New-York tribune., 1879-12-10
THREE CHEAT MEETINGS.

| rRoM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRIBUSg.1
| EDINBURGH. Nov. 2s.-The last great English
man is low, sang Tennyson, when the Duke of Well
| lingfon was laid in st. Pauis amid the mourning
| OF mighty nation. When Lord Palmerston died,
Carlyle, in his turn, described Palmerston also
the last of the Englishmen. But great men are OF
many types. and those who have been happy
enough to spend this last week in Midlothian may
be permitted to think that there giants stil In
| the land and that when Mr.. Gadstonc-dlstant be
the day-follows his former chief TO his chamber
| in the silent halls OF Westminster Abbey
surviving poet or heroic moralist will be found to
say that he. too, stood high on the roll of EnglanPs
worthless. There is not much profit TO be got out OK
comparisons between this man and that. and shall
attcmpt none between Mr.. Gladstone and any Of
his PREDECESSORS An amateur Of historical parallels
might produce striking one if he would take Can
ming and Peel together, and see how many OF the
distinctive features in those two characters were
reproduced in Mr.. Gladstone. But this will ssyi
that if intellectual and physical power combined
have anything to do with claims TO greatness il Is
idle to dispute Mr.. Gadstones right TO
place among the highest. What he has done
this week must extort the admiration. nDwill-
ing though il be. of those who like him least The
exhausting journey of Monday which | have de-
scribed in q former letter, with its perpetual sue
ccssion of popular greeting of official addresses.
of crowds surging about him, with his repeated
speeches in the open air and the demands Of friends
aud nconsldcrate strangers for personal recogni-
ton, and the thousands Of hands graspng his-au
this was enough and more than enough to task the
strength of u strong man who looked forward
to a period of rest afterward. Bnt Mr.. Glad.
stones rest has consisted in delivering
three elaborate orations Oh three succeeding
DAYS each of great length, each a masterpiece each
a distinct and wcl-consldered execution Of . sep
aratc part in an elaborate programme pIoersnne
which, as a whole, aims at nothing less thar fhe
overthrow of powerful government by an appeal
to a sovereign people. To make these speeches he
has travcrsed and rctraveTsed spreading county,
and at every step Of his way has had TO confront au
enthusiasm that would not he denied. aud which
was expressed IN every possible form, but never
without some drain upon the Resources II him Who
was its object. He has been guest meanwhile IN
country house where the thck-coming social re-
ouirements of each day are enough TO keep most
mems minds occupied; cal;, dinners, receptions
following close upon each other with a rapidity
that leaves the guest few hours 20 himself, that
makes little division between day and night aud
allows few moments for repose. 1t is in the midst
of these distractions that Sir. Gladstone has done
his work Any of his three great speeches
would establish the fame Of lesser man as an
orator or as party leader. And the three TO be
| followed by two more on Saturday and by fresh
series in remote districts OF Scotland next week.
All these events | have seen. | have heard all
the speeches and looked Oh during the inc"ssant
popular demonstrations in Mr.. Gladstone's honor.
an ! may say, in a humility that am beginning
first to conceive their magnitude as sit down to
describe them. The amount OF space you care TO
devote to foreign topics being necessarily Limited,
and American interest in English ahair- being
certainly not unlimited. i had formed the purpose
cf summing up Mr.. Gladstones three speeches in q
single letter, which should also give some a~count
of the scenes AMID which they were delivered. Ny
present views are mo.e modest. ! shall be thankful
If within any reasonable. compass can tonrb n the
briefest way some of the more striking ncidents
of the week. and note in this a following letter,
one or two of the most essential points in the
speeches. Tic proceedings of the last three days.
as reported in their full dimensions-and none too
full-in Tie Scotsman, fill twenty-seyen closely
printed columns; and this does not include the Two
or three leading articles day devoted TO them.
1he three speeches by themselves occupy eighteen
columns of solid type. aud very accurately
given.
THE POPULAR GREETING IL EDINBvBGH
OF all the meetings. those in Edinbnrgh and
those at the exremties of the county, one thing
may be said, that the eagerness 10 ba present at
them outrums all previous experience. The tbree
which have already been held came within the jul
rislction of the Midlothian Liberal Association.
They were in theory simply meetings of the county
electorate convened as the fashion Is IN Greae
Britain to hear profession OF faith from their can
ddate for Parliament They were. in facf asseni-
bes both of electors and non-eectOrs. and from tho
latter there was a pressure for admission which
nothing but brlck and mortaI could stand against.
Que of the Liberal managers, TO whose kIndncssI
L -.
the disposal of the committee there least ten
applications; great proportion of chem such as IN
no ordinary circumstances would it have been po-
tic or pos sible to refuse. But the Music Hail. the
largest available building for Tuesday, holds
scarcely more than ., 600 persons. and the body Of
the hall assigned To the electors rs OF
right Nobody was admissible without ticket, but
tickets were sent t. every elector without 6istinc
ton of party, and extra pains were taken that no
Conservative elector should be withouta ticket q
fact worth noting when you remember that hardly
a discOrdant voice has been heard amid the general
applause. 4 gallery was assigned to ladies the
standing space beneath II 10 non-v"ters, aud the
platform held some hundreds of less dlstin
guishcd persons. Three o'clock was the hour; at
. the doors were open. To see how things were
going s:rocd up George-st. at haf-paSt l. The
street was already blocked up with people. Barn.
cadcs OF timber stretching into the road
way defended the hall. aud these were
held by an army of policemen-who even
thus early had their hands full. Going round
to the rear, which looked upon different street.
found the door indicated on my ticket open. and
went in The hall two-thirds full. In another
ten minutes not a vacant seat could be seen from
the platform. and il was not yet o'clock. But
people continued TO stream in When the doors for
the nop-eectors were opened there came a rush
which left the police out of il altogether. Tho
standing space was swa lowed mp at once. great
many peoDle en- ntered without tickets a great many