Guardians of the People.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 18, 16 October 1907, Page 10

Guardians of the People.

SIR ACLAND-HOOD ON 1 THE LORDS.

Sir Alexander ' Acland-Hood; , M.P,, the oliief Pppositioii;;:i\yhi I ),, I .acldr( I ssed. I <|apUarge gathering of his constituents at a Primrose League demonstration . neld at Heatherton Park, near Tauntoh, on August 29.. He said .the. most important event of. the last twelyq mouths had been the -meeting , of the.lmperial' Conference, and he deeply regretted that the Government utterly failed to. gr,asp the importance, of that Conference arid the great opportunities which it gave .them , to-bii . tho; colonics more closely to the Mother Country.- But in spite, of the Government's, action, preference was bound to.come!in.the ; long run because both the people of ,this, country, and the people of the colonies were .determined.'to. have'it . ' . • , "■■,,. ■■•'."-• IRELAND: ••■' ; Discussing the Irish policy of ' the Government Sir ■ Alexander described the Irish Councils Bill as a most dishonest : measure which was moarit to deceive-both England arid Ireland.: Englishmen were told' that it was not Home , Rule; Irishmen word told that it was tho • first step towards' Home , Ru'loi The Irish leaders-were compelled by their, own followers to drop the; hill,' and , in place of it.they extorted from the ■ Government a pledge for the introduction of the' Evicted Tenants Bill. The extraordinary thing was that, after all tho attempts to , conciliate and square the Irish members, on the day that Parliament rose and when tho Irish members had left the House of Commons; the Government at last recognised the state of lawlessness in Ireland. Irish members'were arrested , ; tho police forco in certain districts was increased; and a belated attempt was'inadeto. euforco ■ tho law in the disturbed ! portion of the country. A curious' coincidence was that' this should take place when the matter could iiot possibly ho .discussed in' tlie House ot Commons.- • ■' ; •' : ' '■ '

, RADICALS AND SOCIALISTS. .The main policy of thp Government, however, consisted in an attempt on tlie'House of Lords. Their plan had been to bring in bills which no sensible House of Commons would pass, to hurl them at the House of Lords, and then, if they rejected, or. amended, to denounce the Upper House as obstructionists. , Tho longer the present Government remained in office, the more urgent 1 became the necessity, for a Second Chamber. After referring to the Scottish Small Landholders Bill, Sir Alexander said the fact was that the Government wero prepared, in order to carry out their quarrel with tho Lords, to drop every important bill on the smallest pussible pretext • for the purpose of strengthening their autumn campaign. the.present moment tho Lords stood as tho guardians of the rights of the people of this country■ against tho dealings of tho most mischievous Government with which this unfortunate Empire had over been cursed. ' ■ -.■-. ■'..■ '.'■■'.

'Sir' Alexander, in some remarks on Socialism, said there was very little difference, between tho majority of the Radicals; of the present Parliament and the Socialists. ■ Bot , had tho same predatory instincts; both had tho, same desire to destroy the Constitution and the best part of tho institutions'of the country; and the only difference was that whilo the Socialists wore avowed and enthusiastic supporters of the doctrine of plunder tho 'Radical members were more timid and less straightforward and wero content ■ with advocating robbery and. being recoivers of stolen goods. '..■..' ,