Part 13

## partially gleaned by Carte, the historian. Near the city is the

Cathedral Ch. of St. Canice, of considerable antiquity, being, in its finished state, of the reign of Edward the 1st, and still in very good preservation. It stands on an eminence, with a descent on all sides; and the Ch. yard is entered, from the town, by a flight of marble steps. The cemetery being planted with trees has a romantic effect, and presents a very extensive prospect over a rich vicinage. In the interior the seats of the choir and gallery are of oak varnished, and the whole plain, but remarkably neat. The compass ceiling is adorned with fretwork, and has many modillions, and in the centre a group of foliage, festoons, and cherubim. In the nave and aisles are many beautiful sepulchral Monuments. It is the Cathedral of the see of Ossory; and close to it is a very curious Round Tower. The Dominican or Black Abbey, an extensive ruin, with the elegant ramifications of some of its Gothic windows in pretty good preservation, stands low, and is surrounded by squalid huts, which disfigure its outside and take off much of the sombre effect of its venerable walls. The windows, especially the east one, are light and elegant: the arcades are open and airy; and the towers spring up with an airy elegance that seizes at once upon the traveller's attention. The Abbey of St. Francis, with its square Tower springing from a lofty Gothic arch, is worthy the tourist's notice, though much disfigured in its interior by the squalid cabins of poverty and idleness, and by part of its precincts being turned into a horse barrack. The great altar is a marble slab of amazing size; but perhaps the most remarkable circumstance about the place is the legendary story of a sainted lady who built part of the choir, and whose extreme chastity induced her to descend a virgin into the grave at the age of 70, although she had been married young and to several husbands. The ruins of St. John's Abbey, part of which has been converted into a foot barrack, present some very fine specimens of the light Gothic in the windows and corridors. Founded in 1220. See the marble mill, about 2 m. from the city, and on the left bank of the river; a very ingenious invention, alike admirable for the simplicity of its construction, and for the power which it exerts. The saws are made of soft iron, and will last but a week; each cutting about ten or twelve inches per day, equal to the labour of two men. Not far from these mills are various marble quarries; but the most curious mineralogical specimen is called Sidero-calcite, so plentiful as to have been used for repairing the roads. Unlike the other marbles, it cannot be burnt into lime; but it contains a quantity of iron and manganese; and as it is brittle and friable, it has been proposed as an ingredient in mortar or cement used for building under water. Visit Clogmanta Hill, about 10 m. N.W., where are some extensive Druidical remains, with a magnificent prospect from the summit. Rathbeath, 5 m. N., is supposed to be the ancient Argat-Ross, where in early times a silver mine existed, whence the first Irish coinage took place.

KNOCTOPHER, 9 m. S. of Kilkenny, stands pleasantly on the banks of a rivulet which flows into the Nore. Bessborough, 8 m. S., is a handsome seat of the Earl of that name, in a park of 500 acres; the house 100 feet in length, with elegant hall, saloon and parlour containing numerous fine paintings, of the Italian and Flemish schools. See various Cromlechs and other Druidical remains at Garryduff-hill, especially Leibe ne Cuhn, or the Priest's Grave, with stone cells. Grandison or Grany Castle, though apparently not older than the reign of Henry VIII., being in the style of domestic fortification of that period, and now almost a total ruin, is yet far from being an uninteresting object, not only in picturesque effect with its numerous towers, but as affording a good idea of the insecure state of society during that unsettled period. It has three Round Towers on the Suir, and two Courts; a large square Tower, connected to a great hall, and another Round Tower form the other side; in the inside of the arch of a window in the hall is a grotesque angel holding a shield with the arms of Butler. It was built by Margaret, the great Countess of Ormonde, at a period when ladies of high birth seem to have been proud of exercising the masculine authority of the other sex. Kells, a pleasant little place, 3 m. N., has some pretty river scenery. At Kilbeacon see Earl's Rath, a very large fort, oblong, and surrounded by a deep fosse, formerly filled with water, with a bank about 20 feet high; in the area are remains of buildings. Kilmogue has a curious Cromlech, the upper stone, 45 feet in circumference, supported by several others, nine in number. The stones are of siliceous breccia, and it is still known by the name of Lachan Scahl, the Great Altar Stone. At Mullinavat, the mineralogist will find considerable amusement in his researches. At Tory-hill, to the S.E. about 7 m., and called in the Irish, Sleigh Grian, or the Hill of the Sun, see a circular space on the very summit, covered with stones, in which is one large squared stone, 5 feet long, resting on three others, with an inscription in the ancient Pelasgic characters, BELIDIVOSE, supposed to be a dedication to the Deity, under the name of Bel, Baal, or Apollo.

