The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-19 00:00:00

THE REVENUE OFFICERS BILL.

The division list on the second reading of the
Revenue Officers Bill shews that the minority con-
sisted of 33 Conservatives and 65 Liberals, whilst
the majority was mainly composed of the supporters
of the Government. Among the Conservatives who
voted against the second reading were Mr. Adderley,
Mr. Stephen Cave, Mr. Henley, Earl Percy, Mr.
Newdegate, Mr. ohnston (Belfast), and Colonel
Wilson-Patten. The chiefs of the Conservative
party were not present. The members for Hull,
Southampton, Devonport, Portsmouth, and Glou-
cester went with the minority. All the members of
the Government voted against the further progress
of the bill.

THE DEMONSTRATION ON GOOD FRIDAY.
The Reform League is defunct; but its works live
after it is dead. The last thing it was about to do
wr.s to hold a demonstration on Good Friday. Mr.
Ernest Jones was a reformer after the :Reform
League's own style, and his death was intended
to ha commemor.del by processions from
various parts of the metropolis, marching to
~Trafalgar-square, and there listening to .oratory
on the rights of man and political equality.
But those who live in and around Trafalgar-square
have a horror of an assembly of roughs, especially
on such a day as Good Friday. Colonel Henderson,
too, objects to the law being broken which declares
all political meetings held within a mile of Parlia-
ment House during sessions to be illegal. So it is said
that he will prohibit the meeting. The advisability
of any such political demonstrations has been
doubted ; but to meet for the purpose of blustering
under the name of doing honour to the dead
appears to us absurd, and to outrage the feelings of a
large proportion of the public by choosing such a
clay for parading the streets of London is most
reprehensible. The League, it is now stated, will go
to Hyde Park to hold their meeting. It is to be
hoped there will be no conflict with the authorities,

NEW LAW ON CLIC. C L RATES.
A. meeting of clergy and churchwardens of parishes
in t: lo archdeaconry of Worcester has lately been
held to discuss the' future course of action under the
Compulsory Church Rate Abolition Act. In most
urban parishes church rates have-been for some time
practically abolished, and the necessary expenses
have depended on voluntary contributions, not very
liberally given in some cases. In the rural parishes
little difficulty has been experienced in collecting the
church rate. It was finally recommended that
wherever rates had been levied under the old law,
they should be continued under the new, but that
when the voluntary principle bad been already
introduced, it should not be departed from for the
future.

THE RESERVE AND AUXILIARY FORCES.
"Hippophylax," writing to the Times, argues for
a reform of our military reserve. Of the auxiliary
forces, the Militia and the Volunteers, he apparently
takes little count. They are miserably deficient in
organisation, and their connection with the regular
army is merely nominal. But something might be
made out of the reserve force. Hitherto it has
proved a total failure. "And no wonder," says the
correspondent, " for, except under special cases, if
men are good men they will find the army too com-
fortable to leave it to enter a reserve, if they are
bad men they desert or enter the Reserve only with
the intention of doing so when called out to serve.
In continental States, where a conscription is in
force, men are glad to enter the Reserve, as the pay
and comforts of the regular service are very infe-
rior ; in this country, where enlistment is voluntary,
men who wish to make the army a profession, will, as
a rule, prefer to stick to it than to be sent into a
Reserve after a few years' service. In the opinion of
" Ilippophylax " if the Military Reseive Act were
really put properly into execution, if commanding
officers of Militia were allowed only .to have require-
ments of a certain strength, but to enlist as many
supernumeraries as they could as Militia Reserve
men, we might soon have a Reserve numerically suffi-
cient to fill up the battalions in England to a war
strength, though other measures must be taken to
preserve them at that strength even through one
campaign.

THE PERSONNEL OF PAILLIAMENT.
Mr. Robert flair, editor of "Debrett's House of
Commons," has given us some curious statistics of
the members of the new Parliament. "Of zraduates
there are 338 ; of these, -151 are alumni of Oxford,
122.0 f Cambridge, 1 of Durham, 10 of London, 22
of Dublin, and 26 of Scotland. The number edu-
cated at public schools is 287, of which Eton contri-
buted 131, Harrow 08, Rugby 29, Charterhouse 8,
Winchester 13, Westminster 20, St. Paul's and
Merchant Taylors' 1 each, King's College 7, and
ITniyersity College School 9. The legal profession
is represented by 120 gentlerdow, of whom 102 have
• been called to the English bar, the remaining 10
being attorneys. The army contiibUtes C 8 members,
and the-navy 13. Of bankers there are 15, and of
commercial men 130. There aro 6 medical prac-
titioners, a like number of civil engineevs, 3
university professors, and 1 dissentint, minister. The
nobility is represented by 3 Irish' peers, by 40
heirs apparent and 14 heirs presumptive to peer-
ages, and by 52 younger sons of peers. Of
Privy Councillors and baronets there are 52
each. Ninety members have served the office of
sheriff, and 3 that of Lord Mayor of London ;
10 aro lords-lieutenant of counties, 7 are
recorders, 9 have been in the diplomatic service,
and 129 have represented other constituencies
than those for which they now sit. Ten fathers are
each honoured by having a son in the House, and
there are no less than 24 pairs of brothers, exclusive
of three brothers of one family."