Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-12-13
O'CONNOR IN MINNEAPOLIS,

O'CONNOR IN MINNEAPOLIS.
A Splendid Reception Given Him Last
Evening-An Eloquent Address.
The procession formed on Second street
promptly at Z o'clock and proceeded, headed
by a platoon of sixteen policemen, Sidwell's
band, and consisted of a large number of the
members of the various Irish societies OF the
city to the Nicollet house, from whence they
escorted Mr.. O'Connor to Market hall, where
upon his walking up the aisle, cheers from en-
thusiastic Irshmen made the hall ring. The
stage deserves special mention. 1t was hand
sornely decorated by the Ladies' Land League
in green and yellow, at the left and in the
rear were the notices, "The land for the
people and Ireland for the Irish," and at the
right aIreland must be Free" and "God save
Ireland" A beautiful green Irish flag with
the harp of Erin in the centre, was at the
right front of the stage with the stars and
stripes. In the upper centre was handsome
banner of the st. Mary's Total Abstinence
society. Over the centre, from right to left,
was beautiful festooned arch with the mot
to beneath, ga united Ireland"
While under these was portrait OF Par
nell and Erin's harp, worked in green, with
an ivy entwined around the strings.
The platform was occupied by Mayor Rand,
members of the city council, Rev. T. M.
Riley, officers of the land league, many prom
inent citizens aud four beautiful girls dressed
in white, whose office it was to make the
floral presentation. Sidwell's brass band from
the balcony in the rear played Paddy o. Rafferty,,
which was followed by potpouri. Aid:
Glenn called the meeting to order. stating that
on behalf of the Irish societies and the Irish
people of Minneapolis he would give Mr.
O'Connor q thousand welcomes. "Cheers."
He then introduced Mayor Rand with q
neat compliment and he was greeted
with cheers. He began by thanking the
chairman for the compliment. he said If he
had ever uttered one word for the ameliora-
| ton of the evils of the Irish side, he assured
| his hearers it was prompted from the inner
most impulses Of his patriotic heart. He was
| from long line of descendants who were
| reared in old New England, those states which
had felt at one time the tyrannical, relentless
| iron hand which was now grinding Ireland.
He spoke hopefully of the agitation being
prosecuted by the Irish people. He said he
remembered when agitators freed the slaves of
the south. He said God speed the agitation
| which he verify believed would end in the ulti-
mate freedom of ireland. He then introduced
was greeted with rounds of applause and
cheers. Mr.. O'Connor began by Speaking of
| Mayor Rand's allusion to the question of agi-
tation. He said the advocates of the OPP
pressed were always considered disreputable
until he is successful. He said the name of
the city of Minneapolis was familiar to him
| from one or tWo facts. In Ireland there were
gIeat many millers. He met one miller in
Galway who said he did not object to wheat and
Anna Init 10
it too bad that they should bring fonr and
wanted him TO- Connor) in parliament to place
tax upon imports, thereby protecting the
millers at home. And another incident, the
Governor of the state sent cablegram to
the National Land League, stating that the
legislature of Minnesota had passed resolu-
ton expressing sympathy with Ireland. An
ignorant English journalist cried: "Where
is Minnesota?' But, said the speaker, upon a
steamer at Liverpool he had noticed positive
proof that the Englishmen would soon learn
where Minnesota was. On this steamer
he found a large number of emigrants
bound for Minnesota. (Cheers.) The speaker
continued that the English nobleman respects
no one but himself. He gave back to his
tenants portion of their rent in order that
they might keep them from emigrating to
America. There are now in England large
tracts of land lying idle, which were being
offered by the landlords to the tenants with
out penny taxation, but they would not take
it. There were thousands of acres in that
condition. The speaker thought this fact
was matter of great encouragement.
Speaking of coercion he said that Irish land
lordism had been tried, convicted and SEN
fenced to be hanged, and was the legitimate
out-growth of that infamous act. It was like
the nearly defunct English lord taking glass
of water adultered with whisky to keep up
his spirits. He said that this very act Of
bringing American wheat and -four into Great
Britain was breaking the aristocratic back of
the coercionists. (Applause.) The speaker
was very apt and illustrated his lecture with
many humorous anecdotes, which kept the
large audience in the most cheerful and even
enthusiastic spirits, He said the land league
agitation was leading to the freedom of
Ireland. England was growing weary of the
contest. She has 10000 soldiers in Ireland
backed by $4,000 policemen in disguise. It
takes 10000 soldiers to keep 5000, 900 Irish
men in order England can't stand the ex-
pense. She will succumb. The game was
not worth the trouble. England is afraid, ac-
cording to many of her so-called statesmen,
that if she granted the Irish liberty she would
have other countries upon her back at the in
slant the act went into effect England may
not loose the United States, but she will send
kilograms of coincidence and of sympathy at
the public expense and shed tears of hypocra-
cy, because she is afraid of the United States.
He quoted Wendell Phillips who said Ireland
bad bound England over to keep the peace
and the statement ELECTED uproarous cheers.
He said England was getting tired, but the
Irish were not wearying. They we're as fresh
as ever. They had been fighting the struggle
for 700 long years upon hundreds of battle
fields, scaffoIds and jails. Ireland has been
fighting the struggle not for day or a
year or generation, but for seven hundred
years on thousand battle fields, on a
hundred thousand scaholds, and in million
cells, and she was still unconquerable. If 700
years does not tire out Ireland while seven
years wearies England, what will be the re-
suits? 1t is perfectly plain that to the Irish
men of to-day was reserved the glOrions final
stroke. Now, gentlemen, let us make that
stroke. 1t wont require very long effort.
He spoke of the action taken by the English
government during the late rebellion, and said
Gladstone was the man who investigated the
action and was responsible for the
deeds of the Merrimac. Some people said
the Irish were very ungrateful to Mr.. Glad
stone, who had given them the land act, but
did he do this or was he forced to give it?
Most emphatically the latter. MIR. O'COnnOr