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diff --git a/38452.txt b/38452.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..442d9aa --- /dev/null +++ b/38452.txt @@ -0,0 +1,17952 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Lord Chatham, by Archibald Phillip Primrose Rosebery + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Lord Chatham + His Early Life and Connections + +Author: Archibald Phillip Primrose Rosebery + +Release Date: January 1, 2012 [EBook #38452] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LORD CHATHAM *** + + + + +Produced by Delphine Lettau, Rory OConor and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + + + + CHATHAM + + HIS EARLY LIFE AND CONNECTIONS + + + + + CHATHAM + + His Early Life and Connections + + + BY + + LORD ROSEBERY + + + LONDON + ARTHUR L. HUMPHREYS + 187 PICCADILLY, W + + 1910 + + + + + Second Impression. + + + + + _To_ + BEVILL FORTESCUE + OF DROPMORE AND BOCONNOC, + THIS BOOK, WHICH OWES EVERYTHING TO HIM, + IS + GRATEFULLY DEDICATED. + + + + +PREFACE + + +My first words of preface must be of excuse for some apparent lack of +gratitude in my dedication. For besides my debt to Mr. Fortescue, I owe +my warmest acknowledgments to Mary, Lady Ilchester, and her son, for the +permission to examine some of the papers of Henry Fox; a character of +great interest, whose life is yet to be written. But I hope that this +will soon be presented by Lord Ilchester, whose capacity for such work +is already proved. I render my sincere thanks both to him and to his +mother; but my dedication, written long before I had access to the +Holland House papers, must remain unchanged; for without Mr. Fortescue's +family collection of papers at Dropmore this book could never have been +begun. + +The life of Chatham is extremely difficult to write, and, strictly +speaking, never can be written at all. It is difficult because of the +artificial atmosphere in which he thought it well to envelop himself, +and because the rare glimpses which are obtainable of the real man +reveal a nature so complex, so violent, and so repressed. What is this +strange career? + +Born of a turbulent stock, he is crippled by gout at Eton and Oxford, +then launched into a cavalry regiment, and then into Parliament. For +eight years he is groom-in-waiting to a prince. Then he holds +subordinate office for nine years more. Then he suddenly flashes out, +not as a royal attendant or a minor placeman, but as the people's +darling and the champion of the country. In obscure positions he has +become the first man in Britain, which he now rules absolutely for four +years in a continual blaze of triumph. Then he is sacrificed to an +intrigue, but remains the supreme statesman of his country for five +years more. Then he becomes Prime Minister amid general acclamation; but +in an instant he shatters his own power, and retires, distempered if not +mad, into a cell. At last he divests himself of office, and recovers his +reason; he lives for nine years more, a lonely, sublime figure, but +awful to the last, an incalculable force. He dies, practically, in +public, as he would have wished; and the nation, hoping against hope, +pins its faith in him to the hour of death. + +And for most of the time his associations are ignoble, if not +humiliating. He had to herd with political jobbers; he has to serve +intriguing kinsfolk; he had to cringe to unworthy Kings and the +mistresses of Kings; he is flouted and insulted by a puppet whig like +Rockingham. Despite all this he bequeaths the most illustrious name in +our political history; and it is the arduous task of his biographer to +show how these circumstances led to this result. + +Happily this task does not fall to the present writer, who has only to +describe the struggle and the ascent; the consummation and glory of the +career lie beyond these limits. + +Further, it may be said that not merely is the complete life of Chatham +difficult to write, but impossible. It is safe, indeed, to assert that +it never has been written and never can be written. + +This seems a hard saying, for it appears to be a reflection on his +numerous biographers from Thackeray to Von Ruville, though it is nothing +of the sort. The fact is that the materials do not exist. For the first +time the Dropmore papers throw some light on the earlier part of his +life. But it is tolerably certain that nothing of this kind exists to +illuminate his later years. Of his conversations, of his private life +nothing, or little more than nothing, remains. Except on the one genial +occasion on which Burke saw him tooling a jim-whiskey down to Stowe, we +scarcely see a human touch. After his accession to office in 1756, his +letters of pompous and sometimes abject circumlocution, intended partly +to deceive his correspondent and partly to baffle the authorities of the +Post Office, give no clue to his mind. He wrote an ordinary note as +Rogers wrote an ordinary couplet. Even his love-letters are incurably +stilted. There is no ease, no frankness, no self-revelation in anything +that he wrote after he embarked actively in politics. From that time he +shrouded himself carefully and successfully from his contemporaries, +except on the occasions when he appeared in public; for, strange to say, +it was in his speeches that his nature sometimes burst forth. And yet +even here, there is trouble. One of the difficulties of a life of +Chatham lies in the rough notes of his speeches preserved by Horace +Walpole. They are often confused, often dreary, sometimes +incomprehensible; but they must be included, for there is nothing else; +though they weigh heavy on a book. Sometimes, however, they reveal a +flash of the man, and Pitt permits little else. Such being his +deliberate scheme of life, adopted partly from policy, partly from +considerations of health, there seems little more material for a +biography of the man, apart from his public career, than exists in the +case of a Trappist. + +It is then, I think, safe to predict that the real life of Chatham can +never be written, as the intimate facts are wanting. What survive were, +as usual, exhausted by Macaulay in those two brilliant essays, in which +with the sure grasp of historical imagination he depicted the glowing +scenes of Chatham's career, and left to posterity the portrait which +will never be superseded. For his instinct supplies the lack of +evidence, and though there may be exaggeration of praise, that praise +will not be seriously diminished. Lives of Chatham will always be +written, because few subjects are more interesting or more dramatic, but +they must always be imperfect. It is, of course, easy to record his +course as a statesman, his speeches, his triumphs, his achievements; and +these narratives will be called biographies. But will they ever reveal +the real man? + +There seems to be a constant tendency in writers to forget that the +provinces of history and biography, though they often overlap, are +essentially distinct; for history records the life of nations, and +biography the life of individuals. To set forth the annals of the time +in which the hero has existed, and to note his contact with them, is +only a part of his life, though it is often held to be all that is worth +remembering. The life of any man that ever lived on earth is far more +than his public career. The life of a man is not his public life, which +is always alloyed with some necessary diplomacy and which is sometimes +only a mask; it is made up of a thousand touches, a multitude of lights +and shadows, most of which are invisible behind the austere presentment +of statecraft. We have probably all, and perhaps more than all, that +Shakespeare ever wrote; we have so to speak all his public life. But +would we not gladly give one or two of his plays to obtain some true +insight into his private life, to realise the humanity of this +superhuman being, to know how this immortal was linked to mortality? We +want to know how a master man talked, and, if possible, what he thought; +what was his standpoint with regard to the grave issues of life; what he +was in his hours of ease, what he enjoyed, how he unbent; in a word, +what he was without his wig and bag and sword, in his dressing-gown and +slippers, with a friend, a novel, or a pipe. This is half or three parts +of a man, and it is certain that we shall never know this aspect of +Chatham. He would no doubt, had it served his purpose, have appeared in +the dressing-gown and slippers, but the array would have been as solemn +and artificial as the robes of a cardinal. He would, had it served his +purpose, have smoked a pipe, but it would have been the jewelled +nargileh of the Grand Mogul. He had practically no intimates; his wife +told nothing, his children told nothing; he revealed himself neither by +word nor on paper, he deliberately enveloped himself in an opaque fog of +mystery; and there seems no clue or channel by which any further detail +of his character can reach us, unless Addington, the doctor, or Wilson, +the tutor, have anything to tell us. But did anything of the kind +survive, we feel confident that it would have transpired. Beckford and +Potter, Barre and Camden, his friends or sycophants or satellites, have +left no sign. Shelburne indeed thinks that he penetrated Chatham, and +Shelburne no doubt saw him under circumstances of comparative intimacy. +And yet, judging by the result, it may well be doubted whether Shelburne +did more than watch and guess, with an inkling of spite. Occasionally +there is a legend, a tradition, or an anecdote, but Chatham seems to +have cut off all vestiges of his real self as completely as a +successful fugitive from justice. And so posterity sees nothing but the +stern effigy representing what he wished, or permitted, or authorised to +be seen. This is not enough or nearly enough, but it must now be certain +that there will never be much more. This makes us all the more grateful +for the Dropmore papers and for Mr. Fortescue's liberality. He has been +able to throw new light on Chatham's youth and on his unrestrained days. +Light on the subsequent years of self-repression would be so guarded and +shaded that we should scarce obtain a glimpse of the true man. Indeed, +by his careful disguise Chatham has made himself a prehistoric or rather +a prebiographical figure, a man of the fifteenth century or earlier. We +know what was around him, the scene on which he played, the other actors +in the great drama, and we recognise himself on the stage; but away from +the footlights he remains in darkness. In a word, after 1756, when this +book ends, his public life is conspicuous and familiar. But his inner +life after that period will never be known; and so we must be content +with a torso. + + _October 1910._ + + + It has seemed unnecessary to give references to familiar printed + authorities, such as Horace Walpole, Coxe, Harris's Life of + Hardwicke, Waldegrave, or the published Dropmore MSS. But where an + exception has been deemed necessary, 'Orford' refers to the + 'Memoirs,' and 'Walpole' denotes an allusion to the 'Letters.' + + Lord Camelford's manuscript, which I have used so copiously, is an + intimate family document entitled 'Family Characters and Anecdotes,' + addressed to his son, and dated 1781. + + + + +CHATHAM + +HIS EARLY LIFE AND CONNECTIONS + + + + +CHAPTER I. + + +There is one initial part of a biography which is skipped by every +judicious reader; that in which the pedigree of the hero is set forth, +often with warm fancy, and sometimes at intolerable length. It is, +happily, not necessary to enter upon the bewildering branches of the +innumerable Pitts, but only to keep to one conspicuous stem. We must +however record that the Pitt family was gentle and honourable; 'it had,' +says one of them, 'been near two centuries growing into wealth without +producing anything illustrious.'[1] But in the eighteenth century it was +destined to blossom into no less than four peerages, Londonderry, +Rivers, Camelford, and Chatham, not one of which survives. William +Pitt's great-grandfather was Vicar of Blandford in Dorsetshire; and +there was born Thomas, his grandfather, better known as Governor Pitt, +and associated in history with the famous Pitt diamond. The Vicar, being +the younger son of a younger son, had no fortune but the advowson of his +own living of St. Mary; and Thomas again being a younger son set forth +to seek his fortunes in the Golden East, and, it may be added, found +them there. + +Of this redoubtable progenitor, Governor Pitt, as he was always called, +it would be possible to say much, as his life, measured by the length of +current biographies, would justify a volume; in any case it is necessary +to say something, for in his character may be traced some germs of his +grandson's intractable qualities. + +We first catch sight of him as an 'interloper,' that is, an illicit +merchant carrying on trade in violation of the East India Company's +monopoly. In that capacity he showed himself formidable and intrepid, +'of a haughty, huffying, daring temper,'[2] and the Company waged +unsparing war against him. In a letter to their agents, writing with +special reference to him, they say: 'We have a most acceptable accompt +of the flourishing condition of all our affaires in those parts, and of +the wreck and disappointment of all the interlopers; insomuch that if +you have done your parts in reference to the _Crowne_, that Tho. Pitts +went upon, there is no probability (that) of seven interloping ships +that went to India the same year that our Agent did, any one ship will +ever come to England again; and ... we cannot doubt that you will in due +time render us as pleasing an accompt of those interlopers that went out +this year, which will certainly put an end to that kind of robbery.'[3] +And so these hostilities continued for more than a score of years, but +without the suppression of Pitt, who appears to have greatly thriven in +the process; for during the latter part of this period he was member of +Parliament for his own pocket borough of Old Sarum,[4] bought out of +these contraband gains. Victory, indeed, rested with him; for the +Company, weary and baffled, determined, on the faith of an ancient but +precarious principle, to set a thief to catch a thief; and in November +1697 appointed Pitt governor of Fort St. George, though some fastidious +stockholders protested. This 'roughling immoral man,' as one of the +objectors called him, governed with a high and strong hand from 1698 to +1709; when the Company, finding the burden of him intolerable, summarily +dismissed him. He was, no doubt, like his grandson, a difficult servant; +and in his career we see the source of that energy, haughtiness, and +self-reliance which were so conspicuous in both. Lord Camelford, his +great-grandson, though a relentless critic of his family, gives, in the +grateful character of an heir, a leniently appreciative account of the +Governor; and says that 'he amassed a fortune which was reckoned +prodigious in those times without the smallest stain on his reputation. +I have heard (but at what exact period of his life I know not) that, +having accomplished such a sum as he thought would enable him to pass +the remainder of his days in peace, he was taken prisoner, together with +the greatest part of his effects, on his return to England, and released +at the intercession of the Duchess of Portsmouth, who was then in +France. He went back to India and made in a shorter time a much larger +fortune from the credit he had established and the experience he had +acquired.' + +[Sidenote: 1710] + +However that may be, he now returned promptly to England, by way of +Bergen, having shipped on a Danish vessel, and having sent before him in +the heel of his son's shoe[5] the precious chattel which made his name +famous, until, under his descendants, it acquired a different lustre. +This was a prodigious diamond, to which he alludes in his correspondence +as his 'grand concern,' which he bought for 48,000_l._, and sold, after +keeping it for some sixteen years, to the Regent of Orleans for the +French Crown. It was rather a sonorous than a profitable bargain, for +though he sold it for 133,000_l._, he was never paid in full. He +received 40,000_l._ and three boxes of jewels, but the balance, +calculated at 20,000_l._, was never discharged. He and his descendants +reckoned, indeed, that on the whole he was the poorer by the possession +of this gem. A tradition remains that the bargain might have fallen +through at the last moment but for the shrewdness of the Governor's +second son, Lord Londonderry. When Rondet, the royal jeweller, came from +Paris to receive it, he criticised the water of the stone. 'His +lordship, who was quick enough in business, understood him, and putting +a bank-note into his hands, bid him go to the window to see it in a +better light. It was then decided to be in all respects perfect.'[6] + +It is evident, however, that he was possessed of considerable though +exaggerated wealth, and he was probably the first of those nabobs who +were to bulk so largely in the drama, the society, and the politics of +the eighteenth century. Among these his diamond gave him pre-eminence, +and made his name both famous and proverbial. In England he remained for +the rest of his life, some sixteen years, dying in 1726. The reformed +filibuster had become a power in the land. He had wealth, force of +character, political connection, and parliamentary influence. This last +must have been an object with him, as we find him sitting for Thirsk +instead of his own borough of Old Sarum; and his eldest grandson seems +to have inherited a considerable but indefinable interest in the +borough-mongering of the West, having definite powers in regard to +Okehampton and Sarum, and vaguer connections elsewhere. So the Governor, +a staunch Whig and furious anti-Jacobite, with an influential son-in-law +in Stanhope, a soldier and statesman who was First Minister for a time, +was a man to be reckoned with. He was indeed offered, and had accepted, +the Governorship of Jamaica, a high compliment, for it was then a +position of peculiar difficulty, but never took up the appointment; +finding probably his hands full at home, with an insubordinate family to +manage, capital to invest, and estates to superintend. + +We find him living at Twickenham, Swallowfield, Blandford, and in Pall +Mall, but mainly at Stratford, near Old Sarum. He had indeed +contemplated building his principal residence at Blandford, his early +home. But the younger children, finding that this would be settled on +the eldest son, intercepted his purpose and turned his attention to +Swallowfield, 'where, however, he contrived to throw away as much money +in a very ugly place with no property about it,'[7] writes his resentful +heir. + +Finally, in 1726, the Governor was gathered to his fathers, and his +spoils caused some disappointment. His wealth had been over-rated, as is +perhaps the case with all notorious fortunes, and not well invested; at +any rate, he had burned his fingers in the South Sea Bubble. He seems to +have left 100,000_l._ in personal property, though some of that may have +consisted in unsubstantial and unrealised advances to Lord Londonderry, +or others of his children. He had bought land wherever he could find it +(for the sake, perhaps, of influence as much as income), in London +(Soho), Berkshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, Devonshire, and +Cornwall, as well as that most marketable of assets, Old Sarum, and +apparently other borough interests. But his greatest acquisition was the +noble estate of Boconnoc, which he purchased in 1717 from the widow of +that wild Mohun who was slain in duel by his brother-in-law, the Duke of +Hamilton. The Governor paid 53,000_l._ for the estate, a great price in +those days; but was held to have got a bargain.[8] + +To his family he had always been formidable, but also an object of +jealous rapacity and expectation. They wrangled and intrigued for his +money both during his life and afterwards, and seem to have been +universally dissatisfied by the result. 'From the various characters of +these persons' (the Governor's children) 'it is easy to conceive,' +writes Lord Camelford, 'in what manner the Governor must have been +pulled to pieces by their different passions and interests when he came +to realise his wealth in England.' The transactions with Lord +Londonderry seem to have been particularly complicated; in fact they +were never unravelled. We only gather, as a specimen of them, that after +the Governor's death his executors claimed 95,000_l._ as due from Lord +Londonderry; which Lord Londonderry denied, claiming 10,000_l._ from the +estate. Thirty years were vainly spent in the endeavour to clear up this +issue, a process rendered all the more arduous by Lord Londonderry's +having peremptorily possessed himself of his father's papers after +death. Only one case seems to have been free from complication. The +Governor stated succinctly that his son John was good for nothing, and +so he logically left him nothing. John, however, claimed an annuity +which, we may be confident, he never obtained. Thus there were endless +disputes, a civil war in the family, not uncongenial, perhaps, to those +who waged it; which died out only with the combatants, but which +illustrates once more the volcanic character of these truculent Pitts. + +It is in his family relations, in his dealings with these ungracious +heirs and with his own wife, that the Governor is most vivid and +interesting; at any rate, to one who has to trace the heredity of genius +and character in his descendants. Thomas Pitt's blood came all aflame +from the East, and flowed like burning lava to his remotest descendants, +with the exception of Chatham's children; but even then it blazed up +again in Hester Stanhope. There was in it, even when it throbbed in the +veins of his eldest son and grandson, some tropical, irritant quality +which, under happy circumstances and control, might produce genius, but +which under ordinary circumstances could only evolve domestic skirmish +and friction. The Governor himself, in his dealings with his wife and +children, does not seem to have been tolerant or tolerable. He set +himself to rule them with the notions of absolutism which are associated +with the Oriental monarchies, but he met with no great measure of +success. It is necessary to study his methods as exhibiting the volcanic +source of a formidable race. + +His wife was of the family of Innes in Morayshire, 'of Scotch and +Cornish extraction,' says Lord Camelford, and she was lineally descended +from the Regent Murray. Sir John Sinclair, like a loyal Scot, attributes +the genius and eloquence of the Pitts to their 'fortunate connection +... with a Miss Innes of Redhall, in the Highlands of Scotland.' Of her, +nevertheless, in unconsciousness of this obligation, but in receipt of +private advices, the Governor writes in terms of implacable hostility. +He had heard, he says to his son, 'that your mother has been guilty of +some imprudence at the Bath ... let it be what it will, in my esteem she +is noe longer my wife, nor will I see her more if I can help it.'[9] + +But his children were not to be released from duty to her by her +supposed misconduct. Four years earlier he had written to Robert: 'If +what you write of your mother be true, I think she is mad, and wish she +was well secured in Bedlam; but I charge you let nothing she says or +does make you undutiful in any respect whatever.' So when they +apparently act on the Governor's view of Mrs. Pitt, he turns round and +belabours them. 'Have all of you,' he inquires of his eldest son, 'shook +hands with shame, that you regard not any of the tyes of Christianity, +humanity, consanguinity, duty, good morality, or anything that makes you +differ from beasts, but must run from one end of the kingdome to the +other, aspersing one another, and aiming at the ruine and destruction of +one another?' This genial picture of his offspring does not seem wholly +imaginary, for the Governor proceeds: 'That you should dare to doe such +an unnatural and opprobrious action as to turne your mother and sisters +out of doors?--for which I observe your frivolous reasons, and was +astonished to read them; and I no less resent what they did to your +child at Stratford. But I see your hand is against every one of them, +and every one against you, and your brother William to his last dying +minute.' (William had died young, in 1706.) A week later he writes +again: 'Not only your letters, but all I have from friends, are stuffed +with an account of the hellish confusion that is in my family; and by +what I can collect of all my letters, the vileness of your actions on +all sides are not to be paralleled in history. Did ever mother, brother, +and sisters study one another's ruine and destruction more than my +unfortunate and cursed family have done?' He again reverts to the +grievance of Robert's having turned his mother and sisters out of doors, +though he calls them, in the same letter, 'an infamous wife and +children,' and states that he has 'discarded and renounced your mother +for ever;' apparently on suspicion, for he makes 'noe distinction +between women that are reputed ill and such as are actually soe.' The +wife of the Caesar of Fort St. George had to be above suspicion. Nor is +this by any means an isolated passage. From his Eastern satrapy the +Governor pours on his hapless family, and especially on his firstborn, a +constant flood of scorn and invective. The arrival of the Indian mail +must have caused a periodical panic to his children, and his +announcement in 1715 that 'writing now is not so much my talent as +formerly' a corresponding relief. + +In vain does Robert, the eldest son, inspire friends to write to the +Governor glowing accounts of his conduct; the Governor sniffs suspicion +in every breeze. 'I wish gaming bee not rife in your family, or you +could never have spent so considerable an estate in so short a time.' 'I +wish gameing, drinking, and other debaucheries has not been the bane of +you.' 'I wish these sore eyes of yours did not come by drinking, and +that generally ushers in gaming, of either of which vices or any other +dishonourable action, if I find you guilty, you may be assured I will +give you no quarter.' 'I think that no son in the world deserves more to +be discarded by a father.' But on the rare occasions when the Governor +does not write in a passion his letters are full of sound sense. The +cost of education is the only expense which he does not grudge. 'I would +also have you putt your mother in mind that she gives her daughters good +education, and not to stick at any charge for it.' But he wishes to get +his money's worth. 'See that your brothers and sisters keep close to +their studies, and let not my money be spent in vain on them; if it be, +I'll pinch 'em hereafter.' Again, later, he writes: 'When this reaches +you your brothers will be 17 years old. If their genius leads them to be +scholars, I would have them sent to Oxford, but placed in two distinct +colleges; and if inclined to study law you may enter them in the Temple. +But if they are inclined to be merchants, let them learn all languages, +and obtain perfect knowledge of the sciences bearing upon trade. I +believe that trade will flourish rather than decay.' + +When he returned home things were probably not much better for his +children, though his letters, of course, are less frequent, and also +less violent. But we gather from timid and vigilant bulletins sent off +by those who cautiously approached the Governor's lair that he was still +as formidable and plain spoken as ever. He suspects Robert of +Jacobitism, the supreme sin in the judgment of the old Governor. 'It is +said you are taken up with factious caballs, and are contriving amongst +you to put a French kickshaw upon the throne again.' 'I have heard since +I came to towne,' he writes seven years afterwards, 'that you are +strooke with your old hellish acquaintance, and in all your discourse +are speaking in favour of that villainous traytor Ormond.' And again: +'Since last post I have had it reiterated to me that in all company you +are vindicating Ormonde and Bullingbrooke, the two vilest rebells that +ever were in any nation, and that you still adhere to your cursed Tory +principles, and keep those wretches company who hoped by this time to +have murthered the whole Royall family: in which catastrophe your father +was sure to fall,' &c. &c. From which it may be gathered that the moral +temperature of Pall Mall, whence the Governor was writing, differed +little from that of Madras. + +The only note of tenderness that he ever strikes is with regard to his +grandson, William, to whom he looks with a rare prescience of attention. +At first he conducts both boys from Eton to Swallowfield, 'with some of +their comrogues,' on a short leave of absence. But soon it is William +alone whom he takes as a companion. 'I set out for Swallowfield Friday +next; your son, William, goes with me.' 'I observe you have sent for +your son, William, from Eton. He is a hopeful lad, and doubt not but he +will answer yours and all his friends' expectations,' 'I shall be glad +to see Will here as he goes to Eton.' 'Monday last I left Will at Eton.' +Sentences like these taken from the Governor's letters are, when the +writer is considered, a sufficient testimony of exceptional regard. It +is not too much to say that William is the only one of his descendants +whom the Governor commends; the only one, indeed, who never falls under +the lash of the Governor's uncontrollable tongue. + +The Governor left behind him three sons, Robert, Thomas, and John; and +two daughters, Lucy and Essex. Robert, the eldest son, married, somewhat +clandestinely, Harriot Villiers, sister of the Earl of Grandison, 'who +seems to have brought with her,' says her grandson, 'little more than +the insolence of a noble alliance.' A more favourable estimate declares +that she had a fortune of 3000_l._, and that 'it is a great dispute +among those who have the pleasure of conversing with her whether her +beauty, understanding, or good-humour be the most captivating.' She +makes a pale apparition in Lady Suffolk's correspondence, soliciting a +place for her brother, Lord Grandison, with the offer of a bribe, and +subsiding under the royal confidant's rebuke.[10] + +The second, Thomas, married one of the heiresses of Ridgeway, Earl of +Londonderry. After that nobleman's death 'he _bought_ the honours which +were extinct in the person of his wife's father.'[11] One infers from +casual hints that Thomas may have had the most influence with his +father, and that he was not embarrassed by scruples. He was, says Lord +Camelford, 'a man of no character, and of parts that were calculated +only for the knavery of business, in which he overreached others, and at +last himself.' But Camelford may have been soured by the controversies +which followed the Governor's death. The honours so dubiously acquired +died out with Lord Londonderry's two sons. + +John, the Governor's third son, 'was in the army, an amiable vaurien, a +personal favourite with the King, and, indeed, with all who knew him as +a sort of Comte de Gramont, who contrived to sacrifice his health, his +honour, his fortunes to a flow of libertinism which dashed the fairest +prospect, and sank him for many years before his death in contempt and +obscurity.'[12] This death took place, within Lord Camelford's memory, +'at the thatched house by the turnpike in Hammersmith.' John seems to +have been a sort of Will Esmond, and we have on record a horse +transaction of his which savours strongly of Thackeray's famous +knave.[13] He married 'a sister of Lord Fauconberg's, whose personal +talents and accomplishments distinguished her as much at least as her +birth, and much more than her virtues.'[14] + +Another of Colonel John's freaks is worth retailing, as throwing light +on the peremptory methods of the Pitts, and of the manner in which the +Governor was harried by his offspring. He waited outside his father's +house in Pall Mall on a day when he knew that one of the estate agents +was to bring up the rents of an estate. He watched the man in and out of +the house, then went in, where he found some secretary counting the +money over, swept it deftly with his sword into his hat, and escaped +into the street, full of glee at having bubbled an unappreciative parent +out of his dues, and leaving the unhappy subordinate paralysed behind +him.[15] This anecdote enables us to understand why the Governor had so +low an opinion of John, and why the keys were kept under the Governor's +bed when this scapegrace was at home.[16] + +Of the two daughters, Lucy, who married the first Earl Stanhope, the +minister and general, seems to have left a fragrant memory behind her; +we are pleased to find her resenting her sister-in-law's behaviour to +her mother, the Governor's wife. She died in February 1723-4. + +Essex, the second, married Charles Cholmondely, of Vale Royal, +grandfather of the first Lord Delamere. 'Her peevishness made her the +scourge of her family,' says her great-nephew, so we may conclude that +she was not devoid of the Pitt characteristics. She died in 1754. + +Over his luckless heir the Governor had kept constantly suspended the +terrors of his testamentary dispositions. 'My resentments,' he wrote not +long before his death, 'against you all have been justly and honourably +grounded, and that you will find when my head is laid.' Nevertheless, +when he died in 1726, Robert, the belaboured eldest son, succeeded to +the great bulk of his fortune. He, in his turn, did not lose a moment in +visiting on his eldest son, Thomas, the sufferings that he himself had +endured. In the very letter in which he announces his father's death to +the lad, he speaks of his son's 'past slighting and disobedient conduct +towards me,' and lectures him with uncompromising severity. He does, +indeed, announce an allowance of 700_l._ a year, but soon after docks it +of 200_l._ on the flimsiest and shabbiest pretexts. Robert, who seems to +have been a poor creature, as his portrait at Boconnoc represents him, +mean and cantankerous, with some of the violence but without the vigour +and ability of the Governor, only survived his father a year, into which +he managed to concentrate a creditable average of quarrels with his +family. His death was something like the sinking of a fireship; +spluttering and scolding he disappears in 1727. + +Robert's life and death were on the lines laid down by Pitt precedent. +He lived and died on ill terms with his family, and his death was +followed by the customary lawsuits. During his short possession of his +patrimony he had laboured under some miscalculation as to its extent; +for, after examining the rentals and estates, he had congratulated +himself on the possession of 'full 10,000_l._ a year;' ' in which belief +he died soon after, leaving the same delusion to his son, which was one +of the principal causes of his misfortunes.'[17] As the estate was +entailed, Thomas, Robert's eldest son, was not liable for the debts of +his father, or anxious to assume that responsibility. The claims that +gave him most trouble were those of his mother, Robert's widow, who had +obtained additions to her jointure, and had had 10,000_l._ settled on +her children at her marriage, a provision which was apparently never +carried into execution. Many bills and cross bills in Chancery were the +consequence of these claims, which ended in Mrs. Robert Pitt's +retirement into France, where she shortly afterwards died. Her brother +and champion, Lord Grandison, also retreated to Ireland, both thus +renouncing administration of the effects of Robert Pitt. So, avows Lord +Camelford, 'my father seized whatever fell into his hands without +account, either belonging to my grandfather or grandmother, keeping at +arm's length every demand upon him, till somehow or other these +litigations seem to have worn themselves out and slept by the +acquiescence of all parties.' The 'acquiescence,' we may add, seems only +to have accrued by the death of the litigants. + +Robert left two sons and five daughters, and this brood was not unworthy +of the family traditions. The eldest son was Thomas, the second +William, the subject of this book; to the daughters we shall come +presently. + +The volcanic element in the Pitt blood was fully manifest in this +generation, and Thomas was a child of wrath. His relations with his +younger brother William seem always to have been uneasy, and from an +early period they seem to have been wholly uncongenial to each other. + +Whatever William may have been, Thomas was impracticable, and no one +seems to have succeeded in working amicably with him. He was a man of +extremes. 'All his passions,' writes his son, 'were violent by nature, +particularly pride and ambition, which were painted in his figure, one +of the most imposing I ever saw. He was not without good qualities; but, +to speak fairly, they were greatly over-balanced by the contrary +tendencies.' He was said not to have been naturally vicious, but early +embarrassments, perpetual family litigations, a sense of injury, the +flattery of dependents, and a train of mortifications and +disappointments 'had formed in him such habits of rapacity, injustice +and violence that he seemed at last to have lost even the sense of right +and wrong.' He had, evidently, personal attractions, marred by an +imperious demeanour, was strong and graceful, addicted to hunting and +manly sports, fond of music and dancing. His overbearing manner, which +arose from an undisguised contempt of his equals, gave him some +ascendancy in Cornwall, where, however, though endured, he was secretly +detested. + +So haughty and violent a character might, one supposes, have been +mellowed and redeemed by a fortunate marriage, and Thomas seems to have +secured an angel as his wife. At the opera one night he saw a daughter +of Sir Thomas Lyttelton, was struck by her extraordinary beauty, +proposed in his headlong manner next day, and was accepted. Her son +laments her want of any fortune to remedy her husband's eternal +embarrassments, but she seems to have lacked nothing else. Besides her +loveliness, 'as a faithful wife, a tender mother, a kind friend, an +indulgent mistress, she was a pattern to her sex.'[18] But her very +virtues turned her husband against her. Her meek gentleness, humility, +and charity, the extreme piety, carried almost to bigotry, in which she +had been reared, were reproachful contrasts to his opposite qualities. +She was the object of ridicule to the wit and malice of others, +possibly, we should guess, of her sisters-in-law; and, finally, every +kind sentiment, even of common humanity, towards her, was extinguished +in the husband who had loved her so passionately. + +Thomas seems, from the moment of succession until death, to have been a +prey to pecuniary embarrassment. He started with an exaggerated view of +his resources, and launched into extravagance; arrogance and ambition +made him more profuse; a taste for borough management, strong in him, +was probably more expensive than any other possible form of gambling; so +all his life was soured by the struggle between pride and debt, and by +consequent mortification. This seems to be the secret of his wasted and +unhappy existence. + +United as he was by his marriage to the Lytteltons, Grenvilles, and +Cobham, he naturally became an adherent and favourite of the Prince of +Wales. He probably called the Prince's attention in glowing terms to the +possibilities of the Heir Apparent's Duchy of Cornwall, and, at any +rate, became His Royal Highness's parliamentary manager in the West, the +realm of rotten boroughs. There the Prince was flattered, or flattered +himself, with influence as Duke of Cornwall, in a region where Lord +Falmouth, the famous threatener of 'we are seven,' and Thomas himself +exercised a more substantial sway. He enjoyed a fleeting triumph at the +General Election of 1741, not unaccompanied with the constant quarrels +which were the vital element of his family. As a reward he was appointed +in 1742 Warden of the Stannaries. + +Then he seems to decay. The General Election of 1747, on which he had +built high hopes, brought him nothing but debt and disaster. He writes +in despair to the Prince, and Frederick sends kindly and reassuring +messages in reply; but he was now ruined, and his last prospects +vanished with the Prince of Wales, on whose death he was superseded in +the Stannaries; this perhaps marks the date of his final catastrophe. At +any rate, there was a financial collapse, and he had to go abroad. +Shelburne met him at Utrecht and heard him hold forth in the true Pitt +style, abusing his brother William as a hypocrite and scoundrel, with a +great flow of language and a quantity of illustrative anecdotes. 'A bad +man,' says Horace Walpole. 'Never was ill-nature so dull as his, never +dullness so vain.' + +Shelburne hints that he was mad, or nearly mad, and that, though not +actually confined, he was obliged to live a very retired life, +complicated by straitened circumstances. 'The unhappy man,' as William +calls him, had never been on cordial terms with his brother: they had +had the usual family wrangles about property, and recently, in his +distress, Thomas had solicited from William, now Secretary of State and +supreme, the appointment of Minister to the Swiss Cantons. He might have +foreseen refusal, for he was fit for no such employment, and William was +sensitive as to charges of favour to his family from the Crown. But men +are friendly judges of their own fitness for any post which they may +happen to desire, and Thomas did not care, probably, to have his merits +or demerits so justly appraised by his junior; so he spent his time of +exile in denouncing to any audience that was attracted by his name, the +ingratitude and neglect of his successful relative. He died in July +1761, and William frigidly announces to his nephew the death of 'the +unhappy man' from apoplexy. + +This nephew was created Lord Camelford under the auspices of his first +cousin, the younger Pitt, whom, by the way, Pitt-like, he seems unable +to forgive for this favour, as he never mentions his creator. The +malicious bards of the Rolliad hinted that the peerage accrued from some +borough-mongering transaction: + + 'Say, what gave Camelford his wished for rank? + Did he devote old Sarum to the Bank? + Or did he not, that envied rank to gain, + Transfer the victim to the Treasury's fame?' (_sic_) + +But, though he was by no means destitute of the family characteristics, +this Thomas was a man of high honour, character and charm. He won the +heart of Horace Walpole, whose neighbour he was, until they quarrelled, +as of course they were sure to do. But for a time Horace, whose +affection was not often or easily given and whose confidence in matters +of taste was fastidious, gave both affection and confidence unstintedly +to this young man. He attracted, too, the still rarer tenderness of his +uncle William. To him Chatham addressed the well-known letters on +education which he found time to write in all the business of office; +though Thomas on attaining manhood repaid him with the most cordial +aversion. This sentiment, which seems at first to savour of ingratitude, +is not in reality difficult to explain. In the first place, the uncle +was to some extent involved in those financial questions connected with +the paternal inheritance in which the father played, as we have seen, so +intrepid though unscrupulous a part. Mutual aversion facilitated mutual +disagreement in matters always fertile of friction; and the younger +Thomas, though he had an ill opinion of his father, sided with him as +against his uncle. We cannot, even on Thomas's own showing, blame the +uncle in these rather petty transactions, and William's besetting sin +was certainly not avarice; but neither can we blame the son for siding +with the father. On an impartial survey we may conclude that disputes +between two Pitts who were near descendants of the Governor were +incapable of an amicable solution. + +But there was more than this. William, for some purpose of persuasion, +says Lord Camelford, informed Thomas that his nephew, the younger Thomas +(Lord Camelford himself), would be his heir. This was a considerable, +almost a magnificent, prospect. William was then middle-aged and +unmarried, his position and future were alike splendid, and high office +might in those days lead to wealth. His career had, moreover, brought +him a legacy of 10,000_l._ from Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough. But, far +beyond that there was the reversion of the great Althorp inheritance, +between which and William there were only the lives of the short-lived +possessor and his sickly child. That William held out this expectation +we think so probable that we do not even question it. He had all his +life been half an invalid, and never seems to have contemplated marriage +till he did marry, at the age of forty-eight. He, moreover, loved his +nephew with sincere and proved tenderness. Why, then, should it be +doubted that he indicated him as his heir, when, in truth, he had no +other? But that he did this with an unworthy motive or for the purpose +of deception there is neither proof nor probability. The episode +probably furnished matter for his brother's maudlin ravings at Utrecht, +but we do not think that it materially influenced the opinions of his +nephew. + +The true reason for Camelford's hatred of his uncle was that he fell +under the influence of George Grenville at a time when Grenville had +broken for ever with Pitt. The estimable qualities of Grenville have +been described with a colour and exuberance which could only proceed +from the glowing imagination of Burke. But, with all allowance for what +Burke saw in this able, narrow, and laborious person, it cannot be +denied that the foundation of his qualities was a stubborn self-esteem +which necessarily led to stubborn hatreds. Grenville came to hate Bute, +to hate the King, to hate the Duke of Cumberland; but it may be doubted +if all his other accumulated hatreds equalled that which he felt for his +brother-in-law. Pitt, while in office, had kept Grenville in a +subordinate position, and had apparently thought it adequate to his +deserts. When Grenville was Minister, Pitt had negotiated with the King +to overthrow him. In the schism produced by Pitt's resignation, Temple +had sided with Pitt and quarrelled with his brother George. But, worst +of all, Pitt had held Grenville up, not unsuccessfully, to public +ridicule and contempt. Now, a Grenville to himself was not as other men +are; he was something sacred and ineffable. Neither Temple nor George +ever doubted that they were the equals, nay, the superiors, of their +brother-in-law, whom in their hearts they regarded as only a brilliant +adventurer, useful, under careful guidance, to the Grenville scheme of +creation. When, therefore, Pitt quizzed and thwarted George, he raised +an implacable enemy. Later on, they might affect reconciliation, and +Temple might pompously announce to the world that the Brethren were +reunited. But George's undying resentment against Pitt never flagged to +the hour of his death. + +Thomas Pitt came under Grenville's influence at the fiercest moment of +this rancour, and seems to have been the only person on record who was +fascinated by him. Thomas writes of him with affectionate enthusiasm +long after his death, and in his life waged his wars with zeal. One of +these led to a quarrel with Horace Walpole, arising out of the dismissal +of Conway, which produced a lengthy correspondence, still extant. But to +become the disciple of George Grenville it was necessary to abhor +William Pitt. Thomas took the test without difficulty, and adhered to it +conscientiously. His father's influence, such as it was, tended in the +same direction. So, though Thomas specifically places his uncle at the +head of all British statesmen, and although he besought Chatham to sit +to Reynolds for the gallery at Boconnoc, and though he displayed grief, +real or ostentatious, at Chatham's death, going the quaint length of +asking every one to dinner who spoke sympathetically in either House on +the occasion; in spite of all this, he retails aversion in every +sentence that he writes; aversion of which the obvious source is +devotion to Grenville. It is necessary to explain this because +Camelford's manuscript notes would otherwise be inexplicable. Putting +this violent prejudice on one side, this memorial drawn up by Camelford +for his son, though too intimate for complete publication, is a +priceless document. Let all be forgiven him for the sake of this +manuscript. It may be inaccurate, and biassed and acrid, but it presents +the family circle from within by one of themselves, and no more vivid +picture can exist of that strange cockatrice brood of Pitts. + +The son for whom it was written grew up a spitfire, not less eccentric +than his sires, and became notorious as the second Lord Camelford. His +was a turbulent, rakehelly, demented existence, the theme of many +newspaper paragraphs. He revived in his person all the pranks and +outrage of the Mohawks. Bull-terriers, bludgeons, fighting of all kinds +were associated with him; riots of all kinds were as the breath of his +nostrils, more especially theatrical tumults. One of these latter +contests brought him into contact with the pacific authors of the +'Rejected Addresses,' who were admitted, not without trepidation, to his +apartment, which was almost an arsenal. It can scarcely be doubted that +the lurking madness of the Pitts found a full expression in him. As an +officer in the Navy, commanding a sloop in the West Indies, his conduct +fell little if at all short of insanity. It is not easy to understand +how even in those more facile times he escaped disgrace. + +Eventually, at the age of twenty-nine he was killed in a wanton duel +with a Mr. Best. The circumstances of this mortal combat show that he +was a true Pitt of the Governor's headstrong breed. Both before the duel +and afterwards, on his death-bed, he acknowledged that he was the sole +wanton aggressor, and that his antagonist was blameless. But as Mr. Best +was reported the best pistol-shot in England, his pride would not allow +him to lend himself, however indirectly, to any sort of accommodation. +So he died, and with him died the eldest line of the Governor's branch +of Pitts. Boconnoc passed to his sister, Lady Grenville, wife of the +minister who was Chatham's nephew. The relations of the brothers-in-law +seem to have been on the Pitt model. 'Pique against Lord Grenville +explains his (Lord Camelford's) conduct,' writes Lady Holland.[19] +Despite all their idiosyncrasies it seemed impossible to keep the Pitts +and Grenvilles from quarrelling and blending. + +All this may seem trivial enough, but it has an important, indeed +necessary, bearing on the story of William's life, as showing the stock +from which he sprang. + +The harsh passions of the Governor and the petulant violence of his +heirs seem so outrageous and uncontrolled as to verge on actual +insanity. Shelburne explicitly states that 'there was a great deal of +madness in the family.' Every indication confirms this statement. What +seemed in the Governor brutality and excess, frequently developed in +his descendants into something little if at all short of mental +disorder. We thus trace to their source the germs of that haughty, +impossible, anomalous character, distempered at times beyond the +confines of reason, which made William so difficult to calculate or +comprehend. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + + +And now we come by a process of exhaustion to the subject of this book. + +William Pitt, the elder statesman of that name, was born in London, in +the parish of St. James's, November 15, 1708. It does not now seem +possible to trace the house of his nativity, but it was probably in Pall +Mall, where his father then or afterwards resided. We are limited to the +information that his godfathers were 'Cousin Pitt' (probably George Pitt +of Strathfieldsaye) and General Stewart, after the latter of whom he was +named. General Stewart was the second husband of William's grandmother, +Lady Grandison.[20] + +It may be well to recall here that William was the second son of Robert +Pitt, the Governor's eldest son, and his wife, Harriot Villiers, fourth +daughter of Catherine, Viscountess Grandison, and her husband the Hon. +Edward Villiers Fitzgerald, who was descended from a brother of the +first Villiers, Duke of Buckingham. + +Of his childhood we catch but occasional and remote glimpses. + +His grandfather, as we have seen, had early marked him. The shrewd old +nabob had discerned the boy's possibilities, but seems also to have +determined that his energies should not be relaxed by wealth. At any +rate, the Governor refrained from any special sign of favour, and +bequeathed the lad only an annuity of 100_l._ a year. This was +William's sole patrimony, for he seems to have received nothing from his +father. + +He was sent to Eton, or, as William always spells it, 'Eaton,' at an +early age; the exact period does not seem to be ascertainable. Here he +had notable contemporaries: Henry Fox, George Lyttelton, Charles Pratt, +Hanbury Williams, and Fielding. + +'Thee,' said this last, addressing Learning, 'in the favourite fields, +where the limpid gently rolling Thames washes thy Etonian banks, in +early youth I have worshipped. To thee, at thy birchen altar, with true +Spartan devotion I have sacrificed my blood.'[21] Pitt could have echoed +his schoolfellow's apostrophe if the not improbable legend be true that +he underwent an unusually severe flogging for having been caught out of +bounds. But even without this, his experiences were no doubt poignant +enough; for, though the son of a wealthy father, he was placed on the +foundation, and the Eton of those days afforded to its King's Scholars +no lap of luxury. The horrors and hardships of Long Chamber, the immense +dormitory of these lads, have come down to us in a whisper of awful +tradition, and it is therefore no matter for surprise, though it is for +regret, that William did not share the passionate devotion of most +Etonians for their illustrious college. He is credited indeed with +saying that he had scarcely ever observed a boy who was not cowed for +life at Eton[22]: a sweeping condemnation which sounds strange in these +days, but which is easily explained by the misery that he, as a sickly +boy, may well have undergone in that petty Lacedaemon. For his health +deprived him of all the pleasures of his age, as he was already a martyr +to gout. That hereditary malady which cut him off from the sports of the +school impelled him to study, and so served his career. Mr. Thackeray, +who wrote his biography in quarto and who may be discriminated without +difficulty from the genius of that name, deposes vaguely that 'Dr. +Bland, at that time the headmaster of Eton, is said to have highly +valued the attainments of his pupil.' We rest more securely on a letter +of his Eton tutor, Mr. Burchett, of which the last sentence need only be +quoted here, as it is all that relates to William. + + + MR. BURCHETT TO MR. PITT. + + Yr younger Son has made a great Progress since his coming hither, + indeed I never was concern'd with a young Gentleman of so good + Abilities, & at the same time of so good a disposition, and there is + no question to be made but he will answer all yr Hopes. + + I am, Sr, + Yr most Obedient & most Humble Servant, + WILL. BURCHETT.[23] + + +This reference under the hand of an Eton tutor is exuberant enough. But +no doubt rests on Pitt's school reputation. It survived even to the time +of Shelburne, who speaks of him as distinguished at Eton. Lyttelton +wrote of him while still there: 'This (good-humour) to Pitt's genius +adds a brighter grace;'[24] a remarkable tribute from one Eton boy to +another. More striking still is the tradition preserved by an unfriendly +witness, William's nephew, Camelford. 'The surprising Genius of Lord +Chatham,' he writes, 'distinguished him as early as at Eaton School, +where he and his friend Lord Lyttelton in different ways were looked up +to as prodigies.' School prodigies rarely mellow into remarkable men; +though remarkable men are often credited, when their reputation is +secure, with having been school prodigies. But the contemporary letter +of Burchett and the reluctant testimony of Camelford admit of no doubts. +Most significant, perhaps, of all is the preservation of the flotsam of +school life, a couple of school bills, the tutor's letter, another from +the boy himself. This last, which took eleven days in transmission, is +here given. The bills have been already published by Sir Henry Lyte in +his History of Eton. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS FATHER. + + _Eaton, Septembr ye 29th._ + + Hon'ed Sr,--I write this to pay my duty to you, and to lett you + know that I am well, I hope you and my mama have found a great + benefit from the Bath, and it would be a very great satisfaction to + me, to hear how you do, I was in hopes of an answer to my last + letter, to have heard how you both did, and I should direct my + letters, to you; for not knowing how to direct my letters, has + hindered me writing to you. my time has been pretty much taken up + for this three weeks, in my trying for to gett into the fiveth form, + And I am now removed into it; pray my duty to my mama and service to + my uncle and aunt Stuart if now att the Bath. I am with great + respect, + + Hon'ed Sr, Your most dutiful Son, + W. PITT.[25] + + +This is the whole record extant of William's Eton life; to so many lads +the happiest period of their existence, but not to him. An invalid, and +so disabled for games, a recluse, perhaps a victim, he had no pleasant +memories of Eton. But there, in all probability, he laid the foundations +of character and intellect on which his fame was to be reared. It is not +usually profitable to imagine pictures of the past, but it may not be +amiss to evoke, in passing, the shadow of the lean, saturnine boy as he +limped by the Thames, shaping a career, or pondering on life and +destiny, dreaming of greatness where so many have dreamed, while he +watched, half enviously, half scornfully, the sports in which he might +not join. He is not the first, and will not be the last, to find his +school a salutary school of adversity. He looked back to it with no +gratitude. But Eton claims him for her own; and long generations of +reluctant students have whiled away the reputed hours of learning or +examination by gazing at his bust in Upper School, and dreamily +conjecturing why so great a glamour still hangs about his name. + +With these few remnants and this vague surmise ends all that is, or will +probably ever be, known of William's childhood. Little enough if we +compare it to the copious details furnished by modern autobiographers. +But self-revelation was not the fashion of the eighteenth century, and +childhood then furnished less to record. Boys were in the background, +repressing their emotions, and inured to a rugged discipline which, +though odious to the sympathetic delicacy of modern civilisation, +produced the men who made the Empire. + +From Eton, Pitt proceeded to Oxford, where he was admitted a Gentleman +Commoner at Trinity College on January 10th, 1726 (o.s.), guided +thither, probably, by the fact that his uncle, Lord Stanhope, had been a +member of that society. There are indications that at this time he was +destined, like a great minister of a recent day, for the Church, but the +gout attacked him with such violence as to compel him to leave the +University without taking his degree. We have, however, an indirect +proof of the reputation which he brought to Oxford in a letter from a +Mr. Stockwell, who, although he had determined to give up tuition, +consents to take William as his pupil, partly as a 'Salsbury man,' and +so owing respect to the Pitt family; partly because of 'the character I +hear of Mr. Pitt on all hands.' + +William's only public achievement at Oxford was a copy of Latin verses +which he published on the death of George I. They are artificial and +uncandid, as is the nature of such compositions, and have been justly +ridiculed by Lord Macaulay. But the performance is at least an early +mark of ambition. If this be all, and it is all, that we know of this +period of William's life, it seems worth while to print the two letters +written by Mr. Stockwell to Robert Pitt, the more as they throw some +light on bygone Oxford, a topic of evergreen interest. + + + MR. I. STOCKWELL TO ROBERT PITT. + + Hon'ed Sr,--I had long since determin'd, not to engage any more + in a Trust of so much consequence, as the Care of a young Gentleman + of Fortune is, & have in fact refus'd many offers of that sort: but + the great Regard, that every Salsbury-Man must have for your Family, + and the Character I hear of Mr Pitt from All Hands, put it out of + my Power to decline a Proposal of so much Credit & Advantage to + Myself & the College. I heartily wish your Business and Health + would have allow'd you to have seen him settled here, because I + flatter Myself, that you would have left Him in Our Society with + some Degree of Satisfaction; as That can't be hop'd for, You will + assure Yourself that everything shall be done with the exactest Care + and Fidelity. + + I have secur'd a very good Room for Mr Pitt, which is just now left + by a Gentleman of Great Fortune, who is gone to the Temple. Tis + thoroughly furnish't & with All necessarys, but perhaps may require + some little Additional Expence for Ornament or Change of Furniture. + The method of paying for the Goods of any Room in the University is, + that Every Person leaving the College receives of his Successor Two + Thirds of what He has expended. On this foot the Mony to be paid by + Mr Pitt to the Gentleman who possess't the Room last, is 43l, Two + thirds of which, as likewise of whatever Addition He shall please to + make to the Furniture, He is to receive again of the Person, who + succeeds Him. + + Tis usual for Young Gentlemen of Figure to have a small quantity of + Table-Linnen, & sometimes some particular peices of plate, for the + reception of Any Friend in their Rooms, but everything of that sort + for Common & Publick Uses is provided by the College. + + If you please to send me the Servitor's Name, I will immediately + procure His admission into the College, & show Him all the Kindness + in my Power, but as to His attendance on Mr Pitt it is not now + usual in the University, nor, as I apprehend, can be of any Service. + Tis much more Customary & Creditable to a Gentleman of Family to be + attended by a Footman--But this I barely mention. + + The other Expences of Mr Pitt's Admission will be in the following + Articles: + + Caution Mony (to be return'd again) 10 0 0 + Benefaction to the College 10 0 0 + For Admission to the Fellow's Common Room 2 0 0 + Fee for the Use of the College Plate, &c. 2 0 0 + College Serv'ts Fees 1 15 0 + University Fees 0 16 0 + + I have stated Mr Pitt's Benefaction at Ten Pounds, because that is + what we require & receive of every Gentleman-Commoner, & of very + many Commoners; but I know Sr that you will excuse me for + mentioning, that several Young Gentlemen of Mr Pitt's Gown have + besides made the College a Present of a Peice of Plate of 10, or + 12l. I am thus particular only in Obedience to Your Orders. I + believe Sr if You please to remit a Bill of An Hundred Pounds, it + will answer the whole expence of Mr. Pitt's settlement here and I + shall have the Honour to send you a particular Account of the + disposal of it. As I am debarr'd the Pleasure of waiting on You by a + little Office, that Confines me to the College in Termtime, I shall + take it a very great Favour, if you please to let me know at what + time I may hope to see Mr Pitt here. + + I beg my Humble Duty to Your Good Lady, & my Humble Service & + Respects to Mr Pitt, and am with the highest Respect + + Sr Yr most Oblig'd & Obedient Servt + + IOS. STOCKWELL.[26] + + + MR. STOCKWELL TO ROBERT PITT, 'AT SWALLOWFIELD + NEAR READING, BERKS.' + + _Trin: Coll: Oxon: Decr 22. 1726._ + + Hon'rd Sr,--Upon receiving the favour of Yours & finding that it + was your Intention that Mr Pitt should keep a Servant, I have made + choice of Another Room much more Convenient for that Purpose, as it + supply's a Lodging for His Footman. I have employ'd some Workmen in + it to make some necessary alterations; but the whole expence will + not amount to the Charge of the Chamber, I had mention'd to you + before. As I am not willing, Mr Pitt should be put to the distress + of lying One Night in an Inn, I will take Care, it shall be fit for + his Reception by New Years Day, & I am sure He will like it very + well. + + I proposed so large a Sum, because I had not mention'd the Articles + of Gown, Cap Bands, Tea-Furniture, & some other little Ornaments & + Conveniences that young Gentlemen don't care to be without. You will + be pleas'd to mention, in what degree of mourning[27] His Gown must + be made; & I will send you an exact Account of the whole expence. + There is no need of remitting any Mony, till He comes. + + If You are willing to recommend the Servitor You spoke of, who may + live here at a very easy rate (I believe very well for 15l p. Ann) + I have bespoke a place for him, & He may be admitted when you + please. I beg My Humble Duty to Your Good Lady, & my Humble Service + & Respects to Your Good Family, & am + + Sr Yr most Obliged & Obedient Servt + IOS. STOCKWELL.[28] + + +Fortunately, too, a few of William's Oxford letters have also been +preserved. The first apologetically continues Stockwell's tale of +preliminary expenses, and endeavours to deprecate Robert Pitt's +economical wrath. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS FATHER, IN PALL MALL. + + _Trin: Coll: Janry Ye 20th 1726/7._ + + Hon'ed Sr--After such delay, though not owing to any negligence + on my Part, I am ashamed to send you ye following accompt, without + first making great apologies for not executing ye Commands sooner. + + Matriculation Fees 0 16 6 + Caution money 10 0 0 + Benefaction 10 0 0 + Utensils of ye Coll 2 0 0 + Common Room 2 0 0 + Coll: Serv'ts Fees 1 15 0 + Paddesway[29] Gown 8 5 0 + Cap 0 7 0 + Tea Table, China ware, bands &c. 6 5 0 + Glasses 0 11 0 + Thirds of Chamber & Furniture 41 7 8 + Teaspoons 1 7 6 + -------- + Summe total 84 14 8 + -------- + Balance pd me by Mr Stockwell 15 05 4 + + I have too much reason to fear you may think some of these articles + too extravagant, as they really are, but all I have to say for it is + humbly to beg you would not attribute it to my extravagance, but to + ye custom of this Place; where we pay for most things too at a high + rate. + + I must again repeat my wishes for yr health, hoping you have not + been prevented by so painfull a delay as ye gout from pursuing yr + intended journey to Town I must beg leave to subjoin my Duty to my + Mother & love to my Sistrs and am with all Possible respect + + Sr Yr most dutyfull Son + WM. PITT.[30] + + +The next is written after an evident explosion of that wrath. In the +Pitt family, even more than in others, father and son viewed filial +expenditure from opposite points of view. It is painful, then, but not +surprising to find that Robert should have regarded William's washing +bill as beyond the dreams of luxury. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS FATHER, 'IN PALL MALL.' + + _Trin: Coll: April ye 29th._ + + Hon'ed Sr,--I recd yrs of ye 25th in which I find with + ye utmost concern ye dissatisfaction you express at my expences. + To pretend to justify, or defend myself in this case would be, I + fear, with reason thought impertinent; tis sufficient to convince me + of the extravagance of my expences, that they have met with yr + disapprobation, but might I have leave to instance an Article or + two, perhaps you may not think 'em so wild and boundless, as with + all imaginable uneasiness, I see you do at present. Washing 2_l._ + 1_s._ 0_d._, about 3_s._ 6_d._ per wk, of which money half a dozen + shirts at 4_d._ each comes to 2_s._ per wk, shoes and stockings + 19_s._ 0_d._ Three pairs of Shoes at 5_s._ each, two pair of + Stockings, one silk, one worcestead, are all that make up this + Article, but be it as it will, since, Sr, you judge my expence too + great, I must endeavour for ye future to lessen it, & shall be + contented with whatever you please to allow me. one considerable + article is a servant, an expence which many are not at, and which I + shall be glad to spare, if you think it fitt, in hopes to convince + you I desire nothing superfluous; as I have reason to think you will + not deny me what is necessary. As you have been pleased to give me + leave I shall draw upon you for 25li as soon as I have occasion. + I beg my duty to my Mother & am with all possible respect + + Hon'ed Sr, yr most Dutifull Son + W. PITT. + + +The third is mysterious enough to us, but it expresses gratitude for +some marks of kindness, whether to the writer or not, cannot now be +known. It is difficult to imagine that Robert should have extended his +beneficence to any one at Trinity but William, and yet it is not easy to +depict the gratitude of a College for a favour done to one of their +undergraduates by his father. In any case there remains no longer any +trace of such benefaction at Trinity. The inevitable financial statement +in which the bookseller's bill figures handsomely, not far behind the +tailor's, is tactfully kept separate in a postscript. It is, however, +well to know that this letter, the last in all probability that William +wrote to his father, who died six weeks afterwards, is one of as much +affection as the fashion of that day permitted. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS FATHER. + + _Trin: Coll: April ye 10th 1727._ + + Hon'ed Sr,--I hope you gott well to London yesterday as I did + to this place, though too late to trouble you with a letter that + Evening. I can not say how full of acknowledgements every one + amongst us is for ye favr you confer'd upon one of their society. + One could almost imagine by ye good wishes I hear express't toward + you from all hands, you were rather a publick benefactor to ye + College, than a Patron to any one member of it. I mention this + because I believe it will not be unacceptable to you to hear yr + favrs are gratefully recd. I hope my Mother is well, to whom I + beg my Duty: & am with all possible respect, Sr, + + Yr most dutifull son, + WM. PITT. + + Sr,--Finding ye quarter just up I send you ye following accompt + commencing Janry ye 9th to ye 9th of this month. + + Battels 15 0 0 + Paid Lambert bd Wages 4 4 0 + Three months learning french & entrance 2 2 0 + For a course of experimental Philosophy 2 2 0 + For coat & breeches & making 5 18 0 + Booksellers bill 5 0 0 + Cambrick for ruffles 1 4 0 + Shoes, stockings 1 19 0 + Candles, coal, fagots 3 10 0 + Pockett money, Gloves, Powder, Tea, &c. 4 4 0 + For washing 2 2 0 + ---------- + 47 5 0 + Remains 9 15 0[31] + + +Robert Pitt died in Paris, May 20, 1727, and the next letter is +addressed to his widow at Bath. The eldest son, Thomas, already, it +would appear, had played William false, and caused a coolness with the +mother by not delivering a letter. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER. + _Oxford July ye 10th 1727._ + + Hon'ed Madm,--Tis with no small impatience I have waited for ye + pleasure of hearing from you, but as that is denied me, I take this + opportunity of repeating my Duty and enquiries after yr health. I + wrote to you by return of ye coach, enclos'd to my Brother, to be + forwarded by him, from whom I have also received no answer, which + makes me imagine you may not have less reason to be angry with me + for not paying my Duty to you, than I have to be sorry at not having + ye pleasure to hear from you, I mean my letter has not come into + yr hands. I send this by ye Post from hence, which I hope will + find better luck, it will be a sensible pleasure to me to hear ye + waters agree with you: for wch reason out of kindness to me, as + also in regard to yr own quiet (lest I should trouble you every + other post with an importuning epistle) be so good as to give ye + satisfaction of hearing you are well; I am with all respect, + + Yr most Dutifull Son, + WM. PITT. + + +The following letter would seem to indicate that William was spending +the Long Vacation at Oxford, while his mother as usual was spending hers +at Bath. He appears to hint disapproval of an acquaintance she wished +him to make, reversing the usual position of parent and son on such +matters. There is again reproachful allusion to his brother; there are +few indeed in any other tone throughout William's correspondence. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'AT BATH.' + + _Oxon Septr ye 17th 1727._ + + Hon'ed Madm,--I rec'd ye favour of yrs by Mr Mayo and have + waited on Mr Vesey as you order'd, with whom, had you not + recommended him to me upon ye knowledge you have of his family, I + should not have sought an acquaintance. I hope you will lett me hear + soon yr intentions. If I am not to be happy in seeing you hear, ye + certainty of it can not be more uneasy than the apprehension; if I + am, I shall gain so much happiness, by ye foreknowledge of it. What + part of ye world my Brother is in or when he will be in Town, I + know not. I hope to hear from him between this and ye Coronation. + The only consideration yt can make me give up quietly ye pleasure + I promis'd myself in seeing you here, is yt you are employ'd in a + more important care to yrself and Family, ye preservation of yr + health. I have only to add my Love to my Sister and am with all + respect, + + Yr most dutifull son + WM. PITT. + + +The gout, we have seen, drove William prematurely from Oxford, after a +little more than a year of residence. Thence he proceeded to Utrecht, +where it was then not unusual for young Englishmen and Scotsmen to +complete their education. Here we find him in 1728 with his cousin Lord +Villiers and Lord Buchan, father of the grotesque egotist of that name +and of Henry and Thomas Erskine. Pitt writes in 1766 that Buchan was his +intimate friend from the period that they were students together at +Utrecht, and, when in office, he showed kindness on that ground to Lord +Cardross, Buchan's eldest son, the egotist himself. Of this period some +few letters to his mother survive, dutiful yet playful. + +The first letter is of the formal kind then general between sons and +parents, mentioning his cousin Lord Villiers, for whom he puts in a good +word, not unnecessarily, as we shall see presently. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER. + + _Utrecht, Febry ye 6th N.S. 1728._ + + Hon'ed Madm,--I have ye pleasure to repeat my assurances of + affection & duty to you, together with my wishes for yr health: I + shall take all opportunities for paying my respects to you, I hope + you will now and then favr me wth a line or two, especially + since you have so good a Scribe as Miss Ann to ease you of ye + trouble of writing yrself. My Ld Villiers begs his Compliments + may be acceptable to you, at ye same time I should not do my Ld + justice if I omitted saying something in his just praise, but as I + can not say enough, I forbear to say more. My Love to my Sistrs & + Compliments where due. I am with all respt + + Your dutiful Son + WM. PITT. + + +The next seems to denote a reluctant intention of returning to England +to pay his family a visit. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER. + + _Utrecht Febry ye 13th 1728._ + + Hon'ed Madm,--I hope I need not assure you yr letter gave me a + very sensible pleasure in informing me of yr better health; I wish + I may any way be able to contribute toward farther establishment of + it by obeying a Command which tallies so well with my own + Inclinations though at ye same time be assured, nothing less than + ye pleasure of seeing you should prevail upon me to repeat so much + sickness & difficulty as I met with Coming over to Holland. I + believe I shall not fail in my respects to you, as often as occasion + permits, though I fear my letters are hardly worth postage: unless + to one who I flatter myself believes me to be + + hr most Dutifull Son + WM. PITT. + + P.S. my Love to all ye Family. + + +The next letter again pleads on behalf of my Lord Villiers, for whose +excess of vivacity William feels obvious sympathy. He mentions, too, and +characterises with a sure touch, his old Eton friend Lyttelton, who has +fallen in love with Harriot Pitt, as he was afterwards to fall in love +with Ann. Lyttelton was apparently determined that the Lytteltons and +Pitts should be matrimonially connected as closely as possible, for two +months afterwards we find him exclaiming in a letter to his father: +'Would to God Mr. (William) Pitt had a fortune equal to his brother's, +that he might make a present of it to my pretty little Molly! But +unhappily they have neither of them any portion but an uncommon share of +merit, which the world will not think them much the richer for.'[32] As +Thomas had just married Christian Lyttelton, it is clear that the writer +meditated a triple alliance as the end to be aimed at. The peerage books +tell us that this pretty little Molly died unmarried. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'IN PALLMALL, LONDON.' + + _Utrecht Feb: ye 29th_ + + Hon'ed Madm,--The return of my Ld Villiers into England gives me + an opportunity of assuring you of my respect & wishes for yr + health; I can not omitt any occasion of shewing how sensible I am of + yr affection, but must own I could have wish'd any other than this + by which I am depriv'd of my Ld Villier's Company, he is recall'd + perhaps deservedly: if a little Indiscretion arising from too much + vivacity be a fault, my Ld is undeniably blameable; but I doubt not + but my Ld Grandison himself will find more to be pleas'd with in + ye one than to correct in ye other respect. I have received so + many Civilities from Mr Waddel, who does me ye honr to be ye + bearer of this, yt I should not do him justice to omitt letting you + know how much I am obliged to him. I hope ye Family is well: + Lyttelton prevented you in ye account of his own Madness. Sure + there never was so much fine sense & Extravagance of Passion jumbled + together in any one Man. Send him over to Holland: perhaps living in + a republick may inspire him with a love of liberty & make him scorn + his Chains. My love to all, who (a second time) I hope are well: & + believe me with all respect & affection + + Yr most Dutiful Son + WM. PITT. + + +The third contains, perhaps, the only token of kindness between the two +brothers which survives. It also alludes to Lyttelton's passion for +Harriot. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'IN PALL MALL, LONDON.' + + _Utrecht April ye 8th N.S. 1728._ + + Hon'ed Madm,--Yr letters must always give me so much pleasure, + yt I beg no consideration may induce you to deprive me of it. they + can never fail being an entertainment to me when they give me an + opportunity of hearing you are well. I can not omitt thanking you + for ye enquiry you make about my supplies from my Brother: neither + should I do him justice, if I did not assure you I receiv'd ye + kindest letter in ye world from him: wherein he gives me ye offer + of going where I think most for my improvement, and assures me + nothing yt ye estate can afford shall be denied me for my + advantage & education. I hope all ye family is well. Miss Anne's + time is so taken up with dansing & Italien yt I despair of hearing + from her. I should be glad to hear what conquests miss Harriot made + at ye birthday. if I had not a letter from one of ye Three, I must + think they have forgott me. I am in pain for poor Lyttelton: I wish + there was leagues of sea between him & ye Charms of Miss Harriot. + If he dies I shall sue her for ye murder of my Friend. This Place + affords so little matter of entertainment, yt I shall only beg you + to believe me with all respect, + + Hon'ed Madm, Yr most Dutifull Son + WM. PITT. + + My love & service to my Brother & Compliments to all ye Family. + + +His stay at Utrecht was probably not protracted, as we find no more +letters from thence. The next glimpse we have of him is in January 1730, +at Boconnoc. He is now established at home, rather, perhaps, from +economy than of his own free will, for he disrespectfully calls Boconnoc +'this cursed hiding-place;' living in Cornwall or at Swallowfield, near +Reading, another of the family residences; or on military duty at +'North'ton,' evidently Northampton, which William, however, abbreviates +differently in later letters. When we consider the elaborate style and +formulas of the letters of this period there seems nothing so strange as +the passion for abbreviation by apostrophe, such as 'do's' for 'does,' +which seems to save neither time, trouble, nor space. + +In February 1731 he received a commission in the 1st Dragoon Guards, +then under the command of Lord Pembroke, and we find him in country +quarters at Northampton and elsewhere. In the autumn we find him once +more at Boconnoc, whence he writes this more genial note to his mother. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, AT BATH. + + _Bocconnock Octbr ye 17 1731._ + + Dear Madam,--I am, after a long Confinement at Quarters, at present + confined here, by disagreeable, dirty weather, which makes us all + prisoners in this little house. I knew nothing of your journey to + Bath, when I came to Town, and was therefore disappointed of the + pleasure of seeing you there. I see you have put a bill upon your + door. Pray what do you intend to do with yourself this winter? I + shou'd be mighty glad to know whether your affairs are near an + Issue. I hope they will very soon leave you at Leisure to consult + nothing but your health and Quiet. Be pleas'd to favour me with a + Letter here, where I shall stay about a month longer; and give me + the satisfaction of knowing how much you profit by the Waters. + Believe me, + + Dear Madam, Your dutifull affect son + WM. PITT. + + My service to the Col: and Mrs. Bouchier: I shall Be glad to hear he + makes one at the Balls. + + +In 1733 he set out on a foreign tour, of which we shall see more +presently, and before leaving writes this note, which gives some ground +for thinking that his brother helped him at least to meet the expenses +of this voyage, as Lord Camelford thinks was actually the case. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'IN BATEMAN STREET, NEAR PICCADILLY, + LONDON.' + + _Boconnock jan: 19: 1732/3._ + + Dear Madam,--I hope Miss Kitty who is now upon ye Road will get + safe to You: I cant omit doing Justice To your goodness in making + room for her, she no doubt wanting your care very much in the ill + state she is in. I continue still here and shall not set out yet + this month, haveing a design to go abroad then. It is however + uncertain till I hear from my Brother after he gets to Town. Miss + Harriot, by her letters, Is much recovered and I flatter myself your + house will prove as lucky to Poor Kitty. I need not assure you of my + wishes for your health and speedy deliverance from the Misery of + Late: my Love to my Sisters and believe me + + Dear Madam Your most Dutifull Son + WM. PITT. + + Miss Nanny gives her Duty to you. + + +He visited Paris, and Geneva, Besancon (where he lost his heart for a +time), Marseilles, and Montpelier, passing the winter at Luneville. + +From Paris he again writes to his mother this letter, of no significance +except dutiful affection; and another from Geneva which gives a strong +proof of filial obedience in giving his consent, though with strong and +obvious reluctance, to one of the bills filed by his mother and Lord +Grandison in reference to his father's succession. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'IN BATEMAN STREET NEAR PICCADILLY A + LONDRES.' + + _Paris May ye 1 1733._ + + Dear Madam,--Though I have nothing to say to you yet of the Place I + am arrived at, I cant help giving you a bare account of my being got + safe to Paris: You are pleased to give me so much reason to Think + you interest yourself in my welfare That I cou'd not acquit myself + of my Duty In not giving you this mark of my respect and the sense I + have of your goodness. I shall make my stay as short here as + possible. let me have the pleasure of hearing some account of your + health and situation: be pleased to direct to me Chez Monsieur + Alexandre Banquier, dans la Rue St. Appoline pres de la Porte St. + Denis, a Paris. I am + + Madam Yr most Dutifull Son + WM. PITT. + + + WILLIAM PITT TO HIS MOTHER, 'IN BATEMAN STREET PICCADILLY LONDON. + ANGLETERRE.' + + _Geneva Sepr ye 17: N.S. 1733._ + + Dear Madam--I have just recd ye favour of your letter of ye + 7th august, with the answer to a bill of complaint of my Ld + Grandison and your self: I cou'd wish you had pleased to have let me + know in general that that bill is, for at present I have no Idea of + it. You assure me, Madam the answer you wou'd have me make is a + form, and can lead me into no farther consequences, by engageing me + In Law, or disobligeing My Brother; neither of which I am persuaded + you wou'd upon any consideration involve me in: upon these grounds I + readily send you my consent to the answer proposed By Mr Martyn in + your letter. I am sorry it did not come to my hands sooner, least my + answer shou'd not be time enough; and that I shou'd, by that means, + be any involuntary obstacle to your affairs which wou'd be a + sensible concern to + + Dear Madam Yr most Dutyfull affece Son + WM. PITT. + + I leave this Place shortly not knowing yet where I shall pass ye + winter. + + +In 1734 he was back in England, doing duty with his regiment at Newbury. + +It is unnecessary to speculate on the measure of success that William +would have achieved in the army had he remained a soldier. That he had +an early disposition to the career of arms seems probable, as his uncle, +Lord Stanhope, a soldier himself, who died when William was twelve, used +to call him 'the young Marshal.' It is useless to surmise; but had he +not been so great an orator, one would be apt to imagine that his bent +and talent lay in the direction of a military career. This at least is +certain, that he sedulously employed his time, preserved from mess +debauches and idle activity by his guardian demon the gout. He told +Shelburne that during the time he was a cornet of horse, there was not a +military book that he had not read through. This is a large statement, +but denotes at least unstinted application. So his career as a +subaltern, though abruptly cut short, was probably fruitful, and these +studies must have been useful to the future war minister. To paraphrase +Gibbon's pompous and comical phrase, the cornet of dragoons may not have +been useless to the history-maker of the British Empire. For his destiny +was to plan and not to conduct campaigns, and he was now to be caught in +the jealous embrace of parliamentary politics. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + + +But before he launches on that troubled career, it is well to catch what +glimpses we can obtain of Pitt in private life. It is the more necessary +as this aspect soon disappears from sight, and his letters begin to +assume that pompous and obsequious tone which we have come to believe +was his natural style, but which it is obvious was assumed and affected +for purposes of his own. Until he passes on to the stage, he is as +bright, as livery, and as affectionate as any lad of his generation. It +is beyond measure refreshing to see him at this period bantering, +falling in love, the participator of revels if not a reveller himself. +For afterwards no one saw him behind the scenes, no one was admitted to +his presence until every feature had been composed and his wig and his +vesture dramatically arranged. To catch a glimpse of him before he +played a part has been hitherto an unknown luxury. But to do this we +must now for a moment consider his sisters. + +There were five of these, and among them was to be found in abundance +the strain of violence and eccentricity that distinguished the Pitts. + +'The eldest, Harriot,' writes Lord Camelford, 'was one of the most +beautiful women of her time, but little produced in the great world, and +died very young from anxiety of mind in consequence of a foolish +engagement she entered into with Mr. Corbett, son of Sir William +Corbett, to whom she was privately married.' She secured for a while, as +we have seen, Lyttelton's transient affections. 'The second daughter, +Catherine, had much goodness, but neither beauty nor wit to boast of. +She married Robert Nedham,[33] a man of uncommon endowments, but of good +Irish family and property, by whom she had several children.' The third +was Ann, of whom more presently; and the fifth Mary. + +The fourth was Betty, of whom, unlike three of her sisters, we seem to +know too much. The curse of the Pitt blood was strong in her. Lord +Camelford, her nephew, speaks of her 'diabolical disposition,' and says +concisely that 'she had the face of an angel and the heart of all the +furies,' and that she 'formed the most complicated character of vice +that I have ever met with.' Family testimony is not always the most +charitable, but outside witnesses in no way mitigate these expressions. +Lord Shelburne says that she was received nowhere, owing to her +profligate life. Horace Walpole brings an infamous charge against her, +which we may well hope is a distortion of the natural fact that for some +time she took up her abode with her eldest brother Thomas; though Thomas +on parting with her said that her staying with him was extremely +distasteful to him. She, in any case, openly lived as his mistress with +Lord Talbot, a peer as eccentric as herself, and who promised her +marriage, she said, whenever he should be free from the incumbrance of +Lady Talbot.[34] Afterwards she went to Italy, became a Roman Catholic, +started from Florence with the declared intention of marrying Mr. +Preston, a Leghorn merchant, who seems however to have been unequal to +the occasion.[35] Then she returned to England, virulent against her +brother William, 'whose kindness to her,' says Horace Walpole, no +biassed witness, 'has been excessive. She applies to all his enemies, +and, as Mr. Fox told me, has even gone so far as to send a bundle of his +letters to the author of _The Test_[36] to prove that Mr. Pitt has +cheated her, as she calls it, out of a hundred a year, and which only +prove that he once allowed her two, and, after all her wickedness, still +allows her one.'[37] And yet on occasion she could call William the best +of brothers and of men.[38] This, too, was characteristic of the breed. + +At this period of her life she called herself, heaven knows why, Clara +Villiers Pitt, or Villiers Clara Pitt (there is an engraving of her with +the latter designation), and published a pamphlet recommending magazines +of corn. Of her perhaps too much has been said; but it is necessary to +demonstrate that William's family relations were not always easy: Thomas +reviled him, Elizabeth reviled him, Ann, whoever was in fault, caused +him much trouble, while Thomas's son, whom he peculiarly cherished, +regarded him with peculiar animosity. + +It should be mentioned, however, that Dutens met her in France some time +during Pitt's paymastership, and gives us a picture of her, which also +throws light on William's strong family affection. She was then +handsome, with a fine figure, her face aflame with pride and intellect, +her age apparently under thirty; she was abroad for her health. With +her, as a companion, chosen by her brother, was a Miss Taylor, a much +prettier girl, of whom Elizabeth was vigilantly jealous and with whom +Dutens fell haplessly in love. Miss Pitt was then apparently on +excellent terms with her illustrious brother, and gave Dutens a letter +to him. She had indeed become enamoured of the young Frenchman, a +passion which, we are not surprised to hear, she carried to indecorous +lengths. He, however, escaped to England and presented his letter. Pitt +called on him the same afternoon and thanked him for his attentions to a +beloved sister. Dutens became intimate, showed the minister his +compositions, and was favoured with an inspection of Pitt's. Then all +suddenly changed, and he was denied access.[39] Betty had quarrelled +with the family of Dutens, and had written to beg her brother to quarrel +with Dutens.[40] Dutens, she said, had boasted in company that he was +well with her, and that if her fortune and family answered expectation +he might marry her. Consequently she desired her brother to order his +footman to kick Dutens down stairs; in any case she implored him to +quarrel with the young man. With this request Pitt unhesitatingly and +unreasonably complied. We see here in one incident how warm were Pitt's +family affections, and the difficulties under which they were cherished. + +In 1761 she married John Hannan of the Middle Temple, 'of Sir William +Hannan's family in Dorsetshire, a lawyer by profession, remarkable for +his abilities, some years younger than myself, and possessed of a +fortune superior to my own,' as Betty describes him in a hostile +announcement of the engagement addressed to William. Nine years +afterwards she died. Of Hannan, her husband, nothing further seems to be +known; but it may be surmised that his lot was not enviable. + +Mary, the youngest, seems to have been a spinster of no striking +qualities. We know little of her, except that she was born in 1725 and +died in 1782.[41] There exists one letter from William to her of the +year 1753, and he mentions her in a letter, dated April 9, 1755, as +living with him. And indeed he was always kind to her, as she seems to +have habitually resided with him. Mrs. Montagu writes in July 1754: +'Miss Mary Pitt, youngest sister of Mr. Pitt, is come to stay a few days +with me. She is a very sensible, modest, pretty sort of young woman, and +as Mr. Pitt seem'd to take every civility shown to her as a favour, I +thought this mark of respect to her one manner of returning my +obligations to him.'[42] But even she, though colourless, seems not to +have been wholly devoid of the Pitt temperament, though she seems to +have always been on intimate terms with her family. 'She had,' says Lord +Camelford, 'neither the beauty of two of her sisters, nor the wit and +talents of her sister Ann, nor the diabolical dispositions of her sister +Betty. She meant always, I believe, to do right to the best of her +judgement, but that judgement was liable to be warped by prejudice, and +by a peculiar twist in her understanding which made it very dangerous to +have transactions with her.' The 'peculiar twist,' which even Mary could +not escape, was innate in most Pitts. + +We have kept Ann to the last, though she was third of the sisterhood in +point of age, being born in 1712, and so four years younger than +William, whose peculiar pet and crony she was for the earlier part of +their lives. She was in her way almost as notable as he, and she +resembled him in genius and temper, as Horace Walpole wittily observed, +'_comme deux gouttes de feu_.' But drops of fire, did they exist, would +probably not amalgamate for long, and one would guess that Ann and +William were too much alike to remain in permanent harmony. Perhaps, +too, their extreme intimacy made them too well acquainted with each +other's tender points, a dangerous knowledge when coupled with great +powers of sarcasm. One might surmise, too, that Pitt's wife, always +apparently cold to Ann, might be disinclined to encourage the renewal of +an intimacy which might once more attract William's closest confidence, +though we have a letter[43] from Ann, dated 1757, in which she speaks +with nothing less than rapture of Lady Hester's kindness to her. Lady +Hester's immaculate caligraphy and frigid style give in our easier days +an impression of distance and austerity. + +Ann, when she was little more than twenty, may be said to have entered +public life by becoming a maid of honour to Queen Caroline, the wife of +George II. From this moment she became one of that group of +distinguished women, not blue but brilliant, who adorned England in the +eighteenth century by their idiosyncrasies as much as by their +abilities. She was courted and beloved by characters so famous as Gay's +Duchess of Queensberry and George the Second's Lady Suffolk, and by Mrs. +Montagu, who was much more blue than brilliant; for her essay on +Shakespeare, so much lauded by her contemporaries, has long been dead +and buried. In her dear Mrs. Pitt's conversation, declared this paragon +of pedants, she saw Minerva without the formal owl on her helmet. + +Among men she corresponded with her neighbour, Horace Walpole (who felt +for her an affection tempered with alarm), Lord Chesterfield, and Lord +Mansfield. 'She had charms enough to kindle a passion in the celebrated +Lord Lyttelton,' says Camelford; Dr. Ayscough, a coarse and crafty +ecclesiastic, whose acquaintance Pitt and Lyttelton had made at Oxford, +and who was a trusted adviser of Frederick, Prince of Wales, sought her +in marriage;[44] but there seem no other traces of the tender passion in +her life. For the whim, if it indeed were not a joke, which made her ask +Lady Suffolk to assist her to secure the hand of Lord Bath (then about +seventy, when she herself was forty-six), hardly comes under that +description. Ann was, indeed, made rather for admiration than for love. +Bolingbroke, who called William 'Sublimity Pitt,' called Ann 'Divinity +Pitt.'[45] But she was, one may gather, destitute of beauty,[46] and +her vigorous originality of character and conversation inspired, we +suspect, more awe than affection. The delightful sprightliness of youth +is apt with age or encouragement to sour into a blistering insolence, +and Ann had all the sarcastic powers of her brother. For example, +Chesterfield calling on her in his later life complained of decay. 'I +fear,' he said, 'that I am growing an old woman.' 'I am glad of it,' +briskly replied Ann, 'I was afraid you were growing an old man, which +you know is a much worse thing.'[47] An attractive, even fascinating, +member of society, she was something too formidable for the ordinary man +to take to his bosom and his hearth. Reviewing her life, we think that +the real and sole object of her love was her brother William, even when +her love for the moment vented itself, as love sometimes does, in +quarrel. Strife was necessary to the Pitts, and when they waged war with +each other it was no battle of roses. The disputes of lovers and +relatives, like amicable lawsuits, are apt to become serious affairs, +and with this race they were conflicts of the tomahawk. Be that as it +may, and whatever the cause, William and Ann adored each other, kept +house together, and then quarrelled with prodigious violence and effect. +At present we are not near that point. Ann is her brother's 'little +Nan,' 'little Jug,' and he is writing her the delightful letters +contained in this chapter, written, says Camelford, who preserved them, +with the passion of a lover rather than that of a brother. To us they +represent rather the special relation of a brother and sister, when +affection and intimacy have grown with their growth, from the nursery +and the schoolroom to riper years, not unfrequently the sweetest and +tenderest of human connections. Our only regret must be that William did +not cherish Ann's letters as she did his, for they may well have +possessed her peculiar charm. 'She equalled her brother, Lord Chatham,' +writes her nephew, who knew them both well, 'in quickness of parts, and +exceeded him in wit and in all those nameless graces and attentions by +which conversation is enlivened and endeared.' At the same time, one may +reluctantly admit that such letters of hers as survive, give one little +desire for more. The same, however, may be said of her great brother's +habitual epistles (for they can be called nothing less); and their +correspondence together was something apart, the gay and engaging +eclogue of two young hearts; so that Ann, like William, must have been +at her best in her early letters to him. + +And so we set forth these delightful letters of a lad of twenty-two to +his favourite sister. They need no comment; of the allusions no +explanation can now be given or would be worth giving; but the letters +speak for themselves.[48] + + + _Boconnock, Jany 3, 1730._ + + Dear Nanny,--As you have degraded my sheets From ye rank and + Quality of a Letter, merely for Containing a few Innocent Questions, + I am determin'd to avoid such rigour for the future by Confining + myself to bare narration: first, Then we are to have a ball this + week at Mr. Hawky's Child-feast, (a Heathenish Name for the + Christian Institution of Baptism), where the Ladies intend to shine + most irresistably, and like enfants perdus, thrust themselves in the + very front of ye Battle, break some stubborn Tramontanne Hearts, or + Die of the spleen upon the spot. The next thing I have to say, + (Don't be afraid of a Question) Is, that we set out ye end of the + same week, and propose seeing you about a week after our departure. + I'l say no more, least I should forget ye restrictions I have Laid + myself under and launch out into some Impious enquiries that don't + suit my sex. Adieu, Dearest Nanny, till I have the pleasure of + seeing you at Bath.[49] + + +The next letter is from Swallowfield, one of the Pitt houses. Ayscough +has proposed to Ann. He is a favourite butt of William's, who seems to +rejoice in his discomfiture. + + + _Swallowfeild, Sep. ye 29th, 1730._ + + I am quite tired of waiting for a letter from my Dear Nanny, and am + determin'd by way of revenge to fatigue you as much by obliging you + to read a very long letter from myself, as you have me with the + eager expectation of receiving one from you. The excuse you assign'd + for not doing it sooner fills me with apprehensions for your health; + Is it that you still converse only with Doctor Bave,[50] or that you + have already changed the old Physician for the young Galant? Is it + the want of conversation That denies you matter, or the entire + engagement to it that won't allow you time for a letter? Be it as it + will, I flatter myself into a beleif of the Latter, chusing rather + to be very angry with you for your neglect of me, than sincerely + afflicted for your want of health. I desire I may know from yourself + what advances you make towards your recovery; you never can want a + subject to write to me upon, while you have it in your power to + entertain me with a prospect of seeing you perfectly restored to + health, and in consequence of that to the sprightly exertion of your + understanding and full display (as my Lady Lynn elegantly has it) of + your Primitive Beauties. Why shou'd I mention Ayscough's overthrow! + That is a conquest perhaps of a nature not so brilliant as to touch + your heart with much exultation; But lett me tell you, a man of his + wit in one's suite has no Ill air; You may hear enough of eyes and + flames and such gentle flows of tender nonsense from every Fop that + can remember, but I can assure you Child, a man can think that + declares his Passion by saying Tis not a sett of Features I admire, + &c. Such a Lover is the Ridiculous Skew,[51] who Instead of + whispering his soft Tale to the woods and lonely Rocks, proclaims to + all the world he loves Miss Nanny--Fath (_sic_)--with the same + confidence He wou'd pronounce an Heretical Sermon at St. Mary's. I + must quit your admirer to enquire after the condition of the Colonel + and his Lady,[52] and to assure' em of my most hearty wishes for + Their health and happiness. I beg leave to repeat the same to Miss + Lenard, who I hope will recruit her spirits after so much affliction + with ye holsome Application of a Fiddle. I shall communicate to you + next Post a Translation of an Elegy of Tibullus By Lyttelton, who + orders me to say it was done for you:[53] I shall then be able to + say whether I go to Cornwall or no, so that you may know how to + direct to me. + + I need not say what you are to do with the hair enclosed to you from + Mrs. Pitt. Adieu dear Nanny. + + +The next letter is from Blandford, where the writer is stopping on his +way to Boconnoc, which he gives as his address at the end of the letter. +He is still occupied with his sister's career as a flirt. + + + _Blanford: Oct. ye 13th. 1730._ + + As we mutually complain'd of the silence of Each other, so I + conclude we mutually have Forgiven it: But had I continued it, my + Dear, Till I had something more entertaining to talk of Than an + execrable journey to Cornwall, perhaps You might not have had much + reason to complain of me. I have not had a minute's pleasure from + my own thoughts since I left Swallowfeild, till now I give them up + entirely to you, and Paint you to myself in the hands of some + agreeable Partner, as happy as the new way of wooing can make you. I + can not help suggesting To you here a little grave advice, which is, + not to lett your glorious Thirst of Conquest transport You so far, + as to lose your health in acquiring Hearts: I know I am a bold man + to dissuade One from dansing a great deal that danses very + gracefully; but once more I repeat, beware of shining too much; + content yourself to be healthy first, even tho you suspend your + triumphs a week or ten days. I beg I may not be misconstrued To + insinuate anything here in favour of my own sex, or to serve the + sinister ends of an envious Sister or two; no; I scorn such mean + artifices. In God's Name, when the waters have had their Effect, + give no Quarter, faites main basse upon all you meet, a coup + d'eventelle, a coup d'Oeil: spare neither age nor condition: but + like an Unskilfull Generall don't begin to take the Feild till your + military stores are provided and your magazines well furnish'd. Thus + Have I acquitted myself not only as an able but honest Counsellour, + and ventured to represent to you your true Interest, tho' never so + distastefull. Adieu, my Dear Nanny, till you renew our Conversation + by a speedy letter. My sincere respects to the Col. and family. + + _Boconnock Near Bodmin._ + + +Next comes the letter in which he curses Boconnoc, but only because of +its remoteness. He lives, it may be presumed, at the family house from +economy. But he is not at ease about Ann's health, and longs to be at +Bath to be with her. + + + _Boconnock. Novr ye 15th 1730._ + + I read all my Dear Nanny's letters with so much pleasure, that I + grow more and more out of temper with ye remoteness of this cursed + hiding place, where The distance of some hundred Miles denies me the + Repetition of it so often as I eagerly desire. But as much as I am + pleas'd with the prettiness of your style and manner of writing, I + cant help feeling a sensible uneasiness to hear no news of your + amendment; cou'd my Dear Girl add that to them, they wou'd give me a + satisfaction that wou'd bear some proportion to The degree of your + Esteem, you convince me I possess. We are all sollicitous to hear + Doctor Baves opinion of your case, which I beg you will not fail to + send me in your next letter, You will before this reaches you, have + recd a letter from my Brother, which I hope will give you perfect + satisfaction with regard to your further demands. As I shall not go + to London Before my Brother, it will not be absolutely in my Power + to see you in my way: I am not however without hopes of prevailing + upon him to go from Blanford to Bath, which is not above thirty + Miles. Beleive me I shall have it at heart to make you this visit, + having two such powerful motives to it, as my Own Pleasure and + yours. All proofs of your affection To me are highly agreeable, and + I am willing to measure the value you may set upon mine to you, By + the same favourable standard. Be assured therefore I shall lett slip + no occasion of giving what I shall in my turn receive with infinite + pleasure: Pray assure Colonel Lanoe and his family of my good + wishes; and let us know what benefit they receive from the waters. I + have time for no more. Adieu My Dear Girl.[54] + + +He was now apparently with his regiment at Northampton, though he was +not gazetted till February. + + + _Northton. Jan. 7, 1731._ + + I am just in my Dear Nanny's Condition, when she tells me she sat + down determin'd to write tho' she had Nothing to say: but I know not + how it comes to pass, One has a pleasure in saying and hearing very + nothings, where one loves: while I have my paper before me I Fancy + myself in company with you, and while you read my letters, you hear + me chattering to you, tis at least an interruption to working or + reading, that serves to diversify Things a little, to be forced to + run your eyes over a side or Two of paper; tho' it says nothing at + all. I remember, when I saw you last, you had a thought of reading + and Translating Voiture's letters: I beg you will take him up as + soon as you have got through this of mine, To recompense you for the + dullest of Letters, what will you Have me do? I come from two hours + muzzy conversation To a house full of swearing Butchers and Drunken + Butter women, and in short all the blessings of a market day: In + such a situation what can the wit of man suggest to him? Oh for the + restless Tongue of Dear little Jug! She never knows the painful + state of Silence In the midst of uproar: for my Part I think I cou'd + write a better letter in a storm at sea, or in my own way, at a + Bombardment, than in my present situation. I won't have this called + a Conversation: it shall pass for a mute interview, adieu my Dearest + Nanny: preserve your health is ye only word of consequence I can + say to-night. + + Compliments to my Sis. Pitt, and all my Friends that come in your + way.[55] + + +Now, for the only time in his life perhaps, we find him engaged +reluctantly in drinking bouts, the necessary discipline of a military +mess in those days. He refers to the amiability of Charles Feilding in a +later letter. + + + _Northton. Febry ye 9. 1731._ + + I have been a monstrous time out of my Dearest Nanny's Company; the + date of your Letter before me, Me fait de sanglantes reproches: I + say nothing in my own behalf, but Frankly confess, in aggravation of + my silence, that I have neglected you for a course of drunken + conversation, which I have some days been in. The service wou'd be + the most inactive life in ye world if Charles Feilding was out of + it; As long as he is with us, we seldom remain long without pretty + smart Action: I am just releiv'd by one night's rest, from an + attaque that lasted sixteen hours, but as a Heroe should never + boast, I have done ye state some service and they know't--no more + of that. + + What shall I talk of to my dear Girl? I have told her I love Her, in + every shape I cou'd think of: we'l converse in French and tell one + another ye same things under the Dress of Novelty. Mon aimable + Fille, rien ne m'est si doux que de recevoir de votre part les + marques d'une ardente amitie, si ce n'est de vous en donner + moi-meme. I did not think I cou'd have wrote a sentence so easily, + mais les paroles obeissent toujours aux sentiments du coeur. Let me + tell you once more, in plain English, your letter was infinitely + pretty; you may leave off Voiture whenever you please. I hope little + Jug is still talking at Boconnock; how Fares it with my Statira, my + angry Dear? I can think of nothing so likely to bring her into + Temper, as telling Her, her Skew will soon revisit ye groves of + Boconnock, where they may pass ye Long Day, and tend a few sheep + together. I beg she'l accept of ye following stanza I met with by + chance in some french poesy, and put a Tune to it, which She may + warble in honour of her gentle loveing shepherd: + + Dans ces Lieux solitaires + Daphnis est de retour: + Deesse de Cythere + Celebre ce grand jour: + Rapellez sur ces rives + Les amours envoles, + Les graces fugitives + et les Ris exiles. + + my Love and services to all Freinds: My Brother gives me ye + pleasure of hearing my Sistr Pitt is very well: pray make my + apologies for not writing to her. + + Adio Anima mia bella, + Dolce speranza mia. + + WM PITT. + + +He has now come to London apparently to kiss hands for his commission. +How little George II. can have realised what his relations were to be +with the raw young cornet. + + + _London: March ye 5: 1731._ + + I thank my Dearest Nanny for her Letter Though it abused me, I think + without Reasonable Grounds: tis true I dont write so often as I wish + to see you, yet I won't allow I have let our conversation suffer any + considerable Interruption. I Have had no opportunity yet of + cultivating any farther acquaintance with Mr Molinox than by + receiving his name and leaving Mine: I shall need no other + inducement to his Freindship than the presumption of his civility to + you, which your letter gives me reason to think: I shall ever esteem + Any Man deserving of my regard who loves In any degree what so + thoroughly merits and possesses my Heart as my Dear Girl. I have the + pleasure of telling you my Commission is sign'd and I have Kiss'd + hands for it, so that my Country Quarters won't be Cornwall this + Summer. You are like to have Company soon with you, Hollins having + ordered my Sister Pitt the Bath immediately: what becomes of the two + poor vestals I dont yet know. the Town produces nothing new, as the + Place you are in I suppose, produces absolutely nothing at all: kill + some of your time by writing often to one who will always contribute + to make you pass it more pleasurably, when in his Power. Adieu, + recover yr health, and preserve Chearfulness enough to give your + Understanding a fair light.[56] + + Yrs most sensibly + W. PITT. + + +The next letter was written in the midst of what would now be called a +bear-fight, carried on apparently in the room of the demure Lyttelton. + + + _London. March ye 13: 1731._ + + I am now lock'd into George's room; the girls Thundering at the door + as if Heaven and Earth would come together: I am certainly the + warmest Brother, or the coldest Gallant In the Universe, to suffer + the gentle Impertinencies the sportly Sollicitations of two girls + not quite despicable without emotion, and bestow my Time and spirits + upon a Sister: But in effect the thing is not so strange or + unreasonable, for every Man may have Girls worthy his attention, but + few, sisters so conversible as my Dear Nanny. Tis impossible to say + much, amidst this rocking of the doors Chairs and tables: I fancy + myself in a storm Of the utmost danger and horror; and were I really + in one, I would not cease to think of my Dear Girl, till I lost my + fears and Trepidations in the object of my tenderest care and + sincerest zeal. let the winds roar, and the big Torrent burst! I + won't leave my Nanny for any Lady of you all, but with the warmest + assurance of unalterable affection, Adieu.[57] + + +He is now once more in country quarters, grievously hipped. The allusion +to the barmaid 'who young at the bar is just learning to score' reads +like a line from some forgotten song. In his despair he threatens to get +drunk. + + + _Northampton April ye 9th. 1731._ + + After neglecting my Dear Girl so many Posts In the joys of London, I + should be deservedly Punished by the Loss of your correspondence now + I very much stand in need of it: I am come from an agreeable set of + acquaintance in Town to a Place, where the wings of Gallantry must + Be terribly clip'd, and can hope to soar No higher than to Dolly, + who young at the Bar is just Learning to score--what must I do? my + head is not settled enough to study; nor my heart light enough to + find amusement In doing nothing. I have in short no resource But + flying to the conversation of my distant Freinds and supplying the + Loss of the jolis entretiens I have left behind by telling my greifs + and hearing myself pity'd. I shall every Post go near to waft a sigh + from Quarters to the Bath, which you shall rally me very prettyly + upon, suppose me in Love, laugh at my cruel fate a little, then bid + me hope for a Fair wind and better weather. I entreat you Be very + trifling and badine, send me witty letters or I must chear my heart + at the expense Of my head and get drunk with bad Port To kill time. + My sister is by this time with You and I hope the Girls: my Love to + her and bid her send away her husband and drink away. my spirits + flag, et je n'en puis plus, adieu. + + +One would guess, but one can only guess, that the following letter +referred to some project of marrying William, which Ann dreaded as +causing a separation from her. + + + _Northampton. May ye 21: 1731._ + + What shall I say to my Dearest Nanny for sinking into a tenderness + below ye dignity of her spirit and Genius? I sat down with a + resolution to scold you off for a little Loving Fool, but Find + myself upon examination your very own Brother and as fond of + receiving such testimonies of the Excess of yr affection, as you + are of Bestowing them: t'wou'd be more becoming ye Firmness of a + man to reprove you a little upon this occasion, and advise you to + fortify your Mind against any such Separation as you so kindly + apprehend, but as your fears are, I believe at present Groundless, I + chuse rather To talk to you like an affectionate Freind, than a + stern Philosopher and return every Fear you Feel for me with a most + ardent wish for your Happiness: Beleive me t'will wound my Quiet to + be forced to do anything to disturb yours, But shou'd such an event + as you are alarm'd at, arrive, your own reason will soon convince + your tender Fears, there is but one Party for me to take: All the + Dictates of Prudence, all the Considerations of Interest must + determine me to it: But I am Insensibly drawn in to prove I ought to + do, what There is no appearance I shall have in my Power to do, + therefore my Dear Girl, suspend your Inquietudes, as I will my + Arguments, and think I Long to see you in ye full enjoyment of yr + Health and Spirits, which I hope to be able to do early in August. + Adieu my Dearest Nanny, Love me and preserve your own happiness. + + I never recd a Line from my Sister Pitt. + + But will write to her soon. I hope she is well.