An Anecdotal History of the British Parliament ... Third edition with additions, etc

Preface

. The scantiness of available information on the subject of the British Parliament, its history and its leading men, is a sur prising fact, in days when historical writing may be said to superabound. Much information was to be found, no doubt, in bulky volumes, or scattered through the material of extensive libraries ; but there was nothing for the general reader at once comprehensive and readily accessible. An attempt was made, years back, by two fellowworkers on the Press who had experienced the want, to supply it, by bringing together, for the first time and in anecdotal form, " some of the more striking facts in the history of our Parliaments, aud the public lives of distinguished statesmen."* Their work met with a favourable reception, and a cordial appreciation of its purport, not only in this country, but abroad.

One correspondent — a member of the legal profession in Italy — expressed himself warmly in praise of the book, which he was desirous of translating into his own tongue, as showing com pendiously the history of constitutional liberty in the nation which has striven most successfully for its promotion, and * "A Book of Parliamentary Anecdote," by G. H. Jennings and W. S. Johnstone, 1872. The writer takes this opportunity of expressing his satisfaction that in his earlier labours he was aided by the co-operation of his valued friend (now deceased), Mr. William Steven Johnstone. That gentleman, although prevented by weak health and arduous engage ments from continuing the work, kindly placed at the disposal of his colleague his own gatherings towards the original book. ANECDOTAL HISTORY OF PARLIAMENT.

VI being therefore well adapted as a text-book for the political education of his countrymen.* The encouragement given to the previous tentative work led the present writer to follow it up by the expansion and re-arrangement of its materials ; influenced, as regards the latter point (in the "Personal" section of the volume), in some measure by the suggestion of a competent and courteous critic in the Quarterly Review, who afterwards gave his remarks upon the book a more enduring circulation. t As regards expansion, the former work included but a small portion of the material contained in the present; for the vein was found to be more rich as it further explored. To deal with it in a manner likely to secure a satisfactory result his required such leisure and attention as opportunity may have afforded during many years ; the difficulty at length having been to confine the gathered material within moderate limits, while not omitting (it is believed) any important or characteristic fact in either the historical or the biographical branch of the subject.

It is hoped that the work, in its present form, may be of practical value in more than one direction. As Mr. Lowe once pointed out, in a celebrated phrase,J the power of thi3 country is now, more distinctly than at any former time, vested in the electoral body. Every individual citizen exercises a proportion of that power ; and, that he may use it wisely, an acquaintance with the history and the working of our Parlia mentary institutions is an essential condition. All have not the opportunity of reference to the works requisite for the information; but all may consult such a digest as will be *He wrote: "Vous avez raconte, dans ses traits plus remarquables, l'histoire d'Angleterre, qui, ancienne ou moderne, est toujours actuell'e pour nous, parcequ'elle est toujours la meme chose, fatale et grande, l'histoire de la liberte.

L'ltalie, si grande dans son histoire ancienne et inoyenue, si nouvelle dans l'histoire moderne, trouverait bien dans votro livre un recueil precieux d'exemples et de pratique liberate, qui l'aideraient imnienscment dans son education civile et politique." — Letter from Sig. Roger Calabrye, avocat a Naples. f " Selected Essays by A. Hayward, Q.O." London : 1878. X See p. 405.

PREFACE.

. VII found here, and the book may therefore claim to possess its •educational uses at home. To maintain the standard reached by constant patriotic effort in past times, and so to uphold the dignity and efficacy of the Nation in Council, is a most impor tant object, which it seems as necessary to keep in view at the present day as at any former period. Moreover, to this country the founders of Parliamentary institutions in other lands have been, and are, eagerly looking. Besides nations speaking other tongues, our numerous colonies have their growing Parliaments, all taking the cue from our own, and tracing in its history the foundations of a government at once popular, and regulated by4law and order, while Freedom broadens slowly down From precedent to precedent. To any of these colonial Assemblies might probably be applied a remark recently made respecting one of them : " It is almost as jealous of any departure from English Parliamentary precedent as could well be the House of Commons itself."* As to the general subjects of Parliamentary rule and precedent, formally considered, it is scarcely needful to say that no attempt is here made to compete wath the claims of such •elaborate and exhaustive works as those of Sir T. Erskine May aud his predecessors, Elsynge, HatseU, and the rest.

In the fullowing "anecdotal" pages, these matters are necessarily kept less in view than the broad lines of historical fact, personal trait, and oratorical effort or allusion ; and in dealiug -with these, one especial design has been to make the work useful to persons engaged in political and literary pursuits. The occasion of a particular incident, or the use of a certain * Letter from special correspondent of the Times at Melbourne, March 31, 1880. — Since theso lines were written, the subject has been enforced in the House of Commons. Mr. Speaker Brand, on his re-election to tho chair in 1880, said, "The power and consequent responsibility of this House are constantly increasing. It is looked up to, not only by onr colonial fellow-subjects as the parent of their popular Assemblies, but every nation in the world now treading in the path of Parliamentary Government watches our proceedings with the greatest attention and interest.

