Manawatu Evening Standard. CIRCULATION 4000 DAILY FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 1914. THE IRISH CRISIS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 9766, 3 April 1914, Page 4

Manawatu Evening Standard. CIRCULATION 4000 DAILY FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 1914. THE IRISH CRISIS.

A ww.coM! change has como over the dangerous situation in the Mother Country, and it would seem now that the spirit of concession is gaining the mastery in every party concerned in the difficult problem. Sir Edward Grey, who lias made for himself an enduring name in the diplomatic world, had added to his reputation for tnct and diplomacy by his conciliatory utterance on behalf of the Government, and from tho ranks of the supporters of Ulster has come an immediate response auguring well for a settlement by consent on lines which, if agreed to. will bring about a peaceful revolution in tho government of Great Britain moro far-reaching than the most drastic system of Home Rule ever suggested for Ireland. The solution at present finding most favour is that which aims at fcderalising Great Britain on the lines of the systems of government obtaining in the United States, Canada and Australia, and it is proposed that the first step in "Home Rule all round," as it has been called, should bo the granting of self-government to Ireland, with the exclusion of Ulster for six years, during which period the details of the! Federal system could be developed, and the ultimate fate of Ulster decided.' Naturally, tho problem still facing the statesmen in this federal solution would j be whether Ulster is to become a separate Federal state in the Union, or • whether she is to bncome a part of Ireland. But if the spirit of concession ■ leads the rival parties sufficiently far! to agree to federalism as common ground for settlement, Ulster's fate may 6afely be loft to the future. Although "Home Rule all round" has not been as prominent in British politics as Home Rule for Ireland, there have not been wanting evidences of a growing demand for a measure of local sdfgovernment in other parts of the Kingdom. In Scotland more particularly the agitation has assumed definite shape, and among its prominent sup-' porters arc the new Governor-General of Australia, Sir Ronald Munro-Fergu--Bon, and Mr Cathcart Wason, an oxNew Zealander, who is now a leading

Scottish member of the Imperial Parliament. A Bill to make better provision for the government of Scotland was introduced into the House of Commons in 1011, and read a first time. Its supporters claimed that the time had arrived for the establishment of a legislative body, to be called* the Scots Parliament, and for the devolution to that body of the power to make laws on matters exclusively relating to Scotland. By this means, they contended, it would be made possible for matters of local importance to Scotland to be considered and determined in a !<K-al Parliament. It is undoubtedly true at the present time that the British Parliament is so concerned with matters of Imperial and national import that pressing local questions are relegated to a minor place, and it is often years before the congested Parliamentary machinery can be brought to bear upon them. Then, again, these local questions are likely to bo more intelligently dealt with if their consideration is in the hands of men who have both the time and the local knowledge.' A fenmonths ago ''Home Rule all round" was a question of the distant future: to-day it has become a live issue.