Sir, - I was lucky to be back home in Ireland to watch the inauguration of the President. I witnessed the Republic en fete, a great occasion graced by a smart, witty, compassionate lady. The children, the soldiers, the people from nearly all walks of Irish life, were participating in the celebration of a mature and prosperous democracy. The President's speech was a modest statement of a people's achievements and aspirations, with particular emphasis on reconciliation and the message of peace. I saw no incongruity in her reference to the message of Bethlehem, no more than in other democracies invoking blessings on similar occasions.
The journalists' comments in your paper on the following day were painful to read, because they illustrated the chronic begrudgery and lack of confidence that has disappeared from the productive and progressive elements in Irish society, but remain the stock in trade of critical spectators, or journalists if that's what they call themselves. - Yours, etc.,
Mount Merrion Avenue, Blackrock, Co Dublin.