to express a very decided conviction that the advice which
admit that the steady furtherance of Liberal principles in Ireland, useful as that furtherance would be, can be any- he gave to the Liberal Unionists in his speech at Belfast was by no means adequately considered. We fully enter Liberals must be thoroughly convinced that the main grossly,—nay, to risk seriously our alliance with the Con- tenance of the Union will mean the steady maintenance servatives, who would justly distrust us, if they could once and the zealous furtherance of the cause of Liberal progress in Ireland. To that end, he thinks it absolutely and doctrines with which they have slender sympathy, than essential that the Liberal Unionists should convince the we are on defending a position which they think quite things, even before world that they are Liberals before all they are Unionists,—that it w Mr. Courtney, however, will perhaps reply that though for them even to cease to be Unionists than to cease to be Liberals. The following are Mr. Courtney's exact words :—" Their action as Liberals must be even that need not mean, and does not mean, that he values more prominent than their action as Unionists. If the the Union less than Liberal progress, but only that at Union was to be maintained, it must be by Unionists the present moment it is of much more importance to never ceasing to be Liberals, by Liberals who were Liberals the success of Unionism to insist on the security it to insist on its in- it never could be said that the matter of the Union was before, by Liberals doing all they possibly could, so that furnishes for further progress, than trinsic merits. The General Election is what he is thinking secured ; and how can this be secured of, and to carry the General Election, a strong Liberal con- a matter of the Conservative Party alone. They knew the strength of the Conservative Party, and they must act tingent must be with them on that matter, but the Conservative Party except by refuting the presumption which the Gladstonians alone could. not maintain the Union Liberal are always enforcing, that a policy so dear to Conservatives Unionists must be zealous to show the people of Great li e Britain that they were not less zealous Liberals because essentially Liberal policy ? To that we should reply that they were zealous Unionists. If there was anything which we quite agree in the wisdom of giving a good deal of criticism, unpleasant as the criticism might be needed , prominence to the position that a Liberal policy in Ireland will be pursued if the Union is maintained, and cannot be they must not hesitate to point out this or that reform, pursued if the Union is sacrificed ; but that what we deny or to insist upon haying it, no matter how slow the Con- is the wisdom of letting it be supposed that we value the servative Party might be to grant it. He would not say Union more because it secures the progress of Liberalism. they were slow. They had done good work, and had in Ireland, than we value it because it secures the safety shown an open and vigorous mind ; but at the same time, if they were ' prodded ' incessantly, they would do more." of the United Kingdom. In point of fact, we do not the And Mr. Courtney, of course, has been universally under- value it nearly as much for the former reason as we do stood to advise that the Conservatives should be "prodded for the latter. We are not at all insensible to incessantly" by the Li importance of pressing forward Liberal reforms in Ireland, Liberal Unionists. Now it is this advice of which we profoundly doubt the wisdom. We doubt but we are far more deeply convinced of the absolute Unionists to extremely the wisdom of advising Liberal necessity of securing the safety of the United Kingdom, make "their action as Liberals even more prominent than ce their action as Unionists ;" and we distrust still more cordially the practical application of that principle which it cannot be wise to the importance Mr. Courtney makes when he encourages the Liberal rtance we attach to. Unionists to go on "prodding" at the Conservatives till Portance, and to underrate they quicken their pace into the quick-march of genuine reformers. We will give our reasons for questioning both Possible importance, if the alliance is to be (as it ought t counsels, and for positively rejecting the latter. be) even more cordial in the future than it has been in We object to Mr. Courtney's first counsel, that Liberal the past. Unionists should make "their action as Liberals even And that brings us to Mr. Courtney's second and most more prominent than their action as Unionists," chiefly on dangerous piece of advice, that we should take even more- the very simple