HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Herald, 1927-12-08, Page 6LL Mil _ G; O RE'S - S`T',,
RISES ONCE' MORE
With His War Chest Filled, 1 -le Is Preparing to Lead the
Liberals in a New Offensive Against the Conservatives
WHAT OF THE FUTURE?
In Britain, where politics are anerman, determined to prove the op -
•kaleidoscope, whereno party coni• polite, As President of the Board of
mends a majority in the country and
where the future is a free-for-all, one
fact clearly emerges to -day. David
Lloyd George is again advancing to
the forefront.
Whatever mistrust there still may
be in his motives, he is at the mo-
ment the undisputed leader of the
Liberal Party. Under his personal
control there is, too, a war chest, con-
taining millions of money, and, on the
chance of adding a further paragraph
to the nage of history, this is a fund
which he is perpared to stake at the
polls. He is supported, too, bya
powerful press, managed by that
amazing embodiment of versatility, eight years.
Lorca Reading. °Moreover, at the, age I Dazzled by Napoleon's generalship,
of 65; Lloyd George has time to use, popular history has overlooked his
but none to waste. In a land where more solid record as a civil admipis
Gladstone was Prime Minister in his trator. ( So has it been with David
eighties, and Balfour, sitting in .the Lloyd George. The world cannot
Cabinet, will be 80 next year, Lloyd realize that to him ,the war and. Ver
George has strength for ten full years thaneies and interruptions rest offit t erethe ieol more e
of office.
o -
To consider Ms career merely as a gress in which he has never ceased
past, therefore, is not enough. That to be interested. Years before the
career is again a prospect. Even his war, he had set in motion what has
critics agree that Lloyd Georgo has changed the face of England.
escaped from Elba and that the Hun- Every Finance Minister, prior to
dred Days have begun. All that they Lloyd George, had told his colleagues
foretell, however, is a Waterloo and to spend as little .as possible.. It was
a St. Helena. lf, then, we outline the an- axiom that the treasury stood for
rise of this astonishing man to pro economy. With a gay exuberance that
miuence before the war, his amazing astounded the Manchester School of
dynamic as one of the. Big Four who Liberals, as it was called, Lloyd
led a shattered world through victory George declared that finance should
to an uneasy peace, and his fall from not . bo restrictive but constructive.
what seemed to be absolute power in- Net only must there be old -age pen -
a comparative obscurity, it is only sions, originated by Asquith, but na-
as a prelude to whatever may be the tional insurance against sickness and
culmination of vicissitudes so uuac- employment. Expenditure? Certain-
countable. The Lloyd. George who ly. And he who proposed it would
has been, "must read the riddle of thefind the money to meet it. He would
Lloyd George with whom, here and tax the rich.
now, the world has to deal. It was veritably a social revolution.
Will They Join Forces? For while Lloyd Georgi did not inter -
Hitherto, Lloyd George has been fere with private. enterprise, confis-
discussed as a colleague of "Asquith." cate
prophe erty
or a tdllterogalm. con -
It
o -
It is not Asquith who .now concerns
us. The real question is how Lloyd which might be and has been inde-
Georgo stands with Ramsay MacDon- finitely extended. His argument was
ah. United, they can sweep Britain. simple. If money could be found for
Divided, they can keep Stanley Bald- wars, it could also be found for; armies
win in perpetual power. Theirs have of industry.
been contemporary careers and often This meant that the entire "New -
they have worked together, behind castle program of Victorian liberal
the scenes. Can they renew such as- ism, which had consisted of home
sociations and dare they avow them? rule for Ireland, the disestablishment
They started -life at the same time. of the Church in Wales, a broader
At a similar age they encountered franchisee and similar political .xnea-
the same events. Both ofthem, more- sures, was overshadowed by the social
over, were born 'Celts. Lloyd George issues.
