good, and Lloyd, her Royal Highness proceeded to examine the evidence of Mrs. Lisle. What is exactly meant by flirting conduct," it is difficult," says the Princess, "with any precision to ascertain. How many women are there, most virtuous, most truly modest, incapable of any thing impure, vicious, or immoral, in deed or thought, who, from greater vivacity of spirits, from less natural reserve, from the want of caution, which the very consciousness of innocence betrays into, conduct themselves in a manner which a woman of graver character, of a more reserved disposition, but not with one particular or superior virtue, thinks too incautious, too unreserved, too familiar; and which, if forced upon her oath to give her opinion upon it, she might feel herself, as an honest woman, bound to say, on that opinion, was flirting."

After noticing, with much force of argument, the other depositions of the different witnesses, the Princess of Wales thus concludes her letter to the King:

"What I have said, I have said under the pressure of much misfortune, under the provocation of great and accumulated injustice. Oh! Sire, to be unfortunate, and scarce to feel at liberty to lament; to be cruelly used, and to feel it almost an offence and a duty to be silent, is a hard lot; but use had, in some degree, inured me to it: but to find my misfortunes and my injuries imputed to me as faults; to be called to account upon a charge, made against me by Lady Douglas, who was thought at first worthy of credit, although she had pledged her veracity to the fact, of my having admitted that I was myself the aggressor in every thing of which I had to complain, has subdued all power of patient bearing; and when I was called upon by the Commissioners, either to admit, by my silence, the guilt which they imputed to me, or to enter into my defence, in contradiction to it; no longer at liberty to remain silent, I, perhaps, have not known how, with exact propriety, to limit my expressions.

"In happier days of my life, before my spirit had been yet at all lowered by my misfortunes, I should have been disposed to have met such a charge with the contempt which,

I trust, by this time, your Majesty thinks due to it; I should have been disposed to have defied my enemies to the utmost, and to have scorned to answer to any thing but a legal charge before a competent tribunal; but in my present misfortunes, such force of mind is gone. I ought, perhaps, so far to be thankful to them for their wholesome lessons of humility. I have therefore entered into this long detail, to endeavour to remove, at the first possible opportunity, any unfavourable impressions; to rescue myself from the dangers which the continuance of these suspicions might occasion, and to preserve to me your Majesty's good opinion, in whose kindness, hitherto, I have found infinite consolation, and to whose justice, under all circumstances, I can confidently appeal.

"Under the impression of these sentiments I throw myself at your Majesty's feet. I know, that whatever sentiments of resentment, whatever wish for redress, by the punishment of my false accusers, I ought to feel, your Majesty, as the father of a stranger, smarting under false accusation, as the head of your illustrious house dishonoured in me, and as the great guardian of the laws of your kingdom, thus foully attempted to have been applied to the purposes of injustice, will not fail to feel for me. At all events, I trust your Majesty will restore me to the blessing of your gracious presence, and confirm to me, by your own gracious words, your satisfactory conviction of my innocence."

On the 8th of December, nine weeks having elapsed since the date of her former communication, the Princess of Wales once more addressed his Majesty, expressing her anxiety and her wish to be informed whether she might be admitted to his royal presence. The following is the reply of the King, which is important, inasmuch, as while it contains her exculpation from the principal charges brought against her, it is also devoted to the expression of his Majesty's disapprobation of the general tenor of her Royal Highness's conduct, from impressions arising entirely out of her own representations of it:

"The King having referred to his confidential servants the

proceedings and papers relative to the written declarations, which had been before his Majesty, respecting the conduct of the Princess of Wales, has been apprised by them, that after the fullest consideration of the examinations taken on that subject, and of the observations and affidavits brought forward by the Princess of Wales's legal advisers, they agree in the opinions submitted to his Majesty in the original report of the four Lords, by whom his Majesty directed that the matter should, in the first instance, be inquired into; and that, in the present stage of the business, upon a mature and deliberate view of this most important subject in all its parts and bearings, it is their opinion, that the facts of this case do not warrant their advising that any further step should be taken in the business by his Majesty's Government, or any other proceedings instituted upon it, except such only as his Majesty's law servants may, on reference to them, think fit to recommend for the prosecution of Lady Douglas, on those parts of her depositions which may appear to them to be justly liable thereto.

