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

The aim and policy of the Irish
party in the house Of commons is set
forth by Robert Ellis Thompson in the
Irish World as follows.
s'The withdrawal of the Duke of
Devonshire from the Balfour ministry
is followed by his acceptance of the
leadership in the battle against his
old ally, Joseph Chamberlain. This
ends the famous combination against
home rule for Ireland, which first de-
feated Mr.. Gladstone, and then pre-
vented the passage Of his bill to re-es-
tablish the Irish parliament in Dublin,
through the house Of lords. Chamber
lain and Devonshire We're the strength
of the Liberal wing of that combina-
ton. The one represented the natural
antipathy Of the English cad to the
z Irish people. The other stood for the
timid conservatism, and the natural
sympathy with landowners, of the
"great Wing houses" There never
was any real homogeneity between
the two elements, or between them
and the genuine Tories. The COM
bination was sure to go to pieces I'M
der the strain of serious questions of
principle. That it has lasted so long
has been due to that English fear of
Irish independence, of which the
queen was the most important repre-
sentative, and to the excitements of the
Boer war. The Duke of Devonshire
ifs a Wing by nature and training, and
to him, as Wing, nothing is so sacred
as political tradition. 1t is true
that his class had almost no part in
establishing the free trade tradition
in England. Up to the very last mo-
ment the Wings refused to be COM
mitted as a party to that principle.
They kept talking about a readjust-
ment 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 Tories by his aid
than to any conviction that he was in
the right. But within a decade the
Wings We're talking as if every Wing
since Lord Somers had been member
of the Anti-Corn Law league, and as
If they had led in the attack upon pro-
fectionist legislation. For two genera
ffons the question has been regarded
by the Wings as closed to discussion,
and whoever tried to reopen it has
been treated by them as a political
iunatic. They abandoned the caution
of their own political economists, such
as Nassau w. Senior, who declared
that political economy of itself did not
furnish the statesman with sufficient
grounds for legislation. They adopted
the Radical doctrines as to the rule Of
free trade being a first principle in ma
fiOnal administrat ton. Late and unwil-
ding converts, they became the most
Jealous Of disciples. And now to be
a Wing by training is to be free
trader, as matter of course. The
Wings never were open to new ideas.
They thank their stars they have in
herited body Of political beliefs,
which save them the trouble Of think
ing out new formulas. The Duke Of
Deyonshire never came into conts ct
with new conviction in his life. He
4 naturally hated home rule, because it
& Is the tradition Of English politics that
ireland shall be ruled by alterations
OF kicks and half-pence.' He as natur-
ally hates criticism of free trade, be-
cause it is the tradition of English poll
tics that oil questions of industry can
be left to take care of themselves
When both Mr.. Balfour and Mr..
Chamberlain point out that they will
not take care of themselves they
take rank in his mind beside Mr..
Gladstone and Mr.. Parnell. So the
big combine has gone to pieces, and
when DULLES fall out among them
selves there is chance that decent
people may come by their own. Ire
land especially has reason to rejoice