The Irish standard., 1919-11-01


years isue of The Monitor; the full
answer has never and can never be
given precisely because it is beyond
human calculation. But attempts
have been made to answer in some
selected chapter of American annals
the colonizing period, the fight for
freedom, the reconstruction days; or
in some of the phases of our cultural
life-literary, artistic, scientific.
There are many excellent books
and shorter reviews relating to Ire
lands work in the creating and up
building of the United States. To
cite but few: 'The Original Lists
of Persons of Quality, etc., who went
from Great Britain to the American
Plantations, 16OO-17O0," ed. by ]. O.
Hotten; Cullen: "The Story of the
Irish in Boston," Mcguire: "The Irish
in America" Conyngham: "The Irish
Brigade and its Campaigne;;" Bagenal:
'The American Irish;" Darcy Nc
Gee: History of the Irish Settlers
in North America" O'Donough:
Geographical Distribution of Irish
Ability" American Irish Historical
Society Publications" (of great i'm
portance to the student); American
Catholic Historical Researches"
Campbell: History of the Friendly
Sons of st. Patrick;" Spalding: "The
Religious Mission of the Irish People,
etc." files of The Irish Press, The
Monitor, The New York Freeman's
Journal, The Boston Pilot, America"
and other Irish and Catholic Ameri-
can periodicals.; numerous pages in
Murray's, Shea's and Grifin's histor-
icar annals.
A good brief account of the achieve
ments of the Irish in the United
States, and of their services to their
adopted country, can be found in the
Catholic Encyclopedia. VOL viii, PIP.
132-145; see also, under the reading
list in the index volume xvi, page 424
So. the many references to allied
subjects in the various volumes of
that great work.
Note, too, that, although most of
the above-named works are from
Catholic pens, their subject matter
treats of the Irish in the United
States regardless of religious or party
differences What has Ireland-not
Catholic Ireland, nor the Protestant
fragment; not the Fenians, not the
Unionists, not the this or that or the
other faction; but Irish people and
the descendants of the Irish, in gen.
eral-what has Ireland done for US?
is ably handled and in part answered
in the citations just given; in part,
only, however, as the complete story
is beyond compilation.
To these books and periodicals, a
list merely suggestive and which the
student of Irish American history and
accomplishment can easily augment
a hundredfold, there can now be add
ed really monumental work on "a
Hidden Phase of American History:
Ireland's Part in Americas Struggle
for Liberty" by the historiographer
of the American Irish Historical So.
ciety, Michael ]. O'Brien.
The immense work-immense in
size, in scope, in achievement-gives
one the sense of ones colossal ignor.
ance, hitherto, of the vital part Ire
land took in our fight for freedom; of
the vast preponderance of Irish
names both among our officers and
the ranks; of their bravery, fearless
ness, willingness to die that WE as
free people might live. And we ask,
What has Ireland done for us? We
recollect 1t was man from the Coun-
ty Wexford, John Barry by name, who
led the war at sea, and is called the
Father Of the American Navy.
We recollect q Marylander, Charles
Carroll of Carrollton, an Irish descen-
dant, was the richest and most influ-
entail of the signers. What else do
we recall? Very little. The ignor-
ance of most of us is profound. Well,
let's begin to acquire some idea of
what Ireland, really did do for us in
our darkest hour; and, believe me,
the deeper into this study we go, the
greater will grow our astonishment
at the magnitude of this hidden phase
until the thought will dawn upon US,
to be no more erased forever, that
we owe most of our debt, not to
France, not Poland, no indeed; we
owe our freedom to that country with.
out whose help it could not, human
ly speaking, seem to have been at
that time-or perhaps at any time
attained; we owe this incompatible
debt to the little green island now
asking our help in what may be called
the continuation of the War of our
i