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Loraqua la document est trop grand pour itre raproduit en un seul clich«, il est film« A partir de Tangle sup^riaur gauche, de gauche d droite, at de haut en bas. an pranant la nombra d'imagea nicassaira. Las diagrammes suivants illustrent la mithoda. 32 X 1 2 3 4 5 6 V SOMETHING 4B0DT IRELAND AS IT IS, AND FENIANISM: TOGBTHBH WITH SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR- THE CONSIDERATION OF THE CANADIAN PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT. BY W. H. WALLER. OTTAWA : Pr.ntkd By I. B. Taylor, Ar ■' The Ottawa Cit,zkn- .Steam Printins JK/STABLISHMENT. >w»^.i ■pK*. m 4f A m V,. M, "mli m -A. 1^ SOMETHING ABOUT IRELAND AS IT IS. AND FENIANISM: TOGITHBR WITH SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF THE CANADIAN PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT. BY W. H. WALLER. OITAWA: Prjntkd by I. B. Taylor, at "Tub Ottawa Citizbn" Steam Printing Establishment. 1868. \-; i*i \ 4 PREFATORY NOTE. The object of tlie following pages is to show that Ireland has grievances, and that they are real, heavy, and tangible ; that they arise only from English niis-governnient ; that Fenian ism is but a .j^niote consequence of a cause, and that that cause is England s misrule of Ireland ; that we, in Canada, have sutfercd through Fenianism, from the stubborn injustice of the British Government, and that we must still sufter, if a proper remedy be not resorted to for the cure of the evil. What that remedy is, I point out towards the conclusion of my remarks. I make no i)retension to style in this pamphlet, being bent only on plain talk, easy of compreheiLsiou. Considering that the fuirows of forty have not yet settled on my brow, some respccttible old conservative, whose body is of 1807 but whose mind is keeping ])ace with the slow coaches of an earlier day, may insist that it is presumption on my part to address this paper to the Canadian i)eople and Government, and protest that the sentiments would have come better from an older and a wiser man. If so, I mean to deny the first proposition, that it is any presumption on my part; but will candidly linit the second, that the " sentiments would have come better from an older and a wiser man ;" but I will further maintain that when this older and wiser man is not disposed to trouble himself in the matter— lest it should be neglected— it is the duty of the younger man to deal with it, to the best of his ability, leaving it to the thinking portion of the community to decide how Ik- he has been successful, or the contrary. W. H. W. Ottawa, March 12th, 1868. / Ft «>K «F' >v x - INTRODUCTION. The custom with a certain class of writers on Iieland is to comniwKH.. witli tlio era l^oyond the flood, and, having demon- strated that Noah and liis family, of tlio Jjuman species, only, were sjived from tlie dehige, tliey i)r()ceed to argue that tlie Irish people are not the descendants of Cain. That impoi-tant l)otnt settled, to their own satisfaction, at least, they refer to the migi-ations of our early ancestors ; and, if we are told that some (A those respectahle peo|)le under Moses made the pas- sage of the Red Sea, and that at ji subsecpient period their lineal descendants, under St. Patrick, gathered trefoil on Crough Patrick, we need not wonder at the narrative. And these writers do not forget to enumerate the mighty works with which our forefathers had hcen identified , for, far, far back into the misty i)ast they i)enetrate, and lifting the drop- curtain, ])erchance of the atu^ient theatre of Egyptian archi- tecture, they stand before the superstructure of the rrreat pyramid, and pointing out a master mason with a. veritable oaken dorjhelpeoi under his arm and a short pipe in the band ot his hat, they tell us that he— the sujierintendent of the everlasting monument— was an O'TooIe or an O'Shau^rh- nessy, from whom came the artizans of a later day, who built the mighty halls of Taiv; l.e palace of the ancient Irish Kinrrs Ihus, coming down. Uy dogrees from antediluvian times, tliese writers charmingly discourse on the happy days when Ireland was— as she ought to be— (iroat, glorious ami fn'c, Kirst flower of the cailli Anil first from of tlio sea, and, in choicest i)hrase they ext<»I her ancient greatness, and exhort her children in impassioned terms To remember the days of old Ere her faithless sons betrayed her When Malachi wore the collar of gold Which he won from the proud invader. But, ere the enraptured reader has had time to revel in the f ™.:Ji ^N 6 INTllODUCTION. bright coiij ma lions of tiie past, the writer has taken another ^ stride, and is painting a nutonliglit scene in penal times — the Irish schoolmaster and his Imre-headed, 1)are-lcgg<"l pupils, sitting under the friendly shelter of a white-thorn hedge; he, in whispering voice, secretly in)parting to them that simple education wliich an Ejiglish statute proscribed their openly receiving. Havinjj reached this point in Irish History, these writers unceremoniously rip open the graves of the sixteenth century, and drag forth chirk deeds and the gi-inning skeletons of their authors ; and they charitably ask us to execrate the rotting bones for the wrongs their f)riginal proprietors inflicted on our progenitors. Here they drop off their narrative, not deigning to intrude on more modern times, resting satistied, no doubt, in having confounded their readers with "prc-historic records" or their ecjuals, and dismissing them, vowing ven- geance on the hated Saxon of 1807 for the injustice our fore- fathers suffered at the hands of the tyi-ants of ancient times. I am not going to imitate the style of these writers, and for two reasons. First, because acting the jiart of an imitator is not always dignified ; and second, that I believe the more of that kind of thing we have in the world, the more force is added to the arguments of a certain ela«s of inodcrn-day phil- osophers, who earnestly endeavor to establish a relationship between accountable man and the irresponsible monkey. I am not going beyond the flood, nor yet as far back as the landing (jf Julius Ctesar, nor the migrations of Fergus McEric and the Stone of Scone. I am only going to speak of "Ireland as it is," and will not exceed the memory of the oldest inhabitant. \* ^ cen aru)ther ^ times — tho fjcil pupils, hedge ; he, that Hiin]>le ilieir opt'uly i.stovy, the.se e sixteenth ig skeletons xecrato the ors inllicted frativo, not i»g satistied, prc-hiHtoric uwing Ven- ice our fore- cient times, ters, and