TO ARCHBISHOP KING.
SINCE I had the honour of your grace's letter of July 29, which found me at Windsor, I have been extremely out of order with a giddiness in my head, which pursued me until very lately; but, by an uneasy course of physick, I hope I have in some sort overcome it.
We are now in very near expectation of a peace; and your grace, I hope, will believe it as good a one as the circumstances of things would allow. I confess I agree with your grace, that the great difficulty was about the danger of France and Spain being united under one king. To my knowledge, all possible means have been taken to secure that matter; and yet, after all, the weakest side will be there. Renunciations by France have very justly so little credit, that I do not wonder so little weight is laid on them. But Spain, we are sure, will, for their own sakes, enter into all securities to prevent that union; and all the allies must be guarantees. If you still object that some danger still remains, what is to be done? Your grace is altogether misinformed, if you think that this is at all the difficulty which so long made the Dutch untractable. It was nothing less: neither have they once mentioned, during all the negotiation at Utrecht, one syllable of getting Spain out of the Bourbon family, or into that of Austria, as the chief men have assured me not three days ago. Buys offered last winter to ease us im-
