Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-08
HOMERULE MOVEMENT
Earl of Dunraven Startles
British Politics.
UNIONISTS SCARED
GURNEY INCIDENT RECALLS
BRITISH EXPERIENCES AT HOME.
Americans Flocking to Gravesend to
See Uncle Sans Warships--Lord
Mayors Election.
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
LONDON, September %, 1901.
The Earl of Dunraven, of Americas cup
notoriety, now holds the center of the Brit
iSh political stage, as the leader of the
"Devolution" movement among Irish land
lords The landlords call themselves THE
Irish Reform Association and they have
frightened the British unionists as badly
as ever Mr.. Gladstone did, by urging the
granting of local self -government to Ire
land and local control over Irish finances.
Their manifesto is everywhere regarded
as indicating the extension of the home
rule movement to a very unexpected quar-
ter, for until lately the Irish landlords have
been as virulent in their denunciation of
the nationalist as the highest of high tory.
For some time past, though, onlookers have
noticed curious change among Irish land
lords Now that the new land act, while it
fills their pockets, deprives them of terri
torlal rights. these landlords have felt much
OF their former power and influence slipping
away from them. To regain this they seem
to be willing to join hands with the ma
uonaIsts, among whom, of course, birth
ana tradition would give them a prominent
place, and SO return of power. This is a
cynical explanation of the manifesto but q
widely accepted one.
In trying to estimate the attitude of the
nationalist toward the reform movement
the fact must be kept steadily in mini that
they always express themselves with one
eye on America. In any case the movement
would have been viewed with suspicion by
the Redmondites, but the time and clrc1Inl-
stances of it's inception tended to increase
distrust. There is a fear that it was de-
signed, in part, at any rate, to prejudice
the Redmondite mission in America Nom
1naly that mission is political; actually Il
Is financial. To put the matter blurtiy Mr.
Redmond and his friends are going round
with the hat, and the immediate answer to
Lord Dunraven'S movement seems to be
MI. Redmond's cry on American platforms
that the Irish race is dying out, and only
to be saved by undelayed and generous
succor.
That Lord Dunraven and those associated
with him are acting in absolute good faith
no one out of Ireland will now doubt; even
the nationalfsts themselves would hesitate
openly to question the matter. But the
latter cannot afford to offer hostages to
fortune. They must maintain their par
liamentary organization to do that; they
must have money, and to secure the money
they must keep some hold on the American
Irish. To concede that Ireland might Ire
saved by the cooperation OF lanulol 6s
would possibly be fatal to their position in
so far as 1t would quite undermine it
financially.
Though the rationalists have not yet de-
clared authoritatively this attitude toward
the Dunraven scheme. the British govern
uent has. and today Mr.. Wyndham, the
Irish secretary, repudiates it through the
unusual channel, for British minister In
power, by letter to the Times.