Oh, I cannot resist! YES, I can speak honestly and say that when our branch or Kirwin women get together, several things are true (and I have cousins on this list who will tell you if I lie...) it is hard to shut us up, we laugh LOTS, we are very strong, some folks do think we are a bit peculiar, but don't care, we know we just have great genes! Anyone else out there willing to "confess"..... I agree, it is quite sad to look at the statistics of those who were arrested and what the charges were - as you say often charges resulting from poverty or hunger. The info is important as it lets us know how they got here (or to Australia), many times the sentences were commuted by ship captains who let them off the boat before they ever reached a prison and, as you say, once here their lives improved and we are all the result of it all! Here is the link to the Kirwin, Kansas homepage http://skyways.lib.ks.us/kansas/towns/Kirwin/ and another link to info on Kirwin, unfortunately, not alot on its founder http://raven.cc.ukans.edu/~hisite/kancoll/books/cutler/phillips/phillips-co-p3.html#KIRWIN. Jana Mingzmom@aol.com wrote: > In a message dated 8/13/98 10:31:14 AM, you wrote: > > <<Teressa Kirwain, female, age 55, lodger, born NS, parents born NS, > catholic, pauper, unsound mind. > ------------------------------------------------->> > By jiminy!! Now I know where the family "problem" comes from -- all the Kirwin > women are slightly wierd --or so I have heard. And before you all jump on me > -- I, too, am a Kirwin woman.