Evening star., 1948-03-31
u. 5. Support 10 End
Partition Of Ireland
Urged by De Valera
By George Kennedy

Eamon de Valera pleaded fol
American moral support of effort.
to end the partition of Ireland wher
he addressed a banquet in his honor
attended by $50 civic leaders ano
members of Irish societies in the
Mayflower Hotel last night.
The former Prime Minister of Erie
was f1anked at the speakers table
by two of the District Commission
ers, whose common paternal grand
father was born in Ireland-John
Russell Young and his cousin, Brig
Gen. Gordon R. Young. Fifty other
leaders of the community, not all
with Irish ancestry, were seated at
the head table.
The Irish leader told his story OF
the struggle for Irish freedom and
the continuing efforts to bring about
national integrity.
Speakers Sketch Life.
He was preceded by several other
speakers. John A. Reilly. president
of the Washington Board of Trade
and of the Second National Bank,
as toastmaster, told the story of the
guest of honor-the young mathe-
mates teacher sentenced to death
for his part in the 1916 Easter re-
bellion, who lived to become Prime
Minister of the new nation and to
negotiate a treaty with England
making it free.
John F. Crosby, former United
States attorney in Connecticut, told
how Mr.. De Valera was born In
New York, where the Chrysler
Building now stands, of an Irish
mother and a Spanish father, who
died when Eamon was years old,
and how he was taken to Ireland
at that age.
"He was the only head Of for
eign government who was eligible
to become the President Of the
United States" said Mr.. Crosby.
As always at Irish dinners there
arose a contest of wit.
History" said Msgr. Fulton
Sheen, another Introductory speak
er, "is divided in three parts, the
pagan era, the Christian era and
De Valera"
Tells Story Of Freedom.
With the simple brogue OF an
earnest man of the people Mr.. De
Valera started by saying:
People who know me better than
any of the speakers here tonight
have pronounced very different
Judgment. Indeed, some have called
the period of my government the
devil era"
He then launched on the story OF
Irish freedom which he attributed
in part to President Wilson's World
War I speeches on the "self-deter-
mination of small nations"
He finally got to the present and
to the grievance of his nation-26
of Ireland's 80 counties are in Fire,
six are not.
"Ulster-the very names fraud"
he said. "The historic province of
Ireland by that name had nine
counties. The Tories kept the par
tition down to six counties because
that is all they could balance
against their Belfast majority" 4
He finished with his plea for
American moral support for the
ending of the partition.
Head Table Guests.
Among those at the head table
were Cen. Frank Aiken, Minister
of Finance in Mr.. de Valera's cabi-
net; Don German Baraibar, Charge
d'Affaires at the Spanish Embassy;
Maj. Robert j. Barrett, superin-
tendent of police here; the Rev.
James E. Cowig, chancellor of the
archdiocese; Vice Admiral John
Dale, Representatives Fogarty and
Forand, Democrats, of Rhode Island;
Representative Lane, Democrat, of
Massachusetts,, the Very Rev. Will
liam D. Maloney, S. j., president of
Georgetown Preparatory School.
Also Senator McCarran, Demo-
crat, of Nevada; Senator McGrath,
Democrat, of Rhode Island, and
Mrs. McGrath; Eugene Meyer,
chairman of the board of the Wash
ington Post; Sean Nunan, Minister
of Fire; Representative Rees, Re-
publican, of Kansas; the Rt Rev.
Msgr. John Joseph Reilly of Catho-
lie University, the Rt. Rev. Msgr
Patrick ]. Ryan, deputy chief of
United States Army chaplains; the
Rt. Rev. Msgr. John J. Russell and
Mrs. Lewis B. Schwellenbach.