The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-05-12

I ended, her chosen leaders prescribed and treated as feIons, now makes her appeal.
 | Article Ten of the draft con- venant of the League of Nations is framed to secure national inde- pendence against aggression of an
 external power. Its terms are as fol-
 lows:
 The high contracting powers un-
 dertake to respect and preserve as
 against external aggression the ter
 ritorial integrity and existing political independence of all states members
 of the League. In case of any such aggression the Executive Council shall advise upon the means by which
 this obligation shall be fulfilled
 Ireland, al a nation that has de-
 clared it's independence and is pledg-
 ed to the principles of freedom; jus ttce and peace, desires to subscribe to
 the Covenant of the League and to
 claim as against England the protec-
 tion of Article Ten.
 I submit to the conference with profound respect that Ireland's claim Is clear and cannot with any shadow
 of justice be refused. Should it be rejected the consequences would be as follows:
 "1-Ireland henceforth must rely for her deIiverance wholly upon her
 own efforts. No such rule has been laid down with regard to any other
 of the smaller nationaIities whose emancipation has been made the care
 of the conference.
 2-Nations which never have de- nied the right of Ireland to freedom will deprive themselves for the future of the power of countenancing her
 claim, and will in conseQueAce be bound, for the first time in history
 to leave her unaided to her own re-
 sources as indicated in the preceding paragraph.
 "3-ArticIe Ten will impose upon all nations, as a condition of mem hership of the League, the obligation to guarantee to Great Britain title
 to the possession of Ireland and do-
 main over the Irish people,
 Against the imposition of such slavery upon Ireland, and especially against the giving of such a guaran-
 tee of title to Great Britain, I entsr
 On behalf of the people of Ireland,
 in whose name have the honor to speak, the most emphatic protest. Great Britains title to Ireland rests solely upon the military power of a.
 nation to determine the right of force. The combined guarantee of
 such title against the declared pro- test of Ireland would constitute a definite denial of the principle of jus tice to all peoples and nationalities and their right to live on equal terms of liberty and safety with one another, whether strong or weak, | and without the acceptance that prin- ciple no part of the structure of in teTnatlnn1l ''The guarantee of such tile would be subsersive of the reign of law based upon the consent of the governed and sustained by the or ganized opinion of mankind The l guarantee of such a title would con | sttute recognition of the right of the l strong to serve its own material in 1 terest and advantage through the ex- ercise of it's exterior influence and mastery The guarantee of such a | title would give Great Britain a war | rant to make a nation weaker than herself Subject to her purposes and interests It would confirm the cIaiu of Great Britain to rule and dom mate the people of Ireland even in their own internal affairs by arbitrarv and irresponsible force. Any guaran-
 tee, under Article Ten of territorial
 integrity and political independence
 as affecting Ireland, can rightly cn :. dure only to the benefit of the people of Ireland themselves.
 Tn the name therefore of the peo- pie of Ireland, ask that the Irish | nation may be invited to give their adhesion to the Covenant of the League of Nations, and that mem Dership of the League-a member ship available under article seven even to colonies who have freely and legilatively subscribed to the suprem- acy of the English Imperial Parlia- ment-shall not be denied to the government of a free, Independent Irish Republic"