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  The Information about Ireland Site Newsletter 
                  January 2010
 
 The Newsletter for people interested in Ireland 
   Now received by over 50,000 people worldwide 
       http://www.ireland-information.com 
           http://www.irishnation.com
               Copyright (C) 2010  

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		IN THIS ISSUE

=== News Snaps from Ireland 
=== New free resources at the site
=== William Clarke - The Ballybay Piper, by Peadar Murnane
=== Edmund Burke - Political Thinker, by Joseph E. Gannon 
=== Walking the Past by Brendan Forde
=== Tricky Dubh by Pat Watson
=== Killarney by Peter Carter
=== Gaelic Phrases of the Month
=== Monthly free competition result

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FOREWORD
========

A belated happy new year from Ireland where the 
great flood gave way to the big freeze. Rarely 
has the country been brought to such a shuddering 
halt as happened in the early weeks of this year.

Surely things can only get better with more 
optimism evident. Maybe people have just had 
enough of the gloom...

Until next month

Michael

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NEWS SNAPS FROM IRELAND
=======================

FLOODS FOLLOWED BY THE BIG FREEZE

It has been called the biggest freeze in 30 years 
although some observers are citing it as a 'once 
in a century' event. The devastating floods that 
hit many business and homes in the west and south 
of Ireland were quickly followed by heavy snowfalls 
and a prolonged freeze. Ireland is not used to 
weather like this and although snow and sleet are 
a regular occurrence the prolonged nature of the 
recent cold snap caused no end of problems.

Supplies of salt and grit that had been built up 
to last for a few days were suddenly depleted as 
the entire transport network was gridlocked with 
ice causing chaos at airports and roads. Schools 
were closed down, businesses suffered as staff and 
customers stayed away. Residents of isolated rural 
homes had to be airlifted to safety in scenes more 
reminiscent of a country under siege than a modern 
western economy.

Government agencies were criticised for their 
response but were ultimately saved when the thaw 
arrived earlier than expected. Schools and 
businesses re-opened and the damage was assessed. 
Melting snow and ice again flooded some businesses 
and homes, their despairing owners only having 
just recovered from the first deluge.

The big flood and freeze had a huge impact on 
recession-hit Ireland with most retailers and 
shopping malls reporting a big reduction in trade 
due to the extreme weather. This is not the sort 
of thing that is needed to boost economic recover. 
Perhaps this beating by the weather marks the very 
bottom of the trough and the recovery is on the 
way? Lets hope so.

WATER DELIVERY SYSTEM EXPOSED AS INADEQUATE

One of the most inconvenient effects of the recent 
bad weather has been the disruption to the supply 
of fresh water to residents and businesses. The 
big freeze has highlighted the poor state of the 
country's network of water-pipes with up to 40% 
of water being lost due to leakage from the system. 
An estimated 300 Million euro is to be spent 
repairing the broken pipes in an effort to prevent 
a repeat of this poor performance in the future.

With the public so focused on the water problems 
it was an ideal opportunity for the government to 
again advance their proposals for water metering. 
An annual charge for water usage is to be 
introduced by the government next year, initially 
in 1.1 Million homes. Businesses already pay for 
water usage. The initial charge to householders 
is expected to be about 175 euro annually although 
this is expected to rise to as much as 400 euro.

NEW TERMINAL TO OPEN AT DUBLIN AIRPORT

The Dublin Airport Authority has allowed the 
public to view the new 19-gate terminal 'T2' at 
Dublin airport for the first time. The fully 
operational new terminal due to be opened in 
November of this year is where all 'long-haul' 
traffic will be accommodated. US customs and 
immigration can be cleared in the new terminal 
before flights are boarded.

BANKING DISASTER TO BE PROBED

A Banking Commission of Inquiry is to be 
established to examine the near collapse of the 
Irish banking system. The government had 
originally balked at the idea of establishing an 
investigation into how Bank of Ireland and Allied 
Irish Bank nearly joined Anglo Irish Bank on the 
scrapheap, but later agreed to a wide-ranging 
investigation that looks set to be established in 
the coming months.

