The San Francisco call., 1898-08-21

about the Irish National Foresters which smacks of Irish nationalism.
 No Nationalist demonstration ever takes place of which a considerable contingent of that body does not form conspicuous element, and in Dublin they have been largely Parnellite. This week was the first occasion for four teen years in which they assembled in annual general meeting in the Irish capital, and the fact that, whereas in 1884. when the last convention as- sembled in Dublin they were allowed to meet and break up without, so to say, any official public recognition, this time they had the Lord Mayor presid- ing over their opening meeting, and the Council Chamber in the Citv Hall was placed at their disposal for the transaction of their business. The gen. eral secretary of the society is MT. Joseph Hutchinson, who is member of the Dublin Corporation, and his GUS tomary review of the past was a pleas ant tale of progress. A few of the figures he gave will suffice to show the general nature of his statement. In 1884. when the last convention was held in Dublin, the members numbered 3563. and the accumulated funds were only &2400. Now, according to MT. Hutchin- son, the members number 21, ,054 and the accumulated funds amount to &34. .454. The total number of benefit members is 19.436, and the total amount paid in benefits during the year was upward of 917,000. This is not a bad record. especially when it is remembered that the Irish National Foresters are only one out of several similar societies in Ireland which are all thriving.
 The local government bill has at last virtually become law The House of Lords made in 1t only two changes of any importance. One was the estab- lishment of double member constituent cies for the rural district councils, which will have to do with the admin istration of poor law relief and the sanitary laws: the other was the in- clusion of Galway City among the county boroughs. The former change was avowedly proposed in the interest of the disestablished minority, but what good 1t will do the landlords it has puzzled a good many persons to discover. Among those who are per plexed on the point is the veteran tenn perance reformer, Sir Wilfrid Lawson, M. F.. who is given to the writing of poetical squibs while he is sitting in his place in the House of Commons, and who perpetrated the following quatrain as he listened to the Irish landlord representatives pleading for the opportunity being given to the Irish councillors instead of one for the new rural boards:
 I m in a most terrible state of alarm
 And scarcely know what I'm do
 One popular member will do me much harm;
 The best plan Is to let me have two!
 Opinion in the Irish ranks was di- vided as to whether the change made by the House of Lords was desirable, but the Government used their major ity to carry 1t, and so there are to be double membered constituencies for the rural councils and single membered for the county councils which will repre- sent both rural and urban districts in all more important matters. The pro- posal as to Galway met with a differ ent fate. It was opposed by the Gov ernment, and the Speaker ruled 1t to be a breach of the privileges of the House of Commons, inasmuch as it raised a money question, which that tion, has the exclusive right ito raise in the first instance. The result was that it was rejected. The practical result to Galway is that, though 1t does not lose pecuniarily, it does lose in position and prestige. It ceases to be a city, to have a separate assize and separate Sheriff, and becomes for county pur- poses a part of the county of Galway. It is pity that this should be the fate of a town which two hundred years ago was a great emporium of com merce. having by the way an extensive and intimate connection with Spain. But the real truth is that, despite the and unquestionabIe ad- of its typographical position It ought to be the chief port for Ameri- ca on this side of the Anlantic-it Is wo- fully declining. Let me hope. as a man, that 1t has a better fu- ture in store.
 An election has taken place in Eng land this week which has had consid- erable interest for Ireland and espe- cially for Irish Nationalists. The home rule member for the English borough of Grimsby, George Doughty, suddenly thought 1t well a few weeks ago to re-