ENGLISH NOTES. RESERVISTS IN THE COLONIES.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVI, Issue 143, 16 December 1908, Page 3

ENGLISH NOTES. RESERVISTS IN THE COLONIES.

LABOUR CO-PARTNERSHIP. HEROISM AND POVERTY. (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, 6th November. Replying to a question in the House of Commons, the War Minister said 10,000 reservists had been granted permission to live in the Colonies. Those who had actually accepted the conditions were as follow : — Household Cavalry — Five in Canada. Cavalry of tho Line — 134 in South Africa, 42 in India and Burma, 21 in Australia,, 326 in Canada. Royal Artillery— -72 in South Africa, 24 in China and Hongkong, 15 s)t Gibraltar, 140 in India and Burma, 17 in tho Straits Settlements, 29 in Australia, 59G in Canada, and 16 in New Zealand. Royal Engineers— 43 in South Africa, 15 in Australia, and 200 in Canada. Foot Guards. — 40 in South Africa, 12 in Australia, and 240 in Canada. Infantry of the Line — 138 in South Africa, 30 in China and Hongkong, 417 in India and Burma, 27 in the Straits Settlements, 28 in Australia, 1527 in Canada, and 44 in New Zealand. Army Service Corps — 65 in South Africa, and 157 in Canada. Army Ordnanco Corps — 18 in Canada. Royal Army Medical Corps — 44 in South Africa, and 81 in Canada. Royal Malta. Artillery — 315 in Malta. The totals of all arms were — South Africa 541, West Africa 19, Bermuda 15. Ceylon 4, China and Hongkong 64 Gibraltar 22, India and Burma 603, India West 16, Jamaica 1, Malta 332, Mauritius 2, Stri'its Settlements 55, British Guiana 1, Australia 165, Canada 3153, Falkland Islands 2, New Zealand 100, Uganda 1, British Central Africa 1. General total, 5097. UNEMPLOYMENT AND TARIFF REFORM. In the course of his speech as the guest of the Junior Conservative Club at Liverpool the other night, Sir Gilbert Parker said the Government proposals to dual with, unemployment were temporary, feeble, and iutile. No sign was made by what artificial means the problem was to be attacked in the Bill which Mr. Asquith had promised for next year after the Pool Law Commission had reported. Whatever- that report might be, whatever Bill might be brought in, whatever relief might be achieved, the question at bottom would be whether our manufactures would increase ; whether British capital would be invested in British industries and British industries defended from unjust and unfair attack ; whether the inequalities of international trading should be regulated ; whether an attempt should be made to check the depletion and destruction cf British agriculture ; whether we should make an effort, scientific, welldevised and powerful, to secure an entry on better terms into foreign markets by using the competent weapons oi tariff which ' had Lieen turned upon us with such success ; whether we should, above all, seek to restore the balanco of our lost agriculture hy making preferential concessions to the Colonies, which would give an. impetus to the development of the wheat fields of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and by so doing, attract into those dominions a larger and larger population who, by instinct, by preference by patriotic brotherly desire were ready to remain purchasers of our goods. Every acre of land opened up under the application, of tho principle of preference would mean new purchasers in those new lands, who would gladly turn to us to buy those manufactures with which they could not supply themselves in their own home market. (Cheers.) NEW ZEALAND COPIED. In the Lord Mayor's Show or. Monday there will be a detachment of Lord Roberts's Boys. They are selected marksmen, and foi-m, for tlia City of London Primary Schools, part of the City Schools Cadet Corps, which is analogous to the system in vogue in Natal- and Now Zealand, and now about, to be introduced into Canada. They \v ill all be kitted in a uniform exactly similar to that worn by the 15,000 New Zealand Public School Cadets — simple, attractive, durable, and cheap. A gun's crew of 19 "men" will draw j, field machine gun, carrying the various trophies and shields won by the boys during the past shooting season. SIR C. FURNESS'S SCHEME. By a majority of 10 to 1 the members of the Hartlepool branches oi the trades unions concerned have decided to give a twelve months' trial to Sir Christopher Furness's co-partnership proposals in respect of his firm's shipbuilding yards at the Hartlepools. The proposals are :— The men take ten £1 shares in tho business (to be paid for out of wages) ; interest at 4 per cent, will be paid on these shares whether there is profit or not ; a bonus will be added when profits exceed 5 per cent. ; the men must never strike, but settle disputes through a works council ; if a man leaves his shares will be repaid, or he may leave them and have a first claim to be taken on again in the works. OLD AGE PENSION FIGURES. Figures given in the House of Commons by Mr. Lloyd-George show that 126 persons in every 10,000 of the population have applied for old age pensions. This very large ratio is mainly made up by Ireland, where no fewer than 373 persons in 1,0,000, or nearly four times as many as in England and Wales, have applied. In London the ratio is only 71 in 10,000. The complete figures are as follow :—: — 1 tl. Applns. Rat. per 10,000 England ... 320,042 97 - Wales 20,227 91 Scotland ... 59,244 123 Ireland ... 167,658 373 Total ... 567,171 Average 126 London (alone) 34,047 „ 71 When Mr. Lloyd-George gave these figures Mr. Harold Cox asked :—": — " Does the ■Government attribute the greater ratio in Ireland to the greater longevity of the Irish people or to a greater power of imagination?" He received no answer. BAN ON FAT FIIIEMEN. A blow has fallen on " fat " firemen of the London Brigade Captain Hamilton, the chief officer, sent for two sub-officers, Etherdon and Eastman, whom he thought were too fat to be made officers, and who had appealed to the committee against the decision. The chief officer now informed them that the Fire Brigade Committee had left the decision to him, and that he should not alter it. Although there was nothing r.gainst them except that they wero too fat — foi they had excellent recommendations! from their superintendents — he said he had to inform Uiem finally that ho could not recommend them lor any further promotion, and that they could either give up their position (as probationary sub-officers) or he would have to take it from them. DESTITUTE "V.C." HERO. the men who have this week been taken on at the Blackburn Corporation relief works — for a fortnight's employment at the most — is ex-Corporal Pitts, who won the Victoria Cross by an act of daring in the South African war. When he left the army in 1904, Pitts, who is married and has v wife and child, obtained a situation as a labourer at a Blackburn factory, and vomr.inod there until October, oi last year,, when

he and three other men were ordered by the General Labourers' Union to come out because a non-union labourer was working with them. Since ihen he has led a tempestuous life. He has done odd jobs, navvying, stoking, and anything else that came to hand, and for some weeks, until he was taken on by the Distress Committee, has had nothing at all. As an Ai-my Eeserve man he draws 6d a day for another three years, and also gets £10 V.C. pension ; but he has had a hard struggle to live. He is 31 years of age, quite able-bodied, and willing to work, and has good character. It is a sad irony that in the very week that a fine statuary group was unveiled at Manchester, in which the actual deed for which Pitts got his V.(J. is commemorated, .the original of the wounded soldier handing his last cartridge to his comrade should be applying tor relief work. NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION. On Wednesday evening, at the Westminster Palace Hotel, about sixty members and friends of the New Zealand Association assembled, and spent a most enjoyable evening at a whist drive. Among those present were Mr. Ward, Mr. J. D. Nathan (Auckland), Mis. Nathan, and the Misses Haybittle.. The first prize was won by Miss Norton and Mr. J. D. Nathan.