Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-10-28
IRISH LEADERS.
Interview with ParnelI In KilmaIn-
ham JaiI-Bfs View of the Arrests
MIR. SuIIIvan's CrItIcIsms, Etc.

| w nat 6utCb Will your aIr6Sb nave Ou Tie
| policy OF the League g''
Mr.. Parnell-Taken alone my arrest would
not have necessitated any change in the
| policy laid down by the National Conven-
| tion, as had been able to perfect the ma
chinery for carrying out that policy; but the
subsequent arrests of the leading members
| of the Executive and of the leaders in the |
country practically deprives us Of the power
| OF carrying out the resolutions of the con-
vention. as the details necessarily would |
have required the greatest care and atten- |
| tion of the different heads of departments Of
the Central Executive. These gentlemen |
| being now imprisoned, 1t is impossible to |
| supply at short notice successors to them |
| who are capable and experienced enough |
for the difficult and complicated task OF test |
| ing the land act. The Executive, therefore, |
felt obliged completely to abandon that por- |
| ton of the resolutions OF the convention |
| which directed them to make this test, and |
insthed of a more moderate policy the Exc
| cutive were constrained to adopt the Oft |
recommended and bolder one of general
strike against paying rent
Correspondent-Do you believe that the
farmers will take your advice and refuse to
pay rent?
Mr.. Parnell-I think that they will to a
| great extent We must recollect that fully
| half of the Irish farmers cannot hope to OBJ
tain any benefit from the act, even though
| It fulflls the expectations of it's most san
| guine admirers. First. All leasehOlders who |
| entRred into leases previous to 1870, num-
| bering over a hundred thousand, are not
benefited. Second. We have dairy farmers
| and other tenants who have entered into
| consulted holdings" since 1S47, who, hav-
ing made no Improvements worth mention
| ing, would practically have little interest in
| their holdings. Third. We have tenants on
great estates whose rents are not higher than
| the standard which would probably be
adopted by the court as fair rent. Lastly,
| there are small tenants sunken In arrears to
| their landlords and debts to shopkeepers. !
The last class would, l think, obtain con-
siderable reduction of rent from the court,
but they would not reap much benefit, since |
they would be compelled to sell their new
interests in order to pay off these arrears Of
debts.
Correspondent-Yo think, therefore, that |
| these tenants will hold out against the land |
| lords?
Mr.. Parnell-Well, the training which the |
people have had in the past two years In a |
modified form of strike against rent has, 1 |
hope, prepared them for the greater exer
| tion now required. II the farmers stand |
| firm in this strike for one short year they |
! must inevitably bring the government and |
| the landlords to their knees. This fight is |
nothing more than question Of money and |
| courage, and, as Mr.. Gladstone intended In |
any case to dragoon the country, it is just |
| as well JQaG the COuuGTy buOulQ RcG bOu0
adequate results In return In the shape Of /
| free land.
CorrespOndent-You are accused Of hav- |
| ing melted the people to acts of intimida- |
tion. Do you objectto answering this charge? |
Mr.. Parnell-The charge is false. | was |
always very careful to avoid anything which |
! could be construed into an incitement to |
acts of intimidation or violence. 1t is some |
what remarkable that according to the war
rants these offeDses charged against me |
must have been committed IN Dublin, and |
must have been contained IN the speeches |
| delivered by me at the weekly meetings of |
| the League. The speeches were by far the |
most moderate of any have delivered since |
the commencement Of the movement. The |
principle on which the government is pro- !
ceeding seems to be this-that any advice |
or recommendation given by me or other |
leaders of the movement to the tenant |
farmers or laborers is intimidation. In |
other words, the way in which they are |
now putting the coercion act In
force is a most absolute abrOgation of
| the right of freedom of speech,
| discussion and meeting which ever obtained
in any country. In taking this course the
! government has practically rendered 1t i'm
possible for the farmers either to test or,
with safety, to use the land act. L had
| ALWAYS been one of those who believed 1t
possible to use the act In such a way as to
| secure substantial benefits for the agrlcul- |
| tural classes of Ireland. l opposed the
more extreme League party, who desired to
reject the act entirely at the recent conven-
| tion but was firmly convinced that the act
| could only be used safely in an organized |
aud systematic fashion, and that If the far
mers were left without OrgaI !Z ltiOn or as
sistance in advance the result would be, as
| in the case of the act Of 1870, disappoint-
ment.
SULLIVAN AND PARNELL.
Mr.. A. NJ. Sullivan continued his interview
| with the New York Herald correspondent
| Sunday. Referring to his relations with
Mr.. ParnelI, he said: 81 have always serious
| lY differed from him on what | hold to be
the impolicy of not taking the English peo-
pie in a more friendly and cousiderate way
| and not discriminating between the ruling
| classes OF England and the mass of the |
English people. But any such difference |
never shook my belief that the Irish people |
never had at their head a man of more |
| thorough devotion, and although 1t may be |
that he would be driven to despair Of extrf- |
eating himself or the movement from some |
| possible complication, yet sure am as l am |
of life that he would never think of retreat |
ing from fear or with view to his own
| safety"
| Correspondent-Do you think that the |
American branches have hampered the ac-
| tion of the home League9
| Mr.. Sullivan-l have always considered 1t |
| a serious embarrassment and danger to Mr.. |
Parnell and his executive in Dublin that a |
section of the American branches were |
| always trying to force his hand in parti- |
cular direction. The men who supplied the |
| funds in so large degree, as our enthusias
tic countrymen over the water do, may very |
| fairly claim right to have their counsels |
| weighed by the people at home. What l |
| objected to always was that in some OF /
| their kilograms to the convention they In |
leFc cfad In fnnr hA or4f In ark{
cular line, even intimating that they would |
cease subscribing unless their views domi- |
mated the resolutions of that body.
Correspondent-What effect do you think |
| the latest developments will have on the |
home rule question?
Mr. SulliVan-First, there will probably l
| come a period of dreadful conflict between |
the Irish people and the government. /
apprehend that the coming winter will be a
| very desperate one, and that we have year
| or two OF very serious times ahead. But /
when this storm shall have blown over the
struggle will not only have convinced the
English penple that a radical change must
be made in the mode of governing the Irish
people, but will bring them to concede some
| sort of home rule for Ireland. There are
numbers of thoughtful men In England,
thousands | might say, who are every day
coming to the conclusion that this sort Of
thing cannot go on forever. they WILL ere
very long, make IuelT mark SO cOupieJely
on the public opinion of England that the
change | refer to will become inevitable; so
that, while deplore the near future, which
| am panied to think likely to be so terrible,
maintain that after the storm will come
not only calm, but prosperity and security
for both countries.
Correspondent-You mean without total
separation?
Mr.. Sullivan-Certsinly, without total
separation. Even at the present moment of
utter evaporation In Ireland, II the Irish
people were polled by secret ballot on the
subject Of total separation or Of fair home
rule arrangement, believe that a large ma
iority would vote for the latter. But if ever
Ireland were driven into conflict, or IL, In
a moment Of evaporation and passion, they
were driven to strike at all, they would
strike for total separation. This is con-
tingency which those Of US who Joined in
the home rale mevement ten years ago have
ever Loyalty and faithfully done our best to
avert.
Archbishop CrOke, whose action has
excited so much interest in Irish politics,
is 81 years old. He was educated at the
endowed school of Chareville, county