The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-08-14
Crowding Parnell

LoNDoN, August 12.-Chamberlain'
reply to Parnell S letter is published
this morning. Cham berlain says: s.
understand that Parnell denied tha
. Shea had any authority to represen
his views, and that he repud.ated q
responsibility for the scherce OF a Ia
tio7al ccurol submitted to me by
OShea." Chamberlain proceeds 10
state that scheme attributed to ParDell,
appended TO this letter. was the Il ject
Of conversation with O'Shea from the
/ end of November, 1884. 1t was brought
to me in writing by O'Shea on
January 18Th, 1885. Parntlls let
tiers prove his authorship, and also
! that OSheG was the confidential
exponent OF his views st the time
These points, however, are not DIS
puted IN Parnell's letter to the Times.
The correspondence also corroborates
Parnells statement that be did not IN
tend the proposal as substitute for an
Irish Parliament. chamberlain says:
Il understood the proposal was offered
as an acceptable settlement, though l
felt no statement made by even Parnell
could bind The Irish people in future,
and though 1 believed then as now.
that a large and safe extension
Of local government would remove al
practical grievance. The whole su bject
was fully discussed with my colleagues,
and was not finally rejected till May
9th, 1885. Wien new government was
formed tried to learn whether PAr
nell adhered to his proposal. In the
middle of July, O'Shea informed me
that In view of the altered state of
affairs and Lord Carnivan's speech,
Gladstone doubted the policy of en-
cum berlng the Irish question with
larger extension of the local
government to Ireland than to
England. The question of the
renewal of the crimes act was discussed
simultaneously with the foregoing. In
the spring of 1885 O'Snea brought me
Pernell's revised coercion acts of 1882
Parnell had no serious objection to the
claus es and 3, the first beng altered
by The transfer from cause l Of The
definition of offenses, excluding, now
ever. treason and felony. Chamberlain
SAYS that in subsequent conversations
he told 0'Shea that he was of the
opinion that no government could DIS
pense with some provisions against boy
cotting and intimidatiDg. | understood
that If the act was limited to the
year, Parnell would consent to more
stringent provisions thar if extended to
three years. 1 therefore pressed this
limitation on other mem bers of the gov
ment. | may say that neither at This
time nor subsequently,, has it appeared
to me that there was anything in these
communications of which Parnell has
cause to be ashamed. believed he was
sincerely anxious to see the end Of the
dangerous agitation that 80 long hadi
distrac ed Ireland. 1t was with this OBJ
Ject that l understood him to propose
compromise views between the sspar-
atist party and the existing system, and
| readily accepted the statements made
of his attitude as entirely con-
sistent with what knew
of it myself and especially with his
offer to- Gladstone, after the Ph9nIx
Park murders, to retire from Parlia
ment and oandon politics. [ have al
WAYS entertained the conviction ttat
one of the most serious difficulties in
the government of Ireland has been the
isolation of the castle and want of the
confidential interchange of opinion be-
tween Parnellites aud government, and
| must express my great regret that this
difficulty has been rather increased
than diminished by the experience of
myself and others who have in recent
years endeav0red to overcome it.