TRAGEDY OF PARNELL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 118, 5 October 1912, Page 7

TRAGEDY OF PARNELL.

RECALLED BY T. P. COU-N-NOK. "Parnell -was then tall and lithe, exceptionally handsome, with a pallid, delicate and intellectual countenance, of American rather than English type." Tkii is the Parnell of 1875 then new to the. House of Commons, as pictured by Lord Eversley in "Gladstone and Ireland." In an illuminative review of these times, Mr. T. P. O'Connor says: "Parnell was not naturally an industrious man—at least in his later years; but at this period of his life he worked twelve or fourteen hours a day, and he literally lived in the House of Commons. With a sufficient but a small income he was content with poor lodgings in Iveppel street, Russell square. It was perhaps these years of loneliness, apart from all society, male and female, and the frightful reaction that comes to overworked politicians, that paved the way for the disastrous passion in which his career went down. . . . Parnell's mind moved somewhat slowly; his strength was that after lie had reached a decision nothing could ever shake it. He was in that respect the most inflexible man I have ever met. That was one of the secrets of his extraordinary influence over men. Pleasant, unpretentious, companionable, easy-going—for Parnell was never tlie half-sufficient, arrogant and rude chief which newspaper legends have described him—Parnell suddenly, and without warning, would reveal the other side of his character;, something t would be proposed which he did not approve; he would listen, silent and 'mysterious; he was Always most dangerous when he remained silent; and then when- everybody else had spoken he- would suddenly show that the foundations of his character were laid on granite; everyone became conscious that he had to strike his - head vainly against a wall of granite, and there was 110 more to be said.

"And yet it is one of the strange ironies of human character that this very inflexibility which was the source of Parnell's strength and of his enor-' mous-success was also the chief cause of his'downfall. If, when the ghastly secret of- his life was unbared to the vfhole public, he could have taken the advice of so many of those who admired him most; if he had made even a pretence of bending before the storm, he 'might; ; li£tve been .saved; but Parnell could not bend : he preferred to break, and he did break. Parnells' Conservatism fought with Davitt's Radicalism on the landi,'question. Davitt was in favor of a policy riot of patching up the system of landlordism, but of pulling it down altogether. Parnell, after long hesitation, accepted the policy of Davitt and started the formidable iand agitation, 1 which has been one of the most 1 -startling phenomena of our time. Parnell had' td -pass through fire and water, and he never reached final ■ success; but long; after his death a great Conservative Minister, Mr. George Wyndham, ac--cepted Parnell's policy, and 'to-day more thaln half .the -land--of Ireland has been ' transferred from the' landlord to the tenants—very much to the benefit of both Ireland atid 'of England. ' '4 to that dramatic epoch in JPaJndttViifßJ" xvhifea fee'"was* imprisoned iii Ki'lnlamliam. ; And here there enters on the scene the strange and sinister •figure who played so large a part in 'Parnell's-life 1 , and -was ultimately destin■ed td''be ftis-ru-iliX It is curious without knowledgej_£r£."_wftat followed to read of Captain O'Shea being the confidential agent between "Parnell and Mr. Chamberlain during "this imprisonment. The name of Capta® O'Shea figures on every page almost of this part of Lord Evers- • toy's'(narrative;." He is running in and out of ParneU's-cell'; he is now with, the •im;pi:lsotied : '.lrish 'leader and the next moment .ip; the- drawing-room of some gVi'ftt fe'a bin? t--Minister; lie figures as the confidant and the friend of Parnell; the deposLt.ofji.fll.iiis .most secret political purposes; his advocate; his plenipotentiary., .Ami his efforts undoubtedly wlicfr'-eWaAWd to induce! th£ Ministry of Mr. Gladstone to adopt legislation" wliich appeased the then terrible incidentally, enabled him also to. xcl e:lsc Parnell from ~K.ilinAi;thaniK- ■ -How can one explain the of' at this fate-l-jull mfioiqni^viniiKafnoil's life? There is iq<J«dotd)t-,t%t jthft fatal passion which ■ l w,i;enkff!j;-taji l -neii; ijnd, -the women he so . jfan'tically loved had already taken possSfssioK.qf typ-th. tJjeir Could O'Shea • atone - 'have been, ignorant of a thing so palp.aWef? ■! 4P n 'f know; I- suppose nobody,,will ever-know. .It is certain that .O'Shea-in. t'he.ijnd became Parnell's most relentless enemy.. I remember still how my. blopd,rfm c<)l|d as,l heard the saying X>£; Cftptliin O'hShea, uttered years aftsr Parnell-was-dead::.'l killed-him inch by jlfl)!' 1 -' ..