Irish News.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVII, Issue 32, 10 August 1899, Page 9

Irish News.

OUR IRISH LETTER.

(From our own correspondent.) Dublin, June 20, 1890.

ORANGE KOWDYIBM.

•HATING each other for the love of God goes on as gloriously, piouuly, and immortally as ever in Belfast, that foreign city in the north which modestly calls itself the Athens of Ireland, and constantly informs the world that it contains the wealth, intelligence. and culture of the country, the rest of Ireland being nowhere.

The anti-Papißt war is raging fiercely just now, the present outburst being the result of : (1) The anti-Ritualistic movement in j England ; (2) Mr. Arthur J. Balfour's backing up of the Belfast { Orangemen's attacks on a local Protestant clergyman, whose own j congregation approved of and joined in his method of worship. For more than a year this clergyman, the Rev. Mr. Peoples, and his flock have been subjected to interference and violence during Divine service, and most indecent scenes of noi«e, uproar, and even personal violence to the clergyman have been the constant protest of a really unthinking and certainly not very pious Belfast mob against what they term ' Popery ' in tne Rev. Mr. Peoples' manner of conducting his service. Sunday riots in this particular church became the order of the day, but when appealed to in the House of Commons to restore order by strenuously putting down such scandalous rowdyism, Mr. Balfour took the weak step of letting the Orangemen plainly | ace that either he was in full sympathy with them, or afraid of them. He practically gave them the law into their own hands by closing the Rev. Mr. Peoples' church and sending its incumbent adrift, even though the latter had the law on his side. This was tantamount to saying to the rioters 'do as you like, the law shall not hurt you.' So they are doing as they like. On Monday week the Nationalists, claiming their conceded right to have a procession for a not unlawful purpose — just as the same right is conceded to the Orangemen — went for a walk together to a place some miles outside Belfast and there held a meeting in favour of unity. The Orangemen had previously announced that they would rise up and attack the Catholics for daring to assert equal rights with them. The law for such occasions is that a lawful procession may take place • that if an opposing party proclaim their intention of rising solely for the purpose of attacking that assemblage, the party so rising shall be proclaimed in the interests of peace. However, though law may be law, Belfast is Belfast Mr. Balfour refused to proclaim the threatened Orange rising : it was the heads of the Orange Society who themselves proclaimed it and said such a spirit was a disgrace to their cause. But the bad spirit had been let loose . vain to remind the mob that the Catholics never rnoleßt the processions of thobe who differ from them. Evil thoughts and worse feeling than ever have been of late worked up by street preaching so horribly obtcene in its language and its attack upon Catholics — even upon the Sisters of Mercy who threw open their hospital to thoae very Orangemen during a fever epidemic of last summer — that no self-respecting woman could read the reports in the daily papers. The painful result of all this has been a week of violence and outrage and bitter feeling unworthy of a Christian community. As many as f>UO shipyard men the other day set upon one Catholic fellow-workman, kicked him almost to death, and flung him into the river, where he must have perished but for some bathers who rescued him. There are police and military in the city where this goes on, and there are more church steeples than in almost any other city in the world. Over the doorway of one of these churches that I often passed are the words, in Greek, that signify : 'To the greater honour and glory of God.' ' What's the ineanin' o' that, mon i" asked one Belfaster of another. 'T' hell with the Pope !' answered the other. Which sentiment reminds me of a good story a Trinity College Don once told me of an old Northern Presbyterian who was dying. • The ineenisther says, Geordie, as ye'r dyin',' said the old man's wife, ' an' yell hey t' forgive all mankind, ye know.' ' Well,' answers Geordie, ' A suppose a must : but there's three as '11 make exception on, an' them three's Owen Roe O'Neill, Dau'l O'Connell and the Pope o' Rome.' TBAVELLINQ IN IBELAND IN ANCIENT AND MODEEN TIMES.

