MR. T.C. THOMPSON, M.P., ON HOME RULE.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XI, Issue 46, 14 March 1884, Page 5

MR. T. C. THOMPSON, M.P., ON HOME RULE.

Mr. T. C. Thompson, 11. P., addressing bis -constituents at Durham on Jan. 11, in the course of an able speech said — He could not conclude without referring to the subject of Ireland, always a difficult subject, and yet always an interesting subject, to them. He did not know of any problem so interesting and so difficult as the problem of how to bring peace to Ireland — a most glorious country, gifted with a soil most fertile, gifted with a population versatile, active, aud intelligent. Yet Ireland was not in i.he highest scale of nations. He would not say that the Irishman was superior, for he must not say anything of that kind in such an assemblage but he was quite equal to any of them in intelligence. If he met an Irish lady, she was not inferior in beauty even to the beautiful daughters of our country. And yet if they went to Ireland they would find misery such as they never looked upon here. People were beginning to discover that there was a great amount of misery in England — that the homes of the poor were not what they should be ; that some effort mast be made to give them better houses and comforts that they had not now. But the misery of England was paradise compared with the misery of Ireland (hear, hear). If any of them were to go to Dublin and pass from one of the cathedrals to the others, they would see in the few streets that they would pass through such scenes as were terrible to think of. If they went into the great city of Limerick they would find scenes eveu worse, scenes of wretchedness and misery. What was that the result of ? (Voice — " 700 years of English rule.") Yes, it was the result < f 700 years of the domination of England. (Voice — " Gladstone is not responsible for that.") H3 knew not and cared not who was to blame ; except that the responsibility rested with the English people (hear, hear, and hisses). It was idle to hiss. The English people had taken upon themselves to govern Ireland, and the fact was that the country was steeped in misery. Why was it? He tried to find out some of the causes when he was there, and he might tell them in a word that it was the poverty of the country that had brought it about. PeoDle would talk over and over again about political societies and secret societies of confederations of men for wicked purposes. Aye," aye. Go into the forest, and look upon the fungus growing upon the oak. That fungus bad as much to do with the ruin of that old oak as thes3 societies had to do with the ruin of Ireland. They were the fungus growth arising from the poverty of the country. Intemperance might have something to do with this poverty ; but a question to be asked vras, were the Irish an industrious people ? If they passed to the mountainous parts of Ireland they would see there abundant evidence of their industry. The fact was that the produce of the land in times of bad seasons was not sufficient to support the population. In such a cass as that what was done in England was what was offered the people was the union or uotbing at all. If the people were belpel over the winter, in three seasons out of four, they could support themselves. But that was not done, and they were obliged to do one of two things — either to go into the workhouse or to starve. He believed that there was a growing feeling now in England, that having failed to govern Ireland uncles the present system, we must let Ireland govern itself (cheers'). He apprehended no danger from such a course. So long as Irishmen were kept down by the iro i hand of England, bo doubt there were some who would rise and do cruel and Btern acts — acts very much to be regretted. But let tbera govern themselves, and he believed they would see the face of Ireland changed ; and eveu if it were not, they would have nobody to blame but themselves. At present theie were 103 Irish members in tbe House of Commons. Why could not these 103 gentlemen sit in one conclave in Dublin, mid fix on the measures for their country, and when Parliament met lay them before it for its assent? (Cheers), if they did tha» and it answered, they would have succeeded in doing what no one had done before. If it failed all he could say was we must try again, because it wa^ our bounden duty, which we must never forget, to take care that that great country, committed to our charge, was as prosperous as the country in which we lived (cheers). In Parliament he had to pursue a course which h:id made him keenly anxious lest he should not have deserved tbeir approbation. He had done his best— he had acted as an honest Englishman (loud cheers). If they did disapprove of that course, and showed their disapproval that night, proud as he bad ever been of being their representative, it would be his duty, and he should not hesitate to perform it, to ask their permission to retire from their representation (loud cheers)."