Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1894-03-09


land. and in 1892 Gladstone cnme back to
power with a certain majority. He passed
HIS home rule hill only to have 1t rejected by
the House of Lords He is still true 10 tn"
cause Of Ireland though temporarily driven
from leadership by the cruel malady that al
ficts his eyes. Gladstone will continue 10 he
the adviser of the home rule advocates.
GladstOne's Withdrawal Disaster.
Gladstone is now a very old man. 50 old in
fact that the great measures of reform which
he accomplished in early or middle life have
long since passed into history. He ruted the
British Empir" before Mr.. Arthur Balfuur
was born. Hrwas chancellor Of the eNchequrr
before the Conservative party were even
thought Of. having achieved distinction rs II
Tory member, which led Macauley to say he
twas the rising hope of the Tories. Mr..
Gladstone was announced to he diving OF old
age at u time when some of the present
members of the House of Commons
were in their cradles. He retired from poll
tics and from the leadership of the I.ihearl
party to spend his declining years IN Har
warden Castle when the majority OF them
were little boys at Eton, and when he 50 re-
tired the Liberal party went to pieces. Glad
stone alone could save II. His matrhe1s po-
ltical saga"itV. his marvellous knowledge.
the power of his name were party capital.
His patriotism. no less than his pride, WAS
appealed to. he came back into politics he
reunited the warning factions h" gathered
up the loose strings aud liberalism lived
again.
The composition of the English political
parties is very peculiar. The Conservatives
want-nuthing. The Liberals want every
thing. The object Of the Conservative party
ia TO keep things just "a they are The Lib
erals want changes. These changes rang"
ull the way from nothing to revolution.
Foreigners find II difficult 10 see anydilIcr-
ence between the Republican and Demo-
cratic parties. That is because in Europe.
and especially 80 in England. the political
differences are more marked and numerous
They have parties in England which it is
difficult ior an American To conceive of.
Such are the Radicals. who are dissatisfied
with the very form Of government under
which they live. The Liberal party is in
| reality made up of several OF these separate
parties, but they are all pulling in different
directions. Only Mr.. Gladstone has been
able to keep them together IntCrmiXed with
their political differences, are social, relig-
ious and race differences. prejudirCs and pas
sions, sympathies and Affiliations. unlike any
thing to be seen on this side Of the Atlantic.
4 great Liberal leader must not belong to
one of these parties, but to all. He must
not only sympathi2e with the Radical. He
must work on the sympathy OF the Tories in
the Liberal party. Gladstone was once u
Tory and Radical. His watchword has
ever been Progress. He ia the embodiment
OF reform. Yet he Is the upholGer of
the traditions of the House of Commons.
His lste cabinet embraced some of
the driest Tory dcadwood to he found in the
city OF London. In his personal affairs he
had many Of the old fogy notions that be-
| lOnged to the last century. This il the rea-
| son why Gladstone was not only hated. but
| feared by the upper classes. He knew them.
He understood their motives.
No English party can ever succeed that has
not Il considerable sprinkling of the upper
| classes among its members. Mr. Gladstone
has created scores Of peers. but has seen them
20 over to the Conservative party as soon rs
| they were safely installed in the House of
| Lords. lie has retained, however the
support of many Of the old Whig families.
| With their representatives, he surrounded
| himself. His cabinets J. we embraced some
| of the oldest titles In the realm. The reform
element was not allowed to appear upon the
surface too prominently but some Ofthe most
| radical reforms In the English legislative
| system were accompanied by ministries hav
| ing the aristocratic gliding. This has been
| Gladstone's pre-eminent distinction - his
ability to combine the progressive and reac-
| tioDary elements into one homogeneous
| whole.
The Liberal party has always had an elab-
orate and attractive programme. 1t has al
ways proposed to improve lot Of things
which it said needed improving. It has en-
| loved power at times under Gladstone and
| has carried out the ante-election promises.
| Then reaction would set in, and the Liber-
| ais would be turned down. English political
| reform has not progressed steadily. lthas been
accomplished by fits and starts. A few i'm
portant reforms always seemed to frightcn
| the English people. who then turn the Liber-
ais out, and sit down and think 1t over
| for couple OF years before attempting any
| thing more.
Mr.. Gladstone has never even suggested
any OF the reforms which would strike for
eigner as most desirable aud obvious. He
never attacked the aristocracy. lie is n most
| scrupulous defender Of the rights OF the
crown, and has been the personal champion
| Of the royal family. He has always defended
the Established Church Of England and has
| been most Jealous churchman. He respects
n lot OF picturesque nbsurdities pertaining tC
ofIlcnl life but of no political Importance
| At official receptions he sometimes wears the
| garb Of an Elder Brother Of the Charter
House. llc wears such an old-fashioned
collar that II Is time for IL to come back into
| fashion again. He lives in castle where
many old feudnl forms are religiousy kept
| up.
1t may bo said that no man who did not
come from the upper classes and answer tC
all the peculiar requirements OF English con
! venuonal forms, "a does Mr.. Gladstone, car
! ever DO Prime Minister of England In these
times. John Bright, who was one Of the
ablest men the Liberdl party ever possessed
was during his whole lifetime the subject fol
ridcule and insult because OF his humbl,
origin. For the same reason Mr.. JOSEPH
Chamberlain may be- put ont OF the category
OF those who may possibly one day rule thu