IRELAND AND AMERICAN FREEDOM

New Zealand Tablet, 10 April 1919, Page 30

IRELAND AND AMERICAN FREEDOM

-• While the eyes of Irishmen in ' every part of the world are turned to America with hope as the nation on whom the future liberties of their.motherland mainly depend, it may not be uninteresting to point out that under similar circumstances the people of the revolted colonies nearly 150 years ago turned to Ireland for sympathy," and found not only sympathy but practical help. - ... . The Congress of - the United States of America, writing from Philadelphia on July 28, 1775, addressed the People of Ireland in the following words: “Friends, —We are desirous of possessing the good opinion of the virtuous and humane. We are particularly desirous of furnishing the People of Ireland with a true statement of our motives and objects, the better to enable you to judge our conduct with accuracy, and determine the merits of the controversy with impartiality and precision. Your Parliament has done us no wrong. You have been friendly to the rights of mankind and we acknowledge with pleasure[and gratitude, that the Irish Nation has produced patriots who have highly distinguished themselves in the cause of humanity and America. On the other hand, we are hot ignorant that the labors and manufactures of Ireland, like those of the silkworm, were of little, moment to herself, but served only to give luxury to those who neither toil nor spin. Accept our most grateful acknowledgments for the friendly disposition you have already shown towards us. We know that you are not without your grievances. We sympathise with you in your distress, and ax-e pleased to find that the design of subjugating us has persuaded the English Government, to dispense to Ireland some vagrant rays of ministerial sunshine. The tender mercies of the British Government have long been cruel towards you. God grant that the iniquitous schemes of extirpating liberty may soon be defeated.” The address in addition to these paragraphs contained a full explanation of the state of affairs in America, the violation of the ancient charters, .the blocking of the ports for trivial causes, the restrictions of commerce, the horrors of military law, the .denial of the right of free speech, the murders of innocent women and children by the savage allies of the British Army, and the hundred and one things which made any honorable death in the cause of freedom preferable to the tender mercies of British civilisation as exemplified by burning homes, and the tomahawk and scalping knife of the savage. When this, the first American Congress, .addressed the people of Ireland, they knew they were not addressing deaf ears and stony hearts. Benjamin Franklin, who visited Ireland in 1771, noted the friendly attitude of Ireland towards the aspirations of the colonists. He says:“l found, them [the principal patriots] disposed to be friends of America, in which I endeavored to confirm them with the expectation that one growing weight might be thrown into their scale. . . . There are many brave spirits among them.” , One of the first acts of the Irish people in response was to raise money for the revolted colonies. In a short time £IOO,OOO was ..collected. The revolutionary army was largely supplied with food from the southern Irish ports, but especially from Cork, where the local authorities connived with the shippers. The Irish in France were not behind hand. Under Count Arthur Dillon 2300 of these exiles sailed from Brest to help the colonists. But the most powerful aid came from the Irish settled in America., For many years there had been a stream of emigrants from Ireland'to the American colonies. Many causes conspired to drive them from their own land, but principally religious oppression and landlord tyranny. From the County Antrim alone,' 30,000 tenants were driven in two years, by oppressive land laws.” Speaking of two of the landlords (Lord Donegal and Mr. Templeton), Mr. Frpude says they were awarded titles, but both deserved forfeiture and Tower Hill. These emigrants, and others

