There was no society to which Motley would not have added grace and attraction by his presence, and to say that he was a welcome guest in the best houses of England is only saying that these houses are always open to those whose abilities, characters, achievements, are commended to the circles that have the best choice by the personal gifts which are nature's passport everywhere. XIV. 1859. AEt. 45. LETTER TO MR. FRANCIS H. UNDERWOOD.--PLAN OF MR. MOTLEY'S HISTORICAL WORKS.--SECOND GREAT WORK, “HISTORY OF THE UNITED NETHERLANDS.” I am enabled by the kindness of Mr. Francis H. Underwood to avail myself of a letter addressed to him by Mr. Motley in the year before the publication of this second work, which gives us an insight into his mode of working and the plan he proposed to follow. It begins with an allusion which recalls a literary event interesting to many of his American friends. ROME, March 4, 1859. F. H. UNDERWOOD, ESQ. My dear Sir,--. . . I am delighted to hear of the great success of “The Atlantic Monthly.” In this remote region I have not the chance of reading it as often as I should like, but from the specimens which I have seen I am quite sure it deserves its wide circulation. A serial publication, the contents of which are purely original and of such remarkable merit, is a novelty in our country, and I am delighted to find that it has already taken so prominent a position before the reading world. . . The whole work [his history], of which the three volumes already published form a part, will be called “The Eighty Years' War for Liberty.” Epoch I. is the Rise of the Dutch Republic. Epoch II. Independence Achieved. From the Death of William the Silent till the Twelve Years' Truce. 1584-1609. Epoch III. Independence Recognized. From the Twelve Years' Truce to the Peace of Westphalia. 1609-1648.