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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 1, Issue 9 (February 25, 1927)

Mr. Lloyd George

page 22

Mr. Lloyd George.

Mr. Lloyd George was born on 17th January, 1863, in Manchester, and was educated at the National School at Carnarvon. He entered Parliament in 1890 where his powers of lucid and earnest speech created an immediate impression. In 1905 he became President of the Board of Trade with a seat in the Cabinet. He was made Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1908, and besides other great reforms he passed, before relinquishing this office, his famous National Insurance Bill. When the Great War broke out in 1914 he was recognised in Britain as the “man of the hour.” By his magnetic powers of speech, by his vigour and resourcefulness he stirred the nation to a consciousness of its peril, speeded up its war activities and welded it into a coherent organisation for the defeat of the Central Powers. He became Prime Minister of the Coalition Government in 1916, and, continued with unabated courage and persistency to prosecute the war to final victory, which largely through his splendid services was achieved for the allied cause in November, 1918. At the termination of the Paris Peace Conference (at which he was the chief British delegate) he was the idol of the whole Empire. He received the Order of Merit in 1920. Mr. Lloyd George is sixty-four years of age and is Leader of the Liberal Party in the present House of Commons.

James Ramsay Macdonald was born in dire poverty, at Lossiemouth in October, 1866. His schooling was of the scantiest, but he early developed a taste for good literature, through the assiduous study of which he was enabled to lay the foundations for a good general culture. Going up to London at nineteen years of age, friendless and without means, the next few years of his career were years of struggle. By sheer strength of will he continued to read and ultimately was led into fields of journalism. With the foundation of the Independent Labour Party in 1893 (of which he was Chairman from 1907 to 1910) commenced his definite association with the politics of labour. He was elected to the House of Commons in 1906 and the “keen eye of Joseph Chamberlain at once detected a coming man.” He subsequently became Leader of the Independent Labour Party in the House of Commons and in August 1914 was offered a seat in the Cabinet. This, however, he did not accept. He continued to lead his party in the Commons and in January, 1924 was invited by His Majesty the King to form a Cabinet. As Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary he concentrated on European affairs, and during his term of office did much to bring order out of the political chaos of Europe. Mr. Ramsay Macdonald is a writer and speaker of rare eloquence and at the present moment is Leader of the Labour Opposition in the House of Commons.