never dreaming that any alteration was contemplated, when George Grey said to him, 'You know Palmerston is going to oppose Locke King's motion' (for leave to bring in his Bill). Lewis expressed his surprise, and asked what had happened to set aside the unanimous agreement come to in the Cabinet. Grey said there had been a dinner at Charles Wood's, at which certain Ministers were present (whom he named, but I forget if Palmerston was one), when the question had been discussed, and the result had been to make a change in their opinions, and Palmerston had agreed that Locke King should be opposed _in limine_. This Lewis told me he regarded as a fatal error, to which they owed the dilemma in which they found themselves placed. But what struck me most was the mode of doing business of such importance, and that there should not be found a single individual to protest against it, and to resign his office rather than to submit to be so dragged through the mire; but the present doctrine seems to be that _Palmerston's_ Government must be held together at any price, and this is the more curious when it is obvious to me that his colleagues, while conscious of the difficulty of doing without him, have an exceedingly mean opinion of his intrinsic value. I told Lewis all that Disraeli had said to me about him as well as about Palmerston, when he expressed his surprise at the manner in which Disraeli had spoken of _him_, for which he was not at all prepared, but said _he estimated Palmerston at his real worth_. He told me of Harrowby's resignation on account of his health, and that his place had been offered to Clanricarde, and wanted to know if I thought Clanricarde would be objected to.[1] We talked of the stories which John Russell had heard of, about our being on bad terms with France, and the Emperor Napoleon out of humour with us, and of Palmerston's meditating hostile designs against Russia, all of which he said were pure fabrications, as we were on the best terms with France, and Palmerston entertained no hostile designs against Russia or any other Power. We both agreed that our hands were too full to think of any fresh quarrels or aggressions, and I found him of the same opinion as myself about our arbitrary and dictatorial system, and of the mischief it had done, and as much with reference to the slave trade as any other question. [Sidenote: THE CASE OF THE 'NEWPORT.'] I told him of the slave case just decided in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and of the sum of money it would cost our Government, to say nothing of the mortification. He said no doubt Palmerston would proclaim it to be a wrong decision, and would defend the Foreign Office and all the agents who had been concerned in the outrage.[2] Footnote 1: [The Earl of Harrowby held the office of Lord Privy Seal. He was succeeded by the Marquis of Clanricarde, which proved a very unpopular appointment.]