NEWS OF THE WEEK.
• IRELAND wears a quieter aspect this week. The public works and other kinds of employment are coming into operation ; and the effect in tranquillizing the general feeling of exasperated despondency is perceptible. More voluntary relief meetings have been held ; which is a symptom of a healthy spirit. At the same time the very moderate sums voted at these meetings, to be paid directly out of the landlords' pockets, contrast remarkably with the lavish votes of works, to be paid out of the State funds, at presentment sessions. It was mentioned in our last Postscript, that the committee of landlords in Dublin had abandoned the proposed meeting in that city, because they deemed its objecito have been anticipated by Lord Besborough's assent to "reproductive labour " ; a tacit ad- mission that the members of the committee, at least, had no more comprehensive or certain scheme to propound. Mr. O'Connell, however, will not give up his notion, but still insists that there ought to be a meeting. Perhaps he cannot relinquish the pro- spect of such a glorious nibble at an Irish Parliament. Perhaps lie dues not like the Irish people to see a suggestion of his so lightly set aside. Most certainly he is " lag that there
are still difficulties to be considered for re —the ykoba-
bility of continued deficiency, the prevention of disastrous conse- quences, the means of rendering the state of Ireland more perma- nently secure. Whether a committee would be the best of tri- bunals for such a consultation, is to be doubted ; but if ever it was desirable, it is as much so now ; and the readiness with which the project was relinquished savoured strongly of that lightness of purpose which is so detrimental to Ireland.
