mber 1858_.

MY DEAR MR DISRAELI,--I am very much obliged to you for your long
letter after a Cabinet meeting of five hours, and subsequent interview
with Lord Stanley, whom I am much pleased to hear you found so anxious
to remedy the present state of things. I am glad that you made it
clear to him that the Queen had never connected in her mind the
objections which she felt bound to take with anything personal,
which could be removed by Lord Stanley's relinquishing the Indian
Secretaryship. The difficulty would still remain to be solved, only
under additional complication and disadvantage. Lord Derby told me
to-day that he was drawing up a Memorandum which, when seen by the
Chancellor and Lord Stanley, was to be submitted to the Queen. Ever
yours truly,

ALBERT.[50]

[Footnote 50: On the same day Lord Stanley wrote a lengthy
letter to the Queen justifying the course he had taken.]

[Pageheading: THE INDIA OFFICE]

_Queen Victoria to Lord Stanley_.

WINDSOR CASTLE, _20th November 1858._

The Queen has received Lord Stanley's letter entering into the subject
of the difficulties which have arisen in the conduct of the new Indian
Department. She had from the first foreseen that it would not be
an easy matter to bring the establishments of the old Company's
Government to fall into the practice and usages of the Constitutional
Monarchy, and was therefore most anxious that distinct rules should
be laid down before the installation of the new Government, which
unfortunately was not done, but she trusts will now be devised and
adopted.

The Queen most readily gives Lord Stanley credit for every intention
to remove the obstacles in the way of the solution of these
difficulties as far as he was able, but she cannot but fear that the
particular form in which the opinion of the Law Officers has been
asked, and the fact [that] the eighteen members of the Council (all
naturally wedded to a system under which they were trained) were made
parties to the discussion between herself and her Secretary of State
on these difficulties--must increase instead of diminishing them.

The account given by Mr Temple, together with the last printed letters
and Memoranda from the Punjab, give us serious cause of apprehension
for the future, and show that the _British_ Army is the only safeguard
at present.

[Pageheading: LORD CANNING'S PROCLAMATION]

_Queen Victoria to Viscount Canning._[51]

WINDSOR CASTLE, _2n