An Irish Martyr’s Memory

Mr. President and Gentlemen: I have been requested to address your society upon the history of one who may be called a martyr, one whose life, labors, and tragic death have furnished an indelible theme to the thousands of Ireland’s scattered sons. My mind goes back to boyhood days and the lessons learned in the schoolroom. When I first read of the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill, and their significance in the defense of this country, I had the hope that my memory and name would be linked to those who share the remembrance of those who died for freedom. There is a widespread lack of appreciation at the present time among a certain class who have never learned the experience of the fathers of this land, to create a sentiment of respect and veneration for Ireland and her leaders. The name and memory of such heroes and patriots as Robert Emmet is as much the product of American institutions as Henry Clay, Wendell Phillips, or Abraham Lincoln. Had he lived a few years earlier, and his fate filled his birthplace on this side of the Atlantic, his name and fame would have been written with Washington's and Warren's. The cause for which one died on the historic ground of Bunker Hill, and the other successfully warred for seven years, is identical with that for which Emmet wears a martyr’s crown—freedom from English domination.