Lords Sitting of 19 February 1906

THE KING'S SPEECH.
THE KING, being seated on the Throne, and the Commons being at the Bar with their Speaker, His Majesty was pleased to make a most gracious Speech to both Houses of Parliament, and then retired.
His Majesty's Speech was as follows:—
"My Lords and Gentlemen,
The lamented death of the King of Denmark, to whom I was united by the closest ties of family and affection, has caused Me much sorrow, and I feel convinced that the sympathy of the country will be extended to Queen Alexandra, who, in consequence of Her severe bereavement, is prevented from accompany Me on the important occasion of the opening of the new Parliament.
The Prince and Princess of Wales left last autumn for India, and are visiting as many portions of My vast Empire as time will admit of. The reception they have met with from all classes has been most gratifying to Me, and I trust that their visit will tend to strengthen, among My subjects in India, the feeling of loyalty to the Crown and attachment to this country.
It was with real satisfaction that I received the King of the Hellenes, who is so closely related to Me, as My guest during the autumn. His Majesty's visit will, I am confident, confirm the friendly ties which have so long governed the relations existing between the two countries.
My relations with Foreign Powers continue to be friendly.
I rejoice that the war between Russia and Japan has been brought to an end by the satisfactory conclusion of the negotiations commenced last August, and due to the initiative of the President of the United States, which resulted in an honourable peace.
An Agreement has been concluded with the Government of the Emperor of Japan prolonging and extending that which was made between the two Govern-
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ments in January 1902. Its text has already been made public.
The Conference summoned by the Sultan of Morocco to consider the introduction of reforms into his Kingdom has assembled at Algeciras, and Delegates from the Powers Signatories of the Madrid Convention of 1880 are engaged in deliberations, which still continue. It is earnestly to be hoped that the result of these negotiations may be conducive to the maintenance of peace among all nations.
The dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway has been peacefully accomplished, and, in accordance with the declared desire of the Norwegian people, My Son-in-law and Daughter, the Prince and Princess Charles of Denmark, have ascended the Throne of Norway as King and Queen.
The insurrectionary movement in Crete has subsided, and the four Protecting Powers have appointed Commissioners with a view to the introduction of reforms in the island.
The condition of the Macedonian vilayets, though in some respects improved, continues to give cause for anxiety. The Sultan has agreed to the appointment of an International Financial Commission to supervise the financial administration of these provinces, and I trust that this may lead to the introduction of salutary reforms and the improvement of the condition of the population.
Papers will be laid before you respecting Army administration in India.
In order to establish responsible government in the Transvaal Colony, I have decided to recall the Letters Patent which provided for the intermediate stage of representative government, and to direct that the new Constitution be drawn up with as much expedition as is consistent with due care and deliberation in all particulars. The elections to the first Legislative Assembly, which had been expected in July, must accordingly be postponed, but it is not anticipated that the additional delay need extend beyond a few months.
The directions which have been given that no further licences should be issued for the importation of Chinese coolies will continue in force during that period.
A Constitution granting responsible government will also be framed for the Orange River Colony.
It is my earnest hope that in these Colonies, as elsewhere throughout My dominions, the grant of free institutions will be followed by an increase of prosperity and of loyalty to the Empire.
The Colonial Conference, which, in existing circumstances, cannot be held this year, has been postponed until the early part of next year, with the concurrence of the Colonial Governments concerned.

Gentlemen of the House of Commons,
I note with satisfaction that the imports and exports of the country continue to show a steady and accelerating increase, and, together with the growing activity of trade at home, indicate that the industries of My people are, in general, in a sound and progressive condition.
The additions which have been made in recent years to the national expenditure and to the capital liabilities of the State are matters to which I invite your earnest attention.
The Estimates of charge which will be laid before you will be presented in as moderate a form as time and circumstances have allowed.

My Lords and Gentlemen,
My Ministers have under consideration plans for improving and effecting economies in the system of government in Ireland and for introducing into it means for associating the people with the conduct of Irish affairs. It is my desire that the government of the country, in reliance upon the ordinary law, should be carried on, so far as existing circumstances permit, in a spirit regardful of the wishes and sentiments of the Irish people; and I trust that this may conduce to the maintenance of tranquility and of good feeling between different classes in the community.
The social and economic conditions of the rural districts in Great Britain require careful consideration. Inquiries are proceeding as to the means by which a larger number of the population may be attracted to and retained on the soil, and they will be completed at no distant date.
A Bill will be laid before you at the earliest possible moment for amending the existing law with regard to Education in England and Wales.
Bills will also be submitted to you for dealing with the law regulating Trade Disputes, and for amending the Workmen's Compensation Acts; for the further Equalisation of Rates in the Metropolis, and for amending the Unemployed Workmen Act.
Your attention will also be called to measures dealing with the Merchant Shipping Law, for amending and extending the Crofters' Holdings (Scotland) Act, for amending the Labourers (Ireland) Act, for checking commercial corruption, for improving the law regarding certain Colonial Marriages, for abolishing the property qualification required of County Justices in England, and for the prevention of plural voting in Parliamentary Elections.
Your labours upon these and upon all other matters I humbly commend to the blessing of Almighty God."
Several Lords took the oath.
The Lord Leigh sat first in Parliament after the death of his father.
Several Lords took the oath.
The right hon. Sir William Hood Walrond, baronet, having been created Baron Waleran of Uffculme, in the county of Devon, was (in the usual manner) introduced.
Philip James Stanhope, esquire, commonly called the hon. Philip James Stanhope, having been created Baron Weardale of Stanhope, in the county of Durham, was (in the usual manner) introduced.
Charles Lord Bishop of Birmingham, was (in the usual manner) introduced.
Several Lords took the oath.
The Earl Cairns sat first in Parliament after the death of his brother.
Several Lords took the oath.

SELECT VESTRIES.
Bill, pro formâ, read 1a.

ADDRESS IN REPLY TO HIS MAJESTY'S MOST GRACIOUS SPEECH.
THE MARQUESS OF NORTHAMPTON: My Lords, I beg to move that an humble Address be presented to His Majesty thanking him for his gracious Speech from the Throne. I am sure your Lordships will agree with me that our special thanks are due to His Majesty for having personally opened Parliament at the beginning of this session. We must all feel that his personal inclinations would have taken him to Denmark to accompany Her Majesty, but the King subordinated his private wishes to a kingly duty, and we owe him our thanks for having done so. We also would like, I feel sure, to express our sympathy with their Majesties in the sorrow which has just come upon them. The late King of Denmark had endeared himself to his subjects; he was a wise and good ruler, and was also the centre of the happiest and most affectionate family life. I am sure I am only echoing the feelings of your Lordships when I tender to their Majesties the expression of our deepest sympathy with them in their sorrow, and assure them that the expression is not a mere form of words but comes from our hearts.
We regret the absence of Her Majesty to-day, and we also notice the absence of two other members of the Royal Family. We have been watching with the greatest interest and increasing satisfaction the Royal progress of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales throughout the great dependencies of India, and we can congratulate His Majesty upon the wisdom which he has shown in sending the Heir Apparent and his Princess on a mission for cementing still closer all parts of the Empire to the British Throne. We are glad to think that that mission has been so successful. Its success has been proved by the enthusiasm with which their Royal Highnesses have been received by the peoples of India, and also by the fact that all the great Princes and Chiefs of the various States have vied with each other in according them a splendid and royal welcome as a mark, as a further mark, of their loyalty and attachment to their Emperor.
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My Lords, I now pass to the paragraph which refers to our relations with Foreign Powers, and I will say how thankful we all are that the old phrase can still be used that friendly relations exist between this country and all other nations. With some the friendly relations have been strengthened during the past twelve months. The visit of the King of the Hellenes was an additional proof of the great friendship which has always existed between ourselves and the Greek nation; the agreement with Japan has been prolonged and strengthened; and the entente cordiale with France has also been strengthened by the interchange of visits by the two great municipalities of Paris and London. We are thankful to be able to say that at this moment the world is at peace, and, although there may be international difficulties, yet wherever those difficulties are the sword is sheathed and peaceful diplomacy is at work.
I am glad to think that the policy of His Majesty's Government as regards foreign affairs has been distinctly declared, and that that policy is one of continuity. As one who served for many years in the diplomatic service, I can bear witness that there is nothing more dangerous to the interests of this country than that there should be even a suspicion in the minds of foreign nations that a change of Government would mean a change of policy in our foreign affairs. Another lesson I learned from serving under such great diplomatic masters as Lord Lyons and Lord Dufferin was that when one made a public speech on foreign affairs, and when the most delicate International questions were being discussed and deliberated, it was wise to observe an extreme reticence and discretion. I only wish that that reticence and discretion could be observed not only by all public men, but by all leader writers in the Press. I would, therefore, only say, as regards Morocco and the Algeciras Conference, that there seems to be only two points of difficulty—perhaps one of extreme difficulty—but we can safely leave, as far as we are concerned, in the hands of our able representative, Sir Arthur Nicholson, the duty which has been imposed upon him by His Majesty's Government of

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giving a full diplomatic support to our friend and neighbour, France, and at the same time not giving a sign of hostility to any other nation. Our hope, and as far as I am concerned, my belief, is that a successful determination will come from the efforts of the Conference. Able diplomatists are at work, and I believe that the work of able diplomatists will always be successful.
I will now, my Lords, leave foreign affairs and address myself to matters which effect our Empire and the mother country. The first paragraph that I will allude to is that which refers to the Transvaal and to the Orange River Colony. It is stated clearly that responsible government will be granted, which means that the proposal of the late Government will not be carried out. I think it would have been quite impossible for any Liberal Government to have come to any other conclusion. I cannot imagine anything more dangerous than to grant, as was proposed to be granted, representative government without imposing upon the representative assemblies the sobering influence of responsibility. I cannot think that the Crown Colony system, as it is called, can be a good one, for it contains in it an element of the maximum of friction which may come between the Representative Assemblies in the Colonies and the Home Government. I am, therefore, glad that His Majesty's Government determined to deal with this matter with a generous hand. I am also glad that it is not to be done in haste, but that full information is to be procured as regards all the details that are necessary in order to arrive at the best form of government to be given; and I can only re-echo the words of His Majesty's speech, that it is our belief and hope that these new Colonies will, as time goes on, prosper as our other Colonies have done, knowing that they have the full responsibility of government on their shoulders. The question of Chinese labour—a question which has been a good deal ventilated lately—will be handed over to the new Government in the Transvaal and Orange River Colony. I am extremely glad that so many of your Lordships approve of that. I regret, and regret intensely, that at the eleventh hour new licences
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were granted, but, as far as I can understand from what has fallen from the legal advisers of His Majesty's Government, that action was irrevocable. No more licences, however, are to be allowed until the Colonies have settled the question for themselves. I feel that it is a question that should be left for those on the spot to decide.
Now, as regards home affairs, I turn for one moment to the paragraph in the Speech relating to Ireland. No actual legislative measure is either defined or foreshadowed in that paragraph, but a, policy is clearly laid down which must ultimately, I suppose, take shape. From my experience in Ireland during two of the worst years in the history of that unfortunate country, I feel convinced that some part of the devolution schemes which have been brought forward contain a good deal that is useful and right, and I also feel that the more we can entrust to the Irish people the administration of their local affairs the better it will be for Ireland. I am glad that the policy of His Majesty's Government will be to develop, and perhaps to carry still further, that policy which seemed to be the policy of the late Government up to a certain date, and that the policy of devolution such as we imagined was going to be carried out by Mr. Wyndham will take effect in years to come. As a well-wisher to Ireland, as one who thoroughly realises the feelings of the Irish people as regards the mismanagement—I will not say more—of Irish affairs in the distant past, and as one who also can thoroughly realise their aspirations for the future, I sincerely hope that a good deal will be done in order to give the Irish people a greater share of the management of their own local affairs, while maintaining the unity—for it must be preserved—of the United Kingdom with Ireland.
I pass to the thorny subject of education. I do not think, after the determined opposition which the late Government's Act has met with, after all that has been said of that Act since, and after the result of the general election, it will come as surprise to your Lordships to know that an amending Act is to be introduced. I do not think it will even be a surprise to the Episcopal

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Bench or to His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, who is popularly supposed to be the godfather of the Education Act. I, of course, am quite unaware of what the amending Act will be. Perhaps I may be considered a little unwise, but I will venture to state my personal opinion at all events as to what one part of it should be. I feel that I cannot maintain silence on the subject of religious teaching In our schools, as I occupy a position in many great religious societies which would make my silence seem perhaps cowardly—at all events, it would be difficult to explain. No one who knows me will fancy for one moment that I am a secularist, but at the same time I feel—and feel deeply—that no system of National Education will ever commend itself to the vast mass of the people, belonging as many of them do to different sects and different denominations—no system will be considered satisfactory, if it is a State-paid system and a compulsory system, as long as any denominational religion is taught in the schools during school hours.
For myself, I think we who lay so much stress upon the religious teaching of children should be content that the simplest bible teaching should be given. I say the simplest, because I think there is a danger that the Bible might be considered by the children only as a lesson-book, to be thrown away as the other lesson-books are thrown away when the joyful moment of escape from school-life arrives. I hope that when the amending Act is brought before us some of the old passions will have passed away, and that the country will be able to give a calm and deliberate judgment on the matter. I am glad to say that one right step has already been taken by the new Minister for Education, for in the newspapers this morning it is announced that money will be forthcoming in order to give further aid to our secondary schools, of which they stand sadly in need, and also further aid in the building of training colleges for the teachers. On those subjects I imagine that your Lordships will be unanimous.
I will refer to only two other matters. The first is the subject of the equalisation of rates for London, of which, as a London landlord in the East End, I shall heartily
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approve; and the other the abolition of plural voting, which, after all, has been before the country for a great many years. I fought something like seven contested elections in eleven years, and know that that subject was always a very prominent one in my programme. When the time arrives I shall be able to give a fuller explanation, but I did come across what I considered to be gross unfairness as regards plural voting, and I think in these times plural voting should be considered as an anachronism and unfair and should be abolished. I am therefore glad to think His Majesty's Government are going to introduce a measure to abolish plural voting. These, with other reforms which will be referred to by my noble friend beside me in seconding the Address, will come before us in due time, and will, of course, meet with objection, and, I am afraid, a good deal of opposition. It would be affectation to pretend to think that these measures will receive the hearty approval of the majority of your Lordships. I regret that that is the case, but I understand it to be the duty, or, at all events, the practice of this House when Liberal Reform measures are brought before it, to put on one side as far as possible party and political opinions, and to give due weight to all the circumstances which have brought such measures into existence. My Lords, I think you will all agree with me that the general election has at all events taught us one great lesson, and that is that there has been a gradual increase, all the stronger because it has been gradual, of democratic feeling and progressive thought. The measures which will be brought before your Lordships this Session and in future Sessions will be the fruit of that feeling, and I trust that as time goes on and we have these measures in full detail before us, we shall be able not only to give a calm and impartial deliberation to them, but also our ultimate consent. I beg to move.
LORD HERSCHELL: My Lords, on rising to second the Address I must ask your Lordships to accord to me a full measure of that courteous indulgence which I understand it has ever been the custom to extend to those who rise to address this House for the first time.

