We are glad to note that the Midwives Bill, which
has been ably conducted through the House and Grand Committee by Mr. Heywood Johnstone, the Member for Horsham, was read a third time in the House on Friday week. The Bill, which in- stitutes a central Midwives Board, has been modified in Com- mittee to allow an adequate interval to midwives to adapt themselves to the new conditions, and is generally admitted on both sides of the House to be, if not an altogether adequate remedy, at least a distinct contribution towards the removal of a serious evil affecting the physical well-being of the poorer classes. Monday's sitting in the Commons was almost entirely devoted to a discussion on the Grain-duties levied by the Finance Bill. The abandonment of the Maize-duty in particular was strongly urged by the Irish Members, sup- ported by several Front-Bench Liberals, but the Chancellor of the Exchequer declared himself unable to consent to the entire dropping of the tax. He accepted amendments deleting locust beans from the schedule, and reducing the duty on grain offals from 3d. to lid. per hundredweight, and professed bis readiness favourably to entertain Mr. Flynn's proposal that the Maize-duty should be similarly reduced. Amend- ments to exempt rice from taxation and to reduce the duty on flour to 4d. having been negatived, the Bill passed through Committee, and was reported to the House.
Previous page
