Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVII, Issue 16, 22 April 1909, Page 627

Irish News

ARMAGH— Death of a Canon

The Very Rev. Canon MeGeeny, pastor of Crossmaglen, died on February 25, .at the age of^sixty. Ordained In 1871, he ministered zealously first at Keady, next at Armagh ,axid finally at Crossraagleiij to which important parish lie was appointed in. 1887 by the late Most Rev. Dr. McGettigan.

CORK — A New Organisation

A private conference of Cork Nationalists of all shades of opinion was held on February 25, under the presidency of Mt. Wm. -O'Brien, M.P., to consider the future of the National " movement. It was unanimously resolved to found a new movement, to be called the All for Ireland Leagtie.' Its main object will be to unite on a common platform all Irish-born men in a spirit of the broadest toleration of differences of opinion between bro- • ther-Na-fcionalists, with the view to concentrating the whole force of Irish public opinion in a movement to obtain self : government for tlie Irish people in Irish affairs. Its further purpose will be to develop a kindlier spirit of patriotism and co-operation among Irishmen of every rank and creed in all other projects ior National welfare in which common action_may be found practicable. These projects are declared to be primarily the completion of abolition i f landlordism on just terms at the earliest practicable date, the active promotion and extension of a —movement for the revival of Irish industries, the cultivation of the language, traditions, and ideals of the Gael, and the social and intellectual elevation of our industrial, agricultural, and laboring population, both in town and country. It is added that the programme of Hie All for Ireland League contemplates no encroachment upon the special province of any existing political or National organisation.' [We have been informed by cable that owing to the opposition shown to this new organisation Mr. William O'Brien has resigned his seat in Parliament.]

KILKENNY— A Frivolous Charge

Mr. Edward T. Keane, the editor and proprietor i,i the Kilkenny People, appeared in the Kilkenny . Court on March 1 in answer to a summons to show cause why he should not give sureties for having published in the issue of his newspaper, on January 9 and 19 and February 6, certain reports under the heading of ' The Land for the People: the Road for the Bullocks.' The Bench acquitted Mr. Keane of intending to commit, any illegal act.

LONGFORD— LittIe Crime

Addressing the Grand Jury at Longford Assizes on March 2, Mr. Justice Kenny said that there were only two cases to go before them. As regards ordinaiy crime, with the exception of Longford district, the light' calendar w.as a true reflection of the condition of the comity. He, was informed by the police authorities that in Longford district boycotting and intimidation had penetrated. .Intimidation, he was glad to say, is confined to this district; and the other parts of the county, he was glad to say, are absolutely free from such disorder and intimidation.

A Presentation

His constituents presented Mr. Farrell, member 7 - for 'North Longford, with 600 sovereigns, in honor of his imprisonment. On December 22 application was made by the Irish Executive, under a statute of Edward 111., that Mr. J. P. Farrell, M.P., be required to find sufficient sureties to be of good behaviour, or, in default, that he he. committed to 1 prison. The case presented against Mt. Farrell was that in his newspaper (the Longford Leader) he published resolutions passed by branches of the "United Irish League naming and subjecting to boycotting three men who were accused of ' land-grabbing.' Mr t Farrell addressed the court. Many a time, he said, " he had travelled from home in the dead of night to vote for the Liberal Government in London; this prosecution was his reward. His action was im the interest of the peace and welfare of the country he loved. The Lord Chief Baron, giving the decision of the court, hoped that Mr. Farrell would undertake to abstain from such publications, and the court would give him until January 4 to consider the t matter if he would now undertake to abstain in the meantime. Mr. Farrell said lie could give no undertaking whatever. Sentence was accordingly pronounced — his own security in £200, with two sureties of £100 each, or six, i months in Kilmainham Prison as a first-class prisoner.

