infallibly throw ourselves into the arms of France.' That,' replied the Duke, 'would infallibly lead to a general war; besides which, the French would act in concert with us, and would not accept you.' I said, 'We are aware that, at first, the French Government would not accept us; but we should appeal to the French People, and, in a short time, the Government would accept us. As for the war, the people would fight their own battles, and have nothing to fear.'"

'I asked Vandeweyer whether, under all the circumstances, he would wish me to bring on my Belgian motion. He answered "Yes," and he then told me that he had been chosen Member for Brussels. I shook hands with him, and begged him to take care of himself. He appeared to me to be a most amiable, most honourable, and most intelligent man; and five-and-thirty years of intercourse with him have not altered the opinion that I then formed of him.' (Vol. ii. pp. 50-52.)

We have never heard any explanation of the fact that on the formation of Lord Grey's Government to carry the Reform Bill, Sir Francis Burdett and Mr. Hobhouse, who were certainly two of the oldest and staunchest Reformers in Parliament, were not invited to join it. It was soon known,' says Hobhouse after the Duke's resignation, that the King • had sent for Lord Grey, whom Sir Francis Burdett had 'seen.'

'Lord Durham (Privy Seal that is to be) told me that all was going well and nearly settled. Going home soon afterwards, I received a note from him, saying that Lord Grey would like to see me the next day. Accordingly I went to his house, and waited there some time, but came away without seeing him. I was, for once, wise enough to say nothing about this, neither at the time, nor ever afterwards; although many explanations were offered to me subsequently by those who, whatever they were before, became my intimate official friends.' (Vol. ii. p. 57.)

This is a curious passage; for it shows that Burdett and Hobhouse were thought of (as was natural) but not employed. But they gave a firm and unwavering support to the Government, and they used their influence in the most serviceable manner by moderating the violence of their own followers." Then came the Bill.

'At last came the great day-Tuesday, March 1. I went to the House at twelve o'clock, and found all the benches, high and low, on all sides, patched with names. With much difficulty I got a vacant space on the fourth bench, nearly behind the Speaker, almost amongst the Opposition and the Anti-Reformers.

'Lord John Russell began his speech at six o'clock. Never shall I forget the astonishment of my neighbours as he developed his plan.

* A peerage was subsequently offered by Lord Grey to Sir F. Burdett. He was gratified by the offer, but declined to leave the House of Commons.

VOL. CXXXIII. NO. CCLXXII.

X

Indeed, all the House seemed perfectly astounded; and when he read the long list of the boroughs to be either wholly or partially disfranchised, there was a sort of wild ironical laughter, mixed with expressions of delight from the ex-Ministers, who seemed to think themselves sure of recovering their places again immediately. Our own friends were not so well pleased. Baring Wall, turning to me, said, "They are mad; they are mad!" and others made use of similar exclamations,— all but Sir Robert Peel; he looked serious and angry, as if he had discovered that the Ministers, by the boldness of their measure, had secured the support of the country. Lord John seemed rather to play with the fears of his audience; and, after detailing some clauses which seemed to complete the scheme, smiled and paused, and said, "More yet." This "more," so well as I recollect, was Schedule B, which took away one member from some boroughs that returned two previously. When Lord John sat down, we, of the Mountain, cheered long and loud; although there was hardly one of us that believed such a scheme could, by any possibility, become the law of the land.

'We all huddled away, not knowing what to think-the AntiReformers chuckling with delight at what they supposed was a suicidal project, and the friends of Ministers in a sort of wonderment. I recollect that a very good man, Mr. John Smith, a brother of Lord Carrington's, caused much amusement by saying that Russell's speech made his hair stand on end.

เ

'Lord Howick and others asked me if I was satisfied. I told them I did not know what to say to the 107. qualification for householders in towns. Sir Robert Peel, with his usual quickness and sagacity, took care, at the end of the debate, to ask for an explanation of this part of the scheme, which, certainly, partook more of disfranchisement than any other reform, and was calculated to make the whole plan unpopular. Burdett and I walked home together, and both agreed that there was very little chance of the mcasure being carried. We thought our Westminster friends would oppose the 107. qualification clause; but we were wrong; for, calling the next day on Mr. Place, we found him delighted with the Bill, and were told that all our supporters were equally pleased with it. We were told that a Westminster public meeting was to be called immediately, to thank and congratulate the King.' (Vol. ii. pp. 77–79.)

