The Greville Memoirs Volume III Part 20

The last day of Parliament was distinguished by a worse attack of O'Connell upon Alvanley for what he had said the day before in the House of Lords. Alvanley has sent him a message through Dawson Damer demanding an apology or satisfaction, and the result I don't yet know.[4]

[4] [O'Connell had called Lord Alvanley a 'bloated buffoon,' and as usual took refuge in his vow never to fight another duel. Upon this his son, Morgan O'Connell, offered to meet Lord Alvanley in lieu of his father, which was accepted and the duel took place.]

London, May 17th, 1835 {p.256}

Newmarket and gout have between them produced an interval of unusual length in my scribblings, though I am not aware of having had anything particularly interesting to record. We had Stanley at Newmarket the second week as well as the first, taking a lively interest in John Russell's defeat in Devons.h.i.+re. This defeat was a great mortification to his party, and was not compensated by the easy victory which Morpeth obtained in Yorks.h.i.+re. These elections and the affair between Alvanley and O'Connell have been the chief objects of attention; all the newspapers are full of details, which I need not put down here. Alvanley seems to have behaved with great spirit and resolution. There was a meeting at De Ros's house of De Ros, Damer, Lord Worcester, and Duncombe to consider what was to be done on the receipt of Morgan O'Connell's letter, and whether Alvanley should fight him or not. Worcester and Duncombe were against fighting, the other two for it. Alvanley at once said that the boldest course was the best, and he would go out. It was agreed that no time should be lost, so Damer was despatched to Colonel Hodges, and said Alvanley was ready to meet Morgan O'Connell. 'The next morning,' Hodges suggested. 'No, immediately.' The parties joined in Arlington Street and went off in two hackney coaches; Duncombe, Worcester, and De Ros, with Dr.

Hume, in a third. Only Hume went on the ground, for Damer had objected to the presence of some Irish friend of O'Connell's, so that Alvanley's friends could only look on from a distance. The only other persons who came near them were an old Irishwoman and a Methodist parson, the latter of whom exhorted the combatants in vain to forego their sinful purpose, and to whom Alvanley replied, 'Pray, sir, go and mind your own affairs, for I have enough to do now to think of mine.' 'Think of your soul,' he said. 'Yes,' said Alvanley, 'but my body is now in the greatest danger.' The Irishwoman would come and see the fighting, and asked for some money for her attendance. Damer seems to have been a very bad second, and probably lost his head; he ought not to have consented to the third shots upon any account. Alvanley says he execrated him in his heart when he found he had consented to it. Hodges acted like a ruffian, and had anything happened he would have been hanged. It is impossible to know whether the first shot was fired by mistake or not. The impression on the minds of Alvanley's friends is that it was _not_, but it is difficult to believe that any man would endeavour to take such an advantage. However, no shot ought to have been fired after that. The affair made an amazing noise. As O'Connell had threatened to mention it in the House of Commons, Damer went to Peel to put him in possession of all the circ.u.mstances, but he said that he was sure O'Connell would not venture to stir the matter there.

Lord Wellesley's resignation of the White Wand has set conjecture afloat as to his motives, and it is a.s.serted on one side, but denied on the other, that disgust at O'Connell's predominance is the reason, following disappointment at not having been himself reinstated. I do not know the truth of the matter. Lord John Russell takes his seat on Monday, after which business will begin again in earnest in the House of Commons. There is an impression that this Government will not be of long continuance, and that the Ministers are themselves aware that their tenure of office must be brief. They will at all events get through this session, for much remains to be done in the way of approximation and combination between different sections of public men before any satisfactory arrangement can be made for replacing the present Ministers. If it was not for the Irish question, and the apparent impossibility of bringing that to any final adjustment, I should not despair of the introduction of a better state of feeling and the mitigation of the bitterness and animosity which set men of different parties so irreconcilably against each other. At present there is certainly a great calm after the storm which raged so fiercely a little while ago. I have been so out of the world between Newmarket and the gout that I know but little of what has been pa.s.sing, and merely throw in this brief notice to keep up the chain of my observations and remarks.

