Two months after foot-and-mouth called a halt to the traditional St Patrick's Day celebrations, Ireland is set to hold the party this weekend. Two months after foot-and-mouth called a halt to the traditional St Patrick's Day celebrations, Ireland is set to hold the party this weekend. In an attempt to show the world that the Republic is once again open for business, Dublin has been decked out in a riot of colour to honour the country's patron saint. Open-air performances of music and drama are planned this afternoon, followed by a Brazilian-style samba carnival in the evening and a fireworks display. Tomorrow more than 2,000 performers will take part in a parade from St Patrick's Cathedral to O'Connell Street.Maria Moynihan, chief executive of the St Patrick's Festival, said: "What better way to spread the message that Ireland is open for business than with living proof in the form of images of people in colourful glorious costumes, dancing in the street?"The celebrations, traditionally held on 17 March, are the biggest sign to date that Ireland's stringent efforts to prevent the disease entering the country have been successful. Ireland has only had one case confirmed in the past two months, compared to more than 1,600 in Britain, where the disease also appears, finally to have been checked.However, tourism is Ireland's second largest industry after agriculture, and the loss of income has cost the country dear.
Preliminary figures for the first three months of this year estimate that the number of visitors in 2001 will be 14 per cent down on last year, Losses caused by cancellations are estimated at £195m.. Traumatic testimony marked the closing stages of America's first polygamy trial in decades as a man accused of having five wives broke down in tears while describing the hardships of his large family, including the death in a fire of his three-year-old son. Traumatic testimony marked the closing stages of America's first polygamy trial in decades as a man accused of having five wives broke down in tears while describing the hardships of his large family, including the death in a fire of his three-year-old son. Tom Green could be sentenced to 25 years in prison if convicted. He acknowledged that his business selling magazines from his car across the western United States had not been enough to cover all his costs and that he had been forced to rely in part on government welfare. Apart from facing four charges of bigamy, Mr Green, 52, is also accused of failing to reimburse the state of Utah for $54,000 of government assistance.After closing argument from both sides at the courthouse in Provo, south of Salt Lake City, the jury was set to retire last night.
The most anguished moments of the trial came when Mr Green recalled having to move his family out of a trailer park close to Salt Lake City and relocate to a remote barn on a patch of desert close to Utah's western border.Tragedy struck when, on a cold night in January 1977, a fire broke out "A fire ignited. We lost our three-year-old," Mr Green told the court, wiping tears from his eyes with a tissue. "A dozen of our children were hospitalised with frostbite." He also described how one of his wives, Linda, was taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation after rescuing their children from the flames.The prosecution showed the court documentary footage and photographs of the Green compound in the desert. The photographs included a picture of 19 toothbrushes on a bathroom wall. Mr Green and his wives instruct their 25 children to identify their brushes by brand and colour.The defence sought to show that Mr Green had never considered himself married to his wives under state law and did not therefore fear prosecution. "He didn't believe he was married in the eyes of the state," said William Morrison, one of Mr Green's former lawyers.
