Whitehall, Feb. 21st, 1789.
MY DEAR BROTHER,
I have little to add to Lord Sydney's letter. Your refusal to
transmit the Address is generally approved here; and I have the
pleasure of seeing daily proofs that the Opposition in this country
are ashamed of what they and their friends have done in Ireland.
Your answer, I think, much improved by the transposition,
especially as it avoids the necessity of your submitting any advice
to His Royal Highness, which might have been said to be an
officious interference, as you are not in any situation which calls
upon you to advise _him_.
You will hear with as much pleasure as I write it, that the King
was not at all agitated by his interview with the Chancellor, and
was perfectly composed and collected all yesterday evening. The
accounts this morning are as good as can be.
Their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales and Duke of York have
been once or twice at Kew, to desire to be admitted _to_ see him,
which you will naturally suppose was not permitted. This morning
they thought proper to make a formal demand that they should be
allowed to see him; or if not, insisting that the physicians should
give in writing the reasons for their refusal. In consequence of
this, Warren and Gisborne, who were there this morning, sent Willis
in to the King, to acquaint him that the two Princes wished to see
him. Willis returned with a message to them from the King, thanking
them for their inquiries, but wishing to put off the seeing them
till he had seen Thurlow again, which he is to do to-morrow. This
was reduced to writing, and sent to them; how it will be received I
know not, but it has completely defeated the avowed object of the
visit, which was to prejudice his mind against the measures which
have been taken.
There seems now every reason to hope that by the 6th or 7th of
March he will be sufficiently recovered, or rather will have been
recovered a sufficient time to make it proper to take his commands
for opening the Parliament. If not, you will see by the despatch
the nature of the measures which we have in contemplation; and I
can have no doubt of your agreeing, that no principle which we have
ever maintained would require or even justify us in putting the
Prince of Wales in such a situation as to enable him to overturn
the whole system of the King's Government, the King being all the
while perfectly well, conscious of what is going forward, and
restrained from acting himself only by the apprehension of a
relapse.
You will already have seen and considered what I have said to you
on the subject of remaining. You cannot form to yourself an idea
how universally it is the wish of all who wish for your own
personal credit, and of all who are interested for the credit of
the party, that you should remain in Ireland so long as to make it
appear that you have thoroughly weathered the storm. Your session
need be but very short indeed. The uncertain state of everything
since November last, is an ample apology for not being prepared
with other business, and for deferring it till another year. But
the leaving it in the middle, would convey the impression that all
this difficulty had been personal to yourself, and that you were
the only obstacle to the success of English Government in Ireland.
Directly the reverse of this proposition is, I am convinced, the
truth; but it is a truth which it is of the utmost importance to
yourself to establish in the general and public opinion in this
country. You have great advantages for this, from the general
disposition which is prevalent here to feel the strongest
indignation at the conduct which your opponents have held. I must
own it would be a severe mortification to me to see you forego this
opportunity.
You know the only motive which I can have for pressing this so
much, and how much violence I do to my own feelings when I urge
anything which may delay my seeing you again.
Ever most affectionately yours,
W. W. G.
Lord Bulkeley, in a letter dated the 24th, describes one of these
interviews of the Princes with His Majesty. The general impressions
which prevailed respecting the conduct and dispositions of their Royal
Highnesses in this crisis, may be gathered from these unreserved
revelations.
The accounts from Kew this morning are as good as possible (but I
have not got the precise words); notwithstanding, the Princes were
with him half an hour yesterday, which is a proof that his
miraculous recovery is not to be shaken. Lord Winchelsea, who was
at Kew the whole time, told me that the Prince and Duke of York,
though appointed at one, did not arrive till half-past three; and
that when they came out, they told Colonel Digby that they were
delighted with the King's being so well, and remarked that two
things in the half-hour's conference which they had with him had
struck them very forcibly: that he had observed to them how much
better he played at picquet than Mr. Charles Hawkins, and that
since he had been ill he had rubbed up all his Latin; and these
facts, which are facts, I expect to hear magnified by the Carlton
House runners into instances of insanity.
The Princes entered the King's apartment without any emotion, and
came out of it with none visible in their countenances. The Queen
only was present, and the conference lasted half an hour. I have
not heard as yet; but conclude they were both rioting, ----, and
drunk last night at the masquerade, as they were at one a week ago;
the truth is, that they are quite desperate, and endeavour to
drown their cares, disappointments, and internal chagrin in wine
and dissipation.
The Duke of York plays much at tennis, and has a score with all the
blacklegs; and in the public court tells them they shall all be
paid as soon as his father can settle with him some Osnaburg money
which he owes him.
* * * * *
The Princes give out, that as soon as they have an opportunity of
explaining their conduct to the King, they are sure he will approve
of it as much as he will reprobate that of Mr. Pitt's.
"It is now almost certain," says Mr. Grenville on the 23rd, "that we
shall not pass the Regency Bill, and consequently that the Government
will not be changed." In the same letter he refers to a suggestion of
Lord Buckingham's, that the answer declining to transmit the Irish
Address should be laid before His Royal Highness.
On conversing with Pitt, we were both clearly of opinion, that no
communication ought to be made to H.R.H. of what has passed in
Ireland, as we have uniformly considered him as not entitled, under
the present circumstances, to any communication of any part of the
business of Government. Nothing has accordingly been ever laid
before him, except the measures which Pitt intended to _bring
forward_ respecting him personally; but that principle certainly
does not extend to such a communication as had been proposed in
your separate letter, which I have for that reason not sent to Lord
Sydney.
In so absurd a light, indeed, did the whole proceedings of the Irish
Parliament appear to Ministers, that Mr. Grenville thought it highly
improbable that the Irish Ambassadors, as they were called, would
venture to present the Address in the improved state of the King's
health, or that His Royal Highness would be advised to accept it. They
_did_ present it notwithstanding, and their reception is thus reported
by Mr. Grenville:
Your Ambassadors are arrived; and presented their Address yesterday
evening to the Prince. The answer which, as I understand, he gave
them, was, that he was highly gratified with the expressions of
_loyalty to the King_, which the Address contained; but that with
respect to the rest he could not give them an answer before
Tuesday, on which day he desired to see them again. I take it for
granted, he will then say, that the King being recovered, all
consideration of a Regency is out of the question.
People in general here do not seem disposed to consider this
transaction in any other than a ludicrous manner, and as the most
absurd and ridiculous farce. It is impossible to describe how much
and how universally their Excellencies are laughed at. One of them
came into an assembly last night, and was received with a general
roar of laughter. I did not think they would have been so foolish
as to present it. The Prince and his friends must have been a good
deal embarrassed what answer to give them; and I do not think they
have succeeded remarkably well, if the account of the answer, such
as I have stated it, is true.
It was on the day after the Princes' interview that Mr. Pitt had his
first audience of the King since his illness; no Minister, except the
Chancellor, having hitherto been admitted to see His Majesty, on account
of the jealousies with which every step they took throughout this
painful interval was watched and turned to account.