The Irish standard., 1899-02-04
A VERY INSTRUCTIVE ADDRESS
Delivered by Him at the Recent
Annual Meeting
ANENT THE EARLY SETTLERS
Part Taken by the Irish in the
American Revolution.

At the third annual meeting of the
American-lrish Historical society, re-
Gently held in New York, Hon. Z. A.
Moseley, the retiring president, deliv-
cred an exhaustive address on the Irish
in the Amcican colonies, from which the
following passages are extracted:
The English government during the
Eighteenth century allowed no vessel to
sail from Ireland direct. but it was
necessary by law first to visit an Engfsh
port before clearance papers could be
obtained for the voyage. A record was
also kept for the purpose of collecting a
head tax on every individual thus leav-
ing the colonies. | have gone carefully
over this register, and to my surprise
scarcely u name appears which could be
identified with Ireland. From this fact
the official register has been cited In
proof that there was no emigration from
Ireland but those who were sent abroad
In servitude, and consequently this
country for the first century. at least.
was settled chiefly by English people.
But the explanation is that every Irish
man in Ireland within reach of English
authority was ut that time governed by
the following law: AN act that Irish
men dwelling in the counties OF, etc.
go appareled like Englishmen and wear
their boards after the English manner,
swear allegiance and take English SUR
names; which surnames shall be of one
town, as Sutton. Chester, Trim, Skryne,
Corke, Kinsale; or colors, MS white,
black. browne; or arts and sciences, as
smith or carpenter; or office, as cooke.
butler etc, and 1t is enacted that he and
his Issue shall use this name under pain
of forfcyting OF his goods yearly. ETC."
AS a consequence, every Irish peasant
crossing in an Irish or English vessel,
and from either England or Ireland.
appeared on the official record as Eng
lish, for the voyage did not begin ac-
corling to law until cleared from an
English port.
by this circumstance we proved the
converse that n large Irish emigration
did reach this country by some route
which was not under English control
How otherwise can We explain the
presence of undoublcd Irish surnames
unchanged, as found in all the early
records of the country? And on the
other hand, we find today lriahmcn and
their descendants In this country, bear
ing the names OF Sutton, Chester, Kim
sale, White. Black, Brown, Smith, Car
pcnlcr. Cook. Butler, etc, otc.. proving
thereby that this law was enforced, by
which they were deprived of their pure
Celtic names. and that they did not
change these names after coming to this
country.
Virginia was undoubtedly first settled
by the English. but at an early period
the Irish began to come in, bound to
serve Il stated term in payment for their
passage money; but eventually these
people became free mon, settling down
on the frontier. and their descendants
in the next generation, as indicated by
their names appearing in the records,
began to take part in the affairs Of the
colony.
Maryland was chiefly settled by Irish
Catholics, and Calvert himself was an
Irishman, and received his title of Lord
Baltimore from place in the southwest
of Ireland.
William Penn spent large portion of
his life in Ireland before he received his
grant in America. A number of his FOL
lowers were Irish, and the most Drom1-
nent person next to Penn himself was
James Logan, an Irishman who acted as
governor of the province for number
of years. He was most tolerant to the
Irish Catholics, who were allowed FREQ
! exercise of their religion, and they re-
ceived protection in this colony from
the first settlement.
Many of those who first settled in
New Jersey were from Ireland, and there
were undoubtedly some Irish in New
Amsterdam. In the Jesuit Relations It
! is shown that Father Jaques, who after
wards suffered the death of a martyr
among the Indians Of Central New York,
came about 1642 from Canada to admin
lister to those of his faith then living
among the Dutch.
In 1884 the general court of Massa-
chusetts Bay granted lands on the Mer-
rimac river for an Irish settlement, and
there were several hundred Irishmen
who served in King Philips Indian war.
whose names are still preserved In the
colonial records. have record OF the
fact. but neglected to note the authority
Of a reference to q contemporaneous