last Saturday, consequently I did not get your letters till my
return last night. They would have been sent on to me, but I was
expected to return. I am much obliged for the information you have
given me, and the interest you have taken in a matter that affects
us all so closely. I have not heard from H. (Hynes), but yesterday
I received a note from E. (Egan) urging me strongly to go over, but
I did not understand for what purpose till I got your explanation.
I should like to go very much if I could spare the time, and if I
thought my visit would produce the effect anticipated, but I am
afraid it would not. I have no authority to speak for anybody, and
no man would undertake to speak for the V.C. without its consent,
and which must take time to get; and none of us, even if we had
that consent, could give any guarantee for the individuals on
the other side, who are hostile, and who, I feel certain, do not
represent the opinion of the home organisation. There can be no
change there until there is a change of persons, and that is sure
to come in time. All I could do would be to tell E. (Egan) and
P. (Parnell), on my own responsibility, what I believe would be
satisfactory to our friends here, and make propositions that I
might have felt morally certain would be approved of; but I would
not, on any consideration, have them pay my expenses; that would
place me in a false position at once. I have asked advice, and
if certain friends here think it the right thing to do, I shall
start next Wednesday; but, at present, I do not think I shall be
so advised. They seem to misunderstand our dissatisfaction here.
It is not their action in Ireland, but the action they allow their
friends to take in their name here. There is little difference of
opinion about the essential point, but we cannot tolerate the kind
of thing begun in Buffalo. Please drop me a line to P.O. box 4,479,
New York City, and even if I should go it will reach me. I will
write again.—Yours in haste,
“JOHN DEVOY.”
Before proceeding to Sullivan and Hynes, I took a trip to
Philadelphia, in order to see Dr. Carroll and convey Mr. Parnell’s
views to him. With him I found very little sympathy for the proposal.
He was as antagonistic to the open movement as possible. As for
Davitt, he had lost all faith in him. “When Davitt ceases to be a
Revolutionist,” he remarked, “I have no further use for him.” As for
any practical alliance between the two forces, his idea was that no
two or three people should take upon themselves to decide, but that
the whole question should be brought up before the coming Convention.
Altogether, Dr. Carroll appeared anything but an enthusiast on Mr.
Parnell’s behalf, although in the end he went the length of saying
that he was glad to find by Mr. Parnell’s attitude that there was a
returning sense of reason on his part. From Philadelphia I journeyed
to Chicago, where I saw Alexander Sullivan and William J. Hynes. I
dealt with them separately at first, but in the end a conference
took place between the three of us. The news I brought them appeared
to be a source of gratification. They apparently fully realised the
importance of the situation, and determined in the end that one of
them at least should go.
I had now completed my part of the work, and so, content with my
labours, I returned home, wrote a full account of my proceedings to
Mr. Anderson, and turned my attention to my business. I communicated
fully with Egan in two lengthy letters, but I did not write Mr.
Parnell, for Egan had purposely asked that I should not communicate
direct with his chief. As far as any further public action on my part
was concerned, I dropped out of the affair at this point. I knew that
I should learn everything in time, and I was quite content to wait.
As I had anticipated, I did hear the result, and on no less an
authority than that of Sullivan himself. He informed me some time
later that the sanction of the executive body of the Clan-na-Gael
or V.C. had been given to the bringing about of an “understanding.”
Sullivan, however, did not anticipate that it would be all plain
sailing. Even then he expected trouble from the members of the home
organisation, but he pointed out that their opinion was not that of
the organisation in its collective capacity. On one point he was very
strong, and that was the getting rid of poor old O’Leary. The old
man’s independence of mind and speech was not by any means relished,
and so it was determined that he should go. There could be no
radical change brought about, Sullivan confessed, while O’Leary was
there, and, I might depend upon it, a change of the representative
was certain to come very soon. As he talked, Sullivan grew quite
enthusiastic over the new move, and he showed me by his manner that
he had given the subject a great deal of thought.
“I feel morally certain,” he continued, “that the propositions I will
make will be approved of. I for one am opposed to bringing up this
matter openly at the coming Convention. I shall most certainly object
to Parnell or any of his friends compromising themselves by allowing
such a course. The whole matter must be left to the Revolutionary
Directory and the F.C.” (Executive Body). [As it will be seen later,
this is exactly what happened. There was no public discussion of
the proposal in open convention, but matters were satisfactorily
arranged in the quiet caucuses of the responsible committees.]
