LORD ROSEBERY.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR:] SIR,—It is not only needful to read a speech, but to see it delivered. It is quite impossible to convey in words the effect of Lord Rosebery's address in Edinburgh. The immense meeting was in a peculiar doubtful, anxious mood. As the speech proceeded all this vanished. The extraordinary emotion of the speaker, the depth of his conviction of duty, above all the pain of parting with Mr. Gladstone, and his manly, in- dependent assertion of the right to judge for himself, all this had an indescribable effect. The dignity with which he restrained himself from every personal allusion, entirely and unconsciously overwhelmed Sir W. Harcourt, and made the future leadership of the Liberal party an impossibility for Sir It is not easy to say bow this came about, but each man said to his neighbour "Whatever happens Harcourt is " There is one thing above all others which impresses me. The Spectator has for many years urged the need of having Ministers, and I may add ex-Ministers, in the House of Commons. They must be allowed, or rather required, to speak in the House of Commons, whether Peers or no. This is essential, and probably, simple as it seems, would solve for all practical purposes the House of Lords problem. Never did I feel the importance of this as I did when listening to this great and influential speech of Lord
Previous page
