Untitled

Bruce Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 2962, 24 May 1898, Page 5

The death of the Right Hon. W.E. Gladstone took place at 5 o'clock on Thursday morning in the presence of hia wife : and family. The deceased statesman had reached the ripe age of 88 years. From ' Hazell ' we take the following brief Outline of hie remarkable career : Gladstone, Ut. Hon. W. E., was tho son of a Liverpool coru merchant — Sir John Gladstone, M.P., sometime of Lei th— and of Ann, daughter of Mr Andrew Boberteom of Sfcornoway, and Provost of Diogwall, The greatest Liberal statesman of his time, was ever proud to boast of his Scottish nationality and middle-olasß origin. He was born at Liverpool on Dee. 29 0h, 1809, and educated at Eton, and Christ Chnroh, Oxford, and at both plaoes early developed High Chnroh tendencies, and those Tory principles which he apparently inherited from hia father. At School ho contributed largely to the 1 Eon Miaoellany,' and subsequently took an active part in the disoussiouß of the Oxford Union. Married in '39 Mis* Catherine Glyune, daughter of Sir Stephen R. Glynne, of Hawarden Castle, Flintshire. Shortly after the passing of the first Reform Bill in '32, V!r Gladstone made hiß entry into pnblio life at Newark, where he was elected, as the Duke of Newcastle's nominee* ia the Tory interest, defeating Sergeant VVtldfl. the popular candidate. It was on May 17tb, '33, that he delivered his maiden speech in the Honse of Commons, in reply to Lord flowiek, on the slavery question, whoa he expressed himself aa opposed to slavery, but nob ia favour of hasty and wholesome enfranchisement. On tho dis~ solution of the Melbourne Ministry, at the end of '34, Sir Robert Peel called Mr Gladstone tj his ficat pub Ho appoiabment aa Junior Lord of the Treasury, which post he resigned in February of the following year for that of Under-Seoretary for the Colonies. A month afterwards (March '35), however* Lord John Eussell introduced his motion with regard to the temporalities of the Irish Church, which Mr Gladstone vigorously opposed ; but the ministry were beaten, and Lord Melbourne again came into power. The death of William IV, in Jnne '37 oausod Another general election, when Mr Gladstone was once more returned for Newark. In '41 on the accession of Sir Robert Peel, after the defeat of Lord John Russell in the House of Commons, Mr Gladstone accepted office as Vice-President of the Board of Trade and Master of the Mint. He took an active part In the Corn Law debates of '41-2, and although opposed to Mr Villiers, the champion of the Repeal party, the revised tariff Boheme was said to be chiefly Mr Gladstone's work. He became President of the Board of Trade in '43 ; but at the commencement of '45 resigned, owing to his opposition to the extension of the Maynooth Grant and the establishment of nonsectarian colleges. In '46, it having been announced that ad immediate revision of the Corn Laws was pending, Sir Robert Peel resigned, finding that certain members of his government wo^njd not go with him ; bnt Lord John Rubb^U declining to form a cabinet, Sir Robert Returned to office with Mr Gladstone as Colonial Secretary, and member for Oxford Diversity. On the death of Sir Robert fl|iil' ia ' 50 . Mr Gladstone paid his memor&gre' visit to Naples, which laid the foundation of his future friendship with Cavour and Garibaldi, During this period he finally severed himself from the Tories, although holding aloof from the Liberals for »sn)e ; and in '52 beoame Ohanoellor of thjjp Exchequer in Lord Aberdeen's Admlmswation, but fell with the collapse of that cabinet after the Crimean war. Subsequently he was ap. pointed by the Earl of Darby Lord High Commissioner to the lonian Islands. In '59 be accepted the Chancellorship of the Exohtqaer In Lord falmerston's Government. His budgets were always looked forward to with abeorbJog interest ; bafc no little sensation was caused by that of '61 which announced the total repeal of the muobdebated paper duty. On the dissolution of '65 Mr Gladstone w»s rejected at Oxford, but was returned for South Lancashire, receiving great ovations at Manchester and Liverpool. On the death of Lord Palmer•ton, in the autumn of that year, Earl Russell became Premier ; his old foe Mr Gladstone being the leader of the lower House. Daring the debates on the new Reform Bill a " oave " was formed in the House, of Commons, aDd the ministry fell in '66, to be suooeeded by the Earl of Derby's Government, with Mr Disraeli as leader in the Commons, who passed a Bill In '67 by the operation known as " dishing the Whigs." 'It was in thiß year that Mr Gladstone made bis famous declaration in favour of disestablishing the Irish Church. In Feb. '68 Mr Disraeli became Prime Minister, bnt Parliament was dissolved in the following November, when Mr Gladstone, defeated in South-west Lancashire' was elected for Greenwich. In the Parliamen of '7o he beoame Premier for the firßt time' and thence up to tho dissolution of '74 a number of important measures were placed on the statute book. The Irish Church baviDg been disestablished, and while Europe was distracted with the Franco- Prussian war, the Liberal Government carried the Elementary Education Aot (q v.), the Irish Land Aot, the Abolition of Purchase in the Army (by Royal warrant), the Act for abolishing University Teßts, and the Ballot Aot ; but they were beaten on the Iriah University Education Bill in '73. and Mr Disraeli returned to power in '74. Mr Gladstone then decided to reßiga the leaderchip of the Liberal party, but in '75 aroused much public indignation against the atrocities wbioh the Turks were perpetrating in Bulgaria. Ia '79 he made bis first visit to Midlothian, aud on the dissolution of '80 he was returned for that constituency, and beoame for the second time Premier. Amongst the important Acts be oarried between '80 and '85 may be mentioned the Employer*' Liability Aot, the second Iriah U»4 Act, *h« H«m « B a Rabbit Act, *

