GLADSTONE'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 261, 27 December 1880, Page 4

GLADSTONE'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

Mr. Gladstone is a wonderful man, and with him we should be a company without a leader, an army without a general. liis capacity for work is enormous, and his breadth and accuracy of information something marvellous. He will go on a diplomatic mission say to the lonian Islands, and speaking there will address his hearers in the purest of modern Greek. Then crossing tho Adriatic to Venice or Rome, he will meet there some learned body, and in the most liquid Italian show an intimate knowledge and appreciation of the whole Held of Latin literature. He may delve into somo mine of classic manuscript and dig up a pearl overlooked by other workers in tho tonguo

of the Cossars. Perhaps proceeding oh to BeJrlih j he will stop and be f_rpp_d.et. to address every man he meets in the language of the Faderland, and while en route to England a stop at Paris would enable hiin to meet the Hteratetirs and scientific men of-the French, capital and discusss their specialties with them in their own beautiful tongue* An'iv* ing ht holiic, lie would be ushered into the seat of a chairman at a lecture by expert, say on " ceramics" and after an hour's talk on old and new china, tho venerable presiding officer could rise and correct any little inaccuracy bf, thb speaker hhd add from his own fund of information a flood of light oh disputed p'oihts. Leaving this lie could attend a reception io Dr. Schliemann, who, after an interesting talk on the tomb of Agamemnon, would find in Gladstone one who could carry on the topic and add a wealth of knowledge which would surprise even the specialist; And then) as a wind-up, he would go into the I.ouso of Commons and spend five hours in a speech bn the budget, hmblifying his remarks with a mass of shi.i.sfias on every branch of political economy. Ho would go into any question of foreign policy and sustain every position by arguments founded on wide and exact knowledge. He would do a dozen things, any one of which would make the reputation of any man, and, yet after all I have said, 1 can say that I have not touched upon his forte. Cookery ! He is chief of chiefs. He can broil a chicken even better than he ean treat a Greek participle, and mix a salad even better than he can confound an opposing logician. You will recall that several have had tilts with him in the Commons and they eame out of the tussle so altered, changed, turned inside out, lhat I doubt whether their mothers would havo known them. Think of that series of Scotch talks, masterpieces everyone of them ! He is a wonderful mail and liis death wbultl be a national calamity to Great Britian. — .' Interview with lsr. Parker of London.'