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Show K trails I By Decisive Majority, Claim to I Exclusive Control of Nation's I Purse Is Recorded. BEGINNING OF GREAT 1 CONSTITUTIONAL STRUGGLE I Premier Asquith Makes Speech I That Burns Lords to a Crisp, I Winning Applause. I LONDON. Dec. 2. By a majority, of I 215 tho house of commons today re.- H corded its claim to exclusive control of H the uation 's purse a claim . ucvur be- H fore -challenged' in modem times. H The vote was taken on a resolution H offered by Premier Asquith. which dc- I clnred "that the action of the house of I lords in refusing to pass into law the financial provisions made bv the chain- H ber for the expenses of the vear "was a breach of constitution and an usurpa H tion of the rights of the house of com- H mons. " The resolution was passed by a vote H of 34) to VM. By this vote the opposing forces of ithe lords and commons arc placed in H battle array for one of the greatest con- stitutioual struggles that ha come be- H fore the country for centuries. Contrast in Sccnc3. I Scenes of enthusiasm which aceom- I nanicd the voting of Mr. Asquith "s resolution were in marked contrast to I those wituesscd in the recent debate iu I the house of lords. No prominent mem- I bers of the government side 'arose in H the house of commons to utter solemn H warnings against the course the minis- tors were pursuing. The ministerial ranks were closed in a complete unan- I imity of protest against the action of I tho unper house. v I 'Mr. Balfour, leader of tho opposi- I tion, evidently was suffering from ef- I feels of his indisposition and did not speak at his best. His speech lacked I the ring of . sincerity and conviction that characterized the prime minis- I ter's. The latter had an easy task in pouring ridicule upon what hev de- M scribed, amid the rousing cheers of his I supporters, as. a "new-fangled Caesar- I ism,-" t his "arrogant usurpation" of I tho lords. m Promior Tb . Sarcastic.- - I The premier's ironical refereuce to I the "instinct of divination," of tbe Eeers on reaching .manhood dissolved is hearer; in' laughter. He quoted with trenchant effect tee speech of JJr. Balfour less than a .vear ago in which the ex-premier described himself as a "house of commons man." and said: "Tt is the house of commons, not the house of lords, which settles, uncontrolled, uncon-trolled, our financial system. f the -house of lords could touch the money bills the whole executive machine- of tho countrv would bo brought to a standstill. The amazement with which the liberals lib-erals listened to the quotations from Balfour against himself - was -only equaled by the chagrin depicted on the t face of Mr. Balfour's followers. Altogether. Alto-gether. Mr. Asquith surpassed himself and his elated followers declare rhat he never made a finer or a more effective effect-ive speech. Mr. Henderson's speech for the labor la-bor parry has also given tho Liberals great encouragement for the coming campaign as showing that tho whole parly is of one mind. Tn the lobby, after the sitting was adjourned, election elec-tion prospects were discussed by the Liberal members with the greatest satisfaction. |