The Guardian from London, Greater London, England • 4

THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN MONDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1917. 4 LEST WE FORGET. CHRISTMAS DAY TRAMS IN peace, and believes in the way that the Leninites have taken to get it. Kaledix has been defeated and Kostoff has fallen. No manner; of good can be done by armed resistance at the present time.

Two things, and two only, will change the mind of Russia: the failure of the Bolsheviks to secure a peace that is not humiliating to Russia and does not carry some specious democratic look about it, and the defeat of Germany by the Allies in the west. We must make all our plans for winning this war without counting on Russia. What is more, we merely make things worse for ourselves by encouraging armed resistance, which, as things are, is sure to fail, and lays itself open to the re STOP-PRESS NEWS. "MATEX" for Leaky Hoofs. BAXENDALE8 UnZXR ETBEET.

If AKCETBSTES, URGENTLY WANTED, AT ONCE, in the CHURCH ARMY RECREATION HUTS, at Home and Abroad, ONE HUNDRED MEN WORKERS. Applicants must be ineligible for military Bervice, Churchmen, communicants, and willing to serve at least four months in France, nine months in Italy, Egypt, or the East. A SPLENDID OPPORTUNITY TO HELP OUR GALLANT SOLDIERS. Full particulars from the PERSONNEL SECR7TARY, Church Army Headquarters, 55, Bryanston Stroi Marble Arch, London, W. 1.

THE LAND OR REVOLUTION." By H. L. OurBWAITE. M.P. will aly bi by Throwing down Ui Iwrr.rajlf r-etni by Uv.b whi-ft hare made tlw bulk of u.ajtlnd fVinajscrs upon th cuds, tagiUvtm aofl Jr'iK bir'h." A almoin tjutisD of land vsIumm the csiy for 'ho nation.

GFJORIK AT.LFK ft HTOK. 40. Mu.wiim Sttmi. Loudon, W.C 1. Piles JVHlt Fre 1:2.

THE GUARDIAN. MANCHESTER. MOXDAT. DEO. 17, 1917.

SUMMARY OF NEWS. The War. An armistice on the Russian front, to extend until January 14 and to continue nnless renounced, was signed at Brest-Litovak on Saturday the signature was to be followed immediately by negotiations for peace. In Italy the enemy attacks hare gained the Col Caprile, just V-ast uf the Brcnta, but from there to the Piavo have again been withstood. A British destroyer has sunk after heing in collusion, nil on board being saved with the exception of two men.

A British airship has been destroyed by an enemy seaplane in the North Sea a.nd another has been forced to descend in Holland. No events of important have occurred during the week-end on either the British or French fronts. Further British advances in Palestine are re ported, (p. 5) British Labour's War Aims. Tho war aims of th British Labour movement, ns drafted by the Parliamentary Committee of the Trade- Unions Congress and the Executive of the Labour Party for submission to the National Conference to bo held in London on December 23, are published today, (p.

5) Wages Advances and High Prices. The Select Committee on Nntioual Expenditure have issued their second report. They call attention to the effect of advances of wsp- on the prices of commodities, and ex press the opinion that if the process con' tinne.i the insult can hardly fail to be disas trous to all classes of the nation. (p. 8) Correspondence.

Letters piiDiisnea tms morning are: ino Jiciucation tun (Lord Sheffield). "The Unlimited Otfensive" (the Rev. Harold -'The Japanese and Vladivostok" Maurice Copisarow). (P-S) Russia and England. Av armistice between Russia and Germany has now been concluded, and though its terms bavi nut yet been made public, our corre spondent in Russia 6tates, on the authority cf M.

Tisotskt, that tho Germans have accepted the- Russian condition that there should be no transference of troops from east to west. How much that is worth remains to bo soon. The- interpretation sought to be put on this condition at first was that no divisions should be transferred as units from east, to west, but that left the Germans quite free to transfer smaller bodies or to comb out the effectives from the divisions on the east front. In spite of all the talk in the newspapers, one is bound to admit that so far there is very little direct evidence of wholesale transfers. But, however that may oe, it is interesting that the Bolsheviks should have laid such stress on this condition about the transference of troops.

It shows that the Bolshevik Government believes itself to be acting in the interests not of the Rus sian people only but also of all the peoples. Hence its insistence on this condition (for i. wnat is wortni. Also, we expect it to be followed up in the peace negotiations proper by attempt to elicit from Ger many what her conditions would be for a general peace. A good deal of all this may ne only sac tor the Bolshevik conscience must feel about the effects of action on the.

other allies, and especially mi Fiance; but it would be idle and ill-tempered on our part to sneer at the Bol-she viks for applying the salve. Thev mean well, and doubtless intend to do what they can for what they consider to be our interests -Separate armistice?" they say in effect. -No; the terms could have been yours too it yju had been so disposed, and we have dom- our best to prevent the troops "released from our front by the armistice "from being used against you. Separate "peace: No; you will see that we will do our best to get you terms if you care to have them." That is the tray they put to themselves the moral issues" of "their defection. It may be neither honest to themselves nor honourable to us; still, wo moat try to understand it.

