Last night, John Bidwell, who dined with me, brought the news of the surrender of Mason and Slidell, which had reached the Foreign Office at four o'clock to-day. Lyons had sent a telegram to say that Seward had notified to him that the prisoners would be delivered up when and where he pleased, and that a voluminous despatch would be forwarded by the mail. This news was announced at some of the theatres and received with great cheering. It is curious that Lyons wrote only the day before these men were surrendered that he had very faint hope that they would be given up, and the mission had begun to pack up, to be ready for a start. Great disgust is felt here at the measure which has been resorted to by the Federals of sending vessels laden with stones, in order to destroy the harbour of Charleston: a rather barbarous mode of warfare.
The Queen held a Privy Council on Monday, which was attended only by Newcastle, Granville, and Sir George Grey. Her Majesty keeps entirely to her private apartments, and excepting the Royal Family, sees no one, not even her usual attendants, with the exception of Phipps and Lady Augusta Bruce, who is now all in all to her, and through whom all her orders pass. The difficulty as to the Private Secretaryship to the Queen is not yet solved; Palmerston, it is said, does not approve of a joint Secretaryship in the persons of Grey and Phipps, and there may be objections to such an arrangement; but no one could be so useful to the Queen as Grey, who is cognisant of all the Prince's affairs and wishes as to the correspondence he has left, which is very voluminous, and must be very curious. Phipps is said to be fond of power and influence (I can speak from my own experience that he is obliging and courteous), Charles Grey to be prejudiced and self-willed, though very straightforward and independent; but neither of these men is quite fitted for so important and delicate a post.
SOURCE: Alice Countess of Stratford, Leaves from the Diary of Henry Greville: 1861-1872, pp. 7-8
No comments:
Post a Comment