be of use to them, and he appears to have judged correctly. The
Tories affected to treat his speech with contempt, and to talk
and laugh, which was a rudeness worthy of the noisy and ignorant
knot that constitutes the tail of that party. Howick attacked
everybody all round, and explained his own motive for leaving
office, not alluding to the Secretary of State's office; and
Graham made one of his usual speeches.

[23] [Sir John Yarde Buller moved a resolution that 'Her
Majesty's Government, as at present constituted, does
not possess the confidence of this House,' which was
defeated after a long debate by 308 votes to 287.]

January 31st, 1840 {p.261}

Macaulay's speech, which was said to be a failure, reads better
than Sir George Grey's, which met with the greatest success--the
one fell flat upon the audience, while the other was singularly
effective. So great is the difference between good manner and
bad, and between the effect produced by a dashing, vivacious,
light, and active style, and a ponderous didactic eloquence, full
of matter, but not suited in arrangement or delivery, and in all
its accessory parts, to the taste of the House.

[Page Head: THE MONMOUTH CONVICTS.]

The question of sparing the lives of the Monmouth prisoners or
not is everywhere discussed, with an almost general opinion that,
under all the circumstances, the Government cannot let the law
take its course. It is impossible for any reasoning to be more
fallacious, because, if pushed to its just conclusion, it must
result that they ought to escape altogether, which nobody expects
or desires. The case has been very curious from the beginning;
and end how it may, no criminals ever had so many chances
afforded them of escape; never were there nicer points for the
decision of different people or different stages of the business,
or more blunders committed by almost all concerned. In the first
place, Maule, the Crown solicitor, failed to comply with the
letter of the Act, and did not furnish the prisoners with lists
of the jury and the witnesses _at the same time_ ten days before
the trial. He gave them one list ten days before, and the other
fifteen days before. The Attorney-General was aware of the fact,
and aware that a question would arise upon it; the judges
appointed to the special Commission were apprised of it by their
Associates, and they communicated with each other upon it. They
considered whether