ground that it would be,—or at all events zealously than ever to the " prodding " tactics in order to- should be,—a distortion of their true creed. It is very make the Conservatives keep step with the progressives in important, no doubt, to keep our action as Liberals distinct our own ranks. Mr. Courtney, when he urges on Lord and emphatic ; but, after all, our action as Liberals only Hartington and his party such a policy as this, seems to tends to secure progress from the point which we have forget that there are two great dangers which beset the already reached, while our action as Unionists tends to next General Election, instead of only one. There is a, secure us against regress to a point far behind that danger, no doubt, that those who are eager Liberals may which we have already reached. And it is to our minds take offence at the Conservative alliance unless the policy more important, and even far more important, to fortify of the Government is made distinctly and genuinely Liberal. our base, than to attempt forward movements from an ill- But there is another and much greater danger, that the secured base. The Union is our Torres Vedras, and any eager Tories in the constituencies may take offence with movement which would render our possession of that the Liberal Unionist alliance, and be rendered languid and fortified position less secure, would render the advance indifferent, if they see the Government placing themselves beyond it rash and almost desperate. To control our too obviously and, as they would say, too abjectly at the impatience for progress is a comparatively light sacrifice, disposal of Lord Hartington and Mr. Chamberlain. To compared with that of hazarding in any way the vantage- our minds, the latter danger is the greater of the two, for ground. which we have already gained and ought tena- the very plain reason that there are a great many more Con- ciously to keep. Unionists hold with Mr. Courtney that servatives who are jealous of the Liberal Unionist influence, "the course of legislation in Ireland, if it were handed than there are Liberal Unionists who are jealous of the over to an Assembly directed by methods with which we Conservative influence. It is quite true, of course, that are acquainted,"—in other words, to the Nationalists of nominally it is a Tory Government, and not a Liberal the League,—would be utterly disastrous ; that the policy Unionist Government ; but that is just what eager Tories TOPICS OF THE DAY of the Nationalists of the League, with respect, for in- . stance, to " the congested districts " of Ireland, would be wholly mischievous and pernicious. But we go much MR. COURTNEY'S ADVICE. beyond this. We hold that the Union, once broken THE Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means through, would be almost past re-cementing, except•is a thoroughly hard-headed man, whose political after a regular civil war ; and that the dissolution mind is not deficient either in courage or clearness. He of the Union would give a deadly wound to the is not one from whom those who agree with him in general unity of the United Kingdom, such as we might drift are at all easy in differing. And yet we shall venture find it very hard to heal. No hearty Unionist can a to express a very decided conviction that the advice which admit that the steady furtherance of Liberal principles in Ireland, useful as that furtherance would be, can be any- he gave to the Liberal Unionists in his speech at Belfast thing like as essential to the prosperity of Ireland and the- into his view. It comes to this, that if at the General safety of the United Kingdom, as the absolute security of Election the Gladstonians are to be beaten, that can only the Union on which that prosperity and that safety directly be achieved by rallying a very considerable number of depend. We hold, therefore, that to make our " action as genuine Liberals to the Conservative ranks ; and for that Liberals more prominent than our action as Unionists7 is purpose Mr. Courtney bolds that a large number of to misrepresent our principles and to misrepresent them these grossly,—nay, to risk seriously our alliance with the Con- tenance of the Union will mean the steady maintenance servatives, who would justly distrust us, if they could once and the zealous furtherance of the cause of Liberal be persuaded that we are more bent upon pushing principles a progress in Ireland. To that end, he thinks it absolutely and doctrines with which they have slender sympathy, than essential that the Liberal Unionists should convince the we are on defending a position which they think quite things, even before essential to the historical continuity of the British Empire..
