The Irish standard., 1893-12-16

HUH
IRISH ST ID AK &,
tionalist ranks, returned seventeen Honaa.
|Rnls Is iixteen Unionist members 81 Par.
lament. Only ii Ulster, and especially
il Protestant Belfast, does there exist
any feeling Of religious intoleranoe.
While Belfast ostracizes and peraecutes
Catholics, Dublin gives Protestsnts more
than their share of Offices and more than
half Of the total amount paid out in
salaries. Cork, Limerick, Waterford
and other Catholic cities are equally
distinguished for liberation and liberal
ity.
CHOW let us come to Amerlca," says
Mr.. Smith: 1--WE hear much talk Of con-
spiracies and rebellions. I never heard
in America Of secret Catholic society
whose object was to prosecute and ostrar
CHE Professionals. How abont our side?
There was not corporals guard of
Catholics in New England when Shay's
! rebellion took place in this state. Rhode
Island had a petty rebellion without
aid; the whiskey rebellion in Pennsyl-
vania on Washington's day was laid to
the door OF the vivacious Irish Protest.
ants in the western part OF the State.
Congressman Oates boasts that the
Southern States have no foreigners and
few Roman Catholics Yet those are the
States that nearly wrecked the Union,
and cost the republic millions in treas.
ure and blood. And come to think of it,
the sunny South has most unenviable
record for lawlessness and illiteracy. I
merely call attention to these things, be-
cause the Catholics are accused. OF con.
spring to do what Professionals have al
ready done SO often, and they not at all.
I might add that it was Catholic France
that aided US in establishing our indie
pendence and Protestant England that
oppressed us in T6, bullied us in 1912
and tried to wreck us in 1861.
ssLet rs remember these things when
individual or aggregated bigotry and ig-
norance invite us to persecute our fellow
citizens who differ from US in religion.
And I sincerely wish our vociferous de-
tenders Of the bible and the school would
read the one and attend the other with
more attention and profit.
Coming to Lowell the old cry of Prot
estant Ulster is raised again. It is the
ottices-plunder. Why is it that an Ul-
sherman always mistakes his stomach
for his soul, and his pocket for his reli.
gion? The policemen are all Catholic he
says. What Of it? Every citizen has the
same chance, it he has health and brains
and inches enough to pass an examina.
tion before civil service board of four
Professionals; Chief Examiner Sherwin,
DR.. Cotton, Charles Conant, Esq, and
myself. Let him come on and try. We
are not worrying about the Pope. If he
hasn't as much brains as the Catholic
candidate, we cau't help him, And the
same rule applies IN all the minor places
OF the city. In the elective Office they
seem to be about evenly divided. The
treasurer and auditor are Professionals,
the city clerk and superintendent of
streets are Catholics; superintendent Of
buildings isl don't know what, and his
assistant is Protestant, 80 is the mayor,
20 is the city librarian, the city engineer,
clerk of the water: board, clerk Of the
overseers OF the poor and some others. I
guess the Professionals are not suffering
so much as the FISHERMAN is. As,for
the board of overseers OF the poor, they
represent che Catholics of Lowell about
as we'll as the FISHERMAN does the Prot
estants and that is-not at all. They
are the outcome of bad politics and not
religion. The man that holds that pack
of petty politicians up as representative
Catholics must have an awfully mean
opinion of the intelligence Of the Prot
estants of Lowell and of the character OF
the Catholic people of this city. Y
"When the Ulsterman's letter ,s exam
ined in detail it proves to be nothing
but unvarnished ignorance and bigotry,
without shadow of reason or fact in it.
He and his kind should come out from
under the bed and act man fashion, in
stead of meeting in secret like rogues
and assassins to stab their fellow-citi
zens. Coming back to Ulster again, let
me say that the Ulster Unionist is an ar