abie. A fierce debate sprang up. The
evidence against him was not by any means so clear as in the case of
Aislabie. There was room for a doubt as to Sunderland's personal
knowledge of all that had been done in his name. His influence and power
secured him the full benefit of the doubt. The motion implicating him
was rejected by a majority of 233 votes against 172, "which, however,"
{200} says a contemporary account, "occasioned various reasonings and
reflections." Charles Stanhope, too, was lucky enough to get off, on a
division, by a very narrow majority.

[Sidenote: 1721--An interview with James Stuart]

A letter from an English traveller at Rome to his father, bearing date
May 6, 1721, and privately printed this year (1884) for the first time,
under the auspices of the Clarendon Society of Edinburgh, gives an
interesting account of the reception of the writer, an English
Protestant, by James Stuart and his wife. That part of the letter which
is of present interest to us tells of the remarks made by James on the
subject of the South Sea catastrophe. James spoke of the investigations
of the secret committee, from which he had no great hopes; for, he said,
the authors of the calamity "would find means to be above the common
course of justice." "Some may imagine," continued he, "that these
calamities are not displeasing to me, because they may in some measure
turn to my advantage. I renounce all such unworthy thoughts. The love
of my country is the first principle of my worldly wishes, and my heart
bleeds to see so brave and honest a people distressed and misled by a few
wicked men, and plunged into miseries almost irretrievable."
"Thereupon," says the writer of the letter, "he rose briskly from his
chair, and expressed his concern with fire in his eyes."

Exiled sovereigns are in the habit of expressing concern for their
country with fire in their eyes; they are also in the habit of regarding
their own return to power as the one sole means of relieving the country
from its distress. The English gentleman who describes this scene
represents himself as not to be outdone in patriotism of his own even by
the exiled Prince. "I could not disavow much of what he said; yet I own
I was piqued at it, for very often compassionate terms from the mouth of
an adverse party are grating. It appeared to me so on this occasion;
therefore I replied, 'It's true, sir, that our affairs in England lie at
present under many har