Series 2 > Seafield correspondence from 1685 to 1708

1705] FIRST EARL OF SEAFIELD 417
think that it would give your Lop. any offence ; and I’m
sure if he had in the lest suspected that it should, he had
checked his curiosity and denyed himself the satisfaction,
for never a son ever payd a greater regard to a fathers
comands than he does to your Lops. He is well enough
pleased with his quarters, and if he should prove uneasy
either in his lodgeing or eateing, according to paction he
may dispose of him as to either to better advantage upon
six weeks advertisement. His landlord is so farr from
being dissafected to the States, that in his converse and on
all occasiones he is most zealeouslie concerned for their
interest. My Lord Deskfoord lives in good friendship and
correspondance with the English and Germans here. He
walks in the fields with them, converses in coffee housses,
receives and returns their visits, but never goes allong
to the tavern, nor ever makes a pairt in their night caballs.
They doe not generally apply themselves to any study,
but for most pairt spend their time and their money in
the prosecution of their pleasures, which seemes to be their
prinll bussieness here. Your Lops, advice about readeing
the Roman history is much the same with the method he
had takn, with this difference only that in his compendize-
ing he does not take notice so much of their fights and the
accidental! pairt of the history as of the severall forms of
their government, their politicks, rites, their laws and the
occasions of them, and in my humble opinion this cannot
miss to improve his judgement, to prepare him for the
study of the law, and to ansr evry pairt of the design your
Lo. proposes. Van Muyden is one of yor Lops, very good
friends, but neither he nor any professor will disswade
or discourage young men from entering, and he expected
he should have given up his name upon his comeing to
town, tho they had advanced very farr, and there was so
litle of the time to run. Mr. Cunninghame is here at pnt,
and haveing upon a dissobleidgment left my Lord Hart-
foord, he applys himself clossely to the compileing of that
book, which he has so long since promised the world. He
has done severall offices of kindness to my Lord Deskfoord,
and amongst the next has promised him liberty to go once