394 



GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



democracy, Lord Randolph Churchill, upheld 

 the principle. 



On the vote on supply Mr. Labouchere ac- 

 cused the Prime Minister of defeating the ends 

 of justice by conniving in the flight of criminals 

 and witnesses in order to hush up a scandal 

 affecting members of the aristocracy, and refused 

 to accept the categorical denial that Lord Salis- 

 bury had made in the House of Lords, saying 

 that he had his information from a source that 

 gave it indisputable authority which he would 

 disclose in confidence to the leader of the House. 

 He was named and suspended by a vote of the 

 House, a ruling that Mr. Gladstone contested. 

 Mr. W. H. Smith's resolution to adopt the re- 

 port of the Parnell commission and thank the 

 judges for their "just and impartial conduct '' 

 was fiercely discussed for six days. Mr. Glad- 

 stone called for the reprobation of false charges 

 "of the gravest and most odious description, 

 based on calumny and on forgery," and an ex- 

 pression of regret for the wrong inflicted by 

 such " acts of flagrant iniquity," and Mr. Bal- 

 four roused the anger of the Opposition by in- 

 sisting that important charges had been proved 

 against the Parnellites. Mr. Gladstone's -amend- 

 ment was lost by a vote of 339 against 268. Mr. 

 Jennings, one of Lord Randolph Churchill's 

 followers, offered an amendment condemning 

 the course of the " Times " newspaper, but with- 

 drew it, saying that he would have no hand in 

 stabbing ministers in the back, when Lord Ran- 

 dolph Churchill expressed his indignation at the 

 whole action of the Government. Mr. Caine, 

 who had been elected as a Liberal Unionist, but 

 disagreed with the Government with respect to 

 the later Irish policy, and also on the licensing 

 question, afterward moved the same amendment, 

 which was debated a single night, and on appli- 

 cation of the closure was defeated by 321 votes 

 against 550. 



Mr. Balfour's land purchase bill, which was to 

 take the place of the Ashbourne acts, was much 

 more complicated in its provisions. The terms 

 of purchase were to be settled by voluntary 

 agreement between the owner and the purchas- 

 ing tenant. If they were approved by the Land 

 Department, the entire sum, provided it did not 

 exceed twenty years' purchase, or twenty times 

 the net rent, was to be advanced by the state, the 

 landlord being paid in a special Government 

 stock bearing 2| per cent, interest. The pur- 

 chaser was to repay the loan in 49 annual pay- 

 ments of 4 per cent, of the purchase money, cov- 

 ering both principal and interest. The Govern- 

 ment would be secured, not by the land alone, 

 but by a guarantee fund equal to the whole 

 amount of its advances at any one time, consist- 

 ing of the contribution of 'the Exchequer of 

 40,000 a year in lieu of the English and Scotch 

 grants \mder the local government acts, the 

 Irish proportion of the probate duty, estimated 

 at 200,000 a year, and one fourth of 1 per cent, 

 of the purchase money included in the 4-per- 

 cent, annuity paid by the occupiers. In case 

 this should prove insufficient the Government 

 could impound one fifth of the landlord's pur- 

 chase money to furnish a tenants' insurance 

 fund and could divert the local rates on Govern- 

 ment property, the grants for pauper lunatics 

 and for salaries in the medical and educational 



departments of the workhouses, and even the 

 Government grants for the national education 

 system in order to make good the deficiency. 

 The capitalized value of the guarantee fund was 

 estimated at 33,000,000, and to that amount 

 the total state advances were limited. When 

 the whole sum had been loaned out, further 

 advances could only be made as fast as the 

 money was repaid by the purchasing occupiers. 

 For the congested districts special arrangements 

 were made, the guarantee being supplemented 

 by 1,500,000 of the estimated church surplus 

 not yet expended and a special board being cre- 

 ated to aid in developing local industries, in 

 amalgamating small holdings, and in assisting 

 emigration. On the introduction of the bill, Mr. 

 Gladstone called in question the practicability 

 and legality of the provisions for contingent 

 guarantees. On the second reading Mr. Glad- 

 stone, Sir William Harcourt, and Sir George 

 Trevelyan condemned state landlordism as a 

 ruinous expedient, and Mr. Parnell called in 

 question the policy of land purchase, although 

 it had been originally proclaimed by the Land 

 League and had been adopted by the whole body 

 of his supporters, both English and Irish. He 

 suggested that the relief should be given in the 

 form of lower rents, the entire risk of the finan- 

 cial operation being borne by the Government. 

 His amendment, supported by the entire Oppo- 

 sition, was rejected by a majority of 80. 



The tithe bill, in accordance with the pledge 

 given by the Government at the close of the 

 previous session, transferred the tithe rent-charge 

 from the occupier, on whom it was placed by the 

 former Government bill, to the owner of the prop- 

 erty that is liable, giving power to the county 

 court to order payment, in case of default, out 

 of the rent of the land and to appoint a re- 

 ceiver. When the amount of the tithe exceeds 

 the rent of the land provision was made for re- 

 ducing it, and, with the consent of the parties, 

 for its redemption. Altered to meet Sir William 

 Harcourt's objections, the bill was still very dif- 

 erent from one that he could approve, or the 

 Radicals following the lead of Mr. Labouchere, 

 or Mr. ParnelTs following, who mustered 164 

 votes in favor of Mr. Picton's amendment, which 

 was rejected by a majority of 125. 



Mr. Goschen's very satisfactory surplus was 

 mainly due, as he explained, to the " rush for 

 alcohol," and therefore in framing his next 

 year's budget he made the temporary duty on 

 beer permanent, placed an additional tax on 

 spirits, and turned over the proceeds of both to 

 the local taxation account in order to make 

 good the promises that the failure to carry the 

 wheel and van tax had left unfulfilled. Tea- 

 drinkers could not be refused a reduction at 

 least of the duty on the temperance beverage. 

 Relief was also given to the lower middle clashes, 

 " the people who begin to wear a black coat," by 

 a reduction of the house tax on houses assessed 

 below 60 a year. The land purchase bill and 

 the tithe bill were both cast into the shade by 

 the controversy that arose over Mr. Goschen's 

 plan for buying up public-house licenses, which 

 was discussed at great length on the budget bill 

 and afterward on the local taxation bill dealing 

 with the application of specially assigned rev- 

 enues. The Tories, who have received political 



