STRANGE BEER
Towards the end of the Middle Ages one of Europe's best-
known beers was 'Braunschweiger Mumm'. It took its
name from the brewer Mumm and the town of
Braunschweig (Brunswick) in Germany where he brewed
it. The beer was made without hops. Instead of hops it
contained a mixture of the flowers of the sundew plant,
spruce-fir bark, various herbs and raw eggs! As if all that
wasn't enough to give it sufficient body and flavour, it was
left to mature for a further two years before being sold.
//W ady's Well" Brewery is the name of one of the companies within our concern. But the
.company is usually called Murphy's, after one of the brands of beer brewed there. It is
situated in Cork in the South of Ireland. What's the origin of this unusual name? Opposite
the brewery there is a steep hill and halfway up the slope lies a well inside a very tiny building. For
the Irish it has been a holy shrine for centuries. No wonder therefore that in 1856 the brewery's
founders named their new business after this hallowed place.
Tremendous interest
The future
man with a purpose
into it. I also got support from the
organisation which provides work for
the unemployed. Because you only
have to pay a percentage of their
wages. Those people did a lot of
bricklaying, for instance. And all the
employees at Murphy's contribute a
small sum every week from their
wages to help pay for the upkeep of the
well. In fact, a lot of cash is needed,
not only for wages but also for
materials. Some of this money has
been used to pay for the long stone
steps which have been built. Before
the steps were there, it was almost
impossible for old people to climb up
to the well. The brewery paid for the
handrails at the side of the steps. Many
inhabitants of Cork come along to our
gateman and ask if there is any way
they can help. A lot of contributions
have also come in from that source.
More than 10,000 Irish pounds have
already been spent".
Once a year holy mass is celebrated at
the wellAs many as 2,000 people turn
up for the occasion. The local "Butter
Exchange Band" and a choir come
along to take part. There is steadily
growing interest and the newspapers
are giving the occasion more and more
publicity each year. Many local and
church dignitaries attend this mass. All
of which makes Matthew Cahill hope
that more and more people will start
working to help preserve the well. But
it's regrettable that vandals have also
taken an interest in it. Just recently, the
old wood carving of the Virgin Mary
was stolen. It was recovered by the
police but it had been badly damaged.
Temporarily, the sisters at a nearby
convent have been kind enough to
make another statuette available.
The end of the work is certainly not in
sight. A garden needs to be laid out
and another wish, of course, is to have
lighting at night. "Benches alongside
the steps are also on our list", adds
Matthew, "so that older people can
rest for a while on their way up. We've
asked for a cost estimate for making
pictures of the Stations of the Cross
and having them fixed in the wall".
This year a great deal of work still had
Matthew Cahill, the man who looks after a holy well.
Cork
to be done before the annual mass,
which took place about the end of May.
There's absolutely no doubt at all in
Matthew Cahill's mind that all these
plans will ultimately be realised. This
former Irish weightlifting champion
(1965) is basing his confidence, so it
seems, on an unshakeable belief in
Providence, the Virgin Mary, the Cork
city council - which has already given
frequent assistance - and of course on
his brewery colleagues and the people
of Cork. His achievements to date
certainly show that faith can work
wonders.
The hill, showing the holy well in the
little white building in the background.
In the foreground: the steps that were
recently built to make the well easier to
get to.
One of the employees at Murphy's is
Matthew Cahill. Tall, strong, quiet, an
unassuming batchelor in his early
forties, he has devoted his energy over
the past ten years or so to caring for
this hallowed place. It was his own
idea. Having worked for the brewery
for some 26 years, he has been able to
keep an eye on what has happened to
the well during all those years. He now
works in the new keg filling
department. He was saddened when
the local residents who used to look
after the well moved away. They had to
leave their houses as they had been
declared unfit for habitation. Did
Matthew Cahill set about the job
alone, armed with just a rake and
some other tools? No, he tackled the
job properly, as the results show.
Particularly in the past five years a
great deal of work has been shifted.
"No, I certainly didn't do it all on my
own", he explains. "I've had a lot of
help from my mates at work. Many of
them have put lots of hours of work