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\ : THE OSHAWA DAILY TIMES, | PACESHNE hronicle of World Events in 1928 CANADA UNITED STATES i EUR OPE GREAT BRITAIN Optimism, intelligent optimism, was the note of 1928 in Canada. The the Canadian-people that the northern part: of the-American continent was due to have its "innings" was reflected in every phase of ndeavor in the Dominioy/ The western grain fields yielded a magnificent , fhefe was vast expansion in industry, nuneral production was largely rt trade camditions were highly encouraging. The trend of events during the Jear seemed to be entirely in Canada's .ndavor. There were no disturbing political struggles, o part of the country 4a VAS faced with any serious labor problem, and the big questions which did !Aforce themselves upon the people and upon the government for considera- tion were met, not with despair, but with complete confidence in their ulti- mate satisfactory solution. , bile ¢ question which provoked greatest discussion, and which forced itself into both official and public considerajon most persistently was that of immigration, There were 'ew indeed who would state that some sort of effort to increase Canada's population by encouragment of immigration sswas not required. But there was a variety of opinion as to wlather unrestricted immigration of all classes, types and races should be encvuraged, or that immigration 3 should be carefully controlled so those of Britgsh stock should always pre- "dominate by a large majority There were {ow however, who would not =addmit that British stock was infinitely to be preferred and the concensus of opinion appeared to be that in co-operation avith British authorities and organizations immigration from the British Isles should be made easy _while immigration of other "Nordics" should, to a lesser extent, be encour- #"aged, Understanding between Britain and Canagla on the question of im- migration was undoubtedly furthered by visits to 'Canada during the year of . several outstanding Britishers, iss he A Lord Lovat, Chairman of the British Empire Settlement Board, Canada's pttitude was expressed in , England by Premier King and Premier Ferguson of Ontario, both of whom "Pyisiteéd the old country during the year, The importation of some 10,000 British mimgrs to help harvest the Western crop aroused a storm of criticism and at the same time not a little raise, It was necessary to send a few hundreds af the miners back home "but it would be too early yet to decide whether or not the experiment was "a failure, Then toward the end of the year came an announcement from Britain the effect of which will not be felt for some months. Through co- operation of the British Government with the transportation companies it «was. arranged that the "$50 to Canada rate" heretofore enjoyed by agri- cultural workers would be extended to include inupigrants of all classes from the British Isles. "Canada's Status" "Canada's position within the Empire" was algo a much discusscd subject. during the year. It would be difficult to attempt to interpret thought ..on this subject without expression of opinion so it must suffice to point out one or two significant actions of the Piberal Government. In pursuance of the policy announced when a Canadian Legation' was cstablished at * Washington, the Government announced that there womld be an exchange --of Ministers Plenipotentiary between Canada and Framce and Canada and Japan, Hon. Phillip Roy, Canadian Trade Commission at Paris was raised to the position of Minister Plenipotentiary but the Japanese appointment has not yet been made. Then as a result of the deciston at the Imperial "Conference that the Governor Gencral of Canada was directly the fepre- sentative of the Crown and not the British Governmest, a British High . Commissioner for Canada was appointed and Sir William Clark was re- ceived at Ottawa at the end of September. Canada Signs Pact Of equal significance was the fact that Canada, unlilse the other Do- minions of the Empire was not content that Great Britain should act for Lt her 'at the signing of the Kellogg Peace Pact. Canada's Prime Minister -.journeyed to Paris on that occasion to add his signature to that of the Great Powers, : St. Lawrence Waterways The large body of opinion in Canada which hopes for the development of the St. Lawrence Waterway saw many hopeful signs during the year. Chief among them was the election of Herbert Hoover, avasved champion -. of joimt action with Canada in the scheme. ' : Distinguished Visitors LF Canada was honored by the visit in January of the Rt. Han. L. C. M. S, ~ Amery, Secretary of State for the Dominions in the British Cabinet and _.in November, of Rt. Hon. Sir Austen Chamberlain, British, Foreign Secre- ""tary. Canada was also the scene of the meeting of the British Parliamen- "tary Association attended by delegates from all over the Empinc, : Provincial Elections Two provincial elections were held in Canada during the yemr and both »*resulted in victories for the Conservatives. On