The Government of England Part 19

[174:3] 12 Ric. II., c. 10 (4). _Cf._ 32 Hen. VIII., c. 1.

[175:1] Gneist, "Self-Government," 212.

[175:2] Act II., Sc. I. The characters of the play purport to be French, but the manners and customs are, of course, English. Fletcher died in 1625. An earlier, though less definite, reference to the power of the clerk is found in William Lambard's "Eirenarcha or, Of the Office of the Justices of Peace," published in 1581 (p. 468): "Howbeit, I do not thinke, that in our case, this dutie of Estreating is so peculiar to the Clarke of the Peace, but that the Justices of the Peace themselves, ought also to have a common and carefull eye unto it . . . least otherwise, it lye altogither in the power of the Clarke of the Peace, to Save or Slay (as one sayd) the Sparrow that he holdeth closed in his hand."

[177:1] Com. Papers, 1839, XVII., 1, pp. 37-38.

[177:2] P. 235.

[178:1] P. 235.

[178:2] P. 268.

[178:3] P. 279.

[179:1] For the quotations from these memoirs I am indebted to Mr. Evan Randolph, who made, while a student at Harvard College, a careful examination of the subject.

[179:2] "Autobiography," London Ed. (1885), I., 70.

[179:3] _Ibid._, 130.

[179:4] _Ibid._, 133.

[179:5] _Ibid._, 136.

[179:6] _Ibid._, 233, _cf._ 123. It was during Lord Glenelg's time that Stephen became permanent under-secretary.

[180:1] "Autobiography," II., 38.

[180:2] Marindin, "Letters of Lord Blachford," 227.

[180:3] _Ibid._, 252.

[180:4] _Ibid._, 275.

[180:5] Morris, "Memoirs of Higginbottom," 183.

[180:6] II., 505.

[181:1] Parker, "Sir Robert Peel," III., 184.

[181:2] Com. Papers, 1900, VII., 183.

[181:3] In that same year much discussion was provoked by Lord Salisbury's sweeping remark that the British Const.i.tution was not a good fighting machine on account of the power of the Treasury to restrain military expenditure. (Hans., 4 Ser. LXXVIII., 32, 237, 239.) It was pointed out that if the political chiefs of the Army and Navy want to increase their expenditure they cannot be blocked by the Treasury clerks. They can confer with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and if he will not consent, they can appeal to the Prime Minister, and ultimately to the cabinet. Nevertheless it is true that if the political chief does not consider a matter of first-cla.s.s importance--and many of the most far-reaching matters do not appear so at the time--or does not want to fight about it, the opinion of the Treasury officials may prevail, even to the extent of blocking useful reforms that cost a little money.

Moreover, if a matter is fought out between the political chiefs, their opinions may very well be derived from their permanent subordinates.

When the subject of Treasury control was investigated by the Committee on Civil Establishments, Sir Reginald (now Lord) Welby was asked, "Is not this question not so much between political ministers as between permanent heads of departments?" He answered "Yes, but the permanent heads of departments to (_sic_) convince their political chiefs behind whom they fight," and added that the political chiefs commonly support their subordinates. (Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs. 10721, 10723.)

[182:1] Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Q. 20168.

[183:1] _Cf._ Giffen's Ev., 2d Rep. Com. on Civil Estabs., Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs. 19131-32, 19139.

[184:1] If there is an a.s.sistant under-secretary the paper pa.s.ses, of course, through his hands; and in case local conditions require to be examined an inspector is sent down to report.

[184:2] It has already been observed that in some departments the parliamentary under-secretary is the administrative head for some matters.

[184:3] Todd, with his unfailing industry, searched the Blue Books for information on this subject. (Parl. Govt. in England, 2 Ed. II., 542, 614, 628-31, 645-46, 671, 708.) Since he wrote, a great deal of evidence on the procedure in the several departments has been collected by the Com. on Civil Estabs. (2d Rep., Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs.

10992-11001, 11849-51, 12034-35, 12072-78, 12360-64, 12887-91, 19434, 19442-43).

[185:1] Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs. 12072-78.

[185:2] In the Home Office, for example, the minuting for replies to papers was formerly done by the permanent under-secretary alone. Later the senior clerks were allowed to make minutes, and now the process begins with the junior clerks. (Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs.

10992-11001.) The same tendency has been at work in the Foreign Office, as will be explained later.

[186:1] Rep. on clerical staff of Local Gov. Board, Com. Papers, 1898, XL., 429, p. 12.

[186:2] He said "The relation of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Treasury is somewhat anomalous; it does not correspond at all with that of a Secretary of State to his department, because of course he lies a good deal outside the Treasury, and a good deal of the current business never comes before him at all." (3d Rep. Com. on Pub. Accounts, Com.

