The Dignified People of Arranmore

by REV. Robert L. Stevenson, S.J.

© Irish Independent, 30th July, 1970

If business or good fortune brings you to Burtonport, you should not miss the opportunity of visiting Arranmore, the island three miles off the Donegal coast. If you can spend a week there, all the better; for it will leave not only pleasant memories and impressions, but will also be an object lesson in many of the things that are best in Irish Catholicism. The island is a hundred per cent Catholic and Irish speaking.

Were our roads better surfaced, wider and straighter, one could speak of the luxury-trip by express coach from Dublin. As things stand, it is swift, interesting and as comfortable as the roads will allow. But Letterkenny, the terminus, is still 40 miles from Burtonport, and this latter journey brings one through landscapes which are so incredibly beautiful in both colour and form. Mountains, hills, and valleys slip by on either side, steeped according to the season and the light, in variegated greens, gorse yellow, heather blue or peat brown.

On arrival at Burtonport, I found that the ferry had been awaiting me for over an hour. My apologies to Phil Bán, were politely swept aside with a smile. The industrious and enterprising islanders do not permit themselves to become slaves of the clock--man matters more than time. And even if they did, their courtesy would never allow a manifestation of impatience to a visitor.

The Ferry:

The sturdy island-built ferry does about eight knots, and takes over twenty minutes for the three-mile trip, past Rutland Island and Inishfree. Mr. Bonner, one of the headmasters, recounted to me as we crossed the tales of Grainne Uí Mheille and Napper Tandy which local tradition associates with Rutland.

We were a party of seven or eight in all, including a young man and an old lady of over eighty, both returning from Glasgow on vacation. The ferry carried the island mailbags, and a large cargo of concrete building blocks, provisions and an assortment of bulky merchandise. We disposed ourselves as comfortably as possible on cases, crates and packages, chatting meanwhile as if we had known one another for half a lifetime.

Dr. Eugene McDermott, the genial curate, met me on landing and welcomed me to his modest ‘teach an t-sagairt’, which is set in surroundings of land--and seascapes, upon which the opulent jet-set could certainly cast an envious eye.

Arranmore, seven miles long and four broad, twenty-eight sq. miles in all. It suports between nine hundred and a thousand people who, though speaking a most beautiful Irish, have experienced no difficulty in mastering (compulsory?) English.

In the late spring sunshine, the island looked like fairyland, backed by May-blue skies, and billowy, white clouds, and hemmed in on all sides by the wind whipped deep blue sea. On every hand well built and well kept houses stand proudly on their own holdings - some indeed are attractive and modern bungalows.

Driving from the jetty one sees lavishly stocked shops and a good supply of motor cars, which seem to imply a comfortable prosperity.

The majority of the houses have every "mod.con". All are lighted by electricity and have bottled gas for cooking. Rooms are carpeted and tastefully furnished, while most bedrooms have modern interior sprung mattresses. Radio and TV sets, fridge’s and washing machines abound, and many already have luxurious bathrooms with "h and c". The energetic Development Committee is presently engaged on a piped water scheme for every home.

Bird Song:

My first morning was a Sunday and I was awakened by bird song. Cuckoos and larks, finches and thrushes were busily enjoying themselves in the sunshine, I made my way down for Mass, through rows of late daffodils and a profusion of wild spring flowers. The church was full to overflowing, all age groups being represented. Many of the very old people had walked over four miles cross-country, and would be back again for evening service. The Mass was, of course, in Irish, and everyone joined in the responses with, one felt, exceptional fervour and enthusiasm.

After breakfast, Father McDermott drove me to see the island lighthouse. We passes along the side of an island lake of considerable size, and over an unbelievably rough and stony road. While most of the roads, though narrow, are tarmacadamed, this one badly needs the attention of the county council.

We spent the early afternoon chatting with the keeper. He is quite a character and like so many thousands of Irish people, scattered all over the country, would make a most interesting and informative guest on television. Intelligent and skilled in his work, both wise and humorous, he entertained us in a manner which many viewers would undoubtedly appreciate.

Contented:

The people of Arranmore are exceptional, if not indeed unique. They have a quiet dignity and self confidence, while warm hearted and friendly with all. They are hard-working and enterprising and, unlike so many people, especially in highly developed countries, contented and happy. The children of school-going age have to be seen to be believed. Simple and unspoilt, they are handsome, clever and friendly - a most attractive set! They give the impression of being exceptionally well cared for by their parents, well dressed, well mannered and courteous.

But the really striking thing about Arranmore people is their strong and lively faith. One and all they are well educated, well informed, and travelled, but all their knowledge and experience is shot through, with a deep sense of the things of God, which permeates their activities in a joyous manner.