[58] + + +This next letter is taken up with poking fun at Ayscough. The 'poor +nuns' would be Pitt's sisters, whom he calls elsewhere the 'poor +vestals.'[59] + + + _North'ton June ye 17: 1731._ + + My Dear Nanny's letter from Bath gave me so many Pleasures that I + don't know which to thank her for first: the Prettiness of it tells + me she has more sense than her sex, the affection of it declares she + is more capable of Freindship Than her sex: and to compleat my joy, + It assures me she no longer wants her health: which may Heaven + continue to my Dear Girl! If anything can make me devout, t'is my + Zeal for your happiness: However don't let the Parson[60] know this + Prayer escaped me for fear she (_sic_) shou'd be malicious enough to + Tell me of it in company some time or other at Quarters. I am glad + he is with you: he will prove as good an enlivener of the spirits + and invigourate the conversation amongst you, as much as Bath waters + do The Blood. Be sure not to suffer him to be Indolent and withdraw + his Wit from ye Service of ye Company: I know ye Dog sometimes + grows tired of being laugh't at: But no matter: insist upon his + being a Man of humour every Day but Sunday. I expect you will all + Three Lose your reputations in ye country for him: and indeed + there's no Intimacy with one of His Cloath without too much room for + Suspicion: But as you don't expect to make your fortune there, The + thing is not so deplorable. You will be mutually Happy in meeting + the Poor Nuns again: I very much fear I shall not partake of that + pleasure so soon as August: Beleive me I long for nothing more than + to see you all well and happy: I break off ye Conversation with + great reluctance To go to Supper: Adieu Dearest Nanny. + + +Ann was now to be a maid of honour and venture on the new world of a +court. So she asks advice of her sage young brother, and he gives his +admonitions in French, probably from fear of the Post Office. + + + Undated. + + Vous voulez que je vous dise, mon aimable, ce que je pense de la vie + que vous allez mener a la cour; votre Interest, qui me touche de + pres, m'y fait faire mille Reflexions: en voici mon Idee. Le cour me + paroit une mer peu aisee a naviger, mais qui ne manque pas d'ouvrir + aux mariniers bien entendus le commerce le plus avantageux; j'entens + l'art de connoitre le monde et de s'en faire connoitre agreablement: + Un Esprit habile sans artifice, et un coeur gai sans legerete vous + rendent ce voiage pleins d'agrements et de plaisirs, pendant que la + vertu qui ne se dement jamais, est l'Etoile fixe qui vous empeche de + vous y egarer. + + En effet n'est-il pas a souhaiter pour une Personne qu'on aime, et + dont on connoit bien les forces, de la voir exposee a un tel point, + qu'elle ne puisse s'en tirer qu'avec le secours du bon sens et de la + Prudence? Ce sont les difficultes qui donnent au merite tout son + jour, et souvent elles en font naitre: Vous en avez, mon aimable, et + il ne s'agit que de le mettre en oeuvre: mais voici ce qui vous + embarasse: La Modestie, qui en est une Considerable, cache mille + autres vertus en se montrant toujours elle-meme; Elle ne laisse pas + en cela de faire un peu le Tyran: elle nous fait souvenir de ces + meres qui par un excez de Pruderie derobent leurs Filles aux yeux du + monde, toutes aimables qu'elles soient, mais que cette Modestie + songe a prendre quelque fois le Parti de la retraite, et qu'elle + scache qu'on ne la regrette gueres, quand on voit quelque belle + vertu briller a sa place. + + a mon avis il n'y a rien de si outree que l'idee que de certaines + gens se sont fait de la cour des Princes: Ils ne s'y figurent que + l'Envie et ses noirceurs, la Perfidie, et les suites funestes de + l'amour deregle: ils en enlaidissent tellement la ressemblance qu'on + ne la reconnoit plus: pour vous, ma chere, Ie ne vous conseille ni + de vous troubler la cervelle d'affreuses Chimeres, ni de vous + endormir tout a fait a l'ombre de la securite. Pour ce qui est de + l'amour, il seroit ridicule d'entreprendre de vous en Tracer le + Portrait, Il ne se fera comprendre que par Luimeme: en un mot, qu'il + soit un Dieu bienfaissant ou qu'il ne soit qu'un Demon malin, donnez + vous garde de l'offenser, car, effectivement, c'est un Personnage a + represailles: enfin en quelque caractere que vous le voyez, Il vous + le faudra respecter: dans l'un vous l'aimerez comme fidele + chretienne; dans l'autre, reverez le afin qu'il ne vous fasse point + de mal. adieu ma tres chere. + + +William has now set out on his foreign tour, of which we caught some +glimpses in letters to his mother. We have already had his letter to his +mother from Paris. + + + _Paris May ye 3rd: N.S. 1733._ + + I don't know whether my Dearest Nanny is not at this moment angry + with me for not writing sooner; But cou'd you see the hurry this + Place throws a man into upon his arrival, you wou'd rather wonder I + write at all. I have done nothing since I came to Paris, but run up + and down and see; so that beleive me it is a sort of Novelty to set + down and think: Tis with pleasure I return to you from The variety + of fine sights which have engaged me; my eyes have been long enough + entertain'd, to give my Heart leisure to indulge itself in a short + conversation with my Dear Girl. It may sound oddly to say I love you + best at a great distance, but surely absence best shows us the Value + of a Thing, by making us feel how much we want it: I find already I + shall have many vacant hours that wou'd be agreably fill'd up with + the company of something one esteems; but I must comfort myself a la + francoise, le bannis la Sagesse et la Raison; c'est de notre vie le + Poison. I shall set out for Besancon in franche comte In three or + four days, where I shall stay till autumn, write often and direct to + me chez Monsr Alexandre Banquier dans la Rue St. Appoline Pres de + la Porte St. Denis a Paris who will Take care to send them to me. I + hope you like your way of Life better every Day; I don't know + whether you may not be said to be travelling too; France is hardly + newer to me than Court was to you; may you find the Country mend + upon you the farther you advance in it: bon voyage ma chere, and may + you find at your journey's end as good an inn as matrimony can + afford you. I am + + Your most afft Brother + W. PITT. + + My Love to Kitty and Harriot. I cou'd not write to all and you are + the only one I was sure to find. + + I write this Post to Skew; if he is not in Town, enquire at his + Lodgings for ye letter and send it. I hope my Brother reced my + Letter.[61] + + +The next letter leaves him at Besancon, the ancient capital of +Franche-Comte, wrested from the Spaniards in 1678, and now become a +French fortress, famous for its silver watches. Here Pitt loses his +heart. + + + _Besancon. June the 5: 1733. N.S._ + + I receiv'd my Dear Nanny's letter yesterday: it has no Date, but I + imagine by some of the Contents it has been a tedious time upon the + road. The direction I left was a very proper one and particular + enough, Alexander being generally known at Paris, so that the street + of his abode is unnecessary: however To be very sure of meeting with + no disappointment In a pleasure I desire to indulge myself in as + often as you'l let me, direct to me at Alexander's dans la rue St. + Appoline pres de la Porte St. Denis a Paris, who will carefully + transmit all letters to me, wherever I am. The pleasure you give me + in the account of Kitty's recovery, is disagreably accompanied with + that of Poor Harriot's Relapse into an ill State of Health; which I + too much fear will never be removed till her mind is made a little + easy: I never think of her but with great uneasiness, my tenderness + for her begins to turn to sorrow and affliction; I consider her in a + great degree lost, and buried almost in an unsuccessfull Ingagement: + You have all my warmest wishes for your happiness and prosperity. I + persuade myself you are in the high road to them, make the best of + your way I beg of you; and contrive to finish your Travels by the + time of my return. I can say but little of Besancon yet: The Place + is externally pretty enough how it will prove upon a more intimate + knowledge of it, I can't say. My Lord Walgrave was so good as to + procure me letters For the Commandant and a Lady of this Place who + passes for the finest Woman here. I have had the honour to dine with + her at her campagne, where I was very handsomely regaled: what + ressource Her acquaintance will be, I shall be better able to judge + after another visit or two. + + Skew hinted something to me concerning Kitty, which he said was not + quite chimerical. If it be any suite of my Mother's project for her + I doubt the Success. I have not Heard a word from my Brother, tho' I + have wrote to him three times. If he han't received them all let him + know it. + + I find Sir James Gray here, who is a very pretty sort of Man and + once more my schoolfellow; between my letters and the acquaintance + he has made in the Town, we shall be of some Use to one another. + Adieu. + + Your most afft Freind and Brother + W. PITT. + + I wish you joy of Lord William's Match. + + +He is next found at Marseilles, where he discovers that he is still sore +from his love affair at Besancon. + + + _Marseilles, sep: ye 1: 1733._ + + j'ai honte a regarder la datte de votre derniere lettre, a laquelle + je vai faire reponse: vous me dites ma Chere, que vous etes fort + aise que vos lettres me fassent plaisir, d'autant plus que vous + croiez en avoir obligation plutot a ma prevention pour vous, qu'a + votre merite. Qu'y a-til de plus obligeant Pour moi ou de plus + injuste pour vous meme? + + Il est vrai que je vous aime a un point qui passe bien souvent dans + le monde pour aveuglement: mais je pretens vous aimer en + connoisseur, je veux que le gout et la raison fassent ici ce que + l'entetement fait d'ordinaire ailleurs. ne guerirez vous jamais de + cette modestie outree? de grace ne faites plus Tort a vous meme par + une humilite qui n'est pas de ce bas lieu, et cessez de louer mon + amitie aux depens de mon gout. + + Vous voiez par la datte de ceci que je suis a Marseilles, j'y suis + depuis deux jours et conte d'en partir dans deux ou trois jours pour + Monpelier, ou nous ferons un sejour a peu pres comme celui que nous + ferons ici: je crois passer l'hiver a Luneville, et de[62] a Lyon + par Geneve et le long du Rhin a Strasbourg d'ou je me rendrai en + Lorraine. je viens de quitter Besancon avec infiniment de regrets: + voulez vous que je me confesse a vous? j'y avois un plus fort + attachement que je ne croiois, avant que de me Trouver sur le Point + de partir: tant il est vrai que l'on ne sent jamais si bien le prix + d'une chose Que lorsque il la faut perdre. Nous y avions de fort + aimables connoissances, et je trouve presentement a plus de soixante + Lieues de loin, que j'y aurois passer l'hyver volontiers, je n'en ai + pas tout a travers du coeur, mais toutefois j'en ai. adieu ma chere, + faites moi d'abord reponse, et imputez mon silence passe a toute + autre cause que a un refroidissement pour vous. je suis avec tout la + tendresse du monde + + votre affectionne Serviteur + W. PITT.[63] + + +And now he has arrived at Luneville, the city of the moon, once +dedicated to the worship of Diana, but at this time devoted to the +manufacture of glass and pottery. In four years it was to be enlivened +by the gay court of Stanislas; but it was now a provincial town, +occupied provisionally by the French in defiance of its absentee Duke, +Francis, afterwards Emperor of Germany. Pitt is not yet cured of his +passion. It is painful to him to revive it by giving a description of +the lady, and he seems to feel her want of noble birth as if he had +contemplated marriage. + + + _Luneville ce 12: d'octob. N.S. 1733._ + + Votre lettre me rejouit fort en m'apprenant que votre vie est + heureuse: quand vous ne me manderiez que cela une fois la semaine, + votre commerce me donneroit toute la satisfaction du monde: mais + d'ailleurs il y'a, mon aimable, un tour agreable dans tout ce que + vous me dites, qui me rend votre conversation charmante. La + tendresse de ses amis, en quelque expression que ce soit, nous + touche; mais quand elle se presente a nous d'une maniere aisee et + delicate, l'esprit participe a la satisfaction que la coeur en + recoit. + + Vous me demandez le Portrait de la Belle: faites vous bien attention + a quoi vous m'allez engager? je commence a respirer et vous voulez me + replonger dans les douleurs que m'a causees sa perte, en m'obligeant + de renouveller dans mon esprit les traits qui s'en etoient empares. + L'absence est un grand Medecin: je me suis si bien trouve de ses + remedes que je ne desespere pas d'en pouvoir revenir: laissez lui + faire encore un peu et je vous ferai le Portrait, que vous me + demandez, assez a l'aise. Cependant trouvez bon que je vous en fasse + seulement un crayon (a la hate?) en vous disant que, quoique son + coeur fut certainement neuf, son esprit ne l'etoit point (j'en parle + comme de feu ma Flamme) que sa Taille etoit grande et des plus + parfaites, son air simple avec quelque chose de noble; Pour ses + Traits je n'y touche pas: suffit que vous sachiez que ce fut de ces + beautes d'un grand effet, et que sa Physionomie prononcat quelque + chose des qualites d'une ame admirable ne vous attendez pas pour le + present Que je vous en donne un detail si exact que vous en puissiez + la reconnoittre si elle se trouvoit sur votre chemin: je n'ose m'y + laisser aller davantage: nous en parlerons un jour plus amplement: + mais avant de quitter son chapitre il faut que je vous dise tout: + Elle n'a point de titre ni de grand nom qui impose; et c'est la le + diable. C'est simplement Madamoiselle de ---- fille cadette de Monsr + de ---- ecuyer a Besancon: Religieuse, Vous avez bien dit que j'en + parlerai volontiers: de quoi vous avisez vous de mettre un homme sur + le chapitre de ses amours? Vous saviez que quand on y est, on ne + scait jamais ou finir, et que vous vous exposez a essuier tout ce qui + vient au bout de sa plume, voila trop parler de mes affaires: parlons + un peu des votres: faisons des demandes par rapport a certain peuple + connu sous le titre d'amants. Parler franchement et donnez m'en des + nouvelles, vous ne scauriez etre si content que vous l'etes so vous + n'aviez range quelque coeur sous vos lois: adieu: aimons nous + toujours et songeons a nous render heureux. + + W. PITT. + + No one can be more sensible than I am of the esteem of Charles + Feilding, nor more disposed to do justice to the amiableness of his + character. + + +Six weeks afterwards all trace of his love affair has disappeared; it is +not the mere cessation of pain, it is oblivion. + + + _Luneville. Nov. ye 22: 1733._ + + Les verites obligeantes que vous me dites, ne me sont pas seulement + cheres par le fond de tendresse qu'elles me font vous connoitre pour + moi, elles le sont au dernier point par la maniere agreable dont + vous les tournez: j'aime autant que votre coeur s'explique avec moi + en bon Anglois qu'en bon francois, d'autant plus que ce qu'on dit en + sa langue maternelle paroit encore plus Naturel, et c'est la ce qui + fait le principal merite des lettres d'amitie, je suis charme, mon + aimable Bonne, de l'air content dont vous m'ecrivez, j'ai un plaisir + aussi sensible a me figurer que vous etes heureuse, que vous etes + gaie, que j'en pourrois repentir moimeme de tout ce que la joie et + la gaiete me pourrait offrir: je vous suis present que si l'etois + Dans le cabinet a Cote de votre Toilette. Je n'ai plus rien a vous + dire de Mademoiselle. + + C'etoit de ces flammes passageres, un eclair qui a passe si vite + qu'il n'en reste pas le moindre vestige. j'ai oublie jusque au + portrait que je vous en ai fait: n'allez pas m'accuser de legerete, + voila comme il faut etre en voiage: je me fais un fond de constance + pour mon retour. Souvenez vous de garder votre parole en me faisant + la confidence de vos premieres amours: que le terme ne vous choque + pas, je l'entends avec les circonstances qu'il faut. Je ne doute pas + que vous ne m'en fassiez bientot, au moins si vous avez autant de + franchise que je me l'imagine. adieu, ma chere, je vous--(torn)--de + terribles bagatelles: mais je ne'en scai rien--(torn) + + Votre tres affectionne + W. PITT. + + If Miss Molly Lyttelton is in Town, I wish you may see one another + often, and make a Friendship.[64] + + +The two following letters contain obscure allusions, which, so far as we +can now interpret them, appear to indicate that Thomas Pitt at any rate +was at this time a ministerialist and supporter of Sir Robert Walpole. + + + _Newbury Octbr ye 24: 1734._ + + Dear Nanny,--You may conceive I was a good deal surprised at Mr + Harrison's modest proposal: I thought it indeed so monstrous, that + ye best way of treating it was not to vouchsafe it any answer, + especially as it did not come immediately from Him: I cannot + conceive how poor Harriot cou'd think of employing Herself in such a + message, or at least that she wou'd not understand my neglect in + answering it, to be (what it is) a thorough contempt of the Noble + Colonel's ridiculous offer. My first astonishment is a little abated + by hearing he was encouraged to it by my Brother at Paris, I mean my + astonishment as to him; For the latter, I have done wondering at + any the most Inscrutable of his proposed designs: it must be + confess'd, this last (if true) is not inferiour to any of the + brightest passages of his conduct: removeing me to bring in a Person + declared in Opposition, and who it is proposed shou'd pay me, + instead of reimbursing him his expences at Oakhampton. I can talk no + more of him; I'll endeavour to put him out of my mind till January. + + I am extremely pleased to see the time of my deliverance from my Inn + approach, a month more will bring me to you, when I shall be as + happy as the endless disapointments and difficulties I have to + encounter, will allow me: all I have of happiness is confined to you + and my friend George; you may easily judge of my Impatience to be + with you; I suppose he's still at Stowe. I am pleased with ye + honour done me to (sic) Lady Suffolk, the more as I am sure it gave + you pleasure. Adieu Dear Nanny. + + Most affecy yrs + W. PITT.[65] + + + _Newbury. Nov: ye 7. 1734._ + + Dear Nanny,--I have been persecuted with a succession of little + impertinent complaints; I have been deliver'd some time of my broken + tooth, by the most dextrous operator, I beleive, in the World, but + am at present in my Room with a sore throat, which is very + troublesome to me. I wou'd not have You be very uneasy at Harrison's + proposal; it appears to me, as it did at first, of no consequence, + and deserves being spoken of only for the Impertinence of it. I am + persuaded it is no more than an absurd, sudden thought of ye + Coll's; 'tis hardly possible my Brother shou'd have given his + consent to it as a foundation for Harrison to proceed upon with me. + My Brother's Interest no doubt do's not persuade him to such a + bargain between Harrison and me: if he intends to consult that, in + the disposition of this seat in Parliament, he must certainly rather + oblige me to accept of satisfaction for the loss of it by something + he may obtain for me, and chuse a man more agreeable to Sir Robt. + than Harrison, who will put him two thousand pounds in Pocket: I am + very much deceived if I hear any thing more of it. You misunderstood + me in thinking I had given no sort of answer to the proposal. I was, + I confess, little sollicitous about giving a speedy one or a very + particular one: I said to Harriot in general that I was extremely + surprised at the offer: that an answer was almost needless for the + Coll., if he had thought of it since, must be able to guess what + answer it deserved. that I was sorry she had employ'd herself at all + in so strange a Proposal, in short something to that effect. I + apprehend no difficulties from this affair; if I have any to + encounter they'l come from another Quarter. I wrote to a certain + Gentleman[66] above a month ago, without answer, so judge of his + kind disposition towards me. my Lord Pembroke is very good in + leaving it in my Power to come to Town, if I found it necessary. I + have at present no thoughts of making use of his Indulgence. I want + to see you more than you can imagine. Adieu: + + Yrs most affecly + W. PITT. + + +Lady Suffolk, Ann's principal friend at Court, has now retired from an +ungrateful servitude. The loss must have been great to Ann, who required +more than most an experienced and sagacious friend at her elbow. + + + _Newbury Nov: ye 17: 1734._ + + Dear Nanny,--I was persuaded my Lady Suffolk's removal from court + wou'd affect you in the Manner you tell me it dos: Your Friend + Mrs Herbert, where I dined the day before yesterday, was speaking + of the thing with concern and was sure it wou'd touch you, as much + as any Body: your Greifs are so much mine that it wou'd be needless + to tell you I am sorry for your Loss; I foresee a very disagreeable + consequence to you from this change, which is, that your Friendship + with Her may be charg'd upon you as a crime, and what was before a + support may now be a prejudice to you. Harriot's complaint is far + from giving me any uneasiness, I think nothing but such a necessity + wou'd have made Them do what they indisputably ought to do. my + concern for Her is, that her situation is so bad as to render this + circumstance, (distresfull as it is) necessary to put her into a + better. Poor Girl, what unnatural cruelty and Insolence she has to + suffer from A Person[67] that shou'd be her support and comfort in + this distress: I have heard him say so many hard Things upon this + affair, that I think I do him no injustice to say he will be more + inexorable than the Knight.[68] I suppose Lyttelton is return'd from + Stowe and has found a letter from me Laying for him at the + Admiralty. If he's not come back I am afraid he's ill this Pinching + weather. I continue well, as I was when I wrote to you last. Adieu + Dear Nanny, + + Yrs most affecly + WM. PITT.[69] + + +The letter that follows is important, as it marks an epoch in Pitt's +life: for he was now at Stowe, where he was to make a long stay, and +enrol himself in Cobham's band of connections. He had just entered +Parliament[70] and now commences a politician. But, happily for us, he +has not yet assumed his political dialect. + + + _Stowe. July ye 2: 1735:_ + + Dear Nanny,--I am mighty glad to hear you escaped the headach after + so fatiguing a journey, but I desire that may not prevent your + applying to a Physician: I am extremely pleas'd with the account you + give me of the Person[71] you saw, it is a great step to be able to + seem easy: I wish his mind may ever be as easy, as I have the + pleasure of hearing his affairs are at present, the other Part of + your letter astonishes me: I think he'l not succeed, tho' I assure + you he has my good wishes, for I am persuaded nothing less will ever + extricate him. The turn indeed is very sudden, but since he has + taken it, he'l disgrace himself less by obtaining, than losing. My + Ld Cobham wou'd have been very glad to see you and wish'd I had + brought you, I am sorry you lost so good an opportunity of seeing + Stowe. Adieu + + most affly yrs + WM. PITT. + + I have had other business to write to my Brother upon, which has + hinder'd my speaking of the Orange trees. I'l make Ayscough do it. + + I hope you found Lady Suffolk well. + + +The next letter is burthened with mysterious and anonymous allusions, as +to which conjecture is futile. + + + _Stowe July ye 20: 1735._ + + Dear Nanny,--I am mighty glad you are so well satisfy'd with the + match you give me an account of: I was not surpris'd to hear it, for + I fancy'd I saw it long ago. I have all sort of reasons to wish Her + happy, but to mention no other, She loves you in the manner I am apt + to think one shou'd love you. the Person[72] you think pretty easy, + is far from it: he endeavours to acquiesce under Pain, to bring his + mind, if possible, to such a state of composure as to go through the + duties of Life like an honest and Reasonable Man. our Friends[73] + Repulse is the most scandalous and ignominious of all things. I want + to hear a little of his noble designs for next year: Despair must + produce something Extraordinary in so great a mind. I am seriously + ashamed of him, and if he was to ask my advice what he should do, I + think I cou'd only beg him to do nothing: that Man's whole life is a + sort of consolation to me in my poor little circumstances. He gives + me occasion to reflect too often, that I wou'd not act his Part one + month for twice his estate, but I leave him to talk to you of + yourself: I don't hear what Broxom says of your headach's: if you + have not consulted him you have used me very ill: Pray send for him + and let me know if you are better. Adieu. + + most affectionately Yrs + WM. PITT. + + +Pope and Martha Blount were now at Stowe, so was Lady Suffolk; and +William was polishing himself in the best company. + + + _Stow Sept. ye 2: 1735._ + + Don't say a word more of my never writing, but confess immediately + that you admire my way of writing more than any Body's, that is my + way of sending you Postcripts Every Day: I have nothing to say of + Letters, but Mr Pope[74] says somewhere, 'Heaven first taught + Postscripts for the wretches aid,' etc: you must know I han't a word + to say to you; for I write only to introduce the Postscript, as Mr + Bays wou'd make a Poem to bring in a fine thought, that was none of + his own; I therefore finish to leave more room for my Lady Suffolk. + adieu. + + [In another hand, evidently Lady Suffolk's] how often my Dear Child + have I wish'd you here? I know you wou'd like it, and I know two who + thinks (_sic_) even Stowe wou'd be still more agreeable they talk of + you I believe both Love you; but one can pun, and talk nonsense + wth Mrs Blount most Elegantly remember Saturday and never + forget me, that is, do not be ungratefull. + + +We see in the next letter that Pitt was not merely supping with the +wits, but playing at cricket, with Pope perhaps as umpire. + + + _Stow Septr ye 14: 1735._ + + I am very well pleas'd with the conversation you Had lately, and + that you met with nothing in it that at all corresponds with the + Subject of my former letter: I shall now be at ease, and give myself + no more trouble in thinking and conjecturing about it. I am glad my + Lady Suffolk got so well to Town; if she's not the worse for her + journey, I fancy you are not much so for her return. if she did not + happen to be the most amiable Estimable Person one has seen, I + shou'd still love her For the admirable Talent she has of + Distinguishing and Describing merit, in which she do's not yeild to + the Noble Ld of our acquaintance. if she has done me justice, She + has Told you I was very stupid and play'd very well at Cricket. I + obey'd her orders to my Ld and Lady Cobham; my Lds reflection + was, He wish'd he cou'd take such a journey and do after it just + what she did. when you see Lyttelton, tell him Mr Pope has been + writing a letter to him ever since he has been here, but head-ach + and Laziness has delay'd it, so that I believe He may be time enough + at London to bring the letter to him himself, as he talks of setting + out in a few days. Ayscough has been here, and desires Lyttelton + will mention him to the Speaker for preaching before the House the + next 30th of January sermon. I'l leave off for fear I shou'd think + of half a dozen messages more. + + I am most affecly Yrs + W. PITT. + + direct to me at Stow I am more here than at Touster [?Towcester]. + You must say 'member of Parlt' They make me pay always else. + + +The next two letters deal with some dark transaction relating to wine, +probably smuggled, from Guernsey. + + + _Stow Sept. ye 16: 1735._ + + I am very sorry I can't answer all your Questions this Post, but to + begin with that I can answer the Frame Maker's Name is Bellamy, he + lives in Rupert Street: as to the Guernsey wine, it is a commission + of so secret a Nature, and must be treated with such art and + circumspection, (according to the instructions I am honour'd with) + That I must desire further time to get the lights necessary to the + full discovery of so dark an affair. I have been able to penetrate + no farther than that my Ld Cobham and his Butler are the only + Persons at the bottom of the secret, The one I can't ask he being + abroad; the other I must not, being ty'd up by my orders: there + remains therefore nothing To be done, but to wait the return of the + Butler, or larger Power to treat with my Ld in Person. but to talk + no longer like a Minister, but an humble Servant of my lady + Suffolk's, I desire my compliments to Her, and I'l be sure to send + an answer about the wine next Post. I please myself with thinking + you are free from Head-ach, both as they are very bad things; and + because they are ye effect with you of other uneasiness: be well + and happy, is the only advice you want; and the only means by which + I can be so: + + I am most affecly yrs + W. PITT. + + + _Stowe. Sept. ye 19: 1735._ + + If you happen to write to me once in a week or fortnight I am never + to hear the last of it; but pray admire the exact diligence of my + correspondence: I don't only answer your letter the first Post, but + I continue answering It two or three Posts successively: I am now + only at the second, and you shall see you are not above half + answer'd yet: but to tell you all I can, the Man Mr Hardy, who + sells my Ld Cobham the Wine in Question, is now in Guernsey; the + Buttler will write to his correspondent to know when he is like to + return, which he supposes must be soon--all which my Lady Suffolk + shall be informed of: I expect a clear distinct answer from you to + each letter of the volumes I have lately writ to you. + + Adieu. + + +The following letter alludes in all probability to his brother, and also +to that Richard Grenville who was afterwards so notorious as Lord +Temple. It seems strange when one recalls Temple in maturity to read of +him as Dick, with a careless countenance and jolly laugh. But everybody +has been young. + + + _Stowe. Sept. ye 28: 1735._ + + I don't understand this way of answering two letters in form, avec + un Trait de Plume; I expected you shou'd have told me you had + nothing to tell me in more words, or at least at two different + times: this sort of Correspondence, where one must not talk, seems + rather a sort of visit to shew yourself: I hope you won't be in such + a hurry next time; that I shall see you a little longer, or I shall + call it only leaving your name, after all this, I am not really + angry at the shortness of your last letter; you gave a reason that + satisfied me entirely. I hope our friend is well; I had the Pleasure + of hearing he seem'd in very good Spirits, when Dick Greenville + (sic) saw him; I hope really was so. I suppose You have seen Dick's + careless countenance at Kensington, and that you begin to be + acquainted with his Laugh. I am called to breakfast, so goodby + + Yrs most affectionately + W. PITT. + + +October finds William still at Stowe, and not likely to leave, but he +sends this anxious and tender note to Ann. + + + _Stowe. October ye 5: 1735._ + + My Dear,--I long to be with you to know what the particular + circumstance is that gives you uneasiness: or is it only the Thing + in general? whatever it be, take all the comfort you can in knowing + you act humanely and honourably. it won't be in my Power to see you + till December, and the latter End of it. I am very much at Stowe, + and pass my time as agreeably as I can do at a distance from you at + a time you say you want to talk to me: I hope by your next letter to + hear you have talk'd to yourself upon the Subject of your uneasiness + and don't want my advice: Adieu, + + I am with all affection yrs + W. PITT.[75] + + +The next note deals again with the affair which is causing Ann +uneasiness, but without giving us any clue to it. One cannot however +refrain from the surmise that Ann's temper and tongue had now begun to +get her into trouble. + + + _Stowe. Octobr ye 12: 1735._ + + My dear Child,--I can't by letter enter into particulars relating to + The affair you mention, nor were I with you, cou'd I give you any + other than a general advice, which is, as well as you can to make + yourself and others easy: I know this is saying almost nothing, and + that is the very thing I think you have only to do: I beg you will + be at Quiet as to what you have hitherto done, believe me it is not + only irreproachable, but must do you great honour with whoever know + your conduct. I will say one word more, which is this, that you + shou'd take care not to be misunderstood, at least in any great + degree. This is all I can say to you, who have the warmest concern + for your happiness and am with more affection than I can tell you, + + Yrs W. PITT. + + +There is now an unexplained interval of two years. Some letters have +perhaps been lost or destroyed, one has apparently miscarried; or, still +more probably, the brother and sister have been together. But the next +letter is still dated from Stowe, where William was evidently +established on the most familiar footing. + + + _Stow. Novr ye 6: 1737._ + + You are even with me for all the want of readiness in writing, ever + since I began to correspond: I wou'd tell you how many weeks it is, + since I wrote to you my last unanswer'd letter, if my memory was + strong enough to carry so remote a period of Chronology in my head: + I have sometimes told you I have been ashamed of not writing: I take + this occasion to retract all Declarations of that sort, and tell + you I never was, nor ever will be ashamed of want of regularity in + corresponding, after this last silence of yours: I am aware that you + must throw the blame upon ye Post, and say you never received the + letter in question, and indeed the Doctor has given me an + intimation, yt the thing was to take yt turn, without which you + wou'd not have been troubled even with these reproaches. the Letter + had nothing in it, and yet I had rather you had receiv'd it, if you + are in earnest that you did not. I intend to be in Town the + beginning of December: I shall see Mrs. Nedham at Bampton before I + come: + + Yrs W. PITT. + + I desire you will write immediately to let me know you have no + return of ye disorder you had just before you left Hampton court. + + +In the next he refers to Lord Cornbury, a friend, a Tory, and something +of a Jacobite. He was a great admirer of Pitt, and had indeed written an +ode to him. + + + _Stow. Novr ye 12: 1737._ + + I do not think myself obliged to thank you for your letter, it was a + defence to an accusation, you was under a necessity of pleading and + you did it with the confidence of an old offender, and even went so + far as to recriminate upon yr accuser: but let the act of oblivion + cover all. however that I may thank you for something, I thank you + for haveing hardly any remains of yr cold. Pray keep keeping + yourself well till December, in one week of which month I hope to + see you. Adieu. + + Yrs Most affecly + W. PITT. + + I wish you the Dutchess of Queensbury and Lady Cardigan with all my + heart. How do's Ld Cornbury? + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + + +More than sixteen years elapse between this letter and the next, which +takes us far beyond our present limit, but it is best to finish the +story of Ann. Part of this long interval can be explained by extreme +harmony, and the remainder by the reverse. The mutual devotion of +William and Ann lasted, says Lord Camelford, till he became Paymaster in +May 1746: then they quarrelled. Why, no one knows, or, it is to be +presumed, will ever know. Horace Walpole only says that Pitt shook his +sister off in an unbecoming manner. Camelford thinks that Pitt disliked +Ann's friendship for Lady Bolingbroke, and thought that she was under +the influence of Bolingbroke himself, 'that tawdry fellow, as Lord +Cobham called him.'[76] Pitt, like most other people, except the rare +spirits who loved the brilliant being, profoundly distrusted +Bolingbroke, and may not have wished to see Bolingbroke influence assume +a footing in his house. Perhaps then he remonstrated, perhaps Ann +vindicated her friendship with heat. Between these two fiery natures +words might be exchanged in a moment which years would not obliterate. +Grattan told Rogers that 'Mrs. Ann Pitt, Lord Chatham's sister, was a +very superior woman. She hated him, and they lived like cat and dog. He +could only get rid of her by leaving his house and setting a bill on +it, "This house to let."'[77] If these two Pitts quarrelled in the +fierce Pitt fashion, it is not unlikely that some such expedient would +be adopted. But it must be doubted whether they lived like cat and dog, +else they would have parted long before. Grattan's statement was made in +conversation with all the large outline and picturesque latitude that +conversation allows, and he probably knew nothing about the matter. We +can only surmise. Lord Camelford tells us that up to the time of the +Paymastership (1746) William and Ann had lived together in one of the +small houses in Pall Mall which look into St. James's Square, and that +when he moved to his official residence at the Pay Office he moved +alone. But, as a matter of fact, she had left him some time before, and +gone to live with Lady Bolingbroke at Argeville. We have a letter from +William to Lady Suffolk, dated July 6, 1742, in which he favours the +plan of Ann's living with Lady Bolingbroke, so long as is convenient to +her hostess, and then returning home. Moreover, Pitt himself in October +of this year 1742 was not living in Pall Mall, but had moved to York +Street, Burlington Buildings.[78] Ann had formed a mad project of living +in Paris as a single woman, which William justly discountenanced. +However, she proceeded to Argeville, where George Grenville found her in +September. She may have returned to her brother, but she probably +remained abroad, and her having been with the Bolingbrokes so long, even +with William's sanction, may have made her less welcome to her brother +on her return. + +In June 1751 she was appointed Keeper of the Privy Purse to the +Princess of Wales, and superintendent of the education of the Princess +Augusta, afterwards Duchess of Brunswick. She obtained this appointment, +we are told, through the interest of Mr. Cresset, the confidential +servant and Treasurer of the Princess of Wales, whose authority in the +Court soon afterwards gave way to the ascendancy of Lord Bute; though +Pitt imagined that here again he could trace the hand of Bolingbroke. +'However,' says Lord Camelford, 'thinking she could be useful to him in +so important a post, he sought a reconciliation--he flattered, he +menaced, he insulted, but was rejected.' + +Of these proceedings two records remain in letters which have already +been published, but cannot be omitted here, as they are instinct with +passion and light. Whether they answer to Lord Camelford's description +must be left to the judgment of those who read them. That they are +powerful, tender, and unaffected all must allow. They also contain +quotations from the quarrels which are not devoid of interest. Ann had +declared that William expected absolute deference and a blind submission +to his will; and that he had in several conversations directly explained +to her that, to satisfy him, she must live with him as his slave. On +this point William admits that he did expect some measure of deference +to his views, and that, living together, he thought she might shape her +life in some degree to his. This seems to have been the real ground of +separation. William wished to be master in his own house. Ann could +brook no control. Perhaps the brother may have asked the sister to +discontinue or relax her intimacy with the Bolingbrokes, as injurious +and inconvenient to him, and Ann, we may guess, would curtly bid him +mind his own business. But these are only probabilities. + +In the course of these proceedings we learn that William lost his +temper, declaring that she had a bad head and a worse heart; for this he +humbly begs her pardon. + +Another complaint of Ann's is easily explained. She says that William +had been talking of the 200_l._ a year that he allowed her. William's +answer makes it perfectly clear that he had been reproached with the +fact of his sister's destitute condition, and that he had had to +explain, in his own defence, that he gave her this income. + +Whether Pitt wished for a reconciliation because his sister had become +Privy Purse to the Princess of Wales must be judged by the light of his +character. It seems more probable that it was because she had returned +from abroad, and that he would now meet her constantly in society. In +any case, here are the letters. Whatever Pitt's motives may have been, +it is clear that Ann, had she not been a vixen, would have gladly +accepted the olive-branch offered by her brother, who, still unmarried, +wished to be restored to the companionship which had been the joy of his +life, 'that friendship which was my very existence for so many years,' +'a harmony between brother and sister unexampled almost all that time.' + + + (A) + + _June 19, 1751. Wednesday morning._ + + Dear Sister!--As you had been so good to tell me in your note of + Monday that you would write to me again soon _in a manner capable, + you hoped, of effacing every impression of any thing painfull that + may have passed from me to you_, I did not expect such a letter as + I found late last night, and which I have now before me to answer: + without any compliment to you, I find myself in point of writing + unequal enough to the task; nor have I the slightest desire to + sharpen my pen. I have well weighed your letter, and deeply examined + your picture of me, for some years past; and indeed, Sister, I still + find something within, that firmly assures me I am not that thing + which your interpretations of my life (if I can ever be brought to + think them all your own) would represent me to be. I have + infirmities of temper, blemishes, and faults, if you please, of + nature, without end; but the Eye that can't be deceived must judge + between us, whether that friendship, which was my very existence for + so many years, could ever have received the least flaw, but from + umbrages and causes which the quickest sensibility and tenderest + jealousy of friendship alone, at first, suggested. It is needless to + mark the unhappy epoque, so fatal to a harmony between sister and + brother unexampled almost all that time, the loss of which has + embitter'd much of my life and will always be an affliction to me. + But I will avoid running into vain retrospects and unseasonable + effusions of heart, in order to hasten to some particular points of + your letter, upon which it is necessary for me to trouble you with a + few words. _Absolute_ deference and _blind submission to my will_, + you tell me I have often declared to you in the strongest and most + mortifying terms cou'd alone satisfy me. I must here beseech you + cooly to reconsider these precise terms, with their epithets; and I + will venture to make the appeal to the sacred testimony of your + breast, whether there be not exaggeration in them. I have often, too + often reproached you, and from warmth of temper, in strong and plain + terms, that I found no longer the same consent of minds and + agreement of sentiments: and I have certainly declared to you that I + cou'd not be satisfy'd with you, and I could no longer find in you + _any degree of deference towards me_. I was never so drunk with + presumption as to expect _absolute_ deference and _blind submission + to my will_. A degree of deference to me and to my situation, I + frankly own, I did not think too much for me to expect from you, + with all the high opinion I really have of your parts. What I + expected was too much (as perhaps might be). In our former days + friendship had led me into the error. That error is at an end, and + you may rest assured, that I can never be so unreasonable as to + expect from you, now, anything like deference to me or my opinions. + I come next to the small pecuniary assistance which you accepted + from me, and which was exactly as you state it, two hundred pounds a + year. I declare, upon my honour, I never gave the least foundation + for those exaggerations which you say have been spread concerning + it. I also declare as solemnly, before God and man, that no + consideration cou'd ever have extorted from my lips the least + mention of the trifling assistance you accepted from me, but the + cruel reports, industriously propagated, and circulating from + various quarters round to me, of the state you was left to live in. + As to the repayment of this wretched money, allow me, dear Sister, + to entreat you to think no more of it. The bare thought of it may + surely suffice for your own dignity and for my humiliation, without + taxing your present income, merely to mortify me: the demonstration + of a blow is, in honour, a blow, and let me conjure you to rest it + here. When I want and you abound, I promise you to afford you a + better and abler triumph over me, by asking the assistance of your + purse. I will now trouble you no farther than to repeat my sincere + wishes for your welfare and to rejoice that you have so ample matter + for the best of happiness, _springing from a heart and mind_ (to use + your own words) entirely devoted to gratitude and duty. + + + (B) + + _June 20, 1751. Pay Office._ + + 'Dear Sister!--I am this moment returned out of the Country and find + another letter from you. I am extremely sorry that any expressions + in mine to you should make you think it necessary for you to trouble + yourself to write again, that you might convey upon paper to me, + what you would avoid saying in conversation, as disagreeable and + painfull. I believe I may venture to refer you to the whole tenor + of my letter to convince yourself that I had no desire to irritate; + and I assure you very sincerely that the expression, which seems to + have had some of that effect, did not in the least flow from a + thought that you was capable of intending to represent falsely. I + only took the liberty to put it to your candid recollection, whether + the very cause you mention, _strong feelings_ and emotions of mind + attending them, with regard to conversations of a disagreeable kind, + might not have led to some exaggerations of them to your own self. I + verily believe this cause, and this alone may have had some of this + effect: for sure I am, that I never could wish, much less exact that + the object of my whole heart and of my highest opinion and + confidence, thro the best part of my days, could be capable of such + vileness as _absolute_ deference and _blind submission to my will_. + All I wished and what I but late quite despaired of, I took the + liberty to recall to you in my last letter. As to the late + conversation you have thought necessary (since your letter of + yesterday) to recollect, I am ready to take shame before you, and + all mankind, if you please, for having lost my temper, upon any + provocation, so far as to use expressions, as foolish as they are + angry: that you _had a bad head_ will easily pass for the first: and + a worse heart for the last. This you made me angry enough to say: + but this I never was, nor I hope shall be, angry enough to think: + and this, Sister, I am sure you know. As to the other word, which I + am sorry I used because it offended you, I will again beg to appeal + to your recollection, whether it was not apply'd to your forbidding + _me ever to talk to you of every thing that interested you_: and as + _to shaping your life in some degree to mine_, which I believe were + my very words, let me ask you, if you don't know that they were said + in an answer to your telling me _that I had in several conversations + directly explained to you that to satisfy me you must live with me + as my slave_? So much, dear Sister, for the several points of your + letter; which I am sorry to find it necessary to say so many words + upon. I will be with you by nine to-morrow, as that hour seems most + convenient to you: is it impossible I may still find you so + obliging as not to think any more of repaying what I certainly never + lent you, in any other sense than that of giving me a right to your + purse, whenever I should want it, and which you must forego some + convenience to repay?[79] + + +Whether a reconciliation took place on this occasion or not we have no +evidence apart from Camelford's. But if he is to be believed as to +William's motives, there was little to be gained by one, for Ann was +soon to leave the Court. Her new office 'very soon grew uneasy to her,' +says her nephew, 'through the artifices of her royal pupil.' Horace +Walpole gives a different account. 'Being of an intriguing and most +ambitious nature, she soon destroyed her own prospect by an impetuosity +to govern her mistress and by embarking in other cabals at that Court. +Her disgrace followed, but without dismissal, on which she had retired +to France.'[80] + +'It was then,' says Camelford, 'that her brother, then Secretary of +State, made a new overture of reconciliation by a letter that you will +read, which had too much the appearance of sincerity and +disinterestedness not to be gladly accepted.' + +Camelford is not particularly careful of his own accuracy or +consistency. He had just told us that William sought for a renewal of +friendship because Ann would be useful to him at Court: he now has to +acknowledge that when Ann was banished from Court he instantly sought +reconciliation with more ardour than ever. As regards his accuracy, it +need only be noted that the letter to which he alludes is dated from the +Pay Office, and despatched more than three years before Pitt became +Secretary; a flaw, but not a grave flaw, in a father writing from memory +to his son. + +Here is the letter, which seems to be in answer to one from Ann, and +which is surely as tender and affectionate as the sorest heart of sister +could desire: + + + _Pay Office. Feb. 8. 1753._ + + Dear Sister,--I shou'd have receiv'd the most sensible satisfaction, + if you had been able to tell me, that the more declared, or new + symptoms of your disorder had been such, as gave you a near prospect + of being quite relieved. believe me Dear Sister, my heart is fill'd + with the most affectionate wishes for your health, and impatient + desire to see you return home well and happy. I never can reflect on + things passed, (wherein I must have been infinitely in the wrong, if + I ever gave you a pain) without the tenderest sorrow: and the + highest aggravation of this concern wou'd be to think, that, + perhaps, you may not understand the true state of my heart towards + you. Heaven preserve my Dear Sister, and may I ever be able to + convince her how sincerely I am her most affectionate Brother: + + W. PITT. + + I continue an Invalid, and wait for better weather with as much + patience as I can. + + +This is followed by another letter so humble and so self-reproachful +that one can scarcely believe it to be penned by one whose pride was a +byeword, and one can certainly not believe it to be the production of +crafty and servile selfishness, as Lord Camelford would have us imagine. +No brother could approach a sister with more delicacy or warmth of +feeling. + + + _Pay Office. Feb. 27. 1753._ + + Dear Sister,--I am unable to express the load you have taken off my + heart by your affectionate and generous answer to my last letter: I + will recur no more to a subject, which your goodness and + forgiveness forbid me to mention. the concern I feel for your state + of health is most sensible; wou'd to God, you may be shortly in a + situation to give me the infinite comfort of hearing of an amendment + in it! I hope Spring is forwarder, where you reside, than with us, + and that the difference of climate begins to be felt. I will not + give you the trouble to read any more: but must repeat, in the + fulness of my heart, the warmest and tenderest acknowledgements of + your goodness to, + + My Dear Sister, Your most affec Brother + W. PITT. + + I continue still a good deal out of Order, but begin to get ground. + + +The next letter marks a complete removal of tension and the restoration +of close and friendly relations. It cannot, alas! restore the easy flow +of youth. A score of years have passed, William has been buffeted and +tossed and has had to fight hard for his hand; he is besides so much the +older. So we find ourselves involved in the fulsome extravagance of his +maturer epistles; so much the worse! + + + _London. April ye 5. 1753._ + + My Dear Sister,--Nothing can be felt more sensibly than I do the + goodness of your letter, in which you talk to me circumstantially of + your own health, and desire to hear circumstantially of mine. it is + a great deal of Comfort to me to know that you have great hopes of + being better by Mr Vernage's advice; but it wou'd have been an + infinite satisfaction to have heard that you had already found + amendment. May every Day of Spring contribute to the thing in the + world I wish the most ardently! I am infinitely glad that the + concurrent opinions of Physicians of both Countries are the + foundation of expecting the Spa will relieve you: I shall dwell all + I can on this comfortable hope, and beg to hear of any amendment you + may find by better weather and whatever course you now use. I will + now talk of that health you so kindly desire to hear of. I have + been ill all the winter with disorders in my bowels, which have left + me very low, and reduced me to a weak state of health. I am now, in + many respects, better, and seem getting ground, by riding and taking + better nourishment. Warmer weather, I am to hope, will be of much + service to me. I propose using some mineral waters: Tunbridge or + Sunning Hill or Bath, at their proper seasons, as the main of my + complaint is much abated and almost removed, I hope my Horse, warm + weather and proper nourishment will give me health again. the kind + concern you take in it is infinitely felt by, Dear Sister, + + Your most affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + +The next letter shows that Ann was residing at Blois. + + + Dear Sister,--I have just receiv'd the pleasure of your letter of 30 + April. the Comfort it has given me is infinitely great, and your + goodness in sending me the earliest account in your power of such an + amendment as you now describe is the kindest thing imaginable, May + the fine season, where you are, continue without interruption, and + every Day of it add to the beneficial effects you have begun to + feel! our season here does not keep pace with that at Blois: I am + however much mended in several respects, and have the greatest hopes + given me of removing my remaining disorder by the help of warmer + weather and Tunbridge waters. I have just time to write this line + before dinner, and had I more, I think it best not to trouble you + with long letters. I shall dine upon your letter I am dear Sister + + Your most affectionate Brother + _London. May 7th 1753._ + W. PITT. + + +Here intervenes a letter to Mary, in which there is cordial mention of +Ann, and an obvious allusion to the escapades of Elizabeth; surely a +tender letter from a brother of forty-five to a younger sister. + + + _Bath. Octr the 20th. 1753._ + + I am very glad to hear in the Conclusion of my Dear Mary's letter + that she will be under no difficulty in getting to London: my + Brother is very obliging, as I dare say he intends to be in all + things towards you, to make your journey easy and agreeable to you. + I propose being in Town by the meeting of the Parliament; if I am + able: when I shall have infinite Joy in meeting my Dear Sister after + so very long an Absence and seeing Her in a Place where she seems to + think herself not unhappy. if I shou'd be prevented being in Town so + soon, the House will always be ready to receive you. I think you + judge very right not to produce yourself much till we have met: + Mrs Stuart, and my Sister Nedham, if in Town, will be the + properest, as well as the most agreeable Places for you to frequent. + My Dear Child, I need not intimate to your good understanding and + right Intentions, what a high degree of Prudence and exact attention + to your Conduct and whole behaviour is render'd necessary by the sad + errors of others. It is an infinite misfortune to you that my Sister + Ann is not in England: her Countenance and her Advice and + Instructions, superior to any you can otherwise receive, wou'd be + the highest advantage to you. Supply it as well as you can, by + thinking of Her, imitating her worth, and thereby endeavouring to + deserve her esteem, as you wish to obtain that of the best Part of + the World. I can not express how anxious I am for your right + behaviour in all respects, upon which alone your happiness must + depend. whatever assistance my advice can be to You, you will ever + have with the truest affection of a Brother. + + Yrs + W. PITT. + + +The next letter is pregnant enough, written to Ann at Nevers. Their aunt +Essex is dead, but her death only lurks in a postscript. For Pelham is +dead and Pitt is a cripple at Bath, disabled from proceeding to the +capital, where his fate and that of the future administration are being +settled. His restless anguish seems to pierce through these few lines. +And yet this bedridden invalid was to be a joyful and alert bridegroom +before the year was out. + + + _Bath. March 9th: 1754._ + + Dear Sister,--I write to you under the greatest affliction, on all + Considerations Private and Publick. Mr Pelham Died Wednesday + morning, of a Feaver and St. Anthony's fire. This Loss is, in my + notion of things, irreparable to the Publick. I am still suffering + much Pain with Gout in both feet, and utterly unable To be carry'd + to London. I may hope to be the better for it hereafter, but I am at + present rather worn down than releiv'd by it: I am extremely + concern'd at the last accounts of your health. I hope you have + Spring begun at Nevers, which I pray God may relieve you. + + I am Dear Sister, Your most affectionate Brother, + W. PITT. + + My Sister Nedham has been ill of a Feaver here, but is well again. + + I have just received an account of Mrs Cholmondeley's[81] Death. + + +The next letter, a month later, leaves Pitt still at Bath; the gout had +almost the lion's share of his life, and we wonder that he accomplished +so much under its constant pangs. On this occasion he strains our +credulity by the complimentary assertion that he thinks a thousand times +more of Ann than of the struggle over Pelham's succession, and his own +involved ambition. On all that sordid scramble he kept the fierce, +unflinching eye of a hawk, and of a hawk fastened by the talon. Ten days +before he wrote this note he had despatched a letter to Newcastle, +Pelham's brother and successor, burning with a passion which Ann's +ailments could never have inspired. Ann indeed, knowing her William, +would smile as she read, and value the extravagance at its worth. + + + _Bath. April 4th. 1754._ + + Dear Sister,--The Account you give me of your own health, and the + kind concern you feel for mine, touches me more than I will attempt + to express, tho' I am still at Bath, don't think the worse of my + health, but be assured that I am in a fairer way of recovering a + tolerable degree of it, than I have been in for a long time pass't. + My Gout has been most regular and severe, as well as of a proper + Continuance to relieve, and perhaps quite remove, the general + disorder which had brought me so low. I am recovering my feet and + drinking the waters with more apparent good effects than I ever + experienced from them. I have been out of all the bustle of the + present Conjuncture; and believe me, my thoughts go a thousand times + to Nevers, for once that they go towards London. Nothing in this + world can, in the smallest degree, interest my mind like the + recovery of your health. I wait with very painfull Impatience for + better weather for you, and to hear, that the waters you propose to + take, afford you relief. + + I am My Dear Sister's ever most affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + My sister Nedham is well, and went yesterday to Marybone to see her + Sons. + + Poor George Stanhope died of a feaver a few days since.[82] + + +The next, after an interval of six months, is again from Bath, but in a +different strain. He is now the happiest of men, about to be united to +the most meritorious and amiable of women, whose brothers are already +his own in harmony and affection; a happy marriage, but a disastrous, +storm-tossed brotherhood, as it was destined to be in the years to come, +when rival ambitions would strain the bond to breaking. + +There is also an icicle from Lady Hester herself, which embodies the +decorous expression of what a young lady of the middle eighteenth +century allowed herself to feel when she was going to be married. Even +this act of politeness was inspired by William. 'I have writ this night +to my poor sister Ann. She is not well enough to return to England this +winter. Whenever your excessive goodness will honour her with a letter +it will be a comfort to her. If you please to commit it to me I will +forward it to her, and bless you a million of times.'[83] + + + _Bath. Oct. 21st. 1754._ + + Dear Sister,--The favour of your letter from Chaillot has by no + means answered my eager wishes for your health, and a kind of + distant hope I had formed of your return to England this winter. My + desires to see you are greatly and very painfully disappointed: I + have only to hope that your Stay in France will give you a much + better winter than the last, and may finally restore your health to + you and you to your Friends. I am now, Dear Sister, to impart to you + what I have no longer a prospect of doing, with infinitely more + pleasure, by word of mouth: it is to say, that, your health + excepted, I have nothing to wish for my happiness, Lady Hester + Grenville has consented to give herself to me, and by giving me + every thing my Heart can wish, she gives you a Sister, I am sure you + will find so, not less every other way than in name. the act I now + communicate, will best speak her character, she has generosity and + goodness enough to join part of her best days to a very shattered + part of mine; neither has my fortune any thing more tempting. I know + no Motif she can have but wishing to replace to me many things that + I have not. I can only add, that I have the honour and satisfaction + of receiving the most meritorious and amiable of Women from the + hands of a Family already my Brothers in harmony and affection, and + who have been kindly Contending which of them shou'd most promote my + happiness by throwing away the Establishment of a Sister they + esteem and love so much. When I left Lady Hester ten days ago, She + wish'd to know when I notify'd this approaching event to you, that + She might do herself the pleasure to write to you. when she knows I + have writ, she will introduce herself to you. I propose staying here + about ten days, if my patience can hold out so long. You will wonder + to see a letter on such a subject dated from Bath; but to a goodness + like Lady Hester Grenville's, perhaps, my infirmities and my Poverty + are my best titles. + + Your ever affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + + LADY HESTER GRENVILLE TO MISS ANN PITT. + + May I not hope, Dr Madam, that the situation I am in with your + Brother will dispose you to receive favourably an Instance of the + extreme desire I have to recommend myself to your friendship; and + that You will give me Leave to employ the only means in my Power + from the distance that is between us, of expressing how much I wish + to enjoy that Honour. Every Thing makes me Ambitious of Obtaining so + great an Advantage, and so flattering a distinction. Your Own + peculiar Merit, and the Large share which you possess of Mr Pitt's + Esteem and Affection makes me feel it as an Article important to my + Happiness, and I indulge myself in the pleasure of thinking that you + will not refuse to extend your goodness to a Person whom your + Brother has thought worthy of so convincing a proof of his regard + and Love, and whose sentiments for Him are full of all that the + highest sense of his superior Merit and most amiable qualities can + Inspire. I feel a vanity and a pleasure in being the Object of his + Choice which can be added to by nothing but the happiness of knowing + that you give your Approbation and that you will allow me to flatter + myself You will not be sorry for an Event which will give me the + valued privilege of addressing you the next time, I have the honour + to be thus employ'd, by the endearing name of Sister. Give me leave + to say that I have heard with the greatest regret that your state of + health does not permit you to return to England this winter, and + that I hope as a compensation for the Disappointment your stay will + ensure yr perfect recovery. I commit this Letter to Yr Brs + Care, and trust to Him for conveying it to you, sure that the best + recommendation it can have will be its coming under his protection; + accompanied with Marks of His Partiality; and I hope that you will + believe Dr Madam, that I am with all the esteem possible, and the + highest regard, + + Your most faithful and Obed. Humble Servant, + HER: GRENVILLE. + + +In the next letters Pitt and Lady Hester acknowledge Ann's +congratulations. He had, however, moved to London, and amid all these +orange-blossoms was forging terrible vengeance on his perfidious chief. +Within ten days of his marriage he was making Newcastle and Newcastle's +henchmen cower in their offices, though for the present they did not +dare oust him from his. + + + _Pay Office. Nov. 8th. 1754._ + + Dear Sister,--Your letter of the 1st Novr has given me all that + remain'd to Compleat my happiness, by the affectionate Share you + take in it; and without which, great as it truly is, and shar'd in + the kindest manner by every Thing else I value and love in the + World, it still wou'd have wanted something ever essential to my + Satisfaction. Your Goodness and Friendship has nothing left to give + me: Cou'd the re-establishment of your health but add that most + sensible Pleasure to all I feel, I may call myself happy, as it is + given but to a few to be. Lady Hester Grenville speaks for herself + this Post. my Health is not good, but, as yet, it is not quite bad. + I have gone on with the World (as I cou'd) with much worse. + + I am Dear Sister Your most affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + I hope in about a week to say more of my happiness. + + +Lady Hester's letter is not worth giving; it is prim, decorous, and +void. + +Pitt and Lady Hester are married on November 16. Lady Hester writes to +Ann nine days afterwards a letter full of good feeling stiffened and +starched by decorum. Some letters are too improper to print, this is too +proper. + +Ann was now returning home, and Mary goes to meet her with a note of +welcome from William. Lord Camelford says that her health and spirits +declined grievously in France, and so her brother, 'though not till +after repeated notifications of her distress, sent over a clergyman to +bring her back to her family and assist in her journey.' This gives us a +test of Camelford's bias in dealing with his uncle. For hear Ann +herself, in a letter to Lady Suffolk announcing that she was on her way +to England, and had arrived as far as Sens, whence she writes. Speaking +of William, she says, 'he continued as he began, as soon as the King had +put him in the place he is in, by giving me the strongest and tenderest +proof of his affection.... I was so sunk and my mind so overcome with +all I have suffered, and I was so mortified and distressed, that I do +not believe anything in the world could have made it possible for me to +get out of this country, but my brother's sending a friend to my +assistance, and choosing so proper a person as Mr de la Porte is in all +respects. He has known me and my family for about thirty years, from +having been my Lord Stanhope's Governor.' She goes on to refer to 'the +virtue and goodness of my friends, particularly of my brother, who has +always seemed to guess and understand all I felt of every kind, and has +carried his delicacy so far as never once to put me in mind of what I +felt more strongly than any other part of my misfortune, which was, how +very disagreeable and embarrassing it must be to him to have me in +France, You may believe that I will be out of it the first minute that +is possible.' + +So the fact is that the man, whom Camelford endeavours to depict as +having acted with hardness and insensibility on this occasion, displayed +in reality incessant and delicate tenderness, according to the grateful +acknowledgment of Ann herself. Pitt had just attained his supremacy; +this was the most critical epoch of his life; all the year he had been +fighting the King and the Court, and this was the moment of victory. +Eleven days before Ann wrote this letter he had become for the second +time Secretary of State and had begun his great ministry. During this +time of strain and anxiety he heard of Ann's illness; he must have felt +strongly, though he refrained from mentioning it to her, the irksomeness +of her being in France when he was waging war against that kingdom, and +so he sent an old family friend to conduct her home. Could brother have +done more? Is there not here an anxious and thoughtful affection, +distorted grievously by the implacable animosity of the nephew? +Camelford is, however, obliged to record that on her arrival she went +straight to Pitt's villa at Hayes, 'where, tho' her spirits were still +weak, she was surprisingly recovered.' + +There is no date to the following note which Mary was to hand to Ann. +But as Ann's letter to Lady Suffolk cited above is of July 10, 1757, we +cannot be far wrong in placing it somewhat later in the same month. It +is indeed perplexing to find another letter to Lady Suffolk dated 'Spa, +September 5, 1757.' But the year 1757 is a surmise, and in all +probability an incorrect surmise, of the editor. Ann was hastening to +England in July 1757, stayed some time at Hayes on her arrival, and is +not likely to have been on the Continent again in September. + + + _Friday Morning._ + + Dear Sister,--I Can not let my Sister Mary go away without a line to + express my infinite satisfaction to hear you are arrived and that + you find your strength and Spirits in so good a condition. at the + same time let a Veteran Invalide recommend to you, above all things, + to use this returning Strength and Spirits very sparingly at first. + I shou'd be happy to accompany Miss Mary to Rochester, but the + overwhelming business of this Momentous Conjuncture hardly allow + (_sic_) me time to tell you how impatiently and tenderly I wish to + embrace my Dear Sister.[84] + + +Ann had gone from Hayes to Clifton, as we know from a letter to Lady +Suffolk dated June 22, 1758, and thence proceeded to Bath, as we know +from another letter dated August 19, 1758. She was restless, as on +August 26 she was at Bristol. In all these letters there is not a word +that betokens other than kindness and gratitude to her brother; as, for +example, on August 19 she writes to Lady Suffolk: 'God grant that the +public news may continue to be good, especially from Prince Ferdinand, +for the sake of a person whose health and prosperity I wish more than I +shall ever tell him.' A week afterwards she takes public occasion to +rejoice at his triumphs by furnishing a bonfire and ten hogsheads of +strong beer and all the music she could procure. On the other side, we +read the letters which the busy statesman found time to write to her, +breathing affection and solicitude. + + + _St. James's Square. Aug. 10th. 1758._ + + Dear Sister,--I wait with much impatience to hear you are arrived + well at Bath, and that you are lodged to your mind. I will not + entertain any doubts, after having had the satisfaction of seeing + you, that your progression to a perfect recovery will be sensible + every Day, and as soon as you can bear a stronger nourishment, that + Spirits, the concomitants of Strength, will return. as a part of the + necessary regimen, solid nourishment for that busy craving Thing + call'd Mind must have its place, and I know of no mental + Alteratives(?) of power to renovate and brace up a sickly + Constitution of Thought, but that mild and generous Philosophy which + teaches us the true value of the World, and a rational firm + religion, that anchors us safe in the confidence of another. but I + will end my sermon and come to the affairs of the world I am so + deeply immersed in. this day had brought us an account that our + Troops effected their landing, with little Loss, ye 7th and 8th two + Leagues from Cherbourgh, in the face of a pretty considerable + Number, who gave some loose fires and run. I am infinitely anxious + till we hear again, as I expect something serious will ensue. I must + not close my letter without telling you that the most particular + enquiries after your health have been made by the Lady you sent a + Card to, and I, very obligingly reprimanded for keeping your arrival + a secret from Them. Lady Hester shares my Impatience to hear news of + you, and all my sentiments for your health and happiness. our Love + follows dear Mary, whose merits you must, to your great + satisfaction, more and more feel every day. + + I am ever my Sister's most affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + + _St. James's Square. Sept. ye 12th. 1758._ + + Dear Sister,--You have now try'd the Bristol waters long enough to + make some judgement of their effects, and I have kept silence long + enough for you to make perhaps a strange judgement of my manner of + feeling for my friends. but feel I certainly do, my Dear Sister, for + all that concerns your health and happiness, how much soever I have + kept it for some weeks past a matter between me and my own + conscience, without giving you the least hint of my truly + affectionate sollicitude on your account. I am extremely inclin'd to + believe Doctor Oliver judges rightly of the first principle of your + disorders; that it is Gout, which aided by the waters of Bath and + proper nourishment may ripen into a salutary tho' painfull crisis. + as I think myself that Languor or perturbation of Spirits are well + exchanged for a degree of pain, I shall heartily wish you joy of + such a revolution in the system of your Constitution. how can I have + got so far in my paper, and not a word of the King of Kings whose + last Glories transcend all the parts? the Modesty of H:P: Majtys + relation, his Silence of Himself, and entire attribution of the + victory to Genl Seidlitz, are of a mind as truely heroick as H. + Majesty's taking a Colours in his own hand, when exhortations + failed, and forcing a disordered Infantery to follow Him or see Him + perish. more Glory can not be won; but more decisive final + consequence we still hope to hear, and languish for further letters + from the Prussian army. My Love to Dear Mrs Mary. + + I am ever most affecly Yrs + W. PITT. + + +Then comes a letter referring apparently to the Battle of Hochkirch: + + + Dear Sister,--I can not omit writing, tho' but a line, to give you + the satisfaction of knowing that Mr d'Escart will return to France + in a very few days. I am very glad that it has been practicable to + accomplish so soon a thing that will give pleasure to so many of + your Friends. the news from Dresden to day is not very agreable, the + King of Prussia's right wing attack'd sudenly at 4 in the morning + ye 14th, put into disorder, Marshal Keith and Prince Francis of + Brunswick kill'd but the King coming to the Right, the action was + restored and the Austrians repulsed. His Prussian Majesty's Person + so exposed that one trembles: his Horse shot, and a Page and Ecuyer + wounded by his side. a second action seems inevitable: I hope every + thing from it, as this Heroick Monarch's happy Genius never fails + him when he wants it most. I have not a moment more. be assured of + my constant wishes for your health and happiness. + + I am Dear Sister Your affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + Loves to Mary. + _Oct. ye 24th._ + + +Ann was now in London on a short visit, for the purpose of attending the +Court; but she had designs of her own which appear to be serious, but +which give some evidence of the insanity which was always hovering over +her. + +'I hear my Lord Bath,' she writes, November 10, 1758, 'is here very +lively, but I have not seen him, which I am very sorry for, because I +want to offer myself to him. I am quite in earnest, and have set my +heart upon it; so I beg seriously you will carry it in your mind and +think if you could find any way to help me. Do not you think Lady Betty +(Germaine) and Lord and Lady Vere would be ready to help me, if they +knew how willing I am? But I leave this to your discretion, and repeat +seriously that I am quite in earnest. He can want nothing but a +companion that would like his company, and in my situation, I should not +desire to make the bargain without that circumstance. And though all I +have been saying puts me in mind of some advertisements I have seen in +the newspaper from gentlewomen in distress, I will not take that method; +but I want to recollect whether you did not once tell me, as I think you +did many years ago, that he spoke so well of me that he got anger for it +at home, where I never was a favourite.'[85] + +Never, surely, did a spinster of forty-eight breathe so frankly her +aspirations towards a wealthy and avaricious septuagenarian. We may be +sure that this freak of fancy was not confided to her brother. But he on +his side had a favour to ask of her, on behalf of a puissant personage. +Statesmen in those days had to pay their homage to the Court wherever +they could find it, and Pitt, who was never loved by George II., could +not afford to neglect the influence of Lady Yarmouth. At any rate, he +did not, though apparently without success in his ultimate object; and +so we find him attempting to neutralise, through Ann, the mischief which +might ensue from Lady Betty Waldegrave's letters being attributed by the +Court of France to the King's favourite. Lady Yarmouth was in danger of +being compromised! + +Ann thus describes the negotiation: 'If I had not happened to be sick, I +should have been very much pleased with an express that was sent me to +give me a commission that I liked to execute, because it relates to a +person I am obliged to and have a regard for; it is my Lady Yarmouth who +desires me, by my brother, to explain a very disagreeable mistake which +has been made in France about a very fond letter, and mighty improper as +to politics, which Lady Betty Waldegrave wrote to her husband, unsigned, +and having desired the answer might be directed to Lady Y's lodging, +they concluded, very absurdly, the letter came from her; and as it was +intercepted, it was translated, shown, and commented very +impertinently.' + + + _St. James's Square. Nov. 7th. 1758._ + + Dear Sister,--I write to you at the desire of Lady Yarmouth, on an + Incident of a particular nature, and which has given her Ladyship + so much uneasiness that it will be a very agreeable office, if you + can contribute, by a letter to some Lady of the Court at Versailles, + to the clearing up of a very odd Qui pro Quo. The matter in question + is as follows. Letters to England from our Army having been taken, + there is amongst them _one_ from Lady Betty Waldgrave to General + Waldgrave _unsign'd_. the writer desires the General will _direct + his letters to Lady Yarmouth at Kensington_. on this ground the + letter in question being attributed, in France, to Lady Yarmouth has + drawn attention, been translated, and handed about, as she is + inform'd, with some mirth at Versailles and Paris. this letter is + return'd, by the channel of Selwyn's House, and Lady Yarmouth finds + it to contain, not only the expressions of a loving wife to a + Husband, but a strain of political reflections, together with + observations on very high Personages in Europe, commanding Armies in + Germany; all which Language cou'd not but bear a very prejudicial + Comment, if really attributed to the Lady, by whose desire I now + write to you. You are the best judge how to acquit yourself of the + Commission you are desired to charge yourself with; whether by + writing to the Dutchess of Mirepoix or any other of your friends. I + can only say, that I perceive Lady Yarmouth will think Herself + obliged to you for such an intervention, in a matter of some + Delicacy, and which might have many possible ill Consequences. if + you shall write in the manner desir'd, and will send your letter + directed to your Correspondent, under Cover to me, I will take care + it shall go in Count Very's packet to Paris. + + I rejoice extremely my Dear Sister, at the account of your amendment + in Spirits, since your late attack. keep the ground so hardly won, + and ascend, by courage and perseverance that arduous steep, on the + Summit of which, Health and Happiness, I trust, still wait you. I am + lame in one foot, and much threatened with Gout for some days past; + but I flatter myself that it may blow over, like an Autumnal ruffle. + our Expeditions are, I fear, lame in both Feet. My Messenger is + order'd to wait your full leisure. + + I am Dear Sister, Your most affectionate Brother + W. PITT. + + +Ann appears to have been successful, and receives thanks both from +William and the formal Lady Hester. + + + Dear Sister,--I am desired by Lady Yarmouth to assure you of the + sense she has of your good offices, which she was so good to + accompany with the most obliging expression of regard for you, and + with many wishes for your health. I shall be happy to receive a + favourable account of your situation, and which I flatter myself is + every day mending, and that by a Progression which will soon enable + you to take air and exercise. I am just going to Hayes, for some + hours recess, that I want much. + + I am ever Dear Sister Most affly Yrs + W. PITT. + _Saturday morning._ + + + _St. James's Square Tuesday Nov. 14._ + + Dear Madam,--If I had not for some time past found great + inconvenience from writing I shou'd not have continued so long + Silent where I always find so much pleasure in expressing my + sentiments, but however great my indisposition is from _my + Situation_ to my present employment, I cou'd not refuse a commission + which I had the honour to be charged with today from my Lady + Yarmouth, as I am sure the Subject of it will be a great pleasure + and Satisfaction to you. It was to desire I wou'd return you a + thousand Thanks for your letters, and to assure you that she felt + herself most extremely obliged to you for them, and for the trouble + you had given yourself, with many other expressions of the manner in + which she was sensible of your goodness in what you had done, and + how very agreable it was to Her. I was very sorry to find by your + account of yourself to Mr Pitt that you had had another return of + your bilious Complaint, but we Comfort our selves with the hope of + its having produced the same salutary effects the Last did. We shall + be impatient to have a confirmation of its having had so desirable a + consequence. By Miss Mary's Last Letters both to her Brother and Me + we have flattered ourselves with the pleasure of seeing Her for some + days past, but as yet she has not appeared, which wou'd make us + uneasy but that we conclude if her purpose of Leaving Bath the time + she mention'd had been alter'd from any disagreable Circumstance she + wou'd have apprised us of it. Our Nephew, Mr. Thos. Pitt, desires to + have the permission and pleasure of conveying this to you, as he + intends setting out for the Bath tomorrow in order to wait upon Sir + Richard Lyttelton, whom I wish he may find better than by the + reports which prevail, I fear he has any Chance of Doing. Your + Brother continues as usual overwhelm'd with business, and not + entirely free from some Notices of the Gout, but which yet I flatter + myself will not increase to a fit. He begs his affectionate + Compliments to you, and I that you wou'd forgive both the shortness + and the faults of this Letter, and believe me equally however + exprest + + Your very affectionate Sister and Obedient Servant + HES: PITT. + + Mr Pitt desires to assure you the Letters were the properest that + cou'd be writ upon the occasion. + + +Ann, as we learn from the preceding letter, returned to Bath at once. +'Mr Thomas Pitt' (Lord Camelford) brings it to her, and here makes her +acquaintance: 'It was there' (at Bath) 'in the year 1759 that I first +connected that friendship with her which still leaves so many mixed +sensations on my mind.' Ann, it may confidently be said, left mixed +sensations on all minds. The next note announces the birth of the young +William Pitt. + + + _Hayes. May ye 28th. 1759._ + + Dear Sister,--I have the satisfaction to acquaint you, of what you + was so good to wish to hear; Lady Hester was safely delivered of a + Boy this morning, after a labour rather severe, but she and the + Child are, thank God, as well as can be. You will give us a very + real pleasure by good accounts of your own health which we hope is + much better for the journey alone, and that waters will not fail to + be of great assistance towards a perfect recovery. I am + + Dear Sister Your most affectionate Brother, + W. PITT. + + I can't help mentioning to you the waters and Bath of Buxton: which + for a languid perspiration and obstructions in the smaller vessels, + have done wonders. + + +Next comes a short letter from William, only notable from his anxiety +about Squire Allworthy. + + + _St. James's Square. July 24th, 1759._ + + Dear Sister,--Your letter on the subject of Mr. Allen's Health gave + me, with the Pain of learning he had been ill, the Satisfaction of + understanding that the attack was, in some degree over; that to Lady + Hester giving an account of the terrible nature of his complaint, + having follow'd Her to Wotton, where she now is. + + I trust that the next accounts from Prior Park will be favourable + and that the best of men, who feels and relieves the most the + sufferings of others, may not Himself suffer the severest of Pains. + I learn with great satisfaction the considerable amendment you + mention in your own Health, and the promising prospects of deriving + much benefit from Tunbridge. I hope You will not let too much of + this fine season for mineral waters pass, before you repair to Them, + and that their effects, when you try them, will fully answer your + own and your Friends expectation. + + I am Dear Sister Your most affectionate Brother, + W. PITT. + + if Lord Paulett be still at Bath, I beg my compliments to his + Lordship. + + +It is perhaps well, for the preservation of continuity, to print the +following letter from Lady Hester to her sister-in-law: + + + _Tuesday. St. James's Square. Aug. 29th._ + + I am so much in Arrear to You, my Dear Madam, and upon so many + accounts, that I don't know where to begin first to acquit my Self + to You. I feel I want now most to justifie my self to you for not + having before exprest how sensible I am to the various Marks I have + received of your very obliging Attention upon all the Subjects that + you knew wou'd give me the greatest pleasure. The Fact is that an + unexpected Journey to Wotton, from which place I return'd but Last + night, interfered with my intention of writing to You, and of + returning you my sincerest thanks for the great Satisfaction your + Letter gave me. It included everything that cou'd make it pleasing + to Me, and renew'd all my own Joy for our Successes with Yours added + to it, which was a great improvement of all I felt before, and + particularly for Louisbourg, _Dear_, as you know so many ways. I am + charmed with my rings, which are after an English Taste that I hope + will be followed, and grow fashionable enough to encourage a Variety + of Patterns. Last night brought a Large Package from Bath directed + to Your Brother, and intended we guess for the Young Militia Man at + Hayes. It contained besides a present for Miss Hetty, both which + will be faithfully deliver'd this evening, and the sentiments they + inspire shall be in due time communicated. In the Interval I believe + I must apply to you my Dear Madam to assure the kind sender of my + share of pleasure in the present. Miss Mary's Letter received Last + night, gave a great deal of Satisfaction to both your Brother and Me + by the account of Your Health, and the Progress You have made in a + returning to a Diet of Solid Food, a sort of Sustenance so much more + likely to restore and confirm your Strength and Spirits than any + other. We are glad to find that Doctor Oliver has your approbation, + and that he seems to reason with great sense and probability upon + your case, and what it is likely to end in. the Gout is not a very + desirable Thing, but only comparatively, where the constitution is + not strong, for then there ar many Disorders to which people are + Liable that are much worse. I am vastly pleased that Our House has + the honour of being approved by you, and should be delighted if I + cou'd be so happy as to receive You in it, and wish extremely that + it was furnish'd and fit for Your reception, but I find Mr. Pitt + thinks that it is not proper to have hired furniture put into it, as + well as that you cou'd not be so conveniently accommodated in a + House so circumstanced, as you will be in the very commodious + Lodgings which Bath affords. We are meditating a journey to Hayes + the moment Mr. Pitt returns from Kensington, which makes it + impossible for me to say as much as I wish to You upon the different + Subjects in this Letter, being obliged to give an account of my + journey to the Friends I met at Wotton who are now disperst. May I + beg you to give my Love to Miss Mary, and to say I hope she will + admit what I have been saying as an excuse for my not acknowledging + by this Post in a letter to Her what I have in my sentiments + acknowledged ever since I heard from her, that I was indebted to her + for the Prettiest, as well as the most Obliging, Letter in the + World, besides her Bath Fairing which I value properly. I shall only + now repeat my request that You will believe me Always my Dear Madam + + Your affectionate Sister and most Obedient Servant, + H. PITT. + + Mr. Pitt will endeavour to serve the Chevalier de Chaila as you + desire. + + +All so far had been harmonious enough. Unfortunately, there now occurred +a second misunderstanding, to which the ensuing letters relate. It is +best to give Lord Camelford's account, which, though mysterious enough, +is all we have. 'Her Physicians advising her to discontinue the Waters +for a short time to give trial to a course of med'cines, she determin'd +to accompany me to London, to see some old friends after a long absence, +and to transact certain business, and then to return to Bath. Fearing, +however, that her unexpected arrival at her Lodgings in Leicester House +might have objections, or that there might be difficulties in her +lodging any where in London, she stop'd short at Sion at Ly. +Holdernesse's, her particular friend, from whence she removed to +Kensington to a house Mr. Cresset lent her. This Journey gave offence to +her Brother, and occasion'd their second quarrel. Instead of managing a +temper too like his own, instead of yielding to her repeated request of +seeing him, when with gentleness he might have explained his wishes to +her and have persuaded to whatever he thought best for her or for +himself, he satisfied himself with dark hints, imperious messages, and +ambiguous menaces convey'd thro' Ly. Hester and his Sister Mary, neither +of whom were very happy in the arts of conciliation. Frightened, +confounded, and at the same time exasperated by so strange a conduct, +she tried to return to Bath, but her strength would not admit of her +getting half way thro' the Journey. She return'd to Kensington--she got +medical advice--she saw a few of her old friends, who soon disproved the +falsities that were every day propagated of her State of Health--by +degrees she saw all her fears vanish--the World return to her and nobody +flie from her but the Person from whom she expected her chief +countenance and support. She sounded the Princess, and found she was at +full liberty to live where she pleased, except that the former intimacy +was at an end. She met her Brother accidentally at Ly. Yarmouth's, he +kiss'd her on both sides with the affectation of the warmest affection; +whilst he refused to visit her and his whole family were hostile to her +in the cruelest manner.' + +The whole affair is obscure, and is not elucidated by the letters of +Pitt and his wife which follow. Lady Hester is civil and kind enough, +though evidently forbidden to visit or receive her sister-in-law. But +what Pitt means by his allusion to 'desultory jaunts,' and 'hovering +about London,' and conduct 'too imprudent and restless or as too +mysterious' for him to be connected with it, we cannot now conjecture. +What harm a spinster of forty-eight could do by staying with Lady +Holdernesse at Sion, and thence moving to Kensington, and being +undecided as to her plans, it is not easy to determine. It is possible, +on considering the whole affair, Ann's own temperate reply, and all that +followed, that Pitt knew that his sister was seeking a pension, for +which purpose she had gone to Sion and to Kensington (for Lady +Holdernesse was the wife of a Secretary of State, and Cresset was a man +of influence), and desirous that his name should not be connected with +the pension list at this moment of unrivalled popularity and power, he +was anxious to have no communication with her. There is a still more +probable explanation of Pitt's annoyance with his sister's behaviour. We +have seen that Lord Camelford speaks of the 'falsities that were every +day propagated about her state of health.' In a letter soon to follow +she herself speaks of her stay in France 'before my spirits were so much +disordered as they have been since.' Some years afterwards, Horace +Walpole wrote of her that she had at times been out of her senses. It +seems possible, then, that one of these attacks had taken place at Bath, +and that she had broken loose from constraint and come up to London, +which would revive the gossip about her condition, and so cause +annoyance to her brother, who thought that peremptoriness was the only +method of getting her back again to Bath. If this were so, he acted +wisely, as she appears to have returned to Bath at once. This last +conjecture seems the more probable explanation. In any case the +circumstances of the people and the times were full of electricity. Pitt +was busy, gouty and irritable; Bute was much above the horizon. Ann was +eccentric, wilful, and wayward. Soon afterwards, she had a pension, +which annoyed her brother. This is all that we can be said to know. We +do not even know the date of this episode. + + + FROM LADY HESTER PITT. + + It is my Dear Madam extremely unfortunate that from different + circumstances which have interpos'd themselves, I have not had it in + my power to have the pleasure of seeing you since your arrival in + the neighbourhood of London, and I am quite concern'd that by Your + Brother's business I am so circumstanced today, as to make it + impossible for me to receive that Satisfaction. There is to be a + meeting of the Cabinet here this Evening, which Always engrosses my + Apartment and banishes me to other quarters. We are but just arrived + from the Country, which I think has done your Brother good. He + desires I wou'd assure you of his affectionate Compliments, and Let + you know that his present Pressure of business is so great that it + does not leave him the Command of a quarter of an hour of his time, + so as to be able to assure himself beforehand of the pleasure of + seeing any friend. therefore under that uncertainty, and fearing he + may miss of the Satisfaction of meeting You, he desires thro' me to + wish you a safe return to Bath, so much the best place, He is + perfectly convinced, for Your Health. We are both very glad to hear + you have had a confirmation from Doctor Pitt of the efficacy you may + expect to find in those waters for your Complaints. I must not end + my Note without expressing how much I was flattered by your + remembrance of Little Hetty, tho' I trust Miss Mary did not forget + me upon that subject, no more than on that of my real Concern for + its being impossible for me to wait upon You, and say for myself + how much I feel obliged to You for your kind Letter and message. The + Compliments of the season attend You my Dear Madam with many good + wishes. + + _St. James's Square. Tuesday._ + + + _St. James's Square. Monday. Jan. 15th._ + + Dear Madam,--Mr. Pitt is this moment come to Town, and so + overwhelm'd with business, that it is quite impossible for Him to + write a word to You Himself, in answer to your Note which he has + just received. He is very sorry to find you are ill, and wishes me + to tell you that you have mistaken Him in thinking he meant to + express any desire of His as to your Going, or Staying, which he + always meant to Leave to your own Decision, but only to offer you + his opinion, and never proposes to take upon Him to give you any + further Advice with regard to the place of Your residence, which you + have all right independent of any thing with respect to Him to + determine as You please for Yourself. I am extremely concern'd to + hear your disorder is increased so much as to have made your return + to Kensington necessary, as I fear your Situation There must be very + uncomfortable and Disagreeable, without Servants, or any of those + Conveniences, which are so particularly of Consequence when any body + is ill. I hope most sincerely to have the pleasure of hearing you + are better, and Able to prosecute what ever May be thought best for + Your Health, being very truly Dear Madam + + Your Most Affectionate and Most Obedt + H. PITT. + + + _Friday Morning._ + + Dear Sister,--I desire to assure you that all Idea of _Quarrel_ or + _unkindness_, (words I am griev'd to find you cou'd employ) was + never farther from my mind than during your stay in this + neighbourhood. on the Contrary, my Dear Sister, nothing but kindness + and regard to your Good, on the whole, has made me judge it + necessary that we should not meet during the Continuance you think + fit to give to an excursion so unexpected, and so hurtfull to you. I + beg my Dear Sister not to mistake my wishes to see Her set down, + for a time, quiet and collected within her own Resources of Patience + and fortitude, (merely as being best and the only fit thing for + Herself) so very widely as to suppose, that my Situation as a + Publick Person, is any way concern'd in her residing in one Place or + another. all I mean is, that, _for your own sake_, you shou'd + abstain from all desultory jaunts, such as the present. the hearing + of you all at once, at Sion; next at Kensington, then every day + going, and now not yet gone, certainly carries an appearance + disadvantageous to you in this view; I have refused myself the + pleasure of seeing You; as considering your journey and hovering + about London, as too imprudent and restless, or as too mysterious, + for me not to discourage such a conduct, by remaining unmixt with + it. this is the only cause of my not seeing you, nor can I give you + a more real proof of my affectionate regard for your welfare than by + thus refusing myself a great pleasure, and, I fear, giving you a + Pain. I offer you no Advice, as to the choice of your residence. I + am persuaded you want none; you have a right and are well able to + judge for yourself on this point. but if you will not fix somewhere + You are undone. I am sorry to be forc'd to say this much; but saying + less I should cease to be with truest affection Dear Sister + + Ever Yrs + W. PITT. + + + ANN PITT TO HER BROTHER. + + Dear Brother,--I am going to set out to return to Bath, but as the + letter I received from you yesterday leaves me in great anxiety and + perplexity of mind, I can not set out without assuring you, as I do + with the most exact truth, that there was no mistery in my journey + here, nor no purpose but the relief I proposed to my mind. If I had + known before I left the Bath that you disapproved of my leaving that + place at this time, or of my coming to Town, I wou'd not have done + as I have done, and wou'd not even have come near it, tho' the + advice given me at Oxford with regard to my health, made me desire + to make use of the interval in which I was order'd not to try the + waters again, to have the pleasure and satisfaction of seeing You + and some of my friends and as I hoped that satisfaction from You in + the first place, I will not dissemble that I am very much + disappointed and mortified in not having seen you, but as the hurry + of important business you are in, and the relief necessary to make + you go through it, made it possible for me not to interpret your not + seeing me as a mark of unkindness, I never used the word (the word) + but to guard against other people using it, upon a circumstance + which I thought they had nothing to do with. + + When I writ you word from the Bath that I had thoughts of coming to + Town for Christmas, I desir'd nothing so much as to do what was most + proper according to my situation, and consequently to have your + advice, which I told you, very sincerely I wished to be guided by + preferably to every other consideration, You best know how I am to + attain the end I have steadily desired for Years, as you know I writ + you word from France (before my spirits were so much disorder'd as + they have been since) that I desired nothing as much as a safe and + honourable retreat, that wou'd leave me the enjoyment of my Friends, + without which help and suport I find by a painfull experience that + it is impossible for me to suport myself. I beg leave to trouble you + with my compliments to Lady Hester, and my wishes for the happiness + of you both, and of all the little family that belong to you. + + I am D Br &c. + + +This undated note appears to belong to the same time as the preceding +ones, and tends to confirm the hypothesis that it was Ann's mental +condition that gave rise to anxiety. + + + FROM LADY HESTER PITT. + + Dear Madam,--Having informed Mr. Pitt, who is this moment come home, + that you intend going to the Lodgings in Lisle Street, He wou'd not + set down to dinner without desiring me to let you know from Him that + this intention of Yours gives him the greatest surprise and not Less + concern for _Your sake_, being unalterably persuaded that Retreat is + the only right Thing for your Health, Welfare, and Happiness, and + that Bath in Your present state seems to be the fittest Place. + + _St. James's Square Wednesday past four o'clock._ + + +We now come to the famous affair of the pension. Ann has evidently +written to ask her brother's interest for a pension. He replies that on +such a subject he would rather not speak, much less write to her, and +gives her plainly to understand that he washes his hands of the whole +business. She now turned to Bute. 'Having lost, therefore,' writes +Camelford, 'all the hopes she had founded on her brother's friendship, +which now turned to open enmity, she tried the generosity of Ld Bute +upon the King's succession, who, not unwilling to give Mr Pitt a +sensible mortification in the shape of a civility, procured for her a +pension that was no small comfort in addition to her slender income, +which was afterwards again augmented to L1000 p.a., at the instance of +her friend M. de Nivernois, upon the peace.' + + + Dear Sister,--I hoped long before now to have been able to call on + you, and in that hope have delayed answering a letter on a subject + so very nice and particular, that I cou'd, with difficulty and but + imperfectly, enter into it even in conversation. I am sure I need + not say to one of your knowledge of the world, that explaining of + Situations is not a small Affair, at any time, and in the present + moment I dare say You are too reasonable to wish me to do it. In + this state I have only to assure you of my sincerest wishes for your + advantage and happiness, and that I shall consider any good that + arrives to you as done to myself, which I shall be ready to + acknowledge as such: but having never been a Sollicitor of favours, + upon any occasion, how can I become so now without contradicting the + whole tenour of my Life? I think there is no foundation for your + apprehensions of anything distressfull being intended, and I hope + you will not attribute, what I have said to any motive that may give + you uneasiness, being very truely + + Dear Sister Your affectionate Brother + _Nov. 24: 1760._ W. PITT. + + +After the letter in which Pitt sheers off from the pension, there was +evidently an announcement from Ann that it had been granted to her on +the recommendation of Lord Bute. This is lost. But we have Pitt's +unpleasing congratulation. This was the note which Ann was with +difficulty restrained from returning to Pitt, having altered it to suit +the circumstances of the case, when Pitt's wife was granted a much +larger pension. + + + Dear Sister,--Accept sincere felicitations from Lady Hester and me + on the Event you have just communicated. on your account, I rejoice + at an addition of income so agreeable to your turn of life, whatever + repugnancy I find, at the same time, to see my Name placed on the + Pensions of Ireland. unmixt as I am in this whole transaction, I + will not doubt that you will take care to have it thoroughly + understood. long may you live in health to enjoy the comforts and + happiness which you tell me you owe to the King, singly through the + intercession of Lord Bute, and to feel the pleasing sentiments of + such an obligation. + + I am Dear Sister Your most affectionate Brother + _Tuesday Dec. 30th 1760._ W. PITT. + + +Then follows Ann's reply, which may be judged not unconciliatory when +her fierce temperament is taken into consideration. She elaborately and +almost humbly vindicates her pension against her brother's sarcastic +strictures. + + + Dear Brother,--I must trouble you again, not only to return my + thanks to Lady Hester and yourself, for your obliging + felicitations, But as I have the mortification of finding, that for + some reasons which I can not judge of, You feel a repugnancy to the + mark of favour I have had the honour to receive, and desire--it may + be throughly understood that you had no share in the transaction--I + ought to make you easy, by assuring you, as I do, that so far as I + think proper to communicate an event, which will not naturally be + very publick, I will take care to explain the truth, by which it + will appear that you are no way concern'd in it, and that it has no + sort of relation to your Situation as Minister, since my request was + first made to the Princess many years ago, as Her Royal Highnesess + Servant, as I am pretty sure I explained to you in a letter from + France, and repeated to you at my return, as the foundation of my + hopes of obtaining the Princesses approbation for any establishment + you might have procured for me. And tho' the Provision I have been + so happy to obtain from His Majesty's Bounty is of the utmost + importance to me and answers every wish I cou'd form with regard to + my income, yet when I was allow'd to say how much wou'd make me + easy, I fix'd it at a sum, which I flatter myself will not be + thought exorbitant, or appear as if I had wanted to avail myself of + the weight of your credit, or the merit of your services to obtain + it. + + As to your objection to your Names (_sic_) being upon the Irish + Pensions, I do not believe that any mistake can be made, from mine + being there. And as to myself, I very sincerely think it an honour + that is very flattering to me, to have received so precious a mark + of the Royal favour, and to have my Name upon the same List not only + with some of the highest and the most deserving persons in England, + but even with some of the greatest and most glorious names in + Europe. If I have tired you with a longer letter than I intended, I + have been lead (_sic_) into it, by the sincere desire I have, that + an advantage so very essential to the ease and comfort of the + remainder of a Life, which has not hitherto been very happy, shou'd + not be a cause of uneasiness to You. I am + + +Alas for the freakful fate which plays with poor humanity and its +concerns! The next letter announces another pension, not to Ann, but to +Pitt's wife. So soon after the other correspondence, not ten months! No +wonder that Ann was tempted to the vengeance that has been described. +Even though she refrained we may imagine her unrestrained scoffs and her +bitter laughter. + + + Dear Madam,--I was out of Town Yesterday, or otherwise I shou'd have + had the pleasure of informing You that His Majesty has been + Graciously pleas'd to confer the Dignity of Peerage on Your + Brother's Family, by creating Me Baroness of Chatham with Limitation + to our Sons. The King has been farther pleas'd to make a Grant of + Three Thousand Pounds a Year to Mr. Pitt for his own Life, Mine, and + our Eldest Son's in consideration of Mr. Pitt's Services, We do not + doubt of the Share You will take in these Gracious Marks of his + Majesties Royal Approbation and Goodness. + + I am Dear Madam Your most Obedient Servant + HES: PITT. + _Sunday Morning_ + + +Some four years afterwards Ann received this short note, which shows +that there was no rupture of relations; and the tone indeed is cordial +for the period, when the expression of the warmest affection was far +from gushing. + + + _Burton-Pynsent Aug. ye 1st 1765._ + + I am extremely obliged to you, Dear Sister, for the trouble you are + so good to take of writing to enquire after my health, which I found + mend on the journey and by change of air. I still continue lame, but + have left off one Crutch, which is no small advance; tho' with only + one Wing my flights, you will imagine, are as yet very short: the + Country of Somersetshire is beautifull and tempts much to extend + them. I hope your health is much better and that you have found the + way to subdue all your complaints, or at least to reduce them + within such bounds, as leave your life comfortable and agreeable. + Lady Chatham desires to present her compliments to you. + + I am Dear Sister Your affectionate Brother + WILLIAM PITT. + + +And now there come the last sad words, the last sign of life that +William gives to Ann. It is not without significance that even at this +period of prostration he bids his wife tell Ann that his official life +is ended. It does not appear that there had ever been or was ever to be +any formal reconciliation between them. But through all the gusts and +squalls and storms that had troubled their intercourse an underlying +tenderness had survived. + + + _Hayes. Oct. 21st. 1768._ + + Madam,--The very weak and broken state of my Lord's health having + reduced him to the necessity of supplicating the King to grant him + the permission to resign the Privy Seal, he has desir'd I wou'd + communicate this Step to You. + + I am Madam, Your most Obedient Humble Servant + H. CHATHAM. + + +About this time (1768) she took up her abode at Kensington Gravel Pits, +in the region of Notting Hill, 'where out of a very ugly odd house and a +flat piece of ground with a little dirty pond in the middle of it, she +has made a very pretty place; she says she has "hurt her understanding" +in trying to make it so.'[86] Before that time she seems to have lived +for a while at Twickenham; at least Horace Walpole speaks of her as a +close neighbour. Being fairly launched as a pensioner, she throve on the +system, and eventually accumulated a treble allowance; this Bute +pension, another procured by M. de Nivernois, and another, mentioned by +Horace Walpole in a letter of Nov. 25, 1764, which must have raised her +whole income from this source to some 1500_l._ a year. On this she +entertained, and frolicked, and danced. We hear of her choice but +miniature balls, and her band of French horns, which Horace Walpole +enjoyed and described. But her intercourse with William, once so bright +and genial, was ended, and that is all with which we are here concerned. +A frigid letter or two counted as nothing in a connection which had once +been as intimate as it was delightful. + +Ann went on living at Kensington a somewhat frivolous life so far as we +know anything about it, in intimate relations with Horace Walpole and +his society. But in 1774 she went abroad, under the auspices of the +Butes, to Italy, to Pisa and elsewhere. Then came her brother's sudden +death. Though she had been so long aloof from him, the shock finally +shattered her reason, which, it would appear, had already given cause +for apprehension. Chatham died May 11, 1778. She soon returned to +England, and in the October of that year Horace Walpole writes that she +is 'in a very wild way, and they think must be confined.'[87] In the +following May he announces that she is actually under restraint.[88] +There is a letter at Chevening from her to her niece, Lady Mahon, dated +'Burnham, May 9, 1779,' which betrays her distraught condition. Burnham +was probably that 'one of Dr. Duffell's houses' to which she had been +removed. On Feb. 9, 1781, she dies, still in confinement. Lady Bute, it +should be noted, was kind and attentive to the end.[89] + +'She was in Italy at the time of his (Chatham's) death,' writes Lord +Camelford, who was probably there too. 'I can bear witness that the +grief she felt at the reflection of his having died without a +reconciliation with her made such an impression of tenderness on her +mind that not only obliterated all remembrance of his unkindness, but +recoiled upon herself, as if she had been the offending party, and +doubtless contributed greatly to the melancholy state in which she +died.' + +Horace Walpole, who had come to hate all Pitts, confirms this in his +sardonic way. 'Did I tell you that Mrs Ann Pitt is returned and acts +great grief for her brother?' and he goes on to say that Camelford +himself 'gave a little into that mummery, even to me; forgetting how +much I must remember of his aversion to his uncle.' + +There were perhaps few genuine tears save those of wife and children +shed over the grave of the grim, disconcerting old statesman, for men of +his type are beyond friendship: they inspire awe, not affection; they +deal with masses, not with individuals; they have followers, admirers, +and an envious host of enemies, rarely a friend. But Ann had no reason +to feign grief or self-reproach. She had lost her first love, her only +love, the love of her life. It is probable that the brother and sister +had understood each other throughout in their quick-kindling, petulant +way. 