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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 12, 1906)
$wi-. ''fignmrjmiiisr' The Commoner! BER.-1, 1901 ' : -,W. M. warned the railroads- that their continued lagement of the public highways will depend the effectiveness of the legislative control it democrat can say less? What democrat kid advise making the democratic party the lpion of the railroads In the fight which is poaching? Aside from the principle involved, would be suicidal to the party to take a posi- which would alienate the patrons of the iroads and please only the railroad magnates haVe for a generation been discriminating against persons and places, extorting from the public through rates unreasonably high and cor rupting politics in every part of tho country. Regulation Is to have a fair trial, but the railroads must know that their Interference in politics will only hasten th day of public owner ship, and the people ought to bo considering whether in event of government ownership they will profor tho centralization plan of national own ership or tho dual plan, which contemplates tho national, ownership of tho trunk lines and the state ownership of all other lines. England's New Liberal Government Mr. Bryan's Thirty-ninth Letter Great Britain has recently experienced one I. the greatest political revolutions she has over town. The conservative party, with Mr. Balfour, me of tho ablest of modern scholars, at its head md with, Mr, Joseph Chamberlain, a powerful orator and a forceful political leader, as its most conspicuous champion, had won a sweeping vic tory after the Boer war and this victory follow ing a long lease of power led the Conservatives to believe themselves invincible. They assumed, as parties made confident by success often do, that they are indispensable to the nation and' paid but little attention to the warnings and threats of the Liberals. One- mistake after another,-: howevei, alienated the voters and the special elefctioris 'two years ago began to show a falling off in the Conservative strength and when the general election was held last fall the Liberals rolled up a majority of something like two hundred in the House of Commons. A new ministry was formed from among the ablest men Of the party a ministry of radical and pro gressive "men seldohl equalled In moral purpose and intellectual strength. My main purpose in visiting London at this time was to become ac quainted with" the personnel of the now govern ment and learn of their program. Before1 speaking of the ministers, just a word in regard to the king, who is the. head Of thp government whether It oe liberal or conservative. The government of Great Britain is always in harmony with the House of Commons and. as the ministers speak for the king, he does not empha size the virtue of consistency, for he may be put in the attitude of advocating a thing today and opposing it tomorrow. He is not expected to have opinions upon public questions or, if he has them, they are always presented with the understanding that If the ministers will not adopt his views he will adopt theirs. It Is much easier to btf a king now than it used to be and the bur dens of a monarchy have been Very much light ened In th6 nations which, like JEngland, recog nize the omnipotence of parliament I was very glad to avail myself of the oppor tunity offered by a private audience to meet his majesty. King Edward, and to be assured of his personal interest in the promotion of peace. The king has a very genial face and makes the visitor feel at ease at once. He ' has a knowledge of world politics and by his tact and good nature has done much to promote cordial relations be tween his own and other countries. It may not be out of place to correct an impression that has gone abroad with regard to the style of dress required of those who are admitted to the pres ence of the king. Because knee breeches are worn at court functions many have understood, and I among them, that they were required on all occasions; but this is not the case. Most of the calls made upon him informally are made before dinner and the ordinary black coat is worn. The requirements are not as strict as they are in Russia, Japan and Sweden, where I was advised to wear an evening suit for a morn ing call. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, a sturdy Scotchman, is the new prime minister, and those who know him intimately feel that his selection Is a vindication of the doctrine that patience and courage, when joined with merit, are invincible. He is now well advanced In years and during his entire public career has stood unflinchingly for democratic ideas. He has not been dis couraged by the fact that he has often been in the minority; on the contrary, he has felt as '. persuasive manner and his fine sense, ot humor gives brilliancy to his speeches. In outlining th policy of tho Liberal party last December, he credited tho victory at tho polls to several causosthe tariff question, the Chinese question, the educational problem and municipal questions. He pledged his party to certain reforms and boldly advocated a reduction of military and naval expenses. Ho pointed out that there could be no retrenchment in taxa tion if the appropriations for armaments and for armies continued to increase. He has been called' a "little Englander," but that did not deter him from uttering a protest against the rivalry which seems to bo going on in Europe In .the building of warships. In view of his utterances In favor of arbitra tion and against militarism it was most appro priate that he should deliver the address of welcome at tho recent session of tho Interparlia mentary Union, better known as the peace con gress. His speech on that occasion was an epoch making deliverance. In ho uncertain tones' he thr,ew the influence of his ministry on the side of peace and opened the door for the adoption of a far-reaching proposition In favor of the sub mission of all questions to Investigation before hostilities are commenced. He used the North Sea- incident as an illustration and urged the extension of the powers of the board of inquiry. His now famous oxclamatlon, "The Duma Is dead long live the Duma," Illustrates both his moral courage and his devotion to representative gov ernment The sentence was a part of his peace congress speech and was uttered In the presence of the Duma representatives who left Russia before tho proroguing of that body. It electrified the audience and has been widely commented on throughout Europe. Few premiers have