Southern Branch of the University of California Los Angeles Form L 1 This book is DUE o on the last date stamped below APR MAY 7 192 192J MAY 2 7 1923 14 APR 1 195*. * DEC 11 [APR 27 1936 *<* 5VJHI IAN s JAN 2 1 1959 THE G-HEVILLE MEMO i us. A JOURNAL OF THE REIGNS OF KING GEORGE IV. AND KING WILLIAM IV. BY THE LATE CHARLES C. F. GREVILLE, ESQ., CLERK OF THE COUNCIL TO THOSE SOVEREIGNS. EDITED BY HENRY REEVE, REGISTRAR OP THE PRIVT COCNCIL. COMPLETE IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. II. NEW YORK: D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 548 AND 551 BROADWAY. 1875. 5 3 G CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. CHAPTER XVI. Whig and Tory Meetings on Reform Resolution to carry the Bill Holland Radical Jones Reform Bill thrown out by the Lords Dorsetshire Election Division among the Tories Bishop Phillpotts Prospects of Reform Its Dangers Riots at Bristol The Cholera at Sunderland An Attempt at a Compromise on Reform Lord Wharncliffo negotiates with the Ministers Negotiation with Mr. Barnes Proclamation against the Unions Barbarism of Sunderland Disappointment of Lord Wharnclift'e Bristol and Lyons Commercial Negotiations with France Poulett Thomson Lord Wharncliffe's Proposal to Lord Grey Disapproved by the Duke of Wellington Moderation of Lord John Russell The Appeal of Drax vs. Grosvenor The Second Reform Bill Violence of Lord Durham More Body-snatchers Duke of Richmond and Sir Henry Parnell Panshanger Creation of Peers Division of Opinion Negotiation to avoid the Creation of Peers Lord Wharncliffe's Interview with the King Opposition of the Duke of Wellington The Waverers resolve to ssparate from the Duke . . . PAGE 9 CHAPTER XVH. eournes ews on te overnment acauay at oan ouse euctance o the Government to create Peers Duke of Wellington intractable Peel's Despondency Lord Grey on the Measures of Conciliation Lord Wharncliffe sees the King Pros- pects of the Waverers Conversations with Lord Melbourne and Lord Palmerston Duke of Richmond on the Creation of Peers Interview of Lord Grey with the Waver- CHAPTER XVIII. Debate in the House of Lords Lord Harrowby's Position Hopes of a Compromise Lord Melbourne's View Disturbances caused by the Cholera The Disfranchisement Clause The Number "56" Peers contemplated The King's Hesitation " The Hunch- back' 1 Critical Position of the Waverers Bill carried by Nine in the Lords The Cholera in Paris Moderate Speech of Lord Grey End of the Secession Conciliatory Over- tures Negotiations carried on at Newmarket Hostile Division in the Lords Lonl Wharncliffe's Account of his Failure Lord Grey resigns The Duke of Wellingtou attempts to form a Ministry Peel declines Hostility of the Court to the Whigs A Change of Scene The Duke fails History of the Crisis Lord Grey returns to Office The King's Excitement The King writes to the Opposition Peers Defeat and Dis- grace of the Tories Conversation of the Duke of Wellington Louis XVIII. Madame du Cfiyla Weakness of the King Mortality among Great Men Petition against Lord W. Bentinck's Prohibition of Suttee heard by the Privy Council O'Connell and the Cholera Irish Tithe Bill Irish Difficulties Mr. Stanley Concluding Debates of the Parliament Quarrel between Brougham and Sugden Holland and Belgium Brougham's Revenge and Apology Dinner at Holland House Anecdotes of Johnson Death of Mr. Greville's Father Madame de Flahaut's Account of the Princess Charlotte Prince Augustus of Prussia Captain Hess Hostilities in Holland and in i v CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. Portugal The Duchesse de Berri Conversation with Lord Melbourne on the State of the Government * PAGE 75 CHAPTER XIX. Foreign Difficulties Conduct of Peel on the Resignation of Lord GreyManners Button proposed as Tory Premier Coolness between Peel and the Duke Embargo on Dutch Ships Death of Lord Tenterden Denman made Lord Chief-Justice Sketcli of Hol- land House The Speakership Home and Campbell Attorney- and Solicitor-General The Court at Brighton Lord Howe and the Queen Elections under the Reform Act Mr. Gully Petworth Lord Egreinont Attempt to reinstate Lord Howe Namik Pasha Lord Lyndhurst's Version of what occurred on the Resignation of Lord Gre" Lord Denbigh appointed Chamberlain to the Queen Brougham's Privy Counc CHAPTER XX. Appointment of Sir Stratford Canning to the Russian Embassy Cause of the Refusal Slavery in the West Indies The Reformed Parliament Duke of Wellington's View of -Affairs The Coercion Bill The Privy Council Bill Lord Durham made an Earl Mr. Stanley Secretary for the Colonies The Russians go to the Assistance of the Porte Lord Goderich has the Privy Seal, an Earldom, and the Garter Embarrassments of the Government The Appeal of Drax vs. Grosvenor at the Privy Council Hobhouse defeated in Westminster Bill for Negro Emancipation The Russians on the Bos- porus Mr. Littleton Chief Secretary for Ireland Respect shown to the Duke of Wellington Moral of a " Book on the Desby " The Oaks A Betting Incident Ascot Government beaten in the Lords on Foreign Policv Vote of Confidence in the Commons Drax vs. Grosvenor decided 'Lord Eldon's Last Judgment His Character Duke of Wellington as Leader of Opposition West India Affairs Irish Church Bill Appropriation Clause A Fancy Bazaar The King writes to the Bishops Local Court Bill Mirabeau p- 14(5 CHAPTER XXI. Dinner at Greenwich Monk Lewis The King's Letter Lord Althorp ; s Finance Salutes to the Royal Family Death of Lord Dover His Character Lyndhurst and Brougham on the Local Courts Bill Charles Napier captures the Miguelite Fleet The Irish Church Bill The Duke of Wellington and the Bonapartes Blount's Preaching Sir Robert Peel on Political Unions Mr. George Villiers appointed to Madrid Duke of Richmond Suspension Clause in Irish Church Bill Apprenticeship Clause in West India Bill State of House of Commons Lucien and Joseph Bonaparte Lord Plunket Denis Lemarchant Brougham and Sugden Princess Lieven Anecdotes of the Emperor Nicholas Affairs of Portugal Dom Miguel at Strathfleldsaye Prorogation of Parliament Results of the Reform Bill p. 170 CHAPTER XXII. The Speaker a Knight of the Bath Lord Welleslcy, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland M. Thiers in England Prince Esterhazy's Opinion of the State of England Queen of Port- ugal at Windsor The Duke of Leuchtenberg Macaulay and Sydney Smith Brough- am's Anecdotes of Queen Caroline Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Sir Stratford Canning and M. Dedel Sydney Smith and the "Siege of Saragossa'' Edward Irving The Unknown Tongues Tribute to Lord Eldon W. J. Fox Lord Tavistock on the Prospects of his Party Moore at the State Paper Office Russia and England Belvoir Castle The Duke of Wellington at Belvoir Visit to Mrs. Ark- wright Sir Thomas Lawrence and the Misses Siddons A Murder at Runton Sandon Lord and Lady Harrowby Burghley Railroads talked of Gloomy Tory Prognos- tications State of Spain Parliament opens Quarrel of Shiel and Lord Althorp Unpopularity of Lord Palmerston Mrs. Somerville O'Connell's Attack on Baron Smith Lord Althorp's Budget The Pension List Lord Althorp as Leader of the House Sir R. Peel's Position in the House Meeting of Supporters of Government Mr. Villiers on the State of Spain Predicament of Home, the Attornev-General p. 195 CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. CHAPTER XXIII. Bpain Russia and Turkey Sir R. Peel's Pictures Peel and Stanley Lord Brougham's Judicial Changes Lord Brougham's Defense Admission of Dissenters to the Univer- sities Lord Denman's Peerage Growing Ascendency of Peel An Apology for Lord Brougham Personal Reflections Crime in Dorsetshire Spain and Portugal Pro- cession of the Trades 1 Unions Lady Hertford's Funeral Petition of the London University for a Charter Repeal of the Union Excitement of the King Brougham and Eldon at the Privy Council Duke of Wellington's Aversion to the Whigs Lord Brougham and Lord Wynford Ffite at Petworth Lord Brougham's Conduct on the Pluralities Bill Crisis in the Cabinet Prince Lieven recalled Stanley, Graham, and the Duke of Richmond, resign on the Irish Church Bill History of the Crisis Ward's Motion defeated by moving the Previous Question Affairs of Portugal Effects of the late Change Oxford Commemoration Peel's Declaration Festival in Westminster Abbey Don Carlos on his Way to Spain Stanley's "Thimble-rig" Speech Resigna- tion of Lord Grey Mr. Greville's Account of the Causes of his Retirement The Government reconstituted by Lord Melbourne Lord Duncannon Secretary of State PAGE 228 CHAPTER XXIV. Taylor's " Philip van Artevelde " Goodwood Earl Bathnrst's Death Death of Mrs. Arbuthnot Overtures to O'Connell Irish Tithe Bill Theodore Hook's Improvisation Lord Westmeath's Case in the Privy Council First Council of Lord Melbourne's Government and Prorogation Brougham's Vagaries Lord Durham's Exclusion The Edinburgh Dinner Windsor and Meiningen Spencer Perceval Lord Grey's Retirement The Westmeath Case again The Queen's Return Melbourne and Tom Young Holland House Reflections Conversation on the Poets Miscellaneous Chat Lord Melbourne's Literary Attainments Lord Holland's Anecdotes of Great Orators Execution of Charles I. Lord Melbourne's Opinion of Henry VIII. The Times at- tacks Lord Brougham His Tour In Scotland His Unpopularity Cowper's Secret Canning on Reform Lord Melbourne on Palmerston and Brougham Canning and Brougham in 1827 Senior Lord Melbourne and the Benthamites His Theology- Spanish Eloquence The Harley Papers The Turf Death of Lord Spencer The Wcsttncath Case heard Law Appointments Bickersteth Louis Philippe's Po- sition . r. 2ii7 CHAPTER XXV. Fall of Lord Melbourne's Government History and Causes of this Event An Intrigue Effect of the Coup at Holland House The Change of Government The Two Camps The King's Address to the New Ministers The Duke's Account of the Transaction And Lord Lyndhurst's Difficult Position of the Tories Their Policy The Duke in all the Offices Negotiation with Mr. Barnes Power of the Times Another Address of the King Brougham offers to be Lord Chief Baron Mr. Barnes dines with Lord Lyndhurst Whig View of the Recent Change Liberal Views of the Tory Ministers The King resolved to support them Another Account of the Interview between tho Kintr and Lord Melbourne Lord Stanley's Position Sydney Smith's Preaching at St. Paul's Lord Duncannon and Lord Melbourne Relations of the Four Seceders to Peel Young Disraeli Lord Melbourne's Speeches at Derby Lord John Russell's Speech at Totness The Duke of Wellington's Inconsistencies and Conduct . p. 292 CHAPTER XXVI. Sir It. Peel arrives The First Council The King's Address Lord Stanley and Sir. I. Graham decline to join the Government Lord Wharncliffe and Sir E. Knatchbull join The Ministers sworn in Peel's Address to his Constituents Dinner at the Mansion House Offer to Lord Roden Prospects of the Elections Stanley's Want of Influence Pozzo di Borgo's Views Russia and England Nomination of Lord Londonderry to St. Petersburg Parliament dissolved State of the Constituencies A Govcrnor- General for India Sebastian! and St. Aulairc Anecdote of Princess Mi-tternich Tho City Elections Lord Lyndhnrst's View of the Government Violence of the OI>IMM tion Close Contest at Rochester Sidney Herbert Sir John Hobhouse's Views-- Anecdotes Connty Elections The Queen supposed to be with Child Church Reform Dinner of Ministers Story of La Roneiere Tho King's Crotchets . . p. 819 v j CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. CHAPTER XXVII. The Speakership Temporary Houses of Parliament Church Reform Dissenters' Mar- riage Bill Peel's False Position Burke Palmerston's Talents as a Man of Business and Unpopularity Sympathy of Continental Courts -with the Tories Abercromby elected Speaker Defeat of the Government Tactics of the Opposition The Speaker does not dine with Peel Meeting of Stanley's Friends Debate on the Address Lord John Russell leads the Opposition The Stanley Party Second Defeat of the Govern- mentPeel's Ability The Litchficld House Meeting Debate on Lord Londonderry's Appointment His Speech in the Lords and Resignation Sir E. Sugden resigns the Great Seal of Ireland Lady Canterbury Brougham in the House of Lords Peel s Readiness and Courage Lord Canterbury and Stratford Canning proposed for Canada Approaching Fall of the Peel Government Meetings of the Opposition Further Defeat Sir Robert Peel's own View of the State of Affairs He resigns. PAGE 345 CHAPTER XXVIII. Lord Grey and Sir James Graham express Conservative Views Opinions of Lord Stanley Lord Grey sees the King, but is not asked to resume Office Lord Melbourne's Sec- ond Administration His Moderation A Difficulty Spring Rice A Joyless Victory- Exclusion of Brougham The New Cabinet Lord John Russell defeated in Devon- shire Lord Alvanley and O'Connell Duel with Morgan O'Connell Lord Wellesley resigns the Lord Stewardship The Eliot Convention Swift vs. Kelly The Kembles London University Charter discussed at the Privy Council Corporation Reform Formation of the Conservative Party The King's Habits Secretaryship of Jamaica Lord Melbourne's Tithe Bill The Pope rejects the Recommendation of the British Government Relations with Rome Carlists and Christines in Spain Walcheren The King's Address to Sir Charles Grey Stanley and Graham cross the House Fail- ure of Stanley's Tactics Alava and the Duke of Cumberland A Sinecure Placeman Lord Glenelg and the King Concert at Stafford House The King's Aversion to his Ministers and to the Speaker Decision on the Secretaryship of Jamaica Archbishop Whateley Irish Church Bill Payment of Catholic Clergy Peel and Lord John Rus- sell Factious Conduct of Tory Peers The King's Violence Debate on the Corpora- tion Bill p. 3s8 CHAPTER XXIX. Resistance of the Lords Duke of Richmond Happiness Struggle between Lords and Commons Peel keeps aloof Inconsistency of the Whigs on the Irish Church Bill- Violent Language in the Lords Lord John Russell and Peel pass the Corporation Bill Dissolution of the Tory Party foreseen Meeting- of Peers to consider the Amend- ments King's Speech in Council on the Militia Lord Howick's Bitterness against the Lords Lord Lyndburst's Opinion of the Corporation Bill The King's Language on the Regency Talleyrand's View of the English Alliance Comparison of Burke and Mackintosh The St. Leger Visit of Princess Victoria to Burghley O'Connell's Prog- ress through Scotland Mackintosh's Life. ... . .p. 413 CHAPTER XXX. Emperor Nicholas's Speech at Warsaw His Respect for Opinion in England Burdett pro- poses the Expulsion of O'Connell from Brookes's Club Law George Villiers at Madrid Lord Segrave Lord-Lieutenant of Gloucestershire Dispute between France and America Allen's Account of Mackintosh and Melbourne Prolongation of a Patent Should Dr. Arnold be made a Bishop ? Frederic Elliot O'Connell's Mischievous Influ- ence Bretby Chesterfield MSS. The Portfolio Lord Cottenham and Lord Langdale Opening of Parliament The Judicial Committee Poulett Thomson at the Hoard of 1 rade Mr. Perceval's Interviews with the Ministers Prospects of the Tories- Lord Stanley's Relations to them Holland House Anecdotes Mischievous Effects of the Division on his Address The Youth of Macaulay Brougham and Macaulay Lord William Bentinck Review of Sir R Peel's Conduct Dr. Hampden's Appoint- mentThe Orange Lodges. . r 443 CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. CHAPTER XXXI. Moore and O'Connell Defeat of the Opposition The Carlow Election Lord Alvanley'a Speech to the Tory Peers Norton vs. Lord Melbourne Catastrophe after Epsom Mendizabal and Queen Christina Lord John Russell's Moderation in the Ecclesiastical Commission Theatricals at Bridgewater House Irish Church Ministerial Difficulties Deplorable State of Spain What was thought of Lord Palmerston in 1836 Weak- ness of Government Lord Lyndhurst's Summary of the Session Balance of Parties Lady Augusta Kennedy's Marriage King's Speech to Princess Victoria Revolution of La Granja Rudeness of the King to Ministers Irritation of the King at the Duchess of Kent Scene at Windsor on the King's Birthday Prince Esterhazy's View of the Affairs of Europe Emperor Nicholas at Vienna A Crisis in Trade State of the Court at Vienna Due de Reichstadt. ...... PAGE 406 CHAPTER XXXII. Crisis in the City The Chancellor of the Exchequer A Journey to Paris Lord Lyndhnrst in Paris Princess laeven Parties in France Berryer The Strasburg Conspirators Rotten State of France Presentation at the Tuileries Ball at the Tuilerles Bal Musard Lord Granville The Due de Broglie Position of the Due d'Orteans Re- turn to England Conservative Reaction Shiel's Tirade against Lord Lyndhurst Lyndhurst as a Tory Leader Angry Debate on Church Rates The Government on the Brink of Resignation Sir R. Peel's Prospects The King and Lord Aylmer Death of Mrs. Fitzherbert Ministerial Compromise Westminster Election Majority of the Princess Victoria The King's Illness The King's Letter to the Princess Preparations for the Council Sir R. Peel on the Prospects of the New Reign Prayers ordered for the King's Recovery Affairs of Lord Ponsonby Death of King William IV. First Council of Queen Victoria The Queen proclaimed Character of William IV ..... ... P. 491 A JOUKNAL OF THE REIGN OF KING WILLIAM THE FOURTH. CHAPTER XVI. Whig and Tory Meetings on Reform Resolution to carry the Bill Holland Radical Jones Reform Bill thrown out by the Lords Dorsetshire Election Division among the Tories Bishop Phillpotts Prospects of Reform Its Dangers Riots at Bristol The Cholera at Sunderland An Attempt at a Compromise on Reform Lord Wharncliffe negotiates with the Ministers Negotiation with Mr. Barnes Proclamation against the Unions Barbarism of Sunderland Disappointment of Lord Wharncliffe Bristol and Lyons Commercial Negotiations with France Poulett Thomson Lord Wharacliffe's Proposal to Lord Grey Disapproved by the Duke of Wellington Moderation of Lord John Russell The Appeal of Drax vs. Grosvenor The Second Reform Bill Violence of Lord Durham More Body-snatchers Duke of Richmond and Sir Henry Parnell Panshanger Creation of Peers Division of Opinion Negotiation to avoid the Creation of Peers Lord Wharacliffe's Interview with the King Opposition of the Duke of Wellington The Waverers resolve to separate from the Duke. 1831. September 22d. The night before last Croker and Macau- lay made two fine speeches on Reform ; the former spoke for two hours and a half, and in a way he had never done before. Macaulay was very brilliant. There -was a meeting at Lord Ebrington's yesterday, called by him, Lyttelton Lawley, and of members of the House of Commons only, and they (with- out coming to any resolution) were all agreed to prevail on the Government not to resign in the event of the Reform Bill being rejected in the House of Lords. I have no doubt, there- fore, in spite of what Lord Grey said, and the other circum- stances I have mentioned above, that they will not resign, and I doubt whether there will be any occasion for it. There was a dinner at Apsley House yesterday; the Cabinet of Opposition, to discuss matters before having a general meeting. At this dinner there were sixteen or seven- teen present, all the leading anti-Reformers of the Peers. They agreed to oppose the second reading. Dudley, who was there, told me it was tragedy first and farce afterward ; for Eldon and Kenyon, who had dined with the Duke of Cumber- 10 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XVI. land, came in after dinner. Chairs were placed for them on each side of the Duke, and after he had explained to them what they had been discussing, and what had been agreed upon, Kenyon made a long speech on the first reading of the Bill, in which it was soon apparent that he was very drunk, for he talked exceeding nonsense, wandered from one topic to another, and repeated the same things over and over again. When he had done Eldon made a speech on the second read- ing, and appeared to be equally drunk, only, Lord Bathurst told me, Kenyon in his drunkenness talked nonsense, but El- don sense. Dudley said it was not that they were as drunk as lords and gentlemen sometimes are, but they were- drunk like porters. Lyndhurst was not there, though invited. He dined at Holland House. It is pretty clear, however, that he will vote for the second reading, for his wife is determined he shall. I saw her yesterday, and she is full of pique and re- sentment against the Opposition and the Duke, half real and half pretended, and chatters away about Lyndhurst's not being their cat's-paw, and that if they choose to abandon him, they must not expect him to sacrifice himself for them. The pretexts she takes are, that they would not go to the House of Lords on Tuesday and support him against Brougham on the Bankruptcy Bill, and that the Duke of Wellington wrote to her and desired her to influence her husband in the matter of Reform. The first is a joke, the second there might be a little in, for vanity is always uppermost, but they have both some motive of interest, which they will pursue in what- ever way they best can. The excuse they make is that they want to conceal their strength from the Government, and accordingly the Duke of Wellington has not yet entered any of his proxies. The truth is that I am by no means sure now that it is safe or prudent to oppose the second reading ; and though I think it very doubtful if any practicable altera- tion will be made in Committee, it will be better to take that chance, and the chance of an accommodation and com- promise between the two parties and the two Houses, than to attack it in front. It is clear that Government are re- solved to carry the Bill, and equally clear that no means they can adopt would be unpopular. They are averse to making more Peers if they can help it, and would rather go quietly on, without any fresh changes, and I believe they are .con- scientiously persuaded that this Bill is the least democratical Bill it is possible to get the country to accept, and that, if 1831.] THE REFORM BILL. H offered in time, this one will be accepted. I had heard before that the country is not enamored of this Bill, but I fear that it is true that they are only indifferent to the Conservative clauses of it (if I may so term them), and for that reason it may be doubtful whether there would not be such a clamor raised in the event of the rejection of this Bill as would com- pel the Ministers to make a new one, more objectionable than the old. If its passing clearly appears to be inevitable, why, the sooner it is done the better, for at least one immense object will be gained in putting an end to agitation, and re- storing the country to good-humor, and it is desirable that the House of Lords should stand as well with the people as it can. It is better, as Burke says, " to do early, and from foresight, that which we may be obliged to do from necessity at last." I am not more delighted with Reform than I have ever been, but it is the part of prudence to take into consideration the present and the future, and not to harp upon the past. It matters not how the country has been worked up to its pres- ent state, if a calm observation convinces us that the spirit that has beep raised cannot be allayed, and that is very clear to me. September 2le, and unselfish. He had at all times been a lively companion, and without much instruction, extensive information, or a vigor- ous understanding, his knowledge of the world in the midst of which he had passed his life, his taste and turn for humor, and his good-nature, made him a very agreeable man. He had a few intimate friends to whom he was warmly attached, a host of acquaintance, and I do not know that he had a single enemy. He was an affectionate father, and ready to make any sacrifices for the happiness and welfare of his children in short, he was amiable and blameless in the various relations of life, and he deserved that his memory should be cherished as it is by us with sincere and affectionate regret. September 18A. I have been in London, at Shepperton, and twice at Brighton to see Henry de Ros ; came back yes- 1 [Mr. Charles Greville, senior, was the fifth son of Fulk Grevillc of Wilbury, by Frances Macartney, a lady of some literary reputation as the authoress of an " Ode to Indifference." She was the daughter of General Macartney. Horace Walpole speaks of her as one of the beauties of his time. She died in 1789. Mr. Greville may have inherited from her his strong literary tastes.] 1832.] LADY KEITH. 115 terday. The \vorld is half asleep. Lord Howe returns to the Queen as her Chamberlain, and that makes a sensation. I met at Brighton Lady Keith [Madame de Flahaut], who told us a great deal about French politics, which as she is a parti- san, was not worth much, but she also gave us rather an amusing account of the early days of the Princess Charlotte, at the time of her escape from Warwick House in a hackney- coach and taking refuge with her mother, and of the earlier affair of Captain Hess. The former escapade arose from her determination to break off her marriage with the Prince of Orange, and that from her falling suddenly in love with Prince Augustus of Prussia, and her resolving to marry him and nobody else, not knowing that he was already married de la main gauche in Prussia. It seems that she speedily made known her sentiments to the Prince, and he (notwithstanding his marriage) followed the thing up, and had two interviews with her at her own house, which were contrived by Miss Knight, her governess. During one of these Miss Mercer arrived, and Miss Knight told her that Prince Augustus was with the Princess in her room, and what a fright she (Miss Knight) was in. Miss Mercer, who evidently had no mind anybody should conduct such an affair for the Princess but herself, pressed Miss Knight to go and interrupt them, which on her declining' she did herself. The King (Regent as he was then) somehow heard of these meetings, and measures of coercion were threatened, and it was just when an approach- ing visit from him had been announced to the Princess that she went off. Miss Mercer was in the house at the time, and the Regent, when he came, found her there. He accused her of being a party to the Princess's flight, but afterward either did or pretended to believe her denial, and sent her to fetch the Princess back, which after many pourparlers and the in- tervention of the Dukes of York and Sussex, Brougham, and the Bishop of Salisbury, her preceptor, was accomplished at two in the morning. Hess's affair was an atrocity of the Princess of Wales. She employed him to convey letters to her daughter while she used to ride in Windsor Park, which he contrived to deliver, and occasionally to converse Avith her; and on one occasion, at Kensington, the Princess of Wales brought them together in her own room. The Princess afterward wrote him some letters, not containing much harm, but idle and improper. When the Duke of York's affair with Mrs. Clark 116 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XVIII. came out, and all the correspondence, she became very much alarmed, told Miss Mercer the whole story, and employed her to get back her letters to Hess. She accordingly wrote to Hess (who was then in Spain), but he evinced a disinclina- tion to give them up. On his return to England she saw him, and on his still demurring she threatened to put the affair into the Duke of York's hands, which frightened him, and then he surrendered them, and signed a paper declaring he had given up every thing. The King afterward heard of this affair, and questioning the Princess, she told him every thing. He sent for Miss Mercer, and desired to see the let- ters, and then to keep them. This she refused. This Captain Hess was a short, plurnp, vulgar-looking man, afterward lover to the Queen of Naples, mother of the present King, an amour that was carried on under the auspices of the Margra- vine at her villa in the Strada Nova at Naples. It was, how- ever, detected, and Hess was sent away from Naples, and never allowed to return. I remember finding him at Turin (married), when he was lamenting his hard fate in being ex- cluded from that Paradiso Naples. September 28th. At Stoke from the 22d to the 26th, then to the Grove, and returned yesterday ; at the former place Madame de Lieven, Alvanley, Melbourne ; tolerably pleasant ; question of war again. The Dutch King makes a stir, and threatens to bombard the town of Antwerp ; the French of- fered to march, and put their troops in motion, but Leopold begged they would not, and chose rather to await the effect of more conferences, which began with great vigor a few days r.go. What they find to say to each other for eight or ten hours a day for several consecutive days it is hard to guess, as the question is of the simplest kind. The King of Holland will not give up the citadel of Antwerp, nor consent to the free navigation of the Scheldt ; the Belgians insist on these concessions ; the Conference says they shall be granted, but Russia, Prussia, and Austria, will not coerce the Dutchman ; England and France will, if the others don't object. A French army is in motion, and a French fleet is off Spithead ; so probably something will come of it. Nothing has damaged this Government more than these protracted and abortive con- ferences. Four days ago there was a report that the King of Spain was dead, accompanied with a good many particulars, and all the world began speculating as to the succession, but yester- 1832.] THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT. 117 day came news that he was not dead, but better. Pedro and Miguel are fighting at Oporto with some appearance of spirit ; Miguel is the favorite. The French Government is represent- ed to be in a wretched state, squabbling and feeble, and no- body is inclined to be Minister. Dupin was very near it, but refused because Louis Philippe would not make him President of the Council. The King is determined to be his own Minis- ter, and can get nobody to take office on these terms. They think it will end in Dupin. The present Government declares it cannot meet the Chambers until Antwerp is evacuated by the Dutch and the Duchesse de Berri departed out of France or taken. This heroine, much to the annoyance of her family, is dodging about in La Vendee and doing rather harm than good to her cause. The Dauphiness passed through London, when our Queen very politely went to visit her. She has not a shadow of doubt of the restoration of her nephew, and thinks nothing questionable but the time. She told Madame de Lieven this. I talked to Madame de Lieven about war, and added that if any did break out it would be the war of opinion which Canning had predicted. She said yes, and that the monarchical principle (as she calls the absolute principle) would then crush the other. I came up with Melbourne to London. He is uneasy about the state of the country about the desire for change and the general restlessness that prevails. We discussed the different members of the Government, and he agreed that John Russell had acted unwarrantably in making the speech he did the other day at Torquay about the Ballot, which, though hypothetical, was nothing but an invitation to the advocates of Ballot to agitate for it; this, too, from a Cabinet Minister ! Then comes an awkward sort of explana- tion, that what he said was in his individual capacity, as if lie had any right so to speak. Melbourne spoke of Brougham, who he said was tossed about in perpetual caprices, that he was fanciful and sensitive, and actuated by all sorts of little- nesses, even with regard to people so insignificant that it is difficult to conceive how he can ever think about them ; that he is conservative, but under the influence of his old con- nections, particularly of the Saints. His friends are so often changed that it is not easy to follow him in this respect. Durham used to be one ; now he hates him ; he has a high opinion of Sefton ! of his judgment ! ! What is talent, what are great abilities, 'when one sees the gigantic intellect of 118 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XVIK. Brougham so at fault ? Not only does the world manage to go on when little wisdom guides it, but how ill it may go on with a great deal of talent, which, however, is different from wisdom. He asked me what I thought of Richmond, and I told him that he was ignorant and narrow-minded, but a good sort of fellow, only appearing to me, who had known him all my life, in an odd place as a Cabinet Minister. He said he was sharp, quick, the King liked him, and he stood up to Durham more than any other man in the Cabinet, and that al- together he was not unimportant ; so that the ingredients of this.Cabinet seem to be put there to neutralize one another, and to be good for nothing else ; because Durham has an overbearing temper, and his father-in-law is weak, there must be a man without any other merit than spirit to curb that temper. He talked of Ireland, and the difficulty of settling the question there, that the Archbishop of Canterbury was willing to reform the Church, but not alienate any of its rev- enues. "Not," I asked, "for the payment of a Catholic clergy ? " " No, not from Protestant uses." I told him there was nothing to be done but to pull down the edifice and re- build it. He said you would have all the Protestants against you, but he did not appear to differ. To this things must come at last. Melbourne is exceedingly anxious to keep Lord Hill and Fitzroy Somerset at the head of the army, from which the violent of his party would gladly oust them, but he evidently contemplates the possibility of having occasion for the army, and does not wish to tamper with the service or play any tricks with it. It is curious to see the working and counter-working of his real opinions and principles with his false position, and the mixture of bluntness, facility and shrewdness, discretion, levity and seriousness, which, color- ing his mind and character by turns, make up the strange compound of his thoughts and his actions. 1832.1 FOREIGN DIFFICULTIES. 119 CHAPTER XIX. Foreign Difficulties Conduct of Peel on the Resignation of Lord Grev Manners Button proposed as Tory Premier Coolness between Peel and the Duke "Embargo on Dutch Ships Death of Lord Tenterden Denman made Lord Chief-Justice Sketch of Hol- land House The Speakerehip Home and Campbell Attorney- and Solicitor-General The Court at Brighton Lord Howe and the Queen Elections under the Reform Act Mr. Gully Petworth Lord Egremont Attempt to reinstate Lord Howe Namik Pasha Lord Lyndhurst's Version of what occurred on the Resignation of Lord Grey Lord Denbigh appointed Chamberlain to the Queen Brougham's Privy Council Bill Talleyrand's Relations with Fox and Pitt Negro Emancipation Bill State of the West Indies The Reformed Parliament meets Russian Intrigues Four Days' Debate on the Address Peel's Political Career. London, October yth. I went to Newmarket on the 30th of September, to Panshanger on the 5th, and came to town on the 6th. Great fears entertained of war ; the obstinacy of the Dutch King, the appointment of Soult to be Prime Minister of France, and the ambiguous conduct of the Allied Courts, look like war. Miguel has attacked Oporto without success ; but, as he nearly destroyed the English and French battalions, he will probably soon get possession of the city. It is clear that all Portugal is for him, which we may be sorry for, but so it is. The iniquity of his cause does not appear to affect it. October 12th. Lady Cowper told me at Panshanger that Palmerston said all the difficulties of the Belgian question came from Matuscewitz, who was insolent and obstinate, and astute in making objections ; that it was the more provoking as he had been recalled some time ago (the Greek business being settled, for which he came), and Palmerston and some of the others had asked the Emperor to allow him to stay here, on account of his usefulness in drawing up the minutes of the proceedings of the Conference ; that Lieven had by no means wished him to stay, but could not object when the others desired it. Accordingly he remained, and now he annoys Palmerston to death. All this she wrote to Madame de Lieven, who replied that it was not the fault of Matuscewitz, and that he and Lieven agreed perfectly. She talked, how- ever, rather more pacific language. This clever, intriguing, agreeable diplomatess has renewed her friendship with the Duke of Wellington, to which he does not object, though she will hardly ever efface the impression her former conduct made upon him. My journal is getting intolerably stupid, and en- tirely barren of events. I would take to miscellaneous and 120 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Cn.vn. XIX. private matters if any fell in iriy way, but what can I make out of such animals as I herd with and such occupations as I am engaged in ? Euston, October 26th. Went to Downham on Sunday last ; the Duke of Rutland, the Walewskis, Lord Burghersh, and Hope. Came here on Wednesday morning ; the usual party. At Downham I picked up a good deal from Arbuth- not (who was very garrulous) of a miscellaneous description, of which the most curious and important was the entire con- firmation of (what I before suspected) the ill-blood that exists between the Duke of Wellington and Peel ; though the inter- ests of party keep them on decent terms, they dislike one another, and the Duke's friends detest Peel still more than the Duke does himself. He told me all that had passed at the time of the blow-up of the present Government, which I have partly recorded from a former conversation with him, -and his story certainly proves that the Duke (though I think he com- mitted an enormous error in judgment) was not influenced by any motives of personal ambition. As soon as the King sent for Lyndhurst the latter went to the Duke, who (as is known) agreed to form a Government, never doubting that he was to be himself Prime Minister. Lyndhurst went to Peel, who declined to take office, and he then went to Baring. Lyndhurst and Arbuthnot sent for Bar- ing out of the House of Commons, and took him to old Bankes's house in Palace Yard, where they had their conversation with him. He begged for time to consider of it, and to be allowed to consult Peel, to which they assented. He afterward agreed, but on condition that Manners Sutton should also be in the Cabinet. Lyndhurst had about the same time made overtures to Mannera Sutton, and, though nothing was finally settled, it was understood he would accept them. So matters stood, when one day (it must have been the Wednesday or Thurs- day) Vesey Fitzgerald called on the Arbuthnots, and in a con- versation about the different arrangements he intimated that Manners Sutton expected to be Prime Minister, and on asking him more particularly, they found that this was also his own impression. The next morning Arbuthnot went off to Lyncl- hurst's house, where he arrived before Lyndhurst was dressed, and told him what had fallen from Fitzgerald, and asked what it could mean. Lyndhurst answered very evasively, but promised to have the matter cleared up. Arbuthnot, not sat- isfied, went to the Duke and told him what had passed, and 1832.] THE PREMIERSHIP. 121 added his conviction that there was some tuch project on foot (to make Sutton Premier) of which he was not aware. The Duke said he did not care a farthing who was Premier, and that if it was thought desirable that Sutton should be he had not the smallest objection, and was by no means anxious to fill the post himself. I asked whether the Duke would have taken office if Sutton had been Minister, and was told that nothing was settled, but probably not. The same day there was a meeting at Apsley House, at which the Duke, Lyndhurst, Baring, Ellenborough, and (I think) Rosslyn or Aberdeen, or both, were present, and to which Sutton catne, and held forth for nearly four hours upon the position of their affairs and his coming into office. Ha talked such incredible nonsense (as I have before related) that when he was gone they all lifted up their hands and with one voice pronounced the impossibility of forming any Government under such a head. Baring was then asked why he had made Sutton's coming into office the condition of his own acceptance, and why he had wished him to be Prime Minister. He said that he had never desired any such thing himself, and had hardly any acquaintance with Sutton, except that as Speaker he was civil to him, and he dined with him once a year, but that when he had gone to consult Peel, Peel had advised him to insist upon having Sut- ton, and to put him at the head of the Government. This avowal led to further examination into what had passed, and it carne out that when Lyndhurst went to Peel, Peel pressed Manners Sutton upon him, refusing to take office himself, but promising to support the new Government, and urging Lynd- hurst to offer the Premiership to Sutton. At the same time he put Sutton up to this, and desired him to refuse every office except that of Premier. Accordingly, when Lyndhurst went to Sutton, the latter said he would be Prime Minister or noth- ing, and Lyndhurst had the folly to promise it to him. Tims matters stood when Lady Cowley, who was living at Apsley House, and got hold of what was passing, went and told it to her brother, Lord Salisbury, who lost no time in imparting it to some of the other High Tory Lords, who all agreed that it would not do to have Sutton at the head of the Government, and that the Duke was the only man for them. On Saturday the great dinner at the Conservative Club took place, at which a number of Tories, principally Peers, with the Duke and Peel, were present. A great many speeches were made, all full of 28 122 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX enthusiasm for the Duke, and expressing a determination ta support his Government. Peel was in very ill-humor and said little ; the Duke spoke much in honor of Peel, applauding his conduct and saying that the difference of their positions justi- fied each in his different line. The next day some of the Duke's friends met, and agreed that the unanimous desire for the Duke's being at the head of the Government which had been expressed at that dinner, together with the unfitness of Sutton, proved the absolute necessity of the Duke's being Premier, and it was resolved that a communication to this effect should be made to Peel. Aberdeen charged himself with it and went to Peel's house, where Sutton was at the time. Peel came to Aberdeen in a very bad humor, said he saw from what had passed at the dinner that nobody was thought of but the Duke, and he should wash his hands of the whole business ; that he had already declined having any thing to do with the Government, and to that determination he should adhere. The following Monday the whole thing was at an end. I am not sure that I have stated these occurrences exactly as they were told me. There may be errors in the order of the interviews and pourparlers, and in the verbal details, but the substance is correct, and may be summed up to this effect : that Peel, full of ambition, but of caution, animated by deep dislike and jealousy of the Duke (which policy induced him to conceal, but which temper betrayed), thought to make Man- ners Sutton play the part of Addington, while he was to be another Pitt ; he fancied that he could gain in political char- acter, by an opposite line. of conduct, all that the Duke would lose ; and he resolved that a Government should be formed the existence of which should depend upon himself. Manners Sutton was to be his creature ; he would have dictated every measure of Government ; he would have been their protector in the House of Commons ; and, as soon as the fitting moment arrived, he would have dissolved this miserable Ministry and placed himself at the head of affairs. All these deep-laid schemes, and constant regard of self, form a strong contrast to the simplicity and heartiness of the Duke's conduct, and make the two men appear in a very different light from that in which they did at first. Peel acted right from bad motives, the Duke wrong from good ones. The Duke put himself for- ward, and encountered all the obloquy and reproach to which he knew he exposed himself, and having done so, cheerfully 1832.] THE DUTCH QUESTION. 123 offered to resign the power to another. Peel endeavored to seize the power, but to shield himself from responsibility and danger. It is a melancholy proof of the dearth of talent and the great capacity of the man that, notwithstanding the de- tection of his practices and his motives, the Tories are com- pelled still to keep well with him and to accept him for their leader. No cordiality, however, can exist again between him and the Duke and his friends, and, should the Whig Govern- ment be expelled, the animosity and disunion engendered by these circumstances will make it extremely difficult to form a Tory Administration. [In a short time it was all made up forgiven, if not forgotten.] November 7th. Came to town on Sunday. The answer of the Dutch King to the demand of England and France that he should give up Antwerp was anxiously expected. It arrived on Monday afternoon, and was a refusal. Accord- ingly a Council met yeterday, at which an order was made for laying an embargo on Dutch merchant-ships, which are to be sequestrated, but not confiscated. The French army marches forthwith, and Palmerston told me they expected two or three days of bombardment would suffice for the cap- ture of the citadel, after which the French would retire within their own frontier. The combined fleets will remain at the Downs, for they can do nothing on the coast of Holland at this season of the year. There is a good^deal of jealousy and no friendly spirit between the English and French sailors ; and the Duke of Richmond told me yesterday that the Deal pilots desired nothing so much as to get the French ships into a scrape. Great excitement prevails about this Dutch ques- tion, which is so complicated that at this moment I do not understand its merits. Matuscewitz, however, who is opposed totis viribus to the policy of England and France, told me that nobody could have behayed worse than the King of Holland has done, shuffling and tricking throughout; but they say he is so situated at home that he could not give way if lie would. A few days must now decide the question of war or peace. All the Ministers, except Brougham, Lord Holland, Grant, and Carlisle, were at the Council yesterday the Archbishop of Canterbury for a prayer (for we omit no opportunity of offering supplications or returning thanks to Heaven), and the new Lord Chief-Justice to be sworn 'a Privy Councilor, Lord Tenterden died on Saturday night, and no time was 124 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. lost in appointing Denman as his successor. Coming as he does after four of the greatest lawyers who ever sat upon the Bench, this choice will not escape severe censure ; for the reputation of Denman as a lawyer is not high, and he has been one of the most inefficient Attorneys-General who ever filled the office. It has been a constant matter of complaint on the part of the Government and their friends that the law officers of the Crown gave them no assistance, but, on the contrary, got them into scrapes. Denman is an honorable man, and has been a consistent politician ; latterly, of course, a Radical of considerable vehemence, if not of violence. The other men, who were mentioned as successors to Tenterden were Lyndhurst, Scarlett, and James Parke. The latter is the best of the puisne judges, and might have been selected if all political considerations and political connections had been disregarded. Lyndhurst will be overwhelmed with an- guish and disappointment at finding himself forever excluded from the great object of his ambition, and in which his pro- fessional claims are so immeasurably superior to those of his successful competitor; nor has he lost it by any sacrifice of interest to honor, but merely from the unfortunate issue of his political speculations. When he was made Chief Baron a regular compact was made, a secret article, that he should succeed on Tenterden's death to the Chief- Justiceship ; which bargain was of course canceled by his declaration of war on the Reform question and his consequent breach with Lord Grey ; though by far the fittest man, he was now out of the question. It will be the more grating as he has just evinced his high capabilities by pronouncing in the Court of Ex- chequer one of the ablest judgments (in Small vs. Attwood) that were ever delivered. [It was afterward reversed by the House of Lords.] Scarlett, who had been a Whig for forty years, and who has long occupied the first place in the Court of King's Bench, would have been the man if his political dissociation from his old connections, and his recent hostility to them, had not also canceled his claims ; so that every rival being set aside from one cause or another, Denman, by one of the most extraordinary pieces of good fortune that ever happened to man, finds himself elevated to this great office, the highest object of a lawyer's ambition, and, in my opinion, one of the most enviable stations an Englishman can attain. It is said that as a Common Sergeant he displayed the quali- ties of a good judge, and his friends confidently assert that he 1832.] DEXMAN LORD CHIEF-JUSTICE. 125 will make a very good Chief-Justice ; but his legal qualifica- tions are admitted to be very inferior to those of his prede- cessors. [He made a very bad one, but was personally popu- lar and generally respected for his high and honorable moral character.] Tenterden was a remarkable man, and his elevation did great credit to the judgment which selected him, and which probably was Eldon's. He had never led a cause, but he was a profound lawyer, and appears to have had a mind fraught with the spirit and genius of the law, and not narrowed and trammeled by its subtleties and technicalities. In spite of his low birth, want of oratorical power, and of personal dignity, he was greatly revered and dreaded on the Bench. He was an austere, but not an ill-humored judge ; his manner was remarkably plain and unpolished, though not vulgar. He was an elegant scholar, and cultivated classical literature to the last. Brougham, whose congenial tastes delighted in his classical attainments, used to bandy Latin and Greek with him from the Bar to the Bench ; and he has more than once told me of his sending Tenterden Greek verses of John Williams's, of which the next day Tenterden gave him a translation in Latin verse. He is supposed to have died very rich. Denman was taken into the King's closet before the Council, when he was sworn in; the King took no particular notice of him, and the appointment is not, probably, very palatable to his Majesty. November 15th. Sheriff business at the Exchequer Court on Monday ; saw Lyndhurst and Denman meet and shake hands with much politeness and grimace. November 2Qth. Dined at Holland House the day before yesterday ; Lady Holland is unwell, fancies she must dine at five o'clock, and exerts her power over society by making everybody go out there at that hour, though nothing can be more inconvenient than thus shortening the day, and nothing more tiresome than such lengthening of the evening. Rogers and Luttrell were staying there. The tableau of the house is this : Before dinner, Lady Holland affecting illness and almost dissolution, but with a very respectable appetite, and after dinner in high force and vigor; Lord Holland, with Iris chalk- stones and unable to walk, lying on his couch in very good spirits and talking away ; Luttrell and Rogers walking about, ever and anon looking despairingly at the clock, and making short excursions from the drawing-room ; Allen surly and dis- putatious, poring over the newspapers, and replying in mono- 126 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. syllables (generally negative) to whatever is said to him. The grand topic of interest, far exceeding the Belgian or Portu- guese questions, was the illness of Lady Holland's page, who has got a tumor in his thigh. This " little creature," as Lady Holland calls a great hulking fellow of about twenty, is called " Edgar," his real name being Tom or Jack, which he changed on being elevated to his present dignity, as the Popes do when they are elected to the tiara. More rout is made about him than other people are permitted to make about their chil- dren, and the inmates of Holland House are invited and com- pelled to go and sit with and amuse him. Such is the social despotism of this strange house, which presents an odd mixture of luxury and constraint, of enjoyment physical and intellectual, with an alloy of small desagrements. Talleyrand generally comes at ten or eleven o'clock, and stays as long as they will let him. Though everybody who goes there finds something to abuse or to ridicule in the mistress of the house, or its ways, all continue to go ; all like it more or less ; and when- ever, by the death of either, it shall come to an end, a vacuum will be made in society which nothing will supply. It is the house of all Europe ; the world will suffer by the loss ; and it may with truth be said that it will " eclipse the gayety of nations." November 27th. At Roehampton from Saturday till Mon- day. The Chancellor had been there a few days before, from whom Lord Dover had picked up the gossip of the Govern- ment. There had been a fresh breeze with Durham, who it seems has returned from Russia more odious than ever. His violence and insolence, as usual, were vented on Lord Grey, and the rest of the Cabinet, as heretofore, are obliged to sub- mit. I have since heard from the Duke of Richmond that the cause of this last storm was something relating to Church Re- form, and that he had been forced to knock under. I fancy he wanted to go much further than the others, probably to unfrock the Bishop of Durham and Bishop Phillpotts, the former because he is a greater man in the county than him- self, and the latter from old and inextinguishable hatred and animosity. There has been another dispute about the Speakership. All the Cabinet except Althorp want to put Abercromby in the chair, and Althorp insists on having Littleton. The for- mer is in all respects the best choice, and the man whom they ought, from his long connection with the Whigs and his con IW2.J THE SPEAKERSHIP. 127 sistency and respectability, to propose, but Althorp thought fit to commit himself in some way to Littleton who has no claims to be compared with those of Abercromby (having been half his life in opposition to the present Government), and he obstinately insists upon the expectations held out to him being realized. Lord Grey, though very anxious for Abercromby, thinks it necessary to defer to the leader of the House of Commons, and the consequence is a very disagree- able dispute on the subject. Abercromby is greatly mortified at being postponed to Littleton, and not the less as Althorp has always been his friend. The language of Dover, who is a sort of jackal to Brougham, clearly indicates the desire of that worthy to get rid of Lord Grey and put himself in his place. All these little squabbles elicit some disparaging re- marks on Lord Grey's weakness, folly, or cupidity, ffceret lateri the offer of the Attorney-Generalship, and the day of vengeance is intended to come. 1 After considerable delay Home and Campbell were ap- pointed Attorney- and Solicitor-General; the delay was oc- casioned by ineffectual attempts to dispose of Home else- Avhere. They wanted to get some puisne judge to resign, and to put Home on the Bench, but they could not make any such arrangement, so Home is Attorney. Pepyswas to have been Solicitor if the thing could have been managed. I don't think I picked up any thing else, except that the King was very averse to the French attack upon Antwerp, and consent- ed to the hand-in-hand arrangement between France and England with considerable reluctance. The fact is he hates this Government so much that he dislikes all they do. Lord Lansdowne is just come from Paris, and gives a flourishing account of the prospects of King Louis Philippe and his Government, but as he is the Due de Broglie's in- timate friend his opinion may be prejudiced. The King ap- pears certainly to have rather gained than not by the attack which was made on him, from the coolness and courage he evinced, and it is a great point to have proved that he is not a coward. jBriffftion, December 14^A. Came here last Wednesday week ; Council on the Monday for the dissolution ; place very full, bustling, gay, and amusing. I am staying in De Ros's house with Alvanley ; Chesterfields, Howes, Lievens, Cow- 1 [This refers to Lord Grey's having offered the Attorney-Generalship to Brougham when Government was formed.] 128 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX pers, all at Brighton, and plenty of occupation in visiting 1 , gossiping, dawdling, riding, and driving ; a very idle life, and impossible to do any thing. The Court very active, vulgar, and hospitable ; King, Queen, Princes, Princesses, bastards, and attendants constantly trotting about in every direction : the election noisy and dull the Court candidate beaten and two Radicals elected. Everybody talking of the siege of Antwerp and the elections. So, with plenty of animation, and discussion, and curiosity, I like it very well. Lord Howe is devoted to the Queen, and never away from her. She re- ceives his attentions, but demonstrates nothing in return ; he is like a boy in love with this frightful spotted Majesty, while his delightful wife is laid up (with a sprained ankle and dis- located joint) on her couch. Brighton, December ~L7t7i. On Sunday I heard Anderson preach. He does not write his sermons, but preaches from notes ; very eloquent, voice and manner perfect, one of the best I ever heard, both preacher and reader. The borough elections are nearly over, and have satisfied the Government. They do not seem to be bad on the whole; the metropolitans have sent good men enough, and there was no tumult in the town. At Hereford Duncombe was routed by Salisbury's long purse. He hired such a numerous mob besides that he carried all before him. Some very bad char- acters have been returned ; among the worst, Faithful here ; Gronow at Stafford ; Gully, Pontrefact ; Cobbett, Oldham ; though I am glad that Cobbett is in Parliament. Gully's his- tory is extraordinary. He was taken out of prison twenty-five or thirty years ago by Mellish to fight Pierce, surnamed the " Game Chicken," being then a butcher's apprentice ; he fought him and was beaten. He afterward fought Belcher (I believe), and Gresson twice, and left the prize-ring with the reputation of being the best man in it. He then took to the turf, was successful, established himself at Newmarket, where he kept a hell, and began a system of corruption of trainers, jockeys, and boys, which put the secrets of all New- market at his disposal, and in a few years made him rich. At the same time he connected himself with Mr. Watt in the north, by betting for him, and this being at the time when Watt's stable was very successful, he won large sums of money by horses. Having become rich he embarked in a great coal speculation, which answered beyond his hopes, and his shares soon yielded immense profits. His wife, who was a coarse, 1832 J JOHN GULLY, ESQ. 129 vulgar woman, in the mean time died, and he afterward mar- ried the daughter of an innkeeper, who proved as gentlewoman- like as the other had been the reverse, and who is very pretty besides. He now gradually withdrew from the betting-ring as a regular blackleg, still keeping horses, and betting occa- sionally in large sums, and about a year or two ago, having previously sold the Hare Park to Sir Mark Wood, where he lived for two or three years, he bought a property near Ponte- fract, and settled down (at Ackworth Park) as John Gully, Esq., a gentleman of fortune. At the Reform dissolution he was pressed to come forward as candidate for Pontefract, but after some hesitation he declined. Latterly he has taken great interest in politics, and has been an ardent Reformer and a liberal subscriber for the advancement of the cause. When Parliament was about to be dissolved, he was again invited to stand for Pontefract by -a numerous deputation ; he again hes- itated, but finally accepted ; Lord Mexborough withdrew, and he was elected without opposition. In person he is tall and finely formed, full of strength and grace, with delicate hands and feet, his face coarse and with a bad expression, his head set well on his shoulders, and remarkably graceful and even dignified in his actions and manners; totally without educa- tion, he has strong sense, discretion, reserve, and a species of good taste which has prevented, in the height of his fortunes, his behavior from ever transgressing the bounds of modesty and respect, and he has gradually separated himself from the rabble of betters and blackguards of whom he was once the most conspicuous, and tacitly asserted his own independence and acquired gentility without ever presuming toward those whom he has been accustomed to regard with deference. His position is now more anomalous than ever, for a member of Parliament is a great man, though there appear no reasons why the suffrages of the blackguards of Pontefract should place him in different social relations toward us than those in which we mutually stood before. Petworth, December 20th. Came here yesterday. It is a very grand place ; house magnificent and full of fine objects, both ancient and modern ; the Sir Joshuas and Vandycks particularly interesting, and a great deal of all sorts that is \vorth seeing. Lord Egremont was eighty-one the day before yesterday, and is still healthy, with faculties and memorv apparently unimpaired. He has reigned here for sixty years witli groat authority and influence. He is shrewd, eccentric, 130 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. and benevolent, and has always been munificent and chari- table in his own way; he patronizes the arts and fosters rising genius. Painters and sculptors find employment and welcome in his house ; he has built a gallery which is full of pictures and statues, some of which are very fine, and the pictures scattered through the house are interesting and curious. Lord Egremont hates ceremony, and can't bear to be personally meddled with ; he likes people to come and go as it suits them, and say nothing about it, never to take leave of him. The party here consists of the Cowpers, his own family, a Lady E. Romney, two nieces, Mrs. Tredcroft a neigh- bor, Ridsdale a parson, Wynne, Turner, the great landscape- painter, and a young artist of the name of Lucas, whom Lord Egremont is bringing into notice, and who will owe his for- tune (if he makes it) to him. Lord Egremont is enormously rich, and lives with an abundant though not very refined hos- pitality. The house wants modern comforts, and the servants are rustic and uncouth ; but every thing is good, and it all bears an air of solid and aristocratic grandeur. The stud groom told me there are three hundred horses of different sorts here. His course, however, is nearly run, and he has the mortification of feeling that, though surrounded with chil- dren and grandchildren, he is almost the last of his race, and that his family is about to be extinct. Two old brothers and one childless nephew are all that are left of the Wyndhams, and the latter has been many years married. All his own children are illegitimate, but he has every thing in his power, though nobody has any notion of the manner in which he will dispose of his property. It is impossible not to reflect upon the prodigious wealth of the Earls of Northumberland, and of the proud Duke of Somerset who married the last heiress of that house, the betrothed of three husbands. All that Lord Egremont has, all the Duke of Northumberland's property, and the Duke of Rutland's Cambridgeshire estate, belonged to them, which together is probably equivalent to between 200,000 and 300,000 a year. Banks told me that the Northumberland property, when settled on Sir H. Smithson, was not above 12,000 a year. 1 1 [The eleventh Earl of Northumberland, Joscelyn Percy, died in 1670, leaving an only daughter, who married Charles Seymour, ninth Duke of Som- erset. This lady is described as " the betrothed of three husbands," because she was married at fourteen to Henry Cavendish, son of the Duke of Newcas- tle, who died in the following year. She was then affianced to Thomas Thynne of Longleat, who was assassinated in 1682 ; and at last married to the Duke cf 1832.] RECEPTION OF NAMIK PASHA. 131 Brighton^ December 31st. Lady Howe gave me an ac- count of the offer of the Chamberlainship to her husband again. They added the condition that he should not oppose Government, but was not to be obliged to support them. This he refused, and he regarded the proposal as an insult ; so the Queen was not conciliated the more. She likewise told me that the cause of her former wrath when he was dismissed was, that neither the King nor Lord Grey told her of it, and that, if they had, she would have consented to the sacrifice at once with a good grace ; but in the way it was done she thought herself grossly ill-used. It is impossible to ascertain the exact nature of this connection. Howe conducts himself toward her like a young, ardent lover; he never is out of the Pavilion, dines there almost every day, or goes every evening, rides with her, never quitting her side, and never takes his eyes off her. She does nothing, but she admits his attentions and acquiesces in his devotion ; at the same time there is not the smallest evidence that she treats him as a lover. Tf she did, it would be soon known, for she is surrounded by ene- mies. All the Fitzclarences dislike her, and treat her more or less disrespectfully. She is aware of it, but takes no notice. She is very civil and good-humored to them all ; and, as long as they keep within the bounds of decency, and do not break out into actual impertinence, she probably will continue so. Two nights ago there was a great assembly after a dinner for the reception of the Turkish Embassador, Namik Pasha. He was brought down by Palmerston, and introduced before dinner to the King and Queen. He is twenty-eight years old, speaks French well, and has good manners ; his dress very simple a red cap, black vest, trousers and boots, a gold chain and medal round his neck. He did not take out any lady to dinner, but was placed next the Queen. After dinner the King made him a ridiculous speech, with abundant flourishes Somerset. The eldest son of this marriage, Algernon Seymour, who succeeded to the Dukedom of Somerset in 1748. was created Earl of Northumberland on the 2d of October, 1749, and Earl of Egremont on the following day. with re- mainder (as regards the latter title) to nis nephew Sir Charles Wyndhara, who succeeded him in February, 1750. The Earldom of Northumberland passed at the same time to Sir Hugn Smithson, son-in-law of Duko Algernon, who was created Duke of Northumberland in 1766. The titles and the vast property of the Duke of Somerset, Earl of Northumberland, thus came to be divided. George O'Brien Wyndham, third Earl of Egremont, to whom Mr. Grevillo paid this visit, was born on the 18th of December, 1751. Ho was therefore eighty-two years old at this time ; but he lived five years longer, and died in 1837, famous and beloved for his splendid hospitality and for hia liberal and judicious patronage of the arts, and likewise of the turf.] 132 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. about the Sultan and his friendship for him, which is the more droll from his having been High Admiral at the time of the battle of Navarino, to which the Pasha replied in a sonorous voice. He admired every thing, and conversed with great ease. All the stupid, vulgar Englishwomen followed him about as a lion, with offensive curiosity. 1833. January 3d. Lady Howe begged her husband to show me the correspondence between him and Sir Herbert Taylor about the Chamberlainship. It is long and confused ; Taylor's first letter, in my opinion, very impertinent, for it reads him a pretty severe lecture about his behavior when he held the office before. Howe is a foolish man, but in, this business he acted well enough, better than might have been expected. Taylor, by the King's desire, proposed to him to resume the office ; and, after some caviling, he agreed to do so, with liberty to vote as he pleased, but promising not to be violent. So stood the matter on the 9th of September. He heard nothing moce of it till the 5th of November, when young Hudson * wrote by the King's orders to know definitely if he meant to take it, but that, if he did, he must be " neutral." Howe wrote back word that on such terms he declined it. I told him my opinion of the whole business, and added my strenuous advice that he should immediately prevail on the Queen to appoint somebody else. I could not tell him all that people said, but I urged it as strongly as I could, hinting that there were very urgent reasons for so doing. He did not relish this advice at all, owned that he clung tenaciously to the office, liked every thing about it, and longed to avail him- self of some change of circumstances to return ; and that, though he was no longer her officer, he had ever since done all the business, and in fact was, without the name, as much her Chamberlain as ever. Lady Howe, who is vexed to death at the whole thing, was enchanted at my advice, and vehe- mently urged him to adopt it. After he went away, she told me how glad she was at what I had said, and asked me if people did not say and believe every thing of Howe's connec- 1 [" Young Hudson " was the page of honor who was sent to Kome in tho following year to fetch Sir Robert Peel, when, as Mr. Disraeli expressed it, " the hurried Hudson rushed into the chambers of his Vatican." He grew up to be a very able and distinguished diplomatist, Sir James Hudson, G. C. B. who rendered great services to the cause of Italian independence.] 1833.] PEEL'S DUPLICITY. 133 tion with the Queen, which I told her they did. I must say that what passed is enough to satisfy me that there is what is called " nothing in it " but the folly and vanity of being the confidential officer and councilor of this hideous Queen, for whom he has worked himself up into a sort of chivalrous de- votion. Yesterday Howe spoke to the Queen about it, and proposed to speak to the King ; the Queen (he says) would not hear of it, and forbade his speaking to the King. To-day he is gone away, and I don't know what he settled ; probably nothing. Lyndhurst dined here the day before yesterday. Finding I knew all that had-passed about the negotiations for a Tory Government in the middle of the Reform question, he told me his story, which differs very little from that which Arbuthnot had told me at Downham, and fully corroborates his account of the duplicity of Peel and the extraordinary conduct of Lyndhurst himself. He said that as soon as he had left the King he went to the Duke, who said he must go directly to Peel. Peel refused to join. The Duke desired him to go back to Peel, and propose to him to be Prime Minister and manage every thing himself. Peel still declined, on which he went to Baring. Baring begged he might con- sult Peel, which was granted. He came back, said he would take office, but that they must invite Manners Sutton also. They did so, and Sutton refused. Vesey Fitzgerald, however, suggested to Lyndhurst that if they proposed to Sutton to be Prime Minister perhaps he would accept. Another conversa- tion ensued with Sutton, and a meeting was fixed at Apsley House on the Sunday. In the mean time Lyndhurst went down to the King and told him what had taken place, adding that Sutton would not do, and that the Duke alone could form a Government. At Apsley House Sutton talked for three hours, and such infernal nonsense that Lyndhurst was ready to go mad; nor would he decide. They pressed him to say if he \vould take office or not. He said he must wait till the next morning. They said, " It must be very early, then." In the morning he put off deciding (on some frivolous pretext) till the afternoon. He went to the House of Commons without having given any answer. The famous debate ensued, and the whole game was up. All this tallies with the other account, only he did not say that Peel had desired Baring to insist on Sutton, and had advised Sutton to take no place but the highest, nor that he 134 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. had without the Duke's knowledge offered Sutton that post, and concealed from Sutton his subsequent opinion of his incapacity and determination that he should not have it. I asked Lyndhurst how he managed with Sutton, and whether he had not come to Apsley House with the impression on his mind that he was to be Premier. He said that "he had evaded that question with Sutton" that is, all parties were deceived, while the Duke, who meant to act nobly, suf- fered all the blame. He showed great disregard of personal interests and selfish views, but 1 shall always think his error was enormous. It is remarkable that this story is so little known. The}* had a dinner and dancing the night before last at the Pavilion for New-Year's day, and the King danced a country- dance with Lord Amelius Beauclerc, an old Admiral. JLoncZon, January llth. Came to town with Alvanley the day before yesterday. Howe plucked up courage, spoke to the King and Queen, and settled Denbigh's appointment, 1 though not without resistance on the part of their Majesties. Lord Grey came down, and was very well received by both. At the commerce-table the King sat by him, and was full of jokes ; called him continually " Lord Howe," to the great amusement of the by-standers and of Lord Grey himself. Munster came down and was reconciled, condescending, moyennant a douceur of 2,500, to accept the Constableship of the Round Tower. The stories of the King are uncom- monly ridiculous. He told Madame de Ludolf, who had been Embassadress at Constantinople, that he desired she would recommend Lady Ponsonby to all her friends there, and she might tell them she was the daughter of one of his late brother's sultanas (Lady Jersey). His Majesty insisted on Lord Stafford's taking the title of Sutherland, and ordered Gower to send him an express to say so. One day at dinner he asked the Duke of Devonshire "where he meant to be buried!" I received a few days ago at Brighton the draft of a Bill of Brougham's, for transferring the jurisdiction of the Del- egates to the Privy Council, or rather for creating a new Court and sinking the Privy Council in it. Lord Lansdowne sent it to ine, and desired me to send him my opinion upon it. 1 [William Basil Percy, seventh. Earl of Denbigh, was appointed Chamber- lain to Queen Adelaide at this time, and remained in the service of her Majestj a most excellent and devoted servant to the close of her life.] 1333.] THE EMBARGO. 135 I showed it to Stephen, and returned it to Lord Lansdovvne with some criticisms in which Stephen and I had agreed. It is a very bungling piece of work, and one which Lord Lansdowne ought not to consent to, the object evidently being to make a Court of which Brougham shall be at the head, and to transfer to it much of the authority of the Crown, Parliament, and Privy Council ; all from his ambitious and insatiable desire of personal aggrandizement. I have no doubt he is playing a deep game, and paving the way for his own accession to power, striving to obtain popularity and influence with the King ; that he will succeed to a great degree, and for a certain time, is probable. Manners Sutton is to be again Speaker. Althorp wrote him a very flummery letter, and he accepted. The Government want to be out of the scrape they are in between Abercromby and Littleton, and Sutton wants his peerage. Every thing seems prosperous here ; the Government is strong, the House of Commons is thought re- spectable on the whole and safe, trade is brisk, funds rising, money plentiful, confidence reviving, Tories sulky. January 17th. The Government don't know what to do about the embargo on the Dutch ships. Soon after they had laid it on they made a second order, allowing ships with perishable goods to go free ; and thinking the whole thing would be soon over, they desired this might be construed in- dulgently, and accordingly many ships were suffered to pass (with goods more or less perishing) under that order. Now that the King of Holland continues obstinate they want to squeeze him, and to construe the order strictly. There have been many consultations what to do, whether they should make another order rescinding the last or execute the former more strictly. Both are liable to objections. The first will appear like a cruel proceeding and evidence of uncertainty of purpose ; the last will show a capricious variation in the practice of the Privy Council, with which the matter rests. Their wise heads were put together last night to settle this knotty point. Wharncliffe showed me a paper he has written, in which, after briefly recapitulating the present state of the Tory party and the condition of the new Parliament (particularly as to the mode in which it was elected, or rather under what influence), he proceeds to point out what ought to be the course for the Tories to adopt. It is moderate and becoming enough, and he has imparted it to the Duke of Wellington, who concurs in 136 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. his view. I wonder, however, that he is not sick of writing papers and imparting views, after all that passed last year, after his fruitless attempts, his false moves, and the treatment he received at the hands of the Tories ; but he seems to have forgotten or forgiven every thing, and is disposed to wriggle himself back among the party upon any terms. He acknowl- edges one thing fully, and that is the desperate and, wobegone condition of the party itself, and the impossibility of their doing any thing now as a party. Lord Lansdowne received very complacently my criticisms on Brougham's Bill, and has acknowledged since he came to town that it would not do at all as it now stands. The King has been delighting the Whigs, and making himself more ridiculous and contemptible by the most extravagant civilities to the new Peers that is, to Western and about Lord Staf- ford. He now appears to be very fond of his Ministers. January 19th. I have at last succeeded in stimulating Lord Lansdowne to something like resistance (or rather the promise of it) to Brougham's Bill. I have proved to him that his dignity and his interest will both be compromised by this Bill, which intends to make the Chancellor President of the Court, and ergo of the Council, and to give him all the patron- age there will be. Against these proposals he kicks ; at least he is restive, and shows symptoms of kicking, though he will very likely be still again. I sent the Bill to Stephen, who instantly and currente calamo drew up a series of objections to it, as comprehensive and acute as all his productions are, and last night I sent it to Leach (who hates the Chancellor), and he has returned it to me with a strong condemnatory reply. Stephen having told me that Howick would be too happy to oppose this Bill, on account of the influence it would have on Colonial matters, particularly about Canada, I took it to him, but he declined interfering, though he concurred in Stephen's remarks. , January 22d. Dined with Talleyrand the day before yesterday. Nobody there but his attaches. After dinner he told me about his first residence in England, and his ac- quaintance with Fox and Pitt. He always talks in a kind of affectionate tone about the former, and is now meditating a visit to Mrs. Fox at St. Anne's Hill, where he may see her surrounded with the busts, pictures, and recollections of her husband. He delights to dwell on the simplicity, gayety, childishness, and profoundness of Fox. I asked him if he had 1833.] HARTWELL. 