Current Topics AT HOME AND ABROAD.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXII, Issue 3, 17 May 1895, Page 3

Current Topics AT HOME AND ABROAD.

THE BEFBBBNDCM.

A writer in the Contemporary Review for March gives particulars respecting the referendum in Switzerland — both of its history and its working. Of the twenty-five cantonp, he says, ten have the compulsory and eight the optional referendum. By the compulsory Bjfltem, he explains, " the people are called together once or twica in the year to ratify the principal acts of the Legislature. Each citizen receives in advance the text of the measures to be submitted to him, together with a msesage explaining them and a voting paper on which ho writes Aye or No to each of the proposed measures. On the day fixed for the ballot he goes and deposits his paper in toe am. In some cantons tha electoral assembly, meeting at a fix d hour in each commune, may re-discuss the measures proposed before proceeding to vote ; but in general this discussion takes place through the press or in non-official public meetings." Of tha optional referendum the writer speaks thus :— " It consists in the right of a certain numbsr of citizens to demand within a given time that such and such a measure shall be submitted to the people for adoption or rejection. If the term of delay is not utilised in the prescribed manner, the bill or resolution is held to be passed. If, on the other hand, the signatures to the demand attain the requisite number, the text of the controverted proposal is distributed to all the active citizens, who are summoned to vote on a given day. The optional referendum, beine; in its nature an act of opposition, generally provokes a pretty lively contest, first over the getting of the signatures, and still moreover the votes themselves " The writer goes on to epeak of the relative value of the two systems. "This question," he says, "is intimately associated with another question. What are the matters which have to be submitted to the referendum?" It was found, for example, by the experience of several cantons, that, owing to its repeated rejection by the people, the budget could not be included. "Toe confederation itself has been obliged to exclude from the referendum, not only the budget, but the ratification of international treaties, where a rejection might place the country in an impossible position. It has also been found necessary to restrict the class of resolutions which are dependent on the referendum to guch as are of general import. Bucb are (.h c encouragements held out to agriculture, to technical education and so forth. Those resolutions on the other hand, which refer to such matters as public works, the construction of buildings, the conservancy of rivers, and the like, are treated as purely administrative and not requiring the formality of popular sanction, Finally, it has oeen necessary to provide for the plea of urgency being admitted in certain cases," The drawbacks to the system, meantime are, that the optional ref 3rendum " plays too much into the hands of the Oppusilun. In order to obtain sigunturus, the Opposition has tv create a sort of advi ise current, which U afterwards very i,ifu\,u.t to control." Again — " tae fear of the referendum tends to uinke tiund legislator , wLo holu4times lack the courage to vote for what tht-y behove iv be the best for the country, or having roted for it, to stand up for it before in jir fellow citizens; they prefer to let it go without a struggle, 2 he referendum has also given birth to a camarilla of politicians who exploit the credulity or passions of the populace in order to oppose measures wbich are perfectly legitimate." The system, nevertheless, says the writer, has borne good fruits. The people, on the whole have shown themselves wiser than meddling politicians, and the net result has been a great tranquilising of public life. The writer in summing up expresses an opinion that the system cannot easily be adopted elsewhere. "In constitutional countries it would be necessary, to begin wilt), to adopt tha Swiss doctrine that a negative vote on the referendum does not entail the dissolution of the Chambers • otherwise the result would be a state of perpetual agita' ion, worse than that it was sought to remedy. Logically, according to this doctrine, the Cabinet al& i ou o 'ht not to be obliged to retire before nn adverse vote of the <Jua ri :bere ; and hence woul i resu't a^ain the periodicity of m 'isUrial functions, which would put aa ena v Uat

offlcc-hnnting which is the chief motive of many a Parliamentary man. It would mean a radical transformation of political life in those countries. ... If in these countries the appeal to the nation on>ny question were to originate with tht nation itself, as is the case in Switzerland, one cannot conceal from oneself that it would probably lead to the most unexpected consequences. It would, indeed, be possible to fix beforehand the subjects on which it should be obligatory to consult the people, which would deprive the refer* ence of any hostile character. But. with the ideas current in those countries, would there not still be a tendency to regard a ntgative vote as an expression of want of confidence, before which the representatives of the people would be constrained to retire ? " The writer concludes by expressing hia opinion that, in all probability, the referendum, as it exists in Switzerland, could not succeed in any other country, whose government was not, in all respacts, the same.

