gave a first reading (June 7) to the Government Bill for settling the Scottish ecclesiastical dispute. In introducing it the Lord Advocate (Mr. Scott Dickson, Bridgeton, Glasgow) recapitulated briefly the circumstances which had rendered legislation necessary (see ANNUAL REGISTER for 1904, pp. 235-7), and explained that the measure was based on the recommendations of the Royal Commission appointed to consider the points in issue between the Free Church and the United Free Church (see the Scottish chapter of the present volume). It was proposed to set up an executive commission of five members, not yet selected, which would have power to deal with all the property of the United Free Church at the date of the union in 1900, and it was to be allocated between the two Churches in a proportion which seemed to be fair and equitable. Congregational property was to be allotted to the Free Church or its congregation in all cases where the members of the congregation were in number equivalent to one-third of what it would have amounted to if the union had not taken place. The commissioners' decisions were not to be interfered with by courts of law, and litigation as to property between the Churches was to cease. The Lord Advocate also explained that the Bill would embrace in regard to the Church of Scotland a proposal to empower it to substitute for the existing formularies of subscription by ministers and presbyteries such formularies as might be prescribed by the Act of the General Assembly, with the consent of the majority of the presbyteries, subject to the provisions of the Barrier Act.

With the exception of the provision last mentioned, to the introduction of which in this manner he took serious exception, Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman expressed entire approval of the general scheme of the Bill.

On the same evening, in a very small House, the representatives of the shipping interest succeeded in carrying by 66 votes to 62, against the opposition of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, a motion declaring that the lighting of our coasts was a national duty, for the efficient performance of which the State should assume full responsibility, at charges to be provided by Parliament and not by dues on merchant shipping.

Also before the Whitsuntide adjournment the House received the resignation of Mr. Speaker Gully, which was tendered on the ground that his health would not longer sustain the exacting duties of his great position; thanked him for his distinguished services in the Chair during more than ten years; and elected his successor. On the occasion (June 7) on which the resolution of thanks was moved and carried the House, which a few days previously, as has been seen, had exhibited itself in a lamentable light, appeared at its best. Amid loud cheers the Prime Minister laid stress on the growing burden of responsibility thrown on the Chair, and referred to the fact that the rules and procedure which were adequate in easier times had been found inadequate in recent years. There was a time when the dangers to the

House came from without; now they came from within. It was upon the occupant of the Chair that the heavy burden of dealing with difficulties as they arose chiefly fell, and the House desired to express its gratitude to the retiring Speaker for the way in which he had borne that burden. Mr. Balfour then spoke of the Speaker's love for the House of which he was the head, of his profound knowledge of its rules and history, of the qualities which had enabled him to deal with unexpected situations and of his great courtesy and kindness; and, in conclusion, assured him that he would carry away with him not merely the memory of great functions worthily discharged, but also the personal devotion of every one of those over whom he had presided so long and so admirably.

The tribute thus paid was supported in language of dignity and obviously genuine feeling not only by Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman but by Mr. J. Redmond, on behalf of the Nationalists (as" a permanent minority "); Mr. Chamberlain ; Sir A. Thomas (Glamorgan, E.), on behalf of the Welsh party; Colonel Saunderson (Armagh, N.), on behalf of the Ulster Unionists; and Mr. Bell (Derby), as representing the Labour Members. The resolution. of thanks, having been carried nem. con. amid loud cheers, was suitably acknowledged by the Speaker, after which there was also carried nem. con. a resolution praying the King to bestow some "signal mark of favour" upon him, and assuring His Majesty that the House would make good any expense incurred in that connection.

On the following day the Right Honourable J. W. Lowther (Penrith, Cumberland), the Deputy-Speaker and Chairman of Committees, in which capacity he had rendered excellent service for many years, was elected Speaker, on the motion of Sir M. Hicks-Beach (Bristol, W.), the "Father" of the House, seconded by Sir W. Hart-Dyke (Dartford, Kent). No other candidate was proposed, and Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman echoed Mr. Balfour's congratulations to the Speaker-elect and assured him of the confidence and support of the Opposition.

