New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-09-19
IRISH LACEMAKERS.
What County Meath Workers Hare
accom- pIiShed.

v.-hs,. the most interesting Of all the foreign
.es+o-s 70 the Irish Industrial Exposition now IN
-,-oe-ass at Madison Square Garden is Miss Ellen
o.Re,uev manager and secretary Of the County
,fsa+h Home Industries Association
7-,s association IS part OF the great organization
If irish cottage Industries started by Lady Aber-
seen in 1855 when Lord Aberdeen was Lieutenant
Governor OF Ireland
the County Meath industry IS mainly OF laos
-,ak5ng and heecy Limerick and Carrckmacross,
s.lI,ate guipure. heavy Irish crochet and YoughaI
DENOUNCED '.yawI") the fairylike Irish point.
isis Mss ORelIey's booth thing Of beauty and
& 10y to lace lovers.
The revival Of the Irish industries has spread
80 ever part Of the island" she said yesterday.
sgTbe irish Industries have al exhibit every fall
st the Dublin horse show. and each March they
have & sale on the 18th and 18th at some private
house il London. Last spring it was at Lord How
sr5 De waI6on's. The Duchess Of Marlborough
.ooz chsrse Of q booth <or It has been at the
T1.ze Of Tyesr-luster's and at Lord salisbu-y's
The headquarters Of or County Meath industry
4. y Navaa. The president is Mrs Everard, the
.r@a Of Colonel Everard. the man who introduced
the cultivation q tobacco into Ireland He planted
Ia acres with last year, and II has grown splen-
6idIy ard proved very profitable have specimen
W have seventy members Of our association.
Al women each Of whom pays yearly due We
conduct nine Iacemal1ing classes with from six TO
sky g1rls n class. The classes are held in the
scloC--t ~,S.-
veuisnt place IN the dinerent villages We nave
thoroughly accomplished and Wei paid IaceIla-her
II d-aw17ork- ms Ueen n existence seven years
oder workers leaving as they acquire he art and
younger ones entering. Our drawnwork has taken
The highest medal four successive years at the
Dublin horse show.
IS furnished 10 the girls. and IS soon as the work
is good enough 10 sell Il is bought from them
We DO not sweat Our workers, and therefore we
take wholesale orders as wholesalers would
expect Is 10 sweat them We pay them
s1aztly. can make S a week That is excellent
II s country district Of Ireland Living is cheap
ano yoq can see that Win Two or three workers IN
6 family II makes nice little income. Il has
meant great deal to The girls, themselves, too.
II "ds al lLeIe was LOT lLlefI 70 DO NOW th1y
hire that rough work done and make q good
been able to keep their land because OF the lace
Some. where the father was dead, have actually
been kept from starving. had little girl, only
sisTe- The had their bouse 5Ir no land exceDt
q little back yard. where they kept few hens
No other help did the girl have Week after week
she took in her pound week. I don't know any
other way il which she could have supported three
OF course. some workers are better than Others
know how TO handle p needle They had never sc
we sell The lace BY rnsiI order and at the exposi
lions. The Duchess Ct Marlborough has paJroLizec
Us and also one OF the German princesses kach
year have been able to pay the expenses OF our
70 the workers That is. each worker has re-
ccved 70 per cent Of he price Of al her work ap
lace. she got z at the end Of the year -
=, %nlcn - Is T r9 tsI lace at ali we cal it
irish crotchet- CarrickTnaCross Is q muslin ap-
pliaue5 on net CTuinure is sewed muslin and
fhe1 cut away Limerick is pattern sewed on
q fine net. very much used for church purposes
II the Irish point braid Is employed. That is
& very rare. fine and expensive lace We nave
oniv one worker who can do II, and she learned
al the convent in County Cork. where one OF the
nuns designed and taught it Lace making IS the
oldest OF Irish industries It's origin Is lost IN the
Middle Ages. Il never quite died out, the con
vents preserving 1t. The irish cottagers are the
best lacemakers in the world, not excepting either
Ehe French the Belgians.
We make gi-rhng for horses, too for County
Meath Is q great hunting centre. and many saddle
Ffrths are required We supply knit socks. stock
ings and gloves, and we have one old man who
weaves blue serge for mems wear. The spinning
wheel and loom have never quite died
land. I have been in more than one house into
which piece OF muslin had never come for house
hold use Every piece Of bed and table linen ever
owned fl that family had been spun from its own
fax
I'VE have one specially in County Meath. q mus
lin embroidery. known as shadow work 7 is ex-
~@T7e-r for cushion covers bedsQreads teacOts and
Al such household purposes because Il really looks
better the more II IS washed.