Nichol, editor of an English Anarchist paper, the Commonweal, was, on May 3, sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment, for an article published April 9, inciting to murder. The proposed victims were Mr. Matthews, the Home Secretary, Justice Sir Henry Hawkins, and Wm. Melville, an Inspector of the Metropolitan Police. C. W. Mowbray, the publisher of the paper, was also indicted, but was acquitted.

Even Poland has not escaped, an attempt being made on April 7, to rob and assassinate Dr. von Poninski, Dean of the Castle of Koscielec.

May Day Demonstrations.

It was generally feared that the first of May would witness serious disturbances throughout Europe, the Anarchists taking advantage of the labor demonstrations to incite the people to outrage and revolt. The most elaborate precautions were therefore taken by the authorities generally. In Paris, for example, speech-making in the streets was prohibited, the military standing ready to aid the police, and the garrison being reinforced by two regiments of cavalry. Six other regiments were stationed near the city, within immediate call, and the streets were sanded to insure the success of any cavalry charges that might be necessary. The result of it all was that the day throughout Europe passed very quietly.

Demonstrations were held according to the international program, but they were orderly. In Paris, there was a Socialist meeting in the Salle Favié, which showed the weakness rather than the strength of the turbulent party. An incendiary speech from M. Vaillant provoked a vigorous protest; and the noted extremist, the Marquis de Morès, was even refused a hearing. After passing the usual resolutions, the meeting quietly dispersed. The presence of the Prince of Wales in the city, who assented to be seen in public, and called upon President Carnot, had a tranquilizing effect. At Tours, where an Anarchist lost one of his hands by the explosion of a bomb which did no other damage; at Troyes, where the Grand Circus was set on fire; and at Marseilles,

where a fighting mob was scattered by the military, occurred the only violent incidents of the day that were reported in France.

A

Belgium witnessed two dynamite outrages at Liège, one of which destroyed $20,000 worth of stained glass in the windows of the beautiful church of St. Martin. Unpleasant weather in Berlin checked the exuberance of the masses; and the public meetings of the trades-unions and Socialists, at which the eight-hour movement was indorsed, and the Anarchist outrages condemned, passed off quietly. conflict between the police and some workingmen at Leuwarden, in which the cavalry were called upon to restore order, was the only incident that marred the peacefulness of the day in Holland. No outbreak occurred in Vienna, although 10,000 men attended the labor fête, and speeches were afterward delivered at a huge fair attended by 200,000 people. Italy remained tranquil, and nothing disturbed the serenity of the Eternal City. No trouble was experienced in Spain nor Portugal. The demonstration in London, Eng., was simply a workingman's holiday, without a single rowdy feature. A monster procession formed on the Thames embankment, and marched to Hyde Park, where speeches were delivered by John Burns, of the London County Council, Cuninghame Graham, Socialist M. P., Stepniak, the Russian Nihilist, and others. Resolutions favoring a legal eight-hour day were passed. No larger demonstration of workingmen was ever held in London. procession took three hours to enter the park, and numbered, it has been variously estimated, from 300,000 to 500,000 men.

The

The various demonstrations have served two important purposes-1st, to draw a sharp, practical distinction between the violent Anarchist and the law-abiding labor agitator and Socialist; and 2d, to show that workingmen are thoroughly alive to the need of common action for the improvement of their position, and have already created a problem in the solution of which the strongest of statesmen will find ample scope for their best talents.

European Strikes.

The most serious incident of the quarter under this head, was the continuation of the Durham Miners' strike in England. As noted in our last issue (p. 45), the members of the Miners' Federation went out on March 12 for one week, being joined by the Durham miners. The latter alone had a grievance in the shape of a proposed 71⁄2 per cent reduction of wages, and so refused to go back to work at the end of the week. In spite of all efforts to come to an understanding, the strike continued through April and May, reaching the proportions of a great public calamity such as the North of England had never before seen. It jeopardized the standing of many an English firm, rendered idle collieries on which communities depended, ruining many of them, filled every berth on the River Tyne with useless vessels, and brought 100,000 people to the brink of starvation. Nothing but the most energetic use of the police and military, saved Durham from riot and pillage. As the strike went on, the mine-owners felt less able to grant favorable conditions; and, although the men finally offered to return at a reduction of 10 per cent, insisted on a reduction of 131⁄2 per cent. The ruinous struggle might have been indefinitely prolonged, were it not for the judicious intervention of the Bishop of Durham, who appealed to both parties to yield something for the sake of peace and the relief of misery entailed upon innocent persons. On June 1, accordingly, the owners assented to a 10 per cent reduction, at which the men resumed work.

