The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1906-03-03
!. The SITUATION
Inslrslaad Is Viewed BY Rev.
- Father Yorke. -
Great Improvement Shown in
Past Six Years.

Speaking to representative Of the
Oakland Tribune, the Rev. P. c. Yorke.
pastor Of st. Anthony's church. East
Oakland, and editor of The Leader,
San Francisco, had the following to
say regarding his late visit to Ireland:
Il left California at the beginning
of June, and at the end of the same
month landed at Queenstown. 1t was
six years since my last visit. and I
was highly pleased to see the great
improvement in Ireland since that
time"
What is the cause of this improve
ment?" was asked.
The root Of the improvement is that
the people have won control Of the
land. You know that for the last half
of the nineteenth century the Irish
people carried on q continuous agita-
ton for reform in the land laws. BY
their own endeavors and by the help
extended to them by the Irish abroad,
and especially in America, they have
won their fight. Fifty years ago an
Irish tenant held his land entirely at
the good pleasure of the landlord. For
any or for no reason the land owner
could throw 1; tenant out on the road
side. In Il purely agricultural country
like Ireland those evicted were sem
fenced to exile, and often to death.
The immense Irish emigration of the
1ifties and sixties was a forced emil
grafton.
But has not the landlord every
where such rghts?'
oh, of course q landlord has rights,
but he also has duties. In this world
the inevitable result of neglect of du-
ties is forfeiture of rights. BY the
confession Of their own friends, the
Irish landlords universally neglected
their duties. They exacted their rents
to the last farthing, and never turned
back penny to the land in the way
OF improvement. More than that, the
tile by the tenants toll, was seized
upon, and the rents Of the whole ISL
and. which amounted to an enormous
sum. were carried out of the country
and spent In idleness and luxury in
London or Paris. No nation could
stand such a drain, and as the ways
r,ft hr> Ion 1,n 1n1
the only solution left was to end
Them
1T then Is to the generosity of the
English government that you owe this
reform?"
mo; it is not through the kindness
or generosity of the English govern
lnent that the solution has been OBJ
tanned. The English government never
yet gave any boon to Ireland except
under compulsion, and as for giving
ireland money, England annually over
taxes Ireland to twice the amount of
the whole revenue OF the state of Cali
fornia. No; the Irish landlords are
being bought out by Irish money. The
scheme works like this: Landlord and
tenants agree to price, and the price
is usually estimated in terms of the
annual rent. Thus twenty years pur-
chase means that the price Of tht
acres is twenty times the rent pai6
per acre. AS in every bargain, there
is q difference of opinion between The
buyer and seller, and ono of the live
questions in Ireland today is the boon
that has taken place in land values
and whether it is natural or fictitious
THE tenants get the money from
the sale of land stock, which is tn
same thing as our municipal bonds
The interest on these bonds is pai'
by an annual tax OH the farmers
which takes the place of the old rent
This tax is much less than the old rent
yet it serves not only to meet the in
terest charges. but also to reduce tn
principal. Hence each year it grow
less. and in fifty years will be extin
guished altogether"
But is not the credit of the BIRTHS
treasury no more pledged to max
Irish land stock saleable than is tn
credit of the federal treasury pledge
to make the Oakland school bond
saleable?"
Just as we don't consider ourselve
under obligations of gratitude to tn
capitalists who invest in our bonds, s
the Irish do not consider themselve
bound to laud the British governmel
because capitalists IRE permitted to II
vest in Irish land stock. 1t is pure
business transaction in which the az
vantage, If any, is on the side of Il
investors.
Irish land is one of the safest secu
tiles known, and the number of d
faulters in payment is extreme
small-so small as to be negligib
quality
is there any revival of manufa
tures?"
Yves, quite a revival. You see, t
old Irish manufacturers were crush
out by law, and this left the peoI
without what you might call the man
featuring spirit when the laws we