The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1899-02-18
UNCOMPROMIsING H0MERULER
Liberals Cannot Justly Repudiate
the Irish Cause.
THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT
Stepping Stone to a Higher Form
of Self Government.

That consistent and uncompromising
advocate of Irish rights, Hon. John Nor
ley, recently delivered speech at Mon
trose in which he referred to Home Rule
in the following language:
II now come to say a few words upon
topic upon which I have said a great
many words during the last ten years,
namely, the topic of Ireland Say what
you like, if you look back upon the last
sixteen years or more, most of our Brit
ish political weather has come from Ire
land. laughter.) That is the wealth
er quarter. Now. there are couple of
expressions that have been used within
the last few months upon the Irish ques-
eion which have found their way into
a certain currency on the platform. One
OF these words is sacrifice and the other
is Slavery Some gentlemen have said
as of authority that it would be great
misfortune if the Liberal party is ever
in office again in slavery to the Irish
vote I have not the least idea what
the language means. Of course every
government is a 'slave'-if that is the
right word-to those who make up its
majority, whether they are Scotch or
English OF Welch or Irish. We took
office in 1892 to carry out an Irish policy.
Why we were more slaves, l should like
to know, to the Irish in relation to our
Irish bills than we were slaves to the
Welsh with respect to the Welsh discs
tablishment bill or to the English with
respect to the parish council bill? AS to
the Irish members-I do not know that
they particularly want to sit at West
minister; but the theory is that they sit
there as an integral portion of that great
governing assembly; and why on earth
should the government be more ashamed
of Irish votes than of your votes, or Of
Welsh votes, or even of English votes?
"Well, then the word Sacrifice 1t is
alleged by some members of our party
that, but for Ireland, we might have
been in power since 1885, But for Ire
land!' l wish they would ask them
selves how often since 1882 the Liberal
party has had a majority Independent
of the Irish. Some one once went into
a room and found that beautiful poet
and philosopher Coleridge on his hands
and knees playing with three or four
kittens, and he expressed some surprise
at 1t. Mr.. Coleridge said, I was anus
ing myself with their little short men,
ories.' Laughter.) I think of Mr.. Col
eridge's kittens very often when l read
the speeches of some friends of mine
(Renewed laughter.) Let us look at the
Liberal government Of 1892.
II have an Irish friend. now with
drawn by his own will from parliament
tary life He had proved himself, dur
ing many years of service in the house,
brilliant orator, consummate de-
batter and a master of all the arts of
parliamentary and public business.
can imagine this parliamentary friend of
mine, who has left no superior in par
liamentary gifts behind him in the house
of Commons-now at this moment can
imagine this Irish friend Of mine, who
has withdrawn from his brilliant posi-
ton, smiling-perhaps smiling bitterly
as he reads these speeches about our
sacrifice, and putting some poignant
questions to those who make these
speeches. / can imagine him asking
whether it was not the Irish who sat
week after week. month after month,
aye, almost year after year, while we
passed the English and 1 think the
Scotch parish councils act,whether it was
not the Irish who gave us three years Of
office and power and emouments and
decorations. (Laughter.) And what
in return for these three years of as
siduous devotion-what in return did the
Irish get, except three years of what l
will venture to call considerate admin
istration? Ireland got nothing.
"Gentlemen, I cannot but think that
this talk of sacrifice is really absurd.
The carrying out of our Irish policy was
either our duty or 1t was nothing. l! it
was nothing: we were playing a false
part before our country. If it was crr
duty where was the sacrifice? Now, the
government have passed local govern
ment bill, and we are told that we must
wait until that measure has been COM
pletely tried before the English people
will consent to deal further with the
Irish question. Well, I ask myself what
length of time a complete trial OF the
new scheme will take. Will it take
fifty years? Will it take twenty-five
years? Because that is tolerably long
of the Irish government
question in the sense in which we
preached from the year 1886 to the year
1895; and want to put this question