There were, of course, during the debate of two days
many minor speeches, all indifferently reported, and none of them very interesting. Sir Wilfrid Lawson, in defiance of his leaders, moved an amendment regretting that Government had called out the Reserves, and this was supported by 64 votes ; but the amendment attracted no considerable speaker to its defence, and indeed the smaller speeches were for the most part very poor. Only two members of the Liberal ex-Cabinet voted with Sir Wilfrid, Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Bright ; and only three minor members of the Government, Mr. G. Trevelyan, Mr. Shaw-Lefevre, and Mr. Gladstone's son. It is useless to analyse a division from which the majority of Liberals stayed away, but we may note that the majority, though 319 in number, did not amount to a clear half of the House, and that the general effect of the debate has been greatly to annoy the War party. They see that the debating strength is not on their side. As Lord Beaconsfield has on his side "Parliament, the Monarch, and the Multitude," that annoy- ance points to a latent dread of the intellectual resources of the Opposition. They have certainly for the moment no other.
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