, 1873-02-16
LONDON.
The Meeting of Parlianleut--Topics
to Be Brought Before 1t.
Does Mr. Gladstone Contemplate {
Speedy Retirement from
Politics?
The New Lord. Lytton, Baptist
Noel, and DIR. Lushington.

Ihe New IOrN LyttOn, BapLls
+ Noel, and DIR. Lushington.
From Our 0,s, Correspondent.
LONDON, Jan. Is, 1878:
THE MEETING OF PARLIAMENT.
By the time this 1otter reaches you, bot
Houses of Parliament will have commence
their sittings. cannot say that the public see1
to care very much about it. People need to b
reminded of the fact, and then they merely re
mark, "Oh! Parliament meets, does it ?" Per
haps this Indifference is healthy sigu
1t proceeds, in tho present case, fror
two causes-one boing the genera
prosperity Of trade; and the other
the absence from the Ministerial programme @
exciting proposals. Business is good, although
the unhappy strikes in tho coal trade hnmpe
transactions. New companies appear almos
daily, and large proportion Of them float. Odt
ideas get q chance. Several people seek to per
shade us that they hayo discovered in
manufacture from peat a substitute fol
coal, literally cheap as dirt; 9th
| ers declare they can put wire
in the ocean without any covering whatoreru upor
it; aud ono son Of genius believes he can estab-
Ish correspondence between opposite coasts BY
| pipes Of water. Meanwhile, the safe and sober
trade Of the country is i'll o prosperous state.
! Tho
SUBJECTS EoE PARLIAMENT .
are not such as to break the rest Of Premier,
but thcre are 'snags" among them, which
| might: in possible construction Of circuul-
stances, sink the ship. The Alabama award will
ba vigorously debated. There is no
excuse for insisting any longer upon the for
bearance Of honorable members. The money
has to be paid and the least satisfaction about it
! will be to blame the Government for everything.
| The attitude Of Russia in Central Asia must be
dealt with, though NO may expect to SEQ the Off
cialB imploring tho House to be silent, and not
to enbar7ass delicate negotiations. This is son-
orally done until the country is bound hard and
fastto q particulnr policy, and then tho gag is
taken away.
Among the home questions. tho grave one Of
Univcrsity-education in ireland is foremost. Is
the English Government prepared to give the
Irish a University SO shaped as to inset all the
prejudiccs Of the Roman Catholic priesthood
Substantially. that is the point to be decided.
Many Liberals, tied already to the principle Of
sectarian education in England, say Yes IN but
I imagine the Conservatives and tho dissentient
Liberals will he numerous enough to decide it
with a No." hear, however, of compromise.
Thou there il the rncGitntcd reforms in the
land laws. This is said to be as bold rs can be
looked for in these timorors days. and cannot
say that, just now, there is much enthusiasm
respecting it. In fact, the only ebuition Of feel
ing in politics is unanimous dislike Of one or
two members Of the Ministry. ar. Ayrton car
ries his usual sardonic smile, despite-perhaps
all the more ostentatiouely because of-the
dreadful hobb1e in which he il made. By recent
f1vr {e s!r,rS% L.,
to tho holding of public meetings in tile
parks; but his emile will hardly eayo
him. Mr. Gladstone can only be wanting to at
tain the reputation Of the late Lord palmerston
this iil-conditioncd, bad-tenlpered maa would
have retired into private life 1oug ago. He cer-
tain1y il not worth the odium lie e1cites. Ho is
a man OF average ability, who has brought to
perfection, after considerable study and practice,
the art Of being disagreeable. But
atR. GLADSTONE
himself, some say, i5 not 10 30 Premier long.
He sighs, it il said, for rest One Of his most
intimate friends declared in MY hearing, few
days back, that he .(tle spesIer) kneto ct his
retro from public life at tho close Of tue session
of 1878. He vas not going into convent, rs
some supposed, but merely to his country
estate, there to read Homer and furbish up old
china. believe not . word OF it. 1 have
learned to distruht these stspeeial" infor1nants
That the. idea has frequently crossed lir.
Gladstones mind we do not doubt Who is
in the activities of public life that does not SIGH
for rest But these are the dreams Of the mind. |
Repose to Mr. Gladstone would be death. |
would not give two years purchase tor his life |
if he retired from Parliament while his mental
characteristics are what they are. He is sensi-
tive. earnest, irritable. Ho is ambitions and
of coutrol. To sit at the frcgido. and
read OF the battles Of emaller men. would |
kill him. So at least I read his char
acter. Should it be- otherwise. and
if we ere really destined to see
bis disappearance from, politics ut an eariy
day, tho Liberal party will be all privates. There
will be no officer among them fit to take COM
maud. They will almost be as badly OF in that
respect as French politics. viii be when II.
Theirs retires.
THE NEW LORD 1Y7roy
s, in outward form,-in stature, figure. GAIT.
md nearly in featurcs,-a counterpart Of lis
father. It is strange how often d personal
peculiarly is repeated in second generation.
fhe new Peer, IN his walk, in his look, in the |
little idiosJncrasies which belong to every man,