The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1871-01-01
Dean Swift.

The year 174l reminds US of the death of
Dean Swift. which took place in this year
He deserves to be mentioned here, because
his writings had some bearing on the pros
poets and condition of Catholics, especially
those of Ireland. He loved his country,
and in an age when too many were ready
to betray it, he had candor and sense
enough to plead for justice in its behalf
But he might as we'll have appealed to ynl-
lures and whirlwinds; the interests OF Ire
lands oppressors were concerned IN her
absolute suhiecton, and a fixed opinion
prevailed among them that the Irish chung
to their eligion as an " hereditary pledge
of luminosity to British settlers" The Eng
lish Govern ment, therefore, systematically
treated Ireland as IL conquered country.
They made il TO England what Poland Is to
Russia, and deputed every ONCE IN 'he aa
Protestants carefully instructed IN the arts
of oppression. Year after year Lord Lieu,
| tenants and SecretsRies of State In Ireland
represented to Parliament the necessity OF
strengthening the Protestant interests, an
expression thatimpiisa the dtscSur ;H; men,
dition of the native Irish. An Irish wooden
man rlfactory had been established about
the year 100; but an act was lmmediately
passed which prohibited the expectation OF
Irish wooden articles to any country except
England. In this manner the earliest at-
at INDUSTRY tLbSA SpAANS
merely checked, but smothered. ne
penal laws against Catholics, as col,
lected by Madden, numerous, black anu
appalling as they are, need to be supple
ment.d by thousand details, for they
family exhibit the hypocrisy, selhshness,
and cruelty with which the material as wei
as the spiritual life of Irish Catholics was
habituaily cramped, poisoned and stuffed
by hands which should have ministered
support, and authorities which should have
protected and pacifed. The Dean of ST.
Patrick's had the courage to oppose the
English policy, and to call upon ms coun-
trymen to meet the injustice of the sister
isle by rejecting all furniture and wearing
apparel that was imported from England,
ana thus lend timely aid to their own
manufactures In his "Drapier's Letters"
he levelled IL blow, which was long re-
mem bercd, at an Infamous piece OF govern
ment iobbing. The copper coinage of Ire
land had long needed renewal and various
petitions had been forwarded to England
in the hope OF obtaining new issue OF
conner CONS. These entreatIcs were uni
formly disregarded, until in l123 an Eng
lish Spectator named William w ood'
having ingratated himself WIN luz
Duchess of Kendall, one of the Kings IA
vorites, and having promised her snare :
in his gains, secured by her means royal
patent authorizing him to coin halipence
and farthings to be used in Ireland. put SO
much alloy is said to have been mlxea VIII WIN
the metal, that coins to the professed
amount of E1Os,OO were estimated as
worth less than ssooo. Swift exposed the
transaction in his famous Letters" en-
ployinS with surprising skill those weapons
of sarcasm and humor which were peeu-
liarly his own. All Ireland was in n, a fer
ment with this we'll timed squib. The au-
thor was extolled even beyond his deserts
Pope celebrated his fame as the eh man VINO VINO
bound - the shopkeepers, the very fisher
women, the boys who sold apples and nn At,
in the street rejected with scorn WOODS
halfpence )" the people in masses voted the
patentees and their acco1nplices the enemies
Of Ireland; and the ministers naarm 4hO were
Heseian and Hanoveran troops might have
compelled poor Irishmen to pay halfpence
enough, they could hardly constraln them
at the point of the bayonet to accept money
they did not want. SodOwn went the sign
of King George and the royal arms from
many a tavern door, while the Drapierss
Heal, amid shouts of ragged peasants and
urchins, was hoisted to swing in its stead.