St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-18
IN The FRONT RANK.
O'Bpien Places Himself in the
Front Rank as a Parlia-
mentary Debater.
He Challenges Balfour to Make
Good His Insinuations
Against Him.
Balfour Says the Childish Fuss
Is Hardly Worth the No
tice Taken.
The Liberals and ParnelliteS
Give Gladstone a RouS-
ing Ovation.
Copyright Cable to the Globe.

Copyright Cable to the Globe
LONDON, Feb. 7.-WilIiam O'Brien's
calm and dignified speech on his return
to parliament, after imprisonment. con-
tinues to be the political sensation of
the day. 1t produced remarkable i'm
preston. The Pail Mall Gazette says,
this evening: "Mr. O'Brien has won
at single bound the position of par
liamentary debater of the first rank.
Nothing has been finer during this ses-
sion, and few things finer during this
aprliament, than the mastery speechin
which the late prisoner arraigned his
jailer, Balfour, and challenged him face
to face to make good the lnsinuations
indulged in when his victim was under
lock and key" Similar comments ap-
pear in the other Liberal newspapers.
The Tory whips had prearranged that
Mr.. BalfOur should reply to Mr.. O'Brien
Immediately, believing that in this way
it would be easy to counteract any i'm
preston that the eX-prisOner might
succeed in producing, but Mr.. Balfour
evidently found the task too difficult;
at least this is the Interpretation
put ON his silence by those who
know what the programme had
been. 1t was declared on the Liberal
side that the chief secretary and the
Tories did not take pains to deny their
belief. This view of the case seems
strengthened by the opening sentences
of Mr.. Balfour'S reply tonight, which
were to the effect that he had wished to
take careful survey of the situation
before stating the governments case,
and to procure disprOOf of assertions
proof consisted of some of the always
obtainable statements of petty officials,
who are themselves under coercion as
hateful as that which they are obliged
to aid in forcing upon the people.
IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS
tonight, Mr.. Balfour, resuming the de-
bate, declared that childish fuss had
been made over the prison clothing of
Mr.. O'Brien. 1t was hardly worth
neticing. A letter he had written dur
! ing Mr.. O'Brien'S imprisonment had
stated that the prisoner. was suffering
from weak lungs and an eXcitable dis
position. The health of the prisoner
had not been disregarded. With regardto
allegations of torture, he had requested
the English inspectors to inquire
into the facts, and the re-
suit was to show no harShness existing.
Mr.. O'Brien'S health had actually i'm
proved in prison. He had gained two
pounds in weight. Mr.. O'Brien inter-
rupted to state that this was inaccurate.
He weighed five pounds less on leaving
the prison than on entering the prison.
Mr.. Balfour sarcaStically rejOined that
he would have parliament presented
with official reports of the rise and fall
D,sN g, I
Mr.. Balfour continued by arguing that
improved as compared with the period
of M. GladstOne's government. The
opposition talked about union of
hearts. Doubtless the Irish meant to
make good use of the English Radicals.
The latter were certainly making good
use of the Parnellites. So long as COM
munity of political interests continued
there would be
THIS UNION OF HEARTS.
When the community of purpose
ceased the Radicals would again have ap-
piled to them the epithets so freely be-
slowed on the government. The Par
nellites had not altered their morality,
though the Liberals had made cOnces-
sions of theirs. He was panied at the
progress of degradation among the Lib
CIdlS. VIII uOW IOSG ~ lIlC 1lclSul VI Ill
dignation only when denOuncing judges,
magistrates and police authorities. I'm
der great difficulties and amid much
obloQuy these officials has stood be-
tween society and utter ruin, fearlessly
executing their duties. They had their
reward in the respect and admiration of
every true friend of liberty and order.
Mr.. BalfOur'S speech enhanced
his reputation as parliamentary
debater. cool and dispassiOnate.
Mr.. Gladstone continued the debate.
His voice Waf weaker than usual, but
the house maintained such perfect
silence that he had no difficulty in max
ing himself heard. The speech was re-
markable for its elOquence, and was in
deed a wholly rhetorical effort, with an
almost entire absence of the argumenta-
tive and statistical style of which Mr..
Gladstone is so perfect a master. When
he apolOgiZed for his physical weakness
as shown by his occasionally falling
voice, saying that he was not so young
as he once was, the house burst into
whirl of sympathetic applause. the Lib
erals and ParneliteS rising en- masse
and waving their hats and handkerchiefs
at him. He seemed much affected bv
the incident. At the close of the debate
Mr. Parnell'S amendment to the reply
to the queens speech was rejected by a
vote of 317 to 229. MIR. BalfOur then re-
sumed the debate OH the address. Re-
ferring to Mr.. O'Brien's attack upon
him in debate, he said he was accus-
toned to such attacks in Mr.. OBrien's
paper. He conSoled himself by the re-
Election that even worse attacks had
formerly been made upon Mr.. O'Brien's
present allies. Mr.. O'Brien had once
compared Mr.. Gladstone to Judas
Iscariot, and United Ireland had insn-
uated that Sir George Otto Trevelyan
and Earl Spencer had cOnspired to
shield men guilty of nameless crimes.
Mr.. O'Brien-l merely stated that the
result of their action was to shield these
persons. never alleged that they acted
willfully.
Mr.. BalfOur--I can prove my state
ment by reference to United Ireland
Mr.. BalfOur, continuing, compared the
crimes acts of 1882 and 1857, and MAIN
tanned that the latter did not create new
crimes, while the former did. He said
Mr.. O'Brien had bOasted that his advice
to the people of MitchelStown, combined
with English opinion, had prevented
wholesale evictions. AS a matter of fact
the action of the government
HAD BEEN MODIFIED
by neither of these causes. Itwas moth
ing new for the NatiOnalistS to preach
resistance to evictiOnS. Mr.. Gladstone
said that Mr.. Balfour's denial that the
Conservatives had communicated with
Mr.. Parnell OH the home rule question
did not get rid of the Irish assertions
that they had. Mr.. Parnell had stated
that he found himself at that time in