Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, 20 March 1913, Page 39

Irish News

GENERAL. The Dowager Countess of Desart has been fined for failing to stamp the insurance cards of her servants. She pleaded conscientious objection. The death has just taken place at Clonmel, County Tipperary, of Mr. John McCormack, who took part in the ’4B rising at Ballingarry under Smith O’Brien.

The death of Canon Walsh, pastor of Newcastle, County Waterford, occurred on January 27. Deceased was recently promoted to the dignity of Canon by the Bishop.

His Holiness has conferred signal honor on two Wexford gentlemen Mr. B. J. O'Flaherty, solicitor, and Mr. H. J. Roche, J.P., —by conferring on them the Knighthood of the Holy Sepulchre. The "Irish branch, with Sir Thomas Esmonde at its head, is senior in the United Kingdom.

In Derry City there are 22,000 Nationalists and 17,000 Unionists, but by jerrymandering the Unionists have "a majority in the Corporation, and in the Corporation employment, out of 43 officials, 40 are Unionists and three .Nationalists. In salaries Derry City pays Unionist officials £7335 annually, The tUree Nationalists get an aggregate of £236 between the lot. In the Catholic churches in Derry on the Sunday before the election references were made to the coming contest. The people were cautioned against yielding to excitement, or possibly incitement, and advised to maintain charity, goodwill, and the honorable reputation of the city by bearing and forbearing, and avoiding everything in the nature of disturbance. This was the only reference to the election that was made in the Catholic churches.

Mr. William Moore, M.P., complained in Parliament on January 16 of the appointment of Mr. Hewitt, president of the local branch of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, as Income Tax collector in Kells district. There was loud laughter when Mr. Masterton stated that the appointment was made in 1902 under a Unionist Government. Mr. Hewitt performed his duties most satisfactorily. He did not think there was any rule of the service against such an appointment. The election of Irish Mayors took place on January 20. Lord Mayors Sherlock, McMordie, M.P., and O'Shea were re-elected in Dublin, Belfast, and Cork respectively without opposition. Other Mayors are Alderman Fitzgibbon, Clonmel; Councillor Callaghan, Drogheda; Alderman Purcell, Kilkenny; Alderman O'Donovan, Limerick; Alderman O'Donnell, Sligo; Alderman Power, Waterford; Alderman Sinnott, Wexford.

THE BISHOP OF ROCKHAMPTON. In St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth, on Sunday, January 26, the Right Rev. Dr. Shiel was consecrated Bishop of Rockhampton by the Most Rev. Dr. Mannix, who was himself consecrated Coadjutor Archbishop of Melbourne in the same college but a short time ago. The consecrating prelate was assisted by the Most Rev. Dr. Gaughran, Bishop of Meath, and the Most Rev. Dr. McKenna, Bishop of Clogher. Amongst the visiting clergy who attended were the Rev. W. Kane, Ballarat, Australia ; Rev. John Carroll, Rockhampton, Australia; and the Rev. J. S. Russell, C.M., Hammersmith, London.

HOME RULE IN THE LORDS. The Home Rule Bill came up for the Second Reading in the House of Lords on January 27. Lord Crewe in a spirited speech moved the Second Reading. The Duke of Devonshire ■ moved rejection. In the course of the debate Lord Dunraven, though criticising the Bill, supported the principle of Home Rule, and said he would vote for the measure. Earl Grey, though in favor of an Irish settlement on Home Rule lines, would not vote fox* the Bill because it was not on Federal lines. Lord Mac Donnell, while criticising the finance

of the measure, supported the Bill, while Lord Ribblesdale (the father-in-law of Lord Lovat) closed the debate with a speech supporting the measure. On the following day Lord St. Aldwyn (formerly Sir M. Hicks Beach) resumed the debate in a speech against the Bill. He had been opposing Home Rule for forty years, he said, and his position was 1 unchanged. The Lord' Chancellor, who followed, showed the hollowness of that vaunt, for in his speech Lord St. Aldwyn had indicated a. preference for a scheme of Provincial Councils as a settlement of the Irish difficulty. The Protestant Archbishop of York opposed the Bill on the ground of want of mandate. But he told the Unionists they would never settle the trouble by repeating ' We won't have Home Rule.' Submit the Bill to the electorate and he would support it. Lord Brassey and Lord Emmott supported the Bill, and Lord Midleton opposed