Is the Ramsay MacDonald of Wales, Of 'the proposals, two views were
and Ramsay MacDonald is the Lloyd and still may be taken. One is that
George of Scotland. The two men Lloyd George killed socialism. The
understand each other. other is that he surrendered to it. It
The Celt is supposed to be capri- was the latter opinion that swayed
cicuz. Ireland and Wales and . the the House of Lords. Repudiating the
Scottish highlands, with their songs financial privileges of the Commons,
ant their feuds, are regarded as re- the peers rejected the budget, and at -
penile of emotion. But the truth about ter two desperate elections, the Com-
- the Celt is not his inconsistency of mons carried the day. If there had
argument but his tenacity of instinct. been no Serajevo, such an achieve -
In essential sympathies, neither Lloyd went would have placed a British
George nor MacDonald . has ever statesman on the roll of the very few
changed, nor ever wilil who have played a decisive part in the
Beta these -nen began life poor. nation's progress.
The one in Lossiemouth, the other in In estimating the services rendered
Llanystymdwy saw and suffered by David Lloyd George in the great
society as society is arranged in a war, we must dismiss from our minds
British village. They encountered the idea that, at any time of his life,
caste and revolted against it. In he was a pacifist. If he opposed the
politics, therefore, they were. hot war in South Africa, it was not be -
Radicals, MacDonaad was 'ae -much cause it was a war but because it was
a Liberal as Lloyd. George, and Lloyd a war waged by the strong against
George was as favorable to Labor as the weak. As Owen Glendower fought
MacDonald, for Wales against King Henry IV., so
Trade, he telt his feet, incidentally;
settling the first of the great coal dis-
putes. But it was when Campbell -
Bannerman died that the big chance
came. Indeed, "the little Welshman"
seized it,
Hero* of "Lefts"
Like other parties, Liberalism had .
its Right and its Left. Asquith, as
Prime Minister from the Right, had
to be balanced by a man of:=Tess nega-
tive achievement,:., David Lloyd
George, the hero of the Left, thus be -
carne -Chancellor of the Exchequer,
and the first of the kind. It was an'.
intimate partnership that lasted for
Temperaments Differ.
did Lloyd George fight for the Boers
But in temperament and training against Joseph Chamberlain and the
their personalities diverged. Like mobs of Birmingham. Similar were
poets, both of the rebels 'suffered from hissympathies with Belgium and Ser-
'
•
an eternal want of, pence, and their Ser-
bia
fact, he was actually leading
only university was earning a liveli- the peace party in the Cabinet, which
hood. James Ramsay MacDonald, as
in July, 1914, strove to avert the dis-
a journalist, read and wrote, seeing
aster, and was in close touch at that
men in books and the brain of men at time with Ramsay MacDonald, who
what is supposed to bo its beat. Lloyd was taking a similar line in the House
George, as a solicitor in the junior of Commons. When, however, Ger-
branch of the law, met men face to many began to cross frontiers, Lloyd
face, and usually at moments when George accepted the fact of the war
clients display their weaknesses. It and, like Roosevelt, would say, "If you
was from different schools of expert -
hit, then hit hard."
once, therefore, that they were gradu- policy Not portfolio.
ated.
inspired by Karl Marx and the Of what followed libraries have
Fabian Society, MacDonald organized been written. That Lloyd' George in-
9 Labor Party. But Lloyd George, trigued with the Tories, with North -
though restive under the Gladstonian cliffs, with Beaverbrook, appears to
yoke, remained a Liberal, fighting his be indisputable. That he wished to
way into the House of Commons and run the war is also admitted, But
there stirring up insurrections against that he cared about the office of Prime
the old gang." The student oNiti- Minister, as such, is a theory which
orates and the practitioner in immedi- misinterprets his character. It is the
sten trod different paths, policy, not the portfolio, that Lloyd
A slightly built, eager, well-groomed George has always desired.
