argument had been omitted. To this habit, and to the practice already mentioned of reading Greek and Latin into English, joined to his wonderful natural endow ments, may be attributed his talent for reply, and that command of language, for which he was from the first so highly distinguished. At whatever length he spoke, he avoided repetition; and it was early and justly observed of him, that he never failed to put the best word in the best place."

Dismissal of the Lord Chancellor

Thurlow.

The extraordinary manner in which the Lord Chancellor opposed the loan bill, rendered it necessary for Mr. Pitt to take a step, which the common friends of those two distinguished persons had for some time seen to be inevitable. From the commencement of Mr. Pitt's administration, to the period of the King's illness, the Lord Chancellor had acted with the utmost zeal and cordiality as a member of the cabinet; but during the proceedings in parliament, to which that unhappy event gave rise, a great alteration took place in his conduct; to such a degree, indeed, that upon several occasions Mr. Pitt felt by no means confident what part he would take in the debates in the House of Lords. In all the discussions, however, relative to the regency, he invariably, and with apparent sincerity, supported the principles and mea

Mr. Pitt used to say, that he always found it useful to talk over any measure which he had in contempla tion, with lord Thurlow, as he was sure to hear from him every objection to which it was liable.

sures of Mr. Pitt, but not entirely without suspicion, at a moment of the greatest difficulty, of a disposition to pursue an opposite line, in consequence of his being admitted to frequent interviews with the Prince of Wales. Whether the amendment, which took place in the King's health, had any influence in this respect, it is impossible to know. After his majesty's recovery, the coolness and reserve towards Mr. Pitt, continued and gradually increased, although there was no difference of opinion upon any political question, nor did there appear any other cause for dissatisfaction.

This was a matter of so great importance, that it was thought right to make the king acquainted with it; and his majesty wrote to the Lord Chancellor upon the subject, towards the end of November, 1789, and received such an answer as led him confidently to hope, that Mr. Pitt would in future have no reason to complain of the Lord Chancellor. This, however, proved by no means the case; and Mr. Pitt at length, convinced that he could not rely upon lord Thurlow's co-operation, submitted to the king, at the beginning of the following November, the expediency of advancing Mr. William Grenville, who was then Secretary of State, to the peerage, for the purpose of conducting the public business in the House of Lords, and of remedying those inconveniencies which had frequently arisen from the waywardness of the Lord Chancellor. To this proposal his majesty imme diately assented; but though Mr. Pitt had now the satisfaction of feeling entirely at ease, as far as

the support of the measures of government was concerned in the House of Lords, yet he still had the mortification of observing a continuance of the same unfriendly disposition in the Lord Chancellor.

One of the members of the cabinet, who had been intimately acquainted, as well as politically connected, with the Lord Chancellor for many years, repeatedly remonstrated with him, upon his present conduct to wards Mr. Pitt, which he represented to be the subject of serious concern to all their colleagues, and earnestly pressed him both for private and public reasons, to state openly and candidly his ground of complaint, assuring him, that no offence or neglect had been intended, and that Mr. Pitt was ready to enter into an explanation upon any point he might wish. This friendly interposition entirely failed: no explicit answer could be obtained; nor did the Chancellor mention a single objection to Mr. Pitt's public measures, or specify one instance of inattention to himself. He persevered in taking every opportunity of marking his personal dislike of Mr. Pitt, though constantly warned of the unreasonableness and unavoidable consequence of such behaviour; and at last his spleen broke forth in a violent censure of a bill, to which he knew Mr. Pitt annexed the greatest importance;† and he actually voted against it with out having given any previous notice of his intention. Mr. Pitt, who had shewn more forbearance

The Marquis of Stafford.

than any other man would have done under similar circumstances, had now no alternative. Neither the good of the public service, nor a regard of his own feelings and character, would allow him to submit to such an indignity; and on the following morning, he respectfully submitted to the king, the impossibility of his remaining in office with the Lord Chancellor, and the consequent necessity of his majesty's making his choice between them.‡

The King was in some degree prepared for this communication, and the Lord Chancellor was immediately acquainted, by his majesty's command, that he must resign the seals.f But as a change was not desirable so near the end of the session, and some time was requisite to bring business depending in the court of chancery to a conclusion, he did not actually give up the seals till the day of the prorogation, when they were placed in the hands of three commissioners.||

His opposition to the New Forest bill, was subsequent to this notice.

This dismissal of the Lord Chancellor was not followed by a single resignation or change in any political or legal department: nor was it expected to affect the

vote of one member in either house of parliament-a clear proof of the opinion which was entertained of Mr. Pitt's conduct upon this occasion.

Her late Majesty, Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, was born on the 17th of May, 1768. Her father, Charles William Ferdinand, hereditary prince of Brunswick Wolfenbuttle, espoused, January 16th, 1754, the princess Augusta, eldest sister of the late king, George III. Of this marriage Caroline was the offspring. In 1780, Charles, her father, succeeded to the dukedom; and, in 1787, was placed at the head of a Prussian army. The duke of Brunswick, on various subsequent occasions, gave eminent proofs of great military talents. At the battle of Auerstadt, after the most strenuous and heroic exer

tions, he received a wound by a cannon-ball in his forehead, through which he was deprived of sight and sense. Being carried off the field, he was first taken to Brunswick, but on the approach of the French, removed to Altona, in the Danish territory.

On the 25th of October, 1806, the House of Brunswick was declared to have lost the sovereignty of its ancestors. This event was followed by the death of the wounded and gallant veteran, who expired Nov. 10th, a few days previous to the entrance of the French into Hamburgh.

