The Washington times., 1909-10-06
THE CRISIS OVER THE BRIT
ISH BUDGET.

The house of lords is taking pause
as it is brought face to face with the
business of actually rejecting a budget
passed by the commons The peers
have taken stock of present day senti-
ment in the kingdom. They have not
ed that since the Lloyd George budget
was brought to the fore. the Liberals
have made gains in all the bye cleo
tions. They have not failed to inter
pref with such accuracy as their stolid
intellect is capable Of, the significance
of this. From the very hour Of their
sweeping victory at the last general
election. the Liberals steadily lost
ground They won an occasional cleo
ton. but only when their opposition
was bopelessly handicapped; they lost
in most cases. Everything indicated
they they were doomed to early defeat
and rejection Until Mr.. Lloyd George
came forward and made magnificent
piece of practical politics out Of a bud
get. the country seemed to have lost
all confidence in the Liberals 1t didn't
care about the educa ton issue; it
wasn't concerned about the land hold
ings legislation; it didn't think these
things were liberal enough to be worthy
the name. 1t plainly wanted, not lib
eralism, but real rsdicalism.
At the moment when the situation
seemed hopeless. Mr.. Lloyd George was
given the chance to write his program
of ultra -radicalism into budget It
was a daring thing to do. 1t was
doubtless the last resort of leadership
driven to desperate expedient by reali-
zation that moderate liberalism had
utterly failed of appeal. 1t was radical
enough for the socialists, without be-
ing socialism. The commons debated
it long and earnestly and passed it.
The peers threatened TO reject it on
second reading. The Liberal leaders
stood firm. declaring that nothing
would satisfy them so well as to have
their radical budget rejected by the
great landowning dukes, and then to
appeal instantly to the country CT that
issue. The real issue, but thinly veil
ed, would be whether the peers saould
be permitted TO overreach their consti-
tutional prerogative, and still to exist.
The peers are not wont to think very
logically on such subjects Their
prejudices and their selfish interests
dominate them in the main Bus just
now their fears are proving potent. A
proposal for compromise is said to have
come from them; they viii pass the
budget with some notifications, pro-
vided the Liberal government viii
agree to appeal to the country imme-
distely after it is done.
II is a safe conjecture that if Lloyd
Georges counsels are permitted to pre-
vail in the cabinet, this proposition
will be rejected and the peers will be
forced to take their choice between
rejection and adoption of the budget,
with an instant appeal TO the country
as the alternative if it be rejected
Having discovered live issue on which
they are suddenly reinstated in popular
confidence. the Liberals ought to be
slow to relinquish any part of their ad
vantage. If they 90 TO the country on
such an issue, they viii undoubtedly
come back TO power with a mandate
whose significance cannot be doubted.
1t will be a direction that the com
mons shall rule the finances, even if to
do so necessitates the ending Of the
house OF peers.
Either way, the little Welshman is
going to be the intellectual pivot on
which British internal politics viii turn
for some time to come. The king is
reported to favor a compromise. His
interposition is calculated decidedly TO
help the Unionists; but the Radicals
will take the part of wisdom if they
decline any overtures Of compromise
on the basis proposed.