Libelous Elijah

Twice in three weeks has the hoary House of Commons been publicly outraged. No sooner had horrified Briton's gooseflesh subsided over Laborite John Beckett's "Rape of the Mace" (TIME, July 28) than the nation shuddered again. One Elijah Sandham, Liverpool Laborite, stood up in the House and said:

"The specific charges which I now make are: First that certain members of this House to my knowledge have been seen in the House drunk. Second that certain members have received money from a money lenders' association in consideration for services rendered . . . that on April 4, 5, 12 and 23 the Daily Mail openly charged members of this House with using their position as members of this House and of using facsimiles of House stationery for writings that were described as 'puff letters' in return for which they were paid sums of money."

"Shame! SHAME!!" cried the Honorable Members.

"I stand by every word of my speech," Labor's Elijah shouted back. "I go even further, I charge that there have been frequent instances of drunkenness on the Front Bench!"**

Words failed the M.P.s. "Oh!" they cried. "0-o-oh!"

Abstemious Ramsay MacDonald demanded proofs, names. They were not forthcoming. The House, greatly relieved, voted 304 to 13 that Elijah Sandham, member for Kirkdale, Liverpool, had been "guilty of a breach of privilege and a gross libel upon the House," merited an official censure.

Parliament has an appropriate ceremony for almost anything that may occur. Then and there Captain Edward Algernon Fitzroy, Speaker of the House, inflicted the official censure upon Laborite Sandham. Looking as dignified as anyone can under a woolly white wig with a black three- cornered hat balanced precariously on top, Speaker Fitzroy sat in his chair, faced the standing, embarrassed libelous Elijah, and intoned:

"Elijah Sandham, member for Kirkdale, Liverpool, you have degraded the House of Commons publicly and in the eyes of the world."

Commented the lone Prohibitionist M.P. Edwin Scrymgeour:

"Just the same I have seen members of all three parties under the influence of liquor in the House."

**Collective reference to the two front benches reserved for Cabinet Ministers, leaders of the Opposition such as Stanley Baldwin, Winston Churchill.

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