Page:History of the Radical Party in Parliament.djvu/94

 8o History of the Radical Party in Parliament. [1800- or convince him. As the autumn came on the European misfortunes increased. First came the news of the capitulation of Mack at Ulm, then the victory of Trafalgar gave relief ; but directly after, the Battle of Austerlitz and the secession of Austria from the confederation destroyed all chance of success. Before Parliament met in January, Pitt was lying hopelessly ill. The session opened on the 2ist of June, 1806, and on the 23rd the great minister died. On a consideration of the general character of Pitt as a statesman this is not the place to enter. Whether or not he would have made a good peace minister has been discussed with quite sufficient fulness by Macaulay and other writers. On one point most men are now agreed, he was not com- petent to deal with the difficulties of the terrible conflict which he had been one of the active instruments in provoking. A war against ideas and principles was easily aroused, but was not easy either to conduct with success or to close with honour. Pitt's whole later life was spent in the endeavour to control events which were too mighty for him ; and his responsibilities as a war minister gave him no chance of showing how he would have governed the country in which at one time his power seemed to be supreme. Yet what light is thrown upon the subject of his earlier official conduct, and his treatment of such political questions as were forced upon him in later years, does not enable us to form a very favour- able opinion either of his wisdom or of the real strength of his character. This we shall see if we try to ascertain how far his views and his actions affected the character and in- fluence of English parties, and facilitated or hindered their operation to the advantage or injury of the nation. When Pitt first took office, the cause of Liberalism, and especially that phase of it which was directed to obtain constitutional reform, was most favourably situated. It had been accepted by Chatham and by many of the Whig chiefs, the repre- sentatives of the great houses, and had been forced upon the national attention by the efforts of Fox, Sheridan, Wilkes, Junius, Sawbridge, Barre, Cartwright, and other speakers and