CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN

campbell-bannerman, sir h.; and asquith, h. h.). his own administration had been wrecked, through no initiative of his, by the dissensions over the fiscal question. but his wide range of knowledge and interests, his intellectual _finesse_, his personal hold over his supporters, his statesmanlike grasp upon imperial problems and his oratorical ability, had been proved to a remarkable degree; and in foreign affairs his tenure of power had been conspicuously successful. he left his country indeed in a position of strength abroad, which it had not held since the crimean war. his institution of the permanent committee of imperial defence, and of the new army council (1904), were reforms of the highest importance, resulting from the report of a "triumvirate" consisting of lord esher, sir john fisher and sir george clarke, appointed in november 1903. the unionist regime as a whole, however, had collapsed. its ministers had become "stale." the heavy taxation of the war years was still retained, to the disgust especially of the income-tax payers; and new issues arose over the education act, labour questions, and the introduction of chinese labour into south africa (in 1904), which were successfully used against the government in the constituencies. the result was an electoral defeat which indicated, no doubt, a pronounced weakening of mr balfour's position in public confidence. this verdict, however, was one based mainly on temporary reasons, which were soon to be overshadowed by the new issues involved in the change of ministry. as a matter of fact, a year of opposition had not passed before his power in the house of commons, even with so small a party behind him, was once more realized. the immense radical majority started with a feeling of contempt for the leader who had been rejected at manchester, but by 1907 he had completely reasserted his individual pre-eminence among parliamentarians. mr balfour had never spoken more brilliantly, nor shone more as a debater, than in these years when he had to confront a house of commons three-fourths of which was hostile. his speech at birmingham (november 14, 1907), fully accepting the principles of mr chamberlain's fiscal policy, proved epoch-making in consolidating the unionist party--except for a small number of free-traders, like lord robert cecil, who continued to hold out--in favour of tariff reform; and during 1908 the process of recuperation went on, the by-elections showing to a marked degree the increased popular support given to the unionist candidates. this recovery was due also to the forcible-feeble character of the radical campaign against the house of lords, the unpopularity of the licensing bill, the failure of the government to arrive at an education settlement, the incapacity of its irish administration, its apparent domination by the "little navy" section, and its dallying with socialism in the budget of 1909. the rejection of this budget in december by the house of lords led to a desperate struggle at the polls in january 1910, but the confident hopes of the unionists were doomed to disappointment. they won back over a hundred seats, returning 273 strong, but were still in a minority, the liberals numbering 275, labour members 40, and irish nationalists 82. mr balfour himself was elected for the city of london by an enormous majority. mr balfour's other publications, not yet mentioned, include _essays and addresses_ (1893) and _the foundations of belief, being notes introductory to the study of theology_ (1895). he was made ll.d. of edinburgh university in 1881; of st andrews university in 1885; of cambridge university in 1888; of dublin and glasgow universities in 1891; lord rector of st andrews university in 1886; of glasgow university in 1890; chancellor of edinburgh university in 1891; member of the senate london university in 1888; and d.c.l. of oxford university in 1891. he was president of the british association in 1904, and became a fellow of the royal society in 1888. he was known from early life as a cultured musician, and became an enthusiastic golf player, having been captain of the royal and antient golf club of st andrews in 1894-1895. (h. ch.)