for iinitator is the more of ore force is rn-day i)hil- relationshij) iikey. I am the landing Eric and the Ireland as it , inhabitant. IRELAND AS IT IS, AND FENIANISM. THE PHYSICAL ASPECT. Ireland a.s it is, 1 presume, is as beautiful to-day. physically m. It has been at any period since 1(14!), at least when Oliver Lromwel!, of double-faith notoriety— his trust lieing in Heaven and m keeping the i)ovvder dry— battered tho walls of her an- cient castles and laid most of thorn in ruins. In fact some winters ])retend to say that Ireland is more beautiful now than It was ten years ago— short though the i)eriod be— and fortius reason, that it is movefjrecn; asoffioial returns show that of late yeai-H, eniigration from the soil has been extensive ; hundreds of tlie liateful hovels, through the agency of rack-rent, have been swept away and the thousands of little lanns up and down the country, have been converted into spacious lawns and parks over which, instead of the industrious cotter, roam the i/Iarmi-' hcent oxen and the latted sheep. Physically, then, and fh.m a horned-cattle point of view, the condition of Ireland may look charming; but, ga^ed uj)on through Irish glasses, it neither delights the eye nor gUaddens the hVart. And how could it when the very humblest and least intelligent son of the soil sees that the change is being brought about by the extermina- tion ol the Irish peoi)le. It is only by the process of driving out the small tenant and his family to go to America, if he has the means, and become a J^enian ; or, if he has not the means, of taking him from the country, to waste away his life in the poor-house or the prison that the sheep and the bullock replace the man and his family and that the hirm becomes a i)asture ; and, though the physical aspect, consefiuent on the change, may lookgi-een and beautiful to the wealthy Lngh.sh .stock-jobber, the pleasure-seeking tour- ist and the heartJess landlord, on his flying visit from hfs con- tinental abode of recklessness and extravagance, to the Irish peasant— the rightful owner of the soil— it cannot possibly ^K IHliLAXD AS IT IS, Drove pleasing or acceptable— ana it never will How applica-- ble are not the following lines of Goldsmith to Ireland s present condition : " 111 fares the liiiul, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates, and men decay, Princes and lords may flourish or may fade ; A breath can make them, as a breath has made ; But a bold peasantry, their country's pride. When once destroyed can never be supplied.' IRELAND,-SOCIALLY AND POLITICALLY. As to the social and political condition of Ireland as it is, I regret to feel, not nutch that is of a cheering character can be safd The social and political state ot Ireland to-day is truly lamentable. No lover cf his country, no iriend oi humanity a'Xroo^ress no in.lividual .)f liberal mind,-no matter what ^'^^Si^^M he EngUsh, Irish - Scotch. -can r-^ view the present distracted condition ollreland without feel- Lr a ceAain amount of sympathy for the warm-hearted and hospitable people of that beautilul but untortunate countiy. Ireland, to-day as for half a century past, to go no farther back is not unlike the Italian volcanic mountain, Vesuvius ; it is in a state of a-ritation. fnnn the centre all round to the sea tUe Srit of peace and contentment has Hed the land-not volun- t irily ilecl, but banished by persistent inpistice and oppression. Under discord and disaffection civd strife and commotion ex- ist and. periodically, like the ever-active volcano, that bi efly s umbel's for a time Init to burst forth again with unabated fu- rv a destructive eruption takes place, which only paralyzes t ^d^ ^commerce, Alls Uie English prisons with unfortunate victims, gives employment to transports, who sail well freight- ed to Spike I^l''^"^^ «'■ ^^'' I^i^™^^^''^ ^'''''}' n^'^kes lone and wid- owed iXts, deserted hearth-stones, and sbuns the boards of English gibbets with the red, impurplmg hfe-blood of Irish ^''Sudf in brief, is the present condition of Ireland socially and politically. Out of one of these periodical convulsions she SsiuTemeiied,or is about emerging, and with what resul s already told. The late Fenian uprising was rapidly crushed midei the rebels were routed ; some of them were slain, others ZZ 'in the dungeons of Dartmoor ; and but a few days ago ' the Maiichester gallows terminated the existence ot a full quar- ter dozen of the disaffected crew. ,r i x Let me here parenthetically state that these Manchester ex- ^'^K AND FENIANISM. 9 How applica- ' and's present A.LLY. md as it is, I I'actei" can be -day is truly of luimanity matter what -can possibly without feel- i-hearted and mate country. -) farther back, Axifi ; it is in a the sea ; the 1 — not volun- iid oppression, iinmotion ex- I, that briefly I unabated fu- mly paralyzes li unfortunate I, well freight- lone and wid- the boards of blood of Irish eland, socially onvulsions she ,h what result vpidly crushed ire slain, others , few days ago of a full quar- [anchester ex- ecutions should be held in remembrance as a gi'im curiosity of their kind. Their object, we are told, was, not to promote the ends of justice, but to " make an imposing demonstration of firmness and vigor, in order to put a stop to Fenian violence and disturbance," — a most effectual means, I must solenudy protest, to the accomplishment of an end. If the gallows pos- sessed the power to cure Irish disaffection, the unfortunate men, Allen, Larkin and Gould, would not be to-day in their graves. Many an " imponing denuuistration " has tlie English gibbet made with Irish victims, since Emmett and Fitzgerald's day, and with what effect ? Why, that Ii'eland, as civilization ad- vances, is now able to su])ply three for the one she could afford in the past ! And yet, years of ])racti(!al experiment have been thrown away on the rulers, who still vainly hope, through the hand of the executioner, to reconcile an o] (pressed j)eople to a state of misery and injustice t is not in lunnan nature, where a wrong is intiieted, to patiently suffer under it without an at- tempt for redress, no matter what severities may be v 10 IRELAND AS IT IS, tfi \ !i '■ '--l with liis lioof or his horn, he could keep his tormentor at bay? Do you (I need scarcely ask the question, for you do not) blame the brave people of Caiidia for rising in insurrection against the persecuting Turk 'i And why, then, blame the unfortunate Irish if they kick against wrong and injustice that have been heaped u])on tliem for