WELFARE CARD OR NATIONAL IDENTITY CARD?

A new public services identity card is to be 
introduced in an attempt to reduce benefit fraud 
and to speed up applications for welfare and other 
public services. The new cards will be able to 
retain biological identifiers such as fingerprints 
and eyescans. It is expected that every adult in 
the country will have the card within 3 to 4 
years. The government is not citing the new 
welfare card as a national identity card although 
it is hard to see how it is not exactly that. 
Despite reservations by civil liberty groups the 
scheme has been met with an overall positive 
reaction.

LIFESPAN GREATLY INCREASED SINCE 1920

The average lifespan for men and women in Ireland 
has been greatly increased due to better health 
care, nutrition and lifestyle and a big reduction 
in infant mortality. 76.8 years for a man and 
81.6 years for woman are an increase of 20 and 25 
years respectively since 1920. The number of 
people over the age of 60 is expected to nearly 
treble by the year 2041, highlighting the urgent
need for future-planning of pension and 
health-care requirements.


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A: Alway, Athey
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==================================
WILLIAM CLARKE, THE BALLYBAY PIPER
by Peadar Murnane
==================================

The son of a third generation Scottish 
Presbyterian family who settled in Cornahoe, 
near Ballybay, Co. Monaghan where Robert William 
Clarke was born on 29th. October 1889. The family 
moved to the townland of Carga and later to 
Dunmaurice where the family was reared. The 
probability is that they all attended the National 
School at Cornanure until they were old enough to 
walk to the town school. in Hall Street. His 
sister Agnes was a registered pupil at Cornanure 
in 1886 when she was four years of age. At this 
time Cornanure was an interdenominational school.

Although the only son and the one best entitled 
to inherit and work the farm, young Willie opted 
for a less laborious and more interesting 
occupation. On leaving school, he 'went to serve 
his time' to the Ballybay jeweller and watchmaker, 
Patrick Duffy. He finished his apprenticeship 
with Mercers of Enniskillen and returned to 
Ballybay to commence business in Main St. in 
premises formerly occupied by Marcella Brown.

He married Margaret Johnston from Clontibret and 
they had a family of two boys, Thomas and William 
and a daughter, Nancy. Thomas (Tom) joined the 
RAF during World War Two and was killed in action. 
William (Willie) is a Minister of the Presbyterian 
Church, now retired in Eglinton, Derry. Nancy is 
married and lives in England.

There was no musical tradition in the Dunmaurice 
Clarkes but when young Willie by chance met up 
with 'The Piper Ward' from Oghill, his latent 
talent soon surfaced. Ward introduced Clarke to 
the Uilleann pipes and Highland Bagpipes and gave 
him a sound grinding on the rudiments of both 
instruments and taught him the skills of reading 
and writing music. 

Pipe bands and fife and drum bands were a common 
feature of parish life in Co. Monaghan in the 
early 1900's. The Orange Lodges, the Hibernians, 
the Foresters, Land Leaguers and Home Rulers 
sustained their faith and enthusiasm through 
their bands and banners. 

  


 Ballybay district had a long tradition of bands be they Fife and Drum or Brass and Reed. Willie Clarke thought that Ballybay should have a good Pipe Band capable of competing with others from Doohamlet, Clontibret, Lisnagrieve, Oghill, Corduff and Lough Egish. No doubt, Clarke got every encouragement from Ward, his old mentor who had founded the Pipe bands at Oghill and Doohamlet. 


