sapprove, all their actions and
motives are suspected by us, and _vice versa_. We lend a willing
ear to imputations of vanity, interest, and other unworthy
motives, and when we cannot explain or comprehend the particulars
of men's conduct, we judge them unfavourably while we are opposed
to their measures; but when they do what we wish, we see the same
things very differently, and begin to hesitate about the justice
of our censures and the suspicions which we previously entertained.
It is pretty clear that the Duke will have a good majority in the
House of Lords, and that many Peers and bishops will find excuses
between this and then for voting with him or remaining neutral.

A ridiculous thing happened the other day in the Vice-Chancellor's
Court. Sugden had taken a brief on each side of a case without
knowing it. Home, who opened on one side and was followed by
another lawyer, was to be answered by Sugden; but he, having got
hold of the wrong brief, spoke the same way as Home. The
Vice-Chancellor said coolly, 'Mr. Sugden is with you?' 'Sir,'
said Home, 'his argument is with us, but he is engaged on the
other side.' Finding himself in a scrape, he said 'it was true he
held a brief for the other party, but for no client would he ever
argue against what he knew to be a clear rule of law.' However,
the Court decided against them all.

February 13th, 1829 {p.173}

Still the Catholic question and the probable numbers in the House
of Lords; nobody talks of anything else. Lord Winchelsea makes an
ass of himself, and would like to be sent to the Tower, but
nobody will mind anything such a blockhead says. Lord Holland
talks of a majority of sixty in the Lords. I walked with
Ebrington to O'Connell's door the other day; he went in. The next
day I asked him what had passed. He said that he had pressed him
strongly to dissolve the Association; O'Connell said he could not
press it himself, but would write to Ireland that it was the
unanimous opinion of all the friends of the cause here that it
should be done. The fact is, he does not dare to acquiesce in all
the measures of Government, though there is little doubt but that
he desires to see an end to associations and agitations. Lady
Jersey affects to be entirely in the Duke's confidence. She said
to Lord Granville at Madame de Lieven's the other night that 'she
made it a rule never to talk to the Duke about affairs in
public,' and she said to me last night that she had known