New-York tribune., 1868-12-25
THE ENGLISH CABINET.
TIE STORY OF THE NEW MINISTRY.
,pRoM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

ol.ted his Cabinet Ii is constructed on the time
bonoted principle of putting the round pegs In the
,ouar. holes and rice rsa-not 10 speak OF the pegs
an, in that should have been left out, and the still
rore important ones left out that ought to nave
o,e in suppose Mr.. Gladstone 10 tolorably salts
s,J with his performance, but do not hear OF any
h.dy else that is The Cabinet s mercilessy crlti-
ei..d in uubllc as well RS in pryate-in the columns
,Ia mess os well as in the clubs and in the col
,mns OF the Liberal journals with hardly less sever
-, ,b,, lv the Tory papers whose natural function
=, ,o mil tn pieees whatever Mr. Gladstone puts
,.,,.,t.r Perhaps there never was q Cabinet which
..,,ss.I everybody Tue task of Cabinet-making ia
,o,oi,usIv delicate and difficult; but suppose it
.cmctim,s happens that Premier pleases somebody,
,hil, Mr. Gladstone has succeeded IN lingering
nearly all parties.
Ills Cabinet is criticised rs a whole and criticised
ii. detail The radical Liberals outraged by the
,rusion of Messrs Forster and Stansfeld, their two
consultative men. Mr.. Bright excepted there is
oot radical in the concern, and the radical Radicals
5onbt whether even Mr. Bright be an exception.
p.b Mr. Forst er and Mr. Stansfeld have held Office
h .,a and both were expected TO receive that pro-
,.otion 10 which their faithful service their great
,sl,ties and their high place in tho confidence of
49,, true Liberal party entitled them. Mr. Forster
s Under-Seeretary for the Colonies in the Russell
,tiu,stry from Nov, 1865 20 july 1868, when that
Ministry resigned. His administrative talents were
,town IN marked way and his strength rs debater
=, an, Uouse conped with his personal loyalty to Mr.
flsdstoue and intimacy with him, were considered
o. ,usure him the etSeoretaryshipo of the Colonial
oi3ee He is thrown overheard TO make room for
rs,I Granville. whose claim TO o Cabinet Office no.
dy Will dispute but whose claim TO that particular
c1,ew was clearly inferior TO Mr. Forsters 1t is sup
uoscd to-day that Mr. Forster will be made Vice
Iesdent of the Council, which makes him junior to
Lord De Grey. gives him no seat in the Cabinet and
is only toerabe rs o step TO the Ministry of Educa
ron likely soon to he established.
The Injustice Of Mr. Stansfelds exclusion Is not less
sasfant Under Lord Pslmerston, Mr.. Stansteld was
Z luuiOr Lord Of the Admiraty-in American phrase
e.ogy Assistant Secretary of the Nayy-tn 1863 and
~ and in 1865 an Under-Secretary Of India. lie
developed in both offices extraordinary capacity aud
las since been known in the House the most intel
hsent critic Of Tory extravaganza in the Admiralty
but he too. is q Radical, and Mr. Gladstone's
imldty has got so much the better of his judgment
tat be sacrifices Mr. Stansfeld well Mr. Forster
10 the croakings of the Wings. Mr.. StaDsfeld might
resume his old place as junior Lord Of the Admiralty
bot he considers that no has served his apprentice
ship and will not take bench iourneymau again.
lie is offered also the place Of Financial Secretary to
than in any corresponding position in the Govern
nent lie has scarcely tho strength or the fortune
for such an Office. and hls friends hope he may
decline
II the Radicals are thus left out in the cold nobody
Will say the Peers have not been well provided for.
There are six of them--surely sufficient counter
balance even to Mr. Bright, and two moro than sat
10 tie Tory Cabinet of Mr.. Dlsraeli. l don't know
that Peer is TO be objected to SUCH but then IL is
quite possible to have too much of moderately good
thing. The governing power of this country Is irre-
yoeably transferred TO the House Of Commons, and
the men who govern ought TO sit theFe-not oil,
bu, certainly the great majority. There must be
strong to lead the debates in tho Lords, and a
Liberal Government needs strength more than Tory
Government, since tho Tory majority in the Lords is
large But six Lords out Of fifteen Cabinet Minis
tsrs are too many. seventh must Dc added, as Sir
William Page Wood takes peerage aud becomes
Lord Chancellor; so that. excluding Mr.. Gladstone
himself exactly one-haf the Cabinet sits will sit
IN the Upper House Tho Marquis OF Harrington,
included in this estimate would not go TO the Lords
til bis father dies the present Duke of Deyonshire
But he has no seat in the Commons and one must be
found for HIM by pcrsuadng some faithful creature
10 resign OF he must be raised 70 the Lords during
lp fathers lifetime under another title. Cabinet
Minister is of necessity a member Of one House OF
tae other.
Among all these noble Ministers there three or az
most four, whose presence in the Cabinet was really
desirable The Duke Of Argyll is not the oldest Int IL
much the beet II them AL and is the only one whose
name viii excite much interest in AmeIsca, where
liz name Is known that Of friend. very clear
headed, hard-workng, positive, Scotch kind
81 man, one Of the best debaters on the
Liberal SIDE Ein the Lords. though not an
Eyra.r AZ 10 hua ton no
ticeably one on The Rdqn Of Lar, eyincing kind
Of intellect very different from that which commonly
accompanies the title Of Duke. lie did have theO-
rics about India which were thought 10 make him a
dangerous head for the India Government; wanted
10 go back T. tine Dalhousie politics, conquer and
annex instead Of protecting" tho provinces Of
Northern India not already overrun by British
lie wrote sotne strong articles in The Edinburgh Re
r1 IN favor of that policy, but is understood to have
abandoned it, and comes into Office without exciting
much alarm. The Anglo-Indians wero so much
frightened at the possibility Of getting Mr. Bright
10 rule them that they were quite ready to
ioce in the accession of anybody else.
The Earl of Kimberley was Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland in the Russell Administration, and from the
English point Of view was good governor. He has
also been ambassador to ST. Petersburg and Under
Secretary in the Foreign Office and, being q liberal
minded man. not soaked In diplomatic traditions and
intrigues looked to hopefully Foreign Secre-
tary in place Of Lord Clarendon lie would have
had for instance DO embarrassing retractions to
make in the Alabama difficulty, and being moder-
hiey good friend Of ours, would have resumed nego
tatious with Mr. ReverdyJ Johnson's successor with
good chance Of coming TO an agreement Possibly
that Is one reason why Mr. Gladstone made him Lord
Prvy Seal an Office in which he will have as much
TO do with the Alabama with the price OF potatoes
The ,ran who holds it now is the Earl Of halmes-