Page:History of the Radical Party in Parliament.djvu/319

 1841.] Accession of the Queen to Fall of Melbourne. 305 38 ; but another amendment to make the annuity .30,000 proposed by Colonel Sibthorp, was supported by Peel and hi ; party, and, taking also the Radical votes, it was carried by 262 votes to 158. Neither the sovereign nor her ministers were pleased with this decision, and Russell had shown his temper with regard to the amendment before the vote was taken, by a declaration that it showed a want of respect to the Queen. He did more harm than good by this ; he received rebukes from Peel and Graham, and had not authority to influence the vote in any appreciable degree. The wishes of the Cabinet had ceased to be an active power in politics. The Tories, however, were too sanguine in their calculations as to the extent of the Liberal dissensions, or, at least, as to the willingness of the Radicals to leave the Government to the tender mercies of the opposition. They found this out when anxious to try their strength at once, Sir J. Y. Buller, as early as the 28th of January, moved " that her Majesty's Government, as at present constituted, does not possess the confidence of this House." In the course of the debate, Ward, on behalf of the Radicals, justified their vote for ministers by showing the hopelessness of expecting any of the reforms for which they were anxious from the party to which Graham belonged. There was thus a united Liberal vote, and it gave the Government a majority of twenty-one. This was a much larger support than they had lately been in the habit of receiving, but it did not give them any assurance of increased power : it was given rather against Peel than in favour of Melbourne ; it represented neither symyathy in the country nor loyalty in the House ; and it did not in the least prevent the Peers from treating the ministerial proposals with contempt. Evidence of this was furnished when the Irish municipal question again came up. The ministerial proposals were very much milder than those which they had made when they first took office, but mild as they were the House of Lords made them still less effective. Morpeth moved the second reading of the bill on the I4th of February, and it was carried by 149 to 14, and the other stages were passed by large majorities. x