"WE ASK FOR NO MERCY AND WE WILL MAKE NO COMPROMISE" - TERENCE MacSWINEY.
An edited version of this speech was published in 'The United Irishman' newspaper in October 1954. This is the speech in full ; on the 13th March, 1920, Terence MacSwiney (pictured) was unanimously elected as the 'Lord Mayor of Cork' by that city's Corporation. He donated his salary for the position to an outside organisation and received no salary for the other position he held at that time - Brigadier of the No. 1 Brigade, Cork IRA.
"Gentlemen, you have paid tribute to him on all sides. It will be my duty and steady purpose to follow that line as faithfully as in my power, though no man in this Council could hope to discharge its functions with his ability and his perfect grasp of public business in all its details and as one harmonious whole.
I have thought it necessary to touch on this normal duty of ours, though — and it may seem strange to say it — I feel at the moment it is even a digression. For the menace of our enemies hangs over us, and the essential immediate purpose is to show the spirit that animates us, and how we face the future. Our spirit is but to be a more lively manifestation of the spirit in which we began the year — to work for the city in a new zeal, inspired by our initial act when we dedicated it and formally attested our allegiance, to bring by our administration of the city, glory to our allegiance, and by working for our city's advancement with constancy in all honourable ways, in her new dignity as one of the first cities in Ireland to work for and if need be to die for.
I would recall some words of mine on that day of our first meeting after the election of Lord Mayor. I realised that most of you in the minority here would be loyal to us, if doing so did not threaten your lives ; but that you lacked the spirit and the hope to join with us to complete the work of liberation so well begun. I allude to it here again, because I wish to point out again the secret of our strength and the assurance of our final victory. This contest of ours is not on our side a rivalry of vengeance, but one of endurance — it is not they who can inflict most but they who can suffer most will conquer — though we do not abrogate our function to demand and see that evil doers and murderers are punished for their crimes..." (MORE LATER).
BLOODY SUNDAY PICKET, SATURDAY, 26TH JANUARY 2019, GPO, DUBLIN, 12.45PM TO 1.45PM.
After a peaceful Civil Rights march on January 30th, 1972 - from Creggan to Free Derry Corner - units of the British army Parachute Regiment opened fire with automatic rifles and shot dead 13 unarmed civilians, injuring many more. It was later revealed that some days prior to the massacre, the British soldiers involved had been briefed to "..shoot to kill.." at the march.
"This Sunday became known as 'Bloody Sunday' and bloody it was. It was quite unnecessary. It strikes me that the (British) army ran amok that day and shot without thinking of what they were doing. They were shooting innocent people. They may have been taking part in a parade which was banned, but that did not justify the troops coming in and firing live rounds indiscriminately. I would say without reservations that it was sheer unadulterated murder. It was murder, gentlemen" - the words of British Major Hubert O'Neill, Derry City Coroner, at the conclusion of the inquests on the 13 people killed by the British Army on that day.
On Saturday January 26th next, a picket to mark the anniversary of that massacre will be held at the GPO in Dublin, from 12.45pm to 1.45pm. All welcome!
ON THIS DATE (23RD JANUARY) 216 YEARS AGO - DEATH OF THE 'GUINNESS BLACK PROTESTANT PORTER' MAN!
'Arthur Guinness disapproved of the United Irishmen's Rebellion of 1798. Because of this, the new brew became known as 'Guinness's black Protestant porter'. Catholics and nationalists boycotted the drink for a time, but far from damaging his trade, Guinness used the opportunity to set up a lucrative export trade with England...' (from here.)
I don't drink the stuff meself (..much more refined than that, so I am..!) but that drink, and the family associated with it - Guinness - have an 'interesting' history. Henry Grattan (to whom the Guinness family were related, through marriage) and Arthur were both vocal critics of the then taxation system which imposed tariffs on, among other goods, beer and, while both men were 'sympathetic' towards the suffering of the Irish, both were prepared to accept and, indeed, campaigned for, less than complete Irish freedom from the British 'crown'. Arthur was not only against full independence for Ireland but was politically opposed to those who were to the extent that, in republican circles, he was considered to be an informer, collecting and passing information to 'crown' agents - the 'Union Star' newspaper described him as "..a brewer at James's Gate, an active spy. United Irishmen will be cautious of dealing with any publican who sells his drink..."
Arthur is on record for being 'directly opposed to any movement toward Irish independence (and wanting) Ireland to remain under English control', to which end one of his family members, 'Lord' Iveagh, donated £10,000 to the UVF arms fund in 1913. As employers, they were decent enough to most of their employees - 'While they maintained their reputation as good employers and philanthropists, their unionist politics left them out on a limb in independent Ireland (sic) , although they quickly adjusted to doing business with the new Free State. In many respects they were the ultimate business pragmatists: the union was important to them because so much of their stout was sold in Britain and the empire. When a trade war threatened in the 1930s they finally activated plans that had been drawn up when Home Rule looked likely before the first World War and moved their headquarters to England...' (from here.)
'In the run-up to the Easter Rising, members of the Irish Volunteers who worked in Guinness' were discouraged from openly parading. Frank Henderson, a captain in the Irish Volunteers who took part in the Howth Gun Running and the Easter Rising, said Guinness' staff were wary that they may be victimised in their workplace...the company took a hard line with anybody displaying any form of support for Irish republicanism or nationalism. Following the 1916 Rising, Guinness was one of a number of companies that dismissed its staff suspected of involvement in the rebellion or sympathetic to those who took part. During the fighting in 1916, trucks used by Guinness' were converted into improvised armoured fighting vehicles by the British Army and used against republican forces. One such Guinness truck used by the British was made by bolting four boilers onto the rear of a Guinness flatbed truck. These were believed to have been the first armoured cars used in Ireland. There are conflicting reports over whether these vehicles were commandeered by the British Army or donated to them by Guinness & Co...' (..more here.)
