I began posting exerpts from an old book of mine to the Ireland list yesterday. It dates back to somewhere in the early 1800's - is in very bad condition and I've often picked it up and flicked though it a bit. Not much - because of it's condition. I always wondered who the author was - now I know.......and I liked his words. You have to be careful in the reading of it - to just flick through what he says - he reads like someone screaming or shouting for Catholic emancipation - criticising Protestants - inciting uprising and the likes......there are speeches in the book written and presented by others - very moving - powerful words I've already had someone from the Ireland list tell me that politics and religion are not allowed on that list - to me this book is neither. People who do not live in this country and whose ancestors left it because of the famine or persecution of one sort or another tend to be emotional about our history. On most newsgroups at some stage or other, there has been some discussion re irish history - people end up flaming one another - each trying to be the more expert on Irish History - trying to outdo the other - prove one point or another. Anyone who knows me will know that I have always spoken of there being two sides to every story - that the famine didn't just affect Catholics, that it didn't just affect the poor. I have spoken over the years of those good people who were Protestants who left as much as they could to poor Catholics in their wills. I have said that statistically if we were to work it all out - if we ever manage to find those full figures - protestants sufferered because of the famine in Ireland as well. We hear about Catholics because their numbers were so great. Yes, at the time of the famine - the larger landowners were Protestants - some of them were very good people, allowing their estates to go to wrack and ruin before they tried to take rents from people who had nothing, others - were hard hearted people, not caring a fig. We also had Catholics mixed up in al that - managing land - cold hard people... To me, religion has no part to play in what happened the common people, it didnt matter if you were protestant or catholic - if you were poor - then you were at the bottom of the latter - the laws of survival applied. history books - they are generally only as good as their author - some had very strong beliefs one way or the other and so give facts in the way they want to....or exclude those that they want to. I didn't mean to ramble on - but I would like to post extracts frm this book to the Wexford list. I believe the book has historical and genealogical value. It also has more for Wexford, because while the author speaks somewhat in terms of what happened through the whole of Ireland at the time of the 1798 Uprising, he concentrates on Wexford. He was from Co. Wexford. He talks about events during the rising, he gives names - he talks about places. I ask those of you who are of Catholic descent - to please read carefully what is being said - see the other side.don't just see the bits about catholics. I ask those of you who are of protestant descent not to home in on the bits about catholic emancipation and Catholics......read the words. Do not half read any of these posts as they come along - they won't be coming too fast as I am doing many things. I ask you all to read the words and to see that these people make a distinction between the 'English' and those who descend from English people who settled in Ireland in the years prior to 1798. They speak of Irish people......Catholics and Protestants......being one people 'Irish' people. While a lot of it has to do with well to do catholics.......I think that the heart of it applies to all....... Some will agree with me, some won't.......it's just more of the 1798 story..........however, the reading of it just adds to your knowledge of the times in the county your ancestors came from. If you don't like these posts - then please set your mail programme to delete. Thanks, Jane