The House then adjourned for the Whitsuntide recess.

CHAPTER IV.

Lord Roberts's Appeal for Rifle Shooting as a National Pursuit-The Co-operative Congress Mr. Haldane at Tranent-Foreign Affairs: the Morocco Question -Report of Sir W. Butler's Committee on Disposal of War Stores in South Africa; A Statutory Royal Commission on the Subject Promised; Vote of Censure Debated and Defeated by Full Majority-The Sinking of the St. Kilda-Unemployed Workmen Bill Read a Second Time-Grant to the ExSpeaker-Indian Budget Debate; Questions of Indian Military Administration Dividing Lords Curzon and Kitchener; Decision of Home Government; Rumours of Viceroy's Resignation Denied-Motor-Car Question-Aliens Bill in Committee; Closure by Compartments; Bill read a Third Time-Sir W. White on the Navy Estimates; Naval Discussions in the Commons-Ministerial Defeat in East Finsbury-Lord Roberts in the Upper House on Our Military Unpreparedness; Volunteer Debate in Commons; the War Secretary's Reply to Lord Roberts-The Crimes Act in Galway-Churches (Scotland) Bill Read a Second Time, and Carried through Remaining Stages in the Commons-Debate on Post Office Employés' Salaries-The Question of Electrical Power for London-Ministerial Redistribution Resolutions Produced; Their Reception; the Speaker's Ruling; Resolutions Withdrawn -Unionist Party Meeting-Government Defeat on the Irish Land Commission Vote; Their Decision to Ignore It-Episcopal and Labour Appeals on Behalf of the Unemployed Bill; Its Passage on a Reduced Scale-London County Council Tramways Bill Thrown Out by the Lords-Lord Lansdowne on Macedonia-Lords' Debates on Physical Deterioration Report and Shortage of Army Officers-Lord Roberts and the London Chamber of Commerce-Fiscal Motion by the Duke of Devonshire in the Lords, Met by the Previous Question; Speech by Lord Minto-Government Bills Dealt with by the Lords; Other Bills Lost; Failure of the Parliamentary Machine-Supposed Settlement of the Curzon -Kitchener Question; Debate in the LordsAlleged Delays of the Judicial Committee-Commons' Debates on South Africa, Education, Telephone Agreement, Foreign Affairs-End of Session -Decline in Prime Minister's Position-King's Speech.

THE most interesting feature of the first days of the Whitsuntide recess was the publication (June 12) of an impressive appeal from Lord Roberts to his countrymen at large to make rifle shooting "a national pursuit, and skill with the rifle a national accomplishment, in the same manner that archery and skill with the long-bow were so considered in the olden days in England." He expressed the conviction that "had our men been trained to shoot better most of the unfortunate incidents " of the recent South African War and of that of 1880-81 "would never have occurred." Failing conscription, the security of the State in the last resort depended not only on the willingness, which might be assumed, but on the ability of the nation to take up arms in self-defence. In the United States and in several of our Colonies steps were already being taken to secure a general ability to shoot with a rifle; but not as yet in England. The chief obstacles in the way of the popularisation of rifle shooting -the difficulty of providing safe ranges in a thickly populated country, and the expense of service rifles and ammunition-had been overcome by the introduction of miniature ammunition, fired at short ranges, either from miniature rifles or from any kind of rifle properly adapted for the purpose. Under the auspices of an association amalgamating the National Rifle

Association and the Society of Miniature Rifle Clubs, and under the patronage and supervision of leading local personages, it was hoped that rifle clubs would be established so universally that every man would have within his reach the means of practising rifle shooting after his day's work was over and so qualifying himself to take up arms for his country should the need arise. At the same time Lord Roberts avowed his own opinion that conscription, in some form, could not be permanently avoided "unless some system of obligatory physical training and instruction in rifle shooting be enforced in all schools and colleges, and amongst the youth of the country generally up to the age of eighteen years. That, however, was a matter for legislation. No law was needed for the encouragement of rifle shooting as a national pursuit. For that purpose only practical encouragement was required, and Lord Roberts appealed for a sum of at least 100,000l. to put the scheme he had advocated for the promotion of rifle clubs in every part of the United Kingdom on a satisfactory footing.