THOMASTOWN, 9 m. S.E. from Kilkenny, deserves the notice of the antiquary from its being one of the most ancient towns in the island, being founded by one of the chiefs of Henry II. in his first expedition. From this Thomas Fitz-Anthony it derives its nomenclature. Its principal remnant of antiquity is the Abbey, of which there are some considerable fragments; one end being fitted up as the parish Ch. There is a venerable Tower at one angle; and the Gothic arcades afford some fine specimens of the lancet arch, evidently of a date posterior to the foundation of the town itself. In the ruinous part of the edifice, the tourist will notice a large sepulchral stone, which is reported in traditionary legends to cover the body of a giant. Its trade is considerably increasing in consequence of the river navigation. The river Argula falls into the Nore, close by Ballyduff, where are ruins of an old Castle. About 2 m. above it, on the banks of the Nore, are the ruins of the Abbey of Jerpoint, a Cistertian establishment as early as 1180. Its remains, which are extensive, more resemble a fortress than an Abbey; and it has a very fine light and airy Tower with four pinnacles. The picturesque tourist when at this place must not omit a most romantic walk to a secluded dell and glen at Kilfaun, about 1-1/2 m. in length, well described by Wakefield, who notices an elegant cottage placed in a situation truly delightful; opposite to which is a waterfall, the rivulet running through the lawn and flower garden, having on both sides rocks ornamented with large evergreens, the whole scene exhibiting numerous beauties both of art and nature. Near Thomastown is Mount Juliet, the seat of the Earl of Carrick, which, though in a neglected state as described by Mr. Wakefield, is deserving of notice; the house being built in the old fashioned style of architecture, and standing immediately on the banks of the romantic and rapid Nore.

MINERALOGY.

Granite in various parts of the county; particularly on Brandon mountain near Gowran, with siliceous schistus, containing mica, crystals, and jasper. Pyrites and quartz near Inistioge. Black slate and hone-stones near Castle Durrow. Kilkenny coal near Castle Comer. Some pieces of very fine compact jasper, of various sizes, may be found on the borders of the granite district in the S. The specimens already discovered were of a deep red colour, for the most part obtusely angular, and squarer at one end than the other: they were imbedded in yellow clay, a few feet below the surface.

The mineralogist may feel gratified by the examination of a very fine granite quarry in the vicinity of Gowran. It is a beautiful stone of a light yellow cast, fine grained and compact, and may be taken up in blocks of any required size.

On the top of Drumdowny Hill, the extremity of an extensive range, there is a dry stone wall inclosing a space of about 300 acres, appropriated for quarrying a species of breccia, or pudding stone, which is cut into mill-stones.

BOTANY.

_Borago officinalis_, Burrage:--on the ruins of Grandison Castle.

_Erica cinerea_, Female Heath; with white flowers:--on moist sides of hills.

_Humulus Lupulus_, or Hops:--indigenous evidently in many parts of the county.

_Iris Pseud-acorus_, Common Flags or Saggons:--in wet grounds.

_Lichen_, Common Mosses; with all the varieties of _caninus_, _physodes_, _farinaceus_, &c.:--in many places.

_Lonicera_ var. _fol. quercinis_, Oak-leaved Honey-Suckle:--in the S.E. district, in meadows.

_Lycopodium alpinum_, Alpine Moss:--on the hills on western side of the Nore.

_Lycopodium clavatum_, Club Moss:--near Inistiogue.

_Lycopodium Selago_, Ladies' Shamrock:--in moist grounds on the banks of the Nore.

_Rumex Acetosa_, Sorrel:--in moist meadows.

_Rumex acutus_, Sharp Dock:--on clayey soils in the north.

_Verbena officinalis_, Vervain:--in pastures, and on road sides.

KING'S COUNTY.

