A round-up of other State Papers 1978 in brief
Memo advised president should not vote
A 1943 file just released includes a memo recommending that the president should not vote in elections.
The memo from the office of the president points out that the first occasion when a president could vote was in June of that year when the general election was held. However, President Douglas Hyde was not well enough to leave Áras an Uachtaráin at that time so the issue did not arise.
The unnamed official in the Áras said his or her opinion was that as the President of the State is above and detached from controversial politics, it is undesirable that he should take part in an election of members to the Dáil or in any other way influence the selection of political candidates for this purpose.''
• There are some interesting references in State files to gifts received by presidents. Libyan president Col Gaddafi sent an Arabian saddle, bridle and whip to president Éamon de Valera when his ambassador to Germany Galal Daghely visited Ireland in 1972. De Valera wrote to Col Gaddafi to thank him and praised the gift "which richly reflects Arab skill and handicraft".
In 1977, Clare pharmacist Barrie Howard sent a bodhrán to president Paddy Hillery. Mr Howard told the president it was made by Frank McTigue of Ennis "and when he heard it was for the president he went all out to make a masterpiece and would not charge for it.
The president described it as "magnificent" but told Mr Howard "my problem is that it is not as easy to play as it appeared to be".
Submarine plan for Clare vetoed
An Irish-American businessman asked the Irish government to approve his plan to get the US to decommission a large submarine, name it after the inventor John Holland and have it moored at Liscannor, Co Clare.
Documents in the National Archives from 1972 show that Hillard Nagle, chairman of the Friends of Ireland group, put the idea to the Irish consul general in Boston, who outlined it to the secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Mr Nagle felt it would promote Liscannor as a tourist centre and be of great educational benefit to children.
However, the plan got a negative response from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
An official pointed out that it would be difficult to disguise the identity of the submarine as a piece of American military equipment and this in turn might prove difficult to justify or defend.
He also said the submarine could be expensive and might pose safety risks.
A separate hand-written note suggested that the submarine could become a focus for protests by anti-militarist, anti-US and anti-nuclear groups.
The Department of Defence raised six objections to the plan.
These were mainly centring around cost, and suggested that a plaque or memorial could be erected instead.