The Sun.
London, England, 1839-05-14 00:00:00

Anne, has not occurred in this country.—(Hear, hear.)
In 1710, however, Lord Sunderland having been re-
moved from the office of Secretary of State, and Lord
Regulator (as we understood) from the office of Comp-
troller of the Household—these Ladies—both daugh
ters of the Duke of Marlborough, remained Ladies -4;
the Bedchamber from the month of August, 1710
when their husbands were dismissed, till December,
1711, when they—their father, the Duke, having been
removed in a manner which they thought was unjust to
that great man—resigned voluntarily their situations.
Here, then, Sir, there have been changes in the House-
hold, but changes far more limited in extent than was
required in the present case. In 1782, Lord Notting-
ham allowed (a Nobleman whose name, in con-
sequence of the noise which now prevailed in
the House we did not catch) to remain Master of the
Horse, and none of the Queen's Household were changed.
In another period (which, from the same cause, we did
not hear) the Lord Chamberlain and the Lord
Steward, with the Lord Treasurer, were removed ; but
none of the Ladies of the Bedchamber were removed. In
1812 there occurred a question as to the Household,
which Lords Grenville and Grey made a question— Lord
Moira having been authorised to form a Government—
whether this included a full power over the offices of
the household which were usually included in political ar-
rangements. And the answer is, that the principle usually
followed must be in this case adhered to. But
Sir, the power asked by Lords Grey and Gren-
ville, and upon which the formation of an Ad-
ministration failed—was the power to change
the Great Officers of the Household, it does not appear
that they asked any change in the Lords of the Bed-
chamber and similar arrangements. During the late
King's reign there were several changes of Administra-
tion, and on those occasions, the Great Officers were
changed ; but as to other persons holding other offices,
they were not changed, as in the case of Sir W. Free-
mantle. Sir, Ido think therefore that the power given
to the Right Hon. Baronet opposite was a power greater
than had been given on any former occasions—and
equal to any power that had ever been given to
a person charged with the formation of an Admi-
nistration by any Sovereign in these realms.—(Cheers.)
Sir, I have put this question with respect to usage ;
and I do think that her Majesty having, as the Right
Hon. Baronet says, given him full power with regard
to the political Administration—that the failure of the
attempt to form an Administration must not be traced
to any deficiency in the power given by her Majesty.
—(Cheers.) Sir, as to the other part of the ques-
tion—the course which her Majesty conceives to be
contrary and repugnant to her Majesty's feelings—it
does appear that the disposal by her Prime Minister
of the offices held by Ladies with whom she is in
hourly and daily communication, that such a measure
would destroy her Majesty's personal comfort, and lead
to continual changes in those with whom she was inti-
mately connected.—(Cheers.) Now, Sir, upon this
subject I feel that although the two cases may not be
quite exact, it is only justice to say that the officers of
Queen Adelaide's Household during the late Reign were
generallycomposed of persons hostile to the Government.
I do not remember, except upon one occasion, that
there was even an idea entertained that any of the
Ladies holding such situations would be removed. I
do not remember that in 1833, when the Ministry had
resigned upon the Reform Bill, and there was a very
strong excitement abroad in the country, so strong as
to induce those who had undertaken to form an Admi-
nistration, to resign the attempt, and when the Ministry
were restored there was an apprehension that some of
the Ladies of the Queen's Household would be removed
by Lord Grey, but he was sure that it was a most
groundless alarm, because that Noble Lord or his Govern-
ment never entertained the slightest wish to interfere with
the comfort of her Majesty. The Right Hon. Gentleman
has stated that he had great political difficulties to con-
tend with, and he alluded particularly to the state of af-
fairs in Canada, .in India, in Jamaica, and more espe-
cially did he refer to the state of Ireland. There was
no doubt that there were great difficulties on all those
questions ; but the Right Hon. Baronet would have
gained no strength to encounter those difficulties by
imposing a condition which was repugnant to her
Majesty. I do not mean to say that the Right
Hon. Baronet in mentioning the proposal which he
meant to make might not have remarked to her Ma-
jesty that places in her Majesty's Household held by
those connected with his immediate opponents would be
a discouragement to him in carrying on his Administra-
tion, but I do think that when he once found that such
a change as he proposed would be repugnant to her
Majesty, I do think that so far from being a strengthen-
ing it would have been a weakening of the Adminis-
trition to insist upon that change. Supposing her
Majesty had granted the change against her will,
that she had consented to the removal of those
Ladies, it would have been impossible for the Right
Honourable Baronet to have insisted that the Ladies
imposed upon her should have been received by
her Majesty with that grace and favour which had
been shown to those who had been dismissed against
her will. In point of policy, immediately that the
Right Hon. Baronet found that there was an objection
made, it would have been far better for himself if he
bad at once withdrawn it—(Laughter and cheers)—be-
cause I should say that the knowledge that a condition
had been imposed upon her Majesty with respect to
the Ladies of her Household without her consent, must
have been for a long time a source of irritation and dis-
content to her Majesty. On the contrary, if that con-
dition bad been relinquished her Majesty was more
likely to treat the Right Hon. Baronet with more con-
fidence, because her Majesty being herself of a
high and generous spirit, would have felt the gene-
rosity which dictated such conduct.—(Hear, hear.)
