El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-01-25
THE BRITISH
SPELLBINDERS
AMERICAN CAMPAIGNS ARE TAME
V-The English Elections

! courtesy, the Liberals refused TO MONTH
nate a man against him. The speaker
of the house of commons, James Will.
liam Lowther, is a Conservative. He
has presided over a Liberal parliament
for four years, and because he is speak
er the Liberals did not place candidate
against him.
Imagine the Democrats refusing to
oppose Joseph G. Cannon because of
courtesy. But, of course. the British
speaker has no politica, power
No Liberal candidate opposed Arthur
James Balfour in the city Of London
for the quite sufficient reason that no
one could be found to lead the forlorn
hope. The city of London. which is a
small section of London, containing not
more than $4,000 population, the finan-
cial and banking center. is almost SOL
idly Conservative, and no Liberal candi
date would have the ghost of a show
at the polls in the shadow Of the Bank
of England.
Personal Work.
Wherever there was a contest the
I speakings and canvassing went on al
most continuously until the polling day.
I The candidate for parliament is bound
/ to see as many voters as possible, and
! personally to ask for their votes. This
/ is called canvassing. and on such trips
/ the candidate is often accompanied by
| takes up all the day.
/ John Burns, of Battersea, in London,
/ is said TO have canvassed persona-Iy
/ almost every voter in his borough Many
! of the candidates have quite wonderful
| canvassing records. 1t is literally
| house to house canvass, and, strange as
I il seems to an American, the candidate
is left entirely free by hangers on and
workers while he is engaged in this
/ business.
AS few of the candidates live in the
| constituencies which they represent (any
( Englishman may be a candidate in any
! county, borough or division which VIII
/ accept HIM, this canvassing is a neces-
J snry part of the business of getting
( acquainted. There is little or no rival
! ~ for the party nominations, and old
J members are never disturbed except
/ for treachery to the party. The longer
/ man has been in parliament the bet
| ter his constituents like ia fact which
has lesson in it for Americans
Rush to the Speeches.
The speakings are conducted along
| lines peculiarly English The announce
ment of a speaking by one of the big
! guns. Mr.. Balfour or LIoyd-George, for
! instance. Will read: Doors open at 4
/ Sir James Johnson will take the chair
at s. admission by ticket"
Everybody who wants TO go rushes
wildly TO the office Of the election agent
! in the constituency, who corresponds
/ to the American district chairman
/ Every body who calls is given a ticket,
capacity of the hall
When the day of the speaking arrives,
and usually only two or three days no.
tice is given, the ticket holders begin
7 to line up at 4 o'clock in the afternoon
If. for instance. the hall holds 1000 and
| 10000 tickets have been issued, it be-
hooveS one to be early on the ground
A corps of policemen keeps the crowd
/ in check and line up the ticket holders,
two and two, for blocks and blocks
1 The doors are opened at z. according
/ 10 promise and the first 1900 get IN.
Then the police close the doors, and
/ the other $500 people do just what they
knew all the time they would do-rush
for the vans"
Overflow Meetings.
The vans are huge motor vans, ar
/ ranged as speakers pltfor1Es and po-
I litical circulating libraries. A spell
{ binder holds forth from one end, and a
! librarian distributes leaflets and min
I iature posters from the other end. AT
one Liberal meeting in London, at which
( LlOyd-George was the speaker, there
were no less than Is of these overflow
meetings grouped about as many vans
/ the chancellor was speaking.
The outdoor speakers, usually mem
/ bers of parliament and often peers, al
/ ways begin by Inviting the attention
/ of the hecklers and by promising to
I answer any questions which may be
asked by any one in the audience. The
: voice" is rot at all backward, and the
van speakers are usually engaged in
a joint debate with the crowd 1t is
c-er so much liyelier and more exciting
! than fhc some sort of thing In America
! american Campaigns Tame.
In recent years American political ex-
| element reached its climax in the Nc
| Kinley Bryan campaign of 1885 Leav-
/ ing out of the question the great street
prrades which were the feature OF that
contest. the 1895 American campaign
| was absolutely tame. compared with this
English political battle. 1t appears that
all Englishmen have political convic-
! tions or prejudices. and that every one
| OF them insists upon proclaiming his
views froEI the stump to the people, or
from the audience to the speakers No
| body is Silent.
Tomorrow, VI.-The House Of Lords.