Review of Reviews and World's Work Volume 15 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1897 Excerpt: ...all, --there is every possible inducement to strive for the honor of a place in the Ministerial group; and such places can only come through demonstrated ability, capacity and character. As I have remarked. Lord Salisbury manages to make about sixty such places available for his Parliamentary followers. Inasmuch as Lord Salisbury obviously owes his position as head of the Conservative party, and therefore as Prime Minister, to the general recognition of his right to lead, he is under no embarrassing obligations to reward personal supporters and adherents with fat places. Undoubtedly, in the distribution of Cabinet and Ministerial offices a Prime Minister like Mr. Gladstone or Lord Salisbury is somewhat influenced by personal preference and sentiments of private friendship. But such feelings do not carry an English Prime Minister beyond the point where there would be danger of seriously offending party or public opinion. PERMANENT UNDER-SECRETARIES. But beside the Cabinet and Ministerial chiefs, and those Ministerial Under-Secretaries to whom 1 have alluded, the English system also provides for all the departments a set of permanent, non-ministerial Under-Secretaries, who serve to break the violence of transition when the government changes from one party to the other. These n on-ministerial Under-Secretaries are simply the high officials of the permanent civil service. They supply the balance-wheel that keeps the detailed work of the government from suffering through changes of policy proposed by their ministerial superiors. These officials are the repositories and sources of knowledge, and they see that the great machine of government moves at a fairly regular rate while the party chieftains come and go. It is the same sort of thing, of course, that one fin..