to the present hour a mystery why James should then, and in that
manner, have got rid of Bolingbroke forever. Bolingbroke himself does
not appear to have known the cause of his dismissal. It may be that
James had grown tired of the whole fruitless struggle, and was glad to
get rid of a minister whose restless energy and genius would always
have kept political intrigue alive, and political enterprises going.
Or it may be that just then there had fallen into James's hands some
new and recent evidences of Bolingbroke's willingness to treat, on
occasion, with either side. However this may be, James made up his
mind to dismiss his great follower, and Bolingbroke at once made up his
mind to endeavor to ingratiate himself into the favor of the House of
Hanover, and to secure his restoration to London society. Almost at
the very moment of his dismissal he made application to some of his
friends in London to endeavor to obtain for him a permission to return.

[Sidenote: 1715--"Banished Bolingbroke repeats himself"]

We do not absolutely say a farewell to Bolingbroke now and here, as he
stands dismissed from the service of {133} the Stuarts and disqualified
for the service of the Hanoverians. Nearly forty years of life were
yet before him, but his work as a statesman was done. Never again had
his genius a chance of shining in the service of a throne. The
master-politician of the age was out of employment forever. We do not
know if history anywhere supplies such another example of a great
political career snapped off so suddenly at its midst, hardly even at
its midst, and never put together again. Bolingbroke re-appeared again
and again in England. He even took more than once a certain kind of
part in politics--that is in pamphleteering; he tried to be the
inspiration and the guiding-star of Pulteney and other rising men who
had come, for one reason or another, to detest Walpole. But even these
soon began to find Bolingbroke rather more of a hinderance than a help,
and were glad to shake him off and be rid of him. He becomes
everything by turns; plays at cool philosophy and philosophic retreat;
is always assuring the world in tones of highly suspicious eagerness
that he is done forever with it and its works and pomps; and he is
always yearning and striving to get back to the works and pomps again.
He plays at farming, actually puts on countrified manners, and dines
ostentatiously off homely farmer-like fare, to the amu