In anoient times in the Emerald Isle there was a delightfully happy way of travelling. The whole country was studded over with houses of hospitality, endowed by the princes of the soil with as much land as maintained herds and so forth, sufficient to support a lordly hospitality under the care of a guest master and his staff, whose duty it was to keep a caldron of goodly meats always boiling,

with other comforts ready for the welcoming 1 and entertainment of all travellers who came the way. There were no hurrying, stuflfy trains then, but the lord had only to mount his steed, his lady and their daughters their palfreys, and their attendants to follow on by pleasant bridle paths and broad tochers over plain and hill and dale : wherever they c.ime, day or night, they had nothing to do but walk into the licatrach (house of hospitality) and make themselves at home. The poor man had but to brush up shanks' mare, take a staff in his hand and wander at his sweet will over green Erin. He, too, when tire and hungry, fouad equal welcome wherever he Wiut, for every parish had it« guept-hotiie, whpre all, rich and poor, ate, drank. el<-pt and were welcome, free, gratis, for nothing, as the baying is. But that was in the happy days, before the English ' grabbed ' all the land from even those products of warm Irish heart*, the Jicateachs. Well, within the pa^L month something like this has been going on onco innn> only with what a difference J In the old days pure, unadulterated charity was the mover in this wonderful system : this time pure, unadulterated selfishness has prompted a lavish display of genial hospitality. We are ridden to death with the • tourist traflic ' mania. To believe our railway and hotel managers, we eat. drink and dream tourists, tourists. If tourißts will only come to us in sufficient numbers we can never see another poor day ; if tourists would but rain, the skies might do their worst, harvests could never again fail ; if tourists would but smile upon Erin, oh ! then, the tear would never again dim her eye. In fact, the development of the tourist is now admitted to be the one only thing wanted to make Ireland the land of milk and honey to her own, heaven upon earth to the tourist. So ' touristed ' are we that we begin to say in our hearts with Mr. Mantilini :' 0, demn the tourist !' But we, the public, don't keep railways or hotel syndicates. Well, some time ago the railways' and syndicate hotels* managers sent a handsome invitation over to — where do you think ? — none of your Lazaruses or people who might stand in need of a tour, but to the members of the Houses of Lords and Commons ! Any English or Scotch member who chose to accept the invitation might come over and travel through Ireland for a certain time free. Free railway (special cars), free hotel living, and that of the very best, free jaunting and sight-seeing, free boating and fishing, and private invitations and Lord Mayor and Vice-regal invitation* galore. Think of it! Some scores of distinguished M.P.'s and newspaper Dons believed in the thing (you see, we have the name of telling the truth in Ireland), came, saw, enjoyed all amazingly (and no wonder), and went back enchanted with our land, ourselves, our railways, our hotels, our scenery, our cookery— confirmed tourists, in fact ; ao glowing in their talk to the distinguished M.P.'s who did not believe and did not take Paddy while he was in the humour, that the little pigs who remained at home were weak from envy. It was very nice for the guests and very cute of the directors and hotel managers, but if we know anything of entertaining English folk, the tot up at the end of the tourist season won't have squared the cost, not to t-ay saved Ireland. Mr. Labouchere was not of the party. There is too much of Don Quixote about him, I believe. He would, perhaps, have made some terribly honest speech that might have been awkward. He might feel, for instance, that true Irish hospitality is offered for love of the kindly and Christian virtue, not on the sprat to catch a salmon principle. But it must be remembered that our railway companies are, for the most part, English, and the hotel syndicates the same.

THE GAELIC REVIVAL.

It is now three years since a series of highly interesting Gaelic meetings were inaugurated in Dublin, and the recent assemblies have been more interesting and successful than those of the two previous years. These Oinachtas, or Irish literary and musical assemblies, were instituted by a certain number of those learned Gaelic scholars who are anxious to see the revival of all that pertains to our Irish native literature and to our mother tongue itself. Notwithptanding that the English laws which strove to kill everything that was national in us made the Irish language penal, the people of three of the provinces clung so to it that even to-day it is naturally spoken ; that is — is the cradle tongue of a quarter of a million of the people, and is known to as many more. But as the language was forbidden in all Government schools it would certainly have died out in another generation or so were it not for this movei ment amongst Irish scholars, such as his Eminence Cardinal Logue, Dr. Douglas Hyde, etc. With the hearty concurrence of their fellow-countrymen of all classes, these scholars started annual assemblies at which were to compete for handsome prizes Irish* speaking men and women from all parts of the country, Irish orators, Iri&h musicians — singers, pipers, harpers, even good whistlers who could thus give good tunes to the public ; dancers of the famous old Irish dances, real step-dancing, not stage high*

