The Irish standard., 1895-11-30
THE LoKDJLIEuTENANT.

Ace Of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland may
be cleaned from an exhaustive article by
j. G.. Swift MacNeil1, Q. c., M. r., that
appears in the latest issue at hand of the
Dublin F'reeman's Journal, says the San
Francisco nation. AS preliminary, 1t
to say might be said right hare--there
have been but five honest, we'll meaning
Lord Lieutenants of Ireland. To the still
Gent of Irish history it is hardly neces-
sary to say that we refer to Lords Fitz-
william, Normandy, Wellesley, Aberdeen
and {3oughton. Lord CORVALLIS, whose
name, is not unknown in American an
rails, and who died in 1906, during his
term of office as Governor General Of In
dia, after His retirement from the Irish
Vice-royalty, gives very unfavorable
opinion of the system of corruption
that prevailed in Dublin Castle II Of
ten," he says, think Of two lines of
Swift, speaking Of tine Lords Lieutenant
and the system Of corruption"
ana Lncn, at 6G6iISUuU SitCtL ldla,
Complains his budget is too small.
These lines, writes Mr.. MacNeill,. "were
written by Dean Swift in 1729--exactly
seventy years before Lord Corvallis
experience of this office # great dignity
which he terms this most cursed of all
situations, and more repugnant to my
feelings was by no means singular. The
private correspondence OF the first Mar
quis Townshend during his Lord Lieuten-
ancy displays a. contempt approaching to
loathing for. the measures to which he
was compelled to stoop and for the men
he was obliged to conciliate. Swim
ming" writes Mr.. Froude, in a base and
sordid element, Townshend, like Corn
wallis after him. detested the work in
which he was engaged, of superseding a
corrupt oligarchy by corrupt Prostorians. ;
Lord CORVALLIS, as Lord Lieutenant, OBJ
serves, went to India, where he died in
the office of Governor General in 1906
When a proposal was made in the House
of Commons to erect monument to his
memory at the public expense. it was OPP
posed on the ground that Lord CORVALLIS
had resorted to the, basest corruption in
the carrying of the union. This discus
sion gave Mr. Charles James Fox, who
was then cal inet minister, an oppoprtu-
nifty of placing On record from the treas
ury bench of the House of Commons his
opinion of that stupandous crime. 1T
was said,' said Mr.. Fox, then secretary Of
state, 'atrocious in its principle and
abominable in it's means. 1t was a meas
ure the most disgraceful to the govern
ment of the country that was ever car
ried or proposed
'"Thank Cod writes Lord Anglesey,
Lord Lieutenant in 1S29-the former
beau sabreur of the Seventh Queens Own
Hussars, and cavalry commander under
Wellington at Waterloo-"My parliament
tary and official duties are now over, and
I have ascertained beyond a doubt that
am not fit to fight with thorough paced
politicians so shall leave them to their
dirty work. The desire to be retrieved
from the Office of Lord Lieutenant, the
reference to the, Thoroughbred politi-
Clans and the dirty work, seems only to
be the reflections Of the sentiments of
Lord CORVALLIS, who, as Lord Lieuten-
ant, wrote. If did not hope to get out Of
this country I would most certainly pray
for immediate DEATH Again, despise
and hate myself every hour for engage
ment in such dirty work"
r, Lord Angelsey, although dashing cav
airy officer, proved a weak, pusillanimous
faineant in the vice-regal capacity while
his successors in power at Dublin Castle
Normandy, Aberdeen and
Houghton excepted-were scoundrels Of
the same stamp.