they are Unionists,—that it w Mr. Courtney, however, will perhaps reply that though iSuld be less impossible ll he recommends Liberal Unionists to make their action as Liberals more prominent than their action as Unionists. t exact words :—" Their action as Liberals must be even that need not mean, and does not mean, that he values more prominent than their action as Unionists. If the the Union less than Liberal progress, but only that at t Union was to be maintained, it must be by Unionists the present moment it is of much more importance to never ceasing to be Liberals, by Liberals who were Liberals the success of Unionism to insist on the security it to insist on its in- it never could be said that the matter of the Union was before, by Liberals doing all they possibly could, so that furnishes for further progress, than trinsic merits. The General Election is what he is thinking secured ; and how can this be secured of, and to carry the General Election, a strong Liberal con- a matter of the Conservative Party alone. They knew with them on that matter, but the Conservative Party except by refuting the presumption which the Gladstonians alone could. not maintain the Union Liberal are always enforcing, that a policy so dear to Conservatives as the policy of maintaining the Union, cannot be an e Britain that they were not less zealous Liberals because essentially Liberal policy ? To that we should reply that they were zealous Unionists. If there was anything which we quite agree in the wisdom of giving a good deal of criticism, unpleasant as the criticism might be prominence to the position that a Liberal policy in Ireland will be pursued if the Union is maintained, and cannot be they must not hesitate to point out this or that reform, pursued if the Union is sacrificed ; but that what we deny or to insist upon haying it, no matter how slow the Con- is the wisdom of letting it be supposed that we value the servative Party might be to grant it. He would not say Union more because it secures the progress of Liberalism. they were slow. They had done good work, and had in Ireland, than we value it because it secures the safety shown an open and vigorous mind ; but at the same time, if they were ' prodded ' incessantly, they would do more." of the United Kingdom. In point of fact, we do not the And Mr. Courtney, of course, has been universally under- value it nearly as much for the former reason as we do stood to advise that the Conservatives should be "prodded for the latter. We are not at all insensible to incessantly" by the Li importance of pressing forward Liberal reforms in Ireland, Liberal Unionists. Now it is this advice of which we profoundly doubt the wisdom. We doubt but we are far more deeply convinced of the absolute Unionists to extremely the wisdom of advising Liberal necessity of securing the safety of the United Kingdom, than we are of the necessity of insisting at once on a forward movement in Ireland. And we are quite sure that- we attach the importance ce the importance Mr. Courtney makes when he encourages the Liberal rtance we attach to. to those principles to which our allies attach no im- those principles to which our allies attach the greatest o counsels, and for positively rejecting the latter. be) even more cordial in the future than it has been in We object to Mr. Courtney's first counsel, that Liberal the past. think the humiliating element in the case, if really the policy be Liberal Unionist and not Tory. They say they would much rather give a generous support to an avowedly Liberal Unionist Government, than be humiliated by the reproach that they are mere tools in the hands of Liberal Unionist advisers ; and there is something reasonable in the . complaint. For our own parts, we profoundly believe that there is no real gulf between the two ; that the gulf is rather a, matter of tradition, a sur- vival from the old Toryism of times gone by, than a matter affecting living political interests. The Tory Party depend now as much on the popular vote as do the Liberals. They have necessarily abandoned the defence of privilege qua.' privilege, and where they still hold by some of the remnants of privilege, it is on the perfectly reasonable and popular ground that the modification and regulation of historical institutions to which we are all accustomed, is safer for all of us than the minting of quite new institu- tions of which we have no experience. But the jealousies which arise out of names, often survive, and long survive, the jealousies which arise out of real things. And there can be no question but that a policy which, if Lord Salisbury himself had originated and introdueed it, would be thoroughly welcome to the Tory Party, is often disliked, and even detested, solely because it is known to have been urged on Lord Salisbury by Lord Hartington or Mr. Chamberlain. And our point to-day is, that this is a real source of danger for the General Election, and, indeed, of very much greater danger than that against which Mr. Courtney warns us. It would be all very well to advocate the " prodding " policy, if it were certain that while many Liberals would be gained for Unionism by this ostentatious " prodding " policy, no Tories would be lost for Unionism by its application. But if, as we believe, there is serious danger that two or three Tories would be alienated, and rendered indifferent whether they should vote or not, by the tactics which would gain a single Liberal to the hearty advo- cacy of Unionism, we shall certainly do more harm than good by adopting Mr. Courtney's advice. As it seems to us, the right course is to regard the alliance as one of reasonable compromise, as it has hitherto been regarded ; to treat Lord Salisbury as the true head of the Government, and to defer to him and his supporters wherever they regard the course which the Liberal Unionists would recommend as really dangerous, but to ask from him and them what it is only reasonable that we should ask,—a full and candid consideration of all Liberal Unionist suggestions, and a disposition to adopt them wherever they seem safe to moderate and enlightened Tories, and likely to increase the popularity of their Government without sacrificing any principle of cautious and sound statesmanship.
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