dy who dared
to attend a Unionist meeting. So _that_ process is altogether out of
the question. Isolated Roman Catholic Unionists like myself need to be
in a very strong and independent position before they dare to express
their views. Roman Catholics of position are nearly all Unionists at
heart, but comparatively few of them dare avow their real convictions.
To do so is to couple yourself with the obnoxious land question. The
people, as a whole, detest landlords and England, and they think that
an opponent of Home Rule is necessarily a sympathiser with British
rule and landlordism, and therefore a foe to his country and a traitor
to his countrymen. Few men have the moral courage to face this
indictment. That is why the educated Catholic party, as a whole, hang
back. And then, they dislike to put themselves in direct opposition to
their clergy. Englishmen do not care one jot what the parson thinks of
their political opinions, but in Ireland things are very different. I
am against Home Rule because I am sure it would be bad for Ireland.
The prosperity of the country is of some importance to me, and for my
own sake and apart from sentimental considerations, and for the credit
of Ireland, I am against Home Rule. We should be poorer than ever. I
would not trust the present Irish party to manage anything that
required management. They have not the training, nor the business
capacity, nor sufficient consistency to work together for a single
week. They cannot agree even at this critical moment, when by their
own showing, the greatest harmony of action is required in the
interests of Ireland. I say nothing about their honesty, for the most
scrupulously honest men could not succeed without business ability and
united action. They are a set of talkers, good for quibbling and
squabbling and nothing more.

"They are M.P.'s because they can talk. Paddy loves a glib talker, and
a fellow with a good jaw on him would always beat the best business
man, even if Paddy were allowed his own choice. Of course he has no
choice--he votes as the priest tells him; but then the selected men
were all good rattling talkers, not in the House, perhaps, but in
their own country district in Ireland. Paddy thinks talking means
ability, and when a fellow rattles off plenty of crack-jaw words and
red-hot abuse of England, Paddy believes him able to regenerate the
world. These men are not allowed to speak in the House. They only
vote. But let me tell you