ODDS AND ENDS.

The death of Sir Robert Peel is reported, whioh took place suddenly from hemorrhage cf the brain. Of Sir Eobert Peel, who was the eldest eon of the famous Statesman of the name, and the inheritor of his title, we had of late years beard very little. There was, nevertheless, a time when, as a young man believed to be a rising politician, a good deal of public attention was given to him. Our personal remembrance of the manner in which he was spoken and written about is that it was somewhat like that in which, of later year?, the late Lord Randolph Churchill was mentioned. A fair share of latitude seemed to be allowed him, and nobody appeared quite able to make up his miDd as to whether he was to be respected and liked or treated in a different way. A memorable event in the political career of the deceased was a journey which he made through Ireland when— at the beginning of the "Sixties," if we recollect aright— he fllkd the position of Chief Secretary. The tour was then a new departure from the associations of the cffice — and at first something was expected to come of it. The distinguished tourist expressed himself pretty freely with regard to what came under hia notice, and, in particular, we remember that he gave, in certain quarters, dire offence by describing the town of Qalway as a "hungy" place— which, in fact, it still was, although it had in some degree thrown off the phase of Dantesque horror, so finely and exactly described by Sir Charles Gavan Duffy in his recollections of Carlyle. Sir Robert Peel, however, came and went, and it remained a matter of indifference whether people in Oonnaught were hungry or full, until Mr Balfour, driven by desperation in an attempt to check the national movement, made a similar trip, with, for the time being, more helpful results. Fjr that, nevertheless, considering hia motives, he was little to be thanked. Of the later events of the life of the deceased baronet we had heard little or nothing. It is plain however, that he had not fulfilled any promise he had given as a statesman.

The small rnajori'y, that of 14 only, by which the second reading of the Bill for tho repeal of the Irish Crimes Act was read a second timo in the ILmse cf Oommous has given Lord Bosebery cause to reprove ihe Members of th ■ Liberal pany for their apatby. A large number of the Libeia's, it appe irs, abstained from voring. If, nevertheless, 'ibdtract justice were allowed by these gentlemen to have aoy claim on thca, it wouid be difficult to account for their indifference. Ireland's record of the past year or two is almost crimelese, and, under the circumstances, to suffer her to labour under the burden and stigma of such aa Act is outrageous. It is to be feared, in fact, that Mr J. B. Bedmoud is not altogether wiihout foundation for his assertions. There seems, at least some reason to suspect that Liberal apatby may not be much less harmful in its results than Tory oppression. Lord Bosebery declared that the Government would continue to hold office until defeatjd. The ob?tiaacy of the [House of Lords, he added, whs not the faulc of tha Government, but that of tha Liberal Party, which must bestir itself.

The debate on the Bill was made an occasion by O'Donovan Bossa, who wag iv the strangers' gallery at tha time, to distingaish himself in a characteristic way. Referring to certain remarka that had been made concerning him by one or other of the speakers, ha cried out, •' An assassin's blow is being ymn me in thia house, and

•hame placed on my name." The offender w.s of course immediately chucked out, making a noisy exit. To introduce bis name, we need hardly say, waa most unfair to Ireland, for Rossa represents no class there. His failure of late to arouse sympathy shows how little he is esteemed among the Irish people. His outbreak, however, m the House of Commons will, no doubt, be tamed Jo good account. Had he been bribed by the Unionists, ho could .scarcely have dona better for them.

