The Irish standard., 1893-09-02

fairly warranted in describing the House
of Lords as exclusively made up out o1
the landlord class. But, to anticipate
small critisism on my own side of the
water, shall describe it as almost thus
composed. Then, being house of land
| lords, they are naturally house inter
ested in the maintenance of an estab
lished church with it's system OF presen-
tation TO livings as part Of landlords
personal property. Now, land reforms,
franchise reforms, educational reforms,
and reforms abolishing class privileges
of any kind, are the main objects of Eng
lish Liberal legislation. Therefore we
have House of Lords, a permanent in
stitution of the state, with very large
majority of Tories in it, and majority
of landlords so great aS to be absolutely
| overwhelming and to leave the tiny non
landlord minority of no account at all
we have that House of Lords set up as a
permanent tribunal to revise and reject
the measures of the representative cham
Der, the House of Commons. I have al
ready admitted that the lords always
have to give in to tho House of Com
mons in the end. But this very fact is
only one other argument to show the alb
surdity of such an institution. If the
House of Lords must knuckle down at
last to the HOUSE of Commons, what be-
comes of the theory of saving upper
chamber? -.
But, although the House of Lords can
not finally resist or reject, it can delay, it
can obstruct, it can annoy and even ex-
asperate, it can tamper with and mutt
late and spoil good measures to repair
the harm the lords have done. Let us
take some illustrations of this faculty
which it undoubtedly possesses. be-
gin with the action of the House of
Lords in regard to Mr.. Gladstone's
measures for the repeal of the paper
duty.
The paper duty was simply tax upon
education. The paper duty made it
practically impossible fior chsap and
popular newspapers to exist in Great
Britain and Ireland. The working
classes and the poor we're by it's opera
ton cut off from the sight Of daily pa
per. for the regular price of a daily paper
then was sixpence. Two venturous pa
pers were started at a penny each shortly
before 1860, but it did not appear possi-
bic that, under the conditions, they
could be maintained. Mr.. Gladstone
wss chancellor of the exchequer in 1860,
and he brought in bill for the abolition
of the duty on paper. The House OF
Lords threw out the bill. The country
was immersed in some months of confu-
sion, agitation, vexation. Lord Palmer
ston epdeavored to make it easy for the
House of Lords. Mr.. Gladstone de-
nounced their conduct with outspoken
eloquence. Lord Palmerston had it
quietly conveyed to the lords that they
must past the Dill next session. The
story used to go-apd even if it be not
true, it is characteristic of public opin-
ion concerning the man-that Palmerston
sent a message to the leading peers to
the effect that what they bad done was a
very good joke for once, but that it must
not be repeated. It was not repeated.
The lords passed the measure quietly
and tacitly in the very next session. Yet
those who heard the debate in the House
of Lords in the session of 1850, when the
bill was rejected, who listened as / did
to the impassioned rhetoric Of the late
Lord Derby and to the lofty argument
OF the venerable Lord Lyndhurst, would
have thought that the whole fate of
England as a state depended on her
maintaining the duty on paper. What
had happened between that time and the
next sesslon-a few mon' hs-to revolu
tionize the. opinion of the House of
Lords? Nothing; but they saw the
country was not with them, and that
even their best friend, Lord Palmerston,
was not prepared to back them up They
delayed for few months measure Of
vast national importance; they exasper
ated many persons and classes in the
country and that was all. What part
for savior Of society to play!
Mr.. Mccarthy next speaks OF the op-
position Of tue lords to the abolition OF
the Irish Church Establishment, to the
abolition of the purchase OF commissions
in the army and to. the establishment
Of the system Of vote by ballot and shows
how they mntilated and impaired the
Irish land bills placed by the Gladstone
administration as to make them utterly
imperative for the very objects to which
they were intended to apply.
THERE'S something provoking can
not find any better word to express what
Il mean LIN the habitual policy of the
House Of Lords. It will paas anything
the moment the country gets angry and
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