Show V V V VV V I J V I THE ENGLISH ELECTIONS V I I. I TH THIS THE E CONSTITUTIONAL CONSTITUTION L CRISIS V I By Frederic J. J Haskin V r n I HE most serious constitutional controversy controversy controversy con- con that has arisen in Great T THE 1 Britain since the days of the revolution revo revo- lution luton under Oliver Olver Cromwell Cromwel is IH baing boIng bo- bo Ing decided by the British elector electors electors elect elect- or ors in I th g general elections now being h hold held ld Whether the final re result ul is a Liberal Lib Lib- eral or 01 a rons Conservative I the constitution of Great Groat Britain never again will wi be the same d Th The fate of the ther 1 r 0 W house of lords hangs c in the balance balanc No V In ft political party Great Greal Britain publicly publicly pub pub- i Britain V champions the tho continued existence lf m of the house of J V. V V fj lords in its present form The Th Minis Minis- 1 part cornI comi composed com corn I i tI i posed of a coal coalition ion ions ion's of Liberals I Irish IRh s 's o. o w Nationalists Labor- Labor R V diP Q ii ite ires if 8 and Socialists is fighting as a n unit under the Radical Rad Rad- f ical ial ensign to jend nd the existence of the house house- house of lords as a ordinate co branch of the British legislature The opposition opposition tion ton party technically an alliance of Conservatives and the tho Liberal Unionists and having the support support of a few disaffected disaffected dis dig affected Liberals and malcontent Irishmen Irishmen Irish Irish- men is fighting as a unit under the Tory Tor banner to mend tho the house of lords But whether it be he ended by the Radicals Radicals Radicals Rad Rad- V or mended by hy the Tories it is certain that the house of lords as a legislative body basing its Is powers solely on the hereditary principle the princIple the accident of birth cannot birth cannot longer endure It It is the only purely hereditary legislative assemblage assemblage assemblage assem assem- blage now existing in any first class nation naton It I an anachronism and the time has come when it must fall fal before the he advance of democracy democracy- Everybody In England at least as far faras faras faras as public utterances are concerned is In favor of democratizing the house of lords lords- Everybody E Is agreed that the hereditary principle no longer shall shan be bethe bethe the controlling factor In making up the personnel of th the second and upper chamber chamber chamber cham cham- ber o of the national and imperial legis legis- lature If I one could take the stump sp speeches ches of all 81 the ta candidates tes together and cut out the details he would find that everybody was as committed to to the same principles with wih respect to the chief issue those issue those principles being an acknowledgment acknowledgment of the necessity of a second chamber a repudiation of the tho hereditary hereditary heredi heredi- tary tar principle In the constitution of that chamber and and the necessity of bringing the members of the upper tipper house into more direct contact with the people The proverbial proverbial- man man Mars might find it I difficult to determine why when everybody is is agreed In in principle there should be such 3 tremendous battle batte about the details o of a the legislation in Intended tended to make those principles effective As a a. a matter of fact the tho details are all al Important important important im im- Im- Im and the thA principles simply as principles amount to nothing The house of lords now is composed of something pm moro than hereditary peers of whom all but but three threescore threescore threescore score are arc Tories Tories Tories-Tories Tories Tories-Tores Tories in politics Tories Tories Tories To To- ries i 1 in religion and Tories in society When the electors of Great Britain are arc pleased to elect a parliament parlament having a Conservative majority that parliament parlament has no difficulty whatever in making up a le legislative program secure in the certain certin knowledge that the government proposals as passed by the house of commons will wi be approved by the house of lords 1 On the other hand when hen the Liberal party has carried the country when there is a J Liberal iberal majority in the house of commons and a Liberal ministry is advising the tIle ero n cro n then the government government government govern govern- ment never nEver is sure that any anyone one of its is measures has even oven a remote chance of being enacted into law In the past fifty years the house of lords has re- re 10 J or Ot mutilated mutated not less than fifty Important go ht measures which had been been duly passed by the commons In same period of time the lords have never rejected nor have they amended in important d detail ai any measures measures measures mea mea- sent up by a Tory Tor majority In Inthe inthe In the lower chamber In other words word the British con constitution I ton tion now permits the people qualified to vote in general elections elections- to control through their representatives matters maters of legislation provided that these same I electors have approved Tory legislation by electing a majority of Tory Tor members member to the house bouse But the cons constitution in inIth its Ith It present form does not p permit the people eople eople to register their will wi in statutory la law if they tey approve of of V Liberal legisla legislation tion lon by electing a majority of Liberal members members- This difficulty having lately become so patent that no man dares to deny the existence e of tho the fact the leaders leader of both hoth parties partes agreed that the house of lords lors must be reconstituted Ana na upon pori tha flaat q st r of the tutI tut n of o the nop Imper r chamber depends th the future of the tp British constitution constitution-a a a fu- fu tr turp today in 10 the hans of the electors of the tho united d ch chamber mb r. r Th Tho Questions Involved in this great constitutional tIon I con controversy first became a ute in 1906 when the Liberal party carried the country countr by a tremendous majority majority ma ma- jOrty in the house bouse of of commons The Th commons passed an education bill bi providing providing pro pro- viding for the divorce of church and state in the tho man management ement and control of th common Common schools This bill bf was mutilated mutt muti mut- mut la d beyond reto recognition