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I hope your Lordships will allow me to say what gratification I have had at the honour which I know it to be of being selected to second the Address in reply to His Majesty's most gracious Speech. But before proceeding with my observations I hope your Lordships will permit me to say how much we feel the absence from our midst to-day of one well-known figure—I need hardly say I refer to Earl Spencer, whose ever-ready courtesy, quick sympathies, and many sterling qualities endear him alike to all, to his political opponents as well as to his political frieids. I myself feel, in a particular measure his absence, owing to the very great friendship which existed for so many years between the noble Earl and my father, and I know that your Lordships will all join with me in wishing him a speedy recovery.
I should like to associate myself with the noble Marquess whose speech we have just heard in his expressions of the deepest sympathy with Their Majesties the King and Queen in their overwhelming bereavement, and in doing so I am confident I voice the sentiments of every Member of your Lordships' House. Allusion is made in the gracious Speech to the visit of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales to India. This visit cannot fail to be a source of gratification to all concerned, to ourselves and to our Eastern fellow subjects; it has been made the occasion of yet another display of the utmost loyalty and attachment to the Throne, and will serve as a further tie to strengthen that unanimity of feeling which does exist, and which it is so desirable should exist, between the peoples of India and the people of this country. There is, I suppose, no one who can fail to rejoice at the happy termination of the war between Russia and Japan—a war which one might, without exaggeration, characterise as the most portentous conflict that the world has ever seen, portentous not only in the valour displayed but also in the unprecedented loss of life on both sides; and I am sure your Lordships will agree that a debt of gratitude is owed by the whole civilised world to President Roosevelt, of the United States of America, for his good offices and timely assistance, which so materially contri-
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buted to the inception and ultimate success of the peace negotiations. The hand of friendship has been proffered and accepted by the two nations, and I trust I may be allowed to express the hope that now that the clouds of war have rolled away they may be on the eve of a new era of vigorous internal development, which will inevitably lead to an increase of material prosperity and happiness to both nations.
This leads me to the Agreement with Japan. The whole world can feel nothing but admiration for the way in which Japan has, in a period so brief as to be without parallel in history, attained the position among the nations of the world which she now occupies. Your Lordships will have noticed in the Gracious Speech that the Agreement entered into with Japan in January, 1902, has been prolonged and extended. This can be nothing but a source of satisfaction to all. The cordial feelings of goodwill which exist at present between the two countries and the various interests, commercial and otherwise, which affect ourselves, of the islands of the West and our allies of the islands of the East, have combined to make this Agreement particularly suitable; for surely, my Lords, the soundest basis of any Agreement, political or otherwise, is community of interests. I should like to express my conviction that there is nothing in this Agreement which could possibly, in any way, militate against those friendly relations which now exist, and which I am confident we shall ever strive to maintain in the future, between ourselves and Russia. Finally, my Lords, as to our part of the Agreement, I feel sure that we shall adhere strictly to all the engagements entered into, not only in the letter but also in the spirit of the Agreement, which is the maintenance of the peace of the whole world.
Your Lordships will have seen in the' gracious Speech that the dissolution of the union of Sweden and Norway has taken place. We cannot but rejoice that the difficulties which existed between these two peoples should have been settled in so peaceable a manner, and I know I am expressing the sentiments of all your Lordships when I say that we offer a humble and heartfelt

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wish that the reign of Norway's King and of the English Princess who is his Queen may be a long one, fraught with happiness for them and prosperity for the people over whom they have been called to rule.
I now come, my Lords, to the reference to Macedonia. This province has always presented innumerable difficulties in opposition to a satisfactory solution of the question as to what precisely is the best form of Government for its peculiar needs. The various warring elements, racial and religious, which exist among its curiously mixed population have ever been a series of stumbling-blocks in the way of reform. Pressure has repeatedly been brought to bear on the Turkish Government with a view to ameliorating the unhappy conditions which obtain in that province. In fact, efforts in this direction have been unceasing one might say ever since the time of the Berlin Treaty. Unfortunately, the procrastination of the Porte, assisted to a certain extent by the slow action of the European Concert, has up to the present practically left matters in statu quo; and, in spite of the assurances of goodwill of His Majesty the Sultan, and his doubtless beneficent intentions, the numerous steps which have been taken so far have resulted in comparatively little actual progress. It is therefore with feelings of particular thankfulness that we now learn that His Majesty the Sultan has definitely accepted an International Financial Commission, which I believe is already at work.
Your Lordships will also have learned from the gracious Speech that papers will be laid before Parliament dealing with Army Administration in India. When the present Government came into power the question of Army Administration in India was only partially settled, and it is satisfactory to know that every possible effort is being made to arrive at a happy solution of any difficulties which may exist. Allusion is made in the gracious Speech to the forthcoming Colonial Conference. I am sure your Lordships will agree with me that these Conferences are of the highest importance in that they afford an opportunity to us of the Mother Country of having laid before us the views on various subjects which are held by the people of the
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Colonies, and the interesting and instructive discussions which take place on the occasion of these conferences enable us on both sides to take a wider and at the same time a deeper and more intelligent view of questions which must of necessity to a large extent depend upon the diverse conditions, local and social, which affect, them in each particular case.
I now turn, my Lords, to a subject purely concerning our own country, one which has for some time past been very seriously exercising the minds of all those who have the real welfare of the country most at heart. I refer to the long-continued exodus of our rural population from their homesteads, and their migration to the towns. The effect of this has been twofold; in the first place, the agricultural districts have been practically depleted, and villages which, formerly contained a race of stalwart yeomen and healthy labourers do not now any longer afford sufficient attraction to the youth and are left to fall into gradual decay, inhabited only by the old and infirm. Farmers all over the country complain that it is impossible for them to find labourers. Apparently high wages (no consideration being given to the enhanced cost of living), the tawdry attractions and the fictitious brilliancy of the towns have drained our rural districts of their natural inhabitants.
This, my Lords, is the first cause of anxiety. I will now proceed to touch upon the second aspect of the question which is of no less grave import. The result of the constant stream of arrivals in the towns has been that terrible condition of overcrowding which is to be seen in all our great cities. These centres, already too densely populated, receive daily, fresh recruits from the country, for whom there is no space. The children of this particular section of the community come into the world and are brought up breathing tainted atmosphere in squalid courts, in strong contrast to the free and open-air existence which their parents enjoyed as children, and to which they have every right. The penalty which nature imposes upon all those who disregard her laws becomes shortly apparent in the ever-increasing number of stunted youths, with narrow chests and pallid faces, who testify

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in a manner all too striking to the inevitable physical deterioration which is going on, and which will continue among these people who are subject to the conditions to which I have alluded. I shall not dilate upon the moral side of the question, although this must appeal very strongly to those who are cognisant of what surroundings are most conducive to moral deterioration, or the reverse. It is, therefore, particularly gratifying to hear that inquiries are being instituted with a view to remedying this state of affairs.
Your Lordships will have noticed amongst the Bills mentioned in the gracious Speech one for regulating trade disputes. Some two years ago a judicial decision of this House came as a surprise to many persons, and a considerable amount of perturbation and dissatisfaction was caused by the discovery of the fact that what had hitherto been considered to be the law was now found not to be the law. It is, therefore, with pleasure that we hear that His Majesty's Government intend to take an early opportunity of considering this important question. For many years we have had in Parliament representatives of a certain political force whose number has been strongly augmented by the recent elections, and I cannot but feel that their knowledge and advice will be of the greatest possible use when two of the Bills mentioned in the gracious Speech—namely, the Workmen's Compensation Bill, and the Bill for amending the Unemployed Workmen Act—come up for discussion in another place.
I now come, my Lords, to the Bill for the amendment of the law regarding certain colonial marriages. I approach this subject with particular interest, because, if your Lordships will pardon the personal allusion, it is intimately connected with a question on which my father held very strong views, although I understand that his advocacy of it did not always meet with the approbation of a certain portion of your Lordships' House. Your Lordships are doubtless aware that there is a very grave feeling of dissatisfaction in certain colonies regarding the disabilities attaching in this country to marriages which, although perfectly legal in those colonies, are not regarded by the law in this country as precisely on a par in all
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respects with other marriages. I need hardly say that I allude to the case of a man who has married his deceased wife's sister. This marriage is strictly legal in the colonies, and, as such, carries with it all the conditions of a legal union. Should, however, the man come to live in this country, acquire property here, and subsequently die intestate, his children are regarded in this particular conjunction by the law as if they were illegitimate, and consequently they are incapable of inheriting property. I feel sure that any measure which aims at removing this disability and the inevitable stigma attached thereto cannot fail to commend itself to your Lordships' sense of justice. I will not detain your Lordships longer, and I have only to thank you most sincerely for the courtesy and patience with which you have listened to me. I beg to second the Address.
Moved, "That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty thanking him for his gracious Speech from the Throne."—(The Marquess of Northampton.)
THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE: My Lords, it falls to my lot to be the first to congratulate the two noble Lords to whom we have just listened, on the manner in which they have performed the somewhat difficult task which has been allotted to them. The noble Marquess who spoke first addresses this House with an authority derived from varied experience. He is still remembered gratefully by those who served with him in the Diplomatic Service. He has occupied a seat in the House of Commons, and he has from time to time taken an honourable part in our debates, and besides that, being, as he is, a large landowner in this city, he has never allowed himself to forget that property has its responsibilities as well as its rights, and he has never failed to interest himself in all philanthropic objects directed to the improvement of the condition of the poor and suffering classes of the London population.
The noble seconder, so far as I am aware, has a better right to represent himself as a novice; but, although he addressed us with a modesty and self-restraint which, I am sure, gained all

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our sympathy, we could not detect any of the imperfections or deficiencies by which the oratory of beginners is sometimes characterised. We hope he will often take part in our discussions, and any contribution to our debates from the son of his father will be gratefully received by this House, where the late Lord Herschell's memory is held in such great respect.
My Lords, I am sure your Lordships will readily concur in all that fell from the two noble Lords in regard to the earlier paragraphs of the gracious Speech. This House will certainly not withhold its sympathy from the Sovereign of the country and his Consort in their mourning for the venerable Monarch who has lately been taken from them. The joys and sorrows of the Royal Family are our joys and sorrows, and we all of us deeply sympathise With Her Majesty in the bereavement which prevented her from standing by His Majesty's side this afternoon. With reference to the question of the Prince and Princess of Wales' visit to India, I think the noble Marquess who leads the House and the noble Earl who sits on his left (The Earl of Elgin) will not differ from me when I say that only those who have lived in India and mixed with the people of that country can appreciate the intense respect and devotion with which the Sovereign of the Empire and those who are closely connected with him are regarded by the people of India, without distinction of race or creed.
The noble Lord who seconded touched upon a personal topic which I am sure must be present to the minds of many of us—I mean the absence of Lord Spencer. I suppose that a year ago, if there was one anticipation which we all of us thought it possible to make, it Was that in the event of a change of Government we should find Lord Spencer acting as the new Leader of this House. No one could have been more preeminently fitted for that position. Lord Spencer's long experience in the House of Lords, the tact with which he has led the Opposition, the sincerity and straightforwardness of his character, combine to make us regard him as one,
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above all others, fit for that high position. We deeply regret that the state of his health should deprive him of that honour, and should deprive this House of his wise guidance at a time when perhaps it may be much required. I hope the noble Marquess Lord Ripon will not suppose that when I use these words I say anything derogatory to his fitness for the position. We regard him, if I may say so, us a veteran of whom this House is justly proud.
In the King's Speech I find with satisfaction reference made to the satisfactory character of our present arrangements with foreign Powers. But, before I pursue that subject, may I be permitted to say one word with regard to the terrible misfortune which has overtaken the Minister who is at present in charge of the foreign affairs of this country? None of the noble Marquess's colleagues assumed office with more general goodwill or support. I do not think any private sorrow has ever more deeply moved the public mind, and it is with no ordinary emotion that we offer to Sir Edward Grey our sympathy in the great trial which he has to bear.
It is deeply satisfactory to us that His Majesty should be able to tell us that his relations with foreign powers are friendly, because we cannot conceal from ourselves the fact that there are many quarters in which the political atmosphere is somewhat highly charged. The noble Marquess spoke in appropriate terms of the Conference now sitting at Algeciras. We must all join in His Majesty's hope that that Conference may be conducive to the maintenance of peace among all nations. Morocco has been for many years past the Alsatia of Northern Africa. It has been a country so misgoverned that we have been liable at any moment to find ourselves confronted by incidents likely to disturb the international peace. I earnestly trust that no international rivalries may be allowed to stand in the way of a durable settlement of these difficulties.
I venture to make one observation only, and it is this—that in cases of this kind one naturally looks with a good deal of misgiving to any attempt to obtain the better administration of a disorderly

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country by the establishment of international control. We have had not infrequent experience of attempts to set up such control, and they have not been encouraging. I suspect that the best hope of a satisfactory solution in such cases is to be found when, with the consent and goodwill of all the Powers interested, and with proper precautions for safeguarding their interests, a single Power, always assuming that such a Power is so situated as to be able efficiently to perform the task, can be induced to take upon itself an undivided responsibility for the maintenance of a better organised and better administered Government.
We must all of us have learned with concern that the union of the dual monarchy—a monarchy united to this country by so many historical ties and associations—could no longer be maintained. It was the universal desire of all of us that if there was to be a dissolution of the union, that dissolution should be effected with as little friction as possible and should leave behind it as few traces as possible of ill will. As one who had special opportunities of watching the process by which that dissolution was effected, I may perhaps be permitted to express my admiration at the tact and moderation which was exhibited by both the countries concerned in that transaction. It is earnestly to be hoped that the relations of the two kingdoms may be of such a kind as to enable them to maintain for the future the friendship and intimacy which it is clearly desirable should subsist between them, and that they should be of a kind which will enable this country to maintain with the Scandinavian Peninsula the friendly arrangements which have always united Great Britain with Sweden and Norway in the past. I need not say that the fact that the throne of Norway is to be occupied by a prince, who, by his marriage with, an English Princess has become a member of our. Royal Family, adds to our solicitude that this should be the case.
The paragraph in which His Majesty refers to Macedonia strikes, as might be expected, a note of anxiety. We have had from time to time frequent discussions in this House upon the subject of
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Macedonia, and I think that most of those who have taken part in those discussions have expressed their disappointment at the tardy progress which has been made in bringing about a better administration of that part of southeastern Europe. I do not know that if blame is to be imputed, that blame attaches to this country. I believe, on the contrary, that the history of the last few years will show that the British Government has consistently taken a leading part in pressing upon the other Powers the necessity of improving the administration in Macedonia. A long step was, I think, taken last year when, not without difficulty, the Turkish Government was induced to accept the appointment of a Commission to deal with the finances of Macedonia. We have always believed that without financial reform, reforms of any other character were not to be looked for, and I trust that the labours of the Commission may be productive of useful and permanent results. We may have, I dare say, before long important papers on this subject laid upon the table of the House.
May I say, speaking for those who sit beside me, that with regard to all questions of foreign affairs, although, the noble Marquess will find us anxious for information, he will never find us disposed to press for such information when it is undesirable in the public interest that it should be given? Looking back to my five years experience as the representative of the Foreign Office in this House, I have every reason to acknowledge the invariable consideration with which I was treated whenever questions of foreign policy came before your Lordships, and I feel quite sure I may promise reciprocity in that respect. It is all the easier for us to deal with questions of foreign policy on these lines, because we have been told that there is to be continuity of policy in foreign affairs and that we need not look forward to any sudden or precipitate reversal of the policy we ourselves have pursued during the last few years.
I cannot help expressing a wish that the same kind of continuity might be looked for in connection with other departments of Imperial policy. I wish

