On 8 January 1896 , in conversation with L.A. Tollemache , Gladstone explained that : " I am not so much afraid of Democracy or of Science as of the love of money . This seems to me to be a growing evil . Also , there is a danger from the growth of that dreadful military spirit " . On 13 January , Gladstone claimed he had strong Conservative instincts and that " In all matters of custom and tradition , even the Tories look upon me as the chief Conservative that is " . On 15 January Gladstone wrote to James Bryce , describing himself as " a dead man , one fundamentally a Peel – Cobden man " . In 1896 , in his last noteworthy speech , he denounced Armenian massacres by Ottomans in a talk delivered at Liverpool . On 2 January 1897 , Gladstone wrote to Francis Hirst on being unable to draft a preface to a book on liberalism : " I venture on assuring you that I regard the design formed by you and your friends with sincere interest , and in particular wish well to all the efforts you may make on behalf of individual freedom and independence as opposed to what is termed Collectivism "
Armenian
Hamidian massacres
William Ewart Gladstone