Irish News.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXIV, Issue 10, 2 July 1897, Page 8

Irish News.

(From Contemporaries.)

ANTRIM.— An Irish Yacht.— lt has been decided to build an Irish yacht to compete for the American cup. The boat will be constructed in Hilditch's yards, Carrickfergus, County Antrim upon the order of Mr. Gustav Wilhelm Wolff, M.P. for East Belfast and a member of ihe Belfast shipbuilding firm ot Harland and Wolff; the Marquis of Dufferin and Vva and the Marquis of Londonderry. It will be sailed under the auspices of the Royal Ulster Yacht Club, of which the Marquis of Dufferin and Ava is Commodore. ABMAGH.— An O'Connell Anniversary Celebration. His Eminence Cardinal Logue has made arrangements, in accord nee with the wish of the Holy Father, to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the death of 0 Connell by solemn religious services in .St. Patrick's Cathedral. Armagh. The Pope hearing- that arrangements were being made at Home and at Genoa to celebrate the event expressed a wish that celebrations should also be held in Ireland, and nis Emmence nas ln a<te arrangements for the celebration on the 12th May. Cardinal Logue. in his pastoral on the subject, pays a tribute to the memory of the great leader and his great principle of uniting priests and people in the great movement for the regeneration of Ireland. •• As Christians," he says, •' we cannot believe that the true interests of our country will be promoted by the pursuit of po'itical principles which savour more of the maxims of paganism, of the modern materialism, than of the sublime inspirations of the Gospel. Such is the truth which O'Connell has proclaimed by word and example. It is well, therefore, that by reviving his memory the teaching of this great Catholic loader should be deeply impressed on the minds of our people." CORK.— A Melancholy Accident.— A melancholy accident occurred in Cork Park during a hurling match, when a player. William John Connell. aged about thirty, ami living at Bandon road. Cork, lost his life. A practice match was in progress between the Blackrock and St. Finbarr's hurling clubs, when deceased and a Blackrock player, named Denis Coughlan. rushed for the ball while it was in mid air. Coughlan struck at the ball and missed it, and the hurley struck Connell on the head, behind the ear. near the base of the skull. The unfortunate man fell to the ground immediately, and while being conveyed to the South Infirmary died. Coughlrn was arreste lon his way to Blackrock police barracks to give himself into custody. The deceased who was a most popular member of the St. Finbarr's Hurlino- Club was married and leaves one child. DONEGAL -Constabulary stations discontinued.Nine constabulary stations have been discontinued in Donegal Ihe causes which led to the establishment of the stations have in a great measure disappeared. The Ardsmore post was the result of the 1 lan of Campaign movement on the Olphert estate ten years ' ?£?'. G1 f nvei S n barracks were established to prevent trade in illicit whiskey, to preserve the peace after the " Glen veigh clearances, and to maintain th - b.tlance of power between the shepherds aod the people during the - *heep war," which some y, ur> »•>.. ra^ed in the Glen veigh and Gweedore districts. The illi.it dis?UUtion has been reduced to a minimum owing to the active interference of Bishop O Donnell. DUBLIN— An Irish Financial Reform League -Representatives from all parts of Ireland lately attended a Convention held m the Mansion House, Dublin, at which it was determined to form an organisation to be called the Irish Financial Reform League Ihe object of the League is to further the movement for the redress of the Imperial taxation in Ireland, and to maintain the financial rights to which she is constitutionally entitled. GAL WAY— Sunk in a Bog.— Mrs. Wraftery. of Cahernagarry, a farmer's wife, attended Loughrea on business, usin^ a lar»-e cart or creel drawn by a valuable breed mare. Returning with groceries and a considerable sum of money, she was accompanied by two f inner* named Donohue and Mahon. Near Danesfort the cart got into the bog: the horse backing violently, the cart was upset and fell bottom upwards with the three people caged inside helpless Ihe creel began to sink, and the unfortunate people became panicstricken. A herder named Fahy found them submerged up to their chests. To reach them he had to scramble through a slimy mass five feet deep Catching the creel he tore it asunder, and one by one dragged the half -suffocated people to the roadside. The tiour, meal and groceries, and a bag containing the money disappeared altogether. The cart and horse also sank beneath the surface, but were subsequently drawn out. the horse being dead. LIMERICK.-The Irish Textile Exhibition-Arrange-ments are in progress to make the Irish Textile Exhibition, initiated by her Excellency the Countess Cadogan, of as representative a character as possible. A meeting was recently held in Limerick presided over by the mayor, and it is stated that sever.il factories' schools, convents and individuals have intimated their intention of participating in the display, which ought to have a very healthy effect upon Irish industries. It is proposed that the exhibition Bhpuld remain open from the I'.tth to the 28th of August. SLlGO.— Reception at the Ursuline Convent— At the Ursuhne Convent. St. Joseph's, Sligo, ou Thursday, April 2!> a very solemn and impressive ceremony took place on the occasion of the reception into the Ursuline Order of Miss Beatrice Dolan of Clontarl. Dublin, and Miss Delany, of Longford. Both youn«- ladies neither ot whom has yet seen her eighteenth birthday, have been amongst the most distinguished pupils of this convent in recent years, and although surrounded by all that was calculated to render secular lite attractive they elected to renounce the worl I and follow

