. 444 of present edition. [T.S.]]

The other lord, in whom the discontented managers placed much of their
hopes, was the Earl of Nottingham, already mentioned; than whom no man
ever appeared to hate them more, or to be more pleased at their fall,
partly from his avowed principles, but chiefly from the hopes he had of
sharing in their spoils. But it fell out, that he was no way acceptable
to the Queen or her new servants: these apprehended no little trouble
and impediment to the public business, from his restless, talkative,
overweening manner, if once he was suffered to have any part in affairs;
and he stood very ill with the court, having made a motion in the House
of Lords, and in Her Majesty's presence, that the Electoral Prince of
Hanover might be invited to reside in England, although he had before
declared to the Queen how much he was against that proposal, when it was
first offered by the other party. However, some very considerable
employments had been given to his nearest relations, and he had one or
two offers for himself, which he thought fit to refuse, as not equal to
his merits and character. Upon the Earl of Rochester's decease, he
conceived that the crown would hardly overlook him for president of the
council, and deeply resented that disappointment. But the Duke of
Newcastle, lord privy seal, dying some time after, he found that office
was first designed for the Earl of Jersey, and, upon this lord's sudden
death, was actually disposed of to the Bishop of Bristol by which he
plainly saw, that the Queen was determined against giving him any
opportunity of directing in affairs, or displaying his eloquence in the
cabinet council. He had now shaken off all remains of patience or
temper, and, from the contemplation of his own disappointments, fell, as
it is natural, to find fault with the public management, and to assure
his neighbours in the country, that the nation was in imminent danger of
being ruined. The discontented[55] lords were soon apprised of this
great change, and the Duke of Roxburgh,[56] the earl's son-in-law, was
dispatched to Burleigh on the Hill, to cultivate his present
dispositions, and offer him whatever terms he pleased to insist on. The
Earl immediately agreed to fall in with any measures for distressing or
destroying the ministry but, in order to preserve his reputation with
the Church party, and perhaps bring them over to his interests, he
proposed, that a bill should be brought into th