e
paid quarterly, and one payment to be advanced on demand, he could not
however come at the money. They had forgot to put it on the Civil
List[139], and the Commissioners of the Treasury found daily some new
excuse for delaying the payment. He imagined[140] those who raised the
difficulty hoped by that means to make him turn Roman Catholic. A report
that he was not far from changing his religion had reached Holland[141].
It gave Vossius some uneasiness, and he wrote to him, acquainting him of
this report, and begging that he would do nothing to give it
countenance. Grotius removed his fears, assuring him he might make
himself easy; for he might have avoided, he says, the grievous sentence
passed upon him, and since his sentence would not have remained so long
in captivity, and might also hope for greater honours than his country
could bestow, if he would change sides. It is more probable that, the
bad state of the finances of the kingdom, or the greediness of the
Commissioners, were the only obstructions to his payment. He had at
length reason to be satisfied: by the solicitations of powerful friends,
who interested themselves for him, he received his pension; and it was
paid as grants were paid at that time, that is to say, very slowly, till
Cardinal Richelieu, who bore him ill-will, gave private orders to
prevent his enjoying the benefit of the King's favour: which obliged
Grotius to leave France, as we shall see in the sequel.

He sustained a heavy loss in April by the death of the President
Jeannin. This worthy Magistrate had so much acquired the esteem of the
Dutch by the great services he did them when the truce was concluded
with Spain in 1619, that all good men in Holland would have his picture.
Grotius received from him testimonies of the greatest friendship, and
regretted him most sincerely.

In a Letter to his brother William Grotius, dated April 23, 1623,
"Whilst I am now writing this, says he, I receive the melancholy news of
the President Jeannin's death: it is a great loss to good men, to the
King's business, and to me in particular."

FOOTNOTES:

[133] Ep. 150.

[134] Ep. 156.

[135] Ep. 171.

[136] Ep. 165.

[137] Ep. 29. p. 763.

[138] Ep. 175 p. 65.

[139] Ep. 32. p. 764.

[140] Ep. 37. p. 765.

[141] Ep. 158. p. 60.

III. The pains which he was obliged to take, and the trouble he
underwent at the beginning of his new settlement at Paris, did not
diminish his passion for literat