Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-02-22
ment were being met by a recourse to
tenn porary borrowing, the speech de-

claTeG.
arrangements must be made at the
earliest possible moment to deal with
the financial situation thus created"
This was taken as confirmation OIL
Premier Asquith's avowed determl-
nation to regularize the present con-
duct of financial affairs before attack
ing the House Of Lords. The most I'M :
portant pronouncement was reserVen
for the end of the speech, which closed
with the paragraph upon the relatlohs
between the two houses as given ABOVE.
The reading of the speech occupleu
only four minutes and at its CLOSE
Their Majesties retired and the SEES
sion was suspended for two hours.
American Ambassador Reid ana VIII
liam Phillips, secretary of the Amer
lean embassy, were among the Clip
oniats present. During lntermlssioh
the speech was the subject OF Keen
analysis in the lobbies of both houses
1t was regarded as evident that the
cabinet had decided against the eN-
tremists who desire the abolltlon Oh the
Uprer Chamber and is anxious only
to deprive the House OF Lords OF the
power of veto.
TIE paragraph of the speech refer
rims. to the Honse of Lords is. however,
admitted TO have been obscurely word
cd and rarliamentarianS are waiting
with GREAT interest Premier Asquith's
Interpretation.
The House of Commons met for bus
mess at o'clock and the most I'M
nortant session of modern tunes open
ed under conditions without parallel
in the history of the British Parlla-
ment I'm to the last moment no one
could predict with any confidence the
course of events and even as Premier
Asouitb led the composite force into
action it appeared uncertain whether
the guns OF his army were levelled
against the common enemy or IN the
direction of the general hlmself. Inc
expression lin the opinion OF my ad-
yisers'' is accepted as having been IN
serted in the speech by the King with
the palpab,e object of disassociating
His Majesty from the views expressed
on behalf of the government.
The chamber of the House of Com
mons was crowded to it's capacity. Am
bassador Reid, Prince Henry of Prus-
STA and many other diplomats or dis
tinguished strangers occupied seats In
the gallery for visitors, while the peers
gallery was filed with representatives
of the Upper House which the govern
ment is about to invite to commit po-
litical hari-kari.
The first business to be transacted
in the House of Commons was the
adoption without division of a mo-
inv nl or
prohibiting peers from participating
in elections. This step followed nat
urally on the recent elections in which
the peers We're prominent on the
Hastings. At the conclusion of this
business the debate on the address in
reply to the speech from the throne
was commenced.
In the course of the debate in the
House of Lords, Lord Lansdowne,
leader of the opposition, said that II
the new House of Commons adopted
the finance bill the Lords were ready
to expedite it's passage. although their
opinion With regard to it was un-
changed.
The proposed sequence OF events
was clear. he said. First the financial
ILL was to re Gisposed of and then
the veto power of the Lords was to
60. in order that the way should Ee
made more clear for Home Rule. Lord
LanstioN ne expressed amazement at
the audacity Of the government, which
assumed the right 10 make such pro
posals on the strength of the recent
elections, in which they had obtained
a majority only by relying upon
parties which did not participate in
their councils.
In the House of Commons Premier
Asquith made an early bid for the
Irish vote by reiterating the assertion
that the removal of the Lords right of
veto was Il necessary preliminary to
the discussion of Home Rule.
Premier Asquith stated that he had
neither received nor asked "guaran-
tees from the King" No constitutional
statesman could demand such guar
antceS in regard to measure which
had not been submitted to the House
of Commons, he said. and added that
resolutions dealing with the veto pow
ers of the Lords would be carried be-
fore the Easter recess and later en-
bodied in a bill.
In the course of his speech in the
House of Lords. Lord LanSdOWne said
that if the government was able tC
show that the Upper Chamber was
constituted in a manner not conducive
to the efficient discharge of it's bust
ness, then the peers themselves were
prepared to cooperate in finding a
remedy If the government was not
prepared to show this the Lords were
ready. he said, to draw up proposals
of their own dealing with the question
Lord Roseberry said that as a mat.
ter of courtesy ana privilege the bill
for the reform Of the House of Lords
ought to have been introduced in that
house. Instead of this they had the
promise of a bill somewhere between
summer and midwinter. He would not
inquire whether this was likely to sat
isfy the wilder spirits of the Liberia
party, but he considered that the Lords
ought to have their own plan of re-
form which the country could com
pare with the governments plans. He
appealed to the Lords to take their owl
salvation boldly in their own hands.
QAg1