I am raising this issue this evening to draw attention to a man whose memory is completely neglected, who is almost a forgotten Irishman and who was connected with the Irish national revival. That is strange because he was a leading figure in that movement, that revival, particularly in regard to the literary renaissance, which in turn gave rise to the national renaissance that took place on this island in the latter part of the 19th century. That inspired and lit the flame of nationhood out of which grew this very State in 1922. In addition, Douglas Hyde was installed as the first constitutional Head of State — an tÚachtarán — in a rare piece of political consensus and generosity in 1938. It is also appropriate, in this, the fiftieth year of the adoption of the Constitution, that mention should be made here of this man and the Constitution which conferred on him the highest office in the land, and well deservedly so. It is also appropriate that mention be made of this great man since he was a member of the Seanad between 1925 and 1926, a fact that is indeed little known.
I am raising the neglect of Douglas Hyde in the context of requesting the Minister in charge of the Office of Public Works to assist by way of contributing finance and technical assistance to the project of the Church of Ireland parish church in Frenchpark, County Roscommon, for a national commemoration to mark the inauguration of Douglas Hyde as the first constitutional President in 1938. That will take place in the summer of 1988. The location for the commemoration is wholly appropriate because in the cemetery in the church grounds is the grave of Douglas Hyde. The project is to restore the church which has a long association with Dr. Hyde and with his family. Here, as we have said, is his resting place.
The project is sponsored by the Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society with the assistance of Roscommon County Council. Under the sponsorship of the Historical and Archaeological Society the restoration has commenced, using an AnCO community youth training programme. While most of the major restoration work can be done through the AnCO programme all of the finer details and the finishings concerned with the refurbishment will need the employment of artisans or craftsmen. The total cost will be £150,000. While there will be some limited local contribution the greater part of the funding must come from public funding. This, we would submit, would be a small, long overdue tribute to this very great Irishman and it is only right that public funds would be the source of funding. This is why we are appealing to the Minister for financial assistance and technical co-operation, particularly from his office, the Office of Public Works, which has an excellent reputation for carrying out this kind of work. Let not the political masters of the Office of Public Works lose their reputations by failing to vote the necessary finance for this most worthy national project.
I would like to speak for a moment about the church itself. It was built in 1740, and I might make that correction now because my motion referred to a 17th century chuch and in fact it is an 18th century church. It has been a continuous place of worship for all those years since 1740. Now, alas, its congregation has dwindled to two families. It is a very unusual and unique building and it is one of the older Church of Ireland churches in this country. It consists of a single main aisle and a small side vestry. The vaulted ceiling of the church is one of very high craftmanship and is most unusual especially for its period.
The proposal is to restore this ancient building and to keep it intact as a perpetual memorial to Dr. Hyde to commemorate his contribution to national life and his contribution to this State. In addition to it being a memorial it will be an interpretive centre, interpreting for this and coming generations the life and great contribution of Dr. Hyde. This will consist of a permanent exhibition of plaques and displays around the building and an audio-visual presentation. The restored building will be open to the public and will be looked after by a caretaker.
This is the only building extant in the country that has close associations with Dr. Hyde. His father was Rector of the church from 1867 to 1905. Douglas Hyde lived in the Rectory from the age of seven until he was 20, by which time he had become a student of law and divinity at Trinity College where he was a very brilliant student, excelling in particular as a linguist.
During his childhood years at the nearby Rectory which, alas, is now totally derelict, he received his primary education. In the countryside surrounding the Rectory he first heard and learned the Irish language. Irish was still widely spoken in this area in the second half of the 19th century. It was from here, where he recorded the stories of local folklorists in their native tongue, that he found inspiration and material for much of his later literary work. I have in mind his Love Songs of Connacht, a collection of poems which he published in 1893 and Beside the Fire, a series of folk tales he published in 1899.
Again, the Minister will see the need to commemorate him in this place, the place of his youthful inspiration for what he achieved afterwards in the literary field, in the cultural field and, indeed, in the political and constitutional fields. I might mention also that the centre will attract many visitors and tourists. Tourist surveys clearly show that most tourists, let them be national or international, like to visit places of archaeological or historical association and this centre is situated on the national primary route to the west. On this very same route and in very close proximity are other historical places like Rathcroghan, the ancient royal seat of Connacht, Clonalis House in Castlerea, the finest terraced house in Ireland and the County Heritage Centre at Strokestown, just to mention a few.
Not alone will there be a commemoration to mark Dr. Hyde's inauguration as first constitutional President in 1938 — and that will be next year — in the years following there will be further perpetuation of his memory by the establishment of an annual Hyde Summer School which, hopefully, will become an international affair like the Yates Summer School in Sligo or the Merriman Summer School in County Clare. Finally, we appeal to the Minister through the Office of Public Works to give technical and financial assistance to this project. This is not a local project; this is not a county project; this is a national project. Douglas Hyde in his life and in his contribution belonged to this country. We believe it is the clear duty of the Government to pay some tribute to this man who received very little tribute for what he achieved, for what he did so unselfishly for the country during his life time. He was the co-founder of the Gaelic League and its first president from 1893 to 1915. He was the driving force behind that movement which did so much for the revival of the Irish language.
Dr. Hyde in his own right was a literary giant; he was a chief inspiration of people like W.B. Yates and Lady Gregory. We all know our own historians agree that it was this literary renaissance which, in turn, gave inspiration to the rebirth of nationalism here in Ireland — and I said earlier that nationalism gave us this State. We in the State responded. Douglas Hyde became this country's first constitutional President and he served from 1938 to 1943 with great distinction.
Today, the only standing memorial to him is a small tombstone in the Church of Ireland churchyard at Portahard near Frenchpark and it is high time that we took up the clear responsibility we have towards this great man, I call on the Minister to do what he can. He may tell us this evening that funds are limited but I ask him to take back this message to the Government, to the Taoiseach and to the other Ministers and Departments who have functions in this field — the Department of Education, the Department of the Taoiseach who administer, say, the national lottery. If there was ever a project that should qualify for funding from the national lottery, that is, if the national lottery is to stay close to the purposes for which it set up, this project surely deserves aid from it. The Government office we know best that can give assistance to this kind of project in terms of technical assistance and, most often financial assistance, is the Office of Public Works. There our appeal lies and we sincerely hope the Minister will have good news for us.
