Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-03-11
The Truth About
St. Patrick.


enthusiastic Irishman can make with
certainty about the patron saint OF tho
dear old Emerald Isle Is the fact that
"st. Patrick liz a gentleman"
n the truth indeed be told. there arc
three 81. Patricks and not one. There Ia
also a slight inconsistency In the fact
that the popular and ordinarily accept
ed 81. Patrick was not an Irishman. In
fact. II good old st. Patrick himself or
one OF the three OF him were TO wander
back and witness n modern Fl. Patricks
day parade he would be- greatly puzzled
by many of the things that would meet
his astonished eyes. The snint might In
deed rccognize.the round towers and the
wolf dogs and In all probability the an.
Glen, Celtic crosses as typical ana sug-
gestivc Of the ireland Of his own early
day. but he would not be aware OF tho
fact that the harp was national Elm.
blcn. since the placing OF the now fa-
mlllar musical instrument always assoc
ciatcd with Tara's halls on the Irish nag
was really an English idea. adopted long
after the old pagan King Lcary and his
Druid priests razcd forth with jealous
and suspicious eyes on the new little
0
religion from over the seas were putting
up throughout Ireland The golden harp.
on blue background. was adopted ns
the arms Of Ireland. or rather Of the
English colony In ireland. during the
reign ~ good Queen BerH. and M such
II ia still quartcred on the British royal
standard.
hut the aaddest part of the whole
thing would be the fact that poor old
~. Patrick would not know what the
shamrock was. Just think OF ~ ~.
Patrick would have TO be introduced 10
his own flower the very plant with
which we have 10 lovingly been keeping
his memory green, To him the sham
rock "the chosen leaf OF bard aud
chief" picked by loving fingcrg on the
dewy hiiiaider Of old Erin. would have
very little Significance. since modern
iconociaatH who have looked into tho
matter brutaily assert TINT the bcaut-
full tradition ~ ~. Patrick and the
shamrock IL NJ purely modern creation.
This tradition. aa II well known. IL To
the eject that the saint made use Of tho
little three leaved plant TO typlfy the
mystery OF the Trinity In his religious
teachings TO the pagan Irish people.
among whom he introduced Christian
ity.
Neither would the very unsophlHticnt.
cd saint recognize green ~ the national
color ~ ireland This color was adopt
ed fully n centuries after the death Of
the national hcncfactor. In fact II seems
that ireland In ~. Patrick'- time had no
settled and undlrputcd national color or
emblem. The well known iied Branch
knights ~ Ulster had a red lion on their
banner. and this emblem. II seems. the
irish % that province took over with
them from Scotia Major. which II. ~
course. merely the early name for Ire.
land. when they settled Scotia Minor.
or. In modern phraseoloTy, Scotland.
This same red lion Htlli appears ON tho
Z british standard M the aunrteringr for
I the land ~ the Scot. iiut previous 10
i5ps there n absolutely no mention Of
green faR In the annals Of Irish history.
II was at the end OF the eighteenth
century that the inhabitants Of the EN-
erald Isle adopted ~ national color
the green now conspicuous In all Irish
paraieH. Al the battle ~ the Doyne II
was that King Williams English troops
were given green leaves b. wear In their
hats In order 10 distinguish them from
the followers " Hlng James. who were
decorated with paper roaetieu symbol
teal OF the white rose Of York. II was
accordingly the orangcmen who were
tho first wcarcrs Of the green on the
Emerald Isle.
Another new feature ~ his nnnlverss-
~ that would he new and strange 10 the
saint would 10 the picture ~ the tall
! and stately Individual wearing trc-
mcndouH inter. which IL now carried
about On banners and In which he In
represented m tramplng on a number ~
snakes and also driving a little army ~
the same crawling animals before him
Now. II II an indlsputahie fact that 81.
Patrick was not u tall man. for In his
own Confessions" he descfihea himself
asa small individual. Neither did he ever
wear n FlitterlnE inter. ~ these pecui.
l lar creations ~ ecclesiastical henddreaa
were not introduced into his country
until after the twelfth century. and.
/ what II more. there were no Hnnkes-not
a snake from one end Of ireland 10 the
other. ~ Bedc. Grant Allen and many
J modern naturailstH and scientists have
pointed out. This old snake story was
the creation Of the English monk Joce-
| Ign ~ Furnlss abbey, who nourirhed
thls penn during the twelfth century.
The Idea was a purely nRurative one.
| for the only serpents that the devout
| aunt fNfI fANfll't lfhfn MS uflhNed
land were those OF paganiani. idoiatfy
and ignorance
Nor has II yet been satisfactorily de-
iermined Just where IT. Patrick was
born. Seven cities commended for the
honor ~ being known ~ the birthplace
NJ Homer after his death. while non. ~
them during his lifetime ever won med
nlH for it, liberaiity To the poor old
blind poet. Almost M many nations
now claim the honor ~ giving birth 10
the illustrioua patron saint OF Ireland.
Some claim that he In an IriHhnan,
some assert that he first saw the light
~ day In Cornwall still others hold that
he was Scotch highlander by birth. and
others again. stick % the belief that the
saint came from the Holy Land. Hut the
weight OF this historic authority tends
10 show that Holy Tours. In Armorio
Gaul. was the only ana original birth
place II this very much nattered saint.
History further claims that he was but
10 years Of age when he landed, n slave,
on the coast OF ireland. The date OF his
birth has been fixed an A. ID. aia, but the
popular tradition that no lived 10 tho
advanced age Of 100 years IN now gener.
ally diacredited by historians.
WILLIAM J. RUDOLPH,