LOUTH— A Light Calendar

The Right Hon. Mr. Justice Madden opened the Spring Assizes for Louth on March. 1, and in his address

to the Grand Jury said bills would be presented for their consideration dealing with two cases. These bills represented" crime of the most ordinary character — one is for larceny and the other for concealment of birth. That was an extremely light calendar; and, what was of more importance, he was happy to conclude, from the official return and information, supplied to him in. the ordinary course, that, that light- calendar truly represented the character of the county in regard to .crime.

MONAGHAN— Death of the Bishop of Clogher

The Most Rev. Dr. Owens, Bishop of Clogher, died on March 3at his residence in" Monaghanr Dr. Owens was born, near the village of Brookboro', County Fermanagh, in 1840. "When sixteen years of age he entered St. Macarten's Seminary, Monaghan, and from there, proceeded to Maynooth College, where his collegiate career was marked by extraordinary success in all branches of study that. he applied himself to. In a class which included . sucl distinguished members as-Archbisliop Walsh of Dublin, tho Archbishop of Melbourne, and Dr. Higgins, the present Bishop of Ballarat, he was' brilliantly successful — the best indication that could lie desired of the ex-tent of his intellectual powers. His contemporaries at. Maynooth included his Eminence. Cardinal Logue, the Archbishop of Tuam, the Bishop of Limerick,- the Bishop of Dromore, the Bishop of Cloyne, and the Bishop of Ferns. After spending soms years on the mission in his native diocese, where his efforts on behalf of temperance were- productive of the most happy results, he was appointed Dean of Maynooth in 1878, and when the Chair of Theology became vacant in 1884 he was selected to fill it. He occupied this position for ten years, and in 1894 was appointed to the See of Clogher in succesN sion' to the Most Rev. Dr. Donnelly.

SLIGO— A Tribute to the Irish Party

In the course of a letter; enclosing a subscription to the Irish Parliamentary Fund, the Most Rev. Dr. Clancy, Bishop of Elphin, says : — ' Never in my life did I contribute towards any object with - -greater willingness. The record of the Party during the^l'ast- year, has rarely, if ever, been surpassed in our Parliamentary annals for brilliancy of debate, cleverness of tactics, and effective work for the country; and we should prove ourselves bankrupts in gratitude and in our appreciation of noble endeavor wei'e , we to fail in our recognition and support of such services. We are told on very high authority that, "the laborer is worthy of his hire," and, though .the text refers directly to a different class of workers, yet it may without profanity be applied to the able and unselfish men who are spending themselves in the service of our people, and who, despite the censure and calumny which they- have sometimes to face — but which, perhaps, after all, is their bast reward — are determined to work on. with strenuous energy and xmflagging effort until the goal of National Autonomy has been won. To inspire them with greater confidence, to infuse into them new courage, to furnish them with the indispensable sinews of war, ought to be the privilege as__well as the pleasure of a grateful, because regenerated, nation.'

WATERFORD— The Lieutenancy of the County

Count de la Poer, who has been appointed ' his Majesty's Lieutenant 3 of the County and City of "Waterford, will not find himself solitary as a Catholic holder of an office 'which is the equivalent of a Lord Lieutenancy of an English county. The O'Conor Don. has for two years .been his Majesty|s Lieutenant of County Roscommon — an office held by his father, before him; while in County Kerry the Lieutenant is the Earl of Kenmare.

WEXFORD— Satisfactory State, of the County

Lord Chief Baron Palles, addressing the Grand Jury .-at the opening of the Wexford Spring Assizes/ said that only one bill would be presented for their consideration — one of petty larceny — and theii experience as magistrates would enable them to dispose" of it without difficulty with? out any observation from him. He had the advantage, .on the previous night, of an interview with the District Inspector, who was acting for the County Inspector, and he reported that the county was in a satisfactory state of peace and order. ' There was, and is, no • cattle-driving in it, and no organised crime. In consequence of his statement, his Lordship looked through the Constabulary returns,' not only since the Winter Assizes, "but as far back as last Summer .Assizes. • That was a period of eight months, and he was glad to say that the returns completely corroborated what the Inspector had said to him. He was only able to find one crime. in the return that had - the slightest trace of agrarianism in it. Having regard to the general state of Ireland, he -was happy to be able to sincerely congratulate them on the peace of the county.

