Volume II Part 31 (2/2)

But Lord Fitzwilliam had not done with Ireland yet. On his return to England, he brought the subject before the House of Lords and demanded an inquiry, which was refused. On this occasion some letters which had been addressed by him to Lord Carlisle were published, and in one of them ”imputed malversations” were attributed to Mr. Beresford. In consequence of this statement, Mr. Beresford addressed the following letter to his Lords.h.i.+p:

MR. BERESFORD TO THE EARL FITZWILLIAM.

No. 11, Beaumont Street, June 22nd, 1795.

MY LORD,

Your Lords.h.i.+p must have seen two letters to the Earl of Carlisle, which have been published in your name, and in general circulation.

I have for a long time hoped, that they would be disavowed or explained by your Lords.h.i.+p; I was unwilling to suppose that such a publication had ever been sanctioned by you; I could not bring myself to believe, that your Lords.h.i.+p, possessing the feelings of a man, and the honour of a gentleman, could avail yourself of the power and the trust which had been committed to you by His Majesty, wantonly to traduce a private character, by insinuations expressed in terms so vague and unqualified, as to make it impossible publicly to refute them. From the rank which you hold in society, I must presume, if you thought it your duty to impeach my conduct as a servant of the Crown, you would have adopted the fair and manly course of advancing direct and specific charges against me, which must have led to my conviction, if they had been founded. Direct and specific charges I could fairly have met and refuted; but crooked and undefined insinuations against private character, through the pretext of official discussion, your Lords.h.i.+p must allow are the weapons of a libeller.

The publication in question, states that you recommended my removal from office, ”because I was a person under universal heavy suspicions, subject to the opprobrium and unpopularity attendant on maladministration and much imputed malversation.” The aspersions contained in this paragraph, are so utterly ungrounded, so unprovoked, unmanly, illiberal, and false, that I could not believe your Lords.h.i.+p could have meant to apply them to a gentleman, by birth your equal, and I will tell you, of reputation as unsullied as your own at any period of your life; there is no charge, however monstrous, of which the idea is not here conveyed; and yet there is none to which the paragraph points directly, so as to afford an opportunity for vindication.

Your Lords.h.i.+p will, I trust, feel the justness of the warmth with which I express myself on those aspersions of my character; and that when I give the lie to such aspersions, I give it upon reasonings as essential to your honour, as they are to mine; and if anything were wanting to induce me to believe that your Lords.h.i.+p will concur with me in this opinion, I should be satisfied of it, from the communications which were made to me by persons authorized to convey your Lords.h.i.+p's sentiments upon my projected removal from the Board of Revenue, and from the official communication made to me by Lord Milton on the same subject.

Considerations of domestic calamity might sufficiently explain the silence I have hitherto observed; but in other respects I should have been unwilling perhaps to have addressed you sooner. I would not appear to avoid any inquiry into my conduct, which insinuations originating from such high authority might be expected to provoke; it became me, therefore, to await with patience the result of the discussions respecting Irish affairs which were taking place in both Parliaments, and even until the close of the session had shown that it was not your Lords.h.i.+p's intention, nor that of either House, to take any further step in the business. I cannot now repent of my own forbearance, as it served, at least, to bring forward testimonies most highly honourable to me, from many individuals of the first weight and character in the age in which we live; these testimonies having been so repeatedly and so publicly urged in your Lords.h.i.+p's presence, and without contradiction on your part, cannot but have convinced you, that you had formed a wrong judgment respecting me, or that you had been deceived by others; in either case, I am ent.i.tled to hope and to presume that you will render to me, and to my character, that justice which one man of honour has a right to expect from another.

I have the honour to be, Your most obedient and humble servant, BERESFORD.

Earl Fitzwilliam.

To this letter Lord Fitzwilliam transmitted the following reply:

EARL FITZWILLIAM TO MR. BERESFORD.

Milton, June 23rd, 1795.

SIR,

I had the honour of receiving your letter of the 22nd this morning.

The letters you allude to, were written by me to Lord Carlisle; and those printed, though not printed by my direction, at my desire, or with my privity, I believe to be substantially copies of the letters I sent to Lord Carlisle; and certainly are so with respect to the quotation in your letter to me, which, therefore, I cannot permit any person whatever to charge with falsity.

It is difficult for me to leave this place abruptly (domestic considerations require a little management); but I will be in London in the course of a few days, where I trust I may rely upon your remaining for the present.

I have the honour to be, Sir, Your most obedient and very humble servant, WENTWORTH FITZWILLIAM.

Rt. Hon. John Beresford.

In consequence of this letter Mr. Beresford sent his friend Mr.

Montgomery to Lord Fitzwilliam, who refused to enter into any explanation. The usual arrangements were then made for a hostile meeting, Lord Townshend acting as the second of Mr. Beresford, and Lord Moira attending Lord Fitzwilliam. When the parties met upon the ground, however, at Kensington, the duel was prevented by the interference of a peace officer.

The correspondence of Lord Grenville with Lord Buckingham appears to have been suspended during the greater part of the year, but it was resumed towards its close. By this time the allies were gradually retrieving their losses.

LORD GRENVILLE TO THE MARQUIS OF BUCKINGHAM.

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