The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-03-15


more than a patriotic formula, to whom
the words are those Of a living Ian.
guage that they know and love and
can use in their daily speech, 81.
That this is so is due to the unselish
and unremitfins efforts Of the meu
ana women VINO, with the vision ever
before them of an Ireland with her
youth renewed. her beauty and
strength restored, have worked for the
preservation of the Gaelic tongue and
the restoration Of Irish arts and indus
tries. They have their reward in that,
whereas Gaelic a few years ago was in
the United States Il moribund il not a
dead language, there are now half a
million persons who speak it--50,00O Of
them in New York city--while in the
thirty-two counties of Ireland the Gael
ic league has q membership Of 10000.
There are nearly 200 Irish schools in
which the whole course of study is
conducted in Gaelic as well as in Eng
fish, while in nearly half OF the eight
thousand, odd primary schools the all.
cient tongue is taught either as an or.
binary or as an added subject. The
University of Cork has chair of Irish
language and literature, and it Is the
intention Of the senate of the National
university to make Irish a necessary
subject for entrance examinations, be-
ginning with the year 1915.
Not less encouraging is the progress
which has been made in the revival
Of Irish arts and crafts. Cottage in.
dustries like lacemaking, for which
Irishwomen have long been famous,
have received marked impetus. A
campaign of education has been car
ried ON i'll this country. not only Oh the
literary side, but with view to in
duce Americans to purchase Irish
products, and with such success that
In four years the volume of Irish i'm.
ports to one city--St. L1ouis-was ill.,
creased from $4,000 to more than
S315, 200, as shown by the records Of
the custom house. OF these linens
constituted the largest item, 1888, 4ss
The other goods and amounts were:
Handkerchiefs, S12.742; other fabrics,
$25,1S9; laces, $1,000; miscellaneous,
S37,s66. = =..
AS result Of this industrial re-
viyal thousands of young people, it is
said, have been made self supporting,
and thousands more are earning more
money than they ever hoped to make
il they remained in Ireland.
Last year party of missionaries of
the Gaelic league visited the United
States and gave lectures on the work
of the league, while some of them,
pretty Irish colleens, illustrated the
lacemaking and other industries which
the league is SO successfully fostering
on the "old sod" One of the lecturers.
describing the benefits which had come
to ireland through this renewal of her
old industrial life. said in a public adj.
dress, "You WHO have endured the
pangs of sorrow, the heartbreak. when
you parted with. your parents, your rel
atires, your sweethearts, and friends
when leaving The Green Isle, know
what it would have meant to you to
be able 10 secure profitable employ
ment at home"
The headquarters of the. Gaelic
league are ID Dublin, and the princi
pal director of its work is DR.. Doug
las Hyde. whose visit to this country
some years ago to collect. funds for
and arouse interest in the organiza-
tion is well remembered by Irish
Americans. The travelling organizers
and teachers are expected to be good
dancers, singers and performers on
the piDes and TO utilize their acenm.