'My brother, who has always seemed to guess and understand all I +felt of every kind,' she wrote in 1757;[90] a sentence which is a clue +to all. The memory of childhood, the glad sympathies of youth, the +impressions received when their characters were plastic and fresh, the +habit of close intimacy for the score of years during which intimacy +was possible for him, all these contributed to form a bond which +survived the skirmishes and collisions of their later lives. Two persons +of highly charged temperament, and of natures too much akin, who +understood each other, respected each other, and perhaps secretly +enjoyed each other's ebullitions, such were Ann and William after they +separated in 1746. Their long affection is interesting if only that it +seemed impossible that two such characters should agree even for a time. +And therefore, though the narrative of this episode has swollen beyond +all limit and proportion, the space is not lost, for it is invaluable to +the student of Pitt's career. It lights up the only expressed tenderness +in his life, it is the one relief to his sombre nature, it is the sole +record that we have of the unbending of that grim and stately figure. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + + +In 1734 there had been a fiercely contested General Election, and Thomas +Pitt had been returned for both Okehampton and Old Sarum. He elected to +sit for Okehampton, and nominated his brother, William, together with +his brother-in-law, Nedham, for the other borough. So, on February 18, +1735, William was returned Member for the notorious borough of Old +Sarum; an area of about sixty acres of ploughed land, on which had once +stood the old city of Salisbury, but which no longer contained a single +house or a single resident. The electorate consisted of seven votes. +When an election took place the returning officer brought with him a +tent, under which the necessary business was transacted.[91] + +To such a constituency it was superfluous, and indeed impossible, to +offer an election address, or an exposition of policy. But William's +politics could not be other than those of his brother and nominator, +though it would seem that Thomas conformed to William rather than +William to Thomas. We have seen some indications in his letters to Ann +that Thomas had been favourable to Sir Robert Walpole, and that so late +as November 1734. But it seems probable that William, who was united in +private friendship with Lyttelton and the Grenvilles, was drawn to them +by political sympathy as well, and was thus in agreement with the +fiercest section of the Opposition. By the time that William was +elected, Thomas, who was connected with the same group by marriage, must +also have thrown in his political lot with it, or he would not have +nominated his brother. For William, though only a cornet of horse, was +known to be an enemy, and a redoubtable enemy, to the Minister. On this +point we have clear evidence in a remarkable statement by Lord +Camelford, which will be quoted later. + +William's political opinions were then, we may safely suppose, the +result of family connection, for through his brother and his own +friendships he was closely united with that band of politicians who met +and caballed at Stowe, the stately residence of Lord Cobham. There he +was a visitor for the first time this year (1735). His stay lasted not +less than four months, from the beginning of July to the end of October. +He could scarcely have remained so long without being enrolled in this +small but important group, even had he not been enlisted already. But he +was probably a recruit before his visit began. His brother, as we have +seen, had married Christian Lyttelton, Cobham's niece; George, +afterwards Lord Lyttelton, was her brother, and Cobham's nephew, as well +as William's intimate friend; Richard and George Grenville, the first of +whom is better known as Lord Temple, and the second as a laborious but +intolerable prime minister, were Cobham's nephews; Richard, indeed, was +his heir. A family connection was thus formed, which, at first held up +to ridicule under the nickname of 'Cobham's cubs,' or 'The Cousins,' or +'The Boy Patriots,' was to be for the next thirty years a notable factor +in political history, and a sinister element in Pitt's career. + +So it may be well here to turn aside for a moment to consider these +Grenvilles, who exercised so singular and baleful an influence on Pitt, +and indeed on public affairs in general. For from the moment that Pitt +became their brother-in-law, he was adopted as one of the brotherhood +and choked in their embraces. From this mortal entanglement he +emancipated himself too late. It was then patent how different his +career would have been had he had a man of common-sense at his elbow, or +at least an unselfish adviser. George Grenville, however, complained on +his side that the connection had been fatal to the peace and happiness +of the Grenvilles.[92] + +Who was the chief of this combination? Richard Temple, Viscount Cobham, +best remembered as the 'brave Cobham' to whom Pope addressed his first +Epistle and as the founder of the dynasty and palace of Stowe, was not +merely a soldier who had served with distinction under Marlborough, but +a fortunate courtier on whom the House of Hanover had heaped constant +and signal honours. He was created first a Baron, then a Viscount, +Constable of Windsor Castle, Governor of Jersey, a Privy Councillor, +Colonel of the First Dragoons, and was afterwards to become a Field +Marshal and Colonel of the Horse Guards. He had, hints Shelburne, some +of the Shandean humour of Marlborough's veterans, but his portrait shows +a keen, refined, perhaps sensitive countenance; he was also something +of a bashaw.[93] Sated with military honours, and always a staunch Whig, +he had now taken to conspicuous politics and splendour; politics +exacerbated by a personal slight, and splendour displayed in sumptuous +hospitality, princely buildings, and lavish magnificence of gardens. +These, laid out under the supervision of Lancelot Brown, extended at +last to not less than four hundred acres. Here he erected pavilions and +shrines in the fashion of those times; the most daring of which was one +to commemorate his friendships, with which politics had made sad havoc +before the temple was completed. Here he kept open house in the spacious +and genial fashion of that time, and entertained Pope, Congreve, +Bolingbroke, Pulteney, the wits as well as the princes of the day. From +these pleasing cares he had recently been diverted by one of those +needless affronts which seem so inconsistent with the robust and genial +character of Walpole, but to the infliction of which Walpole was +singularly prone. On account of his opposition to the Excise Bill, +Cobham had been deprived of his regiment, the same, by-the-bye, in which +Pitt was a subaltern. Stung to political ardour by this insult, he had +begun to form a faction of violent opposition, of which his nephews and +their friends were the nucleus. Thus began that formidable influence +which had its home and source at Stowe for near a century afterwards, +and which for three generations patiently and persistently pursued the +ducal coronet which was the darling object of its successive chiefs. + +Cobham, then, founded the family, and, so long as he lived, directed +their operations, with too much perhaps of the spirit of a martinet. +When he died his fortune and title passed to his sister, afterwards, as +we shall see, Countess Temple in her own right, the mother of the +Grenvilles with whom we are concerned. + +There were originally five Grenville brothers: Richard, George, James, +Henry, and Thomas. Three of these, however, are outside our limits. +Thomas, a naval officer of signal promise, was killed in action off Cape +Finisterre in May 1747. James and Henry were cyphers, not ill provided +for at the public charge. Both seem to have broken loose at one time +from the tyranny of the brotherhood: James at first siding with Richard +against George in 1761; and Henry, whom we find Richard anxious, on +opposite grounds it is to be presumed, to oust from the representation +of Buckingham in 1774. James, who, says Horace Walpole, 'had all the +defects of his brothers and had turned them to the best account,' was +Deputy Paymaster to Pitt; and Henry was a popular Governor of Barbadoes, +as well as Ambassador at Constantinople for four years, after which both +subsided into the blameless occupation of various sinecures. + +Never, indeed, was family so well provided for during an entire century +as the Temple-Grenvilles. Although the system by which the aristocracy +lived on the country was not carried nearly as far in Great Britain as +in the France of the fourteenth Louis and his successor, yet it had no +inconsiderable hold. Even the austere George, though averse in Burke's +expressive language to 'the low, pimping politics of a Court,' did not +disdain, when Prime Minister, to hurry to the King to announce the +death of Lord Macclesfield and secure for his son, afterwards Marquis of +Buckingham, the reversion of the Irish Tellership of the Exchequer thus +vacated;[94] nor, a few months later, to obtain the grant of a +lighthouse as a provision for his younger children.[95] The Tellership, +held as it was under the unreformed conditions, was a place of vast +emolument; it is not now easy to compute the amount.[96] Nor is it +necessary for the purpose of this book to follow up these details. +Cobbett reckoned from returns furnished to the House of Commons that +this Lord Buckingham and his brother Thomas, the sons of George +Grenville, had in half a century drawn 700,000_l._ of public money, and +William, another brother, something like 200,000_l._ more. These +figures, of course, are open to dispute, but they indicate at least that +the revenues from public money of this family of sinecurists must have +been enormous. Of English families the Grenvilles were in this +particular line easily the first. Had all sinecurists, it may be said in +passing, spent their money like the younger Thomas, who returned far +more than he received by bequeathing his matchless library to the +nation, the public conscience would have been much more tender towards +them. + +Nor was it need that drove them thus to live upon the public, for the +private wealth of the family was commanding; it was the basis of their +power. Richard by the death of his mother was said to have become the +richest subject in England.[97] And, as time went on, his possessions +swelled and swelled. The estates of Bubb[98] devolved upon him. +Heiresses brought their fortunes. There seemed no end to this +prosperity, and it was all utilised steadily and ceaselessly to extend +the political influence of the family. + +So all the brothers, even the sailor Thomas, were brought into the House +of Commons; and, with their connections and their discipline, so long as +this was preserved, formed a redoubtable political force. They were not +only a brotherhood but a confraternity. What is really admirable indeed +is the pertinacity and concentration of this strange, dogged race, and +their devotion, indeed subjection, to their chief; they were a political +Company of Jesus. Their objects were not exalted, but from generation to +generation, with a patience little less than Chinese, they pursued and +ultimately attained what they desired. They were of course unpopular, +because their scheme was too obvious; but they knew the value of +popularity, and attempted it with pompous and crowded entertainments. +They were not brilliant; but in every generation they had a man of +sufficient ability, two prime ministers among them, to further their +cause. They built, no doubt, on inadequate foundations, but these lasted +just long enough to enable the structure to be crowned. It is a singular +story; there is nothing like it in the history of England; it resembles +rather the persistent annals of the hive. + +The career of Pitt is concerned with only two of these Grenvilles, +Richard and George. These two men had this at least in common, an +amazing opinion of themselves. They were in their own estimation as good +as or better than any one else. They resented the slightest idea of any +disparity between themselves and Pitt. On what this prodigious estimate +was founded we shall never know; we can only conjecture that it was the +combination of fortune and family with some ability that made them deem +their position at least equal to his. When Pitt had raised Britain from +abasement to the first position in the world, when he was indisputably +the greatest orator and the greatest power in the country, the +Grenvilles considered themselves at the least as Pitt's equals, and him +as only one and not the first of a triumvirate. In 1769, when Pitt was +reconciled to them, Temple trumpeted the 'union of the three brothers' +as the greatest fact in contemporary history. As the alliance of a man +of genius with great parliamentary influence and powers of intrigue it +was undoubtedly a political fact of note. But any disparity between the +three personalities never occurs to Temple. In 1766, he writes: 'If a +lead of superiority was claimed (on the part of Pitt) it was rejected on +my part with an assertion of my pretensions to an equality.' And again: +'I claimed an equality, and have no idea of yielding to him ... a +superiority which I think it would be unbecoming in me to give.' Poor +forgotten Temple! With such superb scorn did he reject the offer of the +First Lordship of the Treasury, with the nomination of the +Chancellorship of the Exchequer and the whole Board of Treasury, when +offered by the first man in Europe. An hallucination of the same kind +was observed in the brothers of Napoleon. But in that case it was only +noted by cynical contemporaries, in this it was proclaimed on the +housetops. + +Of Richard, the eldest, who became, as will be seen, Earl Temple, a +competent and laborious critic has said that he was one of the 'most +straightforward, honest, and honourable men of his age.' The age, no +doubt, was not famous for public men of this type; but it was not so +barren as this judgment would imply. And indeed it is difficult to +discern the grounds on which it is based. To the ordinary student +Temple, we imagine, will always appear a selfish and tortuous intriguer, +who hoped to utilise his brother-in-law's genius and popularity for +practical objects of his own. But he had other resources of a more +questionable kind. He delighted in the subterranean and the obscure. +'This malignant man,' says Horace Walpole with truth and point, 'worked +in the mines of successive factions for over thirty years together.' He +was in constant communication with Wilkes, whom he supplied with funds. +He was an active pamphleteer. So well were his methods understood that +he acquired the dubious honour of a candidature for the authorship of +Junius. It is almost certain at any rate that he was one of the few +confidants of that remarkable secret. But his wealth and strategy and +borough power were all concentrated on selfish and personal objects. As +head of the Grenvilles, his design was that the Grenvilles and their +connections and all other influences that he could bring to bear should +co-operate for the elevation of the family in the person of its chief. +For this purpose his brother-in-law, Pitt, was a priceless asset. But +all the family had to serve. All of them were put into the House of +Commons; and, it may be added, into the Privy Council, except Thomas, +the sailor, who was prematurely removed by death. George, who under Pitt +and Temple only enjoyed subordinate office, was for a time lured from +the family allegiance by Bute with the offer of a Secretaryship of State +and the reversion of the headship. But George himself was eventually +brought into line. + +Temple's aims were simple and material; from the first moment that we +discern him he is pursuing them with persistent but intemperate ardour. +Hardly was Cobham's body cold, Cobham, his uncle and benefactor, to whom +he owed everything, when we find Temple urging that his mother, Cobham's +sister and heiress, should be made a Countess in her own right, with +descent, of course, to himself. Cobham died on September 13; on +September 28 Temple applied for this title. Even Newcastle, the most +hardened of political jobbers, was shocked at his precipitation, and +suggested a postponement, on the ground of common decency. Temple +brushed this objection aside with contempt. He wished the thing done at +once, and done it was. + +Hardly had he thus been ennobled when we find him signalising his new +rank by a filthy trick more suited to a barge than a court. At a +reception in his own house, presided over by his charming and +accomplished wife, Lord Cobham, as he was now styled, spat into the hat +which Lord Hervey held in his hand. This feat Cobham had betted a guinea +that he would accomplish. Hervey behaved with temper and coolness. +Cobham took the hat and wiped it with profuse excuses, trying to pass +the matter off as a joke; but after some days of humiliation he had to +write an explicit apology with a recital of all his previous efforts to +appease Hervey's resentment.[99] Such diversions, Lady Hester Stanhope +declares, were common at Stowe. She narrates one scarcely less +nauseous.[100] + +Having obtained the earldom, his next object was the Garter. George II. +detested him, and refused the request with asperity. So Pitt had to be +brought in. Pitt was then all-powerful, for this was the autumn of 1759. +He wrote a note full of sombre menace to Newcastle, and demanded the +Garter for Temple as a reward for his own services; but still the King +refused. Then the last reserves were brought into play. Temple resigned +the Privy Seal on the ground that the Garter was denied. Pitt had at the +same time a peremptory interview with Newcastle. The King had to yield, +but could not repress his anger. He threw the ribbon to Temple as a bone +is thrown to a dog. But delicacy, as we have seen, did not trouble +Temple in matters of substance, and he was satisfied. + +Having obtained these two objects of ambition, he now played for a +dukedom. This ambition, suspected presumably in Cobham, had been the +subject of epigram so early as 1742.[101] It was avowed, according to +Walpole, in 1767, and, indeed, no other explanation seems adapted to his +various proceedings at critical junctures. Thus, when in June 1765, +George III. and his uncle Cumberland tried to form a Pitt ministry, but +found that an absolute condition of such a ministry was that Temple +should be First Lord of the Treasury, Temple refused on various flimsy +pretexts. When these were surmounted, he declared that 'he had tender +and delicate reasons' which he did not explain to the King, or, +apparently, to Pitt.[102] That this unwonted delicacy and tenderness +were concentrated on the superior coronet appears from the negotiation +carried on by Horace Walpole in 1767, when Lord Hertford assured him of +the fact that Lord Temple's ambition was now a dukedom.[103] It is not +doubtful that this had now become the central preoccupation of his life, +and the hereditary object of the family combination. At first sight it +would seem improbable that Pitt was aware of it, for the simple reason +that he would probably have made efforts to obtain it from the King. On +the other hand, it is unlikely that Temple, in the affair of the Garter, +having found the inestimable value of Pitt's pressure on George II., +could have foregone the effort to exercise it on George III. On the +whole, the most plausible conjecture appears to be that Pitt was +unsuccessfully sounded by his brother-in-law. All that we know is, that +when Pitt finally determined to undertake the ministry without Temple, +they had a heated interview, which seems to have left deep marks on +Pitt's nerves and health, but whether it turned on Temple's particular +ambition or not can now only be matter for surmise. + +The death of Temple made no difference to the family ambition. His +nephew made violent, even frantic, but ineffectual efforts to obtain the +title through Chatham's son. Nor were other means of aggrandisement +neglected. By marriage there accrued the fortunes of Chambers, Nugent, +Chandos, and, by some other way, that of Dodington. Acre was added to +acre and estate to estate, often by the dangerous expedient of borrowed +money, until Buckinghamshire seemed likely to become the appanage of the +family. Borough influence was laboriously accumulated and maintained. +Nor were nobler possessions disdained. Rare books and manuscripts, +choice pictures, and sumptuous furniture were added by successive +generations to the splendid collections of Stowe. Finally, in the reign +of George IV., and in the time of Temple's great-nephew, the object was +attained. Lord Liverpool acquired the support of the Grenville +parliamentary influence by an almost commercial compact, Louis XVIII. +added his instances, and Buckingham became a duke. From that moment the +star of the family visibly paled. Eight years afterwards the duke had to +shut up Stowe, and go abroad. Less than twenty years from then the +palace was dismantled, its treasures were dispersed, the vast estates +sold, and the glories of the House, built up with so much care and +persistence, vanished like a snow-wreath. + +But all this is beyond our narrative. At this time all these ambitions +are concealed, there is nothing visible but cordiality, the genial flow +of soul, and brotherly love. Pitt's early letters to George Grenville +are among the easiest and most human that he ever wrote: he wrote +nothing more unaffectedly tender than two letters he sent in September +and October 1742, to George, then abroad for his health. Richard and +George Grenville, Lyttelton and William Pitt, with their set, form one +of those engaging companionships of youth, when high spirits, warm +affections, and the dayspring of life combine to animate a friendship +without guile or suspicion. + +Then come separation, marriage, new interests, new ambitions, and the +paths diverge, perhaps till sunset. So it was with these young men. They +all at times quarrelled, even the kindly Lyttelton was driven to +separation. Later, again, they all came together again in some fashion +or another, with the exception, perhaps, of George, whose obstinate +self-love when wounded could never be healed. + +But now all was dawn and blossom and smiles. The friends are full of +banter. Their politics are half a frolic. Life is all before them. Its +conditions will harden them presently, and they will wrangle and snarl, +and have their quarrels and huffs. But that is not yet; not even a +coming shadow is visible. Still, even now, it is necessary to indicate +the nature and consequences of Pitt's absorption into the cousinhood. + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + + +It is here that his public career begins. His lot was cast in stirring +times. For the year of his entry into Parliament was the fourteenth of +Walpole's long administration, and it was not difficult to see menacing +cracks in the structure. The Minister himself seems to have been aware +that his position was critical; and at the general election in the +previous year he had spared no exertions to secure a majority. In his +own county of Norfolk, 10,000_l._ had been spent in support of his +candidates without averting their defeat: from his own private means he +is said, no doubt with gross exaggeration, to have expended no less than +60,000_l._ Figures like these, however swollen by rumour, denote the +intensity of the struggle. But in spite of all, his losses were +considerable. Even Scotland, in those days the hungry dependant of all +Governments, was shaken in her allegiance. And, though he gained the +victory, the toughness of the contest betokened clearly that his +stability was seriously impaired, and that the country was weary of his +domination. + +For this there were many obvious causes. One, of course, was the +universal unpopularity of the Excise scheme. It was also one of the +moments in our history when the country is uneasily conscious of +weakness and possible humiliation abroad, and when the silent and +passive interests of peace weigh lightly in the balance against the +smarting burden of wounded self-respect. But the most operative cause +lay in Walpole himself. + +There is no enigma about Walpole. He sprang from near a score of +generations of Norfolk squires who had spent six hundred years in +healthy obscurity and the simple pleasures of the country. None of them +apparently had brains, or the need of them. From these he inherited a +frame hardy and robust, and that taste for the sports of the field that +never left him. He had also the advantage of being brought up as a +younger son to work, and thus he gained that self-reliant and +pertinacious industry which served him so well through long years of +high office. From the beginning to the end he was primarily a man of +business. Had he not been a politician it cannot be doubted that he +would have been a great merchant or a great financier. And, though his +lot was cast in politics, a man of business he essentially remained. +This is not to say that he was not a consummate parliamentary debater, +for that he must have been. But it is to suggest that the key to +Walpole's character as Prime Minister lies in his instincts and +qualifications as a man of business. His main tendency was not, as with +Chesterfield and Carteret and Bolingbroke, towards high statesmanship. +His first object was to carry on the business of the country in a +business spirit, as economically and as peacefully as possible. His +chief preoccupation apart from this was the keeping out of the rival +house of Stuart, which would not have employed the firm of Walpole and +the Whigs to keep their accounts. It is quite possible that as a patriot +he may have also dreaded the probable evils of the Stuart dynasty. But +the first reason is amply sufficient. The corruption of which he was +undoubtedly guilty, but of which he was by no means the inventor, he +perhaps considered as the commission due to customers; or else he may +have argued, 'these men have to be bought by somebody, let us do it in a +business-like way.' His merciless crushing of any rivals was simply the +big firm crushing competition, a familiar feature of commerce. His +carrying on a war against Spain in spite of his own conscientious +disapproval can only be satisfactorily explained on the same hypothesis. +The nation would have war: well, if it must, he could carry it on more +cheaply, and limit its mischief more effectually than any other +contractor. Moreover, Walpole had all along been the merchants' man. He +had given them peace and wealth. Now for commercial purposes they wanted +war and he had to gratify them. They had been the main backers of his +administration, the deprivation of their support would have left him +bare; so when they turned round he had to follow, with scarcely the +appearance of leadership. + +In these days we should undoubtedly condemn any statesman who declared a +war of which he disapproved. Lord Aberdeen morbidly and unjustly accused +himself of this offence, and refused to be comforted. That is the other +extreme to Walpole's position. But we must remember the political +morality of those times. Was there then living a statesman who would +have acted differently? From this sweeping question we cannot except +Pitt, who was bitterly denouncing Walpole for his pacific attitude, and +had afterwards to confess that Walpole had been right. + +We regard Walpole, then, first and foremost as a man of business, led +into the great error with which history reproaches him by his brother +men of business. Still, his qualities in that capacity would not have +maintained him for years as Prime Minister. They proved him to be a +hard-working man with practical knowledge of affairs and strong common +sense; a sagacious man who hated extremes. He had besides the highest +qualities of a parliamentary leader. Of imagination, unless it may be +inferred from his palace and picture gallery, he seems to have been +totally destitute. But he had dauntless courage and imperturbable +temper. + +To his courage George II., who was not profuse of praise, gave ardent +testimony. 'He is a brave fellow,' he would cry out vehemently, with a +flush and an oath, 'he has more spirit than any man I ever knew;' a +compliment ill-requited by Sir Robert, who declared that his master, if +he knew anything of him, was, 'with all his personal bravery, as great a +political coward as ever wore a crown.' Early in his career as Prime +Minister Sir Robert, who had the art, rare among eighteenth century +politicians, of inditing pointed and pregnant letters, had written to an +Irish Viceroy: 'I have weathered great storms before now, and shall not +be lost in an Irish hurricane.'[104] This was no vain boast; it was the +spirit in which he habitually conducted affairs. In truth Walpole's +courage stands in no need of witness, it speaks for itself; his very +defects arose from it or prove it. His jealousy of ability which +deprived him of precious allies and compelled him to fight +single-handed, his intolerance of independence in his party which had +the same effect, all show the dauntless self-confidence of the man. He +wanted no competitors, no dubious allies, no assistance but that of +unflagging votes or diligent service; for all else he relied on himself +alone. + +This great Minister had all the defects of his qualities as well as one +which seemed curiously alien to them. Part of his strength lay in a +coarse and burly, if cynical, geniality. His temper, as we have said, +was imperturbable; we shall see this even in the closing scene of his +ministry; it was even cordial, and sometimes boisterous. He loved to +seem rather a country gentleman than a statesman. He seemed most natural +when shooting and carousing at Houghton, or carousing and hunting at +Richmond. But his appearance was deceptive; he was what the French would +call 'un faux bonhomme,' a spurious good fellow. Good nature perhaps +could hardly have survived the desperate battles and intrigues in which +this hard-bitten old statesman had been engaged all his life. And so +under this bluff and debonair exterior there was concealed a jealousy of +power, passing the jealousy of woman, and the ruthless vindictiveness of +a Red Indian. To the opposition of his political foes he opposed a stout +and unflinching front which shielded a gang of mediocrities; with these +enemies he fought a battle in which quarter was neither granted nor +expected. But his own forces were kept under martial law; anything like +opposition or rivalry within his ranks he crushed in the relentless +spirit of Peter the Great. By these methods he had not merely maintained +an iron discipline among his own supporters, but had himself constructed +by alienation and proscription the opposition to his administration, an +opposition which comprised consummate abilities and undying +resentments. For he had driven from him and united in a league of +implacable revenge almost all the men of power and leading in +Parliament. Politics to them were embodied in one controlling idea; how +to compass the fall, the ruin, the impeachment of Walpole. The undaunted +Minister faced them with confident serenity, though they were not +enemies to be disdained. Pulteney, Wyndham, Chesterfield, and Carteret +were men of the highest ability and distinction. Barnard and Polwarth, +Shippen and Sandys, were from character or intellect scarcely less +redoubtable. Behind them lurked Bolingbroke, excluded, indeed, from +Parliament by the vigilant detestation of Walpole, but guiding and +inspiring from his enforced retirement, the seer and oracle of all the +Minister's enemies, for-- + + 'Princely counsel in his face yet shone, + Majestic, though in ruin.' + +Prominent among these stately combatants was an anomalous figure with a +brain as shallow and futile as St. John's was active and brilliant, but +by the nature of things as formidable as Bolingbroke was impotent, +Frederick Prince of Wales. For Frederick was soon to add to the second +position in the country the leadership of the Opposition. The King's +health was supposed to be precarious, though he lived cheerfully and not +ingloriously for another quarter of a century. And the Heir Apparent, +feeling conscious of his advantages, and determined to assert himself, +became the complacent puppet of all the factions opposed to his father's +Government. His Court, indeed, resembled that famous cave to which were +gathered every one that was discontented and every one that was in +distress. All who had been spurned or ousted by Walpole, all who were +under the displeasure of the King, all who saw little prospect of +advancement under the present reign, hastened to rally round the Heir +Apparent. He was soon to employ Pitt about his person. It is well, then, +to pause a moment and consider this prominent and formidable figure. + +Frederick, Prince of Wales, is one of the idle mysteries of English +history. The problem does not lie in his being a political leader, in +spite of the general contempt in which he was held by his contemporaries +and associates; for an heir-apparent to the Crown can always, if he +chooses, be a factor in party politics, though it is scarcely possible +that his intervention can be beneficial. But no circumstance known to us +can explain the virulence of aversion with which the King and Queen +regarded him, which was so intense as to be almost incredible. They were +both good haters, and yet they hated no one half so much as their eldest +son. His father called him the greatest beast and liar and scoundrel in +existence. His mother and his sister wished hourly to hear of his death. +This violence of unnatural loathing is not to be accounted for by any +known facts. Frederick was a poor creature, no doubt, a vain and fatuous +coxcomb. But human beings are constantly the parents of coxcombs without +regarding them as vermin. The only conjecture in regard to the matter +which seems to furnish adequate ground for these feelings is that the +King was bred in the narrow school of a little German State, where, +though nothing less than affection was expected between a prince and his +heir, discipline was rigidly observed; so that the conduct of Frederick, +in assuming a position independent and defiant of his father, and in +openly heading an opposition to his Government, was an offence the more +unspeakable and unpardonable as it had been absolutely beyond the limits +of Hanoverian contemplation. There was, it must be confessed, an +hereditary predisposition to this parental relation. The King himself, +when Prince of Wales, had been placed under arrest by his father for the +somewhat venial offence of insulting the Duke of Newcastle. He had +submitted himself to his disgrace, and his opposition had only been +passive and inarticulate; he had never dreamed of forming a faction +hostile to the Crown. His only real crimes had been his right of +succession and a fictitious popularity founded on dislike of his +father's mistresses. And yet his father hated him almost as much as +father ever hated son. It was reserved for George II. to discover a +deeper abhorrence for his own heir. With his views of absolute +authority, a peculiar degree of detestation had to be discovered for a +Prince of Wales who had not merely the inherent vice of heirship +apparent but the gratuitous offence of an active opposition which his +father deemed flagrant rebellion. Given violent temper, ill manners, and +a sort of family tradition, the cause of wrath can best be thus +explained. + +Beyond this we know nothing for certain, and presumably shall never know +more. There are some facts, but they are insufficient. + +It is said that as a mere boy he gamed and drank and kept a mistress. By +this last scandal the royal family was enabled to present to the world +the unedifying spectacle of grandfather, father, and son simultaneously +living under these immoral conditions; and all three, it is said, +successively with the same woman. But these facts alone would certainly +not have accounted for his father's displeasure. Again, it is narrated +that when his tutor complained of him his mother said that these were +page's tricks. 'Would to God they were, madam,' replied the tutor, 'but +they are rather the tricks of lackeys and knaves.' And tricky Frederick +undoubtedly was from the beginning to the end. But trickiness, though it +was not among the King's faults, and though it would excite his just +contempt, cannot alone have caused the intensity of his hatred. + +One if not two of Frederick's escapades were concerned with designs of +marriage. He was discovered on the point of concluding a secret alliance +with Princess Wilhelmine of Prussia, with whom he professed himself in +love, and who afterwards became known to us as Margravine of Bareith; on +another occasion it is said that he was lured by a dowry of 100,000_l._ +into a betrothal with Lady Diana Spencer, grand-daughter of Sarah, +Duchess of Marlborough. Both these affairs were interrupted at the last +moment. In both cases the King was irritated by the underhand +proceedings of his son, and by the total lack of a confidence which, as +he probably omitted to remember, he had done nothing to gain. But his +crowning outrage was a monkey-trick, both wanton and barbarous. When he +had at last married a princess of his father's choice, and his wife was +seized with the first pangs of maternity in the King's palace of Hampton +Court, he hurried her off, in her agony and in spite of her entreaties, +to St. James's. At any moment of the journey a catastrophe might have +occurred. What the motive was for this cruel and unmeaning escapade +cannot be guessed, for his own explanations were futile. It was said +that his father suspected him of an intention to foist a spurious child +on his family and that he resented the suspicion. If that were so his +action was exactly suited to confirm it. Whatever his purpose may have +been, the King and Queen, from whom the imminence of the Princess's +situation had been carefully concealed, were naturally and grossly +insulted. The King banished him from his palace and presence, and +forbade the Court to all who should visit him. Nor was there ever an +approach to reconciliation or forgiveness in the fourteen years that the +Prince had yet to live. The King would receive him at Court and would +express the hope that his wife was in good health; that was the extent +of their relations. But though this was the culminating point of his +known misconduct, it would almost seem that there was some more occult +reason which we do not know. We only guess at its existence from the +record of Lord Hardwicke. At the time of this last scandal 'Sir Robert +Walpole,' says the Chancellor, 'informed me of certain passages between +the King and himself, and between the King and the Prince, of too high +and secret a nature even to be trusted to this narrative; but from +thence I found great reason to think that this unhappy difference +between the King and Queen and His Royal Highness turned upon some +points of a more interesting and important nature than have hitherto +appeared.'[105] There, then, is the mystery, without a key, with no room +even for conjecture. But the cause must have been dire that evoked so +deadly a passion of hatred between parents and son. + +Those who care to read in detail the coarse and violent expressions of +this unnatural repulsion may glut their appetite in Lord Hervey's +memoirs. One or two such passages will serve as specimens of the rest. +The Queen and Princess Caroline, Frederick's sister, made no ceremony of +wishing a hundred times a day that the Prince might drop down dead of an +apoplexy. Princess Caroline, who, Hervey tells us, 'had affability +without meanness, dignity without pride, cheerfulness without levity, +and prudence without falsehood,' who was in a word an exemplary and +charming person, declared that she grudged him every hour he had to +breathe, and reproached Hervey with being 'so great a dupe as to believe +the nauseous beast' (those were her words) 'cared for anything but his +own nauseous self, that he loved anything but money, that he was not the +greatest liar that ever spoke.' The Queen, not to be outdone, declared +that she would give it under her hand 'that my dear firstborn is the +greatest ass, and the greatest liar, and the greatest canaille, and the +greatest beast in the whole world, and that I most heartily wish he was +out of it.'[106] Even on her deathbed she could not be brought to +receive or forgive him. If Lord Hervey, his bitter enemy, can be +credited, this obduracy was not at the last without justification. Lord +Hervey declares that the Prince crowded the Queen's anteroom with his +emissaries to convey to him the earliest information of her condition. +As the bulletins of the Queen's decline reached him, he would say, +'Well, now we shall have some good news; she cannot hold out much +longer.' All this need not be literally believed, but it affords a +picture of family rancour which can scarcely have been equalled in the +history of mankind. + +From the time of the public quarrel with his parents the Prince of Wales +gave himself up to political opposition. He wielded, indeed, formidable +weapons of offence. His father was avaricious, secluded, and disliked; +Frederick laid himself out to be thought generous, accessible, and +popular. He knew well that every symptom of national affection for +himself was a stab to the King. He and his family, at a time when French +fashions were all the rage, ostentatiously wore none but English goods. +He trained his children to act Addison's Cato. Nor did he disdain more +social arts. He would go to fairs, bull-baitings, races, and rowing +matches; he would visit gipsy encampments; he became familiar to the +people. He would assist at a fire in London, amid shouts from the mob, +as he and his court alleged, of 'Crown him! crown him!' At Epsom there +is a tradition that when living there he fought a chimney-sweep with his +fists, and erected a monument in generous acknowledgment of his own +defeat. + +In private life he was essentially frivolous. When his father's troops +were besieging Carlisle, the Prince had a model of the citadel made in +confectionery, while he and the ladies of the court bombarded it with +sugar-plums. This seems emblematic of his whole career. + +But his main and favourite diversion had a graver aspect: it lay in +political cabals of which he was the puppet and the figurehead, and in +forming futile ministries and policies for his own reign. Of these last +a curious example is preserved among the Bedford Papers.[107] + +All political malcontents of the slightest importance were sure of a +cordial reception at Leicester House or Kew. There all could warm their +wants and disappointments with the sunshine of royal patronage and the +cheering prospect of a new reign. 'Remember that the King is sixty-one, +and I am thirty-seven,'[108] said Frederick, and this calculation +coloured his whole life. The future was freely discounted and +anticipated in the Prince's circle, so that there, as in the Court of +the Pretender, the faithful adherent might receive some high office to +be enjoyed after the death of the King, but with this substantial +difference: that whereas what James distributed were shadows, the awards +of Frederick required only common good faith and the death of an old man +to make them realities. Bubb for example, the most avid and unabashed of +political harlots, gravely kissed his patron's hand for a Secretaryship +of State, and, according to Walpole, a dukedom, immediately afterwards +nominating his under-secretary, to show the solidity of the arrangement. +Henley, who was afterwards under different circumstances to be +Chancellor, was grievously disappointed to find that Dr. Lee was to have +the seals. And so they snapped and snarled over the spoils, while the +Prince complacently made his appointments, and apportioned the functions +of the future. So far as he was concerned it was all barren enough. His +little projects, his little ambitions, his little ministries, his +political post-obits, were all cut short by the sudden shears of Death. +His councillors and followers were scattered to the winds, and Bubb had +to hasten to make his peace with the powers that be, and to exchange his +contingent Secretaryship of State for an actual Treasurership of the +Navy. The Prince's other post-obits, his debts, were, it would seem, +never paid.[109] + +To sum up, with regard to Frederick we have a few certain facts: the +hatred of his parents and sisters, and a singular unanimity of scorn +from his contemporaries. There is not perhaps in existence a single +favourable testimony. We have many portraits, one at Windsor of an +innocent lad in a red coat playing the violoncello with his sisters, +which is pleasant enough; the later ones all stamped with a pretentious +silliness which affirms the verdict of his own day. Then we have the +mysterious intimation of Lord Hardwicke of some deep and sinister cause +for the alienation of his parents. This, however, unsupported and +unexplained, carries us no further, and is merely an excuse for the +unnatural aversion of his family. Beyond that mystery, the word +'fatuous' seems exactly to embody all that we know of this prince; his +appearance, morals, manners, and intellect are all summed up in that +single expression. + +On the other hand, there are traits of generosity which are recorded, +there is his apparent popularity, there is the general grief for his +death; but it may well be surmised that it was not difficult for the son +of George II. and the grandson of George I. to be popular and regretted. +On the whole, may we not conclude that the arbitrary discipline of +Hanover in early life made him incurably tricky and untruthful, that he +was an empty and frivolous coxcomb, but not without kindly instincts; +and that his weaknesses and frailties, whatever they may have been, laid +a grave responsibility on the parents who reared and cursed him? + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + + +During his first session of Parliament, Pitt never opened his mouth: +indeed, his only public performance was to tell in a division. In 1736 +he became better known. He supported an address of congratulation to the +Crown on the marriage of the Prince of Wales. This formal and +complimentary speech has been absurdly scrutinised because of the +speaker's subsequent fame, and much has been read into it which no +impartial reader can now discern. A notorious eulogy describes it as +superior even to the models of ancient eloquence. Others read into it +piercing innuendoes and vitriolic sarcasm. All this was discovered, long +after its delivery, by the light of Pitt's later achievements. It is +said that George II. never forgave it. But George II.'s hatred of Pitt +is more easily accounted for by other offences. It is rumoured that +Walpole shuddered when he heard it, and said, 'We must muzzle that +terrible cornet of horse.' The ordinary reader sees in the reported +speech nothing which would provoke admiration or alarm in anybody were +it attributed to any one who had remained obscure. But the report, +though elaborate, was probably inaccurate; the speech may have been more +vicious than appears; it must, at any rate, have been something very +different from smooth platitudes on a royal marriage that would have +made Walpole tremble, if indeed Walpole was liable to any such emotion. +The truth, no doubt, is that the graces of voice, person, and delivery +marvellously embellished this maiden effort, and produced a striking +effect on the audience. + +But, whatever its intrinsic merits, the success of this speech was +immeasurably enhanced, if not altogether secured, by Walpole's action. +It may indeed be said to have been made famous by the penalty which +followed it rather than by its own merits. He deprived the young orator +and cornet of his commission. + + 'The servile standard from the freeborn hand + He took, and bade thee lead the patriot band,' + +sang Lyttelton to Pitt. + +It was a vindictive act which seems alien to Walpole's boisterous good +humour, but of a kind to which Walpole's arbitrary notions of political +discipline made him singularly prone. So petty an act of vengeance +wreaked on so young and subordinate an officer by a powerful Prime +Minister seems incredible in our larger or laxer days. But it was +perhaps the very slightness of Pitt's position which was an inducement +to Walpole. He was determined, it may be, that the whole army, from the +highest to the lowest, should feel the weight of his hand. The disgrace +of political generals seemed just and proper, it was cutting off the +heads of the tallest poppies, a proceeding recognised and respectable +since the days of Tarquin. These penalties had left the mass of the army +unmoved, not impossibly because the removal of chiefs means the +promotion of subordinates. So Walpole may have resolved that all in the +service of the Crown should feel that revolt against the minister of the +Crown was a flagrant crime. Generals had been punished, and so all +officers from the highest, to the lowest should be liable to the same +pains and penalties; nay private soldiers, were their lot enviable, +might suffer the same deprivation. 'The King,' wrote Lady Irwin, a lady +of the Prince of Wales' household, to her brother, Lord Carlisle, 'two +days ago turned out Mr. Pitt from a cornetcy for having voted and spoke +in Parliament contrary to his approbation. He is a young man of no +fortune, a very pretty speaker, one the Prince is particular to, and +under the tuition of my Lord Cobham. The Army is all alarmed at this, +and 'tis said it will hurt the King more than his removing my Lord +Stairs and Lord Cobham, since it is making the whole army dependent, by +descending to resent a vote from the lowest commission, which may +occasion a representation in parliament to prevent all officers of the +army from sitting there.'[110] + +It may, however, have been that Pitt's dismissal was due not to his +obscurity but to an exactly opposite consideration. + +Pitt's nephew, Lord Camelford, asserts as an undoubted fact that the +reputation both of Pitt and of Lyttelton was so considerable before they +entered Parliament, and their political tendencies so notorious, that +Walpole made considerable offers to Thomas Pitt on condition that he did +not brings them in for any of his boroughs. 'William's early abilities,' +writes Lord Camelford, 'induc'd Sir Robert Walpole to offer my father +(Thomas Pitt) any terms not to bring him or his brother-in-law Mr. +Lyttelton into Parliament,' but 'my father preferred their interests to +his own, and laid the foundations, at his own expense, for all his +brother's future fame and greatness.' It is a tradition that Canning, +when in office, kept his eye on promising lads at Eton who might make +eligible followers. One would not, however, have imagined that Walpole +was so much in touch with the rising youth of the country. But if +Camelford may be credited, and there seems no reason to doubt him, +Walpole was prejudiced and on his guard against Pitt before Pitt opened +his mouth; and he may have been hurried into a petulant act by previous +friction unconnected with the speech, which may, moreover, have +contained irritating innuendoes directed against Walpole, which Walpole +alone understood. + +The Minister had not been so foolish as to alienate without trying to +secure, and his failure may have exasperated him the more. In later +years Pitt told Shelburne that Sir Robert had offered him the troop +which was afterwards given to Conway, so that had he remained in the +army he would have stood high by seniority alone. This offer, we may +conjecture, was just previous to the overtures to Thomas Pitt. Walpole, +hearing reports of the young officer's conspicuous abilities and of his +hostility to the Government, would try and fix his ambitions in the +army. Failing that, he would try and exclude him from Parliament. And +failing all pacific overtures, he would try different methods. It is +possible, and even probable, that expressions passed during the +negotiations which left a sting. But it now seems clear that no young +private member, without means or influence, ever caused such active +disquietude. + +There is yet another, and, perhaps, a simpler reason. Pitt, as we have +seen, had become identified with the fortunes and party of Cobham, who +was Walpole's bitter enemy. Conciliation having been found futile, the +Minister determined that the young soldier should suffer the same +penalty as the old general. The old gamecock had lost his spurs, so +should the young cockerel. If Pitt were so devoted to Cobham, he should +have the gratification of sharing Cobham's martyrdom. Cobham had lost +his regiment; Pitt should lose his commission. In striking Pitt he would +also wound Cobham. So the removal was carried out in a spirit of +pettiness which was criticised at the time, and seems incredible to +posterity. 'At the end of the session,' says Hervey, 'Cornet Pitt was +broke for this, which was a measure at least ill-timed if not +ill-taken;' which he explained by saying that if done at all it should +have been done immediately on his speech. Hervey, though an ardent +Walpolian, evidently thought the whole proceeding was disproportionate +to the offender and the offence. But the result of the intended disgrace +was, we are told, immediate popularity. Pitt after his dismissal drove +about the country in a one-horse chaise without a servant, and +everywhere the people gathered round him with enthusiasm.[111] + +Pitt took the matter philosophically. 'I should not be a little vain,' +he writes, 'to be the object of the hatred of a minister, hated even by +those who call themselves his friends.'[112] But to his slender means +the loss of his pay was not unimportant, and this fact perhaps explains +his accepting an office ill-suited to his temperament. In September +1737, the Prince of Wales, in consequence of his crazy and insolent +conduct at the time of his wife's confinement, was ordered to leave St. +James' Palace. He retired first to Kew, and then to Norfolk House in +St. James' Square, which thus became the birthplace of George III. The +King's displeasure also caused some resignations in the Prince's +household; and, smarting under this disgrace, Frederick found it no +doubt agreeable to take advantage of these vacancies to attach to his +household two active young members of the Opposition, whose appointment +would be profoundly distasteful to his father. Few could be more +repugnant to the King than Pitt, the ex-cornet, and Lyttelton his +seconder. Moreover, Pitt was already intimate and influential with the +Prince.[113] So Lyttelton became private secretary to Frederick, and +Pitt a groom of his bedchamber. These appointments would, in the +ordinary course, be submitted for the sanction of the King, but the +alienation between father and son was so acute that it is probable that +no communication was made. Pitt held this post for seven years, +resigning it in 1744; and the salary was no doubt of sensible assistance +to his meagre income during this period. + +Pitt's second speech (in 1737) was also on the Prince of Wales's +affairs. George II., who lost no opportunity of displaying publicly his +hatred to his son, and who as Prince of Wales had received a fixed +income of 100,000_l._ a year, gave the Prince on his marriage an +allowance at pleasure of 50,000_l._ The Prince, who owed his father but +scant duty and affection, was persuaded by his advisers to apply to +Parliament for the same annuity that his father, when in his situation, +had received. This proceeding violently incensed the King; but he was +induced to send an official message to his son, promising to convert +the present voluntary allowance into a fixed income, and to settle some +provision on the Princess. The Prince replied that the matter was now +out of his hands. The offer, in effect, was not particularly alluring, +as the allowance could never have been withdrawn, and a settlement on +the Princess ought to have been made at the time of her marriage. It is +indeed difficult, given the circumstances, to blame Frederick's unfilial +conduct in this matter. He had a colourable claim to an income double +that which was given him by the King; the King had ampler means of +paying it than had been possessed by George I.; and the Prince had +nothing to hope from the unconstrained bounty of his father; he was +indeed under his father's ban. So the motion was brought before the +House, and Pitt made a speech, which Thackeray, his insipid biographer, +declares to have been most masterly, but which is nowhere preserved. We +know nothing of it, but it is safe to presume that it was a good speech. +These efforts and his household appointment made him a prominent figure +in the Prince's party. He was beginning to be talked about. He had been +sneered at by the Government paper, the 'Gazetteer,' and defended by +Bolingbroke's organ, the 'Craftsman.' This seems the first glimmering of +his note, and is therefore worthy of remark. Nothing is so difficult as +to trace in a biography the several degrees by which eminence has been +reached; seldom are the slow degrees of the ladder recorded. Here it is +at least possible to mark the first and second steps. The first event, +that brought Pitt into notice was the deprivation of his commission: the +second indication of his growing power is apparent in the laboured +sneers of the 'Gazetteer' at the young man's long neck and slender body, +for it would not have been worth while to direct these gibes against +one who was not formidable. + +Pitt's next speech was less successful. It was in support of a reduction +of the standing army from 17,400 to 12,000. The contention seems almost +incredible when it is considered that Pitt and his party were calling on +the ministry to avenge the ill-treatment of British subjects by Spain. +But, however inconsistent, it was probably deemed a popular move. +Jealousy and dislike of standing armies was still strong among the +people. Lord Hervey had told the Queen in 1735, 'that there was +certainly nothing so odious to men of all ranks and classes in this +country as troops,' and that 'as a standing army was the thing in the +world that was most disliked in this country, so the reduction of any +part of it was a measure that always made any prince more popular than +any other he could take.'[114] Walpole had then maintained that the army +should never be reduced below 18,000 men in view of the constant menace +of the disputed succession, the turbulent character of the nation, and +the necessity of a strong position in foreign affairs.[115] In this +debate of 1738 he took much the same line. This sane view, as it was the +policy of the Minister, was furiously combated by the young bloods of +the Opposition. Lyttelton did not shrink from using the childish +argument that a standing army weakened us abroad, as it made foreign +governments believe that there must be violent dissensions in the +country which it was kept to control. A taunt had in the course of +debate been levelled at placemen; and Pitt, as a member of the Prince's +household, vindicated the independence of officials, directing as he +passed a shaft at the three hundred thick or thin supporters of the +Government who were always so singularly unanimous on all political +questions. The army, he said, was the chief cause of the national +discontents, and yet these discontents were alleged as the chief cause +for maintaining the army. Then he made the criticism so familiar to +English public men even now, that the army cost three times as much +proportionally to its size as the armies of France and Germany. On the +question of disbanding troops, he took a strangely unsympathetic line. +The officers would be put on half-pay, which was as high as full-pay +elsewhere. And as for the private soldiers, 'I must think,' he said, +'they have no claim for any greater reward than the pay they have +already received, nor should I think we were guilty of the least +ingratitude if they were all turned adrift to-morrow morning.'[116] +Pitt, it was obvious, had some distance to compass before he should +become a popular leader. That he should have pressed at all for the +reduction of the small standing army in the midst of an irresistible +clamour for war is another proof of the heedless rhetoric of ambitious +youth. + +While the young patriots were thus endeavouring to reduce the army, war +was brewing with Spain. Our traders were constantly encroaching on her +rights and monopolies in the New World. There was a perpetual smuggling +invasion of the Spanish settlements in America on the part of the +British, and a rigorous defence by right of search on the part of the +Spaniards. There can be little doubt that the British merchants were in +the wrong. But trade has neither conscience nor bowels, and monopolies +of commerce are the fair quarry of the freebooting merchant. The +Spaniards, on their side, were not delicate or merciful in exercising +their undoubted right of search; so our countrymen, to conceal their own +infractions of treaty and to stir up hostility to Spain, spared no +methods or exertions to rouse popular indignation against their enemies. +Little less than the tortures of the Inquisition were alleged. 'Seventy +of our brave sailors are now in chains in Spain! our countrymen in +chains and slaves to the Spaniards!' exclaimed an enthusiastic alderman: +'is not this enough to fire the coldest?'[117] The notorious Jenkins now +appeared on the scene with an ear in cotton-wool, which he alleged to +have been torn from his head by a Spaniard, with an intimation that the +mutilator would gladly serve our King in the same way. Alderman +Beckford, who brought Jenkins forward, afterwards declared that if any +member had lifted up Jenkins's wig, he would have found both ears whole +and complete.[118] Others averred that though he had lost his ear, he +had lost it in the pillory. + +The Spaniards, not to be outdone, recorded the sufferings of two of +their nobles, who, captured by our British filibusters, had been +compelled to devour their own noses.[119] It was alleged, too, that +English pirates swarmed, and that Spaniards were publicly sold as slaves +in British colonies.[120] But these allegations, though probably neither +more nor less veracious than the others, had no currency in England, +while the story of the suffering Jenkins ran through England like +wildfire. A bombastic utterance was coined for him by some political +Tadpole, and rang through the land. None cared to inquire into the right +or the wrong of the imprisonments, or to investigate the other side of +the question, and there were none to present it if they did. 'Britons in +Spanish prisons' was a sufficient cry, and swept the nation off its +feet. Walpole, always too contemptuous of popular passion, had presented +to Parliament a convention with Spain, which regulated most of the +points at issue between them, except that which lay nearest the heart of +his people, the right of search; and his brother Horace moved, in a long +and laudatory speech, an address of thanks to the Crown for this +agreement. This roused the Prince's young men. Lyttelton, indeed, spoke +ostentatiously as the Prince's mouthpiece. 'I know who hears me,' he +said, alluding to his master's presence in the gallery, 'and for that +reason I speak,'[121] Pitt and Grenville also spoke, and they are +described in a contemporary account as 'three or four young gentlemen +who took great personal liberties.' Another letter says that Pitt 'spoke +very well, but very abusively.' However imperfectly his speech may be +reported, it has much of that energy of declamatory invective which is +part of the tradition connected with his name. Of this the peroration is +a sufficient example. 'This convention, Sir, I think from my heart is +nothing but a stipulation for national ignominy; an illusory expedient +to baffle the resentment of the nation; a truce without a suspension of +hostilities on the part of Spain; on the part of England, a suspension, +as to Georgia, of the first law of nature, self-preservation and +self-defence; a surrender of the right of England to the mercy of +plenipotentiaries; and in this infinitely highest and sacred point, +future security, not only inadequate, but directly repugnant to the +resolutions of Parliament, and the gracious promise from the throne. The +complaints of your despairing merchants, the voice of England have +condemned it. Be the guilt of it on the adviser. God forbid that the +Committee should share the guilt by approving it.'[122] This was +undoubtedly the first speech in which Pitt made a real mark as an +orator, and of this a proof remains in the fact that it is recorded that +Sir R. Walpole took notes of it as it proceeded.[123] + +The debate and its unsuccessful division were followed by that abortive +and disastrous form of protest known as a secession. Wyndham announced +it in a speech of solemn acrimony. It failed, as all such secessions do. +It has been said by a veteran politician that 'a secession of a party +from parliament is so obvious a failure in both duty and prudence that a +benevolent looker-on will always recommend to the seceder to get to his +place as well and as fast as he can.'[124] A secession does not appeal +to the country, which regards it as an exhibition of baffled ill-temper, +while it leaves the House at the mercy of the Ministry. This retirement +of his enemies was therefore hailed by Walpole as an unexpected stroke +of good fortune. Prompt repentance, as usual, overtook the seceders, and +the usual difficulty as to returning with dignity and consistency. In +November they had to slink back without much of either. + +It is not easy to discover whether Pitt was among the seceders, though +it seems improbable, as Lyttelton, one of his closest allies, remained +to repeat the strange parallel contention of the Opposition that the +army should be reduced and war declared against Spain. + +The national wish for war was at any rate soon gratified. Though Walpole +had carried resolutions approving of his convention, the growing fury of +the nation could not be dammed by his meagre majority of twenty-eight. +When the negotiations between Spain and Great Britain were resumed, +Spain absolutely refused to abandon the right of search. To the English +this was the main point, and Walpole knew that war was now inevitable. +Whether he as minister could or should, in spite of his convictions, +carry it out was another matter. He decided that he could, and war was +declared on October 29, 1739. + +The enthusiasm of the nation was frantic. The heralds, on proceeding to +the city to read the formal declaration, were attended by a great +procession. The Prince of Wales did not disdain to take part in it, or +to pause at Temple Bar to drink a public toast to the war. All the +church bells of the capital were set ringing. The Minister, as he heard +the clang, bitterly remarked that they might ring the bells now, but +that they would soon wring their hands. This is a truth that may be +uttered with justice at the beginning of all hostilities, and in this +case there were many opportunities for wringing hands; for, with the +exception of the truce of Aix-la-Chapelle, Britain was not at peace from +now (1739) till 1763. But Walpole's cynical pun did not embody the +spirit which gives confidence to a nation, or in which a great Minister +would begin a just or necessary war. Walpole was, no doubt, convinced +that this one was neither just nor necessary. Moreover, he hated all +war as a needless complication which deranged finance and held out +prospects and opportunities for a Pretender. He knew, too, that he was a +Minister of peace, and that he was not likely to shine in war. He had +indeed been Secretary at War, but then he had the guarantee of a +Marlborough in the field; his function had been to serve and supply a +supreme captain. But there was nothing now to give him the same +confidence. He felt, he knew that he was out of place as a director of +wars. Close to him, unsuspected as yet, was the most successful War +Minister that this country has ever seen. For on the benches over +against him sate Pitt, who was to revel in warfare and find his true +vocation in directing it; but his time was not come. Afterwards, when it +had arrived, he was to repent and recant his opposition on this +occasion, and pay homage to Walpole. None, indeed, of the leaders in +opposition to Walpole attempted afterwards to justify their conduct in +this business. + +That Minister meanwhile moodily prepared to carry out the wishes of the +country, and no doubt excused himself for his humiliating compliance by +the thought that if he did not some one else would, with less economy +and more danger to the State. He is said to have tendered his +resignation, but even were this true it could only be, in view of the +King's relations to himself and the Opposition, a matter of form. He +uttered his own self-condemnation: 'I dare not do what is right.' + +But his submission, whether accompanied or not by a feigned resignation, +availed him nothing; his unpopularity seemed rather to increase than +diminish. The nation suspected his good faith. The legion of able and +brilliant men whom he had alienated were in no ways appeased, but more +ruthless in their determination to hunt him to the death; the multitude +effervesced in mobs. Soon they were all in full cry. There was another +general election in 1741, when the Prince of Wales with lavish subsidies +entered actively into the strife. Parliament, dissolved in April, met in +December, thirsty for Walpole's political blood. + +The inglorious course of the war in the meantime, its delays and +disasters, forms no part of Pitt's life. One may wonder in passing at +the callous wickedness that sent out raw boys and decrepit pensioners to +die of fever and exhaustion, or at the strange fortune by which those +who prepare such expeditions, ministers, commissaries, contractors, and +the like, escape the gallows. Walpole at any rate did not escape the +particular fate that he deserved. A year of glowing and successful war +might yet have saved him; a year of failure and calamity fixed his doom. + +He had held on to the last possible moment, and so fell with little of +grace or dignity. An inevitable political catastrophe only becomes more +overwhelming by delay; each day that a minister remains in power against +the will of the nation adds force to the torrent against him. Moreover, +he affronted public opinion by receiving unusual favours from the King +when he had become the object of popular execration. Here the coarse +fibre which had stood him in such good stead during a hundred fights did +him disservice, for it hindered his perception of the fact that it is +unwise to be conspicuously decorated at a moment when the nation is +calling for your head. He held on, with failing health but unfailing +courage, though the war had furnished him with a reasonable door of +departure at the critical moment when honour permitted and indeed +required him to go, and though his friends had implored him to resign. +The motives for his obstinacy were obvious enough. His was a doughty +soul, and did not yield without agony. But there was a more practical +reason. He believed that, as had long been threatened, his fall would be +followed by his impeachment. As soon as he resigned, his brother Horace +hurried off to burn his papers. Walpole himself took a similar +precaution. This shows their sense of the imminence of the danger which +had always impended over him, and which was first in their thoughts when +the protection of office was about to be withdrawn. + +The final scene in the House of Commons was dramatic enough, and must +have been in the mind of Disraeli when he penned his description of the +fall of Peel. As the fatal division on the Chippenham election was +proceeding, the Minister sate and watched the hostile procession with +unfailing and imperturbable humour. He beckoned to his side Bayntun +Rolt, the Chippenham candidate supported by the Opposition, and so their +nominal champion, and gave him a reasoned catalogue of many of the +members voting against him, detailing their ingratitude and treachery, +as well as the exact favours that he had heaped on them. 'Young man, I +will tell you the history of all your friends as they come in; that +fellow I saved from the gallows, and that from starvation; this other +one's sons I promoted,' and so forth;[125] then passing on through this +bitter recital to his scornful conclusion, he declared that never again +would he set foot in that House.[126] + +He fell with the skill and presence of mind which never deserted him, +for in everything except office he remained victorious. All parties had +combined to destroy Walpole, and in their triumph all not unnaturally +expected to see every vestige of the detested administration swept away +in his defeat. Vast was their disappointment. Newcastle, the oldest of +the old gang, to use the vivid expression of modern politics, had long +scented the approaching catastrophe of his chief, and had been preparing +to lessen the shock to himself and his friends, so far as was possible, +by judicious conference with the Opposition. + +Newcastle has long been a byeword; he was so all through his protracted +public life; and he has remained in history a synonym for a certain +jobbing and fussing incapacity. Justice has, perhaps, been scarcely done +to his laborious life; his disinterestedness about money, rare in any +age, especially in that; above all to his unequalled capacity for +remaining in office, a virtue not unappreciated by the great mass of +politicians. Nor was he a fool, though he was something of a coward. A +man who could hold the seals of Secretary of State for thirty continuous +years of stress and intrigue, who filled high office for forty-five +years in succession, could not be without invaluable qualities for +steering with persistence and astuteness through intricacies of +parliamentary navigation. His ambition, such as it was, had indeed an +elastic but stubborn tenacity; the ties of blood, friendship, or +principle availed nothing against it. His industry, such as it was, is +attested by his long tenure of office and the vast mass of his +correspondence. His disinterestedness, such as it was, is proved by his +leaving public life 300,000_l._ poorer than he entered it, and by his +nevertheless refusing a pension offered him by George III. on his +retirement, a circumstance almost unique in the annals of the century. +In nothing else was he disinterested. His only taste in private life +seems to have been for the pleasures of the table and the consequent art +of the physician. On his resignation in 1756 he attempted indeed to +assume the air of a retired country squire. Guns and gaiters were +procured, but getting his feet wet he hurriedly abandoned the sports of +the field and with them the appearance of rural absorption. This +illustrates his crowning defect. In all that he did he was supremely +ridiculous. + + 'Behind him close behold Newcastle's Grace, + Haste in his step and absence in his face; + + * * * * * + + Tho' void of honesty, of sense, of art, + A foolish head and a perfidious heart, + Yet riches, honours, power he shall enjoy.'[127] + +Foote and Smollett have left vivid caricatures of his ludicrous +personality. The story of his conference with Pitt when Pitt was in bed +with the gout, and of his getting into a vacant bed and discoursing from +thence to his colleague, is one of the choicest pictures of his +absurdity that survive. The two leading Ministers were found storming at +each other from adjacent couches, disputing as to whether Hawke's fleet +should put to sea or not.[128] Pitt fortunately prevailed. Newcastle's +grotesqueness was part of his temperament, for all through his life his +jealousy and suspicion kept him in a perpetual froth of nervous +excitement. His jealousy was of power, his suspicion of those who aimed +at it. And by power he meant patronage. Throughout his long life his god +or goddess was patronage. Indeed his voluminous correspondence rather +resembles the letter-bag of an agency for necessitous persons of social +position than the papers of a Prime Minister or Secretary of State. To +hold a crowded levee of placehunters, ecclesiastical and temporal, to +thread his way about it coaxing, fawning, and slobbering, embracing and +even kissing, promising and paying all with the base coin of cozenage, +this was Newcastle's paradise. But it answered. It made him necessary to +his party, and therefore necessary to those who would govern the +country; for government was restricted to his party. So all statesmen in +turn scorned and employed him. 'His name,' said Walpole, 'is perfidy.' +But perfidy paid, and Walpole kept him to the end, fully aware that he +was always ready for betrayal if expediency dictated it, and that in the +closing months he was in fact busy at the work. At last, indeed, Walpole +himself, under the name of the King, commissioned him to intrigue +officially. Hardwicke, perhaps the greatest of our Chancellors, who +furnished the brains for Newcastle, and condescended to act as his +mentor and instrument, was joined with him to make terms with the enemy, +and offer the reversion of the Treasury on condition of immunity for +Walpole. + +Pulteney was the enemy, or its chief; for he led the Opposition, and +guided the Court of the Heir Apparent, as he had that of the father when +Prince of Wales, though then without fruit and result. He was also the +idol of the nation. For long years he had made the people believe that +Walpole was a Goliath of corruption, and that he was the incorruptible +David. Moreover, his vast wealth, his ability, his eloquence, and his +social qualities gave him a personal ascendancy apart from his political +position. 'He was, by all accounts,' writes Shelburne, 'the greatest +House of Commons orator that had ever appeared,'[129] surpassing even +the legendary reputation of Bolingbroke; he was also a scholar, a wit, +and a potent pamphleteer. In conversation he excelled; when the wits +were gathered at Stowe, the pre-eminence of Pulteney was +acknowledged.[130] At this moment he was supreme, 'in the greatest point +of view,' writes Chesterfield, 'that I ever saw any subject in ... the +arbiter between the Crown and the people; the former imploring his +protection, the latter his support;' 'possessing,' says Glover, 'a +degree of popularity and power which no subject before him was ever +possessed of.' All eyes were raised to him with expectant adoration as +he stood on this pinnacle, and as they gazed they saw him slowly totter, +and then fall headlong. For the two Ministers had succeeded in +compromising him. He refused, indeed, amnesty for Walpole or office for +himself; but adulterated these refusals by watering his expressions of +hostility to the Minister, and by asking on his own behalf for an +earldom and a seat in the Cabinet. When his followers found that he and +Carteret were engaged in secret negotiation with Ministers, their +indignation was unbounded. They held a public meeting to disown him. His +popularity disappeared in an instant and for ever. He afterwards averred +that he had lost his head, that there was no comprehending or describing +the confusion that prevailed, and that he was obliged to go out of town +for three or four days to keep his senses. This is not impossible or +even improbable. A political crisis bursts like a tornado, and +bewilders the strongest characters. Both rare and happy are the men who +can on such occasions take counsel with themselves, and meet the storm +with presence of mind. Pulteney had, perhaps, become enervated with a +long period of merely negative opposition. Glover also asserts that his +hand was forced by Lyttelton who was secretly offering terms to Walpole, +and that these, though tendered by the Prince of Wales's Secretary, +Walpole treated with disdain. Glover was an ill-conditioned wasp, and +his story refutes itself. For the one person whom Walpole was anxious to +gain was Frederick, even offering to add 50,000_l._ to his income. That +he should then have spurned an overture from the Prince's right-hand man +is out of the question; he would have met it more than half-way. +Whatever the cause, Pulteney, having committed himself, could not +retrace his steps; an iron grip constrained him. In vain did he seek to +recall his patent and escape his peerage. Walpole held him fast. +Pulteney had finally conquered in the long struggle of twenty years, and +overthrown Sir Robert; but the prostrate Minister had from the dust +worked Pulteney like a marionette. + +For behind all these strange scenes Walpole pulled the strings. His main +object was to avoid his own impeachment, and this, in spite of the +determination of the hostile majority which called for his head, he +achieved; a feat little less than miraculous. The Tory candidates for +office were rejected by the King, and as for the not less bitter Whigs, +as + + '... bees, on flowers alighting, cease to hum, + So, settling upon places, Whigs grow dumb.' + +They were dumb in spite of themselves. The nation, which had been +excited by the hope of seeing corruption extinguished, and the advent of +a new era of virtue and public spirit, was again disappointed. People +saw this sublime struggle result in a jobbing distribution of such +places as were vacated to the same sort of people as had vacated them, +with precisely the same system. It was much the same ministry without +the one great minister. Fooled once more, as so often before and since, +people shrugged their shoulders, and turned their attention to other +things, more honest and more practical than party politics. + +With the fall of Walpole this narrative is not otherwise concerned, for +his successors found no post for Pitt. Two members of the Prince of +Wales's household, Lords Baltimore and Archibald Hamilton, had found +acceptance as members of the new administration; the King probably could +not stomach more, certainly not Pitt. For long years afterwards he could +not endure contact with the orator who sneered at him and at Hanover, +and who even insinuated with factious injustice doubts of his personal +courage. It must also be remembered that Pitt was not merely attached to +the party of the Prince but to the group of Cobham. That veteran +accepted for a short time a seat in the Cabinet and the command of a +regiment. But his animosity against Carteret was second only to his +animosity against Walpole. Carteret was a powerful, and aimed at being +the controlling member of the new Government. He therefore succeeded to +the position of target for the barbed arrows of Pitt and his friends +which had been vacated by Walpole's retirement. Carteret, the new object +of philippic, had striven hard for the succession to Walpole when +Pulteney stood aside, but had been foiled by Walpole acting through the +King. Lord Wilmington, whom Horace Walpole describes as a solemn +debauchee and Hervey as fond only of money and eating, but who was the +favourite nonentity of George II., had been fobbed off upon the party as +First Minister; and the choice had its advantages. For, always +incapable, he was now moribund; and so as a feeble and transient barrier +to ambition was the least unacceptable to Walpole's expectant heirs. A +figurehead, moreover, was the favourite expedient of the century for +skirting the fierce conflict of personalities. + +So Wilmington reigned, and Carteret governed for a while in Walpole's +stead. The shadowy form of the First Minister could not veil for a +moment the bold outline of the Secretary of State, for Carteret, though +scarcely attaining real greatness, remains one of the most brilliant and +striking figures in the eighteenth century. It is almost enough to say +that in all but disregard of money he was the exact antipodes of +Newcastle. No man of his time was so splendidly equipped for the highest +public service as Carteret. He was sprung from an ancient Norman family +settled in Jersey, eight of whom, the father and seven sons, were +knighted in one day by Edward III.[131] To a person of commanding beauty +and an open and engaging demeanour, he united superb qualities of +intellect developed by ardent study. He was a scholar of signal +excellence at a time when scholarship was in the atmosphere of English +statesmanship, the best Grecian of his day, with the great classics +always in his mind and at command. Did any one of the like taste come to +him on business, Carteret would at once turn from business to some +Homeric discussion. Moreover he knew the whole Greek Testament by heart; +an unusual and unsuspected accomplishment.[132] But he was also versed +in modern languages, then a rare and never a common faculty in this +island, and alone among his compeers spoke German fluently, a priceless +advantage under a sovereign whose heart and mind were in Hanover. He was +the only person who was in favour both with the King and with the Prince +of Wales.[133] He abounded in a wit at once genial and penetrating. He +was a puissant orator. His comprehensive grasp of European statecraft, +his capacity for taking broad and high views, his soaring politics, his +intrepid spirit and his high ambition, marked him out among the meaner +men by whom he was surrounded. His contempt of money amounted to +recklessness. His scorn of all pettiness made him disdain jobbery, and +even the subtler arts of parliamentary manipulation. There was much that +was sublime in him, and more that was impracticable. In a greater degree +than any other minister of his time, if we except Chatham, with whom he +had many qualities in common, does he seem to partake of the mystery of +genius. Unfortunately, his energy came in gusts, he could scarcely bring +himself to bend, and he was incapable of that self-contained patience, +amounting to long-suffering, which is a necessary condition of the +highest success in official life. All, indeed, was marred by an +extravagance of conduct which was in reality the result of his nature +running riot and of his good qualities carried to excess. He played his +political chess with the big pieces alone, and neglected the pawns. He +disregarded not merely the soldiers and most of the officers, but all +the arts and equipment of the parliamentary army, heedless of the fact +that parliamentary support is the vital necessity of a British minister. +Disdainful of public opinion or party connections, he attempted to play +the great game in Europe with no resource but his own abilities and the +confidence of his sovereign, whose antipathy to France he shared, and +whose policy and prejudices he could discuss in the King's native +language. And yet over the bottle, which he loved at least as much as +literature or politics, he would laugh at the whole business and the men +with whom he was engaged. 'What is it to me,' he would say, 'who is a +judge or who is a bishop? It is my business to make Kings and Emperors'; +and he would have to be reminded that those who wanted offices or +honours would follow and support those who did deal in those +commodities. One can hear his jolly laugh. His policy he embodied in one +striking sentence: 'I want to instil a nobler ambition into you, to make +you knock the heads of the Kings of Europe together, and jumble +something out of it which may be of service to this country.' As a +matter of fact though he did undoubtedly knock together the heads of +some kings, no material advantage resulted to the country. He was, +however, a patriot, a single-minded, able, jovial, reckless patriot, but +out of touch with the politicians, unsuited to parliamentary government, +and so almost ineffectual. And thus we see him at his best on his +deathbed, where he quotes to the under-secretary who brought him the +Treaty of Paris for approval the speech of Sarpedon with melancholy +emphasis. 'Friend of my soul, were we to escape from this war, and then +live for ever without old age or death, I should not fight myself among +the foremost, nor would I send thee into the glorifying battle; but a +thousand fates of death stand over us, which mortal man may not flee +from and avoid; then let us on.' These last words he repeated with calm +and determined resignation, and after a pause of some minutes desired +the preliminary articles of the Peace of Paris to be read to him. After +hearing these at length he desired that, to use own words, the +approbation of a dying statesman might be declared to the most glorious +war and the most honourable peace that this nation ever saw.[134] The +news of his extremity had reached Chesterfield. 'When he dies,' wrote +this shrewdest judge and observer of mankind in England, who had in his +factious days called Carteret 'a wild and drunken minister,'[135] 'the +ablest head in England dies too, take it for all in all.'[136] + +Pitt soon had an opportunity of showing that the selection of ministers +from the Prince's household had left out the one priceless force. For +now there came raining into Parliament imperative demands for the +impeachment of the fallen Minister. These representations from the +various constituencies to their several members are well worth +consideration, for they emphasise identical demands with a unanimity +suggestive of much later forms of political organization. They denounce +Standing Armies, and Septennial Parliaments, asking that Triennial +Parliaments, 'at least,' may be restored; they require that placemen +largely, and pensioners entirely, shall be excluded from the House of +Commons; and that laws shall be passed for the security and +encouragement of the linen trade. In an even more sanguine spirit they +stipulate for the extirpation of those party distractions 'which, though +their foundations have long ceased to exist, were yet so industriously +fomented among us, in order to serve the mischievous purposes of a +ministerial tyranny.' But first and last, and above all, they insist on +the punishment of Walpole, bringing him and his colleagues, which of +course meant him, to 'condign punishment.' 'Nothing but the most +rigorous justice ought to avenge an injured people ... justice is a duty +we owe to posterity.' 'We have a right to speak plainly to you, and we +must tell you, Sir, that if the man that ruined our trade, disgraced our +arms, plundered our treasure, negotiated away our interests, +impoverished the land--in a word, the author of all the disgraces and +calamities of twenty years should (while the whole nation is calling out +for justice against him) triumph in impunity, we shall be apt to think +our constitution is lost.' 'Lenity to him would be cruelty to the +nation.'[137] Our ancestors, it will be seen, did not wage their +political warfare with the sweetmeats or roses of a carnival contest. + +It seems unnecessary to remark that of these various injunctions the +only one to which the members of Parliament paid any heed was that for +the prosecution or persecution of Walpole. Even here there was no +result. The new officials were sated and at ease, the hungry remnant was +insufficient or inept. But the constituencies were in deadly earnest, if +their members were not. They had been goaded by their leaders to a state +bordering on frenzy, and their demands, vindictive as they may appear +to us, only embodied the declamation of the Opposition throughout half +at least of Walpole's ministry. More than ten years before, Pulteney had +publicly declared that 'the Opposition had come to a determined +resolution not to listen to any treaty whatsoever, or from whomsoever it +may come, in which the first and principal condition should not be to +deliver him (Walpole) up to the justice of the country.' But now the +Opposition was in power, and Pulteney was in a chastened and moderate +mood. His star, indeed, was already on the wane; he was on the high road +to the earldom of Bath and extinction. At the first meeting indeed with +the King's envoys he had declared in a famous phrase that he could not +screen Walpole if he would, for 'the heads of parties are like the heads +of snakes, which are carried on by their tails.' But at a later +conference he said, with reference to the same topic, that he was not a +man of blood, and that in all his expressions importing a resolution to +pursue the Minister to destruction he meant only the destruction of his +power, not his person. He would consult with his friends, yet must +confess that so many years of maladministration deserved some +parliamentary censure. + +Accordingly Lord Limerick moved on March 9 (1742) for a select committee +of inquiry into the administration of the late Sir Robert Walpole during +the last twenty years; but Pulteney did not at first countenance this +moderate measure. He was absent, on a reasonable excuse no doubt, and in +his absence his friends intimated that it would not be disagreeable to +him were the motion rejected. + +This was, it seems, untrue, but it gave Pitt the first great opportunity +of his life. When others were silenced by office or honours, he stood +forth as the mouthpiece of the people and as the consistent, +incorruptible maintainer of the policy and declarations of his party. It +was an opportunity of which he availed himself with terrible effect. It +is now, we think, that he first appealed to the imagination and +confidence of the nation, as distinguished from the appreciation of +Parliament, though that also was sufficiently marked. 'Pitt grows the +most popular speaker in the House of Commons, and is at the head of his +party,' writes Philip to Joseph Yorke.[138] + +Owing to the absence, and so the presumed indifference or disapproval of +Pulteney, Lord Limerick's motion was rejected by two votes. At the +request of Pulteney, however, who, whether lukewarm or not, was nettled +at the natural criticisms provoked by his attitude, Lord Limerick +brought forward another motion of the same kind limited to the last ten +years of Walpole's administration. Pulteney who, discredited outside, +retained within the House 'a miraculous influence,' exerted himself to +the utmost, we may be sure, but it can scarcely be doubted that the +honours of the double debate rested with the vehement and untainted +Pitt. It is not perhaps of much use to quote from the vague and +imperfect reports of his speeches, but we can gather, at least, their +general trend. One passage, at any rate, in his speech on the second +motion, has been authentically preserved by Horace Walpole, for it was a +compliment to himself. Horace had defended his father with a grace and +filial duty that commended him to the House. Pitt, in reply, said that +it was becoming in the young man to remember that he was the child of +the accused, the House should remember that they were the children of +their country, a flight which seems to outstep the perilous limits of +the sublime. + +From the summary of Pitt's two speeches we may at least gather that he +had much the best of the argument on this issue, so long dead and +buried. One noteworthy point, however, in his declamation against the +Minister, is that he paid vindictive attention to Walpole's practice of +dismissing and cashiering his opponents, by which he had himself +suffered. He argued that the King might as well dispose of all the +property of his subjects as of that particular form of property +represented by commissions in the army; which, whether obtained by +service or by purchase, were as freehold as an estate, and should be as +amply secured.[139] + +But, in truth, his denunciation of Walpole is much less remarkable than +the poisoned shafts which, as is manifest even in the faulty report, he +aimed at the King, or at Hanover, which was much the same thing. He +declared that the changes were unreal, that Walpole remained Minister +behind the scenes. 'Though he be removed from the Treasury,' said Pitt, +'he is not from the King's closet, nor probably will be, unless by our +advice or by our sending him to a lodging at the other end of the town, +where he cannot do so much harm to his country.'[140] This pointed hint +at the Tower must have been greatly to the taste of his audience. +Allusions to the debts of the Civil List, caused certainly not by +hospitality or by expenditure on any public object, but inferentially by +corruption, were artfully framed so as to cause the King the greatest +possible annoyance;[141] so, too, were the innuendoes as to our foreign +policy having been framed in the sole interests of Hanover. Lord +Limerick's second motion was carried by seven votes, and Pitt was named +on the secret committee, which, however, owing to the loyal silence of +Walpole's associates, to the placing one of them in the privileged +security of the House of Lords, and to the refusal of the King to allow +disclosures as to the manner in which secret service money had been +employed, came to a futile and inglorious end. We catch one glimpse of +Pitt in its proceedings. Scrope, the doughty old Secretary of the +Treasury, who had fought under Monmouth at Sedgemoor, refused to reply +to the questions of the inquisitors. Pitt seems to have pushed him hard, +and he was so stung that he wished to call his tormentor out. From this +we may at least infer that Pitt took a leading part in the deliberations +of the Committee. On the other hand, it may be noticed that he only +received 259, or one more than the lowest number of votes, while the +member who headed the poll scored 518, a circumstance which would seem +to indicate that he had as yet no strong position in the House. + +He soon had the opportunity of further exasperating the King, an +opportunity of which he availed himself rather with the intemperance of +resentment than with the astuteness of ambition; for he was now in +declared opposition to the new Government, and as bitter against +Carteret as he had been against Walpole. When Parliament met (November +16, 1742) after the recess, Pitt 'spoke like ten thousand angels,' but +no trace of his speech remains. Of its spirit, however, we can judge +from that which he delivered on December 10, on the vote for continuing +the British troops in Flanders. Here the onslaught was against the King, +and it is scarcely possible to conceive sarcasms more calculated to +afflict the sovereign in his tenderest susceptibilities than those which +Pitt now launched, even as we read them in an imperfect report; they +are, indeed, so masterly in this way as almost to prove their +authenticity. This is the first speech of real point and power delivered +by Pitt of which we have any record. It may be noted in passing, that in +the 'London Magazine' (one of the two newspapers that reported debates) +Pitt's speech was unnoticed, while it did not appear in the 'Gentleman's +Magazine' till fourteen months after it was delivered.[142] + +A few specimens may give a fair idea of the power which made Pitt so +dreaded. + +'The troops of Hanover, whom we are now expected to pay, marched into +the Low Countries, where they still remain. They marched to the place +most distant from the enemy, least in danger of an attack, and most +strongly fortified had an attack been designed. They have, therefore, no +other claim to be paid than that they left their own country for a place +of greater security. I shall not, therefore, be surprised, after such +another glorious campaign ... to be told that the money of this nation +cannot be more properly employed than in hiring Hanoverians to eat and +sleep.'[143] + +'As to Hanover,' he continues, 'we know by experience that none of the +merits of that Electorate are passed over in silence.' 'It is not to be +imagined that His Majesty would not have sent his proportion of troops +to the Austrian army had not the temptation of greater profit been laid +industriously before him.' 'It is now too apparent that this powerful, +this great, this mighty nation is considered only as a province to a +despicable electorate, and that, in consequence of a plan formed long +ago and invariably pursued, these [Hanoverian] troops are hired only to +drain us of our money.... How much reason the transactions of almost +every year have given for suspecting this absurd, ungrateful, and +perfidious partiality it is not necessary to declare.... To dwell upon +all the instances of partiality which have been shown, and the yearly +visits which have been paid to that delightful country [Hanover], to +reckon up all the sums that have been spent to aggrandise and enrich it, +would be an irksome and invidious task, invidious to those who are +afraid to be told the truth, and irksome to those who are unwilling to +hear of the dishonour and injuries of their country. I shall, however, +dwell no longer on this unpleasing subject than to express my hope that +we shall no longer suffer ourselves to be deceived and oppressed.' + +Conceive the position. On the one side a King, born and bred in Hanover, +to whom the honour and welfare of Hanover and the Hanoverians were +everything, whose paradise was Hanover, who counted the days to his +annual visit to Hanover as a schoolboy counts the days to his holidays, +who held Hanover as his own absolute monarchy and property as compared +with the limited interest and power of the British throne; a King, +moreover, courted by all, whose favour was necessary for the obtaining +of office; accustomed to unstinted adulation and homage. On the other, +this young jackanapes, an official in the court of his detested son, +declaiming against him with every art of the actor and the rhetorician, +with every power of voice and eye, holding him and his Hanover up to +every kind of ridicule and contempt, before an audience mainly of +place-hunters and place-holders, half trembling, half chuckling, as the +philippic proceeded. + +Why did Pitt take this line? If he wished for office (as he undoubtedly +did), it seemed madness: he was committing something like suicide. But +pique, as Sir George Savile well said, 'is the spur the devil rides the +noblest tempers with.' He was unquestionably angry at his exclusion from +office, which he had, no doubt, been told was due to the King. He was +justly indignant that the long-continued efforts which had resulted in +the overthrow of Walpole's overweening power had simply resulted in the +shuffle of a few offices, and that to the victors the spoil had been +denied; the sole and execrable minister Walpole had been replaced by a +much less sole but not less execrable minister in Carteret. All this was +gall to a man who had been among the most formidable in the heat of +battle. That heat was now over, and the vanquished were picnicking with +a few selected victors, while Pitt and his friends were left to cool +themselves on the deserted battlefield. 'They tell me,' said Lord George +Bentinck, in 1846, 'that I shall save fifteen hundred a year by Free +Trade. I don't care for that. What I cannot bear is being sold.' Pitt, +too, could not bear being sold. + +That pique and a not ignoble rage had much to do with this philippic we +may well assume. But we may also surmise that his attitude was not +devoid of calculation. The veto of George II. was not to be removed by +deference, so he would, like another Hannibal, destroy the obstacle +with vinegar. The King had been exasperated by the lambent play of +Pitt's earlier insinuations; he should be made to know how Pitt had then +held his hand, what thunderbolts he had kept in reserve, what +unspeakable things awaited the Prince who should frown on him. 'All the +things I have told you,' said Sancho Panza, 'are tarts and cheese-cakes +to what remains behind.' George II. should learn that the innuendoes +that Pitt had levelled at him before were tarts and cheesecakes compared +to what he had the power of producing. Pitt, in a word, had made up his +mind that his only means of achieving his objects was by terror. He had +thrown away the scabbard. Moreover, he was appealing from the Court to +the people. The Court was foreign, immoral, and unpopular: the very name +of Hanover was detested. And although Pitt's actual words reached the +people late or not at all, there was an echo which was audible, and made +known all through the three kingdoms that there was within the walls of +Parliament an intrepid, unbribed, perhaps incorruptible orator who +feared the face of no man, and who was embodying in fiery words the +antipathies and distrusts of the nation. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + + +Let us consider for a moment the character of the Sovereign whom Pitt +had set himself to bait. + +George II. was first and fundamentally a German prince of his epoch. +What other could he be? And these magnates all aped Louis XIV. as their +model. They built huge palaces, as like Versailles as their means would +permit, and generally beyond those limits, with fountains and avenues +and dismally wide paths. Even in our own day a German monarch has left, +fortunately unfinished, an accurate Versailles on a damp island in a +Bavarian lake. In these grandiose structures they cherished a blighting +etiquette, and led lives as dull as those of the aged and torpid carp in +their own stew-ponds. Then at the proper season, they would break away +into the forest and kill game. Moreover, still in imitation of their +model, they held, as a necessary feature in the dreary drama of their +existence, ponderous dalliance with unattractive mistresses, in whom +they fondly tried to discern the charms of a Montespan or a La Valliere. +This monotonous programme, sometimes varied by a violent contest whether +they should occupy a seat with or without a back, or with or without +arms, represented the even tenor of their lives. + +George II. was better than this training would suggest. His first +ambition indeed was to be a Lovelace, but his second was to be a +soldier. As a soldier he had the unaffected courage of the princes of +his race. George, red and angry, fighting on foot at the battle of +Dettingen, is a figure that is memorable and congenial to his British +subjects. + +As a Lovelace he lives to this day, for his portraits are generally in +the posture of a coxcomb, with his face in outline wearing an +irresistible smile, only comical to the beholder now, but with which he +goes smirking into the eternities. It is not necessary to dwell on this +part of his character; after all, a shallow part, for the one woman whom +he loved was his wife. It was, however, a necessary part, vital to his +conception of an ideal monarch. His confidences to his wife on this +delicate point, though gross to us, seemed natural to him and to her, +and were probably not alien to the atmosphere in which he was reared. +Withal he bored his mistresses to death, and not impossibly they bored +him. But that did not matter; the thing had to be done; he saw himself +as in a mirror the fourteenth or fifteenth Louis; and when on the +Saturdays in summer he drove down with Lady Yarmouth and his court to +Richmond, escorted by Lifeguards kicking up the dust, to walk an hour in +the garden, dine, and return to London, he imagined himself, as Horace +Walpole tells us, the most gallant and lively prince in Europe![144] + +We must admit then that he was born and bred a coxcomb, like his son. +That he was a fond father no one will allege. His pleasures were coarse +and dull. Even here one strange exception must be made. His letters to +women, in the opinion of hostile critics, were tender and even +exquisite.[145] How he came to write them we cannot know, for his +character could not make one expect a grace of this kind. + +In other respects we think him underrated. Sir Robert Walpole said that +politically he was a coward. To what does this charge really amount? +That a prince who had never left Germany till he was thirty-one, who +succeeded to the throne when he was forty-four, after a life of such +severe repression that his father even entertained the idea of +transporting him to the plantations, should display that familiarity +with his position, his political relations, and a strange nation, which +alone could justify the independent action which is implied by the +phrase 'political courage,' would have been astonishing; it would indeed +have savoured of political recklessness. Walpole may have uttered the +charge in resentment for some refusal of the King's. He was, we know, +irritated at the moment by finding that the King had promised to go to +Hanover without informing him. The King no doubt blustered in private +when he yielded in public. But domestic effervescence was the only +method of relief for a Sovereign who knew his own limitations, and who +also knew that, constitutionally, he would have at last to yield to his +Minister. What is 'political courage' in a constitutional Sovereign? +What would Walpole have said had the monarch shown 'political courage' +and insisted on having his own stubborn way? 'Had he,' wrote Waldegrave, +with his usual good sense, 'always been as firm and undaunted in the +Closet as he showed himself at Oudenarde and Dettingen, he might not +have proved quite as good a king in this limited monarchy.' + +His foible, we are told, was avarice. We do not know that he was mean in +his personal expenditure. Waldegrave, again, who was fair, and knew him +better than most men, declared that 'he was always just, and sometimes +charitable, though rarely generous.' He amused himself, we are told, +with counting his guineas in private. That perhaps was not a very royal +occupation, though a nursery rhyme indicates that it is; it may have +been a trick learned when he was poor, or it may have been his +substitute for those games of anxious futility now known as 'patience.' +But the real ground for the charge of avarice in the eyes of his British +subjects was that he accumulated a great treasure in Hanover. If that be +avarice, it was the avarice of the kings who made Prussia, the famous +Frederick and his father. Parsimony in such cases may well be a virtue; +and subjects may even prefer to be ruled by those who possess it rather +than by princes who rear vast and idle palaces like the Bourbons of +Spain and Naples, or live with unbridled extravagance like George IV. +But kings rarely hit the right mean; if they are generous they are +called profuse, if they are careful they are called mean. George's +avarice, if such it was, was a public-spirited avarice. He hoarded for +his own beloved country, he got as much out of his Kingdom as he could +for his Electorate; for he was a Hanoverian first and a Briton a long +way afterwards. But when Hanover needed it, he spent all his hoards on +her behalf ungrudgingly, and died poor. + +We do not claim him as a great King, far from it. But we think him +unjustly and hastily condemned. It is easy in a slapdash manner to +lavish sarcasms on a King who presented many tempting opportunities for +satire. The genius of Thackeray could not resist them, small blame to +it. But the King's absurdities should not blind one to his merits. The +just critic must recognise in George II. a constant substantial +shrewdness, seasoned with humour. His sagacity made him realise his +constitutional limitations; his penetration appraised with great justice +the men by whom he was surrounded; he had to do much that he disliked +and resented, but he did it when he saw that it was necessary, not +gracefully, for he was never graceful, but without scandal. His rough +common sense constantly vented itself in the ejaculation of 'Stuff and +nonsense,'[146] which proved his command of at least one British idiom, +and not unfrequently a just appreciation of affairs. His judgment of men +was sure. He had only three ministers who were men of commanding +ability; Walpole, Carteret, and Pitt. Two of these were his especial +favourites; to the third, who had mortally offended him, he submitted. +For Newcastle he had a supreme contempt; but wisely accommodated himself +to one who was useful, who 'did his business,' to whom he was +accustomed, and whom he knew through and through. He infinitely +preferred Carteret to Pelham, but at the supreme moment he chose Pelham +in spite of Carteret. No doubt this was due largely to the influence of +Walpole, but many kings would not have followed an advice so contrary to +their own bias. He piqued himself on his knowledge of mankind, not +without reason, and Hervey depicts a scene where he reels off a +catalogue of names, and the King, tersely and unhesitatingly, gives the +character of each. + +The fact is that George II. had the misfortune to keep in his inmost +circle a vigilant and deadly enemy. John Lord Hervey, the Sporus of +Pope's blighting satire, akin in mind and probably in blood to Horace +Walpole, was always with him; noting down, with spruce rancour, a +venomous pen, and some dramatic power, the random outbreaks of his +master. It is not wise to attribute literal exactitude or even general +veracity to such chronicles; the man who can commit so gross a breach of +confidence is little worthy of trust. That Hervey in the very heart of +the King's family should have sate down with a pen dipped in vitriol to +portray its most intimate aspects is perhaps our gain but his disgrace. +He was a viper warmed in the bosom of the Court, and stung it to the +full extent of his opportunity and powers. A court is considered fair +game by such reptiles. But it is hard to see why princes, who after all +are human beings, should not be allowed to some extent the same sanctity +of family life which humbler human beings claim and maintain. Hervey was +the intimate associate of the King, the confidential friend of the +Queen, the lover of one of their daughters, he was the tame cat of the +family circle. He thought it seemly to narrate their secrets in so +brutal a fashion that some more decent member of his family tore out and +destroyed the coarsest and bitterest passages. What remains is coarse +and bitter enough. It shows the King and Queen in a most unfavourable +light. But that aspect is fascinating compared to that in which he +presents himself. The story of royalty should not be a Court Circular; +but neither should it be a lampoon, written by a trusted friend. The +only excuse for him is that being devoted to the Queen, who in her way +merited his devotion, he detested the King whom he deemed unworthy of +her. But that does not help the reader who looks to him for facts. The +George II. we know is the George II. of Hervey, and Hervey's Journal +proves the writer to be unworthy of implicit credence. + +Chesterfield also drew a character of the King. But when we discount +Chesterfield's studied epigrams, poised with the malignant nicety of one +who hated his subject, there is not much left for discredit. + +The real crime of George II. in the eyes of his British subjects was +almost in the category of virtues, for it was his devotion to Hanover. +Innocent and natural as it was in him, it seems wonderful to us that our +fathers should have endured it. How they must have hated Popery! But +Hanover was the King's home and fatherland; all his pleasant +associations were with Hanover; there he was absolute Sovereign, and +could lead without criticism the life that he enjoyed. He could not help +being a Hanoverian any more than William III. could help being a +Hollander. The English chose their Dutch and Hanoverian Sovereigns with +their eyes open, and had no right to complain if what they desired and +obtained was somewhat bitter in digestion. Neither William nor the two +first Georges ever professed to be other than what they were; they never +for a moment simulated that they were English, they never pretended to +like England. 