GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



533 



hemp, and jute, 8,294,553 ; leather, 6,580,222 ; 

 fruits, 0,085,042 ; wine, 5,303,294 ; cheese, 5,- 

 1(50,918; coffee, 4,001,280 : tobacco, 3,566,001. 

 The values of some of the chief articles of do- 

 mestic produce or manufacture exported were : 

 Cotton goods, 54,717,196; cotton yarn, 9,- 

 059,984: woolens, 16,428,407; woolen and 

 worsted yarn, 4,533,474 ; linen goods, 4,778,- 

 996; linen yarn, 1,005,155; jute manufactures, 

 2,391,363; apparel and haberdashery, 5,759,- 

 913 ; tin plates, 3,265,663 ; hoops, sheets, and 

 plates, 3,265,663 ; railroad iron, 2.512,964 ; 

 cast and wrought iron, 3,768,902 ; steel, 2,- 

 183,482 ; copper, 3.022,651 ; coal, 14,488,154 ; 

 hardware and cutlery, 2,048,042. The follow- 

 ing table gives the values of the imports in 1892 

 from some of the principal countries and of the 

 exports to them of British produce: 



Navigation. The number of merchant ves- 

 sels entered from foreign ports during 1892 was 

 61,647, of 37.673,000 tons, of which 24,682, of 

 10,633.000 tons, were foreign. The number 

 cleared was 61.881, of 38.194,000 tons, of which 

 24.954, of 10,862,000 tons, were foreign. The 

 tonnage of vessels with cargoes entered was 29,- 

 530,000, of which 21.356,000 tons were British 

 and 8,174,000 tons foreign shipping; the ton- 

 nage of vessels cleared with cargoes was 33,944,- 

 000, of which 25,064,000 tons were British and 

 8,880,000 tons foreign. The total tonnage of 

 sailing and steam vessels in the foreign trade, 

 entered and cleared with cargoes and in ballast 

 was 75.868,000 tons, of which 54.373,000 tons 

 were British. 5,351,000 Norwegian, 4,045,000 

 German, 2.144.000 Dutch, 1.951,000 Danish, 

 1,939,000 French, 1,936,000 Swedish, 1,163,000 

 Spanish, 953.000 Belgian, 627,000 Russian, 590,- 

 000 Italian, 223,000 American, and 175,000 Aus- 

 trian. The tonnage entered and cleared at the 

 port of London was 13,916,000 tons ; at Liver- 

 pool, 11.120,000; at Cardiff, 9,779,000 ; at New- 

 castle, 4,206.000 ; at Hull, 3,801,000 ; at Shields, 

 3,291.000; at Glasgow, 2,941,000. The total 

 number of vessels entered coastwise was 314,- 

 860, of 49.415,000 tons ; cleared, 281,629. of 43.- 

 682.000 tons. The total number of vessels en- 

 tered at British ports was 376,507, of 87,087,970 

 tons ; cleared, 343,510. of 81,876,330 tons. 



In 1892 there were engaged in the foreign 

 trade 2,082 British sailing vessels, of 2.388,800 

 tons, and 3,577 steam vessels, of 4,905,996 tons, 

 besides 238 sailing vessels, of 37,200 tons, and 



306 steam vessels, of 206,660 tons, engaged part- 

 ly in the foreign and partly in the home trade. 

 In the home trade, which embraces the Conti- 

 nental coast from the Elbe to Brest as well as 

 British ports, there were 8,478 sailing vessels, of 

 535,326 tons, and 2,344 steam vessels, of 26,611 

 tons. The total number of British vessels in the 

 home and foreign trades at the end of 1892 was 

 17,020, of 8,449,512 tons, employing 241,735 men, 

 of whom 30,899 were foreigners. The number 

 of vessels registered as belonging to the United 

 Kingdom was 21,528, of 8.644,574 tons, of which 

 13,578, of 3,080,272 tons, were sailing vessels, and 

 7.950, of 5,564,482 tons, were steamers. The 

 number of vessels built and registered during 

 1892 was 843, of 692,791 tons, of which 322, of 

 258,700 tons, were sailing vessels, and 521, of 

 434.091 tons, were steam vessels. 



The Winter Session. The session that 

 opened on Jan. 31, 1893, instead of terminating 

 in August, as formerly, or being prolonged till 

 late autumn, as of late, extended over the year, 

 and did not come to an end till March 5, 1894. 

 Although Mr. Gladstone's Irish Home-rule bill 

 was the chief cause of its unprecedented length, 

 other highly contentious measures forming part 

 of the Newcastle programme put forth by the 

 Liberal party in 1892 were introduced in accord- 

 ance with the promises contained in the address. 

 The principal measures promised were bills to 

 change the met hod of registering voters, to carry 

 out- the principle of "one man one vote," and to 

 shorten Parliaments, labor legislation fixing 

 shorter hours for railway servants, amending the 

 law of conspiracy, and making employers re- 

 sponsible for accidents to workmen, the parish 

 councils and London County Council bills, a 

 Welsh Church suspensory bill, a similar one for 

 Scotland, a local veto bill. The promised bill to 

 disestablish the Scottish Kirk was not brought 

 in, nor were those for making Parliaments 

 shorter, for abolishing plural voting, and for 

 modifying the constitution of the London Coun- 

 ty Council. The registration bills for England 

 and Wales and for Scotland were withdrawn, as 

 were the conspiracy-law amendment bill, the bill 

 for the disestablishment of the Welsh Church, 

 and the temperance bill introducing local option. 

 The railway-servants bill was passed, and so 

 were bills authorizing an Indian loan, and one 

 correcting the Scotch fishery act. A bill to re- 

 instate Irish evicted tenants, introduced by a 

 Nationalist member, was accepted in principle 

 by the Government, and facilities were offered 

 for a miners' eight-hour bill, proposed by a 

 Labor member. The Home-rule bill, carried 

 through the House of Commons by the free use 

 of the closure rule, was rejected by the House of 

 Lords on Sept. 8, 1893. 



The parish councils bill and the employers' 

 liability bill were reserved for discussion in 

 the winter session, rendered necessary by the 

 fact that the budget had not yet been voted. 

 All the other Government measures were aban- 

 doned or postponed. Parliament adjourned for 

 forty days, and met again on Nov. 2. 



The parish councils bill, which finally be- 

 came law, puts an end to the control of the 

 squire and the parson over rural local gov- 

 ernment. Every man or woman after twelve 

 months' residence is qualified to vote for the 



