Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 8.djvu/707

 KERRY

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KERRY

numbered among his friends Abraham Lincoln, Horatio Seymour, Samuel J. Tilden, Thomas F. Bayard, Grover Cleveland, and other distinguished Americans, and his counsel and advice were often sought by them. Both as a member of the New York Assembly and as a congressman, he was a "War Democrat". In Congress he rendered important service as a member of the judiciary committee, and was thoroughly in accord with the national govern- ment in its efforts to maintain the integrity of the Union. He showed so decided a spirit of justice and moderation that he was often consulted by President Lincoln on matters pertaining to the conduct of the war.

In July, 1S76, at the St. Louis convention. Senator Kernan nominated Samuel J. Tilden for the presi- dency. In the Democratic convention of 18S4, held at Chicago, he was not a delegate, but he was present at the special request of the leaders of his party and was one of the most efficient advocates, outside of the con\-ention, for the nomination of CJrover Cleveland. In the disastrous Democratic campaign of 1S72, he was a candidate for gov- ernor against John A. Di.x. He was a devout and practical Catholic, frequently assisting at Mass and approaching the sacraments. He rep- re s e n t e il tieorgetown College at the Catholic Congress of laymen at Baltimore in 1,SS9, ami delivered a memorable address on that occasion. In charity he gave much, considering his means, as he was never a very weal t h y man, to his church and to charitable institutions: and his legal advice v,as often freely given to the clergy and to his .41ma Mater, Georgetown College, which be- stowed upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws.

Kernan's home life was very happy. In 1843 he married Hannah A. Devereux, daughter of Nicholas Devereux, of Utica, who was one of the principal founders and benefactors of the Catholic Church and its charitable institutions in Central and Western New York. He brought up a family of ten children and was a great home-lover, with no fondness for the theatre, opera, or club life. He was fond of reading, of an innocent game of cards, and was a fine conver- sationalist. Occasionally, but not often, he attended dinners and receptions in Washington and Utica. Duty, not pleasure, was his watchword. He often worked in his home at night over lawsuits and con- gressional speeches. In person he was tall, had a good figure, and an attractive, intellectual face. Without pretence or sham, he was one of nature's gentlemen. His old age was calm, genial, peaceful, and contented. He served his country and his Church to the best of his ability and was a shining example of what a Catholic lawyer and statesman should be.

Thomas P. Kernan.

Kerry and Aghadoe, Diocese of (Kehkiensis et

AcHAnoENSis), suffragan of Cashel, Ireland, is sixty- six miles in length, and sixty-one in breadth, contain- ing a superficial area of 9s::i,400 acres, and extending overthe whole Count V of Kerrv and a portion of that of Cork; in 1901 the Catholic jjopulation was lS7,:Uf> This diocese, in its actual conilition, was constituted by the union of two very ancient sees — Ardfert and Aghadoe, but the precise date of this incorporation cannot now be definitely ascertained. All we know

The Cathedr-\l, Killarne

is that it hail taken place before the Synod of Kath- brassil (1110); for it was there proposed and sanc- tioned that the see of the then united Diocese of Ardfert and .\ghadoe should be at Rathass near Tralee. Our ecclesiastical historians give a detailed account of the various journeys of St. Patrick, who, though visiting the neighbouring County of Limerick, never set foot in Kerry, being content (as the ancient chroniclers say) with giving this remote corner of Ireland his blessing, while standing on some point of vantage in West I^imerick and viewing the lofty mountains and vast bogs of ancient Kerry. Never- theless, we know from many sources that Christianity was introduced here at a very early period. This fact is attested not merely by the annalists, but also by the many monuments of great antiquity and Chris- tian character which still exist in various districts of the diocese. The first bishop whom we find men- tioned in connexion with the history of Kerry, was nametl Ere, and there can be no reasonable doubt that this bishop was St. Ere of Slane, who died ac- cording to the Armals of Ulster in 512. He exercised episcopal jurisdiction in the county before the birth of St. Brendan, and, from what we read about his relations with that great saint, must have resided there almost continuously for several years afterwards. It is very probable he came to Kerry soon after the mission of St. Benignus, who was sent by St. Patrick in 450 to preach to the tribes of West Munster, and " to unite them to the Church by the saving waters of bap- tism". This visit of St. Benignus was compara- tively short, for he was called away to North Clare and Connaught, where his apostolic labours may have been more urgently needed. To complete, however, the conversion of Kerry thus auspiciously begun, St. Patrick sent one of his most zealous and devoted bishops, St. Ere, who had spiritual charge not only of Kerry, but also of a wide range of south-west Limerick, in the heart of which lay the convent of St. Ita at Killeedy, over which he seems to have had juris- diction He was the special friend and tutor of St. Brendan, the patron of Kerry, whose feast is cele- brated on 16 May. There is not among the ancient saints of Erin a more interesting figure than this patron of Kerry. His travels by land, and still more his voyages by sea, have made him famous from the earliest times. Very ancient manuscript copies of his famous seven years' voyage in the Atlantic Ocean are found in several European libraries, while his ro- mantic career was a favourite theme with the poets and romancers of medieval Europe. (See Brendan,

S.UNT.)

The other ancient see included in the modern Dic^- cese of Kerry, is that of Aghadoe. Another native saint, Finan Cam, was the first to build a church at Aghadoe, which in after times became the see of a bishop. It was this saint also who founded the famous monastery and school of Innisfallen, a lovely island in the Lower Lake of Killarney. It was here that one of the greatest of Ireland's kings was edu- cated — Brian Born, who tlestroyed the power of the Danes at Clontarf in 1014, while his distinguished professor, Maelsuthain O'Carroll, was most proliably the original compiler of the famous Annals of Innis- fallen. The principal copy of this valuable work is