24

The bust on the right might provide a clue, unless they are in the habit of moving busts around at Trinity College Library.

Michiel2005 I'd doubt that they do! Presuming this is Socrates?

Possibly, but I suppose you have to visit TCL to be absolutely sure. Pictures of the Long Room are rare on the internet (as photography is not allowed there) and I don't remember it from my visit.

Tunney was very likely to visit the long room and would not have been out of place there at all at all!! Famously while training for his great battle against Jack Dempsey one of the great US boxing writers found him reading Shakespeare and wondered if it was just for effect? It wasn't! Tunney was intelligent, literate and very well read and more than just a bruiser. He has lots of relatives still in Ireland and they're no "daws" either!

Swordscookie And from what I read about him in the Irish Independent reports of the visit, he was also very shy and quiet, hence not easy to interview for the newsmen who were far more used to very extrovert sportsmen...

The Times (London) 24th Feb. There are lengthy accounts of the rescue, but it includes this: The tug with the nine men on board and the body of the man who had died on the island arrived at Waterford at 4 o'clock. A great crowd assembled on the quays to welcome the rescuers

According to this pamphlet put together by the O'Rourke family, there were 10 crew on the Mexico including the captain. Two launched the schooner's lifeboat, and were swept away to the coast. One died on the island, and seven were rescued, and brought by the tug to Waterford, which matches the photo. The guy in the middle is presumably Captain Ole Edvin Eriksen, of Fredrikshald, Norway.

I come from Fethard, so was disappointed to see Fethard-on- Sea rather than the decidedly inland town from Ireland's largest inland county! Great image though!

Niall McAuley That pamphlet is obviously a lot clearer than the contemporary newspaper accounts I've read, one of which appeared before the men had been rescued and which was put together from telegrams. Another twist to the story came the following month. On 19th March it was reported WRECKBREAKERS' PERIL THREE MEN ISOLATED ON A ROCK Grave fears are felt in Wexford for the safety of three men who for over a week have been living on the Keeragh Rock, the scene of the wreck of the schooner Mexico and the Fethard lifeboat. The hull of the Mexico was purchased shortly after the wreck by Mr H Murphy. Last week he put off in a boat with two workmen with the object of breaking up the bull. They took with them a week's provisions and have since been living on the orck under canvas. Owing to the gale that has been blowing on the coastfor the past five days they have been unable to come ashore. Signals of distress have been flying since Saturday, but the high seas have so far made it impossible for boats to put out to rescue them from their perilous position. I don't know what happened to Mr Murphy and his men. Perhaps they're still there.

Patrick Mc Donnell I read somewhere that some donations following the disaster were sent to the wrong Fethard, so they added 'on-Sea' to prevent any further misunderstandings.

Not France but Russia during the revolution - note the stars.

and not a 24 but a 27 - note the pivotted tail skid.