centuries, and under which they at pres- (Mit suffer ? The almighty endowed the people of Ireland, as He did His chosen ])eople the Jews, with an indestructible na- tionality. He, the Great Author of the universe, implanted in their breasts a strong and lasting love of country; and, if under its Divine influence, they weep for Ireland's woes ; if, under the sway of this avior initrka, pricked by oppression's spurs, they burst forth })eriodic{illy, like some stream whose accumulated waters sweep away its dam, — if thus they break forth with the hoj»e of regaining freedom or compelling justice, they but do so under the direction of a heaven-bequeathed impulse which they have no power to resist, and he who blames them for the act but libels the Omnipotent IJeing who constituted them as they are. In England, and even in Ireland and in this country, there h a classic of persons who will not believe that Ireland has any real gi-ievances to complain of; who will not admit that the Church and the State connection is a cause for discontent, or that the land law is unjust and a great source of dissatisfaction; in fact, who will not believe that Ireland has any gi'ievances at all, but that the })revailing disaffection is simply the result of imaginary wrongs, arising from a feeling that the supposed in- justice done our forefathers of three hundred years agohainot yet been addi-essed, and that it is the special duty of the present .('cnci-ation to make England atone for it. This class is the ut- ter ignorant and intolerant, who live only in the corrupt atmosphere of bigotry and prejudice, and who, if removed out of such a sphere into a purer and more enlightened, would as certainly pine away and perish as docs the fish out of water — and because of being out of their natural element. On such I intend to waste no words. THE CAIjSE of disaffection. Some one asks, what is the cause of this Irish disaffection, which has become chronic ? From what springs this discon- tent; this periodical convulsion of the nation; this filling of English prisons v/ith Tri.^l) victims, and this staining of English gibbets with Irish blood ? Is there any cause for all this ? In the human body, disease becomes chronic except through .'^ rmentor at bay ? )u do not) blame rrection against the unfortunate that have been ch they at pres- 3 of Ireland, as destructible na- se, implanted in ry;.and, if under es ; if, under the on's spurs, they se accumulated k forth with the i, they but do so >ulse which they em for the act id them as they 1 country, there [reland has any admit that the )r discontent, or 'dissatisfaction; ny gi'ievances at ly the result of he supposed in- ears ago ha": not ^ of the present i class is the ut- in the corrupt if removed out tened, would as out of water — ent. On such I ON. 'ish disaffection, igps this discon- I ; this filling of ininsf of English ise for all this ? except through AND FENIANISM. 11 the continuance of abuses and violation of fixed laws : in the body politic, chronic disaffection jn-oceeds from no other source —at least, such is the record of the world's history, — aiul can Ireland's disaffection be without a cause tlien ? It is scarcely possible. Hear what Mr. Fox said, soon alter the Union, in 1803 :— " If it bo true that treason has tainted tho people ; if the poLson of Jacobinism pervades tho whole mind of tho multitude ; if disloyiilty be so rooted and universal that military despotism can alono make the country habitable, it would bo against tho experience of the world that such a wide-spread and deadly dlsaifection could or ever did exist in any nation, except from tho faults of its governors." And, if the spirit of Fox could to-day be permitted to appear at the bar of the British Parliament, it would alter but one word in the foregoing, by substituting for " Jacobinism" an ism of another kind, familiarly known as^Fonianism. The cause of Irish disaffection is indisputably English misrule. This I in- tend to establish. THE LAND GRIEVANCE. One of the sources of Irish disaffection, conse(pient on bad government, is the land system, which affords no protection whatever to the tenant against the whimsical or despotic con- duct of the landlord ; the other source is the Church and State connection, whereby the vast majority of the people, who arc Roman Catholic, and always have been, are compelled to pay for the support of an alien Church, imported into the country with the view of proselytizing them, — in which, I may add, it has been an utter failure. As the land law now stands in Ireland , and has stood for years; the tenant is at the mercy of the land- lord ; there is no steadiness of tenure ; and at any moment ho may be turned out of his possession and have his house level- led to the ground, without being allowed a cent of compensa- tion for improvements which he may have made ; and all this when he does not owe a single cent to his landlord. Tho ma- jority of the Irish landlords at the present day are not native born, having come into extensive possessions in Ireland throng]) the operation of the Incumbered Estates Court." They have no sympathy with the people ; they seldom come among them, — for the most part residing in England or on the Continent. Th(!y dr.iw their rents througli Agents, who generally hap])Cn to be hipd sharks in Dublin ; and these latter transact business with the peasantry through a class of men known— aye, too 7f Pi, v^^ f 1 J 12 IRELAND AS IT IS, well known— in Ireland as bailiffs ; and it will not be exagge- rating to say that a more unfeeling set of wi-etches walks not on the face of earth than are these same Irish bailiffs. I speak of them from a personal knowledge of their rascalities, In the selection of these men, the agent to the absentee landlord seeks out the most determined he can get — men who will be invul- nerable to widows' tears and or[)hans' cries, and who will promptly execute the warrants with which they are entrusted. No one would believe who had not seen it with his own eyes, the cruelties to which the Irish pheasants are sometimes subjected by these callous-hearted bailiffs. But, does any one ask, is there no law to prevent all this harsh treatment ? 