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An Appreciation Of King William Iv And His ReignTO the letters already given, which cover the seven years of William IV.'s reign, it seems appropriate to add two public utterances on the occasion of his death. The cuttings containing them are pasted in a MS. book belonging to Miss Clitherow's correspondent, himself a writer of repute,[*] and are preceded by the following notes: [*] The Rev. Edward Nares, D.D., Rector of Biddenden, Kent, and Regius Professor of Modern History in the University of Oxford. 'No King ever departed this life with less of blame attached to him as a King, or with more credit as a well-meaning, good-natured, high-minded man. No King ever more truly acted upon the noble principles of Louis XII. in forgiving, as King, all offences committed against him while Duke of Orleans. When the Duke of Wellington was the Minister of George IV., he saw fit, with a view to retrenchment in the public interest of unnecessary expenditure, to remove H.R.H. the Duke of Clarence from the office of Lord High Admiral. When H.R.H. succeeded to the Crown, not only was this not resented, but nothing could exceed the attentions the Duke of Wellington was in the way of receiving from His Majesty on all anniversaries of the Battle of Waterloo. He constantly honoured the Duke with his company at dinner, and lamented the necessity of being absent on June 18, 1837, only two days before he died. 'This striking instance of a greatness of mind highly becoming a King of Great Britain was alluded to by the Duke of Wellington in the House of Peers on the first day of their meeting after the King's demise. There is extant in print what I believe to be a very authentic relation of the magnanimity with which His Majesty, as King, forgave a bold attack upon him as Duke of Clarence in his presence in the House of Lords by the present Chief Justice of England, Lord Denman. I allude to a memorable speech of the latter at the Queen's trial in 1820. 'Praises and commendations of Kings and Queens are so liable to the suspicion of flattery that it cannot but be pleasant to a mind constitutionally loyal to be able to produce testimony to that effect of indisputable authority. In the course of a speech at the nomination of candidates for North Lancashire, Lord Stanley, not long since a member of a Whig Cabinet, said: "The country had just lost a Sovereign whose virtues and transcendent attributes had earned for him an immortal name. Those who knew least of His late Majesty did not hesitate to ascribe to him an ever anxious delight in being kind and affectionate to his people, attached to their wishes, and determined to administer to their comforts. He thought little of himself when promoting the happiness of those around him. Those who had ever an opportunity of coming into immediate contact with the late Sovereign could justly appreciate his excellent qualities. His attention to business, his candour of manner in listening to the arguments of his advisers, manifested a full knowledge of his constitutional duties. He (Lord Stanley) had witnessed how His late Majesty had declined asserting his prerogative when it in the slightest degree seemed to interfere with public officers in the discharge of their public duties. In the discharge of his duties as a Minister of the Crown it had happened on three occasions that His Majesty had felt a deep interest in the appointment of three individuals to office, and it did so happen that he could not meet the private wishes of the Sovereign in making those appointments, and he intimated to His Majesty the public grounds on which he would rather they were not made. His Majesty immediately with pleasure declined pressing his own views, which, he said, were secondary compared with the public business of the country."' This eulogium is confirmed by several passages in Miss Clitherow's letters. The next extract is prefaced in her correspondent's MS. as follows: 'Of the King's last moments nobody had a better account to give than the Archbishop of Canterbury, who was with him, and who had it in his power to bear undeniable testimony to the affectionate and unwearying attentions of the Queen to the very last. Before His Majesty's funeral I had this confirmed to me by the Archbishop himself, who also told me that he had already seen the young Queen preside in three Councils with singular propriety, dignity, and decorum, adding much in praise of the good education she had received.' Extract from the speech of the Archbishop (Howley) of Canterbury at a meeting of the Metropolitan Churches' Fund: 'I attended on our late Sovereign during the last few days of his life, and, truly, it was an edifying sight to witness the patience with which he endured sufferings the most oppressive, his thankfulness to the Almighty for any alleviations under his most painful disorder, his sense of every attention paid to him, the absence of all expressions of impatience, his anxiety to discharge every public duty to the utmost of his power, his attention to every paper that was brought to him, the serious state of his mind, and the devotion manifested in his religious duties preparatory to his departure for that happy world where we may humbly hope he has now been called. Three different times was I summoned to his presence the day before his dissolution. He received the sacrament first; on my second summons I read the Church Service to him, and the third time I appeared the oppression under which he laboured prevented him from joining outwardly, though he appeared sensible of the consolation I offered him. For three weeks prior to the dissolution the Queen had sat by his bedside, performing for him every office which a sick man could require, and depriving herself of all rest and refection. She underwent labours which I thought no ordinary woman could endure. No language can do justice to her meekness and to the calmness of mind which she sought to keep up before the King while sorrow was preying on her heart. Such constancy of affection, I think, was one of the most interesting spectacles that could be presented to a mind desirous of being satisfied with the sight of human excellence.' William IV.--a good husband, a good father, a good King, a good friend--was indeed a happy contrast to the selfish, if more gifted, brother who preceded him on the throne. He was an eminently constitutional monarch, popular and patriotic. His reign was short, and, though not free from riot and disturbance, was mainly characterized by peace, retrenchment, and reform. Its social legislation included the Reform Bill, the abolition of slavery, the Factory Acts, the New Poor Law, and the Tithe Commutation Act, while the modest grant of L20,000 per annum was the first recognition by the State of its duty respecting the education of the people. At the same time, the Empire was expanding, the colony of South Australia was established, and its capital bore the name of the King's devoted and sympathetic consort. Thus the first steps were taken in many important movements for the welfare of the people and the Empire, which, under his great and good successor, were supported and developed, and the way was made plain for the young Queen, to whom the nation looked with such well-founded hope, whose long and glorious reign has been so abundantly blest, and whose memory will ever be cherished with honour and respect. GOD SAVE THE KING! Next: In The Beginning Previous: Death Of The King
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