Los Angeles herald., 1910-04-17
ASQU|TH PLANS
FIGHT ON LORDS
%rime Minister in Oxford Ad-
dress Throws Light on Stand
b of the Opposition
INCOME TAX AT STANDSTlLL
Concludes Circumstances Cause
Duty. to Carry on Kings
Government
INCOME TAX AT STANDSTILL

N LONDON. April 16.--In q recent
speech at oxford Mr.. Asquith, the
prime minister, threw some light on
his plans for lighting the house or
lords, although his position ON some
points is still very obscure.
After declaring that the result OF
the election showed the need for cleo
tjons on one day, abolition of plural
voting and protection OF the voter
against intimidation and pressure OF
employer and customer, the premier
said: "It was not without some hesita-
tion sthat my colleagues and / came 10
the conclusion that, in the wholly al
tered circumstances, 1T was our duty
10 continue to carry on the Kings gov
ernment Those who think the possess
sion of office in and by itself is an en-
viable thing are Welcome to their opin-
ion; for my part | don't share it. But
there is one position which my col
leagues and / would have felt to be
less enviable still, and that would be,
in the face of difficult and entangled
circumstances, to leave the kings gov
ernment to take care of itself and TO
run away from great tasks which we
had asked the country for authority to
perform before we had honestly at
tempted with all the resources that still
remained at our disposal to see whether
and how far IL was possible to make
effectual progress toward accomplish
ment.
what are those tasks? The passing
of the budget and the abolition OF the
financial veto and the Limitation of the
legislative veto of tho house of lords.
II will say a few words on the bud
get first II is certain that substan>
tall may say a large-majo of
the representatives of Great Britain
arc avowed supporters of tho budget.
4a.-tf. s.Ff 40
sentatives of ireland, while / know
they have raised objections to particu-
lar taxes, I am not aware mp TO this
moment that they have declared hos
tility to the budget as a whole. 1t
would be indeed a strange thing II
they had. There are reasons which
seem TO my colleagues to be unan-
swerabe for pushing the budget for
ward with all possible promptitude.
INCOME TAX AT sTANDsTILL
",The collection of the income tax has
been brought to a practical standstill
by the action of the lords. with the re-
suit that we have had to borrow on an
unprecedented scale to meet the daily
necessities of the state. 1t is suggested
we could have singled out one OF the
taxes-the income tax for preference,
which happens to be the least obnox
ious to our opponents, and passed a
resolution for it's collection. That is
course my colleagues and / could not
bring ourselves for one moment to con
template. ~ 1t would have meant the
splitting up of the budget. with the re-
suit that some of the other taxes might
never have passed.
But we are bound. so soon as we
can consistently, with other obligations,
to get the authority of the house of
commons for the budget as a whole,
that not merely the income tax but the
other important duties may be col
lected without any further avoidable
delay. It's retention in the house of
commons does not, as some people seem
to think, give that house any real hold
either upon the house of lords or upon
the executive.
''The real control-and wish this to
be more clearly and widely understood
by the house of commons upon the
executive depends upon its power to
grant or withhold supplies and to i'm
pose conditions as to duration or other
wise on any grant which IL makes For
tho preservation and. if it be necessary,
the exercise of that power, whatever
the executive may be. we have in the
abnormal conditions of the present year
been careful to make special provision.
FAVOR SECOND CHAMBER
II myself and my colleagues are of
opinion that 1t is desirable In this as
in other democratic countries to have
a second chamber that there are func-
tions both useful and honorable for
such a chamber to perform, that If it is
.rationally constituted and it's power
only defined and circumscribed it may
become a valuable safeguard both for
wise legislation and for prudent policy.
Indeed, one of the complaints which we
advance against the existing state of
things is that with the house of lords
as it is, body of avowed partisans,