The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1872-12-15

King. tho lord lieutenant Of Ireland, and
the English government opposed it to the
very death. They, would not have it-not
one fetter would they strike on from the
chain that encountered even the Protes9.
ants and the Planters of Ireland. And II
was only when Grattau rose up in the Irieh
Parliament and infested that Ireland should
get back her trade; it was only then
chat England consepted-because there
were City Thousand volunteers armed OUT
side. ~ t
The state of ireland at the time is thus
described: "Such is the constitution that
three millions of good faithful subjects, In
their native land, are excluded from every
trust, power, and emolument In the state
civil and military excluded from all cor
porate rights and immunities; excisdeo
from grand juries and restrained 10
petty iuries; excluded in every d.
rection from every trust, from every incor-
porated society, and from every estaoi!sn-
ment, occasional or fixed, that was lnstitu-
ted for public defence; from the oank,
the university, from the college OF Physi-
clans and from mhat-were not they exciu-
ded ~ asks the writer. "There is no IN
stitution which the wit of man has invent,
ed, or the progI ess Of society has produc:eao
which private charity or pubic mnhi ne
education around ne, for the permanene
relief of age, infirmity and misfortune,
from the participatiou Of the benefits of
| which, on all occasions, the Catholics OF
Ireland were not carefully excluded"
Grattan rose up in the senate, and lifting
up his heroic hand and voice to heaven
| he swore before the God of Justice
| that that should come to an end. The Eng
| lish Government heard him with deter
| mination as great as that of the Irish pa
triot, and swore equally that that should
remain the law. Was it not time to assert
for Ireland her independence MT. Fronae
| claims that England willingly consented to
give up the restrictions on 1rish com
merce- when Grattan proposed it in the
| House. An official of the Government
| named Hussey Bird, rose up, to the aston,
ishment of the Government, and seconded
eternation Of the Government factions by
the unequivocai demonstration OF the Ex-
ecutive Of the Ministerial Bench. Hussey
Bird was enc of the most fascinating men
of the day he, Of whom it was Thought
patriotism was impossible, meved " that
his majesty, that it was not by asy tempe
rary expedients, but by free trade aisne
that this nation is now to be saved from
impending ruin. While they were fight
ing the Government within, Grattan took
4 good care to have the Volunteers drawn
were in their thousands armed men, drill
ed men; and they had their cannon with
them and about the mouths of the guns
they had tied label or card with these
words: "FREE TRADE FOR IRELAND Oh
ELsE-"
II So it happened that Lord North was
obliged greatly against his will to introduce
measures to restore to Ireland her trade
Now, ask, was not Henry Grattan JUST.
fed, seeing that by pointing cannon al
, them it threw off the restriction, when he
, said "This English Parliament will never
. do Justice, and in the name of Ged, now
, that we have our men armed around as
let US demand for Ireland a perfect inde
3 pendence of the people from the Parlia
ment of England, and the rights to make
) whatever Laws that arc most condacive u
: the welfare Of our own people,"
!, 1t 10 perfectly true that Grattan failed
: it is perfectly true that, although that dec
0 laration Of independence was proclaimed
7 by law, and, as Mr.. Fronde observes
t &c Home Rule was tried in Ireland from q;
: to '99, and it was q failure" All this i
r true but why was it 80, my friendsT No
t feet upon this the Irish Parliament dis
t not represent the nation the Irish Parlia
ment consisted of three hundred members
and of these three hundred there were on
! ly seventytwo that were elected by tn
; people; all the others were from % Nomln
alton Boroughs," ae they were called
: had three or four little towns on their es
tates, which towns returned member o
B Parliament, and the poor people who ha'
3 the votes were at the mercy Of the land
: lord, who made the regular Nomina
8 tion," and put up whoever he desired, am
. the people were compelled to vote for hin
: or suffer the consequences. just as in To
, Protestant Church whenever Bishop die
the Queen comes and writes to the clergy
and says you will name such one TO
> Bishop, and then they elect Kim. Onl
I seventy-two members were, in some sense
, representatives of the people. But whor
did they representa- There were nearl
4 three millions of Irishmen in ireland. me
of intellect and of education, in spite {
a all the laws that were made against school
! and colleges for Catholics; there wer
! nearly three millions of Irish Catholics
the land and not man of them had vOt
a even for o member Of Parliament. An
a therefore this wretched Parliament ths
r only represented one-tenth of the natior
, if it was venai and corrupt, it is no dis
}. grace to the Irish people and it is no argu
A ment that they did not know how to gov
\ ern themselves.
! Meantime, the volunteers made the mos
a tremendous mistake, and that was by lei
= ting Catholics in amongst their rank
| 7 haze Lord Shef1ald- Here