The engineers' strike on the Tyne and Wear, which began early in February, kept 20,000 men out of work for about three months, at a loss of some £180,000 in wages alone. It also brought misery upon untold numbers. Its origin was a difference of opinion between the Plumbers' and Engineers' Societies, as to whether certain work were to be classified as Plumbers' or Engineers' work.

At Barcelona and St. Martin, in Spain, on June 10, the military were

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called on to quell disorder raised by striking factory operatives.

Extensive strikes have occurred in Poland since May 1; and, notwithstanding the efforts of troops, many lives have been lost in the attacks of the unemployed upon the Hebrews.

EUROPEAN DISASTERS.

The famous Birkenberg silver mines near Przibram, in Bohemia, caught fire June 1. The latest dispatches put the number of lives lost at 400. The Lower House of the Austrian Reichsrath took immediate action to provide for the families of the sufferers.

Two horrible accidents to steamers are reported for the month of June, as happening on the coast of France. One of them, the British steamer Petrolia, laden with coal oil, was struck by lightning, while just outside the harbor of Blaye, and blown to pieces with terrible effect. The Dupuy de Lôme, a French cruiser, burst a boiler when making trial of her machinery near Brest; and, at the same time, an explosion occurred in the coal bunkers, setting fire to the vessel. The injur ed men were crazed with scalding water and sulphurous smoke, fifteen of them being in a dying condition when rescued. The donkey engines saved the vessel from burning. In the midst of the confusion, the steering apparatus broke down.

During a terrific thunder storm in the province of Orense, in Spain, the parish church at Melias, when filled with worshipers at mass, was struck by lightning. Ten persons were killed and 28 others injured.

GERMANY.

The wedding ceremony on June 21 in the Protestant Evangelical Church. in the Dorothea-gasse, Vienna, whereby Count Herbert Bismarck, eldest son of the German Ex-Chancellor, was united in marriage to the Countess Margaret Hoyos, daughter of Count George Hoyos, of Fiume, and granddaughter of Robert Whitehead, inventor of the celebrated torpedo, was specially important only for the political incidents to which it gave rise. Prince Bismarck attended. His journey to Vienna called forth enthusiastic pop

VOL. II.-12.

ular demonstrations in both Germany and Austria, which revealed the fact, that although in retirement, the imposing figure of the Iron Chancellor still towers above all other European figures in interest.

Ever since the Emperor addressed a congratulatory letter to Count Herbert on the occasion of his betrothal to the Countess Hoyos, there had been rumors of a probable reconciliation between His Majesty and Prince Bismarck. These rumors the Prince felt called upon to deny emphatically. His visit to Vienna, therefore, held important issues; and the potentates of Europe hastened to instruct their Am

COUNT VON EULENBERG,
PRESIDENT OF THE PRUSSIAN MINISTRY.

bassadors at the Austrian capital, how to act. Formal politeness, of course, had to be shown the visitor, but no official action was to be taken which might offend the susceptibilities of Germany. The Russian Ambassador was, accordingly, the only Ambassador present at the ceremony; and the Emperor Francis Joseph refused Prince Bismarck an audience. To the resentment caused by this affront, was no doubt partly due the subsequent attitude adopted by the Prince toward the German Government. There appeared in Bismarck's newspaperorgan at Cologne, an account of an interview with the Prince, in which, among other things, adverse comments were made on the diplomatic failure of the Emperor in his visit to the Czar at Narva in the fall of 1890 (see Vol. I., p. 12); and in which also the Emperor's assent to Chancellor von Caprivi's sub

sequent policy of breaking the links between Germany and Russia, was pictured to have been an egregious mistake. Passages such as these referred to, threw the Government upon the defensive; and, at the close of the quarter, there was some likelihood of vigorous action being taken against the Prince. Such was strongly advocated by the Radicals and Centrists, and by a large part of the German press, who regard Bismarck's revelations as verging on high treason. The authorities had, however, taken no decisive step; and, from the fact that the Prince had for a time ceased his offensive utterances, it seems that he too had realized how near he was treading to the verge of open rupture.

The effects of the withdrawal of the Education bill (p. 46), it is still impossible to foresee. Not only did it provoke a serious Ministerial crisis, and split up the Conservative party, but it has profoundly modified the mutual relations of the various parties and their attitude toward the Government. It has also served the purpose of reawakening public opinion as a force to be reckoned with henceforward in German political life, a force the strength of which the Emperor was the first to realize. The internal dissensions among the Conservatives, who cannot agree on an anti-Semitic policy, one faction proposing extreme measures, have of late somewhat strengthened the position of the Government by weakening the Conservative and Centrist coalition.

