and for Irish rights; but the Irish Party was
determined that until rumours had crystallised into realities they
were going to relax none of their extra-constitutional pressure upon
the Government. It was, for instance, resolved to begin the Autumn
Session with a resounding protest against Coercion and to carry on the
conflict in the country more determinedly than ever.

The just and reasonable demand for a day to debate the administration
was unaccountably avoided by the Government, whose reply was that a
day would be granted if the demand came from the official Liberal
Opposition. The Nationalists could not submit to this degradation of
their independent position in Parliament, and when they attempted to
secure their end by a motion for the adjournment of the House they
found that two Irish Unionists had "blocked" them by placing on the
Order Paper certain omnibus resolutions on the state of Ireland. Since
the days of Parnellite obstruction such scenes were not witnessed as
those that followed. The Party defied all rules of law and order,
worried the Government by all sort of lawless interruptions and
irrelevant questions, flagrantly flouted the authority of the chair
and, finally, after a week of Parliamentary anarchy, it was determined
that even more extreme courses would be adopted unless the
constitutional right of Ireland to be heard in the Chamber was
conceded. Hint of this was conveyed to Mr Speaker Gully, who,
regardful of the honour of the House, used his good offices with the
Government to such effect that the blocking motions were incontinently
withdrawn and the discussion in due course took place.

Whilst these developments were taking place Mr O'Brien had taken every
possible precaution to guard himself against any charge of autocracy
in the direction of the movement, whether in Parliament or in the
country. At the request of his colleagues on the Land Conference he
had drafted a Memorandum containing the basis of settlement which
would be acceptable to Nationalist opinion. This was submitted to
Messrs Redmond, Davitt and Sexton, with an urgent entreaty for their
freest criticism or any supplementary suggestions of their own. None
of these could, therefore, complain that Mr O'Brien was attempting to
do anything over their heads. And impartial judgment will declare that
if either Mr Sexton, Mr Dillon or Mr Davitt had views of their own, or
had any vital disagreements with Mr O'Brien's suggestions, now was