	Willie Clarke was responsible for the formation of the Ballybay Pipe Band in 1919.   It was he who brought the recruits together, trained them and raised the funds to procure instruments and uniforms. One of their first public appearances was at the Peace Celebrations held in Leslie Demesne in August 1919. Their band room was in Church St., opposite the old National School which later became their headquarters.  This was also the meeting place of the local Orange Lodge No. 211. It was inevitable that amalgamation would take place.  Not every member of the band was an Orangeman.  Many like Fred Braden, were members of the band for the sheer love of pipe music. Fred was a Methodist.  It was very appropriate that when Willie Clarke died in 1934 the name of the band was changed to the "William Clarke Memorial Pipe Band".


	During his short life, Willie soon attracted the company of such noted Uilleann and Warpipe players as the Carolans of Dopey Mills, near Newbliss; Michael Keenan of Glassleck, near Shercock;  Philip Martin of Kilturk, near Newtownbutler who used to cycle to Ballybay for piping sessions with Clarke and the Moorheads from Doohamlet.

  
	Brother Gildas (Patrick O'Shea) was a native Irish speaker from Kerry and taught in the De La Salle schools in Downpatrick.  He was a well known figure in the piping world and is remembered for his large collection of Egan chanters.   He was a regular and welcomed visitor to the Clarke home in Ballybay where he stayed overnight on many occasions.  Another acquaintance of Clarke who sampled his hospitality was James Ennis of Finglas, the father of the late Seamus Ennis, piper, singer, collector, raconteur and broadcaster.  Two Belfast pipers, Frank McFadden and Francis McPeake and Leo Rowsome, well known piper and pipe maker from Dublin enjoyed many sessions in the Clarke homestead.  There they exchanged tunes and techniques and became lifelong friends.   


	Every man who played pipe music was a friend of Willie Clarke.  Many townspeople will remember an old 'tramp' piper who visited Ballybay on occasions.  He was known to the locals as "Caoch O'Leary". His ensemble was no more than an Uilleann chanter and a 'goose' but he had a vast repertoire of pipe tunes.  As often as he would appear in town Clarke would invite him in for a meal after he had played and collected the town.  There would be an exchange of memories and tunes between them.  Clarke would do the necessary repairs on his  equipment and would bid him goodbye with a packed meal and a couple of shillings .  This was the type of man Willie Clarke was.  A man with no social or religious barrier but 'a man for all pipers'.


	He was an enthusiastic competitor, taking first place at Monaghan County Feis  in 1927.
The following is an extract from an article written by Harry Bradshaw of Radio/Telefís Éireann for the "Heart of Breifne", with grateful acknowledgement:

	"Willie Clarke's name, like that of many another musician, would probably be long forgotten now 	if it were not for his recordings.  The story of how these records came about goes back to 1928 	and an imaginative record company executive in London who decided to present on record the 	various piping traditions existing within these islands.  Ireland would contribute the Uilleann 	Pipes, England the Northumbrian Pipes and Scotland the Highland Bagpipes  --  the series of 	three records to be entitled:  "The Pipes of Three Nations".    Since the early 1920's, Clarke had 	been attending an annual piping gathering held in Bellingham, a small town in Northumberland 	and it was here that the Columbia Record Company of London looked to promote pipers for their 	planned records.  Willie was asked to play the Uilleann Pipes.  Pipe Major James  Robertson of 	Edinburgh played the Bagpipes and Anthony Charlton of Northumberland played on the small 	pipes of Northumbria.  In the Summer of 1928, all three travelled to London and made the 	recordings which were selected that year.  George McCullagh (of Derryvalley and a pupil of 	Clarke's) remembered how Willie proudly returned to Ballybay with an advance copy of the 	record.  'Well I mind the record played in Clarke's own house after he came back:  he was happy 	enough with it.  That was the year 1928'."    The tunes recorded by Willie were:-  'Father 	O'Flynn';  'Down the Broom';  'The Star of Munster';  'McLeod o' Raasay' and 'The Swallow's 	Tail'. 



George McCullagh, won a gold medal in the Ulster championship on the ancient pipes in 	Portadown in December 1945.


