Daily Republican., 1881-10-19
Irel~uA Tor Irish men.

There seems to be no improvement O
the Irish question, aud We doubs whetll
or there ever will be until Irish are al
lowed to govern Irishmen in govern
ment of their own or unless they ar
permitted to have legitimate share il
their own government. The Lresen
troubles have remained 80 long and in
cressed to such an extent that it wi,
require cool heads upon both sides o
the Argument to prevent collision be
tween the people and tae soldiers. The
feelings of the Irish people are wrought
up to such y desperate pitch against the
soldiery, that it is more than merely
probable that the latter would be glad
70 have the opportunity TO open fire
upon the people, fer they have not only
been insulted but often severely NAL
treated by the mobs that they have
been compelled to disperse. They have
seldom been permitted to use their
power either against insult or maltreat-
ment, and it cannot be supposed that
they feel very smiably toward their
enemies. The one great thing the Land
Leaguers have to fear is general ris-
ing Of the people and that is an event OF
always possible occurrence. The feel
ing against the English, their soldiers
and constAb ulary, of whom there are
thirty-tive thousand quArtered in Ire
land, Is at fever heat, and collision
between even a small body of troops
and citizens might end only in = gem
eral insurrestion. The English Gov
eminent is Sighting now to crush out
all opp position in Ireland, and the Land
League to crush out English rule in
Ireland. Thus far the League has had
the best OF N, as it has united Irish,a n
In commoE cause as they were never
before united. and they have pursued
methods Of warfare which If not de-
fensib!e, have been at least most eff
cient. Their chance of success lies
wholly in the continuance of their old
tacticS for if they once meet armed
force by armed resistance. they will be
swept down by English guns like grass
before the scythe Civil war at the
best and for the h9liest Of causes is to
be dreaded, but it was never more to be
dreaded tkan 1t new is in Ireland, where
the forces of the government are against
the people. and where the people are
unarmed and upiisci plined. A cival
war in ireland would simply nean
human slaughter in Its worst forms and
the British Government as we'll as the
League leaders should leave no means
untried to prevent its occurrence.
The result of such a war would not
be doubtful. The Irish would be sub.
dued with terrible slaughter no doubt
for they are brave people and would
fight until the last, but they cannot un-
armed aud undisctplined as they are
cope with tie fully armed and perfectly
drilled soldiers of the English govern
ment. Their situation after wards would
NO doubt be worse than before, but
their spirits would still be unbroken.
They would be only conquered by su-
perior force but not sub lued. There
would be an increased bitterness
of feeling that would only make the
gulf wider between themselves and the
British government. In this unfoitu-
nate struggle the English forget one
thing. Ireland to-day is not the Ire
land OF a century ago. She has protited
by her adversities and she is more in
telligent and her people have a more
extended and better defined views of
government than they ever had before,
and this intelligence sympathetically
extends to all the nations of the world.
As we'll might the French a1d English
be expected to live together peacea bly,
under one government as to expect such
thing of the Irish and the English
The Irish are different race of people
and require a government peculiarly
their own, and there will never he a
fraternity Of feeling between the Irish
and their oppressors until they have a
government of their own. This fact
might as we'll be acknowledged by the
English government. The latter has
kept Ireland in subsection for hundreds
Of years, only to keep them as vassals
and dependent subjects. The land has
become possessed by the English aris-
tocfacy, and whole counties have been
turned into hunting parks for English
Lords, while the Irish peasantry are al.
lowed the privilege Of eking out a mis-
erable and scanty subsistence, half the
time on the verge Of starvation. The
world haH grown too enlightened to
permit such state of affairs to exist
without protest.
We say again that Irishmen should
rule Ireland, Let them make their
own government and let them build as
they desire and best know how to suit
their own tastes and meet their own
wants. If they rise to sublime heights
in the science of government, let them
rise of their own accord, volition and
enterprise; if they fall let them fall by
themselves without being knocked
down the hill by a stronger and on vi
GUS foe. Ireland is not populous it is
true. The half Of her population has
been driven by oppression TO America.
Many would return again if she had
government of her own. But with her
five millions of population remaining at