The Information about Ireland Site Newsletter
December 2004
The Newsletter for people interested in Ireland
HOME - Click Here for free information from Ireland
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Copyright (C) 2004
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IN THIS ISSUE
=== Foreword
=== News Snaps from Ireland
=== New free resources at the site
=== Irish Christmas Traditions
=== Christmas Gift Ideas
=== The Diary of a Scullery-Maid by Joe Rogers
=== Isle of Dreams by Barbara Botch
=== Gaelic Phrases of the Month
=== Monthly free competition result
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FOREWORD
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Hello again from Ireland where the Christmas
festivities are in full swing.
I hope that you all have a great Christmas and
a peaceful new year
HAPPY CHRISTMAS FROM IRELAND!
Michael
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NEWS SNAPS FROM IRELAND
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NO BREAKTHROUGH IN NORTHERN IRELAND TALKS
Despite extensive efforts by Bertie Ahearn and
Tony Blair there has been no breakthrough in the
talks between the DUP and Sinn Fein at the recent
talks. The Northern Ireland Assembly is still in
a state of suspension although both Governments
are optimistic that a deal can be struck soon.
It appears that a major act of decommissioning
of weapons by the IRA was on the cards but the
Unionist side are insisting on implicit
verification and particularly photographic
evidence.
CIGARETTE CONSUMPTION PLUMMETS
The recently introduced smoking ban has had a
significant effect on the consumption of
cigarettes in Ireland. Sales of cigarettes have
fallen by over 17% since the ban was introduced
which has resulted in a tax loss of over 128M
Euro. The Government expects to make massive
savings in public health care costs in the
years to come, as the use of cigarettes
declines continues to decline.
An unusual side-effect of the smoking ban has
been an increase in the number of fires in the
home. As more and more people opt to stay at
home rather than venture to the pub for a drink,
the dangers of smoking while drinking at home
have been highlighted as the rate of home fires
caused by smoking again increased during 2004.
SURVEY SHOWS IRELAND TOP OF WEALTH LEAGUE
Following on from a recent survey that listed
Ireland as having one of the best 'quality of
life' ratings in the world, it has been revealed
that Ireland is the second richest country in the
EU, trailing only to Luxembourg. The EU
statistical office quotes Ireland as having wealth
per person equivalent to 133% of the EU average,
based on GDP.
Such surveys are treated with some skepticism by
the thousands of people who have experienced the
antiquated Irish health system, or the tens of
thousands who lose hours every day stuck in an
under-developed transport system.
HOUSE PRICES SET TO RISE AGAIN IN 2005
The cost of houses continues to rise in Ireland
and is expected to top 10% in 2004. A bank
forecast for 2005 of a 6% increase has been
explained at least in part by the relative
strength of the EURO, which will keep lending
interest rates low. The recent all-time highs of
the EURO when compared to the US Dollar have been
very bad news for European exporters as well as
for US businesses based in Europe. Nevertheless
the week 'greenback' does have the effect of
contributing to the buoyancy of the property
market.
IRISH SHOPPERS SPEND MORE THAN OTHER EUROPEANS
Irish consumers will spend more over the Christmas
period than their EU counterparts. Spending per
household is expected to be at least EURO 1270,
which is well ahead of the EU average of EURO 725
per household. A recent survey has shown that
almost half of all Irish shoppers will make at
least 1 purchase of the Internet, especially in
the books and CD niches. Confidence in the Irish
economy is being cited as the main reason for the
spending spree.
Voice your opinion on these news issues here:
https://www.ireland-information.com/cgi-bin/newsletterboardindex.cgi
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NEW FREE RESOURCES AT THE SITE
==============================
NEW COATS OF ARMS ADDED TO THE GALLERY:
The following 9 coats of arms images and family
history details have been added to the Gallery:
C: Cushley, McConahey
F: Flaherty
G: Gurkin
M: Maddison
N: Nunn
S: Spaulding, Stanton
T: Toland
View the Gallery here:
http://www.irishsurnames.com/coatsofarms/gm.htm
THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT:
We now have over 100,000 worldwide names available.
