in three or four months after; the king did his part, but their failure must needs take off the king's future obligation." In a Latin letter, the original of which is written in James's own hand, to Innocent XII., dated from Dublin, Nov. 26, 1689, he declares himself "Catholicam fidem reducere in tria regna statuisse." _Somers Tracts_, x. 552. Though this may have been drawn up by a priest, I suppose the king understood what he said. It appears also by Lord Balcarras's _Memoir_, that Lord Melfort had drawn up the declaration as to indemnity and indulgence in such a manner, that the king might break it whenever he pleased. _Somers Tracts_, xi. 517. [192] The protestants were treated with neglect and jealousy, whatever might have been their loyalty, at the court of James, as they were afterwards as that of his son. The incorrigibility of this Stuart family is very remarkable. Kennet, pp. 638 and 738, enumerates many instances. Sir James Montgomery, the Earl of Middleton, and others, were shunned at the court of St. Germain as guilty of this sole crime of heresy, unless we add that of wishing for legal securities. [193] James himself explicitly denies, in the extracts from his _Life_, published by Macpherson, all participation in the scheme of killing William, and says that he had twice rejected proposals for bringing him off alive; though it is not true that he speaks of the design with indignation, as some have pretended. It was very natural, and very conformable to the principles of kings, and others besides kings, in former times, that he should have lent an ear to this project; and as to James's moral and religious character it was not better than that of Clarendon, whom we know to have countenanced similar designs for the assassination of Cromwell. In fact, the received code of ethics has been improved in this respect. We may be sure at least, that those who ran such a risk for James's sake expected to be thanked and rewarded in the event of success. I cannot therefore agree with Dalrymple, who says that nothing but the fury of party could have exposed James to this suspicion. Though the proof seems very short of conviction, there are some facts worthy of notice. 1. Burnet positively charges the late king with privity to the conspiracy of Grandval, executed in Flanders for a design on William's life, 1692 (p. 95); and this he does with so much particularity, and so little hesitation, that he seems to have drawn his information from high authority. The sentence of the court-martial on Grandval also alludes to James's knowledge of the crime (_Somers Tracts_, x. 580), and mentions expressions of his, which, though not conclusive, would raise a strong presumption in any ordinary case. 2. William himself, in a memorial intended to have been delivered to the ministers of all the allied powers at Ryswick, in answer to that of James (_Id._ xi. 103; Ralph, 730), positively imputes to the latter repeated