The Sun.
London, England, 1869-11-10 00:00:00

THE IRISH SEATS.

The arrival of the writs at Waterford and Tip-
perary have not yet introduced any party element
into the electoral contests at these two places. At
the first there are three Liberal candidates—Mr. B.
Osborne, Sir H. Barron, and Mr. G rubb. The rejected of
Nottingham, Mr. Osborne, is assisted in his canvass by
Mr. Blake, the late member, and as ho does not mind
going the " whole hog " of Irish demands, he is a
popular candidate. No Conservative has yet come
Corward. Mr. Heron, Q.C., may be opposed in Tip-
perary by Mr. Peter Gill, who represents the Fenian
interest, and has a large following of the
lower orders. But Mr. Heron is very advanced,
and with his fixity of tenure and sectarian education
doctrines. he seeni3 to satisfy the tenantry without
any special Fenian flavour.

CONSERVATISM IN TILL METROPOLIS,

The Cons •rvatives of London some time ar-o
founded an association for ti;L:r of their
,1,.. Ana their Cal ._(.3 nc,...-
cultivation, for London Toryism has grievously run
to seed of late. One seat was gained last
autumn, but all the rest, new and old,
were won by the Liberals, in most cases
ny thousands of votes. To counteract this
Anarchic tendency the association was formed, and it
has just held its second annual meeting. Mr.
Charley, M.P., presided. The objects of the
society, he explained, were to educate the people, to
get Liberals off the register, and get Conservatives
on. What could be more beautifully simple than
such a programme ? If the association can turn only
five thousand enemies off the register in most of the
London boroughs, and elevate only five thousand of
its friends, the work is done. Some may think
that the job, though simple, is of -slightly formidable
magnitude; but, then, lock at the magnitude
of the reward. Thorn has been—so says the
report of the Association—a complete break-down
of the Liberal policy. In foreign matters, commerce,
the colonies, and Ireland, the Gladstone Ministry
has comp'etely failed, and disgusted the country.
The reaction, the society thinks, is coming. Is not
this encouragement to attempt any. enterprise, even
the political conversion of the stiff-necked metro-
polis ?
EDUCATION.

We mentioned recently that the inhabitants of New-
castle were moving in the matter of education. We
have now to record a meeting of schoolmasters in the
Northern town. They agreed in favour of compul-
sory education and local rates, but did not discuss the
"religious difficulty." They first demanded a
Minister of Education. With regard to the manner
of compulsion, they would have that every child
should pass Standard VI. of the Revised Code before
being allowed to work. After being allowed to
labour, and until 18, everyone should be compelled
to attend. a night-school for technical education.
The latter provision is surely a harsh one, without
some condition of restricting the hours of labour
more severe.

THE GENERAL CONVENTION OF THE IRISH CHURCH.

The decision of the Irish Church Episcopacy to
form and vote as a separate order or House in the
new body is being very strongly criticised. Those
who favour a single house are now—arguments on
the merits of the question failing to convince—
beginning to denounce the proposed course as illegal.
The clause of the Act which gives right to call an
assembly, is as follows:
And nothing in any act, law, or custom shall prevent
the bishops, the clergy, and laity of the said Church-, by
such representatives, lay and clerical, and to be elected as
they, the said bishops, clergy, and laity shall appoint, from
meeting in General Synod or Convention," &c., &c.
Those of our readers who are lawyers will perhaps be
able to gather for themselves whether the terms of
the Act are such as to forbid any gathering except as
one house, acting and voting as one body.