Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 7.djvu/465

 APPENDIX. 421 Duke of Wellmgton declared tliis belief to Colonel Buiibury, who had come out on behalf of the Government at home to confer with the illustrious general. It would be interesting and — I should imagme — instructive to know much more of what passed at such a time between the Duke and the representative of the home Government ; but I believe that, upon this subject, Sir Henry Bunbury was accustomed to maintain a very careful reserve. Note 26. — The last memorable act of Colonel — then Sir Hemy — Bunbury's oflicial life was not administrative, and I should therefore be accusing myself of irrelevancy if I were to mention it in the text, but I may speak of it here. It was he — a painful mission in which Lord Keith was associated with him, — it was he who, on board the Bellerophon, had to speak words of doom — St Helena ! — to the fallen Napoleon. The Government, to do them justice, were fully appreciative of Sir Henry Bunbury's services, and, indeed, they seem to have judged him capable of performing any kind of State duty ; for they not only offered to give him (with the same official status as before) the charge of the Colonial business, but subsequently pro- posed to appoint him Ambassador to the Porte. I must take this opportunity of confessing the great advantage I have derived from the thoroughly trustworthy writings of Sir Heniy Bunbury, and also from the very interesting Memoir of him by his son, the present Sir Charles. Note 27. — See the debates on Tierney's motion in 1816 and 1817 for the total abolition of the 'Office of War and Colonies.' Note 28. — I base this loyal surmise as to what the Crown would have done upon knowledge of what the Crown did, when, in later years, firmly advised. The Royal concessions were made by de- gi-ees, and indeed there are remnants of ' personal ' government which even now mar the symmetry of our War administration ; for it is the Field-Marshal commanding in chief, and not the Secretary of State, who still takes the Queen's pleasure upon the appointment of officers ; and I may add, that the Judge-Advocate (who, however, is a member of the ' Government ') still in person submits to the sovereign transactions within his department. These are blemishes of a serious kind, because their tendency is to be almost inviting mistake, if not, indeed, causing relapse, by keeping ' substance ' and ' form ' in a state of incessant contradic- tion ; but despite the two blots thus left staruig, there is no present room for doubting that the great constitutional change to which I refer has substantially taken effect. It has now been declared that the Secretary of State for War is not only answer- able to Parliament for the conduct of all army business, whether