Get the Coat of Arms Print, Claddagh Ring,
Screensaver, Watch, T-Shirt Transfer or Clock for
your name at:
https://www.irishnation.com/familycrestgifts.htm
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IRISH CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS
==========================
Ireland, like most countries, has a number of
Christmas traditions that are all of its own. Many
of these customs have their root in the time when
the Gaelic culture and religion of the country
were being suppressed and it is perhaps because of
that they have survived into modern times.
THE CANDLE IN THE WINDOW
The placing of a lighted candle in the window of a
house on Christmas eve is still practised today. It
has a number of purposes but primarily it was a
symbol of welcome to Mary and Joseph as they
travelled looking for shelter.
The candle also indicated a safe place for priests
to perform mass as, during Penal Times this was
not allowed.
A further element of the tradition is that the
candle should be lit by the youngest member of
the household and only be extinguished by a girl
bearing the name 'Mary'.
THE LADEN TABLE
After evening meal on Christmas eve the kitchen
table was again set and on it were placed a loaf
of bread filled with caraway seeds and raisins,
a pitcher of milk and a large lit candle. The door
to the house was left unlatched so that Mary and
Joseph, or any wandering traveller, could avail of
the welcome.
THE WREN BOY PROCESSION
During Penal Times there was once a plot in a
village against the local soldiers. They were
surrounded and were about to be ambushed when a
group of wrens pecked on their drums and
awakened the soldiers. The plot failed and the
wren became known as 'The Devil's bird'.
On St. Stephens day a procession takes place where
a pole with a holly bush is carried from house to
house and families dress up in old clothes and with
blackened faces.In olden times an actual wren would
be killed and placed on top of the pole.
This custom has to a large degree disappeared but
the tradition of visiting from house to house on
St. Stephens Day has survived and is very much part
of Christmas.
DECORATIONS:
The placing of a ring of Holly on doors originated
in Ireland as Holly was one of the main plants
that flourished at Christmas time and which gave
the poor ample means with which to decorate their
dwellings.
All decorations are traditionally taken down on
Little Christmas (January 6th.) and it is
considered to be bad luck to take them down
beforehand.
TRADITIONAL GAELIC SALUTATION
The Gaelic greeting for 'Merry Christmas' is:
'Nollaig Shona Duit'
......which is pronounced as 'null-ig hun-a dwit'.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS!
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CHRISTMAS GIFT IDEAS
====================
STILL AVAILABLE FOR CHRISTMAS DELIVERY!
GIFT IDEA #1: Family Crest Christmas Tree and
Window Ornaments! Perfect Christmas Tree
ornaments with your family crest sand-carved on
them. Can also be used year round on windows
or doors.
GIFT IDEA #2: Engraved Cigarette Case and Tankard
For the person who has everything! Engraved with
the family crest of your choice our cigarette
cases, hip flasks and pewter tankards are perfect
stocking fillers.
For these and many other great gift ideas visit
https://www.irishnation.com
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THE DIARY OF A SCULLERY MAID by Joe Rogers
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Michael, I now offer my own contribution to your
newsletter in the hope that someone, somewhere,
struggling with rejections of their slaved-over
manuscript, will be encouraged enough to carry
on and not give up.
I spent six years working on my manuscript and
then endured twenty-seven rejections, but imagine
my delight when my creation was among this week's
releases by PublishAmerica. The genre, historical
fiction,can be reviewed or purchased on their site
at http://www.publishamerica.com/weeklybooks.htm
The following is a list of characters/synopsis,
and extracts from the book:
CHARACTERS
LORD EDWARD BLANCHFORD-CARTER: Age 37.Moustache,
monacle, baggy plus-fours and minimal droll comment.
Could quickly alter his usual bored expression to
one of hail-fellow-well met when it suited his
purpose. Was all for the quiet life and therefore
happy for a time to remain a mere appendage of his
dominant wife.
