Jottings From The South Of Ireland.

ago ; but it don't matter , the fault is not mine , but yours , ye unnatural crew ! and may be ye won't find it out to your cost before ye are many minutes quit of this life . Amen . " He who gives to the poor , lends to the Lord . ' Te are not skilled in logic , nor indeed in anything

I know , except in playing hurley in the fields , scheming at cards in public-houses for half gallons of porter , aud defrauding your clergy of their laAVful dues . What's worse , there's no use in trying to drive logic into your heads , for , indeed , that Avould be the fulfilment of another text that speaks

of throAving pearls before pigs . But if ye did knoAV logic , which ye don't , ye would perceive at once that the passage I haA'e just quoted naturally divides itself into tAvo parts : the first involves the giving , that is , logically and syllogistically considered , what ye ought to do ; and the second

involves the poor , that is , the receivers of the gifts , or the persons for Avhom ye ought to do it . " First , then , as to the giving . NOAV it stands to reason , that as the Scripture says in some other place , the blind cannot lead the blind , because may be they'd fall into the bog-holes , ' and get drowned , poor things ! and so though there is

wonderful kindness among them to each other , it is not to be expected that the poor can give to the poor . No , the givers must be people Avho have something to give , Avhich the poor have not . Some of ye Avill try and get off on this head , and say that 'tis gladly enough ye'd give , but that really ye

can't afford it . Can't ye' ? If ye make up your minds , any one of ye , to give up only a single glass of spirits every day of your lives , see AA'hat it Avill come to in the course of a year , and devote that to the church , that is , to tlie clergy . And it will be more than some of the Avell-to-do farmers

Avhom I have in my eye at this blessed moment have had the heart to give me during the last twelve months . Why , as little as a penny a day comes to more than thirty shillings a year , and even that insignificant trifle I have not had from some of you , that have the meaus aud ought to

knoAV better . I don't Avant to mention names ; but Tom Murphy of the Glen , I am afraid , I shall be compelled to name you before the Avhole congregation some day before long , if you don't pay up your laAvfol dues . I Avon't say more IIOAV on that subject , for , as St . Augustine says , ' A nod's as good as a wink to a blind horse . '

" NOAV , the moral of the first part being clearly shown that all who can give ought to give , the next branch is to Avhom should it be given ? The blessed text essentially states and declares , to the poor . ' Then folloAVs the inquiry , 'Who are the poor ? ' The Avhole matter depends on that .

I daresay , ignorant as ye are , some of ye Avill think that it ' s the beggars and cripples and the blind travellers who contriA'e to get through the length and breadth of the country , guided by Providence and a little dog tied to their finger by a bit of string . No , I don't Avant to say one

mortal word against that sort of cattle , or injure them in their honest calling . God help them I 'Tis their trade , their occupation , their business to beg , just as 'tis Paul Mulcahy ' s business to tailor , or Jerry Smith ' s to make carts , or Tom Shine's to make shoes , or Din Cotter's to make poteen ,

and my business to preach sermons , and saA'e your souls , ye ' haythens ! ' But these ain't the poor meant in the text . They're used to begging , and they like to beg , and they thrive on begging , and I , for one , wouldn't be the man to disturb them in the practice of their profession , and long may it be a provision for them and their heirs for ever . Amen .

"May be , ye mean-spiritea creatures , some among ye Avill say that it's yourselves are the poor . Indeed , then , it isn't . Poor and niggardly ye are , but ye ain't the poor contemplated by holy Moses in the text . Sure 'tis your nature to toil and slave ; sure 'tis what ye ' re used to ;

therefore , if anyone Avere to give anything to you , he Avouldn't be lending to the Lord in the slightest degree , but throAving away his money as completely as if he lent it upon the security of the land that ' s covered by the Lakes of Killarney . Don't flatter yourselves any of you for a moment

that you are the poor . I can tell you that you are nothing of the sort . " NOAV , then , Ave have found out who should be givers . There's no mistake about that . Reason and logic unite in declaring that every man , womanand child should giveand strain a point

, , to do it liberally . Next , we have ascertained that 'tis the poor who should receive what you give-Thirdly , Ave have determined Avho are not the poor . Lastly , AVO must discover who are . Let each of you put on his considering cap , and think .

" Well , I have paused that you might do so . Din Cotter is a knoAvledgeable man , compared Aviththe bulk of you . I Avonder Avhether he has discovered AVIIO are the poor . He shakes his head , but there ' s not much in that . Well , then , you give it up ? Ton leave it to me to enlighten you all . Learn ,

then , to your shame , that 'tis the clergy AA'ho are the poor . Ah ! you see it UOAV , do you ? The light comes in through your thick heads , does it ? Tes , it ' s I and my brethren are the poor . We get ourbread coarse enough , and dry enough it usually is , bfilling you Avith spiritual foodand judging by

y , the congregation now before me , it's ugly mouths you have to receive it . We toil not , neither do Ave spin ; but if Solomon in all his glory Avas not arrayed better than Ave are , instead of being clothed in ermine and fine linen , ' tis many a time he'd be Avearing a threadbare black coat , white on

the seams and out at the elboAVS . It ' s the opinion of the most learned scholars and doctors of divinity , as laid doAvn by the Council of Trent , that the translation isn't sufficiently correct in regard to this text ; and they recommend that for the Avords' the poor , ' we should substitute ' the clergy . '