" They cannot abide the Referendum because the vote of
the people themselves may upset the little scheme for which they have plotted and squared and wirepulled," Lord. Salisbury expresses his own opinion that though buying up newspapers may be at first an effective way of supporting particular views, public confidence will not be restored by such political manoeuvres. Finally, he repeats that if you have got a democracy you must trust it. This seems to us to be the plainest of all plain truths. If democracy is of such a feeble character that it has to be tricked and outmanoeuvred for the safety of the nation, then we ought not to have democracy at all.. The duty of the Government is to tell the truth and leave it to the people to judge which rulers they want. Lord Salisbury's earnest warning is all the more im- pressive because he is a supporter of the Coalition.
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