This is one of the small Irish inland counties, long and narrow, bordering in some degree upon the Shannon, and traversed by the canal intended to unite the Irish Channel with that river.--It is flat and often boggy, especially in that district called the Bog of Allen; with the exception of the range of hills that separate it from the Queen's County, called the Sliebh-bloom mountains. Bounded N. by East and West Meath; E. by Kildare and Queen's County; S. by Tipperary; and W. by Galway and the River Shannon.

BALLYBOY, 17 m. S.W. of Philipstown, is nearly central to the county, on the Silver river, and but an inconsiderable village, with ruins of several Castles in its vicinity. See Anna lake and remains of Killinany Castle. At Ballycumber, ruins of a Castle, and a Ch. At Ferbane, beyond the Brosna, 10 m. N.W., see ruins of Cool and Killcolgan Castles; and near it are the ruins of Clonmacnoise, celebrated as the cemetery of numerous chieftains, priests, &c. These splendid remains are seated in the midst of delightful scenery, on a rising ground on the banks of the Shannon. See an ornamented Cross, fifteen feet high, standing near Teanpull Mac Diermid. It is in a rich style of sculpture, exhibiting the duties of Christianity, and some legendary stories of St. Kiaran, (A.D. 549,) the patron saint. The doors of the Ch. of Teanpull are also deserving of notice for their statues and ornamented architecture. Here are also two stone Crosses, and another nearer to Ferban, with ruins of several Castles. The episcopal palace is also in ruins, about 1/2 m. distant, besides some remains of a Nunnery. Many inscriptions in the Irish and the learned languages may be traced in the sepulchral Monuments; and the whole scene assimilates well with the wild and romantic landscape that surrounds it. Frankford is a small town, 3 m. N.W., with a Charter School, and some remains of a roofless Chapel.

BANAGHER, 30 m. S.W. of Philipstown, is seated on the E. bank of the Shannon, with pleasing river scenery and two bridges: a well built town, and good station for the tourist. Cloghan, 4 m., a village with a most comfortable inn, rendering it a convenient resting-place for the pedestrian artist wishing to examine the surrounding wild landscape. The statist may also derive considerable pleasure from investigating the progress of civilization and improvement resulting from the judicious planting and cultivation across the river Silver, by the Rev. Dr. Mullock, at Bellair, and from the erection of a village well planned, with neatness, cleanliness, and a good police as its main objects, in concert with the introduction of the Linen Manufacture.

BIRR, 28 m. S.W. of Philipstown, and seated on a river of the same name, was formerly called PARSONSTOWN, from the family to which it belongs, who have a castellated mansion in the outskirts. The town itself is new, and well built, of a good size, and the streets regularly laid out; with a square, called Duke's Square, from a statue of the Duke of Cumberland erected on a lofty stone column. The tourist will find a good inn at the King's Arms. See the fine old and venerable Castle, the mansion of the Earl of Ross, which stood a siege by General Sarsfield in the war of the Revolution. Excellent Market-house, and Infantry Barrack. Canger, to the S.E., towards the Sliebh-bloom mountains, manifests how much may be done in Ireland by the exertions of an individual. Here, by the judicious care of Mr. Atkinson, aided indeed by the neighbouring gentlemen, much has recently been accomplished; whiskey is giving place to malt liquor; the people quiet and loyal, though illiterate; and other improvements daily taking place. Excellent houses are also building for the tenants; labouring wages have been generously raised; the children constantly employed, and industry and content going hand in hand. Agricultural improvements and experiments are here practised, to the manifest instruction of the hitherto neglected farmer. At Drummoyle, 4 m., see the ancient Castle of Leap, with the incongruous addition of two modern wings to its Gothic centre. In the ancient part the walls are 14 feet thick. Dunkerron has a comfortable inn for those who wish to explore the southern angle of the county, and the Sliebh-bloom mountains. Near it see Franfort, the antique mansion of Mr. Rolleston, regularly defended with fortifications, a fosse and draw-bridge; also a modern, elegant, and spacious mansion house at Greenhills. In the Sliebh-bloom mountains, see a large pyramid of white stones, the emblem of the Sun-fire amongst the Celtic nations, from whence arose their ancient name of Bladhma, or Beal-di-mai, the necromancy of Baal's-day. They extend through a range of 15 miles, through which there is but one steep, narrow, and craggy pass, called Glandine Gap, not more than five feet wide, called by some the Irish Thermopylæ, and leading into Tipperary. At Rathmore, or the Great Rock, examine that extensive work once fortified by numerous towers, but now yielding to the hand of peaceful improvement. Shinrone has a handsome Ch., and Market-house, with a good Classical School.

