Growing Unpopularity of the Melbourne Administration--The Stockdale Case--Approaching Fall of the Government--Financial Embarrassments--Lord John Russell’s Proposal with Respect to the Corn Laws--Defeat of the Ministry--General Election, and Conservative Majority--Views of Prince Albert--Settlement of the “Bedchamber” Question--Wise Counsel of the Prince and Baron Stockmar--Visits of the Queen to Places of Interest--Troublesome Loyalty--Launch of the _Trafalgar_--The Melbourne Government and Free Trade--Speech from the Throne on the Meeting of the New Parliament--Vote of Want of Confidence in the Government--Resignation of Ministers--Final Years of Lord Melbourne--Formation and Chief Objects of Sir Robert Peel’s Administration--The High Church Movement in England--Disruption of the Church of Scotland--Lord Melbourne’s Opinion of Prince Albert--Sir Robert Peel and the Prince--Public Appearances of the Latter in Connection with Social and Artistic Questions--Birth and Christening of the Prince of Wales--Meeting of Parliament for the Session of 1842--Splendid Festivities at Court--Attempts of Francis and Bean to Shoot her Majesty. As the year 1841 advanced, the Melbourne Ministry, which had never occupied a strong position since the General Election of 1837, grew weaker and weaker. In many respects, the Government was a good one. It carried through some excellent reforms, and was for the most part animated by a liberal and benevolent spirit. Yet its administrative powers were faulty; it was repeatedly falling into awkward blunders; it was afflicted with continual deficits; it was unpopular, and it contrived to draw the Queen herself into the orbit of its own disfavour. Education was advanced, though in a very hesitating and tentative fashion; colonisation was promoted; some of the most elementary rights of married women were recognised by statute; the poor climbing-boys, as we have seen, were protected from the cruelty of being compelled to ascend chimneys; the Postal system was reformed; many other things were at least attempted. But people could not forget the mistakes and shortcomings of the Ministry, nor regard with enthusiasm a body of statesmen who often moved with reluctance, and sometimes moved not at all; who had a certain facility in offending others, and yet depended for their official existence on the precarious support of their opponents. As if to make matters worse, they got into a controversy with the law-courts, in consequence of an action brought by a publisher named Stockdale against the Messrs. Hansard, printers to the House of Commons, for issuing, in 1836, certain Reports on Prisons, one of which contained serious reflections on the plaintiff. The Court of Queen’s Bench gave judgment in favour of Stockdale; the Government and the House of Commons championed the printers; a good deal of unseemly action and