The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1915-11-27

After the angry passions excited by
the Jacobite war had somewhat sub
sided, Dublin entered upon period
of improvement and expansion.
Lamps were erected in the principal
thoroughfares to replace the old sys-
tenn of lighting, which compelled the
inhabitants of every fifth house to put
out candle or lantern on dark nights.
The foul system of the Penal Code,
which has already been referred to,
continued with undated vigour. Cath
Ollie citizens were dismissed from every
position of honour and profit in the
gift of the Corporation, and it is inter-
esting to read that even the old woman
who swept and busted the Tholsel was
deprived of her humble means of
bread-winning, and one of the favoured
religion was given her place. In 1901,
an equestrian statue of William III.
was erected in College Green, and
never in the history Of statuary has an
example of the sculptor's art passed
through such strenuous scenes. This
statue, the work of Grinding Gibbons,
was erected at the expense of the
Corporation, and soon became the
Mecca of all the defenders of civil
and religious liberty" which Dublin at
that time numbered among its citi.
zens. In 1710, the Trinity College stu.
| dents, seeming an implied insult in the
fact that the figure of the king had it's
back towards their college, daubed the
statue with mud and wrenched away
the sword and truncheon. Years later,
it was considered a good joke to set a
figure of straw behind the king and to
decorate the whole with green ribbons.
In 1879, the volunteers were reviewed
at the foot of the statue. In 1898, the
sword was again stolen, and a deter
mined effort was made to file off the
head. In 1905, before the annual sat-
urnalia with which the Orange party
in Dublin celebrated the birthday of
the king took place, the king and
horse was painted with horrible con-
l coction of tar and grease, which was
found difficult to remove.
| This incident was chronicled in a
Dublin street ballad, the opening
verse of which ran as follows:
THE night before Billy's birthday
Some friend of the Dutchman came
to him,
| And though he expected no pay,
He told the policeman he'd do him i;
For said he, I must have him in
style;
The job is not wonderful heavy,
And I'd rather sit up for while
Than see him undressed at the
levee:
For he was the broth of a boy
About seventy-five years ago an at.
tempt to blow up the statue was par.
TALLY successful, the head being found
some distance from the pedestal, and
the body. shattered wreck, lay in the
mud, near the Bank of Ireland Nova
days, nobody takes any notice of the
Dutchman, and the angry passions
aroused by the celebration of his vic
tories have, happily, passed away, as
far as the Dublin citizens are con
cerned. fact which speaks volumes
for their good sense.
The Ascendancy Party who ruled
in Dublin at the beginning of the eigh
teenth century, however, soon began
to feel the weight of the English trad
ers' displeasure. Restrictive tariffs
and embargOes were imposed on the
unfortunate merchants of Dublin, and
such was the condition of affairs that
in 1908 the Irish House of Lords petit
toned for a Legislative Union with
England. This was refused, as 9
union would have led to the removal Of
the shackles of Irish trade, a proceed
Ing that would not have suited the
manufacturers and merchants on thu
other side Of the Irish Sea.
The foundation of the old custom
house, in Essex street, was laid in 1907
This building was on the site wher,
now stands Dollard's printing hous,
and the adjacent premises. With tn.
construction of the river walls grea
area of ground, over which the tida
waves had flowed, became availabl,
for building, and thus the course of tn,
scity's growth was directed eastward
To defray the expense of this grea
work an Act of Assembly was passet
for letting the ground to be encloset
in perpetuity. rent free, to set O
Subscribers, who were to undertak,
the enclosure of it, and map of tn,
whole ground was drawn up which di
vided it into lots, denominated foo
and acre lots. leaving room for proper
quays and roads, Whitelaw ant
Walsh's Dublin, p. 1884. gives a de
tailed explanation of this arrange
ment. Throughout the whole of tn,
and men Of affairs in the United State,
of Irish blood or descent, and as fol
art the man. whose design was adopted
for our coined money was born II
Dublin.