kicking. The result was a series of the most thoroughly interesting meetings and entertainments I have ever attended. His Eminence Cardinal Logue presided at the principal Oirrarhtu , opening the proceedings in a speech in the musical native tongue previous to distributing the prizes. The Cardinal is a Donegal man ot striking presence : a quiet, thoughtful, Celtic face, with deep-set grey eyo-over-hung by thick black eyebrows ; simple and gentle „- a child \n manner. Around him on the platform were mau^ not -d seuol.irlay and cleric, Catholic and Protestant, with delegates from Scotland who spoke in the Scotch Gaelic tongue and who wore what is now the Highland national costume • the 1 idi<"» in • silk attire.' with long tartan scarf from the shoulder, the gentlemen in kilt, dirk and philibeg — once the- Irish dreas, brought hence '<■> There were delegates from Wales, who spoke an i sang iu§Velsh : and from every county in Ireland came the Gaels, to show their proicieney in the long-treasured Irish poetry, oratory, and song, not forgetting that a platform was prepared upon which the dance pri/.e-winner ' footed it ' to the delight of everyone, while every toe in the vast rotunda irresistibly beat time. Songs, poetry, recitations, and mo^t of the speeches were in the old tongue, and it did one's heart good to note by the exclamations and applause punctuating all, that n v nrly every man and woni in in the vast assembly knew Irish, and that tht re was- v true heart-ring in the enthusiastic applause. I never siw gnuter dthirht on am faces than beamed on those of the handsome voting lli_rhlan ">er und his sister on receiving the welcome to Ireland th it greeted the delegates. One remarkably good result of the working of this society is that the permission of Government, even though grudginyly given, has been granted for the teaching of Irish in the public schools, and that, consequently, the study is rapidly spreading and becoming popular, even with teachers. The pntuip.il pu/e 'iiven -it the Oireachtas was a cup presented by Mr William O linen to the schoolmaster who passed the largest number of Irish -chol us (iuring the year.

AN IRISH GOLD-MINI:.

It has been rumoured that a gold mine had been discovered in Antrim. Let us hope not ; we are bad enough without that. 15ut Dublin has opened up a little gold-mine of its own in its electric tram system, which, though only begun three years agOi will three months hence be the most perfect electric tram sy-Wn in Europe The city and suburbs will then be served by a mode of transit which for cheapness and convenience, cannot be surpassed. The beauty of it is that the cheaper the fares are made the better the -.y-teni pays. BO that, while an immense public benefit, it is also a very valuable possession for its owners. So well is the cheap transit expected to pay a year or so hence, that already the company's shares are neaily ' three times their original price. ' If you want to know me, come live with me.' is an old saying. Mr. Joseph Chamberlain does not like the like Irish, and does not see why the trounlesome people should want to mind their own business. But Mr. Chamberlain's brother, who has of late years been in business over here, has come to know something, perhaps, of how Irish trade is handicapped by Cire.it Britain : anyhow, he his come to live with us, and no* 7 , speaking at a public meeting in Lnpland gives voice to his convictions lie considers that all Ireland wants is — to be allowed to mind L»-r ov\n business, M. Ji.

