3d. a day and his rice and curry, and he tent, and declare that the moneys voted was housed and fed and clothed under by the Imperial Parliament for the conconditions that no English-speaking man would tolerate for a single moment. The hon. Member for Cardiff put this on his election placards, and spread it all over the town: "He was in favour, if elected, of British boilers being made by British hands, and should be stoked in British ships by British sailors." veyance of mails should not be used, as they were used, as subsidies to buttress up companies which employed foreign, cheap, low, and sweated labour to an extent which they would not do if they had not the advantages of these Imperial subsidies. Take one example. The P. and O. employed the largest proporThe Orient By countenancing steamship companies that employed Lascars and coolies as he had described, the Government were putting a premium on the sweating of English labour, and practically, though perhaps Where was the hon. Member for Cardiff tionate number of coolies. that night? Let him stand up in his Company had been practically unable to place and support him, not for the ex- compete with the P. and O., because clusion of Lascars and coolies, but for they felt morally bound to give employthe enforcement of the fair-wages Reso- ment to British sailors and others who lution. He certainly thought the friends paid the rates from which the subsidy of the English soldier, and above all of they received was drawn. The P. and the English sailor, ought to stand up for O. had no such scruple of conscience, them that night. The complaint was with the result that men were attracted that the English sailor was leaving the from work in India, which they could Mercantile Marine, and that every step do better than stoking and sailoring, should be taken to secure him employ- and were put on board these vessels, ment after he had been driven out by in many cases inefficient sailors. the Lascar, the coolie, the Japanese, and the Chinaman. He thought those Gentlemen would be of more assistance if they were to remove the causes that drove the English sailor away from his ship and to keep him at his work under unintentionally, driving a large number conditions that would insure him some- of English sailors from their legitimate thing like decent treatment. The Post sphere of employment. This had been Office was the greatest sinner in this re- the effect of the system adopted by the spect. It gave its contracts to the very P. and O. Company, and he hoped the lines of steamers that employed the right hon. Gentleman would represent largest proportion of Lascars and coolies, to the Postmaster General the necessity against whom it was impossible for the of communicating with the manager of ordinary member of the Mercantile that Company on the matter, and of Marine to compete. So far as soldiers' telling him that Lascars should not be clothing was concerned, the Government penalised because they could live on 3d. had practically said that it should be a day and their rice and curry, and that made under decent conditions in the Englishmen should not be thrown out of Government Clothing Factories at Pim- employment because they could not exist lico and elsewhere. That did more to on the same conditions. ["Hear, kill sweating in the East End of London | hear!"] He thought the subsidies than anything else. The result was that the widows and children of men who had been killed in the Army were now getting employment under better conditions, and if the Army could do this, he said the Post Office could also follow that example, even if it were to a limited exMr. John Burns. were quite large enough for English sailors to be employed; if not, they might be increased. He would point out to hon. Members opposite who had preached the parable of British labour in the last election, that here was an opportunity for them to put their sentiments And it being Midnight, the Chairman left the Chair to make his Report to the House. Resolutions to be reported To-morrow; Committee also report Progress; to sit again To-morrow. MILITARY MANOEUVRES BILL. Committee deferred till Monday next. into practice. PUBLIC HEALTH BILL. Second Reading deferred till To GOVERNMENT (DETERMINATION OF DIFFERENCES) BILL. Second Reading deferred till morrow. To PUBLIC OFFICES (SITE) BILL. Second Reading deferred till Monday next. BOYNE NAVIGATION TRANSFER BILL. *MR. HANBURY moved the Second Reading of this Bill. DR. TANNER objected, under the Rules, to the Bill being taken after mid *MR. HENNIKER HEATON said, there could be no question that the point raised by the hon. Member for Battersea was a very important one, and he should like to know what answer had been given by the Postmaster General to the representations from night. Australia that contracts should not be given to the P. and O., or any other company which employed Lascars and coolies to the exclusion of British sailors. He also desired to make a protest against the large sums granted in relation to