The Cairo bulletin., 1912-07-15
Fear Trouble Will Break Out Anew
Unless Government Makes
Concessions
NEW VOTING SYSTEM OPPOSED
Flemish are on the Clerical Side
and Walloons on the
Anti-Clefical

election rioting throughout Belgium
which stopped just short of an open
revolution. has fixed the minds u
the leading men of the country upon
the Itobems involved in the dispute
and the likelihood for the future oil
Belgium. The general belief Is that
trouble will break oHt anew unless
the government makes some cences-
sion to the opposition on the two
great questions which are the bass
of the differences, namely, the sur
rage and the schools
The industrial masses, especially
those in the Walloon provinces, seem
be convinced that their rights arr
'estricted in political sense
through the existence of the plural
iystenl of voting. They declare thai
the time has gone IL the world. es-
pecially in a modern and civilized
ountry like Belgium, when an in
liyiduai can have more than one
'ote To them tie idea that a man
nay have two mad three votes be-
ause. he owns property or because
he has superior education is an Of
sensive attack against the rights OF
man.
Everybody in Belgium is careful
Q point out that the school question
'houfd not be misrepresented by in
my way assuming that it is a re-
igious question. Practically the en-
ire population of Belgium is Cath
1lic, and no question of religion, as
such, has been or is involved in the
Belgian physical and polemical war
are The school question liz mixed
Up with the language question.
which in turn is d result OF the oil
ime differences between the Flem-
sh or Dutch people in the northwest
md the Walloon or French-speakiu5
population in the south and SOUTH,
asst. The Flemish recently succeed
I'd in their fight TO obtain an OBJ
igatory teaching of Flemish as wall
IS French in the public schools Of
Belgium. This has been accepted By
he Walloon provinces, but the latter
lain that the Flemish have gone
700 far in this respect and are REALLY
Wasting much valuable time of tie
Inhabitants az Belgium in the teach
ng of language which is more Or
ess of dead tongue,
The clerical question may be said
have the Flemish on the clerical
side and the Walloons on the anti
lerical. 1t is in the Flemish depart
nents that the influence of the
'lural vote is mostly felt, and which,
wen under the present system of pro.
1ortional representation in the cleo
ion of deputies, gave to the clerical
)arty an important victory at the
asst elections The clerical or church
chools have increased considerably
recent years in the following man
Ter. Every commune in Belgium
las the right to a public school, but
very commune Is not rich enough
o supptft such an institution. II
large number of cases, when this
condition existed, the church stepped
and offered to found a church
school. and to pay a. of the expenses
herein incurred The liberals AMI
SOCIALISTS contend that this initiative
II the church has sometimes even
prevented the establishment of a
public school, as tile communes, at
racted by the idea of having a good
school which would cost them moth.
ing, have accepted the church schools
when otherwise they might have
rounded the public or neutral schoo!
Suggestions by the present, as we'll
as the preceding government, to re-
lmburse the clericaY schools in some
form of subsidy, was what immedl-
ately aroused the agitation upon the
general School question.
The racial differences between the
Flemish and the Walloons, which
nave long been on the point of an
outburst, FASTENED the recent clash.
Although 1t is not expected that the
Walloon provinces will do anything
as yet toward approaching France,
It would not surprise many people If
they insisted at least upon an adj
ministrative separation and some
kind of autonomy.
The danger of the present situa-
ZION lies in the convictions of the
liberals and socialists that without
the universal single suffrage there
Is no chance for them to get into
power. They realize that the single
vote cannot be obtained without
revision of the constitution and for
this two-thirds majority is needed
in both houses of parliament. Only
a slackening of the clericals from
their position, it is believed. will
avoid renewed clashes.
Another great problem which is
today > agitating Belgium is that OF
national defense in case of Euro
pean conflict. The Walloon people
are quick to say that, in case Of a !