Democratic Sentinel, Volume 10, Number 11, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 April 1886 — IRELAND FOR THE IRISH. [ARTICLE]

IRELAND FOR THE IRISH.

Mr. Gladstone, in an Earnest Speech, Lays Before Parliament His HomeRule Scheme. It Contemplates a Dual Parliament at Dublin, with General Power of Imposing Taxes. It Is Opposed by Mr. Trevelyan and Partially Indorsed by Mr. Parnell. The Parnellite members of the British House of Commons commenced to secure desirable seats socn after daybreak on the morning of tne Bth inst., and held them for eleven hours, until Mr. Gladstone made his appearance. The thoroughfares in the vicinity were so crowded as to cause a suspension of traffic. The Premier was in excellent health, and was greeted by deafening applause, which lasted some minutes. As soon as the cheering ceased Mr. Gladstone rose and moved for permission to introduce a bill to amend previous legislation and to make provision for the future Government of Ireland. On making this motion Mr. Gladstone said: “The time has arrived when both honor and duty require Parliament to come to a decisive resolution. It should bo the endeavor to liberate Parliament from the restraints under which, during late years, it has ineffectually struggled, and to restore legislation to its unimpaired course. It is our duty to establish harmonious relations between Great Britain and Ireland on a footing of free institutions, in which Englishmen, Scotchmen and Irishmen have a like interest.” This sentiment was greeted with prolonged cheers. As scon as quiet was restored, Mr. Gladstone entered upon a brief review of the general features of past legislation for Ireland. He dwelt upon the coercive and repressive me Mures which had been put in force from time to time, and deprecated any further resort to the rude remedies of intimidation. “Since the year 1833,” he said, “only two years have passed without coercive legislation for Ireland ; and, in spite of all this, the law continues to be disregarded, because it is invested, in the eyes of the Irish, w.th a foreign aspect. Were further coercion to be successful, it would require two conditions—autocracy of the Government and the secrecy of public transactions. ncllite cheers. I The mainspring of tho law in England is felt to be English; in Scotland to be Scotch; but in Ireland it is not felt, to bo Irish. The first condition of civilized life in Ireland demands that the people have confidence in the law and sympathy therewith, Tho problem, therefore, before Parliament at the present timeds to reconcile imperial unity with tho diversity of legislatures." He believed that the Government had found the solution of this problem in the establishment of a Parliament at Dublin for tho conduct of business, both legislative and administrative. (Loud cheers by the Parnellitas.j “The political equality cf the three countries,” said Mr. Gladstone, “must be recognized. Therefore, there must be an equitable distribution of the imperial funds. The peculiar circumstances existing in Ireland also make it necessary to establish safeguards for the minority in that country. The Government will be obliged to consider th ■ class connected with the land and the relations which they will sustain with the Protestant minority. As Ireland is to have a domestic Legislature, it will, therefore, be impracticable for Irish representatives to come here. ” “The intention of the Government bill,” Mr. Gladstone said, “is that the Parliament nt Dublin shall be a dual body. It is to be composed of two orders, each of which shall have the power to veto the acts of the other. The first order will include 103 members ; tho second order 206. Twenty-eight of the present Irish Peers will continue to sit in the House of Lords, and they' will be granted the option to have life seats in the first Irish order. The office of Viceroy of Ireland will not be discontinued. The bill intends that the Viceroy shall rama'n, and that the office shall hereafter be non-political—-that is. the incumbent of the office will not be expected to retire with the downfall of the British Ministry." Mr. Gladstone continued: “If I road Irish history aright, misfortune and calamity have wedded her sons to their soil with an embrace yet closer than is known elsewhere, and the Irishman is still more profoundly Irish ; but it does not (follow that because his local patriotism is strong ho should be incapable ol an imperial patriotism. There are two inodes of presenting the subject which I have argued; one of them is to present what we now recommend as good, and the ether is to present it as a choice of evils, and as the least among the varied evils with which as possibilities we are confronted. Well, I have argued the matter as if it had been a choice of evils. * * * Ido not know whether it may appear too bold, but in my own heart I cherish the hope that this is not merely a choice of the lesser evil, but that it may be proved to be ere long a good in itself. ]Loud cheers.] “There is, I know, an answer to this, and what is the answer? The answer is only found in the view which rests upon a basis of despair, ot absolute condemnation of Ireland and Irishmen as exceptions to those beneficial provisions which have mode in general, Europeans in particular, Englishmen and Americans capable of selfgovernment; that an Irishman is a lusub natural ; that justice, common sense, moderation, natural prosperity, have no meaning for him ; that all that he can understand and all that he can appreciate is strife —perpetual dissension. Now, sir, I am not going to argue in this House whether this view, this monstrous view |lrish cheers), is a correct one. Isay an Irishman is as capable of loyalty as another man (renewed cheers]; but if his loyalty has been checked, why it is because the laws by which he is governed do not present themselves to h'm as they do to us in England or Scotland with a native and congenial element.” In conclusion, Mr. Gladstone said : “I askthat we shall practice as we have very often preached, and that in our own case we should bo firm and fearless in applying the doctrines we have often inculcated on others, that tho concession of local self-government is not the way to sap and impair, but to strengthen and consolidate unity. I ask that we should learn to rely less on mere written stipulations, and more on these better stipulations written on the heart and inin lof man. I ask that we should apply to Ireland the happy experience we have gained in England and Scotland, where a course of generations has now taught us. not as a dream or a theory* but as a matter of pi actice and of life, that the best and surest foundation we can find to build on is the foundation afforded by the affections and conxictiors and will of man, and that it is thus by tho decree of the Almighty, fur more than by any other method, we may bo enabled to secure at once the social happiness, the power, and the permanence of the empire.” Mr. Gladstone spoke three hours and twintyflve minutes explaining his measure. He resumed his seat amid bursts of enthusiastic cheers, which were sustained for several minutes. When the applause had subsided Mr. Trevelyan, who, with Mr. Chamberlain, recently resigned from the Cabinet, addressed the House of Commons in opposition to Mr. Gladstone’s bill. “For my part,” said he, “I have no hesitation in saying that I think complete separation of Ireland fie.n Great Britain would be preferable to the plan of government that hail just been proposed. We should then know tho worst at once. ’’ At the conclusion of Trevelyan’s speech, Mr. Parnell arose, and was received with cheers by the Irish members. As to the bill before tho House, while reserving his full expression of opinion until h > had seen it, Mr. Parnell congratulated the House on the tact that there wan still living an English statesman who could devote his attention to this important matter, and begged to thunk Mr. Gladstone for what would not only prove a beneficial measure, from the Irish point of view, but which he (Parnell) believed would be found to be of equal benefit to England. Tho bill, nevertheless, contained blots which th? Irish representatives would do their best to remove. On the whole, however, apart from thesa defects, he believed the measure would be cheerfully accepted by the Irish people and their repreoentatives as a satisfactory solution of the long-standing dispute between the two countries.