ROTHER JEROME n 1910, an unusually gifted young Christian Brother died in Dublin of tuber- culosis. In the previous thirteen years he had pro- duced no fewer than eleven textbooks, on his own initiative or in collaboration with others, the first of them when he was nineteen years of age. Yet he was not proclaimed within the order for his achievements, and even the Gaelic League accorded him but a slight remembrance."' There were reasons why Br. Jerome Fitzpatrick was largely ignored within the Congregation at his death in 1910. In the preliminaries for the general chapter of that same year he was considered among the radicals of the order - both in his politics and towards contemporary questions of religious life. He was not elected to the chapter. In the event, that general chapter was deeply divided on some issues and Brother Jerome was associated with the minority group. In a post-chapter atmosphere of divisiveness and bitterness a number of Brothers left the order - and Brother Jerome died. His necrology "Life" was written by a member of the general council. It was short and bland, a mere four pages, quite inadequate to do justice to its subject. When the necrology was printed, in a number of communities, Br. Jerome's "Life" was torn from the book by his friends; better he remain little known that that he be dammed with faint praise. Unaware of these proceedings, but aware of his son's commitment, Brother Jerome's father had remarked: "My son was a great fighter for lost cause^".'^' Man in religious life remains a uolitical animal and the brokenness of the human condition permeates the cloister on occasions. However, enough of long-forgotten unpleasantness. It is time to pay tribute to a great pioneer of the Language Movement, whose work in collaboration with leading members of the Gaelic League did more than anything else to cement the image of the Christian Brothers as the driving educational force within the movement to revive the Irish language. Jerome Fitzpatrick was born in Cork and educated at the North Monastery Br. Terome Fitmatrick. where he scored impressive an epoch in the history of the Irish results in the Intermediate revival. Examinations between 1892 and In May, 1902, Fitzpatrick sent a 1894.(3'In the latter year,he joined copy of his new book to Douglas the Christian Brothers and by the Hyde with the following dedic- following year, when he was 19 ation: "As a small token of years old he was receiving advice gratitude for your assistance to and assistance from Eoin McNeill me on several occasion^".^^^ on his First Irish Grammar, as he Meanwhile, Brother Jerome had wrote: "Thank you for your begun work on his Anrotated kindness in correcting the Irish Irish Texts before the finbl release exercises ... I am continuing the of the Irish Grammar. T,$s new Second Book(4' work necessitated some negot- By 1898, Fitzpatrick was iation with Douglas Hyde in May, teaching the Middle Grade 1902, when Fitzpatrick wrote Intermediate class at CBS Synge Hyde a long and emotional letter, Street, Dublin, and was achieving obviously the work of a man exceptional results with his under some strain. They had met students. There was a dearth of at a function at the Rotunda some resource material for teachers time before, when Fitzpatrick had and students of Irish: few been unaware that Hyde himself grammar books, dictionaries, had prepared an edition of the essay books and short stories same short stories. Understand- were available. In his spare time ably, Hyde did not want another Fitzpatrick began work on an similar book placed on the Irish Grammar which was to market. establish his reputation in Irish- Fitzpatrick told Hyde that he Ireland circles. had prepared a complete vocabul- In December, 1900, Fitzpatrick ary for students using the wrote to McNeill "once again" Annotated Irish Texts and now he for assistance with his new book offered this vocabulary in return "in aid of a noble cause". He had for Hyde's permission to publish rewritten the first draft, paying an expurgated edition of the attention to all McNeill's suggest- proposed book. As he said: "There ions, and now requested an are several schools which will not endorsement of his work to assist take up Irish as long as our in having it published. It is also The title page of "Irish Grammar", 1901. prescribed authors contain any- plain that McNeill was in the thing which is objectionable". process of writing or revising the Since there is a good deal of chapter on the irregular verbs for the and it was soon released. Immediately robust sexuality in the stories of the Tain, proposed te~tbook.'