12 MARCH 1870, Page 1

The Tory speeches on the Irish Land Bill are all

in one tone,—a tone of strong dislike suppressed for prudential reasons. That of Dr. Ball, on Monday, was at once the most decided and the ablest. Throughout his speech, from first to last, ran a single consistent thought, that " free coo tract" is the highest form of tenure which the intellect of man has yet been able to devise, and that in legislating to restrict such freedom Britain was relegating Ireland to a lower civilization. He held that as regards Ulster tenant-right the Bill perpetuated and fixed a custom which varied with every estate, which was in itself an evil, making, as it were, a distinct law for every separate holding ; as regarded compensation, it was fixed too high, the maximum amounting to one-third the fee simple. He did not, however, object to the principle, but as regarded future tenancies he thought the Bill utterly bad. lie held that the English were never content with less than the best arrangement, that they had fixed on free contract as the best, and that to keep the best to themselves and give Ireland an inferior one, was to repudiate the great idea of the Union, which was to permit all Irishmen to rise to the English level. Dr. Ball's peroration amplifying this idea was moat eloquent, and, granting his datum, unanswerable. It only fails in its effect because the English have never permitted free contract about any article held in monopoly except land, and even about land the contract is not quite free. No tenant can " contract" to pay property-tax.