A POLITICAL TRAGEDY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1037, 28 January 1911, Page 5

A POLITICAL TRAGEDY.

A CABINET MINISTER'S WRECKED CAREER. tvT/ 16 m gU Hon ' Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, Bart., was born at-Chelsed-'on'Sep-tember i, 1813,. being the eldest son.of Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, who received his' titlofor; his" services'in Connection -rath: the Exhibition in 1851. Ho was educated at Trinity Hall,. Cambridge, of which he was a mathematical scholar, and where he graduated, as senior legalist (head of the Law Tripos) in 1566. In tho same vear ho was called to the Bar at the Middle temple. At Cambridge he rowed "head of tho River aud stroke of his college eight, and was twico vice-president and then twice president of the Union, a tenuro of offico without precedent before or since. In ISGG he commenced a series of extensive travels, Tisitiug Canada and the nli statDS ' Panama, New Zealand, and all tho Australian Colonies, Ceylon, India, and Egypt. The book, in which he embodied the results of these travels, entitled "Greater Britain v A Record of Travel in English-speaking Colonies during 18GG--67, was in-scheme an original study of the influence of race on government and of climatic conditions upon race. For an author's first book its success was nothing less than phenomenal. It passed through four editions in a single year in England, and had a still larger' vogue -in America. One of its first results was the election.of its author in 1868 bv a.two-to-ono majority as member to. Chelsea. in {he House of Commons. Tills at Royalty. . Sir Charles, who was' a Radical in politics, was at that time the youngest man who had over represented a metropolitan constituency. In Parliament. he chicflv spoke upon foreign, Indian, and colonial affairs. Having in 1871 been.attacked.for holding Republican principles," he admitted publicly that he had always preferred a republican, form of government to a constitutional monarchy. Tho lengths to which ha carried his sentiments on this question threatened.at ojio time to be the ruin of his political career. .For a time it might havo been thought -that a new political party, was on the. point of being formed, and that a real Republican, seated, in tho House of Commons as member for a metropolitan constituency, "was to bo its leader.. But one day an unfortunate event happened, : which blighted all' the hopes of the. anti-Monarchical. party, as if oy an untimely frost. Tho Prince of Wales fell ill,' and-from the hour when his illness 'became serious down to- the present moment nothing further has been heard of the movement which it was once supposed that Sir Charles Dilkc was ready, to lead against the Throne." A Solid Politician. It was a" false start in political life which would have wrecked the prospects of a less able. man, but the career of Sir- Charles Dilke was not ruined. " Ke kept quietly in the background for a while, engaging .himself .in--'the'. 6teady. and solid preparation for tho" work": and' the life'of_ji_statesman. Soon he had studied polities with 'such" thoroughness that few men-of'his age in England-could compare with him in depth of knowledge or breadth of judgment. _ _ -,-,„ i . In spite of violent opposition, Sir Charles Dilke was again returned >afe tho head of the. poll for Chelsea "at: the..elections of 187-I..,Among his early t-legista-.. tive achievements* were-".{he--creation.jo£, School -Boards., directly elected' by the. ratepayers,' the conferring of the municipal franchise on women', and. the akolir; Hon of the barbarous penalty of drawing and quartering. In- Mr. Ad; ministration of 1880' he" was-appointed-Under-Secretary of Stat» for Foreign, Affairs. In December, ISS2,..he,.was.made President of the Local. Government Board, with'a seat in the Cabinet.' ■'"'..■ "' ' —

' The extreme. :wins of jjths; Gladstoniap' party looked to the young- and brilliant .baronet as their leader, ahdrainong the working men of the country he .had an influence that was not eclipsed- -even: by Mr. Chamberlain's, rising star. The two men were fast, friends and ■ v;orked-to-' Pettier. .They .were the,.first'to organise Radicalism,as a political force, and their support became a matter of such moment to Mr. Gladstone that he ,vras obliged to find room for both of them in his Ministry of 1880':,: At that time it was a.tos> up which was the abler, which the more promising, .which the more certain to rise to a commanding,: if iiot'the highesfpbsi-' tion—Chamberlain or Dilke. The Wreck of a Career. Then came that unsavoury Divorce Court - scandak that wrecked * a career of ,so much ■ real - hopefulness.- -Wer'oit riot for disclosures then made as to his private life'he would have been, in the opinion of many, one of the foremost statesmen of the country, ' and quite the foremost in the liberal party. As it was,/ the strong insistence of English puritanism npon ahigh standard"o~f"private"cdn-. duct in their public-men virtually bstra-" cjsed and nullified him. He retained his seat in Parliament, but he was pawed over in the appointments to the Liberal Cabinets siuce 1906, and has been, condemned to impotence in public life.