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Lord Selborne very justly criticized the idea of limiting the

Commission to proposals for the future. It was necessary to know what the evil really was before it could be cured. The Duke of Northumberland also demanded an inquiry into the existing system. He told some strange stories about private agents touting Honours about the country. The system was so bad that within the past four years three gentlemen had been honoured either with a baronetcy or a knighthood, all of whom had recently been convicted by a Court of Law for serious offences. The Lord Chancellor's speech was full of admissions, and the Government of course surrendered. But they have not gone far enough. In our judgment it is essential that the terms of reference to the Royal Commission should be very wide.

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