There were new times at the English court when the German George I. ruled England; when he gave his ugly Killmansegge and Schulenberg places among the English peeresses, and the new Countess of Darlington and Duchess of Kendall simpered in their uncouth English. The Whig lords must now bend their gouty knees, and set forth in poor German or convenient—perhaps inconvenient—Latin what the interests of distant New England required. We may well suspect that this German dullard knew little and cared less when it was explained to him that the opposing factions of the private and public bank in his American province of Massachusetts Bay were each manœuvring for a governor of their stripe. We may well wonder if he was foolish enough to read the address of the ministers of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, or the address even of the General Court, which came to him a little later. His advisers might have rejoiced that Increase Mather, pleading his age, had been excused from becoming the bearer of these messages, or of that of the ministers, at least.[219] [Illustration: JEREMIAH DUMMER. After a likeness owned by the Misses Loring, of Boston. It was at one time in the Mass. Hist. Soc. gallery. (Cf. _Proceedings_, ii. 289, 296, 300, 302.) It has been ascribed to Sir Godfrey Kneller.] The friends of a private bank carried their point far enough to secure to Col. Elisha Burgess the coveted commission, who, however, was better satisfied with the thousand pounds which the friends of a public bank were willing to pay him, and so he declined the appointment. The same power that paid the money now got the commission issued to Col. Samuel Shute, and the news which reached Boston (April 21, 1715) of Burgess’ appointment was swiftly followed by the tidings of Shute’s ascendency, which meant, it was well known, that Jonathan Belcher, of Cambridge, and Jeremiah Dummer had been successful in their diplomacy in this, as well as in the displacing of Tailer as lieutenant-governor by William Dummer. The latter was Dudley’s son-in-law, and the appointment gilded the pill which the late governor was prepared to swallow.