Incidents of my life, professional, literary, social, with services in the cause of Ireland / by Thomas Addis Emmet.
- Thomas Addis Emmet
- Date:
- 1911
Licence: In copyright
Credit: Incidents of my life, professional, literary, social, with services in the cause of Ireland / by Thomas Addis Emmet. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.
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![would certainly be entitled to more respect than if he were to remain a nominal member for the sole purpose apparently of defeating his party’s policy. I will now communicate to you the fact that while I was awaiting Mr. Mc- Carthy’s return—the only person, by the way, in England with whom I sought an interview—I was visited by a number of persons in and out of the National party, who fully discussed with me the present situation of Irish affairs. Consequently I can justly claim to be in possession of a knowledge of this question from all points of view. My information I shall repeat to the Board of Trustees of the Federation of America. Whatever their action, there is no question that the time is near at hand when the Irish sympathizers in America, who are looked to for pecuniary aid to the Irish cause, will be heard from with no uncertain note if their cause of complaint be continued. The majority of the National party has our full confidence, but the Irish people themselves will soon have to assume the responsibility of deciding whether a faction, or the accredited majority of the National party, shall in the future be charged with the welfare of Ireland. You are fully aware that the sole object of our organization in this country is to raise money, and that we have never desired nor claimed the right of interference with the political affairs of the party; but if we are to be held responsible to any extent for the funds needed for the National party we have certainly the right to insist that our efforts in this direction should not be rendered futile and ridiculous with the public flaunting of internal dissensions by irresponsible members. I will state furthermore that lack of unity and discipline in the party which has permitted any member at his will to ventilate in the public press his purely personal views on his party’s policy has, from the beginning, nearly paralyzed our efforts in this country, and this has happened so often against our frequent protest that the opinion is fast gaining ground with us that those who resort to such practices are too selfish to be honest friends of Home Rule. In conclusion, allow me to state that with your per- sonal knowledge of these facts, and the disposition which I showed toward you, your letter cannot be regarded as either courteous or candid. I will send a copy of it with this answer to Mr. McCarthy, with the request that he may publish both, unless his judgment should disapprove of this course. Yours truly, Thos. Addis Emmet. Note VI See page 303 [Thomas Addis Emmet writes to the Herald about the National party.] To THE Editor of the Herald: In your issue of July ist, and under the editorial heading “Funds for Ire- land, ’’ an unfair statement of Irish affairs is made, not intentionally, I believe, but from a want of knowledge of the true situation. There exists but one party in Ireland in favor of Home Rule, the Irish](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b28034776_0578.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
