London, Apr. 10.
Great Britain's most successful industrial arbitrator, Lord Askwith, left' for Malta to-day at the head Jof_@ commission charged with the duty of discovering some means by which Constitutional Government may be re-established in the Island, Their task is a most difficult and Jdclicate one and is complicated by strong religious foehn The Constitution was suspended Nast year following a bitter political Jand "ecclesiastical dispute which threatened to turn the projected elections into a farce. During. the electoral campaign the parish priests announced, by order of the Arch shop, that whoever voted for the rime feral of an ordinance postponing the promulgation by the Goveroor-Gen-elections in order that disturbances might be avoided.
Previously the Bishop of Goso Inad issued an edict forbidding Con~ stitutionalists to approach raster Jcommunion or to receive absolution. He further forbade citizens, to. at-{tend Constitutionalist meetings oF trace-meetings organized upon the Jeceasion of the opening of the Cone Stitutional Club. Feeling van 80 high that it was feared bloodshed [would follow if the elections were Ullowed to take place.
The trouble reached its climax when a fanatical Nationalist fred int blank at Lord Strickland, the remier of Malta, as he was enter ing the law courts.
Lord Strickland "had been the central figure in. the controversy between the Church and Kee Jcompanied by the Superintendent of Police, he was entering the Court lof Appeal for, a case in which he hhiniself was. the plaintiff." Tt wa fa case in which the issue involved
to invalidate all the laws passed by teas an atitmpt by the Nationalists the Government, Lord. Strickland was fortunately not hurt and he wes subsequently surrounded and given great ovation by great crowds, Representations were made to the Vatican ard diplomatic negotiations since that time have been proceed
differences in Malta, but little proing with the abject of sotiing the fevers has been made, Tt ig now the task of Land Ask= with's commission to investigate and report to the British Government.—Through Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.