Sullivan, continuing, said, “They (that is, the Parnellites) seem to
misunderstand our dissatisfaction here. Our quarrel is not with their
action in Ireland, but with the action they allow their friends here
to take in their name. I know there is but little difference about
essential points, but we cannot tolerate the kind of thing begun in
Buffalo.”
This reference to Buffalo dealt with some proceedings in connection
with the first American Land League Convention of a few weeks
previously, which had attracted a good deal of attention and comment
at the time. I had no personal knowledge of what took place, owing to
the Convention having been held while I was in Europe, but I heard
fully of the affair on my return. The whole thing was nothing more
or less than an attempt on the part of the clerical element to gain
the controlling power in the League Councils, to the exclusion of the
Clan-na-Gael influence. Certain speeches had been made and action
taken with this view, and although the result had not weakened them,
the Clan-na-Gael leaders felt very bitter on the point.
XXXVIII.
The month of August at length arrived, and with it the Great Dynamite
Convention of 1881. It was pretty well known that “active” work
was to be the order of the day, when the future plans and schemes
of the organisation came to be discussed. Nothing was talked of
throughout the camps but the utter lack of practical effort which had
characterised the past few years; and now, when funds were pretty
large, and the organisation itself in a very flourishing condition
in every way, it was determined that some outward and visible sign
should be given England of its power of doing mischief. The stories
which were daily reaching America of the alleged brutalities being
practised by the British Government, only served to inflame the blood
of the rank and file of the conspirators, and to make them the more
eager to force on some exhibition of their strength. The leaders,
however, were in no sense behindhand in the way of bloodthirsty
sentiment; indeed, as will be seen by what I have already stated
about Devoy and others, arrangements had ere this been completed for
giving expression to the popular desire.
The Convention, which assembled in the club-room of the Palmer House,
Chicago, lasted from the 3rd to the 10th of August 1881; and although
the word dynamite finds no single place in the official records of
the assembly, it was in the air and in the speeches from start to
finish. The whole question of active operations came up and was
debated at great length in connection with the statement of accounts
furnished by the trustees of the Skirmishing Fund. Many of the
delegates present attacked both the Revolutionary Directory and the
Executive Body for having practically done nothing, while an enormous
amount of money had been spent from this fund; and wild demands were
made for particulars. The fight raged so fiercely that disclosures
were made compromising people on the Irish side of the water; and,
in order to prevent a complete _exposé_, a resolution was suddenly
passed forbidding the mention of names and other compromising
particulars. Explanations were, however, tendered as to the schemes
which had been discussed and in part arranged. These included
the treaty with Russia, the supply of officers to the Boers, the
torpedo-boat, the hand-grenade, the purchase and shipment of arms,
the purchase of 200 six-pound cannons at $25 each, and the attempt to
rescue Michael Davitt on two occasions.
In the end a resolution in the following terms was adopted which,
read by the light of the many and excited debates, was a clear
instruction to the Executive Body to be up and doing at once in the
way of “active” warfare:—
“That it is the sense of this Convention that, while we do not
dictate to the F.C., whatever action they may inaugurate, however
decisive, will meet the full approval of the delegates present and
the V.C. at large.”
This, however, was not the only important resolution they recorded.
While the fight over an active policy was being engaged in, I
secretly attended by request before the Committee of Foreign
Relations, and explained to them the views of Mr. Parnell and Patrick
Egan. As the result of what took place in connection with this
matter, the following resolution was proposed and adopted in open
convention:—
“That it is the sense of this Convention that both branches of
the S.E. (_i.e._, the Irish and the American members of the
Revolutionary Directory), in so far as they can give their time and
energies to it, should devote themselves to the work of revolution;
and if such bodies cannot give their approval to public movements
that are intended to promote the political and social regeneration
of Jsfmboe (Ireland) when they are supported by a large proportion
of the Jsjti (Irish) people, they will at least refrain from
antagonising them, and that the members of the I.S.C. (the Irish
Republican Brotherhood) and the V.C. (Clan-na-Gael) should not
arbitrarily be prevented from exercising liberty of action in
regard to such movements.”
XXXIX.
