348 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1812. 



Peninsula had been conducted on 

 an inadequate and imperfect scale, 

 which could not be expected to 

 accomplish the ultimate objects of 

 the war in that quarter : that I had 

 for a long time considered an ex- 

 tension of our system in the Penin- 

 sula to be indispensably necessary, 

 and easily practicable: that I was 

 aware of the impropriety (in my 

 present situation) of urging any 

 detailed questions to Lord Liver- 

 pool on this point ; but that I 

 mentioned it now, because it must 

 form a principal consideration in 

 my answer to the proposition which 

 he had brought to me. 



Lord Liverpool said, that he did 

 not agree in my opinion respecting 

 the scale of the efforts which we 

 had hitherto made in the Peninsula, 

 which he thought as great as it had 

 been possible to make ; that there 

 never had been any limit to our 

 exertions in that quarter, but what 

 arose out of the question of practi- 

 cability (that is, the means of in- 

 creasingandsupplyingour armies) ; 

 and that he had never heard any 

 specific plan by which those means 

 might have been carried further, 

 though the subject had been often 

 most anxiously considered in my 

 presence : that circumstances had 

 occurred since my resignation, 

 which did not then exist, and into 

 the particulars of which it would 

 not be proper for him to enter at 

 this time, which iright enable go- 

 vernment to extend, to a certain 

 degree, the military operations in 

 the Peninsula ; and the system of 

 himself and his colleagues would 

 be, as he contended they always 

 had been, to make the greatest 

 efforts in the cause of the Penin- 

 sula which the resources of the 

 country rendered possible. 



3dly, I inquired whether all the 

 general constituent parts of the 

 present cabinet were to remain ? 

 He informed me that they were in 

 general to remain. He believed it 

 was known to me, that some of the 

 members of the cabinet had been 

 long desirousof retiring, and would 

 be ready, therefore, now to afford 

 facilities to any new arrangement. 



In answer to a question put by 

 me respecting Lord Sidmouth and 

 his friends, he said they were to 

 remain.- 



4thly, I stated to Lord Liver- 

 pool, that I made no inquiry re- 

 specting the proposed distribution 

 and allocation of offices ; because 

 that circumstance would not con- 

 stitute the basis of my decision 

 upon the proposition which he had 

 brought to me. 



Lord Liverpool observed, that 

 the distribution of offices was a 

 matter open to future adjustment, 

 to be regulated for the honour of 

 all parties. 



5thly, When Lord Liverpool in- 

 fornsed me, that the leading in the 

 House of Commons was to be pre- 

 served to Lord Castlereagh, I re- 

 marked, that in any situation which 

 I might ever hold in any ad- 

 ministration, I should feel great 

 obligation to any member of the 

 government who v/ould undertake 

 that charge which was called the 

 leading in the House of Parliament 

 in which I sat ; although I was 

 fully aware of the great importance 

 which that charge necessarily con- 

 veyed to the person who exercised 

 it, and of the great influence which 

 it must give to him in the general 

 administration andpatronageofthe 

 government. 



6thly, I desired to know, whether 

 all those persons now designated by 



the 



