New-York tribune., 1881-09-02
THE BRITISH CRISIS.
sALIsBuRYS BLuNDERs.

Pared FOR TIE EMERGENCY-TlIE COUNTRY
DETERMINED TO UPHOLD THE HOUSE OF COM
MONS.
iFRoA THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT or TIRE TkIboNEi
LONDON, Aug. i5-It is probable enough that no
body in tbe three Kingdoms is so mach suIpflsea as
Lord Salisbury by the character and extent Oh Tue
crisis he has provoked, aud by what now seems
likely to be the result OF ii. Down 10 FRIDAY nlght
his view of events far as can be Judged nom his
acts and words, was something like this: There
was q disagreement between the two Houses on sun
dry matters of detail connected with the Irish Land
bin The Tory majority in the Lords being over
whelming aud being, as Lord Salisbury believed
under his own control, the Government would be
obliged he thought, either TO give way on the points
in dispute to abandon the bill or TO resign, on to
dissolve Parliament. If the Government should
give way, the sting would be taken out Of he Land
bill, and Lord Salisburys personal triumph brill
liant one If the bill were abandoned for the sea-
si0n the triumph would be hardly less complete FOR
the Tory leader and great many things might
happen before next February. If q resignation
dissolution should be resolved on, that would
fer the question to the people and to the chances OF
popular election, which would include not only the
Irish Land Bill but, according to Lord Salisburys
calculation, the consideration of whole catalogue
of crimes and cnces of which he and his associates
stood ready to accuse the Government. | put this
alphabetically but there is abundant evidence that
such was, in fact, Lord Salsbury's conception of
the situation and his Judgment upon the proba-
blities growing out oft Within twenty -four hours
from the time his final decision taken every ele-
menti his calculation upset, his estimate of the
nature of the crisis proved to be falacious and his
Judgment in every point, whether of fact or imme-
date probabilities contradicted by events The crisis
is very Tar from being over but enough has occurred
already to justify the forebodings of those of his
own party who regarded Lord Salisbury's accession
TO the leadership with dismay.
contempt for the people is of the of Lord
Salisbury's creed. 1t is perfectly natural that he
should believe they could be amused by the comedy
he chose TO play on the second reading of the Land
bill, and deceived by the transparent artfce which
he thought sufficient to obscure his real purpose
He clearly that to reject the bill outright would
be running great risk. The people, even in his
opinion, were not stupid not to be able TO see
in that case that the House of Lords assuming
If not arbitrary power, coequal authority with the
Commons, againstwhch he knew very well the people
would rise. He was not ready to risk that, and ne
thought he saw safer course. To pretend to pass
tho bill while really passing very different
blll-to allow the Government measure to be read
a second time and then amend the life out of it
this MachIavellan scheme would be quito sufficient
to hoodwnk the people and, should a conflict occur
lead them of on a false scent. Then argued this
astute aristocrat nobody could say that the House
of Lords had set itself against the House of Com
mons, or against the people. On the contrary, the
Lords by accepting in principle and passing or ap-
pearing to pass measure they nOtoriously detested
would have shown their Difference TO the representa-
tive branch of the Legislature and to its constituents
and the constituencies would never be so ungrate-
full as to est the right of the House of Lords
to deal with the details of the bill. In
short. the crisis was TO be conducted by its
author that 1T should never involve the legislative
authority of the House of Lords nor expose it to at
tack. But crisis, like dynamite. requires careful
handling, and. when the explosion comes is as likely
to do mischief TO him who contrived it, The virtue
OF democracy is this that it sees things broadly:
deals with public affairs in the mass ignores subtle
distinctions, and strides the ptfal in which il
was expected to go to wreck. Lord Salisbury found
to his amazement that nobody cared two straws for
his ingenious machinery was IN the least imposed
upon by his solemn pretencc offair play All over The
country that the Lords setting up their
own will againss the will of the Nation. The Land
bill almost forgotten. The nature Of the amend
ments the Lords had passed ceased to be discu sed
Lord Salisbury found himself all at once face to face
not with the crisis he had planned, but with the
crisis he believed he had averted. Whatever it NAV
be tomorrow the Issue of to-day is not the use the
Lords have been making OF their legislative power
with reference to particular BILL but whether the
Lords ought to have any legislative power at all
That was the state of things the Government
had TO deal with on Saturday when they met in
council They are the most powerful Government
of modern times whether in the House of Commons
where they have majority of more than 100 or
with the people who gave them power and after a
year and half of unexamped conflicts have ahated
no jot of their confidence. And yet on Saturday
this all-powerful Cabinet found themselves IN the
position OF being able TO do nothing whatever di-
recty to control the crisis in the midst of which by
no act of their own, they were placed If they
yielded to the Lords they could not make the people
yield. The yielding of the Government would only
strengthen the resistance of the country and in
flame the hostility which the Lords had already
reused against themselves If Ministers refused TO
yield, thew wonld put themselves in harmony with
the people, indeed, but theywoud deepen the popular
conviction that representative rights were endan-
geredand make theAuestion of the political existence
Oh the House OF Lords suppOsing the Lords to per-
sever, more burning question than it was before
1hey had to act simply on the merits of the points
al issue between themselves and the Upper Cham
Der, without reference to the agitation Of the coun-
try They resolved, accordingly, not to accept any
OF the Lords amendments which were opposed
to the principle of the bill, but to give way
on such as were not fatal TO its purpose or mis-
chievous to the working of it, They re-
solved further. it is believed not to abandon
the bill ifthe Lords should refuse their assent TO
these final proposals not TO resign; not to dissolve
Parameut and not to let the question stand over
to another year, but to summon the Houses for an
autumn session, solely for tho purpose of passing
the bill.
On every point therefore, Lord Saisbury's calcu-
lations turned out wrong, and up to this point il
may be said that he has committed every mistake
which it was possible for him to commit His forecasts
OF the popular temper and of the purposes of his op
ponents were alike erroneous He has committed
his party and his order to a conflict which ,oitbor