Arizona republican., 1914-03-31
Premier of England is to Resign from House of Commons and Take Up Burden of the War De- partment
DECISION COMES
 AS A SURPRISE
Incidentally He Will Go Before His Constituents of East Fife, Scotland, and Ask for Re-elec- tiOn
ASSOCIATED PRESS pIspArcHl

LONDON, March 30.-After all the many solutions of the government crisis, which have been proposed and discussed, Premier Asquith's an house of commons came as one which none of the prophets had expected or even suggested. The prime minis ter himself will assume the burden of the war office, besides other almost crushing duties. He will resign from the house and appeal for reelection to the constituents of East Fife. Scot land. within a few days.
 Field Marshal French and General EWart declined to withdraw their resignations. in spite of an army forder issued on Friday, which was cleverly framed as a platform on which the generals might stand with consistency and honor, and thus it was impossible for Colonel Seeley to retain his secretaryship of war, his resignation being accepted after he had been under fire for several days.
 Viscount Morley, of Blackburn, is lord president of the council, who has partner in the same position. His withdrawal from office is ex- pected tomorrow. These were the chief events in the government af- fairs which are keeping the country at the highest pitch of excitement. The present situation is remarkable, in that the government will nomin- ally be without a prime minister and without a leader in the house of commons until after the bye election held in East Fife. A writ for the election probably will be issued to- morrow and must give eight days notice.
 The only practical loss to the party in the meantime will be the with drawal of Asquith's voice from the debates. He will preside over the cabinet meetings and direct the maneuvers in the house of commons from an official seat, while Reginald McKenna, home secretary, and Wins ton Spencer Churchill, first lord of i the admiralty, will understudy him as house leader
 "Oh, I'll be handy, if I am wanted Asquith remarked to Andrew Bonar Law, the opposition leader, who
 thought the home rule bill could not | be proceeded with in the absence of l the premier.
 | Asquith apparently consulted no
 one except the king before his bold
 decision. His colleagues in the cabi-
 net seemed to be as surprised as the
 other members of the house when he
 revealed his plans. Asquith is already
 first lord of the treasury, which of
 flee he will continue to hold. If he
 had merely shifted from one office ] to another, the resignation of his
 seat in the house of commons would
 not have been necessary, but he said
 he mad been legally advised that the acceptance of tan office of profit under the crown" in the words of i the statute, would necessitate new
 election, although he will take only 1 the one salary of S25,000. Gladstone
 took two offices under similar cir
 cumstances, accepting the salary of
 one and half the salary of the other,
 and did not consider a reelection i necessary.
 The political seers gathered that
 Asquith is in a fighting mood. They have been saying recently that he had shown the effects in his physical appearance of the heavy strain of his
 long labor in office and would gladly
 see the government defeated, but it
 looks at the present moment as if he proposed to make the reorganization of the army a fighting issue.
 The whole army system may have to be recast," Colonel Seely remarked (Continued on Page Seven)