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New Zealand Tablet, 1 December 1921, Page 26

NOTES

The Hero's Grave Where the marble monuments in Waverley Cemetery stand above the sea, looking towards the rising sun, you will find the grave of Michael Dwyer and his "Mountain Mary." It is marked by a stately mausoleum, worthy of the honored dead, and worthy of the faithful exiles whose hands raised it here for a lasting memorial of the deathless cause that is dear to us all. On the monument there are the names of the heroes of '9B, and one cannot fail. to notice nowadays that very many of them were Ulster Presbyterians. In those days Ulstermen were Irishmen; they had not degenerated into Prime Ministers of New Zealand. Remarkable, too, is the Gaelic inscription on the eastern side of the pedestal: FAGAID NA LAOCRA BAS ACHT MAIREANN • ■ / AN CUTS COIR GO DEO (The heroes die but-the just cause is eternal). And when you think it over in your heart you will find that there is no grander proof of the truth of these words than the history of Ireland. Emmet Among the heroes' names there is one blank space. Of course it is left for the name of Robert Emmet, and of course it is going to be filled in one of these days. Recall Emmet's Rising. He was little more than a boy. His movement was hardly more than a local storm. He failed, and was soon in the hands of the foes of his country. Then they hanged him and thouo-ht all was over. All over, indeed! Down the years, in accents that never falter, never lose their ringing appeal, come the words he uttered when he stood in the clock in Dublin, face to face with his tyrants. From father to son they have been handed on as sacred words. They have been recited in every college, in every school; they have burned in the hearts of boys dreaming among the heather on Irish hillsides; they have shone like a lamp through the peaty smoke of many a cabin on whose walls was hung a treasured print of that far-away trial no boy or girl that ever grew up in Ireland has been unmoved by them for the past century. The dead hero who lies in his nameless grave has never died for Irishmen: he has had a greater influence than any other man has had living. There have been mysterious forces at work in all times to keep alive the Irish spirit of freedom, but excepting religion there has been no force comparable to the inspiration that flows perennially from Emmet's speech from the dock: "Let no man writer-my-epitaph; for as no man who knows my motives dares now vindicate them, let not prejudice or ignorance asperse them. Let them rest in obscurity andpeace; let my memory be left in oblivion, and my tomb remain uninscribed, until other times and other men can do justice to my character. v. When my country takes her place among the nations of the earth,, then, not till then, let my epitaph be written-. Emmet prayed that his memory might be a guiding light for future generations of Irishmen: "When my. spirit shall have joined those bands of martyred heroes who. have shed their blood on the

scaffold and in the field in defence of their country, this is my hope, that my memory and name may serve to animate those who survive me." His prayer was granted. The two men of the last century who did most to hand down the torch were Robert Emmet and John Mitchel — Protestants. Daniel Corkery Some few years ago the appearance of A Munster' Twilight announced the arrival of a v new writer of genius. Daniel Corkery who wrote it was hailed by literary critics as a powerful writer of short stories and men looked forward eagerly for more of his work. His first novel, The Threshold of' Quiet, was a notable book. It had its crudities. It was not a masterpiece but rather a wonderful performance for a 'prentice hand. But undoubtedly it was inspired by true Celtic genius and it made no small stir in the world of letters. It had arresting qualities, and the nameless spirit of the deathless race was stirring in its pages. Even they who did not consider it a great novel welcomed it as a herald of remarkable promise. Some there are who put the author of it on a very high pedestal. We remember reading a review by Maurice Francis Egan in which the American critic, referring to Padraig Colum's verdict that Carleton's Fardardfigha the Miser was the greatest Irish novel, asks in parenthesis, if Mr. Colum had read The Threshold of Quiet. We note that Katharine Tynan does not agree with Mr. Egan, and we should be surprised if she did. The novel has qualities that the snobbish soul of Katharine could never appreciate. Corkery has also written several Irish plays, all of them on a high level. In them he proves that he is a master of beautiful language. His prose runs as sweetly and as musically as some of the passages in Synge's Deirdre. He has the Celtic magic in addition to the sweetness and light that are the hall marks of the best prose. / "The Hounds of Banba" The latest book of his that came into our hands is The Hounds of Banba. It is the real thing. , We know of nothing of its kind so thoroughlv good. Form and content are all that a critic could desire. We can imagine what correspondence would have passed between Schiller and Goethe had they lived to read it. The perfervidum ingenium Scotorum burns on every page. It lays bare the soul of Sinn Fein. It reveals to us the minds and hearts of the young men of Erin who have beaten England, displaying in all the unequal struggle a purity of courage that seems hardly mortal. "•'''And Mr. Corkery here and there dwells on the spirit that, almost submerged, almost forgotten, survived in the breasts of the old men who had fought through the land wars or perhaps hidden a pike during the Fenian days. It was there all the time, and it awoke joyouslv when the drilling and the fighting began again. It had come down through such long, sad years. All that was mortal in it had been killed and there remained only the undying soul of itthe deathless soul of Erin to which those words on Michael Dwyer's grave so beautifully refer: Maireann an cuis coir go deo ! Every boy brought up in Ireland knows that the spirit came to him with his mother's milk, and perhaps the great attraction of this book is that it brings back vividly thoughts that we all nourished and dreams that we all dreamed in days when it seemed hopeless to think that they would ever become more tangible than thoughts and more real than dreams. The chanters that tell of the experiences of the boys "on their keeping," of the welcome they got throughout the land, of the pride of the old people —both men and women—in their doings, of'the wonderful courage of the girls, concerning many a one of whom some volunteer of the I.R.A. could say with Dante: Beatrice in suso ed io in lei guard teach us to know the new Ireland, teach us to understand why she is invincible. -We are not going to tell you the stories he tells.- Get the book and read it.

