Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1919-11-10

Il
of the Irish people as the duly accredit
ed spokesman of the Irish nation. H,
is therefore, entitled to speak for Ire
land with an authority from stand
point of democracy, equal to that o
the president Of the United States, o.
the premier of France. You say, sir
he is the pretended president of +,
pretended republic" Let your Thoughts
| wander back to the birth of the repub
lie of the United States, and you viii
! find yourself echoing the contempt an(
reproducing the sheer of Great Britain
| for George Washington and the
Declaration of Independence.
1t is not true that De Valera ani
the Irish people We're disloyal to the
allies during the war, but it is true
that when this country was percheC
upon the fence, the young men of Ire
land We're doing their bit at the
Dardanelles, Gallipoli, and on Elan
der's field. The best and most con
vinciDg proof of Ireland's contribution
to the war is supplied by an English
newspaper. The New Statesman, Lon
don, of November 80, 1913, has an
article which reads in part as follows
"Ireland's record in the war has
been. from the point of view of the
Allies, magnificent. The magniti-
cence of the Irish contribution to
the cause Of freedom has been only
less amazing than the flood of
calumny and belittlement that has
been constantly poured on it ever
since August, 1914. Ireland has
made greater voluntary contribu-
ton of men to the Allied forces
than any other unfree nation in
the world
Nor did the North give a greater
percentage of volunteers than the
South. / speak with absolute knowl-
edge of the spirit that grasped the
town where l was born. Nenagh, Coun-
ty of Tipperary, has population OF
seven thousand people: this town alone
with it's nearby territory furnished
eighteen hundred volunteers to the Al
lied cause. How do the. figures COM
pare with Webster City? How with
the North of Ireland? Had you read
some of the discussions in the House
of Commons, during the war, you
would be better informed Oh the North
ern quota. Again and again the ques-
ton was asked, What has become OF
Carson's tin soldiers?" And it was
reluctantly admitted that the North
had fallen down on recruiting.
But you are convinced De Valera is
a "pretender'' and the resolutions rec
emily adopted by the American Legion
of Pennsylvania emboldens you to say
so. You did not mention the number
present at that meeting in Harrisburg
No doubt some of them could be identi-
fed by their ''ba jove" and "bally
well' form of expression. Shade OF
Mad Anthony Wayne! What think
YOU of the resolutions? General Henry
Lee in his memoirs (1SOS) writes OF
the Irishry of Mad Anthony Wayne
and 1.-The native temper OF the troops
he commanded They were known by
the designation of the line Of Pennsyl-
vania, whereas they might have with
more propriety been called the line OF
Ireland Methinks you should have
ia Their canvassed the feeling Of our own
soldier boys. In popularity contest,
John Bull would have little show
against De Valera with the boys OF
Hamilton county.
/ thank you for the admission that
the people of the United States are in
sympathy with home rule for Ireland"
Had you admitted the whole truth you
would have substituted self determl-
nation" for the words home rule.
There was time when Ireland would
accept home rule. but that day is past
and gone. For one hundred years. or
more, she has been fed OH empty
promises by the British government.
Time and again England's national i'll
tegrity has been pledged only to have
the promise broken. Often has the cup
of Ireland's desire been offered her.
but when she stopped to quaff the
draught that would make her free, the
cup had been snatched from her lips
and dashed to pieces in the ground.
England has had her jokes at lrclands
expense, and the last act of the drawn
ont farce is the home rule bill now ON
the statute book The convention you
referred to revealed the much vaunted
bill to be a gold brick wrapped III
home rule paper. The convention was
a handpickcd one, and all sections were
not represented. 1t was Il joke and
there was no attempt to conceal the
joker. Lloyd George ordered that the
findings of the convention shall be the
result Of unanimous vote. One dis
senting voice would nullify the vote OF
the majority. Was there ever before
without its yeas ana It's