§ The PRESIDENT of the BOARD of EDUCATION (Mr. J. A. Pease)I beg to move, "That leave be given to introduce a Bill to impose a penalty on any elector who votes in more than one constituency at a general Parliamentary election."
The House, Mr. Speaker, will not expect me to repeat the various arguments which have been advanced in favour of the principle of one man one vote, upon which this Bill is founded. In 1906 my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies introduced a Plural Voting Bill, and the principle of that Bill was then discussed in all its branches and through all its stages in this House. Last year my hon. Friend the Member for Accrington (Mr. Harold Baker) introduced another Plural Voting Bill, in a very able speech, and the question was discussed on the Second Reading of that Bill, and it was discussed upon the First and Second Reading of the Franchise and Registration Bill over which I had charge. The argu- 1016 ments in favour of the principle are well known to the House, and, so far as there are arguments against, they are also well known to hon. Members. The objection which, I understand, the Opposition takes is not one of hostility to the principle of this Bill, for otherwise right hon. and hon. Gentlemen opposite would not have accepted that principle in connection with their Referendum proposals in 1910; but I believe their objection to be founded upon the view that this is piecemeal legislation and an attempt to redress an anomaly in the interest of one political party. The question, therefore, I presume they would like to put to me is this: "Why introduce legislation merely to help one party in the State from an electoral standpoint and defer franchise, registration, and electoral reform and reconstitution of the House of Lords, and redistribution—subjects upon which there might be a greater consensus of opinion in all quarters of the House?" My reply to any such question would be that during the lifetime of the present Parliament we intend to proceed with these reforms.
§ Mr. MITCHELL-THOMSONPut it in the Preamble?
§ Mr. PEASEWe are all agreed that no Autumn Session ought to be taken this year, except in the case of very exceptional emergency—unforeseen emergency, perhaps I ought to say. The only consideration which, therefore, really deters the Government from proceeding with the other measures such as I have enumerated is the question of time, and owing to want of time it is quite impossible for us this year to introduce any more comprehensive measure. We therefore think it right to confine our proposal this year to this single reform, urgent, long overdue, and which can be effected in a simple manner without prejudicing or trespassing upon further and more complete amendment of the law, of which we have not lost sight, and which we hope later on to achieve.
Perhaps I may proceed at once to explain the proposals of the Bill. It extends to the United Kingdom; it is limited in scope; it will not affect the right of any individual to exercise his vote at any by-election where his name appears on the register. It will not be necessary for any plural voter to choose which qualification he may care to exercise prior to the General Election, and he will therefore be left the full advantage of selecting which 1017 of his plural votes he likes to register. [HON. MEMBERS: "Why?"] We hope by the introduction of a Franchise and Registration Bill before we go to the country to remove all duplication of votes, and our earnestness in that direction is proved in connection with the Bill which I myself introduced last year. We do not deal, as I say, with registration and franchise in this Bill. We do not subject the plural voter to any restriction, or place him in any more onerous condition in regard to his vote than the single voter. If there were any criticism in regard to the Bill of my right hon. Friend in 1906, and the Bill introduced by the Member for Accrington, it was that at any rate in this respect the plural voter was somewhat prejudiced. This Bill is really a one-Clause Bill. There is a second Clause, but the second Clause is "this Act may be cited the Plural Voting Act, 1913."
§ Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSAny Schedules?