Papers, 1862, XI., 467, Q. 1640.)

[186:3] _Cf._ Mr. Hammond's memorandum ent.i.tled "The Adventures of a Paper in the Foreign Office," Rep. of Sel. Com. on Trade, Com. Papers, 1864, VII., 279, Q. 1384; reprinted in 1st Rep. of Com. on Dip. and Cons. Services, Com. Papers, 1871, VII., 197, Qs. 1145-46.

[186:4] Com. Papers, 1871, VII., 197, Qs. 1145-46. Hans. 3 Ser.

CCx.x.xII., 1058.

[186:5] 4th Rep. Com. on Civil Estabs., Com. Papers, 1890, XXVII., 1, Ev. of Mr. Bryce, Qs. 27927-31, Sir Charles Dilke, Q. 29252.

The position of the Secretary of State for War, and the First Lord of the Admiralty, although in most ways not unlike that of the other ministers, is peculiar in the fact that they are the lay heads of great professions. Their relation to the military officers detailed for service in the princ.i.p.al administrative posts in their departments has already been discussed in Chap. IV.

[189:1] "The English Const.i.tution," 1 Ed., 240.

[191:1] "After that there will come a bureaucratic despotism; that is to say, the permanent officials will take the management of affairs into their hands, and Parliament will have little to do." Andrew Lang, "Life, Letters, and Diaries of Sir Stafford Northcote," 2 Ed., II., 219.

[192:1] Lang, "Life, Letters, and Diaries of Sir Stafford Northcote,"

I., 160.

[192:2] After resigning his post in the Education Department in 1903, Sir George Kekewich condemned publicly the Education Bill which had been pa.s.sed while he was in office, but it may safely be said that even this is not regarded as the best form.

[192:3] Hans. 4 Ser. XC., 327 _et seq._, XCI., 6 _et seq._

[192:4] _Ibid._, XCVI., 969.

[192:5] Sir Antony MacDonnell, who had distinguished himself greatly as an Indian administrator, and had just been given a place on the Council of India, was appointed by Mr. Wyndham under-secretary for Ireland in September, 1902, in spite of the fact that he was an Irishman, a Roman Catholic and a Liberal in politics. In the summer of 1904, believing that he had the approval of Mr. Wyndham, the Chief Secretary, in so doing, he a.s.sisted Lord Dunraven to formulate the policy of devolution in Ireland. But Mr. Wyndham hastened to make public his disapproval of that policy as soon as the plan appeared in the press. When Parliament met in February, 1905, Mr. Wyndham, in reply to questions of the Irish Unionists, stated these facts, adding that Sir Antony MacDonnell had been censured by the cabinet, which was, however, thoroughly satisfied that his conduct was not open to the imputation of disloyalty. (Hans. 4 Ser. CXLI., 324-26.) The occurrence gave rise to a good deal of hot discussion in both Houses of Parliament in the latter half of February, in the course of which Mr. Wyndham said that he could not invite such a man as Sir Antony MacDonnell to come and help him as a clerical a.s.sistant, that he was invited rather as a colleague than as a mere under-secretary. (Hans. 4 Ser. CXLI., 650, and see Lord Lansdowne's remarks, _Ibid._, 461.) The letters that pa.s.sed between Mr. Wyndham and Sir Antony MacDonnell at the time of his appointment were then produced, and they contain a stipulation couched in language that can fairly be interpreted as implying either a position of exceptional importance, or merely such influence as an under-secretary possessing the full confidence of his chief might enjoy. (Hans. 4 Ser. CXLI., 979-81.) The debate led to the resignation of Mr. Wyndham; and his successor, Mr.

Long, as well as Mr. Balfour, insisted that no agreement made with Sir Antony gave him a position different from that of other under-secretaries in the civil service. (Hans. 4 Ser. CXLI., 995; CXLII., 1225-26; CXLIV., 647-48, 1278-79). An aftermath of the trouble came in the autumn of 1906 when Mr. Long challenged Sir Antony MacDonnell to publish any letters bearing upon the events of 1904-1905, but these the Conservative government, when in power, had declined to produce in Parliament. (The _Times_, Aug. 30, 31, Sept. 1, 4, 1906.) Correspondence of this nature cannot, of course, be published, at the good pleasure of the possessor. The whole episode ill.u.s.trates clearly the difficulties that arise when a parliamentary chief fails to a.s.sume complete responsibility for everything that happens in his department.

It shows also that the relations between the political chief and his permanent subordinate are fixed by the nature of the parliamentary system, and cannot be effectively changed in special cases.

[194:1] Parker, "Sir Robert Peel," II., 35-36.