BALFOUR'S DEATH SONG

Grey River Argus, 13 May 1911, Page 5

BALFOUR'S DEATH SONG

(By Elertric Telegraph— Copyright. (Red 10.30 p.m.) . LONDON, May 12. Mr A. Balfour, speaking in the Albert Hall, said that the country must have a strong effective second chamiber, able to carry out a .great and dutiful, not; a pitiful beggarly modicum of responsibility given by Parliament Bill 'Government proposed, and indefinitely postponed t^e. .admittedly necessary reform of tE^^^jds, and , he insisted that we should^J|i^^c to bbverried by- one chamber He called that a gross, palpable, nimjf almost criminal - inconsistency. The Lalbour Party was consistent. They constantly declare • that they = see no object in having a second chamber. They ' can vote for this bill with a dear conscience. The >bill gives them a single cham-ber "Government. Their position is unassailable, tout I cannot imagine inconsistency greater tha:i the Government saying that the futr ure constitution, must be toi-cameral, yet Parliament framing, it may ibe, a single chamber constitution. The only explanation of such humiliating straits is that able men are driven thereto by the necessity of keeping a majority 'in the House of Commons. Mr A"sfquith at Manchester had claimed' that if Home Rule were relinquished the Government would have no difficulty insecuring- assent to the Parliament Bill. This was an inversion of the real facts. There would have oe-m no Parliament Bill but for Home Hule. LONDON, May 12. Mr Balfou r said there might have been reform at the Second Chamber, and a change in the relation of the itwo Houses, but never the absurdity of sugegsting a transfer to a single chamber elected on a different issue. Of all the most fundamental, important, and unvaluable elements of the constiution, whether what the .Government proposes is Home Rule on the Gladstonian or some other unknown model, ought never to ibe passed iby a single chamber alone, but either be subjected to revision by two dependent legally and co-equal chambers or referred to the people as a whole. (Cheers). The true solution of the constitutional question was, firstly — a change in the constitution of the second chamber not an alteration of its powers, at all' events not a fundamental alteration of the powers proposed by the Parliament Bill; secondly, deadlocks should bs met iby conferences for conciliation and joint sittings ; thirdly, matters of grave importance and special instance by referendum. (Cheers). Nothing could toe more entertaining or pathetic ithan to see opponents who had been v >? talking about democracy.,, throughout their lives., struggling to show, that an appeal to the people on a specific issue was the worst service renderable to the democracy. Mr Balfour concluded claiming that the Unionists were the only true democratic party in the State.