The Washington herald., 1907-11-03
Many Elements in Erin Are
Working to This End.
CHURCHES ONE IN MOVEMENT
Prevalent Passion for study Of
Gaelic "a Force for Standardization.
Almost LimitIess Peat Bog to Pro-
vide Power for Generation of EIec-
tricity-Three Months Casualties.
ny sEUMAs MACNANUs.


Protestants in Ireland have been of late
drawing attention 10 themselves by the
national stand which they are taking
up. Their Matchmaking began by their
| Joining the Gaelic League and learning
! the Gaelic language. From being Irish
men linguisucally they are getting 10 be
/ Irishmen politically. and they have be-
gun to lecture the others Of their church
who. for 100 years. have made them
selves notable by their antinational stand.
! Gaelcism has taken fast hold on an inn
portant portion Of the more intellectual
Of the young Protestants of Ireland, and
/ the infection is spreading fast. In Dublin
/ last week. before the Church Of Ireland
Young Mems Christian Association. a pa
per commencing the work Of the Gaelic
League was read, and was received with
much appreciation by a large Protestant
audience.
Rev J. O. Hannay Of Westport, County
Mayo, a Protestant minister, who, under
I the pseudonym Of George Birmingham,
has written a few rather remarkable Irish
political novels recently, and has been
| member Of the executive body Of the
Gaelic League, getting Up to speak on
the paper, was received, the press says,
with loud applause He said that II any
one had told him three years ago that
/ he, a Gaelic Lacquer, should stand on
/ that platform and be allowed 10 address
/ on that particular subject, the Church OF
/ Ireland Young Mems Christian AssoCia-
/ ton. and that when he stood up he would
be cneered loud APPLAUSE, he would alb
soIutely and fatty have refused 10 be-
/ lieve him. Three years ago when he first
became permanently connected with the
! Gaelic League, he found himself tn "a good
deal OF hot water. People told him he
was mixing himself up with a lot Of
blackguards. A brother clergyman warn
ed him that III he persisted in mis- evil
course he would md himself. in all prob
ability. turned out OF his parish. and that
no self-respecjing man would ever allow
/ him 10 preach in his pulpit when II be-
came known how extremely wicked he
was. There was no better sign Of the
change in opinion that had taken place
than the paper tEey had heard that night.
Gaelic as NationnIizer.
Mr. Hannay exhorted his hearers TO
study the Irish language. promising that
their new-found knowledge would pro-
duce In tlem an extraordinary mental
revolution. His knowledge OF Irish taught
him 90 look on the Irish nation I'm 2 way
he never did previously To would give
them q new point Of view, but be did not
say IL would make them "a member Of
any political party II would make them
think Of Ireland Irislly. love Ireland
lrishly, and live In Ireland ITishly. II
raised strange country lOye-the love Of
J tie land-that nothing else ne knew did
/ TO the same extent II taught them %
/ look on Ireland with new, tender, loving
! eyes. as they never did before Their
/ chairman bad referred 10 their pro-
grdmme, but he lthe speaker would sug-
gest 10 them that they should have "a
class for the study Of Irish (applause).
They would gain enormously by it-more
than they could easily imagine. Ireland
would also gain enormously II they, the
members Of the Church Of Ireland. would
come forward and take their part brave
ly-if they liked. recklessly-in that work.
Let them enlarge their hearts, open their
minds and strengthen their souls. Ire
land NEEDED them, and he believed that
the Irish nation needed the members Of
Q III
very special love Of his own church that
made him say that, but he really be-
lieved Ireland needed them most of all
He believed they would be false 70 them
selves. false TO their church. false 10
their country, and ultimately they would
90 upon the way that led 20 failure if
they refused the call OF the Irish people
(applause).
Even the Churches United.
At this remarkable meeting-remarkabl
in showing the entirely new trend OF
affairs in ireland, the entirely new spirit
that is taking hold of young ireland.
Protestant as wen as Catholic, a reverend
professor Of Trinity College tof all places
in the worldD besought the Protestants
of Ireland to join some league. which had
for its object the study of the Irish Ian
guage. He felt that as churchmen they
ought TO show a tinge Of national aspi-
ratiOns. They sought 70 be in the fore
front, and be as national as any one
else. applause And that nationalism
was not confined to those who talked
50 much about their nationality He
would also rejoice if an Irish service
were held on every St Patricks Day in
every fair town, if not in every parish.
in Ireland. Let them bark back to the
ancient times, and show that they alone
could hold an entire service in the Irish
language. (Applause) He would wish
that they were more forward in Irish
ideas. and more tied TO their country
with desire 10 help her and make others
feel that they were the true descend
ants of the Irish Of the ancient Church.
(Applause)
At the instance Of good Irishman
in Australia, DR. O'Donnell, of Mel
bourne, the Irish Australians are mOv-
ing 20 mark their practical sympathy
with and appreciation of the widow OF
that exiled Irish patriot Kelvin Ised
ODoherty, who is now IN her declfn-
ing years. in their midst. Mrs. Kelvin
Ised O'Doherty is the well-known and
beloved Eva the sweet poet of the
old Nation days Throughout the forties.
The Nation newspaper was the clarion
calling young Ireland to arms for the
nations freeing. Many fine and patri-
otto poets sang in its columns. Eva"
was ever me OF the beloved. In her
exile and old age il is well to know
that her compatriots forget her not
Would Turn Bog Into Gold.
The latest industrial move in ireland is
to turn the great bog Of Allen into
gold. A syndicate has just been formed
under the name Of the Dublin and Cen
trail Ireland Power Syndicate, for the de-
velopment of the peat resources of the
famous bog. The object OF the under
taking is primarily to generate and sup
ply cheap electric power to local au-
thorities and other large consumers
throughout the city and county of Dublin,
lit
Queens counties, traversed by the Grand
Canal. reaching southwark TO Athy and
westward to shannon Bay, and contain
ing the extensive series of peat boys
known as the bog of Allen" affording
a practically inexhaustible supply Of peat