The Irish standard., 1910-12-10
TORIES PERP[EXED
OVER SITUATION
Balfour Declares Protection Can
not be Carried Without
Referendum.
Excitement and Enthusiasm Growing
in Evidence as Election
Progresses.
Conditions Look Favorable for Ire,
land Despite Faction
ist Attacks.

In his special cable to the Chicago
Tribune dated at Liverpool Decem-
Der 3, Mr.. T. P. O'Connor reviews the
British political situation in a way
that would indicate that the Liberals
are certain to win. He says:
Kaleidoscope is much too mild
term for the rapid and numerous
changes in the policies of the Tories
in this election. They began with
jettisoning the house of lords The
hereditary house of lords," said Lord
Rosebery, NOW is gone and the Tory
rarty has ceased to exist"
Other peers and G.. ]. Balfour, lead
er of the opposition in commons, re-
peat this momentous saying in differ
ent words.
But the most startling Of all sur
renders is Balfours surrender of the
tariff protection idea. his uec.ara-
ton that protection will not be car
ried without a referendum is the most
daring electioneering coup in British
annals.
All Of these rapid and continuous
changes in tactics make the liberals
describe this as the white flag elec-
ton" Or as Winston Churchill put II.
"the Tories march under an officer
called General Scuttle."
Pledges Are Only Sham.
The expedients are eloquent proof
Of the white terror of the Tories. At
last they realize that their insolent
rashness has imperiled everything
they want to preserve-the land
monopoly, the hereditary peerage and
their grip on Ireland.
OF course all of the surrenders, all
Of the reforms and all the pledges are
sham. The so-called reform of the
house of lords would make the power
Of the peers greater than ever. The
! Balfour pledge is studiously vague
and already 1t has been repudiated
by the Morning Post, the chief pro.
tectionist organ and by the really sin
cere protectionist candidates.
Balfour's declaration is intended to
win over some of the Tory free trad
ers and it may influence some of the
elections, but it helps aggravate the
mutiny against his leadership which
already is strong in the Tory ranks
and gives the liberals a triumphant
opportunity for declaration that any
i tariff reform at all has been finally
side-tracked by Balfour.
,, The election is being fought amid
hourly growing excitement. 1 never
saw the meetings so crowded and en-
thusiastic. The greater the excite
ment the greater is the chance of the
liberals winning, but the staleness of
the voters register is a tremendous
handicap. especially in London where,
in many constituencies, one.third of
the voters have disappeared into 9th.
er dwellings.
fear London elections and as they
are the first elections they may preju-
dice the liberal chance throughout the
, country, but Lancashire, where 1 will
spend most of the time before cleo.
tion, seems as solid as ever for the
liberals.
Liverpool remains hopelessly Tory,
mainly because many of the constitu.
encies are as Orange and anti-Irish
as the worst part Of Belfast.
In Manchester, which is the metrop-
oils of free trade sentiment, only one
seat is endangered.
Horrid9e Fights for Seat.
Thomas Horridge, the ablest and
most convinced protectionist cham.
pion, is fighting for the seat where
Winston Churchill was beaten three
years ago and may win, as the constit-
uency is Of q Heterogeneous character.
consisting Of wealthy cotton lords, Of
Irish Catholics and of the poorer
classes.
Elsewhere there 10 no sign of any
dimnution of the liberal strength and
possibly some seats will be won in
Lancashire, Scotland and Wales.