there were committed to me affairs
of which this French one was the first, of which I took my oath never to
speak without leave. Up to the present in England nothing had been said
to me which would be private twenty years afterwards; I take no shame at
all at revealing what little I was able to do for the King personally in
England--(except perhaps in one or two points which must not be spoken
of)--nor of my adventures and my endeavours to be of service to those
who were one with me in religion; but of the rest, the least said the
soonest mended. So the best plan which I can think of is to leave out on
every occasion all that passed, or very nearly all, when I was out of my
country, both in France and Rome, for I went away--on what I may call
secret service--three times altogether between my first coming and the
King's death. It is enough to say that this time I was in Paris about
three months, and in Normandy one; and that I had acquitted myself, so
far, to His Majesty's satisfaction.[A]

[Footnote A: Plainly this business of Mr. Mallock had some connection
with Charles' perpetual intrigues with France, for Louis' support of
him. At this time Charles' intrigues were a little unsuccessful; so it
may be supposed that without Mr. Mallock they would have been even
worse.]

I returned to London then on the night of the sixteenth of November, of
the same year; and I brought with me a letter to the King from a certain
personage in France.

Now to one living in a Catholic country the rumours that come from
others not so happy, are either greatly swollen and exaggerated in his
mind, or thought nothing of. It was the latter case with me. I was in
high favour on both sides of the Channel; and this, I suppose made me
think little of the troubles in my own country: so when I and James
reached London late in the evening, after riding up from Kent, I went
straight to Whitehall, as bold as brass to demand to see Mr. Chiffinch.
We had ridden fast, and had talked with but very few folks, and these
ignorant; so that I knew nothing of what impended, and was astonished
that the sentinels at the gate eyed me so suspiciously.

"Yes, sir," said the younger, to whom I had addressed myself, "and what
might your business with Mr. Chiffinch be?"

I had learned by now not to quack gossip or to parley with underlings;
so I answered him very shortly.

"Then fetch the lieutenant," I said; and sat back on my horse like a
great person.

When t