Truth IRISH HOME RULE AND BRITISH IMPERIAL UNITY.

NZ Truth, Issue 406, 5 April 1913, Page 4

Truth

IRISH HOME RULE AND BRITISH IMPERIAL UNITY.

Published at Luke's Lank (off Manners- stbeet), Wellington, N.Z.

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In no sense can the confident congratulations of Irishmen throughout the world concerning the constitutional concession of .Home Rule during the late St. Patrick's I>ay celebratAons be 'regarded-, as premature or ill-founded. True, the Home Rule Bill, conferring legislative independence upon Ireland, has not yet become an Act of Parliament. It has been rejected by tho House of Lords. But the opposition to the rejection of any important public measure of reform by the Lords causes no commotion and but small concern. Under the Parliament Bill the Home Rule Bill automatically becomes an Act *of the British Parliament, bearing the; Royal sign manual, within two years after its rejection by,: the Lords. ■■■'■' i ' ' _•..:;.•■■ ■..-. •. The people have paralysed the Peers by the automatic vpro visions of the Parliament Bill. .It is the House of Commons which represent the People ; and the Parliament Bill merely provides that the voice of Iho people's accredited representatives shall prevuil m last resort and within a reasonable time. In the conception and carrying of this Parliament Bill (commonly called by the Cockney comic, "The Peers' Paralyser"), Mr. Asquith has shown himself much more adroit a tactician and astute a statesman than Gladstone showed himself m dealing with a similar critical conjuncture m Irish affairs nearly twenty years ago. As a statesman and constitutionalist, Asquith has shown himself to bo the shrewder and safer man. - * ■ ■- ■■■•■■ ."'.■»' What Gladstone sought to achieve by platform pyrotechnics and Parliamentary compromises, Asquith has accomplished by the surer and safer paths of patience and prudence. With a House of Commons majority behind him for Homo Rule such as As(quith has, and has hod, for years, Gladstone would have resorted to heroic motiibdß for overcoming opposition m the Lords. He would have broken the Constitution m a broad spirit, if not m the strict letter, by straining the Royal Prerogative by bullying the monarch, if he could or dared, into sanctioning the rejected incasuro by Royal ordinance or warrant. This he did with Queen Victoria m tho case of the Abolition of Purchase m the Army. • • • ■ Her late Majesty never forgave Gladstone for thus bullying or bulldozing her into that piece of constitutional autocracy. Victoria disapproved of the measure that Glad- 1 Btone constrained her to sanction ; j but she punished Gladstone for the j term of his and her natural life, by ignoring him when she could, and opposing hijn when she could not constitutionally ignore him. None knew better than the wily old Widow Wettin, what a Grand Old Humbug the Peoples' William really was. Contrasted with those of Aso'Mi'\ the Home Rule methods of Gladstone wero those of a braggart and a bully. Where Gladstone) was over ready to argufy nnd damnify on the platform or m Parliament, Asquith has carefully coolod his courapro, and conducted his campaign with a cautious circumspection which has befn beneficial to tho cause, and creditable to him, to his party, and to his country. * ■ ' * . , When Gladstone would have been striking an attitude on the "stump." Asquith has been carefully perfecting his plans m Council. Leavinp opponents like Lord Londonderry, BonarIjiw, and Lawyer Cnrson. to mako themselves look ludicrous by spoutin? nnd shouting disloyalty and treason. Asquith has prepared to meet them m Parliament. wh«ro ho and his supporters have overwhelmed those liquorish last-ditchers with logic, reason, and ridicule. Asquith hns proved himself not only a better tncti«Man and sounder fitntwmnn than fMnrlfttone. but he shown throughout n whole series of serious constitutional crises, which have arisen during his Premiership, that ho is one of the wisest and snfest Prtmo Ministors who Imve ever directed the destinies of tho British Empire m the House of Commons. »* » • Tt is impossible to believe that Mr. Asquith find his friends h&v* not h»d before their eyes m this finnl Ctaht for Home Hule for Ireland, the prohablo influence it "«>st ultimately have upon tho question of British imperial Unity. Home R«W» bos a vorv dc«p and direct alnnlty with