1 answer, without fear of contradiction, there is absolutely no law to jjrotect the poor Irish tenantry from the severities inflicted on them by the landlords or their emissaries acting for them. I will not be understood as implicating all the landlords of Ireland. There are some of them excellent men, and where they deal fairly and honestly with their tenants, the latter are thrifty and industrious. But the fair-dealing landlords are i'tiw and far between. The n»ajo)ity are out of the country, and in their cases the abuse princij)ally exists. The following quotation from a speech of Mr. McGuire's in the English House of Connnons, a short time ago, will more than confirm the foregoing remarks : "Mr.McGuiro said tho land (|ucstion was really th(3 source of Irish discontent, and he believed that as many as a million victims had borne practical ter^mony to the unwillingness of Parliament to do justice to the occupiers of the soil. In four years 340,000 persons were dispossessetl, and m one year alone, namely, 1849, as many as two /lundred thousand! Tho late iSii- Kobert I'eel stated at the time, that the records of no civihzed country gave a more awful picture than tho descriptions of the miseries pioduced by these eyfctions; and ho quoted the report of one of the inspectors which stated thsit the ejectments were often illegal, being carried out ivithout preinous notice, and that midnight on the 31st of December, on one occasion, wus the time selected for the perpetration of these cruelties, the unfortunate people being exposed to the incle- mency of a stormy winter's night. Some of tho children were sick and their parents implored that they might remain in their houses till morn- 'i"%i*'i"*' *'^^'^"" P^'-'^y^''^ fo'" mercy were fruitless, and many died from the hardships they experienced. Sir Kobert Peel stated one case in which the father was found dead on the floor, tho mother in the last stage of dysentry, and two starving children lying sleeping on the corpse. In another instance— and he remembered how Sir Robert's voice trembled with emotion as he related it— the miserable hut which .•* poor man had erected for his protection was set on fire as he fled across the moor. In Kerry £20,000 was spent in deporting the people, who were flung on tho quays of New York in such a wretched state that the AmericariPGovern- ment was obligod in eelf-defenco to impose a tax on Irish emigrants. AND FENIANISM. 13 II not be exagge- )tclieH walks not bailiffs. I speak localities. In the ce landlord seeks 10 will be invul- i, and Avho will ey are entrusted, his own eyes, the n)es subjeeted by one ;isk, is there answer, without >v to j)rotect the 1 on them by the I will not be Ireland. There they deal fairly are thrifty and lire i'iiw and far ry, and in their Ir. MeGuire's in ago, will more ho source of Irish victims had borne to do justice to the e dispossessed, and r-eti t/ioumnJ! The irds of no civilized ms of the raiseiios )ort of one of the ften illegal, being hton the 31st of r the perpetration losed to the incle- ren were sick and • houses till mom- my died from the one case in which I the last stage of n the corpse. In ;'s voice trembled h a poor man had OB8 the moor. In were fiung on the AmericariPGovern- t Irish emigrants. Thus the landlords were the cause of the emigration, and the Incum- bered Estates Court, though it relieved a certain class, did nothing for the farmers, but handed them over like cattle to the new proprietors with no protection against removal or banishment. There was nothing to prevent the repitition of these scenes, indeed in Tipperary only last year the purchaser of a property in the Incumbered Estates Court obliged the 200 human beings who lived on it to (juit, although they did not owe a farthing of rent and were anxious to continue tenants. They betook themselves to America, of course, there to swell that discontent which, hereafter might prove a formidable danger to England. On one estate producing £30,000 a year, the absentee proprietor sent a notice to quit to all his tenants every May, thus keeping them in a state of complete serfdom. It was good government alone that would furnish the styptic which Ireland re(iuired. Any danger that threatened Ireland from America might bo aggravated by folly, but if wo make the people of Ireland contented, wo might laugh at conspiracy." Now, I appeal to the fairness and liberality of every man in this country, if this land question in itself is not a sufficient cause for Irish disailection, and particularly so when, for years past, the Government of England luis acknowledged — or been Ibrced to acknowledge — the wrong, but yet will not attempt to remedy it. Only a lew months ago it was comi)elled to admit that, in this particular, reform was absolutely necessary for Ireland, but in the next breath it proclaimed that, "in Ireland's present condition it could not think of redress !" or, in other words, here is what the English Government says : " This unjust land law — or rather absence of any law — coupled with the Church anomaly is the great source of trouble in Ireland ; that this state of things is due to our want of just legislation, in behalf of the majority of the people, admits of no denial. Fenianism is undoubtedly the child of these abuses, there is no (juestion about that ; but, Fenianism is an impudent child, that by physical force would wring from us reform. We are not to be coei-ced into acts of justice, by this impudent upstart ; our first duty must be to adopt the stamping-out process, and lay its lifeless body on the green, and when we have accomplished this, at our leisure we can think about reform." This is prac- tically what the English Government says at this moment, while the Irish sore goes on festering for want of the proper salve ; while the heart-burning and disaffection increases, and this " upstart," Fenianism, the child of misgovernment, is growing a very giant, and awakening uneasy sensations at the foot of the throne. Who is, to blame for The injured Iri.sh would we put up with such a state of things in Canada ? Let us judge the people of Ireland by our own feelings. We would all this ? The abuser or the abused ? or their iron-handed rulers ? How long r 14 lUELANl) AS IT IS, not for a inoinent tolerate such abuses. Much as we deJsire conncctum with the Mother (^.uutry ; n.u.