The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-01-30
TO MEET ACRISIS
Parliament Assemblies Under
Unusual Circumstances.
Gravity of the Situation Appar-
ent ON all Sides.
NO SIGNS OF, PANIC.
No Indication of Desire to En-
barrass the Government.
Vote of Censure on LansdoWne
Proposed by His Brother.

London, Jan. 3O.-The preparations
for the reassembling of parliament
commenced in chilly cheerless weather.
The members began to arrive at an un
usually early hour. William Massey
Mainwaring, conservative member for
central Finsbury was the first to arrive
entering the precincts of the house at
4:30 a. m, half an hour ahead of John
Cumming Mac Dona, progressive con-
servative member for the Rotherhite
division of Southwark, the second ar
rival. The other members then began
to appear at shortening intervals.
About 100 seats had been reserved by
10 o'clock, when the yeomen of the
guard arrived from the Tower and with
lighted lanterns, carried out the usual
search of the subterranean chambers
and passages.
There was nothing in the converse
tion of the early arrivals to suggest
anything in the nature of a panic and
there was little to indicate any keen
desire to embarrasS the government, but
there were evidences on all sides that
the members keenly realized that they
were meeting under exceptional circum-
stances when preparations were neces-
Sary to meet a grave crisis.
Among the curious features of the
situation, the house of commons was to
O0 lECdl0Q 10 the SlIlSu SuldI spectacle ol
Lord Edmund F'itzmaurice, liberal mem
ber for the Cricklade, or northern di-
vision of Wiltshire, moving a vote of
censure on his brother, the Marquis of
LanSdowne, secretary of state for war.
The seventh session of the fourteenth
parliament of Queen Victoria opened at
p. m. after the customary formalities
The speaker, William Court Gully ar
rived at the house of commons at 1:53
p. m. There was large attendance
of members.
The gentleman usher of the black
rod, Gen. Sir NJ. S. Biddulph summoned
the commons to the house of lords, at
2:05 p. NJ, where the lord high chancel-
lor, Earl Halsbury. read the queens
speech.
The attendance of peers and of the
public was not extraordinary.
After the reading of the speech the
house adjourned until 4 p. m, and the
conmonerS returned to their house.
which also similarly suspended its sit
ting until o'clock. There was a con-
spicuous absence of public excitement
in connection with the reassem bling of
parliament. A small knot of people
witnessed the arrival and departure of
the yeomanry of the guard the crowd
around the entrance to the palace yard
at no time exceeded 500 and the few
who We're hoping for some demonstra-
tiOn against the ministry were disap-
pointed.
IRISH MEMBERS ABSENT.
All sections of the Irish Nationalists
were absent from the opening session of
parliament, owing to their attendance
at a meeting in committee room Is.
Timothy Harrington. member for the
Harbour division of Dublin presided.
Those in attendance included -Messrs.
Dillon, Holly and John Redmond and
many of their followers.
MesSrs. Harrington and Redmond
urged that the time had come to restore
unity in the ranks of the parliamentary
representatives of Irish Nationalism.
Mr.. Redmond described the prestige
of Great Britain as practically shatter-
ed and said there seemed to be no bet
ter time for promoting union upon
sound and enduring basis, coupled with
a policy of unity in combat and entire
independence of all the English politi-
cal parties. He then moved a resoIu-
tion declaring at an end the division of
the Irish Nationalist representatives
and that henceforth they should act to-
gether as one united party.
The resolution was carried unani-
mously.
On Mr.. Healeys motion three whips
were elected for the reunited party.