Widnes Examiner. — 1891-01-24 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

TOUCH AND GO."  Mr..Setonfliarr. has,declared. himself in favour of an eight hours day for. miners. As the Tory member-for St.lielens,, he knows how the wind blows in, a, constituency- which includes a large number of miners..  Meantime • the &eta Railway servants are fighting still to secure a ton hours day and there are signs of. a stri ke,for. a like: object amongst the railway men of Wales.. pity. there cannot be a simultaneous-•strilie:on:exery line in the kingdom. It would settle the matter in a w3elr. ju stice would and would be done.  Mr..Seton-Karr. hasleazned nothing,on the Irish question.. He still repeats the parrot-cry that . there is no half way- house: between, Rome Rule and.total separation:. He should attend a Juvenile Mutual Improvement Society;. and he would then find, thatthe idea of separatiozi is laughed at— except amongst benighted.M.P3s,  The,attempt.tolide the fact that the Duke of Bedford committed suicide has. simply had the effect ofsdirecting,extraordinary attention to the matter: Such. a. tragic fate. was calculated to excitesympathy,. but the feeling now is one of disgpst with therelativeswho were party to circulating a. false report,. in, the- first instance, as to the•causeof death..  We suspect that we have previously seen something like the,-following whieh we take from the "Star," and; it is,,perhaps,, a case of history repeating itself ::---Scene : The steseroom at a Scotch railway station where blacklegs are at work. A larapman wandering round: and round in a lost sort of way. eremark:: " What are you looking for ?-" Blackleg :;"I 'am looking for the red oil to fill the danger signals."  Replying to a correspondent as to the probability of a general election. taking place shortly, Lord Sashayy says he has a° ground for believing that an eariy dissolution is probable. Precisely; a change has come o'er- the spirit of the dream; a series of Itartlepods,, at a General Election, would be a whirlpool for the Tory party.  Mr., Parnell still continues to condemn himself by railing at wha.t he calls "Mr. Uladstone's whittled down measure of Home Rule." If the ex-leader refers to the Bill of 1885,: the answer is that he voted for it; if to the measure considered at the Hawfirden interview, the answerin that case is that he afterwards again and again expressed his satisfaction with the results of that interview. Mr. Parnell is impaled on the horns of a dilemma, and his loud cries simply attract attention to a position which is as dishonourable as it is lamentable.  The Tories are quite angry now that they are beginning to realise that the fall of Mr. Parnell does not mean the fall of Home Rule. The "Morning Post" calls upon the Opposition to proclaim a policy, or admit that it has ceased to advocate Home Rule. If that very aristocratic organ were not as stupid as the party it represents, it would perceive that the advocacy of Home Rule is in itself the proclamation of a policy. But if the "Morning Post" wants to put " posers" let it ask Lord Salisbury when he means to carry out his policy, and redeem his pledges by granting local self-government to Ireland.  In the course of his speech at Cambridge, Lord Salisbury said :—" Even if Mr. Morley's anticipation of obtaining a majority at the next election should be justified, which does not look very likely at the present moment, then it would be an absurd examration to say that• Home Rule would than have been victorious. There is position after position to be carried long before they could reach auch an end as that." That is to say the house of Lords would throw out the Home Rule Bill; and . what could be better? It would give the people the opportunity of throwing out the House of Lords.  The " Times" is making a fuss over the alleged discovery of a lost work by Aristotle on the constitutional history of Athens. It relates to events some six hundred years before the birth of Christ, and is said to throw light on "the lamentable social and commercial condition of Attica." But what matters? We have been overdosed and surfeited with ancient Greece. The problem to-day is the lamentable social condition of England; light upon that is what is wanted. We cannot get excited about fresh details as to the condition of Attica 2,400 years ago. What's Attica to us or us to Attica, that we should weep for it? Besides, it may yet transpire that the find is a forgery.  Whilst special interest is being taken in the cure of consumption as the result of Dr. Koch's experiments, attention may usefully be directed to Mr. G. T. Congreve's treatment which has in many cases been very successful. His book on consumption and other chest diseases is well worth reading. It contains valuable instructions as to auxiliary treatment, with important chapters on diet, air, exercise, &c. It contains, too, an interesting record of a large number of selected eases. It may be had, post free, for one shilling, from the author, Coombe Lodge, Peckham, London, S.E.  A special census which has been made in the United States shows that Jewish population are not increasing in proportion to the rest of the community. The birth-rate is, in fact, ten per cent. lower than the average ; and it transpires that, contrary to the usual order of things, it is the poorer classes who have the fewest children. It is suggested that the falling off is to be accounted for by a low marriage rate, and increased ago of marriage. Voltaire once said of the sons of Abraham that they were noted for two things—getting money and children. It would appear that they are now losing one of their characteristics.  The Cheshire Standing Joint Committee were usefully occupied, on Saturday,in inquiring into the miscarriage of justice which has resulted through thee magistrates of Nantwich failing to defend their decision in the case of. a licensinm, appeal. It would seem that the Magistrates' Clerk was at fault iv neglecting to call the Bench together, and thus getting their instructions. The police were represented at the appeal, but they were helpless under the circumstances, and a -more humiliating spectacle it is hafdly possible to conceive—to say nothing of the needless expense.. The matter is being .pursued further, as it should be; the magistrates are to be asked for an explanation,- and there is talk of bringing the Clerk to book by a motion to reduce his salary.  The Watch Committee of Liverpool axe not to be turned aside in their crusade against immoral and disorderly houses. Dr. Cross appeared before the Committee oil Monday, and supported a petition which asked that the authorities should