Radical revenue reforms have been proposed by Herr Miquel, the Minister of Finance, partaking somewhat of the Socialistic nature of a scheme to relieve local taxation by contributions from the revenues of the Central Government. The income tax is increased by a new method of assessment exempting small incomes altogether, and increasing the rates on incomes derived from interest.

For a time during the month of May, the incident of the expulsion from Germany of the Russian Herr Wesselitzka at the instance of the Turkish Ambassador, absorbed attention at the German capital. The Russian had spread alarming reports con

cerning the health of the Sultan of Turkey, presumably with the political motive of strengthening Russia's position by weakening the entente between Germany and the Porte.

The tenth anniversary of the birthday of the Crown Prince, on May 6, was celebrated with much ceremony. The First Foot Guards were reviewed in front of the Palace at Potsdam. The young Prince, youngest officer in the regiment, took part in the march past, after which he was presented by the Emperor to the officers.

A sensation was caused on the Berlin Bourse April 20, by the discovery that Herr Jaeger, chief cashier for the Rothschilds at Frankfort, was a defaulter in the sumof about 1,700,000 marks. He had for years speculated with the proceeds of his robberies.

FRANCE.

Not less important than the conflict between Anarchy and order, is that between Church and State in France, which has lately broken out afresh in spite of the conciliatory influence of the Vatican A1though there are some of the Bishops who accept loyally and fully the form of government France has chosen of her own free will, there are, on the other hand, a few who persist in their refusal to submit their actions to the guidance of the Pope, and still regard it as their duty to fight the Republic.

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turbances in several of the churches, the police being compelled to interfere. Mgr. d'Hulst, Rector of the Catholic University of Paris, and successor in the Chamber to Mgr. Freppel, Bishop of Angers, brought the matter up in the Chamber in a speech defending the Clericals. This had the effect of calling forth a vigorous statement of the policy of the Government toward the Church. M. Loubet, the Prime Minister, reminded the speaker that priests who broke the law would be punished. M. Ricard, Minister of Public Worship, declared

that the Government would take proceedings against the Bishop of Mende in the Council of State, and also stop his salary. Said the Minister, apostrophizing the Clerical party:

"You are trying to win the municipal elections by representing the Government as the enemy of religion. We will not permit it. The law does not permit it. and the lawshall be enforced."

Mgr. d'Hulst answered by defying the law. A majority of over 200 voted him down, however; and the Chamber declared its confidence in the Government by a vote of more than two to one.

Early in April, the Bishop of Mende sent out a rather violent circular letter through his diocese, intended for the guidance of voters at the approaching municipal elections, and menacing Republican voters with ecclesiastical penalties. There were serious dis

These scenes in the Chamber were followed by a circular from M. Ricard to the Procureurs-Généraux throughout France, urging vigilance in maintaining order in the churches, and appealing also to the Bishops to stop the use of the churches for political conferences, warning them that otherwise the law would be put in motion. Nevertheless there soon appeared a pastoral letter from the Archbishop of Avignon and the Bishops of Montpelier, Nimes, Valence, and Vi

viers, setting forth the duties of Catholic electors, declaring that "if they fail to vote against candidates hostile to the Catholic faith, they commit a mortal sin," and describing the State schools as nurseries of atheism. Vigorous measures have been taken against the signers of the letter.

About forty of the seventy Royalist Deputies in the Chamber, have is sued a manifesto announcing that they do not hold themselves bound by the Pope's advice to accept the Republic. The manifesto says:

"French Royalists, while respecting the decision of the Pope in spiritual matters, claim for Frenchmen the right of preserving their political preferences The form of government is a question that should be decided by Frenchmen alone. The Papacy has recognized all previous forms of government in France, but it has never called upon the adherents of preceding régimes to forget their fidelity or renounce their hopes.".

This declaration, drawn up by the Duc de la Rochefoucauld, completes that split between Monarchy and the Church in France, of which Pope Leo took the initiative. Its tone indicates that those who signed it are at last convinced that the Royalist hopes are dead.

At the instance of the French Government, the United States Secretary of War, on June 27, issued an order recalling from his post as Military Attaché at the American Legation in Paris, Captain Henry D. Borup, of the Ordnance Department of the United States Army. Captain Borup was suspected by the French authorities of having bought plans of the French defenses, and of having communicated them to Germany and Italy. In response to a demand for explanation from the American Minister, T. Jefferson Coolidge, he admitted having followed the example of all military attachés in paying for secret official documents, getting them from M. Grénier, a clerk in the French Navy Department; but he denied emphatically having communicated anything to Germany or Italy. His course, however, was strongly disapproved by M. Ribot, the French Foreign Minister; and his recall was necessary to prevent a diplomatic breach. His place has been temporarily filled by First Lieutenant Wm. A. Glassford, of the Signal Corps.

Emile Zola has for the third time been defeated for election to the