The Irish standard., 1908-05-23
Times When Trifles Will Not Be Allowed
to Stand in the Way of Great
Events, Near at Hand.
Settlement Upon Which He Believes the
Whole Future Of Ireland Rests Must
Not Now Be Wrecked.

''rheSc are stirring times where po-
Mr.. ". w. Russell, NJ. r., on Friday
night, May 1. at n meeting or Ulster
Liberals in Belfast. Hc said a. Home
Rule Bill. under whatever name. pass
| cd by the Tories would be certain to
| receive tho assent of tho Lords, and
ho could conccivc il possible that the
tariff rrformcrs might give a good deal
for eighty lrisl, votes. That party.
| with huge capitalists In It's ranks.
would not stick at Homo Rule Cor Ire
land. Within tho last is months"
| he continued. "Ijhad n talk with a great
| man. now no more, IL Unionist Of great
position and of lofty character. lie
asked me how thought the free trade
battle was going. ] said IL was going
all right but that there was one card
yet 20 be played, which would settle
the whole matter. told him my belief
that the lrisl, would give their votes
| for tariff reform at their own price
and that the price would be paid. He
did not dissent, and in my opinion this
| is what some of us will 1.-Two to sec.
Those are the times when trifleS arc
great events, and VIC shall see where
we arc when thisN Parliament Is over"
With his official knowledge of tho ca
pHcity of 1rsllmen working In the de-
partmcnt, hc could not doubt Irish
mems capacity to manage their own af
fairs. and he did not believe IT. was
heen done for the Transvaal Dealing
with the University bill, Mr.. Russell
denied that lie had ever been ~ Tory.
though he admitted that he made "a
terrible approach to being one when
lie was Il Liberal trnionist He re-
minded his hearers OF his past utter
ances on the Irish University question
to the Orangclncn or South Tyrone, and
at the Preston election when he was
the accepted Liberal candidate. Then
and over since lie had stated clearly
and explicitly that he was in favor Of
frankly conceding the claims of Irish
Catholics The ncttlc had only to be
grasped. it has been grasped. and the
"four and twenty backbirds' who
| walked into the division lobby against
| IN, 1,,tn6rnIu WIN tho hill
were Il pretty accurate representation
Of the actual state OF opinion. He con-
| fcssed that he watched that division
with strong personal interest, and
| when the numbers were announced he
said to himself here cndeth another
chapter Of Irish history. II he were
asked to define the present Irish stu
alton, apart from the central question
of self government, he should say that
the pressing and urgent necessities
were a settlement OF the finance of the
Irish Land Act, the humane treatment
Of the Land problem in the West, the
considcratc treatment Of the Poor Law
problem, IL reasonable ana falr meas
urc OF temperance reform. resolutc
effort to apply the principles OF the
Laborcrs Acts to town dwellings, and
an enlargement Of those educational
and philanthropic efforts embodied in
the policy Of the Department of Agri-
culture and the Congested Districts
Board (applause) AS to the first Of
these questions, delay is not possible.
The finance of Mr.. Wyndham's Act
has broken down. He stated this last
year, and was severely blamed by Mr..
Wyndllam's press in Ulster. He was
blocking land purchase. He was for in
crcasing the price to the tenant. He
was an enemy of the people. He never
once took the slightest notice Of the
Yellow Press of Ulster. What he said
at Castlerca before the Dudley Com
mission rs to the failure Of the finance
of Mr.. Wyndhams Act is now confirm
cd by a special committee appointed