The record-union., 1892-02-13
LONDON GOSSIP.
PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT OF
LITTLE MOMENT.
Politicians Anxiously Awaiting the In.
PRODUCTION of Balfour's Irish
Government Bill.
Special to the REcoRD-UN1oN.

special TO the RECORD-U MON.
LONDON, Feb. 12.-Until Balfour intro
duces the Irish local government bill on
Thursday next proceedings in Parlia-
ament will be mere party skirmishing,
though the Ministers decline to satisfy
| the politicians, who crave to know the
gist of the Irish proposal. The draft OF
| the bill, which is now in type, is known
to contain host of clauses rivaling in
complexity Balfours Land Act.
A high informant describes it as in sub
stance the application of the English
| County Council Act, without adhering
strictly to the existing county areas, with
a view to protect the minority, that is,
| the Conservative strength. In districts
! where the National vote is strong arbi-
trary electoral boundaries are created.
AS in England, three-fourths of the
| members OF each council will be elected
] by rate-payerS, portion of the rest by
! Councillors, and certain number by the
Irish Executive. The councils are to
have control of the local police, excepting
the appointment of Chief Constables,
control of licensing, administration of the
| poor law, asylums, industrial schools
and prisons, excepting stated Govern
ment prisons and roads and public
works. The imperial police will be main
| tained in lessened force.
A conference of Irish landlords re-
Gently sent Balfour, through the Duke of
! Abercorn, a demand that clergymen be
excluded from the County Board, the
aim being to deprive priests of influence.
Balfour declined to comply with the
wishes of the landlords.
The Irish leaders of both groups de-
| clare their readiness to adopt what they
can of Balfour's proposals, but concur
that the bill will be found in the main
impossible OF acceptance. The early re-
suit of a combined attack on this bill will
be the reunion of the Irish party.
There is something portentious in the
simultaneous assembling in the Levant
of fleets of the great Powers. Since it be-
came known that the French and Rus
sian squadrons i'll the Mediterranean are
going to Alexandria orders have been
sent to the Austrian Admiral, Roth
schild, now at Smyrna, to sail with his
five warships for Piraeus, where his
squadron will be Joined by two Italian
ironclads and division of the German
squadron. Within fortnight the united
squadronS of the driebund will be CO.
operating at a distance with the English
fleet at Alexandria. If Frances design
is to impress the Khedive by naval
demonstration, England and her allies
are ready to make more impressive
demonstration.
The real cause of the strike of the coal
porters is the fact that the mems leaders
learned that the employees were combin-
ing to oust union hands. Other unions
side with the coal porters. The strikers
and masters had meeting to-day, when
the men offered to resume work on con-
dition that all strikers be reinstated and
the non-union men be discharged. The
masters refused. On account of the dead
lock the small retailers raised the price
100 per cent. The strikers allow coal for
hospitals and charitable institutions to
leave the coal depot without interference.
In the Commons Lord George Hamil-
ton said the accident to the ironclad Vic
toria had been made the subject of an in
quiry, but refused to give the details. An
Associated Press reporter learned, how
ever, that the accident was entirely due
to carelessness. A boats crew was sent out
to mark with buoy shoal, the existence
of which was perfectly known to the Off
GERS. The shoal is very narrow, and ex-
tends from shore. The crew were in
structed to proceed along the shoaI from
shore until ten fathoms of water was
reached, and then mark the spot
with buoy. When within a
hundred yards of the end the boat
got off the shoal, and as the next sound
ing showed over ten fathoms of wafer
the crew supposed it all right and placed
the buoy there. The Victoria then came
along at good speed at right angles to
the shoal to take position for torpedo
practice, and passing well outside the
buoy, suddenly struck the shoaI Hon.
Maurice Bourke, who was with the navi-
eating officer, and held responsible for
the accident is great chum of the Duke
of Edinburgh. having served with him
in Malta
The King and Queen of Italy have
abandoned the idea of visiting England
on account of the death of the Duke of
Clarence.
The Prince of Naples will soon start on
a tour of Australia. He will be accom-
panied by an official charged to report on
Australia as a field for Italian immigra-
ton, the United States having come into
disfavor and the Argentine Republic
complaining that Italian immigration has
been overdone there.