The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-01-29 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

In the Horn or LORDS, Jan. 21, the Duke of Richmond
and Gordon called attention to a provisional order made by
the Secretary of State for the Home Department relating to
Burnett's Literary Fund, He explained that the order was
opposed by the RenatuS of the University of Aberdeen and
the ministers of that city on the ground that it afforded no
guarantee that lectures to be paid for out of the Burnett be-
quest might not be subversive of the Theistic doctrine,
which it was the object of the testator to strengthen and up-
hold. He moved that the House do not sanction the order.
Lord Rosebery humorously ridiculed the objection.
• The Government did not oppose the motion, which was
agreed to.
On the motion of Lord Cloncurry, certain returns relative
to grass lands and tillage lands in Ireland were ordered.

Their lordships adjourned at six o'clook,
/p,th'e liotisn or COMMONS, the repott ct. the Irish Land
Abt Commission was laid on Um tl6.
Mr. Moore asked tb. 14"..;simaster-General whether any
steps had been .talt.,Hi to afford additional facilities to the
public Ic.. iveing letters in travelling post-offices at the
Etages of the journey, and whether a uniform fee
had ueen a'r.lO-pied in all such cases,

Fawcett said there were diffictilties in the way of
affording the frodlities mentioned by the hon. member,
Which he dal ha at p.telleht see his way to overcome.
lii afisiver to Mr. P. J. Smyth, who asked when the liolise
Would be put in possession of information as to the cha-
racter of the Land Bill, Mr. Gladstone said it was out of
his power at present to say. He pointed out that we were
only now in reality at the third day of the Session, and the
first business must be to inake progrest with the Bilis to
which pretetinnts Was giVen lb the queena3 Speech, but when
bilsiheas had Moh develoPed the question might be more
etinyeiliehtl:e
n answer to a question from Sir H. Verney, Sir J. afGarel
llogg said the clearing away of the snow from the street
rested, not with the Metropolitan Board, but with the
vestries; but considering the immense quantity which had
fallen, estimated he said, at 8,760,000 tons, it would be
absolutely impossible to remove it all in a few days.
At haliapast five o'clock Mr. Y. E. Forster rose to move for
leave to blinE iti the first et his Coercion. Bills, which is
d.eteribed as a Bill for the Protection of Persons and Property
in Ireland. Admitting the serious character of his pro-
posals, and assuring the House that the Goverment had only
determined to make this application to Parliament after
long and earnest consideration, he said he would first
show that persons and property could not be protected under
the present law, and that liberty was not secure, and would
then show that the powers asked by the Government would
meet the evils complained of. Dealing with the first branch
of the subject, he dwelt first on the great increase of
agrarian outrages—the number for the year 1880 being larger
than any year since 1844—and he showed also that they had
risen most rapidly in the last three months of the year, and
that December exceeded the other two months put together.
There had also been a cotasidetable extension of the area
ever which the evil had spread. The chief characteristic
of these ontrages, he said, was intimidation, and he
described in vivid language the system of intimi-
dation the threatening ietters, the outrages on
Property, the torturing of cattle, the cardings, and
Other personal outrages by which the Land League en-
forced its unwritten law. Some startling cases illustrating
the Land-League's mode of procedure he related in detail
and mentioned that 163 persons are attended day and
night by two policemen, and 1,149 are watched
over by the police. He read also from the Nation news-
paper reports of the proceedings of the Land League
tourts and enlarging on the failure of justice and the am-
Possibility of getting juries to convict, he pointed out that
while in ordinarycrimes there are 47 per cent. of arrests in
agrarian crimes there are only 15 per cent. Enlarging on
the general lawlessness produced by this state of things, he
showed that the shopkeepers were now unable to recover
their debts, and declared that Mr. Dillon was right when he
said the that the Land League ruled supreme, though he
Was wrong when he denied that its rule rested on fore
and terror. To deprive the Land League of its means
of punishing people who would not obey its unwritten law
would deprive it of its power. Its instruments were well
known to the police, they were generally old Riband men,
Fenians, or the mauvais mists of the neighbourhood ; the
contemptible and dissolute blackguards of a village
might be the most powerful anen in it as the
policemen of the Land League's unwritten law. What the
Government asked, therefore, was power to arrest these
men and to deprive them of that power to terrorize over
their neighboties, without which the speeches of the Land
Leaguers would be empty talk. The Bill, therefore, pro-
posed to give the Lord Lieutenant power by warrant to
arrest any person reasonably suspected of treason,
treasonable felony, or treasonable practices, and the commis-
sion, whether before or after the Act, within certain
prescribed districts, of crimes punishable by law in the
nature of intimidation or incitement thereto, and tend-
ing to interfere with and to disturb the maintenance of
law and order. It was proposed that the power should con-
tinue until September 30 in next year, and, with regard to
the treason portion of the Bill, Mr. Forster said the Govern-
ment had information which led them to believe that there
Was danger on this head. (This brief exposition of the pro-
visians of the Bill was received with much cheering from
both sides). After some further observations, Mr. Forster
Went on to say—" I call this Bill a Protection Bill (cheers); a
section of this House call it a Coercion Bill (Cheers from the
Irish members.) I do not think it is for those who support
the unwritten law to talk about coercion. (Hear, hear.)
