, 1880-01-25


i-== =--[=--[777@
arlstocrats who haye hitherto acted With the
Liberal party. :, -: a.,
Notwithstanding all these drawbacks, there
Is every reason to predict that the Liberals
will have fair working majority In the next
House of Commons-that ts, II the irish
Home-Rulers and Land -Reformers act Wlth
them. The English farmers had been so ac-
customed to vote as the parson and the land
lord directed that, Notwithstanding the pro-
lection afforded by the Ballot act, they did SO
at the last general election. As conse'
quence, the rural constituencies OF England
have hitherto been Tory strougholds, but the
agricultural depression and exorbitant rents
will doubtless induce many Of the farmers
to vote against the Tory candidates at the ap-
preaching election, and this the more readily
as by means of the secret ballot they need
not dread the wrath Of the Tory or Whig
landlord. It Is safe to say that the Liberals
will win 0 number of county seats, prin7
oipally in tho northern and eastern shires.
BY the aid Of the Home-Rulers they will
regain about a dozen urban constituencies
which were lost by local dlssenslons and the
bolt Of the rumsellers in the last election.
In Scotland, which is pretty generally de-
voted to Liberalism. the Tories are expected
to Suffer loss Of from thirteen to eighteen
seats. Previous to the last election Scotland
was represented by fftyrone Liberals and
three Tories. In tha present Parliament
there are eighteen Tories from Scotland, of
whom Us many as eight were carried in by
majorities Of less than 100. Midlothian, for
which Mr. Gladstone Is candidate, was car
ried for the Tories by las votes. Mr. Glad
stone has thoroughly reused the Scotch Lib
erals, and the dlsaffootion caused by his sup
port Of denomtnatlonnl educationi in Ireland
has entirely passed away, SO that it would
not be at all surprising if Scotland was repre-
sented In the next Parliament by solid Lib
eral delegation.
The success Of the Liberals In Donegal last
December Indicates that many Of the Ulster
constituencies hitherto represented by Tories
will return Liberals or nd-Refor1ners to
the next Parliament The rent-ridden Pres
byterian farmers are as much interested in
reform Of the Land laws as the Catholic farm
ers Of the South, and, Al no measure ofrelfef
can be expected from the Tories, 1t is highly
probable that several Liberal tenant farmers
will take the place of the Ulster Tories. In
the south and west Of Ireland the whole
Tory representation will be swamped. From
calculations made we may predict that the
Tories will not have more than twenty Irish
members, "a loss OF thirteen. The Home
Rulers will almost certainly act with
thoroughly Liberal Government.
To sum up, then, the "signs Of the times''
indicate that the Liberals will gain at least
eighteen seats in England, twelve in Scot
land, and thisteen In ireland, making total
gain of forty-three, which will count eighty
six in division of the House; and, as the
Tory majority is less than sixty at the present
time, it is quite likely that Mr. Gladstone will
be the next Premier of England. The new
Liberal candidates selected thus fur are Rad
lcals In nearly every instance, and the Scotch
and Irish Liberals will not follow the lead Of
Granville OF Harrington, Vernon Harcourt
or Robert Lowe.
If the Liberals carry the next election the
victory will be undoubtedly followed by great
and important changes OF the Land laws
Of ireland, and at least the abolition Of
Primogeniture and Entail laws In England
sAu ocoLlA1ld, alu 6aupllucallol1 " IAt laws
for the sale and transfer of land, to correspond
somewhat with the American, Canadian, or
systems Of land transfer, There
will also be an extension Of suffrage in Ire
land and to the farmers of England and viii
layers living in the country districts, to cor
respond with the franchise now enjoyed in
the cities and borouglls. The foreign policy
Of Great Britain will be greatly modified, and
there will be far less costly Hglory and gum
powder" nonsense in the relation OF that
Empire to other peoples. The Liberal Adj
will study how to promote the
material welfare of the nation by the arts Of
commerce and appliances Of peace.