THE IRISH NATIONAL CONFERENCE.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3548, 22 November 1882, Page 4

THE IRISH NATIONAL CONFERENCE.

The National Conference opened in Dublin on October 17th. There were 300 delegates in the hall. Messr3 Parnell and Davitt ■wevc received with tremendous cheers. Nearly all the extreme Irish members of Parliament were present, and seated ou the platform was Lord Mayor Dawson, Messrs P. O'Connor, Corbetfc, Gill, Sexton, O , Sullivan, and Brennan. Messrs Brennan and Sexton were appointed secretaries. The proceedings were not altogether harmonious. A delegate named liundon, who attempted to speak, was shouted down as a renegade, and denounced by a suspect named Barrington as a ' coward who had run away from coercion.' Cassidy, a delegate from Manchester, was expelled with insults and threats for moving , an obnoxious amendment. Mr Parnell, who presided, submitted a programme for the Conference and reviewed its proposals. He said in effect no solution of the land question was possible till the Irish people obtained permission to make their own laws and the Irish party numbered 95 or 90 members in Parliament, a number only to bo hoped for when the elective franchise was placed on the basis of household suffrage; that the alleged differences on the Irish question did not exist among Irishmen in America ; and that despite the most tyrannical coercion the world had ever seen,' they would obtain the measures on which they had set their hearts. Mr Davitt wa3 more pronounced than Mr Parnell. He dedared that until the land, which was stolen from the people, was resigned to the ■whole people as national property, there could be no final and satisfactory settlement of the land question. At the same time he ■wished it distinctly understood that he was not separated from Mr Parnell on this land matter. Further on he said that while he to wholly join in with Mr ParHell's scheme of land reform, he would cooperate with him for the abolition of landlordism. A breeze came up when Mr Davitfc moved as an amendment to the proposed constitution of the Central Council of the new League, that the Council consist of 32 members, one for each County, the Parliamentary party to hare no nominations, but its member to be eligible for election MrT. P. O'Connor said this amendment amounted to a vote of wanfof confidence in Parliamentary members, and accused Mr Davitt of lying to injure Mr Parnell's prestige. He reiterated the charge, despite Mr Davitt's repeated denials. At last Mr Davitt became greatly excited, and said that a gentleman would not have made such an accusation, and to prove it groundless withdrew his amendment. It was finally decided that the Council should consist of 48 members, 32 for the Counties, and 1G for the Parliamentary party. A lottor was read from Mr Igan, now in Paris, tendering his resignation as Treasurer of the Land League, and at tho same time submitting a

balance sheet, showing that a total of £244,820 in subscriptions had passed through his hands, of which he had expended £213,O0O,leaving a balance of nearly £32,000. A vote of thanks to Mr Egan was passed, Mr Davitt proposing and Mr Justin McCarthy seconding it. After a resolution thanking Mr Parnell for presiding the conference closed.