that question — deeper and directer than many- of the most ardent Home Rulers and bitterest anti-Home Rulers deem, or ever dream. To say suddenly to these, to biuntly assert to them, that Irish Home Rule is a great stride towards that grand new-world birth of The Federation of the English-speaking Peoples of the World, would be to shock some with surprise, and to stagger others into incredulity. Yet, that such is the case, is as certain as that Irish Home Rule will be the law of England and Ireland some time next year, as that the sun won't rise tomorrow, but that the earth will obliquely gyrate away and round to the sun's Vo filer side/allowing: this, the earth's back side, to be brich^entfd, j warmed, and blessed by Sol's beams, i The sun never rises and sets ; it is ' the earth that whirls around the •sun, and gets the greater part of its two hemispheres lighted and heated once every twenty-four hours. : . ■ * * ' ■• Home Rule for the last sevpn hundred -years has been m politics what the sun is m astronomy — a fixed star, upon which, the national eye of Ireland has been kept fixed, and from which Irishmen have drawn the light of hope and the healthful heat and fire of national independence. In the whirling sphere of factions, Home Rule has frequently been lost sight of, or regarded as a maleficent meteor .or comet of evil omen, by alien factions, who have pretended to regard Home Rule as treason and ruin to the Empire. But to Irishmen^ who- saw with the eye of. truo patriotism and national faith, Home Rule was tlie Day Star of Ireland's dawning independence. To them it was the political polestar of Irer land's destiny, never lost sight of, and never unpercelved even under the blackest clouds of national depression,' amid rancorous sectarian savagery, and perfidious, political' persecution, and 'social ostracism. f ■ " •■■■■■■- '*.'. -■ -. '.-■ * , . Home Rule has -ever been, the star of all' true Irishmen's hopes, since that fatal day when a callo"us Pope (Adrian IV., the only Englishman who ever occupied the Chair of Peter) sold Ireland, without Ireland 'a consent, to a roifiauly English King (Henry II.) for Peter's pence, down till the present time. Irishmen have, never Ceased to plead and pray, to agitate and fight for the rendition of. their national freedomAfter centuries .of sufferings unparalleled, of heroic' struggles unsurpassed, and -of agitations unexampled for consistency ami constancy, the Irish people succeeded m wresting from the fears of England the right to make their own laws for Irishmen m Ireland, m an Irish Parliament m Ireland. Scarce had they begun to enjoy- and realise and reap the benefits of legislative independence, when, by a cowardly combination of force and fraud, Irishmen saw their independence suddenly ravished from them, little more than a hundred years ago. .•* • ■

Now, alter ' a century ol constant, continuous agitation ajid strife, m. which Irishmen have exhibited 1 wonderful constancy , and devotion, never excelled/if ever equalled, by any people fighting for their freedom m any bthor .. part Of tie world; -at any stag£ of, civUlseti government, Irishmen are once more about to come into their national heritage. Tnis consummation of Ireland's national aspirations is one upon which England has more reason for congratulation than even Ireland herself. ' • ♦'■'•*' ■ ■ - It will be no disparagement to the disinterestedness of England m tardily conceding Home Jtule to Ireland; to say, that m serving Ireland she saw that she would be serving hert^elf— doing one good turn for her restive neighbor and two for her own good self. In what way would or could or can this be? Simply by paving the way to Imperial Unity. How so? By conciliating Irishmen m Ireland, Irishmen m the United States, Irishmen m Canada, Irishmen m Australia, Irishmen m Africa, and Irtshmon elsewhere within the Empire, and Irishmen everywhere throughout the world. But it is on account of the influence which Home Rule will have upon the opinion and conduct of Irishmen m the United States, towards England, that the question assumes the most pleasing aspect for Englishmen. In the United States, Irishmen are probably tlio most influential, socially and religiously, and politically potential of the many distinct peoplos and races who go to inak© up the eighty and odd millions of tho population of that mighty rtepublic. Noxt to tlio Irish comes the German plemcnt. Until quite recently '■ „ "this German element was most bitterly, hostile to England on account of , her treatment of tho Boers, both before and during tho i last Boer war. But this Gorman bitterness has been much softened, and will soon bo altogether obliterated, by England's wise and manly recognition of South Africa to Uomo Kulo. ' The concession of Home Kul« to Ireland may reasonably be expected to be followed by a similarly favorable change of Irish-American opinion towards England, Englishmen, and English policy. There is no warrant or reason to believe that Irish- Americans wlH.bc behind Ger-man-Americans m magnanimously recognising England's generous, though tardy, recognition of Irish constitutional rights m Ireland. Thus is the hostile attitude of these two threat all-powerful sections of tho Americans changed into one of benevolent neutrality, if not of svmpnthfttie support. How directly and deeply thf« changed attitude of tho Irish and German peoples m America must have on the future policy of lh<j British Empire can easily be shown. • • •

