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YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
From the Library of
THOMAS R. TROWBRIDGE

THE CROKER PAPERS.

THE

CORRESPONDENCE AND DIARIES

OP THE LATE
RIGHT HONOUEABLE
JOHN WILSON CROKER, LL.D., F.B.S.,
t'l
SECRETARY TO THE ADMIRALTY
FROM 1809 TO 1830.

EDITKD BJlf
LOUIS J. JENNINGS,
AUTHOK OF 'BEPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT IN THE UNITED STATES.'

IN THREE VOLUMES.— Vol. IL
SECOND EDITION, REVISED.
WITH PORTRAIT.

LONDON:
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.
1885.

LONDON :
PRINTED ET WHiLIAJl CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
STAMFORD STREET AND CHARrNG CROSS.

l^^t

CONTENTS OF VOL. II.

CHAPTER XIV.
1829.
The Last Days of Catholic Disabilities — Position of the Ministry —
The Clare Election— Bishop Curtis and Wellington— Recall of
Lord Anglesey from Ireland — Conversation between the Duke
and Mr. Croker — Mr. Peel's Conversion to the Cause of Emanci
pation — Lord Lowther — Anxieties of the Government — Progress
of the Emancipation Bills — The Duke of Cumberland — His
Hatred of Wellington—The new Police Force^Correspondence
between Peel and Croker — Advice upon a new Paper — The
growing Power of Journalists predicted — Proposals for a new
Edition of Boswell's ' Johnson ' — Mr. Murray's Reply — Plan and
Execution of the Work— Sir Walter Scott's Letters — Corre
spondence with Isaac D" Israeli, Sir Henry Ellis, Lord Eldon, &c.
— The Work attacked by Macaulay — His own Disclosures as to
his Motives — His elaborate Efforts to secure Revenge — Public
Opinion and Mr. Croker .......
CHAPTER XV.
1830.
The New Agitation for Parliamentary Reform — Popular Excitement
— Declaration of the Duke of Wellington — Penryn and East
Retford — Mr. Croker's Advice to Peel — Illness of the King-
Disturbed State of Politics — The Duke of Wellington and the
Whigs — Theatricals at Hatfield House — Death of George IV. —
The New King — "Black Sheep" — Lord Brougham and the
Opposition — The General Election — Defeat of Mr. Croker for
Dublin University- — Eevolution in Fiance — Abdication of
Charles X. — Death of Mr. Huskisson — Talleyrand in London —
Dissensions in the Tory Party — Sir H. Parnell's Attack — Defeat
of the Ministry — ^Mr. Croker resigns his Office at the Admiralty

IV CONTENTS OF VOL. IL
PAGE
— Lord Grey's Ministry — Lord Brougham and Lord Lyndhurst
— Difaculties of the New Ministry— Mr. Croker on Party Con
sistency—Death of Sir Thomas Lawrence — His Pecuniary
Troubles^-Letters to Mr. Croker  50

CHAPTER XVI.
1831.
Mr. Croker's Opinions on the Reform Question — In Advance of his
Party — His Disbelief in Eeform as a " System "—Doubts about
Public Opinion — Letters to Lord Hertford — Lord Hertford on
Reform — His Distruft of Peel^Peel's Attitude on Reform — An
Autograph of Talleyrand's — Sir David Baird aud the Duke of
Wellington — ^Hmnoured Whig Dissensions — " Everybody dis
trusts Peel" — The Cry of Retrenchment — Eeform Prospects —
Lord Althorp's Budget — Growing Importance of Peel — Insult to
the King — The First Reform Bill — Anomalies of the Measure —
Discouragement of the Anti-Eeformers — Letters from Sir R. Peel
¦ — Conversations with the Duke of Wellington — The Dissolution
— Second Eeform Bill — Mr. Croker's Speeches — Rejection of the
Bill by the Lords — ^The Nottingham and Bristol Eiots — Third
Reform Bill — Literary Projects — Proposed Editions of 'Hume'
and ' Pope '  92
CHAPTER XVII.
1832.
Last Stages of the Reform Discussion — Meeting of Parliament in 1832
— Passage of the Bill in the Commons — Preparations for meeting
the Hostile Majority in the Lords — Resignation of Lord Grey —
Attempts to form a Tory Ministry — Mr. Croker's Eecord of the
Negotiations — He refuses Office — Sir E. Peel on Consistency —
Failure of the Duke of Wellington — And ofthe Speaker — General
Correspondence — Appearance of Cholera in London — The Duke
of Wellington sometimes Insulted — -The Ultra-Tories — The Duke
at a Levee — Peel's Sincerity Questioned — A new Tory Club (the
Carlton) — Aberrations of Lord Dudley — Mr. Croker's Advice to
the Lords — Letters from the Duke of Wellington — Dinner at the
Duchess of Kent's — A gloomy Forecast — Mr. Croker urges Sir
R. Peel to take Office — Peel's Reply — Prorogation of Parliament
— Mr. Croker's Resolve to retire from Public Life — His Motives
— The Duke's Opinion — Sir E. Peel on Battlemented Houses—-
Charles X. in England — The Library at West Moulsey . ' . 145

CONTENTS OF VOL. IL V
CHAPTER XVIII.
1833-1834. PAGE
The First Eeformed Parliament — Diminished Strength of tho Tories
— Tho Name " Conservative " first used by Mr. Croker — " Paying
Debts " — The Duke of Cleveland — Mr. Manners Sutton re-elected
Speaker — " Finality " in Eeform — An old Superstition — Tho Co
ercion Bill — Irish Debates — ^Disorder in the House — Course taken
Peel — His Remarks on the new House — And on the Working of
the Eeform Bill — Probable Anticipations of Office — Estrangement
from the Duke of Wellington — The Duke's Opinions on Politics
— Giving Pledges at Elections — Peel preparing to accept Office —
Lord Goderich created Earl of Eipon — The Malt-Tax — A Victory
Reversed — Unpopularity of the Budget — The Eoyal Academy
Dinner — Defeat of Sir John Hobhouse — Capture of Don Miguel's
Fleet by Napier — An Unhealthy Season — Toryism of Sir Francis
Burdett — Close of the Session — Dinner given by the King — A
Ministerial Pamphlet — Notes upon it by Peel and Wellington —
Sir R. Peel on the Landed Interest — Dinner given by the Duke
of Gloucester — Conversations with the Duke of Wellington — Lord
Grey's Resignation and Lord Melbourne's alleged " Dismissal " —
Mr. Croker's Narrative — Sir Robert Peel's Ministry — Proffer of
Office to Mr. Croker — Death of the Duke of Gloucester — The
Tamworth Manifesto . . ..... 197
CHAPTER XIX.
1835.
The Dissolution and the Elections — Combination against Sir Eobert
Peel — His Letters describing his Position — Lord Stanley's Eefusal
to join the Ministry — Mr. Croker recommends Mrs, Somerville
and others for Pensions — Peel's Reply — The Eev. George Croly —
Benjamin Disraeli and Mr. Croker's Speeches — Anticipated Contest
on the Speakership — The Ecclesiastical Commission — Church
Eevenues — Peel's Eeply to " Some of Our Tories " — Fears of
another Dissolution — Defeats of the Govemment — ^The Malt-Tax
— Dissenters' Marriages with Church Eites — Letters of Sir E. Peel
— Sir R. Peel's Difficulties— Mr. Croker's Advice. — Final Defeat
and Resignation of the Ministry- — The Premier on his Reverses —
Summary of his Measures — The Academy Exhibition of 1835- —
Sir R. Peel on Wilkie's Painting of Wellington writing a Despatch
— And on David's Painting of the Death of Marat — Suggests .i
History of the Reign of Terror— Illness of Sir W. FoUet— The

VI CONTENTS OF VOL. IL
PAGE
Second Ministry of Lord Melbourne —Corporation Eeform — Me-.
morandum of the Duke of Wellington— Sir R. Peel and Dr. Pusey
— The " Tyranny of Party '' — Amendments to the Corporation Bill
in the Lords— Works on the French Revolution in the British
Museum— The Duke of Wellington on the State of the Country
— And on Napoleon I. . . ..... 2o4

CHAPTER XX.
1836-1838.
Mr. Croker's Literary Work in 1836 — Article on Wraxall's
' Memoirs ' — Letters from Lord Wellesley and Lord St. Helen's
—Lord Aberdeen on Wraxall's Blunders — Sir Robert Peel on
Lord Stanley's Position — Doubts as to his future Course— The
Duke of Wellington on the Stamp Act — Sir Robert Peel as a
Sportsman — Conversations with the Duke of Wellington — The
Battle of Talavera — The Retreat from Burgos — His Power of
Sleeping at Will— Opening of 1837— Death of William IV.—
First Appearance of the "Bedchamber Question" — Sir Robert
Peel on the Functions of the Monarch — Two " Coincidences " —
Retirement of Mr. Walter from Parliament — Sir Robert Peel on
Secular Education — Mr. Croker's Correspondence with the King
of Hanover (Duke of Cumberland) — Lord Durham's Mission to
Canada—The Duke of Cumberland on English Politics — The
Wellington Memorial at Hyde Park — Disputes concerning a
Site — The Duke on " Rheumatism" and " Libels " — An Inquiry
after Shakespearian Relics at Wilton- — ^Mr. Sidney Herbert's
Reply — Lady Peel's Apiary — Sir R. Peel suggests a Cyclopasdia
of the Revolution — His Remarks on the State of the Country —
His Pictures at Drayton — Notes of a Visit to Lord Sidmouth —
Anecdotes of Burke, Pitt, &o. ...... 287

CHAPTER XXI.
1839-1840.
Difficulties of Lord Melbourne's Government — Defeated on the
Jamaica Bill — The Bedchamber Questior — The View taken by
Sir Robert Peel — Opinions of Mr. Croker — Letters from the
King of Hanover — His Estimate of English Parties — Corre
spondence with Lord Brougham- — Renewed Overtures to Mr.
Croker to stand for Parliament — Lord Brougham on Public
Affairs — Letters from the Duke of Wellington — Dr. Hook on the

CONTENTS OF VOL. IL vii
PAQll
Tractarian Movement —Sir James Graham's Fears of Doniocvacy
— Tho Queen's Marriage — Louis Napoleon's Eaid on Boulogne —
The Eastern Question in 1840— The " Bloated " Armaments of
Europe — Hostile Feeling in France towards England — Prospects
of War — Letter to Bishop Philpotts on the Church Service for
Sundays— Reply of the Bishop — Particulars concerning Mr.
Perceval's Character and Opinions — Sir Robert Peel on the
Events of 1830-32— A misdirected Royal Letter . . .339
CHAPTER XXIL
1841-1842.
Fall of Lord Melbourne's Administration — Dissolution of Parliament
— Great Tory Gains in the New Elections — Sir Robert Peel's
Second Administration — The Corn Law Agitation — Peel's Sliding
Scale — His Account of the Debates upon it— Foreshadows a Tax
upon Property — The Income Tax imposed in 1842 — Mr. Croker
again defends Peel's Policy — Peel on the Necessity of a Liberal
Tariff — England's Commercial Policy " on its Trial " — England
must be made a Cheap Country to Live in — Peel's Defence of the
Income Tax — Sir James Graham on the Corn Law Agitation ;
and on the Local Disturbances — Sir E. Peel on High Prices and
Landed Property — Public Disiress at Paisley, &o. — The United
States' Boundary Question — Sketch of the Dispute — The
Mysterious Map — The " Strong Eed Line " — Lord Ashburton'a
Account of the Map^His Defence of the Treaty — The Second
Map — Letters from Mr. Goulburn, Lord Aberdeen, Lord Ash-
burton, and Sir Eobert Peel — Conversations with the Duke of
Wellington — Last Letters from Theodore Hook — Birth of the
Prince of Wales — The Queen's Attention to Business — Remark
able Duels — Church Music — The Prime Minister in Former
Times and Now — Letter from Sir R. Peel — Visit to Windsor —
Peel on the " Voracity " for titles — The " Distinction of an
Unadorned Name" — The Tractarian Movement — Mr. J. G.
Lockhart on the Rich and Poor in England — Sir R. Peel on the
Price of Bread — Death of Lord Hertford — His Latter Days —
Mr. Croker's Account of Lord Hertford's Death — Suspicions of
Lord Hertford's Insanity— The Missing Packet of 100,000 fr.—
Nicolas Suisse — Probable Nature of his Duties — Mr. Croker's
Prosecution of Suisse — Suisse Retaliates — Trial and Acquittal
of Suisse — Letter from Lord Hertford's Son — The Attacks on
Mr. Croker by Macaulay — Their Manifest Injustice — Mr. Croker's
Character in Private Life — Slanders published since his Death . 375

LETTERS, DIARIES, AND MEMOIRS

RT. HON. JOHN W. CROKER.

CHAPTER XIV.
1829.

The Last Days of Catholic Disabilities — Position of the Ministry — The
Clare Election — Bishop Curtis and Wellington — Recall of Lord Anglesey
from Ireland — Conversation between the Duke and Mr. Croker —
Mr. Peel's Conversion to the Cause of Emancipation — Lord Lowther—
Anxieties of the Govemment — Progress of the Emancipation Bills —
The Duke of Cumberland — ^His Hatred of Wellington — ^The new
Police Force — Correspondence between Peel and Croker — Advice
upon a new Paper — The growing power of Journalists predicted —
Proposals for a new Edition of Boswell's 'Johnson' — Mr. Murray's
Reply — Plan and Execution of the Work — Sir Walter Scott's Letters
— Correspondence with Isaac D'Israeli, Sir Henry Ellis, Lord Eldon,
&c. — The Work attacked by Macaulay — His own Disclosures as to
his Motives — His elaborate Efforts to secure Revenge — Public Opinion
and Mr. Croker.
The defeat of Mr. Vesey Fitzgerald in Clare sounded the
death-knell of Catholic disabilities. He had been a consistent
supporter of the cause of Emancipation, but he went before
his constituents as a member of the Government of Wel
lington and Peel, and that Government, so far as the people
knew anything of it, was hostile to Catholic claims. The
Duke had hitherto been inflexible, and every public act or
speech which was identified with the name of Peel was
VOL. II.

2 TEE CBOEER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
antagonistic to concession. Peel, indeed, acknowledged that
to the removal of Roman Catholic disabilities he "had
offered, from" his "entrance into Parliament, an unvarying
and decided opposition."* It does not fall within our pro
vince here either to recount the slow steps by which Catholic
Emancipation was reached, or to discuss the course pursued
by Sir Robert Peel ; even a passing comment on the events of
this period must be limited to a few words explanatory of the
letters and papers now to be produced.
In the last chapter it was shown that great excitement had
been caused by the Clare , election, and by the speech of Mr.
Dawson (Peel's brother-in-law) at Derry, in which a policy of
surrender seemed to be hinted at. " The Clare election," as
Lord Palmerston declared, " began a new era, and was an
epoch in the history of Ireland."t Later in the year there
happened another incident which caused renewed excitement.
Dr. Curtis, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, wrote
a letter to the Duke of "Wellington on the Catholic question,
in reply to which the Duke observed that any present " settle
ment" appeared to be "impossible." Bishop Curtis sent a
copy of this letter to Lord Anglesey, who, in reply, expressed
his disapproval of the Duke's policy. Soon afterwards Lord
Anglesey was recalled, and the Duke of Northumberland — an
opponent of the Catholics— was sent to Ireland in his place.
It was said at the time that Lord Anglesey had been removed
solely in consequence of his letter to Archbishop Curtis, but
this was not the version of the affair given by the Duke to
Mr. Croker. Memorandum hy Mr. CroTcer.
January 9th, 1829. — I saw the Duke of Wellington, and he
entered fully with me into all the affair with Lord Anglesey.
* Memoirs by Sir Robert Peel, i. p. 2.
t Sir H. Bulwer's ' Life of Palmerston,' Book VI.

1829.] THE CURTIS LETTER. .'!
Ho began by saying, " Well, Croker, here we are in another ol
these nine days' wonders ! " He then went on more seriously
to toll me as follows : —
Anglesey's recall is not at all connected with the corre
spondence with Dr. Curtis. It arose out of other circum-
strances, and would have equally taken place had tliat
correspondence not occurred. The discussion began about
O'Gorman Mahon and Steele, whose removal from the
magistracy we thought it right to suggest, but which he was
averse to. In the course of this correspondence, which was
strictly confidential, I thought it my duty to observe on his
intimacy with Lord Cloncurry as making a very bad impres
sion on the well disposed, both here and in Ireland, and
particularly on the King himself Indeed, I had long had
great difficulty in keeping him in his situation, as I could
show you under the King's own hand. To my last letter to
him on this subject, which was really written in private con
fidence, and all through dictated by private friendship towards
him, and a great desire to prevent such an addition to our
public difficulties as his recall could not fail to make, he
wrote to me in a tone that, even as a gentleman, I could not
put up with. He told me that though all my letters were
marked private, yet that he knew I would make use of them
if I should see an occasion for doing so, and that therefore he
for his part ivould make use of them. This, both in the in
sinuation against me, and in the declaration of what he
would do, was not to be borne. My first impression was to
write to show him the impropriety, the moral impossibility,
of his making public letters which involved not only the
King's name, but H.M.'s personal views and feelings, but I
was better advised, and made no answer, feeling that all con
fidence between us was gone, and that it would be lowering
myself to appear to take shelter behind the King, or to
endeavour to obtain by request or remonstrance what his own
sense of honour and duty ought to lead him to.
I therefore waited till the Cal)inet could be assembled,
and on Wednesday the 24th I read to my colleagues the whole
correspondence, (which no one but Peel had seen before,)
and they were unanimous that such a state of things between
the Prime Minister and the Lord Lieutenant could not con
tinue, and that Lord Anglesey must be recalled. Accordingly
on that day I wrote to the King to state these our opinions. His
Majesty was unwell and unable to write to me, and desired to
B 2

4 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
see me at Windsor on Saturday, the 27th, so that three days
were lost by this accident. I saw H.M. that day, but
was not able to get back to town in time to write by that
night's post. I however wrote next day, Sunday. I ad
dressed him as usual, ' Dear Lord Anglesey ; ' my letter was
only a few Unes, alluding to the circumstance of the cessation
of our intercourse, and acquainting him that H.M. had there
fore resolved that he should be relieved in the Government.*
This letter, of course, he received on Tuesday, the 30th. Now
you know his letter to Dr. Curtis is dated the 23rd, yet I can
not help suspecting that it is antedated, and that it was not
really written till he had had my letter of recall.
Croker. — ^What, do you think he had the boldness to ante
date his letter a whole week ?
The Duke. — Why, there are circumstances that incline me
to think so, though I admit there are difficulties as to time,
which are in the way of that conclusion.
Croker. — It is very unlucky for Lord Anglesey that he
wrote his letter. It has afforded a motive for his recall, which
all the world, even his own friends, admit to have been.
sufficient. The Duke. — Yes, 'tis all my good luck, my Fortunatus's cap
[as he said this he touched his little red Cossack cap which he
wears in the house in cold weather]. I never could have'
explained all the reasons which led to the recall. I could not
have told the world the King's feelings. I must have thrown
myself on the confidence of the country, but Anglesey has saved
me all trouble about it, for every one now admits that after
such a letter, he must have been recalled. But I have no
doubt that he had, as he threatened me, already made use of
my former letters. I could detect traces of them — of the
knowledge of them^in the speeches of the Association and
in the Times. You, not knowing what I had written, could of
course see nothing of this, but when a person knows a train
of circumstances, as I did, he can easily see whether another
person speaking on the subject is aware of those circum
stances, and I am convinced that the Catholic leaders had
seen some of my private communications to the Lord
Lieutenant. * [This letter is printed in the ' Wellington Despatches,' N. Ser. v. 366,
where the whole correspondence relating to Lord Anglesey's recall will bo
found.]

1829.] TIIE CATHOLIC QUESTION. 5
Tliis is tho sum of what passed between us on this subject.
His Grace seemed in excellent health and spirits, and inter
spersed our conversation with some droll comments and
expressions, at which we laughed.
I forgot to say that he attached considerable importance to
the change of the article "a settlement" into "tlie settle
ment." He said that Peel had come to speak to him about
the letter when it appeared, and that his first impression on
reading it in print was that he could not have written it ;
that it gave a different idea from what he had ever had in his
mind. Upon calling for the copy of it he found that he had
not said " the settlement which would," &c., but " a settlement
wliich would " — if the latter word had been slundd, the Duke's
meaning would have been stiU more clear. This I have since
observed to him in a note ; but even as it is, the printed letter
talking of the settlement goes on to assert that it would be, if so
settled, beneficial, &c., whereas the written letter expresses the
Duke's wishes for such a settlement as should be beneficial.
Sunday, Jan. llth, 1829. — The Duke of Wellington sent me
Curtis's letter, to which his celebrated note was an answer.*
It quite explains that answer in the sense I understood it, but
still I must always think that his Grace's note had helped on
the Cathohc Question a great step, for he admits the principle
of concession, and alleges only temporary objections. I called
on him after I had returned the letter, and lie entered into the
Cathohc Question. He said that he was satisfied he could
propose a settlement of it satisfactory to all parties if they
would but let him try ; but that he found people so unreason
able and obstinate as to be quite unmanageable. One person,
* [The following is the text of the Duke of Wellington's letter :—
"My dear Sie, Dec. 11.
" I have received your letter of tho 4th inst., and I assure you -that you
do me justice in believing that I am sincerely anxious to witness the
settlement of the Roman Catholic Question, which by benefitting the
State would confer a benefit on every individual belonging to it. But
I confess that I see no prospect of such a settlement. Party has been
mixed up with the consideration of the question to such a degree, and
such violence pervades every discussion of it, that it is impos.sible to
expect to prevail upon men to consider it dispassionately. If we could
bury it in oblivion for a short time, and employ that time diligently in
the consideration of its difticulties on all sides (for they are very great),
I should not despair of seeing a satisfactory remedy."]

6 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
because, twenty years ago, and in a perfectly different state of
affairs, he had given some note or other, now talks of his con
sistency, and will not see that everything has changed about
him, and that his obstinacy makes him really inconsistent.
This happens to people on both sides, and if neither party will
yield anything, no step can ever be made. " For my part, I
am harassed to death by the whole thing. The difficulties
that arise on every side on every question are reaUy distract
ing, and it seems as if all the world relied on me for settling
questions to the settlement of which no one will lend a finger."
C. — You remember, Duke, what I once before told you,
that you are like a young heir who succeeds to a great
inheritance, but so encumbered on every side that he has not
a guinea to spend.
D. — Yes, just so ; and people expect me to pay off the debts
that all my predecessors have accumulated as well as my own.
I never saw him so moved as he seemed to be on this
occasion, or talk with so little confidence in his power of
managing affairs, or with so much emotion. I have very
inadequately noted what he said, but it was all in a strain of
complaint, and chiefly that he had no assistance from any one,
and particularly that he could get no encouragement or help
towards settling the Catholic Question ; and I certainly in the
little I said gave him no great encouragement as to the oppor
tunity — this seemed to me a juncture of circumstances as
inauspicious as any that had occurred during the twenty-five
years that I had been advocating that question. I had been
all my life anxious to see the question settled on grounds of
policy and, I even thought, justice ; but that the late proceed
ings of O'Connell and the Catholics had now brought it to a
point of intimidation, and that I for one was ready to vote
against any concession to intimidation.
Parliament met on the 5th of February ; but, a few days
beforehand, Mr . Peel took the opportunity of communicating
to Mr. Croker the change which had passed over his opinions.
It is clear, however, from his own papers that the " con
version " had taken place some little time previously, though
he had withheld it from the knowledge of the party which
he was preparing to lead into a great and sudden change of
policy.

1829.] PEEVS CONVERSION. 7
From Mr. Croker's Diary.
January 31s<, 1829. — Saw Peel. He announced to me
his conversion to Catholic concession, and showed me the
papers and letters between him, the King, and the Duke on
the subject. I was in great difficulty what to say to him. I
was glad of the arrangement of the question, though it comes
too late for any good ; but I fear he will individually lose
some of the pubhc confidence. He has written to place his
seat at Oxford at the disposal of his constituents, — in my
mind, and so I told him, a democratical and unconstitutional
proceeding, and a precedent dangerous to the independence of
the House of Commons.* On the whole I am almost equally
surprised and dissatisfied with the whole aff'air. When I
read his letter to the King, I really did not know what he
had decided to do.
Feb. 2nd. — Saw Peel, to whom I felt it to be due to say
that the greatest surprise of the pubhc was not so much the
concession to the Catholics, as his consenting to be the mover
of it. I advised, or rather suggested, to him to see Lowther,
and have some explanation with him. He begged of me to
call on Lowther f and send him to him, which I did. Lowther
caUed afterwards, and told me that Peel had shown him the
papers, but had not convinced him.
Feb. Ath. — Dined at Peel's to hear the Speech. Every one
came who was expected except Holmes, who feigned illness.
I sat between Bankes and Hardinge ; they say the former will
resign; his conversation with me did not lead that way.
The dinner was duU enough. I think we were forty-four.
I made one or two verbal corrections in the speech. The
* [On this point Peel wrote (' Memoirs,' i. 312) : " I will not seek to
defend the resolution to which I came, by arguments drawn from the
peculiar character of the Academic body, or from the special nature of
the trust confided to its members. StiU less will I contend that my
example ought to be followed by others to whom may be offered the same
painful alternative of disregarding the dictates of their own consciences, or
of acting in opposition to the opinions and disappointing the expectations
of their constituents."]
t [It must be remembered that Lord Lonsdale had enormous influence,
and commanded many votes in the House of Commons, directly or
indirectly — as Mr. Croker's list, previously given, partly shows. Great
efforts were therefore made to prevent the downright secession of his son.
Lord Lowther.]

8 T£[E CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
conversion of Peel seemed to all so impossible, that I am told
some of his guests did not believe it till they beard him read
the speech.
Feb. 5th. — Lowther is in great doubt what to do. Holmes
and I persuade him to do nothing — at least till events begin
to develop themselves.
Went to the House ; the thing went off very flatly — a very-
full House, which soon thinned. Peel only cheered by the
Opposition, as Canning used to be in 1827. I said this great
mystery had burst like a bubble and not like a shell.
Feb. 7th. — Dined at the Speaker's-^full dress dinner. This,
the Speaker's first dinner, consists of all Privy Councillors in
the House of Commons holding office, and of the Lords and
Secretaries of the Treasury, and the Attorney and Solicitor-
General. The next day (generally Sunday) is for the Privy
Councillors and leading men in Opposition. The third (the
Saturday week) is for .the official members, not Privy Coun
cillors or only Privy Councillors in Ireland, and a few leading
men of the Government side. I had dined nineteen years at
this last dinner, and had almost survived all my first associates
at it, who had been called up to the first dinner. General
Phipps is, I believe, the only one left who had dined at this
dinner in January, 1810. He is now alone, as I am come to
the Privy Councillors' table. What an empty name is that
of Privy Councillor, but as long as public opinion designates
it as an honourable step, pubhc men must consider it so tool
I am an instance of this ; I had formerly dechned it, and
at last I accepted it, fully aware of its inanity, only because
people told me that not to be a Privy Councillor would look
like degradation.
Our dinner was dull enough, and I was in bad spirits.
I sat between the Solicitor and Dawson. Peel made a joke
about old CoUett,* who, not knowing Peel's conversion, had
written to him to say that he was hastening up to support the
good old Protestant cause. This gaiety shows that Peel is
sincere and cordially converted, but in a moment he seemed
to recollect himself, and looked very grave and almost dis
composed at his own mirth, and sat silent and frowning the
rest of the evening. The Attorney-General made a wry
face at Peel's merriment. It is, it seems, doubtful whether
he will not resign. I slept at the Admiralty.
* [Mr. B. J. Collett, M.P. for Cashel.]

1829.] TIIE CATHOLIC QUESTION. 9
Feb. 9th. — Saw Pool, who bogged of mo to iiisoiL in tlie
Courier, as from myself, his letter to the Vice-Chaiicellor of
Oxford; he was induced to do this by the rejiort which had
got abroad that his resignation was conditional, and, of course,
liable to a suspicion of insincerity. I did so, and sent with
it a few complimentary words, but in the character of the
editor. Cooke and Murray bring me accounts, from very different
classes of society, of Peel's — and even the Duke's — loss of
character, and the possibility of the measure failing after all.
Lowther is still very reluctant to stay in ; he showed nie
a long explanatory letter wliich the Duke has written to the
Duke of Rutland, and of which he had sent copies to the
other grandees, and amongst the rest to Lord Lonsdale. Lord
Lonsdale's answer was that he could not pledge himself. The
Duke of WelUngton's letter concludes by saying that, if the
Duke of Rutland and the otlier great interests would not
support him he would resign, " for he would not be left at the
mercy of the rump of the Whigs and Mr. Canning." The last
sentences are written in his familiar, not to say homely,
style. Feb. IQth. — Cathohc Association Suppression Bill in the
House ; no great interest about it ; more on the Kent
Petition. Sir Ed. Knatchbull spoke moderately and, as I
thought, fervently, in general for Peel, but he dropped a hint
that it was a pity that the conversion had not taken place in
Mr. Canning's time ; this threw Peel into, or gave him occa
sion to assume, a fit of passion, in which he said that, once for
all, he declared he would give no further excuse for his
change. Fd>. 14:th. — Dined at the Duke of Wellington's to meet the
Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, with Lord, Lady, and
Lady G. Bathurst, Mr. and Mrs. Peel, Mr. and Lady C.
Greville, Mr. and Mrs. Arbuthnot, Lord Francis Leveson, Mr.
Goulburn, Lord Hill, Lord Corry, the Knight of Kerry, Arch
deacon Singleton (D. of N.'s private secretary), George
Dawson, Sir George Hill, Gerard Wellesley, and Capt. Wel
lesley. I sat between Peel and the Archdeacon ; for so great
a dinner it was tolerably pleasant. Peel told me a most
extraordinary story of the disappearance from South Shields
of a young apothecary's boy, and of its being proved that
Hare, the Edinburgh murderer, was at Shields at the time
under the name of the Country Bagman.

10 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
From another Diary kept by Mr. Croker.
Tuesday, Feb. 10th, 1829.— I called on the Duke of Wel
lington relative to a point connected with the Enghsh trans
ports which have brought the Portuguese emigrants back to
Brest. Before I could enter on this subject, he began, " Well,
Croker, here we are in another mess ! "
O.—l hope not. I think the present opposition to your
proposal will not be serious, though its consequences may.
D. — Oh, yes ; you may depend upon it — very serious even
now. Why, what a situation we were in the other night in
the Lords ! You in the Commons were better humoured, but
in the Lords we were sullen and sour, and if the Opposition
(I mean the old Opposition, the Whigs) had moved an
amendm,ent on any topic of the address — for instance,
Portugal — the Government would have been in a minority,
for a great body of our usual supporters would have voted
with them. The Whigs themselves saw this, and HoUand
afterwards told Aberdeen that this was the reason that he did
not push on the Portuguese question.
G. — I am very sorry to hear it ; it is lamentable to be thus
at the mercy of one's opponents ; but this wiU not last long.
D. — I hope not ; but I don't know. Depend upon it, we
shall have a hard battle to fight.
I then proceeded to ask his Grace, for my own private
guidance in the advice I might be called upon to give to
a friend of mine (Lord Lowther),* whether it was true that
his Grace had had a conversation with Lord Beresford, in
which he had told that Lord (what Lowther had just written
to tell me) that all persons holding office must vote with him
or retire.
D. — Why, you ask me a great secret — a question that
reaches the sanctum sanctorum ; but I will tell you that what
I said to Lord Beresford does not amount to what you state ;
but, even if it did, one's answer must depend on the kind of
person who speaks to you. There are people who, if you
allow them any loophole, will indulge their own vanity or
prejudices to any extent, and if I were not to show a deter
mined resolution where should I be ? If those in my rear
have any excuse for slipping away, how can I meet the
* [Lord Lowther was then Commissioner of Land Revenue. He did
not resign, but voted against the Catholic Bill.]

1829.] LORD LOWTHER AND TIIE MINISTRY. 11
enemy in front ? Besides how am I to bring down my house
hold troops if there is any wavering amongst a class of my
ofiicial men ? But Bankes could tell you that I acted to him,
whom I knew to be quite sincere, in a different spirit from
that attributed to me. I begged of him not to resign. I
asked liim to wait a little for events, to see what I meant to
do, and what line other people might take. For God's sake
advise your friend not to resign, and, at all events, not to do
so without coming to me. I shall be glad to have the fullest
explanation with him, but, at all events, let him not resign,
and beg of him not to speak about his intentions. Men
speak to their private friends or their mistresses, and get
heated as they talk, and pledge themselves so deep that they
create a new point of honour to be got over. No, no ; he
must not resign ; send him to me — that is, advise him before
he takes any step to come and talk to me, which in fairness
he ought, I think, to do. People, I hear, complain most of
the surprise ; but how could I tell them what I did not know
myself ? how could I speak to any man till I was in possession
of the King's final determination ?
We then proceeded to talk of the Portuguese subject. Lord
Aberdeen had come in during the latter part of the preceding
conversation, and on the Portuguese question the Duke adopted
his suggestions.
Feb. 16th. — I saw the Duke this morning in consequence of
a letter I had just received from Lord H., which seemed to
press Lord Douro's return for Aldbro'. As the Duke had
several people waiting to see him, 1 hastened to put an end
to my visit when I had said what I came to say, but he had
a mind to talk to me, and twice called me back. The only
thing in our chat, however, of any importance was his saying,
" You see the Duke of Cumberland is come ; this is an
increase of my difficulties."
C.—lt may be a little troublesome at Windsor, but can have
no effect on the country.
D. — Oh, yes ; at Windsor and everywhere we shall have
these horrid Hbels in public and all manner of intrigues in
private. In short, I assure you 'tis a great annoyance !
Tuesday, March 10th. — I called on the Duke of Wellington
to show him an extract from the first speech he ever made in
Parliament on seconding the address in 1793, and supporting
the Catholic concession of that day. He seemed to have
totally forgotten it, and Peel, to whom I showed it last night,

12 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
had never seen it. As it supports the Duke's present course,
and justifies his consistency, I mean to read it if I get a fit
occasion in the course of these debates, and did not like to do
so without apprising the Duke.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. February 2nd, 1829.
The information which I sent you three days ago is con
firmed and now pubhc. The King's Speech is to recommend
the consideration of Cathohc Emancipation. People in the
streets say that they cannot beheve this as long as Peel
remains in office, and those who do not love him talk very
harshly of him in the supposition of his consenting to stay
after, they say, the reiterated pledges he has given to the
contrary : but he will stay. I can say nothing as to terms
and conditions, but they are of no consequence ; " il n'y a qu^
le premier pas' qui coute," the first concedes all, and any
securities or restrictions can have no effect, but to make the
dose a little rnore palatable. You can have no idea what a
hubbub it has made, and it will be ten times greater when it
is known, as it will be to-morrow, that P. consents. Some
say that his consent will not bind Goulburn. I have no such
notion. P. would not stay if any man, high or low, goes out
upon it ; at least such is my opinion of his high sensitiveness
to public opinion. I should not like to write to you how
folks talk of his supposed conversion, but aU minor difficulties
and personal considerations will be lost in the magnitude of
the question itself. March 28th and 31st.
Old Eldon was four hours with the King one day last week
under the pretence of presenting petitions. I know that
this has given yreat umbrOge to Ministers, but be assured it
will and can come to nothing.
The Cathohc Rehef Bill was passed at 4 o'clock this
morning— 320 to 142, majority, 178, being, pro ratione totius
numeri, the greatest majority we have had, though by a few
the smallest in actual numbers. The debate was exceedingly
dull. Wetherell was absurd as usual. The Duke of New
castle's great Mr. Sadler * fell to nothing : the best speech of
the night was our friend Vesey's.
* [Michael Sadler, M.P. for Newark— a violent Anti-Catholic]

1829.] CATHOLIC RELIEF BILL. 13
The Duke of Cumberland and the Duke of Wellington are
irreconcileable — the former talks violently of the latter, wlio,
though he does not talk, is not in his debt, I fancy, as to
what he thinks of H.R.II. Something more than mere politics
seems to have supervened.
The pubhc ferment is subsiding fast, and, by the time you
return, all will be quiet, except the exasperated feelings of
disappointed pohticians. The public will have forgotten the
Catholics as completely as they have the Dissenters.
The hatred which the Duke of Cumberland had for the
Duke of Wellington has been made known to the public
of late years by the publication of the Wellington papers
and other works. The Duke of Cumberland tried hard to
set the King, his brother, against the Prime Minister, and
insisted always upon calling him " King Arthur." " Between
the King and his brother," wrote the Duke of Wellington,
"it is next to impossible to govern this country." The
King's shifty course in reference to the Emancipation Bill,
which upon one occasion (the 3rd of March) led the heads of
the Ministry to resign, was mainly instigated by the Duke
of Cumberland. The Duke renewed his efforts to wreck the
Welhngton Ministry when the Bdl was sent to the Lords, but
without much success. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. April 9th, 1829.
The thing is over, and well over — a majority of 105 in the
Lords has astonished friends and foes and will make Windsor
as Popish as Downing Street. The Bill has gone through the
Committee of Lords with two nights' debate, but without a
single amendment, and on some bye-topics there were two
divisions — 135 to 64, and 113 to 14 ! Winchilsea has de
clared that he wUl never come into the House of Lords again,
and the D. of C, I am told, declares that as soon as the Bill
shall be law he will leave England /or ever. The public mind
is much more composed, and the mob are much more inclined
to cheer the Duke and Peel than their antagonists.

14 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
I dined yesterday with the Lord Mayor, having previously
attended Peel's inauguration as a freeman of London, in
Guildhall ; the thing looked handsome, but, literally, the
room was better than the company — Lord Nugent, Joe Hume,
and such like were, except office men, the most distinguished
of the company. We are not yet quite right — our aristocracy
still stands sullenly aloof — but things improve, and after
Easter I think the Duke will have reunited the great body
of his scattered forces. April 16th.
The Emancipation Bill has received the Royal Assent.
Till the Commission actually arrived, which it did not till
near 3 o'clock, there was an expectation that the King would
still refuse his assent, and the Whigs, so inveterate is that
party in absurd speculation, were actually thinkuig that they
were coming into office. I have, however, always told
you how it would be. The K  could do nothing but
submit. But to show you how reluctant he was, I need only
repeat to you what Peel said to me the day the Royal Assent
was given — " Well, the Bill has now passed its last and Ttwst
difficult stage." May 7th.
Our only news since I wrote last was Anglesey's motion
relative to his recall, by which, as the lawyers say, he took
nothing. But there was a curioils incident in the debate.
A. stated that he had the King's authority to read his and
the Duke's letters; the Duke, on the authority of H.M.,
contradicted this point blank. A. repeated it, and no one
doubts how the fact was — but it was very awkward to have
the King thus made a pivot for contradictory assertions.
The D., however, was on velvet, for he had two or three
witnesses on his side, viz., the Chancellor and Lord Aberdeen,
who, as well as one other person, were present when he
received H.M.'s assurance. We hear that this vexes H.M.,
which is no wonder ; but he is chiefly vexed with A. There
are those who whisper that A. was set on by the Duke of
Cumberland in hopes of embarrassing W. There can be no
doubt that the two Dukes are mortal foes. I need not tell
you which will be finally victorious — but H.RH.'s unexpected
stay here, and his now announced intention of bringing
over his Duchess and his son, give some uneasiness.
We have had a division on East Retford, strong enough to

1829.] CATHOLIC EMANCIPATION. 15
set us at our ease on that point. I cannot but think tliat we
are in the wrong, and that the best way of averting a worse
and wider reform would be to transfer the franchise to Bir
mingham, Manchester, and Leeds, as cases of flagrant C(3r-
ruption may arise in the small boroughs ; but, involved as we
have unluckily been, in this question, we have no option as a
party but to go on. People in the street say that the D. of
W. looks very ill— I see him too often to observe the change,
if there be any.
The old Duchess of Richmond had a number of stuffed
rats under glass cases on her drawing-room table, to which
Her Grace affixed the names of all the apostates — and I
forget whether I told you that some one, equally wise and
witty, had conveyed a live rat into the House of Lords and
let liim loose during one of the last debates; but the
pleasantry failed, for the poor little beast soon found a corner
to hide himself in. From the Diary.
March 4dh. — The Ministers, that is the Chancellor, D. of
W., and Peel, are gone down to Windsor to-day on a sudden
summons which arrived very late last night. The King is in
great perplexity about this Catholic question. He is, I have
no doubt, sincerely distressed : he told me in 1810 that he
was as good a Brunswicker (the first time I think I ever
heard the word) as his father. His connexion with the
opposition made the world believe that he had adopted their
Cathohc pohtics, but it is not so.
March 5th. — The Ministers came home last night out of
office, but during the night more prudent counsels prevailed
at Windsor, and a messenger arrived to-day with the King's
acquiescence in the measure which, therefore. Peel will open
this morning.
A member, presenting a petition from certain inhabitants
of Dubhn, alluded to the College, and Mr. North took him up,
which obliged me to say something. I find that from want
of practice or growing old,* or both, I have lost a good deal
* [There are other references in Mr. Croker's letters about this time to
his growing old. He was only in his forty-ninth year, and had still
twenty-eight years of life before him. As for his power of speaking, it
was universaUy admitted that he never acquitted himself with so much
credit as a Parliamentary debater as in the Reform debates of 1830-32.]

16 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
of my power of speaking. I do not see my arguments clear
before me and I think I hesitate for a word, which I formerly
never did. Nothing can be well done without pains and
practice, and I neglect both. It is strange enough, but I have
no ambition that way. I have remained too long in
subordinate office to think of parliamentary eminence.
March 1 8 </^.— While I was at breakfast the Bishop of
Ferns arrived on a visit to me. I am afraid he is come on
the project, we have heard of, of the Irish Bishops' waiting
on the King in a body to urge him to refuse his consent to the
Commission. We battled a little good humouredly about the
Catholic question, the time and manner of which I dislike as
much as he does, but I am still more afraid of a dissolution
of the great Church and King party, which is almost certain
to follow any serious split on this unhappy occasion. I have
.been all my life friendly to Emancipation till this moment,
when I fear it is too late to conciliate the Catholics, and is
sure to alienate the Protestants ; what was denied to reason
and policy is surrendered to intimidation.
The only other public measure to which reference is made
in the letters of this year was the formation of the new
Metropolitan Police Force, upon the proposition of Mr. Peel.
It is difficult now to believe that down to the year 1829 the
public should have been contented with the guardianship
afforded them by a few decrepit and broken-down parochial
watchmen, swaddled up in great coats and endless capes,
carrying with them a large lantern so that they could be seen
from afar, and a thick stick to knock upon the pavement so
that they could be heard, and passing the night, as a rule, in
the seclusion of their own watch-boxes. The present genera
tion know of the watchmen only from caricatures or scenes in
old farces, and yet all London managed to get on with them
as its sole police force — aided by the professional " thief-taker,"
of whom Jonathan Wild was a type — down to the approach of
the Reform era. It is true that robberies multiplied, and that
the streets were not safe after dark ; but no system to super
sede the employment of the parish watchman seems to have

1829.] PEEL'S NEW POLICE. 17
been suggested by any official or member of a Govornmout
until Mv. Peel established a day patrol, and followed it up
by laying the foundation of our jiresent police force. It
was not till some time afterwards that the new policeman was
seen in the metropolis or in the provinces, for at first the
popular prejudice agxiinst the force was very great. Frequently
when the constables made their appearance, they were hooted
and insulted, mobs following them cryuig out "crusher,"
" raw lobster," " Bobbies," and " Peelers." The last-two nick
names were derived, of course, from the founder of the force,
and they have probably done more to perpetuate the name of
Peel in the popular mind than the measures by which he
hoped to be remembered, the chief credit for which has
since been popularly assigned to Mr. Cobden and Mr. Bright.
For one person among the bulk of the people who thinks of
Sfr Robert Peel in connection with the Corn Laws, a thousand
have his memory recalled, however faintly, by the famihar
designation of " Peeler," which the policeman has never
shaken off, and which is now apphed to him in a friendly
sense rather than in ridicule.
Mr. Croker took a hearty interest tn the new project, and
offered some suggestions to Mr. Peel with regard to the pay
of the force and its dress. The uniform was at first intended
to be of red and gold, but blue was fortunately chosen instead.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Peel. September 28th, 1829.
Dear Peel,
Having my pen in my fingers to writp an address to you, I
cannot refrain from saying that I find a general opinion pre
vailing that your pohcemen are not paid sufficiently. Three
shillings a day for men capable of even reading, to say nothing
of understanding and executing the printed instructions seems
wholly inadequate. Every artisan has five- shillings a day,
VOL. II. c

18 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
and can you expect to have higher and more laborious duties
done for (considering the deductions) about one-half the rate
of a common workman's wages ? It reminds me of Lady
Hervey's hon mot, when some one of her friends was com
plaining to her of the badness of servants, and enumerating
the faults of a footman. " Why, my dear," said Lady Hervey,
" the truth is that you expect all the virtues under Heaven
for 20^. a year." If you resolve to stick to 3s. a day as a
minimum, at least you should have a higher rate to which
good service and good conduct might hope to rise. Suppose
you said that every man who should serve five years with
approbation should have 4s., and he who should serve ten
years 5s. a day. This would, I think, answer the double pur
pose of encouraging good conduct, and of enabling you to get
trustworthy men at first, for men might be had at 3s., with a
prospect of 4s. and 5s., who would not look at it without some
such hope.
Your prospect of promotion by vacancy is not enough,
because at most the promotion can be but decimal, even as to
the sergeant's rank, and to the higher ranks the prospect
must be so remote as to be almost ineffective. Baffen calcu
lates that a chance of ten thousand to one is absolutely no
chance at all. I do not know what the odds are against any
individual constable rising to be an inspector, but I am satis
fied it must be too remote to have any strong efi'ect on minds
so little susceptible of regulated and calculated feelings as
those which you can hope to hire at 3s. a day. Let me add
one other consideration. The carpenter or mason who earns
5s. a day does so by about ten hours' work, and with liberty to
live where he pleases, with occasional holydays, the society
of his family, the enjoyment of his club, the periodical and
certain recurrence of his Sunday's recreation. Your 3s. a day
man is to be on duty, that is, in requisition for duty, the
whole twenty-four hours ; his duty is in the night, and with
out shelter in bad weather, or society in fine ; he must reside
where he is ordered ; he can have no recreation ; in short, as
they say of a broom that it is dirty to keep other things clean,
your constable must live in a state of perpetual trouble, labour,
and disquiet that other folks may enjoy their rest. Can this
be expected from competent persons at 3s. a day ?
I know that soldiers and sailors have but a shilling, but I
will not waste our time by showing you how fallacious such
an analogy is. Depend upon it, your present rate will uot

1829.] THE PAY OF THE POLICE. 10
answer, and you must by some moans or other contrive to
improve your scale. Yours, my dear Peel, most sincerely,
J. W. C.
Mr. Peel to Mr. Croker.
Whitehall, October 10th, 1829.
My deak Ckokee,
Thanks for your suggestions in regard to the Metropolitan
Pohce. When I fixed the present rate of pay, I fixed it under an
impression that it might be necessary to raise it, but I felt
quite sure that it would be much easier to raise than to reduce
the rate of pay. I cannot say that the short experience I
have hitherto had has confirmed my first impression. I will
not as yet speak decidedly on the point, but I am very far
from being prepared to admit that the improvement of the
situation of a common pohce constable by the giving him
more money, would increase the efficiency ofthe estabhshment.
I have above 2000 apphcations for the appointment at the
present rate of pay (this no doubt is a very bad test, if it were
the only one). Every man who has been dismissed or has
resigned, has with scarcely an exception petitioned for rein
statement. I do not again rely much upon this.
I must first consider what is the class of man I want ; and
secondly, wiU the rate of pay maintain the proper respecta-
bihty of that class ?
No doubt three shillings a day will not give me all the virtues
under heaven, but I do not want them. Angels would be far
above my work. Looking at the duties I want to be per
formed, I am not at all sure whether (all considerations of
expense being put out of the question) three or four shillings
a day will not ensure their performance in a much better
manner then ten or twelve would. I have refused to employ
gentlemen — commissioned officers, for instance — as superin
tendents and inspectors, because I am certain they would be
above their work. They would refuse to associate with other
persons holding the same offices who were not of equal rank,
and they would therefore degrade the latter in the eyes of
the men.
A sergeant of the Guards at 200/. a year is a better man
c 2

20 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
for my purpose than a captain of high military reputation if he
would serve for nothing, or if I could give him a thousand a
year without entaihug a fresh charge. For somewhat similar
reasons, a three shilling a day man is better than a five
shilling a day man.
After all, however, the real question is— how will_ three
shillings a day support a man ? I speak as yet hesitatingly ;
but I have good reasons for thinking that one of my pohce
constables, if a single man, can find out of his pay of a guinea a
week : (1) lodgings, (2) medical attendance, (3) very comfort
able subsistence at his mess, (4) clothing; and can, after
finding these, save out of his pay ten shillings a week.
Now, I think the policy of enabling him to save more
is questionable. However, the impressions under which I
am at present writing are liable to be varied by further
experience. I must add to the number of the pohce for the present
district. I must say that it has worked much better in the
first fortnight than I could have expected.
Ever most faithfully yours, RoBEKT Peel.
Before passing from the subject of the New Pohce, it will
be desirable to quote another letter, which helps to reveal an
important side of Mr. Croker's character, little known or little
regarded by his assailants. Even after this interval of time,
there is an interest in knowing that his kind-hearted appli
cation was successful.
My dear Peel,
I was some months ago moved by a tale of woe to get a
man (of whom I knew, and indeed still know nothing, but
the said tale and repetition thereof) some employment, which
produces him about 10s. a week. On this he and his wife
and children have starved for nearly a year, and he has now
asked me to recommend him for one of the places in the New
Police. I told him point blank I would not, but since I did
so, my heart has relented ; and I have persuaded myself that
I ought to endeavour to relieve the kind of misery, which I
myself think the greatest of all, namely, that of a man of

1829.] ADVICE ABOUT NEWSPAPERS. 21
some education, and of once good prospects, reduced to
penury. The man has no more claim on me than I have on you ;
and I took liim in hand from the same motive that imiy
uidiice you to do him some good if you have a vacancy —
mere charity ; for, as I said before, I know nothing of him but
his distress, and his decent appearance and conduct while
strugghng with poverty. His name is Frederick W  he
is six feet one or two inches high — about thirty years of age —
was a bookseller and is now a pauper. If you can place him
in your Pohce, he seems to mo fit to be useful in such a
station — but if you have any difficulty, say so at once, for he
has no hope that I should apply. Yours ever,
J. W. C.
Mr. Croker became engaged this year in a literary project
of considerable importance, to which more particular refer
ence will presently be made. But he was also entreated
to join in the effort to establish a new paper, and this drew
from him a long and exceedingly practical letter. It will be
observed that he hints at the suggestion that one member of
a Cabinet shoidd undertake to " instruct " the press properly.
His predictions as to the power of journahsm, in Parliament
and out of it, have been more than verified.
Mr. Croker to Mr. J. Planta. August 21st, 1829.
It is not everybody that can write for the newspapers : the
latter is an art, perhaps I should better say a knack, which
one man has in a greater degree than another, as one man
will beat another at picquet, who, en revanche, will beat him
at whist. If, as some critics say, it is harder to write a good
epigram than an epic, why should there not be different
powers required for writing a paragTaph and a pamphlet ?
Believe me, the fact is so : the talent may be as small a one
as you choose to call it, but it is one sui generis. Mr.
Bayley's " Butterfiy " is a mere trifle, but Southey could no

22 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
more have written it than Bayley could have written " Tha-
laba." A short, terse, epigrammatic style, both of thought and
expression, is what produces most effect in a newspaper,
where people do not expect didactic or dialectic essays, and
where indeed they will not read them. The style which I
have heard called coup de marteau (not the hammering style)
is, I think, the best ; but clever men in this walk, as in
others, have their own pecuhar gait. When you have
got a clever man, he will let you see his pecuhar manner ;
but pray do not think that every writer can be a paragraph
writer. I now come to the great difficulty of all. I suppose you to
have a good paper open to you, and a capital hand to work ;
how is he to be supplied with materials ? He cannot make
bricks without straw. How is he to know the line to be
taken ? You yourself will often not know. For instance,
if /, an old, and as some of the gentlemen of the press
used to think, a good hand, pretty high in office, not inatten
tive to the state of Europe, had been obliged to answer the
article in the Morning Journal which you sent me, I should
not have known what to say. As to England and France, I
could perhaps have spoken pretty safely, but I have, upon
my honour, not the most distant guess of what turn it might
suit the position of our affairs to give to the observations on
Spain, Portugal, Russia, Turkey, or Prussia. No one but a
member of the Cabinet could do this safely and completely —
not that if a Cabinet Minister were to hold the pen, he need
tell State secrets, but he alone would thoroughly understand
the case, and know what to avoid, what to hint, what to deny,
when to leave folks in their errors, and when to open the
real views of the Government. I have heretofore conveyed
to the pubhc articles written by Prime and Cabinet Ministers,
and sometimes have composed such articles under their eye —
they supplied the fact, and I suppUed the tact, and between
us we used to produce a considerable effect. In a Cabinet
like ours, surely there might be one person who could find
leisure for this sort of supervision, if not for some more
direct co-operation. If anything of this kind were practi
cable, it ought to be done in the most profound secrecy,
and every possible precaution against even a suspicion, should
be taken, and the Minister who should undertake it, and
you his conveyancer, as Junius calls it, should throw in
here and there, such a slight mixture of error or apparent

1829.] OFFICIAL AID TO THE PRESS. 23
ignorance, as should obviate suspicion of its coming from so
high a source.
But I fear it is impossible to hope that a Cabinet Minister
could be permitted, or found willing to undertake this
delicate task, though, soit dit en passant, the times are gone
by when statesmen might safely despise the journals, or only
treat them as inferior engines, which might be left to them
selves, or be committed to the guidance of persons wholly
unacquainted with the views of the Ministry. There is a
prodigious change now in progress aU throughout Europe in
tliis particular; the French Journals are edited by Peers,
Privy Councillors, and Deputies, and see the result — they are
undoubtedly at this moment the best written and the most
effective body of pohtical hterature that ever existed. Our
papers are now very poorly done, by needy adventurers ; yet
in what a style they are written, and what effect do they
produce? The example of France will soon be contagious,
and we shall see men of liigh hopes and attainments con
ducting journals, and obtaining, at last, through their hterary
character, seats in the House of Commons. Depend upon it,
ah tliis is coming ; and the day is not far distant when you
wUl (not see, nor hear), but know that there is some one in
the Cabinet entrusted with what will be thought one of the
most important duties of the State, the regulation of public
opinion. When I used to write, as I did with some effect, for a few
seasons, I Hved altogether with my pohtical friends ; I knew
what was doing, and what ought to be said — they helped me
and some persons, by contagion, became writers, ay, and
admirable ones too, who never expected to see a hne of their
penning in print. I had disciples who, like the pupil of
Pietro Perugino, eclipsed their master. The success of that
period, of which I was an humble though an active agent, was
so complete that it turned the press — I mean the prepon
derating force of the press — right round ; the Government
had the voice of the Journals, and the Opposition (what had,
I beheve, never before happened in the history of Enghsh
parties) — the Opposition complained loudly of the licentious
ness of the press ; which only meant that they were no longer
able to wield it exclusiveiy to their own purposes.
You may ask me why / cannot take up my old pen again ?
I answer, first because it is an old one, and that the hand
that used to guide it is grown old too ; and that the mind that

24 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
used to prompt it is grown not only old, but indolent — not
to say dispirited. " Solve senescentem mature sanus equum, ne
Peccet ad extremum ridendus, et ilia ducat " —
that is the honest truth.
The project in which Mr. Croker actually embarked was
that of producing a new edition of Boswell's ' Johnson,' first
proposed in a conversation with Mr. Murray on the 8th of
January, 1829. The idea was taken up and acted upon with
business-like despatch. On the 9th, Mr. Croker unfolded his
plans a little more in detail than he had been able to do by word
of mouth, and when Mr. Murray received his letter, late at
night, he sat down to answer it at " a quarter to twelve."
He offered one thousand guineas for the work. In less than
five days, Mr. Croker had gone into his task with his usual
energy and heartiness, writing letters to all his friends who
were likely to be of any service to him, and laying out all his
plans on the most careful and comprehensive scale. The
objects which he wished to accomplish are best set forth in
his own words. Mr. Croker to Mr. Murray. January 9th, 1829.
Dear Murray,
You received so warmly my hint about a new edition of
Boswell's ' Life of Johnson ' that I have given the subject a
little more consideration.
Since Boswell's death, Mr. Malone has superintended two
or three editions, and Mr. Chalmers one ; but I must say
that Malone has done little and Chalmers next to nothing. I
made in one volume of Boswell's own edition near eighty
queries on so many passages which ^eemed to me to require
elucidation. On looking at those passages in Malone's and
Chalmers' last edition, I found but one in which even an
attempt at explanation was made. Anecdotes which we now

1829.] NEW EDITION OF 'BOS WELL.' 25
know (aliunde) to relate to Burko, Sheridan or Langton, aro
left in the vague of " an eminent orator " — " a young goiitlo-
man," or " a respectable friend ; " and I think I may say that
hardly a note has been added to throw any light on the
manners of the time, the state of societ}', or the character of
persons ; and, as Dr. Johnson himself said of the Spectator, a
thousand things which everybody knew at the time, have, in
the lapse of forty years, become so obscure as to require anno
tation. It is to be regTetted that Mr. Malone did not apply
himself to this line of explanation — he could have done, with
little trouble, what will cost a great deal to any man now
h\'ing. I know not whether there is any man who could now
hope to do it well ; but I am also satisfied that I should, at
this day, do it better than any man, however clever or well
informed, will be able to do it twenty years hence.
But there is another improvement of which I think a new
edition susceptible. Boswell published after Sir J. Hawkins
and Mrs. Piozzi, and was in enmity with both. He, therefore,
was shy of them, and unwUhng to borrow their information ;
and as Boswell's materials were chiefly furnished by his own
annual visits, of a few weeks each, to London, his work
naturally omits a great many curious and entertaining cir
cumstances which occurred in the intervals of his visits, and
it gives therefore an imperfect and desultory view of Johnson's
social life and conversations ; this might be remedied by
introducing into their proper places, or under their proper
dates, such extracts from Hawkins or Piozzi as may be worth
preserving — they should form part of the text, with, however,
a distinguishing mark. The anecdotical and journal-like
form of BosweU's book renders such interpolations compara
tively easy, and not in any degree injurious to the general
style. I should not absolutely exclude all anecdotes from
other sources ; but I should admit any such with great caution.
Boswell had examined Hawkins's and Piozzi's publications
not merely with critical but with hostile accuracy, and we
may be satisfied tliat whatever he did not contradict he
believed to be correct, and I would admit no anecdote which
should not be authenticated in a similar manner by the
evidence or acquiescence of Johnson's personal friends and
admirers. Such is my general view of the way the new edition should
be formed. I will add a word or two on the material or
mechanical part. The last edition is in 4 vols. 8vo., of aljout

26 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
450 pages each — the additions and annotations I compute
might extend to about 200 or 300 pages — it would be for you
to decide whether you would add a fifth volume, or increase
each of the four volumes by about 50 pages each.
As to time, I think I could engage to dehver the first
volume by the 1st of March, and one volume every five or
six weeks after, which is, I suppose, as fast as the printers
could work, and would enable you to pubhsh by the middle
of June.
If, however, there be any of your literary friends whose
greater leisure or better information would enable him to do
the work earlier or more satisfactorily, you are quite at
liberty to make use of my hints, and employ him to carry
them into effect. I shall be glad to see the thing done, but I
have no great desire to be the doer. So you are quite at
liberty on that point. Yours, dear Murray, very truly,
J. W. C.
Mr. Murray to Mr. Croker.
Albemarle Street, January 9th, 1829.
Dear Sir, Friday Night, 11.45.
Since writing to you in the afternoon, I have had time to
read and to consider your obliging communication, respecting
a new edition of Boswell's ' Life of Johnson,' with the atten
tion which it deserves. I entirely agree with the admirable
view which you take of this valuable work, and of the
unsatisfactory way in which it has been edited, and I feel
with you that if its omissions be left to a future age, it will be
impossible to supply them. I assure you that I know of no
person who could now supply what former editors have so
carelessly neglected, so well as yourself. You must be aware
that I bave long known how much your attention and time
have been engaged in the literary history of the period
(amongst others) to which this work refers — an .extraordinary
production which grows more valuable as it recedes from
the time in which it was first composed. I hope you will
point out the value of this biography, and the necessity which
there is for elucidating it now ; the readers of the present
day require this information, and it will be very useful to me
in offering the work to the public.
With regard to the business part, I should prefer pub-

1829.] NOTES TO 'BOSWELL.' 27
lishing (at least at first) the original work, with the insertions
and notes as proposed by you ; and for these additions, notes,
and editorship, I shall be happy to give, as something in tho
way of remuneration, the sum of one thousand guineas.
John Murray.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Murray. January 10th.
Dear Murray,
In reply to your letter of last night, which I received this
morning, allow me to say that your pecuniary terms are
offered in the same spirit of hberality (I had almost said of
prodigality) wliich has marked all your transactions of that
nature which have come to my knowledge. I, in return, am
bound to do all I can to make my work not unworthy of such
hberahty. From the first moment Mr. Croker apphed himself with
tireless dihgence to his new and interesting labours; and,
as all the world now admits, he brought together a store of
facts and elucidations which added much to the interest of
Boswell's pages, and which, but for him, would never have
been accessible to the pubhc. A part of the treasure he had
originally stored up was unfortunately lost by an accident
in the course of transmission through the post. Lord StoweU,
one of the few surviving contemporaries of Dr. Johnson, had
permitted Mr. Croker to take down from his dictation a
series of notes and recollections relating to his friend, and
had also undertaken to answer any questions that might
be referred to him. These notes were posted to Sir Walter
Scott. The mail containing them was robbed, and they
were never heard of again. The most searching inquiries
failed to bring to hght the least trace of the missing
packet, and Lord Stowell had declined too much in health
to be approached again on the subject. This loss was
always deeply regretted by Mr. Croker. As he said in
his preface to the book, .no man alive had received and

28 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
despatched more letters than he had done, and none had ever
miscarried. But a vast mass of material still remained, for
Mr. Croker left no stone unturned to find it. The descendants
or connections of friends of Dr. Johnson,, such as Bennet
Langton, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Dr. Strahan came forward
with contributions ; and Sir Walter Scott, Isaac Disraeli, Sir
Henry Elhs, Lord Spencer, Lord Eldon, and many others
offered their help. Sir Walter Scott's notes, especially to the
' Tour in the Hebrides,' were most valuable.
Sir Walter Scott to Mr. Croker.* January 30th, 1829.
My dear Croker,
Your continued friendship and assistance on many occa
sions in life entitle you not to solicit, but to command,
anything in my power to aid your wishes ; and I am happy to
express my readiness to do all in my power, regretting only
that it is so much limited. I heard from Lockhart, who was
down here for a week, of your intentions, and rejoice to learn
from yourself that you are seriously set about adding to the
charms of the most entertaining book in the world. I doubt
my acquaintance with the most part of the book is too slight
to furnish annotations. I was, when it was pubhshed, a raw
young fellow, engrossing with the one hand and thumbing
the Institutes and Pandects of old Justinian with the other ;
little in the way of hearing any hterary conversation or anec
dotes. My little knowledge of London folks began long after
Johnson had gone to swill tea and speak sentences in the
Elysian shades. Among those who remember him in full
career, it might be worth while for you to speak to Northcote,
the artist who enlivened the weary operation of sitting to him
last spring by telling many anecdotes of Johnson, Goldsmith,
Sir Joshua, and the original set. I may have made some
remarks on the book, but I rather doubt it. It is now at
Abbotsford, but I will soon get in the volumes and look over
them with great satisfaction to take the chance of finding
* [This interesting letter is not in Lookhart's ' Life of Scott,' but many
of tho facts and anecdotes contained in it were used by Mr. Croker in
his edition of Boswell's 'Johnson.']

1820.] SIR WALTER .SCOTT'S NOTES. 29
anything useful. It occurred to Loolchart and me that your
task would roipiire )ou to repruit Jioswell's 'Tour in the
Hebrides,' for \\'Iucli 1 could find some curious illustrations.
Meantime, that I may not send an empty letter, I jot one or
two things down as they occur to me.
Miss Seward knew Johnson well, and mimicked him with
great effect. There was a story she told me with great power,
but I fear it will lose its zest by my decay of memory. It
respected the Sage's marriage with the widow Porter, the
mother of Miss Porter, to whom he was supposed to have
paid liis addresses in the first place. His own mother heard
the news with utter astonishment, and exclaimed against the
imprudence of the match. But Johnson chose to interpret
all her surprise into wonder that Mrs. Porter had listened to
his addresses, not astonishment that he should have paid
them. Without allowing her to explain herself, he proceeded
to assure her that he had been quite candid with the lady,
and had pointed out to her all the disadvantages attaching to
him. " I told her," he said, " that I was as poor as a rat, and
destitute of any settled profession ; that I was afflicted with
a disease wliich had left its stamp on my countenance ; that I
was blind and ugly, and moroever of a family which was dis
honoured by the execution of a near relative. She rephed
most candidly that all these drawbacks made no difference in
her choice ; that she was not much richer than myself, and
she was religiously resolved to trust to heaven's blessing and
my talents for a sufficient income ; that if I was unsightly,
she was no longer young, and it was not for my good looks
that she gave me a preference. Finally, that, although she
had not had an uncle who had been hanged, yet she enjoyed
the relationship of more than one near relative who richly
deserved it." Poor Mrs. Johnson, astonished to hear the match
represented as much more [less ?] unfavourable to her son
than the widow Porter, was fain to abandon her maternal
remonstrance. By-the-bye, the fate of this unhappy uncle,
who seems to have been
" The man to thieves and bruisers dear,
Who kept the ring in Smithfield half a year,"
is said to have taken place at Dumfries circuit in Scotland.
Old Dr. McNicol touches on the circumstance in his remarks
on Johnson's ' Tour in the Hebrides.' He observes that the
Doctor has said a tree is as great a rarity in Scotland as

30 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
a horse in Venice. " I know nothing about this," says the
Highland commentator, " as I do not know the numbers of
the Venetian cavalry. But I am much mistaken if a near
relative of the Doctor's at no remote date had not some reason
given to beheve that a tree was not quite so great a rarity."
This story, if true, adds some faith to the report that
Johnson's grandfather (like the grandfather of Rare Ben) was
actuaUy an Annandale Johnstone who altered the spelling of
his name, euphoniee gratia, or to Anghcize it. Do not you,
however, go to establish this tradition if you are afraid of
ghosts, for spirits can be roused ; old Samuel will break his
cerements at the idea of being proved a Scotchman.
Old Lord Auchinleck was an able lawyer, a good scholar,
after the manner of Scotland, and highly valued his own
advantages as a man of good estate and ancient family, and
moreover, he was a strict Presbyterian and Whig of the old
Scottish cast, videlicet a friend to the Revolution and the
Protestant line. This did not prevent his being a terribly
proud aristocrat, and great was the contempt he entertained
and expressed for his son James for the nature of his friend
ships, and the character of the personages of whom he was
en^/oue one after another. " There's nae hope for Jamie, man,"
he said to a friend ; " Jamie is gaen clean gyte. What do
you think, man ? He's done wi' Paoli ; he's off wi' the
land-louping scoundrel of a Corsican ; and whase tail do you
think he has pinned himself to now, man ?"— here the old
judge summoned up a sneer of most sovereign contempt —
" a dominie, man^ — an auld dominie. He keepit a schule,
and caa'd it an acaadamy ! " Probably if this had been
reported to Johnson he would have felt it more galling, for
he never much liked to think of that period of hfe when he
was one of the educating individuals, as Sir John Sinclair
calls them. Besides, he must have been fretted by Lord
Auchinleck's Whiggery and Presbyterianism. These he
carried to such an unusual height that once, when a
countryman came in to state some justice busmess, and
being required to make his oath, declined to do so before
his Lordship because he was not a covenanted magistrate.
" Is that a' your objection, man 1 " said the judge. " Come
your ways in here, and we'll baith of us tak' the solemn
league and covenant together." The oath was accordingly
signed and sworn to by both, and I dare say it was the last
time it ever received such homage. You may guess how

1829.] ANECDOTES OF DR. JOHNSON. 31
far Lord Auchinlock, such as I describe him, was likely to
suit a high Tory and Episcopalian like Johnson. I have
heard that Bozzy, when he brought Johnson to Auchinleck,
conjured him by all the ties of regard, and in requital of the
services he had rendered him upon his tour, that he would
spare two subjects in tenderness to his father's prejudices.
The first related to Sir John Pringle, President of the Royal
Society, about whom there was some dispute then current ;
the second concerned the general question of Whig and Tory.
Samuel was not in the house an hour before both the depre
cated topics had been touched upon. , I have forgot what
passed about Sir Jolm Pringle, but the controversy between
Tory and Covenanter raged with great fury and ended in
Jolmson pressing upon the old judge the question. What
good Cromwell, of whom he had said something mitigatory,
had ever done to his country, when, after being much tor
tured. Lord Auchinleck at last spoke out : " Why, Doctor !
he gar'd kings ken that they had a lith in their neck." He
taught kings they had a joint in their neck. Jamie then set
to staving and tailing between his father and the philosopher,
and availing himself of his father's sense of hospitality,
which was punctilious, reduced the debate to more order.
At Glasgow Johnson had a meeting with Smith (Adam
Smith), which terminated strangely. John Mdlar used to
report that Smith, obviously much discomposed, came into
a party who were playing at cards. The Doctor's appearance
suspended the amusement, for as all knew he was to meet
Johnson that evening, every one was curious to hear what
had passed. Adam Smith, whose temper seemed much
ruffled, answered only at first, "He is a brute! he is a
brute ! " Upon closer examination it appeared that Dr.
Johnson no sooner saw Smith than he brought forward
a charge against him for something hi his famous letter on the
death of Hume. Smith said he had vindicated the truth of
the statement. " And what did the Doctor say ? " was the
universal query : " Why, he said — he said — " said Smith,
with the deepest impression of resentment, " he said — ' You
lie ! ' " " And what did you reply 1 " "I said, ' You are a son of
a b  h ! ' " On such terms did these two great moralists meet
and part, and such was the classic dialogue betwixt them.
Johnson's rudeness possibly arose from his retaining till
late in life the habits of a pedagogue, who is a man among
boys and a boy among men, and having the bad taste to

82 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
think it more striking to leap over the little differences
and courtesies which form the turnpike gates in society,
and which fly open on payment of a trifling tribute.
The auld Dominie hung vilely about him, and was visible
whenever he was the coaxed man of the company — a sad
symptom of a parvenu. A lady who was stdl handsome
in the decline of years, and must have been exquisitely
beautiful when she was eighteen, dined in company with
Johnson, and was placed beside him at table with no little
awe of her neighbour. He then always drank lemonade,
and the lady of the house desired Miss S  h to acquaint
him there was some on the sideboard. He made no answer
except an- indistinct growl. " Speak louder. Miss S  h,
the Doctor is deaf" Another attempt, with as little success.
" You do not speak loud enough yet, my dear Miss S  h."
The lady then ventured to raise her voice as high as misses
of eighteen may venture in the company of old doctors,
and her description of the reply was that she heard an
internal grumbling hke Etna before explosion, which rolled
up his mouth, and there formed itself into the distinct words,
" When I want any, I'll ask for it," which were the only
words she heard him speak during the day. Even the sirup
food of flattery was rudely repelled if not cooked to his mind.
I was told that a gentleman called Pot, or some such name,
was introduced to him as a particular admirer of his. The
Doctor growled and took no further notice. " He admires in
especial your ' Irene ' as the finest tragedy of modern times,"
to which the Doctor replied, " If Pot says so, Pot lies ! " and
relapsed into his reverie.
I do not think there is anything to be had at Auchinleck.
The late Sir Alexander was a proud man, and, like his grand
father, thought that his father lowered himself by his
deferential suit and service to Johnson. I have observed he
disliked any allusion to the book or to Johnson himself, and
I have heard that Johnson's fine picture by Sir Joshua was
sent up-stairs out of the sittmg apartments at Auchinleck.
In these circumstances, he was not likely to write notes on
the volume. Sir Alexander differed from his father in many
particulars ; he was a very high-spirited man, whereas in
James's veins the blood of Bruce flowed faintly and sluggishly,
though he boasted so much of it. Indeed, with the usual
ill hap of those who deal in mauvaise plaisanterie, old Bozzy
wa.s often in the unpleasant situation of retreating from

1829.] ANECDOTES OF BOSWELL. 33
expressions which could not lie defended. lie was always
labouring at notoriety, and, having failed in attracting it in
his own person, he hooked his little bark to them whom he
thought most likely to leave harbour, and so shine with
reflected light, like the rat that eat the malt that lay in .the
house that Jack built. Our friend poor James was in some
of his gestures and grimaces very like his father, though
a less man. There was less likeness, betwixt the elder brother
and the father. Neither of them could remember much of
their father's intimacy with Johnson, if anything at all. I
will make enquiiy, however, if you wish it, of some of the
present young man's guardians : he is not I believe quite
of age, though I am not sure.
Before leaving the biographer, I may mention two traits of
his character ; that he was very fond of attending on capital
punishments, and that he used to visit the prisoners on the
day before execution with the singular wish to make the
condemned wretches laugh by dint of buffoonery, in which he
not unfrequently succeeded. This was hke the task imposed
on Byron to " jest a twelvemonth in an hospital." In fact,
there was a variation of spirits about James Boswell which
indicated some shght touch of insanity. His melancholy,
which he so often complained of to Johnson, was not affected,
but constitutional, though doubtless he thought it a mark
of high distinction to be afflicted with hypochondria like his
moral patron. But Johnson, however indulgent to his own
sinkings of the spirits, had little tolerance for those of his
imitator. After aU, Bozzy, though submitting to Johnson in
everything, had his means of indemnification. Like the
jackanapes mounted on the bear's back, he contrived now
and then to play the more powerful animal a trick by getting
him into situations, like the meeting with Wilkes, merely to
see how he would look. The voyage to the Hebrides ex
hibited some tricks of that kind, the weather being so stormy
at that late season that every one thought they must have been
drowned. Undoubtedly Bozzy wanted to see how the Doctor
would look in a storm. When wind-bound at Dunvegan,
his temper became most execrable, and beyond all endurance
save that of his guide. The Highlanders, who are very
courteous in their way, held him in great contempt for his
want of breeding, but had an idea at the same time there
was something respectable about him, they could not tell
what, and long spoke of him as the Sassenach mohr or large
VOL. IL D

34 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
Saxon. You will see by this time what my powers afford,
nothing better I fear than trifles and empty bottles, but they
shall be turned upside down whenever you wiU.
I cannot but think the plan of your book admirable, and
your additions, corrections, and improvements hkely to give
new zest to that which is in itself so entertaining. You have
only to tell me that the sort of trash which I have given you
a specimen of can be made useful, and you shall have all that
my memory can supply upon reading over the book, and
especially the ' Voyage to the Hebrides.' By-the-bye, I am
far from being of the number of those angry Scotsmen who
imputed to Johnson's national prejudices all or a great part
of the report he has given of our country in that pubhcation.
I remember the Highlands ten or twelve years later, and no
one can conceive of how much that could have been easily
remedied travellers had to complain. The love of planting
which has become almost a passion — I wish the love of taking
care of plantations bore any proportion to it — is much to be
ascribed to Johnson's sarcasms.
Are you aware that the cleverest parody of the Doctor's
style of criticism is by John Young, of Glasgow, and is very
capital ? I think it is mentioned in Boswell's hfe, but you
should see it. I will lend it to you if you have it not.
A propos of Johnson and Reynolds, the last observed the
charge given him by Johnson on his deathbed, not to use his
pencil of a Sunday, for a considerable time, but afterwards
broke it, being persuaded by some person who was impatient
for a sitting that the Doctor had no title to exact such a
promise. And once again a propos ; ornamental illustrations
are now so much the taste that I think, considering that all
the principal personages in your work have been immor
talised by Sir Joshua, you ought to give engravings from
their portraits, which cannot but add a certain valuable
interest to the volume. Mr. Watson Taylor had, if he has
not the portraits which belonged to Mr. Thrale.
I will now, in nautical phrase, haul taut and belay. If
you wish me to go on, I will endeavour to send you what I
can recall to my recollection. Do not mutiny against my
handwriting ; I have chilblains on my fingers in this bitter
weather which prevent me from writing, .and my eyes are
failing me most vilely. Ever yours truly,
Walter Scott.

1829.] LORD STO WELL'S RECOLLECTIONS. 35
Sir Walter Scott to Mr. Croker. March 14th, 1829.
My dear Croker,
I answer your letter immediately because of that passage
in which you bid me send back Lord Stowell's anecdotes.
Now, my dear sir, I have never received any such, nor have
I the least idea of the intrepid lavryer the which your query
refers to. I have only received from you to my knowledge
two letters about Johnson, the last dated 10th of March, 1829.
As I left town on the llth of March, another parcel may
have since that period reached my lodgings there, in which
case I shall get it safe.
Did you ever hear of Lord Elibank's reply when Johnson's
famous definition of oats was pointed out first to him ? " The
food of men in Scotland and horses in England," repeated
Lord Ehbank ; " very true, and where will you find such
men and such horses ? " The retort, I think, was fair enough.
I wish we may have no trouble here. One hot-headed
person might do infinite mischief at this moment, but my
comfort is there is no Lord George Gordon to be feared. The
good sense of the upper classes has kept those of the lower
quiet, but I wish it were all well over. Yours very truly,
Walter Scott.
Sir Walter Scott to Mr. Croker. Extract. March 21st, 1829.
My dear Croker,
I ain sincerely vexed about the packet, which never
reached me. I waited a day after receiving yours to see if
Anne, who was in town gallivanting it at some Caledonian
ball, might bring inteUigence of it ; but she came yesterday,
and brought none. I have written to the Secretary of the
Office to make every inquiry possible. I have seldom lost
a letter, though my name is a common one here. Sometimes
the letters of Sir WHUam Scott, of Ancrum, have been sent to
me. If he had received mine he would have returned it
instantly, as he would immediately see for whom it was
intended, and that it brought no Carlisle news. I will make
inquiry however. D 2

36 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
The first edition of the ' Tour to the Hebrides ' contains
a sarcastic account of the mode in which they were received
in Skye by Lord MacDonald. Peter Pindar alludes to the
retrenchments : —
" Who from McDonald's rage to save his snout,
Cut twenty lines of defamation out.
» * * *
Let Lord McDonald threat thy back to kick,
And o'er thy shrinking shoulders shake his stick."
We shall be aU good boys here. I think the great majority
of everything like sense, or talent, or even property is on the
side of the Ministry, and though the roar may for a season be
with the ultra-Protestants, it will be vox et prceterea.
Always yours truly,
Walter Scott.
I did not wonder at not hearing from you, knowing how
busy the bustling time must have kept you all. In my own
case I should have suspected a mis-address of the unlucky
packet, but your habits of business are too correct for that ;
and, besides, unless it has sailed to " ape and monkey climes,"
it would have surely returned to you by this time.
Sir Walter Scott to Mr. Croker.
My dear Sir,
I am afraid of not being able to solve your problem about
Miss Dempster, being too little acquainted with the family.
Dempster had a half brother, a captain in the Company's
service, who wrote an uncommonly severe epigram on George's
bad success in love and politics. Possibly Mrs. Dempster, of
Skibo, Miss Dundas that was, could tell you something
about it.
I am djdng here like a poisoned rat, as the old Dean says,
to see you all going to the devil so quickly. It is only neces
sary to give the Duke a good income tax and the country is
clear, but a bank-ni;te seems to terrify everybody out of their
wits, and they will rather give up their constitution to Hunt
and Cobbett than part with an Abraham Newlands to pre
serve it.

1829.] PREPARATION FOR TIIE NEW BOOK. 37
I cannot help saying, like a Scottish worthy in dilficulty,
" Woe worth thee, is there no help in thee ? "
Believe me, always yours,
Walter Scott.
The thorough and painstaking spirit which Mr. Croker
applied to every detail of his work, and the unsparing
industry which he devoted to it, may be partially, and only
partially, understood by a glance at a few examples of the
letters with wliich he sought assistance from all quarters.
Mr. Croker to tlie Bev Dr. Hall, Master of Pembroke.
March 27th, 1829.
The Swinfens are a very old Staffordshire family, which
stiU flourishes at Swinfen. Every kind of biographical in
formation on any name that occurs will be of use to me. For
any use that I shall have to make of the Prayers and Medi
tations the printed copy wiU suffice, and I need not trouble
you with collating or copying. Your assistance is too precious
to be thrown away on drudgery.
Whenever you have occasion to copy or note a classical
quotation or allusion I would beg of you (when you happen
to have them present to your memory) to mention the author,
and the place where they are to be found. My library is so
large that I have been obhged to distribute it in three
different houses, and I have not always at hand the volume
in which I should look for the passage. I ought to correct
the foregoing by saying, not that my library is so large, but
that, unfortunately, I have not in any of my residences space
enough for my books, and so am obliged to divide them,
which is very inconvenient. To Mr. Alexander Chalmers.* August 20th.
All preceding editors, as well as Mr. Boswell himself, have,
from obvious motives, gone on the plan of leaving many
hints, allusions, and obscurities unexplained — perhaps I should
* [Editor of an edition of 'Boswell,' and of Chalmers' 'Biographical
Dictionary.']

38 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
speak more correctly if I said that you had all left unex
plained points which, by the lapse of time, are now growing
obscure, but which, when your editions were pubhshed, ap
peared too obvious to require explanation. I am aware that
this was inevitable, and that, take what pains I may, my own
edition will, in thirty years, need another annotator. Nobody
thinks of telhng what everybody knows; and jet JbtaF soon
does it happen that no one remembers wTiat all the world
knew a few years before ? How many people are there in
London who do not know where Rosamond's pond lay ?
Who knows what the game of the Mall was ? The Northern
roads are stiU measured from an imaginary standard of St.
Giles's Pound, of which no trace is to be found in the memory
of the inhabitants of the parish.
To Sir Walter Scott. August 28th.
Dear Scott,
Can you give any reason why all the world seem to have
maintained so absolute a silence on the subject of Boswell's
Lady? All that is told of her is that she was Margaret
Montgomerie. I have discovered by accident that she was
" Miss Peggy Montgomerie, of Lainshawe " ; and I think I
recollect to have read that the Montgomeries of Lainshawe
claimed a Scotch peerage — the name I forget — somewhat
like Lisle.* Can you give me any account of her ?
I cannot but think that Boswell's original Diary must be
in existence somewhere. It clearly was not what was printed
from. I suspect (indeed Boswell says so somewhere) that
there are masses of manuscripts at Auchinleck. Who are the
young Laird's guardians? or, how could we have inqmry
made ? It would be a pity that for want of taking a httl'e
trouble such a prize as the original journal would be, should
escape me.
If you could direct me what hne to pursue, I would use all
diligence and apply in all quarters. Yours most sincerely,
J. W. C.
? [V^ide Croker's edition of 'Boswell,' p. 224. It was the peerage of
Lyle.]

1829.] NOTES TO 'BOSWELL: 39
To Sir James Mackintosh. October 15th.
Do you tliink that I have treated the question of party
properly ? If you and I can agree on such a point, we pro
bably are right, as I had the misfortune for so long to be
pohtically opposed to you ; and it is one of my great regrets
at the strange events of late years that the happy union which
was at last accomphshed, did not, so far as you were con
cerned, continue. I had for a long time, as you know, thought
we might have been together, nor do I yet see why we should
be separate. To Thomas Moore. November 24th.
My dear Moore,
Can you give me any account of O'Kane, the Irish Harper ?
He is mentioned in Boswell, and I should hke to have a short
note on him from you, in preference to one of my own.
To Isaac D'Israeli. April 25th.
My dear Sir,
Though not troublesome to you, I am not idle ; but the
printer has adopted a new plan, which has disabled me from
sending you proofs. In a day or two I shall trouble you with
two or three revises.
Where could I get a sight of Johnson's original plan of his
Dictionary ?
Can you tell me when, and to whom, George the 3rd talked
of the Giants of Literature — see Boswell, sub anno 1750.
What can have become of BosweU's original Diary? It
would be invaluable, and cannot, I think, have been destroyed.
Yours, my dear Sir, most sincerely,
J. W. C.
Mr. Isaac Disraeh— -or D'Israeh, to adopt his own ortho
graphy, followed by his son for many years of his life — read
some of the proofs of the new edition, and appears frequently
to have communicated with Mr. Croker while the sheets
were in the printer's hands.

40 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
Mr. Isaac D'Israeli to Mr. Croker.
Bloomsbury-square, January 28th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
It is with pleasure I recognise your handwriting. Your
awaiting my making " a sign " implies on your part a degree
of watchfulness which is very flattering. Your correspondence
is too agreeable an incident for me ever wilfully to occasion
its extinction — and in future I shall know how to awaken its
dormant energies by answering my own letter.
I now for ever bid "a farewell sweet" to that phantom,
the Conway papers ! I, who live more in the age of Charles
the First than in my own, considered them of more import
ance than your account makes them. In the course of my
researches I have traced several extraordinary documents,
which, if not destroyed, ought to be in those coUections —
such as Lord Conway's journal ' concerning the Duke of
Buckingham — Sir Henry Wotton's Diary of his Venetian
Embassy — besides many papers of secret history, which
rightly should have been deposited at the State-paper Office.
One of the Lords Conway was a very eager collector of the
fugitive pieces of the time, many of which floated in manu
scripts. There must also be a copious assemblage of letters.
I once read by your kindness the letters of Katharine, the
Duke of Buckingham's wife, which led me to form another
idea of the man. What an odd fate have these Collections
met with ! They were made with great c^xe, by very careless
persons, since better means were not taken to preserve them.
And now having in part escaped the fury of cooks, the
critical nibblings of mice, and the mould of time, they
have found, as it was presumed, an Editor, so skilful and
spirited as yourself — a pubhsher so active as Mr. Murray,
and a possessor so hberal as Lord Hertford — all to no purpose !
With such unexpected good fortune the Conway papers will
probably never be seen by the world, and, what is more
important, never be consulted by the historian.
I congratulate you, my dear sir, on having struck out a
literary labour which will prove to be a most variable recreation
— the editing of Boswell. You there have touched a vein which
will flow, and I am all alive. It was one of the earhest books
which fed my taste for literature and literary men. On its
publication it raised a great disturbance, of which I could
afford you many- ludicrous instances. It was an act of

1829.] ISAAC DISRAELVS CONTRIBUTIONS. 41
juvenile heroism on my part, to have declared that it would
outlast the delightful ' Menagiana '* (Monnoye's edition), but
people knew little of such ana in that day. So many were
displeased at themselves in those volumes ; so many secrets
were published ; so many of the malcontents found them
selves unnoticed — that nothing but abuse and reading the
book was heard. My old friend Caleb Whiteford, who lived
above me in my chambers at the Adelphi, assured me the
conversations were not correct, some of his puns had not
been immortahzed. Peter Pindar once called Boswell in a
letter to me, " Jolmson's spitting-pot ; " and the critical
reviewer of my " Dissertation on Anecdotes," who proved to
be Dr. George Gregory, after due commendation of the young
author, anathematised him for his eulogy on Boswell; the
anathema, being rather voluminous, probably will exhibit the
condensed protests of all the Oppositionists. I can afl'ord
you one striking evidence of the fidelity of BosweU's circum
stantiality. My edition is the second — the author's own — I possess none
of the modern editions, though Malone and the author's son
edited them. Malone's notes are always useful, but dry. As
the work itself is a heap of notes, wUl you not find some diffi
culty in contriving space to add your new ones ? You will
sometimes perhaps have to add, what in the present day we call
illustrations, notes like essays. I have no marginal notes to
send you, but I imagine I could Boswellise with you through
a long summer's day. Whenever you consult me, I shall
rejoice to aid you ; but at present I have contracted a debt of
honour with the pubhc which I must satisfy. It is in vain X
attempt to quit my Charles I., since he will not quit me.
Beheve me, with great regards,
My dear sir, much yours, I. D'Israeli.
From Mr. Isaac D'Israeli.
Athen»um, Tuesday, July 6th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
I seize a hurried moment to acknowledge the receipt of
your two notes. Believe me that the courteousness and the
* [' Menagiana, ou les Bons Mots, etc., de M. Menage,' par M. de la
Monnoye. 4 vols. 1729.]

42 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
kindness of one Will never be obliterated from my mind, and
will ever form one of my most gratifying reminiscences.
I must now teU you how my hterary affairs are situated.
Although two months have passed among the workmen at
my new residence, I shall not be able to enter tiU about the
middle of August ; meanwhile I shall reside in a cottage at
the foot of my house. About seventy cases of books are then
to be arranged. Without a command of my hbrary and my
manuscripts, I am nothing ; and I do not hke to answer to
[for] the accuracy of facts by trusting to confused and imper
fect recollections.
If, however, you will have the goodness to continue your
communications, I wiU always do my best ; and the first book
I shall try to get at shaU be BosweU's ' Johnson.' But the
truth is, that this must be a chance, as I cannot know in
what case it is to be found.
Of Mrs. Masters, the poetess, I once before sent you a note.*
Is it BosweU himself who teUs us that Johnson strengthened
her lines? I once saw the volume of her poems, which
appeared to be the usual echo of Pope's, when Pope reigned
alone. I dare not venture to guess at " the Peer " distinguished
" for abstruse science," not knowing where to look for it at
this moment in ' BosweU.' Could it be Hardwicke or Lyttel
ton? It might suit Lord Monboddo; but a Lord of the
Sessions is no Peer.
I suspect that my " future address " may be lying under
your table, and had slipped out of my letter on opening it. I
once more enclose my card, and write it out, to prevent the
same accident.
AUow me again to repeat the assurance of my sincerest
regard, and that you wiU believe me to be, with entire
devotion. My dear sir, ever faithfully yours,
I. D'Israell
A few other letters relating to the same subject may be
given. * [Mary Masters pubhshed, in 1758, a volume entitled 'FamUiar
Letters and Poems.' The following is BosweU's note concerning her :—
"Mrs. Masters, the poetess whoso volumes he revised, and it is said,
illuminated here and there with a ray of his own genius."]

1829.] MATERIALS FOR TEE NEW 'BOSWELL.' 43
Eev. Tliomas Harwood * to Mr. Croker.
Lichfield, August 23rd, 1829.
Dear Sir,
I had hoped to have been able to send you some further
memorabiha relating to Dr. Johnson's fanuly ; but, unfortu
nately, Mrs. Pearson either cannot find the papers or has
inadvertently destroyed them. They were the Books of
Accompt which Michael J. kept in the process of his trade.
I much regret that they have not been preserved. This lady
has sent me the following letter, wliich I copy : —
" To Mr. Johnson, Bookseller in Lichfield.
" Gresley, January 19th, 1729.
" Sir,
" I am amaz'd you doe not send me y" MUton and
History of y^ Royal Society I so long since wrote for. I
desire you wiU not fail to get them as soon as possible, and
also to send w'" them Sir WUliam Temple's Works, finely
bound. Pray take care to get all these as soon as it is possible
to have them, and send them to me with a biU.
" I desfred our neighbour, Mr. Malbon, to caU upon you,
and teU you I wou'd not have Puffendorfe, as I once thought,
but then did not guess he had been so Bulky, or so deep a
Gent, as I since find he is, and am resolv'd not to have him.
Y® rest, y* I have wrote for above, I shaU take it iU if you doe
not help to me w'" aU speed.
" Yo", " Malleyne."
The first letter of the name seems to signify also the initial
of the Christian name — as M. AUeyne.
The fanuly of AUeyne had at this time a seat at Gresley in
Derbyshire, fifteen imles from Lichfield, near Burton-upon-
Trent. In the church of that viUage is a mural monument
with a long inscription to the memory of different branches of
this fanuly.
To your question respecting the letter of Davies to Mr.
Bettesworth, in which he calls Johnson " Dr.," I can only
explain it by a reference to the date of the letter, the last
figure of which is scarcely legible — indeed, the figure after
176- may be read as " 3 " or " 5 " or "9." But the date
* [Author of a ' History of Lichfield,' 1806.]

44 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
in the title page of Bonnet's book, if you have it, would accu
rately mark the date of the letter. I have never seen the
book. Davies first calls him " Doctor," and afterwards writes
MDr. — Dr. written upon Mr. ; from which it may be conjec
tured that the designation of Dr. was not in general use. The
letter referring to an intended advertisement of the book will
sufficiently mark the time at which it was written.
Mr. Matthias never resided in Lichfield, but was a merchant
in London, and a friend of Captain Porter. He was the
father of the supposed author of the ' Pursuits of Literature,'
and nearly related to, but not the father of, the present rector
of Whitechapel.
I am in possession of the identical china saucer which was
always used by Mrs. Johnson, and which Johnson carefuUy
preserved. After her death the roll at breakfast was placed
upon it every day, which he usually divided with his humble
friend Levett.
I have the honour to be, dear Sir, your faithful and obedient
servant,
Thomas Harwood.
Sir Henry Ellis to Mr. Croker.
British Museum, October 29th, 1829.
Dear Sir,
I understand from Mr. Murray that you are engaged upon
a ' Life of Dr. Johnson.'
Are you aware that the Donation MS. in our house.
No. 5994, Art. 2, contains Johnson's original memoranda for
his ' Life of Pope.'
Mr. Cary, the Assistant Keeper of our Printed Books, teUs
me a very old edition (I think 1504) of ' Horace,' belonging to
the Burney CoUection, has a few notes in Dr. Johnson's hand.
The same collection also has the first foho Shakspeare which
was Johnson's, but, I believe, without notes though Burney
complains of Johnson's Ul-usage of it.
Boswell the elder, you of course know, deposited with us
Johnson's own copy of the famous letter to Lord Chesterfield,
which would look weU in facsimile. Address is spelt in it
twice, at least, with one d.
In a letter among Cole's MSS. I once read an anecdote, which
I cannot find now, but of which I gave a copy to Mr. Jerdan,
the editor of the Literary Gazette, who may possibly furnish it.
It gave an account of a very rude speech of Johnson's con-

1829.] BOSWELL AND HIS ANNOTATORS. 45
cerning the Scotch. Jerdan thought it too savage to tell of
tho great man in his work, ami therefore kept it to liimself
I do not find that Dr. Johnson was over much at the
Museum. In 1761, however, " Mr. Sam. Johnson " is entered
as admitted to use our reading-room for six months. Several
of his friends used to come at that time, such as Dr. Percy,
Sir John Hawkins, and Bennet Langton ; and " Wedderburne
Esq., of Lincoln's Inn." David Hume and Gray must have
been his fellow-students, with Dr. Robertson of Edinburgh.
I am, dear Sir, faithfully yours,
Henry Ellis.
From the Marquis Wellesley.
Regent's Park, November 8th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
Johnson's Latin poetry has received the just condemnation
of every classical scholar. I confess that I am not disposed
to exempt the verses of his later years from that censure ;
perhaps, however, his ' Insula Kenneth ' might be spared from
the rod. It is certainly more tolerable than any other of his
compositions in Latin verse. I concur in your opinion
respecting the different readings in the ' Ode from Skye ' ;
some of them are unintelligible, others absolute nonsense. I
do not, however, wish to have my name quoted as a censurer
of Johnson's Latin poetry. I feel that I have no just pre
tensions to the weight which you are so kind as to ascribe to
my opinions on such subjects ; and I have so great a general
reverence for Johnson that I should be sorry to appear among
those who have censured any part of his works.
Believe me always, dear Sir, yours most sincerely, Wellesley.
From Lord Eldon.
Dear Croker,
There are mistakes in the enclosed as to the locus in quo,
&c. When, by the kindness of Sir R. Chambers, I lived in
the house belonging to him as Principal at New Inn HaU at
Oxford, and was his deputy reading his Vinerian lectures, he,
Dr. Johnson, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and, as well as I can
remember, one or two other persons came from London to
Oxford. Walking in the garden at New Inn Hall, Sir R.

