The Home Secretary, Mr. Matthews, made his annual speech to
his constituents at Birmingham on Wednesday, and ranged over the whole field of Government action. He spoke of the measures passed for Scotland, for establishing Local Self-government there, for improving University educa- tion, and for relieving the crofters ; and of the great scheme of National Defence which had received the sanction of Parlia- ment. He mentioned Mr. Goschen's conversion project, so successfully carried out, and the scheme he had shadowed forth, or even begun, for the redemption of the light gold currency. More measures, he said, would have been passed but for the policy of obstruction pursued by the Gladstonians, and avowed by Mr. Labouchere, who would, if he could, have refused to the Administration all means of doing good. He gave a scathing account of the Opposition, which was now 'divided into three parties, each with its regular leader and regular whips,—two of them restless under the authority of the great chief himself. Indeed, Mr. Gladstone's authority was almost gone, his lieutenants being, like Alexander's Generals, only anxious for the succession,—an anxiety, we may remark, which did not, in the ancient case, manifest itself so openly till Alexander was dead. While breath was in his body, "the zig-zag lightning in his brain" cowed his companions, who were, while he lasted, only his tools. Mr. Matthews declared that Mr. Gladstone commanded no real allegiance. and could compare his colleagues "to nothing but a set of vipers in a jar, each striving to get his head upper- most." He then diverged to the remedial policy of the Govern- ment in Ireland, its schemes for Land-Purchase, drainage, and light railways ; and wound up a long speech, received with great favour, by affirming that recent elections were all carried by forces wholly apart from the popularity of Home-rule.
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