Excerpt from Stray Shots: Political, Military, Economical and Social A man with what Lord Granville calls a 'cross-bench' mind is of no use to either political party; but the fact that he forms his own ideas of public policy, morality, and honour, is no reason why he should not be able to see as far through a brick wall as those who take their political opinions at second hand from their leaders. The 'cross-bench' mind may be a nuisance, but I really think it is more respectable than the purely party mind. We comfort ourselves with the idea that we are much better off than any of our neighbours, because our governing class is composed of men of fortune and position perfectly independent of salaries and patronage; in a position to consult their will, and not their necessities. But what is the use of having the richest Cabinet that was ever brought together, if these same rich men divest themselves entirely of their political consciences, and vote black is white and white is black exactly as their leaders desire them? 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.

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