May 24th, 1835 {p.258}

Came from Newmarket on Thursday night. Melbourne is said (by his friends) to be doing very well in the House of Lords, but the discussion on Friday about Lord Wellesley's resignation gave him great annoyance. Lord Wellesley declined to say why he had resigned, and merely declared it was not on account of Mulgrave's procession, but he did not contradict any one of the a.s.sertions that the cause was disgust at O'Connell's ascendency. When Lord Harrowby said that 'if he had been Mulgrave he would rather have been torn in pieces than have marched in under such banners as were displayed,' Lord Wellesley loudly cheered him. Peel's speech at the dinner the other day has made a great deal of noise, for he is supposed to have thrown over his High Tory friends very completely in it, and to have exhibited a determination to adapt his opinions and conduct to the spirit of the times. However, the Tories affect to be satisfied, laud it to the skies, and distribute it through the country. In the House of Commons up to this time nothing has been done; Peel has made over his Dissenters Bill to the Government, who will probably do nothing with it this session. n.o.body expects the present Administration to last long, as it is said, not even themselves; but nothing is prepared for the formation of a better and more durable Cabinet.

Lord Eliot[5] and Colonel Gurwood have returned from Spain, satisfied that the Carlist party cannot be put down, and having had a conversation with Louis Philippe, the substance of which appeared in the 'Times,' and very correctly. Great indignation is expressed at the indiscretion which let this out, and it is understood that Gurwood has been chattering about what pa.s.sed in all directions. The King of France, it is clear, will not interfere, and so they must fight it out. Spanish stock fell 15 per cent, in one or two days. The King is in such a state of dudgeon that he will not give any dinners to anybody.

[5] [Lord Eliot (afterwards Earl of St. Germans) had been sent to Spain by the Duke of Wellington, in March 1835, to endeavour to mitigate the atrocities which at that time disgraced the leaders on both sides in the civil contest raging in Spain. He was eminently successful in his mission, and a Convention (commonly known as the Convention of Bergara) was signed under his Lords.h.i.+p's mediation at Logrono on the 27th of April, 1835. A narrative of this mission was printed by Lord St.

Germans in 1871.]

[Page Head: THE APPEAL OF SWIFT _v._ KELLY.]

Yesterday Swift and Kelly's[6] case came on before the Privy Council. It was to have been heard the Monday before, when it would have been argued and decided, because every day in the week was disposable for the purpose, but Brougham thought fit to interfere. He insisted upon being there to hear it, and compelled Lord Lansdowne to put off the hearing till Sat.u.r.day, to the extraordinary inconvenience of all parties. On Sat.u.r.day the court met, but no Brougham. They began, and in about two hours he made his appearance, read his letters, wrote notes, corrected some paper (for the press, as I could see), and now and then attended to the cause, making flippant observations, much to the terror of Jervaise--Miss Kelly's uncle--for all his interruptions appeared to be directed adversely to them. I told Mr. Jervaise he need not pay any attention to what Brougham said. As he came late, so he went away early, breaking up the court at half-past three, and as other engagements occupied the Judges the rest of the week, it was put off till the 18th of June.

[6] [The curious case of Swift v. Kelly was heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and is reported in Knapp's 'Privy Council Reports,' vol. iii.

p. 257. Mr. Greville had known something of the parties in Rome, and their adventures are related in a former part of these Journals, vol. i. p. 379.]

May 30th, 1835 {p.260}

On Wednesday last went to Charles Kemble's in the evening; singing and playing; Mrs. Arkwright, Miss Strutt, old Liverati (horrible squabbling), and Miss Adelaide Kemble. The father and mother both occupied with their daughter's book, which Kemble told me he had 'never read till it appeared in print, and was full of sublime things and vulgarities,' and the mother 'was divided between admiration and disgust, threw it down six times, and as often picked it up.'

Thursday night. {p.260}

To Horace Twiss's what he called 'a Judy party'--a supper and jollification, where all were expected to contribute to the amus.e.m.e.nt of the company who possessed wherewithal. The contributors were Twiss himself, Mrs. Arkwright, Miss Cooke, Dance, Miss Dance, Planche, Mrs. Blood, Mrs. Groom, Theodore Hook, Billy something, who imitated Cooper and Ward. I stayed till two, and they went on till three. It was sufficiently amusing altogether, though noisy and vulgar; company very miscellaneous, but everybody ready to amuse and be amused.

Friday. {p.260}

[Page Head: LONDON UNIVERSITY CHARTER.]

