The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-11-19 00:00:00

TOWN EDITION.

IRISH SOCIETY.

The Liverpool services in connection with the Irish
Society, the object of which is the promotion of the edu-
cation of the native Irish through the medium of their
own language, commenced on Sunday. During that day
sermons in aid of the funds were preached in the churches
,which will be hereafter named, along with the amount of
their several collections : we are glad to say that the con-
gregations were large and liberal. A deputation attended
from Ireland, consisting of the Rev. Edward Nixon,
rector of Castleton, county of Meath ; the Rev. William
Pennefather, incumbent of Mellifont ; and the Rev.
Daniel Foley, Irish Scholar, Trinity College, Dublin, and
. curate of Dunhill.
Last night a public meeting of tie members and friends
of the Society was held in the Royal Amphitheatre,
which we never saw filled by a more crowded or attentive
auditory. Every part of the house was crowded to
excess, and the greatest interest was manifested though-
out the entire proceedings. We observed the following
clery and gentry upon the platform :—Rees. M'Neile,
Edward Nixon, Wm. Pennefather, Daniel Foley, Dr.
Tattershell, W. W. Ewhank, W. Butler, W. R. Hart,
Thos. Dwyer, J. R. Connor, C. J. Hamilton, Henry Car-
penter,
Fred. Parry, Fred. Barker, C. W. Lawrence, W.
M. Fillloon, J. Cordeaux, S. Fenton, IL Hampton, D. I
D. Stewart, H. H. Higgins, W. Maynard, G. A. Warner,
D. Anderson, W. Rawson, P. Crawford, R. S. Burbury,
J. Jackson, G. F. Greene, Joseph Baylee, B. Morgan,
Finlay, F. Ould, A. B. Marshall, Gibbons.—
Messrs. Wm. Jones, Thos. Forsyth, Charles Cotesworth,
Geo. Langtry, Thos. Crowder, John Eden, Keeling,
(Runcorn,) John Howard' Lord Bangor, Thos. Porter.
Chas. Townley, Edwd. Glazebrook, li. W. Preston,
Jas. Parker.
The Rev. H. CARPENTER moved that the chair be taken
by the Rev. Hugh M'Neile, in the unavoidable absence
of Mr. Adam Hodgson, who had been announced to pre-
side. The motion was carried by acclamation.
Mr. M'NEILE having taken the chair, explained the
cause of Mr. Hodgson's absence, from whom he read a
letter; after which he called upon the Rev. Mr. Carpenter
to supplicate the divine blessing upon the proceedings.
Prayer having been offered, the rev. chairman addressed
the meeting. They were convened together upon the
present occasion, in aid of the objects and operations of
what was truly and emphatically called " The Irish So-
. ciety." The objects of that society was briefly stated in
its extended name, upon the title pages of its reports—
" The Irish Society, for promoting the education of the
native Irish through the medium of their own language."
They would observe the distinction made here was, as
though they were Irish they were not natives. What was
intended by the native Irish, was not all 'he people who
were natives of Ireland, but those who spoke the language
of that country, and those who required to have the lan-
guage spoken to them in order that they might receive
instruction by what was said to them. The class so re-
quiring the use of the Irish language might be divided
into three parties : first, those who knew no language but
the Irish in any degree ; secand, those who knew a little
English, just enough to ask for what they wanted ; and
third, those who knew more English, but still not enough
to receive any instructions through the medium of the
English language. The number altogether, inclusive of
the three classes now described, amounted to almost three
millions, somewhat more than half a million of the first
class, who knew not a word of any language except Irish,
and two millions and a half raagino, in different degrees of
knowledge of English, composed the remainder ; but
those among them, who knew most of the English
language, did not know enough to receive any abstract or
moral teaching through it. To this large body of our
fellow-subjects no effort was made in the way of education
but by this society,if we excepted one or two local bodies,
such as that marvellous mission of the Rev. Mr. Nangle
in the island of Achill. (Cheers.) For the instruction
of that large body of the people of Ireland, England, in
her public capacity, was doing, and had done, nothing.
The government had done nothing. Not one shilling of
the tens of thousands of pounds voted by parliament for
education in Ireland was used through the medium of the '
Irish Society ; therefore there was a mass of the popula-
tion, amounting to nearly three millions of people,
left, without the slightest attempt upon the part of
the government of the United Kingdom to give
them any information to raise their minds from
the most degrading ignorance. (Hear, hear.) There
was no attempt made at any literary instruction for this
people. There might be some difficulty in the way of the
government, constituted as it was, aiming to give them
religious instruction ; but there was no attempt even at
giving them literary instruction. Where were our phi-
lanthropists and our reformers, the men of movement, the
men of life, who wish to send education through the
world ? Where were they in their intercourse with these
three millions of Irishmen ? (Hear.) No attempt to
print books of education, books of figures, books of any
of the branches of natural handicraft, whereby their
minds might be raised from their present degraded state,
had been made either by the government or by the philo-
sophical ladies in the United Kingdom ! (Hear.) Three
• millions of Irishmen were thus left—to what ? Why to
be told mist what the priest chose to tell them. (Hear,
ear.) He would not take upon himself to say what those
gentlemen told them. tle knew, indeed, something of
what they were pledged by oath to teach all their people ;
he knew something of what was contained in the councils
of their church, which they said was infallible ; he knew
what, if they were honest men and true churchmen, ac-
cording to their views, they were bound to teach those
people. He could not, to be sure, say whether they taught
these things or not ; he knew not how much of truth they
might teach the people. he knew not how much of treason
they might teach the people; but he knew that these three
millions of people were left to the mercies of these men,
and that no officer of her Majesty's government knew
