The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-03-22
GREATEST PEOPLE JEWS,
 NOT GREEKS
Remarkable Address by Prof. J.C.Manag.
 han, on "lrish Character.
Asral Nature of True Greatness Eloquent.
 ly Exemplified.
LeIand's Claim to an Exalted Position Among the Peoples Viyidly Describ. ed-She Has Been Mighty in Laws, Literature, War and Religion, Says Speaker.
, women's Section

Prof. J. c. Monaghan. of St. Johns College. Brooklyn, lectured on "The Irish. Character" before an audiencs that filled Polls theatre last night. until there twas standing room on " The occasions.was the annual St. Pat r1ck's rday celebration of St. Patricks parish. which as usual was arranged by the pastor. Rev. Father J. B. Nihill Prof. Monaghan had become well known to the people of Bridgeport by his lectures upon various topics in the Bridgeport High School English course. What he had to say upon the present his utteranceS upon previous occasions. He was eloquent. His listeners were frequently in laughter and sometimes stirred to tears.
 clans and singers were most pleasing and encoreS were frequently extended by the audience. The first part of tn 3 concert consisted of the selections of Moore's "The Wearing of the Green tenor solo. William V. Walsh: Crouch s
 Kathleen Marourneen:" contralto solo. Summer" quartet. John W. Dial acted as accompanist.
 Prof. Monaghan was introduced by Mayor Henry Lee in a brief and com plinentary speech.
 Prof. Monaghan spoke in part as follows:
 Races and Nations are often meas ured by their great men and the gen. eral average of the masses. By this standard the Irish have no cause for confusion or. fear Another, perhaps, on thet whole. the best measure. is on ? that estimates the value of the con tfibutioIf of a race or a people to tn ? worlds progress. Again the Irish have no reason to represS the most rigid in yestigatiOn.
 Benjamin Kidd puts the Greeks at by the French. Including the super natural feature in the life of Israel, have to give the first place to the Jews. for they lead in every line. Only of art fail in their contributions. In laws. Leviticus and the tables of the law. the great Ten Commandments Of Moses are the worlds most priceless guence equals that of the fire touched lips of Isaiah. No. writer. Greek or German. ever write as Job spoke in the awful tragedy of his life. Not Eschylus. nor Euripides. nor sophocles, nor Shakespeare. Who ever sang as David sang? What king or wise man aver contributed to the worlds wis &om a tenth of what Soloman gave us Where lived philosopher whose gold Tn pen wrote down philosophy to Xouch. that of St. John? Plato? Aris- Hbtle? SpfnOza? Kant? there is abso- T1tely no comparison Who has writ Zen DlOSTdpHy llkS lndI OI the four Evangelists2s Not Plutarch. not Ros- Yell. not Macaulay. I say all this by Nay of preface. to disarm the mean Hninded who are wont to charge us Rfth unfairness. If I ask justice it is Aecause I willing to do just ce. 3Ieasured by any of the worlds great Htandards, for measuring a nation S Greatness those indicate above. Ire land has right to high place, how high. I shall leave to you to decide after you have heard such evidence as I have to offer
 z The speaker then reviewed the past and the present of literature in Ire land. saying that "When the lamps of learning had nearly died out in Europe -hey famed like Greek torches all over Ireland" He went on to show that in the higher forms of literature. those which lift the mind above the vile and The mean Ireland holds a. high place lie referred to the works of Sheridan ana Goldsmith. saying that only lit tie lower in the scale of literature were the Banims, Cartons. Levers Lovers ana Grifhns. In oratory Burke. Sheri- dan. Grattan. OConneiI. Curran and