The envoys in England, the Nassau family Hohenlo, the prominent members of the States, such as the shrewd, plausible Menin, the "honest and painful" Falk, and the chancellor of Gelderland--"that very great, wise, old man Leoninus," as Leicester called him,--were all desirous that he should assume an absolute governor-generalship over the whole country.

This was a grave and a delicate matter, and needed to be severely scanned, without delay.
But besides the natives, there were two Englishmen--together with ambassador Davison--who were his official advisers.

Bartholomew Clerk, LL.D., and Sir Henry Killigrew had been appointed by the Queen to be members of the council of the United States, according to the provisions of the August treaty.

The learned Bartholomew hardly seemed equal to his responsible position among those long-headed Dutch politicians.

Philip Sidney--the only blemish in whose character was an intolerable tendency to puns--observed that "Doctor Clerk was of those clerks that are not always the wisest, and so my lord too late was finding him." The Earl himself, who never undervalued the intellect of the Netherlanders whom he came to govern, anticipated but small assistance from the English civilian.