Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-14

Marquis of Rockingham, the prime min
lister. who opened the doors of the house
of commons for him. In very short
time he became the most effective de-
batter and the most influential leader of
his party Then his abilities were fully
recognized and his fame enc1rcled the
world.
He was the ablest friend of the Ameri-
can colonies in England during the reVo-
luton and harassed Lord North more
than any other man. He reached the
summit of his influence at the impeach-
ment of Warren Hastings for misgovern-
ment. and treason while viceroy In India;
and then Burke's sun began to set. He
retired upon a pension and passed from
history with the eighteenth century. One
of his eulogies has said that: "Notw1th-
standing some 'eccentricities and some
alterations he made the tide of human
destiny luminous.
st. Michan's Church.
Near Burke's birthplace Is the Oldest
| and the uuaintest church i'm Dublin, built
| by the Danes before the English came to
Ireland and consecrated to st. Michan,
Danish saint. Within its walls Is the
penitential stool where "open ana no
torious naughty livers' were compeiieo
to stand and confess Their sins IN pubic
and make pledges of repentance and re-
form. The officiating minister. recluhs
the fifty-first Psalm. led the onendlns
sinner from the altar to the foot OF the
pulpit-barefooted, bareheaded and draped
in long white shetland placed MIN
upon the stool of repentance to hear a
sermon directed at his particular sins.
The tower of st. Michans dates from
the twelfth century and Is one OF the
most beautiful things In Dublin Inc
view from the top of it includes all the
city. which is divided into two almost
equal parts by the River Liffey and
spreads over an uneven surface from the
dark green woods of Phoenix Park 10
the dark blue waters of the Irish sea
Handel used to play the organ IN st
Micbans Church. and 1t was there
the public first heard the score Of The
MessiAh.
The most remarkable feature of St.
Michan-s however, is a peculiar atmos-
pheric effect, from the soil nthe crypt
upon the bodies that are buried there
They mummify before decay sets IN ana
turn into a leathery brown similar to
the mummies of Egypt. The vaults are
| for centuries. Among them is the body
of one of the kings of Leinster. and be-
side him is the corpse or BABY from
whose wrists faded white ribbon has been
hanging since it's funeral in 1879. Every
corpse in the crypt is mummified in the
same way and 1t is the only place in
Dublin where this phenomenon occurs.
Nor is there any satisfactory explanation
of the phenomenon. he vaults are dU-
solutely dry. The popular theory is that
subtle gas arising from the peaty soil
suspends natures law of decay.
Daniel o'Connell.
There will always be controversy
among Irishmen as to whether Edmund
Burke or Daniel O'Connell was the greater
man. They were different in their
characteristics that it is difficult to draw
<l,o
stage Just as Burke retired OConnell
was not native of Dublin. He was born
at the humble village of Cahirciveen in
County Kerry. He was the son Of an exile
who fled to escape arrest and entered the
service of France; and from him OCon-
nell inherited an intense prejudice and
hatred of everything English and Protes-
tant. He was educated in Cork for the
priesthood. but changed his mind and was
called to the bar when he was twenty
three years old. He Immediately made a
reputation and by the time he was thirty
was regarded as the ablest advocate in
Ireland, and without equal in Oratory.
Probably no man ever surpassed him be-
fore jury.
O'Connell is regarded by many as the
ablest of all Irishmen, but. as have said,
| this claim is disputed in favor of Edmund
Burke. He was equally strong as a poll
tician and undertook the cause Of Catholic
| emancipation in his very youth. In those
| days all Catholics were disenfranchised;
| they could not hold office or even vote:
the schools were closed to them and a
| Catholic child could only be taught by
private tutor or governess. Daniel O'Con-
nell organized the parish priests for the
movement and was the first to bring the
clergy into politics. Through them he or.
! ganized the masses and regular contribu
| lions were collected in the churches to pay
the expenses of the campaign.
First Catholic to Enter Parliament
| O'Connell was the first Catholic to enter
| parliament and the Duke of Wellington
| confessed that this was allowed only to
| avert civil war. In 1928 he was elected
| to the British house of commons but
| was not admitted because he refused to
! take the anti-Catholic oath. He came
| back to his constituents and was elected
! again. and they continued to elect him.
| lust as the merchants and bankers in the
| city of London continued to elect Baron
| Rothschild who was refused admission
| for the same reason-because he would not
| take the oath He was the first Jew. as
| Daniel O'Connell was the, first Roman
Catholic, to obtain seat upon the floor.
1 nsCounelI was elected lord mayor Of