The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-10-08

NuSi--H0n. John Arthur Explains
the Purposes of the Organization
The Formal Part Over. Refresh
ments are served and = General
Good Time Enjoyed by All.
sion in this city Of a council o. the Irish
National Alliance received practical inpe-
Jus In the meeting that was he'd in Pett.s
hal. on First avenue, las. night. 20 which
all syrrpa1h!zsng Irishmen. Irish-Auser.-
cars AMI their friends had been baden.
with the result that ii fire crowd, num-
oer-ng among us members some OK the
brightest ard best known people Of Sc
attic, gathered and enjoyed = dlyerssfiet
programme that had been provided by the
members OF the alliance having the mat
ter Of the meeting In hand
Shortly after O'Clock President j. J.
Reardon, OF the local council. called the
meeting together, and In a feg well chosen
words announced the objects Of the or
ganlzailon. which he said he hoped would
be understood. '-The people OF ireland are
q sovereign people. and the spirit OF free
dom is their bsrthright." said Mr.. Rear
don. He read the declaration OF the pria-
ciples Of the order adopted at Chicago az
the time the national alliance was organ
ICED, and stated that the organization had
nc religious tendencies. and looked for its
support from Irishman OF all beliefs. He
paid a tribute to the flags OF the United
States and the ernblematic banner OF Ire.
land that dnaped the rear OF the stage.
and then introduced the various ladies
ard gentlemen who participated ia the
programme. Prof. and Miss LANCER rem
dered some instrumental music and Mr..
Edward Long gave a banjo solo that de-
manded an encore. Miss A. Berry sang
Thou Art Ny Life and for an encore
lullaby Hon. John Arthur was then in
tro!acei. ard ienied that he was going 10
make speech. lie had been asked 10
say something in the absence of the reg
uIar speaker OF the evening. and read
letter OF regret from Frank W. Cushman.
WHO had been announced 10 address the
meeting. The letter was dated Pa.ouse,
October s. AMI was as follows.
II ind Il will be utterly impossible for
me 20 be present on the evening Of Ocio-
Der Z IN Seattle. and meet The frsencs OF
Ireland
This Is more OF disappointment 70 me
than you may believe. as ever since | re-
ceived the kind invitation from the Seattle
Council OF the Irish National Alliance
have looked forward with pleasure toward
tha. evening. and made all my CALCULATIONS
on being present az that time. But mat
tiers practically beyond my control have
called me % the eastern part OF the state.
and will isfein me. so that IL VIII be i'm
possible for me TO be present
'Wiu YOU please present my regrets
to the members OF the Seattle council. ana
say 10 them that my heart will be with
them on that evening. however Tar away
the flesh shall be. and God speed TIE day
when the liberty or Ireland shall no longer
be q dream. but reality
After reading the letter Mr.. Arthur went
on TO say that the Irish National Alliance
Is. as the title suggests. an organization
Tor the promotion OF national spirit and
national purposes and progress In Ireland.
The Irish demand the restoration OF their
national parliament. whose abolition in
800 was accomplished by wholesale and
outrageous bribery now condemned by all
Liberal statesmen in England. and sub
ject OF general reprobation and aohor-
renee in ireland. BY similar means the
parliament OF Scotland had been abolished
half u century previously. and Robert
Burns AFFIXED an iudelihle stigma 10 the
mercenary Scots who sold oat their ma
tIonai identity for English money.
Sic a parcel Of rogues in a nation" the
poem in which he dashed them, is as ap
plicabls 10 the ycnal pensioners of the
Irish parliament of $50 as 10 the Scotch
rogues who reduced TO provincial insig-
nifcance the
LsnI OF brown heath and shaggy wood,
Land of the mountain and the Hood.
In their demand for the re-establish-
ment or the ma tIonal parliament, fre Irish
ask for such powers OF local seif-govern-
ment as are enjoyed by territory OF the
United States. not OF so wide and ompre-
hensive . scope as the powers OF state
Of the Union. The latter legisiates ahso-
Iutely and finally on all subjects affect
Ing its oan citizens in their relations with
one another. the powers OF a territorial
legislature are circumscribed by act OF
nd he ~ Dxr
subject 30 congressional revision. though
this Theoretical power has rarely been ex-
ereiscG.
II would seem. therefore, that the de-
niands Of Ireland are quite moderate. and
such as no American community would
long be content with, bnt tn England they
are resisted as a movement for what Is
called "the dIsmsmberment Of the en-
pire." There Is In Ireland no government
al city or county organization possessing
one-haif of the legislative and executive
powers conferred hy its charter on the
city Of Seattle. 4 gas company or water
company cannot 30 organized in ireland
without the authority Of special act az
The British parliament. which Il generally
takes from Eve 20 ten years to secure.
even when there Is no home opposition
70 II. In the casa OF Scotland the mem
hers % parliament from that country as
se,uAled in committee. decide By ma ioriiy
vote upon the measures needed for their
country. AMI this decision IS always a.
cepted without question BY the English
Irish ana Welsh members: so that In a
certain sense the Scotch snjey the home
rule for which the irish are clasnorins
The Irish National Alliance Is world
wide arga ngzation. devised as an auxiliary
20 the home rule movement for TIE resto-
ration OF sss ella parliament 20 Ireland.
In the United safes t-AnaHa Ausfrat;s
ana other British possessions. Il 10 or
ganlzesf - councils. whose functions are
- keep up the sPiYl, OF nationality among
the. Irish ana raise funds for the sunpo~s
81 thc PATRIOTS ov-anlza tons IN ireland.
That country being poor. AID constantly
kept 50 by eXsartiouate taxation. sha IA
trios party depends for f3usnetaI sussenaacD
upoa tire sym "a thetsc friends across tho
great se8s. The rich ard 1eil-to-do in
irsiara being naturally content with things
as they are. the popular movement has to
look elsewhere fer the sinews OF war.
There t. 20 salary paid 20 members OF tha
British parliament: and az the rsgrslar
leaders In Ireland are chiefly made up %
journalists ana lawyers. who ara chaFaS-
terfsicslay poor. il has become he custom
"a provide FOR their decent support and
r,s8lutenaucs n T.ofaxson while they are 8,
attendance upon parliament Az TIA "a.
trsot rneuNerS number from esxhtw n
ninety. this item alone calls for large
sum or nsoaey from America ana AS
tw&9aa.
To assist IN these objects is ihe rur9ss~
= tAe Seattle council % ste IRISH Natior,al
Alliance
ar. Arthu~ also quoted the wartsxh
Statesman. JOAN Bright vao had sail
teat K t6e Irish coaAd have ;helr w2v a;
iezsSs t9Tee-f0arEAs % theFn Mould fear