_The President-General’s Reply._
President-General Moseley replied as follows:
Gentlemen,—Deeply appreciative as I am of the honor conferred upon
me by your tendering me the position of President-General of the
American-Irish Historical Society, I feel that the compliment is
greatly enhanced by my having been selected to fill the place so
recently made vacant by the death of one of our most illustrious
fellow-citizens, the late Rear-Admiral Richard W. Meade, of the
United States Navy.
Honored by all true patriots for the loyalty, courage, and
professional ability which so eminently distinguished him in his
country’s hour of trial, and throughout his whole career, no more
fitting representative of the Irish people, to whose history our
society is devoted, could have been chosen as its first
President-General, than Rear-Admiral Meade, who bore a name renowned
as well in the army as in the navy of our country.
While fully conscious of my being all too unworthy to occupy a
position which my predecessor so adequately filled, yet, as I am
most earnestly and heartily in sympathy with the objects of the
American-Irish Historical Society, and willing to share in its
labors and responsibilities, I cannot but accede to your wishes,
whatever misgivings I may have as to my ability to fulfill your
expectations.
My descent from Irish ancestry, of which I am justly proud, and also
from the English and Welsh, not only enables me to regard myself as
among typical Americans in respect of origin, as well as aspirations
and pride of country, but renders me fondly sympathetic with the
aims and purposes of this American-Irish Society.
The main purpose of the American-Irish Historical Society is to
elucidate the history of the Irish element in our people and the
extent of the contributions to our development and civilization
since the earliest colonial period,—a rich and greatly neglected
field for historical research.
The society intends to demonstrate the fact that this element has
not been given the credit which is its due by the writers of
American history, and to prove by authoritative records that from
the earliest days of the settlement of this country up to the
present day, it has done its part towards establishing and
maintaining this great Republic, and in developing its greatness in
every field of its achievements.
But it is not solely to chronicle the deeds of Irish ancestors, or
their descendants, and our contemporaries that we have organized an
historical society.
Ownership, or the right of possession, as well as pride of descent,
tend to make one a better citizen. We, therefore, desire that as our
young men grow up they may feel that they inherit the right of
ownership in our great country; that their ancestors have done their
part towards the up-building of the grandest nation upon earth—a
part not surpassed by any other element of our people, and therefore
that they should always exercise the right of citizenship as a
sacred trust transmitted to them for the glory and welfare of their
country.
Of all those who by immigration have helped to people our country,
the Irish have come imbued with the most intense feeling of loyalty
towards our institutions, and it may be safely asserted that, since
our independence of English rule was proclaimed, every true Irishman
has felt, on landing in America, that the American shore was not a
foreign shore for him. To perpetuate this feeling is the crowning
object for which the society is organized.
Again sincerely thanking the society, through the committee, for the
honor conferred upon him, President-General Moseley assured them that he
would discharge the duties of the office to the very best of his
ability.
In answer to the subjoined call the third meeting was held Nov. 16,
1897.
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL,
PAWTUCKET, R. I., Nov. 1, 1897.
DEAR SIR:—You are hereby notified that the third meeting of the
American-Irish Historical Society will be held at Young’s Hotel,
Boston, Mass., on Tuesday evening, Nov. 16, 1897.
There will be a business session of the society at 6.30 P.M.,
followed, at 7.30 o’clock, by a dinner and post-prandial exercises
of an interesting nature.
The after-dinner features will include:
(1) An address by the presiding officer.
(2) The reading of letters from distinguished members of the
society unable to be present.
(3) A paper by Mr. Dennis Harvey Sheahan, of Providence, R. I.
(ex-clerk of the Rhode Island House of Representatives), on “The
Need of an Organization such as the A. I. H. S., and its Scope.”
(4) A congratulatory letter from His Excellency Elisha Dyer,
Governor of Rhode Island.
(5) An address by Mr. John Mackinnon Robertson, of London, author
of _The Saxon and the Celt_.
(6) A communication to the society from Hon. Joseph T. Lawless,
Secretary of State, Virginia.
