New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-12-05
BRITISH ELECTION RESULTS.

BRITISH ELECTION RESULTS.
The results of the first days contests
in the British election are wholly indie
cisive. though not without slgnlncance.
1t may still be said. as we SAID rev
days ago, that Understanding may nap
pen. There is as yet no landslide nor
any sure sign Of one. but neither Is 1t 100
late for one to occur. nor is there an!
assurance that one will not be developed.
1t seems more probable. however that
there will be none, but that the polling
will continue to the end along lines SIM
liar to those Of Saturday. If so, the
final result will probably be influential,
though not. we should say, conclusive rs
to any of the three great constitutional
issues which are now before the nation
In Saturdays polling there was a net
Unionist gain Of three seats. If that
ratio of gains should be maintained there
would be a total gain in the House Of
from twenty-five to thirty, or scarcely
half as many as are needed for major
itv. Nevertheless the Unionists would
have n substantial plurality, and that
fact might be regarded as a moral VIC
tory. In the last House the Liberals
had only two votes more than the Union
lists. and thus were practically dependent
upon the Nationalist for working ma
iority. If In the new House they should
suffer heavy losses and should be forty
or fifty votes behind the Unionlsts, even
though with Nationalist aid they might
still command a majority, it may be
doubted whether they would venture 10
enact any such controversial measures
as Home Rule or abolition of the LORDS
veto. If they did, the House Of Lords
would probably interpose its veto, on the
ground that the election had Indicated
no popular mandate for such law
Yet. on the other hand, it might be that
in default of such action, to which MI
Redmond declares the government is
pledged the Nationalist would permit
the government to be defeated and thuS
nrecipitate another crisis That would
nrobably mean q Unionist government on
sufferance until after the coronation, and
then another election, the third in two
years.
ANALYSIS of Saturdays returns reveals
some facts much more significant, how
oyer than the mere Cnionist gain Of
three. Where there We're changes the
Liberals gained four seats from the
Trnionists. while the UnionlstS gained
six from the Liberals and one from the
Tahorites. and the I4aborites gained
none. Where there were no changes the
liberals retained their seats by in
creased ma jorities in nine cases ana by
decreased ma jOrities in eighteen: the
TrnionistS held their seats by increased
maiorfties in nine cases and by de
creased majorities in thirteen. and the
Iahorites had no increased maJorlt1es,
hut held all their seven seats by smaller
ma iorities than before. As rule. the
liberal losses were larger than the
I-Dionfst, and the JniOniSt gains larger
than the Liberal. so that the net move
ment of the popular vote was from the
liberals and toward the Unionlsts. AS
was expected. there was general
shripkage of the vote, and both parties
suffered a net loss in majorities But
while the total UnioniSt majorlties on
Saturday were only 23,12H, against
% a35 at the preceding election. loss OF
BOG. the Liberal total was o6.401,
against 1923 in January, loss OF
10 1872. or nearly nine times as much as
the Tnionist lossA These facts may be
regarded by the Unionists as indicative
of popular tendency in their favor
which would give them clear majority
in another election.
Ireland is yet to be heard from, and
it will he interesting to see what prog
ress is made. if any, by the All-for-1re-
land party against the Nationalist. 1t
Mr.. O'Brien should make material gains.
Mr., Redmond's position as dictator OF
the CommonS-which he and his friends
proudly boast he holds-would be com
menSurately weakened, and the British
government might be unwilling 10 at
tempt a radical change of the British con-
stitution when its doing so was entirely
dependent upon the support OF an irish
Marty which was losing ground in Ire
land. If however, the Nationalist re-
t11rn in undiminished strength Mr.. Red
mond NAV attempt to force the govern
mant's hand for fulfilment of the
hedges which he insists it has made:
with the probab BILE result Of another
crisis On the whole then. the outlook
remains much as it was before Sat'ir-
DAYS polling, with the politics Of the
United Kingdom in a state of flux and
the settlement Of the great constitutional
issues deferred 10 future consideration.