New-York tribune., 1909-12-05
THE PROSPECT FOR PARLIAMENT

THE PROSPECT FOR PARLIAMENT.
The British Parliament. King Ed
wards second. was prorogued just four
years. lacking a day. after the resig-
nation of the former Cnionist gov
ernment. and ii will be dissolved just
four years after the former dissolution.
Ii was ON December (, 1905. that Mr..
Ralfour resigned office and ii was on
the next day that Sir Henry Campbell
Zimmerman was commissioned TO sue
ceed him. Ii was on January :. 1906,
that King Edwards first Parliament
was dissolved, and the election of the
second promptly followed. The result
OF that election was the return of 400
Liberals of various shades. 30 LabOrites
and So NatiOnalists, making a total
ministerial coalition of 513. and 157
UniOnists, leaving a ministerial ma
jority of $50. Since then there have
been 90 by-electiOns, of which IS have
been contested. In these the Liberals
have not gained Il single seat. while
the UniOnists have gained eleven and
the Laborites three and there have been
some secessions from the Liberal TO
the Labor ranks. At the moment of dis
solution the House contained 365 Lib
erals. 53 IAborites, 81 Nationalists and
| Socialist, a ministerial coalition of
800. and 16S Unionists. leaving a min
isterial majority of 3D..
We have already considered the at
titude of the Nationalist members. of
comparable Importance is that of the
oil nd Sneia ic- IL In
ported that the Liberals have made or
are making a compact with these par
ties with a view 10 avoiding triangular
contests, tha basis of il being that the
Laborites are 10 run candidates for only
the seats which they held i'm the late
House and in those places are 10 be
supported by the Liberals. while In all
other divisions the I.abcrltes will sup
port the Liberal candidates. There can
be RO doubt that such an arrange
ment would cOnduce greatly ia the sue
cess of the Liberals or of the Liberal
Labor coalition. and ii seems probable
that IT, will be effected and executed Id
some extent, particularly in Wales,
where Mr.. Lloyd-George is reported TO
have assented TO Liberal support of the
Labor and Socialist capdidates. 1t is
by no means certain, however. that the
bargain can be universally carried out
British voters are resOlute. not TO say
stubborn. and none of them are more
SO than the Laborites and Socialists.
Already in anticipation Of the elec-
tiOns OF next month the Laborites have
nominated eighty candidates, and it is
scarcely To be expected that all or even
most of these will be Withdrawn. In
fact, some of the most conspicuous
Labor and Socialist leaders are out
spoken and vehement against any al
lance with the Liberals. Thus Mr.
Victor Grayson. the one Socialist MEM
ber who was chosen at one of the by
elections, in his paper, The Clarion"
says that If any such ARA ngement is
made he will resign from the Indepen-
dent Labor party and call upon all other
Socialists To do the same. IF our
party" he says, lis TO become an ac-
"cepted wing OF the hypocritical Liberal
party, l would do my little share TO
wreck such scandalOus entente with
''the utmost complacency." Equally
outhpoheu 10 the same erect Is THE
Labour Leader" which says: There
"can be no bargain. arrangement or
agreement with either Liberals or
Tories. The Labor party will fight In
every constituency In which circum-
stances Justify contest. aud without
'tbe slightest regard To the convenience
"of any other party
OF course, many members OF the two
parties In question may not be ruled by
these orders. Also. seeing that In the
late House. even after all the losses M
by-elections. the Liberals had clear
majority of sixty over Unionists. M
ftonalists. Laborites and Socialists all
put together, II is by no means imDos-
sible that they Will again win even
without Laborlte cooperation. IL must
be remembered that the IInionists need
10 win 16S seats-that is, exactly TO
double their. representation in the late
House-to get the barest majority. They