The Clare People Archive

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A JUDGE left his bench after a pris- oner lashed out during a district court sitting in Ennis on Thursday. Several prison officers and gardai restrained the young man, who lashed out af- ter a young woman approached him from the body of the court, at Shan- non District Court, sitting in Ennis courthouse.

As he was being restrained, the young man in his 20s — with an ad- dress in Shannon — screamed at gardai, while the girl also lashed out and roared, “Get off my brother.” The young woman was immediately taken from the courtroom by gardai, while the man — who was in court, charged with motoring offences — was taken back to the cell by prison eno ne

Judge Joseph Mangan left the bench while the incident was taking place and returned to the courtroom after calm had been restored. A short time later, Inspector Tom Kennedy, pros- ecuting, asked that the young man’s

case be adjourned for a month. The defendant’s solicitor said his client was involved in the fracas and was “in a very highly elated and aggres- sive state’. Judge Mangan adjourned the case until July 16 next.

This was the second time that the same courtroom was the scene of chaos in recent weeks. Five weeks ago, three prison officers ended up in hospital with injuries after a prisoner lashed out and attacked them, also during a Shannon District Court sit- ting in Ennis.

One officer sustained a broken arm and was bitten, another received head and shoulder injuries and was detained overnight in hospital, while a third sustained a badly swollen wrist. The incident occurred after a 30-year-old prisoner – in custody at Limerick prison – became irate.

It took several prison officers and gardai to control the man, who was handcuffed, as he lashed out both physically and verbally outside the courtroom and later in the holding AI eCey ace b race

ENNIS’ status as one of Ireland’s ti- diest towns was reaffirmed yesterday when the County Clare capital won a second major prize in just over a iste @

Ennis was named as Ireland’s Best Kept Large Urban Centre, at Ireland’s Best Kept Town competition.

The winning entrants were drawn from winners of the 2008 Tidy Towns competition and the Super Valu Best Kept Town Awards in Northern Ire- land.

The Department of the Environ- ment, Heritage and Local Govern- ment and the NIAC initiated the Ireland’s Best Kept Towns competi- tion in 1995 to help raise the profile of both the Tidy Towns and Northern Ireland’s “Best Kept” competitions, and so help to improve the standard of towns and villages across the 1s- land of Ireland.

Ennis was marked against strict adjudication criteria that included cleanliness, the outward appear- ance of buildings, the presentation of roads and public facilities and the natural environment.

Minister of State Tony Killeen commented that Ennis’ award suc- cess could not have been accom- plished without the support of the wider community.

The Junior Agriculture Minister said, “Ireland’s Best Kept Town com- petition provides members of the lo- cal community with the opportunity

to show their pride in their respective towns and villages. It is evident from Ennis’ outstanding success in this year’s competition that the spirit of volunteerism and pride of place is very much alive in the county capi- tal’.

“Despite the huge volumes of peo- ple that live in and visit Ennis, it has successfully managed to retain its unique heritage, charm and tidy ap- pearance,’ he added.

Miss Doreen Muskett MBE, Presi- dent of the Northern Ireland Amen- ity Council said, “We are delighted for Newcastle in taking the overall title, and well done to Loughgall, Ennis and Glenties for their success

in this year’s competition. Judging is never an easy task when you are comparing the best towns and vil- lages across Ireland, but there is a very healthy and good natured spirit of competition among the entrants.”

This is the second time in over a week Ennis has been recognized as one of Ireland’s best-kept towns.

Last week, Ennis was named as the second cleanest town in Ireland in the latest Irish Anti Business Against Litter IBAL) survey.

Bosses should share pain

KILKISHEN GAA Club will provide a guard of honour today for the funer- al of local man Kevin McMahon.

The 23-year-old died last Saturday after spending almost a week on a life Support machine in a Spanish hospi- tal. The holiday tragedy took place early last week when Mr McMahon hit his head while diving into a swim- ming pool.

He was pronounced dead on Satur- day night after members of his family had travelled to be by his side.

Mr McMahon, who has an address at Plunkett Drive in Kilkishen, repre- sented the county at U-14 and U-16 level, and worked for local council- lor Joe Cooney (FG) for a number of erie

VILLAGES, I think are the most interesting and unique of all human shelters. They have a character and personality you don’t get in cities or towns, which are by their very nature private and impersonal, and certainly the same degree of human contact and cohesion never obtains.

But like everything else on this planet, villages have felt the wind of change blow harshly up and down their single streets. In many cases, it can be called progress, but that also demands a price and, while it 1s an in- disputable fact that standards of living have vastly improved in the developed world, it is also a little sad to see some of the changes that have taken place to accomplish this.

Where are all the great characters that lit up our impressionable youth with their antics: sometimes hilarious sometimes eccentric, but never dull? The box in the corner of the room has supplanted their entertainment. Imag- ine one of them coining in now while ‘Coronation Street’ or “Fair City’ was holding the room spellbound. His en- try (a nightly and very welcome fea- ture then) would be a very unpopular interruption now and he’d be told to “whist up’. A house I knew in my youth had a wind-up gramophone and whenever the spirit moved the woman of the house (which it frequently did) she’d wind it up, put on the McNul- ty Brothers, Delia Murphy or some dance music on an old 78 and a half set lifted the gloom of the hungry ‘30s and ‘40s, even though the cot- tage kitchen floor seriously restricted movement, with no room for fancy steps or pirouettes, but it didn’t curtail enjoyment, homemade, unsophisti- cated and spontaneous.

