Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVII, Issue 2, 14 January 1909, Page 67

Irish News

CORK— The Holy Father's Jubilee The Holy Father's jubilee was celebrated in a striking - manner in the City of Cork. On Sunday, November/ 22, the Mayor, and Corporation- attended in state, the s'olejnn Thanksgiving Mass in the Cathedral, whieli was .. also crowded by a magnificent congregation, including the leading men of the city and 500 members of the famous Cork Young Men's Society. After the Mass the Mayor and his fellow councillors called on Dean Skinkwin, V.G., and expressed the pleasure it gave them to do -honor to ■pho' successor of St. Peter. The Dean, in thanking them, said : ' Fidelity to the Chair of Peter has been ever written in the pages of ihe history of this land of ours, and let us hope that its records may be ever the same in the future.' The Lord. Mayor subsequently despatched the following cablegram: — ' His .Holiness the Pope, Vatican, Rome. — On behalf of the Catholic City of Cork, I desire to tender to your Holiness on the occasion of your Sacerdotal Jubilee the respectful assurance of our deep loyalty, and devotion to the See of Peter. — Thomas Donovan, Lord Mayor.' In the evening the city was gorgeously illuminated, and the citizens thronged the streets to view' the imposing spectacle. Golden Jubilee The golden jubilee of St. Colman's College, Fermoy, was celebrated on November 24. That it has had a remarkably successful career is well known. One of its illustrious presidents was the late Most Rev. Dr. Croke, Archbishop of Cashel. The Venerable Archdeacon Hutch, - P.P., who was connected with St. Colman's as student, professor, and president preached an eloquent sermon at the jubilee Mass. * An Alarming Incident An incident of an alarming nature occurred at Kilnap, near Cork, late on the night of November 13.1 During a heavy thunderstorm the house of a farmer named Denis Murphy was struck by lightning, and completely wrecked. Mr. Murphy and five other occupants of the house were sitting down to tea when a lurid, flash of lightning illuminated the place. Almost instantly, and while those who were in, the house were paralysed with fear, there -was a great "crash, and the western portion of the dwelling collapsed. Buckily Mr. Murphy and his Relatives were at the eastern side of the house. When the western side of the building was struck the inhabitants rushed towards the door, which they found great difficulty in opening, owing to the falling debris. Just as the parties got into the roadway, v the eastern side of the house 'jollapsed, and what previously was a stibstantial and commodious residence became a mass of ruins. DUBLIN — Death of a Well-known Business Man The death is announced from Troy, U.S.A. (writes our Christchurch correspondent), of Mr. William O'Reilly, brother of a lady who is one of the largest contributors to the Christchurch Catholic Cathedral building fund, and also brother of Mrs. Brennan, 96 Amiens street, Dublin, in which city he was one of the best known insurance men. Mr. O'Reilly for upwards of twenty years had been active in insurance circles, part of the time as manager of the department of industrial insurance. Deceased was a native of Dublin, and always took a great interest in affairs of - the Irish societies. He was prominently identified with the old Wolf Tone. Society and other 'Irish- American societies, and he gave his means and his talents towards promoting the best interests of his native land. He was' possessed of a genial disposition, and was popular among his associates. He was a devoted 'member of St. Patrick's Church, and contributed largely to the support of the Church. He is survived by his wife and three daughters. After a Requiem High Mass, celebrated by the Right Rev. Mgr. | Swift in St. Patrick's Church, the remains of the deceased were interred in St. John's Cemetery, t KERRY— Killarney Cathedral The foundation stone of the additions which will complete the Killarney Cathedral was laid on Sunday, November 15, by his. Lordship Bishop, Mangan. His Lordship paid a tribute tcj the kindness of his Eminence Cardinal Moran in allowing two priests from the diocese of ,Kerry to make collections in aid of the Cathedral fund in the Archdiocese of Sydney. A Sad Occurrence ' . A young girl' named Nora O'Shea, of Dreeriogh, Gleucar, Kerry, who had left home on November 10 on her way to New Zealand, was suffocated through an escape of gas

