The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1893-05-18
BRA We LIT LIE WALES.
IRREGULARITIES oF8TfdE COUN-
TRY'S MUSIC 55
Fire Welsl, Nationality and Langna ge Has
Thu Never Been Lost-A Softened Scot
land and Less UnPrOS-
porous Ireland.

The nearest neighbors OF Wales
have sometimes done the cunntry
great injustice. The very name of
Welsh is in itself an injustice.
Welsh is only very slight altera-
ton i'm the familiar Teutonic word
for strangers of any kind. It makes
no pretense to describe any partiou-
lar tribes or race, Or people. It is
something like the Greek phrase
which classified all men not pure
Greeks as barbarians. It is little less
offensive than the Chinese descrip-
tion of s'foreigm DEVILS - Still the =
name has adhered and the slight or
insult of it has, long been forgotten.
The men Of Wales KNOW that they
are Kymry, and do, mot object to be-
ing called Welsh <+ -@
The men Of Wales have. a pictur-
esque country a: brilliant and romantic
history, thrilling national music
and all but an, enchanting national
literature of song and; epic and
legend. There are still some readers
to be found for thatowild and. wonder
full book-threes parts genius, sane
and sound andi one part; as Lowell
said Of Edgar Poe;. sheer fudge
George Borrow s. "Lavengro Those
who know the book will. remember
how the hero tells, us of the change
which came over HIM when, he learn
ed to read the Welsh poets, in their
native tongue. The great classics
of Greece and Rome-even. the: yet
more adored Dante-became of little
account to him when once he. had
come under the spell of the poetry of
Wales Perhaps one-reasOn was that
the world had So long ignored the
poetry of Wales, and so its existence
and it's vividness and it's strength
and its beauty suddenly flashes On
George Borrow like a revelation.
| Everybody had hidden him to admire
Homer and Sophocles, and Dante and
Shakespeare: Nobody. had told him
! anything about the poetry of Walss>
Wales is in appearance softened
Scotland-a less unprosperous Ire
| land. O'Connell described Ireland
in phrase at once picturesque and
accurate as 1.-The land of the green
valley and the rushing river"
Wales, too, is a land of the green
valley and the rushing river He
who will understand the poet, says
Goethe, must go about in the poets
land. He who would appreciate
Welsh poetry must:go about in the
Welsh poets land. A journey from
Euston to Hollyhead in the mail
train even if accomplished in the
daytime and in summer, will not be
| quite enough for the purpose. A
holiday at some fashionable hotel,
the resort of strangers, will not he
quite enough for: the purpose:
| The music of Wales has been often
compared with the music of Ireland
and of Scotland, and yet the music of
Wales has character entirely it's
own. One reason given by those
who profess to know all aboutit is
that the Welsh music was composed
to the thrilling but DELEGATES accom-
paniment of the. harp. The Welsh
minstrels remained faithful to the
harp. In Ireland and in Scotland tine
harp reigned, of course, but it did
not reign alone. IT. admitted a di-
vided sway with the pipe-the bag
plpe-which the Welsh poets and
musicians held somewhat in .scorn.-
! The ballad music of Scotland, AMID
still more markedly: of Ireland, has a
way of trying the voice by sending it
suddenly up great heights.> This, it
has been contended by manyIau tn ORR
ties, was a consequence of the neces-
| sity at some important moment of
the music to make the words ring
out above the. bagpipe's accompany
ing and very self-asserting mote. At
all events, til is certain that the
| Welsh music .holds>a place not lowe
than that owned by the music of
Scotland and of Ireland, and has a
tone and a. touch which, are, not
borrowed from, the notes of other
/ song. f@s e. ,r...
I The Welsh, have made a. stout
fight for their nationality and they
have kept it;alive. The battle is all
over now. The distinct. nationality
! of Wales is acknowledged: Welsh
never was at dead language: There
was never any part Of, the. brave little
country where the native, tongue was
not understood by the people. Gaelic
at one time shrank wholly into the
highlandsof Scotlatadaa or perhaps it
ought to be more properly described
as having failed tor cenauer. the low
lands. - @fs".
Il The Irish language. quite. recently
seemed to be fading out; of. the South
and the midlands, and all, but certain
regions Of the West and what Sir
, Charles Gavin Duffy calls '..the gary
mountains of dark Donegal But
the Welsh language can boast OF
: what the Greeks can boast of their
tongne-it never was a dead Ian.
guage. We are cordially glad tc
know that most earnest and success
: 5ul efforts are made in Ireland to re.
rive the study of the. Irish language
! and OF Irish literature.
\. Conscience Doth Make towards of Us All