The Irish standard., 1893-05-13
IRISH ELOQUENCE.
Thomas Sections Argamentative
Speech During the Debate on
the Home Rule Bill
WHY IRELAND is A NATION.

MISTER Unionists Do Not Want that
Ireland Should be Releassd
From their Grip.
One Of the srsatest speeches delivered
IN the British parliament during the do
bate on the second reading of the Home
Rule bill was that delivered by Thomas
Sexton, the leading orator of the Irish
party. He spoke for two hours and was
repeatedly applauded by Mr.. Gladstone.
The following extracts will give but a
faint idea of the force and eloquence of
his mastery address.
THOMAS SECTIONS SPEECH.
Sir, We have had petitions and we have
had professions. One petition deserving
of mention has been pres ented to this
House. Sir, there appeared at your bar
the other day. to present the petition Of
the City of Dublin in favor Of this
bill, the Lord Mayor of that ancient
Corporation, the Lord Mayor of that
Catholic capital of Ireland and he is
Protestant and an Ulsterman He ap-
Peared at that bar to present petition
which was heard by you, Sir, and by
the House, moderate and just and
reasonable petition, petition which
reflected in this great affair what I
claim to be the spirit Of the Irish peo-
pie. trom what city in Ireland comes
the u Of civil and religious liberty in
danger? From the city of Belfast. When
have they had. when will they have
Catholic Lord Mayor in that city? The
.1tizens of a city who maintain system
OF ostracism of creed to rival which, to
find q parallel to which, we should 60
back to the penal days, raise this false,
hollow, and absurd cry of civil and reli.
gious liberty in danger against people
with whom toleration is not only mat
ter Of conscience but point of honor,
against people whose capital appeared
at your bar the other day in the person
OF an fisherman and Protestant.
Sir, we have had professions against
the bill. There was great procession
the other day at Belfast, where the right
honorable gentleman the leader of the
Opposition (Balfour) showed his respect
for the House of Commons by counte-
nancing and enjoying the burning of the
bill which stands upon the orders of the
House. Well, take leave to say that is
puerile and foolish, and that hon. mem-
bers will have to do more than burn that
bill before they can stop it in passing
through the House. As to the Belfast
procession, speak of what know when
/ say there are 10000 Nationalists even
in the city Of Belfast and ten times as
many in Ulster, and if it were worth our
while we would have in Belfast to-mor-
row or in any p rt of Ulster demon
stration for this bill, as stroug process
sion as you could produce against it.
And if we had plebiscite of Ulster to-
morrow, and if Home Rule Protestants
in Ulster were free to act in spite of the
boycotting which the Unionist party
practices more skillfully, more scientlfi-
sally. and less noieily than others, we
should not only poll man for man in ia
vor of the bill, but should have a good
majority over. sat six years for divi-
sion Of Belfast, and I never paid visit
there but l was interviewed by Protest
ants, and many of them expressed their
sympathy to me, but desired me to keep
the fact secret. #s'
1t is a question, not between the peo-
pie Of Ireland and the Government of
Great Britain, not even between the peo-
pie of Ireland and the people of Great
Britain, it is question between the en-
pire, and every part of this empire, and
a race not confined to the 5000, 600 who
are living in Ireland, but the race Of 25,-
100000 OF mon who are scattered over
the globe. There are 100000 of Irish
men in Great Britain, 100000 in Aus
tralia, 100000 in Canada, and ,16,OOO,OO0
in the United States. Will anyone deny,
looking at the state of Europe Europe
that has been called an armed camp
looking to the doubtful prospects OF. the
future, will any one deny that it is mst--5
ter of high and possibly of urgent neoes-.
sity to establish friendly relations with
the Republic OF the United States. OF
the sixty five millions in the United States
sixteen million are Irish. The Irish citi-
zens Of the United States are more nu-
merous now than the citizens OF British:
origin or Of any other nationality what
ever. / need say no more to bring into.
the minds Of every one who hearssme.
that policy 40 we'll as Justice dictates Che
measure before you, and that even IL
there were no demand from Ireland foI.
y thin itutiiO would b 9 measure.