Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-07-17
The British Emoire-T.lov

- SiCeu July ~.
The British Empire.-Lloyd
George has expressed himself as fol.
lows upon the tentative plan for re-
form of the House of Lords submitted
to that House by spokesman for the
government. Says he: THE House of
Lords proposals are a greater attack
on the liberties of the commoners of
England than has been made since
the days of Charles the First. They
mean the reinforcement of the people
and the establishment of hereditary
peerage as a power which cannot be
overthrown. 1t is straight road to
revolution. In Russia the Bolsheviks,
who are in small minority. are gov
erning by force. That is exactly what
the Peers would do In this country.
Our danger here is that it is not from
a dead Lenin but from a live Bald.
win"
The above language would seem
little strong If 1t is true, as one report
asserts, that the plan contemplates
that only 100 On addition to the few
Royal Peers Of the proposed $50 total
of the reconstructed House of Lords
should be hereditary Peers elected to
sit by the great body of Peers)
My understanding is that the plan
proposes that the former restricted
competency of the Lords in respect
of money bills should be restored to
the reconstructed chamber. I think
1t may confidently be asserted that
the country would not stand for such
restoration should hereditary Peers
constitute majority. 1t will be
recalled that the act of 1911, which
i1ad tho 0f thu
of Lords. completely deprived the
Lords of competency in respect of
money bills and left them power to
hold up any other measure no
longer than two years. after which
it might receive royal assent over
their heads. (My impression is that
the plan calls for removal of the
latter limitation, but / am not clear
on this point.) One dispatch asserts
that the plan provides that. after
enactment of measure embodying
it's provisions, no measure providing
for altera ton of the legislation or
powers of upper house could be en-
acted without its consent. 1t seems
altogether unlikely that the country
would stand for such a provision
should hereditary Peers constitute
a majority.
The indication is that the country
is unwilling that any scheme of re-
form of the upper house should be
enacted without previous popular ap-
prevail thereof, expressed through
general elections. To be sure, a reso.
luton moved in the Commons by
Ramsay Macdonald on July 6, de.
claring that such enactment of the
present governments proposals would
In mt, ~sxIr
defeated. 1862 to 1877, the Conserva-
tives rallying in body to the gov
eminent; but, though the considera-
BILE progressive section of the Con-
sentative members, known as Young
Conservatives" were willing to save
the face OF the government on this
occasion, 1t is fairly evident that
they are no less insistent than are
the Laborites and Liberals on a pop.
ular mandate. antecedent to legisla.
ton so fundamental One hears,
moreover, that the King (most deli
cately and discreetly, of course) has
intimated surprise" i.e., disap-
proval--but the occasion of his sur
PRISE" whether the substance of the
proposals, or the mode of their
presentation, or the proposed manner
Of enactment, Is not disclosed. 1t
seems, therefore, most unlikely that
the Baldwin government will proceed
with its project of reform enacted
by the present Parliament Whether
it will have the courage to go to
the people with a Lords reform bill
remains to be seen. 1t might suffer
defeat on such referendum, but. If
so, it would go down in glory. having
shown patriotic courage Of the high
est order.
Lloyd George was at his jolliest in
his description Of the governments
outline plan as lat first positive. then
tentative. next fugitive, and finally
abortive."
At Stamford Bridge, England, on
July 8, the combination Oxford-Cam-
bridge team Unexpectedly won the
track meet ag,.inst the Harvard
combination, seven to five, only first
places counting. Lord Burghley and
j. W. Rinkel, the Splinter, both of
Cambridge. were the heroes Of the
day. Oxford.Cambridge and Yale
Harvard have now each won four
times in their series Of contests which
began in 1899. one of the most pleas.
ant of international rivalries.
The other day amid ceremonial
splendor in the famous Sheldonian
Theater the Oxford dons ratified,
229 to 1874, a new statute limiting the
number of women students at Oxford
there are four colleges for women)
in the proportion of one woman to
four men.
In the debates preceding the vote
Miss Marjorie Fry, pal of Somerville
College. expressed herself with bitter
| vigor. Why. she exclaimed. are
women so unpopular at Oxford? She
cited the plausible enough explana-
ton that women by their earnest hard
! work have raised the standards OF
examinations. And she cited fno
ga xfx.ss