Monday's debate on the Scotch Reform Bill ended in a
complete triumph for the Government. Mr. Gordon, the Lord Advocate, moved an amendment by which, as we understand him, any house- holder may be put on the rate-book, and, if he pays his rates, may vote ; and Mr. Moncrieff—late Lord Advocate, an able person who is always doing injustice to himself by trying to bring his intellect down to the level of his constituents,—said the amendment was "reasonable,"—so there was an end of the Scotch crisis. Then, after a debate on Union points remarkable for the extreme brevity of the Scotch speeches, Mr. Baxter tried to insist on his proposal, accepted by the House last week, for transferring the ten boroughs in England with less than 5,000 people to Scotland. Mr. Disraeli, however, rose, said he should give only seven seats, one to Glasgow, one to Dundee, one each to Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, and Aberdeen- shire, and two to the Scotch Universities ; should unite Selkirkshire and Peeblesshire, and group Hawick, Selkirk, and Galashiels ; and this also, partly on Monday, and partly on Thursday night, was accepted. We do not know that the defeat matters much, as Scotland, with a 12/. county suffrage, will soon return fifty-two Liberals to seven Tories ; but the Scotch Members ought to acknowledge honestly that, having got their "loot,"—their seven seats,—they bolted with it from the army which had given them their chance.
