The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-05-14
IRELAND Mu RULES ITSELF.
P1ACGyUL AND QUIET 11yolU.
T1Ox ON AP1lL q.


ID pessu1soeoaco NJ Irish natiea-
atty. coeeered and proclaimed
I0) ~ H. remaskable meetings
~ held throughout ireland last
yoAe n coWmeNorat1on Of the
). insusrsetion of ~ has bssn en-
pAastDe4 and revtta1sed by elections held
n tAas country On tho 9Th 81 the present
month. The stgnidcaneo Of theoe cleo
taoas has been overlooked n this country
becanoa Ne have troubles and stirring
oso04o e our own to vsito aoout and
coag16eg. Yet q y fact THAI . revoau-
ten, peaaeahaa but none the iess faf.
reaching and startling. has taken place
u that stormy little Island: and thai. -
foe - The minor Political 0lvtslcns OF
IN Ireland today haA practically. nearly
- brood . msAsuro Of home rule -
an American county. And. wonderful 70
stats. thie revolution and grant ef politi-
cal liberty are due entirely to the Tories
Of England. Incidentally II might b re-
marked that Irish Nationalists gsner-
ally have always had moro hopes Of JUS
tics from that party than from the
Wings or their ouccesocrs. the Liberals
always excepting. u course. the Liberal
party undsr the lsadsrshiD Of Gladstone.
The Nonconformist has never been .
steAdfast susmy Of Irish grievances.
Since ireland has had IN aggressive
Nationalist party In the British parlia-
mont. and even osfore that. annual at
tempts were made to gain for the Irish
people some extension Of local and muni-
cipal authority. to curb landlord and aris-
tocrattc ascendency. but every measure
in that direction was promptly killed as
revolutionary. 10 the surprise, however.
OF the people Of Great Britain, Arthur
Baifour. during the last session Of parli-
ament. In q remarkably speech, made the
announcement that the government had
resolved to give the Irish constituencies
measure OF self-goyernment. TO Be oar
ried out. and created by an electorate
broadly democratic. Tue Irish people
and their representatives IN parliament.
with the exception Of the Orange-Cnien-
lists Of Ulster. hailed the announcement
with delight. It was q scheme even more
sweeping than Irish party leaders had
heretofore been demanding for county
and municipal reform 1t was not homo
rule. but It was q great step towards It.
1t placed the Irish people on virtually
tho same footing as the English people
whose rights and powers OF self-govern-
ment had been extended by . similar bill
about . decade before.
Dalfoar's Bold stapa.
There was. Of course, much opposition
TO tho project among the landlords aud
ascendsncy party In Ireland. and not a
little among Tory and Nencenfsrmfst
elements In Dngiand: but Balfour, backed
BY the government. stood to HE guns.
and the result was the passage OF his
local government act for Ireland, under
which. three weeks ago. the irish people.
through the ballot box. effected revc-
tuition. and secured rights and liberties
peaceably which. through blood and bat
tie they had sought In vain for 700 years
Until this local government act went
into operation the people Of Ireland were
Immediately governed by county grand
1urtes. and as regarded their selection
and appointment, the Inhabitants OF the
several counties had really no more to
say than the man In the moon. The peo-
pie had to pay taxes and support. from
the proceeds of their toll and industry.
local and public institutions and pay
alien masters for governing them, but