Paddy at Home ("Chez Paddy")Mandat-Grancey, E. (Edmond), baron de
History
Paddy at Home ("Chez Paddy")
Mandat-Grancey, E. (Edmond), baron de
Ireland -- Description and travel
A Government should always give its servants a rate of pay which is in
accordance with the scale of salaries in the country. If it fixes too
low a sum, it can only obtain very inferior men; if it pays them too
much, there are ten candidates for one vacancy, and, since it can only
give one appointment, it creates nine irreconcilable enemies in the
persons of those it was forced to disappoint. The English Government,
however, like every other, is influenced by this principle; only its
pay is regulated by the scale of English salaries, and these salaries
are very high. It can scarcely have a special scale for Ireland. An
English constable who gains four or five shillings a day is not too
well paid, because his brother or his father, who are workmen, earn
about the same amount. But because an English constable receives
five shillings, it is necessary to give five shillings to an Irish
constable, although he is living in a country where the workmen never
earn more than one shilling per day. Now, since it is precisely upon
these Irish workpeople, who earn so little, that the taxes producing
the soldiers’ high pay weigh so heavily, they feel exasperated. The
same events take place under all administrations. This is another of
the Land League grievances, and one of its best arguments in favour of
Home Rule, for they point out that if Ireland were completely separated
from England, the pay could be reduced in proportion to the general
distress, and this can never be done whilst the union lasts.
The inspector of police spoke to me about the state of the country,
with which he is naturally better acquainted than any one else. The
neighbourhood of Kenmare is relatively quiet. However, he knows that
the tribunal of the Land League works regularly, and meets every
Sunday: everybody obeys its decisions.
To-day, a constable seized eight or ten summonses issued in the name of
this tribunal. This is an exact reproduction of one of them:--
“KILGAWAN BRANCH, I. N. LEAGUE.
_June 24, 1886._
MR. THOMAS MURRAY, BALLINACARRIGA.
DEAR SIR,
Your presence is requested in the league 2 p.m. On the 27th inst.
On behalf of the committee,
JOHN GODFREY, _Sec._”
He believes that he shall be forced to give James O’Leary two men as
a protection, who will not leave him day or night. There are already
several persons in the county in the same position. And it is only
because the expense is so very heavy, nearly 200_l._ a year, that there
are not more. However, the Government defrays this expense by levying a
special tax from all the inhabitants of the district.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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