The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1898-07-09

0uAAAsoA, IAo 61edI leSdl luulluuTy,
Lord Russell, Of Kilowen; the great
military heroes, Wolseley and Roberts.
In speaking Of Mr.. Gladstone many of
our journals referred to him as the
greatest Englishman of his time and an
example of the possibilities of the An
glo-Saxon character, while upon another
page they inform us that he was purely
Scotch, always desired to be so con-
sidered, and almost as purely Highland
Scotch or Celtic. The preservation of
racial distinctions has its advantages, as
1t frequently lends healthy emulation
and stimulus, and, in any case, while
these distinctions do exist we are bound
to employ the terms by which they are
denoted. A Scotchman is not an Eng
lishman, neither is Cclt an Anglo
Saxon.
We might not object to the general
use of the term Anglo-Saxon for the
sake of convenience did we not detect
tho disposition to arrogate to the Anglo
Saxon all the glory While relegating the
Celt to a position among the dying
races, of whom we have heard. If he
escapes this sad fate, it is only that lie
may be classified With other races
equally Objectionable. DR.. Lyman Alb
bott, in recent article in the North
American Review, declares that the
great forces which contribute to our
civilization in this country are not
Celtic, Slavic, African or Mongolian, but
Anglo-SaXon From the very begin
ming VIC have been in the front rank
with our Anglo Saxon brethren and will
not be crowded out at this late date by
any authorities who would place us in
the same category with the Slavs, Afri-
can and Mongolians. Neither shall
we concede that We have lost our iden-
tlty, or become entirely absorbed, so
long as VIC continue to demonstrate our
superiority over the Anglo-Saxon as we
did recently at Dargai. We are told
that when the English had overcome
their fellow Saxons across the border ii
was that mighty Celt, William Wal
lace, who stretched forth his arm and
drove the enemy from his country. We
have not deteriorated since then and
cannot be ranked second to any race,
Tho Anglo-Saxon may be superior in
point of numbers, but the Celt is su-
perior in point Of merit.
William j. Balfe, secretary Of the New
York Gaelic society, writes:
Nothing could be more misleading
than the statement of "E H. M in
your issue of Wednesday last, that with
tho exception of O'Connell, the men who
have shed lustre on Ireland as their
birthplace within the last two hundred
years have not been pure Celts. He hay
entirely ignored Moore, Lover, Griffin.
Shiel, Sheridan, Carleton, Sir Charles
Gavan Duffy, Darcy and hosts of
others, to say nothing of such men as
Maclise, artist; Hogan and Foley, sculp-
tors; Wallace, Balfe and Sullivan, COM
posers, ETC., all of whom were pure
Gaels. And in his selection of names of
lrishmcn who were not Irish, So to
speak, but Anglo-lrish, he has been
most infelicitous. Every schoolboy in
Ireland knows that the Fitzgeralds,
Plunkets and Burkes (De Burghs) arc
of Norman-French descent, not English.
as are also the Taaffcs, whom "E. H.
NJ" generously but mistakenly credits
to the Gaelic race. In any event, seven
hundred years residence in Ireland,
with continued intermarrage with the
native Gaels, has made the descendants
of these families "more Irish than the
Irish themselves" as was said concern
ing the Fihgeralds in the seventeenth
century.
Thomas Davis was pure Celt. being
Welsh on the paternal side and Irish on
the maternal, fact which he often
reiterated with pride, as can be seen
from Duffy's memoir" of that great
Irishman, Flood was also Celt, be-
longing to the ancient Ulster family OF
OLoimthuile, the latter part of the
name (tuile, flood) having formed the
boo1o AOl LILO <AuSllClLcu 1Olul dS " =
Seasnain has for Sexton. 1t Is inexplic-
able to me why "E. II. NJ" should deny
to the Gaelic race Smith OBrien, the
lneal descendant of the famous house
of Thomond, or John Martin, whose
name is identical in origin with Gil
martin, Killmartin, etc, which are =
branch of the Tyrone house of O'Neil.
The most unkindest cut Of ALL" how
ever, is to dub Mr.. Healy, an Anglo
1rishman. The H@ly sept was found
ed by Ellie Righ Dhearg (Red King Eile)
Of the illustrious house of the Ely
OCarrolls, the same that gave Carroll
of Carrolleton to the United States, and
the English form of name is, but that
it lacks the y, simply phonetic render
ing of the Irish OH Eiligh. There is
but one name In the list furnished by
'E. H. NJ" that is, unquestionably Eng
lish, and that is the euphonious one of
Butt. Each of the other names men,
toned by your correspondents is Of
doubtful origin. Michel, for instance,
being supposed by many good author
tiles to be from the French Michel, and
by others from the Irish Maolmichill,
which hao baop ApOlirizc6 Mirha1 and