The Sun.
London, England, 1870-05-14 00:00:00

The State of -Westmeath.

It would appear that no actual agrarian grievance
led to the series of outrages which have been at-
tempted upon Mr. George J. Hornidge, the land
agent, who cannot leave his house of late without the
protection of constabulary. In 1863 a tenant on the
farm of Sir W. R. Leeson, informed Mr. Hornidge,
the agent for the property, that he was embarrassed,
and that he must surrender the lands. He did so,
and not only was forgiven his arrears, but
was also supplied with a little money to
enable him to emigrate. Scarcely had he
left Ireland, when the Ribbonmen, probably sus-
pecting unfair dealing, threatened to take Mr.
Hornidge's life, unless he let the lands to a man in
the parish. Tninking that as no one had
been aggrieved, the hostile feeling would
soon subside, Mr. Hornidge offered to let the ground
for grazing purposes, and his life and those of the
men who successively rented the farmlands were then
attempted. A set of determined outrages have ren-
dered it necessary that an armed body of constabulary
should be present near Mr. Hornidge's house,
and as he has not yet handed over the lands to
the " man in the parish," he considers
that his life may at any time be taken, while the
fields, formerly occupied by the emigrant, now remain
absolutely tenantless. This state of things in
Westmeath presents a problem, which it is hard to
solve. A gentleman is repeatedly attacked, and his
house assailed by a band of ruffians,. to whom or
to whose friends he has done no injustice, and
the magistracy are unable to apprehend a single one
of the Ribbonmen, or to sufficiently protect the land,
so as to enable any tenant who takes it to feel that
his happiness and his home are secure.
The Burial Laws.

The new Burial Bill contains many provisions
which it is hoped will have the effect of doing away
with the frequent heart-burnings occasioned by the
hitherto unsatisfactory state of the law. By the new
Act notice may be given to the incumbent of inten-
tion that burial shall take place in .a Church-
yard without the rites of the Established
Church, and either with or without any other
religious service. It gives no person the right
of burial when he had none previously, and the ac-

customed fees are to _be paid to the incumbent
Graveyards may be provided by private benefaction ;
the incumbent and vestry to have control in the
consecrated and unconsecrated parts. The Act does
not apply to Scotland or Ireland.
Trade Outrages in Manchester,

It is urged that the case of Mr.Johnston,the master
builder at Manchester, who has suffered so much
intimidation and violence at the hands of trades'
unionists, is entitled to -a commission of inquiry,
more especially as it is stated not to be an isolated
one. Mr. Johnston is a large builder in Manchester,
• and it is alleged that he is unable to sleep with safety
in his own house through the persistent threats of
. the Brickmakers' Union. Latterly his friends have
ceased to visit him, believing that their lives
would be imperilled if they did. When :the.
Manchester trades' unions were made the
subject of inquiry three years ago, the Brickmakers'
Association obtained notoriety on account of
the arbitrary and foolish character of its rules.
The master builders ever since have maintained their
determination to set the Union at defiance, and to
conduct their business without deference to its
restrictions. The hostility against Mr. Johnston
appears to have chiefly arisen in consequence of his
repudiation of those regulations of the society, which
order -firstly.- that stone from—Yorkshire -sh:alLcome
into. Manchester only partially prepared for use, and
secondly, that no machinery shall be employed in the
process of brick making,
;Medical Attendance at Cheap Rates.
A Medical Aid Society for the Metropolis has
been formed, the members of which, on the payment
of half a guinea yearly, will be provided
with surgical, medical, and pharmaceutical aid
for life, at the hands of a staff of emi-
nent professional men. The proposal for a
society of this kind was discussed some years ago in
Dublin, where doctors' fees are, as a rule, very high
and more determined than in English towns. The
scheme fell through, however, but • not alto-
gether, as several benefit societies, seeing
their way to an ultimate satisfactory result,
engaged medical men, to whom they agreed to
pay a fixed sum yearly for attendance upon the
members, who in turn were only asked to meet the
expense by slightly increased weekly fees. The
newly-formed Metropolitan Medical Aid Associa-
tion is heard of with regret by the Lancet, which
speaks of the scheme as one constituting the
first step towards reducing the whole profession to
the level of a trade.. That journal adds, " For years
past we have been struggling to separate the purely
professional practice from the sale of drugs ; and we
have here a retrograde scheme, not only to restore the
union, but to jumble up together advice, medicine,
and consultation in a common contract of a most
degrading and objectionable form. These contracts
will not be open to the profession generally. They
are to .be made for the special benefit of some
selected individuals, who are
.to be certified as com-
petent, and endowed with a sort of new diploma by
the eminent gentlemen who are to constitute the
Council of the . Society, and we presume, also, the
medical consultees."