-h as we pride in the old fla^r ot En^daiid, unch^- whidi so many of our country- men won honor on many a well-contested held—and for Eng- land s glcry— we would not for a moment tolerate an oppression in tins country, such as Ireland now sutlers from, while the' way to indejience wn.s open to our march. Let us not be un- reasonable then and .say that the Irish people are sorely to blame iortho agit^itions and disasters of the hour ; that tliev are a stubl)orn and rebellious freneration ol' vipers who hiss without a cause ; nor wouiul the lii-li-toned sensibilities of a noble but uniortunate people, by blindly pensistinj. in the asser- tion that all the severities they are dealt, in striviuL' for simple justice, ar(, only what they merit. But .i,nant to them that tliev suffer irom ini,sg(,vernnient ; that they are Justitted in an ettbit to obtjiin reih-ess but differ with them (ioncerninrr the means they employ to the accomplishment of the end. Only do this mucli and you do a great deal. You open the Irisli ear to your argument 111 favor of the "moral force," which is the migl,ty l)ower thiit moves tlie world ; and which, when wisely vuror- ously, and persistently aj.plied, in behalf of what is just and right, can no more fail of success than tliat God can fail to be just or overlook the iniquities of the wicked ! But, on the other liand, if you shut your eyes on Irisli wrongs, ami your ears against the truth, and persist in the stui)id Jissertion that ire and 8 grievances are imaginary and her sons rebellious and disloyal, you close tlie Irish ear against rea>ion's voice, and help to make an enemy of the man who, treated with honest sym- patliy and candor, you might rely upon standing by your side m the hour ot need, to rej^el invasion and protect our country. THE CHURCH ESTABLISHMENT. Ireland's second grievance— against which, for half a century slie hsis kicked, and which no one at this day can scarcely be found to excuse, in Canada at least, except he be morally de- jm-iyed, and sadly so— is the imposition, on the Catholic people of tlie country, of the Established Churcli. Little argument is necessary to prove that the effort to force the Protestant Church of Eng and on the Catholic people of Ireland has been and is a tiagi-ant act of injustice, and a potent cause of wide-spread and lasting discontent. It ought only be necessary for the enlight- ened wor d to know that, of the population of Ireland, but a very small modicum of its people at any time has been Protes- tant, and that, at the present moment, the ])roportion is some- -■^ AND FENIANISM. Iff U'h lis we (l(?sire iis wo pride in of our eoiintry- 1 — and for Eng- toanoppro.s.sion, from, while the it us not be un- le are sorely to hour ; tlmt they vipers wlio hi.ss fensibilities of a ing in tlio ii.s,ser- iving for .simple )ihem thattliey itied in an ett'ort ning the means . Only do this rish eai' to your h is the mighty I wisely, vigor- liat is just and i can fail to be ! But, on the I'ongs, ans 16 IRELAND AB IT IS, have HO long protested, and against which thoy now -most solemnly protest, with all the energy of their nature, as an iiisult to their religion, a violation of the very tenets of Pro- testantism, and a scandalous anomaly which England is Ijound to remove, if she would maintsiin a character for justice and fair i)lay in the eyes of the nations of Eurojte." The Liverjiool Post thus : " In Ireland there are G,()()(),(K)0 of people, and they are all Christian. Five millions an^ Roman Catholics and nearly half a million are Dissenters, and some- what more than half a million are Protestants of tli<' Kstab- lished Church. The half million, however, are in the ascen- dency. The Government recognizes them as s}>ocially (entitled t() its favors. The Roman Catholics an; only partially recog- nized. The Roman Catholics in refcretice to nund)ers and Tn reference to industry, are really the {)eople. They are the tillers ot the soil ; they are the laboring poijulation ; and they compose the majority of the tratlesmen. E(piality in a p(»litical and religious sen.so is demanded ; but ecpiality is denied, and in the denial are involved two very important principles which have always been insisted upon in these columns. First, that the government in this country, as in all others, is the government of the many ; and the two Houses of Parliament are jiermitted to govern so long as their government reflects the ofjinion of the public. In the second place religion, which ought to be full of charity, of justice, of fair play, has not yet escaped, even in England, from a spirit of intolerance. For lear of offending that intolerance the Imperial Legislature denies justice to Ireland. On Tuesday, Sir John Gray, temperate, forcible, and true, brought the question (,f the Established Church of Ireland before the House of Conmions. * * * Sir John is a mem- ber of the Established Church, and he therefore claimed, and very properly claimed, to bo considered an advocaU;, not an opponent of the church to which he belonged. * * * Sir John proved conclusively that the Established Church is a great grievance in Ireland, and yet it is permitted to endure, because the people of England, whether they are Dissenters or belong to the Established Church, oppose every alteration, and the only ground on which thoy can base their opposition— their hatred of Popery. The nation has to endure wrong directly and indirectly because the religious part of the connnunity is full of prejudice. Intolerance stands in the way of right ; and Fenianism, active or latent, is to be encouraged rather than the Legislature should justify its wisdom and extend justice to Ireland." >v AND FKNIANISM. 17 they now moHt ir nature, as an ' tenets of Pro- ngJand is bouiul I'or justice and are G,(M)(),(M)0 of lions an; Roman tors, and sonio- s of tliles which have First, that the the government t are permitted the of)inion of ought to be full scaped, even in xr of offendinir nies justice to te, forcible, and ui-ch of Ireland rohii is a mem- e claimed, and vocatf!, r»ot an * * * Sir d Church is a ted to endure, 3 Dissenters or alteration, and position — their wrong directly community is r of right ; and 'ather than the ;end justice to The London Tlrtws, in a jMiwerfid leader, ]»aid the following tribute to Sir John (Jray's speech : " Whoever doubts," says the ThiK's, " the anomaly or tin; failure of the Irish Church, m!\y be recommended o\n-o for all to ])eruse the speech of Sir John Griiy;" and again it says : "England governs Ireland with an overpowering stnmg hand .and a bad conscience." From the London iie;;/^!