It is, then, the more incumbent on us to set an examplo of freedom and order in debate, which constitute the life-blood of Parlia mentary Government." ANECDOTAL HISTORY OF PARLIAMENT. phrase, is often matter of dispute and requires verification, both in Parliament and out of it. A circumstance which occurred in the session of 1876 will show that the want of a ready means of authenticating such facts and phrases is felt, at times, by persons of the greatest eminence in political life. Mr. Gladstone, speaking in the House of Commons of an expression used by a former colleague (the Earl of Clarendon) in an important crisis, said he had been at some pains to find out in "Hansard" what were the actual meaning and connection of that expression ("drifting into war"), and he gave the correct version.

If, however, the right honourable gentle man had had before him the small work of which this is a development, it would have saved him the labour, for the expression would there have been found, among m^ny others of like interest, with the context as given in " Hansard's " pages. The process of "mythical accretion" to which Mr. Glad stone referred on that occasion is constantly going on with regard to the celebrated dicta of our public men, and this makes it the more desirable to trace, as has here been done, the original occasion and precise sense of such expressions. Another instance in point will be found on page 386. Mr. Cobden was frequently credited with the saying that we could " crumple up Russia like a sheet of paper." What he really did say, and the "accretion" which followed, will there be found recorded; and many similar instances appear in other places.

One of the express objects of this book is to prevent, on many occasions in future, the need of such laborious research as that instanced by Mr. Gladstone ; and the number of political proverbs and sayings which will be found included here, with an account of the circumstances under which they arose, is very considerable. For many of these, recourse has necessarily been had, not only to the voluminous pages of " Hansard," and the similar records, such as they are, of former days, but to the deeper depth of ancient newspaper files, where alone some of the celebrated sayings of distinguished statesmen could be found, — often uttered on " extra parliamentary " and slight occasions, but destined, by some-

PREFACE.

. IX happy conjuncture of thought and phrase, to live as long in memory, or longer, than anything that fell from them in elaborate orations. To these, as well as some other portions of the book, gathered from voluminous histories and lengthy biographies, the words of the elder Disraeli, when speaking of some of his own labours, may not inappropriately be applied : — " There are articles in the present work, occupying but a few pages, which could never have been produced had not more time been allotted to the researches they contain than some would allow to a small volume." It may be thought that anecdotes of a humorous nature occur in the book to an extent not to have been anticipated. They have, however, nob been sought for, but have arisen from the -mature of the subject. Humour has always played an important part in the proceedings of the British Parlia ment, whether it be the greater Parliament of the platform and the polling-booth, or the select body which assembles at St. Stephen's. As a worthy member of the House of Com mons once remarked, it loves good sense and joking."* This book, therefore, could not faithfully mirror Parliamentary life, as it attempts to do, unless both qualities were fairly represented.

Reference to authorities is given throughout the work, wherever it seemed likely to be useful to the reader, or' of any importance for verification. It is scarcely necessary to add that in manv cases the authorities cited indicate only tho sources from which the principal facts or reports are derived ; such additions and explanations as may have been requisite to complete the information having, of course, been supplied from other sources. Of one thing the reader may be assured, — that the work before him has been prepared without undue leaning or partiality in favour of any of the great parties in the State, whether in past or present time. The historical student frequently cares little for the differences of passing politics, seeiDg rather, in the calmness of private study, that the adversaries and opponents of a particular time have been, in tho * P. 671. x ANECDOTAL HISTOBT OF PARLIAMENT. main, men working with different views towards common objects, and that there has been much on both sides worthy of admiration and respect.

The familiar illustration of the knights and the shield is as applicable in political as in any other affairs, and it has required many chivalrous men of opposing views to build worthily upon the foundations of the British Parliament. It is believed that all sides alike are here fairly represented; for the historical spirit, as distin guished from that of party, in the main pervades the principal sources of information referred to, and in the collection of material from these quarters there has been no such endeavour as that of Dr. Johnson,* to " take care that the Whig dogs did not get the best of it." * P. 562.

PREFACE.

TO THE THIRD EDITION. During the twelve years which have elapsed since the issue of the first edition of this book, many events of the greatest interest and importance have transpired. The Parliamentary electorate has itself been immensely enlarged; and the brief period that now suffices to effect momentous changes in Parliamentary rules and procedure may be judged by careful readers from some of the closing pages in the first section of the book, and be read in fuller detail in its later portions. Again, the publication of numerous memoirs and biographies of deceased statesmen has thrown additional light upon important passages in their own personal history and career, as well as on that of their colleagues. These biographical records have all required consultation and reference, with results that may be found interspersed in the volume.

Names that were most prominent in 1880 and afterward are now missing from the living roll; while statesmen then of lesser note have since come prominently forward, and in many cases

PREFACE.

