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Show VETO BILL PASSES . COMMITTEE STAGE Union Opposition to the Measure in House of Commons Almost Al-most Vanishes. MORE ABOUT TAFT'S SPEECH No Representations Will be Made to the United States on the Subject. LONDON. 3Iay 11 Tho parliament bill, known also as tho veto bill, for the curtailment cur-tailment of the powers of the lords, today to-day passed the committee stage In the commons practically without amendment. The refusal of A. .T. Balfour, leader of the opposition, to vote against the preamble pre-amble i-emoved any danger thnt might havo .been apprehended from the revolt of thu laboritcs against It, and this portion' of the measure proved easiest to carry. The unionist opposition almost Vanished. In place of hundreds of amendments, only a few Important tines will be moved In the report stage of the bill which Is expected ex-pected to occupy only- two or. three days nex; week- An amendment that tho preamble be eliminated, moved by George ?CIcholI Barnes,, the labor leader, who described that portion of the bill as Inconsistent with all tho pledges and tenets of the labor party, was defeated. After the application of cloture and the rejection of another amendment without division. Mr. Balfour said he regarded the preamble as "indefinite and illusory." but wished to see the government carry It out. He dlslkcd some of it, but liked another part of it and therefore would not voto against it. Arthur J. Balfour, leader of the opposition, opposi-tion, said tho preamble would leud to the constitution of a representative second chamber If the two chambers drew their authority from the electors they would claim and possess equal authority and he did not wish co-equal bodies. The second chamber, he said; should be empowered In case of controversy between be-tween the two houses to refer the question ques-tion to tho electorate. On motion that the bill as amended bo roported, division was challenged and the motion carried J65 to 147. The house then adjourned. John Norton Griffiths, Unionist member mem-ber for Wedncsbiiry. who gave notlco on Monday that he would ask Mr. Asqulth to instruct Embassador Brycc to cable for tho Instruction of parliament a verbatim ver-batim report of President Taffs recent speech In New York, received his answer today. On behalf of the premier Thomas Mc-Kitmon Mc-Kitmon Wood. und'T. secretary of foreign for-eign affairs, said he had found In the speech no reason whatever for making any representations to the United States government. .lohu II. P. Newman. Unionist member for the JSnMeld division of - Middlesex, wished to know if It was not the opinion of the foreign office that the expression of the president in urging the American editors to advocate Canadian reciprocity before a system of preferential tariffs had bound the British empire together was "a blazing Indiscretion." "NTo, sir," replied Mr. Wood, "I certainly cer-tainly would say nothing of the kind. I would think that a remark of that sort (Newman's) would be extremely Improper Im-proper addressed to a groat and friendly country." Mr. Griffiths, the mouthpiece of the tariff reformers, oought to Interrogate the premier In the house of commons today on tho subject of President Taft's address at the dinner of the Associated Press and the American Newspaper Publishers association, but was aslojd to give the usual notlco of his question. |