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Leader (1850-1860), 11th September 1852, Edition Town of 2, Page 875, Untitled Article

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      tec hnicalities , they really think alike . They Aether constitute an oligarchy—a special caste which possesses the official government of England and , in reality , they are unitedly fighting together against that national dictation which they read in newspapers and hear from Radicals , which they defer to after long resistance , but which " being unorganized , " and visible only in " vile rabble" at election times , they unaffectedly despise . It is all very wrong and very melancholy ; but so long as these things are , let those who seek Parliament remember that they are enrolling themselves , not in a popular assembly whose heart beats with the pulse of the nation ,

      but in a close club , perfect m itself , nearly independent of out-of-doors verdicts or individuals , and therefore deciding absolutely the fates of its own members . If you want to revolutionize the House , work away from without ; but , being a member , make a proper estimate of its composition and constitution , identify yourself with it , labour with it and for it , and , in a word , manage it . Think first of your party ; but secondly always of the House ; and when it is thus seen that y ou are not there to air your individuality , you will cease at once to be regarded as a novws homo whom it would be dangerous to trust and absurd to listen to . The House of Commons

      Club looks , in fact , with suspicion at every new member who is not one of the oligarchy—as an intruder — a possibly hazardous man , who may work like Hume or talk like Roebuck ; and it is this suspicion which every new man , not a silent member by right of birth or position , has in the first place to overcome . As I have said in a former paper , the representative of a large constituency , looking to his re-election , cannot satisfy their ^ ignorant expectations , without appearing frequently in debate , to reiterate his

      stale opinions ; and , as I have also hinted before , this might be done without long speeches , without insulting the club , and without endangering personal position . But it is a great out-of-doors error to suppose that the club itself regulates its approval in proportion to display . It is not so in the world , and it is not so in the House ; and , indeed , in the House , the taciturn , careless , back bencher , who never appears on the stage , is often the teacher in rehearsal—the prompter—felt , not seen — when the curtain is up . For instance , Mr . Cornewall Lewis had more to do with the

      government of England , in Lord John Russell's time , than Sir George Grey ; and Mr . Henry Baillie and Lord Lonsdale—two silent mennow affect Lord Derby and Mr . Disraeli more than the rest of the cabinet put together . Fox had a foolometer , upon whom he tried his measures , just as Moliere experimented with his plays upon his cook ; and in that sense , in a club , such as the House of Commons , the " public" may bo in reality more truly represented by a Colonel Sibthorpo than by a Colonel Mure . The leader of the House is seldom the

      most , intellectual man in the House—the leader of the party is not at all necessarily the greatest thinker , best talker , or profoundest writer , in its ranks ; and , among the file , rank is accorded not ; it all in reference to what " literary men" call intellect , and not at all in reference to acquired general knowledge . Again , to use illustrations , Mr . Talfourd was less a power than Mr . William Williams ; Lord Malion than Mr . Christopher . Ju the world we laugh and sneer at those who < lon '| , " get on , " much as they may be our betters i" 'ill except " getting on ; " aud why not in the ' < - Stephen ' s Club P

      . 1 have used the word " rehearsal" several tnuc . s : —let mo explain my meaning . I have fj W ?« nted what is the real constitution of the House of Commons ; and it suggests itself that << very member of that House is perfectly awaro ° ' tlm piscine facts . I think they are " the first assembly of gentlemen" in Europe—patricians , J 1 <> doubt , but patriots , too , whoso blood leapH through their limbs when there- is occasion , an thoug h thoy never had trafficked away small national

      perquisites—and who will ( about midnight ) <'< hcor madly noble aimtimontH . ' Hut , whether O | " Hot the first gentlemen in Europe ; , this is cor'' " . liiat they are a elovoror , shrewder , more dexterous set of men than you will find olHowhoro ! " . ' England — House of Commons existence being ' i ltsolf the moHt magnificent of educations , in teac hing the relative importance of men and tlunp ; aU ( i ^ jl 0 roaBOI 1 W } 1 V the ordeal of a j'lwiden speech is so greatly dreaded , in simply l > ocauao you know the sort of men who aro your

