Irish News

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVII, Issue 15, 15 April 1909, Page 587

Irish News

ARMAGH— Compulsory Irish at National University

Writing to the Freeman's Journal in reference to the controversy on Compulsory Irish "in the National University, Cardinal Logue says : — * Ttie question in debate is one of means. Principally it is, firsts whether it is advisable and judicious that the new University should be handi^ capped, " at the very start, by conditions for which the country is " not -yet ripe, while the doors of- other institutions stand wide open, unimpeded by any such conditions. Secondly, it may be doubted whethe*r the me'ie smattering of Irish with which some profess themselves to be satisfied, for matriculation— what may be picked up in six months — would contribute to raise Irish to the place it should hold in the University. These are" questions on which each one is free as the winds to hold his own. opinion, and to support. , it, too, strongly by arguments, provided they be honest and decent, arguments. The debate, within, its proper limits, does not concern religion. Neither would it involve charity very much, were it conducted in a temperate spirit, free from the tendency exhibited on both sides to attribute motives, call names, and say things needlessly harsh.'

DUBLlN— Confession of a Convert

In the course of a lecture in Dublin under the ausjoices of the Catholic Young Men's Society, the Rev. R. H. Benson, son of the late Archbishop of Canterbury, said : — ' Every, single day of my life I thank God more and more that I am a Catholic/

Death oi a Prominent Layman

The death is announced of Chevalier Slieeran, J.P., Knight of St. Gregory. The" Chevalier, who was in his 65th year, died of heart disease after a few hours' illness. His death makes a big gap in religions and philanthropic circles in Dublin. He was a staunch supporter of Cath-^ olic interests, and was especially zealous in cementing the bonds of attachment between Ireland and fclie Holy See. for which the late Pope Leo XIII. conferred on him one of the highest Orders of Papal Knighthood. He was a prominent member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, - the Catholic - Truth Society, the Catholic Defence Society, and the Sick and Indigent Roomkeepers' Society.

The Lord Mayor's Principles

At his inauguration the new Lord Mayor of Dublin, Alderman Coffey, made the following significant announcement :— c As one who likes to practise what I preach, I have decided that, while on all other occasions 'the hospi-, tality of- the Mansion House will be in keeping with its usual customs, I am anxious that the national holiday should be kept in a manner befitting the capital of Ireland and in accordance with my own principles, and I therefore wish to make an announcement here to-day from - the Mayoral chair that my inaugural banquet on St. Patrick's Day will be a temperance one.' -

The Archbishop of Melbourne

There will be widespread regret throughout Ireland (says the Irish Weekly of February 27) at the -news that his Grace" the Archbishop of Melbourne has been lying seriously ill for the past week at the Hammam Hotel, Dublin. His Grace's illness is due to a very severe bronchial attack, which" at first caused ,alarm amongst his friends, but the worst stages of the illness are passed, and the distinguished patient is on a fair ,road to recovery. His Grace, as is generally known-, is at present on vacation in Ireland, and has but recently been in Rome, where he was received by the Holy Father, to whom he gave a pleasing account of the wonderful spread vof the Catholic Church in -Australasia.

Lord Aberdeen Defends the People

The. Lord "Lieutenant took a bold course even for a Viceroy in taking occasion, at the annual dinner of the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, to refute the calumnies of the ' Carrion Crows,' who are doing their best to spread the slander that Ireland is overrun with ' lawlessness and crime.' The Lord Lieutenant, having disclaimed any intention to talk politics, said that while he could noton that account say anything in defence of a government, he would like . nevertheless to say something in defence of a people, and he thought that, politics apart, he" was justified in helping to protect the. people of Ireland as a whole from the imputation, of being concerned in disorder or riot. England "was getting quite a wrong impression, and surely no patriotic Irishman would wish his countrymen to "be depicted in a worse light than -they deserved. By all means let there be criticism of an administration,

but let not that criticism outrun the limits of fairness and truth-.- " v

GAL WAY— Death of the Vicar-general

The death is announced of the ' Rev. Edmond Power, Vicar.-General of Galway, "and- parish priest of Touclea. He was over ninety years of age.