46 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV,
Chambers threw some snaUs over his garden wall. " Sir," said
Johnson, " what you are doing is very unmannerly to your
neighbour." Sir Robert said, jocosely, " Why, Dr., he is not a
Churchman," or " he is a Dissenter "—I cannot at this distance
of time be quite positive as to the words. " Oh," says the
Doctor, laughing, " why then, throw away as hard as you can."
This is the most accurate account my memory enables me to
give you as to what passed more than half a century ago.
Yours, my dear Sir, with respect and kind regards,
Eldon.
It was a work conceived and carried on in this spirit,
through two long years of toU, its pages enriched by hundreds
of contributions from men who had access to aU possible
sources of information — it was this work that Lord Macaulay
found it consistent with his sense of truth and justice to pro
nounce " a worthless edition of BosweU's ' Life of Johnson,'
some sheets of which our readers have doubtless seen round
parcels of better books."
To any one who has read Mr. Croker's ' BosweU,' or who
has even taken the trouble to look through the notes, this
judgment wiU appear so unfair and so unreasonable that a
suspicion must inevitably be engendered that it was not
arrived at by the legitimate exercise of the critical faculty,
but must have been prompted by some personal and unworthy
motive. The existence of such a motive was well understood
at the time the onslaughts were made, ajid more recently it
has been laid bare to the world by the pubhcation of
Macaulay's own ' Memoirs and Letters.' The attack defeated
itself by its very violence, and therefore it did the book no
harm whatever. Between forty and fifty thousand copies
have been sold, although Macaulay boasted with great glee
that he had " smashed" it; for readers of his letters wUl have
observed that his appreciation of his own work was at least
as high as that which the pubhc of his day entertained for it.
One review had " smashed " a book which has had a steady

1829.] MAOAULArS ATTACK. 47
sale ever since ; another put an inoffensive writer in the
" pUlory," from which he had vainly " begged " to be let
out.* In the present day, it is usually felt that even if a
man is able to produce such dire effects as these by his
\\Titings, it ill becomes him to show too keen a consciousness
of liis tremendous power.
The edition of 'BosweU' was not published until 1831.
For some months previously in the House of Commons,
there had been several sharp encounters between Croker
and Macaulay in the debates on Reform. The two men, as
it has been pointed out,t were to some extent " pitted "
against each other, and more than once Mr. Croker gained a
marked and telhng advantage over his antagonist. He had
greater fehcity in ready reply .than Macaulay, and on more
than one occasion he utterly demolished an elaborately pre
pared and showy, but unsubstantial, speech of the " brUUant
essayist." Macaulay, as it clearly appears from his own
letters, was irritated beyond measure by Croker ; he grew to
" detest " him. Then he began casting about for some means
of revenge. This would seem incredible if he had not, almost
in so many words, revealed the secret. In July, 1831, he
thus wrote : " That impudent, leering Croker congratulated the
House on the proof which I had given of my readiness. He
was afraid, he said, that I had been sUent so long on account of
the many aUusions which had been made to Caine. Now that
I had risen again he hoped that they should hear me often.
Ses whether I do not dust that varlet' s jacket for him in tJie next
number of the Blue and Yellow. I detest him more than cold
boUed veal."$ He had long been waiting for his opportunity
to settle his private account with Mr. Croker.
In the previous month of March he was watching eagerly
* Trevelyan's ' Life of Macaulay,' ii. 276.
t ' Quarterly Eeview,' July, 1876, p. 108.
X Trevelyan's ' Macaulay,' i. p. 239.

48 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
for the publication of the ' BosweU.' " / will certainly review
Croker's ' Boswell ' when it comes out," he wrote to Mr. Napier
— and considering the position of the two men, this notice
must be regarded as an imperative command.* He was on
the look-out for the book, not with the object of doing
justice to it, but of "dusting the jacket" of the author.
But as his letters had not yet betrayed his malice to the
world, he gravely began the dusting process by remarking,
" This work has greatly disappointed us." What did he
hope for, when he took it up, but precisely such a " disap
pointment " ? " Croker," he wrote,t " looks across the House
of Commons at me with a leer of hatred, which I repay with
a gracious smUe of pity." He had cultivated his animosity
of Croker until it became a morbid passion. Yet it is con
ceivable that he did not intend posterity to see him in the
picture drawn by his own hand, spending his time in the
House of Commons straining his eyes to see if there was a
" leer " on Croker's countenance, and returning it with gracious
smiles of pity.
The threat of revenge was made in July, immediately after
the book appeared. On the 7th September, Macaulay wrote
to Napier as foUows : " I send off the first part of my article.
The next wiU follow early in next week." It is quite clear
from this that the threat preceded the writing of the article ;
the demand for the book was made in March, the threat in
July, and the essay was not published till September. The
animus with which the article was written was at once
obvious to all fair-minded men. " It will be evident,"
remarked one journal,^ "that the book has been taken up
by one determined to punish the member of Parliament in
the editor, and who ... is determined to sacrifice truth to
brilliancy " — an accusation repeated, and proved, many times
* ' Napier's Correspondence,' p. 110.
t Trevelyan's ' Macaulay,' p. 248. % The ' Spectator,' Sept. 1831.

1829.] MACAULAY'S REVENGE. 49
since then. " Everybody is aware," remarked the chief lite
rary newspaper of England,* " that the article was originaUy
levelled less agamst Mr. Croker the editor than Mr. Croker
the politician, and the abuse which may have been relished
in times of hot passion and party vindictiveness, reads in our
calmer days as so much bad taste and bad feeling." The
American pubhc were never for a moment deceived by
Macaulay's vituperation. The book was held in esteem, and
had a large sale, in the United States, and American writers
have always done it justice. " Mr. Croker," says one, whose
industry and abihty are equally remarkable,t " deserves great
credit for his excellent edition of 'BosweU.' We venture
this assertion, notwithstandmg the unaccountable attempt of
Mr. Macaulay to depreciate the value of Mr. Croker's editorial
labours." The "attempt," it has been shown, is not so
"unaccountable" now as it was when these words were
written. Macaulay has laid bare his entire process of wreak
ing vengeance — first, the peremptory notice to the editor,
whom he practically ruled, that he intended to review the
book ; then the threat to dust the author's jacket, for the
gratification of private mahce ; lastly, the article itself, laden
with unsupported charges and gross mis-statements. If
some obscure and wretched hack had been guilty of this
conduct, shght indeed would have been the mercy shown to
bim in any quarter.
Public opinion has long ago redressed the wrong which was
done. When a writer, however eminent, is proved to have
committed an injustice for the express purpose of producing a
" slashing article," or of satisfying a personal resentment, it
sometimes happens that it is he who is seen standing in the
" pillory " — not his intended victim.
* The ' AthenKum,' May 17th, 1856.
t Alibone's ' Dictionary of Authors,' i. p. 222.
VOL. II. E

50 < THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.

CHAPTER XV.
1830.
The New Agitation for Parliamentary Eeform — Popular Excitement —
Declaration of the Duke of WeUington— Penryn and East Eetford—
Mr. Croker's Advice to Peel — lUness of the King — Disturbed State of
Politics— The Duke of WeUington and the Whigs — Theatricals at
Hatfield House— Death of George IV.— The New King— "Black
Slieep " — Lord Brougham and the Opposition — The General Election
— Defeat of Mr. Croker for Dublin University — Eevolution in France
— Abdication of Charles X. — Death of Mr. .Huskisson— TaUeyrand
in London— Dissensions in the Tory Party — Sir H. ParneU's Attack
— Defeat of the Ministry — Mr. Croker resigns his Office at the
Admiralty — Lord Grey's Ministry — Lord Brougham and Lord Lyndhurst
— Difficulties of the New Ministry — Mr. Croker on Party Consistency —
Death of Sir Thomas Lawrence — His Pecuniary Troubles — Letters to
Mr. Croker.
One dangerous cause of agitation was at last disposed of, but
another, destined to produce even greater anxiety and con
fusion in pohtics, was rapidly taking a foremost place in the
pubhc mind. Catholic Emancipation was no sooner settled
than the far greater question of Parliamentary Reform was
revived. In some form or other, this question had been
discussed over and over again for upwards of sixty years, and
the necessity of some changes in the system of popular repre
sentation in Parliament had been frequently admitted since
Lord Chatham made his well-known declaration that either
Parliament would " reform itself from within, or be reformed
with a vengeance from without." But the responsibility of

1830.] PARLIAMENTARY REFORM. 51
dealing with so complex a problem was evaded by Whigs and
Tories ahke, and on the outbreak of the great wars there was
business to be disposed of more pressing in its nature than the
extension and readjustment of the franchise. It was not
untU 1829 that the dissatisfaction of various large commu
nities on account of their exclusion from the suffrage became
too earnest and too profound to be suppressed ; riots were of
frequent occurrence, pohtical unions were formed, " mass
meetings " were held ; and once more an agitation was set on
foot which the Ministers of the day were unable to resist.
Yet the Duke of Welhngton, unconscious of the real strength
of the movement, or of liis own weakness when opposed to it,
declared in the House of Lords that not only was he not
prepared to bring fofward any measure of reform, but that he
should " always feel it his duty to resist such measures when
proposed by others." After this announcement, the return of
the Whigs to power, at the end of a long and weary banish
ment, could not be delayed more than a few weeks, and as a
matter of fact the Duke's Government fell to pieces, though
not directly on the Reform issue, in less than a fortnight after
he had run up the flag of " no surrender."
Reference has already been made to the disfranchisement
of Penryn and East Retford on the ground of notorious
bribery. It has been shown that Mr. Croker was always of
opinion that it would only be just to bestow the seats thus
rendered vacant upon constituencies of great and growing
importance, and he behoved that if this measure had been
adopted in good season, it would have satisfied the demands
made by the reasonable portion of the public, and allayed the
popular excitement. These views, as we have seen, he urged
upon Lord Liverpool in 1819. So early as 1822 he saw that
the tide was fast rising, and he then addressed the following
letter to Mr. Peel : —

52 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
February 1st, 1822.
Dear Peel,
I quite agree with you that the Government ought to look
round and see what they can do on the three great points of
diminution of taxation, of retrenchment, and of reform ; and
having made up their minds as to what it may be possible
to do, they should take their final determination to stand or
fall upon the ground they have taken. I wish to submit to
you some views of mine on these points.
The cause of reform, it cannot be doubted, has made great
progress — pubhc opinion is created by the press or by pubhc
meetings, and by the numbers and weight of the advocates of
a cause. Now, almost the whole press, and all pubhc meetings,
are loud for reform, and I believe I may say with truth that
such is the apathy, or the timidity, on our side of the question
that except an annual speech of Mr. Canning at a Liverpool
dinner, and the occasional article of some obscure man of
letters in the Quarterly Eeview, nothing is spoken or written
to oppose the torrent of the reformers. To this must be
added the accession of names which the reformers have
acquired in some of the great Whig lords. Lord Fitzwilham
and Lord Darlington, two of the largest borough holders in
England, have joined them — I care not with what reserves,
mental or expressed. They have joined them to the pubhc
eye, and that is a junction for all effective purposes, for the
reformers only want their names, and they want them not so
much to add to their strength as to diminish ours, which it
does doubly — first, in numbers (that I care little about), but
secondly, in effect, which is very important-; for if Lord Fitz-
william, by all admitted to be a worthy, well-meaning, and
amiable man, with 60,000/. a year, and eight rotten members,
be not alarmed at reform, why should persons whose pecuniary
interest is small compared to his, and who have no political
power to lose ? I know how beautifully Mr. Canning argues
this point, and proves to the people at Liverpool that he is
pro rata as much interested in it all as Lord Fitzwilham ; and
I agree with him ; but the question now is not what ought to
be, but what is the effect of these desertions. In the humbler
circle in which I move, I linow that the effect is prodigious,
and at tables, where ten years ago you would have no^ore'
heard reform advocated than treason, you will now find half
the company reformers — moderate reformers, indeed, indivi
dually, but radical in the lump, One would extract the grey

1830.] PROPOSED CONCESSIONS. 53
hairs and the other the brown, aud our present i)arhamentary
constitution would bo left, after their several remedies, in a
state of bald and defenceless nudity. If the existing course
of tilings holds, I am confident that the result will be, what it
always is with mobs or nations, that those who strut and look
biggest and talk loudest will carry the day, and with the
greater or less ease and celerity as they shall be more or
less opposed. In this state of the public mind, nothing more
is wanted than any unhappy vacillation or weakness in the
Government, to break down the dykes and flood-gates, and
lay the whole country under the wave of reform. What
would rise out of that deluge neither you nor I nor any man
can know or can guess, and having convinced myself that no
human power can control the flood if once let loose, and that
no human sagacity can foretell what are to be its consequences,
I am obhged to say that we are bound to resist it altogether.
Here, therefore, is our first stand. We should not give an
inch to parhamentary reform. Cases hke Grampound will
arise to embarrass us ; we must deal with them when they
occur, and on their individual grounds, and it is doubtful
whether, weU managed, they may not do more good than
harm, for the redress of a gross abuse granted spontaneously,
or at least naturaUy, and arising out of accidental causes,
sometimes appeases the public mind, without giving it any
higher idea of its own power. Some of our friends, I know,
say that even Grampound they would not touch. Such men
are safe in obscurity. I should hke to see any man profess
that doctrine in his place in Parliament. I would not touch
it if I could help it, but, si boire est tire il faut le boire. A
Government oftener injures itself by attempting to defend
abuses not its own, than by any other line of conduct I could
mention. If a Government should be so absurd as to take
up the defence of such a case with a high hand, it would
lose itself, its object, and the country. It wiU require all our
prudence to avoid, all our skiU to parry, and finally all our
force to meet this question.
I therefore conclude not to give an inch to parliamentary
reform as a general measure, to oppose the slightest, the
most harmless, the most aUurtng alteration which is proposed
on principle — to remember that aU the radical mover wants is
a TTov o-Tft) ; on the other hand, to take fhmly whatever advan
tage we may be able to derive from the follies or crimi
nalities of individuals, and burn Grampound to the ground

54 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
rather than undertake its defence, or leave it to the enemy
as a cover whence to assault us. I said in general that no
one could guess what the consequences of reform would be.
I should have said its eventual consequences, for the first step
or two seem plain enough — the day which reforms the House
of Commons, dissolves the House of Lords, and overturns the
Church. Beyond that I cannot venture to guess. Temporary
circumstances, the state of the army, and the personal cha
racter of the then King, would decide whether there would
ensue a mUitary despotism, another martyrdom at Whitehall,
or another flight from Faversham.
Mr. Croker again, in 1830 (bfifore the introduction and
rejection of Lord John Russell's resolutions for enfranchising
Leeds, Birmingham, and Manchester), tried to get the Govern
ment to lead and control the reform movement rather than be
mastered by it. Whether this would have been possible in
any case may, of course, be strongly doubted; but Mr.
Croker's position was at the time quite reasonable; and at
any rate it held out a fairer prospect of success than Peel's
non possumus policy. Peel, however, was opposed to any
extension of the suffrage. He said in Parliament, during
the discussion on Lord John Russell's resolutions, that the
question was " whether the popular voice was not sufficiently
heard. For himself he thought that it was."
Mr. Croker to Mr. Peel. February 24th, 1830.
My dear Peel,
A thought has struck me which (with some difficulties)
has many plausible sides, viz. to resume the Grampound
franchise from Yorkshire in general, and give one member
each (like Higham Ferrars and Abingdon), to Leeds and
Sheffield ; and, in like manner, to divide East Retford between
Manchester and Birmingham.
That would look something like a system and a principle,
and might excuse a change of policy.
The great difficulty is the landed interest, which would

1830.] HEALTH OF TIIE KINO. 55
then get nothing on the present occasion, but as tliey got the
last four seats, they might spare us these two ; l)ut above all,
they must see that they will not be able to prevent a torrent
if they refuse to pacify us by the admission of two drops.
Yours ever,
J. W. C.
The state of the King's health kept the Ministry in a con
stant state of uncertainty concerning their future course, for
they had little expectation that a dissolution would strengthen
their position. The course of events is clearly described in
the foUowing letters : —
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. January 12th, 1830.
The King goes on well — the bleeding was, they say, pre
cautionary, as he had some cough.
The Duke is resolved that there shall be no distress any
where — " there is no distress — there can be no distress — there
shall be no distress." I hope he may be able to bring the.
country gentlemen to his opinion.
Vesey gets on but slowly. There was, it is said, some
kind of apoplectic seizure, and they begin to say that he will
be never fit again for business. His notes to me don't look
so serious — do they ? I have my own opinion, which is that
he shrinks from the responsibility of his office in Parhament,
and makes himself as bad as he can, that he may go out with
the more credit. That he felt it too much for his health
and spirits, he has been telhng me the last two months.
January 20th.
We have had frightful weather — quite an Arctic snow
storm. I do not know how we are to get through the funeral *
to-morrow, which may, like the poor Duke of York's, be the
fruitful parent of many funerals. This day three years
Lawrence and I went down together, and walked side by side
in that ceremony ; and the only time I ever attended a funeral
at St. Paul's — it was old Ronnie's — Lawrence and I were
paired together, and in the mists of the vaults people could
* [Of Sir Thomas Lawrence. See p. 87, ivfra.']

56 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV^
not distinguish, they said, which was which — he was about
eleven years older than I am.
The country gentleman seems much out of humour, but
Scotland, and some districts both in England and Ireland, are
not dissatisfied. The King is mending of the remains of his
inflammation of the body, but the mind is stUl not quite as
Dr. Welhngton would wish it. April 22nd, 1830.
He [the King] was driving yesterday week in the great
park when he met his hounds. He stopped to look at and
talk about them, and alighted from his pony chair. On
attempting to mount again he was seized with a spasmodic
difficulty of breathing. These attacks, it seems, come and go.
This is all that any one knows for certain, but people near him
are very much alarmed. He himself looks at his situation
very steadily and courageously. He once said to me, " I am
very nervous, but very brave."
I myself inchne to believe the danger to be more remote
than the people in the streets, who are always greedy of bad
news, and will have it. AprU 26th.
We are all in the dark as to the disease. The wise ones
say that it is certainly not water. Some imagined it was the
hay asthma ; and the medical people seem to think it arises
from fat, or some supernatural clogging of the viscera about
the heart or lungs. Public opinion is very gloomy about him,
and I begin to fear that the thing looks serious. The Duke
of Clarence has come to reside in town — rather unexpectedly
it is said. Some say to avoid his usual attack, but it is a
month too soon for that — others surmise that he thinks it
right at this crisis to be at the fountain head of affairs ; but I
should have thought that if he were reaUy alarmed about the
King; Bushey, half way between Windsor and town, would
have been the most convenient.
This topic absorbs all our conversation.
Mr. Isaac D'Israeli to Mr. Croker.
Bradenham House, High Wycombe,
My dear Sir, March llth, 1830.
Weather permitting I hope to have the honour of dining
with you on Saturday, 27th.

1830.] LONDON NEWS. 57
I will tear myself away from all the conspiracies and tlie
conspirators of Charles I. Among "the grievances" of his
unhappy reign I have discovered one hitherto unnoticed —
viz., that Parliament has passed no Act that the historian
should have his proofs dispatched by the post. This iiecos-
sarUy delays publication. I recollect that the editor of the
Literary Gazette once whined over this distress of country
authors, and held out a promise which Parhament never
took into their consideration. Though the House has of
late had some intimation about " dramatic writers," I suppose
that no member wUl move for us !
Sometimes when I write, I recoUect that it is possible
that you may read me, and I endeavour to make my volumes
amusing ; but your ' BosweU ' I suspect may prevent the
world from finding any book afterwards sufficiently so.
Beheve me, with great regard.
My dear Sir, ever faithfuUy yours,
I. D'Israeli.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Vesey Fitzgerald.* Extracts. May 3rd.
Sfr Robert Peel has had a relapse, and Peel has gone down
again to Drayton, leaving us not only without a general to
lead us, but even without one fighting man ; for he is himself
our host. ... I think the Duke of WeUington looks uncom
monly harassed ; but his spfrits. are as good as ever. You
may depend upon it that, whether the King hves or not, there
must be some pohtical changes. We are incapable of doing
our business in the House of Commons, and whence we are
to get the needful help I cannot even guess.
The King is aware of his own situation, and contemplates
it, as I learn, boldly. He received the Sacrament on, I think,
Thursday. He sits bolstered up in bed, or in a chair, in
capable of lying down ; his head, they say, faUs on his breast ;
his appetite is gone, and though neither speechless nor sense
less, he is very torpid, and evidently fading rapidly away.
* [Mr. Fitzgerald was on the Continent, for the benefit of his health.
Mr. Croker, it wiU be seen, kept him well informed concerning all that
was going on.]

58 TIIE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV,
Such is the state which the accounts, of what seem the best
authority, describe. If they be anything hke the truth, the
scene is about to close.
Now for politics. The Whigs are, I hear, taking a more
self-centered attitude. They seem to think that they are
capable of making an Administration ; and if they co-operate
cordially — that is, if Grey, Lansdowne, HoUand, Biougham,
Althorp, Burdett, and Graham could agree, they no doubt
could do so ; but could they stand ? On the present principles
of parties in this country, not a session ! But who can say
what change a new reign, and the prospect of a minority,
might not operate ? If to the Whigs were to be added — by
the mediation of Anglesey and Carhsle — Goderich, GrenviUe
and Seaford; Huskisson, Palmerston, and the Grants, they
would have a very strong Government, so far as regards the
fiUing of offices, and the speaking in Parhament ; but unless
the accession and character of the new sovereign should alter
the opinions of the mass of the aristocracy, the gentry, and
the people, I hardly think that even such a formidable coali
tion could eventually maintain itself. On the other hand, we
have repeated declarations (former and recent) of the Duke of
Clarence that he does not intend to change the Ministers he
may find in power ; the country at large has great confidence
in the Duke of Wellington, and the House of Commons
cannot, I think, fail to be impressed with the talent Peel has
lately shown as leader. So much, then, we may look upon
as settled for a season, at least ; but what is to be done as to
the subordinates ? Murray must, it seems, move — of course
into one of the military offices — and I have had a suspicion
that the Duke had turned an eye towards Goderich to succeed
him ; that would do us no good in the House of Commons,
and would rather do harm in the country — but less harm,
I think, than any decided Liberal or Whig would do; for,
depend upon it, there is hardly a man out of office whom
the Duke could introduce — Lord Grey, Brougham, Hus
kisson, Stanley, Spring Rice — who would not occasion more
eventual loss of strength than his accession would repay. I
know that one or two partial tongues have whispered me as
fit to replace Murray,* "me quoque dicunt — sed ego non
credulus Ulis." Putting aU other considerations aside, and God
knows that they are many and weighty against such an
* [Sir G. Murray was Secretary for the Colonies.]

1830.] TEE "NEW COURT." 59
arrangement, I feel that all the Privy Councillors might fairly
object to such a " passe droit." Calcraft, Beckett, Lord Francis
Egerton, Leveson, Fitzgerald, Arbuthnot, and Hardinge would
not, but they, like the others, reasonably might. Depend
upon it, my dear Vesey, the thing is not feasible, and tho
most that could be done would be to move me to independent
office, and there is no independent office at all so good, or that
would be so agreeable to me, as my own, nor is there any
probabUity of any of them being vacated.
I am quite aware of the extreme difficulty of going on in the
House of Commons without help, but I much doubt whether
Peel wishes for any. I say this advisedly, and I do not
think he wUl change that feeling — for such it is, rather than
an opinion — tUl he shaU begin to feel the personal pressure of
adverse debate. He has not yet been attacked, and his single
speech has, every night, supported the whole debate on our
side. This is a high and palmy state — resembling that of Mr.
Pitt of yore- — but when Brougham shall have lost all hope,
and Huskisson aU patience. Peel wUl find that he alone will
not suffice, and that he must have people about him to take
share in the risk and the responsibUity.
I hear and see no symptoms of a change in the Chair — the
Speaker looks and is, and what is more important, says he is,
tolerably weU, and with the present jealousy of pensions, I do
not think that he, or if A^ were, that the Government would
be, mad enough to risk a new embarrassment of that nature as
long as he can be kept in the chair.
May llth. The town is fuU of rumours oi intrigues of which
the new Court is already the object, and there are, to be sure,
two or three strange facte on which such speculations are very
naturaUy buUt. What do you think of Lady Jersey, who
has never been on any terms of intimacy with the Duchess of
Clarence, going down to Bushey — forcing the " consigne," and
obhging H.R.H. to receive a long visit from her. The Duchess,
it is said, received her very cooUy, even to the extent of
expressing some surprise at a pleasure so new and unexpected ;
but that is perhaps not so surprising as Anglesey's having
gone down to the Duke of Clarence. He, I dare say, did not
intrude quite so cavaherly as the Countess, and indeed I have
heard that Lord Errol arranged the interview, but it is said
with no more success than the other attempt. One thing only
of the interview I have heard ; that Anglesey, observing to
H.R.H. the circumstances in which he would find himself at

60 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
the King's death as to his personal residence— Windsor being
out of the question tiU after the funeral, and St. James's
having no accommodation for a King,— suggested his visit
ing the ^or!!s— Portsmouth and Plymouth— untU Windsor
should be ready to receive him. This seems in the last
degree improbable, I might say insane; yet I have heard
it from exceUent authority, but with this observation, that
Anglesey never dreamt of such advice being taken, but that
it was a mode of reminding H.R.H. of his quarrel with the
Duke of Wellington abowt visiting the ports two years ago,
and a scheme to enhst his personal feelings against a con
tinuance of the Duke of WeUington's power.
Peel does not come back to the House tUl Monday (17th).
In the meanwhile poor Goulburn is obhged to make the
whole fight, and there is really business enough for a month
on the paper for the week. The votes of this morning give
an account of 137 matters of business transacted yesterday,
one of which was the Committee of Supply that occupied five
hours, and it contains twelve notices for to-day. So great a
mass of business I never before saw, and it seems to increase
daily. The buUetin to-day is that " the symptoms are not mate
rially mitigated, but H.M. has had some sleep " ; and I hear
that the general state is not so bad as the rumours mentioned
in the beginning of my letter represented it. However, you
may depend upon it that hope is abandoned, and that it is a
mere question of lingering a few days, or at best weeks, more
or less. I forgot to mention one thing which shows some
sensibility. He expressed a wish that his Ministers should in
turn go down to Windsor, to pay thefr duty by inquiring after
him. Accordingly Lord Bathurst and MelviUe went yester
day. They of course did not see him, but he was told that
they were there, and they had a long talk with Halford, but
came back knowing really no more than, if indeed so much as,
their colleagues in town. This visit is very proper on many
accounts, but it seems odd that the King should have himself
suggested it.
The Duke of WeUington was down himself on Saturday,
but did not see him, because (such is the assigned reason) if
he had seen the King, others that were in the Castle could not
be denied— meaning the Duke of Cumberland, whose visits
are said to be pecuharly agitating, and therefore injurious ;
but the Duke of Wellington had seen him in the course of

1830.] STATE OF TIIE KING. 61
the week, and gave a good report of his spirits, appetite, and
appearance. May 14th.
The Duke of Wellington saw the King again on Wednes
day, when he was a good deal struck with an alteration iu his
appearance for the worse — that is, he looked wasted and
wasting ; but his eye was hvely, his hand cool and healthy,
and his mind as clear and active as ever, and even his spirits
were good ; in fact, he showed strong vitality, and I dare say
it will be with hun as it was with the Duke of York, he will
contest every inch with death, and exliibit all that tenacity of
life which his famUy have constitutionally. The successor
stiU talks, I hear, as he has always done, of his intention to
continue to employ the Duke of Wellington,* but I also hear
that besides the visit of Anglesey, wliich I before mentioned,
he has seen Lords Grey and Holland, and many other persons,
and the Whigs have certainly hopes of a change of that
determination. Some changes I am convinced he wUl make, and one of
them wiU reach even as low as me. Such is my impression,
and my present intention is to relieve the Duke of Welling
ton from all embarrassment on my account. Cockburn, I
believe, feels and intends as I do ; but aU this is premature. I
sliaU do nothing but by the Duke of Wellington's advice
and approbation.; but I am too fair not to make allowances
for the feehngs of H.R.H., and too honest, I hope, to allow
my personal concern to risk a great pubhc benefit. Mous
verrons. May 17th.
Peel saw the King yesterday, and was most agreeably sur
prised to find him so hvely, inteUigent, and strong. He talked
of aU Peel's private affafrs, and of old Sir Robert's arrange-
ments,t with all that astonishing knowledge of detaUs for which
he was always so remarkable. Peel stayed but half an hour,
for fear of wearying him, but the King was reluctant to let
him go. I myself am not led away by this gleam of amend
ment. I have seen too closely the progress of this disease, in
* [He did so; but the Duke was defeated on a motion to refer the
Civil List to a Select Committee, November 15th ; and Lord Grey took
his place.]
t [Mr. Peel had succeeded to the Baronetcy on the death of his father
on May 3rd.]

62 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV
the cases both of my father and the Duke of York, to be
deluded by these momentary rallies.
In the meanwhUe, I think I may assure you that the Whiga
have lately entertained more sanguine hopes than they at
first did of being caUed on by the successor. I have heard
that they have even afready allotted the principal places.
I have not heard the name of Goderich whispered, nor
Palmerston, nor the Grants ; but the latter trio of course are
included under the word Huskisson. They would certainly
make a very respectable government in point of talent and
station. In the Lords, Grey, Lansdowne, HoUand, Mel
bourne, and Anglesey. In the Commons, Brougham (if not
ChavAiellor !), Huskisson, Pahnerston, the Grants, Mackintosh,
Althorp, Graham, Stanley, Milton, Lord J. Russell and
Rice, and, if the Duke of Cumberland be propitiated, some
support from the Tories ; many of whom hate Peel and our
Duke even more than they fear the Whigs. With a dissolu
tion, and the choice of a new Parhament in their hands, I
think they would set off, as they did in 1806, with insolent
majorities ; but, as I believe I said before, I do not think the
country would tolerate them a second session, because they
must either offend public opinion by pursuing Whig measures,
or forfeit it by abandoning their pledged principles. May 18th.
The accounts of the King continue stUl to improve. I
have not time to say more, though I have much to say. We
threw out the Jews' Bill* last night, 228 to 163, after a
very faint speech from Peel. He did not at aU grapple with
the real question, and seemed as if he wished to be beaten.
What can this mean ? Does he resent against the Church
the rejection of Oxford ? He last night in principle gave up
the whole connection of Church and State. May 21st.
As to what you are so kind as to think so important in
this state of affairs, viz., my own position, be assured I shall
do nothing hasty or vainglorious. I shall make no parade of
disinterestedness, nor shall I give any handle, I hope, to
public or private malignity ; all I purpose is that the Duke of
Wellington shall not be embarrassed, in the great arrange-
* [Mr. E. Grant's BiU for relieving Jews of political disabilities.]

1830.] POLITICAL CHANGES. 63
ments he may have to make, by any private interests of mine.
He was, you know, so deep in all our proceedings that he
could not abandon us, but think what it would be to have the
national destinies disturbed by piivate considerations and
personal pledges. No ; you would never advise me to be an
active party to any such embarrassment ; but be satisfied that
I shall do nothing hastily, nor does any one but yourself
know that such an idea has crossed my imagination — it would
appear highly impertinent and presumptuous, and I shall
carefully avoid all grounds or colour for such a reproach. May 28th.
I must now tell you a story which I suppose we must
not doubt, though it seems so strange that if it were not
vouched by an ostensible witness it would receive no kind
of credit.
A few days ago H.R.H. the Duke of Clarence sent for Sir
WiUiam Hope to Bushey — so far is notorious. At this con
versation, H.R.H. said he was quite satisfied with the Duke of
WeUington, and indeed with Lord MelviUe, and meant to
continue them both in office ; but that with regard both to
Sfr G. Cockburn and Mr. Croker, his first act would be to
send them to the right about. I thought myself highly
honoured by so much of his personal kindness as the present
King was so condescending as to allow me, but I certainly
never expected the more important distinction of being
marked as the object of the personal hostility of the Sovereign.
I repeat you the story just as Sfr WUham teUs it in the streets.
You recoUect that Sfr WiUiam was himself in early life, and
indeed down to a late period, one of H.RH.'s betes noires.
True or exaggerated, the story puts an end to the idea I had
mentioned to you. Any step on my part would now appear
anything but disinterested or dignified, and I therefore shall
certainly lie at single anchor to wait the turn of the tide.
The Whigs are certainly consolidating themselves. There
was a meeting yesterday at Lansdowne House, but I have not
heard what passed, nor even who was there ; nor shall I in
time for this letter, as I am obliged to send it to Mr. Fitz
gerald before I go down to the House, and the day is so bad
that I despair of any one's calling who is likely to bring
gossip. We are curious to know whether Palmerston was
there, as he certainly had some intention of being, and

64 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
whether Lord Grey attended. This last circumstance is very
important, as it would be quite a God-send to the Duke of
Wellington, who is certainly hampered by some engagements
with Lord Grey.
AU the fashionable world has been for three days at
Hatfield. The last day three farces were played. It all went
off weU. A translated farce by Hook, and an original one by
Lady Dacre, were very successful ; Mrs. Elhs and Mrs.
Ellison were excellent ; so were James Wortley and Charles
Phipps ; Lord Morpeth rivalled Listen. Francis Leveson was
a Grand Duke in the ' Diplomati,' and very dull, as Grand
Dukes usually are. June llth.
On Monday night, a friend, K. [Sir W. Knighton] sat up with
him [the King], and frequently in that night thought him dying.
On Sunday he sat up again. The King slept at times, but in
the waking intervals he was as clear, as communicative, as
agreeable, nay as facetious in his conversation as he ever had
been Such are the vicissitudes of his state ! Another friend
(F) * saw him lately, and it was hke an audience of final leave ;
but the King appeared to balance in his own mind the pro
babilities of life and death as almost equal. He talked suc
cessively of his journey to Aix-la-ChapeUe, and his funeral
procession to St. George's Chapel. I need not, however, point
out to you that, however calmly and courageously he might
talk in these alternations, the moment he admitted the fatal
probability, the other must have been, even in his own mind,
a very hopeless alternative. He told this friend, " Whenever
you lose me, beheve me you will lose one who has had a long,
sincere, and undeviating regard for you." He asked whether
the public took a great interest in his state, and being
answered that they did, he seemed much pleased, and
expressed his own conviction that it ought to be so, for he
"had always endeavoured to do his duty," and had never
wilhngly done harm to any one. This led him to talk of the
prayer which is ordered to be read in the churches for him.
He liked it, and said that "it was in good taste" — an odd
* [Probably Lord Farnborough, for whom the King expressed the
greatest kmdness and affection, and whom he named Keeper of the Eoyal
Signet at his (the King's) decease. See ' Wellington Despatches,' New
Series, vii. 66.]

1830.] ACCESSION OF WILLIAM THE FOURTH. 65
expression on such a subject, but not, I think, an uncharac
teristic one.
You will be glad to hear that although a decent silence is
maintained on the subject, he is not negligent of the duties— -
perhaps I should now say the calls — of religion. The Bishop
of Chichester, who is, I believe, the Clerk of the Closet, does
not leave the house, and sees him frequently. The Duke of
Wellington is astonished at his strength, both of body and mind,
and says that it will rather surprise him if he is not alive in
the autumn. Is it not strange and awful that one who has
been represented as speculating on his [the Duke's] death, is
likely to go before him ? June 27th.
On my return [from Ireland] I found the King grown weak
and languid — that is dying ! And in the night between
Friday and Saturday, at a quarter-past three, after some hours
of tranquU sleep, followed by a copious evacuation of blood,
he expired. His last words were, putting his hands on the pit
of his stomach, as if he felt a peculiar sensation there, " Surely
this must be death," and it was so.
Then came all the bustle of a new reign, rendered more
bustling by the contrast between the easy indolence of the
last King, and the activity of the new one. Everybody
seemed to be on the qui vive. There seem to have been
strange delays and irregularities in the summonses or invita
tions to the Privy CounciUors and others who attend, as you
may remember, to proclaim the new King. I, who knew
that such summonses must come, had dressed myself and
¦ made Cockburn do the same, and as soon as the summons
reached us, we set off afoot through the park to St. James's,
where we found half the Council afready assembled ; so that,
near as we were to Whitehall, others must have had their
notices more than half an hour before us, and I hear that
some of the notices usuaUy sent to some of the principal men
in office, not Privy CounciUors, were not sent at all. This I
know, that Clerk and Hotham attended at the accession of
George IV. and signed the proclamation, but were not invited
on this occasion. However, a vast number of Privy Council
lors, not less than ninety-three, were assembled by one
o'clock, when the King came from his closet into the third
drawing-room at St. James's, where we were all assembled,
and made us his declaration, which you will see in the papers.
VOL. II. F

66 TEE CROKER PAPERS. ¦[€hap. xV^,
His voice faltered amiably at the mention of his brother, but he
soon recovered that, and startled those of his GouncU who
did not know him by exclaiming in a familiar tone against
the badness of the pen with which he was signing the oath
administered to him by the Lord President ["Damn the
pen " *] but his deportment on the whole was decent and
proper, polite to all, and kind to some.
We were all sworn again as Privy CounciUors, and in turn
kissed his hand. I supposed, after all I had heard, that his
manner to me would be cold, if not something worse, but I
was agreeably disappointed. When I took his hand to kiss it,
he held mine longer than was necessary — " hoped I was well
— was glad to see me — had not expected it — thinking that I
had been in Dublin, but supposed that I had found the art of
travelling by a balloon." This, with a gracious smile and a
condescending manner, was much more than I could have
hoped for, and makes me remember Louis XII., who forgot
the quarrels of the Duke of Orleans. Cockburn, the other
supposed black sheep, he treated with lU^e civility, though
perhaps in a somewhat cooler degree.
Before he came into Council, the elite of his Ministers went
to him in a body— the Duke, Lord Chancellor, Lord President,
Privy Seal, and two of the Secretaries of State. To them he
made a little speech, to say that he would have been naturaUy
indisposed to change his brother's Ministers, but that he was
happy to find in office men in whom he personally had the
greatest confidence, and that they might depend not only on
his sincere confidence and good will, but on the most strenuous
support that the King could give to his Ministers. After we
had all taken the oaths, he and the Queen returned in their
travelling carriage to Bushey, calling on Princess Sophia at
Kensington in the way. There is some story of his • having
observed that he had no escort coming up, and that the escort
was not ordered even for his return, till he had made the
observation. A curious and almost ludicrous circumstance occurred.
Our friend BuUer in swearing one batch pledged them to bear
true aUegiance to our Sovereign Lord King George — the King
looked back quietly and emphatically, and said, " William, if
you please " — the last three words I did not hear, as I was at
* [These words are inserted in the margin by Mr. Croker ; much the
same account is given by Charles Greville, ' Diary,' ii, p. 3.]

1830.] THE NEW KING. 67
the other end of the table, but I am assured he said just what
I have written. I myself heard BuUer say " George" and the
King say " William!' but I lost " if you 'please," though I saw
his lips moving. Soniothing move ouvious is, that the Royal
Chaplain, who this day officiated in the Royal Chapel of the
Royal Palace of Kensington, prayed for " King George."
There was some delay (or blunder as I believe) about the
Order in CouncU for the necessary changes in the Liturgy, and
I suspect that if despatched at all last night, they were sent
very irregularly, but no one could have imagined that a
Court Chaplain should so far forget not the rising, but the
risen sun, as to pray for the dead.
Sfr Herbert 'Taylor is to be private secretary to the new
King — a judicious appointment that will inspire pubhc con
fidence, and has more effect than a more important pledge
might have had. Macdonald, his deputy, succeeds to the
Adjutant-General. I am glad of it for his sake, but it seems
to me to be throwing away an appointment which might be
usefuUy employed by-and-bye in smoothing political arrange
ments. I forgot to teU you that an unfavourable impression
was made on the pubhc mind yesterday by the King's having,
in less than twelve hours from his brother's death, ordered the
dress of the Guards to be altered. This looks strange, but it
was in fact right, and was necessary to be done at the moment.
A new and very expensive uniform had been ordered, and it
was to spare the officers the expense of making up this costly
dress that the King was advised to lose no time in counter
manding it. June 28th.
But I have no doubt that eventually the activity of his
mind wUl bring him into colhsion with his Ministers. Here
is an anecdote which I know to be true. Late yesterday a
dragoon arrived at the Admiralty — a letter from the King to
the Ffrst Lord ! The letter — a Holograph autograph letter of
the King — was to enclose to Lord Melville another letter from
a midshipman which had been addressed by mistake to the
Duke of Clarence as Lord High Admfral. This is an anecdote
which would obtain applause as an instance of royal attention
to humble merit ; for my part I hope his Majesty may not
wear himself out with minutiae of this sort, and I think that
a note from Taylor covering the middy's epistle would have
been quite as well; particularly as the King's letter was
accompanied by one from Taylor. F 2

68 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
If his Majesty descends to these minutiae, I do not know
where he is to find time even for the smaU portion of sleep or
aliment which he takes. They said yesterday that he had
given his personal orders to a subaltern of dragoons on some
subject connected with the escort, and that the poor boy was
puzzled which to obey, the King or the adjutant.
As to our Parhamentary proceedings, the Cabinet have
resolved to follow the precedent of 1820 — to bring down a
message to-morrow to announce a dissolution, and exhort the
Commons to get through their business, to take a vote on
account of the Civil List, and postpone the Regency to a new
Parliament. We are run so close with the Sugar Duties
(they expire on the 6th July) that all we can possibly do is to
pass them per saltum in their present form. I conclude that
we shall dissolve in about a fortnight or three weeks ; but
that time may be prolonged if the parties adverse to us unite
to show their strength, which Brougham to-day gave us some
intimation that we might expect, for he read the King and
the public a short but pithy lecture on the text that without
a certain and zealous majority in the House of Commons, no
Government could get on. He added that no acquisition of
talents and strength in another place (the House of Lords)
would supply the defect of support in the Commons. This,
it is supposed, alludes to some suspicion of a junction between
the Duke and Lord Grey. But the upshot of all was that
the Opposition would show the King that he could not do
without them. July 2nd.
If we do not get help somewhere, we shall become ridicu
lous. In the meanwhile, the Whigs have split. The Duke of
Bedford and Lord Jersey voted with the Duke of Wellington
on Wednesday against Lord Grey, and yesterday sent him a
written remonstrance against his proceedings (and, inter alia,
his concert with the ultra-Tories), and dissolved their political
connections, and Lord VUliers is going down to stand in the
Government interest for Rochester.
Nor is there more concert amongst our adversaries in the
House of Commons. Huskisson told me last night that
Brougham was in "a state of excitement bordering on
insanity," and Sir Robert Inglis, who had voted in Brougham's
train on Wednesday, quarrelled outright with him last night
on the point whether drunkenness was a sin or only a vice.

1830.] TIIE GENERAL ELECTION. 69
In short, on a tri\'ial, incidental point they showed a violent
antipathy. This division, as long as it lasts, will save us, and
it may last for ever ; but I see clouds in other quarters big
with storms, and I heartily wish that I were as you are, out of
the vessel that is about to sail in such weather, on a, to me,
wholly unprofitable voyage.

The General Election took place, and the result was un
favourable to the Ministry. Two of Sir Robert Peel's
brothers were defeated, and his brother-in-law, Mr. George
Dawson, whose speech had stirred up so much controversy
the year before, was beaten in Ireland. Mr. Croker was also
defeated in his appeal to his constituents of Dublin University,
chiefly in consequence of a division in the party ranks created
by Mr. North. Mr. Croker, however, speedily secured another
seat, this time for Aldborough. Almost at the same moment
there occurred the Revolution in Paris, and the abdication of
Charles X. Louis Philippe, who afterwards was for many
years in regular communication with Mr. Croker, ascended
the French throne, whUe the deposed king sought refuge in
England. Mr. Croker to Sir Henry Hardinge. August 19th, 1830.
Dear Hardinge,
Charles X. has assumed the incognito title of Count de
Ponthieu. He is to have a temporary asylum in this country.
I fancy he wUl estabhsh himself at Lulworth Castle, on the
coast of Dorset. It belongs, you know, to a mad Catholic
gentleman, whom the Pope has made a Cardinal, and there is
a Catholic chapel there, and the seat is surrounded by a
Catholic population. So that nothing can be better.
My letters from Paris to-day state things as looking less
settled. Cries from the wine-shops of " Vive Napoleon II. ;"
and what astonishes me, an expectation that Protestantism
will be declared the religion of the State !

70 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
Folks begin to think that we shall soon have to find a
temporary asylum for Louis PhUippe ! Yours ever,
J. W. C.
On the 15th of September an event occurred whicH gave a
great shock not only to the political world, but to the entire
body of the community. It had been arranged that the
Liverpool and Manchester raUway should be opened with
much show and ceremony, for it was justly felt that the
occasion was destined to become memorable in domestic
history. The Prime Minister (the Duke of Wellington), with
the Home Secretary (Peel) and Huskisson, the member for
Liverpool, were all present. By some misfortune, Mr.
Huskisson stepped upon the line as the engine was approach
ing, and he received injuries from the effects of which he
died a few hours afterwards.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. September 18th, 1830.
I can think of nothing but the loss of poor Huskisson.
There was no danger, no fear even ; but he, not being quite so
cool and active as we have seen him at Sudbourne, in attempt
ing to get into his car, stumbled back a few feet, tripped, and
fell, with his left leg and thigh just over the raUroad, and
that very moment the other engine passed and crushed the
limb to jelly. It was an accident that might have happened
any day in the Strand if one's foot had slipped at the edge of
the kerbstone just as a stage-coach was going rapidly along ;
but the miraculous combination of circumstances is that he
should fall where a fall seemed impossible ; that he should
fall within reach of the engine ; that the member for Liver
pool — that so important a person should, out of at least one
hundred thousand persons, be the only one to suffer any
accident ; and finally, that it should have occurred just as he
had shaken hands with (shall I say) his political antagonist,*
* [The Duke of WeUington.]

1830.J TALLEYRAND IN LONDON. 71
and reconciled, as it were, the only porsoual enmity he ever
had. How many million of chancos tliore wore against such
a catastrophe befalling him at such a moniout ! Had he not
been member for Liverpool, he would not have been there ;
had he not quarrelled with the Duke of Wellington he would
not have left his seat. In short, there is no end to the chain of
cfrcumstances that were linked to this most deplorable event.
Talleyrand was at this time in London as French Ambas
sador, and he was sometimes entertained by the Duke of
Welhngton. Mr. Croker describes one occasion on which he
met the diplomatist. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
We had an exceedingly agreeable dinner. We were twelve
at a round table that should have held eight ; but what we
lost in elbow-room comfort, we made up for in being all forced
into one conversation. Talleyrand is not at all changed since
our " Concihabule " fifteen years ago ; and his mind seems as
fresh as ever. Ho said two or three of his sly things.
"Avant de partir," said he, " je conseillais au roi de fairo un
grand acte." " And what was that ? " was asked with a great
deal of curiosity. " Mais," he replied, " un grand acle poli
tique, — d' alter passer trois jours a Neiuilly ! " You know that
the Citizen-King has not been out of I'aris since his accession,
and seems afraid of going beyond the barriers lest he should
give umbrage to his good people of Paris.
- The Duke asked him about la Peine. " La Peine," he
said, was a " bonne femme — tres bonne femme, et surtout
grande dame, et c'est precisement ce qii'il nous faut dans les
circonstances." You will judge by these two sarcasms what
the old fox thinks of the late Revolution — observe, I do not
call it the last. You would have been amused at the gravity
with which, when some one talked of confiscation, he said,
" II n'y a plus de confiscation en France." I could not
help whispering Alvanley, " except of France itself" For
what has poor Charles X. suffered but a confiscation ?
We hear that TaUeyrand solicited this mission very
anxiously, and he certainly is delighted to find himself here.
The state of confusion and fear in Paris was, and is, much
greater than we learn from the newspapers.

72 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
I begin to lose all hope of getting away again. Things
seem to me to look blacker and blacker. Yours ever,
J. W. C.
The prospect was, in truth, very dark on aU sides. In
July there had been the Revolution in Paris ; it was evident
that another was preparing in Belgium ; and in England great
disturbances had occurred in the agricultural districte, as well
as in many of the large towns. Incendiary fires were once
more of nightly occurrence. Wellington and Peel were both
unpopular with their own party as well as with the country.
Mr. Croker firmly believed that if the Ministry were over
thrown, still greater evUs would arise, and he was particularly
anxious to restore something like harmony within theT ranks
of his political friends. It was with this purpose in view
that he wrote the next letter.
Mr. Croker to Mr. William Blackwood. October 29th, 1830.
Let me say a word or two to you on the tone your political
articles have lately taken. If, as is, I suppose, the admitted
right of all periodicals, you pubUsh what you think hkely to
sell best, I have no more to say ; but if you and your clever
contributors feel a real interest in the matter, I would ask
what good can be got by the continual attacks on the Duke
of WeUington and Sir Robert Peel. I admit fuUy and
frankly the causes of dislike which the old Tories have to
both, and particularly the latter ; and if there were any mode
by which you could turn them out to make way for more
congenial ministers, I am too old and, I hope, too fair an
observer of the political world to make the shghtest objec
tion ; such a course would be not only natural, but just and
honest. But can the mischief be undone ? — (and I agree with you
and your friends that great mischief was done ; we only differ
as to the compensatory degree of advantage). Because we
have made one inroad on the Constitution, are we to lay all

1830.] REFORM RIOTS. 73
waste ? For saving what we have, I see no other hoi)e than
keeping the Duke in power ; if he were to go out, you would
have revolutions in every State in Europe, England included
perhaps ; certainly attempts at revolution. There is no other
public man who has character enough, either at home or
abroad, to ballast the Cabinet in such a tempest and sea as
are roaring round us. The one or two next to him in public
weight are disposed to these very revolutionary principles. I
know that when called to power they would abjure them, and
do their best to keep their own present friends down ; but
then they would lose all consideration in the eyes of the
public by what would be called apostasy.
Pray consider the few hints I have thrown out. They will
lead to many ramifications, all tending to the one -end, the
re^union of the Tories under the Duke. Pray excuse this
liberty, and believe me to be, very truly yours, &c.,
J. W. C.
Conflicts with the new police force continued to be of
frequent occurrence, and in the House of Commons the
attacks on the Ministry became more and more formidable.
The end was nearer than Mr. Croker probably thought when
he next wrote. Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel. November 3rd, 1830.
My dear Peel,
Barrow went up last night to Bond Street at nine o'clock,
and gives me an account of the affair, formidable enough at
the moment, but, I think, only accidental. It was aU directed
against the police, whose conduct was admirable ; but he says
that aU through the town (that is, of course, as far as his way
home led him) the rascaUy mob were pursuing the pohcemen,
and maltreating them whenever they could get one alone.
For God's sake let them be supported; we are in no
danger if we have amongst ourselves firmness and courage.
Our House of Commons is a good one ; we have a dozen
talkers against us, and we must somehow contrive to have a
dozen for us in the several branches of debate. For instance,
Mr. Fitzgerald did very well last night on Ireland, and will do

74 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
better when he gets confidence, for he stUl speaks under the
restraint of recent Whiggism. It wUl be hard if you can't
get declamation to answer Grant and Palmerston, who are
really nothing but froth ; and the great Brougham himself I
firmly believe to be great only because we go on our knees to
him. Let us get up. But we must not give them an inch,
and we must maintain all our Institutions, and stand or fall
even with the new pohce. Yours
J. W. C.
The Government was in such a position that the sUghtest
reverse must necessarUy have been fatal to it. The blow
soon feU. It was necessary to readjust the CivU List, and
the amount fixed was 970,000^. a year. This was considered
too large by a considerable section of the House, although it
was not so large as it had been in the previous reign. Sir
Henry ParneU, a financial reformer of some- weight and
authority, complained that no change had been made in the
disposition of the revenues of the Duchies of Lancaster and
Cornwall, although there had been a promise in the King's
speech that the hereditary revenues of the Crown should be
placed at the disposal of the House. He brought forward a
motion to refer the Civil List to a Select Committee ; it was
carried against the Government, and the Duke of Wellington
resigned. Thus the Whigs came into power at last, under
Lord Grey, and Mr. Croker resigned the office at the Ad
miralty which he had honourably filled for two-and-twenty
years. Sir James Graham became First Lord, and to him
Mr. Croker offered aU the aid which his successor might
desire. Mr. Croker to Sir James Graham.
Dear Sir Admiralty, November 20th, 1830.
As there never has been an instance of the Secretary of
the Admiralty being removed on a change of Ministry, it
cannot be improper, though it may be superfluous, to acquaint

1830.] RESIGNATION AT TIIE ADMIRALTY. 75
you, who, I understand, are to be at the head of the new
Board, that it is my intention to resign that office.
Permit me, however, to add that if there is any informa
tion or assistance which twenty-two years' experience may
enable me to afford you in the outset of your arduous duties,
I shall feel it my duty to do so, readily and frankly.
I have the honour to be, dear Sir,
Your faithful humble servant,
J. W. C.
Sir James Graham to Mr. Croker.
Grosvenor Place, November 20th, 1830.
Dear Sir,
I am very much flattered by the kind spirit of your
obliging note; and I can only express my regret that the
Admfralty wUl no longer have the benefit of your brilliant
talente and faithful services.
The offer of your assistance at the commencement of the
arduous duties which I am about to undertake is very
generous; and, even if I should not avail myself of it, I
hope you wUl believe that it has gratified me as a proof
that our pohtical warfare has not deprived me altogether
of your esteem. I have the honour to be, dear Sir,
Your faithful servant,
J. R. G. Graham.
The events which led to this change in Mr. Croker's life
are described in various letters now arranged in thefr proper
order. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. November 16th, 1830.
Our division of last night was 233 against us and 204 for
— 29 majority. We are therefore out ! The Duke saw the
King to-day. His Majesty was reluctant to part with his
Government, but the Duke, I beheve, showed him that it was
inevitable, and tried to convince him that, though a present
inconvenience, it would be of ultimate advantage.
The other Ministers are to be successively with His

76 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
Majesty, and all wUl hold the same language, except perhaps
the Chancellor.* Up to two o'clock this morning he talked of
resigning with his coUeagues as a matter of course, but the
knowing ones suspect that he wUl rat. I think not. Lord
Bathurst, with breathless haste, filled up BuUer's vacancy
with his son WUham Bathurst, without the knowledge of the
Duke or Peel, who were, and are, very angry. If we had
stayed in, it would have been a new hare to hunt, and it may
be so still ; for it has been taken notice of in the House of
Commons. We have not yet heard that the King has sent for any
one ; but I suppose he wUl do so this afternoon. I see no
one but Lord Grey; but dreamers talk of the Duke of
Richmond and old Eldon.
When I saw the Duke, Arbuthnot and Hardinge were
with him. Hardinge said the Whigs would endeavour to get
the Duke to be Commander-in-Chief — a device which he
stigmatised as disgraceful, in which the Duke seemed to
assent. The King has spent all the afternoon in seeing his Ministers,
and is, or affects to be, much distressed at what has happened
— but other people say that he talked with great indifference
in expectation of it two or three days ago.
About half-past three His Majesty sent for Lord Grey, who
came about five, What has passed has not yet transpired.
Peel in the House of Commons announced that Ministers
had resigned, and only did the business till successors should
be appointed.
Althorp has asked Brougham to put off the motion for
reform which stood for to-night. Brougham seemed re
luctant — said he expected nothing from any Government, and
• [There seems to have been no real cause for this suspicion, though it
undoubtedly existed at the time. Lord Campbell wrote (November 16) in
his Diary, "Copley will try to intrigue and keep the Great Seal" (' Camp
bell's Life,' vol. i. p. 488), and Mr. Charles Greville expresses himself to
the same effect. Sir Theodore Martin remarks, with much greater
probabiUty of truth, that Lord Lyndhurst " would never have consented
to do otherwise than foUow the fortunes of his leader, for he was much
attached to the Duke of Wellington, and knew himself to be too little in
sympathy with the views of Earl Grey upon the question of Eeform, to
have accepted the Chancellorship under him, even if it had been tendered."
— ' Lyndburst's Life,' p. 272.]

1830.] MINISTERIAL CHANGES. 11
positively would put off the motion for no longer than
the 25th.
So after twenty-two years of office I am about to be a free
man. I wonder how I shall like it. Perhaps after a season
I shall pine for my old green desk. Yours ever,
J. W. C.
To Lord Hertford. November 18th.
Lord Grey has made no progress as yet. Althorp at first
refused office, but Grey said that if he persisted in that
refusal he would throw up his mission. So Althorp sub
mitted, and is, they say, to be First Lord of the Admiralty.*
Lord WeUesley, too, is to get something — some say Lord
Chamberlain, others the Board of Control; but I don't
think that they wUl give any office of business to the most
brilliant incapcLcity in England.f Lord Lansdowne | and
Spring Rice § will probably resume their old stations.
After some doubts, the Chancellor's resignation is certain.
My Lady was all yesterday begging of Lord Durham to use
his influence to save her lord — I believe without the least
sanction from him. He seems to be quite fair, and steady to
go with his friends ; but who are his friends ? There was a
meeting yesterday at Peel's of forty official members of the
House of Commons — ^he announced first that we were out,
and secondly that he meant to retire to private life || — to give
no opposition and not to lead the party — in short, to be his
own unfettered man. We did not much like that; for it
might suit him, but was not what we, going out with him,
had a right to expect ; for if he is at liberty to take his line,
we are at liberty to take ours, and ours might be not to
foUow out one who, when we were out, would leave us to
* [He was made Chancellor of the Exchequer.]
t [He was not given a place in the Cabinet, but was subsequently Lord
Steward, and then Lord Lieutenajit of Ireland.
X [Lord Lansdowne was Secretary of State for the Home Department in
Mr. Canning's Government (1827). He was now made President of the
Council.] § [Mr. Spring Eice was made Secretary of the Treasury. He had held
the post of Under Secretary for the Home Department in 1827.]
|{ [This was the second or third time Peel had talked of retiring to
private life.]

78 THE '. CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
shift for ourselves. However, on this reaching the Duke, he
has announced that he means to keep the party together ; not
to oppose — nay, to support — the King's Government in. all
that may tend to the pubhc safety, but to observe them, and if
they attempt anything hostile to our institutions, to oppose.
This, I hope, will warm the cold caution of Peel into some
degree of party heat ; but if he won't lead us there are others
who will, at least, make the attempt. They said about town
that the Duke had abdicated official life ; but it is not so.
He says he is essentially, and by his position and his duty, a
public man, and will continue so as long as life and intellect
last. November 22nd.
To-night Peel, Goulburn, Murray, Herries, Hardinge, my
self, and, in short, our whole party took the Opposition seats ;
and as O'Connell, Hume, and Co. have not gone over with
the Whigs, it was very difficult to get a place, particularly as
Sir Richard Vyvyan and some of the Ultras came to sit with
us. The other side was comparatively empty, but as there
are twenty at least out for re-election, that did not surprise
me ; but the tone of the House was decided opposition ; for
when Poulett Thompson's writ was moved for, and Lowther
asked whether the honourable member had left the mercantile
firm to which he had so lately belonged, there was a loud
and general cheer, and O'ConneU having made an observation
on the number of retfred ChanceUors now existing (four),
and saying that there would be soon two more, there was a
general mouvement de hilarite.
The burning system is now turned to open rioting in
Hampshire. So much the better; incendiarism cannot be
got at, but rioters can. Indeed, I hear that one incendiary
has been taken up with papers that wiU prove the case against
him, and an account of 800^. spent by him in a tour through
Kent and Sussex. Mr. Croker to Mr. Doyle.* November 22nd.
My dear Doyle,
As you are, I believe, the man in the world who cares
most about me, I wish you to hear from myself, and to
* [An old Dublin friend.]

1830.] MR. CROKER'S RETIREMENT. 19
• approve of my having resigned my officii I su]ipose the now
people would not have kept me, but I did not wait tn know,
as 1 at once determined to follow the Duke of Wellington.
This will be a great release and comfort /or a time, as I am
really weary of eternal business, and am glad of a good
excuse for retiring. How long that feeling may last I d(j not
venture to promise, and pubhc opinion seems to give the new
Administration but a short tenure of power.
You wiU be glad to know that althougli the loss of income
wUl inconvenience me, it wiU be only inconvenience, and that I
shall be able to maintain my private and public rospectabihty
on a moderate scale of expense. My wife and girl are happy
that I am out of office, and are quite contented with the more
economical course of life which we must adopt.
Ever, my dear Doyle,
Affectionately yours,
J. W. C.
To Lord Hertford. November 30th.
The new Ministry is at last completed in all its parts. I
this mornmg left the office and the house in which I have
spent twenty-two years. I left it with the kind of regret
that one feels at hearing of the death of a very old acquaint
ance whom one was not very fond of You are sorry to
think' that you are never to see Jack again, though you must
confess that he was a great bore.
The Conservative party of observation under General the
Duke of Wellington and Lieut.-Gen. Sir Robert Peel have
taken their position, and wiU act if, and when, necessary.
There is a gxeat deal of turmoU in the country — audacity in
the common people, and the most lamentable apathy and
cowardice in the gentry ; but it wUl be soon put down every
where, for it has been checked where it began in Sussex and
Kent. The Duke gives a dinner on Saturday next to all who
went out with him ; I suppose we shall be near fifty.
I have just received your No. 1 from Lyons. You guessed
right in supposing that we wished to get out ; and we thought
it safer for the country that we should go on a question of
form (that is, of confidence), than on so vital a question as

80 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
Eeform. I have long been of opinion that we could not go
on, and, although there are few more financially incon
venienced by going out, no one can approve it more than I do.
Peel is much more cordial and zealous than at first. He
thought, it seems, there were some false brethren at the first
meeting, which induced him to speak with so much caution.
December 8th.
Althorp is not only Chancellor of the Exchequer, but
leader of the House of Commons. This looks like division.
Palmerston,* however, is prompter to the puppet, and they
will have talkers enough. They intend to reduce the salaries
of all public officers sitting in Parhament; they will also
now modify the Civil List, but I don't hear that they propose
any saving — perhaps they wUl diminish the amount of
pensions. I beheve there was no question of Peel's neighbour.
Lord Cassilhs, for any office — out of sight out of mind!
There is a promise of an attack upon the Duke for granting
four pensions after he virtually was out. These four, one I
hear to Black Billy [Holmes], and three Fitzclarences ; the
latter will probably save the former. There is nothing in its
being done just at the moment ; that is usual ; but I doubt the
right to grant at aU before the Civil List has been settled.
Liverpool election is over ; Ewart victorious by 29, after a
poll of 6000. It has cost each, they say, 50,000Z. ; this
seems incredible, yet I am assured it is true ; Denison had a
subscription of 15,000Z., but is himself in for 35,000Z. The
bribery was impudently flagrant. Three pilots who arrived
from sea the last morning had each 1501. for their votes.
What a commentary on Parliamentary reform !
Lord Grey's first offer to Brougham was Attorney-General.
Brougham took the letter and quietly tore it in two and
threw it under his feet ; that was his whole reply. He then
reiterated his notice for Reform, and Lord Grey took fright,
and would have given him the Rolls, but the king, fore-
luarned, would not do that ; and so he became Chancellor. I
forgot to tell you that we all dined with the Duke of
Wellington on Saturday last — fifty in the great gallery — the
most magnificent banquet I ever saw. We were all there
except four or five. The Duke of Gordon gave the host's
health, and said that he hoped he would soon give us the
* [Lord Palmerston was Foreign Secretary in this Administration.]

1830.] POPULAR DEMONSTRATIONS. 81
word of command " As you were ! " to which the Duke of
Wellington, in returning thanks, replied, " No, not as you were,
but m.xich better ;" his meaning evidently being that our late
situation was anything but comfortable ; the dinner, however,
was too flne to be hvely. December 14th.
We live in times when notlihig surprises, else the scenes of
last week were enough to astonish and alarm. I told you
that a fellow, who certainly intended to assassinate the Duke
of Wellington, was taken up on the 8th. Wliile the Lords
were discussing how he should be disposed of, the Duke stood
up and said that he had a matter of much more consequence
to notice. He wished to know of the new Ministers why
they had suffered the king to be, as it were, besieged in his
palace by an iUegal assembly — a mob calling itself the Trades
of London, many, many thousand strong. Melbourne answered
he was aware of it, but thought it would have been imprudent
to attempt to intercept them, and Brougham declared (in
contradiction to the Duke), that the assembly was perfectly
legal; upon this the Duke produced an Act directly pro
hibiting such processions under colour of address or petitions,
and Brougham was put to open shame.
They say that there were 6000 or 10,000 men, and they
stopped at St. James's till two hours after dark, insisting on
seeing the King, and declaring they would not go away tUl
they had. Whether it was the King himself, or (as I beheve)
Blackwood in his fine groom's coat, who appeared at the
window to answer this caU, is not certain, but the populace
thought it was His Majesty; they gave three cheers, their
bands struck up " God save the King," and they marched
off in perfect mihtary order.
This matter was noticed some nights after in the House of
Commons, with the addition that the tricoloured flag had been
carried in the procession, and this gave Lord Althorp occasion
to pronounce a defence of that fact, and a panegyric on the
tricoloured flag, which electrified the House, and has astonished
the country.
The Ministers are going to increase the mUitary force.
Very right and proper ; but it was chiefly their own violent
declamations against the existing amount of force which has
made this measure necessary. They wUl be obliged to eat all
their pledges and promises in the same way.
VOL. II. G

82 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
During the year, Mr. Croker had occasion to write to a
friend in reference to the duty which rested upon a public
man of showing fidehty to his principles, and of preserving a
consistent course in his policy. There can be no doubt that
he attached much greater importance to these virtues than
most people did then, or do now ; and it was partly in con
sequence of that fact that he ultimately became estranged
from Sir Robert Peel. " I am one of those," he wrote to his
acquaintance, " who have always thought that party attach
ments and consistency are in the first class of a statesman's
duties, because without them he must be incapable of
performing any useful service to his country. I think,
moreover, that it is part of our well understood, though
unwritten, constitution that a party which aspires to govern
this country ought to have within itself the means of filhng
all the offices, and I therefore disapprove of making a Sub
scription Ministry, to which every man may belong, without
reference to his understood principles or practices." A
memorandum on the same subject was drawn up by
Mr. Croker at a previous period, apparently intended to be
shown to Lord Goderich. There is, however, no note ex
planatory of the use which was actuaUy made of it.
Memorandum by Mr. Croker. Extracts.
I will uot here recapitulate the extraordinary and blame-
able lengths to which the Tory Opposition went, or were
driven, in the reign of George I. and IL, nor revive the
obloquy with which they were assailed on their partial ac
cession to power. For the next thirty years the fluctuations
were frequent, but even in those days it did not quite pass
without observation that the great Lord Chatham who, in the
Tory Opposition, caUed the King's Electoral dominions a
millstone round the neck of England, saw reason, when he
came into his Majesty's councUs, to consider that Hanover
ought to be as dear to us as Hampshire. Mr. Charles Fox, a

1830.] POLITICAL CONSISTENCY. 83
vehement member of the Tory administration, which main
tained the right to tax America, was omitted from one of
Lord North's treasury patents, and became immediately a
vehement Wliig, and when, after a change or two. Lord North
himself was, on an ebb of the political tide, left on the
strand, he rejoined his former friend Mr. Fox, and was as
violent as the best, or as you and I would say, as the worst
of them.
But these are obsolete instances, and belonged to a period
in which the pursuit of place for the sake of place was con
sidered more venial, and pohtical consistency less of a public
duty than in our days. Let me, therefore, look to better
times and more illustrious examples.
Mr. Burke had attached himself to the Whig party from
Wing principles, at a period when the Whigs professed attach
ment to the constitution as it existed in Church and State.
Even in his earhest hfe, and even in the whfrlwind of his
opposition, Mr. Burke upheld the monarchical and aristo-
cratical principle of our constitution ; but the essential spfrit
of opposition was so strong that it often repressed or fettered
those sentiments, and there was a time when Mr. Burke
was as odious to the Tories as a Radical of the present day.
But when the French Revolution had brought, not small
questions of economy or reform, but the great fundamental
principles of our constitutional and national existence into
discussion, then Mr. Burke, not forgetting but overlooking
and despising all minor topics, stifling all party feelings,
severed aU private friendships, and ranged himself on the side
of the Constitution. This example was followed by the Duke
of Portland, Lord FitzwiUiam, Lord Spencer, Mr. Windham ;
and although I heard and have read much abuse of these
Ulustrious men for thefr junction with Mr. Pitt, I have never
heard that any one ever censured Mr. Pitt (at least nobody
of consequence ever did) for accepting their services in that
hour of difficulty and danger.
The charge of inconsistency against himself and his friends
was answered victoriously, not by denying that he had
previously maintained Whig opinions on various subjects, but
by asserting that these opinions, founded on principle,
belonged to former times and circumstances, that they were
not at enmity with the sentiments he had lately avowed, but
rather (when weU understood) the forerunner of such senti
ments; and finally, that when men and measures had all
G 2

84 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
changed around him, when the dangers to the constitution
were not only different, but of an absolutely contrary character,
it became his duty to fit himself to the new position in which
he was placed. Mr. Burke had been an advocate for
economical reform ; and let me for a moment abandon the
course of my argument to do him the justice of saying that
in a short interval of power he endeavoured to redeem, and
did to a certain degree actually redeem, his pledges to that
effect — not by wUd and slashing cuts at the Royal prerogative
or the national defences, but by a sober and measured
legislation propounded to Parliament in the most masterly,
most prudent, and most eloquent discourses ever dehvered.
Mr. Burke, I say, had been an advocate for economical
reform, the Whig eheval de bataille of that day. He was
accused of forgetting that great object in his energy against
French principles, and for a vigorous war. Mr. Burke had
no need, for the reasons I have just given, to defend himself
against this charge, but with that expansive and com
prehensive power of intellect which above aU statesmen and
most writers he possessed, he lays down certain general con
siderations which apply to the cases, and would justify the
conduct of those who had not, as he fortunately had in some
degree, the opportunity of redeeming such pledges.
After the authority of Mr. Burke, I shall now quote that
which stands in my estimate, and I beheve in your Lord
ship's, next to it — that of Mr. Pitt. But Mr. Pitt's example
is even more authoritative on this point than Mr. Burke's,
his pledges were more important, more clear of local and
temporary limitations and considerations than Mr. Burke's ;
and although he so long held the helm of power, he not only
did not redeem any one of those pledges, but was under
heaven the instrument which delayed and defeated the
attempts of others to carry them into execution.
Your Lordship is well aware that Mr. Pitt began life in
opposition. He found Mr. Burke engaged in the pursuit of
economical reform. It is the nature of an Opposition that
men are there, as it were, at an auction for popularity ; they
bid against one another, and the boldest bidder carries off
the prize — often worthless — always over-paid! This con
sideration seems to me to be of great importance with
respect to the real character of the measures of Oppositions
which are not under the control of some commanding
genius. An Opposition as a body can be no wiser than its

1830.] PITT AND BURKE. 85
siUiest member, who has always the power either to drag his
friends after him, or else to usurp, over their reluctance, an
individual popularity ; we have seen abundant instances of
this in our own days, but more particularly since the re
moval of Lord Grey to the House of Peers left the Opposition
without an acknowledged and authoritative head.
It is not foreign to our subject to observe the converse of
this proposition on the other side of the House. No ad
ministration is stronger than ite weakest member. When a
commanding genius like Mr. Pitt is present, his colleagues,
however naturaUy weak or timid, are either emboldened by
his courage or silenced by his supremacy. In cabinets of a
more equal construction, and in the House in which the Ffrst
Minister happens not to be, we have seen the scruples — often
scruples of vanity or of timidity — of one, otherwise very
unimportant, cabinet minister alter the whole course of enter
prises of great pith and moment.
From this little digression (which, however, is not one in
substance, though it may be in form), let me return to Mr. Pitt.
Mr. Pitt, not content with supporting Mr. Burke in his
efforts for economical reform, resolved, with the indiscretion
of youth and the chartered licence of opposition, to shoot
a bolt which should go higher and farther than even the
Hibernian enthusiasm of Burke had imagined, and he evoked
the spectre of Parhamentary Reform !
The pohtical prescience of the boy who chose this theme
would be wonderful if we did not recollect that he had but
lately lost the advice of that shrewd and why politician, but
that original and daring genius — his father ; he was probably
the friend of parhamentary reform ; he saw in it the seeds of
a power over the democracy which would last when " WUkes
and Liberty " should have faded into oblivion ; he saw in this
question the means of uniting zeal for the rights of the
people with apparent adherence to the true principles of the
constitution ; he was enabled to unite republicans. Dissenters,
Jacobites, all those, in short, whose unvarnished hostUity
would have been treasonable, into a constitutional body,
associated only for the restoration of the rights of the nation
over its representatives. This mode of proceeding did not
attack the Crown dfrectly, nor the Lords ; it was only a
contest between the Commons and a person falsely styling
himself their representative. The losers were not likely to
be alarmed ; while all the Whigs, or, to use a more popular

86 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
and a more correct phrase, the ultra- Whigs, were for ever
enlisted on the side of a question which included all projects
of reforming every subject, and was not to be settled but by
the establishment of universal suffrage, and such other con
cessions to the populace as would have made this country a
pure, or, to speak more truly, an impure democracy.
But whether Mr. Pitt pursued this scheme by his father's
suggestions or by the indiscreet and out-bidding spirit of a
tyro at the auction for popularity ; it is fortunate that he was
soon caUed to other, and higher and happier, duties.
Can you and I, my dear Lord, or can any Tory bred up as
we have been, you at the knees of Gamahel and I with a
distant but undeviating respect — can we say that because,
as Lord Orford exclauned in his rage, that " giddy boy " had
juggled with this question of reform, he was therefore to be for
ever excluded from the service of the Crown, and forbidden
from the exercise of that matured judgment and that improved
eloquence which (a providential boon in difficult times)
enabled him to preserve the whole constitution from the
attacks of his old foUowers, invigorated, and unimpaired by
the friends of the French Revolution ? Mr. Pitt's voice was
the spear of Ithuriel ; it wounded and it healed ; but let us not
concur in a doctrine which should establish as a maxim that
no one who had wounded should ever attempt to heal ; that
the earhest false step must be persisted in by a succession
of crimes to the death of the party and the ruin of the
country ; that no modification or change of opinion is to be
aUowed, and that all shall be brought at last to explosive
violence, actual revolutions, and the extermination of one half
the people — such would be the inevitable result of such a
doctrine. I wUl only here sum up what I have to say to those
Tory gentlemen who belong to what are called Pitt Clubs,'
that the two most formidable objects of their apprehensions,
Parliamentary Reform and Catholic Emancipation, were the
measures of Mr. Pitt ; and if they tell me that he repented him
of the first, and consented to postpone the second, I only ask
for other noblemen and gentlemen who may have given
countenance to these chUdren of Mr. Pitt, that they may be
allowed (if desirous of it), without undue prejudice, a simUar
locus pcenitentice, and equal allowance of time.
I conclude this theme by saying that if it be once introduced
as an admitted principle that no man can take office without
stipulating for the success of every question to which he may

1830.] SIR THOMAS LAWRENCE. 87
have given a support, however insolated or transient, and if
every man in Government is to be bound to reject all con
cessions with those in whom he, on any point, has ever
differed — I say then that the practical constitution of this
country is overthrown ; that we should have a few years of an
almost despotic government succeeded by an anarchy and
God knows what. According to our present practice, opinions
are balanced, moderated, conceded; extremes on all sides are
abandoned, and cabinets are formed, like all other human
institutions, on an average of opinions — on those mutual con
cessions without which neither public nor private, national
nor domestic affairs, the relations of husband and wife, parent
and chUd, servant and master, landlord and tenant, could
be conducted for a day.
The record of the year 1830 would not be complete without
some reference to the death of an old and distinguished friend
of Mr. Croker, who died on the 7th of January— Sir Thomas
Lawrence. Mr. Croker had always been warmly attached to
the great painter, and had rendered him many services, the
necessities for which were constantly arising, for Sir Thomas
Lawrence was never out of the hands of his creditors. No
one could understand how it was that, notwithstanding
his large gains, the President of the Royal Academy was
invariably without a shiUing to call his own. He was always
in love and always in debt. He engaged himself to both the
daughters of Mrs. Siddons, and they were both said to have
died of disappointment— a termination of the story which
probably had more of romance in it than of truth. It is
indeed certain that he proposed marriage to each of the
young ladies, and that each died ; but it may well be that, as
Allan Cunningham said, they " died much in the usual way,
of disease and a doctor." He was afterwards implicated in
the scandals which accumulated round the head of the
Princess of Wales during her residence at Blackheath. The
Committee o^ Inquiry exonerated liim from all blame —
perhaps not entirely to his own satisfaction, for apparently he

88 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
took a pride in the reputation which he had acquired as a
rake. With regard to his pecuniary affairs, there could be no
room for doubt. In 1825 Mr. Croker had a conversation
with the King (George IV.) on the subject. " He talked,"
Mr. Croker wrote in his diary, " a good deal of Sir Thomas
Lawrence, and praised his portraits as to the countenance,
but complained of his slovenly draperies and backgrounds,
though he often imitated the last from old masters. ' He is
a great deal too spotty and fond of colours in ladies' drape
ries. Cannot think what keeps him so poor. He ought not
to be poor. I have paid him 24,000Z., and have not got
my pictures. The Duke of Welhngton is 2800?. in advance
to hun. All the world is ready to employ him at 1000?. a
picture, yet he never has, as I am told, a farthing.' "
Sir Thomas had painted an excellent portrait of Mr.
Croker, and he was stUl more successful with Miss Croker
(Lady Barrow). Of this latter portrait, AUan Cunningham
declares that " men stood before it in a half circle, adnhring
its lovehness, in the Exhibition." It was " all airiness and
grace."* Mr. Croker was dehghted with the picture, and
felt desirous of giving proofs of his high regard for the painter.
The following letters seem to show that he was not aUowed
to seek in vain for opportunities : —
Sir T. Lawrence to Mr. Croker. December 14th, 1827.
I place reliance on a friendship that has always been
zealous for me, and ask that service which is often so dangerous
to friendship.
I would not, and will not, receive payment for that effort
¦• It was in the Exhibition of 1827, and Mr. Croker stated that " no
portrait of the same size and of the same class ever produced so great an
impression." An admirable engraving of it was produced by Samuel
Cousins.

1830.] LOANS TO SIR T. LAWRENCE. 89
which was voluntarily offered by me as a just return for
important kindness ; but I am unexpectedly in want of that
exact sum (150 guineas) to enable me to keep my word with
a coarse man, whom I have appointed to-morrow at three
o'clock to receive it. This note is written late on Friday
evening, and will, of course, not reach you tUl the morning.
If it be convenient to you to send it, I fear I must retain it
for some days (possibly one of the latest) in the next month,
no longer, not to one day.
My only and last request of this nature is made to you,
and no weak pride will diminish my regard for you, though
your acquiescence should confer on me an additional obliga
tion. I hope I shall not suffer by it in yours.
Your obhged and faithful servant, Thos. Lawrence.
[Endorsed by Mr. Croker : " Answered 15th, and enclosed
a cheque for 150?."] Eussell-square, December 17th, 1827.
My dear Sir,
Receive my sincere thanks for that exact, prompt answer,
which you had fuU right to withhold, but which I expected
from you.
I have additionaUy to thank you for an increase in the
amount of my nephew's income, for, though the appointment
may have been the act of another, the whole originated in
your kindness. Believe me ever, my dear Sfr,
Most faithfully yours, Thos. Lawrence,
There are frequent entries in Mr. Croker's books of loans
made to the artist; none of any money being returned.
There are two letters to Mr. Croker which do not touch upon
the President's immediate necessities, and which possess an
interest of their own, apart from the fact that they were
written within a few months of Sir Thomas's death : —

90 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XV.
Sir Thomas Lawrence to Mr. Croker.
EusseU-square, May 7th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
I cannot tell you what Sir Joshua's last prices were, because
I know not if they were altered from what they were when
I first came to town in 1787. As weU as I remember (the
memory of report only), they were then 200 guineas for the
whole length, 100 for the half length, 70 for the kit-kat, and
50 [150 ?] for the three-quarters.
I have given away my catalogue for this year, so that I
cannot at the moment send you the number of works exhi
bited ; but it is between 1100 and 1200. In the first year,
in 1769, it was 136. Ever, my dear Sir,
Most faithfully yours,
Thos. Lawrence.
EusseU-square, May 8th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
Upon an average of the last ten years, the annual receipts
of the Exhibition have been 5917?. The expenses have
generally exceeded 1900?., so that the clear income has been
about 4000?. per annum.
Deducting about one-thfrd of the receipts for catalogues,
it would appear that upwards of 70,000 persons visit the
Exhibition during the ten weeks in which it is usually kept
open.
Thos. Lawrence.

EusseU-square, July 8th, 1829.
My dear Sir,
It must be my excuse for not sooner answering your letter
that I hoped to meet you at the Building Committee to-day.
I confess to you that I would rather you would NOT
mention my prices, which, with all the aUowance of increase
in the value of money and expense of living, would still
appear in too great contrast to those of Sir Joshua.
Speaking in entire confidence and sincerity, I think there
may be one point in which I excel Sir Joshua, and it is that
which has enabled me to be so fortunate in my progress.

1830.] DEATH OF LAWRENCE. 91
I mean the knowledge of those ibrms and lines which con
stitute beauty, and in which I consider the power of rendering
grandeur to be included. I would instance my Satan, Cato,
Hamlet, and my picture of old Mrs. Locke in the present
Exhibition as proofs to justify my assertion. The same power
enables me to catch the quick, momentary expression of
beauty (as in the portrait of Miss Croker), and is the cause of
my present certainty hi producing fidelity of resemblance.
This is the one advantage that I possess.- But then there is a
charm in the general practice of Sir Joshua, as well as in his
finest works, which we painters feel with the most sensitive
enjoyment, and which makes comparison with him always
more repugnant to me than it would be with any other
painter. With this genuine and strong feeling, I cannot but
deprecate pubhc comparison between the proportionate reward
of labours which in themselves are sq dissimUar and unequal.
Pray, therefore, determine to omit it.
WUl you forgive me for recurring to another topic, and not
think me indelicately pressing on your friendship ? Com
mander of a Racquet — in-door pensioner of Greenwich. Could
one of these situations be procured for Captain Pogson ? A
wound in the head and the general result of severe service
have reaUy rendered him unfit for his former career of active
employment, and he is obhged to look to humbler sources of
profit for the comfort and sustenance of a most estimable wife
and infant family.
From pecuhar and painful circumstances, the obtaining
this is an object of deep — of the deepest interest to me, and to
obtain it I hardly know the sacrifice that I would not make.
Ever, my dear Sir,
Your faithful friend and servant,
Thos. Lawrence.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. January 12th, 1830.
Poor Lawrence died of an ossification of the heart. I
suspect he was kept poor by great generosity to women.
I know two or three to whom he was very hberal. I find
that he lived a great deal more at home than I believed.
He had at least two distinct societies, the individuals of
each of which never met the other.

92 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.

CHAPTER XVL
183L
Mr. Croker's Opinions on the Eeform Question — In Advance of his
Party — His Disbelief in Eeform as a " System " — Doubts about
Public Opinion — Letters to Lord Hertford — Lord Hertford on Eeform —
His Distrust of Peel — Peel's Attitude on Eeform — ^An Autograph of
Talleyrand's — Sir David Baird and the Duke of Wellington — Eumoured
Whig Dissensions — " Everybody distrusts Peel " — The Cry of
Eetrenchmeni>— Eeform Prospects— Lord Althorp's Budget — Growing
Importance of Peel — Insult to the King — The First Eeform BiU —
Anomalies of the Measure — Discouragement of the Anti-Eeformers —
Letters from Sir E. Peel — Conversations with the Duke of Wellington
-^The Dissolution — Second Eeform BiU — Mr. Croker's Speeches-—
Eejection of the Bill by the Lords— The Nottingham and Bristol
Biots — Third Eeform Bill — Literary Projects— Proposed Editions of
' Hume ' and ' Pope.'
It has already been shown that Mr. Croker was anxious to
have the chief manufacturing towns enfranchised long before
the majority of the party with which he acted could be
brought to see the necessity of change of any kind in the old
theory of representation. On this point he was for many
years in advance of his party, just as he had been on the
question of Catholic Emancipation. But he could not divest
his mind of the fear that the great democratic wave which he
saw advancing upon the country between 1829 and ,1830
would do infinite harm, and eventually plunge the country in
great disasters. He held, with WeUington and Peel, that the

1831.] THE REFORM AGITATION. 93
existing Constitution had worked well ; that it had produced,
in the main, a better government than other nations possessed ;
and that any attempt to reconstruct it throughout would bo
fraught with peril.*
No doubt he exaggerated the immediate effects which
the BUI would produce. He thought that it would forthwith
drag the country into the horrors of revolution. It must be
borne in mind, however, that much was going on in the
world at that time, although we have lost sight of it now,
wliich tended to confirm the most gloomy forebodings. A
dynasty had been overturned in France, the Continent gene
raUy was in a state of upheaval, and throughout England a
spfrit of turbulence and lawlessness was manifesting itself,
and spreading universal misgivings or actual alarm. We
look back from our present point of view, and see that no
great or violent convulsion happened; that the world went
on after the BUI pretty much as it had gone on before. But
men who were passing their lives in the very midst of the
turmoil and excitement could scarcely survey the scene with
the same coolness. If they lived in towns, their peace was
assaUed by disorderly mobs and riotous processions ; if their
homes were in the country, the chances were that in the
morning they would find a menacing letter from Captain
Swing on the breakfast-table, and that in the evening the sky
would be aglow with the light of their burning hay-ricks and
corn-stacks. The cheap publications of the day reflected the
violent passions which raged on every side, and the language
of the popular spokesmen — of " Orator " Hunt, and others —
* " During one hundred and fifty years the Constitution in its present
form has been in force; and I would ask any man who hears me to
declare whether the experience of history has produced any form of
government so calculated to promote the happiness and secure the rights
and liberties of a free and enlightened people ? " — Sir Eobbbt Peel on
Eeform, March, 1831.

94 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
was not calculated to convince calm and reasonable men that
there was nothing to fear from the advancing force of
democracy. There was, of course, a large class whose sympathies were
entirely with democracy, and who believed that the more
the nation had of it, the better would it be. They antici
pated without alarm the abolition of all limitations to the
suffrage. Mr. Croker never had shared the opinions of this
class, and he was not converted to those opinions by the
events which ushered in the Reform era. He believed that
to transfer power to the hands of the multitude would be to
place the ancient institutions of the country in great
jeopardy ; that landed property would be assailed, the
Church overthrown, the monarchy itself undermined. He
looked forward, as he wrote to a friend on one occasion,* to a
vast subversion, brought about " by a succession of events,
each encroaching on the monarchy, till at last aU authority,
and therefore all security of persons and property, wiU be
lost." It may be that if he were living to-day, he would
contend that we are in the middle, not at the end, of the
history ; that the sequence of events must be watched tUl its
close, before we can assume the right to decide whether
or not the forecast of 1831-32 was based upon truth or error.
At the beginning of the struggle, Mr. Croker did not
believe that the people at large were at all impatient for
Parliamentary Reform ; he regarded the agitation as having
been artfully fomented by the Whig party. This point he
dwelt much upon in his flrst speech of the Session (March 4,
1831) :—
I find that, in the year 1821, 19 petitions only were pre
sented in favour of reform. In the year 1822 the number
was reduced to twelve. In the year 1823 the number was
* To Lord Dover, November 7th, 1831.

1831.] THE TORIES AND IIEFOIIM. 95
29. In the year 1824, there was no petition at all. In the
year 1825, no petition ; in the year 18 2(), no petition ; in the
year 1827, no petition ; in the year 1828, no petition ; in the
year 1829, no petition ; and even in the session 18:-i0, only
14 petitions presented in favour of reform. Such, then, was
the state of the public mind on this subject up to that date.
Then came the late dissolution of Parliament. The noble
Lord and his pohtical friends then sat on the side of the
House from which I am addressing you, and they went from
these seats to the elections, little dreaming that they should
so soon change their situation to the other side of the House.
They looked about for a pohtical lever to move the Govern
ment of the day from its place, and then, from hustings and
windows, and their different places of canvass, they instigated
the clamours of the people in favour of reform; and the
people, as the noble Lord boasts, responded to their call:
650 petitions have been the result of that appeal ! Now, I
wUl venture to affirm, that in aU — no, I wUl not say all, for
I have not yet looked through those which were presented in
a mass on Saturday last — but that in the vast majority of them,
the most prominent demand of the petitioners is, as I have
just stated, for the abolition of tithes and taxes. The first
object of the petitioners is, generally, reduction of taxation ;
the second is the suppression of tithes ; and reform occupies-
most frequently, only the thfrd place in the prayers of the
petitioners. The same view is expressed in the first letters which he
wrote this year. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
Mistley,* January 3rd, 1831.
My date wUl tell you that I cannot give you the latest
London news, but I believe there is little to tell. I hear that
the Cabinet sits four and five hours at a time, and agrees upon
nothing. On Reform I know not how they can agree, and
all other objects are inconsiderable compared with that. I
do not believe that the country is as yet much interested in
the question. If the Tories could be united and well led, I
think they are strong enough, in the House and in public
* [Mistley HaU, near Manningtree, was at this time occupied by the
Speaker. It once belonged to a family named Eigby, and descended by
marriage to Lord Elvers.]

96 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
opinion too, to defeat any plan of reform. Whether they
will unite, and how they wUl be led, is more than I can
answer. The Cabinet has, they say, been feeling the pulse of
Burdett and Hobhouse (sage advisers), and that these
worthies wUl be content to have the qualifications for voting
raised to 10?. Whether as a general principle, including
freeholders, or limited to householders, my informant did
not know, he only knew that a proposition relative to that
sum had been well received by Burdett. Thefr first thought
was to disfranchise a number of the smaUer boroughs ; to that
project I fancy they stiU adhere. But it is more easily said
than done, for I should like to know why a place like
Dunwich, against wliich neither bribery nor perjury can be
charged, should be disfranchised, whUe Liverpool, and New
castle in the Potteries, are to be preserved as samples of
purity of election ?
The Ministers have committed another blunder, which
may be serious in its consequences. They have, by an order
of a Committee of Privy CouncU, without any mention of the
King, ordered a form of prayer to be used on account of
the disturbed state of the country. We can recollect neither
precedent nor principle on which a Committee of CouncU can
do such an act, and yet it seems impossible that they can
have been such dolts as to dp it absolutely without prece
dent. Now my solution is this, that on the two last occasions
on which occasional prayers were ordered, namely on account
of the sickness of George III. and George IL, ex necessitate
rei, the Lords of the CouncU ordered prayers for them, of
course without their presence in Council, the malady that
kept them from Council being the very evil to be prayed
against ; and I suspect that in turning back to the books they
found these precedents, and did not advert to the difference
of the cases.
I have been here these three or four days, no other
stranger but Sir William and Lady Elliott (of Stobs). He
is a dull and rather oddish sort of man, she a granddaughter
of old Boswell, and as zealous a Tory as he was, but withal
ladyhke and pretty. She and I agree wonderfully, and she
entertains me prodigiously with her zeal and her naivete.
She, in face and person, is a little like Miss Raikes, but
perhaps all this whUe you know her better than I do. We
shoot every day. Sir WUliam, the Speaker, his two sons and
I ; but it is rather for air and exercise than sport.

1831.] REFORM RUMOURS IN 1831. 97
Drayton, January llth.
I am here on a visit to Peel. I cannot fiatter myself that I
have been invited as any great political character, yet I think
I see that nothing but pohtics has brought us here. C. lioss
and Clerk were here last week ; and Sir G. Murray, Herries
and Holmes are coming next week (the house not holding
more than three or four at a time), so that it looks very hke
planting a party and building up an opposition, though our
host's visible and avowed occupations are planting trees and
building a house. I hear less and less every day of the
Duke and the House of Commons; men begin to look
exclusively to Peel. The A's* talk of the Duke as willing,
nay anxious, to be again at the head ; others who are almost
as likely to know (H. H.f for instance), seem to think he
is nA)t, and wUl, even in the event of a victorious change,
only take the H.G. I learn that Bucks, Cottesmore,
Belvofr and Althorp are cordial and zealous, and engage
that their friends shaU attend constantly and closely —
ditto old Pow.J {your old friend Row.), ditto Alnwick,
and they seem to say that aU these incline to look to Peel as
caput. We hear that the reform plan of the Cabinet is something
like this — members to half a dozen great towns; in all
boroughs and towns, extend or confine (as the case may be) the
right of voting to resident householders, and give copyholders
votes in the counties. To the first and last I should have no
objection at other times and in other circumstances, but it
seems to me that any alteration whatsoever at this moment
wUl involve everything, and that there is no safe course but
to say — that against a system of reform we are pledged and
fixed; that any step, however otherwise innocuous or even
beneficial, which is part of a system, must be opposed as such —
principiis obsta ; and finally that the question is not reform,
but in fact revolution.
I myself have no object. I am perfectly happy and content
as I am. I hear that they mean to overhaul the pensions,
even those on the Consolidated Fund granted by Act of
Parhament. I can hardly suppose it; but you guess what
the consequences would be — n'importe. Ireland is in a most
diabohcal state, and Anglesey is the most unpopular Lord
* [The Arbuthnots.] f [Doubtless Sir Henry Hardinge.]
} [Lord Powis.]
VOL. II. H

98 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
Lieutenant that has ever been there. I gave him five weeks
to accomplish that degree of honour, but he has done it in
three. Hussey Vivian vacates Windsor to let in Stanley,*
and in return is appointed Commander-in-Chief in Ireland.
I have no objection to this, for if it comes to blows, as it
must, I shall be glad to see a man of decision there.
The reply to this letter shows that Lord Hertford thoroughly
distrusted Sir Robert Peel, and that he would have preferred
joining Lord Grey to acting with a man whom he regarded
as deficient in the first qualities of leadership — firmness and
energy. It wiU also be seen that Lord Hertford's opinions
on the great question at issue were not so extreme as those
which were entertained by many of his political friends.

Lord Hertford to Mr. Croker. Naples, January 31st.
Dear Croker,
With regard to reform, I agree with you, as I did with
Canning, that if it could be resisted entirely, it would be the
preferable course ; but is it not wise also to consider what
hope now remains of being able to do so, and whether it is
not weU to give up a part to save some part ? In your letter,
which I received long ago, you agreed with what I guessed, as
must have guessed every person acquainted with the hst of
the House, that it was preferred to go out on a point of form
rather than upon reform.
Is not the plain English of it this : that twenty-four hours
later the Government expected to be beaten on the question
that some reform was expedient, and that you all proposed
shding out on the CivU List, to not being able to support the
extent of the Duke's declaration, which is precisely Canning's
formerly, and yours now ? Then what hope can exist of your
being able in February, and in opposition, to do what you could
not in government do in November ?
' [Mr. Stanley, the late Lord Derby, then Colonial Secretary, was
defeated at Preston on seeking re-election after taking office. He was
returned for Windsor.]

1831.] SIR ROBERT PEEL AND REFORM. 99
My idea on reform is to save as much as may be, ami even,
if I were in London, and saw an evident desire on the part of
Ld. G. [Grey] to throw over his Radicals, I should try to be
to him as quinine, to strengthen him to throw off his im
purities. To the plan you mentioned. Sir F. B. having agreed
to it, of 10?. and copyholders, I see no objection. I see
none to a few large towns, even if the indefensible boroughs of
Gatton, Old Sarum and Midhurst were to be got rid of on
Lord John Russell's plan of compensation, more Hibernico —
the plan of householders only in boroughs could not be acted
on, as it would disfranchise the voters by servitude, as in
Evesham, Aldborough, &c.
With regard to attendance, to restore the Duke, I am
willing to ask of my friends any degree of attendance and
fatigue, but it must be weU understood that it is for the
Duke, because I think in these times the worst Tory Govern
ment possible would be one under Sir Robert Peel. With
out the European consideration of the Duke's name. Peel is
at least as unpopular among the Tories. Under him aU would
be shipwrecked in some sudden typhoon. He has neither
the energy of the Duke nor of Lord Grey ; he did not re
animate the yeomanry, smothered but not extinguished by
Lord Lansdowne ; he suffered the army to be frittered down.
Lord Grey, much to his praise, is raising both, and I honour
him for it. Sfr Robert Peel has a taste for reform without
measuring his power.
I wish for the Duke's restoration to power, and I then
hope he would throw over his lumber, and persuade Lord
Grey to throw over his Radicals, and then if he brought
together Sfr Robert Peel, Fitzgerald, yourself and Hardinge,
and Lord Grey and Palmerston, the Grants, &c., we should
have what we most want — a strong Government.
In my humble judgment, if we unfortunately lost the Duke
by death, or by his choosing to retire, I should prefer a Tory
junction with Lord Grey, and saying to him, as we agreed
together in London, would in such a case be best .-• — " You are
now sure of your power, and no longer obhged to truckle to
the Radicals ; prove yourself a supporter of our ancient insti
tutions, and of your order." I think he would then be a good
Tory. AU I wish is to preserve to the King his crown, to myself
my coronet and estate, burthened with a large property tax
which I should swallow as easily as any of Hawkins's black
H 2

100 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
doses. But I am sure an unremitting opposition, for the
purpose of making so weak a government as in these times
one would be under Sir Robert Peel, would drive Lord Grey
into radical measures and to dissolution, which might now
dissolve the country, while a year hence it might be in
nocuous. A friend from Barcelona says a great person said confi
dentially, " These people if out would risk all ; in, they wUl do
as little harm as they can, and their measures of strength and
security wUl be supported by my late government." This is
much my creed; the late Government could (perhaps) not
have augmented the army, the yeomanry, or ballotted the
militia. What immense advantages may not accrue? If I
wore a party button, it should be W. and G.* or G. and W., and
if I were umpire I would bid them toss up for Premiership.
For their union I hope ; in it I see our only hope of security.
Which wiU be wise enough to make the first overture, I know
not ; perhaps in these days of blindness, neither.
And so I have said my say, which after all is worth
nothing, because one cannot tell what may have happened.
If the retirement of the Duke occurred, what but revolution
could follow so weak a Government as the Tories could form
under Sir R. Peel if some chance gave them a momentary
majority ? Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. January 19th.
The last day I was in the House I had some serious talk
with Lord Blandford f in the vote office, and I took leave of
him with a " good-bye. Citizen Churchill." How men of rank
and fortune, and above aU, those who have nothing but rank
and fortune, can lend themselves to a faction that seeks to
annihilate them, passes my comprehension. To do Citizen
ChurchiU justice, however, he seemed to me to be alarmed
and inclined to train off.
Lord Lyndhurst has finaUy accepted C. B.f I regret. I
* [Wellington and Grey.]
t [The Marquis of Blandford was in favour of Parliamentary Eeform,
and had brought forward several schemes of his own, among them one for
the payment of Members.]
% [Chief Baron of the Exchequer.]

