The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-09-01
IRISH. REPUBLICANS.
Something for Irishmen to Ponder
Over.
A RoUs1NG MEETING AT CITY HALL.

A ROUSING MEETING AT CITY HALL.
That the Irishmep of this city were interest
ed to hear what their countrymen, Mr.. Loo
ney, Judge Morrison, and Gen. lO'B ierne, had
to say to them in reference to the new Irish
Republican movement, was evident last
night by the way they filed City Hall, a large
portion of which was occupied by them, in adj
dtion to large audience composed of Demo-
Gratis as we'll as Republicans, all together pack
ing the hall. The galleries showed large
attendance of ladies. The outside of CITY
Building was prettily decorated with colored
lanterns.
At Sp. M. the Garfield and Arthur Glee
Club, 60 men, took position on the stage head
ed by Chambers band. Almost Immediately
after President Murphy and Secretary Flan-
negan, of the Irish Republican Club, the
speakers. Capt. O'Farrell, and many well
known Republicans took places on the plat
form.
The band played selection and the Glee
Club sang Gin the morning by the bright
light" Chairman Plummer introduced Mr.
w. ii. Looney as President of the meeting,
and that gentleman was received with per-
feet ovation. 1t was several moments before
he obtained chance to speak. All through
his remarks the audience frequently ap-
plauded.
Ms. Looney spoke as follows:
SPEECH OF WILLIAM H. LooNEY
am aRepublican against what may be
termed the logic of association, born of Irish
parents-mingling chiefly with Irish people
blood and a nationality of which am sin
cerely proud, because, expatriated by the out
rage of brutal forcO, Ireland'S sons have gone
abroad and wherever freedoms battles were
fought, they have stood in the front of the hot
test fights and given their blood for the holy
cause of freedom. But these people coming to
these shores have generally allied themselves
mocracy has fallen upon their ears as the
sweetest music, because to them it represents
the foe of those ideas which for 700 years has
loaded their backs with oppression and LAGER
herited those feelings II drank in the spirit of
Democracy with the eager ardor which be-
longs to Irishmen. could see no good in the
Republican party. Its leaders were represent
ed as hostile to my race. But as approached
the years of majority was led to study and
compare the achievements, the tendencies, the
aspirations, and the leadership of the two great
parties in this country. At first the examina-
ton was scarcely candid. My early preiudices
against the Republican party prevented an
impartial canvass of the merits of the two par
ties But point by point as I viewed the rec
ords OF the two great parties, found that to
| be candid and logical and patriotic, 1 must be
Republican. So say tonight that 1 am a
Republican by the irresistible force of logic
As an honest man. claiming fair degree of
intelligence, 1 must be Republican, because
believe in Republican principles and glory in
Republican achievements.
will not trespass upon your time. l will
not enter into the record of the two parties,
but beg your pardon while briefly call at
tention to the great points in the history of the
| Republican party which have attached me to
its ranks, and which inspire my heartiest en-
thusiasm The Republican party had its birth
quarter OF a century ago as protest against
| the spread of human slavery. The Democratic
| party at that time had declared that slavery
| was national and freedom sectional. 1t main
tanned that the great territories should be open
| to the polluting embrace of slavery. This
policy would keep out free labor, and shut out
the millions of acres of public lands to the
millions of people coming from oppressed Ire
| land, from the military despotism of Germany,
and from the down-trodden nations of Europe,
who would come to this country to make
homes for themselves on the bOundlesS
prairies of the West. How can it be possible
that young men who have their fortunes in
! their hands can support party which will
Danish them and millions of poor men from the
free lands of the United States? The 'Repub-
lican party was the protest OF the conscience
and intelligence of the North against this great
outrage upon human rights. Thus at the out
| set the Republican party was married to free
dom, and from that day to this its leaders and
its general policy has been true to that union,
celebrate their golden wedding.
Another point that attracted my attention
was this: In the interest of slavery the
Democratic policy was far from liberal with
&tx<~c< ~rrI~<~ 1y.~I
land but one of the first achievements Of the
Republican party was to pass the homestead
act, which opened every acre of the public
lands to the poor of all nations to make for
themselves homes, almost without money, and
without price will not stop to note the bit
ter STRUGGLE between the party of freedom and
the party of slavery previous to the war.
Beaten at the polls, poisoned by the virus of
slavery, hating freedom in its highest signif-
canoe, welded to the heresies of state supre-
macy, denying to the Federal governmen mt the
power to protect itself, eleven Democratic
states seeded, set up government having
human slavery as its corner stone, and made
war upon the Union. That was a crime, and
the Democratic leaders of the North made it
their crime either by open sympathy with the
Southern leaders, or by their efforts to
paralyze the Lincoln government. There
were Democrats in the loyal army, thousands
of them They were good and true men. But
they were good and true men because they
turned deaf ear to their leaders. Run over
with me the names of the illustrious men who
took part in the national councils during that
bloody and doubtful struggle. On the Repub-
lican side there was the matchless Lincoln, the
martyr venerated today wherever humanity
has hopes and aspirations. There was our own
great Fessenden. There were Sumner and
Chandler, and Morton, and Henry Winter
Davis. and Ben Wade, and S. P. Chase, and
Thaddeus Stevens, and E. B. Washburne, and
Stanton and a host of others who were illus
trious because they were dauntless friends of
the Union. Where was the Democratic pa
triot? Will some one name one who in the
Senate or House during that protracted strug
gle lifted up his voice or gave his vote for one
of the vital measures necessary to keep our
armies in the field and preserve the Union?
Against this galaxy of leaders that have
named, challenge any Democrat present to
place the name or the portrait Of any con-
spicuous Democratic leader of that day.
When as war measure Lincoln issued the
proclamation that struck the shackles from
four millions OF people, the Republican party,
true to the instinct of freedom, applauded the
act Not so with the Democratic leaders: the
few OF them who, up to that time had given
the Union cause their support, made this act
OF emancipation the pretext for deserving the
Union cause and joining the ranks of those
who aided the rebellion by firing upon the
was over, when the mighty conflict was ended
and the question of reconstruction arose, the
Republican party put itself upon record as the
party OF universal suffrage by adding the four
teenth and fifteenth amendments to the Con-
stitution, and by comforting the ballot and
manhood upon million of men whom it had
redeemed from bondage. 1t thereby engrafted
upon the Constitution the undying truths that
all men are created equal and have certain
inalienable rights. But during these times
where were your Democratic leaders? your
Bayards your Humans, your Seymours and
your Hendricks? Will any Democrat answer
me? Or by his silence will be compel me to
answer as a fact in political history that they
opposed with the utmost rancor, and by every
possible device, the abolition of slavery and
the acknowledgements of a race whose backs are
SCARED with the wrong and outrage of two
centuries. They accepted these results only
when it was folly to oppose, and when they
had been accomplished so that they could not
be revoked. When the Republican party gave
freedom to the bondsmen and the ballot to all
men it not only conferred boon upon the
colored races but upon the poor whites of the
South, and upon all men who, with their own
hands and the power that God has given them
must build their own fortunes By abolshing
slavery the Republican party opened up the
rich country of the South to all men who de-