The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-05-13
WAS MEANEST
MAN IN ENGLAND
Death of Lord cIanrIcarde, Who Held
the Title for Last Half
Century.

LONDON, May 12.-Lord Clanri-
carde is dead. Lord Clanricarde! The
man the British people called 'the
meanest man In England" What the
London papers did to his memory
even before he was buried, was suf
ticient. The Meanest Man in En-
gland!" For half century he held
that distinction. Today, in glaring
columns, amidst the war news, the
London papers told the story Of Lord
|Clanricarde's life. It is a story par
ticularly for Irish folks in America.
1t was men like Clanricarde who
drove the Irish to America. He wa
the meanest Irish landlord. Clanri
carde's grandfather was Canning,
british prime minister in 1872. His
uncle was the first viceroy of India.
When he was young Clanricarde got
the idea that God made a few very
rich, fine and cultured people to be
human beings and that everybody who
wasn't rich, fine and cultured wasn't
human. Human rights, as he knew
them, were the rights Of the rich.
Canadian soldiers in Hyde park, not
knowing their London, have looked
with wonder and pity on little weaz-
ened up old man, in ragged, fifty-year-
old clothes who used to sit on the pub
lie seats-the private seats cost two
cents-a hard, cold look in his eyes.
This was Lord Clanricarde, owner of
twenty square miles of land in Ireland
with Irish peasants paying him $780,
600 year. This was Lord Clanri-
carde, once the SWEETEST fop in Lon
don, victim Of the idea that God made
him to be specially fine human be-
ing, with special rights. In 1874 he
fell heir to the castle at Portumna,
one of the finest houses in Ireland.
and the estate of 10000 acres. He
thought he had fallen heir to the lives
and souls of his tenants too. He paid
one visit to the estate in 1874. He
never returned. His tenants had de-
manded certain improvements and
rights. He sent agents. More than
one of them was killed. There isn't
an acre of land that hasn't it's tragedy.
Homes were broken up by poverty be-
cause of Lord Clanricarde's high
rents. He demanded large share of
everything the tenants Srew; he
would not spend money for improving
their pitifui homes.
Blood was shed time and again.
while he was in London, pottering
Will dllJlQueS.
Irish landlords changed and became
human; Lord Clanricarde, never.
The government refused him police
aid in evicting tenants; he hired
agents to do the evicting.
Decent people began to leave him
alone. Of all the money he took in
from his tenants he is never known
to have spent a cent for improve |
10 Of
human rights were the rights of the !
rich.
The splendid castle fell into ruins. !
Other Irish landlords began to sell |
their land to the government to be
distributed among the Irish peasants.
would not sell.
A special bill was introduced into
he house Of lords, expropriating his
estates. Though he was a lord and
vas entitled to sit in the house OF
ords and help in the government of
lis country, Lord Clanricarde never
appeared until the chances Of losing
lis land arose.
One day a shabby, bent, hardfaced
title old man appeared at the door of
he house of lords. but when he at
empted to enter the policemen stop
,ed him. It was Lord Clanricarde.
He protested in piping voice. He
alked Of property rights. Property
lad it's duties as well as it's rights,
aid someone. Then he walked out
If the place.
He became a solitary miser. He
rent money for antiquities only. His I
heap rooms were filed with rare ar
icles, Uttered about, carelessly. No
ire burned in his CRATE.
Antiquity dealers and the lawyers
10 hired to try to prevent the govern
nent from taking his land were the
My human beings he knew.
Last year, the government won.
Today the Lord Clanricarde estate
5 being divided for sale to small hold
RS.
Lord Clanricarde was paid million +
nd a half dollars by the government
nd the day after his death. while he
ested in his rich mahogany casket,
e got a million and half dollars
rorth of the bitterest advertisement I
hat was ever given a human being. I
The Useful Toad.
Kansas City Times: Some thou
ands of families in this city will
h,n 1y h