The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-10-18
THE IRISH PRESIDENT.

Tomorrow the Twin Cities will
have the pleasure and the honor
Of receiving into their midst the
President of the young Irish Re-
public, Mr.. canon De Valera. He
comes from a land of sorrow and
persecution and makes a bid for
American sympathy for his cause.
Over a century ago the Amer
lean colonies, then, like Ireland
today, an appanage of the British
empire, decided that freedom and
independence were their Cod
given right. They, like the Irish,
formed an assembly of representa-
tives of the people, and sent Ben
jamin Franklin to Frances much
as the Irish representatives sent
De Valera to this country. Frank
lin attained the object of his visit.
and the colonies achieved their
liberty. 1t is the hope that Amer
lea, through her sympathetic in
terest and moral assistance, will
enable the other young republic
to reach the goal of its aspirations.
De Valera comes here not as a
ranter or a demagogue, not as al
organizer of armed forces or as a
Spreader of new and revolution
airy doctrines. He has read the
declaration Of our President that
the war was fought for the free
dom of small nationalities, of
little peoples. AS the leader of
one of these little peoples he asks
if the declaration was sincere. or
if it was simply pyrotechnic dis
play for the edification of the
select audience in Paris. The man
is sincere, intensely sincere in his
cause, and he desires a sincere
answer.
canon De Valera realizes that
this country has been fed to
safety on war propaganda that
frequently CLOSED over the truth
when it did not actually distort
facts. He is here to clear the at
mosphere of the political miasma
that has permeated the views of
many persons in our country. For
that purpose he presents his case
dispassionately and without ran
cor. He stands before the bar of
American judgment, of American
fairness, Of the indomitable Amer
lean spirit that has surmountcd
almost insuperablc obstacles that
lay in its own way on the road to
freedom. He speaks to people
who have themselves fought the
good fight and won the victory.
His appeal should sink all the
more deeply inasmuch as this land
suffered equally with Ireland from
the same foreign power that now
holds Erin in thraldom. We rid
ourselves of the alien yoke: De
Valera would ask us to impart the
secret that brought us freedom.
During the recent titanic world
struggle American eyes frequently
were suf.used with sympathetic
tears for the sutferings Of Serbia,
Poland. Belgium, Montenegro. 1t
was declared and maintained that
these little nations should retain
their autonomy or, as in the case
of Poland, have it returned from
the governments that unJustly
seized it. Is the case of Ireland
different? Does not Ireland s
long night of six centuries OF
servitude make a still stronger
appeal for help and active assist
ance? The people of Ireland were
driven to every corner OF the
globe through dire persecution
Wherever they landed there they
gave indisputable evidence OF
superior ability. America, Aus
tralia, France, Spain and the by.
ways of the world knew them
only to admire, to profit by THEN
loyalty, their generosity, their un
doubted qualities of heart and Of
mind.
St. Paul, Minneapolis, and the
State of Minnesota will welcome
this Irish crusader with true
American openheartedness. His
cause is the self-same one we pre-
scented to doubling world in '76
He is faced abroad by the same
rotten and intriguing European
diplomacy that has brought misery
into the whole world. France an(
Poland helped us i'll the fight fol
liberty from Great Britain: shall
we refuse sympathetic aid to an
other oppressed people in tina
vast empire?
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