Howe, being an eager anti-reformer, replied that she was much frightened and proceeded to make the very worst of the occurrence, with the result that the King, in a fury, determined to cancel his proposed visit to the City, much to the chagrin of his Ministers.
WILLIAM IV.
As for William himself, he blew hot and cold over the Bill, as everyone knows, and it became a duel between Lord Grey and Queen Adelaide, so it was said, as to which should gain the greatest power over the King, and William began to get the reputation of being a hen-pecked husband. At one point Grey desired to go to the country that he might prove that the Lords were the impediment in the way of the Bill, and the King consented to a dissolution, actually taking leave of his Minister. The next day, however, actuated by some hidden motive, he absolutely and flatly refused to countenance the change, thus forcing Lord Grey to persevere in what seemed a hopeless attempt to get the Bill passed through the House of Lords. The Whig press was furious, and published such outspoken opinions as the following:—
“Hail, thou conundrum of our age,
Britannia’s great first fiddle,
By turns a fool, by turns a sage,
A puzzling royal riddle.
By turns you make us weep or smile,
Your country’s curse or glory,