STATE PAPERS. 



373 



I liad resigned the commission, 

 with which his ro}-al highness had 

 charged me. 



Believe me, &c. Wellesley. 



No. 22. 

 Lord Grev's RepI)' to Lord Moira's 



Letter '(No. 20) of the 3rd of 



June. 



Portman-square, 

 4th June, 1812. 



My dear Lord, — Being obliged to 

 go immediately from the house of 

 lords to a dinner party, and after- 

 wards to a meeting at Lord Gren- 

 ville's which occupied me till a 

 late hour, it was not in my power 

 to answer your letter last night. 



You must be too well aware of 

 my personal feelings towards you, 

 of my esteem for your character, 

 and of my confidence in your ho- 

 nour, to entertain any opinion re- 

 specting your conduct inconsistent 

 with those sentiments. Nothing, 

 therefore, could be more remote 

 from my intention — and I am de- 

 sired by Lord Grenville, to whom I 

 have shewn your letter, to give you 

 thesameassuranceonhispart — than 

 to cast any imputation whatever on 

 you, as to the part you have borne 

 in the proceedings which have 

 latel}' taken place for the formation 

 of a new administration. We know 

 with how sincere an anxiety for 

 the honour of the prince, and for 

 the public interest, you have la- 

 boured to eftect that object. 



Whatsoever objections we may 

 feel, therefore, to the proposal 

 which has been made to us, we 

 beg they may be understood as 

 having no reference whatever to 

 any part of your conduct. That 

 proposal was made to us in a 

 formal and authorised communi- 

 cation from Lord Wellesley, both 



personally to me, and afterwards 

 in a written minute. It appeared 

 to ui to be founded on a principle 

 to which we could not assent, con- 

 sistently with our honour, and 

 with a due sense of public duty. 

 The grounds of this opinion have 

 been distinctly stated in our joint 

 letter to Lord Wellesley : nor can 

 they be altered by a private ex- 

 planation : which, though it might 

 lessen some obvious objections to 

 a part of the detail, still leaves the 

 general character of the proceed- 

 ing unchanged. Nothing could be 

 more painful to me than to enter 

 into any thing like a controversial 

 discussion with you ; in which I 

 could only repeat more at large 

 the same feelings and opinions 

 which, in concurrence with Lord 

 Grenville, I have already expressed 

 in our formal answer. I beg only 

 to assure you, before 1 conclude, 

 that ] have felt very sensibly, and 

 shall always have a pleasure iu 

 acknowledging, your personal kind- 

 ness to me in the course of this 

 transaction. I am, with every 

 sentiment of true respect and at- 

 tention, my dear lord, your's most 

 faithfully. Grey. 



No. 23. 

 Lord Wellesley's Reply to the 

 Letter (No, 19.) from Lords 

 Grey and Grenville, of the 3rd 

 of June. 



Apsley-house, 

 June '3rd, 1812, 

 My Lords, — I received the let- 

 ter, by which I was honoured from 

 your lordships this morning, with 

 the most sincere regret ; and I 

 have discharged the painful duty 

 of submitting it to his royal high- 

 ness the Prince Regent. It would 

 have afforded me some consolation, 



if 



