Sitting of 11 May 1921

Preamble
The House met at a quarter before four of the clock, The LORD CHANCELLOR on the Woolsack.

LONDONDERRY CORPORATION (BRIDGE) BILL.
THE CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES (THE EARL OF DONOUCHMORE): My Lords, with reference to this Bill I beg to move the Motion which stands on the Paper in my name dispensing with the Sessional Order. There are special circumstances in connection with tins Bill which, I think, entitle me to make this Motion. I am assured that the Bill will be unopposed and that it is decidedly in the public interest that it should be passed as soon as possible.
Moved, "That the Order made on the 13th day of April last, That this House will not receive ally petition for a Private Bill later than Tuesday the 3rd day of May next 'be dispensed with in respect of a petition of the Londonderry Corporation, under their Common Seal, Promoters of the Londonderry Corporation (Bridge) Bill."—(The Earl of Donoughmore)
On Question, Motion agreed to.

MANCIIESTER CORPORATION WATER WORKS BILL.
Read 2ª.
NUNEATON CORPORATION BILL.
Read 2ª.
ST HELEN'S CORPORATION BILL.
Read 2ª.
BURNLEY CORPORATION BILL.
Read 2ª.
CROYDON CORPORATION WATER BILL.
Read 2ª.

LYMINGTON RURAL DISTRICT COUNCIL BILL [H.L.]
THE CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES: My Lords, I beg to make the Motion standing in my name on the Paper.
Moved, "That Standing Order No. 143 be considered in order to its being dispensed with in respect of the said Bill, and that the Bill be now read 3ª."—(The Earl of Donoughmore)
On Question, Motion agreed to.
Bill Read 3ª, with the Amendment: Bill passed, and returned to the Commons.

HERTS AND ESSEX WATER BILL.
Read 3ª, with the Amendment: Bill passed, and returned to the Commons.
LIVERPOOL CORPORATION BILL. [H.L.]
Read 3ª, and passed, and sent to the Commons.
MID-GLAMORGAN WATER BOARD BILL. [H.L.]
Read 3ª, and passed, and sent to the Commons.
COUNTY OF LONDON ELECTRIC SUPPLY COMPANY BILL. [H.L.]
Read 3ª, and passed, and sent to the Commons.

GERMAN ACCEPTANCE OF ALLIES' TERMS.
THE MARQUESS OF CREWE: My Lords, I understand that the noble Earl, the Foreign Secretary, has some statement to make relating to the acceptance which has been made by Germany of the terms arranged at the Allied Conference, and I trust therefore that he will be willing to make it.
THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (EARL CURZON OF KEDLESTON): My Lords, it is with pleasure that I inform the House that this morning the German Ambassador in London called upon the Prime Minister and handed to him, as the President of the last meeting of the Allied Conference which assembled in London only a week or two ago, the following statement on behalf of the new German Government which has now been formed, and that statement I will now read: —
" In accordance with instructions just received, I am commanded by my Government, in accordance with the decision of the Reichstag and with

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reference to the Resolution of the Allied Powers of the 5th of May, 1921, in the name of the new German Government to declare, as desired, the following:—
" The German Government are resolved—

(1)To carry out, without reserve or condition, their obligations as defined by the Reparation Commission:

(2)To accept and to carry out, without reserve or condition, the guarantees in respect of those obligations prescribed by the Reparation Commission:

(3)To carry out, without reserve or delay, the measures of military, naval, and aerial disarmament, notified to the German Government by the Allied Powers in their Note of January 29, 1921, those overdue being completed at once and the remainder by the prescribed dates:

(4)To carry out, without reserve or delay, the trial of the war criminals, and to execute the other unfulfilled portions of the Treaty referred to in the first paragraph of the Note of the Allied Governments of the 5th of May.