In the 1980's, one of the management team in the company, Edward Guinness, referenced the conflicts in the occupied six counties of Ireland and in the Malvinas and spoke about how he didn't agree with the attitude from Leinster House in regards to not (publicly) supporting Westminster in its 'endeavours' in those two areas of conflict (see text graphic, above), opining aloud that he was "..no longer sure the association with Ireland was helpful.." and stating that it may be opportune to "..emphasise facts such as that Guinness was an English company.."
It is indeed "an English company" ; in 1997, that company further integrated itself into its 'English (business) Empire' when it and the 'Grand Metropolitan' company merged to form 'Diageo'. Guinness could have been better to the Irish, just as the Irish were good for Guinness. But I'll stick to my cider, anyway, as I raise a pint to Arthur Guinness, who died on this date - 23rd January - in 1803. Up ya Boy, ya - and here's to the Wild Rover...!
'SAVINGS LAW SHOULD BE CHANGED' : a letter sent to 'The Irish Times' newspaper by a Dr. Lucey.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, February 1955.
"I urge most strongly that the law governing savings be changed so that the local community may be allowed to benefit by the thrift of its own members" said the most Rev Dr Lucey, Bishop of Cork, when presiding at the annual meeting of the 'Cork Savings Bank' in Cork recently.
Dr Lucey said that the 'Cork Savings Bank' and the 'Post Office Savings Bank' were bound by law to deposit all their income with the Minister for Finance, and much of it was invested in British Government Securities in London. According to his latest report, of July 16th last year, no less than £27,000,000 of Irish savings was so invested. The rest, he said, was used at home, some being in our own State, and municipal loans.
"Dublin, incidentally, has £4,750,000 of it compared with a mere £240,000 to Cork, and the rest - roughly £30,000,000 - used as advances to the Exchequer etc. In a word, our savings are either exported to England, lent out by the State at, perhaps, 5%, to local authorities or used to finance State expenditure.." (MORE LATER).
'A NEW THEORY OF RELATIVITY', by Pat Rabbitte.
From 'Magill' magazine, February 1998.
There is a further reason why the men and women of the Garda Síochana ought to be properly paid - they ought not be driven out of necessity into double-jobbing. It is difficult to know how widespread the phenomenon is - there are no figures available - and it is hard to divine how much is due to gardaí being unable to raise their families on basic pay and how much is due to good old-fashioned greed. Some of it is quite harmless and nobody's business, but some of it seems to regard the day job as a distraction.
Where large-scale entrepreneurial talent is constrained in a garda uniform, should it not, as a matter of policy, be released into the private sector? What is the policy on the matter? For example, why should a garda moonlighting a couple of nights a week as a 'bouncer' be subjected to severe disciplinary action while another member of the force can, with impunity, devote himself to the business of his (sic) choice?
I turned eagerly to the recently published 'Report of the Steering Group on the Efficiency and Effectiveness of the Garda Síochana' for guidance on this and other questions. In other words - quis custodies custodiet? To my surprise , the question seems not to have been addressed. How is it possible to examine the 'efficiency and effectiveness of the Garda Síochana' and not address such a question? Or is it that the subject was discussed but no conclusions are reflected in the published report? No amount of 'Irish Times' reports or expansive pieces by 'security correspondents' on the 'comprehensive' nature of the report can reassure me on this point... (MORE LATER).
ON THIS DATE (23RD JANUARY) 64 YEARS AGO : JUST ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL...
"Only four per cent of the 450,000 pupils attending primary schools could get secondary education, while only eight per cent of secondary students could afford to go to a university.." - so said Dr Noel Browne, on the 23rd January 1955.
In February 1955, 'The United Irishman' newspaper quoted the above comment and (rightly) described it as "..a damning indictment of not merely Leinster House policy, but nineteen years of Fianna Fáil supremacy in that House..", and informed its readers that Dr Noel Browne was a Fianna Fáil Executive member who joined that party in 1953 but lost his Leinster House seat in the 1954 state election and was later expelled from that political party. Since then, however, not only have Fianna Fáil and their colleagues in Leinster House not fixed the education system in this State, but they have 'dumbed down' the health service to match it. Maybe in the hope/belief that if you leave school 'under-educated', you won't notice the shambles that the health service, and every other 'service' in this corrupt State, is in.
ON THIS DATE (OR THEREABOUTS!) 245 YEARS AGO : IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED...
ON THIS DATE (9TH JANUARY) 97 YEARS AGO : RESIGNATIONS OVER THE TREATY OF SURRENDER.
"In view of the vote that was taken here on Saturday and which I had definitely to oppose as one that was tending to subvert the Republic which I was elected to my present position to defend and maintain ; and as it appeared to me also to be a vote which would tend to subvert the independence of the country, I could no longer continue — as I was beaten in that - I could no longer continue in my present office feeling I did not have the confidence of the House. I therefore wish to place my resignation in the hands of the Assembly ; and I think it is not necessary to say any further words in doing so, but simply to resign my office and the responsibilities of it and the members of the Cabinet all go with my resignation" - Eamon de Valera (pictured) stepped down from that position on the 9th January 1922 because of the 'Treaty of Surrender', which had been accepted by Michael Collins and others (Arthur Griffith, Riobárd Bartún [Robert Barton], Eamonn S Ó Dugáin [Eamonn Duggan] and Seoirse Ghabháin Uí Dhubhthaigh [George Gavan Duffy] had also appended their names to that vile document) on the 6th December, 1921, in London - at ten minutes past two on that Tuesday morning (6th December 1921), those men accepted 'dominion status' and an oath which gave "allegiance" to the Irish Free State and "fidelity" to the British Crown - within six months a civil war was raging in Ireland, between the British-supported Free Staters and the Irish republicans who did not accept that 'Treaty'.