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we could look for the same kind of continuity of treatment in regard to colonial policy; but I am constrained to say that on that point I find a marked difference in the attitude of His Majesty's Government. One colonial problem in particular, I mean the problem of the introduction of Chinese labour into South Africa, seems to me, I am constrained to say, to have been treated not only on Party lines, but on the narrowest of Party lines. It has been so treated in the discussions which we have had in this House; it has been still more so treated throughout the recently concluded electoral campaign.
We have never contended that the introduction of Chinese labour into South Africa was not to be regarded as an experiment, and I will go further and say an experiment not unattended by a certain amount of risk; and we should have been the last people in the world to complain if the attitude of noble Lords opposite and their friends had been one of criticism and vigilance. But I think we have every reason to complain when we find that they have not scrupled throughout the discussions which have taken place in regard to this subject to fasten upon us the charge of having introduced into a part of the British Empire a system which they describe as one of slavery, and to impute to us that we have connived at various acts of cruelty and outrage which are said to have characterised the existence of the system of indentured Chinese labour in the Transvaal. All of us, I suppose, during the last few weeks, have had opportunities of reading the statements which have been made on this subject, and of seeing the placards which, apparently on the authority of the Party organisations, have been distributed broadcast throughout the country. It has gone as far as this, that in some parts of England wretches disguised as Chinamen, equipped with pigtails and loaded with manacles, have been paraded about the villages as illustrations of the result of the policy of the late Government.
We have a right to protest against treatment of that kind; and I venture to tell noble Lords opposite what, in my opinion, it was their duty
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to do if they really believed that these things were happening in South Africa. I think they should at once have instituted a full and searching inquiry into the conditions under which Chinamen were being employed, and into the particular acts of cruelty and oppression which were alleged against us. It is not too late to make such an inquiry now; we, I need not say, shall court it and receive it with approval. But what the Government have done is something quite different. They began by endeavouring to put a stop—making believe, I might almost say, to put a stop—to the further importation of Chinese coolies when a very little inquiry would have made them aware that, without illegality, it was impossible to terminate abruptly the arrival of these people. And, in the next place, they have announced that it is their intention to hand this question over entirely the to Transvaal Government.
Now, on the merits, I have no objection to allowing the Transvaal Government to deal with this question; but I. say that, if noble Lords opposite were really satisfied that the condition of things which existed amongst these coolies was a condition of slavery, they had no right to prolong that state of things. But not only have they tolerated its continuance, but they are actually, as we read in the gracious Speech from the Throne, prolonging the interregnum during which this state of things is to be continued, for the elections to the first Legislative Assembly, which were to have been held in the month of July, have been postponed, although forsooth,—
"It is not anticipated that the additional delay need extend beyond a few months."
So that you may have several months during which this condition of slavery, with all the terrible incidents which are said to accompany it, is to be prolonged and perpetuated.
We learn that the Transvaal is to be given powers of responsible government. We should like very much to know, if we can be told, a little more about the form of that government. There have been disquieting rumours to the effect that the new electoral system is to be one differing in essential particulars from that to which we have given our approval, and that

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it will be a system which will have the effect, and. I presume, is intended, to transfer the predominance of power from the colonists of British blood to those of the Boer community. Now the electoral basis to which we had given our approval was determined after much discussion, after full consideration of recent colonial precedents, and after a debate in Parliament in which several Members of the present Government took part—a debate in the course of which the present Prime Minister expressed in so many words his approval of the system which we had adopted, I mean a system with an electoral basis founded upon voters and not upon population. This may be a false alarm, and if it is so, the sooner the report is contradicted the better, for it is one which, both in this country and in South Africa, has been received with feelings of great uneasiness.
I turn for a moment to the paragraph in which the gracious Speech deals with Irish affairs. I do not suppose that any paragraph will have been scanned with closer attention or more anxiety than that particular paragraph. Its language is somewhat remarkable. His Majesty's Government do not announce to us the introduction of a Measure, but they tell us that they have plans under consideration—
"For improving and effecting economies in the system of Government in Ireland and for introducing into it means for associating the people with the conduct of Irish affairs."
We should certainly not grudge His Majesty's Government any length of time which may seem to them necessary for the full consideration of this most difficult subject; and, if they had told us that they had only lately assumed office and that they desired to look more fully into the matter, we should have quite understood their reasons for asking for delay. But their language is at once enigmatical and suggestive. We should like to know in what manner the people of Ireland are to be associated with the conduct of Irish affairs. The late Government passed a very far reaching Act of Parliament which certainly had the effect, not only of associating the people of Ireland with the conduct of Irish affairs, but of giving them a very large measure of control
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over those affairs. I observe that the noble Marquess, in the course of his speech, twice used the words "local affairs," and I presume that he is in the secret and knows what kind of affairs are contemplated. But we may be excused for reading this passage in a somewhat critical spirit, because it is impossible for us to dismiss wholly from our minds that remarkable speech delivered by the Prime Minister, soon after his assumption of office, in which he unfolded to a wondering public the scheme which is commonly spoken of as that of Home Rule by instalments. We should very much like to know whether this is merely what I might call a reasonable and legitimate development of local self-government, or whether the new "plan" represents the first of those instalments which Sir Henry Campbell Bannerman announced his intention or desire to provide for the benefit of the people of Ireland. The paragraph goes on to express His Majesty's desire that the Government of the country—
"In reliance upon the ordinary law, should be carried on, so far as existing circumstances permit, in a spirit regardful of the wishes and sentiments of the Irish people."
I do not suppose that any of your Lordships would for a moment desire that the people of Ireland should be denied the advantage of living under the ordinary law, so long as the ordinary law suffices for the purpose of ensuring peace and good order in that country; but it is quite clear that a reservation of that kind is present to the mind of His Majesty's Government, and has prompted the comforting reservation embodied in the words—
"So far as existing circumstances permit."
As to the expediency of governing Ireland in a spirit regardful of the wishes and sentiments of the Irish people, I believe that I only represent the views of the noble Lords behind me when I say that it is our great desire that the government of Ireland should be carried on in a sympathetic spirit and with due regard to the feelings of the people of the country; and I will undertake to say that there is no Chief Secretary whose name is more honoured in Ireland as that of an official who sought earnestly

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to have regard to the wishes and sentiments of the people than the late Prime Minister, Mr. Arthur Balfour.
I will say only one word more with regard to Ireland. I see no reference in the Speech to an Irish question which is one, I think, of extreme importance—I mean the question of land purchase. No measure of late years has been passed that is in closer accord with the wishes and sentiments of the Irish people; and I earnestly trust that His Majesty's Government will not allow any circumstances to interfere with the proper development, and the progress of that useful measure. We have heard with some slight alarm that during the last few days the proclamations applying certain provisions of the Crimes Act have been withrdawn from, I think, nineteen districts in different parts of Ireland. These provisions, as your Lordships are perhaps a ware, have reference to the use of special juries and the power of change of venue in certain circumstances. Now, if His Majesty's Government are able to tell us that the condition of these nineteen districts really has undergone a change, and that these precautionary measures, which, after all, do not interfere with the personal liberty of a single Irishman, are no longer necessary, we shall rejoice to hear that fact and we shall applaud the decision of Ministers. But we should like to know on what grounds this sudden and perhaps somewhat theatrical step has been taken.
My Lords, I will not say more than a word with regard to the promises of legislation contained in the gracious Speech. One measure will be awaited with the keenest expectation—I mean that which is to deal with the question of education. We have learned from the Minister in charge of that particular matter that the fundamental principles of the Act of 1902 are not likely to be disturbed. I rejoice to hear it; and I hope it is true that that great measure, dealing as it did more thoroughly than any of its predecessors with the question of co-ordinating education, and the position of the local authorities in regard to it, is not likely in its essential points to be disturbed.
The question that is to be dealt with is, of course, that of religious education, and there is no question which more
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deeply moves the convictions of the people of this country. I take it that the general feeling throughout the country is that that our children should be educated in principles of morality having behind them a higher sanction than can be derived from the inspiration of the schoolmaster or from the tenets of some Government Department. I think I am not Wrong in saying, too, that the feeling of the public generally is that so far as possible the wishes of the parents should be considered, and that they should be allowed to determine what form of religious education their children are to receive. But I admit that these are very general propositions, and it is only when you get to close quarters with this most difficult question that its really embarrassing character becomes fully apparent. We have experienced these difficulties, and we shall rejoice if noble Lords opposite are fortunate in surmounting them.
Of the other measures mentioned in the King's Speech I will not at present say anything except to observe that I recognise the importance of the paragraph in which it is said that inquiries are proceeding as to the means by which a larger number of the population may be attracted to and retained on the soil. We all of us admit the desirability of arriving at that end, and we shall be glad to co-operate in any attempt to do so. I take it that the inquiries referred to are those which are being conducted by a Committee appointed by the late President of the Agricultural Department. As to the other Bills, which I see number a dozen altogether, I will only say, echoing a wish which has been not infrequently expressed on this bench—the hope that some of them, at all events, will be introduced in your Lordships' House, and that those which are introduced elsewhere may, if possible, be brought to us at a time of the year which will enable us to deal with them. That is a demand which the Opposition are privileged to put forward, and I am not at all ashamed of echoing language which has fallen from the noble Marquess opposite on more than one occasion.
I will go a little further and say that at this moment, it is for obvious reasons,

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especially desirable that this House should be consulted in good time as to any important measure that may be contemplated. We are confronted with a rather exceptional state of things. His Majesty's Government in the other House have a majority which I may fairly describe as colossal. In this House, on the other hand, they are confronted, not perhaps by a very solid Opposition, but still by a large body of peers who may be expected to have views of their own and to desire ample opportunities of expressing them. I hope, therefore, that arrangements will be made to provide us with those opportunities. If His Majesty's Government will treat this House with the consideration which we have a right to claim, I do not think they need be at all afraid that we shall show a disposition to obstruct the deliberately expressed wish of the constituencies of this country. In my experience I can call to mind no case in which the House of Lords has set itself deliberately to thwart a conclusion arrived at by the people of this country upon full and sufficient premises; and I venture to predict that, if His Majesty's Government, strong as they are in numbers and in collective ability, will use their opportunities with prudence and with moderation, they may expect from us not obstruction, but much useful criticism and much cordial co-operation in the difficult task that lies before them.
THE LORD PRIVY SEAL (The Marquess of RIPON): My Lords, I have first the agreeable duty of joining with my noble friend who has just sat down in offering hearty congratulations to my noble friends behind me on the manner in which they have discharged the duty entrusted to them. My noble friend who moved the Address has had wide experience in various parts of the public service, both in diplomacy and in the House of Commons, and he has shown us to-night in his admirable speech what good use he can make of the lessons which that experience has taught him; and I venture to say that we have seldom heard a more forcible speech in moving the Address than that which fell from the noble Marquess. There is a different.kind of interest in regard to the speech
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of the noble Lord who seconded the Address. It was an admirable speech for a first speech in this House. We are accustomed to find young men on both sides of the House come forward on occasions of this kind who are amply able to discharge the duty that is entrusted to them, and it is, I think, a source of great satisfaction that we should have found to-night in my noble friend the seconder so worthy a successor of that great lawyer whom noble Lords on both sides of the House esteemed and honoured.
We on this side of the House beg to tender our heartiest thanks to the noble Marquess who has just sat down for the kind manner in which he referred to that friend whom we so long have loved and honoured, and who we expected would on this occasion have occupied the place which I unworthily fill. My Lords, Lord Spencer is a man who has won for himself during a long series of years in this House, not only the affectionate regard of his followers, but, I venture to think, the respect and esteem of all men in this House; and it is indeed grievous to think that, struck down by an unexpected illness, he should be unable to come amongst us to-night to take that part—that honourable and distinguished part—in our discussions which he has so long taken. Occupying my present position I feel how difficult it will be for me to follow such a man as Lord Spencer, and I can only hope to accomplish the task which has been laid upon me by the aid and forbearance of my friends, and, if noble Lords opposite will pardon me for saying so, by the considerate indulgence of the House at large. Again we have to tender our thanks to the noble Marquess for the words he used in reference to the bereavement that has befallen Sir Edward Grey; and I believe he was right in saying that no misfortune to a public man, at all events for many years, has moved so deeply the sympathy of all who knew and esteemed him.
I now come to the remarks of my noble friend upon the gracious Speech from the Throne. It is needless for me to say how deeply we on this side of the House sympathise, in common with all of your Lordships, with the King and Queen in the great bereavement which has fallen

