Letter from M. J. O'Donnell to Alice Stopford Green, 28 July 1916

Foo, Bar; Bar, Foo

Letter from M. J. O'Donnell to Alice Stopford Green, 28 July 1916

1 Castlegregory. Co. Kerry. July 28th 1916. Madam, I send herewith the Casement petition signed by nine
of the most representative men in this parish. I personally endorse every word in the petition
and I hope and pray that the members of the Government will
see their way to spare the life of this poor pure souled
honourable Irish gentleman. I may mention that the Kerry County
Council, at its quarterly meeting yesterday, at which
I presided, unanimously passed a strong
resolution calling for clemency for Roger
Casement. Anyway, another chapter shall have to be
added to 'Irish Nationality', and I fear me
that the last sentence in the last chapter of the
same shall have to be rewritten. I have the honour to be, Madam, a
humble admirer of the great work you have done
for Ireland 'In Memory of the Irish Dead.' M. J. O'Donnell , J.P. M.C.C. Madam J.R. Green, 36 Grosvenor Rd. Westminster.

This letter was written by M. J. O'Donnell, a member of Kerry County Council. The letter is addresed to Alice Stopford Green (1847-1929). Alice Stopford Green was the wife of historian John Richard Green (1837-1883). Stopford Green was a nationalist, involved in the Howth gun-running and a historian in her own right. She was shocked by the 1916 Rising and horrified that Casement had been plotting to obtain German assistance. Nonetheless, she visited Casement in prison and lobbied to prevent his execution. In the letter O'Donnell refers to a petition signed by 'nine of the most representative men' in his parish. The petition concerns the case of Roger Casement (1864-1916). Casement had been imprisoned in London after he had been arrested while landing on the coast of Kerry in a submarine on the eve of the Easter Rising. A campaign was launched featuring many prominent figures such as W.B. Yeats and George Bernard Shaw to secure a reprieve for Casement but he was hanged on 3 August 1916.In the letter O'Donnell also refers to Green's book 'Irish Nationality' stating that he believes another chapter will have to be added to the publication.

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How to cite

Letters 1916, published by the Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities, Vienna, 2026 (https://letters1916static.github.io/letters1916-static/item__0318.html)