o 
 
CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME 
 OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT 
 FUND GIVEN IN 1891 BY 
 
 HENRY WILLIAMS SAGE 
 
Cornell University Library 
 PS 3537.T309S12 
 
 St. Patr 
 
 ick at Tara,a forest 
 
 3 1924 021 703 743 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924021703743 
 
THE MIDSUMMER HIGH JINKS 
 OF THE BOHEMIAN CLUB 
 
 1909 
 
THE GROVE PLAY 
 
St. Patrick at Tara 
 
 A Forest Play 
 
 by 
 H. Morse Stephens 
 
 Music by 
 Wallace A. Sabin 
 
 Being the Thirty-Second Annual Midsununer High Jinks of the 
 
 Bohemian Club of San Francisco, as performed by Members 
 
 of the Club at the Bohemian Grove in Sonoma 
 
 County, California, the Seventh Night of 
 
 August, Nineteen Hundred and Nine. 
 
 H. Morse Stephens 
 Sire 
 
TO THE 
 OF 
 
 DENIS O'SULLIVAN 
 
 GOOD BOHEMIAN 
 
 GOOD IRISHMAN 
 
 THIS FOREST PLAY IS 
 
 LOVINGLY AND REVERENTLY 
 
 DEDICATED 
 
Preface 
 
 The literature on the life and work of St. Patrick is very large and 
 steadily increasing. Noteworthy among the books hitherto published 
 about him for devotional, literary or historical treatment are the lives 
 by Miss M. F. Cusack, (the Nun of Kenmare) ; by the Mbst Rev. 
 Dr. Healy, Archbishop of Tuam; by the Rev. Father John Morris 
 S. J. ; by the Rev. Dr. J. D. Todd, and by Professor J. B. Bury. But 
 these biographies all depend for their historical detail upon the two 
 authentic Patrician documents, the "Confession of Patrick" and 
 the "Letter against Coroticus." These documents have often been 
 translated and reprinted, most conveniently by Dr. Whitley Stokes 
 in The Tripartite Life of St. Patrick (Rolls Series, 1887) and by 
 Dr. E. Hogan in the Analecta Bollandiana, 1882-83. Though the 
 earliest MSS. of these documents date from the first half of the ninth 
 century, they were undoubtedly extant in the sixth century, and 
 Professor Bury has triumphantly proved their authenticity as genuine 
 writings of St. Patrick against the criticisms of Professors Zimmer 
 and Pflugk-Harttung. 
 
 In this Grove-Play the "Confession of Patrick" has been fol- 
 lowed literally in the speeches of St. Patrick in the first scene. The 
 deductions of Professor Bury, as to the birth-place of St. Patrick, 
 the chronology of his life, the province of his servitude, his relations 
 with Palladius, the nature of his mission, the probability of the 
 events at Tara, his disputes with the druids and his personality, have 
 been closely followed, and I must express my deep obligations which 
 I cannot state on every page, to Professor Bury's The Life of St. 
 Patrick and his Place in History, London and New York, The 
 Macmillan Company, 1905. 
 
 It would be pedantic to give a long list of the books that have 
 been laid under contribution for the argument and text of this Grove- 
 
 ix 
 
Play, or to defend in a work, which is avowedly imaginative^ though 
 based on historical sources and deductions, my views on early Irish 
 civilization and religion. The antiquity of the legends of St. Patrick, 
 such as those of the lighting of the Paschal fire on the Beltane feast, 
 of the contest with the druids and of the raising of the ghost of 
 Cuchulainn, is very great, and they are characteristic of the cen- 
 turies of the spread of Christianity, in which they arose. The dif- 
 ficulties, which St. Patrick is represented as meeting and the way 
 in which he met them, can be illustrated from the lives of many 
 missionaries. The story of the spread of Christianity under the 
 wing of Rome is the most important subject in the history of modem 
 civilization, and I make no apology in dealing with it in a serious 
 vein at a gathering of the flower of the most modem and most 
 recently founded civilization in the world, that of California. . The 
 Bohemian Club of San Francisco stands for the most characteristic 
 manifestation of this most western, American, California civilization 
 in its Grove Play, and to the members of the Club at their annual 
 outing, the traditional High Jinks, this study of the life and work 
 of the patron saint of Ireland, the home of the most western, 
 European, Celtic civilization, is now offered. 
 
 The form followed is that of recent Grove Plays with the 
 exception that Care is not symbolized and that a Victim of Care is 
 substituted. For this bold departure from Grove Play traditions I 
 am alone responsible and I hope the veterans of the Bohemian Club 
 will be lenient to me for thus transgressing. Mr. Porter Gamett 
 has shown the trend of the development of the Grove-Plays in his 
 admirable book The Bohemian Jinks, a Treatise, San Francisco : 
 The Bohemian Club, 1908, and I have but hearked back to the 
 idea set forth by Dr. Arnold in his High Jinks of 1901, The Enigma 
 of Life, the first, which I had the pleasure of witnessing. In an 
 attempt to get the form and rhythm of Irish songs I have in The 
 Song of Connaught deliberately imitated Lionel Johnson's "To 
 Morfydd" and in The Song of Ulster Moira O'Neill's "A Broken 
 Song," both reprinted in A Little Garland of Celtic Verse, Portland, 
 Maine: T. B. Mosher, 1907. , 
 
Last I must thank a crowd of collaborators for their assistance. 
 The whole Bohemian Club seems to have stretched out its hand to 
 help, as was to be expected from a body of men, to whom club 
 membership means a closer bond of friendship than exists in other 
 clubs. But my! special thanks are due to the last and present Boards 
 of Directors, and to their respective Jinks Committees, who have 
 given ungrudging and unstinted help. I cannot mention the indi- 
 vidual actors and singers, who have given liberally their time and 
 best efforts to make the play a success, but I can never forget their 
 kindness, nor the valuable aid their experience has afforded to me. 
 The music of my friend, Mr. Wallace Sabin, is worthy of the theme, 
 and the club will surely recognize the talent of the composer, though 
 I alone can know the vast amount of care and labor he has expended ; 
 as far as the songs and choruses are concerned he deserves all the 
 credit, as I have been but the librettist to his musical invention. 
 Mr. Frank Mathieu has devoted his patience and energy to the 
 work of giving dramatic value to the first attempt of a novice in 
 the art of dramatic compiosition and the merit of such stage-craft 
 as there may be in this Grove Play is entirely due to him. Mr. 
 Duffey has handled the lighting upon the hill-side with the peculiar 
 skill, which is his own, and has shown positive genius in elaborating 
 new means to give full impressiveness to the unique stage, which the 
 Bohemian Club possesses among the redwoods. Mr. George Lyon 
 is responsible for the mechanical effectiveness of the stage setting. 
 To my dear friends and colleagues at the Academy of Pacific Coast 
 History and the University of California, Mr. F. J. Teggart and 
 Mr. Porter Garnett, I am indebted for constant aid and sympathy; 
 the former has placed his encyclopaedic knowledge and daring 
 originality of thought and feeling freely at my service; the latter 
 has been my guide from the length of his experience of the Grove 
 and the mastery of its mysteries and possibilities in multitudinous 
 details, and in particular has designed the costumes for the play 
 and superintended the production of this book ; without their loving 
 care and encouragement |his play would never have been produced. 
 And last I must make acknowledgment of my debt to Dr. John 
 
 xi 
 
Wilson Shiels, good friend, kind physician, and past president of 
 the Bohemian Club, whose dramatic insight suggested the human 
 interest in the play, when it was first sketched out to him in con- 
 versation, and whose suggestion of the climax gives to it whatever 
 dramatic value it may possess. 
 
 H. Morse Stephens. 
 
Argument 
 
 In the year 432 A. D., the news spread over Ireland that a band 
 of missionaries from continental Europe had landed to preach the 
 Gospel of Christianity, headed by a Briton, named Patricius or 
 Patrick, who had been consecrated a bishop for that purpose in Gaul. 
 The Christian religion was already known in the southern Province 
 of Munster through British slaves and captives in war, and in the 
 previous year a certain Palladius had been designated by Pope 
 Celestine for the correction of the Pelagian heresy among them, 
 but he had died in Leinster shortly after arriving upon his mission. 
 At the news of the landing of Patrick, the High King of all Ireland, 
 has summoned the kings or chiefs of the kingdoms of Ireland to 
 meet at the holy Hill of Tara in the Meath to consider the way in 
 which the Christian missionaries should be received. 
 
 The condition of Ireland in 432 was a condition of tribal warfare. 
 It was true that each of the provinces recognized a sort of supreme 
 chief or king, and that these kings generally elected at this time as 
 high king or ardrigh, the King of the Meath, the central province, 
 in which the sacred Hill of Taxa was situated. But the powers of 
 the high king were very limited,, and he presided, rather than ruled 
 over Ireland. Occasionally the kings all met at Tara to discuss 
 national questions, but the decisions taken by the Council were not 
 binding, and the high king or ardrigh had no power to enforce 
 them. Such a Council has been called to discuss the preaching of 
 St. Patrick, and this is the moment chosen for the action of the 
 Grove Play.* The Hill of Tara was surrounded by temporary booths 
 and each king of a province arrived, attended by a large body of 
 
 * "Now It was a custom of the High Kings to hold a great celebration, 
 called the Feast -of Tara, to which the under-kings were invited. It was 
 an opportunity for discussing the common affairs of the realm." Bury, 
 p. 112. 
 
 xiii 
 
retainers. The ardrigh. King of Meath, presided and prepared the 
 meeting place and the necessary banquets. The ruins of the old 
 banqueting hall, the only permanent building at Taxa, are still to 
 be seen. 
 
 The kings of the five provinces of Ireland exercised as little 
 power over the tribes within their limits, as the high king exercised 
 over them. Each tribe or sept was a political unit, and had its 
 own laws and customs, and the different tribes were always fighting 
 against each other and against the king of the province. The power 
 of each king and tribal chieftain depended on his personal qualities, 
 and the custom of "Tanistry," by which a successor to each king and 
 tribal chieftain was chosen at the same time as the actual ruler, 
 provided an endless opportunity for rebellion and civil war. While 
 the kings and chieftains were the rulers in peace and the leaders 
 in war, the most important persons next to them in the kingdoms 
 and tribes were the "brehons" or judges. These officials preserved 
 the laws of the tribes j — ^whence the old Irish laws are known as 
 the "Brehon Laws." The druids were rather soothsayers and 
 diviners than priests, and they expounded the official religion of the 
 Irish people. The old Irish literature frequently describes their 
 religious controversies with St. Patrick, and therefore much of the 
 dispute with Patrick in this Grove Play has been put into the mouths 
 of the brehons and druids, rather than into the mouths of the kings, 
 who were rather rulers and warriors. 
 
 Ireland had never been conquered by the Romans and had never 
 been part of the Roman Empire, and therefore had neither roads nor 
 cities nor commerce nor Christianity in the fifth century after Christ. 
 Its organization was purely tribal; its civilization was pujrely 
 pastoral; its religion was purely Nature-worship. It represented the 
 untouched development of Celtic life, Celtic literature and Celtic 
 religion. Elsewhere, in Spain, Gaul and Britain, Celtic life had been 
 destroyed or modified by the Roman conquest, and what was left of 
 Celtic ideals and Celtic customs in Cornwall, Wales, Galloway and 
 the Highlands of Scotland, was more or less affected by the neigh- 
 borhood of the Roman Empire. So from Irish literature alone can 
 
 xiv 
 
be obtained an idea of the unaffected Celtic life and religion. But 
 the remains of Irish literature that have come down to us, such as the 
 Book of Kells, the Book of Armagh, the Book of Lismore and the 
 Book of the Dun Cow, were all put together after the acceptance of 
 Christianity by the Irish people, and it is therefore difficult to pick 
 out the unadulterated truth about the life and religion of the Irish 
 people in pre-Christian days. Our best source for their religion 
 is in the legends of St. Patrick and of the way in which he converted 
 the Irish to Christianity. Of these legends free use has been made 
 in the Grove Play, especially in the story of the Paschal fire and 
 of the appearance of the ghost of Cuchulainn. Our best source for 
 a knowledge of the early Irish life is in the Brehon Laws, and these 
 have been drawn upon for the general setting. 
 
 The early Irish religion seems to have been pure Nature- worship. 
 Like other races in the pastoral stage of civilization, the Irish were 
 terrified by the forces of Nature, by the sun and the thunder, by the 
 succession of the seasons and of night to day, and they worshipped 
 the sun, the fruitful earth, which gave pasture to their cattle, their 
 sole source of wealth, and the trees and bushes and green grass. They 
 had hardly got to the stage of conceiving a god of nature behind the 
 powers of nature, nor had they gone far on the road to worshipping 
 moral and physical qualities. Though they did not actually worship 
 ancestors, they yet revered the memory of heroes, and gave them 
 superhuman powers, as in the stories of Fingal and Cuchulainn. 
 Of a different type was their reverence for the memory of historic 
 heroes, such as Cormac Mac Art, the mythical lawgiver of Munster, 
 round whose name had gathered tales of legislative wisdom, and 
 Niall of the Nine Hostages, the warrior leader who had harried 
 Roman Britain. 
 