1831.] PEEL "EATING" HIS "PLEDGES." 101
liked him as a private companion, and looked to him as of
pubhc importance in the other house. All that is over.
Drayton was very agreeable, the host more cordial and
communicative than usual. Little shooting, but various and
wild. I shot a bittern, the only one ever seen in those parts,
and one day a couple, and the next day a single wild duck ;
some partridges and hares, but no pheasants. He [I'eel] is
going to build a good old English house. They say he has
20,000?. a-year in land, and as much in Consols and B.
Stock ; say 15,000?. in each, and it is pretty well. I wanted
him to pledge himself, hke the Duke, against all Parliamentary
Reform, but though he will oppose anything, he will pledge
to nothing. He said, good-humouredly, that he was sick with
eating pledges, and would take care to avoid them for the
future. January 24th.
Is it not retribution that Anglesey, who exhorted the Irish
to agitate — agitate — should be now prosecuting and perse
cuting the agitators, and may be, to-morrow, hanging and
sabring thom ? In England several of the niUitia regiments
(amongst others the Warwick) are ordered out for training ;
and they say that haU a dozen will, when trained, be kept on
for Irish service.
They talk of the Duke of Northumberland getting Bucking
ham House in exchange for his; his to be then converted
into I know not what public offices. If L. [Lansdowne] does
not prevent me (and he is very persuasive), I shall oppose this
tooth and naU. B. H. may be good or bad taste, and the exact
site may be unlucky, but it is a site fit only for a palace, and it
is a farce to think of a royal famUy's residing in St. James's.
His Majesty, I am told, finds the Pavilion too small in every
way, and is to lay out 100,000?. in adding to that over
grown toy a large extent of bedrooms, offices, stables, &c.
Nay, I am told, his Majesty has lately expressed some
regret that he is too old to begin budding at Kew, which is
what he would most hke.
I go to Strathfieldsaye in a day or two for a week to finish
the pheasants, and begin with pohtics. I must teU you an
anecdote of old TaUeyrand. Murray wanted an autograph
to engrave. S.E. benignantly consented, and taking a long
aheet of paper, wrote his name. You guess where — at the
very extreme top of the page, so close that the French lady,

102 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
who wrote with a feather from the humming-bfrd's wing, and
dried it with the dust of the butterfly's wing, could not have
squeezed in an I.O.U.
Mr. Croker to the Duke of Wellington. January 23rd.
A friend of mine and an admirer of your Grace's * is
employed in writing the hfe of Sir D. Baird, under the
direction of Lady Baird. He finds that Sir David made, and
her Ladyship makes, a great grievance of his having been
superseded by you in the command of Seringapatam, after
the capture. He suspects that this was no real grievance,
but a qu'erelle d'Allemand, and that Baird was relieved in
that command at his own request ; but as Baird distinguished
himself in the taking the place, it looks at first sight hard
that he should (after being appointed to the command) have
been deprived of it in favour of a junior officer. Could you
give me any explanation of this point that would enable our
friend to put this matter in a less objectionable view ?
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, January 24th, 1831.
My dear Croker,
I have received your note, and shall be happy to see you
on the day that you have fixed.
I have often heard of Sir D. Baird's dissatisfaction on my
appointment to take the command at Seringapatam, when he
had commanded the successful storm of the town on which
I was not employed, having been appointed to command the
reserve in the trenches. Of course I had nothing, I could
have nothing, to say to the selection of myself, as I was in
the trenches, or rather in the town, when I received the order
to take the command of it, and instructions to endeavour to
restore order.
Baird was a gallant, hard-headed, lion-hearted officer;
but he had no talent, no tact ; had strong prejudices against
* [Theodore Hook. The ' Life' was pubUshed in 1832, and Lady Baird
presented the author with a diamond snuff-box, which had been the gift
nf the Pasha of Egypt to her husband.]

1831.] POLITICAL TROUBLES. 103
the natives; and he was peculiarly disqualified from his
manner, habits, &c., and it was supposed his temper, for the
management of them. He had been Tippoo's prisoner for
years. He had a strong feeling of the bad usage which he
had received during his captivity; and it is not impossible
that the knowledge of tliis feeling might have induced Lord
Harris, and those who advised his Lordship, to lay him aside.
However, of course I never inquired the reason of his
appointment, or of Baird's being laid aside.
There were many other candidates besides Bafrd and
myself, aU senior to me, some to Bafrd. But I must say
that I was the jit person- io be selected. I had commanded
the Nizam's army during the campaign, and had given uni
versal satisfaction. I was hlced by the natives. It is certainly
true that tliis command afforded me the opportunities for
distinction, and thus opened the road to fame which poor
Bafrd always thought was, by the same act, closed upon him.
Notwithstandnig this, he and I were always on the best
terms, and I don't believe that there was any man who
rejoiced more sincerely than he did in my ulterior success.
Believe me, ever yours most, sincerely,
Wellington.
Mr. Croker to the Duke of Wellington. January 25th.
I hear from London that our successors are at loggerheads,
not on one, but on every measure ; that Althorp insists on
the redemption of all pledges, and that it is expected that we
shall be sent for (I use the phrase used to me) before the
3rd of February. God forbid 1 La poire n'est pas mure.
Poor Lord Grey is, they say, harassed to death.
I hear also that France is in a very volcanic state. How
can it be otherwise ? If a palace had been buUt on the
Island Sabrina the day after it was thrown up from the
depth of the Atlantic, should we wonder at seeing it cracking
— tottering — tumbling ?
In England the Whigs erected their administration on
three legs — non-intervention, retrenchment, reform ; they are,
I believe, at this moment as deep in intervention as any
Government ever was. Instead of retrenching, they have
increased all our establishments, and granted some flagrant

104 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL'
pensions ; and on the only question at all bearing on reform
(that of Evesham) they attempted a corrupt job.
Memorandum by Mr. Croker.
Strathfieldsaye, January 28th.
The Duke is in very low spirits about politics. He believes
that the King, from pique or fright or foUy, wUl consent to some
sweeping measures of reform, and when the Crown joins the
mob all balance is lost. I said that surely Lord Grey, who,
besides having so recently declared, that he would stand by
his order, has himself so large a stake in the present system,
cannot seriously consent to anything revolutionary. Lord
Rosslyn said : — " If that is all your reliance, we are hi a bad
way, and you know nothing of Grey's character ; for with all
his high airs he is as timid and frresolute as any man I ever
knew, and more under the influence of people about him than
yoa can imagine, and those are the very people who are now
for the most violent measures — Lambton, Elhce, and the hke.
I remember him once infatuated with Wilson,* and thinking
him not merely a good active soldier, but one of the ablest
men in Europe." Mr. Croker to Lord Lowther. January 26th.
Dear Lowther,
Your letters are all my consolation. There is a story of a
Frenchman who absented himself from his mistress only for
the pleasure of the letters she used to write him ; but much
as I like your letters, I shall be glad to have some of your
company again.
I cannot believe that the Ministers are so utterly dis
cordant as you hear. Depend upon it they wUl, they niust,
all concur in Brougham's proposition about reform. He goes
far enough to satisfy Althorp, and not so far as to frighten
Palmerston. I speak advisedly when I say that Pahnerston
was disposed to go great lengths in that line ; so, I beheve, is
Charles Grant. Who then is to differ? Goderich? Rich
mond ? And if agreed upon reform, all the rest is mere
* [Sir Eobert Wilson.]

1831.] "MODERATE REFORM." 105
questions of establishments and -ways and means to pay the
increased force, upon which the House will probably differ
from the Cabinet, but surely not the Cabinet with itself.
WethereU never can be Chancellor — I say this, even though
Brougham is. If we are to wait for the Ultra-Tories tiU that
day, bon soir la compagnie !
They tell me from Paris that Lafitte is a bankrupt ; but
that he will retire with above a million of francs after all is
paid ; as Burke said of Plunkett, " Pretty well for a failure."
I am astonished at the support which I hear reform is to
have. I see even the Quarterly Eeview talks for moderate
reform. Moderate gunpowder !
To Lord Hertford. February 1st.
I am just returned through a deep snow from Strathfield
saye. Our party was the Arbuthnots, Goulburns, Hardinges,
male and female, Aberdeen, EUenborough, Herries, Alava, and,
the last day, Rosslyn, Planta, and Black Billy. The other
leader (Peel) was asked but could not come ; alleging his
wife's iUness and business with his architect and gardener.
My own private notion is that he would not venture to what
would look hke a pohtical re-union. Every ono seems to
mistrust him— I do not ; but 1 am convinced that he wishes
to stand alone, and that this is the mot de I'enigme.
We were very easy and gay, talked eternal politics, but
without any precise object, just as we should have done at
Sudbourne. There has been a rumour that the host would go
to the Horse Guards again ; but it is not true ; there has not
even been a colour for such a report. He indignantly rejects
the very idea of such a degradation. A dinner to which he
was invited last week at a house in Sussex where you and I
used to dine, has given rise to the renewal of this on dit. He
is very weU in health, high in spirit, and very zealous. We
shot three days, the two first killed little, though in woods at
Silchester which had not been shot for three years. Yesterday,
eight guns kiUed about eighty pheasants. I had intended to
have come away on Sunday, but I was actually embargoed by
his kindness, and kept till to-day, when I was nearly blocked
in by the snow. I was obhged to have four horses from
Bagshot to Egham, and then could not get on above five miles
an hour; I have not seen so thick a faU of snow for years.

106 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
February 8th.
I have been confined to my room ever since my last with a
cold which is still very troublesome; and, although a few
good-natured fellows look in upon me, they bring me no
news, except of that kind which you wUl have received long
ago. The affairs of Belgium are the most important, or at
least the most urgent. The election of the Duke of Nemours
is a sad affront to our diplomacy, and indeed to our national
influence. They teU us that King PhUippe wiU not allow him
to accept; that, though it may stave off general hostihties
for a season, it would only make the insult to us the greater,
as it would show that the Belgians were spontaneous, nay
zealous, against our interests, even without any instigation
from France. Our Ministry professed to be aU for non
intervention, retrenchment and reform ; now, lo ! they have
intervened in the most dfrect way, and not only without success,
but with disgrace.
Their retrenchment wUl be an increase of our military
establishments, rendered indispensable by thefr blundering
intervention, and a series of legal jobs and pensions such as
James II. would not have ventured on ; and, as to reform,
the only question which touched that point was Evesham, in
which they attempted a most corrupt job for Maberley, and
Liverpool, where they actuaUy prostituted office to the
electioneering objects of Denison.
The Government has determined to let the pensions stand,
reducing the amount in future to 75,000?. ; the senior 75,000?.
to stand on the CivU List, and to be filled up as they faU in ;
the juniors to be placed on the consolidated fund, and to die
off. Thus the King, who gives up so much hi appearance,
wUl really give up much less than you would suppose ; for
the senior 75,000?. will die off very fast, all of which he wUl
be entitled to fill up as they fall. This seems to me fair, for
why should pensions granted only for the lives of George III.
or IV., be maintained to the utter exclusion of the exercise of
a like power by William IV. ? which would be the case if
some such arrangement as that proposed be not made.
Our friends are quite triumphant, that on the very point on
which we went out the new Government has substantially
adopted our course, only that of our ten classes they call the
first five Civil List, and the other five Consolidated Fund,
but without any alteration (except as to the pensions, and

1831.] THE WHIG BUDGET. 107
that only in prospect) either in amount or Parliamentary
check. Reform stands for the 1st of March. I hear that it
is by no means so popular a question as it was, and there aro
strong hopes that we may beat it. I hope so ; if we do not,
I am as convinced that a revolution of the widest nature will
foUow, as I am that the discharge of my gun wUl follow the
pulling the trigger. What damage may be done by the dis
charge is another matter, and more to be guessed at than
calculated. I myself am satisfied that it would end in a
repubhc, and after an agony, more or less bloody, would revert
to another restoration. February 17th.
I am glad to say that common sense seems to be regaining
ground, and Parhamentary Reform has within the last fort
night shown symptoms of weakness. The Duke of Welling
ton was with me the day before yesterday. He thinks that
we shaU beat Parliamentaxy Reform on the general grounds.
In the meanwhUe we hear that your quiet* is up ; that 
(but I must play Tacitus) is very feverish, and that indeed there
seems to be a general bubbling of the great caldron. This
alarms t7'[ohn] ]B[ull], but for that very reason, not nfie. If
that worthy takes fright, I shaU take courage.
The Ministers opened a budget last Friday that was the
first step to confiscation.! In defiance of public faith, for
which they did not care, and in the teeth of the Act of Par
liament which I beheve they had not read, they tried the
experiment of a little transfer tax, half per cent, on the funds.
It raised a tempest ; on the Sunday Althorp caUed aU hands
on deck at his house to consider what was to be done ; ninety
or a hundred Whigs attended. Two or three opposed the
tax as a violation of faith, and on Monday Althorp came
down and ate his proposition, and wUl be obhged to give
up, I think, aU the rest of his budget. The tax on sea
borne coals is gone, a remission chiefly for the benefit of
Lords Londonderry and Durham ; but how Althorp is to
provide for the deficiency I do not see.
* [The quiet state of Europe had been referred to in one of Lord
Hertford's letters.]
t [Lord Althorp's Budget provided for the repeal of the duty on sea
borne coals and other commodities, and for levying a duty of ten shillings
per cent, on the transfer of real or funded property. The scheme provoked
great hostility in the City and elsewhere, and was suddenly withdrawn.]

108 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
I am stUl confined with what sounds like the whooping-
cough, which I remember you had a few years ago ; but I
had it when I was ten, and I do not think that this attack is
it ; but it is very like it. Peel has been twice to see me. So
have Goulburn, Herries, Hardinge, &c., but they know nothuig
of the details of Parhamentary Reform. February 21st.
There was a meeting at Peel's last Sunday. They, on the
whole, incline to aUow Parliamentary Reform to make its
first appearance without serious resistance. Many wUl
concur to turn it out, who are not ready to shut the door
in its face. The Government every day more and more
divided and undecided in the House of Commons, Cabinet
Ministers pulling different ways. March 1st.
I write because it is my stated day, and because, though
the vital question is to come on to-night, no result can be
expected, as we mean to aUow the BUI to be brought in.
There is great doubt whether it will not be beaten on the
second reading. People on both sides give out that we shall
have a majority of sixty ; but when I see some of the steadiest
old country gentlemen ratting over to Reform, I am alarmed.
On the other hand, the Ministry is in itself so damaged that
its recommendation of the measure is, with a large portion of
the public, an additional objection to it. I put my trust in
the manifest impossibility of satisfying those who ask for
Reform, and the hope that between those whom nothing wdl
satisfy, and us whom anything alarms, the half measure of
the Ministers may founder.
I have not been yet out of the house, indeed not out of two
rooms ; but coute que coufe, and in defiance of conjugal and
medical advice, I am going down to raise my broken and
ineffectual voice against the Revolution. I never before
wished seriously for Parliamentary weight and power.
For the last week every one, Court, City, Ministers, Tories,
aU agree that the Government holds its seat at the mercy of
Sir Eobert Peel ; and there can be no doubt that, if he had a
good hand of cards, and would play them out, he would win
the game. On the sugar duties, he alone saved the Ministry,
and Chandos was at first very angry with him for doing so.
But how else could he have acted ? UntU Reform is disposed

1831.] THE FIRST REFORM BILL. 109
of, and untU some plan for replacing them be matured, or at
least feasible, it would be madness to dislodge the present
Ministry. I am told that in any case I shall have offers. In your
absence I sliaU act to the best of my judgment. I shall put
myself into Welhngton's hands, and do as he desires. I am
by no means anxious for office, indeed just the reverse. I
have lowered my scale of expenses, and if I am left as I am,
I have nothing to desire, and I feel an inward quiet and
satisfaction that I have been for twenty years a stranger to ;
so that I shaU really rejoice if either no offer, or Wellington's
opinion, should save me from renewed trouble and worry,
and allow me, with my friends, my books —
" Somno et inertibus horis
Ducere soUicitje jucunda oblivia vitse.''
W. R. [the King] is not quite weU, a little more lethargic ;
but he has been these some years inclined to doze. He, good
easy man, wUl submit to anything for a quiet life, nay, for a
quiet day, though the morrow should look ever so alarming.
The King and Queen, I regret to say, were pelted coming
home from the play the other night. The Ministers have
brought Shiel in to oppose O'Connell ; he was intended for
Saltash, but the Saltashers would not have a Papist, and so
Crampton, the new Irish Solicitor, who was to have had
MUbourn Port, exchanges with Shiel.
The measure referred to in the last letter was the first
Reform BiU of 1831, introduced by Lord John Russell, then
Paymaster of the Forces. It proposed to disfranchise sixty
smaU boroughs, and to deprive forty-seven other boroughs of
one of their two members ; to give forty-two additional
members to the metropolis and large towns, fifty-five to the
counties, five to Scotland, three to Ireland, and one to Wales.
It estabhshed a 10?. household franchise, under which, it was
estimated, upwards of half a million persons would be added
to the register. When the list of boroughs with the fatal
mark against them was read, there were shouts of laughter,
and had a division on the BUI been taken that night, it would

110 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
probably have been thrown out. This was the general
opinion of the time, and it is recorded in the following letter.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. March loth.
The first night the proposition was met with shouts of
derision, and if we had shortened that preliminary debate and
divided, as I thought we should have done, against the intro
duction oi the principle, we should, I am confident, have carried
its rejection by a considerable majority ; but the first symptom
of that terror (oi which you wUl, I fear, see but too many sub
sequent proofs) was that Lord G[ranville] S[omerset] and men
of that caUbre over-persuaded our leaders that we ought not
to venture to oppose so popular a measure in limine. After
this (which would have been plausible, at least, had the pro
posal been a half measure) we persevered in the same timid
policy, when the scheme was opened upon us in aU its
violence ; and, would you believe it ? the same clas§ of men,
now, give the same kind of reasons why we should pass the
second reading, and reserve our opposition for the Committee.
The BUI was full of anomalies, and some of them were
brought to the notice of the House by Mr. Croker in his
speech of the 4th of March. He said : —
Now, Sir, it appears that, while Caine, with 4612 in
habitants, is to return two Members, Bolton, with 22,000
inhabitants, is to return but one ; while Knaresborough, with
5280 inhabitants, is to nominate two Members, Blackburn,
with 22,000 inhabitants, is to be limited to one; Bedford,
with 5466, and Tavistock, with 5482 inhabitants, are stUl to
be favoured with the double representation ; whUe Tynemouth
and Brighthehnstone, with each above 24,000, are to be put
off with one. Thus, to recapitulate, four small and now close
boroughs, and which in the new system may become stiU
closer, containing about 20,000 inhabitants, are to have the
undiminished number of eight Members ; while four great
cities, I may call them, containing 94,000 inhabitants, are to
be insultingly restricted to four representatives.
But let us give the noble Lord the full advantage of the

1831.] ANOMALIES OF TIIE BILL. Ill
largest and most comprehensive view of his plan — what is
the result ? — eighteen of the old boroughs which his arbitrary
line includes, containing about 80,000 hihabitants, wUl send
thirty-six Members to this House; wliile eighteen new
boroughs, with a population of about 280,000, are to have
barely eighteen representatives : in the former case, one
representative for every 2300 souls ; in the latter, one for
every 16,500.
This speech, and others which followed it, made a great
impression at the time, and certainly tended to convince the
House that the BUI as it stood ought not to pass. It will be
remembered that in the month of AprU the Ministers were
defeated by a sort of side blow, and that a dissolution
foUowed. A House of Commons was then returned which
was disposed to insist on much more sweeping measures of
Reform than either party had ever contemplated. The calcu
lations of Mr. Croker and most of his pohtical friends were
thrown into chaos. But they stUl entertained some hopes
of controlling the Reform movement, even if they could not
altogether turn it aside.

The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, March 16th, 1831.
My dear Croker,
I had read the Report of your speech in the newspapers ;
and I read it again last night with great satisfaction.
It is a most able view of the plan of Reform ; and dissects
admirably some parts of the measure.
We have stiU much to do, however, to expose it to the
pubhc as it ought to be exposed. I dislike it on account of
its false pretences more than even for its internal faults.
I am very sorry that you stUl suffer. There is nothing
like change of air for such a cold as yours has been.
- Beheve me, ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.

112 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. London, March 22nd.
A week ago we reckoned a majority of 40, say 285 to 245.
Twenty defections brought these numbers to a level, and two
or three absentees wUl, I now fear, throw the majority the
other way. The Government are moving hell and earth. They
have been tampering even with the little household officers.
Mark, of the Lord Chamberlain's office, was sent to Seymour,
Henry Meynell and others to say that they must vote with
Ministers or resign. They consulted a friend at H. P. C.
(Duke of Wellington), who advised them not to resign. The
great Duke of Devon himself then sent for them, and told
them that they must either resig-n or vote They answered
that " they would do neither," so that they must dismiss them.
The Duke of Gloucester is against the BUI, and so is, I
understand, everything royal, except the Duke of Sussex,
whose influence with the King is very great just now. He
and Herbert Taylor support the Ministers. The King's
letter, of which so much has been said, was written by Henry
Taylor, who is supposed to be quite a Whig.
The day after I spoke, I had what I have not had for two
years, a command to dinner and much civUity ; but all this
is of no avaU. He that should feel most, feels nothing, or
at least, shows nothing. He had a good opportunity last
week of saving himself and his people from this frightful
combination, but there was no old Marquis of Buckingham
(vide 1783) to suggest it.
The Ministers after some infamous shuffling were beaten
on Friday on the timber duties — 236 to 190. Here was a fine
occasion to have got rid of them, but it was missed, and they
hope to cover all minor defeats in the great triumph of
Parliamentary Reform. God knows I am in no degree per
sonally interested in wishing them out ; for my own private
resolution (subject always of course to the wishes of the
friends I love and respect) is never to be in public office
again. Except for this fatal BUI, I never was so happy as I
now am, and have no desire to change domestic peace for
official turmoU.
Peel comes to me very often and kindly. He is sore
perplexed. I- suppose his conscience tells him that he is
the primary cause of all the mischief I learn that Ministers
consulted Anglesey as to a dissolution ; he replied that it

1831.] ANECDOTE OF WILLIAM IV. 113
would throw Ireland into anarcliy, and that, with the new
writs, they must send him 20,000 men. This staggered
them ; and they begged him to withdraw that letter. He
answered that he could not, for that every hour increased his
original conviction. They have therefore, in two Cabinet?
held Saturday and Sunday, determined not to dissolve till the
last extremity. They realise the old Greek superstition that
the deadliest poison in nature is contained in the hoof of an
ass. Except in the matter of Parliamentary Reform, they are
the weakest, most ridiculed, most despised Ministry that ever
was in England. March 29th.
Have I ever told you that the Duke of Gloucester has left
the Whigs on the Reform question, and thought it his duty
to remonstrate with His Majesty on the danger to the Crown ?
They attribute to H.R.H. a good thing. He is reported to
have told the King that the result of the measures must be
to deprive him of the Crown ; and on the King's saying
pettishly, " Very weU, very well," the other added, " But, sir,
your Majesty's head may be in it."
To Sir Walter Scott. April 5th.
I say nothing about the revolutionary Reform, but I think
of nothing else. If it be carried, England, no doubt, may be
stUl great and happy ; but it wUl be under a different form of
constitution and administration from that which has raised
her to her present greatness and happiness. No King, no
Lords, no inequahties in the social system ; aU wUl be leveUed
to the plane of the petty shopkeepers and smaU farmers ; this,
perhaps, not without bloodshed, but certainly by confiscations
and persecutions. 'Tis inevitable, and this is to be per
petrated by a set of men like Lambton aijd Johnny Russell,
whom a club in Regent Street would not trust with the
management of their concerns.

To Sir Eobert Peel.

April 12th.

Dear Peel,
I have always thought that if we once get into the Com
mittee, numbers being so close. Ministers wUl be ready
VOL. n. I

114 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
enough to make small sacrifices to Secure their great system—
a system which every day and hour the more persuades me
wiU end, even perhaps in our own short time, the monarchy of
England; but before they get to the Committee there is a
question of the Speaker's leaving the chafr. It was in that
stage that, I think, some former Reform BUI was strangled —
one of Mr. Burke's, I believe. Why should we not try to
bring our 301 to the post again on that general question ? If
Holmes thinks weU of it, I am sure that it would be in other
respects better than reserving our varieties of impotence for
the Committee ; but as this is a question of numbers, I cannot
see how any of the 301 can go off on this, and I think some
of the 302 would be glad to stay away ; but, after all, Holmes
must be here the judge.

Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. April 15th, 1831.
My dear Croker,
I discussed the point you mention with Holmes. He is
very fearful of the result.
If we go into the Committee with a minority of 20 or 30,
instead of a minority of one, we shall have the appearance of
an ebbing tide.
Our object must be an early majority if possible. I
prevaUed on His Majesty's Ministers last night to promise
positively to treat us to a division on this simple question :
"WhUe the number of Irish and of Scotch Members is
increased, shall the number of English Members be reduced
to the extent of 30 or 40 ? "
I think we shall beat them on that question. We must
have a meeting in the course of Sunday, I think. Give us
another month aqd there is an end of the BiU, positively an
end to it. It never could be carried except by the dread of
physical force. One sentence of a speech of Hunt is pregnant
with a most important truth. He said the night before last
in substance, " Physical force is fast awakening from its
dream. It finds that it is to be disfranchised, and it desires
that if there is to be exclusive privilege, that privilege may
be exercised by the upper classes of society, and not by the
vulgar 10?. householder class — ^the class just above physical
force, which has no quality attracting respect, whose arro-

1831.] THE KING AND REFORM. 115
gance is at all times intolerable to those immediately below
it, and will become ten times more so, when it is inflamed by
the possession of a novel and exclusive privilege."
This is the fatal error of the scheme. One month hence, if
the Bill is still in suspense, there will be an enforced natural
union between aristocracy and disfranchised population —
against a vulgar privileged " Pedlary," as in a letter I have
this morning received, a farmer, trembling for the fate of the
Corn Laws, calls the new voters. Ever yours,
Robert Peel.

Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. Extract. April 19th.
I cannot doubt, therefore, that even if Gascoyne's motion *
be carried, the Ministers wUl stUl persevere, and wiU be all
the better for it ; for they wUl have thfrty-one bank-notes (as
Lord Carnarvon pithily said in your house) to buy votes
with ; and, indeed, why should they abandon the BUI on the
motion of one who, hke Gascoyne, professes himself to be a
friend to some parts of it. Depend upon it the real cause of
the success of this fearful measure is that our leader neither
has, nor chooses to have, the command of his army.
I hear the Ultra-Tories had a meeting on Sunday in which
the majority objected to enlisting under our leader, who
seems as little desfrous of having them as foUowers ; but with
forces so divided, and, I 'wiU say, hostile to each other, how can
we hope for victory ? I, in my heart, beheve that the old
Homeric cause of the woes of the Greeks may be applied
to our state from the MtJi/j? JlriXrjldheoi down to SiaarijTrjv
'ArpelSr]^ dva^ dvSpwv, xal Sw? 'Ap^tXXew?.
W. R. is not so far gone as he appears to be. Lord Grey
Risked him whether he might threaten a dissolution if Parlia
mentary Reform should faU. The answer was " No," and the
Gaffer has been obliged to unsay what his followers had said
on this subject. W. R. complained also that the ministerial
press, and nommement the Times, had attacked the Queen,
* [The motion of General Gascoyne, on which Ministers were defeated,
namely, that the number of Members for England and Wales should uot
be diminished.} I 2

116 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
and desired it might be stopped. The very next day the
Times spared the Queen indeed, but attacked the King.
The King had a great dinner of the 1st Guards yesterday.
The Duke of Wellington was there, and sat next W. R, who
was exceedingly civU, and talked to him with the greatest
apparent openness and affection upon every subject in the
world, except only domestic affairs. At the Opera on Tuesday
night it was observed that neither the King nor Queen spoke
to the Duke of Devon, who stood like a post behind them,
but that they both appeared to chat farniharly with Lord
Howe ; some persons fancy that there was a spice of pohtics
in this. Poor WUson* has been assaUed by his consti
tuents, who call upon him to resign his seat, and call him
rat, apostate, &c. If there be a dissolution, he wiU hardly
find his way back. Lowther is just come in, who says that the
King will neither accept the resignation of Ministers nor
allow them to dissolve, but urges them to go on with the
BiU. Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, Fazeley, May 28th, 1831.
My dear Croker,
I left London early on Friday morning (the day after
Cobbett's affair), and therefore know nothing that has passed
since in London. I have been engaged much more agreeably
here with Smirke.
I see that the Standard takes the same line that, I
presume from your letter,t the Albion does. The Standard,
or rather the people that write for the Standard and support
it by their purse, insinuate that I am desirous of office, and
ready to join O'Connell in office. God help him ! The real
ground of hostility is just the reverse; that I detest the
thought of office, and am Tiot ready to join O'Connell in
effecting my return to it.
If the Tory party is gone to pieces, I doubt whether the
new Parliament is to blame for the " Labefactation," as
Dr. Johnson has it. I apprehend there are two parties
among those who call themselves Conservatives — one which
* [Sir E. WUson, subsequently defeated at Southwark, through sup
porting General Gascoyne's motion.]
t [The letter here referred to is not among Mr. Croker's correspondence.]

1831.] TEE "DANGEROUS" CONSERVATIVE: 117
views the state of the country with great alarm ; which sees a
relaxation of all authority, an impatience of all that restraint
which is indispensable to the existence, not of this or that,
but of aU Government ; which is ready to support monarcliy,
property, and public faith, whenever and although the
Ministers may be their confederates. There is another
party, and that by far the most numerous, which has the
most presumptuous confidence in its own fitness for ad
ministering jmbhc affairs (a confidence hardly justified by
any pubhc proof of capacity for the task) ; which would
unite with O'ConneU in resisting the Irish Coercion Law ;
wliich sees great advantage in a deficit of many millions,
and tliinks the imposition of a Property Tax on Ireland
and the aristocracy a Conservative measure; decries the
intemperance of the pohce ; thinks it treachery to attack a
Radical, or rather to defend yourself against a Radical,
provided that Radical hates the Government; and which,
never having yet dreamt of the question how they could
restore order, prefers chaos to the maintenance of the present
Government. Now to this latter section I do not, and will not belong. I
wiU not play that game, which, played by the Ultra-Tories
against us, is the main cause of present evUs.
A Radical and a Repubhcan avowed are dangerous cha
racters; but there is nothing half so dangerous as the man
who pretends to be a Conservative, but is ready to be any
thing, provided only he can create confusion.
Is it not strange that men wiU not see so far (no very
great distance) as the answer to these two questions ? How
are thirty offices to be vacated, fiUed with efficient holders,
and the return of those holders secured ? If this cannot be
done, what wUl happen ? Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
Memoranda of Conversations with the Duke of Wellington, in
May and September, 1831.
The Duke. — "When I was ambassador in Paris after
Waterloo, the French had a mind to pick a quarrel with me,
right or wrong. Lord Wellesley had obtained as augmentation
to his arms a lion or leopard bearing a tricoloured flag. So the

118 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
Demisoldes sent round a report that I had on my ambas*
sadorial state coach an insulting representation of the British
lion trampling on the French national colour. This was
reported to me, and so seriously that I exhibited my coach
panels to whoever chose to see them, to show that there was
no pretence for this he ; but, unluckUy, in the Duchess's arms,
which were placed by the side of mine on the coach, there
happened to be an eagle, and this then became a topic of
offence, and my coach was in danger of being torn to pieces.
It was not worth whUe to make a serious matter on my part
of so ridiculous though mahcious a misrepresentation, and I
accordingly had the Duchess's arms omitted from the coach,
and the affafr was soon forgotten."
Walmer, May 24?A. — This morning before 7 A.M. a courier
arrived with a despatch for the Duke. This was soon known
through the House, and when I came to breakfast Cooke,
Alava, and Lord Douro aU began to question me about it, as
if I was likely to know. I had not heard of it, but after
breakfast I saw by Arbuthnot's manner that something
unusual had occurred, and both Lord Douro and General
Alava were exceedingly curious to know what it could be.
I myself did not feel the same curiosity about the matter,
but, whUe we were amusing ourselves with aU manner of
guesses, the Duke sent for me into his room to teU me sub
sigillo that the messenger had brought him a letter from Lord
Howe,* soUciting (by the King's own command) his Grace's
advice about a very impertinent paragraph in the Times, as
to a letter written by Sfr H. Taylor, by the King's order, to
Lord Howe " to rebuke him for chattering," says the para
graph, " about the Reform BUI." There was a letter written
by Sfr H. T. in the King's name to Lord Howe to request him
to regulate his opposition to the BiU, so as not to compromise
the King or Queen ; but this letter was known only to the
King, Taylor, Lord Grey, and (of course when it reached him
at Gopsal on Saturday) Lord Howe himself As the paragraph
appeared in Monday's Times, it was clear that Lord Grey
must have communicated the information to the Times, or to
some one who had communicated it to the Times. Lord H.,
who meanwhUe had come back to town, hurried to the King
and complained that what was, he thought, known only to
* [Lord Howe's letter, and the Duke's reply, are given in the ' Welling
ton Despatches,' New Series, vii. 443.]

1831.] CONVERSATION WITE TIIE DUKE. 119
the King and himself should be thus made known to and
perverted by the editor of a newspaper, and his first move
ment was to resign his office on the spot. This exhibition of
Lord Grey's indiscretion and his connection with the Times
(which has been extraordinarily violent and offensive) pro
duced a great effect on the King, who wept at the situation in
which he found he was placed, and entreated Lord Howe not,
to resign nor to take any step in this embarrassing and
extraordinary affafr till he liad consulted the Duke of Welling
ton, and this was the occasion of the messenger. The Duke
answered him in an exceUent letter (such as, agreeably to a
suggestion of Lord Howe's, might be shown to the King), in
which, after expressing his regret at this new sign of the con
nexion of the Ministers with the revolutionary press, and
thefr disregard, not only of aU dehcacy, but of their duty
towards the King, he advises him not to resign, which is,
perhaps, the object of the informant of the Times, but to leave
it to His Majesty's own discretion and sense of his dignity to
vindicate himself from a continuance of such proceedings. The
letter is long and calculated to open the King's eyes to the
alarming signs of the times, even if, as may be gathered from
Lord Howe's letter. His Majesty were not already alarmed on
the subject.
I told the Duke in return that I had heard before I left
town that Lord Howe was en butte to the Ministers, and that
there would very soon be a trial of strength on the part of
Ministers to get rid of him ; that I had been informed that
the Queen had told the King that she was well aware of the
intrigues of his Ministers to get rid of Lord Howe ; that she
at least never could consent to part with him on such
grounds as they aUeged; that, if His Majesty pleased to
dismiss him, she, of course, would submit, but in that case
she hoped His Majesty would allow her to do without a
Chamberlain altogether, which in these times of economy,
would hardly be objected to by the Ministers, if she had no
objection. I told the Duke that I had heard all this ten
days ago, with the intimation that Lord Howe would be the
pivot on which the fate of the Ministry would turn as far as
Windsor was concerned.
The Duke was very much struck by the cfrcumstance of
the King's advising Lord Howe to consult him, and he made
a forcible use of this topic in his answer to Lord Howe,
as showing the King's false position when he was obliged

120 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
to seek council against his Ministers from their political
antagonists.* Alava told us one morning at breakfast (the Duke being
present and listening to the whole story as quietly as if it
related to another person) of a very different kind of breakfast
which the Duke and he had had the morning of the battle
of Salamanca. The Duke had been very busy aU the morning,
and had not thought of breakfast, and the staff had grown
very hungry ; at last, however, there was a pause (I think he
said about two) near a farmyard surrounded by a wall, where
a kind of breakfast was spread on the ground, and the staff
alighted and feU to; while they were eating, the Duke
rode into the enclosure ; he refused to alight, and advised
them to make haste ; he seemed anxious and on the look-out.
At last they persuaded him to take a bit of bread and the
leg of a cold roast fowl, which he was eating without knife
from his fingers, when suddenly they saw him throw the leg
of the fowl far away over his shoulder, and gaUop out of the
yard, calhng to them to foUow him. The fact is, he had
been waiting to have the French sighted at a certain gap in
the hUls, and that was to be the signal of a long-meditated
and long-suspended attack. "I knew," says Alava, with
grave droUery, "that something very serious was about to
happen when an article so precious as the leg of a roast fowl
was thus thrown away." Alava had told this story in all its
little circumstantial detaUs, and with all his usual hvehness
and action, and he really brought round the catastrophe very
dramatically and to our great amusement, whUe the Duke
sat by with his head inclined, quite silent, but with a quiet
smUe which seemed to say that the narration was a good deal
pleasanter thanthe reality had been.
Walmer, May 25th, 1831. — " To show you to what a state
of terror Buonaparte. had reduced all Europe, when I was in
Zealand, and after I had won the little battle at Kioge, there
was a Danish gentleman — one, indeed, I believe of the
Ministers, or who had been in office — a Count Rosencrantz,
who had a country house in that neighbourhood. I met him
by accident one day, and when he told me his name I almost
felt that he was an old acquaintance, and might have asked
him for our old friend Guildenstern ; but, seriously, I found
* [There is no allusion to this in the Dukale. letter, but there is in
Lord Howe's reply ]

4831.] TIIE DUKE'S REMINISCENCES. 121
him a well-bred and very sensible man ; and, as we seemed
mutually pleased with our conversation, we walked together
in a wood for above two hours, talking of the state of Europe.
When we were about to part, I told him that I would not
ask him to dine with me, as I was in a wretched inn with no
household nor any means of giving him a dinner ; but that, if
he would allow me, I should go and dine with him. He said
no ; he had rather be excused. Even this accidental walk
in a wood might perhaps, he said, be reported at Paris with
its exact duration, and he would be called upon to report
every word of it, or at least as much as he pleased of it and
as would ^?? up the time, and that, if he were to receive me at
dinner, the consequences might be serious. He added that
he would caU and pay me a visit of ceremony, and that when
I came to return that visit he would take care to be in the
way, and we then might have another conversation, but that
anything like an intimacy would compromise both himself
and his sovereign ; and he therefore begged of me as a private
favour to avoid any appearance of it.
" When I was about to attack Kioge, which had a ditch and
waU, and might have given me trouble, I detached — what was
his name ? — Linsingen with a couple of regiments of German
cavahy to pass the river by a ford some way on my right to
turn the town and alarm the enemy from his communications,
and so force my attack; but he was afraid of risking his
cavalry, and remained on the bank of the river, and, though
I repeated the orders by several messengers, he could not be
got to move. If he had done so, the thing would have given
no trouble ; but he was afraid. However, we took the place,
for the Danes made but a poor resistance ; indeed, I believe
they were only new raised men — mUitia."
He then gave us an account of the battles of Roliqa and
Vuniera, and defended the Convention of Cintra as being at
the time a prudent and advantageous result of his two victories.
Not that he defended all the details, and two or three unlucky
expressions, but the substance and spfrit were right. " The
French had not only the capital, but they had Badajoz,
Elvas, Almeida, and Santarem — all places that would have
required sieges, as also Peniche and the forts St. Julien
and Cascaes, without the possession of which our ships could
not enter the Tagus; the season of bad weather was fast
approaching, and these places must have been regularly
invested; and, on the whole, the entire evacuation of the

122 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI,.
forts, the strong places, the capital, and the kingdom was all
that the most sanguine could have desired ; and I am dis
interested in giving this opinion, for / had nothing whatsoever
to do with the terms of the Convention. I had signed the
armistice indeed, but had no more to do with the Convention
than any other general officer in the army. When I heard
what was going on, I took the liberty to advise against one or
two points, particularly the aUowing the French to make
stipulations for the Russian fleet, and doing so without con
sulting our admfral ; but I found that my superiors disre
garded my advice, and so I had no more to say.
" The French came on at Vimiera with more confidence, and
seemed to feel their way less than [smiling] I always found
them to do afterwards. They came on in thefr usual way, in
a very heavy column, and I received them in line, which they
were not accustomed to, and we repulsed them there several
times, and at last they went off beaten on all points, whUe I
had half the army untouched and ready to pursue ; but Sfr H.
Burrard — who had joined the army in about the middle of the
battle, but seeing all doing so weU, had desired me to continue
in the command now that he considered the battle as won,
though I thought it but half done — resolved to push it no
further. I begged very hard that he would go on, but he
said enough had been done. Indeed, if he had come earlier,
the battle would not have taken place at all, for when I
waited on him on board the frigate in the bay the evening
before, he desfred me to suspend aU operations, and said he
would do nothing till he had coUected all the force which he
knew to be on the way. He had heard of Moore's arrival,
but the French luckily resolving to attack us, led to a different
result. I came from the frigate about nine at night, and
went to my own quarters with the army, which, from the
nearness of the enemy, I naturally kept on the alert. In
the dead of the night a fellow came in— a German sergeant,
or quartermaster — in a great fright — so great that his hair
seemed actually to stand on end — who told me that the
enemy was advancing rapidly, and would be soon on us.
I immediately sent round to the generals to order them to
get the troops under arms, and soon after the dawn of day we
were vigorously attacked. The enemy were first met by the
(50th ?), not a good-looking regiment, but devilish steady,
who received them admirably, and brought them to a full
stop immediately, and soon drove them back ; they then tried

1831.] BUONAPARTE'S CAMPAIGNS. 123
two other attacks, as I told you, one very serious, through
a valley on our left ; but they were defeated ovorywhero, and
completely repulsed, and in full retreat by noon, so that we
had tune enough to have finished them if' I could have per
suaded Sir H. Burrard to go on."
[N.B. — In speaking of Sir H. Dalrymple and Sir H. Burrard,
the Duke always caUed them the Gentlemen. " The Gentlemen
lately arrived"; "the Gentlemen who were discussing the
matter"; "the Gentlemen who thought enough had been
done."] " Sir B. Spencer gave evidence before the Court of Inquiry,
that he had seen a reserve of French strongly posted on the
heights of Torres Vedras, so I said to him, ' Why, Spencer,
I never heard of this reserve before. How is it that you
only mention it now ? ' ' Oh,' said he, ' poor Burrard has so
large a family ! ' I had no desfre to give pain or trouble
either to Burrard or Spencer, who was a very odd sort of
man, and I did not urge any questions on this point before
the Court.
" Spencer was exceedingly puzzle-headed, but very formal ;
he one day came to me, and very slowly said, ' Sir, I have
the honour of reporting that the enemy has evacuated
CasteUo Bono.' It was not Castello Bono, but [Carpio], as,
indeed, we could aU see, and his aide-de-camp whispered him
the right word, upon which Spencer began again as slowly
and solemnly as before, ' Sir, I have— the— honour — to
report,' &c., ending once more with ' Castello Bono,' and,
though he made tliiee several attempts, he never could get
rid of Castello Bono. He would taUi of the Thames for the
Tagus, and so on, eh, Cooke ? " Cooke : " Yes, sir ; it was to
me he talked of the Thames. He told me one day to get
my horse and just trot down to the Thames, and see what
they were doing there ! I told him that I wished with all
my heart I could."
Mr. Gleig mentioned "Buonapartes plans of campaign."
" Pooh ! " said the Duke, " he had no general preconceived
plan of a campaign, as indeed he owned. In one of his
campaigns (that of 1809), General Wrede, the Bavarian,
commanded the army which Buonaparte was assembling
untU his arrival. When he came, Wrede expressed a hope
that the measures he had taken might be found to fall in with
His Imperial Majesty's plan of campaign. B. immediately
said that he never had a general plan of campaign ; that he

124 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIV.
collected his forces together as well as he could, and then
acted pro re nata as he thought best, adding that Wrede
had done exactly what he could have wished by concen
trating the army as much as possible, and handing it over
to him to be employed according to the circumstances of
the moment. This," said the Duke, "I had from Wrede
himself." May 26th. — [Here, unluckily, my note was somehow inter
rupted.] Walmer, Sept. 21st. — We found the Duke with only Cooke,
whom his Grace had asked to meet me, but he had come
down on Thursday.
I find the Duke well in health and I may say in spirits,
though he is very grave. Some of this seriousness, which is
remarkable, is no doubt attributable to the death of the
Duchess ; but it is also considerably increased by, and de-
ducible from, his anxiety about pubhc affairs. He looks upon
the result of the general election as decisive in favour of the
Ministers' Reform BiU, and in that BUI he sees, as I have
always done, nothing but revolution. His opinion is that the
BUI may be considered as passed, and that the revolution has
already begun its march, and wUl be accomphshed, whether
a little sooner or later, without violence or bloodshed, unless,
indeed, there happen to be one or two assassinations, as of
himself or Peel, which he thinks not improbable. He tells
me that he had a few days ago a letter from a man who gave
a name and date, apprising him that it was intended on the
meeting of Parliament to attempt to shoot him from a crowd
which would be assembled in Palace Yard. This letter he
thought it right to send to Sir Richard Bfrnie, who had that
very day returned a very flippant answer, making light, or
rather, nothing of the matter, and saying that, if anything
were intended, the Duke would not have been forewarned.
The Duke answered him gravely that he must know that the
last observation was not correct; that Cato Street and the
intended proceedings on Lord Mayor's Day had (as well as
some other attempts) been made known by anonymous infor
mation ; but, at all events, that as the man gave a name, WiU.
Sidmouth, and a date, Cheapside, Sir Richard should have at
least inquired whether there was any such person before he
had sent such an offhand answer. This letter he wrote on
Wednesday, and has not yet had an answer. He went on, in
reference to the revolutionary aspect and prospect of the

1831.] TEE INCOME TAX. 125
times, to say that, in the general state of disorganization and
contempt of all authority which the Ministers had excited
and kept up to secure their party triumph, there was no
doubt a danger that they might be suddenly overborne by
the frregular power they had called into action ; but the great
body of the nation was sound enough, he thought, to prevent
any immediate violence. As the revolutionists are now all
with the Ministry and enjoying a common triumph, I think
this ferment wiU pass away ; but its effects wUl remain, and
grow gradually and quietly more and more destructive of our
old constitution. First, all reverence for old authorities, even
for the House of Commons itself, has received an irrecoverable
shock, and then the composition of the new House of Commons,
which wUl only change to become worse, wUl render govern
ment by royal authority impracticable. So it will go down
step by step, quicker or faster, as temporary circumstances
may direct, but the result wUl be that at last we shall have a
revolution graduaUy accomplished by due form of law !

Lord Hertford to Mr. Croker. Extract. April 8th.
Dear Croker,
Now to answer your question. I have always liked in the
general sense of public advantage, and disliked in the sense
of personal disadvantage, the Income Tax. But I would not
confide such a tax to a government which I opposed. My
notion of it has always been that it might remedy the great
error of the Resumption of Cash Payments Bill, by being so
arranged as to give incomes derived from land, professions,
and trades, many deductions and aUowances, and fall on
funded and fixed money incomes with such force as a httle
to rectify this old error. But I must have real confidence in
a government to entrust it with this screw, which, by turnino-
a little more or less, squeezes sometimes 5, sometimes 10 or
more per cent. A property tax, valuing what you possess like
the Legacy Tax, is a detestable mode of raising money, and
purely revolutionary, for the coUector could walk into Sir R.
Peel's house and ask him to pay a percentage on the pictures
with which he has adorned the country, and into Lord
Londonderry's and ask for one on the diamonds with which
he has enriched it.

126 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
Lord Hertford to Mr. Croker. Milan, May 16th.
Dear Croker,
I was entirely prepared for the bad news, from never
having expected any other from the moment the passions of
the people were supported by the K. and inflamed by his
Ministers. I well remember how difficult it was for George
III. and Mr. Pitt to stem the revolutionary torrent; had
either given way, our revolution would have run as many
races, and rung as many changes, as the French. I regretted
the Duke's sweeping denial of all change, not as bad in itself,
but as unwise and unnecessary, as it did not even secure the
rejunction of the Tories, as was declared by the Lord of
Scone before I left London. Perhaps they are sorry now,
when it is too late. You blamed my regretting the D.'s
speech. Was I wrong ? I am glad Aldborough and Orford *
die quietly in their beds, and with thefr old bedfellows, and
am grateful for the trouble you have taken about them. I
should have liked to see you regain the Dublin College, and was
sorry you did not make the attempt. The newspapers talked
of the D. of Northumberland and his county, and of others
subscribing 20 and 30,000 ; these matters I felt were
too late, even before I received your letter or met Lord
Mulgrave at the Opera, rayonnant. The Duke had incapaci
tated himself from leading a moderate reform, and I fancy
very few felt entire devotion to any other Tory chieftain.
And so we faU. From the moment the K. and his Govern
ment adopted the Radical scheme, resistance might be credit
able, but must be useless.
When we meet we wiU talk of Orford. I thought the
united parishes would have much exceeded what you
mention; if they did, however, I should have no hope, as
justice could not be expected, even if Aldborough passed
Caine or Tavistock by a thousand.
I have nothing local to teU you. The country is quiet and
happy, and in the Roman states, all bless the Austrians for
saving them from murder and pillage; for there revolution
begins and continues by such brave acts ; and even now, if an
Austrian soldier falls asleep, somebody sticks a knife in his
back, and if he awakes, a dozen run away ; this happened at
* [These pocket boroughs of Lord Hertford's were to be disfranchised.]

1831.] TEE SECOND REFORM BILL. 127
Bologna while 1 was there. Thirty scoundrels mado the revo
lution and formed themselves into a government one day ;
the next day, eight were frightened, and betrayed the remaining
twenty-two. But we are negotiating amnesties and favours
for these people.
I have proposed to the Pope to take an Irish brigade from
the starving Cathohcs of the West of Ireland, and to send
the Monks of St. Patrick, whose shamrock I sent you two
years ago, to beat up for recruits. I proposed it to the
Cardinal Legate in conversation ; I flnd it is now seriously
thought of
The new Parhament met in June, and everybody must,
by that time, have seen that the battle of Reform was practi-
caUy over. The popular demand for the BUI had increased
to such a point that there could no longer be any reason for
supposing that the people were apathetic with regard to it ;
and the Government was armed with a majority in the
Lower House against which it was useless to .contend. Yet
the Opposition by no means relaxed its efforts, and there were
many of its members who did not despair of final success.
The second BUI, which varied in no essential particular from
the first, was introduced, again by Lord John Russell, on the
24th of June. It remained in Committee untU the first week
in September. Mr. Croker spoke on several occasions, and
always with effect. Sfr Robert Peel referred to one of his
speeches as " unanswerable and matchless," and simUar tributes
of praise came from many other quarters.
The Earl of Elgin to Mr. Croker.
Leamington, July 15th.
My dear Sir,
I am extremely sorry that during the few days I could
stay in London, I could only have one passing shake of your
hand, and no other opportunity of seeing you than that in
the House of Commons. From no speeches during the

128 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
progress of the Reform Bill has more satisfaction been felt by
those who are well-wishers to their country and the Consti
tution than from yours. The analyses you have presented of
its main bearings have been distinctly appreciated ; and from
the reasoning, with all your powers, on the clear data which
your industry disclosed, the character and tendency of the
measure has been much better understood, and its dangers
and shameful partialities more generaUy felt. With these
impressions, and the most anxious apprehensions from the
intentions of Ministers, I greatly regret that it was not in
my power to see you in town ; and though I have no wish
to involve you in discussions with me on anything that may
occur to my thoughts, I am much inclined to mention to you'
one or two suggestions, to which I attach a good deal of
importance. AUow me, then, to call your attention to a consideration
which I have not yet seen duly adverted to, and which, I
think, bears powerfully on the attempt to make the census of
1821 — or, indeed, any existing state of the population — a
solid foundation on which to erect a new and permanent
system for this country : I mean the recent improvements in
conveyance on railways. I do not know whether you have
seen that between Liverpool and Manchester. It is the only
one on that scale yet in operation, yet as there are proposals
for several others before the present Parhament, connecting
Liverpool with Hull, and these extremities with the many
important manufacturing districts in the intervening space,
besides various other raUroads known to be in contemplation,
the Liverpool and Manchester one may be fairly taken as a
criterion, after nearly a twelvemonth's experience. And in it
we see so much extraordinary velocity, such regularity and
power, that the efficacy of the discovery cannot faU to be
reckoned upon. If so, can it for a moment be doubted that
the land adjoining to sUch railways wUl be very soon covered
with the population flocking from the crowded streets of the
manufacturing towns, or attracted from all parts of Great
Britain and Ireland ? The value of land between Liverpool
and Manchester, in the direction of the raUway, is already
excessively enhanced.
In the same way, can it be foreseen what capabilities may
now be opened up — -such, for instance, as valuable falls of water,
to which there may not hitherto have been available access,
iron, or copper, or lead mines, which an easy supply of fuel

1831.] TIIE OPPOSITION PARTY. 129
would at once bring into work, &c., &c. ? Wlienever such at
tractions may come to operate, will there not ensue a disloca
tion of population wholly unprecedented ? In a word, if this
matter has not yet been under your notice, I think you will
find it worthy of your best attention, and an element of a
very formidable nature against the system of the present
BUI. But the deepest regret with me in all this business, is the
departure of our friends from (one may call it) the Constitu
tional establishment of an organized Opposition. Complaints
are continuaUy heard of the want of a combination of measures
and weU ordered discipline in your proceedings. The last
glaring instance was on Tuesday last, when (be the object
right or wrong in itself) Opposition was exhibited to the
country dwindling down to thirty or forty, while at the same
moment no diminution appeared hi the numbers of Govern
ment ; and Lord MUton, though evidently intent on pressing
a suggestion of Ms own, openly abandoned it at the desire of
his party. But though the most obvious inconvenience in
this is the excessive injury it does to our cause, and the
corresponding advantage to Ministers tn Parhament, yet
throughout every part of the country has the evil been quite
incalculable to us, both during the late election, and indeed
ever since the question of Reform has been before the public.
For there has been no standard around which the disappro
bation and apprehension felt by individuals towards the
proposed measure could raUy, none to give advice or en
couragement, nothing to prevent the feeling, however right
and valuable, of isolated parties from being left to evaporate
from want of support or means of union. Contrast this with
the tactics of our opponents, and see what formidable odds
this alone furnishes against us. With them the Whigs, the
Reformers, the powerful press, act as one concentrated body.
Thefr every influence is exercised with the force of a well-
sustained combination. The impressions they wish to convey,
and the misrepresentations they choose to recommend, are
counteracted by nothing in any degree corresponding with
the able means they employ. Adieu, and believe mo, ever
Yours most faithfully, Elgin.
VOL. II. K

130 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
It was in the course of these debates that there arose
the controversies between Mr. Macaulay and Mr. Croker
which have already been referred to ; but no just cause of
offence was ever given to Macaulay. His statements — many
of them characterised by that love of the " picturesque " which
led him to denounce Pitt's mUitary administration as that
of a " driveller," and to describe Swift and Stella at Sir
WUliam Temple's as if they were footman and scuUery-maid
carrying on a flirtation — his statements were refuted, but
nothing was said to wound his vanity, which nevertheless was
wounded, and an undying resentment stfrred up in his mind
in consequence. The foUowing passage may be taken as a
fair example of the way in which Mr. Croker dealt with his
opponent:* —
I say. Sir, that I admit the learned gentleman's eloquence,
and feel it peculiarly, not only from the admiration it excites,
but from the difficulty it imposes upon the humble individual
whose fortune it is — -hand passibus cequis — to foUow him. But
I am relieved, in some degree, by the reflection that, as from
the highest flights men are hable to the heaviest falls, and in
the swiftest courses to the most serious disasters, so, I wiU say,
is the most brUliant eloquence sometimes interrupted by inter
vals of the greatest obscurity, and the most impassioned decla
mation defeated by the most fatal contradictions ; and I must
assert that tho speech of the learned gentleman had points
of weakness wliich no imprudence or want of judgment ever
surpassed, and carried within itself its own refutation beyond
any other speech I almost ever heard. The learned gentle
man seemed, sometimes, to forget that he was addressing
the House of Commons ; or, aware that a voice so eloquent
was not to be confined within these waUs, he took the oppor
tunity of the debate here, of addressing himseU also to another
branch of the Legislature, in, as he no doubt thought, the
words of wisdom taught by experience. Not satisfied with
those vague generahties, which he handled with that briUiant
declamation which tickles the ear and amuses the imagina-
* [From his speech in the House of Commons on the Eeform Bill
Sept. 22nd, 1831.]

1831.] MR. CROKER AND MACAULAY. 131
tion, without satisfying the reason, he unluckily, I think, for
the force of his ajipeal, thought proper to descend to argu-
niontative Ulustration and liistorical precedents. Butwhonco
has he drawn liis experience ? Sir, he drew his weapon from
the very armoury to which, if I had been aware of his attack,
I should ni}'self have resorted for the means of repellmg it.
He reverted to the early lessons of the French Revolution,
and the echoes of the deserted palaces of the Faubourg
St. Germain were reverberated in the learned gentleman's
eloquence, as ominous admonitions to the Peerage of England.
He sees that that frightful period — the dawn of that long and
disastrous day of crime and calamity, bears some resemblance
to our present circumstances, and he thinks justly: but
different, widely different, is the inference which my mind
draws from this awful comparison. It were too much for me
to venture to charge the learned gentleman with intentional
misrepresentation of the transactions to which he thus
solemnly refers, but I must say that he seems to me to labour
under strange forgetfulness, or still stranger ignorance. He
teUs us that he was but young when these events happened ;
but there are some of us, not much older than he, who wit
nessed that period with a chUdish wonder, which ripened, as
the tragedy proceeded, into astonishment and horror ; and,
after aU, it requfres no great depth of historical research to be
acquainted with the prominent features of those. interesting
and instructive times. I am, therefore, I own, exceedingly
surprised, not that the learned gentleman should have thought
the iUustfation both just and striking, but that he should not
have felt that the facts of the case would lead any reasonable
and impartial mind to conclusions absolutely the reverse of
those which he has deduced from them. He warns the Peers
of England to beware of resisting the popular wUl, and he
draws from the fate of the French nobUity at the Revolution
the example of the fact and the folly of a similar resistance.
Good God! Sfr, where has the learned gentleman hved, —
what works must he have read, — with what authorities must
he have communed, when he attributes the downfall of the
French nobUity to an injudicious and obstinate resistance to
popular opinion ? The direct reverse is the notorious fact, —
so notorious, that it is one of the common-places of modern
history. . . .
Did the nobles, on that vital occasion, show that blind and
inflexible obstinacy which the learned gentleman has attri-
K 2

132 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
buted to them ? Did they even display the decent dignity of
a deliberative council ? Did they indeed exhibit a cold and
contemptuous apathy to the feelings of the people, or did they
not rather evince a morbid and dishonourable sensibUity to
every turn of the popular passion ? Was it. Sir, in fact their
high and haughty resistance, or was it, alas ! thefr deplorable
pusiUanimity, that overthrew their unhappy country? No
inconsiderable portion of the nobUity joined the Tiers Etat
at once, and with headlong and heedless alacrity ; — the rest
delayed for a short interval, — a few days only of doubt and
dismay ; and, after that short pause, those whom the learned
gentleman caUed proud and obstinate bigots to privUege and
power, abandoned their most undoubted privUege and most
effective power, and were seen to march in melancholy pro
cession to the funeral of the Constitution, with a faUacious
appearance of freedom, but bound in reality by the invisible
shackles of intimidation, goaded by the invectives of a
treasonable and rancorous press, and insulted, menaced, and
aU but driven by the bloody hands of an infuriated populace.
But was this all ? did the sacrifice end here ? When the
Tiers Etat had achieved their first triumph, and when, at last,
the three estates were coUected in the National Assembly,
was the nobUity deaf to the caUs of the people, or did they
cling with indecent tenacity to even thefr most innocent privi
leges ? The learned gentleman has appealed to the decayed
ceUings and tarnished waUs of the Faubourg St. Germain,
where ancient ancestry had depicted its insignia, but which
now exhibit the faded and tattered remnants of faUen great
ness. Does the learned gentleman not know that it was the
rash hands of the nobihty itself which struck the first blow
against these aristocratical decorations ?
The learned gentleman attributes to the obstinacy and
bigotry of the French clergy the ruin of the Church ; but who
in truth gave, in those early days of confiscation and usurpa
tion, the first flagrant example of the plunder of the property,
and the invasion of the power, of the Church ? — A Cardinal
Archbishop ! Who first proposed the abolition of tithes ? — A
noble and a prelate ! and on principles, too, let me observe en
passant, so extravagantly popular, that even the patriot Abb^
Gregoire, of Jacobin notoriety, could not countenance them.
And in that celebrated night, which has been caUed the " night
of sacrifices" but which is better known by the more appropri
ate title of the "night of insanity," when the whole frame

1831.] TIIE RIOTS OF 1831. 133
and order of civilised society was overthrown in the delirium
of popular compliance, who led the way in the giddy orgies of
destruction ? — Alas ! the nobility ! Who was it that, in that
portentous night, offered, as he said, on the altar of his
country, the sacrifice of the privileges of the nobUity ? — A
Montmorency ! Who proposed the abolition of all feudal and
seignorial rights ? — ^A NoaiUes ! And what foUowed ? — We
turn over a page or two of this eventful history, and we
find the Montmorencies in exile, and the NoaUles on the
scaffold !
One advantage, however, Macaulay had which was of in
calculable value : he was on the winning side. The immense
power which was at the back of the Ministry was not
properly appreciated by the Opposition, or it would have
accepted the BUI on its second presentation, without incur
ring the risks of exasperating the public, and of having a
stiU more obnoxious measure forced upon it. It is true that
the House of Commons did pass the BUI, on the 22nd of
September, but the House of Lords threw it out, and then
came the melancholy events of the autumn — the riots at
Nottingham, and the stiU more serious outbreaks at Bristol.
These events were dwelt upon by Mr. Croker in his speech of
the 16th December : —
Whether the learned gentleman [Macaulay] meant to defend
the Government, or to abandon them, he (Mr. Croker) would
ask, not the learned gentleman, but the House and the
country, whether his Majesty's Ministers had exhibited any
spfrit or any firmness on any of those points ? Let Bristol
speak for itself ; let Derby, let Coventry, let Nottingham bear
witness to the facts. Ministers possessed neither firmness
nor vigour; and, so far from protecting others, they had
not shown even the power of defending their own dignity —
their own houses. Thefr privacy had been assaUed at mid
night by the delegates of political unions. They had been
publicly insulted by combinations of persons who declared
their resolution to pay no more taxes. Even when his
Majesty had been advised to issue a proclamation agaijist

134 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVl.
the societies to which his Ministers had previously truckled,
these societies were induced by negotiation to yield obedience
to his Majesty's proclamation. 'That was what the learned
gentleman probably meant by putting the law into vigorous
execution. Had the royal authority been upheld here ? An attack was
made on the gaol at Derby, and the courage of one man saved
it, and probably that great town from destruction. In Not
tingham, a mob collected, which, if he was rightly informed,
gave some hours' information of their intentions ; that mob
proceeded and burnt the castle of a noble person,* close to
that town — not a place in which he personaUy resided, but
one which his liberahty had assigned to the purposes of
charity. The castle was burnt in broad day, in the face of a
great town, in the presence of magistrates, and within the
reach of his Majesty's troops, who were doomed, by the
inactivity of the authorities, to remain motionless spectators
of the tumult. But Ministers had not thought it worth whUe
to institute any inquiry into so extraordinary an event — the
noble owner was only a Tory — that circumstance excused aU !
The impunity of this crime encouraged the reforming mob to
one of the most atrocious violences that ever in a civihsed
country was inflicted upon a respectable and peaceful famUy.
An attack was made upon the house of a gentleman — not an
anti-reformer, nor connected with pohtics or party in any
way. The mob marshalled themselves without interruption,
and proceeded the distance of two or three mUes to the scene
of thefr intended mischief — they burst into the house, delibe
rately plundered it, destroyed everything they were unable
to carry away, and finaUy set it on fire. The master of
the house was absent; his lady in delicate health,t was
forced from her couch to a precipitate flight; led by her
young daughter — another Antigone — to a distant part of the
grounds ; they both remained for hours on the damp earth, the
daughter supporting the mother's head on her bosom, and both
conceahng themselves under a laurel tree. He observed a
smUe come over the countenance of a noble Lord opposite
* [The Duke of Newcastle.]
t [Mrs. Musters, wife of Mr. John Musters, of Colewick HaU, celebrated
by Lord Byron as Miss Chaworth. This lady died on the 5th of February,
1832, from the consequences of the fright which she had sustained in the
attack upon her house above referred to.]

1831.] REFORM INEVITABLE. 135
(Lord Nugent). It could, he supposed, not bo a smile of
approbation of the atrocities he was relating. Ho hoped tlie
noble Lord did not smile at the affiicting story, but only at his
imperfect manner of relating it. The story, however, was not
yet concluded, for so profound was the terror of these unhappy
ladies, that for hours after the wretches had quitted tho
grounds, the servants sought for their mistress and bur
daughter in vain. And at last when they found them in tho
situation I have so feebly endeavoured to describe, half dead
with cold and terror, there was no apartment, no couch, no
bed of that so lately splendid residence fit to receive them,
and they were carried inanimate to the only place which had
escaped the incendiaries — a groom's bed, over one of the
stables. What was the conduct of Ministers on these afllict-
ing and disgraceful occurrences ? Was any step taken, or
any reward offered for the apprehension of the offenders ?
Was a Special Commission held to inquire into these excesses ?
No. If there had been, could any man believe that the
atrocities at Bristol would have taken place — atrocities which,
though more extensive, did not exceed in cruelty that which
he had just described ?
To Mr. John Murray. Brighton, October 9th.
I shall be in town at noon to-morrow, and hope to-morrow
or next day to be able to talk with you and Lockhart (from
whom I have had a kind letter to-day) about the political
article of the next Quarterly. My own impression at
present is to take a cautious hne as to the future, tolerably
decided as to the danger of a reform on any general prin
ciple, but giving no opinion on piecemeal reform. When I
see every speaker in the Lords admitting the expediency
of some degree of reform, I must be wUfuUy blind if I do
not see that it is inevitable, unless some great change is
operated in the public mind, and I do not think that we
have any man at once great enough as an orator, a states
man, and a leader of a party to work that change. Pitt
might, or Fox, or perhaps Canning ; but no one now on the
scene. Yours ever,
J. W. C.

136 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
To Sir Eobert Peel.
Kensington, November llth.
My dear Peel,
I have not heard to-day what the accounts of cholera are.
I only know that if that plague does not ravage the whole
empire (and I do not much fear it) it wiU not be the merit
of the Ministry ; only think of thefr putting the colliers from
Sunderland which convey coals (one of the most efficient of
the preservatives against the disease) into quarantine, and
aUowing twenty stage-coaches to convey persons, for aught
they know infected, north, south, east, and west ; and all this
after warning. The Board of Health in town had not seen
the medical reports from Sunderland at nx)on yesterday. They
had been, forsooth, sent up to Lansdowne House, that my
Lord might read them before he left town for Bowood,
whence he had come not for Cabinet, nor for cholera, but to
dine with the Radical Lord Mayor — at least such is the story
which I hear and beheve !
As to Parhament, it must, I think, meet ; the gravity of
the circumstances seems to requfre it. The real misfortune is
that its meeting wUl increase, instead of diminishing the
danger, and the Ministers wUl caU us together not, as in old
times, to help the Crown against the mob, but in obedience
to, and in encouragement of the mob. We shaU have a
dreary task to perform, and I heartUy wish that I had any
honourable escape from political hfe. I thought I had been
released from my long thraldom on the 16th of Nov. last,
but I have only shifted to a more anxious slavery.
I agree , in all you say,* and participate in all you feel,
except on one point. Counter-associations would only be
more certain and earlier destruction. In the first place, it
would sanction a principle of associations independent of the
Crown, which would legitimatise the Radical National Guard,
and end us at once. Secondly, when it becomes a matter
of association and counter-association, it is a mere affair of
numbers, and eventually of physical force. I heed not say
that, in the present state of excitement and insanity, we
should be overpowered in both. I see no field for any ex
ertion on our part but Parliament — our speeches there, as
long as they wUl permit us to speak, may have some effect,
* [If this was said in a letter, the letter is missing.]

1831.] THE "FOUR M'S." 137
and may perhaps bring round a few, and at last more and
more of the country gentlemen and of the country; but
that seems to me to be the only hope — a forlorn one, I admit
• — we have. The four M's, the Monarch, the Ministry, tho
Members, and the Multitude all against us. The King stands
on his Government, the Government on the House of
Commons, the House of Commons on the people. How can
we attack a hne thus linked and supported? Your house
is plundered by a mob ; you appeal to the Ministers ; the
mob are their allies and friends ; your complaint is laughed
at. You arraign the Ministers for this offence in Parliament ;
again you appeal to friends and accessories, the majority
wUl hoot you down, perhaps send you to the Tower. You
finaUy appeal to the King ; the King wUl teU you that you
aro a disloyal subject to complain of his people, and his
faitliful Commons, and his devoted Ministry; and he may
perhaps strike you out of the Privy Council, too happy if
at last you are not tried at a Special Commission for having
broken the peace— the King's peace — ^by locking the doors
and barring the windows of your house at the approach of
the mob. Things of this kind, but even wUder and more
absurd, happened in France from 1789 to 1793.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. November 12th.
My dear Croker,
I am very sorry you have sent so unsatisfkctory a proxy,
instead of taking your seat at seven to-day. We are quite
alone here, and I am sure we could have defied cholera
spasmodica by long walks after partridges.
I kept mine till late in the season, and have enough to
have been enabled to kill with my single gun thirty-six
partridges the day before yesterday. Pretty well for the
8th of November. I read the progress of our moral contagion
with the utmost disgust and indignation. I will not say
indeed the utmost, because I suppose they are in some degree
abated by the absence of aU surprise, by the foresight that
what is happening must happen, as the inevitable conse
quence of a King and Government hallooing a ten-pound
mob against the House of Commons, in the stupid belief
that they could have the hunt to themselves.
It seems to me that counter-associations for the purpose

138 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
of defence must bel formed, if Sir Francis Burdett and other
supporters of the Government are allowed to organise armed
clubs for the purpose of attack.
That the purpose is attack — attack upon Iffe and property
—cannot be doubted, and the only safety is in preparation
for defence. What I chiefly desire is timely notice.
Perhaps you will still come with Herries, Dawson, and
Holmes about the 16th. Ever most faithfuUy yours,
R. Peel.
Drayton Manor, November 13th, 1831.
My dear Croker,
Associations formed with any ostentation or parade, that
should profess to be independent of royal control, and that
should offer the least provocation, would be manifestly
unwise. They might be justified by the bad precedent
which seems about to be established, but stUl the pleading of
such a precedent by a minority which has property to be
assailed would not be prudent.
But I certainly, if the necessity arises, shall form, and
shall counsel others to form, quiet, unostentatious asso
ciations for the sole purpose of defence against unprovoked
aggression. ¦Association may be too grand a phrase. What I mean is a
select cohort of persons on whom I can thoroughly depend,
who may constitute an armed garrison for my protection
and that of my famUy in case of actual attack — such attacks
as have been made, and are threatened.
I am sure nothing could be more mischievous than to
abandon property without defence, and it is well to be pre
pared before the hour of danger actuaUy arrives. I am sure
also that nothing could equal the effect of even a single
instance of desperate and successful resistance against the
armed vagabonds of a town.
A small band of steady men, backed by the law, and by
the sympathy of property, would do much against ten-fold
their numbers, attacking from any distance, ignorant of the
locale, and with halters round their necks.
To form associations for resistance to the bill, or any
vague indefinite object, would be madness ; but I see no
hope of salvation but in the most strenuous and concerted

1831.] THE KING AND REFORM. 139
resistance to any aggressive demonstration of force on the
part of reforming mobs.
I shaU remain here until shortly before the meeting, and
shaU be very glad to see you at any tmie before then.
Ever yours, Robert Peel.

November 19th.
Dear Croker,
Dawson and Herries are here, and we thank you for your
news. As the King repeatedly said to me (perhaps being
the only poetry he ever made) —
" I consider dissolution
Tantamount to revolution,"
I have no behef that when the hour of trial comes he will
resist the makmg of Peers.
How can he recede ? Who ever did retrace his steps,
having once begun the facUe infernal descent ? Who, at
least, except such men as Lord Strafford and Mr. Pitt ?
I shaU stUl hope to see you and Holmes. 1 wish Aberdeen
on his way from Scotland may meet you in his adverse
carriage, as Mr. Barbour has it. Ever yours,
R. P.
Drayton Manor, November 23rd, 1831.
Dear Croker,
I did not hear from Lord Wharnchffe untU this morning.
I then received a very vague letter as to the probable
intentions of the Govemment.
My fixed determination is to keep myself wholly unfettered
in regard to any measure of Reform brought forward by the
Government, and to decline all communication, direct or
indirect, with the Government upon that subject. I have
many reasons for this. If I had no other than recent public
declarations on the part of every Minister who has made any
pubhc declaration on the subject of Reform, that alone would
be an insuperable bar to my negotiating or conferring with
them respectmg Reform. Very truly yours, Robert Peel.

140 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVL
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
There can be no longer any doubt that the Reform BUI is,
what Hume called it, a stepping-stone in England to a repubhc,
and in Ireland to separation. Both may happen without the
Reform Bill, but with it they are inevitable.
I find that those who some months ago derided my alarms
are now at least as much frightened as I am. I do not feel,
like Peel, that the fright goes off by habit? Mine is only
confirmed by experience. To Lord Hertford. London, December 12th.
The Duke has been confined by a bad cold, caught,
I believe, by traveUing in that miserable open britchska of
his, wliich laid me up twice this year when I traveUed with
him. He is better, however. Let me now bring forward the
history of the negotiation between the Moderates and the
Whigs, of which I gave you some early particulars. It was,
as I told you, all off ; but last week (Friday and Saturday) it
was unexpectedly revived thus. About ten days ago, Chandos
went to Brighton to see, if possible, whether he could have
any mfiuence upon the King. He was civilly received,
listened to, invited to dinner, greatly feted by aU the ladies,
arid, in short, was much pleased with his visit, though it
produced nothing to build any hopes upon.
However, in the middle of last week he was surprised by
a communication from Taylor, by the King's command, to
desire him to call on Palmerston, and open to him the views
which he had before expressed. Chandos at first demurred,
till he was assured that Palmerston was prepared to receive
him by the King's command. He then went ; but the inter
view was, I hear, confined to making an appointment for
himself, Wharnchffe, and Harrowby, with Grey, for Saturday.
They attended, and found Grey and Althorp, and towards
the latter end of the visit. Brougham, but no Palmerston.
Brougham took little part, Althorp none. Grey was dry
and haughty, offered nothing, would concede nothing, and, in
short, nothing was done, and they separated, Harrowby saying
that all that had passed confirmed him in his former opinion.
December 12>th. — The Bill was brought in last night, and is

1831.] THE THIRD REFORM BILL. 141
in its great principles just the same as before; but in its
details it is a great triumph for me and for our party, for
there is not one of my points on which we divided in the
Committee which is not conceded. For instance, the jiarish
and the borough are no longer reckoned together. This
condemns Caine and Morpeth, as well as Appleby and
Saltash. Houses and amount of assessed taxes are adopted
as the criterions ; this I advocated in a long speech and
ample detaUs in the cases of GuUdford, Dorchester, and
Sudbury, and we had three divisions. I complained that
Horsham was preserved entire, whUe Bolton, with 40,000
inhabitants, was to have but one Member. Horsham is now
curtailed, and Bolton increased. I made a strenuous fight,
and divided the House on separating Chatham from Roches
ter, and was beaten ; but lo ! it is now conceded. I battled
against encumbering Whitehaven with Workington ; they are
no longer to be united. We all objected to the destruction of
the Corporations. The corporate rights are to be preserved
for ever, and even the new boroughs are to be made corpora
tions. In short, never was there such a defence of, and
indeed eulogy on, our efforts in the Committee as the now
BiU makes ; but you see that this is nothing, not worth a pin,
except as empty glory, for it leaves the great objection just
where it was ; nay, by removing anomalies and injustice, it
makes the BUI more palatable, and therefore more dangerous.
I am sorry to say that it was evident in the House that
these alterations bhnd many foolish people to the deformity
of the principle. Lord Clive almost pledged himself to sup
port the second reading, and even Chandos seemed shaken.
If Peel and I cannot show in the debate of the second
reading (which begins on Friday, 16th instant) the futUity as
to the great object of aU these alterations, we shall, I fear,
cut a poor figure in our division. We shall, however, do our
best ; and I think that I shaU be able to show that the new
BiU is vastly more democratic than the old, for as the old
numbers of the House are to be preserved (we were dissolved,
you wiU recoUect, for voting that on Gascoyne's motion)'
but as aU the additions are given to town representation, the
proportions against the aristocracy wUl be enormously
increased. As to the Ministers, only Russell and Althorp
spoke. Palmerston came in late, and seemed to 'go to sleep.
Charles Grant never came at all. Robt. Grant sat in the
gallery. Stanley was there, and Graham ; and they, thouoh

142 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
they Uid not speak (nor was it necessary they should), seemed
zealous for the Bill.
Mr. Croker's attention was not entfrely taken up by
politics, even in this exciting year. He had one or two
literary projects in contemplation, upon which he had made
proposals to Mr. Murray ; but neither of these projects was
brought to completion, although considerable preparations
were made for a new edition of Pope. His notes and other
documents were afterwards handed over to Mr. Elwin, for
that complete, and probably final, edition of the poet's works
which was undertaken at a later period.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Murray. March 26th.
Dear Murray,
So far as your terms are an ingredient in the proposition
you state, I need only say that I consider them as extrava
gantly liberal.*
I confess I had never thought of editing Hume's ' History
of England;' and I should like to know the principle on
which you would wish to see such an edition prepared.
I can easUy comprehend the making Hume the groundwork
of a large embroidery of comment and elucidation ; but
I doubt, however weU that employment might suit me,
whether the result would be likely to suit you. Perhaps,
however, you mean something more popular and marketable.
Let me therefore know your views. I confess I feel a great
wish for, not to say the necessity of, steady literary employ
ment. My mind has been so long busy that idleness would
be irksome and injurious, and I therefore shall engage
wUlingly in any work which you may think me capable of
performing to the satisfaction of the pubhc, or, which is the
same thing, to your own fafr advantage as a publisher.
Ever, my dear Murray,
Most faithfully yours,
J. W. C.
¦* [Mr. Murray's letter (if the proposition was made by letter) is not
among Mr. Croker's papers.]

1831.] .1 NEW EDITION OF rOPE. 143
To Mr. M'lirray.
I am ready and willing to undertake Hume, but before
1 tie down your liberality to so large an engagement I should
like to be satisfied that it is likely to answer your purpose as
well as it would answer mine. Think of it in this light, anil
if you see your way, I am ready to set out upon mine.
I only hesitate on your account ; for having so often chidden
you for extravagant liberality, I do not like to become
a particeps criminis.
But there is a small matter which I have been for years
thinking of, and which Jolin * teUs me you also have lately
thought of. I mean a new edition of Pope. None of our
poets has been so often and so badly edited. Notes upon
notes, commentaries on commentaries, teU you all, except just
what one wants to know. Warburton has given us razor-
edged disquisitions, fine and false, in the Divine Legation
style, which are much more difficult to be understood than
the text itseU. Joe Warton has emptied into his notes all
his classical commonplace books, and tells us a great deal
about the hterature and manners of every age except just
Pope's own. Bowles has done httle but scent out the taints
of Pope's private character ; and Roscoe teUs nothing, because
he knows nothing, beyond what he found before his eyes hi
former editions. But towards making the author as intelli
gible to posterity as he was to contemporaries, and putting
the reader of 1831 into anything like the position of the
reader of 1731 — that, none of them have done, nor (what
I complain of) even attempted to do.
Then what bookmaking ! Pope was a poet. Yet every
line of poetry he ever wrote might be contained in the first
volume of Bowles's ten, in the same type and form that he
has given. AU the rest is taken up with notes which explain
nothing, commentaries which no one reads or could under
stand, and letters from most of the ladies and gentlemen of
the literary circles of the reign of George I. This is all very
weU in its own way ; that is to say, the letters are, for the
notes and commentaries are really waste paper ; but it is not
what an edition of Pope for common use ought to be.
If you ask me what I would have, or, if I undertook the
work, what I should do, I answer generally, endeavour to put
the reader of 1831 back into the place of the reader of 1731 ;
* [Then Mr. John Murray, junior : the present head of the house.]

144 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVI.
leave the brUliancy and beauty of Pope's poetry to speak for
itself, and only try to exhibit the persons and the facts, on
whicli the poetry employed itself, and without some know
ledge of which we can no more understand the poetry than
the folks in the gallery do the Italian opera without the help
of the book.
A few critical notes might be admitted when they tended
to explain the meaning ; and all the notes on the Dunciad,
because they are all either explanatory or part of the fun.
For the same reason, I should not be disinclined to add the
memoirs of P. P. and of Scriblerus and some other smaU
prose pieces. Yours ever,
J. W. C.
To Mr. Murray. April 19th.
Dear Murray,
I undertake Pope with alacrity, and at whatever pecuniary
terms you yourseU please to name.
As to the text, I shall print from Warburton's E. K, as
they say in counting-houses ; but in fact all the texts since
Pope's death are the same, except as to the errors of the
press. All the editions give variations. I shall not, except
where the variation connects itself with the personal history of
the writer on the subject, as in the case of Atticus and Addison.
I shaU omit aU the commentaries in which the metaphysical
adulation of Warburton endeavoured to give Pope " a mean
ing which Pope never meant" — which nobody now reads,
and which, if they did, they would be likely to exclaim :
" Egad, the interpreter is the harder of the two."
Of tlae notce variorum, I shaU reject all that do not dfrectly
illustrate the text ; and as they are but a smaU part of what
are now appended in every edition of Pope, and as they go
but a small way in the real object of notes, viz., elucidation,
I suppose I shall have to add a considerable number of notes
of my own — more, I guess, than I shaU retain of those former
editors'. I shall refrain as much as possible from polemics. Bowles
and Roscoe offer abundant food for criticism, but my object
will be Pope, and not his annotators. Yours faithfully,
J. W. C.

( 145 )

CHAPTER XVII.
1832.
Last Stages of the Eeform Discussion — Meeting of Parliament in 1832 —
Passage of the Bill in the Commons — Preparations for meeting the
Hostile Majority in the Lords — Eesignation of Lord Grey — Attempts
to form a Tory Ministry — Mr. Croker's Eecord of the Negotiations —
He refuses Office — Sir E. Peel on Consistency — Failure of the Duke of
Wellington — And of the Speaker — General Correspondence — Appear
ance of Cholera in London — The Duke of Wellington sometimes
Insulted — -The Ultra-Tories — The Duke at a Levde — Peel's Sincerity
Questioned — A new Tory Club (the Carlton) — Aberrations of Lord
Dudley — Mr. Croker's Advice to the Lords — Letters from the Duke of
Wellington — Dinner at the Duchess of Kent's — A gloomy Forecast —
Mr. Croker urges Sir E. Peel to take Office — Peel's Eeply — Prorogation
of Parliament — Mr. Croker's Eesolve to retire from Public Life —His
Motives — The Duke's Opinion — Sir E. Peel on Battlemented Houses —
Charles X. in England — The Library at West Moulsey.
The Reform BiU had been read a second time, by the decisive
majority of 162, before the adjournment of the House for the
Christmas holidays. On the 17th of January, Parliament
again met, and the consideration of the BUI was resumed
without delay. By that time it was clear that all heart had
gone out of the Opposition in the Lower House. The debates
were carried on in the Iffeless manner which is inevitable
when everybody feels that the result is practically decided
beforehand. On the 22nd of -March the Bill was read a
VOL. II. L

146 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
third* time, and on the following day it finally passed without
a division. Thus had the longest and hardest part of the
struggle come to an end.
It then became necessary to decide how the Opposition in
the Upper House was to be frustrated, and the expedient of
creating peers in sufficient numbers to carry the Bill was
once more discussed, and not only discussed, but pressed
earnestly upon the King by Lord Grey and Lord Brougham.
But on the 7th of May an unexpected incident occurred.
Lord Lyndhurst moved to postpone the clause disfranchising
the condemned boroughs, and this resolution was carried by
a vote of 151 to 116. The Cabinet decided at once to recom
mend the King to call into existence fifty new peerages ; the
King declined, and the Ministers resigned. For a brief
period there seemed a probabUity that the Tory party might
regain power on the basis of moderate reform. Lord Lynd
hurst was sent for by the King, and he at once applied to the
Duke of Wellington, who in his turn consulted with Sir
Robert Peel, Mr. Croker, and Mr. Goulburn. They all
declined to take office. Sir Robert Peel, as it appears from the
highly interesting memorandum left by Mr. Croker, attached
much importance to the necessity of public men retaining a
character for consistency, and he contended that this character
would be forfeited, so far as he was concerned, if he went a
second time through the part he had played on the Cathohc
question. In expressing this opinion, he did but anticipate
the all but unanimous judgment which was pronounced upon
his conduct in 1846, after he had revealed his conversion on
the question of the Corn Laws.
The Duke was not long in discovering that he could not
form a government, although he appears to have believed
* The second reading was carried in the Lords by a majority of nine,
the strength of the Opposition baring fallen from 199 to 175 votes.

1832.] THE TORIES IN 1832. 147
that the Speaker (Manners Sutton) might succeed. But while
the Speaker was at work, Mr. Baring made the avowal that
the resignation of the late Ministry was a great calamity, and
he offered to take no part against them if they would return
to office and carry on thefr Bill. This, as Mr. Croker states,
was at once looked upon as securing the return of the
Whigs, and so highly did Sfr R. Peel stiU value pohtical
consistency that he accepted this alternative with pleasure,
rather than see the Duke make the shghtest compromise with
principle. Mr. Baring's announcement paralysed the efforts of
his pohtical friends, and the Speaker's proposed administration
scarcely served as a subject of gossip for twelve hours. Lord
Ebrington was once more at hand with a motion of confidence
in the late Ministry, and it was carried by a majority of 80.
Then petitions were poured in by hundreds ; there were fresh
disturbances; threats of riot; great clamour in the House
and out of it ; and in the end the Duke went to the King
and advised him to recaU Lord Grey. At the same time, he
undertook to withdraw from active opposition to the BUL
It was aU so arranged, and the BUI passed through the Lords,
and became law on the 7th of June.
Mr. Croker's account of the attempts to form a Tory
Ministry is much more full and accurate than that which
Greville and other writers have given, for he was in the
midst of the negotiations, and evidently made his notes care
fully, in a separate memorandum-book, day by day. This
book bears a little label outside, on which is written, " Notes
of what passed about a change of Ministry, May 1832."*
* " From the 9th to 15th May took place those anxious consultations
among the Tory party, the full record of which would be worth a mine of
gold." — This remark is made in a review of Lord Lyndburst's ' Life,' by
Mr. T. E. KebbeL See the ' Fortnightly Eeview,' January 1884. Mr.
Croker's Diary includes this period, and contains a more complete record
than we are now likely to obtain from any other source.
L 2

148 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
The important part which he took in the various negotiations
sufficiently appears from the following documents, and it is
evident from other sources of information that his services
were highly valued by the party leaders. " It is, I think,
absolutely necessary"* wrote Lord Lyndhurst to the Duke of
WeUington, "that Croker should consent to be a Member of
the Cabinet. I think with his assistance the House of
Commons may be managed." It will be seen, however, that
Mr. Croker firmly refused to enter Parliament again or to
take office. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. January 17th, 1832.
The Tories flatter themselves that aU is not yet lost. They
buUd on His Majesty, in whom I have no faith at all.
The Duke of Wellington is quite convalescent ; I walked
with him yesterday, for two hours, up and down Rotten Row,
in a warm sunshine, which seemed'to do him a great deal of
good. He was in good spirits and very chatty ; but, aufond, he
thinks every day worse and worse of public affafrs. So do I,
although I think the danger narrowed. The danger was some
months ago from the people, excited as they had been by the
King and ministers. I now think the danger is from the
King and the ministers alone ; that is, that they wUl endeavour
to revive the frenzy which is cooling in the pubhc miad, and
by that, or by any means, to pass the Bill ; and the BUI once
passed, good-night to the Monarchy, and the Lords and the
ChurcL I really believe that if the King were to-morrow to
send for the Duke of Wellington and make him First Minister,
we should not have even as much of riot or disturbance as we
had on the rejection of the Bill by the Lords. The Bill has
no friends out of office. All England is divided into two
great parties: those who want more, and those who want
less than the BUI, and these are the real parties in the
contest. * See the ' Wellington Despatches,' viii., 307. The date of the letter
is May 12, 1832. The words " absolutely necessary " are in italics in the
original.

1832.] REFORM AND THE LORDS. 149
January 24 th.
In the first place, the discussion is very flat ; neither side
mustering two-thirds of their former little following; no
great zeal, except always in the office-holders, who are zealous
enough to keep their places ; but I see symptoms of a different
result next time, in the Lords. John Wortley would not vote
against Schedule A, nor Lord Sandon, nor Lord Eastnor, so
that I suppose thefr noble fathers mean to aUow the Bill to
be read a second time. But all these oppose Schedule B, but
with so little efiect, that we divided last night worse on
Schedule B with their assistance, than we had done on
Schedule A without it.*
The little politicians of the Clubs are very busy with
rumours of dissensions of the Cabinet ; of differences between
Downing Street and Brighton, and even between the King
and Queen ; on the two former points I know no more than
I told you in my last, and I beheve all such rumours, if they
have any foundation at aU, are much exaggerated, and will
come to nothing. February 14th,
Cholera has arrived in London, and is in fuU speed along
the banks of the river. On Saturday, one case at Ratcliffe,
and next morning one on the opposite bank ; from Sunday
noon to Monday noon, eight more cases, aU or nearly all of
which were fatal ; for, in this early stage, death is the notice
and sign of the pecuhar disease. What the consequences
may be 'tis hard to foresee. We hope that the mortality is
not hlfoly to be great, and the slowness of its progress
prevents any sudden panic ; but its secondary consequences,
in the stagnation of trade and consequent distress of the
lower orders, appear to me to be very alarming. I presume
aU the ports of Europe wUl put the river Thames in quaran
tine, and that would put near half a mUhon of souls out of
the means of earning their daUy bread.
The Reform BUI still drags along. It will certainly pass
our House, and they say be read a second time in yours,
Harrowby is sincere, but timid and over critical ; Wharn
chffe is intriguing for power. The Bishops, they say, wiU not
be so numerous, nor so steady, and on the whole some wise
* [Schedule A contained the list of boroughs to be disfranchised ; schedule
B the boroughs which were to lose one member out of two.]

150 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
men begin to think that it would be the safest plan to give
the BiU the go-by in the Lords by proposing against it certain
resolutions of moderate reform; but this is, I beheve, at
present, no more than a floating idea of some subalterns ; for
I have no reason to suspect any change in the poUcy of the
chiefs. Lord Grey made a strong speech in favour of Irish tithes
the other day, and in Committee in the Lords proposed that
the public should pay the clergy their arrears and take on
themselves the coUection from the peasantry to repay the
Treasury its advance. This has set aU the Papists and
Radicals furious with Lord Grey and the Bear,* and Howick
and Durham very cunningly appear as furious as they, and
say that they wiU quit Lord Grey U he does not retract;
which I have no doubt he wiU. In the tithe Committee in
the Commons, Duncannon opposes Stanley point blank ; the
Ministry, in short, not divided amongst themselves, it would
seem at first sight, take opposite sides for the purpose of
consolidating opposite parties and keeping thefr majority
together. Lords Grey and Stanley endeavour to manage the
moderates, and Duncannon and EUice to keep well with the
Radicals. ' Meanwhile Ireland progresses in barbarism, and
rents are in many counties as hard to obtain as tithes.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. Feb. 21.
I went down to dinner at Strathfieldsaye on Friday and
came back on Sunday. The Duke is very much improved in
health ; he hunts every day, at least he did aU last week. I
thinks he begins to dishke London, where he can neither walk
nor ride without being occasionaUy insulted, or, at least,
hearing disagreeable expressions. It is remarkable with what
respectful, I should say increased attention he is received by
every well-dressed person, and even by a vast majority of the
lower orders; but occasionally a blackguard hoots or says
something gross, and this, I think, induces the Duke to prefer
Strathfieldsaye, where he can take the exercise that is
necessary for his health more at his ease. But his spirits are
very low. He sees everything en noir,. at least as much as I
do ; and I cannot but suspect that, besides his alarm for the
public welfare, he is mortified that these events should have
* [The Et. Hon, Edward EUice was generally known as " the Boar."]

1832.] ATTITUDE OF PARTIES ON REFORM. 151
happened in his time, and par suite, though not perhaps in
comeqmnee, of his own measures. Yet, on the other hand, he
ought to console himself by tliinking that if some of those
measures had not been taken, we might have been in a worse
state. Cathohc Emancipation, no doubt, led to the rupture of
parties which led to the Grey Ministry and Reform : but who
will say what the effects of the Revolutions of I'aris and
Brussels might have been in Ireland, if Catholic Emancipa
tion had not been granted ? I believe there would have been
an Irish rebellion, and perhaps a Reform ferment in England
also. Be it as it may, our Duke is sadly dispirited ; and his
sagacious mind is looking out, not for a prospect of salvation,
but to guess what shape the misfortune wUl first take.
Peel, on the other hand, though, talking confidentiaUy with
me, he admits the danger to as great an extent, almost, as the
Duke or I see it, yet feels, or seems to feel it, infinitely less.
It does not affect his spirits, though 1 think it does his judg
ment. He is very reluctant to attend the House, and anything
hke a bold course he entirely rejects ; when he does attend
and speak, it is ably and firmly ; but somehow he does not
appear what is expressively caUed hearty.
Then, again, the ultra-Tories are but a hoUow support. A
few of them — Wetherell, Inghs, Lord Stormont (and I suppose
his father) — are very cordial ; the two first sincerely actively,
and usefully so. But the Duke of Cumberland, who affects
to be the head of the party, old Eldon, and in our House
Sir R. Vyvyan, Lord Encombe,* Kenyon, and a few ofthe Irish,
though they vote with us, are evidently a different party, and
wUl never, I think, be reconciled to Peel, unless, what wUl
never happen, he should swear aUegiance to the Duke of
Cumberland. Nor are our opponents more comfortable. PhUosophers
say that ff it were not from the pressure of the atmosphere
everything on the face of the earth would fall to pieces and
fly off. So nothing but the pressure of Reform keeps the
ministerial majority for an hour together. Nay, even as it is,
they are kept together with the greatest difficulty and by
every kind of trick and intrigue. They themselves see all
this, and the ministers know that their present reign must be
short, but they think that, having by the details of their
Reform BUI secured to themselves whatever is left of
Parhamentary influence, they must be in the long run and
* [Grandson of Lord Eldon.]