~'It is not possible to there was an encouraging response from an expurgated edition was necessary for specify exactly to what extent Eoin reviewers. One noted that the Christian teachers dealing with young and McNeill was involved in the preparation Brothers had been "very emphatic" in innocent children. of the text but collaboration appears to thanking Mr. John McNeill for his Fitzpatrick concluded his appeal by have been close, rather than casual. Br. invaluable and generous assistance with recounting his extraordinary efforts on Jerome had also sought and received the preparation of the book. The reviewer behalf of the language revival: sleepless help from Mr. W. Shortall, a lay teacher at noted that since McNeill had worked on nights, sacrificed vacations and holidays CBS Synge Street. Shortall did proof- the book its excellence was guaranteed, "through a purely disinterested zeal for reading and gave secretarial assistance to and because it emanated from the the re-establishment of our dear old him when he was away from Dublin on Christian Brothers it was assured wide t~ngue"."~'He concluded by stressing summer holidays in the Dingle penin- and immediate ac~eptance.'~' that a bowdlerized version of Hyde's sula. Shortall also wrote the chapter on McNeill himself, was one of the work would permit more schools to take "Irish Phonetics" for the text.(6' reviewers and his comments in the Irish up the study of the language. A month after his previous letter, Ecclesiastical Record were less fulsome Hyde gave the required permission, Fitzpatrick thanked McNeill for "your and more technical. More enthusiastic and in his letter of acknowledgement beautiful notes on the Irish verb" and than most was the anonymous reviewer Fitzpatrick mentioned that since the first added: in the IriCh People who outlined at edition of the Irish Grammar was almost I am delighted with your arrangement of length the previous services of the sold out, he was revising the material. the tenses and voices. I can assure you Christian Brothers to the people of He invited Hyde's suggestions."" In that I have used your manuscript very Ireland: they had fought the Satanic de- view of this success with Brother freely. I sometimes say to myself that by nationalizing tendencies of the Com- Jerome's work, the Publications Com- the time the book is published I shall have missioners of National Education for mittee of the Gaelic League turned down very little claim to it, as my contribution generations; their textbooks for decades suggestions that any other grammar will form a very small fraction indeed.' had taught Irish children the history and book be prepared, since: "The Committee Notwithstanding all you have already geography of their own country; and are of the opinion that the Simple done for me, I am going to intrude on they had pioneered the revival of the Lessons and the Christian Brothers' your generosity again. There are a few native language by introducing the study Grammar meet our present require- minor p~ints.'~' of Irish into many of their schools. After ments".(14' all this achievement for the nation, their Almost immediately afterwards, In May, 1901, McNeill was invited to new Irish Grammar would be welcomed Fitzpatrick began work on a book which correct the proof-sheets of the text as joyfully by every teacher and student of would be a suitable guide for com- they came from the printer "seeing that the language. The book was described as position practice, that is to say, compos- up to the present I have made so many "splendidly cloth-bound, comprehensive, itions translated from Irish to English slips in the grammar".@'Apparently there with an artistically designed cover and and from English to Irish. None was were no further problems with the work issued at a moderate price"!lO' It marked available in the Irish language. After many enquiries, he obtained a French Irish people associated with the language foreigner who was working on his composition text (i.e. one intended for movement. Fitzpatrick's name was not dissertation "The Contribution of the French students learning English) from on any of his works. This was the Christian Brothers to the Develop- Padraig Pearse and was able to use this Christian Brothers custom at the time. ment of Irish Nationalism, 1802 - as a model for his own work. In this The publishing programme in Irish 1921" (Melbourne University, 1985) proposed Aids to Irish Composition language resource material appeared in Ireland during the 1980s. Fitzpatrick collaborated with Brother V. under the generic title: "The Christian 2. Folklore memories from a number of Casey, who was teaching in Mount Sion, Brothers" and this highlighted the work unrelated sources and gleaned Waterford, and again sought assistance of the Institute as a whole for the during research for my dissertation. from Eoin McNeill. In a letter of language revival to a very wide aud- 3.