The meeting held on Tuesday at the Westminster Palace Hotel,
to concert steps for what is called the federation of Eng- land with her Colonies, with Mr. W. E. Forster in the chair, was a successful one, the leaders talking nothing but sense, though some of the smaller men talked a good deal of dreamy non- sense. Mr. Forster was quite right in saying that it was absurd to pit England's material interests in this matter against her moral interests. Her material interests fol- lowed her moral interests, for nothing is proved more satisfactorily than that trade follows the flag. Lord Rose- bery's notion that delegates from the chief Colonies might be admitted to sit in the House of Lords is a very good one, as far as it goes. It would at least secure that the Colonies should have a hearing in any debate affecting their interests ; but as we have said elsewhere, the first step is to give weight to those representatives of the Colonies whom we have here already,—the Agents-General,—and not to treat them, as some of our Colonial Ministers do treat them, as the mere dust under their feet. It will be time enough to discuss the second step when the first step has been taken of honouring the Colonies in the persons of their representatives.
