The Sun.
London, England, 1868-12-24 00:00:00

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211E7110POLlTAN GOSSl,Phursday.

Not even the change of Ministry has caused more
speculation than the recent political party at Hatfield
House. A year ago that mansion was occupied by a
veteran English nobleman, one of the few surviving old-
fashioned Tory peers. He was a man of more social
influence than personal ability, and important private
meetings of Conservative M.P.'s used to be held at his
house in Arlington-street, rather than at the house of Lord
Derby, in St. James's-square. The marquis died, full of
years, and not without honour, and he was succeeded by his
second son-, who, some two or three years before, had, while
making a speech in the House of Commons, become, by
the sudden death of his blind eldest brother, heir to the
marquisate. That event removed from the House of
Commons the most dangerous foe and most merciless critic
whom Mr. Disraeli had. Scathing bad been the
sarcasms which Lord Robert Cecil had directed
against the Conservative leader. There was no
difficulty in recognising them, whether in the pages of
the Saturday Review (whereof Lord Robert's brother-in.
law, Mr. Beresford Hope, was the chief proprietor) in the
Quarterly .Rcview, or in the short-lived but very brilliant
Bentley's Quarterly. These sarcasms ceased for a
time when Lord Cranborne consented to form one of Lord
Derby's third Cabinet in 1866. But in eight months the
suspicion and dislike which the Conservative Secretary for
India had always felt for the Conservative Chancellor of
the F xchequer induced him to secede from the Cabinet.
Once more the political article in• the Quarterly
became the great literary event of the quarter,
containing as it did • charges against the Con.
servative leaders and policy more bitter than
could be found in the most partisan. Radical organs.
At length the Irish Church question turned up, and when
the Suspensory Bill was brought into-the House of Lords,
Lord Salisbury, as he had then become, voted for it,
because, as he said, the experience of the preceding year
had taught him the danger of resisting changes—bad taught
him that resistance was sure to be followed by a,
more complete surrender. That event may be said
to have marked Lord Salisbury's secession from
his party. When he became chairman of Sir
Roundell Palmer's election committee at Oxford, he
gave- another and emphatic manifestation of the change
which he had made in his political position. The gather-
ing at Hatfield House is strictly in accordance with pre.
ceding events. Conservative journals state that there is
nothing in it, for the visit had been arranged several
weeks ago. But this in nowise alters its significance.
Lord Salisbury was too well acquainted with the course of
public events not to know that somewhere about Christmas
Mr. Gladstone would be Prime Minister. There is not a
politician on either side who was not aware of this. Nor
can there be any doubt that the Marquis thinks that the
course recommended by Mr. Gladstone is more truly con-
servative for the Church than Mr. Disraeli's policy of
passive resistance, or the wholesale suppression of Irish
bishoprics recommended by the Royal Commissioners. It
may well be imagined, therefore, that this has been one of
the principal subjects, of conversation at Hatfield
House. But rumour says that this is only
one. Rumour asserts that the question of Ritualism
has been under deliberation, though I confess I can hardly
magine Mr. Lowe and his old antagonist, who turned him
out of office, discussing such a topic as this. City men
,believe that matters of interest to them have been dis-

cussed, and yesterday evening there was a prevalent
report that Government would purchase all the rail-
ways in the kingdom, and that Lord Salisbury, the
successful chairman of the Great Eastern, had consented
to hold office in the new department that would
then be created. I mention this rumour under reserve, as
the French say. It does not seem to be particularly

credible, knowing that we have at the head of the Board

of Trade a Minister most jealous of State intervention,
and seeing, too, that. this Minister was not one of the
Hatfield party. No doubt we shall hear other solutions
of what is by far the best Christmas puzzle out.
The new Board of Admiralty met for the first time
yesterday. Mr. Trevelyan will no doubt go through
re-election after the issue of the remaining writs on the
29th. Mr. Goschen has taken charge of his department,
and is working exceedingly hard. He is under a disadvan-
tage as compared with his predecessor, for Lord Devon had
served his apprenticeship to the Poor-law Board as
Secretary before becoming President, and was acquainted
with all the routine of the department. This Mr. Goschen
has to learn. Meanwhile he has given evidence that he
does not mean to spare himself. For instance, there
is a grand feud just now, between the Kensington rate-
payers and the Board, arising out of Mr.
Hardy's Act for the erection of asylums, which will cost
the ratepayers £90,000, and 25,000 a year to maintain, and
involve an addition of sd. in the pound to rates already so
high that 800 persons have recently been summoned for
non-payment. Mr. Goschen has not been content to take
the particulars second-hand, but a day or two ago went to
Kensington in person, in order to inquire into th e particulars.
The President of the Poor-law Board has one of the most
difficult posts in the whole Ministry. There is mutiny on
the part of the subordinates against the heads, mutiny on
the part of the ratepayers against the Board. Meanwhile,
the rates are increasing with such terrible rapidity, that
thousands are yearly passing from the ranks of ratepayers
to those of rate-receivers.

