GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



331 



of both armies have met and fraternized on the 

 most amicable terms. 



The order is constantly active in aiding de- 

 serving applicants for pensions, and in expos- 

 ing unworthy attempts and they are many 

 to defraud the Government through unjust 

 claims. During the year more than $253,000 

 have been officially expended in tBe relief of 

 families of deceased and dependent soldiers, 

 and probably an equal amount has been con- 

 tributed by members in a private way calling 

 for no official record. During the sixteen 

 years from 1871 to 1886, the sum of $1,173,- 

 688.60 has been disbursed for charitable pur- 

 poses. These large sums have been distributed 

 directly to those whose needs were personally 

 known to the donors, and it is probable that 

 very little has gone to unworthy pension- 

 ers. Twice within a few years, during the yel- 

 low-fever epidemic in the Mississippi Valley 

 and immediately after the Charleston earth- 

 quake, it was deemed proper to issue a general 

 call for aid to sufferers, a large majority of 

 whom must have been on the side of the re- 

 bellion during the civil war. In both in- 

 stances the order has promptly and generously 

 responded with pecuniary assistance. The 

 latest accessible figures place the total present 

 membership at 372,674, and the number of re- 

 cruits during 1887 numbered about 47,000. 

 The order is in fact a supplementary pension 

 bureau. That it should take an active part in 

 making known its sentiments in regard to the 

 Government bureau, is to be expected. Its 

 members are now too far advanced in life ever 

 again to bear arms in defense of the repub- 

 lic, but their influence is still potent for loy- 

 alty and good government. (Sec LOYAL LEGION 

 and MEDAL OF HONOE.) 



GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, a monarchy 

 in western Europe. The supreme legislative 

 power is exercised by Parliament. Parliaments 

 hold their sessions annually, meeting about the 

 middle of February. The session is usually 

 closed by prorogation about the middle of Au- 

 gust. Parliament is divided into two houses. 

 The House of Lords is composed of hereditary 

 peers ; peers created by the sovereign, English 

 bishops, who have seats ex officio, Irish peers, 

 who are elected for life, and Scottish repre- 

 sentative peers, who are chosen anew for each 

 Parliament. In 1886 the House of Lords con- 

 sisted of 549 members, of whom 5 were peers 

 of the blood royal, 2 archbishops, 22 dukes, 20 

 marquises, 118 earls, 29 viscounts, 24 bishops, 

 285 barons, 16 Scottish peers, and 28 Irish 

 representative peers. There are 20 Scotch and 

 65 Irish peers who have no seats in the House 

 of Lords. The House of Commons consists of 

 670 members, of whom 283 represent county 

 constituencies ; 360. boroughs ; and 9, univer- 

 sities. For England there are 253 county, 237 

 borough, and 5 university members ; in Scot- 

 land, 39 county, 31 borough, and 2 university 

 members; in Ireland, 85 county, 16 borough, 

 and 2 university members. 



The elections of 1886 resulted in the return 

 to Parliament of 318 Conservatives, 73 Liberal 

 Unionists, 194 Gladstonian Liberals, and 85 

 Irish Home Rulers, giving a normal majority 

 to the Conservative government, which was 

 formed in opposition to Mr. Gladstone's scheme 

 of home rule for Ireland, of 112 in a house of 

 670 members. The metropolis sent 48 Con- 

 servatives, 11 Gladstonians, and 3 Liberal 

 Unionists ; the rest of England elected 237 

 Conservatives, 116 Gladstonian Liberals, 49 

 Liberal Unionists, and 1 Irish Home Ruler, 

 who was returned for one of the divisions of 

 the city of Liverpool ; Wales returned 4 Con- 

 servatives, 24 Gladstonians, and 2 Liberal 

 Unionists ; Scotland returned 12 Conserva- 

 tives, 43 Gladstonians, and 17 Union Liberals ; 

 and in Ireland 17 Conservatives, 2 Liberal 

 Unionists, and 84 Home Rulers were elected. 

 Of the 285 Conservatives elected in England 

 the boroughs returned 98, besides the 48 Lon- 

 don members, the county districts 135, and the 

 universities 4. Of the Welsh Conservatives 3 

 represent boroughs and 1 a county constitu- 

 ency. In Scotland 1 borough, 9 county dis- 

 tricts, and both the universities of Edinburgh 

 and Glasgow are represented by Conservatives. 

 In Ireland the universities, 4 boroughs, and 11 

 county constituencies sent Conservative mem- 

 bers to Parliament. Liberal Unionists were 

 elected by 2 of the districts of London, 16 

 other boroughs, 33 county districts, and 1 uni- 

 versity; by 1 borough and 1 county constitu- 

 ency in Wales; by 8 boroughs and 9 county 

 districts in Scotland ; and by 2 county divisions 

 in Ireland. Gladstonian Liberals were returned 

 from 11 of the divisions of the metropolis, 50 

 other borough constituencies, and 66 county 

 constituencies in England ; from 7 boroughs 

 and 17 county districts in Wales; and from 22 

 boroughs and 21 county districts in Scotland. 

 The Irish members were returned from 12 

 Irish boroughs, 1 English borough, and 72 

 Irish county districts. 



The representation act of 1884, with the 

 redistribution act of 1885, increased the num- 

 ber of voters from 3,152,919 to 5,707,531. 

 The number of county electors was increased 

 in England from 966,719 to 2,536,580 ; in Scot- 

 land, from 99,652 to 325,529 ; in Ireland, from 

 165,997 to 631,649. The number entitled to 

 the borough franchise was increased in Eng- 

 land from 1,651,732 to 1,840,044; in Scotland, 

 from 210,789 to 235,051 ; in Ireland, from 

 58,021 to 106,109. The 32,569 electors who 

 choose the 9 university representatives under 

 the act of 1885 were formerly included in the 

 borough electors. The total number of voters 

 was increased in England from 2,618,451 to 

 4,391,260; in Scotland, from 310,441 to 574,- 

 358; and in Ireland, from 224,018 to 741,913. 

 An act passed in 1872, requiring parliamentary 

 elections to be by secret vote and by ballot ex- 

 pired in 1880, but has since been continued 

 from year to year. The Parliament which 

 was opened in August, 1886, is the 24th of 



