The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1911-04-01
WHAT PROGRESS
OWES TO THE IRISH
The Inventive Genius of the Gael
Responsible For Many of Our
Conveniences.
Tsre% EIooA-:-
First Electric Railway, Forerunner
of Our Electric Systems,
Laid in Antrim.
The First Steamer to Cross the
Atlantic Was an Irish Boat
From Dublin.

/ wonder how many people realize
writes Gertrude NJ. O'Reilly, what
modern progress owes to the inven-
tive genius OF the Irish race The
first electric railway, the forerunner
Of all our wonderful street car sys-
tens, was laid in Antrim, running
from Portrush to the Giants Cause
way; the first monorail was the FAM
Gus Lartigue line between Listowe
and Ballybunjon, County Kerry They
tell a joke about this line, that at one
time the manager was given a COW to
carry and had to borrow another to
balance it, and from that day to this
they could never get rid OF the sec
ond COW OF it's successors.
Louis Brennan is the inventor of
the gyroscopic single rail railroad;
the first mail steamer TO cross the At
lantic was an Irish boat from Dublin;
the ,irst pneumatic tire was invented
by J. b. Dunlop Of Belfast: the steam
turbine that rcvoutioniZed sea tran
sit was discovered by Hon. Charles
"A. Parsons, son of the Earl OF Ross;
Birr, Kings County, and Carlow, that
back Of sgodspeed" little inland town.
was the first to adopt n municipal sys-
TEN of electric lighting,
Yet people will say We are not an
enterprising people commercially.
Had We a free hand, rs, please God,
we will, no mind can set the limit of
our progress; yet l would be sorry
to see the isle Of destiny, the land of
poetry and dreams, blackened with
the smoke Of factory chimncys. 1t
would rob our country of that mystic
charm so we'll expressed by Yeats in
The Land of Hearts Desire" when
he says:
The wind that blows out of the gates
OF the day,
The wind blows over the lonely of
heart,
And the lonely of heart is withered
away,
apart,
Tossing their miIk-white arms in
ring,
Tossing their milk-white arms in
the air,
For they hear the wind laugh ana
nlurmur and sing
OF lang where even the old are
fair.
And even the wise are merry OF
tongue.
And ireland, little tiny Ireland, "a
land we are told, suited only for ag
ricultural pursuits, has six of the
largest things, in an industrial way
in the world
Harland & VOLTS shipbuiIding
yards is where the biggest vessels
afloat, the Olympic and Titanic. wer,
built. 1t is there we have the larges
gantries, too, 1863 feet high and GOO
feet long, and costing 100000. Thel
we have the greatest brewery in the
world Guinness in Dublin producing
twice as much us Lngland's largest
The worlds greatest rope works are
ON the outskirts of Belfast They GOV
er 81 acres and produce 10000 mile!
of rope each week, and have 5000,
customers on their books, and max,
$500 different kinds of ropes AM
tWines. The York Street Flax Spin
ming Company is the largest linen fac
tory in the whole world with $4,000
,spindles and 1000 looms. Most as
tonishing Of all, Ireland has the big
gest tobacco factory. too. Galaher's
known all over the world DR.. UI
richard, the explorer. tells how il
New Guinea he found an empty Ca
laher's Gold Plate" tin treasured b
the natives as an idol and mascot
the natives of other places idolize til
contents.