Retrospect of French Literature—Biography. 655 
prince in his ill-concerted expedition to, 
Scotland, \ having remained at. Paris for 
the purpose of obtaining succours from 
Spain; but on the return of this person- 
age, he was dismissed from a service 
which was not very pleasing to bim; 
“for tie conceived but a low opinion 
both of the talents and character of his 
royal hivimess. 
never possible to obtain a. categorical 
answer on the article of religion, suppo- 
sing he ever ascended the throne af Great 
Britain; and although that was a princi- 
pal articie with the English, this prince, 
thercfore, was at bottom no better than. 
a bigot, as his faith was.founded on the 
fear of the devil and of hell, ‘and not on 
the love of virtue, the horror of vice, 
the knowledge of the reciprocal duties of 
men living in society. and, in short, on 
the respect due to the supreme Being.” 
It is but justice to Bolingbroke to add, 
that the Duke of Berwick, who was an 
eye-witness of his conduct, allows, that. 
he acted with great honour and propriety; 
aud remarks, with great force and effi- 
cacy, on the jealousies of ~the Earl of 
Mar and the Duke of Ormond, who en- 
vied his superior talents and credit. 
* One must be entirely destitute of good 
sense,” says this celebrated general, ‘¢ not 
to know tha’ King James committed a 
Most enormous fault, in dismissing the 
sole Englishman capable of managing | 
his affairs, and that too, ata time when 
he scood in the greatest need of his ser- 
Vices.” 
From this moment, Bolingbroke most 
sincerely abjured wot only the services, 
but also the cause, of the Preiender: 
**T then took ‘a resolution,” says he, 
*“to make my peace with King George, 
and, to employ all experience, which I 
had unfortunately acquired out of my 
native country, for the purpose of unde- 
ceiving my friends, and thus contributing 
to the re-establishment of union and 
tranquillity.” 
Soon after this, some explanations took 
place between Lord Stair, the English 
minister at the French court, and the 
subject of this biographical memoir, by 
means of arommon friend; and it ap- 
pears evident that it was the decided 
opinion of the former, that the la‘ter 
should be restored to his country. Du- 
ring this negociation, in the course of 
which the. Ex-secretary refused to dis- 
close any intelligence that might affect 
his credit or wound his honour, the Earl 
of Oxford, who bad been committed so 
Jong to the Tower, was brought befure 
For exampie, it: was 
the House of Peers and acquitted, in 
consequence of a dispute with the Come 
mons. 
still remained in a foreign land. The 
urbanity and gaiety of the French nation 
appeared to be very suitable to his dis- 
position; he was accustomed to deem 
himself the * least unfortunate of exiles:” 
he pessessed a suficiency of money to 
live in a handsome style, and his com- 
pany was eagerly solicited by all the men 
of talentsin France.’ ‘in 1717, he formed 
an acquaintance with the Marchioness 
de Vuilette, whose. maiden name was 
Maria. Claire Deschamps de Marcilly, 
and whe had been married to the Mar-_ 
qius de Villette Mursay, a relation of 
Madame de Maintenon. She was then 
a widow with several children, had been - 
educated at St. Cyr, and lived in the 
faubourg Saint-Germain. This lady 
was about filty-two years of ave, posses- 
sed a very considerable fortune, and at.” 
the same time had a number of law-suits, 
*‘ Without being handsome, she knew 
how to please; she possessed wit, and 
might be said to have’ conversed with 
great effect, provided she had spoken 
but a little less.” Bolingbroke soon felt 
himself in love with her; and as she was 
pleased with him, a close and intimate 
friendship iminediately commenced, 
which was however frequently inter. 
rupted and embittered by his jealousy, 
Tmagining one day, at dinner, tbat she had 
a liking for. Mr, Macdonald, first esquire 
to the.Pretender, anda very handsome 
man, he overturned the tablein a fury, and 
broke ail the glasses. ‘The Abbé Alani, 
who was a witness to this scene, was ace 
customed to observe, in addition: “ that 
In 1715, Madame de Villette had ene 
trusted him to carry to the Count de 
Boulaimvilliers, who pigaed himself-on 
drawing horoscopes, the date of her 
birth, and a variety. of other particulars, 
for his opinion.” ‘The answer was; 
“that the lady was affected by a yreat 
number of passions; that she would exe 
perience one stronger than all the rest 
at the age of fifty-two, and at length die 
in a foreign. country.”~ “ All this pro- 
phecy,” adds the editor, “ was afterwards 
fully realized, and yet no reliance whate 
soever oucht to be placed on the skill of 
the fortune teller, who was completely 
deceived in respect to the predictions 
wade by hin in respect to himself. 
At length, after a variety of lapses, 
lord Bolingbroke concentrated his pas- 
sion for the whole sex in Madame de 
Villette 
Notwithstanding this, his colleague, 
a, ee een 
