“The poor King, it is to be hoped, will be released from the sufferings before this reaches you, if, indeed, he be not already at rest; it was thought on Monday that he could not live four-and-twenty hours. God be merciful to him and to us! He failed most woefully in his solemn and sworn duty on one great occasion, and we are feeling the effects of that moral cowardice on his part. The Duke expected to remove all parliamentary difficulties by that base measure, instead of which he disgusted by it all those adherents on whom he might have relied as long as he had continued to act upon the principles which they sincerely held; rendered all those despicable who veered to the left-about with him, and found himself as a minister weaker than either the Whigs whom he sought to propitiate, or the Brunswickers (as they are called), whom he has mortally offended.
“William IV., it
is believed, will continue the present Ministers, but act towards them in such
a way that they will soon find it necessary to resign. Then in come Lord Holland and the Whigs, in alliance with the
flying squadron of political economists under Huskisson. Beyond this nothing can be foreseen, except change
after change; every successive change weakening the Government, and,
consequently, strengthening that power of public
| Ætat. 56. | OF ROBERT SOUTHEY. | 103 |
“The Peninsular War is my main employment now. It is yet a long way from its completion, but in good steady progress. I have at this time a head and both hands full. John Jones’s attempts in verse will make their appearance shortly; there is a long introduction, in fact, a chapter, of the history of English poetry, which ought to content those subscribers who will not feel the touches of nature which are in this poor man’s verses, but will feel the rudeness and the faults. I have taken public leave of all such tasks, and declined all inspection of manuscripts, &c. in a way which will amuse you: but I am very far from repenting of what I have done in this way and in this case; in this case, because I have rendered some little service, and afforded great delight, to a very worthy poor man.
“In the next Quarterly Review I have papers upon Maw’s passage over the Andes, and the conversion of Tahiti, where, with all my admiration for the spirit in which the missionaries begin and prosecute their work, you will see that I am not blind to the consequences of Calvinistic Christianity. This reminds me of Reginald Heber, upon whose portrait I have written a poem, which will appear in the forthcoming volume of his Letters.
“With our united remembrances to Mr. Hodson,
