The works of Francis Bacon, lord chancellor of England.

LIFE OF BACON. xxxvii
The privy counsel met at the lord keeper's place." In this strain he proceeded through the
house, and were assisted by noblemen selected whole of his address.
for that purpose. The commissioners were eigh- He constantly kept in view the queen's deterteen, the auditory about two hundred; there was mination neither to injure her favourite in person
much state and solemnity in the assembly, and nor in purse; he averred that there was no charge
much humility and contrition on the part of Es- of disloyalty; he stated nothing as a lawyer;
sex, who knelt while the commission was opened, nothing from his own ingenious mind; nothing
and so remained till he had leave to rise. From that could displease the queen; he repeated only
this mode of conduct, which, doubtless, had been passages from letters, in the queen's possession,
prescribed to him, he never departed but once complaining of her cruelty and obduracy; topics
during his examination, and he was then reminded which she loved to have set forth in her interb'y the lord treasurer of the course he was expected course with a man whom she was thought to have
to pursue. too much favoured; he selected the most affecting
The case was opened by a statement, that 1" to expressions from the earl's letter, and though he
command down the winds of malicious and sedi- at last performed his part of the task, by touching
tious rumours wherewith men's conceits may have upon Hayward's book, he established in the
been tossed to and fro, the queen was pleased to minds of the hearers the fact that Essex had
call the world to an understanding of her princely called in the work a week after he learnt that it
course held towards the Earl of Essex, as well in was published.
herebefore protracting, as in now proceeding To those who are familiar with Bacon's style,
against him, not in the ordinary and open place and know the fertility of his imagination, and the
of offenders and criminals, which might leave a force of his reasoning, it is superfluous to observe
taint upon his honour, but, on account of his pe- that he brought to this semblance of a trial only
nitence and submission, her majesty had ordered the shadow of a speech; and that under the flimsy
that the hearing should be before a great, honour- veil of an accuser there may easily be detected
able, and selected council, a full and deliberate, the face of a friend.
and yet in respect a private, mild, and gracious In answer to these charges, Essex, on his
hearing." The chief heads of the accusation knees, declared that, ever since it had pleased her
were then stated by the lawyers, who, with the majesty to remove that cup from him, he had laid
exception of Bacon, either not in the court secret, aside all thought of justifying himself, or of makor disregarding their instructions, pursued their ing any contestation with his sovereign; that he
argument with their usual pertinacity, coloured had made a divorce between himself and the
by the respective characters of the men, and of world, and that, rather than bear a charge of discourse by Sir Edward Coke, with his accustomed loyalty or want of affection, he would tear his
rancour. Bacon, on the contrary, though he was heart out of his breast with his own hands. The
favoured with a part of the charge least likely to first part of his defence drew tears from many of
be injurious to Essex, still complained that he his hearers; but, being somewhat touched by the
might injure his friend, and, though in array sharp speeches and rhetorical flourishes of his
against him, evidently fought on his side. accusers, he expressed himself with so much
To those persons present who were not already heat, before he had gone half through with his
apprized of the queen's wishes, Bacon's speech reply, that he was interrupted by the lord keeper,
would be considered more consistent with his af- who told him 6" this was not the course to do him
fection for his friend than his duty to the queen, good; that he would do well to commit himself
as it was constructed as much as possible to do to her majesty's mercy; that he was acquitted by
him service. " I hope," he said, "that my Lord all present of disloyalty, of which he did not
Essex himself, and all who now hear me, will stand charged, but of disobedience and contempt;
consider that the particular bond of duty, which and if he meant to say that he had disobeyed,
I do now, and ever will acknowledge that I owe without an intention of disobedience, it was friunto his lordship, must be sequestered and laid volous and absurd."
aside, in discharge of that higher duty, which we In pronouncing the censure, the lord keeper
all owe unto the queen, whose grace and mercy declared, that if Essex had been tried elsewhere,
I cannot enough extol; whereof the earl is a sin- and in another manner, a great fine and imprisongular work, in that,.upon his humble suit, she is ment for life must have been his sentence, but as
content not to prosecute him in her court of jus- he was in a course of favour, his censure was,
tice, the Star Chamber, but, according to his own;, That the Earl of Essex should be suspended
earnest desire, to remove that cup from him, for from his offices, and continue a prisoner in his
those are my lord's own words, and doth now own house till it pleased her majesty to release
suffer his cause to be heard interprivcaosparietcs, him." The Earl of Cumberland declared, that,
by way of mercy and favour only, where no man- if he thought the censure was to stand, he would
nor of disloyalty is laid to his charge; for if that ask more time, for it seemed to him somtwhat sehad been the question, this had not been the vere; and intimated how easily a general corn
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