Evening star., 1924-05-24
HOME-RULE FERvOR
GRIPPING SCOTLAND
Movement Gains Impetus Since
labor Has Come to Rule
England.
IRISH SUCCESS is CITED
But Dublin Got Consideration
GLASGOW Cannot.
IRISH SUCCESS is CITED
BY w. J.. MANSON.

BY w. J.. MANSON
| Special Dispatch TO The Star and Chicago
Daily News.
| GLASGOW, May 24-Hope deferred
| does not seem to have reduced the
enthusiasm for home rule for Scot
land. The home rulers are always
! crying aloud about the iniusticss
under which Scotland is alleged to
| be laboring in it's association with
| England. Since ireland was given
home rule in two different forms
| Scotch home rulers have been saving
more than ever. Recently the have
| been inspired to enthusiasm Lv that
new factor which has come into the
HE OF the United Kingdom-the La
| Dor government. Somehow m. IN
! thusiasts for home rule think th4Sr
cause VIII have better chance &C
| success with labor running tho affairs
| of the empire than il ever had wen
| the government was Tory, Iibcr.t or
| Coalition.
| The majority of the Scottish m m
| bers of the Imperial Parliament ave
declared themselves in favor at a
separate Parliament for Scotland md
! nearly all the Scottish Labor mem
| bers are home rulers. But berora
home rule bill has any chance of
passing. the majority of all the -qcm-
| bers of Parliament must rally tn its
support. AZ present there does rot
| seem to be any likelihood of that.
| The English members. with the ex-
| ception. perhaps. of a few labor men.
are sublimely Indifferent to the A.
fairs of Scotland
| Disc0uragement for Home Rule
When Scottish business comes IN in
| the imperial Parliament almost all
the English members find that they
| have engagements elsewhere and the
| house is left to the Scots themselves.
Ireland got its way, but Ireland was
not Scotland, and the success Of Ire
| land does not provide many argu-
| ments in favor of home rule for Scot
! land. The Imperial Parliament and
! the two countries of England and
Scotland were heartsick of the whole
business of managing Ireland. Ire
land was in a condition of civil war
more or less-for generations Peo-
pie were tired reading about il and
Parliament was tired of making laws,
or trying to make laws, for Irelands
pacification and its better govern
| ment.
That was how Ireland got home
rule. One cannot imagine Scotland
getting it that way. Scotland has not
the grievance. to start with, or at any
rate, the Scottish Home Rule Associa~
tion has never been able to convince
the Scots that they have the griey !.
ances. Somehow. the Scotch have
never grasped the great fact that
they are a downtrodden people. Some
have searched for the chains of slay
cry, but thus far have not found
them. The Scots seem to be quite as
well off as the people of England. in
spite of the great historical fact that
they lost their king and parliament
hundreds of years ago, and in spite
also Of the present day fact that they
are in hopeless minority in the
mother of parliaments in London
Government support Required.
If ever Scotland gets home rule
doubtless it will be by the straight
forward method of presenting a bill
to the imperial Parliament and get
ting that bill passed into law. Public
ly the bill will be treated with indif-
ference by the English members, but
it as quite possible that the Scottish
members by attending regularly
whenever it is being discussed or
voted upon, may carry it through
The Scottish members are sufficient II
number to form a quorum of the
House. and so they can. if they like,
prevent any bill from falling to the
ground through the apathy and neg
lect of those of England. But they
will never get a bill made into an act
of Parliament unless government
takes it up and makes it part of its
program.
That bill drawn up by the Scottish ,
Home Rule Association is compr"-
hensive and businesslike. 1t provides
for Scottish parliament of 14S mem
bers, elected by the present parlia-
mentary constituencies, but each
constituency having two member in
stead of one. This parliament would
have sovereign power to manage and
control all national affairs in scot
land. 1t would look after all SCOT
the army, the navy and the air force
which would be managed Jointly by
the English and Scottish parlla'ut ntS
and the cost OF which would br pald
in proportions to be agreed or pc .
tween the two countries. s1f tn" TWO
governments failed to agree as 10
their proportions of the cost, v' as
to other conditions of the joint srrN-
ices, each would finance and manage
it's own services. With regard TO mat
ters of home and foreign policy ON
mon to both there would be d council
of representatives of the two govern
ments, and this council would draw
up and operate agreements, wien.
however, would have no effect Inth
they were ratified by both paTIia-
sponsibility for eleven n-eightietas of
the national debt and would recover
similar proportion of the material.
and liquid assets of the present
United Kingdom treasury.
A Weakness in the Bill.
There are many more prov "ns,
all showing that the associate has
thought the matter out fully But
there are obvious and inc able
weaknesses in the scheme. The -dea
of Scotland, after failing 10 agree
with England regarding the army.
the navy and the air force, financing
(and presumably managing) it, own
services, is itself enough to pu' the
bill out of court. Whatever happens
there can be no separation of the de-
fense forces of the two countries
The present Labor government may
express it's sympathy with the prin-
ciple Of home rule for Scotland, but