The Irish standard., 1910-04-23
So Shout the Tories in the
House of Commons When
Taunting Asquith.
All Sides Unite in Saying
That the Irish Leader
Holds Whip Hand.
Has Spurred the Premier to
Declare Fight on the
Predatory Peers.

Predatory Peers.
| BY permission of the Chicago Tribune
the following copyrighted special cable
from Il. P. OConnor to that great
newspaper is reprinted in these col
umns:
! London, April 16.-"Redmond is
premier" shrieks the Daily Mail.
Redmond is the real MASTER" says
the Times I'VE feel compelled to take
off our hat to Redmond" writes the
| Spectator. Redmond is bigger man
than we ever realized" admits the
Pail Mall Gazette. "Why don't you
| give three cheers for Redmond" yelled
| Thus from one end Of England to
the other a universal chorus is shout
! ing that Redmond, the Irish leader
has won in parliament. Undoubtedly
| the statement is true From his first
| speech to his last Redmond always
adhered exactly to the same demand
| namely: that Premier Asquith should
ask the king for guarantees the mo-
ment the commons had adopted and
the lords had rejected the veto reso-
lutions to pass these resolutions by
the creation of enough peers in this
parliament, and, in case that request
was refused, that Premier Asquith
! should follow up with request that.
if another election is demanded, he
should go to that election with the
kings guarantee in his pocket, ami
with the right to announce the fact
to the people.
This is what Asquiths announcement
has now done. 1t is, almost word for
word, Mr.. Redmonds persistent de-
mand. -
| One of the most important and most
gratifying outcomes of the situation is
. that the British Liberals and the
, British democracy unanimously admit
that they owe their salvation to Red
mond. His name is as warmly cheered
in the great English gatherings as AS
quiths or Lloyd-George's.
Never have 1 seen such a rapid and
complete transformation of the whole
spirit of the parties. The Liberals,
after weeks of depression and doubt
! Jor, o1r inv II
with their heads in the air and with
beaming faces.
| The meeting Of the Irish party will
, not take place till Monday, but a con-
clusion to support the government
through thick and thin is foregone. This
outburst comes after many weeks of
most painful anxiety. especially to Red
mond and his colleagues. Though de-
,rmined, If the government fa1terci
vote against them and end their ex-
istence, Redmond all along has realiz-
ed the gigantic perils and deplorable
disaster such action involved. 1t must
mean a rupture with the Liberals, the
Laborites, and with the British masses:
in short, with all the factors Of Eng
| lish life most friendly to Ireland.
A racial struggle would replace the
growing racial reconciliation and home
rule possibly would be postponed for
another generation. Shakespeare in
his most inspired moment could not
have led up to the final denouement of
the drama on Thursday in the house
of commons more dramatically, and
especially from the Irish point OF view
First, just as Asquith was about to
rise and make the epoch making an-
nouncement an Irish Orangeman had
proposed an amendment to the veto
resolution, excluding home rule from
the powers to override possessed by
the house of lords. This elected a ve-
hement home rule declaration by
Winston Churchill and an equally We
| hement denunciation Of home rule. and
loud cheers by Balfour and all the
Tories.
Thus the old home rule fight, witt,
the old battle cries, was going on fierce
ly as Asquith quietly and solemnly en-
tered the house of commons. Then
Balfour made the worst blunder Of his