The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1886-04-16
IRIS GRATrAN,s PARLIAMENT

Essentially the bill proposed Dy MI.
Gladstone yesterday is downright re-
peal of the Act of Union carried by Pltt
at the beginnin of the century. lt Ia
vokes no sweeping changes OF the BTU
ish Constitution. 1t copies neither the
political system of the United States
nor the scheme constructed FOR the Cah-
adian Dominion. It reverts to the state
of things coveted by Irish patriots IN
1882. It gives back to Ireland her an
cient Parliment, not as Grattan saw IL,
but as Grattan hoped that he might
1--we 10 see it, PaTliment not only un-
shackled from indC pendence on tue
English legislature. but truly represent
atiYe of the Irish people. 1t Is no more
/ an ideal assembly than is the ParllmenG |
/ at Westminster. Like that, 1t VIII !
1 have need of much publication and i'm 1
provement. But it is Irish to the core;
1 Its roots are struck IN Irish history, ana
I its fruits of self help and elf-dlsclpllne
should answer Irish aspiration.
No more conclusive answer could Oe
4 given to the charge that Mr.. Gladstone
is theor;st and policy-monger, but no
statesman, than his refusal III this cris-
is to accept any of the nostrums OF Vhe
Constitution thinkers or to diverge from
the broad lines of political Relationship
which up to the Act of Union had re-
long defaced and overlaid by Englands
usurpation of veto on Irish Legislation.
| Grattan ALWAYS contended that these
lines, in POyning's act wer brushed aside
and the Dublin Parliment itself were
reconstructed on a basis of religious
| equality and a libersliZed franchise,
would be found the right foundations
! on which to build an Irish nation SELF
governing and yet observant OF lts du-
D-SE V.,Y,Svn
, his firm faith, and, his countrymen Oe-
lieve, such would have been the fact,
. had not the emaDcipated Parliment
been prematurely swept away. IL is
3 Mr.. GladstOne's conviction, as he told
d the House of Commons yesterday. thaG
for all the suffering and crime in Ire
land the Act of Union is primarily res
ponsible, and therefore he asks the
: British people, by repeating that pad
d law. to restore to Ireland the instru-
l. meut of self-amelioTation which was
v forged by Irish hands.
= An attempt to give Ireland State
u tights patterned on the American mod
u ell would have involved the retention of
Irish members in the Parliament at
Westminster, which, it will be noticed,
forms no part of Mr.. Gladstone's IS plan.
is Their exclusion does, undoubtedly, to
l. some extent involve the principle OF
!. taxation without representation, for not
only will Ireland have to bear her share
~ of the cost of wars, in beginuing or end
20 ing which she will have no voice, but
Of She will also have to pay-in the pro
~ portion of ! to 15--heT quota of interest
on the public debt, although that deb
III ! undoubtedly may be increased by out
n Law for English or Scotch purposes. L
ne seems that an effort should be made II
so committee to modify the Home Rul
- bill in these particulars, so as to pro
vide some safeguards against imposing
IL weighty burdens on 1relaRd's resource
nd without her consent. For obviously il
to the event of prOtracted war or of tn
&c application to England of the Chamber
lain land municipaliZation scheme, Ire
7S- lands fifteenth might be swollen to
ke sum much exceeding Mr.. Gladstone
ite present computation.
ia The relation of Ireland to the Britis
-. empire under the Gladstone Repeal bi
'"o will differ broadly from that of the CaI
or adian Dominion. The Dublin Govern
inc ment will not have the right to lev
Ike customs, such duties being fixed an
collected BY the imperial administer
tiou, i'll trust, however, to pay over tt
ry, proceeds to the Irish exchequer, aft
the reserving the amount necessary to NAL
cC- good Irish obligations. 1t would,
ov- we have often pointed out, be an ir
possibility to obtain from a British Pa
10 lament, rejecting, as it does, the W
the of the British manufacturers, the san
of tion of Ireland'3 right, abstractly pc
the feet, to tax goods imported from Gre
=, Britain. Mainly on this ground '
have supposed that Mr.. Gladstone mig
TN be forced to follow an American rath
i to than Canadian precedent. AS we sc
the be has followed neither, and it may
haf Triab natri.OfG rpPnuniTIn0 Z
- tremendous difficulties Of his pOsitiu
Jun will consent to waive an important le
anne sIative function, notwithstanding tn,
ven exclusion from the imperial custom
pass levYing body. But this. too, is pl
ator vision which may be altered in comm
- tee, where the proposition to leave a
oe the Irish cunstabulary under the iml
lIIh rial command is certain to be siren
ously opposed. And as Mr.. Gladsto
admitted that the retention of the
lice under the Viceroy was only inter
ssed ed to be temporary, he would not prol
? by bly, be sorry to see his measure AIMED
avs. on that point.
10 of There is another feature of the
-, which will provoke good deal of
au' cussior. We refer to the curious in;
that tuition (cOpied apparently from
lout Norwegian Storthing) of two ord
10 to which are to sit and vote for the m
part IN one cnamDer, DuJ or which
lo"' is to possess a power of transient v
pur- on the action of the other. The obi
con- of this provision plainly was to affOr
10 oe pretext for the election of the represe
ative Irish Peers from st. StepheI
- Oo and to console them with life seats i
GEMS kind of Senate which should seen
oyes partial restitution of the old Ii
very House of Lords. But this element
Ill Grattan's Parliament is an anach
nism, and would not long survive
q IN English upper house, which is itself
act undisguised decTepitude.
both 1t must, indeed, be understood {
What Mr.. Gladstone is giving, not all
81, would. but all he can. If in this
VII, draft he did not take every precaut
VIII to disarm resistance and distrust,
the bill would never get as far as the c
,man mittee stage. But whatever trans
s,,ob nation or whatever fate awaits
80. measure, the fact of its introduction
hllh a tremendous gain for Ireland
esent Act of Union cannot stand, now
IA ex- lis repeal has been demanded b
tho Prime Minister who rides TO his D
amid hos9nnas, by a man acclai
0ieOS lord paramount of his country's b
even and conscience.-N 7. San Of ADr
ctical