As far as we can read the signs, the situation
is this. The Government to live must get the Budget through and unaltered. But there is a clear majority in the House of Commons against the Budget if the Nationalists vote upon their personal convictions, and, what is more, according to the very loudly expressed wishes of their constituents and of Ireland as a whole. The only ground upon which the Nationalists will be allowed by Irish public opinion to vote for the Budget is a public and unconditional pledge by the Government that a Home-rule Bill of a very far-reaching kind shall be introduced at once, and assurances given that it will be pressed on to an issue,—these assurances to include the immediate deprivation of the House of Lords of its power of veto, not only over finance, but over ordinary legislation. The Irish know very well that if Home-rule is promised to them only after the enormous amount of negotiation and discussion which must result from a far-reaching scheme for the reconstruction of a Second Chamber, Home-rule will be indefinitely postponed. They can, in fact, only support the Government if they can be assured that " Home-rule " and not " A Reformed Second Chamber " is to hold the political stage.
