AN GAODHAL.
377
The presence of bo or ba, cow, is with apparent
correctness detected by the same author in such
words as Bohemia, Bœotia, Bavaria, Batavia, Ba¬
shan, Bosphorus. So confident is the author that
his argumentation is solid, and that every intelli¬
gent reader must accept it; that he thus invites
the reader to attend while he is unfolding the man¬
ner in which fowls obtained their names : "Let us
now, in prosecution of our plan, attend to Adam
giving names to fowls." So certain is the author
that his explanation of names of fows on the
ground of Onomatopoeia is satisfactory, that he
avers : "If it should be denied that we have prov¬
ed the Adamic origin of the Celtic, it is undeniable
that we have proved the natural origin of it, and
certainly nature was prior to Adam."
"Lo ! the trunk, rearing from its parent earth,
And now to branches numerous giving birth;
Such is the Celtic tongue; an Eden oak,
Supplying nations from its hoary stock."
Sir William Betham, in his interesting work, "The
Gael and Cymbri," gives a long list of topograph¬
ical names in Asia and Europe, which, according
to his contention, are Celtic, e.g. Tyre, means
land or country, Tir.
Sidon or Saida is from Saida, a seat or site. It¬
aly is from ith, corn, and talamh, country; the
land of corn.
Dalmatia — Dal, share or tribe, and maith, good.
Sardinia — Sard, the greater, and inis, an island.
Corsica — Corsad, coast.
Baleares — Ba, cows, and lear, the sea.
Lusitania — Luis, flowers, and tana, country.
Astures — As, a torrent, tir, a country.
Cautabri — Ceann, head, tiar, high above, and bri,
a hill.
There can be no question, that the names of many
of the rivers of Spain are Celtic; that such names
of mountains as Alps, Appennines, Pennine, Pyr¬
enees are Celtie; and that such French rivers as
Rhine, Rhone, Garonne and Seine are likewise
Celtic. Tiber, the classic river of Italy, bears an
unmistakable likeness to the Irish tipra, as in Tip¬
perary, and to the Gaelic tobar. Even so learned
and painstaking a scholar as Latham contends
that the word Aborigines is Celtic, and that he dis¬
covers in Abor, the Aber which occurs so frequent¬
ly in such names as Aberfoyle, Aberdeen, etc.
The word Portugal seems to bear its Celtic origin
on the very face of it, Port nan Gaidheal.
More than half a century has elapsed since Pri¬
chard's famous work, "The Eastern origin of the
Celtic nations," was published, forming as it did,
perhaps, the first serious attempt that had been
made to determine, on philological principles, the
position which the Celtic languages ought to occu¬
py in the great family of languages. Prichard was
successful in vindicating the claims of the Celtic
languages to be classed with the same category with
the Greek, the Latin and the Sanscrit languages.
To the important contribution to Celtic philology,
which was thus made by Prichard, material aid
was subsequently rendered by Pictet, whose work
on "The Affinity of Celtic Languages with the
Sanscrit" appeared in 1837 ; and by Bopp, whose
work on "The Celtic Languages" was published
in 1839. To German scholars too much praise
cannot be given for their profound and painstak¬
ing investigations in the field of Celtic literature.
Among all laborers in the domain of Celtic phil¬
ology, the first place is, by common consent, as¬
signed to Zeuss, whose marvellous "Grammatica
Celtica," the result of unremitting toil and inves¬
tigation during thirteen years, was published in
1853. Zeuss wrote his grammar in elegant Latin,
and displayed an unusual ability in wielding the
language of Cicero and of Tacitus, even when he
had to deal with the minutest particles, and with
the relative value of half-forgotten Celtic adverbs
and conjunctions: No English translation of the
"Grammatica Celtica" has yet appeared. That
admirable work of Zeuss indicating, as it does, a
vast comprehension of intellect, a masterly power
for examing even minute details, and a patient and
laborious research which rose above every obsta¬
cle and fatigue, — will henceforth be regarded, in
all probability, as the foundation of scientific Celtic
philology. Ebel, who prepared a second edition
of the "Grammatic Celtica" and published it in 1871
and Windisch, are German scholars to whom Cel¬
tic philology is much indebted. In our own day
there have appeared many able and industrious
Irish, Welsh, Gaelic and Manx scholars who, stim¬
ulated in many cases by the extraordinary diligence
and researches of German philologists, have done
much, and who are doing much, to redeem Celtic
literature from the imputation of being insignifi¬
cant in itself, and of having among those whose in¬
heritance it is, few who care sufficiently for it to
study it, and to bring its beauties and its treasures
to the light of modern intelligence.
(To be continued.)
The pitiable condition of the labor market in
Austria is shown by a strik of blacksmiths and
farriers, which has just begun at Pesth. The
strikers demand only that they shall be allowed
to rest on Sundays, that twelve hours shall con¬
stitute a days work and their pay shall be seven
florins ($2.81) a week. At present they are requir¬
ed to work fourteen hours a day and half time on
Sunday and receive as wages about 36 cents per
day.
Scranton Truth.
This is European wages. The wages our Free
Traders would fain see obtain in America. — Ed:
The Kingdom of Saxony is the most protestant
state in Europe, 98 per cent of the population be¬
ing of that persuasion, yet the king and royal fam¬
ily are Catholic.
