A LIFE OF BATTLE.

Hokitika Guardian, 16 February 1924, Page 4

A LIFE OF BATTLE.

NEW British premier

it must be admitted that Great Britain lias cause in be proud ol its' Parliament (says a writer in an American exchange). It i- true that every how and then a worthless person may ij nil his way to the British Parliament, but these have very little chance to stay there any length ol time. lie may get there, he may even attract considerable attention, but in a very short time lie is driven out, never to be heard again. No matter bow rich, brilliant or canny lie may

be, if he wants to stay in the British Parliament lie will have to he fundamentally a decent man. James ltam say Macdonald was neither educated nor ‘'brought up” in a certain established sense, lie simply grew up. One of his biographer' writes—‘Some obscure germ within him made him realise while lie was a pupil in a Poor Board School that if be wanted to get on and do anything in the world be must bo mentally wellefpiipped, and that the only person who could help him at that stage was himself.” So he made up bis mind that lie could best, fight his way into the great theatre of life by becoming a school teacher, ft veil to-day in Scotland the teacher is looked upon nr an honoured person. Many of Scotland's really big men have begun life as a swots "Dominie.” IX SEARCH OF J7KAJ!XING.

However, to .James (iain-ay the gentility of the profession, the long leisure hours, and the inevitable social standing with quite minor matters; what he wanted to get out of the profession was learning. Tie could get it cheaply that way, and just, as soon as In- was sa’ti'ed that he had acquired enough knowledge to enable him to enter the world’s life battle lie sought, round for some field where he might find more easily the opportunities he desired. For a very short time he tried business, and his dehut in commerce was as an invoice clerk in a commercial house, lie soon realised that he had not aptitude for if and left it to try still other fields. He was extremely shy. rather iin-

fellow-elerks as strange and mysterious. Although he was kind am! pleasant to those who asked favours of him, he preferred to keep lo himself and never made efforts to make friends.

Finally the young Scotsman decided lo seek his fortune in London, and for some time lie eked out a prrearioiis livelihood hv odd writings. ORGANISING LA BO I*ll. At that time Socialism Was uni yet. introduced to England a-, a political measure, hut all sorts of relormers abounded in the ranks of the British Labour movement. During that period Socialism was beginning to become n subject which wa, attracting the attention of a certain cla-s of Fngtish intellectuals, hi addition to Tlvndnian, the pioneer loader of socialism in England, there was the then young and terribly gay and devaslai iiigiv witty George Bernard Shaw, imbued with a real Irish love of lighl. And. at the other extreme there was the granite-like hut lender-hearted Scot. Koir llanlie, trying to organise British Labour politically. Ramsay Macdonald sized up the situation and decided that neither

through the wind-bag levity of Shaw, nor iron-cast inflexibility of Koir llardie, could British l.aboni he organised into a political unit, lie is a terrible speaker; both as a soapbox orator or on the floor of Parliament. I have heard him from the .same platform with Shaw, making a monkey ol I,he famous wit; I have heard him thun dor at the lirki-h Prime .Minister from the floor of the Parliament ; tend I have heard him address a crowd of 10, tlOti on Trafalgar .Square, and though I was at the very outside of

the crowd, 1 have heard every word distinctly. He speaks with decorum, vet his words are sent home with

shell-like speed. LESS TALK AX!) M.ORE WORK. At first .Macdonald did not engage in talking—he lid Shaw and ICcir Hanlio do llip talking- but s«|»pli<-d liis wonderful nplitiule lor the j'l'iilibing about among statistics. lie lias tlie Sen it is!) respect fur the sanctify erf foots. Ife deliberately undertook to manage the people whom he wished In organise politic,’illy, lie certainly had till his work cut nut for him in the early da vs of the Independent l.ahour Party. .Macdonald's joh was a very dillicnlt one. There was a very small body of British labouring men who had organised themselves into the Independent l.ahe.nr Party. Tlicse men were composed of .Social-I’eholnt ionists. eager to bring ahotit, overnight, a political revolution. Their only asset was their ability to talk. Macdonald appreciated the value of these keen and carer agitators, lmf realised that they were lew. and therefore iinpotent. Tie wanted the old-fashioned trade unionist*, who had powerful organisations thron<_diotit flroat Hritain, brought together with the talkative Independent Labour Party. Mu perceived that if the ample funds and strong organisation of trade unionist groups were once allied with the Independent Labour Party section, who had a superabundance of vitality, he would have a powerful Labour group ami would land many mouthers in the Parliament. He handled the Independent Labour Party skilfully anl sent them among the trade union groups as agitators, and within a few years the trade unionists were i ap(tired by the Socialist element, the former accepting political action as a principle. After having accomplished the amalgamation of the two elements, Macdonald cautiously and studiously began to direct the new power that he had created. AMREEABLE TO EVERYBODY. At first a few of the Labour end us suspected him of being a politi.-nl trimmer, for he was too clever at making himself agreeable to everybody. These feared to rely on hint politically. Xo doubt these suspicions were founded to a great measure on Ttainsay Macdonald's handsome physical appearance. Let me again quote his biograohy. "In 1910 he was a tail, well-hui't man, with an elegant figure; a keen, intellectual face; Hashing eyes that were never at rest—sombre and sparkling in turn—a fine moustache; a big head of jot black hair, eurlv and artistic: a pleasing man to look at; ami the pleasure of listening to him was accentuated by his musical voire, his plea sing manner and invariable politeness. This must have been his happiest period." DEATH OK IMS WIFE. His wife. Margaret Ethel Macdonald. was a wonderful woman. She was beautiful, and her sweet nature radiated a kindness that enveloped not only her family, hut many a stranger who found themselves at home at their Lincoln Inn flat. Mrs Macdonald, too, was a zealous politician, and collaborated with Iter husband in all Ins activities; and to a great measure Ramsay Macdonald's aspirations in political life were smoothed for him bv Mrs .Macdonald.