'He hated the English,' says Lord Hervey of George II. And +when at the first available instant they fled from Kensington and +Hampton Court to Loo or Herrenhausen, their English subjects ignored +the mortifying preference, from devotion no doubt to the Protestant +Succession; but partly also because these monarchs were profoundly +indifferent to them. With George II., it is true, these excursions were +accompanied, as in Shakespeare, by alarms; alarms only too well founded +that he would return with a pocket full of treaties for subsidies which +the British taxpayer would have to pay. But all these three kings +accurately understood their position. They knew that they were not +chosen from affection, or for their qualities, certainly not for their +attractions. They were taken as necessities, almost odious necessities, +to keep out a Romanist dynasty which represented something to the people +that was more odious still. + +They entertained, then, no illusions; a bargain had been driven with +them and they would keep it; they gave their pound, or more, of flesh. +They would occupy palaces, receive civil lists, interview ministers, and +keep out the Pretender. But that did not imply a perpetual exile from +home; they intended to get as many holidays as possible; and they did. +They might be a hateful necessity for England, but England as a +necessity was almost as hateful to them. Their life in this island was +servitude, more or less penal; they only breathed by the dykes of +Holland or the waters of the Leine. If this be clearly understood, much +confusion and vituperation may be avoided. But the wonder is that the +English (for the Scots and Irish had little to do with it) should have +had the civic courage in the cause of religion and liberty to endure the +compact. + +George II. then, we contend, putting his private life apart, which we +must judge by the German standard of those days, was not a bad King +under the conditions of his time and of his throne. He was perhaps the +best of the Georges; better than George I. or George IV., better as a +King than George III., though inferior no doubt in the domestic virtues. +All things considered, it is wonderful that he was as good as he was, +and he scarcely deserves the thoughtless opprobrium which he has +incurred. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + + +And now it is necessary to say a word of Continental affairs. + +A life of Pitt should concern itself with Pitt alone, or with the +persons and events immediately relating to him. But as during this +period of his life foreign policy was all in all, and Britain seemed a +mere anxious appendage to the Continent, it is necessary to give a +succinct sketch of the familiar but complicated sequence of events in +Europe which occurred at this time, and which inspired almost all the +debates in which Pitt took part. + +Walpole, as we have seen, had declared war against Spain in 1739, and +the not very glorious course of those operations does not call for +record. But the year 1740 marked a new and critical epoch. Death in +those few months was busy lopping off the crowned heads of Europe, as if +to clear the scene for two great figures. On February 6 died Pope +Clement XII. On March 31 died the shrewd but brutal boor Frederick +William I., and at the age of twenty-eight his son Frederick II. reigned +in his stead. His accession was to unveil a mystery; and where mankind +had hitherto seen a fiddling dilettante, contemptuous of his countrymen +and craving for all that was French, to reveal the direct ancestor of +German unity, the most practical and tenacious of conquerors. On +October 20 the Emperor Charles VI., the figure-head for which we had +fought in the War of the Succession, and, a week afterwards, Anne the +Empress of Russia passed away. Rarely has the sickle of Eternity +gathered so pompous a harvest. Between February and November it had +garnered the Holy Roman Emperor, the Holy Roman Pontiff, the sovereign +of Russia, and the sovereign of Prussia. Of these the death at Vienna +was by far the most momentous. For Charles left behind him no son, but a +young daughter of twenty-three, about to be a mother, whose succession +he had attempted to secure by the Pragmatic Sanction of 1718, ratified +and recognised by solemn international instruments. On the morning of +his death she was promptly proclaimed sovereign of her father's +dominions; but her treasury was empty and her ministers paralysed. +Bavaria at once protested. Behind Bavaria stood Frederick armed to the +teeth, eager to let slip the dogs of war. Every one saw his +preparations; no one could tell at whom they were aimed. + +'No fair judge,' Mr. Carlyle[147] tells us, can blame the 'young +magnanimous King' for seizing this 'flaming opportunity.' The point is +fortunately not one which a biographer of Pitt is called upon to +discuss, except to note that hero-worship makes bad history. For our +purpose it is sufficient to say that Frederick did avail himself of the +new juncture of affairs. Charles had died on October 20; on December 6 +the announcement was officially made in Berlin that the King had +resolved to march a body of troops into Silesia; on December 13 these +had passed the frontier, not as enemies of the Queen of Hungary or +Silesia, it was declared, but as protective friends of Silesia and her +Majesty's rights there. All this was preceded and accompanied by the +strangest diplomacy that the world had seen, but which does not concern +this abstract. Thus begins the first period of the Continental war. + +Britain, like Prussia, was bound by treaty to maintain the Pragmatic +Sanction which assured the Austrian dominions to Maria Theresa. Our +statesmen at this moment were engaged in a pastime of more immediate +interest and excitement, for they were hunting Walpole to death; the +exhaustion of the quarry was evident; the end could not be far off. But +even then the nature of the aggression and the appeal of a young and +beautiful Queen exercised the usual influence on the chivalrous +sympathies of the nation. Maria Theresa could, moreover, appeal to +treaty rights. So that Walpole found himself reluctantly forced into a +new war while the former was still undecided and incomplete. He agreed +to renew the pledges of England to maintain that Pragmatic Sanction +which secured the succession to the daughter of Charles VI.; he agreed, +moreover, to an immediate subsidy of 300,000_l._, and to sending a force +of 12,000 men. Meanwhile Marshal Schwerin had defeated the Austrians at +Molwitz at the very moment that the House of Commons was debating these +proposals. + +This victory brought into the arena new and eager claimants for some +part of the Austrian spoils, now apparently so available. The eminent +guarantors of the integrity of Austria were suddenly transformed into +hungry schemers for her immediate partition. Spain, Sardinia, and +Poland-Saxony all advanced pretensions. But a mightier enemy was +preparing to join hands with Frederick and take the field; for it was +scarcely to be supposed that the secular enemy of the House of Hapsburg +could remain quiescent at such a moment. France saw a unique opportunity +for breaking up the Austrian dominions, and reducing the portion +reserved to the young Queen to comparative insignificance. In France, as +in England, the Minister was peaceful, but the party of war carried the +day. Two French armies of 40,000 men each crossed the Rhine in August +1741. One under Marshal Maillebois marched on Hanover. The ruler of that +State, who, as sovereign of Great Britain, was the active ally of Maria +Theresa, hastily concluded a treaty of neutrality for one year, +promising to give no assistance to the young Queen in his Hanoverian +capacity, and to refrain from voting for her husband as Emperor. For +this treaty George II. was violently attacked by his British subjects, +who believed themselves to be fighting for Hanoverian interests, while +Hanover itself was thus snugly removed into a haven of peace. The +censure was, we think, excessive, if not undeserved. The treaty did +indeed accentuate the duality which somewhat unequally divided the +person of George. But if that be once conceded, it must be admitted that +he was right as Elector to do his very best for Hanover, just as King he +was bound to do his very best for England. As Elector, then, he was +fully justified in keeping his defenceless State out of the devastation +of war, from which it was destined to suffer so terribly sixteen years +later from another French army under the Duke of Richelieu, when +neutrality was no longer possible. + +While Maillebois marched towards Hanover, the other army, under Marshals +Belleisle and Broglie, marched through Bavaria and menaced Vienna. +Maria Theresa had to fly to Hungary, and appeal in a manner made +familiar by description to the chivalry of the Magyars. The Elector of +Bavaria, who was the figure-head chosen by the confederates for the +imperial throne, and who had his fill of titles in the lack of more +substantial fare, was proclaimed Archduke of Austria at Linz, King of +Bohemia in Prague, and soon afterwards Emperor in Frankfort. It seemed +as if a vast partition was about to take place, and the House of Austria +destined to disappear. + +But this was the turning-point; in the general blackness there appeared +rays of hope for Maria Theresa. Walpole, the peace minister, +disappeared, and the control of Foreign Affairs in Great Britain passed +to Carteret, who was warm for Austria, and eager to play an active part +on the Continent. Moreover, the misfortunes of the Queen roused the +enthusiasm of Great Britain. Five millions were voted for the war, half +a million as a subsidy to the Queen of Hungary. Sixteen thousand men +were sent into Flanders to assist the exertions of the Dutch. +Unfortunately there were no exertions to assist, and our troops remained +useless. Our fleets were more active. They harried the Spaniards and +controlled the Mediterranean. A squadron entered the Bay of Naples and +gave the King, afterwards Charles III. of Spain, an hour in which to +decide whether he would abandon the confederacy against Austria or see +his beautiful city bombarded. The King of Naples yielded, but as King of +Spain never forgave the English for this humiliation. + +[Sidenote: Feb. 12, 1742.] + +The Austrians, too, found a bold and skilful general in Khevenhueller, +who seized Bavaria and occupied Munich on the very day on which its +ruler was crowned Emperor. In the succeeding June a peace, which proved +afterwards to be but a truce, was concluded at Breslau between Austria +and Prussia, through the mediation of Great Britain, and followed by the +Treaty of Berlin, to which George II. both as King and Elector, the +Empress of Russia, the States General, and the King of Poland as Elector +of Saxony were parties. There had been a secret armistice between the +two states in the winter of 1741, by which Lower Silesia and Niesse had +been ceded to Frederick, but this had soon proved inoperative. A new +situation was however produced by the severe battle of Chotusitz, in +which the Austrians suffered defeat at the hands of Frederick. Maria +Theresa now yielded to the pressure of the English ministry and ceded +all Lower and part of Upper Silesia with the county of Glatz to +Frederick, who in return abandoned his allies and left the French to +themselves, on the plea that they were in secret communication with +Vienna. Saxony, under his influence, also withdrew from the war, and the +King of Prussia and the Elector of Hanover concluded a defensive +alliance, the Elector guaranteeing Silesia and Glatz to the King. +Frederick saw that he had been too successful. He was determined to +retain Silesia, but he saw with apprehension great French armies +overrunning the German Empire. That France should be aggrandised at the +expense of Germany was no part of his policy. For Germany as Germany he +had no natural affection; but the waters of Germany, however troubled +they might be, he proposed to keep for his own fishing. + +[Sidenote: Dec. 1741.] + +With the Peace of Breslau, then, the first period of the war ends, and +the second begins, in which it assumes a new character. It is not +Frederick and France fighting against Austria; it is Austria supported +by Britain, and to some extent Holland, fighting, with the secret +sympathy of Germany, against France and Spain. Elizabeth, too, the +daughter of Peter the Great, had mounted the throne of Russia, and +assisted her sister sovereign with sympathy and with money. The whole +aspect of the war was suddenly changed. Austria was now free to turn her +whole forces on France, and she did so with terrible effect. The French +had to evacuate Bohemia in a retreat so heroic and so appalling that it +anticipated the horrors of 1812. Of the 40,000 men with whom he had +crossed the Rhine, Belleisle brought back but 8000 into France. The +share of Great Britain in the war became substantial and direct. The +Elector of Hanover, relieved from apprehension by his treaty with +Prussia and the success of Austria, reduced his army by 16,000 men, but +the King of England took them into his pay. This measure exasperated his +British subjects, whose attention was thus once more called to the +jarring interests of the Kingdom and the Electorate combined in George's +person. But Ministers carried the day, and in June 1743 the King himself +took the field with an Anglo-German army of some 40,000 men under the +command of Lord Stair. At Dettingen, not far from Frankfort, in escaping +from a position of extreme jeopardy, they encountered and defeated the +French. The strangest part of this engagement was that there was then +nominally no war between France and Great Britain, and that these +operations were only accidental auxiliary conflicts. It was not for nine +months afterwards that war between the two countries was formally +declared. + +[Sidenote: Sept. 1743.] + +Later on in this year George II. took an even more active measure, and +through Carteret, as Secretary of State, though behind the back of his +other ministers, signed the Treaty of Worms. For many years past it had +been the policy of the House of Savoy to put itself up to auction, and +by the Treaty of Worms George II. became the successful bidder. The King +of Sardinia was to receive some territory from Austria, and 200,000_l._ +a year from Great Britain, while he was to assist the Austrian cause +with 45,000 men. Carteret at the same time covenanted to pay Maria +Theresa a subsidy of 300,000_l._ a year 'so long as the war should +continue, or the necessity of her affairs should require.' But this the +British Ministry refused to recognise, and it became the subject of +fierce debate in Parliament. + +To meet this combination, Louis XV., on the advice of his Minister but +against his own better judgment, signed one of those one-sided and +altruistic treaties which characterised French policy at this time, and +renewed the family compact of 1733 by a treaty signed at Fontainebleau +in October 1743. In this new edition the Bourbons of France and Spain +pledged themselves to an indissoluble union. France was to declare war +against Great Britain and Sardinia, to help Spain to reconquer Parma and +the Milanese for Don Philip, and to compel Great Britain to give up her +colony of Georgia. Finally, the two Powers were not to make peace until +Gibraltar and, if possible, Minorca were restored to Spain.[148] + +[Sidenote: May 1744.] + +But the Austrian successes once more brought Frederick into the field +to redress the balance, which now inclined too much to Austria, as it +had inclined too much to France. Austria had acquired Bavaria for the +moment, and perhaps would never evacuate it; she might be encouraged to +attempt the reconquest of Silesia. Her armies were now in Alsace; where +would they stop? The Queen, he knew, was only a degree less tenacious +than himself. So he signed a new convention at Frankfort with the +Emperor, the King of France, the King of Sweden as Landgrave of Hesse, +and the Elector Palatine, and again took up arms against Austria, which +was almost drained of troops. France about the same time formally +declared war against Great Britain and Austria, whom she had been +fighting, so to speak, incognito, for three years past. On the other +hand a quadruple alliance was concluded between Great Britain, Austria, +Holland, and Saxony; based as usual on British subsidies, which +Parliament ungrudgingly voted, with the eloquent but surprising support +of Pitt. + +Here begins the third period of the war. Louis XV. and Marshal Saxe at +the head of 80,000 men entered the Austrian Netherlands almost without +resistance. Frederick soon made himself master of Bohemia and Bavaria, +and returned the Electorate to its sovereign, the Emperor Charles VII. +In January 1745, worn out with misfortunes and anxieties and dignities, +but once more in his capital, that hapless monarch died. Within three +months his successor had concluded peace with Austria through the +earnest pressure of the British Cabinet on the haughty Queen; the +Elector abandoning his claims on the Austrian dominions, and promising +his vote for the Empire to Maria Theresa's husband. Peace between +Austria and the King of Poland, Elector of Saxony, followed in May, +when the contracting parties entered into a premature concert for the +partition of the Prussian dominions. + +Otherwise 1745 was a disastrous year for Austria. The Allies, Austrians, +British, and Dutch, under the Duke of Cumberland, sustained a bloody +defeat at Fontenoy in May; and Great Britain, occupied with the domestic +disturbance caused by the landing of Charles Edward, had to withdraw +from active participation in the war. In August a secret convention was +concluded at Hanover between the Kings of Prussia and Great Britain, by +which the latter Power guaranteed Silesia to the former. This was the +beginning of the end. The British Ministry now notified to the +unyielding Queen that she must come to terms with her enemy, or expect +no more assistance from England or Holland. The Austrian arms met +everywhere with reverses. While the young Queen was planning with Saxony +a triumphant march on Berlin, Frederick broke into Saxony and occupied +Dresden. On this final blow Maria Theresa accepted the mediation of +Great Britain and signed, on Christmas Day, 1745, the peace of Dresden +which gave Silesia and Glatz to Frederick. So ends the third period of +this strange and erratic war; a labyrinth of fugitive conventions and +transient alliances, with two strong purposes in the centre. + +But the auxiliary combatants remained at strife, just as the seconds in +a duel have sometimes fought after their principals had settled their +own differences. And so we now enter on its fourth period, that in which +the British, Austrians, and Dutch (with the assistance of the +Piedmontese in Italy) contended against France and Spain. The part of +this war which chiefly concerns Great Britain was fought in Flanders. +And in all these transactions it must be noted that a main difficulty of +the British Ministry, both from the practical and from the parliamentary +point of view, lay in the problem of moving the Dutch. The Hollanders +had everything to apprehend from the triumph of the French arms, but +their phlegmatic temper, and still more the impracticable nature of +their constitution, offered great obstacles to their co-operation. +Anglers may see an analogy between these British negotiations with the +Dutch and the tardy and tantalising sport of sniggling for eels. At the +beginning of 1746, matters seemed to have come to a climax. The French +were harrying Flanders, and were threatening to invade Holland. The +Dutch Government were now stirred into proposing active measures, and +the raising of a large army, to be under the command of the Prince of +Waldeck; but they declined to declare war against France. The British +agreed to a joint force of 100,000 men, comprising 40,000 to be +furnished by the States-General, 30,000 by Austria, some Hanoverians and +Saxons to be paid by England and Holland, and 6000 Hessians to be +provided by England after Charles Edward had been finally defeated. The +Dutch regarded the British offers as inadequate; for it is a cardinal +principle of all Continental wars in which Great Britain is concerned +that her purse is to be open to her allies, and that she is to find the +funds. + + 'The Dutch we know are good allies, + So are they all with subsidies.'[149] + +They were, moreover, not indisposed to negotiate with the French. +These, meanwhile, under the leadership of Marshal Saxe, were occupying +the Low Countries almost without interruption or resistance. In February +they entered Brussels; in May, Antwerp. Mons, Charleroi, and Namur +successively fell into their hands, and they ended the campaign by +defeating the allies at Roucoux, and remaining practically in possession +of the Austrian Netherlands. But there was a glimpse of peace, in that +some negotiations, abortive though they were destined to be, were opened +at Breda. + +In 1747 the Duke of Cumberland again assumed the command with the usual +disastrous result. The Dutch contingent, also as usual, was very +inadequate: commercial nations are perhaps apt to treat international +engagements in too commercial a spirit. But the irruption into Dutch +Flanders of twenty thousand Frenchmen roused a spirit of a different +kind. The Dutch rose like one man, overturned their rulers, and once +more entrusted the Stadtholderate to the House of Orange. This was a +national gain. But the luckless Cumberland again sustained a bloody +defeat at Lauffeld. The battle, however, had one indirect but happy +consequence. Our best General, Ligonier, was captured, and, being of +French birth, was favourably received by Louis XV., who threw out hints +of peace and placed him in communication with Marshal Saxe. The Marshal +admitted that the war, and he himself as concerned in it, were +profoundly unpopular in France, that peace might be obtained on easy +terms, and suggested that Cumberland and he should be the negotiators. + +Pelham was naturally eager for a pacification, George II. less so, and +what the King wished Newcastle was anxious to wish. But a congress to +adjust a treaty met at Aix-la-Chapelle in March 1748, and in April the +preliminaries of a treaty were signed by the British and French and +Dutch plenipotentiaries. + +[Sidenote: 1748.] + +Maria Theresa held aloof. To her it seemed that the first and only duty +of the British, and, indeed, of all other nations, was to fight and work +and pay that she might regain Silesia, just as her father had held that +the first, last, and only duty of Europe was to establish him in Spain. +This peace would ratify the acquisition of Silesia by Frederick, and +though she herself had ceded it, she could not bring herself to declare +the cession definite. England, however, could no longer agree to the +general interest being overridden by the obstinacy of the Empress-Queen; +there had been bloodshed and suffering enough on her account. However +just a cause may be, there are limits to human endurance, more +especially when the cause to be upheld has no substantial importance for +the defending nation. The definitive treaty was signed on October 18. +Two days later, Spain, the original belligerent, acceded to it. There +were, a philosopher may note, no stipulations regarding the commercial +regulations which had been the original cause of our war with Spain. On +the 23rd it was accepted by the Austrian Government. + +This is a narrative, as condensed as possible, of the foreign affairs +which entered into our parliamentary debates. That part of the war which +took place in Italy has been excluded. It was a mere contest of petty +rapine in which strange princes parcelled out Italy; which can scarcely +be said to have concerned Great Britain, and Pitt not at all. Nor has it +left the least visible trace in history. + +The greater war which we have summarised is a sufficient tangle. Leslie +Stephen calls it 'that complicated series of wars which lasted some ten +years, and passes all power of the ordinary human intellect to +understand or remember. For what particular reason Englishmen were +fighting at Dettingen, or Fontenoy, or Lauffeld is a question which a +man can only answer when he has been specially crammed for examination, +and his knowledge has not begun to ooze out.'[150] This is the exact +truth, as the ill-fated chronicler who gropes about among the treaties +and conventions is fain to confess. But apart from its complications +this war is not in itself very memorable or exalted, though it has left +an indelible result in the great Prussian monarchy. It was not beautiful +or glorious. The guarantors of Austria at the first sign of her weakness +had hurried, most of them, to divide her spoils, at the same time +betraying each other from time to time without scruple, as their +immediate interests required. Frederick had a business-like candour +which almost disarms criticism. Macaulay in a famous passage has pointed +out that innocent peasants perished in thousands all over the world that +he might obtain and retain an Austrian province. And Maria Theresa, with +all her maternal charm, is not wholly admirable. It was natural that she +should fight for her rights, and induce all she could to fight for her; +natural, perhaps, that she should be content that all Europe should +bleed so that she might retain her territory. But we cannot forget that +she who was ready that myriads should perish, not of Austrians or +Magyars alone, but of all the nations that she could enlist in her +cause, to maintain the sanctity of her rights to Silesia, was later on +an accomplice in the partition of Poland; a reluctant accomplice, it is +fair to add, as she herself was awake to the inconsistency of her +position. + +Among all these stately figures and famous slaughters we see the central +fact of the period, the shameless and naked cynicism of the eighteenth +century, which, turning its back for ever on the wars of faith and +conviction, looked only to contests of prey. And so it continued till +the great Revolution cleared the air, and, followed up by the poignant +discipline of Napoleon, made way for the wars of nationality. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + + +No more of Pitt's speeches are recorded during the session, which, with +the enviable ease of those days, having opened on November 16, 1742, +closed on April 21, 1743. In the interval before the ensuing session an +event occurred, not in itself memorable, but notable for the contest +that followed. In July 1743 occurred the long-expected death of +Wilmington, the nominal head of the Government. In itself this departure +would not have caused a ripple on the surface of politics, but it opened +a critical succession. Pulteney, now Earl of Bath, at once laid claim to +it; and his pretensions were warmly supported by Carteret, who was the +minister in attendance on the King in Germany. Henry Pelham, supported +by his brother Newcastle, also applied for the vacant post. As between +these two groups it seemed certain that Bath, through Carteret, who was +on the ground, would have the preference. Pelham, indeed, at the +instance of Walpole, had, before the King left England, applied to his +Majesty for the reversion of the moribund Minister's place, and had, if +Coxe may be trusted, received a definite promise. It seems difficult to +credit this, for George was a man of his word, yet the Pelham brothers +were unfeignedly astonished when the reversion was given them; so that +had Pelham indeed received such a pledge, he must have expected that +the King would break it. Six weeks of dire suspense followed the death +of Wilmington; an interval which was probably caused by the anxiety of +the Sovereign to consult Walpole, while he intimated to Pelham that his +decision would be conveyed to the Ministry by Carteret. This seemed a +deathblow to the chances of Pelham, though the King's aversion to Bath +was notorious. But a letter at length arrived from Carteret, in which he +announced, with unaffected regret but with a generous promise of +support, that the prize had fallen to Pelham. The brothers were elated, +if such an expression can ever be applied to the timid and cautious +Pelham. Newcastle was transported by the 'agreeable but most surprising +news;' so much so, as to acknowledge that Carteret's letter was 'manly.' + +Walpole, in writing his congratulations, looked warily to the future. +'Recruits,' he advised, should now be sought 'from the Cobham +squadron.... Pitt is thought able and formidable, try him or show +him.... Whig it with all opponents that will parley, but 'ware Tory.' +Newcastle, on reading this letter to his brother, wrote back: 'I am +afraid, one part of it, viz. the taking in of the Cobham party and the +Whigs in opposition, without a mixture of Tories, is absolutely +impracticable; and, therefore, the only question is whether, in order to +get the Cobham party, etc., you will bring in three or four Tories, at +least, with them, for, without that, they will not come, and this is +what I have the greatest difficulty to bring myself to.' Orford's advice +was not followed, and Pelham's appointments were few and narrow. Two of +Lord Bath's followers, a friend of the Prince of Wales, and a friend of +his own, the only surviving name of the four, Henry Fox, were +gratified, and that was all. And even this limited arrangement was not +completed before Parliament met. + +[Sidenote: Dec. 1, 1743.] + +The opening of the new session was anticipated with keen interest, as +the Ministry was known to be rent with divisions, and hatred of the +Hanoverians had immeasurably swollen in consequence of rumours of the +favour that the King had shown to his electoral subjects. He had been +surrounded by Hanoverian Guards to the exclusion of the English Guards; +he had worn at Dettingen a yellow sash, which it appears was a +Hanoverian symbol of authority; the Hanoverians had refused to obey the +orders of Lord Stair, and so forth. We can easily imagine the buzz of +angry legend and comment; for national antipathies have no difficulty in +obtaining substantial affidavits in their support. Of this wild but not +unreasonable intemperance Pitt, it is scarcely necessary to say, was the +mouthpiece. In the debate on the Address he spoke with his accustomed +violence. He called Carteret 'an execrable or sole minister, who had +renounced the British nation, and seemed to have drunk of the potion +described in poetic fictions which made men forget their country.'[151] +So far as this tirade concerned Carteret's authority, nothing could be +more absurd or wide of the truth. He could indeed scarcely have chosen a +more unfortunate epithet than 'sole.' So far from being a sole minister, +Carteret, as we have seen, had just received a crushing defeat in the +elevation of Henry Pelham to the first place in the Ministry, and the +rejection of his own candidate; though he had strained all his influence +in the cause. + +Nor had this 'sole minister' any parliamentary following; his only +strength lay with the King, where it had just been found signally +inadequate. The supreme minister in the last resort, and behind the +scenes, was, in truth, Walpole. It was his decision and his alone that +had turned the scale against Carteret and Pulteney. Carteret was +congenial to the King, for he worked with his Sovereign in matters of +foreign policy; and, as we have seen, he could talk politics to the +Sovereign in the King's own language. But, while the King tried to carry +out his own views in Continental affairs, in domestic politics he looked +to Walpole alone. Still, invective must necessarily have an object, and, +by aiming at the King's confidential Foreign Minister, Pitt was able to +wound the King as well. It is hinted by Yorke, the parliamentary +chronicler, that Pitt's acrimony was dictated by jealousy of Carteret's +influence with the Prince of Wales.[152] As to this there is no proof, +and conjecture is idle. Carteret and Frederick had indeed been long +connected, but this would scarcely impel one of the Prince's court to +attack one of the Prince's friends. Moreover, were this the motive, +Pitt's attacks would have been of a different and milder character, +enough to damage Carteret, but not enough to embroil Pitt with the +Prince, who was not merely his master, but the head of his political +connection. It is clear that Pitt's sole object was to destroy Carteret +as minister, not for the ignominious purpose of subverting him in a +court camarilla, but to show his own power by demolishing the +conspicuous man, the vizier of the King who proscribed himself. The mere +fact that Carteret represented the King's Continental policy, and that +Pitt had apparently determined, in the jargon of that day, to storm the +Closet, seems sufficient reason for Pitt's bitterness. He denounced +Carteret as he denounced Hanover, as darling accessories of a monarch +whom he was determined to harass in every way until his attacks should +produce compliance or surrender. But it was the fate of Pitt to have to +recant his abuse of Carteret, as solemnly and as publicly as he recanted +his abuse of Walpole. 'His abilities,' said Pitt in 1770 of Carteret, +'did honour to this House and to this nation. In the upper departments +of Government he had not his equal. And I feel a pride in declaring that +to his patronage, to his friendship, and instruction, I owe whatever I +am.'[153] It was a generous, almost an extravagant statement. But it +shows how little importance should be attached to the early philippics +of Pitt, as of other aspiring and brilliant young men. Invectives are +one of the least subtle and most piquant forms of advertisement, but +they do not facilitate the task of biographers. + +The Sovereign he attacked openly and unsparingly. It was proposed, in +the Address to the Throne, to congratulate the King on his escape from +the dangers of the battle of Dettingen. This Pitt deprecated. 'Suppose, +Sir,' he asked, 'it should appear that His Majesty was exposed to few or +no dangers abroad, but those to which he is daily liable at home, such +as the overturning of his coach or the stumbling of his horse, would not +the address proposed, instead of being a compliment, be an affront and +insult to the Sovereign?' No affront or insult could at any rate be more +stinging or more unfounded than his wanton insinuation. George II. had +the courage of his race, and had displayed it at Dettingen. At first his +runaway horse had almost carried him into the French lines, so he +dismounted and fought on foot for the rest of the day; not leaving the +field until he had created a number of knights banneret; the last +British king to take the field, and the last bannerets to be so +created.[154] + +It was vile then to disparage the King's courage, but political life in +those days had no scruple and little shame. The sneers at Hanover with +which this speech was sprinkled were better founded and deserved. But a +serious and reasonable argument, not yet obsolete, pervaded Pitt's +violent rhetoric on this occasion. It was that though the balance of +power concerned all states, it concerned our island state least and last +of all. Moreover, he attacked our recent policy on other grounds. On our +attitude to Austria, then fighting for its integrity under Maria +Theresa, he heaped scorn from another point of view. We had promised her +abundant assistance when she was fighting Prussia alone; when France +intervened we shrank back and left her in the lurch. That, he declared, +was not our only discredit. When Prussia attacked the Queen of Hungary, +and Spain, Poland, and Bavaria laid claim to her father's succession, we +should have known that the preservation of the whole was impossible, and +advised her to yield the part claimed by Frederick. But the words from +the Throne and the speeches of the courtiers had persuaded the Austrian +Government that Great Britain was determined to support her. So great +was the determination, that even Hanover added near one-third to her +army at her own cost, the first extraordinary expense, it was believed, +that Hanover had borne for her purposes since her fortunate conjunction +with England! But then the French intervened. Hanover was in danger, and +so we promptly retired. We gave some money, indeed, but that was because +our ministers contrived to make a job of every parliamentary grant. The +Queen, seeing that she was deserted, came to terms with Frederick, but +much worse terms than he had originally offered. Then was the time for +us to have insisted on her making peace with France and the phantom +Emperor. But we had advised her against this, for no conceivable reason +except apparently that we wished to go on paying the 16,000 Hanoverians +whom we were employing. As regards the battle of Dettingen, he declared +that we had no idea of fighting, but that the French had caught us in a +trap. The ardour of our troops was restrained by the cowardice of the +Hanoverians; we ran away in the night, leaving our dead and wounded +behind us. Never would he consent to call the battle a victory, it was +only a fortunate escape. + +Were we to continue fighting? he asked. We ourselves had nothing to gain +by it, though Hanover, no doubt, would continue to receive four or five +hundred thousand pounds a year from us if we did. But we should +consider, even the Hanoverians should consider, that we could not carry +on a long war as in the reign of Queen Anne. We were not far from a +national bankruptcy, and should soon have to disband our army. What, +then, if the Pretender should land at the head of a French force? + +This outline is given to show the singular but forcible mixture of +shrewd argument, wayward extravagance, and bitter scoffs, which at this +time constituted Pitt's parliamentary armament. + +He followed this speech up by another on December 6, of which little +remains; but his vehemence brought him into collision with the Speaker. +He urged contemptuously that if we must have German troops we should +rather hire those of Cologne and Saxony than those of Hanover. The King +was surrounded by German officers, and by one English Minister without +an English heart. The little finger of one man, he declared, had lain +heavier upon the nation than an administration which had continued +twenty years. Murray, however, the Solicitor-General, afterwards Lord +Mansfield, delivered a consummate speech against the motion, which +carried so much conviction that Pitt with some of the other Cobhamites +struck out the words relating to the exhausted and impoverished state of +the kingdom. But the amended motion was rejected by a majority of +seventy-seven. + +And now there occurred a significant fissure in the Opposition. Pitt and +Lyttelton were inclined to support the maintenance of the British force +in Flanders. But Cobham, the chief of the little party, was +uncompromising: he resigned his commission 'as captain of the troop of +horse grenadiers' and his seat in the Cabinet. A formula had to be +framed to unite the two sections, and so George Grenville brought +forward a motion praying his Majesty 'in consideration of the exhausted +and impoverished state of the Kingdom not to proceed in this war without +the concurrence of the Dutch.' Pitt concurred in this motion, and +promised that if it were rejected he would join in opposing the +continued employment of the British as well as the Hanoverian troops in +Flanders. + +This revision by a little group is not without significance; as the +Opposition, we are told, at the beginning of the session, entrusted the +direction of the party to a committee of six, consisting of Dodington, +Pitt, Sir John Cotton, Sir Watkin Wynn, Waller, and Lyttelton. The +putting of political leadership into commission has never been +successful in Parliament, and the device seems finally to have broken +down when it was last attempted, by the Protectionist party, after the +fall of Peel. Nor does it appear to have been more happy on this +occasion. Pitt and Lyttelton, who, in spite of their engagement, still +desired to support the continued employment of the British troops in the +Low Countries, at a general meeting of the Opposition found themselves +alone, and so agreed to give a silent vote with their associates. + +It is probable that this incident produced alienation as it certainly +wrought friction between Pitt and Cobham. In the ensuing year we find +Cobham describing Pitt as a young man of fine parts, but narrow, +ignorant of the world, and dogmatical.[155] Two years afterwards Cobham +went further, and described him as a wrong-headed fellow, whom he had +had no regard for.[156] So we may well conjecture that from this time +there was but little confidence between Pitt and the patron of the +cousinhood; a great emancipation, though not wholly a gain for Pitt. + +[Sidenote: Jan. 19, 1744.] + +On the vote of 393,773_l._ to maintain the 16,000 Hanoverians during the +coming year, there was no need for the restraint of silence, so Pitt +railed with his customary bitterness against Carteret, who was the +Hanover-troop minister, a flagitious taskmaster, with a party only +composed of the 16,000 Hanoverians; and he ended his denunciation by +wishing that Carteret were in the House, for then he would say ten times +more. His speech was passionate and rhetorical, incomparably good of its +kind. But the Government prevailed in the division by 271 to 226. This +majority of forty-five was larger than had been anticipated, and was due +to the incessant exertions of Walpole. He sustained the flagging spirits +of the Ministry, who were on the point of abandoning the proposal. +Newcastle, indeed, had blenched before the storm, and openly took part +against the Hanoverians. But Walpole restored the fortune of the field. +He stemmed the gathering retreat, put heart into the waverers, and used +his personal credit with his old friends. Never in his own +administration had he laboured any point with more zeal. 'The whole +world,' writes his son Horace, 'nay, the Prince himself, allows that if +Lord Orford had not come to town, the Hanover troops had been lost. They +were, in effect, given up by all but Carteret.'[157] + +[Sidenote: Jan. 1744.] + +So far as the House of Commons was concerned, this ended the hostilities +against the Hanoverian troops, though the House of Lords continued the +controversy with a debate in which Chesterfield, who outdid Pitt in +violence, delivered a speech which was greatly admired. But a subsidy of +200,000_l._ had to be voted to the King of Sardinia under the treaty of +Worms. This treaty, negotiated by the King and Carteret in Germany +independently of the Home Government, was little relished by that +Government, and offered a tempting target to the warriors of the +Opposition. On a first motion for papers, Pitt was again prominent, +though little of his speech survives. Alluding, however, to a secret +convention attached to the treaty, which Carteret had signed but which +Ministers had refused to ratify, he declared, 'I only wanted the sight +of a convention, tacked to the treaty which that audacious hand had +signed, to furnish matter for immediate impeachment.' On the actual vote +the Government had only a majority of 62. Subsequent unreported debates +furnished Pitt with opportunities of denouncing the Pelham brethren as +subservient tools of Carteret. But the Government waxed stronger in +proportion to the heat of opposition. On a vote of censure they had a +majority of 114. Through these discussions Pitt passes like a phantom, +foremost by all consent in debate, but without leaving any footprint of +speech behind. + +From these broils Parliament was now distracted by startling +intelligence. By message to the House on February 15 (1744) the King +apprised his faithful lieges that a French fleet was prowling in the +Channel, and that the young Stuart Prince, Charles Edward, had arrived +in France to join it. One of our vessels had met this squadron of +seventeen men-of-war and four frigates so long ago as January 27, 'half +seas over' between Brest and the Land's End, prowling apparently +northwards. There was something of a panic: men remembered how the Dutch +in 1667 had sailed up the Thames, and apprehended a repetition of that +disgrace. The Jacobites began to raise their head, but stocks did not +fall. The King's message announced that the 'eldest son of the Pretender +to his Crown is arrived in France; and that preparations are making +there to invade this kingdom in concert with disaffected persons here.' +A loyal address was at once prepared, to which the Opposition moved an +addition, promising an inquiry into the state of the Navy. The +amendment was, of course, supported by Pitt, and, of course, defeated. +But Pitt, as stout an anti-Jacobite as his grandfather, promised his +adhesion to the address whether the amendment voted or not; and a few +days later, on the presentation of papers, he supported the Government +so warmly as to receive the public thanks of Pelham. But for once the +interest was not in the Commons but the Lords. Newcastle had laid the +papers before the House, and with his usual blundering ineptitude had +allowed the House to pass to private business. Then Orford rose, and +broke his long silence. With dignity and emotion he confessed that he +had vowed to refrain from speech in that House, but that abstinence now +would be a crime. He had heard the King's message, and had observed with +amazement that that House was to be so wanting in respect as to leave it +unanswered. Was our language so barren as to be unable to find words to +the King at such a crisis; 'a time of distraction and confusion, a time +when the greatest power in Europe is setting up a Pretender to his +throne?' + +'I have indeed particular reason to express my astonishment and my +uneasiness on this occasion; I feel my breast fired with the warmest +gratitude to a gracious and royal master whom I have so long served; my +heart overflows with zeal for his honour, and ardour for the lasting +security of his illustrious house. But, my lords, the danger is common, +and an invasion equally involves all our happiness, all our hopes, and +all our fortunes.' + +In these passionate words the wary and unemotional Orford allowed his +apprehension to overflow. He saw the work of his life, the keeping out +of the Stuarts, compromised and endangered by the unpopularity of the +throne, and the blunders of jobbing mediocrity. He perceived the danger +which he had so long warded off now instant and imminent. The House was +deeply moved. Newcastle with obvious mortification acknowledged his +lapse, and the Chancellor hurriedly drafted an address. Even the Prince +of Wales, whose hatred of Walpole was perhaps the deepest feeling of +which his shallow nature was capable, was so stirred, that he rose and +shook hands with the veteran Minister. Nay, as we are told by a +chronicler blissfully unconscious of bathos, 'he revoked the prohibition +which prevented the family of Lord Orford from attending his levee.' It +was a dramatic occasion, worthy of being the last public appearance of +Orford. The hard-bitten old statesman who had been baited for near a +quarter of a century, and had always given his opponents as good as he +had got, disappeared from the stage with a burst of passionate +patriotism. + +[Sidenote: 1744.] + +The end is so near that we may follow him thither. This speech was on +the last day of February, and he was soon afterwards seized with a +painful and mortal complaint; but in July he could not resist returning +to Houghton for a final visit. There he remained till November, beset by +anxious solicitations both from the King and from the Ministry, for he +was the guide and stay of both. At last, though tortured with the stone, +he consented to return to London at the urgent solicitation of his +sovereign, then engaged in a desperate struggle to retain Carteret as +Secretary of State. Even Carteret, his old enemy, in the stress of +self-preservation sought his aid. Orford set out on November 19, and in +four slow days of an agony which wrung even the practised nerves of +Ranby, the surgeon (and it is difficult even now to read Ranby's +narrative without emotion), he reached London. The crisis then was over, +for he had put an end to it on his journey. A message despatched by the +Pelhams had met him on the road and placed him in possession of the +facts of the situation. He had at once written to advise the King to +part with Carteret, and the King had instantly submitted. + +This was Walpole's last act of power, but he remained in London to die. +For four months he lingered under the hands of the surgeons, sometimes +under opium, sometimes suffering tortures with equanimity and good +humour. But even so his shrewd and cynical common sense did not desert +him. Consulted by the Duke of Cumberland as to a marriage projected for +him by the King, but repugnant to the Duke, the dying statesman advised +him to consent to the marriage on condition of an ample and immediate +establishment. 'Believe me,' he added, 'the marriage will not be +pressed.' Walpole's knowledge of mankind left him only with his death. + +His constancy, his courage, his temper, his unfailing resource, his love +of peace, his gifts of management and debate, his long reign of +prosperity will always maintain Walpole in the highest rank of English +statesmen. Distinguished even in death, he rests under the bare and +rustic pavement of Houghton Church, in face of the palace that he had +reared and cherished, without so much as an initial to mark his grave. +This is the blank end of so much honour, adulation, power, and renown. +For a century and a half unconscious hobnails and pattens have ground +the nameless stones above him, while mediocrities in marble have +thronged our public haunts. His monument, unvoted, unsubscribed, but +supreme, was the void left by his death, the helpless bewilderment of +King and Government, the unwilling homage and retractation offered by +his foes, the twenty years of peace and plenty represented by his name. + +And here another illustrious name cannot but suggest itself, though it +may seem difficult to bring into anything like a parallel the two great +Sir Roberts, Walpole and Peel. Both were distinguished by the same +cautious and pacific sagacity. But they differed by the whole width of +human nature in temperament. Walpole belonged to the school of the cold +blood, and Peel to that of the warm. This, perhaps, constitutes the most +important touchstone in the characters of statesmen, and success usually +lies with the colder temperament. Of this principle, Fox, who was warm +blooded, presents the most remarkable illustration, and Gladstone, who +was not less so, the most signal exception. Peel's conscience, moreover, +was as notably sensitive as Walpole's was notoriously the reverse. But +though thus essentially apart, there is one capital point which the +careers of Walpole and Pitt bear an almost exact resemblance to each +other. Neither of them, strangely enough, reached his full height until +his fall; neither acquired the full confidence of the country until he +had lost that of Parliament; after having exercised almost paramount +power as Ministers, neither ever reached his truest supremacy until he +had left office for ever. Then, after a great catastrophe which had +seemed to demolish them, it was perceived that they had soared above the +mist into a higher air, clear of passion and interest; whence, though +with scarce a following and without the remotest idea of a return to +office, they spoke with an authority which they had never possessed when +their word was law to an obedient majority in the Commons; an authority +derived from experience and wisdom, without any lingering suspicion of +self-interest. They lived in reserve, and only broke their self-imposed +silence when the highest interests of the country seemed to forbid them +to maintain it. Walpole, it is true, had to do his work mainly behind +the scenes, while Peel did it conspicuously in Parliament; but the +position was the same. If their eulogist had to choose the supreme +period in the lives of both Walpole and Peel, he would select, not the +epoch of their party triumphs, but the few exalted judicial years which +elapsed between their final resignation and their death. It may seem a +strain of language to use the word 'judicial,' for Walpole remained the +oracle and stay of Whiggery, while Peel extended his consistent +protection to the weak ministry of Lord John Russell. But Peel's +protection of Russell was given in defiance of party to secure the Free +Trade which he deemed vital, and Walpole's guidance of Whiggery was in +disinterested support of men he disliked and despised because he deemed +Whiggery, or at least opposition to Jacobitism, not less vital. Free +Trade and Whiggery were, in the opinion of the two statesmen, essential +to avert the revolutions which the opposite systems would have involved. + +This seems a digression, but at this time Pitt and Walpole were not far +apart; they secretly acknowledged each other's power and merit. Pitt had +already begun to appreciate the solid sagacity of Walpole, and to repent +of some random invective. Walpole saw the rhetorical boy developing +into the man of the future, and was more and more anxious to enlist him. +'Sir Robert Walpole,' said Pitt in Parliament at a later period, +'thought well of me, and died at peace with me. He was a truly English +minister.'[158] + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + + +[Sidenote: March 1744.] + +Soon after this memorable debate France formally declared war against +Great Britain in a document reciting the injuries sustained by France at +the hands of the 'King of England, Elector of Hanover,' and faction was +for the moment laid on one side, though Pitt, while supporting the +Government, managed to declare that perdition would attend Carteret as +the 'rash author of those measures which have produced this disastrous, +impracticable war.' Still Parliament adjourned with comparative harmony +in May. Before it met again two events occurred of the greatest +importance to Pitt. + +The first was the death of that vigorous old termagant Sarah, Duchess of +Marlborough. All through life she had been more bellicose, though with +less success, than her illustrious husband, and of late years had +devoted her peculiar powers of hatred to Walpole. This bitterness +extended even beyond the grave, for by a codicil dated two months before +her death she bequeathed legacies to the two men who had most +distinguished themselves by their attacks on that Minister. One was +Chesterfield, to whom she left 20,000_l._; the other was Pitt, to whom +she left 10,000_l._, 'for the noble defence he made for the support of +the laws of England, and to prevent the ruin of his country.' Moreover, +she seems to have bequeathed to him her 'manor in the County of +Buckingham, late the estate of Richard Hampden Esq: and leasehold in +Suffolk; and lands etc. in Northampton.'[159] Pitt, in acknowledging the +bequest to Marchmont, her executor, demurely and ambiguously replies: +'Give me leave to return your Lordship my thanks for the obliging manner +in which you do me the honour to inform me of the Duchess of +Marlborough's great goodness to me. The sort of regard I feel for her +memory I leave to your Lordship's heart to suggest to you.'[160] Nor was +this legacy all, for she settled her Wimbledon estate on her favourite +grandson John Spencer, and after him on his only son; should that only +son die without issue, it was to be divided between Chesterfield and +Pitt. She, moreover, induced John Spencer to make a will bequeathing his +own Sunderland estates to Pitt after his own sickly son.[161] Two years +afterwards Spencer himself died at the age of thirty-seven 'because he +would not be abridged of those invaluable blessings of an English +subject, brandy, small beer and tobacco,'[162] so that only a child +stood between Pitt and this great inheritance. Fortunately the splendid +contingency did not take effect. For Chesterfield died without +legitimate issue, and the Pitts have long been extinct; but the +descendants of John Spencer's only son have been men of a purity of +character and honour which have sweetened and exalted the traditions of +English public life. + +The legacy was opportune in more respects than one. It came as a solace +to Pitt, who was desperately ill at Bath with gout in his stomach, +which the waters were unavailing to remove; his friends indeed feared +that he would be disabled for life. It also made him independent. +Bolingbroke indeed thought it made him too independent.[163] Cynics soon +declared it to be timely from another point of view, for immediately +after the Duchess's death there was a crisis which was to put an end to +Pitt's opposition and so to his claims on her sympathies. Carteret fell, +and with his fall disappeared the object of Cobham's hatred and Pitt's +philippics. The tempting contrast between Pitt receiving a legacy as the +leading member of the Opposition, and Pitt immediately reconciled to the +Ministry, and so ceasing to be a 'Patriot,' could not escape satire. Sir +Charles Hanbury Williams lost no time in penning the coarse but vigorous +lampoon which depicts the ghost of the old Duchess appearing to Pitt. +'Return, base villain, my retaining fee,' says the spectre, reminds the +legatee that even Judas returned the wage of betrayal, and leaves him to +the 'lash of lost integrity.'[164] But these taunts were wide of the +mark. It was not Pitt's integrity that had disappeared, but the object +of his opposition, now that Carteret had fallen. + +The story of that fall is material to the life of Pitt; it is that +second event of importance to him at this time to which we have alluded. +We have seen that Walpole's last journey to London was caused by the +King's struggle to retain Carteret whom the Pelhams insisted on +removing. This indeed was a matter of necessity for them, as they could +never enjoy real power while Carteret engrossed the King's confidence. +Moreover, owing to the ill success of the Austro-British alliance during +1744 in operations with which he was identified he had become extremely +unpopular. He himself was dissatisfied with his position, for though he +had the ear of the King he was constantly outvoted in the Cabinet. +'Things cannot go on as they are,' he said to the ruling brother. 'I +will not submit to be overruled and outvoted on every point by four to +one. If you will undertake the Government, do so. If you cannot or will +not I will.' This rash declaration of war sealed his fate. As a matter +of fact the main division in the Cabinet of which we have record at this +time was nine to four; but the majority was no doubt steady and +inflexible against Carteret. The brothers now concentrated their +energies on his overthrow. But before making any open attack on so +strong a position, they wisely endeavoured to secure new sources of +strength by negotiation with the Opposition. + +During the year 1744 the leaders of the Opposition had reunited, 'upon +one principle,' says the malignant Glover, 'which was to get into +place.' This may fairly be said, without disparagement, to be the +legitimate object of all Oppositions. In any case these politicians may +well have realised that divided and scattered they were impotent, and +they may have desired to make themselves felt in Parliament with or +without office. So they appointed a committee of nine to treat with the +Government. The junto, as it was termed in the jargon of that day, +consisted of Bedford, Chesterfield, Gower, Cobham, Pitt, Lyttelton, +Waller, Bubb, and Sir John Hinde Cotton.[165] This powerful body was +approached by Carteret, always tardy and unskilful in such +negotiations; but he had been anticipated by the brethren in power, who, +in such intrigues, displayed all the skill that he lacked. He obtained, +however, the powerful mediation of the Prince of Wales, who had a regard +for him. Carteret's offers were liberal enough. He offered that the +administration should be transformed, and places found for all of them; +but they replied that they could make no terms with him. He turned, as +we have seen, to Walpole in his despair, but in vain. Every hole was +stopped. The Pelhams had secured both Walpole and the Committee. + +Five of the junto, including Pitt and Lyttelton, were, it is said, in +favour of joining the Pelhams without any stipulation. The minority, +including Cobham, who considered that the pass had been sold, and who +cursed the less scrupulous tactics of the majority, were for making +conditions as regards future policy. However, all, both of the majority +and the minority, were brought into the scheme; Cobham, who received a +regiment, having, it is said, also obtained an assurance from Newcastle +that the interests of Hanover should be subordinated to the interests of +Great Britain. Bedford became First Lord of the Admiralty; Gower, Privy +Seal; Waller, Cofferer; Lyttelton, a Lord of the Treasury; Bubb, +Treasurer of the Navy; and Cotton, a notorious Jacobite, Treasurer of +the Chambers. It should be added, however, that the narrative of this +negotiation, however probable it may appear, rests on the doubtful +authority of Glover, who is too venomous to be trustworthy. But in any +case it is not necessary to condemn the Committee, even if Glover's +statement be accepted as fact. Should so powerful a body of men enter +the feeble Government of the Pelhams, they might well feel confident of +controlling its policy with or without previous stipulation. A severer +judgment may be passed when it is seen that the policy remained +substantially unaltered, and that Pitt found himself able to +discriminate between Carteret's policy with Carteret in office, and the +same policy with Carteret out of office. + +Fortified by this treaty, which included, of course, places for Pitt and +Chesterfield, to be given when the King could be induced to give them, +the Pelhams executed their stroke of state; and having, as we have seen, +made sure of the oracle at Houghton to which the King was sure to have +recourse, they sent the Chancellor to the King to inform him of the +determination of the entire Cabinet to resign unless he would remove +Carteret. Still the King could not be brought to abandon his favourite +Foreign Minister and his favourite foreign policy. It was not until +Orford gave the decision against Carteret that the Sovereign succumbed, +three weeks after the delivery by the Pelhams of their ultimatum. + +The fall of Carteret left the brothers, Newcastle and Pelham, absolute +masters of the situation. The King had been completely defeated, and had +sullenly to submit. He would scarcely speak to his Ministers. When he +broke silence it would be to say, 'I have done all you asked me, I have +put all the power into your hands, and I suppose you will make the most +of it.' To that Hardwicke, the Lord Chancellor, with more than legal +subtlety replied, 'The disposition of places is not enough if your +Majesty takes pains to show the world that you disapprove of your own +work.' This was more than the King could endure. 'My work!' he broke +out; 'I was forced, I was threatened.' The Chancellor was shocked at +these expressions. He knew of nothing of the kind. Such harshness was +utterly alien to the ministerial mind. The mere idea of compulsion was +shocking to it. 'No means were employed but what have been used in all +times, the humble advice of your servants supported by such reasons as +convinced them that the measure was necessary for your service.' This +was the legal and fastidious method of describing the threatened strike +of the Ministry in the previous November. + +Carteret resigned in the last week of November (1744), and the Pelhams +used their victory wisely and well by building up during the following +month a strong administration on a large basis. It comprised men of all +parties, Whigs, Tories, even Jacobites, forgotten Whigs, forgotten +Tories, forgotten Jacobites, and was called in the canting phrase of +that day the Broad Bottom Administration, as being a coalition of all +parties. The only flaw in it was that it omitted the only men worth +having. Among the new officials were George Grenville and George +Lyttelton, who became subordinate Lords of the Treasury and Admiralty. +'Do what you will,' Cobham had said, 'provided you take care of my +boys,' from whom Pitt now seemed to be excluded; for Cobham found him +positive and unbending, differing, sometimes, it may be presumed, from +Cobham. When complete, this Ministry was so comprehensive as to +annihilate opposition, and render the next few years unprecedentedly +placid and dull from the parliamentary point of view. + +Outside the forgotten worthies who were provided with places, there +towered the two memorable men, Pitt and Chesterfield, the one great and +the other considerable. Against them the King remained implacable. But +he had at last to yield to the admission of Chesterfield. At first 'he +shall have nothing,' had said the King, 'trouble me no more with such +nonsense.' But now Chesterfield was to combine the Lord Lieutenancy of +Ireland with a special embassy to the Hague. On Pitt alone was the veto +still absolute. And yet he was the only man whom the Ministers really +dreaded.[166] + +The Pelhams, through Cobham, had promised him the Secretaryship at War, +on which his heart was set; but they were unable to fulfil their pledge, +and soothed him for the time with promises that they would persevere in +pressing him upon the Sovereign. With these fine words Pitt professed +himself satisfied, and promised support, all the more readily as he knew +himself to be inevitable. In the meantime, however, he gave up the only +post he held, a course to which he was impelled both by the Marlborough +legacy and the fall of Carteret; for while the first made him +independent of salary, the second had alienated the Prince of Wales. So +in April (1745) he resigned his groomship of the bedchamber, and met +Parliament in the unadorned character of the most powerful private +individual in the country. + +On the army estimates he spoke for the first time, and with vehemence, +as a supporter of the Government. On this occasion, too, he first +utilised the apparatus of gout with the demeanour of a graceful invalid, +whose end was approaching. Were it to be the last day of his life, he +exclaimed, he would spend it in the House of Commons, since he judged +the condition of his country to be worse than that of his own health. +Formerly these expressions would have meant that the Government was +ruining the nation. But now, he explained, that though Carteret had +nearly wrecked the kingdom, the present object was, by connecting +Hanover with Holland, to arrive at a prompt and fair pacification. He +paid warm compliments to Pelham on his patriotism and capacity for +business, and commended his Government with oblique and friendly +expressions directed towards the King. A dawn of salvation to this +country had broken forth (which, apparently, had hitherto been obscured +by the form of Carteret), and he would follow it as far as it would lead +him. His 'fulminating eloquence,' we are told, 'silenced all +opposition.'[167] + +In February 1745 a question arose of peculiar delicacy for Pitt. Through +one of the compromises sometimes required by political emergency the +question of the employment of the Hanoverians, against which Pitt was so +strongly pledged, was arranged by transferring them to Maria Theresa, +with an extra subsidy to enable her to pay them. This somewhat +transparent artifice was boldly and dexterously defended by Pitt +himself. On such occasions it is well not to hesitate or refine, and +Pitt spoke without visible qualms. 'It was,' he said, 'a meritorious and +popular measure, which did honour to the minister who advised it, and +the Prince, who so graciously vouchsafed to follow it, and must give +pleasure to every honest heart. As to what had been thrown out that the +Queen of Hungary might take them into her pay, when they were dismissed +from ours, what of that? She was at liberty to take them or not. They +would not be forced on her, but God forbid that these unfortunate troops +should by our votes be proscribed at every court in Europe.' It was +enough that, 'by his Majesty's wisdom and goodness,' they were no longer +voted annually as a part of our army, and so forth.[168] + +It is obvious from the meagre report that Pitt was now as copious in his +praise of the King as he had formerly been niggard. His Sovereign had +become wise and good and gracious; the Hanoverian troops, which had been +so short a time ago cowardly and contemptible troops, were now +unfortunate and meritorious, well worthy the attention and employment of +Maria Theresa. One or two members could not help smiling; they called +the measure collusive, and declared that if we were to pay the +Hanoverians at all it were better to pay them directly, when they would +at least be under our direction and control, than through the Queen of +Hungary, when they would not. It is not on record that any one asked +what advantage would be reaped by the taxpayer under the method +proposed, when he would pay at least as much as before, but without the +least check as to the way in which the money was spent. Nevertheless, +there were complaints enough. Pitt must have hinted that it was better +that they should fight under the Hungarian flag than the British, as +they did not fight in harmony by the side of British troops; for this +called up a Northumbrian baronet to explain that this was contrary to +the fact, and that he should raise the point in a motion. Pitt at once +rose again, not in his high line, but 'with all the art and temper +imaginable,' soothed and complimented the honest member, hinted that his +motion would only serve the purposes of Carteret, whom they both +rejoiced to see removed, and generally allayed the debate with complete +success.[169] + +This is again a notable mark in his career. For the first time he +appears, not as the fierce hero of declamation and invective, but as the +dexterous official diplomatist, coaxing and reassuring. He was fast +moving onwards. + +The official character of Pitt's speeches is all the more marked because +there was little to commend and much to attack in the conduct of the +Ministry, which had, to say the least, been singularly unfortunate. The +disastrous battle of Fontenoy was not redeemed by the capture of +Louisbourg, a gallant affair for which local volunteers and local +enterprise, rather than the Government, deserve the credit. And now +during the Parliamentary recess from May to October there suddenly +appeared a fresh danger, the one against which Walpole's policy had been +mainly directed for a generation. On August 19, Charles Edward, eldest +son of the exiled Prince of Wales, and grandson of King James II., +raised the standard of civil war at Glenfinnan; on September 17 he was +living in the palace of his ancestors at Holyrood; four days afterwards +he completely defeated the forces sent against him. Had he at once +marched South he might well have reached London, and had he reached +London the face of history in this island might have been changed. The +Cabinet was panic-stricken, not merely at the advance of Charles, but at +the anger of their legal Sovereign, who seemed likely to recall +Carteret to his side. Dutch troops were hastily fetched over and sent to +the North, and English troops from Flanders followed. Had these +reinforcements been detained by contrary winds but a few weeks Pelham +declared that London could not have been defended against the Jacobites. +Two days before the victory of Charles Edward, Henry Fox wrote that 'had +five thousand (French) troops landed in any part of this island a week +ago, I verily believe the entire conquest would not have cost them a +battle.' + +But Charles contented himself with a reign at Holyrood of six weeks, and +this delay lost him his chances of success. When Parliament met on +October 17 he was still in Edinburgh, but adequate measures had been +taken to render his enterprise abortive. All this does not concern Pitt, +except as giving him an opportunity of expressing his devoted loyalty to +George II.; but while Charles Edward was marching on Derby a desperate +struggle was going on which related entirely to him. In the new session +he had begun to show signs of irritation and of impatience with the +Government; the emollients of the Pelhams began to lose their virtue, +and he was determined not to be fooled any longer. His amiability had +disappeared, and though his speeches are unreported, it is evident that +the Ministers were now made to feel the terrors of his tongue. +'Yesterday,' writes Horace Walpole, 'they had another baiting from Pitt, +who is ravenous for the place of Secretary at War: they would give it +him: but as preliminary, he insists on a declaration of our having +nothing to do with the Continent,' a stipulation which reads strangely +enough by the light of the years to come. The Pelhams saw that they +could no longer defer the fulfilment of their promises, and that it was +necessary to approach the King. The moment was singularly unfavourable. +The King had never forgiven the compulsion put on him to dismiss +Carteret, nor the fact of his separation from Carteret. He had +shrewdness enough to see that in ability and grasp of affairs Carteret +towered above the other ministers except the Chancellor; and he despised +Newcastle, who was principally thrown into contact with him. It was a +shame, he declared, that a man who was not fit to be a chamberlain at +the pettiest of German courts should be forced on the nation and on the +Crown as a principal minister. All through 1745 the royal resentment +smouldered, though it was kept in suspense by the rebellion. But when +that movement lost in importance and became clearly doomed, the King +felt more free to display his feelings. Foreign policy, with which we +are not here concerned, was part of his grievance; but the main cause of +irritation was the threatened intrusion of Pitt on his councils. And yet +this was obviously impending and even inevitable. Pitt, at first so +patient, had begun to show his teeth in public, and probably in private +as well. The crisis could not be any longer avoided. + +In the preceding autumn there had been conferences between the Pelhams +on the one side and Pitt and Cobham on the other. On November 20, 1745, +Newcastle records a meeting at which Pitt put forward his demands, and +'apprehended great difficulties in bringing about what we so much +desired,' his accession to office. His conditions were finally melted +down to an extension of the Place Bill so as to exclude from Parliament +all officers in the Army under the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and in +the Navy below the rank of captain; the removal of all the remaining +adherents of Carteret, notably the two Finches, from Court; and a 'total +alteration of the foreign system, by feeding only the war on the +Continent, acting there as auxiliaries, and particularly by confining +all the assistance we should give to the Dutch to the bare contingent of +10,000 men; but to increase our navy, and to act as principals at sea in +the war against France and Spain. For a peace with France, at present, +was not to be thought of.' + +The first condition presented no complications. The second seemed +inexpedient on grounds of prudence and decency. The third presented more +difficulty. Newcastle had two long conferences upon it, first with Pitt +and then with Cobham. Finally a meeting was held between the Chancellor, +Hardwicke, Harrington, Pelham, and Newcastle on one side, and Gower, +Bedford, Cobham, and Pitt on the other.[170] + +The situation of affairs at this moment was this: Charles Edward was +marching from Holyrood towards London. The French had won Fontenoy and +were overrunning the Austrian Netherlands, without difficulty and almost +without resistance. Maria Theresa was about to conclude peace at Dresden +(December 25, 1745) by a renewed cession of Silesia. This was the +juncture at which the Pelhams resolved to force on a Cabinet crisis in +order to obtain the services of Pitt. The fact at least displays the +value and importance of the personage who was the subject of contest. + +The real point at issue between the Government and Pitt was this: The +Government wished to give general and unlimited assurances of +assistance, amounting almost to a guarantee, to the Dutch. Pitt wished +the assistance definitely limited to a force of 10,000 men; and that we +should then, free of all other continental complications (for both +parties agreed that Austria must come to terms with Prussia), carry on a +purely naval war against France and Spain. + +At this conference between the Ministers and the Cobham +plenipotentiaries, Newcastle was the spokesman of the Government. He +declared that the Queen of Hungary had forfeited her rights to any +further assistance, and that we were about to tell her that she could +have no more from us. On this point all were apparently agreed, so that +Austria was eliminated from the discussion. The case of Holland was, +however, in the opinion of Ministers, different; her existence was +necessary to us, and we must proffer help to her, if only to prevent her +concluding a separate peace with France. But an offer limited to 10,000 +men would not prevent such a peace; we must show a general disposition +to assist. Lord Cobham answered that this sort of defensive war could +never bring about a peace, that the Dutch would evade their engagements, +and we should find ourselves with as formidable a continental war on our +hands as if we were again actively supporting Maria Theresa. Pitt warmly +supported Cobham; spoke strongly against the Dutch; 'insisted that +10,000 men in our present circumstances was a generous and noble +succour.... He insisted on the necessity of coming to some precision as +to the contingent in order to satisfy the people; and talk'd much of the +great impression we could make upon France, when our efforts were singly +at sea.' + +At this point Bedford and Gower separated themselves from Cobham and +Pitt. It was not possible, they said, to increase our navy. In fine, the +plenipotentiaries of the Government pointed out that if France and +Holland came to terms, we might have France and Spain free to devote +their whole energies against us, and, as the others chimed in, 'they +might easily keep the rebellion on foot for years, if not destroy us +quite.' + +Cobham and Pitt, however, departed unshaken, though with great civility +and good-humour. Newcastle glumly sums up the position. The King may say +that he was ready to take these gentlemen into the Government, but, as +they will not come in, ask if the Ministry will thereupon desert him? +'To which, to be sure, no other answer can be given but that we are not +in a condition to carry it on. To depend upon my Lord Granville's +friends to support this administration against Lord Granville is a +contradiction in itself. To bring in Mr. Pitt against his own will is +impossible. And, therefore, at present there seems to be nothing to be +done, if Mr. Pitt is determined (which, I should still hope, he would +not finally be), but with your lordship (Chesterfield), the Duke of +Bedford, my Lord Gower, to get as many individuals as we can to carry us +through till the rebellion is over: and then we shall be at liberty to +take such part as we shall think most consistent with our own honour and +the public service.'[171] + +Observe: without Pitt we are not in a condition to carry on. That is +what this letter amounts to, for of Bedford and Gower the Ministry felt +sure, and Cobham was an auxiliary who was on and off like a freebooter. +The adhesion of Pitt, a private member, poor and almost unconnected, +was vital to a Government which in the public opinion had already +collected every possible element of strength. So matters continued till +the meeting of Parliament after the Christmas recess in January 1746. +Pitt held aloof, and had no further commerce with the Government. + +A few days before Parliament met, however, he went to the Duke of +Bedford, inquired as to the foreign policy of the Government, showed a +disposition to come into it, and expressed a wish that some minister +would talk it over with Lord Cobham, 'into whose hands they had now +finally committed themselves.'[172] On this hint Newcastle hurried to +Cobham, who was reasonable, and 'seemed very desirous to come into us +and bring his Boys, as he called them.... The terms were, Mr. Pitt to be +Secretary at War; Lord Barrington in the Admiralty; and Mr. James +Grenville to have an employment of L1000 a year. He flung out Lord +Denbigh, the Duke of Queensbury, and some Scotch politicians, but not as +points absolutely to be insisted on.' + +It is useful and edifying to be allowed behind the scenes in this way; +for such negotiations are now, one would imagine, obsolete, or as nearly +obsolete as the corruption of our fallen nature will allow. Still, one +may drop a tear in passing over the 'Scotch politicians,' so lightly +proffered, so lightly dismissed. But let Newcastle continue his +narrative. 'Upon this I opened the Budget to the King, which was better +received than I expected, and the only objection was to the giving Mr. +Pitt the particular office of Secretary at War.' Still the Pelhams +pressed the appointment. Then the goaded and distressed monarch +determined to make a desperate effort to break from the dominion of the +Whig hierarchy, so as to carry out his own foreign policy, and avoid the +admission of Pitt to his counsels. At this juncture Bath gained +admittance to the Closet, and fortified the King's repugnance. He +'represented against the behaviour of his ministers in forcing him in +such a manner to take a disagreeable man into a particular office, and +thereby dishonouring his Majesty both at home and abroad; and +encouraging the King to resist it by offering him the support of his +friends in so doing.'[173] The King caught at this forlorn hope, and +gave Bath full power to form a new Government. Bath released himself +from his vow against holding office, accepted the charge with alacrity, +instantly summoned Carteret, and obtained from the City a promise of +supplies on terms more favourable than those to which Pelham had agreed. +Carteret, it need scarcely be said, joyfully acceded. The misfortune was +that there was no one else who did. The Pelham ministry resigned in a +body. Bath kissed hands as First Minister, and received the seals of the +Secretaries of State to transmit to Carteret, who was ill. The new +Secretary at once announced by circular his appointment to the foreign +ministers. But there all ended. When old Horace Walpole was told that +this ministry was settled he shrewdly remarked: 'I presume in the same +manner as what we call a settlement in Norfolk; when a house is cracked +from top to bottom and ready to fall, we say it is settled.'[174] +Winnington was to have been the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Thrice +did the King press the seal into his hand, and thrice did Winnington +return it. 'Your new ministers, sir, can neither support Your Majesty +nor themselves,' said he.[175] He insisted, moreover, that they could +not depend on more than 31 peers and 80 commoners. History does not +confirm even so moderate a computation, but it may be presumed that this +was the Court contingent on which any minister could count. + +Harrington, one of the actual Secretaries of State, on whom the King +confidently reckoned for assistance in the new arrangement, resigned, +after a stormy scene with his master, who never forgave him. Every one +resigned or tried to resign, and there was no one to fill their places. +To Pelham himself Carteret had made overtures; but Pelham told the King +that the Whig junto would have nothing to do with Bath or Carteret. At +last, the only measure left to the hapless monarch was to shut himself +up and forbid his door to the crowd that sought admittance in order to +give up their keys and staves and official insignia. He was soon +compelled to send for Bath and to tell him that it would not do. Bath +exhorted him to be firm, and offered by means of the Prince of Wales to +secure Tory support. But with Charles Edward still in arms in the +Highlands, the King could not bring himself to approach the foes of his +house, and under no circumstances would he owe salvation to his son. +Both Princes of Wales, the real and the titular, were almost equally +repugnant to him. Another version of the story states that it was Bath +who told the King that the project would not work. It matters little +which is correct, for the position was self-evident, but George was +probably stouter than Bath. + +Bath kissed hands on February 10 (1746). Two days afterwards his +ministry had come to an end, and the King had sent for Pelham to return. +Carteret saw the humour of the situation and laughed it away; he owned +it a mad escapade, but was all the more ready to repeat it. It was all +over, the King had to surrender to the Whigs, who condescended to resume +the seals on easy terms, which were the proscription of Bath's following +and the admission of Pitt. The first condition was simple enough, it was +the natural result of Bath's defeat. _Vae victis._ 'We immediately +desired,' writes Newcastle, 'that the Court might be purged of all their +friends and dependents, that Lord Bath might be out of the Cabinet +Council, the Duke of Bolton, Lord Berkeley of Stratton, Mr. William +Finch, the Vice-Chamberlain, Mr. Edward Finch, the Groom of the +Bedchamber, Mr. Boone, and the Lord Advocate of Scotland (which were all +that were left of that sort), should be removed.' We have an impression +that, in spite of all, 'the black, funereal Finches' were preserved to +the Bedchamber and to the card table, but that does not concern this +narrative. + +As to the second condition, it was inevitable sooner or later, and took +place in the form least offensive to the Sovereign. But the ministerial +crisis and the desperate venture with Bath and Carteret testify to the +formidable position of Pitt and to the equal aversion of the Sovereign. +In no less an instance than Pitt's could this repulsion have been +overcome. + +Pitt himself had begged that his pretensions to the Secretaryship at War +should not act as an obstacle to an accommodation with the King, for +there was evidently nothing so repugnant to the Sovereign. The King had +said first that he would not have him in that office at any price, then +that he would use him ill if he had it, then that he would not admit him +to his presence to do the business of the office if he had it.[176] + +There is, if the matter be candidly considered, no just cause of +reproach in this obstinacy. George II. was a gentleman, and a brave +gentleman. The Hanoverians were his own people, of his own blood and +language. Hanover was the home in which he had been brought up, the +paradise to which he always looked longingly from his splendid exile in +England. The King's personal courage Pitt had publicly and wantonly +aspersed; Hanover and the Hanoverians he had held up to every form of +public hatred and contempt. One cannot be surprised that George II. +would have nothing to say to him except under compulsion, and refused, +as between one gentleman and another, to have personal relations with +him. As a constitutional ruler his duty was another matter, but he would +not perform a duty so odious except in the last resort. He ignored Pitt +even after Pitt had entered office. It was four years after Pitt became +Paymaster that Newcastle, as the result of long pressure or intrigue, +induced the King even to speak to him. This was considered a triumph for +the ministry.[177] + +[Sidenote: Mar. 6, 1746.] + +Perhaps the Pelhams understood the King's feelings. Pitt did without +doubt. The King was not now pressed beyond endurance, and Pitt was +content for the moment with the joint Vice Treasurership of Ireland, in +which his partner was Walpole's son-in-law, Cholmondeley. The office was +understood to be lucrative, but he was not destined to hold this +sinecure for more than a few weeks. He had scarce time to ask for +exemption from the land tax of four shillings in the pound which was +charged on his salary for not residing in Ireland, or for admission to +the Irish Privy Council, both customary requests.[178] Two months after +he was gazetted Winnington died, and Pitt succeeded him in the rich +office of Paymaster-General. This is a Privy Councillor's place, so Pitt +had to be admitted to the King's presence to take the oath. The King +shed tears as Pitt knelt before him. A constitutional Sovereign has +these bitter moments. + +During the interval between the two appointments Pitt had to pay a heavy +fee for the first. A vote was demanded for 18,000 Hanoverians to be +taken into British pay. Cobham's young men, one of whom, afterwards Lord +Temple, 'had declared in the House that he would seal it with his blood +that he never would give his vote for a Hanoverian,' voted the money in +silence. Pitt however was not content to play so abject a part. He stood +boldly forth, speaking, said Pelham, his new chief, with the dignity of +Wyndham, the wit of Pulteney, and the knowledge blended with judgment of +Walpole. Walpole's son thought differently: Pitt, he declared, added +'impudence to profligacy; but no criminal at the Place de Greve was ever +so racked as he was by Dr. Lee, a friend of Lord Granville, who gave him +the question both ordinary and extraordinary.' Probably both accounts +are true. Lee was one of the Prince of Wales's men, and Pitt's relations +with his late master were strained to the point of rupture by his +acceptance of office. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + + +Pitt was now to inhabit the Pay Office, and he gave notice to Ann, +without any previous quarrel so far as we know, that they would +henceforth live apart. In any case, Pitt's accession to office thus +enabled him to put a convenient period to what had probably become a +fretting and irksome arrangement; but Walpole notes at this time that +there is gossip about 'the new Paymaster's menage,' possibly Grattan's +tradition of 'This House to Let.' This sort of chit-chat is, however, +the inevitable accompaniment of a man in Pitt's position and need not +again be dwelt upon. Two of his early patrons also quarrelled with him: +the Prince of Wales and Cobham. But Pitt, for the moment at any rate, +could afford to do without either. A more delicate question required his +attention. There were habitual practices in the Pay Office which brought +in immense profits to the Paymaster. It was the custom of that official +to take poundage on all subsidies paid to foreign princes, and to use +the great balances at his credit for his own purposes of speculation. As +to this second method Pitt had no doubts, and rejected the idea. As to +the first he seems, on entering upon office, to have consulted +Pelham.[179] Pelham replied that Winnington had taken these perquisites, +but that he himself when Paymaster had not; Pitt could do as he chose. +'Such a manner of stating it left scarce an option in any but the basest +of mankind,' remarks Camelford with characteristic bitterness. Pitt at +any rate did not hesitate, and refused to take a farthing beyond his +salary, which, in truth, was splendid enough. But the indirect profits +of the Paymastership, which earlier in the century had founded the +dukedom of Chandos and the palace of Canons, and which later endowed the +peerage of Henry Fox and the glories of his exquisite residence at +Kensington, besides furnishing great fortunes for his graceless sons to +squander at the gaming-table, were, as Dr. Johnson would have said, +beyond the dreams of avarice. It was held in that day of loose political +morality to be noble, if not unique, for a man with a patrimony of a +hundred a year and a legacy of ten thousand pounds to refuse to receive +such profits.[180] + +Lord Camelford's statement may be taken in the main to be correct +without adopting the sour inference which he draws. Pitt may well have +asked Pelham as to the practice of the office and Pelham have replied in +the sense indicated. If so, it was nearly as creditable to Pelham as to +Pitt, for one was scarcely less needy than the other. Pelham was a +gambler, and so wanted all the money he could get. He was a politician, +and politicians in those days required money for their purposes almost +as much as gamblers. Lord Camelford implies that had Pelham not answered +as he did, Pitt would have taken the percentages and the balances. This +is mere surmise. But, had he done so, he could not have been blamed. +These perquisites were regarded as legitimate by the practice and +opinion of the day; the balances were matters of public account. They +made the Paymaster's office a great prize, a recognised source of +immense profits. The fact remains that Pitt, or Pitt and Pelham, thought +them improper, and refused to take them. + +One signal difference must however be observed. Pelham abstained +silently, the abstinence of Pitt was widely known. This notoriety may +have been partly due to the fact that the King of Sardinia, having heard +of Pitt's refusal to deduct the percentage on the Sardinian subsidy, +sent to offer him a large present, which Pitt unhesitatingly declined. +But there was another reason, which colours Pitt's whole life, and which +may therefore well be noted here. His light was never hid under any sort +of bushel, and he did not intend that it should be. He already saw that +his power lay with the people, and that it was based not merely on his +genius and eloquence, but on a faith in his public spirit and scrupulous +integrity. His virtues were his credentials, and it was necessary that +they should be conspicuous. Pulteney and St. John had wielded greater +Parliamentary power, yet Pulteney and St. John had perished from want of +character. Character he saw was the one necessary thing, but character +must be known to be appreciated. Pitt was perhaps the first of those +statesmen who sedulously imbue the public with a knowledge of their +merit. He can scarcely be called an advertiser, but he was the ancestor +of advertisers. Other statesmen no doubt had paid their pamphleteers. +Pitt paid nobody, but he inspired; he had hangers-on who clung to the +skirts of his growing fortune. This is not to imply that he had not a +genuine scorn of meanness and corruption and the baser arts of +politics. He had to use them through others; he had to ally himself with +Newcastle and his gang; he could not govern otherwise. But he was +anxious that the public should know that he was something apart from and +above these politicians. His was a real but not a retiring purity; a +white column rather than a snowdrop. This was all part of his +essentially theatrical character, which he had found successful in +Parliament, and which gradually absorbed him, with unhappy results. + +But there was another reason why it was necessary that Pitt should +advertise his virtue on this occasion. He was a patriot joining the +Court party, a member of the Opposition accepting a place, which, with +all deductions, had a fixed and ample salary. It was not possible for +him, though his friends were already established in office, to join them +without some loss of popularity. It was difficult for him to keep his +shield untarnished in the royal armoury. The morose Glover states that +he brought himself to the level of Lord Bath in public disfavour by his +acceptance of office. Pitt himself, at the time of his bitter +mortification in 1754, writes to Lord Hardwicke of his 'bearing long a +load of obloquy for supporting the King's measures,' without the +smallest abatement of the King's hostility, and about the same time +describes himself as having parted with that weight in the country which +arose from his independent opposition to the measures of the Government. +He must indeed have counted the cost. It seemed obvious and in the +nature of things that Lytteltons, Grenvilles, and Cobhams should follow +the other patriots into office when opportunity offered; they had no +doubt barked loudly at ministers, but they belonged to the families +which always governed the country, and it was proper, indeed inevitable, +that they should take up their predestined positions on the Treasury +Bench. But Pitt had stood on a different pedestal. He had been marked +out by Walpole for punishment and by the King for exclusion. He had +thundered against the King and the King's trusted Ministers, the +Walpoles and the Carterets, with a voice that overbore all others, and +which apparently could not be silenced. The people seemed at last to +have found an incorruptible champion. Then suddenly he was muzzled with +a sinecure. Had he insisted on the Secretaryship of War and wrenched it +from the reluctant sovereign, the position would have been totally +different. But to pass into the sleek silence of the Vice Treasurership, +and almost to disappear from sight or hearing for eight years, seemed a +moral collapse. It is not one of the least remarkable features of Pitt's +career that he should have survived this lucrative obscurity. + +It is indeed difficult to understand how so fierce and restless a spirit +could have endured the passive existence to which he had restrained +himself by the acceptance of office. We seem to hear a growl but a few +months after he had become Paymaster. 'In the gloomy scene which, I +fear, is opening in public affairs for this disgraced country,' he +writes to George Grenville in October 1746; not a cheerful tone for a +young minister, but one not unfamiliar among those in subordinate +positions. Still he could afford to wait. He probably contented himself +with the reflection that King George could not last for ever, and +flattered himself with an easy entrance to the councils of King +Frederick. He could watch, too, with silent scorn, the miscarriages of +his official superiors, confident that high office must come to him, as +it were, of its own accord. Still, he had to wait long, and the death of +Frederick as well as the longevity of the monarch were little less than +disastrous to his calculations. It would have been better, of course, +for his historical position had he refrained from taking a subordinate +office, which restrained his independence, and deprived him of the +peculiar lustre of his lonely power. In these days we ask ourselves what +temptation could induce him to accept a post which seemed to offer +nothing but salary in exchange for the exceptional splendour of his +independent position? How was it worth his while to become +Vice-Treasurer of Ireland? It cannot have been for money. He was +notoriously indifferent to money (though his nephew casts doubts even on +this), and he was better off as to money than he had ever been before, +owing to the Marlborough legacy. It may have been that as his political +associates had all joined the administration, he thought that his +loneliness impaired his power, and he must certainly have felt that it +was impossible for him to continue in active and effective opposition to +a Government which included his closest friends. That would seem to be +the chief and conspicuous reason. But there was another, as one may well +suppose, which was not less potent. Office is the natural, legitimate +and honourable object of all politicians who feel capable of doing good +work as ministers, and even of some who do not. The instances to the +contrary are so few as to prove the rule. Wilberforce and Burdett, +Ashley (for Ashley, though not literally outside the category of +officials, cannot be considered as one), and Cobden are the names that +obviously present themselves. But Ashley and Wilberforce had +consecrated themselves to a high career of philanthropy which was +incompatible with the bond of ministry. Burdett, long a popular idol and +an orator of great power, a country gentleman of the best type, and +personally agreeable even to those who differed from him, was probably +held to be too advanced a demagogue to be even considered for an +appointment. Cobden refused office at least twice; yet had he lived he +could not have kept out of it. Bright, his illustrious political twin, +the Castor to his Pollux, took it and liked it. In the eighteenth +century we can think of no one but Pulteney. He, indeed, strictly +speaking, is no exception, for as a youth he held a subordinate post. +And though in the maturity of his powers he refused the first place when +apparently he might have had it, he also solicited it when it was out of +his reach. + +Althorp too, in the last century, is a singular example. He led the +House of Commons for four years as Chancellor of the Exchequer, when his +popularity and ascendancy made him the real pivot of the Government. But +he hated office with so deadly a hatred that he had the pistols removed +from his room lest he should end his official career with them. He +really comes in the list of exceptions to the rule that office is the +goal of all capable politicians. + +But Pitt had nothing in common with these men. He wished to be in +office, and he knew that he would be a better minister than any there, +even though he may not have felt already the confidence which he +afterwards expressed that he alone could save England. How then was he +to obtain a foothold in the ministry? The just repugance of the King +was, he knew, insurmountable, so long as he remained outside. But if +admitted to office he might well hope much from his power of +fascination, which was almost famous. The King was not an easy person +for any man to charm; but Pitt no doubt felt that if he could once be +placed in contact with His Majesty, he might be able to remove the royal +prejudice; though in that he seems to have been wrong. He tried his hand +on Lady Yarmouth, with whom at a later period he seems to have been on a +familiar footing; but it is doubtful if she ever dispelled, though she +may have mitigated, the King's hatred of Pitt. + +Even failing the mollification of the King, he felt that by taking +office he would have entered the official caste, and he would have +placed his foot on one rung of the ladder of greatness. In accepting the +Vice-Treasurership he had doubtless been promised the next post that was +vacant, and was, as has been seen, given the Paymastership. He was thus +reunited to all his political friends, and would form with them a solid +proportion of the garrison of Downing Street, a proportion to be +reckoned with. It would be strange indeed if in such a position and with +such feeble superiors he did not make his way to some position of real +business and power. + +It must be remembered, too, that the state of affairs as regards office +in the eighteenth century was very different from the present. Now, if a +man be a bold and popular speaker, both in Parliament and on the +platform, but more especially on the platform, he leaps into the Cabinet +at once; he disdains anything else; a Vice-Treasurership such as Pitt +accepted he would regard as an insult. But in the middle of the +eighteenth century there was nothing of this. There was no such thing as +platform speaking outside the religious movement. A man made himself +prominent and formidable in Parliament, but that was a small part of the +necessary qualifications for office. The Sovereign then exercised a +control, not indeed absolute, but efficacious and material, on the +selection of ministers. The great posts were mainly given to peers; +while a peerage is now as regards office in the nature of an impediment, +if not a disqualification. In those days an industrious duke, or even +one like Grafton who was not industrious, could have almost what he +chose. But most of the great potentates preferred to brood over affairs +in company with hangers-on who brought them the news, or with their +feudal members of parliament. Still they formed a vital element in the +governments of that time. Pelham's administration at this very time +contained five dukes: he himself was the only commoner in it, and he was +a duke's brother. It was necessary to have a Chancellor of the Exchequer +in the House of Commons, but all the other high offices could be held +preferably by peers. The two Secretaries of State were both dukes. A +brilliant commoner without family connection or great fortune was an +efficient gladiator to be employed in the service of these princes, but +he was not allowed to rise beyond a fixed line. The peers lived, as it +were, in the steward's room, and the commoners in the servants' hall; in +some parlour, high above all, sate the King. + +Pitt, according to the practice of the twentieth century, would have +received at least the highest office outside or, more probably, office +within the Cabinet on the fall of Walpole, and he certainly would have +been a Secretary of State or the equivalent before 1746. As it was, in +that year he had to climb on hands and knees into a subordinate +position. It had been difficult for him to get even that far at the cost +of a ministerial crisis of capital importance. The veto of the King had +certainly been the principal obstacle. But the iron rules of caste +forbade any idea of office for Pitt at all commensurate with his +importance. He had under the system in force to get in as he could, and +into much the same sort of office as his inferior but more influentially +connected colleagues, the Grenvilles, the Lytteltons, and the like. + +There was another weighty consideration which pointed to prompt +acceptance. Pitt had no time to spare. He was no longer in his first +youth, he was approaching middle age. When he accepted this subordinate +post he was thirty-eight; and thirty-eight, it may be said, when the +lives of statesmen were comparatively short, was a more mature period in +a career than it would be considered now. At the age when Pitt became +Vice-Treasurer of Ireland, North was already Prime Minister. Pitt was +now seven years older than Grafton when he became Prime Minister, and +fifteen years older than his own son when he first led the House of +Commons as Chancellor of the Exchequer; both, of course, under +circumstances abnormally propitious. These figures show sufficiently not +merely that Pitt's career was, so to speak, in arrear, but that the +youthfulness of ministers in those days, under the favouring breezes of +birth and connection, affords no standard of comparison for the +possibilities of a poor country gentleman with no such advantages. Pitt +was, indeed, rather old than young of his age. His sickly youth and his +habitual infirmities had aged him beyond his years. But it must be +noted in passing that, in spite of the dire impetuosity of his +character, all his steps in life, except his entry into Parliament, were +tardy and delayed. He was forty-six when he married, and forty-eight +when he first entered the Cabinet; he was thirty-eight when he first +obtained office. He moved slowly, but not patiently. His glowing nature, +thrown back on itself, exacerbated by rebuffs and neglect, all fused +into a fierce scorn, the _saeva indignatio_ of Swift, gathered strength +and intensity in its restrained progress, until it developed into a +spirit not indeed amiable or attractive, but of indomitable and +superhuman force. That was the process which was at work in the shade of +subordinate office. + +This consideration leads us to what is the best, and probably the true, +explanation of this voluntary eclipse: that in taking office he was +taking leave of his youth and of his past, and embarking on a new phase +of his career. Up to this time he had, like a predatory animal, lived +wholly on attack, and had given no thought to consistency, and little to +his future. He had only been a rattling politician, determined to make +his way, thinking only of the game, and of how to develop and display +his powers of oratory. He had been content to adopt Cobham's enemies as +his own, and had tried on them the temper of his virgin sword, without +much caring who they were or why he attacked them, so long as they were +sufficiently prominent to give notoriety to their assailant. His course +had been one of brilliant recklessness and of striking eloquence; but at +bottom it had been nothing but faction. There have been many such +swashbucklers in our history, and there will be many more. But it is +rare that, as in Pitt's case, they develop into something supreme. With +Pitt these extravagancies had only been the frolics of genius. By +burying himself in the sedateness and reticence of office, Pitt sought +to break with his dazzling indiscretions, and mature himself for +statesmanship. He retired behind a screen in order to change his dress. +That, one may infer, was his design; that, certainly, was the effect. + +To make an end of this topic, one may ask why Pitt, so fertile of +invective himself, was not the subject of execration when he joined the +Court. Great men no doubt may commit faults, even crimes, with impunity, +for the lustre of their achievements throws a shadow over their errors. +In such men it is recognised that all is usually on a colossal scale, +deeds and misdeeds alike. As they are capable of gigantic successes, +they are also capable of stupendous blunders. This is true of Pitt's +whole career, but it does not explain the facility with which he was now +able, before he had his famous administration to his credit, to subside +into an easy placeman and vindicate the measures which he had previously +denounced. A few lampoons were of course launched at so tempting an +object, but he was not made a conspicuous butt. Nor does he seem to have +lost, or if he did he soon regained, the ear and confidence of the +people. He had at all periods rare powers of recovery. But in this case +the fact is not difficult to explain. In the first place it must be +borne in mind that what he did was the ordinary thing to do. Again, his +personal friends, and even those who had intercourse with him, were +impressed by his character and believed in his integrity. Then the +refusal of the indirect profits counted for much, it gave an air of +austere virtue to a proceeding otherwise questionable. Again, there was +no particular object to be gained by attacking him. Who indeed was there +to attack him? No one thought it worth their while to subsidise Grub +Street for the purpose of throwing dirt on a silent Paymaster, and few +dared attack him to his face. He had already inspired the House of +Commons with that awe of him which subsisted and increased so long as he +remained there. To deliver a philippic against Pitt was no joking +matter; it required a man with iron nerves who was reckless of +retribution. Lee, as we have seen, had attempted one, but, in spite of +Horace Walpole's eulogy, he does not seem to have repeated the +experiment. Hampden also attacked him, as we shall see, in terms which +would have led to a duel had not the Speaker interposed his authority. +Fox and Grenville withstood him doggedly in after years. Barre, when an +obscure Irish adventurer, tried an attack not altogether without +success, but did not care to renew the attempt, and became, in fact, +Pitt's devoted follower. But these instances must be considered as +singularly rare when it is remembered how tempting a mark was presented +by Pitt's career, how frank and direct was the language of Parliament, +and how generous the potations which flushed its debates. Murray, Pitt's +contemporary and his equal in sheer ability, cowered before him; cowered +with loathing, but cowered.[181] Pitt was already surrounded, and as +years went on completely encompassed, with an armour and atmosphere of +terror which rendered him almost impregnable to personal collisions +throughout his career in the House of Commons. Some who had nothing to +lose and everything to gain baited him from time to time, but they were +always tossed back with damage. Such persistent assailants as he had, +and they only appeared in force long afterwards, were mainly anonymous. + +Whatever the cause may have been, Pitt, from his accession to office in +1746, remains in obscurity and almost in silence (so far as the records +testify, though it is evident that these are extremely imperfect) for +eight long years, at the potent period of life which ranges from +thirty-eight to forty-six, the age at which Napoleon closed his career, +but which was yet two years earlier than the commencement of Pitt's. +During this long eclipse of ambition and stormy vigour he gives but few +signs of life for the most diligent chronicler to note. But he had no +sooner been appointed Paymaster than an incident took place which seemed +to point to a sudden dawn of royal favour. The Duke of Cumberland's +achievements in Scotland were to be rewarded by a pension of 40,000_l._ +a year, and the King expressed a wish that the motion to this effect +should be made by Pitt. It is, however, evident that this was not a mark +of royal affection, but rather of a royal desire to utilise the new +acquisition to the Government, and in a way so little congenial as to +make Pitt feel the collar on his neck. The King may have wished to +display his captive in chains. But Cumberland, who did not love Pitt, +declined this mark of regard, and Pelham fulfilled the honorary duty. + +Cumberland had earned this grant, as well as his name of 'the Butcher,' +by his victory at Culloden, and the barbarity with which he had followed +up his success. Fortunately for him, it never occurred to a grateful +country to draw up a debtor and creditor account as between the nation +and the Duke. Had it done so, there would have been no grant; for his +defeats, both in number and in importance, represented something much +more considerable than this easy and solitary triumph, which would have +been amply compensated by Swift's 'frankincense and earthern pots to +burn it in' at 4_l._ 10_s._, with 'a bull for sacrifice' at 8_l._ +However, mingling vengeance with gratitude, Parliament now plunged +itself with zest into the horrors of the trials of some adventurous or +bankrupt gentlemen who had followed Charles Edward, so that Pitt, even +had he so desired, had no opportunity of breaking silence. No speech of +his is recorded, indeed, till 1748. + +[Sidenote: Nov. 20, 1747.] + +In the meantime he had been compelled to exchange Old Sarum for the +ministerial borough of Seaford, one of the Cinque Ports; for Old Sarum +was no longer tenable. The lord of Old Sarum, his brother Thomas, was a +liege servant of the Prince of Wales, who was now once more in violent +opposition, and who indeed ran two candidates, Lord Middlesex, a member +of his household, and Mr. Gage, the sitting member, at Seaford in +opposition to the ministerial men, William Pitt and William Hay. This +proceeding sufficiently indicates the violence and completeness of the +rupture between Pitt and his former master, brought about by acceptance +of office. So tense indeed was the contest that Newcastle posted down to +Seaford in person, held a levee of the voters whom he wooed with copious +solicitation and refreshment, and during the poll sat by the returning +officer to overawe the corrupt and limited constituency. He was +victorious; Lord Middlesex exchanging seats with Pitt, for after this +his defeat he was brought in by Thomas Pitt for Old Sarum. Newcastle's +proceedings furnished matter for a petition to the House of Commons. +This Pitt treated with contempt and 'turned into a mere jest,'[182] but +Potter, son of the Primate, a clever scapegrace, of whom we shall hear +again, spoke vigorously in support of the petition. This, however, had +little chance against the argument of a compact parliamentary majority, +which rejected it by 247 to 96. But it is strange to find Pitt treating +purity of election with ridicule: all the more strange when we remember +that seven years afterwards he delivered one of his most famous speeches +in awful rebuke of the same levity on the same subject. 'Was the dignity +of the House of Commons on so sure foundations that they might venture +themselves to shake it by jokes on electoral bribery?' It was thus that +the House might dwindle into a little assembly serving only 'to register +the arbitrary edicts of one too powerful a subject.' It was the +arbitrary interference of the same too powerful subject in a +parliamentary election that Pitt was now screening with jesting scorn. +But Pitt thought little of consistency, and he might well have forgotten +for the moment his earlier performance, when seeing and seizing the +opportunity for a speech which placed him on a moral elevation above the +House of Commons. + +In 1748 we find him intervening comically enough in an affair, +suspiciously like a local job, which affected his friends, the +Grenvilles, and which proved the bitter and jealous animosity with which +they were regarded. + +Hitherto the summer assizes for Buckinghamshire had been held at +Buckingham, and the winter at Aylesbury; but suddenly the summer assizes +had also been transferred to Aylesbury. The reason seems to have been +simple enough; for the gaol being at Aylesbury, prisoners had to be +transferred thence and back again when the assizes were at Buckingham. +Richard Grenville (afterwards Lord Temple), however, for obvious +reasons, took up the cudgels for Buckingham, which was the close +neighbour and borough of Stowe, and brought in a Bill to enact that the +summer assizes should be held at that town. All Bucks rushed into the +conflict, and as is generally the case in a local affair, the debate was +extraordinarily diverting. Richard Grenville, Sir William Stanhope of +Eythrope, the brother of Chesterfield, and afterwards a brother of the +famous or infamous Medmenham fraternity, Potter again, who had now +become secretary to the Prince of Wales, who was soon to be member for +Aylesbury, probably for his services on this occasion, and also a future +monk of Medmenham, George Grenville, the solemn figure of Pitt, Robert +Nugent (whose daughter married George Grenville's son), Lee of Hartwell, +were all visible and ardent in the thick of the battle. Henry Fox, then +a friend of Pitt, was the only outside member who intervened, and then +with a sort of puzzled surprise at the fury of the combatants. Sir +William Stanhope, who led the attack on Buckingham, made a speech which +was specially piquant. He began: 'Sir, if I did not think I could prove +that this Bill is the arrantest job that ever was brought to Parliament, +I should not give the House the trouble of hearing me.' He attributed +the Bill to the fact that the County of Bucks had not elected two +Grenvilles as their members. 