The office of Lord President of the Council, vacant by
the resig- nation of Lord Spencer, who, however, does not quit the Cabinet, has been bestowed upon Lord Carlingford ; and the Privy Seal will,. it is generally believed, be taken by Lord Rosebery, whose keen intelligence and knowledge of the world will make him an addi- tion to the Cabinet. Lord Carlingford, it is further announced,. will perform all the duties of a Minister for Agriculture. If they are to be made serious, the next step ought to be the change of the- Education Department into a responsible and separate Ministry of Education, with its chief not necessarily in the Cabinet, but• not excluded from it, as he now is. Mr. Gladstone, however, when questioned on this subject on Tuesday, gave little hope of such a change being speedily made. He said he thought the subject too- large to be dealt with just now, considering its complications,. and the heavy calls upon the time of Government. No harm will arise from the postponement while the Department is in the hands of Mr. Mundella, who, we regret to see, is seriously ill; but there is always inconvenience in patronage lodging in- one hand, while power resides in another ; and a Minister is- more responsible for expenditure than a Vice-President. The- Education Office is rapidly taking rank as a great spending: Department.
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