Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-04-30
aTHE IRISH SANS POTATOs." !"
BY THE REV. J. II. ECoB.
81 tell the, thou foolish philanthropist, II is
wicked dollar"

Mean every dollar sent 10 Ireland.
The starving Of Ireland Is n crime, not
misfortune. Every man who sends dol
lar becomes pGrticeps orimiHfs. traYersed
from end 10 enda year ago, and found my
self exclaiming, is It possible that this land
has been scourged once and again with
famine? Why II you but Tickle her with
a hoe, she laughs in haryests." The travel
er through Ireland in midsummer would as
soon think Of being called upon 10 contri-
butte to famine fund for Central New
York. Nothing but wiokedness, some
where, can be at the bottom Of such repeat
ed disasters. Neither the soil, nor the ele-
ments, nor Providence should longer be
made the scapegoat Of this mOnstrous
crime. Eastern Massachusetts,, with her
tough, skinney. obstinate soil, might we'll
appeal to the world for a starvation fund,
and the certificate needed to make her case
aud stir the heart OF charity, would he
few photographs Of her hills, taken any
where between Boston and Plymouth Rock
The same might be said Of almost the en-
tire Stateof Maine, except few River bot
toms. 1t isnot exactly "ahuge untrodden,
haggard country" but you will certainly
find enough savage glaciers, granite noun
tains, unhewed forests, and not many
hNl UWulo ~ ~ gNNs luN AlflhlhH WIN llEI
rich soil, moist. genial climate, aud not
overcrowded population-what business
has she to be living on potatOs, and IL 1t
happen to rain IA little to much, to become
"A nation OF "Sans potatos" crying to the
four quarters Of the globe for relief?
But Ireland has wrongs. Yes, that is an
old story; very lcng story; not very
credible story TO some Of her neighbors, nor
indeed to Ireland herself | trust some
American Green will speedily give us a
short history Of this Irish Question, so that
il We still persist in giving our wicked
dollars we can no longer plead Ignorance,
or the siren voice Of some foolish philan-
throplst, charm he never so wisely. Ire
land has wrongs most grieYiOus wrongs,
and If giving dollars and sending wheat,
ships aud polato-ships would strike at the
root of these things then by all means let
your starvation funds run up to millions in
stead of thousands. Let great Armada
OF fOod-ships invest the Emerald Isle from
Queenstown to Giants CausewAy; for we
have dollars and wheat enough and to spare.
But your dollars aud food ships are simply
keeping the breath Of life in Ireland
that she may be starved again the next
time the annual rainfall exceeds given
number Of inches. It is the old story Of
the artist who would paint Promethus.
| He buys captive in the market, binds him
TO the wheel aud bids u stout slave rack
| him. The artist stands by with palette and
canvas to catch "the fine agony working
| his brow" An attendant is stationed near
with water and restoratives to revive the
victim, that he may be racked again En-
gland is the artist. Her averice has Of late
| reached the pitch of fine art. Ireland is
the victim; the land tenure system, the
stout slave; America the attendant with
restoratives. In the language OF the poem
il not in ITS rhythm, the artist cries out,
"Hal there you black rascal, Land tenure,
/ give the victim another turnl | must have
more dollars. | want finer agony" The
wheel takes another turn; the victim faints.
"Quiok there, you attendant, with your
dollars and foOd-shipsp So we meekly
step toward and revive the 'poor wretch" ="
Then the artist and stout slave fall to
again. Now, hold that this is wicked
business all around: wicked for England
/ in her heartless averice; for the land tenure
system, and all the English, IRISH and
Scottish lords involved in il; wicked for
Ireland that she so tamely, basely submits I;
and wicked for us to dance attendance upon
such a masterpiece Of iniquity, keeping its
vitality upby our foolish philanthropy.
"But wnat will you do? Let people act
ually starve to death ?" shout all the philan-
thropists in a breath. Precisely that Let
ten men starye to death this year, that ten
! thousand may not starve to death in years
to come--that starvatian may beimpossible
hereafter. 1t is better that ten men starve
| TO death than that the whole nation perish.
Bear it in mind, Ireland is starving, not
from the poverty Of the soil, not from pest
H.. rvg
rainfall not from MYSTERIOUS providence,
that convenient pack-horse for mems vii
ainies. Ireland is starving principally be-
cause that stout slave, land tenure is rack
ing her life out that his master, the afore-
saidartist may have a little finer agony. 1t
comes to Just chat at last, as the best of
| Englishmen themselves will tell you. Be-
sides, starvation is not the worst thing that
can befall people, Many things are more
to be lamented than sans potatos, Ireland
with her brilliant and fascinating qualities
of heart and brain, has yet to learn some
thing in the line of the sterner elements of
true national life. Perhaps starvation,
with no food ships in the offing, no wicked
dollars flying to the rescue, might react up
on Irish members Of Parlment, so as to
nut a little 'capita" into their speeches
extract a little Of their blasphemous wind
elouuence impart little of that terrible
life-and-death eaTnestness which men in
stantly recognize as elemental, and to
which they always listen as to the sea, or to
storms, or to earthquakes. The sweet Irish
soul needs little more iron, therefore let
the iron enter into it, Perhaps il starVa-
tion walked throughout the land, silent and
alone, with no rumops of food ships or hint
OF Herald subscriptions, the bishops of
Dublin might possibly hear call for the
five thousand dollars OF Peters pence just
sent to Rome. Has finer Irish bull than
this seen the light for many day. 1t is
barely possible, also, that IL starvation un-
mitigated stared him In the face, the aver
age ITishman might be so sobered that he
would not proclaim feast to all his kith
and kin the moment he discovers that he
has a cabbage or turnip in addition to his
potatos, and In the high old Irish fashion,
Batter the floor TIL the ceiling comes down
Improvidence, shiftlessness. and go-as-you
nlease life are the curse of ireland to day.
A beggary spirit has taken possession OF
her. She will spend more time in begging
a dollar Of her friends than would have
earned the dollar ten times over. This
Needless devil must come out of her. II he
can be starved out, /, for one, vote foI
starvation. Perhaps sans potatos will
weed her OF her folly.
= The 'Congregationalist" confesses 'tC
some surprise that we hear no more about
relief measures IN England" This coy
demure surprise seems to be putting forth
its head, timid as aspiring flower, elsewhere
; than in Boston, The marvel is that ii il
I not bearing in full bloom from nps end Al
: the land to the other. II this signihoan
: fact, that England, who has starved Ire