IMPERIAL POLITICS.

New Zealand Mail, 15 February 1900, Page 17

IMPERIAL POLITICS.

DEBATE IN THE HOUSE OF , COMMONS. THE MOTION OF CENSURE NEGATIVED. ' J J LOiNJJON, February 6. I he debat e on Lord Edmond Fitzmauyice s motion of censure upon the balisbury Government— which is charged with want, of knowledge, foresight, and judgment iri the management of South African affair's, and in thn nroparations made for war—is still prricccdiPS m the House of Commons. The Right 'Hon Sir William Harcourt, formerly Leader of the Liberal party, spoke to-day in support of the amendment, and warmly criticised the •o lS t erial P°U c y- . Inquiry must, he said, be made now into - the circunistanconnected with-the war, or it would ueyer be practicable. -In-his own opmlon, the ..present crisis- was traceable tothe dictatorial attitude of the 'Government, and its reversal -of- the policy of its predecessors. . .The Secretary of g tate for the Colj _ nies (Right Hon Joseph Chamberlain) IG n to i - h i! S attack in a -brilliant speech, which was conspicuous for its frankness of tone. The questions-at issue -between Great Britain arid the Boers, had been grave from a period long antecedent to 1881. The Majuba Hill disaster m.that year had but served to intensify their gravity. The policy of magnanimity on the part of the British Government had proved a failure, and both .the late Mr Gladstone and- Air Schreiner, Premier of Cape Colony, though favourably disposed towards the Boers, had been obliged to use force in compelling the observance of agreements,. - i As to the criticisms which had been leyefled at the military arrangements of the,-Government, Mr ‘ Chamberlain said rue Ministry was quite ready to bear all the. blame that was due for the absence of-more complete military preparations.-But-Ahe.,reason for its unpreparedness : was,.that it had hoped that the difficulty v’oum be met by diplomatic means, without the. necessity for war. Now however, that the struggle, had been forced ‘ upon it, the. Government • was doing ,rts utmost to repair the mistakes of the p s U Its policy in the diplomatic negotiations had been based upon the despatch sent in 1894 by the Marquis -of Ripon, then Secretary of State for the Colonies in the Rosebery Ministry; in which the granting of the franchise to all outlanders of five years’ residence in •the .Transvaal was recommended. „ The British Army, in the field- in South Africa would soon, proceeded the gpeater 5 number two hundred thousand troops.. The colonial .soldiers. - in it alone,, wquld ? outnumber the British troops; who fought at Waterloo, arid ,woqld : nearly equal. the British \ Army einployed in the Criinea. The Government was resolved that it would not al- : low. a . second: Alajuba ! to occur, and would , not, allow. - any citadel to * remain which threatened -the paramount cy of Britain iri South Africa: , *. Great Britain was, said Mr Chamberlain, gratefully accepting the splendid offers that had been made spontaneously by the colonies, and he spoke in terms of, glowing eulogy of the magnificent spirit of Imperialism, which they be--spoke.-j The. tendency throughout Britain's .dependencies indicated a steady" realisation -ofthe federation.:; of the whole . British race a consurnriaation. whicli; would, make for peaGe, liberty and justice. - 1 Jv V.. ; 1 : , UMr -Uhamberlaiu accused the Opposii k tioii - pi 'inconsistency-; m ifirst' declaring -that- trie; way was unnecessary, and then ' h.,; 2 .iFkal-w’eh.‘ ■ -k V w '. i.; ffheiffon:.: H Aspri ith' ’ ’whoJ Home iril thef'-ladff Lrrieral rMiniSiiyy ip ’t«»rigmuirig>:tlie Lord Fitz- ; maurice’s amendirienl?/;> exonerated!the Ggoyerntrient l from the charge of desiring to precipitate .hostilities with the Trans? vaal. In his opinion Kruger was the sole author ;of;the war; for he” had raised,' injtentiorially, many impossible demands. Great Britain-had, however; been embari rassedl.by Mr Chamberlain’s ruiming comm’enAary . oa.Transvaal affairs in: and out of Parliament. ms despatches- and speeches; now, belorigeA to-the- Recording .Angel; hiit doubtless Mr Chamberlain .wpuJd them.tq^ayi.’f i; 4 p ,; i Z. cWcrfc after-a' fi f; F :; J6hn 7 for-’'BatterseaTjj-idifsefibed the British troops as the saries of Jews. ( r - r- .*- y v y <- jAlr J. Havelock-Wilson, .M.P., for Middlesborough, spoke iri favour Of upholding 'the,Empire;;;;; \J; 'V; .r-V . Sir Heiiry Campbell-Bainriermari, lead-, er. Of r thq Liberal party, in supporting hheyameiidmerif, recommended the continuation. of the.war until Great Britain’s military’superiority had‘been asserted. . . .The Hon A i J? Balfour, First Lor a of the. Treasury, ■ described Lord Fitzmaur- , ice’s ajnendmerit as being merely an attack on Mr Chamberlain. . Mr Balfour was warmly cheered for eulogising. his success in. welding the Empire into- a homogeneous whole. • In conclusion, he made A' warm appeal to the Opposition,to ;-show ! the' soldiers of .the country that tpe undivided." :- r .. J Ori a being taken, the amendment was negatived by. 350 yotes to ,139. iMr,Chamberlain's speech in .the Ho f iise or Commons has caused a great impression in Germany and in Austria, - r -

