On Monday Mr. Asquith addressed a meeting of two thousand
people at Galashiels. He began by chaffing the Unionist critics for their futile prophecies as to the dis- integration of the Liberal party. " The Liberal party," he went on, "unanimous as it is in regretting Lord Rosebery's retirement, sees nothing in what has occurred which ought either to threaten its unity or to relax its fighting energies." Perhaps; but if this is so, and if the party is really unanimous, why does Mr. Asquith quiz " those well-informed gentlemen who seem to have a certain inability for dis- criminating between forged and genuine documents "? The critics who failed to see that the alleged letter from Sir William Harcourt must be a forgery, were mistaken because they did not regard it as impossible that Sir William should speak with civility and regret about Lord Rosebery's resigna- tion. Mr. Asquith ought not to be angry with them for this and for their belief in Liberal disunion in the same breath. Mr. Asquith's speech was also noticeable for the very strange remark that Lord Rosebery remained "in complete sympathy with the Liberal party upon every one of the vital issues, whether foreign or domestic." Yet when Mr. Asquith came to speak in detail about Armenia, he showed a marked divergence from Lord Rosebery, especially in his reference to Cyprus. The rest of the speech was taken up with an attack on the educational policy of the Government and a discussion of the Employers' Liability Bill.
Previous page