whilst staying at the Scandinavian Home, Limehouse, London. The deceased was coming out to an uncle in this* Dominion. LIMERICK — The Recent Calamity at an Orphanage / The inquest on the victims of the recent calamity in ■Mount St. Vincent's Orphanage, Limerick, was concluded on; November 19.. Professor McWeeney, of Dublin, made a 'report of his analysis, which had led him to conclude that;Hhe deaths were due to a form of cholera caused by meat' poisoning. He gave details of the manner in which " this poisoning could be brought about. He thought the -meat which arrived at the, orphanage on the 24th ult. .was the cause of the trouble. Other doctors concurred, and .ther-jury returned a verdict in accordance with the medical \ testimony,, adding that at the time of using the meat its '-njttsoundness could not be discovered. < A Point Blank Contradiction r <A' sensation was caused by false reports of what took place at the funeral of the late Mr. John Enright, of Castleconnell (says a Dublin correspondent). ■ These report's, which stated that whilst Mr. Enright, who - was a Protestant, was being interred, a disturbance was caused by" the Catholics, were contradicted, but" the" story they told was in substance revived by an extraordinary letter which the Protestant rector, the Rev. Mr. Wylie, wrote to the 'press- and which has appeared in the Times. , 'Mr. Wylie' says that he was a frequent caller at Mr. '.Enright' s house during his illness, that as his clergyman he ministered to him a very short time 'before his end,' that with - the full consent of the Enright family he arranged to take the funeral service, but that, a .disturbance was caused by a crowd, that sticks were raised in a threatening .manner, and that some of the bearers, including Dr. Enright, were roughly handled. Mrs. Enright, mother of the late Mr. John Enright, has sent a letter to -the press which contradicts Mr. Wylie's statements point, blank and should put an end to all controversy on the matter. She sets forth the facts briefly as follows :,r-' Mr. Wylie, the Protestant rector, did not minister to my son . during his - illness as his " clergyman. Since , , the . day my son fell sick Mr. Wylie never saw him, nor never • Asked to .see him imtil the 25th October, when he was unconscious. He died in less than half an houT after Mr. Wylie leaving him. My son had been attended by a priest on three occasions at his own special reqxiest, uninfluenced by anybody,' while he was in his perfect senses. ' The priest received him into the Catholic Church, administered to him the last rites of the Catholic Church, and he died a Catholic. "''''Mr. Wylie had been told *this. My sons tell me that., they*' saw no sticks at the funeral, nor did my son, Dr.-G^bfg^ef get any "-rough handling," as stated.' '■"** -"•*{• Lord Dunraven's Views In the course of an article 'in the Financial Reviexo of Reviews, Lord Dunraven says : — ' Everyone who is familiar with the history of Ireland is compelled to admit that the present condition of the country is largely the result of British action or inaction. The siris of action may be . summed up in the attempt to destroy the Irish" -nation and to accomplish the impossible by transforming Ireland into so many English shires. .Those of inaction consist of violated pledges, broken promises, and the postponement of reform and other beneficent measures, and their inadequacy; the annihilation of the population; the confiscation -.of land; the destruction of all means of subsistence; the ruin of trade and industry; the banning of religion — such was the policy pursued' in pre-IJnion days. Relief, when it came, through wiser counsels or the stress of necessity, came too late, or was. grudgingly given or insiifticient. GENERAL Land Purchase Mr. Birrell made the interesting announcement recently -in the House of Commons in reply to a question put to him by Mr. William Redmond, that the number of purchasers to whom advances .have been made under the various Land Purchase Acts from 1870 up to the 30th October last was 143,545, and the number who have agreed to purchase, biit to whom advances have not yet been made, was 149,501, making a total of 293,046. The amount of money advanced between 1870 and 1903 was 21 millions. He was not able to give the numbers who had purchased since 1903, nor the cash value these purchases represented, but promised to procure them at a later date. ~ A Social and Economic Revolution^.-. It is to be hoped that the Unionist •' press, which is ever ready to open - its columns for the vilification of Ire-" land," arid which sets' startling headlines to reports of bogus outrages, will give fine prominence (writes ta London correspondent) to the statement made by Sir Horace Plunkett in opening the Aonach at the Horticultural Hall, West-