We shall not attempt to follow our author through his animated descriptions of the debates on the first Reform Bill. Nothing retains less of its original life than a Parliamentary discussion in the pages of history. The scene itself is all action-the tone of the speakers, the emotion of the audience, and the uncertainty of the result, raise the feelings of those who are present to the highest pitch of excitement; but the fire is soon burnt out, and but little remains of the most splendid displays of oratory and passion. The great trial of strength came at last on General Gascoyne's motion that the number of knights, citizens, and burgesses for England and Wales ought

not to be diminished. The end seemed at hand, for on the 20th of April the Government were beaten by eight votes. Two days afterwards Hobhouse learned that the King was resolved to come down in person to thank Parliament for granting the Civil List and to dissolve it. Sir Richard Vivyan was in the act of delivering a furious and factious speech against Ministers. He was called to order by Burdett and Tennyson, but in vain.

'Vivyan again spoke; the cannons announced the approach of the King; and at each discharge of the guns the Ministerialists cheered loudly, as if in derision of the orator's solemn sentences. At last the roaring of the cannon, the laughter, and our cheering fairly beat the Baronet, and he suddenly sat down.

'Peel, quite beside himself, now jumped up; so did Burdett. The Speaker, not quite fairly, called on Peel, and Lord Althorp rose. The calls for Peel, Burdett, Althorp, and Chair, now were heard in wild confusion. The floor was covered with members; half the House left their seats, and the Opposition seemed perfectly frantic; William Bankes looked as if his face would burst with blood; Peel stormed; the Speaker was equally furious; Lord Althorp stood silent and quite unmoved. At last the Speaker recovered himself, and said, "I am quite sure I understand what the noble Lord moves-he moves that Sir Robert Peel be heard." Althorp assented, and, after some more shouting and screaming, Sir Robert Peel was heard. The Black Rod cut short his oration just as he seemed about to fall into a fit. Then the Speaker, with a face equally red and quivering with rage, rose, and, followed by many members, went to the Lords. But Peel was not the only over-excited performer on that day; for Sir Henry Hardinge crossed the House, and said, "The next time you hear those guns they will be shotted, and take off some of your heads. I do not mean yours," said he to me, "for you have been always consistent; but those gentlemen," pointing to the Ministers. The Speaker returned and read the Royal Speech at the table-it was an admirable speech indeed.

'Lord Althorp, Sir James Graham, and myself, walked away together, and stopped to see the King pass the door of the hat-room. He was much cheered; but the crowd was not great. Lord Althorp said to me, "Well, I think I beat Peel in temper; as, indeed, he had most completely.

We were joined in Palace-yard by Lord Goderich, who told us that the scene in the House of Lords had been more disgraceful than that in the Commons. Lord Londonderry had shaken his fist at the Duke of Richmond; and the Lord Chancellor had been hooted by the Opposition Peers when he left the woolsack, and Lord Shaftesbury had been voted into his seat. Lord Tankerville told me that the angry Lords would, without the least scruple, have voted off the Ministers' heads that day. All this fury and despair were not surprising when we remember that the party who had been in possession of power so long now saw that their hold on that power, through the borough system,

was about to leave them-never to return. The firmness of the King had dispelled the last illusion of the Anti-Reformers, who, to do them justice, did not give way until all resistance was hopeless.' (Vol. ii. pp. 103-105.)