De Valera had already stated, on the 18th December 1921, that he was against that 'Treaty' -
"We were elected by the Irish people and did the Irish people think that we were liars when we said that we meant to uphold the Republic. I am against this Treaty because it does not reconcile Irish national aspirations with association with the British Government. I am against this Treaty not because I am a man of war, but a man of peace. I am against this Treaty because it will not end the centuries of conflict between the two nations of Great Britain and Ireland. It gives away Irish independence ; it brings us into the British Empire.." ('1169' comment - yet the same man had no problem with working on behalf of that 'empire' in the years following that 'not acceptable' speech!)
He had offered to resign on the 6th January, 1922, but the offer was not accepted at the time - but, on the 9th, it was accepted by 60 votes to 58 votes, following which Arthur Griffith (another Free-Stater-in-waiting) stated - "Before another word is spoken I want to say : I want the Deputies here to know, and all Ireland to know, that this vote is not to be taken as against President de Valera. It is a vote to help the Treaty, and I want to say now that there is scarcely a man I have ever met in my life that I have more love and respect for than President de Valera. I am thoroughly sorry to see him placed in such a position. We want him with us."
Others objected to the 'deal', and among them were Austin Stack, who stated his intention to fight on "even if this rotten document be accepted", and Erskine Childers, who complained that the 'Treaty Ports' section of the document would prevent the Free State from pursuing an independent foreign policy. The seven women members of the Dáil opposed the Treaty on the grounds that lives had been lost in pursuit of an Irish Republic, which the document subverted. Many, such as Margaret Pearse, Mary MacSwiney and Kathleen Clarke had lost close relatives in the struggle for
independence and stated that such an outcome was not what they and others had fought for. And, one week later (on the 16th January), Michael Collins and his Free State comrades were given the seat of British injustice in Ireland - Dublin Castle - from which to continue the campaign against Irish republicans from.
Máire Nic Shuibhne [pictured] (Mary MacSwiney) stated her objection to the 'Treaty' - "I claim my right, before matters go any further, to register my protest, because I look upon this act worse than I look upon the Act of Castlereagh. I, for one, will have neither hand, act, nor part in helping the Irish Free State to carry this nation of ours, this glorious nation that has been betrayed here to-night, into the British Empire — either with or without your hands up. I maintain here now that this is the grossest act of betrayal that Ireland ever endured. I know some of you have done it from good motives ; soldiers have done it to get a gun, God help them! Others, because they thought it best in some other way. I do not want to say a word that would prevent them from coming back to their Mother Republic, but I register my protest, and not one bit of help that we can give will we give them.
The speech we have heard sounded very beautiful — as the late Minister of Finance can do it ; he has played up to the gallery in this thing, but I tell you it may sound very beautiful but it will not do. Ireland stands on her Republican Government and that Republican Government cannot touch the pitch of the Free State without being fouled ; and here and now I call on all true Republicans ; we all want to protect the public safety, it is our side that will do its best to protect the public safety. We want no such terrible troubles in the country as faction fights. We can never descend to the faction fights of former days. We have established a Government, and we will have to protect it.
Therefore, let there be no misunderstanding, no soft talk, no ráiméis at this last moment of the betrayal of our country, no soft talk about union. You cannot unite a spiritual Irish Republic and a betrayal worse than Castlereagh's, because it was done for the Irish nation. You may talk about the will of the Irish people, as Arthur Griffith did ; you know it is not the will of the Irish people, it is the fear of the Irish people, as the Lord Mayor of Cork says. And tomorrow or another day when they come to their senses, they will talk of those who betrayed them today as they talk of Castlereagh. Make no doubt about it. This is a betrayal, a gross betrayal, and the fact is that it is only a small majority, and that majority is not united. Half of them look for a gun and the other half are looking for the fleshpots of the Empire. I tell you here there can be no union between the representatives of the Irish Republic and the so-called Free State."
And today, on the 9th January 2019 - 97 years after the Westminster and Free State-enforced partition of Ireland - Irish republicans remain adamant that there can be no political union between "the representatives of the Irish Republic and the so-called Free State".
"WE ASK FOR NO MERCY AND WE WILL MAKE NO COMPROMISE" - TERENCE MacSWINEY.
An edited version of this speech was published in 'The United Irishman' newspaper in October 1954. This is the speech in full ; on the 13th March, 1920, Terence MacSwiney (pictured) was unanimously elected as the 'Lord Mayor of Cork' by that city's Corporation. He donated his salary for the position to an outside organisation and received no salary for the other position he held at that time - Brigadier of the No. 1 Brigade, Cork IRA.
ON THIS DATE (2ND JANUARY) 103 YEARS AGO : "FIGHT FOR IRELAND" SPEECH BY 1916 RISING LEADER.
"If the Germans landed in Ireland, taking it by force of arms, they would have just as much right to it as England...fight for Ireland and be buried in consecrated ground, not dying like those in France, to be thrown into a *bode.." - Tomás Ceannt, speaking at a public meeting in Ballynoe, County Cork, on the 2nd January 1916 - 103 years ago on this date (* borehole/hole in the ground).
