BENCHMARKS
continued
Almost
50 years ago as the bus for Dublin passed a direction sign reading
'Douglas Bridge', Benchmarker's father was prompted to recite a few
verses of a rhyme thus -
Who lived adjacent to Strabane,
Before the English hung him high
For riding with O’Hanlon.
God save you, Sir,” I said with fear,
“You seem to be a stranger here.”
“Not I,” said he, “nor any man
Who rides with Count O’Hanlon.
Spool
forward a quarter of a century and when Ben Kiely came into a radio
studio to record a few miscellaneous talks, a reference in one to Count
O'Hanlon prompted Benchmarker to ask if he knew the Ballad of Douglas
Bridge. Kiely
knew the name of the writer, Francis Carlin, and said it was perhaps 30
years since he had read it, pondered for a second and then proceeded to
recite the complete nine verses from memory.
So,
on a recent journey southwards Benchmarker diverted to check
possibilities, bridges being good as locations for 'marks. However the
bridge has been much changed since the days of the Count; rebuilt and
widened. No luck there. But, further along in the village one was
spotted on the Church Hall. It's not so much as 'on' Douglas Bridge, as
'in' Douglas Bridge.
Below: The 'mark in Douglas Bridge.
Above: The Church Hall in Douglas Bridge with the 'mark on the left side gable wall (not visible in photo).