The Sun.
London, England, 1839-09-30 00:00:00

not the less English in cases where the rights of I view, the increased relative advantage to Dublin
Ireland are concerned ; and, to cap the climax, would have a powerful operation in this way,
speeches were made in opposition to my motion by namely, that Dublin is the central point of the
Lord Morpeth and Sergeant Jackson ! After this, Orange or ascendancy party ; and if the middle of
I retire in despair of any important advantage to operative classes of Protestants in Dublin desert
Ireland, unless such as can be achieved by the j that party, and adhere to the repeal and to Ireland,
almost unanimous determination of the Irish people. the springs of bitterness and of dissension that now
Last year we formed the Precursor Society. Its flow from Dublin would be stopped at their source,
objects excluded repeal, being solely confined to or much retarded and diminished. This is my
exertions to make the Union an identification of negative advice to you and to the Irish people—to
the two countries, and to obtain from the United fly as you would from famine or pestilence all ming-
Parliament justice for Ireland. This was our sole ling of sectarianism or religious differences with the
purpose ; to make the Union a reality by great question of the repeal. But I go farther; and
placing the people of Ireland on the same I most strongly advise you to use every effort to
footing—we asked them no more—with the procure Protestant support ; and Protestant agitation
people of England. The Union means such should be put into shape and form by Protestant
an identification, if indeed it have any fair mean- hands. It is as clear as the sun at noonday that if
ing at all. We acted with the utmost fairness and any influential portion of the Irish Protestants join
candour. In Kerry, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, in a constitutional demand for the repeal of the Union
Wexford, Louth, and Dublin, at meetings at which statute, thatdemand will altogether become irresistible!
(taken together) hundreds of thousands of Irishmen I smile with good humoured complacency at the
attended,t'l offered in their names, on their behalf assertions in the English press that the repeal of
and on my own, to give up, for the present gene- the Union is impossible. That was not the opinion
ration at least, and (so far as we could) for ever, of Lord Althorp. He said in the House of Corn-
all agitation of the repeal, provided that the two mons, that if the overwhelming majority of the
countries were identified, and the Union made real Irish people demanded the repeal of the Union.
and complete. And my offer was sanctioned by they would be entitled to and would obtain it. It
the unanimous cheers and resolutions of congregated is true that the overwhelming majority of the Ca-
hundreds of thousands. To procure that assent, tholics are in favour of that measure ; but to make
however, required all my popularity, and all the the restoration of the Irish Parliament wise and
confidence which the people repose in me, together just, it is absolutely necessary that it should have
with whatever limited powers of persuasion I pos- the concurrence and support of a large and influ-
sess. Such was the basis of the Precursor Society. ential portion of the Irish Protestants. Irish Pro-
Contributions and subscriptions from every county testants must be made to feel that their properties,
in Ireland attested the willingness of the Irish their rights, and their religion will net be injured
people to confide to the Precursor Society and to by the repeal. Indeed, as to their properties and
me the working out of the great experiment whether rights, instead of being injured, these must be
equal justice should be obtained for Ireland by the augmented in value and in enjoyment ; and the
United Parliament. We have worked out the ex- perfect equalization of civil rights, and of their
periment fairly and honestly. I had inspired the enjoyment by all classes and creeds, must be gua-
people with hope ; and they readily acquiesced in ranteed and secured beyond doubt or controversy.
