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[To TIM EDITOlt Or Tax "Brim:cos:]
Sin,—Irishmen who differ from you politically were hardly prepared to find you adopting Mr. Bonar Law's estimate of Nationalist Ireland. Let me earl your attention to two fallacies upon which your articles of last week are founded. First, that Ireland must be regarded as an English, Scotch, or Welsh county ; and second, that the opinion of Orange Ulster, which represents but a fifteenth of the population, should dominate the rest of Ireland. Historically and geographically our position is distinct and our commercial interests as an agricultural country are quite different from Great Britain's, which are principally industrial. Dean Swift, writing about Ireland, said :—" I ever thought it the most uncontrolled and universally agreed maxim that freedom consists in a people being governed by laws made with their own consent and slavery on the contrary." What is Ireland's position to-day under that definition P As you, Sir, must be well aware, the Chief Secretary of Ireland is at least as powerful for good or evil there as is the Prime Minister in England, with the difference that in his selection or continuance in office the Irish people have no voice.
The present system could not be defended, I contend, even if with it prosperity resulted to Ireland ; but with the ghastly history of the century before us I find it bard to believe that any unprejudiced Englishman can advocate its continuance. To come to your second contention may I ask why the voice of Orange Ulster should be hearkened to with more attention than that of the rest of Ireland ? Is it because we demand self-government P Canada and Australia insisted upon having it. Or because we are Catholic P I did not know that religious beliefs carried any disqualification in the British Empire. Why, therefore, should one Orangeman be considered to equal five other Irishmen P Would any English politician assert that the opinion of one Middlesex man should outweigh five Yorkshire or Devonshire men P I do not remember that at the time of the Boer War any of the English generals drew a distinction between the merits of the Irish soldiers, North or South. Does not your estimate of the English garrison in Ireland smack rather of the Roman Empire than the British where it is boasted all are equal ? May I ask where have the Orangemen been conspicuous for anything save lip loyalty—and that only sometimes Most of us can remember when England wanted fighting men. Did Sir Edward Carson, for instance, offer his services when ten years younger to argue the question of the right of way across the Tugela with General Botha P How many of Belfast's hundred thousand men were with Buller, or listed for Mr. Chamberlain's war P I cannot recall that any undue proportion of the Belfast population volunteered for South Africa when their presence was desirable. The cry goes up from Ulster that she will never desert the Empire. May 1 in all seriousness ask who wants her to do so? Are not her protestations a little like Mrs. Micawber'sP I would be the last to dispute the commercial genius of the North, but may I submit that they have been singularly obtuse when political questions were under consideration P They were just as bitterly opposed to Disestablishment. None of their representatives helped on Land reform. They had to have a Belfast University thrust upon them. We :Irishmen judge what self- government may do for us by history. Dean Swift nearly 200 years ago pointed out the work that was necessary for our country if it was to prosper. Our native Parliament in tho eighteenth century, both before and after 1782, attempted to carry out these projects which are vital to our interests. In the middle of the eighteenth century we had a department encouraged and equipped by our Parliament quite as useful as that procured for us recently by Sir H. Plunketil I only quote from memory, but I am sure you will find that Swift advocated that laws should be passed to preserve and extend our forests, to drain our bog- lands, to encourage our agriculture, more especially tillage, for the discouragement of grass lands and for advancing trade. Can you point out any effort made by the mother of Parliaments from 1800 to 1200 that had for its direct object the furthering of any of these great designs? We ambition that Irishmen should live in peace and amity. May I respect- fully ask you what steps the Unionists, beyond regarding native opinion with contempt, propose to take to bring about that happy consummation P—I am, Sir, &c.,
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