BRITISH AND FOREIGN

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 330, 17 October 1908, Page 10

BRITISH AND FOREIGN

CURRENT TOPICS,

Mr. J. ■6. Swift "Macneill raises a point of national importance when, in tho "Times" (August 18), ho draws attention to what he calls "a now departure in constitutional practice — the interviews, of the Sovereign with tho heads of foreign States when unattended by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. Mr. Todd, in his ' Parliamentary Government in England,' is emphatic in his statement of this practice. 'At ©very interview,' ho writes,' 1 between tho Sovereign and the Minister of any foreign Court jt. is the duty of tlio Secretary of Stato for 'Foreign Affairs to he present. Private communication between a King of England and foreign Ministers is contrary to'-.'the ..spirit and practice of the British Constitution.' "Tho fact that Sir Charles Hardinge, tho Permanent Undor-Sccretar.y of State for Foreign Affairs, lias attended tho King on his recent visits to tho Emperors of Ger-' many and of Austria, and the fact that not only Sir Charles Hardingo 'but' Sir John Fisher, as representing tho Admiralty, and Sir John French, as representing tho War Office, attended tho King on his recent visit 'to the Emperor "of Russia, while emphasising tho political and diplomatic, as distinguished from the private, character of such .visits; 1 enforce tho significance of the absence of tho Foreign Secretary on theso occasions, who is ihe Minister responsible to Parliament, and through Parliament'to the country, for tho' conduct of foreign -policy—a .policy which is practically Tomoved from tho effective control of Parliament,' having regard to the? fact; that the Cabinet is .able to commit the country to the greatest international obligations without consulting Parliament or. the country. That Cabinot'should not adopt a course whiph 'might lead to the inference, that this great power for whoso liso it is responsible to the people • has been delegated to tho Sovereign." Persecuting tho Jaws. < / "Ono of those amazing- decrees that aro constantly being promulgated "in Russia," Temark's tho "Jewish World," "has just been -issued. -According- to a Government circular, such Jews as are at present denied the-right to live in the city of Moscow'arefor the. future : forbidden to set foot, for however brief a period, Ton its holy ground, and even passage through tho streets will 'be regarded as a transgression of the law. The effect of this order, is that Jows -ivho are on their travels and who havo to change trains at-' Moscow, will not bo allowed to pass frqm' one I :,train to another. The mode-"' rate Russian '.journals- confess. ,tbem6elves''a"£-"j tonished at this new departure,, land"; , asking whether .the Government is-prepared') to construct' a. special railway .for those 'Jews who a'rG'.debarred from changing trains' at Moscow. . Tho only remedy .for tlio situation seems: to be'that Jewish travellers in that district : will havo to tako .to * airships. •But one trembles to think of tlio corise-!' quences .that i would ensue should the airship,«uddenly_ take;'it into its head torinake a< •descent imthemiddle of, the forbidden oity." Politics .'in-Franco,-In oile 'of; the most informing speeches •■'delivered .tlio Constitutional Congress M. tYves Giiyot maintained i that, the arbitrdjrj. methods of the old French Monarchy were* still employed by the Government of the ,'French Republic .(says'; tho' "Guardian'-^). ; - 'Notably Ihe'accused the men in power of 'of OiEciali candida'tures, ; eo bitterly denounced by Liberals under tho reign of ' Napoleon " 111, and of keeping' tho Judges in .subjection to the Executive. There is too rnuch ' reason to * believe that"' .theso accusations are. .wellfounded,and that' the of: Departments for'tho time being, Etilrimpose their will, on the nation .instead of regarding., themselves, as commissioned to carry, out its How far the coin-, position. of ( the present Chamber of Deputies "genuinely reflects popular opinion it is diflV ' chances'. are that if a pladcd ~a; Reactionary Adminis-, thd'iheii'd.'of affairs an Assembly of very, different complexion would .be returned,, .and' it; is that a groat many Frenchman "vote Republican" because Jtlie Republic.now represents the established order of things.'...."'But,wo believe, that a frcelycboseri Chamber would deal more vigorously with the Socialists than M. Clemenceau ventures' to"do; 'and that though (probably) :up-; holding, the' separation of Church and State, it would desire to establish friendly relations between .them.

