1827.] The New Miniatti/. 577 



his services merited, but still in very large and copious abundance. He 

 has not, certainly, been personally popular with the country ; but he will 

 remember that a character decidedly military is never well calculated to 

 be a favourite with the English people. They are better prepared always 

 to do justice to its claims than to be in love with it. But, in his case, that 

 justice lias been most freely accorded. No grants or remunerations, whether 

 in the way of pecuniary reward or rank, have been viewed with more 

 pleasure, or with a readier sense of their fitness, by the people of England, 

 than those which, from time to time, have been bestowed upon the Duke 

 of Wellington. 



But to return to our argument passing his grace the Duke of Wel- 

 lington and the late Lord Chancellor, there is no one left on the high Tory 

 side to do any thing with as a minister but Mr. Peel ; and Mr. Peel, 

 although he is a valuable man in the House of Commons, yet still he is 

 not say in experience alone at all Mr. Canning's equal ; and, moreover, 

 his views and opinions upon some subjects have a touch of the fault belonging 

 to those of Lord Eldon : they are of a school of policy that is (in our opinion) 

 upon the wane. Lord Liverpool, the late Lord Chancellor, the late Marquis 

 of Londonderry, the Duke of Wellington, and Lord Sidmouth these were 

 a party of politicians formed to make a ministry of themselves. The 

 Marquis of Londonderry's trust was in steel ; in every emergency he was 

 ready always to advise " strong measures ;" Lord Liverpool could reason 

 upon them plausibly and ingeniously; the Lord Chancellor, as a lawyer, 

 would justify them ; and the Duke of Wellington, at the head of the 

 troops, would carry them into execution ; and Lord Sidraouth could write 

 to the magistrates. No knot of men could have been better fitted than 

 these, to uphold (as long as it could be upheld) a system of policy which 

 the growing information of the age was every day more and more rapidly 

 going on to undermine. But their scheme went to pieces as soon as their 

 union was broken. The first blow it received was from the death of the 

 Marquis of Londonderry : there was no man of equal tact and similar prin- 

 ciple could be found to fill up his place. 



In fact, the very circumstances which, in our view, render the existing 

 ministry so unquestionably strong, go of themselves to make the formation 

 of any other almost impossible. The present administration between 

 those who compose it and those who act with it embraces almost all the 

 leading talent of the country; and, under such circumstances, it becomes 

 difficult to perceive how even passion and disappointment can lead any set 

 of men to question its stability. The " Opposition" is nothing; and hardly 

 can be any thing, because it cannot be united. The parties out are a few 

 very stern and scrupulous Whigs, and a body of ultra- Tories men who 

 may not be able to coalesce with the government, but who can still less 

 have any thought to agree with one another. Lord Grey says distinctly, 

 that the Whigs cannot oppose. He says, " I am not, by any means, at 

 all points satisfied with the ministry ; but that I should act with the 

 ' Opposition ' " (meaning the Tory party) " is impossible. I differ upon 

 some questions, and on some very important ones, of policy, from Mr. 

 Canning ; but, from Lord Eldon, f am, on every point, * far as the poles 

 asunder !' " In fact, the mere course of the'debates in the House since 

 Parliament has assembled, sufficiently shews what must be the event. The 

 strength of the seceding party was tried, and found to be a reed in the begin- 

 ning and it has been growing weaker and weaker every day. There were 



M.M. New Scries. VOL. III. No. 18. 4 E 



