366 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



reaches the House, which is at once the goal of his ambitions 

 and the grave of his ideals. The system is as nearly perfect, 

 for the purpose in view, as human ingenuity and vast experi- 

 ence can make it, for the men so selected and so shepherded 

 can generally be relied upon to march through the division 

 lobbies at the crack of the whip, and to emerge therefrom with 

 the proud satisfaction of having done their duty to their Party 

 even though, as is often the case, they are unable to name 

 the subject upon which their vote was given. 



The control of the House of Commons over finance is an 

 empty boast. In the House which is the guardian of the 

 people's purse, untold millions were voted each session (even 

 in pre-war days) without discussion, often in the small hours 

 of the morning, by members too tired and too indifferent to 

 be conscious of any breach of trust. 



Much has been heard about the congestion of business in 

 the House of Commons, and much sympathy has been wasted 

 upon Ministers on this account. To this cause are conveniently 

 attributed the neglect of many important matters, the post- 

 ponement of necessary legislation, and the inadequate discussion 

 of vital questions. Yet, such is the perverse ingenuity of man- 

 kind, that it is doubtful whether this manifest evil is not 

 regarded, by some of those responsible for the business of the 

 House, as a veritable blessing in disguise ; for, as the end of 

 each session approaches, and jaded legislators emulate wearied 

 Ministers in their anxiety to seek repose, hard-working Whips 

 find in this very congestion of business their most powerful 

 ally in rushing the final stages of belated Government Bills, 

 and in inducing the authors of all sorts of inconvenient projects 

 to consent to the massacre of their offspring. " Unless this 

 is dropped, we shall have to sit until the end of August " ; 

 " Unless that is withdrawn, we must meet in Autumn Session," 

 and so Agriculture languishes, Science is starved, and Educa- 

 tion neglected, while half-baked Government Measures are 

 rushed upon the Statute Book, full of glaring anomalies and 

 imperfections, lest fuller discussion should lead to undesired 

 results. Members are reminded, by their ubiquitous mentors, 

 that under the Standing Orders of the House, all Bills which 

 have not reached their final (Third Reading) Stage, auto- 

 matically die with the expiring Session, and that, as each 

 session has its own heavy burden of new legislation to face, 



