Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-06-08
IN ENGLAND
Premier Asquith's Plans May
Help the Women.
GROWTH OF MOVEMENT
Government Aims to Win in Next
General Election.
WESTMINSTER ABBEY ROLL
Society's Latest Fad Is Living in
Caravans-Delights Of Nomadic
Life-Proposed New Club.
WESTMINSTER ABBEY ROLL
Special Correspondence OF The Star

IONDCN, May -. 1905.
Mr.. Asquths promise of measure of
electoral reform before the end of the
present parliament has aroused immense
interest. His further announcement that
IL an amendment were moved extending
the. suffrage to women democratic
basis 1t would be left to the house to de-
eide is looked upon as a victory for fe
male suffrage. and, of course. for the
noble upholders of that cause.-the sui
fragists.
l understan that Mr. Asquith contem-
plates large extension of the franchise
in the direction Of manhood franchise. and
that the extension of women's suffrage on
this wider basis of the franchise would be
favorably considered by the government.
1t is obvious that such a measure, which
will also abolish plural voting and do
away with the smaller boroughs. will be
drastically amended by the lords The
lords will also oppose the extension of the
vote to women on the wider franchise.
The government is aware of this. But
1t counts on such a rejection being of
great assistance to liberal candidates AT
the next general election. If the bill
goes through. the government believes
that its strength will be greatly increased.
80 that in either contingency Mr. AsqIith
hopes to secure the favor of the electorate
by his last move in the game before the
general election.
While l do not think that the liberals
have been driven to give votes to wom-
en-. as the cry is, on account of the suf-
fragettes' tactics yet there Is no doubt
they have suffered great deal from the
suffragist opposition in the country.
majority of the cabinet is we'll known to
be in favor Of giving women the vote. and
the suffragist campaign Is so we'll organ
ICED and so well directed that 1t would
have been ruinous for the liberals to have
courted their hostility at the general cleo
ton.
The policy of the government is now
directed toward winning the next general
election, and Of being in office again for
another six years. 1t Is aware that
it can do little in its present term of
Office beyond laying the foundation of "A
great scheme of revolutionary reform. and
all its plans and energies will now be
turned toward the attainment of this
great object. The fact that Mr. Asauith
has been convinced Of the desirabilty of
promising votes to women shows the
strength Of the propaganda going on be-
hind the scenes.
If people want to know how events are
shaping themselves. they must keep their
eyes on Mr.. Lloyd George He is the one
man of significance in the cabinet and
what he thinks today the cabinet will do
tomorrow. And what Mr.. Lloyd George
has in his mind is vast scheme of social
reform. on which the government will go
to the country at the next general cleo
ton.
Women will be charmed with the prom
Use Of the vote If the house of lords does
not let the reform bill through and their
gratitude will be looked for if the lords
do. The middle class will be soothed with
a graduated income tax. a heavy supertax
being levied on all incomes over 800 or
f2O.W0. while commercial men will be
brought in with promise of the nation
alization of the railways and canals.
The scheme may appear so Impossible
as to suggest exaggeration but ii repre-
sents the ideas of the active school Of
politicians headed by Mr.. Lloyd George.
and II is this school that now dominates
the cabinet. Mr.. Asquith and some of the
more sober members maybe afraid of the
program at first. but they will be told
that 1t Is the only hope Of the party. and
recent experience shows that they are
open to conviction.
Parliament's Proceedings.
The new scheme for an official verbatim
report of the proceedings of parliament
has naturally given rise to a good deal
of discussion among members and press
men. Some are disposed to think that
it may have the effect of raising the level
Of parliamentary speaking just as in the
French chamber the necessity Of mounting
the tribune tends to restrain a deputy
from addressing the house unless he has
something to say. The more informal
British method of debate. it is contended.
is favorable to loose and rambling dis
cussion.
Another view is that, as corollary to
the Introduction of official reporting. a de-
termined attempt should be made to inn
pose time limit. otherwise the record
of the new Hansard will be an appalling
burden. Sir Carne Kasch has for years
been urging this reform upon the house.
and Sir Henry Campbell Bannerman used
to say that in the matter of shortened
speeches he regarded the genial member
for Mid Essex as his leader. The sug-
gestion is not, of course, that no speaker
should In any circumstances trespass be-
yond the statutory twenty or thirty
minutes. but that the house shall have
power to say whether a private member
Is to be allowed to go on
Lord Eversley. who has called attention
to the Overcrowded state OF Westminster
Abbey as regards monuments. was Off
cially connected as first commissioner of
works with previous negotiations for pro-
viding space for continuing the interesting
historic roll which now forms so i'm
pressive a feature of the interior of the
abbey. Additional accommodation might
have been provided before now, but for
disagreement between members of the
royal commission appointed in 1890 to in
quire into the subject the best means
of providing 1t. for this body was evenly
divided In opinion between a proposal to
connected with the abbey at poets cor
ner. and another plan which contempla ted
the erection of such chapel on the site
of the old refectory lying Immediately
south of the great closter and parallel
with the nave Of the abbey.
1t was this difference of opinion which
compelled Lord Eversley, in 1894 to de-
cline for the time being an offer by Mr..
Henry Yates Thompson to provide 93S 200
to defray the cost of building a suita-
BILE place of reception for monuments
connected by cloister with poets corner
and beyond the destruction of some old
houses in Old Palace Yard-upon the de-
STABILITY of which. owing to the danger
of fire to which they exposed the
abbey all the commissioners were agreed
nothing has been done since. The
proposal to erect statue of Sir
Campbell Zimmerman reopened the whole
question. and 1t seems probable that
something will now be done to secure that
the roll of such memorials shall be pre-
served and continued.
Mrs. Asquith's Health.
Since moving to Downing street Mrs
Asquith's health has become very poor
and she may have to take long rest
1t Is unfortunate that now, when she has
come to the summit Of her ambitions, her
strength hardly allows her to take the
share in her husbands position for which
she Is SO brilliantly qualified. Mrs. AS
quith IL a woman of highly strung tenn
permanent. with acute nerves that have
to be treated with the greatest delicacy,
and the recent spell of anxiety and ex-
Dtta Nv r