Padraic Colum he became involved with the National Theatre Society and became involved in the founding of the Abbey Theatre, writing several of its early productions. His first play, "Broken Soil" (revised as The Fiddler's House) (1903) was performed by W. G. Fay's Irish National Dramatic Company. "The Land" (1905), was one of that theatre's first great public successes. He wrote another important play for the Abbey named "Thomas Muskerry" (1910). His earliest published poems appeared in "The United Irishman", a paper edited by Arthur Griffith. His first book, "Wild Earth" (1907) collected many of these poems and was dedicated to Æ.
Padraic Colum the rest of their lives. In America, Colum took up children's writing and published a number of collections of stories for children, beginning with "The King of Ireland's Son" (1916). This book came about when Colum started translating an Irish folk tale from Gaelic because he did not want to forget the language. After it was published in the New York Tribune, Hungarian Illustrator Willy Pogany suggested the possibility of a book collaboration, so Colum wove the folktale into a long, epic story. Three of his books for children were awarded retrospective citations for the Newbery Honor. A contract for