Of the Liberal Conference, Lord Hartington spoke respect- fully, but
not hopefully. It was his own duty, he said, not to go into negotiations of that kind at all, but to retain his liberty, and watch the situation on behalf of the nation. He did not augur hopefully of the examination of the Canadian or any other elaborate scheme of self-government. He himself was not at all indisposed to give both Ireland, and large sections of Great Britain, a liberal municipal constitution for the purpose of relieving Parliament of local business, for which, as a central Assembly, it was by no means fit; but if it was proposed to create a subor- dinate Assembly with the view of satisfying national aspirations of any kind, then he thought a most dangerous confusion would arise, and the scheme would fail. The great question atthe present moment, however, is how to put down anarchy in Ireland, and to enforce the law resolutely. He entirely approved of all the Government had done, both in the way of trying to make the Irish landlords reasonable, and in the way of punishing those who were inciting to lawlessness. The agitators must be punished, and as for the misery of the evicted tenants, for that an economical remedy, migration or emigration, was the only resource.
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