itics, we must also remember that his compliance with
the request involved no ordinary sacrifice of much which renders life
delightful. He was to relinquish pursuits of noble excitement to which
he was passionately attached, and to withdraw in a great degree from
a circle of high-spirited friends, many of them of different political
connection from himself, by whom he was adored. With all his unrivalled
powers of application when under the influence of a great impulse, he
was constitutionally indolent and even lethargic. There was nothing,
therefore, in his position or his temperature to prick him on in '46;
it was nothing but his strong will acting upon his indignation which
sustained him. It is not, therefore, marvellous that he exhibited great
reluctance to commit irretrievably his future life. At a subsequent
period, indignation had become ambition, and circumstances of various
kinds had made him resolve to succeed or die.

On the adjournment, Lord George had gone down to Newmarket, which he
greatly enjoyed after his exhausting campaign. Here some letters on the
subject of the leadership passed, but nothing was definitely arranged
till some time after the re-assembling of Parliament. For convenience
we mention here the result. The wish of the party was repeatedly
and personally urged by the popular and much-esteemed member for
Dorsetshire, and at last Lord George consented to their wishes, on these
conditions: that he should relinquish his post the moment the right man
was discovered, who, according to his theory, would ultimately turn up;
and secondly, that his responsible post was not to restrict or embarrass
him on any questions in which a religious principle was involved.

Before, however, this negotiation was concluded, and while yet at
Newmarket, he wrote to a friend, the day before the House met (April
16th).

'I think there is no doubt, but that the Irish will take care of Friday
(to-morrow) night. I have not much hope of their keeping up the debate
beyond Friday.

'It is quite clear from O'Connell's language at Dublin that we have no
hope from the Irish tail.

'I still think myself, that delay affords a great chance of something
turning up in our favour; already the rejection of any reciprocity by
M. Guizot has provided us with a grand weapon, which, I trust, you drive
well home into * * * *'s vitals; a very short delay would probably bring
over similar intelligence from the United States and their Con