e misunderstanding which occurred at this
time between Lord Cornwallis and Lord Buckingham developed the state of
feeling existing between the Irish Government and the English Militia,
and brought it to a very unexpected crisis.

A detachment of the Bucks had been ordered by the Lord-Lieutenant into
the field, and Lord Buckingham, as colonel of the regiment, conceived
that he had a right to take the command; but Lord Cornwallis, who looked
at these matters with the formality and decision of a martinet,
exercised his own discretion in giving the command to another officer.
The grounds of Lord Buckingham's exception to the Lord-Lieutenant's
dictum on this point were, that the detachment taken from his regiment
for this particular service was numerically greater than the remainder
of the regiment left behind, and that being also of greater force than a
detachment from another regiment with which it was to act, he was
entitled to take the command of both. Lord Cornwallis, however,
overruled his wishes, as tending to produce inconvenience to the service
in the matter of rank, and in other respects. To Lord Buckingham's
remonstrance on the subject, Lord Cornwallis transmitted a reply which
induced Lord Buckingham to request his Lordship's permission to lay the
whole correspondence before the King. It was to be expected under these
feelings of irritation that Lord Buckingham should have been desirous of
returning to England. But the expression of such a desire was liable to
misconstruction. Lord Grenville felt that it was possible it might be
interpreted into an appearance of declining service.

Now, my dear brother, as to the question of sending the Bucks back,
I really scarce know what to do about it. I have no communications
(for none of us have any) which can enable one to form the least
guess of Lord Cornwallis's intentions, much less any previous
knowledge of his measures. Nothing could be more unexpected to me
than to hear that he had ordered back any part of the Militia
force, which can alone enable him to accomplish his object, or to
protect Ireland during the winter. If any part is to go back, it
certainly seems reasonable that those who went first should be
first relieved; but I am totally at a loss how to take any steps
for this purpose which shall not be liable to interpretations the
most repugnant to your feelings and to the spirit with which you
s