from all parts of the country", with heaiH^Wrmng with hatred of England, formed the backbone of the American army. This is no rhetorical exaggeration. " Galloway, the Tory ex-Speaker ; of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, who fled ■ from America, was examined before a committee of the House of Commons. 1 Asked as to the composition of the troops in the service of Congress he said: “I can answer the question with precision. _ Scarcely ~ one-quarter were natives 'of America; about one-half were Irish the other’’quarter English and Scotch Plowden, the Catholic historian, declared “It is a fact beyond question that most of the early successes in America were due to the vigorous exertions and prowess of the Irish emigrants, who bore arms in the cause.” And Lord Mountjoy, in the House of Lords, emphatically said : “England lost America by Ireland.” . J Twelve of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were Irish. One of these," Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, was brother to Bishop Carroll of Baltimore, the Catholic prelate whom the American Congress appointed to preach the panegyric of George Washington. Charles Carroll was . the wealthiest ..of the, signers of that famous document. . He wrote “Charles Carroll of Carrollton” that there t might be no mistake as to bis. identity. The, cause,, was then doubtful, as regards, success, and one of the spectators observed: “There go millions.” Many of Washington’s principal commanders were Irish. The first man killed in the war, Patrick Carr, was Irish. Major. John Sullivan, who capturedfirst fort (New Castle), was . Irish. His .. brother was Governor' oh. Massachusetts.. . John Stark, ‘ 'who commanded Newhampshire men at Bunker’s Hill, was Irish. General Knox, Washington’s trusted adviser, was Irish ; and so were .Reed, his private secretary,! and Colonel Fitzgerald, his favorite aide-de-camp. The History of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, published in 1892, gives the names of 399 officers of the. highest order, furnished by the society to the . State during those troublous r times. .... Washington- himself was an honorary member only, hot .being Irish, but three. Presir. dents were ordinary members. But for. the exertions of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, ' Washington’s forces would probably have starved during the terrible winter in Valley Forge. f . . ’ Commodore Barry, the father , of ...the. American Navy, was Irish, a Wexford man. by birth. His .prizes’ in one voyage alone, when sold in French ports,brought, the American Government three million dollars at, a time when money was very badly “needed.. Barry’s exploits were a great factor in compelling, the English to, make peace. He hit England in the pocket, its most vulnerable point. It would be, .impossible in r the, space r of a 4 short article to mention the, names and deal with the exploits of the Irish'officers (fully one-third of the whole) in the. American service. A few will be familiar, to . readers, of American history, though, not perhaps as Irishmen— Generals Richard Sullivan, John Sullivan,- Montgomery , : . Knox, s s Stark, Wayne_.(“Mad !... Anthony”), Morgan, ' Pickens,.. Lewis,, Roche, and. Clinton. The others are too numerous to mention. .The story , of Ireland’s attitude towards and ' help * for America in troubled times is well known in the United States, and it is largely responsible for the present attitude of the people'.as represented by Congress. The Americans are proverbially “ an acute people, and they have hot been deceived by British propaganda in their country which was, more anti-Irish than anti-German. • The immense sums spent on lecturers and literature was practically .wasted.! The truth about Ireland is now well known’, for the people do not tolerate, now the war is over, a censnrshin of the press. That blessing is reserved for free countries like New Zealand and Australia,-where too much of the truth is not wholesome. The censor,some little while ago permitted us to know that the’-American: House of Representatives, ! by an overwhelming majority, ‘‘had declared in favor of self-determination for Ireland.” This, .as might be expected, was a mis-presentation of the facts. as we

know now from the American papers to hand. Mr. . Gallagher’s resolution was of much more importance, as * will be seen from its text, which 'we quote: ■ " 1 ;:«f -MOIST KESOI.CTION . .... “ JQINT . RESOLUTION - . '“Requesting the Commissioners Plenipotentiary of ' the United States of America to the International Peace 1 'Conference to present to' the said Conference the right L ■of Ireland to freedom, independence," and self-deter-mination. - - ■ ’ “ ‘Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the‘United 'States of America in Congress assembled, that the Commissioners • Plenipotentiary of the United States of America representing the United * States at the International Peace Conference soon to * assemble at Versailles, be, and are hereby, requested to present to, and to urge upon the said International Peace Conference the right to freedom, independence, * and self-determination of Ireland, predicated on the principle laid down by the President in his plea for an : international league, that “all governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed”.’ ” This is surely a more important resolution than one expressing a pious opinion in favor of self-determina-tion. It is to be hoped America will remember the debt due to Ireland since the Revolution, and that her representatives at the. Peace Conference will do their utmost for the freedom of an ancient and oppressed nation.