§ MR. TRITTON (Lambeth, Norwood)I claim the indulgence of the House to refer to a mutter which seriously touches its honour, its dignity, and its privileges. I wish, by your permission, Sir, to draw attention to a letter which appeared yesterday in The Daily Chronicle from an hon. Member of this House, to whom I have given notice that I intended to call attention to it. It is a letter which strongly impugns your impartiality, Sir, in the Chair, and seriously calls your conduct in question. With the permission of the House I will read one brief paragraph from the letter—
Another not insignificant advantage I gained by it—namely, that it called pointed attention, which the Speaker's curt severity only emphasised the more, to the contrast between his treatment of the Liberal majority on this occasion and his treatment of the Tory majority under the parallel circumstances of June 10, 1887.I may say that letter refers to the proceedings which took place in the House in the early hours of Friday morning last. I feel sure that these sentiments arc repudiated by all sections of the House. They are sentiments which will meet with universal disapproval, and therefore we most distinctly wish it to be stated in this House that no such suggestion as that you, Sir, have for a moment deviated from the strictest line of impartiality in these Debates can be allowed to be put forward. I refer to you, Sir, for direction as to whether it will be necessary to move that this letter constitutes a Breach of Privilege; and, in the meantime, I will content myself with taking the prelimi- 821 nary step of asking that the letter be read by the Clerk at the Table.
§ The letter having been brought up,
§ "The Editor of The Daily Chronicle.
§ "Perhaps you will allow a 'luckless' wight to state why he courted the 'withering' asperity of Mr. Speaker by making what your reporter is pleased to consider an 'inopportune Motion for the Closure' at half past 3 a.m. on Friday morning.
§ "I knew perfectly well that the Speaker would refuse the Motion. Indeed, it was the talk of the Lobby that he had earlier in the evening told our Leaders it must be a two days' Debate. Whether that be so or not, we felt on our side that we could not give in to the Tory demand to postpone the carrying of the Resolution till Friday afternoon, without the justification of vis major in the shape of the Speaker's refusal to accept any Closure Motion. The moment I had elicited his emphatic refusal to closure the Debate the conditions of the fight were altered, and even without the compromise with the Opposition Leaders, we should have been relieved of all further responsibility, and could have gone home to bed with an easy conscience. I fail, therefore, to see what of inopportune there was in my Motion.
§ "Another not insignificant advantage I gained by it—namely, that it called pointed attention, which the Speaker's curt severity only emphasised the more, to the contrast between his treatment of the Liberal majority on this occasion and his treatment of the Tory majority under the parallel circumstances of June 10, 1887. But then, of course, a Liberal Home Rule Bill is not to be compared with a Tory Coercion for-ever-and-ever Bill.
§ "I believe I moved the Closure at nearly the same hour at which it was accepted by the Speaker on the historic occasion of the 1887 precedent.
§ "Yours obediently,
§ "C. A. V. CONYBEARE.
§ "Southwold, July L."
§ *Whereupon MR. SPEAKER addressed the House, as followeth:—I do not know whether the way in which the hon. Gentleman has introduced this question permits me to say anything to the House now. It was at no instance of mine that this question has been brought forward. I did not know till the present moment that this letter was going to be submitted to the notice of the House. I had not read the letter, and did not know its contents until it was read a moment ago. The hon. Gentleman who has signed this letter—I do not know whether he is present—has in past Parliaments taken upon himself to censure my conduct in the Chair, and past Parlia- 822 ments have signified their disapprobation of the conduct of the hon. Gentleman. In all seriousness, I cannot think that it is respectful to the House for any hon. Member who thinks my conduct is censurable to write to the newspapers. His proper course is to impugn my conduct in this House, and I shall be quite ready to meet the imputation. The hon. Member is not justified in saying that I treated him with curt severity. It appears to me, on hearing this letter read, that the hon. Member was defending himself against a charge, made against him by someone, that his intervention for the Closure was inopportune at the moment, and so I deemed it to be. My action during the whole of that evening is before the House. I maintain that my action in refusing the Closure actually led to a friendly arrangement being made between both sides of the House, which otherwise, I think, would not have been arrived at for some time. The only part which I can take to-night is to deprecate any severe action on the part of the House which it might possibly be willing to take as regards the hon. Gentleman. My only course is to leave my conduct to the judgment of calm-thinking and fair-minded men. Nothing I should more deeply feel than that there should be any just reflection upon my conduct in this Chair. The past relations in which the House has permitted me to stand towards them justifies me in thinking that I am not generally accused of what the hon. Member has accused me of, and I hope I may venture to say that there is not another Member of the House who would think so, or who would accuse me (whatever my failings and shortcomings may have been during a period of ten years) of having ever been partial to one side or the other.
