1903] Emperor William Described 55 



franchize Ireland and perhaps govern her as a Crown Colony. He did 

 not think there was any fear of this, hut I still think there is a remote 

 danger. 



" We also discussed Somaliland, on which Dillon also spoke a day or 

 two ago in the House. Dillon has more statesmanship, I think, than 

 any of them, having a wider experience and a better knowledge of 

 history. His cynical view of the English parliament is fully justified. 

 All the same, I think he is wrong about the Land Bill, as I believe 

 it will prove a great step to Home Rule. But I agree with him that, 

 whether or not it passes, the next Government that comes into power 

 must do the Irish bidding. O'Brien is to speak to-day. 



" 6th May. — The debate is going capitally. O'Brien spoke with 

 moderation and on the lines I pressed on him, especially as to the 

 finality of the Bill as a land settlement. He was followed by Grey, 

 who to our surprise has supported the Bill warmly. On Monday 

 Arthur Balfour made an admirable speech in support of it, and Grey's 

 was on the same lines. The Tory opposition has cooled down. I 

 look upon the second reading as assured. George will, I think, be 

 obliged to agree to the Irish demands on most of the amendments in 

 Committee, and barring accidents, the thing is safe. Chamberlain seems 

 to have made up his mind to a glum silence. He had his own Transvaal 

 fish to fry to-day. 



" 10th May. — George's Bill has passed the second reading tri- 

 umphantly by 417 to 26. I believe the biggest vote on record. 



" 14th May. — Chapel Street. Margaret Sackville came to lunch 

 with me and talk over her plan of an Irish magazine to be called ' The 

 Celt ' she is trying to start. I have given her some verses for it, 

 and have promised some prose. 



" 16th May. — To the Academy, where the most remarkable thing is 

 Sargent's portrait of Cromer. Sargent has a genius for seeing and 

 reproducing the base passions of his sitters ; and here is Cromer with 

 bloated cheeks, dull eyes, ruby nose, and gouty hands, half torpid, 

 having lunched heavily. Truly my quarrel with him is avenged. The 

 newspapers complain that, instead of our '".glorious Pro-Consul,' 

 Sargent has given them nothing but a full-fed obstinate Indian 

 official. 



" Found Lady Z. at home. She has enjoyed her German visits 

 and a lunch with the Emperor William. She found him an enormous 

 talker without being exactly a good talker. He talks about everything, 

 sometimes well, sometimes stupidly in a random, ill-balanced way. She 

 says the Germans — I suppose she means the German officials and aris- 

 tocracy — laugh at him for his wild utterances and constant mistakes ; 

 but he gives them no time to complain, passing with extraordinary 

 energy from one thing to another, so that his blunders are forgotten ; 



