1-150-430 - The Cartoon Collector/Heritage-Images

'The Officious Passenger', 1866. Lord Russell is shown here as the ship's captain. The 'Officious Passenger' is John Bright. At the beginning of January, he had given a speech in Rochdale when he had said that the endeavour was to make Parliament 'the honest and faithful guardian of the interests of all classes in the country'. However, his friendly support was, in some quarters, believed to be interference of an officious nature. 1866 was the year which saw the revival of Lord Russell's campaign to introduce parliamentary reform. Russell was now the Prime Minister, and his Chancellor, Gladstone, had also become committed to the principle of an extended suffrage. From Punch, or the London Charivari, Janury 20, 1866.