1 'GLENGARIFF' RUDGRAVE SQUARE, EGREMONT, CHESHIRE. 17th Feb., 1916. My dearest Pierce, I just lost the post in
writing this letter. I find I
cannot now catch the 8 o'clock
post, which would bring this
letter to you in the morning,
but you ought to have it
to—morrow evening. About
that article, which you sug—
gested for next week. I can—
not take one for next week
because I have one, and had
it when I got your letter in
hand for next week, and
I have received for consider—
ation two others or so to which 2 I am more or less committed.
The position, as I explained to you,
is rather delicate and diffi—
cult for me. You would have
to use a pseudonym be—
cause it would not do to
let people think I was writ—
ing the articles myself or
favoring my son by giving
prominence to his writings
— one or other of which that they
would be sure to think if
you wrote under your name.
But with a good pseudonym
— the name, as it were, of
some living person — I might
be able to get in an occas—
ional article. They would have
to be good and appropriate so
that no obligation could be
raised on that score, and not more than about a column in
length, that is, about fourteen or
fifteen hundred words. I would
suggest that you should send
me by Monday, March 2 — nothing
can be done for next week
as I have indicated — an article
for the issue of March 10, in
preparation for St. Patrick's Day,
showing how desirable it is
that with Englishthe Irish peo—
ple should grip the language
as well as St. Patrick used as
well as the faith he preached
so successfully in Ireland. It
seems to me that the subject is a
charming one and might be
made a great deal of by pointing
out some of the beautiful re—
ligious expressions in the old
tongue (giving only the English
translation, except in two
or three particular cases, per—
haps, to give impart a tone to the article), 3 explaining how the old tongue
was associated with the most
flourishing periods of the faith
in Ireland, how it is, as it were
, turned round the old ruin s —
the ruins of chapels and wells —
towers whose bring it to
mind, and dwelling on the con—
trast between the cold secular
spirit indicated by the language
of ordinary social life in English
speaking lands and the brotherly,
Christian warmth conveyed in
Irish in the language of social inter—
course. Make your sentences
fairly crisp and let yourself go.
If you throw in some strengthen
ing figures in the middle or so,
so much the better. I have an
article on St. Patrick (to which I am
committed) for the issue of March 17,
but it does not touch on this.
Don't forget to choose a name. If you
think of a good heading so much the better. You will have had mother's letter.
Don't forget to write very soon again
if you want another such letter.
We are well thank God. I dont know
yet what affect the shortening of paper supplies
will have on the C.T. With fond love form mother,
Ever affectionately Father.