Lord Rosebery, who presided at a lecture on " The
Parlia- ments of the Queen" at Epsom on Wednesday night, made a pleasant speech on the House of Commons. Endorsing the lecturer's view as to the decorousness of the present House, he confessed to a suspicion that this was due to its dulness
For this he assigned three causes : the disappearance of such commanding figures as Mr. Disraeli and Mr. Gladstone, the
present Government's huge majority—" a sense of unanimity, though it tends to complacency, does not tend to liveliness" —and the growing spirit of local interest in County Councils and urban bodies Lord Rosebery's criticisms are sound enough, but after > II it is possible to pay too high a price for vivacity. One is reminded of the Irish " M.P." in Mr. Godley's verses on the Austrian Parliament, who sings in tones of envious admiration :—
" No base procedure rules restrain those wild, untutored Czechs ; They have no vile formalities the patriot's soul to vex : While we must catch the Speaker's eye before a word is said, In free and happy Austria they blacken it instead."
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