THE TABLE
A VAeekly Newspaper and Review.
D u m VOBIS GRATULAMUR, ANIMOS ETIAM ADDIMUS UT IN INCCEPTIS VESTRIS CONSTANTER MANEATIS.
From, the B r ie f oj H is Holiness to T h e T a b l e t , J nm 4 , 1870.
Vol. 46. No. 1842. L o n d o n , J u l y 31, 1875.
Price 3d. By Posts^ cI
[Registered at the General Post Office as a Newspaper.
C hronicle of the Week:—
Page
Mr. Plimsoll and the Merchant Shipping Bill. — Unseaworthy Ships.— Overloading.—Mr. Plimsoll’s Bill.— Notices of Action in /the Matter.— Public Sympathy.— Ministerial Statement.-Sir Charles Adderley’s Measure.—The Convents Bill.—The Dissolution Question in France.—The Senate Bill. — England and Russia in Asia.— The Bavarian Elections. — The German Bishops and the Last Falck Law. — Proscription of Auxiliary Bishops.—The War in Spain .. .. .. .. .. 129
CONTENTS.
L eaders :
Page
The Disturbances in Turkey .. 133 | Dr. Thirlvvall..............................133 ' Taxation in I t a l y .........................135 j Our Protestant Contemporaries : |
Every One for Himself .. .. 135 Reviews :
Freemasonry—The Church and the State .. .. .. .. 137 “ The Contemporary Review ” .. 138 Short Notices :
The Jubilee .. .. .. .. *38 Compendium Theologian Moralis.. 138 De Seminario Clericorum.. .. 139 The History of Cork .. .. 139 Children’s Treasury of English
Song .................................... 139 Thy Gods ! O Israel .. .. 139
Church Music :
P3ge
St. Cecilia’s Society Catalogue .. 139 Literary, Artistic, & Scientific Gossip 140 Correspondence :
Catholic Politics .. .. .. 141 Jubilees .. .. .. .. 141 Examination for the English Col
lege .. .. .. .. .. 141 Restoration of the Church of the
Assumption, Warwick-street .. 142 Pagan Missions .. .. .. 142 The Church of the English Martyrs 142 Parliamentary Summary ., 142 Rome :—Letter from our own Cor
respondent .. .. .. 145
Diocesan News :—
Page
Westminster .. .. .. .. 146 Southwark .. .. .. .. 146Beverley .. .. .. .. 746 Birmingham .. .. .. .. 146 Scotland—Western District .. 147 Ireland.. .. .. .. .. 147 Foreign News :—
Germany ......................... .. 14S Austria .. .. .. . .1 4 9 Belgium .. .. .. .. 149 Memoranda :—
Educational .. .. . . 1 4 9 Cricket .. .. .. . .1 5 0 General N ews ........................... 150
CHRONICLE OF THE WEEK.
AIR. PLIMSOLL
AND THE MERCHANT SHIPPING
BILL.
