New-York tribune., 1886-01-22
MR. GLADSTONE'S BIRTHDAY.
HOW IT WAS CELEBRATED AT HAWARDEN
AND ELSEWHERE.

, c,5stone,s seyenty-sxth birthday has
,,t him from many quarters the usual con-
orotrl,tions. and tie celebrations OF this ami
,,ors.rv at Hawarden have been Joyous NIL
Gladstone 49, in fact, i'll won erful health ana
snirjts. ana nobody can discover the least
abatement of that superabundant energy which mas
ohoracterized him these fifty years past. His
nbvsician Sir Andrew Clark, once said OF him that
ths most amazing thing about him not his mind
lint his body. He lives his life, to all appearance
rs fully as he did twenty years ago. All his family,
wife s.ns and sOns-in-law, daughters and
dauahters-iu-law, were at the Castle. kilograms,
letters and gifts poured in all day long lhe Prlhce
of Wales tecgraphed Accept our BEST wlshoS ou
anniversary of your bir hday." There is no record
of any message from the Queen. Her Majesty Imits
her relations with the greatest OF her SUBJECTS 10
.uch Intercourse political necessities impose
rnon her When he is Prime Minister the Queens
demeanor is irreproachabls; is 80, at any rate, by
comparison with her demeanOr to other Prime Min
isters all of whom at times find themselves put 100
NEARLY on the level of an upper servant.
Liberal clubs from all the Kingdom sent
resolutions and good wishes. From Ireland there
were but two three messages. New Zealaud
cabcd respectful congratulations, and admirers III
Stockholm to which cable rates are less extor-
tonate expressed their desire for a long life and
happiness to you and to England There are
Tories now living who would insist that these
wishes are Incompatible and mutually exclusive.
Midlothian. of course, dispatched greetings to her
preat member The messages have been sifted by
somebody. perhaps by Mr.. Herbert Gladstone. and
the siftiugs given to tho press. They are as must
he tho case monotonOus. Some less stif than
others but decorOus formaty is the rule lnssUlne.
expense has been egarded in not few the SIX
penny limit twelve words including addresses
has been penurioasly adhered to. The more
saugune hope for many more years of life ana
public service; the majority content themselves
with feicitous illusions to the past.
Five young Liberals of Exeter have a telegram
oil to themselves The Liberals of Blaokpool are
explicit and believe Mr.. Gladstone will be for
third time Prime Minister of gland Mr. Mower,
OF Norwich. more explicit still, trusts he may have
health and strength deal with the Irish question:
The Chester Liberal Club touches lyrical note in
the hope of future noble services to your Queen
and country" There is a shade OF unintentional
unkindness in the telegram lorigin not namedl
from those who represent one Dt the very lew
English boroughs that have given you UNDIVIDED
support" The Land Naturalization Society hg-
ures in the long list but cannot be our friend Mr.
Henry Georges society for the members of it assure
Mr. Gladstone of their high appreciation OF his re-
pelted concurrence with the main principle OF their
eaose. The sea Joins with the land, and the fish
him. So do the Edinburgh Liberal Telegraph
Clubs and there are other appeals to the Almighty
from various fervent souls. THAT God may long
snare Won to be a power for good" is one The tele
graph clerks of the House of Commons, of Parlia-
ment-st of Glasgow, and other places are among
those whose dispatches are largest and Glasgow
even adds the compliments of the season.
Perhaps the most remarkable and even unac-
countable of all these addresses is one from one oil
your contemporaries; none other than Inc Aetc-
York Times hailing " the advent of a year which
through you promises much for the cause OF
liberty" Is Mr.. George Jones whose soul is filled
with rapture as he caches GLIMPSE OF coming
liberty IN England, perchanco lrelandf If there
be anything to compete with this, 1t Is tho enusion
of the Liberal Assocatlon's soree at Grimsby
There were L. 900 Liberals, male and female, al the
Grimsby sOirte and they unite III assurance TO
Mr. Gladstone that they apprecably value his
eminent services as statesman and scholar to the
cause of Liberalism and progress" IL is, perhaps
the first time that Mr. Gladstone has been described
as scholar TO the Liberal cause, whether sap
pr,ciably valued" or not. There Germans who
would deny his claim TO be called scholar at all.
Among the gifts was the inevitable American axe.
Mr. Gladstone must have axes enough to start him
in business as a hardware dealer. This last came
from n company; Welsh, to judge from it's totally
count NAV be trusted. Mr.. Herbert Gladstone ever
original presented his father with bust of Lord
Rcoconsfeld; whether as a trophy, or an example
for imitation or a warning, the Tory reporter omits
to add A workingman sent a purse as a token OF
love- From the Duke and Duchess of Westminster
came a beaut ful nJsegay. Another floral tribute.
to copy the language OF local enthusiasm composed
of magnificent roses and orchids was received from
a gentleman iu-nO, not Birmingham, but Manches-
81. l..
to have spared a single one of his fayOrite and
famous flowers in homage 10 his late chief. lie
would not even 60 to the dinner of the Chester
Liberals marble bust of Achilles accompanied
the Manchester orchids and roses. The giver hides
his name in modesty, but he will read with pleasure
that it was much admired by the recipient y unless
the vlencss of the phrase turn his pleasure to pain
Altogether more than a Thousand teegrams and
letters OF cOngratulation re@ched Hawarden during
the last two days. The reoicings were continued
Yesterday by a childTcn's party at which all Mr..
Gladstonss grandchildren were present and there
was magnificent Christmas tree Last OF all came
o servants ball at the Castle, at which. Gays the
faithful chroncler Mrs Gladstone led oil the iirst
dance with the butler for her partner and MIR. w.
II. Gladstone with the hou9ekeeper."
And yet, amid all these festivities there one
thing wanting. The Press the Liberal Press most
consplcuously Of ALL failed TO offer its greetings to
Mr.. Gladstone with its wOnted heartiness and imi-
tatve cOpiousness. | suppose it must be said that
the confidence of the Liberal party in its great
leader has suffered rude shock. His experiment
in Home Rulc is too recent to be DardOned. on
such q day as Tuesday, when surely controversies
and mistakes and all the angry collisions of politics
might have been forgotten. The Liberals seem to
me inexcusable In choosing such an occasion for
their manifestation of resentment, even though it
were only by silence. Whether Mr.. Gladstone is
right or wrong about Home Rule. tire will show.
That he committed mistake in tactics in announc-
ing frst his conversion and then his recantation.
he did his friends coneede. But is a mistake in