Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-17

L
ancestors. because 1t was a cemesery 1l
| idola tiers. but to place his dust mummy
| in consecrated ground with ms az "
| the east These injunctionS were ciedf
and positive but the KING ser, a az oha,,
ouired a miracle to induce them 10 opey
| Three separate times they starred lIoIl
| the palace at Tara for the ro!al pur ing
| ground at Brlgh- Ma Bolnne. When .ne
| river miraculously rose to suen ne 81,
that they could not cross AFTER 81 n .na =,
warnings their stupid brains many saw
the light. and they laid his majesty
| ashes in consecrated GROUND.
Royal st. COLUMBIA.
Tho little Anticipated village OF keils'
v,t,, n,easant surroundings and glorious
tou.,a ,ooks unconscious Of its fame. II
Is of the greatest interest to Christia''
,rcbeoloeists because it was the home OF
St. COLUMBIA Tor Columkille) second only
IA Ct patrick in influence and the work
Of evangelizing Ireland. He was porn
In Donegal in 521 Of royal blood. oe1he
| the great-great grandson or hlns va
of the Nine Hostages. founder OF me
| O'Neill family. Having hearo 'ne .uI.
| of the gospel he gave up his prlnceiy
| heritage for the service of his Master
and became a monk, travelling TOT sixtes'
years, preaching from place 10 piace
! founding churches and monasteries al
| over the country which are SUN VeneI
| most interesting ruins in Ireland. AZ
Kells he built a famous monastery IN
| the year $50 and the cost was PaiG ny
Dermot, son of Fearghus, King OF TARA
at that time.
st. COLUMBIA made his headquarters
! here for many years. and then crossed
the channel to the little Island or iona
ON the west coast of Scotland, winch Hdo
been granted him by his relative the KING
of that country. Here he founded a
or x1-hfo hn
ciples traversed. all Scotland and the Heb
rides, preaching the gospel, baptizins
| the people building churches and monas-
teries until half the Scotch were convert
Britain was converted from paganism by
the missionaries he educated ana sent
out. After a life of extraordinary &C
tivity and usefulness he died at Iona IN
the year 597 at the age of Seventy-slx
and was mourned on the shores OF the
four seas by every one. His funeral serv-
ices lasted three days and three nights
and he was buried within the walls of the
monastery of Iona, where you can see his
tomb today.
A portion of the house of St COLUMBIA
still remains at Kells. half concealed by
a cloak of wonderful ivy. There Is a
tower 100 feet tall and in the neighboring
churchyard are several crosses Of the
Celtic fashion. similar to but not so large
or so fine as those at Monasterboice where
we visited yesterday. They are, however
sacred in the eyes of all true 1rishmen
and date back to the tenth century.
The Annals of the Four Masters record
many exciting incidents and important
events that have occurred in the history
of the town Of Kells. 1t has been invaded
and looted by Irish clansmen Norwe-
gian hordes and Danish vikings. 1t has
been devastated by fire. sword and pestt-
lence many times; Sigtryg of the Silken
Beard burnt it to the ground in 1919 and
Edward Bruce in 1875 but it has arisen
serene and smiling as often as it has
been destroyed and the prosperity has
been restored again.
1t was In the great monastery founded
here by st. COLUMBIA that the famous illu-
minated Book of the Gospels, preserved
In the library of Trinity College. Dublin.
of which 1 wrote you the other day. was
made by the monks in the eighth cen
fury. Mr.. Westwood. a very high au-
thority, pronounces 1t the most elahp-
rately executed monument of early Chris
tian art In existence" Kells was also
noted for it's metal work in the middle
ages.
At present 1t is merely an agricultural
market and the seat of the MARQUIS of
Headfort. who has a large estate and
beautiful chateau surrounded by a wooded
demesne and a hunting preserve. There are
several other delightful residences in the
neighborhood, and If there were decent
hotel within walking or driving distance
keils might have many visitors. but those
who come here are compelled to hurry
on to find some place to stay over night.
King Johns Castle.
Navan is a neat little manufacturing
town with wooden mill and other indus
tries and reasonably good hotel. but you
have to come back about ten miles from
Kells. There is another neat little town
called Trim where it is possible to stay
over night and even to pass a day or two
The country around Trim Is lovely. The
landscapes In every direction would fas-
cfnate an artist and the ruins of king
Johns Castle" built on the banks of the
Boyne by Hugh de Lacy, are among the
most extensive and the most beautiful in
the world. The walls. 1856 yards long with
ten circular towers at nearly equal dis
tances. are still we'll preserved, and there
IL a lofty keep. seventy feet high, with
beautiful turrets and fanked on each side
with rectangular towers. There is moth
ing to surpass it in Ireland for pic
turesqueness and it's associations give it
additional interest, for. King John, Ed
ward II, Richard. Earl of Ulster, and
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester have
lived here. Henry of Lancaster, after
ward Henry ~ of England. was i'm
pr.soned here; the parliament Of Ireland
met within it's walls year after year: and
1t was once the mint of the kingdom. In
later days it was occupied by the Duke
of Wellington, who received his early edu-
cation in the diocesan school within the
grounds.
Family of Wellington.
The name, you know; of one of the most
illustrious of modern generals was Ar-
thur Wellesley. He was son of Lord
Mornington of an old Irish family. His
mother was a daughter of the Earl OF
Dungannon of Tyrone, and she lived to
see four of her sons elevated to the peer
age of Great Britain. not because of
of >l1eir ability and usefulness Richard,
the eldest. was the celebrated statesman,
the Marquis of Wellesley: the second
William was also eminent in politics and
civil affairs as Lord Mayborough: the
third, Henry. Lord Cowley, spent his life
in the diplomatic service and made an
enviable name; while Arthur hero of
Waterloo and of the Spanish campaign
the man who broke the back of Napoleon
the Great. was the fourth and most ia
nous of them all.
in Merton street. Dublin, in a house now
occupied by the commissioners that are
carrying out the land act and he died
September 10, 1852. 1t may be said that
no Irish subject of a British king ever
received greater honors or better deserved
them
Dangan Castle. the home of the Welles-
leys, is near Trim, about twenty miles
from Dublin. and the nearest railway sta
ton is Summer Hill. Laracor. a secluded
little village. where Dean Swift was once
curate and where Stella lived with Mrs.
Dingley, is only a mile or two distant
VENUS MAY BE DEMENTED.