Page:History of the Radical Party in Parliament.djvu/276

 262 History of the Radical Party in Parliament. [1834- marked in the second Parliament, but its causes were more easily to be explained. For one thing, it is clear that a policy can only be fully developed and efficiently carried out by those who thoroughly believe in it. Until the Radicals are prepared to undertake the government of the country, they cannot expect that their principles will inspire the thoughts and acts of the Govern- ment ; until they can insist upon obtaining not merely an occasional seat, but a recognized position of equality in the Cabinet, they cannot expect that in any ministerial pro- gramme their policy will obtain a fitting recognition. The Radicals in 1835 were neither sufficiently organized to insist upon such a position, nor provided with leaders who could have filled it. The Whigs, on their side, were as much repelled from, as attracted to, Radicalism by the result of the elections. It was true that their only chance of resuming office lay in securing the votes of the reformers ; but, on the other hand, there was proved to be amongst the constituencies a solid force of Conservatism which made it hopeless to attempt to carry against the House of Lords any policy of reform which was not thorough enough to awaken the popular spirit, and to such extreme views the Whigs were as much opposed as the Conservatives. If it came to a real trial of principle, there was much more likely to be a coalition between moderate Con- servatives and Whigs than between Whigs and Radicals. At the worst, when they were once in office the old ministers could count, as they had done in the last Parliament, upon Conservative votes to resist the too Liberal section of their own followers. For the next thirty years this was the position which the Whigs held. They had to be Liberal enough to outbid the Conservatives, but not so Liberal as to endanger the privileges and power of the class to which they as much belonged as did their avowed opponents. The first thing to do, however, when the new Parliament met in 1835, was to turn out the Conservative Ministry. To effect this object, it was not enough that the English and Scotch Radicals should be conciliated, for the Government