It is evident that no party in Russia has the slightest chance of overthrowing the Bolsheviks by violence. We may as well recognise the fact and make thn hoc nf a I uut ab present nearly the whole of the arm; wantej celebration of the Christmas festival will be greatly hampered. The right of the tramway workers to a holiday at Christmas is unassailable; but the right of all of them to the whole of Christmas Day fails when tested by tha needs of the community. The solution lies in a reasonable and worLAIe compromise. Let the employees accept a restricted service, and let those that work on Christmas Day receive compensation at another time (say New Year's Day), as is done in other branches of the public service.

A little reflection would, we think, bring about Bome such decision. Manchester's Opportunity. Manchester this week has one of the most signal opportunities ever given her to strengthen her reputation as a great city It has been remarked with truth that in latter years the corporate spirit of Manchester has suffered from the fact that the coming of the motor-car has spread her wealthier citizens over the hills of Derbyshire and the meadows of Cheshire. Neither for political nor for charitable purposes is she quite the compactly powerful entity that gave the Anti-Corn Law League its backing and ensured that Manchester's contribution to a great national end should rank highest among the British cities outside London. This week she must resume her old place, and the men who make their fortunes under her sombre agis by day and escape it at evening, as well as those of humbler means who have never deserted her, must mlly to see that she does so.

The Tank that stands in Albert Square has for company the statues of great men who have been the head and front of national causes to which Manchester wa3 devoted. Itself the symbol of the most vital cause for which the city's aid has ever been asked. If its mission were to take tribute of the jewellery and ornaments of the people, as has been done in Germany, instead of the benignant one, that vests strangely in so forbidding a monster, of offering a sound investment, wo should still expect the people of Manchester to come in their thousands with their offering. The million invested by Sheffield and Cardiff, the two millions of Liverpool, are figure noteworthy only, as marks to pass. It is on the 3J millions wrung from London by two Tanks that Manchester should fix its attention, and set out to gorge the single Tank that has been sent her with at least a similar sum.

The Finance Committee. If anyone ever had any real doubt as to the necessity for the appointment of a Parliamentary Committee to inquire into the national expenditure, the reports already published the 6econd of them to-day should convince him. Tho control of expenditure rests nominally with the House of Commons, which has, however, abandoned it, since it no longer receives estimates from the war departments, and with tho Treasury, which the Select Committee says exercises only a very slight control compared with what is needed. It appears, indeed, that the ono war department which has exercised a rigorous economy in regard to tho numbers of its staff is that whose business it should be to enforce economy on other offices. The Treasury needs a much larger staff than it had in peace-time in order to enforce economy on the immensely swollen war departments; the Select Committee urges that (after nearly three and a half years of war) the Treasury should "adapt itself to war conditions and begin to exercise the real control that has been its nominal function all along.

The Committee makes a number of valuable suggestions in regard to both Treasury control and the question of cost of living and wages advances. But we must not be content to have reports, criticisms, and suggestions. It is results that wo need, and we expect that the Committee, which now speaks with a higher authority on national expenditure than any other person or body, should carry on its work boldly and persistently in Parliament. OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENCE. (BY PRIVATE WIRE.) Loxdon, Scxdav Night.

M. Tchicherin to be Released. I understand that the Government have taken tha sensible course at last, and agreed the release of M. Tchicherin, the well-known Russian Socialist, who has been interned here for the last two years. M.

Pctroff is already free. The Maximalist Government announced on Saturday that British officials were no longer being refused passports to leave as the British Government had informed them it was prepared to re-examine the question of the detention of M. Tchicherin and M. Petroff The incident indicates the change of attitude in the Foreign Office and an acceptance at last of the facts of the Russian situation. The Debate on Lord Lansdowne's Letter.

Now that the Prime Minister and Mr. Asquith have spoken all the prolegomena, as a Front Bencher expressed it, are before the House of Commons, and the way is clear for a debate on Lord Lansdowne's letter and the whole question of the restatement of war aims. 1 understand that the debate is tn take place on Wednesday. Mr. Asquith has not carried the question much farther, but it i axnecteri that the nt.Vi vuaiuou Liberal leaders will carry it farther on vi npsiar it rnpr nn tint ma KaHni 1 TO 1 ..1 group will.

The debate will be extremely 1 '4. 1 1 1 uiicmiwug, ueuaiue iti mil enow, wnetaer bv "iwii is iiaiu ui iu is Dot saia, wnich wav political rartiei are now mnintinor Thpra is to Via nnnr.Viar rorr AAAWCACaWUlJ usu4j vuie ee. xo-morrow jir. Anderson will open the question of food prices and much exasperation that in one way or siblv the Government mn turn. r- r.

r. 4- L. i oaj uiio ijuesuuju or UlSbTlDUtlon If not of compulsory rationing. Remaining Business of Parliament. To-morrow also Mr.

