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diff --git a/44066-8.txt b/44066-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 9b4d776..0000000 --- a/44066-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,9146 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Wanderings in Ireland, by Michael Myers Shoemaker - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Wanderings in Ireland - -Author: Michael Myers Shoemaker - -Release Date: October 29, 2013 [EBook #44066] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WANDERINGS IN IRELAND *** - - - - -Produced by Matthias Grammel, Ann Jury and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - - By M. M. SHOEMAKER - - - ISLANDS OF THE SOUTHERN SEAS - - With 80 Illustrations. Second Edition. Large 8vo. Gilt - top $2.25 - - QUAINT CORNERS OF ANCIENT EMPIRES - - With 47 Illustrations. Large 8vo. Gilt top $2.25 - - THE GREAT SIBERIAN RAILWAY FROM PETERSBURG - TO PEKING - - With 30 Illustrations and a Map. Large 8vo net, $2.00 - - THE HEART OF THE ORIENT - - With 52 Illustrations. Large 8vo net, $2.50 - - WINGED WHEELS IN FRANCE - - With about 60 Illustrations. Large 8vo net, $2.50 - - WANDERINGS IN IRELAND - - With 72 Illustrations. Large 8vo net, - - PALACES AND PRISONS OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS - - With about 60 Illustrations. Large 8vo net, $5.00 - Large Paper Edition. 4o net, $12.00 - - - G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS - - New York London - - - - -[Illustration: "The Harp of Erin" - -From the original painting by T. Buchanan Read in possession of the -author] - - - - - WANDERINGS - - IN - - IRELAND - - - BY - - MICHAEL MYERS SHOEMAKER - - Author of "Islands of the Southern Seas," - "Winged Wheels in France," etc. - - - Illustrated - - [Illustration] - - - G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS - NEW YORK AND LONDON - The Knickerbocker Press - 1908 - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1908 - - BY - - MICHAEL MYERS SHOEMAKER - - - The Knickerbocker Press, New York - - - - - TO MY AUNT - ANNA L. SHOEMAKER - - THESE NOTES ARE AFFECTIONATELY - DEDICATED - - - - -PREFACE - - -Are you minded for a jaunt through the island of Erin where tears and -smiles are near related and sobs and laughter go hand in hand? We will -walk, and will take it in donkey-cart and jaunting-car--by train and in -motor-cars--and if you suit yourself you will suit me. - -Leaving Dublin we will circle northward, with a visit to Tanderagee -Castle and the tomb of St. Patrick--God bless him,--then on past the -Causeway and down to Derry, and so into the County of Mayo, where in the -midst of a fair you will encounter the wildest "Konfusion" and will be -introduced to the gentleman who pays the rent. - -In the silence and solitudes of the island of Achill you will see tears -and hear sobs as you listen to the keening for the dead. Near the island -of Clare, Queen Grace O'Malley will almost order you away, as she did -her husband, and your motor with all its wings out will roll through the -grand scenery of the western coast--now down by the ocean and then far -up amidst the sombre mountains--Kylemore Castle and quaint Galway, Leap -Castle--ghost-haunted--and moated Ffranckfort, Holy Cross and the Rock -of Cashel--will pass in stately array and be succeeded by a glimpse of -army life at Buttevant, and a dinner at Doneraile Court, where you will -hear of the only woman Free Mason. Killarney will follow with its music -and legends, and Cork and Fermoy, and so on and into the County of -Wexford, where you will rush through the lanes and byways and will scare -many old ladies--driving as many donkeys--almost into Kingdom Come. You -will be welcomed at Bannow House and entertained in that quaintest of -all earthly dwellings, "Tintern Abbey," which was a ruin when the family -moved into it more than three centuries ago. You will visit the buried -city of Bannow and pass on to where Moore watched the "Meeting of the -Waters." You will visit in stately mansions, and go with a wild rush to -the races at the Curragh. At Jigginstown House you will be reminded of -the cowardice of a king, and as you bid farewell to Ireland you will lay -a wreath on the grave of Daniel O'Connell,--all this and much more if -you are so minded. - - M. M. S. - - UNION CLUB, NEW YORK, January 1, 1908. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER I - - PAGE - - Welcome to Ireland. Quaint People of Dublin. Packing - the Motors. Departure. Tara Hill. Its History and - Legends. Ruins at Trim. Tombs of the Druids. - Battle-field of the Boyne 1 - - - CHAPTER II - - Through Newry to Tanderagee Castle. Life in the Castle. - Excursions to Armagh. Its History. The English in Armagh 15 - - - CHAPTER III - - Through Newcastle to Downpatrick. Grave of St. Patrick. - His Life and Work. The Old Grave Digger. Belfast and - Ballygalley Bay. O'Halloran, the Outlaw 25 - - - CHAPTER IV - - Ballycastle to the Causeway. Prosperity of Northern - Ireland. Bundoran. Gay Life in County Mayo. Mantua - House. Troubles in Roscommon. Wit of the People. Irish - Girls. Emigration to America. Episode of the Horse. - People of the Hills. Chats by the Wayside. Mallaranny 34 - - - CHAPTER V - - The Island of Achill. Picturesque Scenery. Poverty - of the People. "Keening" for the Dead. "The Gintleman - who pays the Rint." Superstitious Legends 53 - - - CHAPTER VI - - Monastery of Burrishoole. Queen Grace O'Malley and - her Castle of Carrig-a-Hooly. Her Appearance at - Elizabeth's Court. Dismissal of her Husband. Wild - Scenery of the West Coast. The Ancient Tongue. - Recess. Kylemore Castle. Crazy Biddy 77 - - - CHAPTER VII - - The Ancient City of Galway. Quaint People. Curious - Houses. Vile Hotel. Parsonstown. Wingfield House. - Leap Castle, and its Ghosts. Ffranckfort Castle. - Clonmacnoise. Holy Cross Abbey 94 - - - CHAPTER VIII - - The Rock of Cashel. Its Cathedral, Palace, and Round - Tower--Its History and Legends. Kilmalloch, its - Ruins and History. The Desmonds. Horse Fair at - Buttevant 119 - - - CHAPTER IX - - Buttevant Barracks. Army Life. Mess-room Talk. - Condition of the Barracks. Balleybeg Abbey. Old - Church. Native Wedding. Kilcoman Castle, Spenser's - Home. Doneraile Court. Mrs. Aldworth, the only - Woman Freemason. Irish Wit. Regimental Plate. - Departure from the Barracks 132 - - - CHAPTER X - - Route to Killarney. Country Estates. Singular Customs. - Picturesque Squalor. Peace of the Lakes. Innisfallen. - The Legend of "Abbot Augustine." His Grave. "Dennis," - the "Buttons," and his Family Affairs. Motors in the - Gap of Dunloe 161 - - - CHAPTER XI - - Kenmare and Herbert Demesnes. Old Woman at the Gates. - Route to Glengariff. Bantry Bay. Boggeragh Mountains. - Duishane Castle. The Carrig-a-pooka and its Legend. - Macroom Castle and William Penn. Cork. Imperial - Hotel. "Ticklesome" Car Boy. The Races and my Brown - Hat. Route to Fermoy. Breakdown. Clonmel and its - "Royal Irish." Ride to Waterford 170 - - - CHAPTER XII - - Ancient Waterford. History. Reginald's Tower. - Franciscan Friary. Dunbrody Abbey. New Ross. Bannow - House. Its "Grey Lady." Legend of the Wood Pigeon. - Ancient Garden. Buried City of Bannow. Dancing on - the Tombs. Donkeys and Old Women. Tintern Abbey and - its Occupants. Quaint Rooms and Quainter Stories. - Its History and Legends. The Dead man on the Dinner - Table. The Secret of the Walls. The Illuminated - Parchment. The Sealed Library. Ruined Chapel. King - Charles's Clothes. Is History False or True? 181 - - - CHAPTER XIII - - Return to Ireland. Illness. Conditions on the Great - Liners. The Quay at Cork "of a Saturday Evening." - En route once more. The Old Lady and the Donkey. - Barracks at Fermoy. Killshening House, Abandoned - Seat of the Roche Family. Fethard. Quaint Customs. - The Man in the Coffin. "Curraghmore House" and its - Great Kennels. Its Legends, Ghosts, and History. - Lady Waterford. Oliver Cromwell at the Castle. The - Marquis in the Dungeon 209 - - - CHAPTER XIV - - Departure from Fethard. A Dead Horse and a Lawsuit. - Approach to Dublin. Estate of Kilruddery. The - Swan as a Fighter. Glendalough, its Ruins and History. - Tom Moore and his Tree in Ovoca. Advantages of Motor - Travel. Superstition of the Magpie. A Boy, a Cart, - and a Black Sheep. The Goose and the Motor 225 - - - CHAPTER XV - - The Lunatic. Insanity and its Causes in Ireland. The - Usual Old Lady and Donkey. Sunshine and Shadow. - Clonmines and its Seven Churches. The Crosses around - the Holy Tree. Baginbun and the Landing of the - English. The Bull of Pope Adrian. Letter of Pope - Alexander. Protest of the Irish Princes. Legends. - Death of Henry II. 243 - - - CHAPTER XVI - - Wild Times in Ireland. Landlord and Tenant. Evictions. - Boycott at Bannow House. The Parson and the Legacy. - The Priest and the Whipping. Burial in Cement. - Departure from Bannow House. Kilkenny and her Cats. - The Mountains of Wicklow. Powerscourt and a Week-End. - Run to Dublin and an Encounter by the Way. The Irish - Constabulary. Motor Runs in the Mountains. Lord H----. 260 - - - CHAPTER XVII - - Dublin. Derby Day and the Rush to the Curragh. An - Irish Crowd. The Kildare Street Club and Club Life. - Jigginstown House and its History. The Cowardice - of a King. The Old Woman on the Tram Car. Parnell. - The Grave of Daniel O'Connell 276 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - PAGE - - THE HARP OF ERIN _Frontispiece_ - From the original painting by T. Buchanan Read, - in the possession of the author - - STATUE OF ST. PATRICK ON THE HILL OF TARA 4 - - CASTLE OF KING JOHN AT TRIM 8 - - MONUMENT ON THE BATTLE-FIELD OF THE BOYNE 12 - - TANDERAGEE CASTLE, IRISH SEAT OF THE DUKE - OF MANCHESTER 16 - - CHAPEL, TANDERAGEE CASTLE 20 - - DRAWING-ROOM, TANDERAGEE CASTLE 24 - - TERRACE, TANDERAGEE CASTLE 28 - - TOMB OF ST. PATRICK AT DOWNPATRICK 32 - - A CABIN IN THE NORTH 36 - - A WOMAN OF THE NORTH 40 - - MANTUA HOUSE, ROSCOMMON 44 - - BALLINA, A TYPICAL IRISH TOWN 48 - - A GLIMPSE OF ACHILL 52 - - SLIEVEMORE MOUNTAIN, AND DUGORT, ACHILL 56 - - FISHERFOLK OF ACHILL 60 - - A LONELY ROAD IN CONNEMARA 64 - - KYLEMORE CASTLE, CONNEMARA 68 - - CRAZY BIDDY 72 - - THE LYNCH HOUSE, GALWAY 76 - - ABBEY OF ST. DOMINICK, LORRHA, ANCIENT - BURIAL-PLACE OF THE CARROLLS 80 - - LEAP CASTLE, COURT SIDE 84 - - LEAP CASTLE, PARK SIDE 88 - - MOAT OF FFRANCKFORT CASTLE 92 - - FFRANCKFORT CASTLE 96 - - CLONMACNOISE 100 - - ABBEY OF THE HOLY CROSS 104 - - ROCK OF CASHEL 108 - - CORMAC'S CHAPEL, CASHEL 112 - - CROSS OF CASHEL, AND THRONE OF THE KINGS - OF MUNSTER 116 - - ANCIENT GATEWAY, KILMALLOCH 120 - - DOMINICAN ABBEY, KILMALLOCH 124 - - BUTTEVANT BARRACKS 128 - - DINNER, BUTTEVANT BARRACKS 132 - - BUTTEVANT, COUNTY CORK 136 - - KILCOMAN CASTLE, SPENSER'S HOME 140 - - DONERAILE COURT, COUNTY CORK 144 - - ROOM IN DONERAILE COURT WHERE MRS. ALDWORTH - HID 148 - - THE HON. MRS. ALDWORTH, THE ONLY WOMAN - FREEMASON 152 - - THE LAKE, DONERAILE PARK 156 - - MALLOW CASTLE, COUNTY CORK 160 - - IRISH COTTAGE, COUNTY KERRY 164 - - CHAPEL OF ST. FINIAN THE LEPER, INNISFALLEN 168 - - TREE OVER THE ABBOT'S GRAVE, INNISFALLEN 172 - - UPPER LAKE, KILLARNEY 176 - - "DINNIS," HOTEL VICTORIA 180 - - THE ROUTE TO GLENGARIFF 184 - - CARRIG-A-POOKA CASTLE 188 - - MACROOM CASTLE 192 - - REGINALD'S TOWER, WATERFORD 196 - - FRANCISCAN FRIARY, WATERFORD 200 - - DUNBRODY ABBEY, COUNTY WEXFORD 204 - - BANNOW HOUSE, COUNTY WEXFORD 208 - - TERRACE, BANNOW HOUSE, COUNTY WEXFORD 212 - - CORNER OF THE ROSE GARDEN, BANNOW HOUSE, - COUNTY WEXFORD 216 - - BANNOW CHURCH, COUNTY WEXFORD 220 - - TOMBS IN BANNOW CHURCH 224 - - TINTERN ABBEY, COUNTY WEXFORD 228 - - KILKENNY CASTLE 232 - - DESERTED KILLSHENING HOUSE, FERMOY 236 - - CURRAGHMORE HOUSE, MARQUIS OF WATERFORD 240 - - HALLWAY, CURRAGHMORE HOUSE 244 - - DINING-ROOM, CURRAGHMORE HOUSE 248 - - KILRUDDERY HOUSE, EARL OF MEATH 252 - - GLENDALOUGH 256 - - TOM MOORE'S TREE, VALE OF OVOCA 260 - - ONE OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES, CLONMINES 264 - - FUNERAL CROSSES BY THE WAYSIDE, COUNTY - WEXFORD 268 - - POWERSCOURT HOUSE 272 - - GREAT SALON, POWERSCOURT HOUSE 276 - - RUINS OF JIGGINSTOWN HOUSE, EARL OF STRAFFORD 280 - - PARNELL'S GRAVE, GLASNEVIN CEMETERY, - DUBLIN 284 - - DANIEL O'CONNELL'S MONUMENT, GLASNEVIN - CEMETERY, DUBLIN 288 - - - - -WANDERINGS IN IRELAND - - - - -CHAPTER I - - Welcome to Ireland--Quaint People of Dublin--Packing the Motor and - Departure--Tara Hill; its History and Legends--Ruins at Trim--Tombs - of the Druids--Battle-field of the Boyne. - - -"Glory be to God, but yer honour is welcome to Ireland." - -An old traveller understands that it is the unexpected which makes the -joy of his days. I had come to Europe with the intention of spending -some conventional weeks in London, followed by an auto tour with the -family through the fair land of France. Fate brings me, upon my first -day in town, to Prince's Restaurant, when out of the chaos of faces -before me rises one whose owner, a son of Erin whom I had last seen -under the cherry blossoms of Japan, advances upon me. Then the -conventional promptly drops off and away, and it is but a short while -before a motor tour is arranged in the Emerald Isle, a month to be -passed amidst its beauties and miseries, its mirth and its sadness, for -all go in one grand company in the land of St. Patrick. - -With Boyse of Bannow I shall follow the fancy of the moment, which to my -thinking is the only true mode of travel. - -"Du Cros" has agreed to furnish a perfectly new Panhard for and upon the -same terms which I received in France last year, viz., thirty pounds -sterling per week, and everything found except the board and lodging of -the chauffeur. These very necessary details arranged we are impatient to -be off and leave London on a hot day in June. The smells, dirt, and dust -of her wooden streets, driven in clouds over all the grand old city, -follow us far out into the green meadows of England until we ask whether -the hawthorn blossoms have ever held any fragrance, and have we not been -mistaken as to roses. But London is not all of England, and we are -finally well beyond her influence and wondering why we remained within -her limits with the beautiful country so near at hand. The meadows of -England giving way to the mountains of Wales, one catches a glimpse of -the stately towers of Conway Castle, and then sails outward and westward -upon a level sea, which, on its farther side, holds the haven of desire, -Dublin, on the broad waters of the Liffey. - -Ireland welcomes us, weeping softly the while, though smiling ever and -anon as the sunlight rifts downward from the west. The gang-plank is -slippery and the pavements mucky, but our welcome is a warm one, at -least one fat, comfortable looking old woman with a shawl over her head, -a gown whose colour I cannot attempt to give, and shoes which have -evidently been discarded by her "auld man," greets me with a "Glory be -to God, but yer honour is welcome to Ireland!" and then catching sight -of my Jap servant, she gives utterance to a very audible aside, "Be the -powers of the divil, phat's that he has wid him!" crossing herself -vehemently the while, firmly convinced, I doubt not, that she has seen a -limb of Satan, which I think he strongly resembles. - -The Shelburn Hotel receives us within its walls, unchanged in the thirty -years which have elapsed since I last crossed the threshold, a -comfortable inn, pleasantly situated upon College Green, where a band of -Irish musicians are discoursing American ballads of the early sixties. - -One runs into the tide of American tourists here in Dublin, and to-night -this hotel is crowded with them. The clatter of tongues proving too much -for me, I dine and start to bed as soon as possible--a good book and an -easy resting-place are attractive after the long ride from London. - -In the hallway I encounter the porter trying to induce an old gentleman -to go to bed. Said gentleman is drunk as a gentleman should be, and -sound asleep in his chair, holding fast to a glass of whiskey and soda, -from which no efforts of the porter can part him. - -"What's the number of your room, sir?" - -The sleeping eyes half open as the happy man murmurs, "Wasn't you tryin' -to stale my whiskey just now?" - -"Well, I thought, sir, ye would be more comfortable in yer room." - -"Let slapin' dogs lie, me boy. But 'twas in a good cause ye did it, and -so I'll go," and he staggers off to the lift, sleeps on my shoulders -until I get out, and probably on the bench for the rest of the night, as -that small lift boy could never move that bulk, redolent of whiskey and -good humour. - -So far I have heard nothing from Boyse, who was to have rejoined me -here, and, when ten o'clock comes round, give him up for the night, and -putting out the light am shortly in the land of dreams, only to be -awakened by a clatter on the door followed by the entrance of the -missing man. He has put up at the Club, having reached here ahead of me. -Our car he reports ready for us at nine to-morrow morning, and I shortly -drive him out as it has gotten late. - -One must be of a sour disposition if one does not laugh in Ireland, and -be assured her people will always laugh with one, though at times there -sounds a catch of a sob running through it all. Seat yourself on any -spot in the island, and something funny is apt, nay almost sure, to -occur before you depart; all of which is apparently arranged for your -especial benefit. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Statue of St. Patrick on Tara Hill] - -It is raining this morning and it is Sunday, which in the dominions of -his Majesty does not mean a day of diversion unless you happen to be a -guest in some country house. I am in a secluded seat on the portico of -the hotel, when directly before me, on the only spot of pavement -visible, appears a girl of fourteen dressed in everything which could -never by the widest stretch of the imagination have been intended for -her when purchased. She summons "Katie darlin'" not to be such a -"truble" to her, but to appear and "spake to the gintleman," whereupon -from around the corner of a stone post comes "Katie darlin'," a mite of -a child some two feet tall with a pair of black eyes sparkling all over -her dirty little face. She is robed in what looks like a blue plush -opera-cloak on wrong side in front and festooned over what were once -shoes; her shock of never combed hair is topped by an old woman's -bonnet. "Katie darlin'" is evidently out for her Sunday. She is glad to -see every one, and especially "Your honour" after the reception of a -"ha'penny." Bless her dirty little face, what will be her portion in -this life, I wonder! Yet, after all, being Irish, she is safer than if -born of another race, for the women of her land do not go down to death -and destruction as easily as those of other countries, be it said to -their credit. God grant it may be so with "Katie darlin'," who goes -smilingly away to meet whatever fate the future holds for her, and which -disturbs her not at all as yet. - -The morning of our start from Dublin opens windy and with drifting -clouds but is a fair day for hereabouts, and after all these grey skys -are very soothing to one's eyes. - -Our motor rolls up at ten A.M. and proves to be a handsome new Panhard -of fifteen horse-power. Packing and stowing take a half-hour the first -day, as economy of space is to be desired, and the proper arrangement of -luggage is a question to be considered. However, all is done and I roll -off to the "Kildare Street Club," where Boyse awaits me. - -His traps necessitate a new arrangement of all the luggage, which I am -not allowed to superintend at all, but am carried off to a room well to -the rear where a whiskey and soda is vainly pressed upon me. I should -much prefer to stay outside and boss the job of loading up, but that -would be undignified. So we stay cooped up until all is arranged, and -then sally forth and roll away with the utmost grandeur of demeanour. I -object several times during the day to the arrangement of those traps, -impressing upon Boyse the truth of the old saying, "if you want a thing -done, go,--if not, send--" and pointing out to him that therein lies the -reason for the increasing glory and prosperity of our country and the -evident decadence of the British Empire. - -He does not take me as serious,--perhaps I am not,--but daily life must -have its spice and we spend many hours like Pat and "Dinnis" on the quay -at Cork of a Saturday evening, "fighting each other for conciliation and -hating each other for the love of God." - -Speeding away through Dublin's busy streets and out into Phoenix Park, -existence becomes life once more. The rushing winds drive the last taint -of the city and its world of men and women off and away. Beyond the -confines of the park we enter at once into the green country; tall -hawthorn hedges toss their branches above us as we speed onward, the car -moving like a bird. These are not French roads but they are far from -bad. Mile after mile glides by us, and a sharp rain forces the top over -our heads, but not for long,--it is soon down again, and we give -ourselves up for an hour to the enjoyment of mere motion. And then -history claims our attention. Dublin is of course rich in its memories -but leave it for the present and speeding westward some thirty miles -pause at the foot of Tara Hill, the most renowned spot in Ireland. There -are few in our Western land who do not remember the sweet old song of -Moore's: - - "The harp that once through Tara's halls - The soul of music shed, - Now hangs as mute on Tara's walls - As if that soul were fled." - -And there are many to whom its melodies will recall those better days -when voices long since sunken into silence sang them off into dreamland -with those words. - -Green grow the grasses to-day over this site of Ireland's most ancient -capital. Gone are its garland-hung walls, silent its harps for ever. - -Leaving the present behind, one passes into the remotest recess of the -island's past as one mounts the hill. To-day wavering misty shadows -close in around me as I move upward, even as though the spirits of the -ancient kings and minstrels were yet about, and the winds moan as though -driven across the strings of many harps, and there seems melody all -around me. - -Tara is not a great hill, but a fair green mound from which the ancient -kings were wont to spy out all the fair land around them. It was the -most sacred spot in the kingdom and none could wear the crown who bore -blemish of any sort. Cormac Mac Art, the great King, was, upon the loss -of his eye, forced to retire to the hill of Skreen near-by. For -twenty-five hundred years, Tara was the palace and burial-place of the -kings of Ireland, who every third year met here in great convention. -To-day as I stand on its summit nothing of that period, save some long -mounds, breaks the green carpet of grass thrown like the covering of our -holy communion over this holy of holies. Tara was mentioned by Ptolemy -and he called it "illustrious." Its name by some is supposed to be taken -from that of the wife of a King, Heremon, the first monarch of Ireland. -"Thea" was her name and the place was called Temora (the house of Thea), -but others call it "the house of music" (Thead, a musical chord, and -mur, a house). - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Castle of King John Trim] - -The main hall stood nine hundred feet square and "twenty-seven cubits in -height." It held its thousand guests daily and on great days the monarch -sat on his throne in its centre, his flowing yellow hair bearing the -golden crown, his stately form clothed in a brilliant scarlet robe laden -with rich ornaments of gold. Golden shoes ornamented with red buckles -and bearing stars and animals in gold, were upon his feet; the King of -Leinster sat, facing him, the King of Ulster sat on his right, the King -of Munster on his left, while the King of Connaught sat behind him. On -long rows of seats before him were the druids, bards, philosophers, -antiquaries, genealogists, musicians, and the chiefs