July 18, the Liberal Goy- =ternment of British Columbia under Premier J. PD. MacLean was defeated ...at the polls. On Oct, 1, the Conservative Government of Premier E. N, ...Rhodes of Nova Scotia was sustained by a close margin of three scats. = "The Government won 23 of the 43 seats contested. A decisive sgep in the government administration of Nova Scotia was taken March 2 when the Legislative Council was abolished, the measure taking effect on March 31. & Ontario Mine Disaster ed Thirty-nine men lost their lives in the greatest mine disaster in ..Canadian history when fire broke out on the morning of Feb. 10 in a , disused stope in the workings of the Hollinger Consolidated Mines, Limited, 'at Timmins, Ont, : An official enquiry was immediately ordered by the Provincial amthori- 'ties and in his published report on May 23, Mr. Justice Godson found the «disaster was duc to the disjointed system of control in the mine, Manasoo Wreck Fifteen members of the crew and one passenger of the Manasoa, be- longing to the Owen Sound Transportation Company, lost their lives when the vessel foundered in Georgian Bay early Saturday morning, Sept. 15. Five men including the master, John McKay of Owen Sound, were saved. An inquiry failed to reveal the exact causc of the tragedy although it was suggested water had cntered the hold in some manner which caused the boat to list and finally capsize. The Coroner's jury absolved the offacers = and~zrew of negligence. The Manasoo was formerly the Macassa of the .Canada Steamship Lines which plied between Toronto and Hamilton, Wheat Pool Conference Intra-Empire trade was strongly emphasized at the International Wheat Pool Conference which opened at Regina on June 5. Equal stress was laid z:on the principle of co-operation in the belief that the hope of the future, due to present world conditions, depends on the overthrow of competition. Delegates were present from the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, United: States, Italy, Argentine and Russia: - ~ «== 'Canada at the Olympics At the ninth revival of the Olympic Games, which opened at Amster- dam on July 28, Canadians made the best showing that has been made by "anadian representatives in recent years. A contingent of six girls accom- . panied the athletes for the first time. By equalling the record and winning the 100 metre race and by winning the 200 metre race, Percy Williams i brought honor to his country and native city of Vancouver, while Jimmy i Balu ot Winnipeg gave a good performance in the 400 metre finals. Four Toronto girls won the 400 metre relay and the high jump was won by Ethel Catherwood of Saskatoon. ; Governor General's Carpets In the warmest battle of the final session in the Canadian House of Commons, the Conservatives and the Laborites joined. forces in fighting a . proposal to spend $70,000 in providing carpets and curtains for the Quebec . Citadel, part time residence of the Governor General of Canada. The or- iginal item was for $150,000. The amendment to thc resolution was de- 8! Adncreased 'and 1eports "n expo pgs: » ~ * feated by a vote of 75 to 64. Election of Herbert Hoover as President of the United States on November 0, followed a campaign which, for many reasons, will Be marked as one of the greatest cam- paigns in American history. In the first place the candidates selected by both parties constituted some departure from precedent, Mr, Hoov- er will be the first resident of the White House who had never pre. viously stood for any office in the gift of the electorate. Alfred L, Smith, the Democratic nominee was not only the first Roman Catholic to seek clection as President of the United States but he the first who could be describe as repre. senting that strata of the population which gains expression through Tam- many Hall in New York, Naval Appropriations In contrast with the steps toward international peace which were sug- gested by the United States was th naval construction bill suggested be | the Administration, Congress was to be asked for $740,000 for some 25 cruisers, Mr, Coolidge, himself, was largely responsible for having the Naval Committee cut the amount to $240,000 for 15 cruisers and one air- craft carrier but even this failed to secure the approval of Congress which voted only the year's naval appropriations, Coolidge Talks On the cve of his departure from the White House, "Silent Cal" Cool- idge, President of the United States, belied his famous title when on the tenth anniversary of the signing of the Armistice he took Europe to task and strongly asserted that Europe's refusal to disarm would compel United States to increase the mna- tion's armaments, Passing scathing criticism, he charged that at the abortive Geneva conference Britain proposed "not a limitation but an ex- tension of war fleets," The Franco- British compromise proposal, Cool- idge epitomized as one to "limit the kind of cruisers and submarines adaptable to the use of the United States," but to leave "without limit the kind adaptable to their use." Touching on, war