Mr Gladstone's Magnanimity.

Manawatu Herald, 16 July 1898, Page 3

Mr Gladstone's Magnanimity.

Old friends of the late Mr Gladstone dwell strongly on his liking for and admiration of Mr Balfour (writes the " Lobby " correspondent of a London paper). It seems that Mr Gladstone always regarded Mr Balfour as really the ablest of the four members of the famous Fourth Party, and long before the party was broken up he predicted that the present First Lord of the Treasury would attain to a high position in the political world. Mr Gladstone's liking for Mr Balfour was so great that he would not hear him adversely criticised. One night during the existence of Mr Gladstone's last Government, the right hon. gentleman had a party of Liberal members to dinner. There had been a debate on Irish affairs, in the course of which Mr Balfour had spoken against the Prime Minister with unusual asperity. The guests were indignant, and expressed their indignation pretty freely, but their host declined to agree with them, examined his opponent's position and arguments with great impartiality, and strongly maintained that from his (Mr Balfour's) point of view they were perfectly reasonable.