Wo learn from a cablegram that the Archbishop of Melbourne baß expressed himself with regard to the utterance on the so-called union of the Churches lately made by the Anglican B:shop of Ballarat. Of how well qualified bis Grace is to deal with this qu stion of union, the lecture on Anglican pretausions published by him some little, time ago is an ampin ? u*rante<3. The cablegram runs ac fol owe:-" Archbishop Carr, replying to Bishop Thornton, of Ballarat. on the question of the union of the Roman and Anglican Churches, deprecated bis remarks with reference to Rome. and eaid (hat Bishop Thornton's add-ess was remarkable chiefly as proving the deep and widespread interest thr qn-ation had aroused. Catholics looked forward hopefully to the issue. They were not active disputants in the matter. Whatever the outcome might be, he was certain that many Anglicana wera yearning for a union with Home. They had adopted Catholic practices and devotions to such an extent that a atrang.r, on entering an Anglican church, found it difficult to distinguish the counterfeit from the real. They felt the inconsistency of the thing being bo near and yet so far from Catholic. 1 ' The Cardinal Archbishop of Sydney also has given an opinion on the subject in question. His Eminence, in replying to an interviewer, contradicted a charge made by a certain leading Nonconformist in England to the effect that the converts would be victimised by the Church, instancing the honours conferred on such men as Newman and Manning-in proof of her truo disposition in the matter, The Cardinal stated positively that where the teaching of the divine faith was concerned, the Church could make no compromise. As to mere matters of discipline, however, he explained, it was otherwise — When asked whether such a question as celibacy of the clergy would not come within the category of arrangements of this kind, the Cardinal replied :'I am conS dent that no change would be made in the discipline of the Weatcrra church in that regard. Of course the dißcipliaein the Eastern church, in the Greek church, l 8 quite diitinct, but whilit there is no possibility of the diaciphno of the Western church being changed in regard to the cehoacy of the clergy special concessions might be made to enable those already married in the Anglican church to continue in the sacred ministry, This has often been done in the Eastern church. If the Holy Fither considered it prudent it ia quite within his province to permit it again to the dignitaries or clergy of the Protestant church. Finally, no change ifl probabl. regarding the Latin liturgy, though a concession is possible in the reading of the Scriptural portion in English.

A. caße that has recently occurred in Melbourne enables us the more easily to receive the explanation given of the feeling agaiost the Jews-still prevalent and still general in Europe-that it is due, not to their rshgion, but to the peculiar manner of their dealings in trade and commerce. The Cardinal Archbishop of Toledo explaina the case ma rec^t p jstora! in which he attributes the cause of existing distiessamoDghis people to "the tyranny of the Jewish bank, to Jewiek capital and usury." The matter, meant.m?, to which we more particularly allude occurred with regard to a Jewish fi, m, known a Ba B H. Abraham and Co , trading as gunsmiths in Eliz .beta Str cc*,c c*, Melbourne. The-r plan of business, as transpired the other day in thi B\nt C vil Court of the City named, was to import cheap guns from Belgmm-and then, after certain manipulations, to turn them out as fecoid-hanl articles, stamped with the names of famous makers and valued at high prices. These prices, moreover, were duly obtained from greenhorns, the firm having its watchwords by which its employees were admonished, or admoniahed one another, as to the namre of the cußtomers they had to serve. " Kaffee," for instance, meant a smart m?m ?r a DO v, in. " Smoogee » meant "take him down " and Schlock it on » meant put on the price. The &me damme of the firm, a witness named Frederick Driver, who had manipulated tht gun 8 and been present at their sale, expressed himself, moreover, M quite conscious of h. 8 moral rectitui,, so Ion? as he committed bimse lin no sucb manner as might lodge him in gaol. From Toledo to Melbourne is, no doubt, a long way. Still, when we find afl mof high repute conducting its business by methods lik, this in the one city, we are able the more easily to understand how a bank in the other city, under somewhat similar mana Xa m3nt f deserve! reproach. It behoves the Jews to clear themselves from all suspicion of such associations, before they cm explain the dislike they inspire as arisng from rtligious considerations only.