 The treatment of the five kings, the five druids and the five 
 brehons is purely imaginative, but it is based upon certain historical 
 characteristics of the pre-Christian people of Ireland. The most 
 beautiful poetry of early Ireland is of Ulster origin. The stories 
 of the Red Branch, the songs of Nature poetry, the poetical tales 
 of warfare, the mysterious legends of tribal sleep, all bear witness 
 
to the effect of the wild scenery of northern Ireland upon a poor and 
 poetical race of mountaineers and sea-f arers. For this reason, the 
 Brehon and Druid from Oriel, one of the three kingdoms of Ulster, 
 are represented as enthusiasts with a poetical love of Nature, with a 
 fervid adoration of the old religion, the old gods and the old heroes, 
 and with a shuddering horror at the idea of worshipping "a dead 
 man." Both of them and the King of Oriel are represented as 
 belonging to the straight-haired, black haired type of Celtic Irish- 
 man, full of mysticism and poetry, and to one of them is assigned 
 a religious Irish song. Munster, the southern province of Ireland, 
 is contrasted with Ulster. Munster abounds in good pasturage and 
 is rich in fat cattle ; the price of butter is still fixed in Cork market ; 
 and the man from Munster with his rich Cork brogue is the typical 
 Irish humorist. Therefore the King and the Brehon and Druid of 
 Munster are represented as jolly, red-haired, corpulent Irish Celts; 
 the Brehon has a drinking song; the King tries good-naturedly to 
 stop all trouble ; they are good-natured, irresponsible and full of 
 fun. They are horrified at the ascetic side of Patrick's teaching — no 
 more fun, drink and jollity. While Ulster shivers at replacing the 
 worship of beautiful living things of Nature by the worship of a 
 dead man, Munster shrinks from giving up the joys of life for self- 
 denial and fasting and prayer. Leinster, the eastern province, 
 represents political, Celtic Ireland. Its closer touch with Wales and 
 Britain caused the Leinster king to fear in Christianity not the 
 religion nor the asceticism, but the overthrow of the old tribal life 
 and government. Christianity in continental Eiurope had associated 
 itself with the Roman government; the Pope at Rome supported 
 settled civilization; obedience and discipline were the key-notes of 
 > the Roman Church; Patrick brought his mission from Rome; and 
 Christianity would mean settled law instead of ancient custom, and 
 it would also mean a hierarchy of ecclesiastical and civil officials in 
 the place of the old individual freedom under patriarchal leadership. 
 This is made the basis of the opposition of the King of Leinster to 
 Patrick's preaching. 
 
But the Celtic civilization in Ireland overlaid a still older civiliza- 
 tion. The legends of the wars between the Milesians and the Tuatha 
 de Danaan bring this out clearly. In the wild and barren western 
 province of Ireland, Connaught, are still to be seen men of the pre- 
 Celtic race — especially in the Joyce country in Galway — short, stocky, 
 men with hard round skulls, covered with short, bristly, black hair. 
 The King of Connaught in the Grove Play represents this pre-Celtic 
 race — a bestial, ferocious creature, a slave to his passions, and ever 
 ready to fight. To him the loathsome part of Patrick's teaching is 
 the call for restraining his passions, and especially "the Gospel of 
 Peace." His brehon is of the same type, but with some finer instincts. 
 He is aifected by dwelling on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean; he 
 recalls the vague stories of sailors drifting away over the ocean to a 
 mythical western continent; he like his king shrinks from Patrick's 
 doctrine, but not so crudely. To him the ocean and the setting sun 
 are religion; and human passions are sacred. He is loyal to his 
 king with the loyalty of a dog, and he is ready with his own life to 
 defend the crimes and vices of his cljief. His druid knows that the 
 old religion must pass away and in The Song of Connaught states 
 the belief that a new religion would come from the West, from 
 across the Atlantic Ocean. 
 
 Meath, the middle kingdom, which touched all the others, always 
 stood in historic times for the unity of Ireland. It was the smallest 
 of the five kingdoms and had no sea coast; it contained the holy 
 Hill of Tara, where the Irish chieftains occasionally met; and its 
 king was during this period habitually chosen ardrigh or presiding 
 king of all Ireland, partly' because of the central position of his 
 kingdom. The King of Meath in the Grove Play represents the love 
 of Ireland, a nation; he appears as an old man with white hair and 
 beard; his druid chants the praises of Ireland in The Song of Erin, 
 and he himself shows a passionate love for her and her past and her 
 heroes of old time. His opposition to Patrick's preaching lies in 
 its rejection of her ancestral faith, in its renunciation of her ancestral 
 heroes and it is to convince him that Patrick raises the ghost of 
 Cuchulainn. The Historic Laogaire, son of Niall of the Nine 
 
 xvii 
 
Hostages, and contemporary of St. Patrick, was King of Meath and 
 "High King" or "Ardrigh" of all Ireland from 425 A. D. to 463 
 A. D. During his reign the "Senchus Mor" or code of Irish laws 
 was drawn up, and many councils are recorded to have taken place 
 at Tara. He showed himself tolerant to Christianity, which was 
 embraced by many of his relatives, but he himself refused to be 
 converted and remained faithful to his ancestral religion. Many 
 legends are told of his interviews with St. Patrick and of his obstinate 
 •paganism. He fought many wars with Leinster, not always with 
 success, and was killed during one of them in 463, just two years 
 after the death of St. Patrick. 
 
 St. Patrick, whose arrival at the Hill of Tara is the spring of 
 the action of the Grove Play, and the chief points of whose argu- 
 ments over the thirty years of his mission up and down Ireland, are 
 concentrated into a single day, was born in 389 A. D. and was 
 therefore a man of forty-three at the time of his coming to Ireland 
 in 432 A. D. He was born of a Romanized Celtic stock in South 
 Wales, — the old identification of Bannaventa with Dumbarton in 
 Scotland has been disproved by- Professor Bury — and in his "Con- 
 fession" he describes how he was stolen by Irish pirates in his boy- 
 hood and made to work as a slave herd-boy for many years. He 
 came of a family which had taken part in the government of his 
 native place, and was bred a Christian. During his slave days, he 
 fell in love with the beauty of the Irish scenery and the character 
 of the Irish people, their many virtues and general charm, and 
 legend says that he vowed that if ever he escaped from slavery, he 
 would seek the support of the Holy Father, the Pope, at Rome and 
 would return to convert the Irish people to Christianity. In bis 
 "Confession" he describes how he did escape and went to Gaul, and 
 his own account is closely followed in the first scene of the Grove 
 Play. He made his way to Lerins, a little island religious community 
 in the Mediterranean, off the southern coast of France, and there 
 received the rudiments of a religious education. But he never became 
 very well educated and he complains in his "Confession" of his lack 
 of literary facility and his rusHcitas. In 418 he visited his relatives 
 
 xviii 
 
in Britain, and it was there that in a dream he felt himself summoned 
 to the work of converting the Irish to Christianity. He went to 
 Auxerre in Gaul, where he was ordained deacon by Bishop Amator, 
 and he was on his way to Ireland thirteen years later, when he was 
 suddenly called back to Auxerre, consecrated a bishop by Saint 
 Germanus, and appointed to the Irish mission in the place of 
 Palladius in 431. The chief events of St. Patrick's later life, apart 
 from the incidents of his missionary journeys in Ireland, were his 
 visit to Rome during the papacy of Pope Leo the Great in 441, and 
 his selection and foundation of Armagh in Ulster as the primatial 
 or metropolitan church of Ireland in 444. It is quite certain that 
 Christianity was already established in the south of Ireland before 
 Patrick arrived, but it had no organization or regular standing as 
 part of the religious scheme of Christendom. Patrick is said to have 
 converted all Ireland by the time of his death in 461 A. D. The 
 legends of his teaching and preaching show him to have possessed 
 ready wit, much controversial power and a fund of human sympathy. 
 "The bitter hostility of the druids," writes Professor Bury, "and 
 the relations of Laogaire to Patrick were worked up by Irish imagina- 
 tion into a legend, which ushers in the saint upon the scene of his 
 work with great spectacular effect. The story represents him as 
 resolving to celebrate the first Easter after his landing in Ireland 
 on the Hill of Slaney, which rises high above the left bank of the 
 Boyne at about twelve miles from its mouth. On the night of Easter 
 eve he and his companions lit the Paschal fire, and on that self-same 
 night it so chanced that the King of Ireland held a high and solemn 
 festival in his palace at Tara, where the kings and nobles of the land 
 gathered together. It was the custom that "on that night of the year 
 no fire should be lit until a fire had been kindled with solemn ritual 
 in the royal house." (Bury, p. 104.) With this incident begins the 
 Grove Play. 
 
 XIX 
 
Plot of the Play 
 
 It is the morning of Easter Sunday, in the spring of 432 A. D. 
 The Steward of the ardrigh, or presiding king of all Ireland, at 
 that time the King of Meath, is directing the preparations of the 
 servants for the council of the kings of the provinces of Ireland, 
 who have been summoned to Tara to decide upon the policy to be 
 adopted towards St. Patrick, the news of whose arrival in Ireland, 
 and of whose mission, has stirred all Irish hearts. The hour is 
 just before sunrise, when suddenly there flares upon the horizon 
 the red light of a fire. The Steward and servants are horrified, 
 for it is the feast of Beltane, and an old law strictly forbade, under 
 pain, of death, the lighting of any fire, except by the druids upon 
 that day. It is the Paschal fire, lit by Patrick and his followers for 
 the celebration of the Easter sacrifice. 
 
 The sun rises and the music of an Irish march is heard. Then 
 five processions enter by different entrances; first, the King and 
 Breho'n of Leinster in their saffron colored robes, with a Druid in 
 white and their retainers in light blue; they take their seats to the 
 right of the stage; another blare of the march, and the King and 
 Brehon of Munster, with another Druid, enter with their retainers 
 in dark blue ; they take their place to the left pi the stage ; another 
 blare of the march and the Connaught procession enters, clad in 
 dark red, and they take their place to the right of the High King's 
 throne; another blare of the march and the Ulster procession enters, 
 clad in bright red, and they take their place to the left of the High 
 King's throne; the march rises in intensity and the old High King 
 enters with his Brehon and his Druid and his, retainers in green, and 
 takes his seat in the center of the stage. The music ceases, and the 
 High King signs to his Brehon to open the matter, which all have 
 
 xxi 
 
assembled to discuss, when the Steward rushes forward and inter- 
 rupts him with the news that the edict against fire has been infringed 
 and that a red blaze has been seen on the horizon. The Kings of 
 Oriel and Connaught demand the immediate punishment of the 
 oflEender, though from different standpoints; the Kings of Munster 
 and Leinster counsel mildness and delay, though from different 
 standpoints ; the High King accepts this counsel and sends his Steward 
 with twelve men, namely the four servants and two chosen from 
 the retainers of each of the other four kings to bring the offender 
 before the Council. They go up the hillside in the direction of the 
 fire, which flares up for a last moment as they climb upwards. 
 
 The Council opens with a speech from the Brehon of Meath, 
 describing the reason for the summons, and the treatment of Patrick 
 is being discussed, when there enters an Irish chieftain, a sad and 
 melancholy man, whose saffron robe is tattered and whose misery 
 is written on his face. He tells his tale. He bears the burden of 
 Care. He tells how his home has been burned, how his chaste wife 
 has been ravished and his children slain. Attempts are made to 
 comfort him, when suddenly the King of Leinster shows him the 
 grinning face of the King of Connaught. It flashes across th^ 
 Chieftain that it is the King of Connaught, his neighbor and lord, 
 who has done him this wrong. Hope of revenge flashes up and he 
 dashes at the King of Connaught with his dagger drawn. The 
 Brehon of Connaught leaps forward to meet the blow and save his 
 master, while the King continues to grin sardonically, but shows no 
 fear. The Chieftain is at last subdued, and removed to be brought 
 before the Council at a later session. At this moment the Pange 
 Lingua is heard from the hilltop, and at the top of the hillside is seen 
 a procession approaching. It is led by a crucifer bearing a cross; 
 he is followed by St. Patrick in his episcopal robes, and by eight 
 missionaries chanting the processional; and after them come the 
 Steward of the High King with the twelve men, who had been sent 
 to bring the offender who had lighted the forbidden fire. Meanwhile 
 the crowd on the stage watches the procession. 
 
 xxii 
 
When Patrick and his followers reach the stage, the Steward 
 declares that he has brought the offender who had lit the forbidden 
 fire. Patrick explams the circumstances, describes his early slave 
 life in Ireland, expounds his mission, and expresses his longing to 
 see Ireland Christian. He is interrupted on all sides, when the High 
 King rises, declares the Council adjourned, and announces that the 
 whole matter will be discussed after the usual feast and revels. The 
 Kings and their retainers retire to the music of the Irish March in 
 the reverse order from that in which they entered ; Patrick looks sadly 
 after them. The missionaries again chant the Pange Lingua, and 
 leave the stage, escorted by the Steward. The stage darkens. 
 
 INTERMEZZO. 
 
 Enter the retainers of the Kings, noisy, exhilarated and partially 
 intoxicated. The Brehon of Munster leads in a drinking song which 
 is followed by the dancing of an Irish jig. Enter the Kings them- 
 selves, from the banquet. The King of Connaught is quarrelsomely 
 drunk ; the King of Munster mellow with liquor ; the King of Lein- 
 ster has drunk enough to loosen his tongue; the King of Ulster is 
 sober and looks cynically on the noisy scene, while his Druid is sober 
 and indignant; the old High King takes his seat, looking sadly at 
 the spectacle of such riotous behavior, but yet sympathetically at the 
 joyous nature of the scene. The tumult is hushed; the drunken 
 King of Munster falls into a drunken sleep ; and, by the High King's 
 orders, Patrick and his missionaries are introduced by one entrance, 
 under escort of the Steward of Meath, and the Chieftain, the Victim 
 of Care, imder the escort of the Brehon of Leinster, by another. 
 
