d intensify this to the uttermost. I think this was
all." Another sentence indicates Lord Wolverton's own view:--

Lord Granville is not sanguine as to the future. As you know, he
is always inclined to "temporise"; this is his line now, and he is
perhaps right. You know my fear was that without your name in
front, the battle at the election would be fought at a great
disadvantage. But I see the immense difficulty of a change of
front _now_, even if they desired it and you consented to it. This
you also feel, I know.

To all this Mr. Gladstone replied to Wolverton as follows:--

_Hawarden, December 18, 1879._--I thank you much for your letter.
What you report yourself to have said is quite satisfactory to me.
If Granville said more than you had mentioned, anything that fell
from him would be acceptable to me. When I saw your envelope, I
felt a dread lest the contents should be more substantive; a
relief came on reading them. But these communications are useful,
as they give distinctness to ideas, and through ideas to
intentions. I may state mine as follows: 1. My ears are shut
against all the world, except it were Granville and Hartington. 2.
And even to them unless they spoke together, and in clear and
decisive language. 3. They are the judges whether to speak, as
well as when to speak. But as an individual, I am of opinion that
there is not a case for their speaking _now_. 4. Were they to
speak now, and as I have defined above, I should then say let us
have nothing more than a formula, and let the substance of it be
that by the nature of things no man in my position could make
beforehand an absolute renunciation, and that the leadership in
the next parliament must, like everything else, be considered in
connection with what may appear at the dissolution to be the sense
of the country, but that my action individually has been and will
continue to be that of a follower of Lord Granville and Lord
Hartington. One thing I would ask of you as a fast friend. If you
think that in anything I fall short by omission or commission of
perfect loyalty as a member of the party, I beg you to tell me.

II

As usual with him, these grave political preoccupations were not
engrossing, but only a part of the day's task. He carried on a pretty
profuse correspondence, he worked hard on his favourite div