The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1888-10-06
CONGRESSMAN PA. COLLINS
Tells the County Democracy of New
York How the Industries of
Ireland We're Ruined
+ WAS NOT FREE TRADE,
But the Suppression Of All Trade, That
Brought About Ireland's In
lustrial Ruin.

Brought About Ireland's In
dustrial Ruin.
The concluding and most interesting
portion of the speech made by Hon z.
A. Collins at the great meeting of D-m-
Ocrats in Cooper Institute. New York.
last week: Another sap:ent suggestion
is made in order to excite the prejudice
OF s0kne of or ynters: See how Brit
isll free trade rnined Ireland" 1t was
not free trade, or fair trade, Or any
trade at all, but the suppression of all
trade, practically, by acts of Parlia-
ment and kings decrees that ruined
Irish industries. Perhaps those peo
pie who are SO solicitous about Irish in
dustries, and especially about Irish
votes. will give JOHN Mitchell credit for
knowing tho suti-ct. On page II OF
his history of Ireland you Will find what
happened: During the first y,ars of
Williams (Wi!'iam IlI.) reign, there
being then abundance of sheep in Ire
land, and also much che, p labor, con.
siderable progress was made in the
manufacture of woollsn cloths; these
fabrics were exported in some quantity
to foreign countries, and in many casts
| the Irish manufacturer was enabled t.
undersell the English. But England
was then using great rxertions to oh
tain the entire control Of this gainRuI
trade; and the competition OF Ireland
gave great umbraga. II is true that
tt,o woollen trade of Ireland, and all
the profits Of it's export and sale, were
in the hands Of the English colonists,
and that the colonial Parliament il,
Dublin would fain have extended and
protected it it they had been permitted.
But here, again the English power
stepped in and controlled everything
according to its own i.:terest. The two
houses of 4 rds and Commons addressed
King William, urglng that some imma
d.ate medy must be found against the
obnoxious trade in Ireland. The
Lords, after detailing the intolerable
opp, ession which was inflicted upon
deserving industrious people IN Eng.
land, expressed themselves thus:
Wherefore, We most humbly beseech
! your sacred majesty that your IN 3esty
would he pleased III Tie must public
and eTecluai way that may be, to do
clare to- all your subj b5ects il Ireland that
the growth and increase CT the woollen
manufacture here hath long been, and
| viii! be ever, looked upon with great
jealousy by all your subjrc OF this
kingdom, and If not timely remedied,
may occasion very strict laws totally TO
prohibit and suppress the same.''s Prob
ably no more shameless av0wak OF Brit
ish gretdi ess was ever made even by
the Parliament Of England. But the
King replied at once that be would do
all that in him lay to discourage the
woollen manufacture of ireland, in
other words, to ruin his subjects Of that
island. The Irisn ParIiamt mt was now
also assembled in Dublin. The Earl Ut
Galway aud two others were lords
justices. and they, pursuant to their in
structioDs, recommended to Parliament
to adopt means for putting stop to
the woollen manufacture and to en-
courage the linen. The Commons IN
their address meekly replied that they
shall heartily endeayor to encourage the
linen trade, and as to the woolleh, they
tamely express their hope to tipd such a
temperament that the same may not be
Injurious to England. The temper
ament they found was in the acts which
were passed in the following year, 1883,
which minutely regulated everything
relating to wool. Ii the first place, all
export Of Irish woollen cloths was pro.
hibited, except to England aud Wales
The exception was delusive, because
heavy duties, amounting to prOhibi.
ton, prevented Irish cloth from being
imported into England or Wales. Irish
wool, thereafter, had to be sent to Eng-
land in raw state, to be woven III
L VI hSllllCi tSuu CtC1J tul0 VApWo "SaS
cramped b. appointing one single Eug.
lish port, Barnstabie, as the only point
where it could legally enter. All at
tempts at foreign commerce in Ireland
were at this time impeded also by the
navigation laws which had long pro-
hibited all direct trade between Ireland
and the colonies; no colonial produce,
under these laws, could be carried Il,
Ireland until after it should have first
entered an English port aud unlnaded
there. The object of these laws, Of
course, was to secure to English merch-
ants ard shipo 1ners monopoly On all
SUCH trade, and they had the desired efs
feet. 80 that q few years afterwards the
dean Of st. Patrick's could truly write:
J.. e p