The Family Circle

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LI, Issue 15, 10 April 1924, Page 53

The Family Circle

' - ".; ■ - PASSION-TIDE. r • J - r c -—" • - : ' (At Matins.) "... '•■-■ : .-. ; / ■■"- (Should be composed with- the Latin.) Sing, my tongue, the glorious coaflict . With success divinely crowned, ' • Triumph on the Cross achieved, .. As on battlefield renowned; ..,.:. Telling how the world's Redeemer Conquered, when as Victim found. -For the sin of our first parent, ;";'' i ; Protoplasm of His Word, Cod, in pity for His creatures, Who through fraud had weakly erred, To repair what Tree had ruined, Even then' a, Tree preferred. V" -. For the work of our Salvation Such a plan beseemed it well: Counter-stratagem to frustrate All the stratagem of hell, And like Instrument of healing Found to that by which we fell. Therefore, when at length of the fulness Of the sacred time had come, Born on earth, the world's Creator, \- ' Sent us from His Father's Home, Came, in mortal flesh invested, From the Virgin's sacred womb. In a narrow manger lying, ■---.. Hear His tender infant cries! See what poor and bumble garments 'Round His limbs His Mother ties! With His Hands and Feet swathed, helpless There the .God of Heaven lies! Everlasting praise and glory _ To the Blessed Trinity! To the Father, Son, and Spirit . ' Equal honor ever be ! Praise His Name, 0 all creation, Nature One, and Persons Three! —Amen. —Translated by F.G.M.

SAINT PATRICK: RELICS OF IRELAND'S APOSTLE. Recently by the gracious courtesy of Most Rev. _ Dr. Macßory, Lord Bishop of Down and Connor, the venerated and highly-prized relics of St. Patrick, Ireland's Patron Saint, were privately shown in St. Patrick's Cathedral, Belfast, to members of the Royal Irish Academy (says the Irish Catholic). They consist' of the hand and the jawbone of the great Apostle, and are encased in two costly reliquaries— of the hand being of silver gilt enriched with precious stones. It is shaped like an arm and hand, with the two forefingers outstretched in blessing, and. has always been the object of special veneration by the faithful of Down and Connor. March 17 is the day when - it is specially exposed in- the Cathedral which bears his name. _ ; A cherished account in faded, but legible writing, . is preserved with the reliquary, and by the kindness of the esteemed Administrator, Rev. JVC Kelly, -is here given for" publication. ' r .. ~ % "St. Patrick's hand was brought to the Ards about 80 or-90 years ago by Madame Russell, ; grand aunt of Colonel Nugent. She was. married to Charles Russell, who was proprietor, a considerable tract. of land near Dbwnpatrick7 Charles Russell's first, wife was either /the daughter or near relative of Lord Iveagh, . whose family me was Mageiinis,

Castlewellan. It was through her that the hand descended to the Russell family. After the death oFMadame Russell, which took place about 70 years ago, the hand was in the possession of Mr. Savage, Colonel Nugent's father, until 1798, when it was given to the McHenry family of Kerstown, whose mother was a Russell, a near relative of the abovenamed Charles .Russell.,, ."•-...;■';'■■;..,; /■-.•> , "P.S.Perhaps the hand was given to. the McHenry family some short time previous to 1798." No less interesting is the subjoined account summarised by Rev-. Daniel Mageean, Professor, Maynooth, from pages 212 and 213 of .the 2nd volume of the Ulster Journal of Archaeology,, 1854," describing the relic, St. Patrick's jawbone and its cover. This reliquary was formerly in the possession of a family named Cullen, who lived in Derriaghy, Co. Antrim. In it is a human jawbone in a perfect state,, but retaining only one double toothnow missing (in 1919). It had formerly five teeth, three of which were given to members of the family when emigrating to America, and the .fourth was deposited under the altar of . the Catholic Chapel of Derriaghy when it was rebuilt in 1797. The case is of antique appearance, rather fancifully embossed, and has , ; a „ lid though old, it has nevertheless the hall mark of some early date impressed upon it. The bone is of a male of rather large size, and the Cullen family believed that it was the jawbone of St. Patrick, a tradition to that effect having been handed down amongst them for generations. The reliquary, too, was for a long time in this family grandmother of the present —having brought it from her relations, the Savages, of Dunturk, Seaforde, Co. Down. Needless to say, it, too, is held in highest veneration. Formerly water in which it was immersed was given to persons afflicted with epilepsy. It was also used as an antidote for all diseases of cattle. "Whenever the bone is lifted out of the reliquary a towel or handkerchief is used to prevent contamination by hand."

