Adieu!  I have nothing more to tell you:  I flatter myself you content yourself with news; I cannot write sentences nor sentiments.  My best love to the Chutes, and now and then let my friends the Prince and Princess and Florentines know that I shall never forget their goodness to me.  What is become of Prince Beauvau?

(920) Lady Grace Carteret, eldest daughter of Lord Carteret.  She was married in 1729 to Lionel Tollemache, third Earl of Dysart; by whom she had fifteen children.-E.

(921) Wife of Signor Capello.

(922) Robert Darcy, Earl of Holderness, ambassador at Venice and the Hague, and afterwards secretary of state.

369 Letter 137 To Sir Horace Mann.  London, May 8, 1744.

I begin to breathe a little at ease; we have done with the Parliament for this year:  it rises on Saturday.  We have had but one material day lately, last Thursday.  The Opposition had brought in a bill to make it treason to correspond with the young Pretenders:(923) the Lords added a clause, after a long debate, to make it a forfeiture of estates, as it is for dealing with the father.  We sat till one in the morning, and then carried it by 255 to 106.  It was the best debate I ever heard.(924) The King goes to Kensington to-morrow, and not abroad.  We hear of great quarrels between Marshal Wade and Duc d’Aremberg.  The French King is at Valenciennes with Monsieur de Noailles, who is now looked upon as first minister.  He is the least dangerous for us of all.  It is affirmed that Cardinal Tencin is disgraced, who was the very worst for us.  If he is, we shall at least have no invasion this summer.  Successors of ministers seldom take up the schemes of their predecessors; especially such as by failing caused their ruin, which, I believe, was Tencin’s case at Dunkirk.

For a week we heard of the affair at Villafranca in a worse light than was true:  it certainly turns out ill for both sides.  Though the French have had such a bloody loss, I cannot but think they will carry their point, and force their passage into Italy.

We have no domestic news, but Lord Lovel’s being created Earl of Leicester, on an old promise which my father had obtained for him.  Earl Berkeley(925) is married to Miss Drax, a very pretty maid of honour to the Princess; and the Viscount Fitzwilliam(926) to Sir Matthew Decker’s eldest daughter , but these are people I am sure you don’t know.

There is to be a great ball tomorrow at the Duchess of Richmond’s for my Lady Carteret:  the Prince is to be there.  Carteret’s court to pay her the highest honours, which she receives with the highest state.  I have seen her but once, and found her just what I expected, tr`es grande dame; full of herself, and yet not with an air of happiness.  She looks ill and is grown lean, but is still the finest figure in the world.  The mother is not so exalted as I expected- I fancy Carteret has kept his resolution, and does not marry her too.