ICELAND'S DAY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 133, 29 October 1914, Page 6

ICELAND'S DAY.

[ SCKKE IX THL HOUSE OF LORDS. (By f.' P. O'Connor), London, September 10. | Ireland's day, a-, Friday, September 18, id already ea led in Englh.ii journals, was marked liy scenes more impres- ' sive bi'i'ause spontaneous, Prorogation is usually the dullest day of the whole session, with every member nlnady on lite way to. his lmuie and only the olliciala left. JJut this prorogation was u.\i citing and historic. .Mrs. Redmond and. the wiVcs ot' other Irish members filled all the suits on tho I benches in the House of Lords where : Unionist persons usually gather, and | Irish and Libirals broke all rules of the House of Lords by vigorous cheers I when the Royal assent signified the passage of the Irish Bill. William Crooks,. Labor member, ft pcpu'ar figure in the House of Commons, and an old and warm friend of Ireland, took the proceedings entirely under his own control and led the singing of "God save the King," heartily joined by the Irish members, lie then called for "God Save Ireland!" Redmond, replying, shouted, "God Save England!" and thus the century-old feud between England and Ireland closed for ever. TORIES GLAD STRUGGLE IS OVER.

■ Though the Tories made a perfunctory protest against the passage of the Bill, they aluo are delighted that the struggle is oyer. They are glad they Have won Ireland'*, heart at last by freedom, and are now assured of Ireland's cordial alliance in the present crisis. If should he added that Mr. Aaquith | and Lord Chancellor llaldane laid great «tress on the necessity of considering { the opinion of Irishmen in America as »n argument in passing the Bill. So Irish America in this, as in «thtr epochs of Irish .struggle, turned the scale in Ireland's favor. There is now open and cordial co-oper-ation of Nationalists with other British parties in helping to carry the war to a successful end. Ireland was vehemently in favor of the Allies from Hie first moment, through its old love of France and ( ! Belgium, and their instinctive hatred of j Prussian militarism. Ihe outrages of Be'gium and Louvain inflamed this feelf ing. Though the misgiving, owing to

the last few weeks' delay, enabled a small body of cranks in Ireland to preach pro-German policy, these represented an infinitesimal minority, and their campaign ends with the passage of the Bill-. Kedmond and Dillon will be with Mr. Asquith at the great recruiting meeting in Dublin. 1 will" speak with Winston Churchill and P. ]•;. Smith in Liverpool on Monday on the invitation of all parties in the city; IRISH REGIMENTS IAUB FORMING. Tho Redmond manifesto, demanding the formation of Irish into Irish regiments, wifl be respected ay the Englush War Office, and already Irish regiments aru forming in several Kaglish cities. An even mors important development will be the arming and drilling of Irish volunteer* by the War Office" so that when the war is over Ireland will have an arnry of 100,000 traiu/d men to defend hef liberties.

It is impossible yet to say what development:* may come from this extraordinary unity of all countries and creed* created by the war. It is possible that the demand of exclusion by Lister will disappear. The alleged attempts to cfiptuve American opinion in favor of intervention made iby Germany were fully recorded in the cables here, but such intervention is more likely to do barm than good at this moment of universal British -feeling. The recent renewal of the pledge of common action in making peace m in war between the Allies extliides the possibility of separate aotlon. LOOKS FOE ANOTHER YEAR*OF WAR. According to present appearances the war must last another year, and peace is only possible ill Berlin with Germany thoroughly beaten. It is obviously impossible fon tie Allies t» be content witk less terms thai the liberation of AlsaceLorraine and the freedom of the Pales and Kilwlst, and ike anrrendor ol at least a partion ef tho Orman fleet. A powerful and proud country like «erniany cannot yield to sack terms until eahaustad. Military «peratians, -while showing a turn ef. tkt tide is favor af taa Allies, still do mot promise an early result, •erntany has still a big army in France intact, and il driven back inta her own borders ean defend herself for months, the only possikility ef driving lier to surrender is the continuation ai the triumphant starohl of Russia to Berlin, which again must take snany months and overcome a tremendeusand •Bstinate resistance. '., , „_ ,