§ Mr. PEASENo, there is no Preamble. The operative Clause consists of three Sub-sections. The first prohibits the exercise of the plural vote by enacting that at a General Election a person shall not vote or ask for a ballot or voting paper in more than one constituency. The second Sub-section imposes a penalty on anyone who votes more than once at a General Election; and the third Sub-section defines a constituency and includes universities as well as county divisions and boroughs. The only other point, I think, on which the House ought to be informed before this Bill is introduced is as to the penalties which we impose. There seems to be three different penalties which might be applicable to offences of this kind. One was to make the offence a felony, with the penalty applicable to personation, which was a sentence of two years' hard labour without the option of a fine. That was the penalty imposed by the Unionist party in their Bill of 1888 in respect to anyone who was convicted, not in connection with a Parliamentary but a local election for county councils, and who voted twice in connection with any one borough that is in two separate wards, or who voted twice in two divisions for the same county council. We think that penalty unnecessarily severe, and we are not going to impose it. The penalty which we also disregard is the penalty attached to illegal practices. That 1018 would render an individual liable to a fine of £100 and to be incapacitated for five years from voting in the constituency in which the offence was committed. We do not think that really meets the case. We propose to adopt another penalty which is applicable by Section 6, Sub-section (1) of the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act, 1883, and that would impose a maximum fine of £200 or a maximum period of two years' imprisonment, with or without hard labour. It would incapacitate an individual from holding any judicial or public office or voting in any election during a period of seven years. We have accepted the middle course of these three, and I hope the House wilt agree that the penalty is sufficiently severe and will be an effective deterrent in the case of anyone voting at a General Election more than once. The Bill will remove a long standing injustice, which is detrimental to the interests especially of the poorer and working classes in the community.
§ Mr. F. E. SMITHThe right hon. Gentleman invariably treats us on this side of the House with courtesy, and we always listen to his observations with pleasure and interest…[HON. MEMBERS: "Speak up."] I confess that when he is selected to do the kind of work which falls to his, duty to-day I am reminded of a political party in this House which not many years ago elected a new leader. Let no one be apprehensive that I am going to revive the discord of the Liberal League. I am dealing with an election which took place in connection with the party which now sits below the Gangway, and when it was pointed out that their new leader might possibly be criticised as lacking in some of the qualities of leadership, they replied, "Yes, but, at any rate, he is very respectable." [HON. MEMBERS: "Name."] Surely after that description identity is not so difficult. I cannot but conjecture that some such criterion is adopted when the right hon. Gentleman is successively for two years put forward to defend a proposition which is so difficult to reconcile with what he advocated a year ago, and what he has advocated to-day. I remember him saying at the close of his speech a year ago:—
We think we have given birth to a very lusty child.The partiality of the parent was somewhat falsified by the event, but it is certainly very necessary to inquire how adequate is the justification for the substitution of the very shoddy changeling 1019 which has taken its place to-day. What did the right hon. Gentleman say a year ago? After hearing what he said the House will then appreciate how far from his own point of view the grievances he then stated were greater or less than those he complains of to-day. He said of the system he was going to correct by the important Bill he introduced a year ago:—Our present registration system is based upon eleven different Parliamentary franchises, with at least nineteen variations of different kinds. No one knows, except a few electioneering experts, in this country when he may become qualified or how he is to become qualified.If that is true, then it was a real grievance, but is it a less grievance than the one you have set yourselves to-day to redress or is it a greater one? The right hon. Gentleman further said:—If an individual goes into a constituency on the 17th of next month (July), he will not of course obtain a vote for this year. He will not obtain a vote during 1913, and he will not obtain a vote during 1914, but he will only go on the register on the 1st January, 1915.Those are great grievances—in fact, they are real grievances. They could have been dealt with in a comprehensive measure, which would have received great support in every part of the House, and I was allowed to announce, and did announce, on behalf of the Opposition when the right hon. Gentleman made his speech, and when we did not know that that Bill was going to be abandoned, that we would give nothing but support to that part of the Bill. That was when everybody thought that the Bill was going to be pushed through, and at that time we said that no opposition to that part was to be apprehended from the Conservative party. It is now a subject of curiosity why these pressing needs have been abandoned in favour of a need which obviously is less pressing. The right hon. Gentleman spoke of the extraordinary urgency of his proposals, and he said:—The real strength of the House of Commons depends on the democracy behind Members of this House, and the views of the democracy depend upon the equal votes of