The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-08-27 00:00:00

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hibiting the i.: trict registrars from practising in their own
courts.

A discussion ensued, in which several hon. members took
part, and, after 'ply from the Solicitor-General, the Bill
was rearl a s_cuud time.
Tile Oxford and Cambridge Universities (Statutes) Bill was
passed through Committee, and the Fugitive Offenders Bill
was read a third time.

The Petroleum (Hawking) Bill was also read a third time,
Mr. Warton's opposition to it being defeated by 61 to 10.
The Army Acts Consolidation Bill was read a second time,
Mr. 0. Morgan explaining that, with the exception of a few
verbal amendments, it was an exact reproduction of the
existing law.

On the second reading of the Appropriation Bill, Mr.
Ashmead-Bartlett proceeded at some length - and occasionally
called to order by the Speaker—to canvass the foreign policy
of the Government, on which he moved a Vote of Censure,
as tending to the dishonour and disintegration of the
Empire, and the isolation of England in Europe. Chiefly,
he dwelt on the sacrifice of the German alliance bequeathed
to the present Government by Lord Beaconsfield, ridiculed the
exploit of the " concert " at Dulcigno, and declared that in
the Greek affair our Government had played the part of a,
firebrand. He repeated also his condemnation of the aban-
donment of Candahar, and the apathy of the Government to
the advance of Russia in Central Asia, and criticized
severely the history of the "Peace with Dishonour" in the
Transvaal.

Mr. Gladstone, who replied in a sarcastic vein, said he
should dispose of Mr. Ashmead-Bartlett's charges by assert-
ing everything he denied and denying everything he as-
serted. lie could only attribute his diatribe to the intoler-
able pain of prolonged retention, and the effect of his
arguments was to give him every reason to believe the
Government to be perfectly right. Incidentally ,Mr. Glad-
stone said no terms could be better than the terms on which
the British Government stood with the Porte; and
in concluding his speech, said— " For my part, I
have no pretensions to offer an argumentative answer to
speeches such as that which the hon. member has delivered
to-night. Let me, however, tell him this :—.He is young;
he takes great pains (hear, hear); he has plenty of time to
gain instruction; he has plenty of time to unlearn and to
cast off error. Let him apply that time to good pur-
poses; but let him learn this, that if he wishes really to
make an impression on the world, if he wants really to
give aid to his friends or to inflict disaster on his adver-
saries, the very first lesson he must learn is to restrain his
universal and sweeping propositions within the bounds of
fact and actual experience, to submit himself to be taught
by the lessons of the world and the lessons of the day, and
to learn and know that moderation, reserve, consideration
for those with whom you have to deal, and the endeavour to
bring your propositions into exact conformity with the cir-
cumstances of the case, is for him and for everybody else
the very first condition of any useful and durable success.
(Cheers.)

Mr. Healy occupied some time in repeating the charges
against certain Irish magistrates which have already been
frequently discussed; and the Solicitor• General for Ireland
having replied, the Appropriation Bill was read a second
time.

Subsequently the Highways and Locomotives Act Amend-
ment Bill was passed through Committee and read a third
time; and Mr. Beresford Hope was moving the secend read-
ing of the Discharge of Contumacious Prisoners Bill, when
the House was counted out at twenty minutes past ten
o'clock,