Bible Christiana will not allow a man to mix tie shade under which he ■its. He may have his h>tree but not his vine. We take our information from a report published by the Daily Times of a meeting the other n igbt in Dunedin of the congregation in question. A rev visitor who was present on the occasion strongly dissuaded bis hearers from following the advice given by Slgnor Bragato as to planting

vineyards. " What," he aßked, " did it profit a man if he gained the whole world and lost his own soul." The speaker added that the wine made in South Australia was "miserable stuff," and then be left his hearers to draw their own conclusions. The argument, if not convincing, i 8i 8 certainly Buggestive. And, by the way here is a nice little exercise in Scriptural exegesis which we ma> propose to our friends of the private interpretation. Let them prove to their own satisfaction that the viue spoken of in Iloly Saripture is not a grape vine. They can easily do it, or at least quite as easily as they prove other points.

If we may trus' a report published, without any acknowledgment whene it waa taken, on Saturday evening by our contemporary the DuDedin /Star-published, too, we admi>, with woDderfal promptitude, considering that a cablegram relative to the matter in question had only be*n received hero on April 8, a case of witch-burning had actually occurred in Tipperary. But this comes of the march of progreas and the enlightenment of the period. Had not the spread of education brought publications such as those lately issued by Mr Stead and others, and stamping with the note of cultured approval the most degrading tales of |superstition |and folly as exiiting still in England and other advanced, quarters we may taka it for granted that nothing of the kind would have happened. An attempt was made, it would appaor, to expel the spirit of a witch by whom a young woman was possessed— in which possession we find not only Btrong traces of Mr Stead's teaching but some alsD of that of Florence Marryatt— by holding the victim over a fire. Evil communications, then, it is evident, still corrupt good manners, and the Irieh peasant suffers from his contact with the advancement of the period.

The French Republic continues to discharge the debt due by it to the Pope— and which even Republicans themselves acknowledge to be great— by imposing burdens on religion. A system of taxation, evidently including ecclesiastical property of every kind, has now been added to the oppressive measures already in existence, and threatens to be most severe in its effects. We gather that a vigorous protest has been made, and that even the Holy Father has expressed himself regarding the matter. But no doubt the spirit of persecution vull be maintained to the bitter end. Nothing, in fact, can seem more incoLgruous than the present sta'e of things in Fiance Wd 8h.,11 n- 1 be surprised to find, ere many more years have passed by, that the French p 2 ople-the Catholics who are apathetic or cowardly, aB well as the infidels who are aggressive-have earned for themselves another chastisement, heavier even than that which they received some twenty-five years ago, at the hands of the Germans

Their Lordships, Dr Lanigan, Bishop of Goulburn ; Dr Byrne Bishop of Bathusfc ; Dr Torreggiani, Bishop of Armidale; Dr Dunne Bishop of Wilcannia ; Dr Doyle, Bishop of Graf ton ; and Dr Higgios Auxiliary Biehop of Sydney, (says the Sydney Freeman of May 4) at the close of the annual episcopal meeting held in Sydnay last week, besides sending through the Cardinal-Archbishop a telegram of sympathy to Dr Murray, Bishop of Maitland, decided to visit the venerable prelate. This n-solntion was carried out, all the Bishops making a journey to MaitUnd before returning to their respective dioceses. His Lordship of Maitland, it may be remarked, is the senior Bishop of the colony bath in age and service. The Cardinal wished to accompany the other prelates, but was strongly advised nut to n & k the journey in his present state of health. The latest intelligence from Maiiland is that Dr Murray is "slightly better. a J

A witch in Indiana, meantime, has recently been placed under the protection of the law. This >s a man named Stapleton, who, at the age of fifty-sis, bad lately married a girl aged fifteen. The girl 8 brother had sworn to kill him, and his son had applied for legal protection. The young wife, dec'ared herself, as well as her mother and sister, bewitched by her husband. "After the recital of the story m court," says the report, '< the three women suddenly began to scream, while their muscles twitched and jerked as if they were in agony. This continued until all three fainted and were carried from the room. They declared this attack w*s due to a spell which Stapleton had cast upon them "

Here is a suggestive sentence t ken from the concluaion of the address delivered at Knox Church, Duoedin, on Sunday, by the Bey J. Anderson Gardiner, in memory of the late Rev Dr Stuart •-<• Nor has he forgofen us, for he is still a man of God and servant of Christ and to-day m the calm and beautiful retreat of the heavenly home n3n 3 thinks of us, works for us, and prays for us "