Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-04-09

musl oe reasonable safeguards for the minor
ity. He had no doubt of the ability of the
minority TO take care of itself, but for the
present there were three classes of people
whom they were bound TO consider. Firstly,
the class connected with the land: secondly.
civil servants and officers of the government,
OF Ireland. Thirdly, the protestant minor
ity. Several schemes for the separate
government of Ulster had been submitted TO
him, one being that Ulster province be ex-
cluded from the operations of the present
bill, but none of the proposals had appeared
to the government to be 90 completely justi-
ned by its merits or by weight of public
opinion IN its favor as to warrant the govern
ment including il in their bill However
should any feasible and satisfactory plans be
discovered the government would do its best
TO adopt plan that seemed likely 10 give
general satisfaction. Referring to the great
settlement of 1882, Gladstone said tina, it was
not real settlement, and why? Was il Ire
land that prevented real settlement being
made? Irish cheers. No, it was the mis-
taken policy of England listening TO the per-
nicious voice and claims of the ascendency
Hear The Irish Parliamen; labors under
great disadvantages. yet it had in it spark
of the spirit of freedom and it emancipated
Roman Catholics in Ireland when Roman
pated There was spirit in that Parliament
which if it had had free scope would have
done noble work and probably would have
solved all the Irish problems and have saved
this government infinite trouble.
The speaker said that he would now pass
TO the plan how to give Ireland legislature
TO deal with the Irish as distinguished from
Imperial affairs. Hear He was con-
fronted at the outset with what he felt TO be a
formidable dilemma. Ireland was to have
domestic legislation for Irish affairs. Were
the Irish members and Irish representative
peers in either house to continue to form a
part OF the representative assemblies? The
speaker thought ii would be perfectly clear
that if Ireland was to have a domestic legis-
lature Irish peers and Irish representatives
could not come to parliament to control Eng
lish and Scotch affairs. Cheers. Then with
regard to the question whether Irish repre-
sentatives should come to the House of Com
mons for the settlement of imperial affairs,
he thought it couldn't be done. He had,
therefore, arrived at the conclusion that Irish
members and Irish peers ought not to sit in
the palace of Westminster. Oh. oh. and
cheers. If Irish members were not to sit
in the House of Commons Irish peers ought
not to Sit in the other house OF Parliament.
.
taxed if they had legislators in both coun-
tries? He believed Great Britain would never
impose on Ireland taxation without represent
alton, and added that if we were to have taxa
tion without representation, then there would
come another question which would raise a
practical difficulty and that is "are we to give
up the fiscal unity OF the empire?" He be-
lieved that to give up the fiscal unity of the
empire would be great misfortune for
Great Britain and greater misfortune for
Ireland. He conceived that one escape from
that dilemma would be such an arrangement
as would give the imperial government au-
thOrity to levy customs, duties and such ex-
else duties as were Immediately connected
with customs. The conditions of such an
arrangement were first, that the general
power of taxation over and above those par
ticular duties, should pass unequivocally into
the hands of domestic legislature. Second
lv. that the proceeds of customs and excise
should be held for toe benefit of Ireland, anl
TIE discharge of the obligations of Ireland
and the payment of the balance after the OBJ
legations were discharged, should be entered
into the Irish exchequer and be for the free
disposal of the Irish legislative body. The
government bill provided for this and the bill
then provided that the representatives. of Ire
Commons or Irish peers in the House of
Lords, but at the same time they would have
the right of addressing the Crown, and so
possess all the constitutional rights they held
now. Oh and cheers
1t would therefore relieve the Irish mem
bers from attendance at Westminster There
is another point with regard to the powers of
legislature. Two courses might have been
taken. One was to endow this legislative
body with particular legislative powers. The
other was to except from the sphere of its
action those subjects which the government
thought ought to be excepted and to leave to
it every other power. The latter plan has
been adopted. The administrative power
would pass with the legislative, duration OF
the proposed legislative body that should not
exceed five years functions, which it was
proposed to Withdraw from the cognizance of
the legislative body. 1t would not be com
plete to pass laws for the establishment or
endowment of any particular religion.
Cheers
As to trade and navigation it would be a
misfortune to Ireland to be separated fro m
England. The Irish Parliament would have
nothing to do with the creation or coinage of
legal tender. The subject of postoffce would
be left to the judgment of Parliament, though
view that it would be more convenient to
leave postoffice matters in the hand of the
postmaster general. Quarantine and one or
two other subjects we're left in the same cat
egory.
The next subject he had to approach was
that of the composition of the proposed leg
islative body. The bill proposed to introduce
two orders who would sit and deliberate to-
gether, with the right of voting separately on
any occasion and on demand of either body
which should be able to interpose the veto on
any measure for limited time, either till
dissolution or for three years. The orders
would be constituted as follows: First,
there were 2S representative peers who could
not continue to sit in the House of Lords
after the representatives Of the Irish people
left the House of Commons thev would have
option Of sitting as a portion of the first
order in the Irish Parliament, with power Of
sitting for life. He proposed that with the
2S peers now in the House of Lords there
should SIT 10 Representatives elected BY the
Irish people. With regard to the powers of
election the constituency would be composed
of occupiers of the value of % pound. and
upwards, and they would be elected Tor ten
years. The property qualification of these
representatives would be 200 pounds annual
value or capital value of 1000 pounds.
Gladstone then said he proposed that the
1ol Irish members in Commons should be
members of the Irish Parliament. and whilst
the first order of the legislative body would
consist of l03 members, the second order
T.