'Here let me condole with that unhappy, +rather that blinded, county who neglected to choose two gentlemen of +such power and interest that I am persuaded they will have more votes +in this House to-day than they would have had at the General Election in +the whole county in question if they had done it the honour to offer +themselves for representatives.' After this bitter exordium he +proceeded: 'It is the power and interest of these gentlemen that I am +afraid of, not of their arguments;' with good reason, for though to +posterity the claim of Aylesbury with its gaol will seem conclusive, the +Bill was triumphantly carried. But Stanhope proceeded with an invective +against Cobham's young patriots, so violent as to be checked by the +Speaker. It is noteworthy as showing the jealousy and hostility with +which their rise and power were regarded in the House, and so merits +quotation:-- + + + And to shew you, Sir, how sensible they are of the frivolousness of + the latter, I could recapitulate such instances of intriguing for + votes, as no man would believe who does not know those gentlemen. + Conscious of the badness of their cause, they have employed every + bad art to support it, and have retained so much of their former + patriotism, as consisted in blackening their adversaries and + acquiring auxiliaries. They have propagated such tales, that men + have overlooked the improbabilities, while they wondered at the + foolishness of them; and they have solicited the attendance of their + friends, and of their friends' friends, with as much importunity as + if their power itself was tottering, not the wanton exercise of it + opposed: the only aid they have failed to call in was reason, the + natural but baffled enemy of their family: a family, Sir, possessed + of every honour they formerly decried, fallen from every honour they + formerly acquired: a family, Sir, who coloured over ambition with + patriotism, disguised emptiness by noise, and disgraced every virtue + by wearing them only for mercenary purposes: a family, Sir, who from + being the most clamorous incendiaries against power and places, are + possessed of more employments than the most comprehensive + place-bill that ever was brought into parliament would include; and + who, to every indignity offered to their royal master, have added + that greatest of all, intrusion of themselves into his presence and + councils; and who shew him what he has still farther to expect, by + their scandalous ingratitude to his son; a family, Sir, raised from + obscurity by the petulance of the times, drawn up higher by the + insolence of their bribing kinsman, and supported by the timidity of + two ministers, who, to secure their own persons from abuse have + sacrificed their own party to this all-grasping family, the elder + ones of which riot in the spoils of their treachery and places, and + the younger.... + + +At this point he was, not prematurely, called to order. Stanhope brought +up Pitt, portentous but unconvincing, with perhaps a unique expression, +for he addressed the Speaker as 'dear Sir.' 'They (the Grenvilles) +desire the assizes may be sometimes held at Buckingham; the point he +(Stanhope) espouses is that they should be always held at Aylesbury. +Which, dear Sir, looks most like a monopoly?' Then he proceeds to defend +the Grenvilles. + + + After so happy a beginning, he falls into a torrent of violent abuse + on a whole family, founded on no reason in the world, but because + that family is distinguished by the just rewards of their services + to their king and country; and, in the heat of his resentment, he + throws out things that are as unpardonably seditious as they are + palpably absurd. He takes it for granted that men force themselves + into a presence and into councils to which they have the honour to + be called, and into which our Constitution renders it impossible for + any to intrude. In the same breath he makes entering into a father's + service an act of ingratitude to a son; and, without so much as + pretending to assign either facts or reasons, he bestows the most + low and infamous epithets upon characters that all other men mention + with esteem. In a word, he forgot himself to such a degree that he + pointed out men of birth and fortune, and in high stations, as if + they were the most abandoned and profligate creatures in the + universe, without parts, without morals, without shame, and who, if + his description had in it the least tittle of truth, instead of + being Members of Parliament, or admitted to the Privy Council, were + fit only to be members of a society once famous by the name of the + Hell-fire Club.[183] + + +It is not worth while to follow this local squabble further, except to +notice the singular atmosphere of jobbery with which it was surrounded. +By a job, it was alleged, Lord Chief Justice Baldwin, having purchased +the manor of Aylesbury in the reign of Henry VIII., had transferred the +assizes from Buckingham to Aylesbury. By another job a judge who was a +native of Buckingham had managed that the summer assizes should be +always held at Buckingham while he lived. 'The arrantest job,' cried +Stanhope. 'One of the worst sort of jobs,' echoed Potter, who divided +jobs into two species, one laudable and the other infamous, declaring +this to be one of the latter kind. Lee also called it a private job of +the most infamous kind. Articulate Buckinghamshire was indeed unanimous +against the Bill. But the Grenvilles were now powerful with all the +insolence of power, and the Government smiled silently on their +enterprise; though Nugent said they could only have done so from +weariness of political serenity, and the wish to invite catastrophe. So +the Bill was carried, and the job, whatever its exact denomination may +have been, lasted for nearly a century.[184] But the debate, as will be +seen, is significant because it shows the resentment which had long +been growing, but which was now openly displayed against Cobham's +aggressive and ambitious group. + +We do not again hear Pitt's voice till 1749, when he vindicated the +proposal of the Government to pay to Glasgow ten thousand pounds to +reimburse the city in some degree for what the occupation of the +Jacobites had cost it. This of course was an official speech and of no +permanent interest.[185] He had to prove that the case of Glasgow stood +by itself, and that there was no analogy between this and those of other +towns which made the same claim. Two of his points are incidentally +worthy of remark. The first is that it was the whole tenor of Glasgow's +conduct since the Reformation which had drawn upon it the resentment of +the Jacobites; the second, that if this payment were not made, and made +promptly, Glasgow must be ruined. He told, too, a story which merits +preservation. When there were rumours in 1688 of the coming of William +III. with 30,000 men, an adherent of James II. made light of the matter; +when it was said that the prince was coming with 20,000 he began to be +alarmed; but when he heard that the expeditionary force numbered only +14,000 he cried, 'We are undone: an army of 30,000 men could not conquer +England. But no man would come here with only 14,000 unless he were sure +of finding a great many traitors among ourselves.'[186] + +In 1750 there is a faint echo of Pitt's voice in a discussion on the +annual Mutiny Bill, at least the only echo in the recorded debates, for +we learn from two letters of Pitt's to George Grenville that there had +been other long and troublesome discussions in which he had had +officially to bear much of the burden.[187] Colonel Townshend brought +forward the case of non-commissioned officers who had been broke or +reduced to the ranks without any cause assigned. Some of these, he said, +were waiting at the bar as he spoke. He proposed a clause for preventing +this abuse, and forbidding these punishments except under sentence of a +court-martial. Pitt took the line, truly enough, that if soldiers were +on every occasion to bring their complaints against their officers to +the House for redress there would be an end to all discipline; and +proceeded in the tone of a Paymaster-General to declare that the +business of the House was to consider the requisite number of the forces +and to grant money for their payment, but that the conduct of the army +or complaints against one another were solely within the province of the +King or those commissioned by His Majesty.[188] This need not detain us. +About the same time, Lord Egmont, who now represented the Prince of +Wales in the House of Commons, an able man not without incredible +absurdities, brought forward a mischievous motion with regard to +Dunkirk. The question which he raised was whether the French had +demolished the fortifications erected during the late war, as by the +Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle they were bound to do; but he diverged into a +general attack upon the provisions of that Treaty. Pelham answered him +in a speech of remarkable candour. Lord Strange followed and brought up +Pitt. He defended the peace, which indeed was not difficult, in a +speech eminently discreet, ministerial, and conciliatory. No one could +discover in it any germ of the policy he was destined afterwards to +pursue with such triumphant success. But he cast an interesting light on +the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle. 'If there be any secret in the late +affairs of Europe,' he said, 'it is in the question how it was possible +for our ministers to obtain so good a peace as they did. For I must +confess that when the French laid siege to Maestricht in the beginning +of 1748, I had such a gloomy prospect of affairs that I thought it next +to impossible to preserve our friends the Dutch from the imminent ruin +they were then threatened with, or to maintain the present Emperor upon +the imperial throne.'[189] Though he had thus already spoken, he wound +up the debate for the Ministry, and did so with equal discretion. + +[Sidenote: Aug. 3-14, 1750.] + +This was in February 1750. He seems to have spoken no more that session, +but in August Pelham wrote to his brother: 'I think him the most able +and useful man we have among us, truly honourable and strictly honest. +He is as firm a friend to us as we can wish for, and a more useful one +does not exist.'[190] Such an eulogy, offered in confidence by a Prime +Minister, a reticent, unemotional man, seems to us a great mark and +epoch in Pitt's career. Not 'the most brilliant,' not 'the most +eloquent,' not 'the most intrepid,' as we should have expected, but 'the +most useful, able, and strictly honest.' + +Pitt had earned this praise by exertions which were not visible to the +outer world. It often happens that there is a member of Government whose +merits do not appeal to the public, who is no orator, who passes no +measures, whose conversation does not attract, and whose position in an +administration is a puzzle to the outer world. And yet perhaps his +colleagues regard him as invaluable. He is probably the peacemaker, the +man who walks about dropping oil into the machinery, and preventing +injurious friction. This had recently been Pitt's position. He had been +diligently and unobtrusively trying to keep the Government together. +This was not so easy as it would seem; for though the brothers Pelham +had arranged it to their will when they ejected Carteret, the morbid and +intolerable jealousies of Newcastle prevented any ease. Did other +subjects of intrigue and irritation fail he would quarrel with his +brother, for when all else was serene it would secretly chafe him that +his junior should be in the first place and he only in the second. Henry +himself, it may be noted, seems to have been both blameless and placable +on these occasions, but naturally bored. The elder brother would begin +whimpering and whining to Hardwicke, his prop and confidant. Hardwicke +would soothe him as a sick baby is soothed, eventually his tears would +be dried, and he would begin burrowing and intriguing in some other +direction. + +On this occasion the trouble arose over Bedford. Bedford had become +Joint Secretary of State with Newcastle on the resignation of +Chesterfield. Sandwich, a clever scapegrace, and Bedford's henchman, had +been Newcastle's candidate for the office, while Henry Fox had been +strongly supported by Pitt and others. Before offering it to Sandwich, +it was thought well to make an honorary tender of the post to Bedford, +in the belief that he would refuse it. Bedford, as sometimes happens on +such occasions, had promptly accepted it; for six months as he said, +but, as also happens, for as long as he could keep it, which was more +than three years. The appointment was thus distasteful in its origin to +Newcastle and became more irksome with experience. Bedford as a minister +was indolent, and as a man was obstinate and unamiable to a singular +degree. But it was not these drawbacks which attracted the malevolent +attention of Newcastle. Bedford, no doubt, was difficult to work with, +and Newcastle soon wished to be rid of him. But it was when Bedford +became well with the Court, with the King and with Princess Amelia, for +whom Newcastle had once affected to feel something more tender than +friendship, with the Duke of Cumberland and Lady Yarmouth, that +Newcastle's hatred passed the bounds of moderation and almost of sanity. +Pelham, who knew the parliamentary power of Bedford and who was anxious +not to alienate it, was reluctant to take up his brother's dispute; so +Newcastle promptly quarrelled with him. Pitt intervened. Had he been +blindly ambitious, he would have welcomed a schism which might have +produced a much greater position for himself. But he saw that a quarrel +between the brethren would break up the Ministry; and that such a +destruction would involve grave consequences, difficult to calculate, +and possibly the resuscitation of Carteret in the first place. Moreover, +though on the whole he sided with Newcastle, as Fox sided with Pelham, +he could not but be aware of the priceless merits of Pelham as a party +manager, as one who allayed animosities, and as one who kept the peace. +Pelham, in writing to Newcastle, affects to diminish the value of Pitt's +intervention, as he wishes to attribute the renewal of harmony to +'natural affection.' But an impartial judgment comes to a different +conclusion. Natural affection had not prevented discord, and was +insufficient to produce reconciliation. It is at all times an +indifferent political cement. But the exertions of an independent +colleague such as Pitt could not be overestimated. There exists a long +and earnest letter of July 13, 1750, from Pitt to Newcastle, too long +and too tedious to quote, but which is both tactful and energetic, +though in his worst style of winding verbosity. 'I don't hazard much,' +he wrote, 'in venturing to prophesy that two brothers who love one +another, and two ministers essentially necessary to each other, will +never suffer themselves to be divided further than the nearest friends +by difference of opinion or even little ruffles of temper may +occasionally be. Give me leave,' he continues, 'to suggest a doubt. May +not frequent reproaches upon one subject gall and irritate a mind not +conscious, intentionally at least, of giving cause?' and so forth.[191] +He concludes all this with warm eulogies on Newcastle's conduct of +foreign affairs, and soothes and flatters the fretful duke with +something like sympathetic regard. He or 'natural affection' is +successful, for, a week afterwards, he writes a brief note on +another subject, which ends thus: 'I am glad to note that the +understanding between you and Mr. Pelham, for which I had fears, is +re-established.'[192] It is pleasant thus to catch a glimpse of Pitt as +a loyal colleague, strenuously patching up differences; not less +pleasant to see him pushing the claims of his rival, Fox, to be +Secretary of State. This is a new human, and attractive aspect. + +The termination of the Bedford transaction is worth noticing for more +reasons than one. The King, though he was at least indifferent to +Bedford, declined to remove him at the instance of Newcastle, and was +probably pleased to have the opportunity of thwarting the tiresome +minister who had been the inseparable bane and necessity of his life. +Pelham would not intervene directly for other reasons. A characteristic +and tortuous method was therefore adopted. The King cared nothing for +Sandwich, who was necessary to Bedford. So the brothers suggested the +removal of Sandwich, to which the King promptly acceded, and Bedford, as +they had foreseen, instantly resigned. + +Two points are notable with regard to the vacancy thus caused. The Prime +Minister announced that the nomination of Bedford's successor must be +left to the sole nomination of the King, with which he would not +interfere in any way, but insisted that he must be a peer.[193] The main +reason for this strange limitation seems to have been that there were +fierce but dormant rivalries in the House of Commons, and that an +appointment of one of the aspirants would call uncontrollable passions +into activity. Both Secretaries of State must therefore be peers, a +principle which seems strange to a later generation. The King, +therefore, nominated Lord Holdernesse, of whom the Prime Minister merely +observes, 'I cannot possibly see him in the light of Secretary of +State.'[194] Holdernesse however is appointed, and reappears more than +once in this accidental character. + +But Pelham, though he tried to take this affair easily, was near the +end of his patience. He was worn out by the perpetual exigencies and +caprice of his brother and colleague, for Newcastle was in truth his +partner in the Premiership, as well as by the explosive rivalries of +Pitt and Fox, which any spark might ignite. Chained to an intolerable +nincompoop, with two such subordinates ready to fly at each other's +throats or his, and conscious of failing health, he began to long for +liberty and repose. At the end of March 1751 died the second Earl of +Orford, and thus vacated the rich sinecure office of Auditor of the +Exchequer, worth at least eight thousand a year. Pelham, it is said, +intimated his wish to retire from active business with this noble +provision, but the King would not let him go. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + + +On the meeting of Parliament in January 1751, Lord Egmont raised on the +Address the question of the peace with Spain. Pitt in reply delivered a +speech of singular interest, for he disarms criticism by frankly avowing +the errors of his 'young and sanguine' days, to employ his own epithets. +After pointing out that the Spaniards could not be expected to give up +the assertion of their right of search any more than we would renounce +our claim to the right of free navigation in the American seas, he +proceeded: 'I must therefore conclude, Sir, that "no search" is a +stipulation which it is ridiculous to insist on, because it is +impossible to be obtained. And after having said this I expect to be +told that upon a former occasion I concurred heartily in a motion for an +address not to admit of any treaty of peace with Spain unless such a +stipulation as this should be first obtained as a preliminary thereto. I +confess I did, Sir, because I then thought it right, but I was then very +young and sanguine. I am now ten years older, and have had time to +consider things more coolly. From that consideration I am convinced that +we may as well ask for a free and open trade with all the Spanish +settlements in America, as ask that none of our ships shall be visited +or stopt, though sailing within a bowshot of their shore; and within +that distance our ships must often sail in order to have the benefit of +what they call the land breeze.' 'I am also convinced that all +addresses from this House during the course of a war, for prescribing +terms of peace, are in themselves ridiculous; because the turns or +chances of war are generally so sudden and often so little expected that +it is impossible to foresee or foretell what terms of peace it may be +proper to insist on. And as the Crown has the sole power of making peace +or war, every such address must certainly be an encroachment upon the +King's prerogative, which has always hitherto proved to be unlucky. For +these reasons I believe I should never hereafter concur in any such +address, unless made so conditional as to leave the Crown at full +liberty to agree to such terms of peace as may at the time be thought +most proper, which this of "no search" can never be, unless Spain should +be brought so low as to give us a _carte blanche_; and such a low ebb it +is not our interest to bring that nation to, nor would the other Powers +of Europe suffer it, should we attempt it.'[195] + +This is a new milestone. 'Those who endeavour to quote from my former +speeches, the outpourings of my hot and fractious youth, are hereby +warned off. I have sown my wild oats; henceforward I am to be regarded +as a prudent and sagacious statesman.' This was the real purport of this +speech, divested of the necessary circumlocutions. A statesman who has +been an active politician in his youth usually has to utter some such +warning and repentant note in his maturity. + +[Sidenote: Feb. 22, 1751.] + +In 1751 we find Pitt delivering another speech which marks a further +distance from his unregenerate days. At this time, for reasons which we +can now scarcely discern, but which originated with George II., who +considered that the peace and safety of his electorate depended on a +secure succession to the Empire being vested in the House of Austria, +our foreign policy was concentrated on securing the election of Maria +Theresa's son, a boy of ten years old, as King of the Romans, and so +heir to the Empire. This strange line of action was absurd enough to be +congenial to Newcastle, who soon adopted it, called it his darling +child, and grudged its paternity to the King.[196] Pelham had +reluctantly to follow, only deprecating expenditure as far as possible. +For this we slaved and negotiated and subsidised, in the faith that +should the Emperor die without a King of the Romans being ready to +succeed him, a war must infallibly ensue. This hypothesis was at least +doubtful; but, in any case, we expended our energies in vain. Prussia, +and France as guarantor of the Treaty of Westphalia, declared the +election of a minor to be contrary to the fundamental laws of the +Empire, and prevailed. There is the less reason to deplore our failure, +as it is not known what we should have gained by success. Austria, which +was alone to profit, threw the coldest water on the project. The obvious +flaw of the policy appears to have been that the receipt of subsidies so +entirely conflicted with the electoral oath as to form an insuperable +bar of honour preventing any elector who received them from voting for +our candidate. We were in fact to bribe those who could not vote if they +accepted our bribe, for an object flagrantly illegal, on behalf of a +Power which scouted our assistance. We offered to bribe the Electors of +Mainz, Cologne, and Saxony. To the Elector of Bavaria we agreed by +treaty to pay 40,000_l._ a year, the sum to be made up by Holland and +ourselves. It was this last treaty which Pitt found himself called upon +to defend, and his speech was a broad defence of the whole system and +principle of subsidies. 'Surely,' he cried, 'it is more prudent in us to +grant subsidies to foreign princes for keeping up a number of troops for +the service of the common cause of Europe, than by keeping up such +numerous armies of our own here at home, as might be of the most +dangerous consequence to our constitution.'[197] This must have seemed +strange doctrine to those who remembered his former harangues. But in +this speech he was to exceed himself in superfluous candour. He had said +that there was a good prospect of a firm and lasting peace, and then +strangely wandered off to the consequent prospect of economy at home, +'perhaps by a different method of collecting the revenue. I am not +afraid to mention the word Excise.[198] I was not in the House when the +famous Excise scheme was brought upon the carpet. If I had I should +probably have been induced by the general but groundless clamour to have +joined with those who opposed it. But I have seen so much of the deceit +of popular clamours, and the artful surmises upon which they are +founded, and I am so fully convinced of the benefits we should reap by +preventing all sorts of unfair trade, that if ever any such scheme be +again offered whilst I have a seat in this assembly, I believe I shall +be as heartily for it as I am for the motion now under our +consideration.'[199] + +It is scarcely possible to conceive a more deliberate and scornful +repudiation of responsibility for any previous opinions that he may have +maintained than is expressed in this passage. He goes out of his way to +tender an unnecessary support to the detested Excise scheme, which at +the same time he declares that he should certainly have opposed had he +been in the House when it was introduced. The middle-aged Pitt seemed +never to tire of trampling savagely on the young Pitt, even wantonly, as +on this occasion. There is, indeed, more justice than is usual in Horace +Walpole's taunts when he says of Pitt, 'Where he chiefly shone was in +exposing his own conduct; having waded through the most notorious +apostasy in politics, he treated it with an impudent confidence that +made all reflections upon him poor and spiritless when worded by any +other men.' This is one way of putting it. A preferable and, in our +judgment, a truer way is that Pitt deliberately chose this method of +public atonement for past recklessness, and as an avowal that he had +learned and ripened by experience. He recanted at large, so as to +obliterate every vestige of his heedless and censorious youth. It is +better for the country and for themselves that statesmen should thus do +penance than that they should continue to offer sacrifices of what they +see to be right to the somewhat egotistical pagod of their personal +consistency. Honourable consistency is necessary to retain the +confidence of the country; but there is also a dishonourable consistency +in concealing and suppressing conscientious changes of judgment. + +Though, as we have seen, his defence of the principle of subsidies +seemed unbounded, it was more limited in practice, and Pitt fixed his +limit at the Bavarian contribution. In 1752 Pelham had to move a subsidy +to the Elector of Saxony, King of Poland. This had been negotiated by +Newcastle, but was so strongly disapproved by Pelham that he even +threatened to second the opposition to it. However, he was persuaded by +the argument most urgent and sometimes most fatal to prime ministers, +that the apparent unity of the Government must at any cost be +maintained, to withdraw his opposition and move the vote. Old Horatio +Walpole, though he voted with Pelham, spoke warmly against him, and Pitt +supported Walpole's argument, though privately and not in speech. He +felt, it may be presumed, that it was not for him to be more of a +Pelhamite than Pelham himself. + +With Pelham, however, he had felt constrained to be at open variance in +the previous year, about the time of the Bavarian subsidy. The Minister +had moved a reduction of our seamen from 10,000 to 8000. Pitt declared a +preference for 10,000; and Potter, whom we have seen in the Buckingham +and Aylesbury affair, a clever, worthless fellow, who had now become an +ally of Pitt, opposed the reduction. Pelham seemed to acquiesce, but +Lord Hartington, an enthusiastic Pelhamite, who was hereafter to be for +a while Prime Minister under Pitt, forced a division, in order to show +Pitt that the Whigs would not support him against Pelham. Pitt's +immediate following on this occasion seems to have consisted only of +Lyttelton, the three Grenvilles, Conway, and eight others. There was, it +is to be observed, nothing factious in this; the opinion of Pitt was +natural, and not distasteful to Pelham. Moreover, on the report Pitt +made a conciliatory speech, marking in the strongest manner his regret +at differing with Pelham, declaring that it was his fear of Jacobitism +alone which made him prefer the larger number, and expressing his +concern at seeing our body of trained seamen, whom he called our +standing army, reduced. He and his little following, or rather +cousinhood, vied with each other in loyal eulogies of the Prime +Minister. + +This called up Hampden, an intrepid buffoon, but the great-grandson of +the patriot, and 'twenty-fourth hereditary lord of Great Hampden,' who +attacked Pitt and his group with rancour. Here, again, we seem to +discern traces of Buckinghamshire politics and jealousies. Temple and +his belongings had, as we have seen, many enemies in their own county, +and Hampden was one of them. Perhaps the Aylesbury affair still rankled. +Pitt was visibly angered. Though Pelham warmly defended him, he was not +appeased, and the affair would have ended in a duel had not the +Speaker's authority intervened. In the succeeding year, it may be noted, +the number of 10,000 was restored. + +Though these hostilities were averted, the debate produced further +friction between the brethren who controlled the Ministry. Newcastle was +profusely grateful to Pitt for the line he had taken. He wrote to one of +his vassals (January 30, 1750-1): 'As you can be no stranger (if you +have attended the late debate) to the able and affectionate manner in +which Mr. Pitt has taken upon himself to defend me, and the measures +which have been solely carried on by me, when both have been openly +attacked with violence, and when no other person opened his lips, in +defence of either, but Mr. Pitt, I think myself bound in honour and +gratitude to show my sense of it in the best way I am able. I must +therefore desire that neither you nor any of my friends would give into +any clamour or row that may be made against him from any of the party on +account of his differing as to the number of seamen. For after the kind +part he has acted to me, and (as far as I am allowed to be part of it) +the meritorious one to the administration, I cannot think any man my +friend who shall join in any such clamour, and who does not do all in +his power to discourage it. I desire you would read this letter to' +(here follow the names of seven forgotten men whom we may presume to +have been his closest followers).[200] Pitt's attitude had alarmed +Pelham, and this letter from the Duke, so formidable from parliamentary +influence, made him sensible of imminent danger. He saw that he must +either be reconciled to his brother or face that alarming coalition of +Pitt and Newcastle which was afterwards effected with so much success. +Once more there was a crisis, and Pelham's son-in-law Lincoln was called +in as mediator. A treaty of peace of three articles was solemnly drawn +up between the brothers, and apparent harmony restored. The King, +however, broke out anew with emphatic anger against Pitt and the +Grenvilles. + +This was probably due to the rumour that Pitt and his connections were +negotiating with the Prince of Wales. This is not improbable. We know +indeed that Lyttelton was arranging through his brother-in-law Dr. +Ayscough for a coalition between the forces of Stowe and those of +Leicester House. The King was old, and ambitious politicians would not +wish to be ill with his heir, if that could be avoided. But all such +foresight was wasted, for Frederick was never to reign, and within two +months of the vote on the seamen he was dead. Up to the last he was +intriguing and securing adherents. On February 28 he was engaging +Oswald, an able debater in the House of Commons, to his cause; on March +20 he died. Next morning his party was convoked by Egmont to consider +the future. Many came, probably from curiosity, but dispersed without +any conclusion. 'My Lord Drax,' writes Henry Fox in pleasant allusion to +the promises of the Prince, 'my Lord Colebrook, Earl Dodington, and +prime minister Egmont are distracted; but nobody more so than Lord +Cobham, who _cum suis_ has been making great court and with some effect +all this winter. Do not name this from me. I fear they will not be dealt +with as I would deal with them.'[201] In truth the purpose and bond of +the party, the sole reason for its existence, had disappeared. +Henceforth the courtiers who found no favour with the King kept their +eyes on the Princess of Wales and her eldest son, a shy, sensitive boy, +who was afterwards to be George III. Soon they began to perceive in this +obscure court a handsome, supercilious Scotsman, who enjoyed the favour +of the Princess and the veneration of her son, who was now a lord of the +Prince's bedchamber, but was hereafter to head one ministry and become +the bugbear of many others, John Earl of Bute. + +The Heir Apparent was only thirteen, and a Regency Bill was required. +This is only pertinent to our narrative in that it produced a fierce +parliamentary duel between Pitt and Fox, the point at issue between them +being the Duke of Cumberland, whom the King wished, but the Ministry +did not dare, to nominate Regent. Indeed, one of the principal +expressions of popular grief for the loss of the Prince of Wales had +taken the form of regret that the death had not been that of the Duke. +'Oh! that it was but his brother! Oh! that it was but the Butcher!' +Unfortunately, the speeches of neither Pitt nor Fox in this session have +come down to us. All that we know is that Pelham declared that Pitt's +was the finest speech that ever he heard. Pitt had strongly maintained +that the Regency must be closely restricted, the vital contention of his +son thirty-seven years later, and hinted that Cumberland, if +unrestrained in his capacity as head of the Council of Regency, might be +tempted to usurp the Crown. Hence the wrath of Fox, the close friend of +the royal Duke; hence, too, the antipathy of Cumberland to Pitt, which +was to cause complications thereafter. + +Pitt and his family connections, whose allegiance to the Ministry had +been under suspicion, and who had been in negotiation with the Prince's +party, were rallied into apparent fidelity to the Ministry by the +Prince's death, without, however, severing their renewed connection with +Leicester House. But it was acquiescence rather than loyalty. Between +the two ministerial orators in the House of Commons, Fox and Pitt, there +had been cordial friendship. But it is evident that this had ceased. +Fox, as we have seen, would have dealt with Pitt and the Grenvilles as +traitors, and one would infer that it was the negotiation with the +Prince of Wales which had angered him. The fact that Fox had sided with +Pelham, and Pitt with Newcastle, had probably tended to division. Pitt, +indeed, afterwards accused Pelham, poor soul, with having fostered their +variance. Then there had been the affair of the Regency. There had, +too, just previously to the Prince's death, been a sharp altercation +between them in a small debate raised by the petition for compensation +of an ill-used gentleman in Minorca. This Pelham had refused; while Pitt +upheld the claim with his wonted energy, but with unusual absurdity. He +would support the petition of a man so oppressed and of so ancient a +family to the last drop of his blood. Fox ridiculed this extravagance, +and Pitt was nettled. This is only notable as a symptom of prevailing +temper. + +But the facts of their personalities speak for themselves. They were +rivals in Parliament, neither of them very scrupulous, both fierce in +debate. What need of further explanation? Fox, moreover, viewed Pitt's +overtures to Leicester House with distrust, not merely from the point of +view of a minister, but from that of the Duke of Cumberland, to whom he +was devoted, and who detested the Prince of Wales and his crew. So that +on the Regency Bill it was the wrath between the two factions which +broke into open war. It was in the main the devotion of Fox to +Cumberland which originally divided and then estranged him from Pitt. +They were afterwards to reunite for a time by the mutual attraction of +brains opposed to imbecility. + +This is perhaps the best opportunity to consider the character of this +Henry Fox, who was now Pitt's rival. Strangely enough there is no real +biography of this remarkable man, a vigorous and interesting figure, who +has been to some extent obscured by his more popular and famous son. + +It would almost be enough to say that Fox was everything that Pitt was +not. He had not that wayward but divine fire which we call genius, and +which inspired Pitt; but he had the saving quality of common sense which +was wanting to his rival. He laid no claim to the oratory of Pitt; he +was, we are told hesitating and inelegant, not indeed a good speaker; +but he was plain and forcible, with a good business-like wear and tear +style, which is in Parliament not less valuable than oratory; on +occasions indeed he spoke with a vehemence and closeness of reasoning +which almost anticipated the supreme faculty of his son. More than all, +he thoroughly understood the House of Commons. He had the cordial +manner, the veneer at least of good fellowship, the frankness savouring +of cynicism, which make for an eminently serviceable sort of +parliamentary popularity. In one respect, as a letter writer, he was +greatly Pitt's superior. While Pitt was prancing fantastic minuets +before his correspondents, Fox, without wasting a word, went straight to +the point; and his letters are pregnant, graphic, and forcible. There +are perhaps none better in the English language than those in which he +describes the debates of December 1755. He was, what Pitt was not, a +genial companion, fond of the bottle and the chase; he had, indeed, been +a gambler and a debauchee. He was, what Pitt was not, a man of the +world, and was closely allied with the choicest blood of the aristocracy +by a marriage with a daughter of the Duke of Richmond. Pitt was a county +gentleman, who had indeed married Temple's sister, but had thus entered +a more limited and less exalted connection. They both had courage, but +Fox minded the rebuffs of debate much less than Pitt. He was +passionate, but with a passion less sublime than Pitt's. Pitt could +sometimes feign passion; Fox could sometimes repress it. In later life, +when it had been long smouldering, it was ungovernable. But at this time +it only displayed itself in a not ungenerous resentment. In the race for +success it would perhaps have been safer to back Fox than Pitt. + +But Fox had one incurable flaw which was wholly wanting in Pitt: his +aims were base and material. He was content for long years to be +Paymaster, amassing a huge fortune from all the emoluments, legitimate +and semi-legitimate, of that lucrative office, when a noble ambition +would not have stooped to so gross an obscurity. And besides money he +had another weakness. He longed to be a lord. In the moment of his +rival's triumph and his own fall we find him writing to Lady Yarmouth +soliciting a peerage in almost abject terms.[202] That was refused, and +it was only after long years of unabashed solicitation that he obtained +his object. At last a peerage was accorded to his wife, as if to mark +the reluctance felt to giving it to himself. Then his chance came. Bute +had to find a bold and unscrupulous agent to carry the Peace through the +House, and Fox was his man. Not merely had Fox to earn his peerage but +to wreak some vengeances.[203] He accepted the task readily, and had as +his first reward the joy of removing Newcastle from the lieutenancy of +three counties. And then, as if animated by a hatred of the whole human +race, he expelled from their posts all, from the highest to the +humblest, whom he suspected of opposition. It was a reign of terror, and +by terror he accomplished the work he had been hired to do. Then he +claimed his reward. He had earned and he received his peerage. But he +had also earned and received a detestation, rarely accorded in England +to a statesman, which lasted for the rest of his life, and which finds +vent in the bitter lampoon which Gray, the gentlest of scholars, was +moved to write. + +Later again, in his opulent seclusion, Fox was fired with a new ambition +to become an earl.[204] He feared no extremity, no humiliation, to +obtain his cherished object. But he failed. He was no longer worth +buying; he could not, indeed, be employed. So in bitterness of spirit he +passed away, cheered only by his delightful devotion to his wife and +children, and by the goodwill of a few staunch friends. + +There is something profoundly melancholy in Fox's degeneracy. Its +commencement is clearly marked. In 1756 he was an easy companion, a good +friend, kindly and beloved; he was honoured and admired; he was the +second man in the House of Commons, willing and able to dare all. But +when he was discarded, and had subsided into the Paymastership, he seems +to have suffered a gradual deterioration. His objects became sordid; he +lost the finer elements of his character; his ambition sank into +something composed of vindictiveness and greed; his generous wine became +corked and bitter. But at the time we are writing of, he was still +amiable, still courageous, still warm with some instinct of honour, +patriotism, and high emulation, still an able and masculine figure. It +is perhaps unfair to anticipate a decline which is outside our limits. +But the change is so remarkable, throwing, as it were, a back light on +some of the puzzling aspects of Fox's earlier career, that it cannot +well be unnoticed. + +More ominous of Pitt's attitude to the Ministry than any small incidents +of debate was Pitt's silence. For three successive sessions of +Parliament, in 1752, 1753, and in that which closed in April 1754, he +practically held his peace. Nothing could be more sinister, nothing +could mark more emphatically his discontent. Sickness, it appears, +accounted in part for this abstinence from the arena. 'After a year of +sullen illness,' as Horace Walpole describes it, he intervened in 1753; +and this was followed by another twelve months of silence and of illness +not less sullen. The intervention of 1753 was not very happy. By an Act +passed in June 1753, foreign Jews had been rendered capable of +naturalisation. The Bill had passed into law without serious opposition, +but soon aroused great popular clamour. Grub Street, as usual, was +called into requisition. + + 'But Lord! how surprised when they heard of the news + That we were to be servants to circumcised Jews, + To be negroes and slaves instead of True Blues, + Which nobody can deny.' + +Newcastle was charged with having been bribed. + + 'That money you know is a principal thing, + It will pay a Duke's mortgage or interest bring.'[205] + +[Sidenote: Nov. 27, 1753.] + +On the meeting of Parliament in November of the same year Newcastle at +once moved to repeal it. It had only been, he said in his silly jargon, +a 'point of political policy,' and as it had aroused agitation in the +public it had better be repealed. Foote recalled this slipshod phrase in +his comical portrait of the Duke. 'The honour,' says Matthew Mug, 'I +this day solicit will be to me the most honourable honour that can be +conferred.' Pitt supported the repeal in a speech on which his admirers +would not desire to dwell. He was still in favour of the Act, but should +vote for its repeal, because the people wished it, having been misled by +the 'old High Church persecuting spirit' into believing that religion +was concerned in the matter, which was not the fact, therefore an +explanatory preamble was necessary. 'In the present case we ought to +treat the people as a prudent father would treat his child; if a +peevish, perverse boy should insist on something that was not quite +right but of such a nature as, when granted, could not be attended with +any very bad consequence, an indulgent father would comply with the +humour of his child, but at the same time he would let him know that he +did so merely out of complaisance, and not because he approved of what +the child insisted on.'[206] Whether this would or would not be the +wisest course of parental discipline it is not necessary to discuss, but +it was in the spirit of the practice that prevailed in the Fox family +rather than in that of the Pitts. The repeal was passed with the +preamble of admonition. + +This reluctant, ironical support was all that Pitt gave his colleagues. +It cannot indeed be doubted that throughout these three lean years of +silence he was hostile to the Ministry. Promises had probably been made +on his first accession to office which he thought had been ill-kept. He +had been told, no doubt, that every effort would be made to make him +more acceptable to the King, and he might well doubt if there had been +much strenuous effort in that direction. And indeed a topic so sure to +excite the royal spleen was not likely to be raised except under the +pressure of absolute necessity. At any rate there had been no result. +'The Pitts and Lytteltons are grown very mutinous on the Newcastle's not +choosing Pitt for his colleague,' writes Horace Walpole six weeks after +the Prince's death. For Bedford was known to be doomed by Newcastle, and +his Secretaryship of State would soon be vacant. There were many +aspirants for the succession, but no whisper of Pitt. Cobham, who had +been his main supporter, was dead;[207] no one could speak with so much +authority on his behalf; and even had Cobham survived he would probably +have been silent. + +Soon after the letter from Walpole which we have quoted (June 1751) +Bedford had resigned. He had been succeeded by Holdernesse. At the same +time Granville, the object of Pitt's inveterate philippics, was admitted +to the Cabinet as President of the Council. These events may well have +inflamed Pitt's resentment, which had, we cannot doubt, been long +smouldering. The great obstacle to his advancement was the King, who, as +he knew, had always detested him. It was with the greatest difficulty +that the Pelhams could persuade the Sovereign not altogether to ignore +him at the Levees. Could he indeed trust the brothers? He appreciated no +doubt Pelham's qualities at the Treasury, in council, and in the House +of Commons. It seems impossible to believe that Pitt ever can have +trusted Newcastle; though he addresses the Duke in his letters with an +affected flummery of devotion. Almon, who is not a trustworthy +authority, but who is supported in this instance by a probability which +we may well deem irresistible, says that in at least one interview in +the year 1752 he treated Newcastle with such scorn that Newcastle had he +dared would have dismissed him from office.[208] Pitt had openly scoffed +at the King of the Romans policy, Newcastle's cherished plan, and told +the Duke that he was engaging in subsidies without knowing the amount, +and in alliances without knowing the terms. Why, indeed, should Pitt +trust Newcastle, whom no one had ever trusted, and whom Pitt must have +measured and known to the very marrow of his bones? + +We may take it as certain then that Pitt viewed the Duke with +contemptuous penetration, and tolerated his grimaces and professions +only till such time as he could put them to the test. Meanwhile there +was a free trade in blandishments between them. Newcastle would send +venison from Holland, and carp and fruit, and Pitt would abound in +gratitude.[209] He still thought well to profess friendship, but, we may +be sure, a wary friendship, for the veteran in the florid and artificial +style of the day; on the very day of Pelham's death he wrote from Bath +to assure him of 'unalterable attachment;'[210] and he condescended to +solicit a parliamentary seat from him. + +But words cost little, and Pitt did not disdain profusion in them any +more than in what cost more. In a letter to Lyttelton written +immediately after Pelham's death, when he recommended an attitude of +armed and hostile vigilance towards the new powers, he says: +'Professions of personal regard cannot be made too strongly,' and this +line of conduct explains his professions to Newcastle. For how could he +fail under existing circumstances to be suspicious? Had Newcastle lifted +a finger to procure him the succession to Bedford? Yet no one could +compete in Parliamentary authority with Pitt; and, though Murray's +claims to oratorical pre-eminence might vie with his, Murray's +aspirations were confined to the law. At this time, Chesterfield, the +best living judge of such matters, was writing to his son, and +expressing therefore his real convictions: 'Mr. Pitt and Mr. Murray are +beyond comparison ... the best orators. They alone can inflame or quiet +the House; they alone are so attended to, in that numerous and noisy +assembly, that you might hear a pin fall while either was +speaking.'[211] It is true that Chesterfield depreciates Pitt's matter. +But the fact remains that he mentions Pitt as one of the two supreme +masters of the House of Commons, the other, indeed, not having much +heart in politics. The ignoring, the slighting of this great power, +could not be forgiven by so aspiring a nature as Pitt's. He brooded and +watched. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + + +How did he pass these three years? It is not easy to say, for we have so +little light on his private life. No prescient Boswell marked his words +and habits, or indeed had much opportunity of doing so. Few men of the +same eminence have lived in such retirement as he did; we only catch +glimpses. In the first place, it may be said without extravagance that +his principal occupation was the gout. His gout became part of the +history of England. To him it was a cruel fact. It kept him constantly +disabled, and constantly away from London, ever trying new waters, +principally the historical springs of Bath. Bath, indeed, was his second +home. He seems to be almost always there till his marriage, and very +frequently afterwards. Half his letters seem to be dated thence. At last +he definitely recognised it as a home by building a house there in the +Circus, which cost him 1200_l._[212] This was in 1753. But in 1763 he +disposed of this particular house, probably under some financial +stress.[213] Whether he thus established himself from love of the place +or from love of his friend Ralph Allen, who was Fielding's Squire +Allworthy and Bath's Man of Ross, or whether he had already an ambition +to represent the City in Parliament, we cannot tell. His cousin, Lord +Stanhope soon joined him and bought the houses next to his.[214] As time +went on, and Pitt's fame and seclusion increased, it became more and +more a political centre. There men collected who were anxious to get a +word with the statesman, or at least obtain news of his health, which at +times became the problem and mystery of a crisis. + +But his own uneasy quest of health made him seek a variety of other +resorts, Astrop Wells, at the spring of St. Rumbald, Tunbridge Wells, +Sunninghill, and what not. He thus became a constant participator in the +tepid diversions of these sickly haunts. Gilbert West, a minor poet, +whose mother was Cobham's sister, and who was one of Pitt's dearest and +most intimate friends, accompanied him to Tunbridge Wells in May 1753, +and writes accounts thence of his life and condition.[215] They lived +together at the Stone House, which perhaps may still be identified, and +which was chosen as their residence for its absolute quiet. Actual gout +he seems to have welcomed as a relief from other disorders. He was at +one time unable to sleep without opiates. Insomnia produced its usual +effects, deep dejection, nay, complete prostration. Like all sufferers +under that supreme disability, he was ready to try any remedies; musk +was one of these. When the open appearance of gout relieved the sufferer +of its more insidious effects, he began a course of mild dissipation. We +find him giving a dinner at the New Vauxhall, enriched perhaps by the +bounty of Newcastle, who was sending him choice dainties at this time; +then a rural entertainment of tea in a tent, where he bade 'his French +horn breathe music like the unseen genius of the wood;'[216] a diversion +which seems all the more pastoral, when we remember that at the same +moment Fox and Hardwicke, the Chancellor, were at each other's throats +in St. Stephen's over the Marriage Act. He made excursions to view the +fine parks and seats of the neighbourhood, to Penshurst, Buckhurst, and, +we may presume, Eridge; we are told that he considered these expeditions +as good for the mind as well as the body. Then when he got stronger he +went further afield. 'I have made a tour,' he writes, 'of four or five +days in Sussex, as far as Hastings; Battel Abbey is very fine, as to +situation and lying of ground, together with a great command of water on +one side, within an airing; Ashburnham Park most beautiful; Hurtmonceux +(_sic_) very fine, curiously and dismally ugly. On the other side of +Battel: Crowhurst, Colonel Pelham's, the sweetest thing in the world; +more taste than anywhere, land and sea views exquisite. Beach of four or +five miles to Hastings, enchanting Hastings, unique; Fairly Farm, Sir +Whistler Webster's, just above it; perfect in its kind, _cum multis +aliis_, &c. I long to be with you' (he is writing to John Pitt, his +Dorsetshire kinsman), 'kicking my heels upon your cliffs and looking +like a shepherd in Theocritus.'[217] For the sake of his mind, too, he +attended 'Mr. King's lectures on philosophy, &c.,' when 'Mr. Pitt, who +is desirous of attaining some knowledge in this way, makes him explain +things very precisely.' In August, we must note in passing, he begged +Newcastle to give him an opportunity of an interview as the duke passed +near Tunbridge on the way to Sussex. Even in this amiable note he allows +his pique to be visible for a moment. He entirely agrees with the policy +of the brothers, but 'What I think concerning publick affairs can import +nothing to any one but myself.'[218] On his recovery he went off on a +round of country visits to Stowe, Hagley and Hayes; Hayes, then occupied +by Mrs. Montagu, which was destined to be the shrine of his passionate +affection. Stowe was a second home to him; there we have seen him play +cricket, there he entered with zest into the sumptuous plans of +landscape gardening, and even advised on architecture. His delight in +Hagley, the seat of his friend Lyttelton, was scarcely less keen. 'My +dear Billy,' he writes to William Lyttelton, then travelling in Germany, +'I am going in a few days to follow your brother to Hagley, and with all +the respect due to the oaks of Germany, I would not quit the Dryads of +your father's woods for all the charms of Westphalia. Io gia coi campi +Elisi fortunato giardin dei Semidei, la vostra ombra gentil non +cangerei. You see, the idea of the Germanick body and the heroes and +demigods who compose it have made me very poetical.'[219] He had, we may +note, when this letter was written (August 1748), just returned from +Tunbridge, and had greatly benefited by his stay there. What, we may ask +in passing, has become of the efficacious nymphs of all these wells? +Have they lost their virtue, or is it only the necessary faith which has +disappeared? + +From Hagley, Pitt would visit Shenstone at his petty paradise of the +Leasowes, and the grateful poet would apostrophise him: + + 'Ev'n Pitt, whose fervent periods roll + Resistless o'er the kindling soul + Of Senates, Councils, Kings; + Tho' formed for Courts, vouchsafed to move + Inglorious thro' the shepherd's grove, + And ope his bashful springs.' + +But Pitt, debarred from the sports of the field, had always taken a +lively interest in the laying out of land, in planting, in landscape +gardening. He had, to use his own felicitous expression, 'the prophetic +eye of taste.' At the Leasowes, at Hagley, at Radway, the Warwickshire +seat of Mr. Saunderson Miller,[220] at Wickham, the home of Gilbert +West, and at Chevening, the delightful residence of his friend and +cousin Lord Stanhope, he freely exercised his gift. He utilised it still +more freely and indeed extravagantly at his own homes, for in the +pursuit of this hobby he disdained all limitations. Once, when Secretary +of State, he was staying with a friend near London whose grounds he had +undertaken to adorn and in the evening was summoned suddenly to London. +He at once collected all the servants with lanterns, and sallied forth +to plant stakes in the different places that he wished to mark for +plantations. In later life he ran to still greater extremes. At Burton +Pynsent a bleak hill bounded his views and offended his eye. He ordered +it to be instantly planted with cedars and cypresses. 'Bless me, my +Lord,' said the gardener, 'all the nurseries in the county would not +furnish the hundredth part required.' 'No matter; send for them from +London. And from London they were sent down by land carriage, at a vast +expense. These two familiar anecdotes cannot well be omitted. + +In the more moderate time with which we are dealing he was the chosen +adviser of his friends, who may well have been guilty of the innocent +flattery of seeking his advice with regard to his favourite hobby. His +own home at this time was South Lodge in Enfield Chace, which is said to +have been bequeathed to him together with 10,000_l._, 'on this bequest +that he should spend the money on improvements, and then grow tired of +the place in three or four years.'[221] This seems dubious. But we are +on safe ground in inferring from a letter of Legge's that he established +himself there in 1748. Legge writes to him from Berlin (July 10, 1748): +'I congratulate myself and the rest of my unsound brethren upon the +acquisition we have made by your admission into the respectable corps of +woodmen and sawyers. I consider your Lodge as an accession to the common +Stock and Republick of Sportsmen, which from its situation will bring +peculiar advantages along with it, and that the woodcocks and snipes of +Enfield may be visited at seasons of the year when those of Hampshire +will not be so accessible.... As to the joiners and bricklayers, +possibly too the planters of trees and levellers of walks by whom you +are surrounded, don't give yourself any concern about them. They are a +sort of _satellites_ which I beg leave to assure you attend a man +_gratis_. Nay, I have been told by one whose opinion I rate highly, that +these men's works all execute themselves with a certain overplus of +profit to the person who is so happy as to employ them,'[222] and he +adds in a postscript a list of shrubs or trees which he recommends. +Legge's playful sarcasms as to expense did not deter his friend. + +By 1752 Pitt had converted South Lodge, in the opinion of his friends or +flatterers, into a delightful pleasance. He had, in the fashion of those +days, constructed a Temple of Pan with appropriate surroundings, which +excited the admiration of critics, and is mentioned with special +admiration, we are told, 'by Mr. Whately, a forgotten expert, in his +"Observations on Modern Gardening," as one of the happiest efforts of +well-directed and appropriate decoration.' The famous blue-stocking, +Mrs. Montagu, writes of the 'shady oaks and beautiful verdure of South +Lodge.' 'There can,' she says in another letter, 'hardly be a finer +entertainment not only to the eyes, but to the mind, than so sweet and +peaceful a scene.' Yet Pitt assured her that he had never spent an +entire week there. Gilbert West paid a visit there, when suffering +presumably under an attack of the gout. 'He had provided for me a +wheeling-chair, by the help of which I was enabled to visit every +sequestered nook, dingle, and bosky bower from side to side in that +little paradise opened in the wild.'[223] So that the garden would seem +to have really been a success. + +But Pitt was to prove fickle to all these charms. On leaving Tunbridge +Wells after the completion of his course of waters, he intended, besides +long visits to Stowe and Hagley, to pay a passing visit to Hayes, a +place near Bromley, of which his friend, Mrs. Montagu, had a lease. +Whether it was a case of love at first sight or not, we do not know, but +Hayes was destined to be the home of his affections and the place most +closely identified with himself. At the termination of Mrs. Montagu's +lease in 1756, he bought it of the Harrison family, who owned it, and a +letter from him is dated thence in May 1756. But in January 1765 he +inherited the Burton Pynsent estate, and so, in the following October, +he offered the Hayes property to his friend, the Hon. Thomas Walpole, at +a fair valuation, indeed at cost price. He had wasted on it, we are +told, prodigious sums, with little to show for it, for he had spent much +in purchasing contiguous houses to free himself from neighbours. 'Much +had gone in doing and undoing, and not a little portion in planting by +torchlight, as his peremptory and imperious temper could brook no +delay.' He had, moreover, Wallenstein's morbid horror of the slightest +sound. Though he doted on his children, he could not bear them under the +same roof; they were placed in a separate building communicating with +the main structure by a winding passage. Vast sums were thus expended +without adding to the value of the property. But now he was eager to +leave the cherished home which had swallowed so much of his fortune, and +to hurry to the new scene. His intention of retiring into Somersetshire +seems to have caused some alarm among his friends, who feared that it +betokened retirement from public life; but with little reason, for it +was in June 1766 that the sale of Hayes to Mr. Walpole was completed, +and in the succeeding month Pitt was First Minister. His accession to +power was, however, accompanied by a combined attack of all his +maladies, nervous and physical; and his morbid, violent cravings had, if +possible, to be indulged. The most imperious of these was for Hayes, and +he persuaded himself that its air was necessary to his recovery. He +negotiated through Camden with Walpole, who unfortunately, in his year +of residence, had become passionately attached to the place. But Pitt +had become frantic. Hayes could not be mentioned before him for fear of +causing immoderate excitement. 'Did he' (Pitt) 'mention Hayes?' Camden +asked James Grenville, who had just visited his illustrious +brother-in-law. 'Yes; and then his discourse grew very ferocious.' Lady +Chatham wrote imploring and pathetic letters to Walpole, who was ready +to lend indefinitely, but not to sell. It would save her husband and her +children; her children's children would pray for him. Meanwhile, even if +Walpole consented, they had no money to buy with. They determined to +sell part of the Pynsent inheritance. But that would only suffice to pay +other debts, and Hayes would have to be mortgaged as well. Nothing could +better prove the insane violence of Pitt's desire. At last, in October +1767, Walpole yielded to Pitt's importunity, and in December the great +man found himself once more at home. Camden declared of Walpole that +'the applause of the world and his own conscience will be his reward,' +but it is not altogether pleasant to find that he did not disdain much +more material compensations. Pitt had sold the house and grounds in June +1766 for 11,780_l._, and had to buy them back in November 1767 for +17,400_l._, a difference of 5628_l._; so that he had to pay a smart fine +for his caprices. The whole purchase came to 24,532_l._, but this +includes other items, and lands which had been added by Walpole.[224] In +1772 he appears again to have contemplated selling Hayes,[225] but he +was destined to die there. All this is anticipation, but follows +naturally on the topic of Pitt's country life. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + + +We have seen that Pitt was to proceed to Hagley after leaving Tunbridge +Wells in September 1753. From Hagley he sent a letter to Newcastle, +which it must have cost him something to write. 'Some circumstances of +my brother's transactions at Old Sarum render me uneasy at depending for +my seat in next Parliament on that place. So I take the liberty to recur +once more for your Grace's protection and friendship to provide for my +election elsewhere.'[226] Newcastle seems at once to have offered his +borough of Aldborough, and Pitt 'can never express himself sufficiently +grateful for all your favours.'[227] From Hagley (October 1753) he +proceeded to Bath for a fresh course, and seems to have remained there a +helpless cripple for no less than seven months, though he was in London +for a debate in November. Never was illness so untimely, as events of +vital importance to him were about to take place. For on March 6, 1754, +Pelham died, and all was confusion. 'Now I shall have no more peace,' +said the shrewd old King. 'I never saw the King under such deep concern +since the Queen's death,' wrote Hardwicke. And indeed the situation was +full of alarming possibilities. For Pelham had become the unobtrusive +but indispensable man, like the mediocre and forgotten Liverpool, who +kept the balance between fierce rivalries and discordant opinions for +fifteen years. + +There seems no great complication in Pelham's character. He was a Whig +politician, trained under Walpole, but also under an intolerable brother +who exercised the utmost prerogative of his birthright. His portrait, by +Hoare, indicates something catlike, and he had much of feline caution +and timidity. But among the politicians of that day he seems to have +been comparatively simple and direct; and no man of his day was so fit +for the position of Prime Minister in view of his own qualifications, +and the conditions of the office at that time. He was indeed an inferior +Walpole. He seems moreover to have been almost devoid of personal +ambition; the highest places were thrust on him without his seeking +them. At the fall of Walpole, in spite of Walpole's urgent instances +that he should accept the Chancellorship of the Exchequer, which besides +the eminence of the office would have given him the succession to Lord +Wilmington, he insisted on remaining Paymaster, a post which, as we have +seen, even without the recognised perquisites, had great material +attractions, and which with them was capable of enchaining so powerful a +parliamentarian as Fox. On the death of Wilmington, by Walpole's +influence, he obtained the highest place; though Walpole had not merely +to inspire the King, but to overcome Pelham's reluctance. We may imagine +that Walpole would urge on his Sovereign that Pelham was the only House +of Commons man available, that he was eminently safe, that he +represented Newcastle's parliamentary influence, and that Newcastle +represented Hardwicke, who embodied the brains of the Cabinet; for +those of Carteret were too dangerous to trust. + +As First Minister Pelham had many difficulties to contend with, but not +greater than those which always must encompass that position. There was +the King, with violent prejudices and a Hanoverian policy, neither of +which he shared. Then there was his brother, who regarded himself as at +least his junior's equal, and whose petulance, jealousy, and suspicion +had to be kept in a constant state of arduous appeasement. Thirdly, +there was Pitt, whom the King could not do with and Pelham could not do +without; an element of incalculable explosion which anything might +ignite. + +He seems to have steered his course somewhat passively through these +complications; content so long as he could ward off domestic +catastrophe, and prevent war with its consequent expenditure; though the +fates in neither case were propitious. His only real conviction indeed +was for peace and economy; for the heritage of Walpole's policy had +devolved upon him, without Walpole's character and ability. Three years +before the end, as we have seen, he had sickened of his task and of his +helplessness amid the jarring elements of discord, but he had not been +permitted to retire. He was indeed the necessary man; a good debater, a +good administrator, a minister with a conscience for the public, a +leader or a figurehead with Newcastle's parliamentary power behind him, +a tactician who managed to keep Pitt at bay, dangerous but muzzled. Men +of this stamp are kept in harness to the end. + +He died on March 6, and the news found Pitt, on March 7, crippled and +immovable at Bath. His feet were impotent with gout, but his brain and +hands were evidently unaffected. He at once despatched a brief note of +condolence to Newcastle, 'whose grief must be inconsolable as its cause +is irreparable. You have a great occasion for all your strength of mind +to exert itself. Exercise it for the sake of your master and your +country, and may all good men support you. I have the gout in both feet +and am totally unable to travel.'[228] To Lyttelton and the Grenvilles +he wrote on the same day at length 'the breaking of first thoughts to be +confined to you four,'[229] enclosed in a covering letter to Temple, +saying that he was worn down with pain, and incapable of motion. But he +was none the less vigilant with regard to the least ripple on the +surface of politics, 'I heard some time since that the Princess of Wales +inquired after my health: an honour which I received with much pleasure, +as not void, perhaps of some meaning.'[230] Newcastle at once answered +Pitt's note of condolence, for we find Pitt acknowledging the reply on +March 11, and mentioning a letter written to him by Hardwicke, under +Newcastle's authority, 'with regard to some things in deliberation for +the settling the Government in the House of Commons and the direction of +the affairs of the Treasury. My answer is in a letter to Sir George +Lyttelton.'[231] This was practically giving powers to Lyttelton to +negotiate with Newcastle as Pitt's representative; a strange choice, +when we read in the covering letter to Temple: 'let me recommend to my +dear Lord to preach prudence and reserve to our friend Sir George, and, +if he can, inspire him with his own.' Lyttelton indeed was not destined +ever to earn fame as a negotiator. + +And now it is necessary to give the principal passages of this letter to +Lyttelton and the Cousinhood, which would have been a fuller and clearer +manifesto had not all politicians at that time felt a well-grounded +apprehension that their letters would be opened and read before they +were delivered. Fulness and clearness were therefore the last qualities +aimed at in their epistolary style, and inquiring posterity rues the +result. + + + MR. PITT TO SIR GEORGE LYTTELTON AND THE GRENVILLE BROTHERS. + + _March 7, 1754._ + + My dearest Friends,--[Then follows pompous regrets for Pelham's + 'utterly irreparable' loss.] I will offer to the consideration of my + friends but two things: the object to be wished for, the public; and + the means; which the object itself seems to suggest; for the pursuit + of it, my own object for the public, is, to support the King in + quiet as long as he may have to live; and to strengthen the hands of + the Princess of Wales, as much as may be, in order to maintain her + power in the Government, in case of the misfortune of the King's + demise. The means, as I said, suggest themselves: an union of all + those in action who are really already united in their wishes as to + the object: this might easily be effected, but it is my opinion, it + will certainly not be done. + + As to the nomination of a Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Fox in + point of party, seniority in the Corps, and I think ability for + Treasury and House of Commons business stands, upon the whole, first + of any. + + Doctor Lee if his health permits is Papabilis, and in some views + very desirable. Te Quinte Catule, my dear George Grenville, would be + my nomination. + + A fourth idea I will mention, which if practicable, and worth the + person's while, might have great strength and efficiency for + Government in it, and be perfectly adapted to the main future + contingent object, could it be tempered so as to reconcile the Whigs + to it: I mean to secularise, if I may use the expression, the + Solicitor-General,[232] and make him Chancellor of the Exchequer. I + call this an idea only; but I think it not visionary, were it + accompanied by proper temperaments. I write these thoughts for Lord + Temple, his brothers' and Sir George Lyttelton's consideration only, + or rather as a communication of my first thoughts, upon an emergency + that has too much importance and delicacy, as well as danger in it, + to whoever delivers their opinion freely, to be imparted any + farther. + + I am utterly unable to travel, nor can guess when I shall be able: + this situation is most unfortunate. I am overpowered with gout, + rather than relieved, but expect to be better for it. My dear + friends over-rate infinitely the importance of my health, were it + established: something I might weigh in such a scale as the present, + but you, who have health to act, cannot fail to weigh much, if + united in views. + + I will join you the first moment I am able, for letters cannot + exchange one's thoughts upon matters so complicated, extensive and + delicate. + + I don't a little wonder I have had no express from another + quarter.[233] + + I repeat again, that what I have said are the breakings of first + thoughts, to be confined to you four; and the looseness, and want of + form in them, to be, I trust, excused in consideration of the state + of mind and body of + + Your ever most affectionate, + W. PITT. + + As nothing is so delicate and dangerous, as every word uttered upon + the present _unexplained_ state of things, I mean _unexplained_, as + to the King's inclinations towards Mr. Fox, and his real desire to + have his own act of Regency, as it is called, maintained in the + hands of the Princess; too much caution, reserve, and silence + cannot be observed towards any who come to fish or sound your + dispositions, without authority to make direct propositions. If eyes + are really turned towards any connection of men, as a resource + against dangers apprehended, that set of men cannot, though willing, + answer the expectation without countenance, and additional + consideration and weight added to them, by marks of Royal favour, + one of the connection put into the Cabinet, and called to a real + participation of councils and business. How our little connection + has stood at all, under all depression and discountenance, or has an + existence in the eyes of the public, I don't understand: that it + should continue to do so, without an attribution of some new + strength and consideration, arising from a real share in Government, + I have difficulty to believe. + + I am, however, resolved to listen to no suggestions of certain + feelings, however founded, but to go as straight as my poor judgment + will direct me, to the sole object of public good. + + I don't think quitting of offices at all advisable, for public or + private accounts: but as to answering any further purposes in the + House of Commons, that must depend on the King's will and pleasure + to enable us so to do.[234] + + +It will be observed that Pitt does not mention the Treasury; and he +probably, though in his letter to Temple of the same date he speaks of +the Duke's 'ability as Secretary of State,' took it for granted that +Newcastle would succeed his brother; a proof of his perception. Yet +Walpole tells us that it was to the astonishment of all men that +Newcastle took the Treasury five days later. + +Next we may notice that he does not mention the Secretaryship of State +to be vacated by Newcastle, which would seem to show that that office +had long been destined by the cousinhood for himself. + +The postscript is extremely obscure, as it was probably intended to be. +It seems to enjoin the greatest caution in dealing with any vague +overtures which may be made, until it is known whether the King means to +give his confidence to Fox, and whether he means to maintain the Regency +as then established. But this phrase about the Regency is almost +unintelligible. + +The last sentence in the postscript is the clearest of the letter. Let +us remain in office, but whether we exert ourselves there or remain in +sullen silence must depend on the attitude of the King. + +All this is enclosed in a covering letter to Temple-- + + + MR. PITT TO EARL TEMPLE. + + _March 7, 1754._ + + My dear Lord,--I return my answer to Jemmy's and Sir George's + dispatch directed to you, and accompany it with this line to give + you my apprehensions of Sir George's want of discretion and address, + in such soundings as will be, and have been, made upon him, with + regard to the disposition of his friends. + + I beg your Lordship will be so good to convene your brothers and Sir + George, and communicate my letter to them which is addressed to you + jointly. It is a most untoward circumstance that I cannot set out + immediately to join you. I am extremely crippled and worn down with + pain, which still continues. I make what efforts I can, and am + carried out to breathe a little air. I write this hardly legible + scrawl in my chaise. + + Let me recommend to my dear Lord to preach prudence and reserve to + our friend Sir George, and if he can, to inspire him with his own. + + I heard some time since that the Princess inquired after my health; + an honour which I received with much pleasure, as not void, perhaps, + of some meaning. + + I have writ more to-day than my weak state, under such a shock as + the news of to-day, will well permit. + + Believe me, my dearest Lord, + Ever most affectionately yours, + W. PITT. + + Fox will be Chancellor of the Exchequer, notwithstanding any + reluctancy to yield to it in the Ministers; George Grenville may be + offered Secretary at War; I am sure he ought to be so. I advise his + acceptance. The Chancellor is the only resource; his wisdom, temper, + and authority, joined to the Duke of Newcastle's ability as + Secretary of State, are the dependance for Government. The Duke of + Newcastle alone is feeble, this not to Sir George.[235] + + +Pitt's next step was to send two letters, in the same cover, to +Lyttelton; one a confidential letter, the other, an ostensible one, to +be sent to Hardwicke. The confidential letter, which follows, is +striking, and contains as much of Pitt's plan of operations at this +crisis as any that we possess. + + + _Bath, March 10th, 1754._ + + Dear Lyttelton,--I am much obliged to you for your dispatch, and am + highly satisfied with the necessary reserve you have kept with + respect to the dispositions of yourself and friends. Indeed, the + conjuncture itself, and more especially our peculiar situation, + require much caution and measure in all our answers, in order to act + like honest men, who determine to adhere to the public great object; + as well as men who would not be treated like children. I am far from + meaning to recommend a sullen, dark, much less a double conduct. All + I mean is to lay down a plan to ourselves; which is, to support the + King's Government in present, and maintain the Princess's authority + and power in a future, contingency. As a necessary consequence of + this system, I wish to see as little power in Fox's hands as + possible, because he is incompatible with the main part, and indeed + of the whole, of this plan; but I mean not to open myself to whoever + pleases to sound my dispositions, with regard to persons especially, + and by premature declarations deprive ourselves of the only chance + we have of deriving any consideration to ourselves from the mutual + fears and animosities of different factions in court: and expose + ourselves to the resentment and malice in the closet of the one + without stipulations or security for the good offices and weight of + the other there in our favour. + + But do I mean, then, an absolute reserve, which has little less than + the air of hostility towards our friends (such as they are) at + Court, or at least, bear too plainly the indications of intending a + third party or flying squadron? By no means. Nothing would, in my + poor judgment, be so unfit and dangerous for us. I would be open and + explicit (but only on proper occasions) that, I was most willing to + support his Majesty's Government upon such a proper plan as I + doubted not his Majesty, by the advice of his Ministers, would + frame; in order to supply, the best that may be, the irreparable + loss the King has sustained in Mr. Pelham's death: in order to + secure the King ease for his life and future security to his family + and to the kingdom: that my regards to the ministers in being were + too well known to need any declarations;' this and the like, which + may be vary'd for ever, is answer enough to any _sounder_. As to any + things said by Principals in personal conference, as that of the + Chancellor with you, another manner of talking will be proper, + though still conformable to the same private plan which you shall + resolve to pursue. Professions of personal regard cannot be made too + strongly; but as to matter, generals are to be answered with + generals; particulars, if you are led into them, need not at all be + shunn'd; and if treated with common prudence and presence of mind, + can not be greatly used to a man's prejudice; if he says nothing + that implies specific engagements, without knowing specifically what + he is to trust to reciprocally. Within these limitations, it seems + to me, that a man whose intentions are clear and right, may talk + without putting himself at another's mercy or offending him by a + dark and mysterious reserve. + + I think it best to throw my answer to the Chancellor into a separate + piece of paper, that you may send it to his lordship. I am sorry to + be forced to answer in writing, because, not seeing the party, it is + not possible to throw in necessary qualifications and additions or + retractions, according to the impression things make. + + As far as, my dear Lyttelton, you are so good to relate your several + conversations upon the present situation, I highly applaud your + prudence. I hope you neither have nor will drop a word of menace, + and that you will always bear in mind that my personal connection + with the Duke of Newcastle, has a peculiar circumstance,[236] which + yours and that of your friends has not. One cannot be too explicit + in conversing at this unhappy distance on matters of this delicate + and critical nature. I will, therefore, commit tautology, and repeat + what I said in my former dispatch, viz., that it enters not the + least into my plans to intimate quitting the King's service; giving + trouble, if not satisfied, to Government. The essence of it exists + in this: attachment to the King's service, and zeal for the ease and + quiet of his life, and stability and strength to future government + under the Princess; this declared openly and explicitly _to the + ministers_. The reserve I would use should be with regard to listing + in particular subdivisions, and thereby not freeing persons from + those fears which will alone quicken them to give us some + consideration for their own sakes: but this is to be done + _negatively_ only, by eluding explicit declarations with regard to + persons especially; but by _intimations of a possibility of our + following our resentments_; for, indeed, dear Sir George, I am + determined not to go into faction. Upon the whole, the mutual fears + in Court open to our connexion some room for importance and weight, + in the course of affairs: in order to profit by this situation, we + must not be out of office: and the strongest argument of all to + enforce that, is, that Fox is too odious to last for ever, and G. + Grenville must be next nominated under any Government. + + I am too lame to move. + + Your ever affectionate, + W. PITT.[237] + + +Then follows the apparent and ostensible letter to be shown to the +Chancellor. It is from the nature of it artificial and need not be +quoted in full. But it contains one remarkable passage in which Pitt +claims credit for having renounced opposition and the accompanying +popularity when he was convinced that there might be danger to the +reigning family from his carrying it further. The assertion is striking +and daring, and no doubt Pitt did join the Government while Charles +Edward was still in arms. + + + _Bath, March 11th, 1754._ + + My dear Sir George.--I beg you will be so good to assure my Lord + Chancellor, in my name, of my most humble services and many very + grateful acknowledgments for his Lordship's obliging wishes for my + health.... I can never sufficiently express the high sense I have of + the great honours of my Lord Chancellor's much too favourable + opinion of his humble servant; but I am so truly and deeply + conscious of so many of my wants in Parliament and out of it, to + supply in the smallest degree this irreparable loss, that I can say + with much truth were my health restored and his Majesty brought from + the dearth of subjects to hear of my name for so great a charge, I + should wish to decline the honour, even though accompany'd with the + attribution of all the weight and strength which the good opinion + and confidence of the master cannot fail to add to a servant; but + under impressions in the Royal mind towards me, the reverse of + these, what must be the vanity which would attempt it? These + prejudices, however so successfully suggested and hitherto so + unsuccessfully attempted to be removed, shall not abate my zeal for + his Majesty's service, though they have so effectually disarmed me + of all means of being useful to it. I need not suggest to his + Lordship that consideration and weight in the House of Commons + arises generally but from one of two causes--the protection and + countenance of the Crown, visibly manifested by marks of Royal + favour at Court, or from weight in the country, sometimes arising + from opposition to the public measures. This latter sort of + consideration it is a great satisfaction to me to reflect I parted + with, as soon as I became convinced there might be danger to the + family from pursuing opposition any further; and I need not say I + have not had the honour to receive any of the former since I became + the King's servant.... Perhaps some of my friends may not labour + under all the prejudices that I do. I have reason to believe they do + not: in that case should Mr. Fox be Chancellor of the Exchequer, the + Secretary at War is to be filled up....[238] + + +He does not follow up this innuendo, nor was it necessary. The next day +he writes frankly to Temple, who seems to have been much in Pitt's +confidence at this time. Taken in conjunction with the secret letter to +Lyttelton of March 10, the plan of operations is easily understood. We +will leave ministers 'under the impression of their own fears and +resentments, the only friends we shall ever have at Court, but to say +not a syllable which can scatter terrors or imply menaces.' Pitt's plan, +in a sentence, was to hang over the Government like a thundercloud, +dark, silent, menacing, possibly to be dispelled, but ready and in an +instant to pour destruction down. + + + MR. PITT TO EARL TEMPLE. + + _Bath, March 11, 1754._ + + My dearest Lord,--I hope you will not disapprove my answer to Lord + Chancellor. I include in you your brothers, for your Lordship's name + is Legion. You will see the answer contains my whole poor plan; the + essence of which is to talk modestly, to declare attachment to the + _King's_ government, and the future plan _under the Princess_, + neither to intend nor intimate the quitting the service, to give no + terrors by talking big, to make no declarations of thinking + ourselves free by Mr. Pelham's death, to look out and fish in + troubled waters, and perhaps help trouble them in order to fish the + better: but to profess and to resolve _bona fide_ to act like public + men in a dangerous conjuncture for our country, and support + Government when they will please to settle it; to let them see we + shall do this from _principles of public good_, not as the _bubbles_ + of a few fair words, without effects (all this civilly), and to be + collected by them, not expressed by us; to leave them under the + impressions of their own fears and resentments, the only friends we + shall ever have at Court, but to say not a syllable which can + scatter terrors or imply menaces. Their fears will increase by what + we _avoid saying concerning persons_ (though what I think of Fox, + etc., is much fixed), and by _saying very explicitly_, as I have + (but civilly), that we have our eyes open to our situation at Court, + and the foul play we have had offered us in the Closet: to wait the + working of all these things in offices, the best we can have, but in + offices. + + My judgment tells me, my dear Lord, that this simple plan steadily + pursued will once again, before it be long, give some weight to a + connection, long depressed, and yet still not annihilated. Mr. Fox's + having called at my door early the morning Mr. Pelham died is, I + suppose, no secret, and a lucky incident, in my opinion. I have a + post letter from the Duke of Newcastle, a very obliging one. I + heartily pity him, he suffers a great deal for his loss. + + Give me leave to recommend to your Lordship a little gathering of + friends about you at dinners, without ostentation. Stanley, who will + be in Parliament: some attention to Sir Richard Lyttelton I should + think proper; a dinner to the Yorkes very seasonable; and, before + things are settled, any of the Princess of Wales's Court. John Pitt + not to be forgot: I know the Duke of B---- nibbles at him: in short + liez commerce with as many members of Parliament, who may be open to + our purposes, as your Lordship can. Pardon, my dear Lord, all this + freedom, but the conjuncture is made to awaken men, and there is + room for action. I have no doubt George Grenville's turn must come. + Fox is odious, and will have difficulty to stand in a future time. I + mend a little. I cannot express my impatience to be with you. + + W. PITT.[239] + + +On March 18, Lyttelton writes to Grenville to ask if he shall send an +express down to Pitt as 'he will be impatient to hear particulars,' with +the news that Grenville and the writer had accepted office, and 'things +are not as much settled as they are likely to be till the dissolution of +parliament. I have had no answer from him to my last letter; have you?' +But this unanswered letter may not have reached its destination, or was +destitute of certain intelligence, for we find Pitt writing to Lyttelton +on March 20: 'I conclude that things still remain unsettled, because I +hear nothing from you or my other friends relating to them.' So he is +solacing himself by reading Bolingbroke's works. Their arrogance, he +says, is so excessive, that, great as is the performance, it often +becomes ridiculous. There was, he remembers, not many years ago, a man +in Bedlam, a scholar of fine parts, who used to entertain all the +spectators of that asylum with very rational discourses, and talked +with wit and eloquence; but always concluded by assuring his hearers +that he alone of all his hearers was in his right senses, and they and +all mankind were mad, and had conspired to put him in that place; +Bolingbroke reminds Pitt of this lunatic. There was indeed no love lost +between the two men. Pitt had not treated the elder statesman with the +deference paid to him by the adoring circle in which he lived, and +Bolingbroke had then charged Pitt with the same fault which Pitt now +found in Bolingbroke. On March 24, in a letter to Grenville, he pursues +the same theme, and dubs Bolingbroke the 'intellectual Sampson of +Battersea.' But six weeks afterwards, we find him warmly recommending +Bolingbroke's 'Remarks on the History of England' to his nephew 'to be +studied and almost got by heart for the inimitable beauty of the style +as well as the matter.' + +And now comes a letter of which not a word must be omitted, the +memorable letter to Newcastle of March 24, long supposed to be lost, but +now discovered among the Newcastle Papers. It was penned under the just +resentment caused by the knowledge of the arrangements for office from +which he had been insultingly ignored. It is, so far as we know, the +greatest that Pitt ever wrote, full of scornful humility, suppressed +passion, and pointed insinuation. Unlike most of his letters it needs no +interpretation, it speaks for itself. That bitterness of indignation, +which is said to produce poetry, has in this instance evolved clearness +and force. Towards the end, after speaking of resignation, and of his +wish for retirement, he utters this prophecy, baleful to Newcastle, who +should have remembered that the prophet had it in his power to fulfil +his own prediction. 'Indeed, my lord, the inside of the House must be +consider'd in other respects besides merely numbers, or the reins of +government will soon slip or be wrested out of any minister's hands.' A +few months were to bring home to the duke the truth of this prediction. + + + PITT TO NEWCASTLE. + + _Bath, 24 March, 1754._ + + My Lord Duke,--I have heard with the highest satisfaction by a + message from Sr George Lyttelton the effectual proofs of his + Majesty's great kindness and firm confidence in your Grace for the + conduct of his Government. You have certainly taken most wisely the + Province of the Treasury to yourself, where the powers of Government + reside, and which at this particular crisis of a General Election + may lay the foundations of the future political system so fast as + not to be shaken hereafter. But this will depend upon many + concomitant circumstances. For the present the nation may say with + consolation, _uno avulso non deficit alter aureus_. The power of the + Purse in the hands of the same family may, I trust, be so used as to + fix all other power there along with it. Amidst all the real + satisfaction I feel on this great measure so happily taken, it is + with infinite reluctance that I am forced to return to the + mortifying situation of your Grace's humblest servant and to add + some few considerations to those, which, I have the satisfaction to + learn from Sr George Lyttelton, had the honour to be receiv'd by + your Grace and my Lord Chancellor without disapprobation. The + difficulties grow so fast upon me by the repetition and + multiplication of most painfull and too visible humiliations that my + small store of prudence suggests no longer to me any means of + colouring them to the world; nor of repairing them to my own mind + consistently with my unshaken purpose to do nothing on any + provocation to disturb the quiet of the King and the ease and + stability of present and future Government. + + Permit, my Lord, a man, whose affectionate attachment to your Grace, + I believe, you don't doubt, to expose simply to your view his + situation, and then let me entreat your Grace (if you can divest + your mind of the great disparity between us) to transport yourself + for a moment into my place. From the time I had the honour to come + into the King's service, I have never been wanting in my most + zealous endeavours in Parliament on the points that laboured the + most, those of military discipline and foreign affairs; nor have I + differ'd on any whatever, but the too small number of seamen one + year, which was admitted to be so the next; and on a crying + complaint against General Anstruther: for these crimes how am I + punish'd? Be the want of subjects ever so great and the force of the + conjuncture ever so cogent, be my best friends and protectors ever + so much at the head of Government, an indelible negative is fixed + against my name. Since I had the honour to return that answer to the + Chancellor which Your Grace and his Lordship were pleas'd not to + disapprove, how have mortifications been multiply'd upon me. One + Chancellor of the Exchequer over me was at that time destin'd, Mr. + Fox: since that time a second, Mr. Legge, is fixt: a Secretary of + State is next to be look'd for in the House of Commons; Mr. Fox is + again put over me and destin'd to that office: he refuses the seals: + Sir Thomas Robinson is immediately put over me and is now in + possession of that great office. I sincerely think both these high + employments much better fill'd than I cou'd supply either of them in + many respects. Mr. Legge I truely and cordially esteem and love. Sir + Thos. Robinson, with whom I have not the honour to live in the same + intimacy, I sincerely believe to be a gentleman of much worth and + ability. Nevertheless I will venture to appeal to your Grace's + candour and justice whether upon such feeble pretensions as twenty + years' use of Parliament may have given me, I have not some cause to + feel (as I do most deeply) so many repeated and visible + humiliations. I have troubled your Grace so long on this painfull + subject that I may have nothing disagreeable to say, when I have + the honour to wait on you; as well as that I think it fit your + Grace shou'd know the whole heart of a faithfull servant, who is + conscious of nothing towards your Grace which he wishes to conceal + from you. In my degraded situation in parliament, an active part + there I am sure your Grace is too equitable to desire me to take; + for otherwise than as an associate and in equal rank with those + charg'd with Government there, I never can take such a part. + + I will confess I had flatter'd myself that the interests of your + Grace's own power were so concern'd to bring forward an instrument + of your own raising in the House of Commons that you cou'd not let + pass this decisive occasion without surmounting in the royal mind + the unfavourable impressions I have the unhappiness to be under; and + that the seals (at least when refus'd by Mr. Fox) might have been + destin'd as soon as an opening cou'd be made in the King's mind in + my favour instead of being immediately put into other hands. Things + standing as they do, whether I can continue in office without losing + myself in the opinion of the world is become a matter of very + painfull doubt to me. If any thing can colour with any air of + decency such an acquiescence, it can only be the consideration given + to my friends and some degree of softening obtain'd in his Majesty's + mind towards me. Mr Pelham destin'd Sir George Lyttelton to be + cofferer, whenever that office shou'd open, and there can be no + shadow of difficulty in Mr Grenville being made Treasurer of the + Navy. Weighed in the fair scale of usefulness to the King's business + in Parliament, they can have no competitors that deserve to stand in + their way. I have submitted these things to your Grace with a + frankness you had hitherto been so good to tolerate in me, however + inferior. I wou'd not have done it so fully for my own regard alone, + were I not certain that your Grace's interests are more concern'd in + it than mine: because I am most sure that my mind carries me more + strongly towards retreat than towards courts and business. Indeed, + My Lord, the inside of the House must be consider'd in other + respects besides merely numbers, or the reins of Government will + soon slip or be wrested out of any minister's hands. If I have + spoken too freely, I humbly beg your Grace's pardon: and entreat you + to impute my freedom to the most sincere and unalterable attachment + of a man who never will conceal his heart, and who can complain + without alienation of mind and remonstrate without resentment. + + I have the honour to be, etc. etc. + W. PITT. + + I cannot hope to leave Bath in less than a week. My health seems + much mended by my gout.[240] + + +This letter was enclosed to Lyttelton under flying seal to be +communicated to the Grenvilles. Pitt, writing the same day to Temple, +says: 'I hope my letter to the Duke of Newcastle will meet with the +fraternal approbation. It is strong, but not hostile, and will, I +believe, operate some effect. I am still more strongly fixed in my +judgement that the place of importance is employment, in the present +unsettled conjuncture. It may not to us be the place of dignity, but +sure I am it is that of the former. I see, as your Lordship does, the +treatment we have had: I feel it as deeply, but I believe, not so +warmly. I don't suffer my feelings to warp the only plan I can form that +has any tendency or meaning. For making ourselves felt, by disturbing +Government, I think would prove hurtful to the public, not reputable to +ourselves, and beneficial in the end, only to others. All Achilles as +you are, Impiger, Iracundus, etc., what would avail us to sail back a +few myrmidons to Thessaly! Go over to the Trojans, to be revenged, we +none of us can bear the thought of. What then remains? The conduct of +the much-enduring man, who by temper, patience, and persevering +prudence, became _adversis rerum immersabilis undis_.' + +He adds another postscript of caution: 'Be so good as not to leave my +letters in your pockets, but lock them up or burn them, and caution Sir +George to do the same.'[241] Secrecy was of the essence of his scheme. +Should Newcastle or the Chancellor understand the part that he designed +to play, they would have an advantage in the game. + +On April 2 Pitt writes to jog Newcastle's memory in a note about the +Aldborough election: 'I had expected to hear from you, but I know the +multiplicity of your business.'[242] He need not have feared that his +letter had been overlooked. So little was this the case that, no doubt +after anxious and protracted conferences, Newcastle and Hardwicke were +both writing to him on this very day long and elaborate apologies. +Hardwicke's is a document, as might be expected, of great but inadequate +skill.[243] It gives him much concern to find that Pitt is 'under +apprehensions of _some_ neglect on this decisive occasion.' He is not +altogether surprised. Could Pitt only have heard how warmly Hardwicke +pressed his claims! But there are certain things which ministers cannot +do directly. These must be left to 'time and incidents and perhaps +ill-judging opponents.' Fox's pressing for larger powers than the King +would give had no doubt helped the cause of Pitt, and Newcastle's being +at the head of the Government whose devotion to Pitt was so notorious +would further it still more. He concludes by hoping with sincerity that +Pitt would take an active part, though no doubt had he seen the +direction in which his wish was fulfilled, he would have withdrawn it +with greater emphasis. This stripped of verbiage seems the bone of this +long letter. + +Behind Hardwicke shuffles Newcastle. 'Feel for me,' he plaintively +exclaims, 'for my melancholy and distressed situation: compelled to +leave the department of which I was a master to one with which I was +entirely ignorant, exposed to envy and reproach, and sure of nothing but +the comfort of an honest heart.' It had first been suggested that Fox +should be Secretary of State to make Newcastle's elevation more +palatable to his opponents. But 'that for certain reasons did not take +place; upon which the King himself, of his own motion declared Sir +Thomas Robinson Secretary of State.' And this Pitt's friends thought the +best practicable arrangement. For though an excellent man for the +office, Robinson had not Parliamentary talents which could excite +jealousy, and as, from circumstances deeply lamented by Newcastle, 'it +was impossible to put one into that office who had all the necessary +qualifications both within and out of the House,' there seemed nothing +better to do than to appoint the inoffensive Sir Thomas. All +interspersed with copious assurances of love and affection. 'I honour, +esteem, and ... most sincerely love you.'[244] + +Pitt replies to Newcastle in a letter which it is necessary to print in +full from the original in the Newcastle Papers, for this is very +different from the draft printed in the Chatham Correspondence. + + + PITT TO NEWCASTLE. + + _Bath, 4 Apr. 1754._ + + My Lord Duke,--I was honour'd with your Grace's letter of ye 2nd + inst. yesterday evening. How shall I find words to express my sense + of the great condescension and kindness of expression with which it + is writ? It would be making but an ill return to so much goodness, + were I to go back far into the disagreeable subject that has + occasion'd your Grace so much trouble, and wou'd be tearing and + wounding your good nature to little purpose. Whatever my sensations + are, it is sufficient that I have once freely laid them before you, + and that your Grace has had the indulgence to pardon that freedom, + which I thought I used both to your Grace and myself. As for the + rest, my attachment shall be ever found as unalterable to Government + as my inability to be of any material use to it is become manifest + to all the world. I will enter again, but for a word or two, into a + subject your Grace shall be troubled no more with. It is most + obliging to suggest as consolations to me that I might have been + much more mortify'd under another management than under the present: + but I will freely own I shou'd have felt myself far less personally + humiliated, had Mr. Fox been placed by the King's favour at the head + of the House of Commons, than I am at present: in that case the + necessity wou'd have been apparent: the ability of the subject wou'd + in some degree have warranted the thing. I shou'd indeed have been + much mortify'd for your Grace and for my Lord Chancellor: very + little for my own particular. Cou'd Mr. Murray's situation have + allow'd him to be placed at the head of the House of Commons, I + shou'd have served under him with the greatest pleasure: I + acknowledge as much as the rest of the world do his superiority in + every respect. My mortification arises not from silly pride, but + from being evidently excluded by a negative personal to me (now and + for ever) flowing from a displeasure utterly irremovable. As to the + office of Chancellor of the Exchequer, I hope your Grace cannot + think me fill'd with so impertinent a vanity as to imagine it a + disparagement to me to serve under the Duke of Newcastle at the head + of the Treasury: but, my Lord, had I been proposed for that honour + and the King been once reconciled to the thought of me, my honour + wou'd have been saved and I shou'd with pleasure have declin'd the + charge in favour of Mr. Legge from a just regard to his Majesty's + service. I know my health, at best, is too precarious a thing to + expose his Majesty's affairs in Parliament to suffer delay, perhaps + in the middle of a session by being in such improper hands. As to + the other great office, many circumstances of it render an + uninterrupted health not so absolutely necessary to the discharge of + it. Were I to fail in it from want of health, or, what is still more + likely, from want of ability and a sufficient knowledge of foreign + affairs, a fitter person might at any time be substituted without + material inconvenience to publick business. To conclude, my Lord, + and to release your Grace from a troublesome correspondent, give me + leave to recur to your Grace's equity and candour: when the suffrage + of the party in one instance, and a higher nomination, the Royal + designation in another, operate to the eternal precluding of a man's + name being so much as brought in question, what reasonable wish can + remain for a man so circumstanced (under a first resolution, on no + account to disturb Government) but that of a decent retreat, a + retreat of respect, not resentment: of despair of being ever + accepted to equal terms with others, be his poor endeavours ever so + zealous. Very few have been the advantages and honours of my life: + but among the first of them I shall ever esteem the honour of your + Grace's good opinion: to that good opinion and protection I + recommend myself: and hope from it that some retreat, neither + disagreeable nor dishonourable, may (when practicable) be open'd to + me. I see with great joy Sr George Lyttelton and Mr. Grenville in + this arrangement, where they ought to be. I am persuaded they will + be of the greatest advantage to your Grace's system. They are both + connected in friendship with Mr. Legge and with Mr. Murray, who in + effect is the greatest strength of it in parliament. May every kind + of satisfaction and honour attend your Grace's labours for his + Majesty's service. I have the honour, etc. etc. + + W. PITT. + + I wrote your Grace by the Post ye 2nd inst. which I hope came to + your hands.'[245] + + +Two days afterwards he answered Hardwicke. In this letter the notable +passage is that in which he points to retreat, having in his mind, it +would seem, some specific office:--'The weight of irremovable royal +displeasure is a load too great to move under; it must crush any man; it +has sunk and broken me. I succumb, and wish for nothing but a decent and +innocent retreat.... To speak without a figure I will presume ... to +tell my utmost wish; it is that a retreat, not void of advantage or +derogatory to the rank of the office I hold, might, as soon as +practicable, be opened to me.... Out of his Grace's (Newcastle's) +immediate province accommodations of this kind arise.'[246] + +By the same messenger Pitt wrote to Lyttelton one of the terse notes +which throw a hundredfold more light on his real temper than his more +pompous lucubrations, and which are infinitely more readable than the +long rigmaroles which he wrote to official persons. He professes in this +to be more than satisfied with Newcastle's answer, and also with the +Chancellor's. + + + ... The Duke of Newcastle's letter to me is not only in a temper + very different from what you saw his Grace in, but is writ with a + condescension, and in terms so flattering, that it pains me. I am + almost tempted to think there is kindness at the bottom of it, + _which, if left to itself, would before now have shewed itself_ in + effects. If I have not the fruit, I have the leaves of it in + abundance; a beautiful foliage of fine words.... The Chancellor's + letter is the most condescending, friendly, obliging thing that can + be imagined. I have the deepest sense of his goodness for me; but I + am really compelled, by every reason fit for a man to listen to, to + resist (as to the point of activity in Parliament) farther than I + like to do. I have intimated retreat and pointed out such a one in + general as I shall really like. Resolved not to disturb Government; + I desire to be released from the oar of Parliamentary drudgery. I am + (un)willing[247] to sit there and be ready to be called out into + action when the Duke of Newcastle's personal interests might + require, or Government should deign to employ me as an instrument. I + am not fond of making speeches (though some may think I am). I never + cultivated the talent, but as an instrument of action in a country + like ours....[248] + + +The places were now all filled: the Government was made up: Pitt was +excluded and proscribed. Fox or Murray, he admitted, might reasonably be +put over his head. But the promotion of Robinson was a personal outrage. +So he would no longer sit in Parliament as a subordinate and almost a +creature of Newcastle's, member for one of his boroughs, Paymaster in +his administration. Pitt was now determined to be free. He would remain +out of London, and they might see how they got on without him. When he +did return to London they should realise what they had lost. Meanwhile +he would occupy himself with a little architecture and a little +gardening; all that he was fit for, as he would assure inquirers with +obsequious sarcasm. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + + +In the meantime all had been settled by hasty arrangements in London. +Owing to Newcastle's 'overwhelming affliction,' Hardwicke tells us that +he himself was compelled to step forward as a 'kind of minister _ab +aratro_,' and make the necessary arrangements. A faint offer of the +Treasury was made to the Duke of Devonshire, which he wisely declined, +and, six days after the death of Pelham, Newcastle, in spite of his +overwhelming affliction, was proclaimed his successor. We do not doubt +Newcastle's sorrow, for in his own way he loved his brother and had +divided his patrimony with him; but it is even more certain that the +Chancellor acted as his watch-dog in front of the Treasury. For the +Duke, though his timidity was a standing jest, could not bear that any +one else should obtain the rich prize which he coveted and dreaded. And, +in truth, if that was his view, no one could controvert it, for his +power in the House of Commons was obvious and undeniable. The King seems +to have made no trouble. He said that he had an open mind, and would be +guided by the opinion of the Cabinet as to the nomination of their new +chief. The suggestion shocked Hardwicke. 'To poll in a Cabinet Council +for his first minister, which should only be settled in his closet, I +could by no means digest.' So Hardwicke, with remarkable expedition, +took care that the Closet, which was the term used to denote the King's +personal apartment and so his personal authority, should pronounce in +favour of Newcastle. But the Closet was guided by the Cabinet in spite +of Hardwicke's scruples; and the Cabinet, a facile caucus, inspired by +Hardwicke himself, represented to the King as its unanimous opinion that +Newcastle should be their chief. Horace Walpole tells us that it was 'to +the astonishment of all men.' To us it seems the only natural solution. +Hardwicke had declared that a peer must be placed at the head of the +Treasury. 'That peer must be somebody of great figure and credit in the +nation, in whom the Whigs will have great confidence.' He was no doubt +painting the figure to represent Newcastle. But who else could it be? +Newcastle was the head of the Whigs, the master of Parliament, Secretary +of State for a generation, and the brother of the late First Minister. +The House of Commons, moreover, consisted mainly of his creatures. His +nomination to the premiership was easy and simple enough. But a +formidable difficulty at once presented itself. Who should lead the +House of Commons? It was not that there was a dearth of capable men; on +the contrary, there was a terrible embarrassment of riches; for there +were Fox, Pitt, and Murray, all men of the first eminence in their +lines. Murray at once let it be known that his views lay in another +direction; in any case, he was a Scotsman, which was little +recommendation, and suspected of being a Jacobite, which was less. But +Fox was on the spot, and, though distracted with anxiety for his child +Charles, who lay dangerously ill,[249] prompt, vigilant, and eager. +Within a few hours of Pelham's death he had sent three humble messages +of apology to Hardwicke, with whom he was on terms of bitter enmity, +made energetic advances to Newcastle, and had called at Pitt's London +house. Soon afterwards he was closeted with Lord Hartington. It was +obvious that no considerations of delicacy would stand in his way. But +there were strong prejudices against him. Hardwicke feared his success, +for they had quarrelled mortally. He belonged, said the Chancellor, 'to +a very narrow clique, many of them of the worst sort.' His claims rested +on his abilities, but even more on the friendship of the Duke of +Cumberland; perhaps, too, on a presumed pliability. + +Pitt was absent, and had the proverbial fate of the absent; he was not +merely distant, but could not be moved. He had been nearly a year +secluded in the country out of the atmosphere of London and politics. +Horace Walpole describes him epigrammatically in a letter written on the +stirring day after Pelham's death: 'Pitt has no health, no party, and +has what in _this_ case is allowed to operate, the King's negative.' On +the other hand, the King had a prepossession for Fox; and the Cabinet, +we are told, when it recommended Newcastle, unanimously named Fox as the +proper person to be Secretary of State and manager of the House of +Commons. What wonder then that Newcastle's choice fell on Fox, who at +any rate could not be fobbed off by stories of the King's insurmountable +repugnance and who was the favourite of the King's favourite son? The +Chancellor sent his son-in-law, Lord Anson, to Fox with an olive-branch. +Lady Yarmouth acted as a friendly means of communication between Fox +and the King. Lord Hartington acted as the honest broker. Fox was given +the management of the House of Commons, with the Secretaryship of State +vacant by Newcastle's elevation. He was at once led by Hartington, like +a votive lamb, to the Chancellor, with whom a reconciliation was +concluded. Thence he was conducted to Newcastle, who received him, we +need not doubt, with his customary effusion, probably with a kiss. All +went well till the Secret Service money was mentioned. This Newcastle +said he should distribute as his brother had done, without telling +anybody anything. Then came the question of patronage. That also was to +be reserved to Newcastle alone. Lastly, there was the list of nominees +for ministerial boroughs at the approaching General Election. This +Newcastle also declined to divulge. In the evening Newcastle sent for +Hartington. He did not deny that he had broken his engagements, but +simply declared that he would not stand by them. He 'confirmed not his +promise but his breach of promise in these words: "Who desires Mr. Fox +to be answerable for anybody but himself in the House of Commons?" I +then,' continues Fox, 'was to take this great office on the footing of +being quite a cypher, and being known to have been told so.'