the many.That is true. The right hon. Gentleman gave some further illustrations a year ago, and I will summarise them. He said that if any party really wanted to deal with admitted grievances they have a very much plainer grievance than any we are concerned with to-day. We have the fact that fourteen Irish Members, whose votes before to-day have been extremely useful to this Government, are exactly balanced in equality of voting strength by one 1020 Member of the House of Commons to-day. I should have thought that was a real anomaly, and one which was not less injurious to the exact representation of democracy in this House than the proposal which the right hon. Gentleman is now making. Fortunately we are not left to conjecture as to the reason for this substitution. The right hon. Gentleman told us that this was a long overdue measure of reform demanded by the interests of the people. He was more frank a year ago, and he was a little more particular in his definition. He then said:—I am quite prepared to make the admission freely to hon. and right hon. Gentlemen opposite that by the abolition of the plural vote we do expect to gain on this side of the House.4.0 P.M.[An HON. MEMBER: "Why not?"] The hon. Member asks, "Why not?" But that observation appears to me to be both an irrelevant and apposite question, and my answer to it is that no one would complain if you would only honestly say what is true, what you know is true, and what we know is true, that you are introducing this Bill not with the slightest concern for the interests of the country, and not caring a brass farthing whether it makes this House a more exact representation of the democracy or not. The only reason you are introducing this Bill, and the only reason you have given up the idea of introducing the comprehensive Bill which you said was urgently demanded a year ago, is because this Bill loads the dice against you as a party. If that expression appears to anyone ridiculous, perhaps I might quote again from the right hon. Gentleman. He said a year ago that the effect of this in, I think, 260 constituencies would be to disfranchise one thousand persons who are at present exercising the vote, and he told us in the clearest possible manner that he expected the majority of those would be Unionist voters. Let us avoid the expression "loading the dice." [An HON. MEMBERS "Unloading."] That is not a very brilliant interruption; the hon. Gentleman has already been anticipated by some of his Friends. Let us avoid that expression, and let us content ourselves with saying, "Do not attempt other arguments; they impose upon nobody, either in this House or in the country. Tell us plainly, "We are determined at the next election that we will not appeal to the same constituents who sent us here at the last election.' Tell us that to do that under the Ten Minute Rule, adopting a 1021 principle which, whether it be good or whether it be bad, at least destroys the whole basis of voting in reference to localities which has always dominated our electoral system, is a proper step, and at least give us the justification that you are doing it because you believe that you will gain a party advantage by it and injure your opponents." When that full explanation is made, it might also be useful to notice that we have in the scheme under which I understand this plan is to be carried out perhaps the most illuminating and useful illustration of the principles of Home Rule up to date which has hitherto been furnished.
It is proposed, I understand, that this Bill, if it becomes necessary in the vicissitudes of its Parliamentary career, shall become law under the terms of the Parliament Act. [HON. MEMBERS: "Hear, hear."] I think that is almost the first spark of enthusiasm which has been evinced on that side of the House while still smarting under the gross injustice done to them of not being able to extend the penalties to two years' imprisonment. If the Parliament Act is to be applied to this Bill, it will be two years, or nearly two years, before it can become law, and, unless something abnormal takes place, assuming the happy fortunes of the Home Rule Bill, it would appear to follow that before this Bill can become law the Government will once again require the support of those Irish Nationalist Members who, on the basis of the Home Rule Bill, will by that time be attending, or ought to be attending, to their own business in Ireland. At the very moment, in other words, when the principle of Home Rule is most publicly asserted on behalf
§ of Ireland, you are going to inflict a measure of injury on your political opponents by the votes of those Members who, by every theory you held and declared at the last election, ought to be attending to the affairs of their own country. Let me say this in reference to the right hon. Gentleman's statement that we cannot have an Autumn Session this year, and that therefore it is not possible for him to deal with the other subjects of which he spoke: Is it not clear, whether you are in favour of an Autumn Session or not—and probably there are not many differences of opinion amongst us on that point—that the whole question is a competitive one between these different proposals? A Government which wanted to deal with this question with public sincerity would have dealt with the greatest anomaly and injustice, and nobody who reads the speech of the right hon. Gentleman a year ago, and who considers the proportionate space he gave to this subject and to the other subjects with which he dealt, will be under any false impression as to the anomaly, to which he then attached the greatest importance. The reason for that change is patent. You have abandoned the correction of all those great anomalies, because the only part of the whole scheme to which you attach the slightest importance is that part which will, as you believe, improve your prospects at the polls.