and foreign loans, he severely criticized the attitude of "the needs of our that any further advances by wus must have most careful considera, tion," Widespread feeling was aroused by the Presidential address, F ellog The. United States Secretary of State, Mr. Frank B, Kellogg, durin 1928 assumed the role of worl "peacemaker" which had been held by Sir Austen Chamberlain in the previous year swing to his activity in connection with the Locarno pact, The attention of the world was first directed toward Mr, Kellogg when he announced in February that his Government would be willing to si a treaty with all the Powers prohib- iting the use of submarines entirely, And then he became a world figure later in the year when his "Kellogg Pact" was accepted by all the Great Powers. Pan-American Conference Pan- .merican union was undeni. ably strengthened and much of the suspicion was cleared away at the sixth' Pan-American . Conference which opened at Havana, Cuba, on January 15, with delegates from 21 Central and South American Re- public's present. Compulsory Arbitra. tion was fully discussed but definite action was left for a further meeting at Washington, The Conference was opened by President Coolidge, who, when he arrived with a warship es- cort at Havana, set foot for the first time since his» election as President, on foreign soil. One feature of the Conference was the defense offered by Charles Evans Hughes of the action taken by the United States in Nicaragua, Nicaragua Trouble Settled Through United States interven. tion order was restored in Nicaragua and "General" Sandino, the rebel leader was checked. After many dif- ficult sessions of the Nicaraguan Par- liament, General Jose Moncado was elected President on Nov. 4 in an election held under the supervision of the United States Marines, The intervention of the United States caused widespread indignation not only in South America but in the the Curopean mations and warned| ple required yn As the year drew to a close the ree big statesmen who wove the ocarno peace pact came together at ugano, Switzerland, in an effort to show one another and the world that the spirit of Locarno still animated Europe, _ Sir Austen Chamberlain, British. Foreign Secretary, Aristide Briand, French Foreign Minister and Gustav Stresemann, German Minister of Foreign Affairs, the latter still convalescent from a recent illness met on the eve of the filyy-third session of the council of the League of Na- tions, Statesmen gathering for that event admitted that they were dis- turbed and anxious over the Europ- ean political situation. The question of the evacuation of the Rhineland area by Allied troops was the chief cause of anxiety. The German statesman appeared to be disappoint- ¢d in recent parliamentary remarks concerning the Rhineland evacuation but he was assured by 'both the French and British representatives that that Jrogedute was already be- ing studied, Persistent difficulties in the matter of control and reduction of armaments also caused apprehen- sion in international circles while a speech made by Premier Mussolini in which he stated that the whole world was arming and Italy must therefore prepare served to emphas- ize the fact that some understanding between the nations was greatly to be desired, On the whole however, the year saw Europe reach a condition some- what approaching the normal and perhaps even take a step forward. Polish and Lithuanian tempers con. tinued to flare up at frequent inter. vals but the outbursts never had very serious result. In Poland Mar- shal Pilsudski began to receive more vigorous opposition and in: the late spring= he resigned the Premiership retaining only the portfolio of Min- ister of War, ; In the Scandinavian countries there was little to mar the even tenor of their course although Nor- way was called upon to weather 2 political storm when a radical gov- ernment succeeded a labor socialist ministry which lasted only two weeks. Roumania ; After 50 years of almost uninter- rupted rule by powerful capitalistic United States, Japan Gladly the Japancse people pour- ed oot a million dollars a day or its equivalent for sixteen days tc enthrone the "Son of Heaven" the Emperor Hirohito, More than four millions was spent on acw equipment for railways, lighting tclegraphs, CANADA'S 93,000,000 bushels over that of las telephones, telephoto and radio, Temporary buildings imimitating those of bygone days had to be cs- pecially constructed for the cere monies at Kioto, ancient capital of | Japan, ; | Hirohito is the first modern Em- peror of the Island Kingdom, the first to emerge from the impenetrable seclusion which has surrounded every Japanese Emperor for many centur- tes. The new Emperor plays tennis, rides horseback and experiments in his own biological 'aboratory. In 1921 | he broke all Japanese precedents by | travelling for two months in Europe | where he was much imp-essed by the relative democracy of the western princes and by the parliamentary system. He came to the throne of {Japan at a time of grave economic