320
AN GAODHAL.
ing the language, until, in the course of time, Eng¬
land should have run her race, as other conquering
nations have done — sink out of sight, and that then
Ireland would come by her own.
That is our idea still. But if other Irishmen are
of the belief that modern inventions enable the weak
to cope with the strong, and that they will make the
attempt, we beg of them not to make fools of them¬
selves by going about it in such clumsy, idiotic way
as would bring destruction to themselves and the
blush of shame to the brows of their countrymen.
We redden with indignation when we hear of pe¬
titions being made to England by Irishmen begging
for the release of such prisoners as Dr. Gallagher,
because we think that no man should go on a mis¬
sion such as that alleged except him who would be
prepared to carry his life in his own hands — neither
seeking for nor giving quarter.
We also blush with shame when we hear of the
loose manner in which persons are admitted to mem¬
bership in Irish revolutionary societies, whereas the
antecedents of candidates from the time of their birth
their place of birth, and where and in what manner
since employed, should be strictly investigated, for
all are aware of the tactics used by detectives to get
into and disrupt such organizations. For instance
the Protestant Head Constable Talbot represented
himself as a rabid Fenian, and a Catholic, and went
so far to prove himself the latter that he knelt before
the altar of God, in the chapel of Carrick-on-Suir
and sacrilegiously received the body of His Divine
Son!
Again, Dr Gallagher was not fit for his alleged
mission, for if he were no one would know the time
or manner of his proceeding (not even those who sent
him), nor his port of landing on the other side; and
his profession indicating that his apparel and sur¬
rounding would be that of a gentleman, he should
have assumed the role of chimney-sweep, ragman,
tinker, or some other humble calling — disparage the
Irish and be as much as possible the typical English
man. A hundred men possessing these traits would
quickly prick the lordly windbags, and cause Eng¬
land to sue for peace. But as we do not believe, in
the present degenerated state of Irishmen, that such
are forthcoming, we would urge them to preserve the
language until, in the natural order of things, Eng¬
land reverts to her former state of imbecility. For
Providence will cut short her unhallowed career
when she least expects it as He did that of Talbot
hereinbefore referred to, who was shot dead in a
crowded throughfare in the city of Dublin without
any one seeing who fired the shot or when it came
Ah, friends, who would have the temerity to say that
Providence did not visit him for his diabolical crime
at Carrick-on-Suir as He did the lying Ananias of
the Bible?
THE LIAR AGAIN.
The Gael protests against the uncandid manner
in which some New York people seek to injure it,
namely, by alleging that it said what it never did
say. One says, —
"The time that "Logan" said Russell went to
Ireland I was speaking with him (Russell) at such
a place."
That is, simply, a lie. "Logan" never said that
Russell went to Ireland, but he published extracts
from a letter received from Mobile Ala., in which
the writer quotes his (Russell’s) sisterinlaw as saying
that it was his wont to go twice a year and that he left
Cleveland the early part of that July (1890) for that
purpose (but she did not say what time he sailed —
and he could go to and return from Ireland in 14
days). What made the sisterinlaw say that in or¬
dinary conversation ? and our correspondent repeat¬
ed it in alike off-hand, gossipy manner, without any
idea that Russell's going to Ireland then was but
his ordinary routine. We reported the matter and
commented on it in the interest of the Irish cause
that's all. Were it our aim to vilify Russell we would
have published the following matter, which we re¬
ceived from Mr O'Farrell, publisher of the Irish E¬
cho, five months before (April 2. '90) the reception
of the Mobile letter. Mr O'Farrell writes, —
"My old Friend O'Shea is not getting very good
health and my knowledge of the Irish language * is
not that which would enable me to run the Echo
successfully, and you know that those who know
least are the greatest fault finders, for instance see
the audacity of that 'travelling rat' and impostor
Russell, a man that an Irish speaking person can¬
not understand. I have given him the cold shoul¬
der by consigning every piece of his MSS of an ar¬
ogant nature to the waste basket of late. And 'Dr'
Norris treated his case carefully, it is to be hoped he
will not venture into deep water again, but he is a
cheeky adventurer without a particle of shame or
gentlemanly principle. He is not in the liquor busi¬
ness, as a trade or business, no more than I am,
that has entirely exploded here long ago, every one
is suspicious of him, and what every body say must
be true. †
Chas. O'Farrell."
We hold all these letters, and they can be seen by
anyone. We have no spite against Russell; we
beleive he holds a certain office and that to the best
of his ability (which is large) he endeavors to serve
his employer. The "Mick" letter, which he thought
would never see the light, reveals the inwardness of
the man. No, we owe Russell no spite. Why should
we if we believe him to be an English detective ?
an honorable calling. We call it spying, but were
matters changed, we would call it as honorable as
any other employment. We call Le Caron a spy,
but whether was he or those whom he duped the
more honorable, or served their respective countries
the better? The Language being the Repository of
Nationality a smart man should be employed to dis¬
organize the Movement to preserve it. But he met
a snag — he met steel where he expected matter !
Were the Hibernians and the Clans to die to-mor¬
row what would they leave behind them? The for¬
mer a few flags and banners. The latter — not even
as much But. the Gaels? — The Nationality,
perpetuated in the thousands of the rising genera¬
tion, who, in turn, will hand it down to their chil¬
dren. Hence we have no personal animosity to Rus¬
sell; the battle was long, fierce and bitter; we sent
him home with his tail between his legs, and we
are too gallant to mutilate the corpse of a foe who,
because of his inexhaustible resources to buy aid,
with our limited means, was worthy of our steel,
but we deplore the gommishness of our countrymen
in permitting themselves to be duped by every one
who shouts "hurroo" for Ireland.
* Mr Farrell has had ample time since to be a
good Irish scholar.
† Mr Sullivan of the Boston Philo Celtic Socie¬
ty in a column and a half article in the Irish World
in October, 1878, charged Russell with being a Bri¬
tish detective because of his efforts to burst the Gae-
