d to him.

Believe me always yours sincerely,

B. C.

Of Canning at this period one of his intimate friends thus
speaks:--"Great as his talents for Parliament are, and great as is the
want of them on the Ministerial side of the House, it is not without
the utmost reluctance that the rest of the Cabinet will consent to
receive him as an associate. If they make him any proposal, it will be
only because they are forced to it by the opinion and wishes of their
own friends, and if they make him a _fair_ proposal, it will be a clear
proof that they think that the Government cannot go on without his
aid."[93]

[93] Lord Dudley's "Letters," p. 351.

A little later we learn from the same authority: "The delay that has
taken place in filling up the very important station that was held by
Lord Londonderry is itself a pretty good proof of the embarrassment of
the King and his Ministers. Canning will be a bitter pill to them, and
yet I am more inclined than I was at first to think that they will
swallow it. I give Canning full credit for what he declared at
Liverpool, that he _knew nothing_; and yet without imputing to him any
Jesuitical reservation, I consider his speech to be that of a man who
thought that he was more likely to come in than not."[94]

[94] Lord Dudley's "Letters," p. 356.

Canning knew well enough that he had only to wait, and the necessities
of the Government, notwithstanding the aversion of the majority, would
force him into the position his great rival had left vacant. Many
persons of influence shared in this conviction, and though far from
cordial in their admiration for this political leader, they were eager
to adopt him as their colleague or superior, seeing no other assistance
at hand so capable of advancing their particular policy.

THE RIGHT HON. CHARLES W. WYNN TO THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.

Broadstairs, Aug. 24, 1822.

MY DEAR B----,

My letter of yesterday will have sufficiently put you in possession
of my opinion, that although I agreed in the principle of your
letter, yet the addressing it under the present circumstances to
the D---- of W----, and through him to Lord Liverpool, was
premature. They seem to have thought the same, though I wish they
had expressed it in a manner less unambiguous.

It is difficult to make up one's mind whether it would, on the
whole, be more desirable to see Canning at the Exchequer or in the