Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1913-01-11
Home Rule Bill Will Soon En-
ter Third Reading
Stage.
Asquith Premier Till Irish Par
Lament Meets on College
Green.
TORYS RANKS ARE BADLY SPLIT

The close of the week, cabled
T. P. O'Connor, NJ. p, last Sunday,
finds every home ruler in high
spirits, especially because of the
events of Wednesday night, when
the Tories, after long hesitation, de-
cided to move the amendment to
exclude Ulster from the operation of
the home rule bill. When this
proposal was last discussed there
was a slight wavering among the
Liberals, and indeed the proposal
came from the Liberal benches.
Then the Government majority fell
down under seventy, and several
Liberals abstained from voting, but
last Wednesday, with single excep-
tion, the Liberals stood solid and
the majority against the proposal
mounted up to ninety-seven. Premier
Asquith, John Redmond, the home
rule leader, and Winston Churchill,
First Lord of the Admiralty, made
brilliant speeches against the pro-
posal. The whole debate was a
triumph for the Liberals and Irish,
and Asquith heartily congratulated
Redmond on the magnificent sue
cess.
Next week the debate on the re-
port stage of the bill will be finished,
and on Tuesday, January IA, the
debate on third reading starts and
will end in two or at most three
days, and by January 90 the discus
sion will open in the House of Lords.
No doubt now is felt that the House
of Lords will reject the bill, though
many of the English Tories are be-
ginning to get restive under the
complete servitude of all the English
conservative interests to the marrow
intolerance of the Ulster Orangemen.
OF course the bill will be passed by
the Commons a second time within
a few weeks of its rejection by the
House of Lords, and time we shall
begin probably an era of proposals
of some kind Of compromise by the
saner Tories.
Any compromise will be made
difficult by the continuance OF the
irreconcilable attitude of the Orange
men, who this week reiterated their
determination not to accept home
rule even If, in another election, the
British constituencies declared In
its favor. This irreconcilable at
titude compelled A. Bonar Law,
opposition leader, to make the open |
admission that If home rule were
accepted by the British constit-
uencies again he would bow to their
decision, but Law wound up the |
debate on Wednesday with the as
founding declaration that he would |
support the Orangemen in any |
action. even civil war, which they |
might take against home rule. The
Ulster Nationalists, who know |
Ulster the best, laugh at these
views, and Premier Asquith is not |
in the least affected by them and he
is ready to take all the steps neces-
sary to indicate home rule when It
It is passed into the law of this land.
During this week, however, as
during the last, all legislation and
every Liberal move were submerged
in public interest by the spread OF
the big split between the food
takers" and the free fooders" in
the Tory party. In spite of every at
tempt of some of the Tory papers 70
nostpone or hide the split, the dis
cussion proceeds with the utmost
l1VeDneSSt anu Juo AOiy JOuAA A"A0 -
the different sections continue TO
amply to each other terms OF
ferocious and almost hooligan
violence and insult.
The triumphs of the Government
In this particularly lucky week were
completed by Chancellor Lloyd
Georges overwhelming defeat OF the
doctors on the insurance act. The
break In the doctors ranks, when
began in tricklets, swelled TO big
stream as the final days Of the fight
proceeded and now Lloyd-George has
more doctors than he wants.
There is no foundation for the
ridiculous press rumor that Premier
Asquith contemplates an early gem
eral election. He will remain
Premier, barring accidents, till the
irish Parliament meets on College
Green.