WILFUL WILHELM: "Take the nasty _Punch_ away! I won't have any _Punch_ to-day!" Young Wilhelm was a wilful lad, And lots of "cheek" young Wilhelm had. He deemed the world should hail with joy A smart and self-sufficient boy, And do as it by _him_ was told; He _was_ so wise, he _was_ so bold. ] When we add to this brief summary the Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887, the passing of Lord Beaconsfield and Bright among the elder statesmen, and the tragic eclipse of Parnell, it will be seen that there was enough and more than enough to engage the pen and pencil of _Punch_ as a political and social chronicler. Mention has already been made of our thorny relations with Russia. With regard to Germany, the attitude of England might be described as one of reluctant admiration punctuated by moments of misgiving. These moments were not infrequent in the days of the old Emperor; they ceased during the brief reign of his son, only to recur in a more acute form when Kaiser Wilhelm II "dropped the pilot," made it clear that he intended not only to rule but govern, and by his meteoric versatility and frequent references to his divine mission and to the Germans as the chosen race, awakened the world to the emergence of a new and formidable promoter of European unrest. Our relations with France were correct rather than cordial; her _rapprochement_ with Russia did not make for popularity on this side of the Channel; but in the main English observers read the inner meaning of the Boulanger episode aright, and without exactly exulting over his collapse, were relieved by his failure to revive a military dictatorship. By way of filling in this rough outline with more detail, we may note that Gladstone's resignation of the Liberal leadership at the close of 1874 was regarded by _Punch_ as premature. In one of the first cartoons in the next year Dizzy is shown saying good-bye to his great antagonist: "Sorry to lose you! I _began_ with books; you're _ending_ with them. Perhaps you're the wiser of the two." Perhaps he would have been--in the ultimate verdict of posterity--had his decision been final. But _Punch_ was right in regarding Gladstone as an unspent force, and in his regretful and affectionate farewell clearly indicates a hope of his return:-- Will he who, from Llandudno's calm retreat Late burst, at once, on battle and defeat, Will he, though Harcourt gird, and Granville pray, Himself the Leader's truncheon fling away, Still in his prime of power, unbent by years, Renounce the joy of battle with his peers, Unmoved by _Punch's_ counsel, or his prayer, Nor to his realm relinquished name an heir? [Sidenote: _The New Shepherd_]