The Bill for amending the King's Declaration was intro- duced
by Mr. Asquith in the House of Commons on Tuesday. It provides for the omission of the passages offensive to Roman Catholics, so that the new Declaration would read :—
"I [then follows the name of the Sovereign] do solemnly and sincerely, in the presence of God, profess, testify, and declare, that I am a faithful member of the Protestant Reformed Church as by law established in England, and I will, according to the true intent of the enactments which secure the Protestant Succession to the Throne of my realm, uphold and maintain the said enactments to the best of my powers accordi g to law."
Mr. Balfour, in supporting the Prime Minister, remarked that the position of the Crown had altered completely in the last two hundred years. When the Declaration was framed the Sovereign was only King of England. He now rules over the most diverse races, and "it would be difficult to catalogue the number of religions which are now professed by loyal subjects of the Crown." The Motion for the first reading was carried by 383 votes to 42,—a result in every way satis- factory, and affording proof that the Government need have no fears as to their ability to pass the measure into law.
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