Jingo jingllngs and mnd inafTickIngs apart, it has loner since coino to be recognised that there can bo no real pure and permanent federation for iho British F.mpire, tho basis of which f« not a union of thf» lOncHnhupeaklntf racos of the world. Thero aro only tvfo bonds of muionnl or intcrnftWonal union between different pooples— religion nnd language. Haco goes for naught ; common origin copstitutes no common tic ; n.* witnesses the present attitude of those two great Powers, Pritnin nxul Carmany, Hoth of tho one common Teuton stock. Hut look al ih > Ptron« bond of unf.on e.rinlinK br.tv.'e<*n (h-> Sftxon-F t ncr!irth m f-:nglnnd. ami the CeUifih-RttpHsh m Scoilnnrl nmi Wnltrs — soon, let us hop*'. <o be «itrcngtlwnc<l by Celtlc-KnKllnh svmptuhy rtnd support m IrH-uifl, Th'To we bav^ tho true jjerm and rfft.l bAtea of Imporinl unionr-lanßUupo mwl r«»---liclon. n common tongue and a fotnmdn Chn»tionity. ■ • • In her day» ol troublo to cotno,

England cannot face the world m arms alone. With her colonies beside her, she would put up a splendid fight, and probably more than hold her own. But with the whole of the English-speaking peoples of the world— including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada. Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand — backing her, the peace of the British Empire and of the whole English-speaking world would be assured, and the safety of commerce throughout the Seven Seas guaranteed for centuries. Without some such Pan-Anglican Alliance as this, the stability of the British Empire j does not seem to be too certainly assured. Within such a noble alliance or fraternal federation, " her fate would be fixed m security for five hundred j ? ears, long before which time, shall have come that period when "War shall be no more," and Tennyson's noble dream of "the Parliament of Man m the Federation of the World" realised. No such consummation could have been dreamed of as practicable so long as Irishmen m Ireland, m the United States, and throughout the British Empire, remained .the bitter opponents of England's policy m Ireland and.Boerland. Hostile Irishmen and Hostile Germans "m the ' United States refused to , sanction reciprocity or' union ■with the British Empire so long as within that Empire Germans and Irislimen were held m legislative thrall. That ground of hostility has been, removed. Germans and Irishmen within the Empire are now free. The removal of this great and galling' grievance clears away one of the greatest obstacles to the federation of the EngKsh-speaking world. ■ -■'.-».- * . . ' ■ That federation is one which, when it conies about (as come it must, if Christianity and Western civilisation are to bo saved from ever-growing Asiatic aggression) will yet redeem the world and bring about Christ's Kingdom here among men, based upon the principles He preached of "Peace on earth and good will towards men." That Home Rule does not directly serve and help on m this way the cause of peace and progress and the happiness of humanity, is the chief ground for common gratulation between Celt and Saxon ; upon the somewhat belated concession of self-government to Ireland. ■■■"*. ■' ♦ • ' * Surely, m a self-governing, contented Ireland, m a self-governing, contented South Africa, Britain has better sureties- of safety and support for her Empire than m discontented and disaffected dependencies. Certainly ■;■ . most indubitably . It is m this development of seH-govenwnent and peaceful progress within the Empire that Britain must • jjieek, as she will probably find, her best guaranttees of her Imperial stability and i solidarity from internal sedition and from external attack. It is this alluring prospect of the world's j peace so pleasingly projected ?n*o the J page of history that makes Tenny- j son's well-known lines seem so pregnantly prophetical, and the poet him- i self to seem to be an inspired sacred seer :— • ( . K . : ' Men, my brothers, ra.cn the workers, ever reaping something new: That which they have dono but earnest of the things that thay shall do: For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see. Saw the Vision of the world, and aU. the wonder that would be; Saw the heavens nil with commerce, argosies of magic sails. Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales; Heard the heavens fill with shouting, and there rain'd a ghastly dew Prom the nations' airy navies grappling j m the central blue; Far along tho world -wide whisper of the south-wind rurhing warm, With the standards of the peoples plung- j ing thro* the thunder-storm: Till the war-drum throbb'd no longer, j and the battle-flags were furl'd , In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world. There the' common sense of most shall hold a fretful realm In awe. And the kindly earth shall slumber, lapt j In universal law. | JOHN NORTON, j Brisbane, I March 20, 1913. ... |