The Irish standard., 1912-08-03
In Frank Speech Churchill Makes
Strong Plea For Increase
of Armament.
Tories Favor the Expansion of the
Navy---Liberals Unwilling
ly Acquiesce.
All the English Newspapers are
Ignoring listers Threats of
Civil War.

Keenness in political interest shows
no signs of abatement. Indeed, the
present week reached high water
mark in intensity Of political feeling
during the year. This is chiefly due
to the First Lord of the Admiralty
Churchill's tremendous demands for
a further increase in the navy, ac-
companied by ultra-frank reference to
Germany, says T. P. O'Connor in his
London cable of July 27 to the Chi
cago Tribune.
Churchill has thus produced strange
ly mixed feelings, especially among
his fellow liberals. On the one hand
the horror Of an increase in arma-
ment and hatred and dread of war
We're shown in the stony silence with
which the liberals listened throughout
Churchills skillful and daring appeal
to arm against Germany.
And yet, on the other hand, except
for the small "peace at any prico"
minority the bulk of the liberals voted
unwillingly, but solidly to profess
friendship for further armament.
This feeling of inevitably and al
most despairingly bowling before an
adverse fate is increased by the want
of all prospect of elimination Of
naval burdens in future years, every
thing on the contrary pointing to their
further and further expansion.
Arm, Though Favorne Peace.
Another proof of obsession in the
English mind of German aggression Is
given by the response from tories 70
the latest naval increase for they de-
mand even more gigantic preparations
than Churchill offers.
Thus we have the spectacle of two
great nations being apparently drag
ged unwillingly, but inevitably, into
an abyss Of ruinous ornaments and
such exasperating national feeling as
ultimately makes war possible on the
smallest provocation.
The radical and labor sections pro-
posed an alternative to this outburst
of universal jingoism the breaking
away by England from entente with
Russia and France as the provocat!on
to Germany which created the great
German fleet. This alternative was
rejected with equal decisiveness, Sir
Edward Grey, secretary of foreign af-
fairs, and Premier Asquith declaring
with emphasis that England must Gull
tivate alliances as counter-poise to the
German triple alliance.
All this reacts against the position
of the ministers, and especially of
Chancellor of the Exchequer Lloyd
George, and has led to constant rum
ors of his early resignation: These
rumors are without foundation, but 1t
is certain that Lloyd-George intends
to put himself at the head of dig
land reform movement next October,
which, while different from the sin;z!e
tax extremists plan, will still send
tory landlords into furies Of terror
and vituperation and may antagonize
some moderate sections.
The liberals fate in this crusade
, will depend largely on the nature OF
the proposals and also what backing
Lloyd George gets among his COL
leagues. Asquith, it is believed. will
agree in the main with Lloyd-Georse,
but Lloyd-George's relations with
Churchill are strained, partly through
out Churchills complete change OF
front on the question Of the navy ard
partly through Churchilrs hanker!ng
friendship for tory landlords, to whose
stock he belongs.
Home Rule Issue Grows.
One unexpected effect of all these
tremendous new issues is to bring
Home Rule into clearer prospective,
first as essential to imperial unity, and
second, as a small issue in the face
of such gigantic perils Thus Home
Rule is found no longer to be trump
card for the tories in the elections
the masses of the English people re-
/ garding it at once an inevitable and
less serious question than such issues
as the German peril. revolutionary
J land reform. and closer relations with