LADY CYNTHIA BLANCHFORD-CARTER: Age 30. Reddish
unkempt hair loose about her head; green, alert
eyes set too close together; walked with urgency
in her stride and was over fond of long-flowing
chiffons and all-embracing gestures.
HELEN SARSFIELD: Age 16. Jade-green eyes; hair of
luminous gold; a comely,intelligent face with a
determined slant to her jaw. Her youthful
silhouette gave emphasis to the fact that her
beauty burgeoning since childhood was finally
beginning to blossom. Began her working life as a
scullery maid.
ELIZABETH WHITTAKER: Age 32.A slim, sinewy
pinched-faced kitchen maid as ramrod stiff as her
starched cap and apron, and perpetually smelling of
strong carbolic. Assaulted at the age of 15, she
had developed a thorough dislike of men, and much
preferred the company of teenage girls.
JONATHAN ODDY: Age 19.Assistant groomsman. A tall,
square jawed, curly haired youth with
chestnut-coloured eyes and thick brows that met
in the middle. Shy and awkward but polite in manner.
JAMES EDGAR HAWKINS: Age 40. House steward to Lord
Edward. A gigantic gentleman's gentleman with a dour
face and the blackest eyes in creation. Head of his
profession and a hard taskmaster, other servants
cringed from his path and scampered to hide in glory
holes as he approached.
This article is continued in the online edition
and can be viewed here:
https://www.ireland-information.com/dec04.htm#story
CHRISTOPHER SARSFIELD:Age 16.Helen's twin.Fair with close cropped hair-his one and only ambition to list as a soldier and not to have to wait years for the privelege. DOLORES MERRIMAN:Age 16.A divine epicurean princess, in the worshipping eyes of Christopher, the most ravishing creature ever to have attended first, second or even third mass in the lovely old church of Athlone. HERBERT HUME:Age 26.A handsome, thin-boned individual with a shock of red hair, the life and soul of the Sunday evening confraternity meetings.As a student of Shakespeare was once a real wizard at producing and putting on plays.A kingpin in James Connolly's Irish Socialist Republican Party is committed to a free Ireland. AMY SARSFIELD:Age 15.Younger sister of Helen.Dark complexioned, her hair a mass of black curls.A reluctant schoolgirl, eager to leave home. ARTHUR MORRISON:Age 34.Groomsman.Lover of horses and the great outdoors.A tall rugged individual of easy going manner and a pleasant disposition.Conscientious and well liked, he had shown no particular interest in the opposite sex until he met the much-younger Helen. SENORA FELIZ:Age 76.A frail old lady languishing in the throes of feeble reminiscence, struggling to recall all that a time-worn memory would permit - her tired physiognomy intermittently allowing the ghost of a smile to linger over an amusing recollection.But was she really as fragile as she seemed or was it part of a very clever act ? STEPHEN:Age 45, multi-millionaire on the Costa del Sol - his mysterious comings and goings a constant source of interest to the elderly senora. EXTRACTS SPAIN 1995 Senora Feliz allowed herself a faint smile of smug satisfaction as her alert eyes meandered the magnificent vista before her - the sun was approaching its zenith and from the senora's vantage point in the hills above Marbella,the Mediterranean beckoned with a thousand sun-kissed ripples to come on in for a leisurely sail or swim and relax in the placid waters. For a moment she was tempted to take the Alfa Romeo and drive to Puerto Banus to go aboard Stephen's luxury yacht,but she had promised to visit Ronda with Isabel who was travelling down from Granada and already one hour late... YORKSHIRE 1899 The pony and trap turned in at the gates and set off along the two- mile avenue to Lord and Lady Blanchford-Carter's Stockswell Hall.The driver,silver- haired Harry Hobson,a rotund,red-faced individual, turned to his only passenger and struggling with a speech impediment stammered, 'His lo-lordship's estate,Nell.Not fffar to go,nnow.' Helen,a delightful girl of sixteen with jade-green eyes and hair of luminous gold, smiled in reply and looked ahead anxiously .She was on her way to Stockswell to begin work as a scullery maid, and wondered what sort of reception awaited her there. And if at that moment approaching high-noon with the wind rising and rustling the trees, she could have foreseen even the tiniest blip of the future