TEE CRISIS CF
77 1832,
m
advanced wing of the Whig party, who were just beginning 10
call themselves “ Radicals,” began to agitate for the abolition
of hereditary titles and the destruction of the Upper House,
The results of the effervescence of popular feeling were shown
when the cabinet once more introduced their bill; it passed
tapidly through the Commons, and after a hot debate in the
House of Lords its second reading was carried by a small
majority (April 14, 1832).
But the Whigs had not yet completed their victory. Instead
of openly throwing out the bill, the Tory peers tried another
device : they proposed to mutilate it by post- Attempts by
poning the clauses which disfranchised the rotteN the Lords to
boroughs, without which the bill was practically te the
useless, When this side blow was successful in
the Lords, Grey promptly resigned and challenged the opposi-
tion to take over the management of affairs if they dared. The
king sent for the Duke of Wellington, and invited him to form
a 'Tory cabinet. For seven days the Iron Duke contemplated
the possibility of facing the angry nation, and sounded his
party as to their willingness to take the risk. During that
week the nation was on the brink of civil war; many of the
more hot-headed leaders of the Whig party made preparations
for arming the members of the Reform associations and march-
ing on London, Others, with greater ingenuity, organized a
cun on the Bank of England, in the hope that the enemy would
not dare to face a financial as well as a political crisis. “To
stop the duke, go for gold” was the word passed round among
the merchants of London (May 8-15, 1832).
Fortunately for the peace of the realm, Wellington shrank
from the ibili accepting office, He
found chat it a AS S9rHE if de army could Wellington
be trusted to act against the people. His Tory Dis a
friends showed a general reluctance to accept the card ie A
Posts in his projected cabinet. Finally, he returned
to the king and advised him to send again for Lord Grey, as