As far as my knowledge reaches, there is not a single non-practising Catholic on the island, which must be unique in the entire Catholic Church. And apparently due to age-long customs and conventions, they are highly virtuous - in every sense of that word. There are no island Gardai, pubs are always open, as well as hall doors. And yet there is neither crime nor drunkenness. If, by mistake, you were to leave your groceries by the roadside, or your wallet on the counter, they or it, would be returned to you by nightfall.

The community can boast a resident doctor, who is himself an Arranmore man. There is also a resident nurse, and two good schools, staffed by four tip-top teachers.

Island hotel:

The island hotel is attractive and old-world, but still up to the highest Bord Failte standards. Unfortunately there is, so far at any rate, neither chemist nor bank. The postal delivery varies daily, since it depends on the sailing of the ferry. But early or late, your letters arrive. On my last evening it was around 7p.m.

Should one ask how do these people earn their livelihood, the answer is both revealing and interesting. It lays bare the island modus vivendi. Obviously there is farming - cattle and sheep, vegetables, potatoes and chickens. Obviously also there is fishing - herring, lobster and salmon, according to season. Besides which, large numbers of tourists and young people, coming to learn or improve their Irish during the summer months, are catered for.

This in itself is a considerable source of revenue, but it does not exhaust Arranmore enterprise. There is a very expert boat building industry. Two admirable thirty-foot samples lay, fully completed and ready for export, in full view of the presbytery during my stay. A boat of this kind takes some months to build and sells, complete with engine (£1,000), for around £2,500.

But all this is less than half the story, for the islanders are widely travelled people, and many have returned home after half a lifetime in Glasgow, New York or Chicago. One and all, they appear supremely happy to be back amongst their own: having seen the world, they have made their choice though needless to say, they did not return empty handed!

It is still quite common for a son to go to Glasgow, or ever farther afield, sending back a weekly £20 to his mother for banking, against the day of house building, marriage and rearing a family. It is not unknown for a young fellow of round twenty two to have earned £120 a week in London - mostly "danger money" on building sites. After a stay of about ten months such a young man would be the proud possessor of round £4,000, and backed by this he might be seen, working from dawn to dusk on a modern bungalow, his future island home.

It was after addressing the Pioneer centre that I first met "Wee Hughie". "Wee Hughie" must be 6’3" or 4" tall. A magnificent specimen of a man, and, incidentally, the dynamic president of the sixty strong centre. By reading up text books Hughie can plan and build a house, install central heating and the like. It goes without saying that he is in great demand. By all accounts he is an expert on English literature, and has memorised, in some cases, the opera omnia. Should I be misinformed under this head and should Hughie’s eye chance to scan these lines, I can only plead that the information is second-hand!

Like elsewhere, television has brightened life in Arranmore. Watching an international soccer match one day I was surprised to notice, that everyone seemed to know the names of all the Scottish players. I had not realised that, since most of the viewers had worked in Scotland, they had interests and hobbies even broader than many on the mainland. Indeed from whatever angle one views them, Arranmore folk are not only intelligent but have world-wide interests.

Besides their faith and culture, sensitivity and intelligence however, they are possessed of still another attractive trait, a great sense of humour. The most ordinary happenings of daily life and well known characters are treated with impish playfulness. The retirement of a Cunard liner was described, for example, as: "They are hauling her away to grind her into razor blades!"

On one occasion we visited a dear old lady, living near the top of the mountains. She is quite a character, strong willed, determined and very pious. The day after we had called, a friend of hers remarked: "I saw you going up to Cleopatra yesterday, Father. How did you get on?"

Welcomes:

An experience I should not care to have missed was visiting the old and the sick. This is usually undertaken in retreat time to involve them all in the spiritual exercises of the parish. Since they were very numerous and scattered all over the island, the task was considerable and took four hours daily from Monday to Friday. But it was a labour of love and an unforgettable experience.

Everywhere we got the warmest of welcomes. But it was the courage and cheerfulness, the trust in God and resignation to His Will which deeply impressed me. Over many years I doubt if I have seen the equal to such faith, certainly nothing to surpass it. As we left each home people took leave of the priest, as if parting with lifelong friend or relative.

The week was so full of pleasant and interesting experiences that, almost before we could realise it, the retreat had come to an end. A thronged congregation rose enthusiastically to the occasion, for Arranmore loves its misiún and feels lonely on the following days. People surrounded the priest outside the church, when everything was over.

"A Athair a chroí, nack dtiocfaidh tú ar ais lá éigin?"

As the ferry drew away on the Monday morning I promised myself, God willing, that I would indeed. I was sufficiently sentimental to feel, that I had left a bit of my heart in Arranmore.