My own village, Cooraclare, where I was baptised and confirmed, has changed but not, in my view, as seri- ously as other bigger centres of popu- lation. In my far-off youth, the Sugan City had an array of characters from the creamery to Ryan’s Store on the Kilrush Road.

Dennis Horgan was the creamery manager – an onerous and well re- garded job then, now only a memory. He was a Kerryman and a most inter- esting and colourful man who knew and lived football. Mary Ellen and Sinon Considine owned a fine shop across the road and on Sunday morn- ing before Mass it would take Moss Keane to battle his way to the counter. Tom Mac moved in from Dromelihy and set up a nice little shop with his wife, Mary, under the Old School. Tom was an all-round man of many parts, combining business acumen with a natural ability on the stage. Gura, fada buan thu, Tom. Can you still sing Rowledum Randy, Tom?

Brock’s pub dominated the street; Mick on his grey house was a feature of the road to Kilrush: both very well turned out. The pub, later bought by Tom Doherty, became the Own Pride Inn (a great tracker mat I almost had at stud).

Jacky Mclnerney, a postman and a lovely man we affectionately called Jacky Nutty, looked after our bicycles and sold us my first Rudge in 1939. He and his red terrier, Bully, were on our team as we set out to make life miser- able (and short) for Raynard in Lios

a tSeabhach, Burnpark or Campbell’s grove in Dromelihy. The Guards in Tudlows on the Danganella road re- moved the tongue and gave you half a crown. Powertul!

John Joe Conway, affectionately known as Bully, with no threatening undertones, delivered telegrams for Martin Joe Doherty, the soft spoken and most agreeable postmaster. John Joe ran a small shop opposite the chapel gate and every Sunday morn- ing before Mass the ‘Man from the Clochar’ laid out his stall of seafood. Fresh fish, seagrass with a lovely salty flavour, baimeachs in a tank of brine, periwinkles and a seagrass called Slamhcan that was boiled with ba- con instead of cabbage (often scarce in a late spring). He did a roaring trade and your greyhound (a sixpenny piece) went a long way with the long- gone “Man from the Clochar’.

Next to the Chapel gate was D’arcy’s. One of whose girls was the mother of TD and Senator, Brendan Daly who later served with distinction as Min- ister for Defence. Then there was Tubridy’s pub. Three of the Tubridy boys gave great service to the parish football team. Martin, Tom and the youngest, Shamashin, who when he donned the black and amber Number 11 gansey never took a backward step from any opponent. He emigrated to

London and died there, still a young man. Leaba imeasc na Naomh duit, a Sater UeerNnuee

The sable-clad carpenter, Micko Carey, did all our building and car- pentry work and was a master crafts- man and a family friend. His son, John, played football for the village at Number 6, with distinction for many years and he and his wife were a thorn in the side of the track bookmakers with their very successful kennel of racing dogs. His brother, Stevie, won a very competitive Irish Coursing Oaks in Clonmel with his very fast bitch, Lady Item. The local coursers suitably fined the Clonmel bookies and celebrated accordingly.

Across the road, on the elbow of the village, was Meades where my neighbour, John Connell, with whom I sometimes went to Mass, stabled Fanno. I often went down to the river- bank to watch and listen to the sound of running water (which | think has a soothing, calming effect) as the river made its way to Doonbeg Castle and the ocean.

Mitchel Lillis always kept and drove a good horse and his lifetime inter- est was the local and county football team. He lived for the game and fit- tingly his son, Mickey, won senior championship medals in Clare and Laois, when he went on to win a Na-

tional Club Championship with Port- laoise. A great day for the Lillis family and the Sugan City. Mitchel’s cousin, affectionaxely known as Solas, was a top-class musician and entertained many an appreciative audience with his distinctive style on the accordion. Another great Milesian supporter was postman Frank O’Brien, whose broth- er Pana was a nationally acclaimed football star, having played for Clare, centre-back in front of Jamsie Foran and Micko Connole in goal in the 1917 All Ireland final, when Wexford won the third of their four in a row. Frank wrote and sang the beautifully evocative ‘Around the Chapel Gate in Cooraclare’, in which he proclaims proudly his love for and pride in his native place. Frank emigrated to Chi- cago to join Pana and sadly died far away from the Sugan City. A lovely and very talented man.

George Russell’s forge was down by the water’s edge at the bridge. We of- ten congregated at its gable-end with the blue-head worm, when the river was in flood. Inside, many discussions went on, with customers and some of the village’s retired workforce settling the world’s problems, while George worked at his bellows and anvil mak- ing sweet music and watching “the river fret and foam”. George is long gone to God and his profession is now

history: in a village where sweet an- vil-music rang out from three forges serving the needs of the local hinter- land, even the physical evidence of the forges is gone, mo lean!

