“BOYCOTTING.”

Patea Mail, 15 February 1881, Page 3

“BOYCOTTING.”

An English Agricultural Journal of 25th December, says : Mr Bence Jones— universally respected by all who know him, and living on capital terms with his tenants—thought fit, as an Irish landlord of much experience, to give his views on the Land question publicity in an English magazine. He did not advocate eviction—he did not call for harsh measures to be applied to the “ foinest pisantry in the world ” —he simply stated what he believed to be the salient facts connected with the Land question. Without more ado the Land League determined that he should be “Boycotted,” and forthwith his tenants were advised to pay him no rent, his laborers commanded to leave him, the public instructed to have nothing to do with him, and he himself threatened with assassination. Let it be noted, by the way, that the menace of murder was an integral part of the “ Boycotting” process. Mr Bence Jones, being a brave man, determined to resist, and came to the conclusion that the better way would be to turn his farm down to grass, and to send his cattle away for sale. Mark the performance of the Land Leaguers. Determined to ruin this man, whose only fault was that he had sought to enlighten the public on matters which are public property, they actually followed his cattle to Dublin,

prevented its being sold there, deterfea shippers from taking it way for several* days, kept the cattle themselves without food, and even attempted, when at last by the intervention of Major Maurice, the boasts were got to Liverpool, to prevent their being disposed of there. Now it is not to much too say that this is a state of affairs that could not be paralleled in any part of the civilized globe. There is not a country in Europe where such pranks could be played, and law and order be so defied. And when it is remembered that this is no isolated case, but one of hundreds—and that at Manchester, Mr T. P. O’Connor, the M.P.for Galway, declared in a public meeting that he would, if he could, extend “ Boycotting ” to every one of the ten thousand landlords in Ireland, a fair idea of the situation may be gained. Wc have pointed out that “Boycotting” which Mr O’Connor calls the grandest word ever introduced into the vocabulary of the people, means brutal, cowardly murder.