The Irish standard., 1895-04-06
The Irish Language.

EoleF 10 b &0QIl0m8Q n8m0Q b8TrO0, OF
the county Of Waterford, who made az
effort in 1885 to revive the study Of the
Irish language and lrieh history, and d
whom you say: 1.-THE means he proposed
to employ were the establishment Of .
college in which Irish was to be exclu.
sively taught, and the compilation and
publishing OF elementary works to facili
tate it's acquisition, but the attempt
failed, and until recently the study d
Gaelic has been left to the Germans" H
| As / was born and bred within stones
Throw OF the ruins OF the college which
Philip Barron partially erected and never
completed in lovely spot in the count,
LOT Waterford, I am able to give you s
q sketch Of the patriotic Irishman as
learned it from my fathers lips, hoping
I it may prove interesting to such Of YOU
readers as have love for the Language
of old Ireland and for the men who tried
to preserve that noble language from
extinction. :..
1t is about sixty years since PHILIP
Barron was editor and proprietor Of the
Waterford Chronicle. He was an enthu
siastic lover of his country and one who
would pass nowadays for a thorough
Irish nationalist Not only did he fight
the enemies Of bis faith and fatherland
with tongue and pen but he perforated
the bodies Of his Saxon antagonists with
bullets from his unerring pistol. He
was noted duelist who was often on the
field of honor in vindication Of his prin:
ciples. When not fighting duels he was
in the courts for libel, and as the judges
who then occupied the bench had risen
on their country's ruins to fame, he uau-
ally got the worst of it and was heavily
fined. On one occasion he excoriated d
landlord in his paper for cruelty to ten
ants and had to pay heavy damages. He
paid the damages in installments, and
when he went to give the landlord the
last payment he brought along his pistol
with the intention of shooting him. Tie
landlord got wind OF his sanguinary III.
tent and skipped away from home. Bar
ron never called upon him again, and the
landlord never asked him for the las
payment. When boy met Barron's
cousin, who wac an estimable married
LADY, and on whose account be, had fought
q duel. She was insulted by British
army officer in the city of Waterford
when a young lady, and the naughty
Saxon soldier, refusing to apologize, was
given his quietus the following day by
the fiery editor.
Barron was great linquist, but he e.
pecially excellent in q kno Wedge Of the
Celtic tongue and spoke it with f1ency
and elcquenoe. Being an estated gentle
man he commenced the erection of q
college on his own land,
wherein was to be taught the language
and history of Ireland, but through some
financial embarrassment the building
was never completed and Barron left for
France where he died as professor in .
literary institution. He published ele-
mentary works on the Irish language, as
stated in your editorial, and when boy
some Ct them fell into my hands, and II
was from them I first learned how to
read the melliauous tongue Of the bards
and sages Of Erin. I remember one Of
the books ia which Barron showed the
close:afinity between Hebrew, Greek and
Irish. He was q member of the Royal
Irish Academy and occupied high rank
among the irish scholars Of his day. One
Of the professors he had engaged for the
Irish college was man named Harts
ney, prodigy Of learning and great
master Of languages He was the son Of
q poor man who was not able to give him
much Of an education, but Barron and
others observed the boys precocity and,
genius and betrayed his expenses until
he had received the highest education OBJ
tainable az the time. He died at an early
ago and Barron declared there was no.
man il Ireland able to take his place.
i have never read any thing about Bar
ron in books and what I have here writ
ten I heard from my father over thirty
Eve years ago. Had the college which
he started to build ever been opened il
would cert have been one Of the
students, for5it was within . few rodsoff
my home, but fate deaeed otherwise,andl
now like many others of my countrymen
/ have but q limited acquaintance with
the irish Language. { am heartily IN IA
vor 81 seeing d resuscitated u q mat tef
Sc national pride, and hope when. Ireland
Rets back her own parliament of which
shs was % unjustly deprived 1T Tho be1
ginning of the century, the irish Yerns.
sulars VIII ~ spoken and read om th1
Giants Causeway to Cape (lleas. ss.
u. 81 ~ Z n '1D