The Holy Father's Gift

The Archbishop of Tuam in a letter to the Archbishop of Dublin says: — From my heart I thank you for procuring for the victims of the bog-slide in County- Galway the splen-^ did donation of £1000 which, the Sovereign Pontiff has remitted to us through your hands'. The Holy Father, es might be expected, is ever full of sympathy for his afflicted children throughout the world, but never has .he given a more signal proof of his sympathy and affection for Ireland than is unfolded in the letter which I have jxist received from your Grace. lam quite satisfied that not only the Catholic clergy and laity of theJWest 5f Ireland, bu€ indeed good Christians generally, will know how to appreciate the royal munificence of "his Holiness, which is all the more remarkable, as your Grace points out, -in view of the fact that his own passionate appeal for his stricken fellow- - countrymen is still ringing piteously through Christendom. May I request your Grace, then, not .only- in .my name, but in the name of the Bishop of Elphin — in "whose diocese the disaster occurred — and in the name of the other. Bishops and all the priests and people of the province, to return our most cordial thanks .to the Holy Father for the openhearted, full-handed manner in which- he, has stood by us in our- hour of need ? - This noble and timely act of generosity will help to draw more closely than ever the bonds of loyalty and love that from tlie beginning have linked Ireland with Rome, as well as to increase considerably our personal devotion to the present occupant of the Holy See.

LIMERICK— The Material Condition of the People

The Bishop of Limerick, in his Lenten Pastoral,' says: ' Amongst the changes through which we are passing .there is oiie so important in itself, amd so far-reaching in its moral and religious bearings^ Hhat it seems to me worth our consideration, paricuiarly from this latter point of view. I mean the process that is known as Land Purchase. In this diocese it has made great progress: considerably more than half the land is now owned in fee by the occupying farmers, and it is sincerely to be hoped that nothing will happen to stop or, rto "delay the process until not only in his diocese, but throughout the country, - the people of Ireland will own their land, and know the blessings of personal independence. Already we can. see the beginnings of prosperity which this measure is bringing. In all probability it will set forces in motion that will fundamentally change the material condition of our people; but what" is _of far more consequence is that it promises -to exercise, under God's Providence, an equally great and beneficent influence on their religious welfare, and, in" relation to this, - 1 should -wish to point out some of the ways in .which it may be expected -to produce these results. In the first place, it is already acting as a measure of appeasement amongst us. Hitherto one of the most lamentable features in Irish life has been, the sharp and, in many instances, bitter divisions which separated the different sections and classes of'tlie people. "We have not been in. fact and reality one nation occupying the soil of a common country,' but we have stood apart from one another, in hostile camps, differing in religion, , in politics, and social interests. : There was nothing., like this unnatural disorganisation in" any counry " in. tlie world. • The great mass of the people; poor and downtrodden, lived like serfs on the lands from which their ancestors had been driven to make way for a foreign race-who held it, not only as proprietors "but as a garrison. Out' of all that state of things arose the evil history of the Irish land question, and, amongst others^, that opposition of interests which made any hearty co-operation between landlords and .tenants a practical impossibility. Down to our day -\ve were reaping the bitter crop of the wrongs that were sown centuries "ago. Well, land purchase, if it -does nothing else, will blot out -of Irish life that miserable separation, and replace its bitterness, its distrust, its wrongs, by mutual feelings of fellowship in the service of a common country. That will" be an incalculable gain for every good element in society. . "

SLIGO — A Strenuous Advocate of Temperance .

The death is announced from Rosses, Point 3 County Sligo, of Canon Casey, formerly the parish priest of Athleague, County Sligo, who passed away in his 82nd year The deceased priest was one of the best known ecclesiastics in Ireland, mainly by reason of his enthusiasm' in the temperance cause, to the furtherance of which he devoted the zealous labors of many - years. Canon Casey wrote voluminously in the propagation, of temperance advocacy,

not confining his productions to prose- either. He was a man of great simplicity of. life and manner, and his death is very, widely regretted.

