The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1909-11-20
COL. ARTHUR LYNCH, N. P, DEPRECATES
THE ATTACKS Of THE S|NN FE|NERS
Recommends that Points Agreement be Sought Future
Discord Between Themselves and the Paaentaans- New
Movement Springs From Patriotic Motives but Ideas Not
Fully Matured or Well Digested

The following interesting cablegram, 4,
dated House Of Commons, London, Nov.
13, appeared in the st. Louis Republic
Of last Sunday from Col. Arthur Lynch,
MP, who fought with the Beers Of
South Africa in the late war and was
arrested and imprisoned for his par
ticipation therein, but afterwards
liberated through the intercession of
Sir Thomas Upton with King Edward:
No question is more thorny to deal
with than that of Sim Fein in Ire
land, especially for an Irish MP. But
good reason for avoiding it. That fact
indicates that the question is an i'm
portant one, keenly discussed by the
people on all sides, and one that has
created, as all important questions do
in Ireland, some exaggeration and a
good deal Of feeling, even of personal
feeling.
Most of the Parliamentarians scout
Sim Fen entirely; they regard it
either with contempt or bitter aver
sion; it is sort of heresy with some to
read the Sim Fein newspaper, or to ex-
press any interest in Sim Fein.
For this state of mind the Sim Fem
ers are themselves to blame to some
extent. We have already seen that the
Irish Parliamentary party is the most
serious and effective force in Irish
politics today, and that whatever be
it's shortcomings it is so regarded not
only in England, in other countries, but
also in Ireland itself.
| The Sim Feiners have, however,
spent much time, too much time, not
only in attacking Parliamentarians, but
in criticising with great acerbity, and
often with taunts and gibes, the in
dividual members Of the party. This Is
unnecessary even to their own cause
Their argument is that the action of
the party in Westminster distracts the
attention of Irishmen from what is go
ing on around them. and especially that
it teaches Irishnen to rely too much
on legislative interference.
But when legislative interference
brings in benefit-even if it be re-
garded on the basis Of q refund-of
over million dollars a year, we must
acknowledge that there are compcnsa-
| tions to it's drawbacks.
AS to distracting attention to what is
going on in Ireland, that is little ex-
aggerated. The average Irishman in
the country districts only reads the
weekly papers from Dublin, and the
! local papers, and so keeps himself more
or less in touch in q general way with
what is happening in Westminster.
Moreover, the Parliamentary party has
not been doing anything so extra
ordinarily sensational since the death
Of Parnell, that it has effectually
monopolized the limelight.
Many a good movement goes ahead
in Ireland without extensive limelight,
and the fact that Sim Fein has put
itself too much forward as an anti
Parliament movement has really shown
it's relative weakness. Nothing anti
can be anything but mediocre, from
anti -Jacobins to anti -Maccasars.
More recently Sim Fein has changed
that attitude, and in the altogether ad-
mirable article with which the new
daily paper Sim Fein presents Itself
to the world it says: "Reversipg the
custom that has long prevailed in our
public affairs, we shall seek to hnd
points of agreement and not points OF
difference. We shall refuse to regard
any Irish party as our enemy"
It seems to me that we should all ac'
in the same spirit, and that even those
Of us who have been disparaged by tne
Sim Feiners should lift our minds tt
see what good there is in the move
ment. There is no doubt but that there
is much good. The Sim Fein men are
for the most part young, or compare
q lively young, ardent men, burning WIFI
. patriotic, fire, possessing great abilities
unusual fund of ideas, and elasticity
mind, and devoting themselves to TN
high ideal Of saving Ireland by regen
: Grafton from within.
. How is it possible that from such
source good results may not flow? In