I.
The year 1885 saw the Seats Bill, with its numerous compromises in detail, passed into law, but not without attendant difficulties.
'On Ash Wednesday, February 18th, I saw Sir Stafford Northcote, and settled with him, in view of the meeting of the House on the next day, the whole course of affairs for the 19th and 20th, under guise of discussing details of the Seats Bill. After we had parted, Northcote wrote to me that on consideration he had come to the conclusion that he must give notice of a vote of censure, but our amicable communication continued on the next day. "On consideration," with Northcote, always meant "After bullying by Randolph."'
In the process of settlement there were constant meetings with Lord Salisbury and Sir Stafford Northcote together, with Lord John Manners, with Sir Michael Hicks Beach; while on the Conservative scheme for Irish grouping
'I saw Healy for them, to discover if the thing could be done by general consent; and, although Healy did not oppose right out, the prospect of an agreement on details was far from promising. Healy and I took the opportunity to discuss the Parnell-Chamberlain Irish National Board scheme, of which I had written to Grant Duff on January 23rd, "Chamberlain has a grand scheme for an Irish Board."'
March 6th.—'Healy having told me that he was sure Lord Salisbury had "rigged" the Irish Boundary Commission, and I having written this to Spencer, I received an indignant denial. "If indignation were justified at anything that Healy says, I should indignantly deny his accusation."'
'Between March 11th and 13th the Conservatives had given me a good deal of trouble by trying, under pressure from their friends, to vary the Seats Agreement upon several points…. They then attacked the two-member towns in England, which, it may be remembered, had been insisted on by Mr. Gladstone against my wish; and Northcote wrote: "Lord Salisbury and I never liked that privilegium, and wished to have single-member constituencies everywhere"; he tried hard to get me to reopen the question, knowing doubtless that I was with him on the merits. He continued to press the question as late as March 15th, when he wrote: "Our men are getting hard to hold, and, having twice walked through the lobby almost alone, I have no taste for repeating the operation." Conference with Lord Salisbury followed, and the final stages were reached: from Monday, March 23rd, I had the Seats Bill in Committee four days a week.'
The essential fact in these dealings is that emphasized by Mr. Howel
Thomas, Secretary to the Boundary Commission:
'No political or other pressure would induce Sir Charles—and the strongest pressure was used again and again—even to contemplate a departure from the spirit of the compact. When once an agreement became possible, he would spare no trouble to modify details. But without agreement, however strong the argument for a change, nothing was listened to.'
'On May 6th I received from Sir John Lambert, the retired Permanent Secretary of the Local Government Board, a most grateful letter about the Privy Councillorship, which had been announced to him by Mr. Gladstone, and which no man ever more greatly deserved as an honour, or by his character more greatly honoured.' [Footnote: John Lambert's letter to Sir Charles contained these words: 'I have had the opportunity of assisting you in a work which has placed you in the very foremost rank of statesmen, and I have formed a friendship which is one of the most gratifying incidents of my declining years.']
'On the morning of May 9th I received a letter from Northcote, congratulating me on the manner in which I had conducted the Redistribution Bill "through its difficult stages…. Let me thank you once more for the great consideration, as well as the perfect loyalty, with which you have dealt with the numerous questions, and congratulate you on having brought your ship so well into port."' [Footnote: Upon a table in the larger drawing-room at 76, Sloane Street there stood always a bronze 'Victory' sent by Sir George Trevelyan to Sir Charles to celebrate the passing of the Redistribution Bill, with these words:
'Dear Dilke,—The bronze is a Victory on a globe. The Victory is obvious. The globe below signifies the manner in which your conduct of the Redistribution Bill got the Tory Press under your feet. I am pleased to think that, as a work of art, it may pass muster even before such an artist as the future Lady Dilke…. It is a copy of a Herculaneum bronze…. I cannot help hoping that you will think it not unworthy of the event which it is meant to commemorate.']
But 'port' was not finally reached till after the fall of the Ministry in June.
Work on the Housing Commission was also practically completed.
Throughout the year the Report had been under discussion.
On February 16th 'I told Chamberlain that the Labourers' Ireland Committee had "advised taking of land under compulsory powers in order to attach it to cottages"—a proposal which was afterwards carried; to which Chamberlain replied: "And your Commission?" and I answered: "We shall, I hope, but Lord Salisbury is jibbing since your speeches" (on the unauthorized programme).
