FATEFUL MEETING AT THE CARLTON.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2497, 24 October 1922, Page 4

FATEFUL MEETING AT THE CARLTON.

LLOYD GEORGE’S DYNAMIC FORCE OBJECTED TO. LONDON, Oct. 19. Mr Austen Chamberlain presided at the meeting of the Conservatives at the Carlton Club. He had Lord Balfour, Sir Robert Horne and Lord Leo on his right, and Lord Birkenhead, Hon. S. Baldwin and Mr Bonar Law on his left. Mr Chamberlain, in addressing the meeting, closely followed the lines of his Birmingham speech. He declared that the old party issues were dead. The real issue was not between the Liberals and Conservatives, but between those who stood for free industry and those who stood for nationalisation, with all its inefficiencies. The Hon. Stanley Baldwin said: "lho root, of the whole difficulty is the position of the Prime Minister. He is a dynamic force and from that fact all our troubles arise. It is owing to his dynamic force and remarkable personality that the Liberal Party, to which he belonged, has been smashed to pieces, and in the course of time, I am convinced, the same thing would happen to our party.” Mr Prettvman said the new issues could best be niet by Conservative principles rather than a Coalition, of which members were doubtful. Not only were old party measures dead, but the party itself was dead in the sense that there was a vast mass of opinion without definite allegiance to the Conservative or the Liberal Party. The country was seeking a lead and was determined on a change of Government. It would be a national disaster if the only Government available was a Socialist one. It was the Conservative Party’s to come out under its own leader. Ibis policy would be better for the party even if it did not win as many seats as it would otherwise win. He thought the party would be perfectly willing to co-operate with anyone willing to assist in preventing the advent of Socialism. There was no reason for the proscription or exclusion of those who hitherto had worked with them, but the resolution did mean that the Conservatives were no longer pledged to the Coalition Conservatives in any constituency and wore quite free to put up their own candidate, but as a. party they should not definitely oppose coalition with the Liberals. Mr Bonar Law said the real question was: Ought, the Coalition to continue? If they adopted Mr Chamberlain's proposal and any Conservative felt that bis return was possibly due to Mr Lloyd George’s influence, it would be infinitely more" dishonourable to ask Mr Lloyd George to retire after the election. . If it were possible, bo would urge Mr ( hatnbeilain to abide by the party's decision regarding the continuance of the Coalition, Cut ho was afraid if was ioo late and the party was faced with the ultimate split. Personnliy. lie attached more imp.niai.ce to keeping the party united than lo win I ning the election. He did not think there was" any danger of Labour coming ml" power:'the country was not that way inclined. Labour bail won many by elec (ions because it was the only alternative to the Coalition. That a party composed of everyone not Labour would inevitably result in a Labour Government ultimately was obvious. Heartfelt union no longer existed. It was like a marriage in which one of the parties was determined to go away. The fooling against the Coalition was so strong that the party would be broken and not the least evil would he that wlint was left of the Conservative Party would become reactionary. If tHoy agreed with Mr Chamberlain, the hotly cast oil would slowly become the Conservative Party, but it would take a generation to recover its influence. On the other hand, if the meeting decided against the Coalition, the groat majority would continue members of the party if no compromise were possible. He would vote, therefore, in favour of the party going into the oleetion as a party, fighting to win. If it could have gone as a united party, at least it would have had a good chance. Whether it was Mr Lloyd George’s fault or force of circumstances the Government had unable to find their way out again, had lost the party’s confidence. lie thought in the main it was force "of circumstances for no Premier could have avoided unpopularity in the years through which Mr Lloyd George passed. There was no good, however, in trying to keep the Government alive. (Loud cheers.) Earl Balfour said ho had never seen a sign of Mr Lloyd George forcing his Conservative colleagues to adopt Liberal principles. A modification of views had already occurred on the part of the Premier much more than on the part of his Conservative colleagues. lie absolutely denied that he had been unfaithful to any sub slantial principles that lie bad advocated all bis life. Why anticipate difficulties which did not exist’? Why advocate a return to tiie two-party system, when the realities on which it were based were in abeyance. Mr Prettyman’s proposal was preposterous. They could not light on siir-li lines. The principles on which a twoparty fight was proposed had not been produced. The only practical way of restoring the two-party system was Individing tiie Conservative Party, which was an undesirable remedy. He did not believe the most expert electioneer knew what (lie country really thought as between the parlies. When the elect ion was over they would know infinitely more, and in the light of that augmented knowledge tiie reconstruction of the Government would have to be reconsidered, lie had list.uied painfully to the lip service paid to leaders, compared with what had been rendered in actual service. Earl Balfour strongly urged the meeting to .support Mr Chamberlain.

Lieutenant Colonel Leslie Wilson said if tin- ('onservn lives worn returned willi a considerable majority, ho would 1101 bo prepared to servo under a Liberal Premier. The conservatives would be broken, like the Liberals, if they continued in the Coalition. tColonel Wilfrid W Ashley asked whether the voters for the motion would be voting for a Tory Premier. Mr Chamberlain said he certainly understood the motion excluded the possibility of any but a Tory Premier. The resolution, moved by the lion. E. Cl. Prettyman, that the Unionists should fight the elections as an independent party under their own programme and their own leader, with a proviso for a Coalition with the Liberals if the Unionists were so advised by their leader, was then put and carried.—A. and N.Z. cable. A DRAMATIC ENDING. CRIES OF “TRAITOR 1” LONDON, Oct. 19. The Coalition died in dramatic circumstances. A big crowd gathered at Pall Mall. The public fully appreciated the significance of the Conservatives’ meeting. Thousands watched the Cabinet Ministers arriving at the Carlton Club, one conspicuous group cheering Mr Bonar Law and booing Mr Chamberlain, who turned in astonishment on hearing the cry of “Traitor!” as he left his car. There were also several cries of “Judas!’’ when Lord Birkenhead appeared. There was another sensational incident; inside the club over the exclusion of the Conservative Peers and Independent Conservative Commoners. The aged Lord Chaplin, whom two policemen lifted from a taxi-cab. mounted the steps of the club with the aid of two sticks, and sought admission to the meeting, but was refused. Mr J. jtl. Erskine, an Independent. Conservative, angrily attempted to force his way into the meeting, but Captain King, the junior whip, barred the entrance. Admiral Sueter was similarly barred. —A. and N.Z. cable.