Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1898-09-03

/ pcIlSncu III DuDnnI dSSdSStudtcu ny the
illegal verdict of a court-martial. a" And
then he went on to say that his talents
and his courage announced him as the
future Washington of Ireland. In these
sentences he spoke only the sober Ian
guage of truth. confess what has al
ways struck me as one of the most sub
lime spectacles of human progress and
struggles for liberty was the spectacle of
Wolfe Tone as he stood before the court
martial in this city, in the power of cruel
and dastardly enemies, and when he
knew that his life was forfeited and that
the hour of his death was at hand. 1t is
easy to be heroic and courageous in the
field of battle when your blood is hot, and
to strike blow for fatherland when ones
comrades are butchered at ones side !;
but standing powerless before your cruel
enemies in cold blood with death before
you, then say the metal of which man
is made is tried, and with all the agoniz-
ing thoughts of wife and children-for he
had young wife and three children, to
whom he was devotedly attached-in the
whole annals of human history / know
no more magnificent spectacle of human
greatness than when Tone confronted his
enemies. With a frmness, calmness and
dignity great as was ever displayed he
dehed his enemies and went to his death
with courage that illustrated page of
Irish history which will remain forever
to be cherished by the children of Ireland.
We honor his memory here today in the
city in which he was assassinated. We
have shown by this magnificent demon
stration that his principles are triumph
ant, and l recommend all of you to study
his life, his writings and his teachings.
They are a precious inheritance to the
Irish people and one which, if studied
and acted upon, will be, in my Judgment
the best guidance to the patriots heart
Mr.. John E. Redmond, NJ. P, who
was received with prolonged enthusiasm,
said: Fellow-countrymen, can not but
feel how poor and how weak words are
after the demonstration of today. The
eloquence of your numbers and your en-
thusiasm could not be increased by any
words, and it seems to me almost as if it
would have been better to have let this
great demonstration speak for itself
speak for itself to England of the deter
mination of the Irish people to stand by
their country, and to have left speeches
out of the programme altogether; and
| vat - De- ...~.aee;tla Co.
ton as this to come to close without
some of our public men coming together
on this platform to show once again to
England that however men in the current
politics of the day may have different
views as to methods, at the same time in
the essentials, that is in our devotion to
the national cause, and in our undying
hostility to English rule, we Irish Nation
alists stand absolutely united around this
statue today. Mr.. Dillon has quoted
some words from Lucien Bonaparte' IS
speech about Theobald Wolfe Tone. /
was reading that speech myself this
corning and 1 was struck by this extra
ordinary prophesy which Lucien Bona
1 parte made on that speech in November,
1899. He used these words: "The
day." he said, will doubtless come in
that same city of Dublin, and on the spot
the satellites of Britain reared the scat
fold where they expected to wreak their
vengeance on Tone, where the indie
pendent people of Ireland will erect on
that spot a trophy to his memory, and
will yearly celebrate on the anniversary
of his trial the festival of their union
round his monument. Well now, thank
God, after the hundred years that have
passed, at last today the Irish people have
fulfilled that prophesy of Lucien Bona
parte. The hundred years that have
passed have vindicated the purity of the
motives, the loftiness of the character,
and will say also the wisdom of the
aims of Tone and of the United Irishmen.
Fellow-countrymen, there are many diff
ferent views which are taken by histor.
ians of the instruction of 1898. One Of
the most common of those views is that
that movement was merely movement
Va ANRAoeNhN~ Oh NAN PoAN Vi hANh WAN
were driven to arms by cruelties and bar.
harities of every kind. Well in one sense
and as applying to some of the rebels Of
'98. that view was true one. But if we
regard the '9S movement broadly the
view is false one; so far at any rate a:
Tone himself and the founders of the SO
ciety are concerned that view was false
because the '9S insurrection was the re
suit of deliberately, cautiously and ably
planned effort to achieve national liberty
Fellow-countrymen Tone and his asso
ciates were not drawn into arms simply
by the barbarity of English troops and
!. defense of their lives and their homes
. No; they were driven into arms by {
higher and loftier ideal, the ideal o.
J creating on the soil of Ireland free gov
eminent and of raising the flag of liberty
1 say, therefore, the view that many his
torians have expressed that the '98 in
! surrection was merely a movement o
, resistance against the barbarities of thu
! English is not true The movement wa
the purest movement for liberty that il
. lumines the annals of any country sine
4f.a mo- IL haoor THE .,,aa&:,..v to1a,