depression and widespread discon- tent, China Civil war has come to an end and China has turned a corner leaving strife behind and heading toward re- construction. There are few parallels in modern history to the tremendous undertaking of the Nationalist Govt. but under the guidance of the once general, now president, Chiang Kai-Shek ten executive departments are squarely facing the problems of swollen arm- ies, unification of their country, fin- ances, and foreign relations. Unification of the country has not yet been accomplished but the power of the great war lords has been brok- a The last of them, Chang Tso L# was killed by a bomb as he was fieing from Pekin for his home Province of Manchuria before the oncoming Nationalist Army. That Army captured Pekin on June 8 and soon after Chiang Kai Shek resigned command declaring the military phase of tle revolution to be over. A cen- tral Government, the core of which is the sdlf-appointed Central Executive Comngittce of the Kuomintang party and is run along the same lines as the Soviet committees, was established Total wheat production ...,.. 4 Total oats production ...ss.s Total barley production ..,.. Total all rye production Total mixed grains production Total flaxsced production "Decrease, figures which are just issued for Gold Copper .. Nickel Silver .. 1928 has shown a great increase in production of all crops in Canada. Not only has the total harvest for the year increased oats, barley and flaxseed exceeded last year by 32,500,000 bushels. Comparative figures of production are Bush. 1927 439,712,700 96,938,000 14,950,600 37,621,500 Lumber production figures for 1927-8 decided increase for the past few years. produced in 1926 was $101,071,260.00. : Comparative figures for Mineral productions for the two years ending June, 1927, and June, 1928, are as follows :-- June 30, 1927 $17,840,434.00 9,750,634.00 8,008.823.00 0,612,833.00 HARVEST t year but exportations of wheat, iven below :-- Bush. 1928 Increase 500,613,000 437,505,000 134,452,000 14,625,800 36,655,000 3,499,000 2,207,700% 37,514,000 324,800% 966,500% 1,385,600 40,024,700 4,884,600 are not available but of 1925-6 show a very the years The value of lumber Increase $ 893.581.00 2.819,026.00 2,616,879.00 333,049.00% June 30, 1928 $18,734,015.00 12,569,660.00 10,625,702.00 6,279,784.00 Total production of all metals ,.... "Decrease. $56,468,412.00 $62,967,411.00 Kai Shek was clected President of the Chinese Republic, Then the Gov- ernment proceeded toward the cs- tablishment of Dr. Sun Yat Sen's three principles of national unity, in- ternational autonomy and economic reconstruction. One of 'the first steps in the reconstruction program was the appointment of Dr. Edwin W. Kemmerer of Princeton University who has handled similar jobs for other nations, to reform China's cur- rency, taxation system and banking. At the same time the Nationalist Government named Henry Ford, Jeremiah W. Jenks, Owen D. Young, Robert N. Harper, and Edwin R. A, Seligmann, all American financiers, to act as "honorary economic advis- ers." Extreme tension between the Nationalist Government and Ja- pan developed in the spring over Ja- pan's rights in Manchuria and Japan rushed troops to that Province. By the end of the year the tension was relieved to some extent but Japan still maintained a small force in China and her warships were kept in at Nanking and on October 9 Chiang neighboring waters. 1 BRITISH EMPIRE Commission" taking that name from ! Irish Free State With taxation still high, trade de- , pressed, unemployment rife in the ; towns, and the farmers struggling : against fearful odds, vet the most pessinustic in the Irish Free State will admit that conditions are better than hopeful. Mr. Cosgrave, although ' he had only a precarious majority in the Dail was able to enact pro- gressive legislation and to improve largely the financial position of the State. In February Mr. Healy was . succeeded as Governor General by - Mr. James McNeill. Although it did not abandon its attitude of faithful- + mess to the ideal of full and com- plete independence for Ireland, the Fianna Fail under Mr. de Valera , found it necessary to curb most of , its activities. In June de Valera made i one attempt at change when he pre- i sented a petitibn signed by more : than 75000 voters calling for the de- i letion from the Constitution, of the Oath of Allegiande to the i . India Most of the important events of the vear in India centred around the Statatory Commission. or as it is more commonly called the "Simon : i i King. {in "reconfiling its chairman Sir John Sion. The pu. jose of the Commission is to re- p -t to what extent it would be de- sirable to extend, modify or restrict the degree. of responsible Govern- ment. There were many things in connection with - the Commission which did not meet favor with the Nationalist sentimett in India and the result was boycotting and form- entation of unrest which tended" to obscure the healthy progress of In- dia in many directions. South Africa Local British Governments