The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1907-09-14
Dublin. August "a.


Following my communication of re-
cent date your readers will. perhaps,
he anxious to know what the United
Irish League is actually doing in Ire
land at present, says a writer in the
Irish World 1t is not improbable
that the cable will have told America
before this letter reaches you. A great
grazing war is in progress in Ireland
at present. in the county Roscommon,
in Longford. Tipperary and elsewhere.
Perhaps I ought to explain that by
a grazing war" is meant the deter
mination Of the people to insist on the
cattle being made to go from the lands
and the people being afforded an op-
portunity of settling on them. instead
of being forced to emigrate or be
forced to the workhouse.
| This agitation has been brought into
existence through the failure of the
land act of 1903 to operate on behalf
of the holders Of uneconomic holdings
and those entitled to allotments Of
measure. When the act was being
passed through Parliament dehlite
promises We're made by the then re-
sponsibe ministers of the crown that
few years only would elarse before
the vast tracts of untenantel land in
these counties would be divided
amongst those entitled to benefit un-
der the measure
The people waited patiently from
1903 until the beginning of the pres
ent year. They tried every possible
means of inducing the landlords to
sell over to the Estates Commissions
ers or the Congested Districts Board
both bodies appointed by the gov
be fixed by responsible government de
partments; and they petltioned both
bodies to say that they--the small
| holders. laborers entitled to allot-
ments, and others-were prepared to
pay whatever price those government
departments would fix as the value of
such holdings as would he allotted to
them under the act of Parliament No
| tice to this effect was sent to the
landlords all over the county Roscom-
| mon to take a. typical county-and
they. with that characteristic callous-
ness If not brutality which has always
characterized the landlord system in
Ireland. refused all peaceable over
lures on the part of the people, and
refused to sell to the government de-
partments to which l have referred.
Exasperated by the treatment ac-
corded them by the landlords and the
graziers. who pay exorbitant prices for
the right to raise cattle upon the vast
tracts Of land. the people have risen
proceeded to drive the cattle from the
lands Perhaps all your readers may
not be aware that no harm is being
done to the cattle, sheep and other
animals which are being driven off the
lands. Instances were brought to
light a few days back where crowd
engaged In these cattle driving expe-
ditions had to drive" a distance Of
nearly ten miles to reach the house of
the grazier owning the cattle, the OBJ
ject being to deliver them over to
him. after the people had made their
protest against the system Of which
he was one Of the principal instru-
ments.
The custom Of those engaged in the
driving off Of the cattle is to count
in presence Of the owner or the police
every beast driven off the farm. and
deliver them up to the owner free Of
hurt. In the particular drive to which
refer some lambs grew tired on the
journey. and lay down on the wayside.
The people engaged in the driving;