The Portland daily press., 1886-06-02

they fancy that Dublin Parliament would
interfere with their liberties as Presbyter-
ians. Great applause.
Now Mr.. Chairman, if the home rule bill
shall pass and aDublin Parliament be granted
| there never was an association OF men since
human government was instituted who
| would assume power with greater response
| bility to the public opinion of the. .wOrldithan
| the men who would compose that parlia-
nent, because if they are allowed to form it
| they form it by reason of the pressure of the
| public opinion of the world. [Applausel
| And know that the Catholics of ireland
| and the Presbyterians of Ireland can live
and do just as the Catholics Of the United
| States and the Presbyterians Of the United
| States live, Applause. citizens Of one
| country each giving to the other perfect right
of conscience, each declining to interfere in
| the remotest manner with the perfect liberty
| of the other. lApplause.I
| er bill he proposes to do something to re-
| lieve the Irish from the intolerable oppres-
| sion of the landlords Let me quote Macau-
| lay again. Speaking OF Ireland, whose
territory is slightly less than the territory
of the State of Maine, perhaps thirty
| thousand less than this State. Lord
Macaulay in the same speech says, I'm nat.
ural fertility it is superior to any area ,iI GI
| equal size in Europe" Now give you ms
| estimate of what ireland is toward England.
'A country far more important to the pros
| perity, the strength, the dignity Of the Brit
| ish empire than all our distant dependencies
together, more important than the .Canadas,
| the West Indies, South Africa, Australia,
| Ceylon, and the vast Dominions of the Mo-
| gull" If an Irishman had said that in Amer
| lea people would eXclaim, did you ever hear
| such extravagant men as they are from the
| Green Isle" [Laughter)
| Well, reading these statements from this
| high source led me to practical examln-
| alton, somewhat minute, II you will pardon
| it, of the land question. Not in any abstract
| way but in perfectly practicable and farmer
| | what A.
| caulay said about the extraordinary fertility
| of this island and / took the latest British
| authority upon which [ could lay my hands
| for statistics. | could get none later than
1880, but i give you the result of my examin-
| alton for that year and for some years that
| preceded it. In the year 1880 Ireland pro
| duced four million bushels OF wheat. But
| wheat is not the crop of Ireland. She pro-
duced eight million bushels of barley But
| barley is not one of the great crops OF Ire
| land. Now we begin to strike in the next Item
something for which she is especially adapted
| She produced seventy million bushels of
cats. The next item l think every one will
recognize as it is peculiarly adapted to Ire
| land, of potatoes she produced one hundred
and ten million bushels, ,[Applause.I with
| in sixty millions OF the whole product OF the
| United States. She produced of turnips and
mangolds put together one hundred and
| eighty-five million bushels. She produced OF
| flax sixty million pounds. She produced OF
| cabbage eight hundred and fifty million
|
| She had on her thousand hills and IN her
| valleys over A. 900 head of cattle. In the
same pasture she had 30OO,5OO sheep;
| She had 100000 horses and 100000 asses and
mules. During the year 1880 she exported to
| England over 100000 cattle, over 100000
| sheep and nearly half a million swine. Now
| that out of a territory not quite SO large as
| the State of Maine, and out OF this magnlf-
| cent abundance, the like of which has scarce
| " been known since the richness of Goshen.
| there are men in want of food that appeal to
| the charity of the stranger. Why should
| this be? In a land that can produce so very
| abundantly why should any want? The
| great lawgiver of Israel ordered that Thou
| Shalt not muzzle the OK that treadeth out the
corn," and st. Paul added in quoting that in
| his epistle to Timothy, "The laborer Is wor-
| thy Of his reward. [Applsuse.] And yet
the men who are producing these great re-
| suits that almost turn the Imagination IN
| their extent are absolutely in want OF sufli-
| cient food. | do not think it is difficult to
| find the reason. Seven hundred and twenty
nine men own one.half of the land in Ire
| land. and the other half is owned by about
| three thousand more; and OF the rural farm
| land of Ireland there are but 1925 owners
| in ALL whereas there are 10000 adult males
| in Ireland. Produce tnat condltl0n OF aftalrS
| in Maine, in New England, tomorrow and
| the distress will be as great as the distress
has been in Ireland.