awaiting within those walls, she would have run from that place as if possessed and not have so easily dismissed the ghostly shivers traversing her spine. But there was neither palmist, nor gypsy, nor diviner to warn her, only the unfathomable voice of the angry gusts, which if listened to, might possibly be screaming across the cobbles, awaaay...awaay...away! Understandably, her concerns just then were centred on her imminent arrival and of how she would be received, not so much by Lord Edward and Lady Cynthia but by the servants themselves, having been warned that there was far more class distinction and terrorizing below stairs than ever existed above. Then as Stockswell came into view, she straightened a fold in her freshly-laundered dress which though patched and well-worn was still very presentable and as Hobson had observed earlier, accentuated admirably her youthful silhouette. 'That be Mr H-H-Hawkins at dddoor,yonder. Servants' entrance, th'a knows, Nell. An' a rrreet taskmaster he be too, b' all accounts.' Harry's stammer brought Helen's deliberations to an abrupt end and as they approached the rear of the great house, she looked in the direction indicated to discover herself under the fierce scrutiny of a gigantic gentleman with a dour face and the blackest eyes in creation. As house steward at Stockswell, James Edgar Hawkins's priority was to ensure the smooth operation of the entire household, for the greater well-being of his lord and the lesser displeasure of his lady in whose excesses he was sometimes expected to participate... STOCKSWELL HALL built in 1892 for Lord and Lady Blanchford-Carter was really two individual mansions that came into being through the inability of their lordships to agree on the composition of a single dwelling acceptable to them both. Whereas her ladyship craved a showpiece mansion with busts of kings and emperors gazing down from arched niches, his lordship favoured a much less ostentatious display, wishing only a habitable abode planned along lines of Elizabethan symmetry. The architect, astutely recognising a golden opportunity to indulge his many fantasies at once, seized the moment and sold them on the notion of building, not one manor, but two - the ideal solution, he assured them, of catering for their numerous and multifarious specifications. So it came about that Stockswell Hall was composed of two huge houses, one known as the Edifice, the other known as the Habitat - all her extravagances built into the Edifice and the sum of his lesser indulgences contained in the Habitat. His lordship's greatest worry was the colossal expense of maintaining two mansions, but as things worked out he had indeed worried needlessly because while he idled his hours away in the Habitat, her ladyship, free as a bird in the Edifice, had taken to entertaining sundry gentlemen - some young and some not so young - and events at Stockswell changed forever when Lord Edward unexpectedly entered his wife's boudoir to discover her exhibiting a total wantoness of animal passion and screaming with uninhibited bliss, clutched in the ape-like arms of their indomitable house steward. Edward had entered quietly thinking his beloved Cynthia might be sleeping; consequently neither she nor Hawkins noticed him as he stood in a state of shock watching their disgusting cavortings. The purple and rose gaudy decor of the room ;the arrangement of cheval glass, console and wall mirrors - their frames richly carved with scenes inspired by ancient Rome, laurel wreaths, palmettes, cornucopias, scantily-clad females - the mirrors specially set at angles to focus on the bedstead; the actual performance on the bed itself, all helped to convey to his shaken- from-complacency mind a scene reminiscent of a house of ill-repute he had once visited in London... OCTOBER 12TH 1899.DECLARATION OF WAR AGAINST GREAT BRITAIN BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC AND THE ORANGE FREE STATE. The First Battalion of the Connaught Rangers, part of the 5th Infantry Brigade, had completed a musketry course at The Curragh, Co. Kildare, and was assembling at Athlone under mobilization orders following the declaration of war. They were to be honoured by a visit of Field-Marshall Lord Roberts V.C. who was coming to inspect the battalion and the men were well drilled and under orders