JET. 36.] AND THE PRINCESS CHARLOTTE. 205 



delicacy respecting the Princess Charlotte to which I 

 have alluded, is, that, notwithstanding all appearances 

 (calculated, I admit, to lead towards an opposite con- 

 clusion), she continues in the same mind as formerly, 

 retains the same opinion of her father, and is only 

 kept by the constraint incident to her situation from 

 coming to open rupture. The overt act of these in- 

 tentions to which I am especially alluding is, that she 

 has recently opened a communication with me, and 

 desired my advice respecting her marriage and the 

 carrying her out of the country. The person through 

 whom this is carried on is Lady Charlotte Lindsay, 

 and I enclose the last letter received from her, which 

 I beg you to return. One of the two letters which 

 she refers to contained earnest advice to the purport 

 suggested by you. The absolute necessity of keeping 

 this wholly secret above all, from the old Princess 

 places Lady Charlotte Lindsay in a very delicate 

 situation ; but she is quite convinced that whatever is 

 for the benefit of the young Princess, and tends to 

 keep her out of her father's hands and Yarmouth's, 

 is for the mother's good in the long-run. Miss Knight 

 is another obstacle ; for though I think well of her, I 

 would not allow her to know anything about the 

 matter, for the sake of caution ; so that I desired 

 Lady Charlotte on no account to say a word while 

 she was by, and this created some delay. 



" In order to explain these proceedings, and indeed 

 to vindicate the Princess Charlotte from an imputation 

 of rashness, and myself also, I must go a little back, 

 and mention the two circumstances on which princi- 

 pally I take whatever confidence she has in me to be 

 founded. About the end of 1812 (before the explo- 



