The sun., 1883-12-05
LETTER FROM AN IRIsHMANs WIFE
How she Demonstrates that Ireland is = Tax
on the Uuifed States.

on the United States.
To THE EDITOR OF THE SUN---Sir Some
sixteen yeors ago Lord Dufforin wrote de-
fence Of Irish land tenure and Irish landlord
ism. He devoted especial attention to emigra-
ton. which great Irish landlords like the father
OF the present Lord Iansdowne. tho successor
OF tho Marquis Of Lorne as dovornor-Genernl
Of Canada. actively promoted. chiefly to escape
poor rates and connscate tho tenants improve
nents. Lord DufIcrin enthusiastically Rp-
proved OF emigration. AS the strongest argu-
ment In Its favor. next to those already inti-
mated. he proudly quoted q return OF the
Government Emigration Board. showing that
between the years lS4s and 1864 the Irish emf
grants in the United States had sent buck to
Ireland upward of thirteen million pounds.
Every shilling OF it was clear gain to Irish
landlords. oxcept the sums that went to British
ships rs Storage passage money.
In his speech in Cooper Institute few
months ago. Mr.. Sullivan President OF the
Irish National League OF America. also quoted
these figures of tho Government Emigration
Board. but for very different purpose. He
oops afn saios pss
eS n to s sasqn III he peculiar ns'a
urcs as a rejoicing Irish landlord. Mr.. Snlli-
van. an American born and bred looked at
should DO stopped. -, This enormous amount
ss ana sS sSa% a s.y % as' Rs Unsa m 0 ats Sn4
| 1t Is not apparent that. enormous as is the
drain. it can forthwith be stopped. SO long as
| the present regime oXists in Ireland tho mass
and will be kept from death BY hunger only
Kindred In the New World. A. scrutiny of tho
figures reveals. however. that the money gift is
| not always in proportion to the dread OF actual
|
women. and children died Of hungrr-whilG
plenty OF food was being exported to england
1854. when the potato crop was more than sufll.
cient for tho poasnntry. tho gift scnt from M the
That went TO save the tenants from eviction
| for arrears OF rack-rents during the years wher
hsy yoS S the knred ds Of Sr IN Ser bat anh %
course some of it went to the British steamship
companies Tor passago money. but not very
grants tickets this side the water and forwart
Them. The great bulk of that immense gratu
over to Irish landlords ns rack -rcnts
That this tay is still enforced Is nnHnestion
ACCOMPLISHED c much. its beneilts enc have beer sif
ideal rather han matcri al. The esupplementar,
Arrears act, its most humane feature. y fal
from being so thoroughgoing rs 1t should he
Its provisions are within reach OF only those
tenants who can pay one years arrears The.
rates or from America as gift Many of thos,
who borrowed the sum have since been oblige,
10 SURRENDER tne Securlty-tue nOlulnE ltSel1-
and 20 to the poorhouse or submit, pcnnilsss
to compulsory emigration. Those who coult
neither beg nor borrow one year S arrears have
generally been evicled. In spite Of the LnIlt
act OF 1881, Government returns show that IL
five years evictions have nearly doubled, and /
was Mr, Gladstone himself who said that il
Ireland eviction is almost equivalent to sen
tenco Of DEATH
But tho Irish landlord has Jared we'll. II th
tenant could neither beg nor borrow one year
arrears. the landlord turned him out. coniis
cat ing the results OF his toll and his savings il
| rn,,Iv Il inlt h., fam ia f,n
ant. of course ut an advance; il tho tenant il
possession succeeded in getting few hundred
dollars the liberal Govrrnment-iiberal for TIL,
landiord-put it's hand into tho Irish chnrcl
surplus. which belonged to the Irish pcasantry
and paid the balance of the rack rent to tn
land ord. Isaac Butt asked in vain that tn
surplus be used for education. Parnel en-
treated the Government to use it for the peas
nntry during the famine period Of '8u-Sl. Tn
Government kept II for the Irish landlords.
Al tho present time collections ,nro hcn
male in many parts Of tho United States T.
send to Ireland for the relief of lmpovcrishe
districts. The Irish question is. therefore
practically an American question.
IRIsHMAN's WIFE.