The articles which appeared recently in the Birmingham Daily Post
under the title of " The Condition of Ireland," are about to be republished by the Radical Union, with a preface from the pen of Mr. Chamberlain. This preface has during the week been given to the public. Mr. Chamberlain points out the necessity for finding a permanent remedy for Irish discontent, and declares that the material causes of discontent are " economic and agrarian." The Irish is not a race which will surmount difficulties for itself. The Imperial Parliament must, therefore, undertake work which in England and Scot- land is safely left to private individuals. In the first place, it must stimulate industries by judicious public works, and in the second, inaugurate some scheme of purchase which will make the peasants owners of their farms. Mr. Chamberlain believes, however, that it is useless to ask the electors to buy out the landlords by the use of English credit. It must, then, be done by some such scheme of local responsibility for the interest on the purchase-money and local collection of the rents as was proposed in the articles in the Birmingham Daily Post. After the land question has been thoroughly settled, but not till then, Mr. Chamberlain believes that a wide scheme of local government, such as is also propounded in the reprinted articles, may be safely undertaken. We dissent from the last proposal, and regret that Mr. Chamberlain, in his speech at Bradford, acknowledges that he expects Irish Councils to be bad and corrupt. If, however, Irishmen like corruption, he would let them have it. That is mere cynicism.