in the footsteps of St. Angela Merici. The Most Rev. Dr. Clancy, Bishop of the diocese, attended by the local clergy, officiated at the ceremony, at which the Most Rev. Dr. Lyster, Bishop of Aohonrv, was also present. After the reception the Rev. Mother Superior of the convent entertained their Lordships, the clergy and the numerous relatives and friends of the youthful novices at a very sumptuous dejeuner. TIPPERARY.-Death of the Master of Clonmel Workhouse. — Michael Boland, Master of the Clonmel Workhouse, one of the bes;, masters in Ireland, died reaently. He was born in Fermanagh, served some time in the Dublin Metropolitan Police and subsequently served through the whole Crimean War, where he had some hairbreadth escapes. He was quartermaster of the South Tipperary Artillery, Nineteen years ago he was appointed Master of Clonmel Workhouse. WESTMEATH. - The Connaught Rangers: Thejr First Irish Station for Twenty Years.— The home-coming of the l(,t Battalion of the 88th Regiment (Connaught Rangers), after an absence of twenty years from Ireland, is an ite n of i terest (says the Belfast Weekly, May 8) to all the old members of that celebrated corps. On Monday a detachment of one officer, one colour-sergeant, and fifty men left Sheffield to take up qu rters at Athlone, which by a coincidence, was the last Irish station occupied by the Ist Batalion. On the 2Hrd .Tune, 1877. the Rangers left Kingstown on board the Orontes for the Cape, and saw considerable service in the Kaffir war of 1877-81, and in the Zulu campaign of the following year. In October, 1875), the battalion was moved to Bombay, and was stationed there for eleven years. After a subsequent sojourn for twelve months at Aden the regiment left for home, and since 18«» l has been stationed at Pembroke Dock, Portsmouth and Sheffield. The results of the short service system are very evident in the changes which have taken place in the distinguished corps since it left Ireland twenty years ago. Of the men that sailed from Kingstown with the regiment in 1577 only nine men return, and these are the quartermaster, Mr. T. Kenny, and eight staff sergeant*. A hundred time-expired men from the 2nd Battalion joined the battalion the other day, and a large draft from the 1 st Battalion, to the number of 253, left in February last to join the battalion now serving in India. GENERAL. The Queen's Jubilee : Ireland's Debt of Gratitude.— At a moment when England is enjoying the fruits of her plunder of other lands, it is interesting (remarks the Dublin Nation, May 8) to note some of the facts set out in a work recently published by Mr. Mulhall, entitled "National Progress in the Queen's Reign" How little gratitude Ireland owes Queen Victoria is testified by one set of statistics given in the volume named. These are as follows : Population. Population. I*4l. 1896. England 1G.m0.000 30,780.000 Scotland 2,i;20.00u 4,190.000 Ireland 5. 200.0011 4.550 000 Total 2(5,860,000 3!), 170,000 Commenting on these deplorable figures — so far as this country is concerned — the London h'tiuinnul Xrwx says that " it will be seen from this table that in 1841 Scotland had'less than one-third the population of Ireland. Khe has added 1,570,000 souls since then, whereas Ireland in the same period has lost almost half her inhabitants, and to-day has a very little larger population than Scotland. The increase in Scotland's material wealth has been very marked! whereas, in Ireland, Mr. Mulhall says, 'every useful occupation except the raising of cattle exhibits a decline.' It is not very encouraging to find the statistician remarking in the course of hia .survey : • There seems little likelihood of this downward march being arrested.' " The total number of Irish emigrants during the period, on the completion of which we are now, forsooth, asked to make jubilee, was no less than 4,!>50,000 ! How little Ireland has benefited in material improvement during the present reign is shown by many other figures. For example, if we compare the paid-up capital of the railways with population in the Three Kingdoms we fiud is follows :—: — X sterling. Population. England 82."). 200 .000 30,000,000 Scotland 121>,600.000 4.170.000 Ireland ;$'.».300.000 4,560.000 United Kingdom 1,001.100.000 20,050,000 Again, while the acreage under cultivation in Scotland has increased and while that in England has suffered some diminution, the decline' in Ireland is marked, indeed. The statistics are as follows :— Acre*. Acres. I*4<; 1895 England U. 300.000 12.550,000 Scotland 3,390.000 3,510.000 Ireland 5.24<i,000 3,990,000 United Kingdom 21,1130.000 20,050,000 Clearly, Irishmen have good reason to bless the Act of Union, and to pray for another ••Jubilee Reign." DANIEL O'CONXELL. The appended stanzas are the closing passages of the noble cde written by John Boyle O'Reilly for the centenary of the birth of Daniel O'Connell, August 6, 1 875. They are no less appropriate now when the fiftieth anniversary of the death of this great statesman revives the memory of his life and its lessons.

