jmg@houxk.UUCP (J.MCGHEE) (12/30/83)
In an article on net.nlang.celts the other day rabbit!jj wrote about those who had been exiled from the British Isles in various circumstances and briefly described their motivations. While I don't agree with his statement that all Celts are brought up to hate the English (I was not) I can identify with some of his comments and so I'm submitting the following historical capsule to give more balance to his assessment. In Ireland nine men were captured, tried and convicted of treason against Her Majesty the Queen, during what has been referred to as the "Young Irish disorders", in 1848 or thereabouts. The nine, who were sentenced to death, were: Patrick Donahue Charles Duffy Michael Ireland Morris Lyene Thomas McGee Terence McManus Thomas Meagher John Mitchel Richard O'Gorman The judge decreed that the defendants should be hanged until dead, and then drawn and quartered. Passionate protests, however, influenced Queen Victoria to commute the sentence to banishment for life and transporttation to far wild Australia. In 1874 an astounded Queen Victoria received word that the Sir Charles Duffy who had been elected Prime Minister of Australia was the very same Charles Duffy who had been transported there some 25 years before. Curious about the fate of the other eight, the Queen demanded that the records of those transported in the 1848 incident be researched and revealed. This is what was found: Thomas Meagher - Governor of Montana Terence McManus - Brigadier General, U.S. Army Patrick Donahue - Brigadier General, U.S. Army Richard O'Gorman - Governor of Newfoundland Morris Lyene - Attorney General of Australia Michael Ireland - Attorney General of Australia, after the term of Morris Lyene Thomas McGee - Member of Parliament, Montreal, Minister of Agriculture and President of Council, Dominion of Canada John Mitchel - writer and prominant New York politician. His son became Mayor of New York City. With this knowledge we can better appreciate the words of Emma Lazarus in her poem "The New Colossus" which is dedicated to the Statue of Liberty: "Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me...
jj@rabbit.UUCP (12/30/83)
You LIE, Joe! I specifically said that NOT all Celts were brought up to hate the British empire. I did not say, as you suggest, that all WERE brought up that way. Please read my article again. I do not like hate mongering, I do not like being misquoted even more! Rince Philib a choeil! -- -Diogenes stopped here- (allegra,harpo,ulysses)!rabbit!jj