NUTS TO CRACK. When is it easy to read in the —When autumn turns the leaves. ,_ When is a pie like a poet -When it is Browning. When is a newspaper like a —When it is filed. Why is necessity like a stupid lawyer?— knows no law. What do we often catch, but never see? —A passing remark. . - Why is a pig's tail like the letter K? —Because it is the end of pork. What are most patient objects in the shape of humanity ? —Statues. Which is easier to spell, fiddle-dee-dee or fiddle-de-dum ? —The former, because it is spelt with more e's. Why is a bookbinder like charity ? —Because he often covers a multitude of faults. Why is a wise man like a —Because his head prevents him from going too far. : ,~ Why is a banker's clerk necessarily well informed? Because he is eonstantly taking notes.

: THE FLOWER OF HOPE. There's a beautiful flower that springs in each heart In the soul's virgin soil the roots make their start It's the sweetest to raise, the hardest to kill, Since the Planter who loves it waters it still. : "-". ,-, Through the bright beaming eyes of children at play Bursting flowerets of Hope are flung on life's way, From those dear freshling hearts and pattering feet, Where ; the tendrils find clasp \ and early bucks meet. Out of gloom or despair the wonderful flower, : ' '" In her rising; and beauty,; throws out a power .... ;"?■ That dispels with one breath of ; fragrance divine, '-.-- Every thought which bodes sadness or evil design. t; ■:l l'-^^ : —Florence Marion L. Hunter.";:

r ' 4 *V .- 'A BETTER PLAN V , \ "• > ■ Thompson: "I hear that Jones has had a wonderful run of luck with horses this year." v ..'•'•/■ Jenkins: "Yes, a winner every time. Do you know how he does it?" ~ _> '".. •'''■'••''• -Thomson: "No!" ,*• Y Jenkins: "Well, he holds up a list of the horses running, gets his wife to close her eyes and stick a pin in the list, and she always picks a winner." ■ Thompson: "I'll try that gag with my wife, but I'll make her use a fork, and then we'll get first, second, and third." '' N.

NOT DISCOURAGED. The morning faded into afternoon, which in turn was shadowed by the coming of the night. It was cold and grey. But the angler moved not, save to readjust his bait. He had been there for many weary hours, when a friend chanced to stroll along the river bank. r 'Halloa, George!" he cried. "How many have you got?" George looked up rather vacantly and replied: "When I get the one I'm after and four more, I shall have five."

/ THE EDITOR'S RETORT. A characteristic story of the late Mark Twain relates that in his early, days, when the great humorist was editing a weekly journal in a small town in the States, one subscriber wrote to him, informing him that in a recentlydelivered copy of the paper he discovered a spider embedded in the folds. The writer requested the editor to lot him know whether such an occurrence was a sign of good or bad luck. Mark replied in the next issue as follows: "Constant Reader.—The appearance of a spider, in a copy of last week's paper was a sign of neither good nor bad luck; that intelligent insect was merely studying our columns in order to ascertain whether any store in the neighborhood had failed to advertise in our paper, in order "that he might make for that establishment, and there weave a web across the doorway, where he- might dwell in undisturbed peace."

SMILE RAISERS. Optimist (just run over):-'"! am a lucky beggar! To think that I should be run over by a motor-ambulance 1" Professor (to biology class): "Now, these bacteria are largely very small, though a small number of them sometimes grow to be very large for their size." *? "Don't you find a baby brightens up the household wonderfully?" ■ "Yes; we have the gas "burning most of the night now." Landlady: "Could you eat an egg for your breakfast?" Mick: "Yes, missus, I think I could; but I once knew a man that ate two, and he lived." Willis: "How do you like Army life? Quite a number n of new turns for a fellow to used to, I suppose?" Gillis: "You're right. At night you turn in, and just as you are about to turn over somebody turns up and says, 'Turn out.'