Berlin, June 10, The first step in the bringing down, of prices by reducing wages waa taken to-day by the Minister of Labour, Dr. Stegerwald, who, on. the request of the employers, declared obligatory the award: in favour of the West German iron and steel group which the trade unions had rejected.
The reduction amounts to seven and one-eighth per.cent, and the industrialists undertook to reduce the sale price of their products by the same pereentage—equivalent reduction of three to four marks per ton in the prices of iron, The Minister of Labour, it may be recalled, announced on May 30 that 2,000,000,000 marks had to be found by the Reichstag to relieve the unemployed in Germany who, he said, totalled 2,000,000.—Rteuter.
Berlin, June 13.
The Cabinet, following a protracted meeting yesterday, has decided to ignore the nation-wide protest against the proposed special conte pulsory 4 per cent levy on the ies of all civil servants and of such other employees whose month= income exceeds 700 marks.
The Cabinet has, furthermore, decided upon sweeping economies in the civil administration including 20 per cent, reduction of the Ministers? [Representation Fund. The proposed measures will be submitted "next week to the Reichstag where a battle is anticipated.
June 1M.
In a vigorous speech, the former Minister of Interior, Herr Severing, the name of the Social Democrat, Party threw down the gage of electoral battle before the Bruening:
Here Severing declared, that the Social Democrats wold oppose to the last man the Cabinet's new financial scheme. Since it is understood that the Hugenberg Nationalists are doing likewise it is believed that the Government's chances of securing a majority in the Reichstag are very slim. The former Minister of Interior, there fore, warned the country to pres pare for tha early dissolution. of the Reichstag to be Followed by a general election, The Cabinet, however, continus to display unshaken optimism re-Jrarding its prospects, It is hinted that possibly the key to the solution of the present situation "may lig im the Cabinet's proposals for reducing the national expenditure, details of which have not yet been published, It is believed that tha scheme will include compulsion on the various states to homologize their salaries and pensions with the leval standard, the gradual reduc tion of the number of civil servants fand general yeduetion in personal allowances, It ig also reported that the Cabinet Ministers themealves propose to cut off 20 per cent. of their own entertainment allowance As a result of the declining traffic receipts, the German Railway Administration has decided apon sweeping wage reductions of all employe has also bern decided to apply: to the Government ior permission to raise the passenger tarifts.—/Trans-Ocean Kuo Sin,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.