And this be it remembered, was a proposition to a So-
vereign of no mature age, very young when she came
to the throne, and of a sex which calls for the peculiar
exercise of generosity.—(Cheers.) But I am sure the
country and the world will be convinced that neither
the sex of her Majesty will prevent her from
being wanting in courage, nor will the age
of her Majesty prevent her having a just
discrimination, and a sound and calm understanding.—
(Cheers.) I am saying this not because the Right
Hon. Gentleman, either in the manner in which he con-
veyed his proposition to her Majesty or in what he said
to-night, has either said or done anything except upon
public grounds which he is not entitled to state as
a public man, but I am putting the case of a
feeling which the proposition of the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman might be expected to excite with those
who would be likely to take an impression. The Right
Hon. Gentleman has referred to public impression
there might have been a public impression that her Ma-
jesty might have been unwilling to secure.—(Hear.)
Sir, her Majesty was pleased on Friday last, after she
had received the letter of the Right Honourable
Gentleman resigning at once the commission with
which her Majesty had honoured him—her Ma-
jesty was pleased to order my attendance upon
her Majesty. Her Majesty stated the circumstances
to me very much as the Right Hon. Gentleman has
stated them—with respect to herself, exactly as the
Right Hon. Gentleman has stated them—(Hear, hear)
—but with regard to the proposition of the Right
Hon. Gentleman her Majesty certainly had not gathered
the precise nature of the manner in which the Right
Hon. Gentleman proposed to use the power which
was to have been granted. Her Majesty, after making
these statements to me was pleased to ask whether I
thought she was justified in making that refusal ; and
when I stated that I thought her Majesty was justified,
her Majesty was then pleased to observe, that as her
Majesty, in possession of the powers of the Crown, had
hitherto given her support to the Administration, she
hoped I would consider myself bound now to support her
Majesty in return. Sir, on the next day a Cabinet
Council was held in Downing-street, and her Majesty's
confidential servants, after a consultation, expressed their
opinion with regard to these matters in a minute, an ex-
tract from which I will take the liberty to read to the
House :—" Her Majesty's confidential servants having
taken into consideration the letter addressed by
her Majesty to Sir Robert Peel on the 10th of
May, and the reply of Sir Robert Peel of the
same day, are of opinion that, for the purpose of
giving to the Administration that character of effi-
ciency and stability,• and those marks of the consitu-
tional support of the Crown, which are required to
enable it to act usefully to the public service,
it is reasonable that the great officers of the Court, and
situations in the Household held by Members of

iCrli;inent,should be included in the political arrange-
ments made on a change of the Administration, but
they are not of opinion that a similar principle
should be applied or extended to the offices held by La-
dies in her Majesty's Household.”—(Great laughter
from the Opposition and cheers from the Ministeriar
side of the House.) 'What therefore her Mal
jesty conceded was as much as ever was con-
ceded by any Sovereign to any person concerned with
the task of forming an Administration. What
was further proposed by the Right Hon.
Baronet was not conformable to any usage, and it wary
a proposal which was at the same time repug-
nant to her Majesty's feelings. The question then