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THE department of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that the search is con- tinuing for a Clare woman who has been missing in Italy for 45 days. 82-year old Mairéad Cleary, a na- tive of Cratloe, went missing on Oc- tober 10 while on a holiday in Italy.

Described by her family as very fit and a regular walker, Mrs Geary was on holiday with her active retirement group in Streasa on Logo Maggiore, close to the Italian Swiss border.

She was last seen when she took a cable-car to the top of Mount Motta- rone, a popular viewing spot. When she got to the top, she set off for a walk on her own and has not been seen since. Her family travelled to Italy to be on hand but returned last week after police and rescue officials advised them to go home as there was little they could do there.

KILRUSH is well known for its mar- itime heritage, traditional music and past association with St Senan and the Vandeleur landlord family.

Less publicised, is Kilrush Wood, located within a few hundred metres of the town centre. The wood, which also has a restored walled garden, is now regarded as one of the flagship tourist venture in Clare.

Woodland and town are linked historically and socially: the name Kilrush is derived from the Irish Cill Rois, meaning church of the wood or wooded peninsula.

The wood has a holy well named after the sixth century monk, St Senan, who founded the nearby mo- nastic settlement in Scattery Island. The influence of the Vandeleurs is still evident in both town and wood. They were largely responsible for the unique design of Kilrush, now listed as a heritage town.

The 175 ha wood formed part of the estate of the Vandeleurs, a Dutch family who established a seat in Kil- rush around 1687. Crofton Vandeleur was responsible for the design of the walled garden, surrounding park- lands and wood up to his death in 1795.

The family had been highly regard- ed up until the mid-nineteenth cen- tury, but their popularity waned due mainly to the harsh treatment meted out to some of their tenants during and after the Great Famine.

The West Clare Railway linked

Kilrush with the national rail net- work in 1892 but by then the rela- tionship between tenant and landlord had deteriorated further, especially when Hector Vandeleur – an absentee landlord – took charge of the estate. When the house – built in 1808 – was destroyed by fire in 1897, it effective- ly marked the beginning of the end of the Vandeleurs as major landlords in the area.

The Land Commission took pos- session of the estate in the 1920s and the woodland was taken over by the then Forestry Division and today is managed by Coillte.

The garden itself has been sensi- tively restored and redesigned. It has a variety of plants, trees and shrubs while the centre has a coffee and craft shop and hosts a permanent ex- hibition ‘Kilrush in Landlord Times’, a reminder of both sides of landlord-

ism. Despite the darker side of the Vandeleurs, the people of Kilrush have resisted the temptation to air- brush the name from their history.

Instead they have named the re- stored walled garden after the family and have retained the name in one of the town’s streets.

Like the planting and care of the woodland, it is a confident gesture that looks to the future while ac- knowledging the past without being consumed by it.

It is a gesture that is in tune with the words of T.S. Eliot: “Time present and time past /Are both perhaps present in time future, /And time fu- ture contained in time past.”

AN ADDITIONAL charge has been brought in the case of a man charged in connection with an alleged serious attack at a hair salon in Ennis.

Anthony McDonagh (22), of Wa- terpark View, Ennis, was charged last Friday with producing an axe in the course of a dispute, at Brownie’s hair salon in The Market area of En- nis on September 18 last.

Previously, he was charged with assault causing harm to his second cousin David McDonagh (24), on the same date.

Detective Sergeant Michael Molo- ney told Ennis District Court that he charged the accused last Friday morning and in reply, he said, “I re- quire my solicitor.”

He told the court that the charge sheet was contained in the Book of Evidence that was served on the ac- cused that morning.

The accused’s solicitor asked that the case be adjourned for a fortnight and there was no objection from the SEI

Mr McDonagh was remanded in custody to appear again in court next month.

Wheelchair group launches calendar

A MAN’S eye socket was cracked and put out of place during an early morning altercation in Meelick, it has been claimed in court.

Arising out of the alleged incident, David (23) and Gary (22) Moloney, of Elton Court, Meelick, are accused of assaulting Mark Walsh, causing him harm, at Killavoher, Meelick, on June 28 last.

Inspector Tom Kennedy told Shan- non District Court that Mr Walsh

received serious injuries to his face during a row at 3am.

“From a medical report his eye socket was cracked and put out of place,” he said. He said Mr Walsh’s face was swollen as a result of the incident.

He said he was punched into the face and kicked to the body, whilst on the ground.

Judge Joseph Mangan declined jurisdiction and adjourned the case for preparation of the Book of Evi- dence.

Ballyea GAA in good heart

A THREE-MONTH jail term has been confirmed after a 23-year-old man was found unsuitable for com- munity service.

Previously in court, John McDon- agh, of Halting Site, Ballymurtagh Cross, Shannon, was convicted of handling two boxes of stolen tiles, valued at €68, in Shannon, on No- vember 13, 2007.

A three-month jail term had been handed down, but he would not serve this if he was found suitable for com- munity service.

Shannon District Court heard last Thursday that the accused was not suitable for community service, af- ter he failed to meet an appointment with a probation officer.

His solicitor Tara Godfrey said her

client did not receive correspondence on one occasion.

McDonagh told the court that he did not receive a letter from the Pro- bation service regarding a meeting.

“T live in a halting site. About 10 of us use the letter box. About 10 fami- les use the one letter box,” he said.

“There are a lot of kids there. There could be 30 letters. They could have opened them and realised they were not theirs and dumped them. It has been happening,” he said.

He said that he made a complained to the local postman but did not take Wem ONE IAKoMRUDMN OOM

Ms Godfrey then said her client did not get a letter reminding him of an appointment with the Probation service.

Judge Joseph Mangan confirmed the three-month jail term.

Top Munster award for paint retailers

A MAN who was caught taking ma- terial from a plant in Shannon im- mediately put it back, a court has heard.

Seamus McAllister (41), of East Singland Road, Garryowen, Limer- ick, admitted a charge of burglary at Boart Longyear, Shannon Industrial Estate, on January 13 last.

Shannon District Court heard that a generator, drill, halogen lamp, seven rolls of copper and a vice were taken

from the premises.

Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that the accused was seen putting the items into a vehicle, but then returned them. The incident oc- curred on a Sunday afternoon.

“Nothing was in fact taken. It would appear the defendant was in the process of taking the material,’ he said.

Defending solicitor Ted McCarthy said the generator was small and the items could be purchased quite cheaply.

“He accepts what he did was wrong,’ he said. “He has not been before the courts in 15 years. Dur- ing that time, he has turned himself around,” he added.

He said his client thought the build- ing was derelict.

Inspector Kennedy accepted that the accused had fully co-operated. Judge Joseph Mangan imposed a fine of €400.

Frances graduates with flying colours