The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1916-09-30
Continued from ID
CELTIC LIBRARY AT ST, THOMAS

/ Scholars, however, who are we'll &C
quainted with the manuscript in the
Dublin libraries, know that the great
er part of the work in Celtic studies is
| still to be done. Whole divisions oil
/ ly .unrepresented in print. We might
mention the Bardic Poetry, the An
nails, the Closes, the Lives of the
Saints, and, above all, the long lists
of translations from foreign texts
which are especially valuable for theil
criticism of the early forms of many
themes widely spread in the literature
of medieval Europe. For the scholar
who wishes to do original work in q
| field in which he has few competitors
| Old Irish studies offer the greatest at
traction. In this country, where the
| Irish race is so strong, it is strange
that so little should have been done in
this department. A glance through a
! photography of Irish philology fails
to show, among the German, French
| Austrian, Scandinavian, Dutch, Scotch
and other names, the name of even
one American. 1t is intended that, in
the new Celtic Library at st. Thomas
all the printed books on this subject
will be gathered together, and an at
| tempt will also be made to collect all
the material scattered through a null
| titude of periodicals in France, Ger
many, Austria, Ireland, etc.
Modern Gaelic Literature.
From the labours of the above-men-
toned scholars, sprang the movement
to restore Gaelic as the spoken Ian
guage of the Irish people-a move
| ment which took definite shape when,
in 1898, the Gaelic League was found
ed by DR.. Douglas Hyde, John Mac
Neill, Rev. Eugene O'Growney and
Rev. Digby Cleaver. Within few
years, magazines, pamphlets, newspa-
pers, translations from foreign Ian
guages, and original works of fiction,
poetry, etc., were written in Irish.
Not alone the language, but the song,
music, customs, and home manufac-
lures of the people were being re-
vived. Gaelic schools and colleges
were opened throughout the Irish
speaking districts, and the students of
these colleges were taught to collect
from the old native speakers, all the
stories, folklore, quaint Irish sayings,
proverbs, Irish songs and Irish pray
ers that still existed in the tradition
of the people. These were all pub
lished in magazines founded for the
purpose. Meanwhile, a long list of
writer's, among whom may be men,
toned Canon O'Leary, Padraic O'Shea,
Thomas Hayes, Eamonn O'Neill, Faith
er Dinneen, Patrick Pierse, Henry
Morris, 4ames Craig, Seaghan
O'Neachtain, and Padraic O'Conaire
have been editing texts, collecting
folk-tales, preparing grammars, writ
ing Irish plays, stories, poems and es-
says, and translating the worlds clas-
sizes into Gaelic. So great has been
the output of purely Gaelic literature
during the last fifteen years, that the
first instalment of the Hibernian grant
could easily be exhausted in this de-
partmentS alone.
Irish History.
The study of Irish History derives
its Importance from many sources.
The Celts, at one time, ruled over
more than one-third of Europe, and
are, at present, the oldest race exist
ing in that continent Nothing con-
tributes more to make a nation wor-
thy of study than hoariness of age,
and derivation from definite primi-
tive stock. Secondly, the Irish nation,
having escaped entirely from the
sway and influence of the Roman En-
pire, was the only one of the print
tive European nations to preserve in
tact it's national institutions. Third
ly, in all the other European nations,
the advent of Christianity brought
with it a struggle between the vernac-
ular and the Latin tongue for the rank
of literary language, with the result
that, until the end of the eleventh
century they had no vernacular liter
allure. Ireland, on the other hand,
while it acknowledged the religious
supremacy of Rome, was far removed
from Latin influence, with the result
that, during the sixth and seventh
| centuries, a aourishing Christian lit
erature arose in the vernacular For
the same reason, ecclesiastical GUS
toms and practices, which, at the fall
of the Roman Empire, had died out in
Europe. were still in Ireland at the
close of the tenth century. Fourthly,
at the fall of the Roman Empire, Ire
land became the heiress, not only of
the classical, but also of the philo-
sophical learning of the old Western
Empire, and, during the sixth century,
she drew upon herself the eyes of the
world, and became the great haven of
Christian and classical learning. Her
children carried Christianity to prac-
tically all the nations of Europe, be-
came heads of universities and coun-
sellers of kings, and for two centuries,
before they fell before the Roman sys-
tenn, Celtic ideals impaired a new life
to decadent civilization. And lastly,
during the last thousand years, Ire
land has maintained constant strug-
giles against three powerful enemies
the Dane, the Norman, and the Saxon,
and has successfully withstood them
all.
An incomplete photography pub
llshed some years ago, of Irish his
torical matter, contained list, of
more than two hundred closely printed
pages in length. Half century ago,