There is no doubt, I believe, but that Sir Richard
Mayne will shortly retire, with a baronetcy and upon full
pay. The Chief Commissioner is now getting on towards
80, and the twin evils of London criminality and pauperism
require a younger man to deal with them. It is not yet
officially stated who will be Sir Richard's successor, but I
should not be surprised to learn that the Government had
selected Sir 'Walter Crofton. His appointment would be
more popular than any other that could be made, for he
of all men who are likely to have the post seems best to
understand the work of "rooting out" criminals. But he
and everyone else will fail, an angel from heaven
would fail to do the work thoroughly, until some vigorous
reform of the licensing system is effected.

It seems to be generally admitted that one of the pro-
minent questions of the coming session will be the Ballot.
Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Cardwell have already announced
their readiness to concede it—not that they like it, but that
they consider it a lesser evil than intimidation. Mr.
Gosehen has also, I understand, come to view the matter
in the same light. Mr. Bright, Mr. Stansfeld, Sir
R. Collier, and Sir J. D. Coleridge have always
been in favour of it. The Conservatives seem

to have withdrawn their opposition to it. They
do not deny that there has been intimidation, but only
affirm that " it has been as much on the one side as on
the other," a fact which they, of course, see makes in
favour of the measure. It will be a remarkable fact if
this measure should pass without any serious opposition
from either side, after the many years of fruitless efforts to
obtain even an experimental trial for it. I may add, that
though Sir Henry Bulwer has taken charge of the
matter, there is no jealousy on the part of Mr. Henry
Berkeley. The old and the new member are quite in
accord.

The first of the contested elections since the general
election has resulted in a Conservative triumph. This
event was fully anticipated. The late Captain Calcraft
got in at Wareham simply through a split among the
Conservative party ; the breach healed, the Conser-
vatives carried their man. The vacancy in South Derby-
shire caused by the death of Sir Thomas Gresley will
result either in a walk over for Mr. Evans, one of the
defeated candidates last month, or in a very severe contest.
The Liberal loss at Wareham will be in all probability
counterbalanced by a Liberal gain at Nottingham. Colonel
Wright, who won a seat for the Conservatives there under
precisely similar circumstances to those which enabled
Captain Calcraft to win a seat for the Liberals at Ware-
ham, has found it expedient to retire. A large number of
Liberals split their votes between him and Seely, thinking
that the latter was safe. Their chagrin when they saw
their favourite third may be imagined. It is fully expected
that he will now be successful, although political parties
are in such a disorganised state at Nottingham that an
election there is more uncertain than in any other con-
stituency in the kingdom.

A grievous scandal is being much talked about in
London. There is, I fear, no reason to doubt but that
the scandal is well founded. It is said that the son of a
well-known Liberal statesman, who has already suffered
severely through the escapades of this member of his
family, has added to other notorious offences that of
forgery. Twice has his brother attempted to screen the
wrong-doer by taking up the bills which were falsely
endorsed, but it is believed that the offender is incorri-
gible, and that the law will have to take its course.
University readers may like to know that next year's
Senior Wrangler will, if Cambridge dons prophesy truly,
be a Queen's man, and in 1870 the first place will be taken
by a Johnian, the son of a Liverpool chemist, and who
appears to be a prodigy of genius.
One of Lord Stanley's last official acts was to grant
Consul Cameron a pension of £350 as compensation for
his captivity. Mr. Rassam gets a present of £5,000, and
Lieutenant Prideaux and Dr. Blanc £2,000 each. The
letter to Consul Cameron is dated December 7, a week
after the resignation of the late Government was an-
nounced.

I have just seen a private telegram from the Continent
announcing the proposal to bold a Congress for the settle-
ment of the Turco-Greek difficulty. I sincerely hope the
proposal is not too late. The quarrel is very serious, and
causes much anxiety here, though the new Government
are acting as though they had resolutely determined not
to go to war.

Air. Holman Hunt has not yet commenced work in
Palestine, but still lingers in Florence. He finds so much
difficulty in getting his design for his wife's mausoleum
executed that he has taken lessons in sculpture, and ix
himself carrying out the work.