§ Amendment reported (according to Order).
LORD BALFOURsaid, he had put down a series of Amendments. The object of the Bill was to amend Clause 105 of the Factory and Workshops Act of 1878, which appointed as public holidays in Scotland, instead of Good Friday and Christmas Day, the Sacramental Fast Days. The Bill proposed to substitute, so far as burghs were concerned, certain days to be fixed by the magistrates for the Sacramental Fast Days. He saw no reason why there should be any difference between the burghs and counties, as any such difference must give rise to unde rable anomalies. The Amendments of which he had given Notice were for the pur- 1516 pose of amending the law alike for burghs and counties. But he understood that objections were likely to be made "in another place" and that if these Amendments were passed they might endanger the Bill, which was desired by many persons; and as he considered he had done his duty in calling attention to the anomaly which would be created, he did not propose to press his Amendments, although he did not depart from the opinion that the proposal, limited as it was in the Bill, was injudicious and unsound.
§ Bill to be read 3a on Thursday next.