Tomás Ceannt (Thomas Kent) was born on the 29th August, 1865, in Bawnard House, Castlelyons, in Cork, the fourth of seven sons and two daughters, for David and Mary Kent. The Kent family had a long tradition of fighting against social and political injustices : 'His family were squeezed off their land by the British Crown's incremental rate increases. Thomas Kent left for Boston in the United States, but returned to Ireland several years later, owing to illness. Himself and his three brothers became radicalised, and were often jailed for their political activities, chiefly their support for the Land League and their membership of the Irish Volunteers. When the Easter Rising kicked off in April 1916, Tomás Ceannt, then 50 years of age, and his brothers, obeyed Eoin MacNeill's countermanding order and stayed home, Kent having planned to head to Dublin to fight. In a swoop for known republican sympathisers, however, the RIC made a dawn raid on the Kent family home in Castlelyons.
The Ceannts resisted arrest and had a shoot-out with the RIC, which lasted four hours. The RIC's head constable was killed, his face blown off, before the Ceannts surrendered. When they arrested Tomás Ceannt..he was paraded through the town of Fermoy a bit like Jesus Christ. His hands were tied and he had no shoes — he wasn't allowed wear any boots. He was humiliated...his mother was 89 and she was cooling down the guns and supplying her sons with ammunition during the raid. (The RIC) humiliated her as well. She was too old to walk so they put her on a cart with her dying son, the youngest son, Richard. He suffered from his nerves, as they said in those days. He had mental issues...he was terrified when he was arrested and he ran away and was shot in the back. He was dying. He died about a day later from his wounds...' (from here).
Thomas and his brother, William, were charged by the British with 'armed rebellion' - the brother was acquitted, but Thomas was found guilty and sentenced to death. Another brother, David, was 'found guilty' of the same charge and received a death sentence, but this was commuted to five years penal servitude. On the 9th May 1916, Tomás Ceannt was put to death by firing squad and his body was placed in a hole in the ground of Cork Prison, where he lay for 99 years : in 2015, the Free State administration, still attempting to associate themselves with those who fought against British rule, shamefully re-buried that Irish republican in a televised display of pomp and ceremony and it and the 'establishment' it spawned practically crawled over themselves to be seen to be associated with such a man.
After their taxpayer-funded meal and drinks, they reverted to condemning those who continue to fight for the freedom of this country. Disgusting behaviour from a disgusting political 'elite'.
CABHAIR SWIM , 25TH DECEMBER 2018 - A SWIM IN THE FOGGY DEW : FEW WORDS AND PICS.
The Cabhair Swim site, 3rd Lock, Inchicore, Dublin, pictured at 9am on Christmas Day, 2018.
A swim in the foggy dew - not really, as it had cleared-up by about 10.30am, when we got there, but the Cabhair Crew, who arrived on site at about 8.30am to begin assembling all the paraphernalia that goes with an 'outdoor gig' of this size, told us that visibility was only about fifteen feet, due to the heavy fog, until about half ten, when it lifted - but they were delighted that it wasn't raining, like last year, when all of us on-lookers got as wet as the swimmers!
Anyway - enough with the weather report : by the time we got there, the Crew were putting the finishing touches to the event, passers-by, on foot and in cars etc, were stopping for a chat and a mince pie and a few sweets and/or a drink (and not only lemonade, God bless their constitution!) and the scene was starting to buzz.
A Cabhair donation tin and some of the 'goodies', which those present helped themselves to.
The Cabhair Swim heating system ; not 100% efficient but, according to the swimmers, better than nothin'!
And then the fun (!) began : the Crew had to forcibly stop all six swimmers from jumping in at the same time (yeah, right...) and straws were drawn...
..resulting in one brave man (the 'winner' of the shortest straw competition!) 'volunteering' to test the waters for his comrades!
'Short Straw' was then joined by two more swimmers..
..one of whom made a break for dry land..
..but took the scenic route back..
..to give one of the lads a hand out!
And, finally, with the help of a sharp instrument -
- the six swimmers were corralled around the fire to have their picture taken :
And then all six were escorted off the premises and the rest of us had a party. Couldn't let them stay, as they were dripping like mad yokes all over the beer, the cider and the 'goodies'. But they were allowed to keep the T-shirts, and told to behave themselves next year...!
Thanks to Cabhair for putting the event together - for the 42nd consecutive year - and a BIG 'GRMA' to the swimmers and their sponsors, and to the on-lookers ; couldn't have done it without ya!
Thanks for reading, Sharon.
ON THIS DATE (19TH DECEMBER) 141 YEARS AGO : 'FATHER OF THE IRISH LAND LEAGUE' RELEASED FROM A BRITISH PRISON AFTER SEVEN YEARS INCARCERATION.
On Wednesday, 19th December 1877 - 141 years ago on this date - Michael Davitt (pictured), 'the father of the Irish Land League', was released from Dartmoor Prison in Princetown, Devon, in England, having served seven years in savage conditions. He was 31 years of age at that time.
This Irish 'dissident' was born on the 25th March, 1846, in Straide, County Mayo, at the height of An Gorta Mór ('the Great Hunger/attempted genocide') and the poverty of those times affected the Davitt family - he was the second of five children and was only four years of age when his family were evicted from their home over rent owed and his father, Martin, was left with no choice but to travel to England to look for work.
