The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1843-11-08

rable trckery, such rouerie and juggling as this.
OConne has insisted five thousand times that the
monster meetings were legal and constitutional.
In that case all attempts to put down, either by
force or by proclamation, legal and constitutional
meetings, must be illegal and unconstitutional
therefore, the proclamation of the Irish Lord Chan
cellor and hN coadutors must be OF that character;
therefore, dsobedience to it would not have been
unlawful. What then, was the course which
O'Connel, il he had been an honest and true man,
ought to have pursued! He ought to have attended
at the spot hxed on TO hold the meeting; he ought
to have convoked all his friends to be present. he
ought to have said to his followers, here am ],
my riends, at the post OF danger, in time oil diff
Guilty" Harvested, he ought to have gone quietly
to prison. II the riot act had been read, he should
have ordered his followers to dispense. He would
thus have shown that ne was wretched coward;
that he was lot inundated by what he has de-
nounced to be an illegal proclamation; and that,
when the precise moment tor dispersion had
arrived, that he knew how to prevent his followers
from suffering any evil consequences, simply by
commanding them to retire--whilst he would have
justified all his oft repeated declarations, that he be-
lieved the meetings he convoked to be perfectly
lawful. BY the conduct he has pursued, he has
demonstrated both TO friends and foes, that
he did not believe his meetings either to
be legal or constitutional; that he held them
out Of defiance, but no longer than they
were not resisted; and that he is either bad law
yer or bad leader, or both. | am not maintain.
ing that OConnell should have directed his unarmed
forces to attack, or to repe the attacks OF the troops
but 40 insist, that after years OF Boosting, ana
months Of unparalleled agitation, it was disgrace
full and dishonorabe course, course which his sup
porters and friends IN America will regard with
row and shame, to desert even those who attended
at Coniar not to show himself in public during the
whole OF Sunday, and then to palaver on the Mon
day about his past life and his past exertions, and
coDtine his measures to such absurdites and such
as those to which have referred.
But what shall l say of the Government! What
do its friends say? They ask how it came to pass
that ali OF sudden, this determination should be
taken, although meeting after meeting had been
held, and Ireland had been kept during spring. sum-
Their friends say" If you could do this now-why
could you not have taken the same steps before?"
Now the answer OF the Government is this, " This
Contart meeting possessed characteristics, rather
to the prior mon ter meetings which had been held.
II was manifesty military In Its character lntlml-
dating IN Its principles, and designed to Overawe
the Government at the very seat OF Government;
TO. what are two miles distance when such meet.
ing as that at Clontarf was to be held?" "And
then" says the Government, "the moment having
arrived when O'Connell, being in the utmost diff
Guilty as to the conduct he should adopt, when he
sighed for some wayof escape from the opportunities
OF his followers, and when what he desired
was 10 beat retreat ii the opportunity should be
afforded him, 1t was clearly our duty to put such
means In his power, AID by putting down the mon-
ser meetings, to confine his agitation to the cOmpa
rativeIy harmless proceedings of his Repeal Asso-
citation, or even his small parish assemblies BY
thus acting, we at once reduce the repeal question
TO ls original Insgnlfcance, and obtain time first
to put down that agitation altogether and next, TO
propose some large and general measures for the
pacification and ameliora.ion of Ireland.''
The enemies of the Government accuse it most
justly of having made the proclamation as to the
Clontarf meeting with too much haste, and without
leaving sufficient time between its promugation
and the period for holding that assembly, to prevent
the tendance of those who resided at some dis
lance from Dublin. Ihave not seen any satisfactory
la, tf,f haxya lot lima pf hn.
nest and well prncipled justification of the rapidly
with which they acted; and shall not be surprised
to see very strong resolution carried by the House
OF Commons, if not carried, at least supported by
powerful minority, condemnlDg the haste and
reconsideration oil the Irish Prvy Council.
Mr.: O'Connell. when defeated by the Government
in holding the Contar meeting, resolved on holding
a Ciontari Repeal Banquet" in the favored resort
of Dublin gaiety, the Rotunda in Sackvle street
The room was crowded to excess, and upwards OF
], O00 sat down to dinner in the round room. Much
confusion took place, and the dinner was far from
satsta ctory. O'Connell looked five years older.
He knew that his supporters began to suspect him
They did not as yet dare to say, and scarcely to
think so, but the cheers with which he was greeted
were few and far between, and he knew that his
plans and measures would be, and were looked upon
pale, equvocal, uncertain, and unsatisfactory.
His jokes fell heavy, his sallies were harmless, and
the banquet broke up.
The news from Ireland has every day since been
looked for with increased interest and his friends
ton, have sought 10 cause ii to be believed that
the proclamation is OF no lmportance-that OCon-
nell did not propose holding any more monster
meetings-thaI he is not at all stopped in his intend
ed measures-that he has 800 gentlemen ready with
fl00 EACH prepared to meet and form the first Irish
parliament-that he will convoke them in Dublin in
January-that it will be such ameeting, and SO con-
ducted in building, and with closed doors, that
no proclamation can touch or reach-that the meet
ngs 10 be held In every parish throughout Ireland
however small, to petition the Queen TO remove her
present advisers, will produce powerful effect, and
that measures such as are now being taken by the
ogita,or 10 try all questions between subject end
subject before voluntary courts OF arbitratiOn
stead of before the established legal tribunals of the
country, will have the effect Of weakening the
power Of the government, and of preparing the
way for carrying Repeal. But though all this is
sufficiently plausible. there is distI CT impre sson
the public mind, both in this country and in Ire
land, and that Is, that OCOnnell personally is de
feated aud that the repeal agitation will hereafter
cause little anxiety or apprehension The public re-
me mber the time when the question OF "Repea"
was looked on as a mere theory, a whim, caprice
of Daniel O'Connell. Year after year, indeed, wit
nesst its temperance on the taps, but no one
believed that It's chief mooter was sincere They
looked upon the movement as one iptended 10 brlnr
about other ends, or in plain TERMS as sort ot
threat or ousbear TO brighten the government for
the time being. To that level, il is more than pro
bahie, that the repeal agitation will be again re-
duced, though NOT, think, without measures being
proposed and passed, which shall greatly tend the
Improvement VI lttldnu Inc government VIII
now seek, first, to suppress the repeal agitation
second to punish the leaders, and third then to in.
troduce certain general measures for the improve.
ment OF Ireland.
] he Government has 81, coo troops at present in
ireland. o these 3 600 are Cavalry, II 400 Infan-
uy-3 400 at Depots GOO Artillery, and 10 900 arm
ed Consrabuary. The Times says that battaliau
OF each regiment OF Foot Guards is in constant Iead
ness to proceed to Ireland, and that arrangements
have been made with the directors of the Great
Western, and London and Liverpool railways, to |
have trains at The disposal of Government, TO start
At any time an order may be sent from the Horse
Guards, without the slightest delay At Bristol and
Liverpool steam vessels are likewise ready.
According 10 all appearances this vast organza-
ton and display OF military power is Unnecessary
The lreh have been trained in masses to move and
10 act together, and 10 obey implicitly the leader for
the time being. That leader now is unquestonably
O'Conne, and whilst he continues to exhort them
daily not to make the smallest dlsorde rymoveme
It il scarcely possible that any thing approaching to
a rebellion will take place.