The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-10-12
MACDONALD IS BLAMED
 FOR BALLOT
ManifestOes Issued By Three Parties Seeking
 Control
RUSSIAN ACCORD
 IS COMMON ISSUE
Conservatives Would Hedge In Reduction
 Of Armament
iIea.e,, Wire no The Herald

ueased Wire To The Ase.Herald)
 LONDON, Oct. 11.-The battlelines are drawn for the strenuous election campaign, the shortest in English history, which is to determine whether labor will be repudiated or will enjoy 8 new lease of life in it's experiment of governing Great Britain.
 All three political parties the laborites, conservatives and liberals, issued their mani festoes today, containing the platform blanks on which the respective candidates for par liament will go before the country.
 Interest centers naturally in the strategy of the laborites, who reveal their claims for accomplishment which they expect to win victory for them at the polls.
 kafNBON
 The accomplishments listed include the promotion of world peaees the ins pFoyement Of Eraneo.Ge Herman relAtioqN. lhe xesnmntieH 9l tlae AnEla. kEgf'al. eEfsnts and fhe diaArubpSsist ~ 0ess slsaed by the Iseaghs q NatieAe ( { 9eneya.
 The manifesto stressed the need ef fesuniing normal relations between England and Russia in behalf of mus tnai prosperfiy--R Russia absorbing Brit ish manufactures and Ehglaiad obtaln- ing Russian raw materials. The fatifi- cation of the Russian treaty, therefore, is urged as necessary to the welfare of the country.
 The laborites enumerate their claims for achievement In solving the housing problem and administering the national finances.
 Referring to unemployment, the claim is made that there are 100000 fewer jobless men than when labor assumed office.
 Apart from the necessary transfor. nation of the whole industrial system, the only practical way of dealing with this problem is to work out q construe- tive policy of national development and the upbuilding of foreign trade" the manifesto says.
 1t is significant that no mention is made of the capital levy, the issue which caused so much campaign furore when labor first took over the government.
 LIBERALS
 The liberal manifesto, signed by Fl. H. Asquith and Lloyd. George, former prehiers, condemns the laborites for precipita ting an election because they were not able to face an inquiry on the dismissal of charges against com munist editor, and because they desired to evade responsibility for pledges of loan to Russia.
 The liberals criticize labOrs failure to solve the unemployment problem, ridicule the governments increased mili- tary expenditures, condemn the Russian loan, and urge the rehabilitation of agriculture. The declaration stresses the desirability of the state acquiring all mineral and coal rights in the nation and assisting in the construction of super-power stations. The liberals traditional free trade principles are reiterated.
 CONSERVATIVE
 The conservative manifesto, like the liberal proclamation, excoriates the labOrities for rushing an election in order tn avert the inquiry concerning the communist editor, to distract atten- ton from the Russian treaty and to hide their failure to alleviate unemploy- ment which is declared to be more ser. ious than when MacDonald's govern. ment first took office
 The manifesto declares that while Q general tariff is no part of the con servative program, the party will aim to extend the safeguarding of industries act. Otherwise, it is asserted the Dawes plan, which is desirable in it. self as it is calculated to secure repara- tions and restore the economic situarion in Europe, would be disastrous to our selves"
 British foreign policy, the statement declares, must be cOOrdinated with that of the dominiOns The party urges the development of the League of Nations, but opposes commitments on the use of armed forces without parliamentary