§ Question put, "That leave be given to bring in a Bill to impose a penalty on an elector who votes in more than one constituency at a general Parliamentary election."
§ The House divided: Ayes, 303; Noes, 177.
1025| Division No. 31.] | AYES. | [4.8 p.m. |
| Abraham, William (Dublin, Harbour) | Bentham, G. J. | Chapple, Dr. William Allen |
| Acland, Francis Dyke | Bethell, Sir J. H. | Clancy, John Joseph |
| Adamson, William | Birrell, Rt. Hon. Augustine | Clough, William |
| Addison, Dr. C. | Black, Arthur W. | Clynes, John R. |
| Adkins, Sir W. Ryland D. | Boland, John Pius | Collins, G. P. (Greenock) |
| Agar-Robartes, Hon. T. C. R. | Booth, Frederick Handel | Compton-Rickett, Rt. Hon. Sir J. |
| Agnew, Sir George William | Bowerman, C. W. | Condon, Thomas Joseph |
| Ainsworth, John Stirling | Boyle, Daniel (Mayo, North) | Cornwall, Sir Edwin A. |
| Alden, Percy | Brace, William | Cory, Sir Clifford John |
| Allen, Rt. Hon. Charles P. (Stroud) | Brady, P. J. | Cotton, William Francis |
| Armitage, R. | Brunner, John F. L. | Cowan, W. H. |
| Arnold, Sydney | Bryce, J. Annan | Craig, Herbert J. (Tynemouth) |
| Asquith, Rt. Hon. Herbert Henry | Buckmaster, Stanley O. | Crawshay-Williams, Eliot |
| Baker, H. T. (Accrington) | Burke, E. Haviland. | Crean, Eugene |
| Baker, Joseph Allen (Finsbury, E.) | Burns, Rt. Hon. John | Crooks, William |
| Balfour, Sir Robert (Lanark) | Burt, Rt. Hon. Thomas | Crumley, Patrick |
| Baring, Sir Godfrey (Barnstaple) | Buxton, Noel (Norfolk, N.) | Dalziel, Rt. Hon. Sir J. H. (Kirkcaldy) |
| Barnes, G. N. | Buxton, Rt. Hon. S. C. (Poplar) | Davies, David (Montgomery Co.) |
| Barran, Sir J. N. (Hawick Burghs) | Byles, Sir William Pollard | Davies, Ellis William (Eifion) |
| Beale, Sir William Phipson | Carr-Gomm, H. W. | Davies, Timothy (Lincs., Louth) |
| Beauchamp, Sir Edward | Cawley, Sir Frederick (Prestwich) | Davies, Sir W. Howell (Bristol, S.) |
| Beck, Arthur Cecil | Cawley, H. T. (Lancs., Heywood) | Davies, M. Vaughan- (Cardiganshire) |
| Bean, W. W. (Tower Hamlets, St. Geo.) | Chancellor, Henry George | Dawes, J. A. |
| Delany, William | Jones, W. S. Glyn (T. H'mts, Stepney) | Primrose, Hon. Neil James |
| Denman, Hon. R. D. | Jowett, Frederick William | Pringle, William M. R. |
| Devlin, Joseph | Joyce, Michael | Radford, G. H. |
| Dewar, Sir J. A. | Keating, Matthew | Raffan, Peter Wilson |
| Dickinson, W. H. | Kellaway, Frederick George | Raphael, Sir Herbert H. |
| Donelan, Captain A. | Kelly, Edward | Rea, Rt. Hon. Russell (South Shields) |
| Doris, William | Kennedy, Vincent Paul | Rea, Walter Russell (Scarborough) |
| Duffy, William J. | Kilbride, Denis | Reddy, Michael |
| Duncan, C. (Barrow-in-Furness) | King, Joseph | Redmond, John E. (Waterford) |