minster. Sir Horace is a Unionist of the old-fashioned type, -and his :words_ ought ;to have weight with gentlemen of his own particular kidney. "He declared that Ireland was at present coming through what was nothing less than a social and economic revolution ,by the transfer of the land from the former' owners to the occupiers. He said perhaps some people, .might' be under the impression that the country must be-jri a terribly "bad and. perturbed state owing to certain" things they read, but, taking the country as a whole, he did not, he said, think it could be said that there was more disturbance at the ' present moment than was almost inevitable to such a radical change as that which was going on in the whole economic condition of the people. It will be interesting to see how many .London dailies, for instance, will reproduce this statement, which bluntly gives the lie to the Craigs and the rest of the outrage-mongers. A Work of Art The editor of the Irish Messenger is sending to the Pope" a beautifully bound and illuminated album, containing the immense list of names of those who up to the present have joined the ' Jubilee League of Prayer for the Pope ' and for the Afflicted Church in France ' in the year 1908. The album is a splendid and interesting example of exclusively Irish art. It is bound in white, with the Pope's arms in' gold in the centre, and a broad Celtic border, also in gold, round vhe edges. The two opening pages are occupied by a handsome picture of Pius X. and an original Latin poem addressed to his Holiness, botli encircled by Celtic borders of beautiful design. The following pages are masterpieces of the " illuminator's art, setting forth, in general and in detail, the various items given above. Then follows the v great list of names, under the respective addresses of the. centres from which they have come, each page with its own special illuminated Celtic border. The New Land Bill z&% Mr. Birrell, the Chief Secretary for Ireland, has again proved that he is a man of courage (says the Catholic Times). All Ireland has been calling to him to legislate for the -completion of the scheme of land purchase, and he has responded' in a statesmanlike spirit. The bill which he introduced on November 16 is emphatically 'a good one. A difficult financial situation is dealt with in a masterly way. Sales amounting to £25,000,000 have been carried through. A sum of fifty-two millions will have to be raised to meet pending agreements, and the total amount required will be no less than £180,000,000. The money will be raised by the issue of 2£ per cent. Irish Land Stock. As the market price is now only about 87, there will be a deficieicjfe; and the charge is to be transferred to the Imperial Exchequer. The Birmingham Daily Post asks ' Why should the Imperial taxpayer have to make good the deficiencies of the Irish ratepayer? The latter may be poor, but, as everyone who has lived in Ireland knows, He is thriftless and his poverty is largely his own fault.' Everyone who has lived in Ireland knows nothing of the sort. So long as landlord rule was supreme, the majority of Irish ratepayers were made thriftless, because thrift on their part meant merely the enrichment of the proprietor of the land, but now that the Irish occupant of the soil can reap the full fruits of his labor, no man is more thrifty. The Times admits that it was never the intention of the Legislature to saddle the Irish ratepayer with this charge, and that the Chief Secretary is abundantly justified in transferring it to the Imperial Exchequer. Mr. Birrell's proposals have received the hearty approval of Mr. Redmond and the Irish Party. The Parliamentary Fund The second draft for £2000 from ,the United Irish League of America to the Irish Parliamentary fund has been received by the National Trustees. Tobacco Growing Colonel Everard, speaking at a recent meeting of the Council of Agriculture, said that Ireland was probably the first European country where tobacco was planted, but the ■ Irish tobacco industry was ruthlessly stamped out in the interest of. the English colonies of America, and in 1803" it was again crushed to please. English manufacturers. It had now been proved by nine years' experience that all classes of tobacco could be grown in Ireland, and the American re-handler, who was an eminent expert, had said, ' Irish tobacco compares most favorably with the average crop in Kentucky.' A refund of Is 3d per 1b had been guaranteed to the Irish growers for ten years, of which four had expired, b\it that had now been commuted to £6000 a year for five years. The limit was 100 aores^ but £6000 only represented a refund of Is per lb on 100 acres, and there would be a loss of £6000 to the country ' by the change.