Omaha daily bee., 1910-01-25
Some Things You Want to Know
The English Elections British spellbinder

All British campaign methods are much
more strenuous than those employed
In America and the publlo-speaking
and piivste-canvhssing campaigns are
not exceptions to the rule The right
little tight little, islands are so small that
they can be covered with spellbnders to
an extent impossible in the United States,
and every advantage Of the natural oppor-
tunities is taken.
Premier Asquith and Mr.. Lloyd-George
for the liberals and Mr.. Balfour and Lord
Lansdowne for the conservatives are the
chief spelbinders, and each Of them spoke
nearly every night during the campaign.
Every one Of the go parliamentary dis
tricts had several meetings a week during
the campaign and in many OF them dozen
meetings were held every night Four
hundred peers were on the stump, more
than COO members Of Parliament, 100 wo-
men, and not less than 20OO ordinary
speakers. This does not take into account
the volunteers, but only those spellbinders
who spoke under the direction OF the ma
tional headquarters OF the two principal
parties.
1t may not be out OF place to note that
the two parties, liberal and conservative,
have no such compact organization as
Americans are familiar with in the repub-
lican and democratic parties. There is no
national organization having any authority
over the party at all. The sole party
authority lies with the voters of each con-
sttuency. For purposes Of convenience
these small associations, represented by
central committees, delegate certain powers
to the national organization.
called the National Liberal Federation. 1t
is permanent institution, maintaining a
publishing house and keeping up a party
campaign of education in season and out,
without regard to the campaign. When the
campaign comes on this publishing house
sells enough literature at profit to make
expenses for the next few years Imagine
such a condition in the United States.
The National Union of Conservative and
Constitutional associations is the head
quarters of the conservative party. 1t
maintains a publishing house and a polit-
teal library, just across the street from
the House of Lords. This institution on
joys the patronage Of the highest classes
Of the British public, and it's publishing
house is operated on a sef-supporting
basis.
"llho the tltCllOH DdlNl6 10 WdBeQ De-
tween the liberal and conservative forces
1t must not be Understood that these two
parties meet each other in clearly aligned
forces as do the republicans and democrats
in the United States. The liberals have
the largest party organization. but in the
last Parliament their 81 members were
allied with eighty-three Irish nationalists
and fifty-four labor party men.
The conservatives find the greater num-
Der of their party leaders in the ranks of
another party, the liberal unionists, which
has a national federation of it's own. Mr.
Balfour and his chief supporters are known
by their friends as unonists. BY the radi-
calls all conservatives of every type are
called tories. The liberal unionists are the
political heirs of those liberals who seeded
from their party when Mr.. Gladstone made
home rule for Ireland a party issue They
insisted upon keeping the name liberal and
upon declaring their preference for the
maintenance OF the United Kingdom. Mr.
Joseph Chamberlain has been the chief
liberal unionist and from his sick bed he
has directed the conservative fight in this
campaign. He has compelled an unwilling
party to adopt his scheme Of tariff reform
because that party had to have some issue
with which to combat the Lloyd-George
socialistic tendencies.
In this campaign the conservatives and
unionists were absolutely amalgamated, as
they have been for SEVERAL years. The
liberals, the nationalists and the labor party
made separate campaigns, but were careful
not to oppose each other. In a constituency
where the laborites were stronger, the lib
erals supported the labor candidate, and
| so on.
| There were great many independent
| candidates of various types and many
trades union candidates Independent of the
labor party. OF the 60 constituencies, fifty
four went into the elections with three
cornered races. In seventeen constituencies
the tory candidate was unopposed. in one
the liberal was the only candidate and in
Ireland over forty nationalists had no
opposition.
1t strikes an American as amazing that
some of these unopposed races are the re-
suit Of courtesy. Mr.. Joseph Chamberlain
is i'll, and therefore, out of courtesy, the
liberals refused to nominate man against