Lord Roberts associated himself with the criticisms of Lord Curzon,
while Lord Sydenham, speaking from the cross- benches, condemned the Bill as vicious in principle and dangerous in practice. The proposed method of election would be peculiarly distasteful to the Princes and Chiefs of India, who had not the least belief in electoral methods, and would never dream of employing them in the selection of their councillors. Lord Crewe deprecated the view that the Act of 1858 was a sacred measure which must not be touched. As for the alleged assumption of autocracy, there were count- less checks imposed upon anything approaching autocratic action by the Secretary of State. He did not deny that the procedure could be speeded up by short cuts, but it was a questionable method, and they came uncommonly near break- ing the law on many occasions. Lord Crewe's lukewarm advocacy, coupled with the failure of Lord Morley to meet the damaging criticisms of the made its rejection a
certainty, the figures being 96 to 38, or a majority of 58.
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