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Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16206, 8 May 1918, Page 6

Tlie appointment of Viscount Frenofr as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, is extremely interesting, not so much because the Government havo gone outside the class from which such appointments havo usually been made—though this departure from proeedent is noteworthy—as bccausc Viscount French, little more than four years ago was associated in a very striking manner with one of the most critical periods in modern Irish history. Tho appointment cf such an able and experienced soldier as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at the present juncture may Ikj regarded by some people as significant, and may even bo given greater importance than it actually possesses; it is certainly no less significant that that soldier should be one who resigned a high position in tho Army rather

sanction an apparent breach of faith by the Government regarding the possible use of force in the "'settlement of the Home Rule trouble.

The incident to -which 'we have referred recalls the dangerous days which in the early part of the year 1914 followed the introduction into the Houso of Commons, for the third time, of Mr Asquith's Home Rule Bill. Towards tho end of March the situation was made more serious by the resignation of a number of officers of tho Irish command in oonscquonco of the Government having ordered troops to be moved into Ulster and of a warship to Belfast. Mr Asquith's official statement that the moving of the troops was purely a precautionary measure and that no further action was contemplated, went far to allay public anxiety. But a few days later came tlie disclosure that a memorandum given to General Gough, the cavalry commander at tho Curragh, which had been approved by tho Cabinet and which pointed out to the troops that it was their duty to obey nil lawful commands, had received an important addition which Cabinet had not seen or approved. This was a paragraph by Colonel Seely, the Secretary of Stato for War, which stated, definitely, that the Government had no intention of using its right to employ tho forces of the Crown in maintaining order, to crush political opposition to tho policy or principles of the Homo Rule Bill. This unauthorised amplification of the original memorandum was initialled by Sir John (now Viscount) French, then Chief of the Imperial General Staff, and Sir J. S. Ewart, QuartermasterGeneral. Mr Asquith at once repudiated the guarantee given by his colleague, declaring that "the Government would never yield to tho claim of any body of men in tho servico of tho j Crown to demand in advance what they j would or would not bo required to do under circumstances that had not arisen." Colonel Scely's resignation of his portfolio followed as a matter of course, and Sir John French and Sir J. S. Ewart also persisted in resigning wieir appointments, though strong efforts were made to induce them to ! reconsider their decision. Four months later tho outbreak of the war saw Sir John French in command of tho Bri- ' tish Expeditionary Force, while Ire- ! land, to the amazement of tho Kaiser, | who had expected her to seize tho opportunity to embarrass England, closed ; her ranks in faco of tho enemy. If Government trading departments were moved by the same desire to meet the convenience of customers that actuates tho ordinary trader, one might hope that tho scenes which occurred outside tho Government Buildings in Worcester street yesterday morning would induco the officials of the State Coal Department to adopt commonsense methods of dealing with clients. As it r/as, for several hours a dense little crowd pressed against the iron grille drawn across the entrance to the building, and from time to time a struggle resembling a football scrum took place, as the gate was slid back a foot or two to admit half a dozen customers. Some of tho crowd, which was composed largely of women, some with babies in their arms, must have waited for hours before reaching the entranco

i The present scarcity of coal is bound to cause some inconveniences, but there is no possible excuse for these being aggravated, as they were yesterday, by the unbusinesslike methods of tho State Coal Department. It is understood that for days past would-be customers •who wanted to order coal were told to givo in their orders yesterday. If a bag of coal could be carried away by the purchaser like a pound of tea, there would bo every reason for refusing business when no coal was available. But as all that the crowd yesterday could do was to givo in their orders and pay their money, it is impossible to see why tliey should not have been allowed to do this at their leisnre during the preceding week. To decline to •do any business of tho sort until the coal is actually in Lyttelton or Christchurch, is, as yesterday's scene showed, to cause inucii unnecessary discomfort and waste of lime to a large number of citizens.