 Patrick looks sternly round, perceives the continued excitement 
 in the air and sees that his opportunity has come. The Victim of 
 Care has resumed the sadness of his original entrance, but 
 glances from time to time in fierce anger at his enemy, the King 
 of Connaught, who grins back at him in drunken malevolence. The 
 Brehon of Connaught watches the Chieftain heedfuUy, ready at any 
 moment to protect his King. The King and Brehon of Leinster 
 show by their actions their sympathy with the Chieftain. On the 
 
other side of the stage, the King and the Brehon of Ulster watch 
 every movement and listen to every word of Patrick, while the King 
 of Munster is in a drunken sleep and the Brehon of Munster fud- 
 dled, but awake. The High King presides with dignity. The Vic- 
 tim of Care is at his entrance utterly indifferent to Patrick, but he 
 gradually becomes absorbed in his words and approaches closer and 
 closer to him. 
 
 The High King calls on Patrick to speak. Patrick speaks. 
 As he speaks of the universal, character of Christendom and 
 the greatness of Rome, the King of Leinster interrupts and praises 
 the individualism and the political and social freedom of the Irish 
 Celts. Then as Patrick speaks of the sobriety of Christianity, the 
 Brehon of Munster interrupts with the praise of liquor, as "gods' 
 good creature"; Patrick catches his tone and playfully promises to 
 drive all the snakes out of Ireland, since these snakes are largely the 
 result of the drunkard's fuddled brain. Then Patrick speaks of the 
 virtues of Christianity and of his God as the God of Peace. The 
 King of Connaught brutally interrupts and shouts his praise of 
 fighting and vice. Then Patrick attacks Druidism and the Druid 
 of Oriel opposes Patrick's teaching as unpatriotic and sacrilegious. 
 The Chieftain, Victim of Care, is attracted by an allusion to im- 
 mortality and comes up close to Patrick. Then the High King, in 
 solenm words, speaks of the ancestral heroes of Ireland, and asks 
 if they, even the great Cuchulainn, are damned because they were not 
 Christians. To this argument Patrick replies with dignity; he calls 
 on God to aid him ; his missionaries chant ; Patrick prays aloud ; he 
 waves his arm; and the Spirit of Cuchulainn appears. A brief 
 dialogue ensues, taken as nearly as possible in the very words of the 
 old Irish legend; and the spirit or ghost of Cuchulainn disappears, 
 leaving the whole Council profoundly unpressed. By this time the 
 effect of the riotous drinking is passing away. But Patrick has not 
 yet convinced them. Surely the old beautiful Nature gods, their old 
 tribal freedom, their old jolly pleasures, their old indulgence in war 
 and vice, are preferable to this cold new faith in a "gibbeted man." 
 The human touch is lacking. It comes. The Chieftain, Victim of 
 
 xxiv 
 
care and sorrow, tells his tale briefly to Patrick; and Patrick sympa- 
 thetically hears him, tells him of an after life, of a heaven, where all 
 care and sorrow are forgotten, of a place where he may meet his 
 loved ones again. The crowd is touched ; the Victim of Care declares 
 his belief in the new religion, and kneels before Patrick begging to 
 be received into the church that promises such solace for care and 
 sorrow. Suddenly, angered at the attitude of the Council and its 
 rallying to Patrick's side, the Druid of Oriel dashes at Patrick with 
 his dagger drawn and strikes at him; but the Chieftain, Victim of 
 Care, s^prings to save Patrick and receives the blow. As he sinks to the 
 ground, he asks for a further proof of the truth of the religion he 
 has just embraced; the Kings of Leinster and Oriel hold him up, 
 and Patrick waves his arm thrice toward the hillside, where a great 
 white Cross appears. The missionaries chant the Veni Creator ; the 
 crowd all fall upon their knees, except the High King and the 
 Druids; even the King of Munster is awakened and flops on his 
 knees; even the King of Connaught is awed; the forest is illuminated 
 behind the Cross; the music indicates the victory of the Christian 
 chant over the music of the opening Irish march; St. Patrick raises 
 his hand in blessing over the dying Victim of Care, who slowly sinks 
 back dead. 
 
 XXV 
 
ST. PATRICK AT TARA 
 
Dramatis Personae 
 
 King of Meath^ the High King F. P. Deering 
 
 Brehon of Meath E. D. Peixotto 
 
 A Druid of Meath ' T. V. Bakewell 
 
 King of Oriel in Ulster C. K. Field 
 
 Brehon of Oriel Oscar Frank 
 
 A Druid from Oriel W. H. Smith, Jr. 
 
 King of Leinster Allan Dunn 
 
 Brehon of Leinster I. O. Upham 
 
 A Druid from Leinster. . ., Wyatt H. Allen 
 
 King of Munster Waldemar Young 
 
 Brehon of Munster W. B. Hopkins 
 
 A Druid from Munster R. M. Steele 
 
 King of Connaught R. C. Newell 
 
 Brehon of Connaught Frank Corbusier 
 
 A Druid from Connaught Lowell Redfield 
 
 Steward of the High King W. H. Robinson 
 
 Apparition of Cuchulainn H. McD. Spencer 
 
 A Chieftain J. Wilson Shiels 
 
 St. Patrick. R. M. Hotaling 
 
 A Crucifer , J- D. Fletcher 
 
 First Servant J- C. Dornin 
 
 Second Servant W. J. Wayte 
 
 Third Servant G. W. Turner 
 
 Fourth Servant R. P. Merritt 
 
 Retainers of the five kings, Missionaries. 
 
 Place : The Hill of Tara, in the Meath, Ireland. 
 
 Time : Easter Sunday, A. D. 432. 
 
 Scene I. Dawn. 
 
 Scene II. Evening of the same day. 
 
The Chorus 
 
 E. D. Crandall^ Chorus Master. 
 
 Retainers of the King of Meath — C. E. Bundschu, R. L. Coun- 
 tryman, C. E. Engvick, E. E. Jones, E. C. Little, F. Z. Button, 
 E. D. Crandall, W. H. Hamm, A. F. Lawton, E. M. Moore. 
 
 Retainers of the King of Oriel — H. C. Allen, J. R. Harry, Geo. 
 S. Johnson, W. F. Keene, W. A. Mitchell, Paul Otey, J. D. 
 Ruggles, E. Z. Taylor, F. E. Wilkins, M. L. R. Oksen. 
 
 Retainers of the King of Leinster — Harold Baxter, T. G. 
 Elliott, R. E. Fisher, P. D. Gaskill, Walter Kneiss, E. W. 
 Roland, Benj. Romaine, Benj. Stich, A. W. Sperry, M. White, 
 R. L. Phelps, W. F. Davis. 
 
 Retainers of the King of Munster — A. A. Abrogast, R. M. 
 Dodsworth, Chris. Heinz, John McEwing, H. C. McCurrie, 
 Matthew McCurrie, C. D. Pinkham, G. D. Reynolds, J. R. 
 Weeks, C. A. Smith. 
 
 Retainers of the King of Connaught — P. S. Carlton, F. S. 
 
 Chase, C. J. Evans, R. B. Heath, R. I. Lynas, F. S. Mitchell, 
 
 W. P. Nielsen, P. J. Oksen, C. D. Purlenky. 
 Missionaries — C. E. Anderson, W. G. Glenn, P. J. Mohr, Harald 
 
 Pracht, E. H. McCandlish, H. L. Perry, J. de P. Teller, G. C. 
 
 Farley. 
 
 Stage Director: Frank L. Mathieu. 
 Illumination by Edward J. Duffey. Effects by George E. Lyon. 
 
 Costumes and Properties designed by Porter Garnett and executed 
 by Goldstein & Co. under the direction of Mme. Jahn and John 
 C. Merritt. 
 
 Calcium Lights by F. W. French. 
 
 Stereopticon by B. F. White. 
 
Plan of the Music 
 
 1 Prelude 
 
 2 March of the Irish Kings (with Chorus) 
 
 3 Song of Connaught 
 
 4 Song of Ulster 
 
 5 Processional ("Pange Lingua'') 
 
 6 Chorus of Retreat 
 
 7 Intermezzo 
 
 8 Entrance of Revellers 
 
 9 Drinking Song (with Chorus) 
 
 10 Irish Dance (Jig) 
 
 11 Song of Erin 
 
 12 "Veni Creator'' 
 
 13 Apparition Music 
 
 14 Finale 
 
Thou hast conquered, pale Galilean; 
 The world has grown grey from thy breath. 
 
 Swinburne. 
 
 When the half-gods go. 
 The gods arrive. 
 
 Emerson. 
 
St. Patrick at Tara 
 
 Scene I. 
 
 The stage is set for the Council of the Kings of Ireland, which 
 has been called upon the news of the landing of Bishop Patrick 
 in Ireland. There are five chairs or thrones for the Kings or Oriel 
 in Ulster, Munster^ Leinster, Connaught and Meath. The 
 throne of the King of Meath^ who is Ardrigh or High King of 
 all Ireland, is in the center; to the right, the thrones of the Kings 
 OF Oriel and Munster; to the left, the thrones of the Kings of 
 Connaught and Leinster. The gray of dawn. Enter the Steward 
 OF the High King and with him four Servants of the High 
 KiNGj carrying fresh brush. 
 
 Steward : 
 
 First Servant: 
 Steward : 
 
 This is the place, 
 Where meet the chiefs of Ireland to discuss 
 Affairs of import to the island realm, 
 The holy Hill of Tara; from time to time 
 Forgetting ancient strife and bitter war. 
 They here assemble to decide the fate 
 Of Ireland's future and the Irish state. 
 Why meets the Council at this present time? 
 The news arrived not many months ago 
 Of foreign wizards landing on this shore, 
 Attacking the beliefs of former days, 
 Disturbing with strange words the minds of men 
 Who worship as their fathers did of old, 
 And working wonders, which surpass in skill. 
 In miracle and in prophetic truth, 
 All that our druids do. This the High King, 
 Learning from many sources, felt to be 
 1 
 
So great a menace to our Irish faith, 
 
 That he sent forth his summons through the land 
 
 To all the kings of Ireland to come here, 
 
 During the sacred season of Beltane, 
 
 To the old accustomed council place of kings. 
 
 The holy Hill of Tara, to decide, 
 
 What steps to take against the wizards, who 
 
 Have dared deny old Ireland's cherished gods. 
 
 Second Servant : By what name, sir, are these foul wizards called? 
 
 Steward: I know not; but the. leader of the band, 
 
 A British slave, who broke his bonds and fled, 
 Once kept the flocks of sheep of old Miliucc. 
 He on returning caused the flames to fall 
 From Heaven by magic to consume the hall 
 Of his old master and destroy it all. {Pause.) 
 But cease this idle talking ; get to work — 
 Give the last touches to the Council place — 
 Remove the branches and the leaves that fell 
 During the night; make fair the thrones of kings. 
 For days I've labored with unceasing toil 
 That all things shall be fit and proper for 
 This morning's council. The first streaks of dawn 
 Show in the east. As I came through the camps, 
 I heard the din among the followers 
 Of Ireland's kings, for each is trying hard 
 To outshine the others, and I deem it wise 
 In the High King to limit close the force 
 That each might bring to Council; else, no doubt. 
 Unequal strength might tempt from words to 
 
 blows. 
 All night I watched in darkness, for the law 
 Of Beltane's feast is strict, that none shall light 
 On pain of death a fire upon this night. {Pause.) 
 (During this speech, the servants are busied in removing the 
 
 branches and the leaves.) 
 
 2 
 
Third Servant: How sit the kings in council? Why five thrones? 
 
 Steward (pointing) : Here to the right sits Munster — a stout king, 
 Fond of strong drink and hearty jollity; 
 O'er Ireland's richest kingdom holds he rule, 
 Lord of fat cattle and of pastures green; 
 With him his brehon and chief druid come. 
 Both lusty men and worthy such a king. 
 With ten men more in dark blue garments clad. 
 And next (pointing) from Ulster's northern land 
 
 there comes 
 The King of Oriel, a black-haired chief, , 
 Full of strange fancies and fantastic thoughts. 
 Adoring ancient gods and ancient rites. 
 By him his sweet-voiced brehon always sits, 
 Charming his gloom with Red Branch legends old 
 And tales of Nature's beauty, till the fame 
 Of that sweet music spreads throughout the land 
 With him there comes a druid from the North, 
 A ruthless worshipper of altars old 
 And fierce adorer of the ancient gods. 
 
 Fourth Servant : And who sit, master, on the other thrones ? 
 
 Steward {pointing) : Over there, the savage King of Connaught — 
 Black-browed and bullet-headed, fierce in fight — 
 Belonging to an older race than the 
 Milesians of Erin, and he dwells 
 Close to the ocean with a savage horde 
 Of noisy ruffians, faithful to the death. 
 
 Fourth Servant : My mother told me tales of these wild men. 
 Their love of vengeance and their cruel deeds, 
 Which frighted from me many an hour of sleep. 
 
 Steward : Last of our visitors there (pointing) has his seat 
 
 The King of Leinster, our defeated foe, 
 Who has forgot his quarrel with our king, 
 To sit in council at this present time, 
 3 
 
And give advice upon the issue raised. 
 A politic king is he, and well endowed 
 With Irish wit and Irish shrewdness, too, 
 Knowing the world well, and not terrified 
 By old-time gods and new-time prophecies. 
 He brings his brehon and a druid, too ; 
 But asks not counsel of them like the rest, 
 Being his own best counsellor, he thinks. 
 His band is with him clad in brilliant blue. 
 
