The Irish standard., 1895-10-05
Patrick, why should not an 1rishman be
tall and straight as well as any other
man, even if that other man should be an
Indian?
THE IRISH CONVENTION.

j
| the effect Of indefinitely postponing
Home Rule, as it is. said the present
English ministry is in favor Of granting
| to Ireland that precious boon so long
sought but always so elusive. It is claim
ed that DR.. O'Sullivan, of Limerick, one
Of the delegates to the Chicago conven-
| ton, stopped in Montreal on his way
! home this week and there expressed
| himself to the effect that compact had
| been made between Justin Mccarthy and
Arthur J. Balfour by which the former
promised the government the support OF
his followers in return for Irish Home
Rule. This, DR.. Sullivan says, he had
from McCarthy's own lips, but he Is now
afraid that the resolutions passed at the
convention may interfere with the plan.
Surprising this is true, Is it not a little
strange that DR.. Sullivan waited until
he got thousand miles away from the
convention before he divulged such in
formation? There is no record of his
even limiting at such an arrangement
II
have changed the course of affairs there,
however, but 1t would have been an in
teresting piece Of information for consid-
GRAFTON in convention where everything
was open and above board, and 1t could
have had an airing, even If the next
moment it might have been laughed at
for it's absurdity, for absurd it undoubt-
eddy is. The present Tory ministry
would no doubt desire to make an envi-
able record and to that end perhaps it
would not be aversa to stealing some Of
the Liberal party's thunder (and such
thunderD and grant some sort of relief
to Ireland; but even in such an event it
would simply be a sop to Cerberus to
stop the clamor of the Irish people.
No, there is no plausibility in the tale.
The English have been tried In every
way known to the ingenuity of honest,
earnest men to grant even a moiety Of
relief to those who have been almost
degraded by her brutality and She has
looked calmly on, taking delight in the
writings of her vctime Ireland she
never intends to permit to govern itself.
She has Iessened the ardor Of it's repre-
sentatives by holding out the tinsel of
hope and thus solacing for the time being
the anxiously awaiting people, but when
the crucial moment came-when the
hour arrived for the fulfilment of the
hopes deferred which had made the heart
sick-there was always some excuse Of
fered, some subterfuge employed, some
plausible delay to be considered, and the
long looked for victory was still in abey-
ance.
Painfully aware of all these failures
and knowing the various methods that
had been employed to obtain success
methods that were sometimes aggressive,
sometimes peaceful, sometimes persta-
sive and parliamentary-was it not nat
ural, proper and praiseworthy that a
convention of Irish Americans should be
called to consider what was the next best
step to take? All sorts of disastrous
predictions had been made concerning
the gathering-some affirming that it
was political scheme for the benefit of
few and that such fact would be devel-
oped in the convention, some claiming
that it was another attempt at the revival
of fenianism, while others claimed that it
would be scene of disorder and the
clashing of interests and would end
where it began, in mutual distrust, and
the accomplishment Of nothing. To none
of these gloomy prophesies has there
been any ful1llment. 1t was remarkable
that so few speeches were made in that
convention, considering its purpose and
the eloquent addresses of the chairman,
Mr.. Finerty, there was comparatively lit
tie platform talking done and even that
was couched in such conservative phrase
as to be amazing. Mr.. Finerty gave vent
to his vehement hatred of English rapac-
ty towards the Irish, but he has done so
on many occsaions before with equal i'm
petuosity. The feeling of that meeting
was one of intense thought for the pur-
pose of evolving some means of bringing
the English to terms, and SO placidly and
legitimately were the proceedings con-
Quoted that the plans for future action
were not even outlined but were left
in the hands of committee for its quiet
deliberation.
Even supposing every man who at
tended the convention had fenian in
stincts in his heart and was only await
ing the opportunity of carrying them
into effect-what matter? Why should
he not have fenian instincts or any other
instincts akin to that feeling, if he
could thereby effect anything whatever
for the benefit Of his native land or the
land of his ancestors? If fenianism has
any terrors for the timid so much the
better. It shows there is something in
it. What matter it what methods are
employed to wrest from England justice
to Ireland 80 long as innocent parties
do not suffer? Did not the patriots of
the American revolution employ every
method that could be suggested so that
the hated rulers should be driven from
our shores? Why do timid Irishmen
shudder today lest some jealous lover
of the old land should proceed too far?
Is there any limit to the extent Of a