The Committee of Council met on the matter of the London University; Brougham of course the great performer; the same persons were summoned who had attended before, but great changes had since taken place, which made the a.s.sembly curious. There were Melbourne, Lord Lansdowne and certain of his colleagues, Brougham and Lyndhurst--both ex-Chancellors since the last meeting--Richmond, Ripon, Stanley and Graham, the Dilly complete, and Lord Grey. When they came to discuss the matter n.o.body seemed disposed to move; at last Brougham proposed a resolution 'that the King should be advised to grant a charter making the pet.i.tioners an University, the regulations and restrictions to be determined hereafter.' The Bishop of London objected on behalf of King's College to any advantages being conferred on the London University which would place the latter inst.i.tution in a better condition than the former. After much tedious discussion the words 'university,' &c., were omitted, and the resolution moved was '_to grant a charter_.' The Duke of Richmond formally opposed it, his princ.i.p.al objection being to the insolvent state of the concern. Brougham sat in contemptuous silence for a few minutes while the Duke spoke, and then replied. There was a squabble between them, and an evident inclination on the part of the majority present to refuse the charter, but the address of the Commons with the King's answer were read, which presented a very difficult case to act upon. The King's answer amounted very nearly to an engagement to grant a charter; the Privy Council was bound to decide without reference to the address and answer, and the bias _there_ was to advise against the grant. Brougham, after much ineffectual discussion, said in a tone of sarcastic contempt that 'their hesitation and their scruples were ridiculous, for the House of Commons would step in and cut them both short and settle the question.' This is doubtless true, and he can effect it when he will; but how monstrous, then, was the vote. The House of Commons had never heard a t.i.ttle of the evidence or the argument; the Council had heard it all, and were bound to report upon it, when the House, while the judgment of the Privy Council was still pending, voted an address to the Crown for the purpose of obtaining an adjudication of the matter one particular way, without reference to the proceedings before the tribunal. They all seemed agreed that if it was expedient to grant a charter it required much consideration to decide under what restrictions and regulations it should be conceded, and Lord Grey declared that if he was called upon, without reference to any proceedings elsewhere, to decide upon the arguments they had heard at the bar, he should decide against giving the charter, but if he were called upon to advise the Crown what under all the circ.u.mstances it was expedient to do, his advice might be very different.

Graham said he could not divest his mind of the knowledge he possessed of what had pa.s.sed in the House of Commons, and he thought the Government ought to advise the Crown on its own responsibility what course it was expedient to adopt. After wasting an hour and a half in a very fruitless and not very interesting discussion (everybody looking bored to death except Brougham, who was talking all the time) the Council broke up without doing anything, and agreed to meet again on Friday next.

Old Eldon was very busy and eager about it, and had all the papers sent to him; he could not attend, being wholly disabled by the gout. Of course the charter (at least _a_ charter) will be given, because the House of Commons in the plenitude of their ignorance, but of their power, have so decided.

June 14th, 1835 {p.262}

[Page Head: THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY.]

Taken up with Epsom since I last wrote, and indisposed to journalising, besides having nothing to say. I did not attend the second meeting at the Privy Council on the London University question. Lord Eldon came to it, and there was some discussion, but without any violence; it ended by a report to the King, requesting he would dispense with the advice of the Council; so the matter remains with the Government. It is clear that they would have advised against granting the charter but for the answer which the King made to the address of the House of Commons, which was in fact a _promise_ to grant it. This answer was the work of Peel and Goulburn, and I can't imagine what induced them to put such an one into his Majesty's mouth, when they might have so properly made him say that he had referred the matter to the Privy Council, and was waiting for their report.

The calm and repose which have succeeded to the storms of the early part of the session are really wonderful; all parties seem disposed to lay aside their arms for the present, one reason of which is that parties are so evenly balanced that neither wishes to try its strength. Then the line which Peel is taking precludes any immediate renewal of hostilities. The measures of Government are confined to one or two questions, of which the Corporation Reform has alone been brought forward. Peel made a very able and dexterous speech upon John Russell's introduction of that measure, in which he exhibited anew his great superiority, and at once declared his intention of admitting the whole principle of it, reserving to himself to deal as he thought fit with the details. It has been a.s.serted on both sides that the Whigs and the High Tories are equally disgusted at his speech, the former for cutting the ground from under his feet, the latter for his departure from good old High Tory principles. There may be some truth in this, but the Tories profess generally to be satisfied and convinced, and to be quite ready to follow him in the liberal course on which he has entered; so much so that it is now said there is no longer such a thing as a Tory. Peel clearly does not intend that there shall be (as far as he is concerned as their leader) a _Tory_ party, though of course there must be a _Conservative_ party, the great force of which is the old Tory interest, and his object evidently is to establish himself in the good opinion of the country and render himself indispensable--to raise a party out of all other parties, and to convert the new elements of democratic power into an instrument of his own elevation, partly by yielding to and partly by guiding and restraining its desires and opinions. Neither is there any mystery in his conduct; his object and his intentions are evident to all, and it is perhaps advantageous that he has nothing to conceal. At the same time he plays this game with great prudence and ability. It is not his interest to strike great blows, but constantly to augment the reputation and extend the influence he has acquired, and this he does visibly and sensibly. There seems to be an universal impression that nothing can keep him out of office long. This Government may probably scramble through the session; there is no particular question on which they are likely to be overturned, but there is a conviction that any Government must be provisional in which Peel is not included, and that before long the country will insist upon his return to power.