of all the towns of -the kingdom. The assembly was opened by the chief bard, followed by the -druidical rites, after which the fire of Saman, or the moon, was -lighted. Not until then was the business of the convention taken up. In -one part of the palace, the youths were instructed in poetry and music -and initiated into the hidden harmony of the universe. Evidently in -those days a city must have surrounded the base of this hill, but of the -houses of the people little seems to be known and nothing is left. - -In these long mounds the traveller to-day may trace the outlines of the -hall composed of earth and wood from whence one hundred and forty-two -kings ruled the land, the great King Cormac dating back to A.D. 227, and -he it is who is supposed to have built this hall. Some claim that the -celebrated "Stone of Destiny" now in the coronation chair in London was -taken from here to Scotland. Of this there is no proof, but so runs the -legend. - -There is only the music of the wind-swept grasses on Tara Hill to-night, -yet surely the moon rising so grandly yonder still holds her feast and -is summoning her worshippers from the mists of the valley rising in -fantastic forms all around us,--but the only thing bearing semblance of -human form which she illumines is a crazy statue of St. Patrick here on -the spot where he met and, by the power of the Lord, vanquished the -magicians of the king. There could be no fitter heir to inherit and so -we leave him in sole possession and go down to our car, which rolls us -silently away through the green lanes and on towards Trim's ruined -arches and towers. Now the tall "yellow steeple" of the Abbey of St. -Mary's, founded by St. Patrick, and close into the town the great Castle -of King John loom up in the moonlight. Vast in extent, the castle -appears doubly so in this shadowy light, as we glide by it, a huge empty -shell covered with clambering ivy. - -Rolling on through the town we pass to Navan, dear to hunters. All this -is a fair green country where the grass is good for the cattle, where -the poultry thrive, and the Boyne is full of fish, hence one notes on -all sides the ruins of many monasteries, for those old monks were always -to be found where their stomachs could be well taken care of; and yet -with all that they were the power in the land, as the priest is still -the power in southern Ireland. - -Leaving Navan we turn northeastward towards Drogheda. The road winds all -the way by the banks of the Boyne and while that name recalls to mind -most prominently the famous battle of the kings, James and William, -still the region was celebrated long ages before either was thought of. -The whole valley was a vast necropolis for the ancient kings and druids, -and on both sides one sees the remains of a remote antiquity, especially -at New Grange where one finds a tumulus covering some two acres. At -first glance it resembles an Indian mound in America, but it is far more -satisfactory to explore as one finds in its interior a tomb of -extraordinary size and rich in carving, which is supposed to date as far -back as the earliest bronze age, but who was buried here is a question -which has never been settled. - -We enter by a passage on its southern side about fifty feet long,--a -stone corridor formed by upright slabs about seven feet high and roofed -by stones of great size. Our glimmering candles show the centre tomb to -be a lofty domed chamber, circular in form, its roof composed of -horizontally placed stones projecting one beyond the other and capped by -a single slab some twenty feet above the observer. There are three -recesses branching off from the rotunda, probably the tombs of the -lesser mortals, while the body of the monarch evidently occupied the -centre space. - -There is another sepulchre of equal size at Dowth, and doubtless every -hill or mound in sight holds others. If the Boyne as it winds and -murmurs past them could speak, it could doubtless tell us tales of kings -and druids, of royal coronations and priestly ceremonies, of life and -death in the long dead past. How was it all, I wonder? Was it -picturesque and beautiful or did the barbaric side crowd all that down -and out, leaving nothing save a shuddering feeling of horror as one -gazed on the rites of the druids? - -These tombs were rifled by the Danes a thousand years ago, and -therefore, aside from the carvings on their walls, have yielded but -little of interest to the antiquary. There is nothing of animal or human -life represented, merely coils, lozenges, and spirals, with now and then -a fern leaf, but nothing which tells their story as do the Egyptian -inscriptions. This valley of the Boyne is beautifully wooded and the -roads are fine. Our route lies past the obelisk marking the famous -battlefield where the sun of James II. set for ever. The valley is -lovely and reminds one greatly of that of the Thames near Richmond. It -has taken most of the day to make the chauffeur understand that we are -not out to kill time and distance. At the rate he would like to travel -we should reach Iceland in time for tea even with the ocean to cross, -but, as I have forced him to retrace the route several times, he seems -at last to understand our determination not to rush. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Monument on the Battle-field of the Boyne] - -The whole day's ride has been charming. We did not stop at Drogheda, but -passed on to Newry, a twelve-mile ride over a very fine road, and rested -at the Victoria Hotel, having covered one hundred and three miles since -eleven this morning, with long stoppages several times. The auto has -done splendidly and will do better as it gets down to work. - -This is the Protestant end of Ireland, prosperous and contented -apparently, but not picturesque. That goes with the state of affairs to -be found in the southern half. - -Newry is a clean town with neat shops and houses, and a good hotel, -still there are Irish characteristics which those of us who remember the -Irish maid of long ago in America will recognise at once. Many things -are broken, "jist came that way"; a complete toilet set is unnecessary -where there are windows; and I notice that the salutations sound always -wrong end first,--when people meet they say "Good-night," a form never -used elsewhere except when parting. - -Apparently the hotel is the social club of the town, where the men of a -certain class gather in the evenings, and drawing their chairs in a -circle before the bar, spend an hour or so in chaff with the barmaid, -drinking porter the while. To-night the talk is of a more serious nature -and turns on trade. - -It is claimed that what kills all chance of Ireland being a profitable -country are the railway rates, that, for instance, it costs more to get -corn from Galway to Dublin than from America to any point on the island. - -I asked an Irishman whether Gladstone had benefited Ireland, and he -replied, "he was the cause of all our trouble, he cost Great Britain two -thousand millions sterling and countless lives, and yet they put up -statues to him." - -The traveller of to-day sees no sign of the upper classes in Newry, -though there are estates all around it, and in turning the pages of its -history he will discover that it is a place of great antiquity, though -its streets to-day show no signs thereof. Prosperous and commonplace -would best describe it. However, it is just the prosperous and -commonplace which the traveller most welcomes as night comes down upon -him, for there, and not amongst the romantic and picturesque, in Ireland -at least, does he find comfortable quarters and good food. So it is -to-night and so to bed and dreams. - - - - -CHAPTER II - - Through Newry to Tanderagee Castle--Life in the Castle--Excursions - to Armagh--Its History--The English in Armagh. - - -Our route lies from Newry north-west through Pointz-pass, beyond which -as we approach Tanderagee, the castle, a stately stone structure, is -seen towering high on a forest-crowned hill with a flag denoting its -owner's presence floating from the main tower. - -While the castle is a modern structure of some seventy-five years of -age,--originally built by the Count de Salis,--it stands on the site of -the very ancient stronghold of Redmond O'Hanlon, the most noted outlaw -of Ireland. As we roll through the quaint town clustering around the -hill, where every soul appears to have gone to sleep or gone dead long -since, the sound of the motor brings a few pale faces to the doors of -the houses, but it is very quiet withal. - -Looking upward from this street the growth of trees is so dense that no -sign of the castle is visible. We pass through almost a tunnel cut -through the rocks and trees, and emerging in a spacious courtyard, draw -up at the main portal where the _maître d'hôtel_ meets and conducts us -within, our hosts being off somewhere in their motor but will return -shortly. - -This gives us time for a quiet inspection. We find ourselves in a long, -wide, and lofty corridor having a row of windows on its right, while on -the left one has entrance first to the main hall and chapel, stately -apartments very richly decorated, and then in order follow several -drawing-rooms, a library, and a spacious dining-hall, and from the walls -of each and all, the painted faces of those who walked these chambers -long ago look down upon us with questioning gaze as though they still -retained some interest in this world of the living, and yonder dame -would, I know, like to hear the latest news from London; but take my -advice, my lady, and let it pass, it is productive of just the same -unrest and discontent now as when you trod the boards of that great -theatre of life,--Dead Sea fruit, the whole of it. - -Wondering what part she played in life, my eyes wander to an open window -and straightway all thoughts of Madam vanish as I gaze downward -through the glades of one of those beautiful parks which abound in these -dominions. A stately terrace of stone shrouded in ivy runs below these -windows and from it the land drops away into a gentle valley filled with -great trees and blossoming banks of rhododendrons with here and there a -stretch of grassland and a gleam of water, a vista which must have been -a perpetual delight to the Duke who collected these books in this -library, for a lover of books is generally a lover of nature. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Tanderagee Castle] - -Passing onward you will enter the courtyard and at the end of the long -arcades on one side find the billiard and smoking rooms. On the upper -floors, aside from the state and family apartments, one finds long rows -of bachelor apartments, twenty or thirty of them I should say, and in -the middle of the row a cozy octagon chamber where much high revel has -held forth, and which looks very lonely just now. There are small -closets in the walls which certainly did not hold holy water. - -But times are changed at Tanderagee, and while there is to-day high -revel within its walls, it comes from the fresh young voices of children -and would in no way appeal to the ghosts which haunt the octagon -chamber. - -After luncheon we visit the little ones in their rooms high up in the -sunlight, and very happy, fine children they appear to be. Round-eyed -little Lady Mary did the honours and presented her brother, who at the -time was making vain attempts to stand on his head in a corner, while -the new baby dreamed his days away in a crib by the fire. I am told that -the present Duke dying without an heir the estate would pass to a -Catholic owner, much to the distaste of the tenants here, who are mostly -Protestants, and that when little Lord Mandeville was born the -rejoicings were immense,--every man as he heard it having a pull at the -church bell. Now there are two sons and hence little chance of the -dreaded misfortune,--though it often happened during the Boer war that -many estates in the empire fell to those so distant that no hope had -been entertained for an instant of their so passing. Let us trust it -will not occur here, for these are fine children. - -Passing downward, we spend some hours in wandering over the park, -pausing at last by the grave of the late Duke in the little churchyard. -I did not notice the graves of any other members of the family. I -believe former dukes are interred at Kimbolton, the family seat in -England. The church holds some very beautiful windows erected by the -present Duchess to the memory of her mother, Helena Zimmerman. As we -return to the castle the voices of the children have roused all the -echoes of the courtyard into wild replies and now the sunlight streams -downward as though in thorough approval. - -Tea-time, that most pleasant hour of the day, finds me in the chapel -listening to the soft tones of the organ. My hand quite haphazard picks -up a volume lying near me whose title at once chains my attention and in -view of the base manner in which the author afterward sold his talents -to her enemies and slandered his Queen it may be well to quote what he -says of that Queen in this preface: - - "TO THE MOST ILLUSTRIOUS MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. - [An Epigram of George Buchanan.] - - "MADAM: - - "Who now happily holdest the sceptre of the Caledonian coast - conveyed from hand to hand through a long line of innumerable - ancestors, whose fortune is exceeded by thy merits, thy years by - thy virtues, thy sex by thy spirit, and thy noble birth by the - nobility of thy manners, - - "Receive (but with candour and good nature) these poems upon which - I have bestowed a Latine Dress, etc. etc. I durst not cast away - this ill-born product of mine lest I should reject what thou hast - been pleased to approve. What my poems could not hope for from the - wit and genius of the composer perhaps they will obtain from thy - good-will and approbation."[1] - -Deep in thoughts of that most interesting period of Scotch history I do -not even hear the dressing bell until its clangour becomes too insistent -to be disregarded, and I mount to my room to dress for that most -important function of the day--dinner. A bright fire makes the chamber -warm and cozy so that it is difficult to resist the temptation to -further reverie. - -Evidently Tanderagee has been greatly improved of late years. In the -building have been placed several modern bathrooms, a Turkish plunge, -and an electric light plant and steam heat, so that the damp, -penetrating cold and musty, mouldy smell usually so ever-present in -these houses, where fortunes are so constantly spent in decorations and -so little done for actual comfort, are absent. From my window I can see -on the lake of the park an ancient swan named Billy, alone in all his -glory and from choice and bad temper, not necessity. He has killed off -all his kind and all other kinds, is in fact a degenerate bird, and when -evening comes on he betakes himself with the rest of the "boys" to the -village street, and loafs around all night, no dog in the place daring -to molest him. I saw him outside of a public house there with a desire -for strong drink expressed in his eyes. He is a rake of the worst -character but you dare not tell him so. He leaves the park every night -before the gates are closed and returns next morning. - -There are fine drives in all directions hereabouts, and the roads being -good we have many a rush in the motor-cars,--one to an old ruin where -the devil is supposed to leave the impress of his foot upon a plank in -the floor each night. I doubt if to-day even the devil could reach the -plank through the accumulation of dirt thereon. - -[Illustration: Photo by Wm. Lawrence - Chapel, Tanderagee Castle] - -As we wait in the quadrangle one morning for our motors, to my -astonishment I am accosted in salutation by a name used only at home, -and by those I have known for years. "How de do, Mr. Mike?" Around me -rise the walls of the castle, but aside from the expressionless faces of -the house servants standing near I can see no one until in a dark corner -of the court a yet blacker spot suddenly shows a white gleam of teeth, -and out into the light comes the speaker. "How de do, sir?--I'se de cook -on de boss's car, and I knowed you all your life. Don't you remember -nigger John and Miss Nancy Ballentine?" Convulsed with laughter, I can -scarcely answer. This explains the hot bread and waffles on the -breakfast table, which surprised me for the moment, but which I had -entirely forgotten. Bowing and scraping came black "Tom" into the -sunshine and it seemed to do his heart good to talk of the old times, of -Black John our own cook, and Miss Nancy Ballentine, who "tended de -ladies' waitin' room in the C. H. & D. station" when she was not -assisting at the marrying or burying of most of us, at the latter -wearing a dress composed of the crêpe from many a doorbell. That it did -not match in degrees of blackness mattered not at all to the good dame. -She arranged it in stripes and she could tell you which particular -funeral each of those stripes came from. She has been dead many years, -and to have her recalled here was strange indeed, but--the cars come -with a rush, and we are off with a rush, speeding through the beautiful -park whose trees certainly equal any I have seen except of course those -of California. - -I find that my fifteen horse-power Clements keeps up very fairly with -the Duke's motor of sixty horse-power. Of course on the wide straight -roads of France this could not be, but on these narrow and crooked lanes -of Ireland we are never very far apart, and have had many good runs -together. - -Our motoring carries us often to the town of Armagh where one comes -across traces of the hatred of that Catholic Queen, Mary I., for the -Irish. She burned this see and three other churches. The cruelties of -that Queen to the people of Kings and Queens counties equals anything -told in Irish history, but is rarely mentioned by the historians of the -day. In fact, all the territory forming now those counties was stolen -from its ancient owners and the name changed as above, resulting in a -warfare which lasted into the reign of Elizabeth until the people -finally disappeared into the mountains. No torture or cruelty was -spared. - -In _Forgotten facts in Irish History_ we read that "it seems very -apparent to the student of Irish history that these people received -their persecutions not because they were _Catholics_, but because they -were _Irish_. The most terrible persecutions took place under the -Catholic sovereigns of England and not until those monarchs became -so-called heretics was the Church of Rome turned against them, so that -at the present time it is the effort of all to show that the persecution -if it exists is because of the religion." - -The history of the archbishopric of Dublin is an object-lesson on the -exclusion of the Irish from the Church ever since the Conquest. From -1171 down to the Reformation, in 1549, there were twenty-three -archbishops of Dublin. Of these not one was Irish. For the archbishopric -of Dublin "No Irish need apply!" - -The Statute of Kilkenny enacted that no religious house shall receive an -Irishman, under penalty of being attainted and having its temporalities -seized. - -One historian of our times asks: - - "But would any Irishman have the hardihood to say that if King - Edward VII. were to become a Roman Catholic (which heaven forbid), - and to go hand in hand with the Papacy in the prosecution of their - Imperial and world-wide projects, that the Pope would oppose the - King in any tyrannies he might be disposed to inflict upon Ireland - which did not run counter to the interests of the Roman Catholic - Church? Would the Pope risk the friendship of the ruler of a great - Empire for the sake of what Italians regard as 'a mere eruption on - the chin of the world'?[2] - - "The centuries of oppressive treatment which Ireland received while - the whole kingdom was under the 'shelter of the wings of Rome' - amply explains the animosity which rankles in the Irish heart - towards England and everything English. The whole story of that - almost forgotten period is a series of murders, cursings, - tyrannies, betrayals, rapacity, hypocrisy, and poverty, which - scarcely finds a parallel in the range of history." - -Armagh has suffered terribly throughout the years since St. Patrick -founded the cathedral, but though abounding in memories, there is little -existing of the past in the town to-day. The site of its cathedral is -very fine, but the building has suffered a complete restoration. - -Our days at Tanderagee have passed pleasantly but they are over at last -and bidding our hosts adieu we roll off towards Newry. - -[Illustration: Photo by Wm. Lawrence - Drawing-room, Tanderagee Castle] - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] The Preface of George Buchanan's Poetical Paraphrase upon -the five books of Psalms. - -Translated literally into English by Pat Stobin, A. M. Copied by me from -the MS. copy of Stobin at Tanderagee, owned by the Duke of Manchester. -The whole book is in MS. - M. M. SHOEMAKER. - -[2] The late Professor Stokes ventured to say that an English -Peer is a more welcome visitor at the Vatican than an Irish Roman -Catholic Bishop. - - - - -CHAPTER III - - Through Newcastle to Downpatrick--Grave of St. Patrick--His Life - and Work--The Old Grave-Digger--Belfast and Ballygalley - Bay--O'Halloran the Outlaw. - - -It is nearly six o'clock when we start from Newry towards Newcastle. Our -road lies down the river, and so on by the sea the entire distance. - -The highway is excellent all the way, some thirty-two miles, and the car -speeds onward like a bird. The scenery is lovely, the glimpses of -mountain and meadow, sea and sky enchanting. - -About 7.20 brings us to the hotel at Slieve Donard, a very large costly -establishment built by the railway company. It is evidently a -watering-place of some importance, and next month (July) will see it -crowded. The place is pleasantly situated by the sea and presided over -by the Mourne Mountains. There are golf-links and the walks and drives -are fine, but otherwise there is nothing of interest, and we shall move -northward to Dundrum. - -The morning is clear and crisp as we leave Newcastle, getting lost at -once in the many byways, but that is rather a pleasure than an -annoyance. All the roadbeds are fine hereabouts and we roll merrily -along over hill and down dale until Downpatrick comes into view, and we -pass up her streets to her ancient cathedral, and there pay our -devotions at the grave of St. Patrick. - -The church stands well above its ancient city and is visible from all -the country round about. Several places claim the birthplace of St. -Patrick, but that benign Scotchman was born near Dunbarton. He himself -says that his father was a deacon and his grandfather a _priest_. He was -a nephew of St. Martin of Tours, the sister of that holy man having been -the mother of the Irish patron. His name was Succat, but it is by his -Latin name of Patricius that he is known best to the millions who revere -his memory. - -Ireland during its first millennium was called Scotland, and its people -"Scots," and by these St. Patrick was taken prisoner when he was but -sixteen years of age and carried to Antrim, where he was held for six -years and forced to care for the swine of Michu, a chieftain. We are -told that this occurred in the mountain of Llemish near Ballymena. -During this period his thoughts were ever turned towards Christianity -and after having effected his escape he is next heard of at Auxerre with -its Bishop, Germanus, by whom he was admitted to holy orders. His -thoughts always turned towards Ireland and here he landed when he was -sixty years of age near the present church of Saul on Strangford Lough -in 432 A.D. This was but four miles from Downpatrick, and there the -Lord promptly blessed his work by enabling him to convert the chieftain -of the district, Dichu, to Christianity, receiving as a gift the barn of -that same chieftain, which formed the first Christian church of this -island. The present church of Saul stands on the spot and that name is -but a corruption of the ancient one of "Patrick's Sabball," or barn. - -From here the faith spread until it covered all the land, and here in -492 he died. - -Both Armagh and Dundalethglass--Downpatrick--claimed a right to provide -him with a tomb, and to settle the dispute two untamed oxen were yoked -to his bier, and they stopped on this hill of Downpatrick. As to what -sort of a wild ride they gave his saintship before, out of wind, they -rested on this hill, history is silent, but, being Irish, there is no -doubt but that he thoroughly enjoyed it. - -I have always regretted that during an ocean voyage which I once made -with the late Bishop Donnelly, I did not make inquiry concerning this -funeral progress, for I have no doubt but that his reverence--he was not -a Bishop then--knew all about it. I have never met any one who more -thoroughly appreciated the sunshine and sorrow, the laughter and tears -of the land he loved so well, and I greatly regret that that voyage was -so short and that the good Bishop so soon thereafter entered into his -rest. But to return. - -As far as the actual grave of St. Patrick is concerned, there is, of -course, no certainty; that he was buried somewhere on this hill appears -beyond doubt, and probably near the spot the church was built on, but -that his body remained long in the grave after he was elevated to the -sainthood is clearly doubtful. Probably every church in Ireland has at -one time contained a relic of his. As for this original church here, it -is spoken of way back in the sixth century and again in the eleventh. -The first claimed to have been erected by the saint himself. - -The relics of Columba were brought from Iona here and it is related that -it was that saint who enshrined those of St. Patrick just three-score -years after his death. In his tomb were found his goblet, his Angel's -Gospel, and the Bell of the Testament. - -Into St. Patrick's tomb went also the bones of St. Brigid. The Danes -came here, and Strongbow and King John passed by. - -The present church is supposed to be only the choir of the great -edifice--the second church--built by De Courcey and destroyed by Edward, -Lord Cromwell in 1605; but it is so completely restored that it is of -little interest, though very comfortable withal. - -[Illustration: Photo by Wm. Lawrence - Terrace at Tanderagee Castle] - -Just outside there stands a venerable gravedigger amongst the tombs, -who might almost have been here fifteen hundred years ago, and certainly -he would resent any insinuation that he was not well informed upon all -which may or may not have occurred since the death of the saint. He is -leaning upon his rake near the church door, and returns our salutation -in an antique manner, nothing about him as it were, belonging to this -latter day or date. "Yes, the cathedral can be visited, but perhaps -'twould be as well to visit the tomb, I will show you that,--who -better?" - -It is off amongst a tangle of tombstones and high grasses, a great flat -irregular boulder engraved with a Celtic cross and the saint's -name--evidently the sinful dead have crowded as closely as possible -around the saintly ashes in order perhaps to pass into the heavenly -gates unobserved with such great company to chain the attention of St. -Peter. But some of these around started on their last journey hundreds -of years after St. Patrick,--still, as we are told that "in His sight a -thousand years are but as yesterday," perhaps they all arrived together, -and I doubt not that for his beloved Irish the holy Patrick would delay -his entry as long as possible and even come back again from that farther -shore at the calling of some late comers. - -When I ask this gravedigger whether this be indeed the grave of the -holy man, he looks wise, plucks a bit of grass from a near-by grave, and -seizes his opportunity for an oration. It is useless to stop him with -questions, he will answer as and when it pleases him; and so, sitting -upon the tomb with the sunlight falling in a glowing benediction upon -us living and upon the old cathedral and its silent company, he speaks -on and on. "There's many, your honour, phwat has heads but don't use -thim. Is this _the_ grave you ask. Well I have puzzled out the question -for many years. I _don't_ believe it is, as I suggested this spot to the -antiquary society myself. In owlden days the spot prayed upon as his -tomb was under yonder middle window of the church, but whin a bishop -came along who wanted more silf-glory than one driveway would give him, -he made that one there, and in so doing moved the owld tombstone,--not -that I am claiming that even that was the first one laid upon the -blessed corpse, for an owld woman of eighty who lived here until she was -ten and then moved away, came back to bid farewell to her native town on -going to America, and upon being shown the tomb undher the window asked -since whin had the dead taken to moving their graves, for whin she left -here it was below there in the valley. But we know it was around here -some place, and this new spot is as good as any other." "Did St. -Pathrick build that church?--no, sure, yer honour, he was not the kind -of a man who wint around glorifying himself. If he had had as much money -as that cost 't would be the poor who would have got it. Still, the -church yonder is fifteen hundred years old, though it has been so built -over that it is hard to believe it." - -The old man would have talked on for ever, but, like most of his age, it -would have been but vain repetition, and so we move off and away, -feeling sure that the spirit of the benign old saint returns now and -then in floods of warm sunlight to his ancient cathedral of Downpatrick. - -Like most grave-diggers, the man up there knew more of the past than of -the present, and when he told us that we would find a fine ferry from -Strangford across the outlet of the lough of that name he spoke without -advisement. We found a proposition to place some planks from one boat to -another and so to ferry us and our great machine over one of the -deepest, swiftest currents passing outward to the sea. It is useless to -say that I vetoed this proposition, so we rolled backward almost to -Downpatrick, and then turned north-west towards Belfast, which we -reached for luncheon. - -When I pass a city like Belfast without notice, it is not that there is -not much of interest there, but that it has been so often described, and -I would confine these notes to those more unfamiliar spots with which -Ireland abounds, places of which the general run of travellers knows -nothing. Yet Belfast, like its great neighbour Glasgow, possesses much -of interest of which the guide-books make no note. - -Leaving the busy city of the north, our route lies towards the sea and -by the sea for some hours, the roads all very good. We pass -Carrickfergus and Larne and on the shores of Ballygalley Bay, coming to -a sudden stoppage, discover on investigation that our stupid chauffeur -has allowed the gasoline to run out. What to do is a problem, as we are -some miles from any town and the road is a lonely one. To assist in a -solution of the question Boyse goes to sleep in the motor and I go out -on a lonely rock at sea where O'Halloran, that most renowned outlaw in -Irish history, built his tower,--all in ruins now. For ten years he kept -all this district in subjection and was killed in 1681. - -There is but little left of his stronghold here--an angle of a tower, an -outline of a wall or two,--all on a tiny island around which murmur the -waters of the Irish Sea, while far out, seemingly afloat, in the hazy -distance rise the shadowy shores of Scotland. That is Cantyre and Arran -over yonder. There are no sails in sight and the sea is asleep. The -high-road winds away close down by the shore on either hand, while high -behind it the fantastic cliffs tower some three hundred feet and more, -wild and desolate. To have passed this way in the days of O'Halloran, -without paying heavy tribute, if he allowed you to go at all, would have -been well-nigh impossible, and our further progress, unless that petrol -comes, is as effectively prohibited. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - The Tomb of St. Patrick] - -But there is peace about just now, the drifting clouds above, the -lapping waters and silent hills all around, Boyse still sleeping, and -the auto seemingly dead, while Yama occupies a pinnacle of an adjacent -rock, a bronze Buddha on its travels, as it were. But far down the coast -road a white speck shortly evolves into a jaunting-car laden with petrol -cans--we had sent word back by a passing cyclist--whose contents are -promptly transferred into our tank, and then with all paid for we glide -away to the north, with one last glimpse at the ruined tower in its bay -of Ballygalley. - -I should make the chauffeur pay for his stupidity about that petrol, but -I don't suppose I shall do so. - -The ride to Ballycastle is joyous, the road very fine and smooth, -running now by the glistening sea and then far up a thousand feet amidst -the silence of the hill and moors, over which flocks of sheep are -browsing upon grass rich and thick. - -Several towns are holding fairs, and we have met two "Irish gentlemen" -returning home who would not care to-day whether the Emerald Isle got -her freedom or not. One led a huge stallion which pranced and snorted at -our passing, but while unable to stand straight, his keeper held on to -his charge, and I doubt not got him home safely, occupying most all the -roadway in his progress. It will be a very sorry day indeed when an -Irishman, no matter what his condition, cannot hold on to a horse. - -Ballycastle is reached at eight o'clock and we find quarters in a very -comfortable inn--the Marine Hotel,--after a run of over one hundred -miles. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - - Ballycastle to the Causeway--Prosperity of Northern - Ireland--Bundoran--Gay Life in County Mayo--Mantua House--Troubles - in Roscommon--Wit of the People--Irish Girls--Emigration to - America--Episode of the Horse--People of the Hills--Chats by the - Wayside--Mallaranny. - - -It is nineteen miles from Ballycastle to the Causeway. Immediately upon -leaving the former place, in fact quite within the town's precincts, we -struck one of those steep short hills which seem greatly to try the -temper of motors. While they will later mount much more difficult and -longer slopes, with apparently no difficulty, such a hill so soon after -breakfast always disagrees with them, and so it was just here. In fact, -it looked as though we must get out and walk, but with an additional -spurt and snort it was over the summit, and we tobogganed down the other -slope at a speed which made us hold on tightly. - -All this ride to the Causeway is up and down the wildest hills, close -beside yet high above the neighbouring ocean, and at times the route -lies down such steep inclines that I confess I take them in great -trepidation, commanding Robert to go slowly. This he consents to do at -the very summit, but halfway down with what a whiz and a roar do we -finish the descent, rushing far up the next incline! - -There is a safer, far safer, route just inland, but the vote was against -that. Yet at times when the wind is roaring past us, as we rush downward -and we realise that a break in any part of our car might hurl us over -the wall and hundreds of feet downward, we almost wish we had selected -the safer route. The road is so close to the cliff's wall that the -prospect along the coast is at all times grandly impressive while from -far beneath arise the vague, delusive voices of the ocean. Pausing for a -space we cross the wall and creep out on to a projecting headland and -drink in the superb panorama. Far below us and far out to sea spreads -the great floor of the Giant's Causeway, while on either hand away into -the hazy distance of this lovely day in June stretch the fantastic -cliffs and headlands of this romantic coast, showing by their jagged -outlines the effects of their ceaseless battle with the sea. On the -headland where we stand green grasses spangled with buttercups roll -inland into broad meadow lands and towards distant purple mountains. -This world may hold more lovely spots than Erin's Isle, but if so, I -have never seen them. - -As there are very few signboards in Ireland a motor tour is a constant -study of the map and one must come provided with such. Before leaving -London I purchased a set of Stanford's, seven in all, covering this -island, and very finely gotten up.[3] It is a pleasure to study them and -a child could scarcely go wrong, though we have enjoyed the pleasure of -getting lost several times. - -So far my luck of two years back in France, as to weather, has followed -us. Aside from one shower the first day we have had fine weather all the -time, not all sunshine but no rains, and the cool grey skies with rifts -of sunlight breaking through them, illuminating like a searchlight spots -of the land or sea, are beautiful. - -The auto has settled down to serious work by now and rushes singing -along, working better and better as the hours fly by. Leaving the -Causeway our route lies inland through Bushmills, Coleraine, and -Limavady. - -All this end of Ireland appears prosperous. The highroads and villages -are well kept. The land is strongly Protestant, its men and women fine, -serious specimens of humanity, and there are no heaps of manure and -filth near the tidy houses, while the old mothers go smilingly along -through life. - -Even the hens in this island have a degree of understanding denied their -French sisters. Scarce one has attempted to cross our pathway and none -have gotten killed. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - The Interior of a Cabin of the North] - -Lunching at Londonderry we made a rapid run to Bundoran on the Atlantic -coast. The ride was pleasant with good roads nearly all the way, part -way over the highlands and part by the shores of Lough Erne. Bundoran is -a desolate, bleak sort of watering-place, lonely and dispiriting, but -with a comfortable hotel of the Great Northern Railway Company. - -We depart next morning with every feeling of satisfaction. It is a -dreary place and the life led therein is dreary also. The power of the -ocean is so great here that it has carved the whole coast with caverns -and gulches until the observer wonders whether it will not eventually -carry off Bundoran, town, hotel, and all. - -So we roll off into the sunshine and from the moment we enter County -Sligo the fun begins. A spirited sprint with half a dozen young steers -leads us through a group of jaunting-cars from which our passing causes -men and women to descend in anything but a dignified manner. One portly -dame in a white cap slips and sits down upon mother earth with much -emphasis. Her remarks, though few, were to the point. Another gathers -her skirts well around her waist, and regardless of a foot or more of -panties takes a flying leap over a mud wall, and "Glory be to God's" -resound on all sides. A flock of geese in attempting escape through the -bars of a gate get wedged therein, and keep the gate going by the -motion of their wings, and as it swings to and fro rend the air with -their squawking. On the whole the excitement would satisfy the most -exacting and there is more to come. - -This being the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul has been seized upon for -fairs, and in all the villages great preparations have been made for -their celebration. Towards each town droves of animals, mostly cattle -but also many pigs, the latter scrubbed to cleanliness, make stately -progress, the pigs in carts bedded with straw--not a mortal in any of -the fairs is as clean as the pigs. - -We were approaching one of these fairs, and moving as slowly as could be -if we were to move at all. Cattle and pigs were all around us and -generally paid no attention to our car, but one sportive young heifer -decided otherwise, and with a snort and a whisk of tail she was off in -the opposite direction. Evidently a leader of fashion in her circle, she -created a fashion there and then for there was scarce a pig or cow which -did not follow suit, urged on by many dogs. The noise and confusion was -appalling, and the manner in which old men and women, comfortable Irish -"widdies," young men and maidens, took to trees and stumps gave added -animation to the landscape. By this time we had come to a halt. I did -not want to laugh, and the suppression of that emotion caused the tears -to course down my face. Just then a man advanced towards us, his face -aflame, his raised right arm grasping a bowlder, while as he came onward -he shouted furiously, "I'll larn yez, I'll larn yez." There was nothing -to do save sit silently, and this we did. The nearer he came, the lower -got his arm, until he had passed us as though we were not there. Then -the arm went up again and all the fury returned while the air rang with -his "I'll larn yez," but towards whom directed it was impossible to -determine as he walked steadily away from us all the time. I cannot say -that I altogether blame him as it must have been somewhat difficult for -the owners to separate their new purchases from that concourse of -rushing animals. What a good time they had to be sure! - -The man was our first instance of hostility in Ireland. In fact the -people were generally very friendly towards us, assisting whenever -assistance was required, which fortunately was not often. Certainly we -met with none of the jealous hatred which often greets a prosperous -looking man in France, and causes him to think of the guillotine, or the -lowering glances and sometimes violence of the Swiss. Still the Swiss -have some justice on their side. The passing machine covers the meadow -grass with dust and the cattle will not eat it, which to the people -spells ruin. - -However, auto cars cannot be kept out of Switzerland, and her government -should take the matter in hand and, by oiling the highways, obviate the -difficulty. - -No oil will, however, ever be needed in Ireland. While we had but one -rain during the entire tour of the first summer, the night dews did away -with all dust. As for the highways and lesser avenues and byways, I -expected to find much that was rough and almost impassable, but on the -whole they are all very good indeed. Except in Galway I remember none -that were bad, and I circled the entire island and crossed and recrossed -it many times. - -From Sligo we take a run through the county of Roscommon, which seems to -suffer most from these evil days, and to carry on its face a look of -sadness and neglect. Things are not at rest here and the press daily -holds its records of "outrages" in Roscommon, but let us leave that -until to-morrow. Certainly there are no traces of it as our car rolls up -the broad avenue of Mantua House, the estate of Mr. Bowen, where as the -rain comes down a warm welcome and bright fire cause us to forget that -there is storm and darkness outside and perhaps sorrow and trouble all -around. - -Mantua House is a spacious, square building, in a large park. It has -some three centuries to its credit but yet it is a cheery, pleasant -abiding-place and smiles at the passer-by like a saintly old lady. It is -said that the fairies abided once under its doorstep and when some few -years ago a vestibule was added an old woman appeared and kneeling down -cursed the workmen for disturbing them. But the little spirits do not -seem to have minded it much and the inhabitants of the "House in the -Bog" live on in peace. My night's slumber under its roof was undisturbed -and dreamless. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - A Woman of the North] - -There is much of interest in the house in the shape of portraits, and -those of seven generations, whose owners had passed their lives here, -looked down upon us while at dinner. I fear I appear morose and a bad -guest for I cannot keep my eyes and thoughts from these old portraits, -wondering what the lives of their owners were and how I shall feel if -ever my painted face looks down from some shadowy canvas on a company at -dinner a century or two hence. If such portrait should exist it will -probably be marked "Portrait of a gentleman" as one so often reads in a -catalogue when name and owner are long, long forgotten as of no -importance. How poor a thing is earthly immortality and yet how we all -long for it, how we dread to be amongst those "_forgotten_." But they -are not "forgotten" in Mantua House, as I was told the names and dates -of all of them. Later, in the glow of the turf fire, those around us in -the spacious hall almost quicken into life and gaze into its glowing -depths as we are doing and as they have each in turn done in the old -mansion, until the bell of time sounded for them and they passed away -into shadowland. I think that for glowing warmth and depth of colour a -turf fire surpasses all others. The brown earth burns deeply but glows -to its very heart, and as it burns throws off a pungent smoke which -recalls to your memory the "Princess of Thule," and finally getting -into your brain drives you off to bed and the mantle of sleep falls upon -the "House in the Bog." - -It is a misty morning in which we bid our hosts good-bye but not to be -too hard upon us the sun shines now and then as we roll off between the -dripping hedgerows whose boughs, reaching at us as though endeavouring -to stay our progress, scrape the top of our hood as the car glides -onward. As I have stated, the county of Roscommon suffers more than any -other section of Ireland in these days of "cattle driving." Here it is -first impressed upon the traveller that there is trouble abroad. Numbers -of men with lowering glances loaf around doing nothing save smoke their -stumpy pipes and all the rich land hereabouts stands neglected and -deserted. - -As to this driving of the cattle which is the cause of most of the -trouble, the landowners generally rent their fields for grazing, but the -people are determined that they shall _sell_ them their lands and at -prices dictated _not_ by the _owners_, but by the _purchaser_. This -being refused, they will not allow the grazing, and drive a man's cattle -back to him, leaving the land of no profit to its owner, and hoping -thereby to force him to their methods. There would appear to be small -justice in all this. - -There is much trouble of this description all over the island but it is -only in Roscommon that the fact has impressed itself upon us and we -hear of it constantly. One man told me that he had been out with seven -packs of hounds which had been poisoned and related the story of a -landlord who spent not less than forty thousand pounds a year on his -estate keeping it and his tenantry in the best of conditions. He was -waited upon by a committee from the League, who informed him that if he -allowed certain men, all his friends, to hunt with his hounds, he and -his pack would be boycotted. He replied that he lived in the country -because he considered it his duty to do so, that he spent all his money -here for the same reason, giving employment to hundreds, keeping all in -plenty, but that if such a threat was carried out, he would sell -everything and leave. It was carried out, and he closed his estate, sold -his horses and hounds in England, and left this island, the loss to his -section being enormous, and all for the sake, as in most of our -"strikes," of a few ringleaders who fatten on the poor men they -hoodwink, while their families starve. - -At present a man may go into many sections of Ireland and demand land, -placing his own price thereon and the owner has got to accept it. -What an opportunity for dishonesty lies there! It is so common for -all Europe, and I have noticed several very bitter "communications" -in the Irish press lately--to point to the so-called lawlessness of -America, _i.e._, the United States, that it is something to note the -present state of affairs in parts of Ireland. For