Omaha daily bee., 1919-10-11
LLOYD GEORGE
FACES SEVERE
PARTY CRISIS
MorthCliffe and Churchill Com.
bine to Effect Overthrow
of British "Man
of Destiny"
BY EARLE c. REEVES,
International News Service Staff C0rre-
spondent,

spondent.
London (By Mail.) - Political
crises are meat and drink to David
Lloyd George. England's man of
destiny" but the one which now
impends promises to tax to the
utmost the strength and dexterity
of the little Welshman who has
traded heavily thus far on the fact
that he won the war and wrote a
British" peace.
During a holiday of parliament
political battles are likely to be at
best only skirmishes and minor
raids. The heavy artillery OF at
tack and defense generally rumbles
only when the lawmakers are seated
in Westminster.
The American foreign relations
committee has revealed plot" by
Lord Northcliffe. political journalist
and cabinet maker, and Winston
Churchill, secretary for war. to form
a cabinet majority to overthrow
Lloyd George.
And labor meaning the British
Labor congress, representing 5,000,-
900 workers, and, with their families,
nearly half the inl abitants of Brit
ain, have taken sharp action against
Lloyd Georges government on ma
| tionalization of the coal mines, mill
tary rule in Ireland, continuance of
the war against bolshevist Russia
and continuance of conscription.
Circumstances Complicated.
On the face of things it is SEEM
ingly inevitable that attempts to
oust the Georgian government will
be made from two directions. The
editor who is credited with having
made" the premier and the pre-
mier's best known lieutenant,
Churchill. would turn the trick to-
morrow if they saw their way clear
to do it. Labor, aiming not so much
at Lloyd George himself as at the
coalition government, would force a
change of government just as quick
ly if there were not bothersome and
complicated circumstances.
| The bothersome and complicat-
ing circumstances for Northcliffe,
Churchill & Co. are:
They cannot swing a workable
majority against the premier.
They haven't found the Churchill
name big enough for headliner
in new government, and
Their first platform plank" unre-
lenting warfare against the bolshe-
viks to prevent Germany from COB
bling Russia, has become very TN
popular with the general public, and
is no longer tenable.
The bothersome and complicat-
ing circumstances for organized
labor in all its rapidly growing
power are:
| Labor hopes one day to be the
government.
| Could Force Overthrow.
Labor could force an overthrow
of the government on one Of its
major issues, but it could not dc
this by political action through its
members of parliament. who are not
numerous enough for the purpose.
| If labor forces the downfall of the
government it will have to use the
strike weapon or the threat of di
rect action. The government which
permitted" this would be discredit
ed. and probably would fall. Bu
the labor movement also would lost
standing with the voters and tht
day when labor can become tht
government party would be post
poned.
So, while there will be spirited at
tacks and noisy battles directed
against the redoubts held by Davic
Lloyd George, Northcliffe. labor
Lord Rothermere, Northcliffe's ed
itor- brother, and a score of minol
factions, nobody is yet visible on th'
political horizon who can stage
Lloyd Georges downfall with safety
to himself.
If King George started today cali
ing in leading statesmen for tn,
purpose of inviting them to form ;
new cabinet he'd in all probabilit,
give audience to goodly num5e
of so-called Leading Statesmen
without getting single nibble.
A few weeks or a few months o
the new session of parliament ma,
develop a different story. Som
statesman may grow. The pile o
evidence for the prosecution" whicl
the opposition is collecting at tn
door OF Downing street may grow
to such dimensions as to make con
viction easier.