Gladstone and Home Rule.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 436, 1 April 1890, Page 3

Gladstone and Home Rule.

Mb Glad3Tonk made the following remarks in one of his latest political speeches What is it that the Tories look to ? It is very seldom any of them venture to express a confident anticipation that the people of England at the next election will sanction their policy. What they say is —“ We must persevere until the people of Ireland change their minds and become reconciled to the present system, and

perceive that they, the Irish people, hive totally mistaken the interests and situation of their own countiy, and that we Englishmen in England, are the only people who understand the government of Ireland, and that, in defence of every principle of freedom, we mean to take it out of their hands.” Well, we are to wait until the Irish people recognize all that, and when the Irish people have turned inside out every convicti. n they entertained and have perceived the .’ own folly, incompetency, and almost lunacy (laughter), and, on the other hand, the courage, wisdjtn, and omniscience of the present. Government and their allies, then they are to pass into a sort of earihty paradise, and, in some condition not yet explained to us, become a conten- ; ted people. (Laughter). Now, is there a single instance that they can nrnnt to :n which

such a result has arrived ? Wh-re you have had a discontented nation, and that discontent stereotyped in the experience of generations and of centuries, and directed toward the attainment of a particular remedy, is there a single instance where they can point out that that people has been converted and induced to abandon its views and to become satisfied with the Government that it had denounced ? Did the Belgians when they were united with Holland change their minds and become satisfied with that condition? Did the I alians when they were oppressed change their minds and acquiesce in a cf Government which the patriotic citizens of the country declared to be detestable ? Did the Bulgarians change their minds under the Saltan of Turkey, or is the contrary true m every one of these instances? There has been a change of mind brought about, unfortunately, after resistance, after long delay, with much excitement, and with much shedding of rivers of human blood, and the end of these things has in all cases been tbe same. The foreigner has gone out of Ita'y the Dutchman out of Belgium, and I believe that the Belgian and Du-ch man are now excellent friends. The foreigner has gone out of Italy and the Turk has gone out of Bulgaria. That must be the case he e.

The Irish will not change their minds, even r.nough you were to do that which is absolutely impos-ible and to go against th-.ni. Not if Wnglar d were unanimous in her refusal would Iri-hmen change the conviction which they have received from numberless generations of Irishmen of oiher days (Cheers.) If they w mid not change in the face of a united Eng. land do you think they will change when, even on the first official, responsible proposal of Home Rule 313 members of the Hjuse of Commons were found ready to vote for it in 1887 (cheers), and when, since 1837 Wales and Scotland, always friendly to the claim of Ireland, now to be joined to the vast power of England by a ooovic ion daily and incessantly increasirg that Ireland is in the right ? No. p'ot emeo, such anticipations are dnams, mischievous, idle dreams, and not idle only, but pestilent dreams, because they contribute to maintain a state of* discord between the countries which at any time might be aggravated by untoward circumstances, because they Delect evils which it is in our power to cure.