Lord Roberts's appeal was received with a large amount of sympathy in the Press, but the sum, modest enough for the furtherance of such great national ends, for which he asked, was very slow in coming in.

At the Co-operative Congress, which as usual held its meetings at Whitsuntide, a resolution was passed (June 14) in favour of some action whereby the strength of the co-operative movement, which, it was said, numbered over 2,200,000 members, having a loan and share capital of 36,500,000l., and an annual trade of nearly 92,000,000l., should exercise direct influence on the legislation and administration of the country. But on a further resolution being moved to the effect that this object could best be attained by a junction of the co-operative forces with those of the Labour Representation Committee, the most vigorous opposition was developed; and, after a long and at times heated discussion, an amendment hostile to any such alliance, which was denounced by one of the speakers as involving the "handing over of the co-operative movement, bag and baggage, to a body financed by trade unions and controlled by Socialists," was carried by 801 votes to 135.

There was very little political speaking during the recess. Mr. Haldane at Tranent, East Lothian (June 13), said that while the Government had done a great deal of mischief by their failure to take a clear line on the fiscal question, they had on the other hand "supplied the Liberal party, which had been divided and shattered, with a policy which had unified it "that of insisting that before the people of this country were committed to a departure from the Free Trade policy under which they had lived and flourished they must be sure of the ground on which they were invited to tread. With regard to the Japanese alliance, Mr. Haldane observed that the Liberal party might be counted on as surely as the Conservative party to main

tain the alliance with Japan, and to take advantage of the new situation which had arisen in the Far East for the opening up of trade in those regions. It was, therefore, he contended, irrational to say that the Government ought to cling to office in the interests of a sound national policy in the Far East.

The question of the renewal and possible extension of the scope of the alliance with Japan was, however, by no means the only foreign problem of importance which was engaging the attention of the Government in the early summer. There can

be little doubt that the disinclination of the Prime Minister and his colleagues to go to the country at that period was, whether rightly or wrongly, strengthened by the feeling that a dissolution of Parliament and the attendant uncertainty as to the subsequent direction of British policy would be particularly unfortunate in connection with the situation created by the pressure at that time being exercised on France by Germany in connection with the question of Morocco. The retirement of the French Foreign Minister, M. Delcassé, already referred to (p. 165), was generally believed to have been due, directly or indirectly, to German hostility to that statesman; and the proposal put forward shortly afterwards on behalf of the Sultan of Morocco in favour of an International Conference on the affairs of his country, instead of accepting the French project of reforms, was on all hands regarded as the result of German influence at Fez. In these circumstances the obligation incumbent on this country, in accordance with the letter and spirit of the Anglo- French Agreement of April, 1904, to give her diplomatic support to France towards the prosecution of the measures the latter Power might think necessary for the prevention of disorder and the spread of civilisation in the State bordering her Algerian dominions, appeared to have plainly come into operation. It was obviously with that view that, as became known on June 15, the reply of the British Government to the Sultan's invitation to a conference had been a distinct refusal. But they also made it known that this reply was not to be regarded as final. So that in case the French Government were to consider it desirable to accept the conference, subject to any previous understanding with Germany as to the scope of its deliberations, they would not be in any way embarrassed by the British attitude, but would be assured of our support in the conference if it were arranged. The loyalty and tact exhibited by the British Government at this difficult period were cordially acknowledged in the Press of Paris, where, after possibly a little hesitation, it became generally recognised that attempts which had been made across the Rhine to persuade France that England wished to bring her into collision with Germany, were absolutely without foundation in fact.

A very painful impression was produced by the publication (June 15) of the Report of the Committee appointed by the War Secretary (see p. 90) to consider the question of sales and refunds