The Worthington advance., 1901-02-15
ENGLISH STATE SECRETS.
fully Kept from knowledge OF
the Public.

The reconstructed CABINET mas Qelu
its first sittings, but what passed with
in the chamber no one but the minis
ters themselves know. The British
cabinet, in fact, is the most important
secret society in the world, and no
meeting is ever held that can compare
for gravity of possible issue with cab
met council, says the London Mail.
The room in Downing street where
the cabinet meets is large and fur
nished with the severity of city
counting house. At one time cabinets
were held in the dining-room of the
prime minister's official residence, but
the accommodation was ridiculously
inadequate. Some of the ministers had
actually to squat on the floor; at any
rate, that is the story told.
The members having assembled, the
sound-proof doors are closed, and un-
der no circumstances are they re-
opened except at the bidding of the
prime minister. Occasionally a mes
senger is seen to leave the house car.
rying dispatch box, every document
in which bears the inscriptions: "Most
secret; for the use of the cabinet" :"
Immediately after the close. of the cab
met the premier sends by special mes
senger to the queen a full account of
its deliberations. And this is the only
record of the cabinet that is kept.
The taking of minutes or other
memoranda would be highly danger
Gus. There is always possibility OF
them getting into undesirable hands.
Seldom, indeed, does a whisper reach
beyond the double doors of the cabinet
room.
Only once within half century has
a cabinet minister deliberately broken
his solemn oath of secrecy. It is>a ro-
nance Of the days of the corn laws. A
beautiful and fascinating lady cajoled
minister into telling her what de-
cision Sir Robert Peel and his COL
leagues had arrived at, and then sold
the information to the Times. The mis-
guided minister rendered his resigna-
tion, but it was not accepted.
Perhaps the cabinets record in pre-.
serving great secret was furnished by
the resignation of Mr.. Gladstone. For
three months the secret was kept in
tact. One day the veteran statesman
appeared at Downing street. He who
had attended more cabinets than any
other man of his time, and had in four
successive ministries presided over the
deliberations of his colleagues, had
came to bid them farewell. He knew it,
and they knew it.; but the outside
world was ignorant of the fact from
December to March. The scene when
the last farewells were said in the coun-
Gil chamber was.a most pathetic one.
One of the ministers present on that
historic occasion narrowly escaped
some time previously inadvertently re-
vealing cabinet secret of supreme i'm
portance. He went to his club to write
letter, and left on the table the secret
draft copy of the home rule bill, print
ed for the use of the cabinet only.
Shortly after his departure a fellow
member of the club had occasion to use
the same table and found the document
lying on it. This gentleman was him-
self the private secretary to a cabinet
minister. He realized in flash the
CONSERVATION that would be caused if
the contents of the document got
abroad, and inclosing the paper in an
envelope and carefully sealing it he
called cab and drove at once to Down
ing street.