On the record
I answer that the House of Lords must yield whenever the opinion of the Commons is also the opinion of the nation, and when it is clear that the nation has made up its mind.
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Walter Bagehot
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gutenberg.orgWalter Bagehot: “I answer that the House of Lords must yield whenever the opinion of the Commons is also the opinion of the nation, and…”
Editor's note · Context
Bagehot asserts that the House of Lords should yield when the Commons reflect the nation's opinion.
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These anomalies, in a hundred instances, mark the old boundaries of a constitutional struggle.
I cannot, therefore, join in the full cry against anomalies; in my judgment it may quickly overrun the scent, and so miss what we should be glad to find.
Political philosophy is still more imperfect; it has been framed from observations taken upon regular specimens of politics and States; as to these its teaching is most valuable.
The casual line was traced according to the strength of deceased combatants; succeeding generations fought elsewhere; and the hesitating line of a half-drawn battle was left to stand for a perpetual limit.
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