The power of their law rests on coercion, and on that alone
We have had some other objections, and they have either*
Intentionally or unintentionally taken the shape of
warnings and threats. The hon. member for Carlow,
for instance, made a speech which I deeply regret-
ted to hems The hon. member said that in his view
lisaitterette outrages would follow the passing of the Coercion
pill and those outrages would not be confined to Ireland,
inn 'the Government would have to face a very similar con-
dition of affairs in England. (Mr. Gray: "Hear, hear.")
Well, Sir, there is not an hon. member in this House, ex-
cept, perhaps, the hon. meitber and one or two of his friends
Who will pay any heed to this warning or fear it it it be
attempted. The English people are a law-abiding people,
and they are not a cowardly people (cheers), and they are
not to be frightened from protecting life and property in
Ireland from any fear of secret outrages in England."—After
alluding to the Westmeath Act of 1871, Mr. Forster
Proeeeded—" From their knowledge of the condition of
Ireland the Government felt that they could no longer allow
their law to be ignored, and the unwritten law of the Land
.sLeague to be obeyed, and they determined with all the power
'arhament could give them to make the power of the
Queen respected. (Cheers.) But it is true that outrages
are diminishing every day now. And why are they
diminishing? I believe there are two reasons for the fact.
One is that the gentlemen at the head of the Land League
are using every power they possess to put a stop to outrages.
(" Hear, hear," from below the gangway.) I see that hon.
bembers assent to that. But why did they not use that
Dower before? (Cheers.) Why did they allOw them to go on
hrough October, November, and December, and take steps
ROW, when it is clear that something is going to be done?
(Renewed cheering.) Why, these Outrages were all attri-
buted to the action of the gentlemen of the Land League,
and from their position and influence they are much more
Powerful to incite to than to prevent outrages. Even if
they did not intend it, they have scarcely ever shown a
Proper sense of their responsibility for the words they
uttered, and are much more powerful to incite to outrages
than to control them. (Hear, hear.) But, Sir, I believe
that there is another influence at work' it is that the
Men who plan these outrages and have them executed, as in
1871, so new, fear to commit them. They fear that they
will be placed under arrest. They know that the police
know who they are. My belief is that if you pass this Act
You will cause an immense diminution of crime. These
Men will be careful, because for the first time within one
or two years they will fear punishment for their misdeeds,
and some of them I doubt not, will disappear. I trust the
House will not for a moment suppose that because of the
Change in the condition of the country for:the last three or
lour days, after a fortnight of very great outrage indeed,
that is any reason why this power should not be given to
her Majesty's Government. They could not by any possi-
bility make a greater mistake. Hesitation now would make
matters far worse than ever. (Hear, hear.) If while we de-
clare that we will contend with this organisation for the
purposes of outrage, and we say we will contend with it by
taking power to arrest the men who commit the crimes, the
/louse is misled, and gives up its intention, it will be looked
upon; as an act of weakness, and those criminals will be
More powerful than before. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Forster
then referred at some length to the system of "Boycotting,"
Baying that he had no words to express his sense of the
cruel nature of that system; and the right hon. gentleman
concluded his speech by saying :—" Well, we shall perhaps
no asked why we have not included in this Bill some
Power for the exercise of summary jurisdiction—why
those offenders should not be subjected to an immediate
41.1,TlinarY penalty rather than take the chance of having a
larger penalty following the verdict of a jury after what
°lir experience of jurors recently has been. That may be
Permanent legislation, but what we want is an imme-
s a_te remedy to conterill against the existing evils, and
411 with the provision referred to would afford many
We for protracted debate. We want the power
we ask for and we want it at once. (Cheers.) For that
teason also we have separated this from the other Bill,
W,hich in its main features is an Arm); Bill. Its chief
eslasnile puts the possession of arms in the same position in
5,...^01ch it was left by the Act which expired this year.
