at he was content to waive his objection to the
Duke of Portland's being at the head of the Treasury and that he
desired that a scheme of a Ministry might be submitted to him on
that idea. From him Lord North went to the Duke of Portland;
what has been the result I know not.

I am sure you will excuse me if I own to you that I do not quite
like your letter to the Duke of Portland, a copy of which I
received from you last night. My objection to it is, that it
seems to court too much, what I understand it will produce, a
second application upon the subject. I subscribe much too
heartily to your reasons to imagine, and still less to wish,
that this application may be successful; on the contrary, I own
I should have desired that room had not been given for it, which
I think is rather too much the case. In other respects I like
the letter perfectly.

I cannot close this without expressing to you what I feel upon
the reception this night of a letter from Bernard, informing me
of your goodness to him, and full of gratitude and
acknowledgments to you upon the subject; it has most truly
relieved my mind from what has been a burthen upon it.

Adieu, my dearest brother,
Believe me ever most affectionately yours,
W. W. G.

MR. W. W. GRENVILLE TO LORD TEMPLE.

Pall Mall, March 13th, 1783.

My dear Brother,

I have just received yours of the 7th, and am utterly at a loss
to imagine what Mornington can have stated to you which has
given you apprehensions about the Irish Bill. It has passed the
House of Commons without a single dissentient voice in any one
stage of it, and I know of no considerable opposition likely to
be made to it in the House of Lords, except possibly from the
Chancellor or Lord Loughborough.

In all events, I should hope you would very seriously reconsider
the two ideas which you throw out. That of a precipitate
departure, before the arrival of your successor, would bear so
very strongly the appearance of fretfulnesss and intemperance,
and would be liable to so many ill consequences in Ireland that
might arise, and would all be imputed to you, that I own I
should deprecate it in the most eager manner, especially as I
should think you would most fully acquit yourself, both to your
own character and to the peace of the two kingdoms, by
p