to be on their very best behaviour. Thoughts of the impending African adventure thrilled and delighted Sergeant-Major Barney Merriman and his eyes skimmed the faces of the men drawn up before him and skipped and hopped till they came to rest on young Sarsfield Christopher. Sufferin' Mother o' Jaysus, he thought, Is that what I've got to fight the Boers with? Must be all o' sixteen! How did he ever manage to get past the Recruitin' Officer? Christopher grew uneasy under the sergeant-major's scrutiny and for a few heart- stopping moments agonized with the conviction that the big nco was a mind-reader, fully capable of discerning the young soldier's deepest thoughts and fantasies, and God help him, especially his most secret imaginings concerning the sergeant-major's beautiful daughter, Dolores, who in Christopher's worshipping eyes was a divine epicurean princess - the most ravishing creature ever to have attended first, second or even third mass in the lovely old church of Athlone. That was where he had first laid eyes on her - all of seven Sundays ago - and so badly was he smitten that whichever way he looked in the church - forwards, backwards, sidewards, downwards - eyes open or closed, her delightful vision was everywhere at once. She hovered over the aisles; roamed in and out of the pews; adorned the narthex; graced the nave; emblazoned the chancel and even appeared on the high altar itself where she adopted the several roles of Server, Deacon and Celebrant. She blessed the congregation with incense; read from the pages of the Missal; rang the Sanctus bell; sang in Latin - pax Domini sit semper vobiscum - there she was everywhere at once - now kneeling at the Communion Rails, attired in the whitest silk and smiling at Christopher coquettishly. SOUTH AFRICA 1899 Advance in column of route, Dublin Fusiliers leading, by the left, quick march. Left, right, left, right - the British Army ,with great pomp and ceremony, marching across Africa, as if on parade at Aldershot or The Curragh - regular columns of impeccable parade-ground alignment crossing badly reconnoitred terrain where, with indecent promptitude, the invisible Boers shot them down at will. 'I declart t'Jaysus, all feckin' officers are parade-ground lunatics.' Sean Healy, an old soldier from Ballyfin in the Queen's County, was furious, 'They'd rather have us jilty on parade than knockin' th'shite out o'th'enemy.' 'Shu' yer mouth.' Corporal Powell silenced him. 'All we're up ag'in is a few lousy farmers wi' rifles. No artillery whatsoever. An' anyway, it's the Dubs up front that's coppin' it, not us.' Barely had he finished speaking when the first of the Boer shells fell among them. 'Holy Mother of Divine God! 'Murphy ,terrified, crossed himself in haste, 'I thought yo' said they had no artillery - yo' fuckin' eejit!' Fortunately, the noise was too intense for the corporal to hear him. 'Lord God deliver us from...'prayed Horan, the rest of his supplication lost in the pandemonium of shell after shell exploding, blowing horses and men to smithereens, the invisible Boers having enticed the brigade to within murderous range. Guts were hurled into Horan's face and the flaccid flesh of a Fusilier's torso's fell at O'Neill's feet. And then a deluge! Fragments of horseflesh and human flotsam sullied the field and floated among the blood and the mud and the stench and the noise and Christmas only ten days off. Christopher fell to the ground and lay amid mangled and blood-spattered bodies mixed with blown-apart carcasses. Bits and pieces of limbs - hands, hoofs, heads, entrails littered the land - here a forearm and there what remained of a leg, and with eyes shut forever, the horror-struck face of Frank Hanlon from Navan, whose rifle had fallen the day the battalion was honoured by the Field-Marshall - it had fallen once more today but now no amount of shouting could ever make him pick it up again. STOCKSWELL HALL 1900 Elizabeth arrived late that evening, laden down with an enormous brown-paper parcel. 'Just a few little luxuries, luv, keep us from freezin' in yon cold bed,' she explained as she struggled to untie the string, taking great delight in watching an enthralled Helen on tenterhooks to discover the parcel contents. 