House thereupon took up Naval Estimates.  Instantly Commodore HARCOURT appeared in offing; landed on Front Opposition Bench, diffusing unwonted smell of stale mussels and seaweed.  Commodore looked very imposing pacing down quarter-deck towards Mace, with telescope under his arm, sou’wester pulled well over his ears, and unpolished square-toed boots rising above his knees.  A blizzard outside; snow and wind; bitterly cold; but the Commodore soon made it hot all round.  Fell upon JOKIM spars and sails, stem and starn.  “Regularly claw-hammered him,” as GEORGE HAMILTON said, drawing on naval resources for adequate adjective.  Accused him of making a speech that would have become CHARLES THE FIRST. Talked about levying Ship Money; threatened a revolution; hinted at HAMPDEN, and, unrebuked by the SPEAKER, called unoffending Prince ARTHUR the “youthful STRAFFORD.”

Splendid performance, only wanting an audience.  But the storm inside House burst as suddenly as the blizzard without.  Nobody knew that the Commodore was close-hauled, and meant business.  Few present to witness the perturbed scene on the Treasury Bench:—­OLD MORALITY huddled up against GEORGIE HAMILTON, who was nervously tearing sheet of paper into measured strips; JOKIM shaking in every limb, and white to the lips; Prince ARTHUR most successful of the group in maintaining his self-possession, though evidently not liking the reference to STRAFFORD.  The Commodore, looking in his tarpaulins considerably more than six foot high, stormed and raged what time the snow and sleet beat a wild accompaniment on the melancholy windows.

Business done.—­Commodore HARCOURT goes again on the rampage.

Tuesday.—­HOWARD VINCENT rather staggered to-night.  Favoured by fortune and the ballot, had secured first place for Motion on Friendly Societies.  Useful thing for coming General Election to be remembered as advocate of cause of Working Man.  Bestowed much care on terms of Resolution; invited Government to encourage more general voluntary provision for sickness and old age.  Then adroitly dragged in the axiom that “Sound principles of provident Insurance should be included in the subjects prescribed by the Education Code for instruction in elementary schools.”  That meant to draw OLD MORALITY; succeeded a merveille.

“TOBY, dear boy,” he said to me, half closing his eyes, and folding his arms, whilst a far-away look melted into newer softness his kindly countenance, “that reminds me of old days.  Many a time have I written out in my copybook, ’Take care of your Neighbour’s Pence, and your own Pounds will Take Care of Themselves.’  ’Borrow an Umbrella, and put it away for a Rainy Day.’  ‘Half a Currant Bun is better than No Bread’; ‘A Bird in a Pigeon Pie is better than three in the Bush.’  Got heaps of copy-books filled with these and similar words of wisdom.  HOWARD VINCENT is quite right.  If there was more of this in our elementary schools, there would be, if I may say so, more men like me.  You remember what Who’s-This said, ’Let me write their copy-book headings, and I don’t care who makes their laws.’  HOWARD VINCENT is on the right tack; think we shall accept his Resolution.”