The Irish standard., 1911-05-27

weakness, and two of those three vot-
ed for the veto bill.
But the fight will be a bitter one,
and the English and, still more. the
rich Irish tories, arc putting up gigan-
tic funds for Il campaign.
In the meantime the lrishmen ev-
erywherc are full of extraordinary
hopetulncss. The Irish organization of
Great Britain, which this year will
meet in Cork city as an answer to the
O'Rrien faction. had record year in
the whole history of the organization
for the members and subscriptions.
$4,000 from Workers.
The subscriptions are coming almost
entirely from the poor workngmcn in
| the English and Scotch mills and the
mines, but they reach the splendid to-
tai of $4,000.
There was perhaps us much personal
curiosity as keen political interest In
the vast crowd that gathered to hear
| Lloyd-Gcorgc cXpound his great in
surancc scheme There had been all
kinds Of rumors as To the real state of
| his health and there are few diseases
To which the poor human frame is sub
| lect. which ne WAS not reported to have
contracted. He had tuberculosis in tho
| throat, he had canccr-Whatcvcr it was
he was doomed to carly death. The
continued absence. the rcappcarlncc
often announced and then so often
| postponed, his absence from the house
of commons even when he paid flying
visits to London, his restless wander
ings from one health resort to an
other, all added to the mystery and the
anxiety, and people had at last come
to the conclusion that with him, as
with Mrs. Chamberlain, the ghasty
truth was being kept back. Lloyd
George is recovering his health. but
the process is slow and the breakdown
must have been serious. But it was
only a temporary breakdown.
| j IItSt dIS lIIc oJStitClcS lIliil Slullu III
the way of passing the great insur-
ancc scheme of Lloyd George into the
law, and yet it may pass. That extra =
ordinary adroit little Welsiman has
added to the main features Of his bill
several sideshows which will help tc
make its progress irrcslstable.
Take as a single instance what the
bill proposes with regard to maternity
cases The woman is to be attended
tion that she do not return to work
for four weeks. When you remember
that women in the mill districts OF
Lancaster often now return after
childbirth in Il few days time, ii
would seem what an immense boon
this is.
Another OF the features of the
scheme which cnthuscs English opin-
ion is that which creates Il regular
campaign against consumption, tho
terrible ravagcs of which Lloyd George
skctchcd in d few broad, rapid, but
striking, thrilling, ncGraceablc SEN
tcnccs. A system of nntatoriums is tc
be created and many other steps talk
ell to arrest the disease and there is
even prospect OF it's being clearly
decades. But momcntous as these
things are, the most mOmentous fca
turc in the whole scheme is the abso-
lutte revolution it is proposed to make
in this ancient English people. 1t asks
for nothing less than an absolute
transformation OF all their habits
IDEAS and even temperament. Free tc
choose either evil or good, and free
handed, frce-living, enjoying the hour
reckless of the morrow, usually without
penny saved, the English working
man has been the jolly, reckless, light
hearted, frccst human being in tho
world up to now.
Under this bill he is asked to place
himself under cOmpuISion in almos
every hour and step in his life He is
not asked, but is forced, to contribute
to the protection of his old age, ant
against the pcrils of sickness and EN-.
ployment while he Is still in his prime
If sudden transformation is made DOS.
siblc by law, then Lloyd George is en-
titled to be hailed as the most daring
the most revolutionary, as we'll as the
most beneficial social reformer Eng.
land has ever known.
Magnificent Altar.
Thomas +. Ryan is to- nave a marble