Whitlocke even ventured to appear in the House, but was received so coolly that he soon withdrew into the country, leaving instructions to his wife to burn a quantity of his papers and to deliver the great seal to the Speaker.  So far was Fleetwood from being in danger that they were considering whether he might not be retained as Commander-in-chief.  Ludlow, much to his surprise, found himself among the accused.  This, however, was not because of the middle course he had taken in London through the late interruption, though he had lost some credit by that with his Republican friends.  He had unfortunately left London on his way back to Ireland on the very eve of that happy restitution of the Rump which he had despaired of seeing, and it was in Ireland that his enemies were most numerous and violent.  He had hardly arrived among them and attempted to resume his command when he received notice from the House that he and Colonel John Jones, with Miles Corbet and Matthew Tomlinson, were required to come over to answer certain charges against them relating to their Irish government (Jan. 5).  Ludlow and the others obeyed, and found, on their arrival in London in February, that Sir Charles Coote and other officers in Ireland had lodged an impeachment against them for nothing less than high treason.[1]

[Footnote 1:  Commons Journals of dates, and generally from Dec. 26, 1659 to Feb. 1659-60; Ludlow, 783-806; Whitlocke, IV. 384-392.]

Another business, natural in the circumstances, was the now too familiar one of “re-modelling.”  Men not now satisfactory had to be removed from all departments of the public service and more proper men substituted.  Whitlocke’s great seal was given into new keeping, and there were new judicial appointments.  To supply vacancies caused by the removal of defaulting officers in regiments, there began again, too, on a considerable scale, that process of nomination for new commissions and of delivery of the commissions by the Speaker which had been so wearisome in the former session of the House.  To Whetham, Walton, Morley, Okey, Mosse, Alured, Hasilrig, Rich, Eyre, Hacker, and others, retaining their former colonelcies, or promoted to farther military trusts, there were added Colonels Camfield, Streater, Smithson, Sanders, &c.; and now, as heretofore, one is puzzled by the appearance of many persons as “colonels” who had the title only from their places in the militia of their counties, or from the courtesy custom of designating a retired army-man by his former name of honour.  Lambert, Desborough, and the eight others ordered into seclusion, were, of course, among the discharged; so also was Robert Lilburne; but Hewson seems to have been forgiven.[1]

[Footnote 1:  Commons Journals, Dec, 1659 and Jan. 1659-60; Whitlocke as before.]