The Irish standard., 1900-03-24

sentative of the crown was to be ex-
plotted for the benefit and the glory OF
the ascendancy classes there would be
music in the air that would not be
grateful to royal ears. So the duke
came as distinguished visitor and was
treated as such. 1t will be the same
with Queen Victoria, if her mission be
that OF good will and not the tantaliz-
ing evidence of conquest and subjuga-
ton. The Irish people anyway have no
love for her majesty and there is not a
single reason why they should have.
Her reign has been one Of the most
doleful and cruel for Ireland in the his
tory of the connection between the two
countries. Sheis lookedupon as heartless
and hypocritical, while sting giness is a
well-known Characteristic of her men,
tai and moral makeup. When she as
cended the throne, or few years later,
the population of Ireland was not far
from o,ooo, 900, to-day it is but one-half
of that.
She has seen over 100000 OF her
subjects there buried in famine graves
or driven despairing into exile, and no
word of womanly commiseration or
sympathy has come from her. Her
heart and purse have been closed in
their hours of deepest distress. 1t has
been in her days as it was when the
poet Shelley visited ireland. Writing
from Dublin in 1872 he described the
condition of the country and people as
follows: "The rich grind the poor into
abjectness and then complain that they
are abject They goad them into fam
inc and hang them if they steal loaf"
This is brief and vivid picture Of
Ireland under Queen Victoria.
And her family has been as unsympa-
thetic as she. The Duke of Cambridge,
her uncle, in speech delivered i'll Lon
don expressed himself, it is asserted, as
follows: II understand that Ireland is
not in so bad state as has been repre-
sented. l understand further that rot
ten potatoes and sea weed, or even
grass, properly mixed, afford very
wholesome and nutritious food. We all
know that Irishmen can live upon any,
thing, and there is plenty of grass in
the fields, even if the potato crop should
fail" The "prince consort," Albert Of
SAKE Coburg, Queen Victoria's hus-
band, was accused, some time later, of
having used practically the same and
as brutal and fendish language in a
letter to the great German naturalist,
Baron Humboldt. The charge has been
made against him, and has never been
heartlessness has been regarded as
prima facie evidence OF its truth. His
heartlenssness has been regarded as
only a reflex Of the opinions of his
wife, Victoria, and so it is no wonder
that the Irish have neither love nor
respect for her majesty. Why, it is
only last year that men, women and
children were starving in the west and
south of ireland and not command
to aid them nor a word of sy1npath,
came from her.
1t was during her early years on the
throne that thousands of the Irish peo-
pie of all ages were found lying dead
and dying behind bitches with their
mouths green by eating sorrel and the
grass of the field, and it was on this
condition that her uncle, the Duke of
Cambridge, made his brutal speech,
which was all but paraphrased by her
husband, and yet she uttered no pro-
test nor made any sign of commisera-
ton. Her present compliments about
loyalty and bravery will not drive the
memories of those days out of the
minds of the Irish people, and, though
they may treat her with respect as Il
woman, they can evince no enthusiasm
for her, and should any efforts be made
to give political or imperial significance
to her visit there is sure to be popular
protest that will show her she is more
hated than loved or respected.
Austen Chamberlain has announced,
no doubt by instruction, that the gov
crnment refuses to appoint Catholic
chaplains to the navy. This denial has
brought vigorous protests from the
hierarchy of this country. There are
not probably now as many Catholic
sailors in the service as formerly, but
the refusal is none the less calling, for
the number of Irishmen in the British
fleets is still very large. What the num-
Der was in former times may be seen
from speech made by Henry Grattan
in 1893. He said: "In the last war, OF
10000 seamen $4,000 we're Irish names;
in some of the men-of-war almost the
whole complement of men were Irish.
The Irish Catholics have supplied his
majestys fleets, and in so great pro-
portion that the recruiting service could
not we'll go on without them" Later
Sir John Hippesley showed that in a
list of forty-six ships of the line the
majority of Catholics greatly exceeded
the Protcstants, in some cases amour.
ing to even two-thirds and in one or
two of the frst-rate ships nearly the
whole.
But it serves Irishmen right if they
cannot get religious consolation when