152 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
eventually the prevailing party. They are assuredly mis
taken ; but such is their blind and wicked calculation.
There was a meeting of Tory Peers at the Duke of Bucking
ham's yesterday, to consider how to meet the BiU. The defection
of Wharnchffe and Harrowby (the latter of whom canvasses
for votes on the second reading with great zeal) renders it
doubtful whether they could beat it on the second reading,
even now, and of course a small creation of peers would
become irresistible. They therefore, as I hear, think of
meeting the BiU by a resolution for moderate Eeform, and
this, I believe, was the general sentiment in PaU Mall yester
day ; but I was in the House of Commons from four tUl two
this morning flghting the BUI, and had no opportunity of
hearing details. February 28th.
Revolution progresses, and so does cholera ; but so slowly
that we have got accustomed to both, and no one is alarmed.
At present cholera seems to thrive most on the south bank.
We have had less frost this year than I ever knew, and no
snow at aU ; the day or two I was at Strathfieldsaye were
positive summer — hot sunshine, yet dry under foot ; latterly
we have had fogs ; raw but dry ; but it has hardly rained
these six weeks. In short, I never saw such a winter. I
suppose we shall pay for it in spring, and some doctors think
that we are now paying for it in cholera.
At the levee the other day, the Duke of WeUington had
two anti-Reform addresses to present ; and, fearing that if
handed in in the usual way to the Lord-in-waiting, the King
would never see them again, the Duke made an abstract of
them, and, to the great astonishment of the King and his
attendants, read His Majesty the abstracts in fuU levee. This
very much vexed the ministers, and did not much please the
King, though he listened at the time graciously enough, and
was civil in asking after the Duke's health; the Duke
preferred doing this to an audience in the closet, first because
it was bold and above board ; but secondly, as he hiniseK told
me, that if he went into the closet he might be asked for
ad^dce which he did not like to give till at least the Mutiny
Bill should be passed. March 6th.
Things are, to my judgment, in the most unaccountable
state. Duke of Wellington is gone down to his country house

1832.] TORY MOVEMENTS IN MAY. 153
alone or with the Arbuthnots ; and although we see so much
intrigue and defection going on, he seems to abandon the field.
To^lt cela me passe. His natural good temper is very much
altered. Mortification and alarm at the state of public affairs
affect him deeply. Peel is quite the reverse ; he seems very
stout-hearted and in good health, and makes every now and
then a display against the Bill ; but, I know not how it is, he
too seems incUned to consult his own personal ease, and
people are not satisfied of his sincerity, but I really believe
it is only the weariness of being eternally defeated, and the
conviction that no good is to be done.
1 myself am very much wearied and dispirited. I think I
was yesterday as " low," as they call it, as I ever was in my
life ; and it certainly aU arises from my constant anxiety and
labours in this barren vineyard. But I shall go through with
it, irksome, nay painful as it is, with the consolation that I
am doing my duty towards my friends and my country, with
gratitude and sincerity.
Peel and Charles Ross are founding a Tory Club,* to which
I do not think I shaU belong, if, as at present intended, it
fixes its abode in the retirement of Carlton Terrace, where
they are treating for Lord Kensington's House. I have
retirement enough at my own Kensington.
From Mr. Croker's Diary.\
Monday, 1th May. — Ministers were beaten in the House of
Lords by 151 to 116 on the question of postponing the dis
franchisement clause of the Reform Bill.
Tuesday, 8th May. — Lords Grey and Brougham went down
to Windsor to submit to his Majesty the unanimous advice of
the Cabinet " that a number of peers sufficient to carry the
BUI unaltered should be made." In conversation (with Sir
H. Taylor) Lord Grey talked of fifty, but Lord Brougham
said sixty, and the King seemed ready to make twenty, but
these were only explanations — the proposition was " an ade
quate but indefinite number." The Ministers came back with
an impression that the King would not consent, but the final
determination was postponed to next day.
* [This was the Carlton Club. The present building was not completed
tiU 1856.]
t [LabeUed " Notes of what passed about a change of Ministry, 1832." ]

154 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
Wednesday, 9 th May. — The King came to town to his
weekly levee. He had made up his mind not to consent to an
indefinite number of peers, upon which the Ministers resigned.
The King saw them successively. He intimated to Lord
Brougham and the Duke of Richmond a kind of wish to
retain them, founded as to the latter on a notion that he was
adverse to the creation ; but they were both resolved to go
with their colleagues. The King then sent for Lord Lynd
hurst, who had been his Chancellor, and who, now holding a
judicial situation, might be expected to give him the most
impartial advice, and he desired Lord Lyndhurst to consider
what was fit to be done, and authorised him to make overtures
to any person whom he might think likely to undertake the
Government with success; and he asked Lord Lyndhurst
whether he should stay in town ; Lord Lyndhurst advised him
to return to Windsor, which he did. That evening Lord
Ebrington, who had, on the rejection of the BUI last autumn,
moved a vote of confidence in the Ministers, gave notice of a
similar one for the next day.
Thursday, 10 th May. — I received, at Molesey, a letter from
Goulburn to desfre me to come to town to attend a meeting
at Lord Stormont's to consider how Lord Ebrington's motion
should be met. I arrived in town about eleven, and was
going to see the Duke of Wellington, when I met Goulburn,
who told me that the Duke and Lord Lyndhurst were just
gone down to Peel's, whither he was also going, and wished
me to come, but I did not think it proper to do so on his
suggestion. At half-past twelve I went to Lord Stormont's
in Jermyn Street, where I found Peel, Goulburn, Herries,
Murray, Hardinge, Cockburn, Clerk, Ch. Wynn, A. Baring,
Sir J. Walshe, Sir R. Vyvyan, and about thirty others of our
party. I was so deaf with a cold that 1 did not hear much of
what was said, and said little myself. The question was
whether to meet Lord Ebrington's motion by a direct negative
or by the order of the day. I saw little difference, and pro
posed that Peel should, when he heard Ebrington's speech and
motion, decide on tlie spot what course to take. This was
approved. Baring consenting to take the lead. While this
was going on. Peel whispered me not to go away without
him ; so when it was over, which was about one, he took my
arm and begged me to walk with him to the Duke of Wel
lington's, who, he told me, had a similar meeting of our friends

1832.] ATTEMPTS TO FORM A MINISTRY. 155
in the Lords to consider what was to be done, and wished to
see us after it should be over.
When we arrived at Apsley House we found the Lords
dispersing, and did not think it right to go in just as they
were all coming away, so we took a turn in the park, and then
went to the Duke, just preceded by Lord Lyndhurst. When
we (four) were seated. Lord Lyndhurst told me — I supposed
(as was the fact) that he had already told the others — what
had passed between him and the King, and the extent of his
mission, and began to discuss what should be done. By the
way, he said that he was a good deal struck by the firmness
and discrimination of the King, whose style of talking on
business he thought very much improved since he had been
in office. His Majesty showed, he said, considerable adroit
ness and practicabUity. When he had done this explanation,
which had been chiefly addressed towards me, I asked him,
" Whom do you mean to put at the head ? " He made a
significant motion with his hand towards Peel and said,
" That Peel must answer." Peel then said, with a tone of
concentrated resolution, that he could not and would not have
anything to do with the settlement of the Reform Question,
and that it was evident that it must be settled now, and on
the basis, as he understood, of the present Bill. Lord Lynd
hurst said (what he had not before mentioned in my presence,
but had, it seems, told them in the conversation in the fore
noon), that the King had not fixed that the new Government
was to be formed on the specific engagements to carry
Schedules A or B, but that his Majesty having thrown out
something to that effect, Lord Lyndhurst had objected that
none of the Tories could consent to swallow these schedules
in the lump, upon which his Majesty varied his phrase, and
said, " Well, then, an extensive reform," and that " an extensive
reform " was therefore the basis of his lordship's mission.
Peel said, " It was aU the same in his view. He was peculiarly
circumstanced — he had been obhged to arrange the Catholic
Question by a sacrifice of his own judgment, and he would
not now perform the same painful abandonment of opinion on
the Reform Question." He talked of " the advantage to the
country that public men should maintain a character for con
sistency and disinterestedness, which he would for ever forfeit
if, a second time, he were on any pretence to act, over again,
anything like his part in the Catholic Question."
I said that I agreed that on the principle of carrying the

156 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Cnhv. XVIL
BiU, I did not think that either Peel or the Duke would be in
an honourable position, and that it seemed to me that Lord
Harrowby* was the natural person to undertake the Govern
ment on such a basis ; I said I was aware of his state of
health, and his known reluctance to take office, but as he was
the person who had brought us all into the difficulty by
having concurred in the second reading (but for which, the
Duke's or Peel's course would have been clear), I thought
that as a man of honor he ought to come forward to cure — as
far as it might be curable— the mischief he had made. AU
seemed to agree in my reasoning, but Lord Lyndhurst de
clared that he knew Harrowby would not consent. I insisted
that he ought at least to be sounded and pressed, and imme
diately. The Duke opposed this. He said he was to have a
meeting of Tory Lords next day, and that he was afraid that
they never could be persuaded to support Lord Harrowby, but
at all events it would not be safe to make Lord Harrowby any
proposal tUl he had felt the pulse of those Tory Lords. I said
that I was afraid Lord Harrowby might take advantage of the
delay in applying to him, and shelter his real reluctance
under a plea of offended dignity, in not being sooner apprised
of what was expected from him. AU I could say, however,
was overruled by the Duke, and it was resolved to do nothing
till after the meeting at Apsley House to-morrow. It is
scarcely worth whUe to mention that I stated to Lord Lynd
hurst that his Majesty's pledge to Schedules A and B rendered
it impossible that / could take any share in his Government,
and that therefore my advice and opinions were only those of
a disinterested friend. I walked away with Peel, and he
suggested the Speaker as Premier. Soon after this I left town
for Molesey, and having stayed there five minutes (to see
Mrs. Croker, who was very ill), I rode back to town, and got
to the House of Commons about eight.
I did not feel inchned to speak, as I had not heard the early
part of the debate, and was not very well ; nor had I, indeed,
an opening, except after Macaulay, but as I had happened to
reply to him on five different occasions, I thought it would
" [Lord Harrowby was one of the leaders of the party in the House of
Lords known as the " Waverers." They voted against the second reading
of the Bill as originally introduced, and for the second reading in its
amended state, while objecting altogether to the principle of the measure.
The " Waverers " materiaUy helped to secure the passage of the BiU.]

1832.] WAS\a TORY GOVERNMENT POSSIBLE? 157
look too much like pitting myself against him ; and as it had
happened thret' times that I had interposed between him and
Wetherell, I on this occasion remained silent. I was after
wards sorry I hail done so, for I did not much like the
tone of the debs ,te, which I thought rather low on our side.
Indeed, I observp.d in the ineetmg in the mornmg that people
looked grave and anxious, and not at all like a victorious
party. The appearance in the House was of the same cast,
but we made a go id division, 208 to 288. Lord Ebrington's
simUar motion in C^ctober had been carried by a majority of 131.
The announcement of the numbers was received with cheers
on both sides. We thought it a good division — they affected
to think it so for them, but the Ministers looked, I thought,
abattus, and when Althorp got up to answer a very foolish
flourish of WethereU's on the mode of presenting the address,
he looked quite pale with agitation, but whether with vexation
at the division, or anger against Wetherell I cannot decide.
Friday, May llth. — I returned to Molesey early in the
morning. In reconsidering the state of affairs, I could not
but see that if a Tory government of some shade or other
were not formed, and if the Whigs were allowed to return
triumphant over the King's scruples, the revolution might be
looked upon as consummated, for bad as the aspect of affairs
now is, such a triumph to the agitators would render them
intolerably audacious and too strong even for the Whigs
themselves to manage ; I therefore wrote Peel a strong letter
urging him to take the Government — even on the King's
terms, if there was no other resource or alternative. I after
wards learned that Lord Lyndhurst went down to Windsor to
report that the only advice he could give His Majesty was
that he should come up to town, and send for the Duke of
WeUington ; and he brought back His Majesty's commands
that the Duke should attend him at St. James's at one o'clock,
to-morrow. Saturday, May 12th. — I came early into town and caUed
on the Duke ; he said, " Well, we are in a fine scrape, and I
reaUy do not see how we are to get out of it." He told me
that Lord Harrowby had absolutely refused (I never heard
the particulars of the communication with Lord Harrowby).
He also told me that Lord Lyndhurst had had a communi
cation with the Speaker, to induce him to put himself at the
head of the Government ; but that also had failed. He then
said that the meeting of Lords yesterday had agreed to

158 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
support the King's Government even in passing the present
BiU with some amendments : and then he told me that if no
one else would, he would himself undertake the Government.
He said that he had passed his whole hfe in troubles, and
was now in troubles again, but that it was Ins duty to stand
by the King, and he would do so ; for " what," he added,
" could I say to those gentlemen who met h^re yesterday, and
who consented at my suggestion to foregd aU thefr private
feelings and interests for the great object of preventing a
revolution, but that I would not myself hesitate to undergo
all the odium and all the danger which might attend our
attempt ? " However, when I told him that I had written to
urge Peel, and was about to go to him to entreat him verbaUy
to undertake the Government, his Grace encouraged me to
do so, and authorised me to say to Peel that he was ready to
serve with him or under him, or in any way that he should
think best for the common cause. I said that I did not like
to carry a message, but that my advice should be founded on
that hypothesis. He then said, " I am particularly pleased
with the advice you give Peel, because it leads me to hope
that you mean to act on the same principle yourself, and to
help me in this great emergency." He spoke doubtuigly, as
if he knew that I had expressed a contrary intention, as I
had, indeed, ever since we left office in 1830 ; and I had
repeated it to Lord Lyndhurst in the first of three discussions,
on the 10th, in the Duke's hearing, and I have no doubt that
he had not forgotten it. I replied by begging His Grace to
recoUect that I had apprised him verbaUy and in writing, soon
after we left office, of my firm resolution never again to enter
into it, happen what might; that that resolution I had
maintained all along, and by that I must now abide ; but I
said that exclusive of that, there were reasons which must
have obliged me to dechne taking office under present
circumstances. I had neither birth, nor station, nor fortune ;
nothing but my personal character to hold by, and I would
leave him to judge what would be thought of me if, after the
part I had taken, I should be found supporting schedule A,
and accepting a high office and salary as the price of that
support. I should lose myself and do the cause more harm
than good ; whereas, out of office and independent, I should
be at liberty to adapt myself to the new circumstances of the
case, and my opinions might have some weight in the House
and in the country, when it was seen that they were at least

1832.] WELLINGTON AND PEEL. 159
disinterested, and that I had no private or personal object in
the support which I might be able to afford the King's
Government ; but 1 assured liim that these considerations,
though primary in principle, were only secondary in point of
time, because my mind had been made up, as I had often
apprised all my friends, private and political, at Christmas,
1830, never agatii to enter upon official life ; and I had so
early made my resolution known, at a time when it almost
seemed presumptuous and idle to suppose such a case, in
order that one might not, if such a crisis should ever arise, be
supposed to refuse through any dissatisfaction either at what
might be offered, or from what hands.
He acquiesced in what I said; rather, I thought, more
readily than I expected, but still with an air of pique and
disappointment. He then told me that he was going to the
Idling at one o clock, and would tell His Majesty that, happen
what would, he (the Duke) would stand by him and endeavour
to extricate him from the difficulty in which he was placed.
" A difficulty, however," he added, " created altogether by his
allowing the delusion as to his real opinions to have committed
the House of Lords, as well as the country at large, to the
principle of the Reform BUI."
I then went to Peel, with whom I found Goulburn and
Holmes. Peel had answered my letter, and read us the
answer, which I afterwards put in my pocket. Then began
a discussion in which I pressed upon him — as a last resource,
and if every other scheme should faU — the duty of saving the
King, the country, and the world, from the obvious conse
quences of the re-establishment of the revolutionary Govern
ment, and he dwelt on the same topics as before, in reply. I
persisted so long, and urged points so strongly, that Holmes
and Goulburn (who, however, were of my opinion) interfered,
and said that I had done all that could be done, and that they
thought I should push it no farther. Yet 1 think I shook
Peel's resolution for a moment. I certainly tried his temper.
After they went, I stopped, and we recovered our good humour
thoroughly, and were about to saUy out to stroU through
some of the exhibitions, when it struck us that it would
hardly be decent, when it was known that the King was come
to town on a subject so serious, and in which he and I were
in some degree involved, that we should be seen ostentatiously
parading our indifference to the crisis in the exhibition rooms.
This seemed rational, and so I went away alone. I looked ui

160 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
at the new Club, and there heard that the Duke had been at
St. James's and had kissed hands as First Minister, and also
that he had been hurrahed by the mob as he left St. James's ;
I thought the fact impossible after all that had so lately
passed, and that no communication had or could have passed
since he had authorised me to press Peel to accept the first
place. About 4 o'clock I returned to Peel, wfth whom I found
Lord Fitzgerald. I told Peel the rumour of the Duke's having
kissed hands as a thing impossible. He said he thought it
might be true, and then went on to tell me that about ten
minutes after I had loft him he was summoned to the King ;
that His Majesty invited him into his service without saying
in what post, or who was to be his First Minister, and that he
had shortly but firmly decUned, on the same reasons he had
before given mo.
He did not seem to think that the King was very pressing,
and he by no means corroborated Lord Lyndburst's report
of his dexterity and savoir faire; on the contrary, he thought
him awkward and confused. He began by saying that it
" was eighteen months since they had met in conversation ; "
Peel assented. Then foUowed two or three simUar observa
tions, to which Peel also assented, "and then," said His
Majesty, "I recoUect you said that some degree of reform
was desirable." To this Peel could not assent — " he recol
lected nothing hke it, though it was possible that some
thing might have passed which at such a distance of time
might have left that impression on His Majesty's mind — for
instance, he might have told- His Majesty that he expected
that the House of Commons of that day would pass some
resolutions of reform; but that, so far from approving or
conceding anything to such resolutions, he was prepared to
leave office if they were carried." His Majesty also said that
he had parted with his late Ministers with the "greatest
regret" and spoke of them in terms that showed that he
either did not feel or did not estimate the extent of the
insult and perU which he had resisted ; in sTiort, he seemed
to have taken his stand where he did, without being well
aware of the whole importance of the case, or of the spirit-
which must have actuated his late Ministers. He concluded
the interview by saying that " he hoped the refusal to enter
his service was not to be understood as applying to all future
times, and that he hoped to see him again on some more
favourable occasion."

1832.] DIFFICULTIES OF THE TORIES. 161
When Peel left the King, the Speaker went in, and he
afterwards caUed and told Peel that the King had desired
him to come into his official service as leader of tlie House of
Commons ; that when the Speaker in return asked him who
was to be Minister, he looked confused, or, as the Speaker
termed it, flabbergasted, and stammered out " The Dnke of
Wellington." The Speaker then declined, though the King
offered to do all that was in his power to compensate him for
abandoning his present claim to the peerage and pension
usuaUy bestowed on retiring Speakers. It was this which
made Peel believe the rumour that 1 had discredited, of the-
Duke's having kissed hands, for it was thus clear that he
was already first Minister when the King had sent for Peel
and the Speaker ; and moreover Peel understood that lie had
the day before nominated Hardinge to Ireland, and had in
two or three other points acted as the Prime Minister only
could do. I then told Peel of the message which I had been
authorised to dehver in the morning, and which seemed
absolutely at variance with the Duke's having accepted a
situation which 1 understood from him he wished to see
filled by either Peel or Sutton, or even Lord Carnarvon, in
preference to himself. Lord Fitzgerald said it was clear .
there was some serious misunderstanding somewhere. I
myself suspect that the Duke thought the King was offering
Peel and Sutton successively the first place, whUe the King
was, in fact, only offering the second. The facts appear clear
as to Peel and Sutton, and I must beheve that the mistake
was His Majesty's.
I dined at Lord Lonsdale's, and sat next to Lord EUen
borough, who confirmed me in what I had before guessed,
that the Duke had not kissed hands, and was stiU only
considering what arrangement could be made. This makes
aU clear and consistent.
After dinner I called and sate late with Peel. He still
supposed that the Duke was to be at the head of affairs, and
augured iU of the success of the Administration, although he
thought Sutton might have succeeded. I afterwards learned
that at the very time when Peel and I were thus talking,
Sutton was with the Duke, and that, after a conversation of
some hours, finding that the Duke persisted in thinking that
he himself should be at the head of the Government, the
Speaker declined to undertake the lead of the House of
Commons, because he felt, as he had already told the King,
VOL. II. M

162 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
that his utility, "such as it was," consisted in his being
" whoUy unpledged on the Reform BUI, and that therefore
the amendments he might offer would be received with no
personal disfavour, whereas that, with the Duke at the head.
His Grace's avowed antipathy to all reform would afford an
Opposition a colourable ground for suspecting all their pro
positions." So the Speaker considered the thing as ended
with regard to himself.
Sunday, May 13th. — As I was going to Molesey for aU
day, I thought it right to look in at Apsley House, and ask
whether his Grace had any commands for me. I found
Goulburn and Wynn waiting to see him by appointment,
but as I was in a hurry to get away, the Duke saw me first,
that is, he reaUy pulled me into his room, for I told him
that though I had caUed to pay a visit, I had really nothing to
say to him. He again pressed me, and much more strenuously
than before, to take office, and a httle surprised me by saying
" that in such a crisis as this, if a man put himself on the shelf,
it might not be so easy to take him off the shelf when he
perhaps might desfre it." I told him at once rather sharply
that " such an observation could not apply to me ; that I had
, recorded with him, as weU as with other friends eighteen
months ago, my fixed resolution never to take office again ;
and that, besides all other reasons, I really felt that my
health could not stand the worry of business ; that it was
with nervous reluctance and the most painful sensations
that I went to the House at all ; that nothing but an im
perious sense of duty drove me there, and that I was quite
sure that if I were to undertake the double duties of
minister and debater, I should knock up in a couple of
months ; and I repeated that besides all these, which were
immediate and insurmountable objections, I felt that I never
could lend a hand to any Reform BUI of the kind which was
in contemplation, though I might support it when it should
come to us if it appeared, as, no doubt, it would, the lesser of
two evils." The Duke acquiesced in the reason arising from
my state of health, but seemed, I think, a little, though but
a httle, annoyed. He then asked me what I thought of
Wynn. I said that he would be of great use to an ad
ministration of moderate reformers. He then mentioned
some other persons, of whom I said what I thought, which
was favourable, and I particularly urged the advantage which
Baring would be of I mentioned Lord Wharnchffe, but

1832.] TEE TORIES AND REFORM. 103
said that I did not suppose he would take office. " I am
sure," said the Duke, " they' would be unlucky who should
take office with hun."
When I came out, Goulburn went in, desirmg me to wait
for him, which I did. When he left the Duke, he walked
with me to Knightsbridge. He told me that the Duke had
again pressed bun to take office, but that though he was
personaUy willing to help the King in such a crisis. Peel's
refusal had rendered it impossible for him who stood in a
situation exactly the same as Peel, to take a line that would
expose him not only to all the taunts of political adversaries,
but to the bitter reproach of a comparison with Peel. The
Duke had before told me (when I had mentioned Herries)
that he had positively dechned — (EUenborough had said the
day before that he made no difficulties). The Duke told me
that he, Herries, also had come to a resolution never to accept
office ; this a little surprised me.
On getting to Molesey, and revolving all that had passed,
I thought that the negotiation with Sutton must have faUed
from some misunderstanding, and I therefore wrote to EUen
borough to advise that it should be explained. I said I
thought that with Sutton and Baring in the Cabinet, and the
Duke at the Horse Guards, a moderate Reform BUI might
be satisfactorUy carried, but I also suggested that ff all other
modes should faU, I thought the Duke, in resigning his
mission into the King's hands, should inform his Majesty
that, to save him from the personal mortification of making
peers after having spontaneously refused to do so, he and his
friends would withdraw their opposition, and thus render it
unnecessary to create the number of peers against which
his Majesty had pledged himself
I do not know the detaUs of what passed during the
remainder of Sunday, but I suspect, from what Wynn said
to me in the Duke's ante-room, that he also was disinclined
to accept, and I afterwards heard that no one had been willing
but Hardinge and Murray, who, from motives of personal
devotion, were ready to foUow the Duke, though I fancy
with httle hope of ultimate success. In the course of the
day, however, it became clear to the Duke that he could not
succeed, and I afterwards learned that he sent to desire to
see the Speaker, who caUed on him about 4 o'clock, and then
the Duke informed him that he found he could not make
a Government, of which he was to be at the head, but that
M 2

164 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
he had no doubt the Speaker could, and offered to serve with
or under him, and also informed him that he had Baring's
authority to say that he would take office under the Speaker,
though he had not appeared willing to accept under the
Duke. The Speaker asked time to consider of it. Lyndhurst,
who was by, pressed for an answer that night, but the Speaker
would only promise one next day. Next day the Speaker
consulted Fitzgerald and Peel, and both advising him to
accept, he wrote a note to the Duke to say that he wished
to see him once again before the matter should be finally
arranged, but that so much he would, even then, say, that
under all circumstances he felt it to be his duty to under
take the task.* I know not what circumstances prevented
the Speaker's seeing the Duke in the morning — perhaps he
was inqufring what support he could have ; but it was settled
that after the House, if it rose before one in the morning, he
would go up to Apsley House.
There was a large meeting at Brooks's to consider how
the Whigs should act ; there was a great difference of opinion.
Stanley spoke for, I hear, near an hour. Some were for
joining Hume in a motion for stopping the supphes, and
taking other violent steps ; but the ministers advocated more
moderate measures, and Hume's project was given up. Several
others were still more moderately inclined, and would not even
pledge themselves to oppose the new Government.
May 14:th. — I came early to town. Having so positively
refused to take office myself, I now felt that my going
unbidden to the Duke might look like idle curiosity, so I did
not caU at Apsley House; but I met EUenborough in the
[* The Speaker's letter is given as foUows in the Wellington
Despatches : — Palace Yard, 14th May, 1832.
My dear Loed Duke,
I am most anxious to have a personal interview with your Grace before
the whole matter, as far as I am conc'erned, is concluded : and I would
therefore have come to you this morning, if I could have found the time.
But as I am now forced to prepare for the House, and cannot anticipate
how long we may sit, I will now say with reference to the proposition
made by your Grace yesterday, that if no other arrangement can be made,
I must give way, though with fear and trembling. . . .
Ever, my dear Lord Duke,
Your most faithful and obliged,
C. Man-nees Sutton.]

1832.] ATTACKS ON WELLINGTON. 165
park, who told me how matters stood with the Speaker, but
that it was to be kept a profound secret, as he wished —
EUenborough did not know why — to take the chair that
evening without any suspicion of his intentions getting out.
He also told me that Baring would take office with the
Speaker, and that aU looked very prosperously. But why
this delay ?
I saw Peel twice, who told me that he had seen a memo
randum on the part of the King, of what had passed with the
late Ministry about the creation of peers — that it was very
confused, but that it was obvious that His Majesty's case was
a bad one; that he had consented to the principle of a
creation to carry the bUl, that he had even offered 41
(the number of the former majority), and that, therefore, it
was a mere question of degree, and that really between 41
and 50, or even an indefinite number, the difference was
not broad enough for the stand which the King had so
tardily resolved to make. We walked together to the House
about half-past four, a good many people lining, the streets,
and the police keeping the way clear. In the House, on the
occasion of a petition from the City, a debate grew up which
must have a great effect on the whole affair. The Whigs,
led by Lords Ebrington and MUton, and supported by
Macaulay and T. Duncombe in clever and very bitter
speeches, branded the Duke by anticipation with every mark
of pohtical bad faith, if he should accept office on the basis of
passing the bUl against which he had made so remarkable
a protest on the 16th AprU. Ebrington said it would be
" pubhc immorahty," MUton hinted at " the caprice of a fickle
individual," Macaulay talked of "infamy and place," and
Tom Duncombe made a violent but clever and amusing
speech, in which he likened the Duke's change to a crane-
neck carriage, and worked out the aUusion wittUy and well ;
but they aU declared (as did Althorp, who said a few words
with more warmth than usual) that they should accept
whatever bfll the new Ministry should offer, but would not,
beyond that, give them any credit or confidence ; nay, they
hinted that they would only take such a bill as a step to any
further demands that they might see occasion to make. In
reply to aU this, Hardinge got up to defend the Duke of
Wellington from the injurious hypotheses on which the
Whigs were condemning him. This was weU enough ; but
Baring unluckily got up, and, though disclaiming any official

166 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
character, yet spoke certainly with a kind of Ministerial
authority, in defence of the supposed Administration, and,
what with replies and explanations, kept up a very damaging
debate for several hours ; towards the close of which things
took a turn as short as Tom Duncombe's crane-neck could
have made, for Ebrington, having dropped something hke
a regret that the Ministers had not known how much the
Opposition would have conceded, as they would then, perhaps,
not have insisted on the peers. Baring said that he contem
plated the resignation of the late Government as a great
calamity, and that if they would consent to return and carry
the BUl, as it now seemed they might do, without swamping
the House of Lords, he, for one, would not consent to form an
Administration to replace them.
Ebrington (whose proposition seemed very unpalatable to
Ministers) was obviously put up by them to retract, saying
that the time for such a compromise was irrevocably passed ;
upon which Hume and the Mountain shouted " No, no," and
Burdett and Hume enlarged on this point ; and the debate
was adjourned to the next day, for the avowed purpose of
affording an opportunity for such a reconcUiation with his
late Ministers as might " replace His Majesty in the affections
of his subjects," although Althorp expressed an opinion that
no such arrangement could be made.
Peel went home to dinner at half-past nine, before the
debate was over, and I foUowed him, when Hume got up.
There dined Peel, Wm. Peel, Hardinge, Dawson, Goulburn,
and Lord Stormont.' We all agreed that Baring had been
indiscreet, and that the proposition which he had made must
end in the return of the Whigs, which Peel declared he
thought better than that the Duke of WeUington should lend
himself to passing the Reform Bill in any shape. What
seemed to all of them the most important feature in the
debate was that Sir Robert Inglis, whose opinions were, of
course, those of Oxford and the Church, had reluctantly, as it
seemed, but forcibly, denounced the loss of character and
confidence which must attend the Duke's undertaking office
for the purpose of passing the Reform BUl. Inglis spoke so
low that I did not well hear what he said, but Peel considered
it fatal, and. conclusive against any Government to be formed
of any class of anti-Reformers.
The House rose about half-past eleven, and the Speaker
came at twelve in his coach to take Peel and Hardinge to the

1832.] FAILURE OF THE TORIES. 167
Duke's. I having withdrawn myself from the whole affair,
was unwUhiig to accompany them, but Peel insisted on luy
coming also. The Duke had already heard from Baring
what had passed, and every one was clear that the aspect of
affairs was entirely changed — so much so, that the Speaker's
intended Admhiistration was dropped in sUence. It was
hardly alluded to, although this very meeting had been
originaUy appointed for the purpose of finally settling that
matter. After a good deal of conversation, it was agreed, on
Peel's proposition, that the Duke should tell the King that
after what had passed in the House, and the temper shown,
it was impossible to hope to form a Tory Administration on
the basis of passing the Reform BUl, and that therefore His
Majesty must take his own course. The Duke was to add
that, in order to save His Majesty's personal honour as to the
creation of Peers, he himself would, as far as depended upon
him, remove aU pretence for such a creation by withdrawing
his opposition.
We got home very late. I suppose it must have been near
three in the morning.
May 15th. — I saw Peel, who seemed pleased and relieved by
the resolution of last night, and thought it a most fortunate
result for the honour and character of the Duke. Lord
EUenborough came in and told me that the Duke was gone
to the King, where he seems to have remained a long time.
I went, as I had promised last night, to the Speaker, who
told me in detaU all that had happened. The only thfrig
I did not know afready was, that the first day Lord Lynd
hurst had been to him and made the appointment for Ins
seeing the King next day, and at that time seemed to give
him the option of being Premier — which, however, the King
did not next day confirm, and His Majesty told the Speaker
he disapproved of having the First Minister in the House of
Commons. Mrs. Sutton, who came in towards the close, on
my teUing the Speaker not to haUoo tUl he was out of the
wood, for that if Lord Grey were to be obstinate and impe
rious he might yet be caUed on — Mrs. Sutton, I say, tried to
persuade me to accept Cabinet office if the Speaker should be
forced to do so ; but, having refused the Duke, I had no
difficulty in resisting her entreaties. I went down and slept
at Molesey.
May 16th. — On coming to town I found the Whigs con
fident that aU was settled, and the Tories believing that the

168 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
King held out. Certain it was that His Majesty was in
communication with Lord Grey, and that aU the underlings
said everytliing was arranged, and that they had not been
hard on the King.
I dined at Macleod's, where there was the Duke of
ArgyU, who told me that he understood aU was arranged.
I went afterwards very late to Lady Salisbury's, where
I heard that there were stUl doubts, or rather that nothing
had been declared ; but the Whigs were in spirits, and the
Tories in despair. I found some of the Tory ladies, and even
a few of the gentlemen, were angry with me for not having
been ready to take office. These good people never consider
— 1st, my position as to the Reform BUl, and, above aU, as to
Schedule A. ; 2nd, that not having been in the old Cabinet,
the old Cabinet have no claim on me ; and 3rd, that it would
be impossible for me, even if I wished for office ever so much
(the contrary being the fact), to take such a step without the
concurrence of those pohtical friends (Lord Hertford in
particular) with whom I had hitherto acted. What might
not Lord Hertford say ff, on his return to England, he found
the Member for Aldborough advocating Schedule A. ? It
reaUy would be a dishonourable breach of trust, besides being
a base surrender of my own opinions.
May llth. — I called on Peel. He had not heard that
anything had been done. We talked over what had passed,
and were glad that the Duke was reheved from the pain of
proposing the Reform BiU in any shape. Some one had told
Peel that I would have come in with the Speaker. I asked
him how he could have listened to such an absurdity ; that
I never had been asked, for Mrs. Sutton's idle talk, vague as
it was, referred to future contingencies ;¦ and that I had never
spoken to any one but himself on the subject of the Speaker's
Administration ; that if I would not serve with him or the
Duke, how could he imagine for a moment that I could serve
with any one else ?
Hardinge came in and told us the Duke would make an
explanation. Peel said he disliked explanations. Hardinge
told us what the Duke might say, or rather what he would,
if called upon, say for him in our House, which would admit
that he had resolved to support the Reform BUl. I saw no
necessity for such an admission. Why say what he would
have done, when he never had been able to form a Cabinet to
consult with ? I advised all that to be left in the vague, and

1832.] LORD GREY'S MINISTRY. 169
merely to say that the Duke had not accepted office, but had
only undertaken to try whether a Government could be
formed on a principle consistent with the King's engage
ments and the sentiments of those who might be called to
office; and finding that that could not be done, he had
resigned his mission back into His Majesty's hands. To this
both Peel and Hardinge objected that such was not the true
reason, because Sutton and Baring were merely to have
redeemed the King's pledges, but that they broke down from
the want of support in the House of Commons ; — to which
I rejoined that my view was the really just one, for although
two, or even four, gentlemen had been wUhng to come in on
that basis, aU the rest of the principal people had held off,
and it was reaUy because neither Peel, nor Goulburn, nor
Herries would consent to take any share in the Reform BUl,
that the Duke's mission had faUed.
In the House the Ministers came in all together, evidently
from a Cabinet. They looked very suUen. Althorp stated
that the negotiation was going on, and that he hoped and
believed it would be satisfactorUy terminated, but did not
like to speak too confidently. It is clear that the King
stickles for some changes, for Althorp dwelt on his pledge
that no essential changes would be conceded. Ebrington said
a few, but very strong, words to encourage the Ministers to be
resolute in insisting on the bUl unaltered. It is obvious that
they are in great perplexity, and even Sfr James Graham had
laid aside that saucy sneer which seems habitual to him.
The rest of this affafr, I suppose, wUl be better told in the
newspapers than by me, who am now quite out of the secret,
ff there be one.
May 18 th. — Mrs. Croker continuing very UI, and rather
worse, I remained at Molesey, and was surprised at finding
that a body of workmen from Manchester (who had been
marched up, it seems, to intimidate the King and the now
Government, but were stopped and ordered back in conse
quence of the restoration of the Whigs) had quartered
themselves in this and the neighbouring viUages, and were,
like sturdy beggars, insisting on getting food and money.
Two of them came to my gate and made some noise, and
I could hardly get rid of them. Each carried a small skein
of cotton yarn, which they pretended to seU ; but when
I showed them the absurdity of such a pretence, the value of
all they had not sufficing to pay Hampton ferry, they con
fessed that they had come up many thousands to carry the

170 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
Reform BiU, which was to put down machinery, and enable
the poor man to earn a livelihood. It seems that they were
halted whUe the change was pending, and that they were
dispersed, either to diminish alarm, or to procure food and
lodgings for so great a body. They wore a kind of work
man's unfform — a flannel jacket, trimmed with narrow blue
ribbon. One was an Englishman, and civil ; the other an
Irishman, and very much inclined to riot and rob. But his
companion listened to reason, and when he heard that there
was a lady dangerously ill in the house, he half forced away
his troublesome comrade. I have no doubt that they were
part of a body which have been brought up from Bfrmingham
and Manchester to help the Wliigs. I thought it right,
however, to apprise Lord Melbourne, Secretary of State for
the Home Department, of this migration of the northern
hives. I could not make out any details of their numbers or
march, but they said they were many thousands, and in the
three or four vUlages within the circumference of a mile
there were, they said, about forty.
Mr. Croker to a Friend. m r h 26
Our poor friend Lord Dudley, in Park Lane, is UI to a
degree to excite some alarm. His absences and oddities have
become so marked, that Halford, who witnessed some of them,
intruded his advice and ordered bleeding, cupping, &c. He
had music and a dance on Wednesday, liut never took any
notice of his guests, but sat in an arm-chair aU night in an
ante-room. He had a dinner on Friday, and allowed the
Duke of Sussex to sit at the lowest place at table, as he had
gone to dinner without hun, and there was no place vacant
except one at the bottom. The Duke of Wellington and
Lord Rosslyn came in a little late from the House, and had to
dine at a side table, and his whole conduct was so strange
that Halford, who dined there that day, volunteered, as I have
told you, his interposition. April 3rd.
Lord Dudley invited last week the Duke of Wellington
and Lord Lyndhurst to meet Lord and Lady HoUand ;* bien
assortis, n'est ce pas ? But he saved himself all trouble in
amalgamatmg such discordant materials; for when they
¦* [Lord Dudley had quarrelled with Lady HoUand, and had not spoken
to her for many years previously.]

1832.] MR. CROKER'S ADVICE IN 1832. 171
arrived at Dudley's they found that my Lord dined out ! On
a certain Wednesday he told Mr. Murray, the bookseller, to
advertise his hbrary for sale, and next day he consulted him
about buying a larger additional one. In short, he shews
every mark of harmless derangement.
During the progress of the Reform discussions in the Lords,
Mr. Croker was requested by Lord Haddington to explain
what course he would advise the Upper House to pursue in
reference to the BUl, short of rejecting it altogether. He was
asked, in fact, to place liimself in the position of a moderate
Reformer, who had voted for the second reading of the Bill,
and who now desfred to " diminish its danger to the con
stitution and the monarchy," by such amendments as might
seem practicable. In reply to this request, Mr. Croker wrote
a letter, which was privately printed, containing essentially
these propositions: — That enfranchisement should not be
carried beyond the limits proposed in the flrst Reform Bill ;
that disfranchisement should go no further than might be
required for enfranchisement — " if you want forty Members,
rather take one each from forty boroughs, than wholly
annihUate twenty;" instead of a 10?. franchise, admit every
body who paid rates and taxes. This letter, of course, had no
practical effect, and it bears evidence upon every page that
its author never supposed it would have any ; but it attracted
a good deal of attention, at the moment, among the persons
who saw it. It was first read by the Duke of Wellington,
and the correspondence respecting it has already been pub
lished in the ' WeUington Despatches.'
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, AprU 7th, 1832.
My dear Ceoker,
I return your letter, which is a very able production. But
we are living in times in which, and among men with whom,

172 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
it is necessary to be very cautious. These men are respon
sible for more than they are aware of. Their defection from
the good cause may occasion its ruin. If they had not left
us, we should have had a majority of not less than sixty,
with all the gentlemen of England at our back against the
Bill. We might have dictated our own alterations. As
things are, they have ruined themselves and us.
Believe me to be ever most sincerely yours,
Wellington.
Mr. Croker to the Duke of Wellington.
Saturday evening, 14th of AprU.
My dear Duke,
I send your Grace the letter, but I cannot send you the
other papers before Monday, as my materials are in the
country. I have just had Haddington with me. He is confident of
killing the bUl ; and EUenborough, who called whUe he was
here, seems equally confident.
I own I do not see how Lord Grey can keep the biU
anything hke what it is but by a Creation. EUenborough
seems strong for an instruction, but the pohcy of that must
depend on the Combination wliich would support that mode
rather than the same thing moved in Committee.
Yours ever most attached,
J. W. Croker.
The Duke of WeUington to Mr. Croker.*
London, April 24th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
Since I wrote to you yesterday I have seen Lord Lyndhurst.
He is very anxious to have some conversation with you. He
is turning his mind to an alteration of the Reform BUl.
Will you settle a time to see bim ?
Ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
* [' WeUington Despatches,' New Ser. viii. 271.]

1832.] ADVICE TO TEE " WAVERERS." 173
Mr. Croker to the Duke of Wellington.
West Moulsey, 27th April, 1832.
My dear Duke,
I have finished my letter and sent it to the press, but what
use we shall put it to, your Grace shall determine when you
have read it. . . .
I shall call on your Grace on Tuesday morning ; and if
you would allow me to suggest whether I might not meet
Lord Lyndliurst and Lord EUenborough with your Grace on
that day, to talk over the matter, I shaU hold myself dis
engaged to obey your commands aU day.
In reading my letter your Grace wiU recollect that it is
written for the Waverers ; but I think the practical part we
should all agree on.
Yours, my dear Duke, most faithfuUy,
J. W. Croker.
The Duke of WeUington to Mr. Croker.*
Strathfieldsaye, April 29th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
I am going to town to-morrow, and I shall be very happy
to see you at half-past ten on Tuesday.
I will apprize Lord EUenborough and Lord Lyndhurst of
your desfre to see them with me. If they should fix any
earher or later hour on that day I will send you word to
Kensington Palace.
I have not altered my opinion respecting the expediency
of any pubhcation by you, or by any of those who belonged
to the late Government in particular, or are connected with
the Conservative party.
The whole world is too ready to throw upon us the entfre
responsibUity for what is going on ; perverting every fact,
and inventing hes of aU descriptions, to prove that we are the
cause of the mischief. If you or any of us publish anything,
they wUl have too good cause for making simUar assertions.
I intend to do my best to amend the BUl. But I shall
take every opportunity of protesting against every part of
* [' Wellington Despatches,' New Ser. viii. 289.]

174 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
the system which it is proposed that it should carry into
execution. I will not take the course of proposing alterations to make
the system worse in my sense than it is. I wUl try to
improve the BUl in my sense ; but stUl protesting against it,
and intending to vote against it upon the third reading.
I cannot think that it would be consistent with this course
for me to recommend the publication of a pamphlet containing
a system of improvement of the BUl.
Ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.

London, May 1st, 1832. 9 a.m.
My dear Croker,*
I received your two notes f last night. I wUl wait here
till four this afternoon in case you should come to town.
In case you should come to-morrow morning, let it be by
nine o'clock, and apprize me this day of your intentions,
in order that I may have Lord Lyndhurst and Lord EUen
borough here.
I should doubt our being able to go so far as you propose
in the matter of franchises and large towns. However, we
can talk over details hereafter.
The important point now is the pubhcation, or rather the
completion of the printing, and the cfrculation to some of the
Waverers, viz. Lord Haddington, of your work.
We are very awkwardly situated in relation to the
Waverers. They are an object of detestation and jealousy to our
friends and supporters. They are so with great reason. We
communicated cordiaUy with them previously to our leaving
town. What do you think of Lord Wharnchffe communi
cating with Lord Grey on Saturday last ; and this, notwith
standing that he was warned by Lord Lyndhurst, at my
request, of the inconvenience of this course ?
Both parties being more or less involved in the pursuit of
the same object, we cannot quarrel without great pubhc
" [' WeUington Despatches,' New Ser. viii. 292.]
t [These two notes referred to a change in the appointed day of meeting,
rendered necessary by the iUness of Mrs. Croker.]

1832.] SIR R. PEEL ON REFORM. 175
inconvenience ; and we must continue to communicate to a
certain degree. But our communications must be very
guarded, and we must keep to ourselves anything of which
it is desirable that our opponents should not have a
knowledge. This being the case, conceive what an advantage would
be taken of such a document as your work, which must be
our brief.
I think that a proper time for pubhshing the work wUl
come. It is but fafr and just by you that it should be
published. But I am convinced that it would be a very false
step to pubhsh it at the present moment, or to do what is as
bad, to give it into the hands of the enemy.
Secrecy is of much more importance than men are aware
of in all transactions, and particularly in political trans
actions, and in the management of a public assembly. I
wish just to refer you to the advantages derived by our
opponents on the same subject by the secrecy in which they
involved their measure till the moment at which it was
opened in Parhament.
We had previously determined not to oppose the first
reading, and we could not alter our course after the measure
was produced. But if we had known what the measure
would be, we should have opposed it ; and our opposition
would have been successftd.
Believe me, ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.

Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. WhitehaU, AprU 23rd.
My dear Croker,
I approve the general principles of your letter. I see
nothing left, now that the House of Lords has approved the
principle of the Reform BUl, but a strenuous concerted effort
on the part of all those who deprecate such a reform as that
which it involves, to mitigate the evU of it. Both Lords and
Commons have now by their votes so far discredited the
system of Government under which we have lived, that it
seems to me inevitable to try another.
That other had better, in my opinion, bo the result of

176 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
amendment to the present Bill, than of a new scheme
of Reform, proposed by Anti-Reformers, who would be them
selves disparaged by their own proposal.
The original Bill of the Government, wherever it is less
mischievous than the present, is a good document to appeal
to ; but there are no doubt many amendments of detaU
introduced into the present, which ought not to be rejected.
I think you should not go too much into detaU in your
letter. The patience of our forces in Committee wUl soon
be worn out in the Lords ; proxies wUl not teU ; the
more, therefore, the fire is reserved for important points the
better. Ever yours, my dear Croker,
R. Peel.
The allusion at the close of the ffrst paragraph of the next
letter was prompted by Mr. Croker's fixed belief that the
days of the monarchy were numbered.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. April 17th.
I dined on Saturday at the Duchess of Kent's, with a large
Conservative party — four Dukes and three Duchesses, and
the rest of thirty people in proportion. I was the only
untitled, and almost the only undecorated guest. The httle
Princess ceases to be little. She grows taU, is very good
looking, but not, I think, strong ; yet she may hve to be
plain Miss Guelph.
I forgot to teU you that the speaking in the Lords * was
admfrable — particularly our friends EUenborough, Lynd
hurst, and the Bishop of Exeter the most effective ; but the
Duke of Buckingham was very good indeed; part of Lord
Mansfield very fine; and Lord Bristol acute, pohshed, and
brUhant. Lord Tenterden spoke with great weight. On the
other side Lord Grey's first speech was feeble, and his reply
furious. Lord Shrewsbury ranted Popery of Bloody Mary's
day, and Lord Durham beat BiUingsgate hoUow. Brougham
was able, moderate, cautious — much more for the seals than
for the BiU. "¦ [On the second reading of the Eeform Bill.]

1832.] WEY DID NOT PEEL TAKE OFFICE t 111
We now come to the letter written by Mr. Croker to
Sfr Robert Peel during the negotiations for the formation
of a new Government after the resignation of Lord Grey. It
is referred jto, as the reader will have noticed, in the
Journal already printed in this chapter. It has frequently
been maintained that Sir Robert Peel might have taken the
management of the Reform question, and secured his party
a long lease of power, by accepting office in 1832. Mr.
Croker's persuasions were doubtless prompted by this behef.
And considering the events of later years, and the attitude
in which the two men were placed by those events, it is
curious to observe the pains taken by Mr. Croker to remove
from Sfr Robert Peel's mind his dread of being thought
inconsistent. It will be remembered that Charles GrevUle
expresses a suspicion that Peel was not sorry for the
dUemma in which the Duke was placed — " Nothing can be
more certain than that he is in high spirits in the midst
of it aU, and talks with great complacency of its being very
weU as it is, and that the salvation of character is everything ;
and this from him, who fancies he has saved his own, and
addressed to those who have forfeited thefrs, is amusing." *
, Mr. Croker was careful to intimate that he expected no
reply to his letter, but Peel answered it the following day,
and did not faU to afford strong reasons for his views.
Mr. Croker to Sir E. Peel.
West Moulsey, Surrey, May llth.
My dear Peel,
The more I think of the situation of affairs, the less
satisfied I am with the line which you seem inchned to adopt.
I think your feeling a little obscures your judgment. AUow
me, therefore, who feel for your honour and happiness, aU
that any man can feel for another, but who am a more
* ' Diary,' ii. p. 301.
VOL. II. N

178 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
impartial judge than you can be in your own cause, to offer
you some considerations which have grown up in my mind.
I fully admit the embarrassment to any man of having to
countenance a measure which he has opposed and stUl dis
approves, and I admit also (though not in the degree you
seem to feel it) the peculiarity of your personal position in
reference to the unhappy Ca'tholic question ; and I carry
perhaps stUl higher than you do, my knowledge of the
difficulties of office at this conjuncture. AU that premised
and conceded, I stUl think that it may be your positive duty,
as a man of honour, to take office, just as it might be to fight
a duel — a duty both painful and perUous, but, if honour
requires, indispensable.
I further agree that you are the last man who ought to
undertake the Government at this moment ; but if at last it
comes to be you or nobody, the very fact decides the question.
Every effort should be made to get Lord Harrowby or Lord
anybody to consent to take the helm for the moment ; but if
there should be ultimately no alternative (which seems to me
most probable) but Lord Grey or you, can you doubt what
the public advantage and your private honour alike require
of you ?
If Lord Grey returns, see what must happen — the King
enslaved, the House of Lords degraded, the BUl passed, the
Revolution, I may say, consummated. And what wiU be your
consolation then ? The poor and negative one that you have
maintained an apparent consistency in not having touched,
even with a view of diverting it, the fatal instrument of the
mischief. But the consistency wiU be only apparent; the
real consistency would be that, as you did all that was
possible to avert the danger, so now, when it is inevitable,
you should exert every effort to mitigate and diminish it. A
man easily finds, or rather fancies, colourable reasons for not
doing what he has no mind to. You have no desire to be
Minister. You are disgusted, if not dismayed, at the prospect,
and you permit your, dishke and dread to array themselves in
the self-deluding garb of consistency and contempt of power.
You are now quite sincere. The natural and pecuhar
delicacy of your mind gives substance and weight to the
shadows — for they are no more — which you imagine might
cloud your character ; but be assured you will not long, and
the world wUl not for a moment, be so deceived ; and if the
King and Constitution sink under your eyes, without your

1832.] MR. CROKER'S ADVICE TO PEEL. 179
having jumped in to attempt to save them, your prudence
and consistency will be called by less flattering titles in that
black-edged page of history which will record the extinction
of the Monarchy of England.
" But you may fail." You may ; probably will ; I do not
deceive you or myself with any confidence of success. But
what then ? We shall not be worse off with the Whigs
triumphant after an interval of a month, than after one of
a week. Nay, we must be better off. We shall have restored
the Monarch to his proper station, and even a month of Royal
dignity and authority wUl do some good. See some of the
effects already. Lord Ebrington's motion last year was
carried by a majority of 131 ; last night by one of 80 ; and
that majority of 80 would, I firmly beheve, melt totally away
before a Ministry which should consent to some, nay to great
sacrifices, to save what might remain of the Monarchy. Is it
without a pang that one hghtens the ship, in the last hour of
danger, by throwing overboard its treasures, or its guns ?
But who would not do so rather than let her founder under
you ?
Honour ! character ! Yes, the greatest, the only moral
treasures of our nature ; but they must be aUied to courage
and self-devotion ! What but disgrace can result to the
whole party, if, after having committed the House of Lords,
and encouraged the King, to this violent rupture, they are to
be abandoned, and thrown upon the tender mercies of their
exasperated enemies ? If the Whigs are aUowed to get back
without a struggle on the part of the Tories, and of you
personaUy, en dernier ressort, depend upon it, instead of
honour and character, we shaU have only degradation and
contempt. We shall be despised as feUows who had not
courage to take advantage of the events they had prepared,
and to which they had instigated others. This reproach wiU
fall most heavUy on Lord Harrowby, if he should decline to
take his share in the danger ; but it will eventuaUy revert
to you and the Duke, if you also should, on any pretence,
evade the responsibUity with which your stations, your
talents, your former conduct and principles, and your recent
combinations and arrangements, invest you in the eyes of all
mankind. Pray ponder over all this. I give it to you not dogma
tically, however strong my expressions may be, but only as
materials for your own consideration — as hints of what
N 2

180 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
I think the opinions of the world will be m the premised
cases. It is easy enough to say, " I will have nothing to do
with it," but you must have something to do with it, for
your very refusal is a very important and responsible
something. Yours affectionately, J. W. C.
p.S. — This requires no answer — only your own serious
thoughts. I shaU see you to-morrow. What an anniversary
is this for such a letter. Was Mr. Perceval's task more
difficult in 1809 than yours would be now ? I think it was
not, but I think also he would not have decUned it were he
now in your position, and that no one else could be found to
undertake it. Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU Gardens, May 12th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
If I could be a waverer as to the course which I should
pursue in such a crisis as the present, I should by the very
act of wavering prove that I was unfit for the crisis.
I foresee that a BUl of Reform, including everything that
is reaUy important and really dangerous in the present BUl,
must pass. For me individuaUy to take the conduct of such
a BUl — to assume the responsibUity of the consequences
which I have predicted as the inevitable result of such a BUl
— would be, in my opinion, personal degradation to myself.
Read the foUowing — one of a hundred declarations to the
same effect made by me, in the melancholy anticipation that
some such event as that which has now occurred would
occur: —
Sir Rohert Peel. — " Dissolve Parliament if you will, — I care not much
whether I am returned again; but if I did feel any anxiety on this
point, I would go to my constituents with your Bill in my hand, and
I would put forward as my especial claim for a renewal of their confidence,
my determined opposition to its claims.
" If the people of England still insist on the completion of this measure,
I shall bow to their judgment, but my own opinions wiU remain unchanged.
To all the penalties of maintaining those opinions — ^the incapacity for
public service, the loss of popular favour, the withdrawal of public con-

1832.] SIR R. PEEL'S EXPLANATION. 181
fidence — I can and must submit. The people have the right and the
power to inflict them, but they have neither the power nor the right to
inflict that heavier penalty of involving me in their responsibility. I feel
that it has ceased to be an object of fair ambition to any man of equal and
consistent mind, to enter into the service of the Crown."
I look beyond the exigency and the perU of the present
moment, without diminishing the extent of the danger, and
I do beheve that one of the greatest calamities that could
befaU the country would be that utter want of confidence
in the declarations of pubhc men which must foUow the
adoption of the BUl of Reform by me as a Minister of the
Crown. It is not a repetition of the Cathohc question.
I was then in office. I had advised the concession as
a Minister. I should now assume office for the purpose of
carrying the measure to which, up to the last moment, I have
been inveterately opposed as a revolutionary measure.
If I am to be behoved, I foresee revolution as the conse
quence of the BUl. What is your advice ? That I should be
the author of a more remote but certain revolution, in order
to avert an immediate one ? But the very adoption of the
BUl by me is revolution — it is a concession, against my
conviction, to a popular demand. There is as much of
violence in it as in the making of Peers. [No signature].
Mr. Croker to a Friend. May 29th.
When the King proposed, as the basis of a new Adminis
tration, the BUl (substantially) of the old Ministers, it was
evident that no Conservative Government could be formed,
and that the attempt would perhaps accelerate rather than
retard the Revolution, which, in either case, was inevitable,
and so the Whigs returned to place — but not the same place.
Thefr position seems to me materially changed. It is no
longer " the King and his Ministers." It is no longer King,
Ministers, Lords and Commons, united in one principle. It
is quite clear that each of these four parties have a different
and (in essentials) contrary object. In short, aU have taken
off thefr masks. The King turns out to have been a reluctant
reformer aU through. The Ministers are avowedly the tools
of the mob. The House of Commons is so divided that

182 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII-
(except on some question of reform, oi' one connected with it)
I do not think the Tories or the ultra-Tories, the Whigs,
the ultra- Whigs, the ' English Radicals, or the Irish Radicals,
could carry any one measure through the House. The Lords
are affectedly busy in the lamentable farce of passing with
considerable majorities a BiU which everybody knows there
is a large majority against ; and finaUy, but most important
of all, the mob has thrown aside the mask of loyalty, and aU
pretence of respect for the present ' form of Government.
The King, the Queen, and the Jioyal Family are libeUed,
caricatured, lampooned, and balladed by itinerant singers
hired for the purpose, to a degree not credible. They are
constantly compared to Charles and Henrietta, and to Louis
and Antoinette, and menaced with their fate ; and the
Attorney-General declares in Parliament that he thinks no
libeller should be prosecuted, if only he happens to be sincere
in his opinion ; and when in the Lords the impunity of all
this treason (for it has gone beyond sedition) is charged
against Ministers, they exhibit a violent indignation — -against
the libellers and traitors I — No ; but against the Lords, who
complain of their atrocities.
Depend upon it, our Revolution is in a sure, and not slow,
pirogress ; and every legitimate Government in Europe will
feel its effects. We have been for half a century the ark
wbich preserved in the great democratic deluge the principles
of social order and Monarchical Government. We are now
become a fire-ship, which wUl spread the conflagration.
In the month of August, Parhament was prorogued, and
Mr. Croker took the decision, from which he never afterwards
could be induced to swerve, to retire altogether from pubhc
hfe. There was no difficulty whatever about his obtaining a
seat in the new Parhament. Dublin University was now
prepared to return him at any time, as is sufficiently proved
by the letters he received throughout the years 1832 and
1833. Other constituencies invited him to represent them,
and the interest of private friends, notwithstanding the
Reform Bill, was more than strong enough to provide a place
for him in the House, had he been willing to accept it. But

1832.] RETIREMENT FROM PUBLIC LIFE. 183
his resolution was immovable. Even tho opinion of the man
whose judgment he trusted most — the Duke of Wellington —
had no infiuence over him, so far as this subject was con
cerned. The reasons wliich rendered him so steadfast to his
determination are set forth in the foUowing letters : —
Mr. Croker to the Duke of Wellington.
Sudley Lodge, Bognor, August llth, 1832.
My dear Duke,
I think it right to inform your Grace that I have to-day
declared, what I had aU along resolved, that I would not offer
myself for the new Parhament. I beheve, in my conscience,
that that Parhament wiU substantiaUy be as complete a
usurpation, leading to as complete a subversion of our ancient
Constitution, as the Long Parliament. My sitting in it would
be an acknowledgment of its legahty, my sohciting a seat
would be an admission of its beneficial tendency. 1 must,
perforce, obey its decisions, but I am not bound to concur in
making them, or to assist in enforcing them. I shaU, in my
humble station, dutifuUy submit to what is de facto estabhshed,
but I wiU not spontaneously take an active share in a system
which must, in my matured judgment, subvert the Church,
the Peerage, and the Throne— in one word, the Constitution
of England. Many men whom I love and respect, younger,
of more sanguine temper, of high station, and greater abilities
vUl, I beheve, take a different course. I regret it ; because I
fear that their countenance- — perhaps I should better say their
acqijiescence — wUl diminish, or at least delay, the chance of an
early return to something hke our old system of Government,
But tliey do what they conceive to be their duty. I do mine.
One only contingency could have altered this determina
tion ; I have received so many — indeed, such general assur
ances of support from the University of Dubhn, accompanied
with such apprehensions of approaching danger to all our
institutions — that I was afraid I should receive a formal
requisition calling upon me, as one who had three times in!
better days solicited the honour of representing them, to accept
now the trust as one of difficulty and danger. Such a call I
felt that I could not in honour dechne. The more disagree
able, the more dangerous, the more I should have felt bound
to accept it ; and, as in all cases of personal character and

184 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
honour, the suggestion of private judgment and political
principle must have been rejected. But although I am
assured that I should be unanimously elected, I am no longer
apprehensive that any such honourable claim and caU wiU be
made upon me, and I therefore feel myself perfectly free to
foUow my original and conscientious determination. I had
had an invitation from Ipswich, and a more formal and very
weighty requisition from the City of Wells, but could of course
have no difficulty in declining both, though at Wells, I sup
pose, I should have been pretty sure of success.
J. W. C.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, August 14th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
I have received your letter. I am very sorry that you do
not intend again to be elected to serve in Parhament. I can
not conceive for what reason. Ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
Thus the Duke, having received, and doubtless carefuUy
considered, Mr. Croker's letter, briefly tells him that he can
not conceive " for what reason " he declines to re-enter Parha
ment. This significant commeiit on the reasons so minutely
set forth by Mr. Croker expressed what must be regarded a's
the strictly common-sense view of the matter. It neve]; can
be wise for a man to give up public hfe altogether because
some measure has been passed of which he happens to disap
prove. Even on the highest grounds of conscience or prin
ciple, it is his duty still to use his influence on what he
believes to be the right side, and to endeavour to avert the
evil which he foresees or fears. What Jeremy Taylor said
of life generally, may certainly be applied to that part of life
which is passed upon the political stage — one is bound to
play out the game. " We are in the world like men playing
at tables ; the chance is not in our power, but to play it is ;

1832.] REASONS FOR MR. CROKER'S RETIREMENT. 185
and when it is fallen, we must manage it as we can." Not
thus, however, did the question present itself to Mr. Croker's
mind. He felt very strongly that he could not honourably
take any part in a system which he had denounced as dan
gerous and wrong, and towards the end of August he wrote
to another friend, even more fuUy than he had written to the
Duke of Wellington, in support of his views.
Mr. Croker to Lord Fitzgerald.*
The Grange, August 28th, 1832.
I am very sorry to find that all my political friends (unless
Peel, who has given no opinion except by taking a different
course) disapprove of my determination. They say that
" admitting that all were hopeless, it is my duty to continue
my resistance to the Revolution even ' to death in the last
ditch ' ; but aU is not, say they, hopeless. The Parhament
wUl be a better one than the present. Much may be done,
everything ought to be attempted." I believe they are utterly
mistaken; a great fuss is made of some dozen or two of
places which, contrary to all expectation, show a desire to
return Conservatives. It surprises us, and therefore makes an
undue effect ; for, when aU is done, I do not beheve it possible
that above 150 Tories should appear on the new arena ; and
" what are they among so many ?"
It is, in truth, a miserable delusion to consider the agricul
tural interests as essentially Conservative. No doubt the
county gentlemen are, as they always have been, Tories — that
is, adverse to change. So they were in 1642, in 1688, and so
again in 1830. But how did they succeed ? and if they were
not able to resist the populace then, when they reaUy com
posed so great a proportion of the constituency, what can they
do now, when to the 40s. freeholder are added tenants at 10?.
20?., 50?. per annum ? But what is' it that is in danger ? The
Church, and the Peerage, and the Crown ! WUl the agricul
turists " die in the last ditch " to maintain the parson's right
to his tithe, or the landlord's rent ? In short, I believe the
county constituency will be just as bad as that of the towns,
* [Mr. Vesey Fitzgerald succeeded to the Barony of Fitzgerald and
Vesci on the death of his mother, in January 1832.]

186 TEE' CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
for the question of tithe wiU unite them all, small farmers and
great gentlemen, in the common assault upon the whole social
system. But all this, however unportant, has nothing to do
with my personal conduct, because it is only a result, whUe I
must act on the present circumstances ; and seeing, as I clearly
do, that to solicit, or even to accept a part in a system created
by usurpation, and pregnant with confusion, would be a par
ticipation in the guUt, I wUl, I repeat, have nothing to do
with the new Parliament.
As I hinted before, all my political friends are very
angry wdth me. The Duke seriously so. He is here,* and I
doubted almost whether he would speak to me ; however we
are very cordial, and though I undergo the attacks of the
whole house aU day long, it is all in good humour and com
pliment. Lady Sandwich, to whom I said yesterday that
I was about to write to you on the subject, desires me to give
you her remembrances, and say that she is quite sure that
you wUl partake her indignation at my desertion. I dare say
you wiU at first, because you would like to see me with this
. fine feather in my hat ; but on consideration I think you wiU
agree that, happening to be ashore, I am right in not embark
ing again in a new voyage in which I can gain nothing, and
indeed do nothing, and am in'vited by no better inducement
than that the ship must founder. The metaphor is, I see, a
bad one, for I am in the ship, and must founder with her, and
the real question is, whether I shaU voluntarUy involve
myself in the moral and pohtical responsibihty of the in
evitable catastrophe ? Must I not only he lost, hut must I
sacrifice my principles, my character, my comfort, and my
happiness ? I say nothing of health, though that too, I believe,
would break down long before the general catastrophe ; and so,
heaven be praised, ends that odious chapter of self.
Now for the rest. Lord Grey has privately refused the
Speaker his peerage, and I hear the King, grateful to Sutton
for his readiness to accept the Government last May, is
resolved that he shall be his first peer.t Lord Grey gave
Sutton to understand that he was in Some embarrassments
about peerages, but that they might not have been unsur-
"* [At " The Grange," the residence of Mr. Croker's old friends. Lord
and Lady Ashburton.]
t [Mr. Manners Sutton was made a Knight of the Bath in 1833, and
created a peer in 1835, with tho title of Lord Canterbury.]

1832.]. MR. MANNERS , SUTTON. 187
niountable, if Sutton had not been so determinedly hostile.
This was touched very gently and remotely, but if Sutton
had taken the hint, and said, " Why should you anticipate my
hostUity ? " the matter might have been arranged ; at least,
that is Sutton's opinion and mine, but though he might for so
great an object as the enhsting Sutton, and in so peculiar a
case as a resigning Speaker, have ventured on the creation, we
know that he would have had great difficulties in satisfying
certain other individuals.
Next come two questions, which will surprise you as they
did me. It is mooted whether he ought to come into Parlia
ment, and if he does, whether he should strenuously refuse to
be elected to the chair. The Duke of WeUington (as he,
Sutton, tells mo) is clear in advising him to come in and not
to take the chafr. This seems to me incomprehensible. I
should have decided both questions the other way. I cannot
conceive how a man who has for sixteen or seventeen years
sat in that chafr, and who has had precedence of all the Com
moners of England, can descend to be called to order by Spring
Rice (thefr reported Speaker), and to yield the pas in society
to old Newport. But connected with this matter there was a
httle plot. I hear, from a most confidential source, that the
King (if not at the suggestion, at least with the knowledge of
the Duke of WeUington) intended, at the last levee, which
the Speaker necessarUy attended, to offer Sutton his seat for
Windsor. I need not suggest to you the motives and obvious
results of such an offer. Whether it was made or not, Sutton
did not teU me ; in fact, it was not from him that I learned
anything about the exact object. He only told me that,
" The Duke urged him to come into Parliament, and that
when I met his Grace here he would explain to me his views
and all about it." But having myself retired from politics,
and knowing the Duke's disapprobation of my doing so, I
could not venture to broach such a subject with him, and
therefore I cannot tell you whether the King did or did not
make the actual offer.
Well, Ned EUice is out. People ask why ? No one can
teU. Yet I think I can guess. He was so liberal of his
promises and pledges to pass the BUl, that he is actually
bankrupt, and runs away to escape the unportunity of his
pohtical creditors.
Sir Robert Peel was in the meantime at Drayton, thinking

188 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap.XYIL
¦very little of pohtics, as he caused it to be understood, but
very much of the new Drayton Manor which he was then
buUding. Instead, therefore, of discussing the Reform Bill or
the prospects of the new Parliament, he sent to Mr. Croker
a short treatise on battlemented houses.
Drayton Manor, August 10th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
Notwithstanding your retirement, and my supposed immer
sion in politics, your letter was the first communication I
have received since I left London which related to elections
or reminded me of pohtics. I feel as if I had done with
them — at least for a long season — and read of the House
sitting tUl three o'clock, and abortive attempts to amend the
Reform BUl in the present session, with no feelings but
those of satisfaction that I am a hundred miles from the
scene of contention.
I am not going to have battlements, and I am not going to
have labels to the windows of the main body of the house ; and
I feel quite confident I am right. The parapet, or ornamented
balustrade, was in use in the time of Elizabeth and James, and
not the battlement. The battlement was of an earher date.
The great authorities extant in domestic architecture of
the times of Elizabeth and James, are Hatfield, Audley End,
BUckling, Ingestre, Aston Hall, Warwickshfre, Burghley,
(Lord Exeter). Add: Beaudesert, Losely Hall, Surrey;
KentweU HaU, Suffolk ; BramshUl (Sir John Cope's), buUt for
the Prince of Wales, son of James I. I could add many
others. In not one of those above mentioned does a battle
ment appear. There is uniformity, and without an exception
a parapet, either plain or enriched, in the place of a battlement,
and the courses are almost as uniformly as they have been
placed in my house. There is scarcely a window in any one
of the houses above named with a label. There is not one where
the course is so near the top of the window as it is in mine.
I am in a strange state — with one house rising before the
windows of another. The stone turns out to perfection, and
they are roofing in the body of the house.
Ever most sincerely yours.
My dear Croker,
Robert -Peel.

1832.] BARGAINS IN PORTRAITS. 189
I forgot to say that I did not buy the Hobbemas,* nor did
I attempt to buy them ; but I did buy what I could not find
on the osier-pool or by the brook-side: — 1st. The original
Portrait of Dr. Johnson by Sfr Joshua; 2nd, The Bust of
Pope by Roubihac t ; 3rd, The Bust of Dryden by Scheemaker ;
and 4th, A beautiful Portrait by Dobson, an Enghsh portrait-
painter whom Vandyke introduced to the patronage of
Charles the First. The two first are truly valuable; but
people were buying gilt chafrs and old China, and let me
quietly buy my portraits and busts for 300?., altogether.

Mr. Croker to Sir E. Peel.
Sudley Lodge, Bognor, August 15th, 1832.
My dear Peel,
I give you joy — Pope — Dryden — Johnson — for 300?. ! I
am as poor as you may live to be ; but I should have given
300?. for Pope alone. It is, to my taste, the finest bit of
marble which I ever saw ; and if I were to have one costly
work of art, it should have been that, if I could have com
passed it. When I heard Lord Hertford was going to Erle-
stoke, I was just about to advise him to bid for that, which I
estimated at 500?. ; but he has such a disposition to make one
a present of anything one happens to admire, that I was
afraid he might offer it to me, and so I luckily held my
peace. I forget the Dryden. The Johnson, if it be the
picture — as I believe it is — which I saw twenty-six years
ago at Mrs. Thrale's, is invaluable. So again I give you joy,
if, in the storm-portending times in which we live, the
gewgaws of art or literature are worth a thought.
You, I think, mistake, and therefore, as we say in Pande
monium, mis-state, what I said about "battlements" and
" labels." I did not mean to rest the battlements on authorities,
but merely on beauty. There are authorities both ways, and
the weight of authority may be with Smirke and you ; but there
is enough on the other to justify what I only advocated as an
* [At the sale of Mr. Watson Taylor's pictures. The portrait of Dr.
Johnson was painted by Sir Joshua Eeynolds for Mr. Thrale, and is now
in the National Gallery.]
t [The original clay model of this bust is in the house of Mr. John
Murray, at Wimbledon.]

190 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
embellishment. There is a class of parapets which are as
handsome, perhaps more so, than embattlements ; but they
are expensive ; and, as weU as I remember, your parapet is
plain upright, in preference to which, even in the teeth of
authority, I should like a battlement. As to the labels, I did
quote authorities, because you once quoted authorities against
me. Now I insist that authority is against you. Observe, I
am not speaking of the great windows, as you seem to think,
which are protected by the string-courses, but of the smaUer
windows (as my drawing showed), which, by some internal
accident, depart from the general size and external character
of the .great windows. Tliese I assert ought, according to the
best authority, and that best of authorities, reason, to have
labels to protect thefr upper frames. So much for architecture.
Now for a little pohtics, a subject that wUl soon be dried
up as between us, but which I think it right to trouble you
with, for, I hope and beheve, the last time. You are aware of
my reluctance to come into the new Parliament.* ... I
well know the sacrifice I make — not of the vanity of being
re-elected for that place — in other times that would have
been something — but of that private society and intimate
intercourse, which in our habits cannot exist without political
connexion, or at least without hving in the same pohtical
atmosphere. I shall lose the society of those with whom I
have lived the inteUigent half of my hfe, and I shaU have,
not the pleasure, as Lucretius calls it, but pain of seeing them
tost on a tempestuous sea, whUe I stand — perhaps not out of
danger, but out of sight — on the shore. But, under aU
circumstances, believe that I shaU be, my dear Peel,
Your most sincere and affectionate friend,
J. W. C.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker. '\
Walmer Castle, September 28th, 1832.
My dear Croker,
I have received your note of the 26th, and I shall be happy
to see you on Saturday the 6th.
* [Mr. Croker here repeats the arguments used in Ms letters to the
Duke of Wellington and Lord Fitzgerald, supra.l
t [' Wellington Despatches,' new series, viii. 415.]

1832.] CHARLES THE TENTH. 191
I am inclined to believe that the retreat of Charles X. from
Edinburgh was a measure of prudential anticijiation, on his
part, of a course wliich he conceived was to have been pre
scribed to him in a short period of time. He saw clearly
that he had no hope of protection from the Ministers, and ho
anticipated the invitation wliich they would receive from
home to send him away.
When he went, they treated him and his famUy in a very
scurvy manner. The Duchesse d'Angouleme, in London, was
unnoticed, excepting by a private visit from the Queen. They
did not even give her a Government yacht or steamboat ; or
to the King one of King WUliam's vessels to carry him away.
Her Royal Highness went in the common passage boat to
Rotterdam, His Majesty in a trader to Hamburgh.
Yet I know, and they know, that when the family came
here, there was nothing about which King Louis Phihppe was
more anxious than that they should be received and treated
with respect and attention, and everything done to provide
for their accommodation.
This want of respect and attention to them, therefore, is to
be attributed to an innate desire to court the Radicals, and
to manifest a contempt (however cowardly) for fallen greatness
Believe me, ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
In October, Sir Robert Peel sent a pressing invitation to
Mr. Croker to pay him a visit at Drayton ; and the reply to
this conveyed a somewhat melancholy account of Mr. Croker's
thoughts and feelings at the moment. There can be no doubt
that he greatly missed his old employment, and that the
prospect of never again being heard in the House of Commons,
although it was a sentence voluntarUy pronounced upon him
self, depressed his spirits. The fit however passed off, and his
letters soon recovered their usual tone.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford (in the form of a journal).
October 21st. — I dined at Kew, as you know. His Royal
Highness * asked me when you were to leave town. I said
* [The Duke of Cumberland.]

o

192 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XYHJ
"Next morning." He then asked, "Early?" I said, "I
suppose about ten." He said, " That's too early, else I should
go in to see him. If I had known that he was in town I
should have caUed on him to-day." They are in great alarm
for Prince George ; though his accident was so slight its con
sequences are, out of all proportion, formidable. Sight is
they say, frrevocably gone, and even life is in danger. I
observed an instance of Royal confidence. I, who had heard
from some people of the family that matters looked very iU,
avoided the subject ; but the Duke of Dorset, who came in
after me, asked after Prince George. " Oh," said the Duke of
Cumberland, "he's quite recovered — quite weU; in high
force." At that moment he was in imminent danger.
October 22nd to 21th I spent at Drayton with Goulburn,
Herries, and Holmes, Our host reaUy in " high force," and
thinking, better than any one I have yet met, of the proba-
bilities of salvation. It seemed to me, however, to be rather
the confidence of his temper than his reason ; but either way
it was cheering, though I regret to say not catching. He
builds a good deal of hope on the Dutch war bringing people
to their senses. I doubt that there wUl be war, and ff there
is it wUl awaken no great degree of pubhc feeling, and it wUl
have the effect of uniting the Government and the Radicals,
who are every hour separatirig.
November 1st. — I went up to town to attend a meeting of
persons desirous of testifying regard for Sfr Walter Scott*
You "had been written to, but I have not heard whether you
consented to lend your name ; the general wish seemed to be
to rescue Abbotsford, its library, and collection of curiosities,
from the hands of the creditors, and settle them as hefrlooms
in the family ; but I doubt the success of the scheme ; it
would require a subscription of 50,000?., and I do not expect
half the sum, indeed I doubt the public's hking that object —
a monument, a statue, or even a piUar, I think, wiU be readUy
provided for ; but buying a large estate ; and paying off trading
debts, is quite another matter.
November 3rd. — Brougham is ill, some say very. He did
not receive the Judges the first day of term, nor the new
Lord Mayor. Lord Tenterden resigns, and Denman, tri
umphant from the acquittal of the Bristol magistrates, is, it is
said, to be Chief Justice — 'tis the birthright of his station, I
* [Sir Walter Scott had died on the 21st of September.]

1832.] LONDON GOSSIP. 193
should not be surprised if Brougham longed for that perma
nent place himself, and liis iUness may not be unconnected
with some design of that kind.
I am glad to hear that Prince George is better ; they feared
last week effusion of blood on the brain ; but it seems that
apprehension is vanished, and he is constitutionally so much
better, that he walks out in the garden, but he is, I fear, stiU
bhnd of both eyes, and hkely to remain so. When the Duke of
Welhngton was at Sudbourne, he told us that the Conservative
registries had been so neglected in Hampshire that Lord
Devon would withdraw. I now hear that they turn out
better, and he is to stand. They have a story, that at one of
the late Conferences, when hostUe measures by France and
England were actuaUy decided upon, Bulow got up, took his
hat and walked off, and I hear to-day that Lieven has also
retired from the Conference ; but I was long enough in the
secret to learn to doubt street reports of such matters.
The acquittal of the Bristol magistrates has made a good
deal of sensation. The pubhc caU it a conviction of the
Government, and Denman prosecuted the business as if he
thought it would bear that interpretation. I beheve the
Ministers are much mortified at the result, which certainly
does fix the blame on Colonel Brereton, who was acting under
thefr orders.
November 5th. — How prophetic the above has been! On
my arrival in town to-day, I find that poor Lord Tenterden is
dead, and, wonderful to say, I find in everybody's mouth a
rumour that, agreeably to my foregoing guess. Brougham
means to be Chief Justice himself Nothing is too strange
for that man, and I beheve he could even do this, but his
coUeagues wUl not allow him. What, would they do for a
ChanceUor? Westminster HaU says that Denman is the
man. The Clubs talk of Lord Lyndhurst, and Denman to be
Chief Baron. This would be the best arrangement for the
law, and I think the best for the Whigs, for it would remove
Lyndhurst from politics. In his present position he is always
a point d'appui for the formation of a new Government.
November 9th, London. — I came in here to attend a meeting
for promoting a subscription to purchase Abbotsford and its
coUections out of the grip of creditors, and to entail them
as a monument — a kind of hterary Blenheim, on Scott's
descendants. We had a good meeting of Whigs and Tories,
but no Radicals. I do not think we shall be able to raise
VOL. II. 0

194 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIL
anything hke enough to fulfil our object. Lord Mahon
moved, and Burdett seconded one set of resolutions, and I
moved, and the Socinian Bishop Maltby seconded another ;
but, like aU coalitions, I fear we shaU faU in our ultimate
object.* Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
West Moulsey, November 15th.
Having a httle paper to spare, let me say a word about the
towcQ'. Don't think I sent you the sketches of Rhine towers
as authorities (though I might, for they are probably of the
age we caU Norman). I only sent them as hints and speci
mens of how the thing would look, and indeed chiefly to
correct the shght error I had made in talking to you on the
subject, as well as to explain how slight that error was. But
if you want authorities, they are all through England and
Normandy. I have no fine books, and cannot refer you to
many examples, but the other day at the Scott meeting at
Bridgewater House, Smfrke began to speak to me on the
subject, but we were immediately interrupted by the business
of the day ; as I walked away, having been thus reminded
of the subject, I happened to look at the front of St. James's
Palace, and there I found the square base resolving itself into
the octagon tower as they do at Burleigh. I am almost sure
there is something of the same kind at Warwick. As to the
turret or beUry on a tower, there are abundant examples.
There are, I think, at Warwick two turrets on one tower.
Belfries, as apphed to castles, are of a later date, but don't be
deterred from having a utUity like a belfry by the want of
authority. UtUity and common-sense are, as I think I once
before said to you, the best authority ; and to please the eye
is the next ; and as your tower is an ornamental expense, I
should, if 1 were you, have the belfry to it, and should give
it the most agreeable form, in spite of all the authorities in
the world, even if they could be produced against me. ,
Yours affectionately,
J. W. C.
* [The library was purchased by the friends of Sir Walter Scott, and
made over to the family. It remains at Abbotsford as the original owner
left it.]

1832.] WHIG AND RADICAL DISSENSIONS. 195
P.S. — I have received to-day a formal invitation to stand
for Nottingham, and, if I should decline, to recommend a
candidate. " I have declined in three words, and have taken
no notice of the latter proposition. I have at last retired
into my pretty den here, and am as happy as one can be
vdth the prospect of seeing httle of the friends of my early
and better days.
I wish you could see my library here. I think it a model
for a book-drawing-room ; it is but just finished, and all in
the very cheapest way ; but every one who has seen or sat in
it is delighted with it. It is rather odd, and would frighten
poor Smirke by its angles and irregularities ; but it is warm
and comfortable, and holds 3000 volumes without diminishing
the size of the room, and without having, I think, any of the
sombre formahty of a hbrary. I have besides a little den
which holds 1000 volumes more, and in which I work. In
short, with the drawbacks which I have mentioned, I am as
happy in my mind, as satisfied with my very moderate
fortunes, and as contented with my humble location and still
humbler avocations as it is possible to be.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. November 21st.
The devU to pay amongst the Whigs and Radicals. Burdett
and Hobhouse have -found out that they are Whigs, and so
have their old supporters, and have set up Colonel Evans
against Hobhouse, because Hobhouse's stomach has taken a
squeamish turn since he has lived so much at Whitehall, and
cannot digest pledges. Now as he used to swallow pledges
like strawberries, the Radicals are suspicious that so great a
change in his taste must proceed from a constitutional indis
position, and they mean to send him traveUing for the benefit
of his health. On this Burdett takes alarm, and pubhshes a
letter against pledges somewhat stronger in language than
perhaps Peel might use, but in the most Conservative dfrec-
tion, and concludes by telling his quondams fairly that he
had rather be turned out with Hobhouse, than returned with
Evans. In short, the proposition of " enfranchising his close
borough" of Westminster "takes away his breath." li the
cause were not so serious, all this would be laughable. If
candidates and money could be found to oppose them, the
0 2

196 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVII.
Ministerialists would be everywhere beaten; but as it is,
they wUl get in most of thefr office men. Palmerston cer
tainly for South Hants, Spring Rice probably for Cambridge,
Althorp and Russell for their two counties ; the rest is more
doubtful. Then, / hear that Lord Grey becomes more and
more anxious to escape ; he has set fire to the mine and
wants to run away from the explosion.
December llth. — The Metropohtan elections are aU over
quietly, and (with one exception) to my satisfaction. The
Radicals are everywhere beaten by the Whigs ; but unluckUy
in London the only Tory, Lyall, is defeated. In Marylebone,
Finsbury, &c., the Radicals made no muster at aU. There
was no Tory candidate, and the Government Members have
come in, and so, I beheve, they wUl generally.
December 13th. — The elections are going as badly as possible
for the Tories as a party. Of about 150 returns they have
only about 44. Peel is in, so are Manners Sutton, and
Goulburn for Cambridge, Herries for Harwich, &c. Tom
Duncombe is in the most ludicrous misery for his defeat.
Folks think that he must join BrummeU. He says that it
has cost Lord Salisbury 14,000?., and that for half the money
he would have retired ; the extent of bribery is — I repeat
it — enormous, and wUl decide aU.

( 197 )

CHAPTER XVIII.
1833-1834.
The First Eeformed Parliament — Diminished Strength of the Tories — The
Name "Conservative" first used by Mr. Croker — "Paying Debts" —
The Duke of Cleveland — Mr. Manners Sutton re-elected Speaker —
" Finality " in Eeform — An old Superstition — The Coercion Bill — Irish
Debates — Disorder in the House — Course taken by Peel — His Eemarks
on the new House — And on the Working of the Eeform Bill — Probable
Anticipations of Office — Estrangement from the Duke of Wellington —
The Duke's Opinions on Politics — Giving Pledges at Elections — ^Peel
preparing to accept Office — Lord Goderich created Earl of Eipon — The
Malt Tax — A Victory Eeversed — Unpopularity of the Budget —
The Eoyal Academy Dinner — Defeat of Sir John Hobhouse— Capture
of Don Miguel's Fleet by Napier — An Unhealthy Season — Toryism of
Sir Francis Burdett — Close of the Session — Dinner given by the King
— A Ministerial Pamphlet — Notes upon it by Peel and Wellington — -
Sir E. Peel on the Landed Interest — Dinner given by the Duke of
Gloucester — Conversations with the Duke of WeUington — Lord Grey's
Eesignation and Lord Melbourne's alleged " Dismissal " — Mr. Croker's
Narrative — Sir Eobert Peel's Ministry — Proffer of OflSce to Mr. Croker
— Death of the Duke of Gloucester — -The Tamworth Manifesto.
When the new House of Commons assembled, it was found
that the changes in its composition were not nearly so great
as most people had anticipated. Most of the well-known
Members on both sides were safely back in thefr seats,
although a few familiar faces had disappeared from the scene
— among them, that of Sfr C. WethereU, one of the most
active, and sometimes one of the most amusing, of all the
opponents of the Reform BiU. On the other side, Orator

198 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
Hunt was defeated at Preston. The general result, however,
was that the Tories, who had already been much weakened
in 1831, suffered a further diminution of their strength.
They mustered only 149, against 509 Whigs and Reformers.
The fortunes of Toryism have never since then been reduced
to so low a state. Even in 1880, after the great reverse
which feU upon the party, there were stUl 237 Members of
the House who professed its principles.
The Radicals, although numericaUy weak — not exceeding
fifty — were active and determined, and Mr. Croker foresaw
that they were destined to exercise a great, it might even be
a preponderating, influence. " The only one of the three
parties that can be reckoned upon," he wrote to a friend
on the 6th of January, "is the Radical The Conserva
tives, a few by pledges, many by professions, wUl find
themselves obhged to vote for popular measures. So wUl the
Ministeriahsts ; and, to say the truth, I have more hope from
the latter than from the Conservatives, who, I fear, wUl not
be able to exhibit a compact and certain body of above forty
or fifty." It wiU be observed that Mr. Croker here adopts
the word Conservative instead of Tory. The name was then
just coming into use, Mr. Croker himself having first intro-
, duced it in 1831, in an article in the Quarterly Eeview. It
crept slowly into general favour, although some few there were
who always held out against it, encouraged by the example of
the late leader of the party. Lord Beaconsfield, who was not
at all hkely to extend a welcome to anything which came
with Mr. Croker's mark upon it.
The programme of the Radicals was large and comprehen
sive — vote by baUot, universal suffrage, abolition of Church
Establishments, formed a part, and only a part, of it. Great
demands, and great professions, were made on all sides ; but
after all, the measures which chiefly tend to render the year

1833.] TEE NEW PARLIAMENT. 199
1833 noteworthy, were tho abohtion of slavery in English
colonies, and the Bill of Lord Ashley for regulating the labour
of children in factories. But before this or any other
business was done, the Ministers had, as Mr. Croker said, to
pay their debts. Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
West Moulsey, January 25th.
The Ministers, hke honest men, have been paying their
debts, but, unlike Alvanly, they seem to give some creditors
a preference. Lord Stafford is Duke of Sutherland, and the
modern Harry Vane, Duke of Cleveland. When I told
Francis Leveson, six months ago, that his father was a
reformer in hopes of being a Duke, he laughed at me, and
assured me that the poor old man had no such thoughts, but
was frightened at the idea of losing his present titles and
estates, and supported the Ministers out of mere cowardice
and dotage. When Cartwright, on the hustings at North
ampton, prophesied that Cleveland was to be a Duke, the
patriot peer was indignant, and actuaUy obhged Cartwright
to unsay what he had said ; and lo ! in a few weeks the
Gazette fulfils my rejected guess and Cartwright's dis
avowed assertion. Then they have made Western a peer,
because he was beaten in Essex by Baring. This last stroke
has been pecuharly designed to show how cordiaUy the King
is with them ; for surely if there were any peerage which
His Majesty might and ought to have refused, it was this
particular one ; for besides the obvious indecency of making
a man a peer only because he was rejected by a reformed
constituency, there was this pecuharity in the case, that
Baring was the man to whom the King owed and professed
great obhgation for his readiness, in May last, to sacrifice his
own comfort and his private feelings for His Majesty's
service. And what do you think is the excuse that the King
has condescended to give the Tories for this strange act?
Why, forsooth, that he wanted to have another friend to the
agricultural interest in the House of Lords. Eisum teneatis ?
Yet his favourite society is Tory ; and all his verbal civUities
and attentions at Brighton are for the Tories. He promised,
it is said. Sir H. Neale the command at Portsmouth, vice

200 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
Foley, dead ;' but his Ministers would not consent, and His
Majesty submitted, but consoled his own dignity by inviting,
Neale to spend a week at Brighton, and to dine with him
every day, " to show the fellows and the world his real senti
ments." Is not that capital ?
On the last day of the year there was a small party at the
Pavilion. When the clock struck twelve, everybody got
up from the card table and went and kissed the Queen's
hand, and made the King a bow, and wished their Majesties
" a happy New Year ;" upon which the King started up in
great. spirits, and insisted on having a country dance to dance
in the New Year. Lady Falkland sat down to the piano,
struck up a lively tune, and everybody took out their
partners ; and who do you think the King took out ? Lord
Amelius Beauclerk. You know Lord Amelius, and you
think I am jesting. No, by all that's nautical, quizzical,
clumsy, monstrous, and mascuhne. Lord Amelius was His
Majesty's partner ; and I am told by one who saw it, that the
sight of the King and the old Admiral going down the
middle, hand in hand, was the most royaUy extravagant farce
that ever was seen.
Lord Munster has been lately at Brighton, and has had even
better luck than Lord Amelius ; for his father gave him last
Tuesday 2500 sovereigns, with which he made the best of
his way to Petworth, in hopes, I suppose, that Lord Egremont
would take the royal hint, and imitate so laudable an
example. One word more, and I have done with Royalties
for the present. Wharncliffe is at Brighton, and the King
asked him the other day if he could teU him " who the new
Bishop of Waterford was to be ? " January 30th.
Well, our friend Sutton was elected Speaker yesterday — -
241 to 31 — Morpeth proposing, Burdett seconding, and
Littleton crying " Nolo Speakerari ;" in spite of which, Hume,
O'Connell, Cobbett (who sits on the Treasury bench), Faithfull
of Brighton, Beauclerk of Surrey, and Warburton, spoke for
Littleton, as being "in unison of opinion with the House
and the country," whereas Sutton, being a Tory, his re-election
would " be a Tory triumph." Burdett seems to have become
a zealous Conservative. The only important thing which
occurred was Althorp's explanation as to the finality (a word
which I coined, and which is now in great vogue) of the BiU,

1833.] THE MINISTERIAL MEASURES. 201
by which it appears that they have hit on a device to keep
well with aU sides. He agreed with Hume that the BiU was
only a means towards an end, and that he expected pro
gressive improvements from its having passed ; but on the
other hand, as related to our representative system, he looked
upon the BUl, and trusted the House would do so too, as
final. This means, we see no necessity for altering the
Reform Bill, which has produced us so great a majority ; but
we are ready and wUhng to alter everything else. This is
my commentary ; but I know not what other folks may
think. Are you fond of a bit of superstition ? One day last week,
at A. Baring's, I told them at breakfast that I dreamt a tooth
had dropped out, and that, of course, I should hear of the
death of a friend. So we looked at the newspapers for
a couple of days with some kind of interest, but no bad
news came, and we were about to give up our superstition,
when lo ! two days after, I read an account of the death that
very satne night of my dear old friend Lord Exmouth, who
with his dying breath sent me a most affectionate message.
You wUl be anxious to hear how the new Parliament goes
on. The debate on the Address lasted four nights, O'Con
neU and all the Irish opposing the Government with a
violence of which there has been no example ; but it must be
confessed that the Speech foreshadows measures of coercion
against Ireland of which there is no example, and we hear that
the measures themselves are to be of a character and rigour
that no Tory Minister would have ever dared to hint at.*
Absolute power in the Lord Lieutenant to suspend the Habeas
Corpus ; to proclaim any parish, barony, county, province, or
the whole country, under mUitary law, and hable to Courts-
Martial; and, even when the ordinary criminal process is
resorted to, to enable the Government to change the venue
for trial to Lancashfr'e, Cheshire, or Wales. Such is the
rumour, and such, I have no doubt, were the first intentions
* [The Whig Coercion BiU of 1833 gave the Lord-Lieutenant power to
proclaim disturbed districts, substitute martial law for the ordinary Courts
of Justice, suppress aU meetings, search houses, suspend Habeas Corpus,
and punish all persons caught out of their houses between simset and
sunrise. The Bill was passed by the beginning of April, in spite of the
eloquent opposition of Shell and O'ConneU.]

202 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
of the Government; but I guess that the violence of the
debate wUl induce them, rash and shabby as they are, " de
mettre de I'eau dans leur vin."
But to return to the House. For two nights and a half the
vehemence and disorder were so great that people began to
think the National Convention was begun. Peel told me
that it was " frightful — appaUing." This induced him to rise
late the third night, and read the House a most able,
eloquent, and authoritative lecture. WhUe he arraigned the
foreign policy of Ministers, he expressed his determination to
support their Conservative dispositions, and he deprecated
those idle and violent debates. The fate of the Government
was, and he knew it, in his hands. If he had chosen to
listen only to passion and revenge, he could have put them
out. He wisely and honestly took the other line, and the
effect was instantaneous and prodigious. The storm mode
rated, the Enghsh Members got time to reflect on the
insanity of the Irish, the debate was conducted next night
with decency, and the Ministers had 438 to 40 ; in a
second division, on an amendment of their former aUy
Tennyson, 328 to 60. People now congratiUate one another
like men escaped from an imminent shipwreck. I do not
partake in their hopes, as I see no change in the elements of
the case ; only I am surprised that the Radicals were not
stronger. That is to be attributed to O'ConneU's violence,
and the shame which Peel's speech produced in some of their
minds. Lord Grey is, I hear, loud in praise of Peel. This
will give rise to suspicions and rumours ; but be assured that
Peel is firm and staunch to his principles and his party.
March 10th. ¦
I dined the other day at a smaU party made at the desire
of Burdett, who talked the highest Tory language, praised
Peel and his speech up to the skies, and foretold that it
would knock off fifty from the Radical minority. He was so
very Tory that I was obliged to moderate him, and to entreat
him not to diminish his ultimate utUity by throwing off his
popularity too soon ; and the Duke of WeUington, to whom
I told all this, replied significantly that he had been for some
time apprised that Burdett's sentiments did not much differ
from his own. Such things as this give rise to the rumours
of coalition, but I repeat that it is impossible.

1833.] PEEL ON PUBLIC AFFAIRS. 203
From the beginning of the Session, the eyes of all sections
of pohticians were turned upon Peel, whose movements and
designs no one could fathom. There were some, indeed, who
entertained even at that time a strong suspicion that he was
preparing to throw over his former friends. This, however, was
not the opinion of his pohtical associates ; and Mr. Croker
clearly foresaw then, as he had always done, that Peel must
inevitably rise to the liighest place in the Government, and
thoroughly behoved that he was incapable of the slightest
infidehty to the opinions which he professed. The following
letter shows how careful and patient was the study which
Peel was making of the new House, and how much impressed
he was by the fact that the ordinary force of party ties was
broken. His reflections apparently had their share in pro
ducing the famous Tamworth Manifesto of the foUowing
year. Sir E. Peel to Mr. Croker. March 5th, 1833.
My dear Croker,
Thanks for both your letters — chiefly for the first, which
drew away my attentidn from the House of Commons and
Irish debates.
It is odd enough that at a large dinner I had yesterday
I said that I thought Sfr Francis Burdett was the chief
Conservative in the House of Commons, and that all I feared
was, that he would diminish his efficiency and usefulness in the
Conservative hne by taking his steps too rapidly in advance.
I instanced his doctrine about officers in the army, and the
superior, almost exclusive, fitness of gentlemen for a mUitary
commission, as a doctrine better suited to the atmosphere
of France in 1784 or 1785, than the atmosphere we breathe
in the House of Commons. Perhaps he is not far from
the truth, but I admired and wondered at his boldness in
telling it.
Now for the House of Commons. It is a good one to speak
to, but that circumstance does not diminish my fear of it.
It is not the suggestion of confidence and vanity, but it is
sober truth, when I tell you that on Friday night I could

204 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVUL
have moved it just the other way. Perhaps not Friday
night, but on Wednesday night, if I had chosen to foUow
Lord Althorp, with his lame accounts of providing for Crown
witnesses with good places in the Pohce ; of some man who
had actuaUy received a threat that his winnowing machine
should be burnt ; nay, of a clergyman, who absolutely had
had panes of glass broken — if I had foUowed him, given an
account of English crimes within the same period, and asked,
as Perceval once asked of an excited House of Commons, in
the language of true eloquence, " WiU you hang a dog upon
such evidence ? " I could have trampled the BiU to dust.
What does this show ? That there is no steadiness in the
House, that it is subject to any impulse, that the force of
party connections, by which alone a Government can hope
to pursue a consistent course, is quite paralyzed. Three
times already, with reference to throe different measures, the
Government has said, in the most chUdish manner, that if
not passed they intend to resign.
My behef is, that the Reform BUl has worked for three
weeks solely from this, that the Conservatives have been too
honest to unite with the Radicals. They might have united
ten times without a sacrifice of principle. They might unite
on twenty clauses of the Irish BUl.
And what is to happen then ? The question is not. Can
you turn out a Government ? but, Can you keep in any
Government arid stave off confusion ?
What must be the value of that change in the Constitution
which rests for its success upon the forbearance and
abstinence of parties ? — which intended to sacrifice Tories as
a party — which appeared to have sacrificed them — and which
now appeals to them as a protection, ahnost the sole pro
tection, from anarchy.
What are we doing at this moment ? We are making the
Reform BUl work ; we are falsifying our own predictions,
which would be reahsed without our active interference ; we
are protecting the authors of the evil from the work of their
own hands. It is right we should do this, but I must say
that it was expecting more than human institutions, intended
to govern the unruly passions and corrupt natures of human
beings, ought to calculate upon.
Ever affectionately yours.
My dear Croker, Robert Peel.

1833.] PEEL'S CHANGES OF OPINION. 205
Three weeks later, it was evident that Sir Robert Peel
behoved the time to be at hand when his long cherished
projects could be matured.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. March 25th.
I went to Whitehall Gardens (Sir Robert Peel), and found
him in much the same opinions; but to my great surprise
apparently resolved to accept office and make battle. He spoke
with great firmness and spfrit, said he would do his duty,
and, if necessary, venture to attempt a ministry, though he
might think that it could not last a fortnight, but he said he
would never give up his principles to that House of Commons ;
he would be leader, and not led. He would try whether
Government could be carried on, and after a fafr experi
ment, he at least would have done his part. I gave him no
encouragement, having no hope myself, but I could not deny
that what he said was reasonable. He seemed to think there
would be an entfrely new combination, of which the currency
questions would be the basis. On that he was firm, but fore
saw that Radicals and Ultra-Tories would unite against him.
The opportunity did not actually arrive tiU the foUowing
year, but the intervening months were not lost. It was noticed
that Sir Robert Peel gradually withdrew more and more
from the Duke of WeUington, whose views upon reform, and
upon other questions which divided parties, were quite un
changed by all that had happened.

The Duke of WeUington to Mr. Croker.
Strathfieldsaye, March 6th, 1833.
My dear Croker,
I wiU endeavour to obtain for you the detaUs which you
requfre regarding the state of the representation in the
House of Commons. I know none, excepting regarding this
county. I have compared notes with others, and I think
that all agree in the same story. The revolution is made.