what the mass of the popalation were taught. Was it any
wonder, then-, that so large a mass of the Irish people, so
neglected, should, being numerous, and being neglected,
prove to be dangerous? (Hear.) They gave physical
weight to the wiil, however arbitrary, of the priesthood;
to the agitation, however pernicious, of the demagogue.
(Loud cheers.) He did not say this as finding fault with
the population ; he protested he thought it their misfor-
fortune, not their fault; for how were they to know bet-
ter when those who did know better had taken no pains to
teach them better? (Hear, hear.) It was, then, upon
their behalf that they were associated in this society.
Nothing could be done for them but through the medium
of their own language; it was impossible to get at their
minds through any other medium, as it would be impossi-
ble to get at the minds of the meeting through any other
medium than English. The rev. gentleman illustrated
this position by reciting two or three lines from Homer;
following which, after observing that this matter of lan-
guage
was a very interesting subject, he shewed that
if we addressed the native Irish in the English language
they were " barbarians" to us, and we were " barbarians"
to them. Nothing could be done for them except through
their own tongue. And this, he thought, laid an obliga-
tion upon us, for to W:3003 should these poor people look
but to us. If the meeting said, as they might naturally,
" Surely the government of the country ought to do
something for so large a mass of the population," he
-agreed with them ; but he thought he could tell them a
part of the cause that had prevented any such attempt.
There had been a feeling concerning the Irish language
it was barbarous tongue, and the sooner it was done
away with the better ; and in order to do away with the
Irish language, the plan adopted by the most thinking
people and government of England had been not to teach
the people any other! (Hear, hear.) This society then
set to work in this way. It got the people, grown as well
as old, to the schools. The schools were not the like the
schools we knew here, where a hundred children went
every clay in the week. In the schools connected with
this society the greater number of the people were adults;
the whole number amounted to 17,301, of whom 12,033
were adults. The schools were kept net in fine school
houses, built with cut stone, but where they might, in
cow-houses, pig-houses, and in cabins that were not much
better ; under a tree, where they had a tree, upon the sea
shore, under the banks of a turf bog—any where, where
they could assemble to read portions of the Irish Bible.
(Hear.) It might occur to some to ask " How can teach-
ers be got for these people ?"—for it would be a strange
thing to have schools where the teachers did not know the
language of the people, or tire people that of the teachers.
Why, they had found some people in Ireland able to teach
Irish, and willing to teach it, members of the Roman Ca-
tholic Church ; they were willing to teach the poor to read
the Bible. They were paid according to the proficiency of
the pupils. Inspectors were sent round periodically to
examine into the proficiency of the pupils, and according
to the number of the pupils, and the proficiency they had
made, were the gratuities or salaries of the teachers.
So that although the teaching was in a very desultory way,
• there was value given for all the money given by the
Society. (Hear.) The readers cost, according to the
st report, £ll per year each, their salaries varying ac-
cording to circumstances from £3 to £3O. Here the rev.
gentleman read from the report a statement of the num-
ber of the schools in actual operation. Having put the
meeting in possession of the objects of the Society, he
should call upon his friends to state the details ; but be-
fore doing so he would remind the meeting that a consi-
derable expense had been incurred by assembling them in
that place. The rev, gentleman concluded by an urgent
and affectionate appeal to the Christian liberality.
The Rev. H. CARPENTER then read the report, of which
the following is an abstract :
The report stated that Ireland contained a population of above
two millions who speak the Irish language. Many of these are so
totally ignorant of any other tongue, that this is the only possible
medium through which they can receive the saving truths of
Christ's Gospel ; while to the rest it is a vehicle of communication
so much more ready and intelligible, and one to which they are so
enthusiastically attached, that practically speaking the Irish lan•
guage is the only avenue by which their heart can be reached, and
their affections moved. This ardent love for their mother tongue
caused it to be said long ago, in Ireland, " if you would plead fur
your life, plead in Irish." Now if this language would engage Irish
sympathies its one case, it was reasonable t..) expect that it might en-
gage themi n another. Accordingly, " The Irish Society," after his
example who became all things to all men, that he might by all
means save some, resolved to plead in Irish for the Gospel of Christ
and fcr tte aaatiou of souls. And, blessed be the God of all
mere? and Vacs, their labour has not been in vain in the Lord.
Hntdrsds of thousands have, through this society, become devout
tudentsot the Irish Scriptures,. and many of them have been made
wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Some
have died in peace, rejoicing in that Saviour whose love they first
learned in the Irish Scriptures. Others are living monuments of
the efficacy of Christ's Gospel, exhibiting, by their blameless lives,
that tes s tot hem, what it is to all who really believe, the
power of God unto salvation. In the work of instructing the na-
tive Irish, this society at present employs, in additiOn to some cleri-
cal assistants. 47 scripture readers, and. 797 Irish teachers. Last
year, more theta 17,001)
chsloecftiyaya;ultsandwfrom its cora-
ere examined
and.l pprovul by the lrish
inspectorssolhoafrtsh,
the et
iniericement it has been instrumental in putting into circulation in
the Irish language, Bibles or Testaments, or books of scripture to
Now when we refleetthat from tag
r"Xlegar c 138,199 "Pi".
not
eriod et the Reformation rip to the institution of this society
en, that 1750 Irish Bibles or Testaments were circulated in Ire