Mr. Gladstone's Finance From His Accession to Office in 1853 to His Budget of 1862 (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from Mr. Gladstone's Finance: From His Accession to Office in 1853 to His Budget of 1862 There is one great drawback inherent in Parliamentary oratory, that it is always criticised in a partisan spirit. The object which the speaker has in view is almost invariably foreknown and pre judged; and it is hopeless to expect an impartial hearing from either of the political parties whose sympathies, interests, or pro judices have predetermined their opinions for or against the cause he represents. The most convincing logic, the most unanswerable facts, are listened to with a scepticism which no powers of per suasion can remove. On the other hand, the most transparent fallacies are accepted and applauded with a liberal and aecom modating faith for which no imposture is too extravagant. An energetic whip baffles the highest oratorical effort; empty benches paralyse the most brilliant powers; crushing majorities annihilate reason, facts, and figures. But the orator who looks beyond an ephemeral political triumph has this consolation - the record of his speeches is preserved. The time comes sooner or later when his judgment is tested by an impartial audience, and his claim to statesmanship decided - not on a parliamentary vote, but on the strength of fulfilled predictions, of realised calcula tions, and of proved foresight. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.