Morning journal and courier., 1888-05-18
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS. IRELAND SAYS HANDS OFF, Rome Must Not Meddle In
 Politics AN ANSWER TO THE RESCRIPT. The Senate Passes The
 Pension Bill. RUSSIA PREPARING FOR WAR. Harvard Students Arrested
 For Stealing.
RUSSIA PREPARING G FOR WAR.
A SPIRITED ANSWER To ROME.

A Re The National League Says Ireland Will Take No Politics From The Pope-The Holy See Forgot to Apply Hts Moral Teachings to England. DUBLIN, May 17.-Forty Parnellites, in- cluding Messrs. Dillon and O'Brien, sat nine hours in the Mansion house to-day discussing
 the papa1 rescript. A subcommittee was ap
 pointed consisting of Messrs. D. Sullivan, T.
 D. Sullivan, O'Brien, Redmond, Healey and
 Harrington, with Messrs. Kenney and Clancy as secretaries, to draw up resolutions on the principles agreed to: The meeting prepared manifesto to the following effect:
 Being aware that the papal rescript is be- ing used by enemies of the holy see and of the Irish people to the prejudice of the Irish cause, to estrange the people and their spirit ual guide and to increase the dangers which threaten the people, and being mindful of our obligations and our duty as constitution ally elected representatives, we have delib- erated together and adopted these resolu- tions:
 That the allegations of fact put forth in the circular are to our knowledge unfounded and could not we venture have been promuI- gated under the authority of the holy office if statements so prejudicial to the Irish people had been tested by reference to the Irish prelates and the elected representa- tives of the people. That the assertion that freedom of contract prevails as to the letting of land in Ireland except in significant mi nority of cases is unfounded and unwarrant- able and is disproved by the fact that the whole cause of an agrarian legislation for Ireland for at least eighteen years has pro- ceeded upon the non-existence of free cons tracts. Furthermore, since the inception of the movement known as the ''plan of cam paign" the present Tory government has been obliged to eHact & statute for the purpose of breaking over hundred thousand contracts of tenancy on the ground that they were one- sided.
 That the constitution and adjudication of the rent-fxing courts afford inadequate grounds for the statement that they can so reduce rents as to bring them within the limits of equity, since no provision can be made for disaster or failure of the crops as is supposed by the holy See. Moreover, partisans of the landlords predominate in the courts and rents continue to be fixed up- on ktensnts' improvements. That no pro vision is made for reduction of arrears which are now declared by the courts to be excessive. These arrears enable landlords by threats of eviction to prevent tenants from applying to the courts, from which large numbers of tenants are shut out. With regard to the state-- ment that rents have been extorted and deposited with unknown persons we affirm that the tenants freely lodged their rents with persons whom they knew, to be held AS an insurance against eviction, and they were invariably returned without de- duction at the request of tenants. That the unjust and cruel exercise of the legislative eviction for generations has blighted the lives of the people and banished millions from their country, and as the legal power of eviction is armed with new facilities by an s, fv,k kI 111.; led by landlords who are devoted now to the destruction of thousands of families, together with the appropriation of their legal interest in the ownership of the soil, we declare that the merciless exercise of this power has been and is the one cause and crime in Ireland and that the public feeling which in extreme cases has resulted in denial of social intercourse Is 6 feeling excited in the minds of the people by their love of justice and desire for Christian charity which should mould the law of the land and prevail in the relations of life.
 That we repudiate the assumption that the status of Irish farmers is that of mere tenants at will, and assert that not only in equity but in law the dominant interest in build- ings belongs to the tenant who has executed improvements, and we attribute much of the prevailing diseontent to disregard of our con stant protests against the imposition of rent on improvements. We cannot refrain from expressing our regret that the holy office is silent regarding the source and provocstion of evils and disorder affiicting the Irish people. This silence is the more to be deplored in the interests of religion and our mutual cause because it has enabled enemies to misuse the name of the holy see and because the admonition of the rescript was against the systematic violation of jus tice and charity. That the demand of the Irish people for agrsrian reform and political liberty is dictated by necessity, re- strained by natural justice and conducted by modes of action and methods or organization prescribed or allowed by the constitution to which the Irish people owe what they have won of civil and religious freedom, that the force of this movement against unconstitu- tional coercion and organized calumny will continue to be exerted until we shall have achieved success.
 While unreservedly acknowledging the spiritual jurisdiction of the holy see, we as guardians of those civil liberties which our Catholic forefathers defended feel bound to solemnly reassert that Irish Catholics can recognize no right of the holy see to inter fere with the Irish people in the manage ment of their political affairs.