"In this situation his Majesty is advised, that it is no longer necessary for him to decline receiving the Princess into his royal presence.

"The King sees, with great satisfaction, the agreement of his confidential servants, in the decided opinion expressed by the four Lords upon the falsehood of the accusations of pregnancy and delivery, brought forward against the Princess by Lady Douglas.

"On the other matters produced in the course of the inquiry, the King is advised that none of the facts or allegations stated in preliminary examinations, carried on in the absence of the parties interested, can be considered as legally, or conclusively, established. But in those examinations, and even in the answer drawn in the name of the Princess by her legal advisers, there have appeared circumstances of conduct on the part of the Princess, which his Majesty never could regard but with serious concern. The elevated rank which the Princess holds in this country, and the relation in which she

stands to his Majesty and the royal family, must always deeply involve both the interests of the state, and the personal feelings of his Majesty, in the propriety and correctness of her conduct. And his Majesty cannot therefore forbear to express, in the conclusion of the business, his desire and expectation, that such a conduct may in future be observed by the Princess, as may fully justify those marks of paternal regard and affection, which the King always wishes to shew to every part of his royal family.

"His Majesty has directed that this message should be transmitted to the Princess of Wales, by his Lord Chancellor ; and that copies of the proceedings, which had taken place on the subject, should also be communicated to his dearly beloved son, the Prince of Wales."

In reply to this communication, the Princess named the day, on which, if agreeable, she would have the happiness to throw herself in filial duty and affection at his Majesty's feet. The King postponed this meeting on the grounds of mutual convenience; and subsequently (February 10th, 1807) he sent her the following note:

"Windsor Castle, February 10. 1807. "As the Princess of Wales may have been led to expect, from the King's letter to her, that he would fix an early day for seeing her, his Majesty thinks it right to acquaint her, that the Prince of Wales, upon receiving the several documents, which the King directed his Cabinet to transmit to him, made a formal communication to him, of his intention to put them into the hands of his lawyers; accompanied by a request, that his Majesty would suspend any further steps in the business until the Prince of Wales should be enabled to submit to him the statement which he proposed to make. The King therefore considers it incumbent upon him to defer naming a day to the Princess of Wales, until the further result of the Prince's intention shall have been made known to him.

(Signed)

"To the Princess of Wales."

"GEORGE R.

The Princess made a strong appeal against this decision, commenting in decided terms on what she designated "the unparalleled injustice and cruelty of this interposition of the Prince of Wales at such a time and under such circumstances;" and signified her hope that his Majesty would recall his determination.

"The publication of all these proceedings to the world, (adds the Princess) seems to me, under the present circumstances, (whatever reluctance I feel against such a measure, and however I regret the hard necessity which drives me to it,) to be almost the only remaining resource for the vindication of my honour and character."

The threat of the publication of these documents is still further insinuated in another passage of the same communication.

All the principal documents connected with this subject, including the report of the Lords' Commissioners, the letters of the Princess of Wales to his Majesty, and the depositions, both criminatory and exculpatory, had already been printed under the superintendance of Mr. Perceval, in a volume, entitled, "The Book." "To avoid coming to this painful extremity," observed her Royal Highness, "I have taken every step in my power, except that of abandoning my character to utter infamy, and my station and life to no uncertain danger, and possibly to no very distant destruction."

Two days previous to the date of this letter (7th March) Mr. Perceval and his friends had been called into his Majesty's councils. No sooner were the ministerial arrangements completed, than a minute of the council was made upon the affair of the Princess, containing the following passage: "Your Majesty's confidential servants, therefore, concurring in that part of the opinion of your late servants, as stated in the minute of the 25th January, that there is no longer any necessity for your Majesty being advised to decline receiving the Princess into your royal presence, humbly submit to your Majesty, that it is essentially necessary, in justice to her Royal Highness, and for the honour and interests