Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, 22 April 1915, Page 39

Irish News

GENERAL. The late General Sir Thomas Kelly-Kenny left personal estate of the value of £83,221, of which £78,523 is in England. He left £IOO to the Sisters of Mercy of the Convent, Kilrush, for the poor; £IOO to the Little Sisters of the Poor at Hove for the poor, and £IOO for repairs to the church at Kilrush. General Sir Lawrence Parsons has written Captain Balf© heartily congratulating him on the result of his recruiting for the Irish Brigade in Roscommon and Mayo. He said he and Colonel Hammond had read with great interest accounts of the meetings held by Captain Balfe, and had arranged to provide the assistance of the 6th Connaught Fife and Drum Band to attend meetings. Cardinal Gibbons, in a letter to Mr. John Redmond, the Irish leader, says: ‘ I wish to tell you of my admiration and gratification when you proved your sterling loyalty by urging your fellow-countrymen to support their Government in the circumstances through which it passed. Your words were most timely and golden, and added immeasurably to the esteem in which you are held by all right thinking men.’ This is high praise. ° The Manchester Guardian says that in no town of the United Kingdom has the war produced such a revolutionary change of feeling as in Belfast. A man who left it a year ago returning now might well rub his eyes at the spectacle of Nationalist recruits for the Irish Brigade marching to join the Imperial colors, and swinging along through the streets of Belfast to ‘ The wearin’ of the green.’ What in old times would have been the signal for a bloody struggle now evokes from the Orange majority indications of grim approval. Following the announcement that his uncle, Mr. W. H. K. Redmond, M.P., had accepted a commission in the Irish Brigade at Fermoy, the news that Mr. William Archer Redmond, son of Mr. J. E. Redmond, M.P., has also offered his services in a similar capacity evoked keen interest in Parliamentary circles. The leaders of all parties in the House of Commons now have sons serving with the colors. Mr. Asquith has three, Mr. Bonar Law and Mr. Henderson, who is now leading the Labor Party, have two each, as has also Mr. Lloyd George. DUBLIN’S NEW LORD MAYOR. On February 15, with all the usual formalities, the outgoing Lord Mayor, Mr. Lorcan Sherlock, transferred the civic chain from his shoulders to those of the Right Hon. James M. Gallagher, who assumed office for the coming year. Mr. Gallagher, who is a Catholic, is in trade as an extensive cigar importer and tobacco merchant. He is enterprising and wealth}'', and has always been a liberal supporter of every religious and national movement. It *is believed that neither the dignity nor impartiality of his historic office as Chief Magistrate will suffer in any degree in the hands of his lordship, who is certain to be capably assisted in the discharge of all its duties by the Lady Mayoress. CONNAUGHT RANGERS’ BRAVERY. Apropos of the striking letter from a Gordon Highlander published recently in the Freeman, telling how the Connaught Rangers came to the rescue of the Gordons at a critical moment and routed an overwhelming force of Germans, it is worth recalling that this is at ’east the third occasion in which it has been publicly reported (says the Glasgow Observer) that the Connaughts have distinguished themselves in similar incidents in the present war. The first was early in November, when a thrilling account appeared in one of the London papers describing how an unnamed Irish regiment ran unexpectedly into a great body of Germans just over the-brow of a hill. They were too close for deliberate rifle fire, and after a terrible hand-to-

