The age-herald., 1900-03-24
THIRD LECTURE OF
 EXTENSION COURSE Dr. Fellows Talked Interestingly
 of Modern England. 1T WAS A LITERARY TREAT Covered Period Since Reformation Bill of 1se7-work ofthe Great Com
 moner Gladstone-Royalty
 Only an Ornament.
IT WAS A LITERARY TREAT

George E. Fellows, Ph. D., of the Univer- sity of Chicago, delivered the third lecture of his history course in the University EX- tension series at Pollock-Stephens institute last night, his theme being Great Britain Since the Reform Bill of 1S67''
 As instructive as were pr. Fellows two preceding lectures-Germany and Italy this one on the British government was perhaps the most entertaining and instruc- tive yet delivered.
 The speaker, by way or 1ntroductioh' went back to the reform measure of lSS2 hut after a short preliminary sketch, and after the statement that the English gov ernment was a growth-an outgrowth of the customs of the people rather than government with tangible constitution he confined himself to a discussion of the great questions that had agitated Great Britain from '67 to the retirement rom public service of MT Gladstone.
 Without being an Anglomaniac, Dr. Eel lows revealed clearly his admiration for the English system and his appreciation of the fact that England has a more thor
  sponsive government than even the United States. Great Britain, he said, was styled a monarchy, but the power of the monarch was now so restricted that it amounted to nothing whatever The crown was an em- b1em of government, and that was all Royalty was ornamental and as an orna- ment it had its value from the traditional English point of view; but the queen was no more the government of Great Britain than the White House or the Capitol build ing at Washington was the government of the United States. The government of Great Britain. the speaker explained, was directed by the prime minister, who was but the leader of the political party in pow CT The real government was the house of commons.
 Intensely interesting was pr. Fellows comparison of Gladstone with D3sraeli. Ap- the latter, the speakers sympathies were strongly with the former. Disraeli was most brilliant in his foreign policy. His aim was 10 make the nation dominant He worked for the nation rather than the people. Gladstone, on the other hand, worked for the people first. The great commoner was reformer and the work he had done for civilization could not be over-esti timated. He was, in the speakers opiBion, by far the greatest English states man of the century. No Englishman dying had been so sincerely rourned
 One of the wisest and best measures that Gladstone succeeded in working out, ac- cording to Dr. Fellows, was the disestab- ni..1,, I,f-i church in Ireland. Nothing could have been more unwise or more unjust than to compel Irashmen--Irfsa Catholics-to sup port a church to which they did not be- long. The Catholic religion was as much a part of Ireland as 1t was a part of Italy, He pictured graphically the herosm Of the Irish standing by their religion in the face of persecution. The state church was poorly attended, while the Catholic ohapels were always crowded to overflo wing. 1t was Gladstone who righted the wrong. And in passing the speaker gave it as E1is opin- ion that the Church of England would some day be disestablished. The wrong of establishing the Anglican church in Ire- land was only a little worse than was the maintenance of the state church in Eng land today.
 Dr. Fellows sketched the Fenian move- ment and showed how the Fenian agitation had opened the eyes of the English nation and had caused Gladstone to move for the disestablishment of the Irish church.
 For a half hour after the lecture per- sons in the audience asked questions, and the discussion growing out of these ques- tions was much enjoyed. Some one asked about the cost of royalty. In replying, pr. Fellows said that while 1t was somewhat expensive, the people didn't seem to mind the cost. If the government did not spend the public money on royalty 1t would spend 1t, perhaps, in some other way; would spend it on something less desirable. There was a Slight agitation led by Sir Charles Dilke a few years ago in favor of abolishing the monarchy, but 1t was not seriously re- garded. No one thinks now of agitating against the system which seems to suit all classes of Great Britain so well.
 The lecture next week will take place on Saturday night. instead of Friday night.