The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1911-03-11
INTERNAL D|SSENS|0N
THREATENS TORIES
The Old Tory Party Becoming the
Victim of Almost Hopeless
Disintegration.
Old and Young Members Disagree
on the Question of Hered-
itary Principle.
That Home Rule Measure Will be
First Business of Next Ses-
sion is Assured.

Never has u political party descend
fusion as the Toy party since tho
opening session, says Il. p. OConnor
in his London cable to the Sunday Chi
cago Tribune. In the first week Of
this parliament the Tories seemed to
have reached the deepest abyss, but
the second week sounded a deeper
depth, and the third week sends them
into lower abyss still.
A. j. Balfour and the old Tories
still passionately insist on retaining
the hereditary principle OF the house
of lords, while the ardent, energetic
and vehement young insurgents of the
party openly demand the complete eX-
tinction Of the hereditary feature in
the new second chamber
These divisions of opinion, while
kept quiet for some time, at last have
reached the public ca: and now are
universally known and are likely to in
crease in violence as time goes on.
The insurgents began holding meet
ings without consulting either Balfour
or Lord Lanslowne, and they dictat-
ed their policy to the lords TO" re-
forming themselves. This caused bit
ter resentment on the part of the old
Tories.
Peacemakers tried to get a joint
meeting of the insurgents and stand
patters and apparently they patched
up peace, issuing the official re-
port, which suggested general agree
ment between the two sections.
Then London was startled by the
announcement in the Times that this
report was misleading and was meant
to 1nislead.
A statement so merciless and insult
ing in Unonist organ was unprece-
dented. This was followed mmed-
ately by denial from Balfou:'s
friends, characteriZing the assertion Of
the Times as too monstrous for words.
Balfour Attacks Policy.
Balfour added fuel to the flames in
his speech on Thursday night at the
end of debate. Contemptuously dis
missing the attacks on the hereditary
principle. he committed himself al
most beyond recall by hostility to their
policy.
This irreconcilable and intermina-
bic division of the Tory ranks brings
into even greater relief the solid union,
becoming daily more solid Of all the
ranks of the coalition supporting the
ministry and the veto bill.
Every member of the Irish party cx-
cept one who was seriously ill voted
with the ministry. Even every
O'Brienite except Moreton and Frew-
en-, who are absent in America, voted
with the government. The Laborites
were equally stanch and there is only
one e,ecalcitrant among all the Lib
erals.
The home rule cause advances every
hour by the Tories denouncing the
veto bill as intended to carry home
rule, and the Liberals every day pledg-
ing themselves the more solemnly by
accepting this challenge to make home
rule the first measure in the next sc'
~
made it a law.
1t is impossible now to say whether
the Tories will fight to the bitter end
They began by hoping that the king
would refuse to create the new peers,
now they realize the futility Of that
hope. Then they tried to force the
ministry to compromise and give a
new conference. That possibility also
is gone.
If the ministry even talked Of Il
compromise the whole Liberal party
apart from the Labortes and Irish
would Immediately revolt and the Lib
erals therefore must go right on.
This must mean that if the Tories
persist and if the house of lords throw
out the veto bill. the king will be
asked and will have to give the new
peers.
This prospect alarms all Of the rea-
sonable Tories, but at the same time
they have maneuvered themselves into