The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-10-16
Forgotten Part of ireland.

To illustrate old-time Irish life in that
part of Ireland separated from the
mainland by narrow strip of sea
where mingle the waters of Clew bay
and Black sod, and which is called
Achin island. the writer Of this sketch
can adduce much evidence.
Here the everyday language Of the
people, the only language Of many of
them, is the Gaelic tongue. It is first
learned by the children, who may be
heard chatting glibly in its liquid ac-
cents after school hours with one an
other, or with their mothers and white
old Irish grandmothers at home. Their
isolation has enabled this people to pre-
serve the ancient Irish manners and
customs, the simplicity and lively faith
whereby somebody said they "see
through the VEIL" and have won the
title Of children of eternity" Many of
the older inhabitants have never set
foot on the mainland, have never seen
8 railway train or q town, and, in the
midst of their native hills, live and die,
Of whom we may say with the poet:
Along the cool sequestered vale Of life
They kept the even tenor Of their way.
One girl, only a few years ago, came
from there to New York City in bliss
full ignorance of her fellow mortals be-
ing dyed in any other color than white.
She didn't have long to wait there,
when, behold the niger appeared, and
the poor innocent girl was siezed with
such a fright on seeing her only idea
OF the devil materialize before her. as
nearly ended her life She has seen
many such apparitions since then
However, without treating profusely
Of this aspect Of life in Ireland's largest
island, It viii abundantly appear from
what has to be said, that il is little
bit Of an island.
Achill, '1and of moor and mountain"
is supposed to derive its name from the
eagles that still make their haunts
around the tops of its wild, picturesque
mountains. In the island itself, $4,000
acres in extent, as well as on the main
land adjoining it, there are several hills
Of considerable height Four of these
-Curraune, Sieve Nor, Crochaun and
Mcnamara the glory of Achir lisland,
and seem to account in large measure
for the extraordinary love of its 1000
people for their island home.
Curaune, the only one of the four on
the mainland-which is only a short dis
lance from the Islands ], ESQ feet high
and commands a magnificent view of
Clew bay, with its myriad islands, the
home Of Grania Uiale From Curraune's
summit the eagles now and again swoop
down to carry off the fowl and young
lambs from the peasants inhabiting its
sides.
Sieve Nor, within the island. at its
northwestern extremity. justifies its
name of big mountain by raising its
head only a few feet above that of its
neighbor and rival, Crochaun, which.
almost, 1000 feet high. with the tips of
&c ~, 40
finest cliff scenery in Europe. The "big
which presents a conical an |
pearance when viewed from the island. |
impresses the spectator from the sea
with the conviction that half its mass
must have at one time Slipped into the |
Atlantic, which roars and tumbles /
around it. It shelters from the Atlantic |
sotrms a beautiful village called the |
colony or settlement which calls for
'urther mention Farther inland there
s a large space sacred to Irish archaic
,logists, containing i'm the shape of a
Oruid's altar various cromlechs and
tone circles, some of the most interest
ng archaeological remains in Ireland
Kettle scholarship has not yet said the
asst word on these wonders of dim an
EQUITY, but there is a concensus of
opinion to claim this, as pagan ceme-
cry Where lie the mighty bones Of
ncient men," Some years ago, while
were being made in the
human bones of giant
Toportions were unearthed and were
carried off by a gentleman
{ antiquarian tastes who happened to
e about the place. On the evening of
hat day a storm, such as rarely visits
ven the storm-swept island was let