These determined opponents of Progress—Parish Magnates—who dread the light of intelligence, and whose excessive desire to guard the ratepayers’ pockets is suspicious, and reminds me of Judas’ anxiety to trade on the distress of the poor. This Ignorant Phalanx, officered by pompous little great men, or loud little foolish men,—small vanities and pomposities, whose cry is “more taxation,” and who seem to say, “I am the Parish,” and “when I speak let no dog bark;” all these small politicians and miserable DO-NOTHINGS are making ready for the field. A motley group are these specious Antagonists! Frantic about the Ballot, clinging to some Utopian impracticable reform, these sciolists and pedagogues presume to snarl at the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and denounce him as a financial jobber, wishing to float every stranding newspaper with public money, and who speak of our foremost Statesman and his Bill for the repeal of the Paper Duty, “as a sop to that _Cerberus_, the Press, to get the support of the newspapers of the country.” What skimbleskamble stuff! Consistent only in its inconsistency, true to its base, diabolical instincts, the _Times_ with the malice of Disraeli, and the hypocrisy of the Tempter, so far from supporting, positively revels in slandering this CONSCIENTIOUS Minister. Yes, the veering, versatile, infamous _Times_ faithful to one principle only—unprincipled wickedness exerts every nerve to retain this obnoxious tax. It has assailed the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and vilified his policy with a vindictiveness which _Shylock_ might have envied, and which even cheap journalism disdained. Parish officials who ought to know better, prose about the danger of innovation. Not too fast. Slow and sure. No complaints; no mischief has yet taken place; stay till it has taken place! _Wait a little this is not the time_! With pretended friends of Progress the right time will never arrive;—_to-day_ is the plea, _exclusion_ the object. I admit your “Poor rate is enormous,” but I rest my case on this fact, as a strong argument for adopting this humanizing Act of Parliament. All these insidious foes either ignore or misrepresent the objects and purposes of the PUBLIC LIBRARIES’ ACT. Miserable economists in the guise of friends of poor-rate defaulters, (whose talk about the Lisson Grove Sunday nuisance is vain and hypocritical, while opposing Lord Chelmsford’s Bill, who have not the courage to say, “We don’t believe in the education of those who have to work,”) make use of the ratepayers to pare down necessary Parochial expenditure, and to cry down the wisest outlay of the Public money, in order to place themselves in office, and who on the utterly fallacious plea that a half-penny Library Rate is a compulsory and oppressive tax, would artfully dissuade you from supporting the News Rooms Act on its own merits. Know Nothings, and Dreamers, whose emblem is, “Man never IS, but always TO BE, blest.”