The lighter side of Irish life

London : T.N. Foulis, 1911, 1911. Very Good. 270 p., [16] leaves of plates; [6] pp. of advertisements : col. ill. ; 20 cm. ; LC: DA950.1; PR6015.A48; Dewey: 941.5 ; OCLC: 3233602 ; top edge gilt ; pages untrimmed ; with sixteen illustrations from water color drawings by Henry W. Kerr, specially mounted on tinted paper ; Henry Wright Kerr was a Scottish watercolorist who spent some time in Holland, as well, and is noted for the fineness of his portraits, some in miniature ; Birmingham (James Hannay), was an Anglican clergyman from Belfast who allied himself with England in the Irish conflict, and was a prolific author of ; "Mr. Birmingham (to use his pen name) has attained repute as a humorist, and the present book is described by the publishers as his "most humorous work." It may well be so: yet the humor is of the tender, mildly ironical kind that a man might indulge in at the expense of his mother while exposing, explaining and excusing her foibles. He begins by describing the Irish "As Others See Us"—the typical Irishman of the novelist, made up of an impossible combination of nonmoral Puckish traits, who may once have existed, but has long since vanished. The contemporary Irishman, according to the author, is free from illusion and possessed of a power of facing facts, full of nervous industry, sharpened wits and sensitive pride. He is thus naively contrasted with his rulers: "We know quite well that the Englishman is our superior in many matters. He succeeds where we fail, grows rich while we remain poor; and although he is, as a rule, much stupider than we are, he continues to govern us in spite of our efforts to prevent him, although we ought by rights to be governing him. The history of Ireland, Mr. Birmingham explains, broke off abruptly and made a fresh start after the famine of 1846-7-8; old Ireland ended and new Ireland gradually began to be. Even the very type of faces has changed, but the country has not become Americanized, though thousands upon thousands of her sons and daughters are in America. A special chapter entitled "The Yank"—meaning Yankee —deals with emigration and returned "Yanks." The generosity of the American Irish to their friends at home is freely conceded, and besides financing the homes, says the author, they also "finance our politics"; but for all that the home land is not fond of them. American Irish will enjoy the book, even though it may not lead them to go "home" to live. Mr. Birmingham's style is easy and diverting and makes the reader forget the somewhat disjointed and disconnected range of subjects and anecdotes. "--The Interior, Volume 44, 1889 ; G