Jornson-Hicks is to open a debate on the treatment of enemy aliens. Tuesday will be devoted to the Non-ferrous Metals Bill and the National Health Insurance Bill. On Thursday the House of Commons expects to rise for the Christmas recess. On the motion for the adjournment the Prime Minister will make an important speech on the position of the war. The House iriU adjourn till January 14 or 15.

The Lnrds are to take the second reading of the Representation of the People Bill tomorrow and Tuesday, and will then adjourn till about January 3, when they will feeein the Committee stage. 6 The Commemoration of the Seven. It was an unforgettable afternoon. Tint: Tin. worthy of what it commemorated.

Those few i THE TANK ARRIVES. MANCHESTER'S WEEK BEGINS TO-DAY. is Manchester's Tank Week. London, Liverpool, Sheffield, and Cardiff have all had theirs, and have done well. In its fortnight, with the aid of two tanks, London amassed 1 1 about 3J millions sterling; Liverpool, with one tank, has raised over two millions and Sheffield and Cardiff each announce a round million.

Manchester, therefore, will have to invest freely if the Lord Mayorjs hope of regaining the' premier position outside London which the city occupied in the War Loan period is to be" realised. At the present time Liverpool and Birmingham stand higher on tho list. The tank which is to conduct the operations in Manchester is No. 113 the one which monopolised public attention in Liverpool last week and which reached fame as The Messenger in London during the preceding fortnight. It arrived at the Liverpool Road goods station of the London and Northwestern Railway Company on Saturday night, and was followed by Lieutenant Lowe and his crew yesterday morning.

At eleven o'clock it rolled from its long truck into Lower Byrom-Street, where, in the presence of some thousands of interested spectators, a little over nn hoar was occupied in certain tasks of fitting it for the journey through the streets, such ns the swinging out of tho gun embrasures, which had been drawn in, of course, to facilitate the railway running. Its pon-drous progress along Liverpool Road, Deans-gate, and John Dalton Street into Albert Square was quite in tho nature of a triumphal procession, for hundreds walked in front and behind, and the route was lined by more thousands who had come in from all parts of the city to get a glimpse of the monster ns it ought to be seen in motion. At rest, owing to its squat, toad-like form, it is hardly as impressive as some artists of the brush and camera have pictured it. In Albert Square, too, a large crowd which began to assemble three hours before its arrival, and which at the last moment was recruited by streams of folk who had been waiting vainly in Peter Street linpd the barriers around the flags between the Prince Consort memorial and the statue of Bishpp Fraser. Among those who watched it settle into its quarters by the feet of John Bright, was the Lord Mayor (Sir Alexander Porter).

The operations of the tank will begin at eleven o'clock this morning, when, after opening speeches by the Lord Mayor, Mr. C. T. Needham, M.P., and Alderman T. Smethurst from its back, the Lord Mayor will present the first bond for its endorsement.

The rumour that from time to time the tank would take strolls through some of the chief thoroughfares of tho city has no foundation. Two good reasons against such an indulgence are that each time it would necessitate an interference with the ordinary traffic and also with the work the tank is "here to do that of wasting no time in stamping the bonds that are expected to flow in unbroken streams between the hours of ton in the morning and four in the afternoon. As compensation it will have tho company daily of a military band that of the 1st Battalion Manchester Regiment on the first three days and of a body of speakers one of the first of whom, at 12 30 to-day, will be Bishop Welldon. As at Liverpool, too, there will be arranged around it a number of German trophies, in cluding an ammunition belt, a food container, a grenade thrower, a body shield, a stretcher, rifles and pistols, a trench mortar, and a machine-gun on trench mountings. Hints to Investors.

Mr. Arthur Pereira, of the Publicity De partment of the National War Savings Committee, who has charge of the arrangements, informed a representative of the "Manchester Guardian" yesterday that stockbrokers who invest money for clients through the tank will receive their usual commission, jusi as if they made the loans through the ordinary banking channels, and banks themselves will receive the same commission as they would if -they took their customers' money to the Bank of England. Separate provision is made for the convenience of those with Post Office Savings Bank accounts and for those with ordinary banking accounts, and the first named should note that it is not at all necessary for them to draw their money from the Post Office first in order to make a purchase tiie presentation or tne dook will he sufficient. Nor is it necessary for a purchaser to call personally at the tank. Anyone can make a purchase in the name of anybody else, whether thev live near or far.

