El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-12-14

close in Great Britain were pre-
cipitated by a constitutional con-
troversy. In all probability the reader !
by this time has been informed by the !
cable dispatches of the final result, !
something not known as this is written. !
But whether 1t is a Liberal victory or
a Conservative triumph, the constitu-
ton of Great Britain has been changed. !
The mandate Of the electors will be
obeyed by the new house of commons
which will meet in January.
The fact that there would be a gen.
eral election to decide the fate of the
historic and ancient upper chamber of
the British parliament was not known
until November IA. Within five weeks
after that date the last member of the
new parliament will have been elected.
Within six weeks from the time of the
last election the new parliament will
De IN session ready to carry out the ex-
pressed will Of the electors
Different I'm America.
A hundred years ago, fifty years ago,
ten years ago, five years ago, one year
ago-anybody in America might have
known that there would be a congress
sional election in the United States in
the autumn Of 1910 Any time in the
past 40 years everybody knew that
election would take place on the first
| Tuesday after the first Monday in No
vember.
| True to the course of the calendar,
the constitutional machinery and the
| statutory enactments Of the United
/ Safes government brought about that
/, election in due ime. No constitutional
| issue was involved, the election was not
I called to decide any particular question,
| IT was held because the time had come
to hold an election. 1t is true that there
| were several more or less sharply de-
! fined national issues, and the result
was that the people generally recalled
| from the Republican party its mandate
| of power. and entrusted the Democratic
| party with majority in the house Of
1 representatives. A session of congress
began in Washington last week. But
| the representatives elected last No
! vember are not there. Those members
| now sitting in Washington were elect
ed on the first Tuesday after the first
| Monday in November, 1908. Next De-
cember, a full twelve months hence, the
| representatives in congress elected by
the people last Novmber will assemble
in Washington for the first time.
To Fight Upper House.
In the campaign in England the Lib
| eral leaders declared emphatically that
if they were returned TO power they
would in the session beginning in jan
! uary insist that the house of lords obey
at once and forthwith the command of
| the people to sbrogate forever its rights
| and powers as q coordinate branch of
the legislature.
When the American house of repre-
| sentatives elected last November meets
| next December it must reckon with a
senate Of contrary political complexion,
| coordinate in every legislative power
| except the Initiation of financial meas
! ures, and that senate will not for one
| instant feel that il is obligated in The
! slightest to obey the political man
date of the last congressional election
These things are set down by way
of showing the striking differences be-
tween the constitution OF Great Britain
and the constitution Of the United
Safes of America. The one is unwritten
and flexible. The other is written and
! inflexible. The one not only permits,
/ but encourages the immediate obedi-
ence of the governing power to the lat
/ est expression of the will of the voters.
| The other interposes an elaborate sys-
! tenn of checks and balances between
the presuna ably hasty and hotheaded
voter and the deliberate and deliberat-
ing legislator.
Constitutions Different.
The British constitution is an unwrit-
| ten and Intangible collection of work
| ing agreements and compromises crys-
I tallized into a political conscience. The
| American constitution IS a written and
] tangible compilation of a series OF
guarantees designed to protect, each
| from the other, the federal and the
state governments, and furthermore II
temper democracy with discretion and
| to hamper the aristocracy with restric-
, tions.
The British constitution can be. and
often is, amended in material fashion by
| an election, by an agreement between
the two houses of parliament, or. even.
by an agreement between the leaders
Of the two parties in the house OF
commons. The American constitution
can be amended only by means sof two
very slow and complicated processes
and has in fact, been amended but four
times. The first was when ten amend
ments were attached to include the
bill of rights. the second was to change
1 was a child. 1t is so nice to have