detested as he was by the Duke of Bedford and Grenville, they nevertheless made no scruple of endeavouring to unite with him in an unnatural coalition against the present Government. Accordingly, through the medium of Lord Eglinton, it was arranged, that a meeting should take place at the house of that nobleman, to be composed of Bedford, Temple, Grenville, and Bute, the three former being evidently impressed with the conviction that the King was alike cognisant of their intentions, and fully approved of their proceedings. When, however, the appointed day arrived, Feb. 12. Temple was unaccountably absent. It has been suggested, not without good reason, that the reports of the spies whom he was in the habit of employing to watch the movements of Bute,* had convinced him how entirely that nobleman had become estranged from his Sovereign. But, whatever may have been the occasion of his absence, he was at all events spared the ridicule and humiliation which awaited his brother George and the Duke of Bedford. "The Favourite," writes Walpole, "had the triumph of beholding the Duke of Bedford and George Grenville prostrate before him; suing for pardon, reconciliation, and support. After enjoying this spectacle of their humiliation for some minutes, the lofty Earl, scarce deigning to bestow upon them half a score of monosyllables, stiffly refused to enter into connexion with them."† For the disappointment thus encountered by Bedford and Grenville, Bute was in no respect to blame. The meeting, as he plainly told them, had not been of his seeking, and if Lord Eglinton had led them to believe so, it must have been either "ignorantly" or from good intentions on the part of that nobleman. As regarded his Majesty, he knew * See Grenville Papers, vol. iii. p. 366, and note; and Almon's Anecdotes of Chatham, vol. ii. p. 20, 7th Edition. + Walpole's Reign of George 3, vol. ii. p. 294. nothing of his opinions. In fact he never saw him.* At parting, the Duke of Bedford condescended to express a hope that their meeting would be kept a secret. "There is nothing of which I am ashamed," was the cold reply of Bute; and thus terminated this unsatisfactory conference. Disappointed at the result of their appeal to Bute, the next endeavour of the Triumvirate was to find the means of prevailing upon the King to grant a personal interview either to Bedford or Temple, for the purpose, to use Grenville's words, of "representing to him the distressed situation of his affairs." Considering the high rank of these two lords, one would have imagined that they would have encountered but little difficulty in gaining their object. But such was not the case. It affords, indeed, the strongest presumptive evidence of the King's good faith and loyalty towards the Rockingham Administration, that, among the many persons who were allowed daily access to him, not one could be found bold enough to broach the proposition to their royal master. There was no one who knew his character better than the Princess Dowager, yet she not only shrank from speaking to him herself, but when it was proposed that the Duke of York should be the go-between on the occasion, we find her in a state of alarm lest her favourite son, by taking such a step, should incur his brother's serious displeasure. In so dangerous a crisis, Lord Temple said it was his duty to hasten to the rescue of his royal Master. If his Majesty should send for him he *Grenville Papers, vol. iii. p. 363. Grenville, it seems, had heard from some quarter or another that on the preceding Saturday, the 8th, Bute had been for four hours with the King. (Ibid., p. 361.) Surely, however, if this were the truth, Bute would never have ventured to utter the deliberate, false, and uncalled-for statement which Grenville has placed in his mouth. According to the Duke of Bedford, Bute's words were, that he could "give no positive answer, not having seen the King for many months past" (Bedford Corresp., vol. iii. p. 329); and, with all his faults, Bute was at least a man of veracity. ↑ Walpole, vol. ii. p. 295.—See also the Bedford Corresp., vol. iii. pp. 328, 329. Grenville Papers, vol. iii. p. 368. would obey the summons; or if the King felt any delicacy in taking that step he would "save him the blush" by demanding an audience. The Queen was requested to communicate Lord Temple's proposition to the King, but very properly, and very decidedly, declined the mission. Lord Denbigh, a Lord of the Bedchamber, at last volunteered his services, but had scarcely given his consent before. his heart failed him. The King, he told Lord Temple, disliked to be talked to upon such subjects, and as he was the person who would certainly be made the victim, he earnestly requested that the only letter which he had written on the subject might be destroyed. * At length, at the request of the Duke of Bedford, the Duke of York undertook to lay the views of the Grenville party before his royal brother, and at the same time to demand an audience for the Duke. But the season for such a negotiation had gone by. The measure, said the King, was under the consideration of Parliament, and must abide its decision. With regard to admitting the Duke of Bedford to a private audience, it had ever been a rule with him, added the King, to grant an interview to any nobleman who made the request to him. At the present moment, however, as he told the Duke of York, were he to admit the Duke of Bedford into his closet it would in all probability be construed into treating with his Grace.† The Duke of York again discussed the subject with his brother on the following morning, but to no better purpose; and thus fell to the ground, the united efforts of the Grenville and Bedford sections of the Whig party to expel the Rockingham Administration from power. The Bill for the repeal of the Stamp Act was triumphantly carried in the House of Commons by a large majority. * Grenville Papers, vol. iii. pp. 360, 368, 369, 372. + Ibid., vol. iii. pp. 370, 371. "It was clear," said Grenville, " that both England and America were now governed by the mob."* The bill, though it met with a violent opposition from the Lords, was finally carried in that House by a majority of 34, and on the 18th of March received the royal assent; an event which in the words of Burke, caused more universal joy throughout the British dominions, than perhaps any other that could be remembered. CHAPTER XVIII. The King's health suffers from mental excitement - Popularity hunting of the Rockingham Administration—Ministers disinterested in their conduct of publie affairs Further unsuccessful attempts to induce Pitt to enter the CabinetThe King, by the advice of Lord Chancellor Northington, reopens negotiations with Pitt-Idle attempt of Princess Amelia to bring the King and Lord Bute together-Consequences of the popular opinion that Lord Bute continued to influence the King's mind. In the mean time, the King's health had again given way under the mental excitement occasioned by the continued embarrassment of his affairs. On the morning of the 1st of February he was observed to be flushed and heated. In the course of the day it was thought necessary to bleed him. His agitation on the following morning was excessive; it was evident to all who approached him that his mind was very ill at ease; in the afternoon it was announced that he was too unwell to be present at the Drawing Room. "I am willing," he said to his physicians, "to do anything for my people, if they would but agree among themselves."* Happily on the 4th he was considerably better. The frequent charge which has been brought against the members of the Rockingham Administration of having paid an undue deference to public opinion was assuredly not undeserved. In fact, the King on one occasion very plainly told them that he feared their yearning after popularity would be the ruin of themselves, if not of their country. It was the error of young and inexperienced Grenville Papers, vol. iii. p. 357. + Ibid., p. 370. Walpole's Reign of George 3, vol. ii. p. 207. |