The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1880-11-13 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

THE STATE OF IRELAND.  The state of things in Ireland is not improving. Indeed, -the present condition of affairs is so menacing that Mr. Forster 4. deemed it necessary to despatch large bodies of troops to the western part of the country, while the channel squadron has received orders to remain at Queenstown, the instructions to Admiral Hood being that he shall land a body of about 2500 men in case their services are required. Fuel has been added to the flame of animosity by the action which has been taken by a section of the Ulster Oraegemen. Some days ago a contingent of them, five hundred strong, arranged to go to laillinrobe in order to assist Captain Boycott, who has been placed under the ban of the Land League, and is guarded night and day by policemen, to gather in his crops. They announced that it was their intention to go to their work armed, to be in a position to resist any attack which might be made on them. The Irish Secretary very properly perceived that if they were allowed to carry out their ill-conceived plan the most serious consiquences, if not downright civil war, might ensue. So he interposed, declaring that he would not permit the expedition to depart. At the same time, he announced that he would protect those who assisted Captain Boycott to gather in* his crops, and the sincerity of his *Lundell is proved by the fact that af, the present time the police are helping to perform that work, and the military are guarding OrangeMill who have gone to Captain Boycott's aid. He made known his inteutious to the representatives of the press in Dublin, .whom he invited to meet him at the Castle. He has been condemned by some of the sham patriots, who place party before country, and who, while they brag about loyalty and what not, rejoice over the anarchy of which unhappy and misguided Ireland is the scene, because they imagine that it may be made the means of weakening the Government and leading to the triumph of their own faction, but the course which he is pursuing is a prudent ono and admirably calculated to meet the necessities of the case. He would have failed in his duty, and forfeited his deservedly high character for siatesmanship, if ho had permitted a body of rabid Orangemen, armed, to run the risk of coming into collision with a body of exasperated " Leaguers," also armed. Such a collision would, no doubt, have bow productive of bloodshed and bitter strife. What has happened proves the necessity for prompt and vigorous action on the part of the Government. It is, therefore, re-assuring that in his speech at the tiuildhall, London, on Tuesday, Mr. Gladstone indicated that if the prosecutions of the leaders of the Leaguers and fomenters of the present mischief failed to achieve their object the Government were so alive to the seriousness of the situation and so determined to pat down mob terrorism, outrage, and murder, that they would, however painful the doing so might be to them, apply to Parliament for farther coercive powers. The spirit in which those urgently-calledfor prosecutions are regarded by the reckless men against whom they arq, directed was indicated at Athlone on Sunday last, where Mr. Parnell presided over a land meeting and made an exceedingly and unjustifiable speech. He ridiculed the notion that the Leaguers had been " frightened " by what had happened, and vaingloriously said that it was the Government who were afreid. No doubt, the Government are afraid—of doing anything inimical to the welfare of the whole of the Irish people in consequence of the wrong-doing of a proportion of them, but their alarm does not go beyond that. They know, and all thoughtful men realize, that they have sufficient force at their command to put down in a harsh way, if they are forced to extremities, what is to be so much deplored. Mr. Parnell rudely taunted the Northern Whigs, whom he accused of clinging on to the coat-tails of Mr. Forster, whom he sarcastically designated the humane Mr. Forster, his description being greeted with cries of "Buckshot Forster." He boastfully declared that the Land League had checked, if not altogether stopped, evictions, and that if they had a little farther time for organization they would reduce their number still more. He taunted the Government with having