“‘I am very much obliged to you; indeed, I think you are _all_ very kind in trying to accommodate me; and I quite appreciate all you do; but I could not think of allowing you to do what you propose. You know the state the country is in; what terrible accounts we are constantly receiving from India; and what severe general distress there is. Although we may not be suffering from these calamities, it would be selfish and heartless in the extreme not to join with those who are, in praying for God’s mercy to deliver us out of these troubles.’ “‘Well, ma’am, that’s all very right, I dare say; and I don’t object to the thing itself; but what I object to is the way it is done in. I was reading the proclamation outside the Mansion House, the other day; and it says that the Queen _commands_ us all on that day to pray to Almighty God. Now, I don’t think any one has a right to command us to do anything of the sort; and, if I pray at all, I shall do it some other day.’ “‘I gave you credit for being a wiser man. What would become of law and order in this country, if some one had not the power to decide such things? There would be no end of contest and confusion. I don’t suppose that either you or I should make very good Sovereigns; but if there were no one else, it would be much better for the country to give one of us the power of saying what should or should not be done, rather than to leave every question open to be contested. And as to your taking offence at the expression, “her Majesty commands,” that is merely a form of words, meaning that her Majesty confirms the wish of the nation. The term itself is just as much of a form as the “Most Gracious Majesty” which is used to the really gracious and ungracious alike.’ “Another man then joined in, and said that he thought, ‘what the nation wanted more than fast-days was better government. The government was always getting the country into trouble, and then setting it to pray itself out of it again.’ “‘If that is the case, that would be a very good reason in itself for having a fast-day,’ I said, ‘that we might pray for better government.’ “Most of the men joined in this talk about governments. It was evidently a topic upon which they were much in the habit of conversing; and I could not but be struck with the shrewdness of their observations.