The Irish standard., 1905-02-11

;UARY IL, 1905.
And unless Turkey became England's
ally the Dardanelles would remain
closed and Russia's Black Sea ports
would be safe. If Turkey Joined Eng
land in such a war then the Franco
Russian alliance would become active
and all the great powers would take
a hand, for the mastery of CONSTANT
nople would be the stake.
This is what war would mean for
England now, and yet there are fools
in high places who are constantly do.
4. ing their little best to provoke it. Two
of these, Lord Selbourne, First Lord
of the Admiralty, and Arnold Forster,
! Secretary of War, never miss chance
: Of making war on Russia with their
mouths, and hardly ever open their
, mouths without putting their foot in
it." Selborne staggered during the
early days of the Dogger Bank excite
ment, and Forster brayed loudly the
other day about the internal condition
. of Russia. This adopted son of Buck
shot, Forster, who champions re-
preston in Ireland, had the folly to
say in a public speech at Croydon that
1.-THE people Of the United Kingdom
sympathized with the people Of Rus
sia'-meaning that portion of the
people who were rioting in st. Peters
burg-and that che was sure Britons
desired the peasants Of Russia to enter
upon the heritage Of liberty and free
dom which all Britons enjoyed and
obtained through the sacrifices Of their
fathers" Such an utterance at such
a time by responsible minister de-
monstrates Forster's unfitness for re-
sponsibility; but, of course, if his folly
is full of danger for England it is
fraught with hope for Ireland. A man
who demoralizes and discrepancies the
British army and then provokes war
with great power is the kind of Sec
rotary Of War that suits Ireland best.
Not satisfied with the mess in which
Forster had put the government, Lans-
downe, his predecessor in the War
Office who made England laughing
stock in the Boer War, and who is
now Secretary for Foreign Affairs,
thought he would Ego him one better"
He gave out an unofficial statement
to the press, in imitation of John
Hays announcements to the Wash
ington correspondents, but entirely
lacking in the cleverness, tact and in
genuity which characterize the fine
Italian hand" of the old Tribune man,
Lansdowne's mimicry was, in fact,
like the monkeys stroke across his
throat with his masters razor. 1t did
not hurt Russia, but it cut England
in a weak spot. "The Foreign Office"
the statement said, considered the
situation in Russia very grave. There
was undoubtedly revolutionary up
heaval and it was impossible to say.
what the result would be. It was this
instability of the government in
Russia that prevented England from
proposing an Arbitration Treaty with
Russia. No man could tell what kind
of government would replace the
present one, and the new government
might repudiate the treaty."
If Lord I.ansdowne had made this
silly and reckless statement in Il public
speech, an apology would have been
instantly demanded by Russia, but it
was only Il newspaper report, given
as having been obtained at the For
eign Office, so Russia can only take
note Of it and hide her time. Forster,
Lansdowne, and Selborne are treading
on very thin ice. and if their silly
prancing should break it, they will
bring IL good many down with them.
Their antics supply Il very striking
illustration Of the decay of English
craftsmanship The men who built
the British Empire often Numbered.
but they We're intellectual giants COM
pared to the pigmies who rule it now.
and who are preparing the way for it's
destruction. There We're no blather-
sixties among the empire builders
there are at least three in the present
cabinet. and they may be safely trust
cd, il the Lord spares them. to hasten
the beginning of the end.
Preaching, not tire Gospel, but OH