137 ever known Pitt, He said that Pitt came to Rheims to learn French, and he was there at the same time on a visit to the Archbishop, his uncle (whom I remember at Hartwell, 1 a very old prelate with the tic-douloureux), and that he and Pitt lived together for nearly six weeks, reciprocally teaching each other French and English. After Chauvelin had superseded him, and that he and Chauvelin had disagreed, he went to live 1 [Mr. Greville had paid a visit with his father to the little Court of Louis XV III. at Ilartwell about two years before the Restoration, .when he was eigh- t(. j <_-:i years of age. His narrative of this visit has been printed in the fifth vol- ume of the " Miscellany of the Philobiblon Society," out it may not be in- appropriately inserted here.] A VISIT TO HAKTWELL. April 14, 1814. I have often determined to commit to paper as much as I can remember of my visit to Hartwell ; and, as the King is about to ascend the throne of his ancestors, it is not unin- teresting to recall to mind the particulars of a visit paid to him while in exile and in pov- erty. About two years ago my father and I went to Hartwell by invitation of the King. Wo dressed at Ayleslmry, and proceeded to Hartwell, in the afternoon. We had previously taken a walk m the environs of the town, and had met the Dnchesse d'Angouleine on horse- back, accompanied by Madame Choisi. At five o'clock we set out to Ilartwell. The house is large, but in a dreary, disagreeable situation. The King had completely altered the in- terior, having subdivided almost all the apartments in order to lodge a greater number of people. There were numerous out-houses, in some of which small shops had been estab- lished by the servants, interspersed with gardens, so that the place resembled a little town. Upon entering the house we were conducted by the Due de Grammont into the King's private apartment. He received us most graciously, and shook hands with both of us. This apartment was exceedingly small, hardly larger than a closet and I remarked pict- ures of the late King and Queen, Madame Elizabeth, and the Dauphin, Louis XVII., hanging on the walls. The King had a manner of swinging his body backward and for- ward, which caused the most unpleasant sensations in that small room, and made my father feel something like being sea-sick. The room was just like a cabin, and the motions of his Majesty exactly resembled the heaving of a ship. After our audience with the King we were taken to the salon, a large room with a billiard-table at one end. Here the party assembled before dinner, to all of whom we were presented the Duchesse d'Angou- leme, Monsieur the Due d'Angouleme, the Due de Berri, the Prince and Princess de Conde (ci-d-evant Madame de Monaco), and a vast number of Dues, etc. ; Madame la Duchesse de Serrcn (a little old dame d'honneur to Madame d'Angouleme), the Due de Lorpes, the Due d'Auray, the Archevfique de Rheims (an infirm old prelate, tortured with the tic- douloureux), and many others whose names I cannot remember. At a little after six din- ner was announced, when we went into the next room, the King walking out first The dinner was extremely plain, consisting of very few dishes, and no wines except port and sherry. lite Majesty did the honors himself, and was very civil and agreeable. We were a very short time at the table, and the ladies and gentlemen all got up together. Each of the ladies folded up her napkin, tied it round^with a bit of ribbon, and carried it away. After dinner we returned to the drawing-roem and drank coffee. The whole party re- mained in conversation about a quarter of an hour, when the King retired to his closet, upon which all repaired to their separate apartments. Whenever the King came in or went out of the room, Madame d'Angouleme made him a low courtesy, which he returned by bowing and kissing his hand. This little ceremony never failed to take place. After the party had separated we were taken to the Due de Grammont's apartments, where we drank tea. Alter remaining there about three-quarters of an hour we went to the apartment of Madame d'AngoulOme, where a great part of the company were assembled, and where we staid about a quarter of an hour. After this we descended again to the drawing-room, whcro several card-tables were laid out. The King played at whist with the Prince and Princess de Conde and my father. His Majesty settled the points of the game at"le quart d'un sliding." The rest of the party played at billiards or ombre. The King was so civil as to invite us to sleep there, instead of returning to the inn at Aylesbury. Wheu he invited us ho said, " Jo crains que vous screz tres-mal loges, mais on donne ce qu'on pent." Soon after eleven the King retired, when we separated for the night. We were certainly ' trcs-mal logos." In the morning when I got out of bed, I was alarmed by the 133 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. near Epsom (at Juniper Hall) with Madame de Stael ; after- ward they came to London, and in the mean time Pitt had got into the hands of the emigr'es, who persuaded him to send Talleyrand away, and accordingly he received orders to quit England in twenty-four hours. He embarked on board a ves- sel for America, but was detained in the river off Greenwich. Dundas sent to him, and asked him to come and stay with him while the ship was detained, but he said he would not set his foot on English ground again, and remained three weeks on board the ship in the river. It is strange to hear M. de Talleyrand talk at seventy-eight. He opens the stores of his memory and pours forth a stream on any subject connected with his past life. Nothing seems to have escaped from that great treasury of by-gone events. January 2th. I have at last made Lord Lansdowne fire a shot at the Chancellor about this Bill. He has written him a letter, in which he has embodied Stephen's objections and some of his own (as he says, for I did not see the letter). The Chancellor will be very angry, for he can't endure contra- diction, and he has a prodigious contempt for the Lord Pres- ident, whom he calls " Mother Elizabeth." He probably ar- rives at the sobriquet through Petty, Betty, and so on. Dined with Talleyrand yesterday ; Pozzo, who said little and seemed low ; Talleyrand talked after dinner, said that Cardinal Fleury was one of the greatest Ministers who ever governed France, and that justice had never been done him ; he had maintained peace for twenty years, and acquired Lor- raine for France. He said this d propos of the library he formed or left, or whatever he did in that line, at Paris. He told me he goes very often to the British Museum, and has lately made them a present of a book. January 26th. It seems that the Government project (or perhaps only the fact that they have one) about West Indian emancipation has got wind, and the West Indians are of course in a state of great alarm. They believe that it will be announced, whatever it is to bo, in the King's Speech, though I doubt there being any thing but a vague intention appearance of an old woman on the leads before my window, who was hanging linen to dry. I was forced to retreat hastily to bed, not to shock the old lady's modesty. At ten the next morning we breakfasted, and at eleven we took leave of the King (who always went to Mass at that hour) and returned to London. We saw the whole place before we came away; and they certainly had shown great ingenuity in contriving to lodge such a number of people in and about the house it was exactly like a small rising colony. We were very much pleased with our expedition ; and were invited to return whenever we could aiuke il convenient. 1833.] ABOLITION OF SLAVERY. 139 expressed in it. Of all political feelings and passions and such this rage for emancipation is, rather than a considera- tion of interest it has always struck me as the most ex- traordinary and remarkable. There can be no doubt that a great many of the Abolitionists are actuated by very pure motives ; they have been shocked at the cruelties which have been and still are very often practised toward slaves, their minds are imbued with the horrors they have read and heard of, and they have an invincible conviction that the state of slavery under any form is repugnant to the spirit of the Eng- lish Constitution and the Christian religion, and that it is a stain upon the national character which ought to be wiped away. These people, generally speaking, are very ignorant concerning all the various difficulties which beset the ques- tion ; their notions are superficial ; they pity the slaves, whom they regard as injured innocents, and they hate their masters, whom they treat as criminal barbarians. Others are animated in this cause purely by ambition, and by finding that it is a capital subject to talk upon, and a cheap and easy species of benevolence ; others have satisfied themselves that slavery is a mistaken system, that the cruelty of it is alto- gether gratuitous, and that free labor will answer the purpose as well or better, and get rid of the odium ; and thousands more have mixed feelings and opinions, compounded of some or all of the above in various degrees and proportions, accord- ing to the bent of individual character ; but there are some persons among the most zealous and able of the Abolitionists who avail themselves of the passions and the ignorance of the people to carry this point, while they carefully conceal their own sentiments as to the result of the experiment. I say some, because, though I only know (of my own knowledge) of one, from the sagacity of the man, and the conformity of his opinions with those of others on this and other topics, I have no doubt that there are many who view the matter in the same light. I allude to Henry Taylor, 1 who rules half the West Indies in the Colonial Office, though with an invisi- ble sceptre. Talking over the matter the other day, he said that he was well aware of the consequences of emancipation both to the negroes and the planters. The estates of the latter would not be cultivated ; it would be impossible, > [Afterward Sir Henry Taylor, K. M. G., author of " Philip van Artevelde." Nearly forty years later Sir H. Taylor continued to fill the same position de- scribed by Air. Greville in 1833. He resigned in 1872.1 140 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. for want of labor ; the negroes would not work no induce- ment would be sufficient to make them ; they wanted to be free merely that they might be idle. They would, on being emancipated, possess themselves of ground, the fer- tility of which in those region* is so great that very tri- fling labor will be sufficient to provide them with the means of existence, and they will thus relapse rapidly into a state of barbarism ; they will resume the habits of their African brethren, but, he thinks, without the ferocity and savageness which distinguish the latter. Of course the germs of civilization and religion which have been sown among them in their servile state will be speedily obliterated ; if not, as man must either rise or fall in the moral scale, they will acquire strength, with it power, and as certainly the desire for using that power for the amelioration of their condition. The island (for Jamaica may be taken for example, as it was in our conversation) would not long be tenable for whites ; indeed, it is difficult to conceive how any planters could remain there when their property was no longer cultivable, even though the emancipated negroes- should be- come as harmless and gentle as the ancient Mexicans. Not- withstanding this view of the matter, in which my friend has the sagacity to perceive some of the probable consequences of the measure, though (he admits) with much uncertainty as to its operation, influenced as it must be by circumstances and accidents, he is for emancipating at once. " Fiat justitia ruat ccelum " that is, I do not know that he is for immediate, unconditional emancipation ; I believe not, but he is for doing the deed ; whether he goes before or lags after the Govern- ment I do not at this moment know. He is, too, a high-prin- cipled man, full of moral sensibility and of a grave, reflecting, philosophical character, and neither a visionary in religion nor in politics, only of a somewhat austere and uncompromising turn of mind, and with some of the positiveness of a theorist who has a lofty opinion of his own capacity, and has never undergone that discipline of the world, that tumbling and tossing and jostling, which beget modesty and diffidence and prudence, from the necessity which they inculcate of constant compromises with antagonistic interests and hostile passions. But what is the upshot of all this ? Why, that in the midst of the uproar and confusion, the smoke and the dust of the controversy, one may believe that one sees a glimmering of 1833.] EGYPT AND TURKEY. 141 the real futurity in the case and that is a long series of troubles and a wide scene of ruin. January 30th. The intentions of Government with re- gard to the West Indies (or rather that they have intentions of a nature very fatal to that interest) having got wind, the consternation of the West India body is great. A deputation, headed by Sir Alexander Grant, waited upon Lords Grey and Goderich the other day, and put certain questions to them, stating that the prevalence of reports, some of which had appeared in the newspapers, had greatly alarmed them, and they wished to ascertain if any of them had been authorized by Government. Lord Grey said " certainly not ; the Gov- ernment had authorized nothing." They asked if he would reappoint the Committees. He would give no pledge as to this, but they discussed the propriety of so doing, he seeming indisposed. To all their questions he gave vague answers, refusing to communicate any thing except this, that nothing was decided, but a plan was under the consideration of the Cabinet in which the interests of all parties were consulted. He added that he could not pledge himself to give any pre- vious intimation of the intentions of Government to the West India body, nor to disclose the measure at all until it was proposed to Parliament. There are in the mean time no end of reports of the nature and extent of the proposed measure, and no end to the projects and opinions of those who are interested. I dined at Lord Bathurst's yesterday, and sat next to Lord Ellenborough, who said that he was convinced the best thing the proprietors could do would be to agree instantly to stop their orders, which he believes would compel Government to arrest their course. I am not enough acquainted with the subject to judge how far they might operate, but I doubt it, or that in the temper of the people of this country, or rather of those zealots who represent it, and with the disposition of this Government to yield to every popular cry, the fear of any consequences would prevent their going on. It would, I believe, only give them and the House of Commons a pre- text for refusing them pecuniary compensation. I was much amused with a piece of vanity of Ellenborough's. We were talking of the Avar between the Turks and the Egyptians, and the resources of Egypt, etc., when he said, " If I had con- tinued at the Board of Control I would have had Egypt, got 142 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. at it from the Red Sea ; I had already ordered the formation of a corps of Arab guides ! " February 1st. The Reformed Parliament opened heavily (on Tuesday), as Government think satisfactorily. Cobbett took his seat on the Treasury Bench, and spoke three times, though the last time nobody would stay to hear him. He was very twaddling, and said but one good thing, when he called O'Connell the member for Ireland. Saw Madame de Lieven the day before yesterday, who fired a tirade against Government ; she vowed that nobody ever had been treated with such personal incivility as Lieven, " des injures, des reproches," that Cobbett, Hunt, and all the blackguards in England could not use more offensive lan- guage ; whatever event was coming was imputed to Russia Belgium, Portugal, Turkey, " tout 6tait la Russie et les intrigues de la Russie ; " that she foresaw they should be driven away from England. With reference to the war in Asia Minor, she said the Sultan had applied to the Emperor for assistance, " et qu'il 1'aurait, et que le Sultan n'avait pas un meilleur ami que lui," that the Egyptians would ad- vance no farther, and a great deal more of complaint at the injustice evinced toward them and on their political in- nocence. In the evening I told all this to Mellish of the Foreign Office, who knows every thing about foreign affairs, and he said it was all a lie, that Russia had offered her as- sistance, which the Sultan had refused, and she was, in fact, intriguing and making mischief in every Court in Europe. George Villiers writes me word that she has been for months past endeavoring to get up a war anywhere, and that this Turkish business is more likely than any thing to bring one about. 1 February 2d. Dinner at Lord Lansdowne's for the Sheriffs; soon over and not particularly disagreeable, though I hate dining with the Ministers ; had some conversation with Gode- rich about Jamaica ; he says Mulgrave has done very well there, perhaps rather too vigorously, that the dissolution of- the Assembly under all circumstances is questionable, but he must be supported ; he hopes nothing from another Assembly, nor does Mulgrave, who says that they are incorrigible. The 1 [The state of the Ottoman Empire was most critical. In the latter months of 1832 the victorious troops of Meheroet Ali had forced their way across the Taunus ; the peace of Koniah was concluded early in 1833 with the Egyptians ; and the Treaty of IJnkiar Skelessi with the Eussians in July, lR'5;!.j 1833.] THE WEST INDIES. 143 fact is their conduct paralyzes the exertions of their friends here, if, indeed, they have any friends who would make any exertions. February 4th. At Court for the King's Speech and the appointment of Sheriffs^ Lord Munster and Lord Denbigh were sworn Privy Councilors. The West Indians have taken such an attitude of desperation that the Government is some- what alarmed, and seems disposed to pause at the adoption of its abolitionary measures. George Hibbert told me last night that if they were driven to extremities there was nothing they were not ready to do, and that there would be another panic if Government did not take care, and so Rothschild had told them. I dined with Madame de Lieven yesterday, who is in the agonies of doubt about her remaining here. It turns upon this : Stratford Canning has been appointed Embassador at St. Petersburg, and the Emperor will not receive him. Palmer- ston is indignant, and will not send anybody else. If the Em- peror persists, we shall only have a Charge d'Affaires at his Court, and in that case he will not leave an Embassador at ours. There seems to be at present no way out of the quarrel. Strat- ford Canning's mission to Madrid cannot last forever, and when it is over the point must be decided. The people of Jamaica have presented a petition to the King (I don't know exactly in what shape, or how got up), praying to be released from their allegiance. Goderich told me that it was very insolent. Mulgrave's recent coup de theatre is severely condemned. Nothing can save these un- happy colonies, for all parties vie with each other in violence and folly the people here and the people there, the Govern- ment here and the Government there. February 10th. After four days' debate in the House of Commons (quite unprecedented, I believe) the Address was carried by a large majority. 1 Opinions are of course very various upon the state of the House and the character of the discussion. The anti-Reformers, with a sort of melan- choly triumph, boast that their worst expectations have been fulfilled. The Government were during the first day or two very serious, and though on the whole they think they have reason to be satisfied, they canpot help seeing that they 1 [The first Keformed Parliament met, and was formally opened on the 29th of January, 1833. After the election of the Speaker (Manners Sutton), the King delivered his Speech from the Throne on the 5th of Fehruary.] 144 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XIX. have in fact very little power of managing the House. Every- body 'agrees that the aspect of the House of Commons was very different the number of strange faces ; the swagger of O'Connell, walking about incessantly, and making signs to, or talking with, his followers in various parts ; the Tories few and scattered ; Peel no longer surrdunded with a stout band of supporters, but pushed from his usual seat, which is oc- cupied by Cobbett, O'Connell, and the Radicals ; he is gone up nearer to the Speaker. The whole debate turned upon Ireland. O'Connell pro- nounced a violent but powerful philippic, which Stanley answered very well. Macaulay made one of his brilliant speeches the second night, and Peel spoke the third. It was not possible to make a more dexterous and judicious speech than he did ; for finding himself in a very uncomfortable position, he at once placed himself in a good one, and ac- knowledging that his situation was altogether different from what it had been, he contrived to transfer to himself person- ally much of the weight and authority which he previously held as the organ and head of a great and powerful party. He pronounced a eulogium of Stanley, declared that his confidence in Government was not augmented, but that he would support them if they would support law and order. The Government were extremely pleased at his speech, though I think not without a secret misgiving that they are likely to be more in his power than is pleasant. But the benefit re- sulting from the whole is that the Radicals all opposed the Government, while Peel supported them ; so that we may hope that a complete line of separation is drawn between the two former, and that the Government will really and boldly take the Conservative side. On the whole, perhaps, this bout may be deemed satisfactory. February 1Uh. The night before last Althorp brought forward his plan of Irish Church Reform, with complete suc- cess. He did it well, and Stanley made a very brilliant speech. The House received v it with almost unanimous ap- plause, nobody opposing but Inglis and Goulburn, and Peel, in a very feeble speech, which scarcely deserves the name of opposition ; it will be of great service to the Government. O'Connell lauded the measure up to the skies ; but Shiel said he would bite his tongue off with vexation the next morning for having done so, after he had slept upon it. It was clear that Peel, who is courting the House, and exerting all his 1833.] PEEL'S CONTRADICTORY CHARACTER. 145 dexterity to bring men's minds round to him, saw the stream was too strong for him to go against it, so he made a sort of temporizing, moderate, unmeaning speech, which will give him time to determine on his best course, and did not commit him. Poulett Thomson said to me yesterday that Peel's prodigious superiority over everybody in the House was so evident, his talent for debate and thorough knowledge of Parliamentary tactics, gained by twenty years of experience, so commanding, that he must draw men's minds to him, and that he was evidently playing that game, throwing over the ultra-Tories and ingratiating himself with the House and the country. He, in fact, means to open a house to all comers, and make himself necessary and indispensable. Under that placid exterior he conceals, I believe, a boundless ambition, and hatred and jealousy lurk under his professions of esteem and political attachment. His is one of those contradictory characters, containing in it so much of mixed good and evil, that it is difficult to strike an accurate balance between the two, and the acts of his political life are of a corresponding description, of questionable utility and merit, though always marked by great ability. It is very sure that he has been the instrument of great good, or of enormous evil, and ap- parently more of the latter. He came into life the child and champion of a political system which has been for a long time crumbling to pieces; and if the perils which are produced by its fall are great, they are mainly attributable to the manner in which it was upheld by Peel, and to his want of sagacity, in a wrong estimate of his means of de- fense and of the force of the antagonist power with which he had to contend. The leading principles of his political conduct have been constantly erroneous, and his dexterity and ability in supporting them have only made the conse- quences of his errors more extensively pernicious. If we look back through the long course of Peel's life, and inquire what have been the great political measures with which his name is particularly connected, we shall find, first, the return to cash payments, which almost everybody now agrees was a fatal mistake, though it would not be fair to visit him with extraordinary censure for a measure which was sanctioned by almost all the great financial authorities; secondly, op- position to Reform in Parliament and to religious emancipa- tion of every kind, the maintenance of the exclusive system, and support, untouched and uncorrected, of the Church, botii 29 146 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. English and Irish. His resistance to alterations on these heads was conducted with great ability, and for a long time with success; but he was endeavoring to uphold a system which was no longer supportable, and having imbibed in his career much of the liberal spirit of the age, he found himself in a state of no small perplexity between his old connections and his more enlarged propensities. Still he was chained down by the former, and consequently being beaten from all his positions, he was continually obliged to give way, but never did so till rather too late for his own credit and much too late for the interest at stake. Notwithstanding, there- fore, the reputation he has acquired, the hold he has had of office, and is probably destined to have again, his political life has been a considerable failure, though not such a one as to render it more probable than not that his future life will be a failure too. He has hitherto been encumbered with embarrassing questions and an unmanageable party. Time has disposed of the first, and he is divorced from the last ; if his great experience and talents have a fair field to act upon, he may yet, in spite of his selfish and unamiable charac- ter, be a distinguished and successful Minister. CHAPTER XX. Appointment of Sir Stratford Canning to the Russian Embassy Cause of the Eefusnl- Slavery in the West Indies The Reformed Parliament Duke of Wellington's View of Affairs The Coercion BUI The Privv Council Bill Lord Durham made an Earl- Mr. Stanley Secretary for the Colonies The Russians go to the Assistance of the Porto Lord Goderich has the Privy Seal, an Earldom, and the Garter Embarrassments of the Government Tho Appeal of Drax vs. Grosvenor at the Privy Council Hobhouse defeated in Westminster Bill for Negro Emancipation The Russians on the Bos- porus Mr. Littleton Chief Secretary for Ireland Respect shown to the Duke of Wellington Moral of a "Book on the Derby" The Oaks A Betting Incident Ascot Government beaten in the Lords on Foreign Policy Vote of Confidence in the Commons Drax vs. Grosvenor decided Lord Eldon's Last Judgment His Character Duke of Wellington as Leader of Opposition West India Affairs Irish Church Bill Appropriation Clause A Fancy Bazaar The King writes to the Bishops Local Court Bill Mirabeau. February ~iQth.- Madame de Lieven gave me an account (the day before yesterday) of the quarrel between the two Courts about Stratford Canning. When the present Ministry came in, Nesselrode wrote to Madame de Lieven and desired her to beg that Lord Heytesbury might be left there " Con- servez-nous Heytesbury." She asked Palmerston and Lord 1S83.] DON'T LET IT BE CANNING. 147 Grey, and they both promised her he should stay. Some time after he asked to be recalled. She wrote word to Nes- selrode, and told him that either Adair or Canning would suc- ceed him. He replied, " Don't let it be Canning; he is a most impracticable man, soupponneux, pointillewx, defiant; " that he had been personally uncivil to the Emperor when he was Grand Duke ; in short the plain truth was they would not re- ceive him, and it was therefore desirable somebody, anybody, else should be sent. She told this to Palmerston, and he en- gaged that Stratford Canning should not be named. Nothing more was done till some time ago, when to her astonishment Palmerston told her that he was going to send Canning to St. Petersburg. She remonstrated, urged all the objections of her Court, his own engagement, but in vain; the discussions between them grew bitter; Palmerston would not give way, and Canning was one day, to her horror, gazetted. As might have been expected, Nesselrode positively refused to receive him. Durham, who in the mean time had been to Russia and bien comble with civilities, promised that Canning should not go there, trusting he had sufficient influence to prevent it ; and since he has been at home it is one" of the things he has been most violent and bitter about, because Palmerston will not retract this nomination, and he has the mortification of finding in this instance his own want of power. However, as there have been no discussions on it lately, the Princess still hopes it may blow over, and that some other mission may be found for Canning. At all events it appears a most curious piece of diplomacy to insist upon thrusting upon a Court a man personally obnoxious to the Sovereign and his Minister, and not the best way of preserving harmonious relations or obtaining political advantages. She says, however (and with all her anger she is no bad judge), that Palmerston " est un tres-petit esprit lourd, obstin6," etc., and she is astonished how Lady C. with \\Qrfinesse can be so taken with him. Lady Cowper has since told me that Madame de Lieven has been to blame in all this business, that Palmerston was provoked with her interference, that her temper had got the better of her, and she had thought to carry it with a high hand, having been used to have her own way, and that he had thought both sJie and her Court wanted to be taken down a peg; that she had told Nesselrode she could prevent this appointment, and, what had done more harm than any thing, she had appealed to Grey against Palraerston, and employed 148 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. Durham to make a great clamor about it. All this made Palmerston angry, and determined him to punish her, who he thought had meddled more than she ought, and had made the matter personally embarrassing and disagreeable to him. Last night Lord Grey introduced his coercive measures in an excellent speech, though there are some people who doubt his being able to carry them through the House of Commons. If he can't, he goes of course ; and what next ? The measures are sufficiently strong, it must be owned a consommb of insurrection-gagging Acts, suspension of Habeas Corpus, martial law, and one or two other little hards and sharps. 1 London, February 22d. Dined yesterday with Fortunatus Dwarris, who was counsel to the Board of Health ; one of those dinners that people in that class of society put them- selves in an agony to give, and generally their guests in as great an agony to partake of. There were Goulburn, Sergeant ditto and his wife, Stephen, etc. Goulburn men- tioned a curious thing d propos of slavery. A slave ran away from his estate in Jamaica many years ago, and got to England. He (the man) called at his house when he was not at home, and Goulburn never could afterward find out where he was. He remained in England, however, gaining his live- lihood by some means, till after some years he returned to Jamaica and to the estate, and desired to be employed as a slave again. Stephen, who is one of the great apostles of emancipation, and who resigned a profession worth 3,000 a year at the Bar for a place of 1,500 in the Colonial Office, principally in order to advance that object, owned that he had never known so great a problem nor so difficult a question to settle. His 1 [In the debate on the Address, O'Connell had denounced the coercive measures announced in the Speech from the Throne as " brutal, bloody, and unconstitutional." But the state of Ireland was so dreadful, that it demanded and justified the severest remedies. Lord Grey stated in the House of Lords that, between January 1st and December 31st, 9,000 crimes had been com- mitted : homicides, 242 ; robberies, 1,179 ; burglaries, 401 burnings, 568, and so on. The Bill gave the Lord-Lieutenant power to proclaim disturbed dis- tricts, to substitute court-martials for the ordinary courts of justice, to prohibit meetings, and to punish the distributors of seditious papers. Such were the powers which Lord Wellesley described as more formidable to himself than to the people of Ireland, for the greater part of them were never exercised. The Act produced the desired effect. In a year Ireland was pacified ; and the aban- donment of several of the most important clauses in the Act (contrary to Lord Grey's wishes) was the cause which led to the dissolution of the Ministry in the month of June, 1834.] 1833] THE SLAVERY QUESTION. 149 notion is that compulsory labor may be substituted for slavery, and in some colonies (the new ones, as they are called Demerara, etc.) he thinks it will not be difficult ; in Jamaica he is doubtful, and admits that if this does not answer the slaves will relapse into barbarism, nor is he at all clear that any disorders and evils may not be produced by the effect of desperation on one side and disappointment on the other ; still he does not hesitate to go on, but fully admitting the right of the proprietors to ample compensation, and the duty incumbent on the country to give it. If the sentiments of justice and benevolence with which he is actuated were common to all who profess the same opinions, or if the same sagacity and resource which he possesses were likely to be applied to the practical operation of the scheme, the evils which are dreaded and foreseen might be mitigated and avoided ; but this is very far from, the case, and the oils will, in all probability, more than overbalance the good which humanity aims at effecting, nor is it possible to view the settlement (as it is called, for all changes are settlements nowadays) of this question without a misgiving that it will only produce some other great topic for public agitation, some great interest to be overturned or mighty change to be accomplished. The public appetite for discussion and legislation has been whetted and is insatiable ; the millions of orators and legislators who have sprung up like mushrooms all over the kingdom, the bellowers, the chatterers, the knaves, and the dupes, who make such a universal hubbub, must be fed with fresh victims and sacrifices. The Catholic question was speedily followed by Reform in Parliament, and this has opened a door to any thing. In the mean time the Reformed Parliament has been sitting for a fortnight or so, and begins to manifest its character and prentensions. The first thing that strikes one is its inferiority in point of composition to preceding Houses of Commons, and the presumption, impertinence, and self-sufficiency of the new members. Formerly new members appeared with some modesty and diffidence, and with some appearance of respect for the assembly into which they were admitted ; these fellows behave themselves as if they had taken it by storm, and might riot in all the insolence of victory. There exists no party but that of the Government ; the Irish act in a body under O'Connell to the number of about forty ; the Radicals are scattered up and down without 150 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. a leader, numerous, restless, turbulent, and bold Hume, Cob- bett, and a multitude such as Roebuck, Faithfull, Buckingham, Major Beauclerck, etc. (most of whom have totally failed in point of speaking) bent upon doing all the mischief they can and incessantly active ; the Tories without a head, frightened, angry, and sulky ; Peel without a party, prudent, cautious, and dexterous, playing a deep waiting game of scrutiny and observation. The feelings of these various elements of party, rather than parties, may be thus summed up : The Radicals are confident and sanguine ; the Whigs uneasy ; the Tories desponding ; moderate men, who belong to no party, but sup- port Government, serious, and not without alarm. There is, in fact, enough to justify alarm, for the Government has evi- dently no power over the House of Commons, and though ib is probable that they will scramble through the session with- out sustaining any serious defeat, or being reduced to the ne- cessity of any great sacrifice or compromise, they are conscious of their own want of authority and of that sort of command without which no Government has been hitherto deemed secure. The evil of this is that we are now reduced to the alternative of Lord Grey's Government or none at all ; and should he be defeated on any great measure, he must either abandon the country to its fate, or consent to carry on the Government upon the condition of a virtual transfer of the executive power to the House of Commons. If this comes to pass the game is up, for this House, like animals who have once tasted blood, if it ever exercises such a power as this, and finds a Minister consenting to hold office on such terms, will never rest till it has acquired all the authority of the Long Parliament and reduced that of the Crown to a mere cipher. It is curious, by-the-by, that the example of the Long Parliament in a trivial matter has just been adopted, in the sittings of the House at twelve o'clock for the hearing of petitions. February 27th. Laid up ever since that dinner at Dwar- ris's with the gout. Frederick Fitzclarence has been com- pelled to resign the situation at the Tower which the King gave him ; they found it very probable that the House of Commons would refuse to vote the pay of it a trifle in itself, but indicative of the spirit of the times and the total want of consideration for the King. O'Connell made a speech of such violence at the Trades Union the other day calling the House of Commons six hundred scoundrels that there was a 1833.] THE "TIMES" ARTICLE. 151 great deal of talk about taking it up in Parliament and pro- posing his expulsion, which, however, they have not had the folly to do. The Irish Bill was to come on last night. The sense of insecurity and uneasiness evidently increases ; the Government assumes a high tone, but is not at all certain of its ability to pass the Coercive Bills unaltered, and yesterday there appeared an article in the Times in a style of lofty re- proof and severe admonition, which was no doubt as appalling as it was meant to be. This article made what is called a great sensation ; always struggling, as this paper does, to take the lead of public opinion and watching all its turns and. shifts with perpetual anxiety, it is at once regarded as un- doubted evidence of its direction and dreaded for the influence which its powerful writing and extensive sale have placed in its hands. It is no small homage to the power of the press to see that an article like this makes as much noise as the dec- laration of a powerful Minister or a leader of Opposition could do in either House of Parliament. Yesterday morning the Duke of Wellington came here upon some private business, after discussing which he entered upon the state of the country. I told him my view of the condition of the Government and of the House of Commons, and he said : " You have hit the two points that I have myself always felt so strongly about. I told Lord Grey so long ago, and asked him at the time how he expected to be able to carry on the Government of the country, to which he never could give any answer, except that it would all do very well. However, things are not a bit worse than I always thought they would be. As they are, I mean to support the Government support them in every way. The first thing I have to look to is to keep my house over my head, and the alternative is between this Government and none at all. I am therefore for supporting the Government, but then there is so much passion, and prejudice, and folly, and vindictive feeling, that it is very difficult to get others to do the same. I hear Peel had only fifty people with him the other night on some question, though they say that there are 150 of that party in the House of Commons." He thinks as ill of the whole thing as possible. [While I am writing Poodle Byng is come in, who tells me what happened last night. Althorp made a very bad speech and a wretched statement ; other people spoke, pert and disagreeable, and the debate looked ill till Stanley rose and made one of the finest speeches that [52 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. were ever heard, pounding O'Connell to dust and attacking him for his " six hundred scoundrels," from which he endeav- ored to escape by a miserable and abortive explanation. Stanley seems to have set the whole thing to rights, like a great man.] I told the Duke what Macaulay had said to Denison : " that if he had had to legislate, he would, instead of this Bill, have suspended the laws for five years in Ireland, given the Lord-Lieutenant's proclamation the force of law, and got the Duke of Wellington to go there." He seemed very well pleased at this, and said: " Well, that is the way I governed the provinces on the Garonne in the south of France. I de- sired the mayors to go on administering the law of the land, and when they asked me in whose name criminal suits should be carried on (which were ordinarily in the name of the Em- peror), and if they should be in the name of the King, I said no, that we were treating with the Emperor at Chatillon, and if they put forth the King they would be in a scrape ; neither should it be in the Emperor's name, because we did not ac- knowledge him, but in that of the Allied Powers." In this I think he was wrong (par parenth&se), for Napoleon was ac- knowledged by all the Powers but us, and we were treating with him, and if he permitted the civil authorities to admin- ister the law as usual, he should have allowed them to ad- minister it in the usual legal form. Their civil administra- tion could not affect any political questions in the slightest degree. March &th. Sir Thomas Hardy told my brother he thought the King would certainly go mad ; he was so excitable, loath- ing his Ministers, particularly Graham, and dying to go to war. He has some of the cunning of madmen, who fawn upon their keepers when looked at by them, and grin at them and shake their fists when their backs are turned ; so he is extrav- agantly civil when his Ministers are with him, and exhibits every mark of aversion when they are away. Peel made an admirable speech on Friday night; they expect a great ma- jority. March 13th. The second reading of the Coercive Bill has passed by a great majority after a dull debate, and the other night Althorp deeply offended Peel and the Tories by hurry- ing on the Church Reform Bill. It was to be printed one day, and the second reading taken two days after. They asked a delay of four or five days, and Althorp refused. He did very 1833.] BROUGHAM'S PRIVY COUNCIL BILL. 153 wrong ; he is either bullied or cajoled into almost any thing the Radicals want of this sort, but he is stout against the Tories. The delay is required by decency, but it ought to have been enough that Peel and the others asked it for him to concede it. He ought to soften the asperities which must long survive the battles of last year as much as he can, and avoid shocking what he may consider the prejudices of the vanquished party. It was worse than impolitic ; it was stupid and uncourteous, and missing an opportunity of being gracious which he ought to have seized. I have been again worried with a new edition of Brougham's Privy Council Bill, 1 and the difficulty of getting Lord Lansdowne to do any thing. This is the way Brougham goes to work : He resolves to alter ; he does not condescend to communicate with the Privy Council, or to consult those who are conversant with its practice, or who have been in the habit of administering justice there ; he has not time to think of it himself; he tosses to one of his numerous employes (for he has people without end working for him) his rough notion, and tells him to put it into shape ; the satellite goes to work, always keeping in view the increase of the dignity, authority, and patronage of the Chancellor, and careless of the Council, the King, and the usages of the Constitution. What is called the Sill is then, for form's sake, handed over to the Lord President (Lord Lansdowne), with injunctions to let nobody see it, as if he was conspiring against the Council, secure that if he meets with no resistance but what is engendered by Lord Lansdowne's opposition he may enact any thing he pleases. Lord Lansdowne sends it to me (a long Act of Par- liament), with a request that I will return it " by the bearer" with any remarks I may have to make on it. The end is that I am left, quantum impar, to fight this with the Chancellor. March 15th. Ministerial changes are going on ; Durham is out, and to be made an earl. Yesterday his elevation was known, and it is amusing enough that the same day an inci- dent should have occurred in the House of Lords exhibiting 1 [This was the Bill for the establishment of a Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which eventually became the Act 3 and 4, Will. IV., cap. 41, and definitively created that tribunal. Mr. Greville objected to several of the provisions of tne measure, because he regarded them as an unnecessary inter- ference of Parliament with the authority of the Sovereign in his Council. The Sovereign might undoubtedly have created a Committee of the judicial mem- bers of the Privy Council ; but the Bill went further, and, by extending and denning the power of the Judicial Committee as a Court of Appeal, it undoubt- edly proved a very useful and important measure.] 154 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAT. XX. in a good light the worthiness of the subject, and how much he merits it at the hands of Lord Grey. March %Qth. Lord Goderich is Privy Seal, 1 and Stanley Secretary for the Colonies, after much trouble. Last year a positive pledge was given to Stanley that he should not meet Parliament again but as Secretary of State. It was not, however, specified who was to make room for him. The Cabinet settled that it should be Goderich, when Durham went out, and Palmerston was charged with the office of breaking it to Goderich with the offer of an earldom by way of gilding the pill, but Goderich would not hear of it, said it Avould look like running away from the Slave question, and, in short, flatly refused. Stanley threatened to resign if he was not promoted, and in this dilemma the Duke of Richmond (who was going to Windsor) persuaded Lord Grey to let him lay the case before the King, and inform him that if this ar- rangement was not made the Government must be broken up. He did so, and the King acquiesced, and at the same time a similar representation was made to Goderich, who after a desperate resistance knocked under, and said that if it must be so he would yield, but only to the King's express command. March 30th. Saw Madame de Lieven yesterday, who told me the story of the late business at St. Petersburg. The Sultan after the battle of Koniah applied to the Emperor of Russia for succor, who ordered twelve sail-of-the-line and 30,000 men to go to the protection of Constantinople. At the same time General Mouravieff was sent to Constantinople, with orders to proceed to Alexandria and inform the Pasha that the Emperor could only look upon him as a rebel, that he would not suffer the Ottoman Empire to be overturned, and that if Ibrahim advanced " il aurait affaire a 1'Empereur de Russie." Orders were accordingly sent to Ibrahim to suspend his operations, and Mouravieff returned to Constan- tinople. Upon the demand for succor by the Sultan, and the Emperor's compliance with it, notification was made to all the Courts, and instructions were given to the Russian commanders to retire as soon as the Sultan should have no further occasion for their aid. So satisfactory was this that Lord Grey expressed the greatest anxiety that the 1 [Down to this time Lord Goderich had been Secretary for the Colonial Department in Lord Grey's Government.] 1833.] THE RUSSIAN FLEET. 155 Russian armament should arrive in time to arrest the prog- ress of the Egyptians. They did arrive at least the fleet did and dropped anchor under the Seraglio. At this junc- ture arrived Admiral Roussin in a ship-of-war, and as Embassador of France. He immediately informed the Sul- tan that the interposition of Russia was superfluous, that he would undertake to conclude a treaty, and to answer for the acquiescence of the Pasha, and he sent a project, one article of which was that the Russian fleet should instantly withdraw. To this proposition the Sultan acceded, and without waiting for the Pasha's confirmation, he notified to the Russian Embassador that he had no longer any wish for the presence of the Russian fleet, and they accordingly weighed anchor and sailed away. This is all that is known of the transaction, but Madame de Lieven was loud and vehe- ment about the insolence of Roussin ; she said the Emperor would demand " une satisfaction eclatante " " le rappel et le d^saveu de 1'amiral Roussin," and that if this should be re- fused, the Russian Embassador would be ordered to quit Paris. She waits with great anxiety to see the end of the business, for on it appears to depend the question of peace or war with France. She said that the day before Namik went away intelligence of this event arrived, which Palmerston commu- nicated to him. The Turk heard it very quietly, and then only said, " Et ou 6tait 1'Angleterre dans tout ceci ? " I have heard to-night the Goderich version of his late translation. He had agreed to remain in the Cabinet with- out an office, but Lord Grey insisted on his taking the Privy Seal, and threatened to resign if he did not ; he was at last bullied into acquiescence, and when he had his audience of the King, his Majesty offered him any thing he had to give. He said he had made the sacrifice to please and serve him, and would take nothing. An earldom he refused ; the Bath ditto ; the Garter that he said he would take. It was then discovered that he was not of rank sufficient, when he said he would take the earldom in order to qualify himself for the Garter, and so it stands. There is no Garter vacant, and one supernumerary already, and Castlereagh and Lord North, viscounts, and Sir Robert Walpole (all Commoners) had blue ribbons ! London, April 28th. Came to town last night from New- market, and the intervening week at Buckenham. Nothing but racing and hawking ; a wretched life that is, a life ot J56 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. amusement, but very unprofitable and discreditable to any- body who can do better things. Of politics I know nothing during this interval, but on coming to town find all in con- fusion, and everybody gaping for " what next." Government was beaten on the Malt Tax, and Lord Grey proposed to re- sign ; the Tories are glad that the Government is embarrassed, no matter how, the supporters sorry and repentant, so that it is very clear the matter will be patched up ; they won't budge, and will probably get more regular support for the future. Perhaps Althorp will go, but where to find a Chancellor of the Exchequer will be the difficulty. Poulett Thomson wants it, but they will not dare commit the finances of the country to him, so we go scrambling on, " clu jour la journee." Nobody knows what is to happen next no con- fidence, no security, great talk of a property tax, to which, I suppose, after wriggling about, we shall at last come. May 2d. The Government affair is patched up, and nobody goes but Hobhouse, 1 who thought fit to resign both his seat in Parliament and his office, thereby creating another great embarrassment, which can only be removed by his reelection and reappointment, and then, what a farce ! There were two great majorities in the House of Commons the night before last. The King was all graciousness and favor to Lord Grey, and so they are set up again, and fancy themselves stronger than before. But although everybody (except the fools) wished them to be reestablished, it was evident that this was only because, at this moment, the time is not ripe for a change, for they inspired no interest either individually or collectively. It was easy to see that the Government has no consideration, and that people are getting tired of their blunders and embarrassments, and begin to turn their eyes to those who are more capable, and know something of the business of Government to Peel and to Stanley, for the former, in spite of his cold, calculating selfish- ness and duplicity, is the ablest man there is, and we must take what we can get, and accept services without troubling ourselves about the motives of those who supply them. It must come to this conclusion unless the reign of Radicalism and the authority of the Humes " et hoc genus omne " is to be [Sir John HoTphouse, who had consented to take the Irish Secretaryship a April, 1871 (No. 272), an account of this transaction.] 1833.] THE DRAX LUNACY CASE. 157 substituted. That the present Government loses ground every day is perfectly clear, and at the same time that the fruits of the Reform Bill become more lamentably apparent. The scrape Government lately got into was owing partly to the votes that people were obliged to give to curry favor with their con- stituents, and partly to negligence and carelessness in whip- ping in. Hobhouse's resignation is on account of his pledges, and because he is forced to pledge himself on the hustings he finds himself placed in a situation which compels him to save his honor and consistency by embarrassing the public service to the greatest degree at a very critical time. Men go on asking one another how is it possible the country can be gov- erned in this manner, and nobody can reply. Since I have been out of town the appeal against the Chan- cellor's judgment in the Drax (lunacy) case has been heard at the Privy Council, and will be finally determined on Saturday. 1 Two years have nearly elapsed since that case was lodged, and the Chancellor has always found pretexts for getting the hearing postponed ; at length the parties became so clamorous that it was necessary to fix a day. He then endeavored to pack a committee, and spoke to Lord Lansdowne about sum- moning Lord Plunket, Lord Lyndhurst, and the Vice-Chancel- lor, but Leach, who hates Brougham, and is particularly net- tled at his having reversed some of his judgments, bestirred himself, and represented to Lord Lansdowne the absolute necessity (in a case of such consequence) of having all the ex-Chancellors to hear it. Plunket was gone to Ireland, so the Committee consisted of the Lord President, the Chancel- lor, Vice-Chancellor, Master of the Rolls, Lords Eldon, Lynd- hurst, and Manners. They say the argument was very able Sugden in support of the Chancellor's judgment, and Pern ber- ton against it ; they expect it will be reversed. Leach, fool- ishly enough, by question and observation, exhibited a strong 1 [An appeal lies to the King in Council from orders of the Lord Chancellor m lunacy, but there are very few examples of the prosecution of appeals of this nature. This case of Drax vs. Grosvenor, which is reported in " Knapp's Privy Council Cases," was therefore one of great pecularity. The Bill constitutin*^ the Judicial Committee had not at this time become law ; this appeal was there- fore heard by a Committee of the Lords of the Council, to which any member of the Privy Council might be summoned. Care was taken that the highest legal authorities should be present. It was the last time Lord Eldon sat in a court of law. Lord Brougham, the Chancellor, sat on the Committee, although the appeal was brought from an order made by himself: this practice had not been uncommon in the House of Lords, but it had not been the practice of thu 1'rivy Council, where indeed the case could seldom arise.] 158 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Ciur. XX. bias against the Chancellor, who nevxr said a word, and ap- peared very calm and easy, but with rage in his heart, for he was indignant at these Lords having been summoned (as his secretary told Lennard J ), and said " he was sure it was all Leach's doing." What a man ! how wonderful ! how despi- cable, carrying into the administration of justice the petty van- ity, personal jealousy and pique, and shuffling arts that would reflect ridicule and odium on a silly woman of fashion. He has smuggled his Privy Council Bill through the House of Lords without the slighest notice or remark. May 16th. On coming to town found the Westminster election just over, and Evans returned. They would not hear Hobhouse, and pelted him and his friends. No Secretary for Ireland is to be found, for the man must be competent, and sure of reelection. Few are the first, and none the last. Hobhouse is generally censured for having put Government in this great difficulty, but the Tories see it all with a sort of grim satisfaction and point at it as a happy illustration of the benefits of the Reform Bill. I point, too, but I don't rejoice. At the same time with Hobhouse's defeat came forth Stanley's plan for slave emancipation, which produced rage and fury among both West Indians and Saints, being too much for the former and not enough for the latter, and both announced their opposition to it. Practical men declare that it is impossible to carry it into effect, and that the details are unmanageable. Even the Government adherents do not pretend that it is a good and safe measure, but the best that could be hit off under the circumstances; these circumstances being the old motive, "the people will have it." The night before last Stanley developed his plan in the House of Commons in a speech of three hours, which was very eloquent, but rather disappointing. He handled the preliminary topics of horrors of slavery and colonial obstinacy and misconduct with all the vigor and success that might have been expected, but when he came to his measure he failed to show how it was to be put in operation and to work. The peroration and eulogy on Wilberforce were very brilliant. Howick had previously announced his intention of opposing Stanley, and accordingly he did so in a speech of consider- able vehemence which lasted two hours. He was not, how- ever, well received ; his father and mother had in vain endeavored to divert him from his resolution ; but though J [John Barrett Lennard, Esq., was Chief Clerk of the Council Office.] 183'j.] A SECRETARY FOR IRELA.ND. 159 they say his speech was clever, he has damaged himself by it. His plan is immediate emancipation. 1 AVhile such is the state of things here enormous interests under discussion, great disquietude and alarm, no feeling of security, no confidence in the Government, and a Parliament that inspires fear rather than hope matters abroad seem to be no better managed than they are at home. It is remark- able that the business in the East has escaped with so little, animadversion, for there never was a fairer object of attack. While France has been vaporing, and we have been doing nothing at all, Russia has established her own influence in Turkey, and made herself virtually mistress of the Ottoman Empire. At a time when our interests required that we should be well represented, and powerfully supported, we had neither an Embassador nor a fleet in the Mediterranean; and because Lord Ponsonby is Lord Grey's brother-in-law he has been able with impunity to dawdle on months after months at Naples for his pleasure, and leave affairs at Constan- tinople to be managed or mismanaged by a Charge 1 d' Affaires who is altogether incompetent. May 19th. They have found a Secretary for Ireland in the person of Littleton,* which shows to what shifts they are put. He is rich, which is his only qualification, being neither very able nor very popular. The West India ques- tion is postponed. The Duke of Wellington told me that he thought it would pass away for this time, and that all parties would be convinced of the impracticability of any of the plans now mooted. I said that nothing could do away the mis- chief that had been done by broaching it. He thought " the mischief might be avoided;" but then these people do noth- ing to avoid any mischief. I was marvelously struck (we rode together through St. James's Park) with the profound re- 1 [The result proved that Lord Howick was right. The apprenticeship sys- tem proposed by Lord Stanley was carried, but failed in execution, and was eventually abandoned.] [The Rt. Hon. E. J. Littleton, M. P. for Staffordshire, and afterward first Lord Uatherton. It was Lord John Russell who advised Lord Grey to make Littleton Irish Secretary. He told me so in May, 1871, but added, " I think I made a mis- take." The appointment was wholly unsolicited and unexpected by Mr. Lit- tleton himself, who happened to be laid up at the time by an accident. On the receipt of the letter from Lord Grey offering him the Secretaryship of Ireland, and requesting him to take it, Mr. Littleton consulted Mr. Fazakerly, who was of opinion that he ought to accept the offer. This therefore he did, though not. as I know from his own journals, without great diffidence and hesitation ; and ho intimated to Lord Grey that he would only retain his office until some other mnn could be found to accept it.] [60 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. spect with which the Duke was treated, everybody we met taking off their hats to him, everybody in the park rising as he went by, and every appearance of his inspiring great reverence. I like this symptom, and it is the more remark- able because it is not popularity, but a much higher feeling toward him. He has forfeited his popularity more than once; he has taken a line in politics directly counter to the popular bias ; but though in moments of excitement he is attacked and vilified (and his broken windows, which I wish he would mend, still preserve a record of the violence of the mob), when the excitement subsides there is always a return- ing sentiment of admiration and respect for him, kept alive by the recollection of his splendid actions, such as no one else ever inspired. Much, too, as I have regretted and cen- sured the enormous errors of his political career (at times), I believe that this sentiment is in a great degree produced by the justice which is done to his political character, sometimes mistaken, but always high-minded and patriotic, and never mean, false, or selfish. If he has aimed at power, and over- rated his own capacity for wielding it, it has been with the purest intentions and the most conscientious views. I believe firmly that no man had ever at heart to a greater degree the honor and glory of his country ; and hereafter, when justice will be done to his memory, and his character and conduct be scanned with impartial eyes, if his capacity for govern- ment appears unequal to the exigencies of the times in which he was placed at the head of affairs, the purity of his motives and the noble character of his ambition will be amply ac- knowledged. The Duke of Orleans is here, and very well received by the Court and the world. He is good-looking, dull, has good manners and little conversation, goes everywhere, and dances all night. At the ball at Court the Queen waltzed with the two Dukes of Orleans and Brunswick. Peel compelled old Cobbett to bring on his motion forget- ting him erased from the Privy Council, which Cobbett wished to shirk from. He gave him a terrible dressing, and it all went off for Peel in the most flattering way. He gains every day more authority- and influence in the House of Commons, It must end in Peel and Stanley, unless every thing ends. May 27#A. All last week at Epsom, and now, thank God, these races are over. I have had all the trouble and excite- ment and worry, and have neither won nor lost; nothing but 1833.] LCRD STANLEY AT HOME. 161 the hope of gain would induce me to go through this demor- alizing drudgery, which I am conscious reduces me to the level of all that is most disreputable and despicable, for my thoughts are eternally absorbed by it. Jockeys, trainers, and blacklegs, are my companions, and it is like dram-drinking; having once entered upon it I cannot leave it off, though I am disgusted with the occupation all the time. Let no man who lias no need, who is not in danger of losing all he has, and is not obliged to grasp at every chance, make a book on the Derby. While the fever it excites is raging, and the odds are varying, I can neither read, nor write, nor occupy myself with any thing else. I went to the Oaks on. Wednesday, where Lord Stanley kept house for the first, and probably (as the house is for sale) for the last time. It is a very agreeable place, with an odd sort of house built at different times and by different people ; but the outside is covered with ivy and creepers, which is pretty, and there are two good living-rooms in it. Besides this, there is an abundance of grass and shade ; it has been for thirty or forty years the resort of all our old jockeys, and is now occupied by the sporting portion of the Government. We had Lord Grey and his daughter, Duke and Duchess of Richmond, Lord and Lady Errol, Al thorp, Gra- ham, Uxbridge, Charles Grey, Duke of Grafton, Lichfield, and Stanley's brothers. It passed off very well racing all the morning, an excellent dinner, and whist and blind hookey in the evening. It was curious to see Stanley. Who would believe they beheld the orator and statesman, only second, if second, to Peel in the House of Commons, and on whom the destiny of the country perhaps depends ? There he was as if he had no thoughts but for the turf, full of the horses, interest in the lottery, eager, blunt, noisy, good-humored, "has meditans nugas et tottts in illis ;" at night equally devoted to the play, as if his fortune depended on it. Thus can a man relax whose existence is devoted to great objects and serious thoughts. I had considerable hopes of winning the Derby, but was beaten easily, my horse not being good. An odd cir- cumstance occurred to me before the race. Payne told me in strict confidence that a man who could not appear on account of his debts, and who had been much connected with turf robberies, came to him, and entreated him to take the odds for him to 1,000 about a horse for the Derby, and deposited a note in his hand for the purpose. He told him half the horses were made safe, and it was arranged this one was to L63 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. win. After much delay, and having got his promise to lay out the money, he told him it was my horse. He did back the horse for the man for 700, but the same person told him if my horse could not win Dangerous would, and he backed the latter likewise for 100, by which his friend was saved, and won 800. He did not tell me his name, nor any thing more, except that his object was, if he had won, to pay his creditors, and he had authorized Payne to retain the money, if he won it, for that purpose. We heard, while at the Oaks, that M. Dedel had signed the convention between France, England, and Holland, on which all the funds rose. The King of Holland's ratification was still to be got, and many people will not believe in that till they see it. June 3d. The Government are in high spirits. The Saints have given in their adhesion to Stanley's plan, and they expect to carry the West India question. The Bank meas- ure has satisfied the directors, and most people, except Peel. The Duke of Wellington told me he was very well satisfied, but that they had intended to make better terms with the Bank, and he thought they should have done so. Melbourne says, " Now that we are as much hated as they were, we shall stay in forever." As I came into town (having come by the steamboat from Margate very luxuriously) on Saturday I found a final meet- ing at the Council Office to dispose of the lunacy case. It was so late when Home finished his reply that I thought there was no chance of any discussion, and I did not go in ; but I met the Master of the Rolls afterward, who told me they had delivered their opinions, Lord Eldon cautiously, he himself " broadly," which I will be bound he did (for he hates Brougham), and that, though no judgment had been yet given, the Chancellor's decree would be reversed ; so that, after all Brougham's wincing and wriggling, to this he has been forced to submit at last. London, June llth. At a place called Buckhurst all last week for the Ascot races ; a party at Lichfield's, racing all the morning, then eating and drinking, and play at night. I may say, with more truth than anybody, "Video meliora proboque, deteriora sequor." The weather was charming, the course crowded, the King received decently. His household is now so ill managed that his grooms were drunk every day, and one man (who was sober) was killed going home 1833.] A GOVERNMENT DEFEAT. 163 from the races. Goodwin told me nobody exercised any authority, and the consequence was that the household all ran riot. , The first day of the races arrived the news that the Duke of Wellington, after making a strong muster, had beaten the Government in the House of Lords on the question of Portuguese neutrality and Dom Miguel, that Lord Grey had announced that he considered it a vote of censure, and threw out a sort of threat of resigning. He and Brougham (after a Cabinet) went down to the King. The King was very much annoyed at this fresh dilemma into which the Tories had brought him, and consented to whatever Lord Grey required. In the mean time the House of Commons flew to arms, and Colonel Dawes gave notice of a motion of confidence in Ministers upon their foreign policy. This was carried by an immense majority after a weak debate, in which some very cowardly menaces were thrown out against the Bishops, and this settled the question. Ministers did not resign, no Peers were made, and every thing goes on as before. It has been, however, a disastrous business. How the Duke of Welling- ton could take this course after the conversation I had with him in this room, when he told me he would support the Government because he wished it to be strong, I can't con- ceive. At all events he seems resolved that his Parlia- mentary victories should be as injurious as his military ones were glorious to his country. Some of his friends say that he was provoked by Lord Grey's supercilious answer to him the other day, when he said he knew nothing of what was going on but from what he read in the newspapers, others that he " feels so very strongly " about Portugal, others that he cannot manage the Tories, and that they were determined to fight ; in short, that he has not the same author- ity as leader of a party that he had as general of an army, for nobody would have forced him to fight the battle of Salamanca or Vittoria if he had not fancied it himself. The effect, how- ever, has been this : the House of Lords has had a rap on the knuckles from the King, their legislative functions are prac- tically in abeyance, and his Majesty is more tied than ever to his Ministers. The House of Lords is paralyzed ; it exists upon sufferance, and cannot venture to throw out or materially alter any Bill (such as the India, Bank, Negro, Church Re- form, etc.) which may come up to it without the certainty of being instantly swamped, and the measures, however obnox- 1(54 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. ious, crammed down its throat. This Government has lost ground in public opinion, they were daily falling lower, and t-hese predestinated idiots come and bolster them up just when they most want it. Tavistock acknowledged to me that they were unpopular, and that this freak had been of vast service to them ; consequently they are all elated to the greatest degree. The Tories are sulky and crestfallen ; moderate men are vexed, disappointed, grieved ; and the Radicals stand grin- ning by, chuckling at the sight of the Conservatives (at least those who so call themselves, and those who must be so really] cutting each others' throats. On Saturday, the day after I came back, I found a final meeting at the Council Office on the lunacy case, the appeal of Grosvenor against Drax. There were Lord Lansdowne, the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, Master of the Rolls, Lord Manners, Lord Eldon, and Lord Lyndhurst. The rule is that the President of the Council collects the opinions and votes, beginning with the junior Privy Councilor. This was the Chancellor, 1 who made a sort of apology for his judgment, stating that he had made the order just after two or three very flagrant cases of a similar description had been brought under his notice, and then he went into this case, and en- deavored to show that there was fraud (and intentional fraud) on the part of the Grosvenors, and he maintained, without insisting on, and very mildly, his own former view of the case. Leach then made a speech strongly against the judgment, and Lord Eldon made a longish speech, very clear, and very decided against it, interlarded with profes- sions of his " sincere " respect for the person who delivered the judgment. The Chancellor did not reply to Lord Eldon, but put some questions some hypothetical, and some upon parts of the case itself which, together with some remarks, brought on a discussion between him and Leach, in which the latter ended by lashing himself into a rage. " My Lord," said he to the Chancellor, " we talk too much, and we don't stick to the point." Brougham put on one of his scornful smiles, and, in reply to something (I forget what) that the Vice- Chancellor said, he dropped in his sarcastic tone that he would do so- and so, "if his Honor would permit." For a moment I 1 [This must be a mistake. The Chancellor takes rank in the Privy Council after the Lord President and before every one else. Lord Brougham was junior Privy Councilor in mere seniority, but "his office gave him rank over others present. His opinion was probably taken first out of compliment to him, as ho bad made the order under review.] 1833.] TEMPLARS' DINNER TO ELDON. 10o thought there would be a breeze, but it ended without any vote, in the adoption of a form of reversal suggested by Lord Eldon, which left it to the option of the respondent to insti- tute other proceedings if he should think fit. Afterward all was harmony. Eldon seemed tolerably fresh, feeble, but clear and collected. He was in spirits about the dinner which had just been given him by the Templars, at which he was re- ceived with extraordinary honors. He said he hoped never to be called to the Council Board again, and this was probably the last occasion on which he will have to appear in a judicial capacity. It is remarkable that his last act should be to re- verse a judgment of Brougham's, Brougham being Chancellor and himself nothing. I could not help looking with something like emotion at this extraordinary old man, and reflecting upon his long and laborious career, which is terminating gen- tly, and by almost insensible gradations, in a manner more congenial to a philosophic mind than to an ambitious spirit. As a statesman and a politician he has survived and wit- nessed the ruin of his party and the subversion of those particular institutions to which he tenaciously clung, and which his prejudices or his wisdom made him think indispen- sable to the existence of the Constitution. As an individual his destiny has been happier, for he has preserved the strength of his body and the vigor of his mind far beyond the ordinary period allotted to man, he is adorned with honors and blessed with wealth sufficient for the aspirations of pride and avarice, and while the lapse of time has silenced the voice of envy, and retirement from office has mitigated the rancor of politi- cal hostility, his great and acknowledged authority as a lumi- nary of the law shines forth with purer lustre. He enjoys, perhaps, the most perfect reward of his life of labor and study a foretaste of posthumous honor and fame. He has lived to see his name venerated and his decisions received with profound respect, and he is departing in peace, with the proud assurance that he has left to his country a mighty legacy of law and secured to himself an imperishable fame. June 15th. The day before yesterday I had occasion to see the Duke of Wellington about the business in which we are joint trustees, and when we had done I said, "Well, that business in the House of Lords turned out ill the other day." " No ; do you think so ? " he said, and then he went into the matter. He said that lie was compelled to make the motion by the answer Lord Grey gave to his question a few nights 166 REIGN OF WILLIAM 17. [CHAP. XX. before; that his party in the House of Lords would not be satisfied without dividing they had been impatient to attack the Government, and were not to be restrained ; that on the question itself they were right ; that so far from his doing harm to the Government, if they availed themselves wisely of the defeat they might turn it to account in the House of Commons, and so far it was of use to them, as it afforded a convincing proof to their supporters that the House of Lords might be depended upon for good purposes, and they might demand of their supporters in the other House that they should enable them to carry good measures, and they keep the House of Commons in harmony with the House of Lords. He said the Government would make no Peers, and that they could not ; that the Tories were by no means frightened or disheartened, and meant to take the first opportunity of showing fight again ; in short, he seemed not dissatisfied with what had already occurred, and resolved to pursue the same course. He said the Tories were indignant at the idea of being compelled to keep quiet, and that if they were to be swamped the sooner it was done the better, and that they would not give up their right to deal with any question they thought fit from any motive of expediency whatever. I don't know what to make of the Duke and his conduct. The Catholic question and the Corn Laws and Canning rise up before me, and make me doubt whether he is so pure in his views and so free from vindictive feelings as I thought and hoped he was. When Lords Grey and Brougham went down to the King after the defeat, they did not talk of Peers, and only proposed the short answer to the Lords, to which he consented at once. His Majesty was very indignant with the Duke, and said it was the second time he had got him into a scrape, he had made a fool of him last year, and now wanted to do the same thing again. Some pretend that all this indignation is simulated ; the man is, I believe, more foolish than false. June 19ZA. The King dined with the Duke at his Water- loo dinner yesterday, which does not look as if he had been so very angry with him as the Government people say. The Duke had his windows mended for the occasion, whether in honor of his Majesty or in consequence of H. B.'s caricature I don't know. I had a long conversation with Sir Willoughby Cotton on Sunday about Jamaica affairs. He is Command er-in- 1833.] AN IMPRACTICABLE PLAN. 167 Chief, just come home, and just going out again. He told me what he had said to Stanley, which was to this effect : that the compensation would be esteemed munificent, greater by far than they had expected ; that they had looked for a Joan of fifteen millions at two per cent, interest, but that the plan would be impracticable, and that sugar could not be cul- tivated after slavery ceased; that the slave would never un- derstand the sytsem of modified servitude by which he was to be nominally free and actually kept to labor, and that he would rebel against the magistrate who tried to force him to work more fiercely than against his master ; that the magistrate would never be able to persuade the slaves in their new char- acter of apprentices to work as heretofore, and the military who would be called in to assist them could do nothing. He asked Stanley if he intended, when the military were called in, that they should fire on or bayonet the refractory appren- tices. He said no, they were to exhort them. He gave him to understand that in his opinion they could do nothing, and that the more the soldiers exhorted the more the slaves would not work. "With regard to my own particular case he was rather encouraging than not, thought they would not molest me any more, 1 that the Assembly might try and get me out, but that the Council considered it matter of loyalty to the King not to force out the Clerk of his Privy Council, but that if any thing more was said about it, and I went out to Jamaica, I might be sure of getting leave again in a month or six weeks. June 26th. This morning at six saw my mother and Henry start for the steamboat which is to take them abroad. I wish I was going with them, and was destined once more to see Rome and Naples, which I fear will never be. Last week was marked by a division in the House of Commons which made a great noise. It was on that clause of the Irish Church Bill which declared that the surplus should be appropriated by Parliament, and Stanley thought fit to leave out the clause. The Tories supported him; the Radicals and many of the "Whigs Abercromby and C. Russell among the num- ber opposed him. The minority was strong, 148, but the fury it excited among many of the friends of Government is 1 [This refers to Mr. Greville's holding the office of Secretary of the Island of Jamaica with permanent leave of absence. The work of the office was done by a deputy, who was paid by a share of the emoluments which were in the shape of tees.] 1G8 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XX. incredible, and the Tories were very triumphant without being at all conciliated. The Speaker said lie should not be sur- prised to see the Bill thrown out by the junction of the Tories and Radicals on the third reading, which is not likely, and the suppression of this clause, which after all leaves the matter just as it was, will probably carry it through the House of Lords. It is, however, very questionable whether they were right in withdrawing it, and Tavistock told me that though he thought it was right it was ill done, and had given great offense. Somehow or other Stanley, with all his talents, makes a mess of every thing, but this comes of being (what the violent Whigs suspect him of being) half a Tory. Meas- ures are concocted upon ultra principles in the Cabinet, and then as his influence is exerted, and his wishes are obliged to be consulted, they are modified and altered, and this gives a character of vacillation to the conduct of the Government, and exhibits a degree of weakness and infirmity of purpose which prevents their being strong or popular or respectable. No- body, however; can say that they are obstinate, for they are eternally giving way to somebody. In the House of Lords there was a sharp skirmish between Brougham and Lynd- hurst, and high Parliamentary words passed between these " noble friends " on the Local Courts Bill. The Tories did not go down to support Lyndhurst, which provoked him, and Brougham was nettled by his and old Eldon's attacks on the Bill. There is great talk of a letter which the King is said to have written to the bishops that is, to the Archbishop for the edification of the episcopal bench. It is hardly credible that he and Taylor should have been guilty of this folly, after the letter which they wrote to the Peers a year and a half ago, and the stir that it made. I have got from Sir Henry Lushington Monk Lewis's journals and his two voyages to the West Indies (one of which I read at Naples), with liberty to publish them, which I mean to do if I can get money enough for him. He says Murray offered him 500 for the manuscripts some years ago. I doubt getting so much now, but they are uncommonly amusing, and it is the right moment for publishing them now that people are fall of interest about the West India question. I was very well amused last week at the bazaar in Hanover Square, when a sale was held on four successive days by the fine ladies for the benefit of the foreigners in distress. It was 1833.] BAZAAR FOR DISTRESSED FOREIGNERS. 