"
Lord George Hamilton: "I doubt whether we ever had a parliamentarian who
equalled Mr. Gladstone."
The Marquis of Lorne: "I share the universal regret at Mr. Gladstone's
death as a personal loss."
Sir John Gorst: "One feature, which greatly distinguished Mr. Gladstone,
was his remarkable candour in debate. He never affected to misunderstand
his opponents' arguments, and spared no pains in trying to make his own
meaning understood."
Sir Charles Dilke: "I think Mr. Gladstone's leading personal
characteristic was his old-fashioned courtesy. Whilst a statesman, his
absolute mastery of finance, both in its principles and details, was
incomparably superior to that of any of his contemporaries."
Mr. Thomas Ellis, the chief Liberal Whip, confessed that the greatest
interest of his life in Parliament was to watch Mr. Gladstone's face.
"It was like the sea in the fascination of its infinite variety, and of
its incalculable reserve and strength. Every motion in his great soul
was reflected in his face and form. To have had opportunities of
watching that face, and of witnessing one triumph after another, is a
precious privilege, for some of the charms of his face, as of his
oratory and character, were incommunicable.
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