Omaha daily bee., 1889-04-13
OTHER LANDS THAN OURS.

OTHER LANDS THAN OURS.
The proposal of local government bill for
| Scotland by the Salisbury ministry, upon
| lines more advanced than had hitherto been
suggested by tory officer Of the crown, was
| a surprise TO parliament. The bill introduced
| creates county councils elected by household
. suffrage, having functions similar to the
councils recently established in England.
| But the measure goes farther and surren-
| ders to these councils the right to legislate
| On private bills. This branch of legislation
| has always been exercised by parliament
| alone. No one supposed that the local gov
| ernment for England would be the end of
| the movement Scotland and Wales were
| promised the like in due time. The dram
| attic turn in the course of the Parnell COM
mission aud the hostile veriicts of
| the electors . in the by-elect ions
combine to quicken Saisbury's legis
lative pace. The Introduction of the bill for
Scotland comes in time to affect the Birming-
ham election, and i; may have u tendency to
| steady the waveriag columns of the union.
lists. 1t is matter of wonder as to how far
| Lord Salisbury is capable of carrying his
| concessions. He has rallied at household
| suffrage. land appropriation local autonomy,
| and so on.-and yet, when he gets to the
| jumping-off place, he surrenders his princ-
| pies and takes the leap. minister who can
| denounce forced land sales under theory of
| dual ownership as brigandage, and then pre-
| sert bills perpetuating that theory upon the
| statute books,-a minister who can deliber-
| ately confound the sentiment for local auton-
omy with socialism, and then turn about and
| give England county government and
| Scotland even a broader system of self-gov-
ernment, needs but another twist of the
| screws to embrace homo rule itself. 1t has
| been the opinion of many of the liberal lead
| ers that tory government is destined to
| give Ireland Dublin parliament. Capturing
| an enemy's supply train is w.r,-and Lord
| Salisbury, since he came into power. has
made pretty free with MIR. Gladstone's bag
gage.
| The election for the seat left vacant by the
death of John Bright will take place Mon
| day, and the result will be regarded with
| great interest not alone in England, but else
| where. The conservatives and unionists
| have united in the great orators eldest son,
| and the Gladstonians have an able candidate
! to oppose him. The Mr.. Bright who is run
| ming, rather against his will, resembles his
father III appearance and habits but cannot
| make an average speech, or conduct the
| simplest kind of an argument His younger
| brother, vigorous home ruler by the way,
| is. on the contrary, an able debater, and has
| made quite a reputation in parliament. A
! similar condition of things exists in the
| Gladstone family. The ex-premier's eldest
| son is a very quiet man, not troubled with
| even the average degree of intelligence. His
| young brother, Henry, Is, on the other hand,
a capital speaker, an able fnancer, and is
admitted on all hands, to be u coming man.
W.
The friends of Boulanger are making a
| great deal of noise but every day their idol
| loses in the respect OF the world, If not in
| that of sensible Frenchmen. All reasonable
men see that Boulanger at the helm of
| France would probably enter upon period
of storm, the END of which could not be fore
told. Boulanger is man of intense amD
tions, and experience shows him to be with
out scruple. He denies that he is working
for dictatorship, but that is of course. We
doubt if France would tolerate the proDos-
tion at this time. The history Of France is
too recent for tolerance of that. Yet, Gam
BETA was dictator in all but the name, and
he was tolerated. and even more. He was
| worshiped. A man of affairs in large
sense, he was wise enough to conceal the
sword in the scabbard. Boulanger lacks
that in which Gambetta excelled. He is es-
sentially military man, with the instincts
OF military character. But he is a states
man of the Brummagem type. He may be
called a Napoleon without brains That be
would endanSer the peace of Europe If at
the head of the state nobody doubts With
such man it would be the army against the
people, and that would mean war.
qs.*
The most serious danger, perhaps, that at
present menaces thspeace of Europe Is the
illness of the kingllof Holland. William Is
now seventy-four years old, and has long
been in feeble health. The heir to the throne
is nine-year-old girl, during whose minority
Queen Emma, her mother, will doubtless be
regent. The danger lies in the fact that Bis
marck has undoubtedly long looked upon
Holland with longing eyes and the oppor-
tunty which will be offered by the weakness
of a regency is one that he is hardly likely
to let go unless compelled to do
SO by the united opposition Of the other
| great powers. Holland has just what Ger
many most needs to increase her greatness.
Besides her excellent sea ports and great
| commercial advantages, Hollands colonies
are large ana prosperous, and Bismarck is
particularly intent upon securing colonies. 1t
is not likely that the sturdy Dutch will look
upon any such plan with favor. Their pres
ent condition is too prosperous TO make them
Il 1nat - tnlt ant