In this way did both of Mr. Parnell’s ideas receive recognition
and support. In the first place, the Revolutionary Directory was
instructed to prepare for the rising of which he spoke, while, in
the second, a pretty strong hint was given to the home organisation
that members in their individual capacity should join the League
and support its programme. It is only right that I should state at
this point that I was not the only one charged with representing
Mr. Parnell’s views. My attendance before the Foreign Relations
Committee brought me into contact with John O’Connor, _alias_ Dr.
Clarke, _alias_ Dr. Kenealy, the travelling agent of the Clan-na-Gael
in Europe, who informed me that he specially attended in his
representative capacity to support the “understanding.” This was not
my first meeting with O’Connor by any means. When in Paris I had been
introduced to him by O’Leary, and had frequently met him in the
company of Egan, with whom he was on the most confidential terms, and
working in perfect harmony. O’Connor’s statement was followed by one
on the part of Devoy, who informed me that “the matter was now all
right.”
This Convention saw the initiation of the Sullivan _régime_,
Alexander Sullivan, ere its close, being elected to the position of
president of the organisation, with head-quarters at Chicago. His
election was attended by many changes in the constitution. Up to
this the executive body, or “F.C.” as it was termed, had consisted
of a chairman, secretary, and treasurer, with eleven district
members or “E.N.’s,” elected to control the society in their several
districts. The Convention now reconstituted the “F.C.” by excluding
these eleven “E.N.’s,” and limiting the number to six, including the
secretary, who was _ex-officio_, but without a vote. This was quite
a revolution in the management of affairs, and Sullivan, in his
new position, acquired a power and prominence never enjoyed by any
previous president. It was after gaining possession of this important
and powerful post that he visited Europe, in accordance with the
arrangement I had been the means of first proposing to him. Of course
it was not publicly announced that Sullivan was in Europe. By some
he was understood to be ill, by others in Florida. It would never
have done for him to have publicly admitted or allowed the fact to be
known that he was so far east as Paris.
I had very many interesting conversations at this Convention, but
none more so than those with Dr. Gallaher, now in Portland Prison
for complicity in the dynamite outrages, and Mackay Lomasney, who
had just returned from Ireland, where, like Devoy in 1879, he had
been acting as the inspecting envoy of the Clan-na-Gael. Gallaher,
at the time I speak of, was making experiments in the manufacture of
explosives, and advocating their use. He was quite enthusiastic in
their praise, and so carried away by his subject that he expressed
his willingness to personally undertake the carriage of dynamite to
England and to superintend its use there. Lomasney was an equally
ardent dynamitard, not foreseeing then the fate which awaited him
under London Bridge.
I think I cannot better conclude this chapter than by quoting the
following statement of accounts, furnished at this Convention, of
the Skirmishing Fund, which, in all its details, even to the amount
stolen by the messenger of the _Irish World_, should prove of
interest.
RECEIPTS, &c.
Total receipts by _Irish World_ up to May 31, 1881 $88,306 32
Received by trustees from other sources 1,603 50
Interest 1,072 50
Profits on Exchange 471 25
----------
$91,453 57
----------
EXPENSES, &c.
Purchase of bonds $31,488 87
Lent per F.C. to S.C. for tools 10,000 0
Lent to F.C. 5,875 0
Irish volunteers 1,000 0
J. J. O’Mahony’s burial 2,030 0
O’D. Rossa’s defalcations 1,321 90
Old submarine vessel 4,042 97
New submarine vessel 23,345 70
Miscellaneous expense 321 4
Lent Dr. Carroll 860 0
Luby and Burke 100 0
Cheques dishonoured 78 68
Reception, Condon and Meledy 249 79
Allowed A. Ford on old money, Rossa’s not cashed 41 90
_Irish World_ overcharged 5 4
Subsidising foreign newspapers (J. J. O’Kelly) 2,000 0
Land League trial (Davitt) 1,532 0
Special to O’Kelly 177 63
Author, New Departure 1,003 90
Stolen by messenger of _Irish World_ 27 50
Reception of Parnell 165 0
----------
$85,666 92
----------
ASSETS.
Balance in bank $5,745 82
Balance on hands 40 83
---------
$5,786 65
----------
XL.
