The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-03-24

NllCll Wdo lHC oSilOol NANAN men, who our state soon after called upon, received their military education.
 When Governor Buckingham re- quested Captain Cahill to organize a regiment of Irish volunteers in '6l he replied he could not do SC until the ln- jury of '55 was repaired. The governor saw the justice of this request and lm-
 mediately issued an honorable dis charge to all members of company ID.
 Then it was that the Ninth c. V. was organized a full regiment of Irishmen or their descendants, led to the front by the patriotic Cahill and returned, honorably mustered out after service during the way, under the command of Colonel John G. Healy, man who commanded the respect of the enemy and the reverence of his own regiment. Patrick Maher was not idle during
 this time when the country called for aid, but recruited three companies of the Twenty fourth c. V. and returned after an honorable service as com | manding major.
 The history of the Irish is indelibly written on our Soldiers monument, so will offer no apology for the Irish | troop, either in the presence of the ! enemy of on the parade, before the ! commanding general.
 The benevolent societies had their
 birth in the visit of Rev. Theobold
 Mathew, October IS, 1884, when 1,40O
 men took the pledge of total absti-
 hence, and formed the benevolent so- l cieties which have succeeded even to | this day. and the amount of good | they have done is known only to the l benficiaries, and to Him, who has
 said that He will reward for a cup of
 cold water given in His name.
 The Irish naturally took to politics,
 and as they were accustomed to strife
 in the old country, they enjoyed it. They naturally adopted the democrat | ic party, and it was by this party they stood through all diversity.
 The first Catholic elected to a city
 office by popular vote was Dr. John K.
 Downes, who in November, 1856, was
 elected to the office of registrar of vital
 statistics. This gentleman's aunt was the wife of Edward Downes, who for years was city clerk, and uncle of our
 Eddie Downes, who Is still living, and I
 wish to hereby testify to her assist
 ance to me in preparing this paper,
 and her enthusiasm in the cause of
 the progress of her people.
 Then began the ward elections
 wherein the Irish took an active part,
 and in the year 1857 elected Thomas
 w. Cahill to the city council, Patrick :. Maher, Bernard Reilly and Francis !, Donnelly, honorably discharged the du- ], ties of their respective offices.
 I will only mention Peacock No. 10
 among the early fire companies. These l men would fight anything, and often
 they had drowned out the other com , pany, extinguished the fire, dispersed the crowd, they would return home sadly because the life of the Volunteer , fireman was too slow.
 } The police force did not receive the 7 attention of the Irish until later days
 but some few remain to tell of the trial of thirty years or more ago Thomas Kennedy and Philip Reilly were the first to be appointed. While | our present Superintendent Wrinn was only a boy in '49, he took the ' pledge from Father Mathew and kept it.
 There must have been reason fo1 , the good feeling which obtained be- : tween the Catholics and Protestants ir this city, and we believe the influence
 of Yale college had no little part tc play in this happy result. Yale college owes something to the Emerald Isle /, Let us see: When Henry II in 122t ; sought to subdue Wales, he applied tt Ireland for assistance and was giver some men under a young cadet of tht j. house of Fitzgerald, who as a reward l for his services was given a hundred in Wales, called Yale, and from this county of Hundred, the young sprig O D the Fitzgeralds took the name of Yale He prospered in the new country, an( the castle of Din Brais, over the beau tiful Vale SlGothlin became the hom' : of the house of Yale Early in the Sev Il enteenth century David Yale, chancel : Tor to the bishop of Chester, who's daughter he married, died leaving ; three sons. His widow married Theo
 philus Eaton, who emigrated t. IL America and became the first gover nor of New Haven colony. Elihu Yale ' the founder of Yale college, was tn Il son of one of the foster sons of Cover
 nor Eaton, so it does seem that tn , Yale spirit can be traced back to it Irish ancestry. The spirit of tolera tion at Yale is the spirit of this city
 They want no discrimination there, fo man is what he makes himself. D have seen Catholics ostraciZed in Yal
 society because. they were practicall :, Catholics at home, but Protestants Ii N New Haven. I have seen Jews shun
 ned here because they ridiculed tn
 faith they practiced in Denver. hay 1T seen an agnostic receive the highes Z honors from his classmates, becaus l. he was honest in his convictions an
 consistent in his acts. At Yale the |. expect a man to be honest in his be
 liefs, practice what he breaches and b
 able to give a reason for the faith tha
 is in him.
 -s The Irish are thankful for the as u sistance they have received from tn y Protestants, and I believe honors ar 'i even, and feel sure that in the futur It our citizens will pursue the even teno
 of their way.
 And now tonight, as dangers stan U before us, let me declare the Catholic IL know no banner but the flag of libert. ,o , no potentate but the choice of thi people, no law but the law of the lant y The Pope of Rome, unlike the chic