the packet services, amounting to £435,000 being charged to the DR. TANNER was surprised the Post Office-up to 1868 the sums were right hon. Gentleman objected to the charged to the Admiralty. Neither in objection from the Opposition side of Germany or in America were such the House, in view of the opposition subsidies charged to the Post Office De- raised to the Bill by Members on the partment. Government side. *MR. HANBURY said he would have to withdraw the Bill if there was any It was a Bill further opposition to it. intended for the benefit of a portion of Ireland; and he would not feel justified, if there was any further opposition from Irish Members, in going on with it. MR. T. M. HEALY asked whether it | PUBLIC BUILDINGS (LONDON) (No. 2) was not the fact that the money supposed to be taken under the Bill had already been spent, that the Treasury were in a hobble, and could not drop the Bill? BILL. BILL. Second Reading deferred till To morrow. *MR. HANBURY said the Treasury METROPOLITAN SEWERS AND DRAINS were in no hobble. He understood that the late Government spent a certain amount of money without authority [a laugh], but the moment he entered office he refused to allow any more money to be spent until this Bill had received the sanction of the House. [Cheers.] MR. T. M. HEALY: How much was spent without authority by the late Government? *MR. HANBURY: About £1,200. MR. T. M. HEALY: Then you will have to get a Bill for it. Second Reading deferred till Thursday, 23rd April. FISHERIES ACTS (NORFOLK AND EDINBURGH GENERAL REGISTER Second Reading deferred till To morrow. BALLOT ACT (1872) AMENDMENT BILL. Second Reading deferred till Wednesday, 22nd April. CONCILIATION (TRADE DISPUTES) Second Reading deferred till Monday next. MILITARY LANDS ACT (1892) Second Reading deferred till To morrow, TELEGRAPHS (ADVANCES). BOROUGH FUNDS ACT (1872) Bill to amend The Borough Funds Act (1872), ordered to be brought in by Sir Albert Rollit, Sir John Leng, Mr. Bingham, and Mr. Whiteley; presented and read 1°; to be read 2o on Monday next, and to be printed.-[Bill 174.] LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT (1894) Bill to amend the Local Government Committee thereupon deferred till Sir Albert Rollit, Mr. Spicer and Mr. Monday next. WAYS AND MEANS. Committee deferred till To-morrow. Wingfield-Digby; presented and read 1o; to be read 2o upon Monday next, and to be printed. [Bill 175.] Adjourned at Ten minutes after HOUSE OF COMMONS. Friday, 10th April 1896. GRIFFIN'S DIVORCE BILL [H.L.] Ordered, that Standing Order 204 be suspended, and that the Bill be now read a second time.-(Dr. Farquharson.) Bill read 2o, and committed. QUESTIONS. TRUCK BILL. *SIR CHARLES DILKE (Gloucester, Forest of Dean): I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he hopes to be in a position to introduce the Truck Bill dealing with Fines and Deductions from Wages. EVENING CONTINUATION SCHOOL Mr. J. PARKER SMITH (Lanark, Partick): I beg to ask the Lord Advocate, whether he is aware that strong representations have been made by the Glasgow and Govan School Boards against the provision in the Scotch Evening Continuation School Code, by which no grant under Section 10 (b) is to be made in respect of a pupil studying less than two subjects: Whether the Committee of the Privy Council will be prepared to modify this provision, especially in regard to advanced subjects and in respect of full-grown pupils; and, whether, in view of the pressure caused by the adjournment of the House, he can make any arrangements by which further time can be given for consideration of the Question. aware *THE LORD ADVOCATE (Sir CHARLES PEARSON, Edinburgh and St. Andrew's Universities): I am that representations have been made with regard to the provision in the Evening Continuation Code referred to, but although not prepared to say that there are not sound educational reasons for the provision, the Department will give THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR time for further consideration of the THE HOME DEPARTMENT (Sir matter by submitting to Parliament a MATTHEW WHITE RIDLEY, Lancashire, Minute modifying the Code in the Blackpool): Either one day next week desired direction, which will extend the or quite early in the following week; opportunity for discussion, should the and on Monday I shall lay on the table hon. Member desire to take advantage the memorandum, asked for by the hon. of it. Member for Haddingtonshire, explaining the state of the law with regard to the truck question. RICHMOND PARK. Mr. PARKER SMITH: It would, perhaps, be for the convenience of the House, if I were to withdraw the Motion which I have put down for to-night. Mr. T. SKEWES-COX (Surrey, GRAND JURIES (IRELAND). Kingston): I beg to ask the First Com- MR. PATRICK O'BRIEN (Kilmissioner of Works, whether he is now kenny): I beg to ask the Chief Secretary in a position to give the public the to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, whefacility of entering and leaving Rich- ther Irish