The Solicitor - General's speech on the same occasion, which
in its political aspects we have elsewhere discussed,
was, besides being instructive on the question of land, very entertaining, after the easy egotistic fashion which he so much affects. Ile began by envying the old Druids their freedom from reporters,—but would the new Druid have said half he did say, or said it half as well but for those same reporters ?—then he proposed to take off his official wig and gown, and to chat at his ease, and he did chat at his ease, but there was a good deal of method in his ease, lie had very comfortable anticipatiods of a Budget surplus to propound, was very severe on the army of inspectors who swell local taxation, nicknaming them happily "a species of voracious. caterpillars whom I would call the Inspector Vastator" ; he declared that the modernisation of Endowment trusts was neither " plundering " nor "blundering," and then he proceeded to his discussion of the Land question, giving expression to a very sharp and not very intelligible censure of some suggestions in Mr. Mill's economic philosophy, and talking as if all philosophy meant.want of .sense. Surely there is no good sense without at least a little philosophy, and no good philosophy without good sense.
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