LIVERPOOL 2.061.012. SATURDAY'S TAKINGS Saturday's investments at the Liverpool tank bank amounted to 369,087, making the total for the week 2,061,012. The tank afterwards made its way to Edge Hill en route for Manchester. Largo crowds of interested spectators and a band of the Border Regiment accompanied St. George's Hall for a considerable distance.

The principal contributions on Saturday were T. H. Dennis and British Insulated and Helsby Cables, Assurance Company, Automatic Telephone Manufacturing Company, Limited, 15,000. Mersey Quay and Railway Carters? and 1,000 from a local firm of flsh merchants. Messrs.

Dennis's investment is the largest sum contributed by any Liverpool firm. Sheffield's Total: 1,305,761. Sheffield was 30,000 short of the million pounds when business began at the tank on Saturday, but in a quarter of an hour the sum upon which the city had setits heart was reached. Speeches were delivered by clergymen and politicians, and vocal and instrumental music was contributed durine thn cuuisb vi vim Xjuuu certincates nave been bought by citizens and given to wounded soldiers in the city hospitals. Among the most sanguine there was a hope that the total would be carried to a million and a half, but when the final statement was issued it was found that the figures were nearly 200,000 short.

Saturday's takings were 335,064, and the total for Cue iui. Cardiff Over the Million Mark. Saturday's receipts at Cardie's tank raised the week's, total to 1,020,000, which represents more than 5 per head of the population of the city. WOMEN'S MEMORIAL TO PEERS. THE THE FRANCHISE BILL.

The following memorial has been sent to members of the House of Lords, before whom the Representation of the People Bill comes for second reading to-day. The memorial is signed by over 500 women who are taking a prominent part in war work of many kinds We, the undersigned women, who with many thousands of others -have welcomed the opportunity of working for our country in time of wlr, profoundly hope that your Lordships will accept those clauses of the Representation of the People Bill which enfranchise a certain number of women. We do not presume to olaim the right of citizenship by virtue of service tendered at' a time when the service of death has dwarfed all other effort. Our claim is based rather upon future needs and upon the practical urgency of representing women's interest and experience in the task of social healing and industrial reconstruction which must follow the conclusion of m. therefore venture to press this view dnrin ia present time of national stress in the belief that the Speaker's Conference report nfrn unique opportunity for ending a bitter controversy in an atmosphere of goodwill.

fortunate enough to be present who were not near kin of the men of the Seven Divisions felt that they were present at a family party at the most illustrious family party ever given. It was altogether dignified, with many moments of real beauty. It suffered a little from the character of its origin, which was a privately organised concern intended to be done on a small scale. The idea, as I have already explained, struck fire in every part of England, and applications poured in to Lady Mary Trefusis and Mrs. Somervell, the honorary secretaries, until it became a great gathering of 700 officers and.

men of the Seven Divisions, and thousands of the kin of those who had fallen, and many great personages attended to do honour to them. The programme was intended for the more specialised audience, and did not provide a great moment for the nomilar outpouring of the emotion of the thousands of men and women of simple stock, but that was the result of events and a consequence or nav- ing first struck so noble an idea. The organ isation, on the whole, was wonderful, but there were some bad blunders in the arrange ments made in the City for lunching the men and taking them by motor-ear to the nau. hen it was clear that many ot them would arrive late the King was telephoned to, and it was arranged that the Royal party should be a quarter of an hour after their appointed time. The Roll-Call of Battle.

The men did not find a vent for their feelings until Lord Derby read the battle-roll of the Seven Divisions. Then they let then-voices be heard in cheering the commanders and units as each name came up. It was characteristic of the race that they only let themselves go when the Roval Amiv Medical Corps and again when Queen Alexandra's nursing service were mentioned, and in tho rather grotpsoue turn affairs took when the Army Pay Department was mentioned. That hard-working unit was welcomed with cries beginning "What about I tried to assess the amount of cheering given to the different commanders, and so far as I could judge Lord French, General tiaig, and trcneral bnuth-liornen received about an equal meed of cheers, and General Allcnby clearlv most of all. The late General Capper, who fell last year, came next to these commanders.

Then would come Ueneral Byng, with General Gough and General Snow close behind. The cheering of the units was spasmodic at first, and the famous Battery did not get its due, but latterly you could tell from the cries in which box their representatives were, and beyond that there was a general cheering which varied a good deal. It was in the reading of the Second Division that the hall became really vocal, the 2nd Coldstreains especially, tho splendid 2nd Worcesters, and the 2nd South Staffords being very loudly cheered. The Third Division was greeted with cheers, including many of the artillery batteries, tho 2nd Royal Scots with a very Edinburgh Hurreh the 2nd Royal Irish with a great scream, while tho 4th Middlesex and tho 4th Royal Fusiliers got cheers with special regimental cries. The Qlory of the West.

