New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-03-01
IRISH LAND REFORM.
THE CHARACTER AND EFFECT or MIR. GLAD
STONES SPEECH INTRODUCING THE LAND
IRON OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT

LONDON, Feb Eff first impressions may be
trusted, Mr.. Gladstones measure promises to be a
success 1t is too to write very positively either
as TO the merits of the BILL OF as to its reception by
the pubic The speech has been only twenty-four
hours in print, while the bill itself not to bo
had till this morning one two early copies to the
press excepted. Fox the sake of shortening this
letter send YOU an analysis of the bill In separate
form.
OF Mr.. Gladstone's speech as a speech, everybody
is loud in praise. did not hear IT, but so far as one
can judge from the report it deserves all that is said
Its great length does not prevent its being reau
through aud it fills ten columns. Its delivery IN the
House occupied three hours. have heard MI Uiad-
stone when he was more eloquent ana cOplous' o"'
this speech is masterpiece of luminous exposition
Lord Brougham's speech on Law Reform has been
Thought n model of clear statement. j question
whether Mr. Gladstone dealing with a subject even
more difficult and complicated has not surpassed
Brourham himself in those qualities IN when
Brougham was considered prominent
The bill covers 80 folio pages and contains 6S
clauses Mr. Gladstone told the House that he had
found il a very tough subject 1t does not need to be
said that be has devoted TO it great zeal and ngenu-
ity The greatness of the occasion did not ind nun
unequal TO it. and one cannot be surprised that
friends and opponents agree i'll admiring the skill
with which n perplexing question has been mastered,
met the struggle between the landlords party ana
the tenants party. between the men who wanted to
eoncede rs little as possible and the men who were
resolved on a comprehensive measure Ihere Iau
been reports enough but there little knowledge
of what had been done and curiosity at its hight
when Mr. Gladstone rose, at o'clock on TUESDAY
afternoon, to state the principle OF the nlli mere
were men who persisted in believing that the Caol-
net had after all, made up its mind TO 90 niue OF
H. ...,, oil thpT
the bill goes far enough may be questionable
Gladstone himself seemed to doubt whether he had
reached the limit of legisaton-but there can be no
doubt that it exceeds expectation. Few people not
IN the confidence Of Ministers had any notion that so
large q measure would be brought forward. 1t Is
agreed on all hands that the bill proposes an i'm
mense change in the land system of Ireland
What the Cabinet finally resolved was to do
greatly great act of justice Every line of the bill
bears the stamp of this purpose. doubt whether
bin was ever before brought into Parliament that
overturned many precedents, and reversed, as
this does the whole spirit and tendency of system
OF law The law in Ireland has been made by the.
landlords aud as 1t stands to-day is landlords law
throughout This bill will make it tenant'Sfaw.
1t IS on the whole, Radical bill. 1t is Mr. Brights
bill aud not Mr.. Chichester FOrtescue's.
But as said the bill cannot be wholly judged
vet. II cannot be wholly judged on its merits. had
there been time for that 1t must be judged, to
great extent by the impression makes on the people
of Ireland; and by the people Of Ireland mean in
this case the Occupiers of land for whose relief the
bill is designed. Before you say the bill is orr
not a success YOU must have heard what Ireland
thinks OF it, 1t is something more than land law
il is measure of pacfcation. 1t might deal success
fully with the land but if it does not deal success
fully with the people also it will be failure. One
great object of its introduction will not have been
accomplished.
Now it is not an easy thing TO collect the true
answer of Ireland. We know well enough what the
complaint Of irish tenants is. But it quite possible
TO state their grievance in such way as to make
the application Of a remedy impossible. Underlying
all the just complaints of oppression and eXtOrtiOn
by landlords is the rooted conviction of the Irish
tenants that they ought to be landlords; that the
soil which they occupy they ought to possess; that
in word the land of Ireland belongs to the people
of Ireland think you may almost say, broadly,
that no measure which is not measure of conisca-
ton would completely satisfy the tenantclass whose
wrongs this bill is meant to redress Between sub
stantial redress to the sufferer and the complete
satisfaction of the sufferer there may obviously be
gulf dinicult to bridge over. Nobody expected
49, unless few Tory zealOts might TO be
taken at their word - measure Of con-
fscation from Mr. Gadstones Cabinet Nobody ex-
pected therefore that the measure would completely
silence the complaints of the great class which wants
10 own 4 land it now occupies. On the other hand
IL was possible To frame bill which should remedy
the real grievances Of that class If no such measure
was accepted by them at the moment, time must be
trusted 10 its acceptance and TO do the work
of Cancellation. And is TO be remembered that the
effect of a scheme like this cannot be readily COM
prehended 10y those whom it is meant to benefit 1t
Is too complicated to be grasped in moment We
shall know in a day or two what itheseading Irish
papers saw but not for many days the judgment
of the people The real grievance of the people is
insecurity of tenure. Arbitrary evicions exOrbtant
rents capdcious notices to quit and all the many
forms in which landlord disposed to harass his ten
ants nav vexatousy exercise his legal powers, are
included in that one phrase Give tine tenant secu-
rty of tenure You protect him against all the rest
And this is what Mr.. Gladstone has, aimed to do +;
what be WILL think be seen to have accomplished
when the bin has been examined by men who know
practically what evils required a remedy.
At any rate there seems no middle course between
this bill ard a bill for perpetuity Of tenure. Mr..
Gladstone stated with great force the objections to
measure establishing perpetuity OF tenure declaring
that the effect of would be to reduce the landlord
10 the condition of pensOner upon his own estate
But two things are very remarkable. He did not
describe it as conscatiOn which it would be in fact,
and he did lot reject 1t plan absolutely inadnls-
sble under any circumstances. He said For
the present at any rate, l cast aside perpet-
uity Of tenure being q remedy that we
are not prepared TO entertain or propose"
That seems TO me a weak point in the speech, and
one which Mr. GladstOnes critics will make much Of.
IL holds out certain announcement to two widely
different classes of men the landowners who would