'After the drive she took them into her room, and clasped a bracelet round Jane's arm, begging her to wear it for her sake, and, as the stone was an amethyst, the A would remind her of Adelaide, and then she kissed her cheek. To my brother she presented a silver medallion of the King, telling him her name was on the back, and he must keep it for her sake. She always has something obliging and kind to say. She sent a ticket for her box at Drury Lane. It was "Admit Colonel and Mrs. Clitherow." Jane asked her if that meant two places. "No, no; the whole box, to be sure. It holds eight. But, when I name one of you, I cannot help naming both."
'King William IV. forgot little me when he sent his commands. On their going in he said: "Where is Miss Clitherow? I hope illness has not prevented her.' On an explanation, "Then next Monday meet us at dinner at Bushey, and bring your sister with you.' And we did meet them. The King came over with Wyattville to inspect Hampton Court Palace. The Queen followed, to dine with him at their dear Bushey. They returned to Windsor at ten, the Princess Augusta to town. Only Lady Falkland and Miss Wilson attended the Queen. The company were the inmates of Hampton Court, where we have never visited, and therefore to me the dinner was dull.'
At this time there was a grave political crisis through the action of the House of Lords respecting the Reform Bill. The Cabinet advised the King to create a batch of peers to form a Whig majority, as had been done by Harley in 1711. This, however, the King refused to do, and Lord Grey consequently resigned. The letters which passed between Lord Grey and the King at this time are of considerable interest, and show that the King exercised a greater influence and tact as a ruler than has generally been ascribed to him. The Duke of Wellington was summoned, but could not meet with sufficient support to accept office. Earl Grey, therefore, returned to power, and the deadlock was removed by the King persuading the Duke of Wellington and some of the peers who supported him to absent themselves from the division on the Reform Bill, and thus allow it to pass.[*] Miss Clitherow touches but lightly on this subject, but it seemed desirable to put the facts before the reader. Her letter proceeds:
[*] There are several letters on this subject towards the end of vol. ii. of 'The Correspondence of the Late Earl Grey with H.M. King William IV., and with Sir Hubert Taylor,' edited by his son, and published by John Murray in 1867. Anyone desiring to have a clear idea of the political anxieties which Miss Clitherow tells us harassed the King would do well to consult this interesting work.
'The Thursday after we went to see Lady Falkland, who is on a visit to papa King. We found her, her widowed sister Lady Augusta Kennedy, and Miss Wilson very comfortably at work. They were the two Fitz-Clarences; we saw a good deal of them when they lived at Bushey.
'A page soon came to conduct my brother to the King, another to desire we would take luncheon in the Queen's room. On entering the King called Jane by him, the Queen me; she rose up and shook hands with both. My brother went down to the general luncheon. Nothing could be more good-humoured and pleasant than they were. The King was cheerful but silent; 'twas the day after Lord Grey's resignation. The Queen certainly in particular good spirits; the King's firmness respecting the making no peers had delighted her. They went to his apartments, and we to Lady Falkland's, and were preparing to depart, when a message came. The Queen had not taken leave of us, and hoped we were in no hurry, but would stay and Walk with her. Of course we did. The party consisted of the Queen, Miss Eden (Maid of Honour), Miss Wilson, Lord Howe, Mr. Ashley, Mr. Hudson, Sir Andrew Barnard, and our three selves. She took us through the slopes to her Adelaide Cottage and her flower-garden to see Prince George of Cambridge at gymnastics, with half a dozen young nobility from Eton, who came once a week to play with him. We were walking nearly two hours. The Queen is very animated, and Mr. Ashley and Mr. Hudson full of fun and tricks, and amused us all much. In short, I have but one fear when with her—forgetting in Whose presence I am; her manner is so very kind, but there is dignity with it that keeps us in order.'
Before Miss Clitherow wrote again to her old friend, the Queen's little niece, Whose illness has been already alluded to, had passed away. Her Majesty was tenderly attached to the young Princess, and had shown her every possible attention during her illness. She was greatly grieved at her death, and the sorrow and anxiety seem to have affected her health for some little time.
'WINDSOR CASTLE, 'September 3, 1832.
'Here I am writing with Royal pens, ink, and paper, which last I dislike of all things, it being glazed.
'We have not seen our dear, amiable Queen since the Ascot week, and, poor thing! she has gone through a great deal, but her conduct through the whole was beautiful. Princess Augusta gave us the account of the closing scene, and with tears in her eyes described the feeling and resignation of the Queen, and the extreme kindness and attention of the King to all her little wishes at the time of the funeral, which, by all accounts, was the best managed and most affecting thing possible. She has very much recovered her spirits, which are naturally very cheerful, but she is still most miserably thin.