The whole thing would be laughable if it were not so very sad.  Even such matters as sports and education, where all creeds and parties might be expected to work together amicably, must be used as instruments to bring about separation; and the result already is not so much to widen the gulf between Ireland and England as the gulf between the two parties in Ireland; for the Protestant minority in the south, who know that most of their children will have to leave the country, are not likely to let them fritter away their youth in the study of a language which can be of no possible benefit to them in any part of the world to which they may go; and the idea that the Ulstermen will ever adopt a Celtic tongue is too ridiculous to be considered.  But perhaps the most painful thought of all is that the Nationalists should be ready even to sacrifice the prospects in life of the rising generation of the country in order to satisfy their blind hatred of England.

CHAPTER XIII.

IRELAND UNDER THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT.

I come now to the policy which has been pursued by the present Government since 1906.  It must be remembered that the Radical party returned to power pledged to Home Rule as a principle, but with a sufficient majority to enable them to retain office without depending on the Irish vote.  Hence there was no necessity for them to introduce a Home Rule Bill; but of course they set aside the policy of the Unionist Government, and resolved to govern Ireland according to their own ideas.  What those ideas were, and what the result has been, I shall now proceed to show; but in doing so I shall as far as possible confine myself to quotations and statistics which can be verified, so that I may not be accused of giving an unfair report.

The Chief Secretary for the first year was Mr. Bryce, who was afterwards appointed British Ambassador at Washington.  The Government at once repealed the Act which forbade the carrying of arms without a licence; withdrew all proclamations under the Crimes Act of 1887; and resolved not to stop any political meetings.  Accordingly the Nationalists commenced holding a series of demonstrations all over the country.  A few specimens taken from the speeches made at them will suffice to show their general tenour.

    “Let them all be ready, and when England got into trouble with
    European Powers, they would pounce upon her with the ferocity
    of a tiger.”—­T.  Walsh, District Councillor.

    “They must stand together as one man, and make it impossible
    for England to govern Ireland.”—­P.  White, M.P.

“If there had been 100,000 Fenians in Ireland at the time of the Boer War there might now have been a Republic in Ireland, and British supremacy would have been tumbled in the dust.”—­J.  Daly, formerly Mayor of Limerick.

And Mr. Bryce, when leaving Ireland at the end of the year, stated that he had not found any harm in any of the speeches delivered at the meetings.