Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-01-17


What he demands in the way of
legislation is that the land of Ire
land shall be bought with the ma
tional revenues, and that then the |
present tenants shall have the priv
ilege of buying it of Government on
long time with small instalments, |
and, to facilitate the purchase by
making the land cheap and worth
less, he undertakes to continue his
present comfortable arrangement of
holding it rent-free at the muzzle of
the shotgun. 1t is easy to see that
this is equivalent to giving him the
fee-simple of his land at the expense
of England and Scotland, for if he
cannot or will not pay rent now, ne
could not or would not pay the in
stalIments on his purchase, and
would resist eviction for the nom
payment of it by the same shotgun
methods which he is now putting
in force against the payment of rent.
This is the present condition of
Ireland and its land question. 1t
amounts to every man voting him.
self a farm and backing his vote
with bullet; and we have stated
the question broadly and without
disguise, discarding sentiment and
customary gush because we deem it
necessary to point out to Americans,
North and South, state of things
to which we are approaching and
at which we shall soon arrive if the
sectional agitation still going on is
not in some way brought to an end.
The present condition of Ireland is
the result of centuries of stalwart
rule. The idea has been trodden
into the Irish race, until it is part
of its nature, that the Government
is its enemy, and its one conception
of patriotism is resistance to the
Government. Courts of justice are
with him the mystery of iniquity,
to be baffled and bambooZled by
every device his ingenuity may
suggest; and his substitute for their
arbitration is the shilleleah, and
latterly his shotgun.
Does the Northern stalwart desire
to establish this habit of mind in
Southerners? Does the Southerner
desire to become the irreconcilable,
unreasonable antagonist of all gov
/ eminent? The tendency is that
way in both sections; we mean
with the extreme of both sections.
We have seen how such a quarrel
becomes irreconcilable after while;
is it to become irrecOnciIable with
US? We have seen the wretched
misery it infiicts On both parties ;
are we going with our eyes open to
take that misery on ourselves? We
have seen that, however much
stronger the ascendant party, the
time must come when armed stall
wart despOtism has to end, when
grievance after grievance must be
removed, and alas! we have seen
that the removal of the grievances
does not remove the chronic, inVet-
crate disaffectiOn which those griev-
ances produced. Is history written
in vain? Written, did we say?-is
it transacted in vain before Our
eyes? Will not the Northern stall
Wart, the Southern fire. eater look
at the stage where the drama they
are now enacting is advanced one
act further, and seeing the misera-
BILE, degraded end break up the
play, ring down the curtain before
that catastrophe is arrived at?
We know what the stalwart's
reply would be were this appeal
made to him. lie would say
"Well! if the parallel Is to be fol
lowed out here, if concession is moi
to disarm hatred, if the removal OF
real grievances is to be met by the
creation of imaginary ones, we had
better not begin concession; we haC
better have recourse to the man or
horseback and a strong govern
ment," Such would be their reply
if this appeal could reach them
and such, we fear, will anyway be
their policy. If such men were &C.
cessible to warning, we might warn
them that no such q government
no government of a weaker people
at the despotic will of stronger
has withstOod the furnace heat o.
this nineteenth century. This
writer was born when stalwart rule
was ascendant everywhere Russis
was at once goading and claiming
Poland, England was ruling Ire
land as nation of conquered aliens
Austria was trampling Hungary in
the dust till that dust was muddy
with her blood, France had at last
stricken down the revolution in the
person of its mightiest offspring,
Napoleon-and how is it now with
Russia, England, Austria and
FranneP Russia, scared at the
avenging demon of Nihilism, is try
ing at this moment to make friends
with her lifelong victim, Poland
England has admitted Ireland to
her Parliamentary council, and
finds ireland an obstruction and a
firebrand therel Austria has made
Hungary cOequal in her Govern
ment, and Austria is ruled by Hun
gary rather than rules it; France
oscilIates between Democracy and
NapQlRonism, and the only thing
impossible there is the Bourbon
rule, which was so we'll intrenched
with bayonets and artillery when
the nineteenth century was young.
All these dGspotic Governments
had stronger armies ana RaVies and
means of repression than Grant
would have if he were established
for life at the While House with a
stalWart majority in both Houses,
and all was in vain. Force, how
ever overwhelming, cannot cure the