Whitehall, Dec. 28th, 1788.
MY DEAR BROTHER,
The messenger carries with him, as usual, the account received
to-day from Kew. I do not know that I have anything material to
write in addition to my former letters. I stated to you on Friday,
at length, the strong objections which both Pitt and myself feel
against your idea of proroguing the Parliament. If any accident
should detain that letter till after you receive this, I hope you
will take no step of that sort till you have received that letter,
and seriously considered the nature of our objections, which seem
to me to be of the utmost importance.
The belief that the Prince of Wales will certainly accept seems to
gain ground. It is most probable that we shall be enabled to speak
with more certainty on this subject in the course of to-morrow, as
a letter is to be written to him to-day by the Ministers, stating
the outlines of their plan. It will not materially differ from what
I originally stated to you. Peerages, grants for life (with the
necessary exceptions), and reversions, are to be restricted for a
certain time, which will be about a year and a half. This time is
fixed in consequence of what you will observe in the evidence both
of Willis and Addington, who both state the recovery as infinitely,
and beyond all calculation, less probable if it does not take place
within that time. Some line is to be drawn with respect to the
King's household, but what that shall be is the subject of this
morning's deliberation. It is a point of delicacy and difficulty.
The entire custody, management, and government of the King's
person; the appointment, &c., of his physicians, and the regulation
of his actual family, &c., is to be vested in the Queen, with the
advice of a Council, to be named and removable by her. The idea of
a Council of Regency to assist the Prince, but to be removable by
him, seems to be given up.
Our division in the House of Lords, though sufficiently decisive,
was less than it would have been, owing to a variety of accidental
circumstances. There is every reason to believe that we shall
divide stronger on Monday. I have no apprehension whatever as to
the carrying our restrictions in the House of Commons. Accidental
circumstances may vary our majority from 50 to 80; but there can be
no doubt of success. There seems very little reason to believe that
they will venture to dissolve Parliament till March or April, if
they do it then, which I doubt.
There certainly never was in this country, at any period, such a
situation as Mr. Pitt's. It is no small addition to the
satisfaction which we derive from all these events, to observe that
every man of all parties seems to feel how well the game has been
played on our side, and how ridiculously it has been mismanaged by
our opponents. Add to this, that they are all quarrelling amongst
themselves, and that we were never so united as at this moment.
With all these reflections you will own that _the prospect before
us_ is not an unpleasing one. The opinion of Willis continues as
sanguine as ever.
Believe me, my dear brother,
Most sincerely and affectionately yours,
W. W. G.
Lord Bulkeley announces, with exultation, the division in the Commons,
and returns to his enumeration of _rats_.