Yes, the press was starting to control, and it was also in the people of these groups.



WITH THE AJ Rily AT ALDER SHOT.65gether, whether for the purpose of business or of so-called relaxation, they have been,harangued by a succession of the most distinguished and responsible of living Englishmen—(cheers)—^n the duties and privileges of the Imperial Press. (Cheers.)He would be a vain and a self-complacent man who could flatter himself that at this, I suppose, the final stage in this unprecedented outpouring of eloquence, always circling around the many-sided but the same topic—'he could find anything new to say—tliat is out of the question—that he could find even a new way of presenting what has been already said. I, -at any rate, cherish no such illusions ; and if I handle this toast with brevity—as I am going to do—I ask our guests to believe that it is not because I do not realise its true dimensions, but because I am certain that after the experiences of the last week you do not need to be again reminded of the warmth and the genuineness of the welcome which is accorded to your visit from every class and section of British opinion. (Cheers.)There is, however, one feature which may be said to distinguish our gathering fco-night from those in' which you have hitherto participated, in that it is officially given to you by the Government. (Cheers.)His Majesty's Ministers felt when they learned of the arrangements for your visit that they would not be doin^ justice either to their duty or their inclination if they did not find an opiX)rt unity for a special acknowledgment on their own part of the significance and of the importance of your visit. As is the case in these days in every democratic community, so is it still more the case in an Empire such as ours—an Empire which is held together by the tie, not of ovei-mastering force, but of common rights and common liberties—Ieay in such an Empire there is, or there ought to be, a sense of the interdependence—I will go further and say a sense of partnership—between the Government and the Press. For with such an Empire, what is the Government? It is a body of men who represent for the time_ being the opinions with regard to legislation and to policy of a majority of their fellow-citizens. They are not the chosen vessels of Divine right. Tliey do not hold such power as they possess by the title of force or of inheritance. They are there, and they are where they are by the free suffrages of their fellow-countrymen, and the same authority which brought them into existence will constitute the tribunal which, sooner or later, will measure the length of their days. Such being the Government, what is the Press?The Press is the daily interpreter and mouthpiece of the tastes, thp interests,the ideas—one might go further and say the passions and the caprices—of the same people. (Hear, hear.) How far the Press actually operates as a dommant force in the formation of public opinion is not.quite such a simple question as some people seem to imagine. (Hear,hear.) But I am far too cautious to-night-^laughter)—to approach within even a measurable distance of its discussion.But, be that as it may, it is the baldest of truisms to assert that, at any rate in the interval between one dissolution and another, the Press is the only authentic mirror and reflection of the public opinion of the time. I do not know—I am not suggesting for a moment—that any Government, in these days at any rate, which is worthy of the name, which is entitled to its own respect or to the respect of the nation, will trim its sails and shift it's course according to the passing breezes and gales of the hour. Such Governments may have been known in other countries in and in days gone by, but you may be sure they are quite obsolete here. (Laughter.)But, all the same, there is no one who has held any responsible position in public affairs here who will not admit that the Press, be their shortcomings what they may, is to the Government of the day—which, after all, if it is to be a living Government, must keep in close and constant touch with the national life—the Press is the most potent, the most flexible,the most trustworthy auxiliary which in the performance of that primary duty every Government in every country can possess. (Hear, hear.)

I will not dwell on some other aspects of our relationship which I observe have been touched on in the discourses of the distinguished men you have been listening to. You have been going through what to many of you has been a unique experience, and, I trust, a wholesome and profitable one. (Hear, hear.) You have been, for the time being, transferred from the jury box to the dock—(laughter)—or,if you prefer the metaphor, you have been,transferred from the pulpit to the pew.(Laughter.) For a few short moments you have had the privilege of hearing something of what those whose normal function It is to be criticised think of those whose normal function is that of the critic.


All along the reading it getting more where they are giving the rules of what new and the Empire should be. They were very sneaky, to say the least. All the same group of people, I noticed it was mostly the so called Royals involved, the Old house Royals.

This fits in with my other research over the years. If I said these were the working of a group at the top during those years it may make more sense, they want to bring their group back to the top and very one else underneath them. This was behind some or a lot of them, they were they Empire, the Dominion.