instance, here in -Roscommon, no man has been convicted of murder for years, yet there -have been many terrible crimes of that sort committed; one where a son -and daughter murdered their old father on his doorstep that they might -get the little place. They were tried and _acquitted_. Again every one -has heard of the case of Mr. and Mrs. Blake which occurred but lately -in Galway. Refusing to sell their lands they were both fired upon and -wounded while returning from mass and almost under the walls of the -church. The people standing round simply roared with laughter. No one -was apprehended for that crime though every one in the country could -tell who were the assailants. - -It is scarcely just for an outsider to pass upon the affairs of a -foreign country, but when, as I have stated, one's own land is -constantly held up to the most violent criticism, while at the same time -the daily press of our critics teems with reports of like and worse in -their own country, one cannot be blamed for so doing. - -[Illustration: Mantua House - Roscommon] - -I was told later that there is much trouble around Cashel, but -personally I saw no signs of it save in Roscommon. Elsewhere it is very -easy to disbelieve the reports, for surely in no part of the world are -the prospects more entrancing to the traveller--on the surface at -least--than in this island with its lovely lakes, its beautiful -mountains and seas, its picturesque people, and above all its luxuriant -vegetation. Every old tower is shrouded in ivy, and the grass is soft as -velvet, showing the richness of the soil, and is beautiful beyond -description. With all their sorrow and tears these people appear full of -sunshine and laughter, and if you smile at them you are always greeted -pleasantly, while you find them at all times full of jests and quaint -humour which keep you in a constant state of laughter. The other day I -gave a man a sixpence as a tip. Being possessed of true politeness, he -would not directly reflect upon my generosity, or the lack thereof, but -gravely regarding the coin a moment, and scratching his head the while -in a meditative fashion, he exclaimed, "Bad luck to the Boer war which -blew the two shillings away and left the sixpence." - -It is almost impossible to change the habits and customs inborn in these -peasants, no matter how many years may be passed in foreign lands. It is -a well-known fact that girls that have lived in cleanly, pleasant homes -in America, with all which that means, on returning here, as they often -do, and marrying some Irish lad, soon sink to the level from which they -had raised themselves by emigrating. Their savings all gone to buy the -hut from their husband's brothers and sisters and poor as when they left -Ireland, they are soon seen standing barefooted in the manure and filth, -pitching it into a wretched cart, drawn by a most wretched looking -donkey, all their good clothes and dainty habits a thing of the past and -I doubt if greatly regretted. - -Occasionally, however, the reverse holds true. A lady not long since -came over bringing her Irish maid with her, and on reaching Queenstown -told the girl that she could, if she desired, go home for a visit and -rejoin her mistress later in Dublin. The girl went, but before the -mistress reached Dublin the telegraph wires were laden with messages -from the maid, so fearful was she that the mistress would leave her, and -when she rejoined her remarked with a gasp, "but ma'am, I did not know -it was like that; why the pig slept in the room wid us." But there are -not many who mind the pig and a girl returned and married here will cuff -her children, dirty with dirt which would have sickened her while in her -American home, out of the way of the "gentleman who pays the rent." - -As for the emigration of these or any other peoples to our country, if -they who come are honest and willing to work, they will find no -difficulty in obtaining plenty of employment, provided they go where it -is and do not expect it to be ready to their hand on landing. Most who -get into trouble and, returning home, tell woful tales about -impositions, etc., are those who insist upon remaining in the congested -districts of the East. The whole South and great West, from St. Louis to -the Pacific, and from Canada to Mexico, is open to them, a vast empire, -where all may live if they will work and where there is room for all who -come. The systems of irrigation in action and proposed by our -government, in the west, are reclaiming a vast empire yet to be -peopled, while in the South labour brings high figures and is difficult -to obtain, especially in our great cotton mills in South Carolina and -Georgia and in the lumber mills of Florida. - -But thousands who come to us have no intention of working and insist -upon remaining around and in our crowded cities and districts where the -devil soon finds plenty of employment for their idle hands, and his arch -agents--ward politicians--lend him most efficient assistance. I know -that only last winter one of the owners of a great lumber mill in -Florida, at his own expense, brought from the immigrant bureau in New -York a large number of men who no sooner got to Florida than they ran -off and became tramps, having from the start no intention of working. - -That there is much truth in _The Jungle_ and other books of like sort is -beyond doubt, but there is no necessity for any man, woman, or child's -remaining in such places unless he so desires. Most of them having lived -in abject poverty and wretchedness at home, continue, by nature, to do -so abroad, and will never change, and such as these by their very habits -contribute largely to the state of affairs described in that book. The -hope lies in the future, not for them, but for their children, who -certainly _will_ change. Such change is difficult if not impossible -after man's estate is reached, not only with the poor but also with the -well-to-do and rich. - -To all proposed emigrants to the United States I would say again, if you -are honest men and will come willing to work, you are welcome and there -is plenty for you to do and space for all. If you expect or insist upon -loafing around the cities, declining work, and expecting to be -supported, you will be disappointed, you will end in the workhouse--stay -away, we don't want you. - -The roads through Roscommon from Mantua House are bad. We encountered -but few good stretches for some miles from that house; then they became -better. On one of these we were making rapid progress down grade, when -suddenly some hundred or so yards ahead two men came out from a gateway -leading a huge black mare. She was evidently restive and we slowed up -but as we came to a stop a hundred feet off she reared, broke loose, and -fell over backwards, then rolling over plunged forward towards a gate -and succeeded in fastening the metal pointed horns upon her collar so -securely under the bar of the gate that she was held immovable upon her -knees. Notwithstanding her great power she could not stir an inch. When -the gate was thrown open, she sprang forward in the wildest fright and -her owner stood by and cursed us to the extent of his ability. He -certainly heard us coming and should not have brought her out, but it's -all one-sided with horsemen,--they expect to do exactly as suits them -and if anything happens, the other party, no matter what they are on or -in, are always to blame. In every case we come, as we did there, to a -dead stop at once, and I must say that all of our accidents have arisen -because the men have much less sense than the horses, which I notice in -nearly every case rarely evince fright until their owners jump at them -and drag at their bridles. I have never listened to a more perfect line -of curses than were poured forth in that case; they seemed to linger in -the air long after we had placed hills and dales between ourselves and -the old man, which we did as soon as possible. - -[Illustration: A View in Ballina, A typical Irish town] - -As we stopped for luncheon later on I questioned a car driver as to a -large building near by. - -"Is that a court-house over there?" - -"Yis, sir, but we haven't much use for it. Only open it wanst a -fortnight, and shortly we won't open it at all, at all. Thim lawyers've -'ad their own way long enough, it's time the car drivers had a show." -(Wherein lawyers interfered with car drivers was not stated.) - -"Are you mostly Catholics around here?" - -"Yis, sir." - -"Is not that a Methodist chapel yonder?" - -"Yis, but not much good at all, and would shut up altogether only some -old man with more money than sinse left it twenty pounds a year." - -Passing onward into the highlands, we stopped for water at a little -stone house, from which the children swarmed out like -flies,--seven,--belonging to one man, and his wife ventures the -statement that if we come back in seven years there will be seven more. -She speaks feelingly; evidently there is no race suicide here. - -This far western Ireland is much like the highlands of Scotland, but far -wilder. Auto cars are rarely seen here. While the land is still orderly -and apparently prosperous, I think I note the change towards the -shiftlessness so prevalent in the south. There are many roofless and -abandoned cottages and the heaps of manure are becoming more frequent. - -We shall shortly reach Newport near Clew Bay and pass on to Mallaranny -and Achill Island, the wildest part of Ireland. Well up into the hills, -we pause for some slight repairs, and the usual group of men and boys, a -girl and a dog, appear as from nowhere and squat on the adjacent bank. -They say they can speak the ancient tongue and that all the old customs -and usages are still in vogue hereabouts. I ask for a wake, but that -puzzles them. "It might be difficult to arrange, sir." However, I shall -probably attend one before I leave the land, hoping that it may not -prove my own. I ask if these boys live near here. - -"They all do, sir." - -"Well, it's a beautiful spot." His eyes and mine wander off over the -solitary moorland and up to the more solitary mountains. - -"It is indade, sir." - -"I have a streak of Irish blood in my own veins," I venture to add. - -"Have ye, now, sir, and were ye born in Ireland?" - -"No, we left here more than two centuries ago." - -"Time you war havin' a wake indade, sir." That turns the laugh on me, -and I throw a shilling at the crowd for drinks, which results in a wild -scramble down into a muddy ditch and a wilder waving of legs in the air -as each and all go head first into the mud. - -Quiet restored, my former conversationalist, somewhat the worse for mud, -remarks. "And indade, sir, ye seem to have a good time, 'tis wishin' I -am that all the people here had the likes," and with an echo to the wish -and a wave of the hand we glide off and away into the valley. - -This ride has indeed been beautiful, but just as we enter the village of -Mallaranny (County Mayo) and are speeding down a steep incline, a little -yellow-headed urchin toddles directly across our track; a catastrophe -seems unavoidable; women shriek and howl, and men stand paralysed, but -one old crone grabs the boy just as Robert brings our car to a halt, -with not six inches to spare. The baby, not at all frightened, howls -with rage because his progress has been cut short. The old crone -proceeds to spank the child until I tell her that if any one deserves -punishment it is herself for her neglect. A few more miles brings us to -the hotel and in a very sleepy state, as the air all day has been -chilly; but we are not so sleepy that we cannot see at once that this -is not such a chamber of discomfort, such a cold storage as that place -at Bundoran. In point of situation and objects of interest there can -also be no comparison. As a centre to explore this beautiful section and -study these people Mallaranny could not be improved upon. The house -stands high and overlooks land and sea for miles, and in whichever -direction the eye roams the prospect is attractive, while Bundoran Hotel -stands on a bleak moor over which the howling winds from all the North -Atlantic sweep with terrible force. The town is dreary and of no -interest, and the mountains too far away, while the climate is raw and -unpleasant, whereas Mallaranny, much to the south, is swept by balmy -winds and well sheltered on the north. Both places have salt water in -the house, but here the bathrooms are large and the tubs are small -swimming-tanks. There is a man at the head of that house and a woman at -the head of this, and there lies the difference so far as the houses are -concerned. Of course I do not mean to state that it is warm here. In -fact the air is cold all over the land, and while there have been no -rains so far, we wear fur coats and use fur robes all the time, and -would be most uncomfortable without them. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - A Glimpse of Achill] - -FOOTNOTES: - -[Footnote 3: There are also Mecridy's Maps for Cyclists and Tourists, -published at the office of the _Irish Cyclist_, Dame Court, Dublin, at -one shilling each. A very excellent lot of maps. Just what one wants and -no more, and not so expensive as Stanford's.] - - - - -CHAPTER V - - The Island of Achill--Picturesque Scenery--Poverty of the - People--"Keening" for the Dead--"The Gintleman Who Pays the - Rint"--Superstitious Legends. - - -The island of Achill lies off the west coast of Ireland. Exposed to the -full fury of the North Atlantic winds it is one of the bleakest spots on -the globe. The manners and customs of its people change but slightly -with the passing years. - -Leaving the hotel on a misty morning, we roll off towards the sea. The -way is narrow for a car and we pass uncomfortably near sleeping brown -bogs whose quiet waters would promptly cover us up and suck us down past -all resurrection were our wheels to slip over the brink. - -Reaching a hill up which a man is driving cattle, our chauffeur sounds -the horn and pushes gently forward, causing the animals to give way, -whereupon their owner holds up his hand in indignant protest with a -"Would ye dhrive the _cattle_!" To his thinking we should plod slowly up -that miles-long hill behind his herd rather than cause them to move to -one side,--to "dhrive the _cattle_!" being in his eyes little short of -sacrilege. Yet his sort does not hesitate to drive other men's cattle -off of still other men's land, and consider it their right so to do. - -The long muddy road runs on the cliffs over the sea and finally turns -down towards the coast, apparently losing itself in the waste. This is -not the highway and we so discover in season to prevent an accident. -Just then a small boy comes racing after us shouting that we should have -turned off higher up. A few half-pennies and our thanks make him -smilingly offer to return and show us the route, and a lift in the car -completes his happiness,--the first time he has ever ridden in an -automobile, I doubt not. - -The traveller does not notice anything unusual until, having crossed the -Peninsula of Curraun, he enters upon one of the strangest spots on -earth. In the foreground, deep in a valley is a mysterious pool, black -as night: all around rise the gloomy mountains, while over the peak to -the west the sun is sending long shafts of purple and gold into the -distant hollows, where brown turf fields stretch away, and low-walled, -whitewashed, and thatched cottages spot the landscape, and the scarlet -skirts worn by all the women throw splashes of vivid colour here and -there. The whole is gloomy and sombre to a degree. The winds blow coldly -and we draw our furs closely about us as the car speeds onward over -roads not made for such usage. This indeed is ancient Ireland and one -hears the Celtic tongue on all sides. - -Holiday is held here as in Sligo, and the encounters with cattle and -ponies are frequent. Here is a pony drawing a load of heavy timber which -he insists upon running off with on our approach. Of course, we halt -until we can creep by him. Yonder is a man to whom the fair has proven a -not unmixed blessing. He lies upon his face on a bank, blind drunk, and -will not take home with him the drinks consumed at the fair. His wife -and father stand by trying to hold an old horse, but the bridle breaks -and off he goes ahead of us, losing finally both blanket and saddle, and -vanishing up a mountain. Another old gentleman, held on his horse by a -dutiful son, curses us to the King's taste but in Celtic which we do not -understand. Only the women are sober after the day's bout, and many is -the beautiful face set off by the scarlet dress, which greets us -smilingly or hides its sorrow from our glances. - -Now the road grows wilder and wilder,--there is absolutely no sound save -the moan of the distant ocean. - -As we near the remotest part of the island, where the mountains raise -their heads in solemn grandeur, there are no signs of human habitation -except one lonely cottage. Its door is open, but there is no evidence of -life. Suddenly the air shivers with the weirdest, loneliest cry I have -ever listened to,--a sustained, penetrating wail rising and falling on -the sad air and then shuddering away into silence, silence, silence -rendered all the sadder by the fast approaching shadows of night. It is -the famous "keening" or mourning cry for the dead. There are -professional keeners and when one is informed of a death she starts for -the house of sorrow and commences this melancholy cry as she goes. All -the way over hill and dale, by these dark pools and through the bog -pathways she goes, her cry bringing the women and children to the doors -of all the huts. As she approaches the dead the cry dies away and ceases -as she enters the cottage. Walking round the bier she commences anew and -passing outward and away fills all the silence of the deepening night -with her melancholy plaint. To hear it any place in Ireland is sad -enough, to hear it amidst the desolation of Achill is almost terrifying -and never to be forgotten. To-night it sounds like the voices of lost -souls from the depths of the dark Atlantic. - -I have heard a cry like that from the Arab women of a desert town, but -nowhere else on earth, and I doubt if any other people possess one of -such concentrated, desolate sorrow as this,--a sound which almost makes -the heart stand still. - -Why should these people mourn the advent of peace? Surely it is better -for them to sleep than to wake; better to die than to live. - -Through the open doorway of this hut as we pass we catch but a glimpse -of an old woman bowed in sorrow and a sheeted, silent form on the bed in -the corner. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Slievemore and Dugort, Achill] - -Our car glides slowly and silently by and we move onward, more and more -into the island of Achill, into the heart of ancient Ireland, until, -rounding the shoulder of a desolate mountain, we come suddenly upon the -sea. This is no bay or inlet, no capes guard us here, there is no -lighthouse in sight to indicate that man ever sends his ships out there. -That is the heart of the ocean, the deep sea. The waves, black as -midnight and hurled forward with the force of the Gulf Stream, and all -the currents of the North Atlantic, come thundering in with such power -that one instinctively draws backward, while the coast is all cut and -jagged, torn up and thrown pell-mell by the ceaseless onslaught. You -realise that just out there are vast depths, awful forces, and that once -within their grasp nothing save an interposition of God could save you; -even this land scarcely seems a safe abiding-place. - -The sky above is black as the waters beneath it and the winds sough -upward from the underworld as though laden with the misery of these -people of Achill. - -Are there not scenes and times when the great truth of the existence of -the Deity is impressed upon one? By the deep sea, amidst the solitude of -the mountains and the silence of the desert, from the song of a bird far -overhead, and always from the eyes of a little child does not the -assurance come to man, past all doubting, that verily there is--a God? -Has the atheist ever existed who has not experienced this many times -throughout his wretched life? - -The face of Ireland in the far western section seems constantly covered -with tears. The sadness and poverty of the people passes all -comprehension. Surely the love of their home land must be very great to -keep them here at all. - -Lady Dudley has established a most excellent charity hereabouts in the -shape of contribution boxes for the establishment of district nurses in -these the poorest sections of Ireland. The girls have a sadly hard time -of it as often they find nothing to rest on in these hovels save a box -or head of a barrel. We are stopping in front of one now that would be -considered unfit for cattle at home, a low stone hut thatched in rotting -straw patched up with turf. There is no window, and the door has no -glass. The interior, plainly visible, is horrible in its sodden -wretchedness. Before the doorstep is a bog of manure and all kinds of -filth in which the pigs and ducks are at work. As our eyes wander away -and up to the hills, white with stone, we wonder why in God's name with -feet to walk upon every soul does not leave this island, which is not -intended for man to live upon; yet here they are and plenty of them, and -many seem cheery and happy. The woman of this wretched hovel before us -is pitching manure into a cart, and as she stands, barefooted, in the -filth above her ankles, sings and talks to me in the liveliest fashion. -Just beyond is a bog whose waters, black as night, and spangled with -water lilies, reflect as in a mirror a flock of geese and a woman in a -brilliant scarlet petticoat. Beyond rise the mountains sombre and gloomy -and over all lowers a sky dark with storms. Then the rain falls, but -only for an instant, when the sunlight descending in long shafts of -intense light turns even this scene of desolation into one of beauty. If -these people were moved into a richer and more fertile section would -they remain there, or would one shortly find these filthy hovels -occupied again by their original owners? If so, their love of home -passes comprehension. - -One cannot but feel that many of the countless millions yearly sent to -foreign missions were better spent here, where, by improving the body, -the salvation of the soul would be more easily attempted, for it is -impossible to believe that with such horrible, sordid conditions, there -can be any deep belief in the goodness of God. - -When in Teheran, Persia, I could not but observe the extensive -missionary buildings, and when I asked what people the work was amongst, -the reply came "Nestorian Christians." So, all the contributions from -the churches are expended upon those who are already Christians. For (as -is certainly not known at home) a Persian to be converted does not mean -loss of caste as in India but _death_, and hence conversion to -Christianity amongst them is impossible. Persia is the most fanatical -of all nations, where one may not even look into a mosque, much less -enter, yet millions continue to pour into that land yearly. Comment -should be unnecessary, but I cannot help feeling that comment is needed -when looking out over a scene like this before us to-day. There are -plenty of plague spots in our own new land which need close attention; -for instance, in the mountains of Virginia where the people are so -ignorant that they not only cannot read, but do not know what reading -is. It is a disgrace to our land that the ministers from these mountains -are forced to go begging through the churches for money to carry on -their work, but,--it is not half so picturesque and interesting to help -such as to send millions to the land of the Sultan of Ispahan and -perchance be able to rescue some Lalla Rookh or encounter the veiled -prophet of Khorassan. - -I find I am very apt--so to speak--to tumble off the island of Achill -into almost any part of the world, so let us return once more. - -The population of Achill is steadily decreasing, and now counts but -forty-six hundred. These people have been described as a lot of thieves -and murderers with, I should judge, very little justice in the charge. -They had no such appearance to my eye. - -The soil on the island is so thin and poor that her men cannot raise -enough upon it to pay their rent and are forced to seek every year work -in more favoured sections. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Fisherfolk of Achill] - -It is claimed these islanders consist of four great families, whose -members can be easily distinguished from each other, the French -Lavelles, the English Scholefields, the creole Caulfields, the Danish -Morans. But there are also pure Irish to be found in the O'Malleys, -Gaughans, and Monahans. The houses are but heaps of rude stones (which -have been moulded by the tide), round of gable, and roofed by fern, -heather, and shingles fastened by straw bands. Often there are no -chimneys. - -We stop at the town of Dugort under the shadow of the sombre mountain, -"Slievemore," which rises immediately behind it. The town is an attempt -on the part of one church to upset the authority of another amongst -these people, and judging by the absolute desolation of the place I -should say that the move has not been successful. There are some good -houses and a church, but the people do not appear to be about. In the -dreary hotel, we spent some time in an inspection of the most marvellous -collection of paintings it has ever been our misfortune to examine. -There were several of them and they occupied most of the hallway. We -were unable to discover what one of them was intended to portray. We -asked the barmaid and she seemed equally in doubt. B. suggested the -mountain of Slievemore--I thought, a leg of mutton. The artist is the -hotel proprietor. We left a request that he would "Please not do it -again" which seemed greatly to relieve the young woman in charge. - -At the door stands a jaunting-car waiting to take the luggage of a man, -who has been fishing hereabouts, to the station. We offer him a lift in -our motor and I tell the barmaid to give a glass of whiskey to his car -driver. It appears, when it comes, to be a fair sized drink, but the old -chap cocks his eye first on it and then at me, remarking, as he touches -his cap, "And did ye say, sir, it was _twelve_ years old--indade thin -it's _small_ for its _age_." As we roll off he promises to pick us up -when our car breaks down as he knows it _will_. If that is to occur it -is well to start, as we are miles from Mallaranny and well know that -aside from this dreary hotel no hospitality would or could be offered us -in this desolate region, and that the feeling here is not, especially -after the "day off," of the best, as is proven by the curses hurled at -us once more by the old gentleman whom we encountered on our way out. -Later we meet the load of timbers and find that the drunken man has been -deposited face down on the top, while his poor wife and old father -trudge along behind. - -How different all here from the Ireland decked out for the tourist! How -sad and stern and strange! As I turn to look back upon it the daylight -departs and the shadows grow blacker and deeper, only the waters of the -lake catching for an instant a fleeting glow which soon dies out into -ashes; and with the coming of night silence and solitude, profound and -unbroken, rest upon the island of Achill. - -Yet there we saw some wonderfully beautiful women, women whose type has -made Ireland famous, great blue-grey eyes and jet black hair,--or the -fairest of blondes with pale yellow hair and blue eyes, like the -rain-washed heaven of their native land. Again, as we rolled by some -white-walled, rose embowered cottage, an ancient dame in high frilled -cap would smile us a welcome, or, as once to-day, I saw such a splendid -young fellow, whose eyes beamed down into those of his baby boy held in -his arms. There was happiness there. He must have married "his Nora" and -the boy must have had its mother's eyes. Happiness, yes truly, such as -comes not often to the portals of a palace. The man smiles in my face as -the car rolls by. In fact, nowhere in all the years of my wanderings -have I met such quick response to a smile or greeting as in these wilds -of Ireland--save when drink, the curse of the land, had destroyed the -man; but always with the women one has seemed welcome. - -As for the pigs, they are so clean and so pink that one imagines that -they wear silk socks and pumps. Do they walk?--bless you, no,--not on -holidays at least, but ride in state, and here at last you meet and -understand "the gintleman phat pays the rint." I firmly believe they -have all been shaved. B. says not, not till after death. But those were -very lovely and complacent pigs. I was only astonished that they were -not riding in motor cars. - -After the desolation of Achill it is pleasant to return to the hotel at -Mallaranny. Owned by the Great Western Railway Company, it is most -comfortable; a cozy fire before which a tabby cat is purring greets us -as we enter the reading-room and we drop rugs and books with a sigh of -contentment. Dinner over, the evening is passed deep in the history, -romance, and poetry of the spot just visited. - -Probably in no part of Ireland does superstition persist so strongly as -in Achill. Many of the legends are gruesome and cluster about death and -the grave. Many are beautiful, like that of the swans, and there is one -about the seals, which they believe are the people who were drowned in -the great flood. Not until this world is destroyed by fire will they be -permitted to enter heaven, but once in every hundred years they resume -their human shape upon earth, and it was during one of these periods -that an incident happened which is still talked about in the island of -Achill. - -"John of the Glen had fallen asleep. Now the place he had chosen to -repose in was for all the world like a basket; there was the high rock -above him, and a ledge or rock all round, so that where he lay might be -called a sandy cradle. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - A Lonely Road in Connemara] - -There he slumbered as snug as an egg in a thrush's nest, and he might -have slept about _two_ hours, when he hears singing--a note of music, he -used to say, would bring the life back to him if he had been dead a -month--so he woke up; and to be sure, of all outlandish tunes, and, to -quote his words again, 'put the one the old cow died of to the back of -it,' he never heard the like before; the words were queerer than the -music--for John was a fine scholar, and had a quarter's Latin, to say -nothing of six months' dancing; so that he could flog the world at -single or double handed reel, and split many a door with the strength of -his hompipe. 'Meuhla machree,' he says, 'who's in it at all?' he says. -'Sure it isn't among haythins I am,' he says, 'smuggled out of my native -country,' he says, 'like a poor keg of Inishowen,' he says, 'by the -murdering English?' and 'blessed father,' he says again, 'to my own -knowledge it's neyther Latin or Hebrew they're at, nor any other livin' -language, barring it's Turky'; for what gave him that thought was the -grand sound of the words. So, 'cute enough, he dragged himself up to the -edge of the ledge of the rock that overlooked the wide ocean, and what -should he see but about twenty as fine well-grown men and women as ever -you looked on, dancing! not a hearty jig or a reel, but a solemn sort of -dance on the sands, while they sung their unnatural song, all as solemn -as they danced; and they had such queer things on their heads as never -were seen before, and the ladies' hair was twisted and twined round and -round their heads. - -"Well, John crossed himself to be sure like a good Christian, and swore -if he ever saw Newport again to pay greater attention to his duty, and -to take an 'obligation' on himself which he knew he ought to have done -before; and still the people seemed so quiet and so like Christians, -that he grew the less fearful the longer he looked; and at last his -attention was drawn off the strangers by a great heap of skins that were -piled together on the strand close beside him, so that by reaching his -arm over the ledge, he could draw them, or one of them, over. Now John -did a little in skins himself, and he thought he had never seen them so -beautifully dressed before; they were seal skins, shining all of them -like satin, though some were black, and more of them grey; but at the -very top of the pile right under his hand was the most curious of them -all--snowy and silver white. Now John thought there could be no harm in -looking at the skin, for he had always a mighty great taste for natural -curiosities, and it was as easy to put it back as to bring it over; so -he just, quiet and easy, reaches in the skin, and soothering it down -with his hand, he thought no down of the young wild swan was ever half -so smooth, and then he began to think what it was worth, and while he -was thinking and judging, quite innocent like, what it would fetch in -Newport, or maybe Galway, there was a skirl of a screech among the -dancers and singers; and before poor John had time to return the skin, -all of them came hurrying towards where he lay; so believing they were -sea-pirates, or some new-fashioned revenue-officers, he crept into the -sand, dragging the silver-coloured skin with him, thinking it wouldn't -be honest to its _rale_ owner to leave it in their way. Well, for ever -so long, nothing could equal the ullabaloo and 'shindy' kicked up all -about where he lay--such talking and screaming and bellowing; and at -last he hears another awful roar, and then all was as still as a -bridegroom's tongue at the end of the first month, except a sort of -snuffling and snorting in the sand. When that had been over some time he -thought he would begin to look about him again and he drew himself -cautiously up on his elbows, and after securing the skin in his bosom -(for he thought some of them might be skulking about still, and he -wished to find the owner), he moved on and on, until at last he rested -his chin upon the very top of the ledge and casting his eye along the -line of coast, not a sight or a sign of any living thing did he see but -a great fat seal walloping as fast as ever it could into the ocean: -well, he shook himself, and stood up; and he had not done so long, when -just round the corner of the rock, he heard the low wailing voice of a -young girl, soft and low, and full of sorrow, like the bleat of a kid -for its mother, or a dove for its mate, or a maiden crying after her -lover yet ashamed to raise her voice. 'Oh, murder!' thought John -O'Glin, 'this will never do; I'm a gone man! that voice--an' it not -saying a word, only murmuring like a south breeze in a pink shell--will -be the death of me; it has more real, true music in it than all the -bagpipes between this and Londonderry. Oh, I'm kilt entirely through the -ear,' he says, 'which is the high-road to my heart. Oh, there's a moan! -that's natural music! The "Shan Van Do," the "Dark Valley," and the -"Blackbird" itself are fools to that!' To spring over was the work of a -single minute; and, sure enough, sitting there, leaning the sweetest -little head that ever carried two eyes in it upon its dawshy hand, was -as lovely a young lady as ever John looked on. She had a loose sort of -dress, drawn in at her throat with a gold string, and he saw at once -that she was one of the outlandish people who had disappeared all so -quick. - -"'Avourneen das! my lady,' says John, making his best bow, 'and what -ails you, darling stranger?' Well, she made no answer, only looked askew -at him, and John O'Glin thought she didn't sigh so bitterly as she had -done at first; and he came a little nearer, and 'Cushla-ma-chree, beauty -of the waters,' he says, 'I'm sorry for your trouble.' - -"So she turns round her little face to him, and her eyes were as dark as -the best black turf, and as round as a periwinkle. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Kylemore Castle] - -"'Creature,' she says, 'do you speak Hebrew?' 'I'd speak anything,' he -answers, 'to speak with you.' 'Then,' she says again, '_have you seen my -skin_?' 'Yes, darling,' he says in reply, looking at her with every eye -in his head. 'Where, where is it?' she cries, jumping up and clasping -her two little hands together, and dropping on her knees before John. - -"'Where is it?' he repeats, raising her gently up; 'why, on yourself, to -be sure, as white and as clear as the foam on a wave in June.' - -"'Oh, it's the other skin I want,' she cries, bursting into tears. -'Shall I skin myself and give it you, to please you, my lady?' he -replies; 'sure I will, and welcome, if it will do you any good, sooner -than have you bawling and roaring this way,' he says, 'like an angel,' -he says. - -"'What a funny creature you are!' she answers, laughing a lilt of a -laugh up in his face; 'but you're not a seal,' she says, 'and so your -skin would do me no good.' - -"'Whew!' thought John O'Glin; 'whew! now all the blossom is out on the -May-bush; now my eyes are opened'; for he knew the sense of what he had -seen, and how the whole was a memory of the old world. - -"'I'll tell you what it is,' said the poor fellow, for it never took him -any time at all to fall in love; 'I'll tell you what it is, don't bother -any more about your bit of a skin, but take me instead of it--that is,' -he said, and he changed colour at the bare thought of it, 'that is, -unless you're married in your own country.' And as all their discourse -went on in Hebrew and Latin, which John said he had not a perfect -knowledge of, he found it hard to make her understand at first, though -she was quick enough too; and she said she was not married, but might -have been, only she had no mind to the seal, who was her father's prime -minister, but that she had always made up her mind to marry none but a -prince. 'And are you a king's son?' she says. 'I am,' says John, as -bould as murder, and putting a great stretch on himself. 'More than -that, I'm a king's great-grandson--in these twisting times there's no -knowing who may turn up a king; but I've the blood in my veins of twenty -kings--and what's better than that, Irish kings.' - -"'And have you a palace to take me to?' she says, 'and a golden girdle -to give me?' - -"Now this, John thought, was mighty mean of her; but he looked in her -eyes and forgot it. 'Our love,' he says, 'pulse of my beating heart, -will build its own palace; and this girdle,' and he falls on his knees -by her side, and throws his arm round her waist, 'is better than a -girdle of gold!' Well, to be sure, there was no boy in Mayo had better -right to know how to make love than John O'Glin, for no one ever had -more practice; and the upshot of it was that (never, you may be sure, -letting on to her about the sealskin) he clapt her behind him on Molche, -and carried her home; and that same night, after he had hid the skin in -the thatch, he went to the priest--and he told him a good part of the -truth; and when he showed his reverence how she had fine gold rings and -chains, and as much cut coral as would make a reef, the priest did not -look to hear any more, but tied them at once. Time passed on gaily with -John O'Glin: he did not get a car for Molche, because no car could go -over the Mayo mountains in those days; but he got two or three stout -little nags, and his wife helped him wonderful at the fishing--there -wasn't a fin could come within half a mile of her that she wouldn't -catch--ay, and bring to shore too; only (and this was the only cross or -trouble John ever had with her, and it brought him a shame-face many a -time) she'd never wait to dress anything for herself, _only eat it raw_; -and this certainly gave him a great deal of uneasiness. She'd eat six -herrings, live enough to go down her throat of themselves, without -hardly drawing her breath, and spoil the market of cod or salmon by -biting off the tails. When John would speak to her about it, why she'd -cry and want to go back to her father, and go poking about after the -skin, which she'd never mention at any other time; so John thought it -would be best to let her have her own way, for when she had, it's -nursing the children, and singing, and fishing she'd be all day long; -they had three little children, and John had full and plenty for them -all, for she never objected to his selling her rings, or chain, or -corals; and he took bit after bit of land, and prospered greatly, and -was a sober, steady man, well-to-do; and if he could have broke her of -that ugly trick she had of eating raw fish, he'd never say no to her -yes; and she taught the young ones Hebrew, and never asked them to touch -a morsel of fish until it was put over the turf; and there were no -prettier children in all the barony than the 'seal-woman's'; with such -lovely hair and round blinking eyes, that set the head swimming in no -time; and they had sweet voices, and kind hearts that would share the -last bit they had in the world with any one, gentle or simple, that knew -what it was to be hungry; and, the Lord he knows, it isn't in Mayo their -hearts would stiffen for want of practice. - -"Still John was often uneasy about his wife. More than once, when she -went with him to the shore, he'd see one or two seals walloping nearer -than he liked; and once, when he took up his gun to fire at a great -bottle-nosed one that was asleep on the sandbank, she made him swear -never to do so: 'For who knows,' she says, 'but it's one of my relations -you'd be murdering?' And sometimes she'd sit melancholy-like, watching -the waves, and tears would roll down her little cheeks; but John would -soon kiss them away. - -[Illustration: "Biddy" - The Lunatic of Kylemore] - -"Poor fellow! much as he loved her, he knew she was a sly little devil; -for when he'd be lamenting bitterly how cute the fish were grown, or -anything that way, she'd come up and sit down by him, and lay her soft -round cheek close to his, and take his hand between hers, and say, 'Ah, -John darlin', if you'd only find my skin for me that I lost when I found -you, see the beautiful fish I'd bring you from the bottom of the sea, -and the fine things. Oh! John, it's you then could drive a carriage -through Newport, if there were but roads to drive it on.' - -"But he'd stand out that he knew nothing of the skin; and it's a wonder -he was heart-proof against her soft, deludering, soothering ways; you'd -have thought she'd been a right woman all her life, to hear her working -away at the 'Ah, do,' and 'Ah, don't'; and then, if she didn't exactly -get what she wanted, she'd pout a bit; and if that didn't do, she'd -bring him the youngest baby; and if he was hardened entirely, she'd sit -down in a corner and cry; that never failed, except when she'd talk of -the skin--and out and out, she never got any good of him about it--at -all! But there's no end of female wit; they'll sit putting that and that -together, and looking as soft and as fair-faced all the while as if they -had no more care than a blind piper's dog, that has nothing to do but to -catch the halfpence. 'I may as well give up watching her' said John to -himself; 'for even if she did find it, and that's not likely, she might -leave me (though that's not easy), but she'd never leave the children'; -and so he gave her a parting kiss, and set off to the fair of Castlebar. -He was away four days, longer certainly than there was any call to have -been, and his mind reproached him on his way home for leaving her so -long; for he was very tender about her, seeing that though she was only -a seal's daughter, that seal was a king, and he made up his mind he'd -never quit her so long again. And when he came to the door, it did not -fly open, as it used, and show him his pretty wife, his little children, -and a sparkling turf fire--he had to knock at his own door. - -"'Push it in, daddy,' cried out the eldest boy; "'mammy shut it after -her, and we're weak with the hunger.' So John did as his child told him, -and his heart fainted, and he staggered into the room, and then up the -ladder to the thatch--_It was gone!_--and John sat down, and his three -children climbed about him, and they all wept bitterly. - -"'Oh, daddy, why weren't you back the second day, as you said you'd be?' -said one. 'And mammy bade us kiss you and love you, and that she'd come -back if she'd be let; but she found something in the thatch that took -her away.' - -"'She'll never come back, darlings, till we're all in our graves,' said -poor John--'she'll never come back under ninety years; and where will we -all be then? She was ten years my delight and ten years my joy, and ever -since ye came into the world she was the best of mothers to ye all! but -she's gone--she's gone for ever! Oh, how could you leave me, and I so -fond of ye? Maybe I would have burnt the skin, only for the knowledge -that if I did, I would shorten her days on earth, and her soul would -have to begin over again as a babby seal, and I couldn't do what would -be all as one as murder.' - -"So poor John lamented, and betook himself and the three children to the -shore, and would wail and cry, but he never saw her after; and the -children, so pretty in their infancy, grew up little withered atomies, -that you'd tell anywhere to be seal's children--little, cute, yellow, -shrivelled, dawshy creatures--only very sharp indeed at the learning, -and crabbed in the languages, beating priest, minister, and -schoolmaster--particularly at the Hebrew. More than once, though John -never saw her, he heard his wife singing the songs they often sung -together, right under the water; and he'd sing in answer, and then -there'd be a sighing and sobbing. Oh! it was very hard upon John, for he -never married again, though he knew he'd never live till her time was up -to come again upon the earth even for twelve hours; but he was a fine -moral man all the latter part of his life--as that showed." - -As I close my book and put out my candle for the night the moonlight -streaming in at the window draws me to the casement. The bay is like a -sheet of quivering silver with the mountains of Achill and the island of -Clare towering darkly above it. On the highway winding off white in the -clear light no sign of life is visible and but for the softly sobbing -winds, the silence of the night is intense. The tide is flowing to the -sea and the waters are deserted save for one slowly drifting boat. One -is scarcely conscious at first of any sound other than that of the winds -but, as the boat draws nearer on the air floats upward one of those sad -crooning melodies of these people--at first a low monotone which rises -and rises, wailing all around and far above until the very mountains -seem to throw back the sorrow of it. Then it falters away into silence. - -[Illustration: From a steel engraving - The Lynch House, Galway] - - - - -CHAPTER VI - - Monastery of Burrishoole--Queen Grace O'Malley and Her Castle of - Carrig-a-Hooly--Her Appearance at the Court of Elizabeth--Dismissal - of Her Husband--Wild Scenery of the West Coast--The Ancient - Tongue--Recess--Kylemore Castle--Crazy Biddy. - - -Leaving Mallaranny we retrace our route towards Newport and pass near -Burrishoole, the ruined monastery of the Dominicans, and then the castle -of Carrig-a-Hooly, from whence that Amazon Queen of this section and of -the island of Clare, Grace O'Malley, dismissed her lord and husband of a -year's standing. - -Carrig-a-Hooly is to-day a square pile of very solid construction, -standing upon a rock, and at one time protected by a massive surrounding -wall. The few windows or loopholes are far apart and very narrow. From -which one Queen Grace dismissed her approaching lord is not related but -that the dismissal was short, sharp, and to the point, effective, there -seems no doubt, as she continued to hold sway over all the County of -Mayo and the adjoining islands, to say nothing of as much of the -neighbouring