stripling of a statesman, with black To the Liberal Party, his triumph
hair brushed to an ample gloss, Lloyd over Asquith and the coalition with
George loved the platform; but what the 'Conservatives were acts of treach-
he valued was print, Then, as now, ery, unparalleled in politics. Win the
his tactics might be summed up as war? There were greater disasters,
space in the newspapers. He had the so it was declared, under Lloyd
better chance because Liberals in the George than ever there had' boob. un-
House of Commons were Yew; every der his less advertised predecessor,
one counted and every one was want- Ile that as it -nay, this village lad
ed to speak. from Carnarvonshire, who had never
Precisely why Balfour liked him, been to EOM. or Harrow, oxford or
has been to Many people, a mystery. Cambridge; whose budget had been
They did not. notice that, amid all the refected 11 tamp peers: whose name
bitterness, Lloyd George treated Bal- had been oxevrated by peereslee Rncd
four as hie senior and as a great pian. bafkere and lancllorile, wielded
It was a tribute that, conveyed With powers for a time that a Mussolini
infinite subtlety, Balfour did not re- might have envied-- powers that wOre
sent, all the more ittoredible because they
As a labor leader, MacDonald had were supported tiot by the suppres-
acted on the assumption that even in sive force of a Fi ascismo., but by pleb -
the early 90e Liberalism had become lac opinion. The Opposition still went
obsolete, In 14€5, Lloyd George, by on, The newspapers could still say
coining the Csibitiet of Dampliell-Bat►•
-
0
ar
Old Laud Fagerati'yUp*oMDat6
THE LORD MAYOR'S SHOW .
When Sir Charles Bathe made an official' visit to the king at Westminster the show was nigra elaborate
than ever this year, several historical floats taking part. The city of London state coach is here seen on the way
to the Abbey.
..w
could not find or keep a seat in the
House of Commons.
Then, in a night, the autocracy col-
lapsed. Angered by liberties granted
to Ireland, the Conservatives unmade
the man whom they had made. If
Lloyd George had dreamed of the na-
tional party, advocated by Churchill
and Birkenhead, he Woke up to find
himself in a nightmare. The man who
had been everybody was nobody. Re-
turning from Paris, he had been met
by the King himself. In the House.of
Commons the rise of Labor now re-
duced the triumphant Caesar to a cor-
ner seat below the gangway.
Liberal Disastee.
Never had any party suffered a dis-
aster comparable with the .shattering
of Liberalism. Not only was the vote
split with Labor, but what was left of
it had been discouraged by the inter-
necine feuds between the friends of
Asquith and of Lloyd George. Per-
sonalities devastated politics and La-
bor loudly acclaimed the end of the
faith held by Bright and Gladstone.
kYet no other party than the Liberal
Party would look at Lloyd George.
The score or two of "Wee Frees," as
they were playfully described, who in
the House of Commons survived the
debacle, were his only chance, and
half of them hatedhim with the
hatred of a vendetta. Yet he began
to recover his position.
But, even at the worst of times,
Lloyd George was never down as well
as out. No statesman who has been
Prime Minister is superanuated ex-
cept by disease or death. He is held
in reserve, sitting as before in Parlia-
ment and joining still in debate. Party
or no party, Lloyd George in the
House of Commons has continued to
be a personality. To ignore a pian
who speaks as he speaks has been
impossible.
As Prime Minister he was criti-
cized by others. He is now himself
the critic. He has the advantage of
an offensive in which he has always
been a past master. The swing of.
the pendulum is in his direction, and
he helps to swing it.
Stanley -Baldwin hopes to save him-
self by means of what is called the
Rapper vote—that is, the suffrages of
women between the ages of 21 and 30
years. It is supposed that, alarmed
by Bolshevism, they will vote Conser-
vative. But some Conservatives are
too masculine in their prejudices to be
sure of this result. They fair the
feminine in politics -especially do
they dislike Lady Astor and her tem- impressive pause, "what of it? - I had
perance ideas: my r-easons."
Perhaps Not Premier.
In a future Goverirment Lloyd
George would not demand, of neces-
sity, the Premiership. Why should
he? Wherever MacGregor sits is the
head of the table, and personal adapta-
bility to circumstances greatly as-
sists a statesman who knows that he
can only return to power if there be
a bargain. Lloyd George does not ex-
pect that the Liberal Party will obtain
a majority at the election. He does
think that it will win back enough
seats to be the balance wheel between
the other parties. Either to Conser-
vatism or to Labor, a Liberal alliance
will be essential..
Has War Sinews. •
Hence his adroit management of his
war chest. For the expenses of 500
candidates at the next election, he has
released $1,500,000. But he retains an
ample balance for later emergencies.
