The New Year's Honours List was not an exciting one.
Lord . Incheape deservedly became a viscount ; and Sir Frederick Banbury was made a baron. This latter event had, indeed, a certain academic interest, for it makes one speculate as to what would be the political situation to-day had Sir Frederick Banbury accepted his peerage six months ago, when it was first offered to him. In that event, it may be presumed, Mr. Reginald McKenna would have joined the Cabinet, and the whole tariff adventure might have been avoided and the unemployment problem attacked by an enlightened monetary policy. In that case how strangely different would be the position of the Unionist Party, and indeed of the nation, at this moment ! Sir Charles Darling and Colonel Sir Herbert Jessel both . become barons ; Mr. Ronald McNeill and Lord Winterton are among the new Privy Councillors ; Major II. R. Cayzer and Sir T. W. Chitty are among the new baronets. A feature of this year's list was the omission of the usual " reasons for honours " which have been of late years appended to the names. No very adequate explanation of this omission seems to have been given, and we agree with the Times that it is a regrettable one.
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