LETTER VII.
MR. GLADSTONE—MR. COBDEN—THE IRON-CLAD 'MERRIMAC'—EMIGRATION OF WOMEN—POVERTY AMONG THE PEOPLE.
DURING the Parliamentary recess the spirit of domestic politics seems to have fairly died out; Mr. Cobden's pamphlet, "The Three Panics," is about the only ripple on the dull quiet sea. Mr. Gladstone's appearance in Lancashire may be regarded more as a personal than a political ovation. The high spotless character of the Chancellor of the Exchequer raises him above most others in the estimation of the English public—from the Throne to the cottage; and the mercantile and manufacturing classes are justly proud of him, and never lose an opportunity of doing him honour. This was seen with grand effect lately in the House of Commons, when Mr. Disraeli imprudently raised the question of political morality between
