The “Pope” of Holland House
John Lewis Mallet to John Whishaw, 8 September 1831
Malvern, Sept. 8, 1831.
My dear Whishaw,—The Times has taken up some clauses of
the Reform Bill, the division of counties, and the giving votes to the
tenants-at-will who occupy land or houses of the value at least £50 a year, with an
extraordinary degree of violence, and has done its best to damage the whole measure
in public opinion. I do not know a more capricious and unprincipled paper. The
Bill, however, proceeds, and will get through the Commons in the early part of the
ensuing week, and the quiet manner in which it has gone through the Commons (at
least this session) is mainly due to Lord
Althorp’s admirable temper and quiet good sense. He received
last week a most flattering tribute of respect as to the conciliatory manner in
which he had conducted the discussions from Peel and Wynne and several
other members.
I am not sure that Brougham’s transference to the other House, notwithstanding
his superiority and great talents, has been advantageous on the whole: and I am
afraid that his sarcastic manner and Lord
Grey’s irritable disposition will prove very formidable
circumstances in the Lords: irritate the Opposition, and irritate the public
against the Peers. Not a word calculated to excite angry feelings has escaped
Lord Althorp.
You will see the list of the Commissioners who are to report on
the division of counties, and on the districts to be allotted to boroughs.
Abercromby is at
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the head; Gilbert,1
Littleton,2 and, very
odd to say, Hallam are three of the
principal persons; John Romilly, young Ord, Bellenden
Ker, young Drinkwater,3 are among the members: I do not know, but it appears to me
that Bentham’s laboratory and the
Society for the Diffusion of Knowledge have furnished no inconsiderable quota.
Speaking of Bentham,
there was a letter from him in the Courier newspaper some days ago animadverting on
a criticism in the Spectator on Bowring’s4 report on French finances.
I had suggested to Huskisson, when he was
Secretary of State, some enquiry on this subject, and it appears from
Bentham’s letter that he followed it up, and that
when at Paris he had endeavoured to get some information as to French accounts.
But, says Bentham, “Huskisson
was all stiffness, haughtiness, coldness, and repulsive, and did not succeed.
Bowring is all attractive.”
There is a pamphlet of Senior’s on
the subject of Irish affairs, particularly with reference to the Poor Laws, which I
have not seen, but which has been
1 Davies
Gilbert, M.P., of Cornwall. 2 First Lord
Hatherton. 3 J. E. Drinkwater
Bethune, well-known counsel to the Home Office and member of
the Supreme Council. 4 Sir John
Bowring (1792-1872), an intimate friend of Bentham. In 1828
was appointed Commissioner for reforming the system of keeping public
accounts. His appointment was cancelled by the Duke of Wellington. In 1831 was associated with Sir H. Parnell in the duty of examining and
reporting on the public accounts of France, and appointed Secretary of the
Commission for inspecting the accounts of the United Kingdom. This
Commission was the foundation of all the improvements since made.
(“Dic. Nat.
Biography.”) |
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a good deal read and animadverted on in
the Times and Chronicle, both
of which papers will hear of nothing but Poor Laws. Senior has
severely criticised Dr. Doyle’s
evidence and publications, which are chiefly remarkable for eloquent declamations
and mistaken philanthropy; and no doubt the Doctor will reply and lay it on the
economists. The most unexpected part of Senior’s panacea
for Ireland is the decapitation of the Irish Church and the transferring of the
revenues of five or six sees to the support of the Catholic clergy. This coming
from Oxford has made people stare; and Stanley
took an early opportunity of protesting in the House against the appropriation of
any of the revenues of the Church to any save Church purposes.1
I am always truly yours,
James Abercromby, first baron Dunfermline (1776-1858)
The son of Lt.-Gen Sir Ralph Abercromby; he was MP for Midhurst (1807), Calne (1812-30)
and Edinburgh (1832), judge-advocate general (1827) and speaker of the House of Commons
(1835-39); he was raised to the peerage in 1839.
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
The founder of Utilitarianism; author of
Principles of Morals and
Legislation (1789).
John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune (1801-1851)
The son of John Drinkwater (d. 1844); educated at Westminster School, Trinity College,
Cambridge, and the Middle Temple, he was appointed a member of the supreme council of India
(1848).
Sir John Bowring (1792-1872)
Poet, linguist, MP, and editor of the
Westminster Review. He was
the secretary of the London Greek Committee (1823) through which he was wrongly accused of
having enriched himself.
