Yesterday week, Mr. Childers, speaking at Knottingley, re- minded his
constituents that in 1880 Lord Grey had commented on the very alarming state of Ireland after six years of Con- servative rule, though Lord Grey took care to say that he feared the Liberals even more than the Conservatives. He was, there- fore, an excellent witness to prove that the Irish difficulty of the day was not of the origin ascribed to it by the present hot poli- ticians of the Tory Party. Mr. Childers defended vigorously the Irish policy of the Government, and declared that, when Parlia- ment met, it would be possible to say a good deal which could not be said in the recess, and which would vindicate that policy. The Government would steadily resist the "No-rent" cry, and would steadily resist the separation cry. They would redress grievances to any extent, and especially the grievance of centralisation, which was one of the worst of Irish grievances ; but they would be no party either to robbery of the landlords, or to a dissolution of the Union. The Land Act was working well, and even the clauses sanctioning the sale to tenants by limited owners were coming at last into practical operation. Mr. Childers' view of the Irish land policy of the Government was perfectly confident, though not in any way sanguine of immediate cure.
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