The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1924-09-30
PREMIERiN
POWER IS
TOTTERLNG
Writer Says British Labor
Government May Fall
Soon.

| bJ W 1LA@4E1-4 L LII LII 0A-A-NAA}1
Foreign Editor, Washington Bureau.
/" SSAILED both from without
ia and from within, the labor
government of Great Britain,
/ headed by Premier Ramsay Mac
Donald, may fall within the next
| thirty days.
The Liberal faction. led by former
Prime Minister David Lloyd George,
is up in arms against what they
term the fake" treaty with Rus
| STA, and will wage a bitter offensive
not only to prevent its ratification
by Parliament. but to unseat Pre-
mier Macdonald. who engineered it.
In this grand assault against the
| labor cabinet certainly some OF the
Conservatives will join. How many
remains to be seen. Added to these
/ will be a small but powerful group Of
| industrialists who believe the gen
eral putting into effect Of the scheme
to rehabilitate Germany will prove
fatal to the already hard hit British
industry by flooding the markets
with German products.
Party Is Split
Then, too, the labor party Is split.
The radical and revolutionary
groups charge Macdonald with hav-
| ing betrayed the party by working
with the Liberals and Conservatives
and abandoning the Socialist pro
| gram. Others within the party say
| he has failed materially TO reduce
unemployment. still the biggest
problem in the country.
Lastly there is the incident Of the
| Premier's endowed automobile"
The proprietor Of a cracker factory,
seeing Premier Macdonald either
footing it, riding the subway or
rafting along in an American fliv-
yer, bought him a Daimler like King
Georges. The upkeep Of car, as
every one knows, being the main
expense, the biscuit king endowed"
lit-thaN is. he set aside a block OF
stock in the cracker works for the
upkeep Of the machine.
All this happened last spring. A
few weeks later the cracker maker
was knighted. And the whole story
came out.
The premier's worst enemies do
not accuse him of even a dishonest
intention, let alone selling a baron
etcy for a slice of biscuit stock. But
the incident is regarded as blum
der because prejudiciaI to his pres
tige, both among the Liberal and
Conservative opponents and in his
own party. In fact. the chief critics
of the incident are Laborites,
amongst whom-unlike in America
automobiles of any kind. not to
mention royal ones. are mighty few.
Treaty Involved
While this incident is bound to
! play no little part as a sort Of under
! tow, the fight in the open will cen
| ter about the sO-called Russian
treaty, described by witty critics as
an agreement to agree if the parties
can agree.
There are really two treaties"
one commercial, with a promise Of
trade credits to the Soviet Republic,
the other more general. The latter
deals with British claims and debts
against Russia, Russia admitting
liability and agreeing to pay after
determining the amount.
These treaties. initiated some
weeks ago to Macdonald and the
Soviet agents, are now before Par
! Lament for ratification or rejection.
The chances for rejection are at
| least even, whereupon the normal
course would be for the premier to
resign and ego to the country"
That is, there would be an election
10 let the British voters decide.
Labor organizations in the British
Isles have been warned to be ready
for a general election by December,
indicating Macdonald would follow
tradition. Yet there are rumors that
he might accept parliament's de-
cision.
Were he to take this course, how
ever, and hang on TO office, his
prestige would be virtually gone,
even in his own party, and his po-
litical days would be numbered. The
chances are, therefore, that if de-
feated he would resign.