Footnote 43: The Ministerial proposal of a fixed duty instead of a sliding scale.
Footnote 44: The Thiers Government had resigned in the preceding October, owing to the King objecting to the warlike speech which they wished him to pronounce to the Chambers. The Soult-Guizot Cabinet was accordingly formed.
Memorandum of Mr Anson's last secret interview with Sir R. Peel. (No. 4.)
SIR ROBERT PEEL
Sunday, 23rd May 1841.
Called upon Sir Robert Peel this morning. I said I could not feel satisfied without seeing him after the very unexpected course which political affairs had taken. I wished to know that he felt assured, though I trusted there could be no doubt upon his mind, that there had been perfect honesty of purpose on my part towards him, and more especially upon the part of those with whose knowledge I had been acting. I assured Sir Robert that H.M. had acted in the most perfect fairness towards him, and I was most anxious that there should be no erroneous impression upon his mind as to the conduct of either H.M. or the Prince.
I said (quoting the Prince's expression), "that the Queen has a natural modesty upon her constitutional views, and when she receives an advice from men like the Lord Chancellor, Lord John Russell, Mr Baring, Mr Labouchere, and Lord Clarendon, and knows that they have been weighing the question through so many days, she concludes that her judgment cannot be better than theirs, and that she would do wrong to reject their advice."
The Prince, I said, however strongly impressed for or against a question, thinks it wrong and impolitic, considering his age and inexperience and his novelty to the country, to press upon the Queen views of his own in opposition to those of experienced statesmen. Sir Robert said he could relieve my mind entirely; that he was convinced that all that had taken place had been with the most perfect honesty; that he had no feeling whatever of annoyance, or of having been ill-used; that, on the contrary, he had the feeling, and should always retain it, of the deepest gratitude to the Queen for the condescension which Her Majesty had been pleased to show him, and that it had only increased his devotion to Her Majesty's person. He said that much of the reserve which he had shown in treating with me was not on his own account, but that he felt from his own experience that events were by no means certain, and he most cautiously abstained from permitting her Majesty in any way to commit herself, or to bind herself by any engagement which unforeseen circumstances might render inconvenient. Sir Robert said it was very natural to try and remove obstacles which had before created so much confusion, and he was convinced that they would have been practically removed by what had passed. He said that neither Lord Stanley nor Sir James Graham knew a word of what had passed. That Mr Greville had asked his friend Mr Arbuthnot whether some understanding had not been entered into between Lord Melbourne and him. That Mr Arbuthnot had replied that he was certain that nothing of the sort could have passed,45 as, if it had, Sir Robert Peel would have informed him (Mr Arbuthnot) of the fact. Again, Lady de Grey, the night of the ball at the Palace, came up to him and said the Duke of Bedford had been speaking to her about the resignation of the Duchess of Bedford, and asking her whether she thought it necessary. She volunteered to find out from Sir Robert whether he thought it requisite. She asked the question, which Sir Robert tried to evade, but not being able, he said it struck him that if it was a question of doubt the best means of solving it, was for the Duke of Bedford to ask Lord Melbourne for his opinion.
I added that if the dissolution was a failure, which it was generally apprehended would be the case, I felt convinced that Sir Robert would be dealt with in the most perfect fairness by Her Majesty.
Footnote 45: "After I had been told by the Duke of Bedford that Peel was going to insist on certain terms, which was repeated to me by Clarendon, I went to Arbuthnot, told him Melbourne's impression, and asked him what it all meant. He said it was all false, that he was certain Peel had no such intentions, but, on the contrary, as he had before assured me, was disposed to do everything that would be conciliatory and agreeable to the Queen."—Greville's Journal, 19th May 1841.