Ambassacor to Cormany. "Sir W. E.- Gosehen, British Ambassador to the: Austro-Hu'ngarian Court, has been appointed i.to .succeed' Sir 'Frank ■ Lascelles as •Ambassador in, Berlin," says tho "Times." : "The appointment was announced by King Edward to .the -Ambassador on the way..;to Ischl, ; after his'.Majesty had received: at; Croriberg from the Emperor William tho. assurance that Sir Edward Gosehen would bo ..persona gratissima at the. German Court. "The selection of Sir Edward Gosehen for the'Berlin-post'is ;a well-deserved recogni- 1 tion' of his excellent work in Vienna, and ■will generally be* regarded as promotion. Nevertheless, the news of his , and Lady Gosehen's impending departure will be received with general regret in Austria-Hun-gary. ■ The .precise date ■of the. transfor is not-yet fixed, but it is understood that Sir Edward Gosehen will take up his new duties v before-the-end of tho yean" : New Vienna Ambassador. "Sir Fairfax Cartwright,. British MinisterResident at-Munich, has been appointed to succeed Sir Edward Gosehen as Ambassador" at jYicnna," says, tjio "Times." '" "The now. 'Ambassador owes -. his' appointment chiefly to his'r excellent.-''work done from Munich. ' - Ho' is regarded as intellectually one of the most giftid'of the younger members of the Diplo-. matic Corps.' ' In literature he has repeatedlyachieved'distinction, his Persian tales, published privately ten years ago under tho title 'The Mystic Rose' in, the Garden of tho King,' having been- highly commended by Orientalists, some of whom even supposed the-tales to be translations from the Persian instead of original work based oh keen' observation and study. 'He ; married the second daughter of the'ltalian Senator, ,th« Marquis Chigi Zondadari, of' Siena." Tho Doyin of Publishers. ;- , . The death of Mr. Frederick ' in the 90th year of his age, removes'one who was probably not only the doyen' of/English publishers, but one of the oldest of Cambridge''graduates. A member of a Norfolk family, . Miv Norgate studied; at. Clare College;, and took,his B.Ai degree in 1839. , Ho. ' was originally intended for -the Church, but he eventually became a publisher, starting-,. ■ in 1843, with' Mr.- Williams, ' the firm ofWilliams, and Norgate, a house well knolvn" in -England and abroad as publishers and importers of serious books in and concerning the various Continental and other languages. The firm';, most celebrated author is.pro- . bably Herbert Spencer, in whoso recent, "Life"-.there' aro:many references' to his pub-' Ushers. Writing to his father iiv'Jaiiuai-'y';' 1852, ■ Spencer informs him that;'lie had' "succeeded:-in coming to an ; arrangementwith Williams and Norgate. Every' one' .agrees-that they are the best people I could' hare." 'Mr. Norgate retired from the firm"some time in the "sixties," and of lato years had devoted himself to literary piirsiiits. Mr: Norgate leaves an only daughter, Miss Kato; N&rgate, well known for her work in- historical research, tho author of "England un-" dor • the- Angevin Kings," a contributor ' to' the ."Dictionary of National Biography," and the assistant of Mrs. J. R. Green in the-production of the elaborately illustrated edition of. Green's 1 "Short History of th«' English People." . ' ~ . What is Worship? "The Committeo of Privileges of ■ th«' Methodist Church has decided to contest the decision arrived at by the Midhurst local Tating committee. ■ This authority has decided that in consequence'of addresses having been given in tho Midhurst Wesleyan Chapel, on such topics as Licensing,- Congo Reform, and Disarmament, that, therefore, the -building- has, not been used exclusively for religious purposes and must -bo rated,' To accept such a decision," says. th«. "Brotherhood Journal," "would bo to agree with the view that religion has no concern with tho great moral and human interests which lio outside .doctrinal, theology, a view which wo.of, the • -Brotherhood absolutely repudiate."