 First Servant (climbing to the High King's seat, and clearing it 
 of leaves) : This, then, must be the seat of Laogaire, 
 
 High King of Ireland, our most gracious lord, 
 Since it o'erlooks the rest, and he presides 
 In Ireland's councils. 
 
 Second Servant {aiding him) : But he is also 
 
 King of the Meath, our middle kingdom famed. 
 Which touches all the others, and itself 
 Is heart of Ireland, for its bounds include 
 This holy Hill of Tara where we pray. 
 
 Steward: Yes, make all fit for good King Laogaire, 
 
 High King of Ireland, valiant, wise and just, 
 Who ne'er forgives an injury, yet holds 
 Rein on his passions; whose reverend age 
 Makes the more youthful listen, and whose fame 
 Makes them obey; who, loving well the old, 
 Yet lends his ear when novel tales are told. 
 
 {Red flame flashes up on the hillside.) 
 
 Third Servant: Master! the flame! 
 
 Fourth Servant : Look how it flashes bright ! 
 
 First Servant : The Heaven 's afire ! 
 
 Second Servant : It reddens all in sight ! 
 
 Steward: What means this fire on Beltane's sacred night? 
 
 The law is known. The punishmeijt is death. 
 4 
 
All night I watched in darkness for the dawn, 
 Despite official duties pressing me. 
 
 (The flame flares up again.) 
 
 It seems to come from Slaney, just across 
 The valley,* and some stranger must have lit 
 A blazing bonfire, for no son of Meath 
 Could have ignored the law. 
 
 {The flame dies down.) 
 
 Now it dies down — 
 I must at once to the High King repair 
 And tell him of this sacrilegious fire. 
 ^For from the other scarpment of the hill 
 The light could not be seen. 
 
 (He moves to leave the stage.) 
 
 But 'tis too late; 
 I hear the tramp of footsteps coming near. 
 
 (He comes back to the center of the stage.) 
 
 So I must wait until the chiefs are set 
 And in full council tell this fearful crime 
 And breach of Beltane's laws. 
 
 {Giving orders to the Servants.) 
 
 Stand ye right here. 
 While I prepare to marshal forth the kings.- 
 
 MARCH OF THE IRISH KINGS. 
 
 (Enter the Leinster procession. It marches across stage, led 
 by the King walking ahead of-his Brehon and Druid, and followed 
 by ten men in light blue.) 
 
 Leinster Men (Hnging) : 
 
 We are sons of glorious Leinster^ 
 From the east we come; 
 
 * "The distance of Tara from Slaney is about ten miles." (Bury, p. 104, 
 note.) 
 
We are sons of glorious Leinster, 
 
 Fair is our eastern home. 
 Our land is rich in harbors fair, 
 
 We sail the Irish Sea, 
 Others with us cannot compare, 
 
 Strong and brave and free. 
 
 (Enter the Munster procession. It marches across stage, led 
 by the King^ singing merrily, with one arm around his Brehon^ who 
 carries a jar of liquor and two cups, and with his Druid by his Hde, 
 followed by ten men in dark blue.) 
 
 Munster Men (singing): 
 
 Munster men are we, lusty fellows we. 
 
 From the south we come; 
 We, the sons of happy Munster, 
 
 Love our southern home. 
 Where the land is rich with verdure 
 
 Hearts from care are free; 
 Where the sky is bright, and the work is light. 
 
 Men of the south are we. 
 
 (Enter the Connaught procession. It marches across and up 
 stage, led by the King^ stalking ahead and scowling, followed at 
 some distance by his Brehon and Druid and by ten men in dark red.) 
 
 Connaught Men (singing): 
 
 We, the men of rock-bound Connaught, 
 
 From the west have come; 
 We, the war-like sons of Connaught, 
 
 Sing of our western home. 
 Where the ocean breeze is surging 
 
 Through the fog and mist. 
 To the fight we need no urging. 
 
 Hard of heart and fist. 
 
(Enter the Ulster procession. It marches across and up stage, 
 led by the King of Oriel in friendly guise with his Brehon and 
 Druid followed by ten men in bright red.) 
 
 Ulster MEn (singing): 
 
 We, the valiant sons of Ulster, 
 
 From our hills have come; 
 From the cold, bleak winds of Ulster, 
 
 From our northern home. 
 Where the ancient gods are loved now, 
 
 As they were of old, ' 
 
 And the Red Branch legends tell how 
 
 Men were brave and bold. 
 
 (Enter the High King's procession. It marches round and up 
 stage; twelve men in green march first in the same quick step as the 
 others, iinging, and are followed by the High King, walking very 
 slowly and bowing to the other Kings, closely supported by his 
 Brehon and Druid.^ 
 
 High King's Men (singing): 
 
 We are men of central Ireland, 
 
 Middle Meath our home; 
 Dwelling in the heart of Ireland 
 
 All the land's our home. 
 Here old Ireland's life we cherish 
 
 'Neath our holy hill ; 
 Here all wrath and discords perisih; 
 
 Ireland a nation still ! 
 
 Full choruS of all processions : 
 
 Ireland a nation still ! 
 
 (All take their seats, grouped round the five thrones.) 
 
 High King: Welcome to Tara! Now the hour has come 
 When we in solemn council must resolve 
 
 7 
 
What steps to take to save old Ireland's faith. 
 Welcome, ye chiefs of Ireland — welcome all; 
 Welcome, ye brehons, who expound the law; 
 Welcome, ye druids, who preserve the faith! 
 
 {To his Druid) Open the meeting in accustomed form. 
 Druid of Meath : Arise, ye druids, from north, east, west, south. 
 
 {The Druids rise from their seats, and, led by the Druid of 
 Meath, turn to the north, east, west and south, raising their hands 
 and looking at the sky.) 
 
 The Druids (together) : The day is propitious, the auguries are fair. 
 Brehon of Meath : The Council is opened — 
 
 (The Steward comes down stage, raises his hand, checks the 
 Brehon in the very act of speaking, attracts all eyes, creates silence 
 by his gestures, and addresses the High King.) 
 
 Steward : Hear me, my lords, 
 
 Ye chiefs and priests of Ireland. As the dawn 
 Showed in the east this day, and as we set 
 The place for this great meeting, forth there flashed 
 Bright flames from Slaney right across the sky. 
 Reddening the heavens and startling all who saw. 
 Whether by mortal or immortal hands 
 The fire was lit, I know not, but the law 
 Of Beltane's sacred feast by act of man 
 Or act of god was broken, and I deemed 
 It was my duty to acquaint ye all 
 With this strange portent, 'ere the Council met. 
 
 Druid of Oriel: What says the prophecy? — ^that from of old 
 Forbids the lighting of the wonted fires 
 On Beltane's feast, until the sacred flame 
 Is started with due rites by holy priest. 
 "Whenever starts a fire on Spring's first morn,'' 
 "Not lit by druid's hand, 
 8 
 
,"Not fed by druid's breath, 
 "Not blessed by druid's prayer," 
 "The ancient faith of Ireland will give way, 
 "The druid faith, before the doctrines new 
 "Of the new god, who lit the fated flame." 
 Therefore, the druids made the sacred law 
 To save their faith from peril, that the man 
 Who lights such fire shall surely die the death. 
 My mind misgives me that the fatal day 
 For Ireland's druid faith has dawned at last, 
 And that the British preacher, whose onset 
 Upon our faith has caused this Council here, 
 Makes thus his challenge to our trembling fear. 
 But we invoke the law. 
 
 (Turning to the King of Oriel and then to the High King.) 
 
 My chief and I, 
 Druid and King of Oriel, demand 
 The instant punishment of death upon 
 The sacrilegious lighter of the fire 
 Of which the Steward tells us. 
 
 Brehon of Connaught {catching the idea from his King^ who 
 
 smiles grimly) My chief, too. 
 
 Demands the punishment of death, for he 
 
 Holds that no council rightly is begun 
 
 Without the human victim, whom our sires 
 
 Slew to win favor from the gods above 
 
 In the brave days of Ireland's ancient faith. 
 < 
 King of Leinster (interrupting): Peace to such cruel counsel. I 
 
 demand 
 
 That due inquiry shall be made, and that 
 
 No man, however guilty, be condemned. 
 
 Without a hearing ; for too long have we 
 
 Been swayed by druid priests, and bowed too long 
 
 To barbarous customs of the savage west. 
 
 9 
 
King of Munster: For my part, this long council makes me dry. 
 Give me to drink — 
 
 (Turns to his Brehon, who gives him a cup, which he drains.) 
 
 And let us not discuss 
 Shedding men's blood and such like horrid deeds. 
 
 High King : I grant the justice of the druids' pla;int ; 
 
 The law has been infringed ; I, like Connaught, 
 
 Hold close by ancient usage; but I yield 
 
 To Leinster's plea for judgment, slow and sure. 
 
 Give order, Brehon, for the bringing here 
 
 At once, without delay, of all who shared 
 
 In breaking Beltane's law on thi§ spring morn. 
 
 Brehon of Meath {to the Steward) : Go towards Slaney, 
 where the fire was seen. 
 Taking twelve men, of whom four of thine own, 
 And two selected from each chieftain's train. 
 Find and bring straight before the Council here, 
 Without permitting e'en the least delay. 
 All who have broken the most sacred law 
 By lighting iires upon the Beltane feast. 
 
 {The Steward selects his men, four of his own, the four Serv- 
 ants who were with him in the opening scene, takes two from the 
 retainers of each of the four kings, and, marshalling them, bows to 
 the High King and goes up the hillside; the rest watch them; the 
 light flares up for the last time. While the Steward is selecting 
 the retainers and marching up the hillside with them, the Brehon 
 OF Connaught is still showing his indignation at the slurs cast upon 
 the "savage west."" He rises from his seat to protest.) 
 
 Brehon of Connaught: 
 
 We are no savages. We know full well 
 That some day from the West new gods shall come. 
 The oldest folk in Ireland, we recall 
 10 
 
Old legends echoed back by sailors bold 
 Whose ships have drifted to the setting sun. 
 These echoes carried by the winds and waves 
 Have told us that some day new gods will rise, 
 That in the furthest West the Future lies. 
 
 THE SONG OF CONNAUGHT. 
 
 Druid of CoNNAUGHT_(««^f) : 
 
 Western the winds are, 
 And western the waters, 
 
 Where Connaught lies: 
 There keen are the winds, 
 And storm-tossed the waters, 
 
 Darkling the skies. 
 
 A voice on the winds, 
 A voice by the waters, 
 
 A new spirit cries: 
 "Oh! who rules these winds? 
 "And who stirs these waters? 
 
 "The old gods denies?" 
 
 Across the wild waves. 
 Across western waters. 
 
 The answer flies: 
 "Beyond these fierce winds, 
 "Beyond these rough waters, 
 
 "The Future lies." 
 
 Yes: down the loud winds, 
 And o'er the blue waters, 
 
 Old Ocean replies : 
 Above the high winds, 
 Above the cold waters, 
 Though wild be the winds. 
 And rough be the waters. 
 
 The new gods arise. 
 11 
 
High King: Brehon, the time has come now to discuss 
 The matter which has led me here to call 
 The chiefs of Ireland. Open thou the cause. 
 
 Brehon of Meath : Kings, brehons, druids, all, give ear. 
 
 And hearken to the words that I shall say: 
 Upon the coast of Ireland' late there came 
 A former slave of British birth, who fled 
 From bondage more than twenty years ago. 
 He now returns, and, working magic spells 
 And showing wonders, has bewitched men's minds 
 So that they doubt the gods of olden time. 
 Hearing these tidings, wise King Laogaire, 
 Remembering prophecies of ancient days, 
 And fearing for the life of druid faith, 
 Resolved to summon here a council great. 
 Such as is wont to meet at solemn feasts 
 To settle matters of the common weal. 
 The High King deems it well all should agree 
 To face this peril with united strength. 
 Full well he knows that Irishman hold fast 
 Their fathers' faith, but also well he knows 
 Concerted action only can be had 
 After due consultation and debate. 
 So now he asks your counsel, one and all. 
 To lure this British wizard to his fall. 
 
 King of Leinster : The High King knows that Irish chiefs are free, 
 And able to take care of their own lands; 
 His petty realm of Meath, as all men know. 
 Exists by my forbearance, and my septs, 
 The valiant men of Leinster, oft have shown* 
 That Laogaire is King in name alone 
 Over all Ireland — 
 
 •On the wars between. Laogaire and Leinster; see Bury, p. 353. 
 
 12 
 
( The men of Meath spring from their seats with indignation, but 
 
 are quieted by the High King.) 
 
 And my counsel is 
 That wizard against wizard should be set. 
 This Briton brings his spells from far away ; 
 The druids fear him; therefore, let them show 
 That they are stronger ; let the contest be 
 Free, without favor. When this stranger came, 
 And one before him, singing the same song, 
 I let them stay in Leinster, for I know 
 That many men have many faiths abroad, 
 And that the world is not by druids ruled. 
 My people know of Britain and of Gaul ; 
 They know of Rome; they are not savage folk 
 Of inner Ireland, who all new thoughts shun 
 Because they're new; and I a kingdom rule. 
 Fairest and best in Ireland, where no priest 
 Opens his mouth without my leave, and where 
 Druids and bards are silent and obey. 
 
