The Irish standard., 1888-12-29
HIS FRIENDSHIP FOR EMMET
Thomas Moore, the Delightful Irish
Poet-His Love Of Country and
Tenderness of Heart.

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Poet-His Love Of Country and
: Tenderness Of Heart.
HE WAS BORN AT A TIME WHE|
Progress, Distinctions and Means {
i Education Were Denied to
I Catholics.
The last issue of the Boston PHO
contains an interesting article from th
pen Of Rosa Mullholland, Dublin, con
cern;ng the great Irish poet, Thoma
Moore. She says:
''1t is The fashion to make little OF tht
poet Of our Irish melodies, and a fash
ion which Irish men and women ought
not TO follow, for 10 pen has ever done
so much for Ireland as Moore did swher
he snatched from obscurity much OF the
pathetic music floating alb out our hills
and valleys, aud preserved it to us fol
all time, by linking il with his own
charming and tender verse. Moore's
Irish melodies, words and music are
unique; the whole may be said to form
a treasure which no other country is
possessed Of. The literary critic may
make light Of the verse as poetry, if he
will; but, shonld he fail to feel their
power, when, having become one with
their music, they are sung, he must be
without ear or soul, In the whole range
Of song there is to be found nothing
that appeals with nl ore tenderness and
sincerity to the inmost heart of the
listener than those OF the melodies
which deal with pure sentiment, s,lch
as "Come Rest in his Bosom. My Own
stricken Deer,'' when Gazing on the
Moons Light" Mo, Not More Wei
come" Come Ger the Sea" ssIt is Not
the Tear at this Moment She'd" ""As a
Beam Ger the Face of the Waters may
Glow," and many others. too numerous
to ennmerate. In these the thought is
so delicate and yet SO deep, it remains
on the memory as if called by the strain
of the music alone, and the words, sep
arated from the music and read in a
book, read like mere imperfect trans
latlon. No songs SO quickly touch the
heart and bring tears to the eyes when
sung with feeling, and it is easy to
believe in the effect produced when
Moore sang them himself, causing
Byron to shed tears, kindling Jeffrey,
Sydney Smith, Christopher North into
eloqueuce, and drawing from n. p.
Willis the remark that che could have
taken him to bis heart with delight
"a pretty story is told by Lady Nor
gan of her first introduction to Moore,
and of his singing, and Of the effect
produced on two young girls-herself
and her sister. The lively Sidney
Owenson, who was then living with
her parents in Dominic street, Dublin,
was, with her sister, carried off by Sir
John Stephenson to party at the house
OF Moore's father and mother. over the
grocer's shop in Little Lorgford street,
Aungier street. In small apartment
shaped like harpsichord, the plump,
penevolen: old couple, whose portraits
now bang on the screen smiling down
on their famous son in the National
Portrait gallery, received a goodly com
pany. Cali the women were pretty, all
the men eminent for musical talent" !"
With great simplicity and cordial kind
ness they accumulated their homeliness
to the society which their sons genius
brou ht within their doors; and Moore
nowhere appears to SO much advantage
as in his relations with these kindly
parents, to whom his affection and de-
votion were genuine and unsw erylng to
the last. Lady Morgan describes the
gentle. doche mother and pretty, dark
eyed sisters all playing their part nicely,
till Moore arrived late, after dining
with Crocker and others, at the Pro-
yost's house, the Provost's LADY, being
"Queen of the Blues in Dublin at the
time, though Mrs. Lefanu, Sheridan'e
sister, relgned vice-queen under her. !"
Moore, who was on his way to a great
party at Lady Antrm's, sat down at
the piano at his mothers bidding, and
entertained ber company with his
newest song, Friend OF My Soul" to
the rapture of the listeners.
My sister and myself says Lady
Morgan, two scrubby-beaded, very
i'll dressed little girls, stood niched in
corner close to the piano." Her sister
shed tears plentif nlly, which pleased
Moore, who was ''eYer gratified by the
musical sensibility of his audience, :
and he sang them another song. Sc
enchanted were the young girls that
they ''went to bed in delirium,' >
forgetting to undress themselves, and
wakened each other singing "Friend
OF My Soul" after which one got up tc
draw the poets portrait from memory
and the other to immortalize him as the
minstrel in a romance.
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