Sir Henry James made a wise, dignified, and impressive speech
on Saturday to the electors of Bury, in the Liberal Unionist Club, formerly known as the Trevelyan Club, adjoining the Philips Hall. The founder of the Club, Mr. R. N. Philips, formerly M.P. for Bury, closed the Club last Christmas as a Liberal Club, and- has now handed it over to the Liberal Unionists. Sir Henry James quoted Mr. Glad- stone's remark made on November 11th, 1885, that he would prefer to see the Liberal Party "sever and split" rather than sacrifice "conscience and conviction." That was exactly what had happened, said Sir Henry James. The Liberal Unionists were taunted with finding nothing better to do than to support Lord: Salisbury. He thought they would have found some- thing less worthy to do if they had supported Mr. Parnell. He expressed in very impressive language the serious convic- tion which the evidence he had been compelled to study brought before him, that Mr. Parnell, so far as he speaks the language of moderation, is the representative of a mere transient phase of Irish political purpose, and that as soon as Mr. Parnell has served his turn, it will be found that there is no reserve force of moderate men in Ireland to lead the popular party, and that the Irish movement will pass into much more violent hands ; that Mr. Davitt, who is, as he himself admits, always ready to turn Fenian when. ever he thinks Fenianisin likely to serve the Irish cause, will probably come to the top, and seek to found a Com- munist, anti-English, and anti-landlord Republic, on the basis of his own well-known and frankly avowed principles. For our own parts, we do not believe, with Sir Henry James, —if, indeed, as he seems to imply, he really expects this,—that Communist views will ever succeed in Ireland ; but we do believe that if Ireland gets Home-rule, Ireland will soon be torn to pieces by a fierce struggle amongst factious local leaders of whom Mr. Davitt probably will be the. most respectable.
Previous page