Henry Peter Brougham, first baron Brougham and Vaux (1778-1868)
Educated at Edinburgh University, he was a founder of the
Edinburgh
Review in which he chastised Byron's
Hours of Idleness; he
defended Queen Caroline in her trial for adultery (1820), established the London University
(1828), and was appointed lord chancellor (1830).
Davies Gilbert (1767-1839)
Originally Giddy; born in Cornwall and educated at Pembroke College, Oxford, he was a
Whig MP for Helston (1804-06) and Bodmin (1806-32), and president of the Royal Society
(1827-30)
Charles Grey, second earl Grey (1764-1845)
Whig statesman and lover of the Duchess of Devonshire; the second son of the first earl
(d. 1807), he was prime minister (1831-34).
Henry Hallam (1777-1859)
English historian and contributor to the
Edinburgh Review, author
of
Introduction to the Literature of Europe, 4 vols (1837-39) and
other works. He was the father of Tennyson's Arthur Hallam.
William Huskisson (1770-1830)
English politician and ally of George Canning; privately educated, he was a Tory MP for
Morpeth (1796-1802), Liskeard (1804-07), Harwich (1807-12), Chichester (1812-23), and
Liverpool (1823-30). He died in railway accident.
Henry Bellenden Ker (1785 c.-1871)
Son of the botanist of the same name; he was educated at Lincoln's Inn where he
befriended Henry Brougham with whom he was afterwards associated as a legal reformer. He
published in the
Edinburgh Review.
Edward John Littleton, first baron Hatherton (1791-1863)
The son of Morton Walhouse, educated at Rugby and at Brasenose College, Oxford; he was MP
for Staffordshire (1812-22) and South Staffordshire (1832-35). He was Irish secretary
(1833-34), raised to the peerage in 1835.
John Lewis Mallet (1775-1861)
The son of the French journalist Jacques Mallet du Pan; he was Secretary of the Audit
Office.
William Ord (1781-1855)
Of Whitfield Hall, Northumberland; he was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge and was
MP for Morpeth (1802-32) and Newcastle-upon-Tyne (1835-52).
Henry Brooke Parnell, first Baron Congleton (1776-1842)
The son of Sir John Parnell, second baronet; he was Whig MP for Queen's County (1802,
1806-32), Portarlington (1802), Dundee (1832-41); he held high government offices and wrote
on economics.
John Romilly, first baron Romilly (1802-1874)
English judge, the son of Sir Samuel Romilly; educated at Trinity College, he was MP for
Bridport (1832-35) and master of the rolls (1851).
Nassau William Senior (1790-1864)
Professor of political economy at Oxford (1825-30) and author of
Outline of the Science of Political Economy (1836). He contributed to the
Quarterly Review and
Edinburgh Review.
John Charles Spencer, third earl Spencer (1782-1845)
English politician, son of the second earl (d. 1834); educated at Harrow and Trinity
College, Cambridge, he was Whig MP for Northamptonshire (1806-34) and chancellor of the
exchequer and leader of the lower house under Lord Grey (1830).
Edward John Stanley, second baron Stanley (1802-1869)
The son of John Thomas Stanley, first Baron Stanley, educated at Christ Church, Oxford;
he was Whig MP for Hindon (1831), North Cheshire (1832-41, 1847-48), raised to the peerage
as baron Eddisbury (1848), president of the Board of Trade (1855-58) and postmaster-general
(1860-66).
John Whishaw (1764 c.-1840)
Barrister, educated at Trinity College, Cambridge; he was Secretary to the African
Association and biographer of Mungo Park. His correspondence was published as
The “Pope” of Holland House in 1906.
Charles Watkin Williams Wynn (1775-1850)
The son of Sir Watkin Williams Wynn, fourth baronet; educated at Westminster and Christ
Church, Oxford, Robert Southey's friend and benefactor was a Whig MP for Old Sarum (1797)
and Montgomeryshire (1799-1850). He was president of the Board of Control (1822-28).
The Courier. (1792-1842). A London evening newspaper; the original proprietor was James Perry; Daniel Stuart, Peter
Street, and William Mudford were editors; among the contributors were Samuel Taylor
Coleridge and John Galt.
Morning Chronicle. (1769-1862). James Perry was proprietor of this London daily newspaper from 1789-1821; among its many
notable poetical contributors were Coleridge, Southey, Lamb, Rogers, and Campbell.
The Spectator. (1828-). A London weekly edited by Robert Stephen Rintoul, 1828-58.
The Times. (1785-). Founded by John Walter, The Times was edited by Thomas Barnes from 1817 to 1841. In the
romantic era it published much less literary material than its rival dailies, the
Morning Chronicle and the
Morning
Post.
