The Irish standard., 1918-02-23

Recounts Achievements of the Nation.
alist Party for the Countryside
vises Electorate to Set An Example
to All ireland.
At public meeting held at Newry
on the eve of the South Armagh elec-
ton, the Very Rev. Canon Quinn, p.
r., V. F., was moved to the chair.
The Very Rev. Chairman, who was
received with cheers, congratulated
the Nationalists on the election of
Mr.. Donnelly, who, he said, would be
splendid representative for South
Armagh (hear, hear).
They were aware that there were
two nationalities" in Ireland at the
present time GA voice: "Only one in
South Armagh" and applause). There
was a nationality that, in his judy
ment, was insane, and a nationality
that was sane, and which would bring
victory to Ireland in the near future
(hear. hear. He did not desire to
give offense to any person, but with
regard to the nationality that was in.
sane, he wished to say it represented
what was called the Republican party
"a party whose policy meant Easter
Week propagated throughout all Ire.
land-that awful catastrophe which
meant rebellion, which meant blood,
1icJrr
unparalleled in the history of Ireland.
The Cardinals Letter.
"On this subject" continued Canon
Quinn, Il will read for you part of
the Cardinals letter, and it explains
the situation much better than | could
explain it. The exact words of His
Eminence we're:
Nor is it for the general peace of
the world only that we should sue.
We have troubles and unrest, and ex-
citement and dangers here at home
which render domestic peace neces-
sary. Whether it be due to the de-
moralization which this world-war has
brought on every country, or to the
tate which seems to hang over our
own unhappy country, blasting her
hopes when they seem to brighten, an
agitation has sprung up and is spread
ing among our people, which, ill-con-
sldered and Utopian, cannot fail, if per-
severed in, to entail present suffering,
dlsorganization and danger; and is
sure to end in future disaster, defeat
and collapse.
And all this is in pursuit of a
dream which no man, in his sober
senses. can hope to see realized-the
establishment of an Irish Republic,
either by an appeal to the potentates
OF Europe seated at a Peace Confer
ence or an appeal to force by hurting
an unarmed people against an Empire
which has five millions of men under
arms, furnished with the most terrible
engines of destruction which human
ingenuity can devise.
The thing would be ludicrous if
it were not so mischievous and fraught
with such danger, when cleverly used
as an incentive to fire the imagination
OF an ardent, generous, patriotic peo.
ple.'
mo words" said Canon Quinn,
ever passed from the lips of a great
ecclesiastic that conveyed better to
my mind, and to your minds, am
sure, the truth of that insane system
propagated by what they call the Re
publican party in Ireland | will leave
80 =
nails letter." added Canon Quinn en-
phatically.
Continuing, he said he wished to re-
fer to the sane nationality which he
was sure every one of them would sup
port (applause). That was the nation
atty represented by the sane Bishops
OF Ireland, one and all. At the Cob
vention in Dublin were four illustrious
bishops, of whom Dr. O'Donnell was
one and DR.. MacRory another Gap.
plause). They represented the sane
bishops and priests of Ireland to
man (cheers). They had also in that
Convention of the greatest leaders
that Ireland ever had (cheers). He
said that deliberately, and he had
right to say it, because for sixteen or
seventeen years he sat by his side at
the National Directory (applause).
Yes, they had their leaders-Mr. Red
mond, Mr.. Dillon, and Mr.. Devlin-
and they knew what had been accom-
plished by these men and the Irish
party as whole during the past num-
Der of years (applause). They had
only to look around them to see the
results. In his parish every inch of
the land had been bought out, and the
same applied in most of the surround
ing districts.
Political Madness.
He (Canon Quinn) could speak with
some authority on these matters, as
they all knew the part he had taken