The Croker Papers - 1885 Author:John Wilson Croker Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER IIL 18141816. Passages In King's Ships -- Application from Lord Byron -- Mr. Gladstone of Liverpool -- The Brief Peace of 1814 -- Monument to W... more »ellington in the Phoenix Park -- The 'New Whig Guide' -- A Visit to Paris -- Letter to Canning -- Paris after the War -- Fouchc and Talleyrand -- Anecdotes of Buonaparte -- Journal of Events in 1S15 -- Intended Duel between Peel and O'Connell -- Parliamentary Encounter between Mr. Croker and Mr. Tierney -- The Elgin Marbles -- Mr. Canning's Mission to Lisbon -- Napoleon in Exile -- Peel on " Papal Superstition " in Ireland -- The Rombardment of Algiers -- Walter Scott on Byron's ' Politics and Morality' -- Letter to Dr. Croly on the Question whether Dryden's and Pope's Works were becoming obsolete -- Popular Disturbances in 1816 -- A Curious Coincidence. One of the advantages incidental to the office of Secretary of the Admiralty in Mr. Croker's day was the opportunity which it occasionally conferred of obtaining a passage in a King's ship to some foreign port -- a privilege which was highly valued, not only because it was much pleasanter to make a voyage in a vessel of the Boyal Navy than in an ordinary merchantman, but also because in that disturbed period, when hostile ships were encountered on almost every sea, a comparative degree of safety could be enjoyed in a Boyal frigate. Many were the applications which Mr. Croker received for these favours, which, after all, he could only secure by using his influence with the commanders of the vessels, for he had no power or authority ofhis own to grant them. As a matter of course, however, the influence of the Secretary was great, and it seldom failed to accomplish the desired purpose. But there were seasons when nothing whatever could be done, and this happened to he the...« less