Hrrifv of Rerietrit, SOji/OO. 



Topics of the Month. 



373 



■f Mill, the disciple of Edmund Burke, and he can 

 understand the significance of the national move- 

 ment in Bengal." 



" ' Bengal a nation,' then is that your cry ?" 



" ' Bengal a nationality one and indivisible,' that 

 is our watchword. There is a noble aspiration which 

 is very grand in its way, which touches one to the 

 depth of one's being, in the present struggle of the 

 Bengalee people for the realisation of their national 

 ideal. They are by nature gentlemen, these latter- 

 day Western-touched men, so imaggressive by na- 

 ture, yet roused by the present injustice into a pas- 

 sion of revolt against a system in which such things 

 '■an be. Revolt not of arms, for they are peaceful ; 

 but of sentiment, which leads them to appeal to Mr. 

 Morley for redress." 



" But are things really so bad?" 



" They are much worse than you imagine. What 

 would you think of sixty-four men arrested on mere 

 suspicion of disaffection without a single shred of 

 evidence producible against them? It is like Mr. 

 Forster in the old Land League days. A very culti- 

 v.Tted Bengalee wrote to me the other day : ' I fear 

 there has been an unmistakable deterioration in the 

 juality of our rulers.' This witness is but too true. 

 .■\nd at the same time the .Anglo-Indian is deteriora- 

 ting, the Bengalee is rising steadily in political 



sanity. The cultivated middle-class is growing yeax 

 by year in intelligence and political aptitude. A iiew 

 India is being born in our midst, and that new India 

 has been outraged by the partition of Bengal." 



" What was the idea of cleaving the nation in 

 twain ?" 



" They say that they did it to give the Mussul- 

 mans a chance I Imagine the vivisection of a na- 

 tionality in order artificially to foster a creed which 

 you do not believe, which did not ask for your in- 

 ter^ention, and which was getting on far better with 

 the Hindoos than our Orangemen get on with tke 

 Nationalists." 



" But is not the native objection metaphysical and 

 sentimental ?" 



" What is stronger than the sentiment of nation- 

 ality to the Eastern metaphysics is their breath of 

 life. If Mr. Morley were here now face to face 

 with the people as he userl to be in Ireland we 

 should not have a moment's fear but that he would 

 undo Lord Curzon's mischievous handiwork. But 

 Ix)ndon is a long way off. The voice of the Anglo- 

 Indian is never still, and as for our poor Bengalees, 

 they are far away. But, for the sake of the peace 

 and prosperity of British India, we hope and pray 

 that Mr. Morley may act as a just man and an up- 

 right, and spare us this wanton outrage on the na- 

 tives of BengaJ." 



LXXVII. THE IRISH PARTY: MR. JOHN REDMOND, M.P. 



"Great times these," I said to Mr. Redmond, as 

 I met the redoubtable Irish leader for the first time 

 since the General Election in the inner lobby of the 

 House of Conmions. 



" Yes," said Mr. Redmond, " I think we may 

 fairly say sa There is no lack of good will, but 

 whether it will work out as well as it is intended re- 

 mains to be seen." 



"Then I take it that you are moody — expectant 

 rather than confident ?" 



" Of course ] look at the thing from an Irish 

 standpoint. And as an Irishm.in. and as the leader 

 of the Irish Party, I could not do otherwise." 



" Of course not. No one expects you to do any- 

 thing else. Nor do we expect you to abate by one 

 jot or iota your demand for Home Rule. But do 

 you acquiesce in the refusal of the Go\ernment to 

 bring in a Home Rule Bill ?" 



" Acquiesce, of course not. We protest, as we 

 have always protested, against the postponement 

 for a single unnecessary day of the establishment of 

 an Irish legislature and an Irish executive respon- 

 sible to that legislature. We have filed that pro- 

 test with unfaltering consistency whenever we have 

 had an opportunity. Whether a Liberal or a L^nion- 

 ist Ministry lie in office, or otherwise, it must be un- 

 changeably the same." 



" I quite understand. No other attitude would be 



cither logical or consistent. But I suppose that un- 

 compromising attitude is consistent with the accept- 

 ance of any measures of reform that abate the grie- 

 vances or improve the Government of Ireland ? ' 



" If a man owes you a so\ereign and offers you 

 five shillings ' on account,' you may accept it, if 

 only as an instalment of his debt, and you give him 

 a receipt ' on account.' But if he only offers you a 

 farthing — that is another matter." 



"And are the measures promised in the King's 

 Speech five shillings or a farthing?" 



" That is what I don't know. And until I do 

 know, I cannot possibly say what will be the atti- 

 tude of our party towards them." 



" But so far as you see at present ?" 



" So far as I can see at present, I think the Go- 

 vernment, collectively and individually, means well. 

 Whether they will collectively do well — ujion that I 

 have an open mind." 



" If I might define your position, it is one of 

 standing vigilantly on the qui vive, prepared to wel- 

 come any friendly overture, but none the less ready 

 to resent or avenge failure to recognise the justice 

 of Ireland's claims." 



" The price of liberty is eternal vigilance," said 

 Mr. Redmond. " We have every disposition to en- 

 courage the new Ministry to go as fast and as far 

 as they can be induced to go. But I hope they will 



