/ET. 36.] THE OPPOSITION. 91 



from time to time \ The Catholic question, of course ; 

 but there are many others, some connected with Ire- 

 land, others general. Why should they not bring on 

 the question of tithes generally? I had got every- 

 thing ready for this (even to the length of a bill car- 

 ried through Parliament as an experiment, and which 

 had completely answered) when I was flung out ; but 

 the thing is as plain sailing as a common road-bill, 

 and would, I venture to assert, succeed the first ses- 

 sion it was tried. 



" I believe no one thing the party could do would 

 more recommend it (or more justly) to the country. 

 The question of impressment is another, though cer- 

 tainly of a much more delicate and difficult nature ; 

 but I had made considerable progress in it, chiefly 

 upon Windham's principle, and saw my way better 

 than could have been supposed. The greatest practi- 

 cal evil, or nearly so, at present existing -the expenses 

 of law proceedings is a third ; and to trouble you 

 with only one more, to which I had not applied myself, 

 but which, I am sure, much may be made of the poor- 

 laws. But I mention these merely as specimens, and 

 I am quite clear that, with the force now at your dis- 

 posal in both Houses, such a campaign might be ar- 

 ranged and carried on as would both steer clear of all 

 differences and grounds of splitting, and would de- 

 servedly gain incalculable weight for the party with 

 the country, while it would allow the awkward interval 

 to pass by between this victory and peace to pass 

 with credit to the party, instead of showing them up 

 day after day as discomfited and scattered, or at best 

 doing nothing but waiting for a blot to hit. Observe, 

 I don't mean that they should not hit a thousand blots 



