The last time, according to his account, that the coinage was thus
debased was in the days of HENRY VIII., whose views both on money and
matrimony were notoriously lax. Other Members were friendly to the project,
and Mr. DENNIS HERBERT, in the avowed interest of churchwardens, urged the
Government to seize the opportunity to abolish the threepeeny-bit, the
irreducible minimum of "respectable" almsgiving. The CHANCELLOR OF THE
EXCHEQUER, however, stoutly championed the elusive little coin, for which
he declared there was "an immense demand."
On Captain HAMBRO'S motion deploring the action of certain trade-unions in
refusing to admit ex-Service men to their ranks the Labour Party heard some
very straight talking. The whips of Lady BONHAM-CARTER at Paisley were
nothing to the scorpions of ex-Private HOPKINSON, who has actually been
fined at the instance of the trade-unions because he insisted upon
employing some of his old comrades-in-arms.
Mr. SEXTON'S rather maladroit attempt to shift the blame on to the
employers only deepened the impression that trade-unionism is developing
into a system of caste, in which certain occupations are reserved for
certain people.
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