TAKE OFF YOUR COAT

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25, 30 January 1912, Page 3

TAKE OFF YOUR CO AT

MR. ASQUITH TO THE ANTISUFFRAGISTS. THE DAY OF GLADIATORS. [FROM OUB OWN COBBESPONMSNT.] LONDON, 22nd December. "I d 6 think, and I cay it frankly, it ifl time for those who hold strong opinions on the subject, unless there is some very special personal disability as in. my own case — I do think it is time they ehould take off their coats— thoee who belong to my own sex at any rate — and the ladies should exert their co-operation in whatever panoply suite them best, for effective militant co-operation of a constitutional kind." > Mr. Aequith made this confession of faith to a friendly deputation of antisuffragists which was led against him by Lord Curzon. to aek for a referendum on the subject. At least they did not a6k for it in so many words. As Mr. Asquith remarked humorously : — " There is a good deal of shyness in 6ome of the speakers about the most compendious description of the method to be adopted. My noble friend, who is a master of both direct and circumlocutory expression, avoided the word as long as ho could, and Mrs. Humphrey Ward did not exhaust, but used to the full, all the literary artifices of which she is a mistress, .by glancing at and gliding round it. Miss Markham plumped for the word. So I may use it. What you are really pressing for is a referendum." (Hear, hear.) Lord Curzon had explained that* they viewed with alarm the possibility that next summer one amendment to the Reform Bill might add 1,000,000 women to the register, while another equally possible might add from eight to ten millions, thereby raising the electorate of the country by a single leap from 7,000,000 to between 15- and 20 millions. But it was even more alarming to think that even if the House of Lords' rejected this measure for three years it would still become law, by virtue of the Parliament Act. without any possibility of appealing to the people upon it. "MY PECULIAR POSITION." In his reply, Mr. Asquith said : — "As you know, I occupy a somewhat peculiar position. On the one hand, as an individual, I am in entire agreement with you that the granting of the political franchise to the women of this country would be a political mistake of a very disastrous kind. I have held that opinion ever since I entered political life, and I have seen nothing in the arguments and other _ manifestations — (laughter) — which have induced me in the least degree to alter it. On the other hand, as you know, I am for the moment the head of the Government, in which the majority of my colleagues — a considerable majority of my colleagues I may say without violating the obligations of Cabinet 6ecrecy —are of a different opinion, and the Government in these circumstances announced a policy which is the result of their combined deliberations, and by which it is the duty of all our members loyally to abide. That is the position so far as I am personally concerned. I quite agree that, while the referendum is, in my opinion, a most undesirable innovation as part of our constitutional machinery, I have always said there were conceivable cases in which it might properly be employed. ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE REFERENDUM. "I think the arguments for^the referendum apply to this more than to any other political issue, but this seems to be the serious difficulty in the way — to whom, is this reference, to 'be made? Is it to be made to the men of the existing electorate?, (Hear, hear.) Are you going to leave women out of account? Of course that is tho convenient and obvious way to do it, because you have the machinery practically ready for the purpose, but is it not plain that the verdict so given by men, and by men alone, would not only nob be accepted, but also would be resented as in the highest degree misleading and unsatisfactory, I will not^say by the majority of women, because it is a moot point- -but by the majority of men and women who are advocating this change. I do not believe that you would allay the agitation by any verdict so pronounced." Lord Curzon and others : We grant that. Mr. Asquith : lam not sure that you would not inflame and accentuate it, and render it . more embittered than before. You will say this is cold comfort. But 1 speak now for the moment' as one of yourselves, that is, as one who defcires to see this change prevented. I do not take a hopeless view of the situation. Public opinion, after all, is, or ought to be, i tne predominating factor in determining a matter of such gravity as this. THE REAL FIGHT. After remarking that the delays necessitated by the Parliament Bill seemed to him to be a very valuable safe* guard, Mr. Asquith said : I have very strong hopes that if those who hold strong opinions on this subject will take their coats off as suggested, and the case is clearly and. cogently presented to the public opinion of this country, it will be found that some of the jubilations which are heard already from the supporters of the movement will be premature, and that public opinion will declare it is not prepared to' make this gigantic experiment, for which there is no parallel in the' history of any other country in the. world.