[250] + +Newcastle had always intended this and nothing else. As Hardwicke +judiciously wrote, two days before Newcastle saw Fox: 'If the power of +the Treasury, the Secret Service and the House of Commons is once well +settled in safe hands, the office of Secretary of State of the Southern +province will carry very little efficient power along with it.' Fox was +to be Secretary for the Southern province. But the Duke's plan of +campaign had the radical defect of making the post of manager +impossible. For the difference between the modern term of 'leadership' +and the denomination of 'management' was no mere verbal distinction. The +House of Commons had to be managed by acts of a kind more material than +the eloquence of a chief, or the seductive hints of whips. The leader, +in fact, combined the leadership with the office of Patronage Secretary. +'The House of Commons must have,' as Fox explained on a subsequent +occasion, 'at least one man in it who shall be the organ of His +Majesty's parliamentary wishes, and known to be able to help or hurt +people with His Majesty.'[251] The leader would not know how to talk to +his followers, when some might be hirelings and some free, without his +knowing which were which. He would not be able to promise a borough or a +place. He would be a mere speaking automaton with a wary old chief in +concealment working the machine. Fox saw that he was cheated. He himself +seems to have clung for a moment even to the shadow of office which +Newcastle had proffered. But his friends insisted on his refusal. So on +the next day or the next day but one, he wrote a curt letter, stating +that the assurances conveyed to him through Lord Hartington had been +entirely contradicted by Newcastle at their interview, and that he +preferred to remain Secretary at War. 'I remain therefore,' he wrote to +Marlborough, 'a little little man, which I think is better than a little +great man.'[252] But he soon repented, or his friends did for him.[253] + +Newcastle cared little for the charge of breach of faith. He had kept +his patronage, and, as he thought, silenced Fox, who remained Secretary +at War. In a hysterical condition he hurried to kiss hands for his new +office. He flung himself at the King's feet, sobbing out 'God bless your +Majesty! God preserve your Majesty!' embracing the royal knees with such +howls of adoration that the lord-in-waiting had to beg the other +courtiers to retire and not watch 'a great man in distress;' then, in +the zeal of discretion, attempting to shut the door on the tittering +crowd, he jammed the new Minister's foot till genuine roars of physical +pain drowned the more artificial clamour.[254] Having recovered himself +after this characteristic performance, Newcastle betook himself without +delay to the choice of his heart, the man whom he had always longed for +as a colleague, even at the time when he had been seeking a successor to +Bedford, an obscure diplomatist, Sir Thomas Robinson. 'Had I,' he had +written in September 1750, 'to chuse for the King, the public, and +myself, I would prefer Sir Thomas Robinson to any man living. I know he +knows more and would be more useful to the country and me than any other +can be.' This opinion seems to have been confined to the Duke himself. +Horace Walpole writing at the moment says:--'The German Sir Thomas +Robinson was thought on for the Secretary's seals; but has just sense +enough to be unwilling to accept them under so ridiculous an +administration. This is the first act of the comedy.' But in the second +act Sir Thomas's good sense was unequal even to this strain, and he +accepted the post. Under what hallucination he laboured, or whether he +was merely beguiled by the fawning caresses of Newcastle, it is +difficult to say. The fact remains that he undertook to lead the House +of Commons, seated between Pitt and Fox, whom he knew to be malcontents, +and capable of anything. His own parliamentary powers were in the egg +(for he had never spoken), and were never destined to be hatched. At the +time of his appointment as Secretary of State he was Master of the Great +Wardrobe, a congenial post which he was destined during the next year to +resume. For in his new capacity he justified the anticipations of his +enemies, and disturbed the equanimity of his friends. Newcastle himself +had recommended the appointment to Pitt's benevolent consideration on +the very ground that he could not excite the rivalry of existing +orators. He 'had not those parliamentary talents which could give +jealousy or in that light set him above the rest of the King's +servants.' But the reality was far below these modest anticipations. Sir +Thomas was not merely ineffectual and feeble, but would attempt on +occasion agonising flights of eloquence. Posterity is spared the perusal +of these, for Parliamentary history records no word of this unhappy +leader. 'Sir Thomas,' says Lord Waldegrave, 'though a good Secretary of +State, as far as the business of his office and that which related to +foreign affairs, was ignorant even of the language of an House of +Commons controversy; and when he played the orator, which he too +frequently attempted, it was so exceedingly ridiculous that those who +loved and esteemed him could not always preserve a friendly composure of +countenance.' This partly arose from his appearance. He was a large +unwieldy man, and would in debate put his arms straight out, which made +George Selwyn compare him to a signpost.[255] + +Such was Sir Thomas; who was to allay the warring elements, to appease +the Titans and the Giants, to hold the scales between Fox and Pitt. Let +us, while contemplating this grievous and pathetic spectacle, at least +take comfort that we have arrived at the priceless narrative of Lord +Waldegrave, a man not brilliant, but shrewd and honest, who guides us +past the waspish partiality of Horace Walpole, the bitterness of Glover, +and the corrupt cynicism of Dodington with a light which we feel to be +the lamp of truth. Newcastle, delighted with the consent of Sir Thomas, +and with the apparent acquiescence of Fox, hastened to complete his +arrangements with the squalid instinct of a jobber. Fox was, he thought, +muzzled; the formidable task remained of silencing Pitt. He could not +satisfy Pitt directly, for that would imply overwhelming difficulties +with the King, and perhaps with Fox; but he might give indirect +satisfaction, and detach some of Pitt's little section. In this last +attempt he succeeded. Pitt's friend Legge was made Chancellor of the +Exchequer, the King only making the same condition that he had with +regard to Pitt himself, that he was never to receive the new minister. +It is said, indeed, by Horace Walpole that his mean appearance and +uncouth dialect made him unsuitable for such audiences, and that he +would have preferred to remain Treasurer of the Navy, the lucrative post +which had so great a fascination for Bubb. George Grenville, one of the +Cobham Cousinhood, succeeded Legge in this attractive office; George +Lyttelton, another, became Cofferer, with his brother as Sub-Cofferer; +'it is a good L2200 per annum, all taxes deducted,'[256] writes George +of his new post in the fulness of his heart; and, according to Horace +Walpole, in the exuberance of his satisfaction with that office, he +vouched for Pitt's acquiescence in the new arrangements. Newcastle +himself presented these appointments to Pitt with a satisfaction not +unalloyed with melancholy presentiments. 'The appointment of Mr. Legge +was made,' he writes, 'with a view to please all our friends. We knew he +was well with the old corps, we knew he was happy in your friendship, +and in your good opinion and in that of your connection; _and you must +allow me to say, that I never could have thought one moment of removing +you, in the high light which you so justly stand, from the office you +now possess to be Chancellor of the Exchequer with another person at the +head of the Treasury_.'[257] + +It is perhaps scarcely necessary to explain that the italics are not the +Duke's, but it seemed necessary to give emphasis to so daring a flight. + +'These dispositions being thus made,' he continues, 'it was my first +view to show you that regard in the person of your friends, which it was +impossible to do in your own, to the degree which you might reasonably +expect. The two first vacant offices, that of Treasurer of the Navy and +Cofferer, were by my recommendation given to your two first friends, Mr. +Grenville and Sir George Lyttelton,' etc. etc. 'Legge at the Exchequer, +unsuitable for you, two of your friends as Cofferer and Treasurer'; +these were the sedatives timidly launched to Pitt, gnashing his teeth +at Bath over his own impotence and the desertion of his friends. So may +a despairing traveller have attempted to assuage with a few casual +comfits the hunger of a Bengal tiger crouching for a spring. + +Pitt controlled himself. We have seen his reply[258] to Newcastle's +shuffling apologies. He continued to write to Lyttelton, but with less +cordiality. To George Grenville he wrote a tepid note of congratulation. +To Temple, who had been omitted from the arrangements, he addressed +himself more cordially, and sent the portrait for which he had been +sitting to Hoare. It represents no formidable orator, but a simpering +man of the world; yet, after the fashion of mankind, who secretly +cherish the portraits least like themselves, Pitt commended the +resemblance. But he took occasion to add a phrase which reveals the full +bitterness of his heart. 'In this portrait,' he writes, 'I shall have +had the honour to present myself before you in my very person; not only +from the great likeness of the portrait, but, moreover, that I have no +right to pretend to any other existence than that of a man en peinture.' +The wrath pierces through the confused sentence like a sudden sting: it +is not often indulged, but it cannot be wholly suppressed. + +Soon afterwards (May 1754) Temple and his brother George paid Pitt a +flying visit at Bath, where no doubt explanations were exchanged and +plans concerted. For, putting Pitt on one side, the Minister knew little +of human nature who could think that he would conciliate Temple by +promoting his brother George. + +In June 1754, Pitt at length left Bath and arrived in London. He had +now been fourteen months absent from the metropolis. In the meantime he +had been chosen for Newcastle's borough of Aldborough at the General +Election in the previous April, a somewhat embarrassing connection under +existing circumstances; though embarrassments of this kind are apt to be +less irksome in politics than they may appear. And Pitt wrote to thank +the Duke in terms of Oriental submission. 'I thank you for writing to +tell me of the great honour you have done me at Aldborough, for which +seat I declined the offer of many others, being anxious to be known as +your servant.' With whatever grimace Pitt may have written this, it +strikes one as carrying the joke too far.[259] + +But when he returned to London in June, he no longer affected to conceal +his discontent. His complaints were obvious and well founded enough. He +had not been consulted, but had only been informed. Nor was the +information calculated to gratify him. He had been told at first that +Fox, whom Bubb at this time calls Pitt's 'inveterate enemy,' had been +offered the seals; then by the next post that Fox had refused them and +that they had been accepted by Robinson. The excuse had then been +tendered that Pitt's health would not allow him to accept an office of +so much business and fatigue; to which he had replied that he himself +should be the best judge of that. He ought at least to have been offered +the Exchequer, which had been given to the underling Legge.[260] The +King in any case should have been reconciled to him. When he saw the new +minister Newcastle asked him his opinion of the arrangements. This Pitt +at first refused to give, but on being pressed declared that 'your Grace +may be surprised, but I think Mr. Fox should have been at the head of +the House of Commons.' He met Fox. They had mutual explanations, and no +doubt assurances of common vengeance to exchange. For Fox was as loud in +complaint as Pitt. 'Nothing,' he wrote, 'can be more contemptuous than +the usage I receive.'[261] + +Parliament had risen, so Pitt, after settling the arrears in his office, +went back to the country. Early in September we find him at Astrop +Wells. On October 2 he called on Newcastle with reference to some +business in his office. Bubb's account of this interview is well known. +When they had settled the business which had brought Pitt, the Duke +wished to enter on affairs in North America, where things were looking +black, and Washington, then a major, had been compelled to surrender to +the French at Fort Necessity. 'Your Grace,' said Pitt, 'knows I have no +capacity for such things,' and declined to discuss them.[262] Newcastle, +who, the same day, wrote an account of the interview to Hardwicke, makes +no mention of this incident. And yet it is too good, too Pitt-like, not +to be true. We can reconcile the two statements by presuming that it was +what an opening is to a game of chess, and that Pitt, having enjoyed his +sarcasm, could not resist the appeal of military plans. 'I then +acquainted him with what was designed for North America, and also with +my Lord Granville's notions, which had not been followed. He talked up +the affair of North America very highly--that it must be supported in +all events and at all risks--that the Duke's scheme was a very good one +as far as it went--that it might do something: that it did not go near +far enough--that he could not help agreeing with my Lord Granville--that +he was for doing both, sending the regiments and raising some thousand +men in America--that we should do it once for all--that it was not to be +done by troops from Europe--that mere France would be too strong for +us--that we should have soon to countenance the Americans, &c.--that the +Duke's proposals for artillery, &c., were infinitely too short. This +discourse, joined with Lord Anson's opinion, has made me suspend at +least the stopping the orders for the raising two regiments, &c., and +for providing all the artillery promised by the Duke.'[263] + +What a scene of confusion! Here are three stages revealed: the orders, +the stopping the orders, the suspending the stopping the orders! Pitt, +it is evident, though beginning with a refusal, ended by speaking with +authority. + +Hardwicke, however, who had made a merit to Pitt of having sustained his +claim to be Secretary, waxed suspicious on receiving Newcastle's letter. +'I am glad,' he replies, 'your Grace has talked to Mr. Pitt upon these +measures. As he expressed himself so zealously and sanguinely for them, +I hope he will support them in Parliament, and I dare say your Grace did +not omit the opportunity of pressing that upon him. There is something +remarkable in that gentleman's taking a measure of the Duke's so +strongly to heart, and arguing even to carry it further. I think that +sett used to be against warlike measures.'[264] + +Suspicion tainted every political breeze. The vigilant celibates in +Cranford did not keep a closer watch on their neighbours' proceedings +than did the public men of those days on each other. The mere fact of +Pitt's commending a project of Cumberland, his former enemy, at once +implied to Hardwicke that he was in harmony and understanding with Fox, +Cumberland's right-hand man. And indeed Bubb assures us that this was +the case. Fox and Pitt were agreed as to the division of the spoils, +when spoils there should be. Fox was to be head of the Treasury and Pitt +Secretary of State; 'but neither will assist the other.' + +All this came to nothing, and therefore need not detain us now; for Pitt +was occupied with something far more vital to him than Fox, or +Newcastle, or the distant echoes of American warfare. He had come up +from Wotton, the residence of George Grenville, where in the last days +of September he had plighted his troth to Lady Hester Grenville, the +sister of the Grenvilles, and he was now hurrying back to join her at +Stowe. The engagement was in some respects remarkable. Pitt was now +forty-six and Lady Hester was thirty-three. When Pitt first went to +Stowe in 1735 she was fourteen, and in the nineteen years that had +elapsed they must have seen each other constantly. How was it then that +the cripple of forty-six suddenly flung away his crutches to throw +himself at the feet of this mature young lady? It seems inexplicable, +but love affairs are often inexplicable. And we know little or nothing +of Pitt's loves. Except the childish passage at Besancon, there is only +the statement of Horace Walpole, a spiteful gossip if ever there was +one, that Lady Archibald Hamilton had lost the affections of Frederick +Prince of Wales by giving him Pitt as a rival.[265] This lacks +confirmation and even probability. Were it true, it might be a clue to +phases of Pitt's connection with Leicester House. He seems, too, as we +have seen in a letter of Lyttelton's, to have had a tenderness for +Lyttelton's sister Molly. Then there was another Molly, Molly West, with +whom, it is said, he had been in love, the sister of his friend Gilbert, +who afterwards married Admiral Hood, Lord Bridport. Want of means, we +are told, prevented their union. But the authority for this is unknown +to us.[266] + +This much at least is certain, that no man ever had a nobler or more +devoted wife. She survived him to witness the glories and almost the +death of her second son, dying in April 1808. At Orwell there is a +picture of her by Gainsborough, painted in 1747, dressed in white with +jewels, with a pleasant rather than a beautiful face. There is another +portrait at Chevening painted in 1750, which represents her with auburn +hair, a long upper lip, and a nose slightly turned up; comely and +intelligent, but no more. Mrs. Montagu rather confirms this impression: +'I believe Lady Hester Grenville is very good-humoured, which is the +principal article in the happiness of the Marriage State. Beauty soon +grows familiar to the lover,'[267] and so forth; from which we may infer +that Lady Hester was not at any rate a reigning toast. Her appearances +are rare but full of tenderness; she watched over her husband with +exquisite devotion; furthering and anticipating his wishes, which were +often fanciful and extravagant; shielding his moments of nervous +prostration with the wings of an angel. On her rested often, if not +always, the care of his affairs, often, if not always, disordered, and +all the burdens of household management. For many months she was his +sole channel of communication with the outer world. The wives of +statesmen are not invariably successful, though they are generally +devoted; but none was ever more absorbed in her high but harassing duty. +In all the bitterness of that bitter time, when her husband seemed +surrounded by implacable enmities, no one found a word to say against +her. Pitt's choice seems to have been as wise as it was deliberate. + +Camelford, from whom the worst interpretation can always be obtained, +says: 'His marriage was unexpected. He was no longer young, and his +infirmities made him older than his years, when, upon a visit to Mr. +Grenville at Wotton, Lady Hester made an impression upon him that was +the more extraordinary as she was by no means new to him. The first +hints he gave of his intentions were eagerly seized by her, saying she +should be unworthy the honour he proposed to her if she could hesitate a +moment in accepting it. With a very common understanding and totally +devoid of tenderness, or of any feeling but pride and ambition, she +contrived to make herself a good wife to him by a devotion and +attachment that knew no bounds. She lived only in his glory, and that +vanity absorbed every other idea of her mind. She was his nurse, his +flatterer, his housekeeper and steward, and, though her talent was by no +means economy, yet she could submit to any privation that would gratify +his wants or his caprices. If he loved anyone it must be her who had no +love but for him, or rather for his reputation. Yet I saw no sacrifices +on his part for her ease and quiet or to the essential comforts of her +life.' + +As to Lady Hester's having a 'very common understanding' and being +'totally devoid of tenderness' we need not rest on tradition, though +that is all the other way; for the superiority of her understanding and +her tenderness are amply proved by the admirable letters published from +the Pretyman Papers by Lord Ashbourne; and her devotion to her husband +is attested by Camelford himself. How he became acquainted with the +details of courtship, usually mysterious enough, and in those days more +veiled than in these, we need not trouble to inquire. When it took place +Pitt was taking time which he could ill spare to write letters of +anxious and affectionate solicitude to Camelford at Cambridge, and +receiving in return the most unbounded assurances of grateful devotion. + +Pitt's love letters, alas! survive; the treasures of his wife, but the +despair of posterity. That a great genius presumably in love should send +such stilted, pompous, artificial documents as tokens of his passion to +the object of his affections is one of the mysteries of brain and heart. +They are as wretched in their way as the letters of Burns to Clarinda, +and shall not be quoted here. + +Having paid his betrothed a flying visit at Stowe, the blithe bridegroom +had as usual to proceed to Bath, where he remained a fortnight inditing +these execrable epistles of rhetorical affection. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + + +[Sidenote: 1754.] + +On November 14, the very day of the opening of Parliament, Pitt brought +forward a bill for the relief of the Chelsea Pensioners, who, from +receiving their pensions a year in arrear, fell inextricably into the +hands of usurers. He was in haste to perform this useful duty, for on +November 16 he was married by special licence to Lady Hester at Argyll +Buildings, Dr. Ayscough officiating; and Solomon and Esther, as Lady +Townshend called them, thence departed for the honeymoon to West's house +of Wickham in Kent. That interval of seclusion did not last long, but it +would seem to have effected a striking transformation. The marriage +marks a new ascent in Pitt's career; love seemed to have transformed +him; always powerful and eloquent, he became sublime. Into his former +qualities there had passed an inspiration kindred to the divine passion +which makes the poet. The timid warblers of the grove, as he was +afterwards to call them, the politicians who sought quiet lives and safe +places, the arch-jobber himself who had for years deluded him, were in +an instant to realise that a new terror was added to life. For on +November 25 he was once more in the House of Commons. At this time, just +before or just after the meeting of Parliament, he had come to open +words with Newcastle. The Duke had offered the usual palliatives. +'Fewer words, if you please, my Lord,' replied Pitt contemptuously, 'for +your words have long lost all weight with me.' Fox had said much the +same to Newcastle in March. The new Minister had therefore been grossly +insulted by the two first men in the House of Commons. He must have felt +that there were menacing symptoms in the political horizon. It is +strange, therefore, to find Walpole writing that, as 'Newcastle had +secured by employments almost every material speaker in Parliament,' it +was hoped that the session might pass in settling election +petitions.[268] + +It seems incredible that the Duke can have so flattered himself. But no +doubt he relied on two main considerations. One was that, though +official discipline was then incomparably more lax than now, it was +scarcely possible for Pitt or Fox to mean mischief so long as they kept +their places, and these they had not resigned. The other was this. The +General Election had just been conducted under his auspices, and had +returned a House of Commons devoted to himself. Indeed in all England +there were only forty-two contests. In some Continental countries a +general election always returns a ministerial majority; there are +mysteries connected with the proceeding of which only ministers have the +key. This to some extent was the case in England at this period; and no +Secretary of the Treasury, no Martin or Robinson, understood his +particular business better than Newcastle. But whatever his illusions, +they were soon destined to be disturbed, for on November 25 Pitt opened +fire on him. Of that famous scene and outburst we are fortunate enough +to possess two brilliant descriptions: one by Horace Walpole, and one, +even more graphic, which has the additional value of being written by +Pitt's rival, Henry Fox. Fox, writing in a white heat of generous +admiration, describes it summarily as 'the finest speech that ever Pitt +spoke, and perhaps the most remarkable.' This last epithet was probably +due to the fact that the speech was apparently made on the spur of the +moment. The occasion was one of those election petitions on which the +Duke had relied as a sedative and a pastime for his faithful Commons. +Wilkes, the pleasant, worthless demagogue, who was afterwards to cause +so much trouble, had petitioned against the return of Delaval, the +sitting member for Berwick. Delaval had defended his seat in a speech +full of wit and buffoonery, which kept the House in a roar of laughter; +much the same speech, one would guess, that Pitt himself had delivered +on the proceedings at his own election for Seaford when those were +attacked. But to-day he was in a different mood, and, as the debate +proceeded, came down from the gallery where he was seated, and +intervened with a frown. He was 'astonished to hear this merriment when +such a matter was concerned. Was the dignity of the House on so sure a +foundation that we could afford to shake it with scoffs?' In an instant +the House was cowed into silence, like schoolboys found in fault by +their master. You could have heard a pin drop as he continued. + +'Had it not, on the contrary, been diminishing for years, till now we +were brought to the very brink of a precipice where, if ever, a stand +must be made? Were we ourselves within the House to try and lessen that +dignity when such attacks were made upon it from without that it was +almost lost? On the contrary, it wanted support, for it was scarcely +possible to recover it.' He appealed to the Speaker (Onslow) with +profuse compliments, for the Speaker only could restore it--yet scarcely +even he. Then he eloquently adjured all Whigs to rally and unite in +defence of their liberties, which were attacked, nay, dying, 'unless,' +he passionately added, 'you will degenerate into a little assembly +serving no other purpose than to register the arbitrary edicts of _one_ +too-powerful _subject_;' laying an emphasis on the words 'one' and +'subject' that might well send a shudder to the soul of Newcastle, when +the echo should reach him. He ended by a recapitulation as to 'our being +likely to become an appendix to--I know not what: I have no name for +it.' 'All,' adds Fox, 'whether pleased or displeased, declare this speech +to be the finest that ever was made.'[269] The effect of this sudden +menace in the midst of the Duke's comfortable arrangements to appease +and silence everybody, was appalling. It came with the shattering effect +of a shell, and a shell falling in some quiet picnic. The Ministers were +in consternation; every member sat confounded. Murray, pale and +miserable, shrunk his head in silence. Wilkes used to narrate his dread, +as he heard the awful tone of Pitt's exordium, lest the thunder that he +saw was gathering should fall on him. Never, he said, when at +Westminster School had he felt greater terror when summoned for a +flogging, never when let off a greater relief than on this occasion; +terror when uncertain where the bolt would fall, relief when he found it +was destined for another.[270] Fox himself only came in as Pitt was +finishing, just in time to witness the devastation which had been +caused. Legge, on the part of the Government, had to rise and humbly +deprecate the wrath of the orator. + +Pitt allowed no respite. On the same evening a discussion arose as to +the dates on which the various petitions would be taken. That relating +to Reading was fixed for a particular day, and that for Colchester on a +day soon afterwards. Pitt moved the postponement of the Colchester +petition; as the Reading one would take time, and concerned a noble +lord, Lord Fane, for whom he had a particular regard. A malignant fate +here tempted the new Secretary of State to a needless and unhappy +intervention. He declared that the Reading petition would be a short +case, and, so far as concerned the sitting member, a poor case; that +Lord Fane had only a majority of one. + +This gave Pitt his opportunity, and he soundly trounced the unfortunate +Minister. What did Sir Thomas know about it? It was ignorant presumption +to lay down the law about a case which had not been heard. If this was +the method of the Minister, there would be short work with elections. He +himself had little thought to see so melancholy a day as this, but he +was not to be taught his duty by Sir Thomas or any one else. Sir Thomas +replied, 'with pomp, confusion, and warmth,' to deprecate the misleading +effects of mere eloquence. He hoped that words would not be allowed more +than their due weight. For his own part, he was performing the duties of +an office which he had never desired. Pitt in his rejoinder affected to +believe this last statement, with the unkind commentary that if anybody +else had wished for the post, Sir Thomas would not have had it. Then, +artfully cooling down, he showed that he was only aiming at Newcastle, +for he professed the highest respect for Sir Thomas with this cruel, +backhand blow at the Duke, 'that he thought him, Sir Thomas, as able as +any man that had of late years filled that office, or was likely to fill +it.' Fox could no longer resist joining in the sport of baiting his +hapless leader. He also could only explain and excuse Sir Thomas's +pronouncing hastily and summarily on a case which he had not heard by +his long residence abroad, and by his consequent and total inexperience +of parliamentary matters. + +It was clear that neither of the formidable lieutenants was in the least +appeased, or likely to contribute to the tranquillity of the session. +Still it was also clear that the members of the House were loyal to +Newcastle and his deputy, and that they were not moved from their +allegiance by the oratory to which they had listened. But when the +display was over, the frightened ministerialists gathered into small +groups whispering their terrors to each other. Pitt's fury breaking out +at this moment might be due, thought Fox, in some measure to accident. +'But break out I knew it would. And the Duke of Newcastle may thank +himself for the violence of it (he) having ... owned to Pitt that he had +acquainted the King with part of their last conversation; adding, like +an idiot, "to do you good, to do you good," and that he had not +mentioned that part which could do him harm.'[271] We do not know what +is the interview to which this refers; it can hardly be that which +occurred at the beginning of October in which Pitt had said, 'Your +Grace, I suppose, knows that I have no capacity for such things.' So we +are at a loss to know the immediate cause of Pitt's outbreak, though no +divination is required to know that ever since Pelham's death he had +been explosive. + +Nothing can better illustrate the extraordinary power which Newcastle +wielded in the House of Commons than the dumb terrified fidelity of the +great majority who clung to his knees in spite of the attacks of Pitt +and Fox. Hapless majority! They had neither voice nor faith; they +despised almost equally their nominal chief Robinson, and their real +chief Newcastle; so they huddled together for warmth and sympathy. And +this was a House of Commons produced by a general election carried on +under the auspices of a consummate manipulator and by long years of +cozening, patronage, and corruption. The success had been complete, a +devoted and passive majority had been returned, and this was the result. +It was a strange and instructive spectacle. This docile flock was +shepherdless, it was not thought to need any superintendence, it had +only to receive its instructions from Newcastle through the channel of +some such agent as Robinson. What Newcastle thought well to give, it was +prepared gladly to take. Could Minister want more? Yet, before the +session was a fortnight old, Newcastle was to learn, but not completely, +the futility of such a scheme of government. He had promised the King +that the new House of Commons would need no leader, that indeed the +position of leader of the House of Commons was both dangerous in power +and superfluous in practice. He was yet to learn that there was +something more formidable; a ship without captain or helmsman, and two +loose cannon banging about at large. + +For, two days after the annihilation of Robinson, Pitt again took the +field, this time against Murray, the most formidable antagonist that he +ever had to face after the resignation of Walpole. It was on the vote +for the army. Barrington and Nugent had made fulsome speeches, dwelling +on the popularity of the King and the Ministry, declaring, indeed, that +there were no Jacobites in England. People, said Nugent, sometimes +reared those whom they thought would be Jacobites, but who turned out +very differently. So had he seen in his rural retirement a hen, which +had hatched duck's eggs, watch with apprehension her nurslings betake +themselves to the water. Pitt rose and declared with solemn pleasantry +that this image had greatly struck him, 'for, sir, I know of such a +hen.' The hen, it appeared, was the University of Oxford. This, we +think, in its demure unexpectedness, is the best stroke of humour in all +his speeches. But he begged the House not to be sure that all she +hatched would ever entirely forget what she had taught them. Then +followed an innuendo at old Horace Walpole which is immaterial and +obscure. Sir Roger Newdigate, whose name is still cherished by budding +poets, rose, as member for the University, to make a meek defence. Pitt +rose again, and told 'inimitably' the story of a recent adventure at +Oxford. He was with a party at the Angel Inn, one of whom was asked to +sing 'God save Great George our King' (one can hardly imagine that it +was Pitt who called for this). The chorus was re-echoed by +undergraduates outside who had been attracted by the song, 'but with +additions of the rankest treason.' Then walking down the High Street he +examined a print in a shop window of a young Highlander in a blue +ribbon, and was shocked to read the motto _Hunc saltem everso Juvenem_. +This Latin prayer was a flagrant proof of the disloyalty of that learned +body. 'In both speeches every word was _Murray_; yet so managed that +neither he nor anybody else could or did take public notice of it, or in +any degree reprehend him. I,' it is Henry Fox who speaks, 'sate next +Murray, _who suffered for an hour_.'[272] Two episodes seem to attach +themselves to this terrible onslaught. One is the famous and dramatic +menace. Fixing his eyes on Murray the orator paused and proceeded: 'I +must now address a few words to Mr. Solicitor.--They shall be few, but +they shall be daggers.' Murray's agitation was now visible. 'Judge +Festus trembles,' thundered Pitt; 'well, he shall hear me some other +day,' and sat down.[273] Murray could not muster a reply. We may be sure +that he then mentally resolved that, whether Festus or not, he would be +a Judge as soon as possible. Yet Granville had embraced him that very +day and bid him pluck up resolution. The other episode is this. Foote +went with Murphy (afterwards Editor of the 'Test') to hear Pitt, who +happened to be putting forth his full powers in an attack on Murray. +'Shall we go home now?' asked Murphy at last. 'No,' replied Foote, 'let +us wait till he has made the little man vanish entirely.'[274] + +[Sidenote: Nov. 27, 1754.] + +The plan of ignoring the House of Commons and keeping all power in a +junto of two or three, or even one, was already breaking down. 'It is +the universal opinion,' writes Fox, in the same letter as that in which +he describes Pitt's onslaught on Murray, 'that business cannot go on as +things are now, and that offers will be made to Pitt or me. On this +subject Pitt was with me two hours yesterday morning. A difficult +conversation.' Difficult indeed, for both parties fenced with each +other, and neither was sincere. Pitt had long distrusted Fox and his +connection with Cumberland. We have seen that in March he was writing +confidentially that he wished 'to see as little power in Fox's hand as +possible,' and again in the same letter, 'Fox is too odious to last for +ever.' On the other hand, Fox, who was genial but ignoble, was +determined to take the best place that offered, with a secret leaning to +the lucrative possibilities of Pitt's office. Fox was not in error as to +the offers. He wrote on November 28, and on November 29 Newcastle was +beginning to seek assistance. On that morning the King sent for Fox and +treated him with friendly confidence. It then appeared that the royal +leaning towards Fox was caused by the King's having found out that +Frederick Prince of Wales had made overtures to Fox, who had rejected +them, but had not divulged them for the purpose of paying court to the +King.[275] + +The object of the Court was to separate Fox and Pitt. This last, +doubtful and suspicious, had at first assured the Chancellor and +Newcastle that he would not league with Fox. This was probably the +secret of the Minister's confidence. But when Pitt realised that the +Duke was trading on the division between his two formidable auxiliaries +he sought, or appeared to seek, an honest and hearty co-operation with +his rival.[276] + +'Could you bear to act under Fox?' Hardwicke had asked him, and 'Leave +out _under_; it will never be a word between us: Mr. Fox and I shall +never quarrel,' had been the reply. + +Alas! for the loves of statesmen, often ardent and always precarious. +The vague bait was no sooner dangled before Fox than he began to eye it +with avidity and to contemplate the abandonment of Pitt. He sought the +advice of two friends, Cumberland and Marlborough. The last advised him +to ask for admission to the Cabinet and to be satisfied with that +advantage. Cumberland dissuaded him, as it would seem, from parting +company with Pitt, and used these remarkable words: 'I don't know him, +but by what you tell me, Pitt is what is scarce--he is a man.' But at +last both dukes concurred in Marlborough's advice, with the proviso that +Fox should make it a condition that he was not to oppose Pitt; a +singular reservation when it is remembered that his help was only sought +against Pitt, as he was soon made distinctly to understand. Fox +apparently took Pitt into his confidence, and they exchanged cordial +notes. He submitted to Pitt his letter to the King, and Pitt approved it +with some omissions. Nothing must be said, he declared, which remotely +implied that he would do the least thing to keep his place.[277] So Fox +wrote to say that, understanding the King was determined to have no +leader in the House of Commons, but wished to have him take a forward +and spirited part on behalf of the Ministry, he desired some mark of his +Majesty's favour to show that he enjoyed his Majesty's confidence. +Waldegrave, who conducted the negotiation, was given to understand that +the distinction aimed at was a seat in the Cabinet. He was further told +that Fox would never accept Pitt's rich place, which the King had said +was destined for him in the event of Pitt's dismissal, lest it be said +that he was answering Pitt for money. So the stipulation about not +opposing Pitt was already out of his contemplation. The negotiations +extended over months. The King had first seen Fox on November 29, 1754, +but did not signify to Fox his admission to the Cabinet till April 26, +1755, two days before his Majesty left for Hanover. Fox was also +admitted to the Council of Regency during the King's absence. + +During these months of negotiation his opposition to the Ministry +ceased, and Pitt was left alone. But he communicated constantly and +secretly with Pitt as to the offers made. When he had closed with them, +without waiting for the cock to crow, he forswore Pitt.[278] He was no +doubt made to understand distinctly, as he must always have known, that +it was the condition of his elevation. This treachery cost him dear; for +Pitt, who seems to have been at once apprised of the desertion, probably +by a Minister whose interest it was to keep the two apart, never forgave +it. Nor could a man much less irritably and jealously proud have done +otherwise. So much for the question of honour. As to the question of +policy it is clear that a real union between Pitt and himself would have +been irresistible. But Fox at the first temptation forsook this +honourable alliance, and forsook it for a feather, as the lure was +justly described. + +It should be mentioned that this account of Fox's behaviour is founded +on the narrative of Horace Walpole, and that Waldegrave, who is far +more trustworthy, says that 'Fox during the whole negotiation behaved +like a man of sense and a man of honour.' But this only regards his +negotiation with Newcastle, in which Waldegrave acted as the channel. +Walpole, on the other hand, was notoriously partial to Fox, and in his +confidence, so that his statement may be taken as accurate. In no other +way, indeed, can the breach between the two statesmen be adequately +explained. On April 26 they are on the most confidential footing. On May +9 there is a public rupture. Fox, indeed, attributes this sudden breach +to Pitt's wish to be well at Leicester House; but then Fox had to find +an ostensible reason, as he did not know that Pitt was aware of his +desertion. + +[Sidenote: Apr. 27, 1755.] + +The day after the admission of Fox to the Cabinet, Newcastle despatched +old Horace Walpole to Pitt to see if they could not come to terms. Old +Horace, who has suffered from the constant malignity of his nephew, but +who appears to have been a laborious and public-spirited man, with a not +uncommon itch for a coronet, undertook the commission with alacrity; but +found, as all did who attempted to negotiate for Newcastle, that his +powers were far from ample, and shrunk from the moment that they were +given. It is probable that these overtures were only made in consequence +of some secret agreement between Fox and Pitt that Pitt's claims should +be pushed; for it is otherwise inexplicable that they should have been +made simultaneously with the capture of Fox, and that Newcastle on the +slenderest grounds should at once have withdrawn the commission. The +hypothesis of a sham negotiation, entered upon to keep to the letter of +some understanding arrived at through Fox, is highly congenial to the +character of Newcastle; nor is it likely that Fox can have joined the +Government, when in the closest communication with Pitt, without some +such stipulation. + +Whatever the nature of the overture may have been, Pitt received +Walpole, with whom he was on cordial terms, not unfavourably. He +stipulated that he should be admitted to the Cabinet, but not, it would +appear, immediately (for the King was going abroad next day); and that +in case of a vacancy he should be promised the seals of Secretary of +State. No one could deem these conditions excessive, and Walpole +approved them. But Newcastle would have none of them, and soundly rated +his emissary. It is clear that the negotiation was illusory and unreal; +for what less terms could Newcastle have expected Pitt to demand?[279] + +[Sidenote: May 9, 1755.] + +A fortnight afterwards Pitt went to Lord Hillsborough's, where he met +Fox. When Fox had gone he declared that all was at an end between Fox +and himself; that the ground was altered; Fox was a Regent and a Cabinet +Minister, and he was left isolated. Fox returned, and Pitt, in great +heat, repeated what he had said with even more violence. He would not +accept the seals from Fox (this seems to confirm our hypothesis as to +the sham negotiation through Walpole), for that would be to acknowledge +a superiority and an obligation. 'What, then,' said Fox, 'would put us +on an equality?' 'A winter in the Cabinet and a summer's Regency,' +replied Pitt, in allusion to what Fox had accepted. + +Next day Hillsborough expostulated with Pitt, who, however, remained +unmoved, and begged him to convey as a message to Fox that all +connection between them was at an end. Pitt added that though he +esteemed Fox he wished to have no further conversation on this subject. +In spite of this, during the next few days they had a further conference +at Holland House, but with no better result.[280] + +On this second occasion (May 12, 1755) Pitt formally declared their +connection at an end. Fox asked if Pitt suspected him of ill faith in +the recent negotiations. Pitt, on his honour, held him blameless. +'Then,' asked Fox, 'are our lines incompatible?' 'Not incompatible, but +convergent,' a word that Fox professed not to understand. In the future +it was possible they might act together, not now. On this or some +proximate occasion, Pitt blurted out what was at least one cause of +offence. 'Here is the Duke of Cumberland King and you his minister.' The +Duke, like Fox himself, was only an ordinary member of the Council of +Regency, so that Pitt's taunt was absurd. But Pitt was looking to the +young court of Leicester House which detested and distrusted Cumberland; +hence this outburst of jealousy and wrath. Pitt indeed, the day before, +had seen the Princess of Wales; who, it was presumed, had insisted on an +open and immediate rupture with Fox as the price of her support. But +beneath all there was we think, in spite of all professions, undying +suspicion of Fox's rectitude in the recent negotiation with +Newcastle.[281] + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + + +It was soon clear to Newcastle that Fox after all might not suffice, and +that Pitt must be again approached. The King, then in Hanover and beyond +Newcastle's control, was negotiating new treaties of subsidy on behalf +of his German dominions; one with Hesse-Cassel for a contingent of +12,000 men to act in defence of Hanover or Great Britain, the other with +Russia for an army of 40,000 men for the defence of Hanover. It was +terrible for the Duke to contemplate what Pitt might say and do with +regard to such unpopular and indefensible instruments. Moreover, Pitt +was now supported by the court, every day more and more important, of +Leicester House. It was probably Hardwicke, who as the moving brain of +the Cabinet saw the vital importance of securing Pitt, and who was, we +think, sincerely favourable to Pitt's pretensions, if only from hatred +of Fox, who suggested these negotiations; and it was his son Charles +Yorke who entered upon them. Yorke was to act as a skirmisher, to get in +touch with Pitt, and to report on the temper in which he found him. They +met on July 6 (1755), and talked over the abortive conference with +Walpole. Pitt declared that he had then waived the immediate bestowal of +the Secretaryship of State, but had asked not merely that Newcastle +should speak on his behalf before the King left for Hanover, and urge +that he was the proper person to lead the debates in the House of +Commons; but that Lady Yarmouth should also be interested in his cause, +so that she might use her influence with the King during their stay +abroad. + +Of Newcastle himself he spoke with supreme disdain. It was a waste of +time to bring him assurances of friendship and confidence from +Newcastle. All that was over. He would never owe Newcastle a favour, he +would accept nothing as an obligation to Newcastle. This is not in +Yorke's account, because probably it would be shown to Newcastle. But it +comes authentically enough from Pitt's brother-in-law, James Grenville, +to Bubb. If Newcastle were really in earnest, he would say that he could +listen to no proposition but this: 'This is our policy; and the post of +Secretary of State, in which you shall support it, is destined for you.' + +Yorke reported to his father, and Hardwicke saw Pitt on August 8 (1755), +with power to offer a seat in the Cabinet. After compliments, to use +Eastern language, which were usually the preface of such interviews, in +which both parties assured each other of high mutual esteem, which Pitt +went so far on this occasion as to declare for Newcastle, in strange +contrast with his language to Yorke, they came at once to the point. +Before he could take what was required, 'a clear, active, and cordial +part in support of the King's measures in the House of Commons,' Pitt +desired to know what those measures might be. Hardwicke at once +specified them. 'Twas all open and above board; the support of the +maritime and American war, in which we were going to be engaged, and the +defence of the King's German dominions, if attacked on account of the +English cause. The maritime and American war he came roundly into, tho' +very orderly, and allowed the principle and obligation of honour and +justice as to the other, but argued strongly as to the practicability of +it. That subsidiary treaties would not go down; the nation could not +hear' (obviously 'bear') them. That they were a connection and a chain, +and would end in a general plan for the Continent which the country +would (obviously 'could') not possibly support.' Then he went into +financial considerations. The maritime and American war would alone add +two millions a year to the National Debt, which could not bear an +addition of one million. He would treat Hanover like any other foreign +dependency of the British Crown; the worst that could happen was that it +should be occupied by the enemy for a time and restored at a peace, and +that then compensation might be given to the King. As to the subsidies, +Hessian and Russian, he asked questions but did not commit himself. But +he inquired, with peculiar emphasis, what others, such as Fox, Legge, +Lee, and Egmont, thought of them. At last he said he must consult his +friends, one of whom, Legge, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, he was +about to visit. But why, asked Hardwicke, should he not see Newcastle +himself? 'With all my heart, if he would see me,' replied Pitt. To the +offer of a seat in the Cabinet he said neither yea nor nay, but he was, +thought Hardwicke, gratified by the overture.[282] + +One cannot but note the strange contrast between Pitt's language about +Newcastle to Hardwicke and that which he had used to Yorke. 'He +expressed great regard for your Grace and me.' But this was the base +coinage in political use at that time, and Pitt had by this time become +a master of dissimulation. Fox hated Newcastle to the full as much as +did Pitt. In truth, every one seems to have secretly hated or despised +him, or both; a melancholy reward for an industrious ministerial +existence. But so great was his political influence that scarce any one +could afford to say so. + +One Minister was now, however, to display a rare courage, and to oppose +both the King and his Minister on a critical point. In the middle of +August, after the conversation with Hardwicke, the treaty of subsidy +with Hesse-Cassel arrived for the necessary confirmations. When it came +before Legge as Chancellor of the Exchequer, he, no doubt with the +connivance of Pitt, flatly refused his signature. Newcastle had always +distrusted Legge, as, indeed, he distrusted everybody, and had given him +the seals of the Exchequer with great reluctance. He was now aghast. War +was imminent; the King would soon return with his pockets full of odious +treaties of subsidy; Fox was still a malcontent; Legge was in open +revolt; it was evident that he must face the formidable interview with +Pitt. So he expressed the necessary wish, though one may guess his +reluctance, and Pitt saw the Duke on September 2 (1755) for two hours +and a half. The record of this interview is contained in a long letter +from Newcastle to Hardwicke,[283] couched in the quavering notes of a +distracted Minister. It begins with a wail of despair, the reluctant +acknowledgment of the paramount importance of Pitt. 'I never sat down to +write to your lordship with more melancholy apprehensions for the +Publick than at present. I see nothing but confusion and it is beyond me +to point out a remedy.' + +This was the result of Pitt's verbal refusal to join him, made by a +Minister who held the great mass of the House of Commons in the hollow +of his hand, who clung to office as to life, and yet, though he knew +Pitt was indispensable to its retention, would not once more, as in +1746, face his Sovereign and say so. Nothing can better illustrate the +trembling plank on which the Duke was content to walk, wavering and +helpless, depending only on Hardwicke's counsel and his own jobs. He did +not dare face the King, he was bullied by the disorderly chiefs in the +House of Commons, and he was always chaffering, but always afraid. So he +and his like are satisfied to bear the yoke for the semblance of power. + +All began smoothly between Pitt and the Duke, all was apparently open, +friendly, and civil; but when Newcastle referred to the conversation +with Hardwicke, he was taken aback by finding that Pitt declared that +nothing had passed that was material. He thus compelled Newcastle to +recapitulate the points of policy, no doubt for purposes of comparison. + +So the Duke had to state that the eve of the King's departure had been +too troubled to lay Pitt's claim before his Majesty; for an address +against the journey had been threatened in the House of Commons and +actually proposed in the House of Lords. But that when alarming events +had happened in America, Hardwicke and he had represented to the King +the urgent necessity of forming a system in the House of Commons, which +means, it may be presumed, abandoning the plan of conducting the House +without a leader, and of enlisting Pitt as an active Minister there. +That thereupon the King had graciously expressed his readiness to admit +Pitt to his Cabinet. Pitt received this offer coolly, and proceeded at +once to larger issues. + +As to the King's voyage he spoke with unsparing candour. The King had +nearly ruined himself by his unpardonable departure to Hanover at such a +crisis. He should only have been allowed to go there over the dead +bodies of his people. 'A King abroad at this time, without one man about +him that has an English heart, and only returning to bring home a packet +of subsidies.' + +Of course, he proceeded to say with scarcely disguised sarcasm, the +King's countenance was more to him than any other consideration. But if +it was expected that he should take an active and efficient part in +Parliament he must observe that a mere summons to the Cabinet would not +be sufficient. In his present office he could silently acquiesce in +ministerial measures. But activity could only be exercised in a +responsible situation. + +Then he took a line which was clear, bold, and statesmanlike. The whole +machinery of the House of Commons was, he said, paralysed by the plan of +leaving it without a responsible Minister. That plan must be abandoned. +The House could not perform its proper functions without a responsible +Minister, even though a subordinate one, who should have access to the +Sovereign and to the royal confidence. For that purpose the leader or +agent must have a responsible office of _advice_ as well as of +_execution_. 'That was the distinction he made throughout his whole +conversation. He would support the measures which he himself had +advised, but would not like a lawyer talk from a brief. That it was +better plainly to tell me so at first.' + +This surely was no inordinate claim from indisputably the first member +of the House of Commons, whom the King had kept at bay for so many +years, and to keep whom still in subjection every possible manoeuvre, +childish or cunning, was being adopted. 'Why,' said he bluntly to +Newcastle, 'cannot you bring yourself to part with some of your sole +power?' This of course produced voluble asseverations from the Duke. +Sole power! What an idea! He had no conception of what Pitt could mean. +He was in his present place, not by his own choice, far from it! but by +the King's command, and, though he was devoted to the King, he would +retire to-morrow if he was distasteful to the House of Commons. (This +was a safe promise, for, as we have seen, the House of Commons was with +but few exceptions at his absolute disposal.) Pitt replied that he +himself had no objections to a Peer as First Lord of the Treasury, but +there must be men of ability and responsibility in the House of Commons, +a Secretary of State and a Chancellor of the Exchequer, that they must +be sufficiently supported, and they must have access to the Crown, not a +nominal, but an habitual, free, familiar access. In speaking of the +Chancellor of the Exchequer he burst out into so enthusiastic a eulogy +of Legge, 'the child, and deservedly the favourite child of the Whigs,' +that Newcastle suspected that all this was concerted between his +rebellious Chancellor of the Exchequer and his insubordinate Paymaster. + +Pitt and the Duke next proceeded to analyse their own expressions; a +task which the statesmen of that day seem to have avoided, to our +detriment, as much as possible. Newcastle had spoken of the proposed +seat in the Cabinet as a designation. 'What did this mean?' asked Pitt. +'Did it mean the seals of Secretary of State, though not immediately?' +The Duke was obliged to shuffle out, for in truth he had no power to +promise any such thing. Designation only meant that the seat in the +Cabinet would design him as the King's man of confidence. 'Then the +Secretaryship of State is not intended,' was the fierce rejoinder. The +Duke replied that he was not authorised to offer more than a seat in the +Cabinet. If, rejoined Pitt, 'the Secretaryships of State are to remain +as they are, there is an end of any question of my giving active support +to the Government in the House of Commons.' + +They had arrived at an impassable barrier, Pitt would take nothing but +the seals which the King would not give him, and Newcastle was +determined not to force on another crisis with the King on account of +Pitt; whom, in truth, he dreaded little less as a colleague than as a +foe. So they turned to matters of public policy, 'and then,' writes the +hapless Minister, 'nothing can equal my astonishment and concern.' He +tried Pitt first with the Hessian Treaty, and then with the Russian. For +the Hessian Treaty the Duke characteristically urged every reason but +the true one, and for the Russian that it was the fruit of four years of +negotiation, and that it would seem strange to drop it now. But Pitt was +obdurate. He would be no party to a system of subsidies. If the Duke of +Devonshire attacked the Hessian subsidy in the House of Lords, as was +his intention, Pitt would echo the attack in the House of Commons. If +the Russian Treaty were dropped he might acquiesce in the Hessian from +regard for the King; as, for the same reason, he would always speak with +the utmost respect of Hanover. But no consideration would make him +support both, or a system of subsidies. It was his regard for the King, +presumably, which impelled him to make a further suggestion, which +Newcastle did not venture to transmit even to Hardwicke. Out of the +fifteen millions sterling that the King was said to have saved why, +asked Pitt, should he not give Hesse 100,000_l._, and Russia +150,000_l._, to be out of these bad bargains? Newcastle was driven to +his usual resource of the Chancellor, and suggested a conference with +him in the ensuing week. Pitt agreed to this with, we may presume, a +shrug of the shoulders. + +Neither in truth expected anything from such a meeting, for the pleas +and the powers had both been exhausted. Newcastle realised this, and +ends his remarkable record of the conversation with a despairing glance +at his own prospects. What was he to do? There were as usual three +courses to pursue. The first, which he should infinitely prefer, would +be his own retirement. This is a common cant of ministers, and with +Newcastle it was more than usually insincere. Fox, he said, might +succeed him at the Treasury, and Pitt for a session at any rate would +have to acquiesce. The second would be for Newcastle, remaining First +Minister, to throw himself into the arms of the Pitt group, with Pitt +as Secretary of State and Legge at the Exchequer. But the King would +never hear of this. Newcastle puts it significantly thus: 'Whether this +is in any shape practicable, I leave to your Lordship and all who know +the King to determine.' The third course was the one adopted, 'to accept +Mr. Fox's proposal, made by my Lord Granville,' the first allusion that +we have to this particular negotiation. Fox was to be the real, +efficient, and trusted leader of the House of Commons. But there must be +conditions. Cumberland, the patron of Fox, must give his support, so +must Devonshire and Hartington. There must be a new Chancellor of the +Exchequer, and Fox must act cordially with the person whom the King +might appoint to that office. Murray, and indeed every one, must put +their shoulders to the wheel and exert themselves on behalf of the +Administration. Lastly, it might be necessary to take in the venal but +inevitable Bubb. + +Hardwicke answered Newcastle's report without a moment's delay, in a +shrewd letter.[284] His first remark was that Pitt had taken much higher +ground with the Duke than with him, perhaps because the bad news from +the Ohio had made the Paymaster deem himself more valuable and +necessary. He doubted whether the praises of Legge were sincere; they +were probably intended to indicate a closer connection between them than +really existed. But Hardwicke went straight to the two main points. The +first was the general principle that the King must have a recognised +Minister, what he called oddly enough 'a Minister with the King' in the +House of Commons. The other question was whether Pitt should be +Secretary of State. + +As to the first, if the Minister is to be subordinate, that is, not the +Premier, he sees no great harm in it. 'For I have long been convinced,' +continues the sagacious man, 'that whoever your Grace shall make use of +as your first man and man of confidence in the House of Commons, you +will find it necessary, if he be a man of reputation and ability +accompanied with the ambition naturally incident to such a character, I +say under those circumstances, your Grace will find it necessary to +invest him with more power than, from the beginning, you thought fit to +impart either to Mr. Legge or Sir Thomas Robinson.' + +From this we may gather that the Chancellor had never believed in the +plan of a leaderless House of Commons. How indeed could he, as a man of +sense, much more as a man of rare capacity? Such a plan could only be +deemed possible by an alien King and a mountebank Minister. As to the +personal point, Hardwicke is not less acute. Pitt, he declares, has +stiffened his demand since their interview. Pitt, he is convinced, +intended to draw from the Duke a promise that it should be made a point +with the King that he should be made Secretary of State within a given +time; and so, when he failed in this, he proceeded to discuss measures +in a more peremptory tone than he would otherwise have employed. + +'Now,' says Hardwicke, 'this comes to a point which you and I have often +discussed together. Whether you can think it right or bring yourself to +declare to him that you really wish him in the Secretary's office, and +will in earnest recommend him to the King on that foot.' + +This inestimable sentence throws a flood of light on Newcastle's +professions to Pitt, and on the reality of the efforts that Newcastle +had employed to soften the King. It is clear, we think, from this secret +utterance that Newcastle had been sincere in neither case. + +Hardwicke urges that the Duke should close with Pitt. He thinks that if +Newcastle were loyally to give this assurance Pitt 'would close and take +his active part immediately.' Without this he is sure that Pitt believes +'that the intention is to have the use of his talents without gratifying +his ambition.' In writing this Hardwicke of course knew, as Newcastle +knew, that Pitt's apprehension was well founded. 'My poor opinion,' +continues the Chancellor, 'is that without it all further meetings and +pourparlers with this gentleman will be vain. Your heart can only +dictate to you whether you should do it or not.'[285] Justly distrusting +the Duke's heart, the Chancellor proceeds to appeal to his instincts. He +discards, of course, the idea of Newcastle's resignation. A friend, +consulted on such a point, rarely deems it decent to do otherwise; +certainly no confidant of Newcastle's could have done so and retained +his intimacy. + +As to relying on Pitt and Legge, he agrees that nothing but the pressure +of necessity could make the King adopt this course. Of course he does +not say that the Duke could at any moment bring about this pressure, +though that no doubt was the case. Newcastle, by his Parliamentary +influence, could always produce a deadlock, as was soon to be proved. +But Newcastle could, thinks Hardwicke, have Pitt without Legge. If Pitt +had the seals he would not insist on Legge. + +The third course is that urged by Granville: to take Fox on Granville's +conditions, which we may safely presume to have been those afterwards +adopted. Hardwicke insinuates objections. Fox has the strong protection +of Cumberland and the personal inclination of the King, but his election +will be profoundly distasteful to Leicester House. Pitt, on the other +hand, has 'no support at Court, and the personal disinclination of the +King. He must therefore probably depend, at least for a good while, upon +those who bring him thither.' Then comes the sentence about Fox and +Leicester House which conveys a hint that Pitt, on the contrary, is well +there. It is impossible to be more adroit. Hardwicke knew that Newcastle +was fully aware that he hated Fox, and so put his objections in this +indirect and skilful way. He failed, probably because Newcastle felt +that to accept Fox would at any rate not necessitate a critical struggle +with the King, and that Fox himself was more malleable. + +Of all strange confidants it was Bubb whom Pitt, on leaving Newcastle, +proceeded to take into his inmost counsels. There are always parasites +of this kind in politics, universally mistrusted, and yet constantly +taken into confidence on grounds of convenience. Always sympathetic, +always warm, always ready to betray at the first symptom of personal +advantage, they are nevertheless useful parts of the political machine, +and not so contemptible as might appear. They profess little, they +deceive nobody except for a fleeting moment, and they are employed, +with full knowledge of their character, to sound others and report the +result, to suggest from their own base experience, to bring statesmen +into relation with necessary people, and do the work with which +statesmen will not soil their hands. But they are perilous and slippery +agents, they attract in the warmth of the moment excessive confidence, +and while these indiscretions are still ringing in their ears they are +already in the tents of the enemy. Still, such as they are, they will +always exist, and always be utilised, for they are part of the fatality +of politics. + +So to Bubb Pitt betook himself on the day after that on which he had +seen Newcastle, and gave a spirited account of the interview. He then +spoke fully of his relations with Fox, in which really lay the key to +the situation. He wished well to Mr. Fox, he did not complain of him, +but he could not act with him; they could not co-operate because they +were not on the same ground. Fox was not independent (_sui juris_), but +he was. He had been ready during the last session to go all lengths +against the Duke of Newcastle; but when it came to the pinch Fox always +failed him (under the constraint, it may be presumed, of the Duke of +Cumberland). _Fox had risen on his shoulders_;[286] he did not blame him +for it. Fox had taken the smooth part, and left him the brunt; he did +not complain. Fox, too, lived with his greatest enemies, Carteret, +Stone, and Murray. And Newcastle had told him that Fox had recently +offered himself to his Grace. Bubb declared that this was false, to his +knowledge. Pitt replied that no one knew better than himself how great a +liar Newcastle could be, and that if Fox denied this he should readily +take his word against the Duke's. But all that he had recapitulated +showed how impossible it was for two men to act together who stood on so +different a footing as Fox and himself. + +Bubb now scented business of the kind to which he himself was addicted, +and broke in with, 'As we who are to unite in this attack _are to part +no more_,'[287] it would be proper to think what was to be held out to +the confederates if they succeeded. + +Pitt declined to enter into this premature traffic, 'it would look too +like a faction, there was no country in it'; but expressed himself, in +the fashion of the day, with warmth and confidence as to Bubb himself. +He thought Bubb of the greatest consequence; nothing was too good for +such a man; no one was more listened to in the House and in the country. +He wished to be connected with Bubb in the strictest sense politically, +as he already was by marriage.[288] + +Bubb demurely records these confidences, and was left happy; glad to +find, as he writes, that he should receive such support in an opposition +which, on patriotic and conscientious grounds, he must have pursued even +had he stood alone.[289] + +Once more we have to deplore the hapless destinies of political alliance +and of Parliamentary twins, united in bonds of principle, who are to +part no more. This conversation took place on September 3 (1755). On +November 20 Pitt was dismissed, because of his adherence to the +virtuous course which Bubb had resolved to pursue without flinching, +even if isolated, with or without Pitt. Bubb records the removal in a +terse entry of his diary, and the next, not less terse, records his +acceptance of a lucrative post tendered by Newcastle. History has to +note some such incidents, but we know of none so cynically and +complacently narrated by the renegade himself. + +Hardwicke made one last desperate effort to move Pitt, but without +success. He writes to Newcastle on September 15 (1755): 'I have had a +long conversation with the _gentleman_ your Grace knows, but with little +effect. I talked very fully and strongly to him upon every part of the +case, both as to _persons_ and _measures_. He made great professions of +his regard and firm attachment to your Grace and me, but adhered to his +_negative_. He puts that negative upon two things: His objections to the +two treaties of subsidy ... his other objection arose from _Mr. F._, +with whom he declared he could not act.'[290] + +On this scene, coming more and more into prominence as the King became +older, and as the Prince of Wales, or rather Bute and his clique, waxed +bolder, appears the mysterious and elusive influence of Leicester House. +It is difficult to trace or measure this combination, except in the +naked fact of an old King and a young heir, nor is it easy to trace the +connection of Pitt with this party. Every movement in Leicester House +was jealously watched by the politicians, much as a late Sultan is said +to have tracked the movements of the least menial of his dethroned and +secluded predecessor. We read of the Princess being stirred to wrath by +her father-in-law's project of marrying her son to the daughter, +supposed to be active and ambitious, of a woman she detested. Then there +is the suspicion that the Heir Apparent was surrounded by persons who +were more or less Jacobite; Bute himself having, it was presumed, +Jacobite leanings. But the King at once desisted with rare good sense +from any idea of the projected marriage, though no doubt it would have +given him pleasure. And the danger of an Hanoverian sovereign becoming a +Jacobite under any influence seems too fantastic for a pantomime. The +real apprehension was no doubt that Leicester House might shake off the +domination and destroy the long monopoly of the Whigs, as indeed it +eventually did. And certainly Leicester House, with the throne full in +view, was becoming more and more inclined to assert itself. Human nature +and family relations had, as usual in such cases, much to do with the +matter. The Hanoverian Kings did not love their heirs apparent. George +the First hated his, but he had no other son to love, and indeed little +capacity for loving, except mistresses who found favour with no one +else. George the Second hated his with a peculiar hatred, and was thus +able to devote what fatherly affection he had to give to his second son, +the Duke of Cumberland. These parental preferences, however justifiable, +do not tend to affection between sons. And so there was no love lost +between Prince Frederick and his family on the one side, and Duke +William on the other. These feelings, as is usually the case, survived, +when Frederick died, with increasing intensity between the widow and her +brother-in-law. She saw him on the right hand of the King, enjoying all +his confidence, as was natural, and herself and her bashful son of no +account; so that a new jealousy was added to the original rancour. + +Understanding these facts, we are able to follow the course of Pitt. Fox +was essentially the Duke of Cumberland's man, and so by the force of +circumstances Pitt became allied, but not at this moment closely allied, +to Leicester House. He had been a friend and servant of the dead Prince +of Wales, then had quarrelled with him, but the original brand was not +altogether effaced. Now he was the one champion whom the faction of the +late Heir Apparent could adopt; and so the politicians began to see +behind Pitt the influence of the coming King, his mother, and their +favourite. Thus, when Newcastle had to make the option between Fox and +Pitt, it was not merely the choice between two rival orators, but +between two rival Courts, the Old and the New. We may be sure that no +element in this business was more essentially present to the Minister's +mind. + +All this seems petty but essential; but all was petty then, as is proved +by the mere fact of Newcastle being at the head of the Ministry and +master of the House of Commons; and it is all essential to the reader +who would understand the history of those times, because the +complication of these byways and intrigues is so extreme. There was the +King with Lady Yarmouth and Cumberland; there were Newcastle and +Hardwicke, with the House of Commons at their feet, and anxious to +remain at their feet if that were possible; there was the influence of +Cumberland apart from the King, and represented by Fox; there was +Bedford, powerful from his property and connections, with a clique +hungry for office; there was Pitt with his Grenville relations, who were +ready to give him their support, but not less ready to withdraw it if +something better should offer. And around and below these was the great +shifting mass of politicians by profession and cupidity, the +parliamentary Zoroastrians, who worshipped the rising sun, when they +could discern it; the sun which should shed upon them office, salary, +and titles; striving, sweating, cringing, as Bubb, the most shameless of +them all, emphasises in capital letters, 'AND ALL FOR QUARTER-DAY.' It +was through this scene of confusion and intrigue that Pitt had to thread +his way, not very scrupulously; for he had always lived in this society, +had lost whatever thin illusions he had ever possessed, and followed the +clues which his experience had taught him to prize. He played the game. + +[Sidenote: Nov. 13, 1755.] + +The meeting of Parliament took place two months afterwards and that +period was spent by Newcastle and Hardwicke in arranging to discard Pitt +and Legge, and to lean on Cumberland and Fox. Newcastle did not yield to +Fox without reluctance, for it was, in Pitt's words, parting with some +of his sole power. In his helplessness and despair he even offered to +cede his place to Granville, who as Carteret had been his most detested +bugbear, but who had now subsided into a quiescent President of the +Council. Granville refused with a laugh, and preferred to conduct the +negotiation with Fox. Fox had to him the merit of keeping out Pitt, +whose former denunciations he had neither forgotten nor forgiven. So he +had first endeavoured to inspire Murray to face, and now Fox to +supplant Pitt. With a flash of his old diplomacy he was able to bring +together the two mistrustful parties, on terms which Newcastle had +curtly refused in the first insolence of his power, but which now, at +the instance of Hardwicke as we have seen, he had to concede. The insane +plan of a leaderless House of Commons, left like sheep on a barren moor, +owned by an absentee Duke secluded in the Treasury, was to be abandoned. +Fox was to be Secretary of State, leader of the House of Commons in name +and in fact, and what was far more than either, he was authorised to +announce that he represented the full influence of the King in the House +'to help or to hurt.' When the two shepherds, the old and the new, +burning with mutual hatred and distrust, met to ratify the conditions, +Fox suggested sardonically that it would be best that this should be the +last time on which they should meet to agree, that there should be a +final settlement, or none at all, meaning that it should be honest and +complete. Newcastle, no doubt with a wry face, agreed. 'Then,' said Fox, +'it shall be so'; though indeed it was not. Fox stipulated for the +admission or promotion of five persons, the only memorable ones of whom +were George Selwyn, whose lovable and humorous personality has survived +that of many more eminent contemporaries, and Hamilton, who is the only +man, except the less-known Hawkins, who is remembered by a single +speech. Chesterfield, on hearing of the reconstitution of the Ministry, +observed with his habitual shrewdness that Newcastle had turned out +everybody else and had now turned himself out. Fox at once repented of +his adhesion, for Stone, Newcastle's confidant, informed him that had he +not joined them the Ministry would have instantly resigned.[291] But +now he had to content himself with negotiating through Rigby with the +Bedford group, which he hoped to bring into office for the purpose of +wrecking the administration. + +Robinson made less than no difficulties in accommodating himself to the +new pretensions. He only yearned to return to the Great Wardrobe of +which he had been Master. And so with a pension of 2000_l._ a year, +fixed upon luckless Ireland, he vanishes into space, with the natural +remark that he had never looked on his seven children with so much +satisfaction as on the completion of these domestic arrangements. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + + +This blank though important space in the life of Pitt himself seems +favourable for picking up a few threads which had to be dropped in the +narrative of his negotiations with Newcastle. + +After the baiting to which Robinson had been subjected in the first days +of the session he disappeared from debate; and Fox, then in close +negotiation for a seat in the Cabinet, represented the Government in the +Commons, and turned a deaf ear to the proposal that he should join Pitt +in a combined attack on Newcastle. Fox's game, it will be seen, was not +calculated to win the confidence of Pitt, to whom, however, during the +session, he showed marked courtesy on the one hand, while negotiating +with the Duke on the other. + +[Sidenote: Feb. 26, 1755.] + +The Lord Advocate had introduced a Bill continuing for a further period +the provisions passed after the rising of 1745 which had temporarily +placed the tenure of sheriff-deputyships at the King's pleasure instead +of for life as before. This seems to have raised an animated debate, +memorable to us as having produced two fine speeches from Pitt, which +Horace Walpole alone mentions, and of which he gives a spirited sketch. +It is only possible to give Walpole's record in his own words, as there +is no other. Pitt spoke in answer to Murray (who, by-the-by, speaking +in defence of the Bill, had said that there was not a single Jacobite +left in Scotland) 'with great fire, in one of his best worded and most +spirited declarations for liberty, but which, like others of his fine +orations, cannot be delivered adequately without his own language; nor +will they appear so cold to the reader, as they even do to myself, when +I attempt to sketch them, and cannot forget with what soul and grace +they were uttered. He did not directly oppose, but wished rather to send +the Bill to the Committee, to see how it could be amended. He was glad +that Murray would defend the King, only with a salve to the rights of +the Revolution; he commended his abilities, but tortured him on his +distinctions and refinements. He himself had more scruples; it might be +a Whig delicacy--but even that is a solid principle. He had more dread +of arbitrary power dressing itself in the long robe, than even of +military power. When master principles are concerned, he dreaded +accuracy of distinction: he feared that sort of reasoning: if you class +everything, you will soon reduce everything into a particular; you will +then lose great general maxims. Gentlemen may analyse a question till it +is lost. If I can show him, says Murray, that it is not my Lord Judge, +but Mr. Judge, I have got him into a class. For his part, could he be +drawn to violate liberty, it should be _regnandi causa_, for this King's +reigning. He would not recur for precedents to the diabolic divans of +the second Charles and James; he did not date his principles of the +liberty of this country from the Revolution; they are eternal rights; +and when God said, "_let justice be justice_," He made it independent. +The Act of Parliament that you are going to repeal is a proof of the +importance of the Sheriffs-depute: formerly they were instruments of +tyranny. Why is this attempted? is it to make Mr. Pelham more regretted? +He would have been tender of cramming down the throats of the people +what they are averse to swallow. Whig and Minister were conjuncts he +always wished to see. He deprecated (_sic_) those, who had more weight +than himself in the Administration, to drop this; or besought that they +would take it for any term that may comprehend the King's life; for +seven years, for fourteen, though he was not disposed to weigh things in +such golden scales.' The reader must make of this what he will. + +Fox said 'that he was undetermined, and would reserve himself for the +Committee; that he only spoke now, to show it was not crammed down his +throat; which was in no man's power to do. That in the Committee he +would be free, which he feared Pitt had not left it in his own power to +be, so well he had spoken on one side. That he reverenced liberty and +Pitt, because nobody could speak so well on its behalf.'[292] + +The Bill came up again a few days afterwards, and we find Pitt again +attacking it, and Fox apparently evading a contest with him. We are once +more thrown back on Walpole's account. 'Pitt talked on the harmony of +the day, and wished that Fox had omitted anything that looked like +levity on this great principle. That the Ministry giving up the _durante +bene placito_ was an instance of moderation. That two points of the +Debate had affected him with sensible pleasure--the admission that +judicature ought to be free, and the universal zeal to strengthen the +King's hands. That liberty was the best loyalty; that giving +extraordinary powers to the Crown was so many repeals of the Act of +Settlement. Fox said shortly, that if he had honoured the fire of +liberty, he now honoured the smoke.'[293] + +These arguments are not easy to follow, so the only faithful course +seems to be to give the actual record. + +Meanwhile it is necessary for a moment to peer outside, and take note of +the world so far, and only so far, as it affects the life of Pitt; for +the clouds of war were gathering fast. The Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle was +only an armed truce, the cupidities and resentments which it had checked +for the moment were still active, though mute. With two such characters +as Frederick and Maria Theresa matched against each other, it was +evident that Silesia would never be surrendered or abandoned without +another deadly struggle. Moreover, half unconsciously, the two secular +rivals, France and Britain, were drifting into a contest for supremacy +over half the globe, to settle the question as to which should become +the first colonising power of the world. Hostilities in India and in +North America were always smouldering, and the arrangements of +Aix-la-Chapelle had not extended to either region. The treaty had in no +way checked the desperate war carried on in India between the English +and French Companies, between Clive and Dupleix. That was presently +closed for the moment by a provisional treaty signed on the spot in +January 1755. In America the scene was even more poignant. There without +any declaration of war, in a formal and legal state of peace, +hostilities were carried on, openly and yet treacherously, by incursions +connived at by the French Government. And as if to add an additional +horror to these sinister operations, they were accompanied by all the +unspeakable barbarities of Indian warfare, the cold-blooded murder of +men, women and children, rewards from the European governors for the +scalps thus obtained, and by open cannibalism.[294] Christian +missionaries were not ashamed to hound on these savages to murder, +torture, and rapine; nay, their professed converts[295] were sometimes +the keenest in butchery. For religious fanaticism imparted an ignorant +zeal to the barbarous combatants, who were taught, it is said, that +Christ was a Frenchman crucified by the English. The claim that the King +of France was the eldest son of the Church was construed into a much +more literal interpretation of divine origin.[296] There was in fact no +element of atrocity wanting to this war, which was not a war; blasphemy, +murder, outrage, arson, rape, torture were all employed under the pure +white banner with its golden lilies. Parkman, the historian of these +operations, does not record the like of the British. But this is not to +affirm there were no reprisals. For war carried on in this fashion and +by the employment of savages can scarcely be one-sided in its +barbarities. + +[Sidenote: July 4, 1754.] + +[Sidenote: Jan. 1755.] + +[Sidenote: July 9, 1755.] + +But apart from the perfidious ambitions of governments and the predatory +lusts of savages, there could not be peace in America, nor in effect had +there been since the settlement of Utrecht. Boundaries in that trackless +continent were vague, and constantly overstepped. The proper limits of +Nova Scotia, and the demarcation between Canada and New England, were +subjects of acute controversy. Under such circumstances both parties +plant outposts in disputed territories, and both attempt to dislodge +each other. French officers headed exploring parties, annexing vast +territories by the simple expedient of nailing to a tree-trunk a tin +plate stamped with the arms of France, and burying at the root a leaden +tablet recording that possession had thus been taken. But there were +other operations much less bloodless and futile. One of these petty +engagements survives in history because it marks the first appearance of +Washington, compelled in 1754 to celebrate the Fourth of July by a +surrender to the French, who had surrounded him in superior numbers; and +because it was the commencement of open but not declared warfare between +the British and the French. Both nations now determined to send out +reinforcements. 'In a moment,' says Walpole, 'the Duke of Newcastle +assumed the hero, and breathed nothing but military operations; he and +the Chancellor held councils of war; none of the ministers except Lord +Holderness were admitted inside their tent.' With some discount for +Walpole's malicious pleasantry, the picture, humorous enough to us, must +have filled men like Pitt with the darkest misgivings. Pitt, as we have +seen, had once been accidentally admitted into the tent and taken into +confidence. He must have left it with the feeling that the destinies of +the Empire were in peril so long as Newcastle was at the helm. A giant +conflict for the supremacy of the world was preparing, and Newcastle was +in charge of Great Britain. It was enough to give the bravest patriot a +qualm. Nor were the military preparations less deplorable. Braddock was +sent out at the new year with a plan of campaign prepared by +Cumberland. Cumberland on Braddock was a combination which might make +the stoutest heart in England quail. Cumberland, who had lost every +battle but the one-sided affray of Culloden, was the brain to devise. +Braddock, a brutal soldier of parade experience, whose only warfare had +been in Hyde Park or Hounslow, was the hand to execute. Braddock took +his troops through the American bush as if they were marching from +London to Windsor, and was annihilated ten miles from the French +stronghold, Fort Duquesne, where now smokes toiling Pittsburg. British +troops then first faced the most formidable of adversaries, an invisible +foe. They advanced boldly, cheering and singing 'God save the King.' But +they found that they were mere targets for a host of concealed +sharpshooters. Behind every tree and rock there lurked a musket. At last +they broke ranks and huddled into confusion. 'We would fight,' they +answered their officers, 'if we could see anybody to fight with.' Some +survivors declared that they had not seen a single Indian. Others were +not so fortunate. Twelve unhappy persons were tortured and burned alive +by the savage allies of the French. Braddock was mortally wounded, and +died after a long silence, broken only by the one pathetic question, +'Who would have thought it?'[297] His papers fell into the hands of the +French and swelled the indictment with which they declared war.[298] +This evil news arrived in England at the end of August, and no doubt +precipitated Newcastle's attempt to come to terms with Pitt. + +Three months after the departure of Braddock, the French in alarm +fitted out a fleet of reinforcement, which sailed at the end of April, +just as George II. was leaving his kingdom for his electorate, amid the +scarce veiled indignation of his British subjects. The moment was +critical, the King was old, his heir was young, the French were making +great warlike preparations, every circumstance pointed to the grave +impropriety of the departure. But the King was obdurate to all +remonstrance. Not only was Hanover his home, he was also anxious to +negotiate treaties of subsidy for its protection; treaties which were +more conveniently signed away from Great Britain; that country being +only required to endorse them in order to furnish the necessary +supplies. + +[Sidenote: 1755.] + +When it was certain that the French fleet was destined for America, +Admiral Boscawen was despatched with a squadron to intercept it. +Boscawen had eleven ships of the line and one frigate, the French fleet +consisted of eighteen ships, eight of which were lightly armed as +transports. The two armaments came into collision at the mouth of the +St. Lawrence on June 7. Three French ships came into conflict with three +British ships under Captain Howe. The French commander sent to ask 'Is +it peace or war?' Lord Howe replied that he must ask his admiral, who +replied 'War.' Thereupon Howe attacked and captured two of the enemy, +but to the mortification of the British the bulk of the French fleet got +safely into Louisbourg; then a Gibraltar, now a lonely pasture beaten by +the surf. + +During all this year attempts had been made by negotiation in London +between Mirepoix, the French Ambassador, and Newcastle, to delimit the +territories in dispute, but at the news of this conflict Mirepoix left +London at once. Nevertheless the French behaved with signal +placability, they even released the _Blandford_ man-of-war, which they +had captured; and there was at present no formal declaration of open +hostility. For Louis XV. and his mistress did not desire war with Great +Britain, nor were they ready for it. A council was held at Compiegne at +which the opinion of Noailles prevailed. That was to suffer and endure, +so as to attract the sympathy of all Europe against Britain; only to +declare war when it was abundantly proved to be inevitable; then to +limit the operations to the sea, and not to be lured into any warfare on +the continent of Europe.[299] It was the Government of Newcastle that +moved towards hostilities. Our Admiralty behaved with great but perhaps +lawless vigour. It issued letters of marque, and before the end of the +year 300 French merchant ships and 6000 French seamen had been captured. + +War seemed now inevitable, although at earlier stages it might, we +think, have been avoided without difficulty; and there began a general +hunt for alliances, which soon developed into a complete reversal of +former arrangements. Maria Theresa, thirsting for revenge, sought under +the inspiration of Kaunitz a strict union with France and Russia. The +tongue of Frederick, biting, uncontrolled, and especially venomous in +dealing with the frailty of woman, did perhaps more than Austrian +diplomacy to facilitate these arrangements; for the Empress Elizabeth +and Madame de Pompadour were both stung to unrelenting animosity by +Frederick's reckless ribaldry. Frederick, however, took the first step +himself. While France was secretly carrying on negotiations with +England, which continued to the end of 1755, and neglecting to renew +her previous treaty with Prussia which expired in May 1756, Frederick +signed with Great Britain in January 1756 the Treaty of Westminster, by +which both parties guaranteed each other's possessions and bound +themselves to take up arms against any Power which should invade +Germany. This instrument had the indirect but grave effect of +neutralising the King's treaty with Russia for the defence of Hanover, +for it precluded any foreign Power from marching troops into Germany. +The news of this agreement was received at Versailles with consternation +and wrath. The French Court replied to it by the Treaty of Versailles +(May 1, 1756), hurriedly concluded with Austria and extremely one-sided. +France agreed to respect the Austrian Netherlands, from which she might +have hoped for some compensation in case of success. Both parties agreed +to guarantee each other's dominions, and a secret article, aimed at +Prussia, made the compact more stringent. In August a treaty still more +advantageous to Austria was concluded between the two Powers; but in +this some frontier towns in the Austrian Netherlands, though not +specified, were to be conceded to France, when Austria was once more in +possession of Silesia and Glatz.[300] + +It was believed in Europe that this counterbalancing treaty to that of +Westminster ensured the peace of the Continent. But the world did not +yet know Frederick. He was crouching for a spring. Two circumstances +impelled him. He had become aware through a corrupt Saxon clerk of a +correspondence between Austria and Saxony concerting a vast confederacy +against him. The second was this. We have noticed the Russian and +Hessian treaties of subsidy. That with Russia had been originally +concluded with a view to operations against Frederick himself,[301] and +to that purpose the Empress Elizabeth was determined that it should be +confined. By a personal declaration[302] and by two resolutions of the +Russian Senate[303] it was made clear that hostility to Frederick alone +inspired the Russian share of the treaty. He saw the circle closing +round him. Three outraged women were directing the forces of three +Empires against him. He had nothing to rely upon but his own country, +Britain, and himself. Cognizant of the plot against him, he determined +to have the advantage of attack. Like a leopard he sprang upon Dresden. +Before the Saxons had well realised that war was impending he was at the +throat of the electorate, and had seized the capital, the army, and the +compromising papers which justified his action. This was the beginning +of the worldwide struggle known as the Seven Years' War, and it occurred +in September 1756. + +This is all that is necessary for our story, a mere glimpse of the +intrigues and rancours which were lashing all Europe into storm. We must +now return to the parliamentary arena. + +[Sidenote: 1755.] + +On September 15, George II. deigned to return to his British dominions, +and on November 13 he opened his Parliament. Two circumstances were +considered noteworthy in connection with the formal occasion. Fox, as +leader of the House, rehearsed the Speech from the Throne, as was then +the custom, at the Cockpit; but the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the +Paymaster, and the Grenvilles were conspicuous by their absence. Fox, +too, summoned his supporters by a note of the kind then, as now, +customary, but in terms which gave offence to the susceptible +independence of members; intimating that the King was about to make him +Secretary of State, though not till after the first debate, 'which may +be a warm one,' so that his seat might not be vacated until after the +Address had been voted. He was also to take upon him 'the conduct of the +House of Commons.' This last expression was animadverted upon in +Parliament, and Fox admitted that he should have said 'conduct of His +Majesty's affairs in the House of Commons.' In these days, when 'leader +of the House of Commons' is the recognised title of the principal +Minister in the House, it is not without interest to notice this +constitutional squeamishness. + +The King's Speech contained the following paragraph, which strikes the +reader as something less than candid:-- + +'With a sincere desire to preserve my people from the calamities of war, +as well as to prevent, in the midst of these troubles, a general war +from being lighted up in Europe, I have always been ready to accept +reasonable and honourable terms of accommodation; but none such have +hitherto been proposed on the part of France. I have also confined my +views and operations to hinder France from making new encroachments, or +supporting those already made; to exert our right to a satisfaction for +hostilities committed in a time of profound peace: and to disappoint +such designs as, from various appearances and preparations, there is +reason to think, have been formed against my kingdoms and dominions.' + +Members met to hear the Royal Speech in the electric condition which +bodes a crisis. There had been a long political truce; but this was +evidently about to come to an end. Ministers had to bear the burden of +the Russian and Hessian treaties, which the Speech from the Throne +commended to the attention of Parliament. War with France was impending; +indeed, a French invasion was daily expected. There was a new leader, +and, consequently, a new opposition. Pitt was evidently prepared to +launch thunderbolts at the Administration. Leicester House was said to +be behind him. There was an animating sense of conflict in the air. + +Once more the parliamentary history fails us, and disdains to record one +of the most memorable passages in its annals; so once more we are thrown +on the authority and the sketches of Walpole; sometimes brilliant, but +more often confused and defective. + +The debate in the Commons lasted till near five in the morning, an hour +then almost unprecedented. + +It was distinguished by that famous effort which gave Single-speech +Hamilton his nickname. Walpole, in recording and eulogising it, says: +'You will ask, what could be beyond this? Nothing but what was beyond +what ever was, and that was Pitt.' Pitt, indeed, after sitting through +the eleven hours of the debate, rose and delivered, with inimitable +spirit and all the dramatic force that the greatest actor of his age +could impart, a speech of an hour and a half, which contains his most +famous figure, and which perhaps he never exceeded. + +'His eloquence,' says Walpole, 'like a torrent long obstructed, burst +forth with more commanding impetuosity.' For ten years he had been +muzzled, and now he revelled in his freedom. 'He spoke at past one (in +the morning) for an hour and thirty-five minutes. There was more humour, +wit, vivacity, fine language, more boldness,--in short, more astonishing +perfections, than even you who are used to him can conceive.' + +He 'surpassed himself, and then I need not tell you that he surpassed +Cicero and Demosthenes. What a figure would they with their formal +laboured cabinet orations make vis-a-vis his manly vivacity and dashing +eloquence at one o'clock in the morning, after sitting in that heat for +eleven hours!' + +This enthusiasm from the least enthusiastic of men adds to our regrets +that so faint a memory of this dazzling speech remains. And yet perhaps +we were wise to be grateful that we have only the description. It seems +not impossible that the words taken down verbatim by some old +parliamentary hand in the reporters' gallery would seem cold or tawdry +without the soul and grace which animated them, and which haunted Horace +Walpole for long years afterwards. Some of the allusions which have been +noted down seem forced, some of the bursts incoherent, some of the irony +obscure. But those who heard it palpitated with emotion, they saw the +divine fire of the orator, while posterity can only grope among the cold +ashes for the burning fragments poured forth in the wrath of the +eruption. + +'Haughty, defiant, conscious of injury, and of supreme abilities,' he +offered a great contrast to Legge, who fought by his side with different +weapons; for Legge was studiously moderate, deferential, and artful; +'gliding to revenge.' Yet Pitt himself began with expressions of +veneration for the King, and of gratitude for 'late condescending +goodness and gracious openings,' alluding to the offer of a seat in the +Cabinet. It was obvious from this that he did not mean the door of the +Closet to be closed on him, or to try again to force it by attack. But, +he continued, the very respect he felt for that august name made him +deprecate the unconstitutional use made of it in this debate. + +Egmont had argued that we were to have the Hessian and Russian +mercenaries to fall back upon in case our fleets were defeated. Why if +that were so, asked Pitt, did we not hire of Russia ships rather than +men? The answer was simple: because ships could not defend Hanover. Must +we drain, he asked, presumably in obscure allusion to Russia, our last +vital drop and send it to the North Pole? We had been told that Carthage +was undone in spite of her navy. But that was not until she betook +herself to land operations. Carthage, too, he added, pointing directly +to the enterprises of Cumberland, had a Hannibal who would pass the +Alps. We were told, too, that we must assist Hanover out of justice and +gratitude. As to justice, there was a charter which barred any such +consideration. Gratitude was only in question if Hanover should be +involved in anything which called down on her the resentment of France +in consequence of any quarrel of ours. But, to speak plainly, these +expressions were unparliamentary and unconstitutional. The King owed a +duty to his people which should not be obscured by such phraseology. Our +ancestors would never have stooped to such adulation. + +Then he turned with the greatest contempt to Sir George Lyttelton: 'A +gentleman near me has talked of writers on the law of Nations. But +Nature is the best writer; she will teach us to be men and not to +truckle to power.' As he proceeded, he slowly swelled into his famous +burst. 'I, who am at a distance from the _sanctum sanctorum_--I, who +travel through a desert and am overwhelmed with mountains of +obscurity--cannot so easily catch a gleam to direct me to the beauties +of these negotiations. For there are parts of this Address which do not +seem to come from the same quarter as the rest. I cannot unravel this +mystery. But, yes!' he exclaimed with an air of sudden enlightenment, +clapping his hand to his forehead, 'I too am now inspired. I am struck +by a recollection. I remember at Lyons to have been taken to see the +conflux of the Rhone and the Saone. The one is a gentle, feeble, languid +stream, and, though languid, of no depth; the other a boisterous and +impetuous torrent. Yet they meet at last. And long,' he added, with +bitter sarcasm, 'may they continue united, to the comfort of each other, +and to the glory, honour, and security of this nation.' + +This is all that we possess of this renowned flight and in this faint +form it does not strike one as particularly impressive. But the actual +words of the orator were probably very different; and nothing can +preserve for us the voice, the eye, the darting accent and the +concentrated fire of delivery which imparted such tremendous force to +the apostrophe. In any case, the effect was instant and prodigious. +After the debate Fox asked Pitt, 'Who is the Rhone?' 'Is that a fair +question?' answered Pitt, for no orator likes to be cross-examined +about his metaphors. 'Why,' rejoined Fox good-humouredly, 'as you have +said so much that I did not wish to hear, you may tell me one thing that +I want to hear. Am I the Rhone, or Lord Granville?' 'You are Granville,' +returned Pitt. He meant, of course, what was true, that Fox and +Granville were now practically one, and one in opposition to himself. + +After this climax the notes of the remainder of the speech seem +comparatively poor. By adopting these measures, he urged, we are losing +sight of our proper force, the Navy. It was the Navy which, by making us +masters of Cape Breton in the last war, had secured the restoration of +Flanders and the Barrier Fortresses. And yet even then we had had to +conclude a bad peace. Moreover, bad as it was, our Ministers had +suffered such constant infractions of it that they would have been +stoned in the streets had they not at last shown signs of resentment. +And yet, even now, they seem to have already forgotten the cause in +which they took up arms, for at present they are not acting on behalf of +Britain. These treaties are not English measures, but Hanoverian. Are +they indeed measures of prevention? Are they not rather measures of +aggression and provocation? Will they not irritate Prussia and light up +a general war? If that be the result, I will follow to the death the +authors of this policy, for this is the day that I hope will give a +colour to my life. And yet I fear it is useless to try and stem the +torrent. Ministers evidently mean a land war, and how preposterous a +war. Hanover is their only base, for they cannot gain the alliance of +the Dutch. I remember, everybody remembers, when you did force them to +join you: all our misfortunes are due to those daring, wicked counsels +(of Granville's). Out of them sprung a ministry,' he continued, +referring to the forty-eight hours phantom of Pulteney and Carteret. 'I +saw that ministry. In the morning it flourished. It was green at noon. +By night it was cut down and forgotten.' What if a ministry should +spring out of this subsidy? It is contended, moreover, that it will +dishonour the King to reject these treaties which he has concluded. But +was not the treaty of Hanau transmitted to us in the same way and +rejected here? If these treaties are really a preventive measure, they +are only preventive of Newcastle's retirement. + +Then he ridiculed Murray's elaborate compassion of the aged Sovereign. +He too could appeal for commiseration of the King. He could picture him +deprived of any honest counsel, spending his summer in his electorate, +surrounded by affrighted Hanoverians, without any one near him to keep +him in mind of the policy and interest of England, or of the fact that +we cannot reverse the laws of Nature, and make Hanover other than an +open, defenceless country. He too could foresee the day, within the next +two years, when the King would be unable to sleep in St. James's; but +that would be because his slumbers would be disturbed by the clamours of +a bankrupt people. + +These are all the shreds that remain of this glorious rhapsody. It would +perhaps be better that nothing had survived. Each student must try and +reconstruct for himself, like some rhetorical Owen, out of these poor +bones the majestic structure of Pitt's famous speech. + +Fox replied with obvious languor and fatigue, and the division was +taken between four and five. On the first question, that the words +promising assistance to Hanover should be omitted, the supporters of the +Government were 311 to 105. On the second amendment, which obscurely +questioned the policy of both treaties the numbers were 290 to 89. The +faithful Commons were still able to be loyal to Newcastle. Against that +pasteboard rock Pitt's billows broke in vain.[304] + +Next day (November 15, 1755) Fox received the seals. Five days +afterwards Pitt, Legge, and George Grenville were dismissed by notes +from Lord Holdernesse, the colleague of Fox in the Secretaryship of +State. Fox indeed declares in a letter to Welbore Ellis, then peevish at +not getting a better place, that he did not know till the last moment of +the intention to remove anybody but Legge.[305] To George Grenville, +Bute, now beginning to show himself above ground, but still with +circumspection, sent a significant note of congratulation. 'Tis +glorious,' he wrote, 'to suffer in such a cause and with such +companions.' Pitt received an even more gratifying communication from +Temple, who settled on him a thousand a year till better times. We +cannot perhaps blame Pitt for accepting this offer, since probably there +was no other way of maintaining Lady Hester in decent comfort; for we +may easily surmise that he had squandered his own fortune on buildings, +gardens, and the like; as Temple probably knew. But we could wish that +he had done so with less effusion. 'How decline or how receive so great +a generosity so amiably offered.' Lady Hester, who had begun the letter +of thanks, 'was literally not in a situation to write any farther.' +Pitt was 'little better able to hold the pen than Lady Hester. We are +both yours more affectionately than words can express. We could have +slept upon the Earl of Holdernesses' letter (of dismissal). But our +hearts must now wake to gratitude and you, and wish for nothing but the +return of day to embrace the best and noblest of brothers.' Even this is +not sufficient. Next day he must write again to say to Lord Temple, +'that I am more yours than my own, and that I equally love and revere +the kindest of brothers and the noblest of men.' + +Language less ecstatic would better have become a great man accepting a +serious pecuniary obligation. In truth Pitt never had any scrupulous +idea of personal independence. He had accepted a borough from Newcastle, +whom he then suspected and despised. Now it was an allowance from +Temple, whom, from close intimacy and kinship, he must have known to be +an intriguing politician, who was not likely to give without expecting +return. A few years hence it was to be a pension from the Crown. + +With regard to money indeed he had no very careful or exalted standard. +In such matters he was indifferent, reckless, and heedless of any nicety +of scruple, except as regards the public. He never seems to have +considered how important solvency is to character. He was always, after +his marriage, quite unnecessarily, in desperate straits for money. +Indifference to the fact that pecuniary independence is a main though +not necessary base of moral independence was a flaw in his own life, and +was the worst inheritance that he transmitted to his illustrious son. + +The announcement of Legge's successor at the Exchequer provoked +universal hilarity. It was Lyttelton. We have seen that in the last +debate Pitt had turned with fierce scorn on his former ally. No doubt he +was aware of Lyttelton's approaching elevation. But their historic +friendship had been dissolved for a year. In November 1754, at the +heedless or mischievous instance of the younger Horace Walpole, +Lyttelton, with the best intentions and the most inane execution +possible, had hurried off, without consultation with his friend, to +effect a reconciliation between Newcastle, Pitt's enemy, and Bedford, +who was allied to Pitt by a common hatred of the Minister. Newcastle +received the negotiator with his wonted effervescence, and gave or +appeared to give full powers. Away sped Lyttelton, bursting with the +importance of an amateur diplomatist. But at the mere mention of his +mission the other Duke nearly kicked the messenger of peace downstairs, +and at once communicated the secret overture to Pitt. The result to +Lyttelton was for the moment unmixed disaster. Pitt publicly broke with +him, Newcastle of course disowned him, he indeed disowned himself. +Henceforth he was banned by the Cousinhood, and incurred a wrath and +vengeance as implacable as that of the Carbonari. Now, however, he had +his reward, for it can scarcely be doubted that his elevation to the +Exchequer was intended partly as a plaster for his diplomatic wounds, +partly as an annoyance to the party of Pitt. Any motive indeed but +fitness for the office can be suggested for his promotion, to which he +was lured by the promise of a peerage.[306] If, however, the annoyance +it would cause to his late friends was a reason, it failed in its +object. For Lyttelton, in his new office, gave the amplest opportunity +for the wreaking of their revenge. He was, as we have seen, grotesque as +a diplomatist. He was even more unfit to be Chancellor of the Exchequer. + +Lyttelton had been a promising young man, but promising young men +frequently fail to mature, and he became a minor politician, a minor +poet, a minor historian. As a politician, he was principally known for +the delivery of pompous prepared harangues. He wrote a pathetic and not +wholly forgotten monody on the death of his first wife, to which he +could have added a new and poignant emphasis after his second marriage. +He wrote a treatise on the conversion of St. Paul, which earned the +commendation of Dr. Johnson. He wrote some 'Dialogues of the Dead,' +which Dr. Johnson was not able to commend. He was now writing an +elaborate History of Henry the Second, on the printer's corrections in +which he spent a thousand pounds, and was soon to publish with a score +of pages of errata. But his literary renown rests on the dedication of +'Tom Jones.' + +He was, however, best known to the public at large by his eccentric +appearance and demeanour. 