THE IRISH RACE.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XV, Issue 21, 16 September 1887, Page 7

THE IRISH RACE.

Thk following particulars are mainly taken from an interesting article in the Irish Tribvme. 8 A glance at the athletic records of America and the colonief will show that in every form of Btrength, skill, and agility, the highest places are held by men of Irish stock. Hanlan, an IrishCanadian , having beaten the world as an oaramao is conquered by Beach, who declares that he himself will shortly have to yeild the championship to a young Irish-Australian. John L. Sullivan, the boxer, offering odds of a >out 400 to 1, can find no maa in the world to Btand before him for four rounds of three minutes each, with large glove*. England has only one man worth mnetioning to act against Ti.rr, 1 ] ; and he is the 80n o£ lris a parents. If SulliTan were out of the field, the next great boxers in the world would ba Kilrain and Dempsey— both Irish-Americans. The base-ball players of America for a generation past have given the highest places to IrisfcAmencans. The first collar-and-elbow wrestler in America ii M Laughhn ; the first.Graaco-Rooaan wrestler is Muldoon. The beat and longest walkers are Daniel O'L;ary, JohnEnnis and Patrick Fitzgerald. And even in the latest and least worthy form of athletics, roller-skating, the highest place was won by the hapless lad Donovan lhe champion walker of Australia, Scott, is an Irishman, and the (till lately) champion runner, Malone is anlrishman, while Con Dwyer an Irishman, is the best amateur bicyle rider in ths Colonies. Lawrence Feley, an Irish-Australian, has for years held the boxing championship m Australia, and sons of Irish colonists are to be found foremost in the cricket, football, and rowing clubs. Australia's belt runner in former years— Bob Watson-was an Irishman, among her rowing men who have won fame, are found the names of HickaT Punch, Rush, Clifford and Matheson, all Irishmen or sons of Irishmen These varied superiorities are not accidental ; they are based as much on intelligence as on physical strength. Without keen and quick intelligence a strong m id cannot use his physical powers to their rull advantage. It is well known to scientists that the Irishman is a man of extraordinary compactness of intellectual and physical strength. Professor Forbes, of the University of Edinburgh, some years ago instituted an extensive series of observations of the size and strength of the students attending the University. He found that the Irish students were the tallest and strongest men. Professor Quetelet of the Univeriity of Brussels, instituted similar investigations, covering a number of years testing the quality of Belgians, Englishmen, bcotchmen, and Irishmen. He found the average height of the Belgian to be 68 inches, of the Englishman 68$, of the Scotchman 69, and of the Irishman 70 inches ; that the average weight in pounds of the Belgian was 150 pounds, of the Englishman 151, of the Scotchman 152, and of the Irishmen 155 pounds ; and that the average strength as indicated by a blow given to the plata of a spring dynamometer, in pounds, was, of the Belgian, 339 pounds, of the Englishman, 403 pounds, of the Scotchman, 423 pounds, of the Irishman. 432 pounds. ' " The Irish are thus," says Sir Robert Kane, L.L.0., « the tallest Btrongi-st, and heaviest of the four races." And Sir Robert Kane adds: Mr. Field, an eminent mechanical engineer of London, had occasion to examine the relative powers of British and Irish labourers to raise weignts by means of a crane. He communicated his results to the Institute of Civil Engineers in London. He fonnd that the utmost efforts of a man, lifting at the rate of one foot per minute, ranged in Englishmen from 11,505 to 24,255 pounds, and in Irishmen Irom 17,325 to 27,562 pounds. I have reason to doubt that these figures represent the existing conditions of these respective populations. Those experiments were carefully made at the time, and the results were as given." In remote as well as in modern times the Irish people were renowned for their strength and intelligence. Sir John Davies, an eminent Englishman, who was Attorney-General of Ireland in 161«, in his " Histonal Tracts," says " The bodies and minds of the Irish people are imbued with extraordinary abilities by nature." But what need to multiply testimony ? Look at the great industrial march of the United States, Caoada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Argentine Republic— who shall attempt to take from Irish workmen their honour of the burden 1 They are strong men to make roads and mines and railroads, to lay the foundation of cities. When the five millions of Irish people in Ireland get control of their own country they will make its marvellous resources hum with industrial development. They are a people worthy of a country, and circumstances and nature are ensuring that they shall have one.

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