Lord Ellenborough, with his most humble duty to your Majesty, humbly acquaints your Majesty that your Majesty's Ministers, taking into consideration the smallness of the force with which the campaign in China was commenced this year, and the advanced period of the season at which the reinforcements would arrive (which reinforcements would not so raise the strength of the Army as to afford any reasonable expectation that its operations will produce during the present year any decisive results), have deemed it expedient that instructions would be at once issued to the Indian Government with a view to the making of timely preparations for the campaign of 1842.111
Your Majesty's Ministers are of opinion that the War with China should be conducted on an enlarged scale, and the Indian Government will be directed to have all their disposable military and naval force at Singapore in April, so that the operations may commence at the earliest period which the season allows.
Lord Ellenborough cannot but entertain a sanguine expectation that that force so commencing its operations, and directed upon a point where it will intercept the principal internal communication of the Chinese Empire, will finally compel the Chinese Government to accede to terms of Peace honourable to your Majesty, and affording future security to the trade of your Majesty's subjects.
Footnote 111: Ningpo was taken by Sir Hugh Gough on 13th October 1841, and no further operations took place till the spring of the following year. See Introductory Note, ante, p. [254.]
Memorandum by Mr Anson.
Windsor Castle, 3rd October 1841.
Sat by the Queen last night at dinner. Her Majesty alluded to Sir Robert Peel's awkward manner, which she felt she could not get over. I asked if Her Majesty had yet made any effort, which I was good-humouredly assured Her Majesty "thought she really had done."
Sir Robert's ignorance of character was most striking and unaccountable; feeling this, made it difficult for Her Majesty to place reliance upon his judgment in recommendations.
Viscount Melbourne to Queen Victoria.
ENGLISH AND FOREIGN ARTISTS