You had better give up thinking
about its special honesty." And yet Mr. Monk would on an occasion
preach to him such a sermon as that which he had just uttered!
Perhaps there is no question more difficult to a man's mind than that
of the expediency or inexpediency of scruples in political life.
Whether would a candidate for office be more liable to rejection from
a leader because he was known to be scrupulous, or because he was
known to be the reverse?
"But putting aside the fourth commandment and all the theories, you
will come to Ireland?" said Phineas.
"I shall be delighted."
"I don't live in a castle, you know."
"I thought everybody did live in a castle in Ireland," said Mr. Monk.
"They seemed to do when I was there twenty years ago. But for myself,
I prefer a cottage."
This trip to Ireland had been proposed in consequence of certain
ideas respecting tenant-right which Mr. Monk was beginning to adopt,
and as to which the minds of politicians were becoming moved. It
had been all very well to put down Fenianism, and Ribandmen, and
Repeal,--and everything that had been put down in Ireland in the way
of rebellion for the last seventy-five years. England and Ireland
had been apparently joined together by laws of nature so fixed,
that even politicians liberal as was Mr.
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