But seriously, if Lord Rosebery has been misinterpreted by his
admirers, he has no one to blame for the fact but himself. He was not obliged to touch on the matter at a non-political gathering, but if he did touch on it at all, those who, like our- selves, are Imperialists and Free-traders had a right to look to him—the man who has always proclaimed himself an Im- perialist and a Free-trader—for a clear and definite lead on this momentous subject, not for a juggling oracle. No doubt it will be said that Lord Rosebery has at once explained and made clear the enigmas of his speeoh, and in the right direction ; but unfortunately that is by no means the same thing as a clear lead from the beginning. An explained speech never brings conviction. Did not Lord Rosebery himself, speaking of a former Premier (Lord Shelburne), deplore the fact that his statements had always to be explained P "There lies the whole matter,—Shelburne's good faith was always exemplary, but always in need of explanation."
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