On the 11th of August, 1831, Sir Benjamin Hobhouse died and his son succeeded to the baronetcy. A short time afterwards, in February 1832, Lord Althorp was authorised by the Cabinet to propose to Sir John Hobhouse to take office as Secretary at War. The office was not particularly agreeable to him, especially as he stood committed to strong opinions against flogging in the army. But a sense of duty to his friends and to the party prevailed, and he accepted the appointment to their great satisfaction The King gave him a most gracious reception when he kissed hands and said, I trust your manners will be as pleasing in intercourse on 'public matters, as your father was in private life.' He was then sworn of the Privy Council with the usual formalities. It is important to remark that this proposal of office by Lord Althorp was accompanied by a positive assurance that Ministers would carry the Reform Bill, though their own tenure of office was not likely to be permanent. The position of Lord Grey and his colleagues was peculiar and even unprecedented. They had not the ordinary resource of withdrawing from office. They stood pledged to the country to carry the measure, which implied that they were bound to employ the means necessary to carry it. But on the nature and extent of those means they were not at all agreed among themselves, as Hobhouse soon found out. Although he was not in the Cabinet, the assurance given him by Lord Althorp gave him a right to insist on the adoption of decisive measures, and throughout this critical period he advocated with great energy the creation of Peers as indispensable to ensure the result. The following important conversation explains his position:

"The House of Commons met at twelve the next day (11th February). Going down to Westminster, I met Lord Howick, who said he wanted to speak with me; and, accordingly, we walked together for some time. He told me that he had had a conversation with his father the night before, and that Lord Grey still hesitated about creating Peers previously to the second reading. Lord Howick said that his father was not aware of the consequences of rejecting the Bill; and that, in fact, he was not aware even of the paramount importance of the measure itself, and confessed that, had he known what would ensue, would never have embarked in it. Lord Grey added, that, up to a certain time, he and all the Cabinet were resolved upon the creation of Peers; but that Brougham fell ill, and then took fright, which was communicated to Lord Grey. Now Lord Brougham had recovered from his panic, and

Lord Grey had his doubts. He was most decidedly adverse to swamping the peerage, and desired to retire from office. He did not seem aware that he could not do that without losing his character, and risking the ruin of the country. Lord Howick concluded by begging me to call on his father, and state my opinion. I said, "I would do so; and added that, "if the Bill was allowed to be lost, I should consider that the Cabinet had broken its pledge with me, made through Lord Althorp, and that I should be wantonly sacrificed." Lord Howick assented to this view, and repeated his entreaties that I would see Lord Grey at once-not a moment was to be lost. Some of the young men who were to be called to the Upper House had begun to cool; others might refuse, and it would take some time to make out a fresh list. I replied that I should prefer a meeting of Members of Parliament to advise Lord Grey. Lord Howick remarked that his father would not like that; he would call it dictation, and would prefer friendly advice given privately. I confess I was mightily surprised, and not a little alarmed, that a mar. with so much power, so much honesty, and so much intellect, should be so indifferent to his own glory and to the best interests of the country. I went to Sir Francis Burdett, and had a long conversation with him. He felt as I did; and wrote to Lord Grey. He told me that I ought to save myself, and resign office the moment I discovered that it was intended to risk the loss of the Bill, by not doing that which the Administration had the power of doing. Sir Francis added "that taking this course might, perhaps, destroy the Government; but the fault would not be mine. To sacrifice me would not save them, nor ought they to be saved."

This day I dined at the Speaker's-my first Ministerial dinner. I sat between Charles Grant and Poulett Thompson, and had some serious talk with them both, and told them what I had resolved to do. Taking Grant afterwards to the Duke of Sussex's conversazione (of F.R.S.) at Kensington, I told him I should go to Lord Grey before the Council the next day, and would resign office if I was not assured that the Bill was to be carried. He said I was quite right. I spoke to him, as one of the Cabinet, with the utmost freedom and unreserve, for I felt that it was absolutely necessary to take some decisive step. I thought the creation of Peers, were it ever so objectionable, was nothing in comparison with the consequences of rejecting the Bill, and bringing back the old set and the old system.

'The next day I called on Lord Durham. He told me that on the previous Thursday he had, through Lady Durham and Lady Grey, conveyed to Lord Grey his intention of resigning, unless the Bill was made quite safe in the House of Lords. He assured me that, when he persuaded me to accept office, everything was decided upon. As many Peers as were thought requisite were to be made, either at once, or by degrees; and on this the whole Cabinet seemed determined, but Brougham's illness made him flinch, and his flinching raised doubts in Lord Grey; and both together revived the hesitation in that portion of the Cabinet that had originally objected to the creation of Peers. It seemed that the Duke of Richmond, although as strong for Reform as any member of the Cabinet, was still very averse to the creation of