The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-31
LLOYD-GEORGE IS BUSY
Great English Statesman Is Believed To Be Failing in Health-Queen Alexandria's Plans for Spring.
 Princess Very Witty
By PHILLIP EVERETT

outlined by King George in his speech
 at the Delhi Dunbar, will prove very
 beneficial to India and will serve at
 least to put off the day when that
 great empire tears itself loose from
 British rule, even If 1t does not result
 in uniting the two countries perma-
 nently.
 The Kings speech at Delhi came as
 great surprise to everybody in Eng
 land, and 1t was evidently taken as
 personal insult by Lord Curzon. But,
 after all, there was no real reason
 to be surprised for the liberal govern
 ment is only going to try to pacify
 India, whose inhabitants hate every
 thing British at least as heartily as
 did the Boers. Once more the govern
 ment has given practical proof of
 it's faith In home rule, though home
 rule for Ireland Is preceded by home
 rule for India.
 The government has moved the cap l ital of India from Calcutta to Delhi, a
 step which the people of India have
 already greeted with delight, but what
 is far more important, they have re-
 versed Lord Curzon's division of Ben
 gal and thus undone the greatest po- litica1 blunder ever committed by any | British yiceroy in modern India, and
 following up this they have foreshad-
 owed a system of devolution and au-
 tonomy which will in a few years prac-
 tically make India a self governing 1coutnry.
 When one remembers that India with
 it's 300,000,000 of people has hitherto
 been governed by an almost autocratfc bureaucracy, represented by council
 that sits in Calcutta to advise the vice.
 roy and another council that sits in
 London to advise the secretary for
 India, it is small wonder that the peo-
 pie of India have learned to hate
 people who treated them like ignorant
 savages.
 The people of India have of recent years
 been deeply stirred by the great unrest
 in all parts of the east They have seen
 Japan becoming powerful, independent | civilized state with a voice that com | mands respect all over the world: they 1 have seen Turkey shake off her corrupt
 despotism and become a constitutional state, and they are even now seeing China l awakening from her long sleep
 1 The action of the present liberal gov ernment, l maintain, may have saved l India for the British empire, for of late
 there has arisen in India a huge class
 of native wealthy merchants and edu-
 cated Indian university men, who are in
 many respects as proud of their posi- l tion as are the leaders of wealth and I thought in Europe, and who are not con
 tent to be treated as ciphers. Ignored
 and neglected by the official government throughout Lord Curzon's reign, they or | ganized themselves into a great national | congress, which represents d rival gov | ernment in the eyes of the people of 1 India, and without the reforms which | have now been granted. 1t would very l shortly have become a rival government | in fact, as well.
 1 The naughty tories in England are si- 1 lent at present, as they say themselves 1 because of the presence of the King in 1 India,' but when he returns their crit
 icism will break out In full force. Is
 not this in itself proof that the gov ernment has done the proper thing to
 win the people of India for England as
 they have already won the Boers? | Mr Lloyd-George is just now prob ably one of the busiest men in Eng 1 land, and his health appears to be giv- | ing way under the strain. During the | greatest part of the year. Times po- iitical correspondent points out Mir Lloyd Georges working day, seven days week, | has been 15 or 16 hours, and he did not ] slacken his efforts during the period at | the beginning of the year, when he was | suffering from a throat affection. Walk l ing at o'clock in the morning, he has | been wont to begin work at once on | the bill to which he has devoted himself. Throughout each day he has been accus-
 toned to meet and confer with deputa- tions, big and little. In a few months | he has received more deputations than
 any other minister has probably received | in the course of a lifetime.
 1 He is now described as looking Ina rassed," and the other day he had to
 retire from round of golf after only playing nine holes.
 l The weeks are Hitting by so swiftly that | one may already begin to discuss the | plans of Queen Alexandria for the spring. | Her majesty is not going to Windsor cas- l tie in January. as she has been in the | habit of doing for several years past. There will be a formal celebration of the death anniversary of the late Queen Vic | toria at Frogmore at the end of next
 month. But 1t will not be attended by | the Prince of Wales, on behalf of his august father as certain gossips have l supposed. King George is desirous of concentrating these family services in | memory of the departed into the first | week in May, when memorial service l will be held in the Albert Memorial chap l el at Windsor, not only in remembrance I of the late King Edward, but also of his | illustrious parents. and his long sorrowed | sister, Princess Alice.
 l Queen Alexandria will remain at Sand | ringham, and will not accept any private 1 invitations to country houses during the | winter. Towards the end of February her majesty will have the Victoria and | Albert at her disposal. Although it is commonly assumed in the entourage of the court that she will go to the Medi- | terranean-in which event she will spend most of the time at Corfu and Athens Queen Alexandria has not actually dis closed her intentions. and it is too early | to consider them in any definite way. Princess Mary of Teck the daughter of | Prince and Princess Alexander of Teck, l who is at present visiting her grandmoth- l CT. the Duchess of Albany, is as smart and original in her remarks as was the l popular late Duchess of Teck. Recently | Princess Mary and the Duchess of Al bany, who mutually adore each other, l happened to have. had a slight differences | of opinion on some subject. and the duch- ess said that the princess would not go l to heaven if she acted as she was doing. | Well, it's like this, granny" replied l her serene highness. q have been to the Hippodrome and Aunt Mary's party az l Buckingham palace; so, really, can't I expect to go everywhere l The Duchess of Albany is far more in-
 dulgent to her grandchildren than she ] was to her own boy and girl when they