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upon them in the death of the King of Denmark. In that feeling we share the universal sentiment of the people of this country. The joys and sorrows of our Sovereign are shared by all his subjects; we all know the sterling affection with which the people of this country regard the Royal Family. I was not surprised at the words which fell from the noble Marquess with reference to the visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to India. As he has reminded us, he knows that country well, as I also do, and he knows how deep is the respect and attachment which the people of India bear towards the Crown of this country. Certainly when I was in India there were few things which were remembered more vividly and with greater pleasure by the princes and peoples of that country than the visit of our present Sovereign when he was Prince of Wales. I have no doubt that feeling has continued, and that it will be strengthened and extended by the visit of their Royal Highnesses.
My noble friend alluded very briefly to the single line in the Speech which I refers to our relations with Foreign Powers and states that those relations continue to be friendly. As His Majesty's Government have been but a short time in office, it is due that I should say to my noble friend that a large share of that satisfactory state of things is due to his able conduct of the foreign affairs of this country. We all rejoice that the war between Russia and Japan has been brought to an end. That war was one of the most terrible with which the world has ever been visited; it was marked by gallantry on both sides, and it is indeed a subject of the highest satisfaction that it should, under an arrangement honourable to both parties, have been brought to a conclusion. We cannot be too thankful to that eminent ruler, the President of the United States, for the part which he took in bringing about that peace. It reflects great honour not upon President Roosevelt alone, but upon his great country. My noble friend will naturally be anxious to know what are the intentions of His Majesty's Government with regard to the recent Treaty between this country and Japan. I can assure
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him that we accept that Treaty in the spirit in which we believe it was made, and that it is our firm intention to carry out strictly and readily the obligations it imposes on us. We are proud of our connection with a gallant nation like Japan, and we shall certainly apply to that treaty arrangement that continuity of policy which has been already alluded to.
The noble Marquess next referred to the Conference which is going on at Algeciras. I am happy to say that that Conference is still continuing. Some persons have thought that it has been slow in its progress. Diplomatic conferences of that kind are not apt to proceed very rapidly, but I know nothing at the present time which should preclude us from hoping that it may be brought to a satisfactory conclusion. Reference has been made to what is called the Declaration agreed to by this country and France in regard to Egypt and to Morocco, and that Declaration requires us to afford full diplomatic support to France. To that arrangement we entirely adhere, and His Majesty's able representative at Algeciras is so instructed. We have, no doubt, my Lords, some national interests in respect to Morocco, but they are interests chiefly in regard to the maintenance of order vital to the success of commerce, and to the keeping of the open door; and no arrangements can be better calculated to promote that end than those which have passed between ourselves and France. Therefore we stand, so far as regards our diplomatic position, on the same footing as that laid down by my noble friend opposite.
One word with regard to the dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden. It does seem to me that there are few instances in history in which a dissolution of a connection such as that has been made in so perfectly peaceful and reasonable a manner. The noble Marquess did not allude to the state of things in Crete, and I may therefore pass that subject by, merely saying that the statement contained in the Speech shows accurately the arrangements in that matter. It is very natural that my noble friend should feel great interest in the question of Macedonia. He has

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had the right object before him in the difficult task which he has endeavoured to perform, and his primary object has been to maintain the concert of Europe in this matter. He has succeeded in bringing the Sultan to agree to an international financial commission, and I am able to state that the Commission has had one or two meetings, and that, so far as it is possible to judge upon so slight an experience, it seems as if it will be likely to perform the task entrusted to it satisfactorily. I believe that Hilmi Pasha, the Turkish representative, is co-operating as was to be desired with his colleagues.
My noble friend asked a question about Papers respecting the arrangements for Army administration in India. My right hon. friend Mr. Morley has given most careful consideration to the state of things which was created by changes made last year in regard to that matter—changes not made, certainly according to my idea, with much skill—and he sent a Despatch to India on the 9th of this month conveying his views. That despatch is likely to arrive on the 25th or 26th, and as soon as it has reached India Papers will be laid on the Table. I think it will be agreed that the terms of the Despatch ought not to be made public till they are in the hands of the Indian Government. My noble friend commented unfavourably on the paragraph in the Speech with reference to the state of things in South Africa, and he referred to the question of Chinese labour. He seemed to take us to task for having taken steps in reference to the employment of Chinese labour in the mines as soon as we came into office. Now I think his comments arose from a feeling which apparently has existed among the Party opposite that the objections which we have steadily urged from the beginning to the employment of the Chinese coolies in South Africa under the terms upon which they are employed were taken up for some party purpose, and that this was a matter on which we had no very strong feeling. If they have entertained that opinion it is entirely erroneous. It is a question upon which we have felt very deeply; it is a question upon which those who I have the honour to represent in this House
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have strong and clear convictions; and it was the absolute duty of the Government, in view of the opinions which they had deliberately formed, to consider that question at the earliest possible moment after they came into office.
My noble friend made a great complaint of the language used at the late general election, and especially of certain pictorial representations which were cast abroad in the country in respect to the condition of the Chinese. We all know that at election times many things are done which had better not have been done. If there were any representations made, any pictures put forth, which led people to think that the Chinese in South Africa were constantly going about in manacles, it was wrong. I do not pretend to say that that is the state of affairs. But I should like to remind my noble friend opposite, when he makes the complaints about electioneering proceedings, that such proceedings are not always of the most gentle and courteous description. At least, they were not so always in my days. Perhaps Lord St. Aldwyn, whom I heartily welcome of this House, might state to us, as one of its most recent importations, whether electioneering manners have improved or not since then. I would ask my noble friend, when he makes this complaint, whether he recollects a case—I think it was in the county of Cambridge—where a Liberal candidate who had lost two sons fighting on the British side in the South African War was represented as engaged with President Kruger in pulling down the British standard. I think that case, and that treatment of a man in that condition who had made those sacrifices for his country and sustained that most grievous loss, may be paired off with half a dozen of the other examples brought forward by my noble friend opposite.
I do not think that the objections which we have entertained to the introduction of Chinese labour in the Transvaal are clearly understood by noble Lords opposite. The Chinese have been introduced under very special circumstances. The arrangements made for them, and with them, are not the arrangements which are generally made for the introduction of coolie labour. I admit that in one sense, and if you were compelled to have Chinese labour at all,

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you were obliged to make these arrangements, but they are arrangements which, in respect to the position of those men when they are not at work, are largely inconsistent with the condition of free men.
I have never spoken of the condition of these coolies as the condition of slaves. I described it once in this House—and I adhere to the epithet—as a condition of semi-slavery. That is exactly what it has been. We have been often told that the Chinese are well treated and well fed. I do not dispute that for a moment, but good food and good accommodation do not make free men. And when you lay down rules that these men are not to engage in certain employments—the number is twenty-nine, I believe—that people who assist them in any way inconsistent with the Ordinance are to be imprisoned, and that the Chinamen are not to be allowed to remain in the country but are to be removed by force as soon as their engagement is at an end, I say that you are making arrangements which a tall events in the opinion of His Majesty's Government, and I venture to believe in the opinion of all those whom they represent, ought not to be made. I know very well the dread of Chinese competition. That is the reason why these arrangements were made; but if the Chinamen are such dangerous competitors with the tradesmen and other portions of the population, as undoubtedly they are, then they are not fit people to be brought into a British Colony.
I was anxious to make these few remarks, because they represent the feeling strongly entertained by a very large portion, I believe a large majority, of the people of this country. What were we to do? We came into office, and found this thing as it was. We found these coolies at work in the mines. We did not think, however, great as might be our objection to this kind of arrangement, that it was possible for us, or that it would have been right, to take steps to prevent the continued employment of the Chinamen who were there at the time. But when we came to look into the matter we found that there were a very large number of Chinese coming over. The history of that matter is rather curious. I will not trouble your
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Lordships with it at this moment, but the number of licences applied for at a particular date last year sprung up in the most extraordinary manner, at the time, too, when Mr. Lyttelton was suggesting that perhaps no more would be required. We were advised that if those licences had been given between private persons it was quite clear they constituted binding contracts. Well, what did we do? We said we could not break the contracts; we would hold ourselves bound by them; and all the Chinese under those contracts are to come in. But would it not have been inconsistent with what we had said, and with our profound convictions, if we had allowed any more licences to be issued? We therefore stopped the further introduction of Chinese; but we said, in accordance with what I believe to be sound principle in this matter, that this is a question which must ultimately be decided by the people of the Transvaal themselves; and therefore we determined to take immediate steps to obtain that opinion in the most perfect manner and as quickly as possible. It may be argued—indeed I think it was argued by the noble Marquess—that we are to blame because we have not allowed Mr. Lyttelton's Constitution, if I may be permitted to call it that, to come into operation. Why have we not done that? There are several reasons.
THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE: The noble Marquess will pardon me for interrupting him. I did not make that complaint. I suggested that there was a well-supported rumour that the new Constitution which His Majesty's Government were going to introduce was based upon an electoral system widely different from that which we had adopted.
THE MARQUESS OF BIPON: I am coming to that. I beg the noble Marquess's pardon for attributing the complaint to him, but the complaint has been made and I will answer it. All I desire to say on that point is this, that a Constitution of that kind, consisting of elective members in a very large majority having to deal with a nominated Executive over whom they have no control, has been proved to be a very bad form

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of Colonial government. The sort of despotism which Crown Colony government sometimes is may be necessary in certain cases, but I do not think this intermediate stage is, or will be, a method of advancing to responsible government. With respect to the question specially put by my noble friend, I have this to say. We are about to establish as speedily as we may in the Transvaal and ultimately in the Orange River Colony, responsible government properly so called.
It is a great and serious responsibility to construct a Constitution of that kind; and we have found ourselves obliged to take steps to obtain further information upon a variety of subjects before we can frame the Constitution which we shall ultimately establish. While we are doing that all these sorts of questions are open. The effect of the revocation of the letters patent with regard to Mr. Lyttelton's Constitution is entirely without prejudice to the fall consideration of the basis on which the Constitution will ultimately be framed. I express no opinion on that basis at all. I reserve for myself and for the Government the fullest freedom to deal with the matter as they may think best. With regard to the time at which we may be able to put forward this new Constitution I can give no more definite assurance than is contained in the Speech itself. No time ought to be lost about it. I quite admit that all persons interested in the Transvaal have a fair right to demand that we should bring this business to a conclusion as soon as we can; but I am sure your Lordships will agree that it is not a matter to be hurried, not a matter to be decided hastily, and that we are bound to proceed with due deliberation, due inquiry, and due communication with South Africa before arranging the basis on which this Constitution is to be framed. In the meanwhile, as I have told your Lordships, no further licenses are to be issued for the importation of coolies.
We desire to leave the question where, in my humble opinion, it ought to be left, to the people of the Transvaal themselves; and I believe there is no effectual means of ascertaining the opinion of any
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country except through the intermediary of what is called responsible government. I have a feeble belief in plebiscites. I believe that a freely elected Legislature, guided by responsible Ministers possessing its confidence, is the surest and best means by which the opinion of any country can be ascertained; and it is to such a body that we intend to leave the decision of this matter. It is hinted that we ought to have decided the question out and out for ourselves. I do not think that. I believe that there is no more difficult question in connection with the responsible Government of Colonies than that which relates to the management of native races, and I believe that the Colonial Secretary has no real effective means of controlling the management of these matters by Ministers in responsible Colonies. You can veto their Bills, but you cannot control their Executive action. The moment you attempted to do anything of the kind you would be involved in infinite difficulty. Therefore, it is from no wish to shift responsibility from ourselves, but from a desire to leave to the people of the Transvaal the decision of a great question deeply concerning the future interests of that country that the step referred to has been taken.
I need hardly say that we shall make very effort also to frame a Constitution for the Orange River Colony. I have never quite been able to understand why the late Government did not deal with the Orange River Colony at the same time as the Transvaal, but that is a question not worth discussing now. I have only one word to say about the Colonial Conference, and that is that it has been agreed with the Ministers of the various self-governing Colonies that a Conference shall be held next year—the late Government felt that it could not be held this year—and that it shall be conducted in the same manner and on the same principles as the Conferences which have preceded it; and I hope and believe we shall all derive great advantage from a Conference of that kind.
Now I come to the paragraph relating to Ireland. My noble friend opposite

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wants to know its meaning. He complains that it is indistinct. I can tell him this, that when we speak of improving and effecting economy in the system of government in Ireland, and introducing into it means for associating the people with the conduct of Irish affairs, we speak of matters of administration The noble Marquess alluded to the local government system which was established in Ireland by the late Government. It was a very useful step, a very good measure, and it has worked very well; but that is only a reason which should encourage us in proceeding, so far as matters of that kind are concerned, in the same direction. The present condition of the administrative government of Ireland has been criticised by many men. Most of those who have gone there—Sir West Ridgeway for instance—with very different views have come round to the belief that it is a very unsound system needing change; and it is with a view to rendering that system more suitable to the present conditions of the country that we contemplate this arrangement.
It is many years now—more than twenty years—since the Irish system of administration was denounced in the most vehement, and, as I at the time thought, exaggerated language by no less a person than Mr. Chamberlain. I know it is no use to recall Mr. Chamberlain's words in the past in reference to anything he may say or think now; but, at the same time, if your Lordships would turn bask to that speech, if it is still in print, you would see in what language he denounced the administrative arrangements for the government of Ireland, and especially the boards that exist there. Those boards require to be brought more fully under the control of the central administration itself. I believe it is almost universally admitted that Boards of this kind are not the best means of conducting the administration of Ireland, and we hope to be able to make important changes in that direction without unnecessary delay. My noble friend laid great stress on the words—
"So far as existing circumstance permit"
in reference to our desire to carry on the government of the country in
58
reliance upon the ordinary law. Of one thing I am quite sure—namely, that if these words had been omitted from the paragraph, my noble friend would have complained of the omission. He now complains of their presence. I think they are wise and judicious words, and they have been introduced for very obvious reasons. My noble friend spoke of relying on the ordinary law. He admits—and I think all men must admit—that it is, as a rule, desirable in all countries to rely on the ordinary law where you can do so. We were advised by those responsible, who have the best means of knowing what is the present condition of Ireland, that the stop which has been taken in withdrawing the clauses of the Crimes Act which were in operation in certain counties in Ireland could be taken with safety, and that being so we were bound to withdraw those clause, and to rely on the ordinary law.
There are a good many people—and this is one of the dangers of having laws of this kind—who when they have got powers think they are bound to use them, and that if there is any little disturbance here or there it is a good thing to resort to these extreme powers. The late Count Cavour well said that any fool could govern in a state of siege. I have no doubt that in a certain sense you can govern with less trouble if you have these powers, but I venture to say that the sound principle for this country is to govern where you can and when you can without such powers, to rely, wherever possible, on the ordinary law. That is certainly the view which His Majesty's Government take of the matter; and in accordance with that view, and upon the advice which has been tendered them, they have withdrawn those special powers which have been but rarely used in most parts of the country where they have been in force during recent years.
My noble friend then referred to the paragraph relating to the agricultural districts of the country. I have no comment to make on what my noble friend said with regard to that. The Committee alluded to is the one which was established by His Majesty's late Government. We propose to await the Report of that Committee, and then we shall see what steps it is desirable to

