The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1897-05-01

DO founded upon the broader and
sounder basis Of independent political
action for the benefit Of the whole Irish
nation" That intelligence must have
been furnished to the press by some Of
the leaders, probably Mr.; Redmond him
self, and it was meant to convey the
idea that the majority party in the
house Of commons led by John Dillon
is not to the liking Of Mr.. Redmond
and his adherents. In other words, it
means that the Redmondite party will
not act and vote with the Dillon party,
but will keep aloof from it ''for che ben
eft Of the whole Irish nation" Ac-
cording to that report there Is no proxi-
mate prospect Of union between the con-
tending parliamentary factions II Mr..
Redmond can prevent it. It appears
that his little party is rapidly disinte-
grating, however, for Timothy 1Iarrjng-
ton, who favors unity and" Cancellation
between all Irishmen, left the Parnellfte
convention, followed by those who have
confidence in his honesty and patriotism
and who realize the fact that the cause
of Ireland is irretrievably lost unless the
Irish leaders abandon dissension and
pull together as in other days. Tim
Harrington has demonstrated his disin-
terested love Of country by cutting loose
from John Redmond, who appears to be
bent on mischief. In his recent visit to
the United States Mr.. Redmond bad an
opportunity for ascertaining' the senti-
ment of the American-1rish people on
the question Of division among the par:
namentary leaders, and yet he Drofted
nothing by the knowledge acquired here.
He no sooner arrived home than he en-
couraged disunion in the face Of the Of
forts being made in his absence to effect
unity among his countrymen. John
Redmond places self above country.
and we are greatly mistaken II he does
not prove himself a traitor to the irish
cause before he finishes his political ca
reer.
Another object Of the proposed league
is to prevent "any further interference
Of rricds in politics" How can Red
mond prevent the priests from partici-
pating in tho politics Of their native
land? Does he want them to be dis
franchised1 There is no body Of men in
Ireland who deserve the gratitude OF
the Irish people more than the present
hierarchy and clergy Of that country.
and any leader who antagonizes them
is sure to get fall, The Irish priests
are different from the clergy Of every
other nation. They have always stood
between the people and their oppressors
and long before Redmond was born the
Catholic priests of Ireland were the
champions Of civil and religious liberty.
Some Of them led the people against
their tyrants on bloody battlefields and
yielded up their lives for their country.
Has Redmond forgotten the heroism
and patriotism Of the priests of his ma
tive county in the rebellion of '9S? The
staunchest supporters Of O'Connell were
the men whom this leader would dis
criminate against. Who rendered bet
ter or more efficient aid, to the Liberator
than Archbishop McF1ale and the great
DR.. Doyle? We could name several pa
trtotic priests who cast their influence
with the Young Ireland party. and dur
ing the land league agitation did they
not suffer imprisonment under the reg
ime of Buckshot Forster? There may
be an odd man among them who may
err in Judgment anu be guilty of polfti-
cal indiscretions, but as body the
priests and bishops Of today are the en-
bodiment of patriotism. The names Ct
Archbishops Walsh and Croke are hon
ored by the Irish race. and we know
not the name of single bishop or priest
who does not favor Home Rule for his
country. The late Mr.. Parnell, though
Protestant, had all the Catholic bfsh-
ops and priests Of Ireland at his back
and he frequently acknowledged his
obligations to them. Redmond, the self
constituted successor of that great man,
is a Catholic and yet he wants mo fur
Their interference of priests in politics"
Neither do the Tories want any Inter-
ference from them, for they know the
Irish priests possess brains, character
and conscience and are absolutely incor-
ruptible and unpurchasable.
We have confidence in the good sense
of the Irish people, and we risk the as
sertion that the day is not remote when
they will dispense with the services of
Mr.. Redmond and relegate him to the
obscurity from whence he sprung.
He is no friend of ireland who would
keep the people divided in the face of the
Tory enemy. Unity and liberty, one
and inseparable." said great Ameri-
can. and the words are as applicable to
ireland today as they were to the United
States when first uttered.
The citizens of Waterford are largely
responsible for the retention of Red
mond as an Irish leader. At the next
election If they have the cause of their