A GENERAL EIECTION

Stratford Evening Post, Issue 64, 25 October 1928, Page 3

A GENERAL EIECTION

WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE? RESPONSIBILITY OF ELECTORS. (By Civ is). In 1871 IV. E. Gladstone relin- j quished the position of loader of the Liberals in the House of Commons and retired into private but in 1879, he iv as again in the political arena, being a candidate for the Midlothian seat. In November, 1.879, be delivered an election speech in Edinburgh, in which he very severely criticised) the Government of the day, and in concluding his remarks he stressed the responsibilities cast on electors at a general election. •‘lt is no longer the Government with which yon have to deal,” said M/r Gladstone. “You have to deal with the majority of the House of Commons. The majority of the House of Common, s has completely acquitted! the Government. Upon every occasion when the Government , has appealed to it, the majority ol the House of Commons has been IrU’.dy to answer to the call. Hardly Sa. man has ever hesitated to grant jtho confidence that was desired, however outrageous in our view the nature of the demand might be. PARjLIAMENT RESPONSI RLE.

“Completely and' bodily, the majority of the House of Commons lias taken on itself the responsibility of the Government. The occasion is a solemn one; for as I am the first to aver that now fully and bodily the majority of the Hons© of Commons has, in the face 1 cf the country, by a multitude of repeated and deliberate acts, made itself wholly and absolutely responsible in the 'wfliola of these transactions that I have been commenting upon, and i n many more; and) 'a.s the House of Commons lias done that, eo, upon the coming general election will it have to he determined whether that responsibility so shifted from a Administration. to a nation. If faith, has

been broken, if blood has been needi-

Jossly shed, if the r.hme of England has been lowered from- . tdjiutr lofty standard' which it ought to exhibit to the whole world, if the country has been needlessly distressed), if finance lias been thrown into confusion, all these things as yet are the work of an Administration and a Parliament. ELECTOR MUST DECIDE. “But the day is near .at hand), when that event will taka* p]ac e which will lead Uie historian to declare whether or not'they 1 are- the work - not of an Administration and not of a Parliament,, hub the work of a greut and a free people. If this great and free and powerful people is disposed to associate itself with isuch transactions, if ft is disposed to assume upon itself what some ci- [ vis would call the guilt, and) many ! of us) must declare to be tile heavy | burden, of all those events that have been passing before our eyes, it rests with .them to do it. But gentlemen, let every one of u, s resolve in hid inner conscience, before God and before! mafli—let ihlim reset! ve that he at least will have no share in such a proceeding; that he- will do- hisbest to exempt himself; that he will j exempt himself from: evtery particiI pation, in what he believes to be misi chiovous and ruinous misdeeds; tlihfe j so far as his exertions can avail, no j trifling, no secondary ■ consideration ] shall! slimd in the way of them, or j abate them; that he will do. what j in him lies to dissuade his countrymen from arriving at a resolution so | full of mischief, of peril and of shame.” ;