The Irish standard., 1899-04-08
JOHN DEVOY IN THE CITY.
His Opinion of the Irish Local Govern
ment Bill.

His Opinion Of the Irish Local Govern
ment Bill.
John Dewey, OF New York. the noted
Irish Nationalist. was in the city last
Monday and submitted to an interview
on the Irish local government bill,
which has just gone into operation in
the old country
1T is not" he said. "a substitute for
home rule. and will not be accepted as
such by the Irish people, but it gives
the people much control over local af-
fairs. Up to the passage OF this law
the local government Of the counties was
in the hands of the grand juries, which
were appointed in the name of the
queen by Dublin Castle. They exer-
cised the ordinary functions of grand
juries, the same as in this country. and
also those OF Our county commissioners
or boards OF supervisors. They were
all landlords. or OF the landlord class
and naturally took care OF their own
personal and class interests at the ex-
pense OF the people. They built bridges.
made roads and took charge OF all pub
lie improvement and levied the local
taxes which betrayed the expenses. AS
they were not elective or subject to the
control of the voters. the whole system
was rotten and inefficient. These pow
ers will in future be exercised by
county or district councils. elected by
constituencies composed OF those en-
titled to vote at elections for parliament
Practically it is the householders who
have votes
Besides these functions the new
councils also perform the duties former
ly performed by the poor law boards,
which were partly elective and partly
appointed The urban constituencies
have already elected and the labor men
and Parnellites have secured the major
ity. John DAILY recently released po-
litical prisoner. was elected mayor OF
Limerick, and several working men are
on tile councils in the various cities.
The most remarkable feature OF the
rural elections which will take place next
Thursday is the candidature OF many
men like Lord Dunraven. Lord Emily
and the O'Connor Don, who, while be-
ing strongly Irish i'll many ways, have
been opposed to home rule. Their
chances of election, if one may Judge by
recently arrived Irish papers. seem to be
good. If they should be elected. the bet
ter portion Of the Irish arstocracy will be
taking part, side by side with farmers,
mechanics and business men in admin
istering the local affairs OF Ireland.
Many of these aristocrats, like Lord
Castletown and Lord Maurice Fitzger-
aid (whose father was Duke OF Leinster)
have been driven nearer and nearer the
Nationalist by the governments refusal
to redress grievance which has existed
since the act of union passed in 1900,
and admitted by a commission COM
posed largely OF Englishmen. This
commission reported that ireland is
overtaxed to the extent of from $12, ooo,-
600 to $15,oooooo year and remark
able series of meetings at which Protes-
tant and Catholic bishops, Nationalist,
Liberals and Tories, have stood side by
side was held to demand reform. The
government refuses to make any change
and thus, as Lord Castletown puts it,
removes the only Unionist argument
against home rule.
81 believe this unaninity of the Irish
people in the taxation movement will
probably lead to union later on ma
tional political lines and that the new
county or district councils will supply
the machinery for winning national self
government
England will be fighting for her ex-
istence one of these days and if the Irish
people at home and abroad are united
and ably led they can extort their own
terms. Ireland has always had to ex-
tort such installments of her rights as
she has got England has never yet
granted her anything merely from a
sense of justice. When it is made very
inconvenient for her to do wrong she
begins to see the necessity of doing
right and then does it grudgingly."