Martin's wife, Sabina, and their five children, were given temporary accommodation by the local priest in Straide. The family were eventually reunited, in England, where young Michael attended school for a few years. His family were struggling, financially, so he obtained work, aged 9, as a labourer (he told his boss he was 13 years old and got the job - working from 6am to 6pm, with a ninty-minute break and a wage of 2s.6d a week) but within weeks he had secured a 'better' job, operating a spinning machine but, at only 11 years of age, his right arm got entangled in the machinery and had to be amputated. There was no compensation offered, and no more work, either, for a one-armed machine operator, but he eventually managed to get a job helping the local postmaster.
He was sixteen years young at that time, and was curious about his Irish roots and wanted to know more - he learned all he could about Irish history and, at 19 years young, joined the Fenian movement in England. Two years afterwards he became the organising secretary for northern England and Scotland for that organisation and, at 25 years of age, he was arrested in Paddington Station in London after the British had uncovered an IRB operation to import arms. He was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, on a 'hard labour' ticket, and served seven years in Dartmoor Prison in horrific conditions before being released in 1877, at the age of 31, on Wednesday, December 19th - 141 years ago on this date.
Objects: The objects for which this body is organised are —
1) To watch over the interests of the people it represents and protect the same, as far as may be in its power to do so, from an unjust or capricious exercise of power or privilege on the part of landlords or any other class in the community.
2) To resort to every means compatible with justice, morality, and right reason, which shall not clash defiantly with the constitution upheld by the power of the British empire in this country, for the abolition of the present land laws of Ireland and the substitution in their place of such a system as shall be in accord with the social rights and necessities of our people, the traditions and moral sentiments of our race, and which the contentment and prosperity of our country imperatively demand.
3) Pending a final and satisfactory settlement of the land question, the duty of this body will be to expose the injustice, wrong, or injury which may be inflicted upon any farmer in Mayo, either by rack-renting, eviction, or other arbitrary exercise of power which the existing laws enable the landlords to exercise over their tenantry, by giving all such arbitrary acts the widest possible publicity and meeting their perpetration with all the opposition which the laws for the preservation of the peace will permit of. In furthernance of which, the following plan will be adopted :— a. Returns to be obtained, printed, and circulated, of the number of landlords in this county ; the amount of acreage in possession of same, and the means by which such land was obtained ; farms let by each, with the conditions under which they are held by their tenants and excess of rent paid by same over the government valuation. b. To publish by placard, or otherwise, notice of contemplated evictions for non-payment of exorbitant rent or other unjust cause, and the convening of a public meeting, if deemed necessary or expedient, as near the scene of such evictions as circumstances will allow, and on the day fixed upon for the same. c. The publication of a list of evictions carried out, together with cases of rack-renting, giving full particulars of same, names of landlords, agents, etc, concerned, and number people evicted by such acts. d. The publication of the names of all persons who shall rent or occupy land or farms from which others have been dispossessed for non-payment of exorbitant rents, or who shall offer a higher rent for land or farms than that paid by the previous occupier. The publication of reductions of rent and acts of justice or kindness performed by landlords in the county.
4) This body to undertake the defence of such of its members, or those of local clubs affiliated with it, who may be required to resist by law the actions of landlords or their agents who may purpose doing them injury, wrong, or injustice in connexion with their land or farms.
5) To render assistance when possible to such farmer-members as may be evicted or otherwise wronged by landlords or their agents.
6) To undertake the organising of local clubs or defence associations in the baronies, towns, and parishes of this county, the holding of public meetings and demonstrations on the land question, and the printing of pamphlets on that and other subjects for the information of the farming classes.
7) And finally, to act as a vigilance committee in Mayo, note the conduct of its grand jury, poor law guardians, town commissioners, and members of parliament, and pronounce on the manner in which their respective functions are performed, wherever the interests, social or political, of the people represented by this club renders it expedient to do so.'
Thus began the land agitation movement. On the 21st October 1879, a meeting of concerned individuals was held in the Imperial Hotel in Castlebar, County Mayo, to discuss issues in relation to 'landlordism' and the manner in which that subject impacted on those who worked on small land holdings on which they paid 'rent', an issue which other groups, such as tenants' rights organisations and groups who, confined by a small membership, agitated on land issues in their own locality, had voiced concern about.
Those present agreed to announce themselves as the 'Irish National Land League' (which, at its peak, had 200,000 active members) and Charles Stewart Parnell who, at 33 years of age, had been an elected member of parliament for the previous four years, was elected president of the new group and Andrew Kettle, Michael Davitt, and Thomas Brennan were appointed as honorary secretaries. That leadership had 'form' in that each had made a name for themselves as campaigners on social issues of the day and were, as such, 'known' to the British authorities - Davitt was a known member of the Supreme Council of the IRB and spoke publicly about the need "..to bring out a reduction of rack-rents..to facilitate the obtaining of the ownership of the soil by the occupiers..the object of the League can be best attained by promoting organisation among the tenant-farmers ; by defending those who may be threatened with eviction for refusing to pay unjust rents ; by facilitating the working of the Bright clauses of the Irish Land Act during the winter and by obtaining such reforms in the laws relating to land as will enable every tenant to become owner of his holding by paying a fair rent for a limited number of years.."
Davitt realised that the 'Land League' would be well advised to seek support from outside of Ireland and, under the slogan 'The Land for the People', he toured America, being introduced in his activities there by John Devoy and, although he did not have official support from the Fenian leadership - some of whom were neutral towards him while others were suspicious and/or hostile of and to him - he obtained constant media attention and secured good support for the objectives of the organisation.
