A further interesting fact that emerged from the debate was
the fresh decline in the prestige of the Prime Minister. Mr. Buchanan's vitriolic abuse of him was allowed to pass unchallenged until Mr. Holford Knight, a National Labour Member, raised the question as a point of order. Then the Chairman of Committees, admitting " a share of human fallibility," excused himself for not having demanded a withdrawal by Mr. Buchanan at the time of his offensive remarks, by pointing out that no Member had drawn his attention to them. There is no doubt that the House would have been in an uproar if Mr. Buchanan had made a similar attack on, say, Mr. Baldwin or Sir John Simon. Mr. MacDonald has himself very largely, to blame for this by his very lax attendance on the Front Bench. Obviously the Prime Minister has heavy claims on his time when the House is sitting, but on important occasions, when feeling is running high, he clearly ought to put aside everything in order to under- . stand what it is all about. It was particularly noticeable that even on the following day, when presumably he had had time to study the reports in Hansard, he still did not think it worth while to put in an appearance,
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