I have found this subject of Irish secret conventions so interesting
to the many people who have talked with me about Clan-na-Gael affairs
since my appearance in the witness-box that I almost think I might
venture on some slight description of the _modus operandi_ of these
gatherings without wearying the reader. Like all proceedings from
which the general public are shut out, a Clan-na-Gael assembly
becomes interesting in proportion to the amount of secrecy by which
it is attended. Not indeed that a Clan-na-Gael Convention is anything
very exciting or terrible after all. It possesses none of the weird
features of that scene in which our three old friends of Macbeth
figure. It is on the contrary very Irish—very Irish indeed. But what
it is and what it is not can best be demonstrated by some few details
by way of description; and so, transforming my gentle reader for the
nonce into a V.C. delegate, I will take him with me for a flying
visit to the Clan Convention of 1881 in the club-room of the Palmer
House, Chicago.
As we pass along down the corridor to the iron doors of the
club-room, we find our passage barred by two stalwart Irishmen. They
are members of the local camp, stationed as sentinels to prevent the
entry of the unauthorised. We have already presented our credentials
and been intrusted with the necessary passwords, and on giving
the outside password to these guardians of the door, we are duly
admitted. On the other side, however, we are brought face to face
with another couple of trusted Gaels, and to them we have to give the
inside password. ’Tis done, and, freed now from further question, we
enter the charmed assembly. What a sight! What a babel of voices and
a world of smoke! You can scarce see for the clouds which curl and
roll round you as the breath of fresh air is admitted by the opening
door, while, as for hearing, your ears are deafened by the din and
clatter of many tongues and stamping feet. Yes, we are at last in the
Irish Parliament, as it is grandly termed, in full session. These
are the hundred and sixty odd delegates of the great V.C., sworn “to
make Ireland a nation once again,” who are now assembled in the year
of grace 1881 to clamour for dynamite as the only means of achieving
their patriotic ends.
Let us sit down in the corner and study the scene with attention.
It partakes, on the first view, more of the character of a “free
and easy” entertainment than a grave portentous gathering of
conspirators; but you must not judge by first appearances or
outward characteristics. It is the way these men have of doing their
business, and the dread character of their work is in no way affected
by the almost ludicrous phases of the preliminary performance. Always
you must remember that you are dealing with Irishmen, who in their
wildest and most ferocious of fights still retain that substratum of
childishness of character and playfulness of mood, with its attendant
elements of exaggeration and romance, which make it as difficult for
an ordinary House of Commons member to rightly understand his Irish
colleague when he launches forth in description or invective, as it
is for the civilised foreigner to know where the actual grievance now
comes in.
Well, we are seated, and we must proceed to make the most of our
time. And so I hurry on with my description. That is the chairman
seated over there on the platform, with his two secretaries in
attendance. The permanent presiding officer, as he is termed, is on
this occasion no other than our friend Wm. J. Hynes, the gentleman
who received his start in Chicago politics as a professional juryman
through the instrumentality of Alexander Sullivan, and who since that
time has put together flesh as well as riches, and is now one of the
strongest-looking men here, possessed of that which, if he had no
other qualification, would yet constitute a strong claim for the
office of chairman—a voice capable of rising above the din caused by
fifty excited patriots all yelling with their greatest might. Seated
round in semi-circular fashion are the different delegates who, in
the language they love so well, may be described as the flower of
Irish-American patriotism. They are a funny crowd, as lolling with
arms akimbo, and thumbs resting in their waistcoat arm-holes, they
hang their feet on the chairs in front, which for comfort’s sake
are tilted to an angle of some 40 or 45 degrees, and puff their
cigars—on such an occasion there is nothing so vulgar as a pipe
indulged in—high up into the air, changing their position now and
again in order to have a pull at those interesting-looking black
bottles, or to disrobe themselves of coat or waistcoat, the better to
cool their heated frames.
But hark! there is a row on now. Listen to the oaths and foul
epithets which fill the air. These two patriots to our left have
apparently disagreed about something and, want to fight it out. See
how they jump to their feet, kick the chairs about, throw a curse
across the floor at the chairman as he seeks to stop their rowdy
proceedings, and enter into grips with each other. Watch how friends
hurry up on either side, and note the general confusion which now
reigns. The business of the Convention of course is brought to a
standstill, but not for long. See, all is quiet again now. These
incidents are of hourly occurrence, and the fun of it all is that
these two combatants will be drinking whisky in the most amicable
way out of the same black bottle in less than a quarter of an hour’s
time. Do you notice these few men hurrying in with handkerchiefs to
their lips? Thirsty souls! They have been taking advantage of the
interval to pay a visit to the bar.
