Page:Irish Emigration and The Tenure of Land in Ireland.djvu/231

Rh Therefore, while I heartily admit that a heavy obligation rests upon the landlord to exercise such extreme rights with great moderation, and with a charity far in excess of his legal responsibilities, in the face of the foregoing considerations, I cannot believe it would be either just or wise to curtail them.

In fact, the transition which is affecting the agricultural world of Ireland resembles the revolution which overturned the manufacturing system of England on the introduction of the power-loom. In each case an improvement of method threw a large proportion of the population of either country out of their accustomed groove, and great suffering and discontent ensued; but, for Parliament or public opinion to compel the agricultural interest of Ireland to maintain an unprofitable or exploded system of husbandry, for the purpose of preventing emigration, would be as unreasonable as an edict to preclude the mill-owner of Manchester from adopting such mechanical improvements as economize manual labour, or from working half-time during a cotton famine.

That a moral duty rests on the promoters of every industry, whether commercial or agricultural, to mitigate the distress incident to those periods of transition which periodically disturb all branches of employment cannot be too strongly insisted upon; but there can be no such essential difference in the relations between a landlord and his tenants, and