'Some o' these were given me b' Agnes,' her slow progress in undoing the string was considerably adding to Helen's mounting anticipation, 'others I got from Evelyn - stuck-up bitch she were wi' nowt t'be stuck up about, if th'a knows what I mean. She were scullery maid here, same as thee, Nell. Got herse'n in Mr Hawkins good books - th'a knows, house steward, like - let 'im 'ave his way wi' her, she did - never looked back after that, didn't lass. In no time at all she were transferred to Edifice - th'a knows - yonder side o' courtyard.' She giggled and gave Helen a friendly dig, 'Imagine goings on over there. All that gallivantin' - sumit shockin', i'n't it, luv? Idle rich an' such like - bigwigs carryin' on wi' lasses - Agnes, Evelyn, Lilian an' t'others. An' money they make, eee... But Helen was only half listening and eased forward to get a better view as the parcel was finally opened and a veritable treasure of silken foundation garments emptied on to the bed. Basques, bustles, chemises, petticoats, camisoles, corsets, pantaloons and pantalettes, all complete with showy ornamentation and finely tailored to thrill or shock or both. LATER AT STOCKSWELL He towered above her, barring her way to the door. She avoided meeting his eyes, which was a pity, because the look of naked longing therein would have given ample warning of the ordeal before her. 'You'll be promoted to her ladyship's Edifice,' he said, 'where you will occupy your own sumptuous rooms and be showered with satins and sables and pearls and a salary of at least ten times your present wages. You'll receive lessons in etiquette, protocol, how to deal with and entertain the upper echelons of society,' he took her hand and led her to the settee - she still did not meet his gaze, her mind busy remembering the opulent underwear given to Elizabeth by her friends, and calculating ten times her present wages. 'And what would be expected of me in return?' she asked. 'You would have to attend lessons - learn the various forms of ceremony and...precedence. As practiced by politicians, officers of the crown, heads of church and state...' he decided to keep talking and hold her attention while, at the same time, keeping rein on his hungry hands. 'You will be taught much about the social conventions...be given every help to live the life of a lady...good bearing, speech therapy, voice modulation, even dancing lessons, believe me nothing gets overlooked.' Helen listened, wanting to believe what she was hearing: live the life of a lady; satins, sables and pearls; dancing lessons; speech therapy; ten times her present wages...her mind was in a whirl as she considered the promises that poured from his lips like doves from a magician's hat...then she observed his tobacco-stained fingers alighting on her breast and her trembling heart perished inside her. DUBLIN,IRELAND 1900 The fire in Riordan's inner bar blazed brightly and danced a merry jig in the landlord's spectacles as he leaned forward to place the two drinks on the snug table. 'Cead mile failte, Mr Hulme. You're welcome back, so y'ar. Ain't yo' after doin' a grand job in Dublin. We heard all abou' it.' 'Ah, the hard Paddy. 'Tis fit an' well you're lookin'. Yo' were busy servin' as we come in - didn't want t'disturb yo' - we come on in here out o' th' way.' 'I understand perfectly. Yo' don't have t' explain at all. An importan' man like yerself, sure don't yo' have t'be movin' in crowds all th' time.' He leaned towards the corner where Dolores was sitting well back in the shadows. 'Ain't I right, ma'am,' he asked and would willingly have stood the price of the drinks to discover who she was. Herbert was quick off the mark to intercept him, took the small port from the tray and putting it in front of Dolores ,said, 'Now Paddy, she's had a long day. We had to leave Dublin early this mornin', so if yo' don't mind...' Riordan got the message immediately and placing the pint of stout in front of Herbert, gave him a knowledgeable wink, saying, 'Not another word, sir. L'ave it t'me entirely. I'll make sure you're not disturbed,' and patting his watch chain reflectively, he headed back to the bar, closing the snug door tightly behind him. Must be a nationalist of some importance, he thought, honouring his establishment with her presence, for who else would be travelling with Herbert Hume one of the main kingpins in James Connolly's Irish Socialist Republican Party? 