hand conflict, in which bayonets, rifle butts, , and even bare knuckles were used, the whole of the Germans were either killed or captured. There was much dissatisfaction at the time that the name of the Irish regiment was not allowed to be given, but there can be no harm now in saying that they were the Connaughts. The second occasion in which the famous West of Ireland regiment was reported as displaying conspicuous gallantry was some weeks later when, finding a detachment of the Indians hard pressed, the Irishmen came up at the double, with ringing cheers, and after being twice repulsed by the Germans, re-formed for the third time,' and in another glorious charge swept back the enemy like chaff and occupied their trenches. There is reason also for saying that on yet another occasion the Con-* naughts performed a similar service for one of the crack London territorial regiments, but particulars of this feat have not been published. Other Irish regiments, of course, have done magnificently, and the pity is that the military regulations ' have prevented more of their deeds becoming known. THE SITUATION IN IRELAND. We note with keen satisfaction that the leading Irish-American organ of to-day, the. Chicago Citizen , takes a shrewd and truly statesmanlike view of the situation at home. Our contemporary (says the Irish News) writes in the latest issue to hand:—■' ‘The Irish in England and Scotland have determined, through their affiliation with the United Irish League, to maintain their organisation until at least the Home Rule Rill has been proved of value to Ireland by the successful operation of its powers for a reasonable period of time. This, we think, is a very wise act on their part for, although the Home Rule Party have won the victory in a conflict with England’s Governments, lasting for over a century, yet the people of Ireland have still a period of anxiety before them : hence the absolute necessity of every element in the National Organisation presenting an unbroken front to the enemy enemy keenly alive to every petty trick and artifice that might aid them in their wretched effort to keep the Irish people from enjoying the fruit of their well-earned victory.’ Despite the 1 political truce ’ that our anti-Home Rule friends ignore daily and hourly, evidence accumulates that the enemies of Self-Government still believe some twist or turn of fortune’s wheel will place them in a position to destroy the Home Rule Settlement between Ireland and Great Britain. Only a few days ago one of the local Orange organs urged Unionists to join the mysterious Ulster Division, not because men are wanted to behave in France and Flanders like Lance-Corporal Michael O’Leary, Y.C., of Cork, and Drummer William Kenny, V.C., of Droghedanot because the Germans are ferocious marauders and cruel tyrants, and not because the Empire and the Three Kingdoms are in danger of invasion and all its horrors —but because the Unionist who joins the colors ‘ is also indirectly accomplishing the object for which he was enlisted as an Ulster Volunteer.’ Everyone knows what the said ‘object’ was; the Nationalists who have achieved their object by placing the Home Rule Bill on the Statute Book must see to it that no lack of energy or vigilance on their part will give an opportunity to the political ‘ Imperialists ’ who urge men to join the ‘ Ulster Division ’ in the hope that Home Rule may still be defeated. Our Chicago contemporary is forcibly insistent on the point; and as the Citizen stood firmly by the Irish Party and movement, and spurned temptations, defied - threats, and held gallantly to the straight path during the recent crisis, its words of admonition and advice should be taken seriously to heart by thoughtful Nationalists at home. It writes; ‘ Their discipline and unity must be maintained among the Irish people, not only in Ireland, but also in England and Scotland. By abandoning their standard now, the Irish would simply prove themselves insane, and produce such dissension and confusion among the people as could possibly end only in chaos. The National organisation, then, must be maihtained afr

any and all cost. There is no : sacrifice too costly to make in support of it, and -we in America ought i not for a moment withdraw our support from Mr. Redmond and his lieutenants in their work of solidifying and coordinating the various elements of the Irish people in their present brilliant effort to bring peace and prosperity to their precious little island.’ As we have stated, people all over the country are acting in the spirit and the letter of this good advice already. Henceforward let the nation’s resolute determination to hold at any cost or sacrifice what has been won , for it be still more plainly demonstrated. Our great measure of liberty has been passed; but the independence of Belgium was secured eighty-four years ago, and the people of that heroic State are fighting to-day against tyrants who have attempted to enslave them. If self-government was worth all the age-long struggles and sacrifices that resulted in its achievement, the holding of 'self-government is worth a hundred thousand times more than the men of Ireland need sacrifice now. He enshrined an immutable principle- in simple words. who said: ‘Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom/ IRELAND’S POPULATION INCREASE!!. According*to the Dublin Freeman’s Journal the population of Ireland increased last year by 5000. This is the first year since the great exodus began at the end of the ’forties in the last century that the population of the country has increased within the- space of a year. Increases have been registered within a quarter as compared with the previous quarter, and once within a halfyear. But the complete year’s returns have always shown a decrease on the previous year, and this decrease has gone on steadily from year to year for the past 65 years. The figure of the increase has been obtained by deducting the number of deaths and the number of emigrants from the number of births. The calculation omits, however, to take account of the number of immigrants who have returned to the country, and if these are considered the population has increased not by 5000, but by 13,000. The emigration and immigration returns are interesting. They show that whilst there, was a considerable decrease, amounting to 30 nor cent., in the number of Irish-born men and women that left the country during the year, there was again an increase in the number of those (natives of Ireland) who returned to the land of their birth. These numbered 8045, as compared with 5940 in 1913, an increase of 35 per cent. The return of Irish emigrants was greatest from the United States, whence 4740 came back to Ireland. The returns from all the British colonies numbered 3060, of whom more than half (viz., 1593) returned from Canada. The figures we have quoted refer only to those of Irish birth who have returned. In addition 232 persons of foreign birth came to Ireland to take up their residence in this country, and no doubt the majority of these are Irish-Americans of Irish descent who have returned to the land of their fathers. It should be noted that these returns do not include the movements of visitors to or tourists in Ireland, but deal only with emigrants, natives of Ireland, who have been in permanent residence in the country, and with immigrants ho have come to reside permanently in Ireland.