The chief cheers in the Fourth Division went to the 1st Warwicks, 1st Hampshires, 1st Rifle Brigade, and especially to the 1st Royal Lancasters and tho 2nd Royal Lancashire Fusiliers. The Fifth Division got greatest acclamations when the. 1st Devons were called out. Some men in the hall could remember the scene on the 31st October, 1914. when the Devons, on being relieved after 16 dnysj of almost continuous fighting, were loudly cheered by the other troops ns they passed through, "a thin but indomitable remnant worthy the old glorv of tho The 1st Royal West Kents.

the "2nd Scottish Borderers, the 2nd Manchnsters, the 1st Bed- fords, and the 1st Dorsets came next. In the Sixth Division the cheers went mostly to the 1st East Kents, the 1st Leices-tershires. the 1st City of London, and the 2nd Welsh Fusiliers, and especially the 1st Middlesex. The "Immortal Seventh" were well cheered, particularly the 1st Grenadiers, the 2nd Scots Guards, "the 2nd Yorkshires, and the 2nd Queen'B. Of course, too, very many of the artillery had each their welcome.

.4 Temple Celebration. A special service was held in the Temple Church this morning to celebrate the deliverance of Jerusalem. An enormous congregation filled the building. Tho Master of tho Temple delivered a noble panegyric on the Order of Knights Templars, whose ancient church is now in the keeping of the two societies of the Temple. He dwelt in glowing terms on their history and example, and paused to consider their ultimate failure.

He drew lessons to enforce the duties of the moment, and made an eloquent plea that in the war we might retain the pure mind tliat inspired the Knights Templars in their sacred warfare for Christ's tomb. I THE CHARGES AGAINST M. CAILLAUX. HIS WIFE'S ALLEGED VISIT TO THE VATICAN. Pahis.

Satttroav. The "Echo de Paris" says that M. Caillaux discussed with calm, before the Parliamentary Committee, the accusations made against him, and asserted that the letters cited were no mora than oolite correspondence. With reeard in that letter praising Almeyreda, the late editor of the Bonnet Kouge," for his article entitled Oh, those English," M. Caillaux said he was merely thanking the author of that article because he was congratulating the British neoDle on having replaced Asquith by Lloyd George.

A 1 A V. r-l If 1 I President, asked M. Caillaux to explain why, in view of what was known of Almeyreda and Bolo, he had been able to maintain such cordial and intimate relations with them up to the last M. Caillaux made no reply. The Figaro says that it appeaTs from the documents in the hands of the prosecution that and that M.

Caillaux urged certain prelates to conduct a campaign for a separate peace by Italy, promising the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with the Vatican. The paper also asserts that a note was received in Paris from the Military Attache in Rome reporting that SI. Caillaux was saying that France was exhausted and was on the point of collapse. The then Minister of War General Lyautey, had to deny these statements! and it was left to the Italian Government to cut short this peace campaign. This afternoon M.

Caillaux was asked to make, clear certain statements regarding his stay Italy. M. Caillaux protested strongly against the intervention the affair of 1L Barrere, the French Ambassador in Rome with whom, he said, he was in disagreement for purely personal reasons. M. Caillaux declared that when in Italy he had never used the expressions attributed to him.

but, on the contrary, had not to affirm his patriotic sentiments. He said that Signor Martini the ex-Minister, would bear him out in this He also quoted in corroboration of his statement a letter which he had received from M. Briand when he was Prime Minister. wiana On leaving the Committee M. Caillaux told a journalist that he had refuted the allegations of the indictment, some of which, he constituted real forgeries.

Beuter. -Uf THE CASUALTIES. 1S9 OFFICERS; 4,594 MEN. The casualty lists issued during the week-end show the following losses Officers: Dead, 51; wounded or missing, 138. Men: Dead, wounded or missing, 3,582.

MANCHESTER. EMPLOYEES REFUSE GENERAL SERVICE. At a meeting of Manchester and Salford tramway workers held yesterday morning at the Victoria Picture Theatre, Ardwick, was resolved that the decision arrived at at a meeting held on November 25, that the orkera decline to work on Christmas Day, be adherea to. Two or three hundred employees were present at the meeting. ft was stated by officials of the Tramway Mens Union after the meeting that It was summoned primarily in order that the workers might be informed as to what had taken place at the Interview a few days ago between representatives of the employees and the officials of the Tramways Committee, and that, eo far as the general question of ceasing work on Christmas Day was concerned, there was no indication that the resolution already arrived at would be amended.

Mr. Davies. one of the representatives of tho workers on the deputation, said the only suggestion that the officials made was that the caT service should begin on Christmas Day at 2 30 p.m., instead of the usual hour in the morning, and that work should then be carried on till or 12 o'clock at night. He pointed out to the tramway managers that that was not a concession which went very far, but he was informed that the managers could not go any farther. Mr.

