The Irish standard., 1907-06-29
lnveterate Prejudice Against the Irish People,
Their Race, Their Greed and Their
Ways, Shown.
The Decision Not to Press the Bill is Rec.
ognition of Fact That Ireland is
Political Entity.

The comments Of English news
papers and speakers on the rejection of
the Devolution bill by the Irish people
are not such as promise peace between
the two countries, says Robert Ellis
Thompson in the Irish World.
The best feature of these is the
forced recognition of the fact that Ire
land is a political entity, and not a
province of Great Britain. No British
question could have been disposed Of
with such unanimity and such dignity
by the united action of the whole
people. On no point have the English
and Scotch been so unanimous as
are the people of Ireland; and while
there is nothing novel in this, the
manner and the occasion have given
1t an emphasis not conveyed even
in the days of O'Connell or of Par
nell Hitherto English parties have
made unwilling and fragmentary
concessions to Irish demands without
asking how they would be received.
Now the Irish people make it under
stood that they want no beggarly
grants of such favors, to which Eng
land may point to show how generous
she has been to this troublesome coun-
try Home Rule or Nothing is the
answer Ireland returns to the attempt
to palm on her this miserable substi
tute for the control of her own affairs.
There can be no doubt that the
position of the British Liberal minis
try has been greatly weakened by the
rejection of the Bryce-Birrell propo-
sal. 1t is so because Irish support is
a considerable strength in the British
constituencies. and this action of the
Dublin convention be ~ins new poll
icy in the direction of that vote. The
Liberals were already weakened be-
fore this blow fell on them. Their
failure to achieve any solution of the
English education problem, and even
to relieve those Dissenters whose sem
sitive consciences oblige them to choose
imprisonment rather than the payment
of school-rates under the present bill,
has disgusted the Dissenters. The
course taken by the Liberal Lord
Chancellor Reid in overruling every
thing that might have weakened the
force of the existing Education law,
and his selection of Churchmen and
even Tories as Justices of the Peace.
have irritated them extremely. The
threat is openly made that the Dis
senters will withdraw all support from
the Liberal party, even though this
should bring back the Tories to pow
er, and it is hard to see how Sir Henry
Campbell -Bannerman can meet the
threat. He cannot carry through the
House of Lords a single measure that
would content the Dissenters, and his
big majority in the House Of Commons
is worthless so long as the other
branch of the national legislature re-
mains where it is. 1t but creates re-
sponsibilities and raises hopes he can
not satisfy.
Even his efforts at Land Reform in
England does not give any hearty sat-
isfaction. 1t aims al creating a popu-
lation of small farmers. tenants Of
the present landlords, rather than a
population Of small land owners. No
doubt the authors of the bill suppose
that this is to restore the yeomen
farming class, which once was the
strength of England. But the yeomar
held by copyhold tenure, and his rent
could not be raised by his landlord,
nor his land taken from him on any
pretense. The modern equivalent of
copyhold is ownership. and the Eng
lish farm la borers want ownership and
nothing less. They do not see why
they should be less favored than the
tillers of the land across the Irish
Sea, and while they are willing to take
the, halnoaf they are looking for some