/'; ; "Whivtovcr may bo tlio I'ato of Kir John Uray's motion tl»of|iU'.sti()n of tlio bisli Church is not hkcly to Khjcj). The liberal i>arly cannot icni.un infliHorcnt totho injustico iuflictod upon the sister countiy, by the e,\is tcnco of an ecclesiastical establishment, which olh>n(l.s in almost eveiy conceivable way the I'eclings of a highspiiitcrl and sensitive people. It is alien in its origin ; it is a memorial of concpiest; it is inseparably .asso- ciated with oppression and intolerance; it has no history which is not a history of wrong done and sutibrings inflicted u[)()n the nation with whicii it is coHuccted by f\ forced and unnatural allianco ; its cloctiines arii Ikmcv tical in the opinions of thoso amongst whom it professes to minister -. and it marks hi tho most oilcnsivo way, (ho weakness of the country which gives it a name, and a home, by tho contrast it perpetually sug gests between Scotland with its own Church and Ireland with tho Churcii of the stranger. • * • q/,g possession oj the very f/ua/ilies iv/iic/i Jit men to be good citizens renders them had ones nvhen their faith, their sense of independence, their love of country, their pride of race, are oulrat;ed as nve out- rage those things in Ireland, by maintainmg an institution which sins against every principal of political justice, and violates every sound rulo of i)oli- tical action." I think, by the foregoing, I am pretty strongly fortified in my po.sition as to the Church grievance in Ireland, and all liberal and honest minded men, of whatever country or ciced, win agree with the authorities I have ipioted, that lrelanv^ out of the country. Justice, therefore, will only ])e done nu^ by those who peruse these pages, in believing that I w)"ite from no feeling of prejudice or disloyalty, but from an hoiujst and conscientious belief that the position I liave taken is a true one, in so far as the cause of Irish wrongs is concerned, and their consequence. >v 18 IRELAND AS IT IS, THE REMF]DY FOR IRISH DISAFFECTION. I have ciideavoml hr'wi\y to shew that "Irehnul jis it is" is in a hijiiontahic cMniditioii, and i^roaiis iiiiiier the prcssurt' (»f injustice; that the wion^rs ol" the ih;o|»U! are f^rievuus; that all liberal minds in England admit that Ireland is heartlessly (ippressLMl,— that the Government of England itself is eonseious of the wrong, is not and cannot be denied. Having attempted so much, let mo now my » few words on what I consider to be the only remedy I'or 'Ireland's disciuiet. And first, let me reiterate a social axiom, that "there are no mores generous, hospitable, and warm-hearted peojile in existence than are the Iri.sh [)eo|)le;" no people who, if but dealt with in anything like justice and fair play, nrv more easy of heing reconciled. This is saying a greafdeal ; but it is only simple truth, as fdl who liave beeii among the Irish peoj)le at home, and stiidiiid their ])eculiurities, will at once attest. There an; no other pco[)le wh(j feel mori; sincei'c sorrow for injmy inflicted, or who are more ready to forgive an injustice, if a.[)[)roached with candor and an earni'st maiiilestation or desire to compensate for t!ie wrong. As the old song says of tlu! Irishman: — ills liand is rash, liis lioart is warm, liiifc principlois still his guide, None moro ropeiits a deed of liarm And none forgives with nobler r)ride. Ills inmost soul he will unlock. And if ho does your merits scan, i'our confidence he scorns to mock. So generous is aii Irishman. And such being the nature of this m^blc, ill-treated animal of Hibernia, I cannot help thiidving that, even now, after centuries of heart-burning and wrong, if the British Government woidd but awaken to a sense of conunon justice — ascend to the sum- mit of moral excellence, and at once apply the axe to the root of Irish disaffection, which is mis-rule — abolish the hateful and manifestly unjust Church and State connection; enact equitable land laws; encourage a|;riculture and manufacture, and let the members of the Royal Family — and the Queen herself betimes — come amongst the people as she does annually amongst the Scotch ; build a little palace at Kilkarney, or the Vale of Avoca, for summer resort, than which lovely valley Moore tells us there is not in the wide woi'ld another so sweet, and it is more than probable — it is certtiin — that, in a short time agitation would become extinct in Ireland, and no more loyal devoted '^ECTION. ' ^land as it is" in the jUTSHUH' «tf griovuu.s; that ul is heartlt'SHly solt" is (MUisoioiis Lviiij^ attt'iupted I consider to Ix; d first, lot iiM^ inou! ^"[tau'rous, U't; tliaii are tln^ th in anythinj^ eiii^ reconciled, [jle truth, as all me, and studitjd •e iiro, no other ntlicted, or who lied with candor pensatc for the :ated animal oi' , after centuries enunent would ;nd to the sum- axe to the root the hateful and enact equitable ure, and let the herself betimes ly amongst the Vale of Avoca, Moore tells us , and it is more time agitation ! loyal devoted AND HiINIANISM. I!l Hu])jectH of Her MaJ(>sty to be found in th(> extent of her wide dominions. Ib^r Kingdom would thus be vastly strengthened — and let it be understood that Ireland is Kngliind's strength or weakness, as her lulers may desire to have it. And thus .sti eugthened, having th(! cordial co-o|ieratioii of the Irish nut ion, in connection with tlu^ brave Scot and the determined Sa\uri, well may her Legislators afford to look with confiden(!e into the future, and see no reason to fear that the old ling which has braved for a thousand years the battle and the breeze, will not in the year A. I). ii.*J(!7, be found holding its own on the land and on the sea. Hut, h^t injiistice be persisted in, and the hangman's r(»{)e rather than a just measure of reform be ex- tended to the Irish peoph;, and — 1 do not (choose to assumt; the' pr<»phetic in predicting thi; conse(|uences tiiat nmst ultimately befall the f)ppressing power. There are in Ireland at the present day r),()(M),()(M) acres of waste land, whose lowest elevation is 2().S feet above the level of the sea at low water. At least, we are told, 4,()()(),(H)() acres of this land are (capable of being reclaimed and rendered lit for cultivation. Many thousands of acres of arable land, which in the past wen; divided into farms, aneration of a bad law, have been cttnverted into deer parks and pastures, and the people driven off. It will not be extravagant to say that all the money sp(!nt by the; Im])erial Government, within the last fifty years, in keeping tin; Irish nose to the grinding fitone, wouhl have more than sufficed to jturchase out half of the land(;d estates of absentees, and converted all tln^ bogs and swamps in the country into a state of cultivation; have settled the people on the land thus obtained on e([uitable terms, giving them an interest in the soil and a sense of security, which would have made them happy and contented and loyal to the crown. ' It is not yet too late to reform, and the sooner that the British Government makes up its mind to take some step in this direc- tion the better, not only for England and Ireland, but for Can- ada also. FENIANISM. Fenlanism is the Lawful offspring of English misrule in Ire- land. No other parentage ciui it claim — none other does it claim — and the most learned genealogist can traci; its birth to no other source. It is settled then, without further argmnent on tlie point, that Trish Fenianism, or disaffection, is the child of English misrule. Who is to blame for its conduct ? Who ,^ 20 f UPLAND AM IT IS, ir not its author. If Fouianisiu lia«l never hoen Ixnn it would never have plav.