The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-06-20
From Our Own Correspondent
OUR IRISH LETTER.
DUBLIN, May 25th, 1875.


DUBLIN May 25th, 1875.
The question of closing public houses on
Sundays is just now occupying an unusual
share of attention. l mentioned in q recent
letter that Professor smyth's bill for effecting
this very necessary reform, although supported
by the vast majority of the Irish people and
of their representatives in Parliament, was
opposed, q few weeks ago, for the second time
by the present Government, and /" talked ont"
by one of the champions of the publican in
terest in England. Since then efforts have
been made to get it on again in the House Of
Commons this session, and 1 believe thatsthe
abruptly adjourned debate stands q good
chance of being resumed in that assembly on
Wednesday, the I'd of June. From the decla-
rations of the Government on the last occasion
on which it was discussed, it is thought pro-
bable that they will not oppose it again on
condition that the large towns and cities in
Ireland be exempted from Incorporation. Evil
IDENTIFY, if this change were made in the mea-
sure, it would be emascnlated. The large
towns are precisely the places where Sunday
closing is most needed; and this view was
very strongly expressed at q large and very
influential meeting at the Mansion House here
on Friday last, at which the Lord Mayor (Ai-
dermsn cSwiney) presided. Other meetings
to support the bill in its integrity are an
nouuced to come off in other parts of the oouu-
try.
The publcaus, on the other side, have not
been idle but through the over-cleverness OF
their general secretary-one Michael Dwyer,
who formerly owned and edited in Dublin an
anti-Irish organ called the Catholic Telegraph
they have come decidedly to grief in their first
move. When the Sunday closing bill was re-
Gently about to come before the House of Com
mons, they put their names to memorial to
Disraeli drawn up by Dryer. In this docu
ment occurs,the following passage:
eve respectfully ask you to consider the
effect likely to be produced on the minds of
the working population in Ireland by the en-
acting by the Imperial Parliament of law
[Sunday- closng] far more oppressive upon
them than any Irish coercion Act ever yet
passed. Coercion Act which, instead Of Affect
ing a mere handful of MIscREANTs " would be
directed against the bulk of the people. Very
likely, if such law were passed, we would
find some of the parties now active in its pro-
motion, ready to take advantage OF the wide
spread discomfort sure to be evoked by the at
tempt to enforce it, in order to cast popular odiu
upon the Imperial Parliament and Government,
and to further their own selfish schemes at the
expense of the country's peace and welfare.
Here it will be observed, is an attempt to
work upon the anti-Irish prejudices of the
Government. The very language of the sup
porters of coercion is used. Well, some clever
fellow-the Secretary of the Sunday CLOSING
Association, suppose-got this extract print
ed in huge and flaming placarGs, in which he
drew the inference that the mass of the Irish
people against whom, of course, the Coercion
Acts enacted) were held forth "miscreants"
by the publicans and the placards, headed
In the biggest letters with the words "The
coercion Act-Irish Miscreants," were posted
on every dead-wall in every city, town and
village in the country. The effect has been
wonderful. The pnblicans dare not show
themselves in public. Last Sunday they tried
20 get up meeting in Cork to protest against
'ne sunday-closiDg bill, and pretended that it
was workingmen's meeting. But it had
scarcely been constituted when the National
ISIS put the whole phalanx to the rout, smash
Cd the platform, apd then held a meeting
themselves, at which the publicans were de-
"ounced as traducers of the country. can
remember no more effective plaosrd than that
"nich brought about this catastrophe; and
D"yer, who drew up the obnoxious memo
.i"i' mas got into serious trouble, as many of
the parties whose names are attached to it are
thorough Nationalists themselves, and doubt
Tess signed it without scanning it's contents.
The name of the Catholic University of Ire
land will be honorably associated with the
new Arctic expedition. One of the four medi-
cal officers accompanying it is DR.. Coppinger,
VI this city, who only two or three years since