| Edwards, Clement (Glamorgan, E.) | Lambert, Rt. Hon. G. (Devon, S. Molton) | Redmond, William Archer (Tyrone, E.) |
| Edwards, Sir Francis (Radnor) | Lambert, Richard (Wilts, Cricklade) | Rendall, Atheistan |
| Edwards, John Hugh (Glamorgan, Mid) | Lardner, James C. R. | Richardson, Albion (Peckham) |
| Esmonde, Dr. John (Tipperary, N.) | Law, Hugh A. (Donegal, West) | Roberts, Charles H. (Lincoin) |
| Esmonde, Sir Thomas (Wexford, N.) | Lawson, Sir W. (Cumb'rld, Cockerm'th) | Roberts, George H. (Norwich) |
| Essex, Sir Richard Walter | Leach, Charles | Roberts, Sir J. H. (Denbighs) |
| Esslemont, George Birnie | Levy, Sir Maurice | Robertson, Sir G. Scott (Bradford) |
| Falconer, James | Lough, Rt. Hon. Thomas | Robertson, J. M. (Tyneside) |
| Farrell, James Patrick | Low, Sir Frederick (Norwich) | Robinson, Sidney |
| Fenwick, Rt. Hon. Charles | Lundon, Thomas | Roch, Walter F. |
| Ferens, Rt. Hon. Thomas Robinson | Lyell, Charles Henry | Roche, Augustine (Louth) |
| French, Peter | Lynch, Arthur Alfred | Roe, Sir Thomas |
| Field, William | Macdonald, J. M. (Falkirk Burghs) | Rowlands, James |
| Fitzgibbon, John | McGhee, Richard | Rowntree, Arnold |
| Flavin, Michael Joseph | Maclean, Donald | Runciman, Rt. Hon. Walter |
| Furness, Stephen | MacNeill, J. G. Swift (Donegal, South) | Samuel, Rt. Hon. H. L. (Cleveland) |
| Gelder, Sir W. A. | MacVeagh, Jeremiah | Samuel, J. (Stockton-on-Tees) |
| George, Rt. Hon. D. Lloyd | M'Callum, Sir John M. | Scanlan, Thomas |
| Gilhooly, James | McKenna, Rt. Hon. Reginald | Schwann, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles E. |
| Gill, A. H. | M'Laren, Hon. H. D. (Leics.) | Seely, Rt. Hon. Colonel J. E. B. |
| Ginnell, L. | Manfield, Harry | Sheehan, Daniel Daniel |
| Gladstone, W. G. C. | Markham, Sir Arthur Basil | Sheehy, David |
| Glanville, H. J. | Marshall, Arthur Harold | Sherwell, Arthur James |
| Goddard, Sir Daniel Ford | Meagher, Michael | Shortt, Edward |
| Goldstone, Frank | Meehan, Francis E. (Leitrim, N.) | Simon, Rt. Hon. Sir John Allsebrook |
| Greenwood, Granville G. (Peterborough) | Middlebrook, William | Smith, Albert (Lancs., Clitheroe) |
| Greenwood, Hamar (Sunderland) | Millar, James Duncan | Smith, H. B. Lees (Northampton) |
| Greig, Colonel James William | Molloy, Michael | Smyth, Thomas F. (Leitrim, S.) |
| Griffith, Ellis J. | Molteno, Percy Alport | Soames, Arthur Wellesley |
| Guest, Hon. Major C. H. C. (Pembroke) | Money, L. G. Chiozza | Spicer, Rt. Hon. Sir Albert |
| Guest, Hon. Frederick E. (Dorset, E.) | Montagu, Hon. E. S. | Strauss, Edward A. (Southwark, West) |
| Gwynn, Stephen Lucius (Galway) | Mooney, John J. | Sutherland, John E. |
| Hackett, John | Morgan, George Hay | Taylor, John W. (Durham) |
