Norwich bulletin., 1918-04-11
Second Reading of Man Power Bill
HAS BEEN PASSED IN THE HOUSE
 OF COMMONS
VOTE WAS BPS TO 100
John Dillon Declared His Belief That No More Than so,ooo Men Could Be Taken From Ireland.

London, April 10.-The house of commons tonight passed the secondl reading of the governments man pow CT bill. The vote was 323 to 100.
 In moving the second reading of the man power bill in the house of com mons today, Sir George Cave, unionist member for Surrey, said it was the duty of the country to do everything it
 could do, and then only should it be entitled to use to the fullest extent the
 help given by its allies Germany had made Europe an armed camp, he add ed, and the necessity of taking every man who could be spared was over Whelming.
 Sir George declared that he had been advised that the application of the man power bill to Ireland would yield a | large number of men, but if only five | divisions could be got from Ireland it 1 would be worth while.
 The speaker added that even if there was an Irish parliament today the question of conscription in Ireland still
 would rest with the imperial parlia- ment.
 Interrupted by Nationalist Members. l Sir George, being continually inter-
 rupted by nationalist members, said he doubted whether the voice of Ireland l had yet been heard in the matter. The | speaker of the house appealed to the
 Irish members to give Sir George a | fair hearing.
 1 After Sir Charles Hobhouse, the former postmaster general, and Don lald MacLean had criticized the bill, depressing the opinion that the num- Eber of men over 40 who were fit for iserVice did not justify raising the age limit John Dillon the nationalist Header. said that, apart altogether from 4 Ireland. no case had been made out for the bill itself. As to the Irish I proposals they would destroy the hope of an Irish settlement during the war He challenged the government to ltake piebiscite in Iceland and de- elared that Antrim would vote with T Glare against conscription. The farm
 CTS of Ulster, he sad, were against i conscription
 Sir Edward Carson, interrupting said: N Q more than the farmers oi
 England
 Estimates of Men from ireland. Il The estimate of 400, ,00q men from Ireland, continued Mir Dillon was non. sense. Two years ago the figure was
 put at 12o;090, and since then 20,00C had volunteered. He believed that nc more than S0.Q8O could be obtained without doing infinitely more injury bA destroying the food supply.
 2 Tlse. real purpose of the, bill sMas tt l diEcrt public attention and inGuir, z from the true causes of the failure or the western front. Tie attempt tt } extend the bill to Ireland would opel , tanother war front in Ireland, all th' more formidable because it would b. la moral front in which Britain woult t be- wrohg; it would be a front which Il whatever form the conflict took Il would spread to America and Aus tralias and to all the corners of tn , earth where the Irish race were scat } ltefed. The prospect before the gov I ernment was that for the remainder 0 3 the war it must hold Ireland unde , strict military law with eyer-increas g ing bitterness.
 3 In committee the nationalists woul l lpropose to have county option, and :. Ithe government would concede that s perhaps they would cry quits and no . oppose the bill further. He had n e. .lhope that. a home rule bill acceptabl g Ito Ireland could be passed