Recent references in these columns to roller-skating at the Rotunda, Dublin, were vividly recalled when I came to Chapter Thirteen of that very entertaining book, "My Countrymen," the anonymous author of which, after many years in the Land Commission here has transferred his services to the Northern Ireland Ministry of Labour. Describing a visit to the "Rink" that was constructed at the Rotunda during the previous skating "boom," he says: "As I approached the rink, my ear was caught by a distant moan, like the surge of the tide on a pebble beach, which, as I pushed aside a curtain, swelled to a deep-throated roar. Then the maddening beauty of the scene fell upon me. The bare timbers of the shed were partially concealed by calico flags and advertisements. In the left-hand corner learners were clutching a friendly rail and recovering, one by one, their escaping feet; to the right, attendants buckled skates on the boots of those about to join in the winter sports; on a platform beside me, idle rich were feasting upon stewed tea and faded confectionery. The noise I heard as I entered was not of human suffering; it came from the multitude of wheels rasping the wooden floor in the centre, abandoned to the experts; but, none the less, the pastime seemed more amusing to spectators than actors; so I chose a section of pine bench reasonably free from protruding nails and sat down to study it."
The Irish Times, November 26th, 1929.