Memoirs of the Court and Cabinets of George the Third Volume II Part 1

Memoirs of the Court and Cabinets of George the Third.

Volume 2.

by The Duke of Buckingham and Chandos.

1788.

(CONTINUED.)

THE KING'S ILLNESS--CONDUCT OF THURLOW--PLANS OF MINISTERS--DISCUSSIONS IN PARLIAMENT--IRISH VIEW OF THE REGENCY QUESTION--PROCEEDINGS OF THE PRINCE'S PARTY--THE RATS IN BOTH HOUSES.

The fluctuations of the daily accounts from Windsor, and afterwards from Kew, to which place the King was ultimately removed at the instance of the Prince of Wales, and the effect they produced upon the public and the Opposition, greatly increased the difficulties of the Government in this unprecedented emergency. So long as there was the faintest hope of His Majesty's recovery, Mr. Pitt was enabled to avert extremities between the Administration and the Prince of Wales, by repeated adjournments of Parliament. The interest, therefore, which attached to the slightest items of intelligence contained in these letters may be easily understood. All other subjects were of inferior consideration.

Even the serious inconvenience occasioned to the public service by the suspension of business in Parliament was forgotten in the one absorbing topic.

The uncertainty that hung over the issue, the responsibility that attended the treatment of the case, and the extreme caution observed by the physicians in the opinions they were called upon to p.r.o.nounce, kept all cla.s.ses of the people in a state of constant agitation. The Prince and his supporters availed themselves of these circ.u.mstances to strengthen their party in Parliament and out of doors. The pa.s.sions of the inexperienced, and the hopes of the discontented, are always on the side of youth and excitement; and every vicissitude in the condition of the King that diminished the prospect of his recovery, augmented the ranks of the Opposition, which now became familiarly known as "the Prince of Wales's Opposition." Mr. Pitt acted throughout with the utmost reserve. Deeply impressed by the complicated hazards of the situation, he carefully avoided all allusions to his ulterior intentions in his intercourse with the Prince of Wales, which was strictly formal and official, and confined to such communications as were unavoidable in his position.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

Whitehall, Nov. 15th, 1788.

MY DEAR BROTHER,

I enclose you the note, which I received from Pitt last night on his return from Windsor. I have seen him this morning; and understand that Warren said one thing which is still more favourable. He told him that a more rapid amendment would, in his opinion, have been a less pleasing symptom; and I find, from Pitt, that on conversing both with Sir G. Baker and Reynolds, he found them rather more sanguine, upon the whole, than Warren, but agreeing with him in his general account. What I have learnt this morning seems to confirm the pleasing hope which I cannot help indulging, from all these circ.u.mstances, though, G.o.d knows, it is still exposed to much doubt and hazard. The public account, which has been uniformly less flattering than the private letters from Windsor, states that he has had six hours' sleep, and that he is a little better this morning. All the other accounts say that he is certainly getting better.

Pitt saw the Prince of Wales yesterday, for the purpose of notifying to him the step which the Council had taken, of ordering prayers, and of acquainting him that he had written circular letters to _all_ the Members of the House of Commons, stating the probability of Parliament having to meet on Thursday; and that he meant then to propose to adjourn.

Prince of Wales received the communication with civility, and told him he was persuaded no opposition could be made to this. It is, I think, plain, from Pitt's account of his general behaviour, and from what one hears, that my conjecture is right, and that he will dismiss Pitt without hesitation.

Ever most affectionately yours, W. W. G.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

Whitehall, Nov. 17th, 1788.

