, 1880-12-22

0nSAhseb &AAL0 49,
ture might have been removed long before,
and removed. long before without the sacri-
flee OF more than thousand millions ster-
ling in money,an more than a sacrifice of
halt a million of human lives. tCheers.) If
these tremendous events come upon couu-
tries and curse their populations by reason
mainly OF the ignorance OF the people, of
their unacquaintance with political success
Is it not commendable thing that there
should be clubs. if clubs be an adequate
and q good mode of spreading political
opinion among the people (Hear. hear.)
And stepping q little further, leaving
America and it's great Civil war, with its
grand results, we come to our own country
and we behold now one portion, and not
an Insignificant portion, of one of the
three Kingdoms which should form the
United Kingdom-we find Ireland suffer
ing, not from anything that the existing
Legislature has done. not from anything
that has been done even during the reign
OF the present monarch, but suffering from
things that have been done any time within
the last two centuries and if our FORE
fathers had understood these questions
even as well as we now understand them,
these evils could never have.'been inflicted
upon the Irish people. (Cheers') The
monarchs and the statemen withip the
last two or three centuries have done a
great deal to coniscate the soil of Ireland.
They have planted in that country great
proprietors, who went over from England
and Scotland-mainly from England
and who Were settled there as an Eng-
llsh garrison in q conquered country
There was no attempt ever made to win
over the conquered to contentment with
their new political relations with England
no attempt whatsoever to make them
feel that the English power, even though
1t was dominant, was still just and equal
and merciful in the treatment OF the Irish
people. They were an uncivilized people
in those days, and they were treated with a
barbarity of which we feel ashamed when
we know that our fathers were in some
way connected with it, and we all regret
Il trust every man in England, l hope
the mosi obtuse and conservative, Will now
regret-that there ever existed in Ireland
o code which we call the Penal Laws, by
which a system of unmitigated and cruel
persecution was practised upon the catho.
lie native population of that island.
(Cheers.) What are the results in our
day 7 1t has been said by the same high
authority that I before quoted "a laugh
that a great part of the troubles of Ireland
came from its being surrounded by a
melancholy ocean. (Great Laughter) Well
/ believe oil islands are surrounded by
some kind of an ocean (great %laughter),
and all oceans that I have yet seen wear at
times q very melancholy aspect (renewed
laughter) ; but it is not that the soil OF
Ireland ls not green enough or that the
ocean is not prolific enough 10 hsh. 10
fact there is nothing in the geographical
position of Ir sland that 10 the slightest
degree accounts for the trouble which Ire
land has been to itself and to this country,
with which it is uow politically allied.
But we find that, as q consequence OF a
policy which we all now regret and con.
denim, Irish patriotism, as apart from what
is called patriotism 10 this country, has con-
sisted to a large extent 10 hatred OF Protes.
tantism, hatred Of landlords, and hatred OF
England. II the English people bad been
informed, if they had been capable within
the last two centuries of judging fairly OF
these matters, there cannot be q doubt that
il, ia addition to this, the Government had
been merciful and Just to Ireland, ireland
would be as ,closely welded at this mo-
ment to England a. Scotland is tapplauieb
and il would be as difficult to raise the