IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT

Evening Star, Issue 14001, 6 March 1909, Page 5

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT

THE ARMY ESTIMATES. STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. LONDON, March 5. Mr Haldane (Secretary cf War) made a detailed speech in introducing the Array Estimates. He said that the recruiting bad been (singularly good, and that the special reserve now numbered 70,000 men, which was equal to the old Militia. A generous tribute to the ‘Daily Mail’ and the employers of labor in connection with til®. Territorials aroused violent disapprobation from the Labor benches. Mr Haldane retorted by saying that owing to a breakdown of the auxiliary services the nation was never nearer conscription. The recent movement, however, had established a stronger bulwark against conscription than ever before. In the last seven weeks thirty-three thousand men had been added to tho Territorials, which we-e now 240,000 strong. The root idea of Imperial organisation was that where it was possible the Oversea Dominions should work on a similar pattern and organisation to our own, affording the possibility of co-opera-tion in the case of great necef«ity. The last thing the Government would dream of would be to even suggest to the Oversea Dominions what they should do. The staff colleges bad been enlarged, and it was now possible to receive any oversea officers. General Nicholson had completed plans for home defence, making a successful invasion even less likely than in the past. Sir Charles Dilk© criticised the Germanic trend of Air Haldane’s mind. •Mr Arnold-Forster (ex-Secretary of War) ridiculed tho suggestion of training » special reserve. He said that Air Haldane dealt more with names than with things. Ho commented on the reduction of 100,000 men, and declared that the smaller army cost more than in the pre-reform days. A reduction of £24,000 nominally was’really an increase of £275,000, as £300,000 had been transferred from another account. INDIAN REFORAI. THE LORDS OPPOSE LORD AIORLEY’S SCHEME. LONDON, Alarch 5. An important debate in the House of Lords on the Indian Councils Bill resulted in the rejection by 59 votes to 18 of clause 3, empowering the Governor-General to create an Executive Council in any province under a Lieutenant-general, despite Lord Aloxley’s appeal as to the urgency of the measure. Lord Curzon, Lord Lansdowno, and Lord AlaeDonnell opposed Lord Morley's scheme, though they were sympathetic towards and recognised the difficulties of the situation. Lord Northcoto said that the Bill would fake power from the British representing 100,000,000 agriculturists, and give the control of the councils to middle-class politicians representing insignificant minorities.