counties as she could cowe into submission. - -The monastery of Burrishoole is said to have been her burial-place, and -there her skull was for a long time preserved as a precious relic, but -it is also stated that, together with those of many others buried there, -her bones were stolen and being carted to Scotland were ground up for -manure, enriching the land as those of Cæsar were used to stop the -chinks and keep the wind away. - -It was well for the thieves here that they worked and escaped in the -night, for such desecration would have resulted in their quick dispatch -had the superstitious peasantry caught them. - -Many of the latter believe that the skull of the Queen was miraculously -restored to its niche in the abbey, but if so it has mouldered into dust -long since. - -The skulls still to be seen here are regarded with deep veneration and -are often borrowed by the peasantry to boil milk in, which being served -to the sick one is a sure antidote for all ills. - -Queen Grace of Mayo strongly reminds one of another Queen in a far-off -country,--Tamara, whose ruined "Castle of Roses" still keeps watch over -the Caucasus. - -This castle of Queen Grace, like so many old towers, is supposed to -cover buried treasures, guarded at night by a mounted horseman. - -There is, however, another scene in her life which, whilst not -productive of such results as the one at Carrig-a-Hooly, must have been -picturesque and startling in the extreme. - -Imagine the court of the great Elizabeth, with the daughter of Henry -VIII. on the throne in all the heyday of her fuss and feathers, robed -gorgeously and wearing a great farthingale--beneath the hem of her short -skirt one notes the jewelled buckles on her high-heeled shoes,--from her -pallid face flash a pair of reddish eyes and above her pallid brow her -red hair is piled high and adorned with many of the pearls and jewels -which have come into her possession from the robbery of her Scottish -prisoner by the rebel lords. Huge butterfly wings of gauze rise from the -shoulders but give nothing ethereal to the appearance of the -sovereign,--Elizabeth was of the earth earthy. Around her are grouped -all the splendid of that golden age,--the grave prime minister, Cecil -Burleigh, the gallant Leicester, the boy Essex, the splendid Sir Philip -Sidney, together with all the foreign diplomats and beautiful women of -the court. - -In the space before her stands an equally imperious figure,--the -sovereign of this island of Clare. What could have been her dress in -those days three hundred years agone? How did they robe the dames of -high estate in Ireland then, I wonder, and must continue to wonder, for -there is no account left us, but I am sure she was a beauty with fair -skin, brown eyes and a glory of red gold hair. - -The Queen of England has just offered to make her a countess, and we can -imagine the half amazed and wholly amused expression of her majestic -countenance when the offer is coolly refused with the remark that "I -consider myself just as great a Queen as your Majesty." - -Then the Irishwoman went home and did things, short, sharp, and to the -point, effective: secured possession of all the fortified castles of the -island and all the treasures and men at arms, and there occurred that -dismissal already recorded. - -It had been agreed on her marriage that either party could terminate the -matrimonial arrangement at a year's end by a simple announcement to the -other. On the day in question the countess observed from one of the -loopholes of Carrig-a-Hooly the approach of her liege lord, and -thereupon, to surely forestall such action on his part, hailed him and -announced that "all was off" between them, making no mention of a return -of any of the castles, men, or treasures be they his or not. She should -have been Queen of Scotland. She would promptly have settled the cases -of each and every rebel lord from Moray down, and John Knox would have -heard a truth or two which would have made his ears tingle,--neither -could her Majesty of England have meddled so easily in the affairs of -the northern kingdom. - -As our car rolls onward round the bay towards Louisburgh, her island of -Clare blocks the entrance to the westward. Rearing sharply its cliffs -against a glittering sky, it strongly reminds one of the island of Capri -and occupies about the same relative position here as that island does -in the bay of Naples. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - The Abbey of St. Dominick - Lorrha] - -But the blue of these northern waters is to my thinking vastly different -from that in the South. There is a sensuous cast to all the colouring -around Naples, whilst here both heaven and sea are of a bright fair -rain-washed blue. The air is full of health and life, the waters -sparkle, and the strong winds force one to jam a cap down over the eyes -and go for a brisk walk or sail, returning ravenous for one's dinner; -whilst in the south - - "With dreamful eyes my spirit lies, - Under the walls of Paradise." - -And one's body is very apt to contract a fever during the trance. - -Personally in Naples, with all its charm and interest, I always feel -that death stalks wide, the mortal part of me is forever in evidence. -Here, a new lease of life and health comes with every intake of the -glorious air. - -The winds blow strongly to-day while over the mountains dense black -clouds gloom, through whose shadows one brilliant shaft of sunlight -strikes a white sail far out at sea. - -On the rocks the kelp gatherers are abroad with their long rakes, -gathering a slimy harvest. What a living thing that kelp seems to be. -How quiet its slumbers in the dark pool of the rocks while the waters -are afar out, but watch it when the tide turns. At the first ripple it -startles into life and reaches out its long snake-like feelers towards -the coming sea. - -Leaving the ocean for a time and turning inland, we pass some bad roads, -but finally mount upward until in the heart of the mountains and the -wildest section of Connemara their surface becomes smoother and the -wings come out on our hubs and the car skims birdlike onward. - -Fortunately the day has become divine and sunlight and shadow chase each -other in fascinating lights and shadows over the mountains. Up in the -higher valleys where the white cottages are few and far between, the -vast black turf fields stretch to where the brown mountains rise to the -blue skies. Here and there the scarlet skirt of a peasant woman at work -in a distant field glows against the brown earth, while donkey carts, -each with a solitary old dame perched on a pile of turf, pass us now and -then, the little beast which draws them paying us no attention, save by -a pointing of the ears. This is not a holy day, so there are no fairs -and fewer cattle on the highroads, hence fewer races, though now and -then we do have a spirited brush, and several old women shake their -fists at us as we pass by. Coasting down the hills which surround the -lovely lake of Doo Lough, we come finally down by the shores of the -harbour of Killary or Killary Bay, where the fleets of the nation may -and do enter far inland in safety. - -Lunching at Leenane in a comfortable and clean inn made an already -pleasant day seem all the more enjoyable. - -The road, from Leenane on, lay westward by the waters of the Sound, and -then south and up until a superb panorama of sea and land was spread out -before us. - -Those who go yearly to some genteel watering place know little of the -outer sea, never comprehend the majesty of the ocean as it rolls in on -Ireland's western coast, a vast wash of wild waters, glorious and -majestic, roaring around jagged cliffs, which appear actually at war -with it, while the winds murmuring over bogs and lowlands one instant -are in the next roaring outward to greet the ocean. All around here -there is no sound of human life, and a strange sad sort of sunlight -falls over the mountains and shimmers downward into the sea. - -The desolation of this coast is intense to-day but how far more terribly -desolate it must have appeared to the poor sailors on those hulking -ships of the Armada, hurled to their destruction hereabouts. I doubt not -but that the last thoughts of the poor wretches as they sank in these -thundering surges were of the vine-clad sunny hills of far Andalusia -with the tinkling of guitars and the music of the Danza they were never -again to hear. - -As we leave the sea and turn again inward, the scenery becomes wild in -the extreme. Sombre mountains surround lonely valleys with here and -there a lonely lake reflecting the sky. The roads on the whole are good, -save for many ridges formed by the backbone of the old stone bridges. If -the car does not slow down one is thrown out of one's seat, and some of -these ridges would destroy if passed at full speed. - -The higher we mount the more joyous the motion until we seem to be -skimming like a swallow. One nasty angle almost causes our undoing, but -it is passed in safety by the quick action of our chauffeur, who -certainly understands well how to handle a motor, though I think he was -thoroughly frightened that time; we came very near shooting down into -the lake. - -Orders are strict that no risk of destroying animals is to be run unless -the safety of the car necessitates it, but to-day we did kill a poor -pussy who jumped from a wall directly in our path, and not a yard away. -It was done in a flash, and kitty's joyous days were over. Poor thing! -as with us life was the best she had, and it is gone. The incident quite -clouded the day for some time. - -At another time a fine dog, a collie, sprang at us and was thrown down -and the motor passed over him. I looked back, quite expecting to see his -mangled body lying on the highway, but instead of that saw him take a -stone wall in a fashion creditable to the best hunter in Ireland, and -none the worse for his experience. But that does not often occur. [4] - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Leap Castle from the Court] - -It does not strike the traveller as singular that--while English is -spoken by all--he hears so much of the ancient tongue in remote -sections; there is the natural home for it: but I confess I was much -astonished during a recent visit to Canada to find that, after one -hundred and fifty years, from Montreal east, French is the language of -the people. While in the larger cities English is of course spoken, it -is not the prevailing tongue, and in all the small towns and rural -districts French is the tongue, and thousands of the people cannot speak -English at all. In one of the greater cities if a man would obtain a -position in the police or fire departments he must be able to read, -write, and speak French, but a Frenchman is _not_ obliged to read, -write, and speak English. All the estimates for public improvements are -in French alone, though the bidders are all English or Americans, -generally the latter. Of course, they must be translated into English by -the bidders, and what an opportunity is here presented for breaking a -contract by a claim of incorrect translation. In fact, it would seem to -an outsider that Canada is much more loyal to France than to England, -even after a century and a half of Saxon rule. Giving due allowance to -the treaty with France and to the power of the Church of Rome, such a -state of affairs at this date is singular to say the least. - -As for the attempt in Ireland to revive the ancient Celtic amongst these -people, personally I do not think it will be successful, nor do I -understand the move; while it is well to keep it alive for students and -savants, what possible good can it serve the desperately poor and -ignorant of the land, how can they use it? At least so it appears to a -looker-on. (I have not been able to extract a good reason for the move -from any of its many advocates with whom I have conversed on this tour.) - -Surely English is destined to be the language of men, not only in -Ireland but all over the world, and to my thinking this is the greatest -work accomplished by that nation. After all, is it not a case of the -survival of the fittest, and can any one deny that that tongue is -already the most widely spoken and more rapidly spreading than any or -all others? - -Go where you will you will find that next to the language of each -country it is the one in use, and I believe that in generations to come -it will wipe out all the trouble caused by the inhabitants of Babylon in -their desire to get above high-water mark. - -For professors and students it would be well to maintain these ancient -tongues as long as possible, but surely the poor of Ireland could be -benefited to a greater degree by other means than an attempt to restore -to daily use the ancient, almost forgotten, and fast dying tongue of -their forefathers. - -As for the travellers in this land to-day it is confusing and irritating -to be confronted by a sign-post of absolutely no value, intelligible -only to those who know the Celtic tongue. The peasants cannot read them -and do not require them, hence, to all concerned, they mean as much here -as the verst posts do to a stranger in Russia. - -As for the milestones, they tell a story hereabouts concerning what -happened between two towns separated some eighteen miles from each -other. The figures on the stones having become almost obliterated by -time and weather an order was given to a workman in one of the towns to -recut the lot. He took them up one by one and placed them in the proper -order in his stoneyard, but when completed it is evident that, before -the work of replacing them began, he must have celebrated the event in -the usual manner. Certainly the fact remains that he began at the wrong -end of the pile, placing the one marked "17" where the first stone -should have been, and so on with the lot, the result being that sundry -gentlemen the worse for wear coming from one town discovered that their -utmost endeavours to reach home only took them farther afield--where -they finally brought up is not related. As for the man from the other -town, when at the end of the first mile "17" stared at him from the -stone he became convinced that the devil was after him and shook his -first at a solitary magpie which had just flown over his head. I must -confess that I doubt these tales. However but for our maps we should -have been completely astray in western Ireland for all the use the -sign-posts were to us. - -There is a charming little town at Recess, but unless you are a -sportsman, not much of interest. - -Letters from home necessitate B.'s return, and we must call at Kylemore -Castle before we start. Distanced from Recess some thirteen miles, a -journey thither and back would with horses necessitate a whole day's -time, but with a motor it's only just around the block so to speak. - -The morning is sunny and fair, and we drink in the rushing sea-breeze as -we roll away over gentle hills and valleys between the higher mountains, -and though the hills are treeless the whole panorama is attractive. - -Our driver reports his petrol low, with none to be had at Recess, hence -we must fill the tank at Kylemore sufficiently to get us to Galway if it -can be done. - -Kylemore Castle stands in a sheltered valley close by the sea though not -in view of it. It faces a lovely lake and is really built on the side of -the mountain which rises directly behind it to the height of two -thousand feet. - -Across the lake the view is blocked by a similar range. While the -shrubbery is fine and the grass very luxuriant and green around the -mansion, all the hills and mountains are absolutely treeless. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Leap Castle] - -The place, but lately purchased by the Duke of M., was built by Mr. -Henry at an expense, on the estate, of a million sterling. Reverses -forced its sale, and it was bought by its present owner. There is -nothing ancient, the house having but some fifty years to its credit, -but it is capable of being, and, in the present owner's hands, will be -made a charming dwelling-place, and certainly, swept by the winds of the -North Atlantic, it must be at all seasons very healthy. Filled with a -large company or with a few congenial people it should be an enjoyable -spot. - -Its gardens are very extensive and one passes through endless -conservatories full of flowers and fruits. As we round a corner close to -the stable, we encounter the quaint figure of a woman with straggling -grey locks, tumbling down over a pallid face. In a dress of rags and -barefooted, she is dancing a crazy jig all by herself. There are weird -gleams in her eyes as they rove over the sombre mountains, seeking -kindred spirits, I fancy, as she croons in a monotone the notes of some -quaint melody which still drifts across her brain. She shows as she -catches sight of our party that she is no respecter of persons as she -grabs the Duke by the coat and won't let go, imploring him to "lock up -the castle and I'll be round a Monday." When he implores her to put off -her coming for a day or so she declines and sticks to "Monday." I -cannot but doubt in some degree her insanity, at least it has not -destroyed her womanly vanity, for when I tell her I want to take her -picture, she at once attempts to smooth her hair and dress, and striking -what she thinks will be a becoming pose, tells me to "go ahead," and -after the snap remarks, "You had better take another for fear that is a -failure." - -Yesterday, having gone to the kitchen of the castle for her "bit of -meat," she found a new cook, who, not knowing about her, ordered her -out, whereupon she seized a knife from the table and there ensued a -handicap, go as you please, all over the place, with the cook in the -lead and Biddy a close second. After that she got her meat in peace. - -As we return from an inspection of the grounds she is being conducted -off the terrace by the butler. But Biddy has a mind of her own and no -one save this butler could get her away, if it suited her to remain, -which it generally does. We are told she is deeply in love with him and -that there is a photo extant with Biddy on her knees, clasping his legs -and imploring him to marry her. Now the butler is a most stately -personage; he has the cast of countenance of the great Louis of France, -the same beak-like nose and downward sweep of the face lines running -from it, the same haughty pose of the head, in fact, deck him in a high -wig, court suit, and ruffles, and great red heels and you have Louis le -Grand; take them away and you have the butler, the object of Biddy's -devotion, to whom it makes no difference whether he be king or butler. -But Biddy in her rags is after all the most picturesque thing about -Kylemore; her eyes are bright if she is crazy--but where in all the -world will you find brighter eyes than amongst the beggars of Ireland, -and they seem equally pleased whether one gives or not (Biddy did not -beg, neither did she hesitate to take what we gave her). Like all -beggars, many of them are rogues, but, ah, risk that, for you may by -your half crown relieve for the time real heart-breaking misery, and -such poverty as you cannot conceive of. Go to Achill if you would be -convinced of that. - -Yesterday while watching a train pass at Recess a boy approached and -just looked at me, but with a look of such hungry suffering that a -shilling was promptly forthcoming. Then I questioned him, and found that -he had been ill and could at best make but a sixpence a day, that his -brother drove the car for the hotel, getting as wages only the uncertain -tips of the visitors, which, never many, in this remote spot are indeed -few and far between in this bad season. His father had worked in the -neighbouring marble quarries, but pestered and beset by a law-suit over -his little hovel had, as the boy expressed it, "gone dotty," and could -work no more. The mother did what she could and a sister was a cripple. -So that all they had to live upon was what he and his brother could -earn. - -Just as he finished a ducal train rolled by. His Grace was transporting -his family and effects from one great castle to another. Surely the -contrasts in life are heartrending, yet I doubt not that this Duke will -and does do all he can to relieve the sufferings of the poor on his -estates--sufferings intensified and made all the more horrible by the -unprincipled leaders of the leagues in this land, and masters of strikes -in ours and others. - -But to return to Kylemore, the interior of the castle at present is in a -state of transition, so that it is impossible to describe it. Built -against the side of the mountain, some of its staircases are literally -laid on the solid rock. Many of the rooms are spacious and stately and -in the hands of the present owners will doubtless be made very handsome. - -The glimpses of mountains and lake from its windows are entrancing. On -the whole I think one might come to love Kylemore very dearly. It has -cost vast sums of money as it stands and much more will be expended -before the end, if indeed the end ever is reached in these great places -where the expenditure of money is concerned. This one will require a -fortune to maintain. - -Of the two Irish seats of the Duke of Manchester I should much prefer -Kylemore to Tanderagee. While the latter is beautiful in its park and -great trees, the former is a place of endless possibilities. Shooting -and fishing are abundant and of the best, whilst to the lovers of the -picturesque the mountains are an eternal joy, and close by is the -jobling and sobbing of the sea. Its quaint people are an endless source -of amusement and study. To enjoy it one must dwell there, and I depart -with regret at our short sojourn or rather call. - -[Illustration: Moat at Ffranckfort Castle] - -Our petrol has run out and there is none in this locality. However, the -chauffeur manages to buy some from the man at the station and with a -sputter and roar we are off and away through the mountain glens, turning -for a last glimpse of Kylemore, and her little church, both gleaming -white amongst the forests by the lake, and guarded by the brooding -mountains. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[4] Our route to-day from Mallaranny lay via Newport and -Westport to Louisburgh, then south over the mountains past Doo Lough, -round Killary Harbour to Leenane, west past Lough Fee to Tully Chapel, -south to Letterfrack, west and south to Clifden, south to Ballinaboy -Bridge, southeast to Toombeola Bridge, north to Ballynahinch Station, -and east to Recess. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - - The Ancient City of Galway--Quaint People, Curious Houses, Vile - Hotel--Parsonstown--Wingfield House--Leap Castle and its - Ghosts--Ffranckfort Castle--Clonmacnoise--Holy Cross Abbey. - - -As we enter Galway from Recess, the roads become anything but agreeable; -there are many crossings and bridge backs which throw us from our seats, -and without extreme care on the part of the chauffeur would destroy the -car. Fortunately the weather is moist and there is little dust, which in -Galway is most disagreeable, the soil being limestone. - -If you would see an ancient Irish city, purely Irish and undefiled by -the progress of this latter day, come to Galway, where she sits close -down by the sea. It is evidently to this section what Paris is to all -France. There may have been in other times those of the upper classes -here, but they do not appear on her streets to-day. Narrow and winding, -they are lined with ancient houses many of which bear pretentious coats -of arms and much carving, but all are now the dwelling-places of the -people. - -The streets are jammed as this is Saturday evening and we move -cautiously along. At one point, owing to instructions from Boyse to turn -to the right and from me to go to the left, the motor car almost runs -over the pavement, scaring a buxom dame half to death. "'Twas the mercy -of God the dur was open behint us, or ye'd 'ave smashed mesel' and the -childer entirely." But at the same time she laughs and gives us a "God -bless ye." While we are learning the route from her, a perfect Irish -gentleman, properly drunk, reels up and leaning over the front of the -car gazes at us in a most affectionate fashion. Barefooted, rosy-cheeked -urchins are running in all directions, numerous women stand around doing -up their hair, and there is more of the ancient tongue to be heard than -at any other point except in Achill. - -As a child I learned a lot of it, meaninglessly, from the old servants -at home, and recalling many phrases here have at times launched them -forth, generally with dire results. - -To-day as we wend our way slowly through these crowded streets, it -greets our ears on all sides. - -The quaint figures which one encountered in America thirty years ago -must have come from here. Boarding ship in yonder harbour they landed on -our shores absolutely unchanged and unique. One never sees them -nowadays. Even in Ireland they are to be met with only in the remote -districts; they are here in the good city of Galway but you will look -for them in vain farther east. - -The story of the first appearance of my dear old nurse upon the streets -of our city has become a household tale with us. Just in from the "owld -country," she decked herself in her best for her Sunday's outing. A gown -of the most vivid emerald green whose skirt spread over a voluminous -hoop was composed of four huge flounces bound in bright red; a huge -bonnet of green and blue circled around her anything but classic -countenance--certainly her nose could never have been called "Roman"; -she carried an orange and green sunshade. Her appearance created a -sensation which almost ended in a riot. She was too much for the -American youth as he was for her, and she fled homeward pursued by a -howling mob of the gamins. - -I must pay tribute to the women who have come to us from this -island,--respected and self-respecting, they have proven most excellent -servants, with never a shadow of immorality amongst any of them, -thoroughly honest and upright, and during months of absence, and -sometimes years, left in entire charge of the households of which they -kept as perfect watch and ward as though they were indeed their own, -and, in fact, they soon learned to look upon the dwellings of their -employer as home, with no desire to change unless to marry and set up -their own firesides, and even then they never have forgotten and often -return to the places where they lived so long through days of sorrow and -days of mirth, not only servants but friends in the best acceptation of -that word. - -[Illustration: Ffranckfort Castle] - -While Galway is a town of but some fourteen thousand people, the crowds -on its streets to-night would convey the impression of a much greater -population. They simply swarm all over the place. - -The city dates far enough back to have been mentioned by Ptolemy, and -probably took its name from the Gaels or foreign merchants who once -lived here. Galway appears on the pages of history in 1124 A.D. and from -that date onward it was fought for by every tribe of the island. Just -hereabouts there were thirteen tribes who strictly guarded themselves -against all intercourse with the native Irish. Indeed there was a law -that "none bearing an O or Mac in his name shall struttle one swaggere -through the streets of Galway." - -But those days are past and there must certainly be many who bear such -prefixes to their names who are strutting these streets in this year of -grace 1907. - -This was one of the most important seaports trading with Spain, and -there may be seen, even at this date, Spanish traits and features -intermingled with the Celtic, and many of its ancient houses hold the -touch of the South in their lines. Galway was loyal to King Charles and -suffered horribly from the forces of Cromwell in consequence. - -While there are quaint structures still to be found in the streets they -require looking for and one must be prepared to endure much squalor and -dirt and endless smells which will not recall the perfume bazaars of the -Orient, though it has always struck me that the perfumes of the Orient -were thickly strewed that they might drown out much more horrible smells -than were ever to be found in Ireland. - -The most interesting and famous of all the old houses is that of the -Lynch family whose façade holds some curious carvings, notably that of a -monkey carrying off a child, one of the children of the family having -been saved from death by fire by a pet monkey. - -From the window of this house in 1493, its owner, James Lynch, hanged -his own son for murder. - -Legend and truth are probably greatly mixed in the story told to-day. -The murder was that of a young Spaniard of whom the son was jealous, and -whom he stabbed to death. His mother besought her kinsfolk to save him -and them the disgrace of a public death by hanging, the father being -determined that the law should be obeyed. They met and roused the -populace which collected in a multitude outside the old house, to-day so -full of its noisy poor. The father, finding it would be impossible to -conduct his son to the place of execution, led him to one of the great -windows high up in the mansion and from thence launched him into -eternity at the rope's end. The people, awed into silence by his stern -justice, dispersed in quiet to their homes. To-day the street is called -Dead Man's Lane, and it is claimed that the tablet with skull and -cross-bones and its motto, "Remember deathe--vanite of vanite and all is -but vanite," was placed there to commemorate the dark occurrence, but if -so it was not until more than a century had rolled by. - -It is said that this stern, sorrowing father never appeared in public -after his execution of his son. - -The family of Lynch appeared here from Austria in 1274 and until 1654 -was of great prominence; then it vanished entirely. - -The old house rises in state still from its squalid surroundings and the -gloom upon its face seems to come as much from its present degradation -as from its sad history. - -With all its dirt and squalor Galway is possessed of greater interest -than any other Irish city, though with the hurried march of time in -these latter days, the antiquary must search more and more each year if -he would discover aught. - -One of the most singular and interesting parts is to be found in the -district just outside the walls and on the river. It is called Claddagh, -and consists of a colony of fishermen numbering with their families some -five or six thousand. Their marketplace adjoins one of the city's -ancient gates. They are a well ordered and governed people, having a -king or mayor elected from time to time whose word is law and from whose -decision they never appeal; neither will they acknowledge any other -authority. They are religious and will not sail away nor fish on Sunday -or feast day. - -At one period they were sufficient unto themselves and always married in -their own set. That is changed now and neither does one often see the -old and picturesque costume of their women,--a red gown and blue mantle. - -However, even to-day their part of Galway is cleaner and more wholesome -than its other sections. - -Its people are very superstitious and will not fish nor permit others to -do so unless the day and hour be lucky. Some have tried to break through -this but were forced to give up the attempt, as their lives were in -danger. - -An Irishman in the city stated that times were very bad, they "had had -very good crops and hence could not raise the cry of famine and so bring -in the cash from England and America. When they can do that every one is -well off and happy." - -But, as I have stated, squalor, dirt, and evil smells so abound that one -is fairly driven off and away from this quaintest of the Irish towns. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Clonmacnoise] - -You may spend a time in her old church of St. Nicholas, but if you -enter the adjoining graveyard the terrible neglect will drive you forth -in horror, a horror in no way quieted by a sojourn at the awful railway -hotel, a place so vilely dirty that nothing save acute hunger forces us -to remain an instant within its doors. I ask the waiter for a toothpick. -"Well, really, sor, we have none, but here's one of me own, which I'll -lend yez." In the search for it he pulls from the same pocket a dirty -handkerchief and a stump of a clay pipe. My laughter brings a twinkle to -his eyes and procures us a much better luncheon than we had reason, from -the appearance of the dirty table, to expect. - -There is no excuse for this hotel. It is a disgrace to the railroad -which owns and runs it. These railway hotels are generally cleanly and -well kept. Certainly such is the case in England and Scotland and in the -west and north of Ireland. But in Galway the broken-down, dilapidated, -and filthy state of affairs is disgusting in the extreme. One hesitates -to eat anything which comes from the kitchen, and we confine ourselves -to boiled ham and cheese. - -From Galway our route lies eastward to Parsonstown and had we followed -the map would have been simple enough, but the advice of sundry -home-going men, all somewhat the worse for liquor, sent us astray -several times, but in a motor that is of little moment. - -Parsonstown, or Birr, lies directly east of Galway and en route we pass -by Lorrha, where I stop a moment to inspect its ancient abbey. It is of -interest to some Americans as having been the burial-place for centuries -of a well-known family, the Carrolls. There are no monuments or -tablets, as dead have been buried upon dead within the ruined walls for -years on years, even unto to-day, as a fresh mound with a half-withered -wreath of flowers upon it testifies. - -Birr Castle was the original seat of the Carrolls, but they appear to -have owned numerous others in this locality, such as Leap and -Ffranckfort. - -The life of the dwellers must have been very crude and rude, but they -were all very tenacious of their right of sepulchre with their -forefathers. Each old will directs, after kindly returning the "soul to -the God who gave it," that their bodies be buried "in the chapel -adjoining the Abbey of St. Dominick in Lorrha," and so it was done; but, -as I have stated, years have gone and other dead have claimed the same -graves in this holy spot, until the place, now a tangle of ivy and wild -brier, is buried deeply and heaped high with the silent sleepers whose -rest is rarely disturbed by a passer from the great outer world of the -living. - -In the surrounding graveyard the dead sleep closely together and the -spot is better cared for than is usually the case. Apparently they are -not so soon forgotten, at least, one is not horrified by the appalling -desolation and abandonment usually to be found in such places in rural -Ireland. Of course the people are very poor, but at least they could -lock the doors of the vaults and cut the grass over the graves of their -dead. It may be that they consider that nothing is necessary or can be -done once they pass beneath the sod of "holy ground," that, having been -consecrated by the church, any touch of man's hand would be a -desecration thereof. Be that as it may the effects upon one from another -land is horrible. Such is not the case here in Lorrha, I am pleased to -state. - -A quick run of nine miles brings us to the quaint old city of Birr, just -as the night closes in. - -Birr is an eminently respectable town. Its streets are wide and its -houses have a delightful seclusion which reminds one of the main square -in Frederick City, Maryland. There are arched doorways shaded by -climbing vines and bearing great brass knockers. There are family cats -every here and there, and ancient dames peer at you from behind lace -curtains. In its main square at the base of the column to the Duke of -Cumberland and his victory of Culloden, one of the present citizens of -Birr is declaiming. He does not declaim long; truth compels me to state -that he is tight, and that even now two servants of the law are -escorting him into the calaboose. Pity 'tis, 'tis true. But this is -Saturday night and a man must have his little enjoyments. - -We descend at the door of an hotel whose name sets us whistling, "Mr. -Dooley's Hotel." I think it fairly good--Boyse does not agree with me -but withal we are very comfortable in it. - -Birr is the very centre of Ireland, and probably takes airs to herself -in consequence. - -We arrive here very weary to-night. There are days when motoring is not -all joy--this has been one. The lime dust and cold winds around Galway -have cut our faces into segments, and I find a bath, an open fire, and -easy chair too attractive to resist, but Boyse has gone off in a -jaunting-car eight miles to see some friends and arrange for a visit -to-morrow to an ancient castle where a real ghost still holds forth. We -shall see what we shall see, but it would take more than a ghost to keep -me awake to-night, much less to make me drive sixteen miles to call, but -it seems nothing to Boyse who does not return until late--too late to -talk--and so good-night. - -Morning dawns in mist and rain, which continue off and on all day long. -Birr is as silent as only an Irish or English town knows how to be on a -Sunday,--every shop is closed, the houses show scarce any sign of life, -while Cumberland upon his column seems to offer an apology for being in -gala array on the first day of the week. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Abbey of the Holy Cross] - -Boyse's friends near here have bidden us to luncheon after an -inspection of that ancient seat of the O'Carrolls, Leap Castle -(pronounced "Lep"). So rain and mist defying, we roll off at ten A.M. -leaving Yama and our kit behind us. The roads are slippery and the car -skids a little, but the chauffeur is alive to the danger, which is -minimised to the fullest extent by chains on the wheels. Some ten miles -out we turn into a spacious park and are welcomed at the door of the -mansion of "Wingfield" by the daughters of the house, three lovely Irish -women, and I know of no land which can produce more beautiful women than -Ireland; striking forms, faces, and figures are the rule not the -exception in this land of the harp. There is a type of reddish golden -hair, fair clear complexion, and sky-blue eyes which is especially -beautiful to my thinking; it belongs to the upper classes, at least I -have never noted it in a daughter of the people,--there the dark -blue-grey eyes and black hair, or pale straw-coloured hair combined with -palest of blue eyes, prevail. - -I have a painting by our poet-painter, T. Buchanan Read, which shows the -type I speak of, yet where did he ever see it? Certainly not amongst -those emigrants who came to America in his time. The painting, called -_The Harp of Erin_,[5] represents a white-clad woman chained to a rock -in the sea, whose waves dash up around her. Reddish golden hair floats -over her shoulders, which are draped in a green scarf. Blue eyes of the -colour of the deepest heaven gaze mournfully upon you and her arms are -raised to play upon a harp. The artist was in his happiest mood when he -painted this picture and for it he refused a large price, expecting at -the period of the Fenian excitement, in the sixties, to have it -lithographed and so realise vast sums, but fate in some form, how I know -not, intervened, and his idea was never carried out, or the Fenian -bubble burst before it could be accomplished. - -But to return to Wingfield. We gather in two of the ladies and speed off -over the slippery highway to Leap Castle. Now Leap, I would have you -know, is THE ghost castle of Ireland, owning more spooks to the room -than all the others together. En route thither we pass under the shadow -of "Knockshigowna" or hill of the fairies, and it would seem on this -shadowy morning that the ruin on its summit shows signs of a strange -agitation; perhaps the shades are aware of our approach to their -favourite castle in the valley and trust that we may tarry until night -falls and their dominion maintains,--for until then, they must stay -where they are, high up on yonder hill, which is the centre of all the -fairy romance and legend of the island. The forest is dense here and we -roll under the bending boughs, heavy with the night's dew, and -glittering in the sunlight. At the end of a long green tunnel the tower -of Leap Castle blocks the way. - -Leap stands overlooking a fair valley, a great square tower to which -have been added wings on either side. It was one of the most ancient -seats of the O'Carrolls, who seem to have left a most excellent memory -hereabouts as expert sheep-stealers. All of these ancient castles were -composed of simply one great strong tower. Everything else is of much -later date. We have seen a dozen such in the past few days. Leap is no -exception. Fortunately its owner, Mr. D.; is at home and welcomes us to -what has been in his family since the days of the Restoration, a period -when many of the Irish castles passed into the hands of Englishmen. - -We enter the lower floor of the great tower, which in the days of the -O'Carrolls was evidently the great hall, where many of those weird, -barbarous feasts one associates with such places must have occurred. -To-day its appearance is peaceful enough. Pictures anything but terrible -surround us and no ghosts can stand this clear light of day. - -From its windows you enjoy a superb panorama, and from its terrace one -of its ancient owners leapt his horse when pursued by some enemy--hence -the name. He was a rider superior to any even Ireland can show at the -present time for the drop is quite thirty feet. - -The wings of the castle flank the tower on either hand, but aside from -containing cheery rooms with much fine old furniture, are not of -interest, at least when compared to the hall, around which a gallery -circles in the second story, to which stairs in the thickness of the -walls conduct one. In one of the angles there is an oubliette to -anywhere below,--in another a stair mounts to a chapel in the top, -dismantled and disused now save by the ghost of a priest which walks -here with his head under his arm, and it is reported that one of the -chatelaines of the castle fled here from following footsteps which she -could not understand, and flinging the great door to behind her used -her fair arm as a staple, only to have it broken in two by a force no -mortal could withstand. She fainted, but before losing consciousness saw -passing by her the shadow of the headless monk. If you sleep in one of -those chambers below there you will awaken to find your hand drawn over -the bedside and blood slowly dripping from your fingers,--there are -stains on the old oaken flooring even now. Which ghost does that is not -stated. - -No direct heir ever inherits "Leap," and when misfortune is following -fast on the footsteps of the family, a ghostly sheep appears and with a -claw of great length (that kind of sheep have "claws") scratches on the -panels of the great oaken portals. Every properly self-respecting house -in Ireland has a ghost, but Leap has more than its share, and no peasant -of the island would venture to pass a night alone in the dungeon under -its great tower. There was nothing ghostly about the very good Irish -whiskey which we had there,--so toasting all ghosts malign or beneficent -and bidding our host a thankful adieu, we depart under the dripping -skies and return to peaceful-looking Wingfield, only to learn that it -too has its ghost, but a friendly one, being a great white goose which -walks around the walls of the home park and so wards off all evil from -the occupants. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Rock of Cashel] - -A cheerful luncheon with agreeable people will banish any amount of -spooks. It is so in this case. Wingfield could never be called a lonely -place. Each of its fair chatelaines has a pet dog of her own and there -are half a dozen stray dogs belonging to no one and every one. _They_ -are not allowed in any room unless they find the door open and in -Ireland doors are rarely closed. If the dining-room door _is_ open at -meal-time and they about, it's first come first served, with odds on the -dogs,--ditto at teatime,--in fact, any old time or meal, and there are -dogs enough to fill all vacancies and be present upon all occasions. - -It is a merry meal we have, but the best of things must end and so we -rise to depart. As I step forward to open the door for the ladies I find -the knob gone and the act impossible; but we troop around by another way -and settle ourselves before a bright fire in the drawing-room. - -We are told by our hostess that the parson came to call the other day. -The doorbell was broken but the door open. Upon entering the -drawing-room and closing the door the knob came off in his hand. In the -meantime numbers of dogs had collected in the hall. Remembering that the -family were probably all out, he went to the bell to summon help, when -_that_ handle came off also; going to the window to get out, he could -not keep it up until he had called into service a small table; thus he -managed to tumble out on to the lawn amidst ten or a dozen barking dogs -not at that moment on duty inside. He has not called since. - -However to my thinking Irish dogs are good-natured. - -Warm-hearted hospitality reigns in that house and may good luck and -happiness for ever abide therewith. - -After luncheon we start again with our fair guides on a visit to another -famous house, Ffranckfort Castle, some eleven miles away, a veritable -moated grange owned by Major Rolleston. - -Our way lies through the forest. There are few hills hereabouts and no -sign-posts to any of the roads, so that one might well lose the route, -and but for our fair companions we certainly should have done so several -times since we lost sight of the hill of the fairies and entered these -labyrinths of the forest. - -Turning at last through an ancient gateway, we see through the vistas of -the trees and on a level stretch of ground a great enclosure some -hundreds of yards each way surrounded by a high stone wall, through -whose pointed gateway there are glimpses of a castellated mansion. As we -draw nearer a moat full of water discloses itself around the outer wall, -and rumbling over a drawbridge which has long since forgotten its -function, we enter the enclosure. - -As the car draws towards the house, which stands in the centre of the -place, a saturnine face, with a long, hooked nose, gazes at us through -the dusty diamond-shaped panes of a window. - -Here is a mansion of the olden times, and one so secluded that few from -the outer world ever find it. - -The house, built at several different periods, stands in the centre of -the enclosure. I should judge that the main portion was of the date of -Elizabeth but the left still holds a large round tower of a much older -period and the main doorway of heavy old oak, very thick, and studded -with nails folded back in several panels. A very curious bit of work. - -It would seem to-day that the gentleman behind the window either doubts -our being otherwise than spirituelle, or doubts our characters, and so -declines to admit us, but he does come finally, and we enter an old-time -place which knows nothing of the changes of these latter days and cares -less for them. - -In a large square hall we are greeted by our host, a typical Irish -gentleman. He presents us to the ladies of the family, and we are -welcomed as one is always welcomed in Ireland. - -The owner, Major Rolleston, will not believe that I am an American as he -cannot "hear the voice." I know just what he means and finally convince -him that America like England has many accents. - -They are charmed when they find that I really desire to see the old -house, and we are soon at work, at least the Major and I are,--leaving -the rest to discuss "tea." The Major acts as my guide over the place and -out into a lovely flower-garden; he is greatly interested also in the -cultivation of vegetables, and remarks with