'Extremely tall and extremely thin, he bent +under his own weight,' says his nephew Camelford. 'His face was so +ugly,' says Hervey, 'his person so ill-made, and his carriage so +awkward, that every feature was a blemish, every limb an incumbrance, +and every motion a disgrace.' Horace Walpole says of him that he had the +figure of a spectre and the gesticulations of a puppet. Chesterfield +portrays him as the embodiment of all in manner and deportment that was +to be avoided. His legs and arms, said the urbane peer, seem to have +undergone the rack, his head hanging limp on his shoulder the first +stroke of the axe. As absent as a Laputan, he leaves his hat in one +room, his sword in another, and would leave his shoes, if unfastened, in +a third. 'Who's dat!' wrote the satirist, + + 'Who's dat who ride astride de pony, + So long, so lank, so lean and bony? + Oh! he be de great orator Little-toney.' + +He was obviously something of a butt from his physical peculiarities and +awkwardness, and a butt is ill placed in high office. + +Gawky, fussy, pedantic, he was what in these days we should call a prig; +a kindly prig, with a warm heart, some literary ability, and strong +religious feeling; but for all that an unmistakable, inveterate, +incurable prig. The word 'prig' is untranslatable and uncommunicable. It +denotes nothing unamiable, nothing distasteful. It marks only a strange +flaw; partly of intellect, partly of character, partly of accent. And +one feels that it was impossible not to like Lyttelton, for he was full +of friendliness and virtue. With Pitt he was reconciled within a decade, +and mourned his death with a sincere sorrow which was not then abundant. + +But the Exchequer is a peculiar office requiring peculiar gifts. A dull +man may succeed in it if he possess them; without them the greatest +talents will fail. Lyttelton possessed none of them. He was unable, it +was alleged, to work out the simplest sum in arithmetic. He was ignorant +of the first principles of finance. The Exchequer never had a more +preposterous Chancellor, till Dashwood appeared. He had better have left +it alone. + +Fox, whose accession to the leadership was said to have inspired Murray +with courage, must have watched with gloomy forebodings the figure set +up in the Exchequer to face the lightnings of Pitt. The most that he +could hope was that it would act as an efficient conductor. Yet Fox +needed all the strength that he could muster. For no one despised his +chief more than he, or had a greater respect for the powers of his +rival. + +It should further be noted that this ministry had a luckless connection +which made it known as 'the Duke's ministry'; for it had been formed +under the auspices and at the recommendation of the disastrous +Cumberland. 'Never,' says Almon, 'was an administration more unpopular +and odious.' + +[Sidenote: Nov. 21, 1755.] + +War had now been declared between the Government and Pitt, who now +certainly had the latent countenance of the Heir Apparent, or of the +clique who represented the Heir Apparent; and there was no delay in +coming to blows. The very day after Pitt's dismissal, Welbore Ellis, a +Lord of the Admiralty, who was destined to live on as a Nestor in +politics and be made a peer by Pitt's son, moved for 50,000 seamen, +mentioning that the peace establishment was 40,000. It was a formal +motion, and members were leaving the House, when they were recalled by +the awful tones of Pitt, declaring that he shuddered at hearing that our +naval resources were so narrowed. He recalled his former protest in 1751 +against reduction. He would hunt down the authors of these disastrous +measures which made the King's crown totter on his head. This noble +country of ours was being ruined by the silly pride of one man and the +subservience of his colleagues, and some day we should have to answer +for it; unless already overwhelmed by some catastrophe brought about by +France, our hereditary enemy. All this trouble arose from the petty +struggle for power. What power was it that was sought, what kind of +power, was it only that of doing good? On an English question like this +he would not impede unanimity but implore it; he would ask favours in +such a cause of any minister, would have gone that morning to Fox's +first levee to ask him to accept 50,000 men besides marines. (The vote +asked for was for 50,000 men, including 9113 marines.) If that could be +obtained it would be the first thing done for this country since the +Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle. He obscurely intimated charges of treachery +and collusion. And now, he added, shame and danger had come together. He +himself had been alarmed by intelligence on the highest authority. These +terrors had been communicated to the House, which was willing to grant +the King any assistance for any English object. But there was an +essential difference between the ministry and that House. The ministry +thought of everything but the public interest; the House was ready to +afford everything for it. The House, he added mysteriously, was a +fluctuating body, but he hoped would be eternal; and he concluded with a +prayer for the King, with his royal posterity, and for this 'poor, +forlorn, distressed country.' + +It is not always easy to trace the sequence of Pitt's speeches in +Walpole's notes, nor is it possible to tell whether the confusion is due +to the oration or the notes. The notes were probably made during the +debate with the intention of filling in the outlines while recollection +was still fresh; an intention which, as is usual with such intentions, +was, it may be safely surmised, never carried out. But we are inclined +to attribute obscurity in the main to the abrupt rhapsodical transitions +of Pitt's speeches. They require, as reported by Walpole, almost as much +interpretation as Cromwell's. In this one we discern great court paid to +the House of Commons, so hostile to himself; unrelenting scorn of the +Government; and bitter emphasis on British as opposed to Hanoverian +interests. The peroration as barely reported seems below the level of a +debating society. But, then, we must remember that no fervent and +exalted apostrophe, prolonged as this probably was, can be adequately +transmitted in a naked sentence, or perhaps in any conceivable report. + +Fox replied with admirable temper, a self-control all the more laudable +and noted because of his usual impetuousness. He took up Pitt's sneer at +petty struggles for power. What the motives of these struggles for power +had been let those tell who had struggled most and longest for power. +They had been told that nobody round the King had sense or virtue, that +sense and virtue resided somewhere else. How was the King to know where +they are to be found? for he feared that _this_ House of Commons would +not point in the required direction. He ended by asking why Pitt had not +asked sooner for his augmentation of force. + +This called up Pitt again, who denied that he had ever asserted that +there were no sense and virtue near the Throne. No man had ever suffered +so much as himself from those stilettoes of a Court which assassinate +the fair repute of a man with his Sovereign. The insinuation of his +having struggled for power had been received by the House with so much +approval, that he must take notice of the charge. Had he yielded to the +poor and sordid measures which are ruining the country he might, no +doubt, have been admitted to the confidence of the Closet. Then, carried +by anger beyond the facts, he went further, and said that as he was not +prepared then to enter into the details of the private transactions of a +whole summer, he would only say that he might have had what Fox had +accepted. Unfortunately for himself, however, the measures contemplated +were so disastrous that his conscience and his honour had forbidden him +to support them; though he would have strained conscience a little, +perhaps, to be admitted to the confidence of the King. No, it was not +failure in the struggle for power that was the cause of his exclusion +from office. Was it not that he would not approve of the Russian and +Hessian treaties? He challenged a denial. + +Fox rose in reply, and said that he was ready to forget what Pitt had +said about the lack of sense and virtue near the Throne. + +Pitt, evidently beside himself with wrath, interrupted him, and said he +rose to order, and, on that long-suffering plea, delivered another long +speech. The phrase about sense and virtue, he declared on his honour, +was none of his. What he said was that France would found her hopes on +the want of sense, understanding, and virtue in those that govern here. +Fox's modesty appeared to have taken these words to himself; but he had +not put him right sooner, as the statement of the plain truth would +sooner or later be sufficient. He would remind that gentleman of certain +efforts which had been made (alluding to their brief coalition against +Newcastle) to limit the power at which he had hinted. As to invective, +he was not fond of employing it, but no man feared it less than himself. +He was, however, complimentary to Fox; would, though no betting man, +back his sense and spirit; believed that we should get some information +from abroad now that he was in power; but could not treat him as _the_ +minister, for that he was not yet. + +'But[307] he asks why I did not call out sooner. _My_ calling out was +more likely to defeat than promote. When I remonstrated for more seamen, +I was called an enemy to Government: now I am told that I want to strew +the King's pillow with thorns: am traduced, aspersed, calumniated from +morning to night. _I_ would have warned the King: did _he_? If he with +his sense and spirit had represented to the King the necessity of +augmentation, it would have been made--but what! if there is any man so +wicked--don't let it be reported that I say there is--as to +procrastinate the importing troops from Ireland, in order to make +subsidiary forces necessary.[308] This whole summer I have been looking +for Government. I saw none. Thank God, His Majesty was not here. The +trade of France has been spared sillily, there has been dead stagnation. +Orders contradicting one another were the only symptoms of spirit. When +His Majesty returned, his kingdom was delivered back to him more like a +wreck than as a vessel able to stem the storm. Perhaps a little +sustentation of life to the country will be obtained by a wretched +peace. These are my sentiments, and when a man has truth on his side, +he is not to be overborne by quick interrogatories. It may be presumed, +and indeed confidently hoped, that this was not Pitt's actual speech, +though Walpole gives it as the very words. They are probably only heads. +He continued with softening expressions to Fox. Want of virtue was the +characteristic not merely of the Government but of the age. He himself +was glad to show a zeal not inferior to that of ministers; let them show +him how to serve the King, and then let them, if they could, tax him +with strewing the royal pillow with thorns. But what were their own +services? Murray indeed had boasted that 140,000 of the best troops in +Europe were provided for the defence of--what? of Hanover. But what of +England? What of the Colonies? Compare the countries, compare the forces +destined for the defence of each! Two miserable battalions of Irish, who +scarcely ever saw one another, had been sent to America as to the +shambles. If his comparison of forces for Hanover and for the Empire was +exaggerated, he would be glad to be told his error. + +Fox kept his temper, and remained on the defensive. He not unnaturally +commented on the disorderliness of Pitt's speech to order. He did not +'on his honour' know what was the offer which Pitt had rejected. He +himself had waited till everybody had refused, passing the summer at +Holland House, as happy as any man in Parliament. He was in favour of +the subsidies, and when that was known he was told 'Then support them'; +and so he did. When his opinion changed he should leave office. He +wished all evil might befall him if he had injured Pitt with the King, +for he thought nothing so dishonourable as to accuse a man where he +could not defend himself. + +Murray followed with covert but bitter innuendoes; defended Pelham's +reduction of 2000 men, and had thought that that Minister had at least +died in friendship with Pitt. This again brought Pitt on his feet to say +that his friendship for Pelham had been as real as Murray's. Murray +continued coolly. The sting of his waspish speech was in its tail. He +wanted to clear up one particular point for his own information. He +understood Pitt to say that he had refused the Secretaryship of State: +pray, had he? + +He had his enemy at the point of the sword. Pitt had certainly, as we +have seen, with incredible rashness, at least insinuated this, if not +declared it. He now had to rise and eat his words: 'he had only refused +to come into measures'![309] + +Walpole apologises for recording this debate, tedious as it is, at such +a length. We must do the same, and his excuse is ours. Little was said +on the question, and indeed there was scarcely a question to discuss. +But the points of the speeches, so far as we can discern them, throw +light on the speakers, more especially on the reckless, impetuous +character of Pitt, even at this time. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + + +The bombardment of the new Ministry continued without intermission, for +Pitt was determined to wreak his vengeance on Newcastle and Fox. We may, +moreover, presume that, seeing the critical condition of affairs and the +incompetence of the Ministry to wrestle with them, he, conscious of +great powers, was determined to become a directing Minister. He was now +forty-seven, in the full ripeness of character and intellect. Neither he +nor the country could afford to wait. + +[Sidenote: Dec. 2, 1755.] + +Ten days after the last debate, Lord Pulteney, the sole and short-lived +hope of his famous father, introduced a Bill to give the prizes captured +before a declaration of war to the seamen who had captured them, should +war be afterwards declared. Pitt and his section intervened, and the +engagement developed from a skirmish into a battle. The debate turned +largely on pressing; that practice having brought great complaints from +Scotland, where 'mobs are more dangerous and more mischievous than our +mobs in England, not contenting themselves with clubs and bludgeons, but +possessing themselves of as many firearms and other mortal weapons as +they can possibly come at.' This perhaps was not wonderful, when it was +admitted that a gang had surrounded a church, and pressed part of the +congregation as it came out. But it soon soared from that point to the +question of our relations with France. + +Fox opposed the Bill, which he said would be considered as a veiled +declaration of war. France was patient because she wished to persuade +her allies that we were the aggressors, and so induce them to join her. +The passing of the Bill would furnish the very proof she required. The +whole gist of the matter lay in the word 'now,' 'the hinge,' he said +with a painful confusion of metaphor, 'upon which the very marrow of +this debate must turn.' Were peace hopeless such a Bill might be +necessary; now it could only do harm. Pitt followed Fox and made play +with the word 'now,' for as Murray said in reply: 'He has the happy +faculty of being able to turn the most important word, the most serious +argument, into ridicule.' He pointed out from examples in the reign of +Elizabeth and Charles II. that we might be at war for many years without +declaring war, and supported the Bill; as did Richard Lyttelton (though +the House, says Rigby, can no longer be brought to hear a word from +him), and George Grenville. The most piquant part of the speeches of +both Pitt and Fox related to Walpole, who had now from a bugbear become +a fetish. Fox pronounced a high eulogy upon him, but denied that his +parliaments had been venal. Pitt said that he himself had always opposed +Walpole when in power, but after resignation had always 'spoken well of +him as a man.' Here there was a laugh, which Pitt angrily rebuked. Was +it not more honourable to respect a man when his power had come to an +end than before? Walpole had no doubt 'for many years an amazing +influence in this House, and the enquiry, stifled as it was, made it +pretty evident from whence that influence proceeded!' Legge swelled the +chorus of devotion to a Minister who had scarce a friend at his fall, +by declaring that 'he was an honour to human nature and the peculiar +friend to Great Britain!' Death, in British politics, magnanimously +closes most accounts with a credit balance.[310] + +[Sidenote: Dec. 5, 1755.] + +Three days afterwards, Barrington, the new Secretary at War, moved the +Army Estimates. Here we are again thrown upon Walpole, whose records, +precious as they are, are the notes of an amateur, jotted down at the +time with the idea of subsequent expansion, but not subsequently +expanded. Indeed, when he came to use them, his memory, it is probable, +no longer availed for the purpose. But from the account of the last +debate on December 2, 1755, the Parliamentary history, incredible as it +may seem, records no speech of Pitt's till the last month of 1761, and +then only a formal reply. + +Pitt, 'in one of his finest florid declamations,' seconded the motion +for an army of 34,263 men, which was an augmentation of 15,000 men. He +would have moved for a larger number, had not Barrington promised to +move for more men when he brought in a Bill for the better recruiting of +the army, a pledge which seemed to meet the general anxiety of the +House. Rigby, who gives us this information, says that Pitt's speech was +most violent and abusive, but admits that it was a very fine piece of +declamation.[311] Both Walpole and Rigby, it will be observed, use this +vigorous substantive to characterise the speech. + +Pitt again used the language of tenderness and devotion to the King, +deplored to see him in his old age, and his kingdom exposed to attack; +and even his amiable posterity, _born among us_, sacrificed by unskilful +Ministers. + +The innuendo at the King's foreign birth betrays the sarcasm underlying +Pitt's effusive loyalty. One cannot also but suspect that his constant +allusions to the venerable age of George II. were not intended to be +wholly agreeable to a King who piqued himself on being gay and +libertine. 'He then drew a striking and masterly picture of a French +invasion reaching London, and of the horror ensuing while there was a +formidable enemy within the capital itself, as full of weakness as full +of multitude; a flagitious rabble, ready for every nefarious action; of +the consternation in the City, where the noble, artificial, yet +vulnerable fabric of public credit should crumble in their hands. How +would Ministers be able to meet the aspect of so many citizens dismayed? +How could men so guilty meet their countrymen?' + +The King's Speech of last year, he continued, had been calculated to +lull the country into repose. Had His Majesty's Ministers not sufficient +understanding, or foresight, or virtue, he repeated the words that they +might not again be misquoted, to lay before him the real danger? +Elsewhere, where the King himself had the slightest suspicion even of a +fancied danger, we knew what vast preparations had been made. Did the +subjects of his kingdom lack that prudent foresight which his subjects +of the electorate possessed in so eminent a degree? Alas! that he should +live to see a British Parliament so unequal to its duties. There were +but ten thousand men left in England. Not half that number would be +available to defend the royal family and the metropolis. 'Half security +is full danger.' + +'Accursed be the man,' he continued, 'who will not do all he can to +strengthen the King's hands, and he will indeed receive the malediction. +Strengthen the Sovereign by laying bare the weakness of his Councils: +urge him to substitute reality to incapacity, futility, and the petty +love of power. It is the little spirit of domination, the ambition of +being the only figure among cyphers, which has caused the decay of this +country. The ignominious indulgence of patronage, the poor desire to +dispose of places, should be left for times of relaxation: rough times +such as these require wisdom. The cost of the augmentation proposed +to-day, two hundred and eighty thousand pounds, would last year have +given us security. Yet the danger was last year as visible as now to the +eye of foresight. The first attribute of a wise Minister is to leave as +little as possible exposed to contingencies. Now, for want of that +foresight, stocks will fall, and hurry along with them the ruin of the +City, vulnerable in proportion to its opulence. In other countries the +treasure remains in a city which is not sacked. But paper credit like +ours may be wounded even in Kent. It is like the sensitive plant, it +need not be cropped; extend but your hand, it withers and dies.' + +Barrington, the orator continued, had cited the Romans. He need not go +so far afield, our own days had produced as great examples. In 1746, +thirteen regiments had been raised by noblemen who, though they had not +like the Romans left their ploughs, had left their palaces to save their +country. With what scorn, depression, and cruelty, so far as contempt is +cruelty, had they been treated! + +He wished the country gentry encouraged to raise a militia, for he was +anxious to call the country out of that enervated condition that the +menace of twenty thousand men from France could shake it. It was our +Government that was degenerate, not our people. He wished the breed +restored that had formerly carried our glory so high. What did those +Ministers deserve, and again he insinuated mysterious hints of +connivance and collusion, what did those Ministers deserve, who, after +Washington had been defeated and our forts taken, advised his Majesty to +trust to so slender a force as had been sent. He was for no vindictive +proceedings against them; they erred from the weakness of their heads +rather than their hearts. But a sagacity something less than that of a +Richelieu or a Burleigh could have foreseen what would happen. + +Fox replied with urbanity and compliment, for there was at this time a +marked courtesy in the language of the two protagonists, as of men who +did not know how soon they might be allies. Pitt denounced Newcastle, +and Fox did not defend him. This, too, must be noticed. Why, Fox now +asked, had Pitt not made this noble speech sooner, when we were indeed +asleep, before the French had wakened us. 'If he had made it,' said Fox, +'I am sure I should have remembered it: I am not apt to forget his +speeches.' Let Pitt himself take in hand a Militia Bill. It was +evidently Fox whom Pitt had described as treating the thirteen regiments +with contempt, at least Fox now fitted the cap on himself. He said that +he thought obloquy too harsh a term to apply to his language on that +occasion; nevertheless, he should not disown anything he had said. But +he must make a clear distinction between these noble persons. He thanked +God there was one noble duke, able and willing to save his country, who +went to the King, and offered to go and try if, with his lowlanders, he +was not a match for any highlanders. This was an elaborate compliment to +Bedford, whose political lowlanders were now at the service of the +Government, though not the Chief himself. Fox at the same time made an +invidious comparison to the detriment of the Duke of Montagu, and was on +the point of saying that he must discriminate between dukes, for though +some deserved everything from their country for the part they took, yet +he should not be for trusting others to raise a regiment who could not +raise half a crown. There was evidently money to be made out of these +patriotic impulses.[312] + +Pitt excused himself for not having sooner raised the cry of danger on +the ground that he had been lulled into composure by the previous Speech +from the Throne. When he became alarmed he made representations in +private, so long as he was allowed to do so. But now the alarm must be +sounded in Parliament itself, for we have invited into our bowels a war +that was the child of ignorance and connivance. If there be justice in +Heaven, Ministers must some day answer for this. + +Nugent, an Irish adventurer of the type known to comedy, paid his court +to Newcastle by a burlesque attack on Pitt. And even Robinson appeared +once more on the scene with a panegyric on himself, which, though +ridiculous to his audience, was by no means superfluous. The other +notable speeches, delivered by Charles Townshend, Sackville, and +Beckford, do not affect our subject.[313] + +[Sidenote: Dec. 8, 1755.] + +Five days later, George, who was afterwards Marquis, Townshend, brought +forward a Militia Bill. Pitt took this occasion of responding to Fox's +challenge by unfolding a plan of his own. No scheme, he said, could be +carried out without the co-operation of the Government, the Army, the +Law, and the country gentry. But he unfortunately came under none of +these descriptions. He knew no secrets of Government; he had too early +been driven from the profession of arms; he had never studied the law; +he was no country gentleman. + +His plan was made the groundwork of a Bill, which occupied much time in +the Commons, but was lost in the Lords. + +It provided for an infantry militia of fifty or sixty thousand men, to +be summoned compulsorily by the civil power: to be exercised twice a +week, one of these days to be Sunday, if the clergy did not raise too +much objection. It was to have the same pay as the infantry, but plain +clothing, 'not pretending to all the lustre of the army.' The +non-commissioned officers were to be private soldiers, not fewer than +four to every eighty men. + +What millions, he said, would have been saved by such a force during the +last thirty years! And what an inglorious picture for this country, to +figure gentlemen driven by an invasion like a flock of sheep, and forced +to send money abroad to buy courage and defence! If this scheme should +prove oppressive, provincially or parochially, he was willing to give it +up. But surely it was preferable to waiting to see if the wind would +blow you subsidiary troops. These, always an eyesore, you would never +want again if this Bill were passed. This speech marked another step +forward in Pitt's career; for he opened his plan with a plain precision, +a mastery of detail, and a business-like clearness the House had not +expected from him. 'He had never shone in this light before.'[314] + +[Sidenote: Dec. 10, 1755.] + +Two days later, again the treaties were discussed in both Houses. + +The debate in the Lords does not concern us. It was spirited and bitter. +Temple raised the storm, while the future George III. sate and took +notes. In the Commons there was a new feature. Newcastle, doubtful of +the zeal of Fox and Murray on his behalf, had retained for his defence +Hume Campbell, the brother of Marchmont; with the Paymastership as a +retaining fee, had not Fox, who always had his eye on this lucrative +place, vetoed the appointment.[315] Walpole describes the new gladiator +as eloquent, acute, abusive, corrupt, insatiable. To this accumulation +of epithets we need and can add nothing. He had been in opposition with +Pitt, and had had a brush with him already, but had almost given up +attendance in Parliament. + +Hume Campbell, raised to this bad eminence, seems to have acquitted +himself ably in his opening attack, and to have delivered a masterly +speech. He could see no reason, he said, why gentlemen were suffered to +come every day to the House merely to threaten and arraign the conduct +of their superiors. Such behaviour was unparliamentary and +unprecedented. 'Let the House punish,' he said, 'these eternal +invectives.' Pitt angrily called him to order for so describing the +debates of that House. Horace Walpole, the elder, said, with some +reason, that Pitt ought to be the last man in the House to complain of +irregularity. Pitt declared that Campbell's words struck directly at the +liberty of debate; that he had a mind to move to have the words taken +down, but would refrain till the orator had explained himself. Campbell +then proceeded with his discourse. He was followed by other speakers, +Murray delivering a fine argument in defence of the treaties. Pitt, +meanwhile, contrary to his habit, possessed himself in silence, +collecting all his powers for his reply. When he arose he delivered one +that was memorable and overwhelming. 'You never heard such a philippic +as Pitt returned. Hume Campbell was annihilated. Pitt, like an angry +wasp, seems to have left his sting in the wound, and has since assumed a +style of delicate ridicule and repartee. But think how charming a +ridicule must be that lasts and rises, flash after flash, for an hour +and a half! Some day perhaps you will see some of the glittering +splinters that I gathered up.' + +So wrote Horace Walpole in the first enthusiasm produced by this effort. +But the more deliberate record in his memoirs reveals few of the +flashing splinters that he thought to have garnered. Luckily, Sir +William Meredith has left a very brief account[316] of the tilt between +Campbell and Pitt, which we can collate with Walpole's. + +So slight had been the defence, said Pitt, that he did not know how to +deal with it; only little shifts or evasions worthy of a pie-poudre +court, but not of Parliament. As for Hume Campbell, he had him in his +power, he could bring him to his knees at the bar of the House as a +delinquent for such an assault on the privileges of Parliament. If +members were to be threatened for speaking with freedom of Ministers, +all liberty of debate would be at an end. As he revered the profession +of the law, so he grieved to hear it dishonoured by language that fixed +an indelible blot on him that spoke it. 'Superior' was a word that he +disdained. That hon. gentleman might indeed have his superiors. But he +knew that when sitting, speaking, and voting in his legislative capacity +the King himself was not his superior. And he could assure the hon. +gentleman that such freedom in speaking of ministers was neither +unparliamentary nor unprecedented. For even in the profligate +prerogative reign of James I., when a great duke, as now, monopolised +power, the House of Commons possessed an honest member who dared to call +that duke _stellionatus_, a beast of most hideous deformity, covered +with blurs and blotches and filth, an ideal monster, fouler than exists +in nature. Yet a grave and venerable member of parliament thought this +no unfit comparison for that great duke, who no doubt had his slaves all +about him who called him Superior, yet durst not bring such language +into the House of Commons. And we had then a wretched King who would +have been glad of the assistance of a great lawyer, could he have one to +have threatened a member of parliament for exposing the arbitrary and +pernicious designs that he was carrying on by his ministers against his +people. Thank God! we had no such King. If we had, he would not want a +slavish lawyer to abet the worst measures that can be devised to ruin +and enslave this country. + +'But I will not dress up this image under a third person,' he exclaimed, +turning full round and facing Hume Campbell, 'I apply it to him; his is +the servile doctrine; he is the slave; and the shame of his doctrine +will stick to him as long as his gown sticks to his back. After all, his +trade is words; they were not provoked by me, but they have no terrors +for me, they provoke only my ridicule and contempt.' + +Then turning to Murray, he denounced the treaties as a violation of the +Act of Settlement. The article to which, it may be presumed, he referred +was as follows: + +'That in case the Crown and Imperial Dignity of this realm shall +hereafter come to any person, not being a native of this Kingdom of +England, this nation be not obliged to engage in any war for the defence +of any dominions or territories which do not belong to the Crown of +England without the consent of Parliament.' + +It cannot be said that this enactment had been specially present to the +mind of George II. at any period of his reign. Murray had defended the +treaties thinly against the charge of infringement by declaring that if +this treaty violated the Act of Settlement all our defensive treaties +had done the same, and had ended by the quaint and almost cynical remark +that 'we could not enjoy the blessing of the present Royal Family +without the inconveniences.' + +Pitt can have had, and in fact had, but little difficulty in dealing +with Murray. 'It is difficult to know where to pull the first thread +from a piece so finely spun. Constructions ought never to condemn a +great minister, but I think this crime of violating the Act of +Settlement is within the letter. If the dangerous illegality of this is +to be inquired into, it should be referred to a committee of the whole +House, not to a Committee of Supply. Inquired into it must be, for I +will not suffer an audacious minister to escape the judgment of +Parliament. For if a Cabinet have taken upon them to conclude treaties +of subsidy without the consent of Parliament, shall they not answer for +their action?' + +He derided Murray's precedents. For in 1717 or 1718 Ministers stated +that there was danger to be apprehended from Sweden, and then asked for +money. Would any lawyer plead that when his Britannic Majesty speaks of +dominions in a treaty, he can mean any but his British dominions? We +were not to be explained out of our liberties. + +He then criticised the conduct of the Hessians in the last war; except +on one occasion, when they were forced at Munich, they had not behaved +well. + +There Horace Walpole's notes branch off into a tangle of headings and +exclamations which it is difficult and unnecessary to unravel. Pitt +emphatically denied that the Crown had a power of concluding treaties of +subsidy that led to war. He was sorry to hear it avowed that Hanover was +concerned in all the treaties which had been cited. It was clearly a +time to make a stand, now that we had arrived at that pitch of adulation +that we were ready to declare openly that Hanover was at the back of +all. He wished that the circumstances of this country would enable us to +extend this protecting care to Hanover, but they would not. For no +consideration would he have set his hand to these treaties. + +Fox in reply defended Hume Campbell with spirit, and made ironical +retorts to Pitt, some of them now obscure, none of them now pertinent to +this narrative. Such speeches become trivial within forty-eight hours of +their delivery. The bones of Pitt's preserved by Walpole scarcely claim +any better right of survival. To tell the bare truth, what survives of +these debates is incomparably tedious and confused. But it is evident +that Pitt had amazed the House by disclosing a new weapon, the power of +ridicule. 'His antagonists endeavoured to disarm him. But as fast as +they deprive him of one weapon, he finds a better. I never suspected him +of such an universal armoury; I knew he had a Gorgon's head, composed of +bayonets and pistols, but little thought that he could tickle to death +with a feather.' + +Whatever the relative arguments may have been, the legions were +faithful, and voted the treaties by 318 to 126. + +[Sidenote: 1755.] + +On December 12 the general engagement on the treaties was renewed, when +Barrington brought them forward in Committee, and Charles Townshend +distinguished himself by a speech which, Pitt declared, displayed such +abilities as had not appeared since that House was a House. He himself +spoke at length, but poorly and languidly, not deigning to answer Hume +Campbell, who once more appeared, with manner and matter both 'flat and +mean.' + +Pitt said, in the few sentences into which Walpole condenses his speech, +that he did not pretend to eloquence, but owed all his credit to the +indulgence of the House. He looked with respect on the King's +prejudices, he added with the finesse of a courtier or the irony of a +foe, and with contempt on those who encouraged them. Was everything to +be called invective that had not the smoothness of a court compliment? +Old Horace Walpole had said that if one spoke against Hanover it might +cause a rebellion. That was the chatter of a boarding-school miss. Lord +Townshend and Sir Robert Walpole had withstood Hanover. 'Sir Robert +thought well of me, died in peace with me. He was a truly English +minister, and kept a strict hand on the Closet; when he was removed the +door was flung open (to dangerous advisers?). His friends and followers +had then transferred themselves to that minister, Lord Granville, who +transplanted (_sic_) that English minister. Even Sir Robert's own +reverend brother has gone over to the Hanoverian party!' + +Fox merely tried in reply to keep Pitt at bay, so he said little of the +treaties, but seems to have attacked his rival with some acrimony. He +recalled all the treasonable songs and pamphlets of the former +Opposition, all directed by Pitt, no doubt for the good of the country! +But he could never forgive any man who had the heart to conceive, the +head to contrive, and the hand to execute so much mischief. 'The right +honourable gentleman professes pride at acting with some here; I am +proud of acting with so many! But because he wishes that Hanover should +be separated from England, is it wise to act as if it were already +separated?' + +The legions once more prevailed, and approved both treaties by 289 to +121. + +[Sidenote: Dec. 15, 1755.] + +If Pitt was held to have been below himself in this debate, he was +considered to have surpassed himself, when the treaties came up on +report three days afterwards, in a speech 'of most admirable and ready +wit that flashed from him for the space of an hour and a half, +accompanied with action that would have added reputation to Garrick.' He +denounced Murray for attempting to hide the points at issue in a cloud +of words. But in fact these treaties from simple questions had become +all things to all men, as a conjuror plays with a pack of cards, +passing them in turn to each spectator, receiving and keeping the money +of all. Then he turned to Russia. 'Let us consider this Northern Star, +that will not shine with any light of its own, but requires to be rubbed +up into lustre; for could Russia, without our assistance, support her +own troops? She will not prove a Star of the Wise Men, yet they must +approach her with presents. The real Wise Man "Quae desperat tractata +nitescere posse relinquit." + +'By this measure you are throwing Prussia into the arms of France. What +can Frederick answer if France proposes to march an army into Germany? +If he refuses to join her will she not threaten to leave him at the +mercy of Russia? This is one of the effects of our sage +negotiations--not to mention that we have wasted ten or eleven millions +in subsidies. + +'Shall we not set the impossibility of our carrying on so extensive a +war against the contention that his Majesty's honour is engaged? Our +Ministers foresaw our ill-success at sea, and prudently laid a nest-egg +for a war on the Continent. We have as an inducement to engage in this +war been referred to the examples of Greece and Carthage. These ancient +histories, no doubt, furnish ample matter for declamation. It is long +since I read them, but I think I recollect enough to show how +inapplicable they are to our present circumstances. Suppose Thebes and +Sparta and the other Greek Commonwealths fallen from their former power, +would Athens have gone on alone and paid all the rest? No, Athens put +herself on board her fleet to fight where she could be superior, and so +recovered her land.' + +'Not giving succour to Hannibal was indeed wrong, because he was already +on land and was successful, and might have done something of the kind +that Prince Eugene proposed, and marched with a torch to Versailles. But +another poet says, I recollect a good deal of poetry to-day, another +poet says, "Expende Hannibalem," "weigh him, weigh him." I have weighed +him. What good did his glory procure to his country? Remember what the +same poet says: "I, demens, curre per Alpes, ut pueris placeas et +declamatio fias."' + +This flight, it may be surmised, was aimed at Cumberland. + +He once more expressed his dutiful feelings to the King, and +acknowledged how difficult it was for Ministers to be honest with him. +But yet the resistance to these treaties might save us from a +Continental war. In any case, speaking for himself, he would never again +give his confidence in the nation's advisers or adopters of this +measure. He could only hope that our perverted Ministers might yet yield +to conviction and save us, and that a British spirit might influence +British councils. + +In the division which followed, the Hessian treaty appeared somewhat +less acceptable than the Russian. The former was voted by 259 to 72 and +the latter by 263 to 69. This was the net result. Yet, as Horace Walpole +wrote at the time, 'Pitt had ridden in the whirlwind and directed the +storm with abilities beyond the common reach of the genii of the +tempest.' Eloquence, reason, and argument avail little against a compact +parliamentary majority.[317] + +The reader will scarcely regret that an adjournment for Christmas +followed this debate, for nothing is so tantalising as these barren +husks of great speeches. The Minister employed his holiday appropriately +in distributing gifts of office to his friends, and the reconstruction +of the Government was completed. No part of it directly touches our +story, but some features are of interest. The Dukes of Newcastle and +Bedford, the Chancellor and Fox were each allowed to nominate a member +of the Board of Trade. But Newcastle would not allow Fox a single voice +in the appointment of the Lords of the Treasury; for he guarded that +department with the jealousy of a Turk. The other point of interest was +the cost to the public of these manipulations. To get rid of Sir Thomas +Robinson it had been necessary to settle a pension on him of 2000_l._ a +year for thirty-one years. To make a place for Lord Hillsborough, Mr. +Arundel had a pension of 2000_l._ in exchange for the sinecure office of +Treasurer of the Chamber. Lord Lothian had 1200_l._ a year to vacate the +Clerk Registership of Scotland for Hume Campbell. Lord Cholmondeley, who +held the Vice-Treasurership of Ireland with one colleague, had 600_l._ a +year to induce him to accept a third partner of the office. Sir Conyers +Darcy had 1600_l._ a year for vacating the Comptrollership of the +Household. In all a burden of 7400_l._ a year was settled on the public +to patch up a feeble and odious Ministry for ten months. + +While the gentle showers of office and pensions were descending on +parched politicians, Pitt wended his valetudinarian way, as usual, to +Bath. But when Parliament met in January, he was in his place, alert and +thirsting for combat. + +[Sidenote: 1756.] + +We first catch a glimpse of him, on January 23, paying great court to +Beckford; with conspicuous success as it happened, for Beckford +hereafter was to be his devoted follower, and his invaluable agent in +the City of London. On the same day the new Chancellor of the Exchequer +unfolded his Budget, better than was expected, but bewildered with the +figures. 'He stumbled over millions, and dwelt pompously over +farthings.' His Budget dealt with figures enviably small; duties on +plate, calculated to produce 30,000_l._ a year, which produced +18,000_l._; on bricks and tiles which were to produce 30,000_l._ a year, +and on cards and dice which were to produce 17,000_l._ Bricks and tiles +failed the Government; the tax was too unpopular; so, it is scarcely +necessary to state, it was moved on to ale-houses. A generation, which +passes tens of millions of expenditure without breaking silence, looks +back with awe on that which deployed the full splendour of eloquence on +taxes which altogether were not to produce 80,000_l._ a year. Pitt, who +was almost as ignorant of finance as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, +attacked him with vigour, but Lyttelton replied effectively. In speaking +he mentioned Pitt as his friend, but corrected it to 'the gentleman.' +This raised a laugh, when Lyttelton remarked, not without pathos, 'If he +is not my friend, it is not my fault,' and the contest, after lasting +some time, mellowed into good humour. + +[Sidenote: Jan. 28, 1756.] + +A few days later Pitt broke out again and declared that the Ministry was +disjointed, and united only in corrupt and arbitrary measures. Fox +denied this publicly and privately; publicly sneering at Pitt's family +connection, privately assuring Pitt that, so far from there being any +disunion between Newcastle and himself, the two Townshends had offered +to join the Duke if he would give up Fox, and that the Minister had +refused them. + +[Sidenote: Feb. 9, 1756.] + +[Sidenote: Feb. 10, 1756.] + +The next battle was on a proposal to raise four Swiss battalions to be +employed in America, when Pitt, as usual, censured the dilatoriness of +the Government and flouted their 'paper' forces. Lord Loudoun commanded +only a scroll, he said; the suggested battalions were only adding paper +to paper; and so forth. Next day he diverted the debate from its tedious +course by accusing the Government of having cashiered a brave officer, +Sir Henry Erskine, a friend of Bute's by the by, on account of his vote +in Parliament. But this ended in nothing. + +[Sidenote: Feb. 20, 1756.] + +At a later stage, Pitt ironically described the plan for the Swiss +auxiliaries as a fortuitous blessing, for had not Prevot, the adventurer +who was to command the battalions, been taken prisoner by the French and +found his way from Brest hither, and had he not then taken it into his +head that he would like to command a regiment, nothing would have been +heard of it. He hoped this Ulysses-like wanderer might be as wise as his +prototype and so forth; one can imagine the sort of pleasantry. But it +was Charles Townshend who, 'content with promoting confusion,' chiefly +shone at this time. On the other hand, one of Pitt's speeches, urging +that the Colonies should be heard on this Swiss scheme, is described as +lasting an hour and a half without fire or force. Indeed, Walpole writes +of this debate that 'the opposition neither increase in numbers or +eloquence; the want of the former seems to have damped the fire of the +latter,' and that 'the House of Commons has dwindled into a very +dialogue between Pitt and Fox ... in which, though Pitt has attacked, +Fox has generally had the better.' Pitt seemed to be becoming dull and +diffuse. 'Mr. Pitt talks by Shrewsbury clock, and is grown almost as +little heard as that is at Westminster.' Still one wishes that the +chronicler had reported the speeches of either as faithfully as he +reports his own. + +The apprehension of a French invasion, which had been present for +months, became acute in March and April (1756). The Government asked for +the troops which Holland was, it was held, bound to furnish, and they +were refused. Thereupon Lord George Sackville, probably by concert with +the Court or to gain its favour, suggested a preference for Hanoverians, +whose soldierlike qualities he commended. The hint was acted upon with +suspicious promptitude; and on March 29, Fox formally moved to address +the King to send for his Electoral troops.[318] + +Pitt, swathed as an invalid, opposed the motion in a long speech. He +alleged his respect for the King as the ground of his opposition. For +this address would be advice to the King in his Electoral capacity which +we had no claim to offer, and which, moreover, might involve his +Electorate in a peril equal to our own. He seems to have argued against +any fear of invasion, on the ground that in the Dutch war, with a +suspected King, we had coped with Holland and France; that in 1690, when +the French had beaten our fleet at Beachy Head and had an army actually +in Ireland, we had surmounted that danger; and that de Witt, the +greatest man since the men of Plutarch, had proposed an invasion to +d'Estrades, who had treated it as a chimerical suggestion. In any case +the natural force of the nation was sufficient to repel any attack of +the enemy. That state alone is a sovereign state 'qui suis stat viribus, +non alieno pendet arbitrio,' which subsists by its own strength, not by +the courtesy of its neighbours:[319] words which may have inspired Lord +Lyndhurst, a century afterwards, with his famous phrase with regard to a +State existing on sufferance. He would vote, Pitt proceeded, for raising +any numbers of British troops. The late war had formed many great +officers, and he would not interpose foreigners to hinder their +promotion; nor would he force this vote on the King when he might send +for his troops without.[320] The motion was agreed to by 259 to 92. Bubb +comically commented on the readiness of the King, who had then amassed, +it was believed, an immense treasure in Hanover, to make the nation pay +for this defence of himself, by declaring that 'His Majesty would not +for the world lend himself a farthing.' Not less humorous is the story +preserved by Horace Walpole that the night the Hanoverian troops were +voted, he summoned his German cook and ordered himself an exceptionally +good supper. 'Get me all de varieties,' said the homely monarch, 'I +don't mind expense.' A lampoon in the form of an anecdote, it is to be +supposed. + +[Sidenote: March 30, 1756.] + +Next day Pitt had another opportunity for attack on the charge involved +by the employment of Hessian troops, who, he declared, would cost +400,000_l._ more than the same number of British troops. But, a few days +afterwards, there was a still better occasion, when Barrington brought +forward the estimate for the Hanoverian troops, and commended it as a +better bargain than the Hessian, which had been passed, and was +therefore secure. Pitt at once harped on the same strain, and, lauding +the Hanoverian estimate, fell still more vehemently on the Hessian. No +one could find fault with the Hanoverian, that we owed to His Majesty; +but the subsidiary juggle with Hesse was the work of his Ministers. +'Nothing but good flows from the King; nothing but ruin from his +servants. I choose that they shall fall by a friendly hand, and that the +condemnation of his patrons should come from the noble lord himself +(Barrington). But must we engage mercenaries because France does? She +engages them,' he said, with one of his phrases of picturesque energy, +'because she has not blood enough in her own veins for the purpose of +universal monarchy.' He despaired of preserving Minorca, he continued +with gloomy prescience, yet the waste on these Hessians would have saved +that island, would have conquered America. He broke out bitterly against +the departmental character of the Government. 'I don't call this an +administration, it is so unsteady. One is at the head of the Treasury; +one, Chancellor; one, head of the Navy; one great person, of the Army. +But is that an administration? They shift and shuffle the charge from +one to another. One says, "I am not the General;" the Treasury says, "I +am not the Admiral;" the Admiralty says, "I am not the Minister." From +such an unaccording assemblage of separate and distinct powers with no +system, a nullity results. One, two, three, four, five lords meet. If +they cannot agree, "Oh, we will meet again on Saturday!" "Oh," but says +one of them, "I am to go out of town." Alas! when no parties survive to +thwart them, what an aggravation it is that no good comes from such +unanimity!' + +Fox, in reply, asked if Pitt wished to see a sole Minister, a question +that suggests that there was already an impression abroad that Pitt was +aiming at the dictatorship which he afterwards received, or else that +Pitt, if he obtained office, would be so overbearing as to become the +sole Minister. + +Pitt, at any rate, did not accept the allusion as to himself. He said +that he did not wish to see a single Minister, but system and decision. +Indeed, he gracefully added, were Fox sole Minister there would be +decision enough.[321] + +On May 11 (1756) a royal message apprised Parliament of the treaty +concluded with Prussia (the Convention of Westminster, signed January +1756), and asking his faithful Commons for supplies. + +The House promptly voted a million on account, but Pitt as usual uttered +eloquent lamentations on the incapacity of Ministers and the calamitous +situation of affairs. What was this vote of credit for? Was it to raise +more men? We had already 40,000 British and 14,000 foreign troops. Was +it for the purpose of marine treaties? Then he would joyfully vote it. +For a naval war we could and ought to support, but a Continental war on +the present system we could not. Regard should no doubt be had to +Hanover, but a secondary regard. For if Hanover was to be our first +object it would lead us to bankruptcy. It was impossible to defend +Hanover by subsidies. How could an open country be defended against an +enemy who could march 150,000 men into it, and if necessary reinforce +them by as many more? Should Hanover suffer by her connection with Great +Britain, we ought not to make peace without exacting full and ample +compensation for all the damage and injury she might have sustained. But +the idea of defending Hanover by subsidies was preposterous, absurd, and +impracticable. Then, excited by this favourite theme beyond the limits +he had imposed on himself, he struck home at the King and his darling +patrimony. This system, he said, would in a few years, cost us more +money than the fee simple of the electorate was worth, a place which +after all could not be found in the map. He ardently wished us to break +those fetters which chained us like Prometheus to that barren rock. (The +metaphor which made a rock of Hanover does not strike one as one of his +happiest efforts). + +If Lyttelton could not state the purpose for which this credit was +designed, perhaps he could say for what it was not designed. Still, Pitt +added sardonically, he was of so compounding a temper that he should +assent to it. + +Ministers bragged of their unanimity and spirit. But what had all this +army of councils and talents, this universal aye, produced? Were we +safe? Had we inflicted any damage on the enemy? If so, when and where? + +He had no particular pleasure in thus speaking. He did not wish to load +the unhappy men who had undone their country, most unhappy if they did +not realise it. And our activity! Philosophers indeed had a phrase _vis +inertiae_ by which they denoted the inactivity of action (_sic_). Was it +by that that we were to be saved? + +His charge against the Government was this: that we had provoked before +we could defend, and neglected after provocation; that we were left +inferior to France in every quarter; that the vote of credit had been +misapplied to secure Hanover; and that we had bought a treaty with +Prussia by sacrificing our rights. He would not have signed such a +treaty to have the five great places of those who had signed it. Yet if +this treaty were restrained to the defence of the King's dominions he +should not know how to oppose it. + +He had no feeling of resentment against the Government, no one had +injured him. Yet he could not but think ill of their capacity and their +measures. Could he, then, every day, arraign their policy and feel +confidence in them? Pelham indeed had intended economy, but he was +dragged into this foreign policy by his brother, now at the head of the +Treasury. And if he, Pitt, saw Newcastle like a child driving a go-cart +with that precious freight of an old King and his family on to a +precipice, was he not bound to try and take the reins from his hands? +And with a gloomy foreboding which must have chilled the anxious House, +he solemnly prayed that the King might not have Minorca written on his +heart, as Calais had been, in the dying declaration of Mary, engraved on +hers. + +The debate ended with a bitter rally between Pitt and Lyttelton, the +fiercer for their former friendship. Lyttelton had sneered at his +epithets. This came well, said Pitt, from Lyttelton, whose own character +was a composition of epithets. He himself had used no epithets that day, +so Lyttelton had chosen ill the occasion for his taunt. But in any case +the House was not an academy for the exchange of compliments. And when +Lyttelton disclaimed any share in framing the motion, it was obvious +that he was not at liberty to change it. If Lyttelton would declare that +he had no more resources, he would only say that Lyttelton was +incapable. + +The new Chancellor of the Exchequer, whose heart was still warm with his +old affection, was hurt by this attack, but he maintained his ground. +'He says I am but a thing made up of epithets. Is not this the language +of Billingsgate? The world is complaining that the House was turned into +a bear garden. I do not envy my friend the glory of being the Figg or +Broughton of it.' Pitt retorted that Lyttelton was a very pretty poet, +and that there was no one whom he more respected pen in hand. 'But it is +hard that my friend, with whom I have taken sweet counsel in epithets, +should now reproach me with using them.' Lyttelton replied once more +that it was not his fault if he and Pitt were not still friends.[322] + +[Sidenote: May 14, 1756.] + +A day or two later Lyttelton unfolded to the House the provisions of the +Treaty of Westminster. It had cleared up some small pecuniary claims on +both sides, so much to Frederick for losses from British privateers, so +much from Frederick for arrears of interest on the Silesian loan, a +balance of 40,000_l._ due on the whole to Great Britain. On this, Pitt, +inveterate against the Ministry, fulminated once more. He declared that +by payment, even of a small sum, we had conceded the principle of our +Empire over the sea, and went off into the usual rhetoric. 'For himself +he should affect no superiority but what was common to him with the +twelve millions of his countrymen, innocence of his country's ruin, the +superiority of the undone over the undoers.' + +All that is notable in these crumbs of debate is the strategy of Pitt; +to hammer at the enemy without ceasing, not to allow him a moment to +breathe or recover, but to display him to the country day and night +pummelled, bewildered and helpless, until he should succumb from +exhaustion; when the country should insist on the removal of the +defeated combatant, and the substitution of his conqueror. Pitt was +openly set on the destruction of the Newcastle Government for more +reasons than one. He was vindictive and had been slighted; he was +profoundly anxious about the position of the country, and convinced of +the incapacity of Newcastle to govern; he wished to try his own hand at +the game, believing that he could do better, convinced that he could do +no worse, than the Ministers whom he had seen at work. + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + + +But national calamity was now to lend irresistible force to his attacks. +It had been known for some time that France was meditating an attack on +Gibraltar or Minorca, and in the beginning of March it became certain +that Minorca was to be the object.[323] During the first week of May the +Government received the news that the French had actually landed on the +island. War was formally and not prematurely declared on May 18. Six +weeks earlier the ill-fated Byng had sailed with a fleet to relieve the +fortress. The country waited for news with bated breath. The King +declared that he could neither eat nor sleep. Saunders, afterwards to be +Pitt's First Lord of the Admiralty, reassured his Sovereign by saying +that they should screw his heart out if Byng were not at that moment +(June 7) in the harbour of Mahon.[324] Then came the news that Byng, +after an indecisive engagement with the French fleet, had sailed back to +Gibraltar and left Minorca to its fate. Still the nation, though raging +against Byng, hoped against hope, till on July 14 the news came that +Fort St. Philip, the British fort, had surrendered after a gallant +defence on June 28, and that Minorca was in the hands of the French. The +long-compressed anxiety exploded in a terrible outburst of wrath against +Byng. Addresses poured in from every part of England demanding vengeance +upon him. The unhappy Admiral was brought back to Greenwich Hospital as +a prisoner to await a court-martial. But, the nation had already turned +its thumb downwards. Perhaps the best idea of the popular sentiment is +conveyed by the fact that Byng's brother, who went to meet the Admiral, +was stricken to death by the popular fury wherever he passed; so that he +fell ill at the first sight of the prisoner, and died next day in +convulsions. There was no chance of a fair trial for the unhappy man. To +the merchants of London bringing one of the addresses for his exemplary +punishment Newcastle, not sorry to have a scapegoat, had blurted out, +'Oh! indeed he shall be tried immediately: he shall be hanged directly.' +And executed he was, after an agony of eight months, in spite of +justice, in spite of Pitt, who had the fine courage to support him, in +deference to the nation and the King who were bent on his death. +Voltaire, who had tried with real humanity to save him, sardonically +described the execution in Candide, 'Dans ce pays-ci il est bon de tuer +de temps en temps un amiral pour encourager les autres,' a phrase which +he appears to have borrowed from the Knights of Malta.[325] + +Something less, much less than Nelson, might have saved Minorca. The +truth seems to be that Byng, who was personally brave, sailed from +Gibraltar with the preconceived impression that Minorca was lost, and +acted throughout under this conviction, without energy or resource. So +far as his countrymen, or rather, their rulers, were concerned, they had +long done their best to lose it. They had, in spite of constant appeals, +starved and neglected it. But there was worse than this. On one side of +the mouth of the harbour of Mahon is a site easily rendered impregnable, +on the other a plain which nothing can secure. John Duke of Argyle had +begun a fort on the first site, but Lord Cadogan out of hatred to him, +it was said, destroyed it and built Fort St. Philip at a vast expense on +the second. The thing is incredible to the traveller who sees the place. +If the story be true (Horace Walpole is the authority), it is on the +head of Cadogan and not of Byng that should be laid the loss of Minorca, +a loss which can neither be forgotten nor forgiven. + +This tragic incident only touches Pitt's life in so far as it +precipitated the disgrace of Newcastle. The Duke was indeed getting +deeper and deeper. In May he declared that no one blamed him, for every +one knew that the sea was not his province, and Fox had replied that as +to public censure, his information was exactly the reverse. In September +he could scarcely conceal from himself that he was being mobbed and +pelted in his coach, and that his coachman was urged by the shouting +crowd to drive his Grace straight to the Tower. Ballads swarmed of which +the burden was, 'To the block with Newcastle and to the yard-arm with +Byng.' Even the docile allegiance of the House of Commons can scarcely +have allayed the veteran's rising anxiety. 'This was the year of the +worst administration that I have seen in England,' says Walpole, though +he was the close friend of Fox, 'for now Newcastle's incapacity was +allowed full play.' Fox indeed found that he was not admitted to real +confidence or to the counsels of Newcastle and Hardwicke. He was +therefore in a state of swelling discontent, ready to break away at the +first opportunity. He declared that he had urged that a strong squadron +should be sent for the relief of the fortress during the first week of +March, but was overruled. The fall of Minorca and the storm of national +fury which followed increased his anxiety to be out of this disastrous +Ministry. He was, we suspect, already determined not to meet Parliament +again as Newcastle's talking puppet, possibly his scapegoat. + +The House had risen on May 27. Two days earlier occurred an event which +was to remove one of the three intellects of the Government, Fox and +Hardwicke, of course, being the other two. Ryder, the Chief Justice of +the King's Bench, died, and Murray at once laid claim to the succession. +This demand drove Newcastle to despair. He offered Murray exorbitant and +increasing terms to remain, for he regarded Murray as his sole protector +in the House of Commons against his doubtful friend, Fox, and his open +enemy, Pitt. But offers of the Duchy of Lancaster for life with a +pension of 2000_l._ a year, with permission to remain Attorney-General +at a salary of 7000_l._ a year, and a reversion of one of the Golden +Tellerships of the Exchequer for his nephew Stormont, left Murray +unmoved. For months the game of temptation was played. At the beginning +of October the Prime Minister had raised the proposed pension to +6000_l._ a year. Murray remained firm. He stipulated, indeed, for more +than the Chief Justiceship; he demanded a peerage as well; he would not +take the one without the other; and in no case would he remain +Attorney-General. We can imagine Newcastle's tears and caresses; they +were in vain. Vain, too, was his attempt to fob off his rebellious +subordinate with the reluctance of the King. Murray, indeed, hinted that +when he became a private member of the House of Commons he might go into +Opposition. We may be sure, at any rate, that he had no intention of +facing an angry nation and Parliament in defence of Newcastle and the +loss of Minorca. This hint probably clinched the matter. Newcastle +capitulated; though, said Fox, from 'wilful trifling,' he deferred the +performance of his promise as long as possible.[326] It was not till the +eve of the Duke's fall that, on November 8, Murray was sworn in as Chief +Justice and created a Peer as Lord Mansfield. + +[Sidenote: 1756.] + +What glimpses are there meanwhile of Pitt? He had just got possession of +Hayes, and was there in May, building and improving, as usual, but +speaking brilliantly on the Militia Bill in the House, so brilliantly as +to earn a patronising note of approval from Bute, beginning 'My worthy +friend'; an indication that the bond between Pitt and the young Court +was now close. Indeed, Pitt seems now to have been the principal adviser +of that increasingly powerful connection. + +Potter, whom Pitt had come to describe as 'one of the best friends I +have in the world,' wrote to Pitt, ten days after Ryder's death, +conveying the news from an inspired source that if Murray went on the +bench Newcastle would invite Pitt to join the Government, for he could +repair the loss in no other way. But he adds, shrewdly enough, that the +Duke was evidently ignorant of his own strength, for if he had to rely +on Lyttelton and Dupplin (then Joint Paymaster of the Forces) alone, +though the debates would no doubt be shorter, he would not, such was the +temper of the House, lose a single vote. He added that, in his judgment, +the Opposition had not made themselves popular by their conduct, because +of the fear of invasion. Hanover treaties and Hanover troops had become +popular; opposition to them must be wrong 'when we are ready to be eat +up by the French.'[327] + +But these anticipations were premature, for the struggle with Murray +lasted, as we have seen, from May till November. So that Pitt had +leisure to squander on his improvements and to receive his eldest son +John on John's entrance into the world. But his eye was vigilantly fixed +on the distresses of the country. 'Quae regio in terris nostri non plena +laboris?' he writes to George Grenville (June 5, 1756). 'It is an +inadequate and a selfish consolation, but it is a sensible one, to think +that we share only in the common ruin, and not in the guilt of having +left us exposed to the natural and necessary consequences of +administration without ability or virtue.' Grenville, determined not to +be undone, replies in a letter stuffed with Latin quotation. 'Distress,' +rejoins Pitt (June 16, 1756), 'infinite distress seems to hem us in on +all quarters. I am in most anxious impatience to have the affair in the +Mediterranean cleared up. As yet nothing is clear but that the French +are masters there, and that probably many an innocent and gallant man's +honour and fortune is to be offered up as a scapegoat for the sins of +the Administration.' In July he paid a visit at Stowe, and in August he +was laid up at Hayes with 'a very awkward, uneasy, but not hurtful' +malady. + +He must have seen with poignant interest Frederick's fierce irruption +into Saxony, but all seems absorbed in his anxiety for his wife and his +overflowing delight at the birth of his son. This event occurred on +October 10, at a moment when the ministerial crisis had become acute. + +No one in fact was willing to face even an abject House of Commons with +the loss of Minorca on his back. Newcastle was near the end of his +tether. Murray had gone. Whether Chief Justice or not, he was determined +to be out of the Ministry; and if disappointed of his just claim to the +Bench he was not likely to face a storm on behalf of the Minister who +had refused it. Murray had gone, Fox was going; for his chagrin was +patent, and Newcastle 'treated him rather like an enemy whom he feared +than as a minister whom he had chosen for his assistant.' He was no +better used by the King. The Duke, moreover, was at war with the waxing +power of Leicester House. With this Court indeed he managed to patch up +a hollow peace at the expense of Fox; offending one Court and not +appeasing the other. But that did not help him to an agent in the House +of Commons. + +And worse was still to come, disaster followed on disaster. To a nation +freshly smarting with the fall of Minorca there came tidings of +catastrophe from the East and the West. In June Calcutta had been +captured by Surajah Dowlah, followed by the horrors of the Black Hole, +which still linger in the proverbial dialect of this country. Then in +August fell Oswego, the most important British fortress in North +America. Situated on Lake Ontario it was a permanent menace to the +French, for British command of that lake would mean the separation of +Canada from Louisiana. Montcalm, a general of high merit, who has had +the singular good fortune to leave a name consecrated by the common +veneration of friend and foe, had arrived to take the command of the +French forces in Canada. Two months after landing he marched on Oswego, +and, investing it with a greatly superior force, soon compelled it to +capitulate. Its garrison of 1400 men surrendered as prisoners of +war.[328] A hundred pieces of artillery and great stores of ammunition +fell into the hands of the French. The forts, three in number, and the +vessels were burned. It was a real triumph for the French, and a +proportionate disaster for their foes. 'Such a shocking affair has never +found a place in English annals,' wrote one American officer. 'The loss +is beyond account; but the dishonour done his Majesty's arms is +infinitely greater.' 'Oswego,' wrote Horace Walpole, 'is of ten times +more importance even than Minorca.' + +Scarcely less consternation was caused in England, where the news +arrived on September 30. People there were getting dazed with disaster, +and the men who ruled became more and more abhorrent. Already, on +September 2, Newcastle had written to the Chancellor that people were +becoming outrageous in the North of England, and that a petition was +being largely signed in Surrey demanding 'justice against persons +however highly dignified or distinguished.' This, he adds drily, may +mean you or me, or 'perhaps somebody more highly dignified and +distinguished than either of us.'[329] Who could be found to bear such a +burden of shame and ignominy, and affront the storm that threatened to +burst at once in overwhelming popular fury? + +Not Fox, undaunted though he might be. Like the condottiere that he was, +he did not heed hard knocks provided the pay were good. But here he was +defrauded of his deserts, of the promised confidence of the King and his +Minister. For Newcastle had betrayed him to the last; the magpie cunning +of that old caitiff paralysed every arm that might have defended him. +When it came to the point he could not bring himself to part with his +monopoly of patronage, and of power as he understood power. He was like +a drowning miser with his treasure on him, who will not part with his +gold to save his life. So the Duke preferred to sink with all his +influence rather than take the chance of floating without it. First he +set the King against Fox. The Duke had tried to appease Leicester House +by getting the appointment of Groom of the Stole for Bute. The King, +suspecting Bute's intimacy with the Princess, detested that fascinating +courtier. So Newcastle, to divert from himself the King's wrath at +having to make this nomination, told His Majesty that Fox made Bute's +appointment a condition of his retaining the seals; and then without +telling Fox that his name had thus been mentioned to the Sovereign, +informed him that the King was exasperated against him.[330] + +Then there arose the eternal question of patronage. Fox had been +promised by the King himself that on becoming Secretary of State he +should have the conduct of the House of Commons with all that that +involved. But Newcastle could not bring himself to fulfil the royal +pledges or his own. When the list of the Prince of Wales's household was +published, Fox saw in it the names of eight or ten members of Parliament +as to whom he had never been even consulted. Newcastle moreover, as Fox +asserted, broke a solemn promise that Fox's nephew, Lord Digby, should +be included. A still greater affront was that he told Fox that he +destined a vacant seat at the Board of Trade for a person whom he was +not at liberty to mention. More than this, he took occasion to remind +Fox of a former offer to make way for Pitt if it were for the King's +service, and Fox again readily agreed. All this took place on September +30.[331] Such an insulting and accumulated want of confidence between +the leaders of the two Houses was not to be tolerated, and Fox wrote at +once to Bubb that things were going ill. The final explosion was caused +by the exclusion of Digby, which was notified to Fox on October 5. The +King, said the Duke, refused this nomination peremptorily and bitterly, +but had said that, if the Duke himself pressed it, he would yield to +oblige the Duke. On receiving this letter, Fox wrote a furious letter +to Stone, Newcastle's secretary. The draft of a letter commonly reveals +much more of the writer's mind than the letter itself, and the draft of +this is fortunately preserved.[332] 'I do not know,' wrote Fox, 'whether +I am to imagine from hence that the negotiation with Mr. Pitt is far +advanced, but I am told it is not begun. In these circumstances, dear +Sir, I must beg you to stop it. I retract all good-humoured dealing. I +may be turned out, and I suppose shall. But I will not be used like a +dog without having given the least provocation (suppose I should say +with the utmost merit to those who use me so) and be like that dog a +spaniel. I do not consent that Mr. Pitt should have my place, and +promise to be in good humour or even on any terms with those who give it +him.'[333] Fox was in a blind fury, but sensibly expunged all this from +the letter he sent. To Welbore Ellis, his confidant, he wrote: 'The King +has carried his displeasure to me beyond common bounds, and I vow to God +I don't guess the reason. The Duke of Newcastle, instead of growing +better, has outdone himself, and show'd me the Prince's establishment on +which eight members of the House of Commons are plac'd whose names he +never mention'd to me, and he had the assurance to make a merit of +shewing me the List after it was _fix'd_ with the King. He has been Fool +enough to ask my consent, and to intend to offer my place to Mr. Pitt +without (as I believe) trying whether or no he will accept it. This +makes it necessary for me to take a step in which my view is to get out +of court and never come into it again.... If you think it worth while to +get up very early to-morrow morning you may be at Holland House before +I go to Lady Yarmouth, to desire and humbly advise H.M. to conclude the +Treaty with Mr. Pitt, promising my assistance in a subaltern employment, +and shewing the impossibility of my appearing and my determination not +to appear in the H. of Commons as Secy. of State.'[334] While he was +writing this, Newcastle was despatching a note giving way as to Digby's +nomination,[335] with much the same effect as a cup of cold water poured +with the best intentions on a burning city. + +Whether with or without the companionship of Ellis, Fox went straight to +Lady Yarmouth. She was out. Newcastle had already sent her a note +enclosing Fox's resignation, and assuring her that Fox was bringing it +to her for transmission to the King.[336] When Fox found her, later in +the day, and handed her his paper, she denied any idea of Pitt ever +having been suggested to the King, but besought him to reconsider his +determination. 'Monsieur Fox, vous etes trop honnete homme pour quitter +a present. S'il y avait quatre ou cinq mois avant que le Parlement +s'assemble; a la fin de la session vous ferez ce que vous voudrez, mais +a present de jeter tout en confusion! Regardez a la position des +affaires. Non, je n'excuse pas le Duc de Newcastle; c'est dur, c'est +penible, mais quand vous aurez pense un peu au Roi, a la patrie, vous +continuerez cette session,' perhaps the only articulate utterance of +Lady Yarmouth that we possess.[337] Failing in this, she begged at least +that Granville might hand the resignation to the King instead of +herself. Fox agreed to this.[338] + +Fox's note to Newcastle was terse and sombre: + +'My Lord, I return Your Grace many thanks for the letter which, not +being at home, I did not receive till late last night, and I am much +obliged to you for the contents of it. + +'The step I am going to take is not only necessary but innocent. It +shall be accompany'd with no complaint. It shall be follow'd by no +resentment. I have no resentment. But it is not the less true that my +situation is impracticable.' + +To the King he sent a formal paper of grievance and resignation, which +has already been printed and need not be repeated here. He took great +pains over it, as the drafts testify. The substance of it was that he +had been loyal to Newcastle, but that he had not received support in +return, and so could not carry on the business of Government in the +House of Commons as it should be carried on. But he would gladly serve +the King outside the Cabinet. This meant that he would gladly exchange +offices with Pitt. At the same time he told Cumberland and wrote to +Devonshire that if Newcastle had been such a fool as to offer the seals +to Pitt without knowing whether he would take them, he (Fox), to prevent +the general confusion that would ensue, would continue for another +session. No notice was taken of this offer.[339] It does not seem +certain that it ever reached either Newcastle or the King. + +Granville found the King prepared for the resignation, and very angry +with Fox for deserting him. 'Would you advise me to take Pitt?' he +asked. 'Well, Sir!' replied Granville, 'you must take somebody.' 'Ah! +but,' said the monarch, pensively, 'I am sure Pitt will not do my +business.' The business to which the Sovereign referred was, of course, +electoral. He considered that he had in various ways shown Fox great +favour, and that Fox had acted ill in throwing up his office when the +meeting of Parliament was near at hand. + +Newcastle received Fox's resignation at the Treasury. Though he was +planning to discard Fox for Pitt, he was thunderstruck at finding that +Fox had anticipated him. He hurried to Court, and found the King in good +humour except with the resigning Secretary. His Majesty gave Newcastle +the paper which he had received from Granville, having underlined the +passage which had mainly offended him: 'for want of support, and think +it impracticable for me to carry on His Majesty's affairs as they ought +to be carried on;' and then recited, with the aid of Newcastle as +prompter, all the favours shown to Fox. But the more urgent and +practical question was not the ingratitude of Fox, but what was to be +done now that he had gone. The King, with that shrewd and redeeming +touch of humour which we constantly discern in him, said that a sensible +courtier, Lord Hyde, had told him that there were but three things to +do. The King recited them thus: 'to call in Pitt, to make up with my own +family, and, my lord, I have forgot the third.' The third probably +related to Newcastle himself, and may therefore have been difficult of +repetition to the Duke. But without hesitation the King empowered +Newcastle to approach Pitt, and to tell him that if he would take +office he should have a good reception. Pitt was also to be offered the +seals, but not at first, on the fatuous principle on which all +Newcastle's negotiations were conducted; to hope against hope that the +object he coveted could be got for much less than its value. + +But then the King asked 'the great question ... which,' says Newcastle, +'I own I could not answer: what shall we do if Pitt will not come? Fox +will then be worse.' Then the King, with still increasing acuteness, +asked, 'Suppose Pitt will not serve with you?' 'Then, Sir, I must go.' +And so it was to end. But Newcastle would not without a struggle +renounce the deleterious habit of office. He summoned Hardwicke to town +for the purpose of approaching Pitt. He hurried to Lady Yarmouth and +took counsel with her. All agreed that the only resource was Pitt, and +that Hardwicke alone could sound him. Pitt was at Hayes, but leaving +immediately for Bath. Time was short, the crisis acute, so Newcastle +wrote, 'don't boggle at it.'[340] + +There was no boggling or hesitation on the part of the Chancellor: he +hurried to London and saw Pitt on Tuesday, October 19. The interview +lasted three hours and a half. When it was over, Hardwicke despatched a +despairing note to Newcastle: 'I am just come from my conference, which +lasted full 3-1/2 hours. His answer is an absolute final negative +without any reserve for further deliberation. In short there never was a +more unsuccessful negotiator.'[341] In a longer letter to his son Lord +Royston, Hardwicke added but little more. On the main point Pitt was +inexorable; he would have nothing to do with Newcastle. Hardwicke could +not move him an inch. He was obdurate on 'men and measures.'[342] But +'men and measures' only meant Newcastle. Pitt had been repeatedly +tricked by him; he had seen Fox repeatedly tricked by him when the +meanest self-interest dictated honesty; he would not fall into the trap +into which Fox had fallen; to join Newcastle now would be to be a +willing dupe, and he was determined to govern if he was to govern, +without this perpetual ambush at his side. Nor would he have any +dealings with Fox. He thought, truly or untruly, that Fox had betrayed +him, and he intended to try and do without treachery. He wished to enter +on power clear of all suspicious connections, and indeed with little but +the influence of his wife's family. So he resolved to see nothing even +of Bute before meeting Hardwicke, and he summoned the Grenvilles to +receive his report immediately after seeing Hardwicke.[343] + +Pitt, however, having no access to the King and being anxious to +communicate with him directly, made overtures elsewhere. On October 21, +the palace was disturbed by an unwonted agitation. Pages and lackeys +were seen in sudden perturbation calling to each other that Mr. Pitt had +arrived to see my Lady Yarmouth. Lady Yarmouth's position was singular +enough. She had once been the declared mistress of George the Second; +'My lady Yarmouth the comforter,' wrote a ribald wit.[344] She still +lived under his roof, when it was her business to keep him amused, if +possible, during the long dull evenings. But from being a favourite, she +had developed into an institution. Her apartment, immediately below the +King's, was little less than an office. There, it was said, peerages or +bishoprics might sometimes be bought, and some patronage was perhaps +facilitated or dispensed. On the other hand, Lord Walpole declared at an +earlier period that she asked for nothing, and that one of her principal +charms with the King was that she did not importune him for favours. At +any rate, persons wanting anything did well to write to her. Thither, +too, a circumstance of much significance, Ministers repaired before or +after their audience with the King, to anticipate the royal disposition +or to report the royal utterances. 'I went below stairs,' was the +phrase. They took close counsel with the lady, she told them her +impressions of the King's real views, and usually added some shrewd +observations of her own. Her action seems to have been wholly +beneficial; she appeased jealousies, conciliated animosities, +administered common sense, spoke ill of nobody, and, so far as we can +judge, was eminently good natured in the best sense of that tortured +epithet. Perhaps her most useful function was that of acting as a +conciliatory channel for those who had something to say to the King +which they could not say themselves. Both Fox and Newcastle had at once +hurried to her, as we have seen, when the crisis took place. And so Pitt +now found it necessary to pay his first visit to her. + +He had heard perhaps that the King had said, 'I am sure Pitt will not do +my business,' and had come to give soothing insinuations. But he also +entertained a well-founded doubt as to whether he had fair play with +the King, and whether he could trust Newcastle and Hardwicke to +represent him fairly to the Sovereign.[345] So he came to Lady Yarmouth +as his only means of direct communication with the Closet, and stated +his real terms, handing her a written list of the men he proposed for +office, a list which still exists.[346] He would not serve with +Newcastle, but the King might find in getting rid of Newcastle that +Hanover had other unsuspected friends.[347] But he also 'sent,' says +Fox, 'the terms of a madman to the King.' They do not seem very mad to +us: Ireland for Temple, the Exchequer for Legge, the Paymastership for +George Grenville, the Irish Secretaryship for James Grenville, the +Treasury for Devonshire. Townshend was to be Treasurer of the Chambers, +Dr. Hay a Lord of the Admiralty, and places were to be found for George +Townshend, Erskine, Lord Pomfret, and Sir Richard Lyttelton. For his +colleague in the Secretaryship of State he proposed, most marvellous of +all, Sir Thomas Robinson! The overture, however, irritated the King, +partly from the demands, partly because it showed that people thought +that he was influenced by Lady Yarmouth. 'Mr Pitt,' he said,'shall not +go to that channel any more. She does not meddle and shall not +meddle.'[348] Nevertheless the hint dropped by Pitt was probably useful +and fruitful. Pitt himself said afterwards that this interview put an +end to the indecision of the King, who had remained sullen and +passive.[349] + +The next point to be noted is Pitt's second interview with Hardwicke. +And though the minute of Hardwicke's conversation with Pitt on October +19 appears to be lost, we have his record[350] of this second meeting +between them on October 24, which he read to the King on October 26, and +which contains the main points at issue. + +Hardwicke began by telling Pitt that he had sent for him at the King's +command; that he had on October 20 faithfully narrated to the King all +that had passed at the interview of October 19, and that the King had +summoned him on October 23, the day previous to the present meeting, in +order to send the following message-- + +'The King is of opinion that what has been suggested is not for his and +the public service.' + +Pitt thereupon bowed and said that His Majesty did him the greatest +honour in condescending to return any answer to anything that came from +him. He then repeated the message word for word, and desired Hardwicke +to bear in mind that all that he _had suggested_ was by way of +objection; that he had not suggested anything _affirmative_ as to +measures of any kind. Hardwicke replied that he had repeated to the King +exactly what had passed, and recapitulated the five heads under which +Pitt had summed up the previous conversation. + +'1. That it was impossible for him to serve with the Duke of Newcastle. + +'2. That he thought enquiries into the past measures absolutely +necessary, that he thought it his duty to take a considerable share in +them, and could not lay himself under any obligation to depart from +that. + +'To this I said that the King was not against a fair and impartial +enquiry. + +'3. That he thought his duty to support a Militia Bill, and particularly +that of the last session. + +'I told him that the King and his ministers were not against _a_ Militia +Bill. + +'4. That the affair of the Hanoverian soldier[351] he thought of great +importance; that what had been done ought to be examined, and, he +thought, censured. + +'5. That if he came into His Majesty's service, he thought it necessary, +in order to serve him, and to support his affairs, to have such powers +as belonged to his station, to be in the first concert and concoction of +measures, and to be at liberty to propose to His Majesty himself +anything that occurred to him for his service, originally, and without +going through any other minister.' + +Pitt, who was evidently disappointed, acknowledged the accuracy of +Hardwicke's recital, and desired to know if the message from the King +was _an answer to the whole_. Hardwicke replied that it was the King's +answer in the King's own words,[352] and that he could not take on +himself to explain it; but that he understood it as _an answer to +everything that had been conveyed by Mr. Pitt to the King_. + +To this Pitt rejoined with thanks for the King's condescension that he +would say to Hardwicke, '_as from one private gentleman to another_,' +that he would not come into the service, in the present circumstances of +affairs, upon any other terms for the whole world. + +'I then,' continues the Chancellor, 'said that undoubtedly He must judge +for himself; But I would also say to Him, _as from Lord Hardwicke only +to Mr. Pitt_-- + +'That, as He professed great Duty to the King & Zeal for his Service, & +I dared to say had it; That as He had expressed an Inclination to come +into his Majesty's service, in order _really_ to assist in the support +of his Government; + +'That as He was a Man of Abilities & knowledge of the World; That, as +Men of Sense, who wish the End, must naturally wish the means; why would +He at the same time make _the thing_ impracticable? + +'To This He answered that he would say to me _in the same private +manner_ That he was surprized that it should be thought possible for Him +to come into an Employment to serve with the D. of Newcastle, under +whose Administration the things he had so much blamed had happened, & +against which the Sense of the Nation so strongly appeared; & I think +he added,--which Administration could not possibly have lasted, if he +had accepted. + +'In answer to That I said some general things in the same sense with +what I had mentioned on that head on Tuesday last. + +'He then rose up & we parted with great personal Civility on both +sides.' + +Meanwhile Newcastle, proscribed by Pitt and spurned by Fox, knew not +whither to turn. He broke out in a wail against them to the Chancellor, +the keeper of his conscience even more than of the King's. 'My dearest +Lord,' he writes (October 20, 1756), 'tho' a consciousness of my own +innocence and an indifference as to my own situation may, and I hope in +God will, support me against all the wickedness and ingratitude which I +meet with, yet your Lordship cannot think that I am unmindful of or +senseless to the great indignity put upon me by these two gentlemen.' +Newcastle in the character of a Christian martyr, the prey of heathen +raging furiously, has something humorous and incongruous about it, were +the attitude less abject. But in a sentence or two he returns to a more +familiar character. 'Allow me only to suggest to your Lordship the +necessity of making the King see that the whole is a concert between Mr. +Pitt and Mr. Fox. The news and principles upon which they act are the +same, viz., to make themselves necessary, and masters of the King ... +that the only thing Mr. Pitt alledges against me is the _conduct of the +war_.' ... 'Quit before the Birthday I must and will.' He goes on to +consult the Chancellor as to whether he shall ask any favours for his +relations.[353] + +So the falling Minister in his straits tried to play upon the King's two +strongest passions, fear of being dominated and fear for Hanover. How +wise Pitt was to go straight to Lady Yarmouth! But Newcastle had tried +other measures as well after Fox's resignation. The very day he received +it he had hurried to his old enemy Granville, now comfortably ensconced +in the Presidency of the Council, and offered to exchange offices with +him, giving him his friend Fox as Chancellor of the Exchequer.[354] +Granville, he remembered, had once been willing to face far greater +hazards with Pulteney. But Granville was ten years older; he had, to use +his own expression, put on his nightcap; and he laughed the suppliant +Duke out of the room. 'I will be hanged a little before I take your +place,' he said, not perhaps without some relish for his chief's terror +and distress, 'rather than a little after.' But he added more gravely +that '_we_ must determine either to give Mr. Fox what he wants, or to +take in Mr. Pitt; who,' Newcastle adds piteously, 'will not come.'[355] +Then Newcastle tried Egmont and Halifax. Egmont was willing to take the +seals with a British peerage. But it was in the House of Commons that +strength was wanted. No such strength was to be found without Pitt or +Fox. Dupplin, one of the Paymasters, an able man of business and much in +Newcastle's confidence, said broadly and truly, 'Fox and Pitt need only +sit still and laugh, and we must walk out of the House!' And yet the +House of Commons was almost unanimous in devotion to the Minister. Was +there ever so strange a situation? + +In view of this last fact Hardwicke urged Newcastle to hold on; and +Lyttelton, to inspirit him, offered to accept any office. This +well-intentioned proposal failed to animate the Duke, though it was +gratefully recognised. There was nothing left but the rank and file; +ardent supporters with nothing to support. The Government was doomed. + +Instructions from counties and boroughs were coming up as in the days of +the impeachment of Walpole. Addresses were presented to the Throne. The +country was thoroughly roused. And its hopes and gaze were fixed solely +on Pitt, a private member, untried in affairs, with scarce a follower in +Parliament. He, at any rate, had not failed, a negative merit indeed, +but one which he alone of the leading statesmen of the time could claim. + +Newcastle was left alone with Hardwicke. Around them that desert had +begun to form which portends the fall of a Ministry; though their +faithful Commons still awaited their bidding in silence. And at last the +old Duke realised that he must resign, but determined that Hardwicke +should resign too, perhaps to make his own resignation regretted, +perhaps because he would not leave behind him an asset of such value. +'My dearest, dearest Lord,' he wrote, 'you know how cruelly I am treated +and indeed persecuted by all those who now surround the King.' +Hardwicke's friendship, he said, was now his only comfort, Hardwicke's +resignation would be his honour, glory, and security. 'But, my dearest +Lord, it would hurt me extremely if yours should be long delayed.' And +indeed, Hardwicke, to the regret of all, consented to leave the woolsack +and follow his friend. Newcastle was shrewd enough to know that under +the existing conditions in Parliament he could scarcely fail soon to +return to office. But Hardwicke did not return. + +[Sidenote: Oct. 28, 1756.] + +When the King was sure that Newcastle was really going, he sent for Fox +and bade him try if Pitt would join him. 'The Duke of Newcastle whom you +hate will retire,' said the Sovereign; 'try your hand and see what you +can do with Pitt.'[356] Next day Fox went to the Prince's levee at +Saville House, and engaged Pitt in close and animated conversation for +some twenty minutes. 'Mr. Pitt exceeding grave, Mr. Fox very warm. They +did not seem to part amicably.'[357] Of this talk a famous fragment +survives, characteristic of political language in those days. 'Are you +going to Stowe?' asked Fox. 'I ask because I believe you will have a +message of consequence from people of consequence.' 'You surprise me,' +answered Pitt, 'are you to be of the number?' 'I don't know,' said Fox, +taken aback. 'One likes to say things to a man of sense,' rejoined Pitt, +'and to men of your great sense, rather than to others. And yet it is +difficult even to you.' Fox caught his hint at once. 'What! You mean +that you will not act with me as Minister.' 'I do,' replied Pitt. But a +moment after he felt that he had been too abrupt, and expressed a +courteous hope that Fox would take an active part, which his own health +would not permit him to do.[358] + +Was Pitt right in refusing the concurrence of Fox? On that question we +must allow him to be the best judge, as it is obvious that he did not +act in heat or passion, and that we cannot know the situation as he +did. To us now, viewing the poverty of his following and the useful +abilities of Fox, it would seem that he made a palpable mistake. Fox +would have taken the second place; as a matter of fact he was content to +subside into the gilded subordination of the Paymastership. His talents +as a debater were second only to Pitt's with the possible exception of +Charles Townshend's; but Townshend was only a shooting star, and did +not, like Fox, represent the important influence of Cumberland. Fox +would have fought stolidly for the side he espoused; he had a leaning to +Pitt, and shared Pitt's detestation of Newcastle, who was the common +enemy. But Pitt evidently had determined that he must sever himself +entirely from Newcastle and Newcastle's Minister in the House of +Commons. On both these rested the taint of corruption and national +disaster. He must, if he was to keep the confidence of the country, cut +himself clear from these personalities and their traditions. He could +estimate the weight of odium which rested upon them, which we cannot. He +had all the facts of the case before him, which we have not. He knew, +what we do not know for certain but cannot doubt, that Leicester House +made the exclusion of Fox or of Cumberland in any form a condition of +cordial support. He realised the weakness of his own parliamentary +position, he well understood the value of Fox's co-operation, but he +also knew the temper of the nation, and so we cannot doubt that he came +to the right decision. + +In any case Fox was not to blame. He offered, and we think cordially +offered, to co-operate with Pitt, and, indeed, serve under Pitt. Public +spirit perhaps was not his main motive. He did not, he confessed, feel +equal to the principal place. He had written in July: 'Though I see how +fatally things are going, as I don't know how to mend them, I am not +unreasonable enough to wish for what I could not conduct.'[359] And +things were much worse now. Moreover, he saw, as others saw, that it was +only the combination of himself with Pitt that could keep out Newcastle. +But in public affairs the best and fairest course is not to analyse +motives. He made the offer, he made it sincerely, and must have the +credit of it. + +But Pitt was inflexible. Those who had made him feel the weight of their +proscription should feel the weight of his. Fox would have liked to be +Paymaster. In that subordinate but opulent post he would have been +content to give support. But Pitt would have none of him. He refused him +this slight favour on the mysterious ground that it 'would be too like +Mr. Pelham in 1742.'[360] He would not touch Fox or Newcastle. + +The day after Fox's conversation with Pitt at the levee, the King sent +for Devonshire, and bade him form a Ministry. This Duke was now Lord +Lieutenant of Ireland and Fox's closest friend. The King probably hoped +in this way to bring about the union between Pitt and Fox, which almost +every one desired, save Pitt himself. Pitt himself had nominated +Devonshire, but without consulting him, in the interviews with +Hardwicke. Devonshire had written to Fox in approval of the resignation +as soon as he had heard of it. Five days afterwards he wrote again: 'If +my friendship or assistance can be of any use you can command me,' and +went on to say, 'Nothing has hurt Mr. Pitt so much as his having shown +the world that in order to gratify his resentment and satisfy his +ambition he did not value the confusion or distress that he might throw +this country into. This I own has in some degree altered the good +opinion I had of him.'[361] Devonshire therefore did not seem a +propitious Prime Minister for Pitt. But dukes counted for much in those +days. No one can read the history of those times without seeing the vast +importance attributed to forgotten princes like Marlborough, Bedford, +and Devonshire. + +Fox soon quarrelled with Devonshire. He considered that Devonshire had +abandoned him. The Duke had been his confidential friend, and had left +him to help Pitt, and act as Pitt's figurehead. At first he affected to +approve. But his wrath only smouldered. On one of the eternal questions +of patronage it broke out. Fox wrote to him a note of real dignity and +pathos. 'The Duke of Bedford has just now told me that Mr. John Pitt is +to kiss hands to-morrow for Mr. Phillipson's place;' (promised, +according to Fox, to his friend Hamilton). 'Consider, my Lord, +everything that has pass'd, and do not drive me from you. I neither mean +to do you harm, nor can do you harm if you think. But Your Grace's own +reflections will not please you when you have done so.'[362] Devonshire +was a weak man, but he was unconscious of blame and was deeply hurt. +Political friendships, when paths diverge, are more difficult to +maintain than men themselves realise at the moment of separation. + +[Sidenote: Oct. 31, 1756.] + +Devonshire was now sent to Pitt in the country,[363] but found that his +terms were such as the King could not be brought to accept. He +positively declined association with Fox in any shape, but deigned to +apologise to the Duke for having nominated him without previous +consultation. It was necessary, he said, to place some great lord there +to whom the Whigs would look up, and his partiality had made him presume +to suggest his Grace.[364] + +Then the King, refusing Pitt's terms, and aware that he had been +misinformed as to Fox's language about Bute, sent for Fox and offered +him the government. 'I was never dishonest, rash, or mad enough for half +an hour to think of undertaking it,' says Fox.[365] And again, 'I am not +capable of it,' and goes on to give the reason. 'Richelieu, were he +alive, could not guide the councils of a nation, if (which would be my +case) he could not from November to April have above two hours in the +four-and-twenty to think of anything but the House of Commons.'[366] If +that were Fox's need in 1756, it is difficult to imagine the kind of +physical and intellectual combination that he would have thought +adequate to the stress of affairs in the twentieth century. But in spite +of Fox's private opinion thus expressed, his friend Walpole records that +he offered at the worst to take the Treasury and go to the Tower if it +would save his Sovereign from having 'his head shaved.' 'Ah!' replied +the King with his usual shrewdness, 'if you go to the Tower I shall not +be long behind you.'[367] + +Then the distracted monarch, at the instigation of Fox, tried the fatal +expedient of an Assembly of Notables, and summoned all the leading +nobles and commoners who were at hand to meet at Devonshire House.[368] +But this meeting never took place, for Devonshire postponed or got rid +of it. It was to have recommended that Devonshire should have the +Treasury, Fox the Exchequer, and Legge be content with a peerage. Pitt +himself was to have the seals, with _carte blanche_ for his other +friends and dependents. Temple was to be First Lord of the +Admiralty.[369] + +Fox declares that Devonshire put an end to this plan by positively +refusing the Treasury.[370] Holdernesse sent word to Newcastle that _les +Renardins_ (the followers of Fox) were less sanguine.[371] And indeed, +on November 4, the day after that fixed for the assembly, Devonshire +went in to the King and came out from his audience having accepted the +Treasury. Bubb says that he stipulated for Fox as Chancellor of the +Exchequer.[372] This is at least doubtful. 'This question,' Fox +afterwards wrote, 'I beg may be asked: whether at the time his Grace did +take it with Legge I was not pressing him strongly to another thing, +viz., to offer to take it with me. I pressed this even to ill-humour at +his own house with Grenville at night. He refused absolutely, and the +next morning what he would not take with me he took with Legge.'[373] +This would seem conclusive, were it not that Bubb evidently had his +information from Fox at the time; but politicians are prone to illusions +on the subject of office. In any case, Devonshire left the Closet First +Lord of the Treasury with Legge as Chancellor of the Exchequer; the man +with whom two days before he had refused under any circumstances to +serve,[374] and whom the King had absolutely refused to take. Fox and +Bedford were in the anteroom as he came out, and were thunderstruck. +Bedford broke into passionate expostulation; Fox scented an intrigue. +However, the deed was done.[375] + +Fox says that Devonshire offered him, and he refused, the Pay +Office.[376] This is difficult to believe, and does not accord with his +other statements that he had offered to serve in a subordinate capacity +and been refused. Moreover, it was the office for which he always +hankered, with its vast profits and safe obscurity, as compared with the +Spartan frugality and dangerous prominence of the Secretaryship of +State.[377] + +As to the intrigue, Fox's instinct did not deceive him. The fact was +that Horace Walpole, having heard of the scheme of the Notables, saw at +once that it must put an end to the new arrangement, as it was one that +Pitt could not accept. Walpole feared no doubt that, in case of failure, +Newcastle, the object of his special detestation, might return to +office. So he sent his cousin Conway to alarm the Duke of Devonshire, +who consequently suppressed the meeting, and who went himself, as we +have seen, to the King to accept office.[378] Horace might well pique +himself on his powers of intrigue or duplicity, for a week before he had +spontaneously written to Fox to say that he heard that the King and Lady +Yarmouth were persuaded that Fox would not take the Treasury, but he +hoped they were wrong.[379] + +The new First Lord of the Treasury may have resisted having Legge as his +Chancellor of the Exchequer, but was easily overborne. What is more +difficult to understand is the King's nominating Legge, whom he +detested. It was a rude shock for Fox, who had planned the meeting of +Notables and framed the scheme it was to advise. Henceforth he +controlled himself no more, and became the sleepless enemy of the new +administration, which can be no matter of surprise. Pitt had made his +total exclusion as absolute a condition as that of Newcastle, and Fox +after his warm offers of co-operation and assistance could not but be +bitterly mortified. He believed, perhaps justly, that the proscription +laid on him proceeded from Leicester House.[380] Henceforth during the +short life of the new government he plotted and planned against it, +inspiring 'The Test,' a new paper under an old designation, with +venomous articles, and ready to form alternative administrations at a +moment's notice.[381] + +One great difficulty, the King's repugnance to Legge, had been +surmounted one does not know how; but there were still minor obstacles. +The whole arrangement was odious to the Sovereign: he could not bear +even to turn the first page of Devonshire's appointments. Pitt, who was +to succeed Newcastle in the Southern department, wished to exchange this +for the Northern. The King objected, for the Northern department +included Hanover, and Pitt eventually yielded. The new Secretary, as we +have seen, wished for Sir Thomas Robinson, his old butt, as a colleague, +on the singular ground that he knew nothing of the office he was +undertaking, and required Sir Thomas's guidance.[382] Pitt had compared +Robinson to a jack-boot; but personal opinions vary according to points +of view; Sir Thomas might be contemptible as a leader, but useful as a +dry-nurse. Holdernesse however remained. Then over every petty office, +coffererships, masterships of the Wardrobe, keeperships of the jewels, +treasurerships of the Household, there was snarling and struggling as of +dogs over bones. Bedford was secured as Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, +mainly, it would appear, through the agency of Fox, who wished to secure +as many ministerial posts as possible for his friends, and who was in +hopes that the Duke would traverse Pitt. Bedford cared little for +office; perhaps not much for Fox. His political passions were inspired +by his personal hatreds, of Newcastle now, as later of Pitt.[383] But +Fox, aided by the Duchess's ambition, prevailed. Amid these changes one +provokes a smile; Bubb was as usual dismissed. + +But the greatest and most grotesque disability lay with Pitt himself. +After all his struggles to be in the position of forming a Ministry, he +had no Ministry to produce. He could not fill a fraction of the offices. +His personal followers, all told, hardly exceeded a dozen. When he had +provided for the Grenvilles, Potter, and Legge, he had scarcely any one +to name. So this Ministry was doomed from the beginning. Pamphleteers +could not fail to observe Pitt's predicament. One lampoon, in the form +of a royal degree, 'Given at our imperial seat at Hayes,' and +countersigned 'John Thistle,' (a premature allusion to Bute), sets +forth: 'We will that you give lucrative employments to all Our Brethren, +uncles, cousins, relations and namesakes.'[384] Outside this category +Pitt's subordinates were mostly the friends of Newcastle or Fox, and so +his secret enemies, or waiters upon Providence who were not sufficiently +sure of his stability to call themselves his friends. Holdernesse, +Pitt's colleague in the Secretaryship of State, and Barrington, +Secretary for War, kept Newcastle fully informed of all that went on in +the administration and of all that they knew. Holdernesse also sent +abstracts of the despatches that came from abroad.[385] So that Pitt was +betrayed from the first. Ministries formed by one man seldom last long +under another. But Ministries which pass between two declared enemies +have not from the beginning any chance of life. This one was stillborn. + +Pitt himself lay ill with the gout at Hayes; so he had to leave his +affairs to be managed by a little clique in London, of which Temple of +course was the chief, and which was in close communion with Leicester +House. For every day Leicester House waxed and Kensington Palace waned +in importance, as the King advanced in years. Nothing in the history of +those days is more difficult to trace and yet nothing is more +significant than this invisible Court of the Heir-Apparent, which was +felt rather than seen, but towards which courtiers kept one anxious eye +during their dutiful attendance on the King. All felt that the centre of +power was shifting thither, and the uneasiness of those who wished to be +well with both Courts was manifest and irrepressible. The constant +anxiety of Fox to be Paymaster was largely due to his desire to be +sheltered from the hatred of the young Court in the reign that seemed +imminent. All this could not but increase the jealousy and irritability +of the old Sovereign, at a time when he was undergoing a new Ministry +most repulsive to him. Distasteful as it was in almost every respect, +what was perhaps most abhorrent was the consciousness that it was +imposed upon him by his daughter-in-law and her favourite, that it +rested on their support, and was indeed the Ministry of George III. +rather than of George II. + +Bute was the object of the King's chief detestation, a righteous +aversion if his suspicions were well founded; and Bute was now +undisguisedly prominent in the negotiations for the new Government. The +King treated Temple and his friends so ill at the levee, that the +injured nobleman went to Devonshire to say that he feared he could not +proceed a step further in the negotiations. On this mission he was +accompanied by Bute, for the purpose, apparently, of making the world +realise that Leicester House and all its influence were behind Pitt. +And Bute availed himself of this opportunity to make use of 'expressions +so transcendently obliging to us,' writes Temple, 'and so decisive of +the determined purposes of Leicester House towards us in the present or +any future day, that your lively imagination cannot suggest to you a +wish beyond them.' By Temple, too, he sent word to Pitt that he could +not advise, that he left all to Pitt, determined to support and approve +whatever Pitt decided.[386] This was the one element of strength to the +new Government, besides Pitt himself. And yet, so elusive was this +mysterious Court, that in September the town had been ringing with the +coolness of Pitt's reception at Leicester House, more especially by +Bute.[387] The fact is that there had evidently been a coldness, but +that the fall of Newcastle had brought the two together again.[388] + +[Sidenote: Dec. 4, 1756.] + +After Devonshire had kissed hands on November 4 there were however few +difficulties. Temple's cold reception at Court, on the very day of +Newcastle's resignation, which had made him declare with his usual +arrogance to Devonshire that all was over, was only a passing incident, +due to the fact that the King could not abide the very sight of Temple. +Pitt no doubt counselled moderation from Hayes, not desiring to lose the +fruit of so many years for a slight to his relative. And so, a week +after Temple's fiery declaration to Devonshire, the new Board of +Admiralty was gazetted with Temple at its head. Three days before, the +Board of Treasury had been declared with Devonshire and Legge as its +chiefs. One Grenville was included in this. For George Grenville and +Potter treasurerships and paymasterships were found. There were indeed +but few traces of Pitt's small connection in the Government. He, still +an invalid, received his seals a little later. He had also to change his +seat. He could not condescend to be re-elected for Newcastle's borough +of Aldborough; indeed, he had held it too long. Nor indeed would +Newcastle nominate him.[389] So now he accepted an olive branch from +Lyttelton, who shared the control of Okehampton with the Duke of +Bedford, and generously named his old friend and recent foe.