The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-07-11

door OF the Peace Conference like q
beggar shall have Its place among the
nations of the world when Kingdoms that
havo oppressed 1t are down In the dust"
MilholIsnd spurns League.
John r.. Milhoiland, introduced by
Chairman Cohalan as Presbyterian
friend" denounced tho League of Ma
lions as monstrous, and told the Sim
Feiners that there Is as loyal support for
the>cause Of Irish Independence In Ulster
as In County Connaught. He gave way
to Miss Margaret Reyes OF the Chicago
Opera Company. who sang Irish airs, and
then Justice Cohalan presented Prof De
Valera, who first greeted the audience
with n few phrases In Gaelic and then
swept into a lengthy address in English.
This followed the eight minutes and
forty seconds of cheering. good. solid
cheering.
For the past three years from a
thousand platforms in Ireland the Eng
lish Government has been told what the
Irish people want. and still 1t pretends
not to know" he said. What do they
want? They want their country. IL
Is rightfully and lawfully theirs. Eng
lish power In that home IL an intrusion
and n usurpation. England has no Just
claim no right whatever In Ireland.
Irishmen want freedom to live their
lives in their own way. to develop their
own culture. to express their own ma
tional individuality in government,
trade, art and literature Freedom
Freedom from the rule OF the bayonet
and the machine gun from police ana
police spies from invasion OF homes
without writ or warrant; from murder
by British Government agents from per-
petual coercion and military law.
He accused the English Government
OF spreading false leaflets In this country
alleging that after the sinking OF the
Iusitania Sim Feiners loofed on sneer-
ing when their assistance was wanted
refusing to dig graves and to permit
those to do 30 who might have been IN
clined. He said he had read that Sir
Charles Alloni. who was elected fr'm the
st. Regis after an alteration with two
Sim Fem girls, claimed to be an Irish
man.
Yes" said De Valera. every English
man is an freshman when he-does any
thing that might bring the blush OF
shame to Britannia's brow, or when she
wishes to make II appear that lrishmen
are fighting among themselves; but every
| Irishman is an Englishman when he does
anything for which Britannia wants
credit. We beat these methods in Ire
| land and We shall beat them In America.
English .'Hypocrfsy" Denounced.
This started one Of the loudest dem
onstrations of the evening, after which
| Dc Valera denounced the smooth
| hypocrisy" OF England in pretendin-s to
be interested in freedom and liberty
while 'throttling Ireland" He went far
| back into British history in an effort to
prove out OF the mouths of English
statesmen that Ireland had been
.wronged.
I'm human nature there is a prejudice
against those who complain" said De
Valera. land England counts on this in
dealing with ireland. Egypt and India.
| The sneer "a fresh Irish whine has gen.
orally been sufficient to counterfeit all
| Irishmep could do by way of protest.
I'VE deny absolutely that the question
| OF Ireland is an internal. domestic ques-
ton for the Government of Britain.
England has no more right to ireland
| than has a robber to the goods he stores.
| have never heard 1t put forth as
principle OF law that II n rohber has
greater brute force than the owner he
| may lawfully retain goods and dispossess
/ the owner. International law may be
! quoted against me. What law? say
much of that law has been made by
thieves everywhere a glorification OF
brute force.
| '.I saw il was to destroy this very law
| that America entered the war, and am
certain / am not going to be told by
| Americans that, at the very outset OF the
new order. nights will is still going to
| be right. You have but to awake. rec
ognize your own initiative and responsi-
| biijties, organize and be active. II you
now act as you should. untold millions
in succeeding generations will bless the
| people of this land who. seeing their
duty. did it,
Edward +. Dunno, former Governor Of
| Illinois Frank Z. Walsh and Michael j.
Ryan, who went to Europe in AN enort
| TO interest the Peace Conference, SPOKE
| in denunciation OF the League or Ma
tion proiect and in a demand for Ameri-
can support of Irish independence.