d to repair her former coldness by
every sort of attention and graciousness, to which he is by no
means insensible.

[Page Head: CREEVEY'S JOURNAL.]

Her Majesty went last night to the Ancient Concert (which she
particularly dislikes), so I got Melbourne to dine with me, and
he stayed talking till twelve o'clock. He told us, among other
things, that he had seen Dudley's Diary (now said to be
destroyed), which contained very little that was interesting upon
public matters, but the most ample and detailed disclosures about
women in society, with their names at full length. Melbourne
expressed his surprise that anybody should write a journal, and
said that he had never written anything, except for a short time
when he was very young, and that he had soon put in the fire all
that he had written. He talked of Creevey's Journal, and of that
which Dover is supposed to have left behind him; both of whom, at
different times and in different ways, knew a good deal of what
was going on. Melbourne said Creevey had been very shrewd, but
exceedingly bitter and malignant; and I was rather surprised to
hear him talk of Lord Dover as having been very bitter also, an
underhand dealer and restless intriguer. I knew very well that he
had ambition and vanity, which were constantly urging him to play
a part more than commensurate with his capacity, and that he
delighted in that sort of political _commerage_ which gave him
importance (and this was the great cause of his friendship with
Brougham, who was just the man for him, and he for Brougham), but
I did not think it was his nature to be bitter, or that he ever
intended to be mischievous--only busy and bustling, within the
bounds of honour and fairness.

CHAPTER VIII.

The ex-King of Westphalia--The Duke of Wellington at Court--
Failure of the Duke's Memory--Dinner at Devonshire House to
Royalties--Government defeated on Irish Registration Bill--The
King of Hanover's Apartments--Rank of Foreign Ministers--The
Duchess of Inverness--War with China--Murder of Lord William
Russell--Duke of Wellington on the China War--Weakness of
Government--Duke of Wellington's Conduct towards the
Government--The Queen shot at--Examination of the Culprit--
Retrospect of Affairs--Conciliatory Policy--Advantages of a
Weak Government--The Eastern Question--Lord Palmerston's Daring
and Confidence--M. Guizot and Mr. Greville--Pacific Views of
Louis Phili