The Duke of Argyll made yesterday week one of the
finest speeches to which the House of Lords has listened for many years, in moving for papers concerning the prospects of re- form in European and Asiatic Turkey. He chose the moment as one when the fulfilment of the Treaty of Berlin began to be assured, and made it the occasion for a review of the successes ' and failures of the Government. Their enormous Parliamentary successes he frankly and fully admitted. " I think we have not been beaten by what is called a fire of precision ; we have been beaten rather by a sort of Zulu rush. Our order has been broken, our camp has been taken, and we have been assegaied right and left." Even the resignation of two of the most weighty members of the Government had no more effect than if they had been Junior Lords of the Treasury. And yet the Government were not cheery. They were as sour and bitter in their assaults on their routed opponents, as if they had no confidence in themselves. Lord Salisbury, who did not differ more from the Opposition than Lord Salisbury the Plenipoten- tiary at Constantinople differed from Lord Salisbury the Foreign Minister, or than the author of the famous Circular of the significant date of April 1st differed from the author of the agreement with Count Schouvaloff, had nevertheless charged the Opposition with being " unpatriotic enough to assist the enemies of their country." What was the explanation of this angry and mortified spirit in Ministers so successful ? The explanation was that while Ministers had triumphed in Parlia- ment, the Opposition had triumphed in the world ; and this the Duke illustrated in detail, showing that the Treaty of Berlin was nothing but the Treaty of San Stefano with the most insignificant modifications,—and that Turkey was decomposing fast, in spite of all the circulars of Lord Salisbury and the boasts of Lord Beaconsfield.
