The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-10-07 00:00:00

IRISH DISAFFECTION.

Under the above hvadinj "Au Irish Magistrate."
writes to The litres
am convinced that n great majority of the Irish people
&sire quiet :ind order heft e all things.
It is the fad, that never before was there emit prosperity
of all classes in Ireland. Farmers are especially thriving.
Shopkeepeis in every small trait are carrying on a trade such
as was undreamt of 29 years ago. The 'prods she ii to-day
in their shrip-Wi111141.1 IncludelMlsholli Of articles if comfort
tool even luxury, surrh as then it would have been thought
silly lii irk for. Artisans anti labourers arc getting wages
anknown bufore.
- • - •

No &mid Rls a natural c4msequenee that wlwn Jethurnn ,
waxes fat, he should kick, yet such kicking partakes more
of the nature lit capering than of vice. Any way, it is quite ,
diftennt ft the kicking caused by want and dire mismy.
Farther, there was never a time in the memory Of any one
!Ding when disaffection and discontent dhl IPA prevail
among large classes in Ireland. The further you gin back in
the present century the greater and more widespread was
such disaffection. Even 80 years t in IEC Irs Repeal
ingitath•n. the movement was oat et on nwasine greater than
It is now. Less than go years before that, there was positive
insurrection ia many parts. peaceful progress has
boot stolidity advaneit,g and bearieg OA sere trait, „ob. to„,,
rained learn that generatnms, not veers. are needed for a I
li''? 1,, to enorge !nail the state of af.j,,,t barbariam ill which
Ireland was sunk Is the 10th rentnry.
Lately we have had relliolligrn. It Wag really a reflex pro-
duct of AlllOlll,llll Si.nnind and polithal ideas It did not
deserve anything like the impottance that was given to it.
It never 1., indied the true Industrial daisies I,, Ireland, ex-
cept town artisa is awl sonic 44 the labourers. But lon sooner
hint It exhloded titan It was worked for their own ends by
It ish
It shoubl never lie overlooked that Irish politicians live
, by using every sort if disaffection and discontent that may
, exist in the eountry for their OWII purposes men though i
I they may nut have sympathized and may suit still sympathize
with the particolar disaffection itself. Home Rule has tow
been started. It is nothing lint Item al under whither name.
If it did not mean that, nobody would care for it. flit wile
not Repeal, it would he .04 a lagaeg 611111,1 illry With 11101 V .
power of jobbing f..r a few. But being what it is, Itepeal, ;
It absorb; Fenianisin and all I', tWin SyllllnOthirel 011 the one ,
side, tool the politicians who have capital to niake natal
agitation on the other.
Th,• strorgleild of Venianism was in the large towns. It
haul lei strength at all anywhere else, except la ottc to two
44 the very worst districts of the eminti y The bovit of
Limerick and much of the county (the K tight will
not have been forgot tett), with Dublin and Cork Towns, ware
the most infected places.
n.lie can have watched the late Limerick election with-
out seeing that sympathy with Fenlanism and nothing else,
was his true characteristic. The Attorney-General hail pro-
aerated the Fenian, Mr. Butt had defended them ; the
release of the Fetnian soldiers new undergoing their sen-
tences was a constant and main topic. Mr. Smith, the
Home Rule NI .P, tor Westmeath, had just played the same
card at l'bids nut. The Limerick Ito norm Catholic priests
were not allowed to take any part in the election. Many
if 11r. Butt's chief committeemen declared they wont!' not
art if any l'oitaan Catholic laicals were on the com-
mittee. This has from the flrst been a fowling principle of
Fenianism, not to sutler the Roman catholie dem", to
Interfere. It is finite well known to be the true feeling of
those who call themselves their leaders. It is thoroughly
American. and Is destined, directly or indirectly, to have a ,
larger result than anything else about Fenianism. It
in
110 tiOUlng true that if there had hem a contest the savage
violence 44 the Fenian partisans Wog such that Womb
shed would surely have occurred. Every threat of violence,
every word of Repeal, was loudly applauded. All else was
Wore&
I think it Is therefore quite clear what is the issue now be-
fore the country. It is simply Fenianism and Repeal. I
shall surely bt, asked, what are its prospects and what is the
danger from it? I ate convinced there is 1,0 Ingo-
Viti“i the law be firmly enforced. Without that, all other
remedies will be useless, or worse than useless.
I have already said the great majority of:e people desire
above all things peace and .IMet. Every there is less
&rim what view the Irish Protestants take of Home Rule.
They have no sympathy with Formulism or Repeal. The

has-lade drat how kreat bi the stnumth of the Pro-
tt,statits. It is certain that by next ytar, la;a. their num-
bers will be one to two and a half, and the two and a half
steadily diminish tuteh year by emigration. Snell a Winn ity,
indepetuient!y of its greater education, iiitelligeuee, wealth,
arid habits ~1 en. rze is conelnaive of such a autstion as
The majority, etc!, if of mie Mind, cannot put down
such a Minority an I dare not try. It is not half Mg enough
for the purp.e.

Ind the majority is irot all if one nor anythitez like it.
I am not street tho... nho think ill of Roman Catholics AS
311c11; LI,. 4of then. are fully to he relied npoli.
Th. vitro' i'- Ii uou,ls what awaits them at the hands of
!Mull 38 Mr. initt ant Lis friends in it Fenian or Repeal ,
.N..thillg Is tire astonishing to us here than
the way in whhir Mr. Ilvtr s eleiraet, and conduct wan to
ha ve I,eri for, t ten n En,land. Some Roman t'atholies nray no
dould toe intim aced ii. votirgat cr elcetiri and may flirt with
Rule for personal ends, just as is it,V Prot.,tants may
(10, lint a it y lar4e iii,portion itt tlerm will tint help it.
It to the f• i 3111.11 to sdy the Roman Catholic priests will
have to follow tit ir people int.. ills:Ill.:Um.. I troth-re
the priests have r ire! re 100 l ci hard a game to play.
The interests, or sapposed int.T.,ts, of the Itonian Canon,
Church have hitherto lieen hound up with their own per-
Plllllll power. This 1,(11, er has le.en very great :ind is prized
by them otiose every thing. tin titer,!!,, r 113.1, it is 1,11,111
that the Ft•fliatlil positively hate priestly interference of
any sort. Their leaders love power as ninth as the priests
.10. tool they are totem up by an Ins:di:lldd sorrily •.1* self
that never will submit to the ride if tire priests or any tine
elSe. If they ever had the upper hand there tVolll.l Ire an end
of the power of the priests, and the priests know it.
For a time and in some places, especially large towns
vel.,le hitherto the power of the priests has not been so I.ll'
limited 331:134:W1h:1e, there will lie attempts at compromise,
just as there were at Litneriek—the open management in tiro
hands of the FeLion Repealers “,,a secret condition; with
the priests. l'art this will not to gettendly. It would smoi
issue In the hiss iif most of their personal power by the
priests. They will not give up this power.
What the result will be no one can foretell ; but It is clear
this Fenian principle of non submission to the priests will
bring ahmit a state of parties in Ireland Buds as has never
before existed. The prie,ts cannot follow huh, Pointer Repeal
such of their pe..ple on jOill it, except lip giving up most of
their power. They have never been placed in such a dilemma
before.