'What did he mean, you did a grand job in Dublin?' Dolores, ever inquisitive, was careful to stay in the shadows. 'Ah,that'd be the meetin' we held on the first o' last month. Some big names on the platform, I can tell you.' Herbert was enthusiastic in his reply, pleased with the opportunity to tell her of events in Dublin.' John O'Leary, Michael Davitt, Maud Gonne. Passed a resolution supportin' the Boers and we condemned the enlistment of Irishmen in the British Army. Maud told a cheering crowd of several thousand that it was a terrible humiliation for all of us to think that regiments with Irish names had gone to fight in the Transvaal. She hoped the Irish soldiers would change sides and asked Irish people to do everything possible to put a stop to British recruitin' in Ireland.' Herbert paused to take a sip of his stout before continuing, 'And now that an Irish Brigade has been formed to fight alongside the Boers, the last thing we want is for Irishmen to be fighting each other.' 'They're all ridiculous, that's what they are. Formin' brigades at this late stage! Accordin' to me da it'll all be over in a couple o' weeks. The Connaught Rangers 'll soon put manners on a few farmers, struttin' about with bandoliers over their smocks. Sure they're not soldiers at all, so they're not.' Dolores was quite emphatic, obviously quoting what she had heard her sergeant-major father say. SYNOPSIS Although the story opens and closes in present-day Spain, the real beginnings are set in the early 1900s when: In England, Lord and Lady Blanchford-Carter, at a time when England's wealth was passing from the nobility in the countryside to the professional classes in the towns, decided to augment their dwindling finances by transforming part of their stately mansion into a high class brothel for the upper echelons of society.Their action would not only inaugurate profound changes for their lordships but would also have far- reaching consequences for the young servant girls tricked into becoming painted and powdered playthings, specially trained to adorn the leisures hours of men. Into this debauched household came the young and innocent Helen Sarsfield, to work as a scullerymaid, completely unaware that her heretofore humdrum life was about to be catapulted into a bizarre existence that at times would border on the fanciful, the exotic, the grotesque - influenced not only by wierd happenings within the manor but by the tragic events occurring in both Africa and Ireland. In Africa, the well equipped army of the British Empire was being humbled by a few Boer farmers whose only uniform was a slouch hat and a bandolier over everyday work clothes. In Ireland, James Connolly was reminding people of Daniel O'Connell's maxim that England's difficulty was Ireland's opportunity.The masthead of the Workers Republic newspaper,written by Connolly,declared in Irish; IS DOIGH LINN GUR MOR IAD NA DAOINE MORA MAR ATAIMID FÉIN AR ÁR NGLÚINE. EIRIMIS! (The great appear great to us because we are on our knees - Let Us Rise!). Simultaneously, the ladies of the Transvaal Committee demonstrated against Queen Victoria's visit to Dublin, referring to her as Evictoria, because of the numerous evictions in Ireland during her reign.The committee also condemned the sending of Irish Regiments to fight the Boers, called upon Irishmen not to enlist in the British Army, and welcomed the formation of an Irish Brigade to fight alongside the Boers. In Athlone, where the First Battalion, The Connaught Rangers was assembling, under mobilization orders following the declaration of war against Great Britain by the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, Herbert Hume, a kingpin in Connolly's Irish Socialist Republican Party, had failed in his attempt to persuade battalion members not to go to South Africa. Ordered back to Dublin, he implored his new girlfriend, Dolores, to accompany him. 'We've places to go,' he told her, 'and people to see - important places and important people - we'll witness history being made at first hand.' As she hesitated, he kissed her, 'My own sweet Dol,' he whispered, 'I can promise you sun-soaked days of tender romance and moonlit nights of love. 'The Diary of a Scullery Maid' by Joe Rogers 299 pages over 29 chapters.. Published by PublishAmerica, price...$19.95 |
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