On Saturday Sir Michael Hicks-Beach followed in an address to
the Conservatives of West Bristol. We have dealt with the very unscrupulous assertion that he and his party had done and said nothing to weaken Irish administration, and had entered into no sort of alliance with the Parnellites, in another column. We will add here that he spoke of the foreign policy of the last five years, both in India and Egypt, as "fatuous folly" which had " ruined " Egypt and " endangered " India. The Liberals, he said, had secured the concert of Europe, but it was a concert against England. Even since they had been in office, the Tories had done much to obtain the good-will of Europe,—in other words, we suppose, had gratified Prince Bismarck by taking up once more the cause of the Tnrk. The Liberals he called a " Confederacy of Factions ;" but he did not explain what the bond between the Tory Democrats and the old Conservatives ought to be called. We should call it the tying-up together for a selfish purpose of positive contradictions. The meeting, with but two dissentients, heartily adopted this politic partisan as the Covervative candidate for West Bristol.
