The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-22
SYSTEM
 IS BEING ATTACKED Is Called the Worst Electoral System In Europe AUTOS ARE TO BE TAXED Will Be Assessed in Austria Accord ing to Their Horse-Power Under
 New Law Introduced By
 Government.
AUTOS ARE TO BE TAXED
BY MALCOLM CLARKE.

The worst elecloral SYsleul III EuiOpe- the Prussian system-is being fiercely at tackled by the social democrats of Prus- sia. who are holding mass meetings all over the country with the object of ex- posing it's defects and injustice, and of agitating for it's reform.
 Instituted in 1S49, this system which has been denounced by Bismarck as the most miserable of all electoral systems,
 has the effect of practically disfranchis- ing the laboring class and absolutely bars labor representatives from the lower house of the Reichstag
 The voting power of the workers is neutraized by the three class voting system, under which voters are classified according to the taxes they pay. But as each class has the same voting power the third class voters-the laboring class are always outvoted by the combined first and second classes, including the wealthy citizens, although classes one and two may represent only 10 per cent of the Noters, and class three S5 per cent.
 This was the relative position of the three classes at the last election, when the socialists. with 122,000 votes out of 179,000, were unable to get one seat for Berlin.
  system is what the socialists are trying to get abolished. While their following among the workers Is increasing daily their political power is nullified by the antiquated polling system, which the ar istocratc party has no wish to have all tered.
 New sensational details have come to light showing the connection between the German socialists and the Russian ter rorists, and 1t becomes more and more evident that the chief organ of our so- cialists. Vorwaerts, knew all about the enormous quantity of arms and explo- sives found at the house of the former socialist Alderman Emil Kerber, who was the leading spirit in a plot to flood Rus sia with counterfeit paper money.
 The bookkeeper of the Vorwaerts, Herr Guensel ordered the paper for the coun- terfeit bills in the name of Bulgarian, Andrejeff This "Andrejeff" now proves to be identical with the notorious mem Der of the second Russian Douma, Alex insky, who has kept the Russian secret police very busy and who repeatedly es- capped capture by "the skin of his teeth"
 Alexinsky was one of the members of the Russian socialist-labor party who were banished from Russia, but in spite of this he managed to remain In St. Pe- tersburg for many months under the very noses of the Czars secret service agents
 He was a delegate to the congress of Russian socialists at London, and fs now supposed to be in hiding in this city with Guensel who is also a fugitive from jus tfse.
 The police here claim that the Vor- waerts knows the hiding place of the two men, and the suspension of the paper would surprise nobody.
 .t1 x.,t1f AA fax zd according to their horsepower under a new law introduced by the government This law, elaborately worked out estab- lished sliding scale under which the owner of six horsepower runabout must pay $l7.50 a year; for 70 horse power touring car the tax will be $l75 and for 200 horsepower racer 1t will be $45O
 Tourists bringing their own autos into Austria will have to pay at the same rate, but in proportion to the length of their stay.
 Doctors will pay half rates, and for motor omnibuses only quarter rates will be demanded. For motor bicycles the tax will be only g.
 Brides may be bought by weight at Kolked in Hungary, where the local mayor, cattle dealer, has decided that a man should pay for his new wife at the rate of so much pound.
 The local custom Is that bridegroom should and must pay to the brides par ents a certain sum for the privilege of marrying their daughter. Jan Koetvoes was engaged in a dispute with his fan cee's parents as to the amount he should pay them, and so the mayor was called in to arbitrate.
 Being an expert in cattle, but not in women, he considered that the value of the girl should be estimated by weight, and thought that GO cents pound would be a fair price. After the girls weight had been ascertained-it was S6 pounds -Koctvoes handed over $51.60 and was soon married.
 Germans are very much concerned over the fact that Teutonic hens are inferior to those of Russia and France. The com consequence Is that numbers of eggs have to be imported from the two neighbors.
 A competition Is now taking place which will last several months, and the object of which is to put stop to this state of things. It is sought by persistent but by gentle treatment of the backward German hens to induce them to lay 200 eggs a year, as it is considered they ought to do. At present, however, they only lay about 15O to 160 per year. M'CONNELL'S XMAS EVE
 BALL, TUESDAY, DEC. 24.
 Xmas matinee dance Wed