59
take. I should think that it would be generally admitted that the operation of the present Small Holdings Acts has been very slight and not at all satisfactory, and that a change—I should think it would be a large change—in regard to that matter has become very necessary in order to meet admitted evils.
With reference to the education question, I am not in a position to tell the House what will be the provisions of the Bill. I can only say that the subject is receiving the closest attention of His Majesty's Government. I think it must be admitted, especially looking at the result of the late elections, that the present Act cannot stand as it is. It has produced great dissatisfaction in certain quarters. You have Wales in arms against it. If my noble friend lived, as I do, in the West Riding of Yorkshire he would know the feeling there. It is impossible to leave the Act as it now stands. In the interest of every kind of school you cannot let it remain. The late Government found it necessary two years ago to introduce a special Act for enforcing the existing law. If you look at the returns of the general election in Wales you will see what is the opinion of that part of the country on the question. All I can say now is this, that the necessity of change is great, urgent, and, I believe I may say, admitted, and I hope and believe that when the proposals of His Majesty's Government come before this and the other House of Parliament, they will meet, from all those who are interested in the question, with fair and careful consideration in the hope of some satisfactory settlement being arrived at and one which can stand. For my own part I never had any faith in the Act of 1902. I never took any part in the proceedings in regard to it. I always believed that it would come to grief, but it has come to a great deal more grief than I ever expected.
My noble friend spoke of the necessity of giving your Lordships ample time to discuss measures. Noble Lords opposite had an experience last year, which they can hardly have forgotten, of the difficulty of getting Bills up to this House. The Aliens Bill, an important measure, was forced through this House in a most marvellous manner, for the
60
Government did not even venture to move their own drafting Amendments for fear of the Bill going back again to the House of Commons. The Unemployed Bill, again, came up so late, that, though it had had struck out of it its most important clause, it was yet considered necessary to pass it through this House with what was practically the closure. Therefore I cannot undertake to make any promise whatever with respect to that matter. I wish to be frank with the House, and I make no promise, but being concerned for the interests and dignity of this House, I shall do what I can to take the Bills up quickly; but I am powerless; your Lordships are powerless. I tried to water down the optimism of my friend Lord Spencer last year. I am too old to make promises of a kind which during a long life I have seen broken so very frequently.
I think I have now touched on all the points mentioned by the noble Marquess except one—I refer to the statement which he made, and which I hail with satisfaction, as to the spirit in which, under his guidance, he hoped the Opposition would deal with the measures of His Majesty's Government. I have had too long an experience of the moderation, and the skill of my noble friend who leads the Opposition not to have expected that that would be the spirit in which he would approach the matter, and I am glad that though he has a giant's power he does not seem inclined to use it like a giant. The circumstances are peculiar. There is an overwhelming majority on one side in the other House and an equally overwhelming majority on the opposite side in this House. That is a state of things which calls for all possible consideration and skill in those who have to deal with these questions in either House. The responsibility is great, and I believe, certainly so far as my noble friend is concerned, that he feels it as much as I do myself. The late general election returned, as the noble Marquess, said, a strong, I might almost say an overwhelming, majority in favour of one Party and one class of opinion. That has been brought about in many ways and for many reasons. I will not enter into them now; but this at least, my Lords,

61
I feel bound to say, that the first and plainest lesson of that Election is that the people of the United Kingdom, noting those points which are referred to in the course of the King's Speech—
"That the imports and exports of the country continue to show a steady and accelerating increase, and, together with the growing activity of trade at home, indicate that the industries of my people are, in general, in a sound and progressive condition."
—noting these points and laying them to heart, are determined not to allow to be weakened or undermined the wise fiscal policy which for two generations has secured to them the rich enjoyment of the blessings of Free Trade.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: I do not intend at this hour to trouble your Lordships with any long observations, and I certainly shall not be tempted by the closing remarks of the noble Marquess to enter into the subject of fiscal policy. I rise really to ask a question, and to make one comment. The question has reference to the Irish paragraph in the gracious Speech from the Throne. I do not think the noble Marquess, in replying to my noble friend, realised the question which my noble friend put to him as to the peculiarity of the language in which that paragraph is expressed. What is intended? What are these plans? Do they differ from measures? Are they to be submitted to the judgment of Parliament?
THE MARQUESS OF RIPON: No.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: I understand the noble Marquess to say No.
THE MARQUESS OF RIPON: I did not intend that as an answer.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: Then I will put the question again. Are these plans to be submitted to the judgment of Parliament?
THE MARQUESS OF RIPON: They are still under consideration.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: I would like to press the noble Marquess to tell us what form of consideration these plans are receiving. Is it con-
62
sideration within the bosom of the Cabinet, or is a Departmental Committee considering the matter? Are we to look for the appointment of a Royal Commission, or in what form are these plans for improving the government of Ireland to be effected? Lastly, intimately bound up with the other point I have raised, I should like to ask the Government when we may expect that these plans will be laid before the country and Parliament, when these considerations will reach their conclusion. I have known Governments by referring matters for consideration postpone dealing with them for a very long period; and it may be that this paragraph is a mere device to keep the Irish supporters of His Majesty's Government in another place quiet, for a Session at least, whilst the consideration is taking place. If the noble Marquess or one of his colleagues could throw a little more light upon this we should be grateful. Then I have a comment to make. The noble Marquess spoke in a jocular vein of the kind of things which take place at election times, and said that when he stood for Parliament very wicked things used to be done. I am very sorry to hear it, but I am afraid that we, on this side of your Lordships' House are not able to treat this particular matter to which my noble friend referred in the light fashion which characterised the answer of the noble Marquess. It is not a question of some unworthy paragraph or some unfair charge made on the hustings. If that had been the whole matter, the author of any such utterances would have reason to be ashamed of himself; but no great harm would have been done. The charge that we bring against the supporters of His Majesty's Government in the country and in another place is this, that they obtained the verdict of the country upon a false charge; that they put forward that which they knew to be untrue, and that upon that the verdict of the country Was given. Do they believe in this charge of slavery? Not a bit of it. The noble Marquess, speaking as the Leader of your Lordships' House and as the representative of the Government here, said—
I have never made this charge of slavery."
Yes; but the supporters of the noble Marquess have, and the noble Marquess

63
would not be sitting in that place, perhaps, to-night if it had not been for this charge. If the noble Marquess does not believe in the charge of slavery, does he—
THE MARQUESS OF RIPON: I did not say what I believed on the question generally. I only stated that I had not said the conditions Were those of slavery.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: But I daresay the noble Marquess says what he believes. If the noble Marquess and his friends do not believe these charges of slavery and cruelty, then they ought to be heartily ashamed of the conduct of their supporters on the hustings during the general elections. A belated denial of the authenticity of these placards—a denial which, I believe, came out just two days before the end of the general election—is not a sufficient answer. This denial and refusal to accept responsibility, to be effective, ought to have been made much earlier. I rose only to make these two observations, and to ask the question which I have put to the noble Marquess.
THE LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL (The Earl of CREWE): My Lords, it is, I think, a somewhat new experience, on the particular occasion of the opening of Parliament, that the debate should be prolonged beyond the speeches of the Mover and Seconder and that of the two Leaders; but I make no complaint whatever. On the contrary, it has frequently seemed to me that the practice of closing the debate in such a summary manner as has often been the case has its unfortunate side; and if, when I have sat down, any noble Lord likes to move the adjournment of the debate or proceed further with it this evening, I shall make no complaint, although I notice that we are approaching the time when your Lordships' House usually adjourns. I now come to the two matters raised by the noble Marquess. I shall not attempt to imitate him in the tone in which he addressed your Lordships at this very early stage of the Session. I am bound to say that the manner in which the noble Marquess has addressed himself to us who sit on this bench and
64
noble Lords behind does not hold out to my mind hope of the entire fulfilment of that pledge of fair treatment from the majority which we received, and expected to receive, from the noble Marquess who leads the Opposition. I hope the noble Marquess the Leader of the Opposition will keep an eye on the other noble Marquess his colleague, and endeavour to exercise a moderating influence on the tone in which he addresses your Lordships. With regard to the Chinese labour question, which is the one upon which the noble Marquess spoke with most vehemence, I also, like my noble friend behind me, have never used the word "slavery" in connection with the importation of Chinese coolies into South Africa, because I do not regard it as an accurate term, and I do not suppose it is regarded as a term of art even by those who have used it. It has been regarded generally as a descriptive term. Perhaps I might be allowed to quote an analogy to your Lordships. I have often noted, in speeches made by noble Lords in this House, and by their supporters in the country, that when various provisions in connection with taxation have been brought in by Liberal Governments they have been described as "robbery." I do not suppose it would be contended that "robbery" was a technically correct term to apply. The term "slavery" was used in the same sense, as a term of general description. When people speak of Chinese labour as "slavery" they do not speak of it as being technically slavery. The term has been used as a general description of a system of labour which certainly cannot be described as free.
THE DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH: Does the noble Earl repudiate the word "slavery" on behalf of himself only or on the part of the whole of his colleagues?
THE EARL OF CREWE: I do not quite follow the noble Duke's meaning in asking that question. I have no doubt there are a considerable number of our supporters in the country who do regard this system as being essentially slavery, but I do not hold that view myself. I

65
might, however, point out that it is no thanks to the former Government of the Transvaal, and not very much thanks to noble Lords opposite or to the late Government, that a provision was not included in the Ordinance which the Chinese Minister, when applied to on the subject, said in his opinion constituted what was equivalent to slavery. It was only on the representation of the Chinese Minister that that provision was omitted, and therefore I am bound to say that the indignation on the part of noble Lords opposite seems somewhat excessive. I do not pretend to be an authority on what happens at election times, but it is very common for exaggerated phrases and terms to be used. Those terms we, in this more serene atmosphere, would be sorry to use ourselves, and we are willing to express regret that they should be used. But when the noble Marquess accuses us of having got into office by statements which we knew to be untrue, I beg to protest very strongly indeed against that language. I have been a Member of your Lordships' House for twenty years, and I have never before heard such a charge made by one Member of the House against another Member or other Members of the House. I hope that, upon reflection, the noble Marquess will see the propriety and decency of withdrawing it. I am very sorry I cannot give the noble Marquess the information he desires with regard to Ireland. The whole question is under consideration, and that consideration has not yet proceeded to anything like an advanced stage. I am not even in a position to tell the noble Marquess how soon we shall be able to give any information on the subject.
THE MARQUESS OF SALISBURY: Perhaps your Lordships will permit me to say that I never for a moment desired to impute that the noble Lords opposite had said what was not true. That would have been a very foolish observation, and a most improper one. But I do adhere to what I said, that their friends in another place, and their supporters in the country, did allow charges to be made that were untrue.
On Question, agreed to nemine dissentiente, and ordered to be presented
66
to His Majesty by the Lords with White Staves.

THE EARL OF ONSLOW.
Appointed nemine dissentiente to take the Chair in all Committees of this House for this session.
Committee for Privileges, appointed.
Committee for the Journals, appointed.
Stoppages in the Streets, order to prevent, renewed.
Appeal Committee, appointed.

ROLL OF THE LORDS.
The LORD CHANCELLOR acquainted the House that the Clerk of the Parliaments had prepared and laid it on the Table. The same was ordered to be printed. (No. 1.)

PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS (RECESS).
The LORD CHANCELLOR acquainted the House that the Clerk of the Parliaments had received (by post) from the Lord Clerk Register of Scotland, and had laid upon the Table, minutes of the meeting held on the 30th of January last of the Peers of Scotland for the election of their representatives to sit and vote in the ensuing Parliament of the United Kingdom; and also, return by the Lord Clerk Register of Scotland concerning titles of peerages called at the said meeting in right of which respectively no vote had been received and counted for fifty years last past at the date of the said meeting. Ordered, that the said minutes of election, etc., be printed. (No. 2.)
The LORD CHANCELLOR acquainted the House that the following Papers having been commanded to be presented to this House by His Majesty had been so presented on the following dates by

67
delivery to the Clerk of the Parliaments, pursuant to Standing Order No. CXI., viz:—

TREATY SERIES.
No. 20 (1905). Convention between the United Kingdom and the United States of America respecting Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in Zanzibar. Signed at Washington, 25th February, 1905. (August 29.)
No. 21 (1905). Accession of Mexico to the Convention signed at Geneva, 22nd August, 1864, for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field, 13th March, 1905. (August 29.)
No. 22 (1905). Convention between the United Kingdom and China respecting the Junction of the Chinese and Burmese Telegraph Lines, being a revision of the Convention of 6th September, 1894. Signed at Pekin, 23rd May, 1905. (August 30.)
No. 23 (1905). Declarations between the United Kingdom and Greece with respect to Commercial Matters. Signed at Athens, 10th (23) November, 1904, and 4th (17) May, 1905. (September 2.)
No. 24 (1905). International Agreement for the Suppression of the White Slave Traffic. Signed at Paris, 18th May, 1904. (September 9.)
No. 25 (1905). Agreement between the United Kingdom and Japan. Signed at London, 12th August, 1905. (September 26.)
No. 26 (1905). Parcel Post Agreement between the United Kingdom and Portugal. Signed at Lisbon, 28th July, 1905. (September 29.)
No. 27 (1905). Agreement between the United Kingdom and France, relative to the Arbitral Tribunal contemplated by Article III. of the Convention of 8th April, 1904, respecting Newfoundland. Signed at London, 7th April, 1905. (October 28.)

COLONIES.

  I. ANNUAL SERIES.
  No. 454. Turks and Caicos Islands (Report for 1904). (August 19.)
  No. 455. British Honduras (Report for 1904). (September 2.)
  No. 456. Seychelles (Report for 1904). (September 7.)
  No. 457. Northern Territories of the Gold Coast (Report for 1904). (September 8.)
  No. 458. Straits Settlements (Report for 1904). (September 16.)
  No. 459. Southern Nigeria (Report for 1904). (September 18.)
  No. 460. Sierra Leone (Report for 1904). (September 18.)
  No. 461. British Solomon Islands (Report for 1903–1904 and 1904–1905). (September 30.)
  No. 462. Malta (Report for 1904–1905). (October 9.)
  No. 463. Granada (Report for 1904). (October 18.)
  No. 464. St. Vincent (Report for 1904). (October 13.)
  No. 465. Gold Coast (Report for 1904). (October 18.)
  No. 466. Barbados (Report for 1904–1905). (October 20.)
  No. 467. Uganda (Report for 1904–1905). (October 31.)
  No. 468. Somaliland (Report for 1904–1905). (November 3.)
  No. 469. Trinidad and Tobago (Report for 1904–1905). (November 4.)
  No. 470. Lagos (Report for 1904). (November 7.)
  No. 471. Bahamas (Report for 1904–1905). (November 8.)
  No. 472. British Central Africa Protectorate (Report for 1904–1905). (November 8.)
  No. 473. Mauritius (Report for 1904). (November 10.)
  No. 474. Fiji (Report for 1904). (November 14.)
  No. 475. British East Africa Protectorate (Report for 1904–1905). (November 21.)
  No. 476. Northern Nigeria (Report for 1904). (November 21.)
  No. 477. British Guiana (Report for 1904–1905). (November 22.)
  No. 478. Leeward Islands (Report for 1904–1905). (November 30.)
  No. 479. Bechuanaland Protectorate (Report for 1904–1905). (December 2.)
  No. 480. Basutoland (Report for 1904–1905). (December 15.)

  II. MISCELLANEOUS.
  No. 31. Northern Nigeria (Report on Cotton, Gum, and other Economic Products). (December 1.)
TRADE REPORTS.

