The Irish standard., 1894-07-14

been imprisoned by the English Govern
mont in the Jail of the city Of Cork.
Aud there came to the colony by the
thousand the fl eng victims of the Penal
and Anti-Trade laws, who, landing on
the Delaware, settled many in Philadel-
phia, and, more moving westward, settled
in the southern tier of counties, dotting
the hills and valleys with the old names,
which they still bear, of Donegal. Iy-
rome, Dublin, Coleraine, Merton aud
Dungannon, and SO keeping alive the
memory If the motherlend. From the
known statistics there can be little doubt
that the proportion Of the Irish III the
population was very great. A glance at
the prominent names of the common"
wealth affords ampler proof.
The only Pennsylvania president was
! Irish. .. .-..-
Fourteen of the United States Sena.
! tors have been Irish.
| out of tie few cabinet ministers aA-
lotted TO Pennsylvania, five were Irish.
Ten OF the governors and twenty five
justices of the supreme court have been
Irish, and the names most lustrous upon
the long roll OF Pennsylvania her es--
| whether they bad Mad Anthony Wayne,
at Stony Point, OF George Gordon
Meade at Gettysburg, or Commodore
Barry On the OCEAN, or Admiral Porter at
Fort Fisher-are part and parcel OF the
glory end the fame Of the' Irish Pennsyl-
vaniaDs. ....... ..-
Recessed as we are in the enjoyment OF
civil liberty we can hardly realize the
condition of the colony or the feeling OF
the settlers prior to independence. A
large body OF the people deprecated any
resort to violence, and very consider
able section were opposed to the Revolu-
ton. The French Minister Gerard two
years after the signing of the Declare
ton Of Independence wrote to his gov-
eminent that t'the attempt to celebrate
the Fourth of July was failure, and
that not one fourth of the people are in
favor of the new government"
To their eternal credit be it said that
the Irish in Pennsylvania with life and
fortune supported the new governments.
They constituted the radicals and ex~
tremists of the day. Two years before
1878 their kindred at Mecklenburg pro
aimed to the world that the colonies
"were Of right and ought to DO free and
independent" and it was the men OF this
race who deservedly won for Pennsylva~
MIA the title of the 'Keystone State"
In Pennsylvania, except for them, tie
current ran counter TO extreme mess"
ures. Immediately prior to the passing
Of the resolution of independence by the
continental congress the Pennsylvania
legislature adopted resolutions instruct
ing their representatives "not to give
countenance to any proposed measure of
separation" Immediately mass meet
ing of the citizens to protest. against such
instructions was called. and of the three
officers Of the meeting one was born i'll
Ireland and another was the son of an
Irishman That meeting demanded a
new form of government for the colony.
recommended independence and had
such force that the legislature rescjnded
it's original resolution and elected five
members of the continental congress,
two of whom were natives of Ireland
James Smith and George Taylor, whose
votes changed Pennsylvania and made
the colonies unanimous for independ-
ence.
And the Declaration Of Independence
itself-does it not seem remarkable the
intimate connection that the Irish had
with it. The document itself is in the
handwriting of Charles Thompson, ma
tive Of Londonderry, Ireland, and citi-
zen of Philadelphia, who during all the
years of the continental congress was it's
interchangeable secretary, and OF whom
Franklin said. she was the soul OF con-
gress.'
When the time came, on the twelfth OF
July, 1776, to read the immortal docu-
ment for the first time to the people of
America, the man selected for that dis.
tineuished honor was the captain OF the
City Troop Of Philadelphia, John Nixon,
the son OF an Irishman, and it was first
printed and published to the world by
the printer to the congressional congress,
and the man who published in Philadel-
phia the first daily newspaper in Amer
lea, the r Pennsylvania Packet, John Dun
lap, native Of Strabane, Ireland.
u The invention Of the steamboat, from
which he's come the mighty movements
IA science which have evolutionized not
only modes OF transportation, but, level
ing distances, is changing mankind it
self, was the Pennsyl vania . j ishman,
Robert Fulton.
The first volunteer militia company
ever raised il Psnnsylv il opp osiition.