Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-05-14
THE IRISH QUESTION.
Lecture by John Dsvoy, an Irish Nation
alist

John Dewey. an Irish Nationalist, iectufeo
to large audience at the Congregations
Church last evening. r. M. Clarken pre-
sided. Mr.. Dewey is an earnest. easy and
very interesting speaker. He makes no elo-
cutiouarv attempts. but talks huently. feel,
ingly, aud in the simplest language to Be
chosen. but with grace and an evident knowl'
edge of the power of fit words. His subjec;
was the Irish land and national question. II
may be prefaced by saying that his lecture
showed him to believe the two inseparable
and only temporarily distinct. He believes
il. an ultimate Irish republic and in the
justics of the claim of his party which de-
mands a separation of Ireland from England,
freedom Of the state from all churchly H.
f1enee, political equality and independence
Of all the Irish people and the burial Of all
feuds and sectarian hates now existing be-
tween classes. He referred to the popular
cry that Ireland is unfit for self government.
and that her people ere thriftless and i'm
provident. He asserted that this is fsllacy.
and true Of them tly as it might be true OF
any other people crcumstanced as they are,
but made a vigorous defense OF their claims
TO independence aud their Inherent capacity
to govern themselves to encourage educatlon,
to foster manufacture, to sustain LIBERALISM
| in politics, freedom OF conscience ana TO
take a place among the free nations
| of the world, There were many grave evils
in the Irish system prior TO her conquest by
England. but the same in greater degree ex-
| listed in all Europe when the masses were
ignorant and slavsh, while at that same time
| in Ireland the people were freemen, and
every man who trod the soil owned some of
it. Rent was an unknown word, and only
tribute was paid to the ruling chief, chosen
Nv the full votes OF the people. just as now
salaries are paid to officials. The word rent
was brought over by S5ronghow and SUISSE
| onentlv by Henry Ii. The English brought
With them the feudal system, and but for
that the Irish land system would to-day
stand as the model for the world. England was
not then a manufacturing country; the pro-
| fession of the feudal Lords was that of arms,
which brought with it the forced possession
of lands of Others and the recognition of the
| dgeIiers on tbs soil as vassals and tenants.
| So the struggle between the English and
! the Irish began over the soil, and so it has
continued. Bat the feudal system was not
so rad in Ireland as in England, for the con-
queror assimilated with the Irish, and thus
some of mis- harshness was Modified. After
the reformation began the bitter contest be-
tween the colonists, who were Ptotestants,
and the home people, who were Catholics,
thus preventing assimilation, and the
English Government fostered these Sec
tartan hates in order to keep up the
dissension that kept the people too busily
engaged cutting each others throats to
see that England was fleeing both factions.
Then came the English, who as the price for
garrisoning the country were given the lands.
Their title, and that of their descendants, has
ever been disputed by the Irish, and ever
will be. He charged on this system many an
artificial famine, and the killing and slavery
Of thousands, more than can be laid at the
door of any despot within the same period.
But If it is to be admitted that the English
title to the soil is good. and not that OF the
robbeT, then it remains that their use or
abuse of the system has been outrageous, and
no more scathlng denunciation Of it has ever
been made than by an English pen, that Of
John Stuart Mill. Twelve hundred landlords
claim to own the soil of ireland, SO far
as English law can give ownership. The
tenants are only such at will. So the Irish
farmer is IN constant uncertainty and doubt
as to his tenure and abiding place. Two or
three hundred Of these men can at any time
create famine by raising the rent. AL the
famines in Ireland have been landlord fam
ines. That of 1877 was such, for that year
only the potato crop failed, and the food pro
duction was twice the amount of the demand
famine. Two years ago partial famine &C.
CURED, and it gave point to the system Of
France. There the Government, whatever
it be, has always held it to be its highest
duty to provide for the wants of the People
Two years ago the French found their wheat
crop would be 1000, 000 quarters short. In
mediately the Government ordered to be
purchase abroad exactly that amount
of wheat to be put on the
rat tbck tha laloripr ole
should not suffer by the advance in the price
of wheat. Two years ago they saw in Ire
land that there would he crop failures
From July to October there was constant
rain, and the lands were naked and the crops
failed, or at the best were very seriously
damaged. The Government was appealed to
to interfere between the landlords and the
people and give the latter opportunity to
live and pay rent-to step in and prevent
eyictions. or else distress would follow.
Disrael in response. read the Irish lecture
on their want of thrift and improvidence,
and said that in time OF plenty they should
have provided for the rainy day, and for the
Government to interfere would be violation
of one of its cherished principles OF polit.
ical economy. So the farmers OF the west
of Ireland went abjectly to the land
lords and pleaded for abatement of rent,
not for any of the things the Land League
thereafter asked for. The landlords did not
consent, and il was well for human progress
that they did not, else the Land League and
the present awakening had never been. For
il is now clear the only hope for Ireland is
the taking of the settlement of her own great
questions into her own hands. Most of the
landlords refused the tenants request, then
came revival of the foolish old plans Of
masking and midnight marching, and threat
| ening men suspected as about to take the
places Of the evicted. Had that gone on long
| bloodshed would have followed, and the Gov.
eminent have been given a pretext for radical
action, and the cause of the Irish land ques-
| ton and Irish nationality would have been
| indefinitely postponed. That it was not is
/ due to Michael Davitt, man greatly misrep-
resented and much misunderstood. Because
/ he was once Fenian he has been suspected,
| and the integrity OF his purposes doubted.
| The speaker knew him, his aims and hopes
and desires WE'LL and knew them to be pure,
! patriotic and just, and 10 the interest of
! human liberty. Davitt is almost alone en-
! titled to the credit of preventing the conflict
! that seemed imminent. He secuted the plans
1 Of the farmers, aud showed them they could
4 not resist by force of arms. The Irish were
unorganized in military sense, and had
! learned by hard experience that they cannot
| hope to strike the blow for liberty until Eng
! land is engaged in foreign war. Davitt
J
| stand out manfully and openly for what they
| believe to be right, and appeal to the world
| to justify their claim that the land of Ireland
! belongs to the people. If they did not by that
| plan get all they asked, they might at least
| secure concessions, and meanwhile educate
the people upto higher plane of citizen
ship. Still, some misunderstood Davitt, and
/ thought him only a madcap-a reyolutionist.
/ But the result Of his doctrines was
| the Land League. and now no more
does the tenant go bare-headed and slavishly
| to beseech his landlord, but goes openly,
with right in his hand, and debates his issues
with him, man to man. Personal resistance
has had its effect, and has checked the carry
! ing out of oppressive and obnoxious laws and
awakened the sympathy OF the enlightened
of the world. The landlords pocket is the
weakest place in the whole system, and there
the attack and the appeal were made. Two
years ago the Irish farmer and agricultural
laborer were politically dead. voting at the
! will OF the landlord and trembling under the