Michael Davitt to John Tierney, 2nd April 1901. IE TCD MS 9376/1026

IE TCD MS 9376/1026: Letter from Michael Davitt, Dalkey, Co. Dublin, Ireland to John Tierney dated 2nd April 1901 concerning an invitation to speak at an event in Birmingham: "I am sorry I cannot promise to attend the meeting to which you were good enough to invite me, as it would be most inconvenient for me to travel so far from home and from my work one the date of the proposed demonstration. The platform of the Democratic League is a popular one and ought, on its merits, to have a strong claim upon the support of the English working classes. I fear however that it will not obtain that support. A horse racing programme, or a jingo policy for grabbing gold mines and strangling liberty in South Africa are much more to the liking of the masses in England just now than enlightened proposals, such as the Democratic League puts before them, for making the People the real rulers of their own country, instead of Landlords and Capitalists who govern it now in the name, but in real mockery of, true constitutional principles. As there appears to be no democracy in England at present, I wish success to a movement which is ambitious to create one and I hope that your forthcoming meeting in Birmingham for that purpose will be successful..." Recovered by Mrs. Mary Davitt.