144 



The Review of Reviews. 



February $0, 1906, 



Do you know." said Mr. Law, "there are no fewer 

 than 200 Nonconformist candidates standing at this 

 ■ ■!• c-tion--2oo, and most of these men have come 

 forward solely under stress of the same conscientious 

 impulse which recruited the Ironsides. Never be- 

 fore have so main men who put a conscience into 

 their politics taken the field as .it this election." 



" Then the result cannot fail to be serious?" 



•*The next House of Commons is certain to hav« 

 a large Liberal majority; but what is far more 

 important is that that majority will be permeated 

 through and through b) men who will bring to 

 Westminster the same enthusiasm h>r civic righteous- 

 ness which enabled Cromwell to triumph at Nasebj 

 and Worcester." 



"Isn't that pitching it rather high, Mr. Law.' 1 

 objected, "in describing a protest against the Edu- 

 cate in Act ? 



"Ah! there is where \nu make _ it mistake, 

 said Mr. Law. "We are, of course, just new 

 sup rem el) interested in th< Education Act, the n 

 form or reconstruction of which is practically as- 

 sured. But that is only a segment of the great 

 circle of the Free Church political ideal. Our 

 Federation is working, our Councils are convincing, 

 and our candidates are standing for something much 

 higher than the amendment of a single Act of Par- 

 liament, no matter how necessarj such an amend- 

 ment may be." 



- And that ideal?" 1 inquired. 



" is nothing less," said Mr. Law. " than the trans- 

 formation of the whole conception of the State and 

 of the Empire bj the ethical and religious ideal." 



" Of the Nonconformist conscience ?" 



" I would rather say of the ideal of the Kingdom 

 of Heaven, of the city of the living God who doeth 



righteousness. 



"A tolerable long row for your 200 Noncon- 

 formist candidates to hoe." 



•' Well.' said Mr. Law, " we snail at least not be 

 ploughing a lonely furrow, for we are working in 

 hearty co-operation with all the forces which make 

 for social progress and political reform. Take, for 

 instance, the Temperance movement— all our men 

 are as a unit on that question. They are equally 

 enthusiastic upon moral reforms, and although there 

 is nothing fanatical about them, they will certainly 

 give a much sharper Puritan edge to the axe of 

 moral reform than it has possessed for some years 

 back." 



" What about the distinctly Nonconformist war- 

 cries ; Disestablishment, for instance? - ' 



" Oh,*' said Mr. Law, ' we are going in for First 

 things First, and we are fully aware of the import- 

 ance of studying the science of political perspective. 

 Welsh Disestablishment is, of course, on the pro- 



gramme. Every member of the Cabinet and prac- 

 tically ever\ memb- r 1 t the Liberal Party is pledged 

 to that act of religious and civic justice. Put no 

 one expects Welsh Disestablishment to be the first 

 order of the <\a\ : it will come in due course." 



""And what is the first order < ■! the <\a\. Mr. 

 Law?'' 



" I ne Amendment of the Education Act." 



" ( )n what lines do you expect that will pro- 



J ?" 



" In the first place, the appointment of Mr. 

 Birrell, who is the son of a baptist minister, and a 

 well-known Radical, will effect a most necessary 

 change in the atmosphen in the Education Office." 



■'And. Mr. Lough, will assist in fumigating and 

 disinfecting the premisi - 



■ No doubt," said Mr. Law. •there will not be so 

 much of the flavour of ecclesiastical incense per- 

 ceptible in that department as heretofore. That is 

 the first gain. What we expect is the introduction 



a Bill at the beginning oi next Session which will 

 place all public elementary schools, provided or un- 

 provided, umler the control ol elected authorities, 

 which will free them from denominational or sec- 

 tarian influence, and which will repeal all the tests 

 which are at present imposed upon the teachers." 



•■ Then if these three things are quite certain to 

 be planks in the Education Amendment Pill, what 

 will the tight turn upon"-'' 



•' There are two questions. The first is as to the 

 'right of entry' to the schools for the purpose of 

 giving religious instruction. This ' right of entry 

 we expect will he conceded to them, before or after 

 the regular school hours, but we shall resist to the 

 utmost am permission of right of entry during 

 school hours. What is the second? The second is, 

 whether any special provision should be made for the 

 Roman Catholics which is not made for the Angli- 

 cans. There are some who think that this should 

 be done." 



" And what will decide the question?" 



■• The dimensions of the Liberal majority. If we 

 have a majority large enough to carry the Pili 

 against the Irish and Tory coalition, we shall have 

 no difficulty in the House of Commons. The whole 

 fight will arise when the House of Lords comes to 

 deal with the matter." 



Mr. Law did not make the remark, but as I went 

 away I could not help feeling that history will re- 

 peat itself, and the Puritans of the twentieth cen- 

 tury, like their ancestors of the seventeenth century, 

 will be driven some day to declare that the people 

 under God is the original of all just power, and that 

 in consequence the Commons of England, in Parlia- 

 ment assembled, are capable of giving the force of 

 law to their enactments. 



