During the War Great Britain was compelled to pretend that
.the Southern Irish were friendly and to treat them as though they were, though all the time they were stabbing us in -the back. They would have been less formidable as declared- enemies than as .nominal friends.
H the .Sonthem Irish were allowed to walk off -with their baneful gift of full. independence, as we hold they -ought to be, they would, of - course, receive- no further financial consideration from us. The _Irish problem, provided) always,. of.course,.that the safety of the North of Ireland was guaranteed, and that compensation -was :required for 'dispossessed 'loyalists in the South, :would as nearly as. possible be ended. It will be objected, of course, that we could not allow the South of Ireland to be a jumping-off place for .other enemies than the • We. admit that there would be a risk, but really we are only choosing.between risks. The British Fleet mild police the Irish Seas easily enough. The risks which we accept at -present are great and incessant. We - are reminded of the remark of Thiers after the izevolution ,of 31848 in Paris. .Asked why he had mot taken such and such a course, he replied that to do that would .have been to destroy the monarchy. But the monarchy had been destroyed _anyhow. In much the same way people_ are accustomed to talk in this country. of the importance of avoiding terrible risks in Ireland which, as a matter of fact, beset us already and have long done so.
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