Chapter XXIII: Fall of Lord Beaconsfield

General Gloom--Fall of the Tay Bridge--Liberal Onslaught on the Government--The Mussulman Schoolmaster and the Anglican Missionary--The Queen’s Speech--The Irish Relief Bill--A Dying Parliament--Mr. Cross’s Water Bill--“Coming in on Beer and Going out on Water”--Sir Stafford Northcote’s Budget--Lord Beaconsfield’s Manifesto--The General Election--Defeat of the Tories--Incidents of the Struggle--Mr. Gladstone Prime Minister--The Fourth Party--Mr. Bradlaugh and the Oath--Mr. Gladstone and the Emperor of Austria--The Naval Demonstration--Grave Error in the Indian Budget--Affairs in Afghanistan--Disaster at Maiwand--Roberts’s March--The New Ameer--Revolt of the Boers--The Ministerial Programme--The Burials Bill--The Hares and Rabbits Bill--The Employers’ Liability Bill--Supplementary Budget--The Compensation for Disturbance Bill--Boycotting--Trial of Mr. Parnell and Mr. Dillon--The Queen’s Visit to Germany--The Queen Presents the Albert Medal to George Oatley of the Coastguard--Reviews at Windsor--The Queen’s Speech to the Ensigns--The Battle of the Standards--Royalty and Riflemen--Outrages in Ireland--“Endymion”--Death of George Eliot 581