The Bill for preventing the sale of liquor on Sundays
in Ireland, though carried in the House of Commons against the Government, has been practically dropped. The Government at heart disliked the Bill, and proposed that, if passed, the large towns should be exempted from its operations. The repre- sentatives of those large towns also disliked it, and on Wednesday ten Irish Members talked against time till a quarter to six, when the House adjourned. Mr. Smyth made an effort to obtain another day for his Bill, but Government would not help him, and he failed, as did Sir W. Lawson, who on Thursday was declared out of order in trying to get precedence for the Bill, and was told by Mr. Disraeli that his speech bore signs of the exhaustion of the Session. All this strikes us as very unsatisfactory, and very undignified. The Bill is debatable enough, litira measure accepted by the House of Commons should be either passed or rejected, not shouldered apologetically out of the way.
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