Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-29
'S|N FE|N" A FAILURE
Movement to Restore Irish Ma
tiona|ity Not Practical.
UNDER BAN OF THE CHURCH
It's Leaders Have Been Neither Wise
Nor Tactful.
WIDE SCOPE OF ITS AMBITION
Proposed Peaceful Project Is Per-
meated With Politics and Pro-
vokes Priests and Politicians.
UNDER BAN OF THE CHURCH
VIDE SCOPE OF ITS AMBITION

| Z
Special Correspondence OF The Star and the
Chicago RecOrd-Herald.
BELFAST, August %. 1905
The Sim Fein movement pronounced
Shinn Fane) to restore Irish nation
ality. is not making much prog
ress. Some Of it's principles are ad-
mirable. and from a sentimental stand
point appeal to the patriotism of every
Irishman. but the management Is in the
hands Of impracticable amateurs who
have antagonized the Roman Catholic
Church, and that of itself alone would be
fatal to any movement in Ireland or any
other country where three-fourths Of the
population profess that faith and the
priesthood are as powerful as they are
here.
Mistakes of Sim Fein Leaders.
Furthermore, the young men who are
directing affairs have gone into politics
and, attempted to buck against the ma
tiOnalist party. which controls three
fourths Of the Irish vote. For these rea-
sons the movement has suffered a setback.
and it is doubtful whether it will ever
recover the impetus it acquired two or
three years ago If it had kept out of
politics and out of religion, like the
Gaelic League. for example. which is
aiming at a portion of the same object,
it might have done an immense amount
of good. The leaders are earnest but in
experienced. They are long on ideas but
short on common sense. and have
more principles than votes, as has
been illustrated at recent elections.
in Ireland. The leaders of the national
party. bearing the scars OF many politi-
cal contests and familiar with all the
tricks of their trade. regard the Sim
Fem advocates as enthusiastic schoolboys
and play with them as a mastif plays
| with a puppy.
The Sim Feiners have formally demand
ed that the national party shall abandon
Its present policy and adopt their plat
form. proposition which its leaders con-
slider very amusing; but when you can
persuade them to discuss 1T seriously they
say they have accomplished too much
and are too near the goal Of home rule
to abandon the present program and
adopt one that is new and unrtied.
What the Movement Is.
Sim Fein means For Ourselves" and
these two Celtic words describe the policy
and the purpose OF the organization. 1t
demands that Ireland stand alone and
work out her salvation by her own efforts
absolutely, boycotting the British govern
I
| of Ireland and the source Of all the evils
and Ills that afflict the Irish people 1t
Is an imitation of the policy adopted by
Francis Deak In the contest with Austria
to 1887. He organized a vast movement
| of passive resistance. Under his leader
| ship the Hungarians refused to pay taxes
unless levied and collected by their own
officials; they refused to send Hungarian
representatives to the imperial parliament:
they built up an educational and admins
| trative system of their own, and in less
| than twenty years achieved practical
make their own laws and administer their
| own government. The chief weapon was
a national boycott and it was successful.
| In 10OS young newspaper man named
Arthur Griffith conceived the idea of ap-
plying the Hungarian policy to Ireland
and boycotting the British government.
He wrote q good deal for the newspapers
and went around the island holding public
meetings. organizing local societies. and
| appealing to the patriotic sentiments of
| the young men Of the country. He even
started a weekly newspaper to act as an
| organ of the cause.
| Under Ban Of Nationalist Party.
At first 1t was understood that the Sim
Feiners would abstain from politics like
| the Gaelic League, but the refusal of the
politicians to join or assist in any way
provoked animosities. and in retaliation
the Sim Feiners nominated for several
offices candidates who were in sympathy
with them. This developed a positive
! contest. The Slim Fein movement was
placed under the ban by the Irish par
liamentary leaders and soon became an
| Independent political party
A similar collision occurred with the
Roman Catholic Church. chiefly because
the ardent young leaders did not consult
| the priests and obtain the Endorsement
Of the hierarchy. which might have ap-
proved the program with some revisions
| The misunderstanding was allowed to
grow until now the Sim Feiners are un-
| der the bann of the church, as we'll as
parliamentary party, and the opposition
| of those three powers cannot be over
come or even resisted. Therefore the
movement is doomed to failure.
Doomed to Failure.
! Nevertheless the Sim Feincrs have sue
ceeded in electing several Of their number
to Office on their own platform. They
now have twelve out of eighty members
of the Dublin common council and board
| Of aldermen, and in other cities of Ire
| land they have representatives in official
positions. Not long ago they nominated
a candidate for the house Of commons in
| the North Leitrim district nOtwithstand-
| ing the fact that the first plank in their
program demands the complete boycott Of
the British parliaments 1t was an Irish
bull and naturally excited much ridicule,
but the Sim Feiners succeeded in polling
| LOO out of total of 5000 votes, which
| YVES a great deal more than any one ex-
pected.
Some time ago the national council Of
the party devised scheme for raising
money to establish a daily newspaper.
They printed and offered for sale very
pretty postage stamps and asked every
body to buy them and place them on their
letters in addition to the portrait Of King
| Edward. which Is required by act Of par
| Lament. 1t was a fatal error. because 1t
| was an absolute failure and disclosed the
| weakness Of the movement and the in
| sincerity Of its members. / am told that
| less than per cent OF the stamps printed
| were ever disposed Of.
Its Ideas Impractical.
Some of the propositions in the program
of the Slim Fein party. as 1 have already
said. appeal very strongly to the patriot
ism of the Irish people; others are so
fantastic as to destroy confidence in the
Judgment Of it's leaders. For example. they
recently issued an appeal to the news
papers and to the public to use no paper
1T TYSo ,fo~ -,