AN UNINVITED OPINION.

When the national House of Representatives adopted its resolution on the right of self-determination for Ireland diplomatic discretion was apparently absent from that part of the Capitol. Without at all considering the merits of the English-Irish controversy, it is difficult to understand how the House felt itself called upon to express an official opinion, uninvited, upon the affairs of another nation. The danger to the friendly relations now existing between England and the United States which accompanies such action by the representatives is realized if we point the resolution in the other direction, and consider what a storm of indignation would arise in America if Parliament took such action with regard to the Philippines, with or without provocation.

Geography has decreed that England must be vitally interested in the destiny of Ireland. Had Germany's efforts succeeded when she attempted to secure Ireland as a base of operations, the final outcome of the war might have been disastrous to civilization. Thus, in settling the problem of self-determination, Parliament must act with consideration both for the Irish people and for the future safety of England. At best it is a difficult solution if both sides are to be satisfied, and in view of the vital questions involved, it would probably be better for the House of Representatives to confine its attention to the problems which await solution in America.