328 LIFE OF SIR JOHN LUBBOCK ch. 



his singularly successful and firm management 

 evoked the astonished admiration and comment 

 of his friend Mr. (now Sir Everard) Hambro. 



At the end of April he attended the dinner of 

 the Royal Academy and, not for the first time, 

 returned thanks for Science. 



His diary of May 4 records rather an amusing 

 incident in the House. " I was sitting by Cun- 

 ninghame Graham during the discussion of a Bill 

 on the unearned increment, and Asquith was 

 speaking, when I suggested that if this was just 

 as regards land it applied equally to shares in 

 companies. Cunninghame Graham said, ' Yes, you 

 are right, the Bill is a swindle,' and jumped up 

 saying something to the same effect very ex- 

 citedly. The Speaker at once named him. I 

 tried to pull him down but uselessly, and he was 

 promptly suspended." 



Under date May 17, 1892, is a letter from 

 Sir Charles Tupper to Sir John, enclosing a copy 

 of the resolution in favour of preferential trade 

 between Great Britain and her Colonies which 

 was passed by the House of Commons of Canada 

 on April 26 of that year, together with some 

 memoranda of the differential tariffs given by 

 France and Spain to their Colonies. The letter 

 concludes by expressing a hope " for a favourable 

 response to the unanimous wish of the United 

 Empire Trade League that you should accept the 

 Presidency of the League for the coming year." 



The Shop Hours Act Amendment Bill had 

 passed through a Select Committee, but was in 

 danger of perishing at the annual massacre of the 

 innocents. The Government promised to help 