§ MR. W. E. GLADSTONEI have still less advantage than yourself, Sir, of any acquaintance with the matter that is now introduced to the notice of the House, inasmuch as I was not able to be present during the latest hours of the Sitting on Friday morning, when the circumstances arose. But matters of the deepest general interest have been opened up upon which I think it right and imperative upon me to say a word. I understand you, Sir, in the exercise of your carefully-guarded and most impartial 823 judgment to have deprecated further substantive proceedings upon the present occasion. I attach the greatest weight to that recommendation proceeding from the Chair, and I think it would be wise if the House should act in accordance with it. At the same time, I do not think, especially if we are to act in accordance with it, there ought to be any shadow of doubt as to the sentiment which prevails in the House as to what has taken place. I think it most unfortunate that any Member of the House should be tempted to question the impartiality of the Chair, and I believe there are few men in this House who would have been able to maintain that impartiality or to produce that universal impression of impartiality which has been your happy lot during a period of what I may call unexampled difficulty. It is, Sir, still more unfortunate—for I admit that a Member may be justified in, or, at all events, may have to his own mind plausible ground of justification for, questioning the impartiality of any man, however judicial his conduct may have been—I say I think it is still more unfortunate that any Member of this House should so far forget the dignity of the House, as to what is due to the Chair, as to what is due to himself as a Member of the House, and as to what is due to the whole House, as to make his appeal upon such a subject as that to the columns of a public journal. I must say that in my view it is a most grave and serious error, and I feel convinced that the hon. Gentleman, who probably in a moment of haste has been betrayed into that error, will himself, upon reflection, take that view of the question. It would have been at any period in my recollection a duty on my part, if I had stood in the same position, to take this notice of what has occurred. But I think there is also this to be borne in mind: that the duties of the Chair, always difficult, have been growing in difficulty from Speaker to Speaker, and from year to year, so that it is hardly within the limits of the human faculties for any Speaker to undertake those duties and to discharge them in a satisfactory way, and that, in the effort to discharge them made, Sir, as it has been by you, and made with results so remarkable in their character, it is, I think, evident that the whole duty of 824 supporting the Chair has acquired a new force. Every man who is brought to that Bar to take the Oath, and every man who takes his seat upon those Benches, ought to feel, and must feel, during the whole course of his continuance here, that support of the Chair, respect to the Chair, not an acknowledgment of the infallibility of the Chair, but strict regard to the Rules under which alone the conduct of the Chair can be questioned, is one of the primary and most sacred obligations which are incumbent upon every Member of the House. Sir, in deference to your judgment, I hope we shall take the wise advice you have given us; and I confidently hope that what has happened will be a monition and a warning to all of us, should any of us at any time be tempted to pursue a course so unfortunate as that which led to the present interposition.
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURIt is unnecessary that I should add anything to the weighty and eloquent terms in which the right hon. Gentleman the Leader of the House has explained his view of the duty every man in this House owes to you, Sir, and to every man who may hereafter hold the office you occupy. The right hon. Gentleman, speaking from unexampled experience and authority in such matters, has laid down, in terms which I certainly cannot improve, his view, which I think is the view of every man who listened to him, of what the character of our duty is towards the occupant of the Chair. I regret, Sir, that the hon. Gentleman, who had full notice I believe of what was going to occur to-night, has not thought it incumbent upon him to be present now to express to the House what I have no doubt would have been his regrets for what has occurred—not, I fear, for the first time—in the career of that hon. Gentleman. As he has not thought necessary to be present, and as you, Sir, I think wisely, deprecate any further explicit action on the part of the House—["No, no!"]—well, I thought that was implied—I certainly do not know that anything would be gained by my hon. Friend behind me, who has called attention to the matter, proceeding further on the present occasion. I feel that the way in which your observations, Sir, were received by the House at large, and the way in which the speech of the right hon. Gentleman opposite was re- 825 ceived, sufficiently indicate the opinion which is entertained by every Party and by every section of the House, and, I think I may add, by every individual in the House. Perhaps it would be employing too powerful a weapon on this occasion if we should take any further notice of a matter on which we may by silence, even more eloquently than by Resolution or specific action, express our collective opinion. I feel sure that what has fallen from you, Sir, what has fallen from the Leader of the House, and the general sense of the House will prevent in any quarter, or from any individual, a repetition of conduct of this kind; and henceforth, if it should ever be necessary, and I trust and believe it will never be, to call in question the impartiality or the action of the Chairman, that will be done by a regular proceeding known to this House, and will not be done through irresponsible letters directed to the daily Press of this country. I hope my hon. Friend will be satisfied, as I think he has reason to be, with the result of the action he has taken on the present occasion, and that he will not think it necessary to proceed further in the matter.
§ MR. TRITTONintimated that, in accordance with the advice of Mr. Speaker deprecating any severe action which the House might possibly be willing to take, he would not proceed with the Motion which he had intended to submit to the House.