The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1909-12-21
IRISH POLITICS
ARE STEAM|NG
Plans Made for Next Parlia.
ment and Hopes Entertain
ed For Home Rule

Dublin, Dec. 21.-Now that the Brit
lsh budget has been thrown out by the
house of lords and a general election
is approaching, 1rishmen of all parties
are asking what Ireland may expect
to gain in the next parliament. and
there Is a surprising unanimity of
opinion that the time has come for a
union of all shades of opinion to in
sist on better treatment for Ireland.
The impression seems to be held gen.
orally that which ever of the English
parties wins will do so by very
small margin, and that the new gov
ernment will be at the mercy of the
Irish members of the house Of COM
| mons.
In view of this the question of home
rule becomes an urgent one. 1t is be-
lleved that even the Tory party would
not be averse to granting ireland
large measure of self-government,
provided it were not called home rule,
and that the so-called Unionists of
the north would not object if their
sentimental objection to what they
know as separation" could be humor
ed. Lord MacDonnell, Unionist
himself, has outlined a scheme, to
\
practically everybody in ireland could
be obtained. for the establishment of
an Irish national council with con-
troll over purely Irish affairs, with
| an Irish treasury responsible to it.
rhls would not mean the withdrawal
of the Irish members from the British
parliament. where they would con-
tinue to sit to safeguard the interests
l n rH1 IN, !,
imperial interest. The national coun-
Gil would have all the powers of a
legislature. including that of the
purse. and would be elected by popu-
lar vote. have reason to believe
that Lord MacDonnell has sounded a
number of leading Irish Unionists on
val to the general lines of some such
scheme and even the extreme Sim
Feiners would also agree.
Good Results.
The tactical mistake of the Irish
Nationalist party in not voting against
the budget. which would have borne
so hardly on Ireland, after all has had
good results. Nationalist and Union
list local bodies and men of both poll
tical faiths have united in censuring
the party, and in the end much bet
ter feeling has grown up all around.
Even the Unionists are now con-
vinced that the interests of Ireland
are not safe in the. hands of the Brit
ish parliament, and they are ready, ]
am told, to agree to some scheme of
home rule, which would give them
fair representation and still afford
Ireland the protection which it would
enjoy as an integral part of the Brit
ish empire.
A most interesting report has been
prepared by the royal commission
which was appointed two years ago to
investigate the working of the Irish
railways, and, although it will not be
published for some time, am in a
position to state that it will come out
fiat footedly for the naturalization of
the Irish railways. The proposal is
that they should be purchased at a
fair valuation and worked by a gov-
ernment department to be created for
that purpose. The low price at which
their stocks are selling now would
favor such a project and would also
justify the government in spending
the money. necessary to bring them
up to date and make them efficient.
The total capital invested in these
railways is now $222,S42.6 sos and the
average dividend is 3.s4 per cent. 1t
is estimated that the purchase could
be completed by government bond
issue of $290,000,000 at two and one
half per cent, which could be ex-
changed for the scrip held at present
by the shareholders and debenture
holders. The net receipts would be
sufficient to pay the interest on these
bonds and leave surplus of $780,
600 year, which could be applied
Ito betterments.