Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1900-05-05
DEBATE ON TIE War
English Parliament Takes up the
Matter of the spion Kop
Dispatches
Lord Rosebery asa Warm Champion
Of Gen. BullerWar Office
Criticised
Parliament, However, Refuses to
Take up the Matter Foreign
Gossip.

on the wareoftice vote yesterday. Wall
ter. Runcieman. liberal, representing
Oldham. started the debate on the pubs
licatien Of the spionkop dispatches. He
declared the government had disre-
Egarded every consideration except pub
lieity and asserted that the RESPONSE
bility for the publication rested entire-
~ With politicians, '.altho in this case
the secretary for war had deliberately
attempted 10 throw the responsibility
5on the olnmander-in-chief." The pub
lie, Mr.. Runcienlan asserted. had eN
pected the recall of the censured COM
nanders.
Mr.. Wyndham parliamentary secre-
cary OF the Var Office, in reply quoted
the duke Of Wellington as precedent
[ for the publication of the dispatches.
Ii so doing. he snid. he resented the
grave insnuation that the secretary
hcf state Tor war was guiltyEof ANYTHING
aishonorabse in requesting Gen. Butler
10 rewirt his disiatcll.
Continuing. Mr. Nyndham said he
was prepared 70 discuss the question of
The judgment, and the discretion, but
rot of the honor CT rectituie of tht
marquis of LansloNne. Many mis-
conceptions in regard to the dispatches
mad already evaporated. Including the
belief that Lord Roberts and Gan.
Butler had criticised Gen. Methuen's
operations and that the criticisms had
been suppressed, as supposed. by. favor
Iitism The only point at. issue was why
IL,
published if the government intended
TO leave him in command.
Mr.. Wyndham contended that il was
Impossible to Isolate the Spionkop dis
patches and treat them as no other dis
patches had been treated in the history
of the last hundred years. The war OF
flee, he asserted, had actedaentirely in
accordance with the queens regula
.tions. Ii was said that The publication
would shake the confidence of he
troops in Natal in their commander,
| but Mr. Wyndham said that was not,
1.-The view Of the government nor the
view If Cian. Butler. who was in the
best position 70 decide.
Al this point Mr. Dillon, Irish ma
5tionalist. member for East MAYO. in-
Interrupted, saying he had MAYER asserted.
that he wanted the dispatches pub
Ilishetl.
sgut the gallant general. Mr.. Wynd-
4 ham continued ignoring the interrupt
l8tion, 3s.s has been 5applauded for saving
a he would stick to What he had written.
y and would he have made a great show
sof candor if he thought no one would
s Know what he had written?' This res
mark was greeted with cries of oh,
oh
IE Mi. Wsndham then said he thought
Cen Butler merely had been unlucky.
land that Gen. Warren : services should
s not ~ cverlooked. The case for the
i3goyernment wasa5that the right course
i was 10 publish what il had published
and no more. He vas persuaded that
\ both Gen. Butler and Lord Roberts had
a sent the dispatches home for publica-
a tion. Did the house suppose harm was
4 done To q. commander by dispatch
showing his scheme was a good one and
lougIlt 10 have succeeded. or by deciding
live points IN his favor while one point
Vas critcised'
With regard to Gen. Butler, he sale
that ITO attempt 70 apologize for hin
i would be a great Insult to 50 great Z
{, man. who had deserved Well Of his
country. and his troops would be slat
10 know his strategy was praised by
,sII.nrd Roberts. I,
ii. H. Asauith, liberal. and others an,
;;timadyertea 10 the alleged untenabie pc
,sI3sition oftte government, confidence il
which, the:, asserted. had been 5,
srievously shaken.
Henry I-alopuehere, advanced liberal
7 nenl:oer for Nortnanptofi. declared til,
] 4 5stvernnent MAS charged With deiiber
ately undertaking TO cook dispatehe
ss9r presentation TO the British public.
!, eaddins. Mi honor 70 iSuIier. who re
! fused 10 he a party TO deceiNing III
Ipubiie..
NJ. Balfoui, the government leader
said Mr. i.aboucfiere mad made it
question Of the honor or dishonor of
great public servant. He added tina
his speech was hesculnination of a Sc
, RIGS IF attacks of persons who had dis
covered the meanest and basest mo
tives in the governments action. TIL
! government. he continued. was accuse
: Of faVoritls ore general at the expens
of another. Il was said it meant I
J prepare the public for the dismissal o
Cen Butler. Such attacks We're no
worthy of the opponents Of the govern
ment. which, by publishing the dis
= patches simply followed precedent.
= Was the government to understand
as a result of today's criticism, h
Is asked. that no further dispatches wer
to be published? He repudiated mos
earnestly the accusations hurled at tn
secretary OF state for war. and said h
thought it shocking that such accuse
tons should be made in the house Z
commons. claiming that no worse q
more scandalously unjust accusation
A could be made on any assembly of ger
tlemen
Sir Henry ampbell-Bannerman, tn
liberal leader in the house, said all NJ
Balfour could do was to appeal to mel
party fidelity. The government, he as
serted, had no precedent for its actor
and had departed from the immemori;
practice of the army.
The vote on Mr.. Runcieman's motto
to reduce the war Office vote by e2'
was then rejected by 2l5 TO 116 votes.
Iii the house of lords, the earl I
Portsmouth, liberal unionist, called al
tention to the publication Of Spionko
dispatches, which, he said, had arouse
a depth and strengt h Of feeling difficu
to exazgerate.
The secretary OF state Tor war, Il
u marquis Of I.ansdowne, in defending Ii