	
Willie Clarke's expertise extended to the making of pipes.  His training in clock making and watch repairs called for the utmost precision and stood to him in the 'manufacture' of the real article.  A customer or visitor to his shop premises would find him 'turning' the wood on a small 	foot-operated lathe to his own planned design.   Fashioning the pipes was one thing but their 	tuning or toning was another  and this was Willie's speciality.    
He was the official  local agent for Band Instruments and War Pipes produced by McFadden, foreman Pipe Maker to 	Denis McCullagh of Belfast.



Robert William Clarke died in 1934 at the age of 45.  His mortal remains lie buried in the graveyard of Second Ballybay Presbyterian Church. His memory is still alive in the archives of 	Radio/Telifís Éireann and in the hearts and minds of the people of Ballybay. 
"The Irish Phonograph" radio programme on his life and recordings was transmitted over the airwaves in September 1986.  



Peadar Murnane, local historian, Ballybay, Co.Monaghan.



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================================
EDMUND BURKE - POLITICAL THINKER 
by Joseph E. Gannon 
================================

'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil 
is for good men to do nothing.'
 
Edmund Burke was one of the most famous political 
thinkers of the 18th century. Through his 
speeches and writings, he raised the level of 
political debate in England, attempting to make 
moral principles a part of English politics. A 
champion of Catholic emancipation, Burke wielded 
his influence to weaken the heinous Penal Laws. 
He was born on January 12th, 1729, at Arran Quay, 
Dublin. 

Burke was the son of a mixed marriage, his mother 
Catholic and his father Protestant. He would 
later marry an Irish Catholic woman. Perhaps it 
was these two factors which led him to advocate a 
compassionate policy toward Ireland for most of 
his life. Burke graduated from Trinity College in 
1748 and studied law at Middle Temple in London. 
He failed, however, to secure a call to the bar 
and instead began a literary career. 

In 1756, Burke published his first book, 
'A Vindication of Natural Society' and an essay 
titled 'A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin of 
Our Ideas of the Sublime and the Beautiful'. In 
1757, he married June Nugent, the daughter of a 
Catholic physician, and in 1759 he became editor 
of the Annual Register. 

By 1761, Burke had begun to involve himself with 
politics. That year, after living in England, he 
returned to Dublin as secretary to W.G. Hamilton, 
chief secretary for Ireland. He left that post 
two years later to become secretary to the new 
prime minister, Lord Rockingham. 

In 1765, Earl Verney brought him into the House 
of Commons as a member for Wendover. His first 
speeches in the early months of 1766 impressed 
the members of Parliament. In the space of a 
few short weeks, Burke rose from obscurity to 
being recognized as one of the leading figures in 
the House of Commons. He now began to make his 
own mark in politics through his writing and 
public speaking. 

Burke had come to Parliament just as the 
controversy over the Stamp Act was beginning. He 
urged repeal of the act and consistently supported 
a policy of reconciliation with the American 
colonies. Burke wrote four well-known pamphlets 
on the America question from 1770 to 1777: 
'Thoughts on the Present Discontents' (1770), 
'American Taxation' (1774), 'Conciliation with the 
Colonies' (1775), and 'A Letter to the Sheriffs of 
Bristol' (1777). 

Burke's colleagues in Parliament never took his 
advice on the American colonies, but many since 
have recognized the wisdom of the policy he 
advanced. In commenting on Burke's writings on 
the American question, John Morley, the Liberal 
politician and writer, said that 'taken together 
they compose the most perfect manual in our 
literature, or in any literature, for one who 
approaches the study of public affairs, whether 
for knowledge or practice'. After Yorktown, it 
was Burke and the Whigs who would eventually force 
King George III to recognize the futility of 
continuing the war in America. 

Burke was the leading Parliamentary proponent of 
civil rights for Catholics in Ireland. Since the 
late 17th century, Catholics in Ireland had been 
barred from full citizenship and the vast majority 
forced into abject poverty by the Penal Laws. 
During the last part of the 18th century, the 
threat of French intervention in Ireland and 
Burke's efforts together forced the passage of 
several reductions of the severe restrictions 
of the Penal Laws. 

