The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1918-01-11
BERNARD SHAW SOLVES THE IRISH
NCL|SH QUESTION QUESTION N|1HE

though handful OF members Insult H..
chaff it and ever occasionally subject
/, tn some serious political criticism.
DO You rralizc how dangerous this is?
Unless the nation holds together. and
holds hard and cnnfidcutaly, the war
Will break us up as II has broken Rus
Sia up.
Put how would 70 urcstore conf
dcuCr in the House of C0nmonS"
1T Cannot BE Done"
ut cannot be done: tho wretched old
machine Is dead: & is no longer even L
comfortable asylum for The aged. The
hes, that can be said FOR it is that lis
corpse has ceased 10 offrndlS what
walks to-day is its ghost. 1t would be
a Grim. 10 restore confidence In 1t even
if that were possible. because II cannn;
do IFS work. and would only betray us
again. To rouse public interest. which
* The first step tn restoring public con-
fldcncc you must announce the funeral
az the institution. which Will b" received
with gaSpS Of relief and shouts of glad
ness wherever the English language Is
spoken. md you must replace 1t. us far
as England is concerned. by TWO now
l'arl;am"ntS; u real English home rule
parliament from which persons with
Irish. Scottish and German accents will
hr hurled out ilEc mlIllant SuliThEeil'S.
and 4 federal parliament o: tho British
. Isles"
Never Mind ireland.
Your Irish scheme, IN fact, Mr.
| Shaw"
Stuff: Ny English cheme. 1Iav" 7
ever troubled about Ireland: It was
troubling about itself very effectively
without my help. But this poor. help
less. unfortunat" EnEland. with its foot
lall aud it's cricket: and its bets Oh
! party leaders. and its little suburban
! tribes ready 10 die for The chlcftan who
promises 10 keep the rates down: these
! arc ,n. h"alhrn 10 whom I am mis-
I sinnary. and would have been marty
! cong ago IF they had been capable Of
! taking In what I was driving at.
IF you give England Il big chang"
and a new sort o. parliament YOU VIII
! got six years active government and
! hopeful public Interest in IL
! Look n, the London County Council.
! row as effects and reactionary as the
, old Metropolitan Eoard of Works which
] il Sunplanted and which nevertheless
! managed Ia nmhank the TnuntS before
! il went rotten.
! "Wcll. Incredible as K now seems. the
.ondon County Council was a ma Enfi-
'. con; popular success in it's early years
when il took up thn ideas OF the Fabian
Society. and had not yet been captured
by the lid party machine"
OF Course They Will Do
But will not the new Parliament. If
we get It. 60 rotten also. az you call
IL"
"Of course: you don't expect to live
for ever do you?
"Ru, think Of what IL would bn 10 got
Si
public confidence just now. 1t might SEQ
us. if not over the way. which seems
fairly safe to he another Thirty Years
War. at least over the peril "f Il rrr"lu-
tiouary crash. Why ut the very worst
even If tn" change gave us nothing hut
d period of dclusivc hope. such II pcri"H
might save the situation"
Some Other Time
Tan you suggest II programme for
tho new Parliament"
Not this afternoon. thank YOU; No
have neither of us time for Il fort
light hours talk. Euy the Fabian lit
craturr.
but what do you think. for start
or speeches limited to three minutes
for ministers. rs being experienced and
r.ouciS" tlchaterS. ten minutes for noHireS
in their first session. and five minutes
for the rcS:" And oc Il rule that the aver
ago age OF membership must never IN
coed fifty. nor tho age of any individual
grand old man--shall we say ninety
SIN
How about fifty parliamentary alder
men elected by proportional r"rr"scn-
cation from the Who'll" country az
singi" constituency. with the right 10
Spr:rii in The house. but not 80 vote: for
~. wise and good should have no power
cN,"pl tho power OF counsel.
And then. | suppose. nobody would
v"t".''
cod knows why they vote Al present:
never do. Members Of parliament
should not he elected; th"y should b"
reluctant like jurymcn. aud chosen III
IN sanr"" way. Have you over contested
an "i"ctiou""
''Nu'
Then let me- shake your hand ~ that
"f Il still possibly honest man. Good
bye"