June 19th, 1835 {p.264}

[Page Head: KING WILLIAM'S PERSONAL HABITS.]

At Stoke for the Ascot races. Alvanley was there--n.o.body else remarkable; fine weather and great luxury. Riding to the course on Wednesday, I overtook Adolphus Fitzclarence in the Park, who rode with me, and gave me an account of his father's habits and present state of mind. The former are as follows:--He sleeps in the same room with the Queen, but in a separate bed; at a quarter before eight every morning his _valet de chambre_ knocks at the door, and at ten minutes before eight exactly he gets out of bed, puts on a flannel dressing-gown and trousers, and walks into his dressing-room. Let who will be there, he never takes the slightest notice of them till he emerges from this sanctuary, when, like the _malade imaginaire_, he accosts whoever may be present with a cheerful aspect. He is long at his ablutions, and takes up an hour and a half in dressing. At half-past nine he breakfasts with the Queen, the ladies, and any of his family; he eats a couple of fingers and drinks a dish of coffee. After breakfast he reads the 'Times' and 'Morning Post,' commenting aloud on what he reads in very plain terms, and sometimes they hear 'That's a d.a.m.ned lie,' or some such remark, without knowing to what it applies. After breakfast he devotes himself with Sir Herbert Taylor to business till two, when he lunches (two cutlets and two gla.s.ses of sherry); then he goes out for a drive till dinner time; at dinner he drinks a bottle of sherry--no other wine--and eats moderately; he goes to bed soon after eleven. He is in dreadfully low spirits, and cannot rally at all; the only interval of pleasure which he has lately had was during the Devons.h.i.+re election, when he was delighted at John Russell's defeat. He abhors all his Ministers, even those whom he used rather to like formerly, but hates Lord John the most of all.

When Adolphus told him that a dinner ought to be given for the Ascot races he said, 'You know I cannot give a dinner; I cannot give any dinners without inviting the Ministers, and I would rather see the Devil than any one of them in my house.' I asked him how he was with them in his inevitable official relations. He said that he had as little to do with them as he could, and bowed them out when he gave any of them audiences as fast as possible.

He is peculiarly disgusted with Errol, for whom he has done so much, and who has behaved so ungratefully to him; but it is a good trait of him that he said 'he hoped the world would not accuse Errol of ingrat.i.tude.' He did not invite Errol to the Castle even for the Ascot races, and has seen little or nothing of him since the change. Adolphus said that he believed he was saving money. He has 120,000 a year, of which 40,000 goes in pensions; the rest is at his own disposal. He gives up his Hanoverian revenue--about 16,000 a year--to the Duke of Cambridge.

June 21st, 1835 {p.265}

Yesterday I dined with Lord Ripon; Lord Grey and Stanley and Graham dined there. I sat next to the latter, who holds nothing but Tory language. He talked of Stanley's letter to Sir Thomas Hesketh, and of the great offence it has given the Tories. Graham thought it indiscreet and uncalled for, though in the principles (anti-clubbism and anti-a.s.sociations) he agreed. Graham is very full of the expedition to Spain,[7] and expresses much alarm at the idea of an army being formed which is to act independently of the control and authority of the Government, to be composed of Irish Catholics, supplied by O'Connell (who, he says, has been to Alava and offered him any number of men) and commanded by Evans, who is a Republican. He believes that Peel entertains the same sentiments of aversion and alarm that he does; but he said that when he attempted to draw from him his opinion the other night he could not succeed; that Stanley has no alarm on the subject; expects that on Wednesday next Peel will make a severe attack upon the Government on this matter; [but this fell to the ground].

