Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1907-03-07
THISTLE AND
 ROSE UNITED For Two Centuries - To day Marks An Extraordi- nary Landmark In Scot lands History.
BOOTH ANNIVERSARY.
History of the Union and Trade Re- trictions-Englishmc Jealous of Their Scottish Riyals-GOOd Queen Ann Responsible for Agreement.

London, March 7.-While Ireland is Straining every nerve to bring about a repeal of the legislation uniting her to Great Britain ill 1900, Scotland is not far behind time. Today marks an extraordinary landmark in Scot bands history as it celebrates the 20Oth anniversary of the union be- tween England and Scotland.
 Both kingdoms regard the event as cause for national rejoicing and are emphatic in their belief that the union contracted just two centuries ago has contributed not only to the grandeur of the British empire as whole, but also to the prosperity of the two parties to the agreement. For, if Glasgow is today second only in Great Britain to London in point of population, wealth and commercial importance, superior in those respects even to Liverpool and to Manchester, it is owing to the removal of those re- SlIlCllOIlS Ol lIdut W HlCll CAlSlCu pllol to the union, and which would be the inevitable consequence of any repeal of the union now existing between Great Britain and Ireland. Indeed, at the present moment, when Hungary following the example of Ireland, is clamoring for independence and for separation from Austria as indispen- sable to her economic and political development, and when Norway has just succeeded in cutting herself adrift from Sweden, when secession, in fact is in the air, it is well worth while to briefly review the lessons taught by the two hundred years of union between England and Scotland.
 Of course, the first step toward the Rose was when James VI of Scotland succeeded to the crown of England as James 1 a succession brought about by the sagacity and prescience of Henry VII, who, when nearly one hundred years previously he gave his daughter, Margaret to James " in marriage foresaw the eventual union of the crowns, and predicted that it would prove an acquisition of strength to England For the next one hun dred years after the accession 2f James I to the throne of England, Scotland retained her own parliament, and, though owning allegiance to the same king. was deprived of the priv ilege of commercial equality, being treated by England in all matters re- lating to trade and industry as a for eign country, the attempt of the king to govern Scotland from London through Scottish parliament natuf- ally furnishing abundant opportuni- ties of unfair interference on the part of officious English ministers in Scot tish affairs Finally the situation be- came so intolerable that the two king doms were rapidly drifting back to the bitter emnity which had prevailed prior to the union of the crowns, and at the beginning of the eighteenth cen tury we find English merchant ships being seized in the Forth by the Scot tish government in retaliation for the seizure of Scottish shipping in the Thames.
 Shrewd and patriotic statesmen on both sides of the Tweed became alive to the danger and convinced of the necessity of a closer union between the two kingdoms: and King William in particular devoted all the closing years of his life to accomplishing this end, opposed in the matter at every step by France, which knew by hel experience of the past that with Scot land as an enemy threatening tht northern frontier of England much O the latters importance as foe would vanish Nor did France constitute th' only obstacle of the union. Englisl manufacturers and merchants were i'll tensely jealous of their Scottish riv als and bitterly opposed the remova of the restrictions placed upon them The idea of granting their Scotcl competitors the same advantage which they themselves enjoyed wa abhorrent to them, and all their in fuence was employed to prevent any thing of the kind taking place. Tn Scotch, on the other hand did nc relish the idea of the loss of thei national individuality by mergin their history in that of England. The felt that it would involve the. increas of taxation and share in the respons