MY DEAR BROTHER,

The accounts for the last two days have been, I think, rather less favourable than that of Sat.u.r.day, which I sent you. You can, however, hardly conceive the difficulty which we have, even at this small distance, to procure such information as can be in any degree depended on. All the private accounts are so strongly tinctured by the wishes of those who send them, that no reliance can be placed upon them; and the private letters of the physicians are frequently inconsistent with each other, and even with the public account which they send to St. James's. In general, that account has been uniformly found to be the least favourable; and seems as if it was drawn for the purpose of discouraging the hopes which their own letters and conversation excite. The letters which they read to Pitt, though frequently varying in their general tenor from the public account, are not at all more detailed than that is, and take no sort of notice of the most material circ.u.mstances. I imagine all this is to be imputed to a difference of opinion which is supposed to prevail amongst them, it being believed that Warren is strongly inclined to think the disorder permanent, and that Reynolds is sanguine in the contrary opinion. Pitt is gone down again to Windsor to-day; but will hardly be back again time enough for me to insert his account in this letter. The public account of to-day says, I understand, that the King has had much quiet and composed sleep, but is nearly the same as before. The sleep, I am told, is generally considered as a favourable symptom.

Under these circ.u.mstances, there can, I think, be no doubt that the two Houses will adjourn on Thursday, without opposition.

Everything remains as before. I think you clearly have done right in stopping Corry, it being so much our interest to prevent, and not to promote, negotiation. I think, on more reflexion, that the idea of refusing the power of dissolving is impracticable, and may be turned against us in the end; the other limitations will, I believe, be proposed; and that alone will be sufficient to put all negotiation out of the question.

Fox is expected in three or four days; but it seems impossible that he should be here so soon.

Ever most affectionately yours, W. W. G.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

Whitehall, Nov. 18th, 1788.

MY DEAR BROTHER,

I do not find from Pitt that he learnt anything very particular yesterday in addition to what you already know. The King continues much quieter, but still deranged in his intellects and conversation. The fever has not yet entirely left him. The physicians seem very unwilling to say anything with respect to his situation, and declare that it must still be eight or ten days before they can p.r.o.nounce at all decisively as to the nature of his disorder.

You seem, in your letter, to conceive the point of his recovery to be much more desperate than I understand it to be thought even after a derangement of months, or even years. There hardly pa.s.ses a day in which one does not hear of cases of that sort, and we are now told that a disorder of this sort has appeared in several instances in Devons.h.i.+re in the course of this autumn, where the patient has been in this way for six weeks together, and has then entirely recovered.

I have no other news.

Ever most affectionately yours, W. W. G.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

Whitehall, Nov. 20th, 1788.

MY DEAR BROTHER,

I went down yesterday to Windsor, as a matter of form, to inquire after the King's health. Having nothing very material to write to you in the morning, I thought it best to take the chance of being back early enough to write before the post went out. This, however, I found impossible, on account of the different people whom I met at Windsor, and with whom I was naturally anxious to converse.

The account, as far as relates to the King's actual situation for these two or three last days, is much less favourable than it has been. The disorder of his intellects has continued almost, if not entirely, without intermission for the whole of that time. He talks incessantly for many hours together, and without any appearance of sense or reason, sometimes knowing the persons who are about him, at other times mistaking them, or fancying himself employed in different occupations, such as taking notes on books, or giving different orders. He has appeared several times to have that sort of consciousness of his situation which lunatics are observed to possess, and to use the same sort of methods for concealing it. All this const.i.tutes the gloomy side of the picture; and Warren is so much impressed with this, that he told Pitt there was now every reason to believe that the disorder was no other than direct lunacy.

On the other hand, I understand that he, as well as the other physicians, are now agreed as to the cause of the disorder. You may remember that, at the beginning of this unhappy situation, I mentioned to you that an idea had been entertained of its proceeding from some local cause, such as water on the brain, or some change in the texture of the brain itself, by induration or ossification.

Warren has decidedly said, that he is satisfied this is entirely out of the question; this he told Pitt in express terms. The cause to which they all agree to ascribe it, is the force of a humour which was beginning to show itself in the legs, when the King's imprudence drove it from thence into the bowels; and the medicines which they were then obliged to use for the preservation of his life, have repelled it upon the brain. The consequence of this opinion is so plain, that there certainly requires no professional skill to know that his recovery must depend upon this single circ.u.mstance, whether there is, or is not strength enough in his const.i.tution to throw off this humour by any other channel. The physicians are now endeavouring, by warm baths, and by great warmth of covering, to bring it down again into the legs, which nature had originally pointed out as the best mode of discharge.

