New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-07-16
THE IRISH-AMERICAN VOTE.
AS TRUE TO PROTECTION AS TO BLAINE.
ORGANIZING WITH UNUSUAL vIGoR-A REVOLT
FROM THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND



Tho assertion made by Mr. Blaine In letter written
| to an Irishman daring the Presidential campaign OF
1885, that the attitude OF tho Irish voters Is one OIL
The extraordinary anomalies in our political his
| tory which republlshcd in Tho Tribune few
days ago. has been much talked of since by lrshmcn
! in this city and in the ncghborIng cities. Tho at
tude7 referred to Is the almost uniform way I'm which
| Irlshmen I'm this country who yOto vote on the
Democratic side. There were exceptions, but these
exceptions were few and far between and were con
fined principally to veterans of tho War of the Re
| bclllon and to occasional business man hero and
| there who was born In America OF Irish paronago.
| The extraordinary anomaly however, Is beginning
to disappear and II the change continues has dur
ing the last four years Will have passed altogether
| out OF view before long.
| 81 have never met an Irishman able enough
clever enough to explain this anomaly any basis OF
knowledge or good sense,n says Mr.. Blaine. To
plain 1t might not, after all, be difficult but to
Justify IT, would be impossible. In the first place the
| Irshman who landed in this country in former years
| was by intelligent educated as the
| !rshman who IS coming W. There IS fine rich
roll sound Of liberty, thrill evcn about that word
| democracy 1t seemed to them, not entirely un-
| natural thought, that democracy made up Of
| democrats and only OF democrats They had heard
of democratic clubs having been established here and
there in England, and they knew that they meant anti
landlord clubs, anti lord clubs anti-mOnOpoly clubs
In word they were democratic clubs with all that the
| term implies as they understood tho term.
| They had heard that II tho democracy that
| overthrow tho arts tOcracy in France. And when
democracy in their own country referred to by
their eloquent orators they knew that It in
cluded that favored few who bore titles owned entire
countes-or claimed TO thcm-compellcd obedience
and stned liberty throughout the land. and irish
| men came here. They found great many of their
| counrymen already on the spot. These were Demo
Gratis and it seemed good Them they said thought
| lcssy, If they satisfied so ought
| 10 DO satisfied Give reasons n you say.
| Why should thoy give reasons! They
were never asked to give any. " black Republican
| seemed to them awful a Belfast Orangeman.
1t did not matter TO them that Republican state
| officials, and city officials, and county officials Fri
! vate citizens OF the highest standing who Re-
pnbcans, and Republican newspapers, and all
were allies Of the struggle for liberty going
! in their native country. They still Conscrva-
| ves, Tories, and ought to be dreaded and Stunned
They accordingly Stunned. If a murmur of
discomfort not 20 say threat of revolt,
| heard, Democrats. Ignorant men, fat with the spoils
| Office, rich public plumber. tainted them with
| tho query, What DID the Republicans do for
| you?" The IriShman wasn't posted well enough
oven TO rctort, What did ever do for the Repub
llcans ," Or else they posted n0uEh, but tho
question really never presented itself to them in that
light.
A CHANGED STATE OF AFFAIRS.
This state Of affairs, has been already said,
does not exist now. The first real evidence of a
volt was in 1854 when Blaine and Cleveland were
the candidates Of the rival parties and when many
| thousands Of Irlshmen I'm this city alone who used 20
| vote Democratic voted Republican There was
| plurality of 1,O7f votes I'm favor of Cleveland. The
| Rev DIR. Burchard aicnatcd a large bOfy OF these
voters by his remarks at the Fifth Avenue Hotel.
The revolt not yet old enough to be firm enough
Such uticrance would not change many votes
now. Bat what brought about the revolt at all after
| If
10 know what brought It about, and TO profit by tho
| knowledge in this campaign Everybody Will say
Blaine. No. moi exactly Blaine. If Blaine had ap
Feared as Il cau@dl,c twenty-five years ago, even
! twenty years ago. with exactly the same brilliant
record as public man that he had when he appeared
| IN 1854. there would be Irish revolt. few,
perhaps even a few hundred, might have deserted The
| Democratic party, but that would be all The man
wOuld have been there then II is true, but the hour
woulA not have come. In 1894 both the hour aud
the man came In 1888 the hour and the man have
again appeared, although the is Harrison, not
Elaine.
In fine. the irish havo begun to study American
politics They have begun TO study American par
ties. They have begun to think How could they
read of Lincoln and not love him, and how could
they love Lincoln without applauding the Republican
party! They fought bravcy In the war. and on the
right sh'c yet when they returned to civil life they
fought bravcly and the wrong side They
never stopped TO consider who conducted the war.
They know that it the Republicans who con-
Quoted II. They didn't that the Democracy and
England the ancient enemy OF their native land were
closely allied during the struggle. They see now that
they wcrc-nay. that they are! This I, to show that
the Irish Americans who I'm revolt against the
Democracy are in revolt for good" and that they
the best educated and intelligent among the people Of
that nationality Tho leaders not saloonhecpeis,
nor Office holders nor yet Office seekers. They are men
OF Judgment and Of tact whose spirit Of independence
has been cultivated the Irish social aud literary AMI
political ard labor societies with which most of them
have been connected all their lives. There is large
contingent OF young in the ranks, those who
fought valiantly for Henry George, and who are as
vallanty fighting against him.
TO MANAGE THIS CAMPAIGN BETTER.
Their campaign VIII be managed better than in 1884
There are to be mistakes this time. Then the Re
publican leaders were doubtful They no longer
in that frame Of mind. Then they thought, and per
haps thought with some reason. that these voters
would be found wanting when election day came
around. They no longer think Mr.. Blaine him
self admitted. I'm speech delivered shortly after Mr.
Cleveland had been counted I'm, that the ranks OF the
Republican party had received enormous acce'slons
from Irish voters. I'm this State particularly. but moro
particularly In this city. Mistakes were made but It
Is not likely that these mistakes will be repeated this
year. IIishmcn were brought from faroH places to
make speeches in this city in 1884 to win voes'
Few votes won very few In this city by this
means.
There is point Of resemblance between the Irish
man who dwclls I'm NcwYork and the Irlshman who
dwclls I'm Dublin. man sent. for example, from
Donegal tho plains OF Kildare or the western city
Of Galway, cnlghen the audience their political
duties, or explain how the popn trade or the wool
len trade destroyed. at mass-nccting In the Ro-
tunda, Dublin would probably be laughed at They
would tell him that they, being the spot, know more
about these subjects than he did. Irlshmcn living in
this city proud of being at headquarters" so TO
speak They have many eloquent men among them.
II they want Grafton delivered special Irish
| festival they have objection 10 from the
country" in fact they clamor for the presence Of such
a man but II the desire IS to tell them of the evil
effects OF British free trade for instance, they feel as
! though the man from the country did not know as
much about the subject as they do themselves. They