The championing of that cause would cost Burke 
his MP seat in 1780, but he returned to Parliament 
as the member from Malton and became Paymaster of 
Forces when a Whig, Lord Rockingham, became 
prime minister again. When Lord Rockingham died 
in July 1786, Burke resigned and never held public 
office again, but he continued his involvement 
with British politics and writing for the rest of 
his life. 

Burke was a constant critic of British colonial 
policies, and, in the 1780s, his investigation 
into The East India Company led to the impeachment 
of Warren Hastings, governor general of India. 
Although Hastings would eventually be acquitted 
of all charges, the entire affair led to reforms 
in England's administration in India and helped 
bring the inequities of England's colonial system 
before the public. Burke believed this was the 
most important political contribution of his 
career. 

Burke is often remembered for his vehement 
opposition to the French Revolution, which he 
expounded in 1790 in what is, perhaps, his best
known work: 'Reflections on the Revolution in 
France'. The work was widely published and read 
all over Europe, and his articulation of what he 
viewed as the dangers of the Revolution caused a 
sensation in England. It caused him to break with 
many of his longtime friends and colleagues in 
the Whig party and invoked replies from many 
English writers, the most famous one being Thomas 
Paine's 'Rights of Man'. 

In what might seem a contradiction, given his 
support of the civil rights of Irish Catholics, 
Burke was opposed to the Volunteer movement in 
Ireland and to the establishing of Henry Grattan's 
Irish Parliament. Burke's opposition to these 
movements may well have been his fear that 
Grattan's Parliament would not be a government of 
all the Irish people but merely one that continued, 
and perhaps even strengthened, the long tradition 
of Irish Protestant rule and Irish Catholic 
subservience. Burke was never an advocate of any 
form of Irish independence, though he supported 
the emancipation of Irish Catholics within the 
British Empire. 

Burke's writings on the Irish question are less 
known than those of his on the American and the 
French Revolutions, but he left behind several 
that would have served the British well, had they 
ever been heeded. In his 'Speech at the Guildhall' 
(1780), 'To a Peer of Ireland on the Penal Laws' 
(1782), and 'To Sir Hercules Langrishe' (1792), 
he sends them a clear message: Your foolish 
colonial policies have lost America and your 
foolish policies will lose Ireland. His counsel 
was ignored but the correctness of his theme has 
been proved by history. 

Burke died in London on July 9, 1797, one year 
before Ireland erupted in revolution. That revolt 
might have been avoided if some of Burke's ideas 
on Catholic emancipation and other legislative 
reforms had been more fully implemented by the 
English government. Then, as ever, the country's 
rulers seemed to suffer from a complete inability 
to make the compromises that could avoid repeated 
disasters on that long-suffering island. As Burke 
once said, in words that should echo down to those 
debating Ireland's future today: 'All government, 
indeed every human benefit and enjoyment, every 
virtue, and every prudent act, is founded on 
compromise and barter'. 

Burke is not a hero of Irish nationalists, nor 
should he be, for he never was a proponent of 
Irish republicanism. But he did help put the 
corruption of England's colonial system before 
the English people. Most of all, he started the 
process that would eventually bring the despised 
malignancy known as the Penal Laws to an end. For 
this, he should be well remembered in the land of 
his birth. 

Joseph E. Gannon 

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================
WALKING THE PAST
by Brendan Forde
================

Your thoughts were mine
Since I was a child
As I walked Irelands bye ways
And scenery so wild
I walked troubled highways
Reaching into the past
Where each rock filled, green field
Held memories that last

Where ghosts of the tortured, 
Hungry souls, wandering round
Bringing sad, haunting music
From blood soaked, Irish ground
Each step that I take
Our ancestors trod
Through hardship and suffering
History's soaked,in each sod

But Irish hearts, strong
Kept our heritage alive
In story, and song
The poets spirit, survive
To sing praise to the land
The home, that gave birth
To the spirit of old Ireland
Bringing hope, to this Earth.

