288 Winston's Plan for Ireland [ l 9 10 



the situation. Nothing has yet been settled about the policy, which 

 depends on two unknown factors, Redmond and the King. The Na- 

 tionalist alliance with the Liberals is anything but popular in Ireland, 

 and O'Brien's success in getting ten of his men returned may force 

 Redmond's hand. ' Of course,' said Winston, ' if they (the National- 

 ists) go, we're done for'; but he does not really fear this. The King 

 is the true master of the situation as far as the quarrel with the Lords 

 goes, and they dare not try to force his hand. ' It would never do,' 

 he said, ' to bring the King into the dispute.' What Winston anticipates 

 is a new dissolution, when he thinks they would gain thirty more seats. 

 As to his own position in the Cabinet also nothing is settled. There 

 is to be a ' general post,' but nobody knows who is to get what. He 

 would like the Home Office. He would not take Ireland, unless it 

 were to grant Home Rule. I questioned him as to his understanding 

 to the Home Rule to be given, and he said it would be complete Parlia- 

 mentary Government of all Irish affairs in Dublin, including finance 

 police, and everything, but not the power of levying Custom duties 

 against England, or altering the land settlement, and, of course, none 

 of levying troops or of treating with foreign Powers. He would have 

 the Irish members still sit at Westminister, but in diminished numbers. 

 He quite admitted the alliance between the Irish and the Liberals was 

 unnatural, and that their natural alliance would be with the Tories. 

 As to Somaliland, he told me that he had managed to get the policy of 

 returning to the sea coast adopted, but the devil of it was that the 

 Mullah would not be quiet. As soon as the outposts were evacuated 

 he came down on the friendly tribes and slaughtered them. The Gov- 

 ernment had sent a man to propose a money settlement in favour of the 

 tribes with the Mullah, but the Mullah had cut off the man's head. 

 This made an unpleasant situation. He was pleased when I told him 

 I should like to see him Prime Minister. ' I think,' he said, ' you may 

 see me yet carry out your ideas' (meaning my anti-Imperial ideas). 

 He and Clementine are to come to Newbuildings to hear the nightin- 

 gales. They are on just the same honeymoon terms as ever. 



" On my way home I looked in on Frank Lascelles, who gave me a 

 deal of interesting information about his relations with General Gordon 

 when they were both in Egypt. [But this, too, has been embodied in 

 my ' Gordon at Khartoum.'] 



" nth Feb. — Lunched at the Reform Club with Fisher Unwin, who 

 had invited Mackarness and Cotton to talk over Egypt and India, both 

 good men who have worked hard in the unpopular cause of liberty and 

 have failed at the elections. 



" 13th Feb. — John Redmond called on me, and we had a long hour's 

 talk about the situation in England and also in Ireland. I began by 

 giving him my view of the deadlock; the impossibility Asquith was in 