Davies also read to the meeting a letter from Sir George Askwith, advising that work should be carried on on Christmas Day, butr it had no influence with the employees. The meeting resolved that should any tramway man, woman, or trolley-boy work a car on Christmas Day without permission from a responsible union official, the rest of the members will refuse en Wot to work with them on New Year's Davit was also resolved that whenever it could be shown that cars were needed for munition-workers employed on Christmas Day, a service of cars for them should be run. The Burnley Corporation tramway workers have decided by ballot not to work on Christmas Day. MANCHESTER FOOD SUPPLY. THE QUEUES GROWING.

The supply of butter, margarine, bacon, and tea were distressingly short in Manchester and Salford at the week-end. In some shops the family ration of butter or margarine (the choice wis between the two) was one ounce per head. The queues in the centre of the town were never before so large. A distribution of butter (the second this month) at the rate of one-sixtli of the 1916 consumption will be made this week. NO AlORE MILK CHOCOLATE.

The Food Controller has issued an Order forbidding the use, in the manufacture, of chocolate, of milk, condensed milk, milk powder, dried milk, or any other milk preparation, after to-day. RUNAWAY TRAMCAR WIGAN. AT WOMAN KILLED AND HOUSE FRONT DEMOLISHED. In an accident on the Pemberton route of the Wigan Corporation tramway system on Saturday night one passenger, Mary Gore, of 89, Church Street, Orrell, was killed, and three others were injured. The oar was at the Pemberton terminus, and when the trolley-arm was being changed over for the return journey the car started off down the steep incline towards Wigan at a great speed.

After travelling over a mile the car jumped the lines on the Wigan side of the Union Bridge and crashed through a garden wall into the front of 174, Ormskirk Road, Newtown. The house front was the furniture in the parlour was smashed, and a man named Lane, a visitor to the house, was so badly injured that he had to be taken to the Infirmary. Mary Gore, who was a passenger on the car, received her fatal injuries in jumping off, whereas' another woman passenger, the only one who remained on to the end, had the presence of mind to lie on the flooj of the car and escaped with a few bruises. GERMANY'S PEACE OVERTURE. POLICY THWARTED BY MILITARY INFLUENCES.

Reuter's Agency is informed by Lord Robert Cecil that what purports to he the GeTmam reply to Mr. Balfour's statement in Parliament re garding the German peace overture last Septem ber is quite true. Following the lead of Pre- siuent wnson, threat Britain has been con tinually endeavouring to find out what are Ger many's war aims, and over and over again has endeavoured to get this information by means of Ministerial speeches, but so far without any success. It is, however, utterly untrue to sug gest that any inquiries of a private character have been addressed to the enemy with the knowledge of the British Government. Amsterdam, Satdbdat.

Vorwarts demands that the Government snail communicate to the German people wnat it intended to communicate to the British Government. The paper thinks that this com munication related to Belgium, in view of Baron Kuhlmann's statement in regard to Alsace-Lorraine being the only obstacle to peace It is plainly stated in the Pan-G adds Vorwarts," that the true reason why no German communication was made to England was omitted in the official declaration.such reason ueiug me ujjpuaiwuu ui iiuuiary quarters. The ueruiau ocpie-iuuti puuey was, according to this thwarted by military influences ftr Hmr.tr cided upon at a Crown Council against two most important voices. This statement is calculated to evoke great uneasiness amongst the people and to strengthen the idea in enemy countries that the responsible German Government is not master of the situation, and that, therefore no weight can jbe attached to its declaration 'and those of the Reichstag. We cannot hoi.

Ithat a general peace might have been nearer more astuteness and energy." -a The "Frankfurter Zeitung" says- It is any rate worth something that Great nHfnft. at least formally declares ner read," ess fKch discussions. It appears to ns that Germany not in a bad position if she takes Mr Balfour'? statement as it was made and gives him an opportunity to put bis words in Parliament into action. The 'Geraiania" looks about for means of concludes: The most important o' be first to establish, whether the matter cannot ALLOWANCES FOR SOLDIERS' CHILDREN. AN.

INCREASE OF TWENTY PER CENT. Addressing a meeting arranged by the Asv ciation of Discharged Soldiers' and Sailor. Brighton -yesteraay, air. John Hodge, M.P. Pensions Minister, said he hoped in the course of a few weeks to issue a new Pensions Warrant which would bring joy to the mother with children.

