persons concerned in a riot at the Dublin Theatre against the 1823 Marquis Wellesley, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the December preceding. The grand jury having failed to find a true bill against the rioters, Plunket in open court denounced the grand jury, and laid his informations, thereby bringing the culprits to trial, but without success, as the jury would not come to any agreement for a verdict.

This led to an appeal to Parliament and some bitter debates.

It is not clear on what precise occasion Mr. North delivered his fine speech, but as he was not in Parliament at the time, apparently in the Law Courts at Dublin.

Canning acknowledged the eloquence of the speaker, and pleaded that only deficiency of all means to attract or bring forward Mr. North prevented his acting on Mr. Mulock's suggestion.]

1824.

1824

MR. CANNING TO THE EARL OF LIVERPOOL.

[In this letter Lord Liverpool's view of the West Indian question is referred to as of the most awful importance.'

This may be shortly explained by the events and alarms which were taking place in the British West Indian Islands at the time; a concise account will be found in the 'Political Life,' pp. 84-103; it seems that in consequence of the debates in, and resolutions passed by, the British Parliament tending towards measures for a gradual abolition of slavery, the West Indian Colonial Legislatures, on the one hand, had adopted a most violent and intemperate line of protest and defiance, while the slaves, on the other hand, had entered on a series of dangerous conspiracies with a view to ultimate insurrection.

The imminent risk of creating a sanguinary servile war appears to have been the danger present to the mind of Canning in thinking over this difficult question.]

Gloucester Lodge: January 9, 1824.

My dear Liverpool,-Your view of the W. I. question is of most awful importance. It is one which has been present to my mind for the last two months-and upon which I have thought, but not yet spoken with anyone. I suspect that our opinions tend the same way; but I will be prepared to discuss the question when we meet,

MR. CANNING TO THE EARL OF LIVERPOOL.

[Sends first draft of the King's speech on opening Parliament, in which he has touched upon (1) Dutch and United States negotiations;

(2) Russo-Turkish affairs; (3) Spain and her relations to her revolted colonies.

Canning wanted to mediate between Spain and the colonies upon the basis of the independence of the latter. He expected no difficulty from Russia and Austria, but much from France.]

Gloucester Lodge: January 19, 1824. My dear Liverpool,--I send you a fair copy of the first draft of K. speech, as you may like to study it on your way to town.

I have put in some things which may not ultimately stand (as the paragraphs about Dutch and United States Negotiations); I almost hope that we may have a RussoTurkish paragraph to add. You will see by C. Bagot's letter, herewith enclosed, that things are in greater forwardness at Constantinople than we apprehended. C. Bagot has done excellently.

I think I have rather improved the S. American part. I should not much object to softening our note to Spain by a direct offer of our mediation on the basis of independence. From a conversation which I have had today with Lieven and Neumann I am satisfied that we can satisfy them (by some such means) without a conference. Not to France. But France wants the conference for objects of her own,

1824

MR. CANNING TO THE EARL OF LIVERPOOL.

[Sends a letter from Dr. Pett on the question of appointing to the next vacancy in the deanery of Christ Church.]

G. L.: January 19, 1824.

My dear Liverpool, I enclose to you a letter from Pett, in answer to one in which I begged him to give me, in the strictest confidence, his real opinion as to the present fitness of the person of whom we had formerly talked for the succession of H. at Christ Church.

1824

With a little allowance for Westminster prejudice (but less in P. than in most Westminsters at his standing) I feel entire reliance on the truth and honesty of his statement and on his secrecy and discretion. As to age you see we hurried poor H. If fifty-five will not do for D. of Ch. Ch., God help you and me next year, Ever sincerely yours,

G. C.

MR. CANNING TO THE EARL OF LIVERPOOL.

[Here we find Canning equipping the British representatives at Vienna, Petersburg, and Berlin, respectively with the arguments proper to meet the intent of the despatch given below addressed by M. de Chateaubriand, the French Foreign Minister, to M. de Polignac, Ambassador for France at the British Court, in case the reasoning of Chateaubriand's despatch should be used at the several Courts of the three Allies as a weapon against British policy.]

F. O.: Feb. 13, 1824.

My dear Liverpool,-I agree with you that it is better not to answer Chateaubriand's despatch to Polignac. But as that despatch has probably been communicated to the Allies, and as it may be reproduced hereafter, I think it would never do to appear to have passed it without notice. The only way in which I propose to notice it is, as in the enclosed despatch to Wellesley, Bagot, and Clanwilliam, suggesting to them heads of answers to the main arguments to be used, if those arguments are brought forward at the Courts where they reside, but not to be brought forward by them without provocation.

Ever sincerely yours,

GEORGE CANNING.

P.S.-This will require no Cabinet. But I send the

papers to the Duke of Wellington.

MR. CANNING TO THE EARL OF LIVERPOOL.

[This must relate to the appointment of a Commission on Irish education, made in the beginning of the session of 1824. The expression used of the qualifications for the Commission, where too 'much information is nearly allied to prejudice,' is paradoxical and epigrammatic. Canning strongly insisted on sufficient strength in the body of the Commission.]

Gloucester Lodge: Feb. 26, 1824.

My dear L., I hope, the fright being over, the commission will nevertheless be speedily and sincerely set to work; and I hope it will have at least some additional elements in its composition to those which Peel showed me on Tuesday night. I am quite sure that they will not do I mean will not satisfy. There must be more vigour; and there must be some independence and impartiality-some ignorance if you will-in a case where too much information is nearly allied to prejudice, or the whole will be exclaimed against as a delusion; and we shall soon have the question over again.

I trust you are not deceived by the result of Tuesday's debate, but know what sort of a vote we should have had, if we had resisted instead of evading.

Ever sincerely yours,

GEO. CANNING.

[In Vol. II., Chapter VIII., of the Political Life,' will be found details of the tactics adopted by the Governments of France and Spain to beguile that of Great Britain into a false position with regard to the Spanish American Colonies.

These tactics failed: for Canning had not been three months in power before he replied to the reactionary menaces from Vienna by declaring the intention of the British Government to appoint Consuls to various seaports of the disobedient Colonies for the protection of British trade. During 1823, while the French were overrunning Spain, nothing further was done; but when the Spanish Constitutional Government was extinguished, Canning opened a conference with the French Government, in October of that year, on the subject of the proposed consular appointments. In this conference

1824