The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1909-08-03
ency Of the Irish demands to the at
tentton of English statesmen and par
liaments.
Tiresome Night Sessions.

Tiresome Night Sessions.
Those outside Of the House of
Commons are often tempted into the
belief that these all-night sittings are
picturesque and boisterous affairs.
with dramatic incidents occupying ey-
cry half hour. As a matter of fact
they are extremely dull performances.
Everybody is tired out; everybody is
sleepy; everybody is anxious that the
whole thing should come to an end.
and at the same time everybody ia the
slave of fate, and has to go through
with the torture, however killing IL
may be. Now and then some mem
Der loses his temper, or tries to make
scene with q view of interrupting
business: but as rule it is dull, slow,
logged pegging away; sleepy men ad-
dressing house where half the men,
bers are lying stretched out in audible
slumbers.
Attempts are made to relieve the
situation by organized meals. The
other night sat down by Lloyd-
George to discuss with him some diff
Guilty which had arisen between him
and the Irish party with regard to
the taxation of land III his budget. AS
had already cabled, with a nation
OF TWO millions and half of peasant
proprietors it was obvious that if the
government did not relieve agriculture
al land from these taxes, we would
nave been bound to break with the
government, whatever the cost. The
cost would have been great both to
them and to us; to them, because ws
might nave insured the loss of two
important by-elections; to us, because
we should have lost the land bill We
might have driven the government
from office, and we might have landed
ourselves once more in the forlorn no.
sitlon OF having both the English par
Ties at once arrayed against us.
Meals at All Hours.
Il was rather surprised to find that
the dining room at / o'clock in the
morning was just as full as it is at
O'Clock in tine evening when most
members are taking their dinners. If
! had been five hours later would
nave seen the dining room again full:
lor the members would then be taking
their breakfasts. Apparently every
body was more or less in good humor
and accepted things as they were.
.jut you have only to look at the faces
OF members to see that the strain is
telling, and that few more weeks of
this kind Of life are bound to destroy
:ne health of many OF them.
But Iapeat that it is dull, stodgy
al:.,: Of business. rer,;.,ain.: une for all
the "o' id Of Wes'e1 sane O'Leary as
saw them in The middle of the night
during -one Of the historic long dis
| tance walks.
How long this kind of thing is to
go on nobody knows. For the mo-
ment it looks as If neither side had any
iuea of-eiving in. When members
SIT until five minutes past o'clock in
the morning, having started work at
quarter to three in.1hs afternoon of
the previous day. j',h will see how
bitter end determined is the struggle.
Trouble in the Cabinet.
II have heard that things are not
going on we'll in the cabinet. Many
of the members are not particular
friends of Lloyd-George, having quar-
relied with him bitterly in the distant
past over the Boer war and in the
more recent past over the Dread
noushts. Altogether. things do not
look rosy at the moment for him or
for the government The Irish land
bill is pretty we'll arranged so far as
the House of Commons is concerned.
Redmond was angry with the post
ponement to which the measure has
been subjected, and on the other hand,
the government members are at their
wits end because of the congestion of
business and the terrific fight with
the terrific waste of time over the
budget. Things were approaching a
crisis at the moment when the inter-
view at supper Lloyd-George and my
self took place. The next day the sky,
which had been overcast was once
more sunny so far as Ireland was
concerned"