169 like a masquerade without masks, for everybody : men, wom- en, and children roved about where they would, everybody talking to everybody, and vast familiarity established between perfect strangers under the guise of barter. The Queen's stall was held by Ladies Howe and Denbigh, with her three prettiest maids of honor, Miss Bagot dressed like a soubrette and looking like an angel. They sold all sorts of trash at enormous prices, and made, I believe, four or five thousand pounds. I went on Monday to hear Lushington speak in the cause of Swift and Kelly. He spoke for three hours an ex- cellent speech. I sat by Mr. Swift all the time ; he is not ill- looking, but I should think vulgar, and I'm sure impudent, for the more Lushington abused him the more he laughed. June 28th. The King did write to the Archbishop of Can- terbury a severe reproof to be communicated to the bishops for having voted against his Government upon a question purely political (the Portuguese), in which the interests of the Church were in no way concerned. He sent a copy of the letter to Lord Grey, and Brougham told Sefton and Wharn- cliffe the contents, both of whom told me. It is remarkable that nothing has been said upon the subject in the House of Lords. The Archbishop, the most timid of mankind, had the prudence (I am told) to abstain from communicating the letter to the bishops, and held a long consultation with the Arch- bishop of York as to the mode of dealing with this puzzling document. If he had communicated it, he would as a Privy Councillor have been responsible for it, but what answer he made to the King I know not. Never was there such a pro- ceeding, so unconstitutional, so foolish ; but his Ministers do not seem to mind it, and are rather elated at such a signal proof of his disposition to support them. I think, as far as being a discouragement to the Tories, and putting an end to their notion that he is hankering after them, it may be of use, and it is probably true that he does not wish for a change, but on the contrary dreads it. He naturally dreads whatever is likely to raise a storm about his ears and interrupt his repose. Lyndhurst is in such a rage at his defeat in the House of Lords on the Local Courts Bill that he swore at first he would never come there again. What he said that " if they had considered it a party question the result would have been very different," which Brougham unaccountably took for a threat against the Government was leveled at his own Tory friends for not supporting him. On the third reading they mean to 30 170 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Cn^r. XXF. have another fight about it. I understand the lawyers that the Bill is very objectionable, and calculated to degrade the profession. I sat by Talleyrand at dinner the day before yes- terday, who told me a good deal about Mirabeau, but as he had a bad cold, in addition to his usual mode of pumping up his words from the bottomest pit of his stomach, it was next to impossible to understand him. He said Mirabeau was really intimate with three people only himself, Narbonne, and Lau/un that Auguste d'Aremberg was the negotiator of the Court and medium of its communications with Mirabeau ; that he had found (during the provisional Government) a re- ceipt of Mirabeau's for a million, which he had given to Louis XVIII. CHAPTER XXI. Dinner at Greenwich Monk Lewis The King's Letter Lord Althorp's Finance Salutes to the Eoyal Family Death of Lord Dover His Character Lyndhurst and Brougham on the Local Courts Bill Charles Napier captures the Miguelite Fleet The Irish Church Bill The Duke of Wellington and the Bonapartes Blount's Preaching Sir Robert Peel on Political Unions Mr. George Villiers appointed to Madrid Duke of Richmond Suspension Clause in Irish Church Bill Apprenticeship Clause in West India Bill State of House of Commons Lucien and Joseph Bonaparte Lord Plunket Denis Lemarchant Brougham and Sugden Pirncess Lieven Anecdotes of tho Emperor Nicholas Affairs of Portugal Dom Miguel at Strathfieldsaye Prorogation of Parliament Results of the Reform Bill. June 2Qth. I am going, if not too lazy, to note down the every-day nothings of my life, and see what it looks like. We dined yesterday at Greenwich, the dinner given by Sefton, who took the whole party in his omnibus, and his great open carrriage ; Talleyrand, Madame de Dino, Standish, Neumann, and the Molyneux family ; dined in a room called " the Apollo " at the Crown and Sceptre. I thought we should never get Talleyrand up two narrow perpendicular staircases, but he sidles and wriggles himself somehow into every place he pleases. A capital dinner, tolerably pleasant, and a divine evening. Went afterward to the " Travelers," and played at whist, and read the new edition of " Horace Walpole's Letters to Sir Horace Mann." There is something I don't like in his style ; his letters don't amuse me so much as they ought to do. A letter this morning from Sir Henry Lushington about Monk Lewis. He is rather averse to a biographical sketch, because he thinks a true account of his life and character 1833.] BELLINI'S "NORMA." 171 would not do him credit, and adds a sketch of the latter, which is not flattering. Lord Melbourne told me the other day a queer trait of Lewis. He had a long-standing quarrel with Lushington. Having occasion to go to Naples, he wrote beforehand to him, to say that their quarrel had better be suspended, and he went and lived with him and his sister (Lady L.) in perfect cordiality during his stay. When he de- parted he wrote to Lushington to say that now they should resume their quarrel, and put matters in the " status quo ante pacem," and accordingly he did resume it, with rather more acharnement than before. Charles Wood came into my room yesterday, and talked of the King's letter, said he understood the Archbishop had imparted it to the seven Bishops who had voted, that nothing would come of it, for it was a private letter which nobody had a right to take up. I see the Government are not displeased at such an evidence of the King's good-will. The King and Taylor both love letter-writing, and both are voluminously in- clined. Wood told me that last year Lord Grey got one letter from them (for Taylor writes and the King approves) of seven sheets ; what a mass of silly verbiage there must have been to wade through ! * July 3d. Nothing to put down these last two days, un- less I go back to my old practice of recording what I read, and which I rather think I left off because I read nothing, and had nothing to put down ; but in the last two days I have read a little of Cicero's " Second Philippic," Voltaire's " Siecle de Louis XIV.," Coleridge's " Journey to the West In- dies ; " bought some books, went to the opera to hear Bellini's " Norma," and thought it heavy, Pasta's voice not what it was. Everybody talking yesterday of Althorp's exhibition in the House of Commons the night before (for particulars of which see newspapers and Parliamentary debates). It is too ludi- crous, too melancholy, to think of the finances of this country being managed by such a man ; what will not people endure ? What a strange medley politics produce ; a wretched clerk in an office who makes some unimportant blunder, some clerical error, or who exhibits signs of incapacity for work, which it does not much signify whether it be well or ill done, is got rid of, and here this man, this good-natured, popular, liked-and- 1 [This is not just. The published correspondence of King William IV. and Earl Grey proves that the King's letters were written by Sir Herbert Tay- lor with the greatest ability.] I_72 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. laughed-at good fellow, more of a grazier than a statesman, blurts out his utter ignorance before a Reformed Parliament, and people lift up their eyes, shrug their shoulders, and laugh and chuckle, but still on he goes. July 4:th. At Court yesterday, and Council for a foolish business. The King has been (not unnaturally) disgusted at the Duchess of Kent's progresses with her daughter through the kingdom, and among the rest with her sailings at the Isle of Wight, and the continual popping in the shape of salutes to Her Royal Highness. He did not choose that this latter practice should go on, and he signified his pleasure to Sir James Graham and Lord Hill, for salutes are matter of general order, both to army and navy. They (and Lord Grey) thought it better to make no order on the subject, and they opened a negotiation with the Duchess of Kent, to induce her of her own accord to waive the salutes, and when she went to the Isle of Wight to send word that as she was sailing about for her amusement she had rather they did not salute her when- ever she appeared. The negotiation failed, for the Duchess insisted upon her right to be saluted, and would not give it up. Kemp told me he had heard that Conroy (who is a ridicu- lous fellow, a compound of " Great Hussy " and the Chamber- lain of the Princess of Navarre J ) had said, " that as Her Royal Highness's confidential adviser, be could not recom- mend her to give way on this point." As she declined to accede to the proposals, nothing remained but to alter the regulations, and accordingly yesterday, by an Order in Coun- cil, the King changed them, and from this time the Royal Standard is only to be saluted when the King or the Queen is on board. Friday ', July Y&th. Went to Newmarket on Sunday, came back yesterday, got back at half-past nine, went to Crockford's, and heard on the steps of the house that poor Dover had died that morning. The accounts I had received at New- market confirmed my previous impression that there was no hope ; and, indeed, the sanguine expectations of his family are only to be accounted for by that disposition in the human mind to look at the most favorable side, and to cling with pertinacity to hope when reason bids us despair. There has seldom been destroyed a fairer scene of happiness and domestic prosperity than by this event. He dies in the flower of his age, surrounded with all the elements of hap- 1 See Sir C. Hanbury Williams's Poems. 1833.] DEATH OF LORD DOVER. 173 piness, and with no drawback but that of weak health, which until within the last few months was not sufficiently impor- tant to counterbalance the good, and only amounted to feeble- ness and delicacy of constitution ; and it is the breaking up of a house replete with social enjoyment, six or seven children deprived of their father, and a young wife and his old father overwhelmed with a grief which the former may, but the latter never can, get over, for to him time sufficient cannot in the course of nature be allotted. Few men could be more gen- erally regretted than Lord Dover will be by an immense circle of connections and friends for his really amiable and endear- ing qualities, by the world at large for the serious loss which society sustains, and the disappointment of the expectations of what he one day might have been. He occupied as large a space in society as his talents (which were by no means first rate) permitted ; but he was clever, lively, agreeable, good-tempered, good-natured, hospitable, liberal, and rich, a zealous friend, an eager political partisan, full of activity and vivacity, enjoying life, and anxious that the circle of his en- joyment should be widely extended. George Agar Ellis was the only son of Lord Clifden, and obtained early the reputa- tion of being a prodigy of youthful talent and information. He was quick, lively, and had a very retentive memory, and having entered the world with this reputation, and his great expectations besides, he speedily became one of the most con- spicuous 3'ouths of the day. Having imbibed a great admira- tion for Lord Orford (Horace Walpole), he evinced a disposi- tion to make him his model, and took pains to store his mind with that sort of light miscellaneous literature in which Lord Orford delighted. He got into the House of Commons, but never was able to speak, never attempted to say more than a % few words, and from the beginning gave up all idea of orator- ical distinction. After running about the world for a few years he resolved to marry, and as his heart had nothing to do with this determination, he pitched upon a daughter of the Duke of Beaufort's, who he thought would suit his purpose, and confer upon him a very agreeable family connection. Be- ing on a tour in the North, he intended to finish it at Badmin- ton, and there to propose to Lady Georgiana Somerset, with full assurance that he should not be rejected; but having stopped for a few days at Lord Carlisle's at Castle How- ard, he there found a girl who spared him the trouble of going any farther, and at the expiration of three or four days L74 ' REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. he proposed in form to Lord Morpeth's second daughter, G-eorgiana Howard, who, not less surprised than pleased and proud at the conquest she found she had so unconsciously made, immediately accepted him. There never was a less ro- mantic attachment, or more business-like engagement, nor was there ever a more fortunate choice or a happier union. Mild, gentle, and amiable, full of devotion to and admiration of her husband, her soft and feminine qualities were harmoniously blended with his vivacity and animal spirits, and produced to- gether results not more felicitous for themselves than agree- able to all who belonged to their society. Soon after his marriage, Ellis, who had never been vicious or profligate, but who was free from any thing like severity or austerity, began to show symptoms of a devout propensity, and not contented with an ordinary discharge of religious duties, he read tracts and sermons, frequented churches and preachings, gave up driving on Sundays, and appeared in considerable danger of falling into the gulf of Methodism ; but this turn did not last long, and whatever induced him to take it up, he apparently became bored with his self-imposed restrictions, and after a little while he threw off his short-lived sanctity, arid resumed his worldly habits and irreverent language, for he was always a loose talker. Active and ambitious in his pursuits, and mag- nificent in his tastes, he devoted himself to literature, politics, and society ; to the first two with greater success than would be expected of a man whose talents for composition were be- low mediocrity, and for public speaking none at all. He be- came the patron of various literary institutions and under- takings connected with the arts, he took the chair at public meetings for literary or scientific purposes, he read a good deal and wrote a little. The only work which he put forth of any consequence was " The Life of Frederick II.," which con- ^tained scarcely any original matter, and was remarkably barren of original ideas ; but as it was a compilation from several very amusing writers, was not devoid of entertainment. 1 Though unable to speak in Parliament, he entered warmly into politics, formed several political intimacies, especially with the Chancellor (Brougham), and undertook much of the minor Government work of keeping proxies, making houses 1 [Lord Dover's volume on the " Man in the Iron Mask " deserves not to be altogether forgotten, though more recent researches have proved that his theory identifying the " Iron Mask" with Mathioli, the captured agent of the Duke of Parina, cannot be supported.] 1833.] THE LOCAL COURTS BILL THROWN OUT. 175 (in the House of Lords), and managing the local details of the House itself. But however contracted his sphere both in literature and politics, in society his merits were conspicuous and his success unquestionable. Without a strong under- standing, destitute of fancy and imagination, and with neither eloquence nor wit, he was a remarkably agreeable man. He was hospitable, courteous, and cordial ; he collected about him the most distinguished persons in every rank and condition of life. He had a constant flow of animal spirits, much miscellaneous information, an excellent memory, a great enjoyment of fun and humor, a refined taste and perfect good-breeding. But his more solid merit was the thorough goodness of his heart, and the strong and durable nature of his friendships and early attachments. To the friends of his youth he was bound to the last moment of his life with unremitting kindness and never- cooling affection ; no greater connections or more ambitious interests canceled those early ties, and though he was not unnaturally dazzled and flattered by the later intimacies he contracted, this never for a moment made him forgetful of or indifferent to his first and less distinguished friends. The Local Courts Bill was thrown out by twelve. His party made the amende honorable to Lyndhurst, and went down in a body to back him. He and Brougham each spoke for two hours or more, and both with consummate skill, the latter especially in his very best style, and with extraordinary power and eloquence. It would not perhaps be easy to decide which made the ablest speech ; that of Lyndhurst was clear, logical, and profound, replete with a sort of judicial weight and dignity, with a fine and cutting vein of sarcasm constantly peeping from behind a thick veil of complimentary phraseology. Brougham more various, more imaginative, more impassioned, more eloquent, and exceedingly dexterous. Unable to crush Lyndhurst, he resembled one of Homer's heroes, who, missing his great antagonist, wreaked his fury on some ignominious foe, and he fell upon Wynford with overpowering severity. As somebody told me who heard him, " He flayed him alive, and kept rubbing salt upon his back." It appears to have been a great exhibition. There was Lyndhurst after his speech, drinking tea, not a bit tired, elated, and chuckling : " Well, how long will the Chancellor speak, do you think, eh ? we shall have some good fun from him. What lies he will tell, and how he will misrepresent every thing ! come, let's have done our tea, that we mayn't miss him, eh ? " The truth 176 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. seems to be that the Bill is not a good Bill, and is condemned by the lawyers, that some such measure is required, but that this is nothing more than a gigantic job, conferring enormous patronage upon the Chancellor. The debate, however, appears to have afforded a grand display of talent. 1 Macaulay is said to have made an admirable speech last night on the Indian question in the House of Commons. I observe, by-the-by, that very few of the Bishops voted the other night, but all who did voted with Government ; even Exeter went away before the division, so the King's letter seems to have produced some effect. I have had a squabble with Lady Holland about some nonsense, but she was insolent, so I was fierce, and then she was civil, as she usually is to those who won't be bullied by her. July V&th. It is extraordinary how little sensation the de- feat of Government in the House of Lords has caused. Every- body talks of the debate, nobody thinks of the event, but I find several people expect that the Church Bill will be thrown out, which would be a much more serious thing. I betted Stanley five pounds to one yesterday that they were not beaten on the second reading of the Irish Church Bill. I have concluded a bargain with Murray for Lewis's journal and sold it him for 400 guineas, the MSS. to be returned to Lushington, and fif- teen copies for him, and five for me, gratis. July ~l_4:th. Wharncliffe told me yesterday that the Duke and the Opposition do not mean to throw out the Irish Church Bill on the second reading. He had been in great alarm him- self after the Duke's speech lest they should, but had since heard what satisfied him they would not ; he said that Sir John Wrottesley's motion for a call of the House had given them great offense, and was an extreme piece of folly, for it was obviously for the purpose of bullying the House of Lords, who would not be bullied, and this species of menace only increased the obstinacy of the majority there, but that the Duke could command the greater number, and though there might be a division (as some cannot be restrained from dividing) there would be no endeavor to throw it out. 1 [The successful efforts of the Tories to prevent the establishment of a sys- tem of Local Courts of limited jurisdiction, retarded for many years that im- portant measure to which we, at last, owe the County Courts now an institu- tion of the utmost social utility. Nothing can be more characteristic of the blind bigotry of the Tory party at that time, and the party spirit of Lord Lyud- hurst ; for the measure had no bearing upon politics, and was simply a cheap and easy mode of recovering small debts.] 1833.] CAPTURE OF DOM MIGUEL'S i?'LEET. 177 Thus it is that one folly produces another : the Duke's silly speech about the Coronation Oath (a piece of nonsense quite unworthy of his straightforward, manly sense) produced Wrot- tesley's bravado in the other House. But Wharncliffe says he is persuaded nothing can prevent a collision between the two Houses ultimately. There is a great idea that the Govern- ment will fall to pieces before the end of this year. Tavistock told me that Althorp would certainly go out in a very few months, and that he would go on the turf I Tom Buncombe is found guilty at Hertford (of a libel), and recommended to mercy, to the infinite diversion of his friends. July 15A. Yesterday came the news of Captain Napier having captured the whole of Dom Miguel's fleet, to the great delight of the Whigs, and equal mortification of the Tories. It appears to have been a dashing affair, and very cowardly on the part of the Miguelites. The day before the news came, Napier had been struck out of the British Navy. Met Duncannon in the morning, who was very gloomy about Wednesday, at the same time saying he rather hoped the Tories would throw out the Irish Church Bill, for it was impossible to go on as they were now doing ; that if they did, two motions would infallibly be made in the House of Com- mons, an address to the Crown to make Peers, and a vote for the expulsion of the Bishops, and that both would be carried by great majorities. He talked much of the Irish Church, and of the abominations that had been going on even under his own eyes. One case he mentions of a man who holds a living of 1,000 a year close to Bessborough, whom he knows. There is no house, no church, and there are no Protestants in the parish. He went there to be inducted, and dined with Duncannon at Bessborough the day after. Duncannon asked him how he had managed the necessary form, and he said he had been obliged to borrow the clerk and three Protestants from a neighboring parish, and had read the morning and evening service to them within the ruined walls of the old Abbey, and they signed a certificate that he had complied with the forms prescribed by law ; he added that people would no longer endure such things, that no existing in- terests were to be touched, and that if remedial measures were still opposed, the whole fabric would be pulled down. He was still persuaded that the Opposition meant to throw out the Bill. In the evening I dined at the Duke of Richmond's, and [78 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. found Stanley informed of the result of the meeting at the Duke of Wellington's in the morning, which was decisive on the question. The Duke, after his extraordinary speech in the House of Lords, when he mounted the old broken- down hobby of the Coronation Oath and cut a curvet that alarmed his friends and his enemies, assembled the Tories at Apsley House, and there, resuming his own good sense, though not very consistently, made them a speech, and told them that some such measure must be passed, for nothing else could save the Irish Church : that there were things in this Bill that he did not approve of at all, but he could not resist its going into committee, and he finished by announcing that he should either vote for it or not vote at all, according to circumstances. Lyndhurst goes on the circuit on Wednes- day, so that though there will be a division there will be a large majority for the Bill, which is the best thing that could happen. Stanley said there would be a great speech from Lord Grey, talked of his power in that line, thought his re- ply at five in the morning on the Catholic question the most perfect speech that ever was made. He would rather have made it than four of Brougham's. He gave the following in- stance of Lord Grey's readiness and clear-headed accuracy: In one of the debates on the West India question, he went to Stanley, who was standing under the gallery, and asked him on what calculation he had allotted the sum of twenty millions. Stanley explained to him a complicated series of figures, of terms of years, interest, compound interest, value of labor, etc., after which Lord Grey went back to his place, rose, and went through the whole with as much clearness and precision as if all these details had been all along familiar to his mind. It is very extraordinary that he should unite so much oratorical and Parliamentary power with such weakness of character. He is a long way from a great man altogether. I met the Duke in the evening at the Duchess of Canniz- zaro's, talked of Napier's affair, at which he was extremely amused, though he thinks it a very bad thing, and not the least bad part of it that Napier should be lost to the service, so distinguished as he is. It was he who in 1803 (I believe) was the cause of the capture of a French squadron by Sir Alexander Cochrane. The English fell in with and cleared the French fleet, but Napier in a sloop outsailed the rest, and firing upon the stern of the French Admiral's flagship, so 1833.] MALIBRAN IN " SONNAMBULA." 179 damaged her (contriving by skillful evolutions to avoid being hurt himself) that the rest of the ships were obliged to haul- to, to save the Admiral's ship, which gave time to the British squadron to come up, when they took four out of the five sail. The Whigs all talk of this action as decisive of the Portuguese contest ; the Duke says it is impossible to say what the moral effect may be, but in a military point of view it will not have much influence upon it. Lucien Bonaparte was there, and was introduced to the Duke. He laughed and said, " He shook hands with me, and we were as intimate as if we had known each other all our lives ! " He said he had likewise called on Joseph, who had called on him, but they had never met ; he added that some civilities had passed between them in Spain. Before the battle of Salamanca he had regularly intercepted the French correspondence, and as one of the King's daughters was ill at Paris, and daily intelligence came of her health, he always sent it to him. He did not forward the letters, because they contained other matters, but he sent a flag every day to the outposts, who said, " Allez dire au Roi que sa fille se porte mieux," or as it might be. There was Lucien running down-stairs to look for his carriage, one brother of Napoleon who refused to be a king, and another who was King of Naples, and afterward King of Spain, both living as private gentlemen in England ! July 16th. The Cabinet met at the instance of Lord John Russell to take into consideration Lord Hill's not voting on Brougham's Local Courts Bill. Nothing came of it, and it is extremely absurd when their own people continually vote as they please Duncannon, Ellice, Charles Grey, etc. On Sun- day I went to hear Mr. Blount preach. He is very popular, and has a great deal of merit, not so clever as Thorpe, not so eloquent as Anderson, but with a great appearance of zeal and sincerity, and he is very conscientious and disinterested, for he refused the living of Chelsea (which Lord Cadogan offered him) because he thought he could not discharge the duties be- longing to it together with those of his present cure. Went last night to hear Malibran in the " Sonnambula," a fine piece of acting and fine singing. July 18th. I fell in with Sir Robert Peel yesterday in the Park, and rode with him for an hour or two, never having had so much conversation with him before in my life. He was very agreeable, told me that he had just come from the Police Committee, when a member of one of the political unions had [80 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. been under examination, who had acknowledged that they were provided with arms, and exercised themselves in their use, to be ready for the struggle which they thought was fast approaching. This evidence will appear in the Report to the House of Commons, but what will not appear is that an at- tempt was made (by Mr. Charles Buller especially) to prevent its being elicited, and the aforesaid gentleman endeavored to put down Peel, who drew it out. The room was cleared, and they had an angry discussion, but Peel insisted upon asking his question, and carried his point, even in this Radical Com- mittee. It seems to have been very curious, and the man was nothing loath to say all he knew. Peel thinks very ill of every thing. I asked him if there was no way of putting down the Repeal Union. He said none, and that they had found the impossibility of doing so in Ireland, except by investing the Lord-Lieutenant with extraordinary powers ; talked of the Government and its strange way of going on, spoke highly of Stanley in all ways. Althorp's retirement seems certain, and if the Govern- ment goes on Stanley will be leader, but unless he puts it all on a different footing it must break up, and unless the Gov- ernment people can be brought under better discipline it will fall to pieces, for nobody will support it on that motion of Wrottesley's for a call of the House. Both Stanley and Althorp deprecated it in the strongest way, in the name of their colleagues as well as their own, with whom Stanley said they had consulted, and that they felt it would materially em- barrass the Government if persisted in, and after this Duncan- non, Kennedy, and Charles Grey, voted for the call, Ellice and Poulett Thomson staid away. The other night (I forget on what question) Ellice voted one way and Stanley the other, and the former said to the latter, as he was going out of the house, " You will see if the boys don't go with me instead of with you." The vote of the night before last against sine- cures was carried in a thin House, only one Cabinet Minister present (Althorp), no pains taken to secure a majority, and he (Althorp) saying that it signified more to the Tories than to him, and that they ought to have come down and rejected it. Peel thinks it of great importance, and very difficult to get out of. However, it will be got out of by some particular case being tried, on which Hume, or whoever brings it forward, will be beaten, and then it will sleep for a time ; but there stands and will stand the resolution on the journals, and the 1833.] THE SAINTS AND EMANCIPATION. 181 House of Commons has admitted the principle of dealing with actual vested interests, and not confining their operation to the future. There seems every probability of Stanley's West India Bill being thrown out. The Saints, who at first had agreed to support it, object to pay the twenty millions for emancipa- tion to take place twelve years hence, and the present condi- tion of the question seems to be that all parties are dissatisfied with it, 'and there is nearly a certainty that it will be received with horror by the planters, while the slaves will no longer work when they find the fiat of their freedom (however condi- tional or distant the final consummation may be) has at length gone forth. July 20th. I dropped into the House of Lords last night, and heard the Bishop of London reply severally to the Duke of Newcastle and Lord Winchelsea, the first of whom muttered, and the latter bellowed something I could not hear, but I gathered that the last was on the subject of the King's letter to the Bishops. The Bishop made very pertinent answers to both, but the Duke of Wellington got up after Winchelsea, and entreated nothing might be said upon the subject, and put down discussion with that authority which the Tories dare not resist, and which he exercised on this occasion with the good sense and, above all, consideration for public convenience and disdain of party rancor which distinguish him above all men I have ever seen, and which compel one to admire him in spite of the extraordinary things he occasionally says and does. George Villiers is going Minister to Madrid, instead of Addington, who is so inefficient they are obliged to recall him, and at this moment Madrid is the most important diplo- matic mission, with reference to the existing and the prospective state of things. The Portuguese contest, the chance of the King of Spain's death and a disputed succession, the recogni- tion of the South American colonies, and commercial arrange- ments with this country, present a mass of interests which demand considerable dexterity and judgment ; besides, Adding- ton is a Tory, and does not act in the spirit of this Govern- ment, so they will recall him without ceremony. There is another Embassador (Frederick Lamb) whose principles are equally at variance with those of Palmerston, and who is com- pletely be-Metternich'd, but his removal is out of the ques- tion ; he knows it, and no doubt conducts himself accordingly. L82 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. George Villiers told me that he touched incidentally one day with Palmerston on Lamb's conduct in some matter relating to Lord Granville, and he found that it was sacred ground, and he only got, " Ah, aw yes, Metternich is, I suppose, too old to mend now." July 2~Lst. The Duke of Wellington did not vote on Friday night, but he made a bitter speech against Govern- ment, and attacked Lord Anglesey very unnecessarily, when Melbourne retorted on him very well. Lord Grey s reply appears to have been exceedingly good. I met the Duke of Richmond last night, and talked to him about the prospects of Government, and suggested that if Stanley (when Althorp retires) does not make it a sine qua non that better discipline should be observed in their ranks, the Government cannot go on. He agreed, and said Stanley would, but he thought the House of Lords were going on in such a way that before three years there would be none. It appears to me totally impossible for Stanley or anybody to go on without re- modeling the Government, and one of his difficulties would be in getting rid of Richmond himself. He is utterly in- capable, entirely ignorant, and his pert smartness, saying sharp things, cheering offensively, have greatly exasperated many people against him in the House of Commons, and these feelings of anger have been heightened by his taking frequent opportunities of comporting himself with acrimony toward the Duke of Wellington, though he always professes great veneration for him, and talks as if he had constantly abstained from, any thing like incivility or disrespect toward him. It is remarkable certainly that his colleagues appear to entertain a higher opinion of him than he deserves, and you hear of one or another saying, " Oh, you don't know the Duke of Richmond." He has, in fact, that weight which a man can derive from being positive, obstinate, pertinacious, and busy, but his understanding lies in a nut-shell, and his information in a pin's-head. He is, however, good-humored, a good fellow, and personally liked, particular!}' by Stanley and Graham, who are of his own age, and have both the same taste for sporting and gay occupations. The Tories threaten mighty things in the Committee, but I don't think they will attempt much. July 24:th. Divisions in both Houses last night. The Duke of Wellington proposed an important amendment (which he would afterward have withdrawn, but his friends 1833.] THE SUSPENSION CLAUSE. 183 would not let him), and he was beaten by fourteen. A great division for Government in the House of Lords. In the Com- mons 166 minority for triennial Parliaments, and by every sort of whipping and Billy Holmes's assistance a majority, but only of sixty or seventy ; fine work this. July 25th-26th. Half-past two in the morning. Just come home, having heard of the division in the House of Lords, in which Ministers were beaten on what they call the Suspension clause by two. Alvanley, Belhaven, and Clanri- carde, got there too late. Gower could not attend, nor Lord Granville. Lyndhurst came all the way from Norwich (being on the circuit) to vote. The question is, what Minis- ters will do go on with the Bill, or throw it up, resign, make Peers, or what ? Nothing can be more silly than the amendment, although it may be questioned whether it sig- nifies very materially ; but the light in which Ministers see it is this : are they to submit night after night to the vexatious insolence of the Tories, who are constantly on the watch to find some vulnerable point, and without intending or daring to throw over their great measures, to jpangle their details as much as they can venture to do, and hold the Gov- ernment in a sort of subjugation and in a state of sufferance ? The Tory lords are perfectly rabid, and reckless of conse- quences, regardless of the embarrassment they cause the King, and of the aggravation of a state of things they already think very bad, they care for nothing but the silly vain pleasure of beating the Government, every day affording fresh materials for the assaults that are made upon them by the press, and fresh cause for general odium and contempt. The Duke of Wellington has no power over them for good purposes, and they will only follow him when he will lead them on to some rash and desperate enterprise. This event has affected the people differently according to their several views and opinions, but all are in eager curiosity to see what the Government will do. In the House of Commons things are no better than in the House of Lords. Stanley was nearly beaten on the Ap- prenticeship clause in the West Indian Bill on Wednesday night, Macaulay opposing him ; so yesterday morning he came down to the House and gave it up. It is remarkable that he made an admirable speech in defense of his clause, was unusually and enthusiastically cheered, Macaulay's speech falling very flat, and to all appearance the whole House with 184 JREIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. Stanley, yet upon division he only carried it by some seven or eight votes. It is said that after the vote he could not do otherwise than give it up, but that if he had taken a higher tone in his speech, and treated it as a compact fixed and agreed upon, which nothing could shake, and to which he was irrevocably pledged, he would have carried the House with him, and have got a larger majority. But the truth is that the House of Commons is in such a state that it is next to impossible to say what Ministers can or ought to do, or what the House will do. There is no such thing as a great party knit together by community of opinion, " idem sentientea de republica." The Government conciliate no attachment, command no esteem and respect, and have no following. Althorp is liked, Stanley admired, but people devote them- selves to neither ; every man is thinking of what he shall say to his constituents, and how his vote will be taken, and every thing goes on (as it were) from hand to mouth ; by fits and starts the House of Commons seem rational and moderate, and then they appear one day subservient to the Ministers, another rifttous, unruly, and fierce, ready to abolish the Bishops and crush the House of Lords, and to vote any thing that is violent. The Tories in the House of Commons are lukewarm, angry, frightened ; they say, " Why should we come and support a Government that won't support itself ? " The Government from weakness or facility, or motives of per- sonal feeling and partiality, suffers itself to be bearded and thwarted by its own people, and does nothing. Duncannon, on the triennial motion the other night, staid in the House of Lords and would not vote ; there are some half-dozen of them whose votes the Ministerial bench cannot count upon. Then it is no small aggravation to the present difficult state of things that Stanley does not appear to be a man of much moral political firmness and courage, a timid politician, ignavus adversum lupos. He is bold and spirited against individuals, but timid against bodies, and with respect to results. La- bouchere went to him some time ago, and told him that it was evident a feeling was growing up in the House of Commons against this Apprenticeship clause, and that he had better make up his mind early what course he should pursue, that if he meant to stand to it they would support him, but if not, he had better give it up early and from foresight rather than from necessity at last, but above all, not to drag them through the mire by making them support him, and then throwing 1833.] DINNER WITH THE BONAPARTES. 185 them over. He declared he would stand to his clause. They supported him, and he threw them over. This will not do for a man who aspires to be leader, and Sandon told me last night that men would not be led by him, in spite of his talents, that when Althorp went under Stanley's banner the friends of Government would not enlist. God only knows how it all will end, and out of such a mass of confusion, of so much violence and folly and weakness, acd the working of so many bad passions, what will result, but any day the chance be- comes less of the elements of disorder being resolved into a state of tranquillity and good government. It is every day more apparent that with such a House of Commons, so elected, so acted upon, no Government can feel secure ; none can undertake with confidence to carry on the affairs of the country. It is difficult to describe the state of agitation into which the minds of people of all persuasions are thrown by the continual recurrence of these little events, of the feeling of insecurity, of doubt, of apprehension which pervades all classes. Nobody thinks the present Government can go on, at the same time they can see no party and no individual who could go on as well if they were to retire. The present House of Commons it is found impossible to manage, but it is be- lieved that in the event of a dissolution another would be much worse ; in short, all is chaos, confusion, and uncertainty, and the only thing in which all parties agree is that things are very bad, and every day getting worse. I dined the day before yesterday with old Lady Cork, to meet the Bonapartes. There were Joseph, Lucien, Lucien's daughter, the widow of Louis Bonaparte, Hortense's son, 1 the Dudley Stuarts, Belhavens, Rogers, Lady Clarendon, and Lady Davy and myself; not very amusing, but curious to see these two men, one of whom would not be a King, when he might have chosen almost any crown he pleased (conceive, for instance, having refused the kingdom of Naples), and the other, who was first King of Naples and then King of Spain, commanded armies, and had the honor of being defeated at Vittoria by the Duke of Wellington. There they sat, these brothers of Napoleon, who once trampled upon all Europe, and at whose feet the potentates of the earth bowed, two simple, plain-looking, civil, courteous, smiling gentlemen. They say Lucien is a very agreeable man, Joseph nothing. Joseph is a caricature of Napoleon in his latter days, at least 1 [This must have been the Emperor Napoleon III.] 186 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. so I guess from the pictures. He is taller, stouter, with the same sort of face, but without the expression, and particu- larly without the eagle eye. Lucien looked as if he had once been like him, that is, his face in shape is like the pictures of Napoleon when he was thin and young, but Lucien is a very large, tall man. They talked little, but staid on in the even- ing, when there was a party, and received very civilly all the people who were presented to them. There was not the slightest affectation of royalty in either. Lucien, indeed, had no occasion for any, but a man who had ruled over two king- doms might be excused for betraying something of his former condition, but, on the contrary, every thing regal that he ever had about him seemed to be merged in his American citizen- ship, and he looked more like a Yankee cultivator than a King of Spain and the Indies. Though there is nothing to see in Joseph, who is, I believe, a very mediocre personage, I could not help gazing at him, and running over in my mind the strange events in which lie had been concerned in the course of his life and regarding him as a curiosity, and proba- bly as the most extraordinary living instance of the freaks of fortune and instability of human grandeur. The Duke of Sutherland is dead, a leviathan of wealth. I believe he is the richest individual who ever died, and I should like to know what his property amounts to, out of pure curiosity. July 27th. This affair in the House of Lords blew over. The Patriots at Brookes's were loud in their indignation, and talked nonsense about dignity and resignation, and so forth, but Lord Grey took the better course, and came down to the House with a lecture, conceived in mild yet firm language, and announced his intention of going on with the Bill. Ac- cordingly they got through the Committee last night without further obstruction. The amendment is in fact so trivial that I don't think he will attempt to reestablish the original clause on the report, and if he does not, the Commons (I am told) will not either. August 1th. At Goodwood from Saturday se'nnight to Saturday last. Magnificent weather, numerous assemblage, tolerable racing, but I did not win the great cup, which I ought to have won, a most vile piece of ill-luck, but good fortune seems to have deserted me, and the most I can do is not to lose. George Villiers is appointed to Madrid, but he tells me 1833.] CONVERSATION WITH LORD GREY. 17 ilr.it he can neither see nor hear from Palmerston, that though his appointment is in everybody's mouth it has never been notified to him. All this negligence is because our Foreign Secretary is engaged in the conferences, in which, however, he gives no greater satisfaction to those he is concerned with, for Talleyrand complains that he invariably makes them wait from one to two hours, and Dedel says that his manner is so insulting toward the Dutch nation and King, and that on every occasion he acts with so much partiality toward Bel- gium, that it is with the greatest difficulty he can transact business with him at all. They say the Duke of Wellington has scarcely missed a day during this session in his attendance on the House of Lords, always in his place from the begin- ning to the end of the debates, speaking and evidently pre- paring himself on every subject, doing duty as the head of a party. August 8th.~ Met Lord Grey in the street ; he said this session had nearly done him up, and he must have repose ; he talked of Portugal, of the desirableness of getting rid of Pedro, and of putting Palmella at the head of the Govern- ment. I said he must take care they did not establish too liberal a Government. He replied the Portuguese certainly were not fit for any such thing, and that the constitution had undoubtedly done all the mischief; spoke of the Duke of Wel- lington, and of his being always in the House of Lords, speak- ing on any thing, and generally not well, that he had made a most tiresome bad speech on the India Charter question, etc. Brougham's Privy Council Bill has, I perceive, passed the House of Commons, having gone through both Houses without a syllable said upon it in either. George Villiers is at last acknowledged Minister to Madrid. He told me he was with Palmerston at his house yesterday morning, and was much struck with his custom of receiving all his numerous visitors and applicants in the order in which they arrive, be their rank what it may. Neumann told him he had never known him vary in this practice, or deviate from it in anybody's favor. It is a merit. There seems little dan- ger of any movement on the part of Spain, for Zea Bermudez (Palmerston told George Villiers) is struck to the earth by the events in Portugal, and only anxious to curry favor with England. August \bth. At Council yesterday to swear in James Parke and Bosanquet (who did not come) Privy Councilors, 188 REIGN CF WILLIAM IY. [CHAP. XXI. in order to carry into operation the Chancellor's new Bill for the establishment of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. August 20th. To Stoke on Saturday with Creevey and Lemarchant, the Chancellor's secretary. The Chancellor and others of the Ministry were to have come, but they all dined at Blackwall. Brougham, Plunket, and John Russell, came the next day. Brougham is not so talkative as he was ; his dignities, his labors, and the various cares of his situation, have dashed his gayety, and pressed down his once elastic spirits ; however, he was* not otherwise than cheerful and lively. Plunket I never met before ; he was pretty much at his ease, and talked sufficiently without exhibiting any thing remarkable. Lemarchant is a clever, industrious fellow, whom I remember at Eton. The Chancellor's secretaryship must be no sinecure, and he has particularly distinguished himself by his reports of the debates in the House of Commons. He goes there every night, and forwards to the Chancellor from time to time an account of the debate, and the manner of it, very well executed indeed. He talked to me of Brougham's labors and their intensity, which put me in mind of his gasconading to Sefton a year or two ago about his idleness, and finding the Great Seal a mere plaything; Lemarchant said, that by severe and constant application he had made himself very tolerably acquainted with equity law, and very extensively with cases. I find from Sefton that he means to propose next year that his salary should be reduced to 8,000 a year, and that the new Equity Judges should be paid out of what he now has. I believe he is liberal about money, and net careless, but I have some doubts whether this project will be executed. Lemarchant told me that the cause of Sugden's in- veterate animosity against Brougham was this that in a de- bate in the House of Commons, Sugden, in his speech, took occasion to speak of Mr. Fox, and said that he had no great respect for his authority, on which Brougham merely said, loud enough to be heard all over the House, and in that peculiar tone which strikes like a dagger, " Poor Fox ! " The words, the tone, were electrical, everybody burst into roars of laugh- ter, Sugden was so overwhelmed that he said afterward it was with difficulty he could go on, and he vowed that he never could forgive this sarcasm. Sefton talked to me of Brougham's reluctance when the Government was formed to take the Great Seal ; after they 1833.] LORD BROUGHAM AS CHANCELLOR. 189 had offered him the Attorney-Generalship, which he so in- dignantly refused, they sent Sefton to cajole him and get him to take the Seal. He wanted to be made Master of the Rolls, and left in the House of Commons, the Seal being put in Commission. This they would not hear of, naturally enough not choosing to exist at his mercy in the House of Commons, and rely upon his doubtful and capricious support. It was very well for him to act the part of Atlas, and bear the Government on his shoulders, but they shrewdly enough guessed that they would not ride on them very comfortably, that they would be considerably jolted, and perhaps at last shoved off. He, on the other hand, would not suffer anybody to be Chancellor but himself; and at last, with many mis- givings, he yielded to the gentle violence which would make him the first officer of the Crown. Great was his lamentation at this necessity. " How," he said, " am I fallen ! As mem- ber for Yorkshire in the House of Commons, what a position was mine ! " Sefton tried to comfort him by representing that " the fall " upon the woolsack was somewhat of the softest, and that a few years ago he would not have considered it so grievous a misfortune if it had been foretold him that he should be seated there at such a time. After dinner on Sunday Brougham talked of the Reform Bill and its first appearance in the House of Commons. He said that once allowed to take root there it could not be crushed, and that their only opportunity was thrown away by the Tories. Had Peel risen at once and declared that he would not even discuss such a measure, tha,t it was revolution, and opposed its being brought in, he would have thrown it out, and if he had then come down with a moderate measure, it would have satisfied the country for the time. This is ex- actly what William Banks said to me last year, and the very thing Peel had intended to do, and from which he was deterred by Granville Somerset. The Duke of Wellington has con- tinued to attend in the House of Lords day after day, pro- posing alterations and amendments to all the Bills, evidently reading hard, and preparing himself for each occasion, always loaded with papers. Lyndhurst said to somebody, " I shall attend no more, what's the use of it ? The Duke comes down every day, and tries to make the Bills better; if I could make them worse I would come too." August 22d. Called on Madame de Lieven yesterday, who is just come back from Petersburg, rayonnante at her [90 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. reception and treatment. The Emperor went out to sea to meet her, took her into his own boat ; when they landed he drove her to the palace, and carried her into the Empress's room, who was en chemise. She told me a comical anecdote illustrative of the good-humor of the Emperor (who, she says, is an angel), and of the free and frank reception he gives to strangers. In the midst of some splendid military fetes, which terminated with a sham siege by 50,000 of his guards the last day, word was brought him that two strange-looking men had presented themselves at the lines, and requested to be allowed to see what was going on. They said they were English, had come from Scotland on purpose to see the Rus- sian manoeuvres, and had started from Petersburg under the direction of a laquais de place, who had conducted them to where they heard the firing the cannon. The Emperor" or- dered them to be admitted, received them with the greatest civility, and desired apartments to be prepared for them in the palace (Peterhof), at the same time inviting them to dine with him, and be present at a ball he gave at night. She said that one was a Don Quixote sort of figure ; they called themselves Johnstone. The Emperor asked her if she knew them. She said no, but that there were many of that name in England. There they remained, enchanted, astonished, be- having, however, perfectly well. After seeing all the sights, they were one evening led into a great hall, where all sorts of pastimes were going on, and among others a Montagne Russe (of which the Emperor is passionately fond). He is a very tall powerful man, and his way is to be placed at the top of the machine, when a man mounts astride on his shoulders, and another on his, and so on till there are fourteen ; when a signal is given, with the rapidity of lightning down they go. On this occasion the Emperor took the Johnstones on his back, and she says their astonishment at the position they occupied, and at the rapidity of the descent, was beyond every thing amusing. They were asked how they liked it, and they said they thought it " very good fun," and should like to begin again. So they were allowed to divert themselves in this way for an hour. Bligh told her afterward that these men returned to Petersburg their heads turned, and utterly be- wildered with such an unexpected reception. In her serious talk the Princess said that the Emperor was full of moderation and desire for peace, " s'il y a des orages ce ne sera pas de ce c6t6 qu'ils viendront," that he could not 1833.] AFFAIRS OF PORTUGAL. 191 comprehend the English Parliament, nor the sort of language which was held there about him, that he was " le plus ge'ne'- reux, le plus humain, le meilleur des hommes," that they believed all the lies which were " delnte's sur les affaires de Pologne, qui enfin est notre affaire, qu'il e'tait peu connu ici, qu'elle avait vu en Russie beaucoup de respects, beaucoup d'amour pour 1'Empereur, et voila tout." In short, she is returned in a state of intoxication, and her adoration for the Emperor is only exceeded by that which she has for the Empress. August 24:th. Matters have taken a bad turn in Por- tugal. Bourmont is marching on Lisbon with 18,000 men, " regna il terror nella citta." William Russell, in a fit of enthusiasm, says, "the capital must be saved even at the hazard of a war." Admiral Parker says he shall land 1,200 marines and make them occupy the forts. Our Government are in great confusion and alarm, and have dispatched a swift steamer to Parker to desire him to do no such thing ; but the steamer will probably arrive too late, and, if Bour- mont is really there, we shall cut a pretty figure with our non- intervention, for Parker will probably have to surrender the forts to Miguel. I dined with Talleyrand yesterday, who is furious, laughing non-intervention to scorn ; and he told me he had for the last ten days been endeavoring to get the Gov- ernment to take a decided part. What he advised was, that we should recognize Donna Maria and the Regency appointed by the Charter ; that is, Donna Isabella Regent, with a Coun- cil to be comprised of Palmella, Villa Flor, and any other ; that our Minister should be directed to acknowledge no other government, and at the same time concert with Palmella that Pedro should be sent away, and the constitution be suspended till the Queen shall be of age. Pedro has committed, since he was in Lisbon, every folly and atrocity he could squeeze into so small a space of time ; imprisoning, confiscating, grant- ing monopolies, attacking the Church, and putting forth the constitution in its most offensive shape. I suspect we shall have made a sad mess of this business. Just come from the Duke of Wellington ; talked about Portugal and th^ intercepted letters; the writer said that he (the Duke) had told" Neumann he approved of Bourmont's going, whereas he thought it an objectionable nomination, because he had formerly deserted from the Portuguese ser- 192 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. vice. 1 He had never had any communication with these agents, and did not believe Aberdeen had had any either : he said Lisbon was more defensible than Oporto, but required more men. Talking of Miguel, the Duke related that he was at Strathfieldsaye with Palmella, where in the library they were settling the oath that Miguel should take, Miguel would pay no attention, and, instead of going into the business and saying what oath he would consent to take (the question was whether he should swear fidelity to Pedro or to Maria), he sat flirting with the Princess Th6rese Esterhazy. The Duke said to Palmella, " This will never do, he must settle the terms of the oath, and, if he is so careless in an affair of such moment, he will never do his duty." Palmella said, " Oh, leave him to us, we will manage him." He had no idea of overturning the constitution and playing false when he went there, but was persuaded by his mother and terrified by the lengths to which the constitutional party was disposed to go. The Duke said the Government would be very foolish to interfere for Pedro, who was a ruffian, and for the constitution, which was odious, and that Pedro would never have more than the ground he stood on ; talked of our foreign policy, his anxiety for peace, but of France as our " natural enemy ! " and of the importance of maintaining our influence in Spain, which, so long as we did, we should have nothing to fear from France. September 3d. On Wednesday last, when the King's speech was read, there was no Council. Brougham brought Sir Alexander Johnston, formerly Chief-Justice in Ceylon, to be sworn a Privy Councilor without giving any notice, conse- quently I was not there. The King, therefore, comes again to-morrow on purpose, and, what is unpleasant, desired a Clerk of the Council might always be in attendance when there was any thing going on. This, I suppose, his Majesty will repeat to me himself to-morrow. The Parliament is at last up ; it was a fine sight the day the King went down, the weather splendid, and park full of people, with guards mounted and dismounted, making a picturesque show. He was very cooll v received, for there is no doubt there never was a King less respected. George IV., with all his occasional unpopularity, could always revive the external appearance of loyalty when he gave himself the trouble. 1 Bourmont was an emigrant, and went into the Portuguese service. When Jimot came to Portugal he joined him, was taken into the French service, in winch he continued to rise, till he deserted just before the battle of Waterloo from Napoleon to Louis XVIII. 1833.] THE REFORM BILL CARRIED. 193 The Parliament is up, and not before people were dead sick of it, and had dropped out of town one by one, till hardly any Parliament was left. It may be worth while to take a little surve3 r of the present condition of things as com- pared with what it was a few months ago, and consider at this resting-time what has been the practical effect of the great measure of Reform, without going very deeply into the ques- tion. The Reform Bill was carried in toto, the Tories having contrived that every thing that was attempted should be gained by the Reformers. No excuse, therefore, was left for the Parliament, and, if " the people " did not choose a good* one, it was their own fault. It was chosen, and when it met was found to be composed of a majority of supporters of the present Government, a certain number of Tories, not enough to be powerful, and many Radicals, who soon proved to be wholly inefficient. It speedily became manifest that in point of ability it was not only inferior to the last, but perhaps to any Parliament that has sat for many years. There were 350 new members (or some such number), but not one man among them of shining or remarkable talent ; Cobbett, Silk Bucking- ham, Roebuck, and such men, soon found their level and sunk into insignificance. The House appeared at first to be very unruly, not under the command of Government, talkative, noisy, and ill-constituted for the transaction of business. After a little while it got better in this respect ; the majority, however, though evidently determined to support Govern- ment, would not be commanded by it, and even men in place often took up crotchets of their own, and voted against Gov- ernment measures ; but, whenever the Ministers seemed to be in danger, they always found efficient support, and on the Malt Tax the House even stultified itself to uphold them. As the session proceeded, the men who gained reputation and established the greatest personal influence were Peel and Stanley ; Macaulay rather lost than gained ; Althorp lost entirely, but the weight of his blunders and unfitness could not sink him ; his personal character and good-humor alwas buoyed him up. The great measures, some of the greatest that any Parliament ever dealt with, were got through with marvelous facility. They did not for the most part come on till late in the session, when the House had got tired, and the East India Charter Bill was carried through most of the stages in empty Houses. The measures have generally evinced a Conservative character, and the 31 194 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI. Parliament has not shown any disposition to favor subver- sive principles or to encourage subversive language. It has been eminently liberal in point of money, granting all that Ministers asked, without the slightest difficulty; twenty millions for the West Indians, a million for the Irish clergy, were voted almost by acclamation. Hume cut no figure in this Parliament. Notwithstanding apprehensions and pre- dictions, the Government has contrived to carry on the business of the country very successfully, and great reforms have been accomplished in every department of the State, which do not seem liable to any serious objections, and in the midst of many troubles, of much complaining and bicker- ing ; the country has been advancing in prosperity, and re- covering rapidly from the state of sickly depression in which it lay at the end of last year. It is fair to compare the state of affairs now and then, merely reciting facts, and let the praise rest where it may, whether it be due to the wisdom of men or the result of that disposition to right itself which has always appeared inherent in the British commonwealth. Some months ago there appeared every prospect of a war in Europe ; the French were in Belgium, whence many pre- dicted they would never be got away; Ireland was in a flame, every post brought the relation of fresh horrors and atrocities; in England trade was low, alarm and uncertainty prevalent, and a general disquietude pervaded the nation, some fearing and others desiring a change, some expecting, others dreading the great things which a Reformed Parlia- ment would do. The session is over, and a Reformed Par- liament turns out to be very much like every other Parlia- ment, except that it is rather differently and somewhat less ably composed than its predecessors. The hopes and the fears of mankind have been equally disappointed, and after all the clamor, confusion, riots, conflagrations, furies, de- spair, -and triumphs, through which we have arrived at this consummation, up to the present time, at least, matters remain pretty much as they were, except that the Whigs have got possession of the power which the Tories have lost. We continue at peace, and with every prospect of so being for some time ; we are on good terms with France, and by degrees inducing the French to extend their incipient prin- ciples of free trade, to the benefit of both countries. In Ire- land there never has been a period for many years when the country was so quiet; it may not last, but so it is at the 1838.] A KNIGHT OF TIIE BATH. -195, present moment. In England trade flourishes, running in a deep and steady stream, there are improvement and employ- ment in all its branches. The landed interest has suffered and suffers still, but the wages of labor have not fallen with the rents of landlords, and the agricultural laborers were never better off. Generally there is a better spirit abroad, less dis- content, greater security, and those vague apprehensions are lulled to rest which when in morbid activity, carrying them- selves from one object to another, are partly the cause and partly the effect of an evil state of things. We hear nothing now of associations, unions, and public meetings, and (com- pared with what it was) the world seems in a state of repose. CHAPTER XXII. The Speaker a Knight of the Bath Lord Wellesley, Lord-Lieutenaut of Ireland M. Thlers in England Prince Esterhazy's Opinion of the State of England Queen of Port- ugal at Windsor The Duke of Leuchtenberg Macaulay and Sydney Smith Brough- am's Anecdotes of Queen Caroline Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Sir Stratford Canning and M. Dedel Sydney Smith and the "Siege of Saragossa '' Edward Irving The Unknown Tongues Tribute to Lord Eldon W. J. Fox Lord Tavistock on the Prospects of his Party Moore at the State Paper Office Russia and England Belvoir Castle The Duke of Wellington at Belvoir Visit to Mrs. Ark- wright Sir Thomas Lawrence and the Misses Stddons A Murder at Eunton Sandon Lord and Lady Harrowby Burghley Railroads talked ofGloomy Tory Prognos- tications State of Spain Parliament opens Quarrel of Shiel and Lord Althorp Unpopularity of Lord Palmerston Mrs. Somerville O'Connell's Attack on Baron Smith Lord Althorp's Budget The Pension List Lord Althorp as Leader of the House Sir K. Peel's Position in the House Meeting of Supporters of Government Mr. Yllliers on the State of Spain Predicament of Home, the Attorney-General. September 5th. At Court yesterday, the Speaker l was made a Knight of the Bath to his great delight. It is a re- ward for his conduct during the Session, in which he has done Government good and handsome service. He told them before it began that he would undertake to ride the new House, but it must be with a snaffle-bridle. Bosanquet and Sir Alexander Johnston were made Privy Councilors to sit in the Chancel- lor's new Court. The Privy Council is as numerous as a moderate-sized club, and about as well composed. Awful storms these last few days, and enormous damage done, the weather like the middle of winter. September 6th. Yesterday the announcement of Lord 1 [Rt. Hon. Manners Button, afterward Viscount Canterbury.] 196 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. Wellesley's appointment to be Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland was received with as great astonishment as I ever saw. Once very brilliant, probably never very efficient, he is now worn out and effete. It is astonishing that they should send such a man, and one does not see why, because it is difficult to find a good man, they should select one of the very worst they could hit upon. It is a ridiculous appointment, which is the most objectionable of all. For years past he has lived entirely out of the world. He comes to the House of Lords, and talks of making a speech every now and then, of which he is never delivered, and he comes to Court, where he sits in a corner and talks (as those who know him say) with as much fire and liveliness as ever, and with the same neat, shrewd causticity that formerly distinguished him; but such scintillations as these prove nothing as to his fitness for business and government, and as he was quite unfit for these long ago, it is scarcely to be supposed that retirement and increased age and infirmities should have made him less so now. 1 They have judiciously waited till Parliament is up before the appointment was made known. Lord Wellesley is said to be in the hands of Blake the Remembrancer, a dan- gerous Jesuitical fellow. September 1.0th. At Gorhambury on Saturday till Mon- day. Dined on Friday with Talleyrand, a great dinner to M. Thiers, the French Minister of Commerce, a little man, about as tall as Shiel, and as mean and vulgar-looking, wearing spectacles, and with a squeaking voice. He was editor of the National, an able writer, and one of the principal instigators of the Revolution of July. It is said that he is a man of great ability and a good speaker, more in the familiar English than the bombastical French style. Talleyrand has a high opinion of him. He wrote a history of the Revolution, which he now regrets; it is well done, but the doctrine of fatalism which he puts forth in it he thinks calculated to injure -his reputation as a statesman. I met him again at dinner at Talleyrand's yesterday with another great party, and last night he started on a visit to Birmingham and Liverpool. After dinner on Friday I had rather a curious conversation with Esterhazy, who said he wanted to know what I thought of the condition of this country. I told him that I thought every thing was surprisingly improved, and gave my reasons 1 [TIlia opinion of Lord "Wellesley was, however, speedily changed by liis successful and vigorous administration of Ireland. See infra, November 14th.] 1833.] DEDEL, THE DUTCH MINISTER. 197 for thinking so. He then went off and said that these were his opinions also, and he had written home in this strain, that Neumann had deceived his Government, giving them very different accounts, that it was no use telling them what they might wish to hear, but that he was resolved to tell them the truth, and make them understand how greatly they were de- ceiving themselves if they counted upon the decadence or want of power of this country; a great deal more of the same sort, which proves that the Austrian Court were all on the qui vive to find out that we are paralyzed, and that their political conduct is in fact influenced by their notion of our actual position. They probably hardly knew what they would be at, but their hatred and dread of revolutionary principles are so great that they are always on the watch for a good opportunity of striking a blow at them, which they know they can only do through England and France. They would there- fore willingly believe that the political power of England is diminished, and Neumann, who wrote in the spirit of a disap- pointed Tory rather than of an impartial Foreign Minister, no doubt nattered their desires in this respect. Last night I sat by Dedel, the Dutch Minister, who told me he knew Neumann had given very false accounts (not intentionally) to his Gov- ernment, that Wesseriberg took much juster views, and he (Dedel) agreed with Esterhazy, who said that nobody could understand this country who had not had long experience of it, and that he found it impossible to make his Government comprehend it, or give entire credit to what he said. Dedel told me that Holland is ruined, that the day of reckoning will come, when they will discover what a state of bankruptcy they are in, that the spirit of the nation had been kept up by excitement, and that therein lay the dexterity of the King and his Government, but that this factitious enthusiasm was rapidly passing away. They now pay fifty millions of florins interest of debt, about four millions sterling, and their popu- lation is not above two millions. The young Queen of Portugal goes to Windsor to-day. The King was at first very angry at her coming to England, but when he found that Louis Philippe had treated her with incivility, he changed his mind, and resolved to receive her with great honors. He hates Louis Philippe and the French with a sort of Jack Tar animosity. The other day he gave a dinner to one of the regiments at Windsor, and as usual he made a parcel of foolish speeches, in one of which, after ^98 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. _CIIAP. XXII. descanting upon their exploits in Spain against the French, he went on : " Talking of France, I must say that whether at peace or at war with that country, I shall always consider her as our natural enemy, and whoever may be her King or ruler, I shall keep a watchful eye for the purpose of repressing her ambitious encroachments." If he was not such an ass that nobody does any thing but laugh at what he says, this would be very important. Such as he is, it is nothing. " What can you expect " (as I forget who said) " from a man with a head like a pineapple?" His head is just of that shape. The history of the French King's behavior is that he wanted the young Queen of Portugal to marry the Duke de Nemours, and when he found that impossible (for we should have opposed it) he proposed Prince Charles of Naples, his nephew. This was likewise rejected. The Emperor Dom Pedro wants the Duke of Leuchtenberg, his wife's brother, to marry her. 1 This Duke went to Havre the other day, where the Prefet refused to admit him, though he went with (or to) his sister, pleading the law excluding Napoleon's family. He went to the Prefet to say that he protested against such application of the law, but as he would not make any dis- turbance there, desired to have his passports vise for Munich, and off he went. At the same time he wrote a letter to Pal- merston, which George Villiers, to whom Palmerston showed it, told me was exceedingly good. He said that though he did not know Palmerston he ventured to address him, as the Minister of the greatest and freest country in the world, for the purpose of explaining what had happened, and to clear himself from the misrepresentations that would be made as to his motives and intentions in joining his sister; that it was true that Dom Pedro had wished him to marry his daughter, and that he had written him a letter, of which he inclosed a copy. This was a very well-written letter, begging the Emperor to pause and consider of this projected match, and setting forth all the reasons why it might not be advantageous for her; in short, Villiers says, exhibiting a very remarkable degree of disinterestedness, and of long-sighted views with regard to the situation of Portugal and the general politics of Europe. He told me another anecdote at the same time. Palmerston 1 [Queen Donna Maria did eventually marry the young Duke of Leuchten- berg, son of P/ince Eugene Beauharnais and a Bavarian Princess. But he sur- vived his marriage only a few months, and died of a fever at Lisbon.] 1S3:;.] "A BOOK IN BREECHES." 199 showed him a letter he had received from Charles Napier, in which, talking of the possible interference of Spain, he said, " Your Lordship knows that I have only to sail with my fleet (enumerating a respectable squadron of different sizes) to Cadiz, and I can create a revolution in five minutes through- out the whole South of Spain." Palmerston seems to have been a little amused and a little alarmed at this fanfaronade, in which there is, however, a great deal of truth. He said that of course they should not allow Napier to do any such thing, but as nothing else could prevent him if we did not, the Spaniards may be made to understand that we shall not be at the trouble of muzzling this bull-dog if they do not be- have with civility and moderation. London^ November 13th, Nothing written for nearly two months. I remained in town till the end of September, when I went to Newmarket, and afterward to Buckenham, where I met Sir Robert Peel. He is very agreeable in so- ciety, it is a toss-up whether he talks or not, but if he thaws, and is in good humor and spirits, he is lively, entertaining, and abounding in anecdotes, which he tells extremely well. I came back to town on Friday last, the 8th, dined with the Poodle, and found Rogers, Moore, and Westmacott (the son) ; a very agreeable dinner. On Sunday dined with Rogers, Moore, Sydney Smith, Macaulay. Sydney less vi- vacious than usual, and somewhat overpowered and talked down by what Moore called the " flumen sermonis " of Ma- caulay. Sydney calls Macaulay " a book in breeches." All that this latter says, all that he writes, exhibits his great powers and astonishing information, but I don't think he is agreeable. It is more than society requires, and not exactly of the kind ; his figure, face, voice, and manner, are all bad ; he astonishes and instructs, he sometimes entertains, seldom amuses, and still seldomer pleases. He wants variety, elas- ticity, gracefulness ; his is a roaring torrent, and not a mean- dering stream of talk. I believe we would all of us have been glad to exchange some of his sense for some of Sydney Smith's nonsense. He told me that he had read Sir Charles Grandi- son fifteen times ! Not a word of news, political or other ; the Ministers are all come, Spain and Portugal potter on with their civil contests and create uneasiness, though of a languid kind. I came to town for a meeting at the Council Office, the first under Brougham's new Bill, to make rules and regulations for the 200 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII proceedings of the Court. All the lawyers attended ; not much done, but there do not seem to be any great difficulties. There was Brougham, with Leach next him, and Lyndhurst opposite, all smirks and civility, he and Leach quite fondling one another. Dined yesterday with Stanley, who gave me a commission to bet a hundred for him on Bentley against Ber- bastes for the Derby, and talked of racing after dinner with as much zest as if he was on the turf. Who (to see him and hear him thus) would take him for the greatest orator and statesman of the day ? JVbvember 14?A. Dined with Sefton yesterday; after din- ner came in the Chancellor, in good humor and spirits ; talked of Lord Wellesley, who, since he has been in Ireland, has as- tonished everybody by his activity and assiduity in business. He appeared, before he went, in the last stage of decrepitude, and the} r had no idea the energy was in him ; but they say he is quite a new man, and it is not merely a splash, but real and bona-fide business that he does. The Chancellor talked over some of the passages of the Queen's trial, to which he loves to revert. It was about the liturgy. The negotiations which had taken place at Apsley House between the Duke of Wel- lington and Lord Castlereagh on one part, and Brougham and Denman on the other, were broken off on that point. It was then agreed to refer the matter to others ; the Duke and Cas- tlereagh were to meet Lord Fitzwilliam and Sefton ; a queer choice, old Fitzwilliam a driveler, and Sefton, with all his sharpness, totally unfit for the office of negotiator in a grave matter. He can't be grave, life itself is to him a plaything ; but the night before they were to meet, Fitzwilliam took fright, and backed out. Notice was sent to the other party, but they did not get it, owing to some mistake. In the morn- ing Brougham came to Sefton and asked him to drive him up to the Queen's house, and as they passed through Grosvenor Square, to their amazement they saw Wellington and Castle- reagh alighting (full dressed for the levee) at Lord Fitzwil- liam's door. Sefton went into the house, and found them al- ready in the dining-room, the table covered with papers, when an explanation ensued, on which they had to bundle up their papers again and trot off. When the deputation from the House of Commons went up with the address to the Queen, entreating her to come to terms (Banks, Wortley, Acland, and Wilberforce), she had got all her Council assembled, and before receiving the 1833.] THE QUEEN IN COUNCIL. 