WICKLOW— White Glov«s for the Judge

The Spring Assizes, were opened in Wicklow o>n March. Iby the Lord Chief "Justice. There was no criminal business, and the High Sheriff presented Lord O'Brien with white gloves.

GENERAL

Social Regeneration

Speaking on- February. 27 at .the joint dinner of the Eighty Club and .University Liberal Club at Cambridge, Mr. Birrell said he was not there to say that his administration as CHiel Secretary for Ireland had been crowned with complete success, but if he had adopted the course of suspending the ordinary operation of the law the state of Ireland, he unhesitatingly contended, would "be worse than at the present time. Obedience to the law had been strengthened, and he expressed the" deepest conviction that the social regeneration of Ireland must be through responsibility of self-government.

A Brilliant Discovery

Sir Robert Anderson (says the Catholic Times) has been staggered by the debate on the state of Ireland, but he has recovered his feet, and his centre of gravity is no longer disturbed. Statistics were the cause of the trouble. Mr. John Redmond gave figures from -which it appeared that in-the matter of crime Ireland is quite a considerable distance behind the predominant partner, and the Prime Minister said that if you take Ireland as a whole, it :s: s a country where respect for law is more widely spread and disobedience to the ordinary law is more rare in occurrence than probably any other part of his Majesty's dominions. Yes, writes Sir Robert Anderson in a letter to the Times, it must be acknowledged that the criminal statistics of the two countries Avill lead anyone who can do a rule of three sum to conclude that as compared with Ireland, England is a criminal coimtry. But as a matter of fact this conclusion is grotesquely false. Sir Robert holds that though the Irishman commits less crime he is more criminal because he lives for the most part in the country instead of in the town. The distinguished knight ought to get out a patent- for this brilliant discovery. .

tu gei) uui it piiLciiir iui vma An Unfair Law

Few Irish "Unions (says the Irish Weekly) are penalised to a greater extent than Belfast by the operations of the law which enables English and Scotch guardians to transfer Irish-born paupers from Norfolk, or Caithness, or any place between — from the scenes of their life's labors to the districts of their birth in this country; and the law which permits this injustice prohibits any ' retaliation.' Two hypothetical, but by no means extreme, cases illustrate" a grievance which is not yet generally understood. Suppose A. B. was born in Belfast 69 years ago. His parents took him across the Channel when he was a year old. He began to work in Sheffield, or Manchester, or Glasgow, > t the age of 10. He lived for 58 years in either of these cities, working his hardest all the time, and adding to the wealth of the place day by day. Then, like threefourths of British toilers, he falls upon ' evil days,' and becomes 'a burthen on the rates.' The local guardians promptly discover that he was born in Belfast. The poor old man is shipped across and deposited in the Lisburn Road; thenceforward he is supported by the ratepayers of this city. On the other hand, C. D., born 69 years ago in Sheffield or Glasgow, crosses to Belfast, fails to find employment, and goes to the workhouse a week after landing on Donegal Quay. The Belfast ratepayers are bound to keep him for the rest of his life. Mr. Devlin, M.P., drew the Chief Secretary's attention to this grave injustice recently. Mr. Birrell said : ' This is a question which concerns England, Ireland, and Scotland.' But in different ways. England and Scotland -want no change in the .system. The awaits English Poor-ILaw legislation. Mr. Devlin's timely question will 'impress the necessity for action on the framers of the long-awaited Bill.

Laborers' Cottages

Replying in the House of Commons to a question by Mr. Devlin,. Mr. Birrell said that up to March 31, 1908, 22,921 cottages had been erected under the Laborers Acts. The records of the LocaL Government Board do not show the number of additional cottages since provided. The number actually authorised to be erected up to date is approximately 44 3 000, not including 2000 which are 'at present provisionally authorised. The total cost of providing cottages in each county, apart from expenditure on land, labor, and material, could only be-obtained by applying to the several rural district councils.