in Af-| rica were faced with a grave prob- lem during the past year in the one matter of race. In speaking of Kenya, which is claimed to be fairly rep- resentative of a large proportion of Africa, one who is quoted as an authority states the problem exists the ds an In South Africa therc has been drastic action on the part of the government which resulted in a greater repression of the natives and the strengthening of the color bars. A split in the Government was fol- lowed by the resignation of the Hert- zog Cabinet. The incident was prac- tically closed with the almost im- mediate reformation of the cabinet. The African tour of, the Prince of Wales and his brother, the Duke of Gloucestor, which was cut short by the illness of their Royal father, in Nov., created widespread interest. Australia Confidence in the coalition govern- ment headed by Premier Stanley Bruce was cxpressed by the electors of Australia when the government was returned for the third successive term at the general elections of Nov. 17. The majority in the House of R wes was reduced by sev- needs of an affluent employer class, directly represented in the legisla ture, and the 2500000 inhabitants, agricultural 'and pastoral, whose la- bor is the mainspring of the coun- try's prosperity." eral members while large labor gains were registered in New South Wales. Sept. 3 saw the opening of Euch- aristic Congress by Cardinal Bona- ventura. i was placed in the throes of a gen- eral dock strike that paralyzed ship- ping in the various ports. Serious rders accompanied the strike which lasted for several days. New Zealand : Prohibition was defeated by a nia- jority of 100,000 and the government forces under J. G. Coates, Prime Minister, suffered a severe setback in the New Zealan ions of Nov. 14. The final standing was, Govern- ment 28, United Party 26, Labor 22 and Independents 6. The premier's party failed to gain a single seat but held 53 of the 80 seats in the last parliament. Defeated in the House cf Repre- sentatives on 2 motion of mon-cou- fidence, the Government of Premier Coates resigned on Dec. 7. Sir Joseph Ward, leader of the newly formed United Party, who was Prime Min- ister from 1906 to 1912, was immed- iately asked to form a Government by Sir Charles Ferguson, Governor General of the Dominion. The new Prime . Minister has been in public and landed interests, greater Rou- mania with its agrarian population of 16,000,000, on Nov. 9 passed into the hands of the peasant government under Juliu Manju. Aggressive tac- tics were first employed early in May when 5000 members of the peasant party, led by Maniy, began a march on Belgrade with a demand for a change in government. The march of the peasants was harried by government cavalry and planes ready to bomb the members of the dele- gation on the orders of the official party. An important feature of the Roumanian situation was brought be- fore the attention of the public when on May 7, Prince Carol was ordered to leave England on the grounds of using English territory as the centre of an intrigue against a friendly gov- ernment. While the following day, the' Transylvanian passes leading in- to old Roumania were blocked to the advance of the peasant party by order of the official government, the movement rapidly grew in strength until the objective was reached in November. What appeared to be 2 serious po- litical crisis in Bulgaria developed on Nov. 23 when the Bulgarian Govern- ment began rushing large contingents of troops to reinforce the Sofia gar. rison against the approach of eral Ivan Michailoff, leader of the Macedonian revolutionary party. On the same date, the Bulgarian Legit mist Party proclaimed Archduke Otto, son of Ex-Empress Zita, as King of Hungary. On the ground that it not only jeopardized the peace of Bulgaria but the Balkans as well, Great Britain and France demande that Bulgaria take steps to stop in- ternal strife within the country's borders. Domestic difficulties appeared to keep the Soviet fully occupied dur- ing 1928. With Joseph Stalin at the head of the ers at Moscow they beut every effort toward crushing any attempt on the part of the Trots- ky supports to recover power. Leon Trotsky himself was sent into exile and departed for East Russia on January 18. Later reports reached European points to the effect that several regiments of the Bolsheyist Army had mutinied in support of the Trotsky faction but if the reports were correct the uprising was evi- dently quickly quelled. life since 1887 when he entered par- liament as a Liberal member for Early in Sept. the commonwealth | Awarus \ In September Russia, celebrated | the centennial of the 'birth of Count i Lyo - Tolstoi--September 9, 1828 d | negotiating treaties first with Italy, France Certainly the most important event of the year in France was the stabi- lization of the Franc, New gold coins were struck and the franc was stabilized at a fixed amount in fine gold--something like one-fifth of its value before the war. As before the currency continued to be mainly a paper one. This