| Hall, Frederick (Normanton) | Morton, Alpheus Cleophas | Taylor, Thomas (Bolton) |
| Hancock, J. G. | Muldoon, John | Tennant, Harold John |
| Harcourt, Rt. Hon. Lewis (Rossendale) | Munro, Robert | Thomas, J. H. |
| Harcourt, Robert V. (Montrose) | Munro-Ferguson, Rt. Hon. R. C. | Thorne, G. R. (Wolverhampton) |
| Harmsworth, Cecil (Luton, Beds) | Murphy, Martin J. | Thorne, William (West Ham) |
| Harmsworth, R. L. (Caithness-shire) | Murray, Captain Hon. Arthur C. | Toulmin, Sir George |
| Harvey, T. E. (Leeds, West) | Neilson, Francis | Trevelyan, Charles Philips |
| Harvey, W. E. (Derbyshire, N.E.) | Norton, Captain Cecil W. | Ure, Rt. Hon. Alexander |
| Haslam, Lewis (Monmouth) | Nugent, Sir Walter Richard | Verney, Sir Harry |
| Havelock-Allan, Sir Henry | Nuttall, Harry | Wadsworth, John |
| Hayden, John Patrick | O'Brien, Patrick (Kilkenny) | Walsh, J. (Cork, South) |
| Hayward, Evan | O'Brien, William (Cork) | Walters, Sir John Tudor |
| Hazleton, Richard | O'Connor, John (Kildare, N.) | Walton, Sir Joseph |
| Hemmerde, Edward George | O'Connor, T. P. (Liverpool) | Ward, John (Stoke-upon-Trent) |
| Henderson, Arthur (Durham) | O'Doherty, Philip | Wardle, George J. |
| Henry, Sir Charles | O'Donnell, Thomas | Waring, Walter |
| Herbert, General Sir Ivor (Mon., S.) | O'Dowd, John | Warner, Sir Thomas Courtenay |
| Higham, John Sharp | O'Kelly, Edward P. (Wicklow, W.) | Wason, John Cathcart (Orkney) |
| Hinds, John | O'Kelly, James (Roscommon, N.) | Webb, H. |
| Hobhouse, Rt. Hon. Charles E. H. | O'Malley, William | Wedgwood, Josiah C. |
| Hodge, John | O'Neill, Dr. Charles (Armagh, S.) | White, J. Dundas (Glasgow, Tradeston) |
| Hogge, James Myles | O'Shaughnessy, P. J. | White, Patrick (Meath, North) |
| Holmes, Daniel Turner | O'Shee, James John | Whitehouse, John Howard |
| Horne, C. Silvester (Ipswich) | O'Sullivan, Timothy | Whittaker, Rt. Hon. Sir Thomas P. |
| Howard, Hon. Geoffrey | Outhwaite, R. L. | Wiles, Thomas |
| Hudson, Walter | Palmer, Godfrey Mark | Williams, J. (Glamorgan) |
| Hughes, Spencer Leigh | Parry, Thomas H. | Williams, Llewelyn (Carmarthen) |
| Isaacs, Rt. Hon. Sir Rufus | Pearce, William (Limehouse) | Williams, Penry (Middlesbrough) |
| Jardine, Sir J. (Roxburgh) | Pease, Rt. Hon. Joseph A. (Rotherham) | Wilson, Rt. Hon. J. W. (Worcs., N.) |
| John, Edward Thomas | Philipps, Col. Ivor (Southampton) | Wilson, W. T. (Westhoughton) |
| Johnson, W. | Phillips, John (Longford, S.) | Wing, Thomas |
| Jones, Rt. Hon. Sir D. Brynmor (Swansea) | Pollard, Sir George H. | Wood, Rt. Hon. T. McKinnon (Glas.) |
| Jones, Edgar (Merthyr Tydvil) | Ponsonby, Arthur A. W. H. | Young, W. (Perthshire, E.) |
| Jones, H. Haydn (Merioneth) | Price, C. E. (Edinburgh, Central) | Yoxall, Sir James Henry |
