The morning call., 1891-08-30
STATESMEN
IN ENGLAND.
The Leader in the House Of
Commons.
Who VIII Succeed Smith?-Ths New Post
master STANDARDIZATION by Lord
Randolph Churchill.
Epecial 10 THE MORNING CALI.

New YORK. Aug. 29.-Henry W. Lucy's
special cablegram to the Tribune. from
London says: William Henry Smith. First
Lord of the Treasury, is at his residence at
Waller Castle and has begged his friends to
show him the kindness Of not breaking in
on his repose and by not making inquiries
after his health. 1t is officially reported
that he is mending, but the process is pain
fully slow and there are grave doubts
whether it will ever be so far completed as
TO ht him for renewed contact with the
stormy life in the House of Commons. No
one seeing him on the Treasury bench,
sitting in July weather with a travelling rug
wrapped around his knees could fall to be
struck with his perilous state. He should
have retired two years ago. Had he, at
the close of the last session, mounted to the
serener atmosphere of the House OF Lords,
all might have been we'll But duty to
his Queen and his country" to quote his
pet phrase, the recurrence of which always
sends ripple of laughter through the House
OF Commons, chained him 20 his post. His
colleagues in the Ministry still assume that he
VIII come back with the new session. Per-
haps lie WILL if his dragged but grave re-
sponsi bility would rest with any individual
or body of men who we're instrumental in
influencing him in that direction. Nothing
has yet been definitely settled in the matter,
and probably nothing will be done until Oc-
tOber when the Cabinet councils meet
again and the business of the new session is
rough hewn. But the strong probabilities
are that Mr.. Smiths elevation to the House
of Lords will then be definitely settled, and
that the Ministry will be faced by the diff
Guilty Of selecting a new leader in the
House Of Commons. The difficulty is, Is it
GoSchen or Balfour? Whatever chance
Goschen may have had at the beginning of
last session vanished toward It's close.
Smiths temporary withdrawal provided
him with the opportunity of showing what
he could do as leader, and he used it TO
demonstrate his utter incapacity for the
post. lie biundertd and blundered in half
dozen OF those little things upon which
the House naturally looks fer guidance to
its leader.
The difficulty about Balfour is that he
seems Indispensable at the Irish Office. The
death OF RaIkes places an important minis
terdi office at the disposal of the Premier.
Sir John GorSt Is popularity named for sue
cesSion TO the Postmaster -GeueralShip, but
that does not necessarily mean that he will
be appointed. The outside public and even
mons, has always regarded Sir John G0rst
as nexplicably belttIrd in tine ministerial
ranks. The House, an exceedingly keen
and uu biased judge Of character, recognizes
IN him one OF the ablest men on the Treas
ury bench. but be has never been persona
gTata with the Premier, who possibly does
not forget that he was 1T one time an active
member Of the fourth party. Another min
lister who would make an admirable Post
paster-GeneTal is jackson, the Financial
Secretary of the Treasury. But jackson,
like Balfour. is handicapped in the race for
promotion by the circumstance that he has
made himself almost Indispensable in the
office he chances to occupy
Lord Randolph Churchill has an uncanny
habit of turning up when he is least expected
A johannesburg journalist has had an in
terview with Lord Randolph, in which that
too candid friend when asked what would
be the probable issue Of the pending general
election seemed surprised that such ques-
tion should be raised, and emphaticaIy de-
clared his opinion that Gladstone would
come IN with humping majority. At
tempts have been made in some quarters to
question the authenticity of the CONVERSE
ton, but there is no mistaking Lord Ran
doiph when he speaks, aud one can almost
hear his voice in looking down this sprghty
conversation in tar-off Johannesburg
Edison, who has long been feeling his
way with the phonograph in England, is at
length about to place the concern on COM
mercial basis The preliminary campaign,
under Colonel GourDand's generalship, has
been adroitly and ably managed The
phonOgraph has been literally lent fer
charitable purposes; has chroniced the
words of Gladstone, the songs of Patti and
Lord TennysOn's reading of his own poems,
but no money has been taken on behalf of
the proprietors. Now The scheme on foot is
to dispose Of the monopoly Of one class of
monographs in Great Britain. The pro-
ject has been privately brought before a
number OF capitalists, who are asked to
form themselves into a syndicate and take
over the concern; G750o0 is asked, and for
this sum Edison undertakes to deliver in
ing order.