[7] [This was the Spanish Legion, commanded by General de Lacy Evans. Licence was given under the Foreign Enlistment Act for British subjects to enter the service of Queen Isabella.]

In the morning yesterday I was in court for the unfortunate case of Swift and Kelly, about which I cannot help taking an interest from having been originally concerned in it, and because I think there has been great villany somewhere. Some of the circ.u.mstances connected with this appeal are curious, as showing the accidents on which the issue of matters of vital importance to the parties often depend, and how the mistakes or selfishness of individuals concerned may influence the result, and in a way they little expected or calculated upon.

June 27th, 1835 {p.266}

I am again tormented to death with the Committee on West India places, and menaced with a report that will be fatal to my case.[8] Graham has been very obliging about it, and attended the Committee on Thursday to see what they were about and give me notice. I went to Lord Melbourne yesterday and stated my case to him, invoking his protection, and he appeared extremely well disposed to do what he could for me. I told him I did not wish him to pledge himself till he had seen the case and considered it, such as I had laid it before the Committee; and then, if he is satisfied that I stand upon tenable grounds, I will ask him to exert his influence and authority in my behalf. However, I much doubt whether, strive and struggle as I may, I shall ever escape from the determination of this morose and rigid millionaire [Francis Baring, who was not, however, a millionaire or anything like it, either _in praesenti_ or _in futuro_] to strip me of my property; and I have made up my mind to its loss, though resolved to fight while I have a leg to fight upon.

[8] [Mr. Greville held the sinecure office of Secretary of the Island of Jamaica, which was threatened at this time by a Committee of the House of Commons. He succeeded, however, in retaining it, until he voluntarily resigned the appointment many years afterwards. His salary as Clerk of the Council was diminished by 500 a year as long as he held the two offices.]

Yesterday we were again occupied all day with Swift and Kelly, which to-day will be brought to a close. The conduct of Brougham on this trial exceeds all imagination and belief. From the beginning he has taken a one-sided view of the case, and apparently set out with a bias which has continually increased, till he has become altogether identified, and in a manner pa.s.sionately identified, with the appellant's side; and he exhibits this bias by one continual course of advocacy, battling every argument and every point with the respondent's counsel with a virulence and an intemperance that are so disgusting that my blood boils while I listen to him. But his conduct in all other respects displays the most extraordinary contrast with that of the other judges who sit there; they, at least, listen attentively and consecutively to the whole case, and when they do interrupt it is for the purpose of obtaining explanations and elucidations, and without the exhibition of any bias. But he is writing letters, reading newspapers, cutting jokes, attending only by fits and starts; then, when something smites his ear, out he breaks, and with a mixture of sarcasm and ribaldry and insolence he argues and battles the point, whatever it may be.

[Page Head: LORD BROUGHAM AND THE PRIVY COUNCIL.]

_Afternoon._ I am just come from the court. Lus.h.i.+ngton finished his speech at two, and when Pemberton was about to reply Brougham announced that he must go away to the London University, where he was to distribute prizes. The consequence was that the reply was deferred till next Wednesday, and the parties will be put to the expense of 60 more. His conduct to-day was exactly of a piece with that which he has exhibited throughout the trial. With all the ingenuity and astuteness of which he is master he has attacked every part of the respondent's case; and, to do him justice, he has often displayed great acuteness and expressed himself with admirable force and precision; but it was the conduct of an advocate and not of a judge, and a much better advocate has he been for Swift than either of those he retained.

(Pemberton, however, conducted the case with consummate skill and judgment.) He finished by declaring that as far as he was concerned he should not desiderate a reply, except on one or two points on which he wished to hear it. After the court broke up Baron Parke came into my room and asked my opinion, at the same time telling me his own, which was as decidedly against the girl as Brougham's. I argued the case with him, especially the points which Lus.h.i.+ngton failed to enforce as strongly as I think he might have done, but his mind was made up. Shadwell, on the contrary, leans the other way, and agreed with me in my view of it. It is, however, very clear that nothing can prevent the reversal of Sir John Nicholl's judgment; for Erskine will very likely go with Brougham and Parke, and if he does not Lord Lansdowne undoubtedly will; but if I were to attend this court a hundred years I should never forget the conduct of Brougham on this trial. My disgust would not have been a jot less had he espoused the same side that I do; and if I were myself engaged in a suit, and he were to take up my own cause in such a barefaced and outrageous manner, with such an utter contempt of dignity and decency, I should feel the utmost shame at such partiality, though exerted in my behalf.