206 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
that is to say, that power is transferred from one class of
society, the gentlemen of England, professing the faith of the
Church of England, to another class of society, the shop
keepers, being dissenters from the Church, many of them
Socinians, others atheists.
I don't think that the influence of property in this country
is in the abstract diminished. That is to say, that the
gentry have as many foUowers and influence as many voters
at elections as ever they did.
But a new democratic influence has been introduced into
elections, the copy-holders and free-holders and lease-holders
residing in towns which do not themselves return members
to Parliament. These are all dissenters from the Church,
and are everywhere a formidably active party against the
aristocratic influence of the Landed Gentry. But this is not
all. There are dissenters in every viUage in the country;
they are the blacksmith, the carpenter, the mason, &c. &c.
The new influence estabhshed in the towns has drawn these
to their party ; and it is curious to see to what a degree it is
a dissenting interest. I have known instances of a dis
senting clerk in the office of the agent in a county of an aristo
cratical candidate, making himself active in the canvass of
these dissenters, to support the party in the town at the
election. Then add intimidation and audacity, which always ac
company revolutionary proceedings; occasioning breach of
promise to vote for the aristocratical candidate, and forcing
some to stay away to guard their property, and you have
the history of many unsuccessful contests in counties.
That which passed here passed in Northamptonshire and
Gloucestershire, but most particularly in the Scotch and
Irish counties. The mischief of the reform is that whereas
democracy prevaUed heretofore only in some places, it now
prevaUs everywhere. There is no place exempt from it. In
the great majority it is preponderant.
To this, add the practice of requiring candidates to pledge
themselves to certain measures, which is too common even
among the best class of electors, and the readiness of candi
dates to give these pledges, and you wUl see reason to he
astonished that we should even now exist as a nation.
I was aware of Sir Francis Burdett's opinions, and I say
the truth is that he is one of the largest and most prosperous
landed proprietors in England. He receives above forty

1833.] TEE DUKE'S DESPONDENCY. 207
thousand a year from his land. He does not owe a shilling ;
and has money in the funds. He has discovered that they
have gone too far, and thinks it not unlikely that the
destruction of one description of property, will draw after it
the destruction of all.
I happen to know that his opinion upon the state of affairs
does not much differ from my own.
Beheve me ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.

Memorandum by Mr. Croker. March 15th.
Arrived at Strathfieldsaye, and found only the Duke and
Mr. and Mrs. Arbuthnot. After dinner, the Duke spoke
most despondingly of the public prospects. He did not see
what there was to stop, or even check, the revolution, and
said that whatever we must think of the Ministers, and the
conduct by which they had brought us to this pass, we had
nothing to do now, as honest, nay as selfish men, but to en
deavour to keep them on thefr legs ; wo should not be able
to do so long, and that after them would come chaos, but we
at least should do aU in our power to delay the confusion.
Arbuthnot was angry with the Duke for talking so openly,
and in so desponding a tone, and begged of me when the
Duke returns (for he goes to town to-morrow), and we
should be alone, to suggest to bim that such disheartening
language was the certain way to accelerate the ruin. I said
that I doubted whether a false confidence was not more
dangerous ; that I had in my speeches and writings ex
pressed hopes that I did not feel, because it was thought
expedient by my friends, but that I did not think that it
did any good ; that I did not think anything could do good,
but that truth was, I thought, more hkely to have some
good effect by alarming men who reaUy do not seem to
suspect the mine over which they are walking ; but I said
that certainly I should tell the Duke what he thought.
They aU went away ; the Duke to town to dine with Lord
Salisbury. I remained alone at Strathfieldsaye. The Duke
came back next day, and when we renewed the conversation,
he said that he thought the operation of the Reform Bill

208 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
though it would probably be slow, was nevertheless sure.
The old aristocratical interest has great stamina, and wiU
hold together a long while, but seeing how it has yielded
before this shock when in its entire strength, what is it to
do in a succession of shocks, each of which wUl give fresh
powers to the democracy ? My opinion is that a democracy,
once set a-going, must sooner or later work itself out tUl it
ends in anarchy, and that some kind of despotism must then
come to restore society. How long we may take in going
through that process depends on cfrcumstances, but I myseff
do not see how the encroaching power of the people out of
doors on the House of Commons, and the encroaching powers
of the House of Commons on the House of Lords and the
Crown, is to be checked and brought back to its fafr balance.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. April 15th.
So Fred. Robinson [Lord Goderich] is an earl, the Earl
of Ripon. He wanted to be Earl of Kent and Earl of
Harold, but old Lady De Grey would not consent. You
recollect that eighteen years ago we made him a Duke of
Fuss and Bustle. To see this man, who was our plaything
and butt, grown to be an earl, and by such means! A
viscount, for insulting Castlereagh's memory by his de
sertion to Canning, and an earl for insulting Canning's by
apostasising to Grey! and the King to submit! Such ex
amples as Stafford, Cleveland, Durham, Western, and Goderich,
will have degraded the peerage so much as to diminish our
regret for its approaching and inevitable overthrow. The
history of this is that Goderich refused to accept Privy Seal,
and said that ff Lord Grey pressed, he would resign aU and
break up the Government.* This I should have laughed at
as an idle boast, but it seems Lord Grey felt it to be so
serious, that he was obliged to capitulate, and accordingly
Fred is an earl, and is to have an extra Garter. If wonder
were a pleasure, we should hve in the pleasantest tunes in
the world. AprU 30th.
I told you that six weeks ago I dined at Lady Dysart's
with Burdett, and that he was talking Conservative lan-
* [The story is differently told by C. GreviUe— ' Diary,' ii. p. 367.
Lord Eipon was not made a Knight of the Garter.]

1833.] TEE MALT TAX. 209
guage, and of his own difficulties about the Assessed Taxes.
In the course of our talk I told him that I saw the chance of
an earlier and more dangerous question than the Assessed
Taxes — the Malt Tax. " Some fine evening," I said, " when
no oUe expects it, Sfr William Ingleby * will move the repeal
of the Malt Tax, and carry it by a smaU majority, and you
wUl be aU astonished next morning to find yourselves with a
deficit of five mUhons and a haK in your revenue, and reduced
to a Property Tax, or, in otiier words, confiscation." Such
were my very words, remembered by all the parties present ;
and lo ! on Friday evening, no one expecting it. Sir William
Ingleby got up and moved the repeal of half the malt duty,
carries it by a smaU majority, and throws the Budget, the
Ministry, and the Revenue, on their beam-ends. When the
majority was declared, Althorp, with that stupidity which
has been caUed candour, declared that he "bowed to the
decision of the House ; " but his colleagues had soon sense
enough to see that the bowing to the decision of the House was
no such easy matter ; that bowing to the loss of 2^ millions
of malt would involve the loss of the whole 5 miUions of
malt, and the 3 mUhons of Assessed Taxes, for the repeal
of wldch there is a motion pending for to-night, and that the
loss of 8 mUhons, with great doubts whether a Property Tax
can be passed, was national bankruptcy. Their first thought,
founded on Althorp's siUy readiness to bow, was to give up
the whole Malt and Assessed Taxes, and to try a Property Tax ;
thefr second, I beheve, was to resign; their third, was to
endeavour to get the House to rescind Ingleby's resolution ;
and this they have adopted, thereunto, I opine, much induced
by an intimation which Peel sent them that he would support
them in that course with all his strength.
Accordingly, last night, Althorp backed out of his pledge
to bow to the decision of the House, by declaring that he only
meant that he would so far bow as not to take a second
division that night. He then stated that he would, on the
motion for the repeal ofthe Assessed Taxes this evening, move
a resolution that the repeal of the Malt and Assessed Taxes
could not be effected without laying on a Property Tax, and
that a Property Tax would be at present inexpedient. You
wiU observe that here again there is trick and juggle, and an
attempt to combine in one vote, three great questions, viz., to
* [Member for Lincolnshire.]
VOL. n. p

210 lEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
. rescind the vote of Friday ; to negative the repeal of the
Assessed Taxes ; and to pledge the House against the Pro
perty Tax. Bungling and fraudful as the whole proceeding is,
I wish it success, because I am sure that if the Ministers be
beaten, we are on the verge of a most alarming crisis. Per
sonal or even pohtical difficiUties are not insuperable, but a
financial imbroglio would be immediate anarchy and general
ruin. Opinions Seem much divided as to the result of
to-night. I give Ministers a large majority.* May 6th.
I dined on Saturday at the Academy dinner ; a bad exhi
bition and a very duU dinner. Peel, old Bankes, and I were
almost the only Tory commoners, and there was such an
overflowing of Whigs that I sat between Spring Rice and the
Attorney-General, and opposite the SoUcitor. In old times
no Government officers used to be intruded into the Whig
benches, but now the Whigs push the Tories from even the
humblest stools. Old Lady de Grey is, they say, dying. I
suppose my Lord Ripon will grow in wealth as rapidly as he
has grown in rank. Hobhouse has, in consequence of his
pledges upon the Assessed Taxes, resigned, not his office only,
but his seat for Westminster. Nobody knows why he resigned
both. They say he wiU be re-elected f for Westminster,
though there is a great cry against him ; but Col. Evans is
such an opponent as may ensure Hobhouse success. The
ultra-Tories have set up one of their young lawyers, Mr.
Escott, who is said to be more than half-cracked. This wiU
produce nothing but triumph to the Whigs. Those ultra-
Tories are certainly the siUiest and the wUdest party that I
have ever seen, and would ruin the country if the Wings had
not been beforehand with them.
A thing however has just occurred which, by giving the
Lords an opportunity of doing something, may postpone the
necessity of coming into dfrect coUision with the Commons at
present. A strange, wUd, Navy captain, half mad, of the
name of Charles Napier, became a Radical in hopes of being
returned for Portsmouth. Failing there, he has turned his
"¦ [Lord Althorp's amendment was carried by 355 to 157.]
t [He was defeated by Colonel de Lacy Evans, chiefly through the
unpopularity of the Budget. Hobhouse was at the time Chief Secretary
for Ireland.]

1833.] SIR FRANCIS BURDETT. 211
energies towards Portugal, has engaged with Pedro to take
Sartorius's place, and has collected and sailed with a large
steamer, a couple of transports, and 1000 men.* He calls
himself, I am told, Don Alphonso de Leon, or some such thing,
and means to pass for a native officer. The Duke asked Lord
Grey last night in the Lords if he knew anything of this
expedition. Lord Grey said, " No more than he had, like the
Duke, seen in the newspapers ;" upon which the Duke gave
notice of a motion for Monday, of an address to the King to
maintain a bona-fide neutrality. June 1st.
The season has been the most sickly ever known. Every
body has had the influenza, as it is called, and though nobody,
or very few indeed, have died of it, it seems to have disposed
those who have it, to take the opportunity of dying of any other
disease they may happen to faU in with. I am sorry to say
that poor Westmoreland is very ill with it, or some of its con
sequences, for he had it, recovered, and is now ill again, and
worse than before. Tliat and 76, and not having an ounce of
flesh on his bones, alarms us for our old friend. Lady West
moreland is in town, dutifuUy preparing herself for a death
bed reconcUiation. June 14th.
. . . Met Burdett, with whom I flatter myself I am become
a great favourite. We dine together twice a week, and rail
against Radicals and revolutions, and cry up the Tories and
the Irish Protestants. Let me teU you what happened the
night before last. We dined at the Bishop of Exeter's. I
was talking of Mr. Pitt's error in breaking up the Tory
Party in 1801, but I said, " I can't expect you. Sir Francis, to
sympathise with me," upon which Burdett made a sign of
dissent, and George Sinclair said, "But Sir Francis was a
Tory." I rephed, " I know he was born a Tory, but at the
time I was speaking of he had been thrown by circumstances
into another line." On which Burdett himself interposed,
and said, emphatically, " At least no one can say that I was
ever a Whig ! " Is not that capital ?
* [The " strange, wild " captain became Admiral Sir Charles Napier.
His expedition captured Dom Miguel's fleet," and settled the Portuguese
dispute, which had long been raging.]
P 2

212 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
July 5th.
There was a great assembly at Lady Londonderry's last
night. I literaUy only walked through the rooms, and did
not stop five minutes. Overtaking the Duke of Welhngton
in the haU, he sent away his carriage and we walked to his
house together. He says that we are coming to a dead lock,
that these men cannot work the machine, nor does he beheve
that any other set of men can.
Peel is now as bad as I am. He thinks this House of
Commons is more inveterately hostUe to the Church than he
had apprehended, and begins to think that its overthrow is
quite certain. In the meanwhUe the people are qiuet, the
harvest very promising, fafr prices, and a good deal of trade.
These favourable cfrcumstances make things go smooth.
From the Diary.
30th August, 1833. — Parhament is up. The King closed
the session in person. He was received by the people with
indifference. The mob observed that he spat out of the
window of the carriage, as he went along, and said " George
IV. would not have done that." Kings are but mortals, and
must spit, but I agree with the mob, they had better not do so
out the window of the state coach. I beheve he is very sick
of his role of reformer, for those about him talk in that tone ;
meanwhUe he gives dinners and makes speeches like a; Lord
Mayor. Sfr Henry Goodriche is dead of inflammation, at his seat in
Ireland, wluch he had lately inherited with 16,000?. a year;
and he had nearly as much more before. He has left it aUto
a friend, Mr. Holyoake, and I suppose the Melton hounds,
which he had begun with last season.
The two Buonapartes are stiU here — rivals for the expected
vacancy in France — Joseph as Emperor, Lucien as President.
Joseph is a fool, but wUl show that he is not so great a one as
he is supposed, by giving up the game and going back to
America. Lucien is fool enough to imagine that he has a
party in France. 'Tis true enough the movement party would
be glad to make use of him, and perhaps wUl try it, but not a
living soul cares twopence about him, and if he were to
morrow to succeed Louis Philippe he would be overturned in
three weeks.

1833.] A MINISTERIAL PAMPELET. 213
1th September. — White's empty. I am alone in the room
Crockford's looks equally deserted, and the town itself looks
thinner than I ever remember it.
WeU, Sutton is Sir Charles. He left town to-day for Dover
He says in a note to me " that he is proud of his order, and more
proud of the circumstances under wliich he has received it."
The Duke of Wellington gave me a laughable solution of the
riddle. He says the Speaker's speech at the bar of the Lords,
praising the Ministers and their sessional labours, was so mani
festly irony and persiflage, that Lord Grey, to prove to the world
that it was aU serious, proposed the red ribbon ; at all events.
Lord Grey claims the whole merit, but this does not seem
quite consistent with Sutton's " pride at all the cfrcumstances."
20th September. — Our King gave on Monday week one of
his trumpet dinners to the officers commanding regiments,
and made, as usual, a speech, which was aU about and against
Louis PhUippe, " They say that I follow the Citizen King.
So I do with my eye ! I have my eye on all his movements.
I know that our natural enemy has not changed her dislike of
us. Sharpen your swords, gentlemen, for 'tis you I must de
pend upon to uphold the dignity and interests of old England."
Such, and even more offensive, was, I hear, his Majesty's
aUusion to his royal brother. I suppose it must be exaggerated,
but when he begins to talk after dinner, il prend le mors aux
dents. They add that Pahnerston was by, and said, " Poor man,
he means the Emperor of Russia."
Last Monday there was a dinner of the Guards. The flrst
toast after dinner was given by H.M., " the King of Prussia,"
without any motive that appears, except, indeed, that Bulow
happened to be at table. The Duke of WeUington was there ;
he came up from Woodford on purpose. His health also was
drunk with great eulogium.
In the autumn of 1833 a pamphlet appeared which caused
a great stir in pohtical circles. Quotations from its pages
appeared in nearly aU the papers, and the essay itself
speedUy ran through two or three editions. It was entitled,
" The Reformed Ministry and the Reformed Parhament," and
its object was to show that all the alarms and predictions
to which utterance had been given by the opponents of
the Reform Bill, between 1830 and 1832, were rendered

214 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII]
ridiculous by the subsequent course of events. It soon
became known that the Ministry had practically adopted this
brochure as their own, and that one or more of thefr number
had even taken a part in the work of compihng it. Lord
Brougham had eertainly contributed many pages; Lord
Althorp and Lord Melbourne, it was whispered, had both
had a hand in it. The writer, or writers, ridiculed the
" suspicions expressed by the Duke of WeUington " and the
" terrors of Mr. Croker." They maintained that the work of
Parhament had been done as well as ever — if not better;
that the members were " gentlemen," a boast which could not
be made of many former Parliaments. Mr. Croker replied to
this pamphlet in the Qiiarterly Eeview,* and both the Duke of
WeUington and Sir Robert Peel supphed him with copious
notes on certain points to aid him in his work. The case of
Key, referred to by Sir R. Peel, was that of the Lord Mayor of
London, and was thus described by Mr. Croker : " He gets an
illegal contract, continues to sit, and vote, and move, and
divide in contempt of aU law ; then asks an appointment for
his son, and when the Minister hesitates to appoint a lad of
eighteen, asks it for his eldest son, a man of twenty-two,
and obtains it; and then it turns out that he has but one
son, and the rejected lad is the appointed officer — and
appointed to what ? To be inspector of the articles fur
nished under the father's Ulegal contract."
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, September 29th.
My dear Croker,
Strange as it may seem, I have not read nor have I seen the
Ministerial pamphlet. I saw some extracts from it in the
newspapers, which sated my appetite for such reading.
* Vol. 50, October, 1833 ; article entitled " The Eeform Ministry and
Parliament."

1833.] THE REFORM TRIUMPH. 216'
I cannot see much ground for triumph on the part of the
promoters of the Reform BUl in the results of last session.
Look how the business was done, and cite the report of the
Times for the inattention and indecent clamour which marked
almost every night's debate after an hour not by any means
unusually late.
However, the business was got through. It certainly was,
but it was only got through because that which we pro
phesied took place; namely, that the popular assembly
exercised tacitly supreme power, that the House of Lords —
to avoid the consequences of collision — declined acting upon
that which was notoriously the dehberate judgment and con
viction of a majority. I aUude particularly to the Irish
Church BiU.
With respect to' that BUl, it is quite clear that the course
taken was taken in spite of the opinions of two out of three
branches of the Legislature.
If I were to write on Reform and its consequences, I
should take Key's case as my text — the very worst case of
which I have any recollection. The man himself, twice Lord
Mayor by the voice of the reforming people — the giver of
dinners to the Reforming Cabinet— the Baronet of Reform.
This feUow, the City member of Reform, getting an iUegal
contract, procuring the nomination of his son as the inspector
of the father's contract articles — the son not eighteen —
appointed " in spite of Church," by that very Government
which had afterwards the baseness to hold up Church — the
Tory appointee — as the deUnquent, when they knew that they
had rejected his advice and despised his remonstrances.
I should take also the conduct of the Government in the
Calthorpe Street affair. I should take the first day's evidence
of the Pohce Commissioners, from which, unless the evidence
has been since garbled in publication, it wUl clearly appear
that the Government authorised the dispersion of the
meeting, and seven weeks afterwards denied that they had so
authorised it, and was ready to sacrifice the Commissioners
untU it was proved — that a letter written by the Commis
sioners the day after the meeting, and which had remained
unacknowledged and unquestioned for eight weeks, expressly
recited the authority of the Home Secretary of State as that
upon which the meeting had been dispersed.
When this fact came out, and when the conduct of the
Commissioners was shown to be praiseworthy, then did I

216 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
myself hear in the Committee Room, without communication
with the Secretary of State, the Under-Secretary of State teU
the Commissioners that thefr report was admitted to be correct,
and that there would be no longer any question about the
authority to disperse.
But read the evidence, and see how the matter is stated
there, for I know more than one case last session in which
the evidence when printed has hardly been recognised as the
same by those who heard it orally dehvered.
Ever affectionately yours,
RP.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.*
Walmer Castle, September 30th.
My dear Croker,
I don't know that I eould have been of much use to you
in grappling with the Ministerial pamphlet, if I had not made
a mistake, as I find I have, of a week in the time at which
you was desirous of hearing from me ; as I have here no
means of obtaining accurate information from documents,
and I am aware that in such cases one's memory is not to be
trusted. But having looked into the pamphlet, and considered
the subject generally, I am about to give you my views of the
mode in which it ought to be answered.
Although the work is a very flimsy one, and is full of
exaggerations and falsehoods, it is calculated to make, and
has made, an impression in favour of those who certainly
wrote it — I mean the Ministers themselves.
I think that the object of the answer ought to be to show
that the Parliament which has been formed, and the measures
which are applauded in the pamphlet, are equally the
legitimate offspring of the dissolution of the 21st AprU, 1831 ;
and of the King placing himself by that Act, and by the
mode of carrying it into execution, at the head of the party
whose object had been for nearly two centuries to pull down
the institutions of the country, instead of protecting them.
It was with such measures in view that the electors of the
' [The Duke of Wellington's memorandum is very long, and much of
it was worked into Mr. Croker's Quarterl^y Revieiv article. A part of the
document only is here given.]

1833.] A REVIEW OF REFORM. 217
empire were called upon to elect Members delegated for the
purpose of puUing down the antient constitution and
institutions of the Monarchy. These measures were to be
the reward of the parties in the country which enabled the
Ministers to attain thefr purpose.
It is not believed that the Ministers had any immediate
object in view, excepting the legitimate one to party men of
keeping their rivals the Tories out of power /or ever. It is
extraordinary that the Monarch should not have been sensible
of the consequences to liimself and his successors, of success
in the attainment of even this limited object. The Tories are
avowedly the great landed, commercial, and manufacturing
and funded proprietors of the country ; the Church ahnost to
a man, the Universities, the great majority of the learned
professions in the three kingdoms, and of the Professors of
Arts and Sciences, of the Corporations of the Empire, &c.
This is the party to be excluded for ever from power. This
was the object of the Ministers ; and it is the repeated boast
of their pamphlet that they have attained it.
If they have succeeded, as they have boasted that they
have, what becomes of the King ? He is either in their
hands for ever, or he is dehvered over to the tender mercies
of a Radical Administration.
The Ministers pretend that they have effected much in the
way of economical reform of the Government in all its
branches, and particularly in putting down and rendering
impossible in future a Government by corruption or patron
age. My belief is that we have all done too much in the
way of economical reform. We have deprived the King
of the power of rewarding those who serve him faithfully,
and of reheving the unavoidable distress of the meritorious
among his subjects, who by these measures of ours have been
thrown upon the bounty of individuals. But they deceive
themselves and the public when they tell us that they have
put down corruption or government by patronage.
******
It is not necessary to enter upon a description of the other
measures. They are of the same description, and that relating
to education upon the same principle. The Irish Church
BiU, together with the measures above referred to relating to
Tithes, must destroy the Church of England in Ireland. We
must not consider the Church of England, whether in England
or in Ireland, as a religious establishment only. It promotes

218 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIH,
and encourages learning among its ministers, as well as piety,
morality, good manners, and civUization. The clergy are
composed of the best-educated gentry of the country. They
owe much of their influence, particidarly among the higher
classes, to their education and manners. But deprive the
Church of its dignities, its honours and emoluments ; pay the
clergyman no more than is necessary for his bare subsistence,
and to enable him to rear .a famUy in the cheapest and worst
way in which a famUy can be reared, and we shall soon
deprive the Church of those ornaments which have given it
strength and efficiency as well as credit.
It remains to be seen whether erudition wUl exist in the.
country when deprived of its reward and driven from the
Church. It is certain that the Church of England, rehgion,
taorahty, and good manners, wUl suffer.
. The real topic of the pamphlet is the foreign pohcy of the
Government. The foreign policy of England should be to^ maintain
peace, not only for herself but between the powers of the
world. This should be her policy, not only because she can
have no interest in a change of the state of possession of the
several powers, or in any other change, whether constitutional
or other, which could tend to alter thefr relative strength ;
but because she has the most extensive commercial relations
depending upon peace with each and aU the powers of the
world, the interruption of which must be injurious to her
prosperity. There is but one exception to the existence of
such commercial relations, and that is in our intercourse
with France; yet it will be seen that that is the power
which the existing administration has almost exclusively
favoured. There are two modes of preserving peace; the one by
maintaining the existing relations between the several
powers, supporting the weak against the strong by the aid
of the alUances formed at the period of the settlement of
Europe in 1814-1815 ; the other by submitting to the pre
tensions and encroachments of revolutionary France, and
by rather forcing the advanced guard of revolution than
checking the propensity of the consuls of the Tuileries to
embark in such projects,
******
The great affairs are HoUand'and Portugal. It is perfectly
true that the preceding Government had determined that they

1833.] LORD GREY'S FOREIGN POLICY. 210
would not interfere by arms, to restore and maintain the
authority of the Eng of Holland in Belgium. They were
sensible that they could not maintain this authority without
the formation and permanent maintenance in the country of
a formidable army ; which at that moment of revolutionary
excitement might have led to war, in which the extreme
opinions prevailing in Europe would have been ranged
against each other. We therefore, upon the request of the
King of HoUand, entered into conference with our allies,
France included, upon the best means of putting an end to
the contest in the Netherlands ; and the first act of the Con
ference was to make an arrangement for suspending hostilities
between the belhgerents, taking from each an engagement
that the treaty of suspension of hostUities should be carried
into execution.
It is not true that the late Government declared that " the
two parties should fight no more ; " and " established the prin
ciple of separation."
That which the late Government did was to settle an
armistice unlimited in point of time ; and, as usual, the posi
tions to be taken by the troops of each of the belligerents.
The principle of the separation was not even considered. This
is quite clear by the perusal of the first protocols of Nov.
1830. It is most important to Great Britain that HoUand should
be in a state of security, independence and prosperity.
Belgium is not an object of interest to us excepting for
the sake of HoUand in the first place ; and next for the sake
of the North of Europe. It is important that Belgium
should be independent of France, not only for the security
of Holland and the North of Europe, but because France,
even if so disposed, cannot remain at peace if in possession
of Belgium. She must extend herself to the Rhine; and
when upon the Rhine she would find herself not so secure
as she is at present tUl she should bring her left flank to the
ocean. This is, however, antiquated stuff in these days. I confess
that I was disposed to act upon these principles ; and having
got France into the Conference, and thus under control, I was
disposed to wait tUl the revolutionary fever in Belgium had
subsided, and tUl the King of Holland should have organized
the military resources of 'Holland ; and I should then have
sought the reunion of Belgium and Holland under a different

220 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap, XVIIL
form, but one which would have equally provided for the
security of HoUand and the North of Europe, and would have
kept Belgium out of the hands of France.
Instead of taking this prudent course, our wise rulers, having
allowed France to arm before they had been a week in office,
in less than a month recognised the independence of Belgium
by the Protocol of the 20th December, 1830. They took
this course notwithstanding the protest of the Dutch Pleni
potentiaries, who were upon this occasion turned out of the
Conference. This last step was a breach of the engagements
of the Convention of Aix la ChapeUe.
The conduct of the Ministers towards the Throne deserves
attention. Why were the Supphes postponed tUl the second
week in August ? But reaUy the time is come when, if possible,
we ought to look a little higher, and to warn the King of his
own danger. The rights of his subjects are violated, their
property is plundered, the interests of the commerce of his
subjects are neglected ; the alUes of his cause are abandoned
to the attacks of the ancient rivals of this country or of revo
lutionists, and the influence of this country in Europe is lost.
AU this is the produce of three years of a Government of
Popularity ! I do not much recommend that any notice
should be taken of the regulation respecting army punish
ments. This regulation is very injurious to discipline. I
beheve that if it is discussed it wiU be discovered that it is
more so than it is now supposed to be ; and that the explana
tion of the ambiguities which it contains wiU render it stUl
worse. I do not at present recoUect other points to be
attended to. Believe me ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
In the year 1834 there is, unfortunately, a great gap
in Mr. Croker's correspondence. His own letters were no
longer copied regularly into his books, and few of the com
munications which reached him from his friends appear
to have been preserved. It is not hkely that they were
destroyed by Mr. Croker, for in other years, before and after
1834, he saved everything. The probabUity is that in some

1884.] TEE LANDED INTEREST. 221
way or other the letters were lost after his death. Thus it
happens that there is very Uttle in the correspondence respect
ing some of the most interesting and important events of the
year — the resignation of Lord Grey, the accession to power
and speedy downfall of Lord Melbourne, the debates in the
House on the motion to apply the surplus revenues of the
Irish Church to secular purposes, or on the attempt to get a
renewal of the Coercion BiU. There is little to flU up the
blank which intervenes between the beginning of the year,
and the summons to office of Sir Robert Peel in the month
of December. One of the few remaining letters relates to a
resolution brought forward in the House of Commons on the
6th of March, by Mr. Joseph Hume, for the repeal of the
Corn Laws. It possesses great interest, from the fact that it
shows how decidedly Sir Robert Peel was of opinion that the
landed interest was caUed upon to bear more than its fair
share of pubhc and local burdens, and therefore that it was
entitled to some form of protection, in a proportion at
least " equivalent to the excess " thrust upon it.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Whitehall Gardens, March 24th, 1834.
My dear Croker,
I have not heard the names of any members who specially
were reluctant to vote with Sir James Graham against Hume.
The lists were pubhshed, and I suppose it may be inferred
that those gave the most reluctant votes whose constituencies
were most of a manufacturing character.
I dare say that Graham was put forward to oppose Hume's
motion partly from his declared opinions on the Corn Laws,
partly from the circumstance of his having been Chairman of
the Agricultural Committee.
The most striking fact in the debate was one to which
pubhc attention has been little called.
Lord Darhngton concluded his speech by declaring that
his chief motive for abandoning a certain amendment, of

222 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
which he had given notice, was this, that the highest
authority in the Government (I conclude Lord Grey) had
sent a message to him, earnestly entreating him to withdraw
his amendment; that the pressing of it would create dis
union, and that the Government was most anxious to defeat
Hume by as large a majority as possible.
Now the Government succeeded in their wishes. The
anlendment was withdrawn, and the majority was unex
pectedly large.* But with what decency does Poulett
Thompson— the organ in the House of Commons of a de
partment most intimately connected with the question of the
Corn Lawst — retain his office when his coUeagues in the
Cabinet are united against his opinions, and conspire with
his political opponents to defeat those opinions ?
I thought the maintenance of the Corn Laws was left in
the debate to rest on unsatisfactory grounds — flrst, a sort of
appeal ad misericordiam on account of the distressed state of
the landed interest; secondly, the invidious and starthng
argument — the landed interest as the most important,
ought to be a favoured class, for the beneflt of which the rest
of the community may properly be taxed.
In my morning speech I took this line : — I wUl for the
present waive, without abandoning, other grounds ; but I
wiU show that restrictions on the import of corn are not
restrictions partial and peculiar in their character, but are
part of a whole system of restrictions intended equaUy to
favour domestic produce and domestic manufacture.
I wiU show that you protect your own silk manufacture
more than you protect certain important articles of the
produce of the land, for you raise more revenue on the
quantity of foreign butter and cheese that you import, than
you do on the whole of every foreign manufactured article
into which sUk enters as a whole or as a part.
I wiU show that on the most approved principles of pohtical
economy there is no objection in principle to restraints on
foreign corn, which does not equally apply to restraints on
foreign manufactured goods. Therefore it foUows — that you
are equaUy bound to repeal aU duties intended not for
revenue but protection; and the manufacturers, if they
succeed in repealing the duty on foreign corn, must be at
* [The majority was 157—312 to 155.]
f [He was President of the Board of Trade.]

1834.] A LONDON DINNER PARTY. 223
once prepared for the repeal of every protecting duty what
soever. Then I argued : But if the manufacturers would assent to
the repeal of protecting duties on manufactured articles, it
does not therefore necessarily follow that the Corn Laws
must be repealed, because another question wUl still remain
to be discussed. Are not the public and local burdens
unduly apportioned ? does not the land bear more than its
charges ? and if it does, the land is entitled at least to a
protection equivalent to the excess. I wUl send you the
report of the speech in the Mirror, for the newspapers gave
no report of it — or, rather, much worse than none.
Morrison, the great retaU dealer, said to me that he had
always been astonished that the land had not rested its claim
for protection mainly on this argument.
Ever affectionately yours,
R. Peel.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. West Moulsey, March 17th.
I went up to town to dine with the Duke of Glo'ster, who
gave us a great dinner, in the intention, it would seem, of
announcing his formal junction with the Tories. WUl you
have the names of the party ? Duke of Wellington, Lords
Sahsbury, Shaftesbury, Rosslyn, Verulam, Howe, Jermyn,
EUenborough, Limerick, Strangford, Sidmouth, Redesdale,
Bexley, Maryborough, Cowley ; Peel, Beckett, Goulburn,
Baring, Charles Wynn, Herries, Hardinge, Holmes, Kerrison,
Howard Douglas, WUson, and the Bishop of Rochester. It
was a fine dinner, and a good and tolerably pleasant one.
H.R.H. sees things in a more hopeful light than I do. After
dinner he took Peel and me on one side, and appealed to Peel
whether he was not right, and that things looked better than
I represented them. Peel candidly said that he agreed with
me. The truth is, that the Ministers are in extreme difficul
ties on aU sides, and that those who do not look deep into
causes and consequences (in which class I include the whole
Royal Family) imagine that their difficulties must be our
prosperities — a sad mistake, as we shall but too soon discover,
but one into which neither the Duke, nor Peel, nor Lynd-

224 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIH.
hurst, nor the Speaker, nor Rosslyn, nor Herries, nor, indeed,
any one on whose sagacity I have any reliance, have faUen.
The ChanceUor* made last week a strange, mysterious
escapade, of which no one can discover the motive ; but it
must have been one of vital personal importance to him. He
wrote to Denman, who is on circuit, to meet him at the first
stage out of Bedford. Denman set out- in a hack chaise for
Hitchin, the first stage on one road. Brougham, in a kind of
four-wheeled dog-cart, crossed over from Windsor to Ampthill,
the first stage on another road. They played at hide and
seek for several hours, and at last met, and came to town
together in the dog-cart, and Peel happened to see them
come into town, looking, he said, like two feUows coining
from a boxing match. They drove to Lord Grey's, and after
spending one night and morning in town, Denman returned
to his circuit. It is clear that there must have been
some weighty personal reason to induce the Lord High
ChanceUor to go to an assignation with the Chief Justice,
and to induce the Chief Justice to leave his circuit (without
even telling his brother Judge), and travel in such a strange
way to town. The most plausible, or rather the least
impossible, solution I have heard is that Brougham, finding
he cannot hold where he is, wants to become Chief Justice,
and would persuade Denman to vacate for him.
In the month of June, the Duke of Welhngton went to
Oxford to have the degree of D.C.L. conferred upon him,
and to be installed as Chancellor of the University. He
invited Mr. Croker, who also received an Oxford degree, to
accompany him ; and the visit was described in a few letters
to Mrs. Croker. The Duke's preliminary arrangements appear
to have been soon made.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
My dear Croker, London, June 3rd.
I am the Duke of Wellington, and, bon gre mal gre, must
do as the Duke of Wellington doth.
* [This proceeding of Lord Brougham's is referred to by C. GrevUle,
' Diary,' iii. p. 21.]

1834.] A VISIT TO OXFORD. 225
I intend to send a footman and coachman and horses to
Oxford. But as for magnificent entry, &c., I must enter that
city as I have always entered that and others — as an
individual. Believe me ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
I have not such an article as a post-chaise, or any carriage
except my travelling-carriage and a town coach, which it
would be ridiculous to send.
Mr. Croker to his Wife.
Pembroke College, Oxford, June 9th.
Here I am in Ned's den,* wliich if I had not canvassed an
university, would have a httle surprised me, but knowing
what I had to expect, I reaUy am the reverse of dissatisfied —
which sounds something less than satisfied. I came down
with the Duke, and we were met out of town by about one
hundred young men on horseback, of whom forty passed us
in our britscka and pafr, not suspecting the Duke to be in
such an equipage. At last I saw what was happening, and I
stopped and turned the tide, so that we came into town
accompanied by about sixty or seventy. I could not make
the Duke take off his hat to any one, not even the ladies ; he
kept saluting hke a soldier. I, however, made him show
himself occasionally and take notice here and there ; but he
is a sad hand at popularity hunting. June 10th.
Yesterday I dined with the Master, and an almost family
party. After dinner we went to take a turn in Christ Church
Meadow to see the Beau Monde, but we were rather late and
had like to be locked in, and indeed only escaped by a detour.
About ten arrived the Bishop of Glo'ster and Mrs. Monk.
About eleven we went to our rooms. Mrs. HaU offered me a
cat as a safeguard against the rats, which, from their long
abstinence since Ned's absence, she feared might be very
hungry. I dechned the cat, however, and saw not a rat, and
I doubt whether I even heard one. It was intended that
I should have taken an honorary degree, and have been
* [Mr. E(lward Giffard, who had recently entered 'Pembroke Collpge.]
VOL. II. Q

226 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVHL
exhibited in the theatre as a kind of lion — a lionceau ; but
there having been some demur to granting the Duke of
Cumberland his degree, he hit on the device of declining the
Oxford compliment, on the ground that he was already a
doctor of Dubhn. This rendered it impossible for me to
take the mere Oxford degree; but I did better, for I was
admitted at eight o'clock this morning to what they call
ad eund^m, that is, I was admitted in Oxford to the same
rank I held in Dubhn. This was doubly agreeable to me ;
first, because I prefer my own regular degree to one merely
ceremonious; and second, because, being thus already a
doctor, I had my place in the theatre from the beginning, •
while the candidate doctors were only admitted after the
ceremony had proceeded some way, and then one by one ;
the public orator making a speech for each, and the crowd
receiving each name with more or less applause — a ceremony
which I was glad to see at my ease, and which many of the
candidate doctors did not see at all. The view of the theatre
was certainly the most beautiful thing I ever saw in my hfe.
The sight of the women dressed in aU the colours of the
rainbow, and with no intermixture of men nor anything to
destroy the imity of the effect, was the most surprising
thing I ever saw ; and the burst of applause from all the
benches as the Duke entered the theatre, the shouts of the
men, and even the voices of the women were heard, and the
waving of handkerchiefs — and aU lasted for ten minutes in a
degree of beauty and enthusiasm which I had never before
seen and which I cannot describe. The ladies were
generally in morning dresses, with small bonnets of a
thousand colours, and ten thousand varieties of fashions,
which looked better than any court dresses I had ever seen.
That, in short, was the wonder of the day — everything else I
was prepared for, but the effect of this took me completely
by surprise. The greatest applause was for the Duke, next,
if not equal, for old Lord Eldon, who was looking remarkably
weU, though he told me in the morning in University CoUege
that it was sixty-eight years since he had entered there as a
student. There was also great applause for the Duke of
Newcastle ; but when Lord WinchUsea, who, you remember,
had fought the Duke of WeUington about the Catholic
question five years ago, came up to the Duke to receive his
degree — part of tho ceremony being to shake hands — I really
wa,s startled by the storm of applause. We then had a duU

1834.] SCENES AT OXFORD. 227
Latin speech by the public orator, and a Latin poem and an
Enghsh essay very ill recited by two of the young men. All
this was over by one o'clock, or half-past, and we then went
and waited on the Duke at his levee, and at four we are
going to levee the Archbishop of Canterbury — which I am
now going to do, and I shall finish my letter when I come
back. The weather has changed to wind and showers. I
hope you have the showers; they rather spoil our gaieties
here. June llth.
We dined yesterday with the Vice-ChanceUor in the Hall
of Ids CoUege, University; we were about 120 at four
tables; a very good dinner and very well served, but it
lasted tUl half-past ten. When I came home I found a dance
in the CoUege HaU, where I went in for half an hour, but it
was dark, and to me duU, so I wont into the Master's house
and sat with him and the Bishop of Glo'ster tiU bed-time.
Just as I was going to bed, I received a note from Lockhart
to teU me that he and Mrs. Lockhart had arrived (I had
written to him by the Duke's desire, to offer him a degree).
I could not go at that hour, but early this morning I saUied
forth to try to get her a ticket for the theatre, which by great
good luck I was enabled to do, and so with that passport in
my hand I went and breakfasted with them. I then went and
heard a sermon in St. Mary's Church, and then went to the
assembhng of the doctors for the procession to the theatre.
It was quite as fuU as yesterday, but not quite so handsome,
for there was an ode to be performed, and the musicians
and their basses and kettle-drums broke in upon the ladies
in the 'orchestra and spoUed that uninterruptedness (what a
word) which was so beautiful yesterday ; but aU the rest was at
least as fine. Before the business opened, the young men
in the gaUeries amused themselves in hooting Lord Brougham,
Lord Grey and his cousins, the Whigs and pickpockets,
and so forth — it is quite what the Romans called a Saturnalia
— and the lads do, or rather roar, what they please. The
presentations, however, occasioned less noise than yesterday,
tUl we came to Lord Encombe, old Lord Eldon's grandson,
at which there was an enormous shout, but when, after
shaking hands with the Chancellor, Lord Encombe went up
and shook hands with his grandfather and sat down on the
steps at his feet, the seats being all full, the applause was
Q 2

228 TEE CROKER PAPERS, [Chap. XVHL
reaUy astounding: Then the ode was performed*-^— bad music
to worse verses. Lord Francis Egerton, who sat behind me,
said they should have been translated into Greek to be made
in some degree inteUigible. The ode was accompanied by a
great noise from the crowd in the area, which was so great
that we feared some accident would occur. One poor little
boy about twelve years old was near stifled, but some of the
doctors leaned over and pulled him up into their seat. At
last the Duke interfered, and told them that there was room
enough if they would only place themselves properly, and
showed them how. This restored order, and the stupid ode was
finished. Then began imitations, Greek, Latin and English.
A Mr. Arnouldt repeated some very good verses on the
¦Hospice of St. Bernard ; and after alluding to Buonaparte's
passage of the Alps, and praising his genius, &c., and
recounting all his triumphs, he suddenly apostrophised the
Duke and said something equivalent to — invincible tUl he
met you ! ! ! At that word began a scene of enthusiasm such
as I never saw ; some people appeared to me to go out of
their senses — Uterally to go mad. The whole assembly
started up, and tho ladies and the grave semicfrcle of doctors
became as much excited as the boys in the gallery and the
men in the pit. Such peals of shouts I never heard ; such
waving of hats, handkerchiefs, and caps, I never saw ; such
extravagant clapping and stamping, so that at last the air
became clouded with dust. During aU this the Duke sat
like a statue ; at last he took some notice, took off his cap
Ughtly, and pointed to the reciter to go on: but this only
increased the enthusiasm, and at last it ended only from the
mere exhaustion of our animal powers. Some other recita
tions followed ; very good ; very clever (particularly one by
Lord Maidstone), and very much applauded at every aUusion
to the Duke ; but such a storm as the first it was impossible
to create again — indeed, I had no conception of such a scene ;
but the recitations were all good, and the whole affair went
off to our hearts' desire. After this I went to call on Lady
Salisbury, and then came home to write to you preparatory
to dressing for dinner, which I have barely time to do, as
we dine at Christ Church at five.
¦" [The Installation Ode was written by the Eev. John Keble, and set
to music by Dr. Crotch.]
t [Mr. Joseph A mould, scholar of Wadham College.]

1831] THE 'QUARTERLY REVIEW.' 229!
June 12th.
The dinner in Christ Church HaU was very fine. The mem
bers of the college, old and young, dined with us ; I suppose
we were about 200, rather more, perhaps. The Hall itself
is very fine, and the enthusiasm of the young men was as great
as in the theatre. We dined at five, and got away by daylight.
AU the world went to a ball at the Star rooms, which would
not hold a tenth of the world. I had the good sense to stay
away ; so I drank tea with Miss HaU. The Master and his
lady had dined at Brasenose, and did not come back till I
had come to Ned's rat-hole, where I read tUl eleven o'clock,
and then went to bed. This morning we attended divine
service at St. Mary's, and the Bishop of Oxford preached a
most exceUent charity sermon for the Radcliffe Infirmary.
The undergraduate gallery was fiUed exclusively with ladies.
It looked very splendid, and yet the whole was conducted
with great decorum. I don't know that I have been more
pleased with anything than this service.
The following letter was written after Mr. Croker's return
from this visit, and it carried on a correspondence, which was
never entfrely suspended, with Mr. Lockhart, in regard to
various matters connected with the Quarterly Eeview.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Lockhart. Extract.
Molesey Grove, August 17, 1834. ,
My dear Lockhart,
Murray weU knows that I never was a friend to making
the Eeview a pohtical engine ; for twenty years that I
wrote in it — from 1809 to 1829 — I never gave, I believe,
one purely political article ; not one, certainly, in which
party polities predominated. Nor, even latterly, did I, of
my own free wUl, write political articles. I did what I was
desired to do ; and what I was told was advantageous to the
Eeview. I insist upon this, that you and Murray may be
perfectly aware — as Murray must have boon for twenty years
—that I am not a friend to a merely political review. To
yourself I have more than once hinted that neither politics
nor trifles can make a sufficient substratum and foundation — :
solid literature and science must be the substance — the rest is
" leather and pruneUa." In short, a review should be a review.

230 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XyiH.
and a review of the higher order of literature rather than the
ordinary run of the topics and publications of the idle day.
The Quarterly has a great name, and has always main
tained a rank of composition and information which the fry
can neither attain, nor, if they for a moment caught them,
could maintain. Murray may say to them, as the hon to the
hare, " Tis true, you produce a litter, and / produce but one :
but mine is a hon ! " After all, the main question is the
sale. I have stated why that cannot be expected to be kept in
its " palmy state " when the party and principles which the
Beview professes, and on which it has thriven for twenty-
five years, are in sackcloth and ashes. Murray, therefore, I
think, should be prepared for defalcations ; and you, if I may
venture my advice, should endeavour to counteract that ope
ration by giving the Eeview a higher and more varied scope
of general hterature. You should embrace all subjects, and
look out for new hands. We grow old. " Our candles burn
dim in thefr sockets." Try to find some link boys with great
flambeaux fitter for the dark time in which we hve. I am
ready to. retire whenever you or Murray think that I twaddle,
as, if I don't already, I soon must ; and, in the meanwhUe, I
am wUiing never to write a line of pohtics, — but, beware ;
your sale dechnes ; don't be too sure that "post" is "propter"
It declines with pohtics ; where would you have been with
out therd ?
As for myself, I am, as long as I may continue in the con
nection, wiUing to do what may be considered most useful,
and shall always, as you know I have hitherto done, en
deavour to do what is wished for; and, above aU, when
nobody else wUl. I have of late done some things which
were thought desirable, but for which I considered myself as
unfit, only because those who were able were not willing. You
can't make a sUk purse out of a sow's ear, and you cannot
make a Southey, nor a Blomfield, nor a Canning out of me.
As to your hint about a series of biographies, I never, I am
sure, gave any encouragement to the idea that / would or
could undertake them ; it is essentiaUy against the principle
I hold as to the well-doing of a review. If they come in
naturally — that is, if they arise out of a work under con
sideration, well and good ; but a premeditated series of bio
graphy would be, I fear, detestable. Who, nowadays, cares
about Castlereagh or Perceval ? Murray, it seems, objects to
the politics of the'~day ; what would those biographies be but
the politics of yesterdccy — stale fish !

1834.J THE BATTLE OF VITTORIA. 231
If I were to advise, I should say the first change you should
make would bo to say to all your friends without exception
that you would, on no subject, nor under any pressure or pre
tence, suffer any article to exceed two sheets, and of such
articles there should not be above two, or three at most, in a
number ; trifling subjects should never exceed one sheet.
There should be never less than a dozen, and more generally
about fourteen or fifteen articles in each number, and they
should embrace the whole cfrcle of literature — quicquid
scribunt homines — instead of being a coUection of ethical or
political essays, very clever, very comprehensive, but having
as littie to do with the business ofthe day as Seneca's Maxims
or Cicero's Offices. Yours ever sincerely,
J. W. Croker,

Several visits were made by Mr, Croker to the Duke
during the year, and some notes concerning them, so far as
they relate to subjects of public interest, may conveniently
be placed together. Portions of a Diary by Mr. Croker.
The Battle of Vittoria.
Strathfieldsaye, Monday, March 24?A, 1834. — The Duke was
out hunting when I arrived, but he soon came in. There is
a large picture in the bUliard-room at Strathfieldsaye, placed
since I was here last, of the Battle of Vittoria, 'Tis but a
bad picture, but the Duke said was accurate as to the ground
and action. He said : " I'U show you how I won that battle.
The road on the right is the high road from Madrid to
Vittoria, which you see in the right distance; Lord HUl
attacked along this road, further to the right on sonie broken,
wooded hUls. Into them I sent at first a smaU force, one
battahon ; the French thought that was to be our attack,
and drew off from the left (their right) and centre to reinforce
it. I saw this and sent another regiment (Cadogan's), and
by degrees hicreased the force there. I had the day before
sent Lord Lynedoch with his corps to the other side of that
little river on our left, and he had been moving unseen

232 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
behind some hills till he came on that side quite round the
French ri gh t — that's his fire that you see along there. When I
saw that he had begun, and that the French were astonished
at having us both on the right and left, I attacked this
broken hill that you see in the foreground, and which was
the French centre, but they had drained it to support their
left, and I carried it and won the battle with great ease and
little loss. Those wooded hUls on the right were the ground
of the Black Prince's victory, and perhaps the French thought
that I was ambitious to win a battle on the same spot ; but
they had a better reason for suspecting that to be my point,
for Clausel was on that side, and they beUeved that I wanted
to turn them so as to prevent a junction with him ; but my
arrangements had been made the day before, as I told you,
and took them ^s much by surprise as anything in a pitched
battle can be said to do. I was not at aU uneasy about
Clausel, for an innkeeper came to me that morning to teU
me that Clausel was at his viUage, in his house, about twenty
miles off, and did not intend to move tiU next day — so that
I was quite at my ease about him. It was curious that this
innkeeper should have had the zeal and good sense to make
so much haste to bring me this intelhgenoe ; but so it was."
Long Marches in India.
Tuesday, March 25th. — D. I once marched in India, seventy
miles, in what I may call one march — it was after Assaye —
to the borders of the Nizam's territory, against a body of pre
datory natives, whom by this extraordinary march I surprised
in their camp. I moved one morning about four o'clock, and
marched tUl noon, when I had rest tUl about eight in the
evening, by which time I had marched twenty-five mUes ; at
eight we moved again, and did not stop tUl about twelve, mid
day, when I was in the enemy's camp, distant seventy mUes
from my first point ; and these were not computed miles, nor
am I talking by guess, for the whole march was measured by
the wheel. I had five regiments, two European and three
Native, and two regiments of Regular Cavalry, in aU about
5000 men, with a large body of Native Irregular Horse
C. What sort of troops were these Native Horse ? What
would they be like in Europe ?
D. About equal to the Cossacks. I had before Assaye
made another forced march which saved Poonah ; but it

183L] GEORGE IV. AND LORD NELSON. 233
was not so far, hardly sixty miles, and I took more time to
do it, but it was a surprising march ; but this was with
cavalry alone. George the Fourth.
C. Who made the King sensible of his danger ?
D. Why, he talked very differently to different people
and at different times. To his sister's he said he could not
recover. On the Wednesday before the Friday night on
which he died (I always saw him on Wednesdays and
Saturdays) he went through aU the business I had to lay
before him — aU — and when it was over he said : " I think
your next visit wUl be the last I shaU receive here, for on
Monday I shall go to the cottage, and then to Brighton." And
so on with an enumeration of various places which he had.
C. He took leave of Peel three weeks before his death,
tenderly, and saying that they should never meet ; and I
think it was to Ppel that on some mention of the cottage he
said : " Ah, the poor cottage, I shaU never see it again ! "
Lord Nelson.
Walmer, October 1st, 1834. — We were talking of Lord
Nelson, and some instances were mentioned of the egotism
and vanity that derogated from his character. " Why," said
the Duke, " I am not surprised at such instances, for Lord
Nelson was, in different circumstances, two quite different
men, as I myself can vouch, though I only saw him once in
my life, and for, perhaps, an hour. It was soon after I
returned from India. I went to the Colonial Office in
Downing Street, and there I was shown into the little
waiting-room on the right hand, where I found, also waiting
to see the Secretary of State, a gentleman, whom from his
likeness to his pictures and the loss of an arm, I immediately
xecognised as Lord Nelson. He could not know who I was,
but he entered at once into conversation with me, if I can
caU it conversation, for it was almost all on his side and all
about himself, and in, really, a style so vain and so sUly as
to surprise and almost disgust me. I suppose something
that I happened to say may have made him guess that I was
somebody, and he went out of the room for a moment, I have
no doulit to ask the office-keeper who I was, for when he
came back he w;as altogether a different man, both in manner

234 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
and matter. All that I had thought a charlatan style had
vanished, and he talked of the state of this country and of
the aspect and probabUities of affafrs on the Continent with
a good sense, and a knowledge of subjects both at home and
abroad, that surprised me equaUy and more agreeably than
the first part of our interview had done ; in fact, he talked
like an officer and a statesman. The Secretary of State kept
us long waiting, and certainly, for the last haK or three-
quarters of an hour, I don't know that I ever had a conversa
tion that interested me more. Now, if the Secretary of State
had been punctual, and admitted Lord Nelson in the first
quarter of an hour, I should have had the same impression
of a hght and trivial character that other people have had,
but luckUy I saw enough to be satisfied that he was reaUy a
very superior man ; but certainly a more sudden and complete
metamorphosis I never saw.
Polignae and his Ministry,
Walmer, October 2nd, 1834, — D. Mole told me years
before Pohgnac's ministry, that if ever he. P., should be made
minister, there would be danger of a catastrophe, because he
said, that with considerable talents he had a caraciere
indomptable, and that no considerations of expediency would
induce him to bate one jot of anything that he thought
abstractedly right — such men make great catastrophes,
C. But why did he not show some of his caractere in
coUecting the troops to support his ordonnances ?
D. Ffrst of all, he did not expect a resistance by force;
but in the next place he did not know how to go about it.
C. Why, he had himself the portefeuille of the War
Department. D. Yes, but that is the very fact which proves my asser
tion. He did not even understand the returns in the office.
Marmont told me his whole story when I caUed on him at
Brunet's Hotel on his arrival here, and one particular of it
was that on the morning when Marmont received the
command of the troops, Pohgnac told him that he had 12,000
men. Marmont doubted whether he had half the number,
Pohgnac produced the last return — but it was a return
of the whole nominal strength; he made no deduction
for 4500 who were absent or on furlough. An economical
mode they had at that time of sending a large proportion of

1834.] TEE DUKES GREAT BATTLES. 235
their troops on leave of absence, during which they stopped
their pay — he made no deduction for the sick, nor for the
casualties, so that Marmont was quite right. He had not
half 12,000 actual bayonets.
Numbers of Troops eu/gaged in the Duke's Great Battles.
C. What were the real numbers of your army, and the
enemy, in some of your great battles ?
D. 'Talavera was the only one in which 1 had a superiority ;
but that was only by reckoning the Spaniards. At all the
others I had less. At Salamanca I had 40,000, and the French
not much more ; perhaps 45,000. At Vittoria I had many
thousand less, 60,000 agamst 70,000. At Waterloo the
proportion was still more against me ; I had less than 60,000,
perhaps about 56 or 58,000 ; Buonaparte had near 80,000.
The whole army in the south of France under my command,
was considerably larger than the force under Soult at the
Battle of Toulouse ; but actuaUy employed in that operation,
I had less than he. I look upon Salamanca, Vittoria, and
Waterloo, as my three best battles ; those which had great
and permanent consequences. Salamanca relieved the
whole south of Spain, changed aU the prospects of the war,
and was felt even in Russia. Vittoria freed the Peninsula
altogether, broke off the armistice at Dresden, and thus led
to Leipsic, and the dehverance of Europe; and Waterloo
did more than any other battle I know of, towards the true
object of aU battles — the peace of the world.
G. Did you ever talk with Marmont about Salamanca ?
D. It was a dehcate subject to allude to. It was brought
once on the tapis; but aU I said to him was that I had
perceived very early that he was wounded.
C. That was a comphment. Did he seem to take it so ?
D. Oh, yes, and it was true enough. I did not say what
was equally true : that his previous movement had given me
the opening, for I had resolved not to fight if he had not
given me the advantage. He wished to cut me off. I saw
that in attempting this he was spreading himself over more
ground than he could defend, and I resolved at once to attack
him. and succeeded in my object very quickly. One of the
French generals said that I had beaten "quarante mille
hommes en quarante minutes." Marmont was a great officer
and a worthy man.

236 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
Fouche' s Memoirs.
October 3rd, 1834. — I happened to mention the profuse
fabrication of French Memoires, and instanced those of
Fouche ; the Duke said : " I dare say they were not written
by Fouche, and that they are what therefore may be called
fabrications, but they are certainly done by some one who
had Fouche's confidence or his papers, for there are several
passages in them of a secret nature, in which I myself
happened to be concerned and which I know to be true. I
won't at aU answer for the whole book ; but as far as my
own knowledge goes, I find them tolerably correct, and am
therefore disposed to give some degree of credit to the rest ; of
course they are apologetical, and my evidence can only
apply to the short period of the Restoration in which I came
into contact with him."
From another Memorandum by Mr. Croker.
, I was in Paris in July 1815, whUe Buonaparte was stUl
lingering at Rochefort, and there was great anxiety on the
part of the French Government to get rid of him. We
were anxious to take him prisoner; the French ministers,
Talleyrand, Fouche, &c., were desirous that he should escape
to America. There was held on the evening of the 12th of
July, a kind of double Cabinet Council as to what was to be
done. As I was Secretary of the Admiralty and knew the
state and strength of our naval blockade, I was invited by
Lord Castlereagh and the Duke to accompany them to this
meeting, where we found TaUeyrand, Fouche, and M. de
Jaucourt, then Minister of Marine. Measures were concerted
for capturing him. 1 held the pen ; TaUeyrand took little
or no part. Fouche was evidently anxious that Buonaparte
should escape, and made all sorts of objections, and par
ticularly as to some strong expressions I used and some strong
measures which I suggested. Jaucourt was fafr and straight
forward. When that affair had been discussed, the Duke
turned short round on Fouche about Vincennes, the Governor
of which had hoisted the white flag, but would not surrender
the fortress. The Duke, it seems, had twice before urged
Fouche to put an end to this disagreeable farce; once, I
think, that very morning (our present conference was at
night), and Fouche had promised that ihe fort should be
surrendered that day ; he now put on a penitential air and

1834.] TIIE SURRENDER OF VINCENNES. 237
said that the Governor was entete et opiniatre, and would not
obey the orders, and, shrugging his shoulders, " Que voulez-
vous que je fasse ?" The Duke reddened at this question, and
stood up and said sharply : " Ce n'est pas a moi, M. le Due, de
vous dire ce que vous avez a faire, mais je vous dirai ce que
je ferai, moi! Si la place n'est pas rendue a dix heures
domain matin, je la prendrai de vive force. Entendez-vous ?"
Fouche hummed and hawed, and hoped he would not be so
precipitate, and that a day or two might arrange it d
I'amiable. The Duke said. No, he had been put off in this
same way for (I think he said) two days ; much longer than
he ought to have waited. " A present vous avez mon der
nier mot, et vous devez savoir que ce que je vous dis je le
ferai ; si la place n'est pas rendue a dix heures du matin, elle
sera prise a midi." Ho then turned to me, who was sitting at
a writing-table, and said : " Croker, you never saw a fight ;
be with me at 9 o'clock to-morrow morning ; I shall give you
some breakfast and mount you on a good horse and take you
to see the show " — adding gravely — " a show which I shall
be very sorry to exhibit, but which such an outrage on good
faith and honour forces upon me. The affair," he said,
turning to the French Ministers, " is still more insulting to
the King of France and his Government than to us ; but if
you can't arrange it, I must." When he said this, he wished
us good-night, and left us. The French Ministers then said
a few words to Castlereagh, asking his interposition, who only
answered that it was a mUitary point on which the Duke was
sole judge ; and he assuredly wiU do what he has told you,
M. de Ligny (who was to carry the despatches) was then
caUed in, and was told that he would receive his instructions
next day. I sat up late writing my despatch under Castle
reagh's instructions, and making a copy for London. I went
to the Duke early next morning and found that he had
reaUy taken his measures for storming the place; but the
fort was given up. I unluckily did not make a note of this at
the time, but I have since talked of the circumstance with
the Duke, and think that the foregoing is tolerably accurate. .
The foUowing despatch may be read in connection with
this memorandum, for it was chiefly owing to the navy acting
upon Mr. Croker's instructions that Buonaparte found escape
impossible : —

238 THE CROKER PAPERS. ' [Chap. XVIH.
Despatch written by Mr. Croker to Eear-Admiral Sir H.
Hotham, or the Senior Officer in Basque Eoads.
Paris, July 13th, 1815,
Sir,
Lord Viscount Castlereagh, His Majesty's Principal Secre
tary of State for Foreign Affairs, being now in Paris, has
requested me to communicate to you some circumstances
relative to Napoleon Buonaparte, and to suggest to you the
course which the British Government would wish you to
pursue under the new aspect which affairs have assumed. I
have therefore (though I have here no public character)
undertaken to make this communication, and I have ventured
to assure his lordship that you wiU, under the pressing nature
of the case, overlook the want of official form, and wUl con
form your conduct to his lordship's wishes, which would be
those of my Lords Commissioners of the Admfralty, if there
was time to consult them.
The French Government has received information that
Buonaparte has embarked at Rochefort on board one vessel of
a smaU squadron, which the provisional Government had
placed at his disposal, and it is understood that this squadron
is anchored under the forts of the Isle d'Aix, ready to escape
by the first opportunity.
I understand also from the French Minister of Marine that
the British squadron in that neighbourhood consists of two or
three ships of the line, and two or three frigates, and as in
some communications which I had with Lord Keith on this
subject before I left England, his lordship assured me that
his attention had been dfrected to Rochefort, I cannot doubt
that, except under some very extraordinary circumstance, the
escape of Buonaparte's squadron, or of any vessel of it, from
the Charente, is impossible ; but as it is, for obvious reasons,
of very great importance that the question with regard to this
person should be brought to a decision as speedUy as possible.
Lord Castlereagh wishes you to consult confidentially with the
officer of His Most Christian Majesty, who is the bearer of this
letter, and to afford him your most cordial assistance in all
practicable measures which he may be disposed to recommend,
for the capture of Buonaparte.
The plan which has struck his lordship and the French
Ministers as most likely to succeed, and which will be
suggested to the French officer, is as follows :

1834.] MEASURES FOR BUONAPARTE'S CAPTURE. 239
If it shaU be ascertained that Buonaparte is on board one
of the ships in Aix Roads — I say if, because, notwithstanding
the information of the French Government on this point, I
cannot but doubt that he has embarked with any hope of
escape from this particular port, which, of aU others, is the
most susceptible of blockade, and I consider it most probable
that he has either not embarked, and spread the report of his
having done so as a bhnd ; or he intends to land again, and
endeavour to escape by some other means, which he hopes
may be covered by his present pretence — I therefore repeat if
it be ascertained that Buonaparte is certainly embarked in
Aix Roads, it may be concluded that he is, as he thinks, sure
of the Governor and garrison of the forts which protect the
anchorage ; and as these forts are very considerable, I enter
tain little hope that you could think yourself justified in
expecting to reduce them or capture Buonaparte, whUe lying
under thefr fuU and active protection ; but under the present
circumstances of France it seems reasonably to be doubted
whether the Governor of Aix, if properly summoned by the
King's authority, would venture to fire on the ships of His
Majesty's aUies, in the execution of His Majesty's orders. It
is, therefore, expedient that before you proceed to attack the
ships, you should send a flag of truce to the Governor of the
Isle d'Aix to say, " That by the King of France's express
commands you are about to seize the person of the common
enemy ; that you have no hostile intentions against the ships
or subjects of the Most Christian King ; but, on the contrary,
look upon them as aUies, as long as they do not oppose the
King's authority ; that you do not mean to capture or injure
the French ships, or to interfere with them beyond the mere'
seizure of Buonaparte's person, except so far as their own
opposition may render necessary; and as to the Governor
himself, that, if after this notice he takes any part with
Buonaparte, or permits a shot to be fired at you, you wiU pur
sue the most energetic measures in your power, and wUl hold
him responsible in his own person for any mischief that may
be done ; and you may add that the French Government has
assured you that the King wUl consider the death of any
British saUor employed in execution of his commands, as a
murder of which the Governor of the garrison from which the
shot may proceed will be held guilty." This notice on your
part will be accompanied by an order from the King to the
same effect, and as soon after they shall have been delivered

240 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
to the Governor as possible, it seems expedient that you should
commence the attack, as it would be desirable not to give the
influence of Buonaparte's remonstrances time to operate on
that officer's mind. <
Your professional skill will be your guide how far in the
uncertainty in which you wiU be as to the conduct of the
Governor, you wiU think it justifiable to pursue your attack.
Lord Castlereagh feels that it is of the most urgent import
ance to seize Buonaparte, but he also feels that the safety of
His Majesty's ships ought not to be compromised beyond the
ordinary risk of a naval engagement, and he is sincerely
desfrous of avoiding the effusion of blood, which, however, he
is inclined to think may be best effected by bold and decisive
measures ; and if the ship in which Buonaparte may be, should,
by an obstinate resistance, drive you to extremities, he feels
that you ought not, for the sake of saving her or any one on
board her, to take any line of conduct which should increase
in any degree your own risk. The consequences of the resist
ance wiU be chargeable on those who may make it.
If, however, you should find it impracticable with any fair
prospect of success to attack the ships, or if, having attacked
them, you should pot find it expedient to continue the engage
ment, you wUl of course continue your blockade with the
greatest rigour, and if you should require any increase of force
you may either draw something from the neighbourhood of
Brest, or write to Lord Keith by one of your own cruisers, and
send a duplicate of your letter to the Admiralty by way of
Paris. I shall remain here tUl the 24th or 25th instant, and
after that time if you should have communications to make
to the Board, which seem to require dispatch, you may put
them under cover to the English Minister at this Court, or
send them by an express.
If Buonaparte for himself, or the Governor of the forts, or
commander of the squadron for him, should propose to sur
render on terms, Lord Castlereagh is of opinion that you.
should reply, as the fact reaUy is, that you are not authorised
to enter into any engagement of that nature ; that your orders
are to seize the persons of Napoleon and his family, and to;
hold them for the disposal of the allied powers uncondi
tionally. It is unnecessary to say anything as to the safe custody of
Buonaparte if you should be so fortunate as to take him, as
your orders on that head are sufficiently ample ; but that

1834.] CAPTURE^ OF BUONAPARTE. 241
particular of your present orders which enjoins you to convey
Buonaparte without any delay to a British port in the event
of his capture. Lord Castlereagh thinks should not bo literally
followed under the circumstances in which you would obtain
possession of him, and his lordship wishes therefore that you
should delay sending him to England, till you shall have
had a communication with him on tho subject.
Whatever course you may on other points pursue, it must
be recoUected that your forces are to be considered as acting
in concert with those of the King of France within the waters
of his kingdom, and it is therefore expedient that as little
hostUity (as may be consistent with the success of your groat
object) should be employed, and if the forts and ships should
either by force or summons be induced to acknowledge the
King's authority, you will naturally feel that (with the
exception of possessing yourself of the Buonapartes) the
British Government would not wish you in any way to inter
fere with them.
This letter, the substance of which was settled last night at
a conference with the French Ministers, and which has been
communicated in extenso to M. le Comte de Jaucourt, the
Minister of the Marine, Lord Castlereagh and I trust you
wUl consider as a sufficient authority for you to pursue the
course therein suggested. I shaU this day forward a copy of
it to Lord MelviUe, and I have no doubt that his lordship and
the Board wUl fully approve and sanction all the Secretary
of State's propositions.
I request to have the pleasure of hearing from you with
the least possible delay, and
I have the honour to be, &c.,
J. W. Croker.*
The resignation of Lord Grey took place on the 17th of
July, and he was succeeded by Lord Melbourne. But on the
15th of November, Lord Melbourne, to adopt the common
version, was " dismissed " by the King. Nobody, as
* [This letter was referred to by Sir James Graham, so recently as the
year 1861, in the House of Commons, as an example of the large discretion
which a secretary of the Admiralty might exercise without the express
sanction of " my Lords."]
VOL. IL K

242 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
Greville says, had "the slightest suspicion of such an im
pending catastrophe. The Ministers themselves reposed in
perfect security." Mr. Croker's account — derived, as he
intimates, from the Duke of Wellington, who was in a
position to be made acquainted with all the facts — presents
these events in a different light, and leads to the behef that
Lord Melbourne's resignation was tendered unsought for to
the King, chiefly because he was about to lose Lord Althorp's
services in the Lower House. Lord Lyndhurst and the
Duke of Welhngton gave precisely the same account of the
interview between Lord Melbourne and the King, and it is
obvious that tho version hitherto accepted can no longer pass
into history quite without suspicion. There can be no
doubt, however, that the King was anxious to get rid of his
Ministers, and it is possible that Lord Melbourne may only
have resigned to avoid being dismissed.*
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
Sudbourne HaU,t November 24th, 1834.
When I last wrote to you I had not seen the Duke, and
could only state matters in general. That evening, however,
he wrote to mo to caU upon him, which I did next day. He
put into my hands the copy of his letter to Peel, and original
communications between the King and Lord Melbourne.
The case is shortly this : when the Melbourne Administra
tion was formed in June last it was avowedly based on Lord
Althorp, and especiaUy on his weight in the House of
Commons. When he was caUed up the other day,t Lord
* See Wellington's letter to Peel, in the ' Memoirs by Sir E. Peel,' ii. p. 23.
The facts are represented in the same light in Sir Theodore Martin's ' Life
of Lord Lyndhurst,' pp. 318-31'3. " Even before his interview with Lord
Melbourne, it is more than probable that the King had come to the con
clusion that a change of Ministry was necessary " (p. 321).
t [One of the seats of Lord Hertford. Mr. Croker sometimes went
there to look after his friend's interest, at Lord Hertford's earnest desire.]
X [He succeeded to the title of Lord Spencer, November 10th.]

183L] RESIGNATION OF LORD MELBOURNE. 243
Melbourne stated to His Majesty that as the Government
originally rested on Lord Althorp, he had always con
templated that Lord Spencer's death must throw the Ad
ministration into great difficulties, which apprehension was
much increased by Lord Althorp's declaration that whenever
that event should happen he was determined to retire into
private hfe altogether. That e\'ent has now happened, and
the Government, having lost its greatest weight and bond of
union, was no doubt in great difficulties, but that he (Lord
Melbourne) was wUling, if His Majesty should please, to try
to go on, and had prepared a proposition for remodelling the
Cabinet. This proposition having been made verbaUy, we
only know the points which are noted in a minute made by
the King, of his own reply, and of course imperfectly, but it
seems that Melbourne proposed to the King the choice of
three leaders of the House of Commons — Johnny Russell,
Aborcromby, and Spring Rice. Tho King did not think that
any of those would do, and particularly thought Johnny, who
was Melbourne's first horse, quite incapable.*
From the discussion of men, they passed to measures, and
then it came out that tho Cabinet, even if arranged on any of
Melbourne's schemes, was to set out with an irreconcUeable
difference on the first and most important subject that must
present itself — the Irish Church. Johnny RusseU and the
majority of the Cabinet were pledged to act in the spirit of
the Commission of Enqufry issued in the summer, namely,
to spohato the Protestant Church in aU parishes where the
Roman Cathohcs should be in the majority, whUe Lord Lans
downe and Spring Rico declared that they must resign if any
such measure should be proposed. This, Lord Melbourne
suggested, would prevent its being made a Cabinet measure,
but that when it should be brought forward by any individual,
Johnny Russell (the leader) and tho other members of his
opinions, would vote for it, while Mr. Rice would vote against
it. " But," said the King, " I will never listen to such a
proposition, and I have to complain of a gross deception
practised on me. I signed the Special Commission only as a
Commission of Enquiry, and now they would turn it into an
actual measure of spoliation." (You wUl observe that this
* [This is substantiaUy the same account of the affair as that which
was given by the Duke of Wellington to Mr. Greville, November 28th.
Vide 'Diary,' iii. pp. 162-165.]

244 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
was what all the world, except the King, saw and foresaw
when he signed the Commission in May last, when Stanley
and Graham resigned.) His Majesty went on to state that
it was clear that however wiUing Lord Melbourne might be
to get over difficulties, he could not evade this one — that
early in the session the Cabinet would exhibit itself in the
House of Commons divided on a vital question, and that the
leader of the House and the majority of the King's Ministers
would take that side which was contrary to His Majesty's
fixed opinions. That such a state of things would be a disso
lution of the Ministry, and a dissolution at a time and under
circumstances which could not but produce the greatest
embarrassment. His Majesty therefore suggested that what
was eventuaUy inevitable should be done immediately, before
the meeting of Parliament should have completed the diffi
culties. He therefore accepted Lord Melbourne's resignation,
and declared the Ministry dissolved.
It does not clearly appear whether the King or Lord
Melbourne first suggested the sending for the Duke, but it is
certain that Lord Melbourne waited whUe the King wrote to
the Duke — or rather while Taylor wrote — and that he offered
to convey the letter, which he did. The Duke was at
Strathfieldsaye. He immediately went over to Brighton
(Saturday), where he dined and slept. He told the King
that the great difficulty would be in the House of Commons ;
that he therefore advised His Majesty to name Sir R. Peel as
Ffrst Minister. The King said that Peel's absence was an
objection. The Duke agreed that it was, but he undertook
to conduct the Government till Peel's arrival, filling up no
offices and taking no measures (except when absolutely
necessary), so that Peel should be at perfect liberty when he
came, and that he (the Duke) would serve with him, or under
him, or not at all, as might be thought best.
The King gladly acceded. The Duke then said, that to
prevent the same kind of juggle which had happened before,
as well as to avoid the danger of leaving the power of the
State in such hands at such a crisis, it would be proper to
summon the ex-Ministers to deliver up the seals on Monday,
which was done. The Duke was sworn in to the Home
Department, as the most central and important, and conducts
all the other branches of the public service by the secretaries
of the Board and the Under-Secretaries of State. So far you
may consider as authentic and sufficiently accurate.

1834.] TEE CHANGE OF MINISTRY. 245
I shall now add some minor matters. When the Duke
advised the King to summon the ex-Ministers to deliver the
seals on Monday, His Majesty suggested the being prepared
with a quorum of other persons to make a Privy Council,
" For," said he, " they might all go away as soon as they had
given up the seals, and leave us without a council to swear
you in ! " And it happened just as he had foreseen. I, by
good luck, was at Molesey, and so escaped being summoned,
which would have been awkward, for 1 could not have
refused to attend on such an occasion, and yet my having
attended would appear to the public like a pledge to go on
with the new arrangements in some official station, which,
even under the Duke, I shoiUd have been most reluctant to
do, and should only have done in the last extremity of
necessity. But no power shall ever force me to serve under
Peel. We are excellent friends, and shaU remain so, which
would assuredly not be the case if we sat in the same
Cabinet. I know that your partiality and friendship have a
hankering to see me in tho Cabinet, but I hope and believe
you wiU be satisfied with my declining on this occasion, if I
should be invited, which, however, I shall endeavour to
prevent, because, as I really wish to live on friendly terms
with Peel, I think there wiU be a better chance of that, if I
can avoid giving a refusal to what he would consider a kind
and complimentary proposition. Nor am I at all swayed by
any difficulty about getting into Parliament, for I have been
already apprised that nothing but my declaring that I wUl
take the Chiltern Hundreds wiU prevent the University of
Dublin electing me, as I am informed, without one dis
sentient voice ; but neither in office or out wiU I enter
Parhament. Two messengers have been sent for Peel, with the Duke's
letters in duplicate. The first by Mr. Hudson, a yoimg man
in the Queen's household. He was to go over the Mont
Conis, by Turin, to Rome. You wUl know before we shall
where Peel is overtaken, and wUl guess when he will arrive
here. I don't expect him much before Christmas, and have
some doubts whether the present patience of the pubhc in
tho provisional arrangement will last five weeks.
When Melbourne came from the King on the Friday night
about ten, ho, in his usual poco c-urante way, did not think it
worth whUe even to send round a box, to teU his colleagues
they were out, contenting himself with summoning a Cabinet
for twelve next day. He, however, happened to see our

246 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
friend the Bear,* who is watchful as a/oa;, and the Bear lost
no time in sending the news to the Chronicle and Times, with
an addition that it was aU the Queen's doing. When Lord
Holland t saw the papers next " morning, he said, "WeU,
here's another hoax." Lord Lansdowne equally disbeheved
it, and I beheve one or two others of the Cabinet also learned
tlieir dissolution from tho newspapers. How like Melbourne
aU this is. Personally the King parts with Melbourne on
the best terms, and offered him an earldom and the Garter,
which he declined. He was at the play on Saturday to see a
comedy caUed ' The Regent ' tn which there is much talk of
turning out a Minister. I am told he laughed and rubbed
his hands, and appeared delighted. So, I believe, are Lord
Lansdowne and Rice, but the Radicals and Brougham are
furious. The Duke has been obhged to take the seals from
B. sooner than had been expected, because he had refused
to put the Great Seal to the prorogation of Parliament. He
also refused to issue Lord Spencer's writ, for the purpose
of impeding Sir Charles Knightley's election in Northampton
shire Lyndhurst is full of spirits.
This proved to be the second occasion on which Mr. Croker
declined a seat in the Cabinet — for it was well understood
that this was the prize held before him by the Duke of
Wellington, and again by Sir Robert Peel. As the foregoing
letter states, Peel was absent from England when the Minis
terial changes took place, and it took a special messenger
eight days to overtake him at Rome. Mr. (afterwards Sir
James) Hudson, who was Gentleman Usher to the Queen,
found him at a ball at the Duchess of Torlonia's, but the
King's letter summoning him to return did not reach his
hands till he arrived at his hotel. He set out for England on
the following day (the 20th of November), and arrived in
London on the 9th of December. Almost immediately upon
his reaching home he wrote the following letter : —
* [Mr. E. EUice was usually known by this name (see supra, p. 150),
but, as a matter of fact, it was Lord Brougham who gave the informa
tion in question to the newspapers. See ' Life of Lyndhurst,' p. 323.
t [Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.]

1834.] ARRIVAL OF SIR ROBERT PEEL. 247
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Whitehall, December Otli, 1834.
My dear Croker,
Though I have only been one night in bed since I left
Lyons, and have found anything but repose since my arrival
here this morning, I must write you one line, to certify
to you for myself that I am here. Lady Peel and Juha
traveUed with me as far as Dover ; traveUing by night over
precipices and snow eight nights out of twelve. I shall be
very glad to see you. It wUl be a rehef to me from the
harassing cares that await me.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
Mr. Croker to Sir E. Peel.
West Moulsey, December 10th.
My dear Peel,
A thousand thanks for your letter, of which, at this
moment, I appreciate aU the value, and feel it accordingly.
I should acknowledge it in person, but that T am confined
by a cold. If I am able I will come to town to-morrow ; if
not, I trust there can be no doubt that I shaU on Friday.
If you should happen to dine en famille, Friday or Saturday,
I should like to dine with you ; your mornings will be, I
know, so occupied by indispensables, that I should not like
to interrupt you.
What a journey ! You are near a fortnight sooner than I
expected — not only because I fancied you would have been
at Naples, but from the wonderful rapidity of your journey.
1 knew that you would not leave Lady Peel and Julia
behind, and I did not calculate on such super-feminine
strength on their parts. However, here you are, thank God,
neither too soon, I believe, nor too late. Indeed, on the
whole, I think the panic, the suspense occasioned by your
absence, and the novelty of the circumstances, have been
favourable, and that you will have less trouble now than
you would have had three weeks ago. The Duke has been
standing the whole undivided fire, and it wUl not be so easy
to revive and turn it on you. Well may you talk of
" harassing cares." The first that I dread for you are the

248 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIIL
personal harasseries of individual pretenders. Except the
Duke, and the two or three who dress themselves in his
glass, every one that I saw seemed thinking of their own
paltry advantage, and not of the great crisis of the country,
in which aU private interests — nay, all private affections —
ought to be merged. One only word of advice I ¦^ill venture
to you: don't suffer yourseU to be hampered with the
" veilleurs " — the Monmouth Street of former administrations.
Get, if you can, new men, young blood — the ablest, the
fittest— and throw aside boldly the claims of all the
"mediocrities" with which we were overladen in our last
race. I don't promise that even that wiU ensure success;
but it is your best chance. Yours ever affectionately,
J. W. Croker.
Sir Robert Peel's object in seeking this interview was to
induce Mr. Croker to accept office, as might be inferred from
the letter itself, written at such a time ; but some additional
particulars concerning the conversation which took place
were given by ^r. Croker to his wife. 14, Duke-street. [No date.]
I have seen the Peels; great cordiality; and Lady Peel
(with whom I sat an hour before 1 saw him) reminded me
that he had written to me the first on his return. When I
went in to him he was exceedingly friendly, and when I was
about to ask him a question about his law officers, he said,
"But first, my dear Croker, let me ask you whether you
adhere to tho resolution you stated to me before I went
abroad?" I said, positively, nothing could induce me to
enter the House of Commons. I thought he winced a httle
at that, but he said that he would stUl talk to me tn full
confidence of aU his views. He then put into my hands his
letter to Stanley and Stanley's answer (declining on behalf of
self and friends to take office), and the King's observations
(which had just come in) on Stanley's refusal. He then
went on to state to me his views and difficulties, &c., but I
did not allow him to go far, as I was to see him again in the
evening. The only thing that, I think, is settled is, that an

1834.] SIR ROBERT PEEL'S MINISTRY. 249
offer wUl be made to Lord Chandos and Sir Ed. Knatchbull
— Baring, of course, will be in the Cabinet ; but all tho rest
must be made up of the old odds and ends. Peel twice
over said, with a querulous tone, that it would be only the
Duke's old Cabinet. On one occasion he muttered something
about the unreasonableness of men not helping in such a
crisis, but as this might allude to another person whom we
had been speaking of, 1 did not take it to myself, though I
own I beheve it was a little meant for me. On the whole
the interview was perfectly satisfactory as to personals ; I
am satisfied that we shaU be very good friends, but my fears
for the country are greatly increased. I roaUy begin to
doubt whether an Administration can be made that will
meet Parhament. My particular fear is that tho mediocrity
of such a Cabinet as is likely to be made wUl throw diffi
culties in the way of aU the elections. The people like
novelty, and would, under present circumstances, like a
mixture of new men ; and I think that a great many seats
wUl be lost a the Ministry shall assume an entire anti-
reform colour. Yet, what can be done ? I can't tell.
Thank God I have not the responsibility of having advised
the attempt, or of endeavouring to execute the details. My
cold is better — my cough rather increased. I have seen (by
accident) Mr. Jackson,* who will give me something. I
mean to come back to-morrow. Yours,
J. W. C.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
West Moulsey, December llth.
The Duke of Glo'ster's death had taken place before I
wrote last. He is to be buried privately to-day in his own
vault at Windsor. Duke of Sussex, stone blind, but led by Sir
George and Horace [Seymour], to be chief mourner — very re
luctantly, but the King wiU have it so. The Duke of Glo'ster
made a most Christian end. He gave himself over from the
first moment, and thenceforth spent his hours in good-nature,
charity, and piety. He desired not to be embalmed, and to
be buried in the vault with his father and mother, which,
after it shaU have received Princess Sophia, is to be finally
closed. He desired one of the Duchess's rings to be put
* [Mr. Croker's medical adviser.]

250 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIII.
upon his finger. He has died very rich; they talk of
300,000?. He has left legacies to all his attendants, to the
total amount of 80,000?. ; all the rest to the Duchess.
Colonel Higgins has 15,000?., besides the remission of 7000?.
heretofore advanced for purchasing commissions. It turns
out that he and the Duchess have habitually given above
6000?. a year in charity. The complaint began with a
bUious infiammation, but ended in ^e family complaint, and
the immediate cause of death was the internal bursting of a
scrofulous sweUing in the head.
Peel arrived on Tuesday morning, after a most extra
ordinarily rapid journey of twelve days only from Rome,
Lady Peel and the little girl * accompanying him. He im
mediately saw the Duke and the King, and accepted the
Government. He has written to Stanley and Graham to
come to town ; at first it was intended to send Hardinge to
aboucher with thom, but on consideration they have thought
it best to invite them to town. It is much doubted whether
they (at least, Stanley) wiU join.t This doubt is chiefly
raised by tho fact that Stanley has just broken up a party at
Knowsley. Graham has gone north to Netherby, and
Stanley has come to Trontham, where Melbourne has come to
moot him, and Melbourne made the other day a second
speech in Derbyshire — thoroughly radical. I am grateful
for your kind wishes about me. I regret that so many of my
friends differ from me in my view of my duty ; but, depend
upon it I am right, being convinced that the new Ministry
will be forced, I'epee dans les reins, to continue the march of
Reform. However slowly or reluctantly they may endeavour
to go, the smallest advance in that line would be too much
for me, and 1 should probably be obhged to quit the Cabinet
before we had agreed on the King's speech.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. December 25th.
My dear Croker,
Ward X sent me this morning a proposal to stand for the
City, and asked, " What answer shaU I give ? " I replied,
* [Afterwards Lady VUliers.]
t [Lord Stanley and Sir J. Graham both declined.]
X [Mr. Ward was an eminent merchant, who at one time sat in Parlia
ment as a member for the City of London.]

1834.] PEEL'S FIRST MINISTRY. 251
that if I were free from office I might feel it incumbent upon
me to come forward at this crisis, but that office and the City
were perfectly incompatible. One thing only made me hesi
tate, the satisfaction I should have in co-operating with
Ward himself as a colleague in the defence and improvement
of our ancient institutions.
I am smUing now when I think of Ward's face on reading
the answer which he himself is to give from me.
I have reUeved Wynn from the sad state of suspense in
which he was, and given him the Duchy. Haddington goes
to Ireland. Major need not be afraid. There is no room for
L'effroi.* 1 write as if I was passing a merry Christmas Day.
Ever affectionately yours,
R. P.
By the ond of December, Sir Robert Peel had formed his
new Ministry,! ^^nd the Tamworth Manifesto made its ap
pearance — for the leader of the Tory party felt convinced,
and with good reason, that a new election would materially
improve his prospects, even if it did not actuaUy yield him
* [Mr. Major was a lawyer, an old friend of Mr. Croker's. There is
here probably some joke in reference to an Irish lawyer named Lefroy,
who may have looked for an ofiSce at this time.]
•f It was thus composed : —
Prime Minister and ChanceUor of the J
Exchequer 
Lord President of CouncU .. .. Earl Eosslyn.
Lord ChanceUor  Lord Lyndhurst.
Lord Privy Seal  Lord Wharncliffe.
Home Secretary  Mr. H. Goulburn.
Foreign Secretary  Duke of WeUington.
Colonial Secretary  Earl of Aberdeen.
First Lord of the Admiralty .. .. Earl de Grey.
President of Board of Control . . .. Lord EUenborough.
President of Board of Trade and) n, .i j -o •
¦»«- i j:xi_ -^,¦ i. f Mr. Alexander Baring.
Master of the Mmt  )
Paymaster of the Forces  Sir E. KnatohbuU.
War Secretary  Mr. J. C. Herries.
Master-General of Ordnance .. ,, Sir George Murray.

'I Sir Eobert Peel.

252 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XVIH.
a majority. His address to his constituents, sounded the key
note of the contest. Mr. DisraeU described it as " an attempt
to construct a party without principles," and a more recent
writer * has said that " the ' frank exposition ' must have been
bitter reading to some of the members of the new Cabinet."
Assuredly the last statement cannot be true, for we know on
Sir Robert Peel's own authority that the document was seen
and considered by the Cabinet before its publication. He
says : f " Immediately after the completion of the Cabinet, I
proposed to my coUeagues that I should take advantage of
the opportunity which the approaching election would afford,
and in an address to the constituent body of Tamworth
declare the general principles upon which the Government
proposed to act. My colleagues entirely approved of this
course, and of the Address which I submitted to their considera
tion." Undoubtedly, however, the "Manifesto" seriously
alarmed a large section of the Tory party, — men of the " old
school," like Eldon, who thought that the new leader was
going too far and promising too much. He desired to appear
before the country in the character of a Reformer ; he spoke
of the " mere superstitious reverence for ancient usages," and
made use of several other phrases which fell unpleasantly on
the ears of his followers ; he declared that he was ready to
act in the spirit of the Reform BUl if that impUed " a careful
review of the institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, undertaken
in a friendly temper." There were many faithful Tories who
thought that under such a guide as this they would eventu
ally find themselves pretty much at the same destination as
that to which Earl Grey and Lord John Russell desired to
conduct them.
Mr. Croker did not take this view. Once more he refused

* Mr. Spencer Walpole, ' History of England,' in. p. 281.
t ' Memoirs,' ii. p. 58.

1834.] CROKER'S DEFENCE OF PEEL. 253
to share the " general distrust " of Sir Robert Peel. He felt
convinced that he would never desert his party. Conse
quently, he defended the Tamworth Manifesto in the
' Quarterly Review,' and commended Sir Robert Peel for doing
what he steadUy refused to do himself — that is to say, accept
ing " as a fact the change which the Reform BUl has mado in
the practice of the Constitution," and endeavouring " to avail
himself of aU the good of which its friends consider it suscep
tible, and to paUiate aU the mischiefs to which its adversaries
may have thought it hable." " There is no other common-sense
mode of dealing with any Of the fiuctuating affairs of man
kind, whether they concern individuals or societies, . . . No
Minister ever stood, or could stand, against public opinion."*
These were the principles which Mr. Croker deemed applic
able to Sir Robert Peel's position. He did not see that they
were equaUy applicable to his own.
* ' Quarterly Eeview,' vol. 53, pp. 261-63. In this article a party was
described as a "fortuitous concourse of atoms" — a phrase supposed to
have been used for the first time many years afterwards, by Lord John
Eussell.

254 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.

CHAPTER XIX.
1835.
The Dissolution and the Elections — Combination against Sir Eobert Peel —
His Letters describing his Position — ^Lord Stanley's Eefusal to join the
Ministry — Mr. Croker recommends Mrs. Somerville and others for
Pensions — Peel's Eeply — The Eev. George Croly — ^Benjamin Disraeli
and Mr. Croker's Speeches— Anticipated Contest on the Speakership —
The Ecclesiastical Commission — Church Eevenues — Peel's Eeply to
" Some of Our Tories " — Fears of another Dissolution — ^Defeats of the
Government — The Malt-Tax — Dissenters' Marriages with Church
Rites — Letters of Sir E. Peel— The Irish Church Debates— Su: E.
Peel's Difficulties — Mr. Croker's Advice — Pinal Defeat and Eesigna
tion of the Ministry — The Premier on his Eeverses — Summary of his
Measures — The Academy Exhibition of 1835 — Sir E. Peel on Wilkie's
Painting of WeUington writing a Despatch — And on David's Painting
of the Death of Marat — Suggests a History of the Eeign of Terror-
Illness of Sir W. FoUett — The Second Ministry of Lord Melbourne-
Corporation Eeform— Memorandum of the Duke of WeUington — Sir
E. Peel and Dr. Pusey— The " Tyranny of Party " — Amendments to
the Corporation Bill in the Lords — -Works on the French Eevolution in
the British Museum — The Duke of Wellington on the State of the
Country — And on Napoleon I.
Sir Robert Peel was not deceived in supposing that an
appeal to the country would result in making his weakness
less manifest and loss embarrassing, but it did not turn
a minority into a majority. Before the elections, the Tories
mustered about 150 ; when the new Parhament met they
were nearly a hundred more. The " moderate mon," on
whose support Peel largely depended, could not be numbered

1835.] DIFFICULTIES OF PEEL'S MINISTRY. 255
with any certainty, but there was always a fair proportion
on his side. The amalgamation of all the hostile factions
readily sufficed to overpower them, and Pool's experience
soon proved that a IMinister in a permanent minority cannot
hope to carry on the government. He was harassed by
defeats from the very openmg of the Session — defeated on
the election of Speaker, on the Address, on every important
question that was brought before the House. The Whigs,
Radicals, aud Irish Members never failed to combine against
him, and they refused to accord him even that moderate
degree of fair play which is generally conceded to a Minister
who shows a disposition to concihate his opponents. The
spfrit in which he approached a hopeless task, and in which
he afterwards stood at bay, is best described in his own
letters. Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, January 10th, 1835.
My dear Croker,
Your letter of the 8th * finds me hero. I went to bed
at two on Friday morning, rose at four, travelled to Drayton,
and had the cordial satisfaction of a ball in the evening, at
which Lady Peel and Juha, after their journey, danced with
a spirit worthy of their Italian fame. The next day I shot
eleven wild ducks, twelve pheasants, and 1 know not how
much besides.
I doubt whether the Whigs can turn me out on the
Address, but I cannot tell you how little all this disturbs or
disquiets me. I have done my best. I wUl leave nothing
undone to succeed. If I do succeed, and remain in office (as
I mean to make no sacrifice to popular opinion for the more
purpose of gratifying it, at the expense of the real and even
remote interests of the country), success will be a compensa
tion to me for all that I must resign of private comfort and
happiness. If I fail, having nothing to reproach myself
with, no man was ever installed in office with half the
"' [Not among Mr. Croker's papers.]

256 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
satisfaction to his own mere personal and private feelings as
I shall retire from it, and sit with you in the new library at
Drayton Manor, after a day's shooting.
I envy not Lord Stanley's visions of my place. I would
not exchange my position for his.
I should have thought that in such a crisis as that in
which we are, almost unconsciously, living, a man might
have made up his mind as to some definite course of action ;
that he might have ranged himself on one side or the other ;
that if he left his colleagues because they were Destructives,
to use his own word — that, if he did what he could to ruin
them in pubhc estimation, by the grossest and to them most
unseasonable abuse — if he set the example to his Sovereign
of withdrawing from them his confidence — I should have
thought, having been one of the main causes of the King's
embarrassment, he might, on the highest and most courageous
principles, have assisted in the King's defence.
Mind what I now say to you. If he really entertains the
principles he professes, he shall not be able to maintain them
and oppose me. Ever affectionately yours,
R. P.

WhitehaU Gardens, January 26th.
My dear Croker,
It is now six o'clock, and what between letters that I could
not possibly postpone, and deputations that I had appointed, I
have hardly time to read and return the enclosed by this post.*
I should say that the distinction is not quite sufficiently
marked between my position, called for suddenly from
abroad, and required by the King to give him my services,
and the position in which I should have stood, supposing
I had displaced the Government by combination with
Radicals, or any sort of Parhamentary tactics.
My address to Tamworth is also, I think, too much referred
to necessities imposed by the Reform BiU. I think the
necessities rather arose from the abruptness of the change in
the Government, and, to say the truth, from the policy of
aiding our friends at the election.
" [Doubtless the proofs of Mr. Croker's article on the Tamworth Mani
festo, published in the ' Quarterly Eeview,' February 1835, and referred to
in the previous chapter.]

1835.] LITERARY PENSIONS. 257
I shoiUd say also generally, that from the nature of the
returns, our main hope must be in the adhesion of moderate
men, not professing adherence to our politics. Do not there
fore discourage their adhesion by an attack on their party,
or enable their leaders to throw scruples of honour and
feeling in the way of their withdrawal from old connections.
Remember Stanley's position, and that he wUl subscribe
himself a Whig. Ever affectionately yours, Robert Peel.

One of Mr. Croker's first wishes on the formation of a
new Ministry was to secure some more decided recognition
of the claims of Uterature on the State than had liitherto
been vouchsafed. He began by recommending Mrs. Somer-
viUe for a pension; and Sfr Robert Peel at once advised
the grant to this distinguished lady of 200?. a year. The
pension was afterwards increased, by Lord John RusseU,
to 300?. a year. Mr. Croker also urged the bestowal
of some assistance upon Dr. Maginn, who had frequently
attacked him in various kinds of lampoons ; and upon
Moore, whose circumstances were generaUy in a more or
less disordered pUght. Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
[Without date ; probably January 18th.]
My dear Peel,
Let me remind you of the pension to Mrs. SomerviUe.
I never saw her, and have no kind of interest in the matter,
but as concerns the honour of your Administration, and the
cause of science and letters. I have made such enquiries
about her as I could venture to do without exciting suspicion
as to my object, or leading by-and-bye to a suspicion that
I was the benefactor, who, in fact, only ring the beU. She
is the daughter of an Admiral Fairfax, who was Lord
Duncan's Captain in his victory at Camperdown, brought
home his despatches, and was knighted. He is dead about
vol. il s

258 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
twenty years. She married first a son of Admfral Greig, of
the Russian service, by whom she had a son, who has aU his
father left. She married secondly Dr. SomerviUe, who is
physician to Chelsea Hospital, with no means, I am told, but
his salary. She has two daughters, who, with herself, are
unprovided for, except by the doctor's situation.
I ought to tell you that I heard a whisper that Brougham
had promised to do something for them, and that they think
he played false with them, but I know nothing of the details,
and did not choose to enquire. 200?. or 150?. ,a year .would
surely be weU applied in this case ; or say, 150?. to her, and
25?. each to the daughters. The chUd and grandchUdren
of Sir W. Fairfax have a degree of merit, exclusive of
Mrs. SomerviUe's hterary reputation.
I urge very earnestly upon you the endeavour to do some
thing for hterature. What makes a hterary man easy and
happy is often such a trifle as an individual might bestow.
There is a man, whom I am far from recommending for
rospectabihty, or even trustworthiness, one Doctor Maginn,
but he is a powerful, and has been a useful, partisan writer,
though I beheve he has Ubelled both you and me. He is
a zealous Conservative. He has been lately, and I fear long,
in prison for debt, and was released by a subscription of
some of his friends. I could not advise you to do anything
ostensible for him, but 50?. or 100?. given by a third and safe
hand — Lockhart, for instance, who managed the subscription
that released him — would be well laid out.. He is a powerful
writer, and has, I think, some claim to be warmed by the
sunshine, short and wintry as it may be, that now exhUarates
his party.
Moore I before mentioned to you. He is a person to
whom it would be creditable to give any Uttle thing you
might have, but I fear that such Uttle things are very rare,
and it would not do to single out such a Whig or Radical as
he has been, for Tory favour.

Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, January 21st, 1835.
My dear Croker,
As far as the abstract case is concerned, I have both ample
means and equal inclination to give a pension to Mrs. Somer-

1835.] THE REV. GEORGE CROLY. 259
ville ; but there are three or four matters connected with
this, and with aid to literature, that I should like to speak to
you upon before I do anything. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
Whitehall, .January 28th.
My dear Croker,
It is very odd that the same post should have brought
under my notice the names of the very persons whom I was
trying to recaU to my recoUection as men of fair literary
pretensions, and severe, perhaps unmerited, distress.
Did you ever see a letter which Southey wrote to
Brougham, whUe Brougham was ChanceUor, on the subject
of encouragement to hterary merit ? It is a very able and
striking letter.
I must be very cautious not to confine pensions to Whig or
Liberal professors of hterature. Ever yours affectionately, Robert Peel.
Mr. Croker next appealed to the Lord Chancellor (Lynd
hurst) to do something for the Rev. George Croly, author of
' Salathiel,' who once bitterly complained, in a sermon at
St. Stephen's, Walbrook, of which he was rector, that he had
become "so accustomed to neglect that he had ceased to
regard it as an injury." Mr. Croker to Lord Lyndhurst.
West Moulsey, February 3rd, 1835.
My dear Lord,
If by " Croley " you mean George Croly, D.D., I know
him longer and less than anybody. We were at college
together, but very little acquainted, as he was rather my
senior, and not in the same society. He was also there what
he has been tL'ough life, and what I suppose he still is, a shy,
reserved man. About twenty years ago he published some
poems, which I looked over, and I believe touched here and
s 2

'260 TEE CROKER PAPERS. ' [Chap. XIX.
there previous to publication. They possessed great power,
but were, " like the father who begot them," somewhat stiff
and ungainly. Soon after. Lord Liverpool resolved to set up
a weekly paper, and knowing Croly's talents and principles,
and having a kindness for him, I recommended him for the
editorship, at 300?. a year ; but his talents did not he that
way, and eventually the thing faUed. Even this did not
make me better acquainted with this strange, shy, awkward
man. I should have suspected that I, in some over-frank
ness, had offended him, or that I had not handled with
sufficient delicacy that over-nice instrument, a poor, proud
scholar ; but I am told that this was not the case, and that
his temper is the same to all men. He has latterly been
writing a very bad class of books (by bad I only mean
.visionary and useless) on the Prophecies, and mixing pohtics
and theology. I have not read any of them, but hear that
they are ingenious, eloquent, and absurd ; but on the whole
he has a literary reputation and a character as a clergyman
that wUl justify anything that you can do for him, and
I heartily entreat you to do something.
Indeed I should have mentioned his name both to Peel
and you as deserving of recoUection in the distribution of
literary favours, if I had not heard and beUeved that
Brougham had given him a living. Nay, in writing to Peel
on a similar subject, I instanced as an example to be foUowed
Brougham's patronage of Tory Croly, It turns out now that,
like all the rest of Brougham's merits, aU was false and
hoUow. But I believe the whole hterary world is now under
an impression that Dr. Croly is enjoying a comfortable
preferment ex dono Brougham ; and if anything about that
man could surprise me, your letter would have done so. At
all events, I do most strongly urge you to do the thing.
It is right in itself, and I should have pressed it had I dreamed
of Brougham's roguery ; but it is now on every account
desirable that the disappointment should be repafred.
As you have given me this opportunity, I would implore
you to employ your, I fear, too short-lived patronage, in aid
of the Church and hterature, at present exclusively. If
your reign is to be long, there will be plent-*- of time to
attend to other interests and claims (which T know cannot
be altogether neglected), but now the great object should be
to do wliatever may best tend to make us pr^pular with that
great and important class, who will be more struck by

1835.] MR. DISRAELI 261
a judicious and high-minded use of Church patronage than
by another circumstance.
1 perhaps should not have ventured to give this advice, if
I did not know that I speak to willing ears, and that per
sonaUy as well as politically you are disposed to illustrate
yourself and the Government, by giving good things to good
men, in preference to any other considerations.
The foUowing letter seems to show that the future leader
of the Tory party apphed to Mr. Croker somewhere about
this time, for information with regard to his speeches iu
Parhament on the Reform BUl. Mr. Disraeli may have
desfred to consult them in preparing the ' Letters of Runny-
mode,' which he pubhshed in 1836. His manner of repaying
Mr. Croker for the courtesy shown to him on this and other
occasions, is known to the public.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Benjamin Disraeli. [No date.]
Sir,
Absence from home has prevented my receiving and
answering your letter of the 30th ult. sooner.
In reply to your question, I have to say that I believe that
aU my speeches were reported in Hansard's Parliamentary
Debates, with as much accuracy as the nature of the case
aUows. One or two of the speeches were corrected by me,
at the desire of Mr. Murray, for separate publication ; but
I rather think that those so corrected and published, were
incorporated in Hansard. I have myself no complete set of
my speeches, or I should offer it for your inspection ; but if
Hansard (which, of course, you must have) does not furnish
all the information you desire, you may, by using my name
with Mr. Murray, obtain a copy of my speeches published by
him. He pubUshed also a letter to a noble Lord (Hadding
ton) about the Reform BUl, and the resolutions moved by
me on the report of the last BUl. But these are in the
' Journals.' I have the honour to be, Sfr,
Your faithful servant,
J. W. Croker,

262 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap, XIX.
On the 29th of January, the Prime Minister wrote to Mr.
Croker, " I have done what you suggested as to Maginn."
Other and more pressing duties soon caUed for Peel's atten
tion. It was known that there would be an opposition to
the re-election of Sir Charles Manners Sutton as Speaker,
the adverse party having resolved to bring forward Mr. J.
Aborcromby, who was Master of the Mint under Lord Mel
bourne's Government. Sir Robert Peel expected defeat, and
told Mr. Croker that he should regard it as a " mere flea-bite."
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. February Ist, 1835.
My dear Croker,
I think you wUl be glad to hear that I wrote yesterday to
Lady Canning,* stating that I behoved her son had formed no
pohtical connections, and held no pohtical opinions which
could forbid my offer, and that if she would aUow me to
place him in my own department as a Lord of the Treasury,
although he is not in Parhament, I should be proud to give
him the means of acquiring the knowledge that might enable
him to maintain the lustre of his name, and to have the
opportunity of marking that attachment and admiration for
his father, which separation from him in pubhc life has never
abated. I have not received an answer yet,t and therefore do not
mention the subject. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
I quite agree with you | as to the cause of Abercromby's
selection. It must be the hand of Death alone which wUl
prevent the King's Speech. I should consider defeat on the
Speaker a mere flea-bite, but I must not say this.
* [Peel had offered through Lady Canning, to introduce her son, Lord
Canning (aftei-wards Governor-General of India), to pubUc life by appomtr
ing him to a post as one of the Lords of the Treasury.]
t [The answer is published in the ' Memoirs by Siv E. Peel,' vol. ii.
pp. 54-5.]
{ [Mr. Croker's letter is missing.]

1835.] CHURCH REFORM COMMISSION. 268
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
West Moulsey, February 5th, 1835.
The only interest now existing amongst us is as to the
election of Speaker. Johnny RusseU having declared himself
leader of the Opposition, puts forward Aborcromby in oppo
sition to Sutton. I told you last week that [Spring] Rice
was to be thefr candidate, and I had pretty good authority
for telling you so, namely. Rice's own ; but they found, first,
that Morpeth and some other leading Whigs were pledged to
Sutton against anybody but Aborcromby ; and second, that
the Irish Motmtain would not vote for Rice. They were
therefore obhged to change their man.
As to the result, more doubt is entertained by our friends
than I could have believed. I thought that whoever the
candidate should be, it would be a false step on the part of
the Whigs, for certainly, bad as are the elections, and weak
as in my opinion the Government is, if we cannot carry such
a question as such a speaker against such a candidate, we are
absolutely impotent ; for my own part I stiU beheve that we
shall win, and I should have said win easUy ; but when I find
our own friends calculating on a smaU majority only, I know
not what to say.
Peel has issued a Church Reform Commission, and I think
it was inevitable ; yet, as I told him, I dread a bad precedent
from good hands. He wUl do no harm, and indeed ho will
do good ; but il n'y a que le premier pas qui coute. He means
to make a less unequal, but not an absolutely equal dis
tribution of the revenues of Bishops and great dignitaries,
and wiU hmit, if not aboUsh, plurahties and sinecures. From
the temper of the elections, I doubt whether without this the
property of the Church would not have boon in danger of
spohation for secular, or even Dissenting purposes. I beheve
the view I gave you in my last letter of the result of the
elections is pretty nearly correct. It is admitted, even by
the most sanguine of the Tories, that aU depends upon the
moderates — a poor dependence ! ,
The Commission referred to in this letter was designed to
prepare a plan of Church reform, in fulfilment of the pledges
given by Peel in his Tamworth address. His general views

264 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
at the moment are clearly explained in the following letter,
which was evidently written either in reply to one which has
been lost, or to a newspaper letter or article setting forth
what " some of our Tories '' were saying. No direct trace
can be discovered to the aUusion.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, February 2nd, 1835.
My dear Croker,
It is a very harmless occupation for " some of our Tories "
to keep themselves in wind by attacking wind-mUls of their
own creation.
Whoever dreamed of EquaUsation of Livings ? of anything
but great disparity in their value ? of gradations from very
low to very high ? I am sure I never did. But is this
right — that there should be no provision whatever for
spiritual duties in some of the largest, most populous, most
important, most dissenting districts of the country? Is it
right that three-fourths of Nottingham, included in one
parish, should have no provision whatever for a clergyman,
except what he can coUect from dues and pew-rents — that is,
from a tax upon going to church ?
Is it right that the tithes should be totally withdrawn
from many important vicarages and paid over to preben
daries whose duty it is to preach a sermon once a month ?
Is the Church to be a provision for men of birth, or for men
of learning ? or is its main object the worship of God
according to the doctrines of the Reformed faith ?
That worship is promoted by inviting men of birth and
men of learning into the Church ; but if the time shall ever
arrive when it can be shown that to this object, important as
it may be, you have sacrificed other and more important
objects ; you have left hundreds of thousands to become Dis
senters or, more likely, infidels, because you would not divert
one farthing of ecclesiastical revenues from this Deanery, or
that great sinecure. If the time shall come when a strict
scrutiny shaU be made by unfriendly inquirers into the
principle on which great preferments have been given by
politicians, "some of our Tories," who now profess their
exclusive friendship to the Church, will find their friendship

1835.] CIIURCE REFORM. 265
the severest measure of hostility from which the Church ever
suffered. This is the old cry. The Bishop of London is an enemy,
and the Archbishop, it seems, cannot be depended on. Very
good. But if such opinions as those which "some of our
Tories " deprecate do prevail in the highest authorities of the
Church, can there be a more conclusive proof that our
position is an unsafe one, and that there is a demand from
within as weU as from without, which had bettor be carefully
considered in time ?
Adhere to principle, say "some of our Tories." Very
good; then, if laws have passed enabUng Cathedral tithes
to be reattached to vicarages, appropriating tho revenues of
staUs at Durham to the foundation of a College, the revenues
of prebends at Lichfield to the repair of the Cathedral,
what violation of principle is there in considering whether,
for instance, a Dean of Durham with 8000?. a year might
not be advantageously placed at Manchester or Liverpool,
reUeving possibly the Bishop of Chester from some part of
episcopal duties which no human strength can perform ?
Is it perfection of principle to make Lord Liverpool's
cousin a Bishop in Wales, and also Dean of Durham, and an
utter abandonment of principle to bring the Dean or his
revenues nearer home, not equalising hvings, but making
high dignitaries perform with sufficient and very liberal
emoluments (for they ought to be liberal) effective spiritual
duties ? For God's sake don't let protended friends of the
Church provoke the statement of the case which can be made
out in favour of a temperate review of the present state of tho
Estabhshment. Is this right — that in a parish of 10,000
acres, overrun with dissent, the whole tithes go to an eccle
siastical corporation, to the amount of 2000?. a year ; that
there is only one service in the church, and cannot be two,
because the said Corporation wUl only aUow 24?. a year as a
stipend to the Vicar ? Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel,
The Bishop of Lincoln, in consequence of past spoliations
of the see, has thirty-six impropriate rectories. If I returned
the tithes to the rectories, and gave him a Cathedral prefer
ment instead, would this be violation of principle ?
What think you of Kingston and Eiehmond being united

266 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
in one benefice, because King's College, Cambridge, cannot
afford to endow the two out of the tithes.
Parhament assembled on the 19th of February, and Sir
Charles Manners Sutton was defeated for the Speakership, as
had been anticipated. He was raised to the peerage under
the title of Viscount Canterbury. There was a majority of
seven against the Government on the Address, and it was
thought that this double defeat would induce the Ministry to
resign. But the fear began to spread that instead of resigna
tion. Sir Robert Peel would try another dissolution. He
kept the idea before the House, though in a covert manner,
and it would appear that this course was suggested to him by
Mr. Croker. Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel. February 22nd, 1835.
Dear Peel,
In talking of " the sense of the people " in the first para
graph of the Speech, you must take care of two points.
First, not to concede that this Parliament does speak the
sense of the people ; secondly, not to foreclose yourself from
another dissolution. I myself do not at aU doubt that the
House of Commons does speak the sense of the constituent
body, nor do I foresee the possibUity of another dissolution ;
but it may bo inexpedient to bind yourself on those two
points, and you should therefore be cautious in the choice of
terms. I shaU be in town to-morrow, but shaU not caU
upon you, as this note contains aU I have to say. I have,
ever since I saw you, been thinking of the position of affairs,
and I am sorry to say that I see no extrication. If the
House votes that it has no confidence in you, I cannot dis
cover any other eventual course but a new Ministry, for if it
votes that, is it possible that it should not also negative " that
a supply be granted " ? for, surely, nothing could be more
absurd and unconstitutional than to grant a supply to those
in whom you have no confidence, and the day is not yet
arrived for coups d'etat.
J. W. C.

1835.] THE MALT TAX. 267
The next difficulty was created by one of Sir Robert Peel's
own foUowers, the Marquis of Chandos, who brought forward
a resolution for the repeal of the Malt Tax. In this instance
the Ministry triumphed, for the opposition to the repeal of
the tax was not confined to the Tories. The majority against
the resolution was large enough to encourage the young, but
already declining. Government — 138.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. West Moulsey, March 10th.
Peel is resolute, and so I may say are his friends, whUe
his enemies are not very stout, and are united only on the
one point of opposing him. His immediate and pressing
difficulty is the Malt Tax, the repeal of which at least 150 of
his minority are pledged to support, which two at least,
members of his Cabinet, are bound to [defend ?], and which
prevented Chandos being of the Cabinet. Peel had a great
meeting of his adherents on Saturday — above 200 — in which
some leading men— Hall Dare, for instance, member for
Essex — manfuUy said that they would forfeit their pledges,
and balk their constituents, rather than risk the existence of
the Government, and this is, I have heard, so general a senti
ment that they now talk — ^first, of Chandos not pressing the
question; and secondly, if he should, of beating him. What
ever may be the result, how fortunate it is that- Peel sup
ported the late Ministers on this question, though he earned
great obloquy from our friends for doing so. I recoUect par
ticularly the Lowthers, who voted twice over against the
Malt Tax, and are now very much embarrassed what to do.
Those votes, however, were so confused and complicated in
the form of putting them, that our friends wiU find a loop
hole. In short, the Tories are quite sanguine, and moan to
eat aU thefr words and their votes rather than risk the
Ministry. But wUl it do ? Between you and me I should say no !
They are like shipwrecked men on a raft, and as long as the
sea is smooth, that is, the people quiet, they may hold on
their precarious existence, but the least little breeze will send
them all to the bottom.
The country is for the moment with Peel, but it may shift

268 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XLX,
with the wind, and his power has no solid basis to enable it
to stand against a shift of wind.
This was the only ray of light in the sky. Every other
event turned out unfortunately for the Ministry. The appoint
ment of the Marquis of Londonderry (the brother of the late
Lord Castlereagh) to the post of Ambassador at St. Petersburg
raised a storm, and the Marquis had to withdraw. Scarcely a
day passed without inflicting some humUiation upon the
unfortunate Government. The Irish Tithe Commutation BUl
was introduced, with the " appropriation clause " taken, as
the Whigs declared, from their own measure. Lord John
Russell then made ready to inflict what he behoved would be
the coup de grace upon this hapless Administration. He gave
notice of a resolution to apply the surplus revenues of the
Irish Church " to the general education of aU classes of the
people, without distinction of reUgious persuasion." But
before this question came forward. Sir Robert Peel introduced
a BUl permitting Dissenters to be married, with the usual
rites of the Church, when they were so minded, or with any
rehgious ceremony they pleased, provided notice was given,
and tho marriage registered.
Lord John Russell's resolution was opposed most per
sistently by Sir Robert Peel, but upon this, as upon other
questions, the House was prepared with its decision before
hand. This position of affairs had given rise to many serious
questions in the Minister's mind ; ho had but a dreary choice
before him — between " discreditable defeat " and stUl more
" discreditable concession." Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
My dear Peel, ' [Without date.]
I have been anxiously thinking of our conversation of
yesterday, and of all I afterwards heard about the views of
parties in town ; and I am convinced that you cannot go
out until you are actually forced to do so by some positive

1835.] MR. CROKER'S ADVICE TO PEEL. 269
practical measure ; for instance, if the Irish Church resolu
tion of Monday (which, I hear, is to bo carried by 30)
should be only a resolution, I think it would be much of the
same nature as the amendment to the address, on which you
might have retired ; but not having dono so, it seems that
you are pledged not to be driven out by a vote of the same
abstract nature.' When any tiling shall be done which you
disapprove, and which yet requires your concurrence for its
execution, then wiU come tho time to consider of refusing to
do or suffer to be done an improper act, and (if you cannot
evade the practical dUficulty) of resigning. That crisis wUl,
I have no doubt, soon arrive, but, depend upon it, the terms
under which you took office and tho spirit in which you have
expressed your determination to hold it, oblige you not to
give in tUI you find the wheels of the Government actually
clogged. In tho meanwhUe I would insist on the doing of
the public business, and I should not now be deterred from
dividing by the fear of being beaten, and should let the
country see, when you do resign, that you were forced to do
so by the suspension by the House of Commons of the
routine of tho pubhc service. Quarter-day is at hand, and I
don't behove you have a money vote to enable you to pay
the pay, wages, salaries, half pay, or the other usual quarterly
payments. Let this be known, and let the country see, on a
division, by whom, and how it is, that this class of business
has been impeded. I never for a moment have had a doubt
that you must retire, and I now think it only a question of
a week sooner or later, but I foresee such utter despondency
and prostration of the Conservative party, and so much con
sequent sourness and injustice in their future feehngs towards
you, that I shaU regret your going before every man shall be
convinced that you had expended your last cartridge, and
could physically resist no longer.
I heard from somo quarters a kind of expectation that
Stanley ought now to join you openly, if it were only to go
out with you ; and I even heard that he was not disinclined
from some such course. This seems to me a strange con
juncture — ^hke old Wycherly's marriage on his death-bed. I
repeat it only because I heard it, and because if Stanley has
the magnanimity to take such a course, it might, even now'
postpone the general ruin.
I believe Burdett's opinion is that you ought not to be
driven out by the vote on the Irish Church — such, at least, is

270 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XLX.
the language of his smaU tail. I did not hear whether he wiU
have the courage to come down on Monday to support you.
Yours affectionately,
J. W. Croker.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
My dear Croker, Whitehall, March 30th, 1835.
We shall resist Lord John Russell's motion to-night on
principle and by direct opposition. We shaU consider it not
with reference to words, but to things, to the time at which
it was brought forward, to the ground on which alone it can
be supported (namely, want of confidence in the Govern
ment), and to tho men by whom it wUl be supported.
Lord Stanley approves of our course, and wUl cordiaUy act
with us on this discussion. The resolution is no abstract
one. It means the destruction of the Church in Ireland. It
is the most practical resolution that ever was proposed ; for
it wUl utterly prevent the levy of tithe in the South of
Ireland, if the tithe is to be appropriated to the Church.
Of what avaUs public opinion among the non-voting part of
the people of England, of what avails a counter-resolution
of the Lords, or a rejection by the Lords of a Tithe BUl, when
the question is this — Can you enforce the payment of a
charge which has been discontinued for three years in the
South of Ireland, if a majority of the House of Commons be
ranged on the side of the payers, or, I should rather say, the
non-payers of tithe ?
Shall we undertake the responsibUity of this state of
things — being in a minority not only on the tithe question,
but on every other contested question? Again, have we a hopfe
of bettering our condition ? If we have not, how long shaU
we continue habituating the House of Commons, through our
weakness, to act without the control of the Executive Govern
ment, and to assume functions which do not belong to it ?
They wiU assume such functions whether we are Ministers
or not. They wiU ; but in one case we are consenting, or at
least, conniving parties; in the other not. You see the
course I have taken, I am sure the right one, to prefer dis
creditable defeat to more discreditable concession.
Ever yours,
Robert Peel.

1835.] FATE OF THE MINISTRY. 271
Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
My dear Peel, March 31st, 1835.
On general principles, and in ordinary circumstances, no
one can deny that you should go out if beaten on the Irish
Church or on any other great question; but you have
accepted, or at least have continued in, your post on dif
ferent conditions. You did not resign on the Speaker — on
the address — on aU the other defeats ; so that wo have your
practice against your principle. I, you know, have aliuays
wished to see the Church chosen as the stand or faU ques
tion, both of the administration and of the House of Lords ;
and I have no doubt that it will ultimately be so ; but after
the most deliberate consideration, I am forced to think that
you have pledged yourself to a perseverance and tenacity as
obstinate as the cfrcumstances are unparaUeled. I know it is
but the question of a week ; that you must go out. I thought
so in November last, in December, ever smce — now. I think
this a fitting and adequate occasion ; but as I know that the
public in general, resting on your former pledges and practice,
does not consider tho precise moment as yet come, I am
anxious that you should not retire tiU all mon are satisfied
that a longer resistance would be improper, even if possible.
If you, on the spot and in the centre of knowledge, think
that the world is agreed that the time is actuaUy come, I
have not a word more to say, and my only desire is that you
should appear firm and consistent to the last — servetur ad
imum. I cannot but think that if it were possible, it would
be better to try a new combination with Stanley, than to
throw up the whole game at once ; but that, I suppose,
cannot be, nor would it save us long — perhaps not a day —
but it would make the Conservative party so strong in oppo
sition, as to afford us some Uttle hope of security for persons
and property.
A few more uneasy days, and the fate of the Ministry was
decided. On the 2nd of AprU it was defeated by 33, on the
6th by 25, on the 7th by 27. On the 8th Sfr Robert Peel was
•obhged to acknowledge the uselessness of the struggle, and
he resigned. It is now. generally admitted — as indeed it was
at the time — that he deserved a better fate, and that, in

272 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
despite of the incessant discomfitures he had sustained, his
position as a public man before the country was, upon the
.whole, improved. Mr. Croker defended him most zealously,
not only in the ' Quarterly Review,' but wherever he could
make his voice heard, and the fallen Minister took his
reverse with a good heart.
Sir Eobert Ped to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU Gardens, AprU 13th, 1835.
My dear Croker,
I received a note from the King about seven yesterday
evening, requesting me to facilitate an adjournment untU
Thursday next, for the purpose of promoting the arrange
ments connected with the formation of a new Government.
I iindorstand that Lord Melbourne is to be at the head.
Lord J. RusseU is to be in town at three to-day ; and imtU
his arrival I presume that the cast of parts wUl not be finaUy
settled. They talk of Sir George Grey for Ireland, Lord Granville
as Lord Lieutenant; he fading, Carhsle. Lord Morpeth
to have some office or other.* I presume the Government
wiU be as nearly as possible that which was dismissed in .
November last.
We dine at Oatlands to-morrow. Peradventure, as
Brougham says, we shall meet.
' " My bosom's lord sits lightly on its throne." f
I do not know why Shakespeare should remind me of an
attorney; but I have this morning received a wonderful
address — the strongest expressions of approbation and con
fidence from 1100 solicitors resident in the metropohs, I had
no idea there were so many ; less that they were so nearly
unanimous in the support of Conservative principles.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel,
*¦ [He was made Chief Secretary for Ireland.]
t [Tbus in the originaL The true text is, " My bosom's lord sits lightly
in his throne." — Romeo arid Juliet, Act V., Scene I., linfrS.]

1835.] PEEL'S RESIGNATION. 273
April 14th, 1835.
My dear Croker,
My measures were Irish Tithe — English Tithe — which you
omit — English Church — Dissenters' Marriages. Those wore
opened to the House of Commons.
I made a promise of settling the Church Rate Question
(which I could not have settled), and of relief to land from
certain local charges. I protected the Malt Tax — this was
resistance to a serious attack on public credit.
We found notliing done on the Canada Question — not a
trace of a line written between June or July, when the House
of Commons Committee reported, and the 15th of November,
when the late Government wont out.
Rice says he was going to write a most voluminous dispatch
— of course the very next day. He was, he says, labouring
with it, when ho was mot in Regent Street on the Saturday
and told ho was out of office. Aberdeen has laid the founda
tion for a complete settlement of the Canadian question, or a
complete conviction of the Canadian party of the intention to
rebel and separate.
The pensions — the only pensions — I gave were to a Mrs.
Temple, whose husband, an African traveller, died, I think,
at Sierra Leone. She had 100?. a year. Professor Airy,
300?.* Mrs. SomorvUle, 200?. Sharon Turner, 200?. Robert
Southey, 300?. James Montgomery, of Sheffield, 150?.
The ChanceUor gave Crabbo a hving. I gave Milman the
only proferment I had to give, that of St. Margaret's and the
Prebend of Westminster. I wUl toU Clerk and Venables to
send you what you require. Ever yours, Robert Peel.
In Mr. Croker's next letter there was very httle about
pohtics, and a good deal about the Royal Academy Exhibi
tion of 1835, in which "young Landseer" had a picture
of " Horned Cattle," which did not escape notice.t
* [Professor (now Sir G. B.) Airy was appointed Astronomer Eoyal in
succession to Professor Pond, in 1835.]
t This picture was probably " The Drover's Departure," first exhibited
this year, and now in the Sheepshanks Collection. But "Horned CaitJe"
would be but a sorry description of so fine a work.
VOL. II. T

274 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
Mr. Croker to Sir E. Peel.West Moulsey, May 4th.
I dined at the Academy on Saturday. A bad exhibition ;
several tolerable pictures of what the French caU de genre
but all the large ones (almost exclusively portraits) are
infamous. There are three of the Duke, each worse than tho
other — WUkie and PickersgUl vying in the art of sinking.
I forget the author of the third. " Horned Cattle," by young
Landseer, attracts some notice. " Columbus explaining his
Project," by WUkie, is an imitation of, or I should rather say
a cento, from Titian ; yet not good, and he has made a bolder
anachronism than his oysters in June; he has introduced
the telescope fuU 100 years too soon. LesUe has painted
GuUivor at the Court of Brobdingnag, a total faUure as to the
story (though the parts are good), for the Brobdingnagians aU
look like ordinary men and women, whUe GuUiver looks
only like a toy. A young man of the name of Say has
painted FoUett very weU — nearly the best in the room. The
very best, I think, is a large one of a woman by a woman —
one Mrs. Robertson — a picture that no man in the exhibition
has approached. There are a few pretty little things.
We had Grey and aU the Ministers, except Palmerston
and my Lord Glenelg. Brougham, they said, was not
invited. I rather think he did not choose to come in so
dubious a position as he occupies at this moment. The
places of the Dukes of Wellington, Northumberland, New
castle, and Bucclouch were vacant — this is not right at such
a dinner. I hope you sent your excuse in good time. Pozzo
and Esterhazy also absent. Bulow returned thanks for the
Foreign Ministers in a written English speech, so unintel-
hgible that I should have thought it German, only the
German has a strong affinity to EngUsh, to which this did not
seem to have the least resemblance.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, May 5th.
My dear Ceoker,
I date this from Drayton Manor, but am in truth writing
from what we call Mr. Hill's house. That is a respect
able brick messuage, just situate at the point where tho road

1835.] PEEL ON SIR DAVID WILKTE. 275
to Drayton Church and village turns from the Colesliill road.
We are, however, very comfortably lodged, and convenient, as
they say in Ireland, to the new house.
My cliief interest in your letter is in that part which
relates to the exhibition of the Royal Academy. This is the
first occasion on which I have been absent from the dinner.
I wiU, however, profit by your experience, not in tho eatables,
but the visibles of the ceremony at which you assisted, and
go with you to Somerset House on my return to town.
I think WUkie quite wrong in painting the size of life such
subjects as Columbus, and the interviews of the Pope and
Buonaparte. If ho had been present at the interview, and had
painted the room in which it took place, the portraits of the
two parties to it, with their identical dresses, the picture
would have been reaUy historical and really valuable.
But two portraits by a contemporary who never saw either
of tho personages he represents, and mado up their likenesses
from busts and the pictures of others, and who represents a
scene quite unintelhgible and indescribable by painting alone,
and which has no other pecuharity about it than that which
must belong to tho act of every man who refuses to sign a
paper offered to him by another for his signature, can never
excite much interest.
WUkie had always a fancy for painting the Duke of Wel
hngton writing the report of the Battle of Waterloo, and to
put a trumpeter or some such messenger standing by the table
waiting to convey the dispatch as soon as it was sealed.
I told him that trumpeters did not so wait ; that dispatches
after Waterloo were written very much like other letters on
ordinary business ; that tho only way in which ho could attach
interest to the representation of such an act would be, not by
drawing upon fancy, but by reaUy drawing the room in which
the dispatch was actuaUy written, the portrait of the pen with
which it was written, the state of the Duke's dress at the
moment, if with a night-cap on, introducing the night-cap — in
short by a perfectly faithful record of that truth which was
possibly within his reach, and the deviation from which in a
contemporary would be a fraud upon posterity.
Beheve me ever affectionately yours.
My dear Croker,
R. P.
T 2

276 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
Sir E. Peel to Mr. Croker.
My dear Croker, [Without date.]
When you come to town, go to Leicester Fields, and see a
picture, which wiU interest you, and repay you for your visit if
it makes half as much impression upon you as it did upon me.
It is by David, and I dare say you have afready mentally
ejaculated, that you would not give a farthing to see any
picture by so bad a painter, and so great a scoundrel. But
this picture, which is by far the best he ever painted, repre
sents with horrible fidelity Marat dying in the bath after his
assassination by Charlotte Corday, and was exhibited by order
of the Convention.*
There is the pencil sketch of his countenance by David, in
the agony of death, made in the bath-room on a piece of paper
that David found there. The picture itself is very powerfuUy
painted. Ever yours, R. P.
My dear Croker, [Without date.]
I wish you would think seriously of the History of the
Reign of Terror. I do not mean a pompous, phUosophical
history, but a mixture of biography, facts, and gossip : a
diary of what reaUy took place, with the best authenticated
likenesses of the actors.
French writers treating of the Revolution have very much
slurred over this part of the eventful scene, influenced per
haps partly by the feeling which De Thou expresses with
regard to St. Bartholomew's Day in his very appropriate
quotation : — " Excidat iUe dies eevo, neu postera credant
Sascula. Nos certe taceamus, et obruta multa
Noote tegi nostra patiamur crimina gentis."
There would be many advantages in selecting this subject
for a historical record.
* [This painting was finished by David immediately after Marat's
assassmation, and presented by him to the Convention on the 14th
November, 1793. The voice of the people, he declared, had caUed upon
him to take the work in hand. " David, saisis tes pinceaux, s'ecriait-il,
venge notre ami, venge Marat ! "] =

1835]. A SUGGESTION FROM PEEL. 277
First, the period is a definite one, and well defined, and the
events are a beautiful practical commentary on the maxim :
" Nee lex est justior uUa,
Quam necis artifices arte perire su&."
It woiUd show that with the day of success in popular
insurrections begins the punishment of their authors. That
chapter which detaUed the fate of every actor in tho bloody
scenes, would be written for our learning.
I suppose you have got the five volumes of letters concern
ing Mfrabeau, lately published.
Turn to a note in the fifth volume, which attributes to the
Parhament of Paris a great share in preparing the minds of
the popidation of Paris for resistance to authority by
physical force. The connivance at mobs coUected round the
buUding in wliich the Parhament sat ; the denouncement of
officers and soldiers who tried to suppress the mobs ; the public
exhortation to aU those who should hereafter be employed
against tlie people, to be very humane and moderate, and the
inference that the people naturaUy drew from such exhorta
tions are well described. Ever yours, Robert Peel.
The family of Lepelletior lately bought the picture which
represented his assassination.
The showman tells the monstrous untruth that David had
been offered 3000?. sterhng for the " Death of Marat."
Lord Melbourne entered into office for tho second time as
Prime Minister on the 18th of AprU, and on tlUs occasion
Lord John RusseU was made Home Secretary, and entrusted
with the duty of bringing in the Corporation Reform Bill.
Tho measure was founded upon the report of Commissioners
who were appointed in 1833, and whose method of proceeding
provoked great complaints in many different directions. The
principle of the BUl was, however, in accordance with pubhc
opinion, for it transferred the control of boroughs from
wealthy landowners to the people themselves. It was a
change which could not have beSn deferred much longer, and
which was imperatively called for by the spirit of the time.

278 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Crolcer. July 2nd, 1835.
The Corporation will fulfil my prophecy — that the first
proposal for altering the Reform BiU would proceed from
the authors and supporters of that BiU.
After reviewing the returns, they find the freemen vote in
the Conservative interest more frequently than in the Radical,
and forthwith it is proposed to aboUsh freemen. And this
is done not manfuUy, not dfrectly, but under the pretence of
improving Corporations. Lord John RusseU says, that
though the right of voting on the part of freemen was re
served in the Reform BUl, yet it was not necessarily a
permanent arrangement, that the intention of improving
Corporations was declared at the time, that the reservation
of the right of freemen was therefofo provisional and con
tingent upon the future reform of Corporations.
This is not true. In the first BUl the right of freemen
was destroyed ; in the second Bill it was reserved ; but it
was not reserved generally; it was not reserved upon the
principle that corporate rights constituted a separate ques
tion to be thereafter decided on. The right was modified
and regulated, and limited to those who should reside within
seven miles of the borough ; the arrangement had all the
character of permanency ; the abuse of the right, namely,
the pouring in of non-resident voters, was abolished, and
residence was made the condition of its exercise.
See what the Corporation BiU does. It assumes that the
right of voting for municipal officers ought to be co-extensive '
with the payment of rates ; it gives a franchise much more
popular than the Parhamentary franchise ; nay, it sanctions
universal suffrage on the part of householders, subject to cer
tain conditions of continued residence and actual payments.
It rejects with scorn the doctrine that poor men are not
fit to exercise political power — when that doctrine aids
democratic influence---but this same BiR disfranchises other
poor men who have been guilty of the crime of supporting
Conservative principles.
It assumes that the Irish pauper, who has resided three
years in Manchester and Liverpool, and can get an active
democrat to pay up for him his shilling rate, is well quali
fied for electoral trust; but the man who has served an
apprenticeship of seven years : the Englishman by birth ; the
native of the town ; he who has acquired no capital perhaps

1835.] CORPORATION REFORM. 279
in money, but the more valuable capital of mechanical skill,
experience in his handicraft, who has the testimonial of his
master founded on seven years' personal knowledge — he is to
be dispossessed of an ancient right, held from immemorial
usage, confirmed and regulated and purified by tho second
Magna Charta — the Reform Bill. Contrast these two acts
of power — the devolution of a new trust on the mere rate
payer who may be a pauper, with the extinction of the
ancient franchise hold by a man who, in nine cases out of
ten, givos to the State greater evidence of fixedness of resi
dence and the quahfications of citizenship, and can any one
doubt tho animus, the bounty on Radicalism, the punishment
of Conservative principles in humble life ?
The BUl leaves ecclesiastical patronage in the hands of
the new Common Council. That Common Council may be
occasionaUy either composed entirely or in great part of
Dissenters. These Dissenters are to select for the most
important cures the ministers professing another faith.
What a universal outcry would there be from every Dis
senter in the land, of whatever denomination, if in the case
of a bequest for the maintenance of a Dissenting minister,
Parhament were to sanction au arrangement by which the
selection of that minister might be confided to members of
tho Estabhshed Church !
Among the few other letters of 1835 which have boon
preserved, there are two of importance from Sir Robert Peel.
In the first he shows the cordial sympathy which he felt for
Mr. PhUip Pusey * under the attacks then, and long afterwards,
showered down upon him. The second letter refers to the
Municipal Corporation Bill, which had been subjected to
many alterations and amendments in the House of Lords,
under tho advice and direction of Lord Lyndhurst. Peel
had from the first been desirous of accepting the Bill from
a higher motive, doubtless, than that ascribed to him by
Charles Greville, who insinuates that his object was " to
convert the new elements of democratic power into an in-
* [Brother of Eev. Dr. Pusey, and M.P. for Berks ; first President of the
Eoyal Agricultural Society. The occasion was probably his having voted
with Peel and against Lord Chandos on the Eepeal of the Malt Tax.]

280 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
strument of his own elevation, partly by yielding to and
partly by guiding and restraining its desires and opinions "
(' Diary,' iii. p. 263). The differences between the Lords and
the Commons on the BiU were very serious, and for some time
they threatened to bring the two Houses into dangerous
coUision ; but ultimately a compromise was adopted.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
British Museum, August 1st, 1835.
My dear Croker,
Your letter has foUowed me here. I returned to town on
Thursday evening.
There is no pretext for the attacks on Pusey and Young,
and they are equaUy unjust and impoUtic. Pusey came to
me after his speech, and I said everything to console him,
and earnestly advised him not to resign. There is nothing
more intolerable than the tyranny of party, and nothing
more insane than the excommunication of a man, because he
differs on some one point from those with whom he is dis
posed generally to act.
Every section of a party is a Uttle disposed to act upon
the same principle, each expecting an impossible conformity
with its own views — impossible, because the views are
frequently contradictory. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
Drayton Manor, August 26th.
My dear Croker,
My absence from town is partly owing to the earnest and
repeated advice of Sir Henry Halford that I should leave it
on the ground of health ; partly to sheer mental fatigue, after
the life I led from tho day of my landing at Dover on the
10th of December last, up to the middle of August ; and
partly because I do not concur in the policy of the course
taken by the Lords with respect to the Corporation Bill.
Collision with the Commons was inevitable. It was in
evitable on a great principle, and a measure of great practical
importance — the Irish Church BUl. It was inevitable also,
so far as the refusal to entertain a measure at present was
concerned, on the Irish Corporation Bill.
Collision on the Irish Church Bill, from the importance

1835.] THE LORDS AND CORPORATION REFORM. 281
both of the principle it involved, and the practical conse
quences that must flow from the assertion of it, saved tho
honour of the Lords, manifested their independence, and
selected for the field of battle the best that could be chosen —
that on which the Conservative party in the Commons was
the strongest, the most united, the most in harmony with
Lord Stanley and his few adherents.
1 would not have provoked coUision — nay, I would have
done all I could to avoid it — on the Enghsh Corporation
BUl. At least, the last course I should have taken would
have been to receive evidence without intending to abide by
it, and to condemn altogether in debate the principle of the
BUl, and yet to adopt it.
Wliat is gained by it ? It proves that a vast majority of
the House is against the BUl, dissatisfied with the reports of
the Commissioners, desirous, fr they dare, to reject the BiU ;
and yet tho Bill is accepted, tho main essential principles
admitted ; but speeches made and amendments moved, which
speeches are not acted upon, and many of which amendments,
without taking any effectual security against danger, are just
sufficient to irritate, to afford the pretext for rejection, and to
keep the question unsettled.
Tho manner in which the BUl has boon treated in the
Lords, is more important than the changes made in it. Some
of the changes, that particularly of forcing by law — not the
whole of the existing aldermen or burgesses (for that rested
at least on some intelhgible principle), but forcing a fourth
of the body on the new CouncU — respecting vested interests
and self-election in the degree of one quarter of the whole
extent of the principle — are to me quite unaccountable.
But I look not to this or that amendment, not to this or.
that enactment of the BUl ; I look to results ; and if I do
not reject the BiU on principle, or on the ground of imperfect
evidence, I would, if possible, avoid a coUision on detaUs, or
at any rate I would confine amendments to those points on
which the same party in the House of Commons had offered
them, and would therefore continue to act in concert.
Another course has been taken. Do I personally complain
of it ? No. But I wiU not be necessarily made responsible
for the consequences of it.
I have a right to speak upon this point ; no right to
dictate to others what course they shaU take, no inclination
to complain if they take a different course from mine, but a

282 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XLX.
perfect right to say, " If you do take a different course, if
you disregard my advice, look to ulterior consequences ; con
sider, if no great principle bo involved, what may be the
bearing of your course upon stiU more important matters
than that to which it has immediate reference, and know
beforehand that I will not assume the responsibUity for acts
to which 1 am not a party, and of which I do not approve ? "
I went to London. I had two meetings with the Peers,
who were members of the late Government in the Lords. I
explained to them fully my views, my inability to be a party
beforehand to amendments in the Lords, going far beyond
the amendments which I had either moved or supported or
suggested in debate in the Commons. Under no circum
stances would I have done so ; in the position in which I
stood with regard to Lord Stanley on tho particular measure,
it was impossible with honour.
Another course being taken, I blamed no one, but cer
tainly believed that no pubhc interest could be advanced by
my remaining in London, when it was every day necessary
to consider the conduct of a line of policy in the Lords, to
which I was not an assenting party.
I believe that many of those who were parties to it viewed
with the utmost apprehension the possible result of it —
namely, the breaking up of the present Government on such
a question in the present state and relations of parties, and
in their relations to this particular question.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford.
West Moulsey, September 30th.
Peel is at last thoroughly — I will not sb.j frightened — but
convinced that the Revohition is inevitable, and talks of
resistance. I am by no means so loyal and stout. I hoar
that neither the Duke nor Lyndhurst, and particularly the
latter, are pleased with him. I have long thought that it
would bo impossible, and if possible, not desirable to keep'
an innovating Conservative party together. A Tory Oppo
sition is a contradiction in terms and spirit, and never can
last — an Opposition which does not outbid the Ministry for
popularity is a bubble.

1835.] WORKS ON THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. 283
Mr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
^ West Moulsey, October 7th.
My dear Peel,
I am glad you like Robespierre.* It is only an essay,
which you put me upon, and wliich I wrote at the seaside
without a single book but the ' Liste des Condamnes.' When
I came home I spent a couple of days in verifying, as far as
I could, my recollections ; but it is miserably short of what
it ought to have been, and even of what it would have been,
if I had written it at leisure and amidst my books.
You ask about the Revolutionary Library of the Athenwum.
They have, I beheve, Uttie but a few dupUcates, which I
gave them. If you mean the Museum, they have a noble
coUection of at least 50,000 separate publications, which are
arranged in about 4000 volumes or portfolios ; but they are
in three rooms, and there is no catalogue. Mr. Panizzi had
begun a catalogue, and had arranged and had bound about
one-third of the whole ; but tho Trustees took him off that
work; and when I went to the Museum the day before
yesterday to look at their ' Liste des Condamnes,' to verify
a name, they were obliged to show me into the room in
which the greater part of my gi-devant library is placed ; and
I was obhged to find it by my own recollection of the back.
Neither the hbrarian nor any one else alive but myself could
have found it ; and while I was looking for it Mr. Panizzi
was indexing a coUection of French farces, literally ; but I
must beg of you not to mention this, nor, indeed, to know it
— as a Trustee, for poor Panizzi, though he could not help
lotting me see what he was about, and lamenting that he
was not allowed to go on with the Revolutionary catalogue,
entreated me not to say anything about it, lest he should be
blamed by his colleagues and masters, one of whom you are.
I don't beheve there is, amongst all the Trustees, one single
person who ever visited the Museum for study, or even to
consult the hbrary ; nor, except Aberdeen and yourself, is
there any one who practically knows anything about the
requisites of such an institution. f
* [An article on Eobespierre, published in the Quarterly Review,
September 1835, No. 108.]
t [IMr. Croker's collection of books, pamphlets, and broadsides, relating
to the French Eevolution are now included in the " New General Cata
logue." Most of them have been carefully bound and lettered, and

284 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, October 26th, 1835.
My dear Croker,
I am very much embarrassed respecting the information
which you require on tho Corporation BiU. I could not give
it to you and be of any use to you, unless I should do it
accurately and in detail, nor give it without the assistance
of tho different copies of the BiUs and amendments which
Were made. All my printed papers of the last Session are
gone to be bound ; and I could not easUy, if at all, get them
out of the hands of the bookbinders.
I will, however, turn the matter over in my own mind,
and see what I can recoUect of what we proposed, what we
carried, and what we gave up. How soon do you require the
information ?
I am not surprised that Sir Robert Peel should be alarmed.
All that I hope for is, that the change in the position of the
country may be gradual, that it may be effected without
civil war, and may occasion as little sudden destruction of
individual interests and property as possible. We may all
by degrees take our respectivo stations in the new order of
things, and go on till future changes take place ad infinitum.
All that wiU result from such a state of things wUl be
shame and disgrace to the public men of the day. And I
confess that I, for one, look back with no satisfaction to the
events from the year 1830 to the present time. It is true
that I would have improved thom if I could ; but I am
not certain that the course which I took was the right one.
Believe me, ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
The next letter expresses in plain language the private
opinion of the Duke on some points in the character of his
great opponent Buonaparte. It is possible that Buonaparte
himself would not have been incUned to dispute the sub-

rendered easy of reference. The work is not complete, but it is far
advanced. The great interest and value of the collection are, however,
but little known. They were consulted by M. Louis Blanc]

1835.] WELLINGTON'S OPINION OF BUONAPARTE. 285
stantial accuracy of the Duke's judgment, for he always
maintained that a general — a French general at least — could
not afford to teU the truth about his campaigns. Prince
Mottornich records that when Napoleon was reproached one
day with the palpable falsities with which most of his
buUetins swarmed, he laughed and said, " Ce n'est pas pour
vous que je les ecris ; les Parisions croient tout, et je pourrais
leur center de bien autres choses encore, qu'ils ne se refuse-
raient pas a admettre." * His hatred of the Duke of
WeUington is well known; he would not even admit that
he had any mUitary talent. " Ah," he said one day to Las
Casas, at St. Helena, " qu'il doit un beau cierge au vieux
Blucher: sans celui-la je ne sais pas oil serait 8a Grace,
ainsi qu'ils I'appeUont ; mais moi, bien suremont, je ne serais
pas ici. ... La fortune a plus fait pour Im qu'U n'a fait
pour eUe." t Upon the whole, the verdict of WeUington is
that which the world has confirmed. Apethorpe, December 29th, 1835.
My dear Croker,
I have received your letter of the 26th of November. I
have not got here any means of refreshing my memory with
such detaUs as would be necessary in order to be of much
use to you. Buonaparte's whole life, civil, pohtical, and
mUitary, was a fraud. There was not a transaction, great or
smaU, in which lying and fraud were not introduced ; but
one must . have a perfect recollection of facts, and must be
enabled to correct one's memory by reference to documents,
in order to be able to write of thom with authority.
Of flagrant hos, the two most important in tho military
branch of his life that I can now recollect aro — first, the
expedition from Egypt into Syria, which totaUy failed, and
yet on his return to Egypt was represented to the army
there as a victory ; there were illuminations, &c.
The next was the battle of Preussisch Eylau. This he
• Mettemich's ' Memoires,' i. 282.
t ' Memorial de Sainte-Helene,' vii. 275-7.

286 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XIX.
represented as a great victory. It is true that the allied
army retired after the battle. So did Buonaparte. You will
find the details of the Syrian affair in Bourienne, where you
likewise find Buonaparte's lies about tho defeat of the fleet.
I cannot here tell whore you will find the details of the
affair of Preussisch Eylau. I should think that Spain would
afford you instances of fraud in his political schemes
and negotiations. CevaUos will give you the detaU of the
frauds by which King Ferdinand was coaxed into a depar
ture from Madrid, and afterwards from one town to another
by a fresh lie, tUl he arrived at Bayonne, where he was seized
as a traitor towards the Government of his father. In the
meantime St. Sebastian, Pampeluna, Figueras, Barcelona,
Spanish fortresses, were seized, each by some mihtary trick
or fraud, and held by the French troops tUl deprived by us.
Buonaparte's foreign policy was force and menace, aided by
fraud and corruption. If the fraud was discovered, force and
menace succeeded ; and in most cases the unfortunate victim
did not dare to avow that he perceived the fraud.
He tricked tho King of Spain, Charles IV., by the conces
sion of the kingdom of Etruria to his son-in-law. He after
wards forcibly deprived the said King in order to put in his
brother-in-law. In short, there is no end of the violence and
fraud of his proceedings.
I believe that the Government wUl meet Parhament. They
will go on as well as they can, as long as they can ; and I
believe that their majority wUl adhere to them.
In my opinion EUice has been called home in order to
enable them to reconcUe the Grey famUy, and possibly some
discontented Whigs and Radicals, to taking Brougham again
into office.
They wUl begin by a plan for the reform of the Judicature
in Chancery, the House of Lords, &c. They will appoint
Brougham Speaker of the House of Lords. In the meantime
the House of Lords will throw out their BUl. They wUl
then appoint him Lord Chancellor.
I don't think it wUl signify. We shaU only have to watch
the proceedings in the House of Lords a httle more closely.
We shall then have to contend with weakness and fraud,
instead of, as heretofore, with strength and fraud.
Believe me, ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.

( 287 )

CHAPTER XX.
1836-1838.
Mr. Croker's Literary Work in 1836 — Article on Wraxall's ' Memoirs ' —
Letters from Lord WeUesley and Lord St. Helen's — Lord Aberdeen on
WraxaU's Blunders — Sir Eobert Peel on Lord Stanley's Position —
Doubts as to his future Course — The Duke of WeUington on the
Stamp Act — Sir Eobert Peel as a Sportsman — Conversations with
the Duke of Wellington — The Battle of Talavera— The Eetreat from
Burgos — His Power of Sleeping at WiU — Opening of 1837 — Death of
WUliam IV. — First Appearance of the " Bedchamber Question " — Sir
Eobert Peel on the Functions of the Monarch — Two " Coincidences " —
Eetirement of Mr. Walter from Parliament — Sir Eobert Peel on Secular
Education — Mr. Croker's Correspondence with the King of Hanover
(Duke of Cumberland) — Lord Durham's Mission to Canada — The Duke
of Cumberland on English Politics — The Wellington Memorial at Hyde
Park — Disputes concerning a Site — The Duke on "Eheumatism"
and "Libels" — An Enquiry after Shakespearian Eelics at Wilton —
Mr. Sidney Herbert's Eeply — Lady Peel's Apiary— Sir E. Peel suggests
a Cyclopaedia of the Eevolution — His Eemarks on the State of the
Country — His Pictures at Drayton — Notes of a Visit to Lord Sidmouth
— Anecdotes of Burke, Pitt, &c.
No copies of Mr. Croker's letters during the year 1836 appear
to have been made ; or, if any were made, they have since
disappeared. Of his literary activity we have abundant
traces in the Quarterly Eeview, for which he wrote ten articles,
three of them on events in the French Revolution, three or
four on books of the season, and one only on EngUsh politics.
Having now no office work to make demands upon his time
or attention, and taking no active part in political affairs, he

288 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
devoted himself with greater assiduity than ever to the
Quarterly. " It reaUy is my life," he wrote to Mr. Murray,
in 1835 ; " I should stagnate without it." But he was seldom
without literary work of another kind in his mind's eye, and
at this particular period he appears to have been thinking
much of that long-acknowledged defect in EngUsh Uterature
— the want of a good dictionary. Mr. Murray had submitted
to him a few pages of a work which was intended to ffil up
the vacant place in the Englishman's library, and Mr. Croker
sent them back with a Uttle commentary of his own.*
Mr. Croker to Mr. Murray.
In every work of this kind there are two main considera
tions — the design and the execution. The distinctive design
of this dictionary seems two-fold; first, that on which
Scapula's Greek Lexicon is founded, of making rather a
dictionary of roots and famihes than of individual words.
Secondly, of tracing each root back to its etymological origin,
and forward to its various successive derivations and uses.
As our language has already so many and so copious word
books in strict alphabetical order, there can be no objection,
and there is a manifest advantage, in having one radicaUy
arranged, though it wiU often turn out that words wUl be
thus brought together which have really no other connection
than their alphabetical alliance, as, for instance, when Mr.
Burke's phrase " bottomless guK " is placed in the immediate
company of " bottomry — the mortgage of a ship," or " Lap
land witches bottle air " with Maiiow's " bottle-nosed knave."
But that is a trifling disadvantage, if it be one at aU. It
shows, however, that the arrangement by roots is not of such
great value as the author seems to think, for of what use can
it be to tell us that words of such dissimUar meaning have
wandered from the same origin ? It can only be, in most
cases, a matter of curiosity. But, as I have said, having
abundance of dictionaries in tho mere alphabetical form for
ordinary use, I should be glad to see one in the radical
arrangement for the benefit of philologists. This plan has
* The work referred to was ' Eichardson's English Dictionary.'

1836-1838.] AN ENGLISH DICTIONARY. 289
also the advantage of giving more of the history of the lan
guage, and the variations both of meaning and orthography,
than could be given under the strictly alphabetical plan,
without a vast deal of repetition and confusion.
So much for the general design. Now for the execution,
which, after all, is the main point ; for in works of this kind
the plan is mere matter of form, and the execution is reaUy
the substance, but the execution again has a two-fold aspect.
1st. The Uterary skUl. 2nd. Tho mode of exhibiting it. On
the first point I would not presume to speak without a much
deeper examination than I can give to the specimen you
have sent me, and without consulting authorities, I myself
being none. I wUl, however, venture to suggest one or two
points which have struck me. I find sometimes the Gothic
language referred to, and sometimes the Danish and the
Swedish, but I do not find, in the preface, any account of the
distinction between the " Gothic" and those languages which
1 have hitherto supposed to be nearest aUied to the " Gothic'
I observe very frequently the "Anglo-Saxon " quoted, which
in a dictionary of roots seems hardly sufficient ; for tho roots
should be traced either to the Angles or the Saxons ; and I
do not observe that there is any reference to the Angles, or,
what seems stUl stranger, to the Saxon, and I even observe in
one place (voce brine) that a distinction is made between
Anglo-Saxon and Old Enghsh. Perhaps in some introductory
chapter the author may have intended to explain and define
his terms ; but looking at the specimen before me, I cannot
discover why he caUs a particular word " Old English," while
every page contains twenty words just as old or older, which
are not so designated. I do not observe any reference either
to the Celtic or the Erse, which surely must have had some
influence on our language ; nor do I find any derivations
from the Eastern tongues — Hebrew, Syriac, Arabic. I am
weU aware how fanciful some such etymologies are, but the
author has admitted some etymologies from other languages
at least as fanciful, and some of our words are certainly
derived from Eastern roots, as for instance " abbot," " abbey,"
" alchemy," " algebra," &c., &c. But, I repeat it, of the
author's learning I should be, in any cfrcumstances, a most
incompetent judge ; but even the most competent would be
unwUUng to pronounce an opinion in so loose a way, and on
so smaU a specimen.
I now come to that part of the subject on which 1 am the
VOL. II. TJ

290 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
least reluctant to give an opinion — I moan the mode in which
the materials are arranged and employed ; and which is, after
all, the main point in a dictionary, for as the materials must
be, for the most part, borrowed from other books, the value of
the individual work consists : 1st, in tho copiousness of the
vocabulary and the faciUty with which every word can be
referred to ; 2nd, in the clearness and unity of the system of
etymology ; 3rd, in the clearness and precision of the defini
tions ; and 4th, of the judicious selection of the examples
given. Now, in all these points it seems to me, judging
from the specimen, that the author has a great deal to correct
before he can be said even to have executed his own declared
purpose. I shall give you a few examples from the pages
before me.
1st. In a dictionary radically arranged how does it happen
that " crown " and " coronation " are not found in the same
place, nor " crowner " and " coroner." Why are " cross,"
" cruciate," " crucify," ai^d " crutch " under four separate
heads ?
2nd. The etymologies seem to be presented to us without
system or much selection ; for instance : " Crown — Dut.
Kroon, Ger. Krone, Fb. Couronne, ItaL and Sp. Corona, Lat.
Corona." Now the derivation of all these is the Latin corona.
It may be useful to see, as in a polyglot, what crown is in all
those languages ; but its derivation is from the Latin corona,
and that itself is derived from the Greek Kopmvr). Again
under " cross, crucify, cruciate," &c., we have the French and
Spanish, and even some Latin derivations, but not the real
root of all, crux, which is to be found as the root of croisade,
which is mediately from the French croix. Again, eroisant
and crescent, why are not they stated to be, the first from the
French croitre, to grow, and the second from the Latin, crescens,
growing ? And why are not the languages always cited in
some settled order or on some principle ?
3rd. As to the definitions, sometimes none at all are given,
or you must infer them from the derivations ; as " cress,"
" crape," " broth," " both," " cow," &c. Sometimes the defini
tion is erroneous, as crapula, which is not " a giddiness of tho
head," but a sick headache, and is so to be understood in the
example given ; or " cubit," which is not merely the bend of the
arm, but also the elbow, and thence, its most common use, a
measure, and all the examples given are of the measure, which
is omitted from the definition. Of the chief use of " crest "

1836-1838.] AN ENGLISH DICTIONARY. 291
in relation to a helmet and armour, there is no mention in
the definition, and no mention of anything else in the
examples. 4th. The examples seem to have been selected with great
diligence and some taste ; and are certainly the best part of
the specimen, but they exhibit a groat want of order and
system. 1st. The examples do not follow the order of the
words and meaning — as, for instance, the word " cramp,"
which is first given as a verb, and secondly as a noun, and
thirdly as an adjective ; but the first example is given, not
of the verb, but the noun, and no example of the adjective.
2nd. They are repeated uselessly, as seven instances of the
noun " cramp " are given without the slightest variation of
one from another. Six examples of " crime " in the seKsame
sense are given ; four similar examples of " bridge ;" of
" bridle," the noun, five instances, and of " bridle," the verb,
as many as eight or nine. Most of these quotations are excel
lent, but in a dictionary are of little use, and they swell the
bulk enormously. It seems to me that one, or at most two,
examples of each distinct sense of the word would be enough,
and one example of each mode of speUing. As, for instance,
I woiUd have given one example of a bridge ; one or two olf
to bridge — bridging ; one of brugge ; and one of brigge — five
examples instead of ten.
This superabundance of examples is the greatest merit of
the specimen as a repertory of choice quotations, but it would
be a great, and I fear fatal difficulty in the work itself, which
it would carry to an inconvenient extent and bulk ; but more
over aU quotations should be made on some principle, and
that principle should be to give one or two of the best illus
trations of each meaning of a word, and no more. All after
is mere curiosity and amusement, and the dictionary becomes
a kind of Elegant Extracts.
These are my candid opinions on the specimen, and all
my objections may, I think, be reduced to one, namely, the
want of order and principle. The author should fix the order
in which, and the principle on which, each word and variation
of a word should be treated, and to that he should adhere.
I would advise him to give in all cases, as he does in most
words, the articles from Junius, Skinner, Minsheu, Cotgrave,
&c., in an abridged form, and with contracted marks; as,
instead of " Skinner suggests so and so," or " Cotgrave is of
opinion that," I would advise him to give the word from
u 2

292 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
Skinner or Cotgrave with Sk. or Cot., and no verbiage at all,
printing his own suggestions with some distinctive mark.
This would make it a dictionary of dictionaries.
I fear I have stated all this imperfectly and confusedly,
but you gave me a task which could not be done weU in my
present circumstances, and I am unwiUing to detain your
proofs any longer.
In an article on Wraxall's Posthumous Memoirs, published
in December 1836, Mr. Croker was materially assisted by
the Marquis Wellesley, who contributed many interesting
notes on his personal friend, WUliam Pitt. This communi
cation was printed by Mr. Croker as he received it, in the
pages of the Quarterly, and it is not, therefore, reproduced
here. Two other notes of Lord WeUesley's contained
anecdotes or facts which were only briefly referred to in the
article. The Marquis Wellesley to Mr. Croker.
I knew WraxaU only by sight. He was held in no
estimation. Before I came into Parliament he had made
a speech which obtained for him the title of "Travelhng
Tutor" to the House of Commons, and gained him the
honour of one of the Probationary Odes, in which he
declares : — " On Norway's foam, with nerves unshaken,
I saw the Sea-snake and the Kraken."
When Mr. Pitt recommended him to George Selwyn as
a candidate for Ludgershall, George Selwyn went about town
exclaiming : " Does anybody know who is this Eascall that
Mr. Pitt insists on my bringing in for Ludgershall ? I wish
Mr. Pitt could find some man with a more creditable name.
It is very hard on me to be forced to bring in a man who
calls himself Eascall." HurUngham, November 3rd, 1836.
My dear Sir,
In reply to your obhging letter of the 1st, I beg leave
to inform you that Lord GrenviUe (himself an exceUent

1836-1838.] WRAXALL'S MEMOIRS. 293
Grecian) has often told me that he considered Mr. I'itt to
be the best Greek scholar (not professional) of his time.
Mr. Pitt was perfect master of Demosthenes, of whose
orations I have repeatedly heard him recite whole pages,
dweUing on aU the grand bursts of thunder and Ughtntng.
You have hiiposod a most delightful task on me, which
I will undertake with aU tho zeal and ardour which the
warmest affection, admiration, and gratitude can inspire. It
wUl reqiure a little time to discharge such a duty (in any
adequate manner) to the memory of so transcendent a
character, and so cordiaUy beloved a friend. I think it had
best be attempted in a letter to you, to be published (if
deserving) with my name.
From the year 1784 down to 1797, I was constantly
in Mr. Pitt's society (with the interval of 1790 and 1791,
when I was in Italy for my health), and I never observed
Mr. WraxaU in that society. He may perhaps have been at
somo of the crowded Parhamentary dinners ; but we certainly
knew him only by name, and by his very ridiculous exhibi
tions in the House of Commons. His knowledge, therefore,
of Mr. Pitt must have boon coUected from the rumours of the
day, and from Mr. Pitt's appearance in Parliament.
The disputes between the Government of India and the
Nabob of Arcot had not commenced in Hastings's time, and
therefore the " Member for Arcot "* might have boon at liberty
to take Hastings's part. I do not remember any accusation
against Hastings of being connected with the corruptions of
the Nabob of Arcot's Durbar.
No person was more in Mr. Pitt's society or confidence
than Lord Harrowby, and I am certain that he would be
happy to lend his aid. If you are acquainted with him,
I recommend you to apply to liim ; if not, I wUl apply, if
you desfre it.
The Duchess Dowager (Countess) of Sutherland was the
great ornament of Mr. Pitt's society, and much admired by
him. I beheve her to be greatly attached to his memory.
I have frequently met her at Dundas's, at Wimbledon, and
have observed that she was delighted with Mr. Pitt's con
versation in his gayest hours. If you approve, I wUl wait
* [The " Member for Arcot " was a phrase applied to WraxaU, who " had
submitted to be brought into Parliament by the Nabob of Arcot, to
advocate his jobs, and had, even while affecting the character of a British
senator, accepted the ofSce of agent to Mohammed Ali." — Quarterly
Riview, vol. 57, p. 464.]

294 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX-
on her, and I will endeavour to obtain her testimony to this
proposition : " That a more social spirit, or a gayer heart
than Pitt's, never existed in the world."
I see you are with Sir Robert Peel. Pray present my
kindest regards to him. I was happy to hear at Windsor
Castle, where I passed the last week, that he had returned
from France in such good health and spirits.
Yours, my dear Sir, sincerely, Wellesley.
Another interesting letter was sent to Mr. Croker by Lord
St. Helens, then in his eighty-third year. This old diplomatist
was ambassador in Spain from 1789 to 1794, and had also
served in Russia and at tho Hague. From first to last, ho
was upwards of five-and-twenty years in the diplomatic ser
vice. He was Chief Secretary in Ireland (then Mr. AUeyne
Fitzherbert) from 1787 to 1789. Fortified by such authorities
as these, it may well be imagined that WraxaU's Memoirs
came forth in a much discredited state from Mr. Croker's
hands. The work has been repubhshed, but there has never
been any defence attempted of the incredible blunders exposed
by Mr. Croker. Grafton-street (Saturday), October 29th, 1836.
I shall feel great pleasure, my dear sir, in compljring with
your request, the more so, as I have been lamenting this
long suspension of our intercourse.
And, moreover, I am glad to learn that you have so
generously undertaken the uninviting task of exposing and
refuting this fresh outpouring from the late Sir W. WraxaU's
storehouse of calumnious impostures, since I am told that,
though certainly entitled to no better treatment than that of
silent contempt, it is in a fair way of reaching a second
edition. _ Such is the fames aceipitrina of the reading public
for gossip and scandal.
But a week or so must probably elapse before I can
transmit to you the remarks that occurred to me in looking
it through, because they were consigned to the margin of
a copy of the book which was lent to me by my friend

1836-1838.] WRAXALL'S MEMOIRS. 295
Sir John Osborn, and which I shall endeavour to got back ;
but am not sure as to the time, as he lives out of town.
I was but very slightly acquainted with the late Sir W. N.
WraxaU, but well remember my having met him one
morning at the late Lord Walsingham's, soon after the
pubhcation of his former memoirs, and my having pointed
out to him the utter incredibUity of some of the scandalous
stories which he had picked up abroad, and which, though
grossly injurious to the parties concerned, he had not
scrupled to set down, with the names at full length — an
expostulation which he seemed to take in good part, and
without attempting any reply, yet showing no signs of
contrition, but, on the contrary, exhibiting a certain air
of triumph ; hke a monkey, grinning and chattering over the
havoc wluch he has been committing in a china-closet.
Yours ever, my dear Sir,
Very sincerely, St. Helens.
Grafton-street (Wednesday), November 2nd, 1836.
My dear Sir,
The anecdote related by WraxaU concerning the Equerries
of King George III. is certainly true, though, as you rightly
suppose, they never dined at His Majesty's table when in
residence at Windsor. They had a table of their own,
denominated " Of the Equerries." But, being also that of
aU the male visitors at the Castle, it was served a full hour
later than that of their Royal Master. And, consequently,
it often happened that the good old King, who used to
dispatch his soUtary and scanty meal in a very short time,
had saUied forth on his afternoon's walk, ere his Equerry-in-
waiting, who was always summoned to attend him forthwith,
had had time to swaUow his soup. A most unwelcome
summons, therefore, as may well be supposed. And accord
ingly, I recoUect an instance of the kind, when the said
Equerry, a splenetic old General, afforded us a good laugh,
by saying, as he left the room, " WeU, thanks to Heaven,
my waiting wiU finish to-morrow, and I shall take care to
order two pounds of rump steaks for my dinner, and to be
two hours in eating it."
The late Mr. Joseph Ewart was a person of considerable
note in his day, having been Minister to the Court of Prussia
at a very important and stirring period, commencing with

296 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
the Dutch Counter- Revolution, accomplished by means of
a Prussian army, towards the end of 1787.
And, as respecting that mUitary expedition,, in the success
of which Great Britain was so deeply interested, I can
confidently say (having been at Berhn at the time, on my
way back from my first mission to Russia) that in all
likohhood it would not have been even undertaken, far less
completed, but for Mr. Ewart's strenuous exertions, and the
extraordinary degree of influence which he had acqufred over
some of the leading members of the Prussian Cabinet —
acquired, too, not by address or insinuation, but by a certain
peremptory, authoritative, and overbearing language, which
it was really quite diverting to witness, in a little raw, red-
haired Scotch youth, who was invested too at that time with
no higher character than that of charge d'affaires.
But he was uncommonly clever, and a perfect master of
the French and German languages, and had the advantage
of having married a daughter of one of the Prussian State
Ministers. He had afterwards a leading share in setthng
the terms of the peace between Austria and the Ottoman
Porte, concluded at Reichenbach in 1790, under the media
tion of England and Prussia. And, lastly, in 1791, he
planned and conducted the negotiation, wliich in its issue
was so fatal to himself, being that of our engagement with
Prussia for enforcing, by means of a joint armament, the
acceptance of our proffered joint mediation of a peace
between Russia and Turkey — a favourite measure also with
Mr. Pitt, but which ho was ultimately forced to abandon,
partly by the disapprobation and falUng off of many of his
own friends and supporters in the House of Commons, and
partly by the fractious, not to say treasonable, manoeuvres
conducted without doors, by a certain late celebrated leader
of the Opposition party, through the means of a certain indi
vidual who is still living. And the effects of this disappoint
ment preyed so deeply and severely on poor Ewart's fiery and
irritable feelings and temper, that it actually turned his brain,
and he died before the end of the year (if 1 rightly remember),
at an early age, in a state of absolute insanity.
A warning to all over-eager politicians, to which class
I cannot be said to belong, having nearly completed my
eighty-fourth year, after having sustained many much harder
rubs in the course of my long diplomatical career.
* [Compare with this account of Mr. Ewart the statements in the
Memoirs of Sir J. Bland Burges, pp. 145-146 and 181-2.]

1830-1838.] WRAXALL'S MEMOIRS. 297
I send you these particulars, my dear sir, in reply to your
two especial queries, en attendant the transcript of my
marginal annotations, because, notwithstanding what you
are so obligingly pleased to say as to the sujiposed unabated
vigour of my inteUectual faculties, they are in truth most
wofiUly on the dechne — a few pages of this 12mo size being
the very utmost that I can achieve, and that only when
in the vein ; so that there is not much Ukelihood of my
troubhng my neighbour with any packet beyond Post-office
weight. Most sincerely yours, St. Helens.
One other letter on the same subject may be given, from
Lord Aberdeen, afterwards Prime Minister.
The Earl of Aberdeen to Mr. Croker.
Haddo House, Aberdeen, October 30th, 1836.
My dear Croker,
The subject of your letter is certainly rather delicate, but
I write to you without any hesitation or difficulty, and
I think that I am able to give you all the information which
the nature of the case admits of. I have road with indigna
tion the statements to which you refer. WraxaU insinuates
that Mr. Pitt received money from Lord Abercorn, both for
making bim a Marquis, and for obtaining the precedence of
an Earl's daughter for his cousin. Miss Hamilton. If
Mr. Pitt received money for one, he certainly might have
done so for both these favors ; but, in truth, they are both
to be accounted for in the same manner, if, indeed, they
require any explanation at all. To those who know Lord
Abercorn and Mr. Pitt, it must appear equally impossible
that the one should offer, or the other receive, money for any
such purpose.
The great affection entertained by Mr. Pitt for Lord
Abercorn is by no means generaUy known. The intimacy
commenced at Cambridge, where they were together at the
same smaU coUege ; and notwithstanding the difference of
their pursuits, it continued through life. Mr. Pitt had the
very highest opinion of Lord Abercorn's talents, which he
expressed on aU occasions. You may possibly be aware of

298 TIIE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
my opportunities of early intercourse with Mr. Pitt. He
died in less than a year after my connection with the
Abercorn famUy, but he has frequently spoken to myself in
such terms of Lord Abercorn as it would be difficult to
exaggerate. I know that on one occasion he said to Mr.
WUberforce, as an early friend of both, that if Lord Abercorn
had chosen to take to public life, " as a speaker, he would
have beaten us all."
With these opinions, and with his early affection undimi
nished, it is not surprising that he should have done every
thing in his power to gratify Lord Abercorn's wishes. So
early as the year 1786, Lord Abercorn, at that time
Mr. Hamilton, obtained for his uncle, who was only a Scotch
Peer, the rank of an English Viscount. After succeeding to
his uncle's title and estate. Lord Abercorn's pretensions
to the rank of Marquis, I apprehend, were equal, if not
superior, to those of any other person. He was the male
representative of the Hamilton family, as may be learnt
from all the Peerage-books, and as WraxaU himself mentions.
It is doubtful whether he might not have made good his
claim to several of the HamUton titles ; at least I am in
possession of the very elaborate opinions of eminent Scotch
counsel, decidedly affirming his right to the Marquisate of
Hamilton, the Earldom of Arran, and to various ancient
Baronies of the famUy. Such a position, in addition to his
large fortune, and personal talents, rendered his creation as
a Marquis simple enough. But the pretensions of Lord
Abercorn were much higher than a Marquisate, and these
were fully admitted by Mr. Pitt. I have seen a letter from
Mr. Pitt to Lord Abercorn, and which is still in existence,
in which he gives his reasons for not making him a Duke,*
and employs various arguments to induce him to accept the
rank of Marquis, which it appears that he was reluctant
to do. Mr. Pitt assures him that it shaU be a step to the
Dukedom, and refers to the only obstacle which prevents his
having the higher rank at that time. The obstacle alluded
to was the promise made by George III. to the late Marquis
of Buckingham, that no Duke should be created without his
elevation. As the King subsequently repented of this
promise, he determined to make no Dukes at all — a resolu
tion to which he adhered to the end of his reign. In all
this, Mr. Pitt exhibits the anxiety of a friend to gratify his
* [The title of Duke was conferred upon his grandson in 1868.]

1836-1838.] LORD ABERCORN AND PITT. 299
own quite as much as Lord Abercorn's wishes, by conferring
the Dukedom. The stylo is far enough removed liom the
notion of any bargain or sale. I have often heard Lord
Abercorn refer to this subject, always doing justice to tho
warm friendship of Mr. Pitt, but always greatly undervaluing
the rank which he actually possessed.
As some proof of the great personal influence Lord Aber
corn was supposed to possess with Mr. Pitt, I may mention
that when some one asked how he came to be created
a Marquis, a mutual friend, who knew them both well,
rephed : " It is weU he did not wish to be Emperor of
Germany, for Pitt would certainly have done his best to
make him so." This was just about the time of the death
of the Emperor Joseph.
The precedence of an Earl's daughter given to Miss
HamUton was certainly a more unusual and loss accountable
act ; but I have not the least doubt in the world that, so far
as Mr. Pitt is concerned, everything is to be explained in
the same manner. If a bargain was made, it must have
been truly expeditious, for the rank was conferred in about
a fortnight after the death of Lord Abercorn's uncle, whom
he succeeded ; before which time, he was in no condition to
bribe a Prime Minister, or any one else. This was about
two years before he was made a Marquis.
Lord Abercorn has occasionally mentioned this subject to
me ; and of all the men I have ever known in my life, his
regard for truth was the most strict and scrupulous. The
desfre on his part may perhaps appear extraordinary ; but
Miss Hamilton was by birth an Earl's grand-daughter, and
his own first cousin. She was living as an inmate in his
famUy ; and although she was greatly admfr'od and beloved,
of course he had not the most distant conception of ever
marrying her ; his own wife being then ahve, and not having
died untU two years afterwards. I know that he subse
quently regretted having made this request ; but this regret
was in consequence of the unhappy termination of his
connection with Lady CecU. I believe it is true that tho
King was at ifrst reluctant to comply with the proposal of
granting the precedence, not from its being unusual, or
improper in itself, but because he gave some credit to the
report which prevailed, that an intimate personal connection
already existed between the parties. Mr. Pitt, who knew
Lord Abercorn's truth as well as I did, was perfectly satisfied

300 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
that this was not the case, and accordingly pressed the
inatter still more earnestly with the King. My impression
is, that if this report had not existed, the precedence would
never have been asked for.
Having said so much about Lord Abercorn, I will now
say a few words respecting WraxaU's insinuation as it affects
Lord Carrington. You are aware that Mr. Pitt has often
been reproached for having been too prodigal of peerages,
and Lord Carrington's has often boon referred to especially,
as introducing into the House of Lords a new description
of person. I never heard Mr. Pitt speak on this subject
himself, but I have heard the late Lord Melville say that
Mr. Pitt always defended this creation on principle, and that
he maintained the time was come when, for the sake of the
House of Lords itself, it was desirable that it should not be
closed against commercial eminence, any more than other
well-founded pretensions. No doubt Lord Carrington's
political support was valuable to Mr. Pitt, and ho had also
a personal regard for the individual himself.
Ever, my dear Croker,
Most sincerely yours, Aberdeen.
The session of 1836 was comparatively uneventful, for
the Tory party was gathering up its strength for future
struggles, and the Whigs and Radicals wore disposed to take
a little repose before exploring stiU further the wide fields of
reform. Sir Robert Peel was intently studying the position,
and considering well the men who were likely afterwards to
be of use to him on tho one hand, or perhaps a source of
danger on the other. No one gave him more uneasiness than
Lord Stanley (Derby), whose power in debate had already
caused all eyes to be turned towards him, and whose assist
ance Peel had so much coveted, and coveted in vain, in his
first efforts to form a Ministry. " What will Stanley do ? "
was evidently a question which was always uppermost in
his mind at this period. It was certain, as it seemed to him.

1836-1838.] SIR ROBERT PEEL'S FORECASTS. 301
that Lord Stanley would not join Lord Melbourne, but it was
almost as unlikely that he would act with the Tory party.
No reader will need now to be reminded that when the time
came for Sir Robert Peel to frame another Administration,
on much more solid foundations than his first. Lord Stanley
accepted office as Colonial Secretary, and remained in it
untU the new poUcy on the Corn Laws drove him, with so
many others, from Peel's side.
Sir Eobert Fed to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, January 12th, 1836.
My dear Croker,
Your letter * puzzles me ; parts of it at least.
I never heard of this pamphlet of which you speak, that is
attributed to Lord Holland. Is the name of it ' Parliamentary
Talk' ? I see a pamphlet advertised by that name, but, profit
ing by your successful example, I have directed application
to be mado for Lord HoUand's pamphlet.
What simplicity and ignorance there is in a country life !
You wiU think such stupidity little calculated to give any
hints for an article. I should have thought one on the House
of Lords, and the necessity of maintaining its privileges and
independence, very appropriate to the time. It would open
the whole question of the movement ; the tendency of one
change to beget another, less from any necessity than from
sheer restlessness, or, more probably,from the faUure ofthe first
change ; the unwUlingness to admit that faUure, or the desire
to account for it on the ground that it was not carried far
enough, and that there must be a second revolution to grease
the clogged wheels of the first.
Shall we have an amendment to the Address ? And if so,
what shall it be ?
These are two grave questions which press for deliberate
consideration, which cannot be disposed of in the fiippant
way that most of my correspondents dispose of them ; aU
those who look on a party as a pack of hounds which must
have blood, or, at any rate, must not be brought to the cover
side without the certainty of a run.
* [The letter referred to is not now to be found.]

302 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
The amendment is the bag-fox, to guard against the possi
bUity of disappointment.
I do not disregard altogether their views. It is important
to keep a party in wind ; but in these times the points on
which amendments — amendments as indications of principle
— must turn, are too important to be treated even hke wUd
foxes, let alone (as Burdett has it) bags.
Ffrst, wUl Stanley and Co. (the firm I apprehend is
diminishing in numbers) support any amendment ? I doubt
it. An amendment is a movement in advance ; at least a
preconcerted amendment is. There may be, I think there
probably will be, some passage in the Address to which we
cannot assent. Perhaps Stanley cannot. But there is a
material distinction between an unavoidable, unpremeditated
protest against opinions to which you cannot subscribe, and
a premeditated amendment to an address, the purport of
which is unknown.
The one is a necessary act of self-defence ; the other
an offensive and, almost necessarUy, a party proceeding.
Acquiescence in the latter, concerted acquiescence at least,
implies party union. Stanley's junction with Lord Melbourne
may bo impossible. I have no reason to think his junction
with the Conservative body, I mean avowed and decided
junction with thom as a party, much more probable.
Suppose an amendment were moved embodpng his own
sentiments on the Irish Church, and nothing more, how easUy
he might dechne joining in it. He might say, " I am ready to
unite in defence of the Church. I shall be forced to unite,
but I think the position of resistance more favourable than
that of attack. I wUl not march out of the entrenchments
with you." He might also say, and probably would, if his
incUnations are what I suspect them to be, " This is a rash
and unwise proceeding. It is converting a great question
of public principle, on which men of different political
convictions in other respects are agreed, into a mere instru
ment of party attack. It is acting over this session, by
Conservative performers, the successful but disgraceful drama
of the last, in which Whig automata, moved by Radical
wires, dressed and walked the parts. I cannot be a party to
the proceeding."
We thus lose Stanley. It may be said, if the bond of union
is so very weak, it must very soon be severed ; and the remark
is just. But would it not be better that it should be severed by

1836-1838.] THE HOUSE OF LORDS. 303
an act of his than by an act of ours, unless for that act there
be a clear and intelligible necessity ?
I am not meaning to argue against, at least not to decide
against, an amendment, but scribbUng on carelessly.^ I may
assume unconsciously the appearance of a decided advocate
for one or other course.
We must not carry complaisance for Stanley too far. If
he is not with us or inclined to be, it will be of no avail. Let
us make the declarations of principle, at the time, and in the
manner we think bona-fide best calculated to serve, not party,
but the public interests, and let others agree in them or dis
sent from them as they please.
My own present impression is (assuming that there ought
to be an amendment) that one in support of the House of
Lords would be the best.
There is ground for it in the hostile notices on the book
of the House of Commons, and in the open menaces of
members of Parliament in the confidence of the King's
Government. Lord John RusseU professes to bo with us in defence of the
Lords. WiU he vote with us ? If he does, we divide pro hae
mce the Government party. If he does not, he agrees in the
sentiment, and can only justify opposition to it on some
questions of fitness of time or form.
But, on the other hand, wo may, and probably shall, appear
by a voluntary and gratuitous act of our own to put the
House of Lords, its privUeges and authority, in an actual
minority of the House of Commons.
People judge, not by speeches and explanations, but by
actual numbers on a division. The question at issue in
debate would not be the maintenance of the House of Lords
as at present constituted, but five people out of six would
only read tho purport of the amendment, see that it was nega
tived, and beheve that the division took place on the main
question. Now see the effect of ventilating, as Sir Charles says, any
revolutionary proposal. It sounds preposterous at first, but
it is wonderful how soon repeated discussion familiarises the
public to the proposal, and takes off the edge of their anti
pathy to it.
The plausible, superficial arguments, intelligible to super
ficial minds, are perhaps apparently in favour of the sugges
tion, and silence in matters of faith is sometimes better than

304 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
argument, even where argument to a patient, and deliberate,
and impartial mind is conclusive.
Now is it wise in us to provoke lengthened discussion on
the existence of the House of Lords as a constituent branch
of the Legislature, and to provoke it with a tolerable cer
tainty of defeat ? Or, on the other hand, do we diminish the
danger if it be real by confronting it at once, by declaring that
we wUl not, so far as we are concerned, tolerate the insertion
on our pages of menacing and insulting notices directed
against the Lords ?
That we will force the Government into a declaration of
sentiments, it being better to have their shuffling excuses, or
even their open and avowed hostiUty to the Lords, than
a treacherous silence, and apparent acquiescence with the
Roebucks and O'ConneUs ? What think you of aU this ?
Ever affectionately,
R. P.
WhitehaU, April 14th, 1837.
My dear Croker,
The real state of affairs I apprehend to be this.
The Government was dying to die, and looking out for the
rope by which they might most gracefully terminate thefr
existence. Advice of dissolution, and that advice rejected, was their
chief resource.
You never saw men so confounded as they were, at being
taunted, not with pertinacious adherence to office, but the
contemplation of its cowardly abandonment. Thefr course
has been changed.
I told them distinctly that they were scared by the dangers
which threatened the country, and were preparing to run
away. It is not surprising that it should be difficult to keep them
where they are. If one wicket is opened, if one old ram
escapes, the rest will follow in a herd like the frightened
bullocks at Ballinasloe fair.
Take last night, for instance, as a specimen of their
sufferings. We had about a dozen notices of motion given by Radicals,
which they must oppose, which they could not successfully
oppose without our support.

1836-1838.] DIFFICULT POSITION OF PARTIES. 305
Among the rest : one by Roebuck and Wakeloy for repeal
of the Penny Stamp.
One by Codrington for revising naval dismissals of half-pay
officers. One by Hume for Household Suffrage.
To-night we have Canada, we supporting, the Radicals
violently opposing, the Government. We are, in short, in
this state of things.
All the convictions and inclinations ofthe Government are
with their Conservative opponents.
Half thefr actions and aU their speeches are with the
Radicals. M^ 'yevoiTo indeed ! but, alas, what is the alternative ?
Their remaining, after a crisis, and our acquiescence in their
measures. For why oppose if you will not abide by the
result, when there is no point of honour to forbid it ?
Ever affectionately yours,
P.P.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, August 12th, 1836.
My dear Croker,
Things are taking their course. We had last night a free
conference with the House of Commons.* Nothing could be
more ridiculous than the whole proceeding ; but in due time
it vsoll produce its mischief ; particularly as we have nobody
in the House of Commons to expose the folly, inconsistency,
and wickedness of such proceedings.
I quite agree with you about the Stamp Act.f But what
can you do when leading men in the House of Lords connect
themselves with the gentlemen of the Press ? They cannot
leave them in the lurch ; at least, they will not.
I must protect those who support the good cause in the
House of Lords or give it up. But I am tired of the trade.
Beheve me ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.
* [On the Appropriation Clause of the Irish Tithe BiU. The whole
BiU was afterwards dropped.]
t [By which the Newspaper Duty was reduced from fourpence to
one penny. Mr. Spring Eice was Chancellor of the Exchequer.]
vol. il X

306 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Longshawe Lodge,"" Bakewell, August 13th, 1837.
My dear Croker,
Being tired of trying what repose would do as a remedy
for sciatica, and having, in fact, exhausted all other pre
scriptions, I bethought me of grouse shooting, came here
to dinner on the llth, and took the field yesterday, if that
can be called field, which is made up of tremendous rocks, bog-
holes, and everything else formidable to an inflamed nerve.
With the aid of a pony which Sir Richard Sutton lent me,
I killed thirteen and a-half brace of grouse, got twice wet
through in a deluge of rain, went to bed quite lame, and
awoke more free from lameness than I have been the last
three months. So puzzUng are speculations about disorders
and their remedies.
I am certain Brodie would have pronounced me insane if
he had seen me wet through, stumbUng over great stones
concealed by heather three or four feet high.
I propose that you should come to Drayton with FoUett
to dinner on Saturday the 9th of September, and stay tUl
Monday the 18th, or as much longer as you please.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
In the early part of 1837, Mr. Croker was once more a
guest of the Duke of WeUington at Strathfieldsaye, and
occasionaUy he resumed his habit of making notes of any
thing interesting which occurred in the course of conversa
tion. The Duke appears to have been induced to talk more
than was usual with him of incidents in his own campaigns.
Memorandum by Mr. Croker.
The Duke. When I advanced upon Burgos the second time,
and had taken my measures for driving back all the French
posts and attacking the place, I was very much surprised by
a loud explosion ; they had blown up Burgos.
"* [The Derbyshire shooting-box of the Duke of Rutland.]

1836-1838.] TIIE DUKE'S CAMPAIGNS. 307
Garwood. Did they not blow it up rather too soon, sir ?
Duke. Why, yes ; we wore even told that there was a
whole battahon which in their hurry they blew up with the
place. When I heard and saw this explosion (for I was
within a few miles, and tho effect was tremendous), I made
a sudden resolution forthwith — instanter to cvbss the Ebro,
and endeavour to push the French to the Pyrenees. We had
heard of the Battles of Lutzen and Bautzen and of the
armistice, and the affairs of the allies looked very ill. Some
of my officers (he said, I think, including the two next in
command) remonstrated with me about the imprudence of
crossing the Ebro, and advised mo to take up the line of the
Ebro, &c. I asked thom what they meant by taking up the
Une of the Ebro, a river 300 mUes long, and what good I was
to do along that line ? In short, I would not listen to the
advice ; and that very evening (or the very next morning) I
crossed the river and pushed the French till I afterwards
beat them at Vittoria. And lucky it was that I did so, for the
battle of Vittoria induced the allies to denounce tho armistice,
and then foUowed Leipsic and aU the rest. The way it
reached the aUies, who — that is, the Emperor of Russia and
King of Prussia, and Count Stadion on the part of Austria —
were in a chateau in Silesia, was this : Buonaparte was at
Dresden when the account of the battle reached him in an
extraordinary short space of time, and ho immediately
resolved to send Soult to take the command in Spain
(Buonaparte telhng Bubna, c'est la meilleure tete militaire que
nous avons). Bubna soon after found out the extent of the
victory, and as the armistice was on the point of expiring, he
sent off a secret messenger to Stadion, who arrived at the
chateau in Silesia in the middle of the night. Stadion, as
soon as he had read the letter, went immediately along the
corridors of the chateau, knocking at the doors of the King
and ministers, and calling them all to get up, for he had great
news from Spain. They soon assembled, and seeing that it
was a blow that in all probabihty would free Spain, they
resolved on their part to denounce the armistice.
Massena and Soult.
Croker. You thought Massena their " meilleure tete
militaire " ?
Duke. Yes, I did. While he was opposed to me I never
X 2

308 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
could make an attempt on his Une but I was sure to find
him in force opposite to me. I should say, as far as my own
experience goes, that he was thefr best.
Croker. What sort of man is Soult ?
Duke. A taUish man, and stout — something in size and air
Uke Beresford — bow-legged — indeed, one of his legs is com
pletely bowed by a wound, so that he makes a kind of roll
in walking.
Gurwood. He is very much shrunk of late. I saw him this
year in Paris, and he was so much diminished in height and
bulk that I could hardly believe that it was the same man.
The Battle of Salamanca.
Croker. What do you say about Marmont and the battle of
Salamanca ?
D^lke. Why, Buonaparte was furious against him, and it
certainly seems that he ought to have waited for the re
inforcements under Joseph, which would have so much
increased his army ; but as to tho battle itself, I saw not
much to criticise beyond his having spread himself too much
in endeavouring to get round me. Buonaparte was, as I told
you, in a furious rage at first, but when he received our
gazette with my account of the battle, he said : " This is
true ; I am sure this is a true account, and Marmont, after
all, is not so much to blame ; " and he restored him, or pre
tended to restore him, to favour. This I was told by Barbedel
(the Bayonne banker, a kind of partner of Perrigaux, and
Madame Marmont's father), who dined with me long after at
St. Jean de Luz, and surprised me very much by teUing me,
with true French civihty, that I had done Marmont an
essential service. I thought I had done quite the contrary ;
and asked how ? " Why," replied he, " by writing that
dispatch, which was so honest and clear that Buonaparte saw
the thing in its real light and forgave Marmont."
A Narrow Escape.
My general order after the retreat from Burgos was
much complained of — I'U give you one instance of the conduct
which I was forced to censure. During that retreat, I was
with two divisions of the army — Sir W. Stuart's and Lowry
Cole's ; the French were following me in force, and I was in con
siderable apprehension that they would turn me and get into

1836-1838.] A NARROW ESCAPE. 309
the rear, and perhaps take those two divisions. At the ond
of a day's march I halted these divisions on a high road, and
ordered Stuart and Cole to march by daylight along the same
liigh road to a Uttle village two mUes forward, whither I was
going to sleep as more central. Stuart, on receiving my order
said, " Sir, don't you think wo had better march so and so," a
direction which, he said, was a short cut, and would save
time and fatigue. I told him no, and that that route was not
practicable ; that there was a river in tho way ; that 1 desired
him to come along the high road, and to march along that till
ho had further orders. So I went on to the village, did my
other business, and went to bed ; but I was very uneasy, for
the French had a great superiority of force at this point, and
our situation was exceedingly ticklish ; so I was up again before
day, and kept looking out and listening for the advance of the
two di^dsiohs ; but half-hour after half-hour elapsed and they
did not appear. I became very anxious, for I had left thom but
two mUes off ; so I rode back in somo alarm, which was not
diminished when I could see nothing of my army, nor could I
guess whore they were gone. So I pushed on my recon
naissance towards the enemy, and whether they had recognized
me personaUy and thought I was advancing to attack them,
or from whatever motive, I can't teU; but I was delighted to find
that they wore not pressing after us, but seemed rather concen
trating themselves. This was quite a rehef to me, and I set out
again to look for my divisions, which I found had taken the
route proposed by Stuart and forbidden by mo tho night before ;
and they were brought to a full stop by a deep little river
which they could not get over, and which I had mentioned to
Stuart when I rejected his proposal to take this route. If the
French had known our circumstances they might have caught
those two divisions in this trap, and tho whole army would
have been, in consequence, frretrievably lost. Stuart knew
nothing of the country, and, above all, of this river, and, it
seems, did not believe what I had told him about it. These
sort of things, of which no one but the general can guess the
mischief, obhge him to say and do things that to bystanders
and critics may seem harsh.
The Power of Sleeping at Will.
Wednesday 18th (at breakfast). The Duke had hunted
yesterday, and had ridden above fifty miles (at. 68). Gurwood

310 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
hoped he had slept well after his long ride. This brought on
some talk about sleep. I said that I behoved the power of
sleeping at wiU went further towards making a great statesman
or general than was commonly supposed, for without that
power tho mind would wear itself out ; and the greater the
genius the quicker it would go, if not duly repaired by sleep.
I instanced Buonaparte and Mr. Pitt, as having the power
of going to sleep at wUl, and Mr. Perceval.
Gurwood. Sir, you can sleep when you will. Did you not
sleep during the battle of Talavera ?
Duke. Oh, I know what you mean. I had a nap before the
battle, but it was thus. I had appointed to meet Cuesta at a
redoubt between our two armies, in order to concert our
operations. Cuesta did not come at the appointed time, and
I lay down tn my cloak and slept tUl he came. Once when
I had advanced with a couple of divisions close to the enemy
in the neighbourhood of Salamanca (not at the time of the
great battle), the French army was manoeuvring, and I was
tired and not sure but that I should be obliged to bring them
to action, so I had a mind to get a little rest while I could.
So I pointed out one of the enemy's corps to my staff, and
told them that that corps was going in such a direction, and
would be seen by-and-bye on such a point of the horizon,
and I desired that when they should be soon there I should
be called ; and I then wrapped myself up in my cloak and
slept soundly until I was called and told that the French
had reached the designated point. I luckily have the power,
very generally, of going to sleep when I please.
Charles the Tenth.
January 20th. I was once going with Charles X. to shoot at
Vincennes with the Duke of Fitzjames ; as we passed through
tho Rue de la Ferroniere, Charles X. pointed to the spot
where, he said, Henry IV. had been kUled ; this brought on a
conversation between them about Henry IV., who changed his
rehgion to preserve his crown, and James IL, who lost his
crown to preserve his religion. Charles insisted on it that
Henry had done woU, and the Duke insisted that James had
done still better. You may judge that I did not enter into
the dispute, which, however, soon ended in the common
accord of tho parties, that as both the courses ended in the
glorification of the Roman Catholic faith, both the monarchs

1836-1838.] EPIDEMIC OF INFLUENZA. 311
were objects of veueratiou. In the meanwhile it never
occurred to either of these poUte gentlemen that a Protestant
gentleman, the representative of tho Protestant King of
England, was in the carriage with them. Charles talked with
so warm a bigotry on the duty of restoring the privileges of
the Church, that I could not help thinking to myself that he
was very likely to do something that might lose, or at least
risk, his crown.

Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. Extract.
West Moulsey, February 8th, 1837.
Our influenza, which hills nobody, continues somehow to
people the churchyards. Last Sunday there were between
eighty and ninety funerals in the little church near you in
Regent's Park, and as many in proportion in aU the other
churches tn town. In Dublin, on the same day, there were
1000 burials. Of course you know that you have lost your
uncle. Lord WUham. They had persuaded him some months
ago to give up his peripatetic hfe, and to fix himself in
lodgings at Egham, whore he diod last week and was buried
on Monday. You have hoard also of old MitcheU ? Some
one at White's said, " 1 am sorry for poor Mitchell ; but it is
a kind of consolation to think one wiU never be obliged to
dine with him again." Our old friend Lady Cork is also gone,
and leaves one something of the same kind of consolation.
In pohtics I hardly know what our state is. The Duke
and Stanley met for the first time at Peel's on Tuesday, to
consult and concert, and it was aU very cordial ; Stanley and
Peel sit together as closely as Peel and I used to do — I hope
with better auspices. The Conservatives certainly gain
ground in England and Scotland, and the Renfrew and
Evesham elections have had a good deal of effect, enough, I
think, to deter Ministers from a dissolution. But they have
some internal difficulties in addition to those that every
one sees.
On the 20th of June, WiUiam IV. diod. Queen Victoria
ascended the throne, and in the following month Parliament
was dissolved. Between February and August there are no
letters from Mr. Croker of any public interest ; but of letters

312 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
written to him, a few have been preserved, and among them
are two or three of Sir Robert Peel's. Mr. Croker's letter of
the 15th of August foreshadows the beginning of a con
troversy which was destined two years later to assume, for a
brief period, the proportions of a question of almost European
importance — the portentous "Bedchamber Question," now
lying deep beneath the ashes of extinct controversies, but
possessing vitality enough in its day to stir hot strife among
all sections of parties. In the Quarterly Eeview for July
1837, Mr. Croker appears to have been the first to indicate
the importance which this dispute was likely to attain. The
facts are too weU known to need recounting at any length.
Lord Melbourne had placed in personal attendance upon the
young Queen — then, it wUl be remembered, just past her
eighteenth year — a number of ladies who were nearly related
to his colleagues, the wives, sisters, and other near relations
of the Cabinet Ministers. The impoUcy of this proceeding
was urged by Mr. Croker, but the Queen was satisfied with
existing arrangements, and did not desire to change them^
The question, however, did not become serious tUl 1839. At
this time (July 1837) Mr. Croker dealt with the general
circumstances : —
"But though we express this confidence in Lord Mel
bourne's fidelity to Her Majesty's essential interests, there
are some points on which, we confess, we think the country
has already had reason to complain, and of which it has
complained. We mean the decided political bias, and the
marked political position, of some of the ladies selected to
compose Her Majesty's household. It would bo absurd to
complain of the household appointments being of the same
political colour as the Ministry itself— they should m
general be so. Tho men may be reasonably expected to vote
with the King's Government, and the ladies to be of tho
same class and connection ; but there has been in all times a
marked difference between that party eagerness, that flagrant
zeal, which may be pardoned in those who are exposed to

1836-1838.] TIIE BEDCHAMBER QUESTION. 313
political conflict, and the more moderate and measured de
portment desirable in those who form the private society of
the Sovereign — who, it must never be forgotten, is not the
Sovereign of one party, but of all — who expects to see at his
or her court the various shades of political opinion testifying
ono common sentiment of respect for the station, and affection
for the person, of the monarch. But this intercourse and
interchange of courtesy and duty can never be as free and
impartial as it ought to be, if the constant and inevitable
attendants on the Court aro to bo hot, and therefore offensive
partisans. Wo know to what unhappy and scandalous scenes
a departure from this wholesome understanding gave rise in
former reigns, and we trust there is no danger of their being
repeated ; but we must say that tho appointment of the
wives and daughters of Cabinet Ministers to household
offices is, on these as well as on other accounts, highly
objectionable. The first in rank of those attendants is the
daughter of one, and the sister of another Cabinet Minister;
the second is the wife of the Lord President of the Council ;
a third and fourth, and, wo behove, half a dozen more, are
daughters * of the Lord Privy Seal, the ChanceUor of the
Exchequer, and their political colleagues. It is impossible
to make the shghtest objection to the personal character of
any one of these ladies ; but we do say that the accumulation
of political and household offices in tho same famUy is liable
to serious inconveniences. It is neither constitutional in
principle, nor convenient or becoming in practice, that the
Sovereign should bo enclosed within the circumvaUation of
any particular sot, however respectable — that in the hours of
business or amusement, in pubhc or in private, she should
see only the repetition of the same family faces, and hear
no sound but the different modulations of the same famUy
voices ; and that the private comfort of the Queen's interior
hfe should be, as it inevitably must, additionally exposed to
the fluctuations of pohtical change, or what is stUl worse —
that pohtical changes should be either produced or prevented
by private favour or personal attachments. Tho Sovereign
should not be reduced to such a state of unconstitutional
dilemma as not to be able to change the Ministry without
also changing tho Mistress of the Robes or the Maids of
* [This was a mistake: there were relations of the Lord Privy Seal
(Lord Duncannon) in the Household, but no daughter.]

314 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
Honour — or, vice versa, the Mistress of the Robes or Maids
of Honour, without also changing her Ministry."
Sfr Robert Peel's first letter appears to have been intended
to supply somo suggestions for this article, although it does
not directly touch upon the household arrangements of the
Court. Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, July 5th, 1837.
My dear Croker,
The two divisions are, I think, fafrly selected — Ballot and
the Spanish Question.
The best text, I think, is this — the 'great influence of the
personal character of tho Sovereign. The theory of the Con
stitution is, that tho King has no wiU, except in the choice of
his Ministers — that he acts by their advice, that they are
responsible, &c. But this, like a thousand other theories, is
at variance with the fact. The personal character of the
Sovereign, in this and aU other Governments, has an immense
practical effect.
His opinions and natural prejudices are most probably in
favour of the monarchical element of the Constitution — in
favour of that which is established, of the old usages, of that
prescription to which, in nine cases out of ten, he owes his
throne. There may not be violent coUisions between the King and
his Government, but his influence, though dormant and un
seen, may bo very powerful
Respect for personal character wUl operate tn some cases ;
in others, the King wiU have aU tho authority which greater
and more widely extended experience than that of any single
Minister, wUl naturaUy give. A King, after a reign of ten
years, ought to know much more of. the working of the
machine of Government than any other man in the country.
He is the centre towards which all business gravitates.
The knowledge that the King holds firmly a certain opinion,
and will abide by it, prevents in many cases an opposite
opinion being offered to him. If offered, it will be withdrawn
(witness the admission of Roman Catholics to the Army
and Navy in 1806-1807). Take the case of George HI.

1836-1838.] TEE FUNCTIONS OF TEE SOVEREIGN. 315
in fifty other instances. Ho saw plenty of changes of opinion.
He did not bocouie a Parliamentary Reformer with Mr. Pitt
in 1784 and 1785 ; and had no recantations to read in 1794
and 1795.
The personal character of a really constitutional King, of
mature age, of experience in public affafrs, and knowledge of
men, manners, and customs is, practicaUy, so much ballast
keeping the vessel of the State steady in her course, countor-
actmg the levity of popular Ministers, of orators forced by
oratory into public councUs, the blasts of Democratic passions,
the ground sweU of discontent, and " the ignorant impatience
for the relaxation of taxation."
" Luctantes ventos, tempestatesque sonoras
Imperio premit, ac vincUs et carcere frasnat."
This is the proper function of a King — a function impor
tant in other times, when there were other weights incumbent
upon popular violence, when its disturbing infiuence was hid
in deeper recesses, and less capable of excitement into sudden
explosion. The genius of the Constitution had contrived this
in time gone by. " Speluncis abdidit atris
Hoc metuens, molemque et montes insuper altos,
Imposuit, Regemque dedit, qui foedere certo
Et premere, et laxas sciret dare jussus habenas."
If at other times this paternal authority were requisite, the
authority to be exercised foidere certo, by the nice tact of an
experienced hand, how much more necessary, when every
institution is reeling, when
" Excutimur cursu, et ceecis erramus in undis."
But at this crisis of our fate we are deprived of this aid.
Where is the jury-mast? — the good sense of the con
stituent body ; of aU that portion of it that has inteUigence,
property, love for the Constitution, settled feelings of loyalty
towards the Monarchy. Real attachment to the youthful re
presentative of it must supply it.
What stuff I have been writing. Perhaps it is not legible.
Ever affectionately yours,
R. P.

816 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
Mr. John Walter to Mr. Croker.
Bearwood, Wokingham, July 20th, 1837.
My dear Sir,
It was a gratification to me to receive your letter, in which
you rejoice in " my escape from Parhament," inasmuch as,
in almost every other quarter, my friends assail me, if not
with reproaches, at least with expressions of regret. It was
certainly at a period of disgust and dissatisfaction vsdth the
now defunct House of Commons — and, not the least, with
the Conservative powers in it — that I determined upon
retiring ; and this threw away the fruits of a victory obtained
with much exertion in the county, because I found they
were not such as I expected them to be — neither goodly to
the sight, nor pleasant to the taste. Whether you wiU
think those public reasons satisfactory, I know not; they
drove me from Parliament. Others, perhaps more cogent,
drew me to my own nest. My health requfres attention,
and so do my domestic and rural concerns. Both one and
the other suffered by my public labours ; indeed, I was
sacrificing very much. However, I can toll you more upon
these subjects when we meet, which your letter gives me
reason to hope wiU be ere long.
I wish you had kept your Duke from any declaration on
the Poor-law. Sir Robert Peel, under the foeUng of extreme
candour and liberality to his antagonists, has thrown away
other chances as well as that which I afforded him of beating
up their quarters.
I see no reason for expecting that the next House of
Commons wUl be bettor than the last. If it so prove,
I should have the stronger inclination to make one of it;
but having reUnquished the county, I have declined every
proposition which was offered mo for boroughs.
Can you not look in upon us on your return from the
Isle of Wight, in which case we shaU also have the pleasure
of seeing Mrs. Croker ? This place is fifteen mUes from
Basingstoke, and I shall be at home the whole of next
month. Believe me, my dear Sir,
Most faithfully yours,
J. Walter.

1836-1838.] PARTY DISCONTENT. 317
3fr. Croker to Sir Eobert Peel.
West Moulsey, August 15th, 1837.
My dear Peel,
We came back last week from the seaside, and I at least
am not sorry to be in my own garden again, albeit burned as
brown as Bagshot Heath. I have been twice in town, and
have picked up some news, which I may as well tell you.
I wUl say nothing to you about the elections (which I suppose
you understand by your various correspondents better than
any one else), except that they are better than I could have
hoped ; and, except Beckett, Clerk, and Graham, I do not see
that there is much to regret. It wiU be a grave incon
venience to you not to have Graham with you, and I reaUy
don't see how he can be brought in, for we have no KUkenny,
and it would be madness, even if it could in other respects
be arranged, to open any of the Tory close boroughs. Some
accident may make a vacancy. I presume aU thoughts of
disturbing the Speaker are abandoned. It would faU ; and
failing, would consoUdate them. I can even imagine your
seconding his nomination, in a sarcastic contrast with the
conduct of the Whigs to Sutton. . I take our case to be this.
We are strong enough to protect tho House of Lords and the
Constitution in great points, but neither to conduct a Govern
ment ourselves, nor even effectuaUy to prevent small radical
and dissenting innovations. The danger is that the Govern
ment wiU become so despised as to be incapable of maintain
ing itself, before we are strong enough to make any permanent
arrangement. I had heard ten days ago, what I looked upon as a very
siUy rumour, that tho Ministers were to become Conserva
tives. I neither saw the object nor the possibUity of any
such change ; yet, strange to say, one or two things have
occurred that give a colour to this improbable report. One
is this. A Cabinet Minister and I have a common friend,
who is not in public life, but of Conservative opinions, and
known for his connection with me. To him his Ministerial
friend said, last Friday, " Well, we shaU never differ again on
poUtics ;" and this was said in apparently the serious earnest
ness of friendship, and was certainly meant to reach me.
What can it mean ? The second indication was that I was
at White's on Saturday, where there were only two or three
other people. One asked me my opinion of the elections.

318 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
I gave, of course, a favourable one as to the result, and
I pointed out the essential difference from the old Parha-
ments, that there were no neutral or individual men — no
floating party to be swayed by future considerations — so that
it was clear that the Government could not hope to better
itself, and that every election would make it worse. I then
said that we had all foreseen that the Reform BUl must tend
to a system of delegation and dependence, but that no one
ever expected to see it so soon, and so marked, as that there
should not be one implodgod member in the new House.
WhUe this was going on, up rises from a table, where he had
boon writing, a man whom I had before never spoken to;
nor had we ever looked at each other but with a party scowl
— Henry Cavendishj the Queen's first equerry, who came
over to me, with a Tory good-humour in his countenance,
and said " that all I had said was quite true, and that the
system of delegation was so tyrannical that they (the radical
constituencies) not only insisted on their votes, but that they
actuaUy watched their Members (and himself amongst the
rest) in and out of the House, to see that they not only
voted in the division, but attended the debate." I cannot
give you the air and manner in which this was said, but
I never was more surprised in my life, for the man is a shy,
distant, dogged feUow as ever I met, and I should have as
soon expected such a sortie from Joe Hume. I hear that
there has been in the newspapers some aUusion to the change
of opinion in the Ministers. I have not seen it, but these
two facts happening to myself seem to corroborate what else
appears a mere vision.
Those who are personally interested for the young Queen
complain that she is overworked, and teased with needless
detaUs. They send her aU manner of things in the various
official boxes for signature, and she, not yet knowing what is
substance and what /orm, reads aU. It is suspected that this
is done to give her a disgust for business. I don't suspect
any such deep design ; but certainly the proper way would
be that once or twice a week one of the Secretaries of State
should attend her with the papers that require her signa
ture, and explain what was important and what not. Lord
Melbourne sees her every day for a couple of hours, and his
situation is certainly the most dictatorial, the most despotic,
that the world has ever seen. Wolsey and Walpole were in
strait waistcoats compared to him. His temper and feehngs

1836-1838.] TEE RETIREMENT OF MR. WALTER. 319
lead liim to no great abuse of this enormous influence, nor
would his political position out of the palace permit him to
do anything essentially wrong in it ; but as between him and
the Sovereign he is a perfect Mairc du Palais. He himself is
under the guidance of Duncannon, who, however, is just now
away in Ireland. Ever affectionately yours,
J. W. C.
Mr. John Walter to Mr. Croker.
Bearwood, Wokingham, September 20th [1837].
My dear Sir,
I am glad to learn that the health of Sir Robert Peel
is thoroughly re-estabhshed. The appointment which the
Government has bestowed upon his late antagonist reaUy
carries with it the appearance of a reward for insolence. But
after the proofs of personal courage which Sir Robert has
afforded upon various occasions, is it necessary for him to
resist the impertinences of such opponents as  and
 ? * He has always appeared to me particularly careful
not to give offence to. any one ; and his life is too valuable
to bo risked against petty adversaries. Lady Peel and his
famUy, too, must be kept in constant apprehension for his
safety by the frequency of these occmToncos. I would not
wish him to "register a vow," after the O'ConneU fashion,
but should nevertheless be glad if means could be devised
whereby he might avoid incurring those hazards, to which he
has been more exposed than any other public man of his day,
and to which he wUl be yet more exposed if he returns to
office. With regard to my retfremenf, it was as much influenced
by disgust as any other cause. With due deference to your
judgment, I doubt whether it is regretted by any considerable
number of those whom you designate as " our friends."
From our leader I constantly experienced aU the attention
which I could in reason claim. I never expected to make
him at once a convert to my opinions — pressed, as he must
be, by the aristocracy ; but it is clear that my particular line
of policy was regarded with disfavour by the great body of
* [These names have been omitted by the Editor.]

320 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
the Conservative party. At the commencement of the
Session they gave me their support, but at the close of it
they utterly deserted me. Faithfully yours, J. Walter.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, September 26th, 1837.
My dear Croker,
On Saturday night, after shooting at Fisherwick with
Dawson, I had a return, not of sciatica, but of lumbago— the
complaint which, with me, preceded the inflammation of the
sciatic nerve. I also felt a dull pain, very shght however,
along that nerve.
I am convinced my attack arose from champagne, from
derangement of the kidneys, &c. I abstained from every
thing stronger than water for the last two days. Shot all
day yesterday, and am perfectly free from pain this morning,
from every vestige of either lumbago or sciatica.
Depend upon it, Brodie is right. These things do not
arise from external influences. The enemy is within, and
continued systematic abstinence is the remedy.
Hardinge and I shot thu'ty-eight brace on the ground
that you shot over the second day ; and Dawson and I shot
twenty-six brace in Fisherwick Park.
Grant took tho fleld yesterday, and the moment we left the
phaeton and joined the keepers we were attacked by an in
furiated wasps' nest. Now, is not this a ridiculous coin
cidence ? Tho moment he appeared, BaUard * called out to us,
" Walk down the road quickly, if you please, for here is a
wasps' nest that must have boon disturbed."
Grant's whiskers have been recently dyed black ; possibly
with some redolent mixture ; but this wUl not account for the
assault, which was impartially dfrected against all.
We stUl talk of our continental trip for a month, but the
season is so far advanced that I think we must not linger a
moment after our arrival in town, and must therefore deny
ourselves the pleasure of seeing you and Mrs. Croker at
Molesey. Another coincidence. I was telhng the story last night of
* [Probably the head keeper.]

•'to'

1836-1838.] NATIONAL EDUCATION. 321
my persecution by Haydon, and his eternal correspondence.
I said, I may venture to talk now, for I beheve the devU has
ceased molesting me, and wUl not reappear. There was at
that moment a letter travelling down to me, which was duly
delivered this morning. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.

Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, November 12th, 1837.
Education is the great question to which the public atten
tion should be called. We are to have agitation on that now.
It was tried on Church Rates — that faded. It was tried on
appropriation of Church Revenue — that faUed. One is abso
lutely abandoned, the other sent to sleep in a Select Com
mittee. Now the trial is to be made with education.
Two material points. Ffrst, if there is to be a national
system of education, excluding the direct intervention of the
National Church (at least only tolerating its intervention),
there is an end of the Church, and probably an end of any
rehgious feeling at aU ultimately.
But secondly, there is no ground on which the members of
the Church, if united (lay and clerical) can so confidently
and successfuUy defy agitation. They have it in their power
to act independently of Sovereigns, Ministers, and Parha-
ments ; to institute a system of education, based on instruc
tion in the doctrines of the Church, which, if worked out
with moderation and discretion, shall command much more
of pubhc confidence than any Government system founded
on a different principle.
It won't suffice to abuse the Government plan.
There must be a cordial concert between the clergy and
the laity, and a determination to undertake a duty which
probably can only be well performed by voluntary exertions,
unaided by Government or by Affectionately yours,
R. P.
From the year 1838 a new correspondent of Mr. Crokef s
appears at intervals Upon the scene— the King of Hanover,
vol. II. y

322 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
with whom Mr. Croker had a shght acquaintance of many
years' standing. When the Queen ascended the throne, the
Crown of Hanover devolved upon the next male heir, the
Duke of Cumberland, fifth son of George III. Before the
Duke left England, he requested Mr. Croker to correspond
with him, and it was in compliance with this request, rather
than from any high regard for the Duke, that his first letter
was written. A part of it relates to the very serious aspect of
affairs in Canada, where, in consequence of mismanagement
of one kind and another, the colonists seemed likely to foUoW
the example of the Americans in another part of the Conti
nent, and repudiate aU connection with England. HostUities
had broken out, and the whole country was in a ferment. The
Earl of Durham was sent out to accommodate the various
differences which had produced all this UI feeUng, but un
luckily he only succeeded in making bad blood worse. His
conduct was bitterly attacked by Lord Brougham — who, like
Sir F. Burdett, had become a Conservative, in reahty if not
in name — the Ministry turned their backs upon their own
official, and Lord Durham came home in disgrace, first issuing
a manifesto to the Canadians attacking the Government.
These troubles left one good result behind them, in the union
of Upper and Lower Canada, which took place little more
than a year after Lord Durham's exploits. This amalgama
tion put an end at once to most of the feuds which had pre
vaUed among the French and English colonists.
Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover. Extract.
Lord Durham is coming home in dudgeon because forsooth
he was protected from the consequence of his own indiscretion
and his self-confessed iUegal proceedings ; but before he came
away he pubUshed a manifesto, appealing from the Queen,
his mistress, and arraigning the British Parliament, his
masters, at the tribunal of the Canadian pubhc — a. public

1836-1838.] DISAFFECTION IN CANADA. 323
which his very mission proved to be unworthy of even the
lowest privileges of freemen. He will come homo, and place
himself at the head of the Radicals, who wUl receive him as
a martyr of liberty, though the cause of his disgrace was, in
fact, a tyranny too despotic even for a dictator. Some very
weU-judging people think that he will faU here, and be only
ridiculous. I am not of that opinion. The Radicals want a
mouthpiece in the House of Lords, and if Lord Durham takes
that position sincerely and boldly, he wiU, in my humble
judgment, accelerate the dissolution (already pretty certain)
of Lord Melbourne's Cabinet.
I am not in the secret of any party, but it seems to me that
the Conservatives are very little inclined to force themselves
into office — nay, that they wUl rather require some force to
induce them to accept. The difficulties are very great. The
country seems prosperous and contented, because a Tory
Opposition never wishes to make mischief or to operate on
the natural bad passions of the multitude, but if they were in
power and the Whigs in opposition, there would be raised a
storm of complaints and a host of grievances and miseries
which would render the reformed House of Commons per
fectly unmanageable.
The Duke of WeUington is in excellent general health and
spfrits, but the rheumatism in his neck — though mending —
gives htm a disturbed afr, and has, I think, produced an actual
distortion of tho neck and shoulders. He is going to Bath to
try the hot waters.
I spent a week in October at Sir Robert Peel's. He also
is very weU, but I cannot see that either he or the Duke
have any better hopes of public affairs. They are both happy
at the comparatively tranquil state of the country, but I do
not think they attribute it to any real and permanent causes.
The King of Hanover to Mr. Croker.
Hanover, November 30th, 1838.
Dear Sir,
Yours of the 22nd reached me the day before yesterday,
and I was the more agreeably surprised, as I have been, as it
were, dead to aU my old political friends in England, at least so
I must judge from their utter neglect of mo. The only political
friend that never has forgot me, and writes to me, is London-
Y 2

324 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
derry ;* but all the rest have completely laid me aside, even
that gentleman who for a series of years when out of England,
used constantly to write to me, and when I was in England
was daUy with me, BUly Holmes.f Conceive, since last October
twelvemonth, when he announced to me his being returned
for Berwick, I have never had one line from him ; I am told
he has received supreme orders not to communicate with me.
This rather amuses me, for tUl now I never was considered a
dangerous man ; I behove there never existed a fairer, more
candid, or determined man in his politics than myself, never
acting from sordid or personal views, but from the deepest
and liveliest attachment to my country and its dearest
interests. Such I was, and such I remain, for no one can
feel a deeper interest than myself in aU that is going on in
old England. I am not given, nor ever was, to croak or be
desponding, but I do own that now I feel very, very uneasy as to
the state of affairs there, and hardly can imagine what wiU be
the end ; the more I consider the present position, the greater
the dangers appear to me. You are now in this position —
Ireland ripe for rebellion ; Canada completely so, or wiU be so ;
your affairs in India anything but couleur de rose, and you
have neither troops to send, nor, what is as bad, a fleet to
transport them if you had ; and all this owing to the despe
rate set now in office. It may appear to you very presump
tuous in me to give an opinion, and I agree in this so far that
what is actually the state of things I cannot possibly be sup
posed to know; first, from not being upon the spot, and
secondly, from the determined neglect and abandonment of
my old pohtical friends, who have cast mo off. AU my intel
ligence therefore is derived from the pubhc papers, and those
you know are so fuU of hes and falsehoods that there is no
dependence upon them. Why last session the leaders of the
Conservative party chose to lose the opportunity of turning
the Ministers out, is to me inexplicable. The old song, I
suppose, " We are not able to form a Government ; we are not
strong enough in the House of Commons." AU this I have
heard over and over again, but lot me ask this question : Is not
in the meantime aU sorts of mischief going on ? Are not the
present people demoralising the country in every way ? are
* [With whom, and the Duke of Newcastle, the Duke of Cumberland
had tried to form a new Tory party.]
1; [" Black Billy," the Treasury Whip of that day — as before explained.]

1836-1838.] TEE KING OF HANOVER. 825
not aU the situations in the country filled up by Radicals ?
is not the magistracy of the country totally changed ?
Believe me the first shock we met with was in the year
1828, the repeal of the Corporation and Test Act ; this
led to tiie second in the foUowing year, the Catholic Emanci
pation ; and that to our ruin, the Reform Bill. Tliis is my
firm belief ; our downfaU therefore began ten years ago. The
mischief being, alas, once done, and not able now to be
recaUed, we can only lament past follies, and profit from dire
experience. You wUl say to me. How remedy it? My
reply is short and concise. Those who must see that they
were mistaken in thefr views, and expected very different
consequences from the sacrifices made, let thom boldly and
openly avow this, aU the difficulty is at an end ; and let me
ask you, is there any shame for a man to say, " I have been
mistaken in my expectations ; had 1 foreseen that my en
deavours to secure the peace and tranquUlity of Ireland would
have been thus crueUy disappointed, never would I have done
what I have done " ? This would be a manly and fair line, and
would gain the respect and confidence of every one ; but to
abide by such opinions after the experience wo have had, this
it is that creates this sort of mistrust. Excuse my thus
speaking freely my opinion, but I cannot say one thing and
moan another. Depend upon it, this is the sore point. Another
fatal point has been, and I remark stUl continues, namely,
that the leaders come always to the aid and assistance of
Ministers when they are in difficulties. I cannot tell you
aU the bUe I made last year when reading the speeches of
our great loaders upon the Canadian affairs ; it absolutely
made me sick.
However, I have always one hope, and that is, that as
Great Britain has somehow or other always managed to get
out of her difficulties, so I stiU hope and believe she wUl,
though I frankly own I believe that she never had more to
combat with than at this precise moment.
I am going on quietly but steadUy ; have already been able
to reform many abuses ; but where no master has been for
upwards of 120 years, many irregularities have crept in, which
can only by degrees be corrected. You must not believe all
the lies that are daily heaped upon me in the papers.
Believe me, dear Sir, yours faithfully,
I Ernest.

326 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
It was in 1838 that the pubhc first began to hear of
a colossal equestrian statue to the Duke of WeUington — the
statue which, from the first, was doomed to have so unfor
tunate a history. Mr. Matthew Wyatt was commissioned to
execute the work, and no sooner was this decided than all
kinds of unpleasant controversies sprung up on every side.
The newspapers were fiUed with angry letters, and as the
work proceeded, the Committee — of which Mr. Croker was
a member — found itself completely bewildered by the remon
strances and complaints which poured in upon it. One of
the first of these remonstrances was sent to Mr. Croker, who,
as he said, did not suggest the appointment of Mr. Wyatt,
but merely acquiesced in it.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
The Anniversary of Waterloo, 1838.
My dear Croker,
How could you consent to such a job as selecting Mr.
Matthew Wyatt — a bad architect and worse sculptor — for the
Duke of Wellington's trophy ?
I so shrewdly suspected that the whole affair was intended
from the first as a memorial in honour of Matthew, that
I refused to subscribe, and stated my reasons for it to Trench.
It throws ridicule on the whole affair. I doubt whether fifty
pounds besides Trench's and the Duke of Rutland's sub
scriptions would have been raised, if the real object had been
avowed at tho commencement.
George III. trotting up Cockspur Street would have been
fatal. Let the Committee compensate Mr. Wyatt by giving the
sum he required for Lord Dudley's Newfoundland dog in
black and white marble (5000?., I think), and wash their
hands of him.
Erect the dog in front of the Treasury as a perpetual
memorial of a defeated job.
The selection is bad, the principle worse. The cut-and-dried
resolutions anticipating unanimity in favour of tho protege
of two or three rich men, the said protege being really the

1836-1838.] TEE WELLINGTON STATUE. 327
laughing-stock of everybody else, so far as art is concerned —
are a bad precedent — a retro-active precedent, if such a thing
can be, justifying the selection of Wilkins for the National
Gallery, of Soane for this foUy, and Nash for that, and every
job which immortalizes its own disgrace from the durable
materials in which it is recorded.
Et tu Brute ! who subscribed 10?. to be able to defeat
the job. Ever yours,
R. P.

Year after year these bickerings went on, while the statue
was slowly brought to completion. When it was finished,
a more furious contest than ever arose over the question
where it should be set up. Mr. Docimus Burton's arch at
Hyde Park Corner seemed to be a tempting site, and indeed
the statue had been modeUed expressly for it. The Com
mittee were for placing it there. The Govwnment thought it.
a very inappropriate place, and many persons who had seen
the statue were strongly of opinion that, if possible, some spot
should be found for it where it could not be seen at all.
Lord Aberdeen wrote to Mr. Croker (Nov. 22nd, 1846) : — " I
am no great admfrer of colossal statues, and doubt if much
can ever be gained by increased dimensions. We had too
much money, and we are a Uttle like the artist who gUded
Ms Helen. Not being able to make the Duke grand, we have
made him big." On the other hand, Mr. Wyatt defended
Ms work vigorously, contending that, as it was " in honour
of the greatest man, it should be the largest statue in
existence." He declared that tMs was " truly an unhappy
country for the Arts, since it is not only upon the successful
artist that envy or detraction faUs, but also upon his noble
and .disinterested patrons," an allusion intended specially for
the Duke of Rutland, chairman of the Committee, who always
remained faithful to Mr. Wyatt's cause. The artist went on

328 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
to compare his own hard fate with the rewards which had
been given by more enlightened communities : —
" From the moment of Ms [Charles I.] death the paUadium
passed away, and the blight of discord has faUen upon the.
Art from that time. Amongst the Ancients it was natural
they should look up to those who made their Gods. When
Phidias placed Ms Jupiter in the temple, the multitude feU
down and worsMpped Mm; and to reheve him from aU
worldly cares his chUdren were made children of the State.
In other countries Arts and Artists are stUl honoured,
rewarded, and distinguished. When the statue of Louis
Quatorze was completed, both the Sculptor and the Master
Founder were made Barons, and even in our own time Bosco
was made a peer of France for the mere copy of the four
Venetian horses, which still surmount the Arch in the Place
du Carrousel."
So far from the State adopting Mr. Wyatt's famUy, the
artist seems to have had great difficulty in getting the money
wMch was due to Mm. At last, in 1846, the statue was
hoisted up on the arch — a party of twelve having previously
gone through the ceremony of dining inside t^ie horse — and
as soon as it was there, everybody but the great Duke him
self seems to have wished it down again. The Duke told
the Committee that he was " indifferent as to the fate of the
statue excepting on account of the feehngs of those by whom
this honom' to him had been conceived." But it soon became
generaUy understood that he wished the statue to remain
where it was, and his wishes prevaUed ; the statue remained
on its arch, a favourite mark for every comic artist and
satirical writer down to the year 1883, although even then
it did not cease to be a sore burden to the Government of
the day. Its ludicrous appearance in the summer of 1884,
stranded in the middle of the road, decapitated, covered with
dirt and mud, would have occasioned no Uttle mortification
to the Great Duke. In the early days of the etatue, the

1836-1838.] TEE DUKE AND IIIS STATUE. 329
Duke took it, as it were, under his protection, and Mr. Wyatt
eventually received Ms money, and turned to other work,
with, it is to be hoped, a somewhat better opinion of the age
in wliich ho hved.*
The Duke was at this time beginning to feel some of the
effects of age, although he was but sixty-nine, and hved till
he was eighty-three. He was occasionaUy made the object of
slanders in newspapers and books, but, as it wUl be seen
from the second of the foUowing letters, he received them
with composure, and justly regarded an attack of rheumatism
as a far greater evil than aU the hbels ever written.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
London, May 9th, 1838.
My dear Croker,
Gurwood is gone, and I behove that he has determined
not to publish Ms volume tUl after the coronation.
I am very sorry that you are so deaf.
I have been very bad lately. The cause is a deficiency of
secretion in the ear. I suffer torments in the House of Lords,
at meetings, &c., &c., where I am obhged to talk after
hstening, and endeavouring to hear and understand what
others say.
I should not mind it, if I had only to understand the
bawhng of the chUdren. t 'However, I hope that I am getting
better. Ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.
London, July 2nd, 1838.
My dear Croker,
I have not heard of the person whom you mention. He is
not aimounced here as a part of the suite of the Due de
N  .
But I conclude he is one of the wortMes so announced, and
* [The Duke's feelings on the proposed removal of the statue wiU appear
from the correspondence given in chapter xxv., 1849.]
t [Alluding to his grandchildren.]

330' . TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap'. XX.
who is received here with smUes in aU our houses, and bows
and smiles and makes fine speeches in return, and then writes
the letter to which you refer under a feigned name — that is to
say, feigned to those who are the objects of his observations,
but clearly indicating the writer to the pubhc in France, and
eventuaUy to ourselves.
As for my part, I consider such an affair not worth the
trouble of writing even this note. I have been abused,
vihfied, slandered since I was a boy; and I don't beheve
that there is a living creature who tMnks the worse of me
for all the horrible crimes of which I have been accused, and
which to tMs moment remain unanswered.
I would much prefer to get rid of the rheumatism in my
shoulders and neck than I would of all the hbels of aU the
Jacobins, Republicans, Bonapartists, Radicals, Reformers,
and WMgs in all Her Majesty's dominions, including her
ancient kingdom of Franco, and her colonies in N. America.
Ever yours most, sincerely,
Wellington.

Strathfieldsaye, December 15th, 1838.
My dear Croker,
After Lord Durham's proclamation, the dinner given by
the Guards was very improper.
He ought not to have accepted it; Sir John Colborno*'
ought not to have aUowed it to bo given ; General McDonneU
ought not to have boon a party to the giving it.
He was just the sort of man to suit Lord Durham, and he
called Mm to his councU as a member ! His speech at the
dinner was the more improper.
Having the rheumatism, and not being able to do comme les
autres, 1 have made my excuses to the Duke of Rutland for
absenting myself from Belvofr Castle. I am a great deal
better, and, excepting that 1 am not very comfortable on
* [Sir John Colborne, G.C.B., had just been appointed Governor-General
of Canada in succession to Lord Durham. Lord Durham, on the eve of
his departure, was entertained by the officers of the Guards at a fareweU
dinner at Quebec. Sir James McDonnell, who commanded the brigade,
made some remarks which were flattering to Lord Durham, but not
altogether judicious under the existing circumstances.]

1836-1838.] SEAKESPEAREAN RELICS. 331
horseback, I am as well as ever. But I am obhged to take
care of myself, and it is better to stay at home when that
is the case. Ever yours most sincerely,
Wellington.
Mr. Croker to Mr. Sidney Herbert*
West Moulsey, November 1st, 1838.
My dear Mr. Herbert,
Allow me to recaU your attention to an interesting subject
wliich 1 some time ago mentioned to you in conversation. I
mean the possibUity of discovering some traces of Shakespeare
in the library or muniment room, or even the lumber room,
at WUton. I need not, I suppose, tell you the extreme
interest which the discovery of one or two documents (meagre
in everytMng except the mere mention of Shakespeare's
name) in Francis Egorton's Bridgewater paper,t has produced
in the hterary world. If anytliing should be found at Wilton,
it would probably be of much greater value. The dedication
of the first folio edition of the immortal plays proves the
favour and patronage with wMch Earls WiUiam and Philip
honoured Shakespeare and themselves ; for, allow me to say,
that the world counts that patronage as amongst the Mghest
honours of your name. It is hardly possible but that
Wilton must have at some time possessed something from
Shakespeare's hand — letters, verses or presentation copies of
Ms printed plays. Tho Uttle value set on mere private
letters would probably have doomed them to destruction;
and however the " two noble brothers " may have estimated
Shakespeare, they could not have foreseen the extreme
curiosity that posterity would feel about their then humble
and httle known correspondent. Yet it is possible that
sometMng may have been accidentally, or even intentionally
preserved — any congratulatory verses, or such like, might be
in tMs latter class. But it is highly probable that some of
* [Created in 1860 Lord Herbert of Lea. His attachment to his
ancestral seat was weU known. When seized with his last iUness, in
August 1861, he desired to be taken there, and as he was carried into
the haU his eyesight suddenly failed him. He died three days after
wards, at the comparatively early age of fifty.]
t [This refers to a letter signed " H." found among the papers of Lord
EUesmere, and published by Mr. Payne CoUier. j.

332 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
the early editions of the separate plays were preserved at
Wilton, and may be stiU found there. One would be curious
to know whether the first folio, which, no doubt, was presented
by the editor to both the Earls, is to be found in the hbrary.
Wilton escaped, I believe, pretty well during tho CivU War,
and you, of course, know whether there has been any fire or
other disaster to diminish the natural hope which a priori
one cannot but indulge. But if there has been no such
accident, I would entreat you not to be too easUy satisfied
with a general notion that there is nothing because notMng
happens to be apparent; such treasures may exist by the
very good luck of having been hidden away and forgotten,
and I confess I should look with more expectation to the
lumber garrets than to the muniment room, and to cupboards
and closets, and old trunks, rather than to tho shelves of the
hbrary. I would press upon you not merely tho general
anxiety of the world on tMs subject, but the distinguished
honour to yourself, your ancestors and your famUy, if any-
tMng shaU be recovered. You seemed to me, when I spoke
to you on the subject, to be alive to all the feehngs which
ought to inspire a Herbert on such a question, but I have
fancied that you might be waiting some fresh appUcation from
me on the matter, and I therefore take the liberty of troubling
you with this reminder.
Beheve me to bc; my dear Mr. Herbert,
Very sincerely yours,
J. W. Ckoker.
Mr. Sidney Herbert to Mr. Croker.
Wilton House, November 4th, 1838.
My dear Mr. Croker,
I can assure you I by no means forget the conversation we
had at Drayton on the subject of the possible existence of
papers in this house ; but I fear there is Uttle chance of any
being discovered. The whole of this house underwent such
a thorough ransacking during the immense and unfortunate
alterations made by Wyatt, that there is no terra incognita
where anything remains undiscovered. AU the papers con
nected with the estate, title-deeds, &c., are sorted and arranged,
and kept in London. In the lumber-room I have found
nothing but some chests of chain armour, the refuse of the

1836-1838.] DISCOVERIES AT WILTON. 333
collection which is arranged in the entrance hall here, and
which is interesting as having belonged to Do Montmorency,
the Grand Constable, and to the Dukes of Montpensier and
LonguovUlo, taken prisoners by Lord Pembroke at the battle
of St. Quentin.
Strange to say, we have not in the library even the first
edition of Shakespeare, and as it must originaUy have been
here, it very probably disappeared through the knavery of
my worthy grandfather, who had but Uttle respect for entaUs,
and, when in money difficulties, appropriated and sold pictures,
and probably other tMngs belonging to the WUton coUection.
The only things wMch have been found here in my
coUection are : first, a sort of wooden book consisting of five
or six loaivos in which are set precious stones. The inscrip
tion on tho book states that it was the property of Cardinal
Mazartn. The other discovery was a packet found among the
leaves of Sfr PhUip Sidney's ' Arcadia,' containing a lock of
Queen EUzabeth's hafr, presented by her to Sfr PMhp Sidney,
and a copy of versos from him in return, expressive of his
gratitude for tho gfft. The hafr is of a bright yeUow, and
she must have had a good deal of it if one may judge from
the quantity she gave away in this one present.
It is odd that there had been a tradition from housekeeper
to housekeeper that this packet existed ; but nono knew where
it reposed. This house has been injured by fire to a considerable extent
on two or tMee distinct occasions ; so much so, that the great
Vandyke and some other pictures are very much bhstered
by the heat. Some papers may have been destroyed in
that manner ; but stUl it is strange that there should be no
papers at aU in a house where so much has boon preserved in
the way of art.
I leave tMs place on Tuesday for some days, on a visit to
my sister. Lady Anne, at Savernake Forest, and when I return
I should be veiy much delighted if you would come and
spend a day or two here. I think you would find a good
deal that would interest you, and I should be only too happy
to have you as my guest ; if you should agree to this I would
let you know when we shaU be here, in order that you could
choose the time that would suit you the best.
Pray believe me very sincerely yours,
Sidney Herbert.

334 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, October 29th, 1838.
Lady Pool is about making a flower garden, and told a
country neighbour not skUlod in derivation, that she had a
great mind to have an apiary: "Lord, ma'am, where will
you get your apes from ? For my part, I could never 'bide a
monkey." November 1st, 1838.
I have a now thought — at least now to me — with respect
to the French Revolution, or rather to publications on that
inexhaustible subject.
I have just been reading TMers again, and I tMnk, con
sidering his position, and the advantages it must have given
him, there wiU be no caU for a new history for some time ;
with the exception of Ms evident partiaUty towards the
Gironde, and particularly Roland, I think his work is weU
done. Ho makes good use of the records of the Jacobin Club.
But what do you tMnk of a ' Revolutionary Encyclopaedia' ?
That is, a work containing the biography of all tho most
eminent men who were thrown up to the surface of the
boUing caldron, and whose memory is interwoven with . the
chief events — An account of many things that are very
imperfectly understood (as I believe, by writers on the Revolu- .
tion) ; the Commune; the Sections ; their constitution, functions,
&c. — Local detaUs ; the places where the Constituent and
Legislative assemblies, and the Convention met — The best
description of them that can now be given — The date of each
event, ascertainable at once, would be a great assistance to all
but Frenchmen, who care nothing about dates nor much about
facts. Then the places where the executions took place ; a
detail of what passed.
Many of these things could hardly be introduced into a
regular formal history ; they would interrupt the march of it
just as a biography of Louvet or Chabot, or some subordinate
villain would ; but how interesting and how useful to turn
to the letter J and the word Jacobins, and find all that is
recorded or caji be preserved as to localities and detaUs. If
a ground plan could be had, so much the better, and a little
map showing the position of the Convent.
Ever affectionately yours,
R. P.

1836-1838.] TEE "BLESSINGS OF REFORM." 335

Drayton Manor, December 13th, 1838.
Wliat say you to a reference to the present internal state
of tho country ; to the burnings, atrocious outrages, murders,
that fiU the columns of every newspaper, and to a question
to Her Majesty's Government, How they account for these
tMngs ?
We ought to be tasting the blessings of Reform ; at least we
ought to be beginning to whet our palate for the future feast.
In 1830, when tMs country had been convulsed by the
example and consequences of the three glorious days, and
some disposition to tumult and insurrectionary violence
existed, mal-administration and the denial of Reform wore,
among WMg authorities, the unquestionable causes of aU
disorder ; and the specific was Reform.
It cannot be said that the present turbulence is the heaving
of the old storm, for the Reformers have been doing nothing
else but rejoicing in thefr success ; exhibiting the contrast
between the former state of the country, and the latter ;
attributing the improvement to Reform — to the influence of the
popular wiU, the contentment and satisfaction of the people.
Whence then the present disorders ? When the Whig
papers say that the country is in a fearful state, why do not
they teU us why ?
We had no torch meetings oven in 1830 ; no threatenings
of physical force half so undisguised as we have now.
What makes the people discontented ?
It wiU be said, and most falsely said, that the attempt to
remove the evUs of the old Poor Law has made the Govern
ment unpopular, and that the party opposed to the Government
has tried to inflame public discontent with that law.
TMs shameful falsehood ought to be contradicted. It was
ou/r support of the Poor Law that enabled the Government to
pass it without fearful resistance. It was our co-operation in
practicaUy working the Law ; in becoming Guardians, Chair
men of Unions, &c., that has reconcUod, where it is reconciled,
the rural population to it. The defender of the Poor Law on
the Poor Law Committee was Sir James Graham, not the
Government. But it is said, and repeated every day, that the Leaders of
the Conservative party maintained sUence ; they encouraged
some members of their party to declaim against the Poor
Law at the time of the general election, and basely took the

336 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
advantage, for political purposes, of the excitement thus
fomented. There could not be the opportunity for a more favourable
contrast between the conduct of a Conservative and a Whig,
or a WMg-Radical Opposition, than the history of the Poor
Law BUl would present.
The Duke of WeUington, in the Lords, has been uniform in
his support — open declared support — of the Poor Law BiU.
What course have I taken upon it ? Is there the slightest
foundation for the charge that the Conservative leaders main
tained sUence with respect to the BiU m order that they
might derive some political advantage at the General Election
from its popularity ?
What are the facts ?
In the session of 1837, that is, the session preceding the
dissolution and general election, a motion was made m the
foUowing temptmg form ; tempting, at least, to any one who
wished to evade the unpopularity of supporting the Poor
Law BiU : —
" That a Select Committee be appointed to inquire into the
operation of the Poor Law Amendment Act, and to report
thefr opinion to the House."
Lord John RusseU opposed tMs motion, though he gave a
committee. I supported Mm ; not sUently, but actively by
my voice and vote. The amendment he moved on the original
motion was tMs : —
" That a Select Committee be appomted to inquire into the
admimstration of the rehef of the poor under the orders and
regulations issued by the Comnoissioners appointed under the
provisions of the Poor Law Amendment Act."
Was there ever such an amendment moved by a minister
who objected to the original motion and yet conceded a
committee ? Was there ever such an opportunity for an
opponent to observe: There is no intelligible difference
between the motion and the amendment, and therefore I wUl
vote for the motion ?
Was there ever a Whig in opposition who would not have
taken tMs course ?
I did not take it. I supported Lord John RusseU and his
amendment, and said in my place " that I have given to the
measure of the Government, when first mtroduced, my cordial
support, and that I had heard no facts which could induce me
to regret the course I had then taken, or incline me to

b

1836-1838.] LORD SIDMOUTIPS RECOLLECTIONS. 337
prejudice the operation of the Bill." The debate was 27th
February, 1837.
But it will be said " that I did not foresee that the King
would die, and that a General Election would take place.
What language did I hold at the hustings ? What opinions
about the Poor Law did I then avow ? "
I was taunted on the hustings, at the day of nomination,
with my support of tho Poor Law. The inclosed will show
whether I shrunk from its defence.
My nomination, being for a borough, was among tho earliest
Did I try to profit by discontent with the Poor Law ? 1
doubt whether any minister took upon liimself more
responsibUity for the passing of the Poor Law than I did, or
more franldy avowed upon hi^ hustings the course he had
taken in its support. Now I release you.
Apropos de bottes. When the next edition of your BosweU
is called for, do correct the error there is in tho account
of the portrait of Johnson by Sir Joshua Reynolds. The
portrait wMch Mrs. Thrale had, and which I now have, is not
the portrait wMch is described as hers.
I have got the Wycherloy, by Lely, and the Arthur
Murphy, by Reynolds, and am greatly pleased with my
acquisition. I am glad to have the picture of which Pope
said, " That is a beautiful picture of Wychorley, by Lely."
It is close to Pope's bust.
What a strange letter I must have written.
Ever affectionately,
R. P.
Notes by Mr. Croker of a visit to Lord Sidmouth (ml. 82.)
On the day that tho coalition members dined with Pitt-
Duke of Portland, Lords Spencer and Fitzwilham ; Burke, &c.,
I also dined. After a little, or rather a good deal of wine, we
got up to go to coffee, when Burke addressed us his parting
advice tn a loud voice :
" lUic fas regna resurgere Trojaj.
Durate, et vosmet rebus servate secimdis."
Old Lord Chatham made his five children, three boys and
two girls, act a play. I was present. After the play. Lord
Chatham said to my father with some disappointment, " Did
VOL. II. z

338 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XX.
you observe how superior Pitt (Lord Pitt) was to WUliam ;
how much better he felt and spoke the speeches," and seemed
mortified at thinking that his little favourite did not promise
to be an orator.
Some one — a man of some consequence — came to attend
George III. on somo occasion, but happened to come rather
late. The King was not pleased, and the other said gaUy,
" Bettor late than never, sir." " I don't thmk so," said the
King, " I would rather have the proverb, better never than
late." «
I asked whether the Catholic question was not rather the
colour than tho cause of Pitt's resignation, and whether his
real object was not to have peace mado, and then to return to
power. Lord Sidmouth said no ; that the Catholic question
was the real, and he behoved, sole cause of Pitt's retfrement.
" In fact, I cannot caU it retirement, for the King positively
dismissed Mm," when Pitt in the closet declared that he
could not recede from his proposition for emancipation. He
added some detaUs (from the King) of Pitt's last interview on
this occasion, and concluded by saying that the King's dis
missal of Pitt (though kind in manner) was decisive in tone,
and took him (Pitt) quite by surprise.
Pitt is said never to have had a female attachment ; it is
not true. He had, I believe, more than one. One I know of ;'
it was to the present Dowager Lady BuckinghamsMre, then
Miss Eden. Some of tho letters seem to allude to this.*
Pitt supervised Addington's King's speech.
The Kmg writes to Mr. Addington, December 17th, 1802,
that he had signed the warrant creatmg Mr. Dundas a Baron
and Viscount, and hopes it wiU keep that gentleman quiet,
and that he wUl not enter into that captious opposition that
does no credit to somo members of the House of Lords.
* [The Hon. Eleanor Eden was Lord Auckland's elder daughter. Lord
Stanhope has shown, in his ' Life of Pitt ' (chapter xxiii.), that Pitt was
strongly attached to her, and that he refrained from pressing a proposal of
marriage on the ground of his embarrassed circumstances. Miss Eden
married Lord Hobavt, afterwards Earl of Buckinghamshire, and died in
1851. It is said that Horace Walpole once tried to arrange a match
between Pitt and Necker's daughter (afterwards Madame de Stael). An
income of £14,000 a year was to have been settled on the lady. Pitt
replied, " probably in jest, that he was already married to his country." —
Vide Quarterly Review, vol. 97, p. 568.]

( 339 )

CHAPTER XXI.
1839-40.
DifficiUties of Lord Melbourne's Govemment — Defeated on the Jamaica
Bill — The Bedchamber Question — The View taken by Sir Eobert Peel
— Opinions of Mr. Croker — Letters from the King of Hanover — His
Estimate of English Parties — Correspondence with Lord Brougham —
Renewed Overtures to Mr. Croker to stand for Parliament- — -Lord
Brougham on Public Affairs — Letters from the Duke of WeUington —
Dr. Hook on the Tractarian Movement — Sir James Graham's Fears of
Democracy — The Queen's Marriage — Louis Napoleon's Raid on Boulogne
• — The Eastern Question in 1840 — The "Bloated" Armaments of
Europe — Hostile Feeling in France towards England — Prospects of War
— Letter to Bishop Philpotts on the Church Service for Sundays — Reply
of the Bishop — Particulars concerning Mr. Perceval's Character and
Opinions — Sir Eobert Peel on the Events of 1830-32 — A misdirected
Eoyal Letter.
It was not very difficult to perceive, even at the outset of
the session of 1839, that the Government was not Ukoly to
remain much longer in peaceable possession of power. The
mistakes of Lord Durham in Canada, and the divisions of
opinion wMch existed in the country concerning the treat
ment he had received from the Ministry, tended to render
Lord Melbourne's position precarious ; and if the Con
servatives had been stronger in the House of Commons, the
end would have arrived very soon after the deUvery of the
Queen's Speech. " I have little doubt," wrote Mr. Croker to
the King of Hanover, in the middle of January, " that the
present Ministry wUl break up, and that perhaps very soon ;
z 2

340 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
but I do not think that anything like a Conservative
Government could last a session." But no serious reverse
occurred until May, when the " Jamaica BUl " — by which it
was proposed to suspend the constitution of Jamaica for five
years — was opposed by Sir Robert Peel as weU as by
Mr. Hume and the Radicals. Ultimately the second reading
was carried by a majority of five only — a result which the
Government justly regarded as equivalent to defeat. Lord
Melbourne at once resigned, and Peel was caUed upon
to form a Ministry.
Then again arose the Bedchamber question. Sir Robert
Peel insisted that the ladies who held high offices in the
household, and who were connected with the outgoing
Ministry, should be superseded. There has never been any
question that he was within his strict constitutional right
in making this demand, but it was doubted at the time, and
it has been stiU more seriously questioned since, whether he
was wise in pressing it. It has generaUy been considered
that he might have yielded, without any important sacrifice
of principle, to the young Queen's natural desire to retain in
her service the persons to whom she had already become
accustomed. Sir Robert Peel, however, took a very decided
view of the matter, and dechned to go on with Ms attempt
to construct an Administration. The result was that Lord
Melbourne returned to office ; and with tMs Peel was no
doubt woU satisfied, for he had some experience of the
responsibihties of carrying on a Government with a minority,
and he had little desire to incur those responsibUities again.
His opinions on the main question at issue are stated in
the following memorandum : —

1839-1840.] TEE BEDCEAMBER QUESTION. 341
Sir Eobert Ped to Mr. Croker.
The declaration by a Cabinet that household offices held by
ladies ought to be exempt from change — that is, exempt from
the control of the mmistor. If exempt from that control on
a change of Government, why not subsequently ? Surely
the principle equaUy extends to future vacancies — equally
extends to a claim on the part of the sovereign to fill up
certain household offices, without reference to the opinion or
advice of her minister. Is it possible to maintain such
a position consistently with the first maxim of the British
constitution, that the sovereign can do no wrong ; that she is
presumed in every pubhc act to be guided by tho advice of a
minister whom Parliament can make responsible ?
Is not every appointment constituted by the CivU List Act,
paid by the CivU List Act, a public Act ?
Could it be tolerated that a Queen might appoint a Mistress
of the Robes, without reference to her minister, whom her
minister might know to bo perfectly unfit to be about the
person of the Queen.
Take other times and other sovereigns, and other characters,
and test your position by a reference to them.
What, in a constitutional point of view, had the country
to do with the youth of the sovereign, or the sex of the
sovereign? No more than with the nature, or tho beauty.
A great pubhc principle is under consideration.
Those pay a compliment to the Queen who consider her
the sovereign, with the plenary rights and authority of
sovereign, but subject to the principles and maxims of the
constitution. It is a real insult to the Queen and to the
sovereign authority, to mix with constitutional arguments
any appeals to the special circumstances of youth or sex.
Would a minister be justified or tolerated if he were to
make compromises — not of his personal dignity or authority —
but compromises of the public interest, of the public honour,
of the first principles of the constitution, by consenting to
stipulations in respect to the responsibUity for public acts,
because the sovereign was only twenty years of ago and was
a lady ?
What would be the inference, if the minister were right ?
that ladies • ought not to be sovereigns, but especially
not at the age of eighteen. What does tho constitution
know of sovereigns, or ministers with mutilated authority, or

^^2 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
privUegos conceded through deference, and deference not
to superior experience and pohtical sagacity, but to youth
and inexperience. Either the minister would have grossly
misconducted himself or the law of succession ought to be
changed. Suppose a minister had consented to such conditions as the
Cabinet minute recommends, and to the prfriciples mvolved
in It, IS It not clear that the most ^ievous injury might be
fl, ^^^ ^^i^ s^y of -a foreign enemy might be introduced into
tne household— might have access to every Cabinet secret
Remember Lord John RusseU's declaration that the
quarrel was not about the extent to which a certain authority
niight be exercised by the mmister; it was upon the principle
of the existence of the authority. ^ i-
He said expressly, that the Queen resisted the claim to
make any change whatever, and that her resistance would be
as strenuous against a single change as agafrist the removal of
tne whole household.
What did Lord Grey and Lord Granville contend for ? The
^erjswae principle that is involved in tho present discussion
What was thefr professed object? Tho very same. Not
patronage qua patronage, but patronage as a mark of
confidence. Lady Normanby wUl not abuse her right of access to the
^"f ^?~7 ^°*^ *^™*™^ Cabinet decisions ? Did Lord Grey
and Lord GranvUle contend that the removal of old Lord
Cholmondeley was through the fear of his superior political
cunning and astuteness, through the apprehensions that their
scnemes for the pubhc good would be counterworked by the
Lord Chamberlain ? ^
Where is the assignable difference in principle between
tne two cases ? j^ r
Then Queen Anne's reign.
/a'^^^'i-.'^'*^ the utmost care chapter Iviu. in the 3rd vol.
(8vo. edition) of Coxe's 'Life of the Duke of Marlborough '
Every sentence almost is a propos. For instance :— " Mrs.
w i r , ' ^o^ever, long fiUed her confidential office,
before she likewise aspired to a higher degree of consideration,
and the plots of the Cabmet and parties offered a temptation
wnicb overcame her sense of gratitude
^Z?^^- ^^J^°^f\"ibe; woman found a skUful counsellor and
abettor m Secretary Harley.

1839-1840.] TEE BEDCHAMBER QUESTION. 343
"She became the channel of a constant communication
between the Queen and tho Secretary, more dangerous as it
was less suspected."
Read also with equal care chapter Ixxxvi. of vol. v.
(8vo. edition) of the same work ; and, above all, see how the
embarrassments of GodolpMn, and Marlborough, and Somers
arose from not acting with decision.
When Marlborough wrote to the Queen, " I hope your
Majesty wUl either dismiss Mrs. Masham or myself," did the
WMgs of that day talk about " friends of tho Queen's youth,"
and the harnUessnoss of ladies, and tho hardship of subjecting
ladies' appointments to ministerial control ? Did they write
Cabinet miMsters enforcing the constitutional principle that
ladies ought to be irremovable ?
There are twenty-five ladies of tho household.
The Queen clearly did not understand that any proposal was
made to remove tho whole of thom or any of the sixteen. Her
Majesty's words are to remove the ladies of her Bedchamber.
The whole number is nine out of the twenty-five.
Mr. Croker's theory was that the Queen had unconsciously
entered into an alhance with tho Radicals, and that the cause
of the Constitution itself would be injured by the repulse
wMch Sfr Robert Peel had received.

Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. London, May 29th, 1839.
I admire your asking me to write for you.
" You, who in one line can fix
More sense than I can do in six,"
as Swift said of Pope, but you desire my opinion, here it is.
Six years ago I said that if King WUliam wore to give me
a blanc-seing, countersigned by the Duke of Wellington and.
Lord Grey, I should not know what programme to write on
it. Still less can I derive any hope from anything the Queen
can do, even supposing her well disposed. The short and
real state of the case is this ; the Reform Bill has thrown the
whole power of tho State into .the House of Commons, and

844 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
has, moreover, given a predominance in that House to the
Anti-Monarchical party. I know not whether it be possible
to place that Anti-Monarchical party in such a minority, as to
enable the Tories to carry on the Government on the old
principles of the constitution. I think not, for any length of
time ; but the attempt must be made, for the Conservative
power is too strong to be finally subdued without another
trial. What do the Duke of WeUington or Sir Robert Peel care
for place ? They both detest it, and would gladly never see
Downing Street agam. Why, then, would they accept office ?
Only to protect the Queen and to save the Monarchy, for,
under many different disguises and pretences, it is the
Monarchy that is really attacked.
The Queen by her late unfortunate rejection of the Con
servatives (her natural alhes) has become popular with a
large party in the country. But what party ? Why the
same, identicaUy the same that for the last 150 years have
been the, at once, violent and steady enemies ofthe CrowU —
the old leaven of Cromwell and the recent leaven of Tom
Paine ; the Scotch traitors, the Irish rebels, the British
Jacobins. I don't say that every man who now supports the
Queen is of these extreme classes ; but there is no man of
those classes who does not now affect an extravagant loyalty
to the Throne, because they see the Throne undermining
itself. Our old Constitution had foreseen and provided against
every disturbing cause, except the unimaginable one of a
junction between the Crown and the mob. If anything to
avert, or even to suspend, a democratical revolution can now
be done, it can only be by the Queen giving her whole and
zealous confidence to tho real friends of her person and her
power ; or, to express it all in one word, by adopting implicitly
the councils of the Duke of WeUington. Yours ever,
J. W. C.
Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover. Extracts.
London, May llth, 1839:
There is but one point which I think it worth while to
notice beyond what they say, which is, that the mission of

1839-1840.] TIIE BEDCHAMBER QUESTION. 345
Sir Robert Peel failed upon what I may call an abstract
principle — the right of the Minister to interfere at all in the
female household. No lady's name was mentioned by Sir
Robert, for on his saying to the Queen " As to the ladies of
the household," her ^lajesty is said to have interrupted him
at once by saying, " Oh, I do not mean to make any change
among them." This is the sum of the whole affair. Sir
Robert Pool could not admit that broad principle that all
were to remain. Lady Normanby (whom the Queen particu
larly wishes for), for instance, the wife of the very Minister
whose measures have been the cause of the change, two
sisters of Lord Morpeth, the sisters-in-law of Lord John
RusseU, the daughter of the Privy Seal and Chancellor of the
Exchequer. Your Majesty sees that though Sfr Robert might,
and I have no doubt would, have left the great body of tho
female attendants, he could not possibly have submitted to
have tho hostUe party thus in possession of the personal
favour, friendship, and confidence of the Queen. The general
opinion is that this scheme was prepared even before the
resignation, and that the whole has boon a trick, though
for my part I cannot see how it betters tho position of the
WMgs. Be all this as it may, I cannot suppose that Parlia
ment or tho country wiU acquiesce in the present state
of tMngs, in wMch there is no change from that which
produced the crisis, but the new pretension of having a
MiMstry of one colour and a Court of another — a proposition
which alone would be sufficient to bring on a crisis, if
one had not already existed. These are the speculations of
a private man who has given up all thoughts. of public life,
and who is imperfectly informed on the subject ; but I have
thought that your Majesty might not dislike to hear what an
observer who may almost call himself impartial — for I look
with more fear than hope to a Tory Ministry — thinks of this
very strange but important conjunction. Her Majesty's ball
last night was, I am told, rather dull, though she herself
seemed in high spfrits, as if she were pleased at retaining her
Ministers. She has a great concert on the 13th, but to both,
as I hear, the invitations have been on a very exclusive
principle — no Tories being invited who could be on any pre
tence left out. These are smaU matters, but everything tends
to create a public impression that her Majesty takes a per
sonal and strong interest in the Whigs — a new ingredient of
difficulty !

346 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL,
West Moulsey, January 16th, 1839.
I think the Conservatives have committed a great party
mistake, and neglected a great constitutional duty, in not
having had a dfrect trial of strength with the revived Cabinet,
on their Cabinet minute. Why this has been so I cannot
explain, but I apprehend that it must be from the fear that
if Melbourne were to be displaced, her Majesty would throw
herself into the arms of the Radicals — that I think is no
excuse for abandoning a great constitutional duty ; but, on the
other hand, I feel that Sir Robert Peel and the Duke must
have good reasons (though I do not see them) for thefr for
bearance. The last division on the Jamaica BiU gave for a
moment great spfrits to the Whigs, the majority was swelled
by the negligence of some of the Tories, and by tho caprice of
some of the Radicals, but it wiU have no real effect. The
Bill cannot pass the Lords, and it wiU be contested again in
the Commons on the thfrd reading, and it is expected the
majority wUl not exceed twenty, unless the Radicals come
back to us (which is not expected), and in that case the
majority would be brought down to six or seven ; but in any
case I do not think the BUl can pass the Lords.
We are now in the middle of the Education debate.* It is
expected that on Lord Stanley's amendment they may have
thefr usual majority of from twenty to thirty, but on the
main question the majority will . be much smaller, and it is
confidently supposed that they wiU be forced to give that up
also. The Ministers have made the ballot an open question,
and it is thought that this wUl produce about 230 votes for it
— the last time there were under 200, and I myself should
incline to putthem next division no higher than 210 or 220 ;
but depend upon it. Sir, that question, as woU as any other
democratical innovation, will be finaUy carried. It is the
nature, in a representative Government, of the Monarchical
principle to recede, and of the Democratical principle to
advance, and that law of pohtical nature will bring us to a
Republic, out of which the equally natural spirit of aristocracy,
which it is at the bottom of the human heart, will redeem us
again. Such, I am sure, will bo the course of events, but
about the time I can prognosticate nothing.
* [A BiU to increase the Education Grant from 20,OOOZ. to 30,000?., to
place the fund at the disposal of a Committee of five of the Privy Council,
and to establish a system of inspection of schools. It was carried by
a majority of two only.]

1839-1840.] TIIE FUTURE OF ENGLAND. 347
The King of Hanover to Mr. Croker.
Hanover, May llth, 1839.
Dear Sir,
I have this moment learnt the great event of Government
havmg resigned, and am persuaded that this step does not
arise from the late division, but I have a strong suspicion in
my mind tiiat what I prophecied some weeks ago is the real
truth, namely, that things have come out in Roden's Com
mittee wMch they could not face, and in a letter I wrote at tho
time I said that that Committee would be the death-blow to
Melbourne's Administration. I may be wrong in my surmise,
knowing so very little what has been going on, and therefore
httle capable of judging with that exactness as I was enabled
formerly to do. My letters say that a messenger had been
dispatched to Lord Spencer, but I scarcely can believe he will
accept office ; first, he has, from the very moment he resigned
office under Lord Grey, declared he never would take office
again, and he has, I believe, refused since once, if not oftener,
forming a part of any Government, and now, when certainly
affafrs are more embrouillee than over, I never can imagine
he wUl undertake so arduous a task. You know my faith
ful and zealous attachment to my mother country, and
therefore you may easUy imagine how deeply my mind is
occupied at tMs moment with aU going on in London, for
after aU, England must and ought to be the pivot for
Europe ; it was once the Protector of Europe, and alas !
how faUen is she since the last ten years. Whether she can
ever recover her old state of dignity is more than I wUl
venture to pronounce, and all this owing to the many and
many false steps she has taken, giving up solid principles
and venturing on new. That infernal word expediency has
been our ruin. May Providence be merciful to her, and save
her, is my most earnest prayer ; but I fear you will have still
many difficulties to encounter previous to the formation of a
Ministry. With very deep and sincere concern I have heard of poor
FoUott's recent attack ; what a public and private loss he would
be, for I look upon him to be now one of our first-rate mon,
both as a professional man and a senator. It was hearing
that he was so UI at your house, that I first learnt of your
return to England. In Paris things appear to bo in the same

348 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap! XXI.
state of uncertainty, and the sullen calm there alarms me I
own. Let me hear from you, and
Believe me, ever yours very truly, Ernest.
Frequent temptations were again held out to Mr. Croker,
in the course of 1839, to permit himself to be placed in
nomination for Parhament, but to every offer he returned the
same answer. His political friends always strongly dis
approved of his decision, but, for Ms own part, he never
seems to have been for a moment discontented with it. He
sometimes complained in his letters that since retiring from
office and Parhament he could not find a moment to spare,
and that occupation of all kmds accumulated upon Ms hands.
But all who know him wished to see him back in the House
of Commons, and Lord Hertford once more offered to open
the door for him. The note was brief, for in these days
Lord Hertford seems to have written very rarely, and to
have summed up what he had to say in the fewest possible
words. The following is the entire letter, bearing no date,
superscription, or signature : —
Tell me; you know that teUing a quiet friend is like
tolling a dead waU or a brick-bat.
Do you persist in being the only person of your own way
of thinking, of not coming into Parhament any how ? I saw
a man to-day ; it might be quite easy ; no one knows any
thing. Do you persist in Nolo ?
Good bye.
P.S. — I only know what everybody knows. AU calm and
settled. Several letters signed "H. B." (Henry Brougham) make
their appearance in the correspondence, for the first time,
in 1839. After this year. Lord Brougham and Mr. Croker
were on terms of great intimacy one with the other, for

1839-1840.] LORD B ROUGE AM. 349
Lord Brougham was by this time as Conservative in fooling
and thought, if not in name, as Mr. Croker himself They
corresponded on all sorts of subjects, and Brougham's letters
were so numerous that Mr. Croker must involuntarily have
wished that it had boon a little easier to read them. Tho
handwriting was almost the worst ever seen; every word
was condensed, and every letter destitute of form or shape,
so that it was scai'coly possible for any human being to
make out with certainty all that was written. Sometimes
Mr. Croker amused himself by giving a sort of interhnear
translation of Brougham's letters, but ho was generally
obliged to leave numerous blanks. It is worthy of notice
that Mr. Croker endeavoured this year to interest Lord
Lyndhurst in Brougham's fortunes.
Mr. Croker to Lord Lyndhurst.
West Moulsey, May 8th, 1839.
My dear Lyndhurst,
I am now in perfect ignorance of what is going on, and
I do not volunteer showing myself on a theatre on which
I have no part to play ; but I cannot help urging on you,
though I dare say it is needless, the necessity of dealing
somehow with our friend Brougham. He volunteered to tell
me in Paris, as he said he had told you, that if he was likely
to be in the way, ho would go abroad for a year or two.
TMs would be a poor device, and could hardly, I think, be
carried into effect. [I do not know*] though whether if he were
got into legal harness it would not do aU that we want, for
as a judge he could not, I think, take any inconvement part
in poUtics ; and it would be the happiest and most creditable
thing for himself, and what I think aU his wellwishers, of
whom I am, and I think you are also, would desire. Such
talents as Ms must have employment, and a given dfrection,
and if not either in legal or pohtical office, he must inevitably
be in Opposition. I believe that he is, or at least seems to
* [These words are not in the MS., but they appear to be necessary to
make sense.]

350 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
be, not very fond of tho idea of legal office, even if we had
one vacant to offer him ; but he told me that he would like
a special mission to treat the slave trade question with Ms
friend Louis Philippe. This might do en attendant. Pray
don't mention me as having ventured to meddle in such high
matters. Mr. Croker to Lord Brougham,
West Moulsey, March 14th, 1839.
My dear Lord Brougham,
I am amused with, and in many leading points concur in,
your characters, and dissertations on parties (at least in the
specimens you sent me), though I don't agree with you in
details. Tho contact of party produces a warmth of feeling
towards those who sit around us ; whUe the eye is a cold
and jealous scrutiniser of those that are opposite to us. We
folt towards Canning, and you felt towards RomiUy, as
contiguity alone can make ono feel. You saw m Canning,
and we saw in RomUly, defects which it required a certain
distance to observe. We should therefore never entirely
agree on the minuter merits or defects of our quondam
pohtical friends.
Poor Canning's greatest defect was the jealous ingenuity of
his mind. He, hke an over-cautious general, was always
tMnking more of what might be on his flanks or in his roar,
than in Ms front. His acuteness discovered so many tortuous
by-roads on the map of human hfe, that he believed they
were much more traveUed than the broad Mghway. He
preferred an ingenious device for doing anything, to the
ordinary processes. In hfting a coalscuttle to mend his fire
(as I have been just doing), he would have preferred a screw
or a puUey to Ms own arms. He could hardly " take Ms tea
without a stratagem." I said of Mm "that his minds-eye
squinted ;" but this was altogether a mode of his mind, of the
busy and polyscoptic (may I coin such a word ?) activity of
his inteUect, for his heart and spirit were open, generous, and
sincere. Then there is something in personal appearance and
manner, which, hke the setting of a precious stone, imparts
to, or detracts from, qualities with which they have no real
connection. I have no doubt that Fox was as highminded as

1839-40.] WEIG AND TORY. 351
Pitt, and Perceval as Windham ; but Pitt and Windham had
an air which inipro\'ed their natural Mghmindodnoss into (in
the eyes of the world) a personal characteristic.
In your estimate of party, I \'onture to think that your
scale is too short. You are right to a certain extent, and
indeed as far as you go, but you don't (in my humble
judgment) go fai' enough. Your scale is like that of the
common thermomotor, graduated as Mgh as is necessary for
the ordinary uses of life, but not calculated for the philoso-
pMcal extremes of poUtical science. You reduce all party to
a common or antagonist "desire of power and plunder."
I don't hke the word plunder, and place would, I think,
bettor express your meaiimg ; but I differ from your defini
tion altogether. It is, I think, a definition of the accident,
and not of the essence; of an accident, inherent, I admit,
in aU parties, under a representative system, but not more
essentiaUy necessary to party than, to use Moliero's comic
Ulustration, the form of a hat is essential to the necessity of
a covering for the head. There are two great antagonistic
principles at the root of all government — stabihty and
experiment. The former is Tory, and tho latter WMg ; and
the human mind divides itself into these classes as naturally
and as inconsiderately, as to personal objects, as it does into
indolence and activity, obstinacy and indecision, temerity and
versatUity, or any other of the various different or contra
dictory moods of the mind, which, without behoving in
Spurzheim's occipital or sincipital bumps, one may be satisfied
aro inherent in human nature. Burke's intellect was Tory,
Lord Chatham's WMg, and neither place, nor power, nor
Opposition, nor Ministry, could have destroyed, though they
often did restrain and modify, the original disposition.
I don't believe that any cfrcumstances could have made you
a Tory or me a Whig. We might very easUy have been
tMown Ulto those parties. You might have attached your
self to Pitt, and I might have been a humble foUower of Fox,
but amongst our more homogeneous associates, we should
have been considered as " crotchety, troublesome fellows,"
always hankering after the opposite doctrine. Look at
Canning ; look at Windham. What an unsatisfactory Tory
was the former ; what an imperfect WMg the latter. And
this, I take it, was the cause of those anomalies in Burke's
character wMch Goldsmith (unconsciously as to their cause)
so admirably sketched : —

352 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
" Tho' equal to all things, for all things unfit.
Too nice for a statesman, too proud for a wit.
For a patriot too cool, for a drudge disobedient.
And too fond of the right to pursue the expedient."
But besides those innate predispositions which your scale
does not include below, there are other motives which it does
not include above — I mean acqufred principles, personal
convictions. These are generally the fruits of the natural
predisposition (but they may be occasionaUy, though rarely,
independent of it). How many honourable instances could
I give you, and you, I dare say, give me, in which party,
place, power, have been sacrificed to the pure sense of
right and justice. Depend upon it, bad as we are, your
views of party make us blacker than the reality. Why
was I desfrous of resigning my office on Mr. Canning's
speech in December, 1826, and was only dissuaded by Peel ?
Why, in AprU 1827, did I remain in office when Pool
resigned ? In both cases I acted against my interests and
my feolmgs, but I acted from a conscientious sense of what I
thought right. But the bottom of the eighth page warns me
that you are fast asleep, so I steal away without ceremony.
Ever yours,
J. W. Croker.
The Eev. Dr. (afterwards Dean) Hook to Mr. Croker.
Vicarage, Leeds, April 3rd, 1839.
My dear Sir,
Mr. Murray forwarded to me a copy of the ' Quarterly
Review ' a few days ago, and he did so, I presume, by your
desire, for I conclude that we are indebted to you for the
admirable article on the Oxford Divines.* For that article it
is impossible to express my thanks in language sufficiently
strong. To you wo owe entirely the exorcism of that evil
spirit of Reform which a few years ago threatened the
destruction of all that is sacred in the English Church. The
effect of your article in tho ' Quarterly ' at that time was
'* [Published in March 1839. The author of the article in question was
the Rev. Wm. Sewell. The Bishop of Exeter (Dr. Phillpotts) wrote to
Mr. Murray, April 3, 1839 : " The article on the Oxford tracts is one of
the most valuable your Eeview over contained."]

1839-40.]. THE TRACTARIAN MOVEMENT. 353
indeed quite extraordinary. Before its publication all kinds
of pamphlets issued weekly from the press, recommending
all kinds of alterations. I do not think that one reform
pampMet has been issued by a Churchman since; at all
events, not by a Churchman of any rospectabihty. God
grant that the present article may have a hke effect. I am
not myself one of the Oxford Divines, although they are
among my dearest friends. Engaged in the duties of a large
parish, I thought it would be imprudent for me to render
myself answerable for publications over wMch I could have
no dfrect control. Besides being, what they are not, a prac
tical man, accustomed rather to look at what under given
cfrcumstances can be done, than at what under the best
cfrcumstances ought to be done, I have sometimes differed
from them in opimon. I have sometimes thought that, by
insisting upon a narrow point of detaU, they have retarded
the progress of an important principle. "I have found it
necessary to act, too, with a degree of caution wMch they
would hardly approve of. But stiU I have resolutely main
tained the great principles for which they have so nobly
fought. I maintained them, indeed, before they wrote ; and
in former times — when my dear friend Pusey was a Whig
and a Low Churchman ! — against Pusey himself. Hence the
moral persecution raised against them has been also dfrected
against me ; and bitter indeed has that persecution been, as
raised by the Dissenters, and the few most bitter Eecordites or
" EvangeUcals " here. Thefr malevolence and hes exceed
behef. But by resolutely pursuing my own line, by returning
good for evU, and taking no notice of them, I had succeeded
beyond aU expectation, when an article in ' Fraser ' did me
some damage. There are certain Conservatives who defer to
' Fraser ' as the Recordites do to the ' Record,' and, finding
the Conservative press making war upon us, they were
beginning to cool in thefr zeal towards me. Now those
persons wUl be quite knocked over by the ' Quarterly '; and
thus you see that to me personaUy, as weU as to the good cause
generaUy, your article in the ' Quarterly ' wUl be of service.
May I request you to thank Mr. Murray for sending me
the Review. I have ordered many copies that I may lend
them. I know that it were vain to express a hope of being
permitted to print the article as a tract. Yours,
W. F. Hook.
VOL. II. 2 A

354 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
Mr. Croker to Dr. Hook.
West Moulsey, April 14th, 1839. '
My dear Sir,
I heartily wish I could accept the praise wMch you give to
the author of the article on the Oxford Tracts. We make it
a rule not to disclaim, any more than to accept the paternity
of this or that essay ; but to you I have no reserve in saying
truly that I have had no other share in that article than
having rung the bell. I will not deny having suggested the
necessity of expressing our opinion and tho line in which we
should proceed, but the article is altogether by another hand,
and, I need not add, a much better. I hope it may do good.
I have boon much alarmed at the prospect of a schism, wMch,
however, I thought could only be produced by a misunder
standing of the Oxford Tracts ; and if they are made more
accessible to the general reader by the ' Quarterly ' article,
great good may be done, and stUl greater mischief prevented.
Very faithfully yoUrs,
J. W. Croker.
Sir James Graham to Mr. Croker. Extract.
Grosvenor Place, May 22nd, 1839.
I begin to share all your apprehensions and sad forebodings
with regard to the probable issue of the present struggle.
The Crown in alliance with Democracy baffies every calcula
tion on the balance of power in our mixed form of Govern
ment. Aristocracy and Church cannot contend against Queen
and people united; they must yield in the first instance,
when the Crown, unprotected, wiU meet its fate, and the
accustomed round of anarchy and despotism will run its
course : — " May I lie cold before that dreadful day.
Wrapt in a load of monumental clay."
But it is too sad to pursue this topic, and I will not inflict on
you a Jeremiad. Yours very truly,
Jas. Graham.

1839-40.] VISIT OF PRINCE ALBERT. 355
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
Walmer Castle, November 12th, 1839.
My dear Croker,
I have received your letter of the 10th. I had understood
that it was a matter of indifference at what time you should
receive the information which you require, provided that it
was at about the period of the meeting of Parliament.
I don't much care for a trot, and I would have gone
160 mUes to get the papers for the Committee at the time at
wMch I wrote. But I now am so engaged as to be unable to
leave tMs place, either for the trot or permanently at the
time you mention.
General Maitland is the Secretary of the Committee for
the construction of the Duke of York's pUlar, and has it in
Ms power to give you aU the information that you can
requfre respecting the expense thereof.
It is very difficult to form a judgment what will become
of Lord Melbourne.
But, as I see that your friends preach up insubordination
among the Conservatives, it is probable that Lord Melbourne's
Government wUl endure ; and I am not quite certain that
its continuance wiU not give us a better chance of tran-
quUUty than a Government formed by a scramble of Tories !
Ever yours, most sincerely, Wellington.
Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover.
West Moulsey, November 21st, 1839.
We are at this moment under two excitements, which
cannot but interest your Majesty — the Queen's marriage*
and the indisposition of the Duke of Wellington. All I
know about the former is that Prince Albert has been here
for some weeks, and I am told made himself visibly acceptable
to Her Majesty. He went away last week, and yesterday I, in
common with aU other Privy CounciUors, received a summons
to attend Her Majesty in CouncU on Saturday next (the day
after to-morrow), at one o'clock, on " most important business,"
which of course can be notMng but the announcement of her
* [It did not take place tiU February of the following year, 1840.]
2 A 2

356 THE CROKER PAPERS. [ChAp. XXI.
marriage. I was in town yesterday, when this summons
became pubhcly known. The town had been thrown into
great alarm by the account of a serious attack — supposed to
be paralytic — wMch the Duke of WeUington had suffered at
Walmer Castle on Monday evening. . . . The facts are these :
the Duke had been uncommonly weU for some time, but he had
been exceedingly abstemious. He is always very moderate,
but of late he had become over abstemious, without dimimsh-
ing his usual exertions, either of mind or body. Last week
he had been what he called starving a cold, but was so weU
on Monday that he went out to hunt, and on coming home
between four and five, he went into Ms room, when, about
five, he was heard to faU from his chafr in a fit of insensi
bility, in which he continued about forty-five minutes, when
he spontaneously recovered both sense and speech, and desired
that some company that was expected to dinner should not
be put off, but that Col. Munro would do the honours for him.
Next day he would have got up as usual if the doctor would'
have allowed Mm. Dr. MacArthur, when pressed by my friend
as to the real nature of the disease, said there was nothing of
paralysis in it, but that, if he wore forced to give it a name,
he would caU it epUepsy, though even of that some essential
symptoms were wanting. When I recollect that his Grace had
a simUar attack last February, I cannot see the recurrence of
it without alarm.
The position of the Ministry is equaUy painfnl to them
selves and perUous to the country, and I do not expect they
will be able to last beyond Easter. The Queen's marriage
may enable them to reach that period, though I know some
well-informed people tMnk they cannot meet Parliament.
My own opinion is that they wUl never go out till there
shall be an actual vote against them in tho House of
Commons, and that wUl probably not bo untU some question
on education in connection with the Church shall be brought
forward, which I do not expect before Easter.
Mr. Croker to Lady Hardwicke.
West Moulsey, 24th Nov., 1839.
Dear Lady Hardwicke,
I have taken a fine sheet of paper in honour of the Queen.
By ill-luck I did not receive your letter yesterday tUl after

1839-40.] TEE QUEEN'S MARRIAGE. 357
post, or I should, as you desired, have written you an account
of what passed in Council ; * and I fear that, owing to the
intervention of Sunday, my news will now be too late. We
had a very full Council, and the groat Duke, as you
announced, attended. 1 am sorry to say that a slight twist
of the right corner of his mouth, and some constraint in using
the right arm, indicated too plainly the nature of the attack.
When we had assembled to the number of, I think, seventy
or eighty (two to one Conservative), and as many had taken
their seats as could, at a long table. Her Majesty was handed
in by the Lord Chamberlain, and, bowing to us all round, sat
down, saying, " Your Lordships " (we are all Lords at the
CouncU Board) " wiU be seated." She then unfolded a paper
and road her declaration, which you wiU, before this can
reach you, have seen tn the newspapers. I cannot describe
to you with what a mixture of soU-possossion and feminine
dehcacy she read the paper. Her voice, which is naturally
beautiful, was clear and untroubled ; and her eye was bright
and cahn, neither bold nor downcast, but firm and soft.
There was a blush on her cheek which made her look both
handsomer and more interesting ; and certainly she did look
as interesting and as handsome as any young lady 1 ever saw.
I happened to stand behind the Duke of Wellington's
chafr, and caught her eye twice, as she directed it towards
him, wMch I fancied she did with a good-natured interest.
After the Lord President had asked her permission to
pubhsh her declaration, she bowed consent, handed him the
paper, rose, bowed aU round, and retired, led as before by the
Lord Chambeiiain to the outer room, where the attendants,
who were not of the CouncU, had waited. The crowd, which
was not great but very decent, I might almost say respectable,
at the palace gate, expressed their approbation of the Duke of
Wellington and Sir Robert Peel, and their disapprobation of
the Ministers very loudly. Lord John and Lord Normanby,
they toU me, were positively hooted. I am always sorry for
anything that may vex Normanby, whom I really have a
* [On the occasion of Her Majesty announcing her intention of allying
herself in marriage with Prince Albert. The Queen in her ' Journal '
says : " The room was full, but I hardly knew who was there. . . I felt
my hands shook, but I did not make one mistake. I felt more happy
and thankful when it was over.'' The number of Privy CouncUlors
present was eighty-three.]

358 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
great regard for, and I dare say Lord John owed the dis
approbation of the crowd chiefly to those parts of his conduct
which I the most approve. Lord Melbourne, who did me
the honour of shaking hands with me hke an old friend,
seemed to me to look careworn, and on the whole the meeting
had a sombre air.
Give Charles my best regards, and believe me to be, my
dear Lady Hardwicke, Faithfully yours,
J. W. Croker.
The Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
Strathfieldsaye, December 29th, 1839.
My dear Croker,
I have written a summons to members and all the Con
servative Peers to inform them of the meeting of Parhament,
and of the expediency that they should attend. I can neither
do nor say any more. If the Government have any sense,
they wUl so make their speech as that an amendment to the
address in answer to it cannot be proposed — at least, in the
House of Lords. If the House of Lords act wisely, they wUl
not be in a hurry to attack the Government. I can say no
more. Lord Hertford, who has, or ought to have, this
summons equaUy with others, must be the best judge what
course he ought to take.
As soon as I shaU be informed, or can in any manner
learn anything more, I will write to Lord Hertford.
Believe me, ever yours most sincerely, Wellington.
Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover.* February 17th, 1840.
Sir,
The Duke of Wellington has had another— that is a third
— attack, which no one can doubt to be paralytic, and I am
sorry to have to add that it has been much the most severe
of the three. It happened on Thursday afternoon. His grace
¦* [This is one of the few letters written by Mr. Croker in 1840 which
are now to be discovered.]

1839-40.] TIIE DUKE OF WELLING ION. 359
had been paying a visit to Lady Burghei'sh, and soeniod quite
as well as usual, and ho mounted his horse to ride away, but
Ms groom observed Mm drop the reins, ?ind alighted and ran
up to Mm, and, giving him the reins again, contrived to get
him home, where he was put to bed speechless and paralysed
on ono side. I cannot, however, conceal from your Majesty,
my apprehension that the Duke's pubhc life is oyer. Shaken
as he must be by these repeated seizures, it will be dangerous
to Ms existence, even if it weye physically possible, that he
should be exposed to the worry of a constant attendance and
active direction of the House of Lords. I know how unwiUing
ho wiU be to give m, but I am sure all his personal friends
aro convinced that the day of retreat is arrived ; ho may
stUl, if ho wtU spare himself, give us for a few years perhaps,
the assistance of Ms counsels and countenance, but I confess
I do not wish Mm to take an active part.
I have not yet heard any surmise of what is to be done in
the House of Lords to supply (not to fill — that is impossible)
Ms place ; my own idea is that there is no one to whom loss
objection can be made as leader tn the House of Lords, than
Lord Aberdeen. He wants much that a loader ought, in these
times, to possess, but I thmk he would be the most generaUy
acceptable, and the safest of any one that occurs to me.
The Mmistry had a majority of twenty-one on the vote of
confidence.* This majority is probably not more than a real
majority of fifteen on the whole house — some people think
not above ton or twelve, but be it what it may, it faUs them
on individual questions to a degree of which even their former
defeats afford no parallel. Since that vote of confidence they
have been beaten on throe important points ; one the other
night, on the finance of the year, they admitted to be a vote
of confidence, and they lost it — ^182 to 172. I do not attach
any very groat importance to a majority of ten in so thin a
House ; but I beheve the ministers folt it deeply, particularly
as it was accompanied by the failure of their two new
financiers — Baring and Labouchere.
We have had for many weeks a report that when the
marriage t should be completed. Lord Melbourne meant to
* [A motion of want of confidence in the Ministry, moved by Sir J.
Yarde BuUer, January 28th, and debated for four nights ; in the end the
motion was rejected by 308 votes to 287.]
t [Of the Queen.]

360 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
retire, and that Lord Lansdowne would also go. That rumour
has been revived, but the resignation of Lord Lansdowne
obtains more belief; and it is suspected that they have
invited Lord Brougham to join them as President of the
CouncU. I tMnk such a junction hardly possible, but there
are some small reasons wMch make me hesitate in disbelieving
it altogether. I rather wish it may take place, for I had
rather see Lord Brougham exerting Ms talents m keeping a
government together, than in puUing it to pieces ; for in doing
the latter, he might carry his zeal so far, or rather Ms zeal
might carry him so far, that he might pull the Monarchy to
pieces with the Government.

The King of Hanover to Mr. Croker.
Hanover, March 8th, 1840.
My dear Sir,
I reaUy am ashamed at not having been able sooner to
reply to your kind and highly interesting letter; beheve me. tMs
omission has not arisen either from idleness or forgetfulness,
but honestly it has been out of my power ; what with the
worry and plague I have had on account of the Precedency
Question m England, which seems to me to have been most
grossly mismanaged at last. I mean not what was done by
the Lords, but afterwards, and how such able, clever men as
Lyndhurst and Wynford can have given the opfrdon they have
done, is to mo reaUy unaccountable, and what is more, unin
telligible. I may be deemed very presumptuous to pretend
to offer an opinion at variance with such men, but the fact is,
though no lawyer nor pretending to that, stUl I have common
sense, and tMs pointed out to me that the opuiion they had
given must have been given at a 240 horse-power rate, and
thus they omitted considering two points ; ffrst, the spirit of
the act of Henry VIII., and secondly, that the Princes of the
blood royal, being in the straight line of succession, you cannot
admit that a Royal Highness (N.B. a paper one) can claim
precedency to those born so, and thus de jure ; and in the
next place, I have been, and am stUl most eternaUy on the
watch to frustrate all the machmations and tricks of the
attorneys in the country, who, knowing they are now reduced
to their last efforts, are moving heaven and earth to prevent
all the vacant corporations from electing members for the

1839-40.] TEE DESCENT ON BOULOGNE. 361
General States, which are summoned to assemble here on the
19th of tMs month. However, by patience, perseverance, and
going a straightforward, plain line, and neither permitting
myself or any belonging to me to manoeuvre or do any
underhand work, I have, at least, so far succeeded, that
they aU own I am acting fair and above board, and they
trust me.
Thank God, at least for the present the hfe of our hero
has been saved, but I fear his whole existence must be
very precarious, and two such dreadful and awful attacks,
foUowing each other after so short a period, must have
shaken his constitution dreadfuUy ; and it is really a shame
that he is so careless of his health, and wiU thus expose
himseU; he ought to remember that his life is a pubUc one,
and it is a duty he owes Ms country and Ms party not to
stram upon it as he seems to have done. That Aberdeen is
to lead, seems to me to be the best choice they could make,
considering aU cfrcumstances ; if the Duke would now only
dfrect the general plan of business, and remain quietly at
Strathfieldsaye tUl after Easter, and thus recruit his strength,
then we might hope that Ms valuable life might be spared us
stUl some years to come. I wonder how M. Guizot wiU succeed
in England ? I hear Lord Granville is MgMy dehghted at
TMers being at the head of affafrs, and naturaUy, as he is, T
beheve, a thorough Republican. Yours very truly, E.
Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover.
Kensington Palace, August 23rd, 1840.
I have been in Paris, whither I went both unexpectedly
and reluctantly the week before last, and stayed only six
days. The fact was that poor Lord Hertford thinks very
UI of hunself, and fancying that we might never again
see each other, was very anxious that I should accompany
him as far as I could, which I did to Fontainebleau,
where I left him this day week, not in much better spirits
but really in mere bodily health as well as I have soon him
of late.
We passed through Boulogne the day of Louis Napoleon's

362 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
echauffouree.* It detained us for a couple of hours, as they
embargoed the post-horses for estafettes, but the whole affaij
was so futUe and ridiculous, that even in Boulogne it made no
effect. I was almost inclined to tMnk that Louis Phihppe
had encouraged it, by way of anticipating and blunting the
expected enthusiasm on the arrival of Napoleon's bones. If
this foolish man, Louis Buonaparte, had landed with the bones,
he would have made a different kind of effect ; as it is, he has
covered himself with ridicule, and the great name of Napoleon
has suffered a little also.
Your Majesty can have no conception of the absurdity into
which aU classes of French have plunged upon the Eastern
Question.t To hsten to the talk of the salons and cafes,
there must be war ; and for what object ? To prevent the
partition of Turkey, which it seems, England meditates,
England insisting on preserving Syria to the Porte, and
France insisting on severing it. What an age we live in, when
such nonsense is talked by a whole people. They say that M.
Guizot, who went to England very pacific, is returned rather
warlike, and that he says that he found M. TMers calm and
reasonable, and Louis Phihppe excited. I do not beheve this,
though I heard it from a good quarter ; if there be any truth in
it, it is only that Louis Phihppe thinks the popular sentiment
very strong, and with his usual art appears to faU in with it ;
but I cannot believe that he, in Ms heart, participates in this
folly of the day. I am sure that M. Guizot, whom I saw
ton days ago, before we went to France, was as rational as any
man could be on tho subject, and on the whole I am perfectly
satisfied that war, on any existing grounds, is impossible. I
hear that the actual state of the case is, that the English Ad
miral has orders to give effect to the quadruple convention, if
Mehemet Ali does not accept the proposition made to him, and
* [This was the celebrated landing of Louis Napoleon at Boulogne, with
a handful of foUowers, on the morning of the 6th of August, 1840. The
whole business was regarded at the time as the freak of a lunatic, and one
of the papers described the hero of the exploit as "the maniac, Louis
Napoleon."] t [This resulted in the siege and capture of Acre, in the month of
September. England acted with the Sultan against the rebeUious Pasha
of Egypt, but France was much irritated, and at one time it was believed
that she would attack the Allied fleet. The English part in the affair was
managed throughbvit by Lord Palmerston.]

1839-40.] TIIE EASTERN QUESTION. 363
wliich it was supposed niight roach Alexandria about the lOtli
of August ; the English co-operation is expected to be, first a
blockade of tho coast, which would starve the Egyptian army ;
secondly the transport of Turkish troops to tho flank, or oven
the roar of the Egyptian army ; and thfrdly, supporting them
by our own artUlery and marines, and 20,000 stand of arms
for the Syrian insurgents — half supphed by Austria, and half
by us ; and then the question is whether France wiU not
immediately take opposite measures. I for my own part, do
not believe that any definite orders are yet gone ; nor do I
tliink the French wUl venture to take any directly hostUe
steps. We shaU have Mehemet All's answer perhaps witMn
the week, and my opinion is that the terms are so fair that he
wtU accept ; in which case tho whole matter wUl be settled,
not, however, without great dissatisfaction to the French ; but
if Mehemet rejects the offer, I stUl tMnk that Franco will
not be so mad as to interfere by actual force.
I am told, and beUeve that the Duke of Wellington approves
the course of the Government ; indeed 1 know not what other
course could have been adopted without giving up the Sultan
into the tutelage of Russia. Your Majesty wUl be glad to
hear that tho Duke is better. He told me that he had never
been spoken to about the Canada Bill by any human being,
and that it came to the House of Lords without the slightest
indication (except from the newspapers) that such a measure
was in existence. Pool's conduct on that and other points
seems strange ; but I attribute it not so much to his own
views, as to the exigencies of the Stanley aUianco — a powerful
auxUiary — for wMch, however, we are obliged to pay a largo
price. We hear, and can easUy believe that there are serious
differences in the Cabinet ; and I was told to-day that Her
Royal Highness Princess SopMa, in mentioning the fact had
added : " What a pity it is that the Duke of Wellington will
interfere." We know that the Duke has been occasionally
consulted on public questions, but I can hardly think that he
interferes to make up any personal squabbles in the Cabinet.
The Conservative party is very much dissatisfied at seeing, or
fancying, that thefr leaders do not wish for office, but I think
they mistake the matter. In the first place, I don't beheve
that they could have got in ; but if they had, could they have
stayed ? and should we not have had another edition of Pool's
unhappy administration five years ago, which did more serious

364 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
injury to our constitution in the three months it lasted, than
the Whigs have done since the Reform BiU? Individual
ambition and interests wUl naturaUy wish to come into
office, but for the sake of the country I prefer the present
state of things, as that in which the least mischief wUl be
done ; but I am sorry to say that I do not think that tMngs
can go on as they are, and I fear the Conservatives wiU be
soon driven to take office, without, I think, the power of exe
cuting it on right prmciples ; they wiU be forced to purchase
a precarious existence by disgraceful and dangerous comph-
ances. These are not, I know, our friend WethereU's opinions,
and I admit that there is much to be said on the other side,
but in the choice of difficulties I should prefer the present
position, uncomfortable and perUous as I admit it to be.
Mr. Croker to Mr. George Barrow.*
MontreuU, August 6th, 1840.
My dear George,
I told M. Guizot on Monday, that I expected to meet an
emeute, but I certainly did not expect to meet it so early as
this morning at Boulogne. The story is so extravagant that I
am almost ashamed to feU what looks so hke a fable ; but 1
wUl relate to you what I heard, and give you my authority.
Our avant courrier left Calais about two tMs morning, and
was to order horses for us, but on Ms arrival at Boulogne
about five, he found the town in commotion ; Louis Buonaparte
had landed on the shore a httle to the eastward of la Colonne,
probably near the little port of Vimerieux, about half-past
four A.M., with about sixty-five foUowers, including a brUhant
etat-major, the head of wMch was a General, said to be
Montholon (but whose description does not agree with my idea
of Montholon). They first marched on the upper town, and
attempted the barracks, but the troops shut the gates against
them ; they then assaulted a corps de garde, and the General shot
a voltigeur with a pistol ; but they faUed here too, and then
seemed to have given up the attempt very pusillanimously,
and to have hastened to retreat to their vessels. It seems that
these were a couple of small vessels, and they had boats, in one
of which Buonaparte and some others were endeavouring to
escape, when, being fired at from the shore, the boat capsized
* [Mr. Croker's son-in-law, afterwards Sir George Barrow.]

