An interesting letter to Thursday's Times from " Scrutator "
shows in a very striking manner what the will-o'-the-wisps are which are misleading the Irish people to desire Home-rule. " Scrutator " directed his agent to find out so far as he could what the tempting features of Home-rule were in the eyes of the Irish labourers, and the following was one of the conversations which resulted from the investigation. " A " stands for agent, and " L " for labourer :—" A : What do you object to under the present system ? L : Isn't it a terrible thing to see all the fine bullocks going over to England to feed the English soldiers P—A : Then if, you had Home-rule, I suppose you would keep them all in Ireland for your own consumption P L: Troth we would ; and when we get Home-rule, there'll be public works started and factories for making Irish frieze.— A: And I suppose you won't let the frieze go out of the country either to clothe the English ? L : Indeed we won't.— A : Who is going to pay for these public works and so forth L. You, of course, and the likes of you." The next con- versation was held by a Protestant tenant-farmer (X) with either a small tenant-farmer or a labourer (L), " Scrutator " had forgotten which of the two :—" X : What do you expect to gain by Home-rule ? L Oh, won't all the big farms be divided up into small five-acre lots P—X : Perhaps so, but one man will be a drunkard and another man will be thrifty, and in a few years the thrifty man will buy up the lots from the drunkards, and so in a short time you will have large farms again, and what will you do then ? L Oh, thunder and turf I Can't we divide them up again P" Such are the wild and ignorant dreams which have really led the greater number of the Irish voters to suppose that Home-rule will usher them straight into a land flowing with milk and honey.
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