Dan Irving, who taught for many years in the village school, acted as secretary when Irish coursing people met in Clonmel and set up the ICC when they decided to secede from the English coursing governing body, post 1916. A lovely, gentle gentleman, he was married to a sister of Con Col- bert – one of the heroes of the 1916 period. Sadly she died young. Her son was called Con after his executed uncle. Con was an army officer, post- man and later owned Maria Frawley’s pub. John Thomas Cassidy lived up towards the top of the village and was for a while my next-door neighbour when he lodged with Mrs Connell in Tullabrack from where he cycled to Moyasta National School where he taught for many years. An interesting and precisely spoken man who was our guest almost nightly.

I have walked a village Ulysses from the Creamery to the bridge and have mentioned just a few of the colour- ful characters who walked its street. They and many, many more who have slipped through the widening fissures of an 83-year-old memory don’t de- serve to be forgotten. They were an integral and active part of the village scene and were, like the plucky lit- tle man from Tarsus, “citizens of no neon ae

I look back with pride on the Sugan City and its environs and will always remember the happy days of boyhood when I cycled up and down with my dog, Sam

BUSINESS interests have said they are “appalled” at news that transat- lantic routes are to be cut from Shan- non this winter.

Warning that transatlantic services are “vital for the future of the mid- west’, Ennis Chamber of Commerce chief executive Rita McInerney said that they were “appalled to learn of the intention to cut routes to the U.S. from Shannon. No other region in Ireland is as dependent on invest- ment and industry from the United States as the mid-west’, she said.

“The removal of connections to New York JFK and Chicago O’Hare Airports, can only lead to uncertain- ty with regard to the future of foreign direct investment in the region and will also serve to threaten the reten- tion of the existing U.S. industry.

“The Shannon Region is home to many US companies employing thousands of people, directly and indirectly, who require direct links to the major cities in the US. These jobs are now under serious threat with this announcement.”

“The mistreatment of and lack of commitment to Shannon Airport by Government 1s counteractive to their

supposed policy of Balanced Region- al Development within the country. It continues to fail to protect strategic

air links,’ Ms McInerney said. Ennis Chamber President Guy Flouch, said “At a time when local

businesses, the Chamber and other representative bodies are seeking to increase inward investment into En- nis and the Atlantic corridor, this de- cision is another short-sighted exam- ple of how the country continues to refuse to think outside the box.

“Not only will industrial growth in the mid-west benefit the region but will have an enormously positive impact on a balanced development of the country’s economic infrastruc- MUTKOMB DO CONloI ete

“The Government and Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey, as the ma- jor stakeholder in Aer Lingus, should meet urgently with the Chairperson of Aer Lingus Colm Barrington to encourage a more far-sighted ap- proach – with reference to the recent decision and strategic planning – that will benefit the business of Aer Lin- gus as well as that of the mid-west and Ireland’, Mr Flouch said.

Decision could be ‘as fool-hardy as Heathrow’

Shannon’s Delta blues

ENNIS has been listed as the second cleanest town in Ireland in the latest Irish Business Against Litter IBAL) anti-litter league survey.

Some 68 per cent of Irish towns and cities are now classed as “‘litter free’, including Ennis and Shannon, according to the latest survey.

However, the group is warning that many areas are likely to suffer this summer with the large-scale re- duction of weekend cleaning due to budget cuts.

Ennis finished in second position, holding onto its ‘Clean to European Norms’ status from the last round of 2008, whilst Shannon, having re-en- tered the league, has finished in 13th position, also “Clean to European \lereneky

The survey of 60 towns and cit- ies, conducted by An Taisce on be- half of IBAL, revealed Wexford to be Ireland’s cleanest town, ahead of Ennis. The number of “Litter Free” areas nationwide hit a record high of 41. Athlone and Mallow were the country’s sole litter blackspots, with Arklow ‘seriously littered’.

“An excellent result for Ennis – eight out of the ten sites surveyed got the top litter grade – these were not just clear of litter but fresh and well presented environments, Woodstock View, Kilrush Road Shopping Centre and Car Park, St Clare’s School and N85 approach and R475 approach roads,’ commented a spokesperson

for An Taisce.

An Tasice’s report described Wood- stock View as an “excellent site” while the report states that “there is certainly a feeling of house proud residents’ at Woodview, Radhairc na Coulle.

St Clare’s School was another site rated as ‘clean to European norms’.

“The overall impression at the grounds of this school was of a fresh, clean and well maintained site. Clearly it is not only well cared for but respected by the users’, the re-

port states.

Of Shannon’s performance, a spokesperson for An Taisce said, “Shannon has rejoined IBAL Anti- Litter Survey and it has scored very well with seven out of the ten sites surveyed getting the top litter grade. The remaining three sites were mod- erately littered. All four of the ap- proach routes surveyed got the top litter grade – creating a positive first impression of the town.”

Scoil Naoimh Padraig was rated as ‘Clean to European Norms’. “Not

only was this school environment clear of litter but it was also very well maintained – a credit to the pupils and those responsible for the mainte- nance,’ the report states.

Cul na gCeapagh and the Drum- geely Approach Road were also praised in An Taisce’s report.