The Washington times., 1920-01-18
ENGLISH DESPOT|SM
. IN IRELAND SCORED
George Bernard Shaw Holds
Dublin Castle TO Blame for
Attack on French.
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civil code legalizing such a penalty.
II Is a deliberate insult to humanity:
a proclamation that its victim Is a
lower creature, of an inferior and
seryile species without honor. exist
ing only by the sufrerance of those
who have the power to impose such
humiliation. on him before the whole
world.
This. and not the ten minutes rapid
fire (which Is, at least, a thing which
honorable men DO to honorable men In
war), made every citizen OF the world,
who valued liberty and human dig
nifty, see red. IL revolted England.
What effect must II have had In
ireland. where every man knows that
General Dyer's next command may be
where General Maxwelrs was In
Easter. 1919. and that there Is no mill
tsry distinction between the ma
tionalist Indian and the nationalist
Irishman? Dublin Castle did not fore
see that. and could not have pre-
vented IL in any case.
Temperature Up so Degrees.
The temperature arranged for by
the castle was under 1l2; but the
news from Amritsar sent IL up 80 de-
grees: and the result was that Lord
French. safe enough a week before.
found himself under fre again at
closer quarters than at Ypres.
1t Is idle to deal with a situation
OF this kind by plstitudinous express
sions OF horror at the wickedness OF
assassination. This Is not merely
because II Is so like Joseph Surface
talking to Lady Teasele about his
honor. II is because IL evades the
question really at issue. 1t Is to the
honor of the London Times that II no
longer suspects the leaders OF the
Irish nation OF completely in this at
tempted murder, as II suspected and
accused Parnell of completely In the
murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish.
severe Bisw To De Valera.
The Unionists of both islands may
well exult over rhe blow assassins
have dealt to Mr.. De Valera. no less
than to Sir Horce Plunkett. They
have missed their enemy and hit
their friends. as the manner OF des-
peradoes and fanatics IL. And yet.
though all the Nationalists in Ireland
would hang them for being fools. as
heartily as the Unionists would hang
them for being rebels and murderers.
they are quite likely to go scot free.
because there Is no Irish government
to which they can be denounced by
the Nationalists and no likelihood of
the Unionists knowing where to put
finger on them. The government
can do nothing but offer a reward and
n pardon; but can II protect an IN
former? No doubt there are Irishmen
who would accept either or both IL
-, a fal h,,t N
dent of James Carey is not encourag-
ing.
What. then. Is a reasonable major
ity to do? Nothing. as far as l can
see, except organize secret tribunals,
after the manner Of the Ku-klux or
the Ribbon Lodges, to deal with their
own desperadoes, and IL such thing
were done these secret tribunals
would very soon abuse the irresponsf-
bility OF their secrecy. and become
worse evil than the disease they were
founded to remedy.
Sever Political Relations.
Sim Fein could OFFER Lord French
a bodyguard, pledged to share all his
risks from bullet and bomb; but
would the government accept IT?
Could IL accept 1t without making the
Ming RIDICULOUS. hctC 10 aosoiHsS'y
no remedy except the cessation of
the present political relations be-
tween the two countries. which are
simply criminal relations. incapable
of breeding anything outside their
own kind.
Meanwhile, we must all, at heavy
do what we can TO
stop explosions of mere blind hatred.
will not temper despot-
ism; II will exasperate II and make IL
provike more assassination. impris-
oning Ireland in vicious circle which
is also an odious one.
And IL will make certain mischiev-
Gus acts Of less sensational sort
seem harmless by comparison. For
instance, just before the news about
Lord French came to London the
Times had made ii known that Tuam
was boycotting Belfast commercially.
Nothing more stupid could be con-
ceived Epgland's policy of destroying
German trade and cutting the threates
of her best continental customers is
wisdom and common sense in com
parison.
Irish Lost IL Temper Is Gone.
In making Belfast independent of
Tuam by forcing her to sell her goods
elsewhere (probably in England) 4,
Tuam is deliberately working for the
partition of Ireland. Spite is a bad
counsellor: and IL Ireland loses her
temper Ireland is lost. But who VIII
listen to a lecture to Tuam when
there are assassinations to be dis
cussed?
| must add that as I write this, ]
am by no means clear as to what
actually happened in the attempt to
assassinate Lord French. The ac-
counts in the English papers range
from a pitched battle, in which thirty
men attacked a vanguard which was
led by Lord French, to a waylaying by
1 squad of bombers. who fled and left
one of their number slain on the
field.
At all events, the attempt to as
sassinate the viceroy occurred simply
because the conditions at present inn
posed upon Ireland always do produce