Now Mr.. Gladstone says that TINS condi-
| ton of affairs must cease and that by some
| device the men who till the soil i'll ireland
| must be allowed to purchase and to hold it.
| [Applause.l But did not tell the whole sto-
| ~. On this land, as the British authority
| gives it, three thousand seven hundred and
| fifty men own over four-fifths and they take
| from the tenantry that cultivateS the land
| sixty-six million of dollars rental per annum.
| Now mark sou | am talking OF the little
| island not so large as Maine and they pay
| rental of sixty-six million per annum, and
| then pay an imperial tax of thirty-fve mil
lions of dollars ard a local tax of fifteen mil,
lion dollars more There are one hundred
| and sixteen millions of dollars to be wrought
out of the bone and flesh and the spirit OF the
| Irish peasant and no wonder he lies crushed
and downtrodden. lApplause.j
| l believe the day hath dawned Tor his de-
liyerance. [Great Applause.l From the ex-
perience Of 1reland's past it is not wise to be
| too sanguine of speedy result. therefore,
| for one, shall not be disappointed to see Mr..
Gladstone's bills defeated in this Parlia-
| ment. The English members can do it, but
there is one thing which the English menu
| bers cannot do; they cannot defeat the pub
lie opinion of the civilized world lAp-
plause.] And Lord Harrington made very
| remarkable admission when In a complain
ing tone he accused Gladstone of having con-
| ceded so much that the Irish would never
take less. [Applause.
Well, 1 do not know the day, whether this
| year or next year or the year after, that the
final settlement shall be made, but have
entire and absolute confidence that 1t
| will never be made on as easy terms
| as Mr.. Gladstone now offers if his bills are
defeated. Applause. They complain some
times in England of just such meetings as
| this TLaughter.l They say we are transcend
ing the just and proper duties of a friendly
nation. That is bold talk to us who remem-
Der 1SG3-4-5. Laughter. They should have
longer memories than that. LApplause.l And
yet quite well know that their misconduct
during our war would by no means Justify
any ill-conduct on our part now. do not
mention that as any justification or ground
for justification, for as matter OF TACT there
has been nothing done in America that Is
not strictly within the limits of International
law. Nor until the case of Ireland arose
had England herself ever failed in her people
or in her government for the last nifty years
to extend sympathy and sometimes the help
ing hand to struggling nationalitles that
wanted to get free from tyranny which she
can not see she is exercising herself upon
Ireland When Hungary reyolted against
Austria, Kossuth was as much OF hero In
England as he was in America. When LOm-
bardy broke from Austria on the south side
of the Alps, the British ministry could
scarcely be held back, and when Sicily re-
volted against the reign OF the Neapolltan
Bourbons the sympathy was so active that
Lord PalmerstOn was accused in Parliament
and did not deny that guns from the Wool
wich arsenal had been smuggled on to the
island of Sicily to aid in the insurrectlon.
So quite apart from any argument Of tit
for tat that the United States might tlippant-
ly make quite apart from consideration ex-
cept the broad one OF philanthropy and
Christianity recognized and encouraged by
international law the United States stands
forth as the friend of Ireland. [Great ap-
plausel. They do not stand forth as Demo-
Gratis. They do not stand forth as Republic
cans. They do not stand forth as Protes-
tants. They do not stand forth as Catholics,
but they stand forth as citizens of a free Re
public. [Applausel.
Now if had any word of advice to give
or if l was in a position that would authorize
me to give advice, it would be this that the
time has come and is coming, that Will prob
ably try the patience and the mettle OF the
| Irish people more severely than in any other
age in the progress of their long struggle,
and my advice is that by all means and with
every moral influence that can be used, all
acts of violence be withheld. [Applausel.
You have earned the consolidated opinion of
the Christian world that believes in free gov
ernment Do not have it divided Let no
act of imprudenee produce reaction. New
er has a cause been conducted with cooler
head or with better Judgment in its parlia-
| mentary relations than that which has been
conducted by Parnell, and an answer which |
might have made in place of that which said
concerning the plan of the Ulster Presbyter-
ians when they attempt to make this a Sec
tartan issue they are met by the fact that its
leader is Protestant, and that has been the
| singular and in some respects the happy for