Even more important was the speech made by Mr. Asquith
upon Mr. Cassel's amendment to omit from the operation of the clause Bills to extend the maximum duration of Parliament. Mr. Asquith took the opportunity of stating the Government's position in general with regard to all proposed exceptions from the operation of the clause, twenty-three of which were sug- gested in amendments upon the paper. After pointing out that in order to discriminate between these different kinds of Bills the opinion of a court of law would be required, Mr. Asquith declared that no one supposed that the Parliament Bill was anything else than a means to an end. It was an improvement in our Constitutional machinery, designed to make the pro- gress of legislation desired by the people easier than hitherto. "I have explicitly stated to the country, in the clearest possible terms before the election took place, that if the electors gave us a mandate to pass this Bill we should use the machinery created by the Bill, and use it in this Parliament, for the purpose of carrying out Home Rule." Mr. Asquith ended by declaring that to expect that they would go through the elaborate process of setting up this machinery and then impose upon themselves a self-denying ordinance not to apply it to any of the purposes on which the hearts of the people were set would be ridiculous.
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