Geneva, June 8.
'A. sensation was caused at the International Labour Conference here to-day when a group comprising both labour representatives and employers decided to boycott further discussions of the 40-hour-a-week proposal, originally made by Signor Benito Mussolini, Premier of Italy.
The international limitation of working hours to 40 a week for the purpose of reducing the world-wide Gnemployment, was the most import ant project before the Conference, the Internation Labour Office having recently sent to all governments several proposals for international {reaties on working hours.
Four proposals were under consideration. The first was a draft treaty limiting to 40 hours the average weekly working period of persons employed in industrial undertakings.
The second was a similar conven-ton seeking the same aims for perors employed in commerce and London, June 9.
Sir Samuel Hoare, Secretary of [state for India, and' the Earl of [Derby, who was a leading member lof the Joint Select Committee on [Indian "Reform, were completely exonerated to-day of charges, made Mr. Winston Churchill, a former [Cabinet Minister, in the House of lof Commons on' April 16, that. they influenced evidence submitted to 3 committee which was framing the {Indian Constitution.
'Exoneration was given unantmously to-day by a special Parliamentary Committee of Privileges in a 21- page report, declaring that the two officials had' committed no breach of privileges.
"There was not even any_allegotion or suspicion of corruption, intimidation oF appeal; direct or in. direct, to greed and fear," the report [stated-—United Press.
Mr, Churchill, according to Reuter, Jasseried that, when Sir Samuel Hoare learned last year what evidence the Manchester Chamber of Commerce proposed to submit to the Joint Select Committee on Indian Constititonal "Reform, he, with others, exerted pressure with the result that the evidence was fundamentally changed.
fe also said that the Earl of Derby, who was a leading member of the Joint Select Committee, interviewed members of the Chamber and Jcounselied them to aller their evid~ fence. Mr. Churchill said he had no doubt that the action taken by Sir Samuel and the Earl of Derby was well-intentioned, "He did not impugn their personal motives, but alleged that it was grossly irregular for members of a commission to. press witnesses to alter their evidence The Parliamentary Committee Privileges, however, found that. the reason why. the Manchester "Cham-'Commerce amended its was the receipt of sion which had gone from Lancashire to India, in icing on a strong and cordial supplementary memorandum un behalf raft dation asking govern-'The third was in the form of a
ments to take any measures that may be necessary to prevent a reduction of hours becoming the occasion for a lowering of the standard of living of workers:
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.