. XI have required distinct and separate notice, such as had been given to some of their predecessors. A further word of explanation remains to be added. The compiler of this book witnessed, when very young, O'Connell's last appearance at the table of the House of Commons, and remembers to have heard some of those feeble utterances of the dying gladiator to which Mr. Disraeli alluded in his memoir of Lord George Bentinck. In later years it was the writer's duty, also, as engaged on the Press, to attend the House of Commons on many an important' and critical occasion. Therefore, in putting together this record of Par liamentary facts and incidents, so far as recent times are concerned, his hand has been both guided and restrained, in no small measure, by results of personal observation. As to former days, research has sometimes enabled him to recover contemporary records that were sought for in vain even in the library of the British Museum ; and these are frequently quoted, especially in the earlier sections of the work.

To conclude, as to the whole aim and purport of the book, in the words of one who is frequently quoted in its pages, — it is " to save from what traditions glean, Or age remembers, or ourselves have seen, The scattered relics care can yet collect. . Types of the elements whose glorious strife Formed this free England, and still guards her life." CONTENTS.

Part I. Tage Rise And Progress Of Parliamentary Insti- Tutions

Personal Anecdotes (continued) — page Earl Camden 141 Lord Thdrlow 141 Earl of Sbelburne 145 William Pitt... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 146 Charles James Fox ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 152 Edmund Bcrke ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 159 Richard Brinsley Sheridan ... ... ... ... ... 170 Edward Gibbon ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 175 William Windham ... ... ... ... ... 176 Sir Philip Francis 177 George Tierney 178 William Wilberforce ... ... ... ... 179 Sir Samuel Romilly ... ... ... ... ... ■■■ 181 Sir James Mackintosh ... ... ... ... ... ■•■ 182 Francis Horner 184 Henry Addington, Lord Sidmouth 185 Lord Castleeeagh ... ... ... ... ••• 186 Henry Grattan 191 Henry Flood 194 John Philpot Curran 195 Lord Plunket ... ... ... .-• ■■• ••• ■•• 196 Lord Erskine... ... ... ... ... • •• ■■• ••■ 199 Sir William Grant 200 Lord Eldon "" 201 Spencer Perceval ... ... ... ... ... ■•• ••• 203 Robert Jenkisison, Earl of Liverpool 204 John Horne Tooke 205 Lord Byron ... ... ... ••• ■■• ■■■ 206 Lord Broughton ... 208 Sir Francis Burdett 209 William Cobbett ... ... ... ... •■• ■ •■ ■■■ 211 Joseph Hume ... ... ... ... ... ■■• ••• ■•• 213 Thomas S. Duncombe 216 George Canning 217 William Huskisson 223 Earl Grey 224 Lord Althorp 226 Lord Melbourne 228 Lord Brougham 232 Lord Lyndhurst ... ... ... ■■■ ■•• ■■• ■•■ 242 Duke of Wellington 246 Sir Robert Peel 254 Sir James Graham 266 Daniel O'Connell 269 Richard Lalor Sheil 274 Lord John (Earl) Russell 276 Lord Palmerston 284 Earl of Clarendon 298 Lord Macaulay 299 Edward Bulwer, Lord Lytton ANECDOTAL HISTORY OF PARLIAMENT.

XIV Personal Anecdotes (continued) — page Edward Geoffrey, Earl of Derby 307 Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield ... 314 Lord George Bentinck 347 William Ewart Gladstone 350 Richard Cobden ... ... ... •■• — •■■ ■■■ 384 John Bright ... ... ... ... ■•• ■■■ ••• ••• 390 Robert Lowe (Lord Sherbrooke) 403 John Arthur Roebuck ... ... ... •■• •■■ ■•■ 409 Ralph Bernal Osborne 412 Earl Granville 414 Marquis of Salisbury 420 Earl Cairns 429 Earl of Selborne ... ... ... ... •■• •■■ ■ •■ 432 Earl of Iddesleigh (Sir S. Northcote) 435 Marquis of Hartington ... ... ... ... ... .■■ 441 William Edward Foester ... ... ... ... 447 Duke of Argyll ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 451 Edward Henry, Earl of Dee'.:v ... ... ... ... ... 456 -. Sir W. Ternon Harcourt ... ... ... ... ... ... 459 George Joachim Goschen ... ...' .... ... ... 464- Joseph Chamberlain ... ... ■ ... ... ... 470- Lord Randolph Churchill ... ... ... ... ... 479 William Henry Smith 486 Arthur James Balfour ... ... ... ... ... ... 489 John Morley ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 494 Minor Celebrities and Odd Characters ... ... ... 497 "The Rolliad" 502

Part III. Miscellaneous Anecdotes

:— 1. ELECTIONS 505- 2. PRIVILEGE 539- Exclusion of Strangers ... ... ... ... ... 550 Publication of Debates ... ... ... ... ... 559 3. PARLIAMENTARY USAGES, Etc 569 4. VARIETIES 625