Worcester daily spy., 1872-06-10

EARL RUSSELL s APPEARANCE IN THE HousE
OF LoRDs.-Earl Russell tried to be the hero of
last week, and failed. ] was in the house of
lords on Monday night when he made his long
medtated attack (or part Of 1t, for he has kent
some bottled up for another timel on tbe Wash
ington treaty and the American government.
The attack wanted nothing but force 10 he
effective. John Wilson Croker (the Ripby of
Disraeli's "Coningsby") once said that Earl
RusselPs principal characteristic was "spite-
ful slyness," and described him as of the feline
order of animal. | was strongly reminded of
this description as 1 SAT and tried to hear his
speech the other night. He did his best TO
make all the mischief he could. But his day of
mischief has passed. He is very old, and are
begins now TO fall on him with crushing effect
lie is eighty years old. He can hardly hobble
along. He is very deaf. His voice is almost
gone. He has lost his teeth, and nearly all his
power of articulation. He wore his years won
derfuy until he reached seventy-tive, and then
age fell down on him suddenly like stroke of
paralysis Palmerston, at his time of life could
talk with all the Uerue and animation of
young statesman. heard Lyndhurst when he
was nearly ten years elder, deliver speech in
the house of lords, every sentence of which vi
brated, as clear as Il bell, into the distance of
the farthest gallery. But Earl Russell the other
night was only doddering old man, mumbling
at table. In the galleries we could not hear
one word out of every ten. Now aud then two
or three words came out in a kind of gust and
gave us some notion of what Earl Russell was
talking about. i once caught some allusion to
General Washington. Earl Russell is one of the
formal old school politicians who never name
even the geatest men, of past or present. with
out their proper titles; he always speaks of MIR
Pitt Mr.. Fox and Mr.. Burke After General
Washington" every light went out, so to sneak
and did not know where was until the noiire
words "mendacious claims" barked or velned
suddenly forth gave us to understand that he
had reached the subject of the CONSEQUENTIAL
damages. The exhibition on the whole was
painful and humiliating. Earl Russell once was
a sort of great man. AT least, if he was not the
rose, he lived near it. He sat at the
feet Of Charles James Fox, he sat in
| the battle tent of Wellington, he CON
| versed with Napoleon the great of Elba. en-
countered Canning and 0'Connell in political
| fight. Such man ought not to sputter leebly
aud noisomely IN his Old age, like an expiring
| tallow candle II he may not set grandiy like
the sun, he ought to 20 out quietly and with
| dignity like a iading lamp. IL is needless /
hope to tell you and your readers that Russell
| now represents no party, and indeed no man but
| himself. HIS day Is d0nei he belongs to the
past altogether. lie has no more business in
| the active politics of today than a restless or
| obtrusiye ghost would have who declining 10
accept death and the tomb, should persist in
| thrustlng his unwelcOme presence and inappro-
| pirate counsels on the living friends who had
| almost forgotten him. All men of all parties
| disapproyed of RusselPs foolish display and were
sorry for it, The newspapers dealt gently will
him. His years, his inGrmitics, and the memo.
ries that even still surround him, protected him
| agnlnst strong public condemnation But in
| private there was only one opinion and that was
severe. | do not know that ever saw the house
of lords so full as IL was that night Peers kept
| turning up whom the oldest habitue OF the press
gallery did not know from Adam. | saw an old
| noDleman III particular, with hat of an extraor.
| dinary cut aud u white beard reaching nearly 10
his knees, who looked very like what Adam
might be II he had lived TO the present day, but
gives up paying any attention to the fashions
| for the last hundred years or thereabouts
| asked OF many experienced persons, official and
other, touching this aged peer, but no one could
| tell who he was. saw him smile once, rather
pityingly, while Earl Russell was speaking.
infer that he set down Russelps anger to the
thoughtless yehemency Of youth, and that he