The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-03-16
SAINT PATRICK'S DAY
GOOD IRISH WILL CELEBRATE
 TOMORROW.
Mass at St. Peter's Catholic Church and Exercises by the Mont gomery Division of the
 Hibernians.

l Tomorrow. Thursday. the 17th Of
 March, Is Saint Patricks Day. The spirit of the day pervades the atmosphere and all true sons of Erin in | Montgomery and the rest of the world 1 are making preparations to celebrate that | great feast day of tho Catholic Church
 and social calendar. Shamrock and lit
 tie bows of green ribbon will be worn
 tomorrow by tho happy-hearted Irishnlen | the world over in commemoration of St. | Patrick, patron saint of Ireland and Q | joyous day 1t will be made. | St. Patrick's day in Montgomery will l be celebrated by solemn high mass at 1 St. Peters Catholic Church at o'clock | in the morning when Father Hugh A. | O'Brien. assistant rector of St. Peters Church, will deliver panegyrfc Cd St. Patrick. Tho day will be appropriately observed by the Ancient Order of Hibernians.' but no formal exercises will be held. Mcm-
 bers of tho order will gather during the
 day for an informal social celebration.
 Tho time and place of meeting has not
 been set and no program has been ar-
 ranged. James Mcintyre Is president of
 the Montgomery division of the order and
 John P. Kohn Is secretary. Tho meet ing will probably be held in St. Peters
 Hali corner of Adams and Lawrence
 Street.
 The extent of knowledge of most people in,regard to good St. Patrick includes tho
 fact that he is the patron saint of Ire land. and. according 10 popular tradi- ton. drove tho snakes out of that coun- try--and there It stops. How he be- came the patron saint and why the sham rock Is so closely connected with him but few seem to know. And yet true Irish- man will tell you that if # were not for l tho great saint Ireland would probably never have had the shamrock as its em- sblem.
 History has not revealed whether St. ! Patrick came from France, Scotland or l Ireland, the three countries to which are attributed his birthplace. but the fact re- | mains that, wherever ho was born, he | devoted his life to the welfare of the l people of Ireland. and they. and those Of t, their blood in this country, are the only | people who celebrate his day, and who | have any memorials of him, the most noted being the church that bears his name in Dun-Patrick.
 Men have come into the world, attained l distinction, and their memories have been been commemOrated for somo centuries. but none Of them has left n more lasting | impression than the Apostle of Ireland" the memory of whoso gond works is re-
 newed every 17th of March.
 Many and widely conflicting arc the accounts which have haen handed down from century to century and from father | to son regarding St. Patrick. IIo was born in Scotland at Dunbarton, on tho I Clyde; at Nantes, in France; nt Boulogne sur Mer. and at various other places, according to many so-called authorities, I.a ,t.-f. .ktlH I,,r, d cd In l mystery. Since In his ''Coufessions' St.
 Patrick tells of his call to Ireland. it might with reason he inferred that he was not already there. However. lre- | land, In his time. that Is, about the Fifth | Century, was called Hibernia or Scotia. l and the people Scots. which may account | for the apparent discrepancy.
 l All historians, however. appear to agree ] in the main as to the story of his life l following his birth.
 As a record of one of his greatest deeds | in his holy work in SIane Abbey, ar. rather, the ruins of 1t. standing on Tara l Hill, where St. Patrick lighted his fire. | and here and there throughout the coun- | try one may come upon an ancient
 standing stone" with the cross which | was engraved on 1t by order of the saint, | thus consecrating 1t to Christian faith.
 These standing stones. which were to | the early Celt what tho totem pole is 10 | thoAlaskan of today, whore thrown down
 by St. Patrick. to emphasize the fact
 that organism was to be left entirely be- l hind. Some of the stones were left,
 however. but those were marked with the
 cross.
 In tho Dublin museum are the good l saints iron hell and cover. the latter be-
 ing covered with beautiful Celtic engrav- | lngs The bell is of a type of those
 which were rung by hand from the win l dows of tho watch tower. and was proha- l bly, used by St. Patrick to call the faith | full together.
 In Cork tho principal highway iS named
 after tho good saint. and 1t is mp and
 down this street that tho annual St.
 Patricks day parade takes place.