HOME RULE CHANGES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15655, 25 June 1914, Page 7

HOME RULE CHANGES.

CONCESSIONS' TO ULSTER THE AMENDING BILL DEBATE IN THE LORDS. , GREAT PUBLIC INTEREST. PROPOSALS BY MINISTRY. ( ■ By Telegriph-Pwas Aawointion-CSopytight (Received June 24, 11.10 p.m.) London, June 24. In the House of Lords yesterday, i the Earl of Crewe introduced the Home Rule Amending Bill, which ho stated was on the lines of the mier's proposals on March &. He added that the Bill gavo the widest possible latitude for amendment. There would be two general elections before the permanent exclusion of Ulster was possible. The Bill provided for obligatory reconsideration of exclusion, and did not provide for automatic inclusion. i. Question of Finances. A Minister of the Government would be appointed to deal with Irish business in Britain, and the civil government of the excluded ar'"' would be exercised by the Lord Lieutenant through departments. The constituencies in the excluded aroa would send members to the House of Commons. A joint Exchequer Board would apportion the finances between the excluded and' included areas. The Earl of Crewe admitted the profundity of the religious differences in Ulster,' but this difficulty would not be met by the exclusion of the whole of Ulster. The Government would give the most careful consideration to any amendments'. "Shabby and Undignified." Lord Lansdowno said it was shabby and undignified of the Government to introduce unacceptable proposals and then ask the Opposition to assist to convert them into a tangible working' measure. The speaker said the Government knew perfectly well, that the Bill would not avort civil war, and that it would leave under the Homo Rule yoke certain areas in which there was a small Nationalist majority, but where the large minority had the preponderance in wealth, education, and industry. The time limit meant that the Government wished Ulster to remain with a noose round its neck.

The Bill was read a first time. Its text will be issued to-day. ,

The Daily Mail suggests that the House of Lords should amend tho Bill and insist that no county should be included without a two-thirds majority, also that no county should be included at the end of six years without a fresh appeal to the electors.

' The House was crowded when the debate opened, among others prosent in -galleries being Sir E. Carson and Mr. Balfour.

O'DONOVAN ROSSA.

BODY TO GO TO IRELAND.

Times and Sydney Sun Services.

London, June 23.

The extreme section of the Nationalists intends to bring the body of 6'Donovan Rossa (the leader, of the Fenian Brotherhood) to Ireland for interment.

The object is to make the funeral , a demonstration to support the complete independence of IrelandO'Donovan Rossa died in America last year, and was buried there. . APPEAL TO THE KING. PLEA FOR POPULAR VERDICT. The follov'ng petition to the King from the Irish Unionist Alliance has been forwarded to*the Home Secretary for presentation to His Majesty ;-We, the undersigned, on behalf of a vast bodv of Irishmen of all creeds and classes, Your Majesty's devoted subjects, in the Provinces of Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, crave leave humbly to approach tho Throne and to represent to. Your Most Gracious Majesty that widespread and well-grounded alarm prevails among Your .Majesty'is loyal subjects in Ireland, 'owing to tho imminent danger of the outbreak of civil war, with all Hfiatlerdant horrors, should the present Government of Ireland Bill be passed into law without being submitted to tho electorate of the United Kingdom. Your petitioners i.ave been deeply moved by the words in tha gracious Speech from the Throne in which Your Majesty expressed your most earnest wish that the good will and co-operation of men of all parties and oreeds might heal dissension and lay the foundation of a lasting settlement in Ireland. Your petitioners most humbly represent to i'our Majesty that the idea of severance from the existing Constitution is abhorrent not only to the people of Ulster, but to the great numbers in the southorn provinces for whom we speak, and we are convinced that the present Bill, if forced upon us, can never prove the foundation of such a settlement as Your Majesty ardently desires, but that, on the contrary, it will produce a rankling sense of injustice which will create bitter animosity and entail grave difficulties for the Empire in the future. Your petitioners, speaking with intimate knowledge of their country, have the gravest reason to apprehend that on the outbreak of civil war the lives and property of many of Your Majesty's subject? dwelling in isolated portions of Ireland will be exposed to tho greatest danger. Your petitioners, therefore, in this time of peril and deep anxiety, most humbly pray that such steps may be taken as Your Majesty in your wisdom m,b deem right, to ensure that this Bill, which, if enacted, will inevitably result in ruinous consequences to the nation, may be submitted to (he judgment of your people.