The Sun.
London, England, 1867-04-23 00:00:00

LONDON, TUESDAY, APRIL 23, 1867.

Mr. BRIGHT and Mr. GLADSTONE are running a
race to see which can be the most successful in
injuring the cause of Reform, and impeding' its
progress. All who peruse the vehement speech
which the former thought proper to deliver yes-
terday at Birmingham will perceive that he has
cast aside all those prudent considerations which
seemed to influence him in the debates of the
House of Commons, and gone back to his old
love of abuse and vituperation. Whether he was
quiet for a purpose in Parliament, or whether he
has changed his mind, cannot be exactly ascer-
tained, but the result is much to be deplored at
any rate. We may well ask, what is all this fuss
about, and why is it nece?sary to get up another
agitation, or to go on with the old one ? Have
not the Ministers conceded far more than any one
expected, and ought not Reformers to be satisfied ?
The only solution to the enigma is that jealousy is
at the bottom of it, and is the mainspring of Mr.
GLADSTONE'S excitement, and the watchword of
Mr. BRIGHT'S campaign. It would be amusing, if
it were not so manifestly unfair, to watch how
these jealous patriots confuse themselves and
others in their desire to be impressive. Thus
one of the speakers denounced, in strong terms, the
" treacherous conduct of political nonentities like
Mr. ROEBUCK and others." It is something new
to hear Mr. ROEBUCK designated a "nonentity" at
any rate, and it is the more absurd, because he has
evidently done too much instead of too little, and
made himself of too much consequence. It looks
very much as if the League were afraid of
OTHELLO'S occupation being gone, and of their
glory being departed, for the nearer the prospect of
R.Aorm being settled the more fierce is their demea-
nour and the more fiery their language. Mr.
•BEALES, for instance, declared that they must be
true to their traditions, and not allow the passing
of " another sham aristocratic dodge," which is a
very inconsequent expression, because he had just been
praising the work of 1832, and there was no difference
between the two. But words seem almost power-
less to enable these orators to express themselves,
and it is no wonder they get rather confused at
times. " The Bill now before the House is full of
the most gross, the most flagrant, and the most un-
just inequalities ; it can never satisfy the demands
of the people, who have now risen in their might,
and are determined that an aristocratic monopoly
of political power shall exist no longer." It is sur-
prising how people can talk such nonsense, for it is
not deserving of any other name, and still more
astonishing that others can be found to applaud its
utterances ; but these wise men forget that they are
in reality rendering a service to the Government,
by showing not only that it is impossible to please
everybody, but that the demands of some increase
in proportion to what they get. A few years ago
no one dreamt of advocating manhood suffrage,
and yet it would appear that nothing less has ever
been contemplated by these indignant patriots, and
they profess the greatest disappointment at not
finding it mentioned iu the Government measure.
Mr. BRIGHT made a most intemperate speech, in
which he did not actually advocate the adoption
of violent measures, but he spoke of them in very
mild terms, and actually made a joke of the
Ilyde-park affair. Ile said, or intimated, that the
Tory party had been driven horn its anchorage on
account of the working classes following his advice
and meeting together; they went to Hyde-park and
found the railings just as rotten as "they would
find all the other barriers raised up against their
rights when they are united in demanding them."
Mr. BRIGHT is very much to blame in speaking in
this style ; and were it not that his influence does
not extend beyond the noisy crowds who delight in
platform oratory he might do a great deal of
harm. It may be inentione 1 that Mr. BRIGHT,
and all the rest of these demagogues, have
abandoned argument, and now descend to abuse

their opponents, which is alike mean and con-
temptible. Thus we find in one passage of this
speech that these various meetings " are intended
to strike with dread those usurpers and impostors
who, pretending to b 3 a Government in favour of
Reform, are offering you the most affronting and
insulting measure that has ever yet been proposed."
When Mr. BRIGHT states that the Tory party have
not yet learned to love Reform, we may retort that
neither has he ; or if he does he loves better to get
up an agitation, and to hear himself talk by the hour
of the rights and wrongs of the people, and in abuse
of all the upper classes. All the time he takes very
good care to stop, so far as he can, whatever efforts
are made to further the cause of progress and to
benefit those whom he professes to regard. It is
time that this hypocrisy should be thoroughly
understood, and those who have watched the
course followed by the hon. member this year
will see how inconsistent he is ; he has
one form of words .before the House of Commons,
and another before the League at Birmingham.
Besides this, how can we reconcile Mr. BRIGHT'S
language at the meeting in Carlton-terrace with
that of yesterday in the Town-hall of Birmingham.
At the former he said he thought they had turned
the corner and were out of danger in their efforts
to pass the bill, and at the latter he spoke of the
bill as one that could not, should not, must not
pass. People whom it is worth while to influence
could not be impressed by such transparent
devices, but it is a pity that by this new mania
which has possessed them these speakers should
be lowering the tone that former►y prevailed at their
meetings.

There is really but little worthy of comment in
this long harangue of Mr. BRIGHT'S. We find that
klr. GLADSTONE would give a " generous lodger
clause,", which is important to know certainly, and
the only thing
,to be surprised at is that
it was not followed by the announcement that
Mr. GLADSTONE first proposed the said clause.
So far as we can make out Mr. BRIGHT'S wishes to
postpone the settlement of Reform, so that Mr.
GLADSTONE may concoct another measure, doubt-
less with his kind assistance ; aul as for the Bill
now before the House • why should they set it ou
its legs ;
he is not fond of pursuing phantoms and