I was mentioning these circ.u.mstances yesterday to a person who lives in intimacy with John Hunter, the anatomist. He told me that they had been all stated to him three days ago, by Hunter, who had collected them from the different inquiries he had made. Hunter added, that we must still expect for some days, and perhaps even weeks, to hear of no decisive alteration, but possibly of some occasional variation from day to day; that at the end of this it would probably come to some sort of crisis, by which it would appear whether there was strength enough in the const.i.tution to prevail over the disease; that all he had heard of the manner of the King's life, did unquestionably make him an unfavourable subject for such a struggle, but that if it was the case of any common man, he should have no hesitation in p.r.o.nouncing even now that it would be very bad luck indeed if he did not recover, and that the chances were nine to one in his favour. You will easily suppose that this was said under the seal of confidence, and that a professional man would not choose to have his name quoted in a case of so much importance in which he is not employed, and in which his opinions may be either founded at present on false information, or may be defeated by the mode of treatment adopted by those who are called in. I have, therefore, mentioned this only to you, though possibly you may hear it from other channels. On such authority, one certainly may be allowed to indulge some degree of hope. I am, however, far from letting this expectation take possession of my mind, but, on the contrary, have prepared myself for the worst, and can with truth say that I have made up my mind to meet it with cheerfulness, and to accommodate myself as a reasonable man ought to do to my situation.

You will particularly see that this consideration had no effect on my judgment, and that I feel as you do. On the question of a coalition, no offers have as yet been made. The language of Opposition inclines one to think that their idea is _to that_, but the conduct of the Prince of Wales marks a desire of avoiding Pitt.

I believe he has had no communication with the Duke of Portland, or with any of them, except Sheridan and Lord Loughborough; the latter is supposed to be much in his confidence. Pitt has opened his plan of Regency to Thurlow and Lord Weymouth, and they both approved it; he is to lay it before the Prince of Wales in a few days, and will then make it public.

Whatever is done, I have no conception that it can be brought to a point so as to enable you to form any decisive judgment with respect to your situation so early as the beginning of next month. We are now at the 19th. Pitt means to-day to move an adjournment to this day sevennight, and a call of the House for this day fortnight. It is doubtful whether the business will even then be brought on, and the intervening adjournment is made with the view of enabling Pitt to put off the call to a more distant day if the King's situation should be thought to render that a proper step.

Bernard is now out of town, but I understood from him that your house in Pall Mall was let to the Duke of Gordon for another year, to commence from Christmas.

I am just returned from the House, where Pitt moved the adjournment for the whole fortnight (in consequence of an opinion of the Chancellor's), and a call at the end of that term. Not a word was said by any other person, and he himself barely stated that the continuance of the King's illness had prevented the prorogation, and that the same circ.u.mstance made it desirable to have the public attendance when the House met again.

The public account of to-day is that he has pa.s.sed a less disturbed night, but that the fever continues.

Ever most affectionately yours, W. W. G.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

Whitehall, Nov. 20th, 1788.

MY DEAR BROTHER,

The accounts which Pitt received last night are more favourable than any which have yet been sent. They stated particularly, that during the whole course of yesterday the King was more composed, and with less incoherency in his conversation, than he has been at any period during the last fortnight. The opinion which I mentioned to you yesterday prevents my being very sanguine with respect to the _uniform_ continuance of these symptoms; but it is certainly no light confirmation of that opinion to observe this sort of fluctuation; and it is a pleasant circ.u.mstance to find that this abatement of his disorder has followed so immediately on the application of fomentations to the legs.

Since I wrote the above, the accounts of this morning have been received. I enclose the public note, which admits that there is some remission of the fever, by which word they describe the delirium. The letter sent to Pitt only states that the King is less well than he was during most part of yesterday. I do not learn that there is yet any appearance of swelling or eruption on the legs. On the whole, though the account of this morning is certainly less encouraging, I think the two taken together by no means diminish the hopes which I trust there is reason to entertain.