GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



<.f thoHHtUb, French, 



Kh the Suit 

 of reforms for Ar- 

 thc hMOfpCMtimi of British Bech- 

 h ( 'ape Colony. No legislative pro- 

 mAdeVthe business of the 



of the session 



posats ' 



Imtecomftned to voting the estimates for the 



trvfe of the year which ware not voted by the 



Lowther was elected chairman 

 of committees John Daly, who was chosen a 

 amltfr for Limerick city, was declared incapa- 

 ble of being elected because he was undergoing 



, .......... , . ,. ,,,:.,i \\ i:.: 



promised the Irish members to consider a 

 naooontentious bill for the relief of evicted ten- 

 ants, but said that he would not introduce a land- 

 la bill then on account of its controversial char- 

 acter. In fulfillment of his pledg* the new Irish 

 Secretary secured the re-enactment of a clause 

 of the land act of 1891 for the reinstatement of 

 evicted tenants with the consent of their land- 

 lord*. Further than this he refused to go. Dr. 

 Charles K. D. Tanner, Anti-Parnellite, was sus- 

 pended for a week because he created a disor- 

 derly scene. The Liberals supported the de- 

 mands that were made on the Government for 

 the immediate treatment of the questions of the 

 condition of agriculture and the unemployed. 

 The session came to an end on Sept. 5. 



London County Council. TheCounty Coun- 

 cil that has managed the affairs of the metropo- 

 lis for six years has been in control of the 

 Progressive party. The Progressives desire the 

 unification of the metropolis and seek to extend 

 the powers of the County Council, whereas the 

 Moderates, their opponents, propose that the 

 metropolitan area shall be divided into 10 self- 

 governing municipalities. The Progressives 

 nave, indeed, acceded to the creation of sepa- 

 rate municipalities, each with its own mayor, 

 but not to the principle that each of these shall 

 assess and spend its own rates. The effect of 

 that would be that rich districts, having ban- 

 ished all the poverty and labor into the |>oorer 

 districts, would not be responsible for any of the 

 cost of improving and keeping up these districts ; 

 that the parishes of the West End, which have 

 their Hyde and St. James's Parks maintained 

 out of the taxes, would be relieved of the ex- 

 pense of parti v paving for the parks and open 

 paces of the East End ; that poor districts, hav- 

 ing a valuation one tenth that of the city or the 

 luxurious divisions and in which all the insani- 

 tary areas are found, would have to clear these 

 unhealthy areas away at the expense of the poor 

 themselves. The Progressives have endeavored 

 to introduce the principle of assessing the rates 

 upon the owners rather than upon the occupiers 

 of the land, and the Council has incurred large 

 i in trying to obtain the sanction of Par 

 to this method of local taxation. In 



me- 

 rates 



per cent., from 1 1 \d. 



n the pound, during the six years the 

 Council has been in existcne. 



-treet improvements were proposed 

 in Parliament in 1898, the Council makingthe 

 condiUon that Parliament should pass a public 

 bill for taxing ground values, otherwise tte im- 



edocation. sanitation, and other matters the n 

 twpotoha* made great progress. The rsJ 

 have been increased over 20 percent., from 11, 



nrovements would not be made. This resulted 



in a deadlork. fort ho (lovenmieMt dedn 



106 such a I'ill. Later the Council was 

 willing t<. proceed \\iih Mime of the scl, 

 provided Parliament should sanction the t 

 pie of beitt rmcnt, which is that <>\\ 

 [and is enhanced in value by impro\emcntJ< 

 should IK* made to pay for them in |>rii|M>rtinn 

 to the benelit received. Iii furtherance of tin- 

 project of unification the Progressives have, pro* 

 -in the corporation of the citv 

 of London its ceremonial function-. In compli- 



ance with their \M-II,- the city companies ha 

 i ui) some of their surplus r 



for technical education. Manv of tin' 



- already given uj> some of their sui 



lusrevemj 



ir i 



sals are called socialistic, such 'its the mum. ipal- 

 ization of docks and markets and the estt^^H 

 merit of municipal pawnshops. The num. 

 /at ion of gas and waterworks and street rail- 

 roads is not opposed absolutely by the M 

 atcs, but the majority of the Council hn , 



able to agree with the opposite p.. 

 with the companies owning the existing 

 works and tramways in regard to tl 

 the conditions of the transfer. The County 

 Council adopted the policy of executing all pull- 

 lie works and conducting all the. public "USUM 

 without the intervention of contractors. The 

 Committee on Works regarded the results 

 isfactory, although the rule was adopted 

 the trade-union rates or the highest mark 

 of waives to all workmen employed. The M< 

 crates have ceased their opposition t 

 chase of the street railroads since tin 

 Appeals decided that the price shall n<>t be 

 on the market value of the shares, and mu< 

 be more than the actual value of plant and 

 terial. The Moderates want the train wa 

 ever, to be leased and operated by >i 

 while the Progressives propose that the 

 Council shall'run them. P.i lls have been brouSMJ 

 before Parliament for the expropri 

 the water companies. 



Elections for a new County Council were bsW 

 in March, 1805. The general reaction in fan 

 of the Conservative and Unionist party opers^H 

 in favor of the Moderates, who have Ixn-n affll- 



\vith the Conservatives. The result waflM 

 tie, 57 Moderates against 57 Progressives. Ifcei 

 Moderates gained 23 seats. Never 

 Progressives obtained a majority in the mm 

 Council with the votes of the 9 aldermen wh 

 have seats and votes in the Council, ^l 



i their candidate for chairman, i 

 Arthur Arnold, over the Duke of Norfolk by 66- 



The Progressives, grown modest 1 1 

 electoral reverses and the prospecth 

 the Conservatives in the national elect; 

 fered in Parliament a compromise bill. 

 ing betterment with worscmtfnt in assessing spe-< 



ixesfor local improvemei 

 mise, having been arranged by Mr. 

 Lord Cadogan, had the support 

 ates. The principle of worsement, s<- HI 

 demnity to owners whose property is injured b; 

 improvements, has heretofore been i 

 the majority of the Council. The- bill pi 

 that in certain conditions owners may call upoi 

 the County Council to purchase the lands am 

 houses on which a special tax has been assessed 



