President calls college a centre of gravity for the Irish

The President, Mrs McAleese, had personal words for everyone at the Irish College in Paris yesterday: for Mr Maurice Caillet, the 90-year-old librarian who showed her the college's rare books; for Ms Roisin Dockery, the college administrator from Co Roscommon, who gave her two engravings by the Roscommon artist Roderic O'Conor; for the members of the Fondation Irlandaise whom she thanked. "for keeping faith with this place".

After shaking hands with 300 people, Mrs McAleese moved to the podium. "I met a few people with big grins. Manifestly they are from Kerry," she said, referring to their All-Ireland final win.

Briefly she summarised the history of the most valuable building Ireland owns abroad.

"It's clear our forbears knew a good piece of property when they saw it," she said.

Irish priests began coming to Paris for training four centuries ago, "for a variety of reasons which, in this period of ecumenism and reconciliation, I will not go into."

The Ambassador, Mr Patrick O'Connor, and his wife, Patricia, had decided to hold their reception at the college because of its symbolism. In May the Government announced it would spend £7 million refurbishing the building, designed by a French royal architect in 1769.

"It will be a very new, strong statement about the dynamism of Ireland," Mrs McAleese said, "a centre of gravity for the Irish and their friends."

Earlier the President attended Mass at the English-speaking St Joseph's Church, which is run by Passionist priests.

It brought back memories of a going-away party in Paris for Father Eugene McCarthy, she said. "There was this very handsome fellow in an Armani-like suit," Mrs McAleese told the crowd under the marquee in the Irish College courtyard.

When she realised he was a priest, and that he was going to the Ardoyne neighbourhood in north Belfast, "I said, `Oh God, there's going to be trouble'." Sure enough, Father Eugene became known as "yer man with the suit".

Back in Ardoyne one Sunday, but wearing "full clerical regalia", he asked Mrs McAleese in front of the entire church, "How do you like the gear? No Armani suit today!"

The remainder of the President's four-day visit to Monaco and France was devoted to trade. The Franco-Irish Chamber of Commerce could not hold all those who wanted to attend its gala dinner for Mrs McAleese last night.

The Irish pharmaceutical company Biotrin and the French transport company Alstom, which is selling 40 trams to Dublin, reserved large numbers of seats. Mr Peter Queally received the Chamber's annual prize for doing most to promote business between the two countries. Two of his Dawn Queally group's 31 food factories are in France.

Mrs McAleese will attend a French and Irish business lunch at the Ambassador's residence before returning to Dublin today.