Tokio, Feb. 23.
The discussion of the universal suffrage bill in the Lower House of the Diet has been set for this afternoon.
The session has afforded an opportunity for the staging of popular demonstration, of which the Diet buildings are the centre. Crowds commenced gathering early, but the police up to noon have aged to separate the converge masses and cleared the ap-Thousands OF police are concealed at, vantage points within half a, mile, The probability of a serious disturbance is discountenamced by well-
The bill is supported almost unanimously by the press, but its defeat by 2 majority of 100 is regarded as almost certain.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.