The Express.
London, England, 1861-05-27 00:00:00

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LONDON, MONDAY, MAY 27.

ON the last night of the last desultory debate
onthe Budget the leader of the Opposition made
what he himself would probably call an obscure
and menacing allusion to the course he and his
friends might think it right to take on the future
stages of the Bill. And, if report speaks truly,
this ambiguous utterance is to be interpolated '
by the action of the party in Committee to-
night. It is rumoured that Mr. D 1811.111.1 will
this evening resist the resolutions relating
to the Paper Duty, and that to meet the an-
ticipated division, • secret but most urgent whip
has already been made amongst his followers.
We by no means vouch for the truth of this
report. No formal notice of any such opposition
has been given. There is, indeed, nothing adverse
to the Budget on the books, except the unfortu-
nate proposition which poor Mr. NZWDROATZ
picked up after it had been contemptuously
rejected by the leaders of the party. But even
had a formal notice been given, this would have
furnished no reliable index to the proceedings of
the Opposition. The policy of the Tories on the
Budget has varied so widely not only from day to
day, but from hour to hour during the rune even-
in& that until • division is actually taken it would
be rash and precipitate in the extreme to predict I
the precise point on which it would eventually be •
made to turn. It cannot be denied, however,
that the terms of Mr. DISRAILLI'S allusion to the '
resistance that might yet be offered to the Bill
seem to favour the current report. Finding the I
attack on the form of the Budget a failure, the I
right hon. gentleman excused himself from oppos- I
ing the second reading of the Bill on the ground
of having assented to some of its resolutions. As
• matter of fact, the Opposition assented not to
some of the resolutions only, but to all that are
contained in the Bill. But with an eye to future
contingencies Mr. DI/MAUI deemed it expedient
to except those relating to the Paper Duty, as
having been framed under • reservation of right
to discuss them at a future stage. "We at first
" agreed," said the right hon. gentleman, Lin the
last sentence of his speech, " to the passing of
" the resolutions, in order that the Bill founded ,
upon them might be brought in, reserving to
" ourselves the right—upon the occasion which
" might seem to us proper and fitting, and is the
" manner which we might deem the most judi-
" dons, the moat conducive to the public interest,
" and the best calculated to attain the end which
"we desired—to challenge • policy which, speak-
" log generally, we entirely disapprove."
We cannot honestly say that the right bom
gentleman has hitherto been very happy either in
the matter, the manner, or the time of his opposi-
tion to the Budget. But it is never too late
to mend. The Opposition have lately had some
fresh lessons in the school of political adversity,
and it is possible they may have learnt wisdom
from the painful experience. The resumption of
the discussion will in • few hours show whether
this is the case or not. Meanwhile a word of
seasonable advice may be given. We protest on
public grounds against any repetition of that
purely factious opposition to the Budget of which
Parliament and the country have had more than
enough. If the financial propositions of the Go-
vernment are to be still further resisted, let the
opposition be conducted with at lead some show
of consistency and self-respect, some regard for
parliamentary usage and public convenience.
Hitherto these considerations have been treated
with • reckless indifference which is fortunately
rare in our parliamentary history. Mr. 0 Larerroare
yea, indeed, perfectly right in stating that the course
pursued by the Opposition is unexampled. We
venture to say that no great party in this country
ever attempted to resist an important Government I
measure in a manner so frivolous, fluctuating, and
contradictory. The grounds of objection have
been, even in the same debate, not only altogether
different, but so opposed as virtually to exclude
each other. Almost as many contradictory objec-
tions were urged wither, were speakersto state them.
Nor were these contradictions confined to the rank
and file of the party. The leading speakers of the
Opposition have contradicted each other quite as
much as their subordinates. This probably explains
the unusual heat and bitter resentment which Mr.
LOrK6'll playful allusion to kite-flying excited in
the breast of their leader. Mr. Disasmi was
stung to the quick by this innocent allusion,
and the unwonted display of personal feel-
ing betrayed his keen consciousness of its
truth. The whole opposition to the Budget
hitherto has, in fact, been little better than I
a series of rather clumsy experiments in kite-
flying. In the first debate Mr. BARINO wee put
up, with the watchword of "No surplus ;" but
there being no favourable response in the House,
he was summarily discredited by his chief. Then
good Mr. Hoar/ALL was put up, to appropriate a
larger surplus than the Government proposed to
deal with. And now, it seems, an effort will be
made to deny the smaller estimated surplus of the
Government. The reasoning of the Opposition on
the subject of the surplus is, indeed, like nothing so
much as the celebrated American argument about
the borrowed kettle. The lender complained that
the kettle had been sent back to him with a hole in
the bottom ; to which the borrower replied-1.
That the kettle was sent back sound, without a
hole in it at all ; 2. That the hole was there
when it was burrowed ; and 3. That he
had never borrowed the kettle. So taking
the several steps in reverse order, the
Opposition protest-1. That the surplus is
less than the if oven ttttt ,nt estimate, and
therefore the paper duty ought not to be taken