The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1907-02-22
THE HOUSE or LORDS
CHECKS IT HAS RECEIVED AT THE
HANDS OF THE COMMONS.
The Long Parliament Pit the Peers
Out of Business Altogether For a
Number Of Years - BoiinKbroke's
Way with the Noble Lords.


There is an idea in the minds OF very
many persons that the British house or
lords il supreme and can do pretty well
what II plcases. This, however, IL
mistake. On several notable occasions
their noble lordships have been para
lyzcd and have got very much The
worst Of IL In stormy arguments with
the gentlemen OF the house or com
mons.
The first occasion Oh which this hap
pened was when the peers ventnred TO
differ with the long parliament, which
was at the time engaged IN life ana
death struggle with Charles ]. The
commons on this occasion wasted 40
valuable time in talking. but promptly
abolished the lords altogether ana
turned them. archbishops, dukes, belt
cd earls and all the rest Of the gOr-
geous coronetcd crowd, into the street.
The gildcd chamber was vacant
For half dozen years or 80 the
country got OH without any house OF
lords.
All the checks the house OF lords
have received have not been of such
drastic nature rs this, OF course.
Various ministries. finding that the
peers were unwilling TO pass their pro.
posed bills, have resOrtcd To the threat
TO create enough new peers TO swamp
the house Of lords. These new peers
would, of course have been pledged
beforehand TO vote for the ministry
creating them.
In III the prime minister Of the
day, the daring and INSCRIPTIONS Wis
count Bolingbrokc, was anxious To ter
inmate the desolating and runous war
with France, which had been raging
on and off for twenty years.
TO cffcct this purpose he had drawn
up the treaty of Utrecht II was neccs-
sary at that time that lords and com
mons should agree TO treaty before
il would become valid. The commons
nsscntcd TO the treaty. but the lords
declared that they would have none
Of il and that the war must 20 on,
whcrcupon Bolingbroke COOlly but
firmly Informed them that, rather than
see himself dchcd 10y them, he would
create whole army Of new peers To
vote for the treaty.
The story goes that he had rcgi-
mcnt Of the Life guards paradcd under
the windows of the house of lords and
Threatened TO make every trooper into
noble lord If driven to il. He did
make twelve new peers, and then The
lords gave in
The Liberal government of 1892, with
Earl Grey ~ prime minister, used the
same threat. They wished to pass the
first reform bill. The lords hated this
hill bitterly.
Until then they had been practically
nm olgarchy, with all the real power
I'm their hands. The franchise had been
so limited that only rich men, aud gen
orally only the nominee Of some great
nohlcman. could get into parliament.
The reform hill altered that. It gave
the smaller men n chance. The lords
expressed their deliberate intention of
wrccking the bill
Earl Grey retortcd Ivy eXtorting from
King William lN.--who didn't like re-
1Olnl nlllS, bUl udItN lol opIloSt llt
wish of the nation for fear OF n rcvo-
luton permission 90 call up to the
house of lords as many new peers as
should he necessary 10 carry his bill.
The mere threat was enough for the
lords They had no wish 70 see their
order made cheap aud ridiculous, as
would have been the ease had peers
become rs plentiful as blackberries.
II used 10 be the custom in the Brit
ish army for all officers commissions
to he purchased. That iS, an officer, in
stead of getting into the army Ivy
means OF competitive examination
and rising hy merit, came straight
from school without knowing anything
Of the new duties lie WAS about to as
sumo. and had commission bought
for him. After that. instead of bein.
promoted as reward for his services,
he used 10 buy each promotion.
II H. had no money his chances Of
being promoted were about thousand
20 one. The result was that officers
who had grown gray in the service and
fought in many battles remained sub
ordnateS all their lives, while the sons
Of wealthy families who had not seen
quarter of their service jumped over
their heads by having their way pur-
chased UP for them To be colonelS aud
generals.
Mr.. Gladstone decided To 40 away
with this purchase system. The lords
did not wish IL TO he abolished Con
seQuently, when Mr.. Gladstone intro
duccd n bill TO abolish purchase in the
army the house OF lords was not dis
posed TO give il n kind reception.
They threw ont the bill aud imagined
that they had won glorious victory
Rut Mr.. Gladstone found that Queen
Victoria had the power To abolish pur-
chase in the army 10y her own act IL
she pleased lie induced the queen 10
do this 10y means of n royal warrant.
And the house OF lords could no more
interfere with a royal warrant than
they could knock the dome OF ST