Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1901-02-21
AN irish VIEW OF VICTORIA.

CORRESPONDENCE OF New York Evening Post
Dublin. Ireland, Jan. 26. 1t was TO
be expected that Queen Viotoria's
death should call forth expressions OF
sincere regret in all quarters OF the
civilized world, except where her
soldiers are engaged in conflict with
civilized people 1t is scarcely realized
how little, and why, IL is 30 felt In one
of the earliest oonqunsts OF her race,
the ono nearest to her centre OF
authority, by one OF the only thrse
peoples IN her wide dominions whose
arms are quartered on her standard, and
whose cross ia borne upon every flag
officially flown in her honor.
The absence OF genuine affection for
her majesty in the hearts OF the vast
majority of the Irish people and OF
sorrow for her death are not due to
hardness Of heart, want OF chivalric
feeliug, or inherent separatist proclivi-
ties. 1t Ia all explicable Her reign
has not been to them happy une. 1t
is true that its conclusion leaves them
--sucn as arc in the country--in hap.
pier condition than lite opening found
them. But this alteration Of condition
has been attained through ordeals to
which the English or aOy other self
governing people would not have been
subjected. 1t found them 5000. 600 in
number; it leaves them 4, 500, 600. IL
found them three .tenths of the strength
of the United Kingdom ii leaves tbem
one tenth. Viotorin's signature has
been attached to sDme 30 or 40 acts OF
Parliament annulling for then alone
ordinary constitutional safeguards to
liberty. She leaves them under such
a one, perpetual In it's provisions by
! which her Viceroy can at any moment,
/ by stroke of his pen, suspend tho
liberty of the prss7. abolish trial by
| jury, and practically hold In abeyanco
habeas. corpus. Her initials have been
placed most prominently before the eyes
of tens Of thousands of her Irish sub
iects upon writs evicting them from
lands which they themselves had re.
| claimed. The associations through
which the greater reforms wherein
lreland's present prosperity mainly
rests ere suppressed by proclanations
ending with God save the Queen.
In her name were imprisoned those by
| whose exertions such reforms were
mainly accomplished.
Surprising necessary the apathy and
lament and people in the process Of
Irish reform, surprising unavoidable
the treatment melted out to associations
aud leaders, all the more would really
great and sympathetic sovereign have
exerted herself to tighten the pressure
of the iron necessity of things upon q
suffering and sorely tried people. Many
we're the occasions that afforded when
even shred OF personal sympathy
might have allayed fevered passion and
diverted the current Of Irish thought
into happier channels. No people
would have been more amenable to such
influences than the Irish. Such sym
Iathy as has been from time to time
officially communicated has been regu-
lated strictly upon formal and consti-
tutional lines. If one half the personal
interest lie their people occasionally
shown within our time by Continental
sovereigns during periods Of CALAMITY
had been by her shown in Irelapd's
crises, feelings would would be very diff
fereut from what they are. For 80 years
she never visited ireland, and then,
last year, under circumstances which
deprived her coming Of all real grace
it was patiently a move on the part OF
her advisers to encourage Irish enlist
ment in war detested by majority
OF the Irish people. Behind all this
there was more. Her attitude was not
alone wanting in sympathy. Within
official circles it was known that she
was accustomed to say to at least one
Irish born minister: You must not
say you are Irish - The reasons for
her attitude towards Mr.. Gladstone OF
late years could not be concealed.
Biographies have much TO account
for in establishing bad blood between
peoples as between individuals. A
system of united 'undenominatonal
education was set up in Ireland Il
years ago, mainly under the tutelagt
OF Archbishop Whately. Nothing ha,
more contributed to the destruction Of
it's INSTRUMENTATION character thar
!, the admission by the archbishop in !
letter published by his biographies
after his death Of his underlying ex
peutation that the system would wear
Ireland from Catholicism. So, il
! memoirs Of Prince Albert, the queen
alter ego, the Poles we're declared b.
him to be mo more deserving of sym,
, patty than tho Irish, - and of O'Con
! nell's death il was he that wrote
1T is a beiitting end to an sgitato
! that, two years after he had stood be
> fore the world like a colossus, b,
, should pass out Of it unnoted, wherea
man of true worth cannot surviy,
his reputation. ''* This last passage
at least Was penned during one Of th
darkest periods of Irish history, whel
all sympathy WINS called for, concernin,
man dosarvediy held In the highes
respect and deeply mourned by tn
! Irish people.
: An occasion such as the presen
. brings into more than ordinary promi
n nence the sad reality of Ireland's be
! ing etill inhabited by two people
! whose political sympathies are wild
: apart. by the loyal minority" tn
queen Is inourned, as far as outwar
> appearances go, more deeply tina
a upon the average she Is .mourned 81
!, ~The first of these two passages, ofte
q quoted, and never ESQ far as have heard
3 repudiated, ] have been unable, for Ii
i purposes of this writing, to trace. Til
4 second stands in Sir L. Martins tiv,
D volume Life of the Prince Consort,
r published by authority Of the queen.
England. There is with then no cor
seriousness of there being an Irelan
with separate experiences and feeling
i, from England There are in sue
respects more English than the Englis
themselves. The wealth and oultur
ana power are mainly In the hands @
= the minority; the voting strength |
1 hot .E -. n