EDENDERRY, 8 m. N.E. of Philipstown, a pleasant village inhabited by Quakers.--See ruins of Castle on a hill; and near it, spacious ruins of a Monastery.

PHILIPSTOWN, 39 m. S.W. from Dublin, took its name from Philip of Spain, being in a new shire incorporated by Queen Mary.--See ruins of Castle on bank of the river, with the spacious Gaol,--this, though a sorry village, being the county town. Near it see Croghan-hill, conical, and beautifully clothed with the most luxuriant verdure to its top; with ruins of Ch. at the base, and ancient cemetery at the summit.

PORTARLINGTON, 10 m. S.E., stands partly in this county, partly in Queen's, being divided by the river Barrow.

TULLAMORE, 7 m. S.W. of Philipstown, is divided in two by the river Clodagh. Here the tourist will find a good inn and accommodations at the Charleville Arms near the bridge. The town was burnt down a few years ago, but is reviving rapidly, with a busy and flourishing aspect, under the auspices of Lord Charleville; intersected by a canal leading from Dublin to the Shannon, on which a covered boat is fitted for passengers. A short distance, and on the banks of the canal, see a small square fortress in good preservation. See Charleville Castle, a magnificent mansion in all respects, erected in the Gothic style, but yet wanting the hoary hand of time to darken its castellated battlements, being built of limestone, which does not yet harmonize with the foliage of a flat park, or with the artificial piece of water formed in its front. The scenery in the demesne is very fine, with cascades, grottoes, rustic bridges, &c., &c. Clara, 10 m. W., is a neat handsome village, surrounded by the Linen Manufactory. Geashill, 3 m. S.E., has ruins of an ancient lofty Castle, the residence of the O'Molloys, which, defended by a lady, made a strong resistance against Cromwell. Near it a celebrated spring, and ruins of an Abbey.

MINERALS.

The Sliebh-bloom mountains offer a fine field of research to the mineralogical and geological tourist; being at present virgin ground. In other parts may be found, manganese, iron ore, ochres, with limestone and potter's clay.

BOTANY.

_Hypnum crispum_, Curled Hypnum:--in woods, heaths, and rocks.

_Melittis Melissophyllum_, Bastard Balm:--in woods and hedges.

_Pinus sylvestris_, Scotch Fir:--in woods in various parts.

_Pyrola rotundifolia_, Wintergreen:--in a bog near Dunkerrin.

LEITRIM

Borders on the sea at its N.W. extremity; almost entirely covered by groups of mountains, not completely barren, affording sufficient herbage for the feeding of cattle; whilst the vales between them are occupied by numerous lakes giving rise to equally numerous rivers. The picturesque tourist will here behold nature in her boldest features; and the antiquary may gratify himself with the examination of numerous ancient Castles in situations of the wildest and most savage grandeur. The lakes are numerous. Bounded on the S. by Roscommon and Sligo; W. by Bay of Donnegal; N. by Donnegal and Fermanagh; E. and S.E. by Cavan and Longford.

CARRICK-ON-SHANNON, or CARRICK DRUMRUSK, 78 m. from Dublin, is the largest and shire town of the county.--See the New Prison. Hall observes that many of the tombstones in the Ch.-yard are of a musical nature; for if struck with the knuckles, they ring like a dull metal.

FENAUGHT, 8 m. N.E. of Carrick, is a wild open district, presenting little worth notice except the venerable ruins of what was once a celebrated Divinity School of the Culdees. It is picturesquely overrun with ivy. The E. window is considered as a specimen of very curious workmanship; and the tourist must not fail to notice a line drawn across the middle of the eastern gable, with a figure on the N. side, about 12 feet from the ground, said to represent an evil spirit who was very troublesome to St. Cullin, the founder, during the period of its erection, this black gentleman acting the part of Penelope towards her suitors, and pulling down in the night what the Saint and his holy comrades had set up during the day. To check the troublesome intruder, the Saint blessed some ropes and drew them one night along the top of the building, when the Spirit, like a fly in a spider's nest, got entangled in the ropes, and being unable to extricate himself, was caught by the monks in the morning, who gave him some sound correction for his offence, but set him loose again upon the public, as is too often done by our modern police, and pretty much, perhaps, for similar purposes. 1/2 m. dist. two Druidical Altars.

