Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1898-12-24
William O'Brien's Denuncia-
ton of the Governments
Tactics.
Elect Men to County Councils
Who Will Prevent Police
Grabbing.
A TIDAL WAVE OF NATIONAL SPIRIT

The meeting which was recently held
at Strokestown is the best evidence of
the manner in which the United Irish
League movement has, says the Dublin
Freeman's Journal, to use common
phrase, "caught OIL" in the West of Ire
land. The town of Strokestown is the
center of the lordling's cleared demesne
in the County Roscommon. In fact, the
warning to be seen at the gates of the
Strokestown demesne is practically
posted on the stone fences of every field
in the neighborhood of the town, keep
Off the Grass" The meeting under all
the circumstances was a splendid one. 1t
was not as large as the gathering usually
held under the auspices of the United
Irish League, but the question may well
be asked: Where did the people come
from?
Mr.. William O'Brien, the orator of the
day, who was received with loud cheers,
said this was the first time he had ever
set foot in Strokestown. 1t was a great
pleasure to find SO many people left in
the country after the miles of depopu-
lated land through which he had just
been travelling. 1t was pride and pleas
ure to him to address the people of
Strokestown, because he knew that
among them were some who differed
from him in some matters, but although
there were some matters on which they
differed there were also important ques-
tons on which they were agreed, and
upon which they were prepared to fight
side by side together as Irish Nationalist.
They were all agreed in hitting English
rule. They would be only too eager to
welcome the man, be he native leader OF
foreign soldier, WHO conitd tefif them nov
to Danish it most quickly out OF this isl
and bag and baggage. They were al
haters of Irish landlordism. They knew
that every page of its history has beer
blotted with the sufferings and with the
curses of the whole Irish race, and that
the only service landlordism could evei
do to Ireland was by disappearing from
its soil forever. They all believed in the
United Irish League programme of more
land and better land for the people.
Of $4,000 tenants in the County Ros
common there was no less than IL, 00(
whose valuation was under go, ano
there were nearly 5000 of them scattered
on wretched patches whose valuation
was less than Is, and that in the very
midst of the richest and most abundant
plains that the heart of man could de
sire. Finally they were all agreed il
reprobating the conduct of the polic'
grabber. AS to land grabbing he tool
leave to lay down three proposition
which he was ready to fight out with thu
Government in their coercion courts
even if they were packed with all thu
Lord Norburys and Judge Keoghs tina
ever disgraced the name of justice il
Ireland.
The first proposition was that their OLE
race might as we'll fly the country alto
gether if they left land grabbers to g
unpublished. The next was that by ever,
law which entitled the trade unionists O
England to fight blacklegs and tn
judges of the land to blackball disrep
utable barristers. the farmers of Irelan'
were justified in stamping out this in
sane and unnatural greed for the mean
of livelihood of the poor and weak.
The case of the ordinary land grabbe
was bad enough, but here was the case G
a man paid by the public fol the purpos
of being an impartial officer betwee
landlord and tenant taking an evicte
farm, and so stirring up one of the mos
serious public disturbances that eve
shook Roscommon, and the Inspecto
General of the Constabulary, instead c
rebuking this peace officer, indorse
Egan's action. He had always found
good deal of kindly Irish nature, toe
Even the strait jacket of the depot cou1
never altogether strangle the members {
the peasant fathers and mothers the
they sprang from. But even for the
own sakes every decent man anon
them ought to be the first to make
stand against adding land grabbing to a
the other discomforts of their profession
Just fancy such thing happening i
England. Fancy in the case of a gres
English strike police force being SCI
down to work for the masters at lowe
wages aud being at liberty to prosecui
the workers. The place of an Inspects
General in England who would tolera'
such thing would not be worth twent,
four hours purchase. And why1 Becaul
the representatives of the English peop
control their own police, and il they wei
to be used for the purpose Of helping Il
capitalists to put down the workers the
would have every public man and new
paper in England crying out for punis
ment Of the man who countenanced sue
unfair use Of the police force.
. But in Ireland they were expected
: lie down dumb, without word Of pr