XLI.
At last we turn to business again. Luckily the topic is an exciting
one—nothing less indeed than the Skirmishing Fund discussion—and
so matters will be interesting. O’Meagher Condon is on his feet, and
he is launching forth in vehement style against the whole of the
governing powers. Condon is one of those men who were mixed up in
the Manchester Martyr affair, and since his arrival here a couple
of years since, on being amnestied, he has been quite a hero. He
has now a position in a Government department at Washington, and is
much esteemed in the ranks of the Gaels. How his face works with
excitement and passion as he attacks Devoy and his fellows on the
Revolutionary Directory for their want of practical work. He finishes
at last, and up jumps Devoy, more sour-looking than ever, with the
perpetual scowl growing heavier and heavier. As he proceeds, the
author of the New Departure has recourse to the usual method of
controversy. He asserts that Condon is a coward, and was guilty of
the grossest neglect at Manchester. If Condon had but distributed the
twenty odd pounds which were found on him on his arrest, many of the
men would have escaped, instead of being captured with empty pockets.
Gruffer and gruffer becomes Devoy’s voice, as losing partial control
of himself he trembles with excitement and flings charge after charge
across the floor.
We are in for another personal quarrel, and so have to wait patiently
while Condon, for the hundredth time, recites the threadbare
narrative of his glorious deeds in Manchester. Matters are very
electrical when the Rev. George C. Betts of St. Louis craves a
hearing, and with his well-known smile seeks the suffrages of
his fellow-patriots for the moment. Truly, a strange figure in a
strange place. Tall, erect, in the black garb of the Church, with
priest-like face and priest-like form, he woos the assembly to a
strange quietness as his clerical style of utterance falls upon
the audience. He is as hot a dynamitard as any, but he wants no
personalities. If they are to accomplish anything, they really must
be more practical. And so he proceeds, winning applause and spreading
enthusiasm, till Devoy and Condon, and their personalities, are swept
into forgetfulness, and all are engaged in applauding revolutionary
sentiment spiced with religious quotation, and served up in the most
orthodox of fashions.
The reverend dynamitard concludes, and resumes his seat amidst
most enthusiastic evidences of his popularity. He gives way to an
equally inharmonious figure in this motley gathering. The man who
now rises is one of medium height, whose every movement bespeaks the
professional man, as awhile back the picture presented by the Rev.
Dr. Betts bespoke the cleric. A young man too is this, with his neat
attire, trim beard, and gold-headed cane. No less a person is he than
Dr. Gallaher, who, in this year of 1892, in the convict suit of grey
with its regulation arrows, works out his weary life in Portland
prison. As you watch, and as he speaks in that quiet gentlemanly
fashion of his, you can well believe that he is a man of whom it
might be afterwards boasted that he was introduced to Mr. Gladstone
himself. Save in his sentiments there is nothing of the dynamitard
about him, but in the matter of his speech there is no room for
doubt. Quiet and self-controlled though he be, his talk is the talk
of war, and the enthusiasm which lights up his countenance is that
strong steady flame which will steadily burn till England’s dungeon
doors close upon him and cut short his career of recklessness.
Following him on the floor is the familiar form of Denis Feeley,
the fellow “Triangler” of Sullivan in later days, and with him the
object of attack on the part of Cronin’s friends. Cool, calm, and
deliberate, he carries his audience with him as he advocates “a
secret blow at the enemy”; while his big form shakes with indignation
as he works himself up to an excited pitch over “the wrongs of their
beloved country.” At last Feeley concludes, and there rises another
well-known figure, that of T. V. Powderly, for years the chief of the
largest working-men’s organisation in America, known as “The Knights
of Labour.” Little doubt can there be as to his views. Listen to what
he says:—
“The killing of English robbers and tyrants in Ireland, and the
destruction by any and all means of their capital and resources,
which, enables them to carry on their robberies and tyrannies, is
not a needless act. Hence I am in favour of the torch for their
cities and the knife for their tyrants till they agree to let
Ireland severely alone. London, Liverpool, Manchester, and Bristol
in ashes may bring them to view it in another light.”