In fact, a schism was developing in the second chamber. On the one hand were the ‘Hedgers’: peers who, however begrudgingly, recognised that it would be better to accede to the proposed reform, lest they be swamped by new creations who would pass the Bill anyway. On the other were the ‘Ditchers’: diehards who were prepared to hold out against any infraction of their hereditary rights until ‘the last ditch’. During the summer of 1911, the conflicts – not just between the Commons and the Lords, but between the rival factions within the Lords – witnessed the almost complete collapse of working
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