Bloomington herald. [volume] (Bloomington, I. T. [Iowa]) 1840-1849, 1846-12-04
IRELAND

The distress in this Inflated COUNTY, 70 "S"
ing in the extreme Starvation has become an cur
bodlmcnt, and stalks with a hagsard ano ghas''y
s,rm abroad over the :. Green Isle of the Ocean.
Ire,and is il, .ribuIaon. Mourning and the shrek
of misery is the daily drge of the people The cry
of help to starving people has reached this country
and contributions are raising in the eastern cites 'or
relief 10 the poor Of ireland. The National intcii!'
ceuccr has call, and the Baltimore Amencan'
says, in reference to this subject
"Lct US remember that prompsness is all inpoF'
tant. He gives twice who gives quickly. Every
dav that passes is day of distress for the starving
TO many of the unfortunate it may happen that re-
lief coming too slowly may come TOO late.
Il is we'll at such moment to consider the caus-
es Of this terrible evil in Ireland. The immediate
cause is undoubtedly, short crop. But if we trace
things to their real and permanent causc-it 49, be-
yond dispute, the unrighteous system OF land lord
and tenant Here lies the only caus S OF st0rration
in Ireland. The land is all owned by few gentle
men idlers,-absentee robbers of the poor The
LARGEST owners of rea! estate in Ireland do not live
there: but absent themselves from their possessions
and their country and send hords Of collectors to
drain the last drop Of nu.iment from starved ten
natry. Thousands of acres lie waste for the plea
sure grounds Of sporting nobenen and gentry
There is soil enough in Ireland TO sustain four times
the present population, if the cultivators could own
the soil, acd introduce that varied culture and roa-
ton Of crops SO essential to profitable and abundant
cropping.
We are free to say that the present land lord sys
tenn Of Ireland should be changed. The peasantry
ought to o,ca the soil, and must do it, or this suffer
ing will be repeated forever. The interest Of human
itv require il. This is one Of those outrageous sys-
TENS against the interest Of the mass of the human
family which no law can render sacred III the eyes OF
any good man, or christian. If any one can read
The following account and not curse the system that
produces it, they are made of different materials
from US.
TO US, there is something approaching blasphemy
to order prayers in the churches for the Deity
avert tribulaon and famine where there is nothing
to eat-scarcty produced by land monopoly-land-
lordism. Better offer up prayers to avert the just
| vengeance of God from those who sustain, "by d.
vine right" system of legaized robbery, and So
cial Wrong. At meeting in Dublin, Mr.. JouS
REILLY said
| q did net come here today with the view
| If seccnding this motion, fer l have been re-
Gently in the west Of Ireland, and the scenes |
| have witnessed--ihe extreme, the awful state
of destitulion 10 which saw the people re.
duced-have so weighed upon my spirits and
chilled my political ardor, that can think Of
nothing but the means Of feeding the people.
of saving them from immediate death, from
the horrors of starvation. (Hear, hear) ]
| saw Young men walking about the streets,
',v!'r.rE, rr'rrrrTrr. saw men m ucu, VITO had
gene there the day before TO Try to sleep aw ay
the anguish Of hunger, and had then become
| unable 10 leave ii. The Rev. Mr. M'Manns,
Of Castelar,, told me tia, there was many
such In the parish, and be expected many
deaths speedily to ensue; he pointed to the
crowded State Of the town, and said that few
had tasted food from the day before, and their
gauat and tame-struck appearance fully bore
out his assertion. My heart sickens at the
recollection Of the fearful misery beheld.
was in The kitchen Of friends house durin q
| the time Of the servants breakfast, when
mother ard six children came 10 the door !:
their wre,ched appearance struck the lady Of
The house who desired tha. some food should
be given them. The scene that ensued was
really appalling-ihe wolfsh eageTness with
which the children rushed npoa the food, tear.
ing 1t from each other, and in the struggle
wasting,tuuch Of it--,he savage Joy they be,ray.
ed as food was again given TO them. had no..
thing hnJ,an ia il; aud the utter selfishness Of
extreme misery was fully seen and was only
redeemed by the mothers love, who, starving,
| atns locking the most famished Of the group,
never stf.-,c i,ea forth her hand to touch one
morsel. bat s!ooni witi, an expression of Joy
upon he; wan face thai made the heart sick to
lookupop,-- deep sensa,ioG,)-I saw these
things"