Evening star., 1908-01-12
LONDON, January ., 1908.

invariably paid for the highest
office under the crown in Eng
IL Iand-that of prime minister.
Truly it may be described a
killing job. Attention has been called
once again to the tremendous strain it
places on the vitality of its incumbent by
The recent breakdown of Sir Henry Camp
bell-Bannerman, which was solely due to
overwork.
There is probably no. position. public or
private. in the world which makes so
many demands on the time and energy of
its holder. Americans are accustomed to
the statement that the President OF the
United States is the hardest worked man
in the country and no doubt he is. but the
President of the United States leads n life
of luxurious ease compared with that of
the prime minister of the British empire
Try TO imagine the duties of the Presi-
dent. the leader of the House of Repre-
sentatives and the chairman of the ma
tional committee rolled into one and add
to that personal responsibility for all the
machinery of government. including every
department looked after in. America by q
member of the cabinet, who is also indie
pendent. Add TO these duties the ever
present necessity of watching the pollt-
ical temper of parliament, on which the
prenlier's tenure of office depends. and the
drudgery of addressing numberless great
meetings and travelling from one end of
the kingdom To another when parliament
is not sitting, and YOU may have some
idea of the burden of toll that falls on
the shoulders of the British prime min
The President of the United States
is an executive officer only. Except as far
as his personal influence goes. he has
nothing to do with the legislative branch
of the government. His secretaries in
charge of the various departments are
semi-independent. and except in matters
of broad. general policy he has little con
Germ with the direct management of the
Various departments of government
The prime minister of England is an
executive. a legislative and political of
ficer. He must have seat in one or
other house of parliament and he must
be in his place night after night to lead
his party and answer the questions of his
opponents. who do not err on the side of
consideration. for the much-harassed man
whom they are trying their hardest to
oust from his high position. 1t must be
remembered. tooA that the house of COM
mons in which the present prime minister
sits. does not, like the House of Repre-
sentatives. meet in the morning and ad-
journ at a reasonable hour. 1t meets in
the afternoon, seldom adjourns before
midnight and often sits all night. All this
time the premier has to be in his place.
although he may have been hard at work
on the administrative features of his
routine since early morning. He may
have to make dozen speeches in a
night. many of them impromptu. and he
must always be alert and have all his wits
about him, for an apparently slight slip
may mean the downfall of his govern
ment and the defeat of all the measures
and policies for which it stands
This IS the legislative side of his work
On the administrative side he must pre-
side, sometimes daily for a week or more
and usually at least once week, at cabi-
net councils at which the party program
of legislation. the party policy on all great
questions, and many small ones appoint
ments TO office and a host of other details
are discussed. He must act as peace
maker among group of ambitious men.
struggling to secure each for himself
whatever credit is to be got for the gov
ernrnent's accomplishments. and to place