Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVI, Issue 16, 23 April 1908, Page 27

Irish News

■■'■ V ' Jr % ' ' ." ARMAGH— The Enemies ol Religion ~\ \_ His Eminence Cardinal Logue in the course of "his Lenten Pastoral, in describing th« dangers that .'beset religion, dwells on. the persecution. in France and .the at- \ tempts to^ imitate it in Italy. Perhaps writes his Emlntnce, the most striding • proof of what irreligion can attempt and effect -in Rome itself, still overwhelmingly Catholic, at least as far as native Romans are concerned, and the centre of Catholicity, you have had a past Grand' M a ster of Freemasonry enthroned in the capital, wiih Freemason assistants to do his bidding and heap insults and disabilities ton the Catholic inhabitants. It was only when all restraint was laid aside and the re.igious sense of this people , shocked, that . the politicians found themselves brought up short* against a determined resistance to' which they must yield. Nor could they" promise themselves immunity from these evils because the danger was remote. It was not remote : it - ■was gradually approachd-nig' and its. symptoms were becoming more sensible. Some movements now going on> .: i« England, which seemed to have .won sympathisers in-, , Ireland, savored strongly, of ihose symptoms. They allknew the conflict which their co-religionists in I3ng--land were forced to maintain against, secularism, avow— ed or modified, in order to preserve the Christian: . character of the schools in wfidch their children were educated. That was a conf:lrt at which they could not ' looik on unmoved. With all those whose dearest inter-, ests were at sta y e, .they. .were united -by their common -," faith, and with most of them by bonds of kindred and - corntry. Undefined Biblical -teaching he strongly condemns.. He ventures to say with all reserve that f o r Catholics, provided the teacher honestly and honorably . confined himself to his secular work and did -not tamper with the faith of his pupils, pure secularism would be preferable to- the proposed scheme. DUBLIN — The Progress of Temperance General Sir William Butler in his speech at the annual meeting an connection ■ with the Father Matbew v Memorial Hall, Dublin, illustrated the progress the total abstinence cause had been making by recalling some . incidents of former days. He quoted from a letter descriptive of a public 'banquet in Dublin one hundred and thirty years ago. He told how a duke— 'doubtless the Dune of Rutland—put in; an appearance at an early hour, and yet ' contrived to be as drunk as any ot his Predecessors.' Another account of a public dinner at the same period which was quoted <by General Butler relates how after the Duke had tgone ' the bumpers went, round very fast and those that were left got very drunk:' The inevitable quarrel then occurred and -swords were dr fl wn. Scenes of the kind were pretty common at. that date and the people who figured in them, instead of lasdnT the respect of those amongst whom tliey lived, won admiration for what was regarded" as a symptom of good-fellowship. General Butler gave encouragement to the temperance advocates whom he addressed by re- • minding them of the change for the better which has - come over public opinion since those days ; but specially -heartening was his language when he recounted how Father Mathew, single-handed, had in six years brought down the committals to prison frotm twelve thousand to seven thousand. To-day the Irish Capuohins are worthily treading in the zealous friar's footsteps and inducing thousands to choose the safe path of total abstinence. Pernicious Literature - — His Grace the Archbishop of Dublin in his Lenten Pastoral, strongly denounced vendors of immoral and irreligious , books, newspapers, and other publications. It is, h!e remarked, =iha duty o* the clergy to bring them, if possible, to a sense, of the awful responsibility they incur in lending- themselves to the diabolical work of undermining the morals- of the people through the dissemination of debasing arid; seductive literature. The Archbishop proposed an effective remedy. Catholics living in a city such as Dublin, have it in their power to deal a severe blow to "the infamous traffic. They can| as y bs Grace advised, -taje care not to leave a penny in any boo 1 - shop or- other place in which demoralising publications are exposed to view or are known to be oil sale. The shops *in which) are displayed pictorial advertisements appealing to base instincts deserve the same treatment. By rigorously pursuing thiis course Catholics will speedily gut an end to the evils of which the Archbishop complained. The withholding of custom is a