JAMESTOWN, 2 m. S.E. of Carrick, a small town with ruins of a Castle.--Visit Carrigallan and Clongorrin Castles, about 12 m. E. Lough Bofin lies to the S. About 1 m. from Rusky, is a view which Mr. Hall considers one of the finest in Ireland, looking into Roscommon across Lough Bofin or Achary.

LEITRIM, 3 m. N. of Carrick, is a small town, or village, but gives name to the county.--Visit Lough Allen, encompassed by high mountains and more than 30 m. in circuit, presenting a most picturesque landscape. It is the first depository for the river Shannon, which rises a few miles distant on Quilca hill in Fermanagh, and tumbles down the mountains in tremendous cascades. On Inse Island see ruins of a Ch., a place of high religious estimation as a cemetery.

MANOR HAMILTON, 22 m. N.W. of Carrick, deserves notice from its romantic situation among mountains; a small neat village forming a good station to visit the western district. Here is a Castle built in the reign of Elizabeth. 3 m. N.W. a grotesque Castle of the O'Rourkes. Dromahaire is a small town seated on the river Boonid, worth visiting on account of its Abbey, (1508) which presents a pleasing specimen of Gothic ruins. Visit the romantic and picturesque Lough Gill; also Lough Melve, ornamented with wooded islands and venerable ruins. At Lurganbuy, the beautiful residence of Mr. Wynne.

MINERALS.

The mineralogical tourist must visit the red stone river, with its various coloured clays. The mountains present ores of lead, iron and copper, particularly near Lough Allen; also coal, and pipe clay.

BOTANY.

_Cyclamen europæum_, Sowbread:--in various places.

[Illustration:

_T. Fielding fc._

_Eagles Nest & Echo, Lake of Killarney._]

LIMERICK

Is amongst the largest of the Irish counties, extending along the southern bank of the Shannon, and therefore, though not maritime, yet enjoying, or capable of enjoying, all the benefits of maritime intercourse. Those who are merely in search of the wild and romantic, may perhaps be disappointed by its scenery, as it cannot be esteemed mountainous, except in the W.; yet being diversified by small hills, it might soon become highly picturesque if ornamental cultivation were once to extend over its rich pasture land, having no inclosures but rude earthen banks almost entirely bare of foliage, and only diversified by the squalid cabins of wretched cotters. On the borders of Kerry there is a fine amphitheatre of low but steep hills stretching in a curve from Drumcollogher to Loghil. These hills give rise to the river Maigue, and several smaller fertilizing streams, which traverse the county and fall into the Shannon. The numerous Castles crowded together in this county strongly mark its ancient feudal state. Bounded N. by the Shannon; N.E. by Tipperary; S. by Cork; W. by Kerry.

ADARE is an ancient town, 8 m. S.W. from Limerick, on the banks of the river Maigue, over which there is a good bridge, close to the ruins of the Abbey, whose lofty tower springs from a very curious arch, constructed with four diagonal ogives meeting in the centre. The ruins are yet in pretty good preservation, with beautiful Gothic cloisters, ornamented with escutcheons of arms. The edifice, being of limestone, has a curious yet venerable appearance. See the picturesque ruins of an ancient Castle, once the residence of the potent Earls of Desmond, and often the scene of hostile conflict during the early times, being often besieged and taken by the contending parties. There are vestiges of several other religious edifices; but the town itself is little more than a cluster of cabins, through which the tourist passes in his way to Killarney. In the vicinity is the demesne of the Quin family, beautifully diversified with wood and water, whilst its lawns, sloping down to both banks of the river, offer fine views of the ivied Abbeys nodding their venerable heads over the placid stream. Here too the tourist may wander delighted in silent contemplation through the long-drawn vistas of aged trees, and through shady walks, where once trod the saints and heroes of ancient times. See Mount Shannon, seat of Lord Clare, consisting of a large pile of building ornamented with plantations, near which are seen the environs of Limerick studded with neat houses belonging to its wealthy merchants.