The Norfolk Committee unseated Coke and Windham; Serjeant Lens made an admirable speech.
Petty wrote to me that the Princess had determined to publish, and that on my return I should find the ‘fire burning and cauldron bubbling’ with all the inflammable ingredients I knew of already.
Dined on Monday with Ld. Granville Leveson to meet Lady Stafford,[269] whom I had not seen for many years except in a crowd. Seized at night with a violent headache and cold, and some indications of fever. Confined from that night until this day, the 2nd March, and not yet recovered.
ABOLITION OF SLAVE TRADE
2nd March.—The abolition of Slave Trade was carried in the H. of C. by an immense majority, nearly 18 to 1; the opposition only 16. Mr. Windham came to town to attend, but was prevented by a hoarseness; wrote to Ld. Howick to notify he should oppose it in the Committee. Ld. Castlereagh and Rose[270] absent. The Doctor’s men intended to oppose some part in the Committee.
Catholics becoming more reasonable in Ireland. The Petition is to be sent to Mr. Grattan instead of Ld. Howick, and it is to be brought over by Lord Fingall[271] alone, and not by a Catholic Committee. This will be advantageous to Ministers, as Ld. F. is open to various modes of conciliation. Ld. Ponsonby’s[272] private letters to Ld. Howick throw blame on the Irish Governt. He says, ‘His uncle George, the Chancellor, is stark mad, and as rank an Orangeman as any in Ireland’: that Elliot,[273] who knew of the Petition since July, has been greatly to blame, and has by his cold manner repulsed the Catholics: that Plunket,[274] the Attorney-General, is a secret enemy to the Administration: that the Solicitor-General[275] is not good for much, and Curran is so bad in his office, where he has almost nothing to do, that he ought to be removed. Secret abuses are every day discovered by the investigating accountants, but are kept very secret, especially the two following. Mr. Eden, since his succession to Ld. Thurlow’s Tellership, it appears, has compelled his deputy, whose place is 1000l. pr. ann. and was always considered as one held for life, under a threat of dismissal, to give him 400l. pr. ann. for his brother. The deed was Ld. Auckland’s, so the poor fellow is sconced of his 400l. pr. ann., a scandalous transaction, and one that the honest will suffer by, as Ld. Howick swears the American Commission shall not be paid as he originally designed, thus Mr. Allen will suffer for his colleague’s dirtiness.[276] This proceeding will not be revealed, as Ld. Buckingham was guilty of a similar action in favour of Ld. Grenville’s family.
PUBLIC ACCOUNTS INQUIRY
T. S., one of Pitt’s oldest friends, and a man of a studiously fair character, frank and honest to bluntness and a variety of other such descriptive features peculiar to English worth, coarseness, grossness, rudeness, and all leading to saying he was honest, turns out to be franchement a rogue; having, it appears, appropriated to his own private use balances of Governt. money to the amount of 9000l. He is now refunding principal and interest, imploring secrecy. It is not however determined whether he is to be prosecuted; but until it is decided, the business is kept secret and is not revealed even to the Cabinet. These sturdy, plain characters often prove to be the greatest thieves. These discoveries are owing, I believe, to the Commissioners of Public Accounts. Mr. Biddulph’s Committee of the H. of Commons[277] has struck a general alarm into sinecure placemen and peculators, as it is known to be composed of very active, ardently zealous reformers. Ld. Ellenboro’, who has several lucrative offices of that sort in his gift, complains of its taking from the Chief Justice the only recompense for his services, which consist in having the means to provide for his children, the salary not being sufficiently great. The Commissioners have issued precepts for inquiry into the Colonial Establishments, a measure not very acceptable to Windham, and they are endeavouring to negotiate with the Bank to manage the National Debt on more reasonable terms, from which they expect to save from 60,000l. to 80,000l. pr. ann.
The affair of the Princess is drawing to a public disclosure of the whole proceedings. The Prince has been advised by Romilly and Garrow[278] to make application to the King that the charges against the Princess may be tried in a Court of Common Law; and, on the other hand, the Princess has been advised by her law counsellors to publish her defence, which must lead, of course, to a publication of the charges and evidence against her. It is said that her defence is printing, and will be published on Wednesday.[279]
The Opposition are a disjointed, incoherent body, dissatisfied with their situation, and with one another. Canning has made private overtures to Ld. Grenville to be taken into office when an opportunity presents itself, declaring himself greatly discontented with his present associates. His demands are:—a high appointment for himself, a place for Sturges, and a peerage for Sr. Hy. Mildmay. Ld. G. seems not entirely disinclined to listen to such overtures. He is very much out of humour with Whitbread for his speech on the first day of the session, which, he scrupled not to say to Ld. Howick, betrayed sentiments and views utterly inconsistent with those on which Ministers had conducted the negotiation. But if Whitbread is set aside, and Ld. Grey die, Petty would be left almost alone in the House of Commons, and though his success there during the present session has been greater than the most sanguine of his friends could have hoped for, still he would require an able seconder, especially if Whitbread went eagerly into Opposition. These considerations may weigh with Ld. G., and he may also be desirous of having a speaker of the first rank in the House of Commons, more connected with himself, and less attached to the Whig party than Petty. Mr. Grenville is unwilling to be an every day speaker in the House of Commons. C. Williams has no voice; Ld. Temple is not listened to; but Canning, if brought into office now, would attach himself to Ld. Grenville as he did to Pitt, and become his peculiar organ in the H. of C. Ld. Wellesley has probably been the channel of communication. Whitbread and Ld. Howick are far from being cordial, and unfortunately the conduct of the former tends to widen every day the breach between them, and his pretensions are so high, that independent of the obstacles which he is himself creating, it would be difficult for Ministry to satisfy him: nothing will content him, but to be considered as on a par with Lauderdale for pretensions.