The Red Cloud chief., 1881-01-06

treason. IL still. however. continues "a
exercise IN original jurisdiction in ad'
yising b Crown concerning the grants
OF charters. and IL has assumed exclu'
siye appellate Jurisdiction over the col.
onies and dependencies If the Crown.
Theoretically the Privy Council retains
its ancient supremacy. and Ia con
stituiional point of view Is presumed 10
be the ONLY legal and responsible coan-
ell Of the Crown. The Ministry proper.
or rather those members of the tabi-
net. con, tit ate the chief members Of
the ADMINISTRATION. The practice 81
consulting a few members 81 the Privy
Council had existed. n has been said.
for a loIg period. bat the first aliusion
10 the Cabinet council occurs in the
reign Of Charles !. IL Was extremely
unpopular at first. and il was not Till
1888 that IL Wa regulated by those
rules which il now enforces. Formerly
the King met with the Ministry; but
ut the accession Of George l.. the first
H~anoyerian prince on the throne Of
England, the practice was discontinued.
merely because he was unable Ia speak
or understand the English language.
The free and unrestrained discussion Of
measures in his absence proved 80 ben
eicial that the old practice has never
been revived. Before that time the
Cabinet was not necessarily composed
OF men Of similar judgment and princi-
pies. and at times there were in the
same board Wings and Tories, and
High hurchmen and D~issenteTs, ard
il was no uncommon thing for col
leagues to take opposite sides in Par
lament. But since i-i2 il has been an
established principle that all Cabinets
are 10 be constructed on some basis Of
political union agreed upon by the
members when they accept Office.
IL is also distinctly understood that
members are jointly and personally re-
sponsible for each others acts. and that
on the resignation Of the Prime Minis
ter his colleagues shall resign also. II
is, ofcourse, well known that the Crown,
I'm organizing a Cabinet, only appoints
the Premier, and that the other menu
bers are selected by him, and always.
except in rare cases, without dictation
from the Crown. The first instance Of
the resignation of a Prime Minister re-
sulting from an adverse vote of the
Commons was in the case of Sir Robert
Walpole; and the resignation ot the
Ministry of Lord North, under George
Ill, was the first instance of a stimuli
taneous change OF the whole Admins
tration in Difference 10 the opinion Of the
Commons. From that time. however, q
change of Ministry has been simultane-
nrs and nnunnfntn Tho p,nI.r 80
those constituting the Cabinet is in
definite. The members who ex-oflicio
constitute the Cabinet are the Prime
Minister Tor First Lord of the Treas
ury), the Lord High Chancellor. the
Lord President of the Council. the Lord
Priyy Seal, the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, the Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs. the Secretary of State
for Home Department, the Secretary of
State for Colonies. the Secretary of
State for War, the Secretary OF State
for India, the First Lord of the Adj
miraity. the President of the Board of
Trade, and sometimes the Chanccllorof
the Duchy of Lancaster, the First Com
missioner OF Works, the President of
the Local Government Board. the Post
bis'ci-Ncucia duu iUc SHltl ScCIc-
for Ireland.
Like the Cabinet. the Office of Prime |
is unknown to the law and
He is simply the mem
Der of the Cabinet who especially pos
sesses the confidence of the Crown, and
may be either a Peer or a Commoner.
Lord Rockingham in 1865, the Duke of
in 1852, and Mr.. Addington in
1872 had never held any Office when !
they were appointed Prime Ministers.
Lord Butte became Premier before he
had even spoken in Parliament, and
MIR. Pitt was Prime Minister ut the aye
Of twenty-four. Before 1906 the Pre-
niership was occasionally held in con-
nection with the office of Chancellor of
the Exchequer. or Secretary of State,
Lord Chancellor. but it is now inva-
held in connection with the office
the First Lord of the Urea Sury.-W.
z. DdciS. in Harper'S Magazine.