1839-40.] AFFAIRS IN FRANCE. 365
and they were all swimming for their lives ; some are supposed
to bo lost, but the Prince, as they call Buonaparte, was picked up ;
meanwhile the boats of la Douane got round and captured the
whole expedition. 'Tis said that one of the larger vessels had
two fine carriages on board, and some arms and ammunition.
Our courier says that he saw Buonaparte, the General, and
several others brought up and lodged in the jail of Boulogne.
During several hours an embargo was laid on post-horses, but
it was taken off about one p.m., and we passed at two, with as
httle symptoms of an insurrection as you can imagine ; but
you know the post road only skfrts the lower town ; all we
observed was that some windows wore closed with their
shutters, and that people ran to the upper windows to stare
at us as we passed.
The common people and a mob of boys were ready enough
to cry Vive Napoleon, but the troops, the National Guards, and
tho better classes, were staunch.
Sir W. FoUett to Mr. Croker.
Paris, Hotel de Douvres, October 6th, 1840.
My dear Mr. Croker,
What are you thinking, saying, or doing about tho war, in
England ? Matters here are really assuming a very serious
aspect, much more so than, judgmg from the English papers,
you can have any conception of in England.
In the first place, aU the newspapers of all parties, Bona-
partist, Carhst, Lilioral, Moderate, are unammous in their
abuse of England, and for war. The Journal des Debats is
the only paper that stUl preserves anything like a moderate
tone on this subject, and even that paper does not venture to
take the side of peace. It is impossible that tMs constant
excitement of the Press could faU to produce a considerable
effect upon such an inflaminable people as the French, even if
they were not before .weU disposed for some violent course ;
and I hear now that tho war party in the country and in the
army is gaining such strength, that the Government begin
to be afraid they have not the power to control it. The
Ministers, I was told, and I think from something like
authority, are in the greatest perplexity and distress; all
of them, even M. Thiers, desire to avoid war ; the King
decidedly opposed to it ; yet apprehensive that unless some-

366 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
thing like concession is made by England, they will hfe forced
by the popular cry to take some steps that must lead to
hostUities. I understand that they have come to the deter
mination not to interfere so long as the operations of the
allies are confined to Syria ; but that there is a difference of
opinion upon the point whether they shaU order the French
fleet to saU to Alexandria, with directions to protect the Pasha,
in case of any attack on the Egyptian territories. It is said
that Thiers is desirous that this should be done, but that the
King wUl not consent to it.
I presume that such a step on the part of France would
necessarUy bring on a European war. TMers, they say,
tendered his resignation on Sunday, but was prevaUed. on by
the King to remain, and to try the effect of another over
ture to the Enghsh Government to modify the treaty so far
as to preserve Egypt to Mehemet Ali. If some concession be
not made to France it is impossible to say what may be the
consequence in the present state of men's minds here, but in
the meantime what is thought of tMs treaty in England?
The Duke of WeUington's authority is quoted in its favour ;
I know not with what truth. I do not profess to be able to
comprehend this subject in aU its bearings, but I cannot help
doubting both tho policy and the justice of tMs interference
by force in the dispute between Mehemet Ali and the Porte.
If aU the Powers of Europe had united, it might have been
justifiable and politic as being a sure mode of preventing war ;
but I cannot conceive anything more likely to lead to war,
than a treaty of interference between some of these Powers,
while the one most likely to disturb the peace was left at
liberty to oppose and take part against thom, if it thought fit
to do so. No one, hbwever, seems to have attacked Lord
Palmerston for this treaty, and therefore I suppose I am
wrong about it. In the midst of all this excitement the
populace here is perfectly tranquU ; no incivihty of any sort
or kind is offered to the English, either here or in the pro
vinces ; and I cannot help thinking even now that with the
shopkeepers and a very large portion of the people, a war
with England would not be popular.
We saw in Galignani yesterday that George Giffard* had been
wounded in this affafr on the coast of Syria. His mother and
* [A ward of Mr. Croker and brother-in-law of Sir Wm. FoUett, now
(1884) Admiral Sir George Giffard, K.C.B.]

1839-1840.] WAR OR PEACE f 367
Jane* are, of course, anxious and uneasy about it, and will
be so until we have tho real truth about it. 1 sliould hope,
however, from the way it is meiitioned in the paper, that his
wound is not very serious. We are expecting the despatches
from England.
We talk of leaving this towards the end of this week, and
I hope to be in England about the 18th. All unite in kind
love to Mrs. Croker and Nony, and believe me, ever most
sincerely, W. FOLLETT.
3fr. Croker to Lord Brougham.^
Alverstoke, near Gosport, October 31st, 1840.
Thanks for your speculative letter, to which I have neither
speculations nor facts to return, except, indeed, the facts of
two great three-deckers lying before my windows waiting for
a wind to saU, I know not where, but assuredly to do no
good at aU equivalent to the expense and scandal of such
uncommon armaments. A few days wiU toU us whether tho
French Deputies representing the [people] are to be swayed
by them or the Press, and whether they will encourage the
system of ruimng our respective finances in these hostile
demonstrations. The Eastern Question is per se nothing. It
matters not a fig whether the Subhme Porte spells its name
Mahmoud or Mehemet, but it does signify a great deal
whether the European world is to be spending its money and
frritating its temper on every paltry excuse which a faction
may create. Formerly, you are weU aware, no Power [in
creased] its peace armament without notice to or romon-
stianco from other Powers, and, in fact, they [criticised] each
other's budgets more strictly than Mr. Joseph Hume ever did
ours ; and this foreign jealousy tended to domestic economy.
Our peace, I grieve to say almost our whole peace, has boon
war in disguise. The words of peace, the arts and expendi
ture of war — the voice of Jacob ! the hands of Esau ! Where
is tMs to end ? We have now a larger and more expensive
* [Sir Wm. FoUett married Miss Giffard, daughter of Sir Hardinge
Giffard, Chief Justice of Ceylon.]
t [There were several words in this letter which the copyist was unable
to decipher, and he therefore left them blank. In the absence of the
original, the editor has conjecturaUy filled up these blanks.]

368 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXI.
fleet and army than we used to have in our old-fasMoned
wars, and the system that was to control the beUigerent
propensities of kings, turns out to be more extravagant than
anytMng that mere kings could have ventured upon. Thank
God, I am a private man. You all, of aU sides, who have
public duties, are (or at least I should feel myseU to be) in the
miserable plight of not knowing what to do but to fear and
tremble. Poor Louis PhUippe Uves the hfe of a [mad dog ?],
and wUl soon, I fear, suffer the death of that general object of
every man's shot. Guizot [is] a umt — a nuUity — Soult a
plastron. There is no man in France who has any legitimate
authority or commanding influence over the public mind.
Owr Ministry is a company of second-rate actors, who might
all be buried in poor Lord HoUand's grave* without being
missed. Ward and W. VUliers, and BuUer, and Bulwer
would do just as well, and command the self-same majorities.
The Tories have more station and foUowing, but not enough
to enable them to govern. Yours ever,
J. W. Croker.
Mr. Croker to the Bishop of Exeter (Dr. Phillpotts).
Gosport, 15, Angles 3a Terrace, October 6th, 1840.
My dear Lord,
I take the liberty of asking you, as the most likely of all
my friends to be able to afford me the information, what the
meaning is of a paragraph towards the conclusion of the
Archbishop's recent Visitation charge, about the "quantity
of service" required by the Rubric for the Lord's day? I
know not what rubric specifles " the quantity of service " for
the Lord's day ; nor have I ever known in any church any
curtaUment of the usual quantity. The Archbishop seems
to say that the Rubric requfres two full services every
Sunday (though Ms Grace says, I know not why, that week
day service is, of course, not to be required), and on Sundays,
Wednesdays, and Fridays, the addition of the Litany, and on
Sunday I presume, though I flnd no rubric for it, the Com
munion Service, or a part of it, though for the division of
that service I flnd no rubric. It seems to me that the rubric
* [Lord Holland had died on October 20th, at the age of sixty seven.]

1839-1840.] SERVICES OF TEE CHURCH 369
requfres tliree services on the Lord's day, and not two as his
Grace seems to say, and that it is liy a con\'enient abridge
ment of labour that the Morning Service is, on the Sunday
morning, conjoined to the Communion.
I confess also that I do not understand what his Grace's
drfft or object was. Surely this whole passage (under the
pressure, he teUs us, of such important matters as wore
pressing for notice) did not mean that there should be morn
ing and evening service on the Sunday ; for, as I have said,
there are few, and those few generaUy excusable exceptions,
and probably not one in the diocese of Canterbury, in which
the " rights of the parishioners " are so " infringed " on. The
oiUy precise object I can coUoct from the whole passage, is to
say that attention to the Rubric on week days is, of course,
not to bo expected, but that his Grace submits very humbly
and hesitatingly whether it would not be an infringement on
the " rights of the parishioners " to abridge the Sunday
" complement ; " and he further ventures to suggest that a
second pulpit discourse would be rather desirable, which if
not contrary to, is at least not specffied by, the rubric. TMs,
then, whore the rubric is clear, it is of course not to be fol
lowed, but sometMng that it does not requfre is recommended
to universal adoption.
Is it Hibernian dulnoss that mystifies all this to my mind ?
or is there some rubric or rule not printed in our common
hturgies ? or, finaUy, has his Grace somo esoteric doctrine on
the subject wliich has not yet reached the laity ? Can you,
my dear lord, enhghton my ignorance ?
Ever very sincerely yours,
J. W. Croker.
The Bishop of Exeter to Mr. Croker.
Staffordshire, Himley HaU, October 28th, 1840.
My dear Sir,
Since the receipt of your first letter, I have been in a state
of incessant occupation — I might almost say of locomotion —
except the time occupied by an Ordination. A tour of Con
firmations has filled up part of the time — a journey hither, on
the business of the Dudley Trust, has claimed an entire ten
days. VOL. II. 2 B

370 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap XXI.
Without my books I cannot write as accurately as I wish
on tho subject on which you enquire.
I apprehend, however, that you are quite right in your
supposition that the Communion Service is a distinct office
altogether, and was wont to be performed at a separate time
from either Morning or Evening Prayer.
I apprehend, too, that there is no rule, and no principle,
which connects it more with Morning than with Evening
Prayer. On Easter Monday or Tuesday, I forget wMch, but tho day
on which tho Spital Sermon is proached before the Lord
Mayor at Christ Church, the Communion Service (without
tho Sacrament) is performed alone — i.e., neither Mormng nor
Evening Prayer precedes it.
If my memory does not faU mo, this is also the case at
Lambeth, when the Bishops dine with the Archbishop as a
body. On pubhc days the Litany is the service performed ;
but on the Bishops' day, if I mistake not, it is tho Commumon
Service. As an excuse for my uncertainty on the point, I must teU
you that the Bishops' day has ordinarUy been in Easter week,
when I am never in London. It is now altered, but I know
not that I have dined on that occasion more than once. I
am confident that the Litany was not then tho service, and
am ahnost confident that the Communion was the service.
Respecting the demand of a second sermon from every
mimster on every Sunday, though the recent statute em
powers the Bishop to make it, my own judgment is very far
from being that it ought to be generaUy mado. In rural
parishes espociaUy, I should much prefer the pubhc cate-
cliizing of the chUdron, with an effective explanation of part
of the CatecMsm, or a famUiar, but grave, and avowedly or
manifestly premeditated, though not written, comment on one
of the Lessons of the day — to a second sermon. In truth,
the more wo elevate the Liturgy, the intelligent reading of
Scripture, or tho different offices of the Church (the Baptismal
and Burial Service especiaUy), and render them by explana
tion famihar to our people, even if this bo dono at the expense
of what is caUed preaching, the better in my opuiion it wUl
be. By the bye. Hooker calls all these things preaching.
Yours most faithfuUy,
H. Exeter.

1839-1840.] MR. PERCEVAL. 371
The foUowing, from a son of Mr. Perceval, was evidently
in reply to a request from Mr. Croker for some particulars
concerning tho early life of his old cliief.
Mr. Perceval to Mr. Croker.
,, Tij- ^ Sunday, September 6th, 1840.
My dear Mr. Ceoker, ^
I wish it wore in my power to furnish you with accurate
information upon tlie subject on which you have kindly
referred to me, but I fear I have not much to say that will
bo avaUable for your purpose.
My father was educated at Harrow; he was pupil to
Dr. Drury, who afterwards, but not (I believe) during my
father's time, was head master. Lord Harrowby and Mathew
Montague were among his most intimate friends, and the
prize books wMch he brought away from Harrow, and a
number of old exorcises of his which I have, together with
others by his contemporaries, bear witness that he gave his
mind to tho studies of that place. He was afterwards a
feUow-commoner at Trinity CoUege, Cambridge. His private
tutor was MatMas, author of the ' Pursuits of Literature ; '
but I do not think that I ever hoard any one speak of his
studies there, one way or tho other.
I have heard that Mr. Pitt first saw my father when at
Cambridge, upon somo occasion when he, Mr. Pitt, came
down there after he had ceased to reside ; that they met at
a supper, and that Mr. Pitt was very much struck by him.
This anecdote I am pretty sure I had from Mr. Ryder. I
may as well add hero what, perhaps, you have hoard, but
which is undoubtedly true, that Mr. Pitt, when ho went to
fight Tierney,* named my father to Lord Harrowby as the
fittest man in the House of Commons to take his place.
These facts aro, I am afraid, not much to tho point as direct
answers to your questions, though they have a general bear-
* [On May 25th, 1798, Mr. Pitt introduced a Bill for the more effectual
manning of the navy. In the course of the debate high words passed
between him and Mr. Tierney, which led to a challenge from Tierney the
next day. On Sunday the 27th they met on Putney Heath ; two shots
were fired with no effect, and the seconds then interfered and put a stop to
the quarrel. — Stanhope's ' Life of Pitt,' 8vo., vol. n. pp. 277-279.]
2 B 2

372 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
ing upon the enquiry of how far he cultivated or neglected
his talents during the period of his education. I have seen
many years ago books of notes and extracts belonging to tMs
period, and to tho early part of his law hfe, which bear a
general testimony to painstaking and diligence, but I have
not so accurate a recoUection of them as I could wish, to
enable mo to bear witness as to tho direction or extent of his
reading. Ho took an honorary degree of M.A.
He never wrote anytMng that I kn/)w of (except a very
short pamphlet on part of the eleventh chapter of Daniel) that
was not written in the way of business. His defence of tho
Princess of Wales you probably have. I tMnk I remember
hearing Lord Denman on tho Queen's trial, characterize it as
one of the most beautiful writings in the English language ;
and I have always felt that, independent of the skill, and
discretion, and dignity, and boldness manifested in the con
duct of the case, the letters, as mere specimens of writing, are
worthy a place among the best Enghsh classics, and my filial
vanity has often longed for a legitimate occasion to pubhsh
them. If you have not a copy I wiU ask my mother to send
ono to you, wMch I am sure she wiU do with great pleasure.
Besides tho little pamplUet on 'Prophecy,' which I have
mentioned above, I have heard my mother speak of papers
in the British Critic upon prophetical subjects, and among
my father's books I have observed more marks of study in
somo prophetical works than in any other ; and I have no
doubt that his steadfast resistance to the Roman Catholic
claims was very much owing to his mind being imbued with
views of the Papacy obtained fi'om the study of prophecy.
I am, dear Mr. Croker,
Yours faithfully and affectionately,
J. W. Perceval.
Tlie Duke of Wellington to Mr. Croker.
Strathfieldsaye, December 31st, 1840.
My dear Croker,
I will not deny myself tho satisfaction of teUing you with
what delight I' have perused your article in the Quarterly
Eeview on the Foreign Policy. *
¦ f, [In No. 133, December 1840.].

1839-1840.] TEE RIOTS OF 1830. 373
I believe that there are few persons who know so much of
^\'llat is called the Eastern Aflair as 1 do, even of Ministers,
and 1 must say that 1 have not seen any statenieut of the
case of the country, including that of Ministers, half so clear
or strong as you liave made out.
TMers has not a leg on -which ho can stand. The French
can only sing the 'Marseillaise,' and talk of la pcrfidie
Anglaisc. 1 see but bad accoimts of Lord Hertford. It is said that
he is coming home. Ever yours, most sincerely,
Wellington.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, Saturday. [No other date.]
My dear Croker,
I would wUlingly give you, if I could, the information you
want as to the date of Lord John Russell's speech ; but I do
not very woU recoUect the speech. I tMnk it could not bo
a very recent one, for it would have been too impudent to
take credit for much improvement in the social condition of
England witMn the last five or six years.
I wiU look, however, and try to find the speech. Tho whole
system of government in 1830 was condemned because there
were some incendiary fires, and because the mob was so
maddened by the three glorious days and the praises bestowed
upon them by such mon as Lord Brougham and Lord
Denman, that it became unwise to let the King visit the
Lord Mayor on a November night, for fear mischievous people
might provoke a disturbance, from which innocent ones would
suffer. If we had been so profoundly ignorant of the state of the
country as to let 8000 or 9000 men march upon a town,
without a suspicion that such a thing was possible, and had
then shot dead with the mUitary fifteen or twenty rioters,
what would the Wliigs have said of such culpable negligence ?
and how they would have inveighed against the defective
principle of institutions with which great masses of working
men were dissatisfied ! They would have considered a rising
of 10,000 men a conclusive proof against the whole constitu
tion of Government, assuming, as they always have done till

874 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXL
they were in power, that every turbulent fellow or seditious
meeting must have a cause of complaint/M??2/ justifying the
turbulence or sedition.
A day or two before wo wont to GopsaU, Lord Howe
received a letter addressed to Lmd How, the envelope of
whitoy brown, with an inscription, " per railroad." Ho thought
it one of a dozen letters addressed to Mm from people who
wanted money, or a subscription, or the permission to dedi
cate, or work for a bazaar, or anything else than from Queen
Adelaide, and was very nearly throwing it into the grate.
However, he fortunately opened tho envelope, and discovered
the letter from the Queen, announcing to Queen Adelaide
her intended marriage, addressed in the Queen's own hand to
Queen Adelaide, and written in very kind and affectionate
terms — as fuU of love as Juliet.
I suppose some footboy at Windsor Castle had enclosed
and directed it to Lord How.
If it had been disregarded, and had thus remained un
answered, what an outcry there would have been of neglect,
insult, and so forth — and not unjustly.
Ever affectionately yours.
My dear Croker, Robert Peel.

( 375 )

CHAPTER XXII.
1841-1842.
FaU of Lord Melbom-ne's Administration — Dissolution of Parliament —
Great Tory Grains in the New Elections— Sir Eobert Peel's Second
Administration — The Corn Law Agitation— Peel's Sliding Scale— His
Account of the Debates upon it — Foreshadows a Tax upon Property —
The Income Tax imposed in 1842 — Mr. Croker again defends Peel's
PoUcy — Peel on the Necessity of a Liberal Tariff— England's Com
mercial Policy "on its Trial "—England must be made a Cheap
Country to Live In — Peel's Defence of the Income Tax — Sir James
Graham on the Corn Law Agitation ; and on the Local Disturbances
— Sir E. Peel on High Prices and Landed Property — Public Distress at
Paisley, &c. — The United States' Boundary Question — Sketch of the
Dispute — The Mysterious Map — The "Strong Eed Line" — Lord
Ashburton's Account of the Map — His Defence of the Treaty — The
Second Map — Letters from Mr. Goulburn, Lord Aberdeen, Lord Ash
burton, and Sir Eobert Peel — Conversations with the Duke of WeUington
— Last Letters from Theodore Hook — Birth of the Prince of Wales —
The Queen's Attention to Business — Eemarkable Duels — Church
Music — The Prime Minister In Former Times and Now — Letter from
Su- E. Peel— Visit to Windsor— Peel on the " Voracity " for Titles—
The "Distinction of an Unadorned Name" — The Tractarian Move
ment — Mr. J. G. Lockhart on the Eich and the Poor in England
— Sir E. Peel on the Price of Bread — Death of Lord Hertford — His
Latter Days — Mr. Croker's Account of Lord Hertford's Death —
Suspicions of Lord Hertford's Insanity — The Missing Packet of
100,000 Fr. — Nicolas Suisse— Probable Nature of his Duties— Mr.
Croker's Prosecution of Suisse — Suisse Eetaliates — Trial and Acquittal
of Suisse — Letter from Lord Hertford's Son — The Attacks on Mr.
Croker by Macaulay — Their Manifest Injustice — Mr. Croker's Character
in Private Life — Slanders pubUshed since his Death.
It is to be regretted that the greater part of Mr Croker's
letters for these two years is missing. Some few notes of a

376 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
private or business character were found after dUigent search,
but comparatively little of public interest was left relating to
1841. This is the more unfortunate from the fact that 1841
was a year of some importance in pohtics ; the Corn Law
agitation began to show signs of greater -vitality than hereto
fore, the Government had become unpopular, and Sfr Robert
Peel saw, in the month of May, that the moment had come
for doahng it a fatal blow. He brought forward a direct
motion of want of confidence, and it was carried, on tho 4th of
June, by a majority of one vote ; the defeated Ministers
ad-vised a dissolution, and the new elections were held in the
midst of great excitement. The famous big loaf and the httle
loaf made their appearance, apparently for the first time, at
least in election contests ; but the effect produced was not so
great as had been expected, even Lord John RusseU, who was
identified with the big loaf, barely escaping defeat in the City
of London. Two of the WMg seats were lost, and Lord John
was at the bottom of the poU. The total gain of the Tories
was reckoned at eighty votes on a di-vision.
Lord Melbourne had now no alternative but to resign, and
Sir Robert Peel was called upon to form his second adminis
tration. Lord Stanley and Sir James Graham joined him,
and Mr. Gladstone accepted office as Vice-President of the
Board of Trade, afterwards becoming President, as successor
to Lord Ripon. Mr. Gladstone, in his address seeking re
election at Newark, declared that the British farmer might
rely upon two points : " first, that adequate protection would
be given to liim ; " secondly, " that protection would be given
him through the means of the shding scale." The principle
of the Melbourne Government, it is scarcely necessary to say,
had been that of a fixed duty of 8s. on com ; and the question
of a total repeal of the Corn Laws was not first brought forward
by a recognised leader on either side, nor by Mr. Cobden,
who sat for Stockport, but by Mr. VUliers, whose name

1841-1842.] PROTECTION AND FREE TRADE. 377
has almost slipped out of later histories of the Free Trade
controversy. As the new Parliament did not meet till September, 1841,
no stop could be taken either in reference to this or any other
important question ; but during the winter the great struggle
between Protection and Free Trade was continued throughout
the country, and Sir Robert Peel saw that no time was to be
lost in endeavouring to de-vise terms- of settlement which
might be satisfactory alike to the agricultural and manu
facturing classes.* As soon as possible after the opening of
Parhament in 1842, on the 9th of February, he brought
forward propositions, wMch comprehended a shding scale
varying with tho price of wheat, but invol-ving also a sub
stantial diminution of the duty. Thus ho found a duty of
27s. 8d. on corn, when it was at 59s. and under 60s. the
quarter ; he proposed to make it 13s. At 50s. the duty was
36s. 8d. ; he proposed to reduce it to 20s. Ho laid much
stress upon the importance of dori-vtng the "main sources" of
the supply of corn from " domestic agriculture," and he
expressed the hope that England would " in tho average of
years," be able to produce a sufficiency of wheat " for its own
necessities." It is needless now to point out how delusive
was tMs hope. England does not grow much more than
a thfrd of the quantity of wheat which it requires for its
" own domestic necessities."
Mr. Cobden protested against the scheme, which merely
professed to be a re-vision of the Corn Laws of 1828, as " an
insult to tho Government," and Mr. ViUiers brought forward
Ms motion for immediate repeal. But there wore only 90
votes for Mr. ViUiors, and 393 against him, whUe a proposal
to make an increase in the duties, proposed by the Ministry,
* " The great question of Protection and Free Trade was at no time
really a question between the Conservative and the Liberal parties."
These are the words of a very high authority, in the Quarterly Review,
vol 99, p. 562.

378 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
encountered a defeat equaUy decisive, though not so large.
The BUl was passed through both Houses before the end of
the first week in April.
During the progress of the debates. Sir Robert Peel and
Mr. Croker were in frequent correspondence, but, as it has
just been stated, none of Mr. Croker's letters can be recovered.
In February, 1842, after Lord John Russell had moved an
amendment to the Ministerial measure, condemning the
principle of a shding scale, Sfr Robert Peel addressed the
following to Mr. Croker : — WhitehaU, February 21st, 1842.
My dear Croker,
The debate on ViUiers' motion has been Mtherto unex
pectedly flat. I attribute tMs to two causes : first, tho failure
of the Anti-Corn Law League to get up much excitement,
excepting in the cotton manufacturing districts ; secondly, to
the mistake of the Corn Law Repealers in permitting Lord
John RusseU to invert tho natural order of proceedings, and
take the discussion on his motion, wMch (coupled with the
known sentiments and with the speech of the mover), imphed
a duty on corn, before the debate on the question whether
there should or should not be any duty whatever.
The Repealers were in an uneasy position during the whole
of the first debate, and they could only reheve themselves
from it (as Roebuck did) by anticipating the discussion on
their own motion.
Our measure is taken very woU upon the whole, much
better than any one could, d priori, have anticipated.
The true line for the Quarterly to take is to dwell upon
the enormous difficulties to wMch we have succeeded ; to
show that the Whigs attempted notMng for the furtherance of
tho principles they profess, untU they were in extremis, and
then they did what they could to embarrass. They were
hanged, like Chartoris, for offences wMch they could not
commit. Either they had in 1835, 6, 7, and 8, the confidence
of Parliament and the country, or they had not. If they had,
why did not they review the commercial, legislative and
financial position of the country ?
If they had not, why did they drag on, not for months, but for
years, a miserable existence, powerless for any good purpose ?
What excuse have they to ofl'er for trying their miserable

1841-1842. TAXATION ON PROPERTY. 379
expedients of 5 per cent, ou Custom duties, aud 10 per cent.
on Assessed Taxes ?
When they remitted the Post Office Revenue, they made
Parhament promise to repair the deficiency, if there were one ;
and the promise has never boon redeemed.
Their whole financial policy may bo summed up in ono
sentence. They burned the candle at both ends, increasing expenditure
and diminishing revenue. Their policy here has boon faith
fuUy copied in India. They began with a surplus; they
ended with a frightful deficiency.
My own private opinion is that tho country is in that state,
that the property of tho country must submit to taxation, in
order to release industry and the millions from it ; that
tho doing so voluntarUy and with a good grace, will bo a
cheap purchase of future security.
Three good appointments in tho Enghsh Church, indicating
tho sense of the Government, would do more to allay tho
fever of Pusoyism, than 3000 controversial tracts with a
ChiUtngworth for tho author of each of them.
The sense of the Government must be marked in favour of
that which is reasonable and just; in favour of Church of
England Protestant principles, as they have been understood
for the last hundred years, the via media between Popery and
Dissent. 1 suppose it must have been beautiful weather by this
glimpse of the sun which I sometimes catch. I wish they
would give mo a ten hours' bUl. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.

In tMs letter it will be seen that the Prime Minister makes
an aUusion to the necessity of placing a tax upon property,
and this idea he carried out in Ms Budget — introduced on tho
llth of March, 1842 — by proposing a tax of seven-pence in
the pound on incomes of 150?. and upwards, limited in
duration to three years, with the power reserved of extending
it to five years. The duties on various articles entering into
British manufactures were reduced ; the timber duties were
brought down to 25s. a load, and Canadian timber to Is. a

380 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
load. The Prime Minister was still dissatisfied with the
amended tariff, believing that it ought to be carried much
further in the direction of concession. It seems to be evident,
indeed, from Ms letters, that Ms mind was working slowly
round towards moderate free trade principles, although it is
equaUy clear from the support which Mr. Croker consistently
extended to him that his intimate friends did not realise the
truth. In September, 1842, there appeared an article in the
Quarterly Eeview, by Mr. Croker, -vigorously defendmg tho
whole " Policy of Sir Robert Peel," including the income tax.
But it was assumed that the tax could and would be remitted
at the end of three or five years " without any derangement
of other interests." Mr. Croker was disposed to regard the
income tax as in the " nature of a temporary advance, made
by wealthy capitalists to relieve and facihtate certain branches
of industry, wMch, though now suffering, wUl by this timely
assistance be enabled to recover themselves, and to repay at
no long interval, their debt to the general fund." In a word,
Mr. Croker stUl retained that unbounded faith in Sfr Robert
Pool which has been shown throughout this correspondence,
from tho early days of Peel's career, when scarcely anybody
else reposed any confidence whatever in Mm. He therefore
accepted Peel's own -views, however much they may at times
have startled Mm. As for the belief of both Pool and Mr.
Croker that the income tax could easUy be dono away with
in the course of a few years, no comments can bo necessary.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, July 27th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I can assure you that the difficulty will be to prove that,
we bave gone far enough in concession — that is, relaxation of
proMbitions and protections — not that we have gone too far.
Something effectual must be done to re-vivo, and ro-vive
permanently, tho languishing commerce and languishing
manufacturing industry of this country.

1841-1842.] TEE INCOME TAX. 381
Franco, Belgium, and Germany are closing their doors
upon us.
Look at the state of society in this country ; the congregati(ni
of manufacturing masses ; the amount of our debt ; the rapid
increase of poor rates within tho last four years, which will
soon, by means of rates in aid, extend from the mixed manu
facturing districts to the rural ones, and then judge whether
wo can with safety retrograde in manufactures.
The declared ^¦aluo of the exports of cotton manufacture
fell off abo%'e a million last year, compared with tho former.
Seventeen millions in 1840 ; sixteen milhons in 1841. If
you had to constitute now societies, you might on moral and
social gTounds prefer corn fields to cotton factories ; an
agiicultural to a manufacturing population. But our lot is
cast ; we cannot change it and we cannot recede. The tariff
does not go half far enough in tho direction in which it does
go. If wo could afford it, wo ought to take off the duty on
cotton wool, and tho duty on foreign sheep's wool.
I repeat that the man who pays £2 18s. por cent, on his
income, may make that sa-ving in Ms expenditure in conse
quence of the tariff.
I am confident of it, and yet in tho same breath I ' say to
the agriculturists. Your apprehensions about fat pigs and fat
cattle from Hamburgh are absurd. There will be no reduction
in the price of meat or cattle which need terrify you.
Whore is the inconsistency of this ?
I never said to tho consumer, you wUl save throe per cent.
a year expenditure by tho reduction of the price of meat. I
said to him, and said most triUy : By the reduction in the
price of timber, of coffee, of fish, of oU, of all articles of
furniture, of corn, of everything in short wMch you consume,
there wUl be a saving of three per cent. There may be a
sa-vmg of Id. a pound in the price of fresh meat (I sincerely
hope there may). There wUl be a guarantee that meat shall
not be at an extravagant price of tenpence or a shiUing a
pound. Ham and bacon wUl bo reduced in price. But if there
is no reduction in tho price of beef and mutton, the cal
culation of 3 per cent, saving in expenditure will remain
unaffected. When farmers were stupidly soiling their stock at 30 por
cent, abatement, and were whimpering over advertisements
offering fresh meat from Hamburgh at 3d. a pound, which

382 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
meat costs 5\d. in the Hamburgh market, I said the alarm is
groundless, you, the farmers, will receive no such injury as
you stand in dread of. But again I say, where is the delusion
or inconsistency in this language, compared with my promise
of general reduction in the cost of hving ?
I have made no abatement in tho Tariff or in the Corn
Law in deference to repealers of the Corn Laws. There is
nothing I have proposed which is not in conformity with my
own con-vdctions. I should rather say, I have not gone, in
any ono case, beyond my own convictions on the side of
relaxation. Experience wUl prove that nothing but good will result
from the extent of relaxation. Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
The Income Tax and Tariff Bills wore passed through both
houses before the end of June, but the prospects of the
Ministry were darkened by the distress which continued to
increase throughout tho country, especially in the manufac
turing districts. The Froe Traders began to talk of using
" force " as a " remedy," and bitter attacks were made in all
directions upon Sfr Robert Peel. Some of tho conditions in
this grave state of affairs are touched upon in the next letters,
and Peel expresses many striking -views on principles much
discussed in Ms own day and at a later period.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, August 3rd, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I hardly know what to send you in respect of the tariff and
our commercial policy.
They are on trial, and a much more satisfactory judgment
wUl be formed in respect to thom from facts which must be
known a short time hence, than from a priori reasonings.
1 have taken from the papers of this day tho enclosed
paragraphs. Thoy aro very important as indications fif improvement.

1841-1842.] ECONOMIC PROBLEMS OF 1842. 383
Without improvement wo are on the brink of convulsion,
or something very like it.
For thirty weeks in succession, not less than 10,000'
human beings on the aA-orago have boon supported in one
town — Paisley — on charity.
Some decisive effort was necessary to terminate, if possible,
such a state of things.
The new Corn Law has, so far as we have had experience
(but tho experience is too short to enable us to judge satis
factorily), worked weU.
There has boon a weekly import of foreign corn since it
passed, and a weekly payment of duties on taking out the
foreign corn for home consumption.
The trade, foreign and retail, has boon steady and regular.
Tlio duty wUl not faU below eight shUlings, and very pro
bably we shaU receive 600,000?. or 700,000?. of revenue during
the quarter for corn.
I heard a gxeat corn merchant make a bet last night in the
lobby of tho House of Commons that, before the 1st of
November next, the weekly average of wheat would be so
low as forty-five sliilhngs a quarter.
He repeated tho bet once made.
Three months hence we shaU see the working of the law,
the effect on the American market, and many other par
ticulars wliich wUl determine its character and probable per
manent operation and tendencies.
The Anti-Corn Law League determined, as soon as we had
passed our financial and commercial measures, to make one
desperate effort at the close of the session to bully us into
further alteration of the law.
Hence tho deputations and interviews ; tho system of lec
turing ; the gross exaggerations ; the detail of individual cases
of suffering ; exhuming buried cows, &;c. See the circular of
the 1st of August : tho observations on the falling off of the
receipts of railroads as an e-vidonce of depression.
We must make tMs country a cheap country for living,
and thus induce parties to remain and settle hero.
Enable thom to consume more, by having more to spend.
The argument that people must pay more for the articles
they consume because they are heavily taxed, is absurd.
If you have to pay annually sixty-four shillings a quarter
for 24,000,000 quarters of wheat there is a dead loss of
12,000,000?. sterhng annually.

384 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
Comparing tho expenditure on one article with that wMch
would be requisite were wheat at fifty-four shillings, how wiU
that 12,000,000?. be employed ? In consuming more barley,
more wheat, more articles of agricultural produce. It is a
fallacy to urge that tho loss faUs on the agriculturist. They
too aro consumers ; thoy lose almost as much in increased poor
rates alone, tho burden of which, as they contend, faUs almost
exclusively on them, as they gain by increased price.
Lower the price of wheat, — not only poor rates, but the
cost of everytMng else is lowered.
We do not push this argument to its logical consequences,
namely, that wheat should be at thfrty-five shillings instead
of fifty or fifty-four.
We take into account vested interests, engaged capital, the
importance of independent supply, the social benefits of
flourishing agriculture, &c.
We find that the general welfare wUl be the best promoted
by a fair adjustment — by aUowing the legitimate logical
deductions to be controlled by the thousand considerations
which enter into moral and pohtical questions, and wMch —
as friction and the weight of the atmosphere disturb your
mathematical conclusions — put a limit to the practical
application of abstract reasoning.

Ever, most affectionately.

R. P.

My dear Croker,

Whitehall, Aug. 8th, 1842.
Corn Law.

Read page 48 of tho enclosed. Road the whole speech if
you can, as it is a sort of profession of faith, befm'c the last
General Election, and out of office.
Read also my speech on tho first address, after the passing
of the Reform Bill, when. I said a now course of action must
be adopted by the Conservative party, that thoy must govern
¦ — if they did govern — on principles in harmony with the
changes in tho Legislature.
Read my letter to tho electors of Tamworth before the
General Election of 1834-5, and the principles which I then
avowed on entering office.
Read also the declarations I made on entering office in

1841-1842.] ,S"7'.l?'^ OF THE PEOPLE. 385
August last (1841), and my declaration that I would scorn to
hold it on tho condition of being the more organ of a party,
or an instrument in the hands of the House of Lords, or on
any other terms than tlioso of the freest latitude, to propose
what I doomed best for the pubhc interest.
I notice the returns of contract prices for Greenwich, of
meat, &c. See how the high price of necessary articles tends
to increase the public burdens.
At Leicester — they had a subscription for tho relief of dis
tress ; thoy raised about £2700 ; they have just invested
£1200 in tlie funds to meet future demands, finding the
distress greatly exaggerated. Ever most faithfully,
Robert Peel.

WhitehaU, August 13th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
Surely you have got answers to every query you have sent
mo ? Have you got Gladstone's detailed answer to your
queries about copper ore, &c. ? I sent thom to you myself.
The best tMng we have done, without exception, is the
reduction of the duty on timber. It is confidently reported
in the City, and generaUy beUeved, that I have greatly over
estimated the loss to the revenue. All species of ship-
buUding, all parties concerned in fisheries, all pubUc works —
piers, harbours, and coffer-dams ; all public buildings, all
repairs of farm-houses wUl bo benefited by the free access to
Baltic timber.
Landlords -with farmhouses out of repair wUl save their
income-tax by tho reduced cost of timber for repairs.
I hope you have got the import duty report.
Hume of the Customs said, and said justly, " We have the
command of coal and fron, give us the command of timber,
and we have every natural advantage." See the e-vidonce
about our fisheries.
Our inabiUty to enter into deep sea fishing in competition
with other countries, from tho dearness of timber and the
consequent fragility of our boats.
I was told the other day that tho estimated saving on a
new Conservative Club-house that is to be built at the bottom
of St. James's Street is 2000?. from tho reduced cost of timber
alone. vol. II. 2 c

386 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
The colonies wiU indeed be burdensome to us if, in addition
to tho cost of defending them, we are to submit to enormous
burdens to encourage the consumption of thefr inferior timber.
Depend upon it, it admits of demonstration that, by divert
ing capital and enterprise from the steady encouragement of
agriculture in our North American colomos to the lottery of
the timber trade, we are injuring rather than benefiting them.
We are going to submit the timber-growers at home, by
the removal of the duty on colomal timber, to unlimited com
petition with colomal growers. This for tho first time, and
-without notice. It would bo absurd if tho colomal growers
wore to msist on extravagant protection from tho competition
of foreign growers. We give them a very Mgh one.
The argument in respect to timber is, I assure you, con
clusive. There is no one article that contributes so much to
comfort and social improvement, to cheapness of production,
as low price of timber.
Sir James Graham, who was Home Secretary in Sfr Robert
Peel's second administration, was in frequent communication
with Mr. Croker on the state of the country, and supplied
many of the facts which were set forth in an article on the
Anti-Corn Law Agitation, pubhshed in the Qiiarterly for
December, 1842. This article re-viewed the history of the
League do-wn to the date of its appearance, and showed that
the leaders had spent 90,000?. in 1841, and wore then engaged
in raising another 50,000?.* The existence of such associations
was denounced as " incompatible either with the internal peace
and the coijimorcial prosperity of the country " or with " the
safety of the State." Sir James draham to Mr. Croker.
Home Ofiice, August 20th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
Our accounts are better to-day, but the whole state of
society is feverish in the extreme ; and it is a social insur-
¦* The expenses of the League, as it has since been authoritatively
stated, amounted to about 1000?. a week.

1841-1842.] WORKMEN AND THEIR EMPLOYERS. 387
rection of a very formidable character, and well organised
with forethought and ability.
I wish we could got at the authors. I by no means despair
of arri-ving at this great object.
I am always yours very truly,
J. R. G. Graham.

WhitehaU, September 1st, 1842,
My dear Croker,
You aro the most severe of critics, if you aro not well
satisfied with your o-wn performance. I never read a more
able or satisfactory article, and the case of the Government
cannot be placed on stronger or safer ground. It is, in fact,
a statement of the real truth, and is therefore impregnable.
Wo are greatly indebted to you for this able and complete
defence of our pohcy.
I shaU remain here tUl Saturday. I hope on that day to
go to Cowos, and to remain there till the foliowmg Wednes
day; but my movements must depend on reports from the
disturbed districts. The state of affairs is by no means
satisfactory. The workmen are sullen and discontented ;
they return with great reluctance to their employments ; they
have just cause of complaint against their masters ; plunder
is thefr object, and plunder is thefr weapon ; and a state of
social disorder is advancing with fearful rapidity, for wMch
legislation can supply no remedy, and against which force is
the only safeguard. This is an unhappy view of affairs, but
it is the truth.
1 shaU be glad to see you and to converse with you.
I am, yours sincerely,
J. R. G. Graham.

Home OflSce, December 1st, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I congratulate you on the conclusion of your grand outline.
You have extracted the marrow from the dry bones with
wonderful skUl, and I anticipate the best effect from this able
article. If I might ad-vise, I should change the commencement, and
begin with Lord Kinnaird, whose happy ignorance of any
C 2

388 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
intention to use physical force, demonstrates the necessity of
putting tho unwary on their guard, and of undeceiving those
who have boon wUfuUy bUnd.
I shall send you to-morrow some further useful infor
mation. Yours very truly,
J. R. G. Graham.

HUl street, December 4th, 1842.
My dear Croker,,
You wUl have hoard from Peel.
He is anxious that the last paragraph should be omitted,
and he deprecates the admission that law cannot roach those
proceedings, as also the tMeat that it may be made to do so.
He thinks that you cannot end better than -with the last
paragraph but one, wMch I praised as a most effective
summary of the whole case ; and on reflection I am disposed
to think that Peel's -view is quite right. Confessions of im
potence excite boldness ; tMeats of rigour beyond the law
provoke extreme -yiolonce beforehand, and if tho necessity
should arise, they increase the difficulty of legislation by the
resistance which has been organised and prepared in con
sequence of tho menace.
Tho broth is so good that all the cooks in London cannot
now spoU it ; and as it is a question of omittmg a para
gTaph and not writing a new one, I more readUy press on you
this suggestion.* Yours very truly,
J. R. G. Graham.

[Extract.

1

HiU Street, December 5th, 1842.
My confident hope, my fervent prayer, is this — that we,
the faithful friends of the British constitution in Church and
State, may be enabled boldly to do our duty in our respective
conditions, and that, forgetting all past dissension and angry
discord, we may join heart and hand in the defence of the
* [The suggestion was adopted by Mr. Croker.]

1841-1842.] LANDED PROPERTY. 389
blessings we still enjoy, and of the form of government which
the League seeks to overthrow. I am, yours very truly,
J. R. G. Graham.
Sir Eobert Ped to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, October 30th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
These articles in the Presse surprise me from the ability
with wliich thoy are written, and the knowledge of the subject
in detail wliich they e-vmce. I am very anxious, as you
justly suppose, on the subjects to wMch your letter * refers,
but cMefly anxious on account of dangers approaching from an
opposite quarter than that in wMch you are looking out for
thom. TeU me what we are to do with the population of a town
cfrcumstanced like Paisley. The case of Paisley may be the
most grievous one, but there are many not very dissimUar,
For the last year, there have been supported in that one
town of Paisley, (and necessarily supported, unless you choose
to run the risk of wholesale death from famine — or a fright
ful outbreak and desperate attack upon property,) 9000 per
sons, on a weekly average tMoughout the year, by charity,
exclusive of Poor Rate. There has boon an expenditure of
500?. a week, from voluntary, or rather forced, contributions.
This is agrarian law. The question asked in my letter
from Paisley to-day is. What is to be done for the winter ?
Look at the Malt Duty ; look at the Sugar Duty for the
last year.
The danger is not low price from the tariff, but low price
from the inabUity to consume — from the poor man giving up
Ms pint of boor, and the man in middhng station giving up
his joint of meat.
Rest assured of tMs, that landed property would not be safe
during tMs next winter, with the prices of the last four years,
and even if it were safe, it would not be profitable very long.
Poor Rate, rates in aid, diminished consumption, would
soon reduce the temporary gain of a nominal high price.
The long depression of trade ; tho diminished consumption
* [No letter to be found.]

S90 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
of articles of first necessity ; the state of the manufacturing
population ; the instant supply by means of macMnery of any
occasional increased demand for manufactured goods ; the
tendency of reduced prices to sharpen tho wits of the master-
manufacturer, and to urge Mm on m the improvement of
his machinery ; the double effect on manual labour and the
Wages of manual labour— first, of this reduction in price, and
secondly, of the attempt to counteract it by improvement in
machinery ; the addition that each day makes of two thousand
hands to the unemployed hands of the day before. Those are
the things about wMch I am more anxious than about tho
cattle from Vigo, or the price of pork. Go to the Lothians,
and see what skill and industry can do there in the improved
culture of the earth. The same tMngs may be done here, and
must be done here. If people will grow more weeds than
corn, thoy cannot prosper ; but there is a remedy for this by
foUowing tho example of those who contrive to grow corn
instead of weeds, and who have found out that cattle half-
frozen to death by cold, wUl not fatten so fast as those that
are kept warm ; but where is the remedy for the other evds.
Whether low prices will be an effectual one I cannot fore-
toll. But this I am sure of, that they wiU be aggravated to a
frightful and unbearable extent by continued high prices.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
WhitehaU, December 4th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I think this is exceUent.*
But I was in hopes you would have overwhelmed Lord
Kinnaird with ridicule for his letter complaining of tho tariff
for ha-ving reduced prices. Do read it with this -view. His
lamentations over his "lot of Highland wethers which wUl
not pay the summer's keep."
TMs follow complains of hay being reduced from Is. 2d. to
9d. a stone.
Above all read this, and flesh and blood wiU surely not
resist the temptation to an addition to your article, to an
embalmment of Lord Kinnafrd's letter.
* [Eeferring to a proof of the article above referred to, on the Anti-Corn
Law agitation.]

1841-1842.J NORTE-EAST BOUNDARY QUESTION. 391
But what is the state of the linen trade in Dundee ?
Somewhat better, but only becauso there has 1 icon a demand
for sad-s on account of the abundant harvest.
Show that if you touch those aristocratic leaguers by
reducing the price of provisions, and make thom lose 14s. on
thefr lot of wethers, they are just as clamorous as if you
were extracting their heart's blood.
When the Anti-Corn Law manufacturer scents from afar a
reduction of tho price of corn he reduces his wages, and the
Anti-Corn Law lord abuses the tariff for reducing tho price of
meat. Ever affectionately yours,
R. P.
There was still another difficult and intricate public ques
tion upon which Mr. Croker wrote much at this period, and
that was tho famous North-East Boundary question, which
more than once had threatened to bring about a war between
England and the United States. The dispute chiefly affected
the interests of tho States of Massachusetts and Maine on the
one side, and of a part of Canada on the other. It had been
carried on at various times, and under various forms, ever
since the acknowledgment of the independence of tho United
States by Great Britain under the Treaty of 1783. The loose
nomenclature adopted in that Treaty, in tho attempt to define
the boundaries of the United States and British possessions,
was the cause of aU the subsequent bickerings and angry feel
ing. Tho " north-west angle " of Nova Scotia was referred to,
but there was ample room for endless difference of opinion as
to what was the north-west angle ; the " highlands " which
di-vido certain rivers were mentioned, but no one could decide
where they were. In 1833 the arbitration of the King of
Holland was sought, and the decision — as usual in foreign
arbitrations — went much against England. About two-thirds
of the disputed territory wore given to the United States.
Yet England would have considered herself bound by the

392 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
award, had not the United States rejected it. Tho people of
Maine thought that as so much had been conceded to them,
thoy might, by dint of pertinacity, obtain the whole, and
therefore the compromise was refused. More years elapsed,
and gradually the Americans pushed out thefr settlements to
the very verge of the debateable country, the British colonists
threatened reprisals, and the dispute once more became
dangerous. At last, in 1842, Lord Ashburton was requested
to go to Wasliington, for the purpose of making a new Treaty,
and he succeeded in his mission, so far as signing a Treaty
was concerned ; but to this hour the people on the Canadian
side consider that Lord Ashburton permitted Mmself to be
duped, and that their interests were in consequence merci
lessly sacrificed. There were stories of spurious maps and
false boundary lines, and for many years there was a large
party in England, as well as in the colonies, in which the
deepest anger could be stirred by the mere mention of the
" Ashburton capitulation." To Mr. Croker, however, the new
Treaty appeared a reasonable and fafr solution of tho problem,
and he defended it with the zeal wMch never failed to animate
Mm when he believed that he was right. Seven-twelfths of
the territory were given to the United States, and the remain
ing five-twelfths to Great Britain.
The story of the map appeared in a score of different
shapes at the time, and in itself it was very curious. Before
Lord Ashburton arrived at WasMngton, a map of the whole
region in dispute was discovered by Mr. Jared Sparks at
Paris, and upon this map Benjamin Franklin had marked
with " a strong red hne " the boundaries of the United States
as fixed by the Treaty of 1783. This line indicated precisely
the boundary originally claimed by Great Britain — running
south of tho St. John's River, and between its head waters
and those of tho Penobscot and the Kennebec. It gave all the

1841-1842.] THE MYSTERIOUS MAR 393
" no man's land " to Great Britain. " It is evident," wrote
Mr. Sparks, " that the line, from the St. Croix to the
Canadian highlands, is intended to exclude all the waters
running into the St. John's." The difference to the colonies
was immense ; but tho American negotiators kept the map
under lock and key, and Lord Ashburton was not allowed to
see either that or Mr. Jared Sparks's letter. Tho Americans
yielded a httle of their claims, and thus got the credit with
the pubhc of acting -with generosity ; Great Britain thought
she had made a good bargain by surrendering seven-twelfths
of tho territories which she would have obtained had the
map been produced. When the facts became known in
England, it did not tend to increase the public satis
faction with the Ashburton Treaty ; and as to the feel
ing stfrred up in Canada, readers of Judge Hahburton's
works may stiU be able to form some faint idea of it,
although he dealt with the subject only from the light and
humorous point of -view. Even now it would be hard to per
suade an old Pro-vincial that the Ashburton Treaty was not
ono of the most unjust agreements ever entered into between
two groat powers.
Tho British Government, it must be added, caused a search
to be instituted at Paris for Franklin's map. Strange
to say, that map was not found, but another was, on which
a tMck red line had been traced, gi-ving all the disputed
territory to the United States. This was, indeed, an "ex
traordinary coincidence," and to this day it has never been
explained. This brief summary of the question may bo necessary to
make clear to some readers certain portions of the following
correspondence.

394 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
Mr. Goulburn* to Mr. Croker.
Albemarle Street. (Monday Morning.) [Without date.]
My dear Croker,
On looking over my Parliamentary papers I do not find
that we ever printed the statements submitted by England
and America respectively to the King of the Netherlands, and
yet I have a recollection of having seen them. They were
probably printed in the Foreign Office. If I can find out I
wUl let you know more precisely.
The difficulty in the way of our view of the North American
boundary, is undoubtedly tho definition of the north-west
angle of Nova Scotia, which was made by the Commissioners
under the Convention with America of 1794. That point, in
consequence of taking the wrong branch of the St. Croix as
our guide, was fixed too far to the eastward. It is a serious
question whether after the Convention of 1794 we are at
liberty to change that point. I am not satisfied with the
reasons given by Messrs. Mudge and Fetherstonhaugh in
favour of doing so. But after carefully reading tho article in
the Treaty of Ghent and tho Convention of 1794, 1 am rather
inclined to tho opinion that the words of tho former imply
the previous settlement of the north-western angle of Nova
Scotia, and therefore -view it as a matter no longer in dispute.
But this is a hasty opinion, by wMch I should not wish to be
definitively bound. It is, however, as you observe, the really
pinching part of our case.
Yours ever, my dear Croker, most affectionately,
Henry Goulburn.
Albemarle Street. (Friday.) [Without date.]
My dear Croker,
I am afraid I cannot give you a very satisfactory answer to
your inquiries, but such as I can give you shall have. The
Treaty of 1783 undoubtedly speaks loosely as to tho north
west angle of Nova Scotia, but it does so because both parties
to that Treaty conceived that there was a .distinct line of
highlands running east and west, and when they talked of " an
* [At this time ChanceUor of the Exchequer.]

1841-1842.] TIIE ASHBURTON TREATY. 395
angle formed by a line to the highlands and along the saiil
higlilands," they meant that a lino drawn as (Icscrilicd would
make an angle at the intersection of tlie duo north Ime and
the said highlands, which angle would be taken as tho north
west angle of No\'a Scotia. The Plenipotentiaries wished to
fix what was before doubtful, the north-west angle of Nova
Scotia, and thoy determined that it should bo whore the due
north hne intersected the supposed highlands.
The statements submitted to the King of tho Netherlands
on behalf of Great Britain and tho United States, were never
laid either before Parliament or Congress, and aro therefore
only to be got from the Foreign Ofiice, whore I have no
access. I asked Palmerston, whom I mot incidentally, why
they had boon kept back from Parliament, and he answered
that he thought of presenting them, but as in some parts they
appeared to take a ground different from that subsequently
taken, he had thought better of it.
I cannot find the names of the Commissioners who settled
tho source of the St. Croix wrong. In those days papers wore
not profusely lavished on Parhament, and nothing is to be
found in our Journals or papers respecting their decision.
Yours ever, my dear Croker, most truly,
Henry Goulburn.

Lord Ashburton to Mr. Croker. Extract.
The Grange, November 25th, 1842.
Upon the defence of my treaty I am very stout and fear-
loss, and they who do not like it may kiU the next Hotspur
themselves. It is a subject upon which httle enthusiasm
can be expected. Tho truth is that our cousin Jonathan is
an offensive, arrogant feUow in his manner, and is well repre
sented in the swagger of the enclosed speech. By nearly all
our people he is therefore hated, and a treaty of concUiation
with such a feUow, however considered by prudence or pohcy
to be necessary, can in no case be very popular with the
.multitude. Even my own friends and masters who employed
me aro somewhat afraid of showing too much satisfaction
with what thoy do not hesitate to approve.
Leaving Maine and its boundaries for the county of Hamp
sMre, I congratulate you on having pitched your tent there.

396 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
I dare say your little farm is worth the whole pine swamp
I have been discussing. If you think woU of your purchase
do not let your treaty Unger, but strike at once and put it in
black on white. At the present price of stock there should
be an abundance of purchasers of land at the rate you
mention. I fear we shaU not get to Bay House * this autumn.
Stewart writes that the rain beats in worse than ever, and I
have written to Burton to say that he should understand
these miseries, but if there is no cure for them I must puU
tho house down. If I did not make to myself a rule never to
lose my temper about anything, tMs would much provoke me.
I suppose we shall therefore be fixtures here, and by-and-by
I hope we shaU see you when you are less in demand, if that
ever happens. At tho present moment I am suffering the
torment of sitting for my picture to a very clover American
artist, for my co-capitulator Daniel Webster. We agreed to
exchange phizzes with the ratified treaties.
Ever my dear Croker, yours.

The Earl of Aberdeen^ to Mr. Croker.
Ury House, February 25th, 1843.
My dear Croker,
I ought to have written to yoU before, and I suppose it is
now too late to do so, but I will answer your question at a
venture, although I hope to have the opportunity of talldng
the matter over with you at Peel's to-morrow.
1. Your first question is the Dutch award. I answer that it
was an honest judgment. It was unfavourable to us, but it
proceeded on the principle on which almost all arbitrations
are conducted, -viz., that of mutual concession. Tho territory
in dispute was not very unequally di-vided between us. So
far from the decision of the King being fairly attributable to
any feehngs of resentment, in consequence of our pohtical
conduct in the Netherlands, the Americans rejected it because
ho was so notoriously under our influence, and because he
had lost his independence with the loss of Belgium.
2. You next inquire about Livingston's proposal.^ Palmer-
* [At Alverstoke. " Burton " was Decimus Burton, the architect.]
t [At that time Foreign Secretary.]
X [Mr. Livingston was then the Secretary of State in General Jackson's

1841-1842.] TIIE BOUNPARr QUESTION. 397
ston delayed to notice it for eight or nine montlis, as far as I
can learn, for no particular reason at all. This is the opinion
in the office.
When he did reject it, he gave a very bad reason for doing
so, when he required the pro\'iinis assent of Maine. This was
the business of the Central Government, and not ours. If
we had the Govermuent at Washington committed to the
principle, this quarrel with the State of Maine was of no
consequence to us ; and, indeed, ought rather to have boon
encouraged. But I do not think Palmerston was so very wrong in
rejecting Livingston's proposal. There is no doubt that he
would have carried Ms N. W. line across the St. John's until
he found the Mghlands, wMcli, according to his interpretation
of the Treaty, could only be to the north of the St. John. No
doubt, had ho diverged from the due north hne, he would have
found MgMands to the south of the St. John ; but he would
have said that these did not fulfil the conditions of the Treaty
of di-viding waters, &c., &c.
Ashburton was not instructed to renew Li-vingston's pro
posal ; but on the contrary, to give no encouragement to it,
if it should be reproduced.
3. You must know by tMs time why I expressed myself
gi'oatly dissatisfied with the message of the President. The
manner in wMch ho treated tho subject of the Right of Search
was reaUy scandalous. His mention of the Oregon question
was also most uncandid. When he talked of pressing us
to enter mto negociation, he had in Ms pocket a most
friendly overture from us, wMch he had already answered
favourably. Ashburton had fuU instructions upon this subject, and if
he had remained long enough in the United States, I have no
doubt that it would have been settled. But the pressing

Cabinet. He proposed that a scientific survey of the disputed country
should be made, and that from the "highlands," when found, a line
should be drawn straight to the head of the St. Croix, and that this should
be regarded as the north-eastern boundary of the United States. This pro
position, it was generally admitted, would bave given the whole or the
greater part of the disputed territory to England. But Lord Palmerston
first " pigeon-holed " it for some months, and then saddled it with
conditions which made it impossible for the United States to accept it.
This was universally considered a great mistake on the part of England.]

398 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
affairs being brought to a close, he was naturaUy desirous of
returning home.
4. I tMnk we have no strict public right to complain of
Webster in the affair of Franklin's Map. It was most for
tunate that it was not discovered by us before the Treaty
was concluded; for it might not have been easy for us to
proceed, with such e-sddence in our possession. We must
have gone to an arbitration, before the end of which war
would probably have ensued. Con-vincing as the letter and
map must bo to any impartial man, they have not convinced
the Americans, who still maintain their line of boundary in
spite of them.
Although we cannot complain of Webster so as to -vitiate
the agreement, it is a piece of concealment, and of disingenu-
ousness, which must inevitably produce an unfavourable im
pression against him in all honourable minds.
It is a strange tMng that neither letter nor map are to be
found at Paris ; at least we have hitherto faUed in doing so.
But we have found another map altogether in favour of tho
American claim. I wiU toU you the particulars of this curious
aflair when we meet to-morrow.
Ever most smcerely yours, Aberdeen.
Lord Ashburton to Mr. Croker. Extract.
Bath House, February 7th, 1843.
My Dear Croker,
The story of the map is undeniable, and has, I behove, been
truly told. I shall have much to say about it when I see
you, but it is rather an extensive subject to write about, and
in some respects rather a delicate one. Jared Sparks, the
American historian, rummaging in tho archives of the French
Foreign Office, first found the letter from Franklm to Ver-
gonnes referring to the map, which he instantly searched for
and found in the midst of copies, maps, and charts at the
depot of the office, and, though not doubting that he should
find the American case confirmed, to his inexpressible surprise
he found the precise contrary. The map was, it seems, used
to persuade Maine to yield, and subsequently to persuade the
Senate to ratify my capitulation. Mr. Rivers, the Reporter of
the Committee of the Senate to which the Treaty was referred.

1841-1842.] LORD ASHBURTON'S DEFENCE. 399
reports that the Committee were unanimously of opinion that
the American right was not shaken by this discovery, but
nevertheless give thefr opinion that it would not be safe to
go to a now arbitration with such a document against them.
The truth is, that probably but for this discovery there would
have been no treatj^ and if the secret had been known to mo
earher I could not have signed it. " Ainsi tout est pour le
mieux dans lo moUleur des moiides possibles." The public
are very busy with the question whether Webster was bound
in honour to damage his own case by telhng aU. I have put
this to tho consciences of old diplomatists without getting a
satisfactory answer. My own opinion is, that in this respect
no reproach can fafrly be made, but the conduct of both
President and Secretary is most extraordinary in the other
matters relating to my treaty.

Lord Ashburton to Mr. Croker. Extract.
PiccadUly, February 13th, 1843.
With respect to myself, I was clearly acting under such
instructions, and with such lights, as my masters could furnish
me. If there be blame it is with Palmerston and Co., who
looked everywhere for e-vidonce but in tho quarter where it was
to bo found. Large expenses were incurred ; commissions
established ; engineers went out to measure tho hUls and the
vaUeys of the country for facts of very small importance to
the matter in issue, whUo tho very ob-sdous places of inquiry
wore neglected — left to be accidentally explored by the
Mstorian who was searching for other tMngs. I think my
responsibihty in this matter stands quite clear. But how
stands Webster's case? Was he bound to show up and
damage Ms o-wn position ? I tMnk not ; and when I interro
gate on this subject experienced diplomatists, though they
make answer somewhat partaking of their character of
diplomatists, I rather coUect that they are of the same
opimon. The only doubt I have surmised is whether Webster
did not make something of a personal pledge of opinion as to
the intentions of the parties. I can find notMng of the sort ;
and in conclusion, if I am caUed upon to say anytMng m the
Lords, it wUl bo in favour of my collaborator on this point.
I think Mm the more justified because the map, though a
very strong evidence of the intentions of tho American

400 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
negotiators, is by no means conclusive on the whole scope of
tho argument. The evidence of intention, as understood by
Franklin, seems hardly to be denied, but I must say that it
is still a mystery to me how such common sense men as they
were, and more especiaUy Jay, could tMnk those intentions
answered by the words of the Treaty. It is true that thoy
left unascertained what was the true St. Croix, whereas our
position noiv is unfortunately different. We have determined
by treaty wMch is the St. Croix, or by a second solemn
agreement, which is the head of that St. Croix. A monument
is there sot up by common consent; from that we cannot
budge, and it would seem that we have notMng to do but to
run our line north until we find lands turning their waters
into the St. Lawrence. TMs would be the American argument
against alleged intentions. Intentions directly at variance
with plain facts are inadmissible in argument. If the counties
of Surrey and Middlesex were declared to be di-vided by the
Thames, no map showing intentions to the contrary would be
for a moment listened to.
Sir Eobert Ped to Mr. Croker. Extract.
Whitehall, February 23rd, 1843.
My dear Croker,
I did aU I could to persuade Lord Ashburton that unusual
and extravagant reward for the Treaty would bo injurious to
him, to us, and to the country ; to the country as showing
misplaced exultation on account of our differences, or rather,
some of our differences with the United States ha-\dng boon
terminated. If I had been an mtimate bosom friend of Lord Ashburton,
or if I had not stood in a situation which made my ad-vice as
to public honours have the appearance of interested advice, I
should have strongly recommended Lord Ashburton to refuse
any mark of royal favour on account of the treaty, and to
have reserved for himself the enjoyment of the consciousness
that he had sacrificed his ease for the public service, without
looking to reward and without accepting it.
Do nothuig and say nothing at present about the Treaty.
So far as any Paris map is concerned, we are in the crisis of
inquiry, and the present state of it is extraordmary.
Canning was at Paris in 1826, made search for documents
relating to tho boundary and Treaty of 1783 ; could find nothing.

1841-1842.] THE TWO MAPS. 401
Bulwer can fiyd no trace of a letter from Franklin ; no
trace of the map mentioned by Jarod Sparks. But strange
to say, he does find a map, of which he sent us the tracing ;
a map apparently deposited many years since, which follows
exactly with a crimson lino, the lioundary claimed by the
United States ! !
Jared Sparks cannot have lied so enormously as this
discovery would imply.
Notwithstanding the failure to find it, there must, I think,
be a letter from Frankhn and a map just as Sparks describes,
I teU you all I know at present. Bulwer is a very clover
fellow, with gToat experience in such matters as tliat which
he has been investigating. He writes two letters ; one after
a short interval ; and in the second as well as the first, says
he cannot conffrm the alleged discoveries of Jared Sparks.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
It is now necessary to return to the general notes and
correspondence of these two years : —
From Mr. Croker's Note Book.
Saturday, 30th Jcin., 1841. — Called on the Duke of Wel
hngton, whom I had not seen for somo time, though I had
been in communication with him. His looks were better
than when 1 had seen him last, and his voice and manner very
clear and ffrm. The only symptom that I could see of age
or anytMng hke infirmity about him, was tho kind of exagge
ration with wMch he stated Ms perfection of health.
" You know," he said, " I have never boon weU since that
fellow poured Uquid fire into my ear, and electricized not only
the nerves of the ear, but all tho adjacent parts, and the
injury extended in aU directions, sometimes to the head and
then down to the stomach, then to tho shoulders, and then
back again to the head, and so on ; but I outlived it, and
have, in fact, worn it out, and I am now, thank God, as well
as ever I was, and in all respects. I oat as well, I sloop as
weU, I walk and ride as weU, I hunt and shoot as woU as I
have dono these twenty years." Ho fears, as I do, that the
Whigs must go out. Still agreeing that we know not how
vol. II. , 2 D

402 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
difficult, how impossible, it will be found to carry on tho
Government with the reformed House of Commons. " The
Whigs, with the help of the Tories, can hardly govern the
country. What wUl it be when the Tories have to make the
attempt with a fiery opposition."
I hear that even his particular friends who have any busi
ness with him, begin to find the Duke restless and excitable.
I daresay it is so, for he seemed profoundly sensitive as to tho
pubhc prospects, and I observed that whUe conversing he
walked more about the room than ho was used to do. He
wants just three months of bemg seventy-two — the only fact
which he seems practically to forget.
Strathfieldsaye, 16th April, 1841. — The Duke. — Charles X.
was a repetition of James IL, as Louis XVIII. had some
resemblance to Charles II.
Ashburton. — Who never said a foohsh thing or did a wise
one. The Duke. — That is not quite true of Louis, for he acted
prudently on many occasions.
Ashburton. — Then Louis Philippe is much in the same
position as King William, and is just as dissatisfied with
the " principles that placed him on the throne " as William
was. Croker. — Yes, and talks, we hear, as WUUam used to do, of
abdication. Ashburton. — William said to Wharton, " After aU, I see thei
Tories are the only party to make a King comfortable in this
country." " Yes," replied tho other, " but your Majesty must
recollect that you are not the Tory King."
Croker. — And when you recollect how close the execution
of Charles I. and-of Louis XVL, and the intermediate usur
pation of CromweU and Buonaparte seem — the whole parallel
— it is certainly a most striking simUarity, not to say identity,
of events and characters.
5%6 Duke. — Because it is human nature. Human interests
and passions wUl be always the same, and, on the large
scale, will always produce like general results ; but cer
tainly the resemblance between the personal characters of
James II. and Charles X., particularly in their bigotry, was
remarkable.

1841-1842.] LAST LETTERS OF THEODORE HOOK. 403
Theodore Hook io Mr. Croker.*
[No date, but marked by Mr. Croker " Answered March 2l8t, '41."]
Fulham. (Saturday.)
The very sight of your writing, my dear Sir, does me good.
Here I am still in my armed chair, having been during tho
last fourteen weeks three times out of my house — once to call
at Dorchester House, once to dine witli Sir Francis Burdett,
and once on unavoidable business, all of which days wore
mUd and moist. I have by reducing myself to this state of
chrysahsm, quite escaped cough, and hope now to act butter
fly upon the large scale.
In re Townshond. I had a long talk with Bentley, who,
moderate as the terms were, declined, because, as ho told me,
much to my surprise, he has experienced a very hea-vy loss
by Ms Walpole Letters. Colburn, I have little doubt, when I
can make Mm clearly comprehend who Lord Townshend was,
wUl be glad to do them, and I will send to him on Monday
about them. The terms you mentioned were fifty guineas for
copyright (100?. being asked), with your kind help I might
for my name get the other 50?., unless you would put your
own, in which case my part would be only that of master of
the ceremonies to mtroduce Mr. Townshend to Mr. Colburn.
I name no one, but a very popular publisher declined pub-
lisMng — the book was offered him gratuitously— a collection of
' WiUiam Spencer's Poems,' with a short memoir of him, and
which has already been printed and privately circulated —
because, he assured me, that all the later editions of his works,
whether expurgated, modernised, or in their original state
had faded. Spencer pro Spenser — perhaps tho same Maecenas
might without explanation mistake our statesman for the late
MgMy-respectable Bow Street officer. I return, as you desire,
the Babylonian brick.
I hope and trust that you all are weU, and that dear Mrs.
Barrow is out and about again. I conclude Alverbank is
concluded ; although the long frost must have much retarded
your progress. Believe me, dear Sir, yours faithfully,
T. H.
* [Theodore Hook died on the 24th of August, 1841, in his fifty-third
year. The letter to Mrs. Croker, dated the 12th of August, is probably
the last he ever wrote.]
2 D 2

404 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII
Fulham (Thursday); [August (?) 1841].
Many thanks, my dear Sfr, for your kind note, and the kind
in-vitation it contains, to accept which would be to me perfect
happiness ; but I have somehow worried my sma?? mind into a
state which has affected my once large body, and I am not only
wholly unfit to make \'isits, but I do not think that I should
be able to endure tho journey, even by railroad. I have not been
out since last Monday fortnight, and have a dread of moving
hardly describable, but I think I must make an effort in my
little carriage to caU on Mrs. Croker whUe she is at Ken
sington.
T. H.
To Mrs. Croker,
Fulham (Thursday), August 12th, 1841.
My dear Mrs. Croker,
I have each day this week tried to rally myself sufficiently
to get to Kensington in my little carriage, but I am not able.
From a kmd in-vdtation in Mr. Croker's last letter to mo, I
fancy you return to Alverbank to-morrow or Saturday, which
makes me regret missing the pleasure of seeing you the more,
as I fear you wUl be gone again. I am exceedingly unwell,
and so weak that I can scarcely cross the room.
I hope that your traveUors found benefit from their excur
sion. I behove myself ^a.st that, for I have roaUy not the
strength to move. TMs uncongenial -wretched weather, I am
told, is moreover much against invalids. However, I suppose
I am mending, as I can eat three oysters for luncheon, and a
little mutton broth for dinner ; but for nineteen days I tasted
literally nothing.
I write because I cannot personally present my regards and
compUments to you all, but it is with great regret, for I was
most anxious to see you, which, when you get away to your
dehghtful mansion, I shaU have no chance of doing. At
least, I see none at present. '^
Do me the kindness, my dear Mrs. Croker, to remember me
to all your circle, and
Believe me most truly and gratefully yours,
T. H.

1841-1842.] REMARKABLE DUELS. 405
Mr. Croker to Sir W. FollelL*
West Moulsey, 12th Fob. 1841.
]\Iy dear Follett,
I send you a few memoranda which I fear will be of little
use to you. Duels are seldom matters of record, at least
in such N'olumes as have indexes.
If you find it necessary to parry an attack on the gonornl
system of duelling, I would have you strongly to lament
that the law connived at it, and that custom, stronger even
than law, had so sanctioned it, that one would be dishonoured
who should decline. Let the House propose and pass a
distinct law against the practice, but not attempt to do it
by a sidewind, against one who was a peer, and therefore in
a special dogToe bound to stand, as they were all trying him,
on their Iwnour- — against one, too, who was a soldier, and was
challenged in his military character by a soldier ; and finally
against, not the aggressor, but the challenged.
WitMn the last hundred years, six persons have fought
duels who have been prime ministers : Pultoney, Lord Bath,
Lord Shelburn, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Fox, Mr. Canning, the Duke of
Wellington — I might almost add Peel, who twice challenged
— and Castlereagh, who was almost a first minister. Of late
years the custom is certainly decreased, and the House of
Lords has not now, I dare say, above half a dozen who have
actually fought, and about as many who have been seconds.
Yours affectionately,
J. W. Croker.
Duels of Peers.
Deaths. Byron and Chaworth, 26th January, 1765. Byron tried.
Falkland and Powell, 17th March, 1802. PoweU tried.
Camelford and Best, 10th March, 1804. Best tried.
Wounds. Lords Paulet and Milton, 29th January, 1770. MUton
wounded.
* [This letter relates to the trial of Lord Cardigan, in the House of
Lords, for having fought a duel with Lieutenant T-ackett on the
12th of September, 1840. The trial took place on the 16th of February,
1841, and failed on a technical point raised by Sir W. Follett in behalf of
his cUent, Lord Cardigan.]

406 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Obap. XXII.
Lords Townshend and BeUamont, 2nd February, 1773.
Bellamont wounded. Offence given whUe Lord-
LieutenaUt of Ireland; seconds. Lord Ligonier and
Col. (afterwards Lord) Dillon.
Lord Shelburn (Lord Lansdowne's father) and FuUerton,
for words spoken in the House, 22nd March, 1780.
Shelburn wounded.
No injuries. Duke of York and Col. Lennox, 25th May, 1789.
Duke of Norfolk and Lord Maiden, 30th AprU, 1796.
Duke of Wellington and Lord Winchelsea.
Other remarkable duels.
Fox and Adair, 29th November, 1779. Fox wounded.
Pitt and Tierney, 27th May, 1789. Lord Harrowby
Pitt's second.
Castlereagh and Canning, 21st September, 1809. Lords
Hertford and Seaford seconds.
Sheridan and Mathews.
Sir James Graham to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, October 29th, 1841.
My dear Croker,
It must be a Prince of Wales who so delays his coming
and keeps us in such suspense.* Since Tuesday evening we
have expected the summons every hour, and the doctors
directed us to be prepared. The public business has not
been interrupted, for Her Majesty continues to write notes,
to sign her name, and to declare her pleasure with the utmost
gallantry up to last night, as if nothing serious were at hand.
She possesses beyond all doubt the hereditary firmness and
a commanding spirit.
What a dreadful October ! Your double glass will hardly
have excluded the S.W. gales from your dehghtful cottage.
I am always, yours very truly,
J. R. G. Graham.
'" [The Prince of Wales was born on the 9th of November, 1841.]

1841-1842.] TIIE LOT OF A PRIME MINISTER. 407
The Et^. Samuel WUberforce * to Mr. Croket\ Extract.
Alverstoke Rectory, July 23rd, 1841.
My dear Sir,
I assure you that I feel much obliged to you for the sug
gestions of your note, which has just reached me. So far from
looking at it as any boldness, I esteem it as a very grateful
mark of your interest in tho service of tho Church, a thing 1
hail in any one, and specially in the laity. I believe that
I may say that I coincide in a?? your suggestions, with the one
exception of that touching the Amen, on which I am quite un
decided, and as to the variety of tunes. Your words aro the
substance of a lecture I gave my organist last week, ending
with tMs charge : " Repeat tho same tune for tho Te Deum
untU all the congregation join in it "; and I added mentally,
" and then you shall continue it because they join in it." The
tune I have chosen is Jaclcson in F, one not popular with fine
musicians, but one which the common ear soon catches, and
which to myself and ordinary persons appears to be sin
gularly spirited and apposite to tho words. I hope before
many months are past to have all the congregation joining in
it. I think that an occasional trip in the performance was
what tMew out you, as it did me also, on Sunday last.
My dear Sir, most truly yours,
S. Wilberforce.
Sir Eobert Ped to Mr. Croker.
WhitehaU, September 20th, 1841.
My dear Croker,
I think tMs is exceUent.f I wish you could add a_ para
graph to point out the difference between a Prime Minister
in -these days and in former times, when Newcastles and
Pelhams were ministers.
That now (particularly if the minister is in the House of
Commons, and if he is fit to be minister), his hfe is one of
toU and care and drudgery. His reward is not patronage,
wMch imposes nothing but a curse, which enables him to do
* [Afterwards Bishop of Oxford, and of Winchester. At this period he
was incumbent of Alverstoke, where Mr. Croker had a villa.]
t [An article by Mr. Croker on "The Old and New Ministries,"
Quarterly Review, September, 1841.]

408 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII,
little more than make dix mecontents et un ingrat; not
ribbons or hopes of peerage, or such trumpery distinctions, —
but the means of rendering service to his country, and the
hope of honourable fame.
But the man who looks to such objects and such rewards
wiU not condescend to humUiating submissions for mere
party purposes; will have neither time nor incUnation to
be considering how many mon wUl support tMs public
measure, or fly off to gratify some spite or resentment ; he
will do his best for the great principles that his party sup
ported and for the public welfare, and, if obstructed, he wUl
retire from office, but not from power ; for the country will
do justice to his motives, and wUl give him the strength
which his party had denied to him.
[I came in as he was writing this, and took it away without
his signing. — J. W. C]
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker. Extract.
WhitehaU, November 8th, 1841.
My dear Croker,
As the man who found a piece of smooth pavement in
somo country town (Tamworth, it might be) walked to and
fro for the purpose of enjoying the pleasure of the contrast,
so 1, in spite of your injunctions to the contrary, indulge
myself in the satisfaction of answering a letter which not only
does not apply for a baronetage or a peerage, but absolutely
dissuades from the creation. The voracity for these things
quite surprises me.
I wonder people do not begin to feel the distinction of an
Unadorned name. Ever affectionately yours, Robert Peel.
The Eev. S. Wilberforce to Mr. Croker. Extract.
44, Cadogan Place, January 31st, 1842.
My dear Sir
I do not know who the writer of the letter in the Hants
Standard is ;* but I have no doubt that I can easily learn if
your curiosity outlives my stay in London. On the general
"' [Evidently a letter had appeared in the Eants Standard on the
Tractarian movement.]

1841-1842.] TIIE "NON-ANGLICAN" MOVEMENT. 409
question, I am very glad to have tho expression of your
opinion. It will well exhibit my own, thougli I never was
(and if you had seen as much of the system as close at hand
as I have done, you would not think that j'ou ever were) in
any degree a tractarian. It is far too cramped, and crotchetty
and narrow, and dogmatic a circle for you ever to have boon
enticed into it. I have always boon (before thoy were warm
on tho subject) a staunch Churchman. I remember refusing
when an undergraduate to go to Newman's then church,
because ho was too low a Churchman for me. Whilst after
wards he had made such hasty strides, that one of his acts on
becoming solo editor of the British Critic, was to cut short (in
the civillost way possible to me) my future connection with
it, ho then making it solely tractarian in its tone, on the
ground of our irreconcileable difi'eronce of views. In truth,
from the very first they have been essentially non- Anglican.
As they have risen into notice, and younger men have carried
out thefr principles more fully, and their own circle has
enlarged, tMs has become more and more clear ; but it was
always so. I could not find rest in tho narrow views of the
so-caUed strict EvangeUcals, and clung to the Church of
England, and so far fought with them, and was often classed
by the low Church with thom ; but their hatred of the Re
formation, thefr leaning to a visible centre of unity for the
Church, the essence of Popery, their unnationality, for they
can have no notion of a national hfe ; their cramped and formal
dogmatism ; thefr fearful doctrine of sin after baptism, and
many other things of the same cast, revolted me long since.
Now those things are breaking out into more visible and
dangerous tricks; and should thoy predominate would
threaten all. But I have no groat apprehension of this.
Ever, my dear Sir, believe me to be.
Most truly yours,
S. Wilberforce.
Mr. Lockhart * to Mr. Croker. September 9th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I have a long letter, de omnibus rebus, from Murray, and I
enclose the last leaf, as it touches on tho subject of the dis-
* [Then the editor of the Quarterly Review.]

410 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
turbances. After saying he agrees with the Manchester man
referred to in a note of mine, which John showed you, he pro
ceeds as you wUl read.
In a former page of this despatch he says he fears the tone
of the article may be thought too laudatory, and expressing
his opinion that Peel is the greatest Minister we have had,
regrets that " he seems to make no aUowance for those pre
judices which so very naturally arise from such a thorough
and sudden change in our national policy, and almost to
deprecate any kind of deliberation on this subject."
I think it right that you should know what our sagacious
friend thinks on these matters. As for myself, I consider
party questions with little interest at present. The only one
I reaUy feel concerned about is the improvement of the
condition, moral and physical, of the people. I fancy most
men of my standing who are not immediately engaged in the
sphere of politics, are much of the same mind. I fear there
is a cancer at tho bottom of our social condition, and with aU
respect for my betters, doubt if Ministers understand the
extent of the danger, or mix enough with men of different
orders to learn what is thought by those who live near to the
poor. What a wonderful political writer Southey was. On look
ing back now to his articles of thirty or twenty years ago, how
few are there of the questions now pressing that he had not
foreseen the progress of ! His views were always for the
paternal management of the poor people. He knew how
easily they might be kept right if their hearts were appealed
to by those above them.
I cannot tMnk that this Government has taken due advan
tage of the opportunities they had for enhsting the people on
their side. And on the other hand they are too likely to say,
" Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof," and not provide
for the certain recurrence of these disturbances.
Wliat has come of the disbanding of tho yeomanry ? Wher
ever they had been retained, their usefulness has been con
spicuous. Wherever dismissed, their loss has been, and is,
felt grievously. Will tho Government re-establish that force
on the former scale ? If not, they should abolish it wholly —
for as it is, the duties thrown now and then on the poor relics
are such as ought not to be imposed on a voluntary force.
Wherever there aro yeomanry corps, they have been kept from
their farms during the harvest. Why should we not have tho
old local militia back. If Income-tax may be fitly imposed

1841-1842.] NEWMAN'S SERMONS. 411
when peace is as perilous as war, why should not the same
argument apply as to the means of security as well as the
resources of finance ?
These Corn- Law leaguers will, like the Chinese, learn how
to fight. A little, but a little, rad co-operation, and what
force have wo that could keep the peace ? All young men
like being trained and drilled. It is the best exercise thoy
can have, and the most innocent amusement. It is idle to
argue about the committing of power to the middle-classes —
we have given tlioiu the political power as far as Acts of
Parliament can give it. Shall wo lean on them as to our
defence, or take our chances with those who have nothing to
defend ? * Ever sincerely yours,
J. G. Lockhart.
The Eev. S. Wilberforce to Mr. Croker. Extract.
Alverstoke Eectory, October 4th, 1842.
My dear Friend,
. . . There is one expression of your letter which makes
mo suspect that I did not clearly enough indicate my purpose.
You speak of " Ne-wman's last work." I meant my subject
to bo ' Ne-wman's Sermons,' which have now reached to six
volumes, and are rapidly leavening the clerical mind ; effect
ing a great change, in very many respects for good, in the
style of preaching ; as well as roacMng the lay mind in a
multitude of dfrections from their power, their beauty, and
their real exceUenco ; but which continually insinuate prin
ciples, and canons of judgment which aro tho seeds of his
whole system tn the minds on wMch they fall.
My -view was to take Newman's and some other volume of
sermons, and aUowing all their exceUenco, to point out some
of the most striking of these insinuations.
I am, ever most truly yours,
S. Wilberforce.
* [This was a singular anticipation, as will be noticed, of the volunteer
movement.]

412 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
In the following letter by Sir R. Peel there are one or two
miscalculations or errors. Wheat had often been lower
than 40s. a quarter in the " large towns " of the " east coast."
In the very year when this letter was written (1842) it
touched 83 cents a bushel, or 27s. 8d. a quarter. From 1874
to 1883, the average of lowest prices was about a doUar a
bushel, or 33s. 4d. a quarter. Sir Robert Peel's other theory,
that it would bo " impossible to bring any quantity of wheat
worth mentioning, and land it here for 30s.," was also fal
lacious. American wheat, grown immensely in excess of
all possibUitios of home consumption, could bo landed in
England, with a handsome profit, at 25s., and some estimates
have assigned even a lower figure. It is doubtful whether,
taking one year with another, wheat could be grown in
England, to pay any profit whatever to the farmer, under
from 35s. to 40s. a quarter, according to locality, the price
of labour, &c. In August, 1884, new EngUsh wheat only
brought from 36s. to 38s. A large harvest, therefore, no
longer brings with it the groat prosperity to the farmer
which it once ensured, nor does it even render the bread "of
the poor much cheaper, the baker's prices being, as a rule,
kept up without much regard to the cost of wheat.
Sir Eobert Peel to Mr. Croker.
Drayton Manor, October 16th, 1842.
My dear Croker,
I quite agree with you that though we cannot directly inter
fere in respect to p-ices, wo may ascertain and tell the truth
and either shame bakers and butchers with proven reductions,
or induce private individuals to supply themselves from other
quarters. Societies are in progress — self-bread-furnishing societies —
which will soon toll upon bakers' charges.
Have no fear of New Orleans wheat paying a twenty-
shilling duty.

1841-1842.] TIIE THIRD MARQUIS OF HERTFORD. 413
Wheat, on an average of years, on the oast coast of tlie
ITnited States, in the large towns at least, has not been less
than forty sMUings. It would bo impossible to bring any
quantity of wheat worth mentioning and land it hero for
thirty shiUings. But to return to the price of bread.
I have desired Gladstone to ascertain the price of tho 4-lb.
loaf in each town from which the averages are collected. I
have also desired him to ascertain whether there are public
baking establishments, in which it might bo clearly ascer
tained what quantity of bread can be made from a given
quantity of flour. Having the price of the flour, it may then
be determined what price the bread ought to bear — charges
and fair profits being provided for.
Ever affectionately yours,
Robert Peel.
A topic of a more personal kind now demands attention.
The story shall be told with perfect frankness, though with
aU due bro-vity.
From 1830 to 1842, Mr. Croker had devoted a large part of
Ms time and attention to the super-vision of the management
of Lord Hertford's landed estates, under the circumstances
which have been described in a previous chapter. It was
perfectly woU known to aU his friends that he performed this
ser-vice -without any kind of remuneration, and it was equally
weU kno-wn to tho friends of Lord Hertford that his intention
was to settle a substantial sum of money upon Mr. Croker
under tho provisions of Ms -wUl. On the 1st of March, 1842,
Lord Hertford died. The foUo-wing appears to have been the
last of Ms letters to Mr. Croker ; it was found in the 1842
bundle, but it bears no date. The wild and reckless spirit of
the man makes itself -visible even in these few lines : —
I am pretty well, and suffer but little from the influenza,
wMch, I suppose, 1 have got becauso 1 have, like everybody
else a cold, which I suppose it is. I believe we are going to
change, because they say so, but I do not know.

414 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
He was not even certain of Ms own movements ; " they "
managed everytMng for him. And who were " they " ? The
chance favourites of the moment — the parasites who Uved
and throve upon a diseased mind. He seldom saw any of
his old friends in these last days. For some years there had
boon living in his house the Count and Countess Zichy ; but
thoy too had been driven away. The Countess Zichy was
one of tho throe daughters of Lady Strachan, whose relations
with Lord Hertford had long been the subject of comment;
Once he decided to bequeath her a fortune, but he altered his
mind, because, it appears, he disapproved of some one whom he
cynically refers to as his " successor." Sir Richard Strachan,
knowing all the facts, left Ms three daughters to the care of
Lord Hertford — a strange choice of a guardian; and they
lived in Lord Hertford's house tUl they were married. The
Countess Zichy received about £100,000 under the will ; the
Countess Berchtholdt — another of the Strachan sisters —
£80,000; the Princess Ruffo— the tMrd sister— £40,000.
These matters will, perhaps, be best explained by Mr. Croker
himself. Mr. Croker to the King of Hanover. Extract.
March 15th, 1842.
I need not say that he had been long aihng, and that the
most prominent symptom was a kind of palsy, which affected
tho organs both of speaking and swallowing. He had been,
it seems, tired of the company of Count and Countess Zichy,
whom he had brought over with him, but whose presence in
his house interfered with the kind of company he hked to
have sometimes to dine with him ; so that when he was at all
well, he went out to dine at Greenwich or Richmond with
this inferior society. At last, however, he seemed resolved
to lie in bed as long as the Zichys stayed, and this, and some
other broad hints, induced them to go. This they did on
Tuesday, the 22nd Feb. Thoy were hardly out of the house
when Lord Hertford got up, and, by a strange inconsequence.

1841-1842.] LORD HERTFORD'S WILL. 415
did that which ho niight have just as well have done if they
had stayed. He went to dine with his usual company at
Richmond, where, being unoxpoctod, there was a room without
a fire, much delay, and consequently a very late return, in
which ho caught a severe cold, and was next day really
confined to his bed, where I saw him. Finding him so
unweU, I stayed and dined alone in his library ; but ho grew
better, and I saw no immediate danger, and left town late that
night (Wednesday) for Moulsey. He mended for a couple
of days, and on Saturday got up, dressed, and received com
pany in Ms hbrary, but that night became so much worse,
that an express was sent to me at Moulsey, and I reached
Mm very early on Sunday morning. All this while he would
not bo persuaded to have a physician, being satisfied with
Mr. Copeland, his old surgeon, and Mr. Fuller, his old apothe
cary ; but on Sunday wo persuaded him to allow us to call
in Dr. Watson, who had formerly attended Mm— but in vain.
The catarrh, wliich would have been little or nothing by
itself, was too strong for organs enfeebled by palsy. He had
not power to clear Ms chest of the phlegm, and he died at
fifteen minutes past four in the afternoon of Tuesday, 1st
MarcL The last moments were as tranquil and placid as
death could be. At the last moment (which happened as he
lay in a chaise longue in Ms hbrary while they were making
Ms bed in his bedroom). Sir George Seymour stood boMnd
the chair. Sir Horace held Ms left hand, and I was on his
right. Mr. Fuller also was present, and his confidential
servants. His wiU is curious, and even to me, though kindly con
sidered in it, not satisfactory. His own family is mentioned
rather unkmdly, and httle benefited. Horace* has a legacy of
8000?., and Captain MeyneU of 4000?. A considerable legacy
to Sfr George is revoked; and given to one Mrs. Spencer. It
is one consolation that his son is Ms residuary legatee, but
I fear ho -wiU not be so great a gainer as might have been
expected, for the legacies to tho Strachan famUy seem on the
surface of the wUl to be very great — not much less than
250,000?. or 300,000?. As there is a good deal of intricacy
in the codicils, I cannot venture to say whether some of thom
may not revoke others, and so diminish those enormous
legacies. To me he has left three legacies of 5000?., 7000?.
* [Sir Horace Seymour.]

416 THE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXII.
and 9000?., and seems to have intended stiU more, but the
codicils have not been found. He has also named me one of
his executors — the others aro Lord Lowther, Mr. Hopkinson,
the banker, Mr. Kilderboe, De Horsey, and Captain MeyneU.
If aU the codicUs in favour of the Strachans were to be
valid. Lady Strachan would have about 700?. a year and
10,000?. (a, great reduction from what was at one time left her),
the Countess Zichy would have about 100,000?., besides, I
believe, almost as much more which she has had de la main
d la main. Countess Berthold * seems to figure for about
80,000?., and Louisa, lately married in Naples to Prince
Antonio Ruffo, for 40,000?. ; but, I repeat, it is doubtful
whether some of the codicUs which give the details of these
large sums do not contradict each other. I fear there is room
for htigation. He has also given 5000?. and an annuity of
from 1000?. to 1500?. to a Mrs. Spencer, whom he had left
for some time, and who, it seems, had been a maid of Lady
Strachan's before Lord H. knew this lady. He has left large,
over large, legacies to his servants, unless some codicils in
their favour be revoked by others ; and upon the whole, I
grieve to say, that it was hardly possible to have made, in
every respect, a less creditable will than, if aU the codicils
stand, this must appear to the world to be. TMs sounds
ungrateful, as he was so good to me, but even my own good
luck cannot reconcUe me to his negligence of Ms own fanuly.
Among the legacies to servants referred to in the above
letter, there were several to a man named Nicholas Suisse, a
valet. In seven different codicils a separate sum was left for
his benefit, and altogether he received upwards of 20,000?.
It may be mentioned that Lord Hertford made numerous
codicUs to his will ; if he found himself on a dull or rainy
day in a foreign town, ho seems to have amused himself by
writing a codicil. A portion of one may be given as an
example. It is dated at "Munich, the Inn of the Goldene
Hfrsch," 13th October, 1834 :—
"This is a codicil to the will of me, Francis Charles
Marquis of Hertford. I direct in case of my death while
¦* [The name is spelt "Berchtholdt" in the will.]

1841-1842.] THE STORY OF NICHOLAS SUISSE. 417
abroad witli Charlotte L. Strachan [afterwards Countess
Zichy] that all the transferable securities for money, cash,
diamonds, and bankers' travelling notes be given to the said
Charlotte L. Strachan as her property. ... I advise Charlotte
to entrust these securities, if I die abroad, with the nearest
respectable banker, to be transmitted for her to Sir Coutts
Trotter's house, and I warn her to beware of her mother's
new connection ; and as soon as she can, to marry some
respectable Enghsh gentleman. Charlotte to open my socrets_
in carriages and boxes. She knows how and whore, and take
her legacies. Suisse to have all my clothes and apparel of all
sorts. Charlotte to take great care of BoUe and Bezuies [two
dogs] for love of me."
In another codicU he speaks of " Nicholas Suisse, my head
valet, an excellent man." There can be little doubt as to the
nature of the work which this excellent man did for his
master. But was the master perfectly sane when the orgies
of his last years were going on ? There is reason to believe
that he was not. One of the medical men who had attended
liim, wrote a letter to. Mr. Croker stating that " the brain of
the late Marquis of Hertford was a diseased brain, and had
long been so — the partial paralysis, speechlessness, and other
long-standing direct cerebral symptoms demonstrate it." Mr.
Croker was fuUy convinced of tho truth of tMs view. He
-wrote to the Marquis Wellesley (who Mmself died in 1842)
a note in wMch he said, " the lamentable doings of Ms latter
years were neither more nor loss than insanity. You know,
and he was himself woU aware, that there is hereditary mad
ness in his family. He often talked, and even wrote, about it
to me."
When this misguided and wasted life came to an end, there
was a repetition of the scene delineated in one of Hogarth's
pictures ; the birds of prey gathered together, and swooped
vol. II. . 2 E

418 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
down upon all that they could coUect. Among the packages
missing there was one containing a hundred thousand francs.
It was traced to Nicholas Suisse, the valet. He declared that
it was a gift from his master. Mr. Croker, as one of the
executors, felt it to be his duty to prosecute Suisse, and Suisse
tried hard to make the prosecution as disagreeable to Mr.
Croker as it was to Mmself. He brought forward a woman
named Angeline Borel, to swear that she had dined at Lord
Hertford's in Mr. Croker's society, and Mr. Croker admitted
that he had once dined with her at the Marquis's table ; it
would probably have been difficult to have gone to Lord
Hertford's house at any time in those days without meeting
some of his pecuhar associates. But Mr. Croker also stated
that when the Marquis, on another occasion, expressed his
intention to call for the woman in question, and drive her
out, " he left the carriage rather than remam in such com
pany." Suisse was acquitted ; the character of his master
secured that result. It was shown that Suisse and Angeline
Borel had long had a good understanding with each other ;
they were even engaged to be married. Suisse had ordered
for Ms own use a sor-vice of plate worth 2000?. Man and
woman had made the old Marquis their dupe, and their rage
was turned upon Mr. Croker for endeavouring to defeat
a part of their plot. But it could not be proved that Suisse
had stolen the hundred thousand francs, and he was acquitted.
Proceedings were taken in the French Courts for the recovery
of a packet containing 30,000 francs, which Suisse had stolen,
and judgment was at first given in his favour, but on the
case being taken up to the Court of Cassation, the decision
was reversed, and Suisse was ordered to pay the costs.
Mr. Croker did his duty fearlessly in following up these
proceedings, and he was- not to be deterred by the slanders
which were hurled at him. His course was entirely approved
by Lord Hertford's son.

1841-1842.] SPOLIATION OF PAPERS. 119
Lord Hertford (^fourth Marquis) to Mr. Croker.
2, Rue Lafitte, August 7th, 1844.
My dear Sir,
Our lawsuit terminated as 1 expected it would. By this
time you have had the details in the papers, so I will not
talce up your time by making any observations.
Mr. Glandaz desires me to mention to the Executors that
he is convinced the 100,000 fr. Suisse pretended Lord H. gave
him, and that he evidently stole, can easily be recovered.
He desires you will not pay Mm his legacy till all these
proceedings are terminated, and ho wishes to have the posi
tive proof from the books of tho banker of the negotiation of
coupons to the amount of 77,000 fr. rentes this Suisse had
himseU paid in England. I send you Mr. Glandaz's note on
the subject.
He considers Suisse so immense a scoundrel that he tMnks
it right to recover as much as possible from him.
Perhaps you will be of the same opinion, and give your
directions. It is very important his legacy should not be
paid. I am afraid there is little chance of the 83,000 fr. rentes.
Yours, my dear Sir, most faithfully,
Hertford.
Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford. Extract.
Alverbank, Gosport, August llth, 1843.
Thank you for your kindness in my defence. I had neither
motive nor interest to prosecute Suisse untU the discovery of
the robbery. We had no suspicion of him ; though I now
begin to suspect much more than I did at first. I believe
that there was a more extensive spoliation of papers than we
imagined, and Suisse's guilty conscience thinks that I have
discovered this, and he is actuated by peculiar enmity on that
account. As to the fellow himself, I never used to inter
change a word with him, except on the score of your father's
health, now and then.
Mr. Croker received about £23,000 under the will. A
much larger sum was bequeathed to him by a codicil, but hi

420 TEE CROKER PAPERS. [Chap. XXIL
consequence of an informality, the intentions of Lord Hertford
could not be carried out. Sir Robert Peel remarked to Mr.
Croker, in a letter dated the 3rd of March, 1842, " My cMef
interest in respect to Lord Hertford's will, was the hope that
out of his enormous wealth he would mark his sense of your
unvarying and real friendship for him."
Tho reader has now before him the circumstances which
Lord Macaulay deemed sufficient to warrant a broad and
sweeping attack on the moral character — riiot of Lord Hertford,
but of Mr. Croker. No one was ever more devotedly attached
to his homo and kindred than Mr. Croker; no one could
possibly be more free from all cause of reproach in his own
private life. But he happened, in common with most of tho
leading men of England, to know a peer who kept bad com
pany, and therefore Lord Macaulay chose to speak of Mm
with some of the flourishes which were ordinarily reserved
for his special favourites, such as Barere. Macaulay's
biographer — writing, as it must be presumed, under a total
misconception of all tho facts — improved upon the text
which was left for him by throwing out a dark allusion to
" certain unsavoury portions " of Mr. Croker's " private life,"
which " had been brought into the light of day in the course
of either parliamentary or judicial investigations." Charges
of this kind, going to the very root of a man's whole life and
character, were put forward without a word of proof, and
without anything to justify them which deserves the name of
evidence. Nothing whatever that was injurious to Mr.
Croker's private character was ever " brought to light " in
a " parliamentary investigation," or any other investigation.
To the last he was hold in the highest esteem and honour by
men who wore not loss punctilious on the score of morals
than Lord Macaulay. Everybody knew that his private life
was aljsolutoly irreproachable. The only imputation cast

1841-1842.] MACAULAY'S CALUMNIES. 421
upon Mr. Croker vvas that which was prompted by a dis
honest valet whom he was seeking to bring to justice. What
it amounted to, even at the worst, we have just seen.
Macaulay took the utmost pains that it should not be seen.
It was this peculiar method of treating public men which led
Mr. Croker to predict that whatever else might be thought of
Lord MacaiUay's history, it would never bo quoted as an
authority ; a prediction which has yet to be disproved.

end of the second volume.

LONDON :
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