action was prob- ably the direct zeal of the General Election in which- M, Poincare was triumphant, for the victory made his hitherto uncertain position more se. cure, The general election took place on April 21, and the Poincare cabinet which represented all shades of opinions in the Chamber of Deputies celebrated its second anniversary in August, However, when the French Parliament reassembled carly in No- vember it was without a Cabinet. Four Radical Socialist members of the Government under pressure from the Radical Socialist congress re- signed and Premier Poincare at once sent his resignation to the President, But he was persuaded to carry on and on Nov. 1 he formed an. other Cabinet disregarding the Ra. dical Socialists, Germany As far as domestic affairs are con- cerned the general election in Ger- many held the centre of public in- terest and it was, in, fact, of extreme importance, When in February the coalition Government was broken up by dissensions, a general election be- came imperative but the Goyernment headed by Chancellor Marx decided to remain in office so that the budget could be passed. The election was held on a Sunday, May 20, and re- sulted in gains for the Social-Demo- crats while the two or three other important parties suffered losses. When the new Reichstag assembled at the middle of June Chancellor Marx resigned and President Hin- denburg called upon Hermann Muel- ler, leader of the Social-Democratic party to form a cabinet which he suc- 'ceeded in doing by the end of that month, Dr, Stresemann retained his portfolio of Foreign Minister, During the year Germany contin- ued to urge the evacuation of the Rhineland by the Allied Troops and there appeared to be some move- ment in that direction. As far as Germany's foreign relations were concerned the signing of the Kellogg treaty by Dr. Stresemann oversha- dowed everything else of importance. His reception in Paris and his re- ceipt of the Grand Cross of the Le- gion of Honor at the hands of the President of France would scem to have ended the "black" affair of 1914. The question of reparations during 1928 remained a very involved one. On Sept, 1, for the first time since the adoption of the Dawes Plan, Germany was required to meet the standard annuity under that plan-- | about $600,000,000. Germany will be {able to pay that amount but claims | that she would be unable to con- | tinue payment of the maximum an-| { nuity. With the hope of organizing | some such plan as the sale of a huge amount in German bonds to the in- ternational investing public, Winston Churchill, British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Premier Poincare of France and Parker Gilbert, Agent General for Reparations Payment met in Paris on October 19 and de- cided to turn the questions of the reparations payment over to an in- ternational committee of bankers on which committee Germany would have representation. Italy Another step toward depriving the clected representatives of the people of all power of initiating or even sanctioning legislation was taken by Premier Mussolini and his associates in May. Late in 1927 universal suf- frage had been abolished and in May "Il Duce" produced another electoral law, which, although it .reccived strong opposition in the Chamber was passed finally with a comfortable majority. This last law was passed in view of the general elections which will take place in 1929, and then 400 names chosen by the Fascist Grand Council will be submitted to the people for election. The people may vote only yes or no. If they do say no another list of names chosen in the same manner and for that reason also supporters of Mussolini will be submitted and the people will vote again. There was little to ruffle Italy's foreign relations during the year. A storm cloud did appear on the hori- zon when the question of ratifying certain conventions made between Italy and Jugo Slavia in 1925 but it was soon dispersed. Treaties dec- signed to remoye possible causes of friction were signed during the year with Turkey and with Greece. Greece When in May Premier Zaimis and his cabinet re and Venizelos again took over the reins of office to check Greece's drift toward disaster" there appeared "the angel of the Balkans." Shortly after taking office Premier Venizelos ared that he meant to establish complete peace between his country and all its neighbors including those of Angora. And he started on this program by then with Jugo-Slavia while one with Turkey appears imminent. The other Balkan states are watching with in- terest in the hope that this may be the beginning of a Balkan no. In order that his treaties should be fully understood, Premier Venizelos paid visits during the year to both England and France. Toward do- mestic affairs he turned his attention with the same diligence and while conditions in Greece during 1928 were For the British people not only in the heart of the Empire but in all the Dom and the festivities of Christmas and the year's ending were sobered and moderated by anxiety for the health