 King of Munster: "Fairest and best in Ireland!"; but I say 
 
 That Munster fields are richer; Munster men 
 Braver and happier; a land of peace, 
 Where druids share their lord's repast 
 And make no trouble; where the Christians, 
 For so these Britisih slaves do call themselves, 
 Have long been with us, and have caused no strife. 
 If this new wizard comes to spread the faith 
 Of Christians, have no fear, for he will do 
 No harm to Ireland's ancient joy and peace. 
 If this be all the question, let us now 
 Adjourn to revel, for the feast is all 
 That draws us here from Munster, and, mean- 
 while, 
 Give me to drink, for talking fosters thirst. 
 
 (Turns to his Brehon^ who gives him the cup; he drinks, then 
 passes it back to the BrehoNj who drains it.) 
 
 13 
 
KiNG^ Brehon and Druid of Connaught (together): 
 
 "Savage folk of inner Ireland !" ; down, we say, 
 With eastern manners and with eastern scorn. 
 
 King of Oriel (slowly and with emphasis): 
 
 It seems, High King, we have forgot the cause 
 
 That brought us all to Tara. And, alas ! 
 
 The usual brawling threatens Ireland's peace, 
 
 And Ireland's factions ruin Ireland's hopes. 
 
 We never work together, yet the times 
 
 Are evil, and the danger now is great 
 
 That the one thing that knits all Irish hearts, 
 
 Our fathers' faith, may now be torn and lost. 
 
 I reverence the gods, and I believe 
 
 The druids are the mouthpieces of Heaven, 
 
 Who know the past and future, and whose prayers 
 
 Turn the wrath from us, that would surely fall 
 
 But for the old accustomed sacriiice. 
 
 So I would bid you hear the sacred words 
 
 Of the most learned druid of them all. 
 
 Whose pious life and reverend countenance 
 
 Have won the allegiance of all Ulster men. 
 
 Druid of Oriel: Friends; — chiefs, priests, bards, our Ireland's 
 noblest sons, 
 'Tis no slight danger that confronts us now. 
 I fear no preaching of the British slave; 
 Our faith is firmly fixed in Heaven above. 
 We druids know the truth, and I demand 
 A meeting with this wizard face to face. 
 But most grieves me the readiness to hear 
 Strange doctrines, and the license to protect 
 Strange wizards, in the east and in the south. 
 Oh ! let us keep our Irish faith intact. 
 What matter if we fight and burn and slay 
 In civil conflict — ^if we keep alive 
 Our tribal feuds that nourish Irish wit 
 14 
 
And Irish courage — just so long as we 
 Worship the same gods, utter the same prayers, 
 And cling together to our fathers' faith! 
 So keep our Ireland without stain or taint — 
 The land of druid faith and druid saint. 
 
 THE SONG OF ULSTER. 
 
 Brehon of Oriel (sings) : 
 
 What is my faith? 'Tis the faith of my fathers. 
 
 Who are my gods then? The gods ever true. 
 What do I worship ? The sweet face of Nature, 
 
 Changing each day, ever old, ever new. 
 
 Who are my priests? The most holy of Druids. 
 
 What do they ask for? Obedience and prayer. 
 What do they give me? Pure rest and contentment, 
 
 Comfort in trouble and solace from care. 
 
 Where do I dwell? In the bleak land of Ulster. 
 
 Why do I love her? She's barren and cold. 
 What is her charm? She inspires my devotion. 
 
 Home of religion, that's richer than gold. 
 
 (While the song is being sung, enter the Chieftain^ and, look- 
 ing around him, while the others ar'e intent upon listening, he wanders 
 to the center of the stage. Attention is drawn to him; the King of 
 LeinsteRj who does not take much interest in the song, is the first 
 to notice him.) 
 
 The Chieftain (looking round, dazed at the crowd): 
 
 Whence comes this multitude of ghosts of men? 
 Why sings one man? Why listen all the rest? 
 {Confidentially to himself) Do they not know that all things are 
 a dream? 
 That gladness vanishes and that dire fate 
 May in a moment drown their joy in death? 
 15 
 
King of Leinster: Who's this intruder? By his garb a chief, 
 With mind distraught, a victim of great grief. 
 
 Brehon of Meath . (after whispering to the High King) : 
 
 Who art thou, man of sorrow? Who art thou, 
 Victim of Care? The High King fain would know 
 Thy purpose and thy aim in coming here, 
 Where Ireland's chiefs are met on Tara's Hill? 
 
 The Chieftain (rousing himself and looking round): 
 
 The High King ! Ireland's chiefs ! and Tara's Hill ! 
 What ! These are men with eyes to see and hearts 
 To suffer! They shall hear my winged words. 
 And, while I rend their breasts with my sad tale, 
 Perchance I shall find solace in my own. 
 
 Brehon of Connaught {at a glance from his King) : 
 
 What have these ravings got to do with us? 
 Why stops the Council from the stated work? 
 My lord demands that business be resumed. 
 
 The Chieftain (pulling himself together): 
 
 Ravings, indeed, and business forsooth! 
 
 What stated work should Ireland's chiefs engage 
 
 More than consideration of foul crime 
 
 And horrid murder of defenseless babes? 
 
 (Sensation. The Brehon of Connaught tries to cover his 
 King; the Ulster King, Brehon and Druid look fixedly at the 
 Chieftain; Munster shakes his head and takes a drink; the King 
 OF Lf.inster parts his men and prepares to step down.) 
 
 High King: Speak, chieftain; Ireland's Council is prepared 
 To listen to the tale thou hast to tell. 
 
 King of Leinster (coming down and placing his hand on the 
 Chieftain's shoulder): High King, I recognize this man at last, 
 A happier, braver chief there never lived 
 Till care and sorrow came across his path. 
 
 The Chieftain : Sorrow and care, aye, care and sorrow deep 
 
 16 
 
Change all the ^ aspect of the outer man, 
 And blight his face without, his heart within. 
 
 {Stepping forward, throwing off Leinster's arm.) 
 
 Listen, ye men of Ireland! I was once 
 The happiest of men: I had a home 
 Where sorrow never entered; and a wife, • 
 Fairest and sweetest of our western maids. 
 Cattle I had; enough of simple wealth; 
 Followers who loved me and who loved my jests ; 
 And, best of all, two lovely, smiling babes — 
 A boy, who had his mother's eyes and hair. 
 And just began to prattle sweet, fond words; 
 A girl, a little blossom, six months old, 
 Who still was wondering at the strange new world. 
 My days were spent in hunting and in war; 
 My lord, the King of Connaught, loved me well ; 
 
 (Movement among the Connaught men.) 
 I'd played with him in childhood, and he knew 
 My loyalty and courage, and full oft — 
 Too oft, so well I loved my own dear home — 
 He bade me to his palace, where my wife 
 And I were honored over other guests. 
 
 {Looks around to see the impression he has made.) 
 
 King of Oriel : On with your tale. 
 
 King of Munster : It makes me very dry 
 
 To hear so long a story (drinks). 
 King of Leinster: But how ends 
 
 This life of bliss and happiness below? 
 
 The Chieftain (striking an attitude): 
 
 One morn I started on a hunting trip 
 With all my men, and as we ran along 
 We sang and shouted loud for very joy. 
 17 
 
When we returned at eve (impressively), we found 
 
 my home 
 Burned, and my cattle gone; and my two babes 
 Lying amidst the women's corpses, where 
 The signs of strife were thickest, and their blood 
 Sprinkled the ruins; and my baby girl 
 Lay with her brains dashed out against the 
 
 wall. (Sobbing.) 
 Hearing his moans, we traced my baby boy, 
 Wounded but breathing, and he from my arms 
 Looked up for aid I could not give to him, 
 Until he died. 
 
 My wife, I knew, would not have left her babes 
 Had life been in her, so we searched and searched 
 Among the corpses, but 'twas all in vain. 
 For horror worse than death was kept for her. 
 
 {Pause:) 
 Next rtiorn there struggled to my ruined home. 
 Sore wounded by the effort she had made, 
 A little slave girl, who the dread tale told 
 Of how strange men had dragged my wife away; 
 Of how their leader — but I cannot tell 
 The shameful story — her strength failed at last — 
 Maddened at the resistance she had made, 
 He slew her, after he had had his will. 
 And threw her body in a mountain lake, 
 That I might never see her face again. {Pause.) 
 Since then I have wandered ever far and near 
 Imagining the horror of that scene. 
 And conjuring up the faces of my dead. {Pause.) 
 
 High King : And this was done in Ireland. Such a crime 
 Pollutes the very ears of those that hear. 
 
 King of Munster : Give him to drink ; let him forget his woes. 
 (The Brehon of Munster goes to the Chieftain imth the cup; 
 
 the Chieftain gently repulses him.) 
 
 18 
 
The Chieftain : Forgetfulness cannot be thus attained. 
 
 King of Oriel : Pray to the gods, man, who alone can give 
 
 Peace and repose ; perchance, for thou art young, 
 Another white-armed wife may give thee joy. 
 
 The Chieftain : I want no other wife. I want mine own — 
 My very own, the wife of my young days; 
 I want to see my children once again — 
 Can your gods ever give them back to me? 
 
 (The King of Leinster during the Chieftain's recital has 
 been watching the faces around; he has observed the conscious looks 
 of the retainers of the King of Connaught; he has observed the 
 sullen grin on the King of Connaught's face; and he has guessed 
 the truth. He now places his hand again on the Chieftain's 
 shoulder.) 
 
 King of Leinster: Hast thought of vengeance, man? Who did 
 
 this crime? 
 The Chieftain: Vengeance? But who should wish to injure me? 
 
 No man could ever wish to injure her? 
 
 She was so good. And who had heart to hurt 
 
 My little children, innocent and sweet? 
 
 It must have been the gods or fiends from hell. 
 
 Trouble not me with vain imaginings! 
 
 (The King of Leinster gently turns the Chieftain round and 
 points to the King of Connaught^ who is grinning at the scene.) 
 
 King of Leinster: Look there! 
 
 (The Chieftain catches his meaning and grasps the truth.) 
 
 The Chieftain: What! Can my King have done this thing? 
 My old, my trusted friend, with whom I played 
 In childhood's days — who honored me — and her! 
 I'll tear his life from out his grinning soul! 
 Let me have vengeance. 
 19 
 
(The Chieftain rushes at the King of Connaught with his 
 knife drawn; the King continues to grin sardonically ; the Chief- 
 tain rushes up the steps of his throne; the Brehon of Connaught 
 receives the blow and is wounded, but he throws himself on the 
 Chieftain and saves his King. The Chieftain is secured; at a 
 sign from the High King^ the King of Leinster takes charge of 
 the Chieftain, and some of the Leinster Men headed by the 
 Brehon of Leinster hustle him off the stage. 
 
 As the excitement subsides the first notes are heard from the top 
 of the hill, and Patrick appears with his procession, namely, the 
 escort under the Steward, the Crucifer and eight Missionaries. 
 The crowd on the stage turn and look at the descending procession ; 
 the followers of Patrick chant the first three verses of the Easter 
 Hymn, the "Pange Lingua." When the procession reaches the stage, 
 Patrick takes the center with his Crucifer and the eight Mis- 
 sionaries ; 'the escort falls back and its members go to their proper 
 places; the Steward addresses the High King.) 
 
 Steward : This is the man, High King, who lit the fire. 
 
 We found him making a strange sacrifice, 
 Clad in strange raiment, with these followers. 
 Chanting strange incantations, and we brought 
 Him hither straightway, as the order ran. 
 
 Brehon of Meath {to Patrick) : Who art thou? What thy name? 
 And thy degree? 
 
 Patrick: Hither I come to preach the Cross of Christ. 
 
 Sucat my British, Patrick my Roman name.* 
 
 Britain my birth place,t where my father was 
 
 A Roman citizen of high degree ; 
 
 A Roman magistrate in place of trust; 
 
 A Christian deacon active in the Church. 
 
 Myself in boyhood Irish pirates seized 
 
 And sold to slavery in far Connaught.^ 
 
 * On the names of Patrick; see Bury, pp. 23, 291. 
 
 t On the birthplace of Patrick; see Bury, pp. 322-325. 
 
 t On the place of Patrick's servitude; see Bury, pp. 27-30, 334-336. 
 
 20 
 
Six years I served my master tending flocks, 
 And eating bitter bread of bondage, — 
 
 King of Connaught (interrupting) : What! 
 
 A slave from Connaught ! Then I claim this man. 
 Give him to me. He'll trouble us no more. 
 
 King of Oriel : A slave from Connaught ! As I heard the tale. 
 This Patrick was the slave of old Miliucc 
 In Ulster, and upon returning there, 
 After long absence, brought down fire from 
 
 Heaven 
 To burn his ancient home of servitude; 
 Or, as some say, Miliucc destroyed himself 
 After the landing of his former slave. 
 
 Patrick: It matters not. For six long years I toiled, 
 
 Exile from Britain, lost to kith and kin. 
 Far from the Empire of immortal Rome, 
 Hearing no church bell in a heathen land. 
 Where my soul starved for lack of sacred food. 
 And then I fled — 
 
 King of Connaught (interrupting) : A slave escaped from me! 
 Give him to me. High King; I'll deal with him. 
 