the executive measures of a mild* Government, Let me conjure you, my dear friends, to turn your
coupled with the expectation of practical permanent thoughts to these practical points. Procure as
relief. In the silence of that honest expectation much Protestant support as you possibly can. There
tranquillity prevailed. When the fiery spirit of is, for example, Sharman Crawford, whose admir-
Chartism affrighted so many cities and towns able letters in opposition to the depopulating system
in England from their propriety, the pco- give him the highest claims on the gratitude and ad-
ple of Ireland and their leaders saw the miration of his countrymen. Why should not the
advantages which might be attained by an un- Trades' Union address him also at once, and
principled agitation in conjunction with the Char- most respectfully ? He has hereditary claims
tists. We might easily have induced the Irish set- to be the leader in the struggle for Irish Le-
tied in the various towns in England to join the gislative independence. His uncle, the cele-
Chartist cry. But we brought them into connec- brated Colonel Sharman of the Volunteers, was a
tion with the Precursor Society, and we succeeded gentleman to whom Ireland was most essentially
everywhere, except in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in per- indebted in the glorious year of 1782. I believe
suading the Irish population in England not to Mr. Sharman Crawford inherits his estates, as
join the Chartists. The Irish people did still more ; know he inherits his principles. He ought to be-
because, by their tranquillity, and in the absence of come the leader in this struggle; and lam quite
crime, the Government was enabled to diminish the ready, with all deference and respect, to serve under
number of troops usually required for Ireland, and him in the peaceful campaign for the restoration of
near ten thousand horse, foot, and artillery were our domestic Legislature. Cheer up, then, my
disengaged from the service in this country to pro- friends, and exert yourselves, to commingle all sects
tect life and property in the English manufacturing and persuasions in the great, peaceful, and consti-
towns. Is it worth while here to observe that the tutional struggle for Irish freedom. We are slaves
spirit of calumny is of so stupid and besotted a na- of an iniquitous Union at present. It is in the
ture in England, especially amongst that most illi- competency of the Legislature to repeal that law.
beral sect, the Wesleyan Methodists, that one of Laugh to scorn those who tell you it is impossible
their ministers has had the unblushing indecency to to procure that repeal. You know as well as I
accuse me of being the cause of the necessity of in- do that if only five or six leading Protestant gen-
creasing the standing army ? But to return. Such tlemen, whom I could name, joined in the struggle
was the conduct of the Irish people, and of the for repeal, it would be impossible to refuse the uni-
Precursor Society, which sympathised in, and gave versal but peaceable and loyal demand of the Irish
utterance to, the universal sentiment. We made people for the restoration of the Irish Legislature.
the experiment of rendering the repeal unnecessary, Nay, if less than one-half the number I have spe-
and we worked out that experiment honestly in all cified joined in that demand, it would be irresistible,
its details. As part of the experiment, we of course and would be brought about without the least vio-
supported the Whig Ministry, for from the Tories no lence, confusion, or injury to any human being. I
hope could be entertained. These were our merits. reserve for a letter which, within a fortnight, I
Our objects were admitted by the Whigs themselves mean to address to the people of Ireland, more of
to be, as far at least as related to corporate reform the details of the practical measures to' attain our
and the equalization of the franchise, just and pa- object. We must not leave the number of Repealers
triotic. The conduct of the Irish people in Eng- to conjecture. They must be enumerated. In the
land is, if possible, more meritorious, because meantime, fellow countrymen and constituents, re-
more exposed to Chartist contagion. The power collect these three things—.
of Government was greatly augmented by leaving at First—That we have made the experiment, and
their disposal an army which might otherwise have proved that it is impossible to obtain justice for
easily been furnished with occupation in Ireland. Ireland from an Imperial Parliament controlled and
How has this meritorious, loyal, and efficient con- overruled as that Parliament is by the factious
duct of the Irish people been rewarded ? Thus : Tory Peerage, Tory parsons, and Tory party in
not only by refusing us any relief, but (to mix the Enaland
•
little with the great) the Government actually per- Secondly—That the only topic on which the
secuted the Precursor Society. It was announced people of Ireland can or ought to be roused, so as
to those who were looking for, or likely to obtain) to ensure success for their demand, is their darling
office at the bar, on the bench, in the police, object, the repeal of the Union.
or in the revenue, that they must not belong And thirdly—That the struggle for the repeal of
to the Precursor Society—that to belong to the Union must be conducted by argument, reason-
that Society was certain exclusion. This is the way ing, and moral force, in good-hu-morred wisdom and
in which our Government at home treated our animated benevolence and charity towards every-
honest experiment to obtain justice for Ireland, body, and without injury to the property of any
whilst the Government in England made it a Cabi- man, and without the possibility of shedding one
net measure to oppose the paltry privilege of bring- drop of human blood.
ing in a Bill claiming for the Irish people an equa- Hurrah, then, for the repeal
lization of franchises with the English people ! I " Where is the slave so lowly,
cannot repeat this too often ; our experiment is coin- Condemned to chains unholy,
plate. Neither good conduct, nor merits, nor jus- Who, could he burst
His bonds at first,
Lice, avail the people of Ireland aught before the Would pine beneath them slowly ?"
