FROM THOMAS WILSON I MARCH 1768 bis 141

From the REV. THOMAS WILSON, Tuesday 1 March 1768 bis

Printed for the first time from the MS now WSL. For the history of the MS see ante 25 July 1767.

West[minste]r Abbey, March 1st 1768. Sir, I AM much honoured by your obliging letter,1 and that I may not let the world lose a moment of your time in the inquiry about Waynfleet's resignation, Dr Ducaral2 has been so kind as to fixth e dates from the Close Roll of Hen. VI amongst the Tower records. You have, Sir, obliged the sensible part of mankind to own that they have been grossly mistaken, and I have not so ill an opinion of the world as to think the second impression will be long unsold. What I sent you from Wood's Hist, et Antiq. Univer. Oxon.* when ap­ plied by so masterly a hand, will in my opinion, please you. There can be no mistakes, because the account is extracted from the Col­ lege Register, and I have sent for the particulars; when I have them, I shall communicate them to you.s Richard III you will find went from Windsor to Oxford, stayed there two or three days, from thence, attended by a great number of persons of rank, to Wood­ stock, where he might probably stay a day or two, before he set out to Gloucester.6 Ratcliffe? is mentioned as being with him at Oxford. Public exercises were performed before the King, and he did some particular favours to both universities at the same time. I am well convinced, that he never thought of assassinating his nephews8 at that or any other time. If W. G.° be the man who gave me so much

1. Missing. 8. See ante 29 Dec. 1767, n. 14. 2. Andrew Coltee Ducarel, HW's cor­ 9. Wilson had apparently seen the respondent. newspaper advertisement for An Answer 3. See previous letter, n. 5. to Mr Horace Walpole's late Work, en­ 4. See ibid., n. 7. titled, Historic Doubts on the Reign and 5. No later communication from Wil­ and Life of King Richard the Third; or, son has been found. An Attempt to Confute Him from his 6. For details of the royal progress see Own Arguments. By F. W. G. [Frederick P. M. Kendall, Richard the Third, New William Guydickens] of the Middle Tem­ York, 1956, pp. 301-2. ple, published 10 March 1768. The ad­ 7. Sir Richard Ratcliffe (or Radcliffe) vertisement appeared in the Daily Adv. (d. 1485), Kt, 1471; adviser to Richard 17 Feb. (GRAY ii. 172 n. 7). III.