Omaha daily bee., 1888-09-13
DAVITT AND THE FENlANS.
Constitutional Agitation as OPP
posed to the Dynamite Method.
PUT ASSASSlNS ON HIS TRACK,
The Great Agitator Will Apply For
Permission to Explain His Re-
atoms With Parnell Be-
fore the Commission.


LONDON, Sept, 1~2.-[Special Cablegram to
THE BEE. -Davitt intends to apply to the
Parnell commission for permission to give
evidence before that body. He has prepared
for the press an abstract of the statement he
proposes to make before the commission
commencing with the occurrences of 1856,
when he joined the Irish Re
publican brotherhood. He says he
became acquainted with Parnell and O'Don-
nell on his release from the Portland prison.
During his Imprisonment, after much
thought, he concluded the Irish were not
adapted for agitation by secret conspiracy
and formed aplan of combination. He COM
municated his views to the leaders of both
the revolutionary and constitutional parties.
Among the latter he found a disposition to
resent a policy Of Cancellation. Among the
Fenians he received more encouragementthan
he had expected. After his tour
in America he started a movement
to make the land question the basis of agita-
ton. He controverts the Times theory that
this new departure had anything to do with
the new departure originated in New York.
Although defending the American proposal,
so far as it included his scheme for
supplantiug secret conspiracy, he says
he was convinced an alliance be-
tween the constitutionalists and
revolutionists was impossible and therefore
took an independent line without consulting
| either Parnell or the Fenian leaders. In 1879
he started the agitation against landlordism
on funds received from his American
lectures. He applied to John Boyle O'Reilly,
Patrick Ford and John Defoy for assistance.
He received $500 from the national or skirm-
ishing fund, but as the Fenian
press objected to the use of the
fund for constitutional agitation, he
returned the amount. Mr.. Parnell offered
money from the resources of the league.
Parnell's Official connection with the move.
ment began with the organization of the
league in October, 1879. Parnell, during his
absence in America in the winter of 1879 for
warded to the league 95) 900 tc
be distributed for the relief of dis
tress. In 1850 Davitt, on going u
America 10 form an auxiliary league, was
expelled from the Irish Republican brother
hood for the advocacy of constitutional agita
ton. Since then ne had been in constan,
hostility between the leaguers and Fenians
Early in 1850 four men visited his lodgings il
Dublin, designing to murder him At the
same time the Fenian gang headed b,
"Phnnix Park Carey, broke up his meeting
in the rotunda. About this tim,
if he and other leaguers in favol
of open agitation had not beer
removed from the control of the leagu,
by the government imprisoning them, the in
vincible conspiracy would never have beer
heard of.
On the morning following the Phoenix parl
murders he met Parnell, who was greatly ex
cited; said he had decided to send his resig
nation to Cork that very day, retiring utterl,
from Irish politics. Parnell declared no maj
could be safe where irresponsible con
spirators organized deeds of that kind
aiming deadly blows at the constitutions
movement on the threshold of victory. Davit
succeeded in persuading him to remain o.
the same day a manifesto c~ondemning tn
murders was sent to Ireland. Davitt although
taking no prominent part in the ~nationa
league, co-operated with Parnell's delegate
to Chicago in 1886 in trying to influence
the convention in the direction of a pacifi
policy. He was afterwards condemned to b
shot by a council of ~dyiamiters of the Ross
faction because he had denounced the use o
dynamite in Chicago. Davitt concludes wit
reference to the plan of campaign, of whic
he disapproves as only proposing to lowe
rents, thus tending TO prolong landlordism.