'On March 11th, at the meeting of my Housing Commission, Lord Salisbury proposed what Goschen at once described as "Revolution," and Broadhurst "Socialism." He wanted to give public money out of taxes to London. It may have been silly, but it was not either revolutionary or socialistic.'
When it came to the point of acting on the Report, the Tory leader was very far from revolutionary; on June 4th,
'I was also seeing Lord Salisbury as to the Housing Commission Bills, which he was to introduce into the House of Lords, [Footnote: Sir Charles was to take charge of the measures in the Commons.] He was strongly opposed to putting it into the power of Boards of Guardians "to build out of the rates as many cottages, with half- acres attached, as they like, taking for the purpose any land they please." In another letter he wrote: "I should provide that— (1) The Local Authority must pass a petition to the Local Government Board to apply the Acts. (2) The Local Government Board must send down and inquire with a long notice. (3) If the Local Government Board inspector reports (i.) that the poorer classes of the parish are not, and are not likely to be, sufficiently housed without the application of the Acts; (ii.) that the Acts can be applied without ultimate loss to the ratepayers, then a vote of the local authorities should be sufficient to apply the Acts. It would be better that a sufficient interval should be passed in these processes to insure that the second vote should be given by a newly elected local authority."'
On April 4th to 9th the Housing Commission visited Scotland.
'On the evening of April 4th I dined with the Lord Provost of Edinburgh. On Easter Day I attended the Kirk with the Lord Provost, hearing a magnificent sermon by Principal Caird, and in the evening dined with the Lord Advocate. On Easter Tuesday I dined with the Convention of Royal Burghs. On Thursday, April 9th, we left Edinburgh for London.'
There remained only the question of inquiring and reporting with regard to Ireland, and here perplexities abounded.
As far back as February 7th at the Cabinet, 'the third matter discussed was that of the proposed visit of the Prince of Wales to Dublin as a member of my Commission, or, by himself, in advance of the visit of the Commission. It was decided that Parliament could not be asked for his expenses without trouble with the Irish.'
April 9th.—'I now began discussing with Spencer the conditions on which the Commission was to appear at Dublin, with regard to which there were great difficulties. Gray was on the Commission, but could not be Spencer's guest in any way, although, on the other hand, he and his friends were willing to receive me in spite of my being a member of the Government. [Footnote: Mr. Dwyer Gray, Nationalist member for Carlow in 1885. In 1886 he represented St. Stephen's Green, Dublin.] Spencer, in inviting me to stay with him, wrote: "I do not think you will fear the denunciation of United Ireland."
'On April 17th I entered in my diary, after the meeting of the Royal Commission at which we signed our report: "Pleasures of Ireland. If we stay with Spencer, the Irish witnesses say that they will not appear before the Commission; and if we do not, I am told that the 'loyalists' will not appear." On this day I wrote to Grant Duff: "I may go" (out) "with Chamberlain over Budget [Footnote: Correspondence with Mr. Gladstone on the Budget and the Beer Tax has been given in the previous chapter, pp. 118-120.] or over Irish Coercion." He replied, and my rejoinder will be found below.' [Footnote: Sir Charles's summary of this letter will be found in this chapter (p. 143).]
Trouble had arisen also over Mr. Childers's wish to increase the duty on sparkling wines. This Sir Charles strongly opposed
'on the ground that it would upset the French and make them withdraw the most favoured nation treatment which I had won, and the matter was adjourned.'
'On Saturday, May 16th, there was another Cabinet. Childers proposed to raise the wine duties, to reduce by one-half his proposed increase on spirits, and to limit to one year his increase on beer. We all agreed, against Childers, to postpone any announcement of changes for three weeks, and Childers, thinking that this meant that we had agreed not to take his proposals, said that he would resign.'
April 24th.—'I had now received Spencer's consent to my quitting the Viceregal Lodge, when at Dublin at Whitsuntide, for one evening, to attend a party at Gray's, which was the virtual condition of our not being boycotted by the Nationalists.'
Negotiations between the Irish party and both English parties were at this time in the air, and it will be seen that this visit to Ireland became connected with political issues quite different from its ostensible and non-controversial object.