Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-05-01
WHEN COMPROMISE
FAILS IN ENGLAND
Duties of the Opposition in Parlia-
ment and the Enigmas of Gov
ernment by Coalition in
Wartime

| L with Wilson as President Taft, Secretary
of State; Roosevelt, Secretary of War, and
| Eugene " Debs, Secretary of the Interior
| Put Bryan in Secretary of Agriculture
tperhaps the nearest thing to padded cell in
the Cabinet), Uncle Joe Cannon as head of the
Postofiice Department, and find other places
for such differing types as Henry Ford and
Senator Lodge-and you would have some
thing not unlike the present British Cabinet. ,
Such notion of Government by coalition
is an English and not an American idea. In
this country crises do not make the lion and
the lamb lie down together. Crises here tend
to differentiate the political parties more than
ever. Here in time of stress the cry is "r:t
us have nothing but outand-out Repubt ans
or Democrats in Office" Our Government is
not operated in the spirit of compromise The
American mind looks for victory at the polls
and expects to reap all the fruits of that VIC
tory. The genius of the Englshman in gov
ernment is the spirit of compromise. He too.
looks for a victory at the polls but after his
victory he is not sure of all the fruits. If the
opposition puts up a strong fight his compro-
missing nature may make him satisfied to get
only half of the fruits. Therein is the under
lying reason for the present Cabinet.
Kitchener and Lloyd George
Who would have dreamed that the lengthy
legs of Lord Kitchener, imperalst and mill.
tarist, would ever have stretched in council
beneath the same mahogany as those of
Loyd-George near Socialist and pacfst
While Kitchener fighting the Beers in
South Africa Lloyd-George voting in Par.
lament not to send supplies to KitchenerS and
Roberts armies. When Kitchener was a ma
tional hero Lloyd-George, disguised as a police
man, was escaping from mobs. His pro- Boer
speechfying made him the most hated man in
England for a time. Now he is strong enough
to control faction of his own which would
make him Premier instead of Asquith while
Kitchener's glory has dimmed.
1t is not easy for men of such differing
antecedents as Lloyd-George and Kitchener to
become reconced. 1t was only the fact that
Britain faced the greatest of crises that pro.
duced the crowning achievement of British
compromise-the coalition Cabinet In the past
it has not been the custom for the Opposition,
or minority party, to be friendly to the Gov.
ernment in time of war. "The duty of an
Opposition is to oppose" This is a maxim of
British politics. In the good old days when
compromising was not much in evidence.
the Opposition regarded war merely as a
glorious and extended opportunity of ham.
mering away at the men in power The idea
that the Opposition should support the Gov.
ernment in war would have drawn an in.
dignant denial from a whig of George HIS
time. Throughout the American Revolution
the war was bitterly opposed by the Wings.
And, in view of the fact that majority of
Englishmen thought at the time that the
union and integrity of the Empire was at
stake, these attacks looked very much like
disloyalty
Wellington Ought to Be Hanged"
But far more disloyal did the Opposition be.
come in the Napoleonic period. Between the
war which Pitt opened against France then
and the present war against Germany the
points of resemblance are many and strong
Englands future was at stake. And yet the
minority persistently did everything that was
in their power to encourage the enemy and to
overthrow the Government that was fighting
for the national life. Fox. Sheridan and Grew
used all their wit in defending the French
reyolutionists and maligning Pitt Fox went
SO far as to express openly his joy at the
success OF the French arms at the expense Of |
his own country. 1t is difficult to read with.
out disgust Of the tactics of the Opposition |
against the Duke Of Wellington, who was |
destined finally to destroy the menace of |
Europe at the Battle Of Waterloo LORD
Hutchinson, Wing lord. expressed the opin-
ion that Wellington ought TO be haneeda |
creevey told everybody in 1910. hve years be- |
fore Waterloo, that wellington's career was |
finished. Jeffrey, the famous editor. was IN |
favor OF peace at any price. ana only a year
before Napoleon surrendered said Napoleon |
couldn't be beaten
II Lord Kitchener dips into history he must
nnd much TO encourage him in the fate of
muehabused heroes in the past ana their uIti.
mate yindieation.
Disrasli was the nrst British statesman
who refused 70 take advantase e tie ruinoas
blundeFs Of Government u he conduct Il s
var ana Hho suaneated Ehz patriotic aoe
lz.aa IL = ..-l-zz = - = =.