201 deputation from the Commons, she asked their advice. Brougham said that she was disposed to acquiesce, but wanted them to advise her to do so, and that her intention was, if they had, to act on that advice, but to save her popu- larity by throwing the odium on them, and devoting them to popular execration. He therefore resolved, and his brethren likewise, to give no advice at all ; and when she turned to him, and said, "What do you think I ought to do ? " he re- plied, in a sort of speech which he gave very comically, " Your Majesty is undoubtedly the best judge of the answer you ought to give, and I am certain that your own feelings will point out to you the proper course." "Well, but what is your opinion ? " " Madam, I certainly have a strong opinion on the subject, but I think there cannot be a shadow of doubt of what your Majesty ought to do, and there can be no doubt your Majesty's admirable sense will suggest to you what that opinion is." " Humph," said she, and flung from him ; turn- ing to Denman, " And, Mr. Solicitor, what is your opinion ? " " Madam, I concur entirely in that which has been expressed by the Attorney-General ; " and so they all repeated. She was furious, and being left to herself she resolved not to agree. Sefton was on horseback among the crowd which was waiting impatiently to hear the result of the interview and her determi- nation. He had agreed with Brougham that, as soon as she had made up her mind, he should come to the window and make him a sign. He was to stroke his chin if she refused, and do something else, I forget what, if she agreed. Accord- ingly arrived Brougham at the window, all in gown and wig, and as soon as he caught Sefton's eye began stroking his chin. This was enough for Sefton, who (as he declares) immediately began telling people in the crowd, who were wondering and doubting and hoping, that they might rely upon it she would " stand by them," and not accept the terms. November 21s. Another meeting at the Council Office the day before yesterday. The Chancellor arranging every thing, but proposing many things which meet with opposition, wants people to be allowed to plead in formd pauperis before the Privy Council, which they object to. I have doubts whether this Court will work well after all, and foresee great difficulty about the rota ; everybody had something to prevent their at- tendance ; however, we meet on the 27th for the dispatch of business. I have just finished " Clarissa ; " never was so in- terested or affected by any book. 302 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. November 28th. Yesterday the first meeting under Brough- am's new Bill of " the Judicial Committee," the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, Baron Parke, Justice Bosanquet, and Erskine (Chief Judge in Bankruptcy). I can't perceive that matters are likely to go on a bit better than when one Judge sat there, though the Chancellor endeavors to confer all the importance he can on his Committee, that he may hereafter figure there himself. There has been a lively controversy between the Whig and Tory papers, of which he has been the object, the former lauding his law reforms, the latter attacking his judicial incompetence. It is actually true that hardly any original causes are brought before him, and he has little business ex- cept appeals which must come into his Court. He feels him- self every day in a more unpleasant predicament, and of course has a growing impatience to get rid of his judicial duties. That he will by a series of tricks wriggle out of them there can be no doubt, for just now he can do whatever he pleases. What he wants is to be Prime Minister ; his restless and ver- satile mind will then find sufficient occupation, and there is no department of Government which he does not think himself capable of presiding over, leaving as he would do all trouble- some details to be worked out by others. November 30th. A long sitting of our Court yesterday. The Chancellor comes regularly. Jenner (the King's Advo- cate) told me that he believed the Chancellor's object was to transfer all appeals from the House of Lords to the Privy Council. Lyndhurst (whom I met at Mrs. Fox's) said that it was quite true that he had no business in his own Court, for nobody would plead there, that he wanted to be Prime Minis- ter, retaining the emoluments and patronage of the Great Seal, and getting rid of its duties. There can be no doubt that he does, and if Lord Grey dies, or is ill (in which case he will re- sign), he probably will succeed. It is amusing to see Brough- am's tricks in small things ; his present object is to raise the Judicial Committee as much as he can, and bring all the busi- ness there lie can collect; in order to increase the appeals he proposed to allow of them from the Indian Courts in formd pauperis. This, however, was strenuously resisted by all the Judges and others present, and as he always takes the lead in all discussions relating to rules and regulations, when he found that the unanimous opinion of the Committee was the other way, he turned himself round and argued against his own proposal, stating or anticipating the objections of the others, 1633.] ANECDOTE OF STRATFORD CANNING. 203 just insinuating incidentally counter-arguments, and ending by letting the question remain in abeyance. Madame de Lieven told me an anecdote of Stratford Canning -which highly delighted her, because it justified the resistance which the Court" of Russia made to his nomina- tion to that Embassy. The other day Dedel called on Palmerston. When shown into the waiting-room, he said, " Tell Lord Palmerston that the Dutch Minister will be glad to see him," when a man who was there, and whom he did not know, jumped up and said, "And I desire you will tell Lord Palmerston that I have been waiting here these two hours, and that I expect to see him before anybody else ; " and then, turning to Dedel, " Sir, this is too bad ; two persons have been already shown in to Lord Palmerston, both of whom came after me, and I expect that you will not go in to his Lordship till after me." Dedel, who is the mildest and civilest of men, replied, " Sir, far be it from me to dis- pute your right, and I assure you I have no desire to go in before you, but I only beg that if Lord Palmerston should send for me first you will understand that I cannot help going ; " and then the other, " Sir, I am Sir Stratford Can- ning." " And I am Mr. Dedel." This extraordinary scene he told Madame de Lieven, not knowing what had passed about the mission. Touching that affair, there is an un- derstanding that he shall not go there, and no other Em- bassador is to be named till it is quite convenient to Palmer- ston. The day before yesterday I met Sydney Smith at dinner at Poodle Byng's, when a conversation occurred which pro- duced a curious coincidence. We were talking of Vaughan, the Minister in America, how dull he appeared, and yet how smart and successful had been " The Siege of Saragossa," which he published at the time of the Spanish war. Sydney Smith said that the truth was he had not written a word of it, and on being questioned further said that he was himself the author. Vaughan, who was a friend of his, had given him the materials, and he had composed the narrative. He then went on to say that it was not the only instance of the kind, for that the celebrated pamphlet which had been at- tributed to Lady Canning had not been written by her, not a word of it, that it had been written by Stapleton. I said that I had it in my power to contradict this, for that I had been privy to the composition of it, had seen the manuscript, 304 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII and had at her request undertaken the task of revising and correcting it. Thus were two mistakes accidentally cleared up, by the circumstance of the only persons who could have explained them being present. December 2d. I went yesterday to Edward Irving's chapel to hear him preach, and witness the exhibition of the tongues. The chapel was formerly West's picture-gallery, oblong, with a semicircular recess at one end ; it has been fitted up with galleries all round, and in the semicircle there are tiers of benches, in front of which is a platform with an elevated chair for Irving himself, and a sort of desk before it ; on each side the chair are three arm-chairs, on which three other preachers sat. The steps from the floor to the platform were occupied by men (whether peculiarly favored or not I don't know), but the seats behind Irving's chair are evidently appropriated to the higher class of devotees, for they were the best dressed of the congregation. The busi- ness was conducted with decency, and the congregation was attentive. It began with a hymn, the words given out by one of the assistant preachers, and sung by the whole flock. This, which seems to be common to all dissenting services, is always very fine, the full swell of human voices producing a grand effect. After this Irving delivered a prayer, in a very slow, drawling tone, rather long, and not at all striking in point of language or thought. When he had finished, one of the men sitting beside him arose, read a few verses from the Bible, and discoursed thereon. He was a sorry fellow, and was followed by two others, not much better. After these three, Spencer Perceval stood up. He recited the duty to our neighbor in the catechism, and descanted on that text in a style in all respects far superior to the others. He appeared about to touch on politics, and (as well as I rec- ollect) was saying, " Ye trusted that your institutions were unalterable, ye believed that your loyalty to your King, your respect for your nobility, your " when suddenly a low moaning noise was heard, on which he instantly stopped, threw his arm over his breast, and covered his eyes, in an attitude of deep devotion, as if oppressed by the presence of the spirit. The voice after ejaculating three "Oh's," one rising above the other, in tones very musical, burst into a flow of unintelligible jargon, which, whether it was in English or in gibberish, I could not discover. This lasted five or six minutes, and as the voice was silenced, another woman, in 1833.] EDWARD IRVING. 205 more passionate and louder tones, took it up ; this last spoke in English, and words, though not sentences, were distinguish- able. I had a full view of her sitting exactly behind Irving's chair. She was well dressed, spoke sitting, under great apparent excitement, and screamed on till from exhaustion, as it seemed, her voice gradually died away, and all was still. Then Spencer Perceval, in slow and solemn tones, resumed, not where he had left off, but with an exhortation to hear the voice of the Lord which had just been uttered to the congregation, and after a few more sentences he sat down. Two more men followed him, and then Irving preached. His subject was " God's love," upon which he poured forth a mystical incomprehensible rhapsody, with extraordinary vehemence of manner and power of lungs. There was nothing like eloquence in his sermon, no musical periods to captivate the ear, no striking illustrations to charm the imagination ; but there is undoubtedly something in his commanding figure and strange, wild countenance, his vehemence, and above all the astonishing power of his voice, its compass, in- tonation, and variety, which arrests attention, and gives the notion of a great orator. I dare say he can speak well, but to waste real eloquence on such an auditory would be like throwing pearls to swine. " The bawl of Bellas " is better adapted for their ears than quiet sense in simpler sounds, and the principle " omne ignotum pro magnifico," can scarcely find a happier illustration than among a congregation whose admiration is probably in an inverse ratio to their com- prehension. December 6th. The Vice-chancellor, Parke, Bosanquet, and Erskine, met yesterday to consider a judgment, and took three hours to manage it ; business does not go on so quickly with many Judges as with one, whether it be more satisfac- tory or not. The Chancellor, the last time we met, announced to the Bar (very oddly) that for the future their Lordships would give judgment in turn. (He had himself delivered the only judgment that had been given.) The Vice-Chan- cellor, who I thought was his friend, laughed at this yester- day with me, and said that he wanted to throw off from himself as much as he could. I asked him (he had said something, I forget what, about the Chancery Bill) what would be left for the Chancellor to do when that Bill was passed. He said, "Nothing, that he meant to be Prime Minister and Chancellor, and that it was what he had been 206 EEIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. driving at all along, that the Bill for regulating the Privy Council was only a part of his own plan, and that all his schemes tended to that end." Setting political bias aside, it is curious, considering his station, to hear the lawyers talk of him, the contempt they universally have for him profes- sionally, how striking the contrast with the profound respect which is paid to Lord Eldon. The other day, in the action brought against the Chancellor for false imprisonment, Lord Eldon was subpoenaed, and he appeared to give evidence ; when he entered the Court, while he was examined, and when he departed, the whole Bar stood up, and the Solicitor- General harangued him, expressed, in the name of his brethren, the satisfaction they felt at seeing him once more among them. There is something affecting in these reveren- tial testimonials to a man from whom power has passed away, and who is just descending into the grave, and I doubt if, at the close of his career, Brougham will ever obtain the same. December 2th. Went yesterday with Frederick Elliot and Luttrell to hear Fox, a celebrated Unitarian preacher, at a chapel in South Place, Finsbury Square. He is very short and thick, dark hair, black eyes, and a countenance intelligent though by no means handsome ; his voice is not strong, and his articulation imperfect, he cannot pronounce the s. His sermon was, however, admirable, and amply repaid us for the trouble of going so far. He read the whole of it, the language was beautiful, the argument clear and unembarrassed, the reasoning powerful, and there were occasionally passages of great eloquence. The conclusion, which was a sort of invoca- tion to the Deity, was very fine. I like the simplicity of the service ; hymns, a prayer, and the sermon, still I think a short liturgy preferable our own, much abbreviated, would be the best. December ~L3th. Met Tavistock at dinner the other day, and talked about the Government ; from his intimacy with Althorp and connection with the others he knows their senti- ments pretty accurately. He said that Lord Grey had so high an opinion of Althorp that he made his remaining a sine qud non, and accordingly he does remain. He thought Lord Grey would be glad to retire, but that he will go on as long as he can, because the Government would be placed in such great embarrassment by his retreat. He did not think Brougham could succeed him, though he believed his popu- larity in the country to be great ; that all depended on the 1833.1 ROBERT LEMON, ESQ. 207 part Peel took in the next session, for in the event of Lord Grey's resignation he looked to the King's sending for Peel to form a Government (much as Canning did when Lord Liver- pool died), principally composed of course of the purest mate- rials, but not exclusively, and that he did not think the great body of the Liberal party would make any difficulty of ac- cepting office under Peel ; that Stanley would not. He (Tavistock) thinks that Peel could not come into office with the Duke of Wellington ; the Tories (Irvine, e. g.) think he would not come in without him. December 18th. Went with Moore yesterday morning to the State Paper Office, and introduced him to Lemon. 1 It was at the new office, where the documents are in course of arrangement, and for the future they will be accessible and useful. John Allen told Moore the other day that he con- sidered that the history of England had never really been written, so much matter was there in public and private collec- tions, illustrative of it, that had never been made use of. Lemon said he could in great measure confirm that assertion, as his researches had afforded him the means of throwing great light upon modern history, from the time of Henry VIII. The fact is, that the whole thing is conventional ; people take the best evidence that has been produced, and give their as- sent to a certain series of events, until more facts and better evidence supplant the old statements and establish others in their place. They are now printing Irish papers of the time of Henry VIII., but from the folly of Henry Hobhouse, who would not let the volume be indexed, it will be of little ser- vice. In the evening dined with Moore at the Poodle's. He told a good story of Sydney Smith and Leslie the Professor. Leslie had written upon the North Pole ; something he had said had been attacked in the Edinburgh Review in a way that displeased him. He called on Jeffrey just as he was getting on horseback, and in a great hurry. Leslie began with a grave complaint on the subject, which Jeffrey inter- rupted with, " O damn the North Pole ! " Leslie went off in high dudgeon, and soon after met Sydney, who, seeing him disturbed, asked what was the matter. He told him what he had been to Jeffrey about, and that he had in a very unpleasant been opened to literary tion.] 208 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. way said, " Damn the North Pole." " It was very bad," said Sydney ; " but, do you know, I am not surprised at it, for I have heard him speak very disrespectfully of the Equator" December 21st. There is great talk of war with Russia, which I don't believe will take place. I had a long talk with Madame de Lieven the day before yesterday, and was sur- prised to find her with such a lofty tone about war. She said that it was " chance 'egale ; " that they neither desired nor feared it ; that our tone had latterly been so insulting that they had no option but that of replying with corresponding hauteur; that if we sent ships to the Mediterranean they would send ships ; that if those measures were pursued, and such language held, it was impossible to say that circum- stances might not bring about war, though equally against the wishes and interests of all parties. In such a case we might destroy their fleet and burn their harbors, but we could not exclude them from Turkey, nor once established there get them out again. That we must not fancy we should be able, in conjunction with France, to keep the rest of Europe in check ; for it was the opinion of the wisest heads, and of Louis Philippe himself, that a war would infallibly bring about his downfall. (This latter opinion is likewise, I find, that of the French ultra-Radicals ; but they think the war must be a war of opinion, and that the extreme Liberals, who would thereby gain the ascendency, would make the King the first victim.) She complained bitterly of the language of our newspapers, and of our orators in Parliament, described the indignation of the Russian Court, and the dignified resent- ment mixed with contempt of the Emperor ; in short, talked very big, but still there will be no war I met Dedel after- ward, and he told me that at Broadlands, where they all met, some explanations in a tolerably friendly tone did take place. The truth is that we have divested ourselves of the right of objecting to Russia's measures with regard to Turkey, al- though we do not dare acknowledge what we have done, nor our motives. We were (and we are) in a false position, and she has played her cards with great dexterity; but the Treaty 1 is another thing, and is justly calculated to excite our jeal- ousy and suspicions. We have held this language to Russia with regard to the Treaty : " We do not remonstrate, because we admit your right to make what treaties you think fit ; but we give you notice that, if any attempt is made to enforce 1 The treaty of ITnkiar Skelessi. 1S34.] BELVOIR CASTLE. 200 the stipulations of it against us, we shall not endure it, and you must be prepared for the consequences." 1834. Belvoir Castle, January 7th. After many years of delay, I am here since the 3d, to assist at the celebration of the Duke of Rutland's birthday. The party is very large, and sufficiently dull: the Duke of Wellington, Esterhazy, Ma- tuscewitz, Rokeby, Miss d'Este (afterward Lady Truro), and the rest a rabble of fine people, without beauty or wit among them. The place is certainly very magnificent, and the position of the castle unrivaled, though the interior is full of enormous faults, which are wholly irretrievable. This results from the management of the alterations having been intrusted to the Duchess and Sir John Thurston (the former of whom had some taste but no knowledge), and they have consequently made a sad mess of it. There is immense space wasted, and with great splendor and some comfort the Castle has been tumbled about until they have contrived to render it a very indifferent house ; no two rooms communi- cating, nor even (except the drawing-room and dining-room, the former of which is seldom or never inhabited) contiguous. The gallery, though unfinished, is a delightful apartment, and one of the most comfortable I ever saw. The outside of the Castle is faulty, but very grand ; so grand as to sink criti- cism in admiration ; and altogether, with its terraces and towers, its woods and hills, and its boundless prospect over a rich and fertile country, it is a very noble possession. The Duke lives here for three or four months, from the end of October till the end of February or March, on and off, and the establishment is kept up with extraordinary splendor. In the morning we are roused by the strains of martial music, and the band (of his regiment of militia) marches round the terrace, awakening or quickening the guests with lively airs. All the men hunt or shoot. At dinner there is a different display of plate every day, and in the evening some play at whist or amuse themselves as they please, and some walk about the staircases and corridors to hear the band, which plays the whole evening in the hall. On the Duke's birthday there was a great feast in the Castle; 200 people dined in the servants' hall alone, without counting the other tables. We were about forty at dinner. When the cloth was re- 210 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Cnxr. XXII. moved, Esterhazy proposed his Grace's health, who has always a speech prepared in which he returns thanks. This time it was more simple than usual, and not at all bad. To-night there is a ball for the servants, which could not take place on the real birthday, as it fell on a Saturday. I have had snatches of talk with the Duke of Wellington, and yesterday morning he retired with Matuscewitz, and had a long conference with him. The absolute Courts have a great hankering after the Duke, though their Ministers here can hardly look for his return to office; nor do I believe that if he was to come back he would be found indulgent to the projects of Russia, though he might be disinclined to continue so very intimate as we now are with France. He told me this morning he thought the French King's speech to his Cham- bers exceedingly good. He of course disapproves of all our foreign policy, particularly in the Peninsula. He says he sees no daylight whatever through the Portuguese affair. The Spanish may terminate in the success of the Queen, but only by her opposing Liberalism. He is convinced that if she in- troduces Liberal principles she will be lost. He says that the Spanish Government will be too happy to interfere in the Portuguese contest (as in fact I know that they have offered to do), but that we never can allow this, which besides the consequences of interference (as a principle) would necessa- rily make Portugal dependent on Spain. Arbuthnot, who is here, told me (and he hears these things from the Duke) that Matuscewitz had expressed the greatest contempt for Palmer- ston, and not the less for Lord Grey; and that, with regard to the latter, he had been much struck with his ignorance. I do not know on what points he meant, but it must be in his- tory or diplomacy, which I am surprised at, because I thought he was a man of a cultivated mind and general information, who would be found, as far as knowledge goes, competent to any discussion. He likewise said that he found him slow of comprehension. JJelvoir, January 8th. There was a ball for all the ser- vants and tenants on Monday, which the Duke of Rutland opened with Lady Georgiana Fane, and the Duke of Welling- ton followed with Lady BrownJow. Yesterday half the people went to Belton; it was nearly impossible to get any talk with the Duke. He told me that the Russians were in no hurry to do any overt act in Turkey, and that their policy was as it had always been to work very gradually. I asked him if he 1834.] CURIOUS SCRAPS OF HISTORY. 211 thought they really intended a permanent occupation of Tur- key. He said certainly not; that they could not bear the expense of a war, which in that case would ensue; that the difference of the expense between their own and a foreign country was as between 10d. and 4s. a man. To-day I have been all over this Castle ; the arrangements are admirable, and the order and cleanliness of every part of the offices and the magnitude of the establishment are very remarkable, and such as I have never seen elsewhere. This afternoon Gosh [Mr. Arbuthnot] came and sat with me, and talked over all matters, which I have heard from him before, though he has forgotten it, which he well may, for his intel- lect, never very bright, seems to be almost entirely obscured. I dare say I have put down these things before, but as they are curious scraps of history they may as well go down again. It all relates to the break-up of Lord Grey's Government in '32, and the abortive attempts of the Duke to form an admin- istration. The King had given his word that he had never promised to make a single peer. Doubts arose whether he had not told a lie; they pressed him on this point (Wellington and Lynd- hurst) ; he persisted in his denial, upon which they requested Taylor might be sent for, and all the correspondence produced, when they found that he was pledged up to the throat, and without reserve. The King then attempted to get out of it by saying he had consented to call up the sons of Scotch peers and give to Irish peers English peerages, which he did not consider a creation of peers ! When the Duke accepted the commission to form a Govern- ment, it was resolved to prorogue Parliament, and Lyndhurst was desired by the King to go to Lord Grey and tell him such was his pleasure. Lyndhurst forgot it ! In after-times, those who write the history of these days will probably dis- cuss the conduct of the great actors, and it will not fail to be matter of surprise that such an obvious expedient was not re- sorted to, in order to suspend violent discussions. Among the various reasons that will be imagined and suggested, I doubt if it will occur to anybody that the real reason was that it was forgotten. Arbuthnot says they know that Lyndhurst was intriguing with the Whigs when the Duke was turned out in '30, and that it had been settled that he was to remain their Chancel- lor; and so he would have been if Brougham would have 212 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. consented to be Attorney-General, and -had not run restive, and given clear indications of his resolution to destroy the Government if he was left out of it. He says that notwith- standing the duplicity of Peel's conduct in 1832, he and the Duke are alwas on good terms, and no great question is ever agitated without Peel's coming to the Duke and talking it over with him ; that Peel is determined to have nothing to do with the Whigs, and told him (Arbuthnot) so very lately, but the High Tories are just as unmanageable as ever. Chandos came to the Duke the other day, and told him he thought they ought to get up petitions against the malt tax. The Duke said he would countenance no such thing; that he thought the revenue of the country should be supported ; for if it failed, recourse must be had to a property tax, which would fall on the aristocracy ; and so he persuaded him to let the malt tax alone. January ZQth. I left Belvoir on Friday, the 10th, and went to Mrs. Arkwright's, 1 at Stoke, where I found nobody but her own family. I was well enough amused for two days with her original conversation and her singing, and her cousin, Miss Twiss, who, with a face of uncommon plainness and the voice of a man, is sensible and well informed. Then they both liked to have me, and that is a great charm ; a little agreeableness goes a great way in the Peak, and it is not difficult to procure a triumph to one's vanity from people who, with a good deal of power of appreciation, have very little opportunity for comparison, and are therefore easily satisfied. Arkwright told me that it was reported, by those who were better informed than himself of his father's circumstances, that he is worth from seven to eight millions. His grand- father began life as a barber, invented some machinery, got a patent, and made a fortune. His son gave him offense by a marriage which he disapproved of, and he quarreled with him, but gave him a mill. Arkwright, the son, saw nothing of his father for many years, but by industry and ability accumulated great wealth. When Sir Richard served as Sheriff, his son thought it right to go out with the other gentlemen of the county to meet him, and the old gentleman was struck with his handsome equipage, and asked to whom it belonged. Upon being informed, he sought a reconciliation with him, and 1 [Mrs. Arkwrighl was a Kemble by birth, and had much of the musical and dramatic genius of that gifted family. Her singing was most touching, and some of her musical compositions were full of originality and expression.] 1834.] SIR THOMAS LAWRENCE'S ENGAGEMENTS. 213 was astonished to find that his son was as rich as himself. From that time they continued on good terms, and at his death he bequeathed him the bulk of his property. Mrs. Arkwright told me the curious story of Sir Thomas Lawrence's engagements with her two cousins, the daughters of Mrs. Siddons. They were two sisters, one tall and very handsome, the other little, without remarkable beauty, but very clever and agreeable. He fell in love with the first, and they were engaged to be married. Of course under such cir- cumstances he lived constantly and freely in the house, and after some time the superior intelligence of the clever sister changed the current of his passion, and she supplanted the handsome one in the affection of the artist. They -concealed the double treachery, but one day a note which was intended for his new love fell into the hands of the old love, who, never doubting it was for herself, opened it, and discovered the fatal truth. From that time she drooped, sickened, and shortly after died. On her deathbed she exacted a promise from her sister that she would never marry Lawrence, who firmly ad- hered to it. He continued his relations with her with more or less intimacy up to the period of her death, the date of which I do not recollect. From Stoke I went on Monday, 13th, to Drakelow, which Sir Roger Gresley has lent to Craufurd, and staid there two nights. It is a miserable place, with the Trent running under the windows, and Lord Anglesey's land close to the door. Thence on Wednesday to Runton Abbey Lord Lichfield's who has added to it a farm-house, and made a residence in the midst of his property, where he has the best shooting in England. He and I went out the day after I got there, and killed 41 pheasants, 74 hares, 24 rabbits, 8 woodcocks, and 8 partridges. He is a fine fellow, with an excellent disposition, liberal, hospitable, frank and gay, quick and intelligent, with- out cultivation, extravagant and imprudent, with considerable aptitude for business; between spending and speculating, buying property in one place, selling in another, and declin- ing to sell in a third, he has half ruined a noble estate. Just before I got there a murder had been committed close to his house under very curious circumstances, of which some notice appeared in the newspapers. A soldier in the Artillery got a legacy of 500, with which he bought his discharge, went down to the village near Runton, and took a very pretty girl of indifferent character to live with him. He gave her 214 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. shawls and trinkets, and spent a good deal of money on her. Having addicted himself immoderately to drink, he soon spent all his money, and, to supply himself with the means of getting drunk, he began robbing his mistress of the articles he had given her. It happened that about this time somebody in the village who had been robbed consulted a cunning man of great repute in the neighborhood, and so alarmed was the thief at the bare idea of what this oracle might utter, that the stolen property was secretly restored. The girl upon hearing of this restitution resolved to have resource to the cunning man, and invited her lover to escort her to his abode. After endeavoring in vain to dissuade her they set out together, but he was so overcome with terror as he went along that he stopped short in the road and refused to proceed. On this the girl said that it was easy to see who was the thief, and that the reason he would not face the conjurer was that he was conscious of his own guilt. Upon this they fell to high words, then to blows, and he finished by murdering her. He did not attempt to escape, but repaired to a public-house, where he was soon after taken into custody. He acknowledged the crime, and said he was weary of life, and deserved to be hanged. Here is an example of the miserable effects of good fortune upon a man who was unfit to use it, and of the strange superstition of the common people. The murderer will be tried at the next assizes. I staid at Runton till Sunday, 19th, when I came here, 1 where there was nobody but the family and Ralph Sneyd. The place is exceedingly beautiful, and arranged with excel- lent taste. It has been very agreeable. Lady Harrowby is superior to all the women I have ever known ; " her talk is so crisp," as Luttrell once said of her. She has no imagi- nation, no invention, no eloquence, no deep reading or re- tentive memory, but a noble, straightforward, independent character, a sound and vigorous understanding, penetration, judgment, taste. She is perfectly natural, open and sincere, loves conversation and social enjoyment; with her intimate friends there is an abandon and unreserved communion of thoughts, feelings, and opinions, which renders her society delightful. Of all the women I ever saw she unites the most masculine mind with the most feminine heart. Lord 1 [This must have been written at Sandon, Lord Harrowby's scat in Stafford- shire, but the entry is not dated.] 1834.] LORD HARROWBY. 215 Harrowby l has all tlie requisites of disagrceableness, a tart, short, provoking manner, with manners at once pert and rigid ; but he is full of information, and if made best of may yield a good deal of desirable knowledge. Though not illib- eral in politics, he has fallen into the High Tory despondency about the prospects of the country, and anticipates every evil that the most timid alarmist can suggest. Still, justice should be rendered to Lord Harrowby ; a purer and more disinterested statesman never existed. He was always dev&id of selfish- ness and ambition, honorable and conscientious to a degree which rendered him incapable of a sordid or oblique action. Always acute, but sometimes crotchety, he had the same fault in politics which was the reproach of Lord Eldon in law in- decision ; and this in no small degree impaired both his efficacy and his authority. His great idol was Pitt, and, after him, he was the friend and admirer of Perceval. Bred in their school, and a Tory by taste, by habit, and in opinion, it is not a little to his honor that he was able to comprehend the mighty changes which time and circumstances had effected, and to perceive that an inflexible adherence to High Tory max- ims was dangerous, because their practical operation was no longer possible ; but justice must be rendered to him hereafter, for he will never obtain it in his own time. By endeavoring to steer between the two great and exasperated factions he became thoroughly obnoxious to both. After having refused the post of Prime Minister, no one can doubt the sincerity of his desire to retire from public life, and in the consciousness of rectitude, the disgust of parties, and a calm and dignified philosophy, he finds ample consolation for all the obloquy with which he has been assailed. JBurffhley, January 28th. Came here yesterday, and found Lady Clinton, Lady Frederic Bentinck, Lyne Stephens and Irby, not amusing. Captain Spencer came to-day. I had almost forgotten the house, which is surprisingly grand in all respects, though the living rooms are not numerous or hand- some enough. I just missed Peel, who went to Belvoir yes- terday. I heard wonderful things of railroads and steam when I was in Staffordshire, yet by the time anybody reads what I now write (if anybody ever does), how they will smile per- haps at what I gape and stare at, and call wonderful, with such accelerated velocity do we move on. Stephenson, the 1 [Dudley Ryder, second Baron and first Earl of Harrowby, born in 1762, married in 1795 Susan, a daughter of the " Marquis of Stafford.] 216 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. great engineer, told Lichfield that he had traveled on the Manchester and Liverpool railroad for many miles at the rate of a mile a minute, that his doubt was not how fast his engines could be made to go, but at what pace it would be proper to stop, that he could make them travel with greater speed than any bird can cleave the air, and that he had ascer- tained that 400 miles an hour was the extreme velocity which the human frame could endure, at which it could move and exist. February \st, Lord Wharncliffe has been here and is gone. He, like Harrowby, is very dismal about the prospects of the country, and thinks we are gravitating toward a revolu- tion. He says that the constituency of the great towns is composed of ultra-Radicals, and that no gentleman with really independent and conservative principles can sit for them, that the great majority of the manufacturers and of the respectable persons of the middle class are moderate, and hostile to sub- version and violent measures, but that their influence is overwhelmed by the numerical strength of the low voters, who want to go all lengths. He says that he has received greater marks of deference and respect in his own county, and especially at Sheffield, where a short time ago he would have been in danger of being torn in pieces, than he ever experienced, but that he could no more bring a son in for Sheffield than he could fly in the air. Sir John Beck- ett is just gone to stand for Leeds, and certainly the cate- chism to which he was there forced to submit is very om- inous. A seat in the House of Commons will cease to be an object of ambition to honorable and independent men, if it can only be obtained by cringing and servility to the rabble of great towns, and when it shall be established that the member is to be a slave, bound hand and foot by pledges, and responsible for every vote he gives to masters who are equally tyrannical and unreasonable. I know nothing more difficult than to form a satisfactory opinion upon the real state and prospects of the country amid the conflicting prejudices and impressions of individuals of different parties and persua- sions, and there are so many circumstances that tell different ways, that at this moment my judgment is entirely suspended on the subject. George Villiers gave a deplorable account of the state of Spain, but he (unlike the Duke of Wellington) thinks that the only chance of safety for the Queen is to make common 1831.] A SQUABBLE IN THE COMMONS. 217 cause with the Liberals. He has been greatly instrumental to Zea's removal, having conveyed to the Queen Regent that England by no means considered his continuance in the Min- istry indispensable, and this intimation, together with the storm which assailed him from all parts, determined her to dismiss him. Palmerston has never written to George Villiers once since October. I heard the same thing of him in some other case, I forget which. February 6th. Returned to town yesterday from New- market, which I took in my way from Burghley. Parlia- ment had opened the day before, with a long nothingy (a word I have coined) speech from the throne, in which the most remarkable points were a violent declaration against O'Connell, that is, against Irish agitation, and strong ex- pressions of amity with France. It is comical to compare the language of the very silly old gentleman who wears the crown, in his convivial moments, and in the openness of his heart, with that which his Ministers cra'm into his mouth, each sentiment being uttered with equal energy and apparent sincerity. Lord Grey is said to have made a very good speech on the Address. The House of Commons has commenced with all the dullness imaginable, but it was enlivened last night by a squabble on the Hill and Shiel business 1 (dragged on by O'Connell), and the ultimate arrest of Althorp and Shiel by the Sergeant -at-arms, a very foolish affair, which must end as it began, in much declaiming and swearing, and no positive conviction, though complete moral certitude. It afforded much amusement, as every thing personally does. The present expectation is that the session will go off rather quietly. February 13th. It is observed by everybody that there never was a session of Parliament which opened with such an appearance of apathy as this. After the violent excite- 1 [Mr. Hill, a member of Parliament, had stated in a speech that some of tho Irish members moat vehemently opposed to the Coercion Bill in the House of Commons had nevertheless privately stated to members of the Government, that they were glad tho Act should be renewed. This charge was denied with great heat by the Irish members in the House when Parliament met. But upon Mr. Shiel's calling upon Lord Althorp to state whether he was one of the members alluded to, Lord Althorp replied that the honorable gentleman was one of them. Shiel immediately denied it in the most solemn and emphatic terms ; and as it was feared that a hostile meeting might ensue between him and Lord Althorp, they were both taken into custody by the Sergeant-at-arms. Further explanations ensued, and Lord Althorp subsequently withdrew the charge, stating that he believed Mr. Shiel's asseveration, and that he must him- self have been misinformed.] 32 218 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Ciup. XXII. raent which has almost incessantly prevailed for the last two years or more, men's minds seem exhausted, and though the undergrowl of political rancor is still heard, and a feeble cry of the Church is in danger, on the whole there is less bitterness and animosity, and a tolerably fair promise that things will go on in a smooth and even course. The storm that impended over Europe has blown off, and there seems to be no danger of any interruption of the peace. Esterhazy and Madame de Lieven both told me last night that they thought so now, and the former that he had told Palmerston that we might rely upon Austria's not being an indifferent spectator of the political conduct of Russia, and if we would place confidence in them, they would not only prevent any dangerous aggression on the part of Russia in Europe, but would take such measures as should contribute largely to the security of our Eastern dominions, though that was no object of immediate interest to them. Madame de Lieven told me that it was impossible to describe the contempt as well as dislike which the whole corps diplomatique had for Palmer- ston, and pointing to Talleyrand, who was sitting close by, " surtout lui." They have the meanest opinion of his capacity, and his manners are the reverse of conciliatory. She cannot imagine how his colleagues bear with him, and Lord Grey supports him vehemently. The only friend he has in the Cabinet is Graham, who has no weight. His unpopularity in his own office is quite as great as it is among the foreign min- isters, and he does nothing, so that they do not make up in respect for what they want in inclination. George Villiers complains that for above three months he has not received a single line from him, and he is a young minister, unpractised in the profession, to whom is committed the most delicate and difficult mission in Europe. He spends his time in making love to Mrs. P , whom he takes to the House of Commons to hear speeches which he does not make, and where he ex- hibits his conquest, and certainly it is the best of his exploits, but what a successor of Canning, whom by-the-way he affects to imitate ! What would be Canning's indignation if he could look from his grave and see these new Reformers, who ape him in his worst qualities, and who blunder and bluster in the seat which he once filled with such glory and success ! It must be owned that we are in a curious condition, and if the character of the Government, moral and intellectual, be ana- lyzed, it will exhibit a very astonishing result : with a great 1834.] SIRS. SOMERVILLE. 219 deal of loose talent of one sort or another scattered about it, but mixed with so much alloy that, compounded as it is, the metal seems very base. However, we are not likely to get any thing better, and these people will very likely hammer on tolerably well. Since Parliament met, the foolish business of Shiel and Hill has been the sole topic of discussion, to the unspeakable disgust of every sensible person in and out of the House. All feel the embarrassment, the ridicule, the disgrace of such an occupation, and the members of Parliament are provoked that the affair was not strangled at the outset. The Speaker is now generally blamed for not having prevented Althorp from answering O'Connell's question, which he ought to have done, at least ought to have warned the House of the consequences, when undoubtedly the matter would have been stiQed. Thej- say Althorp did what he had to do very well, like a gentleman and man of honor, and in excellent style and taste, though many think he need not have said so much. The committee began to sit yesterday ; it was not a secret committee, but they agreed to request members not to come in ; however, the tail would go in, and they found it would be a difficult matter to exclude them, for which reason, and because Shiel had no friend on the committee, they unanimously agreed that the House should be invited to add CTConnell to it, and after some difficulty, raised by John Russell, this was consented to. February 14/i. Last night at Miss Berry's met Mrs. Somerville, the great mathematician. I had been reading in the morning Sedgwick's sermon on education, in which he talks of Whewell, Airy, and Mrs. Somerville, mentioning her as one of the great luminaries of the present day. The subject of astronomy is so sublime that one shrinks into a sense of nothingness in contemplating it, and can't help regarding those who have mastered the mighty process and advanced the limits of the science as beings of another order. I could not then take my eyes off this woman, with a feeling of sur- prise and something like incredulity, all involuntary and very foolish ; but to see a mincing, smirking person, fan in hand, gliding about the room, talking nothings and nonsense, and to know that La Place was her plaything and Newton her acquaintance, was too striking a contrast not to torment the brain. It was Newton's mantle, trimmed and flounced by Muradan. February Ylth. In the House of Commons the Shiel com- 220 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. mittee came to a sudden termination. It was a silly and dis- creditable business, and people were glad it ended. The course adopted was this : they took the Examiner newspaper, containing the paragraph inculpatory of Shiel, and they called on Hill to prove his case. Hill called witnesses, one of whom, Macaulay, refused to speak. He said he would not repeat what had passed in private conversation. The committee approved, and Hill threw up his case, held out his hand " with strong emotion " to Shiel, made ample apologies, and Shiel was acquitted. Then came the apologies in the House of Commons. Peel told me that he was convinced Shiel really had never said what was imputed to him ; but that he had said something tantamount, though very loosely, is probable, and the people who had told Althorp would not come forward to bear him out, so that he was forced to apologize too, but he did it very reluctantly. The Irishmen, however, had not done, and O'Dwyer (formerly a reporter) attacked Pease, asked for explanations, his card and address. Pease, who is a Quaker, said " he gave no explanations but on his legs in the House of Commons, had no card and no address." But there was a more serious matter than Shiel and Hill's trash O'Connell's attack upon Baron Smith, the circum- stances of which exemplify the way the House of Commons is managed under Althorp's auspices, and the general mode of proceeding of the Government there. O'Connell gave notice of a motion for an address to the Crown to remove the Baron. Government resolved to oppose it. Littleton authorized Shaw to write to him and say so, and that he would say nothing in the debate offensive to him, though he could not but disapprove of his charge. Nobody thought of any support the motion would receive beyond that of the tail. The Ministers came down to the House in this mind. Stanley and Graham went away for some purpose or other, and, when they came back, they found that O'Connell had altered the terms of his motion, and that Althorp, Littleton, and the Solicitor-General, had agreed to support it ; in short, that O'Connell had laid a trap for them, and they had gone ding- dong into it. Stanley was very angry and much annoyed, but, the thing being done, he knocked under, and tried to bolster up the business. Graham would not, and, in a maudlin, stu- pid sort of speech, declared his opposition, which was honest enough. All this annoyed the Government very much, and now O'Connell is said to be quite satisfied with Avhat he has 1834.] ALTHOKP'S FINANCIAL STATEMENT. 221 done, and does not want to have a committee, but (having thrown a slur on the Judge by the vote of Parliament) to let the matter drop. Spring Rice also voted against the Govern- ment, and said that he had never known a worse case since he sat in Parliament, and that nothing could be more mischiev- ous than the effect such a vote would produce in Ireland. Scarlett, Peel, and Spankie, made very good speeches ; Stan- ley, John Russell, and Campbell, as bad. The same night Althorp made his financial statement, exhibiting a surplus revenue and reduction of taxation, all very flourishing and promising; but in announcing his in- tended reduction of the House Tax, he said without any dis- guise that he did not think it an objectionable tax, but that he took it off on account of the clamor against it. Here are three exhibitions in one week, and this is the Minister of our finances and organ of Government in the House of Commons. No matter how he blunders in word or deed, he smiles in dogged good-humor at ridicule or abuse ; his intentions are good, his mind is straightforward, and his conscious rectitude, his personal popularity, enable him to commit his blunders with impunity; but the authority of Government suffers in his hands ; maxims get into vogue which are incompatible with good and strong government, and the effects of his weak- ness and facility may be felt long after the cessation of their immediate operation. February ~Lth. Last night Whittle Harvey's motion on the Pension List. He made admirable speeches ; but had a majority of nine, against him. This division is not a bad ex- emplification of the state of parties and of the House of Com- mons. Some of the Tories voted (in the majority of course), many others would not. I asked one of them (Henry Hope, a man of no consequence, certainly) if he was not going to vote. " No," he said, " I shall not vote, the Government must manage their own business as they can." He would not vote against a proposition he must regard with the greatest aver- sion, because he would thereby be supporting the Government, and prefers the chance of giving a victory to the Radicals, establishing a dangerous principle, and doing a great injury to a host of individuals, the greater part of whom are of his own party or among his own friends, because he thinks that the result may be productive oS some embarrassment to Ministers. This is one of the cases in which the conduct of Government has been such as their bitterest enemies must 233 RSIGN OF WILLIAM IV. | CHAP. XXII applaud, when they risk their popularity to support a very unsightly list of pensions, not granted by themselves, or to their friends, from a sense of justice; and yet these high Tories will not support them even in righting such a battle as this. On the other hand, the Government reject their support when they might avail themselves of it against the Radicals and ultra- Whigs, in such a case as that of Baron Smith the other night ; and so ill blood is constantly increasing between them, while O'Connell and his tail and the Radical black- guards sit by and chuckle at the evils these mutual jealousies and antipathies produce. Richmond told me yesterday that Stanley was greatly annoyed at Baron Smith's affair; but finding the mischief done and feeling the embarrassment that would arise from his opposing Althorp, he threw himself into the breach ; said he had advised him never to do so again. The conduct of Althorp, Littleton, and Campbell, is inconceiv- able, unless it were to give a fresh triumph to O'Connell (he has just carried Dungarvan, Jacob vs. Baron ; " it is the voice of Jacob but the hand of Esau "), who has had his own way hitherto in this Parliament. In this business and in Shiel's he has done just what he pleased, and made the Government appear in as pitiful a light as he could possibly desire. O'Dwyer told the Speaker that O'Connell had never expected or even wished that Ministers should give way to him to the extent they did. Knatchbull has given notice of a motion to reverse the decision for a committee on the case of Baron Smith, and in conjunction with Peel. It must embarrass the Government, but it is not, I think, judicious, because it is not the same question, and affords them the opportunity of treating it on different grounds. In the division last night the three Lenoxes all voted with the minority, brothers of the Cabinet Minister, and all their sisters being on the Pension List. Molyneux was going out, and was forcibly retained by Stanley. It looks as if the whipping-in was very unskillfully managed. Notwith- standing the present prosperity and tranquillity, it is impossi- ble not to be disturbed at the mode in which business is con- ducted in the House of Commons, and at the state and animus of parties, and above all at Althorp being the leader there. His character is peculiarly fitted to do mischief in these times, and his virtues are unfortunate, for they serve to bolster him up, and to keep him where he is in spite of his blunders. His temper is so admirable, his personal popularity so great, that 1851.1 A VAST AND UNRULY BODY. 223 there is an impression that the House will be led by him more easily than by Stanley, who alone, of the present Govern- ment, could aspire to that post. Nobody imputes to Althorp a spark of ambition, and ample credit is given him for the most disinterested motives, and for making a great personal sacrifice in retaining his present situation. The consciousness of this makes him comparatively indifferent to victory or de- feat, and careless of that nice management which formerly was indispensable in a leader. He seems totally blind to the con- sequences of his errors, and the advantage that is taken of them by those who not only meditate mischief to the Adminis- tration, but to the great interests they are bound to protect. Occurrences and circumstances that would have filled former leaders with vexation, and their followers with dismay, seem to pass over him without ruffling his serenity or alarming his mind. He acts as if in utter unconsciousness of a restless spirit of popular aggrandizement, as if the House of Commons was an innoxious and manageable machine, as if it was suffi- cient to mean well, and he lets matters take their chance, without any of that vigilant and systematic direction which, if guided by a nice discrimination, might regulate the move- ments and check the eccentricities of this vast and unruly body. Since the opening of this session, all that he has said and done has proved his utter unfitness for the place he occupies. First, his imprudent answers to O'Connell, and the turn he gave to that affair. Then, in bringing forward his financial statement, the na'ivet6 with which he admitted that he had submitted to the clamor against the House Tax, and withdrawn it contrary to his own judgment ; then the facility with which he gave in to O'Connell's motion about the Irish Judge, and threw over his colleagues and his party without an apparent reason or motive. It produces a feeling allied to despair, all security is at an end, for that which would be produced by his good intentions is destroyed by reflecting on his miserable judgment ; half republican in his principles, and incredulous of any danger to be apprehend- ed from the continual increase of popular influences in the House of Commons, he does not perceive how much the authority of a leader is diminished in his hands, and how diffi- cult it will be for any successor of his to gain that sort of ascendency which is indispensable for the effective conduct of public business, and the moral character of the Government. To effect this, besides great talents, great tact, discretion, . 124: REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. sagacity, and temper, will be required ; more, I fear, than fall to the share of Stanley, who is better qualified to be a de- bater than a leader. Moderate men, wiio do not approve of this Government, but who do not desire to turn them out, if they would only act upon tolerably conservative principles, are thrown into despair by the behavior of Althorp, and re- gard with consternation the inevitable increase of anarchy in the House of Commons, and consequent prevalence of Radical principles, from the sluggish, inert, vacillating, unforeseeing character he displays. 1 February %%d. Went to the House of Commons last night, where I had not been for many years. A great change, and hardly a human being whose face I knew. I heard the end of the debate on Chandos's motion, when Peel gave O'Connell a severe dressing, and I heard the debate on re- scinding the order for a committee on Baron Smith. Shaw, who held the Baron's brief, made a very fine speech, but afforded a memorable example of the danger of saying too much, and of the importance of knowing when to stop. Not contented with a very powerful and eloquent appeal, which he wound up with an energetic peroration, he suffered himself to be led away into a tirade about O'Connell's enmity to reli- gion, and, instead of ending, as he might have done, with shouts of applause, was coughed and " questioned " to the close ; Stanley made a wretched speech ; O'Connell very bad ; affecting to be moderate, he was only dull. Peel spoke very shortly, but very well indeed. Peel's is an en- viable position ; in the prime of life, with an immense for- tune, facile princeps in the House of Commons, unshackled by party connections and prejudices, universally regarded as the ablest man, and with (on the whole) a very high charac- ter, free from the cares of office, able to devote himself to literature, to politics, or idleness, as the fancy takes him. No matter how unruly the House, how impatient or fatigued, the moment he rises all is silence, and he is sure of being heard with profound attention and respect. This is the en- joyable period of his life, and he must make the most of it, 1 [These remarks made at the time are not altogether just to Lord Althorp, and it is now well known from other sources, equally authentic, that he was more conscious than any one else was of his own shortcomings, and passion- ately desirous to be released from office. But it was notorious that the retire- ment of Lord Althorp from the leadership of the House of Commons would ho the signal for the dissolution of Earl Grey's Government, and so within a few months the result proved.] 1834.] PEEL'S GREAT MERIT. 225 for, when time and the hour shall bring about his return to power, his cares and anxieties will begin, and, with whatever success his ambition may hereafter be crowned, he will hardly fail to look back with regret to this holiday time of his political career. How free and light he must feel at being liberated from the shackles of his old connections, and at being able to take any part that his sense of his own interests or of the public exigencies may point out ! And then the satisfactory consciousness of being by far the most eminent man in the House of Commons, to see and feel the respect he inspires and the consideration he enjoys ! It is a melancholy proof of the decadence of ability and eloquence in that House, when Peel is the first, and, except Stanley, almost the only real orator in it. He speaks with great energy, great dexterity his language is powerful and easy ; he rea- sons well, hits hard, and replies with remarkable promptitude and effect ; but he is at an immense distance below the great models of eloquence, Pitt, Fox, and Canning; his voice is not melodious, and it is a little monotonous; his action is very ungraceful, his person and manners are vulgar, and he has certain tricks in his motions which exhibit that vulgarity in a manner almost offensive, and which is only redeemed by the real power of his speeches. His great merit consists in his judgment, tact, and discretion, his facility, prompti- tude, thorough knowledge of the assembly he addresses, familiarity with the details of every sort of Parliamentary business, and the great command he has over himself. He never was a great favorite of mine, but I am satisfied that he is the fittest man to be Minister, and I therefore wish to see him return to power. Stanley told me yesterday how very glad they were at having been defeated on Baron Smith's case, and that they were thereby relieved from a great embarrassment. Times are mightily altered, when such defeats and such scrapes produce no effect upon Government, and when they can go on upon two majorities of four and eight and one defeat. February 25th. There has been a meeting at Althorp's to-day, numerously attended, in which he talked with some effect, as it is said, the audience having gone away in a humor to support Government. He took occasion, on somebody hinting at the disunion among themselves, to say that though there might exist differences of opinion on some minor points, he believed there never had existed a Cabinet 226 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXII. of which the members were more firmly knit together by private fliendship and political concurrence. It was Methuen who harangued, and who said that the meeting was very unsatisfactory. Althorp began by saying that unless gentlemen would more regularly and consistently support the Government it could not be carried on, when Paul l rejoined that the Government did not support itself, and that they seemed divided. Moreover, that when the Chancellor of the Exchequer himself talked with so much doubt and uncertainty about reducing particular taxes, he must not be surprised if everybody tried to get what they could for themselves in the general scramble. There are letters from George Villiers to-day (not to me, but to his mother), in which he gives a deplorable account of Spain, that Carlos has a large party in the north, where the Queen's person is odious, the monks have persuaded the people that she is atheistical and republican, that she has not force enough to crush the rebellion, and what she has is scattered on different points, without being able to make any combined or vigorous efforts, that she has no money. The Cortes is to be assembled, but they (I suppose the Ministers) have rejected all good advice on this subject, and nobody can anticipate the effect that will be produced by 300 or 400 individuals meeting in a legislative capacity. If Miguel had resolved to give effectual aid to Carlos, and dashed into Spain, he might certainty have placed him on the throne, and then secured him as a powerful ally to himself in his own contest. Miguel's own case he (George Villiers) by no means considers hopeless, thinks him much better off than Pedro was when at Oporto. The stories of the Queen's 2 gallantries are true. He does not say so totidem verbis, because he does not dare, but he manages to convey as much in answer to a question his mother asked him. He thinks that the great probability is that universal anarch v will convulse that country with civil war of the most de- structive character, and that the provinces, kingdoms, and districts, will be arrayed against each other. The Carlists of Spain being in the north, and those of France in the south, it is very likely they will endeavor to make common 1 [Paul Methuen, Esq., M. P. for Wiltshire. It was to him that O'Counell made the memorable but somewhat profane retort, " Paul, Paul, why perse- cutest thou me 1 "] a [Queen Christina the Kegcnt is here meant. Queen Isabella II. was a young child.] r.-,4.] BETWEEN THE STOOLS. 227 cause, in which case it will be difficult for France not to interfere, so he thinks ; so do not I, and am more disposed to believe that Louis Philippe is too prudent to run his head into such a hornet's nest, and that he will content himself with keeping matters quiet in France, without meddling with the Spanish disputes. He had not yet received any letters from Palmerston. 1 February 26th. Home, the late Attorney-General, seems likely to fall between the stools. When Brougham proposed to him to take a puisne judgeship, he said he had been an equity lawyer all his life, and had no mind to enter on a course of common law, for which he was not qualified, and proposed that he should not go the circuits, and be Deputy- Speaker of the House of Lords. Brougham told him there would be no difficulty, and then told Lord Grey he had settled it with Home, but did not tell him what Home required. The general movement was made, and when Home desired to see Lord Grey he told him that his terms could not be complied with, so he became a victim to the trickery and shuffling of the Chancellor, who wanted to get him out, and did not care how. I hear that his colleagues are quite aware of all his tricks and his intrigues, and have not the slightest confidence in him. He thinks of nothing but the establish- ment of political power on the the basis of patronage, and ac- cordingly he grasps at all he can. All the commissions of inquiry which are set on foot afford him the means of patronage, but I doubt all will not do. He is emasculated by being in the House of Lords, and he will hardly get any- body to do his buisiness for him in the House of Commons. 1 [Within a few days of the date of this note the Ministry of March let was formed in France, with M. Thiers (for the first time) at the head of it. The avowed object of that Minister was to induce the King to interfere more active- ly in Spain in conjunction with England, " Nous entrainerons le Eoi " was a boast he was heard to utter. But he utterly failed. Mr. Greville's prediction turned out to be correct, and in a few months Thiers was again out of office.] 228 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. CHAPTER XXIII. Spain Russia and Turkey Sir R. Peel's Pictures Peel and Stanley Lord Brougham's Judicial Changes Lord Brougham's Defense Admission of Dissenters to the Univer- sities Lord Denman's Peerage Growing Ascendency of Peel An Apology for Lord Brougham Personal Reflections Crime in Dorsetshire Spain and Portugal Pro- cession of the Trades 1 Unions Lady Hertford's Funeral Petition of the London University for a Charter Repeal of the Union Excitemeut of the King Brougham and Eldon at the Privy Council Duke of Wellington's Aversion to the Whigs Lord Brougham and Lord Wynford Fete at Petworth Lord Brougham's Conduct on the Pluralities Bill Crisis in the Cabinet Prince Lieven recalled Stanley, Graham, and the Duke of Richmond, resign on the Irish Church Bill History of the Crisis Ward's Motion defeated by moving the Previous Question Affairs of Portugal Effects of the late Change Oxford 'Commemoration Peel's Declaration Festival in Westminster Abbey Don Carlos on his Wav to Spain Stanley's "Thimble-rig" Speech Resigna- tion of Lord Grey Mr. Greville's Account of the Causes of his Retirement The Government reconstituted by Lord Melbourne Lord Duncannon Secretary of State. March 12th. I have been laid up with the gout for the greater part of a fortnight, but went to Newmarket for two days to get well, and succeeded. Weather like summer, nothing particularly new, a long debate on the Corn Laws, which being called an open question, the Ministers voted different ways that is, all the Cabinet voted one way, but the underlings took their own course. Half the Ruralists are furious with Government for their indecision and way of acting on this question, but I am so totally ignorant upon it that I cannot enter into their indignation, or exactly understand from what it proceeds. It was pretty to see Graham and Poulett Thomson, like two game-cocks got loose from one pen, pecking at and spurring one another. Everybody agrees that the debate was very dull, and that is all they do agree upon. George Villiers writes to his family from Spain, that nothing can be worse and more unpromising than the state of that country. Notwithstanding his Liberal opinions and desire to see a system of constitutional freedom established in the Peninsula, he is obliged to confess that Spain is not fit for such a boon, and that the materials do not exist out of which such a social edifice can be constructed. He regards with dismay and sorrow the tendency toward irremediable confusion and political convulsions, and sees no daylight through the dark prospect. He appears to regret Zea, to whose removal he contributed, and finds more difficulties in dealing with the present Ministers than he had with him. March ~L4:th. There is a fresh d&mele with Russia on 1834.] A NEW TREATY. 229 account of a new treaty concluded by Achmet Pasha at St. Petersburg. By this Russia agrees to remit six millions of the ten which Turkey owes her, and to give up the Princi- palities, but she keeps the fortress of Silistria and the military road, which gives her complete command over them. The Sultan, "not to be outdone in generosity," in return for so much, kindly cedes to Russia a slip of sea-coast on the Black Sea, adjoining another portion already ceded by the Treaty of Adrianople as far south as Poti. This territorial ac- quisition is not considerable in itself, but it embraces the line of communication with Persia, by which we have a vast traffic, and which Russia will be able at any time to inter- rupt. This new transaction, so quietly and plausibly effected, has thrown our Government into a great rage, and especially his Majesty King William, who insisted upon a dozen ships being sent off forthwith to the Mediterranean. Nothing vigorous, however, has been done, and Palmerston has contented himself with writing to Lord Ponsonby, desiring him to exhort the Sultan not to ratify this treaty, and rather to pay (or more properly, to continue to owe) the whole ten millions than accede to the wily proposal. This advice will probably seem more friendly than disinterested, and I have not the slightest idea of the Sultan's listening to it. He has, in fact, become the vassal of Russia, and his lot is settled in this respect, for from Russia he has most to fear and most to hope. The conduct of our Government in this question has been marked by nothing but negligence and indecision, vainly blustering and threatening at one moment and tamely submitting and acquiescing at another, " willing to wound and yet afraid to strike," treating Russia as if she was the for- midable foe of Turkey, and allowing her so to act as to make Turkey think her an ally and protectress, and finally to throw herself into Russia's arms. I went yesterday morning to Peel's house, to see his pictures; since we met at Buckenham we have got rathei intimate. The fact is that, though I have never been a great admirer of his character, and probably he is not improved in high-mindedness, I am so sensible of his capacity, and of the need in which we stand of him, that I wish to see him again in power, and he is a very agreeable man into the bargain. His collection is excellent, and does honor to his taste. We talked of various matters, but the thing that struck me most was what he said had passed between him and Stanley 230 EEIGX OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. the night before indicative of such good feeling between them. It was about the job of Lord Plunket's with regard to the Deanery of Down (concerning which they say there is a very good case ; not that it will do, be it ever so good, for Plunket has a bad name, and public opinion will not pause or retract in any concern of his). He and Stanley met at Madame de Lieven's ball, and Peel said to him, " Why did you let that appointment take place?" Stanley replied, " The fact is, I could not give the true and only excuse for Plunket, viz., that he had signed the report, but had never read it." Peel said, " You had better give him some other deanery and cancel this appointment." They talked for a long time, but this tone and this advice exhibit a state of sentiment by no means incompatible with a future union, when matters are ripe for it. 1 found Peel full of curiosity to know for what purpose Brougham and Denman had been hunting each other about the County of Beds. The Chief- Justice was on the circuit at Bedford, and the Chancellor sent to him by special messenger to appoint a meeting. The Chancellor went to Ampthill, and then to Bedford. The Chief-Justice had left Bedford in the morning, and went toward London. Brougham had left his carraige at Ampthill and hired a job one, that he might enter Bedford incognito. Somewhere between Barnet and St. Albans they met, and returned to town together in the Chancellor's job coach. They went to Lord Grey's, and the next day Den- man returned to the circuit, which he had left without notice to his brother judge or to anybody a mystery. March 16th. Heard last night the explanation of the above. Brougham found that Williams would not do in the Exchequer, so he shuffled up the judges and redealt them. Williams was shoved up to the Common Pleas, Bosanquet sent to the King's Bench, and James Parke put into the Exchequer. I thought this was odd, because the Exchequer is an inferior court ; but I was told that Parke likes to be with Lord Lyndhurst, who has now made the Court of Exchequer of primary importance : 48,000 writs were issued from the Exchequer last year, and only 39,000 from the King's Bench. I forget what the proportions used to be, but enormously the other way. It is quite ludicrous to talk to any lawyer about the Chancellor; the ridicule and aversion he has excited are universal. They think he has degraded the profession, and his tricks are so palpable, numerous, and mean, that political 1834.] DEBATE ON THE TURKISH QUESTION. 231 partiality can neither screen nor defend them. As to the separation of the judicial from the ministerial du ties of his office, it is in great measure accomplished without any legisla- tive act, for nobody ever thinks of bringing an original cause into his Court. He has nothing to hear but appeals, which must come before him, and lunacy and other matters, over which he has sole jurisdiction. March 19th. The night before last Shiel brought on a debate on the Turkish question, when Palmerston made a Avretched speech, and Peel attacked him very smartly, as it is his delight to do, for he dislikes Palmerston. Talleyrand said to me last night, " Palmerston a tres-bien parle"." I told him everybody thought it pitiable. He certainly took care to flatter France and not to offend Russia. In the Lords Brougham took occasion, in replying to some question of Ellenborough's, to defend himself from the charges which have been brought against him of negligence and incapacity in his judicial office, and he made out a good case for himself as far as industry and dispatch are concerned. Nobody ever denied him the merit of the former quality. The virulent attacks of the Tory press (that is, of the Morning Post, by Praed, for the Stand- ard rather defends him) have overshot their mark, and, though the general opinion of the Bar seems to condemn him as a bad Chancellor, he is probably not near so bad as they endeavor to make him out. A mind so vigorous as his will master diffi- culties in a short time at which an inferior capacity would in vain hammer away for years; but his life, habits, and turn of mind seem all incompatible with profound law-learning. He said to Sefton, after he had spoken: "They had better leave me alone. I was afraid that when Londonderry was gone nobody would attack me, and I did not think Ellenborough would have been damned fool enough." They certainly can't get the best of him at the gab. George Villiers continues to give a deplorable account of Spanish affairs of the imbecility of the Government, and of the conduct of the Queen, about whom the stories of gallantry are quite true, and he says it has done irreparable injury to her cause. An embassy has arrived from Pedro, with a prop- osition that they should concert a combined operation for crushing the Miguelites and the Carlists both, beginning with the former. George Villiers seems to think it feasible, but doubts if the Spanish Government has sufficient energy and courage to undertake such an operation. 232 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. March 25th. Dined with Peel on Saturday ; a great dinner with the Duke of Gloucester and the Embassadors. The day before, in the House of Lords, Lord Grey presented a petition from certain members of the University of Cam- bridge, praying for the admission of Dissenters to take degrees, which he introduced with a very good speech. The Duke of Gloucester, who, as Chancellor of the University, ought properly to have said whatever there was to say, was not there (in which Silly Billy did a wise thing), so the Duke of Wellington rose to speak in his stead. It may have been that considering himself to stand in the Duke of Gloucester's shoes, he could nof make too foolish a speech, and accordingly he delivered one of those harangues which make men shrug their shoulders with pity or astonishment. It is always 'a matter of great regret to me when he exposes himself in this manner. After dinner at Peel's I talked to Lyndhurst about it, who said : " Unlucky thing that Chancellorship of Oxford ; it will make him commit himself in a very inconvenient man- ner. The Duke is so very obstinate ; if he thought that it was possible to act any longer upon those High Church prin- ciples it would be all very well, but you have transferred power to a class of a lower description, and particularly to the great body of Dissenters, and it is obvious that those principles are now out of date; the question is, under the circumstances, What is best to be done ? " Lord Ellenborough entirely threw the Duke over, and made a very good speech, agreeing to the prayer of the petitioners, with the reserva- tion only of certain securities which Lord Grey himself ap- proves of. I dined with him the day following, and he said so, adding at the same time, " Though I dare say they will consider them as an insult, and make great complaints at their imposition. However, I don't care for that, and if they don't choose to accept what is offered them on such conditions, they may go without it." There are two things which strike one (at least strike me) in the discussion that of the two prin- cipal actors the Duke of Wellington is incomparably a man of a more vigorous understanding, and of greater firmness, energy, and decision, than Lord Grey, but that Lord Grey appears like an accomplished orator, and prudent, sagacious, liberal statesman, while the other exhibits bigoted, narrow- minded views, ignorance almost discreditable, and nothing but a blind zeal in deference to the obstinate prejudices of the academical body with which he has connected himself. 