The appointment of Mr. Long to be Chief Secretary has
by no means put an end to the rumours afloat in regard to Sir Antony MacDonnell, and as to how the Government mean to deal with the sitdation in Dublin Castle. It is said, for example, that the unwillingness of the Government to call for Sir Antony's resignation comes from the fact that in such a case he would be in a position to make revelations and to produce correspondence which would throw a very strange light on the attitude now adopted by the Government in regard to Irish Administration. Another rumour—and, we confess, one that, in our opinion, is much too fantastic for belief, though it has been widely circulated—is that the Govern. ment mean to get out of their troubles by appointing Sir Antony Permanent Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs, a post which is likely to be soon vacant. In support of this amazing scheme, it is urged that the appointment is in Lord Lans- downe's gift, and that Lord Lansdowne, as his speech in the Lords showed, sympathises strongly with Sir Antony, and would not lightly tolerate his abrupt removal from public employment. The appointment to the Foreign Office would get rid of Sir Antony from Dublin without producing a Cabinet crisis.
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