He died before he could accomplish all he wanted to, at 60 years of age, in Elphis Hospital in Dublin, on the 30th of May 1906, from blood poisoning : he had a tooth extracted and contracted septicaemia from the operation. His body was taken to the Carmelite Friary in Clarendon Street, Dublin, then by train to Foxford in Mayo and he was buried in Straide Abbey, near where he was born. The 'Father of the Irish Land League' was gone, but will not be forgotten.
'WE ASK FOR NO MERCY AND WE WILL MAKE NO COMPROMISE' - edited highlights of a speech on the 13th March, 1920, by Terence MacSwiney.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, October 1954.
"I come here more as a soldier stepping into the breach than an administrator to fill the first post in the municipality. We see in the manner in which our late Lord Major was murdered an attempt to terrify us all. Our first duty is to answer that threat in the only fitting manner by showing ourselves unterrified, cool and inflexible for the fulfilment of our chief purpose - the establishment of the independence and integrity of our country. To that end I am here.
The menace of our enemies hangs over us and the essential immediate purpose is to show the spirit that animates us and how we face the future. I wish to point out again the secret of our strength and the assurance of our final victory.
This contest of ours is not on our side a rivalry of vengeance, but one of endurance - it is not they who can inflict most but they who can suffer most will conquer. But it is conceivable that they could interrupt our course for a time ; then it becomes a question simply of trust in God and endurance..." (MORE LATER).
ON THIS DATE (19TH DECEMBER) 97 YEARS AGO : "FULL INDEPENDENCE AND NOTHING SHORT OF IT" - AUSTIN STACK, 'TREATY OF SURRENDER' DEBATE, DÁIL ÉIREANN* (*..the 32-County body, not the Free State Leinster House assembly).
Austin Stack (pictured) was born on the 7th December, 1879, in Ballymullen, Tralee, County Kerry, and died in the Mater Hospital in Dublin, from complications after a stomach operation, on the 27th April 1929, at only 49 years of age. That wasn't soon enough, as far as his former comrades were concerned - he had remained a republican, and completely rejected their politics and their Free State.
He was arrested with Con Collins on the 21st April 1916 while planning an attack on Tralee RIC Barracks in an attempt to rescue Roger Casement. He was court-martialed and sentenced to death, but this was commuted to twenty years penal servitude and he was released in the general amnesty of June 1917, and became active in the Irish Volunteers again. He was elected Secretary of Sinn Féin, a position he held until his death. His health was shattered due to the number of prison protests and hunger strikes for political status that he undertook. In the 1918 general election, while a prisoner in Crumlin Road Jail in Belfast, he was elected to represent West Kerry in the First (all-Ireland) Dáil, and the British sent him off to Strangeways Prison in Manchester, from where he escaped in October 1919. During the 'Black and Tan War', as Minister for Home Affairs, Austin Stack organised the republican courts which replaced the British 'legal' system in this country.
He rejected the Treaty of Surrender in 1921 (stating, during the debate on same - "Has any man here the hardihood to stand up and say that it was for this our fathers suffered, that it was for this our comrades have died in the field and in the barrack yard.." ) and, following a short fund-raising/public relations tour of America, returned to Ireland to fight on the republican side in the Civil War.
In the general round-up of Irish republican leaders in April 1923 (during which Liam Lynch was shot dead by Free State troops) Stack, the Deputy Chief of Staff of the rebel forces, was arrested in a farmyard in the Knockmealdown Mountains in County Tipperary - this was four days after Lynch's death. Imprisoned in Kilmainham Jail in Dublin, he took part in the mass hunger-strike by republican prisoners in October 1923, which was his 5th hunger-strike in 6 years. Shortly after the end of that forty-one day hunger-strike, in November 1923, he was released with hundreds of other political prisoners, and he married his girlfriend, Una Gordon, in 1925. In April 1929, at forty-nine years of age, he entered the Mater Hospital in Dublin for a stomach operation. He never recovered and died two days later, on 27th April 1929. He is buried in the Republican Plot, Glasnevin Cemetery, in Dublin.
'Austin Stack was born in Ballymullen, Tralee and was educated at the local Christian Brothers School. At the age of fourteen he left school and became a clerk in a solicitor's office. A gifted Gaelic footballer, he captained the Kerry team to All-Ireland glory in 1904 and also served as President of the Kerry Gaelic Athletic Association County Board. He became politically active in 1908 when he joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood and, in 1916, as commandant of the Kerry Brigade of the Irish Volunteers, he made preparations for the landing of arms by Roger Casement, on Banna Strand.
Although Austin Stack was made aware that Casement was arrested and was being held in Ballymullen Barracks in Tralee, he made no attempt to rescue him : RIC District Inspector Kearney treated Casement very well and made sure Stack was aware that Casement could so easily have been rescued, yet Stack refused to move (possibly sensing that a trap had been laid for him?) but he was arrested anyway and sentenced to death for his involvement, but this was later commuted to penal servitude for life. He was released under general amnesty in June 1917 after the death of fellow prisoner and Tralee man Thomas Patrick Ashe and was elected as an abstentionist Sinn Féin Member of Parliament for Kerry West in the 1918 Westminster election, becoming a member of the 1st Dail and was automatically elected as an abstentionist member of the 'House of Commons of Southern Ireland' and a member of the 2nd Dail as a Sinn Féin Teachta Dála for Kerry-Limerick West in the Irish elections of 1921.
He opposed the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 and took part in the subsequent Irish Civil War. He was captured in 1923 and went on hunger strike for forty-one days before being released in July 1924...when Eamon de Valera founded Fianna Fail in 1926, Stack remained with Sinn Féin..his health never recovered after his hunger strike and he died in a Dublin hospital on April 27th 1929, aged 49.' (from here, slightly edited.)
