LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
WANTED, A CHECK ON CONSTITUTIONAL SURPRISES.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE SPECTATOR."] Sia,—I, a life-long Radical, was advocating on July 13th, in this town, the choice of a Conservative candidate, animated thereto by considerations of Home-rule ; and told the people that I remembered paying 4s. 6d. for a stone of flour in 1847 (my father died when I was young) ; and how, consequently, I hated the Tories for their merciless taxation of the food of the people; but that such were the dangers of Home-rule from which they had saved us, that in full recollection of all their demerits I forgave them freely, and I called, in a large meeting of (principally) working men, for three cheers for the House of Lords ! And they were given, and heartily too ! We increased the Conservative majority from 150 to 584; and I am preparing a question which I expect (or some question like it) will be put down early in the Session which is coming,—the object being, as you will see, to safeguard our Constitution from such rash and ill-considered attacks, as those to which it was exposed at least four times lately. You, however, can discuss the matter in your journal with so much more knowledge and power than I can, that I write this to ask you if you will allay the anxiety that I and thousands upon thousands of other Englishmen feel on this matter. How would it have been if it had suited the Lords to pass Mr. Gladstone's Bill of 1893 F—I am, Sir, &c.,
Mr. —,--To ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether it is the intention of her Majesty's Government to consider what precautions can be adopted, with the object of prevent- ing further proposals being made affecting fundamentally the Constitution of the country, before such proposals have been exhaustively considered by the whole nation.
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