Omaha daily bee., 1909-09-25

gained, the people OF ireland are progress
ing toward the goal Of ownership Of the
land they till. The Birrell bill passed by
the House OF Commons this week is the
most radical measure hat has been before
Parliament dealing with evil for centuries.
When the bill was introduced last spring
Chief Secretary Birrell announced that the
government proposed to deal with the
question so as\to settle It for all time.
Many landlords ~antagonized the present
law by refusing to sell at any price, 9TH
ers demanded exorbitant terms. To dispose
Of these Instructions the government asked
the right to compel landlords to sell to
tenants on terms fixed by a land commits
sion. subject to an appeal to a higher
board. This right of eminent domain"
as It is known in the United States, is
embodied in the bill Just passed, and is
likely to be the first provision which the
House of Lords will attack. The bill pro-
vides for a large extension of the nations
credit for land purchase, nearly a billion
dollars, the purchasers recouping the gov
eminent in a stipulated number Of annua
payments. The land commission is given
Jurisdiction over thr~ee-fourths Of the island
and is also empowered to determine the
selling value Of land when owner and ten
ant disagree. The remainder Of the island,
embracing the five counties Of C~onnaught,
is under control of the congested district
board, which has power TO condemn land
for sale to tenants on demand. Even should
the lords reject the compulsory sale pro-
vision the measure win materially advance
ownership by those who cultivate the soil,
inasmuch as It provides the means OF
financing the purchase OF estates from
landlords anxious to sell.
zee
Two Britons whose opinions are worth
while attempt to explain the unrest In
India. and reach the conclusion by differ
ent routes, that unrest exists which re-
preston cannot stamp out, In the current
Century Magazine Sydney Brooks gives "a
the primary cause Of the discomfort the
educational policy Of the government, sup
plemented by railroad developments and
similar public improvements. Educating
the natives in British ideals Of liberty, In
cIlcating the principles of self-government,
and 1.-THE intellectual irrigation OF the ma
tive press are, in his opinion, the springs
of unrest which should be put down to
the credit side Of the British account
Kier Hardie, M. P, admits British re-
sponsibility, but does not consider the
asset one to boast Of. The noted labor
leader Travelled through India Tor two
months this year, mixed with the people,
heard their grievances, saw their condi-
ton, and published his impressions in a
London labor paper. He tells Of the APP
palling ravages Of famine, past and pres
ent, with which the world is familiar, the
prevalence Of abject poverty on all sides,
and yet, despite the deplorable condition
of the people, a burden of taxation is i'm
posed upon them, and collected regardless
Of consequences. Eighty per cent of the
revenues are collected from the land, and
from 90 to rs per cent of the produce raised
to ward off starvation Is swallowed up in
taxes. I'm England" writes Mr.. Hardie,
"a 8 per cent tax on Incomes leads TO
heavy and continuous grumbling, and yet
the 5 per cent is assessed, not on the total
produce of the land, but on profits. What
then must be the condition of a country
in which the tax is not 5 per cent of the
profits, but rs per cent on the harvest
reaped2 At no period Of midas history"
the writer is persuaded, has there ever
been such a soaking drain upon it's people
as now" Heavy charges on capital in
vested in. the country are drawn off to
England in addition to civil and military
pensions, while the exquisite native hand
industries are languishing under the com
petition of machine made English goods.
The city of Ulm, in Germany, is dealing
with the problem of homes for wageearners
in a way that attracts the attention Of
social students in other countries. The
city bought suburban land and built small
houses, each with a little garden. These
we're sold on reasonable terms. After
twenty years Of this experiment, many of
the working people own their homes. The
death rate is noticably lower than In other
cities of Germany, while mortality among
babies has fallen very low. Many other
public Improvements have, of course, con-
tributed to this general wellbsing. The
city neglects no matter touching the good
Of the citizens. This naturally involved
great public expenditures, and yet Ulm's
taXrate is lower than any other city in
Wurtemburg. There is in Ulm, therefore,
not the slightest murmur when further
measures are taken TO acquire more mu-
nicipaIly owned land and to increase build
ing by the city, nor is the enterprise as
sailed as an extension of government func-
lions into private affairs.
sRR
- hN" law VI ldllOlldilly Ahdl VII lillSi
est other nations has been proclaimed in
China. Hereafter any foreigner who has
lived in China ten years or more, and is
over 20 years Of age, of good moral stand
ing. may be allowed to assume Chinese ma
tionallty. Unless one has lived In China
twenty years or more he Will not be al
lowed to serve in the grand council, i'm
perial household department or as a mill
tary official in any position above the
fourth grade, neither can he become a
member OF Parliament nor OF the provis-
ional council. Abandonment Of Chinese ma
t~ionslity is restricted to persons without
official position, who have not failed to
pay taxes, but the consent Of the local
board must be obtained. When a Chinese
woman marries a foreigner she assumes his
nationality, and when a foreign woman
marrles a chinese she will become Chinese.
In either assuming or abandoning nation
ality, the wife and children will follow the
husbands nationality.
zee
Tip g~rafters have received a stunning
blow In the citadel OF their graft that
will carry a thrill Of Joy to travellers the
world over, A mo tip" hotel has been
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