OCH! Freedom's the Soul of a neat Irishman,
He'll strive to obtain it whenever he can;
With his Sprig of Shillala and Shamroc so green.
'Tis bred in his heart in its Centre and Core,
His Life's at its Service or any thing more;
From his post who shall drive him Machree Paddy whack,
On Freedom dear Freedom he'll ne'er turn his back,
With his Sprig of Shillala and Shamroc so green.
Should we have the Luck to see Jubilee Fair,
Friend Pat you will in your Glory be there;
With your Sprig of Shillala and Shamroc so green.
Then give me your Hand, for my Heart is quite full
At Sufferings so grievous your Brother John Bull
With Sorrow is melted; but mind what we're at;
We'll be free together, determin'd my Pat:
Where grows the sweet Rose and the Shamroc so green.
Then Joy to the Land that gave each of us Birth,
We'll have share of its Water, its Air, and its Earth,
Where grows the sweet Rose and the Shamroc so green.
For the Land is the people's the Gift of their God,
So Moses informs us, the whole of the Sod;
And should we possess but the whole of the Sod;
The Fruit will be Honey, and Milk for our Toil,
The Rose then will flourish with Shamroc so green.
Then list to your Brother and look at our Fall,
For Landlords possess what belongs to us all;
The Hills and the Plains and the Vallies so green.
Attend but to what Spence has written so plain,
'Twill rectify all and restore us again
To our Rank in the World, 'tis an excellent Plan,
Comprising the Rights and the Duties of Man,
Then hail it sweet Rose with the Shamroc so green.
ONE Night after Reading and Speaking of the melancholy Condition of the
Poor, in various parts of the Country, on Account of the Decay of Trade &c.
I dreamt I ascended up into a Planet, and what was equally wonderful my Sight
and Hearing, directly became so strong, that I could hear and see every Thing
passing on Earth.
Methought I saw in every Nation the same gloomy Discontent, the Rich not
being happy, and the Poor miserable. The Armies were so great every where,
under Pretence of War, that hadly any one durst utter a thought, on the real
Cause of these universal evils. Yet I perceived one Man in Despite of all
Danger boldly persist in declaring both the Cause, and the Cure of all this
Human Misery. Methought I saw this man earnestly addressing his Fellow
Creatures. Said he:—“Here, briefly, is the Cause of all your
Misery.—You know that multitudes of you, have been driven from the
Tillage of the Earth by the Landlords.—Thus destitute you fled to Cities
and Towns, to get Employment in Trade and Manufactures. While Trade flourished
Master Manufacturers could live comfortably, but Journeymen and Labourers,
though they made shift to live, were alwas from hand to mouth. But now Trade
fails. What must you do? Those who could barely exist before must now starve.
Will the Landlords take you back to till the Ground? Believe it not. Ask them
if they will. No (They will rather say, Die if you will, What are you to us?)
They know that too many in tillage would make Provisions cheap, and Rents fall,
which would not suit their Pride and Luxury. Thus are the Foundations of
Society, out of Course. For man was made to till the Ground, from whence he was
taken. Tillage is a trade that never fails, therefore the way to it ought to be
easy to every man when all other trades fail. But the Usurpers of the Soil shut
out mankind from this best Resource of Nature as if they were the Lords and
Creators of the Earth, and the rightful Dispenses of Life, and Death, to the
Rest of their Species—Perish such Ideas and all that countenance
them!” Then answered some peevishly, “ What can we do with the
Land? It must be private Property. And if it were given to other Proprietors,
they would be equally as bad, and likewise take every advantage. And again if
we pretend to divide the Land equally it cannot be done. For it is unequal in
Goodness: Moreover, what with some Selling their Lots, and the Increase of some
Families, while others decreased, People's Shares would soon become unequal
again, and the same Distress quickly follow.”
“Oh! Foolish Men,” replied the Teacher, “You have not well
considered the matter and I have suffered in vain for instructing you. You know
that all Things which cannot be divided justly among a Number of Proprietors
can yet be enjoyed with the nicest exactness in Partnership. As for Instance,
Shipping, Colleries, Mines, and many other great Concerns. Parthnership in
Trade is now well undertood. What great difficulty would there be in a Parish
managing its own territory, or Landed Property, as a joint stock in
Partnership? See the parish-Plan for which I have suffered. If you adopt that,
then you will be your own Masters and Landlords. And then you may return to
your natural occupation of Tillage, till the whole Earth be as the Garden of
Eden. Every land then will literally be a Land flowing with Milk and Honey. For
none will be in Trade and Manufactures, but those who can live well by them,
because, Tillage would then be open to all in the Case of
Difficulty.”
Some people who can see no farther than the present cruel System, may think
that Cultivation by these means may be carried to an Excess. But that can never
be, where there are no Landlords. These harpies indeed would certainly repine
at a redundancy of provisions dreading their effect on their Rents. But the
public at large being the Landlords would not be so afraid at any super
abundance, for what advantage they might lose in the Rents, they would gain in
their private consumption. Therefore they would let Rents take their cource,
like every thing else as they ought to do. The Government and Legislature being
Identically the same with the people, would not make Laws in favour either of
Exportation, or Importation, to encourage any class of Men at the Expence of
the public.—All would be free as Air.
“Heigh Day!” grumbled some of the Landlords, “We have
employed ourselves to a pretty Purpose indeed in Improving the Soil, building
Houses, Cities and Towns, if a Parcel of Women and Children are to have the
Fruit of our Labour.” “Your Labour you luxurious Drones!”
replied the Teacher, “Where is your Labour to be seen? Slaves and
unfortunate Men have cultivated the Earth, adorned it with buildings and filled
it with all kinds of Riches. And the Wealth which enabled you to set these
People to work, was got by Hook or by Crook from Society. Pray, was ever a
solitary Savage found to be rich? No:—All Riches come from Society, I
mean the Labouring Part of it. And when all these Improvements return back to
Society, they will only return to the Source from whence they came.”
The Teacher then proceeded to read his Constitution to the people, at the
Conclusion of which the whole multitutude set up such a shout of Acclamation,
that I awoke and to my sorrow found it but a Dream. Thus am I from being a
happy Celestial, reduced again to a poor disinherited Earth-worm, too much in
my senses, and with too exquisite Feelings, ever to be happy in such miserable
Society.