The North-Eastern Weekly Gazette. — 1890-03-22 (Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, England)

TANNER. AT DARLINGTON. i 4 St. Patrick's Day was celebrated at Darlington I on Monday with much milli, a large number assembling in the Mechanics' Halt to listen to the concert and the political speeches which con• stituted the programme. Mr J. 11. Bell presided, and the following contributed to the concert Mire Brewis, Mine Sweeney, Miss Castello, Miss Bertha Bell, Miss Heslop, Mr F. Burgin, Mr Rickaby, Mr Tate, Mr James, Mr Heslop's glee 'party, and Mr T. James's string band.—The Chairman and the Rev. H. H. Kennedy, Vicar of Plumpton having spoken, Dr. Tanner addressed I the meeting, and created quite a sensation by one I incident that he narrated. He said that six years I ago be WU not mixing himself up in polities one way or the other. His dear father, who was a medical man, and some friends of his who were landlords, asked him to go down and see if the Lenwere 4t to be evicted. He was sent down. t estate of Capt. Sarsfaeld, who wen then a great pommel friend of his • and.he was told there . was a girl there who was shamming sickness. It was a pouring wet day, and the - cabin was • poor, miserable affair. The place was surrounded, as usual, with policemen, armed I with rifles. He found a poor girl lying on a 1 miserable bed. She did nothing but moan in reply I to his questions, and he discovered she was deaf 1 and dumb. Examining her with the stethoscope, 1 he found she was in the third stage of pneumonia, ' ithat she was recovering from inflammation of the lungs, but was very ill indeed. He told the subagent what her condition was, and he said, "Then you won't certify that she is out of danger ?" He replied, "Certainly not." "Then," said the sub-agent, "you had better get out, and I will get somebody else who will." (" Shame !") He did got out—(cheers)—and they did get somebody else • —("Shame !")—and the girl was taken out of the cabin and put on her wretched bed on to a dung heap in the yard. (Renewed cries of "Shame '.''j The rtin was still descending. Her parents re' fused to let her go to the Union ; and in ' three days' time she was dead. (Sensation, and indignant cries of "Shame!" and "Murder I") That was only one instance of the horrors perpetrated in Ireland; and if they went over to that country they could leans many similar cases. Was that a right state of affairs to exist in a Christian country? (" No, no.") The fact was, it was human life, human suffering, mony, and misery on one side, and pounds, shillings, and pence and the landlord faction on the other. (Apghinse.) He alluded to the Ponsonby and , Smith-Barry negotiations, and concluded with a powerful appeal to the English constituencies at the next general election to see that justice was done to Ireland and her people, and that a system was abolished once and for all which was maintained at the point of the bayonet in order that the rich man should get more than was his due.— Mr T. Fry, M.P., and other speakers followed.  111.1-111,1-L.O.LikIN A . comsat was given at the Oddfellows' These was a very large audience. S. Mazy Brass Band 1111,9 engaged, and gave four capital selections, Use remainder o ties prograimue being composed of social music. The contributors of songs were Miss Short and Miss Fitzpatrick (sopranos), Mr Widdecombe and Mr J. 'Hagan (tenors), Mr F. McCarthy (bass), and Mr B. Wright (comic vocalist). Miss T. Martin ably presided at the piano as accompanist, besides giving a capital belection of Irish airs.