l, was attentively heard, and well received. I sat by the Duke of
Buccleuch. We had a good deal of conversation. He seems a fine young man.
Lord Rosslyn complained he could never see a draft till it was a month old,
and that there had been no new despatches placed in the boxes since he came
into office. I told him no one complained more of the same thing than
Aberdeen did when Dudley was in office, and I believe all Foreign
Secretaries had a shyness about showing their drafts till they were sent
off and unalterable.

_June 25._

At the office found a letter with enclosures from Colonel Macdonald, dated
Tabriz April 20. What he has been doing in Persia I do not know.

I have written to him to call upon me on Saturday.

Called on the Duke to tell him the substance--which is, that the Turks have
already 30,000 men and sixty pieces of cannon at Erzeroum. That a
dispossessed Pacha is in arms at Akiska. That the Russians have reinforced
the garrisons of Natshiran and Abbasabad, and have withdrawn all their
troops to the left bank of the Araxes, with the exception of those who
garrison Bayazid. The plague seems rife at Erivan. The Russians about Count
Paskewitz abuse the English very much.

_June 27._

The Chairs told me Lord W. Bentinck had extended to all persons the benefit
of the regulation as to coffee planters, _omitting, however_, all the
restrictive clauses. They think very seriously of this, and very justly.
The Calcutta newspapers consider the principle of colonisation to be
conceded.

We must abrogate this 'Regulation' without loss of time. I went to the Duke
to tell him of it. He said Lord W. Bentinck was not to be trusted, and we
should be obliged to recall him. He is gone down in a steamboat to Penang.

No news of much importance at the Cabinet room, except that Lord
Heytesbury's despatches confirm the account of the sickness of the Russian
army.

The Turks seem to have given the Russians a great smash at Eski Arnaut.

_June 30._

A battle near Schumla between the Russians and Turks. The Turks were
besieging Pravadi. Diebitsch marched from Silistria and moved upon their
communications with Schumla. The Turks seem to have been surprised. They
fought gallantly, however, and seem to have caused the Russians great loss.

Saw Arbuthnot. He came to the India Board to speak about his friend,
Russell Ellice, whom he wishes to make a Director. We afterwards talked of
the House and the Government. I thi