The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1847-04-08
AN OLIVE LEAF
For the American Press.

One WORD MORE FOR PooR IRELAND.
Friends Of Humanity!!
Let me address to your hearts one more en-
treaty for poor, famine-stricken ireland.
have come to this indescribable scene Of des-
titution, desolation, and death, that l might
get the nearer to your sympathies; that
might bring thess terrible realities of human
misery more wildly within your comprehen-
sion. | have witnessed scenes that no Ian
guage of mine can portray. have seen how
mach beings made in the image of God can
suffer this side of the very bottom of the grave
and that, too, in a civilized land. While !
write, the wailings Of poor furnished women
and children ningle with moaning winds of
the night, and nature and humanity seem to
join in a funeral drge over this land Of desc
iation have been ont for days in the dark
habitatioas of those ready to perish with fam
inc, and | have spoken to them of the Amer
lean Canaan, where there was bread enough
and to spare, and hearts to spare it, and hands
to send it without money and without price,
when the cause of humanity demanded the
offering. | have seen the despairing eyes of
young, cmaciated, half-naked children kndle
with the light of hope when | spoke to them
thus of America, and Of the sympathy Of A
merican hearts. Let these Pickering hopes
appeal to your charities, fellow-countrymen.
Let this exceeding bitter cry for bread come
to you across the ocean, and over the river,
mountain and prairie. 1t is the cry of thous-
ands, aye, millions, ready to perish for the
surplus of your granaries and wardrobes. 0,
let that cry, with all its agonozing importuni-
ty, soften your hearts to commiseration and
fill your hands with the sweet charities Of be-
neYolencc for these suffering myriadS, Has
not bountiful Providence poured you out
blessings until there is not room to receive
them in your basket and your store ? What
better testimonial of gratitude can you offer
1he great Father of all men, than TO feed these
his Little ones who are perishing, as it were, in
arms length of your tables, for the very
crumbs chat fall UNDECIDED to your dogs p
Farmers Of the Great Yves ! what may say
to these poor, pining children Of want, from
you ? Is there one among you all who will
not give one bag of Indian corn or wheat, or
n hundred weight Of pork or ham, as his free
will offering to the starving in Ireland Is
there n man or woman in New England who
can shut the heart against the importantly of
this great catastrophe to beings made of one
blood with ourselves, and children of Our
Father Is there man, who has a heart
endowed with the sympathics of our common
nature, from New Orleans to Quebec, who will
not open his hand ndgive, " for the honor Of
God,' as these poor famished creatures say,
when begging for bread? Let Neland's ex-
tremity be Americas opportunity to teach the
nations a magnificent lesson in human broth
erhood by her mighty deeds of brotherly
love.
My last Appeal was written so hastily, that
I omitted some suggestions which may be
worthy of consideration. In the first place, it
IS the unanimous opinion of all with whom
have conferred upon the subject in Ireland
that one hundred dollars worth of food from
America would be as valuable as two hundred
dollars in money; for the latter would have
to he sent back to America for food. As the
English Government stand pledged topay the