Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-04-24
IRISH cATHoL cs.
rAeFsw Leaves From the Hist0ry of Halted 92aeMa

&Af%GG w ~y United States. ynL.,s..-# ',
 Apropos of the organization in this city of a branch of the A. P. A ; the sworn enemy of Catholics. Michael Wallace, an old and respected resident and a frequent contributor to the DEMOCRAT. .1picks few leaves from history that ares worthy of serious consideration. He writes:
 To the Editor of the DEMocRAT:
 Have Irish Catholics any just claims to grateful recognition for their services to the United States? am inclined to be- -lieve that educated and unpreiudiced men, must answer this question in the affirma- tive Yet know there are many persons born in the states who are not Americans of the legitimate stamp. It may safely be affirmed that the Irish deserve we'll of this mighty republic They have played a great and conspicuous part in founding it, and nobly and generously assisted it's statesmen and patriots in developing it's resources. extendingsits boundaries, main- taining it's independence. defending it's honor and upholding it's dignity. Within it's boundaries there is no field of exertion, physical. moral, or intellectual, on which Catholic Irishmen have not set their mark. This is g historical fact. which it would be vain to doubt and foolish to deny.
 It is no violation of truth to assert that at the period of the revolution Irishmen were numerous'enoughto to leave their mark on 1the battlefield of freedom and on the Declaration of Independence. Nine of the fifty-six heroic men by whom this inn mortal declaration of human rights-this new charter of human freedom-was sign ed. and six of the thirty-six delegates by whom the constitution of the United Staes was promulgated in 17S7, were Irish by birth or descent. Charles Carroll of Carrollton, n,-"clarum ct venerable mo- men"-the wealthiest of the signers. was the grandson of Irish parents, and to the close of his patriotic and eventful career was always proud of his Irish blood and Irish lineage. Though his private fortune exceeded that of all the other signers col lectively, and though the emmissaries of England used every effort to tempt him from the path of patriotism, he preferred the freedom of his country to gold, and the happiness of his countrymen to the highest honor which the British govern ment could confer upon him. When the courage of even brave men wavered, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, by voice and pen, boldly and fearlessly advocated the independence of the colonies. He fore saw from the commencement of the quar- rel between England and America that the final issue of the struggle would be decided by the sword. In the great work of pre- pairing the minds of the people for the victories which they woD on many 8 well fought field, he used the pen with power and an eloquence which Jefferson alone could rival. His prudence, wisdom, in- tegrity, decision of character, pure patriot ism, administrative abilities and extensive learning made him the idol of his native state and the admiration of all the great men of the revolution. He was the last survivor of the illustrious men who signed the Declaration of Independence. and en- toying every blessing that could accom- pany old age. honor, love. obedience, troops of friends, he died, as he had lived, a true, conscientious and practical Catholic, leaving behind him 8 name among the most honored and cherished in the history of statesmen and patriots in the United States.
 The bigots and fanatics who sheer at Catholics and denounce them as enemies profit the noble record of the Carroll family. the glory of Maryland. Daniel Carroll, who was one of the delegates by whom the constitution of the United States was definitely fixed and adopted, and who gave Washington the farm on which the federal capitol is built, was the son of Daniel Carroll, an Irish Catholic, and brother of Archbishop Carroll How few of our boasted orators who de- nounce Rome and papal aggression, know that the site of the city of Washington was the gift of the worthy son of an Irish Catholic emigrant.
 Richard Montgomery, who was one of the first martyrs of American liberty, and whose name will live forever in the morals of his adopted country, was as brave an Irishman as ever fought for freedom. General Stephen Moylsn, true christian knight, a soldier without fear and without reproach. whose famous dragoons were the terror of the British army, was the brother of Dr Moylal, the Catholic bishop of Cork Commodore John Barry, whose naval ex- ploits won for him the public thanks of Washington, and who was the first upon whom the title by which he is popularly known was conferred by the American government was a true Catholic son of infant navy of the United States was his work. Commodore Barry has been justly called the father of the American navy
 The heroic exploits of the brave Irish men who fought for American independ- ence would supply materials for most in teresting book. Of those immortal sol- diers of freedom it may be truly said that the remembrance of their virtues will be cherished while liberty is dear to the American heart. If Irishmen fought for American liberty. they also spoke and wrote for it. In the British parliament the great Edmund Burke and Richard Brinsley Sheridan hurled the thunders of their eloquence against the despotic min isters who employed brute force to en- slave the champions of freedom. In Ire land. the illustrious Henry Grattan advo- cated the cause of the colonies with that wonderful eloquence which inspired the proud spirit that marshalled the glorious army of the volunteers, and won for a brief period the legislative independence of his country. In truth. Ireland sympa- thized profoundly with the colonists in their heroic efforts to shake off the yoke of England. The Catholics of Ireland were heart and soul with the Americans. Their sympathy did not exhaust itself in fearless professions of friendship and good will; their timely assistance in the hour of dan ger has been acknowledged by men whose cannot be questioned. whose luQSIuout W6S uOb DlhScO ny AdGAOAdA OS religious prejudice.
 Those who. from prejudice or ignorance. deny that Ireland played conspicuous part in the accomplishment of the Ameri- can revolution, or that she manifested deep sympathy for the American patriots in their heroic struggle for the freedom of their country. will scarcely have the courage to question the authenticity. or uudarrate the imuortauce of the following which consider too valuable to be omitted. George Washington Park Custis. who was the adopted son of the great George Washington. and who braved the terrors of death in defense of his country's rights, more than once. bore gen. erous testimony to the service which Ire- land rendered to America. During their struggle for Catholic emancipation, Irish appealed for sympathy to Ameri- ca. and one of the true and patriotic Americans who promptly and with en-