Semi-weekly herald., 1908-12-21
IRISH HISTORY SEEN
IN HER PARLiAMENTs
By william e. Curtis. Correspondence

that the British parliament makes
their laws, the police are appointed
and controlled in London, and the
judges of the upper courts are Sc
lected by the crown. They demand
the right and the privileges Of doing
these things themselves, and are de-
termined to have a parliament. They
seem to have forgotten that they had
one up to hundred years ago.
Six hundred years before the Chris
tian era Ollaha Fodlha, king of Ire
land, organized the Feis Feamhrach,
which met every third year at Tara,
and was composed of the chiefs of
clans, druids and bards. 1t was very
much like the modern house of lords
The ordinary gentry and the working
classes had no representation. The
proceedings and acts were recorded in
volumes known as the "Psalter of
Tara"
This parliament lasted for about
200 years. 1t was abolished A. d.
$50, and Ireland had no legislative as
sembly from that time until the bar
ons were called together at the Car.
| melite convent in Dublin In 1928. Many
of them dared not to leave their cas-
| ties or trust themselves to the hazard
of journey without large armed
retinue Their feuds were so bitter
that many duels were fought and their
retainers stabbed each other on the
streets and In the courtyard of Dub
| lin castle.
There was q notable parliament in
| 1893. in the reign of Edward Ill, which
enacted one set of laws for the Eng
lish and another set for the Irish An
Irishman had no redress for injuries
by an Englishman. He could not seek
the protection of the English law
which gave the magistrates no power
to punish an Englishman for an In
| jury to an Irishman; but on the other
hand an Irishman who injured an Eng
lishman In any manner was promptly
| tried and severely punished If the
charges were proved against him
These laws were intended not so much
to oppress the Irish as to encourage
the migration of Englishmen to Ire
land. The leading families OF Ireland
several times petitioned Edward l
and Edward III. to place them un
der the English law, but the selfist
/ IIob ha.fr
ereigns not Ito do SO on the pretex
that 1t would prevent Englisnmen from
settling in Ireland and building VI
that country.
In 1861 Edward ILL., summoned g
parliament, which enacted what ia ia
miliarly known as "the statute of XII
kenny" 1t can be found in the Law
books under the title of Forty, Ed
ward ILL., Irish Statutes" 1t Is an ex
traordinary enactment, and account;
for a great deal of the trouble tha
came afterward. According to tbi'
law, intermarriage and traffic Of ever!
kind between the English and Irisf
was forbidden as high treason. 1t pro
hibits the sale of horses, boats ol
weapons of any sort to the Irish. i
prohibits the use of Irish fabrics o.
the products of Irish industries, the
wearing of the native Irish dress, th'
use OF any Irish custom under penalt.
of confscation Of property and impris
| onment. The Irish were forbidden tt
use their own language and we're com
manded to use the English language
which they did not know. No Ir.si
child could attend school; irish edr
cation was forbidden; no IrishmaI
| could be receivede into any monaster.
or other religious house. 1t was Tor
hidden to support or entertain Irisf
bards, pipers or story-tellers because
they were suspected of acting as spiei
and encouraging the prejudices of tn
people against England. The hlllni
of a person of Irish birth was no.
crime, but the penalty for an IrishmaI
who struck an Englishman was death
None but the members of certain ti7'
families (Quinque Sanguines) were
even allowed standing In the courts
The statute Of Kilkenny in effect out
lawed all persons of Irish birth !,
their own country. The historians o
the time explained that 1t was intend
ed to provoke perpetual enmity be
tween the races for the determination
of the Irish.
But the laws were impracticable ant
were never enforced except in spots
The Irish and the English went OF
intermarrying. gossiping, dressing
speaking Irish, quarreling and fighting
fist the same as before.
| In 1894, in the reign of Henry VII.
the Irish parliament met at Droghedi
and enacted what is known as "Poyn
ings' law" This consisted OF few
sections reviving and confirming the
statute of Kilkenny except that par
which forbade the use of the Iisf
tongue. 1t provided also that no par
lament was in future to meet In Ire
land until called by the king, ant
no acts passed by the Irish parliamen
were to be enforced until permission