Your brothers are coming to dine with me; your brother Gal. is extremely a favourite with me:  I took to him for his resemblance to you, but am grown to love him upon his own fund.

The peace is still in a cloud:  according to custom, we have hurried on our complaisance before our new friends were at all ready with theirs.  There was a great Regency(1469) kept in town, to take off the prohibition of commerce with Spain:  when they were met, somebody asked if Spain was ready to take off theirs?  “Oh, Lord! we never thought of that!” They sent for Wall,(1470) and asked him if his court would take the same step with us?  He said, “he believed they might, but he had no orders about it.”  However, we proceeded, and hitherto are bit.

Adieu! by the first opportunity I shelf send you the two books of Houghton, for yourself and Dr. Cocchi.  My Lord Orford is much mended:  my uncle has no prospect of ever removing from his couch.

(1467) A Madame Ubaldini having raised a scandalous story of two persons whom she saw together in Mr. Mann’s garden at one of his assemblies, and a scurrilous sonnet having been made upon the occasion, the Florentine ladies for some time pretended that it would hurt their characters to come any more to his assembly.

(1468) Dr. Edmund Gibson had been very intimate with Sir Robert Walpole, and was designed by him for archbishop after the death of Wake; but setting himself at the head of the clergy against the Quaker bill, he broke with Sir Robert and lost the archbishoprick which was given to Potter; but on his death, the succeeding ministry offered it to Dr. Gibson. [The Doctor declined it, on account of his advanced age and increasing infirmities.  He died on the 6th of February, 1748.)

(1469) This means a meeting of the persons composing the Regency during the King’s absence in Hanover.-D.

(1470) General Wall, the Spanish ambassador.

566 Letter 262
To George Montagu, Esq. 
Strawberry Hill, Sept. 25, 1748.

I shall write you a very short letter, for I don’t know what business we have to be corresponding when we might be together.  I really wish to see you, for you know I am convinced of what you say to me.  It is few people I ask to come hither, and if possible, still fewer that I wish to see here.  The disinterestedness of your friendship for me has always appeared, and is the only sort that for the future I will ever accept, and consequently I never expect any more friends.  As to trying to make any by obligations, I have had such woful success, that, for fear of thinking still worse than I do of the world, I will never try more.  But you are abominable to reproach me with not letting you go to Houghton:  have not I offered a thousand times to carry you there?  I mean, since it was my brother’s:  I did not expect to prevail with you before; for you are so unaccountable, that you not only will never do a dirty thing, but you