A commemorative pamphlet, entitled 'What Exactly is a Republican?' was issued in memory of the man - 'The name republican in Ireland, as used amongst republicans, bears no political meaning. It stands for the devout lover of his country, trying with might and main for his country's freedom. Such a man cannot be a slave. And if not a slave in heart or in act, he cannot be guilty of the slave vices. No coercion can breed these in the freeman. Fittingly, the question - 'What is a republican?' fails to be answered in our memorial number for Austin Stack, a man who bore and dared and suffered, remaining through it all and at the worst, the captain of his own soul. What then was Austin Stack, republican? A great lover of his country. A man without a crooked twist in him. One who thought straight, acted straight, walked the straight road unflinchingly and expected of others that they should walk it with him, as simply as he did himself. No man could say or write of him "He had to do it". That plea of the slave was not his. His duty, as conscience and love dictated, he did. The force of England, of the English Slave State, might try coercion, as they tried it many times : it made no difference. He went his way, suffered their will, and stood his ground doggedly, smiling now and again. His determination outstood theirs, because it had a deeper foundation and a higher aim. Compromise, submission, the slave marks, did not and could not exist for him as touching himself, or the Cause for which he worked and fought,lived and died.'
I regard clauses in this agreement as being the governing clauses. These are Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4. In No.I, England purports to bestow on Ireland, an ancient nation, the same constitutional status as any of the British Dominions, and also to bestow her with a Parliament having certain powers. To look at the second clause, it starts off — "Subject to provisions hereinafter set out.." — and then she tries to limit you to the powers of the Dominion of Canada. What they may mean I cannot say, beyond this, that the Canadian Dominion is set up under a very old Act which considerably limits its powers. No doubt the words "law, practice, and constitutional usage" are here. I cannot define what these may mean. Other speakers who will come before the assembly may be able to explain them. I certainly cannot. To let us assume that this clause gives to this country full Canadian powers, I for one cannot accept from England full Canadian powers, three-quarter Canadian powers, or half Canadian powers.
I stand for what is Ireland's right, full independence and nothing short of it. It is easy to understand that countries like Australia, New Zealand and the others can put up with the powers which are bestowed on them, can put up with acknowledgements to the monarch and rule of Great Britain as head of their State, for have they not all sprung from England? Are they not children of England? Have they not been built up by Great Britain? Have they not been protected by England and lived under England's flag for all time? What other feeling can they have but affection for England, which they always regarded as their motherland?
This country, on the other hand, has not been a child of England's, nor never was. England came here as an invader, and for 750 years we have been resisting that conquest. Are we now after those 750 years to bend the knee and acknowledge that we received from England as a concession full, or half, or three-quarter Dominion powers? I say no. Clause 3 of this Treaty gives us a representative of the Crown in Ireland appointed in the same manner as a Governor-General. That Governor-General will act in all respects in the name of the King of England. He will represent the King in the Capital of Ireland and he will open the Parliament which some members of this House seem to be willing to attend. I am sure none of them, indeed, is very anxious to attend it under the circumstances, but, if they accept this Treaty they will have to attend Parliament summoned in the name of the King of Great Britain and Ireland. There is no doubt about that whatever. The fourth paragraph sets out the form of oath, and this form of oath may be divided into two parts. In the first part you swear "true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the Irish Free State as by law established." As the President has stated, according to the Constitution which will be sanctioned under that Parliament, it will be summoned by the representative of the King of England and Ireland and will acknowledge that King.
I say even that part of the oath is nothing short of swearing allegiance to the head of that Constitution which will be the King. You express it again when you swear, "and that I will be faithful to His Majesty King George V., his heirs and successors by law." That is clear enough, and I have no hesitation whatever in reading the qualifying words. I say these qualifying words in no way alter the text, or form, or effect of this oath, because what you do in that is to explain the reason why you give faith, why you pledge fealty to King George. You say it is in virtue of the common citizenship of Ireland with Great Britain and the meaning of that is that you are British subjects. You are British subjects without a doubt, and I challenge anyone here to stand and prove otherwise than that according to this document.
If ever you want to travel abroad, to a country where a passport is necessary, your passport must be issued from the British Foreign Office and you must be described as a British subject on it. If you are mean enough to accept this Treaty, time will tell. You wind up by saying that you further acknowledge that King in virtue of Ireland's adherence to and membership of the group of nations known as the British Commonwealth of Nations, and all that, of course, is really consistent with the whole thing. You will become a member of the British Empire. Now this question of the oath has an extraordinary significance for me, for, so far as I can trace, no member of my family has ever taken an oath of allegiance to England's King. When I say that I do not pretend for a moment that men who happened to be descended from, or to be sons of men who took oaths of allegiance to England's Kings, or men who themselves took oaths of allegiance to England's Kings are any worse for it. There are men in this assembly who have been comrades of mine in various places, who have been fighting the same fight as I have been fighting, the same fight which we have all been fighting, and which I sincerely hope we will be fighting together again ere long. There are men with whom I was associated in this fight whose fathers had worn England's uniform and taken oaths of allegiance, and these men were as good men and took their places as well in the fight for Irish independence as any man I ever met.
