The Daily News. TUESDAY, MAY 2, 1911. GERMAN HOME RULE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 290, 2 May 1911, Page 4

The Daily News. TUESDAY, MAY 2, 1911. GERMAN HOME RULE.

Interest in the subject of Home Rule is increased by the, campaign on its behalf to be fought in Australasia. It is not difficult for advocates of Home Rule for Ireland (or Scotland, Wales and England for that matter) to find excellent and successful examples of its success abroad. Mr. Redmond some time ago remarked that many people regard the German Empire as a great autocracy, and the German Emperor as the very personification of an autocrat. He proceeded to show that nothing was further from the truth, and that to-day the Gerjnan Empire is the most convincing proof "of the triumph of federalism. Irish Home Rulers propose to decentralise legislation by the creation of separate parliaments, subject to the English Parliament. The German States have attained autonomy by a totally different procelss. The State Assemblies in Germany existed before the creation of the Empire in 1871. On the creation of the Empire, these States relinquished a small portion of their legislative powers, but they retain almost the same powers held, before the consolidation of 1871. In a recent article on the subject, Mr. Charles Lowe says:—

Prussia. Bavaria, Saxony and W'urtemberg. Maden, and all the other minor sovereignties in Germany, form in their totality the Confederation called the German Empire; each has its Landtag, Diet, or separate State Assembly, generally consisting of two Chambers, with the Kine, Grand Duke, Duke or Prince as tlie third effective factor in the Legislature; and each of these bi-cameral Diets is entitled to legislate on local matters as before, minus the affairs that were, by common consent in 1871. handed over to the care of the Reichstag, or Imperial Parliament, representing the whole German people. Even the Reichsland, Alsace-Lorraine, is now at last to be endowed with a two-Chamber sort of Legislature for local self-government, under the Statthalter, or Viceroy, and promises fair to reconcile the people to their conquered, or rather re-conquered lot, as nothing else has ever done. It is also, let me say, that, though Bavaria, for example, enjoys some very special privileges in the field of autonomy, neither here nor in any other .State, .so far as I know, has there even been seen any sign of the least centrifugal tendency or disposition to dislocate and disrupt the Imperial edifice which had the mighty Bismarck for its builder. This i- an edifice in which the most keen-eyed critic will search in vain for the very slightest rent or crack—all the German Princes and people being welded indivisilily together l)v their heart-whole devotion to the idea of "Kaiser and Reich."

The local Landtags, or Diets, are mostly bi-cameral, and, of course, are under the local Crown, but by no means arbitrarily monorchia!. The Imperial Legislature, with the Kaiser as Executive President of the German Union, has no power of veto over legislation passed by the bicameral Imperial Parliament. The two Chambers constituting the Imperial Parliament. represent the people and the sovereign princes. The National Assembly is returnable on the basis of universal suffrage, and the Federal Council is composed of personal representatives of confederate sovereigns. The Imperial Chancellor, who is appointed by the Kaiser, presides over the Council, and

both the people's and the princes' Houses have equal powers. Both Houses must assent to the passing of a law.' Either House may negative proposed legislation. There arc 397 members in the people's House, and the voting power of the Princes' House is 58, 17 of these belonging to the Kaiser as King of Prussia, whose monarchy extends over about two-thirds of Germany. The rest of the votes are distributed among the other States, according to their size and importance. The King of Prussia has frequently been out-voted by his sovereign confederates. As King of Prussia the Kaiser may oppose a law in the princes' House. He has no choice but to give it the Royal Assent if botli people's and princes' Houses wish. The people's Chambers have a habit of throwing out with great decision measures it views as undemocratic. It has absolute control of money Bills. Either Chamber has power of veto. That is to say, there must be agreement in all cases before legislation finds its way to the Statute Book. Although the Federal Council has the power of intiating legislation, the people's Chamber has the power of smashing it, by simply withholding its consent. The Party system does not exist. A Party majority cannot turn a Government out of office. Although there is a Prussian Ministry there is not an Imperial one. If the Party system were capable of application it would merely result in a change of Chancellor. The Germans- do not like Party Government. Prince von Bulow is reported to have said: "No one inGermany desires > personal regime; the vast' majority of people in Germany are rigidly opposed to Party domination." Politics in Germany are therefore not dependent on the political caprices of a party that happens to Control a majority of votes, and government is, according to. a written Constitution, variable only by the act of both the princes' and the people's Houses. The advantages of appealing by referendum to the people, should it be considered necessary to dissolve the Reichstag, is infinitely more reasonable and democratic than the wretched method of dissolution by Party vote. There is no case on record where great matters having been put to the German people's vote they have not emphatically declared for the Government. The value of a Parliament that works. only for the people and not for Party or place, is too obvious to need praise.