Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1921-02-14
Miss MacSwiney
Says U. S. Should
Aid Irish Cause
Sister of Late Lord Mayor in
Speech Here Asserts Her
Country in Position Of
America in 1869.

The city Auditorium was filled
to capacity yesterday afternoon by
an enthusiastic audience which re-
sponded with frequent cheers and
applause to an address by Miss
Mary MacSwiney en- "The Irish Re-
public"
Miss MacSwiney is sister OF
the late Lord Mayor MacSwiney
of Cork, Ireland, who starved him
self to death in prison rather than
submit to British.rule.
Miss MacSwiney was dressed in
black and wore a heavy black veil.
She speaks with a marked Irish
'brogue, but with fine enunciation so
that she could be heard in every
part of the big building.
Louis d. Kavanagh presided. The
stage was decorated with palms and
baskets of flowers.
Miss MacSwiney prefaccd her ad-
dress by announcing that she had
just received news of new oppres-
sion OF her family by the English.
Brother Arrested.
Yesterday l received a cablceram
from my sister" she said. telling
me that my youngest brother has
been arrested and is now impris-
onsd in Cork barracks. You don't
know what that means. know
that recently two prisoners in those
barracks have been murdered"
She drew q parallel between the
struggle OF the American colonies
for independence from England and
that of Ireland.
"Some people," she said, seem
to think we shouldn't be permitted
to plead in America the cause of
Ireland. Don't they know that
Benjamin Franklin went to Ireland
i'll 1869 seeking aid for the colonies
and sent back word that all Ireland
was in favor of American freedom.
"Will America do unto Ireland
in 1921 as Ireland did unto Amer
ica iii 1863? Recognition of the
Irish republic by this government
without armed intervention would
not be an unfriendly act"
Says England Will Not Pay.
She declared England will never
pay the debt which she now owes to
the United States.
"You will never get that money.
she said. "But I'll make you busl-
ness proposition Buy Ireland's
Freedom and we'll pay you every
dollar with interest. /
The Irish question is not a re-
ligious question. That is one of the
lies that England has fostered. Cath
olic and Protestant are working side
by side. for Irish freedom. We never
ask man what his religion is. Two
prominent Irshmen were appontdhr
prominent Irishmen were appoint
ed to escort me around in New
York. And the one whom | always
had imagined was a Catholic turned
out to be Protestant and the one
| had thought a Protestant turned
out to be Catholic. England has
kept a handful of bigoted Orange
men in the north of Ireland to keep
up this lie. If all our Catholic bish-
ops were to join and bid us to give
UP the Irish republic we wouldn't |
listen to them.
Irish Will Conquer.
England is still III our country |
only because we are not 5000 miles
away as YOU were fortunate enough,
to be. But conquer we must for our
cause is just
: As Miss MacSwincy LETT the ar-
d!toriunl. men and women crowded |
around and cheered her and sought
to shake her hand.
Rev. R. L. Wheeler, pastor of the
Wheeler Memorial Presbyterian
church, was to have presided but
was unable to be present.
At the conclusion of the meeting.
many signed membership cards in /
The American Association for Rec
ignition of the Irish Republic.
Miss MacSwirey will leave the
Hotel Fontenelle at 9 this morning
,or Lincoln.
\ .