 Patrick (ignoring the interruption): 
 
 I found a ship upon the Leinster coast. 
 Laden with Irish wolf-hounds; thanks to God, 
 The sailors rough received the fugitive. 
 Led by His hand, I traversed stormy seas 
 And desert lands until in Southern Gaul 
 My soul found rest in Lerins' holy isle. 
 Rude and uncultured was I ; all the years 
 Most fit for study and for learning's joys 
 In servile labors had been spent ; and I 
 With toilsome effort learned to read and write. 
 But, as I grew to manhood, more and more 
 God called to me in a peculiar way, 
 And in my dreams He oft reminded me 
 21 
 
Of Ireland and of her light-hearted sons, 
 Whose merry jests and kindly spoken words 
 Had eased my many years of servitude. 
 A kindly people, but without the faith 
 And without knowledge of the Most High God, 
 And of His Son, who died upon the Cross. 
 But, most of all, in dreams there called to me 
 The little unborn children of Fochlad, 
 Doomed not to know the Gospel of the Christ, 
 Nor hope for their salvation. I resolved. 
 Poor and unlettered though I was, to preach 
 The Gospel to them, for their little hands 
 Tugged at my heart strings. 
 
 King of Oriel : Truly this man's tale 
 
 Affects me as a tale of simple truth. 
 
 Druid of Oriel : But see you not, my lord, that he attacks 
 
 Ireland's religion, while he moves your heart. 
 
 King of Connaught : He is my slave ; give him to me, I say. 
 
 Patrick (unmoved) : So I resolved to preach the Gospel here; 
 
 And hence from Ireland drive the demons forth 
 That druids call to batten on mankind. 
 It happened that the Christians in this land. 
 The few that live as slaves in the far south — 
 
 King of Munster: These are the Christians that I spoke about 
 (smiles and drinks). 
 
 Patrick : Were sheep without a shepherd, and they fell 
 
 Into Pelagian heresy, so that 
 Peter's successor, Bishop of great Rome — 
 
 King of Leinster: I thought the hand of Rome would soon be 
 seen. 
 Although her Empire vanishes on land, 
 Through this new faith she now rules o'er men's 
 
 souls. 
 We Leinster men know much of Roman might 
 (conceitedly). 
 22 
 
Patrick (continuing patiently and courteously): 
 
 Peter's successor sent a bishop forth 
 To visit the neglected Munster flock; 
 Palladius was his name; last year he came — 
 But died before his mission was fulfilled.* 
 
 King of Leinster : We heard of him in Leinster, where he died ; 
 A harmless preacher of a harmless faith. 
 
 Patrick : And then the Lord chose me, the former slave, 
 
 To do His bidding and to travel here 
 To found His Church in Ireland, and to preach 
 Christ crucified upon the Cross — to you. 
 
 Brehon of Meath : Why did you light the fire on Beltane's feast? 
 Do you not know the law which makes it crime. 
 
 Patrick: The law I knew; the prophecy likewise. 
 
 And, since I come to drive the demons forth 
 
 And break the druid power, I challenged thus 
 
 Their ancient custom, and defied their wrath. 
 
 It happened further that this morning was 
 
 The Easter morn, and on this holy day 
 
 We Christians celebrate the Paschal feast 
 
 Which Christ, our Lord, founded before His death. 
 
 In the full robes a Christian bishop wears 
 
 I did mine office ; as the fire I lit, 
 
 A little flame, it shot up to the skies 
 
 And reddened all the heavens, thus showing well 
 
 The challenge I intend to issue forth. 
 
 And now. High King, most mighty Laogaire, 
 
 Son of great Niall, I am eager to contend 
 
 With all the druids, and to show that Christ, 
 
 My Master dear, who died upon the Cross, 
 
 Has sent me here to save your souls from hell. 
 
 Give me the chance to prove my God is truth. 
 
 * On the mission of Palladius to Ireland in. 431; see Bury, pp. 54-68, 
 342-344. 
 
 23 
 
King of Connaught: Give me the slave; I'll slay him and his 
 band, 
 And we can feast and revel till the dawn, 
 Without the need of further listening. 
 
 King of Oriel: Nay; I would hear the words he hath to say: 
 Though how a god, who died upon a cross, 
 Can be a God of Truth is hard to see. 
 
 Druid of Oriel : Disgrace it would be, after this fierce speech, 
 Not to take up his challenge and to show 
 How weak his power against the druid faith. 
 
 Patrick: Ready I stand for challenge or for death — 
 
 A martyr's death would be for me a crown. 
 
 King of Leinster: For my part I would see this Roman priest 
 Fight 'gainst the druids with his magic spells. 
 (Patrick moves forward to speak.) 
 
 Brehon of Munster: My master bids me say that he demands 
 The Council do adjourn until such time, 
 As having feasted well, we may decide 
 What steps to take; a dry and thirsty man 
 Cannot do justice or even keep awake. 
 
 King of Oriel: It is, besides, our Irish fashion old 
 
 To give due thought upon such questions twice — 
 In morning light and after midday feast. 
 
 Brehon of Meath : My lord, the King, decrees that we adjourn. 
 He has prepared a mighty feast for all, 
 And bids all be his guests. After the feast 
 We will our wonted revels hold, and spen'd 
 The hours in pleasure ; then, when evening comes. 
 We will return and settle this dispute; 
 For wisdom's part is to do naught in haste. 
 But settle all things after due debate. 
 
 High King: Welcome are guests to Tara's banquet hall. 
 
 Steward, take charge of Patrick and his band. 
 Music, strike up! we'll march to our repast. 
 24 
 
chorus of retreat. 
 Full Chorus: 
 
 Let us march with joy and singing, 
 
 Revel high to hold; 
 Let us keep the hillside ringing, 
 
 As was done of old; 
 For all Ireland's life we cherish, 
 
 'Neath our holy hill ; 
 Now may wrath and discord perish ! 
 
 Ireland a nation still! 
 
 Ireland a nation still! 
 
 (Patrick takes the center of the stage. Singing the Chorus of 
 Retreat, the five processions march of the stage in the same direc- 
 tion, with the High King closing the march; the Kings regard 
 Patrick with anger, contempt, interest, sympathy or dignity, accord- 
 ing to their respective characters. As the music of the Chorus of 
 Retreat dies away, Patrick turns to his followers, the Cross is 
 raised, the followers of Patrick chant the first verse of the "Pange 
 Lingue" unaccompanied, and the Missionaries are led by the 
 Steward of the stage. The stage darkens.) 
 
 intermezzo. 
 
 Scene II. 
 
 (The evening of the same day. Enter the Steward of the 
 High King, the four Servants and the Retainers of the High 
 King, bearing torches.) 
 
 Steward : Now that the feast is o'er, the revels closed, 
 
 The chiefs will soon return, and I must go 
 To bring forth Patrick and his followers 
 To plead their cause before the Irish kings. 
 25 
 
{To the Servants) Arrange the torches so that all may see, 
 And make the evening seem as bright as day. 
 
 {The Retainers arrange torches and light braziers. Exit the 
 Steward. Noise heard without.) 
 
 First Servant: Here come the revellers! Right in their midst 
 The jolly King of Munster and his friends. 
 
 Second Servant : The good cheer that a feast at Tara gives 
 
 Has made all merry and not least the King. 
 
 entrance of revellers. 
 
 {Enter the Retainers^ tumultuously and not in processions, led 
 ly the Druid of Leinster. After the-^, enter the King of Mun- 
 ster^ supported by his Brehon and Druid. He is heavily intoxi- 
 cated and is led to his seat. In the midst of the crowd is seen the 
 King of Connaught^ who is fighting drunk, and who is guarded 
 by his Brehon and Druid^ until he, too, reaches his seat. When the 
 music closes all is in picturesque confusion.) 
 
 First Servant : A song ! A song ! Let's have a song from Munster. 
 Second Servant : The Munster men have always drunk the most 
 
 And sung the best of all true Irishmen. 
 
 A drinking song from Munster, I demand. 
 
 ( Cries from the Retainers : "A song !" "A song !" "A song 
 from Munster !" The Druid of Munster looks at the King^ receives 
 a nod of assent, and helps the Brehon of Munster down from his 
 seat and pushes him to the center of the stage; the Druid then climbs 
 staggering to his seat by the King. The Chorus gather round the 
 Brehon of Munster.) 
 
 drinking song and chorus. 
 Brehon of Munster {sings) : 
 
 Old Ireland's the land of song and dance, 
 T|he land where the stranger may see at a glance 
 That good liquor mellows our hearts and our brains, 
 In a way that no foreigners' liquor attains ; 
 26 
 
For it ripens and lightens and frees us from care, 
 It banishes sorrow and drives out despair ; 
 
 Then let us step quicker, 
 
 There's no other liquor, 
 With ours can at all compare. 
 With ours can at all compare ! 
 
 Chorus: The chiefs' return will call us away from our 
 
 jollity. 
 
 So fill your cups and give yourselves up to fri- 
 volity, 
 
 We'll drink till we wink and blink and sink. 
 
 Like Irishmen unafraid. 
 
 Brehon of Munster: 
 
 Old Ireland's the home of wit and fun, 
 Where welcome is given to every one. 
 Who takes in good part both the laugh and the jest,. 
 And never bears malice or wrath in his breast. 
 It's the land where good fellowship breathes in 
 
 the air. 
 And all men are ready their fortunes to share ; 
 
 Though friends may be many. 
 
 There cannot be any, 
 With ours can at all compare, 
 With ours can at all compare. 
 
 Chorus: The chiefs' return, etc. 
 
 Brehon of Munster: 
 
 Old Ireland has many a chief and sage. 
 
 Whom our taste for good liquor does often enrage ; 
 
 They blame the good "Creature," and lecture, and 
 
 scold, 
 Forgetting it makes us all reckless and bold ; . 
 It excites our wild natures with courage so rare. 
 That an Irishman's ready all perils to dare ; 
 27 
 
There may be feet lighter, 
 
 But there's not a fighter 
 With us can at all compare, 
 With us can at all compare. 
 
 Chorus: The chiefs' return, etc. 
 
 (As the Chorus ends and the Brehon of Munster goes back to 
 his seat, some of the Retainers go to their places, leaving a clear 
 stage. Enter the King of Leinster, who smiles indulgently on the 
 scene and goes to his place. Enter the King of Oriel, with his 
 Brehon and Druid ; he sadly shakes his head at the scene of tumult 
 and goes to his seat. The four Servants and some of the Retainers 
 have not perceived the entrance of the Kings and move about ex- 
 citedly.) 
 
 First Servant : A dance ! A dance ! What's song without a dance ! 
 Second Servant : As Ireland has her songs, she has her dances. 
 
 Unrivalled in their merriment and grace. 
 
 Come, let the best among you dance for us. 
 
 {Eight Dancers step forward, two from Munster, Ulster, 
 Connaught and Leinster respectively.) 
 
 IRISH DANCE. 
 
 {When the music closes and during the applause that follows the 
 dance, enter the High King, with the Brehon and Druid of 
 Meath, con-ducted by the Steward. He smiles at the scene and 
 goes to his seat. The Chorus and Retainers settle to their places 
 of the morning session.) 
 
 Brehon of Meath (raising his voice): 
 
 The time for revelry has now expired. 
 
 The High King bids that silence be proclaimed. 
 
 {Gradual settling down of the crowd under the urging of the 
 Steward. The King of Munster and the King of Connaught 
 
 28 
 
fall into drunken sleep. But after their drinking, dancing and 
 revelling, the retainers cannot entirely settle down at once.) 
 
 The High King begs our sacred singer here, 
 Drjiid of Erin, now to sing the song, 
 Which cheers the hearts of loyal Irishmen 
 More than the utterances of drunken joy. 
 
 THE SONG OF ERIN. 
 
 Druid of Meath (sings) : 
 
 Dear is the island, the land of our mothers. 
 Dear is the land where our forefathers died; 
 
 Dear is the country where all men are brothers — 
 Great is our love for her, great is our pride. 
 Love for her meadows fair. 
 Love for her mountains bare. 
 
 Love for the marsh land and love for the glen. 
 Pride in her gallant sons, 
 Pride that each heart o'erruns — 
 
 Land of pure women and land of brave men. 
 
 Chorus: 'Tis Erin, dear Erin, 
 
 The green isle of Erin, 
 
 The island of Erin, that all of us love ; 
 We'd fight for her honored name. 
 We'd die for her righteous fame — 
 
 The island of Erin that all of us love. 
 
 Though we are ready to anger each other, 
 
 We quickly forgive when the harsh word is byj 
 But if Erin's insulted by one or another 
 Gladly we'd fight for her, gladly we'd die : 
 Fight for her ancient laws. 
 Fight in her freedom's cause, 
 29 
 
Chorus : 
 
 Fight for her over and over again, 
 Die for her honored name, 
 Die for her righteous fame — 
 
 The land of pure women and land of brave men. 
 
 'Tis Erin, dear Erin, etc. 
 
 (While the last chorus is being sung, the Steward^ who has 
 left during the song, returns conducting Patrick and his followers, . 
 who take up a position in the center of the stage, the Crucifer 
 holding up the Cross. At the same time the Brehon of Leinster 
 brings in the Chieftain^ who seats himself moodily below the King 
 OF Leinster^ alternately glancing fiercely at the King of Con- 
 naught and brooding in a melancholy fashion. The Council settles 
 itself. Patrick faces the High King.) 
 
 Brehon of Meath : Now we will listen to the argument 
 Made to us by this former British slave. 
 
 {To Patrick) The High King bids you speak, but bids you fear 
 How you insult belief in holy things. 
 The druids here will quick refute your words, 
 Unless you prove the truth of what you say. 
 
 Patrick: I come to tell you of a living God. 
 
