The Irish standard., 1911-12-23
Demand is for an Irish Parliament
Charged With Management of
Purely Irish Affairs.
1t is Clear, Precise and Definite
Proposal, Says Chairman of
Irish Party.
Ireland Now a Financial Loss to
England Would Then be
Self-Supporting.

The Irish Home Rule campaign eoe.
forward In England with encouraging
Vlgor The meetings are largely at
tended indicating that the people are
deeply interested in the questions that
are now before Parliament for solu.
ton. John Redmond is spending ev-
cry available hour in explaining in
public addresses and written articles
the demands of the Irish party. At
IL meeting In East Dorset he address,
ed large audience on the question
of Irish and English finances.
1--WE want" he said. IAN Irish Par
lament, with an Executive responsible
to 1t. created by an Act of the Imper-
ial Parliament, and charged with tho
management Of purely Irish affairs,
leaving to the Imperial Parliament, in
which, under those conditions, Ireland
will probably be represented, though
In less numbers than at present, the
management, just as at this moment,
of all Imperial matters, the Imperial
Parliament retaining an overriding au-
thority over the Irish Parliament, such
as 1t possesses today over the subordi-
nate Legislatures to the Empire. From
all fair-minded men / claim that that
Is clear, precise. and definite pro-
posal; that there Is no ambiguity
about it.: that 1t Is plain to every in-a
telligent man in the country. The
second thing l claim for it is that it
is not a claim for Separation. 1t is,
In fact. the very antlthesis of Separa-
tion, because Its one essential condi-
ton is continued connection between
Ireland and Great Britain. The third
thing | claim about that proposal is
proposal; that In the whole history of
the world you will find this proposal
Of ours IN actual practice. Today you
find the German Empire consisting of
twenty-five or tWenty-six separate
States, each with it's own Home Rule
Parliament and Executive, but all
bound together in tho bonds of great,
united and powerful Empire, and in
the British Empire itself the Same
thing Is true. We are told that the
demand We put forward does not rep
resent the true demand of Ireland and
her leaders. that the demand for a
subordinate Parliament Is q demand
taken up ut the last moment for the
purpose of gulling the British public
and cloaking the real object of Ire
land and her leaders. which is separa-
tlon from the Empire. This demand
for subordinate Parliament was first
made In Ireland in 1873. Up to that
time the demand had been for a repeal
Of the Union. and anyone who was
not profoundly ignorant of tho course
of Irish history for the last thirty or
forty years must be aware that from
! the day Home Rule was adopted by
the Nationalsts In 1873 that demand
has never been changed by a hairs
breadth. l have been speaking lately
a great deal in England, and quite
naturally I have been drawing light
ming, but l have been safeguarded by
! the lightning conductor Of honesty and
straightforwardness, and the shafts
have been turned away from me into
the mud and mre to which they be-
long. 1t has been said of me that OH
this question of separation l have
never spoken with two voices. I have
never believed that the separation of
ireland from the Empire could take
place, and whatever possibility there
was of it taking place in times past
that possibility has disappeared. and
even If Ireland wanted to separate
from the Empire, which she does not.
! 1t would be impossible in any concelv
able circumstance for her to do so.
Irlshmen stand today on Grattans fa-
nous phrase, The ocean prevents sep
aration, the Channel prevents COM
plete unity and Identity AS to the
cry of Protestant oppression, Mr.. Red
mond said the cry was being raised
| in this country by the most dishon-
orable and disgraceful methods. A
circular had been issued and distrib-
uted in which he had been represented