To Lloyd George even the Liberal
Party is no more than a means to an
end.
To enumerate his blunders—of what
use is that? People merely say that
it must be a big man who survives
them. To attack his war chest, as _
Lord Rosebery did—how does that
help? What party has not had a war
chest? Did hie Government traffic in
titles? . When have Governments
tailed thus to adorn their friends?
There is the story of Ramsay Mac-
Dahald himself and an automobile.
Nowhere is Lloyd George vulnerable
except in the spots where, to his re-
torts, his rivals are also vulnerable.
Is Genius Anyway.
Moreover, he has the look of a big
man. His face, once smooth' and alert,
is now lined and massive. His hair,
once black and glossy, is white and
still abundant. He is a man whom
audiences *ant to see and want to
hear. He is a man who has been in
the inside of the greatest decisions
ever recorded among- mankind. To
himopportunist is
Canada's Ships
Will Lack Nothing
Comforts of Home With
Latest Luxuries in
Vessels
Ottawa.—Comfort and luxury for
first-class passengers are amply pro-
vided for in the specifications for
three passenger and freight ships for
the new West Indies service, which
are to be built by the shipbuilding
firm of Cammel Laird & Co., Limited,
Birkenhead, England, for the Domini-
on Government for $3,849,000, accord-
ing to the contract recently awarded
by the Government. In addition to
these three vessels, the firm is to
build two more ships for use in the
Canada -West Indies service. -
The specifications for the first three
vessels are as follows:
Length over all, 438 feet; length
between` perpendiculars, 415 feet;
loaded draught, , 24 feet; moulded
breadth, 59 feet; gross tonnage,
about' 6,400, They will have straight
stems, raking forward, counter -sterns,
one, funnel, two pole masts, fore and
aft rig, and six decks—boat, promen-
ade, bridge, upper,' main and Iower.
There will be passenger accommo-
dation for 103 saloon, 32 second-class
and 100 steerage There will be cargo
Young Moor Sultan\
is Keen for ,Sports\:
Fie Likes to Tinker Witf ,
Motors and to Rica Blooded
Horses—Has a Good
Education
Pee, Morocco--Moul;ay Mohammed'\
the newly elected' fourteen-year-oW,
Sultan of Morocco, is keenly interest-'.
ed iu all sports and is also one of the\n.
best educated youths in the Dark Co
talent. "
The boy is entitled to four wiyeal
under Mohammedan law and has onel.1
Be and his two elder- brothers *ere
+
married' in a triple, ceremony .thirteen
months ago. Moul�ay adobammedi.
took as his ;,bride a first cousin, al
daughter of his father's brother; Mona
lay Jahar. t
Most of the youth's education ha
been imparted by French tutors, and '
it ;le said in Morocco trout lie le so filli
bued with the European idea of mono -1
gamy that he may be satisfied with
one wife. However, the ancient trap.l
pings of the inr,perial harem will sure
round him.
Prom the Sultan's office in • �the`•paI
ace he will occupy, four doors ops
leading in as many 4jrections to apart
lents each of whidhi itracliitioually i
reserved for one of the four wives
officially permitted the rulers,
Ladies of the harem which the late
Sultan left are Like to pine away?
their livee in a palace that is to ba
provided thr them. The Government
will eupply funds for' their support.
The boy Sultan is. an automobile
fan and a fine horseman. He has siev-
eral cars and, having a knack wit'
machinery, spends a great ...deal of
time tinkering with the motor. Inr;
driving .across- the country he often
takes the wheel himself. •
The lad likes hiellhorses a bit 'wild'
and will not ride+anything but al
thoroughbred with spirit, His, tutors!
found this out long ago, when they
tried to mms akehim ride mogentle
mounts of the type usually given to
children of the sovereign for their own
protection.
As a youth he is said to have
climbed! every tree in the palace
grounds. His physical instruction
wasp in charge of the Sultan's Black
Guard. Indoors hiss favorite studies
were the sciences and literature.
