New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-06-12
NEW YORK DAILY TRIBUNE, TUESDAY, JUNE ~ 1889

q veteran member O staunch Radical, what would
happen if Dir. Collings's view should DO acted on
A Ministry that addressed serious threat TO the
House, answered he, wonld be out of Office in q
week" Things ace not done here in that way.
And yet the Cabinet did take, and Mr. Gladstone
did announce, though in drcorous language, q
momentous resolution. To state the whole matter
in one blunt sentence, Ministers on Saturday came
to tho determination to drop the bill for the Gov
eminent CT London aud to persevere with every
other important measure on their programme.
They do not say to the House, You must pass our
bills before you get O vacation" They do say. in
substance. {" We shall not abandon any of these
bills until the House has either adopted or rejected
each one of them" Whatever means are necessary
to carry out this resolve will be adopted The Sos
sion may last till September. till October, or till
next January. but come to On end 1t will not while
decisive vote remains to DO taken on any one Oh
the ubdropped bills. The Liberals present at tho
Foreign Office left the room perfectly understand
ing this. The Tories, not being present, and hay
ing to trust TO reports by no means complete,
failed at first to grasp the full meaning OF Mr..
Gladstones statement Perhaps IL is pot likely TO
burst upon them all at once but it cannot be many
days before it is pretty generally known. And as
soon as it IS known, tho decisive struggle will
begin. Obstruction proceeds on the theory that
the duration Of the session limited, that the House
must adjourn In August or not long after, and that
1t Is only necessary to keep tho wheels blocked
till then The game only be spoiled by altering
the conditions On which 1t Is played. Nobody
likes to spend August OF the autumn In London
Ministers don't like it, but II 1t comes to the test
Tories will like 1t as little, and the Government. no
matter which party BIO IL power, has always an
advantage as Government toward the end Of q
session and IN q thinning House.
J he struggle can have. in my judgment, but one
ending Ministers will carry their bills, the credit
Of the House will be saved, the Conservative caba
wilfDe overthrown, the country will respond, 1t
always does. with enthusiasm to every evidence Of
courage and resoute purpose on the part of those
to whom Ii has committed the conduct OF its affairs
For II must 10 understood that this 10 matter in
which the whole Cabinet are as ono man. The
only division of opinion was as to pOstpOning or
not postponing the London bill. The two Minis
tiers who represent in the Cabinet the Radical wing
OF the party resisted. and resisted strenuousy the
dropping OF this measure They believed and urged
that IL could be and should be carried this year.
They were overruled but they acquesced solely on
the express understanding that on every other point
the fight should be fought out TO the bitter end.
Their less Radical colleagues indeed no less
resOluto than themselves in their determination to
Withstand the insolont attempt Of confederated
uiinoritcs TO overthrow the rule Of the majority.
The contest is in which every country that has
a representative system Is kcenly interested. The
battle of Parliamentary Government is to be won or
lost on the soil where Parliamentary Government
1t is now understood had its BIRTH 1t matters
little to you, or to Englshmen either, whether a
bankruptcy bill Patent bill sor snot passed this
year. II matters a great deal whether the power
of n majority to pass those or any other bills be
re-estabshed. To-day it does not exist. To-
morrow it may And when 1t has once been de-
cisvely affirmed, something more will be heard OF
the real Liberal programme. aud the Queens
Speech OF next year is likely to be considerably
more exciting document than the tame message Of
last February. G.. W. s.