"Was there ever heard of such a thing,"
writes Lord Cloncurry, "as the almost yearly famine of this country,
abounding in all the necessaries of life, and endeavouring to beg or
borrow some of its own money to escape starvation."[116]
The Earl of Devon, a man eminently qualified to offer an opinion at such
a crisis, touched the true point, when he said, there was a matter which
he regarded as of still greater importance than public works, and that
was _the employment of the people in improving the soil and increasing
the productive powers of the country_.
All relief from Government ceased, as we have seen, on the 15th of
August. On the 17th, the Prime Minister went into a general statement of
what had been done by Sir Robert Peel's Government to meet the Irish
Famine. He detailed the measures adopted by them, in a spirit of
approval, like Lord Lansdowne, and dwelt, of course, with especial
laudation on the celebrated purchase of Indian meal;--its wisdom, its
prudence, its generosity, its secrecy--not disturbing the general course
of trade; its cheapness, coming, as it did, next in price to the potato,
which the Irish had lost. Beyond doubt, there never was such a wonderful
hit as that cargo of Indian meal.
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