The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1909-11-11
THE TIME THAT Mr..
GLADSTONE WAS LOST
BY E. J. EDWARDS.

Joseph Chamberlain is one Of the best
known Englishmen In this country. Our,
more or less intimate knowledge OF him
dates back to 1888, when he came to this
country for the British government and;
settled the Canadian fisheries dispute, and
incidentally found for himself his third
bride in the charming Miss Endicott, Of
Washington.
While he was In this country Mr.. Cham
berlain, Of course, was extensively enter
tanned, and, among other places where he
was the guest, was one OF Americas most
famous clubs. While there Mr.. Chamber
lain fell to talking about Gladstone, with
whom he had been closely associated in,
the British cabinet. He told numerous
good stories about the Grand Old Man.,
some old, some new. But, SO far as I have
been able to learn, the one ] am now to,
relate has hitherto escaped being put I'M
print, and Mr.. Chamberlain, I believe, had
never told the story previous to that night
in the club.
You may remember" he said, that
from 1880 to 1885, as president OF the beard
of trade, ! had membership in the cabinet
over which Gladstone presided as prime
minister. 1t was a ministry OF trying Sit
~uatiens, among them being the Phoenix
bank murders, the defeat at Majupa hill
the failure to relieve Khartum, the de-!
plorable death of Gordon. and we Of the
cabinet get rather accustomed to being
summoned to conferences at most unex-,
pected moments.
well, one day, there arose most unex-,
pectedly an emergency Of most vital inn
p%ortance. 1t was highly necessary to sum-
mon the cabinet to ar immediate session.
I undertook to get it together. and in a;
brief period of time we were brought ali
together in cabinet csuncil-that is, all ex-
cept the man we most wanted to be pres
| ~ ~ L. ; 1l---.JA
senger I had dispatched to Mr.. Gladstene'
had returned with the information that he
was not to be found
"Other messengers were hurriedly sent
here, there, everywhere to all these places
which Gladstone frequented, and each and
all came back reporting that he was not
there-had not been seen there all day. At
q most inopportune-in fact, a vital mo-,
ment, he had become lost to the govern,
ment-had disappeared as completely as.
though the earth had opened up n swal-3
lowed him.
..There we sat in the cabinet, cudgeling
our brains over the situation, and sick at
the thought hat no one knew what dire,
thing might result from the inexplicablei
physical effacement Of Mr.. Gladstone.
FINALLY, with a sort Of ferlorn hope air,
someone suggested that perhaps Mr.. Glad
stone might be found at a certain old book
store which he was known sometimes to
visit. Hastily a messenger was despatched
there, and he returned, GREATNESS, with
the information that Mr.. Gladstone had
been at the shop, had purchased a book
and had gone away. But, the messenger
auued, as we were all but ready to groan
audibly, as we were groaning inwardly,
that the book store keeper said that per-
haps Mr.. Gladstone might be found at a
house where certain Italian scholars were
in the habit Of meeting. He seemed to
recall that Mr.. Gladstone had remarked,
when purchasing the book, hat he in
tended going there.
Instantly the messenger was hurried
to the address given, and there, in the
center of a group of Italian %savants, and
with an open beck before him, was the
MISSING prime minister Of Great Britain,
engaged In animated discussion with the
foreigners about him.
witt visible annoyance, Mr.. Gladstone
heard the messengers declaration that a
vital matter of state required his imme-
date presence at a cabinet council. With
visible reluctance he followed the messen.
ger thither, and when he appeared before
us he voiced his displeasure at the inter.
ruption in the declaration that he haG
been engaged In q very important discus
sien with certain Italian scholars as te
the best manner OF translating the hymn.
of Isaac Watts into the Italian vernacu
lar, SO that they might be largely circu
lated in Italy. And as we sat there, al
but open mouthed in our establishment
he actually requested us to hurry the cab
met business SO that he could renew a.
soon as possible his conference with tn,
Italians.
ut was a copy Of Watts hymns tina
MI. Gladstone had bought Of the hook
man who furnished the clew to his dis
tinguished customers whereabouts. An,
I have no doubt that, as sosn as the cab
met session was over, Mr.. Gladstone hur
ried pack to the old house where hi
italian friends awaited him. I know tina
all through the cabinet meeting his min,
seemed to us ~distraught, as though
were even then occupied with the problem
Of the best manner of t~ranslating Watts
hunna into ItaNann