The sun., 1899-07-23
Ancient Civilization and Literature o.
Ireland.

In a previous notice OF A Literary History OF
Ireland by DOUGLAS HYDE tScrihnersl. we di-
rected attention to the native sources OF Irish
history. to the early OF letters in Ireland. to
the first Christian schools and to the oldest
books and poems We would now supplement
that notice with glance at that part OF the
authors book which deals with Irish prose
writer's in the seventeenth century, with the
compositlon Of the Irish annals. with the So
called Brchon laws and with the history OF
Irish as a spoken language.
During the first half of the seventeenth
century the Irish. oppressed as they wcre and
deprived OF the power Of printing. neverthe-
less made strenuous efforts to keep abreast of
the rest OF Europe in science and literature
1t was this half century which produced
Geoffrey keatinR the Four Masters and Duald
Mac Firbis. men who strove to save from
wreck those records Of their country which
to-day make the name of ireland honorable
In the eyes OF schOlars for her antiquities
traditions and history. OF these men Heating
was tho most eminent He was a man Of lot
ters poet. professor. n theoogian and a
historian. He brought the art OF writing Irish
to point nearest perfection. and. since
the publication Of his history OF Ire
land somc two hundred and fifty years ago the
modern Irish tongue may be said to have been
stereotyred. Born in Tipperary, not Of native
Irish. hut Of an ancient NorG an family. he was
at an early age sent to the Continent to be
educated for the priesthood He finally took
refuge in the west Of Spain After his return
to his own country Keatng. now a doctor Of
divinity. was appointed to a church in Tippe-
rary. whore his fame as a preacher soon drew
crowds together. Presently Carew, the Eng
lish LORD President OF Munster putting the
anti-POpery laws In execution. sent a force
Of soldiers to seize him and bring him a pris-
oner into court. Having received information
OF the design, Keating fed into the Glen Of
Aherlow. whore he remained for some years
efiectually hidden. 1t was at this timo that
he conceived the purpose OF writing a his
tory Of Ireland from tho earliest times down to
the Norman conqueAt. In pursuance OF this
intention he is said to have travelled in dis
guse up and down the island to consult the
ancient vellum books at that time still pre-
served in the families OF the hereditary bre-
hons. or in the neiRhbOrhood Of the ancient
monasterieB. The books nre said to have bee n
shown to him willingly, except In the province
OF Connaught and parts Of Ulster. where some
OF the old families refused to allow him to in
spect their literary treasures because he was a
Norman bV race and not Gael. To the stu
dent OF Irish antiquity the value of Keating' 9
history is great not so much on account o! any
critical faculty possessed by him as by
reason OF his lack OF it. What he found
in the old vellums OF tha monaste ries
and the brehons. as they existed about
tho year lG3O-mnnv Of them have since
perished-he rewrote and put together In his
own language. like another Herodotus He in
vents nothing, embroidsrs little: what he does
not find before him he does not relate accord
ing to Hcrodotus's formula. He composed his
history in the south Of Ireland at nearly the
same time that the so-caled Four Masters in
the north OF ireland were collecting the ma
terials for their annals. Although. in matters
OF fact he is less accurate than they are. yet
his work is an independent compilation made
from the same class OF documents. and. often,
from the very same books from which thoy de-