Ireland is a small but irrepressible island half an hour nearer the sunset than Great Britain.
On Crossing the Irish Sea, Thomas Kettle 1880-1916

Brian O'Linn and his wife and wife's mother,
They all crossed over the bridge together.
The bridge broke down and they all tumbled in -
'We'll go home by water', said Brian O'Linn.
Anonymous 18th century

My only books
Were Woman's looks,
And Folly's all they taught me.
Brian O'Linn

Dear Erin, how sweetly thy green bosom rises!
An emerald set in the ring of the sea.
The Time I've Lost, Thomas Moore

From the Appletree Press title: A Little Book of Irish Quotations.
Also from Appletree: Famous Irish Lives, Famous Irish Writers and the A Little Book of Irish Sayings.