Imperial Parliament. English Catholics and Pro- Harrah again for the repeal I
testants alike, Government and Opposition, all I have the honour to be, fellow-countrymen and
combine to reject our honest and just claims. constituents, your roost faithful, most grateful, and
Here, then, is the inexhaustible source of strength most devoted servant,
to the Repealers, that thorough conviction which
must penetrate to the heart of every honest Irish-
man, that we are reduced to this alternative—we
must consent to be abject slaves, with an avowed
inferiority to the English people, or seek from our
domestic Parliament rights so foolishly as well as
so wickedly withheld from us by the Goverment and
the Legislature.
Seventhly—l come to the seventh and the last
resource for the repeal. It is to be found in the
inborn hatred of the Union cherished in the public
mind,and in the private feelings of the universal Irish
people. This is—l know it full well—the predo-
minating disposition of the Irish mind. No living
man has, or could possibly have, anything like the
experience I possess as to the topics which thrill
the Irish heart and arouse the Irish soul. lam on
this subject a competent and credible witness. I
have addressed the people in almost every county in
Ireland, and upon almost every political and reli-
gious subject, and upon subjects that mixed up, in
what would appear to be the strongest of all human
combinations, liberty and religion together. Yet I
solemnly assure you, fellow-countrymen and consti-
tuents, that upon no topic or combination of topics
have I roused such ardent enthusiasm, such anxious
determination for success, as upon the repeal. It
is the one great and prevailing aspiration of the
Irish mind. There is no sacrifice that the generous
people of Ireland would not make for the restoration
of the Irish Parliament.
There are, I pledge myself, seven millions of Re-
peelers in Ireland.— (Great cheering.) Breathe
but the breath of hope, and their numbers will be
increased and consolidated. I have thus traced,
without any intentional exaggeration, the difficulties
that lie in the way of repeal, and the materials that
exist for its attainment. I now come to that part
of my subject which consists in pointing out the
modes of making use of these materials.
Recollect always that they must be used, I re-
peat it once more—with caution, good temper, pru-
dence, and wisdom—and of these perhaps good
temper is the most conducive to success.
Let me, however, come to particulars ; and, in
the first place it is quite plain that our first and
greatest duty as repealers, is to strip the repeal agi-
tation of everything that has the least appearance
or tinge of sectarianism. We must, with the ut-
most caution, not only avoid, but prevent its being
made in any respect a religious question. This is
our great, and I may say, our only, danger. We
are bound by every impulse of duty, of honesty,
and of zeal for success, to convince the Protestants of
every class that they have nothing to lose as secta-
rians, whilst as Irishmen they have everything to
gain, by the repeal of the Union. Nor is the ho-
nest effort to produce this effect so little likely to
succeed as some timid persons may imagine. It is
true that the leaders of the Orangemen have indi-
vidual and personal interests in the misgovernment
and mismanagement of Ireland. These interests
do not reach the great body of their followers.
The great mass of the party cannot expect to share
in the pecuniary advantages sought for by their
leaders. Nay, the pecuniary interests of all the
middle and operative classes of Protestants would
be promoted by the repeal. Take Dublin, for
example, and there you will find that the Pro-
testant dealers and operatives have precisely the
same, if not a greater, interest in the restoration of
a domestic Legislature than the Catholics of the
same classes. Dublin is, to be sure, a favourable
specimen for
ciao-in-
terest prevails in
in puothrpeorsecitiesßauituithteowsanisn,ewchiears-in-
esthe
increase of resident
proprietors would (as it every-
where must) augment employment ;
and
conse-
quence, increase the earning of wages, a,nbdy
tileoi3.
taining of profits by trade. In another point of

DANIEL O'CONNELL.

MARYLEBONE VESTRY.