The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-12
Will the Referendum BE Adopted In
Great Britain?

According to a London despatch, the
House Of Lords, aware that in a certain
expected contingency a resolute attempt
to mend it or end it will be made by
the Liberal majority in the House Of
Commons, has determined to refute the
principal argument Of its assailants and
thus block the movement by proposing
that whenever the two houses differ
concerning a bill the projected measure
shall be referred to the electorate.
According to the plan, the peers
will pass a bill declaring that either
chamber may couple its assent to a
measure carried in the other with a
proviso that before the royal signature
shall be appended the electors shall
be called upon TO record their approval
or disspproval of the inchoate law.
Should the reply be in the affirmative
the bill would be signed forthwith by
the sovereign and would be placed upon
the statute book.
What is the apprehended contingency?
The hereditary legislators have made
UP their minds to eviscerate the Edu-
cation bill, but they do not expect the
Bannerman Government to accept the
a in its mutilated shape or drop
it definitely or dissolve Parliament forth
with and appeal to the electorate on the
specific issue. They believe that the
bill when sent back to the Commons
will be held in allegiance for about a
yeas, during which the Premier will keep
another of his promises by carrying
through the lower house a measure
involving large concessions to the Irish
Nationalists. Such a bill is practically
certain to be thrown out or mangled by
the upper chamber. 1t is also taken
for granted that the House of Lords will
insist on making grave changes in the
Trades Disputes bill. The Ministry will
then call upon the Commons to declare
by a resolution that the House of Lords.
having given many and fragrant proofs
Of unwillingness to conform to the popu-
lar will, cannot, if Britain is to be self
governing, be permitted any longer to
exist in the traditional form, but must
undergo drastic reconstruction so as to
bring it into harmony with the peoples
accredited representatives. Nobody
denies that the institution as now
constituted is a glazing anachronism,
and not a few eminent peers have ad-
mitted that it needs To be purged and
reinvigorated. II is under these circum-
stances that many members of the
hereditary chamber are meditating a
resort to the shrewd expedient of demon
strating in the way above described
their perfect willingness to accept the
peoples sovereignty in its most direct
and specific application.
The proposed form of referendum
differs materially from that which
plays an important part in Swiss
legislation, and also from that with
which we are familiar in the State Of
New York. In Switzerland the Com
stitution of 1874 provided that all Federal
laws must be submitted to popular
vote on the demand Of 10000 Swiss
electors or Of eight cantons. Moreover,
II an amendment of the Federal COnsti-
tuition be demanded by one of the two
houses Of the Federal Assembly or by
$1,000 Swiss citizens the question OF
cmendatiOn must besubmitted to "A pOpu-
Ear vote, as also the draft Of the revision
advocated. 1t was expected that this
provision would lead to radical and
sweeping changes in statutory legisla-
ton, but such has not proved to be the
case. We should note, however, that
since the organic law of 1874 was passed
a constitutional right Of initiative has
been added whereby a designated frac-
ton Of the Swiss people may demand
that a specific proposal shall be sub
mitted by the Federal Assembly to the