department, the other to the person who should hold it.
About the former he had consulted Lord Panmure;
who gave him his opinion, but advised him not to bring
about a rupture of the government. What he stated to
Lord Aberdeen related to that proposal; but he might
have stated that he should not bring the personal
question before the cabinet, since, if carried, it would
have driven Lord Aberdeen from the government. The
personal question he left in abeyance. Lord John
admitted that he very likely ought to have submitted
the question to the judgment of the cabinet, and if the
cabinet decided against him, to have resigned at once:
but, under the circumstances, he was then averse to
going that length. Lord Palmerston was entirely right
in saying that he had not taken the right time or mode
of resigning. It was an error not to have fully
considered the position he would be in if a motion for
inquiry were made. But having committed that error,
he would have been guilty of a greater error, "an error
of morality—and there can be no sound politics without
sound morality"—had he resisted inquiry and professed
himself satisfied with arrangements he felt to he
unsatisfactory. Neither could he, as suggested, have
stood by his colleagues, and on defeat, have resigned
with them; because a majority might have declared in
favour of the government, partly on his assurance that
he was not dissatisfied with the conduct of the war.
"While his resignation has been called hasty, he was
struck by a statement in the speech ascribed to the Duke
of Newcastle, that, some days before the meeting of
parliament, he had placed his resignation in the hands
of Lord Aberdeen. Lord John had been kept totally
ignorant of that resignation; "and," he continued, "as
my resignation was accepted, I must say I think my
noble friend's advice to the Queen immediately to
accept it, without any further communication with me,
was somewhat hasty." "And now, sir, (he proceeded)
you will perhaps permit me to observe, that, having
been subject to many slanderous attacks on account of
the course which I then pursued—having been made a
mark for obloquy for the last week on account of the
step which I took—I have only to say that if my past
public life does not justify me from the charges of selfishness
and of treachery—I shall seek no argument for the
purposes of defence. It is not that I propose to live down
such calumnies; but I do hope that I have anticipated
them by the course which I have pursued during a
somewhat extended public life. I may here be allowed
to observe upon one phrase which is said to have been
used by the noble duke—namely, that he had said to
the Earl of Aberdeen, when my first letter was received,
'Do not give Lord John Russell any pretext for leaving
the government. Accept my resignation.' Now, I
must say, considering that for nearly two years I had
been a subordinate member of the Earl of Aberdeen's
government—that I had consented, after holding the
office of prime minister for five years and a half, to serve
under Lord Aberdeen, and had done my best to promote
the success of his administration—that I had consented
to the diminished importance of the great party to which
I belonged,—I must say, I think such a sneer on the
part of the Duke of Newcastle was somewhat misplaced.
I wonder it should not have occurred to him, 'These
objections to my continuing to hold this office must be
sincere. It may even be possible that there is some
deficiency in my management of this great department.'
But it does not seem to have occurred to him as within
the range of possibility that he might not be absolutely
faultless in his conduct of the office which he held, and
that I should have had any other than some indirect
motive in wishing for a change in that department."
Lord John again referred to the case of Lord Goderich,
now Earl of Ripon, to show that there was a precedent
for the arrangement he proposed—to substitute Lord
Palmerston for the Duke of Newcastle; and he lauded
the patriotism of Lord Ripon—intimating that the
Duke of Newcastle would have done well to follow his
example. Having finished these statements, Lord John
informed the house, that he had accepted her Majesty's
commands to form an administration; that he had
accepted them, feeling it incumbent on him not to
shrink from the task; but that he had found insuperable
objections to the accomplishment of that duty. But
whoever formed a government, he thought the house
would feel that it would be its duty to support the
executive in any measures they may think necessary.
Before he sat down Lord John expressed regret for the
the omissions pointed out by Sir De Lacy Evans, when
he moved the vote of thanks to the army.—The
CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, after adverting to
the inconveniences attending these replies in one house
to speeches in another, proceeded to supply, as he stated,
some corrections of the narrative of Lord John Russell.
As to the assumption of the office of war secretary by
the Duke of Newcastle, it was only necessary to say,
that it took place with the full, unqualified, and
unhesitating sanction of the entire cabinet. With regard
to the alleged change of opinion on the part of Lord
John, and his suggestion respecting the two questions,
Mr. Gladstone remarked that Lord Aberdeen and his
colleagues had not the means of ascertaining the
distinctions between the two questions in Lord John's
mind. He thought that Lord John had made an
erroneous version of what the Duke of Newcastle had
said on the subject of his resignation, which he did not
place in Lord Aberdeen's hands, but merely intimated
to the earl how he intended to act at a future period.—
Lord Ebrington expressed a hope that public men
would lay aside their differences, so that an efficient
government might be formed for the successful
prosecution of the war; and the house adjourned.

On Tuesday, Feb. 6, the public business on the paper
was postponed, and the house again Adjourned, after
some comments on the loss of time in the settlement of
the ministry.

On Wednesday, February 7th, a New Writ for
Tiverton was moved for, in the room of Lord Palmerston,
who had accepted the office of First Lord of the
Treasury, and for South Wilts, in the room of Mr.
Sidney Herbert, who had accepted the office of one of
her Majesty's principal secretaries of state.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER moved that the
house resolve itself into a Committee of Supply to vote a
sum on account for the supplementary estimate for the
ordnance department. He reminded the house of the
restriction imposed upon the government by the rules
of the house with regard to public money,—namely,
that such money should be not only raised and
appropriated by the authority of parliament, but that it
should not be issued without a ways and means bill.
He proposed to take a vote on account to meet the
exigencies of the public service, leaving a residue to be
voted, which would afford an opportunity for discussion.
—Sir H. WILLOUGHBY thought the proceeding irregular,
and suggested whether, under the circumstances, it was
competent for the house to go into supply and vote a large
sum on account. He wished to know what was the meaning
of these supplementary estimates, amounting for the
navy and ordnance alone to £3,340,000, outstanding
liabilities?—Mr. MUNTZ agreed that this was an irregular
proceeding, and mentioned two items in the supplementary
estimate as extremely objectionable—one of £25,000,
for a shell manufactory, which, he said, was a waste of
money and a job; the other, £15,000 for a building and
machinery for small arms.—Mr. WALPOLE considered
that, in the peculiar position of the government, the
house should not object to go into a committee, and
wait for explanations hereafter.—Sir C. WOOD said, it
was not intended to bind any one by the vote, which
was to meet the pressing demands of the public service.
The proceeding was quite regular and in conformity
with practice.—Mr. STAFFORD called the attention of
the house to the state of the hospitals at Scutari, the
deficiencies of which, according to a letter he had
received, he said, instead of diminishing, increased.
The daily deaths were, on an average, forty, and 500
sick arrived weekly. He urged that if some signal
mark of approbation and confidence were not bestowed
upon Dr. M'Grigor, much would be done to perpetuate
the system of routine.—The CHANCELLOR of the
EXCHEQUER observed, that there were two modes of
proceeding open to Mr. Stafford—one, upon receiving
the statement he had mentioned, to carry it to the
proper department, or any department, of the government;
the other, if the matter were neglected, to call to
account the member of the government in that house