and invited him to send a secret envoy to England, who would instantly have ocular demonstration of the fact.  Croft returned as triumphantly as the excellent Doctor had done; averring that there was no doubt as to the immediate conclusion of a treaty.  His grounds of belief were very similar to those upon which Rogers had founded his faith.  “Tis a weak old man of seventy,” said Parma, “with very little sagacity.  I am inclined to think that his colleagues are taking him in, that they may the better deceive us.  I will see that they do nothing of the kind.”  But the movement was purely one of the comptroller’s own inspiration; for Sir James had a singular facility for getting himself into trouble, and for making confusion.  Already, when he had been scarcely a day in Ostend, he had insulted the governor of the place, Sir John Conway, had given him the lie in the hearing of many of his own soldiers, had gone about telling all the world that he had express authority from her Majesty to send him home in disgrace, and that the Queen had called him a fool, and quite unfit for his post.  And as if this had not been mischief-making enough, in addition to the absurd De Loo and Bodman negotiations of the previous year, in which he had been the principal actor, he had crowned his absurdities by this secret and officious visit to Ghent.  The Queen, naturally very indignant at this conduct, reprehended him severely, and ordered him back to England.  The comptroller was wretched.  He expressed his readiness to obey her commands, but nevertheless implored his dread sovereign to take merciful consideration of the manifold misfortunes, ruin, and utter undoing, which thereby should fall upon him and his unfortunate family.  All this he protested he would “nothing esteem if it tended to her Majesty’s pleasure or service,” but seeing it should effectuate nothing but to bring the aged carcase of her poor vassal to present decay, he implored compassion upon his hoary hairs, and promised to repair the error of his former proceedings.  He avowed that he would not have ventured to disobey for a moment her orders to return, but “that his aged and feeble limbs did not retain sufficient force, without present death, to comply with her commandment.”  And with that he took to his bed, and remained there until the Queen was graciously pleased to grant him her pardon.

At last, early in May—­instead of the visit of Richardot—­there was a preliminary meeting of all the commissioners in tents on the sands; within a cannon-shot of Ostend, and between that place and Newport.  It was a showy and ceremonious interview, in which no business was transacted.  The commissioners of Philip were attended by a body of one hundred and fifty light horse, and by three hundred private gentlemen in magnificent costume.  La Motte also came from Newport with one thousand Walloon cavalry while the English Commissioners, on their part were escorted from Ostend by an imposing array of English and Dutch