The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1907-04-27
This is the Observation of T. P. O'Connor
Who Writes Interestingly of Present
Current Events.
The Land of Ireland Which Was Stolen
From the Celts Seven Centuries Ago
Again Belongs to Them.

Some wears ago | almost laughed in
the face of an English journalist who
having just returned from Ireland, told
me that the difference between that
country and England was there was
life in Ireland and death in England.
says T. p. OConnor in the Sunday
Magazine of the Minneapolis Journal
To me for many years Ireland APP
peared as a kind of political charnel
house. a. country in which one could
discover all the evil agencies that go
to destroy a nation and n people; and
whenever I thought of Ireland, the
landscape always appeared to me- to
have as it's chief feature that CHASTITY
skeleton of a. house which had beel
torn down by the crowhar. and which
still had been left remaining as at
once the tombstone and the eloquent
epitaph Of the poor family that had
been driven from out it's once hos
pitahle walls, Aud whenever l. thought
of Ireland, thought also Of a. gray
and sombsr sky-of the long stretch
of bog, unbroken by green field or hu-
man habitation. through which I have
passed so many times when have
been iourneying from London to my
ancient home in the West of Ireland
and, i'm short. used to think OF Ire
and as resembling not life hut death.
And here came this citizen of the
mighty metropolis of England with its
gigantic trade and inspirations, to tell
me that 1t was the country which
seemed to live that was dead. and the
country which / thought dead, that
had begun really to live. J should add
by way Of explaining to some extent
tho pessimism of this Englishman with
regard to England, that he was a
strong Liberal and what used to he
called a, Pro- Boer: and that at that
moment VIC had the happiness Of 1iv-
ing in England under the dominance of
Mr.. Cha aml)erain and through the hor-
"
South African war.
That little conversation came back
to me very vividly a few weeks ago;
and ] discovered that It was the Eng
lishmen who had a. trucr sense Of Ire
lands present position than the Irish
man to whom he was speaking; and
again it was two conversations which
had that brought this idea clearly
home to my mind.
! was called over To Dublin to at
tend a. meeting of the Irish parlia men
tary party. and took the opportunity
of seeing some Of the leading person.
alities Of Dublin. One evening spent
at the house of a high government
official, q man of strong popular SYM
pathies, who has done much for ire
land, and will do more; and the thing
which most impressed me in the COM
pany was that everybody seemed to
he doing something, and something
new for Ireland. To one man had
been intrustcd a great part of the
gigantic work of tho rescttlement of
the Irish land. by Mr.. Wyndha ms land
act; another was considering what
was to be done about building some
twenty-five thousand new cottages
with money that had been voted by
parliament for the erection of dwellings
for the aborers: a. third---t was DR..
Douglas Hyde--was full Of the revival
of the Gaelic tongue. and had Just
completed his labors as a member Of
a commission to consider the improve
lnent of university education in Ire
land.
What other people who were present
were doing in regard to nonpolitical
movements had to me almost a greater
fascination and interest, however. than
those semipolitical labors in which the
others We're engaged: for this was Il
new departure. BY my side | found a
ady who had started new stained
glass window factory. FIFTY thousand