, 1881-07-10

Ireland as Seen Through Amer
ican Spectacles.
How Outrage Stories Are Manu-
factured.
Public Meetings Broken Up by
Dragons.
To the Editor Of The Chtea1o Tribune.

No''A. ltc!alll. June @S.-hn0Wtng lila
many OF your readers are watching with
:: 1eelnG of deep soIicitude the stirring event
+ TRANSFERRING in ireland, and that it is 4 com
| mon thing to draw improper conclusions A.
to facts, owing to meagrc opportunities o
correspondents, it occurred to he that
little Of my own experience and the con
illusions drawn might not be uninerestins
TO them. No country IN the world has bcel
, | 50 much written about as Ireland, yet le
actual condition is known and realized b1
few who have not been there and minglc,
freely with the lower classes Of her people
10 no spot on earth are tile eyes of the wort
turned so inquiriltgly, yet every mail bears
cuMbrous mass OF ''news" so false and &
exaggerated Us to mystify instead of enlght-
cn tile understanding. l have been here four
weeks, and, though never worked harder, l
am Just beginning to realize that
THE IRISH QUESTION IS VERY COMPLICATED
/ ONE,
and that whoever writes from hearsay or from
Il casual glance at the country is liable, yes,
almost sure, to fall into error.
Besides making the acquaintance of many
lawyers. editors, and active businessmen, 1
have travelled extensively i'll the country and
visited hundreds OF families, both of the
tenant and the laboring classes; have seen
them ut their toll early and late; l have en-
teretl their wretched huts as they were par
taking Ut their scanty meals; have talked
| Will hundreds Of ilen, women, and chill
dren; and such condition Of affairs rs cx-
lists in Ireland can only be understood By be-
lnk seen, and "staid WITH" and studied
Any tourist, any traveller, any newspaper
correspondent can truly say l.
THE PEOPLE ARE IN 4 wRETc1IED CON
DIrIoS,
for that cannot fail to strike any observer
But the cause of this wretcheaness, the OK:
| tent OF this misery, the deep humiliation and
degradation, the almost hopeless despair
which has settled down upon these millions
OF naturally spriglstly people, must be studied
to bc understood. Without attempting Mt
this time to state s'Irelands case,'' l wish
merely to disabuse the minds of your rea.l-
CTS, nlany hundreds Of whom are my friends,
us to sOlne p0lnts relative to the social cvll-
dition Of Ireland. Business is being prus-
trated, travel has almost ceased, and tourists,
upon the enchanting island with longing, but
ALSO with fear and dread. Current repprt
makes Ireland the constant scene OF riot, al,
hloodshcd, and midnight assassination, and
i.Erarian reyolntion,-a, country III. which
property las no security, nnd In which life
trusts only to blind chance for its prescrya-
ton.
NJ MORE FALSE, RIDICULOUS, AND ABSURD
SOT1USs
ever found listeners among inteljisent peo-
pie. I have walked alone and unarmctt for
days through tho Widest portions or this
country. and WHERE, BY the way. these "tcl-
rDlc out';igeS are reported. alnl ielt us safe,
anu WAS lis safe, rs though | were traytilu. |
along tile highways Of Illinois Or Iowa; and |
! AIN sire that II !nll can explore the narrow |
lanes and dark alleys of the City Of Cork by !!
night with much more safety than lie can |
lE Ike places in our proud City Vi Chicago.
There Is no revolution III lrtiulld there is
no anarchy III Ireland; AMI
THERE Is LESS CRIME IN IRELAND
than in EnSlaM,:.if the English papers tell
the truth about, ;EnSland. Nint-tentlls Of
the reports Of ...tertible o,ltrases'' in Iry-
land are. tissue .: IalsellaHls, run
through the outrage-rnill and seasoned up
t. suit the taste ut IA sensatinn-Ioving public.
to exasptratc England against and to alien
ate The sympathy Ut America from tie Irish
pe"ple. | il'1ve hurried to the grounds and
Witnessed several Of the scenes of these "ter-
rible o,traEes,'' and have invariably found
That they were reported without the least re-
gard to truth. nln almost persuaded that
the average reporter i'll this country becomes
50 intoxicated with hope Of reward, or wills
KY, TINT he is incapable Of distinguishing
bIn0d frum the red coat Of Il British sotier
LEI llle very briefly review few OF these
",H!itrages - and "lawlcss demonstrations
Or SO nearly so that think have reached the
truth by visit the spot soon after the oc-
currenco AID inHuiring into details.
THE LAST AND ONE OF TILE MOST sESsA-
TloNlA1.
was highly,colored account IL the Erc'ing :
where. it was stated that the lniscrt.lnts,
of the Land League, WHO aru |
maintaining reign OF terror throughout the
land, deliberately set fire tu the house of Col.
ltaw!ins, with the intent of burning himself |
3llI f1I,llif. f31prtLht nH}.inr f,f
ii'', lie having dnred to pay Ills rent in order +
!" Secure himself against eviction. This. III
Y short, was the cilarge. But what were |
Tuesday, and tile facts elected were hardly ;
satisfactory to the ''iaw-and-ortler party.' E
Inc sWorn evidence was that Col. Kawlins
'robnbly had not I'LL enemy in the wor. that {
10 one blamed him for making terms with his t
nndlorl, and that he considered the whole a
Gp"rf, ~ his own words, as only all bosh.' Ii
[Ietruth WAS, that Col. RawIins 1la,lsiu his 9
nploy us dolHestic q drunken woman, >
sli", i'll condition bordering OH tlelirium- d
renens, accidentally SET fire to her bed, and S
llns to the house. But n
HE LIE HAD FORTY-E1GItT HOURS START, | q
nd had served its purpose. Another is II
hat some person (the name has Slipped my II
'ss:lNory) had been brutal1y mutilalttt,-llad =,
rs ears cnt of. On Investigating | found Il
nat NJ such person ever lived in the vicinity. q
The .tisturbancesa ut Baliydehob Skibl,ercen, Ii
M Sk't'l We're not only grossly .exa@ger- t,
tel. but the motive which artltated the peo- nj
lc III the demonstration w.s perverted. A u =,
!tl1tor WAS set a1loat somehow that Father VI
lurplly was to be arrested The people being Il
lrons'y attached 70 their priest considered it ii
Il Insult, and almost sarrileEe. These h
eople dwell among tile mountains; tlleynrc =.
fft4tlollate allt[ kintllcarted, though hot =,
ead'al and inWtnntS people. Their priest ~ ~
their nnly frisnd, tllelr religion theironly ~
MT misery in WHICH they live, no American g.,
III understand. "ff1yI,1.r lltl hone. in This Nj