The new president-general of the Society, Thomas J. Gargan, said:
GENTLEMEN:-We may congratulate ourselves on the progress which this
Society has made during the two years of its existence. On Jan. 20,
1897, in response to a call, signed by thirty gentlemen from several of
the states of our republic, forty or more gentlemen assembled at Boston
and organized the Society.
Among other statements, the call recited that a number of gentlemen,
interested in the part taken in American history by people of Irish
birth or lineage, are about to organize themselves into an historical
society for the purpose of investigating and recording the influence of
that element in the upbuilding of the nation; also to place the Irish
element in its true light in American history. To secure its correct
perspective in relation to historic events on this soil is the final aim
of the new Society. Its primal object will be to ascertain the facts,
weigh them in relation to contemporary events, and estimate their
historical value, avoiding in this process the exaggeration and
extravagance of poorly-informed writers on the one hand, and the
prejudice and misrepresentation of hostile writers on the other.
We further stated, the organization will be constructed on a broad and
liberal plan. It will be non-political, and no religious test will be
required for admission to membership or the holding of office. Being an
American organization in spirit and principle, the Society will welcome
to its ranks Americans of whatever race descent who evince an interest
in the special line of research for which the Society is organized.
Established on this broad and liberal basis, the accessions to its roll
of membership have been most encouraging, as we have now more than one
thousand members, representatives in the truest sense of the
intelligence and character of the descendants of the Irish race in
America, coming from all parts of this great country, a country which
their forefathers, among the early colonists, took an active part in
reclaiming from the wilderness and upbuilding into this great republic
of the United States, of which we are no insignificant factor. A
distinguished man, who wrote nearly a century ago, said that all history
was a series of lies, which a few men agreed to consider facts. We all
agree that much of the history that has been written in the past has
been written by men who have preferred to see things through their
prejudices rather than their eyes, and no people have suffered more from
the ignorance and prejudice of writers—particularly English writers—than
the Irish people.
Unfortunately, many New England writers inherited the prejudices of
their English ancestors, and have either deliberately slurred the
contributions of the Irish in our history, or have failed to record
them. A discriminating and critical public demands that the searchlight
shall be thrown upon the dark spots. We are now, in this scientific age,
rewriting much of our history and revising our judgment of men. We
cordially welcome this new era, confident that when all the facts are
carefully scrutinized and critically examined, the Irish in the United
States have nothing to fear, but, on the contrary, will gain
immeasurably in the minds of all intelligent and impartial men.
In the first volume of the Journal of this Society, papers will be found
treating of the early history of the Irish settlers in New England, by
Messrs. Murray, Linehan, Smith, Brandon and Sheahan, members of our
Society, thus preserving in permanent form facts useful to the future
historian. The New England historian has never been noted for modesty in
claiming a full share of the glory of our country for New Englanders,
or, as he is prone to write it, descendants of the “Anglo-Saxon” race.
While honoring, as they deserve to be honored, the men of Boston and
Massachusetts who initiated the War of the Revolution, we are not
unmindful of what others have done to make our independence possible,
and to establish this form of government of ours, founded upon the
doctrine—not of the divine right of kings or of any other ruler, no
matter what he may call himself—to rule people, but the divine right of
the people to rule themselves, and lest we forget, in our hour of
conquest, let us recall again the doctrine of the founders of this
government: that all government ought to rest on the consent of the
governed. In establishing this government, the Irish element was a very
important factor. In the British House of Commons’ Report, fifth
session, fourteenth Parliament, Vol. xiii, page 303, we find the report
of an investigation of the causes of defeat in the war with the
colonies—the investigation was held in 1779—Major-General Robertson, who
had served twenty-four years in America, was asked: “How are the
provincial corps composed, mostly from native Americans, or from
emigrants from various nations of Europe?” He answered: “Some of the
corps mostly of natives, others, I believe the greatest number, are
enlisted from such people as can be got in the country, and many of them
may be emigrants. I remember General Lee telling me that he believed
half the rebel army were from Ireland.”
In Vol. xiii, British Commons’ Reports, page 431, Joseph Galloway, a
native of Pennsylvania, speaker of the assembly of the colony for twelve
years, and a delegate to the First Continental Congress, who became a
violent Tory in 1773, was examined for several days by members of the
House of Commons. Among the questions asked was: “That part of the rebel
army that enlisted in the service of congress, were they chiefly
composed of natives of America, or were the greater part of them
English, Scotch, or Irish?” Galloway answered: “The names and places of
their nativity being taken down, I can answer the question with
precision. There were scarcely one fourth natives of America, one half
Irish, the other fourth English and Scotch.”
The Irish contributed their full share in the War of 1812, in the war
with Mexico, and in the war that kept the Union whole. All facts
relating to the part borne by them should be carefully collected. In the
late war with Spain we have a large field for investigation. From the
state of Massachusetts, one fifth of her quota of soldiers were
unmistakably of Irish ancestry; the Ninth regiment, Massachusetts
volunteers, went into the field as an Irish-American regiment; of the
four other regiments, and the large number of sailors, an impartial
investigation would show a surprisingly large number of men of Irish
ancestry, and what is true of Massachusetts is true of every state in
the Union.
Gentlemen, while we are proud of our origin and our ancestry, we do not
forget that, above all, we are Americans, that we earnestly desire that
all the different elements that go to make up this nation shall be
blended together.
This American republic is a mighty crucible into which are thrown many
elements. We have been, and shall be, tested by severe fires; we must
separate the dross and the alloy, and the refined product will come
forth purified by the severest tests. In our process of amalgamation, we
shall eliminate from the different nationalities and races what is gross
and bad, avoiding the vices and emulating the good traits and virtues,
evolving, as the product of our American civilization, the highest type
of manhood or womanhood to be found on the habitable globe.
[Illustration:
COL. JOHN P. DONAHOE,
Of Delaware.
Residence, WILMINGTON.
]
[Illustration:
CAPT. PATRICK O’FARRELL,
Of the District of Columbia.
Residence, WASHINGTON.
]
[Illustration:
COL. C. C. SANDERS,
Of Georgia.
Residence, GAINESVILLE.
]
[Illustration:
MR. P. T. BARRY,
Of Illinois.
Residence, CHICAGO.
]
VICE-PRESIDENTS, RESPECTIVELY, FOR DELAWARE, GEORGIA, ILLINOIS, AND
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.