ured to assassinate him, he no longer
continued his satires, and said not a word of the adventure. The Duke of
Buckingham and Lady Shrewsbury remained for a long period both happy and
contented. Never before had her constancy been of so long a duration;
nor had he ever been so submissive and respectful a lover.

This continued until Lord Shrewsbury, who never before had shown the
least uneasiness at his lady's misconduct, thought proper to resent
this: it was public enough, indeed, but less dishonourable to her than
any of her former intrigues. Poor Lord Shrewsbury, too polite a man to
make any reproaches to his wife, was resolved to have redress for his
injured honour: he accordingly challenged the Duke of Buckingham; and
the Duke of Buckingham, as a reparation for his honour, having killed
him upon the spot, remained a peaceable possessor of this famous Helen.
The public was at first shocked at the transaction; but the public grows
familiar with everything by habit, and by degrees both decency, and even
virtue itself, are rendered tame, and overcome. The queen was at the
head of those who exclaimed against so public and scandalous a crime,
and against the impunity of such a wicked act. As the Duchess of
Buckingham was a short fat body, like her majesty, who never had had any
children, and whom her husband had abandoned for another; this sort of
parallel in their situations interested the queen in her favour; but
it was all in vain: no person paid any attention to them; the
licentiousness of the age went on uncontrolled, though the queen
endeavoured to raise up the serious part of the nation, the politicians
and devotees, as enemies against it.

The fate of this princess was in many cases truly melancholy: The king,
indeed, paid her every outward attention; but that was all: She easily
perceived that the respect he entertained for her daily diminished, in
proportion as the credit of her rivals increased: She saw that the king
her husband was now totally indifferent about legitimate children, since
his all-charming mistresses bore him others. As all the happiness of her
life depended upon that blessing, and as she flattered herself that the
king would prove kinder to her if Heaven would vouchsafe to grant
her desires, she had recourse to all the celebrated secrets against
sterility: pious vows, nine days' prayers, and offerings having been
tried in all manners, but all to no purpose, she was at last obliged to
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