Omaha daily bee., 1910-07-06

London, the ancient realm OF King George
", Is at peace by virtue OF a truce be-
tween the warning elements OF British po-
litical and social life; a truce declared
when Edward VII died, in order that the
reign of the new king might be begun pro-
pitiously. But 1t is only a truce. The at
fairs of the British empire approach
crisis involving the very life of that great
est and most powerful political organization
Of modern history.
British sea power, upon which rests the
whole fabric of the empire, is threatened,
for the first time since Trafalgar. by the
rapid increase in the German navy.
British industrial supremacy, upon the
permanence of which England long ago
staked its material prosperity, is no longer
acknowledged by the world, and the COM
petition Of Germany and the United States
in manufacturing is felt keenly by British
business interests.
British social conditions have not kept
pace with the progress of modern times
and in no other country of the western
world, except Russia, is there to be seen
such unequal distribution of wealth. Nearly
one-third Of the people constantly are un-
der the shadow OF the spectre of starva-
ton.
British political institutions for the first
time are not altogether under the control
OF the landlord class, a class composed Of
very few of the people who own nearly
all of the land The rise OF an Industrial
democracy which is able to control, at
| times, majority of the House of Com
mons and, therefore, the government, in
opposition to the wishes of the land owning,
governing class, presages an inevitable.
rrepressible class conflict
The party of privilege and aristocracy.
frightened by the social democracy, leans
hard upon the past and looks to q foreign
war as a means Of restoring British pres
tge and power, and as an excuse to sacri-
flee social progress upon the altar of
patriotism. 1t Is not the first time that
tories, British and others, have sought TO
| drown the voices Of a protesting proletarIat
In the din Of the drums of war. And this
Time they will have the valid excuse that
there really is a German menace, indus
tria. IL not political.
Tne party OF privilege and aristocracy
Fans the flames of German hatred and
! appears to seek an excuse for war by maxi
ing much OF preparations for war. Accord
ing to this party, and in the phrase of Kip
! ling, the whole duty OF the people is to
pay, pay, pay" that the British navy
| may multiply and to tramp, tramp.
tramp" in obedience to military com
mands. that the army may be made ede-
quate to defend the British hearth from
threatened invasion. But with this pro-
| viso-that the owners of the land be not
asked to do any of the paying, and that
their sons be not asked to do any of the
tramping. To do such things better befits
their tenants.
The party of industry and democracy.
appalled, by the poverty of the people,
seeks to revise the political institutions of
| the country SO that the privileged aris-
tocracy may not have the power absolutely
to thwart the progressive will and wishes
Of the nation.
| The party of industry and democracy
proposes to maintain the British CONNER
cial supremacy, despite the rivalry of all
competitors, by so improving the condi-
ton of the British workman that British
wares actually will show that superiority
of workmanship which has been the boast
of the nation since the dawn Of the age Of
mechanical fabrication.
So 1t is that the party Of privilege and
sristocracy looks forward to a war abroad
as the salvation of the empire from for
eign foes and the conserver OF its own
1
dustry and democracy looks forward to
practical revolution at home, so that there
need be no fear, either of armed invasion
or of privileged plutocracy.
But the organized political parties of
Great Britain are not SO sharply and
clearly divided. Representatives of both
| the aristocracy and the democracy are to
| be found both on the government and the
opposition benches at Westminster. Yet II
is true that the liberal party, now in
power, is controlled largely by the demo-
cratic element while the conservative
party is more responsive to aristocratic
Impulses Yet Mr.. Asquith. as the head
Of the liberal government, always must
consider the whiggish aristocrats still left
among his followers and must not go too
far In the direction Of utter democracy,
while Mr.. Balfour always must remember
that there are liberal unionists behind him
who are not yet thorough going Tories.