" I ask the Allied Powers to take note immediately of this Declaration."
Your Lordships will observe that this is a complete and unconditional acceptance of the terms of the Declaration, sometimes called the ultimatum, which was handed by our Prime Minister to the German Ambassador, as the result of the proceedings that took place in London ten days ago.
That Declaration I read out to the House at the time, and your Lordships will have it in your recollection, and will see that this is an absolute and unconditional acceptance of the precise terms of the Resolution which I then read out. We have taken steps at once to communicate this decision to the representatives of the Allied Powers who are in London, and to their Governments at the various capitals of Europe. The news, therefore, will be in everybody's possession, and, from my recollection of what was said in the debate, it is a result which your Lordships will have pleasure in hearing this afternoon.
NOBLE LORDS: Hear, hear.
THE MARQUESS OF CREWE: I am sure that your Lordships and the country generally will hear with relief of the conclusion which has been reached by the absolutely unreserved acceptance by Germany of the terms that were agreed on at the last Conference in London and presented to Germany. It is unnecessary now to dwell on the relief which many of us feel in the fact that no further armed occupation of any part of Germany will occur. We developed, during the debate we had in the House, our strong sense of the misfortune to the whole of Europe which such a further occupation would be, and it is therefore an extreme-relief that it has been averted. In particular, as the noble Earl will recall from what I said on the last occasion, the absolute and unconditional agreement by Germany to proceed with the complete measure of disarmament which has been demanded is in the highest degree satisfactory. There is no part of the Treaty of Versailles regarding which it was more necessary that the obligation should be carried out to the full.
I note that, although the final acceptance by Germany of the terms has been so satisfactorily unconditional, it was not arrived at, as was perhaps natural, until after discussions and a difference of opinion in the Reichstag, and was finally carried by a moderate, although sufficient majority, of, I think, 46. It may be assumed, I hope, that that majority, being what it is, represents the settled determination of the German people to act up to the obligations which they have once more undertaken and reasserted, so that we trust there will be no further necessity for representations on the part of the Allies. The past cannot be wiped out, but, although it must be long before relations of amity in the full sense, still more of cordiality, can be arrived at between the two countries, I hope that the relations between ourselves and Germany in the future may be marked by complete correctness on both sides, and by a sentiment between the two countries not altogether unfriendly.

MR. SPEAKER'S RETIREMENT BILL.
Brought from the Commons, read 1ª, and to be printed.
EARL CURZON OF KEDLESTON: My Lords, it will be my duty to-morrow to move the suspension of Standing Order No. XXXIX in order to enable all the stages of the Bill with regard to the retire

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ment of Mr. Speaker to be taken the sitting to-morrow before we separate for the Whitsuntide recess.

PILOTAGE PROVISIONAL ORDERS (No. 2) BILL.
House in Committee (according to Order): The Amendment proposed by the Select committee made.

SCOTTISH BOARD OF HEALTH (MIDWIVES (SCOTLAND) ACT TRANSFER OF POWERS FROM SECRETARY FOR SCOTLAND) ORDER, 1921
LORD STANMORE: My Lords, in accordance with the provisions of section 8, subsection 3, of the Scottish Board of Health Act, 1919, I beg to move to resolve, "That this House approves the Scottish Board of Health (Midwives (Scotland) Act Transfer of Powers from Secretary for Scotland) Order, 1921, presented the 22nd day of February, 1921."
The powers of the Privy Council and of the Lord President of the Council under the Midwives (Scotland) Act, 1915, were transferred, under the provisions of the Scottish Board of Health Act, 1919, to the Scottish Board of Health on April 1, 1920. Under Section 13 of the Midwives (Scotland) Act an annual statement of the receipts and expenditure of the Central Midwives Board for Scotland must be submitted to the Scottish Board of Health, after audit by an accountant appointed annually by the Secretary for Scotland. It is considered appropriate that the power and duty of appointing this accountant should be transferred to the Scottish Board of Health, which is now in other respects the supervising central authority under the Act. The present Order in Council, which is made in virtue of the provisions of the Scottish Board of Health Act, 1919, provides for this transfer.
Moved to resolve, "That this House approves the Scottish Board of health (Midwives (Scotland) Act Transfer of Powers from Secretary for Scotland) Order, 1921, presented the 22nd clay of February, 1921."—(Lord Stanmore.)
On Question, Motion agreed to, and ordered accordingly.

CAPTIVE BIRDS SHOOTING (PROHIBITION) BILL.
Order of the Day for the House to be put into Committee, read.
LORD LAMBOURNE: My Lords, I beg to ask leave to postpone the Committee stage of this Bill as I understand the opponents of the measure have some Amendments which they desire time to prepare.
Committee postponed accordingly.

TREATY OF PEACE (HUNGARY) BILL.
Order of the Day for the Third Reading read.
EARL CURZON OF KEDLESTON: Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a Third time.
Moved, That the Bill be now read3ª.(Earl Curzon of Kedleston.)
LORD SYDENHAM: My Lords, may I ask the noble Earl whether the Government is prepared, as soon as possible, to appoint the Boundary Commissions which, under the Treaty, are to be appointed to settle finally the boundaries of Hungary? In M. 1fillerand's Note to the Hungarian Government great stress was laid on the work that these Commissions might perform in mitigating some of the ethnical and economic grievances of Hungary, and it would be of great value if His Majesty's Government could give an assurance that these Commissions will get to work as soon as possible, in order that some of the hardships inflicted upon Hungary under the Treaty may be removed.
LORD PARMOOR: My Lords, may I also ask the noble Ear] one question? The reason why this Bill has to come before Parliament at all is that it deals with questions of private property and—I will not use the word confiscation— with certain interferences with ex-enemy property. Many cases have come to my notice in which there is great hardship. I am aware that these cases have been recognised to some extent, but that recognition does not seem to have gone far enough. I am not speaking in an antagonistic spirit; but it is a matter which may remove friction, if it could be dealt with in a kindlier and more generous spirit. No country is more interested in preserving the ordinary

