On the 23rd of March Mr. Smith moved that the Crimes Bill have precedence over all other orders--and then the battle began. It was not till the 28th that Mr. Balfour was able to move for leave to introduce the measure, in a speech which seemed to show either that his case was exceptionally weak, or that he had not been able to master it.[236] The Bill gave magistrates power to inquire into crimes where no person was charged. It gave two resident magistrates summary jurisdiction and power to inflict imprisonment up to six months in cases of criminal conspiracy, boycotting, rioting, assaults on the police, and in cases of inciting to these offences. It gave the Lord-Lieutenant power to “proclaim” certain associations as dangerous, and to subject to the penal clauses of the Bill any one who after that took part in them. The Bill was to be a permanent measure, and not like former Coercion Bills, merely passed for a fixed period of time. Violent scenes occurred during the debates which led up to the Second Reading of the measure on the 28th of April, and the House was in an irritable mood because it had been forced to sacrifice most of its Easter holiday. In spite of the frequent use of the Closure, the first clause, which was scarcely a contentious one, was not carried in Committee till the 17th of May. When the fourth clause was reached, on the 10th of June, Mr. W. H. Smith moved a resolution that if the Bill were not reported at 10 p.m. on the 17th, the remaining clauses should be put to the vote without debate. When that hour struck Sir Charles Russell was speaking on the sixth clause. The Chairman stopped the debate, and put the question, the Irish Members leaving the House in a body. After the division the Liberal Members also left, and the rest of the Bill passed without any more opposition. It was read a third time on the 8th of July, and having been adopted by the Peers, it received the Queen’s assent on the 19th of July. The determination of the Government to carry the Coercion Bill was natural. It had been admitted by all clear thinkers that, unless Home Rule were granted to Ireland, she could only be governed under Coercion. Moreover, the introduction of the Bill before the Liberal Unionists and Liberals had been reconciled, forced the former to vote for Coercion, which rendered the gulf between them and the old Liberal Party practically impassable. But ere the Liberal Unionists thus burned their boats, they had induced the Ministry to bring in a conciliatory Irish Land Bill in the House of Lords. The Peers sent it down to the Commons on the 4th of July, when the Second Reading was moved on the 12th. The Bill adopted Mr. Parnell’s proposal of the previous year, to admit leaseholders to the benefit of the Land Act of 1881; it gave notice of eviction the same effect as the actual service of an ejectment writ, and gave the Courts power to stay execution, and arrange for payment of rent on easy terms when the tenants were in distress.