cellor, and his great creature, and had been employed by him as a public minister-did the honour to Whitelocke to be often with him, and now, after dinner, discoursed much of the revolution which was likely to happen in this country by the Queen's resignation; upon which subject Whitelocke thought not fit to speak much in company.

Afterwards in private Whitelocke asked Mr. Bloome if he had heard the Chancellor speak of deferring his business till the Prince were crowned. Bloome confessed he heard the Chancellor say that he thought it would be more convenient to have Whitelocke's business resolved after the King should be crowned than at present. Whitelocke told him (which he supposed Bloome would again relate to the Chancellor) that all acts of such nature concluded by the Queen before her resignation would be held authentic by her successor. Bloome said he believed so, but, being the change would be so soon, he thought it might be better to have the business put into the hands of the new King. Whitelocke said it would require a long time to expect the new King's settlement, before which he believed his return home might be commanded. Bloome said the business would be soon done after the meeting of the Ricksdag, which did not use to sit long. By this and other discourses Whitelocke found that there was a purpose in some to defer the conclusion of his treaty to the King, which he therefore prepared to prevent.

La Belle Comtesse made a great entertainment and ball for Montecuculi and the rest of the gallants this night, though it were the Lord's Day; but Whitelocke nor none of his company were present at it.

Whitelocke confers

March 13, 1653.

Grave Eric came to Whitelocke to confer about his

with Count treaty, and said to him.

Eric Oxen

stiern on the arti

cles.

Grave Eric. The Queen hath commanded me to come to you and to have some conference with you about your proposals, wherein she is pleased to make use of my service, because at this time my father is very ill of an ague, and is not able himself to meet with you; and his former indisposition of health and extraordinary affairs hath been some occasion of hindrance of the despatch of your business, as have also the uncertainty of the issue of your treaty with Holland, and our great business of the Queen's intentions here.

Whitelocke. I have long expected some answer to be given in my business, the greatest part whereof hath no dependence upon the treaty with Holland, and the Queen's intentions here have been but lately made known. I have been three months in this place without any answer to my business, although I presume that the amity of England is grateful to this nation, and may merit the acceptance.

Gr. Eric. So is the friendship of Sweden.

Wh. My Lord Protector hath testified that by sending me hither.

Gr. Eric. The Queen hath likewise sent several public ministers to England, and Mr. Lagerfeldt was a long time there without effecting anything.

Wh. He had answers to his proposals very often, and it was on his part that a conclusion was not had with him. But if you please to proceed to a conference upon my proposals, I am ready to treat with

you, as I have always been to treat with my Lord Chancellor, your father, for whose ill-health I am heartily sorry.

Gr. Eric. I am ready in the same way of secresy as it hath been carried with my father, so that Mr. Beningen in his letters to his superiors saith that the English Ambassador did treat with none but the Queen alone, and sometimes alone with the Chancellor, whereby he could not possibly give any account of those transactions; for he thought that not one person in Sweden, except the Queen and the Chancellor, knew what they

were.

Wh. The gentleman hath done me an honour in that expression.

Gr. Eric. My coming to your Excellence is to proceed in your business; and I desire a consideration. may be had of the great losses which the Queen's subjects have sustained by the seizing and detaining of their ships by the English.

Wh. This is a new objection, and I am neither empowered nor have ability to cast up such accounts or to take such examinations; but there is a court of justice in England, which I presume has done, and will do, right to any who have cause to complain; and I know that my Lord Protector will command that justice shall be done to all the Queen's subjects; and if any of them have received any injury, they ought to receive a just satisfaction from the parties that did them wrong; and, if you please, I shall mention these things in my letters to England, and when I come thither myself I will personally endeavour that the same may be had fully.

Gr. Eric. I hope a just satisfaction will be given

herein, without which there can be no solid foundation of amity between the two nations and their people.

Wh. The same is reasonably and mutually to be expected; and I make no question but my Lord Protector will order right to be done therein.

Gr. Eric. The Queen's subjects have received great losses under colour of contraband goods, when the same hath not been proved.

Wh. And many of our allies have been found to colour our enemies' goods to the damage of England; but these matters will be proper for an examination elsewhere.

They proceeded to the particular articles.

1. This, Eric said, was equal.

2. He made the same objections as the Queen had done, and Whitelocke gave the same answers; and Eric said that this article depended upon our treaty with the Dutch.

3. Eric desired an explanation of the words "omnibus in locis quibus hactenus commercium exercebatur,”—whether that were not intended to include the English plantations in America, because traffic thither, without special license, was prohibited by our Commonwealth; and he said it would be unequal for the English to have the full traffic in the Queen's dominions, and her subjects not to have the like in our Commonwealth. Whitelocke answered, that the English desired no traffic in any of the Queen's dominions out of Europe, and therefore it was equal not to consent to their traffic in America; and that the opinion of the Council of State in England had been made known to Mr. Lagerfeldt in England, in this point; which paper Whitelocke then showed, and the Grave

urged many other arguments, but Whitelocke kept himself to the paper of the Council.

Eric said, those transactions of Lagerfeldt were remitted to Whitelocke's Embassy. Whitelocke said, that whatever his instructions might warrant, yet it would not become him to do anything contrary to that wherein the Council of State had declared their judgement. The same answer Whitelocke gave him concerning the herring-fishing, which Eric much insisted upon; and as to the pre-emption of the commodities of Sweden, mentioned in the Council's paper, which Whitelocke showed him, Eric said that could not be, because those commodities were of very great value, and belonged to several private persons; and he demanded of Whitelocke if he thought England would be contented to give a pre-emption of all their cloth.

Whitelocke said, the cloth of England was likewise of very great value, and there would hardly be found one stock to buy it all, and there were several staples in other countries to vent it at; and he said he thought the best way would be, first to agree upon the general amity and commerce between the two nations, and afterwards, if Sweden held it fit, when they sent an ambassador to England, or otherwise, to propound anything concerning the fishing for herrings or the traffic in America, or touching a staple at Narva, Revel, or Gothenburg (which Eric likewise discoursed of at large), that the Protector would give a fair and just answer.

4. Eric made the same objections that the Queen had done, and had the same answers.

5. The like discourse was upon this article.

6. The sixth, Eric said, was the same in effect with