ome of this very injury
and mischief followed.

Lord Hartington no sooner saw what was then called the Hawarden kite
flying in the sky, than he felt its full significance. He at once wrote to
Mr. Gladstone, partly in reply to the letter of the 17th already given,
and pointed with frankness to what would follow. No other subject would be
discussed until the meeting of parliament, and it would be discussed with
the knowledge, or what would pass for knowledge, that in Mr. Gladstone's
opinion the time for concession to Ireland had arrived, and that
concession was practicable. In replying to his former letter Mr. Gladstone
had invited personal communication, and Lord Hartington thought that he
might in a few days avail himself of it, though (December 18) he feared
that little advantage would follow. In spite of urgent arguments from wary
friends, Lord Hartington at once proceeded to write to his chairman in
Lancashire (December 20), informing the public that no proposals of
liberal policy on the Irish demand had been communicated to him; for his
own part he stood to what (M101) he said, at the election. This letter was
the first bugle note of an inevitable conflict between Mr. Gladstone and
those who by and by became the whig dissentients.

To Lord Hartington resistance to any new Irish policy came easily, alike
by temperament and conviction. Mr. Chamberlain was in a more embarrassing
position; and his first speech after the election showed it. "We are face
to face," he said, "with a very remarkable demonstration by the Irish
people. They have shown that as far as regards the great majority of them,
they are earnestly in favour of a change in the administration of their
government, and of some system which would give them a larger control of
their domestic affairs. Well, we ourselves by our public declarations and
by our liberal principles are pledged to acknowledge the justice of this
claim." What was the important point at the moment, Mr. Chamberlain
declared that in his judgment the time had hardly arrived when the liberal
party could interfere safely or with advantage to settle this great
question. "Mr. Parnell has appealed to the tories. Let him settle accounts
with his new friends. Let him test their sincerity and goodwill; and if he
finds that he has been deceived, he will approach the liberal party in a
spirit of reason and conciliation."(170)

Translated into the language of parliamentary action, this meant that th