(7) A paper on “The O’Briens of Machias, in the Revolution,” by
Mr. H. W. Chaplin, of Boston, Mass., who is a descendant of the
O’Briens.
Invitations to attend the dinner have been extended Rear-Admiral
Belknap, U. S. N.; Dr. John Sullivan, a descendant of Gen. John
Sullivan of the Revolution; and President Andrews, of Brown
University. President Andrews’s work on American history is well
known, and his patriotic address recently, before the Twentieth
Century Club, will not soon be forgotten.
It is earnestly desired that every member of the society who can
possibly be present at the coming meeting will attend and help make
the event the great success it so richly deserves.
Fraternally, and in behalf of the Executive Council of the Society,
THOMAS HAMILTON MURRAY,
Secretary-General.
The third general meeting of the American-Irish Historical Society was
held at Young’s Hotel, Boston, on the evening of November 16, about
seventy members being in attendance. Gen. James R. O’Beirne,
Vice-President for New York, presided at the business session.
Secretary-General Thomas Hamilton Murray made his official report,
saying:
The society is steadily growing in membership, and is receiving an
excellent class of active workers. Many of these new accessions are
gentlemen of national reputation. Before the year closes it is
expected that between five and six hundred members will have been
enrolled. Since the founding of the organization last January, three
members have died. They were Postmaster Coveney, of Boston;
Rear-Admiral Meade, who was the first President-General of the
society; and Lawrence J. Smith, of Lowell, Mass.
Twenty-eight states, the District of Columbia, and two foreign
countries are now represented in the society’s membership. Since the
last gathering of the organization the council of the society has
held a number of meetings, and has materially furthered the
movement.
The organization has enlisted widespread attention, and requests for
genealogical information, historical data and facts relating to
early Irish settlers in this country have been received almost
daily. Several of the society’s members are of Revolutionary stock,
and some are descendants of officers who served under Washington.
Some of the members, too, trace their American ancestry back to a
period anterior to King Philip’s War.
Since the last meeting an excellent article descriptive of the
society and its purposes has been contributed to the _Granite State
Monthly_, of Concord, N. H., by the Treasurer-General, John C.
Linehan. A committee of Washington members of the society now has in
preparation a diploma of membership and a seal. This committee will
probably be ready to submit its designs at the next meeting. The
members at the national capital have extended the society a cordial
invitation to hold its coming meeting in that city, and have, in
fact, already begun preparations for the event, under the direction
of President-General Moseley. Gen. James R. O’Beirne, on behalf of
the New York members, has also tendered the organization an
invitation to meet in the near future in that city.
The last meeting of the society’s council was held in Pawtucket, R.
I., as the guests of the members in that place and Providence. The
meeting was very profitable to the cause. Several new members were
obtained for the organization; and the entertainers’ hospitality was
unbounded. The council has been invited to attend similar gatherings
in Worcester, Lawrence, and other cities. This indicates the
interest aroused. Massachusetts has at present the largest
representation in the society; then follow in order Maine, New
Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania.
At the conclusion of Mr. Murray’s report a committee of three was
appointed to take suitable action on the death of Lawrence J. Smith, of
Lowell, Mass. The committee consists of Joseph Smith, Lowell; Thomas B.
Lawler, Worcester; and Capt. P. S. Curry, Lynn.
William McConway, of Pittsburg, Pa., presented a check for $50 to the
society.
It was voted to hold the next meeting of the society in New York City.
The business session then adjourned, and the company proceeded to
dinner.
Hon. Thomas J. Gargan presided; and seated on his right and left were
John Mackinnon Robertson, of London; Admiral Belknap, U. S. N.; Gen. J.
R. O’Beirne, New York; Hon. P. A. Collins, Boston; Col. John C. Linehan,
Concord, N. H.; Rev. Edward McSweeney, Bangor, Me.; James Jeffrey Roche,
of Boston; Thomas B. Lawler, of Worcester; and Joseph Smith, of Lowell.