      auditors ; keener men than are in the whole world beside—accustomed to measure intellect by its exact results on the world , and capable of seeing at a glance through any pretence that may be offered by a Virgin orator . The Demosthenes of the public house may have a profound contempt for the back bencher member of the House of Commons who never talks . But where would the Demosthenes be if the back bencher met him in society—at a railway meeting—at Quarter Sessions—at the bar—in the sweating parlour of a banking-house P These clever gentlemen who

      are only chorus when the curtain is up—when the Speaker is in the chair—the " Strangers" plentiful—the Reporters arrayed—the ladies aghast —are as potent as Disraeli , and as powerful as Sir James , when they come across one another at dinner-parties , in the smoking-room , at committees , or country-house gatherings . For their own reasons they are insignificant on the stage , where they submit to the necessities of discipline . But who would recognise Mr . Glyn of the House , in the Mr . GrTyn who sits chairman twice a year over a noisy meeting in a Roman Doric room ten times as handsome as " the

      House , " and who manages to a marvel the finance of the " North Western ? " Who would suppose that the Mr . William Brown , who never speaks in the House , is the same Mr . William Brown who , at Liverpool , regulates hundreds of vessels , thousands of employes , and millions of merchandise ? Who would suppose that that quiet Mr . Walter , universal in his knowledge , and because so wise , so very temperate , " leads " the " leading journal ? " This club is by no means to be estimated by reference to its own chiefs : a Russell or a Disraeli are selected and

      put first ; not because they are the first men in all respects , but because they have , with most time , the most serviceable special capacity as mouthpieces of large bodies . The House , then , being a crowd of the cleverest , keenest fellows going , position in it is not dependent solely upon public appearance , but upon the impression produced off the stage , in private society , in the smokingroom , in committee . M . P . ' s are gossips : they know everything of each other ; they canvass one another ; they estimate one another ; and , if the hon . gentleman who has talked very

      loud , aud perhaps very well , on the stage , has not also been a hit in the green room , his success ia very incomplete and partial ; and tho applause of his local journal will but slightly compensate for the sneer he will detect in the lobby . There are some men in tho House who may count friends in the whole 656 of their colleagues , —Lord John , for one ; Mr . Labouchere , for another ; and there is no accident in such instances , —it is the result of a deliberate persevering system of gaining good opinions . There are certain men with whom reservo tells better than cordiality , —as with Sir

      Robert Peel ; but lessor men will lose everything if they neglect the art of producing favourable impressions . Fcnelon , in his account of Cicero , says , " when he began to dedicate himself more earnestly to public business , ho thought that while mechanics knew the name , the place , the use of every tool and instrument they take in their hands , though these things are inanimate , it would bo absurd for a statesman , whose functions cannot be performed but by moans of men , to be negligent in acquainting himself with tho . citizens . He therefore made it his

      business to commit to memory not only their names , but the place of abode of those of greater note , what friends they made use of , and what neighbours were in their circle . " Certainly the " great favourite" class of men in society owe something to a natural amiability , but at least tho unsympathetic men might learn the alphabet , tho letters , of tho language they have to read ; might master the Houho in detail an well as collectively . No orator succeeds who does not know his audience : and tho House of Commons is cruel to those whom it does not like .

      JtH liken and dislikes have little to do with the politics of the object , Mr . Hume , the mostplain-Hpoaking of Radicals , lum been for twenty years the inoHt popular man in an oligarchical IIouho of Commons , and not because , but in Hpito , of his public appearances , which have been , first , " unbunino . s 8-liko , " as having no party at his back , and further , have been slightly too numerous , although , as Charles Bullor saiu , " thow iH never any monotony about him . " Mr . Henry Drumniond novor rises but to sneer at all public virtue and all political pretence j but ho is attentively

      listened to and laughed at , not that the wit is so acute , but that so many have met him out at dinner , and enjoyed the sample in the bulk . To point a contrast , it is enough to say that Mr . Bright carries his inexorable detestation of Toryism into the lobby : whence he is shunned in tho green-room and hooted on the stage . A great blunder , for Radicalism cannot do without Mr . Bright .