V j \ R . P L IM S O L L ’S outburst, unjusti\ I I fiable as it was as an attack upon individuals, has met with a general response throughout the country, and is likely to prove effectual in its result. We shall not learn the sequel o f the affair in tim e to comment upon it in this place, but up to the present moment this is the history o f it. L a s t week, on the n ight before we went to press, M r. D israeli announced that, to the Governm ent’s great regret, the M erchant Shipping B ill would have to be withdrawn, and that first the Agricultural Holdings Bill, and then the Judicature and the Land Transfer B ills would be proceeded with. Air. Goschen then expressed his sorrow that the arrangements o f the Government had been such that a bill for the preservation o f human life had to be sacrificed to one that was concerned with pecuniary interests, and presently Mr. P lim so ll— moving an adjournment to put h im self in order— implored Air. D israeli “ not to consign some thousands o f living “ human beings to a miserable death.” A fter going into particulars, which we shall notice presently, he said that a friend o f his had been told by the Secretary at L lo yd ’s “ that he did not know a single ship that had been broken “ up voluntarily by the owner because she was worn out for “ thirty years.” Out o f 5,000 vessels on L lo yd ’s Register 2,654 had gone off their class and forfeited their position. These ships were sold at reduced prices to shipowners, some o f whom never built a ship and never bought a new one, and who were called “ ship-knackers,” and by the aid o f such “ shipowners o f murderous tendencies outside the “ House, who are immediately represented in the I-Iouse,” every effort to obtain a remedy had been defeated. Plere the Speaker interposed, pointing out to Air. Plim soll that his observations referred more properly to the Merchant Shipping B ill, which was down on the order-book for another day ; and Air. Plim soll then gave notice that he would put a question to Sir C. Adderley on Tuesday about four vessels which had been lost in 1874, and two others which had been abandoned, and should ask whether the owner was the member for P lym outh or another person ; adding that he should ask some questions about members on his own side o f the House also, concluding by saying that he was determ ined “ to unmask the villains who lead “ these sailors to death.” A sked by the Speaker whether he intended the word “ villain ” to apply to any member o f the House, Mr. P lim soll rushed to the centre o f the floor, threw up his arms in the greatest possible excitem ent, and said that he “ did, and did not mean to withdraw it.” Thrice he refused to retract, and on the Speaker saying that he
New Series, {V ol. X IV . No. 351.
must leave the m atter to the judgm ent o f the Plouse, Air. Plim soll said that he should be very happy to submit to i t , threw down a written protest upon the table, and resum ed his seat. Air. D israeli then rose, and after saying that th e member for D erby had behaved “ in a manner almost un“ paralleled ”— to which Mr. Plim soll retorted “ and so has “ the Governm ent ”— he moved that the Speaker should reprimand him “ for his v io lent and disorderly conduct.” T h e Speaker then pointed out the course which the usages o f the House prescribed ; the member for D erby would b e heard in his p lace, and would then withdraw. But M r. Plim soll resisted his friends’ entreaties that he would explain, and left the H ouse with great demonstrations o f excitem ent, exclaim ing that he would “ expose them.” L o rd Hartington then poured some oil on the waters by saying that he would o f course second Mr. D israel’s motion i f necessary, and that nobody could ju stify Air. P lim soll’s expressions ; but that considering the excitem ent under which, he was obviously labouring, he thought it would be more for the advantage and dignity o f the H ouse’s proceedings i f the debate were adj ourned for a few days in order that A ir. Plim soll m ight have tim e for reflection. Then A ir. Sullivan, who had fo llow ed Air. P lim soll into the lo bby, came in, and, in a speech o f great tact, declared that to h is personal knowledge Air. P lim soll was extrem ely ill, that h e had himself been in close intercourse with him for two days, and believed that his mental excitem ent was the result o f over-strain acting upon a very sensitive temperament. H e therefore implored the H ouse, “ ju s tly offended ” as it was, to be “ as considerate and indulgent as, under the circum “ stances, it could be,” and to g ive Air. P lim soll a w eek to think over it. H e (Air. Sullivan) held in his hand some papers which had helped to work the hon. member up to this pitch o f agitation, but would not use them, having no idea o f making his case worse b y going into matters which would hurt any member’s susceptibility. H e was quite sure that Air. Plim soll would not, “ even if he were brought to the “ scaffold,” retract any o f his deliberate convictions, but with regard to the expressions which he had used he was sure that if time were given him he would “ set him self right with h is “ colleagues o f this H ouse.” Air. Fawcett, who had also been in the lobby with Air. Plim soll, seconded the appeal, and Air. Disraeli then moved the adjournment o f the debate for a week, for which he was thanked by Mr. Plim soll’s co lleague in the representation o f Derby, Air. Bass.
Air. P lim soll had certainly some excuse for u n s e aw o r t h y p j s indignation, i f not for his expression o f it.
In the first p lace he allowed his own B ill to become a dropped order in the expectation that the G overnment would proceed with theirs. Secondly, there have been some very bad cases o f unseaworthy ships quit.e recently. O n