To which the learned Circe thee invites.
Thy chaste Penelope doth call thee slow;
Thy friends call for thee home; and they do know
New embassies, affairs abroad, at home,
Require thy service,--stay till thou dost come.
Thou, Keeper of the Seal, dost take away
Foreign contentions; thou dost cause to stay
The wars of princes. Shut thou Janus' gate,
Ambassador of peace to every state."

The Queen was much delighted with these and other verses which Whitelocke
showed her; read them over several times, and desired copies of them,
which Whitelocke sent her; and in this good humour she wished Whitelocke
to leave with her a copy of his articles as he had now revised them, and
to come to her again the next day, when she would give him a further
answer, and, she hoped, to his contentment.

[SN: Spain suspected of intriguing against the treaty.]

Woolfeldt visited Whitelocke, and excused his long absence by reason of
the holidays. He informed Whitelocke with much freedom, that it was
against the interest of Spain that England and Sweden should be in
alliance together, and that Whitelocke's negotiation had been hindered by
the Spanish Resident here, more than by any other. Whereunto Whitelocke
said little positively, but compared his words with the late carriage of
Piementelle,--especially since Whitelocke did not so heartily entertain
the Queen's motion (which probably Piementelle put her upon) to have the
Spaniard included in the league with England and Sweden, which Whitelocke
was not empowered to treat upon, and Whitelocke also remembered the
deferring of his audiences lately desired.[73] But these things he was to