TIPPERARY— Improved Circumstances

In the course of "Tiis, 'Pastoral Letter for Lent, his Grace the Archbislop .of. Cashel.-says:^ l am very well aware of the many difficulties \tfratV agricultural interests have to contend with, such as foreign competition, fall lii prices, increase in wages, and a. higher, standard of living; but, all the same, I am confident that a man who is thrifty, sober, industrious, and skilful, will be able, in spite of all, to live and thrive in his native land. Even in the bad past, such men ha-ve thriven, against the greatest odds — insecurity of tenure, diseases in cattle, failure of the potato crop, and various other visitations which the application of scientific remedies have, to a large extent, disposed of ; and, therefore, I have no liesitation in saying that, under present improved circumstances, a man may thrive and prosper on his native soil.

GENERAL

The Progress of Temperance

Temperance occupies a leading place as usual among the many important questions dealt with by the Archbishops and Bishops of Ireland in their Lenten Pastorals. His Eminence Cardinal Logue, writing at length on this subject, says though much has already been done for the cause of temperance, an earnest and sustained effort is still required on the part of those who strive for the regeneration of the -country and the spiritual welfare of the people. They have to deal with a malady which doe.9 not yield easily to treatment and which is liable to recur, ii neglected even for a time. His Eminence says that countries in which there exists a strong public opinion against drunkenness are remarkable for their sobriety. To create and foster this salutary feeling a public meeting, having delegates from every part of ,the archdiocese oi Armagh, will be held in the Primatial city on Sunday, June 27. Many of the prelates joyfully recognise the great advance which temperance has made within recent - years. His Grace the Archbishop of Tuam says the AntiTreating League has already accomplished wonders, and he hopes it will do even greater work. Most Rev. Dr. O'Dwyer believes temperance is steadily gaining ground. Most Rev. Dr. O'Donnell exhorts his people to let no opportunity pass of strengthening the hold that temperance has secured. Most Rev. Dr. Fogarty states thai drunkenness is visibly on the decrease. Most Rev. Dr. O'Neill recognises the progress of temperance and urges perseverance. Most Rev. Dr. Hoare says the temperance ! missions have all but eliminated the disgrace of drunken- j ness. - I

Crime in England and Ireland

In the course of his speech in the House of Commons on the Address im Reply Mr. John E. Redmond gave some statistics relative to crime in Ireland and England. Ho said : — By comparison with England, Ireland at this moment is «in a state of almost absolute crimelessness. We are asked to say that Coercion should be applied to Ireland because she is seething with crime in three of the four provinces. I will show you that if the present state of Ireland is a reason for applying Coercion, there is ten times greater reason for applying Coercion to England. I hope hon. members who represent English constituencies will not accuse me of doing anything wrong in calling attention to the state of crime in England. We are the people attacked*.": "We are not attacking England ; we are only defending ourselves. Let me institute a' comparison in all classes of serious crime. Let me take murder first. In the last twenty years down to the pre.sent time there have^been 3000 cases of murder in England. Of these cases, only 1309 were ever brought to justice, and; of those only 551 were convicted. Is_ therManything likcv that to be found in the criminal statistics. of Ireland? Thel average number of ~ murders in Ireland is something like seven or eight or nine. Let me take the last four or five years in particular. -' J I take the last four years of criminal statistics for England and I find, not including infanti- - cides, there. were 389 nrurders. - - In the last five years in Ireland there were only 57 murders. There has been no agrarian murder in Ireland 'for years until the .unfortunate occurrence the other day. For three or four years at least there has been no agrarian murder in Ireland. JnLondon alone there were, in the last three years, 92 murders, and there were 2094 attempted murders. I am prepared to prove- from the statistics I have in my possession that for several years past there has been a serious increase in all forms of serious crime in England. '