Brendan Forde

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=============
TRICKY DUBH 
by Pat Watson
=============

A year after her husband's death in 1927 it 
became clear that the widow was on the lookout. 
Three serious suitors were quickly into the 
ring, after all her late husband, Kieran, had 
left her with a snug twenty acres and a house 
built into the shelter of a cut-away hill. 
Thatch would last twice as long in this sheltered 
position.

Of course one couldn't show ones hand too soon as 
failure with one woman would hinder ones chances 
in future. Funny, the way everyone fancied the 
same woman while others could get no man at all. 
Then again twenty acres had it's own beauty. 
Rambling in at night for a chat was the most 
widespread leisure activity at the time and a 
man with intentions could call as a rambler 
without totally revealing those intentions. After 
an hour alone with the widow a man might broach 
the subject. Paddy Ban (fair), John Dearg (red) 
and Tricky Dubh (black) all had the same idea. 
That's why all three spent every night rambling 
in the widow's house this sherraft. Sherraft was 
the period between Christmas and Lent and was the 
time for weddings. While their nicknames once 
indicated their hair colour, now in their fourth 
decade there was little difference between them. 
As none had farms of their own this might well be 
their last throw of the romantic dice.

Paddy Ban was a laidback dreamy romantic chap whom 
a woman could love but his farming abilities were 
suspect. His experience with the opposite sex was 
all in his head. John Dearg was a go-getter who 
would skin a flea and skin anybody else who got 
in his way. Some people called him 'John skin the 
goat'. The woman who got him would never be short 
of a few bob even if she were never at liberty to 
spend it. His only previous romantic encounter 
had ended abruptly when it transpired that the 
object of his affections did not own the uncles 
farm after all. Tricky Dubh who was from a 
wealthier family was gracious and charming but 
was something of a black sheep who had earned his 
nickname. His romantic encounters were many and 
varied and indeed there were rumours of a scandal 
or two.

As Ash Wednesday approached all became more 
desperate and competition increased at the nightly 
meetings. A four-way conversation is not an ideal 
forum for suitors, especially if there is only one 
lady. A man has to measure his words so as to 
belittle the others without appearing vindictive. 
It's not easy to get to portray one's assets, 
one's physical powers, one's charms, one's 
charisma, or one's manhood while in the presence 
of two jealous rivals. All comments are likely to 
be misconstrued, added to, laughed at, sneered at 
or generally belittled.

Then, on the Friday before Ash Wednesday the 
morning was the wettest for many years. If a man 
got very wet out looking for a stray calf wouldn't 
it be reasonable for him to seek temporary 
shelter in the house of an acquaintance and if 
that acquaintance happened to be the widow with 
whom a man wanted to have a serious private 
conversation so much the better.

Whether it's that great minds think alike or that 
fools seldom differ I could not say but all three 
suitors had the same idea around daylight on the 
morning in question. John Dearg and Tricky Dubh 
jumped out of bed and prepared to look the part. 
They would need to walk in the rain for half an 
hour to look suitably wet. John Dearg, not to be 
wasteful, went to the well for water making sure 
to splash himself so as to look wet. Tricky Dubh 
herded the widow's livestock at the back of her 
house. Paddy Ban stayed in bed for a while to 
think. If he had this great idea maybe the others 
had it too. He got dressed, shaved and went as 
far as the ivy clad tree a hundred yards north 
of the widow's house. He would watch from there 
for a while.

