Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1892-10-24
MAC VsAGH TO EGAN.
EE-Cabinent Minister Propoupds Pointed
Questions TO the Chilian Minister.

EE-Fabincnt Minister propouDds Pointed
Questions 10 ti,e Chilian Minister.
PHILADELPHIA, Oct. "A - Hon Wayne
NacNeagh has sent out the following open
letter:
To the Honorable Patrick Fgnn:
DEAR SIR -. AN glad 20 see that you intend
o. last. even after nine years, 10 reply TO the
attacks upon your character hut | am sorry
tJ "ae tLat persist in calling them my at.
t5g.s, and ,. 'olsehoOd leads me to fear that
Enl may re; az the other falsehood that my
statement tiHt your appointment was an In.
suit 4. Chill was intended as a reflection upon
yuu because you were born in Ireland. Now,
II YOU viii abandon those two sheer and abso-
lLtc falsohood5, give you the fullest liberty
tu abuse me 10 any extent or say anythin
aasu, me YOU choose, for what you say of III
cannot pu. IIbly do me the least harm, and
would really be, TO my mind kind, Of eulogy
Of me.
A., furnished in my speech at Cooper Union
the exact d2.es when Mr. Reid and The Trib-
uI. made their very serious and repeated at
,acsa upon your character, you will, trust,
sec now necessary il IN for you to treat them
a his attack, not mine, and TO answer him and
not me, and Il you answer him satisfactorily
you need not bother about me; as you must
pardon me for saying | never even heard of
you till The TT. Dune gave Inc the Information,
ana have neither de sire nor reason to think
III Of you except what is due 10 The Tribune 3
d"lunciat,1n Of you. Ii you convict Mr.. Reid
aua The Tribune of flschood in making them
VIII accept your justification with pleasure,
but must continue 20 think you were rather
tardy Ia 80 grave and 50 serious matter.
And then do abandon the false pretense that
my objection 10 you WAS Iecause you are an
If Imam. You see that pretensc Is childish
a. well rs false, for | am u good deal OF an
lrshman ~ -e'f, as well as a councillor
though | regret TO say without pay-of the
Hibcruian spc ely OF this city, while some of
tie best friends of my life have been Irish
men. My objection TO you was solely be-
cause Mr.. Reid and the Tribune said you were
no, au honest man. and don't like a dishon-
ct man, no matter where he is born. If that
accusation ia not true then l have no objec-
ton whatever % you.
WhatcNcr Fol may say now, You must con-
fess YOU had justified people In forming very
unfavor tle Judgment of you. You remained
sii 1t 80 far rs have ever heard, for nine
To- Z years, unds< Mr.. Reid's statement in Tho
Tr that ycu were a sham patriot" and
tSat YOU could give no satisfactory e1plana-
ton of what you hal done with Sl20,OOl which
had bein entrusted TO your care for the Irish
cause. And thsn, so far as know, you ro-
mu'ncd silent Tclve long months under the
additional attacks upon you in The Tribune,
saying hat you were sure to be recalled and
It "a new American representative at the
Chilian capital Mas urgently needed" and far
worse, thai you had once fled ITO avoid arrest
and trial on very serious criminal charge"
Now all the Irishmen | know and esteem,
and there are very many Of them, IL 80 at
tackled, would call Mr.. Reid and The Tribune
to prompt aad stern account, requiring them
e.tier TO prove their charges or TO retract
them, but you, alas, did neither. On the con-
trary, you meekly endured all these charges,
ana TO my amAzcment, you appeared on Mr..
Ecd's plICh week ago advocating his cleo
tion TO the vice pres ,dency, thus, to my mind,
practically confessing the truth Of his accu-
sation against you. On the next evening !
therefore felt at perfect liberty to call your
appointment ~ insult TO Chill.
So you sec. Mr.. EgIn, IL d res not AT all mat
ter Low poor N opinion you entertain of me
or what you may say about me. The only
questions which can interest the country are
these: Were the accusations Of Mr. Reid in
The 1'ribune against you truet If they were
not true, why did you wait so long before re-
futing thcm2 And why do you divert your
"a tack from the real author OF your trouble TO
me, whose only oirense is that Of believing
what Mir. Reid in The Tribune told me about
yonl
But repeat, If abuse Of ms will relieve your
mind. abuse me to your hearts content; but
don't suppose any dust can thus be thrown in
tie eyes Of the public. IL you can give salts
factory answer to the three questions | have
asked you viii be completely vindicated, but
nothing else W II be, believe me- be Of any real
service To yOu.