Essex was arrested, was impeached for high treason, and beheaded. The impetuousness of Essex approached very near to madness, and a dangerous form of madness. If any one has ever deserved death for treason, Essex deserved it. Ralegh wrote his opinion quite frankly to Sir Robert about him. The letter has raised much feeling against Ralegh. But he had good reason to know the peril a nature like that of Essex could bring to a nation or to anything with which he was connected, and he was perfectly just and honest in the opinion he gave that Essex's wings should be clipped. The letter runs as follows:-- "SIR, "I am not wize enough to geve yow advise; but if you take it for a good councell to relent towards this tirant, yow will repent it when it shalbe too late. His mallice is fixt, and will not evaporate by any your mild courses. For he will ascribe the alteration to her Majesties pusillanimitye and not to your good nature; knowing that yow worke but uppon her humor and not out of any love towards hyme. The less yow make hyme, the less he shalbe able to harme yow and your's. And if her Majesties favor faile hyme, hee will agayne decline to a common parson. For after-revenges, feare them not; for your own father that was estemed to be the contriver of Norfolk's ruin, yet his son followeth your father's son and loveth him. Humours of men succeed not; butt grow by occasions and accidents of tyme and poure.... I could name you a thowsand of thos; and therefore after fears are but profesies--or rather conjectures--from causes remote. Looke to the present, and yow do wisely. His sonne shalbe the youngest Earle of Ingland butt on, and, if his father be now keipt down Will Cecill shalbe abell to keip as many men att his heeles as hee, and more too. Hee may also mache in a better howse then his; and so that feare is not worth the fearinge. Butt if the father continew, he wilbe able to break the branches and pull up the tree; root and all. Lose not your advantage; if you do, I rede your destiney. "Let the Q. hold Bothwell while she hath hyme. Hee will ever be the canker of her estate and sauftye. Princes are lost by securetye; and preserved by prevention. I have seen the last of her good dayes, and all ours, after his libertye." It is strange and it is memorable how the sentiment of the last sentence but one, "Princes are lost by securetye," ran through the minds of men at this time: again and again it occurs. The witches in Macbeth chant-- "Security Is mortals' chiefest enemy." Spenser writes-- "Little wist he his fatall future woe But was secure: the liker he to fall." It is more than the turn of phrase (though great expressions were common enough then--as for example, "millions of mischief" which Ralegh uses in a letter and which arrests you in Julius Cæsar--