OCR Text |
Show WITH WiLLTMKE IB PORTFOLIO PREMIER SPH.NGS SURPRISE ON PARLIAMENT WHEN "f SUMES TASK CF WAR OFFICE. Will Resign From the House al : This Critical Stage and Appeal for Re eiection.-Government Nominally Without Prime Minister. - London.-Fremier Asquith sprung e genuine surprise on the house on Mo d v, when, after all the many so-i so-i nsof the government crisis which uad been proposed and discussed amuumced a decision which none the prophets has expected ot e.i suggested. The prime minister himself will assume as-sume the burden of the war oUice in addition to his other and almost crushing duties. He will resign from the house at this critical stage, when the second reading of the home rule hill is about to be taken up, and will appeal for re-election to his constituents constitu-ents in East Fife, Scotland, within a few days. Field Marshal -Sir John French, chief of the imperial staff, and Sir John Ewart, adjutant general, de-plined de-plined to withdraw their resignations, in spite of the army order issued on Friday, which Viscount Haldane cleverly clev-erly framed as a platform on which the generals might stand with consistency con-sistency and honor. It thus became impossible for Colonel Col-onel J. E. B. Seely, whowas consigner with them of assurances to General Gough that the army would not be used to suppress the Ulster opposition opposi-tion to home rule, to retain the secretaryship secre-taryship of war. His resignation, therefore, was accepted arter he had been for some days under fire from the newspapers of his own party, who insisted that he must go. Viscount Morley of Blackburn, lord president of the council, who was partner with Colonel Seely in drafting the offending paragraphs of the document, docu-ment, stands in the same position and his withdrawal from office is expected. ex-pected. The present situation is remarkable in that the government will be nominally nomi-nally without a prime minister and nominally without a leader in the house until the bye election is held in East Fife. The writ for the election must give eight days' notice. The only practical loss to the party in the meantime will he the withdrawal with-drawal of Mr. Asquith's voice" from the debates. He will preside over cabinet meetings and direct maneuvers maneuv-ers in the house of commons from an unofficial seat while Reginald Mc-Kenna, Mc-Kenna, the home secretary, and Winston Win-ston Churchill, first lord of the admiralty, admir-alty, will understudy him as house leader. |