In their address they
respectfully bring before her two facts then lately elicited, or rather
confirmed, by the Devon Commission--namely, that four millions of the
labouring population of Ireland "are more wretched than any people in
Europe--their only food the potato, their only drink water." They add,
that even these facts do not convey to her Majesty an adequate idea of
the destitution by which the Irish people are threatened, or of the
numbers who shall suffer by the failure of the potato crop; facts
related of the inhabitants of a country which, of late years, may be
justly styled the granary of England, exporting annually from the midst
of a starving people food of the best kind in sufficient abundance for
treble its own inhabitants. They assure her Majesty that fully one-third
of their only support for one year is destroyed by the potato blight,
which involves a state of destitution for four months of a great
majority of her Majesty's Irish subjects. They say, with respectful
dignity, that they ask no alms; they only ask for public works of
utility; they ask that the national treasury should be "poured out to
give employment to the people at remunerative wages.
Pages:
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149