Mr. Thomas' Resignation Mr. J. II. Thomas' resignation from the
Cabinet was, of course, inevitable. The only comment called 14 is Mr. Baldwin's, that " you have acted as I should have done in your place "—an observation which must obviously be confined to the resignation, not to the events that made it necessary. It is due to Mr. Thomas to recognise that his letter to the Prime Minister was a document that did him credit, and that in some respects he has a right to consider himself unfortunate. What the Budget tribunal was considering was the leakage of information regarding new taxation, not Mr. Thomas' relations with betting friends, or his arrangements about his biography, or his indefensible wager on the date of the General Election. These facts came out incident- ally, and in a sense accidentally, but once they were public property resignation was the only course possible. Cabinet Ministers have been converted almost into purists in financial matters by the convention requiring them to resign all directorships on taking office, and if that standard is to be maintained Mr. -Thomas' indis- cretions clearly make-his position.as a Minister untenable. The Colonial Secretary made his reputation as a trade union leader. He has been a competent Minister, but lie cannot be said to have added weight to the Cabinet, and there will be no difficulty in finding a successor capable of handling colonial affairs with at least equal efficiency.