-! ho unruly a part, and di.sturhed th(! peace (.t tlu! ohi and i,t w woHds. If twenty years a^r„ K,„dand redressed Ireland's ; terror of the -..^v Fii.fhsh niis-rovernment of Ireland is alone to hianie fortius sad' state of thintrs. Will it he implied from the i\nverity, diveste«l of h(;r shackles, if her .sons will l.ut lay down the .scythe and the i)itchfork, the brickbat and the pike— sorry im[)lementH of war— and, with united and per- iiistent eilort, wield the moral lever under the direction of or 11) co-operation with, liberal John Bright juid the members of I he Engh:)' Reform League. This process may be con.sidered );low— am? with good reason 1)y a people g.«j.l!e<{ to the quick - but it will have this to recommend it, that it will cost no blood, destroy no lives, and mmt end in ultimate success .^ AND FENIAN IHM, 21 )()m it would H'd tlj«! jHiaci! i^'o Kiij,'liui(l of hfinj^ to- ut tluf loot of 1 cmhnu'c of uilt; Irt'laiid lid Ijo stTun'. il is in misery I'lii, .subjc'l, ■ 1 r of tilt uiii\, It' lortlj(! Hiid tliiit I coun- luiHwor, tliat iti(»n, is pcr- lo tile means lisapi trove of her, towards nly : that it y seared ant! )ee(tnu! weak th(! " moral the " moral lil. True, it (I'eot — let us ' avail. But tian we were Iieland has of a century iug its huge )ftSibevia to ar di.st.uiL — heu Ireland ly recline in ler sons will rickbat and ted and per- ection of, or members of B considered the quick 'ill cost no ate success. Ireland certainly has been very patient considering' (he^WeTg..„ of her wron;^rH, and if to-morrow mIjc were stron;,' enou^'h to hit John iJull a pi>/lli(>(/iic hetween the eyes and the iicwe, that would knock tire out of the one and eing converted into a prol-'-xt ior inrriiif^enicnt of tho hiw (iiid the < .m- Hlitutioii, introducing prap.lice.s dangerous to rightful and indejiend iit jiopular action, and fruitful of enormous niitionul rai.seliief, hy .sell ng the Englisii people against tho Irisli. and tliiis finther H(>par;iling and weakening, instoiid of nnitlng and Htiengthening, the two countri.^.' f hiving .stated that in J)uhlin h(> had iuges on lo .say : — ' Had tli. Fenians adopted that principle in Ireland, and had tiiey enlisted .and ral- lied puhlic opmion there round a moral force, instead of a physical forci' standaRl, they might now have heen assisting to e.\(>rcise an irresi tahle force for Die henelit of both countries, instead of hy vioh-nt, .sanguinary and greatly irritating bul abortive jiroceeduigs, exciting a spirit of ani- mosity and hostility here, tending only to retard tho political and social ndvancemi nt of their own coimtry." " Upon the motion that tho letter of the ))resident be entered upon the minutes, Mr. Lucraft objectehindering their properties, and inllicting all manner of mischief and for Ireland s sake: AND FENIANISM. d in their the most to their meration. ih. There anything Duntry to ; the Eng- :.hoir Irish ; virtuous itity, ami roatnient, the name, L to KOI Me either lit lan, when y he taken hject is to Jncle Sam ms won hi 18 alone in ttenipt to nd sutlers not in- s .all trash scendants, ) invasion, Lit injuring ' the Irish ast retleet- issed over lorn in the late l)y the ould have • the Irish tliey he I irk on the nion, they n invasion len killing properties, and's sake! «L From this one solitary point of view alone to argue the mani- fest injustice of a Fenian invasion of Canada no further, it is sufficiently plain that it is the duty of every Irishman in this country— and of every other man— to use eveiy effort in his power to resist aJljitiiynj2kLl!^' invasion, Fenian or otherwise, on this country .fT^eadyas we, Irisli in' Canada, may he to say, with Mr. Bri^c, " Fenianism go on and prosper " in Ireland, we cannot hy any means tolerate its in- thctmg punishniMit on us in Canada for England's misconduct. No one but a maOman or an idiot, or some designing scoundrel, who would not/eare a button if Ireland and its people wen^ all gone to the Wttoin of the sea, can hold any otlier view on this question of Fbnian invasion of Canada from the United States. A FEW Words for the consideration of the CANADIAN PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT. Does some impulsive Irishman, an ardent lover of his country, ask if I mean to say that Irishmen in Canada should endeavor to do nothing for Ireland but inwardly sympathize with her? I answer, I mean to say no such thing ; on tiie con- trary, I mean to say that Irishmen in Canada have moie reasun to move in Ireland's behalf— present circumstances considered —than have Irishmen in the United States. But if they desire to evince a ]jractical sympathy with Ireland, they mustjjursue a lawful and sensible course. Now what I would pro[)ose is this : That the Irish people of Canada get up a petition to the government of this country, praying them to remonstrate, f or the people of Ireland, with the British government. This petition, I am satisfied, would obtain the signatures of the inajority of the Canadian people. It would not only be sio-ned by Irishmen, but by Frenchmen, Englisli and Scotchmen'^ by Irotestant and Catholic; and, I venture to say, would not fail to obtain the names of intelligent members of the Orano-e Association of Canada. Ireland's m-ongs ai'e so i>alpable that no man of liberal mind would refuse to sign the ]jetition in question. The Petition could be got up by means of connnit- tees throughout the Province, who would report to a central ponit. A remonstrance from our government, to the Imperial brought about by the means contemplated, would have con- siderable weight and might ])ossibly have a good effect. But some may say that the Canadian govermuent has nothing to do wdth Ireland's .sutterings, and should not inter- fere. With those who take such a view I beg most respectfully to differ. The Canadian government and the Canadian people 20 IRELAND AS IT IS, If have much to do with