 I come to tell you of His Son, who died 
 Upon the Cross, to cleanse you of your sins. 
 I come to tell you of a faith that spread 
 O'er all the world of men — a faith that spread 
 ' Despite of persecution, and the death 
 
 Of many martyrs : until Rome herself, 
 Head of the world, drove out her native gods 
 And those she borrowed from the mystic East — 
 Isis, the Mighty Mother, Mithra, all — 
 And worshipped humbly at the Cross of Christ. 
 The Roman Empire, which includes the bounds 
 Of all the civilized world, is Christian now, 
 And hopes this distant island, which refused 
 30 
 
To bow to Roman strength, will recognize 
 And seize on Roman wisdom — 
 King of Leinster (interrupting): What said I? 
 
 When first this man spoke to us I declared 
 It was a scheme of Roman statesmen wise, 
 Who could not conquer Ireland, to ensnare 
 Her valiant peoples into bondage deep. 
 ( To Patrick) We do not want your Rome, your Roman peace. 
 Your Roman roads, your Roman laws, and all 
 That makes your Roman Empire, for we love 
 Our Irish freedom and our Irish chiefs. 
 Britain has lost its heart, and holds out hands 
 In suppliant prayer for help when we invade, 
 And cannot help herself ; and we will not 
 Give up our ancient gods, if that implies 
 End of our freedom and our liberties. 
 We Irishmen are free and will obey 
 None but our native princes and our laws. 
 Patrick: Alas, my lord, I did not mean to rouse 
 
 So great a storm of protest, but I say 
 That without settled peace and settled laws. 
 Such as Rome gives its subjects, none can hope 
 That Ireland ever will her freedom keep. 
 Unless she rules herself, and she unites 
 Her chiefs and peoples in a common bond 
 Of civil wisdom in a mighty state, 
 Dissensions fierce will tear her chiefs apart 
 And make them subject to a foreign race. 
 Whose hand will heavier be than that of Rome. 
 But, let us not waste time in vain debate ; 
 My Gospel teaches true obedience 
 To chiefs and kings, and ever to repay 
 To Cffisar what is Caesar's. Let me now 
 Turn rather to the law of temperance. 
 The Irish nature, in its love of life, 
 31 
 
Rejects restraint and bubbles o'er with joy 
 
 Or sadness; ye refuse to limit cheer, 
 
 And in excess find all your merriment, 
 
 Just as to sudden wrath ye give yourselves, 
 
 Or sudden grief. Look round you now, my lords. 
 
 And see the heavy stupor which has come 
 
 Upon the wild rejoicing, shouting crowd 
 
 Which filled" this place a little hour ago. 
 
 My Gospel teaches temperance, and would 
 
 Drive from your land the curse of drunkenness. 
 
 King of Munster : The curse of drunkenness ! Come, my good man, 
 You know not what you say. Take a deep draught, 
 
 {Offering cup) And you will not repeat those foolish words. 
 The gods gave us good liquor, and with it 
 Forgetfulness of sorrow for a while, 
 And brilliant dreams which banish heavy care ; 
 And make the poor fof get their poverty. 
 The sick their sickness, and the sad their grief. 
 
 Patrick (smiling) : But when the waking comes, and the dreams end 
 In horrid visions of fantastic shapes 
 Of snakes, and bats, and crawling, grinning toads. 
 Then do you think of holy temperance 
 And promise to abstain till the next time 
 Temptation tries your will. I promise you. 
 That if you sober be and quite abstain 
 From liquor, you shall never harbor snakes 
 In Ireland, for I will them straight expel. 
 
 Druid of Munster : Abstain from liquor, give up the best gift 
 The gods bestowed! If it be such a sin 
 To drink good liquor, wherefore does the earth 
 And fruitful Nature let the liquor be 
 And with it grateful thirst to savor it? 
 If this thy teaching be, then I remain 
 True to the ancient gods of tolerance 
 And kindness to the weakness of mankind (drinks). 
 32 
 
Patrick : A God of chastity I bring to you ; 
 
 A Cod of peace on earth, who would put down 
 The cruel wars which ravish Irish lands 
 And wreak such havoc among Irish folk. 
 I preach a God who hates the murderous 
 And savage customs of your tribal wars, 
 And would make Ireland 'neath his gentle sway 
 A fertile and a smiling land of peace. 
 
 King of Connaught (abruptly): Peace didst thou say? Ireland, 
 a land of peace ! 
 Why Irishmen love fighting most of all; 
 We joy in battle, and the strongest man 
 Gets women, cattle and the ripe rewards 
 Of valour; and for my part I despise 
 Your prating talk of peace and chastity (sneering). 
 
 Patrick (indignantly): I argue not with vile and vicious men, 
 Who make parade of passions, and who speak 
 In sneering boastful words ; for such as you 
 My God provides a hell of fire and flame. 
 Worse than your false gods ever did conceive 
 Or their false priests, the druids; and we all 
 Should suffer in eternal hell, had not 
 The Son of God Himself come down to earth, 
 And died a shameful death upon the Cross, 
 To save all those who do repent their sins 
 And trust in Him. 
 
 King of Oriel: Did your god live on earth 
 
 And die a shameful death? Then those who slew 
 Were mightier than he. A hero god. 
 As some we worship, or sweet Nature's self. 
 Never can die, but, oft renewing life. 
 Gives signs to us of life beyond the grave. 
 The trees above us speak of Nature's god; 
 Their soaring height that ever seeks the sun 
 33 
 
Draws our eyes upward, when we would adore; 
 Their length of years and calm, majestic growth 
 Rebuke our petty love for earth-bom days. 
 What sort of hero was your Son of God 
 Who lived on earth and died? 
 
 Patrick: No warrior He; 
 
 A man of sorrows, who loved all mankind 
 And with his life atoned for all their sins. 
 
 King of Oriel : Worship a dead man, that I cannot do. 
 
 Our gods are young and beautiful, or else 
 Aged and splendid; and to us they are 
 The mysteries of life and death ; they show 
 In each returning year fair Nature's work 
 Upon the earth, or else explain the strange 
 And haunting fancies of the minds of men. 
 Shall we renounce them all and in their place 
 Take the pale shadow of a god that died. 
 And could not save himself? 
 
 Druid of Oriel : But worse than all 
 
 For this dead man we're asked to throw away 
 Our fathers' faith, that faith which we have held 
 Throughout the life of Erin,- which has made 
 Erin the last home of druidic lore. 
 Where free from Rome and free from foreign foes 
 The ancient worship has been firmly fixed. 
 
 {To Patrick) What can you give us in exchange for this? 
 What consolation for abandonment 
 Of what our fathers taught, our mothers loved? 
 
 Patrick (solemnly): Immortal life I promise to all those 
 Who trust in God and in His only Son, 
 Who died upon the Cross, immortal life 
 In Heaven, where all believers, after death. 
 Shall see His face, and praise and bless His name. 
 But for the wicked and those who refuse 
 To hear His Gospel, I most solemnly, 
 34 
 
As priest of God and Bishop in His Church, 
 Declare eternal punishment in Hell, 
 Where flames shall torture, and where, worst of all, 
 They ne'er shall look upon the face of God. 
 
 High King : But, Patrick, is this fearful fate prescribed 
 
 For those, who never had the chance to hear 
 Your teaching, for the little unborn babes. 
 Like those of Fochlad, whose sweet memory 
 Made you come hither, or for those of old. 
 Who lived and died in the druidic faith. 
 Our fathers and the heroes of the past? 
 
 Patrick (troubled) : Most High King, son of Niall, great Laogaire 
 I know not how to answer. I'm unskilled 
 And quite unlearned, so I leave to God 
 The solving of such problems as you set. 
 I know that God is mighty and is just 
 And do not fear to leave to Him the fate 
 Of those who have not heard His blessed word. 
 
 High King : I cannot leave my question. You must tell 
 The answer. Could I bear to be in Heaven, 
 The Heaven of Christians, while my father lay 
 In torture of spch flames as you describe 
 Burn in the Christian Hell, or would I choose 
 To spend eternity in any place, 
 Where great Cuchulainn, Ireland's hero famed. 
 Is not revered? Answer that question straight ! 
 
 Patrick : The God, whom I adore, to whom I pray 
 
 Shall answer the appeal. "O God on High!" 
 (Ecstatically praying) : "Help Thy poor servant to uphold Thy 
 cause 
 "And give a sign from Heaven, that these great 
 
 kings, , 
 
 "These chiefs of Ireland, may Thy power behold 
 "And come to trust in Thee, the living God, 
 ' "And in the mercy of Thy blessed Son." 
 35 
 
(Patrick raises his hands; his followers sing four lines of th^ 
 "Vent Creator" ; the orchestra plays; all follow the direction of 
 Patrick's eyes; he makes a gesture of command.) 
 
 Patrick: Appear Cuchulainn, appear, appear, 
 
 In such guise as thou lived'st upon this earth. 
 
 {Music: Apparition of Cuchulainn in ghostly gray apparel 
 with a long lance in his hand.* The King of Munster is terrified, 
 as are all the Retainers of all the five Kings ; the Druids are unem- 
 barrassed; the King of Connaught grins; the King of Leinster 
 smiles sceptically ; the King of Oriel is interested; the High King 
 rises from his seat; the Chieftain, who has now come up to Pat- 
 rick, does not look at the Apparition, but gazes into Patrick's 
 ecstatic face.) 
 
 Patrick (triumphantly ; as the music dies down): 
 
 Praise God for all His mercies. 
 (To the Apparition) ■ Who art thou? 
 
 Apparition : I was Cuchulainn. God sent me here. 
 
 High King : Art thou indeed Cuchulainn, dead long since, 
 
 And passed into the spirit world? 
 Apparition: I am. 
 
 King of Oriel: At whose command came'st thou to meet us here? 
 Apparition: By God's command, his servant Patrick's word. 
 King of Leinster : 'Tis magic brings that vain appearance here. 
 ( To Patrick) 'Tis clever magic by a wizard wrought. 
 
 Better than ever druids tried to do. 
 {To Retainers) Go up and see the nature of the spell. 
 
 (Some of the Retainers of Leinster and a few others begin to 
 climb the hill-side. Patrick and the Apparition pay no attention 
 to the sceptical KiNG.^ 
 
 • On the legend of St. Patrick raising the grhost of Cuchulainn, and for a 
 literal translation of the Celtic words of the ninth century, see Note on 
 page 51. 
 
 36 
 
Druid of Oriel : If thou art the Cuchulainn that we praise, 
 
 Whose deeds we sing in Ulster, where the songs 
 Of the Red Branch are written to thy fame, 
 Tell all these waiting souls the druids' truth 
 And scorn to answer to this wizard's words. 
 
 Patrick {slowly) : Spirit of eld, the High King Laogaire 
 
 Will not believe in God the Father's love, 
 Nor in His Son, nor in the Holy Ghost, 
 And will not hear my word, until he knows 
 Whither thy spirit fled upon thy death. 
 For he desires to be where thou dost rule. 
 
 Apparition : Great was my courage, hard as was my sword, 
 
 Yet down to Hell my soul was carried oil 
 To suffer in red fire. 
 
 Patrick: Oh, tell the king. 
 
 Oh! tell King Laogaire, tell all within 
 The hearing of thy voice, that God is good 
 And does but seek the soul of men to save. 
 Tell them to look for mercy and to pray 
 That they may meet each other in the Heaven 
 Thou may'st not enter. 
 
 Apparition {to Hick King) : Listen, thou, to me 
 
 And save thy soul from death by heeding well 
 The message of the servant loved of God, 
 The Bishop Patrick. 
 
 ^'Apparition disappears ; silence for a moment.) 
 
 King of Leinster: Did I not say true 
 
 That this was clever magic? 
 The Chieftain (at last making up his mind to speak) : 
 
 Did I- hear 
 That we could meet each other after death? 
 Patrick: Yea, weary soul, God's grace is infinite. 
 
 And He loves all His creatures, great and small, 
 And would not have them perish. Who art thou? 
 37 
 
A chieftain by thy garb, but sad at heart, 
 Unless thy looks belie thee. 
 
 The Chieftain: Thou say'st right 
 
 A man unhappy, who in one short day 
 Lost all that makes life worth the living; all 
 The joy went out of me the day I lost 
 My wife and babes ; they died ; and I am left 
 Alone with grief. 
 
 Patrick: Alas! poor suffering soul! 
 
 Look on the Cross, for He who died thereon 
 Bore all for you and sent His minister 
 To comfort and sustain you. Oh ! believe ! 
 And thou shalt see thy loved ones once again. 
 
 Druid of Oriel (furiously): This false magician is making con- 
 verts now. 
 Look how he stoops towards him and entreats 
 His listening ears ! Look how the stupid crowd 
 Is filled with pity and forgets this rank 
 And wicked blasphemy against the gods. 
 I cannot bear it. 
 
 {The King of Oriel tries to check him, but he throws off the 
 KiNG^s hand.) And I'll send him straight 
 
 To see what sort of life is after death. 
 
 {The Druid of Oriel rushes furiously at Patrick, but the 
 Chieftain intercepts the blow and is struck down. The Druid 
 drops his knife. General excitement. The King of Leinster 
 pushes forward. Even the King of Munster rises from his seat. 
 Only the King of Connaught continues to grin sardonically. The 
 Steward tries to restore order. The King of Oriel seizes his 
 Druid.) 
 
 Patrick : Look up, my son, look on the Cross of Christ. 
 
 The Chieftain : And I shall see my loved ones once again. 
 I do believe, I must believe in Christ. 
 38 
 
Help me, my father ; set me on the road 
 
 That leads to Christian Heaven. Tell me the way. 
 Patrick : Forgive, that thou may'st truly be forgiven ; 
 
 Forgive thine enemies. 
 The Chieftain : Yes, all except 
 
 The King of Connaught. I cannot forgive 
 
 The King of Connaught. 
 Patrick: Look, my son, upon 
 
 The Cross, and think what Christ had to forgive. 
 
