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globe. Let us likewise remember that during the period of those great and so-called glorious contests on the continent of Europe, every description of home reform was not only delayed, but actually crushed out of the minds of the great bulk of the people. There can be no doubt whatever that in 1793 England was about to realize political changes and reforms, such as did not appear again until 1830, and during the period of that war, which now almost all men agree to have been wholly unnecessary, we were passing through a period which may be described as the dark age of English politics; when there was no more freedom to write or speak, or politically to act, than there is now in the most despotic country of Europe.

The more you examine this matter, the more you will come to the conclusion which I have arrived at, that this foreign policy, this regard for the "liberties of Europe," this care at one time for "the Protestant interests," this excessive love for "the balance of power," is neither more nor less than a gigantic system of out-door relief for the aristocracy of Great Britain. (Loud laughter.) I observe that you receive that declaration as if it were some new and important discovery. In 1815, when the great war with France was ended, every Liberal in England whose politics, whose hopes, and whose faith had not been crushed out of him by the tyranny of the time of that war, was fully aware of this, and openly admitted it; and up to 1832, and for some years afterward, it was the fixed and undoubted creed of the great Liberal party. But somehow all is changed. We who stand upon the old landmarks, who walk in the old paths, who would conserve what is wise and prudent, are hustled and shoved about as if we were come to turn the world upside down. The change which has taken place seems to confirm the opinion of a lamented friend of mine, who, not having succeeded in all his hopes, thought that men made no progress whatever, but went round and round like a squirrel in a cage.

I believe there is no permanent greatness to a nation except it be based upon morality. I do not care for military greatness or military renown. I care for the condition of the people among whom I live. There is no man in England who is less likely to speak irreverently of the Crown and Monarchy of England than I am; but crowns, coronets, mitres, military display, the pomp of war, wide colonies, and a huge empire are, in my view, all trifles, light as air, and not worth considering, unless with them you can have a fair share of comfort, contentment, and happiness among the great body of the people. Palaces, baronial castles, great halls, stately mansions, do not make a nation. The nation in every country dwells in cottages; and unless the light of your constitution can

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shine there, unless the beauty of your legislation and the excellence of your statesmanship are impressed there on the feelings and condition of the people, rely upon it, you have yet to learn the duties of govern

ment. .

The most ancient of profane historians has told us that the Scythians of his time were a very warlike people, and that they elevated an old scimeter upon a platform as a symbol of Mars; for to Mars alone, I believe, they built altars and offered sacrifices. To this scimeter they offered sacrifices of horses and cattle, the main wealth of the country, and more costly sacrifices than to all the rest of their gods. I often ask myself whether we are at all advanced in one respect beyond those Scythians. What are our contributions to charity, to education, to morality, to religion, to justice, and to civil government, when compared with the wealth we expend in sacrifices to the old scimeter?

Two nights ago I addressed in this hall a vast assembly, composed to a great extent of your countrymen who have no political power, who are at work from the dawn of day to the evening, and who have, therefore, limited means of informing themselves on those great subjects. Now, I am privileged to speak to a somewhat different audience. You represent those of your great community who have a more complete education, who have on some points greater intelligence, and in whose hands reside the power and influence of the district. I am speaking, too, within the hearing of those whose gentle nature, whose fine instincts, whose purer minds, have not suffered as some of us have suffered in the turmoil and strife of life. You can mold opinion, you can create political power; -you cannot think a good thought on this subject and communicate it to good neighbors, you cannot make these points topics of discussion in your social circles and more general meetings, without affecting sensibly and speedily the course which the government of your country will pursue.

May I ask you then to believe, as I do most devoutly believe, that the moral law was not written for men alone in their individual character, but that it was written as well for nations, and for nations great as this of which we are citizens. If nations reject and deride that moral law, there is a penalty that will inevitably follow. It may not come at once; it may not come in our lifetime; but rely upon it, the great Italian is not a poet only, but a prophet, when he says:

"The sword of Heaven is not in haste to smite.
Nor yet doth linger."

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CHARLES STEWART PARNELL (1846-1891)

THE "UNCROWNED KING" OF IRELAND

T

HE part which the great O'Connell took in the first half of the nineteenth century as the "Liberator" of Ireland, was taken by Charles Parnell in the last half. During the decade from 1880 to 1890, when the questions of Irish rights and Home Rule led in British politics, Parnell, as leader of the Home Rule party, was little short of a dictator in parliamentary affairs. Entering Parliament in 1875, for several years he pursued the policy of obstruction with an audacity that caused great annoyance, and made him highly popular at home. In 1880 the method of "boycotting" landlords and agents was put into effect by him. He was sent to jail in 1881 for his forcible opposition to Gladstone's methods of dealing with Ireland, yet in 1886, when Gladstone began to work earnestly for Home Rule, Parnell became his close ally. Parnell's power vanished in 1890 and after, as the result of a divorce suit scandal, and soon afterward he suddenly died. As an orator Parnell was ready and forcible; less fluent and rhetorical than his famous predecessor, yet with much power of his own. In 1880 he traversed the United States as President of the Irish Land League, making there some of his best speeches. He collected on this visit $350,000 for the good of the cause.

EVICTION AND EMIGRATION

[The selection here given is from Parnell's speech of March 4, 1880, delivered at St. Louis, during his tour of the United States.]

I thank you for this magnificent meeting-a splendid token of your sympathy and appreciation for the cause of suffering Ireland. It is a remarkable fact that, while America, throughout the length and breadth of her country, does her very utmost to show her sympathy and send her

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