C. W. W.
THE RIGHT HON. W. H. FREMANTLE TO THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
East India Office, April 16, 1823.
My dear Duke,
I find you do not come till Thursday or Friday, I therefore send you a few lines to say how triumphantly the business went off yesterday. Brownlow made a very eloquent and able speech, but Plunket's explanation was perfectly satisfactory and convincing to the House, and the general feeling was decidedly in favour of crushing all further discussion upon it. The friends of Government had been summoned in the morning by Canning, and then a very calm and friendly communication took place, in which the violent Orangeists, I mean Sir George Hill, Dawson, &c. &c., all concurred in the propriety of preventing, if possible, any decision being pronounced upon the question, which could only go to the increase of the irritation and violence now existing, and could be of no advantage, but on the contrary the greatest disadvantage, to Ireland; and accordingly the motion of Courtenay's was suggested and unanimously approved; I must, however, do Peel the justice to say, that he distinctly stated that if the result of the debate was to be an opinion on Plunket's conduct, he should not hesitate one moment in giving his heartfelt and sincere opinion in favour of the proceeding he had adopted.
In the House, Plunket laboured, I think, a good deal in bringing his precedents to bear on the subject, and showed infinite dexterity in all this part of his argument; but when he came to the whole of the proceedings of the Grand Jury and the High Sheriff, he carried the House along with him, and ended his speech with the unanimous feeling of the House in his favour; indeed, I am not sure but that we might have carried a decided negative; however, altogether it is better as it is, more particularly as Plunket is equally satisfied.
The King comes to town to-day, and I understand has made up his mind to hold a drawing-room, and sit during the time; I doubt even his ability to do this, if he has not greatly mended since I left Brighton. We shall lose the Catholic question to-morrow, at least this is my opinion; the state of Ireland, and of parties in that country, has made a great alteration in opinions of those who were not very stout upon it before.
The papers which have been presented to Parliament regarding the negotiations at Verona, and Paris, and Madrid, are considered so far satisfactory as to meet the feelings of the country in maintaining a neutrality—that is, in avoiding to commit England to any share in hostilities; but I should say that they have given an impression that we were duped by the French Government up to the moment of the King's Speech, and even afterwards, and that the tone maintained by England throughout the whole of the proceedings was not sufficiently high and commanding. There is also throughout the whole of the negotiations, a continued exertion on the part of England to induce the Spaniards to give way by some modification of their constitution, without a corresponding attempt to induce France to remove her army. The Opposition think that the papers altogether afford them a very good case; no notice is yet given in the House of Commons upon the subject, but probably there will to-day or to-morrow.
Adieu, my dear Duke,
Ever most truly yours,