Arizona republican., 1917-05-23
The New Home Rule Plan

The question of home rule has now been put up to the Irish. They have been told that if they can agree upon it they have it. The English are washing their hands of question which has dis turbed the United Kingdom for years and bathed the Irish soil in blood But the new plan does not by any promise home rule. If it should succeed it would be regarded by some Englshmen. according the dispatches of yesterday, as polti- cal miracle" promises for the moment rather, to leave the Irish Nationalists without a grievance against the British opponents of home rule, at least without grievance to which they give voice.
 If an arrangement could be made by which the matter of home determined by the votes of all the Iash people, undoubtedly home rule would be adopted But there appears to be in the present plan clearly outlined in the dispatches of yester- day recognition of the province of Ulster, which is opposed home rule This province" political division purely imaginary. consists of six north counties in of which the Nationaists are in the majority and in which the Roman Catholic popu lation preponderates. However taking the six coun- ties together, Roman Catholics number about forty per of the population. The of Ireland. of course is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic and Ma tionalist.
 Home rule legislation in Ireland between 1911 and 1914 covered a stormy period. It began with the Birre bill rather the government bill forced upon the house of commons by the Natonalists, who sttuted the balance of power. It proposed to give to Ireland control all purely Irish matters This met by proposal by the Ulster Unioniss for provisional government of Ulster provided home rule bill should become law. later bill by MT Asquith proposed confer upon Ireland home rule the character Of that enjoyed by the of this Union. There not to be included in the field of Irish legislation any those which in this country regard within federal jursdc-
 
 age Also. Ireland to be permitted legislate the subjects religion and Freemasonry Provision made for the prerogative of rep resentative the imperial government the Brit ish parliament to retain authority all Irish legislation similar to that exercised by the territorial legislation before the admission of the territories statehood In spite of these and the difficulties the financial provisions bill generally acceptable the home rulers.
 Sir Edward Carson proposed amendment cuding Ulster but that defeated and it then that preparation for armed Unonst resistance began be made. In the meantime the house of lords re- jected the home rule bill which passed it's third ing in the house of commons. By the early part of 1914 the situation rapidly growing A proposition then offered allow the various counties of Ulster decide whether they wanted to be under the Jurisdiction of the Dublin parliament No action was taken on this proposition and in May of 1914 the house of commons passed the bill the time and under the parliamentary of 1911 it came q law. The house of lords, however could still make it of consuming time and did actually modify it by the exclusion of Ulster spite the great number of home rulers in that province That of course could not be effective and the country drifting into civil when both England and Ireland found another engage their attention
 The question of the exclusion of Ulster presents itself in the present plan and may presumed that the differences in Ireland thatssubject have not been lessened We suppose that there is opposition in England to home rule than there was before The English mind has undergone a great change in many respects but very doubtful whether the Irish themselves have been brought closer together by the trials of the years
 All friends of Ireland in America-and in America Ireland has none but friends-wl hope that the christening effect of the feelings of the north and the south, the Irish the counties and the Scotch the north and that now solution of the troubles that country is near