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Show BALFOUR ELOQUENTLY ADMITSHIS FAILURE Former Leader of Unionists Sees That No Human Effort Can Stay Home Rule. LONDON, May 23. The speech of Arthur Balfour in the recent debates in the house of commons on home rule, wherein the former leader of tho unionist party admitted the failure of his life-long efforts toward maintenance mainte-nance of the union, was one of the most eloquent in the recent history of parliament. parlia-ment. Jt had its parallel more than one hundred years ago when Grattan. in his maiden speech in the imperial house of commons, ou May 13, 1813, referred to the Irish parliament, whose legislative independence had been acnievod by his exertions, and whoso destruction he deplored. "Of that assembly," Grattan declared, de-clared, "1 have a parental recollection; recollec-tion; 1 sat by her cradle, 1 followed her hearse. ' ' Mr. Balfour is much in the same position. po-sition. He is one of the last to admit that home rule, in some form or other, is now inevitable. He has steadily i fought against a Dublin parliament, : hoping that, time would bring about a reconciliation between the people of the two islands and old quarrels would be f orgotton. He is still bitterly opposed op-posed to home rule, and yet is willing to make great sacrifices to avoid civil war. After a severe attack on what tlie unionists term "the plot against "Lister" and particularly against Winston Wins-ton Churchill, the first lord of the admiralty, ad-miralty, whom he referred to as an "agent provocateur," Mr. Balfour said: There was a time, not so very long ago, as my life is measured, when F cherished the dream that if law was restored in the southern province of Ireland, if every grievance griev-ance was removed, if every inequality ine-quality was smoothed away, if every encouragement was given to the "legitimate industry, if every equality and more than equality were given to our Irish fellow subjects, sub-jects, ancient memories would gradually soften, men would look forward' as well as backward, and i there would grow up what there ought to be between thepe two islands a common hope, a common lovalty, confidence in a common heritage and that all this might be accomplished under one parliament. parlia-ment. For that I have striven; for that I have argued in this house and out of it; for that 1 have worked-weary hours at legislative projects and striven to accommodate legislative ; details to the needs and necessities j of the moment. And. sir. if the tpfuU ot ad this is that, in order that civil war mav be avoided, with all its incalculable horrors, thre is yet to be established in Dublin a separate parliament to the injury, 1 as I personally think, of the. Irish people and not less, perhaps, to the British people then. sir. mav be an object of pity to the right honorable gentleman ; but he lu-ed not think 1 shall regard Mich h consummation as a triumph over my political enemies. On the con t ra ry . it is t.b e in u r k of the failure of a life's work, it is the admission that the crudes for which 1 have most driven and most earnestly sou to aero in plish are fated to br-ak down, and that, the long la bors spent in this house and out of it have not bornp I the fruit that I once hoped they might. |