The Warwickshire Herald. — 1886-05-06 (Birmingham, West Midlands, England)

THE BARRACK. OF PROSPEROUS.  with all its throatened terrors of blockade. would, in eomequence of France's and Russia's attitude of refusal, burst like a merry soap-bubble into a thousand atoms. One began to expect the worst of Russia, which evidently wished to keep the Eastern question slowly glowing. Then at last the Greek boy, who had sneaked pouting into a corner, turns round, and with a pretty bow he commends himself to the goodwill of the grand ladies and gentlemen assembled. The Greek Premier has thus, not without some dexterity, wound himself out of the danecrous labyrinth he hail got into, and ventured on the golden bridge of retreat which France had built for him. In the Pincus the ships already lay which were to deliver the ultimatum, and, in case of a negative answer from Greece, to take the European envoys on board. The fate of Greece was swaying on a knife-point. Further defiance could only make her position more complicated, Then, at last, Delyannis resolvtil to grasp the rope which the provident Freyeinet had thrown him. He did, indeed, bow before the threats of Europe, but, as a gorx I parliamentary tactician, he took care to make it appear as it he were but yielding to t he advice of the friendly France. On the 23rd ult. the French Government called up,ni Greece, in friendly but very urgent words, to anticipate an official expression of the  League and Captain Moonlight. On the other hand, he has - lately operated on several Leaguers. conduct which would seem to place him outside Mr. Parnell's cognisance. Perhaps Archbishop Croke could throw some light on this puzzling matter. His effusive praises of the " Manchester Martyrs," and his amusingly eootassertion that they are now recognised as having been wrongfully condemned and executed, prove hint possessed of a fine, if somewhat perverted, critical taste in lawlessness. The question we have raised is of some importance, because if Captain Moonlight has no connection with the National League, it might be as well to ascertain whether the Home Rule scheme satisfies his patriotic aspirations, before carrying it any farther. There were two Kings iu Brentford. and possibly there may be two Kings in Ireland.  THR accountants acting unthq• the sliding-scale agreement between the Durham colliery proprietors and employees at the collieries have certified that the net average selling price of coal for the three months ending, with March last. ascortained in the manner prescribed by the agreement, was 4s. 5.49 I. per ton ; and they state thin the prevailing rate o: wages will be therefore reilue I byl ter cent.. calculated upon the standard wages of November. 1879.  TRADE prospects for the present are far from being encouraging. And the worst of it is, our statesmen and legislators seem to ignore the fact. They act and speak as if it were nothing to them whether or not the hundreds of thousands of work. people now out of employment in Great Britain died or lived. All that seems to concern them is the retention of a scat in the Commons House at Westminster. It is time they were rudely shaken out of this selfish idea. Reliable estimates represent that at the present moment there are 800,000 ablebodied men and women in the United Kingdom out of employment. This is simply dreadful. It means (estimating each household to number four) that over three millions of our fellow-creatures are existing, no one knows how. We say existing, because it is next to impossible for an Englishman to imagine that thousands of his fellow-countrymen and women, living under his eyes, are dying of exposure, deprivation, and starvation. But such is the fact.  THE prospects of missiorary work in the interior of Africa are not so encouraging just now as could be wished. The murder of an Anglican bishop in Uganda has been followed by a decree of the King of Moil expelling the Roman Catholic missionaries from his country. Home Rule in the matter of religion is apparently the policy of African sovereigns at present.  MR. BARTLEY made out, the other night, a ease for refi,rm in the mode of assessing and collecting income-tax, which the Chancellor of the Exchequer altogether failed to answer. It is certainly not right that a philanthropic institution, like the National Penny Bank, should in some ten years pay £2,000 in income-tax, though it has not yet even paid its way. There is no doubt, too, that the remuneration of collectors by poundage on the gross receipts does lead in many cases to serious overcharge upon individuals, who, as Mr. Bartley says, very seldom obtain redress upon appeal.