African War. The pre-war output of shells-50,000 per annum was fired on that day from our guns every eighty minutes.

On June 26 the Lord Chancellor moved in the House of Lords the second reading of the Housing Bill. He said that if the Government could have relied on private enterprise they would readily have done so, but he was sure that anyone must agree that the need was too great to be met by private building. Lord Downham insisted that there should be a return to private building as soon as possible if we were to avoid national disaster. He gave particulars of the building scheme adopted by the London County Council, of which he was chairman. Ten thousand houses were to be built within the next two years, and 20,000 within the next five years if the Government extended their offer of financial assistance to that period. The cost of house building had doubled. The estimate of the London County Council for the building of the first lot of four-roomed cottages was 8561. each, which was brought up to 1,0501. by the addition of 2007. for land, roads, and sewers. That being so, the provision of 500,000 houses meant the raising of 500,000,000. Ultimately the Bill was read a second time.

In the House of Commons some amendments were made on the report stage of the Land Compensation Bill. One of these provided that the official valuer in awarding compensation should take no account of the fact that the land was required by the Government or a Local Authority. The reason of this amendment was that the entry of the Government or a Local Authority into the market to buy land had the effect of raising the price.

On the same day the money resolution of the Electricity Bill was agreed to. The resolution proposed to authorise the Treasury to advance 20,000,000l. for the carrying out of the scheme. An amendment was moved by Colonel Gretton to limit the sum to 5,000,000l. Mr. Shortt, in replying, said that the Government had every reason to believe, on the best advice they could get, that the scheme would be financially reproductive, and the amendment was then rejected by 136 votes against 26.

The only remaining event of importance during this month in the House of Commons was the rejection of the Dogs' Bill on its third reading. The rejection was moved by Sir W. Cheyne on the ground that the measure would impose an unnecessary and vexatious obstacle to medical research. The amendment was seconded by Sir Philip Magnus, and although resisted by Sir F. Banbury it was clear that the House repented of having passed the second reading. The Bill was thrown out by 101 votes against 62, a majority of 39.

On June 28 the Peace Treaty was signed, as recorded elsewhere, in the Galerie des Glaces at Versailles. The German delegates issued at the same time a statement to the Press declaring that they had signed the Treaty without any reservations.

F

whatever, and in the honest intention of carrying out its provisions to the best of their ability. They hoped, however, that the Entente might in time modify some of the conditions.

News of the signing of the Peace Treaty was received throughout Great Britain with great rejoicings. A notable demonstration was made outside Buckingham Palace by large crowds. The King and Queen, their three sons, and Princess Mary appeared for some time on the balcony and were enthusiastically greeted. On the same day the King issued a message for publication as follows:

"The signing of the Treaty of Peace will be received with deep thankfulness throughout the British Empire. This formal act brings to its concluding stages the terrible war which has devastated Europe and distracted the world. It manifests the victory of the ideals of freedom and liberty for which we have made untold sacrifices. I share my people's joy and thanksgiving, and earnestly pray that the coming years of peace may bring to them ever-increasing happiness and prosperity."

CHAPTER III.

LABOUR DISCONTENT.

THE formal Proclamation of Peace took place on July 2 at St. James's Palace and in the City of London according to tradition. The King's Proclamation was first read from the balcony of St. James's Palace, a Guard of Honour being formed by the Welsh Guards. The procession moved thence to Charing Cross where the Proclamation occupied only a few minutes. A somewhat longer ceremony took place at Temple Bar, the entrance to the City of London, where the Lord Mayor with many members of the Corporation was waiting to give the heralds of peace permission to pass the confines of the City. The Proclamation was read, trumpets sounded, the people cheered, and the procession resumed its way into the heart of the City. The Proclamation was again read at the end of Wood Street where the Cross formerly stood in Cheapside, and afterwards, for the fifth and last time, it was read from the steps of the Royal Exchange.

On July 3 the Prime Minister made a statement in the House on the Peace Treaty and introduced two Bills, one for carrying the Treaty into effect, and another, called the AngloFrench Treaty (Defence of France) Bill, for approving a Treaty between His Majesty and the President of the French Republic. Mr. Lloyd George had a great reception when he entered the House. In the course of his speech he admitted that the terms were in many respects terrible, but affirmed also that they were just. All the territorial adjustments were restorations. As regards the claim for reparation, justice and wisdom were

limited only by the ability of Germany to pay. He denied that there was anything unjust in scattering the German Army and making it incapable of repeating the injury which it had inflicted on the world. It would have been folly to have widened the area of injustice by giving renewed opportunities to Germany for further possible mischief by restoring her Colonies. Those who were responsible for plotting and planning the war should be held personally responsible, as also those who had been guilty of offences against the laws of war: these persons must be tried. The policy of the Government had not been actuated by a spirit of revenge. It was intended to discourage crime seeing that such risks could not again be taken by the world. Replying to the criticism that we were punishing Germany for the crime of her rulers, he pointed out that the nation had approved and applauded the rulers. Supposing the German Chancellor had returned from the Conference with a Germanic peace, the German people would have received the terms with delirious joy. He had no hesitation in challenging anyone to point to a single clause in the Treaty which was not in accordance with the stern and highest demands of justice and fair play.

