late attempts may, as it seems to us, be completely explained by the neglect of those precautions which an intelligent study of the history of England during the reign of George III. is calculated to suggest.

SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE.

Since the above Article was printed, we have (chiefly through the kindness of Alexander Oswald, Esq. of Auchincruive) obtained some additional information respecting Mr. Richard Oswald, which we annex in a note, as there is no account of him in any of the ordinary books of reference.

Richard Oswald, of Auchincruive, in the county of Ayr (probably born about 1710), was a younger son of the Rev. George Oswald, minister of Dunnet, in Caithness. He was for many years a merchant in the City of London, and (through his wife, Mary Ramsay) was owner of considerable estates both in the West Indies and on the continent of America. During the Seven Years' War, he took extensive Government contracts, and not being satisfied with the manner in which his agents in Germany performed their duties, he went to Germany himself, and acted for several campaigns as Commissary-General of the allied forces under the Duke of Brunswick. In 1759, he purchased the estate of Auchincruive, and other estates in Ayrshire. On account of his connection with America, he was often consulted by the Government during the American war. He died at Auchincruive, November 4, 1784, without issue. His acquaintance with Lord Shelburne, which led to his being employed as a negotiator in 1782, originated in a letter of introduction from Adam Smith.

G

- We have been favoured by Mr. Alexander Oswald with a copy of a Diary kept by Richard Oswald of his two journeys to Paris in 1782, as well as of a journey in September of a previous year (apparently on some private business of his own), in which, however, he had an interview with Franklin, and also with the Comte de Vergennes. The entries in this Diary are very brief. Franklin arrived in France in December, 1776, and as Oswald's first visit was before 1782, and in a year in which the 7th and 14th of September fell on a Sunday, it must have been in the year 1777. It is, however, remarkable that Franklin in his Journal' ('Works,' vol. ix. p. 240) speaks of Oswald as if he had seen him for the first time in April, 1782; he says that Oswald was then introduced to him by 'an old friend and near neighbour of mine many years in London: Oswald also brought a letter of introduction from Mr. Laurens, as well as the letter from Lord Shelburne; nevertheless, Oswald describes himself as reminding Franklin of this first visit in an interview which probably took place before the 'Journal' was composed.

Subjoined to this Diary are full minutes of Oswald's conversations with Franklin on the 31st of May and 3rd June, 1782; between which days he states that he had an interview with Mr. Grenville. We regret that the length of the minutes prevents us from printing them entire we therefore subjoin extracts of those portions which bear principally upon the question discussed in our Article.

1782. Arrived at Paris, Friday, 31st May, nine in the morning. Called on Mr. Grenville; delivered his packets. Then went out to Passy, and delivered to Dr. Franklin the sundry letters for him, and had a good deal of conversation with him about the affairs of the peace. He thought there should be separate commissions to treat, one for France, one for the

Colonies. Was not so positive as to Spain and Holland, although mentioned on several occasions. That though the treaties might go on separately, yet to be united in the final conclusion; meaning that there should be such correspondence between them that there should be no separate conclusion. That by treating separately, different interests and subjects not strictly relative to each other would not be mixed and involved in too much intricacy, and so might be separately discussed in the progress, and yet the final conclusion of the whole in one general settlement might be governed and made to be dependent upon those separate adjustments. Adding that the more we favoured them (meaning the Colonies) the more they would do for us in the conclusion of these separate treaties.'

June 3rd. 'I wanted to take my leave, having sat a considerable time, but he wished me to stay a little longer. And he fell into the subject formerly mentioned of the treaty going on by separate commissions for each party, and said he could see no objection to there being one commission for France, one for the Colonies, and perhaps one for Spain and one for Holland. That by this means, the business with each being separately discussed, they might more quickly and clearly come to a conclusion than when so many different interests must be jointly treated under the same commission. That, with respect to the Colony business, if my private affairs would allow of my absence, and that I would divert myself in the meantime, I might take up that commission. that commission. I told him, that if it was to trench on the character of Mr. Grenville's station, it would be the last thing I should incline to. That I believed him very capable and prudent, and had no doubt of his acquiring himself a reputation. As to my stay here, it was on account of various circumstances not the most agreeable. And with respect to my private affairs, they were in such situation that I should not suffer much by my attendance. At least, I should make no account of these matters if I thought that upon so critical an occasion I would be of any service to my country, &c.

'The doctor replied, that he thought the commission for the Colonies would be better in my hands than in Mr. Grenville's. That I understood more of Colony business than he did, and he

himself had a longer acquaintance with me than with Mr. Grenville, and could not say but he esteemed me; and therefore not only thought the Colony Commission would be left in my hands, but he wished it might be so.

'I replied, that his wishing it was enough to determine, if I found it was a task I could go through with. That my coming here after the first time was entirely owing to the letters he wrote to Lord Shelburne, wherein he was pleased to express himself so favourably with respect to me, that I was ordered to return on the two succeeding occasions. That I was happy in the enjoyment of his good opinion. Was much obliged to him, &c.

'From thence we turned to a more general course of conversation, when I told him I could not but congratulate him in his present happy situation. Since I considered the settlement of a peace on fair and equitable terms to be entirely in his hands. Since, to speak the truth I could not help thinking, that when they as Commissioners of the Colonies were satisfied, they had it in their power to draw the line of such reasonable termination as ought and must content the other Powers.'

6

Mr. Oswald's record of the latter part of the conversation on the 3rd of June agrees substantially with Franklin's account of it in his Journal,' although the latter is more concise (Works,' ib. p. 316). Both the conversations, as preserved by Oswald in his private notes, negative the idea that there was any disposition on his part to counteract Mr. Grenville, although they show that Franklin preferred negotiating with Mr. Oswald.

II.

ADMINISTRATION OF MR. PITT. THE CATHOLIC QUESTION.1

WE have, in a former number (Jan. 1854), given an account of the first two volumes of the Memoirs of Mr. Fox, edited by Lord John Russell, as well as of the letters published by the Duke of Buckingham, and with their assistance we followed the course of the important political changes which took place, in this country, between the American war and the commencement of Mr. Pitt's long ministry. Since the appearance of that Article the seventh volume of Lord Stanhope's History has been published, which concludes his useful and meritorious work, and brings down the narrative to the peace of 1783. As Lord Stanhope has completed the period of seventy years which he proposed to comprise in his history, we trust that he will undertake the succeeding period of thirty-two years, to the Peace of 1815, for no writer is

1 Review of—1. History of England from the Peace of Utrecht to the Peace of Versailles. By Lord Mahon [now Earl Stanhope]. Vol. 7 (1780-1783), 8vo. London: 1854. 2. Memorials and Correspondence of Charles James Fox. Edited by Lord John Russell. Vol. 3, 8vo. London 1854. 3. Memoirs of the Court and Cabinets of George the Third from original Family Documents. By the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, K.G. Vols. 3 and 4, 8vo. London: 1855. 4. Memoirs of the Whig Party during my Time. By Henry Richard Lord Holland. Edited by his son, Henry Edward Lord Holland. Vol. 2, 8vo. London: 1854.*

* Mr. Justice Buller's name has met with an unlucky fate in the recently published memoirs. The editor of the 'Buckingham Papers' has converted him into 'Judge Miller,' while in Lord Holland's 'Memoirs of the Whig Party' his name appears twice as 'Judge Baker' (vol. i. pp. 122, 124).