Around the tables were noted: the Revs. William P. McQuaid, Boston; John
Harty, Pawtucket, R. I.; J. H. Lyons, Boston; Dr. W. D. Collins,
Haverhill, Mass.; Dennis H. Sheahan, Providence, R. I.; Stephen J.
Casey, Providence; Osborne Howes, Boston; Humphrey O’Sullivan, Lowell,
Mass.; J. F. Brennan, Peterboro, N. H.; Representative John Jolly,
Alderman Thomas O’Brien, and Hugh J. Lee, Pawtucket, R. I.; Daniel
Donovan, Timothy Donovan, and P. S. Curry, Lynn, Mass.; Hon. Joseph H.
O’Neil, Dr. William H. Grainger, Dr. P. J. Timmins, M. A. Toland, Edward
A. McLaughlin, M. J. Jordan, Dr. P. F. Gavin, Charles E. S. MacCorry,
Joseph P. Flatley, Jeremiah W. Fogarty, all of Boston; Edmund Reardon,
Capt. J. F. Murray, and Edward M. Manning, of Cambridge, Mass.; James
Cunningham and Frank W. Cunningham, of Portland, Me.; and many others.
After dinner a short but stirring speech was made by the presiding
officer, Hon. Thomas J. Gargan, who said in part:
It cannot be otherwise than interesting to analyze the materials
entering into the warp and woof of our democratic fabric. We are a
nation receiving emigrants from almost every country on the face of
the globe. We are endeavoring to amalgamate people of different
races, languages, and religions into a homogeneous mass, eliminating
all that is vicious, and so refining what is good, hoping to evolve
the best type of manhood and womanhood to be found in the coming
century.
Doubtless the descendants of each race making contributions to our
population will perform their share of the work in tracing their
early settlements and their efforts in up-building the Republic. Our
share of the work is to examine the data and preserve the records of
the Irish and their descendants, and their contributions to the
settlement of the original Colonies, the founding of the nation, the
upholding of the Union, and the maintenance of democratic
institutions.
Proud of our ancestry, yet loving the United States and loyal to our
citizenship, we desire a fair share of credit for what they have
accomplished. We respect the Germans, the French, the Italians, and
the genuine Scotchman; but for that masquerading misnomer, the
Scotch-Irishman, who claims no ancestry and no country as his own,
we have only contempt; and he will go down to posterity as he
deserves, “unwept, unhonored, and unsung.”
A distinguished man has said “the Irish have fought successfully the
battles of all countries but their own.” They have also contributed
their full share to the civilization and progress of all
English-speaking people. That they possess brilliant qualities is
not denied; but it is charged that they lack steadiness of purpose.
I think a careful and critical study of the history of this country
will refute this assertion.
To assert that they have imperfections is but to say they are human.
For much of their humanity, I say God bless them. I wish there was a
little more humanity in the world in our day.
We of this society are only asking that they may be spoken of and
written of impartially, truthfully. “Nothing extenuate, nor set down
aught in malice.” We will accept our share of just criticism. The
malice and insolence of ignorance have unfortunately held the
platform too long. It is our duty to endeavor to refute errors with
clear statements of cold facts. For such purposes this society was
organized; and it is very gratifying to be able to announce that in
ten months since its organization we have already a list of nearly
five hundred members coming from almost every state in the Union,
representing some of the most distinguished men and families of the
Republic. I congratulate you, fellow-members, on this signal
success.
Mr. Gargan then introduced Mr. John Mackinnon Robertson, of London,
author of many striking books and pamphlets, but most widely and
favorably known to members of the Society and Irish-Americans generally
by his masterly work, _The Saxon and the Celt_. Mr. Robertson is a tall,
handsome man of forty, with dark hair, moustache and beard, and a
well-modulated voice, which without effort reached the furthest part of
the room. He gesticulates very seldom, and uses none of the tricks of
the practiced orator; but he held his audience in rapt attention
throughout his whole discourse, evoking applause and laughter at
frequent intervals. He is a firm believer in the ultimate and not far
distant triumph of Home Rule; and his advice to the American friends of
the cause had the merit of novelty at least.