The Express.
London, England, 1867-04-13 00:00:00

THE NUCCR.93 or THE GOVERNMENT.

The Times describes the Reform Bill as having
escaped a mortal blow, and will not pretend to regret it.
Mr. Gladstone's amendment was framed so as to catch
votes from all corners of the house, but such devices are
rarely successful, and this particular one met the fate it
richly deserved. The majority of Mr. Gladstone's sup-
porters were bent either on throwing overboard reform
altogether to another season, or sought with Mr. Glad-
stone himself a refuge from imaginary terrors in • M.
rating franchise. The success of the amendment must
have been followed by the withdrawal of the bill, and the
Times rejoices that the good sense of the House of Com-
mons has saved the country from such a disaster. It is,
indeed, time to recognise the truth that no bill can, under
any circumstances, be passed which will not have some
one or more of its features distasteful to separate
sections of the house, and if all the discontented groups
persist in uniting upon an amendment so drawn as to ex-
press nothing but the fact of this partial dissatisfaction,
legislation must be impossible. This is the course Mr.
Gladstone offered to the committee. It is to be hoped
that the failure will not seriously diminish the influence
of the opposition in the further conduct of the bill. That
it must to some extent take away from their power is in-
evitable, and the consideration of such • consequence
ought to have prevented a division on a misleading issue.
, There are provisions in the bill which require careful
scrutiny, and some which must be considerably modified.
Let the liberal party unite in securing the changes which
are thus necessary.

The Daily Nrw;e—retaining its opinion as to the mischie-
vous character of the clause which debars the compound
householder from exercising the electoral privilege placed
within his reach, save at en expense of money, time, and
trouble which are not required from others, and which
cannot justly be exacted from him--cannot conse-
quently rejoice over the result of the division. The minis-
terial majority was swelled by a considerable contingent
from the ranks of the opposition, who fancy that the
! cheeks and restrictions of the bill will sooner or later be
removed, and leave it, in the course of a few years, a law
! d household miffrage, pure and simple. It is sufficient
to remind such reformers of the obligation which rests
with them. They have enabled the government to
retain the moat objectionable and invidious restriction on
household suffrage. They must now do what they can to
lihendixe the remaining provisions of the bill, and to coun-
teract by wise use of the authority to alter the law of
rating which Mr. Coleridge's instruction confers on the
committee the inequitable arrangements which they have
saddled on the compound householders. The power is in
their hands. They have bought it for a price ; and it is
their duty to see that so far as possible they have their
quid pro quo. With regard to the debate, Mr. Disraeli
never had a better opportunity for that kind of ambiguous
appeal in which he excels, and by means of which he ap-
pears to have convinced many liberals that he was open to
compromise on every important point save that which was
actually under discussion. An indecorous attempt by Mr.
Disraeli to dissever Mr. Gladstone from the leadership of
the liberal party, and to propitiate the house by &spun.
ing him, provoked a spirited declaration from the object of
attack of the conditions on which he holds his poet, which
will strengthen him in it.