The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1882-08-29 00:00:00

BIR BTAFFORD NORTHOOTE ON THE CONSER-
VATIVE PARTY AND THE GOVERNMENT.

131 r Stallord Neethoote met the leaden ot the Oon-
vervative Amodetten, M the Imperial Barton Hotel,
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Weymouth, on Thursday morning. Alter Mr. Moms,
president of the Association, had presented an addrses,
expressing their deep seam of gratitude for his
indefatigable efforts in furtherance of the Conservative
came, especially daring the past session of Parliament,
it Bra:FORD NOIrriIOOTI, in reply, said :—Mr.
Mercer, and gentlemen,—l am very much obliged, I can
ninny, you, for the kindness which has prompted you
to come this morning and give me this address, which
I shall value, and which I am sure will be a pleasant
record of my visit. I need not my to you that of course
I bad ho politic al object whatever in coming here, or
Indeed should I have thought it right to attempt to
make anything of a political visit at this time. I
:Unsay you remember that one of the characters in
Skakspeare infor ms us that there are pampa with whom
time gallope,and others with whom time stands sti 11, and
bistanoes as those with whom time stead still, the law'
yen, became they sleep during the vacation from term
to term. Ide not know whether the same thing might
not apply to members of Parliament. We might
have expected to be allowed to sleep between ses.ion
and session, especially as the intervals now are so
very short, and I do n it know whether we shall have
any intervals left at all, it matter, go on in the way
they promise to do. (Laughter.) I have been deeiroue
as far as possible to get • little rest between this and
the autnm session, and I found it was a very prifit.
able way of doing so by making my way along the sea
meat, and I must say, that of the many places I have
visited, there are none where I have enjoyed myself
more than I hate here. You have a fine open sea,
and you have • grand sight in that great Chesil Beach,
whist: always uminds me of the Conservative Party
which, though it is washed over from time to time,
manages to came right afterwaris. (Hear, hear,
and laughter). We shall find the suns thing Is
the cue with the Conservative Party through-
out the o iuntry now. (Hew.) I have to oon-
grAulate Won the ',bit, the Prime Minister s-ems to
have pal I you, and without doing you any damage at
aIL I cannot help thinking that if be lad been here
still, and had beard of this meeting, he theory ot
what is due to himself in Hilf.defenos might have IM
him to take some etr ing meseures by way of bombard-
ing Weymouth. (Hear, bear, and laughter.) But be
seems to have gone away without doing any great
mischief, but when we :met again I doubt not we shall
find he has been preptred to carry on the wag in the
same way as he has been doing ever since Parliament
not. There was a thing said some years ago by Lord
Salisbury, when he and I were colleagues together.
At the time of the General Election be was addressing
his constituents, when he said —" I do not know what
this new Parliament will do; but this I will venture
to pre hot—that whatever it is elected to do, it will do
IX tinily the contrary." Undoubtedly if we look back
to what Parliament was elected to do, and oompare it
with what it has done, we son, think that, is some
Utile application of that saying to the present time.
Certainly, no one expected to find that when this Par-
liament had been In existeme two or three years, and
this Government had its full swing all the time—we
should find ourselves in such a Mote of affairs. We
never expected to find that we could only govern Ire-
land by strong o mrcion, settle foreign affairs by going
to war, and o:ily manage the Hou.e of Com-
mons itself by endeavouring to stop all free-
dom and liberty of debate. (Hew, bear.) These are
strange things, and there are a good many questions
In the whole situation which an also very perplexing,
and it seems Mr. Gladstone has been acting upon the
winded' to which, rein turning to Sharron*. we have
anirstanoe in the word. ot Benedict, when he said that
when he was • bachelor he never thought he should live
to be minted; and when Kr. °tartar dissected said
stoner the policy of Lord Beronefiell, he never thought
that he should live to adopt it. (Hex, and laughter.)
There is something in that thought of great consolation to
us, for we ;ow see that those things which we were told
were Naiad the rural law, were only against the moral
law when ire did Mem—lhear, aqi learhten—not against
the moral law when other people' did them and we have
