OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE GREAT INQUIRY,
With its Conclusions, Majority and Minority Report, etc.
Printed by Order of the Committee.
Your Inquiring Body, or Commission of Inquest, has been formed of a section of the Cabinet, with power to add to their number.
Of this power they have availed themselves sparingly and judiciously, as the following list will show:
The Lord Privy Seal.
Mr. Joseph Chamberlain, M.P.
The Prime Minister.
His Grace the Duke of Marlborough.
His Excellency the Marquess of Lansdowne.
Mr. Austen Chamberlain.
Mr. Gerald Balfour.
The Colonial Secretary.
The Under Secretary for the Colonies.
His Majesty’s Secretary for Foreign Affairs.
The Postmaster-General.
and
Mr. Balfour himself.
These gentlemen, your Committee, having been sworn, in the Scotch manner, “that they would well and truly bolt out the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, such as would profit and serve this Our realm of England, the Channel Islands, and all Our dominions beyond the seas, so help them God,” the proceedings opened by a prayer that the wisdom of this world might be turned into foolishness, and that the false pride of Reason might be humbled, and the insolence of philosophers confounded.
Upon which was called Mr. Baines, of Middlesbrough, a gentlemanly-looking person, who deposed that:
The country was upon the verge of ruin. In the iron trade, competition with America, and latterly with Belgium and Germany, had been felt very severely. Mrs. Baines and self had passed through many anxious moments since 1892. The extravagance of their eldest son William at the University, which, under normal circumstances, would have caused them no uneasiness, had driven them almost distracted and had led to a most regrettable coolness between parent and child. For the last eight years he had found it impossible to spend more than one month, or at the most six weeks, in London during the season, and that in a hired house. In the worst year, 1897, Mrs. Baines had been compelled to take lodgings. It was only by an unstinted and harassing attention to detail that the business had been kept going. His hair, which twenty years ago had been of a rich nut-brown colour, was now quite grey, and growing very thin and patchy.
“A gentlemanly-looking person.”
Mr. Gerald Balfour, who had followed the business side of the argument very closely, here asked what remedy Mr. Baines proposed for this state of things?
Mr. Baines replied that there seemed to be but two courses to follow. The best way would be for the Government to pay him quarterly not less than 25s. for every ton of pig-iron he might manufacture. If, for party reasons, it was impossible to grant him such a sum, the second course would be to impose a duty on all other iron which would raise his, Mr. Baines’, iron by a similar amount.
Asked by Mr. Chamberlain whether it was his opinion that the wages of his hands would rise under such a system, Mr. Baines looked a trifle puzzled, and confessed that he did not understand the drift of the question.
Mr. Chamberlain (smiling pleasantly): “I will put my question in another form. Would you offer your employés a portion of the [profit so acquired?”]
Mr. Baines (bewildered): “Why should I?”
The Postmaster-General: “Let me [tackle him, father....”] (To Mr. Baines): “I take it all your men have a vote?”
Mr. Baines: “Yes, all except Ben Gailey, who did time for ghurling.”
“What is ghurling?”
Mr. Balfour (with great interest): “What is ghurling?”
The Postmaster-General (hurriedly): “That’s all right. Well, now, the question is this: if we give you £1 down for every ton of pig iron you shove on the market, and we make it a condition that you pay at least 5s. of it in extra wages, will you clinch?”
The witness, who was complimented by Lord Lansdowne on the manly and straightforward way in which he had given his evidence, then stood down.
Mr. Harry Gibbs, farmer of Goudhurst, questioned upon Hops, said that W’ops were in a turrible bad way, and all. He knew his own mind. He was a practical man. He said: “Let the Government prohibit all foreign W’ops, Sussex and all, and let brewers have a law, and let ’un buy Kentish W’ops. There was old Sir Charles Gorle, there was, member of Parliament and all, and he knew for certain as that old man in his brewery never bought none but Sussex, and he’d have a law....”
Mr. Chamberlain (sternly): “Stand down.”
Witness (loudly): “Ar! I’m a plain man and not to be druv, and I tell you....”
Lord Lansdowne: “Stand down, sir!”
Witness (more loudly): “I tell you if you let these dang Sussex W’ops....”
The whole Committee here rose and in chorus ordered the witness to stand down.
Witness: “You hear me! These Sussex W’ops, they have the vly; they aren’t....”
The police here removed the witness, who struggled violently, shaking his fist over his shoulder, and shouting:
“Ar, it’s stan’ down naow!... You wait till t’election.... Ar. You see which way I voät then.... Ar!”
Similar cries were heard in the passage without, until his voice was lost in the distance, or was perhaps gagged by the police.
This unpleasant scene was succeeded by the testimony of a very different witness, Lord Renton, who was of opinion that the good money should be kept in the country.... He, for his part, could see no kind of reason why we should buy from abroad what we could very well make for ourselves.... He was interested in butter.... He believed that the preservation of eggs was only a matter of time.
At this moment, Mr. Balfour observing that the Committee had sat for full twenty minutes, the inquiry was adjourned. Mr. Chamberlain went out with Lord Renton, and partook of his motor-car, as he was stopping with His Lordship from Saturday to Monday.