Mr. Bright has written a very violent letter to a
Bradford meeting about the Reform Resolutions, in which he states that "the course taken is an insult to the House, and a gross offence to the whole body of Reformers in the country ;" that "the administration is bitterly hostile to Reform ;" and that "it has not the honesty or the courage to pronounce boldly against Reformers, but seeks to murder the cause and the question by a course contrary to Parliamentary usage, and odious in the sight of all honest men." Now, is that more than sheer scolding? If Mr. Bright can say all that against the mere method of proceeding by resolutions, what has he left to say against any reactionary scheme, if there be one? Could Mr. Disraeli have done anything whatever on which he would not have lavished the same strong words? We regret to see Mr. Bright wasting so much valnible invective on mere preliminaries. Turner himself, if he had lavished all his "high lights" on the neutral tints, would have been forced to hold his hand when the sun appeared. And even Mr. Bright, after speak- ing of the Resolutions as "an insult," and a "gross offence," and "odious in the sight of all honest men," and an attempt "to murder," and the rest, has not much left, in case of need, that will not sound a little weak in relief against the background of these strong expressions, if anything very abominable is really proposed by the Government. Mr. Bright's invectives, like Draco's punishments, afford no room for marking degrees in guilt.
