Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-01-31

! so remained until Feb. 81, 1874, wher
! Benjamin DisraeE, later on Lord Bea
consfield, became prime minister fol
the second and last time Nearly 81,
years passed before another change o.
ministry. and then, on April Is, 1880
Mr.. Gladstone formed his second ad
ministration On June "a, 1885, the
marquis of Salisbury became prime
| minister for the frs. time, and a little
more than a year later Mr.. Gladstone
ousted him and formed his third min
istry-Feb 8, 1886. Six months after
ward, on Aug. 2, 1886, the MARQUIS OF
Salisbury became the head of the min
| istry for the second time, and so re
manned for six years. On Aug. IS
1892, Mr.. Gladstone became prime
minister for the fourth and last time
retiring on March 5, 1894, and being
succeeded by the earl of Rosebery
whow was succeeded after a brief period
by the marquis of Salisbury, still pre
mier.
Progress in the Queens Reon.
In commerce. art and science great
strides were made in the Queen;
reign. All the great railroads of the
two islands were opened since 1897
The Great Westerns trip to New York
in 1888, inaugurated the ocean steam
ship traffic. which has now reached
such enormous proportions. The first
electric telegraph line was opened in
England the same year. The penny
post was established by Peel in 1912,
and remains to this day. Free trade
was begun in 1916, and all attempts
to carry the country back to protec-
ton have been feeble and unsuccess-
full. Free trade in ships came in 1S4e
by the repeal Of the old navigation
laws, of which our own present nayi-
cation laws are counterpart.
The era of great international eyhib;
lions was started by one held in Loa-
dons 1851, opened by Victoria in per-
son. All the remaining civil and re-
ligious disabilities were removed from
the Jews in 1860. The duty on paper
was removed in 1861, and the daily
penny press dates from that year
Household suffrage was enacted in
1867. The transportation of convicts
beyond the seas was abolished in Ire
land in 1871. Popular education was
made compulsory, and almost free IN
1873, when the first London school
board was organized under the new
education act, framed by the late Will
i'm E. Forster.
The abolition Of the purchase of
army commissions, the suppression of
logging except for a few heinous
crimes, the establishment of the ten
hour day in factories and mines. and
the state inspection of all such en-
Payments, the introduction of the Sc
cret ballot, the enactment of stringent
laws to prevent and punish bribery in
elections, the liberalizating of the land
and game laws, the acquisition OF all
telegraph lines by the government
and the establishment of government
control of the railroads are all includ-
ed in the restrOspect of progress un-
der Victoria.
Attempts at Assassination.
Queen Victoria bore a charmed life.
Twice during her childhood she es-
capped death almost as by miracle
nd no less than five ttempts were made
upon her life by assassins, none of
whom succeeded in inficting bodily
injury. The most serious of these at
tempts was that made by Robert Pate
Pate was an eX-officer of the* tenth
hussars and was residing as a man CT
leisure in London. when. for no reason
that could be assigned other than that
he was out if his mind, he stepped up
to her majesty's carriage as she was
leaving the duke of Cambridge's resi-
dence on May 81, 1850, aid struck her
a violent blow in the face with his
cane, which actually caused blood to
flow. He was crazy.
None of the other assailants of the
queens person ever succeeded in even
slightly wounding her, although three
of them fired ball cartridges at her at
short range, the last of these cases oc-
curing on March 2, 1882, when man
named Roderick Mclean fired at her
as she passed in her carriage from the
railway station at Windsor. Neither
in this nor in any previous instan &c
did the attack upon her majesty have
the slightest political motive or in
f1uence.