Sir, - In reply to Seamus Martin's commentary on Daniel O'Connell upon the 150th anniversary of his death (May 14th), let me offer a concurring view from a descendent of generations of Irish people by contrasting O'Connell and Charles Stewart Parnell.
It appears strange to many in the worldwide Irish diaspora, in addition to some living in Ireland, that the cold, if not neurotic, Parnell retains more popularity than the articulate and charismatic O'Connell. To the champions of nationalism who finally severed the chains of the union, Parnell appeared a more uncompromising foe of the British than O'Connell.
Parnell's leadership of the Land League and his campaign of appeal to the Fenian tradition gave him a revolutionary image. To Yeats and Joyce he was a martyr sacrificed on the altar of British, anti Irish nationalism and a victim of Catholic authoritarianism and puritanism. He appeared to be a symbol of resistance to the forces of narrow minded oppression. His ego and ruthlessness had carved his political fortune. It seemed he was not only the leader of the Irish nation in his time, but might have considered himself the "uncrowned king" of Ireland and may well have been a latter day Robert Emmet.
On the other hand, Daniel O'Connell genuinely loved his own kind. He did not hate England, its people, or its culture; in fact, he wanted Britain's technological leadership, constitution, political institutions and liberal tradition for his own country. He loved Ireland and the Irish Catholic, Protestant and nonconformist. He was so concerned with Ireland's present and future that he exhibited little interest in its past, refusing to emote over former defeats and misery. Although he spoke it fluently, he considered Irish as a symbol of inferiority and an obstacle to progress. His lifelong rejection of violence for political ends might have been a model for generations of those who believe in nonviolence. His victorious struggle for Catholic emancipation was the first and most important step towards Irish freedom. Daniel O'Connel is truly an Irish hero.
Gainesville,
Florida
USA