Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-07-18
British House Of Lords
May Reject Veto Bill.
VIII Mean Creation Of Large
Block OF New Peers,
Lords and Conservative Leaders
eonfsr-.Morlsy's Appeal.

LphuOH. jury lf.-A0 entirely unea-
peeted contingency confronts the ca
reer- of the veto bill tonight. 1t is pos
sibles that the House of Lords, instead
OF passfna the third reading of the Dill
with rtiieira amendments on Thursday,
thus sending IL back to the House OF
Commons for consideration. may re-
ject il. even with amendments. lock,
stock and barrel In that event Pre-
mier Asquith is fully expected to an
nounee as he probably would, that he
had advised the King to create large
block of new peers.
The Liberal party is no more anxious
for en- inflated peerage than the lords
themselves are. but will not balk at the
creation of peers if the necessity is
forced upon them. The parliamentary
program of the Liberals is, as the
Right Hon. Walter Runciman. presi-
dent of the Board of Education. said
in speech on Saturday; The bill. the
whole bill and nothing but the bill"
Two moves in the Lords game today
excited great speculation. One was con
ference between the Conservative leaders,
the Marquis of Landsdowne. the Earl of
Selbourne Baron Middleton. the Marquis of
Salisbury and others. The second was a
strong appeal by Lord Morley of Blackburn
to the Liberal followers in the House of
Lords Lord Morley said in a circular let
ter
1T is possible that certain number
of opposition peers may force division on
the third reading of the parliamentary bill.
The ,nomentous results at stake, both inn
mediate and in the future, make 1t in the
l.
of the bill should be absent from his place
! earnestly trust therefore, that your lord
ship will not fail to give His Majesty S
government tae advantage of your presence
on what may prove so truly critical an oc-
casion
The rejection of the bill has never been
part of the program of the Conservative
leaders. The report went around today.
however. that they would assume the at
titude that the bill even with the amend
ments was so dangerous and revolution
airy that they would refuse to have any
hand in its passage. but would compel the
Liberal lords to take all the responsible
ty for voting its third reading.
That aroused the fear that sufficient in
surgent peers might be found to carry
motion. to reject the bill outright instead,
as Lord Lansdowne desires. of permit
ting the bill to go to its third reading
as amended 1t is Lord Morley's desir.
to have the Liberal peers vote with.the
adherents of Lansdowne to support the
third reading, because If the bill is re-
jected II would necessitate an autumn
session of the House of Commons to pass
the veto bill again through the necessary
stages to return II to the House OF Lords.
A group of extremist peers, estimated
at from between so to so, are sworn to
tight the bill to the last ditch, and il
1t came to a fight between them and the
Liberals the former would have chance
of winning
Lord Morley's unusual appeal was at
tributed by politicians to a threat to re-
ject the bill. A great furry spread in
political circles for few hours, but was
succeeded by comparative calm. The best
opinion late tonight is that the Lords will
return the amended bill to the House on
Thursday and give Premier Asquth an
opportunity to show his hand when the
House takes 1t up on Monday. and that
the premier will announce that the gov
eminent refuses to accept the amend
ments and will, if necessary, call on the
King TO create new peers
Then final struggle will come between
the two factions OF the Conservative
Lords-the stand-patters and those who
believe that the lesser of the evils will
be to swallow the bHl, with the expressed
declaration that the Conservatives will
repeal it when they return to power BY
accepting the bill they can stave off home
rule for two years, by rejecting it they
put the Liberals in a position to adopt
all the extremist schemes of legislation
without delay.
IN me meantime there is no doubt that
the government has made up its list of
possible peers, the number of them. ac-
eording to the latest belief, being $50.