of their King. His Majesty's condition which caused many anxious days earlier in December was happily showing improvement as the year closed. etins detailing the King's progress still claim a prominent place in the daily press so that further elaboration in these columns is unnecessary, _ Although on account of the King's illness, political activity was tempor arily forgotten, all three parties were, during the last few months of the year, making thorough preparations for a general election, Although the Prime Minister, Mr, Baldwin, had not announced any date, the election is due some time during 1929. Mr, Baldwin, Mr, Lloyd George and Mr, Ramsay Macdonald all appeared more frequently at large iss, 0 making speeches of an essentially political nature, Large labor gains in the bor- ough elections were said by many to be a significant forecast of the general election, The "Flapper Vote In May Parliament passed a bill reducing to 21 years the qualifying age for women voters, thus extending the franchise to approximately 5,245,000 women. It wilt be readily seen that these added voters will have a large influence in the coming election and all three parties were actively bidding for the "flapper" vote. Britain's Business Position Britain's effort to shake herself free from the grip of severe depression during the year was a vigorous one and was in a large measure successful. She regained to a great extent her position as world's banker and her invisible exports in the shape of services rendered to the rest of the world such as fi accommodation, shipping, banking, insurance, ete, proved in an encouraging manner. The cost of living was reduced to some extent and the real value of wages increased proportionately while the sheltered industries and the distributive trades, both wholesale and retail, made excellent progress, But, on the other hand, the basic industries stil! struggled against grea} odds and agricelure was only just begi g to be able to raise its head, Iron, steel and cotton remained in a= distressing position, In his fourth budget the Chancellor of the quer, Winston Churchill produced what was described as a "tonic" for British industry. His proposals in short are that the rates which are @cting as a tam on capital and not on profits shall be substantialy reduced and that the heaviest burden of taxation shall be placed upon the shoulders of those best able to bear them, : Labor Conditions : There were comparatively few trade disputes during the year and An sequently. less dislocation of trade. One former member of the Labor Government reviewing "Labor's Outlook" gegards the trénd of events in the past year broadly as "discouraging" But in spite of the depressing statistics sees that "there was relief during 1928 in the remarkable steps which were taken in a joint conference representative of leading employers and of the general council of the Trade Union Congress." It was from this conference which was held in January, that the "peace in industry move- ment" resulted. id Floods The new year 1928 was ushered in with calamity. The fiest of January brought the first relief to snow bound England but then the ng snows and the rains resulted in swollen rivers and a large part of southern England was under water. On January 6-7 the Thames burst its banks and wrought death and destruction in the Westminster area, Scotland Yard Much attention was drawn during the year to the Metropolitan police and they were exposed alike to public praise and blame. Of considerable mterest was the appointment on July 2 of Viscount Byng, as Commissioner of the Force. Anglo-Egyptian Relations With the rejection in March by the Egyptian Cabinet of the Anglos Egyptian treaty negotiated by Premier Sarwat Pasha relations became strained. The cabinet rejected the treaty on the grounds that it was not compatible with the independence and sovereignty of Egypt. This action was followed by the resignation of Sarwat Pasha and a stern Bitish note to King Fuad, The Public Assembles Bill introduced in the Egyptian Parliament a short time later caused further trouble and an ultimatum from Great Britain which was followed by the sending of warships. -How- ever the Cairo Government postponed considerations of the Public Assemb- lies Bill and by May 3 the crisis was considered to be at an end. In July both houses of the Egyptian Parliament were suspended by Roys Decree and King Fuad and his ministers assumed complete legislative control. It was clear that Britain's attitude was not to retain a dictatorial 'control over Egypt but was the result of the realization that the protection of the Suez Canal remained a British responsibility, Cabinet Changes In March Lord Cave resigned as Lord Chancellor and his place was filled in April by Lord Hailsham. Then in October Lord Birkenhead re- signed as Secretary of State for India to enter the City. His place in the Cabinet was filled by Viscount Pecl. Anglo-French Naval Agreement Considerable controversy both in Europe and in America resulted from the announcement made in August