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security of property in international matters than this country, and therefore, wish to ask whether the noble Earl thinks there is a possibility of a more generous treatment of this question.
EARL CURZON OF KEDLESTON: My Lords, I find difficulty in giving a definite reply to the noble and learned Lord, for the reason that I am not personally familiar with the cases to which he refers. I attach great weight to his representations, and will look into the matter at the Foreign Office. With regard to the question of Lord Sydenham, I think the noble Lord was not here when I moved the Second Reading of the Bill and alluded to the particular concession made by the Allies, and announced to the Hungarian Government in the letter of M. Millerand, to which reference has been made, with regard to possible modifications of the frontier. The noble Lord will be aware that the. Boundary Commissions cannot he appointed until the Treaty has been ratified and conies into operation. We have been taking the final stages for ratification. There remains ratification by the French Government which, I hope, will not be long postponed. I heard only yesterday, somewhat to my surprise, that the Japanese Government have not yet ratified the Treaty. For what reason I do not know.
Ratification by all the Parties concerned is not necessary to bring the Treaty into operation, and I need hardly assure the noble Lord that, from our point of view, the sooner these Boundary Commissions are set in movement the better. I am not quite certain that in practice they will be found to have the far-reaching influence
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which the noble Lord and some other friends of Hungary anticipate. But that does not rest with the Powers. It rests with the League of Nations. The Report of the Boundary Commissions as to any changes is to be made to them. They are the body who will look into the matter; it only remains for us to put that stage into operation with as little delay as possible.
On Question, Bill read 3ª, and passed.

PUBLIC HEALTH (TUBERCULOSIS) BILL.
Read 3ª, and passed, and returned to the Commons.

CONSOLIDATION BILL PROCEDURE.
Message from the Commons, "That they have considered your Lordships' message of May 5 relative to Consolidation Bills, and do agree with your Lordships therein."
THE LORD CHANCELLOR: My Lords, Lord Muir Mackenzie has given Notice, in the event of a Message being received from the Commons concurring in their Lordships' message of Thursday last to move, "That a Committee of Five Lords he appointed to join with a Committee of the House of Commons to consider all Consolidation Bills in the present Session." That Message having been received, I beg to make the Motion on behalf of the noble Lord, who is ill
Moved accordingly, and, on Question. Motion agreed to.
House adjourned at twenty minutes past four o'clock.

LONDONDERRY CORPORATION (BRIDGE) BILL.
Petition praying for leave to bring in a Bill to provide for the transfer to the Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses of the City of Londonderry of the undertaking of the Londonderry Bridge Commissioners, and to authorise the said Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses to maintain, improve, and work the same, and for other purposes; presented, together with a copy of the proposed Bill annexed thereto, and read, and referred to the Examiners.
SOUTH EAST ESSEX WATER BILL. [H.L.]
  SOUTHEND WATER BILL. [H.L.]
    SOUTH ESSEX WATERWORKS BILL. [H.L.]
    Leave given to the Select Committee to adjourn over to-morrow and not to sit again until Wednesday the 25th instant.
ST. HELENS CORPORATION BILL.
Committed: The Committee to be proposed by the Committee of Selection
WEST HAM CORPORATION BILL. [H.L.]
Presented (pursuant to leave given yesterday), and read 1ª.
MINISTRY OF HEALTH PROVISIONAL ORDER (DOVER EXTENSION) BILL. [H.L.]
  LONDON COUNTY COUNCIL (GENERAL POWERS) BILL.
    MIDDLESEX COUNTY COUNCIL (GENERAL POWERS) BILL.
      SUNDERLAND AND SOUTH SHIELDS WATER BILL.
      Brought from the Commons; read;1ª and referred to the Examiners
NORTH BRITISH RAILWAY ORDER CONFIRMATION BILL.
Returned from the Commons, with the Amendment, agreed to
CONSOLEDAMN BILL PROCEDURE.
Motion to resolve "That a Committee of five Lords be appointed to join with a Committee of the House of Commons to consider all Consolidation Bills in the present session"— having been agreed to: Ordered that a Message be sent to the House of Commons to acquaint them therewith, and to request them to appoint five members of that House to join with the said Committee to which have been referred all Consolidation Bills