New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-12-04
Anglo-American Memories
81. WILLIAM ACKNOWLEDGMENT POLITICAL REcoLLEc.
fco,vrlrhs. 1910. by George ". smaiieyo

Copyright 1910. by
Iyon6on. November L.
lewis us-courf's long delayed pro-
motion in Cabinet and political rank nos
came at a critical moment But the Az -
thing If recalls Is the memory ol HIS
father Sir William Harcourt one can
not but think how Sir William "ouio
have re5oiced in his sons success. Never
should think. had there been a more
,.,,,,.ie,,l relation of father and son than
r,e.zceen these two The anecuoh o.
81. for the other was deep. their devo-
,fon without stint or limit. They were
much more together than is usual Inc
son was sent TO Eton- but never 10 :"
,,-,iversitv. I-pon his return from Etoh
he gave Up his life to his father pc
came HIS private secretary; lived with
him and for him. The father, IN turn
taught the hoy politics, craftsmanship
end the world There could have been
M more competent master. Said the
father:
Il can never repay Lulu for what ne
has done. He has done everything he
has. sacrificed everything; at any rate
he has postponed his entrance into pup
lie life till much later than he ought
end adjourned his chances for dlstlnc-
-5on. All this and much more he mas
cone that he might be Of use 20 me
This was said at Malwood in 1883.
had peen asked TO Malwood for a snort
visit The Gay before was 10 NAV
gone came q telegram putting me on I'LL
the next week When ] arrived Or
William said:
-.yo,, have heard Of Lrlu's engage
-7eut. and you can guess why we asheo
you 10 come later" And after some otflei
exclamation came the sentences ABOVE
quoted They show you the other sue
a. a man who has been thought IN pup
,ir a little arste-e. perernptc-y and mas
ferful The real Harcourt was KIND
hearted and affectionate: generous IN
character with a strong nature caPaois
of being strongly moved
Five wears before this he had been
Chancellor Of the EKchequer II MT
C3lsdstone-s fourth and last MINISTRY
and had brought in the Death DUTIES
Budget which had revolutionized Eng
lish finance and some other things MI
TJovd-C;eorse-s Budget OF last year is
hut the logical and inevitable sequel OF
Sir William Harcourtrs i'm 1894 The
szv after this exploit / met Sir William
81 lunch. He called 10 me from the
other end OF the table:
What do You think Of my Budget?
I think I had rather not tell you
Nonsense. Can't you say whether
sou think it good or bad?"
Well. if you will have IL think it
brigand's budget
7 suppose ought not TO have said IL
hut thought then, I think now, that
81 vav the dividing fine between the Old
and The New He had broken with the
traditions Of the Treasury. He was tax
ing CapitaI instead OF Income His new
finance was political and something
worse than political He had adopted
The doctrine Of ransom which Mr.. Cham
herlain had first proclaimed and then re
1lounced-that property must pay ran
som in return for the protection OF the
state He levied fine upon the trans
mission of wealth from father to son.
He appealed 20 class jealousles and
TarredS He invited the poor 10 transfer
10 the shoulders of the rich a great bur
zen Of taxation. He asked the working
classes 70 understand that they in future
we're to pay less than their share, and
she -ich-whom Mr.. Lloyd-George now
calls the idle ricil--to pay more than
their share Al the bottom IF il all lay
= motive Of politics He wanted the
-ctes Of labor skilled and unskilled, and
believed they We're TO be had in this
va And that is why I called il
bTigand's budget.
The r,frase seemed = little abrupt and
there vas \ slight pause Then Sir
william said
SO that is what you think Well you
may like 70 know that both Sir Isaac
Holden and Lord Rothschild have been
- see me this morning. and both ap-
Prove Of MY Budget"
AS these were two Of the richest men
g. England. the retort told What Sir
Isaac Holden thought I never knew. but
: saw Lord Rothschild next day, and,
having Sir williams permission. told
him what had been said He answered;
on. no Harcourt misunderstood me.
] told MIN there was one pirbiSacfl VI Ills
Budget. touching the method OF valufng
emo taxing certain properties after
death. which I approved But L never
said I approved the Death Duties. for /
GO not
Some wears after that I was in Wilt
shire and this question Of Death Duties
came up- Indeed. il is always coming
Np L never rests. II was said long
ago that revolutions never go backward.
i happened that three great properties
lying close to each other in wiltshire
had lately passed by death: Longleat'
belonging to the Marquis of Bath. Will
ton. the Earl Of Penlbrokes, and Long
ford owned by the Earl Of Radnor. Lord
Ifadnor had 5000 acres. Lord Bath So
600 and LORD Pembroke 10000. They
Gre al Conservatives. i asked one Of
them what the effect OF the Death Duties
had been He gave very deliberate an
eRer
The effect has been TO cripple the es-
tate and its present owner. / have lad
20 dismiss a large number Of gardeners.
earnekeepers. labo-ers and others en-