1?::4.] DESMAN'S PEERAGE. 233 Who would imagine (who heard the two men and knew noth- ing more of them) that the latter is in reality immensely superior to the former in mind and understanding ? Nor must it be supposed that the Duke of Wellington, if he came into power, would act in a manner corresponding -with his declared opinions. Very far from it ; he would do just as he did with regard to the Test Act and the Catholic question, and if he was at the head of the Government, he would cal- culate what sort and amount of concession it was necessary to make, and would make it, without caring a farthing about the University of Oxford or his own former speeches. The Times in its remarks on his speech was very insolent, but excessively droll. Denman's peerage is much abused ; it is entirely the Chan- cellor's doing. Denman has no fortune and a feeble son to succeed him, and it was hoped that the practice of making all the Chief-Justices Peers would have been discontinued in his person. Brougham wrote to Lyndhurst, ostensibly to inform him of this event, but really to apologize for the misstatements he had made in his speech about the business he (Lyndhurst) had done in the House of Lords and in the Court of Chancery. Lyndhurst said (to me), " What nonsense it is ! He has done all he could do, and so did his predecessors before him ; he has sat as long as he could, and if he has not got through as much business it is because counsel have made longer speeches, for I am told his practice is never to interrupt them, to take away his papers, and come down a few days after and deliver a written judgment." On Sunday at dinner at Lord Grey's I sat next to Charles Grey, who talked of the House of Commons, and said that there could be no question of Peel's superiority over every- body there, that Stanley had not done so well this session, had displayed so much want of judgment now, as well as formerly, that he was evidently not fit to be leader. He owned that Peel's conduct was very fair as well as prudent, and said that if his father was to resign, he himself, and he believed many others, would be willing to support a Govern- ment headed by Peel. It is remarkable how men's minds are gradually turning to Peel. I was amused yesterday with Poulett Thomson, who told me that Peel had been very cour- teous to him, and that they had some important points of coincidence of opinion; that Peel did not like Graham, Palmerston, or Grant, but to the rest of the Government ho 234 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Cii.\p. XXIII. was remarkably civil. I think he reckons without his host if he calculates upon Peel's politeness extending to the offer of a place to our Vice-President in the event of his coming in. March 29th. At the beginning of the week there was a discussion in the House of Commons which lasted for three mornings on the Cambridge petition. Spring Rice, O'Connell, Stanley, and Palmerston, spoke for it ; Goulburn, Inglis, and Peel, against it. Old Cobbett made as mischievous a speech as he could to blow the coals between the parties. Peel spoke last, and as usual very well ; but several people expected he would have supported it, and have abstained (from prudential motives) from saying any thing likely to offend the Dissenters. I expected no such thing ; he was not violent, and addressed his argument to the weak parts of his adversaries' speeches rather than against the general principles of toleration ; arid I still think that when the great question of concessions to the Dissenters comes to be argued he will not be found in the ranks of their virulent and uncompromising opponents. It would have been an extraordinary thing indeed if he had all of a sudden stood forth in the character of an anti-Churchman, for such he especially would have been considered if he had united himself with the petitioners, and he would have dis- gusted and alienated all the High Churchman and High Tories to a degree which must have made a fresh and irreconcilable breach between them. This would not have been judicious in his position, and I am satisfied that he took the most pru- dent course. I am the more satisfied of it from the circum- stance that his speech by no means gave unalloyed pleasure to the Standard, which is the organ of the High Church party. I feel it a strange thing to find myself the advocate and ad- mirer of Peel ; but there is such a dearth of talent, his supe- riority is so obvious, and it is so very desirable that something like strength should be infused into the Government, that I am compelled to overlook his faults without being the least blind to them. I ascribe to him no more elevation of char- acter than I did before ; but we must take what we can get and make use of the existing materials, and for this reason 1 watch with anxiety his conduct, because I am persuaded that he is under present circumstances our best and only refuge. The Vice-Chancellor l called on me the other day, and talk- ing over the business that had been done by Brougham, and the recent discussion about it, he said that he had taken the 1 [Sir Lancelot Shad-well, Vice-Chancellor of England.] I*!t.] A MELANCHOLY ANNIVERSARY. 235 trouble to examine the returns of hearings, decrees, and orders, and he found that there was scarcely a shade of difference be- tween what had been done severally by Eldon, Lyndhurst, and Brougham, in equal spaces of time. (Eldon and Lyndhurst had the Bankruptcy business besides.) This is a clear case for the Chancellor, and it is only fair that it should be known. His friends think him much altered in spirits and appearance ; he has never shaken off his unhappiness at his brother's death, to whom he seems to have been tenderly attached. It is only justice to acknowledge his virtues in private life, which are unquestionably conspicuous. I am conscious of having often spoken of him with asperity, and it is some satisfaction to my conscience to do him this justice. When the greatest (I will not say the best) men are often influenced by pique or passion, by a hundred petty feelings which their philosophy cannot silence or their temperament obeys, it is no wonder that we poor wretches who are cast in less perfect moulds should be still more liable to these pernicious influences ; and it is only by keeping an habitual watch over our own minds and thoughts, and steadily resolving never to be turned from considerations of justice and truth, that we can hope to walk through life with integrity and impartiality. I believe what I have said of Brougham to be correct in the main that he is false, trick- ing, ambitious, and unprincipled, and as such I will show him up when I can but though I do not like him and he has of- fended me that is, has wounded my vanity (the greatest of all offenses) I only feel it the more necessary on that account to be on my guard against my own impressions and prejudices, and to take every opportunity of exhibiting the favorable side of the picture, and render justice to the talents and virtues which cannot be denied him. April 3d. Yesterday I was forty years old, an anniversary much too melancholy to think off; and when I reflect how in- tolerably these forty years have been wasted, how unprofit- ably spent, how little store laid up for the future, how few the pleasurable recollections of the past, a feeling of pain and humiliation comes across me that makes my cheeks tingle and burn as I write. It is very seldom that I indulge in moraliz- ing in this Journal of mine ; if anybody ever reads it, what will they care for my feelings and regrets ? It is no reason, they will think, that because I have wasted my time they should waste theirs in reading the record of follies which are nothing more than the great mass of the world are every day 2C6 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. committing ; idleness, vanity, and selfishness, are our besetting sins, and we are perpetually whirled about by one or other of them. It is certainly more amusing, both to other people and to myself (when I look back at what I have written), to read the anecdotes and events of the day than all this moral stuff (by which I mean stuff as applied to me, not as being despica- ble in itself), but every now and then, the fancy takes me, and I think I find relief by giving vent on paper to that which I cannot say to anybody. " Cela fait partie de cette doctrine interieure qu'il ne faut jamais communiquer" (Stendhal). Jam satis est, and I will go to other things the foreign or domestic scraps I have picked up. Parliament being en reldche, there are few people in town. William Ponsonby, whom I met the other evening, told me he had just returned from the assizes at Dorchester, where some men had been convicted of illegal association. On the event of this trial, he said, the lower and laboring classes had their eyes fixed, and the conviction was therefore of great conse- quence ; any relaxation of the sentence would have been im- possible under the circumstances, and though a great disposi- tion was evinced, partly by the press, by petitions, and by some speeches in Parliament, to get them left off more easily, Melbourne very wisely did not wait for more manifestations, but packed them off, and they are gone. William Ponsonby told me that the demoralization in that part of the country is very great the distress not severe, no political disaffection, but a recklessness, a moral obtuseness, exceedingly disgust- ing. There was a certain trial, or rather case (for the grand- jury could not find a bill), in which a woman had murdered a child, got by her son out of a girl who lodged in her cottage. The only evidence by which she could have been convicted would have been that of the son himself, and he refused to speak. The crime went unpunished ; but I mention this to introduce what grew out of it. One of the lawyers said that in the course of the investigations which this case had occa- sioned it had been discovered (though not in a way which ad- mitted of any proofs being adduced and any measures adopted upon it) that there was a woman whose trade was to get rid of bastard children, either by procuring abortions or destroy- ing them when born, and that she had a regular price for either operation. 1 I don't suppose that the average state of 1 [The same t Charlotte Winsor Mag -was proved more than thirty years later, on the trial of , who eventually escaped the fate fine deserved on the ground 1334.] SEYMOUR BATHURST'S SUDDEN DEATH. 237 morals is much worse in one county than in another; but it is very remarkable that while education has been more widely diffused than heretofore, and there is a strong Puritanical spir- it at work and vast talk about religious observances, there should be such a brutish manifestation of the moral condition of the lower classes, and that they should be apparently so little humanized and reclaimed by either education or religion. In this country all is contrast contrast between wealth the most enormous and poverty the most wretched, between an excess of sanctity and an atrocity of crime. George Villiers and Howard write equally bad accounts from their respective Courts, neither seeing any hope of the termination of the Peninsular contests, and each of them alike disgusted with the men they have to deal with. Howard says that we could put an end to the Portuguese affair when- ever we chose, and that they would submit to British power without thinking it a degradation ; that Miguel is.not popular in Portugal, but that the priests have made a crusade against Pedro and Liberal principles, and that they drive the peas- antry into the Miguelite ranks by the terrors of excommuni- cation ; that the only reason why Pedro's military operations are successful is that he has got an English corps, against which the Portuguese will not fight. April 2lst. At Buckenham and Newmarket for the last fortnight, and all things forgotten but racing. Seymour Bathurst's sudden death called me up to town on Tuesday night, to go to Court on Wednesday. Then I saw the Duke of Wellington march up at the head of the Doctors to present the Oxford petition, attired in his academical robes ; and as 1 looked at him thus bedight, and then turned my eyes to his portraits in the pictures of his battles which adorn the walls, I thought how many and various were the parts he had played. He made a great boggling of reading his petition, for it was on a long and broad parchment, and he required both hands to hold it and one to hold his glasses. This is the day for the procession of the Trade Unions, and all London is alive with troops, artillery, and police. I don't suppose any thing will happen, and so much has the general alarm of these Unions subsided that there is very little apprehension, though some curiosity to see how it goes off. of somo legal technicality which was taken up to the House of Lords, and though it was decided against the prisoner, the Government refused, alter u considerable lapse of time, to have her executed.] 238 REIGX 0? WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. April 23d. Nothing could go off more quietly than the procession on Monday. There were about 25,000 men, most- ly well dressed, no noise or tumult, a vast crowd. It was a failure altogether; Melbourne's answer was good. They say 250,000 men are enrolled in the Unions, and the slang name for those who won't belong to them is " dungs ; " the intimi- dation used is great. There was quite as great a crowd as- sembled yesterday to see old Lady Hertford's funeral go by. The King sent all the royal carriages, and every other car- riage in London was there, I believe a pompous piece of folly, and the King's compliment rather a queer one, as the only ground on which she could claim such an honor was that of having been George IV.'s mistress. Brougham made one of his exhibitions in the House of Lords the other night about the Cambridge petition, quizzing the Duke of Gloucester with mock gravity. It was very droll and very witty, I fancy, but very unbeceming his station. Last night O'Connell spoke for five hours on the repeal of the Union. April 25th. Yesterday the Privy Council met to hear the London University petition, praying for a charter, and the counter-petitions of Oxford and Cambridge and the medical bodies. The assemblage was rather curious, considering the relative political position of some of the parties. All the Cabinet Ministers were summoned ; Lords Grey and Holland were there, the Chancellor, Denman, Lyndhurst, Eldon, the two Archbishops, and the Bishop of London. Old Eldon got a fall as he came into the house and hurt his head. Brougham and the rest were full of civilities and tenderness, but he said " it was of no consequence, for the brains had been knocked out long ago." Wetherell made an amusing speech, and did not conclude. It is seldom that the sounds of merri- ment are heard within those walls, but he made the Lords laugh and the gallery too. There were Allen of Holland House and Phillpotts sitting cheek by JOAV! to hear the dis- cussion. May lltf/t. More thau three weeks, and rebus Newmar- kctianis versatus, I have written nothing. The debate on the repeal of the Union was more remarkable for the length than the excellence of the speeches, except Spring Rice's, which was both long and good, and Peel's, the latter supereminent- ly so. O'Connell spoke for five hours and a quarter, and Rice for six hours ; each occupied a night, after the manner of American orators. The minority was much smaller than 1S34.] STATE OF THE KING'S MIND. 239 was expected. Since that the only question of consequence in the House of Commons has been the Pension List, on which Government got a larger majority than they had hoped for, and such a one as to set the matter at rest for some time. Peel again spoke very well, and old Byng made a very independent, gentlemanlike speech. Independence nowa- days relates more to constituents than to the governing power. Nobody is suspected of being dependent on the Crown or the Minister, and the question is if a man be independent of the popular cry or of his own constituency. The King has been exhibiting some symptoms of a dis- ordered mind, not, however, amounting to any thing like actual derangement, only morbid irritability and activity reviewing the Guards and blowing up people at Court. He made the Guards, both horse and foot, perform their evolu- tions before him; he examined their barracks, clothes, arms, and accoutrements, and had a musket brought to him, that he might show them the way to use it in some new sort of exer- cise he wanted to introduce; in short, he gave a great deal of trouble and made a fool of himself. He was very angry with Lord de Saumarez for not attending Keats's funeral, and still more angry because he would begin explaining and apologiz- ing, first at the levee and then at the drawing-room; and he reprehended him very sharply at both places. An explanation afterward took place through Lord Camden, to whom he said that he was angry because De Saumarez would prate at the levee, when he told him that it was not a proper place for discussing the subject. The debate at the Council Board terminated after two more days' speaking. It was tiresome on the whole. Brough- am is a bad presiding judge, for he will talk so much to the counsel, and being very anxious to abbreviate the business, he ought to have avoided saying pungent things, which elicited rejoinders and excited heat. The extreme gravity and patient attention of old Eldon struck me forcibly as contrasted with the air of ennui, the frequent and audible yawns, and the flip- pant and sarcastic interruptions of the Chancellor. Wetherell made a very able speech, which he afterward published. The most striking incident occurred in an answer of Bickersteth's to one of the Chancellor's interruptions. He said, talking of degrees, " Pray, Mr. Bickersteth, what is to prevent the Lon- don University granting degrees now ? " to which he replied, "The universal scorn and contempt of mankind." Brougham 240 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. said no more ; the effect was really fine. There was a little debate upon Portugal in the House of Commons on Friday, in which Palmerston got roughly handled by Baring. A re- port was believed that Don Carlos had sailed for England, and that an agreement had been concluded between Miguel and Pedro, but it turned out to be false. Nobody, however, doubts that the quadruple alliance will settle the Portuguese business, if not the Spanish. May 12th. There was a report yesterday that Palmerston was out and Durham in his place. The latter was under the gallery when Palmerston made that woful exhibition the other night, and must have been well satisfied. I met Peel at din- ner yesterday, and after it he talked to me of this report, which he concluded was not true ; but he said that Palmerston had seemed bereft of his senses, and that in his speech he had attempted a new line quite unusual with him that of humor and any thing so miserable he had never heard. He then talked of Stanley; expressed his indignation at hearing O'Connell bepraised by the men he is always vilifying, espe- cially by Stanley himself, of whom he had spoken in the early part of the same night in such terms as these: " The honorable gentleman, with his usual disregard of veracity, . . ." and again: " He attacked him, but took care how he attacked others, who he knew were not restrained by obligations such as he was under to bear with his language ; " in other words, calling him a liar and a coward; and after this Stanley con- descended to flatter him and applaud his speech. He said that he had expected better things of Stanley, and was really distressed to hear it. I dined with the Duke of Wellington on Saturday. Arbuthnot was there, and he said the Duke is in a state of unutterable disgust with the present Government and their proceedings, particularly with their foreign policy, which he fancies they shape in systematic and willful opposition to his own. This, of course, is merely his imagination, and rather a preposterous notion. He says the Duke does not think well of the state of the country, but that he grasps with eagerness at any symptoms of returning or increasing pros- perity, and (what is rather inconsistent with his bad opinion of affairs) he is always telling the foreigners (i. e., the Em- bassadors) who talk to him, that they will fall into a great error if they think the power or resources of England in any way impaired. His antipathy to the Whigs is, however, in- 1834.] A VERY ABSURD BILL. 241 vincible, and of very ancient date, as this proves. Arbuth- not said that he was looking over a box of papers the other day, and hit upon the copy of a letter he had written to Lord Liverpool, by desire of some of his principal colleagues, to dissuade him from quitting -office, which he thought of doing at the time of the first Lady Liverpool's death. With it there was a scrap on which was written, "Taken down from the Duke of Wellington's own lips ; " and this was an argument that, in the event of his refusing, he (the Duke) should think himself at liberty to join any other party or set of men, but that his great object was to keep the Whigs out of power, as he was convinced that whenever they got in they would ruin the country. Lord Liverpool said that they (the Tories) had been too long in possession of the Government. May 23d. Newmarket, Epsom, and so forth. Nothing remarkably new. In the House of Commons the Poor Law Bill has been going on smoothly ; in the House of Lords little of note but one of Brougham's exhibitions. Old Wynford brought in a very absurd Bill for the better observ- ance of the Sabbath (an old sinner he, who never cared three straws for the Sabbath), which Brougham attacked with excessive virulence and all his powers of ridicule and sarcasm. His speech made everybody laugh very heartily, but on a division, the Bishops all voting with Wynford, the latter carried the second reading by three, in a very thin House. The next day the Chancellor came down with a protest, written in his most pungent style, very smart, but more like a bit of an article in the Edinburgh Review than a Parliamentary protest. Wynford was in the House when he entered his protest, and he called out to him, "Holloa, Best, look at my protest ! " There is a very strong impression abroad that the King is cracked, and I dare say there is some truth in it. He gets so very choleric, and is so indecent in his wrath. Besides his squabble with old Lord de Saumarez, he broke out the other day at the Exhibition (Somerset House). They were showing him the pictures, and Sir Martin Shee (I believe, but am not sure), pointing out Admiral Napier's said, "That is one of our naval heroes ; " to which his Majesty was pleased to reply that if he served him right he should kick him down-stairs for so terming him. But the maddest thing of all is what appeared in the Gazette of Tuesday the peerage conferred on . She is a disreputable, half-mad 33 242 REIGN CF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII woman ! he, perhaps, thought it fair to give her this com- pensation for not being Queen, for he wanted to marry her, and would have done so if the late king would have consented. On Monday last I went to Petworth, and saw the finest fete that could be given. Lord Egremont has been accus- tomed some time in the winter to feast the poor of the adjoining parishes (women and children, not men) in the riding-house and tennis-court, where they were admitted by relays. His illness prevented the dinner taking place ; but when he recovered he was bent upon having it, and, as it was put off till the summer, he had it arranged in the open air, and a fine sight it was ; fifty-four tables, each fifty feet long, were placed in a vast semicircle on the lawn before the house. Nothing could be more amusing than to look at the preparations. The tables were all spread with cloths, and plates, and dishes ; two great tents were erected in the middle to receive the provisions, which were conveyed in carts, like ammunition. Plum -puddings and loaves were piled like cannon-balls, and innumerable joints of boiled and roast beef were spread out, while hot joints were prepared in the kitchen, and sent forth as soon as the firing of guns announced the hour of the feast. Tickets were given to the inhabitants of a certain district, and the number was about 4,000 ; but, as many more came, the old Peer could not endure that there .should be anybody hungering outside his gates, and he went out himself and ordered the barriers to be taken down and admittance given to all. They think 6,COO were fed. Gentlemen from the neighborhood carved for them, and waiters were provided from among the peasantry. The food was distributed from the tents and carried off upon hurdles to all parts of the semicircle. A band of music paraded round, playing gay airs. The day was glorious an unclouded sky and soft southern breeze. Nothing could ex- ceed the pleasure of that fine old fellow ; he was in and out of the windows of his room twenty times, enjoying the sight of these poor wretches, all attired in their best, cramming themselves and their brats with as much as they could devour, and snatching a day of relaxation and happiness. After a certain time the women departed, but the park-gates were thrown open : all who chose came in, and walked about the shrubbery and up to the windows of the house. At night there was a great display of fireworks, and I should think, at the time they began, not less than 10,000 people were assem- 1331.] THE PLURALITIES BILL. 243 bled. It was altogether one of the gayest and most beautiful spectacles I ever saw, and there was something affecting in the contemplation of that old man on the verge of the grave, from which he had only lately been reprieved, with his mind as strong and his heart as warm as ever rejoicing in the diffusion of happiness and finding keen gratification in reliev- ing the distresses and contributing to the pleasures of the poor. I thought how applicable to him, mutatis mutandis, was that panegyric of Burke's on the Indian kings : " De- lighting to reign in the dispensation of happiness during the contracted space of human life, strained with all the Teachings and graspings of a vivacious mind to extend the dominion of his bounty .... and to perpetuate himself from generation to generation as the guardian, the protector, the nourisher of mankind." May %4:th. The Chancellor, who loves to unbosom him- self to Sefton because he knows the latter thinks him the finest fellow breathing, tells him that it is nuts to him to be attacked by noble Lords in the Upper House, and that they had better leave him alone if they care for their own hides. Since he loves these assaults, last night he got his bellyfull, for he was baited by a dozen at least, and he did not come out of the melee so chuckling and happy as usual. The matter related to the Pluralities Bill, which he had introduced some nights before, in an empty House, without giving notice, and after having told many people (the Archbishop of York among others) that there was nothing more to be done that night. In short, he was at his tricks again, lying and shuffling, false and then insolent, and all for no discernible end. The debate exhibits a detail of his misstatements, and all of his wriggling and plunging to get out of the scrape he had got himself into. It is because scarcely any or rather no motive was apparent that it is with difficulty believed that he meant to deceive anybody. But it is in the nature of the man ; he cannot go straightforward ; some object, no matter how trivial, presents itself to his busy and distempered mind, and he immediately begins to think by what artifice and what underhand work he can bring it about ; and thus he exposes himself to the charges of dishonorable conduct without any adequate consideration or cause. He reminds me c f the man in " Jonathan Wild " who was a rogue by force of habit, who could not keep his hand out of his neighbor's pocket though he knew there was nothing in it, nor help cheating at cards though he was aware 344 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. he should not be paid if he won. It is thought that the ex- hibition of last night will not be without its influence upon the fate of this Administration. May 27th. The Government is on the very brink of dis- solution. The Irish Church Bill is the immediate cause, Stanley and Graham standing out against the majority of the Cabinet with regard to the appropriation clause. Stanley, they think, would have knocked under if Graham had not been very fierce and urged him on to resistance. They attribute all the present bother to Graham, who pleads conscience and religious feelings. It is impossible to guess how it will end, and there is a terrible turmoil. Stanley was with the King for two hours yesterday. The violent party evidently wish Lord Grey to let Stanley go out, and those who choose to go with him, and to reenforce the Cabinet with Durham, Mulgrave, and that sort of thing, and what they call " throw themselves on the House of Commons and the country." On the other hand the half-Tories and moderates wish the Gov- ernment to adopt a moderate tone and course, and seek sup- port from the House of Lords. As to the House of Commons, it is a curious body, supporting the Ministers through thick and thin one day and buffeting them the next. On the Bank question the night before last Althorp was beaten, after im- ploring everybody to come and support him and making the strangest declarations. I am very sorry that there should be a chance of a split on such a question as the Irish Church, which really is not tenable. His colleagues (or their friends at least) suspect that Graham kicks up this dust with ulterior views, and they think he aims at a junction with Peel Stan- ley of course included and coming into office with a moderate mixed party. It will be a great evil if the Government is broken up just now, but it is quite clear that they cannot go on long; it is a question of months. The Duke of Wellington told me yesterday that he could do nothing, and he will be rather shy of giving to the world a second volume of that old business in which he got so bedeviled two years ago. The Lievens are recalled, which is a great misfortune to society. She is inconsolable. The pill is gilded well, for he is made governor to the Imperial Prince, the Emperor's eldest son ; but the old story of Stratford Canning, and Palmerston's obstinate refusal to appoint anybody else, has probably con- tributed to this change. His colleagues have endeavored to persuade him to cancel the appointment and name Mulgrave, 1834.] RESIGNATIONS. 245 whom they wish to provide for, but he will not hear of it. I can't conceive why they don't let him go out upon it ; they would be the gainers in every way. We are now in what is called a mess ; the Whigs have put matters in such a condi- tion that they cannot govern the country themselves and that nobody else can govern it either. " Time and the hour run through the roughest day." May 28th. On returning from Epsom I heard that Stan- ley, Graham, and Richmond, had resigned, and it was supposed Ripon would follow their example. 1 Althorp adjourned the debate till Monday next. Sefton " never was so happy in his life." It is a bad sign when he is happy not meaning to be wicked, only very foolish and violent. I have rarely seen the effects of a neglected education and a vivacious temperament manifested in a more remarkable way than in Sefton, who has naturally a great deal of cleverness, but who, from the above causes and the absence of the habit of moral discipline and of calm and patient reflection, is a fool, and a very mischievous one. They will be forced to put Peers in the vacant places, because nobody can get reelected. The rotten boroughs now seem not quite such abominations, or at all events they had some compensating advantages. June 1st. The arrangements rendered necessary by the recent resignations were pretty quickly made, but they have given universal satisfaction. Whigs, Tories, and Radicals, join in full cry against them, and the Times, in a succession of bitter, vituperative articles, very well done, fires off its con- tempt and disgust at the paltry patching up of the Cabinet. The most unpopular appears to be Lord Auckland's appoint- ment, and, though I like him personally, it certainly does ap- pear strange and objectionable. He has neither reputation nor political calibre to entitle him to such an elevation, and his want of urbanity and forbidding manner seem to render him peculiarly unfit for the post they have conferred on him. [Auckland turned out a very popular and, I believe, very good First Lord of the Admiralty. I have heard many praises and not one complaint of him. December 7, 1834. ] The gen- 1 [The members of the Grey Administration who seceded on the Appropria- tion Resolution (as it was termed), moved bv Mr. Ward, were the Duke of Richmond, Postmaster-General ; the Earl of Ripon, Privy Seal : Mr. Stanley, Cabinet Secretary ; and Sir James Graham, First Lord of the Admiralty. The Marquis of Conyngham became Postmaster-General, the Earl of Carlisle Privy Seal, Lord Auckland First Lord of the Admiralty, and Mr. Spring Rice Colonial Secretary.] 240 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII eral opinion is that this Cabinet, so amended, cannot go on long ; but as they clearly mean to throw themselves upon the House of Commons, and as the House will at all events sup- port them for the present, they will probably last some time longer; they will at any rate scramble through this session, and during the recess it will be seen whether they can acquire public confidence and what chance they have of carrying on the Government. After much conversation with Duncannon, Sefton, Mul- gravc, and others, I have acquired a tolerably correct under- standing of the history of these inconvenient proceedings. The speech of Lord John Russell, to which all this hubbub is attributed, may have somewhat accelerated, but did not produce, the crisis. The difference has long existed in the Cabinet on the subject of the Irish Church, and was well known, for Althorp stated as much last year. Stanley and Graham were both vehemently opposed to any Parliamentary appropriation of the surplus revenues of the Irish Church, but not exactly on the same grounds. Stanley denies the right of Parliament to interfere at all ; that is, he asserts that Parliament has no more right to deal with the revenues of the Church than it would have to deal with his estate. Graham does not deny the right, but contends that it is not expedient, that the connection between the two countries is mainly held together by the Protestant Church, and that any meddling with the Establishment will inevitably lead to its downfall. He stands upon religious grounds. I confess myself to be lost in astonishment at the views they take on this subject ; that after swallowing the camel of the Reform Bill, they should strain at the gnats which were perched upon the camel's back, that they should not have perceived from the first that such reforms as these must inevitably be consequent upon the great measure, and, above all, that the prevalence of public opinion, abstract justice, and the con- dition of Ireland, all loudly call for their adoption. How- ever, such are their opinions, and doubtless very conscien- tiously entertained. Upon Ward's motion being announced, it was proposed in the Cabinet that the difficulty should be waived for the present by moving the previous question, and to this the dissentients agreed ; but on further investi- gation they discerned that if this was moved, in all proba- bility it would not be carried, and under these circumstances Stanley proposed at once to resign. In the Cabinet some 1834.] LORD LANSDOWNE WAVERING. 247 were for accepting and others for refusing his resignation, and matters remained unsettled when Althorp went down to the House of Commons on the night of Ward's motion. It was strictly true (as he said) that he was informed while Ward was speaking that they had resigned. The King accepted their resignations at once, and appears to have expressed his opinion that they adopted the proper course, but he told the Duke of Richmond that the four members of the Cabinet who had quitted it were the four whom he liked best of them all. When they were gone it was to be settled how their places were to be supplied. Ellice and Spring Rice were indispensable ; the Radicals wanted Durham ; the Whigs wanted Radnor, Abercromby, and Hobhouse ; Lord Lansdowne was wavering, for he is likewise opposed to any meddling with the Church, though not, perhaps to the extent that the seceders are, or to such a degree as to make his resignation imperative. However, he haggled, and they ap- pear to have thought him of consequence enough to bribe him high to remain. He made Durham's exclusion a sine qud non, but I believe all the others were equally opposed to his readmission. Spring Rice and Auckland are Lans- downe's personal friends and firmest adherents, and their promotion is very agreeable to him (if he did not insist upon it). Mulgrave so entirely expected to come in that he told me on Epsom race-course on Thursday last that he was to be one of the new Ministers, though he did not know which place he was to have. Great, tBerefore, was his disgust when they only offered him the Post-Office without the Cabinet. He refused it with some indignation,, and thinks himself very ill-used. I do not yet know what are the reasons which induced them to make the arrangements they have done, and deterred them from applying to any of the above-mentioned men. It certainly has given great disgust, and will not serve to make the Administration more popular than before. Durham is of course furious, and if Abercrom- by and the others did not expect or desire to come in, they will nevertheless resent being passed over, and in favor of such people. June 2(1. Yesterday I dined with Stanley ; there was a vast deal of fine company, outs and ins, Richmond, who would not stay in the Post-Office, and Mulgrave who would not come into it, Auckland, Palmerston, etc. After dinner Stanley talked to Mulgrave and toe about the whole business; he said 248 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIIL that above three weeks ago, in consequence of the difference in the Cabinet, which everybody knew, he had pressed his resignation on his colleagues, who refused to take it, that he had agreed to vote for the previous question on Ward's mo- tion, but they were informed it would not be carried. He then said, "Why don't you take ray resignation?" Still they demurred, and on that day nothing was settled. He then saw the King, who agreed to accept his resignation conditionally, provided Lord Grey could make other arrangements, and desired Stanley to go down to his colleagues and talk it over. He replied that it was too late, that he ought then to be in his place in the House of Commons, as the debate was going on. He went down, saw Lord Grey, settled with him that he should resign, and then sent into the House of Commons to Althorp to let him know that it was so settled. In such hurry, uncertainty, and confusion, was this business done. Stanley talked not with acrimony, but with something like contempt of the strange situation in which the Government, and particularly Lord Grey, is placed, and he " hoped " they might be able to go on in a tone which implied great doubt if they would. He said that " Lord Grey continues to preside over a Cabinet which is to a certain degree committed to the principle of a measure of which he disapproves, and he accepts the resignation of the colleagues with whom he agrees; that if in the House of Commons to-night no concession is made to the principle of the measure under discussion, it will appear strange and unaccountable why the seceders have been suf- fered to go. If any be made, it will be inconsistent with the letter which. Lord Grey has just written to Ebrington, in a strain as conservative as the King's speech to the bishops." Thus Lord Grey appears to be tossed on the horns of a very inconvenient dilemma. This speech of the King's, which Stanley alluded to, has made a great noise, and is matter of considerable triumph to the Conservatives. It is reported in the papers as it was really delivered, except some absurdities with which it is mixed. It is by no means a bad speech, and very decided in its tone ; but what matters decision and a per- emptory tone from a man so easily led or misled as the King ? Lord Grey's letter was addressed to Ebrington in reply to an address signed by many supporters of Government, and has bsen lying on the table at Brookes's for public inspection. June 3d. Lord Althorp summoned a meeting yesterday in Downing Street, which was numerously attended, though 1834.] STANLEY IN OPPOSITION. 249 some of the usual supporters of Government staid away as followers of Stanley. He invited them to support the pre- vious question, when there was a good deal of speaking for and against, chiefly among county members, and a good deal of cheering at his saying he hoped he had their confidence ; but the meeting broke up without any satisfactory conclusion, and at five o'clock the general impression was that Govern- ment would be beaten, and this in spite of a conviction that they would resign if they were. In the morning I met Gra- ham, who said that he did not know whether he and Stanley would speak or not, that they could not support the previous question without repudiating the declaration with which it was accompanied, that he considered the question to involve the fate of the Irish Church, and with it the connection be- tween the two countries. I told him we differed entirely, but that I would not enter upon any argument on the subject; that it was very unfortunate, and I thought the Government would not stand. He said a tremendous contest must ensue upon the great, question, and so we parted. In the evening a very full House. Lord Althorp stated that the King had issued a Commission, or rather extended the powers of one that already existed, for the purpose of effecting the objects contemplated by the resolution, and begged Ward to withdraw his motion. He would not, and then Althorp moved the previous question, which, to the astonishment of everybody, was carried by a very great ma- jority, all the Tories voting with Government. Stanley spoke, and spoke very well, but with considerable acrimony and in a tone which demonstrates the breach between him and his old colleagues to be irreparable. He was vociferously cheered by the Tories, especially at one passage of his speech about a Chancellor of the Exchequer and his clerical budget, which, however pungent and smart, appears to me imprudent and worth nothing as argument. I am very sorry he has taken such a line upon this question. His scruples have come too late to be serviceable to the cause he espouses, and all he can do is to fan the flame of religious discord and throw in- numerable embarrassments in the way of settling a very . difficult question, the ultimate solution of which is 110 longer doubtful. June 5th. The Portuguese business is over that is, for the present but Lord William Russell (whom I met at dinner at Richmond the day before yesterday) told me he did not 250 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. think Pedro would be able to keep possession of the country, and that another revolution would probably take place when- ever the foreign troops in his pay were disbanded ; tke party against him is too strong ; he said that nothing but an incon- ceivable succession of blunders and great want of spirit and enterprise on the part of Miguel could have prevented his success, as at one time he had 70,000 men, while the other had not above 8,000 or 10,000 cooped up in Oporto, which is not a defensible place; that Miguel might at any moment during the contest have put an end to it. The country is in a dreadfully ruined state from frequent exactions and the de- pression of commerce and cultivation, but Carvalho, Pedro's Minister of Finance, told Lord William he should have no difficulty with his budget, and could find money to discharge all the claims upon Government. The source from which he expects to derive his assets is the confiscated Church prop- erty, which is very great. Money, however, is so plentiful here that the Portuguese Government have been offered a loan of a million at eighty, which they have declined. 1 June 1th. I was in the House of Lords last night to hear a long debate on the Commission, when Goderich made a very good speech, defending himself for his resignation and at- tacking the instrument ; like other people, as soon as he got out of office he spoke with greater energy and force. I thought Lord Grey was rather feeble, though energetic enough in declaration and expression. Phillpotts I did not hear, but he was wretchedly bad, they told me. The Chancellor, to the surprise of every one, made the strongest declaration of his resolution not to permit a fraction of the revenues of the Irish Church to be diverted to Catholic purposes the purposes, in my mind, to which they ought to be diverted, and to which they in the end must and will be. The Government is now reformed, and will scramble and totter on for some time. Things are not ripe for a change, but people will continue more and more to look for a junction between Peel and Stan- ley. God forbid, however, that we should have two parties established upon the principles of a religious opposition to each other ; it would be the worst of evils, and yet the times appear to threaten something of the sort. There is the gabble 1 [The Quadruple Treaty for the pacification of the Peninsular kingdoms was signed in London on the 22d of April ; and on the 9th of May a decisive battle had been gained by the troops of I>om Pedro over those of Dorn Miguel Don Carlos and Dom Miguel soon afterward withdrew from the Peninsula.] 1834.] WELLINGTON AT OXFORD. 251 of " the Church in danger," the menacing and sullen dispo- sition of the Dissenters, all arrued with new power, and the restless and increasing turbulence of the Catholics, all hating one another, and the elements of discord stirred up first by one and then another. June 9th. Melbourne said to me on Saturday night, " You know why Brougham made that violent declaration against the Catholics in his speech the other night, don't you ? " I said, " No." Then he added, " That was for Spring Rice's election, to please the Dissenters." However, Duncannon says he does not believe it was for that object, but certainly thrown out as a sop to the Dissenters generally, who are vio- lently opposed to any provision being made for the Catholic clergy. Duncannon added that " those were his (Brougham's) opinions as far as he had any, as they were not very strong on any subject.' June 15th. Ascot races last week ; many people kept away at Oxford, which seems to have been a complete Tory affair, and on the whole a very disgraceful exhibition of big- otry and party spirit ; plenty of shouting and that sort of en- thusiasm, which is of no value except to the foolish people who were the object of it, and who were quite enraptured. 1 The reception of the Duke, however vociferous, can hardly, on re- flection, have given him much pleasure, when he saw New- castle, Winchelsea, Wetherell, and hoc genus omne, as much the objects of idolatry as himself. Peel very wisely would have nothing to do with the concern, and they are probably very angry with him for absenting himself. The resentment he must feel toward the University on account of their con- duct to him must afford full scope to all the contempt these proceedings are calculated to excite. There was a vast mob of fine people, Mrs. Arbuthnot among the rest. The Duke made rather indifferent work of his Latin speeches. As usual he seemed quite unconcerned at the applause with which he was greeted ; no man ever courted that sort of distinction less. June 18th. Lord Conyngham and George Byng are to be Postmaster and a Lord of Treasury, Abercromby is to be Mas- ter of the Mint, and Cutler Fergusson Judge Advocate, ap- pointments sneered and laughed at. When Althorp an- n xinced the first in the House of Commons Hume said, " God 1 [The Duke of Wellington was installed as Chancellor of the University of Oxford on the 10th of June.l 252 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. bless us ! is it possible ? " Some think Abercromby will be of use to them that he is grave, practical, industrious, and car- ries weight in the House. I am unable to discover any thing in him, except his consistency, to entitle him to any praise. An odd thing happened to Brougham the other day. He got a note from Althorp while he was sitting in his Court about the insolence and violence of the Times, and that its lies and abuse of the Government ought to be put a stop to by some means. The Chancellor tore the note up, and after finishing his business departed. Two hours afterward Lemar- chant got a note from the editor to say that the note had been picked up, put together, and was in his possession. Brougham was furious, and sent to ask the name of the person who gave it, promising to forgive him if it was given up, and threatening if it was not to dismiss every officer in his Court, and not to replace any of them till the culprit was discovered. . June 20th. The Tories are in 'arms and eager for the fray. There was a dinner of fifty at the Conservative Club on the 18th (Waterloo day), with healths and speeches, when Peel delivered himself of a speech half an hour long, to which vast importance is attached. People, however, hear things, as they see things, differently. Theodore Hook, who was present, told me " it was very satisfactory, a declaration of war ; that he announced his having supported the Government while he could from a sense of duty, but that seeing they were resolved to attack the Church, he was prepared to act with, or lead (I forget which), any party which might be formed upon the principle of supporting the Establishment; that the Tories were few in numbers, but strong in character," and so on. Vesey Fitzgerald, who was likewise there, said it was no declaration of war whatever a strong Conservative speech, but not violent in any way, nor indicative of any in- tended deviation from the course Peel has heretofore pursued. So his acts must show which report is the more correct. When we hear that his speech pleased Chandos and Falmouth, one can't help believing it must have been somewhat fierce. I have great confidence in Peel's watchful sagacity, but his game is a very difficult one, and, with all his prudence, he may make a false step. It is so much his interest to ascertain the real disposition of the country that I am disposed to defer very much to his views and notions of probabilities, otherwise I can with difficulty believe that it is wise in him to encourage and head a High Church party and promote 1834.] TORY WARFARE. 253 the senseless cry of the Church in danger. It is the contest itself as much as the triumph of any party that is to be deprecated, for nothing is like the exasperation of religious quarrels, and victory is always abused and moderation for- gotten, whichever side has the ascendant. Every day, how- ever, it becomes more apparent that this Government cannot last ; living as I do with men of all parties, I collect a variety of opinions, some of them intrinsically worth little, except as straws show which way the wind blows, but which satisfy me that the present House of Commons has no great affection for them, and would not have much difficulty in supporting' any other Administration that presented a respectable ap- pearance, and would act upon principles at once liberal and moderate. The majority of the members dread the dissolution, knowing that the next elections must be fiercely contested, and be expensive and embarrassing in all ways. Altogether it is difficult to conceive a more unsettled and unsatisfactory state of things, nor one from which it appears more hopeless to emerge. In the state of parties and of the country the one thing needful a strong Government appears the one thing that it is impossible to obtain. June 2th. Lord Auckland told me the other night that Government are prepared for the Dissenters Bill being thrown out in the House of Lords, and that they don't care. He thinks it never will be carried, and will be a standing grievance of no great weight. The Chancellor made an admirable speech on secondary punishments, connecting with it the question of education. He told me he was called on to pronounce an essay without any preparation, and he did the best he could. I did not hear it, but was told it was excellent. He shines in this sort of thing ; his views are so enlarged and philosophical, and they are expressed in such becoming and beautiful language. June 2Qth. There was a good debate on Monday in the House of Commons on the Irish Tithes Bill. Peel made a very clever speech, attacking the Commission with great felicity, and John Russell made an excellent speech in reply, failing to excuse the Commission, which is inexcusable, but very good upon the question. Both he and Ellice spoke out. I was at the Abbey on Tuesday and yesterday for a perform- ance and a rehearsal of the "Messiah." The spectacle is very fine, and it is all admirably managed no crowd or in- convenience, and easy egress and ingress but the " Messiah " >54 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. is not so effective as I expected, not so fine as in York Min- ster ; the choruses are admirably performed, but the single voices are miserable singers of extreme mediocrity, or whose powers are gone ; old Bellamy, who was at Handel's com- memoration as a singing boy, Miss Stephens, etc. June 21lth. Lord William Russell told me last night that his brother John has frequently offered to resign, and they never would let him ; at last he said he must speak out on this Church appropriation question, or positively he would not stay in, so that his speech was not blurted out, as I sup- posed, but was the result of a fixed resolution. This alters the case as far as he is concerned, and it can't be denied that he was right in thinking it better that Government should make itself clearly understood, and that a break-up was preferable to going on without any real cordiality or con- currence among each other, and the Administration an object of suspicion to all parties. William Russell said that Gov- ernment were quite aware that Peel and the Duke could turn them out when they would, but that they would not know what to do next. Don Carlos is coming to town to Gloucester Lodge. When they told him the Spanish Embassador (Miraflores) was come to wait upon him, he replied, " I have no Embassador at the Court of London." He will not take any money, and he will neither relinquish his claims to the Spanish throne nor move hand or foot in prosecuting them. "If chance will have me king, why let chance crown me, without my stir." (He was meditating evasion at this time, and got away undiscovered soon after.) They say he can get all the money he wants from his partisans in Spain, and that there is no lack of wealth in the country. Strange infatuation when men will spend their blood and their money for such a miserable object ! If he had any thing like spirit, enterprise, and courage, he would make a fine confusion in Spain, and probably succeed; his departure from the Peninsula and taking refuge here has not caused the war to languish in the north. Admiral Napier is arrived, and has taken a lodging close to him in Portsmouth. Miraflores paid a droll compliment to Madame de Lieven the other night. She was pointing out the various beauties at some ball, and among others Lady Seymour, and asked him if he did not admire her. He said: " Elle est trop jeune, trop f raiche," and then, with a tender look and squeezing her hand. " J'aime les femmes un peu pass6es." 183 l.J THE FINSBURY ELECTION. 255 July 4th. The other night Stanley made a fierce speech on Irish tithes, and plainly showed that no reconciliation between him and the Government is feasible. Last night Littleton made a melancholy exhibition with O'Connell. Formerly a Minister must have resigned who cut such a figure ; now it is very different, for no matter how unfit a man may be, it is ten to one nobody better can be found to replace him. A more disgraceful affair never was seen ; the Tories chuckled, the Government and their friends were disgusted, ashamed, and vexed; Durham sat under the gallery and enjoyed the fun. I was at Woolwich yesterday to see the yacht in which the Queen is to sail to the Continent. Such luxury and splendor, and such gorgeous preparations ! She will sail like Cleopatra down the Cydnus, and though she will have no beautiful boys like Cupids to fan her, she will be attended by Emily Bagot, who is as beautiful as the Mater Cupidinum. She will return to her beggarly country in somewhat different trim from that in which she left it, with all her earls and countesses,' equipages, pages, valets, dressers, etc. The Duke of Wellington gave a great ball the other night, and invited all the Ministers. The Chancellor was there till three or four o'clock in the morning, and they say it was very amusing to see the Duke doing the honors to him. The Tories have had a great disappointment in the Finsbury election, which they fancied Pownall was sure of carrying the first day, but Tommy Duncomb beat him hollow the second. It is certainly a great 1 exhibition of Radical strength in that metropolitan district, and may serve to sober the Tories a little, and bring some of them down from their high horses. July Gth. When I wrote the above I had not read Stan- ley's speech, and had only heard he had used very strong language. I was greatly astonished when I did read it, and fully concur in the nearly universal opinion that, however clever and laughable it may have been, it was a most inju- dicious and unfortunate exhibition, and is calculated to do him a serious and lasting injury. (This was the famous " thimblerig " speech.) I do not know when I have read or heard so virulent and coarse an invective, and it is rather disgusting than any thing else to see such a one fired off at the men with whom he has been acting for some years (up to three weeks ago), with whom he declared his entire concurrence on every other question, from whom he expressed the liveliest 256 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIH. regret at separating, and to whom he was individually bound by the strongest ties of friendship and regard. (It will be seen that he made similar professions when he separated from Peel's Government in '46, and instantly rushed into a similar opposition.) The Tories cheered him lustily; and what must he on reflection think of such cheers, and of his position in the House to be holloa'd on by the party which he has hitherto treated with the greatest contempt, and which he thinks the very essence of bigotry and pre- judice, at least on all secular matters, against his old friends and colleagues, to whom he is still allied in opinion upon almost every great question of foreign or domestic policy ? He availed himself of his knowledge that there was nobody on the Treasury Bench who could answer him to fling out this spiteful and intemperate invective. If Brougham could have been thrown for half an hour into the House, "like an eagle into a dovecot," what a grand opportunity there would have been for his tremendous sarcasm to vent itself 1 As it was, Stanley went away unscathed, for though Althorp was not bad in the few words he said with great good-humor, and Littleton made a very tolerable speech, the former twaddled, and the latter has been too much damaged to allow of his saying any thing with effect ; besides, he quoted a speech of Stanley's against him (at all times a poor argument) and did not quote the whole of it. I dare say Peel was not very sorry to hear Stanley's speech, and justly estimated the value of the cheers with which it was hailed. It places him at an im- measurable distance below Peel, and puts an end to any pre- tensions of rivalship, if he ever entertained any. If a junction is to take place between them, Stanley must be content with a subordinate part ; and, act with whomsoever he may, he will never inspire real confidence or conciliate real esteem. I en- tertain this opinion with regret, and could have wished he had cut a better figure. I dined with a Tory at the " Travelers " yesterday, and he said : " Of course we cheered him as loudly as we could ; we want to get him, but I must own that it was a very injudicious speech and very unbecoming." These are the sort of events in a man's life, which influence his destiny ever after ; it is not that his political career will be marred, or that any thing can prevent his talents rendering it on the whole important, and probably successful, but there is a re- vulsion in men's minds about him, which cannot fail to pro- duce a silent, but in the end a sensible, effect upon his fortunes. 1834.] TEE WHIG GOVERNMENT AT AN END. 257 It is remarkable that Lord Derby, who is a very shrewd and sagacious old man, never would hear of his grandson's super- lative merits, and always in the midst of his triumphs ques- tioned his ultimate success. July 10th. Came to town last night from Newmarket, and found things in a fine state. Althorp had resigned three days ago ; his resignation was accepted, on which Lord Grey resigned too. Both of them explained in Parliament last night, Lord Grey, as they tell me, in a very moving and gentlemanlike speech, admirably delivered. The Duke of Wellington made a violent attack upon him in reply, which it is thought he might as well have omitted. (The Duke's speech gave great disgust to many even of his own party, and was afterward assigned as a reason by Stanley and his friends for not taking office with the Duke.) Nobody knows what is to happen. The King sent for Melbourne, and his nephew, John Ponsonby, told me last night he believed he would endeavor to carry on the Government ; but whether he does or not it can't last ; the Whig Government is virtually at an end. The Tories, who were shouting the night before last, are con- siderably disappointed that the King did not instantly avail himself of Lord Grey's resignation and send fcr them, or at least for Peel. I don't suppose, however, that it is from any predilection for the Whigs that he tries to bolster up this Government, but he is said to have an exceeding horror of a dissolution, and it is just possible he may be acting under some good advice surreptitiously conveyed to him, for under all circumstances I think he is taking the most prudent part he can. It is very essential that he should have no hand in the dissolu- tion of his Cabinet, and if he does his best to reconstruct it, and gives the remaining Ministers a fair trial, he will have a good right to call upon the House of Commons and the country to support him in any ulterior measures that circumstances may compel him to adopt. Thus Littleton has been the instrument of breaking up this Government ; a man powerless to serve his party has contrived to destroy it. It is curious to trace this matter from the outset. When Hobhouse threw up his office and his seat, it was extremely difficult to find a successor to him in the Irish Office, principally because not one man in fifty could procure a seat in Parliament, or his reelection if already there. In this emergency Littleton volunteered his services ; he was sure of his seat, and he wanted eventually a 258 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. peerage, so he wrote to Lord Grey, and said that if he thought him capable of filling the place he would undertake it. 1 Nothing better suggested itself; it was a way out of the difficulty, and they closed with his offer. No man could be less fit for such a situation; his talents are slender, his man- ners unpopular, and his vanity considerable. When warned against O'Connell he said, " Oh, leave me to manage Dan," and manage him he did with a vengeance, and a pretty Tartar he caught. His first attempts at management were exhibited in the business of Baron Smith. When the Coercion question came to be agitated, he thought himself very cunning in beginning a little intrigue without the knowledge of his col- leagues, and he wrote to Lord Wellesley for the purpose of prevailing upon him to recommend to the Cabinet that the Bill should pass without the strong clauses, and most unac- countably Lord Wellesley did so. 2 He stated that this omis- sion was desirable on account of circumstances connected with the Government in England, and Lord Wellesley replied that if it was necessary on that account he would contrive to manage matters without the clauses. Upon this he put him- self in communication with O'Connell, and never doubting that his and Lord Wellesley's advice (in accordance as it was with the opinions of certain members of this Cabinet) would prevail, he gave O'Connell those expectations the disappoint- 1 [This statement, though doubtless current at the time, is to my certain knowledge entirely inaccurate. Mr. Littleton was confined to his sofa at the time by an accident, and knew little of what was going on. Nobody was more surprised than himself to receive from Lord Grey a spontaneous and unexpected offer of the Chief Secretaryship of Ireland. Ho was fully aware of the extreme difficulties of the office, winch, was at that moment perhaps the most important in the Government. With equal modesty and candor he distrusted his own ability to fill it, and he still more distrusted his own want of caution and pru- dence, which was his weak point. He accepted it, however, to relieve the Government from embarrassment, but he accompanied his acceptance with a declaration to Lord Grey that he would gladly resign his office whenever a better man could be found to fill it. It had previously been offered to Mr. Abercromby, who refused to accept it without a seat in .the Cabinet.] 2 [These details arc also far from accurate, as has now been demonstrated by the publication (1872) of Lord Hatherton's own memoir on the subject, and of the original correspondence, which proves that the letter to Lord Wellesley was written at the instigation of the Lord Chancellor, and that it expressed the deliberate opinions of several members of the Cabinet. It must, however, be acknowledged that it was written without the knowledge of Lord Grey and in opposition to his views. The subsequent communication made by Mr. Lit- tleton to O'Connell was made with the knowledge and concurrence of Lord Althorp, though Mr. Littleton said more to O'Connell than Lord Althorp had intended an indiscretion which Mr. Littleton himself admitted: but O'Con- nell made a very base and ungenerous use of the confidence which had been extended to him.] 1834.] DISCUSSION IN THE CABINET. 259 ment of which produced the scene between them in the House of Commons. Lord Grey, however, was equally as- tonished and dissatisfied with this last recommendation of Lord Wellesley's, which was directly at variance with the opinion he had given some time before, and he accordingly asked him to explain why he had changed his mind, and re- quested him to reconsider his latter opinion. He still replied that if it was necessary, he would do without the clauses. Upon this there was a discussion in the Cabinet, and Al- thorp, Grant, Ellice, Abercromby, and Rice, were in a minority, who, however, ultimately gave in to the majority. All this time Littleton went on negotiating with O'Connell, 1 having told Althorp alone that he was doing so, though not telling him all that passed, and neither of them telling Lord Grey. Upon the blow-up which O'Connell made, Althorp very unnecessarily resolved to resign, and when he did Lord Grey followed his example. The Tories have been mighty cock-a-hoop, but their joy is a good deal damped within the last twelve hours, for it is now universally believed that Althorp will be prevailed upon to remain, and will himself be at the head of the Govern- ment. His popularity is so great in the House of Commons, and there is such a dread of a dissolution, that if this ar- rangement takes place they will scramble on some time longer, and at this advanced period of the session it may be doubted whether the House of Lords will throw out any of their essential measures. I met Duncannon, Ellice, and John Russell, this evening riding, and they seemed in very good spirits. I have no doubt Ellice and Duncannon have had a main hand in all this business, and that they urged on Little- ton to do what he did. The House was adjourned till Mon- day, to afford time for the new arrangement. Brougham spoke like a maniac last night, and his statements were at direct variance with Althorp's, the latter declaring that they were all out, and the former that they were all still in office, and that Grey and Althorp had alone resigned. July 12th. I went out of town yesterday morning, and did not return till seven o'clock ; in the mean time affairs were materially altered. I met Duncannon riding with a faco as long as the pictures of Hudibras, which at once told the tale of baffled hopes. Melbourne's negotiation had failed entirely. > [Mr. Littleton had but one conversation with O'Connell.] 260 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. " Jack," ' who was backed at even against the field the night before in the House of Commons, would have nothing to say to it. I have not yet heard in detail the circumstances of this failure, but it will probably turn out that the King insisted upon some Conservative conditions, or an attempt at coalition, which is a favorite plan of his. Yesterday it was generally expected that Peel would be sent for, or the Duke of Welling- ton. Peel called at Apsley House and was with the Duke a long time yesterday, and afterward, as the Duke rode through the Park, Ellice, who was sitting on his horse talking to Sir Edward Kerrison, said, " There goes a man who knows more than he did an hour ago." It is expected that Peel, if called upon, will endeavor to form and carry on a Government; but opinions are greatly divided as to the support he would get in the House of Commons, and as to the effect of a dissolution, should he be driven to adopt that hazardous alternative. I think that almost every thing depends upon the course which Althorp takes, as far as the rest of this session is concerned. His popularity in the House of Commons is very great, and even surprising ; it is a proof of the influence which personal character may obtain when unadorned with great abilities and shining parts ; his remarkable bonhomie, unalterable good nature and good temper, the conviction of his honesty and sincerity, and of his want of ambition, his single-mindedness, his unfeigned desire to get out of the trammels and cares of office, have all combined to procure for him greater personal regard, and to a certain degree greater influence, than any Minister ever possessed in my recollection. There is no such feeling as animosity against Althorp. Some detest his prin- ciples, some despise his talents, but none detest or despise the man ; and he is said by those who are judges of such matters to have one talent, and that is a thorough knowledge of the House of Commons and great quickness and tact in discov- ering the bias and disposition of the House. If-Althorp abstains from any rough opposition, and endeavors to restrain . others, upon the principle of giving a fair trial to those who may have taken his place because he would not continue to hold it, it is probable that the majority will avail themselves of such an opportunity for avoiding a dissolution, and give a sulky and suspicious assent to the measures of the new Min- istry, for a cordial support cannot be expected. This, however, 1 [The cant name given at the time to John, Lord Althorp.] 1834.] INTERVIEWS. 261 must depend upon circumstances which are still in nubibus. To-day must, in all probability, decide who is to attempt the task of forming a Government. Stanley, it is supposed, if invited, will not join Peel, at least not at present ; all, how- ever, is speculation, curiosity, and excitement. July 13th. All yesterday nothing was done ; the King remains very quietly at Windsor, still in communication with Melbourne, and I believe with the Chancellor. He declines talking upon the present state of affairs to anybody. What he wanted was, that some attempt should be made toward a coalition, but this the remaining Ministers would not consent to. Poulett Thomson called on me at my office in the afternoon, and told me that it was by no means true that Althorp would not on any terms take the Government; but that he would not unless he had carte blanche, in which case he could not refuse it; if he did refuse, Thomson added, that everybody ought to support Peel or any Tory Govern- ment. He is convinced that if Peel took the Government he would be driven out by the House of Commons instanter, unless he could show that he had done so in consequence of the King being deserted by the present men. I afterward met Mulgrave, who had been riding with Althorp, who told him that though it would be very disagreeable to him on every account, and especially as regards Lord Grey, he might have it put to him in a way that left him no option. Lord Grey and his friends and family think that he has been extremely ill-used, and they are indignant with all the actors in the Littleton affair, and only burning with desire to expose those who are still concealed. Charles Grey talked to me for half an hour in the lobby of the Opera House last night, and said that Lord Wellesley ought to disclose all that was still secret in the transaction, and pro- duce the private letters he had received from England, and by which his opinions and advice had been influenced. Such letters they know were written, and they believe by the Chancellor; this belief, whether it turns out to be true or false, is, I perceive, very general. It is inconceivable what a reputation that man has, and how universally he is dis- trusted, and despised as much as anybody with such great abilities can be. His political character is about on a par with Whittle Harvey's moral character; his insolence and swaggering, bullying tone in the House of Lords have excited as much disgust out of the House as they have given 262 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. offense in it, and the only excuse for him is what many people believe that there is a taint of madness about him. The other night, in his reply to the Duke of Wellington's vio- lent and foolish speech, lie chose to turn upon Lord Rolle, a very old man and a choleric, hard-bitten old Tory. Rolle was greatly exasperated, and after he sat down went up to him on the Woolsack and said, " My Lord, I wish you to know that I have the greatest contempt for you both in this House and out of it." While Lord Grey had been very indignant against the plotters in his Cabinet he has been sorely wounded by the seceders, or rather by the chief of them, Stanley ; but this has been all made up in a way soothing enough to his feelings, but not advantageous, though not discreditable, to Stanley. The latter wrote a letter to Lord Grey ex- pressing his deep regret at having said any thing to oft'end him, disclaiming the slightest intention of the kind, pouring forth the warmest protestations of gratitude, veneration, and attachment to him, and finishing by an assurance that he would take office under nobody else. After the gross attack he made it is honorable in him to make such an apology, but it only enhances the folly of his former conduct to find himself placed under the necessity of writing a peni- tential letter. Lord Grey replied in corresponding terms, and he says they shall be as good friends again as ever, and that Stanley's speech shall henceforward be forgotten ; but it will be very long before the effect produced by it will be forgotten, or that the recollection of it will cease to have an influence on Stanley's reputation and prospects. His especial friends, the other seceders, were as much annoyed at it as anybody ; and the Duchess of Richmond told me that her husband regretted it very bitterly. It is but jus- tice to Richmond to own that he has acted a fair, open, and manly part in this business, and has satisfied all parties. Lord Grey was not annoyed at what passed between them in the House of Lords, and their friendship has never suffered any interruption. July 15th. This interval of feverish anxiety has ended by the formation of the Administration being intrusted to Lord Melbourne. He refused to undertake it unless Al thorp could stay Avith him. The King wanted Lord Grey to come back, and spoke to Taylor about it, but he told him it was out of the question, and therefore the King did not propose it, but 1834.] DUNCANNON SECRETARY OF STATE. 263 he has constantly written to him in the most flattering terms, and desired he might be consulted in every step of these proceedings. Lord Grey has acted very cordially toward Melbourne, and pressed Althorp so earnestly to stay that he has consented, and last night the announcements were made to the two Houses. The Tories (the High and foolish) are down in the mouth, but Peel is himself well content not to have been mixed up in the concern. The present conjecture is that Abercromby will go to the Home Office and Durham to Ireland. Nobody thinks the Government will last long, and everybody " wonders " how Melbourne will do it. He is certainly a queer fellow to be Prime Minister, and he and Brougham are two wild chaps to have the destinies of this country in their hands. I should not be surprised if Melbourne was to rouse his dormant energies and be excited by the greatness of his position to display the vigor and decision in which he is not deficient. Unfortunately his reputation is not particularly good ; he is considered lax in morals, indifferent in religion, and very loose and pliant in politics. He is supposed to have consented to measures of which he disapproved because it suited his ease and conven- ience to do so, and because he was actuated by no strong political principles or opinions. July Ylth. Yesterday it was announced that Duncannon is to be Secretary of State and called to the House of Peers ; Hobhouse in his place and in the Cabinet, and to stand for Nottingham. This completes the concern ; Duucannon Sec- retary of State ! Who could ever have thought of him in such a station ? His proper element seems to be the House of Commons, where he was a bustling, zealous partisan and a very good whipper-in ; but he cannot speak at all, and though a tolerably candid talker, his capacity is slender ; he has no pretensions of any sort to a high office, and nothing but pecul- iar circumstances could put him in one ; but the difficulty has been how to deal with Durham, for the majority of the Cabi- net were decided upon having nothing to do with him, although there were some few who wanted to take him in. By I know not what process of reasoning they arrived at the conclusion that Duncannon's elevation was the only solution of this difficulty, but so it is, for I believe he would have pre- ferred to stay in his old place. They are all in raptures with the King, and with his straightforward dealing on this occa- sion. In the first instance he desired Melbourne to write to #04 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIII. the Duke, Peel, and Stanley, stating his wish that an Admin- istration should he formed upon a wide and comprehensive plan. He wrote accordingly to each, and with his letters he sent copies of his own letter to the King, in which he gave his opinion that the formation of such a Government was impos- sible. The Duke and Peel each replied, with expressions of duty, to his Majesty, that they agreed with Lord Melbourne, but did not see any necessity for giving reasons for their opinions. The King, however, desired to have their reasons, which have since been sent to him by them. Stanley wrote a long letter, with a peremptory refusal to form part of any such Government. He appears anxious to pacify the Whigs by disclaiming any intention of connecting himself with the Tories. Though all the Grey family are very indignant, and by no means silent, at the way the Earl has been treated, he has behaved with great temper and forbearance, and has lent his old colleagues his cordial assistance in patching up the broken concern. July V^th. Two angry debates in the Lords last night and the night before ; I was present at the last, but not at the first. On Thursday Lord Wicklow made a virulent attack on the Government; the Dake of Buckingham was coarse, the Chancellor rabid, and a disgraceful scene of confusion and disorder arose. Melbourne made his first speech, declara- tion, and explanation, and is thought to have done it very well a good beginning. Last night Wharncliffe moved for the production of Lord Wellesley's letter, by which the opinion of the Cabinet had been shaken about the Coercion Bill. Lord Grey made a very handsome speech indeed, throwing his shield over his old colleagues, declaring he neither complained nor had he been ill-used, and entreated that the new Government might be fairly tried, and not em- barrassed without cause in the outset. It was certainly the speech of a thorough gentleman, but the case is after all a bad one. The dates show what must have happened. It was on the 20th of June that Mr. Littleton told O'Connell there was a discussion going on in the Cabinet, and that the Coercion Bill was not yet. settled. Now on the 20th of June it was settled, but on the 23d of June came Lord Wellesley's letter, which unsettled it. 1 It is clear, then, that a communication was made 1 [This again is not accurate. It was on the 23d of June, after the arrival of Lord Wellesley's letter, that Mr. Littleton saw O'Connell. The question was still under discussion on that day, and the opinions of different members 1834] O'CONXELL AND THE COERCION BILL. 2G5 to Lord Wellesley which it was confidently expected would elicit from him such a letter as would enable the authors of the communication to revive the discussion, and Littleton, not being 1 able to wait for his arrival, anticipated it, and told O'Connell that the discussion was begun before the cause of it was in operation. There certainly never was a more com- plete underhand intrigue perpetrated than this, and although no official document, or demi-official, will now be produced to reveal the name of the prime mover, everybody's finger is pointed at Brougham, and the young Greys make no secret of their conviction that he is the man. But undoubtedly the greatest evil resulting from the proceedings and the termina- tion of them (in the reconstruction of this Government, with its additions, and the alteration of the Bill) is the vast in- crease which must be made to the power and authority of O'Connell. He has long been able to make the Irish believe any thing he pleases, and he will certainly have no difficulty in persuading them that he himself has brought about this state of things, that he has ousted Lord Grey, introduced Duncannon (who of all the Whigs has been his greatest friend), and expunged the obnoxious clauses from the Coer- cion Bill, and the fact is that all this is not very far from the truth. Between his dexterity in availing himself of circum- stances and his betrayal of Littleton, between the folly of some men and the baseness of others, he has appeared the most prominent character in the drama. Even now I cannot make out why everybody wished the Bill to be thus emascu- lated, for there would have been no difficulty in passing it through both Houses. To the surprise of everybody Littleton is suffered to keep his place, probably by the protection of Althorp, who may have been. as dogged about him on this oc- casion as he was about the Speakership, and as he is con- sidered (on account of his character) so indispensable in the House of Commons, of course he can make his own terms. 