Such has on the whole been the experience of those peoples who have gone before along this trail of political advance.

As instance the growth of discretionary powers under the hands of parliamentary representatives in those cases where the movement has gone on longest and farthest; and these instances should not be considered idle, as intimations of what may presumptively be looked for under the Imperial establishments of Germany or Japan.

It may be true that hitherto, along with the really considerable volume of imitative gestures of discretionary deliberation delegated to these parliamentary bodies, they have as regards all graver matters brought to their notice only been charged with a (limited) power to talk.

It may be true that, for the present, on critical or weighty measures the parliamentary discretion extends no farther than respectfully to say: "_Ja wohl_!" But then, _Ja wohl_ is also something; and there is no telling where it may all lead to in the long course of years.

One has a vague apprehension that this "_Ja wohl_!" may some day come to be a customarily necessary form of authentication, so that with-holding it (_Behuet' es Gott_!) may even come to count as an effectual veto on measures so pointedly neglected.