eparate force of cruisers charged with the duty of patrolling the sea
routes which converge upon Ireland, and of watching the harbours of her
coasts. As matters stand at present, such a force does not exist.

It may, of course, be urged that a strategical plan designed for the
double purpose of surveying the movements of a hostile battle-fleet and
of guarding the trade-routes, must of necessity cover the coasts of
Ireland, on the principle that the greater includes the less. The
argument, however, omits the essential qualification that a part of the
Irish population cannot be trusted. It is this additional difficulty
which has been introduced into the problem of naval defence by the
revival by politicians of the agitation of 1798, under another name.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 67: The writer's italics.]

[Footnote 68: According to _The Daily Telegraph_ of January 22, 1912.]

XI

THE MILITARY DISADVANTAGES OF HOME RULE

BY THE EARL PERCY

The problems of Imperial defence have become of late years extremely
complex, owing to the rise of a great European naval power, and also to
the predominance of Japan in the Pacific. These two factors, combined
with the invention of the Dreadnought type of ship which is now being
built by other powers whose navies we could formerly afford to ignore,
have rendered our position in the world more precarious, more dependent
upon foreign alliances and _ententes_, and have rendered combination for
defence far more essential. No Home Rule scheme can be judged without
taking into consideration what its effect will be on this situation. It
is proposed to consider it first in the light of the more pressing
European danger, and next to examine how it will affect the wider
problem of the future, namely, the co-operation of all parts of the
British Empire for defence.

But first it is of course necessary to find out what Home Rule means,
and what the internal state of Ireland will be if it passes. On this
point there is at present no certainty. We can dismiss at once Mr.
Redmond's picture of a serenely contented and grateful Ireland, only
desirous of helping her benefactor, and, under a strong and
incorruptible government, engaged in setting its house in order. The
presence of a strong Protestant community, the history of the Roman
Catholic Church in all countries, and the deliberate fostering of
separatist national ideals preclude the possibility of anything but a
prolonged period of