od this morning, had given his entire
approval to it. Lord Stanley then asked whether anybody else had
been consulted or applied to, to which the Queen replied that she had
written to him a few minutes after Lord John's resignation, and had
communicated with no one else. Lord Stanley then said that he hoped
the Queen's acceptance had only been a conditional one; that he felt
very much honoured by the Queen's confidence; that he hoped he
might be able to tender advice which might contribute to the Queen's
comfort, and might relieve the present embarrassment.

In order to be able to do so he must enter most freely and openly into
his own position and that of his Party. It was quite true that they
formed the most numerous in Parliament after the supporters of what
he hoped he might still call the _present_ Government, but that there
were no men contained in it who combined great ability with experience
in public business. There was one certainly of great ability and
talent--Mr Disraeli--but who had never held office before, and perhaps
Mr Herries, who possessed great experience, but who did not command
great authority in the House of Commons; that he should have great
difficulties in presenting to the Queen a Government fit to be
accepted, unless he could join with some of the late Sir R. Peel's
followers; that he considered, for instance, the appointment of a good
person for Foreign Affairs indispensable, and there was scarcely any
one fit for it except Lord Palmerston and Lord Aberdeen. Lord Aberdeen
had told him that he had no peculiar views upon Free Trade, and that
he did not pretend to understand the question, but that he had felt it
his duty to stand by Sir R. Peel; this might now be different, but
it ought first to be ascertained whether a combination of those
who agreed in principle, and had only been kept asunder hitherto by
_personal_ considerations, could not be formed; that Sir James Graham
had in his last speech declared it as his opinion that the ranks of
those who agreed ought to be closed; when such a combination had taken
place, those of Sir R. Peel's followers who could not agree to
it might not be unwilling to join him (Lord Stanley). As to his
principles, he would frankly state that he thought that the landed
interest was much depressed by the low state of prices; that an import
duty on corn would be absolutely necessary, which, however, would be
low, and only a revenue duty; such a duty, he thought, t