expression to, _in this country_; and insinuated to him, that Lord Besborough’s offer was a snare laid by Lord John, and conceived from my having told him that Lord Chatham would certainly not bend. On the 22nd the Duke of Grafton told Mr. Conway that Lord Chatham had no objection to his proposing anything to the King in favour of Lord Edgcumbe, but would not himself: and the Duke added, “If the King would still grant it.” This made me fear another repulse. Mr. Conway, however, who scorned to bend to Lord Chatham’s haughtiness, desired his brother to ask an audience of the King, in order to make the proposals. Yet I obtained a delay till I should try to prevail on Lord Edgcumbe to accept the Bedchamber. In the mean time I met Lord Rockingham, who, taking me aside, laughed at the idea of Lord Besborough’s proposal; said it was a joke, and that Lord Chatham would only have laughed at them for it. I said, very seriously, “What, my Lord, have you sent Mr. Conway on a fool’s errand, and now disavow him?” He replied, the party knew nothing of it. Lord Besborough had done it from himself to prevent a rupture. I said Mr. Conway had received the proposal from the Duke of Portland. He said, he was sure not: yet so it proved. He pressed me earnestly to encourage Mr. Conway to resign. I said I could not take upon me to advise him to give up all he had. He laughed and said, it could not be for long; everything came round in this country. I replied, “Your Lordship, with twenty thousand pounds a year, talks very much at your ease; but Mr. Conway would have nothing in the world, and would not go into opposition to recover his fortune. He has told both Lord Chatham and the Duke of Grafton that he will not oppose.” This conversation was so ill taken, which was indifferent to me, that it broke off all correspondence between me and Lord Rockingham. I went to Mr. Conway and represented to him that they were trying to dupe him: that they now disavowed him, as they had done on Lord Chatham’s visit to the Marquis; and I added, that though Lord Rockingham affected to resent so warmly for him the treatment of Lord Chatham, his Lordship had treated him in the same manner the last spring on the establishment for the Princes. I wished to stop Mr. Conway from resigning till Lord Chatham should have gained the Bedfords from George Grenville; I wished to give Grenville time to involve himself in further declarations for liberty; I wished Mr. Conway to have a regiment again, which I had been the cause of his losing; and I was not unwilling to convince Lord Rockingham and Lord John Cavendish that Mr. Conway was not to receive orders from them. Of these four points, of which the second in truth would have availed little[302] but to disgrace Grenville if he returned to power, I accomplished all but one; and it will be soon seen that that, like many other prudential views, was defeated solely by the mismanagement of Lord Chatham. Wearisome contests it cost me for six