eon: two very small glasses of Madeira at
dinner and _less_ than a pint of port after dinner: at night,
nothing but a bason of arrowroot: he is positively in the best
possible train of management for his health.... He is positively
decided to have no responsibility whatever respecting what has
been done or is doing on the subject of foreign politics; he not
only adheres to his resolution of not going up for the opening
[of Parliament]; but will not attend even on the estimates
unless a necessity should arise: he writes to day both to Mr.
Addington and Lord Hawkesbury in a style that will not only
manifest the above, _but will prevent all further attempts to
draw him into confidential communication_. He has also made up
his mind to take office again whenever the occasion shall arise,
when he can come in properly, and has now no reluctance on the
subject. I dare not say more by the Post. If my letter is
opened, the Ministers will know the first part is true, and I
don't care about their learning the latter. Lord Grenville will
positively not take a line to render it difficult for Mr. Pitt
and him to act together; he will move no amendment to the
Address....

Rose, as we have seen, disliked Lord Auckland, who was joint
Postmaster-General; and if Pitt's letters were opened at the Post
Office, we can understand the thinness of his correspondence.[645]
Recently he had advised Addington not to retain Alexandria, Malta,
Goree, and Cape Town, but to trust rather to defensive preparations,
which might include a friendly understanding with other aggrieved
Powers. This surely was the dignified course. Even Malta was not worth
the risk of immediate war unless we were ready both with armaments and
alliances. The foregoing letter, however, shows that Pitt believed his
advice to be useless. Possibly he heard that the Cabinet had decided to
retain those posts; and finally, as we shall see, Pitt approved their
action in the case of Malta. Meanwhile matters went from bad to worse.
Ministers complained of Pitt's aloofness; but his friends agreed that he
must do nothing to avert from Addington the consequences of his own
incompetence. Even the cold Grenville declared Pitt to be the only man
who could save England. But could even he, when under an incompetent
chief, achieve that feat?

For by this time Addington had hopelessly deranged the nation's finance.
While