1 of the Cabinet were much divided. Those Ministers (including the Chancellor) who were opposed to the renewal of the Coercion Bill in its integrity wished to secure the assent of Lord Wellesley to their views. After the receipt of Lord Wellesley's letter of the 21st of June both Lord Melbourne and Lord Althorp declared that "it was impossible to ask Parliament for an unconstitutional power which the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland had been led to disclaim." (See *' Ilatherton's Memoir," p. 13.) The question was not finally settled till the Cabinet of the 29th of June. Mr. Littleton had been distinctly informed by Lord Althorp, on the same day that he saw O'Connell, that the matter was not settled, and that he (Lord Althorp) would resign rather than allow the dis- puted clauses to form part of the new Bill.] * [This was so. Lord Althorp positively refused to hold office in the Mol- 266 11EIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAI-. XXIII. July 20th. At Court yesterday to swear in Duncannon Secretary of State. He told me he had made Stanley 1 (the man they call Sir Benjamin Backbite, and familiarly Ben) his under-secretary, telling him he must speak, for that he (Dun- cannon) could not. Auckland and Duncannon will not cer- tainly add mnch to the oratorical splendor of the Government. Ellice was there, and told me about a grand case the Tories have got hold of against him, growing out of Lord Western's evidence in Whittle Harvey's Committee. It there came out that Western had applied to Ellice, then Secretary of the Treasury (at the time of the great Reform election), for money to assist at the Colchester election, and he sent 500. They want to make out that this was public money, but they won't catch him. He says several individuals subscribed large sums, which were placed at his disposal to be employed to the best advantage for the cause. He will get out of it. He talked of the Government, said it was a great error to suppose it was inclined to movement principles, and that in point of fact there was very little difference, except on Church matters, between Sir Robert Peel and himself, that there never was so good a House of Commons for the Government, that in all this mess for mess it was the Tories could not succeed in getting up a feeling or a prejudice against the Government, and it was clear they were utterly powerless there, that the House only required to be a little cajoled, and was easily led ; the word Reform was still potent there, and had only to be uttered on occasions to bring the majority round when they began to show a refractory disposition. July %lst. The Chancellor and the Hollands urged Lord Grey to take the Privy Seal. This Sefton told me as a great secret yesterday, but the indignation of the Greys burst through all restraint, and they told it " A qui voulait les entendre," with every expression of rage and disgust, " adding insult to injury." Lord Grey was more philosophical, and rather smiled at the proposition, but he did not repress the pious resentment of his children. The Grey women would murder the Chancellor if they cotild. It certainly was a bourne Government, unless Mr. Littleton could be prevailed upon to resume or retain his office as Irish Secretary. Nothing could be more honorable to both parties than this conduct of Lord Althorp ; but it was due to the fact that he had himself been a party to the communication made by Mr. Littleton to O'Connell, and that he knew Mr. Littleton had been exposed to more censure than he deserved.] 1 [Afterward Lord Stanley of Aldcrney.] 1834.] LORD MELBOURNE'S ADMINISTRATION. 267 curious suggestion. The Hollands think of nothing on earth but how they may best keep the Duchy of Lancaster, and they fancied Lord Grey's holding the Privy Seal might be of service to the Government, and if they could make him com- mit such a bassesse, so much the better. It is not always easy to discover the Chancellor's motives, but, as he is as vin- dictive as he i-s false and tricking, he perhaps took this oppor- tunity of revenging himself for the old offer of the Attorney- Generalship, which he has never forgiven. 1 CHAPTER XXIV. Taylor's " Philip van Artevelde " Goodwood Earl Bathurst's Death Death of Mrs. Arbuthnot Overtures to O'Connell Irish Tithe Bill Theodore Hook's Improvisation Lord Westmeath's Case in the Privy Council First Council of Lord Melbourne's Government and Prorogation Brougham's Vagaries Lord Durham's Exclusion The Edinburgh Dinner Windsor and Meiningen Spencer Perceval Lord Grey's Eetirement The Westmeath Case again The Queen's Eeturn Melbourne and Tom Young Holland House Reflections Conversation on the Poets Miscellaneous Chat Lord Melbourne's Literary Attainments Lord Holland's Anecdotes of Great Orators Execution of Charles I. Lord Melbourne's Opinion of Henry VIII. The Times at- tacks Lord Brougham His Tour in Scotland His Unpopularity Cowper's Secret Canning on Reform Lord Melbourne on Palmerston and Brougham Canning and Brougham in 1827 Senior Lord Melbourne and the Benthamites His Theology Spanish Eloquence The Harley Papers The Turf Death of Lord Spencer The Westmeath Case heard Law Appointments Bickersteth Louis Philippe's Position. July 23c?. Brougham spoke for four hours on the Poor Law Bill on Monday, and made a luminous speech ; Alvanley, to people's amusement, spoke, and against the Bill ; he spoke tolerably well a grave speech, and got compliments. 1 [This view of the case is certainly unjust to Lord Brougham, ho had more respect and regard for Lord Grey than for any other statesman of the time, as his correspondence with the Earl, now recently published in Brough- am's " Posthumous Memoirs," sufficiently proven.] [The first Administration of Lord Melbourne was thus constituted : First Lord of the Treasury . . . Viscount Melbourne. Lord Chancellor. Lord Brougham. Lord President Marquis of Lansdowne. Home Secretary ... . . . Viscount Duncannon. Foreign Secretary Viscount Palmerston. Colonial Secretary .... Mr. Spring Rice. Chancellor of thc'Exchequer . . . Viscount Althorp. Admiralty Lord Auckland. Board of Control Mr. Charles Grant. Board of Trade Mr, Poulett Thomson. Duchy of Lancaster Lord Holland. Paymaster of the Forces . . . Lord John Russell. Secretary at War Mr. Edward Ellice. Lord Pnvy Seal Earl of Mulgrave. Postmaster-General Marquis of Conynghaaa. Irish Secretary Mr. Littleton. I " 268 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CiiAP. XXIV. July 2th. Read Reeve's "History of English Law," finished Henry Taylor's " Van Artevelde," and read 250 lines of Virgil. " Philip van Artevelde " is a poem of extraordinary merit, and the offspring of a vigorous and independent mind. The author, who is my particular friend, and for whom I have a sincere regard and a great admiration, took his work to Murray, who gave it to Lockhart to read. Lockhart advised Murray not to publish it, at least at his own risk, but he bestowed great encomiums on the work, and urged Taylor to publish it himself. He did so, without much expec- tation that it would be popular, and has been agreeably sur- prised to find that in a short space of time a second edition is called for. With the vivacity of a sanguine disposition, .and a confidence in the sterling merits of his poem, he now believes that edition will follow edition like wave upon wave, in which I fear he will be disappointed. [When the first edition was all sold, and a second called for, he made up his account with his publisher, and the balance was 37 against him. November 29tk,~\ August 5th. At Goodwood for the races, so read nothing except half of Jacquemont's Letters and a little book I picked up, the " History of the Grand Vizier Coprogli ; " called to town on Wednesday last for a Council, to swear in Mulgrave Privy Seal ; went to Petworth on my way for one night. Stanley was at Goodwood, absorbed in racing, billiards, and what not ; nobody would have guessed that all this rough and rustic gayety covered ambition, eloquence, and powers which must make him one of the most eminent men, though his reputation is not what it was. While I was there news came of Lord Bathurst's death. He was a very amiable man and with a good understanding-, though his talents were far from brilliant, a High Church- man and a High Tory, but a cool politician, a bad speaker, a good writer, greatly averse to changes, but unwillingly acquiescing in many. He was nervous and reserved, with a good deal of humor, and habitually a jester. His conversa- tion was generally a series of jokes, and he rarely discussed any subject but in a ludicrous vein. His conduct to Napoleon justly incurred odium, for although he was only one of many, he was the Minister through whom the orders of Government passed, and he suffered the principal share of the reproach which was thrown upon the Cabinet for their rude and barbarous treatment of the Emperor at St. Helena. He had 1834.] LORD BATHURST. 269 not a lively imagination, and his feelings were not excited by the comtemplation of such a striking example of fallen greatness. I was Lord Bathurst's private secretary for several years, but so far from feeling any obligation to him, I always consider his mistaken kindness in giving me that post as the source of all my misfortunes and the cause of my present condition. He never thought fit to employ me, never associated me with the interests and the business of his office, and consequently abandoned me at the age of eighteen to that life of idleness and dissipation from which I might have been saved had he felt that my future prospects in life, my character and talents, depended in great measure upon the direction which was at that moment given to my mind. He would probably have made me a Tory (which I should hardly have remained), but I should have become a man of business, and of the antagonist tastes which divided my mind that for literature and employment would have got the better of that for amusement and idleness, instead, as unfortunately happened, of the latter prevailing over he former. Though I knew Lord Bathurst so long, and was his private secretary for some years, and his family and mine have always been so intimate, I had no real intimacy with him. From what I have learned from others I am disposed to rate his abilities more highly than the world has done. He was the friend and devoted admirer of Pitt, and a regular Tory of the old school, who felt that evil days had come upon him in his old age. When he left office with the Duke of Wellington he resolved upon finally quitting public life, and let what might happen, never to take office again. On coming to town yesterday I heard of another death Mrs. Arbuthnot, after a short illness. The Duke of Wellington, with whom she had lived in the most intimate relations for many years, evinced a good deal of f eeling, but he is accused of insensbility because he had the good taste and sense to smooth his brow and go to the House of Lords with a cheerful aspect. She was not a clever woman, but she was neither dull nor deficient, and very prudent and silent. August 6th. To my office, then to the House of Lords and heard a discussion on foreign politics; not very amusing; Melbourne not so good as Grey would have been. The Duke spoke, but he looked very ill. Walked from the House with Lord Carnarvon, who is an intelligent man, but a great alarmist and very desponding ; he thinks we are going on 270 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV step by step to an utter subversion of all interests and insti- tutions. August 1th. Yesterday I met the Duke of Wellington, who talked to me of Mrs. Arbuthnot ; I walked away from my office with Duncannon, who told me that O'Connell's amendment in the Tithe Bill met with his concurrence (and in fact, though he did not exactly say as much, his conni- vance). He said he was sure this Bill was the only chance for the Irish Church, which he was very anxious to save and support ; expressed great anxiety to make it up with O'Con- nell by giving him a great judicial situation, is convinced he is sincere (at the moment) in all he says, but that he is so vain and excitable and ambitious that when he returns to Ire- land he forgets all he has promised or professed ; the demon of agitation regains the ascendant, and he bursts into all those excesses which have made him so odious and formidable ; but there is no chance of any arrangement with him, for the ma- jority of the Government would not hear of it. I dined at the " Travelers ; " walked to a fire in Edward Street, where I amused myself with the strange figures and groups, the glare, bustle, and noise. There was Duncannon again, a Secretary of State jostling and jostled in the mob. August V&th. On Saturday to Hillingdon, and back yes- terday ; passed the night at the House of Lords, to hear the debate on the Irish Tithe Bill. 1 At a meeting at Apsley House the Tory Lords came to a unanimous resolution to throw out the Bill, and at one or two meetings at Lambeth the bishops agreed to do the same. The debate was heavy ; Melbourne very unlike Lord Grey, whose forte was leading the House of Lords and making speeches on such occasions. Ellenborough spoke the best, I think. I hardly ever heard such unbroken fluency, and a good deal of stujf, too, in his speech. Ellice and Spring Rice both told me that this deci- sion was the most fatal and most important that had occurred for years ; the latter said that no tithe would be paid, but that there would be no active resistance. Such tithe property as could be seized would not be sold, because there would be no purchasers for it. One thing is clear to me, that those Tories who are always bellowing " revolution " and " spoliation," and who talk of the gradual subversion of every institution and the imminent peril in which all our establishments are placed, 1 [The Irish Tithe Bill -was thrown out by the House of Lords by 139 to 122.] 1834.] THE IRISH TITHE BILL. 271 do not really believe one word of what they say, and, instead of being oppressed with fear, they are buoyed up with delu- sive confidence and courage ; for if they did indeed believe that the Church the Church of Ireland especially was in danger, and that its preservation was the one paramount de- sideratum, they would gladly avert, as far as they might, that danger by a compromise involving a very small (if any) sacri- fice of principle, and which would secure to the Irish clergy, as far as human prudence, legislative sanction, and the au- thority of law can secure it, a permanent and a competent pro- vision, free from the danger and the odium which have for a long time past embittered the existence of every clergyman in the country. It is a curious speculation to see what the effect will be of this vote practically in Ireland on the condition of the clergy, and upon public opinion here. It is difficult to understand why the Lords did not alter the Bill in Committee and restore it to its original state, that which Ellenborough said he would not have opposed, and which had been already sanctioned by a great majority of the House of Commons upon the report of a Committee. If they had done this, either the Bill must have passed in this less obnoxious shape or the odium of its rejection would have been thrown upon the Commons, and the Lords would undoubtedly have had an excellent case to present to the country. But if there is a wall they are sure to run their heads against it, and if there is none they build one up for the purpose. What puz- zles me most is the opposition of the clergy ; they are the parties most immediately and most deeply interested in this Bill, and yet the great majority of them appear to be opposed tot is viribus to it. August 13th. Dined at Roehampton yesterday with Far- quhar. Mrs. Norton and Mrs. Blackwood and Theodore Hook dined there among others. After dinner he displayed his extraordinary talent of improvisation, which I had never heard but once before, and then he happened not to be in the vein. Last night he was very brilliant. Each lady gave him a subject, such as the " Goodwood Cup," the " Tithe Bill ; " one " could not think of any thing," when he dashed off and sang stanzas innumerable, very droll, with ingenious rhymes and excellent hits, "his eye begetting occasion for his excel- lent wit," for at every word of interruption or admiration, every look or motion, he indulged in a digression, always com- ing back to one of the themes imposed upon him. It is a tour 272 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [Ciup. XXIV. deforce, in which I believe he stands alone, and it is certainly wonderfully well worth hearing and uncommonly amusing 1 . August 14Z/i. Yesterday there was a bother with the Chancellor about Lord Westmeath's case pending before the Privy Council. 1 He took it into his head (probably having been got at by Lady Westmeath or some of her friends) to have it decided forthwith, and sent to desire a Committee might be convened. Westmeath's counsel was out of town ; Follett, whom he relies on, is on the Northern Circuit, but his other counsel is to be had, being at Chiselhurst. Accordingly the Chancellor desired that the case might stand over from Thursday, the day he first appointed it (giving only two days' notice), to Monday, and that it should be notified to the par- ties that if the}' did not then appear the case should go on without them. Westmeath came to me in a frenzy of rage, and said the Chancellor was the greatest of villains, and so he would tell him in the House of Lords or in the Privy Council. I begged him to hold his tongue, and I would speak to the Chancellor. So I went to the House of Lords where he was sitting, and told Lemarchant what had passed, and that the case ought not to be thus hurried on. He thanked me very much, and said he would go to Brougham ; but he soon returned, and said that the Chancellor would hear nothing-, and would have the case brought on, and he therefore advised me not to give myself any further concern in it, and to leave him and Westmeath to settle it as they might. In the mean time Westmeath went down to the House of Lords, and after speaking to Wynford, whom the Chancellor had asked to attend (as he learned from me), was going to get up in the House of Lords and attack him, and was only prevented by Wynford dragging him down by the tail of his coat. I had already spoken to Wynford, and I afterward spoke to Lord Lansdowne, telling them that the case ought not to be hurried on in this peremptory way, and I persuaded Lord Lansdowne to set his face against it. However, in the mean time Wyn- ford had urged the Chancellor to put it off, and not exasperate that madman, who would say or do something violent ; and whether from reason or fear, he prevailed on him. Wynford told me that Brougham is undoubtedly mad, and so I really 1 [The appellate jurisdiction in causes matrimonial was vested at this time in the King in Council. The case of Westmeath vs. Westmeath, which was a suit for a separation and a question of alimony, came up on appeal from the (Jourt of Arches.] 1834] THE NEW MINISTERS. 273 believe he is. While I was in the House of Lords Home came in from the Commons, and said they had succeeded in stifling there all discussion on the rejection of the Tithe Bill by the House of Lords. Grattan was going to introduce the subject, but was prevailed on to say nothing, and to some questions put by Major Beauclerck Althorp refused to reply. August \th. At a Council for the prorogation ; the first time I have seen all these new Ministers in a bunch a queer set, all things considered, to be in possession of the Palace. Great change of decoration. Duncannon, Ellice, Hobhouse, Abercromby, Mulgrave, Auckland. The King, who is fond of meddling in the Council business instead of repeating like a parrot what is put in his mouth, made a bother and confusion about a fancy matter, and I was forced to go to Taylor and beg him to explain it to him, which I did after the House of Lords. The King was quite knocked up and easily satisfied, for he neither desired nor could have understood any explanations. There were not much more than half a dozen Peers in the House, but many ladies. The Chancellor went down, and, in the presence of the ladies, attired in his golden robes (and especially before Mrs. P., to whom he makes love), gave a judgment in some case in which a picture of Nell Gwynne was concerned, and he was very proud of the delicacy of his judgment. There never was any thing like his exhilaration of spirits and good-humor. I don't know what has come to him, except it be that he has scram- bled through the session and got Lord Grey out. He wound up in the House of Lords by the introduction of his Bill for a Judicial Committee there, which he prefaced by a speech ex- hibiting his own judicial acts, and undoubtedly making a capital case for himself as to diligence and dispatch if it be all true (which I see no reason to doubt), and passing a great culogium upon the House of Lords as an institution, and draw- ing comparisons between that House and the House of Com- mons (much to the disadvantage of the latter), expressing many things which are very true and just and of a highly- conservative tendency. He is a strange being, whom, with all his inconsistencies, one cannot but admire; so varied and prodigious are his powers. Much more are these lines appli- cable to him than to his predecessor on the Woolsack: Great wits are sure to madness near allied, And thin partitions do their bounds divide. 374 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. In a speech the other night, by way of putting his audience on a wrong scent with regard to his correspondence with Lord Wellesley, he assured them that that correspondence was on any subject but politics, and in every language except English ; and Lemarchant told somebody that his most difficult employ- ment was to correct and copy out the Chancellor's Greek epi- grams to Lord Wellesley, his Greek characters being worse than his English ; while Lord Wellesley sent him very neatly- written and prettily-composed epigrams in return. I should think Lemarchant's occupation very amusing, and that no study could be more curious than that of the mind and actions of this strange specimen of humanity. August 19/i. At Stoke from Saturday, the 16th, till yes- terday; had much talk with old Creevey about the Chancellor. Sefton, his great ally, so resented his conduct to Lord Grey that he was on the point of quarreling with him, and Brough- am miscalculated so far as to chuckle to Sefton himself over the improvement of his own position in the new order of things, telling him that he could more easily manage Melbourne than he could Lord Grey. They are a precious set with their squabbles and tracasseries. It appears that they very well knew what Brougham was from the beginning, especially Grey's womankind, who warned their father against him, but they all flattered themselves they had taken the sting out of him by getting him into the House of Lords. Creevey says that Brougham is devoured with ambition, and what he wants is to be Prime Minister, but that it is quite impossible he should forever escape detection and not be regularly bloion up sooner or later. He now wants to appear on good terms with Lord Grey, and there is a dinner at Edinburgh in contemplation (at which Brougham is to preside) to be given to Lord Grey. His friends want him not to go, but he has a notion that the Scotch have behaved so well to him that he ought not to refuse the invitation. The Chancellor had intended to go junketing on the Rhine with Mrs. P., and this project was only marred by his discovering that he could not leave the country without putting the Great Seal in commission at a cost (to himself) of 1,400. This was a larger price than he was disposed to pay for his trip, so he went off to Brougham instead. On Sunday I went all over the private apartments of Windsor Castle, and walked through what they call the slopes to the Queen's cottage; all very splendid and luxurious. In 1834.] SPENCER PERCEVAL. 275 the gallery there is a model of a wretched-looking dog-hole of a building, with a ruined tower beside it. I asked what this was, and the housekeeper said, " The Chateau of Meiningen ; " put there, I suppose, to enhance by comparison the pleasure of all the grandeur which surrounds the Queen, for it would hardly have been exhibited as a philosophical or moral me- mento of her humble origin and the low fortune from which she has been raised. As I rode into London yesterday morning I fell in with Spencer Perceval, and got off my horse to walk into town with him. He talks rationally enough till he gets on religious topics ; he asked me what I thought of the state of affairs, and, after telling him my opinion of the condition and pros- pects of the Church, I asked him what he thought of them. He said he agreed with me as to the status, but his notion was " that it all proceeded from a departure from God," that ours was a backsliding Church, and that God had forsaken it, and that we had only to put our trust in Him, and rely en- tirely on Him, and He would work out the salvation of His own. We parted in the midst of the discussion, and before I had any time to get from him any explanation of the course lie would recommend to those who govern in furtherance of his own theocratical principles. There has been what is called " a great Protestant meet- ing " at Dublin, at which Winchelsea was introduced to the Irish Orangemen and made one of them. It was great in one way, for there were a great many fools, who talked a great deal of nonsense and evinced a disposition to do a great deal of mischief if they can. Winchelsea's description of himself was undoubtedly true, only it is true always and of all of them, "that his feelings were so excited that he was deprived of what little intellect he possessed." August 2Gth. On Friday to Hillingdon, Saturday to Stoke ; Lord John Russell, Medem, Dedel, Tommy Duncombe, D'Orsay. Lord John and I walked to Bulstrode on Sunday ; talked about the Chancellor and the Government. He said that Lord Holland was struck with Brougham's want of tact at hearing him press Lord Grey to go to a public dinner at Edinburgh because he was to be in the chair ; that Lord Grey did not think Brougham had been engaged db initio in a plot to get him out. Lord John talked of the House of Lords, and how it and the House of Commons were to be reunited. He thinks that the obstinacy of the House of Lords and its 276 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. Tory spirit are attributable solely to the numerous creations of the last thirty or forty years. Tommy Buncombe is the greatest political comedy going, lie is engaged in a mediation between the master-builders and the operatives, who have quarreled about the unions, and an express came to him from Cubitt after dinner. Sefton told me that Lord Grey, when he was at Windsor, had a long conversation with the King, in which his Majesty expressed no little dissatisfaction at what had recently oc- curred and at the present posture of his affairs. He told me that Lord Grey certainly would not have continued in office under any circumstances till Parliament met again, and that, in fact, his continual propositions to retire and expressions of consciousness of inability and unfitness had been very embar- rassing and annoying both to his colleagues and the King, and that the latter had evidently been tired out by them, as was proved by his not making the slightest effort to induce Lord Grey to remain when he tendered his resignation. Grey acted very handsomely in giving his proxy to Melbourne, and the reason he staid away from the House of Lords during the latter days of the session was that he was afraid of being com- pelled to say something indicative of the real state of his mind and feelings with regard to past occurrences. When I got to town yesterday, to my great astonishment 1 found that the Vice-Chancellor had been at the office with a peremptory mandate from the Chancellor to bring on the Westmeath case on Friday next, sent up from Brougham Hall. In my absence the summonses had been issued, but I desired them all to be recalled, and the Vice-Chan cellor soon after happening to call on me, I told him what had occurred before, and that the Lord President was opposed to the cause being thus hurried on. He acquiesced, and wrote to the Chancellor to say he had heard from me that it could not be ; and so it ended, but I dare say the Chancellor will be in a violent rage, which I rather enjoy than not. 1 It is very clear that he intends to exercise paramount authority over the Judicial Committee, and to consider every thing connected with it at his disposal. When first he had the Privy Council Bill drawn up by one of his devils, he in- tended to create a new tribunal, of which he should be the 1 [In addition to other reasons, which are obvious, against this proceeding, it would have been an unprecedented thing to call on an important appeal for ii earing at the end of August, in the midst of the long vacation.] 1834.] THE QUEEN'S RETURN. 277 head, and though he was obliged to give up his original design, he still considers himself entitled to deal with the Judicial Committee as he pleases. If the Lord President had more of the spirit that is due to the office over which he pre- sides, he would not suffer him to interfere, and I am resolved, if I can, to get Lord Lansdowne to assert his own authority. The Chancellor has promised Sefton that when Mr. Black- burn, now a judge at the Mauritius, comes home, he shall bo made a Privy Councilor ; that Sir Alexander Johnston, who now attends the sittings of the Council, shall be dis- missed, and Blackburn invited to attend instead of him, and that he shall have 400 a year (which by the Act he may). This, if it takes place, will be one of the grossest and most barefaced jobs that ever were perpetrated ; but I think it can never be. What makes it worse is that Brougham introduced this clause for the express purpose of meeting Blackburn's case ; so he told Sefton, but I suppose it means that he made the stipend receivable by an ex-judge in any colony, when the pretext for it was the power of obtaining the assistance of Indian judges. 1 September ^th. At Court yesterday. The King came to town to receive the address of the City on the Queen's return the most ridiculous address I ever heard. The Queen was too ill to appear. Her visit to Germany knocked her up, and well it might, considering the life she led always up at six and never in bed till twelve, continual receptions and ceremonies. Errol told me she showed them her old bedroom in the palace (as they call it) at Meiningen a hole that an English housemaid would think it a hard- ship to sleep in. Stanley (not the ex-Secretary, but the in Under-Secretary) told me last night an anecdote of Melbourne which I can very easily believe. When the King sent for him he told Young "he thought it a damned bore, and that he was in many minds what he should do be Minister or no." Young said, " Why, damn it, such a position never was occupied by any Greek or Roman, and, if it only lasts two months, it is well worth while to have been Prime Minister of England." " By God, that's true," said Melbourne ; " I'll go." Young is 1 [No colonial judge has ever been appointed to one of the assessorships of the Judicial Committee, except Sir Alexander Johnston, who had been Chief- Justice of Ceylon ; but Sir Alexander refused to accept the stipend (400 a year) attached to the office, and never did receive it.] 278 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. his private secretary a vulgar, familiar, impudent fellow, hut of indefatigable industry and a man who suits Mel- bourne. His taste is not delicate enough to be shocked at the coarseness, "while his indolence is accommodated by the industry, of his secretary. Then Young l knows many people, many places, and many things ; nobody knows whence he comes or what is his origin, but he was a purser in the navy, and made himself useful to the Duke of Devonshire when he went to Russia, who recommended him to Melbourne. He was a writer and runner for the newspapers, and has always been an active citizen, struggling and striving to get on in the world, and probably with no inconsiderable dexterity. 1 know nothing of his honesty, for or against it ; he seems good-humored, but vulgar and familiar. Ben Stanley and I were talking about public men, and agreed that by far the ablest and at the same time the most unscrupulous of them are Brougham and O'Connell, and that the latter is probably on the whole the most devoid of principle. Their characters and adventures would be worthy of a Plutarch. September 5th. At Holland House yesterday, where I had not been these two years. Met Lord Holland at Court, who made me go. The last time I was with my Lady she was so mighty uncivil that I left off my visits, and then we met again as if there had been no interruption, and as if we had been living together constantly. Spring Rice and his son, Melbourne, and Palmerston, dined there ; Allen was at Dulwich, but came in the evening, and so did Bobus Smith. There was a great deal of very good talk, anecdotes, literary criti- cism, and what not, some of which would be worth remem- bering, though hardly sufficiently striking to be put down, unless as forming a portion of a whole course of conversa- tions of this description. A vast depression came over my spirits, though I was amused, and I don't suppose I uttered a dozen words. It is certainly true that the atmosphere of Holland House is often oppressive, but that was not it; it was a painful consciousness of my own deficiencies and of my incapacity to take a fair share in conversation of this descrip- tion. I felt as if a language was spoken before me which I understood, but not enough to talk in it myself. There was nothing discussed of which I was altogether ignorant, and when the merits of Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Crabbe, were 1 [Tom Young was commonly known as " Ubiquity Young," because you saw him in every place you miglit happen to go to.] 1834.] AT HOLLAND HOUSE. 279 brought into comparison, and Lord Holland cut jokes upon Allen for his enthusiastic admiration of the "De Moribus Germanorum," it was not that I had not read the poets or the historian, but that I felt I had not read them with profit. I have not that familiarity with either which enables me to dis- cuss their merits, and a painful sense came over me of the dif- ference between one who has superficially read and one who has studied, one who has laid a solid foundation in early youth, gathering knowledge as he advances in years, all the stores of his mind being so orderly disposed that they are at all times available, and one who (as I have done) has huddled together a quantity of loose reading, as vanity, curiosity, and not sel- dom shame impelled ; reading thus without system, more to cover the deficiencies of ignorance than to augment the stores of knowledge, loads the mind with an undigested mass of matter, which proves, when wanted, to be of small practical utility in short, one must pay for the follies of one's youth. He who wastes his early years in horse-racing and all sorts of idleness, figuring away among the dissolute . and the fool- ish, must be content to play an inferior part among the learned and the wise. Some instances there are of men who have united both characters, but it will be found that these have had frequent laborious intervals, that though they may have been vicious, they have never been indolent, and that their rninds have never slumbered and lost by disuse the power of exertion. Reflections of this sort make me very uncomforta- ble, and I am ready to cry with vexation when I think on my misspent life. If I was insensible to a higher order of merit, and indifferent to a nobler kind of praise, I should be happier far ; but to be tormented with the sentiment of an honorable ambition and with aspirations after better things, and at the same time so sunk in sloth and bad habits as to be incapable of those exertions without which their objects are unattain- able, is of all conditions the worst. I sometimes think that it would be better for me, as I am not what I might have been (if my education had been less neglected, and my mind had undergone a better system of moral discipline), if I was still lower than I am in the scale, and belonged entirely to a more degraded caste ; and then again, when I look forward to that period which is fast approaching When .... a sprightlier age Comes tittering on to drive one from tlic stage 280 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. I am thankful that I have still something in store, that though far below the wise and the learned, I am still something raised above the ignorant mob, that though much of my mental sub- stance has been wasted, I have enough left to appear respect- ably in the world, and that I have at least preserved that taste for literary pursuits which I cling to as the greatest of bless- ings and the best security against the tedium and vacuity which are the indispensable concomitants of an idle youth and an ignorant old age. As a slight but imperfect sketch of the talk of Holland House I will put down this : They talked of Taylor's new poem, " Philip van Artevelde." Melbourne had read and admired it. The preface, he said, was affected and foolish, the poem very superior to any thing in Mihnan. There was one fine idea in the " Fall of Jeru- salem " that of Titus, who felt himself propelled by an irre- sistible impulse like that of the Greek dramatists, whose fate is the great agent always pervading their dramas. They held Wordsworth cheap, except Spring Bice, who was enthusiastic about him. Holland thought Crabbe the greatest genius of modern poets. Melbourne said he degraded every subject. None of them had known Coleridge ; his lectures were very tiresome, but he is a poet of great merit. Then they spoke of Spencer Perceval and Irving preaching in the streets. Irving had called on Melbourne, and eloquently remonstrated that " they only asked the same license that was given to puppet-shows and other sights not to be prevented ; that the command was express, ' Go into the highways,' and that they must obey God rather than man." Melbourne said this was all very true and unanswerable. " What did you answer ? " I asked. " I said, l You must not preach there.' " Then of Cambridge and Goulburn, who is a saint and gave lectures in his room, by which he has caught several young men. Lord Holland spoke of George III.'s letters to Lord North ; the King liked Lord North, and hated the Duke of Richmond. Among the few people he liked were Lord Loughborough and Lord Thurlow. Thurlow was always " endeavoring to undermine the Minister with whom he was acting, and in- triguing underhand with his enemies." Loughborough used to say, " Do what you think right, and never think of what you are to say to excuse it beforehand" a good maxim. The Duke of Richmond in 1763 or 1764, after an audience of the King in his closet, told him that " he had said that to him 1804.] CONVERSATION AT HOLLAND HOUSE. 281 which if. he was a subject be should not scruple to call an un- truth." The King never forgave it, and the Duke had had the imprudence to make a young king his enemy for life. This Duke of Richmond, when Lord-Lieutenant of Sussex, during the American war, sailed in a yacht through the fleet, when the King was there, witb American colors at his mast- head. He never forgave Fox for putting the Duke of Portland instead of himself at the head of the Government in 1782. During the riots in 1780 on account of Admiral Keppel, Tom Grenville burst open the door of the Admiralty, and assisted at the pillage and destruction of papers. Lord Grey a little while ago attacked him about it, and he did not deny it. Such things could not be done now. During the Windsor election they hired a mob to go down and throw Lord Morn- ington (Lord Wellesley) over Windsor Bridge, and Fitz- patrick said it would be so fine to see St. Patrick's blue ribbon floating down the stream. They first sent to Piper to know if Lord Mornington could swim. The plan was defeated by his having a still stronger mob. After dinner they discussed women's works : few chefs-d'oeuvre ; Madame de Sevigne the best ; the only three of a high class are Madame de S6- vigne, Madame de Stael, and (Bobus Smith said) Sappho, but of her not above forty lines are extant : these, however, are unrivaled ; Mrs. Somerville is very great in the exact sciences. Lady Holland would not hear of Madame de Stael. They agreed as to Miss Austen that her novels are excellent. Quintus Curtius is confirmed by Burnes's travels in Bokhara, but was reckoned no authority by the greatest scholars ; Lord Melbourne said Mitford had expressed his confidence in him. Of the early English kings there is no reason to believe that any king before Edward III. understood the English language ; the quarrel between Becket and King Henry II. was attrib- uted (by some writers) to the hostile feeling between Nor- mans and Saxons, and this was the principal motive of the quarrel and the murder of the Archbishop. Klopstock had a sect of admirers in Germany ; some young students made a pilgrimage from Gottingen to Hamburg, where Klopstock lived in his old age, to ask him the meaning of a passage in one of his works which they could not understand. He looked at it, and then said that he could not then recollect what it was that he meant when he wrote it, but that he knew it was the finest thing he ever wrote, and they could not do better than devote their lives to the discovery of its meaning. 283 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. September 1th. At Holland House again ; only Bobus Smith and Melbourne ; these two, with Allen, and Lord Holland, agreeable enough. Melbourne's excellent scholar- ship and universal information remarkably display themselves in society, and he delivers himself with an energy which shows how deeply his mind is impressed with literary sub- jects. After dinner there was much talk of the Church, and Allen spoke of the early reformers, the Catharists, and how the early Christians persecuted each other ; Melbourne quoted Vigilantius's letter to Jerome, and then asked Allen about the llth of Henry IV., an Act passed by the Commons against the Church, and referred to the dialogue between the Arch- bishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely at the beginning of Shakespeare's " Henry V.," which Lord Holland sent for and read, Melbourne knowing it all by heart and prompting all the time. Lingard says of this statute that the Commons proposed to the King to commit an act of spoliation on the clergy, but that the King sharply rebuked them and desired to hear no more of the matter. About etymologies Melbourne quoted Tooke's " Diversions of Purley," which he seemed to have at his fingers' ends. I forget what other topics were discussed, but after Lady Holland and Melbourne and Allen went to bed, Lord Holland, Bobus, and I sat down, and Lord Holland told us many anecdotes about the great orators of his early days. Fox used to say Grey was the most prudent man he knew, and this perhaps owing to his having got into a scrape early in his Parliamentary life, by attacking Pitt, who gave him a severe castigation; it was about his letter to the Prince being sent by a servant during the Regency dis- cussions. Fox thought his own speech in 1804 on going to war with France the best he ever made. Lord Holland be- lieved that Pitt (the younger) was not so eloquent as Chatham. Grattan said, " He takes longer flights, does not soar so high." No power was ever equal to Chatham's over a public assem- bly, much greater in the Commons than it was afterward in the Lords. When Sir Thomas Robinson had been boring the House on some commercial question, and introduced the word " sugar " so often that there was at last a laugh as often as he did so, Chatham, then Mr. Pitt, who had put him up, grew very angry, and at last his wrath boiled over. When Robin- son sat down Pitt rose, and with a tone and manner of the utmost indignation began,. " Mr. Speaker, sir sugar I say 1834.] REMINISCENCES, 333 sugar. Who laughs now ? " and nobody did laugh. Once in the House of Lords, on a debate during the American war, he said he hoped the King might be awakened from his slum- bers. There was a cry of " Order 1 order ! " " Order, my Lords ? " burst out Chatham, " Order ? I have not been dis- orderly, but I will be disorderly. I repeat again, I hope that his Majesty may be awakened from his slumbers, but that he may be awakened by such an awful apparition as that which drew King Priam's curtains in the dead of the night and told him of the conflagration of his empire." Holland regretted much that he had never heard Lord North, whom he fancied he should have liked as much as any of his great opponents; his temper, shrewdness, humor, and power of argument, were very great. Tommy Townshend, a violent, foolish fellow, who was always talking strong language, said in some debate, " Nothing will satisfy me but to have the noble Lord's head ; I will have his head." Lord North said, " The honorable gentleman says he will have my head. I bear him no malice in return, for though the honorable gentleman says he will have my head, I can assure him that I would on no account have his." September ~L3th. Dined again at Holland House the day before yesterday; Melbourne, Rice, Lord and Lady Albemarle, and Lord Gosford ; rather dull. A discussion about who was the man in a mask who cut Charles I.'s head off ; Mackin- tosh believed he knew. What a literary puerility ! The man in a mask was Jack Ketch (whatever his name was); who can doubt it ? Where was the man, Roundhead or Puritan, who as an amateur would have mounted the scaffold to per- form this office ? But the executioner, though only discharg- ing the duties of his office, probably thought in those excited times that he would not be safe from the vengeance of some enthusiastic Cavalier, and that it was more prudent to conceal the features of the man by whom the deed was done. Mel- bourne swore that Henry VIII. was the greatest man who ever lived, and Allen declared if he had not married Ann Boleyn we should have continued Catholics to this day, both of which assertions I ventured to dispute. Allen with all his learning is fond of a paradox, and his prejudices shine forth in every question in which Church and religion are implicated. Melbourne loves dashing opinions. September 18th. For some weeks past a fierce war has been waged by the Times against the Chancellor. It was de- 284 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXI Y.. dared in some menacing articles, which soon swelled into a tone of rebuke, and have since been sharpened into attacks of a constancy, violence, and vigor, quite unexampled ; all the power of writing which the paper can command argument, abuse, and ridicule have been heaped day after day upon him, and when it took a little breathing-time it filled up the interval by quotations from other papers, which have been abundantly supplied both by the London and the country press. I do not yet know what are the secret causes which have stirred the wrath of the Times. The Examiner has once a week thrown into the general contribution of rancor an arti- cle perhaps wittier and more pungent than any which have appeared in the Times, but between them they have flagel- lated him till he is raw, and it is very clear that he feels it quite as acutely as they can desire. While they have thus been administering castigation in this unsparing style, he has afforded them the best opportunities by his extraordinary progress in Scotland, and the astonishing speeches which he made at Aberdeen and Dundee, making more mountebank exhibitions than he did in the House of Lords, and exciting the unquenchable laughter of his enemies and the continual terror of his friends. Lord Holland told me that he was trembling for the account of the Edinburgh dinner. That great affair appears, however (by the first half of the proceed- ings), to have gone off very well. Lord Grey in his speech confined himself to general topics, and he and Brougham steered extremely clear of one another, but Brougham made some allusions which Durham took to himself, and replied to with considerable asperity of tone, avoiding, however, any personalities and any thing like a direct collision. Everybody asks, How long will Brougham be permitted to go on playing these ape's tricks and scattering his flummery and his lies ? and then they say, But you can't get rid of him, and the Gov- ernment (dangerous as he is to them) could not get on with- out him. There would probably be no difficulty; experience has demonstrated to me the extreme fallacy of the notion that anybody under any circumstances is indispensable. Althorp appeared the most indispensable man the other day, but that was only because his friends and the fools in the House of Commons kept bawling out that he was so till they persuaded him, themselves, and everybody else, that it really was the case. Who would have dared to say that this Government could have gone on without either Stanley in one House or 1834.] CANNING AND LORD HOLLAND. 285 Lord Grey in the other? But anybody would have been scouted as mad who had argued that it would go on just as well when deprived of both of them. The Chancellor's amaz- ing talents his eloquence, sarcasm, and varied powers can never fail to produce considerable effect ; but in the House of Lords the field is narrow for the display of these qualities, the audience is cold and unfriendly, and he has excited such a general feeling of personal animosity against himself, and has done such irreparable injury to his character having con- vinced all the world that he is desperately ambitious, false, capricious, intriguing, and governed by no principle, and under the influence of no sentiment of honor that his influence is exceedingly diminished. Those who are charitably disposed express their humane conviction that he is mad, and it probably is not very remote from the truth. 1 Henry Taylor brought me a parcel of letters to frank to Southey the other day ; they are from Newton, Cowper's nephew (I think to W. Thornton), and they are to supply Southey with materials for Cowper's Life, which he is writing. There is one curious fact revealed in these letters, which accounts for much of Cowper's morbid state of mind and fits of depression, as well as for the circumstance of his running away from his place in the House of Lords. It relates to some defect in his physical conformation ; somebody found out his secret, and probably threatened its exposure. September 19^A. Yesterday at Holland House; nobody there but Melbourne. We were talking of Reform, and Lord Holland said, " I don't know if we were right about Reform, but this I know, that if we were to propose it at all, we were right in going the lengths we did, and this was Canning's opinion." Melbourne said, ." Yes, 1 know it was, and that was mine, and that was the reason why I was against Reform." Holland then resumed that he had formerly been one of Can- ning's most intimate friends at college ; that at that time the beginning of the French Revolution when a general ex- citement prevailed, Canning was a great Jacobin, much more 1 [It is with pain and reluctance that I print these remarks on Lord Brough- am, and several passages in the prec-eding pages of these Memoirs which are equally severe, and in some respects, I think, exaggerated. But I certainly do not feel myself justified in withholding them. They were all revised and cor- rected by the author himself with great care; and nothing but a true and full account of the sentiments which Lord Brougham's conduct had excited among his colleagues and contemporaries at that time can account for the catastrophe which awaited him, and which cxdu U:<1 liim for the rest of his lite from o!]i>-i:il lilt' and employment.] 236 . REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. . - [CHAP. XXIV. so than he was himself; that Canning had always hated the aristocracy (a hatred which they certainly returned with in- terest) ; that in after-life he had been separated from Canning 1 , and they had seen but little of each other. Just before he was going to India, however, Holland called on him, and Canning dined at Holland House. On one of these occasions they had a conversation upon the subject of Reform, when Canning said that he saw it was inevitable, and he was not sorry to be away while the measure was accomplished, but that if he had been here while it was mooted, he could have let those gentlemen (the Whig aristocracy) know that they should gain nothing by it. After dinner we had much talk about religion, when Allen got into a fury ; he thundered out his invectives against the charlatanerie of the Apostles and Fathers and the brutal ignorance of the early Christian con- verts, when Holland said, laughing, " Well, but you need not abuse them so violently." They were in high delight at Hol- land House at the way the Edinburgh dinner went off. It was a very ludicrous incident that the Scotchmen could not be kept from falling to before Lord Grey and the grandees arrived, and when they did come most of the dinner was already eaten up. The Chancellor is said to have made an admirable speech at the meeting of savants, full of dignity, propriety, and eloquence, and the savants spoke one more absurdly than another. September 23d. On Saturday at Stoke ; came up yesterday with Melbourne. We had a great deal of talk. As soon as we got into the carriage he asked me if I thought it was true that Talleyrand had taken such offense at Palmerston that he would not return here on that account, and if I knew what it was that had affronted him, whether any deficiency in diplo- matic punctilio or general offensiveness of manner. I told him I had no doubt it was true, and that the complaints against Palmerston were so general that there must be some cause for them, and though Madame de Lieven might be prejudiced against him, all the foreign Embassadors could not be so. He said it was very extraordinary if it was so, tried to argue that it might not be the case, and put it in all sorts of different ways ; he said that Palmerston exhibited no signs of temper or arrogance with his colleagues, but quite the reverse ; he owned, however, he was very obstinate. We then talked over the Stratford Canning business ; he admitted that it was unfortunate and might lead to serious consequences, both ns 1834.] CONVERSATION WITH LORD MELBOURNE. 287 to our relations with the Emperor and to the question of diplomatic expenses here. I expressed my astonishment that Palmerston's obstinacy should have been permitted to have its own way in the matter, and I should guess, from his own strong opinion on the subject, that an Embassador would be sent before long. He told me what I did not know before that the King of Prussia had desired to have Lord Clanwilliam recalled from Berlin. He then talked of Brougham, and I found that he knows him thoroughly, and is more on his guard than I thought he was with regard to him. I told him of the change in Sefton's feelings toward him on Lord Grey's account, and also of Brougham's strange want of discrimination and his imprudence in congratulating himself to Sefton on the recent changes, and of his expectations of profiting by Melbourne's advancement to power. I touched lightly on the latter part, because it is never prudent to dwell upon topics which are injurious to a person's vanity, and a word dropped upon so tender a part produces as much effect as the strongest argu- ment. He seemed not a little struck by it, and, when I said that I thought there was a taint of insanity in the Chancellor, he said that he thought a great change in him was manifest in the course of the last year, and admitted that he did not think him of sound mind, certainly. This he rather implied than expressed, however. He talked of his conduct in Par- liament, and observed upon the strange forbearance of the Tories toward him ; he thought he had never given stronger evidence of talent than in some of his speeches during the last session. I asked him if the King and Brougham were well together. He shook his head : " Not at all, and the King can't bear these exhibitions in Scotland." He said the King liked Palmerston, Auckland, Spring Rice, and Mulgrave ; had no fancy for any of the rest. (I suspect he likes him [Mel- bourne], because he appears to talk openly to him, and to express his feelings about the others, and I dare say Mel- bourne puts him at his ease.) He can't bear John Russell, respects Althorp (and particularly Lord Spencer), but hates A Ithorp's. politics; treats Lord Holland with the familiarity of a connection, 1 but doesn't like his politics either; he is tenacious about having every thing laid before him, often gives his opinion, but is easily satisfied ; liked Lord Grey, but i 'Colonel Fox, Lord Holland's eldest eon, having married Lady Mary, the Kii g 1 * eldest daughter, both however born out of wedlock.] 288 SEIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. was never quite at his ease with him (this accounts for his taking Lord Grey's resignation as quietly as he did) ; has a very John-Bullish aversion to the French, and the junction of the English and French fleets two years ago was a bitter pill for him to swallow. We afterward talked of Canning and the Duke of Wel- lington, and the breaking up of the Tory Government. I told him that I believed the Duke and the Tories were aware of Canning's communications with Brougham. Brougham wrote to Canning, and made him an unqualified offer of sup- port. When the King asked Canning how he was to obtain support enough to carry on the Government, he pulled this letter out of his pocket, gave it to him, and said : " Sir, 3'our father broke the domination of the Whigs ; I hope your Majesty will not endure that of the Tories." " No," said the King ; " I'll be damned if I do ! " and he made him Minister. This Canning told Melbourne himself. September 25th. Dined yesterday at Holland House ; only Melbourne and Pahlen, and in the evening Senior came. He is a very able man a conveyancer, great political econo- mist, and author of various works on that subject. He was employed by Government to draw up the Poor Law Bill, and might have been one of the Poor Law Commissioners if he would have accepted the office ; his profits in his profession are too great to be given up for this occupation. By a dis- cussion which arose about Bickersteth's m-erits, it was clear that there is a question of his being Solicitor-General. Mel- bourne said " he was a Benthamite, and they were all fools." (He said a doctrinaire was a fool, but an honest man.) I said, " The Austins were not fools." " Austin ? Oh, a damned fool. Did you ever read his book on ' Jurisprudence ? ' ' I said I had read a great part of it, and that it did not appear to be the work of a fool. He said he had read it all, and that it was the dullest book he ever read, and full of truisms elaborately set forth. Melbourne is very fond of being slash- ing and paradoxical. It is astonishing how much he reads, even now that he is Prime Minister. He is greatly addicted to theology, and loves conversing on the subject of religion. , who wanted him to marry her (which he won't do, though he likes to talk to her), is the depositary of his thoughts and notions on these subjects, and the other day she told me he sent her a book (I forget what) on the Revelation, stuffed with marginal notes of his own. It was not long- a 2:0 1834.] REFLECTIONS ON TIIE TURF. 289 that he studied Lardner's book on the " Credibility of the Christian Religion," and compared it with the Bible as he went along. She fancies that all this reading and reflection have turned him into the right way. I can see no symptom of it at Holland House. After dinner we talked of languages, and Lord Holland insisted that Spanish was the finest of all and the best adapted to eloquence. They said that George Villiers wrote word that nothing could be better than the speaking in the Cortes great readiness and acuteness in reply and that a more dexterous and skillful debater than Martinez de la Rosa could not be found in any assembly. " That speaking so well is the Avorst thing about them," said Melbourne. " Ah, that is one of your paradoxes," Lord Holland replied. Allen talked to me about the Harley papers, which were left in a box not to be opened for sixty years ; the box was only opened a few years ago at my cousin Titchfield's (the first) desire, and the papers submitted to Mackintosh, with permission to publish them in his "History of England." Mackintosh's death put an end to this, and Allen wants me to ask my uncle the Duke of Portland to put them in my hands and let me publish them. I never did so. Macaulay had all Mackintosh's papers, and among them his notes from these MSS. London, November 13/i. For two months nearly that I have been in this country I have not written a line, having had nothing worth recording to put down. It is not worth my while to write, nor anybody else's to read (should anybody ever read these memoranda), the details of racing and all that thereunto appertains, and though several disagreeable occur- rences have ruffled the stream of my life, I have no pleasure in recording these ; for if their consequences pass away, and I can forget them, it is better not at any future time to awaken " the scorpion sting of griefs subdued." Of public events I have known nothing but what everybody else knows, and it would have been mere waste of time to copy from the news- papers accounts of the conflagration of the Houses of Parlia- ment or the Durham dinner at Glasgow. My campaign on the turf has been a successful one. Still all this success has not prevented frequent disgusts, and I derive any thing but unmixed pleasure from this pursuit even when I win by it. Besides the continual disappointments and difficulties incident to it, which harass the mind, the life it compels me to lead, 35 290 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIV. the intimacies arising 1 out of it, the associates and the war against villainy and trickery, being haunted by continual sus- picions, discovering the trust-tmworthiness of one's most intimate friends, the necessity of insincerity and concealment sometimes where one feels that one ought and would desire to be most open ; then the degrading nature of the occupa- tion, mixing with the lowest of mankind, and absorbed in the business for the sole purpose of getting money, the con- sciousness of a sort of degradation of intellect, the con- viction of the deteriorating effects upon both the feelings and the understanding which are produced, the sort of dram- drinking excitement of it all these things and these thoughts torment me, and often turn my pleasure to pain. On arriving in town I went to Crockford's, where I found all the usual set of people, and soon after Sefton came in. Lord Spencer's death had taken place the day before ; he knew nothing of the probable arrangements, but he told me that he supposed Althorp would go to the Admiralty and Auckland to India. But what he was fullest of was that Mrs. Lane Fox's house was become the great rendezvous of a considerable part of the Cabinet. The Chancellor, Melbourne, Duncannon, and Mul- grave, are there every day and all day ; they all dine with her, or meet her (the only woman) at each other's houses, as often as they can. It certainly is a droll connection. The squab- bles between Brougham and Durham seem to have resolved themselves into a mere personal coldness, and there is no question now of any hostilities between them. I never thought there would be, though some people apparently did ; but they both would much rather rail than tight. November \kth. Went down to the Council Office yester- day, and found them in the middle of Lord Westmeath's case Lord Lansdovvne, the Vice-Chancellor, Parke, Ersldnc, and Vaughan. Lushington was for Lady Westmeath, and Fcllett (with a civilian) for him. After the argument there was a discussion, ajid well, did Westmeath do, for they re- duced the alimony frcm 700 to 315 a year, and the arrears in the same proportion. Thus Westmeath succeeded in great measure in his appeal, which he would not have done if the Chancellor had contrived to lug on the case as he wished ; for Erskine was all for giving her more, the others did not seem averse, and but for Parke, who hit off the right principle, as well as what best accorded with the justice cf the case, she would certainly have got a much larger award. 1834.] LAW APPOINTMENTS. 291 The Vice-Chancellor afterward told me the history of the recent legal appointments. There never was any difference of opinion between Brougham and Melbourne on the subject of either. Campbell accepted the Attorney-Generalship on the express condition that he should not expect to succeed as a matter of right to any vacancy in the Courts, but on Leach's death he did instantly urge his claims. Brougham wrote to Melbourne, and speedily followed his letter to London, and they both agreed not to listen to this claim, and to prornote Pepys. I don't know how they disposed of Home's claim. Bickersteth * refused to be Solicitor-General on account of his health, and not choosing to face the House of Commons and its work. Shadwell told me that he wrote to Brougham and suggested Rolfe when the vacancy occurred, that he had not been in great practice, but was a good lawyer and excellent speaker, and that the Chancellor and Melbourne had likewise concurred in this appointment. Nothing is settled about the new arrangements rendered necessary by Lord Spencer's death, but Melbourne went to Brighton yesterday. Rice has worked hard to master the Colonial business, and probably will not like to be translated to the Exchequer ; besides, it is sup- posed that his seat at Cambridge would be in great peril. People talk of their not going on ; how can anv others go on better? Lord Lansdowne has just returned from Paris, where, he told me, he had frequent conversations with the King. The now Ministry is a wretched patched-up affair; but ths Gov- ernment of France is centred in the King, and it is his great power and influence in the Chambers, and not the ability of his Ministers (be they who they may), that keeps the thing going. Kis influence appears to be immense, and without enjoying any popularity, there is a universal opinion that Louis Philippe is indispensable to France. He told Lord Lansdowne that he had always been against the appointment of Marshal Gerard as President of the Council, although he 1 [Mr. Bickersteth refused to be Solicitor-General because the offer was made to him by the Lord Chancellor, and not by the Prime Minister. At that time he was personally unacquainted with Lord Melbourne, but ho consented to call on him at Lord Melbourne's request, and the offer was repeated, but not accepted. The real reason of his refusal was his profound distrust of Lord Brougham, which amounted to aversion, and he thought it unworthy of him- self i > accept the office of a law officer of tlio Crown under a Chancellor with whom he could not conscientiously act. I have read a MS. narrative of the whole transaction by Lord Langdalo himself, in which these sentiments are very strongly expressed.] 292 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [C:up. XXV had a high opinion of him, but that he was aware he had not tact and judgment sufficient for that post, and he had told his Ministers that he would consent to the appointment if they insisted on it, but that he warned them that it would break up the Government. Whatever may be the instability of this or any other Administration, it is said that nothing can be more firm and secure than the King's tenure of his crown. He appears, in fact, to be the very man that France requires, and as he is in the vigor of life and has a reasonable prospect of a long reign, he will probably consolidate the interests of his family and extinguish whatever lingering chance there might be of the restoration of the old effete dynasty. CHAPTER XXV. Fall of Lord Melbourne's C.ovcrnment History and Causes of tins Event An Intrigue Effect of the Coup at Holland House The Change of Government The Two Camps The King's Address to the New Ministers The Duke's Account of the Transaction And Lord Lyndhurst's Difficult Position of the Tories Their Policy The Duke in all the Offices Negotiation with Mr. Barnes Power of the Times Another Address of the King Brougham offers to be Lord Chief Baron Mr. Barnes dines with Lord Lyndhurst Whig View of the Recent Change Liberal Views of the Tory Ministers The King resolved to support them Another Account of the Interview between the King and Lord Melbourne Lord Stanley's Position Sydney Smith's Preaching at St. Paul's Lord Duncannon and Lord Melbourne Relations of the Pour Seceders to Peel Young Disraeli Lord Melbourne's Speeches at Derby Lord John Russell's Speech at Totness The Duke of Wellington's Inconsistencies and Conduct. November ~L6th. Yesterday morning the town was elec- trified by the news that Melbourne's Government was at an end. Nobody had the slightest suspicion of such an impend- ing catastrophe ; the Ministers themselves reposed in perfect security. I never saw astonishment so great on every side ; nobody pretended to have prophesied or expected such an event. Thus it befell : On Thursday Melbourne Avent to Brigh- ton to make arrangements necessary on Lord Spencer's death. He had previously received a letter from the King, which contained nothing indicative of the fate that awaited him. He had his audience on Thursday afternoon, and offered his Majesty the choice of Spring Rice, Lord John Russell, or Aber- cromby, to lead the House of Commons and fill th.e vacant office. The King made some objections, and said he must take time to consider it. Nothing more passed that night, and the next day, when Melbourne saw the King, his Majesty 1834.] FALL OF MELBOURNE'S GOVERNMENT. 293 placed in his hands a letter containing his determination. It was couched in terms personally complimentary to Melbourne, but he said that, having lost the services of Lord Althorp as leader of the House of Commons, he could feel no confidence in the stability of his Government when led by any other member of it ; that they were already in a minority in the House of Peers, and he had every reason to believe the re- moval of Lord Althorp would speedily put them in the same situation in the other House; 1 hat under such circumstances he felt other arrangements to be necessary, and that it was his intention to send for the Duke of Wellington. Nothing could be more peremptory and decisive, and not a loop-hole was left for explanation or arrangements, or endeavor to patch the thing up. The King wrote to the Duke, and, what is rather droll, the letter was dispatched by Melbourne's carriage, which returned to town. It is very evident that the King has long determined to seize the first plausible pretext he could find for getting rid of these people, whom he dislikes and fears, and that he thinks (justly or not remains to be proved) the translation of Althorp affords him a good opportunity, and such a one perhaps as may not speedily occur again. It is long since a Government has been so summarily dismissed regularly kicked out, in the simplest sense of that phrase. Melbourne's colleagues expected his return without a shadow of apprehension or doubt. He got back late, and wrote to none of them. The Chancellor, who had dined at Holland House, called on him and heard the news ; the others (except Duncannon, who went to him, and I believe Palmerston) re- mained in happy ignorance till yesterday morning, when they were saluted at their rising with the astounding intelligence. All the Ministers (except Brougham) read the account of their dismissal in the Times the next morning, and this was the first they heard of it. Melbourne resolved to say nothing that night, but summoned an early Cabinet, when he meant to impart it. Brougham called on him on his way from Holland House. Melbourne told him, but made him promise not to say a word of it to anybody. He promised, and the moment he quitted the house sent to the Times office and told them what had occurred, with the well-known addition that " the Queen had done it all." They contribute their fall to the influence of the Queen, and fancy that it is the result of a preconcerted scheme and intrigue with the Tories, neither of which do I believe to be 294 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXV. true. With regard to the latter notion, the absence of Sir Robert Peel, who is traveling in Italy, is a conclusive proof of its falseness. He never would have been absent if he had foreseen the remotest possibility of a crisis, and the death of Lord Spencer has been imminent and expected for some time past. I am convinced that it is the execution of a project which the King has long nourished of delivering himself from the Whigs whenever he could. His original dislike has been exasperated to a great pitch by the mounte- bank exhibitions of Brougham, and he is so alarmed and disgusted at the Radical propensities which the Durham dinner has manifested, that he is resolved to try whether the Government cannot be conducted upon principles which are called Conservative, but which shall really be bond fide opposed to the ultra doctrines and wild schemes which lie knows are not distasteful to at least one-half of his late Cabinet. His resentment against these people has been consider- ably increased by the discovery (which he believes he has made) of his having been grossly deceived at the period of Lord Grey's retirement and the formation of Melbourne's Administration. The circumstances of this part of the business I know only imperfectly, so much so as to leave a good deal that requires explanation in order to make it intelligible ; but I was told on good authority yesterday that at that time Sir Robert Peel and the Duke of Welling- ton were quite prepared to undertake the formation of a Government if it had been proposed to them, and that he had every reason to believe they had been betrayed by " that scoundrel H ," who had been employed by some of the other party to find out what their intentions and dispositions were upon that point; that H had gone to them and asked them the question, and having at that time entire confidence in him, they had told him if it was offered to them they certainly would undertake it ; that he had never told them or given them any reason to believe that he was commissioned to find out their resolution, and they think he returned to his employer and told him that they must take care how such an offer was made to the Tories, as they would certainly accept it if it was offered. Melbourne was no party to this transaction, but the consequences of it was that the King was given to understand that it would be useless to propose to them to form a Government, for they 1834.] EFFECTS OF THE COUP. 295 were not prepared to do so, and he was advised to make the proposal of a coalition, which was made, and which the}' of course rejected. The King, it appears, subsequently dis- covered what their disposition had been at the time, and that he had been misled and deceived, and this made him very indignant. I should like to know this story more in detail, for it would be curious to learn who were the agents in the intrigue, and, above all, what could induce H to sacrifice the interests of the Duke of Wellington (with whom he had great influence and to whom he had great obligations) and of the party from which alone he could expect any solid advantages to those of the Whigs, from whom he could derive no benefit sufficient to compensate him for the danger as well as treachery of the transaction. I never liked this fellow, and always thought him a low blackguard, and, however shrewd and active, a bad confidant and "fidus Achates" for the Duke to have taken up ; but the folly and short-sightedness of this proceeding seem so obvious (to say nothing of its villainy) that I cannot without strong proofs yield my belief to the story, though Peel is not a man to harbor such strong sus- picions on slight grounds. This morning Lord Lansdowne wrote me word that the Duke had accepted, but it is probable that nothing can be done till Peel returns from Italy. He will accept no post but that of Prime Minister, though the King w r ould prefer to put the Duke there if he would take it. November \lth. It is only bit by bit that one ascertains the truth in affairs like these. It is true that the King imparted his resolution to Melbourne in a letter, but not true in the sense in which that fact is intended to be taken. I went to Holland House yesterday, but my Lord and my Lady were gone to town. I met the heavy chariot slowly moving back through Kensington, and stopped to talk to them. They seemed in tolerably good spirits, all things considered ; like the rest, they had not a suspicion of what was going to happen. Melbourne was to have dined there en Friday, but did not arrive. At eleven o'clock everybody went away, without any tidings having come of Melbourne ; the next morning Lord Holland read in the Times that the Government was at an end. Allen swore that it must be a hoax, and it was only upon receiving a summons to the Cabinet at twelve instead of two that Holland began to think 296 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXV. there was something in it. He told me that the King had two long conversations with Melbourne, in which he explained his opinions, motives, and intentions, and finally gave him the letter, that he might show it to his colleagues. It would now appear that no definite arrangements were proposed to him at all ; nothing, in fact, could be settled till it was ascertained what Althorp would do whether he would con- tinue in office, and what office he would take but they in- tended that Lord John Russell should be the leader in the House of Commons, or what they call " try it." This must have been peculiarly distasteful to the King, who dislikes Lord John, and thinks him a dangerous little Radical, and Melbourne is well aware of this antipathy. On the Friday night Melbourne, with a party of his colleagues Mul grave, Ben Stanley, Poulett Thomson, and one or two more were at the play just opposite to me ; the piece was the "Regent," and it was full of jokes about dismissing Ministers and other things very applicable, at which Melbourne, at least (who does not care a button about office, whatever he may do about power), was heartily amused. To-day the King came to town to receive the resignations, for he is resolved to finish off the whole affair at once and make maison nette / they have been ordered therefore to attend at St. James's and give up their seals. Five o'clock. Just returned from St. James's. In the outer room I found assembled the Duke of Wellington, Lynd- hurst, Rosslyn, Goulburn, Hardinge, the Speaker, Jersey, Maryborough, Cowley, whom the Duke had collected in order to form a Privy Council ; in the Throne Room the ex- Cabinet congregated, and it Avas amusing to watch them as they passed through the camp of their enemies, and to see their different greetings and bows ; all interchanged some slight civility except Brougham, who stalked through look- ing as black as thunder and took no notice of anybody. The first question that arose was, What was to be done about the prorogation ? The Duke thought they might as well finish that business to-day, and I went on an embassy into the other room to propose it ; but they declined to have any thing to say to it and evinced great anxiety to take no part in any proceedings of this day. Accordingly Lord Lansdowne explained to the King that the presence of a Lord President was not necessary, and that there was a sufficiency of Tory Lords to form a Council, so his Majesty 1334.] THE TORIES IX OFFICE. 