But what I wish to say is this: I was nurtured in the traditions of Fenianism. My father wore England's uniform as a comrade of Charles Kickham and O'Donovan Rossa when as a '67 man he was sentenced to ten years for being a rebel, but he wore it minus the oath of allegiance. If I, as I hope I will, try to continue to fight for Ireland's liberty, even if this rotten document be accepted, I will fight minus the oath of allegiance and to wipe out the oath of allegiance if I can do it. Now I ask you has any man here the idea in his head, has any man here the hardihood to stand up and say that it was for this our fathers have suffered, that it was for this our comrades have died on the field and in the barrack yard. If you really believe in your hearts that it was vote for it. If you don't believe it in your hearts vote against it. It is for you now to make up your minds. To-day or to-morrow will be, I think, the most fateful days in Irish history. I will conclude by quoting two of Russell Lowell's lines : — "Once to every man and nation comes a moment to decide,
In the strife 'twixt truth and falsehood for the good or evil side."
Unfortunately, the "evil side" is, at the time of writing, in the majority. But it's early yet...
(Incidentally, on this date, 97 years ago [19th December 1921], one of those who signed and accepted the 'Treaty of Surrender' attempted to explain, probably more so to himself than to those who were in his presence, why he had done so - "I do not seek to shield myself from the charge of having broken my oath of allegiance to the Republic — my signature is proof of that fact. That oath was, and still is to me, the most sacred bond on earth..." - a poor effort at absolving himself for doing the wrong thing, in our opinion : more here.)
SAN FRANCISCO.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, February 1955.
At a special meeting of the San Francisco branch of the 'Irish Republican Prisoner's Aid Committee', held on January 20th, 1955, the following resolution was unanimously passed : 'WHEREAS the English Government, for eight centuries, has been guilty of invasion, confiscation, aggression and persecution in Ireland, and still pursues the policy, despite the world-wide maxim of peace-loving nations that all people should be allowed to govern themselves, free of outside interference and WHEREAS at the present time a number of young Irish patriots have been brutally sentenced to from four to twelve years penal servitude in English prisons and in Crumlin Road Jail in Belfast for asserting their God-given rights to freedom from an alien enemy tyrant, therefore BE IT RESOLVED that we, Americans of Irish birth and extraction, meeting under the auspices of the 'Irish Republican Prisoner's Aid Committee' of San Francisco, on this twentieth day of January 1955, emphatically protest the foul policy of Britain in imposing barbarous measures of punishment on Irish patriots who are entitled, under the circumstances, to treatment of prisoners of war and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we pledge our moral support to these patriotic soldiers of Ireland and our financial support to their dependents during their long and trying years ahead."
(END of 'San Francisco' : NEXT - 'Derry Men Fined', 'GAA Support' and 'Mistaken Identity', from the same source.)
ON THE TAKE...The question is no longer whether there is corruption within our political establishment but whether the political establishment is itself corrupt.
By Vincent Browne. From 'Magill' magazine, February 1998.
At present, private investors on the Irish Stock Exchange own shares to an estimated value of £8 billion ; over the last year alone, the value of these shares would have increased by about £200 million. The tax on this realisable gain alone has been cut by £40 million! Of course, the capital gain on such stocks would be far greater that £40 million, taking the gain over the last several years.
And that capital gain represents only a fraction of the capital gain generated generally in the economy - it does not include, for instance, the capital gain from investment in property. Therefore, the benefit to the rich by this tax reduction is probably of the order of £100 million, although Charlie McCreevy stated that the cost to the exchequer in a single year was only £19 million. Either this was done to benefit the rich generally - on top of the benefit they gained by the reduction in the top rate of income tax - or perhaps for the benefit of a particular individual. Either way, it is a disgrace. And particularly a disgrace given the paucity of the increases in social welfare and the deferral (again) of the implementation of the benefit, such as it was.
In that vivid phrase of the hapless Michael Lowry, the cosy cartels are indeed very cosy. They have three parties to represent their interests (Fianna Fáil, the Progressive Democrats and Fine Gael) and they have little to fear from a tame Labour Party and a timorous Democratic Left. (END of 'ON THE TAKE' ; Next, from the same source : 'A NEW THEORY OF RELATIVITY', by Pat Rabbitte.)
A WORKING HOLIDAY...!
We'll be busy ourselves over the Christmas period, as usual - but, again as usual, we don't mind, as it's for a good cause! The 42nd successive Cabhair Christmas Swim will be held on Christmas Day 2018 at about 12 noon, at the 3rd Lock of the Grand Canal in Inchicore, Dublin, and we hope to be fit enough after it to post a few words and pics here on Stephen's Day (or thereabouts - probably thereabouts!) - if you can make it, well and good, you'll be made welcome and we'll see ya there but, if you can't make it, not to worry : we know you'll be there in spirit and, if you want to contribute, donations can be sent to CABHAIR – Irish Republican Prisoners Dependants Fund, 223 Sráid Pharnell, BÁC 1, Éire. All donations are gratefully received and a receipt will be issued.
CABHAIR is a charitable organisation, solely dependant on public subscriptions. It was established in early 1987, following the revolutionary / reformist split in the republican movement, for "the relief of cases of distress arising out of republican activity". Immediately following the Ard-Fheis of Sinn Féin in 1986 when the Provisionals departed from the republican road a number of Irish political prisoners in England, the Six Counties and the 26 Counties adhered to the revolutionary path and refused to accept support from the Provisionals.
To meet this pressing need CABHAIR was formed and has continued with this noble work. Prisoners that they have cared for have been released on completion of sentence and others have gone to prison. At no time since 1987 have no prisoners been in CABHAIR’s care. As long as British rule continues in Ireland, Irish people will resist that foreign occupation and, unfortunately, there will be political prisoners.
We hope you have a Happy Christmas, and thank you for continuing to visit our wee corner of the interweb - much appreciated!
Thanks for reading, Sharon.
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