As Tricky Dubh was approaching the house from 
the back he spotted John Dearg coming up the 
south road. He hid behind the haycock where the 
goat was suckling her two kids. About the time 
John Dearg was reaching the front door, he took 
the ladder from the haycock, placed it against 
the low thatched roof, grabbed a kid and climbed 
up to the chimney. Up the wide chimney came the 
voice of John Dearg calling, 'God save all here', 
just then he dropped the kid down the chimney. 
The frightened beast upturned the kettle off the 
crane, the toast off the tongs, put the fire 
flying round the kitchen, and broke two willow 
pattern plates from the dresser before escaping 
out the door. In her fright and confusion the 
widow thought that John Dearg had brought the 
goat. Where else could it have come from? 
Picking up the twig she attacked John Dearg 
physically and verbally, raining blows on him 
while calling him obscene names and ordering 
him out of her house. Not knowing where the 
kid came from, he was shocked by the whole 
episode and ran for his life. As he struggled 
home through the rain, his heart and spirit 
broken he muttered to himself, what was the 
weird woman doing with the goat? Were there things 
about women and goats he did not know? Now he 
would never know. If that's the sort of them then 
he didn't want to know. They could all go to hell 
and the sooner the better.

'What on earth happened here?' said Tricky Dubh 
as he watched the widow picking up the bits of 
willow pattern plates? 
'They were my grandmother's,' she wailed 
'And look at the fire all over the floor and my 
toast, that lunatic John Dearg brought a goat 
into the house and a mad goat at that.'
 'A goat is it? The sign of the devil, you'll 
have to get the house blessed, I always had my 
doubts about poor John, and you're lucky to be 
rid of him. Here let me help you tidy up.'
'Why did you throw the kid goat down the chimney?' 
That's what Paddy Ban said as he came in. 
'What are you talking about?' Said Tricky Dubh.
'I saw you throwing the goat down the chimney.'
 The widow went for the twig again, this time 
with more ferocity, indeed Tricky Dubh was lucky 
to escape with his life.
 
After Tricky Dubh left Paddy Ban had the field 
to himself. Their descendants are still around, 
no longer Ban or dreamy as the widow's dusky 
beauty and spirited personality changed all that.


'Tricky Dubh' is one of sixty lyrical 
yarns from 'Original Irish Stories' by 
Pat Watson, Creagh, Bealnamulla, Athlone, 
Ireland. First published in May 2006.
To get your copy email the author here:

pjwatson@utvinternet.com

==========================
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===============
KILLARNEY 
by Peter Carter
===============

By Killarney's Lakes & Fells
Emrald Isles & -Winding Bays
Mountain Path & Woodland Dells
Memory Ever Fondly Strays

Bounteous Nature Love All Lands
Beauty Wanders Every Where
Foot-Prints Leaves on Many Strands
But Her Home is Surely-There

Angels Fold Their Wings & Rest
In That Eden Of-The-West
Beauty's Home Killarney
Heaven's Reflex Killarney

Peter Carter

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=========================

=========================
THE IRISH COINS PROOF SET
=========================

The recent limited edition proof set of Irish 
coins produced by the Irish government is now 
available. We have a very small supply of these 
fantastic items which you can get from here:

http://www.irishnation.com/irishcoinsandbanknotes.htm

===========================
GAELIC PHRASES OF THE MONTH
===========================

PHRASE:		Thar gach ni eile...
PRONOUNCED:	har gock nee ella
MEANING:	Above all else...

PHRASE:		Ni mor a admhail.... 
PRONOUNCED:	nee moor ah ad-voll
MEANING:	It must be admitted...

PHRASE:		Ar an iomlan...
PRONOUNCED:	air on um-lun
MEANING:	On the whole...

View the archive of phrases here:

http://www.ireland-information.com/irishphrases.htm

==========================
JANUARY COMPETITION RESULT
==========================

The winner was: hughes@wildlifetrust.org
who will receive the following: 

A Single Family Crest Print (decorative) 
(US$19.99 value)

Send us an email to claim your print, and well 
done! Remember that all subscribers to this 
newsletter are automatically entered into the 
competition every time. 

=================================================

I hope that you have enjoyed this issue.

Until next month,

Michael Green,
Editor,
The Information about Ireland Site.

http://www.ireland-information.com