The Elbert County tribune., 1908-03-12

Dear shamrock OF Erin. so sacred and
green,
Though ages of sorrow thy past years
have seen;
From childhood's bright morning to man.
hoods decline
Thy leafiet we wear o'er our hearts ever
thine.
In Moore's poem on the shamrock
he tells of the triple grass" which
Shoots up. with dewdrops streaming,
As softly green as emerald seen.
Through purest crystal cleaning.
o. the Shamrock, the green immortal
Shamrock
Chosen leaf of bard and chief.
Old Erins native Shamrock!
BY many of the faithful in Wales
and elsewhere Irish soil is imported to
keep away serpents. and it has been
declared that a bite of Irish clay will
kill a snake.
Patrick's labors in Ireland lasted
more than 80 years. In Downpatrick,
near tae Blace where as a slave he
once tended sheep, his ashes are now
believed to repose.
In Down. three saints one grave do fill
Patrick. Bridget and Columb XIII.
The mere student of folklore little
guesses the feelings of the son of
Erin who bears the shamrock in his
cap or wears it on his breast To him
it embodies all the religious and ro-
mantle, mythical and national ideas
which ever have stirred in the souls of
his forefathers. The great love for
the plant inspired the famous ballad
The Wearin' O. the Green" which
tells that They're hangin' men and
women for the wearin' O. the green"
This did not mean, of course that
people were being hanged for that,
but 1t was poetical exaggeration i'm
plying their willingness to die, If nee
essary, rather than give up wearing 1t.
For the last half dozen years, under
the inspiring influence of the Sham.
rock league, happily instituted and
even more happily carried on by the
Countess of Limerick, there has been
an unprecedented demand for the Irish
national emblem. Thousands upon
thousands of little green boxes filled
with tiny punches of the trefoil have
annually been packed by that great
hearted woman and her friends and
sold the world over, the proceeds
going to aid disabled Irish soldiers and
the destitute relatives OF those Irish
men who have fallen in battle. Last
winter nearly 800 of the poor in Coun-
ties Glare and Limerick alone tided
over the hard weather on the profit
derived from the patriotic sale of
shamrock.
And where does all the shamrock
come from? 1t grows wild in every
county of Ireland. Along the noun
tains. in the old hill-pastures and in
the venerable meadows. it may be
picked in small quantities as early in
the year as February 25, and fort
night later in luxurious abundance.
The tiniest and therefore the most
priced variety is usually found along
the bank of dry ditch where there is
no grass, for the poorer and more arid
the soil the better the shamrock. Not
BARN in ireland but knows all the
best places near his home to look for
the little green leaf. 1t is the children
who are the gatherers For days
Just before the good saints festival
the hills around Stepaside and Stillo-
gan and the Scalp will be dotted over
with the Industrious diminutive toll
ers whose profits may in no case ex
coed two dollars but who are supreme
ly happy in their patriotic task.
There are national emblems that
may be eaten. Not SO the shamrock.
A man may eat leek and enjoy it, n
Scot might even try thistle, but an
lrishman must drown his shamrock.
That is as sure as is March II itself.
lf-ssb sr~s.--. t,