There may be a little alteration, but it will be nothing to
'sneak of. Power will be taken to acquire a licence for the
Possession of arms, to search for them, and to take them
away when they are improperly possessed. We have too
often adopted such a Bill to make it necessary to say much
about it. No doubt it is a great disappointment to us to
have to bring forward this Bill, seeing that we did without
it in the early part of the year; but remember it is agita-
tion which has made disarming far more necessary than it
ws_as then. If we are to blame for what are we to blame?
That we had mere hope of thelrish people—more hope from
Pose who seem to have their confidence—than we ought to
have had. (Hear, hear.) This has been to me a most pain-
ful duty; I never expected that I should have to discharge
It. If I had thought that this duty would devolve on the
Irish Secretary, I would never have held the office; if I
could have foreseen that this would be the result of twenty
Years of Parliamentary life, I would have left Parliament
rather than have undertaken it. But I never was more
Clear than I am now that it is my duty; I never was more
clear that the man responsible, as I am, for the administra-
tion of the government of Ireland ought no longer to have
any part or share in any Government which does not fulfil
its first duty—the protection of person and property and
the security of liberty. It may be said that we have been
too long a time in fulfilling that duty; but recollect we
have to wait until we are able to bring before a Conatitu-
tional Parliament incontrovertible proof of the existence,
the extent, and the extreme danger of the evil. I think I
ave shown its existence, and, though I believe the enor-
tre ons majority of the Howse will share with me in feeling
in
Reuse
reluctance to perform this duty, I believe the
...ulnae and Parliament will perform it and that the country
,".'u support them. (Cheers.) I believe it to be the duty
v, Parliament to pass this measure, and to pass it at
2nce, for every day's delay involves a great increase of
danger. (Hear, hear.) There remains another duty, and
anal is to recollect why it is that these outrages, and this
?-eitation, and this Land League are possible, and that, if
the evils of the present land system were removed, they
road be no longer possible. (Hear, hear.) I can hardly
"'log in this Protection Bill—Coercion Bill some will call
itn—without recording my belief that it is a duty quite as
cunibent upon us, whether we regard the immediate
resent or the near or the distant future, to deal with the
ad question. (Hear, hear.) Some will say, 'Remove the
;Oa of the land system before you bring in your Protection
(hear, hear); but people cannot wait for protection
(hear, hear), and they ought not to wait for protection.
(Cheers.) It is our business first to protect person and pro-
tertY and liberty, and we cannot reward crime or make
tins with crime. While the House is determined to
Perform this duty, it is also thoroughly determined to re-
v. the land laws, and to perform that duty also this
esion po . I supse we are all cured of indulging in pro-
t,ißaecies about the future of Ireland. Some of us, it is
.fought, have been subject to illusions on tilts subject. I
"'ay be sanguine, filt still, even now, I venture to think
as regards Ireland that if this Parliament persistently
determines to do its duty it will eventually obtain the success
and meet with the reward it will deserve in seeing Ireland
(Cheers.)
a presperous, a contented, and an advancing country.
, The right hon. gentleman concluded by moving
!oat leave be given to bring in a Bill for the better pre-
tectiolo persons and property in Ireland.
/3r- ns moved an amendment in favour of giving pre-
;.eclence to remedial measures and asking .the Government
r tecoilsider their decision. By coercion he predicted many
moderate men would be driven into the arms of the League,
r..(_l.rt especially he looked for resistance to disarmament.
a -Lher, he urged that there should have been a preliminary
"cluirY, and complained that the existing laws had not been
Put Into operation.
bt'
,cate
The amendment having been seconded by Mr. Given, the
de
Was continued by Mr. Dillon, Mr. Bradlaugh, Mr.
s_
arthy, Mr. J. Richardson, and Mr. H. Davey.
Sir S. Northcote held that Mr. Forster's temperate
.aPeech had amply proved his case, and though it would
be possible to reproach the Government with dilatori-
ness, it would be ungenerous and unwise to take such
a line.
G 2
roeve es r
Of nin'
their
the Conservative party, therefore, the
t would receive proper support in the pro-
-with candour
measure, and though he was ready, to consider
by the (lour any Land' Bi llwhich might be recommended
overnment he thought they were right in not
;nixing it LIP with the restoration of law and order,