“The So-called Council of State” 1649–1652time he persistently sought out, visited, and wrote to every influential person he
could approach,^136 singling out Milton and John Dury as his special patrons. He
kept a detailed diary or Tagebuch^137 of all his encounters and negotiations, which,
together with several letters to and from Milton, provide the most detailed infor-
mation we have about the state of Milton’s health and vision during these months,
about the quotidian duties and frustrations of his busy public life, and about the
transformation of what began as a formal diplomatic association between Milton
and Mylius into something like friendship.
Styling himself “an appraiser and admirer of your merits,” Mylius wrote to Milton
the day after Milton’s return (October 16), indicating he had “long wished” to have
a conference with him (CPW IV.2, 828). Milton arranged and then twice post-
poned such a meeting with the polite excuse of pressing business; probably, how-
ever, he recalled or was reminded that he was bound by his oath of secrecy not to
have private conferences with diplomats without permission.^138 On October 20
Mylius had his first formal audience with the committee appointed to hear his
request.^139 Milton stood at the right of Whitelocke, the chairman, translating Mylius’s
remarks into English for the committee and theirs into Latin for him, and making
notes on the documents Mylius supplied; he could still see well enough to do
that.^140 Mylius sent a draft copy of parts of the proposed Safeguard to Milton in a
letter of October 25, and wrote a series of obsequious letters pressing for an inter-
view. On October 26 and 27, and November 7, Milton again made and canceled
arrangements for a meeting, claiming the pressure of work and “ill health” (CPW
IV.2, 831–2). While true enough,^141 these excuses also show Milton coping diplo-
matically with the very persistent Mylius. He returned the drafts of the Safeguard
with the reassuring comment that it was in good order and was being dealt with
“by those to whom it has been entrusted” (Whitelocke’s committee).^142 On No-
vember 24 Mylius was told by a messenger that Milton had delivered the draft copy
and thought the affair “would now start to move,”^143 that Milton “would very
much like to visit me but headache and pain in his eyes made it impossible,” and
that “I should rely on his diligent support and assistance in private.” Mylius’s De-
cember 1 diary entry records his perception that “Milton was almost blind, so the
others were taking on all the business.”^144 On December 17, frustrated by still more
delays, he appealed to Milton again: “Unless you, Great pride and pillar of my
interests, prompt and prod, my case will remain motionless” (CPW IV.2, 834).
On December 31 Milton, his reappointment now formalized, wrote to Mylius
in more intimate terms, addressing him as “Hermannus” and explaining his failure
to write sooner by a revealing comment on his recent difficulties (ill health, moving
house). He also reports on his efforts to advance the Oldenburg business:
First then, know that ill health, which is almost my perpetual enemy, caused delay;
next, for the sake of my health, came a necessary and sudden move to another house,
which I had chanced to begin on that very day on which your letter was brought to