The Irish standard., 1918-11-23

What was possibly the most impor-
tant of all the meetings addressed by
T. P. O'Connor, M. p, during his re-
cent visit to Liverpool was that which
assembled in the Hotel st. George,
Lime street. It was held as the result
of an invitation sent to some of the
leading commercial and professional
men of the Irish race in Liverpool
with view to establishing q city
branch of the United Irish League.
After an eloquent speech from Mr..
O'Connor the branch was started un-
der circumstances which encourage
the hope that It will play q big part
in the future history of the race in
Lancashire.
Mr.. O'Conuor. who was warmly ap-
plauded. In opening the proceedings
said that many men. while fully shar-
ing and deeply and warmly sympa-
thizing with tho objects Of q political
movement, and especially Of nation
al and racial movement like the Irish
movement, did find themselves unable
to take that active part in politics
which politicians by occupation were
compelled to do. The problem one
therefore had to solve was how to 80
coordinate their efforts as to bring
into the support Of the political move
ment 4 large body Of men who had
neither time nor indeed the inclina-
ton to go down into the dust of the
arena. He did not want to put this
as a class question, because being a
Democrat and a Nationalist he could
not entertain anything like class dis
tinction. To him. of course, as poll
tician and as an Irish Nationalist, the
man who occupied single room in a
sordid and poor street and who
worked for the movement was quite
as much entitled to his attention and
his respect as the man who lived in
q mansion. 1t was curious fact
about the Irish race and their move
ment, and it was not altogether a
creditable fact, that so much of the
struggle for Ireland herself and for
the larger issue of the Irish race had
been left in the hands Of the poor.
Generosity of the Irish Poor.
Just as their churches and their
schools began in Liverpool, certainly
in the early days, with zeal and the
pence of the poor, so really the Irish
movement in many parts of the world
had been kept alive largely through
that uncomfortable love of the moth
erland which existed among the poor
or of their race (hear, hear). OF
course that was not altogether true of
America. The old jibe against them
that their movement was kept alive
by the servant maids of America was
never really true. The servant maids
of course subscribe and work for the
Irish movement, and all the more
credit to them for doing so, and it
was no reproach to the movement
that they did so. But as a matter of
fact in America-and he had been
there six times-their movement there
had been largely middle-class move.
ment. It was from the well-to.do mer.
chants, from the lawyers, from the
judges, from the clergymen that they
mainly drew their financial assist
ance to the cause. The only class in
America which had not as a whole
taken as active part in their move
ment'-and he spoke of them only as
a class-had been what he might call
the millionaire class. He had re-
ceived in his time large subscriptions
indeed in his recent visit to Amer
lea he had received large subscrip-
lions from men of the Irish race of
very great wealth.
Rich IrisF-Americans.
He received, for instance, a sub.
scription of $4,000 from E. L. Do.
heuy, the son of Irish parents, who
was today in the proud position-a
position that made him (Mr. O'Con-
nor) proud as one of the same race
of being the greatest owner of oil
wells in the world. He received a
subscription of $4,000 from his friend,
John D. Ryan, who had been entrust-
ed by the American Government with
the great position of the direction of
the whole air service of the United
States. He received a subscription of
$4,000 from a member of the Brady
family, well-known family of Irish
extraction in America, and he re-
ceived very great assistance from
other men of their race in very strong
financial positions. But he would be
uncandid If he said he received as
much assistance from all of them as
he thought he was entitled to. There
were men in America of very great
wealth who could have given him all