not groundless, since Lord
Palmerston and Lord Lansdowne bluntly declared that they meant to retire
from office if the Government went forward with the Bill.

[Sidenote: 'GOD DEFEND THE RIGHT']

Lord John felt that he could not withdraw the Bill unconditionally, and
therefore resignation seemed the only honourable course which was left.
After deliberate consideration he could see no other choice in the
matter, and, on April 8, relinquished his seat in the Cabinet. The
Court, the Prime Minister and his colleagues saw at once the gravity of
the position, for the Liberal party were restive enough under Lord
Aberdeen, without the withdrawal from his Cabinet of a statesman of the
first rank, who was not anxious for peace at any price. Lord John's
position in the country at the moment rendered it probable that a
quarrel with him would bring about the downfall of the Government. His
zeal for Reform won him the respect and support of the great towns, and
the determination which he shared with Palmerston to resist the
intolerable attitude of the Czar made him popular with the crowd. A
recent speech, delivered when Nicholas had recalled his Ambassador from
London, had caught, moreover, the sympathies of all classes of the
community. 'For my part, if most unexpectedly the Emperor of Russia
should recede from his former demands, we shall all rejoice to be spared
the pain, the efforts, and the burdens of war. But if peace is no longer
consistent with our duty to England, with our duty to Europe, with our
duty to the world, we can only endeavour to enter into this contest with
a stout heart. May God defend the right, and I, for my part, shall be
willing to bear my share of the burden and the responsibility.'

John Leech, in one of his inimitable cartoons in 'Punch,' caught the
situation with a flash of insight which almost amounted to genius, and
Lord John became the hero of the hour. One verse out of a spirited poem
entitled 'God defend the Right,' which appeared in 'Punch' at the time,
may be quoted in passing, especially as it shows the patriotic fervour
and the personal enthusiasm which Lord John Russell's speech evoked in
the country:

'From humble homes and stately domes the cry goes through the air,
With the loftiness of challenge, the lowliness of prayer,
Honour to him who spoke the words in the Council of the Land,
To find faith in old England's heart, force in old England's hand.'

A week before the