TH TABLET.

A W e e k ly N ew sp a p er a n d R ev iew .

DOM VOBIS GRATULAMUR, ANIMOS ETIAM AODIMUS DT IN INCCEPTIS VESTRIS CONSTANTER MANEATIS.

From the B r i e f o j H is Holiness P iu s IX . to T h e T a b l e t , June 4, 1870.

V o l , 9 1. N o . 3009. L ondon, Ja n u a r y 8, 1898.

P r ic e sd ., b y P o s t s ^ d .

[ R e g i s t e r e d a t t h e G e n e r a l P o s t O f f i c e a s a N e w s p a p e r .

C h ro n ic le o f t h e W e e k ! P a g e

The Engineering Dispute—The Sinews of War— Appalling Accident in Canada— Death of Sir H. Havelock-Allen— The New Gospel in Germany— Pleasant for TithePayers— The Far Eastern Question : Attitude o f the British Government — The Cession of Kiao-Chau — Presidential E lection in the Transvaal — Should Musicians be Examined ?— The Future of Crete— The Story of the Electric Cable — Railway Accident at Dunbar— A Deep Sea Cable to the Cape and Australia — The Chinese Loan . . . . 37 L e a d e r s :

The Pope on State and Church in Ita ly . . . . . . . . 41

CONTENTS

L e a d e r s (Continued) :

A Word to “ The Methodist

Page

Times ” . . . . . • ..42 The Evacuation of the Reforma­

tion ......................... _ -- 42 The Attitudes of Catholics on

Pentateuchal Criticism . . . . 44 Cardinal Vaughan on the Present

Intellectual Needs of Catholic Women in England . . . . 47 N o t e s — •• 5° C o r r e s p o n d e n c e :

Rome (From Our Own Corre­

spondent) . . . . — — S3 News from Ireland — — 55 News from France . . . . . . 57 L e t t e r s t o t h e E d it o r :

Father Wyndham and “ The

Freemason ” ......................... 58 “ A New Prayer Book” . . . . 59

L e t t e r s t o t h e E d it o r (Con­

tinued : “ The Month” and Father Taun­

Page ton . . . . ......................... 59 “ Roman Catholic " . . . . 59 A Correction _ ......................... 59 Hunger and Crime . . ..60 The Secret of Plain Song . . 60 The Russian C h u r c h and the

E u c h a r i s t .....................................60 The Venerable Jeanne d’A rc . . 61 Anti-Catholic Lecturers . . . . 61 R e v ie w s :

The School for Saints . . . . 62 Biological Experimentation, Its

Functions and Limits^ . . . . 63 The Popes and the Ordinal . . 63 Musical Memories . . . . . . 63 S o c ia l a n d P o l i t i c a l . . ..66

SUPPLEMENT. NBWS FROM THE SCHOOLS!

^ g e

The Manitoba Schools Question.. The Irish Catholic University

Q u e s t i o n ..................................... The Religious Schools o f France Louvain and America A Catholic School Question in

New Y o rk . . . . . . Catholic Schools Association Aid Grant and Old Debts N ew s from t h e D io c e se s :

Westminster ......................... Southwark.................... . . /Birmingham.................................... 73 Middlesbrough ......................... 73 Nottingham .. . . . . .. 73 Newport ......................... — 73 Glasgow ......................... — 73 One o f the World’s Grand Old Men 73

69 70 70 70 7t 7 r 7E 72 72

# * Rejected MS. cannot be returned unless accompanied with address and postage.

CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK.

TH E attempt to settle the quarrel by a Conference having disastrously failed, both parties have fallen back into their old position, and for the moment no new developments are expected. Meanwhile, Mr. Thom as Mann has issued a manifesto on his own account. Mr. Mann is not hopeful o f success in the present struggle, and indeed delares that trade unionism is working on wrong lines. H e recalls the fact that the engineers have been out o f work now for six months, and no good end has yet been gained. The federated employers still refuse,as they have always refused, to concede the pay o f 54 hours for 48 hours’ work. H e considers that it would be better for the engineers, in the event of their resources being exhausted, to just drop back to workoneby one, and on their own responsibility, than to ask the Union to accept the terms offered by the employers. H e then blames the other unions for not having helped the engineers more efficiently. “ Instead o f the trades unions having helped the engineers in a loyal and substantial fashion, we are bound to declare that the financial assistance from all sources outside the union itself has been so utterly trifling as to reflect grave discredit upon the trade union movement. Less than .£5,000 per week has come in from all trade unions in the country outside o f the engineers themselves, whose 60,000 members at work have been paying £ 1 1 ,5 0 0 per week. More than one-and-a-half million in all the other trades have subscribed less than half that sum, and why? Because o f the isolated and exclusive nature o f trade unions as at present constituted. H ad a national federation of unions existed, or even a federation o f the unions connected with the engineering and shipbuilding industries, all necessary finances could have been provided to have supplied the men adequately for a twelvemonth without any one being heavily taxed, and that knowledge would have had its influence on the employers.” H e then sketches out a programme for a national organization. First of all, the area o f trade unionism must be widely extended, so as to take in not merely some two million workers as at present, but the whole industrial population of

N ew S er ie s . V o l . L1X., No. 2,518.

five times that number. Then, too, there must be a thorough change o f method. “ Most o f the existing unions are far too exclusive in their character and seriously weighed down with the sick benefit and superannuation scheme ; the proposed new organization should be free from these encumbrances, which can best be provided by other and more effective agencies. T h a t the only monetary benefits provided for should be out-of-work pay, dispute pay, and funeral money, the latter because o f the financial strain thrown upon the home at time o f death, but also that a percentage o f the funds should be available for supporting labour candidates for Municipal bodies and for Parliament, and for systematically carrying on an organizing campaign throughout the country.” I f sick pay and provision for the o ld age o f the workers are henceforth to be considered as “ encumbrances,” we are indeed brought face to face with a revolution in the principles of trade unionism. T h e tone o f the whole document, however, is equivalent to an admission that in the present struggle the Amalgamated Society o f Engineers has been out-matched. On the other hand, Mr. Barnes boldly declares that several large employers are on the eve of breaking away from the Federation, and are secretly negotiating with the union. A s a set-off to these alleged defections, the employers point to the fact that the great Fairfield Company have joined the Federation and posted the lock-out notices.

T h e state of their finances is naturally a

— th e sinews matter upon which the leaders o f the Union of w ar . are judiciously reticent. A delegate who was present at the recent conference o f trade unionists has, however, made a communication to the Press from which it appears that the funds o f the Amalgamated Society of Engineers have been reduced in six months from .£399,000 to £49,000— not counting a sum o f £ 6 o ,o o o , which is not available for strike purposes. Mr. Barnes is represented to have stated that the struggle had cost the society from £24,000 to £ 25,000 per week. There were 27,000 members out o f work, who had to be supported, in addition to some 3,000 members of other unions, who were receiving assistance, 2,000 on sick pay, and a large number o f non-unionists. Since the commencement o f the dispute the society had received £ 1 1 3 ,0 0 0 in subscriptions from outside sources. In addition to that there had been an income o f £ 1 1 ,0 0 0 per week from the levies and contributions o f members o f the society. T h e dispute had been in progress six months, and the total income from members was represented by a sum o f