  I. ANNUAL SERIES.
  No. 3475. Portugal (Madeira).
  No. 3476. Russia (Finland).
  No. 3477. Turkey (Baghdad).
  No. 3478. Portugal (Angola). (August 14.)
  No. 3479. France (Algeria).
  No. 3480. Russia (Odessa).
  No. 3481. Russia (Riga). (August 18.)
  No. 3482. France (Marseilles).
  No. 3483. Turkey (The Hejaz). (August 19.)
  No. 3484. Cuba.
  No. 3485. Germany (Finances of the Kingdom of Prussia). (August 23.)
  No. 3486. Austria-Hungary (Bohemia).
  No. 3487. Italy (Leghorn).
  No. 3488. Turkey (Tripoli). (August 25.)
  No. 3489. United States (Boston).
  No. 3490. Japan (Tainan). (August 26.)
  No. 3491. Peru. (August 29.)
  No. 3492. Tunis.
  No. 3493. France (Society Islands). (August 31.)
  No. 3494. Turkey (Crete).
  No. 3495. Portugal (Chinde). (September 4.)
  No. 3496. Italy (South Italy (Supplementary) ).
  No. 3497. Turkey (Hodeida and Camaran).
  No. 3498. France (Répunion). (September 9.)
  No. 3499. Persia(Kharassan). (September 14.)
  No. 3500. Persia (Sistan and Kain). (September 10.)
  No. 3501. Belgium (September 21.)
  No. 3502. Japan (Yokohama), September 22.)
  No. 3503. Mexico (Vera Cruz).
  No. 3504. Siam (Bangkok), September 23.)
  No. 3505. China (Ningpo), September 27.)
  No. 3506. Germany (October 4.)
  No. 3507. Persia (Azerbaijan.)
  No. 3508. China (Wenchow), (October 10.)
  No. 3509. France (Madagascar), (October 16.)
  No. 3510. France (October 17.)
  No. 3511. Würtemberg, (October 19.)
  No. 3512. United States (Philippine Islands, (October 27.)
  No. 3513. France (The Ivory Coast). (November 3.)
  No. 3514. Trans-Caucasus (Agriculture in 1905). (November 4.)
  No. 3515. Uruguay.
  No. 3516. Greece. (November 7.)
  No. 3517. Zanzibar.
  No. 3518. Portugal (Goa.) (November 14.)
  No. 3519. Germany (German Colonies.) (December 5.)
  No. 3520. Switzerland. (December 7.)
  No. 3521 Brazil (Santos). (January 3.)

  II. MISCELLANEOUS SERIES.
  No. 636. German Sea-fishing Industry and Trade. (August 19.)
  No. 637. Japan (Tea Culture.)
  No. 638. France (Chemical, Metal, and other Industries of Lyons). (September 4.)
  No. 639. Argentine Republic (Quebracho and Cotton in the Argentine Chaco). (September 5.)
  No. 640. Belgium (Scheme for the Extension of the Port of Antwerp). (September 27.)
  No. 641. China (Land Taxation in the Province of Honan.) (November 17.)
  No. 642. Germany (German Paper Industry and Export Trade). (November 25.)

  LIGHT RAILWAYS ACT, 1896.
  I. Orders made by the Light Railway Commissioners, and modified and confirmed by the Board of Trade, authorising the construction of—
  1. A light railway in the rural districts of Bath and of Keynsham in the county of Somerset (being an extension of the existing and authorised undertaking of Bath Electric Tramways, Limited).
  2. Light railways in the county of Devon from Newton Ferrers to Yealmptom, and from Kingsbridge to Slapton, and to Salcombe.
  3. Light railways in the county of Lincoln and the West Riding of the county of York. (August 16.)
  II. Orders made by the Light Railway Commissioners, and modified and confirmed by the Board of Trade, amending—
  1. The Holmfield and South Owram Light Railway Order, 1902. (August 16).
  2. The Central Essex Light Railway Order, 1901, and the Bardfield and Sible Hedingham Light Railway Order, 1901.(December 29).
  3. Bere Alston and Calstock Light Railway Order, 1900. (December 29.)
  III. Orders made by the Light Railway Commissioners, and modified and confirmed by the Board of Trade, authorizing the construction of a light railway—
  1. In the county of Somerset for Priston to Dunkerton.
  2. In the county borough of Devonport. (December 29.)
  IV. Orders made by the light Railway Commissioners, and confirmed by the Board of Trade, amending—
  1. The Padstow, Bednethan, and Mawgan Light Railway Order, 1903.
  2. The East Sussex Light Railway Order, 1901. (December 29.)

  ARMY.
  I. (Estimates)—Approximate Estimate of Expenditure under Military Works Acts of 1897, 1899, 1901, and 1903. (August 29.)
  II. (Regulations as to Pay).—List of Exceptions to the Army Regulations as to pay, non-effective pay, and allowances sanctioned by the Treasury pur-
  72
  suant to the Royal Warrant dated 27th October, 1884, during the year 1904–1905. (OctobeT 14.)
  III. (Military Prisons).—Report on the discipline and management of the Military Prisons, 1904. (November 11.)

  REFORMATORY AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS (IRELAND).
  Forty-third Report of the Inspector, for the year 1904. (August 14.)
  QUEEN'S COLLEGE, BELFAST.
  Annual Report of the President, for the year 1904–1905. (August 14.)
  QUEEN'S COLLEGE, GALWAY.
  Annual Report of the President, for the year 1904–1905. (August 14.)
  PUBLIC RECORDS (IRELAND).
  Thirty-seventh Report of the Deputy Keeper of the Records, for the year 1904. (August 15.)

  AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS (IRELAND).
  I. Abstracts showing the acreage under crops and the number of live stock in each county and province, 1904–1905. (August 21.)
  II. Agricultural statistics of Ireland with detailed Report for the year 1904. (September 5.)

  EXPLOSIVES.
  I. Report to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State for the Home Department by Major A. Cooper Key, His Majesty's Inspector of Explosives, on the circumstances attending an explosion of fireworks which occurred at the factory of Messrs. John Jennison and Company at Belle Vue, near Manchester, on the 9th July, 1905. (August 24.)
  II. Report to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State for the Home Department by Captain M. B. Lloyd, His Majesty's Inspector of Explosives, on the circumstances attending an explosion of nitro-glycerine, which occurred in the fitters' shop of the factory of the "Explosives and Chemical Products, Limited," at Bramble Island, Essex, on the 11th July, 1905. (October 14.)
  III. Report to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State for the Home Department by Captain A. P. H. Des-borough, His Majesty's Inspector of Explosives, on the circumstances attending the destruction of a factory magazine at the factory of the Thames Storage (Explosives) Company, Limited, at St. Mary's Marshes, in the Hundred of Hoo, Kent, on the 29th July 1905. (November 14).

  BOARD OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES.
  I. Minutes of Evidence taken before the Departmental Committee appointed by the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries to inquire into and report upon the fruit industry of Great Britain; with appendices and index. (August 24).
  II. Annual Report on the distribution of grants for agricultural education and research in the year 1904–1905, with statements respecting the several colleges and institutions aided, and a summary of the agricultural instruction provided by county councils in 1904–1905, and the expenditure on the same in 1903–1904 and in 1904–1905. (January 3).

  WESTERN PACIFIC.
  Report on the trade of the New Hebrides, by Captain Ernest Rason, R.N., Resident Deputy Commissioner. (August 19).

  INDIA.
  I. (Army Administration)—Further papers regarding the administration of the army in India (in continuation of [Cd. 2615.]). (August 21).
  II. (Trade)—Review of the trade of India, 1904–1905. (October 11).
  III. (Re-constitution of the Provinces of Bengal and Assam)—Further papers relating to the re-constitution of the provinces of Bengal and Assam (in continuation of [Cd. 2656.]). (October 12).
  IV. (Statistical Abstract).—Statistical abstract relating to British India from 1894–1895 to 1903–1904. Thirty-ninth Number. (October 18).
  V. (Sanitary Measures).—Report on sanitary measures in India in 1903–1904. Vol. XXXVII. (November 7).

  RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.
  Returns of accidents and casualties as reported to the Board of Trade by the several railway companies in the United Kingdom in pursuance of the Regulation of Railways Act, (1871); together with reports of the inspecting officers, assistant inspecting officers, and sub-inspectors of the Railway Department to the Board of Trade, upon certain accidents which were inquired into—
  I. During the three months ended 31st March, 1905. (August 30).
  II. During the three months ended 30th June, 1905. (October 11).

  IMPERIAL INSTITUTE (INDIAN SECTION).
  Annual Report for the year 1904–1905. (September 2.)
  PRISONS (ENGLAND AND WALES).
  Report of the Commissioners of Prisons and the Directors of Convict Prisons, with Appendices, for the year ended 31st March, 1905. (September 5.)
  POLICE (METROPOLIS).
  Report of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, for the year 1904. (September 7).
  WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION.
  Statistics of Proceedings under the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1897 and 1900, and the Employers' Liability Act, 1880, during the year 1904. (September 8).

  BOARD OF EDUCATION.
  I. (Reports on Children under Five Years of Age). Reports on children under five years of age in public elementary schools by women inspectors of the Board of Education. (September 8).
  II. (Administrative County of Stafford. Endowed Charities (Elementary Education).) Report made to the Board of Education on the result of any inquiry into endowments subject to the provisions of the Charitable Trusts Acts, 1853 to 1894, and appropriated in whole or in part to purposes of elementary education in the administrative county of Stafford, or in any part thereof. (September 16).
  III. Regulations relating to the Royal College of Science, the Royal College of Art, and to Museums under the Board of Education, from 1st August, 1905, to 31st July, 1906. (October 10).
  IV. (Statistics of Public Education, 1903, 1904, 1905). Statistics of public education in England and Wales, 1903, 1904, 1905. (November 21).
  V. Report to the Board of Education for the year 1904–1905. (November 23).
  VI. Inter-departmental Committee on Medical Inspection and Feeding of Children attending Public Elementary Schools.
  Vol. I. Report and Appendices. (November 13).
  Vol. II. List of Witnesses, Minutes of Evidence. Appendices and Index. (November 27).
  VII. Report from University Colleges, 1905. (November 30).
  VIII. (List of Evening Schools). List of evening schools under the administration of the Board, for the school year, 1903–1904). (December 18).

  IRISH LAND COMMISSION.
  I. (Proceedings). 1. Return of Proceedings during July, 1905. (September 16).
  2. Return of Proceedings during August, 1905. (September 20).
  3. Return of Proceedings during September, 1905. (November 8).
  II. (Estates Commissioners). Report of Proceedings for the period from 1st November, 1903 to 31st March, 1905. (September 27).

  REFORMATORY AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS (GREAT BRITAIN).
  Forty-eighth Report, for the year 1904, of the Inspector of Reformatory and Industrial Schools; Part II. General Report and Appendices III. to XI. (September 18).
  CANADA (IMPORTATION OF CANADIAN CATTLE INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM.
  Despatch from the Governor-General of Canada, with the reply of the Secretary of State for the Colonies. (September 19).
  BRITISH EAST AFRICA PROTECTORATE.
  Report on the working of the Uganda railway and the steamboat service on Lake Victoria, 1904–1905. (September 21).
  FISHERIES (IRELAND).
  Report of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland on the sea and inland fisheries of Ireland for the year 1904; Part I. General Report. (September 22).

  MINES AND QUARRIES.
  I. (General Report and Statistics for 1904; Part II. Labour). General report and statistics relating to persons employed and accidents at mines and quarries in the United Kingdom, and to the enforcement of the Mines and Quarries Acts. (September 23).
  II. (General Report and Statistics for 1904; Part III. Output). General report and statistics relating to the output and value of the minerals raised in the United Kingdom, the amount and value of the metals produced, and the exports and imports of minerals. (October 3).
  III. (National Colliery Explosion). Reports to His Majesty's Secretary of State for the Home Department by E. Milner Jones, Ba rrister-at-Law, and by F. A. Gray and J. T. Robson, two of His Majesty's Inspectors of Mines, on the circumstances attending the explosion which occurred at the National Colliery, Wattstowon on the 11th July 1905. (November 11).

  JAPAN, NO. 2 (1905).
  Despatch to His Majesty's Ambassador at St. Petersburgh, forwarding a copy of the Agreement between the United Kingdom and Japan. Signed at London, 12th August 1905. (September 6).
  POOR LAW COMMISSIONERS' REPORT OF 1834.
  Report made in 1834 by the Commissioners for Inquiry into the administration and practical operation of the Poor Laws. (September 12).
  MUSCAT, NO. 1 (1905).
  Award of the Arbitration Tribunal appointed to decide on the question of the grant of the French Flag to Muscat dhows. September 28).
  FRANCE, NO. 1 (1905).
  Agreement between His Majesty's Government and the French Government for the constitution of an Arbitral Tribunal to settle the indemnity to be awarded to the French citizens lately engaged in the fishery on the treaty shore of Newfoundland, and statement of sums allotted by the arbitrators. (September 28.)
  MISCELLANEOUS, NO. 4 (1905).
  Agreements between the Argentine Republic and the Republic of Chile. Signed on 28th May 1902, 10th July 1902, and 9th January 1903. (October 13.)
  AFRICA, NO. 6. (1905)
  Reports relating to the administration of the East Africa Protectorate. (October 28).
  TURKEY, NO." 3 (1905).
  Further correspondence respecting the affairs of South-Eastern Europe. (In continuation of Turkey, No. 2, 1905). (November 28).
  COLONIAL CONFERENCE.
  Correspondence relating to the future organization of Colonial Conferences. (December 1).
  FACTORY AND WORKSHOP (LAUNDRIES).
  List of religious and charitable institutions in which laundries are carried on. (Second Issue.) (September 26).

  CYPRUS.
  I. Report by Professor Wyndham Dunstan, F.R.S., on the agricultural resources of Cyprus, with special reference to cotton cultivation and correspondence relating there to. (September 28).
  II. Annual Report for 1904–1905. (November 17).

  BANKING, RAILWAY, AND SHIPPING STATISTICS (IRELAND).
  Statistics for June 1905. (October 10).

  LONDON TRAFFIC (ROYAL COMMISSION).
  Report of the Royal Commission appointed to inquire and report on the
  78
  means of locomotion and traffic in. London.
  Vol. II. Minutes of Evidence.
  Vol. III. Appendices. (October 14).
  Vols. V. and Vol. VI. Maps and Diagrams, with Index. (December 29).
  Vol. VII. and Vol. VIII. Report to the Royal Commission on London Traffic by the Advisory Board of Engineers, and Appendix. (October 2).

