New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-02-16
METROPOLITAN LONDON.
THE MOVEMENT OF THE vEsTRIES FOR
MUNICIPAL INCORPORATION-Ih
COUNTY COUNCIL ELECTION.
London. February ..


the public or his own party has begun to take
an active interest. When Mr. Chamber'aih'
zeal on behalf OF an imperial zonvereih
alarmed the mercantile classes. well as the
Golden club the Duke Of Devonshire was
brought forward to explain away what had
been said and 10 convince the country that MS
colleague had been taken too seriously. y"
similar spirit the Duke has been employed "s
master Of ceremonies in moderating the ardor
and dampening the zeal of Delegation Oh
vestry statesmen, who had volunteered io'
active service In Lord Salisbury's campa'sh
against the unincatlon Of London In MS coi''
measured, Unconditional way he has demonstrate
ed that ambitious Bundle does not understand
what he Is talking about and hardly knows
what It il that he really wants. My hooie
friend has lifted up the curtain for moment
said the Prime Minister. The metaphor was
faulty The Duke Of Devonshlre had turned
on the hose and sent the parochial statesmen
home wet and bedraggled
Lord Salisbury. it is true. protested that he
had nothing to change in his Albert Hall speech
which expressed his views very clearly; but he
disclaimed responsibility for the CLOSES and
interpretations which had been put upon 1t by
some Of his critics II seems 10 be Lord Sails
burv's fate 10 be misunderstood, although he Is
a master Of plain-spoken. vigorous and luminous
English He never has anything TO retract or
modify but he is constantly employed IN ex-
nlaining away what he has once said and sun
persists in reafirming with qualifications which
are fatal 10 It's original significance. There was
the famous Hastings speech. In which Free
Trade was described beautiful theory. but
as a poor business policy. since It involved the
surrender of the home market without ade-
duate safeguards and compensations. LORD
Salisbury has never recanted; but he has re-
peatedly put fresh gloss upon IT and inter
preted It in n way In the Albert Hall
speech he sounded a warning from the failure
Of tho reforn.ers in the New-YOrk election. ana
declared war upon the London County Council
as an overworked municipal parliament. which
could not govern the metropolis cheaply and
wisely He now reiterates that he has MOTH
ing to take back but that he had no thought
OF abolishing the County Council. and that his
critics have not understood his previous speech.
Between the Duke Of Devonsfi"e and Lord
Salisbury the representatives Of twenty-five
vestries. which aspire TO the dignity Of city
councils with Lord Mayors of their own, ha0
a chilly and uncomfortable hour in the Foreign
Office They had read the Albert Hall chal-
lenge. In which the members Of the County
Council were charged with becoming profes-
elonal politicians. with wasting time in the
discussion Of abstract questions, and with neg
lect,np nrosaic and simple matters affecting the
welfare Of five millions Of oeople. They mad
welcomed his suggestion that smaller municipal
councils elected in narrower areas were alone
competent to govern London They had raj
lied in force TO assure the Prime Minister OF
their willingness to sacrifice their modesty for
the public good and to be known as Mayors
and members OF incorporated municipal coun-
ra1.fft long FOL he
sudden frost Of the Duke OF Devonshre's com
nonsense and the murky haze OF Lord Sails
bury's "reminiscences OF what he had meant TO
saw although he had been understood in an
opposite sense The dazed and perplexed Bum
bles retired I'm n state Of mental detection, with
the humiliatinC consciousness Of having mis-
taken the cackle Of their burgh for the muir
,nur OF a town" and Of having been caught in
the act Of revising the solar system or recon
structing the Milky Way.
DIFFICULTIES APPEAR IN THE WA
Il had been easy for Lord Salisbury in the
presence Of the Primrose League to sheer at
rooealomania as passion for big things
s,mplv because they are big, and 10 con-
tend that local government would have been
q more efficient machine II legislators had been
content 70 look upon London not as one great
municipality, but as an aggregate OF munic-
inalities But when II was seriously proposed
TO divide London into twenty or more cities.
with separate charters Of incorporation and
definite areas OF administration, the difficulties
appeared almost insuperable. The Duke OF
Deyonshire. appalled, by the complex problem
of a readiustment of powers and functions be-
tween the central and minor authorities and
the creation of dozen or more coordinate
Birminshams in the metropolitan district,
GALL
remain IN existence; and Lord Salisbury was
equally explicit in affirming the necessity for a
central legislative body although he did not
consider it expedient that It should suffer from
an excessive accumulation Of duties and priv
uoees. Whatever may be the London govern
mont policy to be embodied In the bill to
be laid before Parliament. It will not involve
tho obrogation Of the County Council
Indeed when the speeches OF the Prime Min
istor and Of the Duke OF Devonshire COM
nared with the authorized programme Of the
Progressive party. there are fewer lines Of
divergence than would he looked for by OBJ
servers Of the canvass now in progress through
ont the metropolis for the election Of a new
County Council The Progressves since the
massage Of Mr.. Ritche's act. I'm ISIS. have
aimed 10 effect In the first instance complete
municipal unity Of the metropolis by the ANAL
gamatlon Of the old city with the county OF
London and then to create a coordinate sys-
TEN of sub-municipal administration. Their
series of sub-municipalities does not differ ma
terially In number or area from the series of
municipalities which the Moderates now ad-
vocating and as each was 10 have local area
and elective Board Of its own the machinery
would be essentially the same Each party pro-
noses To relieve the central body by transfer
ring important powers to the sub-muncipal or
municipal councils The County Council re-
mains at the centre In either system.
In the municipal canvass, however. the two
parties seem TO be far apart the poles.
The Noderates are denounced from Progressive
ulatforms as the rcactionary enemies OF Lon
don who are endeavoring TO wreck the County
Council and 10 distribute It's powers among
twenty municipalities. The Progressivcs in
thcir turn are cOndemncd as SOcialists who