BRITISH POLITICS.

Hokitika Guardian, 14 October 1924, Page 3

BRITISH POLITICS.

[Reuters Telegrams.] MU MacRONALI VS SEND-OFF. (Received this clay at 10.-5 a.in.) LONDON, Oct. Hi. A crowd of live hundred Labour su |>— IKirters heartily sent oil’ Air .MacDonald from Huston this morning for (dasgow to comnience his whirlwind electioneering tour of Scotland and Wales. Mr MacDonald is accompanied hy his daughter Isabel and son. Alistair, Lord Arnold and William Orahant. The premier, in a speech said: “This is the biggest light the Labour Party has ever had. They have never begun a light better spirited. The Campbell case has nothing to do with the Government’s defeat. The other two parties decided the life of this Parliament must he ended because a Labour (>ovornment was in power and was doing so well. The Labourites are now challenging them in the country to do thelworst. We have come to stav. and I am perfectly certain that bv the same appeal to allow the patriotic elements to state we are going to return substantially strengthened.” The crowd sang “For He’s a .lolly Corn! Fellow” and the “lied Flag.” 1 Mr MacDonald was presented with a bouquet of red geraniums. The Premier sent a message to the London Labourites saying“ Fight hard and fight well. Keep your principles high. Thcv will hit below the belt all the time, but don’t you do the same.”

COMMUNISTS UKFOIIK COURT. LONDON'. Oct. 13. Four men were charged at How St. in connection with the disturbance at the Communist meeting in Irafalgar Square on Sudny. A policeman said lie heard the one who wore a Fascisti badge calling the crowd dirty clogs. The man refused to go away and was arrested in order to prevent a breach of the peace as the crowd.was threatening. The accused told the Magistrate that the crowd surrounded him when it saw the badge. He sang the National Anthem when he heard the lied Flag sung. The Magistrate said he was provocative and hound him over. The evidence showed that three others, members of the crowd, rushed the policeman when he was taking oil tlio Fascist, the one who struck the policeman shouting: “Come on! Mere are the Fascisti.” The man was sentenced to 21 days imprisonment. Another was hound over. Tho Magistrate told the third lad. who is aged 17, and described as a shop hoy, to go hack and clean out his shop as it was useless to waste time on a ridiculous shop hoy.

The hist general election left the state of parties in the House of Commons ns follows: Conservatives 2o" Labour ... U)2 Liberals l">8 Independents 8 The votes cast were : Conservatives ... ,7.;703,27-7 Labour •! .-70(5,935 Liberals .1.250,834 Independent ... 239.007 Prohibitionist ... ‘J0,7.73 No fewer than ‘213 members, or more than one-third of the llorse, were minority representatives