and, after a little conversation between Mr. Whitbread and Lord Castlereagh, the subject was dropped-I conclude to be resumed in future. The letter is very good, whatever may be the consequences: I should suppose it must be Brougham's, for it is a simple and impressive law statement. The general impression seems to be, that the Princess has been harshly treated; and it must be allowed that, unprotected as she is, she had no refuge but an appeal to Parliament; yet, I fear no good purpose will be answered, and that the material point will not be gained-that of seeing her daughter more frequently than she has of late been allowed to do.

Extract from another Letter.

March 8th, 1813.

Pray express my most sincere congratulations on the triumph, the complete triumph, the Princess has so justly obtained. What passed on Friday night in the House of Commons made me, I confess, feel proud of my country; which has not of late been the case with me. But what gives me the greatest satisfaction, as far as her Royal Highness is concerned, is her most admirable letter to the Prince in answer to his. That letter does her more credit than words can express, and I am heartily glad that it has appeared at this time, as I already see the impression it makes. For the present, I do trust that the Princess will remain satisfied with the sensation excited in her favour, which is what it ought to be. By remaining satisfied, I do not mean that she is to seclude herself at Blackheath, or avoid appearing as usual. For my part, I think she should in all this just follow her own inclination; come to Kensington, go to the theatres, &c., &c., as she has hitherto done, &c.

Extract from a Letter, from the same.

Dated March 25th, 1813.

I must (as I hope at least) be the first to tell you, that I have heard from good authority that Sir John Douglas is, or is immediately to be, expelled by the Freemasons of this country from their society. Also, that the Duke of Sussex has dismissed him from his household. All this

marks the general and honest indignation the conduct of these vile sycophants excites.

Extract from a Letter addressed to one of the

Princess's Ladies.

March 26th, 1813.

Though I have not the honour of being personally acquainted with your ladyship, I feel assured that the subject which actuates this address will form an apology for the liberty I take in making it, and claim your ladyship's full and free pardon, having felt no less an interest in it than myself. On an affair of so important and interesting a nature as that which has recently been brought into Parliament, and which has gained such general attention, and from its happy termination, such warm approbation and delight, it will not, I trust, be deemed impertinent to make a few remarks. I could not, without subjecting myself to much pain, withhold expressing the enthusiastic joy which the perusal of this day's papers has produced. Will Lady [] gratify the feelings of a stranger by conveying to her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales the warm congratulations of an affectionate heart, on the glorious victory recently obtaineda heart that has long been deeply wounded at the base conduct of the D[ouglase]s, the vilest pair that England ever knew, and who it is ardently hoped will now receive their just and highly merited punishment. Yes, revered and highly beloved Princess, the nation has long felt your wrongs and wished for redress; but power and undue influence forbade it, until that impressive address obliged a public avowal of your innocence. Excuse the freedom of my sentiments-my heart is full, and every feeling is roused. That her Royal Highness may long live to enjoy the society of her beloved daughter, beholding in her every grace and virtue which can adorn the throne and secure the affections of the nation, is the fervent prayer of thousands. It may afford her Royal Highness some pleasure to be informed, that the patronage which she so graciously conferred on the National Benevolent Institution, has been highly beneficial to the charity; respectable committee has been formed, and subscriptions are daily increasing. Relying on your ladyship's forgiveness for this intrusion, I beg leave to subscribe myself, &c.

a

A Letter addressed to one of her Royal Highness's Ladies. March 19th, 1813.

I do myself the honour of writing to your ladyship, to congratulate you on the pleasure you must have felt on the result of the late debates in the House of Commons. I see a variety of persons, and observe with great satisfaction that there is a general sympathy with the Princess of Wales, on the cruel persecution she has undergone; and the complete conviction of her Royal Highness's perfect innocence. Whitbread has done himself great honour by his generous defence -he has acted nobly. I wish he had been able to crush the vile snake whom her Royal Highness cherished formerly, and who so ungratefully attempted to sting her benefactor ;that wretch and her mate have, however, covered themselves with infamy. May I venture to ask the favour of a few lines from your ladyship, to inform me how her Royal Highness endures these, which I trust will be the last efforts of calumny. It is not from curiosity that I take this liberty, but from the sincere interest which I feel in her Royal Highness's welfare.

