Pall Mall, Feb. 8th, 1783, Nine, P.M.
My dear Brother,
I wrote to you this morning an account, which you will receive
at the same time with this letter, of a conversation with Lord
Bellamont. I little thought, at that time, that I should now
have one of so different a nature to detail to you, which I had,
just before dinner, with Percy. He said, that although he might
be thought officious in coming to speak to me upon a subject,
upon which it had not been thought proper to make him any
communication, yet he could not help saying that he thought it
inconsistent with his duty to you, &c., &c., not to state to me
that he had last night procured from the House of Commons a copy
of the Bill proposed; and that he was fully convinced that, so
far from answering the purpose intended by it, the country would
be thrown by it into a much greater flame than ever. I asked him
to state his objections; he said they would be best seen by the
form which he had drawn up, and would leave with me for my
consideration.
I did not detail to him the many objections which occur to me
upon his Bill, and particularly that most insuperable difficulty
of its asserting what the right now is, in contradiction to the
declared opinion of almost every lawyer in this country. But I
said, in general terms, that the Bill in question had been drawn
up with great consideration; and that it was a matter of
infinite delicacy, on account of the great variety of prejudices
to be encountered on both sides of the water. He asked if this
was the form which had been sent to you, and if you had
consulted people there upon it. To this I could not but answer
that I understood you had, though you do not say a word to me
upon that subject, and it is a question which will most
certainly be asked in the House of Commons.
This unexpected difficulty has made me determine to postpone the
second reading of the Bill till I have an answer to this letter,
unless I should in the meantime receive one from you perfectly
approving, and stating the opinions of people in Ireland as
agreeing with yours upon it.
It is certainly to be observed, that the whole of this
difficulty has arisen from want of communication from Ministry
to you. Because, if you had known that they were determined to
admit no recognition of the existing right, it would have been
well worth considering whether anything short of that would not
be worse than as it was before. Instead of that, they receive
your resolutions and your Bill, and then pledge themselves, and
suffer me to pledge both them and you to _a Bill_; after which,
they first say that they will allow of nothing which admits the
_original_ right, and when beat from that ground, that they will
not have anything asserting the _present_ right. It then only
remained, as we were pledged to _a Bill_, to consider whether
this was not the best form of a Bill to be drawn on such
principles.
Whatever your answer has been to Townshend's despatch, I hope at
least that it has been coolly and temperately expressed, as he
told me he meant to represent to you that an advantage had been
taken against you from the warmth of your late despatches.
Another advantage which will arise from deferring the second
reading will be, that by that time this strange, unsettled
situation of things must have taken some form; and I do not
believe that this form will be such as you will choose to act
under in Ireland. In that case, it certainly will not be worth
our while to engage our characters to a measure which the folly
of your successor may render pernicious; which must at all
events be precarious; and which England will most certainly
repent whenever the hour of her insolence shall return. We took
the business out of the hands of Lord Beauchamp, because it
ought to be conducted by Government; and that will be the best
reason for resigning it into other hands whenever we shall cease
to stand in that character; which _whenever_ must, I think,
arrive in the course of a very few days.
Jemmy is to dine at Lord Shelburne's on Monday, when he will
probably be able to tell you more. I go to Townshend to-morrow,
and mean to try what I can get from him.
At least we have the satisfaction to reflect, that if your reign
has been short, it has not been dishonourable to you; and that
having taken the Government at a most difficult and inauspicious
moment, you will quit it with more real and more deserved
popularity than the Duke of Portland, notwithstanding the
uncommon advantages which threw themselves in his way.
Of myself I say nothing, except that wherever and whatever I am,
I shall always consider myself as deriving honour, consequence
and happiness from your character and success.
In these sentiments believe me,
My dearest brother,
Ever most affectionately yours,
W. W. G.
I am able to tell you nothing with any certainty as to the state
of parties; but I think that neither Lord Shelburne nor Fox are
strong enough to keep the Government without a coalition with
Lord North's people, and that the latter are too strong to sell
themselves unless they be admitted to form part of the
_Government_. Fox's people no longer deny his negotiating with
Lord North.