COUNTY NEWS

BELFAST— lntolerance in Educational Matters.— A very accurate notion ot the intolerant attitude in educational matters of the monopolism^ minority m lieiand (says a Dublin correspondent) may be gathered Irom the proceedings ot a body calling' itself • The Northern Royal I'liiveiMiy (j-radu ites Association,' which met recently at the mcnis ot the oung Men's Christian Association, Belfast. The fundamental b.Wh ot this association is opposition to Catholic University education. A- 1 mentioned in a previous letter, the l'rotestant minority, no*, content with thur practical monopoly of Trinity College and of the (j ie> n's Cidlegis, have succeeded in capturing, in defiance of an honouiable understanding heretof ire maintained, a majoiity on i lie Senate of the Royal University. Even yet the\ are not content. The meeting in Belfast devoted itself to ao attack on the propoitionatt allotment of fellowships to the ' University College " undu J.-i:n eoniiol. in Stephen's Green, Dublin, which, though w holly unendow ( d, succeeds at each examination in capturing, in open compeutiun. lii.nv rniversity prizes and distinctions than the three richly endowed Queen's oollegeH of Belfast, Cork, and Galway, all put to^c-tlnr DUBLIN-— Temperance Mission-— The v. iy Re V . r. c Hays, P.P., of the Church of the Sacred Heart, We-t Riidfor. i- at present (says an Irish contemporary) on a visi, 1 - to Ireland Father Hays is the president of the United Kingdom Tern per, uu i ('iu-<u]e, and the leader of the movement in England, where he is known as 'the second Father Mathew,' his time being devoted almost < veinsi vely to this work and to prea. hing missions-, lie inaugurated m Dublin a great temperance crusade, the demonstration at the Custom House being attended by some thousands ot per-oi.--, repieuenting every shade of religious and poliih.il opinion. In the coarse of a vigorous and eloquent speech he declared that tv o.m-e in whose favour that glorious n.eeting was called tugitlui was founded upon all that was noble in patriotism, generous m phil uithropy, and good and wise in Christianity. The highest and hohe-t and best aspirations — social, religious and patriotic — of the natmu were bound up with the progress ot temperance, thriit ami -obii-ty Drunkenness was the foulest and most danjjeious en i,i\ to th. ir God, their country, and their home. He appealed to eve>> man who had a mind to appreciate the truth, a heart <o fe. 1. and i will th.it was not the will of a baby or a coward to labour tor man •> happiness and God's glory. No man who claimed to be a Chn-ti.ni or a patriot could refuse to work tor the destruction ot a wee that lay at he root of all social and moral ruin.

St. Patrick's Training College.— On Sunday, June ll, the new and beaut itul chapel attached to ht. Patrick's Training College*^ Drumeondra, was consecrated mxl opened for worship. During tb^k fifteen years that this Catholic Tr.ui'ing College h.is been estab* hshed nearly litteen hundred tiaeh r- have been 1 rained within its walls for the fining discharg. „! .bur vitally important duties. Ine chapel compld sUs religious <<(><!! inent tli^llmu the Archbishop <.f Dublin presided at the t ui.-'t latiorj t,en numy. and the beautiful inaugural sermon was pic < lied iy the Key. .}. Conmee, "\L, Rcct'ir cf the Jesuit House in G.uWmer street, Dublin, and one ot the most eloquent Irish preachers Death of a Prominent Citizen.— Municipal lite in Dublin has Ui.sL <i vt.Ln.iu .aid valuabh \suil: v in the ]Vc Air Michael Kornan, T.C.. and the supporters oi the cause of Home Rule throughout Ireland will realise ihat the death oi the earnest prid zealous Nationalist, who repn suited ihe \\ ood quay Ward in the Corporation, is a sad event at n time when the eountiy can ill spare talented public men. Mr. Kem.ni. who up to the Ijst municipal elections in Dublin had been ;he aldeuimn of his ward t,or many years, took a keen and active inter, st i-i nub'io affair-. He lett himark upon local ndniinistratio.i. iiud on -evwul oo^.sions was compelled tv refuse the office ot Lord M,y ir in cons queue c oi his business engagements. Mr. Keriiiin w.ih not only i<n active Nationalist and conscientious member of the Corporation, hut one ot the most prominent >nd worthy oi the men whose capacity and success do credit to the eouimerci.il hie ot Dublin. He was known as a model employer and an uiiHellisli friend, and all classes anr. creeds in Dublin sincerely regret the death of one of the best of citizens. LlMEßlCK— Profession at the Good Shepherd Convent. On Tnurs.l iy. M^y L'">. 'wo huvua-s were professed at the Convent of the Good Miephei 1. Luneii k. The sisters who V ad received the black veil wne Mi-s s. (l rah Feunelly. daughter of Mr. Richard Fennel Iy. I'.arnlough llou-u. U.nsha, Co Tipperary, and Miss Lillie Carroll, daughter of the Lite Mr. .Michael Carroll, Cahirmee House, Doner.ule, Co. Cork In the absence of Bishop O'Dwyer the ceremony wus performed by the Rev. T. Lee. Administrator of the Cathedral. TIPPERARY.-The Archbishop of Cashel and the Evicted Tenants-— The Arehbi.-hop of Cashel has forwarded a supplemental subscription of £20 to the Evicted Tenants fund which raises his recent contribution to this fund to £70. '