The children's allowance would be increased at any rate by 20 per cent, and he believed the mothers would then have a real chance of bringing up the children ina way. Thevnew warrant would also make provision there would be no break between the army allowance and the pension. 'J IN MEMORY OF THE SEVEN DIVISIONS. LOJTDOX, SATCF.nAT. In the great' retreat from Mons, when the men of the old army were driven fighting bloodily, with the old military ord.

of things tumbling in thunder about their heads, and wounded and exhausted soldier when they could snatch an hour of sleep, woke up hoping that it had all been a dream, their thoughts must have been as nnd immediate as their actions. I ham never met one of those soldiers who remember any connected thought at tho tiiiv except that the folk at home didn't knew what a time they were having, and that it would be all right vet. To-day, as one sat in the Albert TT.i!! along with seven hundred of these- true mon. with the kin of those who had fallen or afterwards in other battles when th mighty new armies of Britain had come int.) tho war, and heard tho really significant nr, beautiful service that had been prepared, there was no sign of what tho soldien thought, or what the many elderly men or the women, young and old, of all degree.) sitting there the English way. almost witl--out expression, thought, ns Newholt's "Fare, well" to the dead fighters in Stanford's beautiful setting sounded through the hall, or as Mr.

Balfour read the commemoration from Ecclesiasticus And some there be which have no memorial, who perished as though they never been, and have become as though they had never been born, and their children after them. But these were merciful men whoso righteousness hath not been forgotten. Their seed standeth fast and their children for their sakes. Their bodies are buried in peace, but their name liveth for evermore. Mr.

Balfour read the words finely, and thern was an echo in the hall that repeated them sharply almost as he spoke. But the word were quite distinct, and the effect was very curious, as though the world outside was repeating and confirming the words. The soldiers in their separate boxes, cantai.is and corporals side by side, sat bolt upright, looking straight before them, and on the gallery front below and above them new silken banners bearing the arms and achievements of tha regiments hung before them, as banners bang in old churches before the effigies of knights. Some of the soldiers, many of them in hospital blue, sat below in the body, of the hall, and others sat in the upper tiers, some of them in nonchalant positions with their legs hanging down. Many of the relatives were in black, some in now mourning, and people wero mixed together on the floor of the hall, ladies of Loudon society and women cf humble life.

The great- folk were in the grand tier, the King and the Queen and Queen Alexandra in the centre. Lord French and Admiral and many other 'great commanders were present. Thero were many nurses who had gone out to the war in the beginning, and other nurses attending the maimed The gathering was representative of these islands, of all classes and of all parts. The public in the usual sense of the word were absent ony the soldiers of the Seven Divisions and their relatives and the choir and orchestra were there. It was intimate a gathering as comradeship and one burning common association could make it.

But it was very striking that even there there was' no outward sign of emotion. French or Italian officers and soldiers on such an occasion would have found personal expression in gestures, in embraces and cries. One could have imagined an ode by D'Annunzio or words of fire lightninged by Clemenceau. But this commemoration was as characteristic as what it commemorated. The stubbornness of the men who heldYpres through the momentous days when they were outnumbered by ten to one was just as successful in fighting back their emotions to-day.

There was not a sob heard from any soul in that hushed hall, even when the music was probing every heart, and every man's thoughts must have been of their dead comrades and the women of their dead husbands and sons and lovers. Oh, little force that in your agony Stood fast while England girt her armour on these words in Miss Bf ice's sone. intensely moving as they must bo to the public, would hardly affect the men who wero that little force. But Stanford's "Farewell" was different as Mr. Plunket Green's voice gave it in all its beauty.

The service took its highest flight in Whitman's Towards the unknown region," to Vaughan Williams's music Darest thou now, soul, walk out with me into the unknown region Where neither ground is for the feet nor any path to follow 1 The other pieces were Elgar's "Cockaigne" Overture, tho London before the war, and Parry's "There is an old belief" came after the solo "To the vanguard." The Order of Battle. After Mr. Balfour had. read from Ecclesiasticus Lord Derby, read from the platform the Order of Battle of the First Seven and as the names of the great commanders were read out there were continued cheers. The pipes were heard skirling outside, and before the reader came to the units of the the pipers entered the hall at the back under the Royal box- and marched down tho steps and through the centre and round the hall and out again.

They played the old Border war-song "Blue Bonnets Over the Border." The pipers were the famous pipers of the Scots Guards, with tho Royal Stuart tartan on their ktfts. The terribly insistent war music of the pipes, coming after the hushed commemoration hymn, was a wild reminder that the war was still on and that the army was not hack again at Mons. Lord Derby real well, and as the names of the cavalry squadrons, the artillery batteries, and the infantry unite of the First Seven Divisions were cried out a response came, as in a liturgy, from the soldiers in tho boxes and in the gallery Lancashire voices, Yorkshire voices, London voices, Scottish Lowland voices and Scottish Highland voices, and high tosh voices, and penetrating voices from Wales. They answered for themselves, and for their comrades, and it was strange to think that this great hall could have been filled over and over again if the dead of the Seven Divisions could have come back to fiU it. The service ended with the sounding of the reveille.

J.It.wa? beautiful, and altogether dignified affair. There has been nothing like it England before, as there has beeS nothing before tha so demanded it. Much gratitude i felt to those responsible for it, and to the Bach Choir and the Royal Albert Choral Society, and to all who assisted in lt' J. B. LABOUR TO CONTEST WIGAN.