June 30th, 1835 {p.268}

I went to Melbourne on Sunday and carried him my case.[9] He told me he had already desired Spring Rice to speak to Baring on the subject, and I believe he will do what he can; but these great people, however well disposed, can seldom be urged into sufficient resolution and activity to take an energetic way of settling the matter, and they have always so much consideration for each other that Melbourne will probably, with all his good-nature, feel a sort of delicacy to his subordinate colleague in rescuing me from his clutches. Yesterday I went to the Duke of Wellington and gave him my case to read, requesting him to exert his influence with his Tories, and get them to attend the Committee and defend me there. He read it, approved, and promised to speak to both Peel and Herries. I had previously desired George Dawson to speak to Peel. I might certainly, after the very essential services I rendered Peel and his Government, go with some confidence to Peel or any of them and ask for their aid in my difficulty; but it is not wise to remind men of an obligation; if they do not feel it without being reminded they will not be made to do so by any hint, and an accusation of ingrat.i.tude will be implied, which will only excite their resentment; if they are sensible of the obligation they will return it without any reminder.

[9] [Relating to the Secretarys.h.i.+p of Jamaica.]

[Page Head: THE POPE AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT.]

After I had said what I had to say to Melbourne he asked me what was thought of the t.i.the Bill. I told him it was thought a very outrageous measure by the Tories, but that I thought it useless and that it did not go far enough. 'I know you do,' he said, 'but such as it is it will very likely overturn the Government.' He then talked over the Irish question, and owned that nothing could settle it, that _they_ might perhaps bolster up the Irish Church a little longer than the other party could, that they, however, could not do _more_ than this now, and it was only doubtful if they could do _this_. He talked the language of reason, and with a just sense of the insuperable difficulties which present themselves on all sides with respect to this question, but at the same time of their eventual (though as to time uncertain) solution. I told him that I had long been of opinion that the only practicable and sound course was to open a negotiation with Rome, and to endeavour to deal with the Catholics in Ireland and the ministers of the Catholic religion upon the same plan which had been _mutatis mutandis_ adopted universally in Germany and almost all over the Continent, and that there was nothing the Church of Rome desired so much as to cultivate a good understanding with us.

He then told me a thing that surprised me, and which seemed to be at variance with this supposition--that an application had been made to the Pope very lately (through Seymour) expressive of the particular wish of the British Government, that he would not appoint M'Hale to the vacant Catholic bishop.r.i.c.k, _anybody but him_, notwithstanding which the Pope had appointed M'Hale; but on this occasion the Pope made a shrewd observation. His Holiness said that 'he had remarked for a long time past that no piece of preferment of any value ever fell vacant in Ireland that he did not get an application from the British Government asking for the appointment.' Lord Melbourne supposed he was determined to show that he had the power of refusing and of opposing the wishes of Government, and in reply to my question he admitted that the Pope had generally conferred the appointment according to the wishes of Government. Can anything be more absurd or anomalous than such relations as these? The law prohibits any intercourse with Rome, and the Government whose business it is to enforce the law has established a regular but underhand intercourse, through the medium of a diplomatic agent, whose character cannot be avowed, and the Ministers of this Protestant kingdom are continually soliciting the Pope to confer appointments, the validity, even the existence, of which they do not recognise, while the Pope, who is the object of our orthodox abhorrence and dread, good-humouredly complies with all or nearly all their requests. These are the national and legislative follies of this wise and prosperous people, and such is the false position into which we are drawn by a long course of detestable policy--policy arising at first out of circ.u.mstances, and eventually adhered to from those powerful prejudices which struck their roots so deep into the soil that the force of reason and philosophy has not yet been sufficient to tear them up. Peel, in one of his speeches on Catholic emanc.i.p.ation, bade the House of Commons not to deceive itself, and to be aware that if that Bill was carried, we must have Episcopal (or Protestant) England, Presbyterian Scotland, and Catholic Ireland.

He prophesied well and truly no doubt, and to that consummation affairs will eventually come, as they ought to come, though not without many a struggle, through many a year. The prophecy of Peel is advancing to its accomplishment, but he has either forgotten it or finds it convenient to forget it.