Morning journal and courier., 1888-02-17

-1Onde.
 hed Irishman was greeted
 prolonged applause as he ad-
 the front of the stage. He
 the New Haven citizens
 ,sere instrumental in getting up the
 eting in the limited time they had. He
 expressed himself as being greatly pleased for the opportunity to address the citizens of New Haven. He also thanked the local press for their aid and then spoke @ few words Of
 eulogy for the late Stephen Joseph Meany,
 the Irish patriot, whose remains are to be
 taken back to his native country and who in life made his presence when laboring for the Irish cause felt all over the world.
 Sir Thomas is about five feet six inches in height, of clear cut features, clean shaven face and jet black hair. He is only about twenty seven years of age ard is one of the youngest members of the House of Conl- mons, on the floor of which he has been for two years. He has pleasing address and gains the good will of his audience in very few moments.
 ssI come here," said he, Ito ask you for assistance in aiding home rule for Ireland. ! Home rule means about as much local gov ernment for Ireland as every State in your United States enjoys. If you wanted to build 8 railroad here in Connecticut you don't have to go to Boston to get permission. But that is what we have to do in Ireland we have got to ask permission to do even | smaller things. We think this preposterous and not right. Even were the English par 1 lament inclined to do it's best for Ireland, it knows very little about the condition of \ Ireland The English parliament has really very little time to deal with Ireland. It has to do with England, Burmah, India, Australia, Canada and Scotland, and even were the M. P.'s legislative machines they | could not fully attend to the multifarious duties imposed. The time has been when | Ireland's affairs were laid aside and shelved. o1o hot ria hova | to be first considered.
 ''There are those who say that the Irish people have no business with home rale, and they affirm that they can't make proper laws to govern themselves. My first answer is that it's nobody's business to say how we should govern ourselves. That is our busi ness But say that the Irish people are not incapable Look back eighty-six years when Ireland had parliament of her own. Even Lord Clare was forced to admit that when Ireland had home rule her progress was most remarkable and without example. 1 lock abroad and find that Irishmen have risen to great positions all over the world. Those who be- lieve that Irishmen can't govern themselves would ask if they don't think they could make better land of it than England has. The population of Ireland when England succeeded in destroying the Irish parliament was 5000, ,000 and now it is only about A. 500, ,000. And this after eighty-seven years under English rule And then we know of the great Irish famines. Come to look into I it we find that these famines could have been prevented, or at least greatly alleviated. When the Irish people were starving corn and food were going out of Irish ports over to England When the American people sent over food the grasp of England on the famine-stricken isle was such that the food never reached those for when it was intend ed. The American ships laden with food were detained in the English ports until it routed.
 "When Ireland had a parliament of her own she had a national debt of $12, 300, 900. She now has debt of $625, 1000, ,o0O. "Ireland is supposed to be governed as the people of England are governed; but in real ' ity the system of government obtained in Ireland under the guise of constitutional gov ernment is as tyrannical as that in Russia. 'tFirst we have the Lord Lieutenant of ] Ireland appointed by the English govern ment and not by the people. Under him is the Chief Secretary of Ireland. He also re- ceives the appointment from the English government and is virtually the government of Ireland He has the power in the Eng measures he may desire no matter how dis tasteful they may be to the Irish people "Next come the ex chief secI Ietaries, land- lords and judges. These men are above the opinion of the Irish people and cringe only to the English government, from which they
 
 appointed because they have rendered at some time some political service to the Eng lisn government. Their whole object seems | to be to use their power for the benefit of ! their party. Then there are the magistrates ! who are also appointed by the government
 and opposed to the people. They differ I from the people in religion and ninety nine times of one hundred in politics, and this accounts for some of the meetings between \ the police and people. We also have police ! magistrates, and any number of police or con- stabulary.
 "There are ffty-fve policemen in Ireland to every twenty-seven in England and every \ twenty one in Scotland.
 cover here, understand, it is said that 8 policeman is never about when one wants \ him. In Ireland they are always about and | when they are not wanted.
 "The Irish grand juries are composed of | individuals who are opposed to the people. alist on a jury. On these grand juries are a lot of irresponsible men who areS entrusted with the levying of immense amounts of money from the Irish people. In Ireland we have organizations or bureaus which are ! known as boards. We have board of edu-
 cation, board of public works. etc. On \ these boards are gentlemen appointed by the government and over whom the people have no power. Immense amounts of money are wilfully bled and wasted from ' Ireland annually by some of these boards. One of these boards spent over half
 million of dollars in building pier. The ' first incoming tide took the pier with it upon ! it's retreat. We shouldn't mind that much if we didn't have to pay fer it ourselves, and we object to it. All the other departments are in similar state of mismanagement. f'What we want to do is to get these mat ters into our own hands and save this bleed ing of Ireland and wilful waste of her peo- ple's money.
 "That is home rule.
 s'Ireland will never be peaceful, happy or prosperous while England rules.
 s'Irish tenants have made the value of the land in Ireland. This increased value which the Irish tenants have given the land is theirs and nobody's else. We are prepared, how ever, to give the landlords the fair value of the land.
 "But things are going on very we'll in Ire land now. Coercion is an absolute and in disputable failure. Coercion instead of injuring has accelerated home rule for Ire land. It has not succeeded in preventing public meetings nor our editors from writing what they like in the newspapers Some have gone to jail, but they have come out none the worse. It is perfectly ludicrous to attempt to put down home rule in Ireland. It is now merely a question of time when we shall have it. One good thing in our favor is the friendship and support we are receiv- ing from the English Radicals or Democrats and the people in Scotland and Wales This enlivened interest in favor of Ire land has been oceasioned by the recent knowledge by these people of the way the Irish people have for so many years been deprived of ordinary rights due to common humanity. One of the strongest or ganizations in Ireland was the Protestant Home Rule league, which acted with the National league. If to-morrow there was Q general election have no hesitation in say ing MT. Gladstone would be returned We are prepared to stand by any party that will help the people we represent. Home rule is bound to come and that within two or
 three years. The Irish people never had
 better leaders than now, and the feeling in
 their favor is growing"
 When the illustrioug speaker resumed his