reform io the Land Laws, and, ohief of all, the third Reform Act and Redistribution Aot. After the dissolution ef the autumn of '85, Mr Gladstone again oame forward for Midlothian, and was re-eleoted by an enormous majority. On the fall of the Salisbury Administration, Jan. 26th, '86, Mr Gladstone was summoned by the Queen to again take offioe. He then held rb Premier the office of First Lord of the Treasury and Keeper of the Privy Seal. In consequence of a diver genoe of views between some of the leading members of the Liberal party and Mr Gladstone with respeot to bis proposed Irish policy, several of bis old colleagues, notably Lord Harrington and Sir H. James, did not join his cabinet— Mr Chamberlain and Mr Xrevelyan, who accepted offioe, resigning Maroh 27th. Mr Gladstone introduced billo relating to the Government and land of Ire land, the foroier in a great speech on April Bth, and the Sale and Purohaße of Land (Ireland) Bill on the 16th. Rot the revolt of the Liberal Unionists became pronounced, tho Government were defeated by a majority c* 30 on the Home Rule Bill, and resolved to resign. On July 2nd, at the General Eleof ion following, Mr Gladstone was elected fo r both Midlothian and Leith, and ohose to ait for his old constituency, but the result of the general eleotion was to deprive him of power. During the remainder of that year and throughout '87 littlo of speoial importance oocurred. He visitel Italy early in '88, and waß moßt warmly received. In December he again visited Italy, returning in Feb. '89. His golden wedding was celebrated on July 25th, '89, and the anniversary of his 81st birthday in '90 was made the occasion of the unveiling of a memorial fountain at tfawarden (Dec 29th, '90), which hud been erected to commeaiorate the golden wedding. During '92 Mr Gladstone oarried out yet another Midlothian Campaign. He was returned at the general eleotion, though by a greatly reduced majority, and in AugUßfc he became Premier for the fourth time. On Oot. 24th an enthusiastic welcome was given to him at Oxford, where he delivered th first of the Romanes lectured, ohoosing " Mediaeval Universities " for his subjeot. On April 6tb, '93, he moved the second reading of the Home Rule Bill (see '94 ed.. besaiou, sects. 79101) in the House oi Commons, bnt the Bill was thrown out by the Lords. During his stay at Biarritz, in Feb. '94, a London jonrnal announoed hiß retirement ; but the report was contradicted in very guarded terms. After hia return to England the report was renewed, and in the midat of the uncertainty Ht Gladstone made his last speeoh in the Houbo of Commons as Prime Minister (Marco. Ist)— the occasion being the consideration of the Lords' amendments to the Parish Councils Bill' The next day hia reaigaation was made public, the chief cause being the diaoovtry that he was euftertug from cataiact in both eyes ; and on March 3rd he uad an audience of the Queen, and gave up the sealß of offijb. A successful operation ior the removal of the cataract was performed in May, and during the eammor Mr Gladstone got con tinuously stronger. He paid a visit to Caunes early in '95, and delivered a stirring Bpeeoh on tne Armenian question at Chester in August. His long connection with the House of Commons terminated that year, for he did not Beek re-election at the General Election. He w»b &c Biarritz again in Jan. '96, and afterwards stayed in the Riviera, where he bad an interview with President Faure. The year paßeed very quietly in literary work, the moat notiseable eventß being the visit, by his own Bpecial request, of Li HuDg Chang to Hawarden in August, .bia impressive speech at the town's meeting at Liverpool on the Amerioan Question(Sept. 25fcb),and the death of Archbishop of Canterbury while on a visit to Hawarden in October. Mr Gladstone's literary efforts have resulted in many valuable works, and cover a most extensive field. In his early manhood he published " The State in ita Relations With the Church," and his pamphlet on the Neapolitan atrocities in'sl caused a remarkable seutsation. "jStudies in Homer " followed, aud " Juventua Mundi," while the pamphlet on the " Bulgarian Horrors "is atlll fresh, in memory. In '86 Mr Gladstone and Professor Huxley orosaed swords in the ' Ninteenth Century ' over Science and Revelation. In '90 he publiehed ••Landmarks of Homeric Study," and also *' The Impregnable Rook of Holy scripture," which reached a second and much amplified edition in '92. A volume of traaslationß of the Odes of Horace, the first frulta of his release from political toil, was published in Nov. '94, and a Commentary on the Psalter in '95. In '96 there appeared a new edition of " Butler'a Workß " arranged and annotated by him, and a volume of " Studies Subsidiary to the Works of Bishop Butler."