The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1904-04-02
FROM PAST TO FUTURE,

Irish people have been turned upon
the past instead of upon the future.
lrishmcn have been wont to point with
pride to the days when Ireland was
the seat of learning for all Europe
Ever since StrOngbow subjugated Ire
land and made it subject to English
rule they have looked backward in
stead of forward. The Irish people
are justly proud of the part their
country played in the history of early
civilization. That was so brilliant
and so full of glorious memories that
we cannot too often be reminded of it.
Never during the seven hundred years
of darkness have the Irish abandoned
hope that they would once again re-
sumo the roll of their ancestors. 1t is
sad commentary upon England's rule
of Ireland to know that Irish orators
an. writers have uniformly spoken and
written of the past. During all the
centuries since the time that Strong
bow crossed the Irish sea and put IL
| stop to Irish progress and culture the
present has presented to Irishmcn only
suffering and persecution and the flu
turc has been darIencd by the contrast
| between the glOries of the past and
the wrongs of the present. OF course
| there have been periods of brightness
during these long centuries of Ire
lands dark ages" There have been
victories mingled with the almost con-
tinuous series of expressions and per-
secution. The Irish have had their
Daniel O'Connell because they suffered
more severe wrongs than were pressed
upon any other civilized people. They
have had heroic political and religious
martyrs because martyrdom was a ma
tional condition for much of the period
1t seems that the time is now ut
hand when this long night for Ireland
is about to end. No one not familiar
with the history of Ireland and who
is not an 1rishman or son of an Irish
man. can appreciate the deep-scated
hatred which the Irish people enter
tain for the English Empire. No
doubt many perfectly fair people re-
gard the present Irish demands as I'M
reasonable. They look upon the Irish
as lot of agitatOrs and trouble MAX
ers. They regard English rule as
fairly good and they ascribc such po-
litical disadvantages as the Irish now
have as due entirely to the Irish them
selves. These people know not the
history of the past and they cannot feel
the natural aspirations which every
one with Irish blood in their veins
nourishes. Being ignorant of the past
history of the Irish nation and without
| that fervid love of race and country
which comes only to those sorely tried,
they are unable to judge justly of Irish
demands. This has been one of the
great troubles of Englishmcn. But ii
seems that even they are now about
ready to make some reparation for
the past. Every year there is an in
creasing number of Englishmen who
believe that the granting of home rule
to Ireland would he but an act of
justice. In the early part Of the last
century religious hatred prevented
Englishmen from doing justice to Ire
land. In the latter part of the last
century the property interests of Eng
lish landlords prevented fair dealing
with Ireland. Fortunately both these
factors or conditions are being rapidly
wiped out. There is another and per-
haps a more potent reason why Eng
lishmen are changing their views in
reference to the Irish. England needs
the friendship Of Ireland today as
she never needed it before. The pros
pect Of death grapple with the Rus
sian Bear some day for the possession
of the far eastern possessions will re-
quire all the strength that she can
command. To have the Irish people
in the frame of mind which they dis
played during the Boer war would be
disastrous. Furthermore the Irish are
a check upon England in many quar-
tiers Of the world besides Ireland. The
Irish in the United States are as con-
sistently and strongly anti-British as