  JUDICIAL STATISTICS (SCOTLAND) ACT, 1869.
  Report on the Judicial Statistics of Scotland, for the year 1904. (October 20).
  LAND LAW (IRELAND) ACT, 1887.
  Return of the number of eviction notices filed during the quarter ended 30th September 1905. (October 21).
  CONGESTED DISTRICTS BOARD (IRELAND).
  Report of the Board for the year ended 31st March 1905. (October 26).
  EVICTIONS (IRELAND).
  Return of evictions in Ireland for the quarter ended 30th September 1905. (October 30).
  IRISH TEACHERS' PENSION RULES.
  Rules under section 11 of the National School Teachers' (Ireland) Act, 1879. (November 1).
  SWITZERLAND (NEW CUSTOMS TARIFF INTERIM STATEMENT)).
  Translation of the New "General" Customs Tariff of Switzerland, as modified by the New Commercial Treaties concluded with Germany and Italy (November 8).

  BOND INVESTMENT COMPANIES COMMITTEE.
  I. Report of the Departmental Committee on Bond Investment Companies.
  II. Appendices to the Report. (November 8).

  LUNACY (IRELAND).
  Fifty-fourth Report (with Appendices) of the Inspectors of Lunatics (Ireland), for the year ended 31st December 1904. (November 9).
  RAILWAY SERVANTS (HOURS OF LABOUR).
  Return in pursuance of Section 4 of the Regulation of Railways Act, 1889, of Railway Servants of certain classes who were on one or more occasions during the month of March, 1905, on Duty on the Railways of the United Kingdom for more than twelve hours at a time, or who, after being on duty more than twelve hours, were allowed to resume work with less than nine hours rest. (November 20).

  NATIONAL EDUCATION (IRELAND)
  Section I. Appendix to the Seventy-first Report of the Commissioners, for the year 1904.
  Section II. Inspectors, training colleges, schools in operation, etc.
  Section III. Examination papers set at the annual examinations, 1904; Summary of the answering. (November 10).

  WEST INDIES.
  West Indian Inter-colonial Sanitary Convention, 1904, adopted by legislation in Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad, British Guiana, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and the Leeward Islands. (November 13)
  STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.
  Reports on the Federated Malay States for 1904. (November 18).

  BIRTHS, DEATHS, AND MARRIAGES (SCOTLAND).
  I. Supplement to the Forty-eighth Detailed Annual Report of the Registrar-General for Scotland of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in Scotland (Abstracts of 1902). (November 30).
  II. Forty-ninth Detailed Annual Report of the Registrar-General for Scotland of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in Scotland (Abstracts of 1903.) (December 12).

  Reports respecting Peterhead Harbour Works (in continuation of [Cd. 2279.]) (December 7.)
  SECONDARY EDUCATION (SCOTLAND).
  Report for the year 1905, by J. Struthers, Esq., C.B., LL.D. (December 7).

  NAVY.
  I. (Admiralty Policy).—A statement of Admiralty policy. (December 9).
  II. (Gunnery).—Result of test of gun-layers with heavy guns in His Majesty's fleet, 1905. (December 12).

  INEBRIATE RETREATS (IRELAND).
  First report, with appendices, of the Inspector for Ireland for the years 1903–1904. (December 18).
  FOREIGN IMPORT DUTIES, 1905.
  Statement of the rates of import duties levied in European Countries, Egypt, the United States, Japan, China, and Persia, upon produce and manufactures of the United Kingdom. (December 20).

  COMMERCIAL.
  No. 4. (1905).—Further reports from His Majesty's Representatives on navigable inland waterways in Austria Hungary, Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. (December 22).
  No. 5. (1905).—Despatch from His Majesty's Minister at Bucharest, transmitting the treaty of commerce and navigation between the United Kingdom and Roumania, signed on 31st October, 1905. (December. 30).
  No. 1. (1906).—Despatch from His Majesty's Agent and Consul-General at Sofia, transmitting the commercial convention between the United Kingdom and Bulgaria, signed 9th December 1905. (January 8).
  No. 2. (1906)—Despatch from His Majesty's Minister at Havana, transmitting the treaty of commerce and navigation between the United Kingdom and Cuba, signed at Havana, 4th May 1905. (January 8).

  Correspondence relating to railway construction in Nigeria. (December 29).
  ST. LOUIS INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION 1904 (ROYAL COMMISSION).
  Report of His Majesty's Commissioners for the International Exhibition at St. Louis, 1904. (December 29).

  CHINA, NO. 2 1905).
  Report by Mr. Walter J. Clennell, His Majesty's Consul at Kingkiang, on a

  81
  journey In the interior of Kiangsi. (With a map). (December 30).

  PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCIES (ELECTORS, ETC.,), (UNITED KINGDOM).
  Return showing, with regard to each parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, the total number, and as far as possible the number in each class of the electors on the register now in force, and also showing the population and inhabited houses in each constituency. (January 2.)
  EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN ACT, 1903.
  Report to the Secretary of State for the Home Department, by Chester Jones, Esq., Barrister-at-Law, on the byelaws made by the London County Council under the Employment of Children Act, 1903. (January 5.)

  TRANSVAAL.
  I. Further correspondence relating to labour in the Transvaal mines (in continuation of [Cd. 2401.], April, 1905, and [Cd. 2563], July, 1905). (December 1.)
  II. Further correspondence relating to labour in the Transvaal mines (in continuation of [Cd. 2786.], December, 1905). (January 8.)

  HISTORICAL MANUSCRIPTS (ROYAL COMMISSION).
  I. Reports on the manuscripts of J. B. Fortescue, Esq., preserved at Dropmore, Vol. V., and of the Earl of Verulam, preserved at Gorhambury. (January 8.)
  II. Calendar of Manuscripts of the Dean and Chapter of Wells. Vol. I. (January 8.)
  The same were ordered to lie on the Table.

RETURNS REPORTS, ETC.

  NAVY.
  (Estimates)—Estimates for the year 1906–1907, with explanation of differences.
  Statement of First Lord of the Admiralty explanatory of the Navy Estimates,1906–1907.
  (Battle Practice)—Result of battle practice in His Majesty's fleet, 1905.

  EDUCATION (SCOTLAND).
  Report for the year 1905, by the Director, on the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh.
  Further correspondence relating to labour in the Transvaal mines.
  TREATY SERIES, NO. 1 (1906).
  Agreement additional to the Money Order Convention of 8th December, 1882, between the United Kingdom and France signed at Paris, 20th April 1904. (Ratifications exchanged at Paris, 10th January 1906.)
  COMMERCIAL, NO. 3 (1906).
  International Sugar Commission, Autumn Session, 1905; Report of proceedings (in continuation of Commercial No. 3. (1905.)
  ROUMANIA (NEW CUSTOMS TARIFF (INTERIM STATEMENT)).
  Translation of the New Customs Tariff of Roumania as modified by Commercial Treaties with the United Kingdom and Germany.
  CANCER RESEARCH (COLONIES).
  Further correspondence relating to the Cancer Research Scheme (in continuation of [Cd. 2342], February 1905).
  RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.
  Returns of accidents and casualties as reported to the Board of Trade by the several railway companies in the United Kingdom during the Three Months ended 30th September, 1905, in pursuance of the Regulation of Railways Act (1871), together with reports of the inspecting officers, assistant inspecting officers, and sub-inspectors of the Railway Department to the Board of Trade upon certain accidents which were inquired into.
  PASSENGERS TO PLACES OUT OF EUROPE.
  Return of the numbers and nationalities of the passengers that left the United Kingdom for places out of Europe in each month of the Year 1906, distinguishing the principal countries in which the passengers contracted to land.
  TRADE DISPUTES AND TRADE COMBINATIONS (ROYAL COMMISSION).
  Report of the Commissioners appointed to enquire into the subject of trade disputes and trade combinations, and as to the law affecting them.

  IRISH LAXD COMMISSION (PROCEEDINGS).
  1. Return for the month of October, 1905.)
  2. Return for the Month of November, 1905.
  3. Return for the month of December, 1905.

  EVICTIONS (IRELAND).
  Return of evictions in Ireland for the quarter ended 31st December, 1905.
  LAND LAW (IRELAND) ACT, 1887.
  Return of the number of eviction notices filed during the quarter ended 31st December, 1905.
  METEOROLOGY.
  Report of the Meteorological Council to the President and Council of the Royal Society, for the year ended 31st March, 1905.
  TRADE UNIONS (BOARD OF TRADE LABOUR DEPARTMENT).
  Report by the chief labour correspondent of the Board of Trade on trade unions in 1902–1904, with comparative statistics for 1895–1904.
  WAGES AND EFFECTS OF DECEASED SEAMEN.
  Account of the sums received and paid in respect of the wages and effects of deceased seamen in the year ended 31st March, 1905.
  IRISH LAND ACT, 1903 (REGULATIONS).
  Regulations made by the Lord Lieutenant in pursuance of the provisions of Section 23 (8) of the Act.

  PAUPERISM (ENGLAND AND WALES).
  Comparative statement of pauperism and cost of the relief of the poor in certain years from 1848–49 to 1904–1905.
  Presented (by Command), and ordered to lie on the Table

  LUNACY.
  1. Report to the Lord Chancellor of the number of visits made, the number of patients seen, and the number of miles travelled by the visitors of lunatics between 1st April, 1905, and 30th September, 1905.
  2. Return to the Lord Chancellor of the number of visits made, and the number of patients seen, by the several Commissioners in Lunacy during the six months ended 31st December, 1905.

  BOARD OF EDUCATION.
  Draft Order in Council, continuing certain provisions in the Order in Council of 6th March, 1902.

  MERCHANT SHIPPING ACT, 1894.
  1. (Collisions at Sea)—Order in Council, dated 23rd October, 1905, amending Article 10 of the regulations scheduled to the Order in Council of the 11th August, 1880, for preventing collisions, at sea.
  2. Order in Council, dated 23rd October, 1905, approving certain new pilotage byelaws made by the Pilotage Board of Port Talbot.
  3. Order in Council, dated 23rd October, 1905, revoking a proviso in paragraph 24 of the regulations scheduled to the Order in Council of 24th March, 1902, relating to the registry of British sea-fishing boats.

  Order in Council, dated 23rd October, 1905, applying the Colonial Probates Act, 1892, to the Orange River Colony.
  NEWCASTLE CHAPTER ACT, 1884.
  Order in Council, dated 20th Novermber, 1905, approving a scheme of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for transferring to the Newcastle Chapter Endowment Fund the endowment of a canonry in the Cathedral Church of Durham.

  ELEMENTARY EDUCATION ACT, 1876, AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS ACT, 1866.
  Order in Council, dated 20th November, 1905, amending the Order in Council of 20th March, 1877, applying to day industrial schools the provisions of the Industrial Schools Acts, and revoking

  85
  the previous amending Order of 11th July, 1905.

  NAVAL AND MARINE PAY AND PENSION ACT, 1865.
  Order in Council, dated 20th November, 1905, approving a memorial of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty praying sanction to a rule by which retired pay and pension, except pensions for wounds of commissioned, commissioned warrant, and warrant officers, shall be held only during good behaviour, and may be forfeited or suspended for misconduct or restored at the discretion of the Admiralty.
  GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1858 (INDIA OFFICE).
  Order in Council, dated 11th December, 1905, approving a statement of new and revised appointments and alterations of salaries in the establishment of the Secretary of State for India in Council.

  FOREIGN JURISDICTION ACT, 1890 (ORDERS IN COUNCIL).
  1. Dated 11th December, 1905, entitled "the Brunei Order in Council, 1905";
  2. Dated 8th January, 1906, entitled "the Somaliland Order in Councils 1906";
  3. Dated 8th January, 1906, making provision for a Seal for His Britannic Majesty's Court of Appeal for Eastern Africa.

  INDIA.
  1. (Examinations) Revision of paragraph 8 of the regulations for the admission of candidates to the civil service of India;
  2. (Loans raised in India). Return of all loans raised in India chargeable on the revenues of India, outstanding at the commencement of the half-year ended on the 30th September, 1905, with the rates of interest and total amount payable thereon, and the date of the termination of each loan, the debt incurred during the half-year the moneys raised thereby during the half-year, the loans paid off or discharged during the half-year, and the loans out standing at the close of the half-year, stating, so far as the public convenience will allow, the purpose or service for
  86
  which moneys have been raised during the half-year;
  3. (Loans raised in England)—Return of all loans raised in England under the provisions of any Acts of Parliament, chargeable on the revenues of India, outstanding at the commencement of the half-year ended on the 30th September, 1905, with the rates of interest, and total amount payable thereon, and the date of the termination of each loan, the debt incurred during the half-year, the moneys raised thereby during the half-year, the loans paid oil or discharged during the half-year, and the loans outstanding at the close of the half-year, stating, so far as the public convenience will allow, the purpose or service for which moneys have been raised during the half-year.

  SHOP HOURS ACT, 1904.
  I. Orders made by the councils of the following counties, boroughs, county boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, and urban districts, and confirmed by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, fixing the hours of closing certain shops in the:—

  1.County borough of Bury.

  2. Borough of Barrow-in-Furness.

  3. County borough of St. Helens.

  4. Borough of Swindon.

  5. Metropolitan borough of Deptford.

  6. Metropolitan borough of Greenwich.

  7. Borough of Leicester.

  8. County borough of Stockport.

  9. Borough of Ashton-under-Lyne.

  10. County borough of Halifax.

  11. County borough of Birkenhead.

  12. Borough of Accrington.

  13. County borough of Cardiff.

  14. County borough of Middlesborough.

  15. Urban district of Shipley.

  16. Urban district of Pontypridd.

  17. Borough of Stafford.

  18. Borough of Wolverhampton.

  19. County of Lancaster, within the following urban districts—

  1. Atherton (Hindsford).

  2. Levenshulme.

  3. Padiham.

  4. Tyldesley-with-Shakerley.

  5. Great Harwood.

  6. Clayton - le Moors, Oswald-twistle, and Church (part of).

  7. Rishton.

  8. Church (part of).

  87

  20. County of Monmouth, within the urban districts of Blaenavon, Abersychan, Pontypool, Panteg, Llanvrechva Upper, and Llantarnam.

  21. Metropolitan borough of Battersea.

  22. Metropolitan borough of South-wark.

  23. Metropolitan borough of Camberwell.

  24. Corporation of the borough of Barnsley.

  25. Corporation of the borough of Newport.

  26. Corporation of the borough of Darwen.

  27. Council of the county borough of Grimsby.

  28. Council of the borough of Swansea.

  29. County borough of Salford.

  30. County borough of Rochdale.

  31. County borough of Oldham.

  II. Closing Orders made by the urban district councils of—

  1. Limavady.

  2. Portadown.

  3. Ballymena.

  4. Banbridge.

  5. Coleraine.

  6. Ballymoney.

  III. Orders by the Secretary for Scotland providing for the early closing of certain shops in—

  1 and 2. The burgh of Motherwell.

