Let us therefore examine what France has to gain in a change of Administration.

Certainly your present Ministers are _not_ much loved _now_ in France, not so much in consequence of the political events of last year themselves, than for the _manner_ in which they came to pass.

Nevertheless, when I was at Paris, King and Council were decided to sign the treaty with the four other Powers, which would put an end to the _isolement_, though many people are stoutly _for the isolement_.

There end the relations which will exist for some time between the two countries--they will be on _decent_ terms; that is all I wish for the present, and it is matter of moonshine who your Ministers are.

No doubt, formerly there existed such a predilection in favour of Lord Grey's[42] Administration and those who continued it, that the coming in of the Tories would have been considered as a great public calamity; but even now, though this affection is gone, the Tories will also be looked on with some suspicion.