Sultan `'Moulay Mohammed is a
youth of clean-cut features, jet black
eyes and clear straw-colored skin. He
speaks French perfectly. Hamada is
the familiar name by which his in
�=
mates know him. His full regal oaguo-
men is Moulay Mohammed Ben Moulay
Yussef ("Ben" meaning "son of").
The Sultan's two older brothers, who •
for some -reason lost out in the selec-
tion of the naw Sultan, were not at
Fez when the religious and political
accommodation for about 27,000 cubic {chiefs sof the country made their choice.
feet for general cargo, and about 13,-
000 cubic feet of insulated space,
divided into•'four compartments for
the carriage of perishable cargo. Two
vessels will have four holds, two 'for-
ward and two aft. 'They will be pro-
pelled by twin screws, driven by oil-
fired geared turbines.
The, captain's quarters will. be lo-
cated on A deck, together with the the throne of the Alide dynasty after
quarters of the deck officers, the en -the last rite called for by ancient
gineers and the wireless operator, and tradition is performed—the holding. of
ridicule as an also the wireless office. The after end his stirrup for him by the most Ben•
merely to say that Paderewski is no of this deck will consist of promenade crated religious leader, the Snerif of
pianist because he can play trills. Yu space. There will be suite's, each Wezzan. Without this, no Sultan can
his achievements there is something consisting of sitting room, bedroom be said to have been invested with hie
not to be , explained by opportunism. powers of office.
To put the case in a word, Lloyd
George- love him or hate him—is
what the race recognizes as .genius.
One of the brothers' was at Marrakesh
and titre other was in the country near
Fes.
A salute of 100``guns will be fired
in the Sauitan's honor when he makes
his• formal entry into Rabat, seat of
the Government and the French
Residency.
At Rabat he will take possession of
This is a true bridge story. She
was only a beginner, but she meant
to keep her end up, and so she was
not at all abashed when her partner
said, "Do you know you revoked?"'
"Well," she replied, after a short but
and bath; also rooms.with private
showers. Some of the suites will. be
luxurious.
A laundry, barber shop - and dark
room for photographic purposes will
add to the comforts and convenience
of passengers.
As these vessels will trade in both
tropical and cold waters special atten-
tion has been given to the: ventilation
and heating arrangements on the
three vessels. It is understood that
they will be painted white.
Well Remembered by Many of Us
This piece of trench ou the my Ridge front and the old
Vi
time condition to stand forever as a nienhorial to the Canadians
what they liked, tut Asttuith hifnsolf oeinent so the old trenches will last for many 'earay
C4rango tunnel are being put back in their warn
bap here
who fell there, The are tilled with moist
r C
Conan Doyle
Asserts Houdini
Was Medium
Says Magician. Was Foe of
Spiritism in Public, But
Had Different View
in Private
The late Harry Houdini, magician,
who was known for his fight against
mediums, was in reality the greatest
psychic medium of modern times, ac-
cording to Sir A. Conan Doyle, who
begins in the issue of Mystery Stories
a study of Houdini.
Admitting, that Houdini's public at-
titude was uncompromisingly anti
spiritism, Sir .Arthur wrote;
"But this was not in the least his.
attitude in private. I suppose that
there are few leaders of the move-
ment, and few known mediums, who
have not letters of his taking the tone
that he was a `sympathetic inquirer
who needed but a little more to be
convinced. His curious mentality,
caused himabsolutely to ignore the
experience of any one else, but ho
seemed to be enormously impressed
if anything from an 'outside source
came in his own direction,
"On one occasion Houdini showed.
me a photograph which the had taken
in 'California, '1 believe it to be the
only genuine spirit photograph ever,'
taken!' he Cried. To my mind, it was
a very doubtful one, and olid which no
sane spiclitualist would have passed
for a mometn. But, in any case, if his
was, as ho claimed, genuine, why
should heput down all °theta to
fraud?"
The creator of Sherlock Holmes
Writes; that since the death of Houdini
he had received several messages pier
porting to onto front him, but "none
of them contained the conclusive
proofs upon which 1 insist."
anxious ''young Father (as doctor.
,...
appears from -sickrocnx)•-•--"i'�:rin
tier?" Doctor- = Theeti,"