BIOGRAPHIES IN A NUTSHELL 129 



in the hunting field. He was too much respected for 

 autocracy to be necessary. 



To those of my readers who take any deHght in 

 comparing fox-hunting and agricultural history with 

 political history, the career of Lord Althorp must be 

 one of absorbing interest. As early as 1806 he was 

 appointed a Lord of the Treasury out of compliment 

 to his father, but he only retained the office for 

 thirteen months, and rarely attended the House of 

 Commons. Yet in 1830 he was appointed against 

 his will Leader of the Opposition, and in the same 

 year became Chancellor of the Exchequer under 

 Lord Grey. In November, 1838, he was offered the 

 choice of the Lord Lieutenacy of Ireland or the 

 Governorship of Canada. But, as is well known, 

 he had firmly resolved to retire from political life 

 on the death of his father. A fragment of auto- 

 biography found amongst his papers, and published 

 in the Prefa.ce to Sir Denis Le Marchant's biography, 

 speaks more conclusively than I can write. These 

 are Lord Althorp's words : " I retire from political 

 life from my own inclination only. But it is satis- 

 factory to me firmly to believe, and to be convinced 

 that by so doing I give myself greater facilities to 

 become a religious man." Lord Lyttleton wrote in 

 regard to Lord Althorp's retirement from political 

 life that " he told my father it was the cessation of 

 acute pain to him." 



But though the private lives of the majority of 

 Masters of Hounds at the beginning of the century 



K 