On the day succeeding to his decease, his son, the duke of

Brunswick Oels, who capitulated with general Blucher, arrived at the residence of his late father. The States of Brunswick sent a request to Buonaparte, that the corpse of the duke might be deposited in the vault of his ancestors. To this the following answer was given :-" Tell the present duke of Brunswick that I would rather cede Belgium, and renounce the crown of Italy, than allow him or any of his family again to enter the territory of Brunswick. Let him take his money and jewels and go to England."

The successor of the unfortu nate duke was thus compelled to quit his native country. In England orders were given by the king (Geo. III.) for the accommodation of his nephew, and for that of his widowed mother.

The issue of Charles William Ferdinand, duke of Brunswick, by the princess Augusta of England, were Charlotte Georgiana Augusta, who was the first wife of the duke of Wurtemberg; Charles George Augustus, duke of Brunswick; Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, her late majesty of England; George William Christian; William Frederick; and, Leopold.

The princesses of Brunswick received their education almost

entirely under the inspection of their mother, the duchess. Their father's court was the seat of hospitality, the resort of military officers, the asylum of unfortunate foreigners. The princesses were early introduced into society, and had opportunities of observing the variety of national manners and characters. These circumstances led to a more easy and familiar mode of social enjoyment, than was consistent with the formality and etiquette usually prevailing in courts. The princess Caroline was of a gay and lively temper; pride certainly was not among her faults. She sought the love and the confidence which she thought could ensure her the homage and respect of her inferiors. She was, with her young female companions, the merriest among the merry, the gayest among the gay. She was fond of music, and participated in all the innocent amusements suited to her temper and age. She had a taste for ingenious mechanical pursuits, which she exercised in the construction of little elegant ornaments, toys, &c.

Her attractions and sprightly youth drew the notice of strangers, and their compliments were received by her with familiar and easy politeness. For the English, the good and brave English," as she was accustomed to style them, she manifested a peculiar partiality. Some months after the French Revolution, she had a personal interview with her cousin the duke of York; from that period the family alliance appears to have been in contemplation. In such a measure the duchess of Brunswick, of course, took a lively interest.

The marriage of the heir apparent to the British empire was considered as a subject of high national importance. The embarrassments of the prince of Wales, who had incurred a heavy pecuniary debt, induced him to lend an ear to a measure which his royal father declared should be the only condition on which he would consent to relieve him from the difficulties in which he was involved. A consent was thus, it may be said, obtained, rather than given.

Negotiations for a marriage between his present majesty, then prince of Wales, and the princess Caroline of Brunswick, were accordingly entered into; and every satisfactory arrangement having been completed, on the morning of the 20th of December, 1794, Caroline, now become by contract princess of Wales, accompanied by her mother and a numerous retinue, departed from Brunswick, her native city, amidst the acclamations and regrets of the people.

The duchess, at the beginning of the journey, was indisposed; but, after a short repose, being in some degree revived, they proceeded to the palace of Herrenhausen, near Hanover. On the 3rd of January, 1795, the travellers reached Osnaburg, where a messenger met them from Lord St. Helens, to announce the return of commodore Payne's squadron to England, and the danger of entering Holland. The bishop's palace had been prepared for the reception of the princess and suite. After a residence of a few weeks at Hanover they proceeded to Cuxhaven, and the princess embarked March 28th,

on board his majesty's ship Jupiter.

The following is a narrative of the proceedings of the squadron under the command of commodore John Willet Payne, appointed to conduct her serene highness to England, as taken from the minutes of an officer belonging to the flag-ship the Jupiter, 50 guns:

The squadron, consisting of the Jupiter, of 50 guns; Phaeton and Latona, of 38 guns each; Martin, Hawk, and Lark, sloops of war; and Coburg, Active, Rose, Fly, and Princess Royal, cutters, sailed from the Noré on the 2nd of March, 1795, and on the 7th anchored off Cuxhaven. On the following day the Elbe became full of ice, which, driving down the tide in immense masses, rendered the situation of the ships extremely perilous. The severe season continued with very little intermission till the 28th. That

day," says the Jupiter's officer, "had been unusually fine; the weather had become more genial; and the whole scene had lost much of its gloom and dreariness, when, at half-past four p. m. guns were heard off the offing, and soon the standard, which was discovered in a cutter standing out in the Elbe, announced that the princess of Brunswick was on board. The preparative signal was immediately made with one gun. The barge was dispatched with the first lieutenant to steer, accompanied by the boats of the squadron.

their oars, had a fine effect. When the royal standard was unfurled in the barge, the ships of the squadron manned their yards; and a salute of 21 guns was fired from each ship. The evening continued remarkably favourable; the sun seemed to linger in the horizon, and for the time, owing to the smoke, had the appearance of an eclipse: it then darted out with fresh lustre. On the sides of the accommodation ladder of the Jupiter were placed midshipmen in their uni forms, and the officers and a guard of marines were drawn up on each side of the quarter deck. The moment her royal highnes ascended the first step, which was about six o'clock, the standard was hoisted on the maintopgallant-mast head of the Jupiter, and received by the other ships with the customary marks of respect. The favourable weather, with the exception of some foggy days, continued during the remainder of the voyage. royal highness particularly endeared herself to the crew, and showed the utmost affability and attention to every one on board. The princess was attended by lord Malmesbury and Mrs. Har court. An admiral of high rank in the service of the prince of Orange was on board. The 29th, being Sunday, her royal highness at two o'clock had divine service performed on the quarterdeck of the Jupiter, by the Rev. J. Stanier Clarke.* At half-past seven in the evening of the 3rd of April, the Jupiter anchored at the Nore. At seven o'clock the next morning the Jupiter, ac

Her

Afterwards Librarian at Carlton