The party bavin decide mntest the borongfc of Wigan "at the next election, a. special, conference of delegates Tnr9intmr :14000 local trade union membera wasfheld on artdreMes by three nominees--Jar. Albeit Hui)nnTr tb o.Mi rf Bailwavmen; ftr. B. O.

iAiSSSml of BnSieers; and Mr. Wigan mmers' gaeeigmnan jmd leader of the Labour party mTJ Wii Town Council. a labour candidate to a later date. proach of causing useless bloodshed. The Bolsheviks are beginning to terrorise all who do not agree with their point of view, and their excuse is that the Cadet party, which is their most formidable enemy, has been encouraging rebellion.

The charge may be unjust, and even if it were true would not justify the later excesses of the Bolsheviks; but though the Russians must be the judges of their own party policy, there is every reason why we should not allow ourselves' to be comnromined hnr TiJr mistakes! We cannot take part in the internal politics of Russia except to make worse mischief; and that being so. we should be wise to abstain, to accept facts as they are, and to treat the Bolshevik Government as the only one that is representative of Russia in her present mood. There is reason to think that the British Foreign Office is learning by experience. The remarkable declaration by Sir George Bvchanax recently is believed to have reflected the views of Mr. Baifour, and it is now understood that TcHrrcHERiNE, the new Ambassador to Lon don, now in Brixton Gaol, is to be released It is a wise decision, and it will help to undo some of the misohief that has been done.

The only possible policy with a Power with which you wish to be on friendly terms is to accept da facto Government as the real one, and to treat it as the repre sentative of public opinion until new facts show that it is not. We negotiated with the late Tsar's Government although we did not approve of Its political principles and methods, and we west do the same with the present Government. There is a further danger: that antagonism to the present Government in Russia can do no practical service to the principles of action that we should prefer to see adopted, and may do incalculable harm. What do we suppose is going to happen if the present Government of Russia goes into conference with the Germans feeling that its late allies are unsympathetic and would injure it if they could We must not count on Germany's aggressive spirit to prevent an agreement from being reached in the negotiations. No one knows how far the Germans are prepared to go in their concessions to the national pride of Russia, but it would not be in the least surprising if she gave Poland and Courland the nominal independence for which Russia is asking.

There are many ways of conceding the letter of these political demands and denying the and the Germans ore wise enough to prefer the reality to the forms of power. They may give the appearance of independence to Poland and Courland, and content themselves with securing the real conquest by means of pacific penetration. They may put it this way to the. Russian delegates nt the Peace Conference: "We ore prepared to "meet your wishes with regard to the future political status of these But there is more in human than politics. We have both of us to "live, and it is as necessary to us as it is to you that your industry, and especially "your transport services, should be organised, and that we should be in a position to resist any attempts by your allies to estab-" lish a commercial boycott after the war.

Moreover, your political position depends "on your doing something effectual to cope "with the prevailing distress. Let us help you. Give us control of your transport services, with power to reorganise them for our mutual advantage. Let us make a treaty of commerce which will defeat any "attempts made later to set up a commercial boycott." That would he a formidable line of attack upon us. If we want to make it easy for Germany, wo will sympathise with rebellion and miss no opportunity of attacking the motives and the patriotism of the present Government.

If we want to make it hard, we will sympathise with Russia and show our sympathy in every way that is practicable, and if we cannot sympathise with the present holders of power we will at any rate treat them with respect as the representatives of Russia until such time as Russia herself changes her way of thinking and makes a new Government. The first duty of our diplomacy is to make it hard for Germany to develop this particularly dangerous hue of attack on our interests. We cannot prevent Russia from concluding peace if 6he wishes we can prevent her from forming a friendship with Germany that will have a point directed against ourselves. Tramcars on Christmas Day. The Manchester tramway workers have tesolved to hold to their decision to work no cars on Christmas Day, except such as can be shown to be needed for munition workers.

They have done this in spite of Sir George Askwith's advice, which confirmed the opinion expressed by the Committee on Production when the question was raised a Year ago. They say that they are as much entitled to this holiday as any other class of workman. But the point, surely, is that the other publio services, with which alone the tramway workers can be compared, do not in fact obtain this holiday, except as to a part of the employees. The tramway workers apparently ignore all those who to maintam the public services railways, telephones, street lights, post, and so forth forgo their claim to the day, and many of whom, if the trams are not running, will have their work impeded and delayed, They have failed to realise that if no cars run the reunion of manv familioc 1 ui nkT workers (and of those working people with' whom they claim equality) will be maA possible; that soldiers arriving on iMri aiter weary journeys wui have in reaching their homes; that soldiers from tne nome hospitals will never tret tn hospitality or entertainment arranged for them that many children to whom the day is precious win oe condemned to spend it in disappointment; and that the public.