Sir, – "Irish is spoken abroad, why not at home?" asks S O'Cuinn (April 6th). In my experience, Irish is employed abroad in much the same way that the Navajo tongue was used by the US military during the Pacific campaign in the second World War – a nearly unbreakable code. Thus one can, while lounging by a Mediterranean resort pool, point out to one's spouse an ill-advised bikini or a dangerously misplaced toupee, without fear of discovery. Any attempt to use Irish in this way in Ireland, is, needless to say, fraught with danger. – Yours, etc,
R McDERMOTT,
Dublin 6.