Evening star., 1934-08-26

is its trade with England, where
Guinness" is household word tran
scending any British rival. Ever since
the election of Mr.. De Valera to the
presidency of the Free State, and espe-
cially since the economic and political
rupture with England, there have been
rumors that Guinness were contem-
plating steps to safeguard their mar
ket across st. Georges Channel in the
event of a complete break between the
two countries.
The nature Of those steps has now
been declared by Lord Iveagh, the
chairman of the company. He in
formed the shareholders at the annual
meeting that as long as 20 years ago
the idea of establishing brewing CEN
ter in England had been entertained
by the firm and that land for that
purpose had been acquired at Man
chester. The scheme had been held
in abeyance, and in the interval con-
ditionS in England had undergone a
change which made it advisable that
the new venture should be made, not
at Manchester, but in the neighbor-
hood of London.
y \ X y
The other incident is no less
significant. It takes the shape of q
ballon d'essai in the columns of the
Irish Times, the organ of the Union
lists in Southern Ireland and the most
powerful critic in the Dublin press
of the presidents policy. It has
published a manifesto laying down
that the only way in which the
present deadlock can be removed is
by starting negotiations for an Anglo
Irish settlement on the basis of a
reunited Ireland within the British
commonwealth of nations. The sig
nificant tact about the manifesto is
that it was written by an avowed sup
porter of Mr.. De Valera's government
ana policy, and, according to the Irish
correspondent of the London News
Chronicle, has behind it substantial
body of opinion in the Irish Free
State. However that may be, the
prospects Of an early settlement on
these lines are not encouraging.
Two main obstacles stand in the
way. The one is the declared policy
of Mr.. De Valera. He has stated that
he is ready to enter into negotiations
for the settlement Of all outstanding
questions on the basis of a united
Ireland. So far good. But he has
intimated no less clearly that his ideal
of united Ireland is republic which
has made a clean cut Of its British
connections.
The other obstacle is, of course,
Northern Ireland. 1t is suffering, like
all other countries, from the world
depression. and in spite of the financial
support it receives from England there
is widespread discomfort with the
proposed further taxation. The view
is now being openly canvassed that
the only alternatives before the people
of the six counties are a return to the
Jurisdiction of the British Parliament
or union with the Irish Free State
on the best terms that can be made
There remains the third party to
the issue. I think I am correctly
stating the overwhelming current Of
opinion in England in saying that it
would gratefully accept any solution
which Northern ireland and Southern
Ireland could arrive at. 1t is heartily
weary of the whole Irish question and
could have no more agreeable assur-
ance than that it was finally dead
and buried. 1t would not, of course,
consent to the forcible inclusion of
Ulster in the Free State, but an
amicable union of the two under one
parliamentary system would be not
merely approved but welcomed. And
this for an obvious reason. The in
clusion of Ulster in the Free State
would effect an entirely new balance
Of the political elements, and would
create a united Ireland which, how
ever independent, would have no
animus against this country and no
wish but to remain part of the
structure Of the British common
wealth, as Canada, Australia and
South Africa are, to their own al well
as Britain's advantage.
(CopyTight. 19341