National Republican., 1888-03-18
lRELAND'S PATRON SAINT.
WHY THE 18TH OF MARCH Is CELE-
BRATED AS HIS BIRTHDAY.
Authority of the Early English CAL
endars-Dating from the Days of the
Flood-Bulk of Traditionary Evil
dence in Favor Of Scotland.

There is no illustrious character of whom
we have any knowledge whose entire per-
sonal historyis shrouded in. deeper mys-
terry than that of st. Patrick. Even the
date of his birth, though now universally
celebrated on the 18th of March, is wholly
a matter of conjecture. A witty Irish
poet has written on the subject as follows
On the eighth day of March 1t was, some peo-
That St. Patrick at midnight he first saw the
While others declared was the ninth'he was
And twas all mistake between midnight
and morn.
For mistakes will occur In q hurry and shock,
And some blamed the baby while some
blamed the clock,
Till with all their disputing sure no one could
If the child was too fast Or the clock was too
slow.
But both of these factions so positive grew
That each kept q birthday, and Pat then had
TIL Father Mulcahey, who showed them their
Said, "No .', one could have two but big pair
DON'T always be fighting for eight or for
nine; o.
Dont,aiways be fighting, but sometimes COM
Eight and nine add together-seventeen is the
mark
SO, let that be his birthday" "Amen!" said
the clerk.
This ancientiyric account of how the
18th of March has come to be celebrated
as the birthday of Irelands patron saint is
quite as authentic as any other intorma-
Il on we possess concerning him. But it
is not alone the honor of being the natal
day of ST. Patrick which entities the 18th
of March to most respectful consideration.
All the carly English calendars name this
ark for the purpose of escaping the flood.
1t would be as difficult tell why the 18th
of March was selected for the date of that
event as il would be to divine why, in all
the religious plays or mysteries OF the
middle ages oh and his wife were s,al al
Dr., was invariably presented as an eccentric
old man and his wife as most voluble
shrew.
In the play of Noah" in the Towneley
mysteries, one of the earliest ofthese very
rare and quaint collections. there is an
better half, where he tells the latter of the
approaching food, which has just been
announced to him by the Creator. Mrs.
Noah calls her lord q Credulous fool and
an habitual bearer of i'll news, and bit
terly complains of the, miserable life he
leads her. Noah retorts in kind, and
finally bids his spouse to hold her tongue.
But she only becomes more abusive till
at length they fall a-fghting after the
manner of our modern Punch and Judy,
Noah getting decidedly the worst of it, and
finally running away to resume his ark
building. When the vessel is completed
and the waters have commenced to rise
characteristic perversity of her sex, to en-
ter it. She ridicules its appearance and
method of construction in most ludicrous
terms, saying.
In faith cannot find
Which Is before. which is behind.
and goes on to remark, in effect, that the
neighbors will be unableto tell whether
they are going away or just coming home.
The danger at length becomes so immi-
nent, however, that she jumps into the ark
of her own free will, but no sooner is she
aboard than she picks another quarrel
with her husband. Good old Noah re-
solved to teach her q lesson, gives her q
ing beaten black and blue" while their
three sons lament over the family dis
cords. Many husbands of the present day
will heartily join with Noah in exclaim-
ng, as he does after this renconter-
Lord that woman he grabbed aye:
And none are meek, dare well say.
All these events are supposed to take
DlhNt oh iitli VI NiulNiii anu ~ thut
date is the correct one il should certainly
be celebrated, not only by the admirers of
St. Patrick but by the whole world, for
if Father and Mother Noah had not
sought refuge in the ark, none of us would
now be here to celebrate anything.
England, Scotland, Wales, and Fray
have each claimed the honor of having
given birth to Ireland's patron saint, but
the bulk of traditionary evidence, which
is all we have, seems to be in favor of
Scotland. His native place seems to have
been Nemthur, now Dumbarton, then a
Roman province, and the date of his birth
is generally thought to have been about
A. ID. 395 His original name was Sue
cath, Patricius being the Roman appela-
tive by which he was known, indicating
that he came of patrician family. Cap
tured by pirates and taken TO Ireland in
his 10th year, he was sold to petty chief,
whom he served as a swineherd for six
years, during which tune he claims to
have been miraculoy AZ converted while
tending his tlocks
Efiecting his escape he wei France
according TO some of his bic .tphers--to
England according to others--and pre-
pared himself for the priesthood. OF the
writings of St. Patrick but two Latin
manuscripts have heen preserved - his
Confession and letter addressed to Co.
roticus, u Welsh chieitain who had cap
tured several of Patriok's Irish converts.
In his confession he tells us that he was
miraculously called Of God in dream to