• little completion in thinking we have contributed
moinepting toward. the vigorous prosecution of the
present campaign in Egypt. This should be brew
In mind when we are told how extravagant
we were sad how =soh we expended in
venerator We now see we have done two things; in
the first place we prevented • very serious °minimisation
and a very serious war, which mast have broken out
throuah the capture of Constantinople, which we alone
revented—auser. Merl—and secondly, in regard to the
very money we expended, we see that • great deal of that
money ban been of the greater possible series to the
Government at the present moment Amongst the
ships employed in the service Is Egypt were many that
were actually purchard Vote out of the Vo vf Credit we ob-
tain I. We thought it might be nevus ore, for u.t o set ve r
rapidly and vigorously, but we fu id tit.t Enrage did not
exist at the time for rapid action; vs found it would lake
a longtisnetoClict a holy of soli dent fora and send
It out properly f merely* wherever it might be
required. We obtained the mean., mad hesomi pot sh.
Iltitish forme on a much better footing than Wore, We
sow see the result of that prudent policy. I think that la
to be horse in mind wino we are told that wa were very
and then gentlemen so esteem:sly monomical
How far the economy goes Ida not know; we &retold they
are taking a notch from us with regard to making India
pay, which we were -Id was a very wicked thing; but
when this war was entered into by these good people, I
supy re the end justified the Olean.. We see :kg curious
addition to the Inoome-tm, and I doe't know that we
fee* Moo the end of it yet. We have a good many things
to pay for; we have not only this BrYntiais war, but we
have this Irish policy, and it looks a. if Kr. Parnell does
not intend ua to come to the end of teat; for this new
proclamation is vary significant, and seem to point to
further grievances and demands upon on We will not
think of all tree matters now; but look forward to what
will take place in this autumn. Ido say it will be a Very
curious session. and I do not think any proposition is
likely to effect the object which Mr. Gladstone rarer
to aim at. I very much doubt whether any alteration of
raise will economise time I think the rent of the evil
Is deeper than 014 In the meantime I would take
the liberty of saying am glad to find there is this gpillt
arrest our friend& not only hare, but in many other
wee of the coustry—a spirit of determination tabs ready
ler any Great when it meow, and we (*.not say how soon
It may be. It might have been a little tine ego; it may
be next year; it may be sooner than we anticipete ; we
must not allow ourselves to be taken by sondes TM
greet thing is to have steady work ; to have our men all
ready, our candidates all ready. to organise well, sad be
prepared to do everything which will his mirth*" when
the time c wee. I would ask gentlemen In Ms time try
to keep u• as well informed ea porble in London, where
oar Csotrel Amoeiation is desirous of co-operating, as far
gm pc...ibis, with the local Associations—not interfering
with thenr—w• desire as far as possible to avoid thet,
but wherever it Ma be done to give aserstmes by conned
or by wading glesoll to forst in lecturing, or other-
wise helping you in your work. We boLiithere will he
cordial and good feeling between us in don and the
proving.. sad the result will be, when time comae.
that we rail go on to victory in the way the Orserative
party ought. (Applause.) I am mach obliged for the
kindness you have shown me, and I am very glad to have
mat my friend Sir Indent% whom I sball always vaise
yeses, a. your reprewentative. (Applause-)
fiEnFanglUC Joss:rose, On behalf Of the Associainn,
*waked Sir Stafford for his flannel* in snatiast the
interview, asenring_him this would be • red latter day in
the annals of the Weymouth Oraervative and Ckinstitu-
Venal Association.
Sir Stafford and the party then separated.
Among those who waited on Sir Stafford were :--Sir
Frederic Johnstone, Bait-. M.P., Mr. John Demists,
General Baugh, Dr. Smith, magistrate, Kama Melrose
J. Groves, Snook, Zillerood Killed/8, James Robertson;
mmistrate Dr. Simpson, Gibbs, Colonel Stanley Soilk
iaam ii. Mangle, Reynolds. Talbot, Dr. Moorhead,
Smith, Aylesbury, J. Berridge. Curtis, Town Councillor,
G F. Arden, J. 6.110 M, Cripp ~ Lee, Captain Neale. Kr.
J. Vincent, to.. to. Taltleaseli barely occupied a quarter
of an hour, the party Sir Stafford at kali-past 10,
sad oat of this the permutation of address mast be
reakosed. and Sir Frederic: Johnston,.', speech.

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