b by the Irresponsible irresponsible sible house of lords A licensing bill bil at a a restriction of the liquor traffic met a similar fate A bill bi to lo restrict plural plura voting on property quail also was as l rejected by the Deers I Their lordships made made made-It It quite quile plain to fo the I leaders a ers of of the majority in the house o of commons that thal nO bill biJJ bi incorporating the principles of progressive economic or soc so- so c al philosophy would be tolerated Nearl Nearly three centuries ago nO un uner er cr the leadership of or Oliver Olver Cromwell l. l the corn conj mon mons assorted asserted their exclusive right and arid pow power r to control the te pur purse purse strings of the nation After the restoration of the monarchy the tho house e of commons solemnly sol sol- sol sol- proclaimed b by a a series serle of resolutions ton Ions that hat hat th the commons had the sole right to levy y taxes to make expenditures on the public account and to have havE absolute control of o all al ton money bills bili without let or hindrance in the house hOUff of lords For nearly three Hirer centuries I this his claim lalm of the HIP theco commons co was not ques questioned ond The king n In hiV his speech from the throne alwn always v was as careful to direct his remarks concerning con con- on- on revenues awl and expenditures res to the commons o mons expressly ex excluding the ha lords V Tho The special Interests of aristocracy A and ald plutocracy V represented in the upper chamber and having n stomach for de democracy do- do heeded wel wells the lesson of the revolution and cheerfully admitted by non-contention non the exclusive exclusive sive control of the te commons over the purse St But But- Butof of course the aristocrats ars- ars aris aris- and the plutocrats plutocrat plutocrat were not willing willing will will- wi- wi ing to give up their r actu actual l control of the treasury so they instituted a s system stem of controlling the llou house e of commons by means of f members members- returned from rotten rolen and b by the most shameless bribery and For two hundred y years ars this thIH condition of affairs obtained During al all that that time tre the electors went through the form of sending their representatives representatives to parliament parlament but the majority majority major major- ity lb of the members of the house were c controlled d by bythe the great lords of privilege and noble birth Finally Finaly the P people ople became Indignant threw off their shackles of or corruption and mana managed ed In 1832 to compel the en enactment en- en nt of the reform bill bJ which mate advanced the the oral moral condition of British politics and which seemed to give to the me people the tle richt ht to control control their to the me people the tle richt ht to control control their l own ow affairs But there was no party representing true democracy There was wasa a Tory Tor aristocracy and a a Whig aris aris- Whether Conservative or Liberal Liberal Liberal Lib Lib- eral every poI tc l leader belonged to what what was known as the ruling class and there was was was' not one who failed to recognize recognize recognize rec rec- the demands of or caste In 1906 tho the reorganized and reconstructed reconstructed recon recon- Libera Liberal party won the election and the affairs of government were turned over to a ministry in which the thc Whig element was overwhelmed by the modern pro progressive democratic element For the first time the plain people of England and not the ruling classes had a majority In parliament The fate of the legislation they Initiated has been out out- lined ned Every measure died In the house of lords But the commons still sti had the power of the he purse They resolved to attack the the bulwarks of the aristocracy by exercising their exclusive power of taxation taxation tax tax- aton real realizing to the full ful that tat the power to tax is I the power er to destroy dEtroy They attacked the land monopoly I The budget of 1909 introduced by Da David Dav David Da- Da v vid d Lloyd George chancellor of the ex EX- EX ex- ex chequer for the taxation lon taxa of land values alues The house of lords made up of the owners owners of more than three-fourths three of all the land in Great Britain refused to submit their property to taxation They rejected the budget budget The controversy contro contro- versy ersy was referred to the people and andIn andIn andin In January Januar of this year ear only eleven eleven months mouths ago the radical coalition coalton was returned to power and the Tories were defeated The lords bowed to the will of the people with respect to this one measure only and passed the land taxes ta But they were not willing to abrogate their power to amend and reject legislative legislative legisla legisla- tive bills bis other than money bills bis They acknowledged only that the verdict of the election confirmed the commons In their right to claim traditional and constitutional constitutional con con- control OV over r the purse strings s. s The prime minister Mr Mr Ir Introduced in introduced introduced in- in a bill bi In parliament providing that a measure passed three times by th the house of or commons within two years should become law even eVEn without the approval approval ap ap- ap- ap of the house of lords This was was known as the veto bill bil since it abrogated ed the lords' lords right to veto le legislation slaton approved ap ap- ap- ap proved by the commons The Tho The only ony way way the veto bill ever can become a law Is for fr it to bf pass the house of lords The i of of lords to only way to to get get et the house vote itself isel out of existence is for the king kins to create creat a sufficient number of radical peers to overcome the Tory majority majority majority ma ma- In the upper house As the king Icing must act on the advice of his ministers it was expected that Mr 11 ASQuith would I ask the king for guarantees t to maI make mako the thE will wf of the people effective in 1 this fashion When the controversy arrived at that stage stase the whole hola British empire was shocked tage by the death of of King Kint Edward Edward Ed Ed- EI- EI ward and the warrn warring political factions declared war a truce of God 3 In November r that truce was as ended and the present elections wre te ordered V Tomorrow Tomorrow The The The English Elections II The n.-The The Constitutional Conference |