Sacramento daily record-union., 1882-01-21
rHE IR1sH QUESTION.
The Reception Of Hon T. P. 0connor Last
Evenfng-Banouet

Hon. T. P. O'Connor, NJ. p, who arrived
in this city yesterday, was received by COM
mitteee appointed for the purpose. Regret
was expressed and felt that his colleague, Mr..
Healy, M. P, the other Irish envoy, did not
accompany him, he having been called to the
southern country. A mass meeting of citi-
zers had been arranged for at the theater in
the evening, to be held under the auspices of
Dillon Branch of the Irish National Land
League of this city. At an early hour the
theater was filed from pit to dome with pee
pie. Many were unable to gain seats, and
large numbers stood. The stage was hand.
somely decorated with evergreens, flowers,
plants, and the flags of the United States and
of Ireland. On one side of the stage was a
cartoon representing Liberty bleeding. on the
opposite side one of Freedom imploring. I'm
mediately over the platform was banner
bearing these words "Spread the Light
Welcome O'Connor and Healy." The Artil-
lery Band played while the people assembled.
j. p. Dalton called to order and announced
as the officers of the evening: President,
his Honor Mayor JohnQ Brown. Vice Presi.
dents-John Ryan, James McClatchy, Will
lam II. Mills, General John +. Sheehan, Ed
ward Christy, G. w. Chesley, Rev. Father
Grace, Rev. DIR. Jacob Bloch, j. w. Wilson,
ri. Rigney, Samuel Blair, Colonel I. w.
Sheehan, Rev. Father Petit, Major 2; J.
Harvey, James Mcclure, Rev. Father Walsh,
P. r. Martin, n. II. Nicholl, Captain Thos
Dwyer. John Diviney, Rev. Father Leahy,
r. NJ. Clarken, John Donahue, w. J.
O'Brien, J. d. Jost, D. J. Considine, B.
Lucey, NJ. Keuhnel, George I. Lyttle, Thos.
Gormley, hL. McKenna. Secretaries-Daniel
Flynn, Thomas ?. Crowley, Thomas Grady.
The officers of the meeting then came upon
the stage, escorting Mr.. O'Connor, and were
greeted with applause.
The President of the meeting, Mayor
Brown, when introduced. said he felt highly
honored to be called upon at this time to pre-
side over such an assemblage, and to be ac-
corded the pleasant duty of introducing such
a distinguished gentleman as the Hon. L. 2.
OiConnor, member of the British Parlia-
ment.
Mr.. O'Connor said the object of his ap
pearance was to explain something of the OBJ
jeet of the IEish Land League, which pro-
posed to transform 600, 900 tenants on Irish
soil into 100000 owners of the soil. Ap-
plause There had been many terms Of
vituperation and disapprebation uttered
against the League, and such as he, who ad.
cerniug himself, indeed, that he really had to
go through an examination of his conscience
TO see who he really was. Laughter and ap-
plause He humorously described a gross
cartoon of himself which had been printed.
The object of his visit had been denounced in
the harshest terms. The object of the Land
League had been denounced as inhdelity,
communism, conh=cation, etc, 1t is said In
America you have 10 600, ,000 farms, and
about every one owns his own farm. Ap-
plause So In France they own the soil they
till. So, too, largely in Germany, in the
Channel isles. and in a great number of other
places. In matter of fact il is the rule and not
the exception that the land should be culti-
waited by the owners and they should be the
tillers The curse of landlordism turns the
garden into the desert. In Ireland we want
the Government to say to the landlord, Get
out, but we viii pay you to get out, and set
up q system by which the tenants shall pay
for what they get, and at the end of %
years know no lord but themselves on
this earth" Applause That's what will
Dsvitt preached snail become the law Of the
land. Applause. We are going to succeed
Why? Because the landlords themselves are
coming to cur way of thinking. He de-
scribed the embarrassing position Of the
landlords, in that the Land Courts were re-
dueing reAts from 2,000 to s. 600 year, so
far as all who Went TO them were concerned,
while those who didn't sc land they are the
nass), were reducing the rent from e3 700
year 70 50 a year, Laughter. Sc. the
landlords, being men OF sense, saw they were
being ground out, and between the two
Inilissouss, they adopted resolutions (read-
ing) . That the interest Of landlord and ten
ant alike require the purchase by the State,
at fair price, of the properties Of those land
lords who are unwilling to occupy the position
(Which they have been relegated by the Act"
So, before many months, we think, we will
lay the foundation stone Of peasant proprie-
torship, and, when that is laid, we shall en-
ter upon the era of prosperity. Applause.
Young. celebrated economist, visited both
Ireland and France and saw the condition of
the people in both places, and he declared
that the peasants Of France were rs bad off as
the peasants of Ireland. That was one hun
dred years ago. Now mark. In 1870 France
went through terrible calamity one-third |
of her army defeated; one-third of her terri
tory occupied her capital seizad and vast
debt thrown upon her. Only eleven years
have passed and France has thrown of the
war fine as lion does the dew drops from his
ma1e, aud her wounds, now healed, show
scarce a scar. [Applauss.l Why? The
whole basis OF her prosperity is. that
of France. Long continued applause.
The French are the most prosperous pea
santry in existence to-day. In France land
lordism has bsen abolished, but in Irela nd
the pessantry to-day stand Ia the same i'm
poverished pauperism that they did one hun
dred years ago. Those whs condemn the
no-rent manifesto are those who have not
read that manifesto. Coercion 10 Ireland
means the suspension of the Constitution.
prsoned until next september, and they can
not get a trial. They have no right to
ask to be tried by jury of their
peers. Life and property is at the
complete mercy of English spies. These
spies are staggering ruffisns, and use
a tyrannical, arbitrary power. One of the
fundamental principles of freedom is that of
holding public meetings. The press is throt-
iled all the editors and attaches of a paper
have been thrown into prison. The English
authorities went into the United I1elGad Office
and arrested all the editors over and over
again, aud cashiers and paper. folders, and
threw them into prison, and repeated it over
and over. TIE ladies then took the mattes in
hand, and for time they published it, but
the officers came. and even the ladies had to
suceumb. So United ireland ceased to ap-
pear. That's the kind of free press we have
The right of personal security, Of free meet
ings, and of free press-the three fundamental
rights of people-are in Ireland tramped
under foot. In Ireland we have now 81 900
soldiers, and 1900 police. Well, here you
have 50, 600 000 people; in Ireland we have
COO, 600 of people. Here you have 5000
soldiers, and with our 5000. GOO people, we
have double the number Of soldiers.
All! that's where we take the
shine cut of you Americans. Laughter and
applause. So, if we haven't as good school
houses as you, oh we have large comfort
able, accommodating jaiis and lots of 'em
TApplsuse.l Soyou see how behind the times
you are, with your large and many school
houses, and your small aud few jsils.
lChesrs and laughter Why have you these
halls of education Why? Because you were
foolish enough TO get rid of English rule.
[Appiause Why, we are fighting against the
same enemy, the same pretensions, and for the
same rights you cid 100 years and more ago !;
against the same doctrine that imprisons Par
nell to-day and which 100 years ago would
have hanged George Washington. Applause
The object of England is to Christianizs
the world. The consequence is that she sells
ruu 60 one nation, opium to another, and