| Jones, J. Towyn (Carmarthen, East) | Price, Sir Robert J. (Norfolk, E.) | |
| Jones, Leif Stratten (Rushcliffe) | Priestley, Sir Arthur (Grantham) | TELLERS FOR THE AYES.—Mr. Illingworth and Mr. Gulland. |
| Jones, William (Carnarvonshire) | Priestley, Sir W. E. B. (Bradford, E.) | |
| NOES. | ||
| Amery, L. C. M. S. | Baird, John Lawrence | Banbury, Sir Frederick George |
| Anstruther-Gray, Major William | Baker, Sir Randolf L. (Dorset, N.) | Baring, Maj. Hon. Guy V. (Winchester) |
| Archer-Shee, Major M. | Balfour, Rt. Hon. A. J. (City, Lond.) | Barnston, H. |
| Barrie, H. T. | Gretton, John | Ormsby-Gore, Hon. William |
| Bathurst, Charles (Wilts, Wilton) | Guinness, Hon. W. E. (Bury S. Edmunds) | Paget, Almeric Hugh |
| Beach, Hon. Michael Hugh Hicks | Haddock, George Bahr | Peel, Lieut.-Colonel R. F. |
| Benn, Arthur Shirley (Plymouth) | Hall, D. B. (Isle of Wight) | Perkins, Walter F. |
| Bird, Alfred | Hall, Frederick (Dulwich) | Peto, Basil Edward |
| Blair, Reginald | Hambro, Angus Valdemar | Pollock, Ernest Murray |
| Boyle, William (Norfolk, Mid) | Hamilton, Lord C. J. (Kensington, S.) | Pretyman, E. G. |
| Boyton, James | Hardie, J. Keir | Quilter, Sir William Eley C. |
| Bridgeman, W. Clive | Harris, Henry Percy | Randles, Sir John S. |
| Bull, Sir William James | Harrison-Broadley, H. B. | Rawlinson, John Frederick Peel |
| Burn, Colonel C. R. | Herbert, Hon. A. (Somerset, S.) | Rees, Sir J. D. |
| Butcher, John George | Hewins, William Albert Samuel | Roberts, S. (Sheffield, Ecclesall) |
| Campbell, Rt. Hon. J. (Dublin Univ.) | Hibbert, Sir Henry F. | Rolleston, Sir John |
| Campion, W. R. | Hickman, Colonel Thomas E. | Rothschild, Lionel de |
| Cassel, Felix | Hoare, Samuel John Gurney | Royds, Edmund |
| Castlereagh, Viscount | Hohler, Gerald Fitzroy | Rutherford, John (Lancs., Darwen) |
| Cautley, Henry Strother | Hope, James Fitzalan (Sheffield) | Samuel, Sir Harry (Norwood) |
| Cave, George | Hope, Major J. A. (Midlothian) | Sanders, Robert A. |
| Cecil, Evelyn (Aston Manor) | Horne, E. (Surrey, Guildford) | Sanderson, Lancelot |
| Cecil, Lord Hugh (Oxford University) | Houston, Robert Paterson | Sandys, G. J. |
| Cecil, Lord R. (Herts, Hitchin) | Hume-Williams, William Ellis | Sassoon, Sir Philip |
| Chamberlain, Rt. Hon. J. A. (Worc'r.) | Hunt, Rowland | Scott, Leslie (Liverpool, Exchange) |
| Chaplin, Rt. Hon. Henry | Ingleby, Holcombe | Scott, Sir S. (Marylebone, W. |
| Clay, Captain H. H. Spender | Joynson-Hicks, William | Smith, Rt. Hon. F. E. (L'p'l, Walton) |
| Clive, Captain Percy Archer | Kebty-Fletcher, J. R. | Smith, Harold (Warrington) |
| Coates, Major Sir Edward Feetham | Kerry, Earl of | Snowden, P. |
| Cooper, Richard Ashmole | Keswick, Henry | Stanley, Hon. G. F. (Preston) |
