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Canning and Canning out of office combined to urge on the ministry to a vigorous prosecution of the Peninsular war and a cordial support of Lord Wellington. Sir Archibald Alison is mistaken in asserting that the whole burden of defending the Peninsular war in the House of Commons during the ministry of Mr. Perceval devolved on Lord Castlereagh, because Canning had gone abroad. Canning was in his place in parliament and spoke brilliantly in support of the war in 1810, 1811, and 1812. But in spite of all that he could do the war was not conducted to the satisfaction of Lord Wellesley, who, early in 1812, retired from the ministry. The assassination of Perceval followed soon afterwards, and then came another interregnum, during which fruitless efforts were made to form a united administration in which Wellesley and Canning and Lords Grey and Grenville should all have places. The failure of the negotiations was really owing to the fact that the prince regent reserved to himself the right of naming the prime minister, thus violating one of the cardinal doctrines of the whig creed; and in the end he was obliged to fall back upon Lord Liverpool, who offered the foreign office to Canning, coupled, however, with the condition that Lord Castlereagh must lead the House of Commons. On these terms Canning refused the offer, though it is hardly to be doubted that he regretted his refusal afterwards. He used to say himself that two years of the foreign office at that time would have been worth ten years of life. However, the die was cast, and his rival was installed for life.

Canning's article on the bullion question in the ‘Quarterly Review’ has been noticed, and such was the readiness with which he mastered questions not naturally congenial to him that in the great currency debates of 1811 he showed to no disadvantage by the side of Huskisson and Horner. These gentlemen represented the views of the ‘bullion committee’ of which Horner had been chairman, recommending that the Bank of England should be compelled to resume cash payment within two years. The government opposed the resolutions embodying the views of the committee, partly on the anti-bullionist theory in favour of an inconvertible paper currency, partly on the ground that the time was ill chosen. Canning took a middle course, agreeing with one half of the government argument, and dissenting from the other. He was in theory a decided bullionist. But he thought cash payments could not be resumed till the restoration of peace, and on that understanding the question rested for the moment. When in 1814 it was resumed, Canning was out of England, and took no part in the further postponements, which eventually reached to 1819.

At the general election of 1812 Canning was returned for Liverpool, on which occasion he made the memorable declaration that his political allegiance was buried in the grave of Pitt. Seeing no probability of any immediate return to office, he in the following year disbanded the small party of friends who had followed his fortunes in the House of Commons, and in 1814 left England for Lisbon. The journey was undertaken in the first instance for the benefit of his son's health, but Lord Liverpool as soon as he heard of it pressed on him the post of ambassador extraordinary at Lisbon. After remaining there for nine months Canning repaired with his family to the south of France, where he spent about a year, and returned to England in the summer of 1816, when he became president of the board of control. The circumstances of his appointment to Lisbon gave rise to a vote of censure in the House of Commons, to which Canning's reply is one of the greatest monuments of his genius which he has left behind him. A message had been sent home from Lord Strangford, the English ambassador at Brazil, to the effect that the king of Portugal would like to return to Europe under British protection. The ministers determined to appoint an ambassador extraordinary to receive him at Lisbon, and Canning was selected for the post. It turned out, after Canning's arrival at his post, that the king had changed his mind. But it was urged by Mr. Lambton, the mover of a vote of censure on the appointment, that it had been known all along that he never intended to come; that the appointment therefore was a simple job, and the salary (14,000l. a year) under any circumstances excessive. Canning made mincemeat of his assailant, and no more was ever heard about the Lisbon ‘job.’

Between 1817 and 1820 the English ministry had to deal with two separate conspiracies of which the avowed objects were the plunder of society and the overthrow of the constitution. That the means at the disposal of the conspirators were ridiculously disproportioned to their ends, that they themselves were men of no ability, and that, after their schemes were discomfited, they appeared to be contemptible, may readily be granted. But the swell of the great revolutionary storm was still agitating Europe. The English conspirators were known to be in communication with foreigners; if despicable, they were still desperate; and though they might be incapable