Turning to the guarantees for the execution of the Treaty, Mr. Lloyd George pointed out that the disarmament of Germany and the destruction of her arsenals made it impossible for her to embark upon another war of aggression. The United States and Great Britain had given guarantees in the event of a wanton and unprovoked attack being made upon France. This arrangement was to be entered into with the approval of the League of Nations. It was clearly and definitely stated in the document that it only engaged us if there was wanton provocation on the part of Germany. There was another guarantee in the Army of Occupation. He said that France did not desire to keep an army in Germany merely to occupy German cities, and if Germany showed her goodwill and gave the necessary guarantees for the execution of the Treaty then France was quite prepared to reconsider the question of occupation. The final and greatest guarantee of all was the League of Nations, which was warmly defended by the Prime Minister, who, however, pointed out that it would be of no value unless it had the sanction behind it of strong nations prepared at a moment's notice to stop aggression. Dealing with the question whether Germany should be admitted to the League at once, he argued that her admission at the present time would open a field for intrigue and dissension. When Germany came in depended on herself, and the time would be accelerated if she showed that she had really broken with the past. Finally Mr. Lloyd George appealed to the country not to waste its strength prematurely by internal dissension. He believed there was too great a tendency to assume that everything would come right without any effort, but we were faced by diminishing output and increased cost of production, which was exactly the opposite

course to that which led to prosperity. He begged the Nation to think, act, and work together and not to demobilise the spirit of patriotism too soon.

Two announcements of new decisions were also made. The first was that the Allied powers had decided unanimously that the Tribunal before which the Kaiser would be tried should be an inter-Allied one and should sit in London. The second was that an understanding had been reached with France, providing that after Germany had carried out her undertaking with regard to disarmament the cost of the Army of Occupation should not exceed 240,000,000 marks a year.

Short speeches mere made by Mr. Adamson, Chairman of the Labour Party, and by Sir Edward Carson, who both paid tribute to the energy with which the Prime Minister had devoted himself to the making of the Peace settlement. Mr. Adamson indicated certain points on which the Labour Party disagreed with the terms, but discussion on these details was reserved to a later date.

We have already referred to the causes leading to a cotton strike during the month of June. At the beginning of July negotiations had very nearly issued in a reconciliation when this hope was destroyed by the action of the spinners in refusing to accept the terms of settlement. The negotiations had been conducted by the United Textile Workers' Association, and the dispute tended to assume the form rather of a split in the ranks of this body than of direct hostilities between employers and employed. At length it was determined that the Legislative Council of the Association was no longer to be the negotiating body, but that in future negotiations should be conducted by the Joint Executives of all the Trade Unions concerned. The effect of this arrangement was to give the spinners a much larger voice in the final decision in the Legislative Council of the Textile Workers' Association to whom there were affiliated in all nine Unions.

The Association had already agreed with the employers upon a forty-eight-hour week and a 30 per cent. increase in the piece rate of wages, on the understanding that the agreement must last eighteen months. The chief cause of dissension on the part of the spinners had reference to the term during which the agreement was to last; and after the reconstitution of the Association fresh negotiations were quickly set on foot and a settlement arrived at, in which nine months was substituted for eighteen months. The Operative Spinners' Amalgamation, the Weavers' Amalgamation, and the other affiliated societies accepted the settlement, and work was resumed on July 14.

At the beginning of the month the House of Lords spent two days in a debate on the second reading of the Church Enabling Bill which was moved by the Archbishop of Canterbury and opposed by Lord Haldane. Lord Crewe, with a view to securing Parliamentary control, suggested the insertion in the

Bill of a provision that no measure passed by the National Church should take effect until it had been approved by a resolution carried in both Houses. After a speech in opposition to the Bill by the Bishop of Manchester, and one in favour of it by the Bishop of Ely, Lord Salisbury protested against the insinuation that there was a conspiracy on the part of Bishops and High Churchmen to obtain through the National Assembly control of the Church. He said that the sole object was to stop the paralysis of the Church due to the difficulty of getting measures of reform carried through Parliament. The Lord Chancellor stated that the Government, after careful consideration, had decided that they were unable to support the Bill in its present shape, and that they proposed to take up a neutral attitude for the time being. The second reading was then carried by a majority of 97.

Great interest was shown by the House of Commons in the report stage of the Transport Bill, when several amendments were moved. The two main points of controversy which had arisen out of the measure had reference to the powers and duties conferred on the Minister in regard to docks and harbours and also to roads. Before the report stage was reached an agreement had been arrived at between the group of members who opposed these clauses and the Government, and amendments were agreed upon which deprived the Minister of the right to take possession of docks and harbours but gave him power to require improvements to be made in docks for the purpose of improving transport, subject to an appeal by the Dock Authorities to an arbitrator. With regard to roads, for the purpose of giving advice and assistance to the Minister a special Roads Advisory Committee was to be constituted composed of ten members to be nominated by the Minister, five as representatives of Highway Authorities, and five as representatives of users of road traffic. These announcements were received with hostile manifestations from the Labour Party, but Mr. Bonar Law assured them that the amendments implied no departure from the object which the Government had always had in view. No question of private enterprise was at issue; the Bill had been introduced solely for the purpose of helping to re-establish the industry of the country after the war by means of the best and most comprehensive system of transport.

The Government nevertheless was attacked by various Labour members for having "capitulated to private enterprise. Mr. Wignall said the Labour Party could not help being suspicious when they found members who had previously stated their intention of wrecking the Bill suddenly change their attitude as the result of an interview with the Prime Minister. Mr. Sexton added that in the Standing Committee the Labour vote had time after time saved the Government. The new clause was, however, agreed to by a majority of 281. The other new clause constituting the Roads Advisory Committee was