New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-03-02
LAND LEAGUE MAN1FESTOES.
MR. pARNELI, sELF.CoYDEMNED.

MIR. PARNELL SELF-CONDEMNED
MADNESS OF THE SBLLRocHEFORr fCLMlNA-
TIoN-vToroR HUGo's UNFORTUNATE POSITION
-sE1F-CoNTRADroroRY CHARACTER OF PAR
NEII's owN NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. SYMPATHY
UTTERLY NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. FAILURE As
A POLITICAL LEADER.
tepos THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
LONDON, Feb. 17.-Since the week began, MI
Parnell has favored the world with two OF three Ut
four, or it may be, half dozen, or perhaps dozen
manifestoes The first which came to the knowled9e
| of the English public is certainly the most remark
| able 1t had been filtered through the imaginative
brain of NJ. Henri Rochefort. Vcomte de Lucay' e&-
| convict and communard, who published In Dlnfrdn-
sigeant what he probably supposes to be an accurate
| account of Mr.. Parnels statements to him on the
| Irish land question and other questions. There was
O report not long since that Mr.. Parnell was mad.
If he should be brought before commission OF lu-
macy and NJ. Henri Rocheforts lively narrative DC
given in evidence against him, Mr.. PanelPs chance
| of q prolonged residence at Colney Halch
| would be very good The SORT
of nonsense that Mr.. Parnel is made to talk womb
| be attributed to nothing less than mental aberra-
| tion He speaks of the surviving mouthplece OIL
Jngoism, The Daily Telegraph, as Government
organ. He declares that Irish newspapers eXlst
under the system that prevailed in France during
| the Empire; "they are warned twice. then they are
| suppressed without any possible appeal to justice
| which. for the matter of that does not exist" He
airms that the owners of the soil in Ireland have
never cultivated their estates but ruthlessly fleece
those who have spent their lives in improving their
| land These circumstances. he adds, have produced
some disorders quite local and partial Official Stats
| tics have magnfed these disorders and multiplied
the number of outrages by processes of which this IN
stance is given that when proprietor has the WIN
dows of his house broken each pane of glass struck
| by stone is reckoned as separate outrage; ana
| this: that when an "insolent landlord" receives
number of blows from cane each blow is rcckOned
o separate outrage and figures as such in the otclai
| returns
II isnot necessary TO impute these absurdties to
Mr.. Parnell, or to suspect him OF wish to impose
| OH NJ. ROchcfort's cTedulitY. The value OF them IS
due solely to the evidence they furnish OF the ces
pcrate straits TO which Mr.. Parnel is reduced in his
search for allies. We must believe IN NJ RocheiortS
good faith, though 1t can only be defended BY
| ascribing to him the most amazing Ignorance. He
knows TO state the truth bluntly. absolutely nothing
of the matter in which ne makes himself PARTISAN
| IN which particular q striking comparison might be
drawn between NJ Bochcfort and the Legislatures
in America which have been passing resolutions
about Ireland Mr. PaInell never showed a greater
want OF political tact than in choosing y. RochcioIt
as q political confdant. No man in France
is more completely diScredited and powerles~.
| Nobody need waste regrets over VI. Rocheiort lie
long since took himself ont of the pale of sympathy
1t il din rent thing when one sees NJ Victor HUGO
practiscd upon. NJ Victor Hugo's is SO great name
IN literature that nothing he says or does can fail to
have its influ,nce IN literature 4 long succession
Of political mistakes has destroyed the confidence
few people once felt in his political good sense.
But II Is pitful none The less to see tine venerable
old man made use Of ~ Mr. Parncll is now making
Use of him To-day's kilograms from Paris say that
| PANEL has induced Victor Hugo to promise to
| issue "A manifesto TO Europe In favor of the claims
of Ireland. Europe will laugh at the manifesto
when it appears NJ. lIuEo's real friends Will Cieve
that he should again be the victim OF purely sentl
mental interest in politics which are tofc'Sn 10
him.
All tns however. hardly touches the fringe OF
serious politics. Mr.. PANELS slCncdprOc on
published this morning the genuncncss of which
seems not to he questioned comes much nearer to
| being An important document than do the flights of
! VI. Rochcfort the pledges Of NJ. Hugo. For one
thing, It puts end u the hopes of Mr.. ParnclI@
English admirers. Of whom there were still left
few who saw in him n leader of considerable
sagacity Even before the appearance OF this extra
ordinary document Mr. Chamberlain had thrown
him over Perhaps ought not 70 rank Mr.. Cham
berlain among Mr.. ParncIs admirers. but he was
certainly at one time. and for certain purposes his
| mort powcrful ally among Engshmcn. Bat Mr.
Chamberlain now writes To his friends ~ Birmingham
that il 10 Mr.. Parnel and his band who have made
coercion Necessary; that they might have pm vented
| crime and did not and that they have allenatch
| English sympathy by an undsguiSed attempt to de-
| stroy the Parliamentary Institutions whose pryi-
| leges they have abused. Even now" adds Alr
| Chamberlain. " when they cannot hope to prevent
the passage Of the they oppose. they seem
| L ,ittul, t.f lima
| in endless discussions: the chei effect Of which,
if not their chief object, is to delay indefinitely the
introduction and consideration Of those measures
of reform for which the people OF Ireland 80 justly
call and which the Liberal party and the present
| Government arc alike willing and eager 10 propose
| Coming from Mr. Chamberlain, that Is very re-
markable declaration Jude Il aud 1t has n bearing
on tho first part Of Mr. Parnelis manifesto Of the
utmost Importance
For what Mr.. Parnell proposes in this first part OF
his manifesto is what he would have long since pro-
posed if he had tenth part Of the ability with
which he has been credited AS leader and which he
proposes row when his own conduct has made the
success Of it an impos5ibty. II is nothing less
than an alliance between the Irish and the English
Democracy. Iii effect, though not in terms Mr. Par
nell confesses that his Parliamentary programme
has broken down. After the new rules had been
adopted there were he says. but two courses open
to him: either to retire from Parliament, which he
will not do OF to use his position III Parliament a
means Of appeal longer TO Parliament
itself nor even to the constituencies but TO
the people. Parliament, he declares, has been
tried and found wanting; but why Because 1t Is
not Parliament of the people, but Parliament Of
the aristocracy, the manufacturers, and the shop
keepers 1t Is an upper and middle class Paramcn t..
1t could not be expected to do justice to the lower
classes of Ireland. TO tho artisans and agricultural
lalIorers of England he therefore looks for that