The history of the United States has been largely written by men of English blood, who have unduly glorified the actions of their ancestors. More critical and scientific examinations have shown us that the Irish element contributed very largely to the settlement of the colonies from New England to Georgia, and were an important factor in bringing about the Revolution and establishing the government of the United States.
Our Society is now engaged in searching many of the colonial records, and I suggest that the members in the different states of the Union examine into the origin and ancestry of the prominent men in their states, prepare information and write papers that may be placed in the archives of this Society.
I congratulate the members on the increase in numbers, the continued prosperity of the Society, and urge all who can to contribute liberally to the publication fund, for spoken words are often but perishable things, and if the history of the part which our race and blood have borne in upbuilding the Republic is to be preserved, we can only keep alive the record of their sacrifices, their heroism and their patriotism by preserving them in the form of permanent memorials, books and publications of the Society.
THE ADDRESS OF SENATOR CARTER.
Hon. Thomas H. Carter, U. S. senator from Montana, made an eloquent address. In the course of his speech he paid deserved compliments to Hon. P. A. Collins of Boston, Hon. John D. Crimmins and General O’Beirne of New York, and to other members of the society.
Senator Carter showed the absurdity of calling the United States an Anglo-Saxon country, and traced the expansion of the original thirteen states, and the wonderful resources of America. He said in substance:
A new race has sprung up in this country better than Saxon or Celt. The success of the Republic is due to the fact that it unbridles manhood. The special purpose of this association is to ascertain what part dear old Ireland has played in this drama.
I am gratified beyond expression that this Society insists on seeing justice done to the race from which we have sprung. The work must be logical and correct. One of the most remarkable things is the intellectuality of the Irish race.
Wherever freedom’s flag is hoisted you will find an Irishman at or near that emblem. O’Higgins in South America is synonymous with liberty. On every battlefield in North America the Irishman is found, as he also is in poetry, history, arts and sciences. I would not adulate the race. The Irishman forms only a part of the American citizenship. But whether it is in storming Manila or the capital of Great Britain the Irishman will be found doing his work enthusiastically.
I would be delighted to see the Society extended to every state of the Union. There are many, very many, incidents in connection with the Irish race in America I would like to see set down. As a rule the Irish hold the offices, not because they are Irish, but as a recognition of ability and the eternal fitness of things.