Mr. Rearden, Member for Athlone, a member much snubbed in
the House, first, because he is an auctioneer, and secondly, because he is not very wise, insists that he is a follower of Mr. Gladstone and the Liberal party. Mr. Gladstone seems to think such "fol- lowing" is rather of the tin-kettle kind, and wrote to a Worcester- shire elector repudiating his supporter. The note was meant, we imagine, to be read in Balmoral rather than Worcestershire; but Mr. Rearden, who does not perceive those nuances, is naturally quite hurt in his feelings, and writes to his chief to say he shall support the Liberals, so he shall, and he is a good Liberal, so he is. Mr. Glad- stone in return points out several divisions upon which Mr. Rearden was absent, and says he himself intended to have treated the suggestion that Her Majesty should abdicate with the severest con- demnation. On the whole, Mr. Rearden is a little hardly used. He is the natural representative of West-End tradesmen, and he expressed their utterly irrational feeling about Her Majesty's pre- ference of Ultima Thule to London in a very silly but not discour- teous manner. Ile was snubbed quite enough by the House, and though it may be fair enough to "cut behind" at the small boy on the spike-board, it is not fair to cut and ask him to push too, as Mr. Glyn clearly did.
