Mr. Goschen replied to Mr. Gladstone in a speech re-
markable among his speeches for the extraordinary quickness and force of its repartees; but we must confine ourselves to- day to the answers directly offered to his opponent. He declared, as regards the first objection, that the Government also desired the landlords to remain in Ireland, and that those bought out under the Ashbourne Act, of which this Act is a great ex- tension, were remaining. As to the second, Mr. Goschen affirmed, what all men can see, that the restoration of social security must and will benefit all Ireland, labourers included. As to the third, the purchases are voluntary, and Irish tenants do not usually give too much. The fourth is answered by the fact that Mr. Parnell offered the embargo as security for his own plan ; but in reality that security is the last of a series, and too remote for discussion. And, finally, as to the fifth, if the Irish people really object to the Bill, it never can become operative; for it is not compulsory, and the people, if objecting, have only to leave it alone. In accepting its provisions, the people ratify them. Mr. Goschen denied that the question had been settled at the Election of 1886, for the proposal rejected then was one to lend millions to Ireland when placed under a separate Legislature, a very different one. The speech was one of astonishing vigour, and marked incidentally by a perception that Mr. Parnell's proposal showed a certain willingness to compromise, which in Committee might be developed into practical improvements on the Bill.