  3. The burgh of Clydebank.

  4. The city of Glasgow.

  5. The burgh of Kinning Park.

  6. The burgh of Partick.

  7. The burgh of Govan.

  8. The burgh of Dundee.

  9. The burgh of Paisley.

  PENAL SERVITUDE ACTS, 1853–1891 (CONDITIONAL LICENCES).
  Licences granted by His Majesty to—1. John Bond, (2) George Lamb, (3) Marion Seddon, (4) William Grant, (5) Robert Allen, under the provisions of the Penal Servitude Acts, 1853–1891, to which are annexed conditions other than those contained in Schedule A. of the Penal Servitude Act, 1864.
  2. Ada Brown, a convict under detention in Aylesbury prison permitting her to be at large on condition that she
  88
  enter the Home of Compassion, Pimlico, S.W.
  3. Sarah Craddock, a convict under detention in Aylesbury Prison, permitting her to be at large on condition that she enter the London Female Preventive and Reformatory Institution, Holloway, N.
  4. Margaret Hartley, a convict tinder detention in Aylesbury Prison, permitting her to be at large on condition that she enter the East End Refuge, Finchley, N.

  POLLING DISTRICTS.
  Orders made by the—

  1. County council of the county of Southampton constituting the parish of Grayshott a separate polling district in the Petersfield parliamentary division.

  2. County council of the county of Stafford constituting the parish of Quarry Bank a separate polling district in the Kingswinford division of the county for the purposes of parliamentary elections.

  3. County council of the county of Surrey altering certain polling districts within the county (3 orders).

  4. Justices of the Kensington Petty Sessional Division dividing the Parliamentary Borough of Chelsea into polling districts.

  5. County council of the county of Southampton constituting the Blackmoor Ward of the parish of Selborne a separate polling district in the Petersfield parliamentary division of the county.

  6. County council of the county of Dorset dividing the parish of Corfe Mullen into polling districts.

  7. Council of the borough of Birkenhead altering one of the polling districts in the borough.

  8. County council of the county of Southampton altering certain polling districts in the New Forest parliamentary division of the county.

  9. County council of the county of Lancaster re-dividing the Ormskirk, Prestwich, and Stretford parliamentary divisions into convenient polling districts.

  10. County council of the county of Essex altering certain polling districts in the Romford parliamentary division.

  89

  11. County council of the county of Huntingdon altering certain polling districts in the northern parliamentary division of the county.

  12. County council of the council of Durham altering certain polling districts in the Bishop Auckland and mid-parliamentary divisions of the county.

  LOCOMOTIVES ON HIGHWAYS ACT, 1896, MOTOR CAR ACT, 1903.
  Orders by the Secretary for Scotland prohibiting motor car traffic on certain highways in the counties of—

  1. Haddington (dated 31st October, 1905).

  2. Forfar (dated 3rd January, 1906).

  3. Argyll (district of Ardnamurchan) (dated 15th November, 1905).

  4. Argyll (district of the island of Mull), dated 31st October, 1905).

  5. Bute (district of the island of Arran) (dated 31st October, 1905).

  UNEMPLOYED WORKMEN ACT, 1905.
  Regulations, dated 14th November, 1905, made by the Local Government Board for Scotland under the Unemployed Workmen Act, 1905, Section 4 (3), respecting organisation for unemployed.
  Act of Adjowmal for regulating the procedure in Scotland under the Aliens Act, 1905.
  WINTER ASSIZES (IRELAND).
  Four Orders in Council, dated 4th.November, 1905, for holding winter assizes in Ireland.
  GENERAL PRISONS (IRELAND) ACT, 1877.
  Order closing the female prison at Limerick.

  PHARMACY (IRELAND) ACTS, 1875 TO 1890, ORDERS IN COUNCIL.
  1. Dated 4th November, 1905, approving of Regulations made by the Pharmaceutical Society.
  2. Dated 7th February, 1906, approving of an amended regulation made by the Pharmaceutical Society.

  MILITIA ACT, 1882 (DEPUTY LIEU- TENANTS).
  Returns of descriptions of qualifications of Deputy Lieutenants lodged during 1905, as furnished to the Chief Secretary for Ireland.

  LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (IRE- LAND).
  I. Orders with respect to the urban county districts of—

  1. Bangor.

  2. Monaghan.

  3. Carrickmacross.

  II. Regulations (Organisation for Unemployed), Ireland, 1905.

  AGRICULTURE AND TECHNICAL IN- STRUCTION (IRELAND).
  Regulations for the appointment of members of the Council of Agriculture, the Agricultural Board, and the Board of Technical Instruction.

  INTERMEDIATE EDUCATION (IRELAND).
  I. Time table of examinations for the year 1906.
  II. Rules made by the Intermediate Education Board for Ireland—

  1. Amending Rule 42 (iv) (I) (6), and Rule 45 of the rules for 1906.

  2. Substituting a work in the middle grade honours programme in Irish, 1906, for that originally prescribed.

  3. Prescribing an alternative work in the middle grade pass programme in French for 1906.

  III. Rule made identifying the syllabuses of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland for the purposes of the rules of the Intermediate Education Board for Ireland for the year 1906.
  IV. Rules and programme of examinations for 1906.

  SECRETARY FOR SCOTLAND ACT, 1904. (REFORMATORY AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS).
  Order made by the Secretary of State for the Home Department in pursuance of Section 1 of the Secretary for Scotland Act, 1904, as to the transfer to the Secretary for Scotland of certain powers and duties in connection with reformatories and industrial schools.
  GREENWICH HOSPITAL AND TRAVERS' FOUNDATION (CAPITAL AND INCOME ACCOUNTS, 1904–1905).
  Accounts of the receipt and expenditure of the capital and of the income derived from the lands and other property held for the benefit of Greenwich Hospital, and the Foundation of Samuel Travers, Esquire for the year ended 31st March, 1905; together with the Report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General thereon.
  RAMSGATE HARBOUR.
  Statement of the receipts and payments made by the Board of Trade, for the year ended 31st March, 1905; together with an account of the receipt and issue of stores.
  LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANIES.
  Statements of accounts and of life assurance and annuity business and abstracts of actuarial reports deposited with the Board of Trade under Section 10 of "the Life Assurance Companies Act, 1870," during the year ended 31st December, 1905.
  An account of the General Lighthouse Fund showing income and expenditure for year ended 31st March, 1905.
  WEST HIGHLAND RAILWAY (EXTEN- SION FROM BANAVIE TO MALLAIG).
  Fourth Annual Report by the Board of Trade as to the condition and working of the Banavie to Mallaig Railway, the rates and charges for traffic, and the receipts and expenditure of any company in working the railway, for the year 1904–1905.
  COMMITTALS (IRELAND).
  Returns from the Clerks of the Crown and Peace of the numbers of persons committed for trial in 1905.

  POST OFFICE (STATUTORY RULES AND ORDERS, 1905).
  1. No. 1065. (Telegraphs)—The Telegraph (Inland Written Telegram) Amendment (No. 1) Regulations, 1905. Dated 1st September, 1905.

  2. No. 1328. (Foreign and Colonial Parcel Post, Costa Rica)—The Foreign and Colonial Parcel Post Amendment
  92
  (No. 18) Warrant, 1905. Dated 21st December, 1905.

  3. No. 951. (Foreign and Colonial Parcel Post, Madeira)—The Foreign and Colonial Parcel Post Amendment (No. 16) Warrant, 1905. Dated 12th August, 1905.

  4. No. 1366. (Inland Post)—The Inland Post Amendment (No. 3) Warrant, 1905. Dated 28th December, 1905.

  Draft Savings Banks (Investment) Regulations, 1906.
  PUBLIC WORKS (IRELAND).
  Treasury Minute, dated 14th February, 1906, authorising the lease of a plot of land at the Dalkey end of the disused tramway from Kingstown to Dalkey.
  Account of the receipts and disbursements of the Duchy of Cornwall in the year ended 31st December, 1905.

  SUPERANNUATION.
  I. Treasury Minutes granting under Section 2 of the Superannuation Act, 1887, retired allowances to—
  Reginald P. Tibbs, deputy cashier in charge, Royal Victoria Yard Deptford (27th November, 1905); J. W. Metcalfe and W. F. Ridsdale, sorting clerks and telegraphists; R. L. Frost, 1st class clerk, Money Order Office; and W. B. Crane, overseer and junior telegraphist, Central Telegraph Office, Post Office (23rd November, 1905); Charles Bennett, 1st class assistant architect and surveyor, Office of Works (31st October, 1905).
  II. Treasury Minutes declaring that the following persons were appointed without a civil service certificate through inadvertence on the part of the heads of their departments—
  Harry Mott, postmaster, Cowes (23rd October, 1905); William Fretton, Bridewell, keeper at New Ross, Bridewell, Irish Prison Service (8th January, 1906); Thomas Moodie, engineer in charge of pumping machinery, Dover, War Office (22nd January, 1906); William. Chevalier, clerk, His Majesty's

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  Consulate, Alexandria; Giovanni Fabri, assistant clerk, His Majesty's Consulate, Alexandria; Saverio Inglott, shipping clerk, His Majesty's Consulate, Alexandria; Shukvallah Fathalla Huri, dragoman, His Majesty's Consular Service, Alexandria, Consular Service (9th December, 1905).

  PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS.
  Treasury Minute declaring that for the due and efficient discharge of the duties of the office of Treasury Solicitor in Ireland professional or other peculiar qualifications not ordinarily to be acquired on the public service are required (12th January, 1906).
  IMPERIAL OTTOMAN GUARANTEED LOAN OF 1855).
  Account for the year to 31st December, 1905, prepared under the Act, showing the sums issued and applied for interest as guaranteed by Her late Majesty, and for management of the Imperial Ottoman Guaranteed Loan of 1855, and also of the repayment in respect of advances under the said Act.
  BANK OF ENGLAND.
  Return of the amount of notes issued more than forty years and outstanding on 25th October, 1905, which have been written off.
  PRISONS (SCOTLAND) ACTS, 1860 TO 1904.
  Rule made by the Secretary for Scotland as to the appointment of a visiting Committee to the prison at Glasgow (Duke Street).

  UNIVERSITIES (SCOTLAND) ACT, 1889.
  Annual Statistical Report by the University Court of the University of Glasgow to the Secretary for Scotland under the provisions of Section 30 of the Act, for the year 1904–1905.
  Annual Statistical Report by the University Court of the University of Edinburgh to the Secretary for Scotland under the provisions of Section 30 of the Universities (Scotland) Act, 1889, for the year 1904–1905.
  Annual Report on the state of the finances of the University of Edinburgh under the provisions of the Universities (Scotland) Act, 1889, for the year 1904–1905.

  FACTORY AND WORKSHOP.
  I. (Dangerous and Unhealthy Industries).
  Regulations, dated 17th October, 1905, made by the Secretary of State for the Home Department in pursuance of Section 79 of the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, in respect of the process of spinning by self-acting mules.
  Regulations, dated 12th December, 1905, made by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in pursuance of Section 79 of the Factory and Workshop Act 1901, for the processes of sorting, willeying, washing, combing, and carding wool, goats hair, and camel hair, and processes incidental thereto.
  II. Order made by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, dated 15th August, 1905, applying to certain classes of work the provisions of Sections 107, 108, and 110 of the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901.

  CRIMINAL LAW AND PROCEDURE (IRELAND) ACT, 1887.
  Proclamation, dated (6th February, 1906,revoking the several proclamations mentioned in the schedule thereto.
  PICKLE POINT PIER, COUNTY MAYO.
  Rules and Regulations.

  DISEASES OF ANIMALS ACTS, 1894 TO 1903.
  Order, dated 12th September, 1905, entitled the Hull (Channel Islands, Animals) Landing-place Revocation Order of 1905.
  Order, dated 11th October, 1905, entitled the Manchester (Old Trafford) Foreign Animals Wharf Order of 1905.
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  UNIVERSITIES OF OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE ACT, 1877.
  Statutes made by the Governing Body of Merton College, Oxford, on the 18th March, 1904, amending Statutes III. and IV. of the Statutes of the College. (No. 3.)
  Statute made by the Governing Body of Balliol College, Oxford, on the 23rd November, 1904, amending Statute IV. and Schedule B. of the Statutes of the College. (No. 4.)
  3. Statute made by the Governing Body of University College, Oxford, on the 11th March. 1905, to amend the Ordinance regulating the Radclifie Travelling Fellowships. (No. 5.)
  Statutes made by the Governing Body of New College, Oxford, on the 21st June, 1905, in lieu of Statutes IV. and XIV. of the Statutes of the College. (No. 6.)
  5. Statutes made by the Governing Body of Christ Church, Oxford, on the 29th June, 1905, altering Statutes XI., XVI., and XVIII. of the Statutes of the House. (No. 7.)
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and to be printed.

UNIVERSITIES (SCOTLAND) ACT, 1889.

  UNIVERSITY COURT ORDINANCES.
  No. XI (Edinburgh No. 4)—Institution of degrees in veterinary medicine and surgery, and relative regulations). (No. 8.)
  No. XII. (Edinburgh No. 5)—Inclusion of geography among the subjects qualifying for graduation in arts. (No. 9.)
  No. XIII. (General No. 1)—Ordinance of the University Courts of the Universities of St. Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh. (No. 10.)
  General No. 1. (Regulations for Degrees in Arts)—Supplementary to Ordinance No. 11. (No. 11.)
  General No. 6. Of the Universities Commissioners. (No. 12.)
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and to be printed.

  UNION OF BENEFICES (METROPOLIS) ACT, 1860.
  Scheme for effecting the union of two contiguous benefices situate within the Metropolis, and within the diocese of London, namely, the benefice (being a vicarage) of St. Mary Charterhouse and the benefice (being a vicarage) of St. Thomas Charterhouse, and for effecting certain other measures incidental to or arising out of such union. (No. 13.)
  Scheme for effecting the union of two contiguous benefices situate within the Metropolis and within the city and diocese of London, namely, the benefice
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  (being a rectory) of Saint Michael Corn-hill, and the benefice (being a rectory) of Saint Peter Le Poor, with the vicarage of Saint Benet Fink annexed, and for effecting certain other measures incidental to or arising out of such union. (No. 14.)
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and to be printed.

  MARGATE PIER AND HARBOUR COMPANY (1812).
  Report and statement of accounts for the year ended 5th April, 1905.

  MERSEY DOCKS AND HARBOUR BOARD.
  Accounts for the year ended 1st July, 1905.
  Delivered (according to Act), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  PRIVATE BILLS.
  Moved, That Standing Order No. 92 be considered in order to its being suspended, and that the time for depositing petitions praying to be heard against Private Bills which expires this day, be extended till To-morrow.—(The Chairman of Committees); agreed to; and ordered accordingly.
  House adjourned at twenty-five minutes past Seven o'clock, till To-morrow at a quartet past Four o'clock.