The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1881-02-22 00:00:00

THE HUSH QUDITION.

The monthly general meetin.,.. of the above ammcia-
Lion wae held In the Foresters' Hall, Chard's Mead,
ior Friday evening, under the presidency of the
President, .1. P. F. Gimilry, Esq. There was a
crowded attendance of members. Among thine; present
were :—Charles Ed Is, Esq. (Mayor of linelport),
.T. T. Stephens, Esq. (ex-Mayor), Alilertnen A.
Reynolds, Major Swain, E. Cox, awl J. P. Suttill ;
Messrs. 11. Satin, A. K Banister, .1. Swaffield, and
T. Male (secretary). Mr. 1/ewes•Gilesei, of Litton
Cheney, near this town, pn,mised to give a lecture on
" Ireland, its Grievances, and their Remedies," at the
last monthly meeting, and the subject being an
important and critical one at the pre,ent, no doubt
led to the over-crawled attendance of the member,.
-- The Ohgirmqan who
woo greeted with loud' applause,
remarked that to, had rest met thou le biro dlirillg
BOIL awl his first duty would be to wish them all a
Happy New Year —(applause) —and after a few Wtonll
of greeting called upon Mr. T. Male, the secretary, to
rea.l the nannies of the previous ini•eting. The
minutes having been eubinitted and carried, were duly
signed by the chairman. —Mr. Gmndry remarked that
they had not met for amine time, but a meeting a few
weeks since would have been a matter of considerable
difficulty, and none could lqieak more feelingly it the
rocent weather than he could. for he had been snowed
up at !4yilling and had an accident into the bargain. But
they now met in welcome numbere, awl he was glad
to see them, for the subject before them was one of
great interest to them all. (Hear, hear.) The Irish
lineetion was one of the most important subjects ever
breeght befum the English Parliament. Nothing
I could have been more cipropos, for they were now in
the very !Whit of the question. Last week he WAS in
London, and was in the Stranger's Gallery from
Tuesday night till nearly five o'clock on the
Wednissday morning, and he was bound to say he felt
ashamed of the great legislative &wordily, which
should he an honour to this country, was for that night
literally a bear-garden. Now, however, things under
the management of our enlightened Premier, seemed
ti o have assumed, as if by urmic, a state of quietude.
Anil he hoPeil that state of things might long continue,
awl may the effort.; made to promote that kind
feeling, which ghoul,' exist in the Sister Isle, be
eminently successful. The Irish were warmhearted
people, awl he trusted the efforts it the Premier
would Ito Inicceasful in producing the end which Misery,
one mia,i anxious to see. Mr. I *unity m.aiml without
further preface he would call upon Mr. newes-
Gibson to give his lecture, and introduced that gentle.
man to the meeting.—Mr. I libson, who supportol the
president on the right, then rose and delivered an
exhaustive but highly intereeting lecture, but space
will permit only .if a brief resume :
Quoting the opinion of the celelvatlil statesman, C. J.
Fox, made in the House of Commons more than SO years
ago, that of all the cbaracteristics of the Irish people
there is not one feature more predominant in every class
of the country, from the highest to the lowest order, than
gratitude for lenefactions and sensibility to kindness. The
lectisser said that alth .u4h issue's that had happened
within the last kW mouths was an apparent oast ladiction
of that noble avows', yet, taking all things into considera-
tion. it was dill true. Ile stowed that the Irish leeple
had many grievances, and he strongly denied that they
could not be reconcile I. Much ilepen.led upon the inn&
of conciliation. The lesson that th • I eish had been taught
for the most part was that nothing was to be obtaine I
justice, but much from their selfish fears. Many
men from the English, from th-ir sense of living
In Ireland at the lament time could rem.mber how
their fathers were persecuted simply on account of their
religion, and the lecturer showed by instances that the
greet mass of the people had no voice iu making the laws
which they were called upon to obey. Ile made a stat
meat that was greeted with cfi sof shame thateven in
certain teas ,a at the beginniuit of tills century there might
be found stibulations respecting the wives awl iiaught
of the tenant farmers, which were Moshe:lief el to mention.
it was •it iodine reptoach of Irishmen that the English
fse.ipie stadia I the libitory of no c •untry but their 4MWIL
Ile asked them that night t, listen for • short time to a
few Pages of Ireland's history, in or ler that the reproach
might be rubel away from them as a Liberal Assuciation,
and as a meeting of reasonable Englishmen. The lecturer
then promote Ito give the history of Ireland, especialle in
Its relation to the Eng jib Government. Tracing the ohief
event" from the landing of the English at Waterford in
Beaty 11. reign, be plainly showed ths lihk between the
two countries was only preserved by the agency of the
sword. Ila I the conquest been complete, or haili struggle
supetvened, such as that of Scatlanill Under Bruce, then
a spirit of patriotism and National Union might
; have been produced which would have form ol
I a people out of the 1114.1 of waning clans. Ile
, reviewed the f the Tut
t attemp' oo
rs and the Stuarts
tol •
reconcile the Irish. The great mistake was the
I endeavour to destroy the whole Celtic tradition of the
' Irish people, the endeavour of making Ireland English
In manners, law, and language and a more fatal blunder
was that which plunged Ireland into religious strife, when
the civil strife °sewed to be coming to an end. Ile spoke
of the confiscations of the land to English and Scotch
settlers, which crested an anger for thirst and vengeance
I of Cromwell's pitiless policy ; of the conquest of William
'lii.. and quoted ljesn Iswifs's bitter words of contempt,
ant the conquered people hal become simply "heavers
of wood and drawers of water" to their conquerers The
i recital of all this tilled the lecturer with ehame. Ile then
; showed how the ascendancy of the I 'tinge party -the
dominant creed—kept d iwn the aspirations. both of the
I Dissenter and the Itolo3ll Catholic; how they were kept
out from every civil office, al,hough that party formed
only one tsvelth of the p ;pulation. Ile showed that Irish
politis we, for this class a means of '1,111,11.. plunder, and
toe resu t VOILA what might have been especteiL At this
juncture the English, although they Warded a certain
amount of protection, yet did her hest to annihi'ate Irish
Commerce, and ruin Irish Agricultuie. I•overty was thus
:shied to mis Government, and Ireland became ahe I. In
lad Lord Itockingharu was led to give Ireland an Irish
parliament, but for IS years, although indepmdent, this
was a mere na ;le for the uncontrolled rule of a few lush
t Pitt to bring Pea,,e and p i
families, The ruling olass bound Government too malt.
able to spare it wit b other pos•essions. Passing rapidly
of the Union with England in POI, and
a lecturer, after reviewing the
onovr.oetri,,peti
nhr
ige hyt
hi st
oet enlY,...th
Inoldents of the career of O'Connell and the granting of
ilane iidt,te thnits
Catholic Emancipation, came to the most interesting
portion of his subject. l'assiug by, just then, all reference