grand juries are legally bound mond Park by the gate at the end of to advertise for tenders for the various Chisholm Road. contracts for the departments of the *THE FIRST COMMISSIONER OF public service which they control, and WORKS (Mr. AKERS-DOUGLAS, Kent, which are paid for out of the public St. Augustine's): I am of opinion that funds; whether he is aware that the this would be a great public convenience; grand jury of the county of Kilkenny and, after consulting the Ranger, I have recently gave a printing contract for a given instructions that a suitable gate term of seven years without having shall be placed there, to be opened for public use in the daytime, as soon as possible. VOL. XXXIX. [FOURTH SERIES.] invited tenders by advertisement in the local press, and at a cost of several hundred pounds to the rates more than the 2 H work would be done for if left open to competition; and, whether he proposes to take any and what action in the matter? THE CHIEF SECRETARY FOR IRELAND (Mr. GERALD BALFOUR), asked that the Question should be postponed until Monday next. THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES (Mr. J. CHAMBERLAIN, Birmingham, W.): The proclamations relating to the townships of Nondweni and Eshave do, as stated by the hon. Member, exclude those who are not of European birth or descent from purchasing or holding land, but the purchase of land by British Indians at Melmoth in 1889 does not appear to have been reported to the Colonial Office. I have *MR. M. M. BHOWNAGGREE (Beth- been informed that a petition on the nal Green, N.E.): I beg to ask the Secre- subject from the Indian community of tary of State for the Colonies, whether Natal, dated March 11th, is on its way, his attention has been drawn to a proclama- and I propose to give the subject my tion published at page 215 of the Natal careful attention when the petition Government Gazette of the 25th February arrives. ZULULAND. last, in which, under the heading "Rules and Regulations for the disposal of Erven," or sites, "in the Township of DECLARATION). whether he will cause inquiries to be made into the large amount of dissatisfaction caused to friendly societies owing to the necessity of this declaration; and, whether, in view of this resolution, the Government, in the Bill which they propose to introduce in order to consolidate the Friendly Societies Acts, will abolish such declaration? Nondweni, Zululand," at Clauses 4, 13, FRIENDLY SOCIETIES (COMPULSORY 18, 20, and throughout the proclamation, words are used which will effectually MR. W. J. GALLOWAY (Manchester, preclude all the British Indian subjects S.W.): I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of of Her Majesty from acquiring or occupy the Exchequer, whether he is aware that ing land within that township for pur- a resolution was unanimously passed at poses of business or residence, while the recent conference of friendly societies enabling others, who are not subjects of held in London on Thursday, 26th Her Majesty but because they are "per- March, urging upon the Government the sons of European birth or descent," to do abolition of the compulsory declaration so; whether similar prohibitory provi- now necessary before a Magistrate or sions have been in force with regard to Commissioner of Oaths when rules of another township called Eshave, since such societies have to be amended; 1891; whether he is aware that only two years before that time, in 1889, British Indian subjects were allowed to purchase land in the township of Melmoth to the value of nearly £2,000; and, if so, whether any cause has been shown for now precluding them from the exercise of a similar right in reference to the townships of Eshave and Nondweni; and, whether, as such prohibition is an interference with the right of British subjects to acquire property in any part of Her Majesty's dominions, based merely on the question of colour, thereby constituting a direct violation of the gracious assurance given by Her Majesty to the people of India in 1858, he will take immediate steps to arrest legislation of this description by the Governments of Natal and other parts of Her Majesty's dominions in Africa, and order the elimination of all such regulations with regard to the townships of Eshave and Nondweni as preclude British Indian subjects from CHEQUER: I have already stated why acquiring property therein ? I do not think it possible to do so. Mr. Patrick O'Brien. THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER (Sir MICHAEL HICKS BEACH, Bristol, W.): I have not seen the resolution referred to, nor has it been communicated to the Registrar of Friendly Societies. If it is sent to me, I will, of course, consider it. But, as at present advised, I am not prepared, as I told the hon. Member on the 24th March, to abolish the declaration. MR. GALLOWAY: If the resolution is forwarded to him, will the right hon. Gentleman favourably consider the first part of the resolution? THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EX |