I have the honour to be, Madam,

Your Ladyship's most obedient, &c., &c. These letters have been taken promiscuously from the upper and middling classes, and from a large collection on the same subject, in order to give an impartial idea of the feeling which generally prevailed at that time, respecting the wrongs of the Princess of Wales.

It may be that this was the proudest moment of the Princess's troubled life; afterwards, there was more pomp and greater public demonstration of feeling for her, but then it was a storm of passion and of party, not the sober current of honest feelings, which moved justice to stand forth and defend her.

May 10th, 1813.*-After all these triumphs, we are only making a charivari upon an old tin tea-kettle of a harpsi

*The Duchess of Brunswick, mother of the Princess of Wales, died at her lodgings in Hanover Square, March 23, 1813. The Diary was perhaps discontinued during her daughter's deep mourning.

chord. Full of my own feelings and my own regrets, I yet could enter into those of hers, if there was uniform greatness, uniform tenderness, uniform anything; but courtly ways are not my ways, and the unfortunate Princess is so inconsistent, so reckless of propriety, so childishly bent on mere amusement, that I foresee her enemies must and will get the upper hand!

Read Madame de Staël sur les Passions. What a wonderful mind is hers! what an insight she has into the recesses of human feeling! How many secret springs does she unlock; and how much the woman-the tender, the kind, the impassioned woman-betrays herself even in all the philosophy of her writings! Yet what do the other sex think of a female authoress? With one or two very sober, but very great exceptions, it is true, that where science rather than imagination or thought is displayed, women are sneered at who venture on the public arena of literature; and there is not a man, perhaps, existing, who does not think that those women are wisest and happiest who do not attempt that bold and dangerous adventure, authorship. I remember once a great friend of mine defended herself, (she being guilty of the fact,) by asking me what stimulus to life remained when youth and outward charms were gone, but when the affections and the imagination were as vivid as ever, and nothing was left to supply the place of that life of life to which, when once accustomed, it was as impossible to live without it, as to live without breathing? "Men," she said, "have the camp, the court, the senate, and the field; —but we—we have nothing but thought and feeling left ; and if we are not understood, not prized by those around us, like

Rosa non colta in sua stagion,

we scatter these thoughts and feelings to the wind, hoping they may bear us back some fruitage of answering kind.

Besides, there are many other reasons which instigate women to become authors. It is not, as men falsely accuse us, vanity, or the thirst after notoriety, which prompts the deed; but it is generally one of two thingsperhaps both together-either poverty, or the aching desire to be appreciated and understood, even though it may be by some being whom we shall never see in this world."

I was sent for this day to the palace at Kensington, to converse only on one topic-the disappointment the Princess felt at having suddenly received a message, informing her Lady Reid's house was not to be let-only sold. As this information came unexpectedly, and after she had concluded that every arrangement was settled, she supposes it is a trick proceeding from Carlton House. One might imagine such meannesses were beneath the consideration of the adverse party; but I have known so many instances of similar littleness, that I should not be surprised if this were one.

It seems Mr. Brougham wrote to the Princess on Wednesday last, stating, that he had heard it was the Regent's intention, the moment she got a house in town, to take Kensington, and all its advantages of coal and candle, &c., from her; for which reason he, (Mr. Brougham,) conceiving this would be of great detriment to her Royal Highness, had delayed concluding the bargain about the Curzon Street house; and that when he went a few days after, on the Friday, to do so, he heard of the new resolution which had been adopted by the late Lady Reid's executors. What makes this the more unaccountable is, that it was specified in her will, that the house should not be sold, but let for twenty years, in order that the rent might accumulate for the benefit of some near relation, and that, in consequence of the will, the executors must procure an act of parliament to enable them to break it. I was requested privately (and this was what