that England and France had agreed to acquaint each other with their naval construction plans thereby ending rivalry, and it was hoped that the support of the United States might also be gained in order that the agreement might form a basis for discussion on general disarmament. Claims that a treaty between the twe mmtions had been secretly established led to an explanation of the agreemenk by Lord Cushenden and M. Briand, French Foreign Minister at the League of Nations Assembly, In September the United States rcjeetéd an offer to participate in such an accord. ; Royal Oak Affair ; What was known as "The Royal Oak Affair" passed anfo history on April 17 when the Board of Admiralty confirmed the dismissal of Captain Kenneth G. B. Dewar and Commander H. M, Daniel and placed the blame of the episode on Rear Admital Bernard St. G. Collard, commander. of the first battle squadron at Malta. Admiral Collard was relieved of hiscommand and retired. Public opinion in the British Empire was deel re by the severity ot the court martial verdict, "The Royal Oak al ir" had its origin early in March when Captain Dewar and Commander Daniel, of the flagship of the squadron, "Royal Oak," were suspended from. duty by a Malta Court of Enquiry, after they had refused, in face of ral Collard's wishes, to allow a jazz band on the battleship to entertain a visiting party. On April 9, following the verdict of the court mastial Second Prayer Book Defeat Designed to afford a compromise rifual' acceptable: to both the High and the Low Church parties, the Church of England prayer book amended for the second time received the final appr of the National mbly of the Church on April 27. This result was not achieved without bitter and prolonged debate which at times tiireatened to split the church asunder. Having passed the scrutiny of the eeclesiastical committee the Measure went to the House of Commons and after two days debate it was rejected on June 14. The defeat of the prayerbook measure which had been vig- orously defended by Dr. Randall Davidson, Archbishop of Canterbury, was said to have been directly responsible for his res from the great office which he had held since 1903. His sesignation took effect in No- vember and on December 4, his Grace Most , Cosme Gordon Lang, Archbishop of York was enthroned as minety-seventh Arch of Can- terbury. Dr. Temple, the Bishop of Manchester was d to succeed Dr. Lang as Archbishop of York. Following rejection of the prayerbook by Parliament there were again murmurs which spoke of disestablishment but the only action taken was by the bishops in private assembly who decided to authorize provisionally the use by the clergy of the additions and variations contained in the book. They stated they would enforce the limits thus laid down. vy the attention of the world to that comparatively obscure state but also strained international relations in the Balkans already ated by political disturbances in Jugo-Slavia. The eyes of the world were turned DA os unc ations was implored to relieve the of Albania from the "tyranny of Presi- dent Bey Zogu' It was char; that an agreement spon- sored by him with Italy had made Albania an armed camp and an out- post for Fascism in the Bafkans. Stephen Raditch, the peasant leader, and wounded three others. Later, Dr. Basaritchek died from his wounds and was accorded mational mourning at the funeral of Raditch. While still in the hospital, during the crisis that foliowed, Stephen Raditch emerged as the man of the hour and he was successful in promoting the demands of the Peasant ratic Govern- ment. His victory remained evident even after he succumbed to his wounds on August 8, when the Croa- tion parties 'set up a separationist overnment and refused to co-operate with the Belgrade government. With the strong pressure exerted on both sides, the two governments drew closer together during the latter au- tumn months. Considerable, blood was shed during the rioting which followed the National Assembly mur- Newfoundland Rapid strides in the development of mineral resources and water power ook of the best the outlook was hope- ! ul. : i ! J via Jugo-Slavia, already burdened with inter-facti strife and the fcar of jan revolt, narrowly escaped being plunged into civil war when on June 20, Punica Ratchitch. Radical with a resultant progress in indus. trial life, has made a decp impres- sion 'on Newfoundland during the past year. In the general elect of Oct. 2, the Opposition party by Sir Richard Squires, defeated Government party under Hap F ( ders. Strained relations between Jugo-Slayia and Italy were aggra- vated at periods throughout the summer by Anti-Italian riots which broke out in Belgrade and other cities of the country. Albania The meteoric transition of Presi- Deputy, drew a revolver during a session of the National Assembly and { Killed Paul ° Raditch, nephew oi' deat Ahmed Bey Zogu of Albania to the throne of the country during the late summer months, not only drew Alderice. The Squires admipistration id the Government over on Nov. ; .