the matter, and have good and tangible reason to feel deeply interested in Ireland's receiving full and immediate justice. If a wise .son, arriving at the years of un- derstanding, sees his mother departing from the path of rec- titude and pursuing a wrong course, if he respects that mother, will he not reason with hei', on her conduct ? and if he should ha])pen to sutler from her folly, how much more ought not he endeavor to dissuade her from the evil of her ways ? Will any one deny this plain truth and show cause for the denial ? No one can. Well, then, is not the relationship between England and Canada as that of mother and son — are not we proud of the connection ? In refusing justice to Ireland, that an enlightened world pro- claims to be her due, does not that Mother Country depart from the path of rectitude and justice, aye from the pathof hon- ov\ And when we, her son behold her defects, and suffer from her evils deeds ; when we suffer severely, and when the pros- spect is that we must suffermoro if she mends not her ways, and that immediately, is it not our duty to express our disappro- bation of her conduct, and i-equest her to reform ? Most undoubt- edly it is,and no sane man will have have the hardihood — except at the hazard of being set down as a fool — to deny the fact. Does any one ask how Canada suffers from English injustice to Ireliind ? The answer is plain : In having her impoverished exchequer strained to the utmost farthing — in having to ex- l)end millions of money and to sacrifice the lives of her sons to protect the country from Fenian invasion. Fenianism within tlie last eighteen months has cost Canada over a million and a-half of dollars ; and, why or for what cause ? Because Canada is Britain's child; because (Britain treats Ireland cruelly and unjustly ; and because Irish Fenians in the United States want to strike us for mix mother, or to strike the mother through the child. England to-day acts the part of an unre- lenting des[)ot, and we have to suffer for her crimes. Now, such "being the stubborn fticts, I pretend say, that it is an imper- ative duty, which the govenunent of Canada owes to the coun- try over whose destinies they preside, and the people who compose it, that they strike at tlie root of Fenianism by re- monstrance with the home government to deal proper and speedy reform to Ireland. For," until Iiish abuses are abolish- ed, and justice — fair, liberal justice, done Ireland, we must suf- fer for England's sins and iniquities. It would be impious to hold any other view ; suice it has been ordained that the sins of the parents shall be visited on the children. Does some wiseacre assert that the children should suffer patiently, then, ^ AND FENIANISM. 27 I tangible full and irs of un- /h of rec- t mother, le should it not he II any one o one can. id Canada ineetion ? v^orld pro- •y depart th of hon- iffer from the pros- ier ways, disappro- undoubt- 1 — except act. Does ustice to overished ing to ex- er sons to m within lion and Because nd cruelly ied States e mother r an unre- 'f ow, such m iniper- the coun- ople who in by re- 'oper and 3 abolish- rnust suf- npious to t the sins >oes some tly, then, i. the penalty ? I hold the presumption as false, and ask for holy writ as a confirmation, if the asserter insists. CONCLUSION. In the preceding pages I have endeavoured to demonstrate that Ireland suffers, at the present moment from n)isgovern- ment; that her grievances are serious; that English misrule is the sole cause of her troubles — the source from which her disaffection spring; that this same misrul(> has ])een tlicpnrent of Fenianism. I have shown that this country has suffered severely within the last eighteen months from Fenianism — this child of English misrule ; that it is likely to suffer more if the proper recipe is not resorted to in time, and I liave pointed out what I believe to be the duty of the Canadian people antl government in the premises, if they study the safety and ])i-os- perity of this country. The injuries the Fenians have inflicted upon us, and the gi-eat expense to which they have subjected this country, is traceable solely to the door of the British Cal)- inet. The feet defies refutiition. If Ireland was not grievously misgoverned there would be no Fenianism, and we would not have been invaded. So long as England refuses to redress Irish wrongs, so long will Fenianism exist ; and so long will Canada be called upon periodically to protect her frontiers and deplete her treasury. What is our only true duty under the circumstances ? I have pointed it out : — Petition the Canada- ian government to remonstrate with Her Majesty's ministers in England to gi-ant a full measure of reform to Ireland. But some OM) asks, "Suppose the Canadian government should . remonstrate, and the British government shoidd give them a deaf ear or no satisfaction (something not at all probable) what then ?" What then! just this : the sooner we cut loose from England's apron-strings the better. ("If a connection with the Mother Country is to costushencefortli — because of her sins the sacrifice of precious life and millions of dollars yearly foi- protective purposes; if we must be driveninto avast militia ex- penditure — which will prove an incubus on the Dominion, and help tocripple its industry and improvement,and all because Eng- land will act the part of an unjust despot, the sooner we pro- claim our indepedence the better for our peace and prosperty. We a,re a mutual source of weakness to one another, at T)est, and if one possesses not the power to stop the abuses of the other, from whichhardship arise and heavylosses are sustained, it is plain that a dissolution of partnershi}) is the only cure Once we had proclaimed cur independence Fenianism troublcff 28 IRELAND AS IT IS, US no more, and that our neighbours on the other side, in our new state of existence, would attempt to jjobble us up, is a thing so utteriible improl)iiM(! tlutt no one laying claim to state- manshii» would for a nionieut J)elieve it. ()m- only daugei- from our neighbours is in there being em- br(Kled in a war with P]ngland through Fenianism, in which event Canada would be; made the field of operations, and what a i)rospect of blood-drenched plains, devastated towns and vil- lages, privaticms and miseries of the hardest kind, does not the conteni))lation of such a state of things open to our view ! That we are not far irom invasion of some kind or another on Engliinfl's ac«X)unt— on account solely of her unjust treatment of Lelau