HOME AND FOREIGN.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 12604, 21 September 1906, Page 7

HOME AND FOREIGN.

United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. ANOTHER ROYAL COMMISSION. LONDON, September 19. A Royal Commission, with Visoonnt Seiby as chairman, and including Sir William Collins, Sir John MacFadyean, also Mr Walter Gasket 1, has been appointed to enquire into the vivisection laws

[The appointment of this Commission was decided upon some time ago. According to the Jast rctume experiments were performed in 1905 upon 36,935 living animals, cc against 1,220 in 1888." The increase from 1904 was 5373, and the Home Secretary explained in Parliament recently that nearly the whole of this increase in the number of experiments—soß3 out of the total of 5373—was accounted for by tie additional inoculations, hypodermic injections, and feeding experiments which had been made. The Increase was due to the greater importance attached to biological teete in practical medicine and to th© greater number of these experiments which were performed en behalf of local and other public authorities. According to the last annual report of the London Anti-Vivisection Society, there are some t<toree hundred members of the Hotine of Commons pledged either to the total prohibition or c-evere restriction of the practice of vivisection.]

MOTOR 'BUSES FOR LONDON. BERLIN, September 19. A Berlin company has secured a contract for five hundred motor omnibuses for London at a cost of £325,000.

DOWIE'S RETIREMENT. NEW YORK, September 19. Dowio accepts a pension from Zion City and retiree.

HUGE RAILROAD TRANSACTION

Mr 0. H. Harriman, chairman of the Union Pacific Railway, -with others, is negotiating for eight millions sterling worth of shares in the Baltimore-Ohio railroad, recently bought by Mr Kuhn Loeb from the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. According to the "New York Tribune," the deal ie practically accomplished, enabling Messrs Harriman and H. C. Frick to make the Union Pacific the foremost trans-continental railroad.

ARGENTINE DEFENCES. BUENOS AYRES, September 19. The Argentine will expend six and a half millions (sterling on land forte and floating batteries and strengthening the fleet, unless the other Republics limit their armnments.

[The Argentine and Chili concluded a convention in 1902, by which they agreed to reduce their navies and not to add to them without giving notice. However, at the conclusion of the manceuvres in 1904, the President ineietod upon the importance of strengthening fcho fleet. His successor, in his inaugural address to the Congress, emphasised the same point,,on the ground that the country must ■necessarily be a eea Power. The port of Bahia Blanca must be completed, the defence of the Rio de La Plato made secure, and the naval arsenal reorganised. In May of last year the President again laid stress upon the importance of the Republic being a eea Power, since it must hold the supremacy in South America.] . OUTBREAK JN MOROCCO. MOROCCO, September 19. Aβ Maelin, a fanatical Sahairan sorcerer, who has been Uie Sultan'e guest at Fez, was returning to Singhib, his followers looted a French store at Casablanca, and wounded several Europeans and tried to incite the populace against the Christians. , THE RAND CHINESE. JOHANNESBURG, September 19. Ratcliffe, a Rand labour leader, who was charged with perjury in connection with statements in regard to alleged cruelty to Chinese coolies, was acquitted, owing to the Chinamen's conflicting evidence. , THE CHINESE CUSTOMS. . . LONDON, September 20. The committee of tihe China Association of London strongly urged Sir Edward Grey to reconsider his attitude regarding the recent changes in the Chinese Customs administration. The committee consider that what an Im-~ perial edict lias done an Imperial edict alone can and ought to be made to undo.

[A Chinese Imperial edict issued some time ago appointed Chinese Coniptrolof the Customs, whidh was interpreted to mean tiiat China would resume can>trol of the Customs duties which had beon controlled for many years by Sir Robert Hart with great success. The duties are the 6©curity for the European loans to China, aoid Great Britain at once protested against the step. Sir Edward Grey obtained assurances from China and announced the other day that China had requested Sir Robert Hart (who had aninouTioed hie intention of retiring) to continue his work as Inspector-General. Commercial meai in Hong Kong, however, hold that only the abolition of the new board and a return to tihe old regkno can givo satisfaction to foreign bond-holdera. The Pekin correspondent of "The Times" stated recently that China was persistently ignoring the asewrancwi given to Great Britain. The new Chineso officers had begun their work by building extensive offices and appointijig a large staff at the expense of the Customs, and had given ordere tihat no reporte ox statistics were to be published without their approval, which, says the "Spectator," '\has an ominous appearance of a return to the old days of incompetence and corruption, which were made impossible wlion Sir IWbert Hart insisted an publicity." In this matter Great Britain ie really acting foT all the Powers. The China Association represents the interests of British commerce with China.] MORE EARTHQUAKES IN SICILY. (Received September 20th, 7.18 p.m.) ROME, September 20. Further earthquakes have occurred in Sicily. Many houses are uninhabitable, end people arc camping out. AMERICAN INSURANCE FINANCE. NEW YORK, September 20. The committee appointed by the policy-holders in the Mutual Life and New York Life Companies declares that the companies control £260,000,000 of convertible assets, mostly real estate, in the vicinity of Wall street. The projected directorate wieh to avert the peril of such concentration, and invest these funds in the countries whence thoy are drawn.

[This committee, which include* several prominent Arnoricane, wae formed to oust the present management.]