The Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1885-1886, 1886-05-04
AN EARNEST APPEAL.
GLADSTONE'S MANIFESTO TO HIS
MIDLOTHIAN CONSTITUENTS.
He Asks Them to Stand by Him in His
Fight for the Rights of Ire1and-Assur-
ances of Sympathy Received from
Everywhere,

Fight for the Rights of IreIand-Assur-
ances of Sympathy Received from
Everywhere.
LONDON, May 1 The DAILY News second
edition, issued at 6 O'Clock Monday morn
ing, publishes two column manifesto by
Mr. Gladstone to his Midlothian constituents
1t is tender and earnest appeal to stand by
him on the Irish question. The premier
apologies for not making a speech during
the Easter recess. age grows upon me-
he says, "and am obliged to reserve my
limited power of voice for any effort which
may lie required i'll the house of commons
| therefore use my pen to revert to the sub
ject which | opened in my address to you
of last September" Speaking of the home
rule bill he says: a have never known an oc.
casion when parliamentary event so rang
throughout the world as the introduction Of
this bill under the auspices of a British
government from public meetings and from
the highest authorities in the colonies and
America; from capitals such as Washing
ton, Boston, and Quebec, and from remote
districts lying beyond the reach o. all or
dinary political excitement | received
conclusive assurances that the kindred peo-
pie regard it with warm and fraternal sym
pathy. Our present effort to settle on an
adequate SCALE and once for all the long
vexed and troubled relations between Great
Britain and Ireland, which exhibit to us the
one and only conspicuous failure of the
political genius of our race to confront and
master difficulty and to obtain in reasona-
ble degree the main ends of civilized life"
Mr.. Gladstone then gives long history
of the attempts to ccnciliate or to coerce
Ireland, and he adds: Watching from day
to day the movement of the current of
opinion during the present conflict, more
and more find it vital to observe the point
at which the dividing lines are drawn. On
the side adverse to the government are
found, as | sorrowfully admit, i'll profuse
abundance, station, title, wealth, social in
tiuence, and the professions, or the large ma
iority of them-in a word, the spirit and
power of class Thes, ara the main body of tn
opposing host Nor is this all As the
knights of old had sluires so in the great
army of class each enrolled soldier has a
roll OF dependents The adverse host, then,
consists of a class and the dependents of a
class, hut this formidable army is in
the bulk of its constituent parts the same,
though now enriched at our cost with val
uabe contingent of recruits, that has
fought in every one of the great political
battles Of the last sixty years, and has been
Defeated We have a great aim before uf
now. 1t is to restore your parliament to ef
ficacy by dividing and by removing obsta
cles to its work; 70 treat the Irish question
with due re ara to its speciaities, but with
the same thoroughness of method by which
We have solved colonial problems that fifty
years back w,re hardly, if at all, less for
midable; to give heed to the voice of peo-
pie speaking in tones of moderation, by the
| mouth of a vast ma jorty of those whom we
ourselves have made its constitutional repre-
sentatves, and thus to strengthen and con-
soldate the empire on the basis of mutual
benefit and hearty loyalty. Such is the end.
| As for the means, we take the establishment
| in Dublin of a legislative body empowered
to make laws for the Irish as contradiS-
| tinguished from imperial affairs 1t is with
that that we are now busied AMI not with
details and particulars Their time will
| come"
| Mr.. Gladstone concluded as follows: ave
are not debating the amount of the Irish
| contributions to the empire or the compost
ton of the legislative body. or the mainten-
| ance of representative connection with
| Westminster. On these questions, and many
| more, we may or may not be at odds; but
| what we are at this moment debating is the
| large and far larger question which includes
and, | think absorbs them all-the question
| whether you will or will not have regard t0
| the prayer of ireland for the management
| by herself of the affairs specified and ex.
| clusiyely ssher own. This and no other
| is the matter which the house of commons
has at once to decide. II on this matter il
! speaks witt clear and intelligihle voice |
feel the strongest assurance that the others,
difficult as some OF them are, will, neverthe
less, with the aid of full discussion, and
| with the aid of a wise AMI conciliatory
spirit, be found capable of rational and
tolerahle settlement 1t is little, gentle
men, which can do in this most grave
matter. 1t is no more than to devote with
| cheerfuneSs to the cause tho small
available residue Of my active life
But let me in these closing words
extend my view beyond my own honorej
constituency and in one sentence say to you
| my countrymen of Scotland and of Eng
land, l can do much with You collectively
and nauSht with any person or class or sac
| tion among you, 1t rests with You to de
liver the great yea or nay. On your choict
depends all the best hopes of Ireland and
much that touches in it The honor and higt
interests of Great Britain and all the mighty
empire of our queen | remain, electors o.
Midlothian, your dutiful and grateful serv
ant, W. f. GLADSTONE