Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1889-04-14
THE IRISH HEART.
1.-THE DUCHESS" TELLS OF GAYETIEs
AMONG THE IRISH.
Their Open Heartedness--Unhappy II Alone.
The shynsss Of Irish Childrsn-Ihe
Hospitality OF Ireland's
Fair daughters
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For the ten years it takes an English
man to fully convince himself that he
knows and thoroughly understands you
il takes an Irishman ten minutes. at
the expiration of that short time he
might be safely trusted to give lecture
on you. Nor IS the Irishwoman behind
hand in this respect she is quite as
smart about it as her husband or her
brother, and will fathom you and know
oil about your pet iniirmity at mo-
ment's notice. This penetration IL
great help to the forming Of society
friendships in Ireland.
TAKE PEOPLE IS YOU FIND THEM.
After all life is too short TO waste much
time over the discovery OF whether this
person or that is all lie or she ought to
he. To "take people as you find them
is as pleasant q way out OF the difficulty
as | know. We none of US want to live
aud die with those we meet on our way
through the world always excepting the
natch,css one who Is sure to turn mp
sooner or later. anu therefore il the pass
ing shadows be prosentable IN every re-
spect, weil-5rcd. 10 brawlers, not given
to picking and stealing or the numbering
OF their neighbors, why let MS send them
cards for our next dance and lie happy.
THE orEN-HgARTED COUNTRY.
This pen-heartedncss, however, be-
longs more to the country than the town
perhaps because in the green dulness of
the former, where the houses are four
and seven and often ten miles apart, any
stray star dropping into our midst IS
looked upon 8s Cod-send. We oil
Know each other 50 terribly, so fatally
well our faults, orr follies, orr virtues
these last, however, are unintcresting
We seldom discuss these all are so well
known to US that to have fresh family
tumble into our midst is 30 great q relief
that, if they lie at all possible, we receive
them with opcn arms. Think what
glorious chance they give MS SO many
fresh victims to be vivisected, SO many
more faults and follies to be talked over.
THE IRISH CHARACTER.
Beyond ell dispute the Irish people
belong to the sociable ones Of the earth.
They are unhappy if alone. They posi-
lively crave for company, which means
sympathy OF some sort. Men, women,
and children all desire to hear their own
voices. to talk, to sing, to laugh TO
some one else.
Having come to the children, ! may as
well say a word about them. Above
everything else, they are the shyest crea-
tlres in the world, ! think. In the
home circle or with their very intimates
they are the gayest things possible, and
shrewd, too, hitting Off the infrmities
or the charms of their own generation
with q certainty that savors of their
elders. Yet let stranger appear and
the viyacious maiden OF q moment since
becomes ut once as uncommunicative as
an oyster in its shell, and "yes" and
mo" murmured with downcast lids is
all the "alien" may expect as answer to
his most lively sallies.
THERE SHE STANDS.
Just such a little maiden I can see
now standing on the tennis-ground as |
look out Of my window. A dainty little
slender being of twelve or so, clad all in
white Indian silk most delicately smock-
ed, and with her bonny face half hidden
by a huge white sun-bonnet. Out of
this shelter her shy eyes turn with a
glance half defiant, half nervous upon
her companion, big, grizzled colonel
of fifty. who is rapidly growing discom-
fitted beneath her determined GOODNESS.
Poor man He has stormed many
citadel, but not one 80 obstinate as this
He gives her up after awhile, and puts
her down as lovely hut hopeless non
entity. Yet that child is as clever lit
tie mortal as 1 know, almost brilliant in
her own way, and destined TO be an art
list if life is granted her.
SUMMER IN IRELAND.
Summer is the pleasantest time Of all
in Ireland. With the coming of the
June roses comes, too, seemingly new
life to all. Every one-in the country
especiaily-grows suddenly wide.awake.
Warmth and sunshine are, / believe, a
necessity to US; We rise on new wings
from the dead ashes Of the dull past
winter, whose rains depressed Us beyond
all bearing.
Pie-nics suggest themselves at once
tennis becomes apart OF ones exi-tsnce (;
cards and notes of invitation begin to
fly in white clouds from house to house.
1t is the vacation, when all the brothers
and sons belonging to the different houses
take run down to see their people.
These are welcomed with acclsmations,
not loud but deep, by the manageable
girls on every sidc-men in an Irish
county, however it may be anywhere else.
being few aud lar between. Indeed.
SO great is tue desrth of the superlluous
sex. as Mr.. Dunphie calls them in his
delightful book, "The Chameleon. that
reioicings are general among the fair
members Of any community "far from
the madding crowd when a bridge
or pier has to be built for must not
engineers pe sent to work them, and
may not these engineers he excellent
partners for tennis or waltz, ii not for
life?
Any cause that brings grist OF this
sort TO their mill is ever hailed 10y Irish
girls with delight 1t is, indeed, q we'll
known fact that the disturbances in Ire
land are to them Il source of JOY, filing
the unused barracks as they do with Of
fcers and men.
SOCIETY ~ DUBLIN.
So much for the country. The
Dublin especially-are decidedly
cliquy, if one may coin word. In the
latter place the "sets are innumerable.
There is the judges set, the barristers'
set, the medical set, the "up to
town for the season" set. and so
on; and to have residence in
Fitzwilliem or Merton Square is to
be the cream of any of these sets.
There is indeed a highly respectable,
but behindhand and old-fashioned set
living in the north of the city, members
OF which sometimes wander down in a
vague sort of way to pay desui.ory
visits to the lighter-minded inhabitants
of the more modern parts, who regard
them as stray sheep belonging to the
lost tribes, and vote them bores tOtidcm
pcrJis.
To get, however, into the inner circle,
TO the very heart Of any OF these chques,
is tO find ones self in very good com.