Omaha daily bee., 1896-04-18
OTHER LANDS THAN ours,

The nationalist press Of Dublin commends
the new irish land bill, just introduced in
J Parliament by the chief secretary lor
! ireland, and expresses the view that, with
some amendment, 1t will be highly bene-
| fetal to ireland. Mr.. Gladstone's land
| legislation in 1881 created a divided owner
! ship. giving the tenant rights inconsisteht
with absolute ownership on the part OF tne
| landlord. This divided ownership WoIks
| badly, promoting discomfort ana schemes
| to deprive the landlord OF his remaining
| rights in the land The new bill looks-as
| two previous bills have done-to the ten
ants becoming the sole owner by buying
| the landlord out with money advanced Dy
the government at low rate OF interest.
| The tenant at present pays a certain rent
on his farm, but under the new bill he has
| the option of buying, after which he viii
| pay the government interest instead OF rent,
and the yearly interest payment viii
| be less than the present rent charge. Thus
a multitude of new proprietors Will he
created and conservatism in politics WILL 1t
| is hoped take the place OF the radical ideas
| formerly suggested by excessive rents.
| Home rule or nationalism, in this view,
was but form Of land-hunger anu will
disappear when the landlord has been
bought out. But the purchase of farms Is
| to be optional, and many tenants and some
| lar dlords will for some years yet prefer the
| old system of tenancy. with view to this
case the new bill provides for the regula-
tion of the relations of landlords and ten
ants in an equitable manner The tenant
| Is well taken cafe OF. 1t is in reference to
| this fact doubtless, that the Froeman's
| Journal Of Dublin says the bill "should not
be rejected" the Independent says ait is an
| advance upon any scheme yet proposed
| and the Express speaks of 1t as "a generous
and statesmanlike conception of the prob
| lem"
| 1t was to be expected that Osman Digua,
| one of the fiercest leaders of the dervlshes
and commander of part Of the forces of
| the Khalifa. would soon show his avtvity in
| the fight against the British advance in
Egypt There is no more inveterate foe of
the English among the Soudanese. He was
not originally a soldier Born at Rouen,
France, in 1880, his name originally was
I George Nisbet. With his parents he emi-
grated to Alexandria, Egypt, where his
mother, after her husbands death, married
a Turkish merchant named Osman, who
! had his sepson converted to Islamism
| and educated in a Mohammedan school
at Cairo. He carried on successful slave
| trade before the British cruisers ruined his
| profitable business and reduced him to pow
| erty. In 1888, Immediately after the de-
| struction of the army of Hicks Pasha, he
entered the service Of the mahdi and be-
came one of his most trusted commanders.
| Appointed emr of eastern Soudan, he at
| tackled Suakln and continued his assaults
personally led the attack upon Baher Pasha's
corps at El Teb, which ended in the lat
| ter's defeat. Afterward held in chuck by
General Graham, he did not cease to harass
! the surroundings of Suakin until in $780,
! he was driven from Tokar, where he had
| fortified his position. He w. subsequently
| relieved by the Khalifa, who sent him to
| Adaramah.
The new Italian premier, Rudini, seems
70 bnHya nln Of rkat to1,y dc
| to get on a firm financial basis, than any
| of the other men who help to rule, or mis-
! rule that country. Rudnl believes in the
reduction of the number of soldiers in the
| Italian army to merely nominal number,
relying on the triple alliance and the friend
| ship Of England to keep off any French or
| foreign aggression. 1t was the vain endeavor
| to carry out this idea which caused his de-
| feat when he was prime minister before
Both the king and Parliament were against
| him then, and probably will be now if he
| lies to enforce his views 1t has been the
! maintenance of an army sufficient to cope
with France all these years that has kept
Italy in almost bankrupt condition. With
cut this tremendous drain, which is generally
regarded by other countries as a useless
and unnecessary one, Italy would be able
to get along very comfortably in much the
same way as Belgium, Holland and Greece
do. The country does not possess the re-
sources necessary to maintain an army and
navy both on an equal footing with other
first class fighting nations and If Premier
Rudini can impress this fact upon his gov
ernment he will have done greater service
TO the welfare of his country than has been
accomplished by any man of his time.
The cessation of active hostilites between
the Abyssinians and the Italians on the Red
sea makes it probable that peace will ulti-
mately result without any more battles be-
ing fought To be sure, a desultory siege of
Kassala is still being kept up by the Arabs,
but as reinforcements are rapidly advanc-
ing, and as King Menelek himself has with
drawn back into his own province of Shoa,
in the southern part of Abyssnia no fear is
now felt for the safety of the Italian army. |
Public attention in consequence has been
drawn away from the Red sea and is now
concentrated upon the English expedition |
into the Soudan. England undertook this
expedition on account of the Italians, and
that she expects a return from them for her |
aid is more than Surmise. 1t Is stated as q |
reasonable possibility that Italy may see the
futility Of trying to keep place on the Red
sea and turn over Massowah and the neigh |
boring country to Great Britain. This would
well repay the latter country, which could
make advantageous use of this territory, and
would be a good thing for Italy, too,-did
she but know it.
The refusal of the Transvaal Volksraad
to sanction President Krugers proposed visit
to England shows that the now famous old
Boer does not monopollze the shrewdness in
his dominions. 1t would be highly injudcious
for the president to leave the Transyaal, and
still more so for him to go far from
home at this time, when affairs in South
Africa are in such a critical condition. Be-
sides, there is a diplomatic point of some
interest in connection with the proposition.
If Kruger should go to England in response
to Mr.. Chamberlains invitation, 1t would
be virtual acknowledgment Of his Inferior
ity to a subordinate official of the British
government, and, consequently, of his coun-
try's subserylency to Great Britain His
best course, therefore, is to remain at home
and let Mr.. Chamberlain come to him, and
that Is the conclusion that his hard-headed
legislature has come to-doubtless with his
entire approval, If not at his instigation.
Before the British occupation of Egypt in
creaslng deficits and increasing taxes were
the invariable rule Since the occupation
taxes have been steadily reduced. So has the
deficit down to 1889. Since the latter date
tho deficit has been transformed into sur