Mr. Goschen on Wednesday addressed his constituents at Ripon, with
a little of the air of a political martyr whose virtues entitle him to be heard respectfully on the eve of a Session in which he expects to be despised and persecuted, and to have all manner of evil said against him, for his views on the Fran- chise. But he testified in the most hearty way to the inevit- ability of the measure, and the necessity that the pledges given by his party at the last election should be redeemed. He' was eager for the London Government Mill, and for the Local Government Reform Bill,—that is, the reform of county government,--but as regards the Franchise Bill, he wanted some pledge that the Redistribution of Seats Bill should be fairly applied to Ireland, before he gave Mr. Parnell the ad- vantage of the Franchise Bill. In regard to the principles of Redistribution, he inclined towards Mr. Forster's views, while expressing his desire to keep the historical unity of the existing Parliamentary boroughs unbroken—if he could, without unfair- ness to the minorities. But he opposed altogether the election of a large group of Members in one and the same constituency by simple majority. Mr. Groschen concluded with a very eloquent enumeration of the sterling qualities in the political character- of Englishmen, and a fervent hope that no change in our insti- tutions would mar these qualities in the future. .
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