The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1903-10-31

70
;ss The aim and policy of the Irish
4 party in the house Of commons is set
forth by Robert Ellis Thompson in the
\ Irish World as follows. sys5i
1.-THE withdrawal of the Duke of
Devonshire from the Balfour ministry
is followed by his acceptance of the
I leadership in the battle against his
old ally, Joseph Chambe erlain. This
ends the famous combination against
! home rule for ireland, which first de-
feated MI. Gladstone and then pre-
vented the passage OF his bill to re-es-
tablish the Irish parliament in Dublin,
throughSthe house Of lords. Chamber
/ lain and Devonshire were the strength
y of the Liberal wing Of that combina-
M0n. The one represented the natural
Antipathy Of the English cad to the
Irish people. The other stood for the
sEtimid conservatism, and the natural
sympathy with landowners, of the
t.great Whig houses There never
was any real homogeneity between
the two elements, or between them
and the genuine Tories. The COM
sbination was sure to go to pieces un-
der the strain of serious questions Of
principle. That it has lasted so long
4 has been due to that English fear Of
Irish indep endence, of which the
queen was the most important repre-
sentative, and to the excitements Of the
4 Boer war. The Duke of Devonshire
fs Wing by nature and training, and
( TO him, as Whig, nothing is SO sacred
as q political tradition. 1t is true
that his class had almost no part in
estab biishing the free; trade tradition
lin England. Up to the very last mo-
s1nent the Wings refused to be com
& mitted as a party to that principle.
They kept talking about, "a readjust-
anent of the sliding scale, which regu-
lated the duty on imported wheat, at
the very moment when Sir Robert
Peel was preparing for his plunge into
free trade That they followed him
was much more due to their expecta-
ton Of dishing the Toriess by his aid
than to any conviction that he was In
the right But within decade the
Wings were talking as If every Whig
since Lord Somers had been member
4 OF the Anti Corn Law league, and az
ff they had led in the attack upon pro.
3 fectonist legislation. For two genera.
lions the question has been regarded
by the Wings as closed to discussion
and whoever tried to reopen it has
been treated by them as political
iunatic. They abandoned the caution
of their own. political economists, such
81 as Nassau w. Senior, who declared
hat political economy Of itself did moi
furnish the statesman with sufhcien,
grounds for legislation. They adopted
the Radical doctrines as to the rule Of
free trade being q first principle In ma
fional administra ton. Late and unwil
ling converts, they became the mos
jealous Of disciples. And now to ;bt
A Wing by training is to be a fret
trader, as matter Of course. The
Whigs never were open to new ideas
They thank their stars they have In
herited "a body Of political beliefs
which save them the trouble Of think
ing ont new formulas. The Duke Of
Deyonshire never came into contSct
with a new conviction in his hfe. He
atnfa ~ hated home rule, because II
B q the stradi ition Of English politics that
b ireland shall be ruled by alternationi
aof kicks and half-pence., He as natur.
ally hates criticism Of free trade, be.
sS:anse It is the tradition Of English poll.
tics that all questions Of industry can
81 be left to take care Of themselves
When both Mr.. Balfour and Mr..
Chamberlain point out that they will
mot take care of themselves they
sssfdke rank in his mind beside Mr..
u Gladstone and Mr.. Parnell. So the
big combine has gone to pieces, and
Ehen bullies fall out among them
y aelyes there Is a chance that decent
y eoples may come by their own. Ire
especially has reason to rejoice
- Z :.