The address is described by the press as having been the “saviour of the British Ministry." The French newspapers have been cruelly awakened. They had imagined that Mr Chamberlain was ruined. When the division on Sir Edmond Fitzmaurice’s amendment was taken thirty-eight supporters of the Government were absent from the House—- • chiefly from the front- benches. All the leaders of the Opposition voted. for the amendment in. spite of an appeal by the Right Hon Mr Balfour, who urged that patriotism required the ; nation to show a united front. ” - The members of the Irish party ab-i stained from voting.’ - Fifty members of the Liberal party' presented a requisition to ikeir leader, . ir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, tire;- ■ nig him not-to divide the House on the ! question, but he persisted in doing so. -■ . _. LONDON, February v ß..' . the House of Commons,- the mo- ’ tmn tabled: by Air Redmond,, one 'of tiri > -■ Irish members, 1 declaring that the war - was unnecessary and unjust, and* 'ought-' to be ended on the basis of the recogrii—’ tion of the independence of the Dutch ' Republics, was debated to-day. it -he speakers were mainly devoted to the claims of Ireland to Home wuh si fces and cheers! Jlr- T. W. Russell, member for South Tyrone, lamented the fact that the representatives of Ireland, a country that claimed to be oppressed, were champions of the cause of one of the most odious and tyrannous Governments of the century. . On the division being taken, the mction was rejected ‘by 368 votes to 66. Sir Henry Campbell - Bannerman, - ALf ader the Liberal party, and sixtry of his followers, voted against the motion; ■ . - The only Liberals who supported! the - motion were Sir Wilfrid Lawson-, Mr John Bums, -Air Roberts, and Dr G. B. • Clai'k. . During the debate Commander Beth- •* ell R.N., Conservative member fci-, Holderness, . created - a - sensation': by clarjng that; the- war was ;unjust, and . that’ it was ■a. • racial ■ conflict; which - it- • ' r ~ will be impossible to settle by means Of the‘sword at such a distance. - • FEELING- IN SOUTH AFRICA. “PERMANENT PROSPERITY - 4ND "FREEDOAI.” LONDON, February 9. Sir Gordon Sprigg, ex-Premier of Cape Colony, in telegraphing a comorimentary message to -Mr ; Chamberlain upon the overwhelming patriotic majority against- Lord Fitzmaurice’s amendment, says the policy of the Imperial, Government' will, if steadfastly pursued, secure under British suprexriacy ' per- ’ manent- prosperity and freedom-iri South’ ; Africa. " .v' ,-i t DISAPPOINT3IENT TN FRANCE. - Chagrin is displayed by the Parisian ' press a| the increasing' popularity and! influence upon British politics of the _Right Hon Joseph Chamberlain, Secretary of State for the Colonies, as shown by the result of ithe division- on Sir Edmond Fitzmaurice’s. censure motion. . - A BY-ELECTION. ' * ‘' “ . AUCTORY FOR! THE -UO^ERNMENT. ,- 1 - , ;LQNDON,..''Febmafy Li- •- r A by-electipn ,'to . fill ithe va-Aricy "f4'- ! * the ?f Commons caused by . Rear- 1 Admiral; Lord Charles Hfri}sfbrdljiayirig' .' rejqined -A-he.'Navy—ke i.was,, j' lately' pointed ; second.'-iri-commarid.iof, ihei Mepf-. > “ itrim^eaui,p squadro.ri-?-has J “ i iwfos -held.;',- v u-i’The :Consefvalrve&-- w^»ln J -" j won? 0 • George Denison..JElabec-.being returned with .6248 votes, as against 4818 polled by Mr Murrayy the Liberal candidate, btrThe. iifef'6hsed ; Govferkmbritr lriajority tin the- election is ascribed to the ‘ing dissatis'factiori) arriong?- the : hleetors; with what is regarded as ih4 inoppoitune tactics of the Opposition in Par-v ' liament. 5 ' 1 "