'Not giving succour to Hannibal was indeed wrong, because he was already on land and was successful, and might have done something of the kind that Prince Eugene proposed, and marched with a torch to Versailles. But another poet says, I recollect a good deal of poetry to-day, another poet says, "Expende Hannibalem," "weigh him, weigh him." I have weighed him. What good did his glory procure to his country? Remember what the same poet says: "I, demens, curre per Alpes, ut pueris placeas et declamatio fias."' This flight, it may be surmised, was aimed at Cumberland. He once more expressed his dutiful feelings to the King, and acknowledged how difficult it was for Ministers to be honest with him. But yet the resistance to these treaties might save us from a Continental war. In any case, speaking for himself, he would never again give his confidence in the nation's advisers or adopters of this measure. He could only hope that our perverted Ministers might yet yield to conviction and save us, and that a British spirit might influence British councils. In the division which followed, the Hessian treaty appeared somewhat less acceptable than the Russian. The former was voted by 259 to 72 and the latter by 263 to 69. This was the net result. Yet, as Horace Walpole wrote at the time, 'Pitt had ridden in the whirlwind and directed the storm with abilities beyond the common reach of the genii of the tempest.' Eloquence, reason, and argument avail little against a compact parliamentary majority.[317] The reader will scarcely regret that an adjournment for Christmas followed this debate, for nothing is so tantalising as these barren husks of great speeches. The Minister employed his holiday appropriately in distributing gifts of office to his friends, and the reconstruction of the Government was completed. No part of it directly touches our story, but some features are of interest. The Dukes of Newcastle and Bedford, the Chancellor and Fox were each allowed to nominate a member of the Board of Trade. But Newcastle would not allow Fox a single voice in the appointment of the Lords of the Treasury; for he guarded that department with the jealousy of a Turk. The other point of interest was the cost to the public of these manipulations. To get rid of Sir Thomas Robinson it had been necessary to settle a pension on him of 2000_l._ a year for thirty-one years. To make a place for Lord Hillsborough, Mr. Arundel had a pension of 2000_l._ in exchange for the sinecure office of Treasurer of the Chamber. Lord Lothian had 1200_l._ a year to vacate the Clerk Registership of Scotland for Hume Campbell. Lord Cholmondeley, who held the Vice-Treasurership of Ireland with one colleague, had 600_l._ a year to induce him to accept a third partner of the office. Sir Conyers Darcy had 1600_l._ a year for vacating the Comptrollership of the Household. In all a burden of 7400_l._ a year was settled on the public to patch up a feeble and odious Ministry for ten months.