We are of course delighted with this courageous declaration by
a paper that is so deeply committed to Tariff Reform as the Daily Telegraph. We should greatly prefer the promise of a Referendum on any proposal to introduce Food Taxes, because it secures an answer on a single and definite issue. But we freely recognize that it may be impossible for the leaders to retract their retractation of the Referendum pledge. Our readers will remember that ever since Mr. Bonar Law's speech at Ashton we have expressed the hope that they would feel able to take the further step of promising a second general election on Food Taxes. We sincerely believe that, failing the more thorough policy which we should prefer, this policy of a second guaranteed election is one on which the party could reunite. It has been written of quite favourably by the Pall Mall Gazette, which stands with the Morning Post and the National Review in holding out for the original Food Tax policy. It only remains to add that the Lancashire Unionists, who are practically "solid" against advocating Food Taxes at the next election, laid their views before Mr. Bonar Law at the House of Commons on Thursday. The Times of Friday says that at the most only seventeen Unionist members still hold out for the Food Tax policy. That is to say, 265 are opposed to it. Mr. Bonar Law has promised to speak at the meeting of the Lancashire division of the National Unionist Association on January 11th. The con- fidence of the party in Mr. Bonar Law's ability to unite the whole party in a very short time is beyond doubt complete and hearty at the close of the week's negotiations.
Previous page
