Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-05-31
THz coEpfrIoN OF IRELAND.

and which cannot be dealt with success
fully through the meskods hitherto EN-
ployed. A dispatch to the New York
Herald yesterday, quite possibly too highly
colored, says that in several counties,
notably Limerick, Tippera'y and Leitrim,
the position of affairs is already intoler-
able. It says "The people are resisting
g the processes of law with recklessness
unequaled in the history of the country,
| and yet with counteracting restraint,
(which is new feature in popular Irish
agitation, and which shows that the
"behests OF the League leaders so throw
the onus OF the first aggressive steps on
''the military and police are not without
'their effect" This last statement Is par
ticularly obscure. How can the people
throw the onus of the first aggressive
"steps upon the police and military, if
they themselves are already defying the
law in all possible ways? In such a state
of affairs it is clear that the onus of ag.
erosion must lie upon those who break
the laws, not upon those who undertake
to see them executed.
A more significant statement is the fol-
lowing 8" The police are rapidly becoming
demoralized. No men can long endure
ga state of siege such as the force in the
disturbed districts are undergoing. Ev-
"ery mans hand is against them. No
"carman will drive; no publican will
"supply them with food. The people
"stone them at every opportunity. The
women howl, yell and upbraid. The
children throw mud at them. After a
"long and fatigling march they find in
"some country village that the wells are
"defiled with mud and rubbish, so that
mo man can quench his thirst. No patrol
"can venture forth except in great force.
cat night the country is left in the hands
"of marauders, who carry on their lawless
practices with the utmost impunity +"
This is picture of practical rebellion, and
nothing less, and evidently it cannot en-
dure. Either the Government must sue
cumb, or it must change its tactics, unless
indeed, which seems out of the question,
the Irish revolutionaries can be made to
listen to reason, and give the Government
chance to pass remedial legislation.
The present ostensible grievance is evic-
ton, but to deprive the landowners of the
| right of turning out tenants who refuse to
pay any rent would be to hand over the
land to the recalcitrant tenants for moth
ing, and to confscate the property of the
landlords. The Government is unable tc
compel the tenants to pay their rent, but
it cannot tie the hands of the landlord:
and deprive them of their legal remedies
The tenants who refuse to pay rent are by
no means all in impoverished circumstances
On the contrary, it isstated that many of the
worst disturbances have occurred in pros
porous districts. 1t is of course very diff
cult to understand from distance all the
multifarious influences which are at work
but on the surface it looks very much a;
though Paddy, with native shrewdness
had thought the opportunity good ont
for forestalling the action OF the land bill
and getting the land into his own hands
without the trouble aud embarrassment o
an agreement to pay for it hereafter.
The position of the Government is ex
tremely difficult, of necessity. 1t does no
wish to have recourse to more stringen
measures, but it is apparently being driver
in that direction in spite of all that it cal
do. If it puts stop to evictions the ten
ants who are holding lands for which the.
are paying no rent will of course continu
to cling to these lands, and the landlord
will be as effectually deprived of the prop
erty as though the Government had seizet
it and transferred it bodily to the tenant
If the evictions go en- the people will keel
up the present state of turbulence, and an
arcby will spread over the country NOR
and more. Ii the Government has re
course to extreme measures, and enforce
the laws with the heavy hand, it will b
obeyed just so long as the troops are OIL
the spot, but no fnality will have beel
reached. Meantime the rebellious Gisposi
ton of large portions of the Irish people i
strengthening the English Conservatives
who hate the Irish cordially, and VIII
make no secret Of their belief that the onl,
way to deal with them is by coercion
Should the present condition Of TIE coun
try result in the failure of the Government
programme it is on the cards that the Con
servatives may be called to take the helm
and in that case the land bill would almos
certainly be abandoned, and an entirel
different policy be put in force.
The Irish leaders are, through their sane
tion of the intemperance Of their follow
ers, doing great deal to render this chang
of policy probable. The Liberals hav
unquestionably desired to do justice t
Ireland, but the Irish themselves hav
thrown all the obstacles possible in thei
way. II uuASI bNtsS CIRCUMSTANCES III
Conservatives should be called upon TO tr,
their hand at the business, public opinion
in England would probably indorse thei
rejection of the persuasive system, and az
prove their adoption of drastic measures
OF course Ireland has everything to los
and nothing to gain by serious insurrec
ton Such movement would merely Civ
her worst enemies the excuse they seek TO
furnishing her severely, and no sane OBJ
server can suppose for moment that tn
rebels would be able to hold their own
They are in fact pursuing suicidal course
and the indications are that it will result
in the defeat of the land bill, and tn
consequent abandonment of all remedia
legislation for years to come.
AN EASY METHOD.