The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-21 00:00:00

but he is always in hot
water. But now he has
incurred, and justly incutlvedo general censure for
to the convict Town'his weakness with reference
ley, af,d that, too, will go to the credit of the Tories,
probably because the affair would
4have term r..
the imperi aous
so -eery differently in the hands o.
and decided Walpole. Then there : Mr. Robert
4 A ca.
Lowe. Combining the most finished classical ,e"u•
.ted
tion with the rough experience of cok. life,and
successful beyond most men both in Parliamei.
in acteiety—here, it would seem, was just the
to conciliate everybody while he served the paL
It has, as a matter of tact, been his destiny to mali.4
many propositions for the reform of our educationist
system, and every one has been a signal for a hub-
bub among the clergy, at which the laity were im
mere self-defence obliged to stop their ears. We
will not pause to comment on what all men recog-
nise, the tact of Mr. Layard and the discretion of
Sir Robert Peel. But take the crowning instance
of all—take Mr. Gladstone. His propositions, 4tt
least, are no blunders. Never was a more beneficent
measure offered to Parliament than the Government
Annuities Bill. It opens a future to the labourer--$
hope to the only class in this country which has
hitherto had no hope—and gives them protection
against the fraud or the incompetency of the noisy'
agitators who govern the so-called friendly societies.
Has it met with the support it deserves ? Is it
even safe from the opposition of a knot of members
interested in insurance companies, or fearful of the
wrath of the Odd Fellows at the next election e
And yet, unless it be in introducing the bill a little
too quietly and speaking his mind on the motion for
going into committee a little too plainly, detraction
itself can find no fault with Mr. Gladstone. What,
then, is the meaning of these signs and portents
They mean that there is a Conservative reaction.
All these little petty mistakes, all this want of tact,
a few years back would have signifieel nothing. All
Governments are always open to the same sort of
fault-finding. But in the youth of a
varty, whet'
its leaders first seat themselves on the stools of
office, it is full of life and hope, and no one cares to
criticise captiously. Small faults are readily over-
looked, and every proposition wears a roseate hue.
If the Opposition open their lips a thousand :,,augues
are ready to defend the Ministry. The malcoAtenta
are oat-talked, out-voted, ridiculed, and cowed. A
few years go by, and there is a change. Support
are languid. Some men have got what they want,
and some men see they are not likely to get it. Then
measures on which the party were agreed are passed,
and on what should be done next there are differ'
ences of opinion. Then the Opposition gathers
courage. Its attacks are less vigorously repulsed,
and consequently are more vigorously plied. Hope
passes over to its side. When hope is gone, faith is
sure soon to follow her sister, and governments can'
not found themselves on charity alone. Then wet'
begin to recognise the end is near. It is not the;
the Tories are one jot better orators, or statesmen,
or administrators, or that the Liberals are one jot
worse than they were formerly. But the supporters
of the former are uniting more closely, while the
latter party are disintegrating slowly under the in-
fluence of their own prosperity. Believing this to be
the true state of the case, we, as Liberals see no
use in denying it, no use in making excuses
when the Premier's near relative is beaten for bid
own county, no use in crying, " Peace ! Peace lt
when there is no peace. It is better to get out of 6
fool's paradise. Nothing keeps us in office but the
popularity of Lord Palmerston, and even that may
fail us any day. So far as the real Liberals are con'
cerued, the men who care leas for power than pro-
gress, they will lose nothing. The wholesome chill
of opposition will stimulate their energies, and drive
them to exertion for life and warmth. The trite'
mers and time servers will be pruned away. Ds,
Tories, on the other hand, with the sweets will
taste the embarrassments of power. If places 01
twelve hundred a year were multiplied by twenti
there would not be enough for the crowd of ob'
scure supporters who have not only claims, but have
had, one time or another, a nod from Tadpole or $
wink from Taper, and the more eager the expects'
tion the keener the disappointment. Out of ago!
for 17 years, the party have no administrators, and;
they cannot cover administrative blunders by a bolo
policy, for their opposition is merely critical, lite
Peel's, which Mr. Disraeli lampooned and copies'
Then at last the public, which after all is not Tort'
will, perhaps, begin to see that rest is not always
a thing to, be thankful for. John Bull will rouse
himself and want to move on, and if it will hastea
so desirable a consummation let us have a Tory GO'
vernment by all means. At present be resembles
an old gentleman who is plethorically drowsy after
dinner. In vain does his wife shake him—he rouses
but for an instant, and then sinks back again with
a stentorous snore. In his lethargy he is not s
graceful spectacle, but for the moment it is useless
to resist, he must have his sleep out. Meanwhile
this stupor, this Conservative reaction, should 11
made the most of by its admirers, for it is a sort 0'
thing that does not last long, and is usually fol'
towed by a rather restless night.