suggested to the duke, who recalled his orders, and thus saved the
unhappy youth from the imminent danger which hung over him.

These symptoms of continued jealousy in the reigning family of England,
both seemed to give some authority to Henry's pretensions, and made him
the object of general favor and compassion, on account of the dangers
and persecutions to which he was exposed. The universal detestation of
Richard's conduct turned still more the attention of the nation towards
Henry; and as all the descendants of the house of York were either women
or minors, he seemed to be the only person from whom the nation
could expect the expulsion of the odious and bloody tyrant. But
notwithstanding these circumstances, which were so favorable to him,
Buckingham and the bishop of Ely well knew that there would still be
many obstacles in his way to the throne; and that, though the nation had
been much divided between Henry VI. and the duke of York, while present
possession and hereditary right stood in opposition to each other,
yet as soon as these titles were united in Edward IV., the bulk of the
people had come over to the reigning family; and the Lancastrians had
extremely decayed, both in numbers and in authority. It was therefore
suggested by Morton, and readily assented to by the duke, that the only
means of overturning the present usurpation, was to unite the opposite
factions, by contracting a marriage between the earl of Richmond and the
princess Elizabeth, eldest daughter of King Edward, and thereby blending
together the opposite pretensions of their families, which had so long
been the source of public disorders and convulsions. They were sensible,
that the people were extremely desirous of repose after so many bloody
and destructive commotions; that both Yorkists and Lancastrians, who now
lay equally under oppression, would embrace this scheme with ardor; and
that the prospect of reconciling the two parties, which was in itself
so desirable an end, would, when added to the general hatred against
the present government, render their cause absolutely invincible. In
consequence of these views, the prelate, by means of Reginald Bray,
steward to the countess of Rich-* *mond, first opened the project of
such a union to that lady; and the plan appeared so advantageous for her
son, and at the same time so likely to succeed, that it admitted not of
the least hesitation. Dr. Lewis, a Welsh physician, who had access to
the quee