56 James Muilenburg 



This last letter was carried over by Shrewsbury, and on Septem- 

 ber 1 another letter was carried over from Halifax by Zuliestein. 254 



An important characteristic of all the letters of Halifax is his 

 constant concern over the meeting of Parliament. It is the 

 burden of every letter. In his letters of December 7, 1686, 255 of 

 January 18, 1687, 256 of May 31, 257 of August 25, 258 and of Septem- 

 ber l 259 — all those included in Dalrymple's collection — the meet- 

 ing of Parliament appears to be Halifax's great hope. This 

 deserves more than passing consideration. It means that Halifax 

 occupies an important place in the politics of the time. He 

 stood for that which Louis XIV opposed most vigorously. We 

 have noted the removal of Halifax and the joy it brought to 

 Louis. 260 It is a concrete instance of the mutual hostility. More- 

 over, Halifax was not indolent. His frequent interviews with 

 Dykvelt, his opposition to the King's declarations, and his cor- 

 respondence with the Prince are important elements in this 

 period of preparation for the Revolution. 



Daniel Finch, Earl of Nottingham, was for a period a leader in 

 the councils at the Shrewsbury home, but as time went on and 

 the conferences developed into a conspiracy, Nottingham with- 

 drew from his colleagues. 261 Burnet tells us that he "had great 

 credit with the church party, for he was a man possessed with their 

 notions, and was grave and virtuous in the course of his life." 262 

 This accords well with his letter to the Prince. 263 His chief 

 interest appears to be the cause of Protestantism. There is 

 nothing striking in the letter so far as the Revolutionary con- 

 spiracy is concerned. 



254 Dalrymple, Letter from Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, September 1, 

 1687, p. 209. 



265 Ibid, Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, December 7, 1686, p. 186. 



256 Ibid, Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, January 18, 1687, p. 186 f. 



257 Ibid, Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, May 31, 1687, p. 196 f. 



258 Ibid, Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, August 25, 1687, p. 207 f. 



259 Ibid, Lord Halifax to the Prince of Orange, September 1, 1687, p. 209. 



260 Supra, p. 54 f. 



261 Burnet, p. 486. 



262 Ibid, p. 485. 



263 Dalrymple, Letter of Lord Nottingham to the Prince of Orange, May 18, 

 1687, p. 192. 



140 



