NEWS OF THE WEEK.
TORD RANDOLPH CHURCHILL gave up at the eleventh hour—we might almost say at the twelfth —an engagement to address the Conservatives and Tories of Liverpool in Hengler's Circus on Wednesday, ostensibly on the ground, it is said, that Mr. Whitley and Lord Claud Hamilton, the Conservative Members for Liverpool, declined to co-operate with him on the same platform. We can hardly believe, for our own parts, that this is the whole account of the matter. Lord Randolph has not recently shown himself so bashful that he cannot persuade himself to appear alone on any platform, and even make it rather hot for those who chose to discountenance him and throw him over. We strongly suspect that his leader has had something to say in the matter. A Tory Democratic speech in Lord Randolph's usual style, delivered while Parliament is still sitting, and while it is possible to interrogate the speaker and his colleagues as to the meaning of his words, might be both distasteful to Lord Salisbury and very dangerous to the harmony of the new Cabinet. But let the speech be only postponed till Parliament has been prorogued, and till no one can be cross-examined upon it, and then per- haps the Government may take advantage of the Democratic sympathisers with Lord Randolph, without incurring the full obloquy of having his expressions promptly disowned by some of his most influential colleagues.
