Elbert County tribune and Elbert County banner., 1920-12-24
COMMONS PASS
HOME RULE LAW
MEASURE TO BE EFFECTIVE
AT DISCRETION OF BRIT
IsH GOVERNMENT.
MODIFIED BILL ADOPTED
CRITICS ASSERT 1T WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED BY SOUTH
IRELAND.
Western Newspaper uuloo Ny~s Service.

Western Newspaper Uulco NsSs Service.
London, Dec. 21.-The Irish home
rule bill, as slightly modified by the
House of Lords, has been adopted by
the House of Commons. The measure
now needs only the royal signature 10
become a law.
The measure will be effective at the
discretion of the government at any
time within three and one-haIf years.
The government reserves the privilege
of applying the law when the oppor-
tune moment arrives.
The home rule bill as 1t finally
emerged from parliament ready for
the royal assent is not fundamentally
different from the measure the gov
ernment first presented. Months of dis
cussion and efforts to amend in both
house resulted in certain safeguards
being added, which its adherents be-
lieve will make 1t more acceptable to
the Irish people.
The bill's critics argue that the
events of the past few months have
not served to change the Sim Fein
attitude that they will not set up the
government suggested by the imperial
parliament.
The bill as presented did not pro-
vide an alternative II either Ulster or
the south, or both, declined to accept
1t, but 1t has been amended to the
effect that IL either does not accept it
within three and a half years, the
measure automatically dies, SO far as
the section refusing to accept 1t is
concerned.
In the meantime either section de-
clining to accept can be ruled as
crown colony The limit of three and
a half years was adopted because by
that time there must be an election
and new House of Commons.
The bill now provides that there
shall be set up by popular elections
two parliaments, one for Ulster and
one for the South. Each parliament
shall decide upon the method of select
ing senates. The connecting link be-
tween them will be the Irish council
of forty, twenty for each section. Each
senate will select seven of its council
members and each parliament thir-
teen.
The original bill provided that the
president of the council should be the
lord chancellor of Ireland, but as
amended he will be appointed by the
lord lieutenant on the advice of the
crown, which means that the govern
ment in power can put anyone at the
head of the Irish legislative body 1t
pleases. The idea expressed by minis
ters explaining the bill is that the
IL - oh,
in time the two parliaments can get
together and form one body for the en-
tire country.
The measure provides that when
that is done the powers of police, H.
nance and other branches of the gov
ernment will be turned over. The i'm
perial government will keep a pretty
firm hand on the fundamentals of the
Irish government during the life Of
the two parliaments, but holds out
many attractions for a united parlia-
ment that its sponsors hope will coun-
teract the prejudlces that always have
existed between the North and South.
The changes made in the powers of
the parliaments as set forth In the
bill when 1t was introduced are incon-
sequential.
Its critics, however, still maintain
that it will not be accepted by South
Ireland, and in this connection 1t is re-
called that Arthur Griffith, Sim Fein
leader, said some weeks after the bill
was introduced that there probably
were not ten influential men In ireland
who had even taken the trouble 10 read
1t.