LORDS V. COMMONS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9667, 4 December 1909, Page 5

LORDS V. COMMONS.

A LIBEB AL MANIFESTO. GRAVE ISSUES INVOLVED. United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph Copyright. Received December 3, 9 a.m. LONDON, December 2. In connection with the present political ciisis, a National Liberal Federation manifesto states.that the issues involved are as grave aa any in the lifetime of the oldest voter. The victory of the Tory Paity ' would involve the degradation of the Commons and the aggrandisement of the Lo r ds, and a return to Protection, with its inevitable taxes on food. The electors will have to decide whether they wisli to govern themselves or he governed by a few hundred heredi ry peers, who have thrown the Constitution into the melting-pot in order to shift the burden from wealth, land, and liquor I t) food and necessaries.

COMMENT BX "THE TIMES." Received December 3, 9 a.m. LONDON, December 2. "The Times" declares that Mr Asquith'fl motion embodies the doctrine of the last four years. It goes much beyond any previous assertion for privileges, and, by implication, denies the power or right of the Lords to have a voice in any legislation tacked to the Budget. It was only incidentally that the Lords refused supplies this year. What really has been done is to refer to the country a quantity of legislation involving novel principles, denying the right of appeal to the courts of law, and establishing an extensive bureaucracy with arbitrary inquisitorial powers.

MR ASQUITH'S RESOLUTION. CARRIED.

Received December 3, 10.20 p.m. LONDON, December 3.

The House ot Commons yesterday was thronged from floor to celling, there being rows upon rows of eager attentive faces, to hear the deDate on Mr Asquith's resolution. Mr Asquith's appearance was the signal for deafening Ministerial cheers, his followers rising to do him honour.

Mr Balfour, in turn, was enthusiastically acclaimed by the Unionists, his unexpected attendance after a slight chill stimulating them to a high pitch of excitement. The debate was a comparatively short one.

Mr Asquith's resolution "That the action of the House of Lords in refusing to pass into law the financial provision made by the House of Commons for the service of the year was a breach of the Constitution, and a usurpation of the righls of the House of Commons," was carried by 349t 234.

Mr Aequitb, in a grave and earnest speech, declared that the circumstances that had arisen were unparalleled in the history of Parliament. He recalled with marked emphasis that the Commons alone had been addressed in the speech from the Throne in February, when they were invited to make provision [for heavy additional expenditure, due to social reform and national defence.

CABINET DETERMINED. PARLIAMENT TO BE DISSOLVED. VIGOROUS SPEECH BY MR i ASQUITH. Received December 4, 12.5 a.m LONDON, December 3. In the course of his speech Mr Asquith said that for the first time in the history, of Parliament the whole of the ways and means for supply and service for the year had been intercepted and nullified by a hody admittedly having no power to increase or diminish a single tax or substitute an alternative. Amid a storm of Liberal and Labour cheers, Mr Asquith remarked that the House would be unworthy of its past traditions, if it allowed another day to pass without making it clear that it does not mean to brook the greatest indignity and most arrogant usurpation whereto it had ever during trie past two lenturies been asked to submit. He laid stress on the confusion, embarrassment, loss of leveiue and the increase in the country's indebtedness—that, said Mr Asquith, was the result of the Lords' action. He scouted the sugge tion that the Commons should stoop to the humiliation of present* ing the amended Budget with the Lords criticisms and sanction. He contended that only one cou'se was open without breaking the law or sacrificing cors itutional principle "That is," said the Prime Minister, "to advise, as we have advised the Crown to dissolve Parliamert at the arliest possible moment. His Majesty King Edward has been graciously pleased to accept the advice " (Prolonged cheers from both sides of the House). Continuing, Mr Asquith said that if the Government was returned to power its first duty would be to reimpose ail the taxes and duties recently voted. The presumption always is that the Commons, which is freely chosen by the people, represents the peoples' will. There was no such presumption regarding the Lords. He admitted, parenthically, the presumption in the case of the Comirons ought to be strengthened by shortening the duration of j Parliament, and more frequent contact with electorates.

Mr Asquith asked the House and constituencies to declare that the organ and voice of the free people is to be i'ouml in the elected representatives of the nation.

Here are some notable extracts f»*om Mr Lloyd George's recent great speech in whijh he warned the Lords that they are forcing a revolution:— The Budget has emerged out of its forty days and forty nifhts in the wilderness, much strengthened and improved. The Bill in ils mi in structure remains. All the Uxes are there—the land taxis aul lie sup r taxes aie there.

You see the Bill practically in the form in which it is going to Income an Act of Paii.a-.ent.

The Bill is not an attack on either industry or property. There has only been one class of stock which has gone down badly. There has been a great slump in dukes. All we ask is that wealth should pay its fair share. One class of people who detest the Budget are those who are seeking completely to change our fiscal system—to tax food, and they know that once this Budget is through there is an end to their desires.

The second and more powerful class are the landlords. They are angry because the land taxss are taxes which will grow.

The working classes are tired of Walbottle.

I have my bag packed with cases in which landlords have demanded ths heaviest price they could positively extort when additions were wanted to existing property.

The State valuation frr the first tinu places a perfectly impartial valuation on all land in l!;e kingdom, it forms a standard to guide the buyer. The Budget will give us 5 per cent, on royalties, a halfpenny on capital value of building land, 20 per cent, on increased price when the laud is sold, and when the landlord passes to another sphere we will collect the dead reni\

When the leasee falls in we get another 10 per cert., and on royalites, from other seams which may be worked, 20 per cent. The landowners should fee! honoured that Providence has given them a chance to put a little into the poor-box. if they don't do it, we shall do it for them. We are going to send the Bill up—all the taxes or none.

Now, what will (he Lords do 1 tell you frankly it is a matter which concerns them far more than it concerns us. The more irresponsible and feather-headed amongat them want to throw it out. What will the rest do?

Poor Lord Lansdowne, with his creaky old ship and his mutinous crew, has got to sail through the narrows with one eye on the weathor glass and the other on the forecastle.

But it does not depend on him. It will depend, in the first place, upon the reports from the country. Not Lord Lansdowne, not Mr Balfour, but Sir Acland Htod, the chief Tory Whip, is the real sailing master. What our fathers obtained through centuries of struggle, strife, and bloodshed, we will not give up. We are not going to be traitors. The Constitution is to be torn to pieces. Let them realise what they are doing. They are forcing a revolution.

The Lords may decree a revolution, but it is the people who will direct