The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1903-09-05
POLITICAL PROSPECTS.

any demand for home rule into the
debates upon the land bill. The new
law is the happy result of English con-
cession To united Irish demands
of Il changed attitude of England to-
ward Ireland or is due to the despair
OF English statesmen in ever rnnctiny
IL sufficiently drastic coercion act mat
tcrS little. We have heretofore pointed
out how the law will operate to trans
fer the ownership of the land of Ire
land to the Irish farmers One can
imagine what this means only by i'm
aginn% what an opposite Industrial
try Ivy some sort of national lcyiSa-
ton which would cause the title to all
the land in this country to revert to the
government. Which in turn should
grant letters patent to Il few thousand
landlords to whom the tillerS of the
soil should be responsible in annual
rents without amy fixed leaSchOd.
just the opposite process. it is hoped,
will be effected in Ireland 1t is easy
to understand what Il revolution has
been effected. The passage of the
bill did not, however, in any direct
way enlarge the political rights of the
Irish people. In Il narrow or strict
sense the measure is not political but
social and Industrial. But nOtwith-
standing the fact that politics were
thrown aside in the discussion of the
measure. nothing has happened in Il
century in Ireland which promises to
be so far reaching in it's political ef-
fectS. Ireland and her people are in
no way indebted to England for the
concession. 1t came as Il result of
the spirit of the times and the political
and financial cXigcncies of the British
Empire. The Irish Nationalist made
no political alliance in order to affect
the passage of the bill but maintained
their political independence Great
as has been the political power of the
Irish party in the house of commons in
the past it is still greater now than
ever before. The Irish party support,
ed Gladstone and the Liberal party
when they were fighting for home rule.
The home rule measure wrecked the
Liberal party and returned the Con-
Servntives to power. The Conservative
party has been the persistent and de-
termine,l enemy of Irrland's main de-
nE,nd-homr rule. Yet these facts
did not prevent the Irish party from
working with the Conservative party
in the interest of the land bill. Every
thing has been made subordinate to
the cause of Ireland. Personal friend
ship. party ties and even past acts of
fricndlineSS have not influenced these
men in their lnhorS for their country.
Now that Il satisfactory land bill has
been wr,lng from IL Tory government,
we may expect to see the Irish Nation
alstS. when the parliament reaS-
srmbles, slmrring for new and greater
political power.
1t seems probable now that MIR.
tlnmhrrlan, who was responsible
more than any other one man for the
uiSalfcction from the Liberal party
when Gladstone introduced his first
home rule measure. will now be the
cause of the wreck of the present Con-
Scrvntivc government His proposal
to tax food products has led to IL li-
vision in the UnioniSt ranks. This
split. unless the unforeseen happens, is
almost certain to return the Liberal
party to power. But even if the dis
organiZati ton of the Unionist party
should cause Il return of the Liberals,
it is hardly possible that the latter
the Conservatives and Irish NATIONAL
lists. Right here would be the Irish
party's opportunity to press forward
for home rule. And the Liberal party
might truly consider itself in duty
bound to grant Il separate Irish paria.
ment. because the only issue that sent
them out of power and which kept
the elements of the present majority
party together was opposition to home
rule The passage of the land bill will
eventually remove from Ireland the
landlords. who have for centuries been
the strong supporters of British rule
III Ireland. This same element has
been the supporter also of the Prot
eStant religion. Ireland is to-day
more united than ever while the op-
position to home rule has been greatly
weakened. If II different opinion on
the tariff question is sufficient to cause
the 'disintegration of the Unionist par.
ty, it is plain that the day of home
rule for Ireland cannot long be de-
ferred. Until that time comes no
political question outside of the Irish
question will be sufficient to divert the
attention of the Irish party. To them
it matters not whether home rule
| comes through the Liberal or the Con
sentative party. They stand politically
independent, recognizing no political
allegiance, but ready to affiliate with
any party which will grant Irish de.
mdmds. Personally, the Irish members
| =