e on one side
of the House; consternation and dismay on the other. At last, when
Russell read the list of boroughs which were doomed to extinction, the
Tories hoped that the completeness of the measure would insure its
defeat. Forgetting their fears, they began to be amused and burst into
peals of derisive laughter" (III, 208).

Walpole's next book was the "Life of Lord John Russell," two volumes
published in 1889. This was undertaken at the request of Lady Russell,
who placed at his disposal a mass of private and official papers and
"diaries and letters of a much more private nature." She also acceded to
his request that she was not to see the biography until it was ready
for publication, so that the whole responsibility of it would be
Walpole's alone. The Queen gave him access to three bound volumes of
Russell's letters to herself, and sanctioned the publication of certain
letters of King William IV. Walpole wrote the biography in about two
years and a half; and this, considering that at the time he held an
active office, displayed unusual industry. If I may judge the work by a
careful study of the chapter on "The American Civil War," it is a
valuable contribution to political history.

Passing over three minor publications, we come to Walpole's "History of
Twenty-five Years," two volumes of which were published in 1904. A brief
extract from his preface is noteworthy, written as it is by a man of
keen intelligence, with great power of investigation and continuous
labor, and possessed of a sound judgment. After a reference to his
"History of England from 1815," he said: "The time has consequently
arrived when it ought to be as possible to write the History of England
from 1857 to 1880, as it was twenty years ago to bring down the
narrative of that History to 1856 or 1857.... So far as I am able to
judge, most of the material which is likely to be available for British
history in the period with which these two volumes are concerned
[1856-1870] is already accessible. It is not probable that much which is
wholly new remains unavailable." I read carefully these two volumes when
they first appeared, and found them exceedingly fascinating. Palmerston
and Russell, Gladstone and Disraeli, are made so real that we follow
their contests as if we ourselves had a hand in them. A half dozen or
more years ago an Englishman told me that Palmerston and Russell were no
longer considered of account in England. But I do not believe one