had so large a majority back of them or possessed so fully the confidence of their supporters and the program prepared by the ministry is a most comprehensive one. It is too much to expect that the Liberal majority can be maintained on all the questions which will be under discussion, but it is evident that the new government will have a number of Im portant reforms to Its credit when it finishes Its work. The president of the house of lords, tho lord chancellor. Is one of the most popular of the Liberal leaders. His name Is Robert Reed and he is also a Scotchman. He is a rare combination and one of the most lovable of men. There is a striking resemblance between him and the Edinburgh statue of Walter Scott and in his heart there Is the democracy of Burns. With high Ideals, an eloquent tongue and a disposition which attracts men to him, he Is especially fitted for public life, and it la to be regretted that upon retirement from his present position ho becomes a judge, for the bench does not afford an equal opportunity with the forum for the moulding Of public opinion. The foreign secretary, Sir Edward Grey, is a man who would attract attention anywhere by the strength of his face. He reminded me of the late William M. Evarts of New York. He played an important part in the campaign which led up to the Liberal victory and his selection was re garded as a fitting one. His position, however, is not so difficult to fill, because Great Britain's relations with the other powers are quite amicable. We extended out stay in London in order to hear the minister of war, Mr. Haldane, make confident In his position when he has had to his argument In favor of a reductloa In tho size maintain it amid taunts and jeer as when hi and cost of th army. By the courtesy of bur speeches brought forth, applause. Hels not as ambassador, Hon, Whltelaw Held, I had an ex gre&t an orator as Gladstone, but he hi a very ceHeat seat 1m the gallery of tke Howe of. Com- mons. Tho reader may he Interested In a brief sketch of this most ancient of parliaments aad most powerful of alj the factors which enter Into the poJttloal life of the British Isles. The hall will seat sixty per cent of the members an astonishing fact to an American who is ac customed to see each of his seaators, congress men and state legislators with a seat assigned to him for tho session. The merabors who are present sit on cushionod bonchos, resembling church pews; and these benches rise one above another on olthor side of the hall. The Liberals, sit on tho right of the spcakor and the front bench Is reserved for the ministry. Tho Con servatlves occupy tho bonchos at the speaker's left, tho front bench being reserved for the lead ers of tho opposition. On tho loft, but farthor from the spoakor, are the Irish members and tho Labor members. There is a narrow gallery on each side which is occupied by members when there is a largo attendance and a small gallery in the rear for visitors. The ladies gallery Is just over tho speaker's desk and Is so carefully screened that tho occupants of the gallery can not bo recognized from tho floor. While no one least of all tho ladies, seems to defend this screen,' It still remains. Most of tho mombors wear their hats In tho hall, but as they have no desks they can not write when a colleaguo is speaking, al though I was told of one member who occasion ally occupied his time knitting. As parliament virtually selects tho ministers and as these ministers are responsible to par liament rather than to tho king, they must at-' tend the sessions at stated times and answer questions. Any member of parliament Is at lib erty to submit a question In writing and the ' minister is obliged to give answer, provided, of course, answer would not make an Improper dls ' closure. Tho leaders, facing each other from th op' posing benches, present a very Interesting picture and after listening to the discussions back and forth, one can understand why free speech has had so largo an influence in the development of the political Institutions of Great Britain. Here every idea is threshed out and every measure " moulded into permanent form. But to return to the minister of war. Mr. Haldane might be taken for Tom L. Johnson, Cleveland's redoubtable mayor, so much li he like him In face and figure. Ho Is plausible In speech and so good natured that no one can be angry with him, however much he may dissent from his conclusions. For two hours he held the attention of the house and gallery an un usual feat in London where the speeches are sot so long as in America. He was frequently en couraged by cries of "Hear! Hear!" the usual " applause in the House of Commons. It was noticeable that the heartiest responses were drawn forth by his expressions In favor of peace and arbitration. The re-organlzation scheme which he presented provides for a reduction of several thousand men and a considerable ' de crease in the total cost, but toake tho scheme more aceptable the remaining regiments are so ; disposed as to give tho country a larger fighting force than It now has. It was Interesting to watch tho opposition benches whose able leaders vigorously attack everything that the new gov ernment proposes. Ex-war Minister Foster fol lowed Mr. Haldane and picked flaws in his plans, but he did not receive the attention accorded the war minister. Tho army question Is arousing considerable interest, and the government bill Is likely to have more opposition In the House of Lords than in tho Commons. In fact, Lord Roberts has al ready attacked the bill in advance in a speech which affords conclusive proof of the tendency of man to magnify his own calling. Nothing better illustrates the conservatism of tho House of Lords than the fact that the Liberal party can claim but one-tenth of tho membership of that body while it has two hundred majority in the popular branch of parliament It must not be supposed, however, that all the bills passed by the House of Commons will be defeated In the House of Lords, for while a large majority of that hQUse may really oppose a measure they recognize that the very existence of their body would be jeopardized If it opposed the people on any important question. Nominally the House of Lords has an equal voice with the House tft Commons, in tho enactment of laws, but as a matter of fact it does not dare to exercise the power which it has. The navy department has reduced the appro priation for large vessels and itiscerialn that at the next Hague conference Great Britain will of ji m Uri, V i t Jkiit'-Haiin '.)
