Norwich bulletin., 1909-11-26

Ol eill GeN, bht CIilllG Ol tliC century which calls aloud to heaven for vengeance and a cry which has not been unheard. When fond memory brings to your minds such names as Sobiewski Pulaski and Kosciusko and scores of others equally as illustrious, then it is that you can feel the thrill of life and appreciate the true great ness of your Polish ancestry. Poland, a nation of learning, the center for all Europe in the early centuries, with a dynasty of nobles going back into the distant past, with legends equally as beautiful as the siege of Troy. How few are the advances in civilization in which the Polish element has. not been an important factor. What part did they take in the early history of our own country2 Recall now the as- sistance rendered by such men as Pulaski and Kosciusko, together with that other group of allies, always will ing to strike a telling blow for the oppressed of any nation, such men as Montgomery, Sullivan, Carroll, Barry, and numberless others of the same eX- traction. It was through the ani- mostly of the Irish exiles in France that Lafayette was induced to send aid to the struggling colonies. and without this aid they never would have achieved their independence. If there are any nationalties to which this country owes a debt of gratitude and which have right to claim this coun- try as a heritage it is the Polish, French and Irish, and we as Ameri- cans and those of you who are here by adoption can point with pride to the honorable and distinguished record of our progenitors. The names of those illustrious men who sacrificed every thing they possessed in the interest of freedom need no eulogy Their deeds will stand forth to future generations as monuments of the true greatness of their race.
 Referring to the attachments of the Polish race in the fine arts, the speaker told of their musical genius, which in later times has produced a Paderewski and 8 Modjeska
 In the history of Poland there is no name which deserves a more hon. orable position than that of Sobiew- ski, and i'll fact there is no one man whom the Christian world owes a greater debt of gratitude to than to John Sobiewski. His life is a history in itself. and his name as great general and strategist can well be placed by the side of Hannibal. Caesar and Napoleon. and as q great benefac- tor to the civilized world he can well be classed with Washington and Lin coin. His signal defeat of the invad- ing Turks on the banks of the Dnies- >ter. where. with his little army of 10000 faithful followers he opposed the Turkish host of ,0O0 men, reads almost like a fairy tale. He gained a most remarkable victory over the in vading Turks at Vienna. in the face of overwhelming odds, and by so do- ing saved Europe from the ravages of the Mohammedan invasion. This victory can well be marked as one of the turning points in the history of the civilized world It was to the Christian world what Marathon was to the civilized world centuries before. and had reverses taken place on eith- CT or both of those battlefields the worlds history would be written with different version. The last stand made by Poland as a nation was in 1795. and after that Poland was no more.
 Warsaw Seat of Revolution.
 But with the exile of Niemcewicz and Kosciusko, the vision of independ- ence had not departed from the Polish mind, and accordingly on the morning of November 29, 1880, the anniversary of the uprising which we are here to- day to commemorate, the city of War saw was once again the seat of revo- lution, and as if by magic Poland once
 
 with her oppressor. The history of that unfortunate struggle hardly needs repeating. Driven by the tyranny of Constantine to revolution they made their final stand at Ostralenka, where. outnumbered by their Russian adver- saries four to one, they gave battle under disadvantaseous circumstances. until their ammunition was exhausted and their forces weakened for want of oFl1 -nGf hut an ditions against them they successfully beat back the Russians and inflicted a loss of 10000 men on them, their own loss being so heavy and their army worn out by continual fighting they withdrew to Warsaw. which was soon afterwards taken, and. as the Polish general was leaving he repeated the words of Kosciusko. ''Finis Poloniae''- an end of Poland Such deeds of val or and acts of bravery as were under taken during that unequal struggle can scarcely find a parallel in history and can only be appreciated by a study of that struggle. With such a band of patriots and such a body of freedom loving men, we can truly say in, the words of the historian that to Russia belongs the ignoble distinc- ton of having oppressed and perse- cuted the Polish ma tion with a barbar- ity unparalleled in the history of mans inhumanity to man. and he that would not stand up for Poland in a just and righteous cause should be sent back to natures mint and re- issued as. a counterfeit upon human ity.
 Recitations and Songs.
 After the address of Dr. Donohue, which was loudly applauded. the fol- lowing programme was given: Song, by children, The Storm Surrounds Us :; recitation, A Sad Anniversary, Amelia Konopko: national song. Poland Has