| Courthope, George Loyd | Kimber, Sir Henry, | Steel-Maitland, A. D. |
| Craig, Charles Curtis (Antrim, S.) | Kinloch-Cooke, Sir Clement | Stewart, Gershom |
| Craig, Captain James (Down, E.) | Lane-Fox, G. R. | Strauss, Arthur (Paddington, North) |
| Craig, Norman (Kent, Thanet) | Law, Rt. Hon. A. Boner (Bootle) | Sykes, Alan John (Ches., Knutsford) |
| Craik, Sir Henry | Lawson, Han. H. (T. H'mts., Mile End) | Sykes, Mark (Hull, Central) |
| Crichton-Stuart, Lord Ninian | Lewisham, Viscount | Terrell, George (Wilts, N.W.) |
| Cripps, Sir Charles Alfred | Locker-Lawson, G. (Salisbury) | Terrell, Henry (Gloucester) |
| Croft, Henry Page | Locker-Lampson, O. (Ramsey) | Thompson, Robert (Belfast, North) |
| Dalrymple, Viscount | Long, Rt. Hon. Walter | Thomson, W. Mitchell- (Down, N.) |
| Dalzlel, Davison (Brixton) | Lyttelton. Hon. J. C. (Droitwich) | Touche, George Alexander |
| Denniss, E. R. B. | MacCaw. Wm. J. MacGeagh | Tryon, Captain George Clement |
| Du Cros, Arthur Philip | Mackinder, Halford J. | Valentia, Viscount |
| Eyres-Monsell, Bolton, M. | Macmaster, Donald | Ward, A. S. (Herts, Watford) |
| Faber, George Denison (Clapham) | M'Calmont, Major Robert C. A. | Warde, Colonel C. E. (Kent, Mid) |
| Faber, Capt. W. V. (Hants, W.) | M'Neill, Ronald (Kent, St. Augustine's) | Weston, Colonel J. W. |
| Falle, B. G. | Magnus, Sir Philip | Wheler, Granville C. H. |
| Felt, Arthur | Malcolm, Ian | White, Major G. D. (Lancs., Southport) |
| Fetherstonhaugh, Godfrey | Mallaby-Deeley, Harry | Williams, Col. R. (Dorset, W.) |
| Finlay, Rt. Hon. Sir Robert | Mason, James F. (Windsor) | Wilson, A. Stanley (York, E.R.) |
| Fisher, Rt. Hon. W. Hayes | Mildmay, Francis Bingham | Winterton, Earl |
| Flannery, Sir J. Fortescue | Mills, Hon. Charles Thomas | Wolmer, Viscount |
| Fleming Valentine | Morison-Bell, Capt. E. F. (Ashburton) | Wood, John (Stalybridge) |
| Fletcher, John Samuel | Newman, John R. P. | Worthington-Evans, L. |
| Forster, Henry William | Newton, Harry Kottingham | Wortley, Rt. Hen. C. B. Stuart- |
| Gastrell, Major W. Houghton | Nicholson, William G. (Petersfield) | Wyndham, Rt. Hon. George |
| Gibbs, George Abraham | Nield, Herbert | Yate, Col. C. E. |
| Gilmour, Captain J. | Norton-Griffiths, John | Younger, Sir George |
| Glazebrook, Captain Philip K. | O'Grady, James | |
| Gordon, Hon. John Edward (Brighton) | O'Neill, Hon. A. E. B. (Antrim, Mid) | TELLERS FOR THE NOES.—Lord E. Talbot and Mr. Pike Pease. |
| Goulding, Edward Alfred | Orde-Powlett, Hon. W. G. A. |
§ Bill ordered to be brought in by Mr. Joseph Pease, Mr. Harcourt, Mr. Burns, Mr. Montagu, Mr. Harold Baker, and the Solicitor-General. Presented accordingly, and read the first time; to be read a second time upon Monday next, and to be printed [Bill 85.]