      These suggestions will show to new M . P . s . the wisdom of a long study of the House out of the House , before they venture on the pursuit of the Speaker ' s eye . A stranger , who is not known and ascertained privately , has no chance of being heard , he is only stared at . But also , before rising to speak , the man who means to win should have come to a conclusion as to what modern House of Commons Oratory amounts to , should catch the knack of the arena , and talk in the tone of the place . Next week you shall have my " Hints" on that theme .

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      ON THE CULTIVATION OF FLAX . * VIII . We are sorry to be compelled by circumstances to issue our remarks on the culture of flax in rather an unconnected manner . We had hoped ere this to have informed our readers of the precise nature of Mr . Donlan ' s patent for the dry preparation of the fibre . This we cannot yet do , for the following reasons : —The patent was sealed in June last , and it was scarcely

      granted when the inventor , a person far advanced in life , and with a constitution weakened by anxiety , died after a short illness . The specification had been fortunately lodged previousl y to Mr . Donlan ' decease , and his widow will , therefore , as we trust , reap the full benefit of her husband ' s labours ; but it will not , we fear , be made public much before the expiration of the period allowed under the patent laws , viz ., six months from the date of the patent . This is said to accord to Mr . Dnnlan and his heirs the sole right of extracting

      the wood of flax from its fibre by the dry preparation . The principle is , in fact , said to be patented ; and if so , after all we have said in its praise , we hope that the specification will describe some cheap and efficient machinery available for the ordinary farmer . If not , we shall have some reason to complain of a law which will have the effect of impeding the progress of our clever agricultural machinists , as far as flax machines arc concerned , for fourteen years from the date of Mr . Donlan ' s patent , if not , indeed , for a longer period . We must , therefore , fill the space allotted to us this week , with some remarks upon the uses of linseed in the fatteninsr of stock .

      The lead which was taken by the county of Norfolk in improved agriculture has been fully maintained in the treatment of fatting stock . At the head of the enterprising farmers in the county , it is not strange that we find the name of Mr . John Warnos , of Trimingliam . It would have been strange if u gentleman ho thoroughly imbued with the flax mania had not discovered some means of turning the . seed into something bettor than linseed oil and its refuse , oilcake . We accordingly find him erecting loose boxes for his cattle , and cooking their dinners for them with as much earo as did M . ttoyer for the magnates of the Kefonn Club .

      Instead of their being blown out with two cwt . of frozen turnips and a bundle of hay , given at all imaginable irregular periods , Mr . VVarnes' cuttle are fed with an object , and fed more profitably by other means . The object is to lay on flesh and fat with as little delay as possible , and to accumulate vast quantities of manure in the best condition for agricultural purposes : ¦— The means arc , housing the cattle in warm loose boxes favourable to the exercise of their digestive powers , and food given in such quantities and so prepared that the meal may be expeditiouwly eaten with a good appetite , and ample time therefor *; allowed for that repose so essential to the development of fat . The cooking appuratus is simple enough : it consists of an iron boiler ,

      capable of holding forty gallons , fitted with a . wooden curb ( sloping outwards , to prevent the mucilage from boiling over ; an iron bowl , with handle ; u Hinnll brewer ' s nmshnig-rttick ; a linseed crusher ; a . JOO-gallon trough or tub ; a wooden rammer ;• n bushel hauled ; ; chniT-cutter and turnip-cutter ; a fork , with ' four 6 r five flat prongs ; upn . il ; a . peck measure , with handle like that of a pail ; and a bin fitted up with the necessary partitions for ground and whole linseed , Ac . Most of the aln ) ve are already to he found in ttnglinh farm-yards . At any rate , about 10 / . would supply what is not there . In Hummer time Mr . Warnes iikoh ryegruNS und clover , or any ' other green crop , cut into chaff about an inch in length , mixed with linseed compound . In winter

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      # Vido leader , Num . 110 , \ i % 11 . ' * , 114 , 116 , 124 ; IW

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      September 11 , 1852 . ] THE LEADER . 875

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 11, 1852, page 875, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1951/page/15/