297 consented to the late Ministers going away. As I thought the company of those who were- coming in \vould be more cheerful and agreeable than that of those who were going out, I passed my time in the outer room, and had a good deal of conversation with the Duke and Lyndhurst, from whom I gathered every thing that I did not know before. After the Whigs had made their exit we went into the Throne Room, and the King sent for Lyndhurst, who only staid with him a few minutes, and then the Duke and all the Privy Councilors were summoned. After greeting them all, and desiring them to sit down, he began a speech nearly as follows : " Having thought proper to make a change in my Government, at the present moment I have directed a new commission to be issued for executing the office of Lord High Treasurer, at the head of which I have placed the Duke of Wellington, and his Grace has kissed hands accordingly upon that appointment. As by the Constitution of this country the King can do no wrong, but those persons are responsible for ids acts in whom he places his confideiice as I do in the Lords now present it is necessary to place the seals of the Secretary of State for the Home Department in those bands in which I can best confide, and I have there- fore thought proper to confer that office likewise on his Grace, who will be sworn in accordingly." Here the Duke came round, and, after much fumbling for his spectacles, took the oath of Secretary of State. The King then resumed : " It is likewise necessary for me to dispose of the seals of the other two Secretaries of State, and I therefore place them likewise for the present in the same hands, as he is already First Lord of the Treasury and Secretary of State for the Home Office." Then, turning to me, he asked if there was any business, and being told there was none, desired me to retire. When I was gone he began another harangue, to the effect that he had endeavored, since he had been upon the throne, to do for the b"st, and that he could not fill up any of the other offices at prssent. Now for what I learned from the Duke and Lyndhurst. The former told me that the was just going out hunting when the messenger arrived; that the letter merely said that the King wished to see him, to consult with him as to the steps he should take with regard to the formation of another Govern- ment. He went off directly, and at once told the King that the best thing he coulJ do was to send for Sir Robert Peel, 298 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXV. and that until he arrived he would undertake to carry on the Government by a provisional arrangement, and would do noth- ing more until Peel's return. So the matter accordingly stands, and no other appointment will be made except that +he Great Seal will be transferred to Lyndhurst, without, however (at present), his becoming Chancellor. He talked a great deal about the state of the late Government, and what passed between Melbourne and the King, but I heard this still more in detail from Lyndhurst afterward. I asked the Duke if he had seen the Times this morning. He said " No," and I told him there appeared in it a consider- able disposition to support the new Government, and I thought it would be very advisable to obtain that support if it could be done. He said he was aware that he had formerly too much neglected the press, but he did not think the Times could be influenced. I urged him to avail himself of any opportunity to try, and he seemed very well disposed to do so. Lyndhurst, whom T afterward talked to for a long time, went into the whole business. He safd that it was very desirable that the public should knoAV the truth of what had taken place between the King and Melbourne, both in con- versation and by letter, because it would be seen that the former was in no way to blame. [This case, such as Lynd- hurst described it to me, was afterward put hvpothetically in the Times, to which it was furnished probably by Scarlett, but the Whigs emphatically declare that it is not correct, and that it will be found, when Melbourne states the truth (as he will require the King's permission to do), that his Majesty had no cause at all. In the midst of these conflicting assertions time must show. November 26?A.] Melbourne told him that, as he had only undertaken to carry on the Government in consideration of having the assistance of Althorp in the House of Commons, his removal made it necessary to adopt a new organization altogether, that some considerable concessions to the principle of Reform were judged to be necessary, and the appointment of a successor to Althorp, Avho should carry them into effect ; that he was of opinion that without these the Government could not go on, and at the same time it was necessary to state that there were members of the Cabinet who did not coincide with these views, and who would retire when Parliament met if they were adopted. These were Lord Lansdowne and Spring Rice ; Lord John Russell was to lead in the House of Commons, but the loss of Rice would be a 1834.] CONVERSATION WITH LYNDHURST. 299 severe blow to them. The concession related principally to Church reform. The disunion of the Cabinet being thus ex- hibited, it was clear the Government could not go on without some material alteration in its composition. The King urged this and asked Melbourne from what quarter the necessary ac- cession of strength was to be procured, and whether he could hope for it from the Conservative interest. He owned that nothing was to be expected from that quarter. It remained, then, that it was only from the more extreme party that their ranks could be recruited. To this the King would not con- sent, and he therefore imparted to him his resolution of plac- ing the Government in other hands. 1 Lyndhurst then went off upon the difficulties of their position. I told him that the Duke had said to me, " If the King had been a very clever man, he would probably have played a more adroit game, by letting them go on till Parlia- ment met, and then taking the opportunity which would soon present itself of breaking them up ; " that I disagreed with the Duke, and thought it infinitely more convenient that this change should take place while Parliament was not sitting, to which Lyndhurst fully agreed. He said that they must dissolve as soon as Peel came home, that they had no alternative ; that it would not do to try this Parliament, to run the chance of a failure and dissolve after having expe- rienced it, that this would be too great a risk. He said that they had several seats quite safe in consequence of their superior management about the registration, such as Leeds and Ripon, where they were sure of both members. He then talked of the tactics to be used, and said they must direct their hostility against the Whigs rather than the Radicals, and make it their principal object to diminish the number of the former. I said I thought this a very perilous game to play, and that if it was avowed and acted upon, it would infallibly produce a reunion between the Whigs and Radicals, who would coalesce to crush their Government ; that tho Radicals were now very angry with the Whigs, who they thought had deserted the principles they professed, and it should rather be their care to keep Whigs and Radicals asunder than provoke a fresh alliance between them. He said ' [This account of the transaction is confirmed in almost every particular by the statement drawn up by King William himself (or by his directions) for the information of Sir EoDcrt Peel, nnd first published in Baron Stockmar's "Memoirs" in 1872. j \ 300 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CIIAP. XXV. the Whigs were certain to join the Radicals. I asked him if lie had seen the Times, said what had passed between the Duke and me, and told him he would do well to endeavor to obtain its support. He said he desired nothing so much, but in his situation he did not like personally to interfere, nor to place himself in their power. I told him I had some acquaint- ance with Barnes, the editor of the paper, and would find out what he was disposed to do, and would let him know, which he entreated I would. The Duke had said, laughing, " I hear they call me a Reformer." I said, " They think you will make as good a Reformer as the present men, if, as Brougham said in Scotland, they would have done less this session than they did the last." 1 asked Lyndhurst if he had seen or heard of the Duke's letter to the Oxford people, and told him that it was very desirable that credit should be given them for in- tending to carry on their government upon principles as liberal as that letter evinced, and I hoped there would be no foolish declarations fulminated against Reform, and that they would all be convinced now that matters had been brought to such a state (no matter how and by whom) that the old prin- ciple of hostility to all reforms must be abandoned. He said that Peel would, he trusted, be flexible, that if such declara- tions were made, and such principles announced, they must be upset, but the Tories would be difficult to manage, and discontented if there was not a sufficient infusion of their party ; and, on the other hand, the agricultural interest had assembled a force under Lord Chandos, a sort of confederation of several counties, and that Chandos had told him that he and the representatives of their counties would not support any Ministry that would not pledge itself to repeal the malt tax ; that they would agree to reenact the beer tax, but the malt tax must cease. Brougham had written to Lyndhurst saying he should be ready to resign the Great Seal in a few days, and only wished first to give some judgments, that he was rejoiced at retiring from office and at the prospect of being able to do what was his great delight devote himself to State affairs without being trammeled and having to fear the imputation of impru- dence and indiscretion. "He will be," Lyndhurst said, "the most troublesome fellow that ever existed, and do all the mis- chief he can." I said, " What can he do ? he was emascu- lated when he left the House of Commons." " Yes," he said, "he knows that, but he will come down night after night and 1834.] LYNDHURST ON BROUGHAM. 301 produce plans of Reform upon any subject ; lie will make speeches two or three hours long to very thin Houses, which will be printed in all the newspapers or published by himself and circulated in fact, a series of pamphlets." I said that he had damaged himself so much that I did not think he could do a great deal of harm, with all his speeches and pamphlets. He said he had damaged himself in more ways than one. He then went off upon his admirable social qualities and his gen- erous conduct to his family, both of which may most justly be praised, and said what a melancholy thing it was to see a man with such fine talents mar their effect by his enormous errors in judgment. Lord Holland, who came out last of all his colleagues, upon his crutches, stopped in great good-humor and said to the Duke, "You can't get me out, I can tell you, without going into Lancashire, for my seal is there." The Duke told me that he did not mean to make the slightest alteration in the transaction of the current business in the different offices, which would go on as usual through the under-secretaries, whom he should request to continue at their posts for the purpose. As, however, a disposition was evinced on the part of the late Cabinet not to afford him any facilities, he began to think that this might not impossibly extend to the subordinates, and he said that at all events he would have two people ready to put into the Treasury to transact the business there. I told him if he was in any dif- ficulty he might make any use he pleased of me. There can hardly be any difficulty, however, when there are permanent under-secretaries in all the offices. Thus ended this eventful day ; just four years ago I wit- nessed the reverse of the picture. I think the Whigs upon this occasion were much more angry and dejected than the Tories were upon that. They had perhaps some reason, for their case is one of rare occurrence unceremoniously kicked out, not resignations following ineffectual negotiations or ballled attempts at arrangement, but in the plenitude of their fancied strength, and utterly unconscious of danger, they were discarded in the most positive, summary, and peremp- tory manner. Great, therefore, is their indignation, mortifi- cation, and chagrin, and bitter will no doubt be their oppo- sition. They think that the new Government have no chance of getting a House of Commons that will support them, and certainly if they do not, and if the Tories are compelled after 302 REIGN 0? WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXV. a fruitless struggle to resign, miserable will be the condition of the King and the House of Lords, and not very enviable that of any Government that may succeed them. To speculate upon probabilities is impossible ; the ne\v Government at present consists of the Duke, Lyndhurst, and Peel, and, till it shall be seen of what materials the complete structure is composed, and what principles they enunciate, it is idle to discuss the matter. Lyndhurst and I agreed cor- dially that all the evils of the last four years the breaking up of their Government, and the Reform Bill that was the conse- quence of that catastrophe were attributable to the High Tories. Whatever may be their wishes now, they can hardly play the same game over again ; they must support this Gov- ernment, even though it shall not act upon the high-flying principles which they so fondly and obstinately cherish. Their salvation and that of all the institutions to which they cling require that they should support the Duke and Peel in carrying on the Government upon those principles on which, from the circumstances- of the times and. the events which have occurred, an Administration must act in order to have a shadow of a chance of being tolerated by the House of Com- mons and the country. Lyndhurst is sensible of this ; I wish Peel may be so likewise. If they both are, I have little fear for the Duke. November ~L9th. Laid up these two days with the gout in my knee, so could not go out to hear what is going on. The Duke, I find, after the Council on Monday (losing no time), repaired to the Home Office and ordered the Irish papers to be brought to him, then to the Foreign Office, where he asked for the last dispatches from Spain and Portugal, and so on to the Colonial Office, where he required information as to the state of their department. I have no doubt he liked this, to play the part of Richelieu for a brief period, to exercise all the functions of administration. They complain, however, and not without reason, of the uncere- monious and somewhat uncourteous mode in which without previous notice he entered into the vacant offices, taking actual possession, without any of the usual preliminary civilities to the old occupants. Duncannon, who had been in the Home Office up to the time of the Council on Monday, and whose papers were unremoved, if he had returned after it, would have found the Duke seated in his still warm chair, issuing directions to Phillips, the under-secretary, while Macdonald, 1834.] LYXDHURST SWORN IN CHANCELLOR. 303 Duncannon's private secretary, was still at his vocation in the adjoining room. Pretty much the same thing he did in the other three offices. He has fixed his headquarters at the Home Office, and occasionally roves over the rest. All this is unavoidable under existing circumstances, but it is enough to excite merriment, or censure, or suspicion, accord- ing to different tastes and tempers. The King offered to make Melbourne an earl and to give him the Garter, but he declined, and begged it might be given to the Duke of Graf ton. In consequence of what passed between Lyndhurst and me concerning the Times (at St. James's) I made Henry de Ros send for Barnes (who had already at his suggestion adopted a conciliatory and amicable tone toward the embryo Government), who came and put on paper the terms on which he would support the Duke. These were: no mutilation of the Reform Bill, and the adoption of those measures of reform which had been already sanctioned by votes of the House of Commons last session with regard to Church and corporations, and no change in our foreign policy. I have sent his note to Lyndhurst, and begged him to call here to talk the matter over. Powell, a Tory solicitor and dme clamnee of the Speaker's, has just been here; he declares that the Tories will be 420 strong in the new Parliament, which I mention for the pur- pose of recording their expectations and being able to com- pare them hereafter with the event. They have already put themselves in motion, dispatched messengers to Lord Hert- ford and Lowther, and probably if ever these men could be induced to open their purse-strings, and make sacrifices and exertions, they will do it now. Six o'clock. Lyndhurst has just been here; he had seen the Duke, who had already opened a negotiation with Barnes through Scarlett. I offered to get any statement inserted of the causes of the late break-up, and he will again see the Duke and consider the propriety of inserting one. He said, " Why Barnes is the most powerful man in the country." The Standard has sent to offer its support; the Duke said he should be very happy, but they must understand that the Government was not yet formed. November 2lst. To-day there was a Council at St. James's, at which Lyndhurst was sworn in Chancellor. Brougham took leave of the Bar this morning, and I hear did it well. 304 REIGN- OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXV. The King speechified as usual, and gave them a couple of harangues; he said it was just four years since he had very unwillingly taken the Seal from Lord Lyndhurst, and he now had great pleasure in restoring it to him. He was all King to-day talked of having "commanded the ex-Ministers to retire; " " desired Lord Brougham to give up the Seal," which is true, for the Duke wrote to him for it, and, instead of sur- rendering it in person, Brougham sent it to Sir Henry Taylor. The King compared this crisis with that which befell his father in 1784, when he had placed the government in the hands of the Marquis of Rockingham; he said that the present was only a provisional arrangement, but that there was this differ- ence, that the country was now in a state of excitement and disquiet, which it was free from then, but that he had full re- liance on the great firmness of the Duke (here the Duke bowed) ; that the Administration which was then formed had lasted seventeen years (of course he meant that of Pitt, which succeeded the coalition), and he hoped that this which was about to be formed would last as long, although at his time of life if it did he could not expect to see the end of it. November 22cl. I read Brougham's speech on quitting the Court of Chancery this morning, and admirable it is not a syllable about himself, but with reference to the ap- pointment of Pepys, brief, dignified, and appropriate. Si sic omnia, what a man he would be ! November 23d. This morning I received a note from Henry de Ros inclosing one from Barnes, who was evidently much nettled at not having received any specific answer to his note stating the terms on which he would support the Duke. Henry was disconcerted also, and entreated me to have an explanation with Lyndhurst. I accordingly went to the Court of Exchequer, where he was sitting, and waited till he came out, when I gave him these notes to read. He took me away with him, and stopped at the Home Office to see the Duke and talk to him on the subject, for he was evidently a little alarmed, so great and dangerous a potentate is the wielder of the thunders of the press. After a long con- ference he came out and gave me a note the Duke had written, saying he could not pledge himself nor Sir Robert Peel (who was to be the Minister) before he arrived, and eventually I agreed to draw up a paper explanatory of the position of the Duke, and his expectations and views with regard to the Times and its support. This I sent to him. 1834.] BROUGHAM ASKS FOR THE CHIEF-BARONSHir. 3Q5 and he is to return it to me with such corrections as he may think it requires, and it is to be shown to Barnes to-morrow. On the way Lyndhurst told me an incredible thing that Brougham had written to him proposing that he should be made Chief Baron, which would be a great saving to the country, as he was content to take it with no higher salary than his retiring pension and some provision for the expense of the circuit. He said that he would show me the letter, but that he had left it with the Duke, so could not then. He knows well enough that, whatever may be the fate of this Government, he has no chance of recovering the Great Seal, but I own I do not comprehend what object he can have in taking this appointment, or what there is of importance enough to induce him to apply for it to his political oppo- nents, and incur all the odium that would be heaped upon him if the fact were generally known. He would not con- sider himself tongue-tied in the House of Lords any more than Lyndhurst was, for though the former took the situation under a sort of condition, either positive or implied, that he was to observe something like a neutrality, he considered himself entirely emancipated from the engagement when the great Reform battle began, and the consequence was that the secret article in the treaty was also canceled, and Denman got the Chief-Justiceship instead of him. I imagine that the King would not agree to Brougham's being Chief Baron even though the Duke and Lyndhurst should be disposed to place him on the bench. There might be some convenience in it. He must cut fewer capers in ermine than in plaid trousers. [As might have been expected, this in- tended stroke of Brougham's was a total failure. Friends and foes condemn him; Duncannon tried to dissuade him; the rest of his colleagues only knew of it after it was done. Duncannon told me he neither desired nor expected that his offer would be accepted. November 30^.] November 2 just come from the court. Lushington finished his speech at two, and when Pemberton was about to reply Brougham announced that he must go away to the London University, where he was to distribute prizes. The con- sequence was that the reply was deferred till next Wednes- day, and the parties will be put to the expense of 60 more. His conduct to-day was exactly of a piece with that which he has exhibited throughout the trial. With all the ingenuity and astuteness of which he is master he has attacked 400 REIGN OP WILLIAM IV. [Ciup. XXVIII. every part of the respondent's case; and, to do him justice, he has often displayed great acuteness and expressed himself with admirable force and precision ; but it was the conduct of an advocate and not of a judge, and a much better advo- cate has he been for Swift than either of those he retained. (Pemberton, however, conducted the case with consummate skill and judgment.) He finished by declaring that as far as he was concerned he should not desiderate a reply, except on one or two points on which he wished to hear it. After the court broke up Baron Parke came into my room and asked my opinion, at the same time telling me his own, which was as decidedly against the girl as Brougham's. I argued the case with him, especially the points which Lushington failed to enforce as strongly as I think he might have done, but his mind was made up. Shadwell, on the contrary, leans the other way, and agreed with me in my view of it. It is, how- ever, very clear that nothing can prevent the reversal of Sir John Nichoirs judgment ; for Erskine will very likely go with Brougham and Parke, and if he does not Lord Lansdowne undoubtedly will; but if I were to attend this court a hun- dred years I should never forget the conduct of Brougham on this trial. My disgust would not have been a jot less had he ospoused the same side that I do; and if I were myself en- gaged in a suit, and he were to take up my own cause in such a barefaced and outrageous manner, with such an utter con- tempt of dignity and decency, I should feel the utmost shame at such partiality, though exerted in my behalf. June 30th. I went to Melbourne on Sunday and carried him my case. 1 He told me he had already desired Spring Rice to speak to Baring on the subject, and I believe he will do what he can; but these great people, however well dis- posed, can seldom be urged into sufficient resolution and ac- tivity to take an energetic way of settling the matter, and they have always so much consideration for each other that Melbourne will probably, with all his good-nature, feel a sort of delicacy to his subordinate colleague in rescuing me from his clutches. Yesterday I went to the Duke of Wellington and gave him my case to read, requesting him to exert his influence with his Tories, and get them to attend the Com- mittee and defend me there. He read it, approved, and prom- ised to speak to both Peel and Herries. I had previously desired George Dawson to speak to Peel. I might certainly, 1 [Eclating to the Secretaryship of Jamaica.] 1S35.] THE POPE AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 401 after the very essential services I rendered Peel and his Gov- ernment, go with some confidence to Peel or any of them and ask for their aid in my difficulty ; but it is not wise to remind men of an obligation ; if they do not feel it without being reminded they will not be made to do so by any hint, and an accusation of ingratitude will be implied, which will cnly excite their resentment ; if they are sensible of the obligation they will return it without any reminder. After I had said what I had to say to Melbourne he asked me what was thought of the Tithe Bill. I told him it was thought a very outrageous measure by the Tories, but that I thought it useless and that it did not go far enough. " I know you do," he said, " but such as it is it will very likely overturn the Government." He then talked over the Irish, question, and owned that nothing could settle it, that they might perhaps bolster up the Irish Church a little longer than the other party could, that thev, however, could not do more than this now, and it was only doubtful if they could do this. He talked the language of reason, and with a just sense of the insuperable difficulties which, present themselves on all sides with respect to this question, but at the same time of their eventual (though as to the time uncertain) solution. I told him that I had long been of opinion that the only practicable and sound course was to open a negotiation with Rome, and to endeavor to deal with the Catholics in Ireland and the min- isters of the Catholic religion upon the same plan which had been mutatis mutandis adopted universally in Germany and almost all over the Continent, and that there was nothing the Church of Rome desired so much as to cultivate a good under- standing with us. He then told me a thing that surprised me, and which seemed to be at variance with this supposi- tion that an application had been made to the Pope very lately (through Seymour), expressive of the particular wish of the British Government that he would not appoint M'Hale to the vacant Catholic bishopric, anybody but him, notwith- standing which the Pope had appointed M'Hale ; but on this occasion the Pope made a shrewd observation. His Holiness said that " he had remarked for a long time past that no piece of preferment of any value ever fell vacant in Ireland that he did not get an application from the British Government ask- ing for the appointment." Lord Melbourne supposed he was determined to show that he had the power of refusing and of opposing the wishes of Government, and in reply to my qucs- 02 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIII. tion he admitted that the Pope had generally conferred the appointment according to the wishes of Government. Can any thing be more absurd or anomalous than such relations as these ? The law prohibits any intercourse with Rome, and the Government whose business it is to enforce the law has estab- lished a regular but underhand intercourse, through the me- dium of a diplomatic agent, whose character cannot be avowed, and the Ministers of this Protestant kingdom are continually soliciting the Pope to confer appointments, the validity, even the existence, of which they do not recognize, while the Pope, who is the object of our orthodox abhorrence and dread, good- humoredly complies with all, or nearly all, their requests. These are the national and legislative follies of this wise and prosperous people, and such is the false position into which we are drawn by a long course of detestable policy policy arising at first out of circumstances, and eventually adhered to from those powerful prejudices which struck their roots so deep into the soil that the force of reason and philosophy has not yet been sufficient to tear them up. Peel, in one of his speeches on Catholic emancipation, bade the House of Com- mons not to deceive itself, and to be aware that if that Bill was carried, we must have Episcopal (or Protestant) England, Presbyterian Scotland, and Catholic Ireland. He prophesied well and truly no doubt, and to that consummation affairs will eventually come, as they ought to come, though not with- out many a struggle, through many a year. The prophecy of Peel is advancing to its accomplishment, but he has either for- gotten it or finds it convenient to forget it. Yesterday the Duke of Wellington talked about the Span- ish war, the nature of which he described very well, and ex- pressed his opinion that on the whole the Cliristinos have the % best chance ; he said Zumalacarreguy was an able man, and that his death must have a very important influence on the result. We talked of Napier's controversy with Perceval. 1 He said Napier had not fairly treated Perceval's character in the controversy, said he had never read a syllable of the book, in order to keep clear of discussions, but that when the work was completed, and all controversies were silenced, he might probably look it over, and if he discovered any errors tell the author of them. He said that no doubt the army had been greatly in want of money, but that this was not the fault of 1 [The Duke referred to Sir William Napier's " History of the Peninsulai 1835.] THE BANK RESTRICTION. 403 the Government. It was a great mistake to suppose that any advanta'ge had been derived (as to obtaining funds) from the bank restriction ; certainly the raising of loans was facilitated by it, but the war would have been much less expensive with- out it, and he had always been of opinion that the immediate cause of the bank restriction was the Loyalty Loan. This loan had drained the bankers and individuals of ready money, and the consequence was a stagnation in commerce, and therefore in circulation, which rendered the bank restriction necessary. He then talked of the Walcheren expedition,*and said that though it was wretchedly conducted and altogether mis- managed, it was not ill-planned, and if they had gone straight to Antwerp it might have rendered very great service to the general cause, and have put Bonaparte in great difficulties. I had always fancied that he had disapproved of that expedi- tion. July 1st. This morning Pemberton was heard in reply in Swift's case, and after a short discussion the court came to a resolution to upset Sir John Nicholl's decision. Brougham behaved very decently to-day, and stated fairly enough his opinion, but he was quite clear, and so was Baron Parke, as to the judgment. The Vice-Chancellor with hesitation ac- quiesced, and Erskine said nothing ; the Lord President went with them, so that the court was unanimous. From thence I went to St. James's to swear in Sir Charles Grey * and Charles Fitzroy Privy Councilors, when we had a most curious burst of eloquence from his Majesty. This is the first time I have seen him and his present Ministers together, and certainly they do not strike me as exhibiting any mutual affection. After Sir Charles Grey was sworn the King said to him, " Stand up," and up he stood. He then ad- dressed him with great fluency and energy nearly in these words : " Sir Charles Grey, you are about to proceed upon one of the most important missions which ever left this country, and, from your judgment, ability, and experience, I have no doubt that you will acquit yourself to my entire satisfaction ; I desire you, however, to bear in mind that the colony to which you are about to proceed has not, like other British 1 [Sir Charles Grey luid just been appointed Governor of Jamaica. He had previously filled for a short time the office of Chief-Justice of Bengal, and en- joyed at this time a considerable reputation in society. The Minister to whom the King referred in his concluding observation was Lord Glenolg, as will be Been presently.] i04 REIGN CF WILLiAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIII. colonies, been peopled from the mother-country that it is not an original possession of the Crown, but that it was obtained by the sic or d. You will take care to assert those undoubted prerogatives which the Crown there possesses, and which I am determined to enforce and maintain, and I charge you by the oath which you have just taken strenuously to assert those prerogatives, of which persons who ought to have lev own better have dared even in my presence to deny the existence" His speech was something longer than this, but the last words almost precisely the same. The silence was profound, and I was amused at the astonishment depicted on the faces of the Ministers. I asked Lord Lansdowne and Lord Holland who it was that he alluded to. Neither knew, but the former said he thought it might be Ellice, and that the King referred to something Ellice had said to him when he was Minister. Somebody said they thought it was Spring Rice, but that could not be when Rice was sitting at the table. I have heard many specimens of his eloquence, but never any thing like this. After this he had to give Durham an audience on his embassy, which must have been very agreeable to him, as he hates him and the Duchess of Kent, whose "magnus Apollo" Durham is. July 3d. The night before last Lord Stanley and Graham quitted their neutral seats below the gangway, and established themselves on the opposite bench below Peel. This was considered as an intimation of a more decided hostility to the present Government, and as an abandonment of the neu- trality (if such it can be called) which they have hitherto prqfessed. Last night O'Connell made a very coarse attack upon Stanley in consequence of this change, which lashed him into a fur)', and a series of retorts followed between them, without any result. O'Connell half shuffled out of his expressions, but refused to apologize ; the chairman (Bernal) took no notice, and the matter ended by a speech from Stanley and a few remarks upon it from Lord John Russell. The for- mer stated his reasons for this ostentatious locomotion, which amounted to this : that he had been rudely treated in the House by ironical cheers and other intelligible sounds, and attacked by the Government newspapers, and he had, there- fore, departed from a society for which he owned he was not fitted. It was not, I think, dignified or judicious, and George Bentinck, the most faithful of his followers, was not satisfied with the proceeding or the explanation. His party, such as 1S35.J STANLEY AND GRAHAM CROSS THE HOUSE. 405 it was, was finally extinguished by this act, though it hardly had any existence before ; some five or six men, among whom were Gaily Knight, George Bcntinck, Stratford Canning, and Sir Matthew Ridley, went over to the Opposition benches ; the others dispersed where they chose. The real history of the transaction is this : it originated with Graham, and it is not the first time he has lugged Stan- ley into what may be called a scrape. He was returning from some division to his usual seat, when he was assailed by those cheers, and some voice cried out, " Why don't you stay where you are ? " on which he bowed in acquiescence to the quarter whence the recommendation proceeded, and instantly retreated to the other side. The next day he told Stanley that he must now stay where he was, and at the same time he produced the Globe newspaper, which contained a very coarse attack upon Stanley himself. This article, together with Graham's representation, determined him to take up his po- sition on the Opposition bench, and accordingly there he went, but without any intimation to his friends, who, to their great surprise, found him there, and only got from him the above explanation that evening in the House. Lord John Russell's reply to Stanley's speech was very courteous, and rather well done as far as it went, for he only said a few words. Lord Stanley is certainly fallen from his high estate, and is in a very different position from that which he aspired to occupy at the beginning of the session. He is without a party, and without any authority in the House except what he derives from his own talents for debate. He has 'now no alternative but to unite himself with Peel's party, and to act under him, without any pretension to competition, and without the pos- sibility of being considered as a separate element of political power. He has been brought to this by a series of false steps from his first refusal to join Peel, followed by his flippant and undecided conduct throughout the great contest. The Whigs and the Tories both hate him, and neither will be very ready to forgive him. There is a mixture of contempt in the dislike of the former, and an undisguised satisfaction among the most violent at having got rid of him, which make any future approximation to their side impossible, and the Tories, though they will receive him in their ranks, will never forgive him for his conduct, to which they attribute the failure of the Conservative effort, for his presumption in endeavoring to set up a middle party and render himself the arbiter of the con- i06 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIII. test and especially for his affectation of want of confidence in Peel and his attacks upon the Duke. In the mean time this move of Stanley's has rather served to streng then the Govern- ment in the House of Commons; between the disposition of many to go with Government, the lukewarmness and indo- lence of the Conservatives, and the steady attendance of a phalanx of Radicals, they have got good, regular steady-work- ing majorities, and appear as strong in the House of Com- mons as any Government need be. July kth. Yesterday Brougham gave judgment in the case of Swift and Kelly a written judgment and at great length. I thought it remarkably well done, embracing all the points of the case, and laying down the law and the reasons for reversing the decree of the court below in a very forcible and perspicuous manner. He must have written this judgment with great rapidity, for it was only on Tuesday afternoon that it was settled to be given on Thursday, all of which is a proof of his admirable talents. His conduct on the last day of the hearing and this judgment in some degree made up for his previous intemperance and violence. He said that he had shown the judgment to Lord Lyndhurst, who en- tirely agreed with him. A negotiation had been previously opened to endeavor to get the other side to concur in an ap- plication to the court to stay the judgment and to consent to a pecuniary compromise, but it was quite ineffectual. A night or two ago there was a breeze at Lady Jersey's between the Duke of Cumberland and Alava, and many stories made of it, more than were true. The Duke, who had fre- quently taunted him before, was again attacking him about his expedition and Spanish affairs generally, when Alava got into a fury and said to him, " Mcnseigneur, Don Carlos peut etre roi d'Espagne, mais il ne sera jamais le roi du general Alava." This Lord Jersey told me, and that the other things he is reported to have said to the Duke are not true. July 7th. I can't deny that many persons have shown a very kind disposition to assist me in this business of my Ja- maica place, of different" political persuasions, and with most of whom I have but a very slight personal acquaintance, among these none more than Mr. Gladstone and Lord Lin- coln, neither of whom did I know to speak to till I put myself into communication with them on this business. On the other hand Charles Wood, who is against me in his opinion, has been the channel of communication with Barins; and shown 1835.] THE KING AND LORD GLEXELG. 407 generally a good-will toward me. These demonstrations are agreeable enough, and contribute to put one in harmony with mankind, but it is after all a humiliating position, and I feel unutterable disgust, and something akin to shame, at being compelled to solicit the protection of one set of men, and the friendly offices of another, in order to be maintained in the possession of that which is in itself obnoxious to public feel- ing and opinion. A placeman is in these days an odious animal, and as a double placeman I am doubly odious, and I have a secret kind of whispering sensation that these very people who good-naturedly enough assist me must be a little shocked at the cause they advocate. All that can be said in my favor is not obvious, nor can it be properly or conven- iently brought forward, and all that can be said against me lies on the surface, and is universally evident. The funds from which I draw my means do not somehow seem a pure source ; formerly those things were tolerated, now they are not, and my prospects were formed and destiny determined at a remote period, while I incur all the odium and encounter all the risks consequent upon the altered state of public feeling on the subject. July 15M. Sefton told me that a correspondence has taken place between Lord Glenelg and Sir Herbert Taylor about that speech of the King's at the Council on Wednes- day se'nnight. Glenelg felt himself called upon to inquire whether the blow was aimed at him, and it was evident from the tenor of the reply that it was. I heard from Stephen a day or two afterward the real truth of this matter. It was Lord Glenelg that the King intended to allude to in his speech. Lord Melbourne spoke to his Majesty on the sub- ject, remonstrated, and said it was impossible to carry on the Government if he did such things. He said that he was greatly irritated, and had acted under strong feelings in con- sequence of what Glenelg had said to him. Melbourne re- joined, "Your Majesty must have mistaken Lord Glenelg." " Not at all," said the King, and he then went into a dispute they had had about the old constitution of Canada I forget what, but something the King asserted which Glenelg contra- dicted. He repaired to the Colonial Office and told Stephen, who informed him that the King was right and he was wrong. (The King, in fact, had got it up, and had the thing at his fingers' ends.) This was awkward ; however, it ended in the King'?, malting a sort of apology and crying peccavi for the 408 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIIL violence of his language, and this will probably be somewhat of a lesson to him, though it will not diminish the bitterness of his sentiments toward his Ministers. I expressed my astonishment that any man could consent to stay in office after receiving such an insult as this was, to which Stephen replied that they were all thoroughly aware of their position relatively to the King and of his feelings tow- ard them ; but they had undertaken the task and were re- solved under all circumstances to go through with it, and, whatever he might say or do, they should not suffer themselves to be influenced or shaken. This is the truth ; they do not look upon themselves as his Ministers, and perhaps they can- not do otherwise as things now are. It is, however, a very melancholy and mischievous state of affairs, and does more to degrade the Monarchy than any thing that has ever occurred : to exhibit the King publicly to the world as a cipher, and something less than a cipher, as an unsuccessful competitor in a political squabble, is to take from the Crown all the dignity with which it is invested by that theoretical attribute of per- fection that has been so conveniently ascribed to it. Both King and Ministers have been greatly to blame, the one for the egregious folly which made him rush into this sea of trou- ble and mortification without calculation or foresight ; the others for the unrelenting severity with which they resolved to gratify their revenge and ambition, without considering that they could not punish him without degrading the throne of which he is the occupant, and that the principle involved in his impunity was of more consequence in its great and perma- nent results than any success of theirs. But it would have re- quired more virtue, self-denial, wisdom, and philosophy, than falls to the lot of any public man individually in these days to have embraced all these considerations, and it would have been a miracle if a great mob of men calling themselves a party could have been made to act under the influence of such moral restraints. The King's present behavior only makes matters worse. When he found himself compelled to take these people back, and to surrender himself a prisoner into their hands, he should have swallowed the bitter pill and digested it, and not kept rolling it in his mouth and making wry faces. He should have made a very bad business as tol- erable as he could, by yielding himself with a good grace ; and had he treated them with that sort of courtesy which one gentleman may and ought to show to all those with whom he 1835.] CONCERT AT STAFFORD HOUSE. 409 is unavoidably brought into contact, and which implies nothing as to feeling and inclination, he would have received from them that respect and attention which it would have been equally their interest and their desire to show. This would have rendered their relations mutually much more tolerable, a decent veil would have been thrown over all that was humil- iating and painful, and the public service must have gained by the tacit compromise ; but extreme folly, great violence in those about the King, and hopes of emancipation secretly cher- ished, together with the intensity of his hatred of his Minis- ters, have conspired to keep his Majesty in his present unwise, irksome, and degrading posture. The night before last there was a great concert on the staircase at Stafford House, the most magnificent assembly I ever saw, and such as I think no croAvned head in Europe could display, so grand and picturesque. The appearance of the hall was exactly like one of Paul Veronese's pictures, and only wanted some tapestry to be hung over the balustrades. Such prodigious space, so cool, so blazing with light ; every- body was comfortable even, and the concert combined the greatest talents in Europe all together Grisi, Malibran, Tam- burini, Lablache, Rubini, and Tvanhoff. The splendor, the profusion, and the perfect ease of it all, were really admirable. Dined yesterday with the Vice-Chancellor ; sixteen people whom I never saw before, almost all lawyers and lawyeresses. He told me that he believed Melbourne had no intention as long as he was Minister of changing the present arrangement with regard to the Great Seal, 1 that he was of opinion that a Chancellor was of no use, and that it was more convenient to keep in his own hands the law patronage of the Great Seal, that this obviated the disputes between Ministers and Chan- cellors, which have generally been very violent, as between Thurlow and Pitt, and still more between Eldon and Liver- pool, which were incessant, and that nothing could exceed the hatred Eldon had for Lord Liverpool, as he knew. Tavistock told me a day or two ago that his Majesty's Ministers are intolerably disgusted at his behavior to them, and his studied incivility to everybody connected with them. The other day the Speaker was treated by him with shocking rudeness at the drawing-room He not only took no notice of him, but studiously overlooked him while he was standing opposite, and called up Manners Sutton and somebody else to 1 [The Great Seal was still in commission.] 40 HO REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIIL mark the ' difference by extreme gracicusness to the latter. Seymour, who was with him as Sergeant-at-Arrr.s, said he had never seen a Speaker so used in the five-and-twenty years he had been there, and that it was most painful. The 'Speaker asked him if he had ever seen a man in his situation so re- ceived at Court. Since he has been Speaker the King has never taken the slightest notice of him. It is monstrous, equally undignified and foolish. July I8th. Yesterday I sat all day at my office wondering why I heard nothing of the Committee, till at half-past four o'clock Graham and Lord Lincoln came in with smiling counte- nances, that announced good news. They had had an angry debate of three hours' duration. Baring moved that my hold- ing the office of Secretary of Jamaica was against the spirit of the Act of Parliament. Graham mcved that holding it with the leave of absence was in accordance with the Act, and the division was nine to seven. A teller on each side and Baring, who as chairman did not vote, made the numbers ten to nine. They told me that Baring and Vernon Smith were furious. The former endeavored to turn off his defeat by proposing that the question should be reopened on framing the report ; but even Grote opposed that, and he was forced to own that he was wrong in proposing it. I must say that Gladstone told me that Baring behaved very well after the division. I will not conceal the truth, much as I have reason to complnin of the man. I owe this victory to the zealous assistance of the Conservatives, for not one Whig or Radical voted with me ; some of the former staid away, whether designedly or not I don't know, except Stanley, Secretary to the Treasury, who told me he could not make up his mind to go and vote against me. The majority consisted of Ilerries, Fremantle (Sir Thom- as), Gladstone, Nicholl, Graham, Lord Lincoln, Bethel!, Fector, Brarn stone, and Pringle ; the minority, Baring, Vernon Smith, Pendarves, Ruthven, Scholefield, Evans, Grote, Hume, R. Stew- art. I never had any intimacy with any one of those who supported me except with Graham, and we were friends, and very intimate friends, twenty years ago. He dropped me all of a sudden from caprice or calculation, and we have been on very decent but scarcely cordial terms ever since. On this occasion I whipped up the old friendship, and with great ef- fect, for he has served me very zealously throughout the busi- ness. I scarcely knew any of the others before, Lord Lincoln and Gladstone only on this occasion, and Fector, Nicholl 1835.] IRISH CHURCH BILL. 411 Bramstone, Bethell, and Pringle, I do not know now by sight. It is really amusing to see the joy with which the news of Baring's defeat has been hailed by every member of his own family, and all others who have heard of it. The good-will of the world (a very inert but rather satisfactory feeling) has been exhibited toward me, and there is mixed up with it in all who are acquainted with the surly reformer who is my adversary a lively pleasure at his being baffled and mortified. July 23(7. Dined with Bingham Baring * yesterday, and met Whateley, Archbishop of Dublin, a very ordinary man in appearance and conversation, with something of pretension in his talk, and telling stories without point, which smelt of the Common room ; nevertheless, he is a very able man, and they told me that when he is with such men as Senior, and those with whom he is very intimate, he shines. I was greatly disappointed with what I saw and heard of him. The Church Bill has been in the House of Commons these two nights. Peel introduced his motion for dividing the Bill in a very able speech, well adapted to the purpose, if any thing was to be gained in such a House of Commons ; but the fact is, both parties look beyond the immediate question : one wants to bolster up the present system, the other to overthrow it, and though I go along with Peel on his point, I go along with his opponents on their jyrinciple. He stated, however, very forcibly the dilemma in which his opponents are placed, and said, " Why don't you make the Establishment Catholic at once, openly and avowedly, or abstain from doing what has that inevitable tendency ? " Melbourne said there was no escape from this, and I replied that I would take him at his word, and that it must come to this, and he might immortalize himself by settling the question. It certainly would be a glorious field for a statesman to enter upon to brush away all the obstacles which deeply-rooted prejudices and chimerical fears founded on false reasoning throw in his way, and bend all his energies to a direct and vigorous course of policy, at once firm and determined, looking the real evil in the face, and applying the real remedy to it. If I were Prime Minister I would rather fall in the attempt than work on through a succession of expedients none of which were satisfactory to myself, to hold language at variance with my opinions, and to truckle to difficulties which it is now time boldly to face. I am as satisfied as of my existence that if the heart's core of Peel could be laid open, it would be found that he thinks so 1 FAfYpnrard the second Lord As 12 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIII. himself. His is not conduct of conviction, and he has been led into contradictions and inconsistencies which must ever beset and entangle those who persist in the attempt to main- tain positions which have ceased to be tenable. Goodwood, July 29th. To Petworth on Saturday and here on Monday ; a smaller party than usual, and no women on account of the Duchess of Argyll's death ; far better not to have women at a racing-party. Tavistock told me that a man (he did not say who) had been to Lord John, evidently com- missioned, though not avowedly, to tell him on the part of Peel and Lord Stanley that they would both support him if he would bring forward a proposition to pay the Irish Catholic clergy. John, however, " timet Danaos et dona ferentes," and hinted that his own popularity would be sacrificed if he did. This is curious, however. John also told him that he never saw Peel laugh so much as during Graham's speech the other night, and he meant (but forgot it) to ask him why he laughed so. To Peel it is nuts to see Stanley and Graham drawing down unpopularity on themselves and every day widening the breach between them and their old friends ; but I was some- what struck with the apparent intimacy which was evinced in what John Russell said about Peel, and asked his brother if they were on very good personal terms. He said, " Oh, excel- lent " a sort of House of Commons intimacy. Peel told John all he meant to do in the Committee on the Church Bill that he should propose so and so, and when they came to the appropriation clauses he should make his bow and leave them. Tavistock remarked (which had escaped me) that Peel had in his last famous speech (certainly one of extraordinary ability) omitted all mention of the principle of appropriation, and con- fined himself to the proof that there was no surplus ; but what is most remarkable perhaps of all is this : Peel said to John, " If you will appropriate, I will show you a much better plan than your own," and he accordingly did show him a plan by which there would be a considerably greater surplus, and John acknowledged that Peel's plan would be better than his own. I wonder what the High Tories and the King would think of all this? While he is quarreling with Johnny and his friends for Peel's sake, and undergoing martyrdom in his social relations with them, there they are hand and glove, and almost concerting together the very measures which are the cause of all the animosities and all the political violence which agitate and divide the world. There is something extremely ludicrous in all this. 1835.] THE MUNICIPAL CORPORATION BILL. 413 I hear to-day that Peel is going into the country for good, and leaves the Lords to deal with the Bills. He probably expects them to commit some follies, and fancies he may as well be out of the way. August 4:th. Came to town on Sunday, having slept at Winchester on Saturday night to see the town and the cathe- dral, and hear the service in the latter, which was very mod- erate; the cathedral, however, is worth seeing. When I got to town I found the Tory Lords had been worked into a frenzy by Wetherell and Knight 1 at the bar of the House of Lords (the latter of whom is said to have made a very able speech), and Newcastle and Winchelsea bellowed and blustered in grand style. Lord Rosslyn had told me some time ago that the Duke would have great difficulty in managing his people, but that I think was d propos of the Church Bill. Yesterday at two o'clock there was a great assemblage of Peers at Apsley House to determine what was to be done, and amazed was I when I learned at about five o'clock that they had re- solved to move that evidence should be heard against the principle of the Municipal Corporation Bill, which was accord- ingly moved by Carnarvon last night. At dinner I met Stuart, to whom I expressed my astonishment at the course they had adopted, and he owned that it was " rather hazardous," and said that it was adopted at the suggestion of Lyndhurst, who had insisted upon it at Apsley House, and that the Duke had given way. He said that this had followed as a necessary consequence of Brougham proposing that counsel should be heard upon the details, as it appeared that the evidence on which' the Bill was founded was not to be relied on. He owned that it was probable Peel would disapprove of the pro- ceedings of the Lords, and a breach between him and them be the consequence. He told me that at a dinner on Saturday, at which the Dukes of Wellington and Cumberland, Peel, and Wetherell, were present, the question had been argued; that Sir Charles Wetherell had urged all the leading arguments he had used in his speech, and Peel had contested every part and particle of his argument, while the Duke of Cumberland did not utter a word. Stuart added that he heard the Govern- ment meditated something very strong, and I repeated what Hobhouse had told me in the morning, when I met him in the Park that Melbourne would probably adjourn the House, that there would be a call of the House of Commons, and some 1 [Mr. Knight Bruce, afterward Lord Justice in Equity.] 414 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIII strong resolution proposed there. Some Whigs, however, who were present last night, suggested that it would be bet- ter to adjourn the House of Commons, and let the Lords go on with their evidence while they pleased to hear it, and then reassemble the Commons in case the Bill was sent back to them. Hobhouse said, " Depend upon it, it is the commence- ment de la fin" It does certainly appear to me that these Tory Lords will never rest till they have accomplished the destruction of the House of Lords. They are resolved to bring about a collision with the House of Commons, and the majority in each House grows every day more rabid and more desperate. I am at a loss to comprehend the views by which Lyndhurst, the ablest of the party, is actuated, or how he can (if it be so, which from Stuart's account is probable) fancy that any object is attainable which involves in it a breach or separation between Peel and the great body of the Tories. I would give much to see the recesses of his mind, and know what he really thinks of all these proceedings, and to what consequences he believes that they will lead. August 6th. Yesterday to Brighton, to see my horse Dacre run for the Brighton stake, which he won, and back at night. The day before I met the Vice-Chancellor 1 at Charing Cross, going down to the House of Lords. " Well," said he, shrugging his shoulders, " here I am going to the House of Lords, after hearing evidence all the morning, to hear it again for the rest of the evening." " What is to hap- pen ? " I asked him. " O Lord, it is the greatest bore ; they have heard Coventry and Oxford; they got something of a case out of the first, but the other was beyond any thing tiresome ; they are sick to death of it, and Brougham and Lyndhurst have agreed that it is all damned nonsense, and they will hear nothing more after Saturday next." So this is the end of all this hubbub, and here are these two great comedians thunder- ing against each other in the House of Lords overnight, with all imaginable vehemence and solemnity, only to meet to- gether the next morning and agree that it is all damned non- sense. There is something very melancholy and very ludi- crous in all this, and though that great bull-calf the public does not care about such things, and is content to roar when he is bid, there are those on the alert who will turn such trifling and folly to account, and convert what is half ridiculous into _ r [The Great Seal being in commission, the Vice-Chancellor of England (Sir Lancelot Shadwell) sat as one of the Commissioners on the Woolsack.] 1835.] THE KING AND LORD TORRtNGTOX. 415 something all-serious. Winchelsea and Newcastle, after all, did not vote the other night ; they said they wanted no evi- dence, that they would have no such Bill, and would not med- dle with the discussion at all, except to oppose it point-blank. Fools as they are, their folly is more tolerable and probably less mischievous than the folly of the wise ones. August 2th. On Wednesday last at the levee the King- made a scene with Lord Torrington, one of his Lords of the Bedchamber, and a very disgraceful scene. A card was put into Torrington's hands of somebody who was presented, which he read, " So and so, Deputy- Governor." " Deputy-Governor ? " said the King, " Deputy-Governor of what?" "I cannot tell your Majesty," replied Torrington, " as it is not upon the card." " Hold your tongue, sir !" said the King ; "you had better go home and learn to read ; " and, shortly after, when some bishop presented an address against (I believe) the Irish Tithe Bill, and the King was going as usual to hand over the papers to the Lord in waiting, he stopped and said to Lord Torrington, who advanced to take them, " No, Lord Torring- ton ; these are not fit documents to be intrusted to your keep- ing." His habitual state of excitement will probably bring on, sooner or later, the malady of his family. Torrington is a young man in a difficult position, or he ought to have re- signed instantly and as publicly as the insult was offered. The King cannot bridle his temper, and lets slip no opportu- nity of showing his dislike, impotent as it is, of the people who surround him. He admits none but Tories into his pri- vate society, wherever he goes Tories accompany him ; at Windsor Tories only are his guests. This provokes his Min- isters, but it necessarily makes them more indifferent to the cultivation of his favor, and accustoms them to consider them- selves as the Ministers of the House of Commons and not of the Crown. My brother writes me from Paris very interesting details of the funeral of the victims of the assassination plot, 1 which was an imposing and magnificent ceremony, admirably ar- ranged, and as it has produced a burst of enthusiasm for the King, and has brought round the clergy to him, it will serve to strengthen his throne. His undaunted courage ingratiates him with the French. August 15th. On Wednesday the Lords commenced pro- ceedings on the Corporation Bill. The Ministers were aware ' [The victims of the Fieschi conspiracy.] 416 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXVIIL that they meant to throw it out, for Lord John Russell and Lord Lansdowne both told me at the levee that they had heard such was the intention of the Tories, However, they never had such a design, and the second reading passed without a division ; on Thursday they went into Committee, and the freemen's clause was carried against Government by a major- ity of 93 130 to 237 the debate being distinguished by divers sallies of intemperance from Brougham, who thundered, and menaced, and gesticulated, in his finest style. When somebody cried, "Question," he burst out, "Do you think to put me down ? I have stood against 300 of the House of Com- mons, and do you think 1 will give way to you f " This was ut- tered with all imaginable rage and scorn. 1 This amendment was always anticipated, and though the Government object to it, Lord Lansdowne told me that as the rate-paying clause had passed without opposition, he did not care for the other alter- ations, but the minority appeared to everybody bordering upon the ridiculous ; a Minister who could only muster thirty- seven present, and who was in a minority of three to one, pre- sented a novel spectacle. Nobody could account for the care- lessness of their muster, for many Peers were absent who might easily have been there, and several who belong to Government by office or connection. It did not, however, occur to anybody that they would feel themselves compelled to resign upon it, except perhaps to a few Tories, who hinted their notion that Melbourne could not go on with such a majority against him, which, however true it may be in the long-run, signifies nothing as to any immediate change. Last night the qualification clause was carried against Government by an equally large majority, or nearly so, and this time Government does not seem disposed to take it so patiently. It was well understood that a qualification would be imposed, and many of the supporters of the Bill said they 1 Brougham had some reason to be angry. Lyndhurst did not reply to him on AVednesday, when he might have done so, pleading the fatigue of late hours and his own indisposition, and on Thursday he attacked him when he was ab- sent ; he therefore gave him good ground for complaint. Brougham's inso- lence and violence have done great injury to the House of Lords by lowering the style and character of their debates and introducing coarseness and acri- mony such as never were known there before. Hardly a night passes without some discreditable scene of squabbling and vituperation bandied between him and the High Tory Lords, one or other of them ; their hatred of him and his scorn of them are everlastingly breaking out. He and Lyndhurst, though con- stantly pitted against each other, are great friends all the time, but with the others it is a rabid passion of hatred and contempt, mutually felt and continu- ally expressed. 1S35.] DEBATE ON THE CORPORATION BILL. 417 did not object thereto, but they had no notion of such a quali- fication as Lyndhurst proposed and carried last night, and the Duke of Richmond (whom I met at Crockford's) told me that it would be fatal to the Bill. He saw Lord John Russell after the division, who told him so, and that the Commons would never take the Bill with such an alteration as this. Richmond himself goes entirely with Government in this measure, and I was rather surprised to hear him say that " it had been urged that Lord Stanley was opposed to this part of the Bill, but that if this were so a man must judge for him- self in so important a matter," which looks a little as if he meant to back out of the dilly, and I should not be very much surprised if he came into office again with these people, if they stay in. I asked him what in his opinion would happen, and he replied that he thought the House of Lords was nearly done for, that he expected the Commons would reject their amendments and pass some very strong resolutions ; he should not be surprised if they refused to pass the Appropriation Bill. I said they would hardly do that, because it would be a measure against Government, and would compel these Min- isters to resign. This he admitted, but he went on to say that he expected it would throw the House of Commons into a ferment, that they would adopt some violent course, and then there would be a " row royal." What astonishes me most in all this is that Lyndhurst, a man of great abilities, and cer- tainly, if wishing for any thing, wishing for the success of the party lie belongs to, should urge these desperate courses. He it was who proposed the fatal postponement of Schedule A, which led to such utter ruin and confusion, and now it is he who manages this Bill, and who ventures to mutilate the Min- isterial measure in such a manner as will in all probability bring down all the Avrath of the Commons on him and his Con- servative majority. I am not at all sure but that the Govern- ment is content to exhibit its paltry numbers in the House of Lords, in order that the world may see how essentially it is a Tory body, that it hardly fulfills the conditions of a great independent legislative assembly, but presents the appearance of a dominant party-faction which is too numerous to be affected by any constitutional process and too obstinate to be turned from its fixed purpose of opposing all the measures which have a tendency to diminish the influence of the Con- servative party in the country. It is impossible to look at the disposition exhibited by this great majority and not admit 418 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. that there is very small chance of its acting harmoniously with the present House of Commons, and that some change must take place in order to enable Government and legisla- tion to go on at all. It is any thing but clear that the nation desires the destruction of the House of Lords, nor is it clear that the nation cares for its preservation. It is, I think, exceedingly probable that a majority of those who return members to Parliament, and in whom collectively the supreme power really resides, though they might be content to retain the House of Lords, if it could be made to act in harmony with, and therefore necessarily in subordination to, the House of Commons, would not hesitate for an instant to decree its downfall if it became clear that there was no other way of crushing the Tory faction which now rules triumphant in that House. At all events the Lords are playing a desperate game ; if it succeeds, they who direct the energies of the party are great and wise men ; but what if it fail ? They seem to have no answer to this but that if they Screw their courage to the sticking place, It will not fail. CHAPTER XXIX. Kesistance of the Lords Duke of Richmond Happiness Struggle between Lords and Commons Peel keeps aloof Inconsistency of the Whigs on the Irish Church Bill- Violent Language in the Lords Lord John Russell and Peel pass the Corporation Bill Dissolution of the Tory Party foreseen Meeting of Peers to consider the Amend- mentsKing's Speech in Council on the Militia Lord Howick's Bitterness against the Lords Lord Lyndhurst's Opinion of the Corporation Bill The King's Language on the Regency Talleyrand's view of the English Alliance Comparison of Burke and Mackintosh The St. Legcr Visit of Princess Victoria to Burghley O'ConneLTs Prog- ress Through Scotland Mackintosh's Life. August 19A. Yesterday the Lords finished the Com- mittee on the Corporation Bill. Their last amendment (which I do not very well understand at present), by which certain aldermen elected for life are to be taken in the first instance from the present aldermen, has disgusted the authors of the Bill more than all the rest. In the morning I met Duncannon and Howick, both open-mouthed against the amendments, and this in particular, and declaring that though the others might have been stomached, this could not go down, as it was in direct opposition to the principle of the Bill. Howick 1835.] OBSTINACY OF THE LORDS. 419 talked of "the Lords being swept away like chaff" and of " the serious times that were approaching." Duncannon said there would be a conference, and if the Lords insisted on these amendments the Bill would be lost. I asked if a com- promise was not feasible, the Lords abandoning this and the Commons taking the other amendments, which he said would not be undesirable, but difficult to effect. The continual dis- cussions about this Bill have made me perforce understand something of it toward the end of them. I am too ignorant of the details and of the tendency of the Bill to have an opinion of the comparative merits of its present and its original shape, but I am sure the Lords are bound in prudence not to mutilate it more than is absolutely necessary to make it a safe measure, and to have a good, and moreover a popu- lar, case to go to the country with, if eventually such an ap- peal is to be made. On the other hand the House of Com- mons, powerful as it is, must not assert its power too peremptorily, and before the Ministers determine to resign, for the purpose of making their resignation instrumental to the consolidation of their power and the destruction of the House of Lords ; they also must have a good case, and be able to show that the amendments made by the Lords are in- compatible with the object proposed, that they were made in a factious spirit and for the express purpose of thwarting the principle contended for, and that their conduct in this matter forms part of a general system, which can only be counter- acted by some fundamental change in the constitution of the Upper House itself. These are violent conclusions to come to, and when one reflects calmly upon the possible and prob- able consequences of a collision, and the manner in which the interests of the antagonistic parties collectively and indi- vidually are blended together, it is difficult to believe that both will not pause on the brink of the precipice and be influenced by a simultaneous desire to come to a decent and practicable compromise. This would probably be easy if both parties were actuated by a sincere desire to enact a law to reform corporations in the safest, best, and most satisfactory manner ; but the reformation of the corporations is not the first object in the minds of either. One wants to save as much as possible of the Tory influence, which is menaced by the Bill, and the other wants to court the democratic spirit, which vivifies its party, and erect a new and auxiliary in- fluence on the ruins of the ancient establishments. Any 420 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. mere looker-on must perceive through all their wranglings that these are the arriere-pensees of the two antagonistic parties. Brougham made a very clever speech (I am told) on Mon- day night, and the contest between him and Lyndhurst through the whole Committee has been remarkable for talent and for a striking display of the different qualities of the two men. The Duke of Richmond had a squabble with Lynd- hurst last night, " impar congressus," and he has wriggled himself almost back among the Whigs ; nothing but the ap- propriation clause in the Church Bill prevents his being First Lord of the Admiralty, and he may be considered as having dropped off the dilly with so many others. The Whigs are dying to have him back among them. I must confess I do not see why, but it is impossible to deny that he contrives to make himself desired by those with whom he has acted, and as they must know best what they are about and what he is capable of, it is reasonable to suppose that he has some talents or some qualities which are developed in the graver affairs of life, but which do not appear in its ordinary relations and habitudes. I thought what he said to me the other night looked like a severance of his Stanley connection, and his strenuous support of this Bill and his pettish attacks upon Lyndhurst show that he at least is not likely to ally himself with the Conservatives. August 2~Lst. Yesterday I fell in with Lyndhurst, just getting out of his carriage at his door in George Street. He asked me to come in and look at his house, which I did. I asked him what would happen about the Bill. He said: "Oh, they will take it. What can they do ? If they choose to throw it out, let them do so; I don't care whether they do or not. Bat they will take it, because they know it does their business, though not so completely as they desire." He said he would alter the qualification, though he did not think it objection- able. I told him I hoped there might be some compromise, and that he and his friends would give way on some of their amendments, and that the Commons would take the rest. Even the Times, which goes the whole hog with the Opposi- tion, won't swallow this (the aldermen), and suggests that it should be withdrawn. Nothing ever was like the outrageous indecency of the attacks upon the House of Lords in the Ministerial papers, and it is n,ot clear that they won't overdo the thing ; this kind of fury generally defeats its own object 1835.] WHAT IS HAPPINESS? 421 August 25th. At Hillingdon from Saturday till Monday last ; began the life of Mackintosh, and was delighted with Sydney Smith's letter which is prefixed to it ; read and walked all day on Sunday the two things I do least, viz., ex- ercise my mind and body ; therefore both grow gross and IKMVV. Shakespeare says fat paunches make lean pates, but this is taken from a Greek proverb. I admire this family of Cox's at Hillingdon, and after casting my eyes in every direc- tion, and thinking much and often of the theory of happiness, I am convinced that it is principally to be found in contented mediocrity, accompanied with an equable temperament and warm though not excitable feeling. When I read such books as Mackintosh's Life, and see what other men have done, how they have read and thought, a sort of despair comes over me, a deep and bitter sensation of regret " for time misspent and talents misapplied," not the less bitter from being coupled with a hopelessness of remedial industry and of doing better things. Nor do I know that such men as these were happy ; that they possessed sources of enjoyment inaccessible to less gifted minds is not to be doubted, but whether knowledge and con- scious ability and superiority generally bring with them con- tent of mind and the sunshine of self-satisfaction to the pos- sessors is any thing but certain. I wonder the inductive pro- cess has not been more systematically applied to the solution of this'great philosophical problem, ichat is happiness, and in what it consists, for the practical purpose of directing the hu- man mind into the right road for reaching this goal of all hu- man wishes. Why are not innumerable instances collected, examined, analyzed, and the results expanded, explained, and reasoned upon, for the benefit and instruction of mankind? Who can tell but what these results may lead at last to some simple conclusions such as it requires no vast range of intel- lect to discover, no subtile philosophy to teach conclusions mortifying to the pride and vanity of man, but calculated to mitigate the evils of life by softening mutual asperities, and by the establishment of the doctrine of humility, from which :ill charity, forbearance, toleration, and benevolence, must flow as from their source ? These simple conclusions may amount to no more than a simple maxim that happiness is to be found "in the pursuit of truth and the practice of virtue." Semita certe Tranquilla* per virtu tern patet unica vita. 422 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. The end of the tenth Satire of Juvenal (which is one of the finest sermons that ever was composed, and worth all the homilies of all the Fathers of the Church) teaches us what to pray for Orandum est ut sit mens sana in corpore sano. Healthy body, healthy appetite, healthy feelings, though ac- companied by mediocrity of talent, unadorned with wit and imagination, arid unpolished by learning and science, will out- Strip in the race for happiness the splendid irregularities of genius and the most dazzling successes cf ambition. At the same time this general view of the probabilities of happiness must be qualiHed by the admission that mere vegetation scarcely deserves the name of happiness, and that the highest enjoyment which humanity is capable of may be said to con- sist in the pleasures of reason and imagination of a mind ex- patiating among the wonders of Nature, and ranging through all the "changes of many-colored life," without being shaken from its equilibrium by the disturbing causes of jealousy, envy, and the evil passions of our nature. The most galling of all conditions is that of him whose conscience and con- sciousness whisper to him perpetual reproaches, who reflects on what he might have been and who feels and sees what he is. When such a man as Mackintosh, fraught with all learn- ing, whose mind, if not kindled into a steady blaze, is .per- petually throwing out sparks and coruscations of exceeding brightness, is stung with these self-upbraidings, what must be the reflections of those, the utmost reach of whose industry is far below the value of his most self-accused idleness, who have no self-consolation, are plunged in entire darkness, and have net only to lament the years of omission, but those of commission, not only the opportunities neglected, but the positive mischief done by the debasement of the faculties, the deterioration of the understanding, the impairing of the power of exertion consequent upon a long devotion to low, despica- ble, unprofitable habits and pursuits ? August 27th. Melbourne has thrown up the Tithe Bill in the Lords, because the Opposition expunged the appro- priation clauses. In the Corporation Bill Lyndhurst made still further alterations, such as the Commons will not take (the town clerks and the exclusion of Dissenters from the disposal of ecclesiastical patronage), and as it is the general opinion that they will make no compromise and surrendei 1835.] STATE OF PARTIES. 