The Irish standard., 1902-04-05
A Story of the Wretch Who Executed the
Beloved Martyr Of Liberty
in the Year 1903.
A Few Sensible Remarks on the Two Ways
of Delivering Ireland from
the British Yoke

On Robert EmmetS birthday.
March +, a great public meeting was
held in Belfast. at which Mr. Michael
cipal speaker. We select the follow
ing interesting passages from his mas
terly address:
''There died in the Ballina work.
house in county Mayo, in August,
1875 an aged pauper, nearly a hun
dred years old. His name was Moran,
and lie was Il native of Dublin. He
confessed that as Il soldier in Porto
bello Barracks he was waited upon
by Il messenger from Major SIR and
offered a large sum of money to act
as the hangman of Robert Emmett.
lie consented and earned his money.
but he wandered about for over sew
cnty years afterwards in misery. suf-
fering. and want. afraid that his ter
ribe secret might be discovered. and
then died. to find escape only from
human fear and hate in an unknown
pauper's grave. OF Emmet'S speech
no new words of praise can or need
he spoken. It's lofty clOquencc its i'm
lDassiOned plea for liberty and mtion-
hocd borrowed additional dignity.
power. and beauty from the shadow
Of the scaffod in which it was deliv-
cred. and for a hundred years it has
been to millions of his race the world
over an evangel of freedom and a
fount of patriotic inspiration. I have
had some unique experiences of the
lasting influence which this speech
has exercised on men far away from
Ireland. and not always of our own
race. I remember one cold morning
in 1873 finding new "chum." us we
called him. in Dartmoor-that is. a late
arrival from the world Outside-in the
exercise ring. He was an old. white
haired man. and it was quite apparent
he was not of the jail-bird class. I
discovered on speaking to him that he
was imprisoned for an election riot in
Yorkshire. and had been Chartist in
1S4S. He had never been in Ireland,
and to convince me. suppose. that he
was not of the criminal fraternity. he
volunteered to recite something Irish,
Judge of my agreeable astonishmcnt to
hear him roll off. in Yorkshire dialect.
every word of Emmet's Grafton. lie
told me that Emmet'S name was the
most honored among the Yorkshire
Chartists in his time. and that his pic
ture could be found. even in the year
1873 in many Yorkshire farmers
home where the memory of the Chart
list movement still fingered.
"Thcre are lessons to be learned and
morals to be drawn from the mcmnry
we honor here tonight. which remind
us that there are mistakes to avoid as
we'll as examples to follow by those
who owe allegiance to the principles
for which Emmett sacrificed his young
life. I will deal. by your kind per-
mission. With one of the mistakes
which has been most potent for mis-
fllltl Ill lIlillH Il movement irI li'-
land during the last one hundred wears
This is the insensatc folly Of creating
antagonism between physical force
methods and moral force ideas (chcrrS).
Let me speak quite plainly on this
subject. at a time when symptoms are
not wanting to show that the old mis-
cradle issue of physical versus moral
force is being thrust again into the
arena of Irish contention. especially
among good men and true in America.
am not going to take sides. ! am
:. believer in both principles (chccrs>.
| believe that a man who attacks one
Injuries each. and thereby renders both
less useful for good in serving our
common cause (applause). Talking Of
and eloluently advocating physical
force methods is not creating such
force 1t is only making use of the
extravaganza of moral force and prAc-
licos in rendering the principle and
purpose of real physical force ridcu-
lous The Scriptures say it is not the
man who stands at the street corner
and cries Lord. Lord who flllfillS the