Until her death she maintained an open house, a rendezvous for the rich or poor, great or humble. Upon her death in 11)11 representatives of every party of all walks in life throughout Great Britain paid tribute to her memory.

The loss of his helpmate had a terrific effect upon Macdonald. For many months he felt despondent, his face began to he haggard, and his hair turned grey, and lie aged suddenly. OSTRACISED BY WARTIME. During the. war, in spite of the fact that quite a lew Labour leaders consented to collaborate with the British Government in its execution of the war and accepted places in the Cabinet. Macdonald consistently hetd hack. He was not only offered a place in the British War Cabinet, hut was also offered the Ambassadorship to Russia immediately after the Russian revolution, lie pofused it. Tfo could , have had other offices, but he preferred to he free to express Ids views, although he became well aware that during the war his views were not popular among the. British labouring men, and even among certain sections of Socialises. But his typical Scottishness prevailed. He considered his principles a thing too sacred lor compromise. A political death faced him during the war years, fie was ostracised and was even deprived of his membership in golf clulx. In Itlß he lost hi> seat ill 111" Parliament. During a by-election in Woolwich, the centre of the Labour movement, lie was hadl.v beaten, and for a time d appeared that his political life had ended. In short. England became ton lint for him. TRAVELS IX EXILE. Than lie decided to travel, lie went lo India, and from there contributed numerous articles to the nnn-Sneialist British papers tthoiii Indian problems, lie w roii' from Egypt and I’ah'siine. Later ha visited Caucasus, and was

feted by the Socialist Republic of Georgia. These travels, although perhaps made as a loreod exile, enabled him to understand the meaning and working of the British Empire. "It was as though he had a premonition that the time would come when he might he called on to form a Government and wanted to know at first hand the problems which some day ha might, have to face," writes one ol his eothusiastic* admirers. To-day his eves do not sparkle ami are more sombre, colder, and sharper 11 is hair is white. Although he ballot lost any oi his gentleness. those who know him well say that he has become like well-tempered sted. As a loadci of Ihe ‘•Opposition” in the British I’arliamenl lie mu't manage his partv so that the maximum number of points arc scored in every gaum, but he must, do this in the British i’arliamenl without stooping to vulgar rowdyism or gutter abuse. never make a concession*. Here is another estimate, h---adulatory. Irom a Loudon ( oiisci vativc* paper; Mr Ram,ay Macdonald reigns in the land hv grace ol the "intellectual-” ami the extremists combined. The lai ter sap,ported Macdonald not because he is an intellectual, hut because he is cold and hard. I never once rctucmhi r hearing him say a

;cnerous thing of an opponent in H

scores of speeches uhieli I have heard him deliver in the House of Commons. Koir Hardin was also like that. It of the least lovely trails of the 1.L.1L M uTover, Mr Macdonald never 111 ■ i!■.t,‘> ii lo ;m njijMiiirnL !«•>* i!;.> oiisljiici-u lor woiiUiios*. JtitcTloeUinlly, lie sees Ihe siivuglh of ppusile - ide as well as any man : hut he will never concede it in an argument, lest, advantage lie taken of his generosity, lie is credited with a warm heart, hut the approaches are formidable and repellaiit. The man who is not for him is his enemy. to he dealt with without, pity or ruth. 11l debate he has a hard brilliancy, with a colil intensity of passion. He has untie of Mr \squitiTs expansive geniality or Mr Lloyd George's personal magnetism, lie does not draw men's sympathies or abortions. He brings hi- arguments out of perpetual cold storage and serves them unthawed. IL 1 soenis to be for ever nursing lho memory of a wrong, and never forgets a slight or an injury. lie looks as if lie had starved the humanities out of his nature. There is great strength in the face, the lon-U'-iiv of steel, the cruelty of the hard man, the self-satisfaction ol the just. Those slow-moving jaws—as Augustus said of Tiberius—indicate no generous use of power. He is widely read, but he has cropped too much the hard stubble of dry thought. 'Tis a pity ho was never turned loose for a time in a field of red clover. C A LU.M NIKS FORGOTTEN ?

There is an arrogance in Mr Macdonald's mental vigor which is not a little terrifying. It came out strongly during the war. T thought his hearing mnnstruos ; I think so still. He has recanted nothing. He lias apologised for nothing, lie has never uttered a word to show that he admits even to himself a single doubt as to whether he was right to disdain the Great War and treat, the dead as misguided fools wlm, if they had been like him, would have refused to fight.

Personally, I cannot understand how anyone can forget the rile, cold calumnies which Mr Macdonald poured out upon the British Government and his own people during those years. Others are more charitable. I hope they will not repent tlu-ir softer hearts, for the change in them, not in him.