 {The Chieftain grows weaker, and is supported with difficulty 
 by the Kings of Oriel and Leinster ; the High King comes down 
 from his seat with his Druid and Brehon. The King of Con- 
 naught comes down closely surrounded by his Retainers, fearing 
 ■violence.) 
 
 The Chieftain: Him also I forgive. (Pause.) But I lose strength. 
 My eyes are growing dim. I cannot see 
 The Cross of Christ. 
 
 (The Crucifer holds it before him.) 
 Father, I cannot see 
 The Cross of Christ (excitedly). Shall I be shut 
 
 outside 
 The gates of Heaven? Make me to see the Cross, — 
 For I must meet my wife and babes again. 
 
 Patrick {deeply moved) : This, my first convert, gives his life for me, 
 And can I not a miracle perform 
 To aid his dying sight? If God could bring 
 A Ghost from Hell, at my beseeching Him, 
 Will He not listen to my prayers again, 
 And set the symbol of salvation high 
 Upon the Hill of Tara, as a sign 
 That God has come to Ireland to remain 
 And make this favored land the Isle of Saints. 
 
 (Patrick blesses the Chieftain, falls on his knees, and looks 
 ecstatically up the hillside. As the "Veni Creator" begins, the 
 
 39 
 
torches and lights on the stage go out and a great white Cross comes 
 out far up the hillside; all fall on their knees, except the High 
 King and the five Druids; the Chieftain staggers to his feet, sees 
 the Cross and falls hack dead. As the "Vent Creator" closes in the 
 finale of the music, the followers of Patrick carry out the body of 
 the Chieftain. As the music closes, the Cross goes out and the hill- 
 side is lit up, while the stage is slowly cleared. ) 
 
 40 
 
SYNOPSIS OF THE MUSIC 
 
Synopsis of the Music 
 
 The Prelude to St. Patrick at Tara opens with a long sustained 
 note on the double basses with a suggestion of the St. Patrick theme 
 or Veni Creator played by the 'cellos — later by the brass and wood- 
 wind: 
 
 t 
 
 W^ 
 
 :^ 
 
 -/t^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 :3^ 
 
 a 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 4-^^ 
 
 St 
 
 ?^ ^,■^ O' . 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ^..f -T — "^^ 
 
 This theme is heard again towards the close of the Prelude scored 
 for full orchestra and signifying the triumph of the Christian faith 
 over that of Nature-worship. After forty bars another theme is 
 heard on the wood-wind, accompanied by muted violins, which is 
 intended to suggest the beauty and peace of Nature : 
 
At a certain point this is interrupted by a succession of chromatic 
 chords ending in an abrupt stop which is intended to suggest the 
 tragic end of the Chieftain. This is followed by a few sustained 
 chords on the low notes of the wood-wind suggesting gloom and 
 despair which, however, soon give place to a religious atmosphere 
 which gradually increases until the Vent Creator theme is trium- 
 phantly announced by the full orchestra and gradually diminishing 
 to a pianissimo ending. 
 
 Early in the play, after an introduction of fourteen bars, the 
 King of Leinster enters with his retainers who sing in unison: 
 
 t±. 
 
 t^ 
 
 E 
 
 ± 
 
 j . .r> ^ 
 
 1 
 
 4= 
 
 ||t/.4 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ^^^m 
 
 ti*. SoKSO^ gl»-n0UI 2.-fli»tNr 
 
 ?^ 
 
 
 ■J^i^ I J 4 d -^ 
 
 ^^^^ 
 
 This is followed by the other kings and their escorts each singing 
 in turn and finally uniting in singing "Ireland a nation still." 
 
 The next entry is that of St. Patrick and his eight missionaries 
 who chant the Easter hymn Pange Lingua: 
 
 
 ■CT 
 
 m=WM^ ^ ^ 
 
 ^A lAViM 7iU3>lt<V. g/ o - 
 
 4 
 
 T' - O - »i 
 
At the close of Scene I. the march is again heard and is taken up 
 by the chorus who sing as they make their exit. 
 
 The Intermezzo is intended to prepare the audience for the 
 revelry with which Scene II. opens. After an introduction of sixteen 
 bars the following theme is announced on the clarinet accompanied 
 by pizzicato strings: 
 
 yf//<«?f*f/o C« 
 
 
 A rollicking theme — 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^m\ 
 
 ""f^^- 
 
 '^ 
 
 m 
 
 brings on the revellers and also serves to introduce a jig : 
 
 nr^^Tmrf:^ 1 1 ^ 
 
 ^EL 
 
 ^:*= 
 
 T^ C- (^CT 
 
 45 
 
Later on, at a signal from St. Patrick, the missionaries chant the 
 Veni Creator — 
 
 :Ti 
 
 r 
 
 %K <\ ^i 
 
 m 
 
 s 
 
 jA ^v 
 
 'PP. M'-rn, Ci^-o^- - 
 
 ^ 
 
 Li^^ 
 
 /« 
 
 •o)- 
 
 3 
 
 /<:. 
 
 unaccompanied, which isi followed by a few bars of orchestral music 
 built on the same theme which is played during the appearance of 
 the Apparition. 
 
 The finale is also constructed on the above theme beginning very 
 softly and finally swelling into a triumphant burst of praise. 
 
 During the play four songs are sung (two with chorus). The 
 following are fragments of the themes : 
 
 k 
 
 ^an(|> o^ ^<»n«\«.UfAt" 
 
 
 |)\^-eS - f-tr-K ^* (*/^%(/^« (Vf^.Aiv^ 
 
 (it 
 
 
 ■'^' . K ■'■ ." },\''\ l- ^^^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 tvJh»^i4 nt^jo.i-lt1 'TIj 7!u |».i./to^i»».y ;^'CU 
 
 46 
 
Sofia or ' ^ryt^ 
 
 /8<*» W ^ tsl»M.d. itU IcLi^/ a^ou., rno/CU^ 
 
 J?r<u.K.i«>e ?a j^c ai.b Ci-oi-uj 
 
 (is 
 
 
 ■f-t^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 ^K. 
 
 «^^ 
 
 Old ryti^i-'dv flit 1»4*JL of- Saneaui l^m^et. 
 
 W. A. S. 
 
 47 
 
NOTES 
 
Note to Page 36 
 
 The Apparition of Cuchulainn. 
 
 "In the Phantom Chariot of Cuchulainn it is related that Patrick 
 went to Tara to enjoin belief upon the King of Erin, upon Laogaire, 
 son of Niall, fox he was King of Erin at the time, and would not 
 believe in the Lord, though he had preached unto him. 'By no means 
 will I believe in thee, nor yet in God,' said the heathen monarch to 
 the saint, 'until thou shalt call up Cuchulainn in all his dignity, as 
 he is recorded in the old stories, that I may see him, and that I may 
 address him in my presence here; after that I will believe in thee.' 
 Upon this St. Patrick conjured up the hero, so that he appeared to 
 the King in his chariot as of old." * * * 
 
 Words of Cuchulainn to King Laogaire. 
 
 {Literally translated from the Irish.) 
 
 "My little body was scarred — 
 With Lugaid the victory : 
 Demons carried off my soul 
 Into the red charcoal. 
 
 "I played the swordlet on them, 
 I plied on them the gae-bolga; 
 I was in my concert victory 
 With the demon in pain. 
 
 "Great as was my heroism, 
 Hard as was my sword. 
 The devil crushed me with one finger 
 Into the red charcoal." 
 
 "The tale consistently enough concludes that 'great was the power 
 of Patrick in awakening Cuchulainn, after being nine fifty years in 
 the grave.' " 
 
 — The Literature of the Celts: its History and 
 Romance, by Magnus Maclean, M. A., D. Sc. 
 pp. 171, 172. London, Glasgow and Dublin, 
 1902. 
 
 51 
 
Note on the Costumes 
 
 In devising costumes for a play dealing with Ireland in the fifth 
 century one is confronted with a discouraging paucity of data. 
 The ordinary books on costume give only certain generalizations on 
 "Celtic" costume, and numerous books on Irish archaeology, at first 
 consulted, were either entirely silent on the subject of dress, or 
 yielded information as vague as it was meagre. 
 
 Working from analogy in Celtic costiune is not wholly satisfac- 
 tory in that the abundant evidence we possess of design distinctively 
 native in ornaments and implements among the ancient Irish would 
 seem to connote characteristics equally underived in their dress. 
 Further research proved this to be the fact. 
 
 The most important consideration in designing costumes for the 
 stage is to suggest through them the attributes of the characters 
 represented and to aid in expressing visually their emotional content. 
 Archaeological accuracy is of value only as a working basis; if 
 carried out with scrupulous exactitude, it leaves no room for the 
 exercise of fancy, in the expression of which a certain quality of 
 creativeness may reside. In the present instance, therefore, the 
 scarcity of data afforded not only an opportunity for the exercise 
 of fancy, but rendered it imperative. 
 
 The distribution of color among the retinues of the five kings 
 conforms with the directions given in his play by Professor Stephens, 
 but, as he states in his preface, it is quite arbitrary. 
 
 It was after the task had been begun with these conditions in 
 view, i. e., the scarcity of data and the restriction of an assigned 
 color-scheme, that two works were found which supplied an abund- 
 ance of such information as would insure the necessary degree of 
 historical accuracy. 
 
 52 
 
Regarding the main facts, quotations from these authorities 
 follow : 
 
 The dress of the ancient Irish consisted of the truis or straight bracca, 
 the long cota, the cochal, the canabhas, the barrad and the brog. 
 
 The truis or straight bracca was made of weft with various colors 
 running on it in stripes or divisions. It covered the ankles, legs and thighs. 
 
 The cota was a kind of shirt made of thin woolen stuff plaided, or of 
 linen dyed yellow. 
 
 The cochal or cocula was the upper garment, a kind of long cloak 
 with a large hanging collar or hood of different colors * * * and was 
 fringed with a border-like shagged hair; and being brought over the 
 shoulders was fastened on the breast by a clasp. 
 
 The canabhas or filliad was a large loose garment not unlike the cochal 
 and probably worn as its substitute. 
 
 The barrad was a conical cap. * * * The cone of the barrad 
 usually hung behind. 
 
 The first innovation in the Irish dress, after the Milesian invasion, took 
 place (if our annals are to be credited) in the reign of Tighernmas, A. M. 
 2815. This prince we are told ordained a sumptuary law called ilbreachta 
 according to which the different classes of the people were to be distin- 
 guished by the number of colors in their garments — ^thus: the peasantry 
 and soldiers were to wear garments of one color; military officers and 
 private gentlemen, of two; commanders of battalions, of three; beatachs, 
 buighnibbs, or keepers of houses of hospitality, of four; the principal 
 nobility and knights, of five; the ollahms or dignified bards, of six; and 
 the kings and princes of the blood, seven. 
 
 — An Historical Essay on the Dress of the Ancient and 
 Modern Irish, by Joseph C. Walker, Dublin, 1788. 
 
 Both men and women wore the hair long, and commonly flowing down 
 the back and shoulders. 
 
 The fashion of wearing the beard varied. Sometimes it was consid- 
 ered becoming to have it long and forked, and gradually narrowed to two 
 points below. 
 
 There were various kinds of gold and silver ornaments for wearing 
 round the neck, of which perhaps the best known was the torque. 
 
 We know from the best authorities that at the time of the invasion — 
 i. e. in the twelfth century — the Irish used no armour. 
 
 — A Social History of Ancient Ireland, by P. W. Joyce, 
 LL.D., M. R. I. A., London, Longmans, Green & 
 Co., 1903. 
 
 P. G. 
 
 S3 
 
THE CREMATION OF CARE 
 
The Cremation of Care 
 
 Arranged and Directed by W. H. Smith, Jr. 
 
 Bohemia J. Dennis Arnold 
 
 A Wordling W. H. Smith, Jr. 
 
 Pall-bearers, Choristers. 
 
 Invocation music by W. J. McCoy. 
 
 Illumination by Edward J. Duffey. 
 
THE SUNDAY- MORNING 
 CONCERT 
 
10 o'clock, August 8, 1909. 
 Wm. J. McCoy, Conductor 
 
 Programme. 
 
 1. M. MozsKOWSKi — Einzugs Marsch, from "Boabdil." 
 
 2. Wallace A. Sabin — Selections from "St. Patrick at Tara." 
 
 (a) Prelude 
 
 (b) Intermezzo 
 (Conducted by the composer.) 
 
 3. Richard Wagner — Siegfried Idylle. 
 
 4. Franz Doppler — L'Oiseau des Bois, op. 24, for flute and four 
 
 horns. 
 Flute — Mr. Oesterreicher 
 Horns — Messrs. Huske, Bergenholz, Tillman 
 
 and Klotz 
 
 5. Arthur Farwell — Dawn, (a phantasy for orchestra after an 
 
 Indian legend). 
 
 Note. — Nonbanonzhin, an aged man of the Omaha tribe, every day 
 at dawn ascended a hill and sang, "With the Dawn I Seek Thee." As 
 this was the hour of the singing of love songs by the Omahas, the 
 song came to be known as the "Old Man's Love Song." In the com- 
 position it is regarded as an invocation to the dawn. 
 
 (Conducted by the composer.) 
 
 6. Arthur Foote — Romance for Violin. 
 
 Mr. Eugene NowLAND.and Orchestra. 
 
 7. JoHANN Strauss — Concert Waltz : Seid Umschlungen Millionen. 
 
 Concert master: Mr. J. E. Josephs.