A CONTRAST BETWEEN NORTH AND SOUTH. The election of chairmen of Irish municipal bodies was characterised by the usual ‘intolerance' on the part of Catholics in districts where the Catholic vote is supreme. In Ballinasloe, for instance, there is one Protestant member in the local Council. He was re-elected chairman, and on returning thanks, he declared that he had never seen any intolerance on the part of Catholics in the district. Derry City elected its Mayor and Sheriff, and, although the Catholics of Derry are a majority of the population, and although the Catholic members in the Corporation are just a minority of the whole, it is needless to say that the intolerant majority refused to elect a Catholic or Nationalist either as Mayor or Sheriff in Derry. In strong contrast to that was the example of Cork City, which chose a Protestant merchant, Mr. Richard Henry Tilson, as High Sheriff. Mr. Tilson, telegraphing to Mr. Hogg, of Derry, said he had been appointed High Sheriff of Cork ‘ by the goodwill and tolerance of my Catholic Nationalist fellowcitizens.' HEROISM OF IRISH NUNS. The heroism displayed by the Irish nuns on the occasion of the fire tragedy at St. John’s Orphanage, San Antonio, Texas, in October last, caused a thrill of admiration throughout the Catholic world. The Catholics of Ireland shared the pride evoked by the conduct of the devoted Sisters during the disaster, but the keenest sorrow was felt in those districts where the brave nuns had received their early education. A communication has just been received in Ireland stating that Sister Mary Kostka Farrell, a native of Kildare (who was reported as dead), is now recovering from the injuries she sustained in jumping from the third? storey window during the burning of the Orphanage. The welcome message details that in taking the leap described Sister Mary struck the second-storey railing, which threw her out of line of the life-net held by the firemen. Her back was hurt, one ankle strained, and the other broken. He recovery is remarkable, as Sister Monica lost her life in taking the same jump. MR. REDMOND ON ULSTER. The Irish Leader got a splendid reception at Coventry on January 25, when he made his first platform speech since the Third Reading of the Home Rule Bill. His speech was confident in tone, and an irresistible argument for Home Rule. Once again he dealt with the ‘ Ulster ' question in words which must impress every reasonable mind. He said: ‘ Tories were claiming that four counties out of thirty-four, with a population not amounting to anything like-one-fifth of the whole of Ireland, should be able to veto Home Rule for the rest of the island. They said they would not permit Home Rule, and they said frankly to the people of England that if both parties here, the Liberal and the Tory parties, united in supporting the passing of a Home Rule Bill, that would not affect them, and that by force of arms they would prevent the will of the people to prevail. I submit,’ declared Mr. Redmond, ‘that that is an intolerable claim. It is a claim which goes deep down into the whole system of democratic representative institutions.

It is a claim which I am convinced .will never be favorably listened to by the people, of Great Britain.' Continuing, Mr. Redmond said the Irish people would never submit to the mutilation of their country by the partition of Ulster, but there were no lengths to which he and his colleagues would refuse to go to placate and conciliate those men. They said no bitter word against them, and they regarded them as brothers. Those men might seek to repudiate Ireland, but Ireland would never repudiate them.

THE ALLEGED HIBERNIAN OATH. The abuse of the Ancient Order of Hibernians afforded the Unionists the best ammunition available in their campaign in Great Britain against Home Rule. The Unionist lie factory felt warranted in going further. It issued a vile concoction, purporting ,to be the oath of the A.0.H., and binding members of the latter to ‘ wade knee-deep in Orange blood,’ and breathing hatred of Protestants as such. This oath has been circulated in millions of leaflets and post-cards. It was quoted by Unionists in the Crewe bye-election last year, and Mr. Joseph Devlin, M.P., the president of the A.0.H., repudiated and condemned it; whereupon, the Tory candidate accepted Mr. Devlin’s repudiation and denounced the libel. But the Unionist lie factory went on circulating the libel. Some time ago. Colonel Hickman, a Tory member for Wolverhampton, repeated the libel at Southport. A local Home Ruler forwarded the report of the Colonel’s speech to Mr. Devlin, who at once raised the question in the House of Commons. Mr. Devlin denied that any such oath, or any oath whatever, was taken by the members of the A.O.H. Colonel Hickman was not satisfied. He wanted Mr. Devlin to read the A.O.H. ‘ declaration and obligation.’ Mr. Devlin did so, on the following day. Everybody, except members of the A.0.H., was surprised. The ' obligation’ was quite innocuous it insisted upon members doing nothing contrary to law or condemned by the Catholic Church. The answer was complete, and the Speaker’s comments and the cheers of the Home Rulers showed how fully the vindication of the A.O.H. was accepted. But, even then, Colonel Hickman was not satisfied. He had not the courtesy to withdraw and make the amende honorable. Instead, he tried to dish up old stories about the Ribbonmen. But the Speaker cut him short, and the incident terminated. Will it be believed that the lie is still being circulated by Ulster Unionists