previously he had received full warning that they were on the watch to take advantage of any momentary displeasure against him in the King. They were not likely to have been conciliated subsequently by the deaths of the Marquis of Exeter and Lord Montague, for which he personally was held responsible; and he prepared for the fate which he foresaw, in making settlements on his servants, that they might not suffer by his attainder.[1] The noble lords possessed, undoubtedly, one serious advantage against him. His own expenses were as profuse as the expenses of the State under his management. His agents were spread over Europe. He bought his information anywhere, and at any cost; and secret-service money for such purposes he must have provided, like his successor in the same policy, Sir Francis Walsingham, from his own resources. As a self-raised statesman, he had inherited only a moderate fortune. His position as a nobleman was to be maintained; and it was maintained so liberally, that two hundred poor were every day supplied with food at his gate. The salaries of his offices and the rents of such estates as the King had given to him were inadequate for such irregular necessities. In Cromwell, the questionable practice of most great men of his time—the practice of receiving pensions and presents for general support and patronage—was carried to an extent which even then, perhaps, appeared excessive. It is evident, from his whole correspondence,
- ↑ Foxe's History of Cromwell.
knowledgments of the King or of Cromwell himself. But the character of the intrigues for Cromwell's destruction is made very plain.
