The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1866-12-18
Ireland Province and Ireland A Republic.

From the "old Guard Of December
If we look inlelligently at Ireland, we shall
see something besides bogs and cabins,
through which squallid misery crawfs oyer
pallets of straw.
We shall see the most beautiful and uniform
climate of Western Europe, with more than
twenty nine millions imps rial acres of the
richest soil, twenty millions of which are ca
pable OF the highest cultivation. We shall
see the most Western land of Europe, which
seems as IT designed BY the Almighty for the
great depot oi trade Tor the Western world, o
land endowed by nature with almott every
thing that superinduces national prosperity
SAD greatness.
Over The dim ages Of this nations wrong
our eye mas rested upon that everlasting page
Of history when. during the sixth. seventh
and eighth centuries. Ireland was the chief
seat Of CIVILIZATION and learning for Europe,
ehen the noble and lower ranks Of England
were sent to Ireland for education; when
the Irish scholars were sought after and
placed at the heed Of the principal institu-
tons OF learning n Europe when Charlie
imagine looked 10 Ireland for his frat teach
- y, tho itaiian schools - =.
drew her largest intellectual resourcestrom
Irish learning: when Ireland opened her pow.
erfui arm and became the friendly refuge Of
the Enelsh as they fed away before the
furious Franks aud Saxons. when tney spread
a cOmmcA destruction over ancient Britain
and Gau; when it was reserved for Irish
yalor Is protect the conquered English from
the terrible Rotnans,a AS the shout OF hisvictory
and desolations were heard over Western
Europe. the irshmer were the chief mis-
sionaries Of Christianity for Europe, who,
with piety and zeal equalled only by the
first heraIds of the cross coursed their way
over the British Isle into Switzerland and
Germany. and rested not till they had pen
etrated the Lombard dominions, and planted
the standard Of the cross among the peaks Of
the Appenlnes-
These old, bright days of Ireland come up
before US, and the question presses hard,
,nDoes the Bosiu owe nothing TO lins eoun>
,ryg Has England no debt of gratitude to
nav? She found her Burkes aud Sheridans
there, he world has found some of her
finest orators, poets, wits, heroes, and apos-
Ties 81 freedom And why is it that this
once glorious nation, this birthplace Of genius
and learning this land &c genial cline aud
fruitful fields, this natural depot OF com
,nerce Tor the whole v estern world, IS now a
beegar
Fnplaud has robbed Ireland She did not,
- her Government of il, merely adopt .
eonrsa al doubtful expectancy, merely try
experimeuts in Government, bat she deliher-
aielv set herself 10 WORK To ruin Ireland. She
began by gripping her commerce, by break
ing up her manufactures, stopping her
spipdles and loums, forbldding, by heavy
pepalties the manufacture OF glass ard iron,
and crushing nearly every branch OF mechan-
icaf industry. that she might drive all the raw
maferia. est Of the country into her own man
uiactorles at home
She violently seized the ancient estates,
elected the rightful owners from the soil, and
nth bur one rule, of war and eyterminatior-
massacreed the people INTO submission. and
held Them TO a forced Obedience
Then. hy ferocteus system of penal laws,
sbs sealed all the other acts Of her crimes and
reduced the great mass OF the IRISH popnis-
t,on To the condition of slaves Ii was de
cided a CRIME punishable with banishmeni
ana death for an Irish Catholic father to teach
b;s own children 10 read or write. there was
yvhat Gas called the law OF discovery, bS
xh;ch the English Pro.estauts might possess
themselves of nearly every Irish Catholic
rroperfy in the country. There was law
yyh;cf,-rawars5d the Catholic Tor apostacy &C
its parent. which paid the Irish wife for mn
aelltv ia her husband, and allowed the rob
hing Of an Irish gentleman OF his horse on tht
hishwav All rights OF Irish property were
destroyed, and every personal disability en-
actfd.
This was the first measure Of English Law
and Encl,sh Christianity TO her ancient frient
and protector.
Aud 80. for six hundred years and more
the history of British legislation IN ifelan,
vas only the history Of abioody, treachetous
Cnd.anl- man defying robber. Aud what i
stitl Inc policy of the British government il
Ireland2 Only spoiation and endless rum
The system Of entails, ahsenteeism, sub>iet
ting. t,thes. aud the whole administration o
the disgusting and horrible nickname .sh
calls Justice, would depopuiate the kingdom
of God. and turn Paradise into desert or
nandemonium. Aud this is all that lrelan
has ever to hope for until the British hoof !
lined from her soil-only famine and ruin
Her mind her heari-nay, even her mnsci
is worn out and wasted in the service c
this great taskmaster of NATIONS.
no we hope that England VIII some da
get weary of her crimes and give back to Ire
land her freedom7 IL IS vain hope. In
history of the world. civilized and barbaroni
tells YOU there is no hope of that The an
hilton of England can be glutted only by tn
con,aeion Of her own lust. Ask Hindoosta
what hone there il from England; ask Al
rhanistan; ask China, who mnst be murdere
because she would not consent to be poisone
hv Rr;,;,h opium: ask Holland, with her wa
II 1872: ask France how England refused /
rive M Malta to The knights, Of Jerusalefr
As she had solemnly promised 70 do, ~
which caused a terrible war, in which million
of human lives xere sacrificed and man
emnires overthrown: ask Denmark; ssk th
SPANISH galleons which she captured leade
with treasure, without even the declaration {
war; ask India; ask massacreed and plunde
"a Nanles: ask the whole history OF niodef
Europe: and it tells You that the bloodie
wars have been owing to the grossest breach
es OF national faith on her part Ask Anne
lea. and let the heroes of the Revolution Il
unquestioued in their graves, while the histt
nv of our Western posts. after the peace
80. answers that England is encreaehinl
crafty, treacherous, and faithless to the Ia
degree Of deprayify; aud thather most 81
cred treaties mean only that she viii kee
them Just so long as II is for her own advsr
tage, and no longer. Even the stipulntioH
Of the Irish Union, which were effected
the force of the bayouet, by bribery an
fraud, we're broken in less than ten years q
ter they received the British seal
About twenty five years ago abe made
great show of relief for Ireland BY enActir
what Was called the Poor law And this NJ
only adding the damning sin Of hypocracy
the catalogue OF Der crimes EngtADd kne
that this Poor Law was no'remedy for Irelan,
She had tried il ~ ho'ne, and !, failed; II vi
avsidahly lawered the price OF wsges Of Il
industrious poor, While II panpsred only il
defence and WAS alike ruInous to industi
and moralltr to the mass SO she was obi
ed 20 ..root It out, and exported ii aero
St Georges Channel, as means Of pacif
ing, for a while, the suffering Irish peasant
with a trick, vain show Of relief What =
the amount Of this poor law7 Simply 70 fe'
a nation upon charitY-soa dole out q Slays