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Behey Nth
4th Feb. 1880 Dear Sir, I have received your letter on emigration. I could not under stand whether your aid wholly depended on Mr. Parnell accepting your proposition and therefore gave it no publicity. Still, I have had so many applications from parties who are anxious to quit this famine struck land that I am obliged to write for information as to whether you would give your aid to suitable persons independent of Mr. Parnell. I am an old man and can well remember your generous efforts in every good cause now in days long gone by. This dear Sir is another noble offer and I am sorry to say relief has never been more wanted in this part of Ireland. In my own case I have lost
my whole crops in the past year with the floods and there are hundreds about me that are reduced from comfort to complete poverty. The last relief for those that go and for those that remain would be the adoption of your plan. Misery will come home to thousands before any practical good will result from any other – no matter how well intended. No man living has more confidence in the many noble qualities of Mr. Parnell than I have but I fear that he would rather devote his energies to the rooting of the Irish in their own native soil and so would I and I believe so would you, but I believe that can
-not be done at present and it is the present aid is wanted. If you think of working inde pendently your old and now tried friends, the National teachers in the different counties will assist you. And many a young man and young woman would be able to emigrate even with two pounds assistance that otherwise must stay in hardship at home. I believe you would have little trouble in the matter. The teachers would select fitting candidates, the passages could be engaged with Ships Agents and you could devise means to guard against
all fraud. I had the notion of troubling you with my remarks, but I have been so besieged with applications that I could not avoid writing for definite information. I am my Dear Sir Your very old servant Patrick Mahon Behey Ballyshannon Vere Foster Esq. Belfast |
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Notes: From a very interesting website 'dúchas.ie' *
(Behey) the present National School was built in 1862. Previous to the lost named edge School there existed another.
This school was held in a barn on the Cashelard Road leading from Cashelard Church to the village of Trummon
and about half a mile from the church. The barn was the property of Patrick Murray (Mahon sp?)
who died several years ago. a very old man. His family still reside here and a new barn was built on the side of
the old Hedge School. There is no record of the Subjects taught in this school. Irish was not taught.
The old people in this district know not a word of Irish. One thing I do know that Penmanship received
very great attention. Slates were enfensively [?] used at the beginning and for working of pens.
Shame heard that the children made seats for themselves. Bag of hay and stoves build of lierf [?] or similar commodities.
A very large stone was made to do service for a seat.
*A project to digitalise the National Folklore Collection of Ireland, one of the largest folklore collections in the world.
Material from 26 counties in the Schools’ Collection is available here now.
New material is being added on a phased basis.
https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4428258/4389402
Vere Foster: In 1847 Foster visited a family estate in County Louth, Ireland at the time of the Great Famine,
with his eldest brother, Sir Frederick George Foster.
They became involved in famine relief. In 1848 their father died, Vere Foster underwent a crisis in his life,
and he came to concentrate on philanthropy in Ireland.
In 1879, with the Land War in Ireland, Foster concentrated on promoting female emigration
to the United States and the British colonies. Young women were assisted, numbering 18,000 in 1880–3.
He was supported in his projects by both Catholic and Protestant clergy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vere_Henry_Louis_Foster