Omaha daily bee., 1908-09-27
FLOODS ELAND
Great Dana Done in North Country
by Storms,
FL0UR1sHING CROPS SWEPT OFF
Heaviest Financial Loss Entailed at
Derry.
RED TAPE BANE OF GOVERNMENT
Newspaper Rooms in Public Libraries
Forced to Close.
BELFAST COUNCILLORS TO PAY
Fed Troops During Last Years Riots
when They Were Starving
without Absolute Au-
BELFAST COUNCILLORS TO PAY

w
promised to be one of the best harvests
that Irish farmers have enjoyed for many
years has been ruined by the disastrous
storms and floods which have prevailed
throughout the north and west OF the coun- !
try during the last week or two Grain |
that had been cut and stacked in the fields |
has been swept away, and even large guam |
titles of oats and hay In stacks have been !
blown away by the wind. Cattle and sheep |
have been drowned in large numbers and
a great many farmers have been ruined.
The damage is WORST in Derry. Tyrone. |
Donegal, Carlow, Roscommon and Galway. |
There a waterspout a few days ago
near Derry which filled one OF the reser-
voirs that supplies the town with water
and caused IL to burst. Fortunately the
millions of gallons OF water which It con-
tained were caught by another reservoir
lower down, and the city saved from what
might have been a great disaster. As Il
was all the low-lying streets were flooded
and there has been great distress among
the poorer Inhabitants. large part OF
! Strabane. the chief town of County Tyrone,
has been under water and relief has been
carried to the poor In boats, which navi-
| gate the main streets. The farmers along
the Finn and Mourne valleys have suf-
fered great loss.
The floods were so bad that traffic on
the Donegal and Lough Swily railway was
entirely suspended for a whole day. In
some places the track was five feet under
water.
Newspaper Rooms Closed.
| The newspaper rooms OF the Dublin pub
! lie libraries have been closed and no more
shining example of the absurdity of gov
ernment red tape could be wished for than
| this. The money appropriated for the
libraries fund has been exhausted. and al
! though there are substantial surpluses in
other funds and although every member
of the corporation ia anxious TO keep the
news rooms open. It has been found inn
possible to do so. and there is no prospect
OF relief even at the apcniaSeef the new
financial year, as the Law limits tlie amount
I to be spent on libraries to the product OF
a tax at the rate of 2 cents in the S. II
| the corporation should vote 20 transfer
some Of the money lying idle in other funds
to the libraries fund the local government
board. which Is a bureau OF the castle
government, would step in and surchsrgc
every member who voted for the resolution.
with the result that they would have to pay
the money out of their own pockets.
Another example of the work Of the
local government board has been provided
at Belfast, where the board has actually
surcharged three members OF the corpora
tion with $2,700 which was spent for feed
ing the troops which were sent 30 quell
the riots there last year. The corporation
had nothing to do with sending the troops.
and. in fact did not want them. but when
they were there it was impossible to see
them starve The three members who have
been surcharged are the officials who
actually signed the check given in payment
for the supplies.
Red Tape Keeps Roy I'm Prison.
Red tape, in fact, seems TO be the bane
of all departments OF Irish government.
and the viceroy has just been compelled
to step in and cut bunch of It which
might have held boy in imprisonment for
life. The lad is Edward Calaghan. IL years
old. of Poyntzpsss He is a little weak
minded. but by no means imbecile OF in
sane and he has taste for roaming. He
has run away from home several times and
has been sent back each time by the police.
on his last excursion he became hungry
and helped himself to some turnips from
farmers field, and was arrested The
magistrate came to the conclusion that he
was insane and sent him to the Armagh
asylum. but when the doctors there saw
him they sent him back. declaring that he
was saner than some of the magistrates
who sent him there. He was then taken 10
the workhouse, but the authorities there
would not have him, and from the work.
house ne was sent to an industrial school.
but II was decided that he was not a
suitable case for that institution The
magistrates in despair sent him to prison
on remand while they considered his case,
and kept remanding him from time TO
time as they could not make up their minds
what TO do with him. The lord lieutenant
heard Of the case last week and iSme
dIately ordered tina. che boy should be
released and turned over TO his father. who
had been trying all the time to recover
possession OF him. g..
Better Wages. Less POrteF.
The most Rev. DIR. Browns. bishop of
Cloyne. has started a crusade against the
practice Of the Irish farmers supplying
drink to their harvesters. and incidentally
for better wages for the harvest workers.
Speaking the other day at mass in Queens
town cathedral the bishop declared that the
scenes attending the harvest in the south
ana west Of Ireland were a disgrace 10 the
country and that the cash OF porter had
become as necessary part OF the harvest
machinery as the threshing machine. In
oidentially he declared that II the farmers
would stop buying drink for their laborers.
they could afford to pay them living
wages. and he appealed 10 the farmers OF
the diocese to try the experiment OF tenn
peranee harvesting and and thus set an
example 10 the rest OF Ireland
A Dublin man, Captain Beattie. has
solved the problem Of the automobile road
hog He has invented automatic gov
ernor which can be attached TO any car
and which when the car reaches a speed
ringing a bell. When the speed exceeds
thirteen miles an hour the governor auto
matically cuts out the engine until the
speed Is reduced.
The guardians Of the North Dublin union
have set a good example 20 the poor Law
authorities Of the rest OF ireland and one
vhish will prohGbiy be widely followed.