[390] It may +have been that Pitt was desirous of cutting the last link with Newcastle +before entering upon office, and had deferred receiving the seals till +he was independent. Be that as it may, he was only to hold them four +months. During most of that time he was ill, during all of it he was +surrounded by conspiracies, and he was soon intrigued out of office, +though he never actually vacated it. But his short term had taught him +one priceless lesson; that genius and public spirit were not enough, +that a practical and even sordid leaven was required, and that if he +would not do the necessary work of political adjustment himself, he must +find somebody to do it for him, or give up all idea of being a powerful +Minister. + +It has been thought well to narrate at length the circumstances of the +final breakdown of the King's veto on Pitt's accession to office and the +struggle which preceded it; partly because some of the documents are +new, partly because it is a curious picture of character and intrigue, +partly because it is the fifth and culminating act of this long drama. + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + + +But with this Government we have nothing to do. We have reached our +limits. The youth of Pitt has passed, his apprenticeship is over, he has +now his foot in high office, he is soon to be supreme. The weary period +of proscription and conflict has come to an end, he is henceforth to +command where he has obeyed, and he is to raise his country to a +singular height of glory and power. That splendid period is beyond the +scope of this book, which only records the ascent and the toil; the +lustre of achievement and reward require a separate chronicle. The next +scenes require a broader canvas and brighter colours. + +But before we leave him let us try and realise his appearance. When we +read about any one we naturally wish to know what manner of man he was +in the flesh. In this case we seem but scantily provided with portraits. +We have glanced at the one by Hoare, to the accuracy of which Pitt +himself bears emphatic testimony. Of this one Hoare painted several +replicas, one of the worst of which, very bilious in colouring, is in +the National Portrait Gallery. There is another at Orwell which seems to +have more force in it; it could not have less. The original represents a +comely, graceful and elegant being without a symptom of anything but +comeliness, grace and elegance, and might be the portrait of any man of +fashion of the time. Great men have sometimes piqued themselves on being +dandies, and it may have been this air which recommended the picture to +its subject. This portrait, of which the large engraving, containing +only the head, is infinitely better than the original, duly arrived at +Stowe. Thence at the dispersal of that great collection it passed to +Drayton, having been purchased by Sir Robert Peel, and has lately found +a final home at Pittsburg. + +There is another portrait by Hoare, at full length, in the coronation +robes which Pitt never can have worn, which was painted for the +Corporation of Bath ten years after that for Temple. It leaves no +special impression. There was a portrait by Reynolds at Belvoir. But +that, alas! disappeared with so much else in the great fire which +ravaged that noble structure. Towards the end of his life (in 1772) he +was painted in peer's robes by Brompton. The engraving of this is at +full length, but the picture itself is a kitcat, so that it was probably +cut down. This picture is at Chevening, and Lord Sidmouth, if we are not +mistaken, owns a replica or another version of this picture. Pitt's +grand-daughter, Lady Hester Stanhope, who was brought up with it, says +that it is the best portrait of him. As she was only two years old when +he died, her testimony, though given with confidence, has no personal +value; but she had relations who may have told her. She piqued herself +on her resemblance to him. But no value is to be attached to the +utterances of this vain and crazy woman, unless one can believe, which +is difficult, that she repeated faithfully what more trustworthy people +had told her. However, this portrait may well be the best, where the +other is so poor. It is in itself impressive, representing a solemn, +noble, melancholy figure, such as Chatham must have been in his last +cheerless decade. + +There are more busts. There is one of him in youth, perhaps at +five-and-twenty, handsome, bright, alert, with a smile that is almost +saucy. The original of this was, it is believed, also at Stowe; also, +perhaps, purchased by Sir Robert Peel. There is more than one by Wilton. +One, dated 1759, grim and masterful, with a touch of scorn, the man +himself at his time of power. There are others of him in old age, with +less expression, ponderous and saturnine; they are posthumous, and dated +1781. One of these is at Dropmore, another at Belvoir, another at +Lowther. + +There are probably other portraits or busts, but these are all that are +known to the present writer. + +His appearance at his best must have been extremely attractive. Tall and +slender, 'his figure genteel and commanding,' he had cultivated all the +arts of grace, gesture and dramatic action. 'Graceful in motion,' says +his reluctant nephew, 'his eye and countenance would have conveyed his +feelings to the deaf.'[391] All authorities dwell on the magic of his +eye. His eyes, said his grand-daughter, presumably on family tradition, +were grey, but by candlelight seemed black from the intensity of their +expression. When he was angry or earnest no one could look him in the +face. No one indeed seems to have been able to abide the terrors of his +glance. + +Of his manners and conversation in private life we know singularly +little. Chesterfield gives us perhaps the best glimpse. 'He had manners +and address; but one might discern through them too great a +consciousness of his own superior talents. He was a most agreeable and +lively companion in social life, and had such a versatility of wit that +he could adapt it to all sorts of conversation.' Of his early powers of +fascination we have an authentic instance. He was seen walking with the +Prince of Wales in the gardens at Stowe, and Cobham, watching them with +anxiety, expressed some apprehension of Pitt's persuading the Prince to +adopt some measures of which Cobham disapproved. A Mr. Belson said that +the interview could not be long. 'You don't know Mr. Pitt's power of +insinuation,' said Cobham. 'In a very short quarter of an hour he can +persuade anyone of anything.' + +Butler, 'the Reminiscent,' who had this anecdote from Belson himself, +goes on to say that 'as a companion in festive moments, Mr. Pitt was +enchanting.' He also quotes Wilkes, who was a good judge of social +qualifications. 'Mr. Pitt, by the most manly sense and the fine sallies +of a warm and sportive imagination, can charm the whole day, and, as the +Greek said, his entertainments please even the day after they are +given.' But, after all, these must have been rare occasions, as Pitt +does not seem to have seen much of society, for his health kept him a +recluse; and as years went on he seems to have found it both irksome and +impolitic to see much of mankind. We fancy that he was a man, like his +son, of small and intimate companies; partly from a haughty aloofness, +partly because he could not partake of the pleasures of the table. + +'As a private man,' says Lord Camelford, 'he had especially in his youth +every talent to please when he thought it worth while to exert his +talents, which was always for a purpose, for he was never natural. His +good breeding never deserted him unless when his insolence intended to +offend. He was, however, soon spoilt by flattery, which gave him the +humours of a child. He was selfish even to trifles in his own family and +amongst his intimates to the forgetting the preferences due to the other +sex, of which I have heard many ridiculous instances; but this was much +owing to a state of health which made him fretful, at the same time that +it called his attention to his own person. When I first saw him he was +intemperate towards his servants full as much as my own father, but it +is to his honour that when he owed a better example to his children he +got the better of that habit. His first and only friendships were with +Lord Lyttelton and his sister Ann.' In a later passage he adds: 'He +lived and died without a friend.' + +Camelford, it will be observed, speaks with confidence about Pitt's +youth, of which he can have known nothing except from tradition, and +Pitt's family traditions were not likely to err on the side of +benignity. What he says about early friendships is obviously inaccurate; +he is quoting Pitt's impulsive note of Oct. 24, 1734.[392] The +Grenvilles, the other Lytteltons, and Gilbert West at once occur to one +as friends to whom Pitt in youth was tenderly attached. We may indeed +take it for granted that this curious piece refers to Pitt's middle +life, which Camelford knew personally; but it is too interesting to be +omitted here. + +His great and singular power lay in his eloquence, and yet even there we +are left largely to the recollection and testimony of his +contemporaries, for there was in those days no reporting as we +understand it, and therefore no reports. There are, of course, +professed reports, but to these little credence can be attached. Dr. +Johnson and a Scottish clergyman named Gordon wrote a great number of +them, based on very inadequate materials, if any materials at all. Men +carried away some noble outburst or some striking metaphor tingling in +their ears, and repeated it. Others would be able to recall the line of +argument, if indeed there was an argument to follow. But the result is +scarcely authentic. Pitt the younger must have known, and he declared +that no specimens of his father's eloquence remained. Butler says that +the person to whom he made this remark (no doubt Butler himself) begged +him to read slowly his father's speeches on the Stamp Act, and endeavour +as he did so to recall the figure, look and voice with which his father +would have delivered them. Pitt did so, and admitted the probable effect +of the speech thus delivered. But it is to be observed that he did not +admit the accuracy. Almon, who knew something of this matter, says that +none of the reports of Pitt's speeches before 1760 can be depended upon. +In 1766 Almon began reporting the debates himself, and so would claim +greater exactness, and may easily have attained it. + +One is in fact thrown back on the impressions and the descriptions of +those who heard him. Horace Walpole, who at this time admired Pitt as +much as he could admire anybody, gives us striking glimpses, some of +which we have already quoted; one of which, that of the answer to Hume +Campbell, is exquisite in felicity of phrase. Chesterfield says that +Pitt's 'eloquence was of every kind, and he excelled in the +argumentative as well as in the declamatory way. But his invectives were +terrible, and uttered with such energy of diction, and stern dignity of +action and countenance that he intimidated those who were the most +willing and the best able to encounter him. Their arms fell out of their +hands, and they sank under the ascendant which his genius gained over +theirs.' In a note Chesterfield tells us that the last phrases allude to +Murray and Hume Campbell. 'Mr. Pitt,' he says elsewhere, 'carried with +him unpremeditated the strength of thunder and the splendour of +lightning.' These extracts convey the impression made by Pitt on one of +the acutest judges of the time, himself an orator of eminence, and no +friend to his subject. + +Bishop Newton gladly avails himself of the same familiar metaphor: 'What +was said of the famous orator Pericles, that he lightened, thundered, +and confounded Greece, was in some measure applicable to him.' 'He had,' +says the Bishop, 'extraordinary powers, quick conceptions, ready +elocution, great command of language, a melodious voice, a piercing eye, +a speaking countenance, and was as great an actor as an orator. During +the time of his successful administration he had the most absolute and +uncontrolled sway that perhaps any member ever had in the House of +Commons. With all these excellences he was not without his defects. His +language was sometimes too figurative and pompous, his speeches were +seldom well connected, often desultory and rambling from one thing to +another, so that though you were struck here and there with noble +sentiments and happy expressions, yet you could not well remember nor +give a clear account of the whole together. With affected modesty he was +apt to be rather too confident and overbearing in debate, sometimes +descended to personal invectives, and would first commend that he might +afterwards more effectually abuse, would ever have the last word, and +right or wrong still preserved (in his own phrase) an unembarrassed +countenance. He spoke more to your passions than to your reason, more to +those below the bar and above the throne than to the House itself; and, +when that kind of audience was excluded, he sunk and lost much of his +weight and authority.'[393] + +Grattan's testimony, as that of a famous orator, cannot here be passed, +though it refers to a later period. 'He was a man of great genius, great +flight of mind. His imagination was astonishing.... He was very great +and very odd. He spoke in a style of conversation, not however what I +expected. It was not a speech, for he never came with a prepared +harangue. His style was not regular oratory, like Cicero or Demosthenes, +but it was very fine and very elevated, and above the ordinary subjects +of discourse.... His gesture was always graceful. He was an incomparable +actor. Had it not been so he would have appeared ridiculous.... His +tones were remarkably pleasing. I recollect his pronouncing one word +"effete" in a soft charming accent. His son could not have pronounced it +better.... His manner was dramatic. In this it was said that he was too +much the mountebank; but if so it was a great mountebank. Perhaps he was +not so good a debater as his son, but he was a much better orator, a +better scholar, and a far greater mind. Great subjects, great empires, +great characters, effulgent ideas and classical illustrations formed the +material of his speeches.' Grattan gives examples, and even notes of one +of his speeches, but they are all outside our period.[394] + +These notes on Pitt's oratory cannot well be omitted, though they are +almost too familiar to quote. But there is one, never yet published, +which is written by an intimate but merciless critic. Lord Camelford was +only nineteen at the time when our narrative terminates, but he must +already and for some years afterwards have been steeped in his uncle's +eloquence, so that his description is of peculiar interest. + +'In Parliament he never spoke but to the instant, regardless of whatever +contradictions he might afterwards be reduced to, which he carried off +with an effrontery without example. His eloquence was supported by every +advantage that could unite in a perfect actor. Graceful in motion, his +eye and countenance would have conveyed his feelings to the deaf. His +voice was clear and melodious, and capable of every variety of +inflection and modulation. His wit was elegant, his imagination +inexhaustible, his sensibility exquisite, and his diction flowed like a +torrent, impure often, but always varied and abundant. There was a style +of conscious superiority, a tone, a gesture of manner, which was quite +peculiar to him--everything shrunk before it; and even facts, truth and +argument were overawed and vanquished by it. On the other hand, his +matter was never ranged, it had no method. He deviated into a thousand +digressions, often reverted back to the same ground, and seemed +sometimes like the lion to lash himself with his own tail to rouse his +courage, which flashed in periods and surprised and astonished, rather +than convinced by the steady light of reason. He was the very contrast +of Lord Mansfield, his competitor in eloquence, who never appealed but +to the conviction of the understanding, with an arrangement so precise +that every sentence was only the preparation for the force that the next +was to obtain, and scarce a word could be taken away without throwing +the whole argument into disorder; the other bore his hearers away by +rapid flights into a region that looked down upon argument, and opposed +the transport of feeling to conviction.' + +This appears to be a description as accurate as it is vivid, and perhaps +none gives the personality and manner of Pitt with more effect. The +style of conscious superiority, peculiar to him, before which everything +shrank; the way in which the orator worked himself into wrath, like a +lion lashing himself with his own tail; the eye and countenance which +would have conveyed his meaning to the deaf; these are touches which we +feel to be accurate, and which seem to explain much of the effect of +Pitt's oratory. Let us here note that Cradock gives a curious account of +an oratorical failure of Pitt's in later life and of his consequent +irritation, eminently comforting to humbler speakers.[395] + +We value sketches like these much more than any professed reports of +Pitt's speeches, which cannot be accurate reproductions. But, even if +they were, they would, we are told, be but pale shadows of the reality, +for so much depended on the soul and grace with which they were uttered; +for the majesty of his presence, his manly figure, his exquisite voice, +his consummate acting, his harmonious action, and above all the +lightning of his eyes inspired reluctant awe before he uttered a word. +We can fancy him rising in the House, which subsides at once into +silence and eager attention. On not a few faces there will be +uneasiness and alarm; on the ministerial bench some agitation, for it is +there probably that the thunderbolts may fall. His opening is solemn and +impressive. Then he warms to his subject. He states his argument. He +recalls matters of history and his own personal recollections. Then with +an insinuating wave of his arm his voice changes, and he is found to be +drowning some hapless wight with ridicule. Then he seems to ramble a +little, he is marking time and collecting himself for what is coming. +Suddenly the rich notes swell into the fullness of a great organ, and +the audience find themselves borne into the heights of a sublime burst +of eloquence. Then he sinks again into a whisper full of menace which +carries some cruel sarcasm to some quivering heart. Then he is found +playing about his subject, pelting snowballs as he proceeds. If the +speech is proceeding to his satisfaction it will last an hour or perhaps +two. Its length will perhaps not improve it, but no one can stir. There +may be ineffective, tedious, obscure passages, but no one knows what may +be coming, these vapours often precede a glowing sunburst. So all +through the speech men sit as though paralysed, though many are heated +with wine. He will not finish without some lofty declamation which may +be the culminating splendour of the effort. If any effective replies are +made, he will reply again and again, heedless of order, vehement, +truculent, perhaps intemperate. And as he sits down perhaps with little +applause, the tension of nerves, almost agonising in its duration and +concentration, snaps like a harpstring; the buzz of animated +conversation breaks forth with an ecstasy of relief. The audience +disperses still under the spell. As it wears off, hostile critics begin +to declare that it is all acting; the fellow acts better than Garrick. +Garrick, indeed, himself declared that had Pitt originally preferred the +stage of Drury Lane for that of St. Stephen's, he would almost have +annihilated the stage by distancing all competition.[396] He was, +without doubt, an incomparable actor, for no less a power would have +enabled him to engage in some of his most famous flights with effect, or +without reaction or ridicule. His action, his inflections, his vehemence +are no doubt at least as good as Garrick's. But these are merely the +accessories which to the shallow or cynical observer seem to be the +heart or the whole of the matter. One might as well say that it is the +varnish that makes the picture, or the goblet that makes the vintage. +The orator is probably unconscious or at most half-conscious of what +seems dramatic, he is moved by an irresistible blast of passion which +carries him as well as his audience away. The passion may have been +stirred beforehand, but at the moment of outpouring it is genuine +enough. Pitt no doubt had trained himself to be graceful in animation, +had studied and enhanced the beauties of his voice, so that when excited +his tones were always musical, and his action harmonious. He may in +earlier days have rehearsed speeches in private, though he probably +delivered something different when the time came. But to imagine that +when he spoke he was acting a prepared speech is to ignore the main +features of his oratory, the force coming from an internal impulse which +was for the moment irresistible. It should be remembered too, that in +one sense he was always acting in the common business of life; when he +chipped an egg, or talked to his gardener, or mounted his horse, he was +acting. He might not, indeed, study his gesture at the moment, but that +was because he had been studying gestures half his life. He had +appropriated the dramatic way of doing things till it had become a +second nature to him; thus, what would have been acting in others was +natural to him. And indeed, he had so adjusted and prepared and schooled +himself, that all his emotions were effectually concealed. The fierce +character of the man would sometimes be irrepressible, but even then it +would be vented with an awful grace. And so when he was said to be +acting in the House he was natural, for acting had become a second +nature to him. When this is so, acting has ceased to be acting. Mrs. +Siddons would give her orders at dinner in the awful tones of Lady +Macbeth. This was not acting but nature, trained but unconscious nature. +So it was with Pitt. He would not laugh, because it was undignified to +laugh. If he had a book or a play to read aloud and came to a comic +part, he passed it to another to read and resumed the volume when the +humorous part was over, lest, we may presume, he should smile or become +incidentally ridiculous. His countenance was, so to speak, enamelled +with such anxious care, that a heedless laugh might crack the elaborate +demeanour. And so he lived in blank verse, and conducted himself in the +heroic metre. We should surmise, though not with certainty, that some of +his more famous flights, such as the comparison of the Rhone and the +Saone, were prepared to some extent, but that there was nothing +written. This is only guesswork, for of his method of preparation we +know nothing. But his diction was habitually perfect. To improve it he +had twice read through Bailey's Dictionary, and had plodded through +masses of sermons, particularly those of Barrow, Abernethy, and 'the +late Mr. Mudge of Plymouth.'[397] 'Every word he makes use of,' said +Chesterfield as early as 1751, 'is the very best, and the most +expressive that can be used in that place.' That was the result of +constant and familiar effort. Like Bolingbroke he had trained himself to +spare no pains in ordinary conversation to attain accuracy of +expression, so as to be sure of himself in public. 'It would not be +believed how much trouble he took to compose the most trifling note.' He +told Shelburne that a phrase he had used in one of his speeches could +not be taken exception to, as he had tried it on paper three times +before employing it in public. Assiduous study of words, constant +exercise in choice language, so that it was habitual to him even in +conversation, and could not be other than elegant even in unpremeditated +speech, this combined with poetical imagination, passion, a mordant wit +and great dramatic skill, would probably seem to be the secrets of +Chatham's oratorical supremacy. And yet it is safe to predict that a +clever fellow who had mastered all this would produce but a pale +reflection of the original. It is not merely the thing that is said, but +the man who says it which counts, the character which breathes through +the sentences. Mirabeau would, as we know, take a manuscript speech +produced by a laborious friend, in itself a dull thing, and read it from +the tribune with such energy of inspiration that it would carry the +Assembly by storm. This is the more marvellous when we remember that a +man who reads the best possible speech with the most effective elocution +is heavily handicapped. And so it may safely be assumed that imitation +of Pitt would be doomed to disastrous failure. The secret of oratory +like this evades the most anxious student: its effect both on the +immediate audience and on posterity seems beyond definition or adequate +explanation. + +Some orators impress their audience, some their readers, a very few +posterity as well. The orators who impress their audience rarely impress +their readers, and those who impress their readers are usually less +successful with their audience. Few indeed are those who reach posterity +or indeed survive a year. Pitt, if any one indeed can be said to have +read his speeches, combined all three forms of supremacy. More than +this, his utterances with a sort of wireless telegraphy seemed to thrill +the nation which neither heard nor read them. In the century which +followed Chatham's death there was an illustrious succession of orators +and debaters. And yet none of these eminent men with all their +accurately reported speeches have left so deep an impress of eloquence +as the elder Pitt, who was not reported at all. We cannot doubt that it +is better for his fame that he was unreported. Sheridan never did +anything wiser than when in his need he refused the most splendid offers +to revise his Begum speech for publication. Pitt's speeches would have +lost half their force without the splendour of delivery. His unreported +eloquence has become matter of faith, and so it is likely to remain. + +Mr. Lecky, from whom it is difficult to differ, thinks that his +speeches were deficient in pathos and wit. As to this last, the +testimony of his contemporaries is emphatic the other way, and they are +loud in extolling Pitt's piercing wit. We have seen how Walpole and +Murray concur in extolling his powers of ridicule. 'He can turn anything +into ridicule,' Murray had said. 'He can tickle to death with a +feather,' was Walpole's description. Nor should we imagine he was +defective in pathos; not perhaps in youth, for youth is not the season +of pathos, but certainly in later years. The speeches, for example, +delivered in the garb of an invalid, abounded we should surmise in +pathos, to which the costume was preliminary and accessory. But pathos, +which has something of humility in its tenderness, was, it must be +admitted, alien to the haughty superiority which Pitt asserted and +assumed. + +One word more of fascinating conjecture. Would he have been a great +popular orator at mass meetings and the like? We cannot imagine Pitt a +platform speaker, yet we can scarcely imagine a better. His graceful +appearance, his terrible eye, the winning and majestic modulations of +his voice, his spontaneity, his magnetic power, his wealth of ridicule, +his poignant personalities, his dramatic force, his variety and +unexpectedness constituted the most formidable equipment for platform +oratory ever possessed by mortal man. And yet we cannot regret that he +never was tried. + +Pitt's life marks itself out with singular distinctness into definite +periods. From 1708 to 1734 is the period of obscure youth, on which this +volume should throw some light. From 1734 to 1745 is the period of +reckless and irresponsible opposition, when he is trying the temper of +his weapons. From 1745 to 1754 he remains in the shadow of subordinate +office. From 1754 to 1756, though still partly in office, he emerges as +an independent figure of extraordinary and irresistible force. From 1756 +to 1761 is the period of power, four years of which are unrivalled in +the annals of Great Britain. From 1761 to 1770 is the period of +detachment, or attempted detachment, from party. It includes some tenure +of office, much obscurity and illness, some actual insanity. And from +1770 till his death in 1778 he appears sometimes to be attempting to +make his peace with the party system, having found it impracticable to +stand alone; sometimes he seems to be retiring once more into his cell. + +Few careers can be marked out so clearly; few have such a glamour. But +the glamour and the glory are yet to come; they lie beyond this book. +Already indeed there are confidence and hope, confidence in his vigour, +his honesty, and his uprightness; but this is due rather to others than +to himself. Every one else has failed, this may be the man of destiny. + +And yet up to this time the career of Pitt has been, eloquence apart, +not unlike that of other ambitious and not very scrupulous politicians. +He begins by attacking Sir Robert Walpole. Why? He has no particular +objection to Sir Robert Walpole; in after years he acknowledges that he +was a great statesman. It was partly a freak of youth. Who is the +biggest man to attack, the man by combating whom one can acquire the +most honour and reputation? Obviously Walpole. So tilt at him. He is +asked to an important house; for the first time he finds himself in the +great world. He is caressed, perhaps flattered; for he has a school +renown, and is a lad to be secured. He is with his Eton friends, and +they think all the world of Cobham, his wisdom, his courage, his +magnificence; they all in a measure depend on him. Thus he is allured +into the charmed circle, and they form much the same group as that which +was in our own days called the Fourth Party. + +So they enter the House of Commons in high spirits, and lay about them +with reckless intrepidity. Pitt is soon marked out for martyrdom by the +Minister. But in a short time he is conspicuous for other reasons. He +towers from the waist above his comrades as a bitter, incisive speaker. +Walpole begins to take notes of his speeches; he is the coming man, and +is at once secured for the faction of the Prince of Wales. Then Walpole +falls. There is a great crash, and the spectators expect to see the +world in ruins. But when the dust has cleared away it is seen that +things are much as they were; Wilmington, scarcely visible, in Walpole's +seat; Newcastle rooted in his own; Walpole, with Pulteney his +protagonist, seated smug and dumb among the distant peers. There is no +room for Pitt among our governors; the only new figure that strikes one +is Carteret, he is evidently the moving spirit of the piece. As the +prominent Minister, and as an object of hatred to Cobham, he is +obviously the man for Pitt now to attack, and he trounces Carteret as +recklessly as he had Walpole; only Walpole was able to reply, and +Carteret cannot; for he sits where Walpole sits. Carteret, again, he +mainly attacks for his eminence. He calls Carteret execrable now, but, +when the battle is over, takes pride in declaring that to his patronage, +to his friendship, to his instruction 'I owe whatever I am.' Still, the +business of party must be done, and so Carteret must be assailed. Then +Carteret disappears, and Pitt is without a target. But the young man +has to realise that in his reckless onslaughts he has incidentally but +mortally wounded the honour of the King. Walpole and Carteret are off +the scene; and the stage is now occupied, so far as he is concerned, by +a monarch who is an incarnate veto as regards him, and who can never +forgive him. This produces a new situation. Pitt is as strenuous to be +pardoned as he was to offend; he is all milk and honey in public, but +apprises the Pelhams, who are now in sole possession of the +administration, that he is not disposed to be long-suffering, and that +the ordinary rewards of political warfare are overdue. They are fully +alive to the situation, and attempt to mollify the Sovereign. But their +labour is in vain, and so, with more subtlety than patriotism, they +produce a ministerial crisis when civil war is alive in the island. The +King has to yield, and, in angry submission, receive Pitt. The new +placeman, having achieved office, subsides into a long silence. Pelham +dies at last, and the great inheritance has to be divided. Pitt is ill +and absent; his rival is at once preferred (though alienated); while +Pelham's brother attempts to guide, with the help of the Master of the +Great Wardrobe, what Pelham could not control. The result is easily +foreseen. The rivals unite to tear the Master limb from limb, and one of +them has to be bought off. That one is not Pitt. And now something, +pique or patriotism or marriage, one cannot analyse it now, perhaps he +could not have analysed it himself, lifts him into new splendours of +eloquence. His rival seems cowed by the harness without the confidence +of office. Pitt stands alone, no one dare face him. Meanwhile he +receives new authority from disaster. In every region where Britain is +interested calamity follows calamity. The country is roused to a passion +of wrath and vengeance. It demands victims. Byng in prison remains an +open wound to remind the nation of its miscarriages. They are resolved +to shoot him, at any rate; they would not be unwilling to hang others +whom they hold responsible for his miscarriage, who are perhaps corrupt, +and who are certainly incapable and untoward Ministers; failing that, +they will at least get rid of them. They look round and see no one but +Pitt. He has been persecuted, he has been ignored by these Ministers, +and yet his eloquence, commanding in itself, has the true note of energy +and patriotism. He shall be tried; and they call for him with as much +energy as the French once called for Necker, but with a truer instinct. + +Strangely enough, there is so far little vigour in Pitt except in his +speeches. Half his life is spent in prostration and seclusion, under the +martyrdom of gout. As we have seen, on the very brink of his Ministry, +he assured Fox that his health would not allow him to hold office. And, +indeed, in the whole life of this singular man there is nothing more +remarkable than this, that in the glimpses we obtain of himself, apart +from great speeches and the result of victorious policy, we almost +always find him prostrate with illness. It is generally the gout or its +allies which disable him; but later it is disorder akin to if not +identical with insanity. Not unnaturally, even among those less prone by +profession to suspicion than the expert politician, his ill-health is +often supposed to be an assumption or a screen. But in this calmer +generation we can see that it was not, that the man never enjoyed +health, as it is ordinarily understood, for a moment. He was always +distempered, irritable, or hysterical, when not in pain. His public life +was scarcely more than the intervals between fits of gout or nervous +collapse. We are reminded of the sufferings of his son, as he approached +the end of a long ministerial career, struggling against constant +sickness and a wrecked constitution, when we contemplate the lifelong +contest between the elder Pitt and hereditary disease. + +Heredity counts for much, for more than we reckon in these matters. We +breed horses and cattle with careful study on that principle; the prize +bull and the Derby winner are the result. With mankind we heed it little +or not at all. With Pitt it was everything or almost everything. From +his ancestors, most probably the Governor, who, we infer, was a free +liver in a tropical climate, he derived the curse of gout. From the same +progenitor he inherited a nervous, violent temperament, and some taint +of madness. All this told partly for him, partly against him. The gout +drove him to study and reflection, but it constantly disabled him. His +temperament roused him to great heights of energy and passion both in +eloquence and politics, but it also alienated his fellow-men, and made +him sometimes eccentric, and sometimes turbulent. We cannot in such a +matter hold the balance. What is genius? None can tell. But may it not +be the result in character of the conflict of violent strains of +heredity, which clash like flint and steel, and produce the divine +spark? + +This takes us beyond our limits, more especially those of time; for +within those limits the genius of Pitt has only been displayed in the +barren gift of eloquence. But when we consider his disabilities of +heredity and of accident we deem him already heroic. Everything has been +against him. He has contended against poverty and disease and contempt. +He has been wounded in the house of his family. He has been constantly +betrayed. He has had to suffer for long years in silence. He is +forty-eight when he at last attains anything like power. From this point +of view his career is pathetic. It seems such a waste of time and +opportunity. But through these long impatient years he was being +trained, hardened, one may almost say, baked in the furnace. In silence +and bitterness the force was being accumulated that was to electrify the +Empire. + +Still the dazzling result must not blind us to the facts as they stand +at the moment when we are surveying and taking leave of them. Much in a +man's life obviously depends on life: much too depends on death. 'Felix +opportunitate mortis' is a pregnant saying. How many village Hampdens, +how many Miltons have passed away, inglorious because mute, and mute +from premature death. Had Caesar or Marlborough died before middle age +their military reputation would have been slender indeed. For how many +men, on the other hand, has death come too late. What would have been +the place in history of Napoleon III., had Orsini been a successful +assassin? What that of Tiberius, had he died at sixty? The authors who +have survived themselves are as the sands of the sea; indeed the +exceptions are those who have not. The politicians in the same case are +less conspicuous, for they crumble into the House of Lords. Historians +and rhetoricians have vied with each other in setting forth the glories +of Pitt's supreme years. What we have to consider is his position in +1756, when we part from him in professed ignorance of what is to come. +How would Pitt appear to us had he died when he was still forty-seven? +He was forty-eight the day before Devonshire, in his name, assumed the +government. That is a respectable age. The younger Pitt never reached +it, though he had been Prime Minister for near a score of years. +Napoleon closed his career at forty-six. It is needless to detail +examples. But at forty-seven the elder Pitt could only claim that he had +been Paymaster of the Forces, and had cowed but not persuaded the House +of Commons by his oratory. He had, too, the faith of the people, +unearned except by vague echoes of purity and eloquence. Otherwise his +career had been much like other careers, denouncing, or coquetting and +even pressing for office, equable in expectation, and vindictive if +refused. Pride was his besetting sin; yet he had stooped, to conquer. + +All seems to depend on this point, so difficult to decide: was there +patriotism in all this alloy? Was the anxiety for office the mere +craving of the politician for reward, or was it the real consciousness +of capacity, purity, and inspiration? It may well in earlier days have +been the more vulgar ambition, vulgar but not reprehensible; for office +is the legitimate end and object of the public man; and Pitt had earned +it a hundred times over by ordinary standards, while compelled to stand +aside and see his inferiors promoted. But at the period which we have +reached we think the nobler sentiment is unmistakable. He will not hold +out a finger, he spurns all assistance, he builds without any foundation +but himself. Had he wished only for the snug and secure possession of +office he would have welcomed the co-operation of Newcastle and Fox, +invaluable allies in their different ways. But at this time he will have +none of them, he dreams of a government which free from taint or +suspicion shall appeal for the confidence of the country on the highest +and purest grounds. + +Here we feel, and feel with relief, that we can give a clear verdict. +The rest matters little. The path of the statesman rarely skirts the +heights, it is rough, rugged, sometimes squalid, as are most of the +roads of life. We are apt to make idols, to ignore shadows, and to fancy +that we see stars; not too apt, for it is an illuminating worship. But, +that being so, let not those who have to scrutinise therefore condemn. +All careers have their blots. The best and happiest are those in which +the blemishes are obscured by high achievement. That was supremely the +case with Pitt. His upward ascent was much like other ascents, neither +better nor worse. But when he reached the summit, and acted in full +light and freedom, his triumph was so complete that none deem it worth +while to scan his previous record. None should care now, were it not a +healthy propensity to seek to know as much as possible of the lives of +great men. It is preposterous to depict Pitt as an angel of light. But +yet, judged by the standard of his day, the only proper standard to +apply, and indeed by the standard of any day, he must be held even in +his darkest hours not to have compromised his historical future. + +Whatever his failings may have been, his countrymen have refused, and +rightly refused, to take heed of them. They have refused to see anything +but the supreme orator, the triumphant Minister of 1757-1761, the +champion of liberty in later years at home and in the West. With Pitt, +as with Nelson, his country will not count flaws. What do they matter? +How are they visible in the sunlight of achievement? A country must +cherish and guard its heroes. + +We have climbed with him in his path to power. We have seen him +petulant, factious, hungry, bitter. And yet all the time we have felt +that there was always something in him different in quality from his +fellow-politicians when they aired the same qualities, that there was an +imprisoned spirit within him struggling for freedom and scope. At last +it bursts its trammels, he tosses patronage and intrigue to the old +political Shylocks, and inspires the policy of the world. Vanity of +vanities! Twenty years after his epoch of glory, three years after his +death, Britain has reached the lowest point in her history. But still +she is the richer for his life. He bequeaths a tradition, he bequeaths a +son; and when men think of duty and achievement they look to one or the +other. It will be an ill day for their country when either is +forgotten. + + + + +INDEX + + + Aberdeen, Lord, 145 + + Abernethy, Dr., sermons by, 501 + + Achilles, 332 + + Addison, Joseph, 'Cato' referred to, 154 + + 'Additional MSS.' referred to, 196, 248, 281, 287, 301, 306, 313, + 316, 332, 337, 349, 351, 374, 380, 458, 461, 464, 467, 468, 472, + 483, 485 + + Aix-la-Chapelle, Peace of, 169, 395; + Treaty of, 213; + debate on Treaty of, 277, 278 + + Aldborough Election, 313, 323, 332, 349 + + Allen, Ralph, 112, 303 + + Allworthy, Squire, see Fielding, Henry + + Almon, John, 300, 301, 493 + + Althorp, Lord, 21, 262 + + Alsace, Austrian armies in, 209 + + 'Ambulator, The,' 308 + + Amelia, Princess, 280 + + America, smuggling invasion of, 165; + hostilities in, 350-1, 372, 395, &c. + + Angel Inn, Oxford, Chatham at, 363 + + Anne, Empress of Russia, death of, 202 + + Anne, Queen of England, 222 + + Anson, Lord, 341, 351 + + Anstruther, General, 330 + + Antwerp, French enter, 212 + + Argyll Buildings, Chatham's marriage at, 356 + + Argyll, Duke of, 343, 452 + + 'Army, History of the British,' see Fortescue, J.W. + + Arundel, Mr., 439 + + Ashbourne, Lord, 355 + + Ashburnham Park, 305 + + Ashley, ----, 261 + + 'Assembly of Notables,' 479 + + Astrop Wells, Chatham's visit to, 304, 350 + + Austria, House of, 286 + + Austrian Netherlands, French in possession of, 212 + + Austrians, War of the Succession, 202, 402; + defeated at Molwitz, 203; + defeated at Chotusitz, 206; + victorious in Bohemia, 207, 209; + in Flanders, 211 + + Aylesbury, dispute over the Assizes at, 271-5, 289; + purchase of manor of, 275 + + 'Aylesbury, History of,' see Gibbs + + Ayscough, Dr., 54, 57, 58, 62, 66, 69, 78, 291, 356 + + + Bailey's 'Dictionary,' Pitt's study of, 501 + + Baldwin, Lord Chief Justice, 275 + + Ballantyne, Archibald, 'Life of Lord Carteret,' quoted, 146, 179 + + Baltimore, Lord, 178 + + Bampton, 84 + + Banquier, Alexandre, 45, 69 + + Barnard, Sir John, 148 + + Barre, Isaac, 268 + + Barrington, Viscount, 249, 363, 424, 426, 435, 444, 483 + + Barrow, sermons of, 501 + + Bath, 8, 29, 38, 57-9, 63, 66, 97, 99, 104-6, 112-16, 234, 303, 313, + 348, 355 + + Bath, Earl of, see Pulteney, Sir William + + Battle Abbey, 305 + + Bavaria, protests against the succession of Maria Theresa, 202; + seized by General Khevenhueller, 205; + taken by Frederick II., 209 + + Bavaria, Elector of, see Frederick II. + + Bave, Dr. Charles, 57, 60 + + Bays, Mr., 79 + + 'Bedford Correspondence,' 154, 478, 480-2 + + Bedford, Duke of, 236, 237, 246, 248, 249, 279, 280, 282, 300, 388, + 412, 428, 439, 477, 480, 482, 486 + + Bedlam, 8 + + Beckford, Alderman William, 166, 428, 440 + + Bellamy, a frame maker, 80 + + Belleisle, Marshal, 204, 205, 207 + + Belson, Mr., 491 + + Bentinck, Lord George, 190 + + Bentley, Richard, Walpole's letter to, 344 + + Bergen, 3 + + Berkeley of Stratton, Lord, 252 + + Berkshire, land purchased in, 6 + + Berlin, 202, 210; + Treaty of, 206 + + Besancon, 45, 68, 69, 352 + + Best, Mr., 24 + + Bland, Dr., 28 + + Blandford, 5, 58 + + 'Blandford,' a man-of-war, 400 + + Blandford, Vicar of, see Pitt, John + + Blount, Martha, 79 + + Boconnoc, 3, 6, 14, 23, 24, 43, 54, 56, 58, 61; + Chatham's early life at, 43; + his reasons for living at, 58, 59 + + Bohemia, Frederick II. proclaimed king in Prague, 205; + taken by Frederick II., 209 + + Bolingbroke, Lady, 85, 86 + + Bolingbroke, Lord, 132, 144, 148, 176, 235, 258; + nicknamed the Pitts, 54; + called the 'intellectual Samson of Battersea,' 328; + accuracy of expression of, 501; + his newspaper, 'The Craftsman,' 163; + 'Remarks on History of England,' 328 + + Bolton, Duke of, 252 + + Boone, Mr., 252 + + Boscawen, Admiral, 399 + + Boswell, James, 303 + + Bourchier, Colonel, 44 + + Bourbons, extravagance of the, 195; + union of the, 208 + + 'Boy Patriots, The,' 131 + + Braddock, General, 397, 398 + + Breda, peace negotiations at, 212 + + Breslau, Peace of, 206 + + Brest, 226 + + Bridport, Lord, 353 + + Bright, John, 262 + + Bristol, 104, 105 + + Broad-Bottom Administration, 239 + + Broglie, Marshal, 204, 205 + + Bromley, 310 + + Brompton, Richard, portrait-painter, 489 + + Browne, Lancelot, 132 + + Broxom, 79 + + Brussels, French enter, 212 + + Bubb, see Dodington, George Bubb + + Buchan, Lord, 39 + + Buckhurst, 305 + + Buckingham, the representation of, 133; + dispute over the Assizes at, 271-5, 289 + + Buckingham, Duke of, see Grenville, Richard Temple, Earl Temple + + Burchett, Will., 28, 29 + + Burdett, 261, 262 + + Burke, Edmund, 21, 133 + + Burleigh, Lord, 427 + + Burton-Pynsent, 124, 125, 307 + + Bute, Earl of, 21, 87, 116, 121, 122, 125, 126, 138, 292, 296, 386, + 387, 410, 441, 454, 458, 465, 483, 484 + + Bute, Lady, 126 + + Butler, 'the Reminiscent,' 359, 364, 491, 493 + + Byng, Admiral, 450-2, 507 + + + 'Cabinets, History of,' see Torrens, W.T. McC. + + Cadogan, Charles, 2nd Baron, 452 + + Calcraft, John, letter to Digby, 359 + + Camden, Earl of, see Pratt, Sir Charles + + Camelford, Lord, see Pitt, Thomas, 1st Baron Camelford + + 'Camelford MSS.' referred to, 85, 256, 412, 490 + + Campbell, Hume, 430, 432, 434, 435, 439, 493, 494 + + Canning, George, 160 + + Canons, Palace of, 257 + + Cardigan, Lady, 84 + + Cardross, Lord, 39 + + Carlisle, 154 + + Carlisle, Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of, 159; + 'Papers' referred to, 159 + + Carlyle, Thomas, 'Frederick the Great' referred to, 202, 402 + + Caroline, Princess, 153, 370 + + Caroline, Queen, 53, 197 + + Carteret, John, Earl Granville, 255, 408, 409, 436; + statesmanship of, 144; + ability and distinction of, 148, 178; + secret negotiations of, 176; + Pitt's animosity to, 178, 187, 190, 218, 219, 280; + Pitt's admiration of, in later years, 220; + his relations with George II., 196; + ability recognised by George II., 245; + his knowledge of the classics, 179; + as a linguist, 180; + his contempt for money, 180; + Chesterfield's opinion of, 182; + supports the Earl of Bath, 216; + downfall of, 229, 235-9; + Administration against, 248; + Secretary of State, 250; + President of the Council, 300, 472; + Walpole's distrust of, 315; + on North American affairs, 350, 351; + on subsidies, 380; + Fox's enmity against, 384; + Newcastle's negotiations with, 389; + his forty-eight hours' Ministry, 409; + Fox's resignation, 461-3; + attacks of Pitt upon, 505, 506; + 'Life of Carteret,' see Ballantyne, A. + + Chaillot, 99 + + Chambers, 140 + + Chandos, Duke of, 140; + Dukedom of, 257 + + Charleroi, taken by the French, 212 + + Charles II., 393, 423 + + Charles III., 205 + + Charles VI., 202, 203, 213 + + Charles VII., 209 + + Charles Edward, 'the Young Pretender,' see Stuart + + Chatham, Lady, see Grenville, Lady Hester + + 'Chatham MSS.' referred to, 50, 51, 92, 99, 254, 455, 485 + + Chatham, William Pitt, 1st Earl of, parentage, 1, 8, 11; + birth, 26; + death, 126, 312; + appearance and characteristics, 421, 488-90; + at Eton, 27; + at Oxford, 31; + father, 8, 12, 14-16, 38, 48; + mother, 12, 14, 26, 38-46; + Governor Pitt's regard for, 11, 26; + sisters, 48-128; + quarrels with his sister Ann, 53, 83, 85-8, 115, 116, 256; + family quarrels, 19, 22, 50, 83, 509; + affected by gout, 28, 30, 39, 46, 96, 98, 117, 234, 298, 303, 304, + 313, 315, 316, 318, 332, 483, 486, 507; + military service, 43-7, 60, 63, 130, 132, 157, 158, 160, 163; + marries Lady Hester Grenville, 97, 98, 102, 253, 352, 356; + letters to Hester Grenville described, 355; + lives and dies at Hayes, 103, 110, 312, 454; + birth of children, 111, 455, 456; + legacy of Duchess of Marlborough to, 233, 234; + anecdotes of, 307, 308, 363; + recommends Bolingbroke's works, 328; + 'History of Chatham,' see Thackeray, Francis + Correspondence--with his father, 29, 34; + to his mother, 38-46; + sister Ann, 56-84, 88-93, 101, 104-112; + sister Mary, 96; + Duke of Newcastle, 97, 329-32, 335; + Sir George Lyttelton and Grenville, 316-18; + Chancellor Hardwicke, 324, 325, 337 + Appointments--Groom of the Bedchamber, 162, 240; + Paymaster, 85, 133, 254, 475, 510; + Privy Seal, 125; + Secretary of State, 103, 480; + Vice-Treasurer of Ireland, 253, 261, 265 + Parliamentary Career--Begins at Stowe, 77; + represents Old Sarum, 129, 270, 313; + elected for Seaford, 270; + chosen for Aldborough, 333, 349, 486; + represents Okehampton, 486; + his first session in Parliament, 143, 157; + George II.'s regard for, 108, 157, 196, 245, 249, 250, 252, 262, + 341, 349, 377, 465, 478, 486, 506; + his regard for the King, 242, 465; + Order of the Garter for Temple, 139; + member of the 'Junto,' 236; + forcing his hand, 247; + wields power through the people, 358, 475; + views and plans on political situation, 316, 321; + apologies from Duke of Newcastle, 335, 348; + exclusion from Government, 338, 415; + American War, 350; + his finest speeches, 293, 357-8; + strong remarks on Sir Thomas Robinson, 360; + distrust of, and attitude to Fox, 352, 365, 370, 474, 476, 478; + Parliamentary intrigue, 370; + as Leader of the House, 376; + eulogises Legge for a position, 377; + pecuniary awards to, 410; + and Newcastle Ministry, 460-5, 471; + negotiations with Hardwicke, 468; + co-operation sought with, 475; + fails to form a Ministry, 483-6; + connection with Leicester House, 353, 386-8, 404, 454, 475, 481, + 485; + his oratory, 357-8, 492-503; + periods of his life, 503, 504; + effect of his life's mission, 512 + Speeches, extracts of--On royal marriage, 157; + reduction of army, 164; + convention with Spain, 167; + denounces Walpole's administration, 184, 505; + subsidies for foreign powers, 209, 237, 379, 380, 434; + transfer of Hanoverians, 241, 242, 410; + Bucks Assizes, 274; + compensation of Glasgow, 276; + peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, 278, 416; + opposes navy reduction, 289, 419; + opinion on Regency Bill, 292, 293; + Jews' Naturalisation Act, 299; + relief of Chelsea pensioners, 356; + on election petitions, 358; + tenure of sheriff-deputyships, 392, 394; + against the Newcastle Ministry, 404; + seamen's prize money, 422; + army estimates, 424; + Militia Bill, 428, 469; + reprimands Hume Campbell, 430-3; + foreign treaties, 433-8; + attacks Budget, 440, 447; + on Swiss auxiliaries, 441; + criticism on army grant, 445 + + Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope, Earl of, and Ann Pitt, 54, 65; + statesmanship of, 144; + his ability and distinction, 148; + his opinion of Pulteney, 176; + quotations from his Letters, 182; + character of George II., 198; + opposed to the Hanoverian vote, 225; + bequest to, by the Duchess of Marlborough, 233; + member of Opposition Committee, 236; + Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, 240; + letter from Newcastle, 248; + resignation of, as Secretary of State, 279; + eulogises Pitt and Murray, 302; + on the reconstruction of the Ministry, 390; + on the character of Pitt, 490, 491, 493; + on Pitt's study of words, 501 + + Chevening, residence of Stanhope, 3, 126, 307 + + Chippenham Election, 172 + + Cholmondeley, Lord, Vice-Treasurer of Ireland, 253, 439 + + Cholmondeley, Mrs., death of, 97 + + Cholmondely, Charles, 14 + + Chotusitz, Battle of, 206 + + Clement XII., Pope, death of, 201 + + Climenson's 'Mrs. Montague' referred to, 303, 304, 309 + + Clive, Lord, 395 + + Cobbett, William, 134; + 'Parliamentary History' referred to, 165, 167, 168, 183, 186, 187, + 188, 218, 219, 220, 225, 241, 242, 243, 271, 275-8, 285, 287, 443 + + Cobden, Richard, 261, 262 + + 'Cobham's Cubs,' 131 + + Cobham, Lord, see Temple, Sir Richard, afterwards Lord Cobham + + Cobham Party (The), 217 + + Colchester, Petition for, 360 + + Colebrooke's 'Memoirs,' 296, 346 + + Cologne, Elector of, 286 + + Compiegne, Council at, 400 + + Congreve, William, 132 + + Conway, a cousin of Walpole's, 160, 289, 481 + + Corbett, Mr., marriage of, 49 + + Corbett, Sir William, 49 + + Cornbury, Lord, 84 + + Cornwall, 6, 16, 43, 58, 61 + + Cornwall, Duchy of, 17 + + Cornwall, Duke of, 18 + + Cotton, Sir John Hinde, 224, 236-7 + + 'Cousins, The,' 131 + + Coxe, William, 'Memoirs of Henry Pelham' quoted 249, 250, 278, 282, + 286; + 'Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole' quoted, 166, 168, 172, 216, 369 + + Cradock, Joseph, 'Literary Memoirs' referred to, 497 + + 'Cranford,' see Gaskell, Mrs. + + Cresset, Mr., 87, 115, 116 + + Cricket, played at Stowe, 80 + + Crowhurst, Colonel Pelham's place at, 305 + + Culloden, Battle of, 269, 398 + + Cumberland, Duke of, Grenville's hatred of, 21; + attempts to form a Pitt Ministry, 139; + George II.'s affection for, 387; + defeated at Fontenoy, 210; + and at Lauffeld, 212; + projected marriage of, 229; + awarded a pension, 269, 270; + objections to, as Regent, 293; + a member of the Regency Council, 370; + his devotion to Fox, 294, 352, 365, 380, 384, 388; + alliance of Newcastle with, 389; + plan of campaign, 398; + influence of, 475 + + + Darcy, Sir Conyers, 439 + + Dashwood, Francis, Baron, 414 + + Delamere, Lord, 14 + + Delaval, John, speech at Berwick, 358 + + Delany, Mrs., 'Memoirs of,' referred to, 52, 125, 126 + + Denbigh, Lord, 249 + + Derby, Prince Charles Edward marches on, 244 + + Dettingen, Battle of, 214, 218; + George II. at, 193, 194; + Pitt's view of the, 222 + + Devonshire, land purchased in, 6 + + Devonshire, Duke of, 339, 379, 380, 462, 467, 476-86 + + Devonshire House, assembly at, 479 + + De Witt, Jan, 443 + + Diamond, transaction of the Pitt, 3, 4 + + Dickins and Stanton, 'An Eighteenth Century Correspondence' + referred to, 134 + + Digby, Lord, 359, 459, 461 + + Disraeli, Benjamin, 172 + + 'Divinity Pitt,' 54 + + Dodington, George Bubb, 135, 140, 155, 224, 236, 237, 292, 346, 349, + 350, 370, 373, 380, 383-6, 388, 443, 459, 479, 480, 483 + + Dorsetshire, lands purchased in, 6 + + Dover, Lord, 156 + + Dresden, occupied by Frederick II., 210; + Peace of, 246 + + 'Dropmore Papers' quoted and referred to, 8, 13, 26, 56 + + Duffell, Dr., 126 + + Dundonald, Lord, 'Autobiography of,' referred to, 134 + + Dunkirk, 277 + + Dupleix, 395 + + Dupplin, one of the Paymasters, 455, 472 + + Duquesne Fort, 398 + + Dutch Expedition up the Thames recalled, 226 + + Dutens, Louis, reception by the Pitts, 50, 51; + 'Voyage' referred to, 174 + + + East India Company, 2 + + Education, Chatham's letters on, 20 + + Edward III., 179 + + Egmont, Earl of, 277, 284, 292, 373, 406, 472 + + 'Eighteenth Century Correspondence,' see Dickins and Stanton + + Election expenses, 143 + + Elizabeth, Empress of Russia, 206, 207, 400, 402 + + Elizabeth, Queen of England, 423 + + Ellis, Welbore, 410, 415, 460, 461 + + Enfield Chase, 308 + + England, indifference of George II. and William III. to, 198, 199; + pledged to the Pragmatic Sanction, 203; + 'Remarks on the History of,' see Bolingbroke, Lord + + Epsom, 154 + + Eridge, 305 + + Erskine, Sir Henry, 39, 441, 467 + + Erskine, Thomas, 39 + + Esmond, Will, 13 + + Essex, Lady, see Pitt, Essex + + Esther, name given to Chatham's wife, 356 + + Eton, 11, 27-30, 160 + + Eugene, Prince, 438 + + Excise scheme, 287, 288 + + + Fairly Farm, 305 + + Falmouth, Lord, 18 + + Fane, Lord, 360 + + Feilding, Charles, amiability of, 61, 73 + + Fielding, Henry, on Lord Chatham, 27; + 'Squire Allworthy' referred to, 112, 303; + 'Tom Jones' referred to, 27 + + Finch, Edward, 248, 252 + + Finch, William, 248, 252 + + Fitzgerald, Hon. Edward Villiers, 26 + + Fitzmaurice, Lord, 'Life of Shelburne' referred to, 27, 47, 49, 166, + 172, 176, 467, 501 + + Flanders, British troops in, 188, 205; + military operations in, 211, 223, 224 + + Florence, 49, 50 + + Fontainebleau, Treaty of, objects of the, 208 + + Fontenoy, Battle of, 210, 214, 243, 246 + + Foote, Samuel, 174, 298; + 'Table Talk' referred to, 499 + + Fort St. George, 3, 9 + + Fortescue Family, nickname of the, 58 + + Fortescue, J.W., 'History of the British Army,' quoted, 221 + + Fox, Charles, illness of, 340 + + Fox, Henry, at Eton with Chatham, 27; + temperament, 230, 294-7; + sketch of his character, 294-7; + regarded as odious, 327; + peerage endowment from Paymastership, 257, 296, 314; + candidate for Secretaryship of State, 279, 282; + the Buckingham Assize dispute, 272; + the Marriage Act, 305; + admitted to the Cabinet, 367, 368, 370; + member of the Council of Regency, 367, 370; + Newcastle's choice between Fox and Pitt, 388; + stipulations for promotions of friends, 390; + position on Provisioning Bill, 394; + as leader of the House, 330, 335, 402, 410, 415, 417-20; + opposes Bill for war prizes, 423; + his challenge accepted, 428; + vetoes an appointment, 430; + defends Hume Campbell, 434; + no voice in Treasury appointment, 439; + questions of dictatorship, 445; + parliamentary intrigues and position, 458-67; + mistakes concerning--resume of parliamentary life, 474-84; + on Ann Pitt, 50; + prospects of the Young Pretender, 244; + George II.'s inclination to, 318, 341; + gratified with Chatham, 218; + opposed to Chatham, 268, 292, 294, 349, 350, 365, 407, 416-20, + 430, 436, 440, 445; + visits Chatham, 326; + placed over Chatham, 330; + agreement with Chatham, 352; + description of Chatham's outburst with Newcastle, 357; + meets Chatham at Holland House, 370; + sends apologies to Hardwicke, 341; + hatred of Newcastle, 374, 389; + and Newcastle's disgrace, 452, 453, 471, 472; + rivalries referred to, 283; + his enemies, 384; + metaphors used by, 407; + letters quoted, 343, 359, 364; + Walpole on, 442 + + 'France, Histoire de,' see Martin + + France, Wars of, 204, 205, 207, 209, 212, 226, 233, 395, &c. + + Franche-Comte, 69 + + Francis, Duke, 72 + + Frankfort, 207, 209 + + Frederick II. (the Great), accession of, 201; + in Silesia, 202, 203; + proclaimed Emperor at Frankfort, 205; + his claim of Silesia, 395; + War of Austrian Succession, 206, 209, 400-02; + subsidy to, 286-7, 289 + + 'Frederick the Great,' see Carlyle, Thomas + + 'Frederick II. and his Times,' see Raumer + + Frederick, Prince of Wales, heir apparent, 148-51; + marriage of, 151, 157; + his character and conduct, 149, 150; + banished from Court, 152; + expelled from St. James's, 161; + Dr. Ayscough adviser to, 54; + father of George II., 195; + friendship with Thomas Pitt, 17; + at the General Election, 171; + Carteret a favourite of, 180, 219, 237; + congratulates Walpole, 228; + quarrels with Pitt, 256; + negotiations with Pitt, 291, 293; + decline of affection for Lady Hamilton, 352; + overtures to Fox, 365; + death of, 261, 292 + + Frederick William, of Prussia, death of, 201 + + Free Trade, 231 + + + Gage, Mr., M.P., 270 + + Gainsborough, Thomas, portrait by, 353 + + Gambier, Lord, 'Memorials,' 305 + + Garrick, David, 499 + + Gaskell, Mrs., 'Cranford' referred to, 352 + + Gay, John, 54 + + 'Gazetteer, The,' newspaper, 163 + + 'Gentleman's Magazine, The,' 188 + + George I., 156, 163, 200, 387 + + George II., his dual personality, 192, 204, 207, character of, 192; + his political character, 194; + Lord Hervey's unworthy portrayal of, 197; + his courage, 220, 221; + with Lady Yarmouth at Richmond, 193; + devotion for Hanover, 195, 198, 446; + as Elector of Hanover concludes a treaty with the French, 204; + on the security of the Electorate of Hanover, 286; + placed under arrest by his father, 150; + his hatred of his son the Prince of Wales, 162, 387; + the Dutch War, 212; + in Hanover, 53, 54, 399, 402; + at Dettingen, 207; + at Oudenarde, 194; + signs the Treaty of Worms, 208; + the Treaty of Berlin, 206; + speech in Parliament, 1755, 403-4; + gives Premiership to Pelham, 216, 217; + his aversion to the Earl of Bath, 217; + his anger with Newcastle, 458; + dismissal of Carteret, 229, 238; + Pitt's first visit to, 63; + his hatred of Pitt, 108, 157, 179, 190, 191, 253, 482; + reason for this hatred, 157; + Pitt's apparent loyalty to, 424, 425; + Pitt's desire for reconciliation with, 459, &c., 465-72; + testifies to Walpole's bravery, 146; + discourteous treatment of Temple, 484; + repugnance to Legge, 481-2; + the execution of Admiral Byng, 451 + + George III., as a lad, 292; + compared with George II., 200; + in the Lords, 430; + and Mr. Fox, 342, 365, 367, 459, 474; + endeavours to form a Pitt Ministry, 139, 140; + Newcastle refuses a pension offered by, 174; + on Pelham's death, 313; + treaties with Hesse-Cassel and Russia, 371 + + 'George III., Memoirs of the Reign of,' see Walpole, Horace + + George IV., extravagance of, 195; + compared with George II., 200 + + Georgia, 167, 208 + + Germaine, Lady Betty, 107 + + Germany, 109, 165, 194, 206 + + Gibbs' 'History of Aylesbury' referred to, 275 + + Gibbon, Edward, 47 + + Gibraltar, proposed restoration to Spain, 208 + + Gladstone, Rt. Hon. W.E., 230 + + Glasgow and the Jacobite occupation, 276 + + Glatz, ceded to Frederick II., 206, 210 + + Glenfinnan, the Young Pretender at, 243 + + Glover, Richard, 176, 177, 236, 237, 259, 346 + + Gordon, Rev., 493 + + Gower, Granville Leveson, 237, 247, 248 + + Grafton, Duke of, 264 + + Grandison, Catherine, Viscountess of, 26 + + Grandison, Lord, 12, 15, 41, 46 + + Granville, Earl, see Carteret, John + + 'Grattan, Life of,' referred to, 85, 86, 495 + + Gray, Sir James, 70 + + Gray, Thomas, lampoon on Fox, 297 + + Grenville, Family of, Pitt united to the, 17, 130, 131, 389 + + 'Grenville Papers' referred to, 86, 131, 132, 134, 234, 277, 316, + 319, 321, 327, 333, 465, 482 + + Grenville, George, opposed the war in Flanders, 223; + the Buckingham Assizes, 272; + speech on unrest with Spain, 167; + offices held by:-- + Prime Minister, 130; + Lord of the Treasury, 239, 486; + Chancellor of the Exchequer, 346; + Paymastership, 467; + Secretaryship of State offered to, 138; + congratulated by Pitt, 348; + Bill _re_ vessels captured before declaration of war, 423; + position and reasons for his hatred of Pitt, 21, 131; + opposition to Pitt, 268; + letters from Pitt to, 141, 260, 276, 277, 455; + Letters from Lyttelton to, 317, 327; + visit to Bath, 328 + + Grenville, Henry, 133 + + Grenville, Lady, inherits Boconnoc, 24, 133 + + Grenville, Lady Hester, 410, 411; + wife of Chatham, 53, 102, 352, 353, 356; + letters of, and reference to, 99-102, 105, 110, 112-15, 124, 125, + 311, 312; + her character, 355; + pension to, 124 + + Grenville, James, 133, 139, 311, 372, 467 + + Grenville, Richard Temple, afterwards Earl Temple, 81; + resigned Privy Seal, 139; + proposed as Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, 467; + proposed as First Lord of the Admiralty, 479; + refused to be First Lord of the Treasury, 136, 139; + Order of the Garter, 139; + his ambition a Dukedom, 140; + application for title, 138; + his bet, 138; + apologises to Hervey, 138; + cold reception at Court, 484-5; + visits Chatham at Bath, 348; + voted against the Hanoverians, 254; + pensioned, 410; + the Buckingham Assizes dispute, 272, 290; + Letters to, 319-21, 326-7, 332; + 'Letters of Junius' ascribed to, 136 + + Grenville, Thomas, killed in action off Cape Finisterre, 133 + + Grenvilles, the, 130, 137, 465, 483; + public money drawn by, 134; + friends of Pitt, 492 + + Grub Street, 298 + + Guernsey, 80 + + + Hagley, Lord Lyttelton's seat at, 306, 307, 313 + + Hague, Embassy to the, 240 + + Halifax, Earl of, 472 + + Hamilton, Duke of, 6, 390, 404, 477 + + Hamilton, Lady Archibald, 352 + + Hamilton, Lord Archibald, 178 + + Hampden, Lord, attack on Pitt, 268, 290 + + Hampden, Richard, estate of, 233, 234 + + Hampshire, land purchased in, 6 + + Hampton Court, 84, 151, 198 + + Hannan, John, 52 + + Hannan, Sir William, 52 + + Hannibal, 191, 438 + + Hanover, Pitt's contempt for, 178, 186; + George II.'s devotion to, 188, 189, 195, 198; + his visit to, 194; + his ideas for safeguarding, 286; + Convention signed at, between Britain and Prussia, 210; + George III.'s visit to, 371 + + Hanoverian Guards substituted for English Guards, 218 + + Hanoverians, allies of Britain, 211; + English hatred of the, 218; + vote for maintenance of the, 224, 225; + transferred to Maria Theresa, 241, 242 + + Hapsburg, House of, 204 + + Hardwicke, Philip Yorke, Earl of, letters to, 259, 324, 325, 333, + 337, 350, 351, 458; + letters from, 351, 380, 381; + on the alienation of the Prince of Wales from his parents, 156; + as Newcastle's mentor and counsellor, 175, 314, 315; + on Pitt's popularity in the Commons, 185; + on Pitt's acrimoniousness, 219; + and George II., 238, 239; + on the foreign military policy, 246; + his treatment of Newcastle, 279; + supports Newcastle, 340; + supports Pitt, 371-3; + antagonism over Marriage Act, 305; + as the brains of the Cabinet, 315-16; + political unrest and intrigue of 1755-6, 386-90, 453, 464-5, + 467-73, 476; + 'Life of Hardwicke,' see Harris, George + + Harrington, Earl of, 240, 246, 251 + + Harris, George, 'Life of Hardwicke' referred to, 152, 464, 465, 471 + + Harrison, Mr., 74, 75 + + Hartington, Lord, 289, 341, 343; + Letters from Fox to, 359, 364 + + Hastings, 305 + + Hawke, Lord, 174 + + Hawkins, ----, 390 + + Hay, Dr., 467 + + Hayes, 103, 110, 111, 113, 114, 125, 306, 310, 311 + + Hedges, William, quotations from, 2 + + Hell-fire Club, 275 + + Henley, Robert, 155 + + Herrenhausen, 198 + + Hertford, Lord, 140 + + Hervey, Lord, 138, 153, 160, 164, 197, 413; + 'Memoirs' referred to, 153, 162, 164 + + Hesse, Landgrave of, 209 + + Hesse-Cassel, Treaty with, 371, 374, 378, 379 + + Hessians, allies of Britain, 211 + + Hillsborough, Lord, 369, 439 + + Hoare, William, portrait of Pelham, 314; + portraits of Pitt, 488, 489 + + Hochkirch, Battle of, 106 + + Holdernesse, Lady, 115, 116 + + Holdernesse, Lord, 282, 300, 397, 410, 411, 479, 482, 483 + + Holland, 40, 41, 199; + the Dutch as allies, 211; + guarantee of assistance to, 246, 247 + + Holland, Lady, 'Journal' quoted, 24 + + Holland House, meeting of Chatham and Fox at, 370 + + 'Holland House MSS.' referred to, 296, 340, 342, 343, 350, 410, 431, + 454, 459, 460, 476, 477, 479, 480-3, 486 + + Hollins, ----, 63 + + Holyrood, Prince Charles Edward at, 243, 244 + + 'Homer, Original Genius of,' see Wood, Robert + + Hood, Admiral, 353 + + Houghton, Walpole at, 147, 228; + his burial at, 229 + + Howard, Frederick, see Carlisle, Earl of + + Howe, Captain Lord, 399 + + Hungary, Queen of, 202; + subsidy voted to, 205 + + Hurstmonceux, 305 + + Hyde, Lord, 462 + + + Impiger, 332 + + India, Governor Pitt's progress in, 2, 3 + + Innes Family, 7 + + Iracundus, 332 + + Irwin, Lady, 159 + + Italy, war in, 213 + + + Jacobinism, Governor Pitt on, 10 + + Jamaica, position of the Governorship of, 5 + + James I., 432 + + James II., 243, 276, 393 + + Jenkins' Ear, story of, 166 + + Jews' Naturalisation Act, 298, 299 + + Johnson, Dr., 257, 413, 493 + + + Kaunitz, adviser of Maria Theresa, 400 + + Kensington, 82, 114-16, 118, 198 + + Khevenhueller, General, occupies Munich, 205 + + Kielmansegge's 'Diary,' quoted, 303 + + Kildare, Lord, 459 + + 'Kildare, Narrative to,' quotations from, 476, 478, 479, 482 + + King, Mr., 305 + + + Land's End, 226 + + Lanoe, Colonel, 58, 60 + + Lauffeld, Battle of, 212, 214 + + Leadam, quoted, 208 + + Leasowes, Shenstone's house at, 307 + + Lecky, W.E.H., 502 + + Lee, Dr., 155, 255, 268, 272, 275, 373 + + Legge, Henry Bilson, 330, 336, 380-2; + letter to Chatham, 308, 309; + Chancellor of the Exchequer, 346, 349, 405, 410, 411, 467, 480, 481; + a Lord of the Treasury, 486; + Pitt's Ministry, 483; + the King's repugnance to, 482; + proposed Peerage for, 479; + on Chatham's speech, 360; + refused to sign the Hesse-Cassel Treaty, 374; + distrusted by Newcastle, 374; + in praise of Walpole, 423 + + Leicester House, 115, 155, 291-4, 318, 353, 368, 370, 371, 383, + 386-8, 404, 456, 475, 481, 483-5 + + Lifeguards escort George II., 193 + + Ligonier, General, 212 + + Limerick, Lord, 184, 185, 187 + + Lincoln, acts as mediator between the Pelham brothers, 291 + + Linz, Archduke proclaimed in, 205 + + Liverpool, Lord, 141 + + 'London Magazine, The,' 188 + + Londonderry, Lord, 1, 5, 6 + + Loo, 198 + + Lothian, Lord, 439 + + Loudoun, Lord, 441 + + Louis XIV., 133, 192, 193 + + Louis XV., 193, 208, 209, 212, 400; + 'Louis XV. et la Renversement des Alliances,' see Waddington, + Richard + + Louis XVIII., 141 + + Louisbourg, 113, 243 + + Low Countries, 188, 212 + + Luneville, 45, 71, 72 + + Lyndhurst, Lord, 443 + + Lyte, Sir Henry, 'Dunster,' quoted, 6; + 'History of Eton' referred to, 29 + + Lyttelton, Christian, marriage with Thomas Pitt, 17, 41, 130; + her character, 17 + + Lyttelton, Sir George, afterwards Baron Lyttelton, Pitt + correspondence referring to, 28, 41, 42, 49, 54, 58, 63, 77, 78, + 317, 318, 321-4, 329, 331, 348; + his companions in youth, 141; + friendship with William Pitt, 130, 492; + supports Pitt, 289; + quarrel with Pitt, 407; + reconciliation, 414; + private secretary to Prince of Wales, 162; + return to Parliament, 159; + and standing army, 164; + and Spanish War, 167-8; + influence over Pulteney, 177; + secret terms with Walpole, 177; + policy concerning war in Flanders, 223-4; + a Lord of the Treasury, 236, 237, 239; + arranged coalition between forces of Stowe and Leicester House, 291; + Cofferer, 346, 347; + attempts reconciliation between Newcastle and Bedford, 412; + Chancellor of the Exchequer, 412; + his Budget, 440; + War supplies, 446-8; + Joint-Paymaster of the Forces, 455; + character, 414; + couplet, 158; + works, 413; + 'Memoirs and Correspondence of,' see Phillimore, R.J. + + Lyttelton, Molly, 74, 353 + + Lyttelton, Sir Richard, 111, 130, 327, 423, 467 473 + + Lyttelton, Sir Thomas, 16 + + Lyttelton, William, 306 + + + Macaulay, 31, 214 + + Macclesfield, Lord, death of, 134 + + Madras, 11 + + Maestricht, siege of, 278 + + Magyars appealed to by Maria Theresa, 205 + + Mahon, Lady, 126 + + Maillebois, Marshal, 204 + + Mainz, Elector of, 286 + + 'Malta, Knights of,' see Porter + + Mann, Sir Horace, 'Letters to Horace Walpole,' 50, 126, 138, 234, 253 + + Mansfield, Lord, see Murray, William, Earl of + + Marchmont, Earl of, Duchess of Marlborough's bequest to, 234 + + 'Marchmont Papers' quoted, 155, 168, 180, 224, 234, 235, 240 + + Maria Theresa, the War of Austrian Succession, 202-5, 208, 210, + 213-15, 221, 222, 241, 242, 246, 247, 286, 395, 400; + her character, 214, 215 + + Marlborough, Duke of, 131, 170, 343, 366, 477 + + Marlborough, Sarah, Duchess of, death and bequests of, 21, 233, 234 + + 'Marlborough, Duchess of, Life of,' see Thomson + + Marriage Act, 305 + + Marseilles, 45, 70 + + Martin's 'Histoire de France,' quoted, 208 + + Martin, Mr., 357 + + Martyn, Mr., 46 + + Mayo, Mr., 39 + + Mediterranean, English fleet in, 205 + + Medmenham, Brotherhood of, 272 + + Meehan's 'Famous Houses of Bath,' quoted, 303, 304 + + Meredith, Sir William, 431 + + Middlesex, Lord, M.P. for Old Sarum, 270 + + Milan, 208 + + Miller, Mr. Saunderson, 307 + + 'Ministry, The New,' a collection of songs, &c., 139 + + Minorca, 208, 294; + fall of, 450-1 + + Mirabeau's power of oratory, 501 + + Mirepoix, Duchess of, 109 + + Mirepoix, Duke of, 399 + + Mohawks, 23 + + Mohun, Lord, sells Boconnoc, 6 + + Molinox, Mr., 63 + + Molwitz, Austrians defeated at, 203 + + Monmouth, Duke of, at Sedgemoor, 187 + + Mons, capture of, 212 + + Montagu, Duke of, 428 + + Montagu, Mrs. Elizabeth, 52, 54; + 'Letters' quoted, 305, 306, 309, 353 + + Montcalm, General, 457; + 'Montcalm and Wolfe,' see Parkman + + Montespan, 192 + + Montpelier, 45, 71 + + Morayshire, 7 + + 'Moreau, Souvenirs de,' referred to, 398, 400 + + Mudge, Mr., 501 + + Mug, Matthew, 299 + + Murray, William, Earl of, formerly Lord Mansfield, oratorical powers, + 302; + precision of, 496-7; + eminence of, 340; + Solicitor-General, 223, 318; + Attorney-General, 453-5; + his chance of promotion, 338; + _re_ new Cabinet, 380; + changes in the Cabinet, 389; + _re_ Jacobites, 392; + _re_ subsidy treaties, 431-4, 436; + attitude towards Pitt, 268, 421; + Pitt's attack on, 359, 360, 363-5; + on Pitt's powers of ridicule, 503; + enemy of Fox, 384; + coolness towards Newcastle, 430; + correspondence regarding, 54, 335, 336 + + Mutiny Bill, 276 + + + Namur, capture of, 212 + + Naples, 195, 205 + + Napoleon I., 136, 215, 269 + + Napoleon III., 509 + + Navy, proposed reduction of the, 289 + + Necessity Fort, surrender of, 350 + + Nedham, Mrs. Catherine, see Pitt, Catherine + + Nedham, Robert, his marriage with Catherine Pitt, 49; + nominated for Old Sarum, 129 + + Nevers, 98 + + Newbury, 46, 74 + + Newcastle, Sir Thomas Pelham, afterwards Duke of, his character, 138, + 173-4; + an incident at his uncle's death, 138; + refuses a pension, 174; + contempt of George II. for, 150, 196, 245; + supports Henry Pelham, 216, 217; + blunder in the Lords, 227; + supports the Dutch cause, 247; + the Ministerial crisis of 1746, 248, 249, 252; + the Seaford election, 270; + his jealous nature, 279; + his dislike for Bedford, 279, 280; + views on the Hanoverian question, 286; + Pitt's enmity with, 422, 427, 453, 471, 481, 486; + profession of gratitude to Pitt, 290, 291; + Fox's vengeance on, 296; + his jealousy of Fox, 439; + Fox's hatred of, 482; + the Jews' Naturalisation Act, 298, 299; + letters and correspondence, 97, 139, 281, 313, 316, 329-33, 347, + 351, 386, 461-2; + Secretary of State, 319, 321, 323; + his appointments, 340; + words with Chatham, 357; + his power in the Commons, 361, 382; + negotiations with Fox, 368-9; + Prime Minister, 388; + formation of Cabinet, 389; + councils of war, 397; + and Hanoverian treaties, 409; + attempted negotiations between Newcastle and French Ambassador, 399; + loyalty of Commons to, 410; + Pitt's suspicions of, 411; + attempted reconciliation between Newcastle and Bedford, 412; + his opinion of Lyttelton, 412; + political unrest, 430, 441, 453-5, 458-70; + _re_ execution of Byng, 451, 452; + deserted by his friends, 471-5; + resignation, 485 + + 'Newcastle MSS.,' 316, 328, 349, 351, 374, 474, 486 + + Newdigate, Sir Roger, 363 + + Newton, Bishop, 'Works' referred to, 176; + metaphor of, 494 + + Niesse ceded to Frederick II., 206 + + Nivernois, M. de, 121 + + Noailles, 400 + + Norfolk, election expenses in, 143 + + Norfolk House, 162 + + North, Lord, 265 + + Northampton, 43, 60, 64, 65, 234 + + Nugent, Robert, Earl, 140, 272, 275, 363, 428 + + Nuthall, Thomas, 312 + + + Okehampton, 5, 75 + + Oliver, Dr., 106, 113 + + Onslow, Rt. Hon. Arthur, Chatham's appeal to, 359 + + Orange, House of, returned to power, 212 + + Orford's 'George III.,' see Walpole, Horace + + Orleans, Regent of, 4 + + Orsini, 509 + + Orwell, portrait at, 353 + + Oswald, James, 292 + + Oswego, fall of, 457 + + Oudenarde, Battle of, George II. at, 194 + + Oxford, 10, 30, 31, 54, 119, 363 + + + Pall Mall, 5, 26, 35 + + Pan, Temple of, 309 + + Paris, 45, 68, 109, 181, 182 + + Parkman's 'Montcalm and Wolfe' quoted, 396, 398, 457 + + Parliamentary History, see Cobbett, William + + Parma, proposed reconquest of, 208 + + Paulett, Lord, 112 + + Peel, Sir Robert, 172, 224, 489, 490; + a comparison, 230, 231 + + Pelham, Colonel, 305 + + Pelham, Rt. Hon. Henry, effect of his death, 96, 97, 301, 313-15, 506; + the King's regard for, 196, 251, 313; + eager for peace, 212; + becomes Premier, 216, 217, 314; + Chatham's support, 227, 291, 394; + Carteret's support, 227, 291, 394; + Carteret's dismissal, 235, 245; + assistance to the Dutch, 246; + refuses office perquisites, 256-8, 269, 314; + on Aix-la-Chapelle Treaty, 277; + eulogy of Chatham, 278, 315; + seeks retirement, 283; + foreign policy, 289, 447; + 'Memoirs of Henry Pelham,' see Coxe, William + + Pelham, Sir Thomas, see Newcastle, Duke of + + Pembroke, Lord, 1st Dragoon Guards, 43, 76 + + Penshurst, Chatham visits, 305 + + Peter the Great, 147, 207 + + Philip, Don, designs on Milan, 208 + + Phillimore, R.J., 'Memoirs and Correspondence of Lyttelton' referred + to, 140, 306, 324, 325, 338 + + Phillips, Mrs., 57, 63 + + Phillipson, Mr., 477 + + Pitt, Dr., 117 + + Pitt, Ann (sister to Lord Chatham), friendships, 41, 49, 53, 54; + State appointments, 53, 87; + nicknames, 55; + correspondence with her brother, 55-84, 88-125, 492; + quarrels with Chatham, 83, 85-7, 115, 256; + retires to France, 92, 95; + returns to England, 102-4; + health and mental condition, 107, 115, 116, 120; + income increased to, 121; + resides at Kensington, 125; + grief at death of brother, 127; + under restraint, death, 126 + + Pitt, Betty (sister to Lord Chatham), history and description of, + 49-52 + + Pitt, Catherine (sister to Lord Chatham), afterwards Nedham, 49, 84, + 95, 96-8 + + Pitt, Clara Villiers, see Pitt, Betty + + Pitt, Elizabeth, see Pitt, Betty + + Pitt, Essex (daughter of Governor Pitt), marriage, death, 12, 14, 96 + + Pitt, George (of Strathfieldsaye), 26 + + Pitt, Harriot, wife of Robert Pitt, see Villiers + + Pitt, Harriot (sister of Lord Chatham), matrimonial designs on, 41, + 42, 44; + her character, 48; + marriage of, 49; + illness, 60, 70, 74 + + Pitt, Hester, wife of Chatham, see Grenville + + Pitt, John (great-grandfather of Chatham), Vicar of Blandford, 1 + + Pitt, John (son of Governor Pitt), disposition, 6, 12, 13 + + Pitt, John, a Dorsetshire kinsman, 305, 327 + + Pitt, John (eldest son of Lord Chatham), 455, 456, 477 + + Pitt, Lucy (daughter of Governor Pitt), marriage, death, 12-14 + + Pitt, Mary (sister of Lord Chatham), referred to, 95, 102, 103, 106, + 107, 110, 113, 115; + described, 49, 52; + letter to Lady Suffolk, 102 + + Pitt, Robert (son of Governor Pitt, father of Lord Chatham), family + relationships, 8, 12, 14-16, 26, 48; + character, 12, 14; + death, 5, 15, 19, 38; + correspondence from son's tutor, 28, 31 + + Pitt, Thomas ('The Governor') parentage, characteristics, 1-5, 7, 14, + 24, 508; + prescience regarding Chatham, 11, 26; + mourning item, 34 + + Pitt, Thomas (son of Robert, brother of Lord Chatham), conduct and + characteristics, 14-16; + seeks appointment, 18; + marriage, 41; + charge against, 49; + parliamentary career, 129, 159, 270 + + Pitt, Thomas (son of Thomas Pitt), 1st Baron Camelford, letters + quoted and referred to, 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 12, 15, 17, 44, 48, 50, + 52, 54, 85-7, 92, 93, 102, 103, 111, 114, 116, 121, 127, 130, + 159, 160, 413, 491, 496; + created Baron Camelford, 19; + on Chatham's marriage, 354, 355; + bias toward Chatham, 23, 50, 102, 127, 257 + + Pitt, Villiers Clara, see Pitt, Betty + + Pitt, William, 1st Earl of Chatham, see Chatham + + Pitt, William (the younger), birth, 111; + death, 353 + + Place Bill, extension of, 245 + + Plutarch, referred to, 443 + + Poetical quotations, 19, 62, 143, 148, 158, 174, 177, 211, 254, 298, + 307 + + Poland, partition of, 215 + + Poland, King of, Berlin Treaty and the, 206 + + Poland-Saxony, claims of Austria on, 203 + + Polwarth, against Walpole, 148 + + Pomfret, Lord, 467 + + Pompadour, Madame de, 400 + + Pope, Alexander, quoted, 79, 131, 132, 197 + + Porritt's 'Unreformed House of Commons' referred to, 129 + + Porte, Mr. de la, 102 + + Porter's 'History of the Knights of Malta' quoted, 451 + + Portsmouth, Duchess of, intercedes for Governor Pitt, 3 + + Potter, Thomas, supports petition against Seaford, 271; + Bucks Assize dispute, 272-5; + Chatham's praise of, 454; + position found for, 483, 486; + opposes navy reduction, 289 + + Pragmatic Sanction, maintenance of, 202, 203 + + Prague, King of Bohemia proclaimed in, 205 + + Pratt, Charles, 1st Earl Camden, 27, 311 + + Preston, Mr., 50 + + 'Pretyman Papers,' referred to, 355 + + Prevot, as a prototype, 441 + + Prior Park, 112 + + Protestant Succession, endurance to secure, 198 + + Prussia, Convention signed at Hanover, 210 + + Pulteney, Sir William, Earl of Bath, Ann Pitt's designs on, 54, 107; + entertained at Stowe, 132; + his wit, 254; + idolised by the people, 175, 262; + Walpole's use of, 176, 219, 505; + stands aside for Carteret, 178; + popularity declines, 184, 259; + nettled at criticism, 185; + claims head of Government, 216; + forms a Government--its failure, 250, 251, 409; + proscribed, 252; + lack of character, 258; + introduces Prize Bill, 422; + Newcastle's reflection on, 472 + + + Queensbury, Duchess of, 54, 84 + + Queensbury, Duke of, 249 + + + Radway, 307 + + Ranby, Dr., 229 + + Raumer's 'Frederick II. and his Times,' 402 + + Reading, 43, 360 + + Redhall, 8 + + 'Rejected Addresses,' see Smith, Horatio + + Reynolds, Sir Joshua, 23, 489 + + Rhine, River, 207 + + Richelieu, Duke of, 204, 427 + + Richmond, 147, 193 + + Richmond, Duke of, 295 + + Ridgeway, Earl of Londonderry, 12 + + Rigby, Richard, 424 + + Rivers, Lord, 1 + + Robinson, Sir Thomas, his appointments, 345; + Master of the Wardrobe and Secretary of State, 330, 337, 344, 345, + 349, 467, 482; + pensioned, 391, 392, 439; + Chatham's remarks to, 360; + Newcastle's praise of, 344, 345; + panegyric on himself, 428 + + Rochester, 104 + + Rogers, Samuel, 'Recollections of Samuel Rogers' referred to, 85, 86; + 'Table Talk,' 364 + + Rolt, Bayntun, 172 + + Rolliad, quotation from, 19 + + Rondet, the royal jeweller, 4 + + Ross, Man of, 303 + + Roucoux, French victory at, 212 + + Royston, Lord, 465 + + Russell, Lord John, 231 + + Russia, George III.'s treaty with, 371, 378, 379 + + Ryder, Sir Dudley, 453, 455 + + + Sackville, Lord George, 428, 442 + + St. James's Square, 105, 108, 110, 112, 113, 118, 120, 151, 162 + + St. Lawrence, River, naval battle at mouth of, 399 + + St. Rumbald, spring at, 304 + + Salisbury, 129 + + Samson of Battersea, nickname of Bolingbroke, 328 + + Sancho Panza, 191 + + Sandwich, Earl of, 279, 282 + + Sandys, Baron, 148 + + Sardinia, 203, 208; + King of, 225, 258 + + Sarpedon, 181 + + Sarum, Old, 2, 4-6, 129, 270 + + Saunders, Sir Charles, 450 + + Savile, Sir George, 191 + + Savoy, House of, 208 + + Saxe, Marshal, marches against Austria, 209; + successes in the Low Countries, 212 + + Saxons, as allies of Britain, 211 + + Saxony, entered by Frederick II., 210; + Elector of, 206, 286, 289 + + Schwerin, Marshal, defeats Austrians at Molwitz, 203 + + Scrope, John, 187 + + Seaford, election of Chatham for, 270, 358 + + Sedgemoor, 187 + + Seine, River, 199 + + Selwyn, George, 109, 345, 390 + + Seward's 'Anecdotes' referred to, 55, 161, 172, 180, 501 + + Shelburne, Lord, thoughts on Thomas Pitt, 18; + on the madness of the Pitts, 24; + on Pitt's use of words, 501; + on Richard Temple, 131; + troop offered to, 160; + on Pulteney's oratory, 176; + 'Life of Shelburne,' see Fitzmaurice, Lord + + Shenstone, William, 306 + + Sheridan, R.B., 502 + + Shippen, William, 148 + + Siddons, Mrs., 500 + + Sidmouth, Lord, 489 + + Silesia, 209 + + Sinclair, Sir John, 7 + + Sion, 115, 116 + + 'Skew,' a nickname, 58, 69 + + Smith, Horatio, 'Rejected Addresses' referred to, 23 + + Smollett, Tobias, 174 + + Soho, 6 + + Solomon, name given to Chatham, 356 + + South Lodge, 308, 309 + + South Sea Bubble, 5 + + Spain, extravagance of the Bourbons, 195; + claim on Austria, 203; + cause of war with, 213; + Walpole's policy, 145, 165, 167; + war declared against, 201; + 'Britons in Spanish prisons' cry, 167; + peace question raised by Lord Egmont, 284 + + Spencer, Lady Diana, 151 + + Spencer, John, bequests to and from, 234 + + Sporus, 197 + + Stair, Lord, 207, 218 + + Stanhope, George, death of, 98 + + Stanhope, Lady Hester, 7, 139, 489; + 'Memoirs,' 139 + + Stanhope, James, 1st Earl, 31; + soldier and statesman, 5, 46; + marriage with Lucy Pitt, 14 + + Stanhope, Philip Dormer, see Chesterfield, Earl of + + Stanhope, Sir William, speech on the Bucks Assize dispute, 272-4 + + Stanislas, 71 + + Stanley, Hans, 327 + + Stannaries, Thomas Pitt, Warden of, 18 + + States General, a party to the Treaty of Berlin, 206 + + Stephen, Leslie, 'English Literature and Society in the Eighteenth + Century,' 214, 307, 353 + + Stewart, General, 26 + + Stockwell, I., as tutor to Lord Chatham, 31 + + Stone, Andrew, 384, 390, 460 + + Stone House, 304 + + Stormont, 453 + + Stowe, 77-82, 130, 132, 272, 291, 306, 352, 355 + + Strange, Lord, 277 + + Stratford, 5, 28 + + Stuart, House of, 144 + + Stuart, Charles Edward, 'the Young Pretender,' 199, 210, 211, 222, + 226, 243 + + Stuart, Mrs., 96 + + 'Sublimity Pitt,' 54 + + Subsidies, On, 205, 209, 289, 379, 380, 430-4, 436 + + Suffolk, 234 + + Suffolk, Lady, letters referred to, 12, 53, 54, 57, 76, 78, 79, 81, + 86, 102, 104, 107, 127, 161 + + Sunninghill, 304 + + Surajah Dowlah, 457 + + Sussex, tour in, 305 + + Swallowfield, 5, 11, 43, 57 + + Sweden, King of, 209 + + + Talbot, Lord, evil living of, 49 + + Taylor, Miss, 51 + + Temperley's 'Essay on the Causes of War with Spain' referred to, 166 + + Temple, Countess, see Grenville, Lady + + Temple, Lord, see Grenville, Richard Temple, afterwards Earl Grenville + + Temple, Sir Richard, Viscount Cobham, 17, 77, 81, 236, 245, 292, 304, + 346, 505; + builder of palace of Stowe, 130, 131; + his entertainments at, 132; + served under Marlborough, 131; + called 'the brave Cobham,' 131; + his great riches, 134, 141; + various titles and honours conferred on, 131; + opposed to the Excise Bill, 132; + sides with Pitt, 22; + Pitt devoted to Cobham, 160, 161, 178; + quarrel with Pitt, 256; + on the war in Flanders, 223, 224, 227; + growing jealousy of his 'young patriots,' 273, 276; + nicknames to, 131; + death of, 133, 138 + + Temple Bar, 169 + + Thackeray, Francis, 'Life of Chatham' referred to, 28, 54, 163, 363 + + Thackeray, W.M., referred to, 13; + satire on George II. mentioned, 196 + + Thames, Dutch ships in the, 226 + + 'The Test,' a newspaper, 50 + + Thessaly, 332 + + Thirsk, 4 + + Thomson's 'Life of the Duchess of Marlborough,' 234 + + Timbs, 'Anecdote biography,' 308 + + 'Tom Jones,' see Fielding, Henry + + Torrens, W.T. McC., 'History of Cabinets,' 276 + + Towcester, 80 + + Townshend, Lady, 356 + + Townshend, Charles, 428, 435, 441, 467, 475 + + Townshend, Colonel, 277 + + Townshend, George, 428, 441, 467 + + Trinity College, Chatham admitted to, 30 + + Trojans, 332 + + Tunbridge, 306 + + Tunbridge Wells, 304, 309, 313 + + Twickenham, 5, 125 + + + Underwood's 'Historical MSS.' quoted, 257 + + Utrecht, 18, 21, 39, 43 + + + Vale Royal, 14 + + Valliere, La, 192 + + Vauxhall, New, 304 + + Vere, Lady, 107 + + Vere, Lord, 107 + + Versailles, 109; + Palace at, 192; + replica of, in a Bavarian lake, 192; + Treaty of, 401 + + Very, Count, 109 + + Vesey, Mr., 39 + + Vienna threatened by the French army, 205 + + Villiers, George, Duke of Buckingham, 26 + + Villiers, Harriot, marriage with Robert Pitt, 12, 26; + mother of Lord Chatham, 12; + her family, 15; + returns to France, 15; + correspondence with her son, 38-46; + death of, 48 + + Villiers, Lord, 39-41 + + Voiture, 61 + + Voltaire's 'Candide' referred to, 451 + + + Waddington, Richard, 'Louis XV. et le Renversement des Alliances' + referred to, 401 + + Waldegrave, Lady Betty, 108, 109 + + Waldegrave, James, Earl, procures Pitt letters of introduction at + Paris, 70; + on the character of George II., 194, 195; + on Sir Thomas Robinson, 345; + negotiates for Fox to enter the Cabinet, 366-8; + 'Correspondence' referred to, 359, 364 + + Waldegrave, John, Earl, 109 + + Waller, 224, 236; appointed Cofferer, 237 + + Walpole, Horace, 2nd Earl of Orford (son of Sir Robert Walpole), + 283, 412 + + Walpole, Horace, 4th Earl of Orford (brother of Sir Robert Walpole), + his kinship with Lord Hervey, 197; + affection for Lord Camelford, 19; + as a gossip, 352; + on Thomas Pitt, 18; + charge against Betty Pitt, 49; + _re_ Ann Pitt, 53, 54, 92, 116, 125-7; + on Pitt's behaviour to his sisters, 50; + on the Grenvilles, 133, 137, 139, 140; + on George II., 193; + on Pitt's speeches, 392, 394, 405, 421, 424, 431, 434-5, 438, 441; + his admiration for Pitt, 341, 493, 503; + on Pitt's impatience for office, 244; + on Pitt's change of opinion, 288; + on Pitt's sudden illness, 298; + on Dr. Lee's attack on Pitt, 254-5, 268; + on Pitt's resentment against the Newcastles, 300, 357; + his partiality for Fox, 368; + on Sir Thomas Robinson's appointment, 344; + on Lyttelton, 413; + on Lord Wilmington, 179; + opposes Saxon subsidy, 289; + on the Bath Ministry, 250; + on the loss of Minorca, 452, 457; + on the American war; + on the scheme of the Notables, 480-1; + letter to Bentley, 344. + + Walpole, Horace, 'Memoirs of the Reign of George III.,' quotations + from, 92, 140, 268, 359, 367, 370, 374, 394-5, 462, 467, 469, + 478-81. + + Walpole, Sir Robert, 1st Earl of Orford, character of, 132, 144, 146, + 254; + his love for sport, 147; + his relations with George II., 196, 219; + on the political character of George II., 194; + his relations with Pitt, 74, 75, 158-60, 170, 178, 186, 187; + his attitude towards the Prince of Wales, 152, 157; + his attitude towards Newcastle, 175-7; + supports Pelham, 314-15; + his policy regarding Spain, 145, 167, 169, 201; + on the Army, 164; + on the Secessions, 168; + supports Maria Theresa, 203; + favours the Hanoverian vote, 225; + speech on threatened landing of the Pretender, 227; + temporary resignation of, 179; + inquiry into administration of, 184; + punishment of, 183; + succeeded by Lord Carteret, 205; + fall of, 148, 149, 171-3, 178, 505, 506; + resignation of, and papers burnt by his brother Horace, 172; + impeachment of, 473; + illness and death of, 228, 229; + compared with Pitt and Peel, 230-2; + 'Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole,' see Coxe, William + + Walpole, Thomas, purchases Hayes, 310 + + Washington, George, General, 350, 397 + + Webster, Sir Whistler, 305 + + West, Gilbert, 304, 307, 309, 492; + his house at Wickham, 356 + + West, Molly, 352 + + Westminster, Treaty of, 401 + + Westminster School, 359 + + Westphalia, 306; + Treaty of, 286 + + Whately, Mr., 'Observations on Modern Gardening,' 309 + + Wickham, Chatham's honeymoon spent at, 356 + + Wilberforce, William, 261 + + Wilhelmine, Princess of Prussia, afterwards Margravine of Bareith, + 151 + + Wilkes, John, 136, 358, 359, 491 + + Wilkins' 'Political Ballads,' 298 + + William III., indifference to England, 198, 199; + Pitt's story of his coming, 276 + + Williams, Sir Charles Hanbury, 174; + lampoon on Pitt, 235; + 'Works of,' quoted, 211, 235, 465 + + Wilmington, Lord, 179, 216, 217, 314, 505 + + Wilton, Joseph, 490 + + Wiltshire, lands purchased in, 6 + + Wimbledon, Duchess of Marlborough's estate at, 234 + + Windsor, 156 + + 'Wingfield MSS.' quoted, 343, 359, 474, 485 + + Winnington, Thomas, 250, 254 + + Wood, Robert, 'Essay on the Original Genius of Homer' quoted, 182 + + Worms, Treaty of, 208, 225 + + Wotton, residence of George Grenville, 113, 352, 354 + + Wyndham, Baron, 148, 254 + + Wynn, Sir Watkin, 224 + + + Yarmouth, Lady, 280, 388, 481; + and George II., 193, 371, 464; + mistress of George II., 465; + and Pitt, 108-10, 263, 464, 472; + Fox solicits her influence to obtain a peerage, 296; + and Fox's overtures with the King, 341; + her utterance regarding, 461 + + Yonge, Lady, 240 + + Yorke, Charles, 371, 372; + interview with Chatham, 373 + + Yorke, Joseph, 185 + + Yorke, Philip, see Hardwicke, Earl of + + + Zoroastrians, politicians compared with, 389 + + +LONDON: STRANGEWAYS, PRINTERS. + + + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Camelford. + +[2] Diary of William Hedges, III. x. + +[3] Hedges, III. xii. + +[4] He purchased it from Lord Salisbury about 1690. Hedges, III. xxx. + +[5] The portrait of the Governor at Boconnoc represents him with the +diamond in his hat. That at Chevening with the diamond in his own shoe. + +[6] Camelford. + +[7] Camelford. + +[8] Lyte's Dunster, 494. + +[9] This and the following extracts from the Governor's correspondence +are all taken from the Dropmore Papers (Hist. MSS.). + +[10] Lady Suffolk's Letters, i. 101-4. + +[11] Camelford (italics his). + +[12] Camelford. + +[13] Dropmore Papers, i. 70. + +[14] Camelford. + +[15] Ib. + +[16] Dropmore Papers, i. 75. + +[17] Camelford. + +[18] Camelford. + +[19] Journal, ii. 45. + +[20] Dropmore Papers, i. 38, 41. + +[21] Tom Jones, Book xiii. Chapter i. + +[22] Life of Shelburne, i. 72. + +[23] Addressed: To Robert Pitt, Esqr, at Stratford, near Old Sarum, +Wilts. Endorsed: 'Mr. Burchet's letter about my Sons att Eton. Febry +4th, 1722.' + +[24] Lyttelton's Misc. Works, p. 650. 'Written at Eaton School, 1729.' +The date is obviously wrong, for Pitt and Lyttelton both went to Oxford +in 1726. + +[25] Endorsed: 'from my Son William Sept. 29th: recd Oct. 10th, +1723.' + +[26] Endorsed: 'from Mr. Stockwell about ye charges of my Sons going to +Oxon: Novr 1726 ansd Decr 1st.' + +[27] Mourning for the Governor. + +[28] Endorsed: 'from Mr Stockwell about my Son Wm from Oxon: Decr +22d ansd 29th 1726.' + +[29] Paduasoy. + +[30] Endorsed: 'from my Son Willm Oxon Jany 20th wth ye acct +ye 100 answd ye 24th 1726/7.' + +[31] Endorsed: 'from my Son Willm Aprill 10th wth an acct + of 3 mos expences 47 05 0 + Rems in his hand 9 15 0 + In all 57 0 0 + + Answd Aprill 25th, wth leave to draw for 25l.' + +[32] Lyttelton, Misc. Works, 665. + +[33] Always spelt Needham in the peerage books, always Nedham by the +family and those concerned. + +[34] 'Villiers Pitt' to William Pitt. 'Tours, June 1, 1752.' Chatham +MSS. + +[35] Mann and Manners at the Court of Florence, i. 382. + +[36] 'The Test' was a weekly paper published in 1756-7, written +principally by Arthur Murphy, and inspired by Henry Fox, as may be seen +from his letters. See too Orford, ii. 276, and Walpole to Mann, Jan. 6, +1757. There had been a previous 'Test' in 1756, of which there was +published only one number, written by Charles Townshend. See Orford, ii. +218. + +[37] Walpole to Mann, Jan. 17, 1757. + +[38] To William Pitt, Oct. 10, 1751. Chatham MSS. + +[39] Dutens' Memoires d'un Voyageur qui se repose, i. 31-42. + +[40] Tours, June 11, 1752. Villiers Pitt to W. Pitt. Chatham MSS. + +[41] Or 1787? as says a note in the Delany Memoirs, iv. 266. It matters +little. + +[42] Climenson's 'Elizabeth Montagu,' ii. 53. See, too, Mrs. Montagu's +Letters, vol. iii. + +[43] Suffolk Letters, ii. 233. + +[44] Camelford MS. Cf., too, William's letter of Sept. 29, 1730. + +[45] Thackeray, i. 158 note. + +[46] There is a crayon portrait of her at Boconnoc, which the writer has +not seen. It 'represents the strong contemplative face of a woman well +past her first prime,' and was taken, apparently, in 1765. + +[47] Seward's Anecdotes, ii. 355. + +[48] All these letters from William to Ann Pitt come from the papers at +Dropmore, unless where noted otherwise. + +[49] 'To Mrs. Ann Pitt, at Mrs. Phillips's, at Bath. T. Pitt Free.' + +[50] Dr. Charles Bave, a physician of the highest character at Bath. See +note on Vol. I., p. 408, of Lady Suffolk's Letters. + +[51] This must almost certainly be Ayscough, in spite of 'Skew's' being +the hereditary nickname of the Fortescue family. + +[52] These are probably Colonel and Mrs. Lanoe, with whom Ann appears to +be staying at Bath. + +[53] Lyttelton's Misc. Works, 619. + +[54] 'Mrs. Ann Pitt, at Col. Lanoe's at Bath.' + +[55] 'To Mrs. Ann Pitt jun. at Boconnock near Bodmin Cornwall.' + +[56] 'To Mrs. Ann Pitt at Mrs. Phillips's at Bath. T. Pitt Free.' + +[57] Same address. + +[58] 'To Mrs. Ann Pitt, at Bath.' + +[59] Ante, p. 56. + +[60] Dr. Ayscough? + +[61] 'To The Honble Mrs. Ann Pitt at St. James's House Londres.' + +[62] Illegible. + +[63] 'To The Honble Mrs Ann Pitt at Mrs Richard's In Pallmall, +London. Angleterre.' + +[64] 'To the Honble Mrs Ann Pitt at St. James's House London. +Angleterre.' + +[65] 'To the Honble Mrs Ann Pitt at St. James's London. +Free--Will, Herbert.' + +[66] Doubtless his brother. + +[67] His brother. + +[68] Sir William Corbett. + +[69] 'To The Honble Mrs Ann Pitt at St. James's London.' + +[70] Elected Feb. 18, 1735. + +[71] Doubtless his brother. + +[72] Lyttelton--a mere guess. + +[73] Doubtless his brother. + +[74] N.B.--Pope was at Stowe during this month. See Lady Suffolk's +Letters, ii. 143. + +[75] 'To the Honble Mrs Pitt at Kensington House Middlesex. +Free--W. Pitt.' + +[76] Camelford MS. + +[77] Recollections of Samuel Rogers, p. 104. + +[78] Grenville Papers, i. 13. + +[79] Chatham MSS. + +[80] Orford, i. 85. + +[81] His aunt. + +[82] Their cousin, Colonel the Hon. George Stanhope, who distinguished +himself at Falkirk and Culloden. + +[83] Letter dated Oct. 21, 1754, in the Chatham MSS. + +[84] 'To The Honourable Mrs. Ann Pitt, W. Pitt.' + +[85] Lady Suffolk's Letters, ii. 251. + +[86] Delany, iv. 156. + +[87] Walpole to Mann, Oct. 30, 1778. + +[88] Ib. May 9, 1779. + +[89] Delany, v. 403-5. + +[90] Lady Suffolk's Letters, ii. 234. + +[91] Porritt's Unreformed House of Commons, i. 35. T. Mozley when the +nineteenth century was well advanced saw the constituency of Old Sarum +in the person of 'a bright looking old fellow with a full rubicund face +and a profusion of white hair.' Reminiscences, ii. 13. + +[92] Grenville Papers, i. 423. + +[93] Grenville Papers, i. 423-5. + +[94] Grenville Papers, ii. 496. + +[95] Ib. ii. 512. + +[96] Lord Dundonald in his 'Autobiography' says that it produced +20,693_l._ p.a. + +[97] Dickins and Stanton. 'An Eighteenth Century Correspondence,' 193. + +[98] It seems best to call this worthy, who assumed the name of +Dodington, by his patronymic; for it is his own name, and the most +appropriate. + +[99] Walpole to Mann, Feb. 25, 1750. + +[100] Memoirs of Lady Hester Stanhope, iii. 179. + +[101] See 'The New Ministry, containing a collection of all the +satyrical poems, songs, &c. 1742.' + +[102] Phillimore's Lyttelton, 681. + +[103] Orford's George III. iii. 137. + +[104] Ballantyne's Carteret, 107. + +[105] Harris's Hardwicke, i. 382. + +[106] These expressions are taken from Hervey's Memoirs. + +[107] Dated Feb. 8, 1748. Bedford Correspondence, i. 320. + +[108] Marchmont Papers, i. 84. + +[109] Lord Dover's note to H. Walpole's letter of March 21, 1751. + +[110] Carlisle Papers (Hist. MSS.), 172. + +[111] Seward, ii. 362. + +[112] Lady Suffolk's Letters, ii. 151. + +[113] Hervey, ii. 195. + +[114] Hervey, ii. 80. + +[115] Ib. ii. 82. + +[116] Parl. Hist. x. 464-7. + +[117] Coxe's Sir R. Walpole, i. 575. + +[118] Life of Shelburne, i. 46. + +[119] Coxe's Sir R. Walpole, i. 580 note. + +[120] See Temperley's Essay on the causes of this war in Trans. of Royal +Hist. Soc. Series II. vol. iii. p. 207. + +[121] Parl. Hist. x. 1284. + +[122] Parl. Hist. x. 1280-3. + +[123] Coxe's Sir R. Walpole, i. 594 note. + +[124] Marchmont Papers, ii. 180, note by Rose. + +[125] Life of Shelburne, i. 37. Seward's Anecdotes, ii. 309. + +[126] Coxe's Sir R. Walpole, i. 695. + +[127] Sir C.H. Williams, ii. 140-1. + +[128] Dutens' Voyage, &c., i. 142. + +[129] Life of Shelburne, i. 45. + +[130] Bishop Newton's Works, i. 93. + +[131] Ballantyne's Carteret, 2. + +[132] Seward's Anecdotes, ii. 280. + +[133] Marchmont Papers, i. 42, 73. + +[134] Wood's Essay on the Original Genius of Homer, p. vii. n. (Ed. +1775). + +[135] Chesterfield, v. 65. + +[136] Chesterfield's Letters, iv. 358. + +[137] Parl. Hist. xii. 416-427. + +[138] Harris, ii. 31. + +[139] Parl. Hist. xii. 561. + +[140] Ib. xii. 488. + +[141] Parl. Hist. xii. 490. + +[142] Parl. Hist. xii. 940 note. + +[143] Ib. xii. 1033. + +[144] Orford, Rem. 97. + +[145] Hervey, ii. 182, 228. + +[146] Holdernesse to Newcastle, Nov. 22, 1756. Add. MSS. 32869. + +[147] Frederick, iii. 141. + +[148] Martin, Hist. de France, xv. 265. Leadam, 376. + +[149] Sir C.H. Williams, i. 247. + +[150] L. Stephen, English Literature and Society in the Eighteenth +Century, 138. + +[151] Parl. Hist. xiii. 136. + +[152] Parl. Hist. xiii. 473 (note). Cf. Phillimore, 226. But Carteret +had taken the lead of the Prince's party in the House of Lords so far +back as 1737. + +[153] Parl. Hist. xvi. 1097. + +[154] Fortescue, Hist. of the Army, ii. 101. + +[155] Marchmont Papers, i. 80. + +[156] Ib. i. 176. + +[157] To Mann, Jan. 24, 1744. Cf. Parl. Hist. xiii. 467 note. + +[158] Orford, ii. 132. + +[159] Thomson's Life of the Duchess of Marlborough, ii. 571-2. + +[160] Marchmont Papers, ii. 338. + +[161] H. Walpole to Montagu, June 24, 1746. Cf. Grenville Papers, i. +131. Camelford MS. + +[162] H. Walpole to Mann, June 20, 1746. + +[163] Marchmont Papers, i. 70. + +[164] Works of Sir C.H. Williams, 1822, ii. 152. + +[165] Glover, 30. + +[166] Marchmont Papers, i. 67, 172. It was said that Harrington, from an +interest in Lady Yonge, wife of the actual incumbent of the office, did +his best to prevent Pitt's becoming Secretary for War. Ib. 97. But there +was a more majestic obstacle. + +[167] Parl. Hist. xiii. 1054-6. + +[168] Parl. Hist. xiii. 1176. + +[169] Parl. Hist. xiii. 1177. + +[170] Bedford is ranked by Newcastle among the Cobham deputation, though +he was First Lord of the Admiralty at the time. Perhaps he was the +honest broker. + +[171] Newcastle to Chesterfield, Nov. 20, 1745. Add. MSS. 32705. + +[172] Newcastle to Chesterfield, Feb. 18, 1746, in Coxe's Pelham Adm. i. +292. + +[173] Newcastle to Chesterfield, Feb. 18, 1746, in Coxe's Pelham Adm. i. +293. + +[174] Coxe's Lord Walpole, ii. 142. + +[175] Coxe's Lord Walpole, ii. 133. + +[176] Newcastle to Chesterfield, Feb. 18, 1746. + +[177] Orford, i. 110. Walpole to Mann, April 2, 1750. + +[178] Cartwright to Pitt, Feb. 27, 1745 (Chatham MSS.). We obtain the +exact salary more or less correctly from a lampoon. + + 'Hibernia, smile! + Thrice happy isle, + On thy blest ground + Twelve thousand pound + For Stanhope's found, + Three thousand clear + For Pitt a year; + So shalt thou thrive, + Industrious hive, + While these and more + Increase thy store.' + + Sir C.H. Williams, ii. 166. + + +[179] Camelford. + +[180] Cf. Underwood MSS. (Hist. MSS.), p. 405. + +[181] He avowed this to Newcastle (Orford, George III. i. 82 note). But +it was otherwise patent. + +[182] Parl. Hist. xiv. 103. + +[183] See the debate in Parl. Hist. xiv. 204. + +[184] Gibbs' History of Aylesbury, 502. + +[185] Torrens says (History of Cabinets, ii. 119) that this speech was +revised by Pitt, but gives no authority. Almon (i. 172) specifically +declares that it was written by Gordon. + +[186] Parl. Hist. xiv. 502. + +[187] Grenville Papers, i. 93-5. + +[188] Parl. Hist. xiv. 664. + +[189] Parl. Hist. xiv. 692-6. + +[190] Coxe's Pelham Adm. ii. 370. + +[191] Add. MSS. 32721. + +[192] July 20, 1750. Add. MSS. 32721. + +[193] Coxe's Pelham Adm. ii. 131, 370. + +[194] Ib. ii. 396. + +[195] Parl. Hist. xiv. 801. + +[196] Coxe's Pelham Adm. ii. 225, 359. + +[197] Parl. Hist. xiv. 967. + +[198] Stone to Newcastle, Feb. 22, 1750/1. Add. MSS. 32724. + +[199] Parl. Hist. xiv. 970. + +[200] Coxe's Pelham Adm. ii. 144. + +[201] Coxe's Pelham Adm. ii. 165. + +[202] Holland House MSS. + +[203] Colebrooke's Memoirs, i. 63. + +[204] Earl of Rochester. Ib. 73. + +[205] Wilkins, Political Ballads, ii. 312. + +[206] Parl. Hist. xv. 154. + +[207] September, 1749. + +[208] Almon, i. 195. + +[209] Pitt to Newcastle, July 25, 1753. Add. MSS. 32732. + +[210] Pitt to Newcastle, March 6, 1754. Add. MSS. 32734. + +[211] Feb. 11, o.s. 1751. Letters, ii. 97. + +[212] Climenson's Mrs. Montague, ii. 51. Kielmansegge's Diary, 131. + +[213] Meehan's Famous Houses of Bath, 112. + +[214] Meehan, 111. + +[215] Climenson. + +[216] Mrs. Montagu's Letters, iii. 235. + +[217] Memorials of Lord Gambier, i. 61. Cf. Mrs. Montagu's Letters, iii. +240. + +[218] Pitt to Newcastle. Tunbridge, Aug. 14, 1753. Add. MSS. 32732. + +[219] Phillimore, 265. + +[220] An Eighteenth Century Correspondence, 388 n. See too Harris's +Hardwicke, ii. 456. + +[221] Timbs, Anecdote Biography, 156, quoting from The Ambulator (1820). + +[222] Legge to Pitt. Berlin, July 10, 1748. Chatham MSS. + +[223] Climenson, ii. 9-10. Mrs. Montagu's Letters, iii. 181. + +[224] Nuthall to Lady Chatham, March 25, 1768. Chatham MSS. + +[225] Chatham to Nuthall, Oct. 7, 1772. Chatham MSS. + +[226] October 6, 1753. Add. MSS. 32733. + +[227] October 13, 1753. Add. MSS. 32733. + +[228] Pitt to Newcastle, March 7, 1754. Add. MSS. 32734. + +[229] Grenville Papers, i. 109. + +[230] Ib. i. 111. + +[231] Pitt to Newcastle, March 11, 1754. Add. MSS. 32734. + +[232] Murray. + +[233] This seems an allusion either to Leicester House, or, less +probably, to Newcastle. + +[234] Grenville Papers, i. 106. + +[235] Granville Papers, i. 110. + +[236] Pitt was member for Aldborough, one of Newcastle's boroughs. + +[237] Phillimore's Lyttelton, 449. + +[238] Phillimore's Lyttelton, 453. + +[239] Grenville Papers, i. 112. + +[240] Add. MSS. 32734. f. 322. + +[241] Grenville Papers, i. 116. + +[242] Pitt to Newcastle, April 2, 1754. Add. MSS. 32735. The more +elaborate draft of this letter is given with a wrong date in the Chatham +Corr. i. 85. + +[243] Chatham Corr. i. 89. + +[244] Chatham Corr. i. 95. + +[245] Add. MSS. 32735. f. 21. + +[246] Harris's Hardwicke, iii. 8. + +[247] The sense shows clearly that Pitt intended to write 'unwilling'. + +[248] Phillimore, 466. + +[249] Holland House MSS. + +[250] Holland House MSS. + +[251] H. Fox to Argyll, Sept. 26, 1755 (H.H. MSS.). + +[252] H. Fox to the Duke of Marlborough, March 22, 1754 (H.H. MSS.). + +[253] Wingfield MSS. 224b in Hist. MSS. + +[254] Walpole to Bentley, March 17, 1754. + +[255] Colebrooke, i. 18. + +[256] An Eighteenth Century Correspondence, 230. + +[257] Newcastle to Pitt, April 2, 1754, Chatham Corr. + +[258] Supra, p. 335. + +[259] Add. MSS. 32733. Pitt to Newcastle, April 22, 1754. + +[260] Bubb, 304. + +[261] Aug. 29, 1754. H.H. MSS. + +[262] Bubb, 317. + +[263] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Oct. 2, 1754. Add. MSS. 32737. + +[264] Hardwicke to Newcastle, Oct. 3, 1754. Add. MSS. 32737. + +[265] Orford, i. 78. + +[266] An Eighteenth Century Correspondence, p. 154. + +[267] Mrs. Montagu's Letters, iii. 273. + +[268] Orford, i. 406-7. + +[269] Fox to Hartington, Nov. 26, 1754, in Waldegrave, p. 146. Orford, +i. 408. Cf. Calcraft to Digby, Nov. 26, 1754, in Wingfield MSS. + +[270] Butler's Rem. i. 144. + +[271] Waldegrave, 149-50 + +[272] Fox to Hartington, Nov. 28, 1754, in Waldegrave, p. 150. Orford, +i. 142. + +[273] Butler's Reminiscences, i. 145. + +[274] Table Talk of S. Rogers, p. 100. + +[275] Orford, i. 417. + +[276] Ib. 418. + +[277] See Pitt's obscure note in Chatham Corresp. i. 130, and the +interpretation in Orford, i. 419. + +[278] Orford, i. 420. + +[279] Coxe's Lord Walpole, ii. 406. + +[280] Bubb, 319-21. Orford, ii. 37. + +[281] The accession of Fox to the Cabinet is beset with small +difficulties of chronology. Horace Walpole in his Memoirs (i. 147) tells +us that the King sent for Fox on November 29, 1754, and in a letter of +January 9, 1755, announces that Fox had been admitted to the Cabinet. +Yet we have Fox's own letter to Pitt of April 26, 1755, announcing that +the King that afternoon had signified to him his admission to the +Cabinet. (Chatham Corresp. i. 132). It is evident that Horace Walpole +believed, prematurely, that the matter was settled early in January. +Strangely enough our surest authority in all these transactions, except +Waldegrave, who is vague and dateless, is the corrupt and perfidious +Bubb. + +[282] Thackeray gives a different account of this interview and of that +with Charles Yorke, we know not whence derived. The account in the text +is that of Charles Yorke and Hardwicke themselves (Harris, iii. 29-34) +and in part Bubb, on the authority of James Grenville (p. 340). + +[283] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Sept. 3, 1755. Add. MSS. 32858. See too +Orford, ii. 40. + +[284] Add. MSS. 32858. + +[285] These two sentences are transposed for the sake of clearness. + +[286] Italics ours. + +[287] Italics ours. + +[288] There was some family connection between Bubb and the Grenvilles, +though it is not easy to trace. Bubb's property indeed, to his disgust, +was entailed on Temple. + +[289] Bubb, 370. + +[290] Add. MSS. 32859, f. 86. + +[291] Orford, ii. 45. + +[292] Orford, ii. 7-9. + +[293] Orford, ii. 17. + +[294] 'Montcalm and Wolfe,' i. 483. + +[295] Ib. i. 510. + +[296] Ib. i. 54, 66. + +[297] 'Montcalm and Wolfe,' i. 214-26. + +[298] Souvenirs de Moreau, i. 62. + +[299] Moreau, i. 58. + +[300] Waddington. Louis XV. et le Renversement des Alliances, pp. 471-6. + +[301] Baumer, Frederick II. and his Times, 227. + +[302] Ibid. 233. + +[303] Carlyle, Frederick, iv. 509. + +[304] Orford, ii. 55-62. + +[305] Fox to Ellis. Holland House MSS. + +[306] Camelford. + +[307] Walpole here professes to give Pitt's words exactly. + +[308] _I.e._, suppose any man should have purposely put off bringing +hither troops from Ireland, with the object of making this country +appear so unprotected as to require foreign mercenaries. + +[309] Orford, ii. 67-76. + +[310] Parl. Hist. xv. 544-616. + +[311] Bedford Corr. ii. 179. + +[312] Bedford Corr. ii. 180. + +[313] Orford, ii. 86-97. + +[314] Orford, ii. 98-101. + +[315] Orford, ii. 107. + +[316] Holland House MSS. + +[317] Orford, ii. 135-9. + +[318] Orford says that Sackville moved for them on April 29. The +Parliamentary History says that Fox moved for them on March 29 (xv. +702). + +[319] Parl. Hist. xv. 702. + +[320] Orford, ii. 185-6. + +[321] Orford, ii. 188-90. + +[322] Orford, ii. 193-7. + +[323] The Consul at Genoa had warned Newcastle early in February that a +surprise attack on Minorca was meditated. Mr. Corbett, who states this, +(England in the Seven Years War, i. 97) excuses Newcastle for neglecting +the information, one does not see why. More attention was paid to an +intercepted despatch of the Swedish minister at Paris, dated February +25, 1756. + +[324] Walpole to Chute, June 8, 1756. + +[325] 'So also we find it recorded during the siege of Malta, that some +hesitation having displayed itself on the part of the slaves in exposing +themselves, during their pioneering labours, to a fire more than +ordinarily deadly, the Grand Master directed some to be hanged and +others to have their ears cut off, "pour encourager les autres" as the +chroniclers quaintly and simply record.' Porter's 'History of the +Knights of Malta,' ii. 272. + +[326] Fox to Ellis, July 12, 1756. Holland House MSS. + +[327] Chatham Corr. i. 158. + +[328] 'Montcalm and Wolfe,' i. 413. + +[329] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Sept. 2, 1756. Add. MSS. 35416. + +[330] Fox to Kildare. This, an undated narrative among the Holland House +MSS., seems to me the best statement from Fox's point of view. From Lord +Kildare's reply it is evident that it was written and despatched towards +the end of Nov. 1756. + +[331] Narrative to Kildare. + +[332] Fox to Stone, October 7, 1756. Holland House MSS. + +[333] Ib. + +[334] Fox to Ellis. H.H. MSS., Oct. 12, 1756. + +[335] Newcastle to Fox, Oct. 12, 1756. H.H. MSS. + +[336] Newcastle to Lady Yarmouth, Oct. 13. Add. MSS. 32868. + +[337] Fox to Digby, Oct. 1756. Wingfield MSS. in Hist. MSS. + +[338] Orford, ii. 253. + +[339] Narrative to Kildare. + +[340] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Oct. 15, 1756. Harris, iii. 73. + +[341] Hardwicke to Newcastle, Oct. 19, 1756. Add. MSS. 32868. + +[342] Harris, iii. 77. + +[343] Grenville Papers, i. 178. + +[344] Sir C.H. Williams, iii. 41. + +[345] Shelburne, i. 83. + +[346] Add. MSS. 35416; cf. Orford, ii. 257. + +[347] Orford, ii. 259. + +[348] Leadam, 445 note. Orford, ii. 259. + +[349] Shelburne, i. 83 note. + +[350] Add. MSS. 35870 'Powis Ho., October 24, 1756. Sunday night.' + +[351] This poor Hanoverian victim, as completely as Andersen's Tin +Soldier, has melted into nothingness. But he once caused a mighty stir. +He bought four handkerchiefs, and by mistake, as was universally +conceded, took the whole piece, which contained six. Yet he was put in +prison on a charge of theft. His commanding officer demanded his +enlargement. Failing in this attempt, he obtained a warrant from +Holdernesse for his release. The whole country was aflame in an instant +with the old hostility to German mercenaries, Holdernesse was severely +threatened, and the innocent soldier cruelly flogged. See Orford, ii. +248-9. + +[352] Strangely enough there is a different answer appended to this +report. + +'That H.M. had been desirous, in this time of difficulty, to have the +assistance of Mr. Pitt in his service, and for that purpose to consider +him and those connected with him in a proper manner. That H.M. continues +in the same disposition, tho' what has been suggested by Mr. Pitt will +not in the King's opinion form a system for carrying on H.M.'s service.' + +This may have been the first draft, and it may have been found, as +usual, that the less said the better. + +[353] Partly given in Harris, iii. 80. + +[354] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Oct. 13, 5 o'clock, 1756. Add. MSS. 32868, +f. 251. + +[355] Ib. + +[356] Digby to Lord Digby, Oct. 28, 1756. Wingfield MSS. in Hist. MSS. + +[357] West to Newcastle, Newcastle MSS. + +[358] Orford, ii. 262. + +[359] Fox to Ellis. July 15, 1755. Holland House MSS. + +[360] Narrative to Kildare. + +[361] October 20, 1756. Holland House MSS. + +[362] Holland House MSS. + +[363] Bubb, 389. + +[364] Orford, ii. 263. + +[365] Narrative to Kildare. + +[366] Bedford Corresp. ii. 210. + +[367] Orford, ii. 266. + +[368] See the summonses in the Holland House MSS. For example, that to +the Duke of Marlborough. 'Nov. 2, 1756. My dear Lord, H.M. desires Your +Grace would without fail be in town to-morrow evening. You shall find at +Marlbro' House a summons to the place of meeting, and I leave to Mr. +Hamilton to acquaint Your Grace more fully than I have time to do with +the intention of it. Adieu. The D. of Bedford is kept in town and all +great Lords within reach are sent to.' + +[369] Narrative to Kildare. + +[370] Narrative to Kildare. + +[371] Holdernesse to Newcastle, Nov. 2, 1756. Add. MSS. 32868. + +[372] Bubb, 390. + +[373] Fox to Marlborough, 1756. Holland House MSS. + +[374] Bedford Corresp. ii. 208. + +[375] Orford, ii. 269. + +[376] Bedford Corresp. ii. 210. + +[377] The salary and allowances of Secretary of State were 2680_l._, as +appears from a paper of Fox's. But there was also 3000_l._ for Secret +Service which Fox appears to reckon as salary. H.H. MSS. + +[378] Orford, ii. 268. + +[379] Holland House MSS. H. Walpole to Fox, Oct. 27, 1756. + +[380] Fox to Bedford, Nov. 23, 1756. + +[381] H.H. MSS. + +[382] Narrative to Kildare. + +[383] Bedford Corr. ii. 170, 220. Bedford to Fox, Nov. 17, 1755 (H.H. +MSS.). + +[384] Holland House MSS. + +[385] Add. MSS. 32869. + +[386] Chatham Corr. i. 190-4. + +[387] Newcastle to Hardwicke, Sept. 2, 1756. Add. MSS. 35416. + +[388] Fox to Digby. Wingfield MSS. in Hist. MSS. + +[389] 'As your Lordship is of opinion that I cannot (which is firmly my +own) rechuse Mr. Pitt,' &c. Newcastle to Hardwicke, Nov. 3, 1756. + +[390] 'Do you know that Sir George now Lord Lyttelton, who had engaged +with the Duke of Bedford for one and one at Okehampton, named Pitt to +His Grace as the man to be chosen in his room?' Fox to ----, Dec. 14, +1756 (H.H. MSS.). + +[391] Camelford. + +[392] Supra, p. 75. + +[393] Works, i. 135. + +[394] Life of Grattan, i. 234. + +[395] Cradock's Literary Memoirs, i. 100-1. + +[396] Foote's Table Talk, p. 103. + +[397] Seward's Anecdotes, ii. 357. + + + Transcriber's Notes: + Many sentences in letters start with lower case. + Inconsistent and dubious spellings have been retained. + Many french accents missing. + Superscripts formatted with carets eg: Septembr ye 29th + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Lord Chatham, by +Archibald Phillip Primrose Rosebery + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LORD CHATHAM *** + +***** This file should be named 38452.txt or 38452.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/3/8/4/5/38452/ + +Produced by Delphine Lettau, Rory OConor and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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