iorm of punishment to which people who live by vending are ■'keenly sensitive. - ' ■ '■-:'-"'., GALWAY— An Alleged Outrage The * Irish Weekly ' of March. 7 reports that a "few days -'before Mr. John Redmond, in the House o 1 Commons asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he^waa, aware that" in March .1905 a telegram was received :by the authorities in Ireland from Mr. Henry Persse, of Woodvnlle t County Galway, to the effect that an attack had been, made upon Ms house by a band of moonlijgfct-; ers, that several shots had fired into the house," and that he toad ' returned the" fire and pursued the moonligihters , whether a* police investigation was htld into the matter ; and did tthe authorities, as the result - of--. this arrive at the conclusion that no such attack had, «mi fact, "been made, that no shots had been fired at or into the h o use,f and that the whole statement contained in the telegram was untrue.— Mr."* Cherry— An &ttao(.£ .was alleged to have been made on Mr, Fersse's hh o u«e on ttiie night of the 2nd of March, 1905. On March, ; 3 Mr. Persse^wrote -to~ the Under-Sec- ' retary starting that, the- men came up toMiis very doo'r^ ' the night before and committed a very /dating outrage: The oMfahary investigations were' made by the police au- Ithirties m the ma,tt:r, but no special- inauirV-twas heW.-. •■ As. a result, of, these rnvesti.gation^-ther a .utlio I MeS-' ; ar- Iffi Vp ?, . at . that a -stone had been-" -throw.--through the fanlight :of; Mr. Persse's , hair door, by **£>:; person but that there was.no evidence fo show thaiT"- : -S? re X^ nornn om ? er f on Vas concerned in'- the matter.- '• +h! f?? 9e o ,\£ rotectl °A duty were at ; Wdoctville hou&^K the time of the occurrence, S o far as they were aw&K men. A second servant man. was found on the lawh' >*-' -Mr J -rm^K the^ &° *** no Angers aboS: -': Pears to me to re the on'y inference. ?• * ap " KERRY— A Sad Event im%mmm MEATH-Oniy Two Bills MONAQHAN-Death of a Canon years ih charge. of Oastleblayney parish, 'where he w as highly esteemed, not only by his own cwSworiK tSct T members Of other in thf S ROSCOMMON— A Timely Hint By a timely hint which he throws out in his Lenten pastoral, the Bishop of Elphin endeavored to -avert what may prove bitter strife. As the- "Chief Secretary has publicly intimated, the Govemment.sare resolved to bring relief within the next few yeafsto the congested districts in Ireland: The realisation of the project will involve -the acquisition, by some of the-ad-manastrative {departments of State, o f the - untehaivted grass lands, especially in- the Western province Under the circumstances- the Bishop suggests to the > occupiers of those lands that it would .argue prudence and wisdom on their part if they surrendered them for distribution amongst the surplus population ol the congested localities, securing at the same time full compensation. If they decline to do this, they cannot, hi« Lordship points ou.t, •' expect that the people, who have been taughlt for years to- look forward to the division of untenanted lands; and have been encouraged in their

hopes by explicit promises and a settled policy of the G-werricrient, will regard their selfish; monopoly with, patience and in silence. Whilst deprecating any departure, however slight, from the dictates of justice and charity, the_ Bishop is disposed to countenance every -form of pressure within the law with a view to "bring home to the Government, the urgent, need for legislation on a 1 suitable <• scale, and to convince the owners ■ of property that the time has come for a settlement of this vexed question. Will the property owners act upon the Bishops- suggestion ? Should they reject it, it will be at grave peril' to their own interests. WATERFORD— OrderIy and Law-abiding Mr. Justice Madden and Mr. Kenny opened the Spring Assizes for the County and City of Waterford. Judge Madden, addressing the ctfiinty grand jury, said there were only six » cases to go. before them', of an ordinary character. No bill presented crime of an exceptional character ' or detracted from "the character the county bore as orderly and' law-aibiding. Mr. Justice Kenny, .addressing the city grand jury, said there was — only one solitary case sent, forward, and he congratulated itihena/ori the peaceful state of the city. ,In the case referred to by his Lordship the Crown did not send up a bill. WESTMEATH— Most Ordinary Character Addressing the grand jury at the opening of the Westnueath Assizes at Mullingar Lord Justice Holmes mentioned that there were only three cases, to go before them, and they were of the most ordinary character. WICKLOW— A Light Calendar Mr. Justice Madden opened the Wicklow Assizes, and in the course of Ms address to the grand jury said : — Bills are about to be presented for your consideration dealing with two cases. These, gentlemen, rep-re-sent crimes of offences against property of the most ocdinary character, and they will give, you no dim- ■ cirlty. And I am glad to infer from the.. -information supplied to me in the ordinary course that this very light calendar fairly represents the condition of the county with regard to • crime. I hope, gentlemen, your county will long maintain the character winch it holds as a peaceful and law-abiding ooimmunity, GENERAL Housing the Working Classes Mr. Hogan's Bill for the housing of the working classes (Ireland),, proposes that for the purpose of cheajp housing the moneys at the disposal of -the Post Office Savings Banks in Ireland and the funds officially accumulated in the law courts may be lent to the local authorities to the extent of five millions sterling, repayable over .an extended period of eighty- years. No Work for the Judges After reading the reports of the Irish Assizes (remarks the 4 Freeman's Journ a l ') one is almost always forced to ask what on earth the judges go to the Assizes for. There is generally no crime to be investigated that would cause any trouble at Petty- Sessions. And except to find soire work for , those^ seasons, which are duller in the law courts vthan others, the judges might as well keep kicking thfeir heels together - in Dublin.. Yet the whole elaborate miacMmery of call- " ing the grand juries and charging them, and so forth, is gone through, as if the safety of the State depended, on its maintenance. Of course, we are not oblivious of the fact that the Assize's give some of* the judges ' the reqjrisite opportunity for po-lito'cal harangues at large. Of course, the criminal calendars never- justify these exhibitions of anti-national spirit and feeling; but the deficiency is readily supplied by police reports, which can easily, be made to suit- the temper of the particular judge going the Assize. The Spring Assizes have been in full swing, with no business to be done." A bill .here alnd a bjll there confronted their "lordships, p.nd they BtjJolled in' and out of county towns in, genuine — Micawber style ; but' nothing turned up. Some of his v " Majesty's judges will begin to think it positively insuiting on the part of the Irish people to keep the peace so unerringly and allow the criminal law thus to drop into desuetude.