423 none of their amendments, that Bill will probably be lost too. What then ? asks everybody j and nobody can tell what then, but there is a sort of vague apprehension that something must come of it, and that this collision (for colli- sion it is) between the Lords and the Commons will not be terminated without some violent measures or important changes ; if such do take place, they will have been most wantonly and wickedly brought about, but it is a lamentable thing to see the two great parties in the country, equally possessed of wealth and influence, and having the same interest in general tranquillity, tearing each other to pieces while the Radicals stand laughing and chuckling by, only waiting for the proper moment to avail themselves of these senseless divisions. There is something inconceivable, a sort of political absurdity, in the notion of a country like this being on the eve of a convulsion, when it is tranquil, pros- perous, arid without any grievance ; universal liberty prevails, every man's property and person are safe, the laws are well administered and duly obeyed ; so far from there being any unredressed grievances, the imagination of man cannot devise the fiction or semblance of a grievance without there being a rush to correct it. The only real evil is that the rage for correction is too violent, and sweeps all before it. What is it, then, which menaces the existence of the constitution we live under ? It is the fury of parties, it is the broad line of separation which the Reform Bill has drawn, the antagonist positions into which the two Houses of Parliament have been thrown, and the Whigs having identified themselves with the democratic principle in one House, in order to preserve their places, and the Conservative principle having taken refuge in the other House, where it is really endangered by the obstinate and frantic violence of its supporters. What was the loud and eternal cry of the Lords, and of all the Conservatives, when the Reform Bill was in agitation ? That it was a revolution, that it would place all political power in the hands of the people, that it would establish an irresist- ible democratic force ; and the great body of them justified their refusal to go into Committee on the ground that the Bill was so vicious in principle, so irremediably mischievous, that no alterations could diminish its evil tendency. It is now as clear as daylight that if they had gone into Com- mittee and amended the Bill, they might have obviated all or nearly all the evils they apprehended, for even after 424 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. the passing of the " whole Bill," with all its clauses perfect and untouched, parties are so nearly balanced that the smallest difference would turn the scale the other way. They would, however, listen to nothing, and now they feel the consequences of their ruat codum policy ; but what I com- plain of is, that after the verification of their predictions, and the realization of their fears, in the establishment of a democratic power of formidable strength, they do not act consistently with their own declared opinions ; for if it be true, as they assert, that their legitimate authority and in- fluence have been transferred to other hands, and that the just equilibrium of the Constitution has been shaken, it is mad and preposterous in them to act just as if no such dis- turbing causes had occurred, as if they were still in the plenitude of their constitutional power, and to provoke a collision which, if their own assertions be true, they are no longer in a condition to sustain. The answer to such argu- ments as this invariably is, Are the Lords, then, to be content to yield every thing, and must they pass every Bill which the House of Commons thinks fit to send to them purely and simply ? Certainly they are not ; no such thing is expected of them by any man or any set of men ; but common prudence and a sense of their own condition and their own relative strength under the new dispensation demand that they should exercise their undoubted rights with circumspection and calm- ness, desisting front all opposition for opposition's sake, standing out firmly on questions involving great and impor- tant principles, and yielding with a good grace, without ill- humor, and without subserviency, on minor points. They ought, for example, to have followed in the footsteps of Peel in this Irish Corporation Bill, and to have satisfied themselves with making those amendments which he strove for without success in the House of Commons, and no more. As it is, he wholly disapproves of the course they have taken, and so, I believe, did the Duke of Wellington in the beginning of the discussions ; but Lyndhurst took the lead with the violent party, overruled the Duke, neglected Peel, and dealt with the Bill in the slashing manner we have seen. I was talking to Lord John Russell yesterday at Court on this subject, and he said that he had no doubt Peel highly disapproved of their proceedings, and that it was evident he did not pretend to guide them ; for one day in the House of Commons he went over to Peel, and said that he meant to re 1835.J SECLUSION OF SIR R. PEEL. 425 commit (or some such thing, no matter what the particular course was) the Bill that night, and he supposed he would not object. Peel said : " Oh, no ; I don't object ; " and, as he was going away, Peel called him back and said : " Remember I speak only for myself ; I can answer for no other individual in the House." He went out of town about a fortnight ago, has never returned, and will not; his own friends think he ought, but it is evident that he prefers to wash his hands of the matter. He knows well enough that the Conservatives hate him in their hearts ; besides having never cordially for- given him for his conduct on the Catholic question, they are indignant at his Liberal views and opinions, and, when they adopted him as their leader, it was in the fond hope that he would restore the good old days of Tory Government, than which nothing could be further from his thoughts. John Russell said of him yesterday, " That he was, in fact, a great lover of changes and innovations ; " and so he is. It often occurs to me that he would not care very much if the House of Lords did go to the wall, and that, though he is the ac- knowledged head of the Conservative party, he doesn r t in his heart care much for Conservative principles. He may possibly calculate that no change can take place in this country by which property will be menaced ; that personally he is safe, and politically his vast superiority in all the requisites for public life must, under all possible circumstances, make him the most eminent performer on the great stage. I do not know that he has any such thoughts as these, but it appears to me far from improbable, and the more so from his keeping aloof at this moment, and abstaining (as far as we know) from any attempt to restrain the indiscretion and impetuosity of his party. But, if, on the one hand, the conduct of the Tories with respect to the Corporation Bill has been violent and rash, that of the Government with respect to the Tithe Bill has been unspeakably wicked. I cannot -recollect an instance of GO complete a sacrifice of the interests of others, of their ov;n principles, and of national tranquillity, to mere party objects, and the more I reflect upon the course they have taken the more profligate and disgraceful it appears. These Ministers have recorded their opinion that the question of appropriation ought not to be mixed up with that of com- mutation ; that they are essentially distinct, and ought to remain so. At the beginning of this session the united 126 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. Whigs and Radicals considered only one thing how to drive Peel out, and, though they had a choice of means to accomplish this end, the famous resolution about appropria- tion was the one which they finally selected for the purpose. In so doing they were altogether regardless of future conse- quences, 1 and never stopped to calculate what would be the effect of saddling the measure of relief (in which all parties concurred) with this impossible condition. Now how stands the case ? They declare that Ireland (as all the world knows) is a scene of disorder and bloodshed, of which the Tithe sys- tem is the principal cause, and that the Tithe Bill will afford an effectual remedy to the evil. It is, therefore, their impera- tive and paramount duty, as it ought to be their earnest and engrossing desire, to secure the application of their remedy, and, whether in office or out of office (with the expectation and intention of coming in), to take care that nothing should be mixed up with it by which it can be endangered, and that it should be proposed merely for what it is, and not made subservient to any object but that for which it has been pro- fessedly framed. Having committed the first error of emplo}"- ing this resolution to drive out the Government, they then considered themselves obliged to adopt it as an integral part of the Bill, and accordingly thej r did so, with a full knowledge that by so doing they should insure the rejection of the Bill itself and that Ireland would continue in the same state of anarchy and confusion, only aggravated by the furious con- tests of parties here and by the failure of all schemes of reme- dial legislation. Nothing can be more certain than this, that if the state of Ireland had been taken into consideration with the simple, straightforward view of tranquilizing the country, and that no party object had been mixed up with it, the fratners of the Tithe Bill would sedulously have avoided intro- ducing the appropriation clause ; but during the great battle with Peel the establishment of this principle (not only the principle of appropriation, but that no relief should be af- forded without its recognition) was made the condition of Radical support and the bond of Radical connection, and hav- ing as the result of this compact pledged the House of Com- mons to the principle, they refuse to retrace their steps, and offer the House of Lords the alternative of its recognition 1 The Whigs were not, probably, the Radicals. O'Connell, without doubt, had very good reasons tor pinning the Government to this, and foresaw all the consequences of the compact by which he bound them. 1835] THE WHIGS' TITHE BILL. 427 (knowing that they cannot in sincerity, honor, or conscience, recognize it) or that of an irreparable injury to the Irish Church, which it is the grand object of the Lords to uphold. But the question must not be considered as one merely affect- ing the interests of the clergy of Ireland. If that were all, there might be no such great harm in these proceedings. Entertaining very strong (and as I think very sound) opinions with respect to the expediency cf dealing with its revenues, and for purposes ultimately to be effected which the}' cannot yet venture to avow, they might be justified, or think them- selves justified, in coping with the difficulties which embarrass this question in the best mode that is open to them, and deem it better that the Irish clergy should suffer the temporary pri- vations they undergo than that the final settlement of the ecclesiastical question should be indefinitely postponed. But they do not pretend to be actuated by any such considera- tions ; their declared object is to restore peace to Ireland, to terminate the Tithe quarrel, to raise the Protestant clergy from their fallen state, and to assert the authority of the law by taking away the inducements which now exist for setting the law at defiance. Those who undertake to govern the country are above all things bound to see that the laws are obeyed, and they do not deserve the name of a Government if they submit to, much less if they connive at, a permanent state of anarchy in any part of the country. They know that the law in Ireland is a dead letter, that neither to statute nor com- mon law do the lower orders of Irish Catholics (the bulk of the nation) pay the slightest obedience, and that they are countenanced and urged on in their disobedience by those agi- tators with whom the Government act in political fellowship, and in deference to whom their measures have been shaped. Granting that after the adoption of the resolution by the House of Commons they were bound to insert it in their Bill, what justification is there for their refusal to receive the Bill back from the Lords with no other alteration than the omission of the appropriation clause ? In so refusing they destroy their own measure; they publish to the world that it is the prin- ciple of appropriation, and not the Tithe composition, that they really care for; and in thus strangling their own Bill, because they cannot tack that principle on to it, they make themselves accomplices of the outrages and violence which are perpetrated in the Tithe warfare, and abettors of the regular and systematic violation of the law. The King's Government 428 REIGN OF WILLIAM IV. [CHAP. XXIX. exhibits itself in a conspiracy with Catholic agitators and Protestant republicans against the clergy of the Established Church and against the laws of the land. If they are sincere in their own statements and declarations they must of ne- cessity deem 110 object commensurate with this in point of urgency and importance ; and what is the object to which this is postponed? That of maintaining their own consistency; because they turned the late Government out on this question they must now adhere to it with desperate tenacity ; their in- terests as a party demand that they should ; O'Cormell and the Radicals will not forgive them if they give it up. They might if they would declare their unchanged opinion in favor of the principle of appropriation, and their determination to press the adoption of it at all times and by all means, and never to desist till they had accomplished its recognition, but at the same time announce that the perilous state of Ireland the magnitude of the evil resulting from the Tithe system would not allow them to reject the Tithe Bill though denuded of the appropriation clauses, as all the rest of its provisions (all those by which the Tithe system was to be determined) had been passed by the Lords. I cannot conceive how a con- scientious Minister can take upon himself the responsibility of quashing this measure, and contentedly look forward to the probability almost certainty of a fresh course of outrage and disorder, and a new catalogue of miseries and privations, which he all the time believes it is in his power to avert. But these Ministers think that they could not avert these evils (by accepting the Bill) without giving umbrage to their task- masters and allies, and they do not scruple to sacrifice the mighty interests at stake in Ireland to the paltry and epheme- ral interests of their party interests which cannot outlive the present hour and party, which the slightest change in the political atmosphere may sweep away in an instant. There is also another reason by which they are determined : they can- not face the accusation of inconsistency the question that would be put, Why did you turn out Peel's Government ? You turned him out on this very principle which you are now ready to abandon. There is no doubt that this question would be put with a very triumphant air by their opponents, but they might easily answer it, without admitting in so many words what everybody well knows without any admission that the resolution was brought forward for the express pur- pose of turning Peel out. They might say that they moved 1635.] ALTERCATION IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS. 439 that resolution because it is a principle that they wished to es- tablish, and that they still think ought to be established ; that Peel's resignation on that particular question was of his own choice, and that if they are not irrevocably bound by the resolution itself, they are not the more bound by that circum- stance ; that they sent the Bill to the House of Lords in what they consider the best form, but that after the Lords had agreed to the whole measure, with the exception of the ap- propriation clauses, it was their duty to take the matter again into their serious consideration, and to determine whether it was on the whole more advantageous to Ireland and to the Empire that the Bill should be rejected (with all the conse- quences of its rejection apparent) or that it should be passed without these clauses. There was no necessity for their abandonment of any opinion or principle, nor any obstacle to the appropriation clauses being brought forward again and again in a substantive independent shape. Besides this it is not pretended that these clauses were to produce any im- mediate, perhaps not even any remote, effect, and they not only acknowledge that the state of Ireland calls for an imme- diate remedy, but they assert that unless the remedy is ap- plied without loss of time it will come too late ; that the Tithe Bill which this year would accomplish its object, will in all probability next year be wholly inoperative. To my mind this reasoning is so conclusive that I can come to no other than the harsh judgment which I have passed upon their con- duct, and I think I have made good my charges against both \Vhi6, 4'J7; es- timates for, 511 ; disputes over the arrange- ments for, 516. Cottenham, Lord, Lord High Chancellor, ii. 450. Cotton, Sir Willoughby, suppresses the in- surrection in Jamaica, ii. 05 ; on affairs in Jamaica, 166. Council, Clerk of the, Mr. Greville sworn in, i. 87; after the accession of William IV., 867; Lord Grey's Administration sworn in, 417; for the proclamation against riot- ers, 418; recorder's report in, 428; clerks of the, 430; scene at Council for a new Great Seal, 517. Council, Privy; suttee case-before the, ii. 104; embargo on Dutch ships, 136 ; meet- ing of the, on the London University peti- tion, 23S ; counter-petition of Oxford and Cambridge, ib. Council, Cabinet: the first of Lord Mel- bourne's Administration, ii. 272 ; the first of Sir Robert Peel's Administration, 819. Covcnt Garden Theatrical Fund Dinner, i. 174. Coventry, glove-trade, il. 83. Cowley, Abraham, lines from "Ode to Soli- tude," ii. 73. Cowpor, Earl, at Panshanger, ii. 87. Cowper, Countess, at Panshanger, ii. 86. Cowper, William, Life of, by Southey, il. 2S5. Cradock, Colonel, sent, to Charles X., i. 3S8. Crampton, Sir Philip, Irish story, 1. 206. Craven, Earl of, disperses a mob, 1. 422; on the proposed new Peers, Ii. 89. Craven, General, the Hon. Berkeley, suicldo of, ii. 469. Crawford, William, member for the City of London, ii. 321. Creevey, Mr., i. 199. Croker, Right Hon. John Wilson, edition of "Boswefi's Life of Johnson," i. 446; re- views lost, 447. Cumberland. II. R. II. the Duke of, opposi- tion to Catholic Relief Bill, i. 152; in- trigues at Court, 188; insults Lsdy l.yn.l- hurst, ib., 189; quarrel with Lord Lynd- hurst, 190 ; disputes concerning the office of "Gold Stick/' 860, 874. Cumberland, H. R. H. the Dnchess of, I. 2. Cuvier, Baron, death of, ii. 10J. DALBERO, Duke de, letter ca European affairs, i. 898. Dawson, Right Hon. Georco Robert, speech on Catholic Km.-inoipation, i- 117, 170; sworn in a Privy Councilor, 418. Do Cazos. l)uk<\ 'flivorito of Louis XVIII., 526 INDEX. it. 102 ; Embassador to the Court of St. James, 108. Dedel M., Dutch Minister at the Court of St. James, ii. 197. Denbigh, Karl of, Chamberlain to Queen Adelaide, ii. 184; sworn in Privy Coun- cilor, 143. Penman, Lord, correspondence with the King, i. 133 : sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 128 ; Lord Chief-Justice, 124 ; qualities of, 125; meeting of, with Lord Brougham, in Bedfordshire, 230 ; raised to the Peer- age, 2:33. Derby Dilly, the, ii. 372, 874, S87. De Eos, Lord, in Rome, i. 813. Do Eos, Colonel, the Hon. Arthur John Hill, death of, i. 6S; character of, C9. Dickenson, Captain, trial of, by court-mar- tial, i. kCO. Diebitsch, Marshal, death of, from cholera, i. 488. Dino, Due de, arrest of the, i. 21C. Dino, Duchesse de, i. 404 ; on the state of France, 523. Discontent throughout the country, i. 448. Disraeli, Benjamin, projects for "sitting in Parliament, ii. 815. Dissenters' Marriage Bill, li. 848, 63. For debates on, see Commons, House of. Dorsetshire election, 1831, ii. 14, 10; crime in, 236. Dover, Lord, resigns the Woods and For- ests, i, 449 ; created a Peer, 484 ; death of, ii. 172; character of, il.; Life of Freder- ick II., 174; book on the Man in the Iron Mask. ib. Down, deanery of, ii. 230. Drax vs. Grosvenor, case of, ii. 22 ; lunacy case, 157; decision on, 162; final meeting on, 164. Drummond, Henry, mission to the Arch- bishop of York, ii. 455. Dublin Police BUI, ii. 455. Dudley, Earl of, Secretary of State for For- eign Affairs, i. 80, 105 ; dinner to Marshal Marmont, 89 ; eccentricity of, ii. 73, 74. "Duke of Milan, 1 '' quotation from the, i. 160. Dulcken, Madam, performs before the Judi- cial Committee, ii. 448. Duncannon, Viscount, ii. 259 ; called to the House of Lords, and Secretary of State, 263; sworn in, 2C6; Home Secretary, 267; on O'Connell, 270; at a fire in Edward Street, ib. : on the state of affairs, 338 ; Commissioner of Woods and Forests un- der Lord Melbourne, 890. I'uneombe, Hon Thomas Slingsby, maiden speech of, i. 108 ; petition from Barnet, ii. 50; guilty of libel, 177; at Hillingdon, 27o. Durham, Earl of, quarrel with Lady Jersey, i. 458; influence over Lord Grey, ii. 81: attack on Lord Grey at a Cabinet dinner, 84 ; rudeness of, 71 ; return from Eus- sia, 126 ; violence of, ib. ; created an earL 158. Dwarrla, Sir Fartnnatus, dinner at tho hocso of. U. W3. EAST. Sir E. Hyde, sworn in Privy Coun- cilor, i. 489. Eboli, Duchesse d', ball at Naples, i. 285. Ebrington, Viscount, moves a vote of confi- dence in the Government, ii. 13, 15. Ebury, Lord, sworn in a Privy Councilor, 1. 422. Egremont, Earl of, nt Petworth, ii. 159; wealth of, 130 ; hospitality to the poor, 24^. Eldon, Earl of, audience of King George IV., 1. 167 ; speech at Apsley House, ii. 10 ; ca- reer of, 164; tribute to, 206. Election, General, in 1880, i. 873, 887 ; In 1831, 475, 477, 478, 480; In 1832, ii. 128; in 1835, 828, 832, 884, 885; results of, 337; in the counties, 840 ; result. 342. Eliot, Lord, return of, from Spain, ii. 392 ; conversation with Louis Philippe, ib. Ellenborough, Earl of, Lord Privy Seal, 1. 105; letter to Sir John Malcolm, 231; on "West India affairs, ii. 141 ; on Egypt, 142 : speech on admission of Dissenters to the University, 232. Ellesmere, Earl of, Irish Secretary, i. 124. Ellice, Eight Hon. Edward, ii. 259; and tho Colchester election, 206 ; Secretary for Wai 1 , 267 ; in Paris, 493. Elliot, Frederic, letter from Canada, ii. 448. Epsom races, 1831, i. 479 ; in 1633, ii. 160. Erskine, Eight Hon. Thomas, sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 82; Chief Judge in Bankruptcy, ib. Escars, Duchesse d\ at a party given by the Duke of Wellington, i. 182. Este, Sir Augustus d', behavior of, i. 522. Esterhazy, Prince Paul, conversation with, i. 890; on Belgian affairs, 517; on the stato of England, ii. 196; on affairs in Europe, 487; conversation with, 490. Europe, state of, i. 434 ; in 1831, 516; in 1836, ii. 437. Evans, General de Lacy, ii. 498; reported death of, 477. Evans, the incendiary, arrest of, i. 416. Exeter, Bishop of, correspondence with Lord Melbourne, i. 489; interview with Lord Grey,ii. 16; talents of, 86; ambition of, 88. FALCK. Baron, i. 369, 390. Ferdinand, Emperor, of Austria, ii. 490. Fergusson, Eight Hon. Cutlar, Judge Advo- cate, ii. 251. Ferrara, i. 845. Fieschi, conspiracy, it. 415. Fingall, Earl of, created a Baron of the Uni- ted Kingdom, i. 484. Finsbury election, 1834, Radical returned, 11. 255. Fitzclarence, Colonel George, see Munster, Earl of. Fitzclarence, Lord Frederick, resigns appoint- ment at the Tower, ii. 150. Fitzclarence, Lord Adolphus, picture of, i. 509. Fitzclarence, Lord Augustus, at Ascot, i. 482 ; picture of, 506. FitzcJarence, Lady Augusta, marriage of; il. 481. INDEX. 527 Fitzgerald. Right Hon. Vesey, i. 127. FiUherbert, Mrs., death of, ii. SOS; docu- ments of 509. Flabault Madame de, anecdotes of Princess Charlotte, ii. 115: union of, in Paris, 490. Fleury, Cardinal ii. ]38. Florence, i. 254; sights of. 25; society at, i.57: sculpture, ^55, 2i>6; pictures, 257; Grand Duke, ib. Foley, Lord, sworn in a Privy Councilor, 1. 4.5 ; Lord-Lieutenant of Worcestershire, ib. ; at St. James's, ii. 95. Fonblanque, Albany, ii. 4G3. Forester, Right Hon. Colonel Cecil, resigns his appointment as Groom of the Bedcham- ber, i. 457. Forfar election, 1S85, ii. 89. Fox. Mrs. Lane, accompanies the Prince of Orange to Gravesend, i. 470 ; receives the Cabinet Ministers, ii. 290. Fox, Eight Hon. Charles James, described by "I aUcyrand. ii. 136. Fox, W. J., Unitarian minister, sermon, ii. 2v>6. France, state of affairs in. i. 241 ; appearance of the country, 244; impending crisis in 1S30, 313; events in 1830,371; revolution, 872 ; Duke of Orleans ascends the throne, H79 ; political prospects, ib. ; reconstruc- tion of the Constitution, 3SO ; army ordered to Belgium, 508; army in Belgium, 511; seizure of Portuguese ships, 513 ; republi- can tendencies of, 516; state of the coun- try. 1831, 23; weakness of the Govern- ment of Louis Philippe, ii. 117; dispute v,-ith America, 446 ; state of the country, 406 Francis. Sir Philip, handwriting of, i. 199. Franklin, Benjamin, i. 514. Franz Joseph, Archduke, ii. 490. Frascati, convent at, i. 251' ; dinner at, ib. ; visit to, 882. p ALLATIN, Albert, i. 213. UT Gambler. Lord, proxy of. ii. 85. Garrick, David, anecdotes of, ii. 112. Cell, Sir William, at Borne, i. 816, 819. Geneva, i. 854. Genoa, i. '24S; palaces, 249, 261; churches, 250; tomb of Andrew Doria, 251. George 111., death of. i. 20; will 54; jewels and property, 55 ; dislike of the Duke of Richmond, ii. 2SO. George IV., illness of, i. 20; nt the Pavilion. 41; interview with, 77; health and habits of. 121 ; violent dislike to tho Catholic Ee- lief BIU. 180, 153; character of, 131; per- sonal habits of. 160; interview with the Lord Chancellor, the Duke of Wellington, and Sir Eobert Peel, 171 ; health of, 175; racing interests of. 180 ; anecdotes concern- ing, 1S4; eyesight affected, IDS, 201; cour- age of, 20l"; conduct in reference to Mr. Denman, 218; illness of, 818: death of, 855; funeral of, 8J.9; sale of wardrobe, 876 ; details of Ust LbMU, 8S2 ; anecdotes concerning, 513. Gerard, Marshal, reported resignation of, L 804; ordered to Belgium. 503. Gibson, John. R. A., at Rome, i. 826. Gladstone. William Ewart, West India Com- mittee, ii. 410. "Glenfinlas" performed nt Bridgewater House, ii. 472, 473. Glengall, Earl of, comedy by the, i. 212. GlengaU, Countess of. i. 428. Glenelg, Lord, President of the Board of Trade, i. 105; Board of Control, 412. U. 267 ; Colonial Secretary in Lord Mel- bourne's second Administration, 890 ; and the King, 407. Gloucester. II. K. H., the Duke of, i. 862. Goderich, Viscount, Small Notes Bill, 1. CO; Secretary of State for Colonial Affairs ana War, SO; sent for by the King, 90; scene at Windsor, 91 ; Administration of, formed, ib.; resignation of, 97; returns to office, 9S; Ministry dissolved, 101 ; Colonial Sec- retary. 412 ; Lord Privy Seal ii. 154 ; cre- ated an earl, 155 ; invested with the Order of the Garter, ib. Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von, death of, ii. 104. Goodwood, i. 512 ; in 1888. ii. ISC. Gorhambury, party at, i. 517. u Goriot, Le Pure. 1 ' ii. 498. Gonlburn. Right Hon. Henry, Chancellor of the Exchequer, i. 1(J5. Graham, Right Hon. Sir James, First Lord of the Admiralty, i. 412; elevation of, 433; remarks on, 434; resignation of, ii. 2-15; declines to join the Peel Administration, 821; conservative spirit of, 8S3; on the crisis of 1 885, ib. ; joins the Opposition, 404. Grange, The, attacked by a motv, i. 414. Grant, Right Hon. Charles, see Glenelg. Lord. Granville, Earl, Embassador in Paris, 11. 499. Grnnvillc, Countess, i. 91; quarrel with M. Thiers, ii. 494. Greece, policy of the English Government toward. L 217. Greenwich, dinner at, ii. 170. Grenviile, Thomas, conduct during the riots of 1780, ii. 281. Gresley, Sir Roger, quarrel with Lord II. Ben- ttnck, i. 488. Greville, Charles, sen., death of, U. 114. Greville, Mrs., "Ode to Indifference," ii. 114. Greville, Algernon, private secretary to the Duke of Wellington, ii. 809. Grey, Earl, hostility to the Government i. 85; forms an Administration, 1880, 411, 418; First Lord of the Treasury, 413; at dinner at Lord Sefton's, 415; nepotism of, 422 ; character of, 481 ; relations with Lord Lyndhurst, ib. ; lays the Reform Bill be- fore the King. 499 ; weakness of Govern- ment In the House of Commons, 455; re- marks on Administration of, 478 ; invested with the Order of the Garter. 481 ; at din- ner at Hanbfry's Brewery, 488 ; attacked on his foreign policy, 50s ; on Belgian f- folrs, ib. ; attacked by Lord Durham, it 84 ; proposed new Peers, 87 : altered con- duct of, 89 ; roluctnnco to make new Peers, ."2 ; oinTprsitloB with, f4 : Interrlew wttb 528 INDEX. Lord Harrowby and Lord Wharncliffe, 62 ; minute of compromise with Lord Harrow- by and Lord Wharncliffe, C3; speech on Ancona, 71 ; speech at the close of the lie- form debate, 87; continued efforts for a compromise. 90 ; Government defeated in committee, 92; resignation of Administra- tion of, 92; resumes office with his col- leagues, 97 ; remarks on the members of the Administration of, 117; embarrass- ment of Government, 157; instance of readiness of, 178; on Portuguese affairs, 187 ; compared with the Duke of Welling- ton, 232; changes in the Administration of, 245, 247, 248; situation of, in the crisis of 1834, 243 ; letter to Lord Ebrinjrton, ib. ; weakness of the Government, 253; resig- nation of, 2 1>1 ; refuses the Privy Seal, 266 ; desires to retire, 276 ; dinner to, at Edin- burgh, 286; events subsequent to retire- ment of, 294 ; intrigue, ib. ; conservative spirit of, 3S3; audience of the King, 885; dissatisfaction of, 471. Grey, Sir Charles, Governor of Jamaica, sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 403. Grote, George, returned for the City of London, ii. 381. Guizot, Monsieur, reported resignation of, i. 394 ; eminence of, ii. 494. Gully, Mr., account of, ii. 123; returned for Pontefract, 129. Gunpowder Plot, papers relating to, i. 136. TTADDINGTOX, Earl of, Lord-Lieutenant II of Ireland, ii. 325. Ualford, Sir Henry, report on the cholera, i. 473. Hampden, Dr., Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford, ii. 401, 402. Hanbury's Brewery, dinner at, i. 483. Happiness, reflections on, ii. 421. Hardinge, Eight Hon. Sir Henry, on the prospects of the Tory Government, ii. 313; on the King and Lord Melbourne, 314. llarrowby, Earl of, Lord President, i. 80; speech on Eeform, ii. 17 ; interview with Lord Grey, 33 ; circular to the Peers, 47, 52; interview with Lord Grey, 62; dis- cussions on letter of, 65 ; letter shown to Lord Grey, 67; the Times on the letter of, ib. ; patriotic conduct of, 76 ; declines to vote on Schedule A, 31 ; character of, 214; subscription to election expenses, 326. Harrowby, Countess of, ii. 214. Hart well, visit to, ii. 187. Harvey, Whittle, committee, ii. 266; speech of, at Southwark, 332. Harwich election, 1835, ii. 330. Health, formation of a board of, i. 488. Henry II., King, and Thomas a Becket, ii. 2 SI. Henry VIII., King, coffin of, found at Wind- sor, i. 499. Heroert Sydney, Secretary to the Board of Control, ii. 336. Herculaneum, i. 297. "HernanV'i. 4SS. Herries, Eight Hon. John Charles, scene at Council, i. 91 ; discussions on appointment of. 93; ill-will of, toward his colleagues, 102 ; Master of the Mint, 105. Hertford, Marchioness of, funeral of, ii. 238. Hess, Captain, ii. 115, US. Heurteloup, Baron, before the Judicial Com- mittee, ii. 454. Heythrop, riot at, i. 421. Hill, Mr., Irish members' squabble, ii. 217. Hobhouse, Eight Hon. Sir John Cam, speech on the Eeform Bill, i. 461 ; Secretary of War, ii. 48; resigns Irish Secretaryship and seat for Westminister, 156; on the state of affairs, 337 ; Board of Control, in Lord Melbourne's second Administration, 839. Holland, the King of, invades Belgium, i. 50(5; state of. ii. 12; conduct of the King of, 110; the King refuses to give up Ant- werp, 116, 123 ; obstinacy of the King, 119 ; bankrupt condition of, 197. Holland, Lord, at Panshanger, i. 395; Duchy of Lancaster, ii. 267; anecdotes related by, 282 ; on Eeform, 2S5 ; on Mr. Canning, ib. ; anecdotes, 457 ; on Mr. Fox, ib. ; con- tempt for the Tory party, 458. Holland, Lady, fancies of, ii. 125 ; and Spen- cer Perceval, 43. Holland House, dinner at, ii.20; conversa- tion at, 112; Allen and Macaulay, 113; sketch of, 125 ; conversation at, 27S, 230 ; literary criticisms, 282 ; Lord Melbourne's conversation, ib. ; dinner at, 283 ; news of the fall of Lord Melbourne's Administra- tion, 295 ; party spirit at, 335. Holmes boroughs, i. 476. Hook, Theodore, improvisation of, ii. 272, 839; singing of, 339. Home, Sir William, Attorney-General, ii. 127 ; and Lord Brougham, 227. Hortense, Queen, at Frascati, i. 259. Horton, Wilmot, lectures at the Mechanics' Institute, i. 439. Howe, Earl, dismissal o ii. 14; Queen's Chamberlain, 115; and Queen Adelaide, 125; correspondence about the Chamber- lainship, 132. Howick, Viscount, Under-Secretary, i. 422; in office, ii. 883; civility of the King to, 889 ; Secretary of War, ib. ; acrimony of, 437 ; interview with Spencer Perceval, 453 ; on the position of parties, 478. Hudson, Sir James, page of honor, ii. 132. Hume, John Deacon, Assistant-Secretary to the Board of Trade, i. 189, 393. Hume, Joseph, extreme Eadical views of, ii. 150 ; speech on the Orangemen, 464 ; depu- tation to Lord Melbourne, 475. Hunchback, The, ii. 85. Hunt, Henry, speech of, i. 451; speech of, against the Eeform Bill, 470. Huskisson, Eight Hon. William, President of the Board of Trade, i. 80 ; dispute in the Cabinet, 101; joins the new Government, 103; Colonial Secretary, 105; resignation of, 111 ; Lord Melbourne's opinion of, Si)5; death of, 396; character of, 3'J7; funeral of; 899. INDEX. 529 THCENDIABI8M in the country, i, 42S. 1 Ireland, trials in, i. 203 ; dissatisfaction In, 421 ; unpopularity of Government changes in,432; state of, 462, 403; education in, U.C9, 73 ; tithes, 107 ; Church difficulties in, 118. Irish Church, abuses in, ii. 177; the Irish Church Bill dangerous to the Government, 244; differences in the Cabinet, 240; diffi- culties of the Irish Church question, 376, S-M ; opinions of Lord Melbourne on the, 401. For debates on the Irish Church Bill, see Lords, House of, and Commons, House of. Irish Tithe Bill, thrown out, ii. 270 ; divisions on the, 3*2 ; conduct of the Government, 425 ; difficulties of, 472, 473 ; abandonment of the Appropriation Clause, 474. Irving, Edward, service in chapel, ii. 204; the unknown tongues, ib. ; sermon of, 205 ; Interview with Lord Melbourne, 230. Irving, Washington, 1. 211. I stria, Uuchesse d', beauty of, ii. 496. TACQUEMONTS Letters, ii. 2C8. tl Jamaica, insurrection in, ii. 65; Mr. Greville, Secretary of the Island of, 140 ; petition to the King, 143 ; affairs of, ib. ; anecdote of a slave, 148; opinion of Sir Willoughby Cotton, 166; office of Secretary to the Island of, threatened, 393, 400, 406 ; secured, 410. Jebb. Judge, charge of, at O'Connell's trial i. 449. Jeffrey, Lord, and Professor Leslie, II. 207. Jersey, Countess of, character of, i. 11 ; party at the house of, 410 ; quarrel with Lord Durham, 458; correspondence with Lord Brougham, 463. Jockey Club, dinner given by the King to the, 1S23, i. 118; in 1829, 179. John Hull, the newspaper, i. 433. Johnson, Dr.. anecdotes of, ii. 112. Johnstone, Right Hon. Sir Alexander, sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 192, 195; at the Judicial Committee, 277. Jones Loyd, Mr., ii. 831. Jones, "Radical," interview with Lord Wharncliffo, ii. 12. Judicial Committee of the Priw Council, Bill for the establishment of the, Ii. 188; meet- ing to make regulations for the, 199 ; first Bitting of the, 202 ; working of the, 845. KELLY, Mrs, adventures of her daughter, i 322, 326; case before the Privy Coun- cil, ii. 3II.S, 394, 898 ; judgment, 406. Ecmble, Charles, and his family, ii. 898. Kcmble, Miss Fanny, i. L'lU. 467 ; tragedy by, ii. 7-J : in the Hunrlibark," 85. Kempt, Right Hon. Sir James, Master-Gen- eral of the Ordnance, sworn in a Privy Councilor, i. 423. Kent, H. R. H. the Duchess of, disputes in the Koval Family, i. 519; and the Duke of Wellington, ib. ; the Regency Bill, 620 ; salutes to, ii. 72; at Burghley, 520; quiir- rels with the King, 4S1 ; scene at Windsor, 45 , ib. ; answer to the address of the City of London, 511 ; squabble with the King, 51 2. Kenyon, Lord, speech at Apsley House, IL 9. Kinnaird, Lord, created a Baron of the Uni- ted Kingdom, i. 4<>. Klopstock, Friedrich Gottlieb, anecdote of. 11. 281. Knatehbull, Right Hon. Sir Edward, joins the Peel Government, ii. 320, 822 ; attack on, 364. Knighton, Sir William, i. 61 ; influence with the King, 83, 122; behavior of, during the King's illness, 504. T AFAYETTE, Marquis de, resignation of, lj i. 440. La Ferronavs, M. de, French Embassador at Rome, I. 261 ; on the accession of the Em- peror Nicholas, 817; on French politics, 818; civility of, 824, on French affairs, 335, 337. La Granja, revolution of, 11. 482 ; " Lalla Rookh, ' at Bridgewater House, ii. 47 1 . Lamb, Sir Frederick, i. 436 ; reported letter to the King of France from the Duke of Wellington, it). Lambeth Palace, restoration of, i. 3S5. Lancashire election, 1835, ii. 340. Langdale, Lord, reply to Lord Brougham, ii. 239; declines the Solicitor-Generalship, 291 ; peerage, 450; Master of the Rolls, il. Lansdowne. Marquis of, Secretary of State for the Home Department, i. fcO ; Lord President, 412; dinner to name the sher- iffs, 449; on the Reform Bill, 468; and Lord Brougham, ii. 158; Lord President in both of the Administrations of Lord Melbourne, 267. 8-l. La Ronciere, case of, il. 344. Laval, M. de, at Apsley House, i. 363. Law, Hlstorv of English, ii. 2B8. Lawrence, Sir Thomas, early genius of, I. 21 S; death of, 224; character of, ib. ; funeral of, 223 ; engagement of, to the Misses Siddons, il. 218. Leach, Right Hon. Sir John, disappointed of the Woolsack, i. 414 ; in the case of Drax r. Grosvenor.il. 164. Ldirli. Colonel George, i. 518. I.i-iii>t-T, Duke of, sworn in a Privy Coun- cilor, i. 4-11. Leltrim, Earl of, created a Baron of tho United Kini'doni. i.484. Le Marchant,l>enis, at Stoko. ii. l-s Lemon. Robert, F. 8. A.. Deputy Keeper of the State Papers, il. 207. Lcnnard, John Barrrtt. rhiof Clerk of tho Privy Coiinrit Office, ii. 153. Leopold, King, i. 19 ; desires to ascend tho throne of Greece, 225; anxiety to the throne of Belgium. 1-7: a>-. , j>t< th throne of Belgium, 4'.rj : .tarts i. glum, 499 ; proposes to the Princess Louise of France, ^b.; In Belgium, 507; want of iviiiiWcnco In. ib. f cold reception of, nt Windsor, ii. l-i'. Lctic hteiibcrg. Duke of, at Havre, il. 199 530 INDEX. marriage of, ib. ; letter to Lord Palmcr- ston, 1% ; arrival of, 381. Leveson, Loi-d Francis, see Ellesmere, Earl of. Levee, ii. 852. Lewis, Matthew Gregory ("Monk" Lewis), journals and voyages to the West Indies, ii. 1(>8; anecdote of, 170; agreement with Mr Murray for the Journal. 176. I.ichfield Earl of, at Eunton, ii. 213. Lichfield Cathedral ii. 449. Lieven, Prince, recalled, ii. 244. Lieven, Princess, character of, i. 18; attacks Lord Grey, ii. 64; on the Belgian ques- tion, 6S ; conversation with, 117; renews her friendship with the Duke of Welling- ton, 119; grievances of, 142; interference of, 147; diplomatic difficulties, 14C ; recep- tion of, at St. Petersburg, 189 ; position of, in Paris, 493. Littleton, Eight Hon. Edward, i. 9 ; proposed by Lord Althorp as Speaker, ii. 126; Sec- retary for Ireland, 159 ; and O'Connell, 255 ; instrumental in breaking up the Government, 257 ; political career of, 25S ; letter to Lord Wellesley, 258, 2C4; in com- munication with O'Connell, 253, 264; Irish Secretary, 267. Liverpool, Earl of, and the King, i. 22 ; para- lytic seizure, 76; transactions before the close of Administration of, 503. Liverpool, opening of the railroad, i. 393, 335 ; bribery at election, 423. Lobau, Marshal, Commandant - Gdne'raL i. 440. Lodge, the Royal, entertainments at, i. 83. London, speech of Bishop of, ii. 504 ; Uni- versity Charter, 23S, 239, 873 ; meeting of Committee of Council on, 894, 3'J5. Londonderry. Marquis of, death of, i. 43; character of, 44 ; funeral of, 55. Londonderry, Marquis of, motion on Bel- gium, i. 509; attacks Lord Plunket, ii. 63 ; debate on appointment of, to St. Pe- tersburg, 364; opinion of the Duke of Wellington, 365 : speech of, 366 ; resigna- tion of, 867. Long, St. John, trial of, i. 428. Lords, House of, debate of Royal Dukes, i. 149; debate on Catholic Belief Bill, 168; division on Catholic Eelief Bill, ib.; debate of affairs in Portugal. 236 ; debate on the Methuen Treaty, 457 ; speech of Lord Brougham, ib. ; violent scene in the, 472 ; debate on Lord Londonderry's motion, 509; prospects of the Eeform Bill, 522; First Eeforin Bill thrown out. ii. 14; attack on the Bishops, 16; new Peers, 87; measures for carrying the second reading of the Second Eeform Bill, 42, 43 ; division on the Belgian question, 45 ; Eeform Bill, 72 ; Irish education, ib. ; debates on second reading of the Eeform Bill, 74. 86 ; list of proposed new Peers, 83; Eeform Bill carried, 86 ; in Committee on the Ee- form Bill, 90; debate on conduct of the Tory party, 100; Eusso-Dutch Loan, 111 ; Government beaten on Portuguese ques- tion, 168; powerlcssness of, ib. ; Local Courts Bill, 163, 169 ; debate on Local Courts Bill. 175; Government defeated, ib.; Irish Church Bill, 176; Bill for the observance of the Sabbath, 241 ; debate on the Irish Church Bill, 250 ; Poor Law Bill, 267; debate on Irish Tithe Bill 270; con- duct of the House, 876; debate on Cor- poration Bill. 415.41s; position of the House. 417.419; Irish Tithe Bill t'irown up. 422; conflict with the House of Com- mons, ib. ; state of the House, 433; de- bate on Corporation Bill, 434, 471 ; hostility to the House of Commons, 477 ; conduct of the House, 478, 479. Louis XVIIL, King, memoirs of, ii. 102; favorites of, ib. ; at Hartwell, 137. Louis Philippe, King, accession of, i. 878; conduct of, 8SO ; tranquilizes Paris, 440 ; speech of, 500 ; averse to French attack on Antwerp, ii. 127 ; behavior of, to the Queen of Portugal, 197 ; power of, in the Cham- ber, 291 ; courage of, 415 ; conduct toward Spain, 445, 478, 482 ; at the Tuileries, 497; dislike to the Duke de Broglie. 500. Louise, H. E. H. Princess, daughter of King Louis Philippe, i. 499. Louis, Baron, reported resignation of, i. 394. Luckner, General, ii. 23. Lushington, Dr., speech of, in the appeal of Swift vs. Kelly, ii. 167. Lushington, Sir Henry, and " Monk " Lewis, ii. 171. Luttrell, Henry, character of, i. 9 ; " Advice to Julia," 28. Lyndhurst, Lord, Lord High Chancellor, i. 80. 105; quarrel with the Duke of Cum- berland, 18S ; dissatisfaction at Lord Brougham's being raised to the Woolsack, 414; reported appointment to be Lord Chief Baron, 432 ; opinion of the Govern- ment, 486 ; Lord Chief Baron. 447 ; politi- cal position of. ib. ; anecdote of a trial, ib.; retort to the Duke of Eichmond, 475 ; on the Government, 479 ; on Sir Eobert Peel, ib. ; on Lord Brougham, ib. ; sent for by the King, ii. 92 ; efforts to form a Tory Government, 120 ; judgment in Small vs. Attwood, 124 ; account of the efforts of the Tory party to form a Government, 138 ; forgets the message of the King to Lord Grey, 211; account of transactions between the King and Lord Melbourne, 29*; policy of, 299; on Lord Brougham, 300; Lord High Chancellor, 803 ; on the Administra- tion of Sir Eobert Peel, 322 ; conduct on the Corporation Bill, 415, 420 ; on the pros- pects of the session, 454 ; on the business of the House of Lords, 455; speech in vindication of conduct, 480; in Paris, 493 ; insult offered to, in House of Commons, 502; capacity of, 503; violent speech of, 542. Lyndhurst, Lady, insulted by the Duke of Cumberland, i. 188 ; conversation with, 436. Lynn Regis election, ii. 316, 817, 320, 826. Lyons, riots at, ii. 28. INDEX. 531 MACAO, verses on, i. 9. 10. M:ic:iul:iy. Thoinna Babington, speech- es on the Reform Bill, i. 40 L; ii. 11 ; elo- quence of, 15; at Holland House, 00; ap- pearance of. 51 ; character of, 115; on the Coercion Bill, 152; conversation of, 199; memory of, 458; eloquence of, compared to Lord Brougham, 46U ; inscription on monument erected in honor of Lord Wil- liam Bentinclc, ib. Macaulay. Zachary, ii. 453. Mackintosh, Right Hon. Sir James, speech of, on criminal laws, i. IT; conversation of, 205: death of, Ii. 104; "History of Eng- land," 2S9; remarks on life of, 421, 439; compared with Burke, 440 ; life of, 441 ; abilities of, ib. ; religious belief of, 447. Maggiore, Lago, i. 808. Maidstone, state of the borough, ii. 323. Maii. Monstenore, i. 812, 319. Malibran, Maria Felicita, in tho "Sonnam- bula," ii. 179. Mallet, conspiracy of, i. 515. Malt Tax, the, Government defeated on, ii. 156. Manners Button, Sir Charles, O. C. B., pro- posed as Premier, ii. 120 ; conduct of, 133 ; reappointed Speaker, 135; Knight of the Bath. 195; the Speakership, 345, see Can- terbury, Lord. Mansfield, Lord, speech against the Govern- ment, i. 472 ; audience of the King, 474 ; meeting of Peers, 487. Mansion House, the dinner at, ii. 323. Marengo. battle-field of, i. 247. Maria. Donna, Queen of Portugal, at a child's ball, i. 177; proposals of marriage for, ii. 196; at Windsor, ib. ; picture of, 337. Marie Ame"lie, Queen, ii. 497. Marmont, Marshal, at Lady GlengalPs, 1. :Wi; conversation with, ib. ; revolution of [880. ::s7; at Woohrtch, 389; dinner at Lord Dudley's, ib. Matteis, trial of, i. 286, 290. Matuscewitz. Russian Embassador Extraor- dinary, i. 135: on affairs in Europe. 506; conduct of, 119 ; conversation with. !;(.. Maule, Mr. Justice, at dinner at the Athe- naeum, i. 442. Meeting of moderate men, origin of the " Derby Dilly," ii. 853. Meiningen, chateau of, model of the, ii. 275 ; the Queen revisits the. 277. Melbourne, Viscount, Homo Secretary, 1. 412; efficiency of, in office, 482; negotia- tion!) with, 445: dissatisfaction of, ii. 60; on the proposed new Peers, 58; on the Reform Bill, 7^ ; on the members of Lord Grey's Administration, 117; sent for by the 'King, 2.Y7 ; forms an Administration, 202; letter to the Duke of Wellington. Sir Robert Peel, and Mr. Stanley, . ministration of, 207; anecdote of. -7 >; in- formation of. 281 ; literary conversation of, 2s2; on Benthamites, 2SS; theological reading of, ib.; fall of Government of, 292; dismissal of, 293: details of fall of Government, 296; account of dismissal, 203, 314; witlj the King, 310, 814; with hia colleagues, 810-312; dispute with Lord Duncannon, 312 ; speeches at Derby, 813; weakness of, ib.; second Adminis- tration formed, 837 ; composition of, 38J ; theological reading of. 447 ; appointment of Dr. Hampden, 463; action against, brought by the Hon. Mr. Norton. 4r,.i ; n- sult of the trial, 470 ; difficulties of the Government, 473. Melville, Viscount, President of tho India Board, i. 100. Mendizabal, ability of, ii. 445; dismissal of, 470. Messiah, the oratorio of the, performed in Westminster Abbey, ii. 258. Mcthuen, Paul, M. P., on supporting the Government, il. 226; retort of O'Connell to, ib. Metternieh. Princess, anecdote of, il. 380. Mexico, failure of the Spanish expedition against, i. 212. MeyneU, Mr., retires from the Lord Cham- berlain's department, i. 470. Mezzofantl, i. 848. Middlesex election, 1S3.5, 11. 839. Mlddleton, party at, i. 11. Miguel, Dom, ii. 108, 111, 117: attacks Opor to. 119; fleet captured bv Captain Napier, 177; anecdote of, 192; blunders of, -J4'J. Milan, i. 3.VJ. Mill. Joan Stuart, at breakfast given by Mr. Henry Taylor, i. 406. Milton, Viscount, at a meeting at Lord Al- thorp's, i. 4 J .4. Mirabeau, Count dc, Talleyrand's account of. ii. 170. Miraflores, Count dc. Spanish Embassador in London, ii. 25i: doubtful compliment to Madame do Laeven, ///. Mola di Gaeta, i. 305; Cicero's villa. 318. Mole. M., Prime Minister of France, ii. 494; abilities of, 495. Montalivet, case of tho French refugee, 11. 503. Monti, Vinccnzo. anecdote of, 1. 515. Moore, Thomas, i. 2'tt, 2ni; conversation of, 206; anecdotes, 210; Irish patriotism of, 4;W; opinions on Reform, 47ii; copy of "Lord Ed ward Fitzgerald," 500; satire on Dr. Bowring, il. 29 ; compared with Rog- ers, 447; nuarrcl with O'Connell, 466. Morning J/erald, the, moderate Tory or- gan, Ii. 71. Mornington, Countess of, death of. 1. 522. Morpeth, Viscount. Irish Secretary, 11. 833 ; speech on Irish Tithe Hill. io. M.-I.-V. Sir Oswald, meeting of moderate men. ii. -.:.-. Mulirrave, Earl of. in Jamaica, II. U2; re- fuses the omoo of Postmaster-General, 247; Lord Privy Seal, 267; capability of; Municipal Corporation Bill, ii. 396, 41 1. 11-, policy of Tory Peers on the. 4;:!; prov pecU of the, 422 : efforts of tho, 435, 136 ; the Bill carried, 436. Munster, Earl of, employed by the King, L 861; raised to the Peerage, 47S; Lieu ten- 532 INDEX. ant of the Tower, 500 ; sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 143. Murat, Achilla, i. 455. Murray, Dr., Kornan Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, i. 124. Murray, Sir George, Secretary of State for the Colonial Department, i. 305. Murray, Lady Augusta, marriage of, i. 522. Mnaard a ball, ii. 493. NAMIK Pasha, Turkish Embassador, ii. 181. Napier, Sir "William, on the state of the country, i. 44S ; " History of the Peninsu- lar War," ii. 402. Napier, Captain Charles, captures Dom Mi- fuel's fleet, ii. 17T ; cause of capture of a rench squadron, 178: anecdote of, 199. Naples, i. 288; sight-seeing at, 284; Court of Justice, ib. ; manuscripts, ib. ; cere- mony of taking the veil, 288; sights of, 294, 803 ; miracle of the blood of San Gen- naro, 301, 302, 310 ; excursions to Astroni, 304 ; lines on leaving, 307. Navarino, battle of, i. 96, 138. Nemours, H. K. H. Due de, accompanies King Louia Philippe, i. 440; nomination to the throne of Belgium declined, 441 ; in the House of Commons, ii. 432 ; at Don- caster, 440. Newmarket, political negotiations at, ii. 89. Nicholas, Emperor, accession of, i. 317 ; re- ception of strangers, ii. 190; on the change of Government in England, 351 ; speech at Warsaw, 413; dislike to King Louis Philippe, 501 ; qualities of, 4S8. " Norma," the opera of, ii. 171. North, Lord, Letters of George III. to, ii. 280 ; anecdote of, 283. Northamptonshire election, ii. 448. Northumberland, Duke of, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, i. 134. Northumberland, Duchess of, resigns her office of governess to Princess Victoria, ii. 512. Norton, Hon. Mr., action brought against Lord Melbourne, ii. 469 ; result of the trial, 470. OAKS, The. ii, 161 ; party at, ib. Oatlands, the residence of the Duke of York, i. 4 ; weekly parties at, 5, 7. O'Connell, Daniel, character of, i. 123; at dinner, 172; attempts to take his seat, 176; elected for Clare, 1829, 189; insult to, 421; in Ireland, 438; opposition to Lord Anglesey, 439 ; abilities of, 441 ; vio- lence of, 447 ; arrest of, 448 ; trial of, 449 ; position of, 441 ; pleads guilty, 453 ; oppo- sition to Lord Duncannon in Kilkenny, 454 ; explanation of, 461 : dread of cholera, ii. 105; member for Ireland, 142; violent speech at the Trades' Union, 150, 151 ; at- tack on Baron Smith, 220 ; retort to Mr. Methuen, 226; and the Coercion Bill, 258, 264 ; in correspondence with Mr. Littleton, ib.; union with the Whig party, 3"^; power of, 3SD ; affair with Lord Alvanloy. 390 ; in Scotland, 441 ; proposed expulsion from Brookes's club, 444 ; quarrel with Moore, 466 ; Carlo w election, 4o7. O'Connell, Morgan, duel with Lord Alvanley, ii. 390. Old Bailey, trials at, i. 173, 428. Opera House, the English, burnt, i. 235. Orange, Prince of, dinner to the, i. 40-1,' re- turns to Holland, 470. Orange. Princess of, robbery of jewels of, i. 227. Orange Lodge, association of, ii. 464. Orangemen, meeting of, ii. 275. Orleans, H. E. H. Duke of, arrival of, i. 177; sent to Lyons, ii. 28; in England, 160; project of marriage at Vienna, 488; ques- tion of marriage of, 500. Orloff, Count, arrival of, ii. 78 ; delay in rati- fication of the Belgian Treaty, 85. Osterlcy, party at, i. 516. PADUA, i. 350. Pfestum, i. 2S3. Palmella, Duke of, arrival of, in London, ii. 111. Palmerston, Viscount, speech on the Portu- guese question, i. 179; Foreign Secretary, 412; suggests a compromise on the Ke- form Bill, ii. 22 ; on proposed new Peers, 5S; on prospects of the Reform Bill, GO; business habits of, 187; unpopularity of, 218 ; speech on the Turkish question, 231 ; Foreign Secretary in Lord Melbourne's Administration, 267; unpopularity with the corps diplomatique, 286; loses his election in Hampshire, 339; as a man of business, 350; Foreign Secretary, 389; abilities of, 478. Panic, the, 1S25, i. 65; on the Stock Ex- change, 1830, 392. Panshanger, parties at, i. 395 ; ii. 30. Paris, society at, iu 1830, i. 240 ; in July, 355 ; Marshal Marmonfs account of events at, in 1830, 387; alarm felt in, 440; change of Ministry, 470; in 1837, ii. 493; society at, 493, 499 ; sight-seeing. 495, 497. Park, Judge, anecdotes of, i. 434; ii. 489. Parke, Bight Hon. Sir James, sworn in a Privy Councilor, ii. 187; Baron of the Ex- chequer, 230; in the ap'peal of Swift vs. Kelly, 400. Parliament, meeting of, 1830, i. 401 ; meeting of, 1831, 440; dissolution of, 1831, 473; opening of, 487 ; in 1831, ii. 32 ; dissolution of, 1832, 128; opening of, 1833, 142; proro- gation of, 1833, 193 ; opening of, 1834, 217; dissolution of, 827; temporary buildings for Houses of, 346; opening of, 358; in 1S36, 455 ; prorogation of, 1836, 479. Parnell, Sir Henry, turned out of office, ii. 48. Parsons, anecdotes of, i. 448. 1'askiewitch, Marshal, in quarantine, i. 405. Pattison. James, returned to Parliament for the City of London, ii. 331. Pavilion, The, dinner at, i. 41 ; completion of, 45. Pease, Mr., and O'Dwyer, ii. C20. INDEX. 533 Pedro, Dom, expedition of, ii. 109, 111 ; pro- posal to combine with Spain, 231 ; in pos- session of Portugal, 249. Peel, Eight Hon. Sir Robert. Home Secre- tary, i. 105; speeches on Catholic Relief Bill. 141. 155; Oxford University election, l <_".. 150; defeated, 151; political pros- pects of, 437. 438 ; power in the House of Commons, 455 ; speech on the Reform Bill, 401 ; inactivity of, on the Reform Bill, 40T, 470; complaints of policy of, 476; conduct of, 493 ; reserve of, 494, 504 ; excellence in debate, ii 11 ; answer to Lord Harrowby, 52. 53; policy of, 67; speech on Irish Tithes, 71 ; invited to form a Government, 92; refuses to take office, 95; defense of conduct, 101 ; conduct during the Tory efforts to form u Government, 122, 123; conduct compared with that of the Duke of Wellington, 122; character of, 144; on political unions, 179; in society, 199; posi- tion of, in the House of Commons, 224 ; collection of pictures, 229; great dinner given by, 232; speech on admission of Dissenters to the University, 234; policy of the Administration of, SOS ; friendship with the Duke of Wellington renewed, 313; arrival of, from the Continent, 319; formation of Administration, 322; mani- festo to the country, 323 ; prospects of the Ministry, ib. ; qualities of, 882 ; Toryism of Administration of, 336 ; false position of, 348; prospects of Government, 854, 872, 373 ; talents of, 362 ; conduct to his adher- ents, 367, 379; courage of, 413 ; impending resignation of, 378 ; Government defeated, 382 ; resignation of Administration of, 1835, 832, 8a3; speech on Corporation Reform, 396; on Irish Church Bill, 411; relations with Lord John Russell, 412 ; seclusion of, 425 ; speech on Corporation Reform, 430 ; consideration for Lord Stanley, 456 ; con- duct with regard to the Corporation Bill, 461 ; position of, 476 ; on the beginning of the new reign, 514. Peel, Sir Robert, sen., account of. 1. 463. }\ il. Ki>,'ht Hon. Jonathan, ii. 878. IVmberton, Thomas, il. 110; in the appeal of Swift vs. Kelly, 899, 403. Pembroke, Earl of, i. 212. Pension List, see Commons, House of. Pepys. Right Hon. Sir Christopher, Master of the Rolls, ii. 450. See Cottenham, Lord. Perceval, Spencer, discourse of. ii. 2o; th<- Unknown Tongue, ib. ; on the condition of the Church, 275; apostolic mission to the members of the Government, 458 ; at Holland House, ib.; apostolic mission of, 4i>o. Perier. Caslmir, momentary resignation of, i. 506; attacked by cholera, il. b7 ; death of, 104. Persian Embassador, the, quarrel of, with the Regent, i. Is. Perth election, 1835, ii. 839. Petworth House and pictures, 11. 12C ; fiHc at, 242. Peyronnet, Comte de, \. 885. Phillpotts, see Exeter, Bishop tt Pisa, i. 2.U Pitt, Right Hon. 'William, described by Tal- leyrand, il. 187 ; anecdotes of. 282. Plunkft, Lord. Lord Chancellor in Ireland, i. 432; anecdote of, 447; at Stoke, ii. las; Deanery of Down, 280. Poland, contest in, i. 491. Polignac, Prince Jules de, head of the Ad- ministration in France; Administration of, i. 885 ; behavior of, 8S1 ; letter to M. de Mole, 3S5; exasperation against, 889. Pompeii, i. 288; excavations at, 292. Ponsonby, Viscount, Minister at Xaples, i. 489; letters of, 503; conduct of. as Em- bassador at Constantinople, ii. 517. Pope, the, audience of Pius VIII.. i. 825; Irish appointments of the, ii. 401. See Rome. Portfolio, the, it 450. Portland, Duke of, Lord Privy Seal, !. SO. Portugal, ships seized by the French, i. 511, 513; affairs in, ii. 191/237; bankrupt state of, 249. Powell, Mr., 1. 401. Pozzo di Borgo, Count, il. 188 ; views of, on the state of Europe, 326; Russian Embas- sador in London, 348, 344. Praed, Winthrop Mackworth, first speech of, i. 454 ; First Secretary to the Board of Control, ii. 837. Pratollno, i. 843. Prayer, form of, on account of the disturbed state of the kingdom, i. 440. Proclamation against rioters, i. 418. QUAKERS', the, address to King William IV., i. 370. Quarterly Review, The, attacks Lord Har- rowby, 11. 71, 72 ; pamphlet in answer to article, 72. Quintus Curtlus, ii. 2S1. RACING, remarks on, il. 160; anecdote, 161. Redesdale, Lord, letter of, II. 71. Reform, plan of, i. 445; remarks on, ii. 18; negotiations concerning, 25. 27, 28. Reform Bill, the, bid before the King, 1. 449 ; excitement concerning, 462 ; carried by one vote, 469; alterations In, 470; Govern- ment defeated, 471 ; remarks on, 509 ; at- titude of the press, 522 ; prospects of, il. 10; negotiations for a compromise, 21; altered tone of the press, 88 : meeting of Peers in Downing Street, ib.; measures for carrying the second reading in the House of Lords, 42-44, 46; continued efforts to compromise, 70; finally passed In the House of Commons, 72; continued tiscusslons on, 75; dllliciilty with Sched- ule A. hi ; carried In the House of Lords, 86 ; in committee, 90 ; posses through com- mittee, 101 ; results or. 198, 884. >'r ! - bates on, tee Lords, House of, and Com- mons, House of. T-elchttadt, Duke of, and Marshal Marmont 11.190. 534 INDEX. Beis-Effendi, the, 1. 133. ' Renfrewshire election, ii. 503. Eice, Eight Hon. Thomas Spring. Colonial Secretary, ii. 245, '.'67 ; difficulties with, 337 ; Chancellor of tho Exchequer, 3M) ; incapacity of, as Chancellor of the Ex- chequer, 492. Richmond, Duko of, and King George III. at a naval review, ii. 2SO. Richmond, Duke of, summary of character of, i. 169; Postmaster-General, 412; re- fuses the appointment of Master of the Horse, 413; difficulties with his laborers, 414; at Goodwood, 512; on Reform, ii. 21 ; character of, 182; resignation of, 245. Riots, in London, 1830, i. 403; among the farm-laborers, 414; proclamation against, 413 ; in the country, 421. Eipon, Earl of, Lord Privy Seal, 1. 412 ; res- ignation of, ii. 245. See Goderich, Vis- count. Pvobarts, Mr., dinner given by, ii. 823. Robinson, Eight Hon. Frederick John, Chan- cellor of the Exchequer, i. 66. See Gode- rich, Viscount. Rochester election, 1835, ii. 325. Eoden, Earl of, declines the office of Lord Steward, ii. 823, 325. Bogers, Samuel, breakfast given by, i. 484 ; compared with Moore, ii. 447. Rolle, Lord, remark to Lord Brougham, ii. 262. Eome, 1. 257, 258; St. Peter's, 253, 273; sight-seeing, 261, 265, 274; the Sistine Chapel, 263; the cardinals, ib.; a cardinal lying in state, 265 ; Pompey's statue, 266 ; Temple of Bacchus, ib.; the Catacombs, 267 ; the Pope's blessing, 269, 276 ; Holy Week observances, 270 ; tho Grand Peni- tentiary, 2TO, 2T2; washing of pilgrims' feet, 273 ; supper to pilgrims, ib. ; Protes- tant burial-ground, 274; St. Peter's illu- minated, 276 ; excavations, 278 ; sight- seeing, 280, 307; aqueducts, 308 ; the Scala Santa, 309; St. Peter's, 311; Library of the Vatican, 312; votive offering of a horseshoe, 813, 316; Columbaria, 318; saints, 328; the Flagellants, 830 ; relations with Protestant countries, 833 ; the Coli- seum, 337 ; story of a thief, ib. ; convent of S3. Giovanni e Paolo, 333 ; sight-seeing, 839. Rosslyn, Earl of. Lord Privy Seal, 1. 179; Lord President of the Council, ii. 322; din- ner for selecting the Sheriffs, 843. Eonssin, Admiral, at Constantinople, ii. 155. Rovigo, the Duke de, at Eome, i. 276. Rundell, Mr., fortune of, will of, i. 76. Runton Abbey, shooting at, ii. 213 ; murder in the neighborhood, ib. Eussell, Eight Hon. Lord John, introduces the Reform Bill, i. 459 ; seat in the Cabi- net, 4S4 ; brings in his Bill, 4S9 ; letter to Attwood, ii. 16, 17; willing to compromise, 118; brings on the second Eeform Bill; Paymaster of the Forces, 267 ; objected to by the King as leader of the House of Commons, 808; speech at Totness, 817; on the Speakership, 846; on Church Ee- form, 347; first speech as leader of the House of Commons, 353 ; letter of, on the Speakership, 857 ; as leader of the House of Commons, 360 : marriage of, 3i6 ; Home Secretary in Lord Melbourne's second Administration, 890 ; introduction of Cor- poration Eeform, 336; relations with Sir Robert Peel, 412; course to be pursued on the Corporation Bill, 429, 435 ; speech on the Orangemen, 465; moderation of, 471 ; meeting at the Foreign Office, 475, 477 ; intention of the Government to pro- ceed with their Bills, 503 ; speech in an- swer to Roebuck, 513. Russia, state of, 1829, i. 184 ; intrigues of, ii. 142 ; diplomatic relations with, 143 ; com- bines with Turkey against Egypt, 154; fleet sent to Constantinople, ib. ; estab- lishes her power in the East, 159 ; quar- rel with, 208; policy toward Turkey, 210; treaty with Turkey, 228; relations with Turkey, 327. Russo-Dutch Loan, question of the, Ii. 46, 47 ; origin of the, 49 ; debate on the, in the House of Lords, 111. Rutland, Duke of, anti-Reform petition, ii. 66 ; birthday-party, 209. O ABLER, Mr., maiden-speech of, in oppo IJ sition to the Catholic Eelief Bill, i. ItiJ. Saint- Aulaire, M. de, French Embassador at Vienna, ii. 880 ; anecdote of, ib. Saint- Aulaire, Madame de, ii. 330. Saint-Germain, Count de, account of, i. 515 ; the " Wandering Jew," ib. Salerno, i. 293. Salisbury, Marquis of, petition to the King, ii. 39. Saltash, borough of, division on, i. 501. San Carlos, Duke and Duchess of, i. 7. Sandon, Viscount, moves the Address in tho House of Commons, ii. 843 ; on Sir Robert Peel, 461. Sandys, Lord, ii. 477. Sartorius, Admiral, petition, ii. 488. Scarlett, Sir James, Attorney-General, i. 178. Scott, Sir Walter, death of, ii. 104. Seaford, Lord, i. 70. Sebastiani, Count, French Embassador to the Court of St. James, ii. 325. Sefton, Earl of, dinner to Lord Grey and Lord Brougham, i. 415 ; on Lord Brough- am, 483 ; created a Peer of the United Kingdom, 484 ; qualities of, 512. Segrave, Lord, Lord-Lieutenant of Glouces- tershire, ii. 445. Senior, Nassau, at Holland House, ii. 283. Session of 1833, review of the, ii. 194. Sestri, i. 252. Seton, Sir Henry, arrival of, from Belgium, L 503. Seymour, Lord, withdraws his support from the Government, i. 462. Seymour, George, Master of the Robes, L 899. Seymour, Horace, retires from tbe Lord Chamberlain's Department, i. 470. INDEX. 535 Seymour. Jane, coffin of, found at Windsor, i. 499. Bhadwett, Right Hon. Sir Lancelot, on legal business, ii. 244. Shee, Sir Martin, elected President of the Royal Academy, i. 223. Sheridan. Richard Brinsley, II. 449. BhieL, Eight Hon. Richard, dispute with Lord Althorp, il. 217; arrest of, by the Sergeant-at-Arms, ib. ; committee, 219, 220 ; insult to Lord Lyndhurst, 5U2. Kiege of Saragossa, the, ii. 203. Siena, i. 237. Simplon, the, i. 353. Slavery, abolition of, 11. 133; for debates on, see Commons, House of. Smith, Baron, i. 445; O'Connell's attack upon. ii. 220, 222, 224. Smith, Sydney, and the siege of Saragossa, ii. 203 ; and Professor Leslie, 207 ; sermon of, in St. Paul's Cathedral, 812; on Sir James Mackintosh, 442; dispute of, with the Bishop of London, 503 ; letter to Arch- deacon Singleton, ib. Bmithson, Sir Hugh, ii. 130, 131. Somaglia, Cardinal, i. 265. Somerville, Mrs., ii. 219. Sorrento, i. 300 ; Benediction of the Flow- ers, ib. Soult, Marshal, sent to Lyons, ii. 23 ; Prime Minister of France, 119. Sou they, Robert, at breakfast given by Mr. Henry Taylor, i. 406; letter to Lord Brougham on rewards to literary men, 441. Spain, the Duke of Wellington on affairs in, ii. 210; state of, 216; affairs in, 226. 231 ; proposal to combine with Dora Pedro, 2;H ; affairs in, 327; deplorable state of, 477. Spanish Legion, formation of the, Ii. 498. Speaker, the, indecision of, ii. 96; disputes on the Spcakership, 126, 345. Spencer, Earl, death of, ii. 290. Spencer, Earl, gee Althorp, Viscount Sprotbarough, party at. for the races, i. 899. SUii'l, Madame de, "Considerations sur la Revolution francaise," i. 18; anecdote of, 515. Stafford House, concert at, il. 409. Swnli-y, Right Hon. Edward, Irish Secretary, i. 412 ; speech on the Beform I'.iil. 4*31 ; seat In the Cabinet. 484 ; speech In answer to Croker, ii. 30; Secretary for the Colo- nial Department, 154; at The Oaks, 161; indecision of, Is4 ; racing-interests of, 200 ; resignation of, 24o; In opposition, 249; 'Thiinblerig" speech, 253; conciliatory letter to Lord Urey, 262; disposition or, 312, 313 ; declines to join Sir K. Peel 820, 821; speech at Glasgow, 324; formation of the Stanley party, 359 ; position of Mr. Stanley, 861 ; policy of, 86t> ; meeting of party at the " King's Head," 878 ; speech on Irish Church question, 876 ; character of, 884; letter to Sir Thomas Hesketh, 497; joins the Opposition, 404; conduct of, 450. Stanley, Right Hon. Edward John, Under- secretary of State, ii. 26(5. State Paper Office, i 136 ; 11. 207. Stephen, James, opinions on emancipation. ii. 14s.' Stcphenson, George, on steam-engines, ii. 216. Stewart, Lady Dudley, party given by, 1. 455; accompanies the Prince of Orange to Gravesend, 470. Stoke, party at, i. 120, 514. Strangford, Viscount, sen: to the Brazils, L 119. Strasburg prisoners, acquittal of, Ii. 496. Strawberry Hill, party at, i. 210. Strutt, Edward, i. 406. Stuart de Rothesay, Lord, Embassador in France, i. 119. Sugden, Right Hon. Sir Edward, quarrel of, with Lord Brougham, ii. 109 ; origin of ani- mosity toward Lord Brougham. 188; Irish Chancellor, 822 ; resignation ot, 868 ; retains his appointment, 871. Sugden, Lady, not received at Court, ii. 868. Snnderiand, state of. ii. 25. Sussex, II. R. H. the Duke of, marriage of. i 522. Sutherland. Duke of, death cf the, ii. 186; wealth of the, ib. Suttee case, before the Privy Council, ii. 104. Swift . Kelly, before the Judicial Commit- tee of the Privy Council, ii. 898, 898, 899, 403; judgment, 406. rTALLETRAND, Charles Maurice de, let- JL ter to the Emperor of Russia, i. 20 ; Em- bassador to the Court of St James, 893; conversation of, 514; anecdotes, ib. , 'mot of, 523; dinner with, il 81 ; on Fox and Pitt, 136 ; detained in the Thames, 18S ; on Portuguese affairs, 191 ; on relations be- tween France and England, 439; opinion of, of Lord Palmerston, 478 : dissatisfaction at his position In London, 500. Tasso, i. 279 ; bust ot, ib. Tavistock, Marquis of, on the prospects of the Liberal party, II. 206. Taylor, Sir Herbert conversation with Lord Wharncllffe, il 56; correspondence with, about the Chancellorship, 182. Taylor, Henry, breakfast at the house ot, 1. 406; breakfast to Wordsworth, Mill. Kl- liot, Charles Villlers, 458 ; on the abolition of slavery in the West Indies, il 189; "Philip van Artevelde," 268. Taylor, Brook, mission to Koine, t. 4S7. Tcddesley, party at I. 9. Tenterden, Lord, death of, II. 128; character of, 125; classical knowN-d^ of. i>>. Terccira, Portuguese expedition to, I. 148, 144. Ternl Falls of, 1.841. Thiers. Adolphc, dinner to, II. 196 ; account of, iJ>. ; at the head of the French Govern- ment, 226 ; on Interference In Spain, ib. ; foreign policy ot 482 ; social qualities of, 491; quarrel with Lndy Granville, il.; courts the favor of Austria, COO. Thompson, Alderman, difficulties with hi* constituents, L 498. 536 INDEX. Thomson, Eight Hon. Charles Poulett, origi- nates a commercial treaty with France, ii. 28; Board of Trade, 267, 390; self-compla- cency of, 452. Thorwaldsen, Albert, at Florence, i. 254, 255. Tierney, Right Hon. George, i. 12; Master of the Mint, 80; death of, 229. Times, the, on Lord Harrowby's letter, ii. (57 ; attacks Lord Grey, 69 ; Lord Chancel- lor's speech, 110; influence of the. 151; and Lord Brougham, 284; disposition of, to support a Tory Government, 298, 300 ; terms of support to the Duke of Welling- ton, 303 ; power of the, 304 ; negotiotions with Lord Lyndhurst, 316; letter signed "Onslow,"34l. Titehfield, Marquis of, death of, i. 63 ; char- actor of, 64. Tivoli, i. 319. TixalL, party at, i. 9; Macao, 10. Torrington. Viscount, and the King, ii.415. Tory party, state of the, i 495 ; meeting at Bridgewater House, ii. 373 ; state of the, 432 ; indifference of the members of the, 503. Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi, ii. 208 ; between Russia and Turkey, 1834, 229 ; the Quad- ruple, for the pacification of the Peninsula, signed 1834, 250. Tree, Ellen, at the City Theatre, i. 510. Tuileries, the, reception at, ii. 497; ball at, ib. ; small ball at, 499. Turf, the, reflections on, ii. 289. Turin, i. 247. Turkey, threatened by Russia, i. 194; criti- cal state of. ii. 142 ; relations with Russia, 3-27. Tusculum, i. 332. Twiss, Horace, supper-party given by, ii. 393. UNION, speech of O'Conncll on the repeal of the, ii. 238. Unions, proclamation against the, ii. 24 ; pro- cession of trades, 238. Urquhart. Mr., Secretary to the Embassy at Constantinople, ii. 510. VAN de Weyer, Sylvain, Belgian Minister to the Court of St. James, i. 510. VaudreuiL, M. de, French charge d'affaires in London, on French affairs, i. 376. Vaughan, Right Hon. Sir Charles, special mission to Constantinople, ii. 51-7. Vaughan, Right Hon. Sir John, sworn in a Privy Councilor i. 489. Venice, i. 345; sights of, 346, 348, 850. Vornet, Horace, at Rome, i. 276. Verona, Congress of. i. 55; visit to, 352. Verulam, Earl of, petition to the King, ii. 39. Vesuvius, nscent of, i. 298. Vicenza, i. 851. Victoria, H. K. H. the Princess, at a child's ball, i. 177; first appearance of, at a draw- ing-room, 458; at Burghley, ii. 440; health of, proposed by the King, 481 ; at Wind- Bor, 484; letter from the King, 512; ee- clusion of, 515; first council of, 518; pro- claimed QUEEN, 519 ; impression produced on all, 519. Villiers, Hon. Hyde, appointed to the Board of Control, i. 480. Villicrs, Hon. George, at the Grove, 1.446; conversation with the Duke of Wellington, ib. ; mission to Paris for a commercial treaty, ii. 28; Minister at Madrid, 18!, 186, 1 87 ; on prospects in Spain, 228, 237 ; let- ters of, from Madrid, 445, 478, 482. Villiers, Hon. Charles Pelham, i. 406. Virginia Water, i. 378; visit to, 382. TTTALEWSKI, Count Alexander, arrival of, VV in London, i. 445. Walpole, Horace, letters to Sir Horace Mann, ii. 170. "Wandering Jew, The," i. 515. Warsaw, affair at, i. 437; taken by the Rus- sians, 521. Warwickshire election, ii. 472. Wellesley, Marquis of, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, ii. 19(5; correspondence with Mr. Littleton, 258, 264; resigns the White Wand, 391. Wellesley, Long, Esq., committed for con- tempt of court, i. 497. Wellington, Duke of, account of the battle of Waterloo, i. 33; in Paris with Blucher, 35; dispute with the King, 43; on affairs of France and Spain, 56; opinion of Bona- parte, 60 ; mission to Russia, 66 ; visit to the Royal Lodge, 86 ; opinion of Mr. Can- ning, 90; forms a Government, 1828, 105; resolves to carry the Catholic Relief Bill, 121; correspondence with Dr. Curtis, 125; ascendency of, in the Cabinet, and over the King, 149; hardness of character of, 162; duel with Lord Winchelsca, ib.; conver- sation with, on King George IV. and the Duke of Cumberland, 183, 185; prosecu- tion of the press, 198, 219, 221; business habits of, 223 ; conversation with, on the French Revolution, 375; qualities ef, 391 ; confidence in, 394; declaration against Re- form, 401; Administration of, defeated, 408; resignation of, 409; suppresses dis- turbance in Hampshire, 419 ; political char- acter of, 224; reported letter of advice to the King of France, 436; correspondence with Mr. Canning, 444; conduct toward the Government, 492; objections to Mr. Canning, 501; dinner at Apsley House, 517 ; anti-Reform dinner at Apsley House, ii. 1; remarks upon, 16; memorial to the King, 21 ; correspondence with Lord Wharncliffe, 30; obstinacy of, 41 ; letter to Lord Wharncliffe, 52 ; unbecoming letter laid before the King, 5(i ; reply to Lord Wharncliffe, 57; speech on Irish Educa- tion ; sent for by the King, 92 ; efforts of, to form an Administration, 96; inability of, to form an Administration, 98 ; statement of his case, 100; conduct of the Tory party, ib. ; ill-feeling toward Peel, 120; view of affairs, 1833, 152; government of French provinces, ib. ; respect evinced toward, 159; defense of policy, 165; speech on the INDEX. 537 Coronation Oath, 177, 17S; policy on the Irish Church Hill, 178; on Portuguese affairs, 179, 191 ; and the Bonaparte family, 192; subsequent account of attempt to form a Government, 210; compared with Lord Grey, 232 ; speech on the admission of Dissenters to the University, ib. ; pre- sents the Oxford petition, 237; and the Whigs, 240; installed ns Chancellor of the University of Oxford, 251 ; First Lord of the Treasury, and Secretary of State for the Home Office, 297; arrangement fora provisional Government, 299 ; at the pub- lic offices, 1S84, 802 ; account of crisis of 1884, 809; inconsistencies of, 817; on the division on the Speakership, 856 ; on Lord Londonderry's appointment, 864 ; anecdote of Lord Brougham, 369 ; on Spain, 402 ; on the Walcheren expedition, 403 ; policy of, on the Corporation Bill, 413; letter to the Duke of Cumberland, 444; speech in an- Bwer to Lord Lyndhurst, 480; meeting of Tory Peers, 509 ; crowned by the Duchess lit Cannizzaro, 517; quarrel with the Duke of Clarence, ib. Western, Lord, evidence of, il. 266. West India Body, consternation of the, ii. 141 ; deputation of the, ib. West India Bill, prospects of the, 11. 181. For debates on the, see Commons, House of. West Indies, Lord Chandos's motion on the state of the, i. 455; project of emancipa- tion, ii. 13S; alarm in the, 143; difficulties attending emancipation, 149; committee on affairs of the, 3ns ; decision on the office of Secretary of the Island of Jamaica, 410. Westrneath, Marchioness of, pension, L 133, 130. Westmeath vs. Westmeath, appeal before the Judicial Committee, ii. Xlt, 270; decision in, 290. Westminster election, 1818, contest, i. 8; In 1S19, 15, 17; in 1833, ii. 15s; in 1837, 510. Wetherell, Sir Charles, account of, i. 1C4; speech on the Reform Bill, 4-' ; reluctance of, to make Peers, 83; a>. ; country- dance, 134; anecdotes of, ib. ; state of mind of, 152 ; letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, 163, 169; letter-writing. 171; animosity to the French, 19S; irritability of; 289; conduct of, 241; personal feel- ings toward the members of Lord Mel- bourne's Administration, 284 ; dismissal of Lord Melbourne, 298 ; speech to the Tory Lords, 297 ; provisional appointments, ib. ; account of difference with Lord Melbourne, 298; resolution of, to support tho Tory Government, 808 ; address to tho new Min- isters, 820; on the state of Persia. :!-_'S whims of. 344 ; Island of St. Bartholomew, ib. ; indignation of, at the affair of Lord Londonderry, 868; distress of, 886; and the Ministers, 881 ; personal habits of, 897; speech to Sir Charles Grey, 408 ; audience to Lord Durham, 404; hostility toward Lord Glonelg and the Ministers, 407 ; con- duct to the Speaker, 409 ; scene with Lord Torrington, 415; speech to tho Bishops, 430; speech on the Militia, 486; and the Duchess of Kent, 489; speech at dinner to tho Jockey Club, 470: Toryism of. 470; Joke, 479; speech to the Bishop of Kly, 487 ; proposes the health of the Princess Victoria, ib. ; aversion to his Ministers, 481, 483 ; speech to Lord Mlnto, ib. ; rude- ness to tho Duchess of Kent, 484 ; iwetie nt birthday party, ib. ; reception of King Leopold, 480; speech, 1837, 499; ad.lr.-s to Lord Aylmcr, 507; illness of. Ml, M'-'; letter to the Princess Victoria. M-! ; dan porous illness of, 513; pnjrmoftnM up for, 515 ; death of, 517 ; kindness of heart oc no. Williams. Sir John, Justice of tho Common Plea*, 11. 230. 538 INDEX. Winchelsea, Earl of, duel of, with the Duke of Wellington, i. 102 ; incident of the hand- kerchief, 16S. Winchester Cathedral, ii. 413. Windham, Eight Hon. William, diary of, i. 196 ; conversation with Dr. Johnson, 197. Windsor Castle, dinner in St. George's Hall, i. 385, 392 ; dinner during the Ascot week, 482. Windsor election, mobs at the, ii. 251. Woburn, party at, i. 20; riot at, 421. Wood, Charles, on the Reform Bill, ii. 80. Wood, Matthew, returned to Parliament for the City of London, ii. 331. Worcester, Marchioness of, death of the, i. 89. Worcester Cathedral, ii. 449 ; monument of Bishop Hough, ib. Wordsworth, William, characteristics of, i. 459. Wortley, Eight Hon. John, Secretary to the Board of Control, i. 230. See Wharncliffe. Wrottesley, Sir John, motion of, for a call of the House, ii. 176, 180. Wynford, Lord, raised to the Peerage, i. 173? Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords, ib. Wynn, Eight Hon. Charles, President of the Board of Control, i. 80 ; resignation of, 462. "\70EK, H. K. H. the Duke of, character of, JL i. 4 ; management of racing establish- ment, 37 ; dislike to the Duke of Welling- ton, 41, 53; duel with the Duke of Bich- mond, 52 ; anecdotes of King George IV., 62 ; illness of. 70, 72 ; death of, 71 ; funeral of, 75; letter to Lord Liverpool on the Catholic question. 444. Tork, II. E. H. the Duchess of, character of, i. 4 ; portrait of, 7 ; illness of, 23 ; death of, 29. Young, Thomas, private secretary to Lord Melbourne, ii. 277. ZEA Bermudez, ii. 187; dismissal of, 21 T. Zurnalacarreguy, ii. 402. THE END. RECENT PUBLICATIONS. THE NATIVE RACES OF THE PACIFIC STATES. By HERBERT H. BANCROFT. To be completed in 5 vols. Vol. I. now ready. 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APPLETOX & CO., Publishers, 549 & 551 Broadway, N. Y. Opinions of the Press on the "International Scientific Series" VII. The Conservation of Energy. By BALFOUR STEWART, LL. D., F. R. S. With an Appendix treating of the Vital and Mental Applications of the Doctrine. I vol., I2mo. Cloth. Price, $1.50. " The author has succeeded in presenting the facts in a clear and satisfactory manner, using simple language and copious illustration in the presentation of facts and prin- ciples, confining himself, however, to the physical aspect of the subject. In the Ap- pendix the operation of the principles in the spheres of life and mind is supplied by the essays of Professors Le Conte and Bain." Ohio Farmer. " Prof. Stewart is one of the best known teachers in Owens College in Manchester. 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