John Morrison Davidson

“ In such circumstances the English race naturally and instinctively have recourse to popular election to rectify matters; and this, after all, is the worst sin that can be laid at the door of the "caucus." The great matter, Mr. Chamberlain insists, is to insure that your hundred, three hundred, or six hundred be truly representative of the party voters. If that is secured, all is well; if not, not. Whoever distrusts the caucus honestly worked, distrusts the people as the true source of power. The party vote need not be one whit less honestly recorded because it is informal. ”

“ Is there not the town council of Birmingham, the threshold of which it is as difficult for a Tory to pass as for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven? and has not Mr. Chamberlain for years sat princeps inter pares in that Radical Witanagemot, playing the part of a terrestrial Providence to an entire community? If Parliament could be constituted as the town council of Birmingham is constituted, then Mr. Chamberlain might begin to respect it. As it is, he feels that it is below rather than above the level of his experience. The parliamentary machine is vaster than the municipal ”

“ If in England the union of culture and Radicalism is less observable, the reason is not far to seek. Excepting Birmingham, which returns Bright and Chamberlain to Parliament, there are scarcely any genuinely democratic constituencies in this country. We are aristocratic, and therefore coarse in our preferences. ”

“ The servants of the corporation would, unlike the publicans, have no interest either in the insobriety of their customers or the adulteration of the liquor sold. The poor man's drink would be as good as the rich man's, which is far from being the case at present; the political power of the publican would be annihilated; and last, not least, the necessity for police espionage would be almost at an end. There is no one cure for drunkenness: but this seems as feasible as any for a great community ”

“ Chamberlain's youthful, handsome face, which gives an added interest to his charm of manner.
Democracy, it has been alleged, both produces, and is partial to, coarseness in its representatives. The reverse is nearer the truth. Really good manners—the happy way of doing things—can never be acquired in an exclusive or aristocratic society, by reason of the paucity and uniformity of the models; and it is an indisputable fact that Radical constituencies, cœteris paribus, prefer to be represented by men of culture and refinement. ”

“ Chamberlain admits that is the true remedy, although that provided by the caucus is, of course, not inconsistent with it. But it is not on this ground so much that Mr. Chamberlain justifies the caucus. He regards it as an invaluable school for political instruction. Nor is that all. The National Liberal Federation, of which Mr. Chamberlain is president, has in more than one sudden emergency shown a promptitude in bringing pressure to bear on the Government by means of powerful deputations and concerted public meetings that never could have been rivalled by any conceivable isolated action. ”

“ Not content with giving the people light, water, and wholesome dwellings, he is the author of a scheme to make them the proprietors of their own public-houses; and, from the favorable manner in which the Lords' Committee on Intemperance have spoken of his proposals, it is not at all unlikely that Parliament will permit the capital of the midlands to make the experiment which her ex-mayor desires. ”

“ Chamberlain, however, claims no special credit in connection with the so-called caucus. He simply regards it as in some form inevitable, and therefore he tries to make the most of it. With the old restricted franchise, when the electors were a select and privileged class, no such party discipline was required. A caucus in the English sense is simply an elected committee. Sixty voters may require no such committee to prepare their business for them, simply because they are practically a committee already. ”

“ The private individuals, however, to whom the corporation may convey a title, will have to rebuild under conditions conformable to the health of the community and to the special convenience of the working-class. It need surprise no one if Mr. Chamberlain be yet found to have been a better sort of Haussman to Birmingham. ”

“ It then numbered forty-six associations; it has now risen to over a hundred, and every week adds to its strength and efficiency. At the late general election the caucus vindicated its power with such emphasis wherever it had taken root, that, from the election agent's point of view, the Liberal victory was its victory. It combines in a marvellous manner complete local autonomy with a capacity for concerted action something like that which existed amongst the Hanse Towns of the middle ages. Mr. Chamberlain has done surprising things as a party organizer ”

“ It is quite another matter when the numbers rise to six hundred, or six thousand, or sixteen thousand, as the case may be. Then some understanding must be come to, some suitable machinery must be devised to give effect to the general desires. ”