i8 



REVIEW OF REVIEWS. 



March 1, 1911 



Commons by the decisive majorit}- of 

 no. It then went to the House of 

 Lords, where it had short shrift. Their 

 Lordships also vetoed the Welsh 

 Church Disestablishment Bill, which 

 passed the Lower House with d 

 majority of 107. The Parliament Act 

 of 191 1 provides that a Bill whi-'a 

 passes through the House of Commons 

 in three successive sessions, wheth.^r 

 in the same Parliament or not, and is 

 rejected by the Lords, may become an 

 Act without the consent of the Upper 

 House, provided that two years have 

 elapsed between the date of the second 

 reading when first passed, and the date 

 it passes finally. This means, that if 

 the present Government remains in 

 power, these Bills will become law early 

 in 191 5. Until that date Mr. Asquith 

 can count upon the soHd support of the 

 Irish party in the House. Hitherto, the 

 Prime Minister has been twitted by the 

 Opposition with receiving his orders 

 from Mr. Redmond ; he now, in the 

 nature of things, has the Nationalist 

 leader in his pocket. 



WHO'S AFRAID? 



(Reproduced by arrangement with the Proprietors 

 of Punch, I>oncloii.) 



Labour Unrest at Home. 



Last }ear it was anticipated that 

 much labour unrest would be shown in 

 Great Britain during 191 3. Everything 

 is booming at home, and demands by 

 workmen, when orders were flowing in, 

 and had to be completed, were likel>" 

 to be granted. The prophets appear to 

 have been correct, and trouble is al- 

 ready' beginning. The difficulties on 

 the railways at home are chiefly due 

 to the refusal of many of the companies 

 to recognise the Railwa>-men's Unions. 

 It is significant to note, though, that 

 it is on the North-Eastern Railway- 

 where the Unions are recognised, that 

 most troubles occur, followed gener- 

 all}' b\- strikes. The present crisis is 

 on the Midland Railway, over the dis- 

 missal of a guard. This is to be made 

 a test case, and will, perhaps, involve 

 a general strike of railwa}' workers, 

 which will paralyse the entire trade of 

 the country. A week's strike will dis- 

 organise industry entirel)' for a month, 

 and its effects will be felt throughout 

 the year. The difficulty confronting the 

 Union executives is, that whilst all en- 

 lightened officials desire to arrive at 

 settlement by negotiation, their mem- 

 bers are not disposed to follow this 

 advice. A local strike takes place — 

 against tlie express instructions o"" the 

 executive — and immediately the whole 

 Union is dragged in. This was the case 

 in the shipbuilding strike recentl\', 

 which resulted in a lock-out ; in the 

 " right-to-get-drunk " railway strike 

 of last year, and, indeed, in 

 most of the recent strikes, except 

 that of the miners. Workmen at 

 home are more and more refusing 

 to be guided b\' their own chiefs, 

 and the results must be disas- 

 trous to them. Northumberland coal 

 miners threaten to strike against the 

 three-shift system, which is the direct 

 result of the Eight Hours Act, passed 



