LIBERALS IN WALES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 254, 20 July 1908, Page 7

LIBERALS IN WALES.

THE PEMBROKE SEAT. RETAINED WITH REDUCED MAJORITY. A PEER'S SUCCESSOR. (BY TELEGUAPJt—"PRESS ASSOCIATION—CorTBIOHT.) London, July 17. /The by-election for Pembrokeshire, caused by the olevation to tho Peerage of Mr, J. Wynford-Pliilipps,'.'resulted as'under:— . Mr. Roach (Liberal) 5460 Mr. L. Williams (Conservative)'..:' '3250 Liberal majority, 1808... ... 2171 : Liberal majority, 1908... ... 3280 PEERAGES AND BY-ELECTIONS. • Tho Pembrokeshire seat is a sound liberal ono. The' Liberal riiajority iii . 1892 was 1099; in 1595, 580; iii'lS9B (when J., Wynford-Philipps first appeared), 1 166-1; in 1900,'Jlr. Philipps was returned .'unopposed; in 1906, Mr. Pmlipps's majority - was 8280," and was 'secured against .Conservative candidate, Mr. Williams, who has fought Mr. Roach", v. Jlr.J.Boach has polled 426 fewer votes than Mr. Philipps did, and Mr. Williams has polled. -6SO more than he did iii 1908; ivhilo the Liberal' majority is 1106 votes fewer than it was. Pembrokeshire'is probably, the Welsh seat which (it was cabled) was at'the disposal of the 'President of the Board of Trade (Mr. Churchill) after' his ': reverse at North-west . Manchester.' But "Scotland came to the rescue" per milium of Dundee,' and Mr. Churchill was not compelled to" accept what a Unionist paper termed- " Welsh hospitality." Liberal appointments to the-Peerage seem to 'work out'.badly, for the Liberals in two ways. At .the consequent by-elections tho 'Liberal-figures rarely snow an increase,. and in the case of Pudsey (whose representative Mr.. Whiteley, .Chief:-Liberal, Whip, was made a ' Peer, at. the same . time as Mr. Philipps) the seat'was lost to the Unionists, Mr. Oduy turning a Liberal' majority of 3502 into a Conservative.'majority ,of. 113 . , • . , , : The,"second.'point on which the. new Peer-, ages arc'being made to operate , against tho 'Government' was ' illustrated recently in. tho Hriuso of The "Express" reports:— Mr.'Hugh'Lea (Liberal member for East St. : Paricras), ever a thbrniin the side of his own party leaders, was grim, earnest, and acid over the new-Liberal-iPeerages.: - • He .began by- asking. ;Mr. Asquith, "How many Peerages ..hf\ve been created sinco ,tho 'Liberal .Government accepted office ; in Dccem"ber, 1905; and'.whether this is the method ; tho Government intend to'pursue, with the House "of. Lords in order t0..-make the will of the I,people 'prevail;-' more-especially;'in view of the recent action of that Chamber in regard to: the Scottish Land Bill of tho Government?" Mr. Asquith'-was bland. "In answer to the' firstvpart: of? my. lion. ; friend!s question," he 6aid .coolly,""twenty-three .temporal' and three spiritual Peers'have been created during the period in question.'-. Ho paused in silence. "The second part of tho question," he added, a. little more icily,, "seems, to trespass' beyond the realm of.fact into that of opinion." ;,' Up- sprang Mr v : Swift -.MacNoill.. "When :changes in the constitution of any .public body are pending," he cried, "is. itriot usuab.to suspend'appointment's f" ; ; Mr.' : '-Asquith • smiled; "That's, a. very, large question," he answered.'^. ''Perhaps the hon. gentleman willl.give'notice of itf" /' But'the'. Irish' constitutional-expert bubbled like -a • geyser. "Is the Prime Minister aware that'the present' Government ■ has created as many Peers as there were inthe first Parliament . of Henry VII. ?"■ pursued Mr. Mac-- . Noill. 1 / ; 'A/.smile struggled' to': the .Prime Minister's features, .but; he made-no. answer. Then 'Mr. Lea was ;up. again. "Is .it'not a fact," lie asked, .'."that..,there is rio j)bribd ; in\English ■ history in which so many Peerages have, been created. ' >• - : "•At last.the Speaker intervened.V-':"That;is a point," he;- said in • his quiet way, "that requires: considerable research." '. , . , v -r' "Is, it not "a fact," Mr. Lea insisted doggedly,' "that,the deihooracy of this country.has shown' by the .by-elections what they think of. the hypooritical and' inconsistentaction of the Government f" - . ' The Speaker rang down the curtain by, calling tho next question. • .• •