The age-herald., 1897-11-21

centuries have passed since the Gael first plueked at the strings of a harp.
 Although the Egyptian harp builder attained great proficiency in his calling, he never made a harp that equaled those produced in Ireland after the Gael land ed on it's ancient shores. Owing to the excellence of the harps and the harp mu- sic of the Irish they have been given a prominent place in Irish history.
 When the wise king of the Gaels felt his declining days he advised his sons to find a more fruitful and desirab ble land than the one they then occupied in Spain. The old king passed away B. c. 1900, and his sons led their people to In- nisfail and they brought the harp with them.
 The Bard's Place in History
 Among the Gaels of pagan times the bard was esteemed next to the Druid. The Druid was priest and teacher, but the bard was historian and music-mak- CT. When the light of Christianity came into Ireland the Druid disappeared before 1t like the magic mist of the Da- anans that the Druids dispelled when they came The bard, however, rose higher in the esteem of the people. An estimate of the rank of the Irish bard may be obtained from the account of the convention of Dromketh, held in 435 A. D. It was attended by 5000 first class bards and 4,G00 second class bards neSe WtIS SuppOIleQ Dy lle SldIe anu the first-class bards were each given thirty attendants.
 Nor did the love of the harp die in the Irish until their hampers were s'ain and their beautiful harps used for fires to cook the suppers of the vandal hordes poured into the unhappy island. The harp is still preserved by that music loving people, for one may yet see it emblazoned on thair green flag.
 Knowledge of the harp was spread from Ireland into the countries of West ern Europe and when the early Irish missionaries went forth to teach the gos- psi to their European brothers they also carried with them the harp. With the other countries of Europe that experi- enced an early civilization the cultiva- tion of music was a later thought. The Greeks and Romans did not burn much of their genius trying to play on any sort of music-making dsvices but they were not entire strangers to the harp and evidences remain that they consd- cred it as holding high rank among tune ful contriyances.
 Order From Queen "Bess'
 One may glance through the history of all the rest of Europe from the re- mote periods to modern times, and seek ing for tidings of the harp he will revert again to Ireland. One may shudder now at the thought of it, but "good Queen Bess' was such a gentle creature that she compelled an act of parliament making it capital offense for an Irish man to have or to play a harp. In or der that this act might have some good effect she is said to have instructed her Lord Barrymore to hang every man in Ireland who was. guilty of playing a harp or of listening to it's music.
 For that good reason the Irish harpers who were not hanged or destroyed by quicker methods, fled to the continent a n n11tG al taf 4-c their great skill at these instruments. While Irish history filled with accounts of eminent harpers, the credit of being the last of the gerat onss Is conceded to O'Carolan who died In 173S He was the composer of more than 100 airs, most of which are still preserved in the west of Ireland.
 With the death of O'Carolan interest