The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-10-18

country ever to take that into considera-
ticn cloud cheering). Actual hostilties
have commenced" said SIR Henry, land an
active aggression has been committed
which it is the plain duty of our ministers,
of parliament and of the people to resist.
There viii Je no disposition on the part Of
this house to place any obstacle in the way
OF granting suoh supplies and SUCH powers
to the crown may be necessary to Sc
cure the rapidly and effective prosecution
OF a war commenced to vindicate our rights
The campaign should be vigorously and
promptly prosecuted, and nothing necessary
for That purpose should be refused by the
house OF commons"
The leader of he opposition went on to
congratulate the government on the choice
made of officers to whom the main charge
of the expedition" had been given. Never,
he believed, had SO capable and so expert
encd a staff been dispatched from the
shores of England.
"Our natural position in South Africa,
he declared, has placed on us the duty of
seeing any impediment to our own suprem-
acy removed. On that we all are agreed.
l have no intention of entering upon min
ute or delicate criticism of the steps taken
by the government. The time for that has
not yet come and 1t is proper to walt for
further explanations. But l may say 1t
does appear to me that the government is
engaged in a game of bluff Opposition
MOI whtch is not very worthy one for a
great country like this. The raising of the
suzezrainty question was utterly unneces-
sary and did more than anything else to
remove all chance of success from the ne
gotiations. Opposition cheers.)
Mr.. Baifour, who was received with loud
cheering, expressed satisfaction at the dec
laration of Sir Henry Campbell-Banner-
man, with much of which, he said he was
in hearty agreement.
Mr.. Balfour complained that while Sir
Henry Il Campbell -Bannerman insinuated
that the war was due to errors of the gov
ernment, he did not specify these errors
The government would like to have charges
brought forward That they could rout
them. He repelled the allegation that the
government had goaded the South African
reppblic into war by Haunting Great Brit
AIMS suzerainty into their faces. The South
African republic made claims to being an
Independent sovereign state, but these We're
inconsistent with the conventions of 1881
and 1884 Mr.. Balfour said he could not un-
deIstand Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman $
declaration that The government had played
a game of bluff.
Mr.. Balfour said further that he felt en-
titled to say: "If war must come, 1t has
seldom been entered into by Great Britain
upon an issue which was more clearly an
issue of righteousness and liberty, and we
have undoubted proof that our self-govern-
heart and SOUL
John Dillon, ma tionalist member for the
east division of Mayo, moved an amend
nlent to the address as follows:
we humbly represent to her majesty that
the state of existing between
Great Britain and the South African repub-
lie has been caused by the assertion of
claims which interfere with the internal
government of the republic In direct VIOLA
ton of the terms of the convention Of 1884,
and by massing large bodies of British
troops on the frontier of the republic
1--WE humbly submit that before more
b1oodshed takes place a proposal be made
in the spirit of the recent conference at the
Hague with a view of finding In lndepen-
dent arbitration a settlement of the differ
ences between the two governments and In
ordr that an ignominious defeat in war by
arms of the British troops against the dis
turbers be averted."
Mr. Dillon asserted that the government
was breaking the convention because gold
had been discovered IN the Transvaal. Mr..
Henry Labouofre, liberal member for
Northampton, seconded the amendmeqt, de-
clarfng the war the absolute act Of Mr..
Chamberlain. 'If there had been no
Rhodes, or Lord Salisbury had been In the
colonial office" said Mr.. Labouchre. "thsre
would have been no war. There Is too
much OF the stock exchange about tine
whole business"
Michael Davitt, member for South Mayo,
vigorously supported the amendment, de-
clarfng that outside Of lingo circles and
stock jobbing rings, the whole British en-
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