DIOCESE OF DUNEDIN The concluding social of the series in aid of the piano fund will be held in the Sacred Heart Schoolroom, N.E. Valley, on Monday next. • This being the final social' it will be an extended one, and a special late car to Car gill s Corner has been arranged for. His Lordship the Right Rev. Dr. Whyte, Bishop of Dunedin, will officiate at an ordination ceremony at St. Joseph's Cathedral on Sunday next, when, at the nine, o'clock Mass, he will confer the Order of Priesthood on Revs. J. Fenton, J. Martin, and P. O'Meeghan, students of Holy Cross College, Mosgiel. The two former are for the diocese of Dunedin, and the latter for the diocese of Christchurch. At a meeting of„the congregation of the Sacred Heart Church, North-east Valley, held in the schoolroom after devotions on last Sunday evening, a committee was appointed representative of that portion of St. Joseph's Cathedral parish to participate in the carnival now being promoted in connection with St. Vincent's Orphanage extension fund. Mesdames Thompson, Smith, Creighton, and Banks,were appointed heads of the local stall. On Sunday, 20th ult., 15 little children of St. Michael's Convent School, Mornington, received their first Holy Communion in the Church of St. Francis Xavier. During Holy Mass the first Communicants recited aloud the Acts of preparation and thanksgiving, and they and their companions sang several appropriate hymns very devotionally. The happy first Communicants were afterwards entertained to breakfast by the Sisters of Mercy. On behalf of the children of St. Vincent's Orphanage, the Sisters of Mercy acknowledge with gratitude the following donations to the institution : A land) from Mr. John Coyle, Kyeburn, Central Otago; £1 from "'Grateful" as a thanks offering for grant of intentions for which a Novena was offered some weeks back; 10s from "G. 1." whose request for a Novena is being complied with. A rare treat is being afforded the music-loving people of Dunedin this week in a series of three recitals by Miss Kathleen Garven, the distinguished dramatic contralto. The first recital was given last evening at the Burns Hall, and met with the whole-hearted acceptance of a large and enthusiastic audience. Miss Garven gives her second recital to-night (Thursday), and her concluding one on Saturday evening. This noted artiste is supported by Miss Agnes Cunningham, a lyric soprano of considerable repute; Mr. Max ScTierek, solo pianist; and as accompanist by Miss Nellie ward, of Christchurch, the .wellknown exponent of voice-culture and music. Miss Garven's recitals, highly artistic as they are, also provide instruction of infinite value to students.

SUCCESSFUL GARDEN FETE. ; Mr. S. Solomon's garden in Belleknowes has become recognised as one of the show places of Dunedin, and his willingness to permit the public to enjoy its beauty was again evidenced on Saturday last, when it was placed at the disposal of the St. Vincent's Orphanage for the purpose of raising funds for the new building. The attendance was very large* numbering considerably over 2000, and with the many activities carried on, all of which were well patronised, a great financial success was achieved. The expenses incurred were extremely light, and the fund consequently will benefit by practically the whole of the returns. The gardens were in fine order, the rhododendrons in particular making a great show. A strong grounds committee was set up under the direction of Mr. J. McKeefry and Mr. A. Heffernan, with the object of protecting the gardens from unnecessary injury, the consequence being that after the function everything was left . in excellent order. Mr. Solomon himself was much albout, taking great interest in the proceedings and being an extensive purchaser. ■ .. * \ r The fete was organised by the committee of the Christian Brothers' Old Boys' Stall, the burden of the work falling upon Mrs. G. M. Baker, who had associated, with . her Messrs.. D. Keys and A. Tarleton, joint secretaries. There was quite an unusual, display of bunting, particularly at the entrance, and a further display at the head - of Michie Street gave a olear indication of the route to the grounds. Music was supplied by the §.t. Kilda Band,

which turned out at only a few hours' notice, and although short of its proper muster, contributed greatly to the, enjoyment of the afternoon. The children of the orphanage sang a number of choruses on the lawn, and Mr. Tate attended and gave an exhibition of his mastery in the art of juggling. A number of guessing competitions were held. All the stalls did good business, and there were additional activities, such as fortune-telling, tea-cup reading, an organ-grinder and monkey, the "wonderful arrow," and such-like. Tea was obtainable in a big marquee erected on the tennis-court, and soft drinks and ice creams in tho summer-house. The stalls and stallholders were as follow —Produce: Mrs. G. M.Baker and assistants; jumble stall: Mrs. E. J. O'Neill and assistants; sweets: Mrs. A. J. Hall and assistants; lucky dip: Mrs. Beaumont, Messrs. J. Burke and L. Toomey; soft drinks: Messrs. Walsh and P. Wilson tea rooms: Mrs. J. Hade, Miss C. Carr, and assistanti. The orphanage children were convoyed to and from the grounds in motor cars lent by . Mrs. Samson and Messrs. Flanagan, Ross, and Winders. The committee desire to very sincerely thank Mr. Solomon for his great kindness in granting the use of his gardens on the occasion.