"AN UNREAL DEBATE."

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXVII, Issue LXXVII, 31 July 1918, Page 5

"AN UNREAL DEBATE."

TALK OF TYRANNY RIDICULOUS. (Received July 31, 8.50 a.m.) LONDON, July 30. Mr Bonar Law, winding up the Irish debate, said that he had never listened to a more unreal Irish debate. Mr Dillon had not come within a hundred miles of the real difficulty of the Irish problem, which was due to differences between Irishmen. The talk about the tyranny of England -was ridiculous. If the English Government had committed a fault it was by laxity^ not by tyranny. We would all like to see _i settlement of the question, but that could only be if those who made demands were prepared to look at the whole facts of the case. The Unionist members of the present Government were prepared to introduce a Bill to give effect to some sort of self-government for Ireland in order to get rid of the Home Rule question, even if they alienated a large section of their party. It would be impossible to put any form of Home Rule into operation in Ireland at present. No sane man would suggest handing the Government to the Sinn Feiners. Nationalists should recall the attitude of Irishmen all over the world, - who not only w*anted liberty, but were willing to fight for it. "Do the men who hold back in this great struggle," he asked, "really represent the principles for which we are fighting?"—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.