THE IRISH QUESTION.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIX, Issue 25, 21 May 1914, Page 4

THE IRISH QUESTION.

A day or so ago the cablegrams stated that the Nationalists in Ireland had resolved on a volunteer movement, and that large consignments of arms for this side had been landed •at various points on the west coast. When speaking on the second reading of the Home Rule Bill in the House of Commons at the end of March, Mr Winston Churchill somewhat anticipated this, for he then said:—"Suppose Mr John Redmond were to raise an army of 200,000 men, as I daresay he conld, by holding up his hand, and suppose he were supported by subscriptions from this country, and suppose there were lying about, an there are in the South of Ireland, large depots filled with ammunition, and weakly garrisoned; and suppose I it were likely that 'the-hon. member would make a 'forward movement' on the works of Sir E. Carson against these depots, would it not be right and proper to reinforce them? I have seen a great many cartoons in the newspapers representing the British soldier saying to the Irish Nationalists 'Do you think I am going to fight for you?' What is the Nationalist entitled to say in reply It is a very simple one. 'Will ypu allow me to fight for myself?' The comment the Imperial Government T s bound to make on that is, 'No, you should not fight for yourself; you should be obliged to confine yourself to constitutional action. If you say that, is it not a debt of honor on our part to make sure that constitutional action is not frustrated by lawless violence?"