Great men grow greater by the lapse of time ; We know those least whom -we have Been the latest ; And they, 'mongst those whose names have grown sublime, Who worked f«r Human Liberty, are greatest. And now for one who allied will to work, And thought to act, and burning: speech to thought ; Who grained the prizes that were seen by Burke — Burke felt the wrong — O'Connell felt and fought. Ever the same — from boyhood up to death ; His race was crushed — his people were defamed 7 He found the spark, and fanned it with his breath, And fed the fire, till all the nation flamed ! He roused the farms — he made the serf a yeoman ; He drilled his millions and he faced the foe ; But not with lead or steel he struck the foeman ; Reason the sword — and human right the blow. He fought for horne — but no land-limit bounded. O'Connell's faith, nor curbed his Bympathieß ; All wrong to liberty must be confounded, Till men were chainless as the winds and seas. He fought for faith — but with no narrow spirit ; With ceaseless hand the bigot law he smote : One chart, he said, all mankind should inherit — The right to worship and the right to vote. Always the same — but yet a glinting prism ; In wit, law, statecraft, still a master-hand ; An " uncrowned king," whose people's love was chrism ; His title — Liberator of his Land ! " His heart's in Rome, his spirit is in heaven "—" — So runs the old song that his people sing ; A tall Round Tower they builded in Glasnevin — Fit Irish headstone for an Irish king I Oh Motherland 1 there is no cause to doubt thee : Thy mark is left on every shore to-day. Though grief and wrong may cling like robes about thee, Thy motherhood will keep the queen alway. In faith and patience working, and believing Not power alone can make a noble state : Whate'er the land, though all things else conceiving, Unless it breed great men, it is not great. Go on, dear land, and midst the generations Send out strong men to cry the word aloud ; Thy niche is empty still amidst the nations — Go on in faith, and God must raise the cloud.