GENERAL

A Lamp for the Shrine of the Holy Sepulchre-— A Maguifi ent masMve silver lamp, the gift ot Iris ■ subs ribern, has just been added to the collection of great and priceless gilts with which the shrine of the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem is enriched. Thu« day and night the twinkling light of this lamp in the sacred place will sene as a reminder of that iaith in distant Ireland which has ever burmd in the hearts of its faithful people since the Gospel was preached to them. The Parliamentary Tour-— The Parliamentary tour in the South- West concluded with a hat.quet in Limerick given by three local merchants. In proposing the health of the visitors, Mr. JMnerney, chairman of the Liuieiiek Poor Law Guardians, put in a plea for better legislation, ar.d wound up • ■ Though we may fight you to-morrow in the House of Commons, we heartily welcome you to-ni ht.' The tourists. \vh'> were ohaimed with the beauty of the scenery and the hospitality shown th>"i..went to Dublin -\ia Killaloe, the Shannon, ard Lough Derg to I'mtim 11,1. ;iml ti ence by rail. Th' j Connemara party had an iqualiy gw d nine ot it. and it is e\pei tul that the evpenimnt will lesult in \astly increasing the luurist tratlic to Ireland. Irish ' Birthday Honours.'— The brief list of Irish 'birthd iy honours." lour in all, is jiuiic'ously stlt eted (says- the Dublin J'n fiiiti/i ). There will be geiii nil satisraetion at the conferring of a Kiwghthood on the esteemed presuU ut of theChamberof Commerce, than whom no man is held 111 higher or more ilesir\id respect among thee'net counueruial m. 11 ot lUiblin. 'lo be respected is not always to be popular, but Mr. l'.aiiy i° lortunate to liave secured to the very iulle~t degree both distinctions, and is not more distinguished for commercial probity than tor social kindness. Xor will anyone of :my creed or pai ty grudge the well de-er\ed knighthood to Dr. James Creed .Meieditli. the learned and giiual and popular secretary of the J loyal Uimersity. The diiUuetion in the world oi art of Mr. William Armstrong, dm ctor ot the National Galleiy, is also recognised by a knighthood. A -nuil«r ui^i.Miction to Mr. 11 A. TayJor, JP . co'iiplttss 1 lie list,. Jt 1, at least :i matter lor congratulation that there aie in the list n"iie of the Castle understrappers, by whom ot late jears it has In en piactically monopolised. The Holy Father and Ireland,— The Uector of k the Irish College in Rome has had an auilieme with his Holiness, in the course ot which he pres. nr»d to the Holy Father Mr. Laurence Ginnell of Dublin, wlio oil'eied i.co XI I La copy of a collection ot papers he has written, c ntiilcd 'Hit Doubtful linntt of Irtlatul by Pope Ad> kiii l\ .to Ann/ Hi nt ij 11. This m a ni.nter which has excited no small amount ot co.urovti^y. The Holy Father thanktd the d-mor warmly tor his present, and said, 'That at no time were the Pope-, aher-e to the spirit < f Irish nationality, which it beems the pan jn.se ot Mr Gnmell's buck to muki evident 111 this special ca&e. l'i.e l'( pts (he went on) weie alwaj's acruited by feelings (>f sytnpathy tor the n.iti >jial w rh^a- d a-,,,iia.t: mt of Ireland.' And then, win considerable amm.iti' n. l,ui XIII. sai 1, ' I am so, I have always I) en so. and 1 ha\e di«'la,ridit oiifeveial oeoasio is ' And then, aUer spi akmg in a rapid way ot the condition oi the Catholic world at the pre-.ent moun nt, he made use of tliest must noticeable words, t " Ihe tv 0 countries which aie now itmarkable tor their constancy and devotion to the Holy bee aie Ireland and Belgium.'