regret "you don't care for -farming." Confessing my shortcomings in that respect his interest in me -dies out, and he shortly conducts me back towards the old house, over -another drawbridge, which, like its fellow in front, has long since -forgotten its ancient usage. One might spend hours over such a place and -not exhaust its interest. I understand that it is the only perfectly -_moated_ mansion remaining in Ireland. There are fish in the moat, and -on one side a man can swim in six feet of water for some hundreds of -feet. The portions of the building which we inspected consisted of a -large square hall, dining-and drawing-rooms which stretch across its -front, and a large library in the rear. - -The hallway, like most in the land, is decorated with the antlers of -many deer, and in the drawing-room quaint prints and engravings and -portraits of long dead dames and squires adorn the wall, while through -the diamond-shaped panes of the casement the leaf-flecked sunshine -starts many a face into life as it flits across them. One feels that one -should be dressed in the costume of the Golden days. - -[Illustration: From a steel engraving - Cormac's Chapel, Rock of Cashel] - -Ffranckfort is not a splendid place, but it is homelike and beautiful. -Is it peace or stagnation which broods over a spot like this? Do these -people live or merely vegetate? To a man who has passed his years where -the pulses of life beat the strongest it seems at first like stagnation, -as though these woods must suffocate as they crowd so closely around the -outer enclosure, ever advancing towards the house,--indeed one great -tree in its haste or intentness to get here has fallen, and now projects -over moat and wall and far into the enclosure, where its branches peer -about them. Yet when one has been here a space there is a "peace, be -still" over it all, a sense of brooding, that is very calming to one's -spirit. - -Everything belongs to the long ago except our auto, which I order out of -sight, round the corner, with a command to stay there until it is wanted -and not intrude this twentieth century upon the sixteenth. But we cannot -remain for ever, and the car, shortly summoned, glides forth and rolls -us off and away, through the great gateway and over the bridge of the -moat and so off into the aisles of the forest whose trees closing in -around it hide the old hall from view as though by the dropping of a -curtain, and again I ask, is it peace and contentment, or stagnation, to -abide in Ffranckfort Castle? - -I think it was Bayard Taylor who, in his early life, desired the -seclusion of an island in some far off southern sea, there to dwell in -close communion with nature, there to look from nature up to nature's -God,--but as his years advanced and his sands of life ran towards a -finish, that desire changed to one which would place him where the -pulses of life beat the strongest, and his last words were, "Oh, for -more of this stuff called Life!" - -The shadows of night and the falling rain make it dark as we reach once -more our quarters in Birr where a bright fire in our sitting-room is, to -say the least, attractive, and where the discussion pro and con as to -the merits of "Mr. Dooley's Hotel" are revived. "Beastly" comes from -behind Boyse's book where he sits reading deep down in an arm-chair; but -here is a cosey little room, easy chairs and a bright fire, a -dinner-table attractively spread and an attractive dark-eyed lassie -waiting to serve us. May I never encounter worse than that on my -pilgrimage through life. - -To-morrow we go to Clonmacnoise and to-night, as I sit reading about it, -my thoughts become a strange jumble of crosses and round towers, haunted -castles, and ancient Manor-houses towards which I am carried in a wild -rush through the aisles of the forest surrounded and pursued by dogs, -geese, fairies, and ghosts until the top of the hill of the fairies is -reached and I am being tried for high treason because of my doubts -to-day of the powers of each and all of them. The headless monk is my -judge while the sheep with the long claw prosecutes the suit against me. -My fingers are dripping blood, it seems, and I am about to be delivered -to the dogs of Wingfield when I distinctly hear it stated that I am -snoring and had better go to bed. Perhaps such is the case; so good -night. - -As Clonmacnoise stands on the banks of the Shannon and is but some -thirty miles north of Birr, and the day yet young, we are off for a run -thither. The morning is moist and the roads slippery, but we make good -progress, most of the way through narrow lanes, and sometimes through -pastures, to the astonishment of the cattle settled for their noonday's -sleep. - -Clonmacnoise was once the Oxford of Ireland, where the sons of the -nobles were sent for education, its name "Cluan-mac-noise" meaning "the -secluded recess of the sons of nobles."[6] - -It was in addition, one of the favourite burial places of the Irish -kings. Even to-day, to be interred here is considered a blessing, as -those so honoured pass straight to heaven. - -The Abbey dates from the days of St. Kieran, 548 A.D.,--he died of the -plague and was buried here,--and at one time was one of the richest, -compressing within its bounds almost the half of Ireland. It flourished -all through the wars with the Danes, and seems to have been finally -plundered by the English, who carried off the wonderful bells and every -other movable object. From that time onward the roofless churches and -buildings fell more and more a prey to advancing time, until the whole -became as we see it to-day, a small ruined church, a fragment of a -castle, a round tower, and a stately cross, crowded upon by the graves -of those who have eagerly - -sought this direct route to the realms of the blessed, but, for us, this -world is as yet too full of interest, and we do not envy these dead even -though they have here found the portals of heaven. - -At Clonmacnoise is one of the many holy wells dating from pagan days, -and which the traveller finds all over Ireland. These wells would appear -to have formed a prominent feature in the paganism of the ancient -nations. There are traces of them all over Africa, Asia and Europe. - -It's a slippery, sliding run back to Birr, which the motor several times -attempts to take backwards, but it ends safely and we reach "Mr. -Dooley's Hotel" for luncheon. - -It is a misty morning as we depart from Birr, but mist at this season in -Ireland falls like a benediction upon man and upon all the world of -green around him--and where else in this world will you find such green -as in Ireland? - -To-day the woods and meadows stretch away before us and over all bends a -grey sky with patches of vivid blue and white cutting through it every -here and there. - -We had arranged to visit with our hosts of yesterday another of the -"most ancient" and still inhabited castles of this section, but fearing -a change to rain in the weather we give that up and roll off to the -south-west, until finally we reach a fair green valley through whose -grasses and beneath whose bending trees lazily rolls the river Suir, a -river just wide enough to suit one's fancy, full of fish and water -lilies, and by whose banks, amidst a thick grove of stately trees, the -ancient Abbey of the Holy Cross rears its grey walls and delicate -traceries. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - The Cross of Cashel and Throne of the Kings of Munster - Rock of Cashel] - -Holy Cross is one of the finest ruins in all Ireland, and was evidently -an abbey of great wealth and importance. Truly those monks of old knew -where to build and when they brought the relic of the Cross bestowed by -Pope Pascal II. in 1110 to this spot and erected its shrine, they made -no mistake. It is not difficult to restore in the mind's eye the ancient -structure to what it once was, or to repeople it with the forms and -faces of ancient days. Yonder door in the outer wall must often have -given egress to the fat white-robed abbot and his jolly crowd of monks, -come out to inspect the baskets of fish and other good things brought by -the people who crowded around them. There were also hampers of fruit and -vegetables, and other things which looked strangely like casks of wine. -Back of all rose the stately abbey, while the river flowed onward waving -its lilies and grasses, and the soft air was full of the sound of sacred -bells and murmuring waters. - -To-day we face a stately ruin and there is no sound of bells or sight of -abbot, only the river still murmurs amongst its lilies, but Holy Cross -is as beautiful in her ruin as she could ever have been in the days of -her splendour. - -A comely dame admits us through the abbot's portal, and for hours we -wander as the fancy dictates, pausing now in the choir with its ancient -tombs, climbing high on the great tower with its prospect of God's -eternal resurrection all around, or resting where the high altar is -draped in trailing ivy and splendid with golden lichen. - -The mists have disappeared, the sunlight is warm and strong and one can -almost see the fish in the river, while the air is laden with the -fragrance of lilies, and there is a hush over all as though this ancient -dame were sitting for her portrait. - -How completely the rush and trouble of the world drops away in a spot -like this! How the soul is lulled into slumber, and the "Peace, be -still" of God comes down upon one! - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[5] See Frontispiece. - -[6] Another authority interprets the name (Cluain-maccu-Nois) -"the meadow of the sons of Nos." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - - The Rock of Cashel--Its Cathedral, Palace, and Round Tower--Its - History and Legends--Kilmalloch: its Ruins and History--The - Desmonds--Horse Fair at Buttevant. - - -The usual dram-shop exists near this one-time shrine of the cross and -outside of it we found a man somewhat half seas over who had insisted -upon showing us the abbey, but we were equally insistent that we would -not submit to such a desecration, and so the good woman in charge of it, -with much pleasure on her part,--"the likes of him, to be sure, to be -troublin' the gintlemen!"--had locked him out. He was on hand when we -came away, determined to get at least a sixpence for a drink, but to all -of his wiles we proved insensible. Just before we entered the car he -moved off a pace, and regarding me from top to toe remarked, "Well, I -must say, sor, that's the handsomest fitting coat I ever saw." As said -coat was a wretched production of a Chinese tailor of Yokohama the -flattery was too fulsome and fell flat, upon obdurate ears, but he -bestowed his benediction upon us for all that as the car rolled off. - -This section would seem to be the very heart of Ireland. There are -traces of ecclesiastical ruins everywhere, and one's interest is -intensified each moment until it reaches its climax some nine miles from -Holy Cross, when the land drops gently into a vast valley from the -centre of which, rising some three hundred feet, and crowned with ruins, -towers the Rock of Cashel. At its base clusters the town and in the -spreading meadows round about there are many stately ruins. As we -approach, the town gives scant evidence of life, until one wonders -whether any one exists there. We certainly do not see a half-dozen -living things, men or animals, before we desert the car and climb the -rock. - -It is a glorious day as we pass upward to the hill and the old town and -ruins take on a kindly look under the streaming sunshine--for sunshine -"streams" in Ireland; the sky is never cloudless and the sun breaking -through sends its light always in long streaming shafts, as though it -were a great searchlight directed by some giant power; and so it is -to-day, and just now it is turned full upon the Rock until all the ruins -seem quivering with life. - -But it passes, and as we enter and the iron gate clangs behind us the -whole place is full of the sadness of decay. This was the Stirling of -Ireland for here is cathedral, castle, and round tower. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Ancient Gateway, Kilmalloch] - -The stories of war and bloodshed have passed away and Cashel has fallen -more and more into ruin and decay with the flight of years. An old -guide, whose name does not seem to be given, made it the labour of his -life and love to restore as best he could what was remaining. Here he -lived on the charity of the poor, which never failed him, doing his -best, and it was much, to gather together the crumbling stones and -replace them in their old positions. Finally he died and was buried here -and his work, almost undone by neglect and time, was finally taken up by -one of equal taste and greater power, Archdeacon Cotton, who devoted -time, energy, and private means to preserve this most interesting spot -in Ireland from destruction. His work here started in Ireland the same -movement towards the preservation of these ancient places with which Sir -Walter Scott was so identified in Scotland. - -To both, the lover of antiquities owes an eternal debt of gratitude. - -Of Cashel it is related that Archbishop Brice in 1744, not being able to -drive his carriage to the top of the rock, procured an act of Parliament -to remove the cathedral down into the town, whereupon the roof was -actually taken off for the value of the lead and the venerable pile -abandoned to ruin. - -As we pass the iron gateway which now guards the ruins and the dead who -sleep around and in them (for the whole is now a great necropolis) the -eye is first attracted by a rude cross rising from an equally rude base; -on one side is carved the crucifixion, and on the other a figure of St. -Patrick. Here it is said the kings of Munster were crowned and here also -tribute was paid by those of lesser state, and it is claimed that a -hollow on one side was caused by the throwing down of the tribute gold -through many years. - -Passing onward one enters the quaint Cormac's Chapel, one of the most -interesting remains in Ireland. Its original stone roof is still in -place and possesses two very singular square towers on either side, one -of which carries its pyramidal roof, but the other is open to the sky. -The chapel is not large, being but fifty-three feet long and having only -a nave and choir. It is Norman in its character; the very rich -decorations of its arches and niches are all of that style. - -The cathedral is, of course, a ruin, but stately and beautiful. Its -interior is crowded with flat tombstones and even to-day interments take -place here, and be assured to have the right of burial in Cashel Church -is a hallmark of nobility which no money can purchase; only blood ties -with those long since laid to rest will gain you a right to sleep there, -and the same holds with Muckross. - -There is not much left of the castle. Outward amongst the many graves -which cover the rock, the eye is at once attracted by the stately round -tower, rising a hundred feet above the rock. To my thinking there is -nothing more majestic than these simple towers with their conical caps, -and one weaves around them all manner of romances and stories, which -probably are very far from the truth. - -There seems little doubt that they are simply the campaniles of this -northern land and it appears certain that they did not make their -appearance until after the advent of Christianity. They were probably -used also for watch towers and are to be found all down the coast at -points where the Danes were apt to land. - -In those days the Danes were the marauders of Europe, and Ireland did -not escape their attention. - -The ancient annals of the island call these towers, of which seventy are -still standing, "Cloicoheach" or house of a bell. There are two in the -land which have most impressed me, this one high on the Rock of Cashel -and the one at Glendalough, deep down in a valley. Of that one I shall -speak later on. - -Cashel as a place of importance dates from the early kings of Munster -and from the days of St. Patrick--the fifth century--when St. Declan -founded a church here. - -Its name probably came from a stone fort or "Caiseal." It was also -called the City of the Kings. Here in 1172 Henry the Second received the -homage of Donald O'Brien, King of Thomond, and the princes of Offaly and -Decies, and England became the ruler of the land. Here he read aloud -that famous papal bull. Edward Bruce passed by Cashel and paused to hold -a parliament. The Butlers and Fitzgeralds warred all over the place and -the great Earl of Kildare in 1495 burned down the cathedral, and when -called by the King of England to accounting, declared that he would not -have thought of committing such a sacrilege but that he was told that -the archbishop was surely in the church; whereupon the King exclaimed, -"If all Ireland cannot govern this man, he is the fittest to govern all -Ireland," and thereupon appointed him viceroy the following year. - -The rock and town were given up to plunder and slaughter by Lord -Inchiquin in 1647 when twenty monks and many of the people were slain, -but Cashel shines forth most brilliantly as the seat for centuries of an -archbishop, and as the stranger stands on the rock to-day it is not -difficult to picture the scenes and pageants of that period. Restore in -your minds the church and palace to their former grandeur, rebuild and -repeople the many monasteries which dot the green valley around the -rock, fill the shady lanes with the gorgeous processionals of the Church -of Rome advancing to some great ceremonial in the cathedral already -crowded with a multitude bowed in prayer, place the gorgeously robed -archbishop on his throne before the altar ablaze with gold and lighted -candles, while the sunlight streaming through the painted windows casts -the greater glory of God over all, and the organ sends its deep solemn -tones forth under the stately arches. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Dominican Abbey, Kilmalloch] - -Then you have Cashel at its best; but passing outward your eye would -have been at once attracted by the stately round tower, as stately -to-day as it was then, which would tell you at once that, as some -believed, long before the cross came to Cashel the pagans held their -barbarous rites and ceremonies on this rock. - -Again, we are told that Cashel was first founded in the reign of Coro, -son of Loo-ee, and that its name was Sheedrum, also called Drum-feeva; -from the woods about. Through the forests and up to the rock at that -time came two swineherds, with their pigs, Kellarn, herdsman to the King -of Ely, and Doordry, herdsman for the King of Ormond, and there appeared -to them here a figure as brilliant as the sun, and whose voice, more -melodious than any music of this world, was consecrating the hill and -prophesying the coming of St. Patrick. The news soon reached Coro, who -came hither without delay and built a palace here called Lis-no-Lachree, -or the fort of heroes, and being King of Munster his royal tribute was -received on this rock, then called Currick-Patrick,--wherefore it was -called Cashel, _i.e._, Cios-ail, or the rock of tribute. - -All that is but a legend and story of the long ago, yet this great round -tower bears enduring testimony that Cashel was occupied long before the -English invasion. Indeed the chapel of Cormac is undoubtedly of before -that period but the cathedral dates from 1169, and the castle from -1260. The whole was originally surrounded by a wall, of which no trace -remains to us. - -But after all it is the prospect from the outer walls which will longest -hold your attention, the beautiful panorama of the golden vale of -Tipperary spread out before you, while beyond range the stately Galty -Mountains and the Slievenaman and Clonmel hills, the old town clustering -around the base of the rock, its twisting narrow streets bordered by -quaint houses while the green meadows around are dotted with ruined -abbeys and many a tower of far more ancient date. - -If Ireland _is_ unhappy, she does not show it here to the passing -stranger to-day. All is peace down amongst those meadows and beside -those still waters. - -Yonder is the Abbey of Horl, the equal of Holy Cross, but to inspect all -the abbeys one passes would take a lifetime. - -As we return to the car, I notice that there is trouble of some sort. An -old Irishman stands near-by and a little girl is trying vainly to draw -him away. As we arrive Yama remarks that the old man is insulting, and -in as low a tone as I can command I bid him pay no attention as the man -is drunk. That may be, but not so drunk as to deaden his hearing for he -promptly replies, "Yes, sor, I am drunk, but I am drunk on my own -whiskey, and I am not travellin' around wid a monkey man." It was -well-nigh impossible to keep grave faces, but for the Jap's sake we -succeeded, and the car started, not, however, without another shot from -the old man: "Well, good-bye to yez, and I forgive ye if ye did say I am -drunk." I am glad to state that that was the only experience of the kind -which we encountered. What may have occurred before we reached the car I -cannot say,--I certainly did not question the Jap on the subject, -judging it better to drop the whole matter, but I have little doubt but -that he did or said something to enrage the old man. The only one -concerned for whom I felt any pity was the little granddaughter, who -vainly endeavoured to lead him away. Poor child, her eyes were full of -tears and I felt very sorry for her. In this world of ours it seems -always her sex which must suffer. - -Our route from Cashel to Buttevant lies through rich meadow-lands where -the grass is greener and the buttercups of a deeper golden than anywhere -else in the world I think, unless it be in the "blue grass" regions of -our own Kentucky. This was certainly the land of promise to all who -lived here or could force their way in; almost every turn in the road -brings us upon some ruined tower or castle, whilst fragments of -ecclesiastical buildings dot the landscape far and near. Indeed, as we -roll leisurely along on this bright summer's morning, the prospect is at -all times enchanting to the lover of history and antiquity, and the -interest increases steadily until Kilmalloch, the Balbec of Ireland, is -reached, though at all times the traveller's regret will be intense -that the ruin of all is so complete. In fact, the town is but a mass of -ruins where the miserable hovels of the poor prop up what is left of the -ancient mansions of a vanished nobility. As we pass through what was -once its greatest street we note the remains of stately houses every -here and there, but they have evidently been partly pulled down and -their materials used to build the wretched structures which now shelter -these people. Only the property of the church has been spared and in -this case, though the ruin is great, it is the result of the sieges -during Elizabeth's and Cromwell's time; the people have let the -buildings alone, only that great disbeliever in church or state, time, -is for ever at work completing their destruction. - -One comes here upon the trails of the most powerful family which Ireland -has ever possessed, the Desmonds, whose properties, covering four -counties, extended over one hundred miles and contained over five -hundred and seventy thousand acres. An ancient family, even at that -period, they were made earls in 1329. Their power appears to have been -at all times dreaded by the crown and we find one of them of the Kildare -branch a prisoner in the Tower in Henry VII.'s time. He it was who -burned the cathedral at Cashel, hence we may save our sympathies for a -better man, especially as his assurance so affected the King that he was -appointed governor of Ireland, as we related in the account of Cashel. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Buttevant Barracks] - -His son, for rebellion, did not fare so well with Henry VIII., as, with -five of his uncles, he perished on the scaffold and his family was only -saved from extinction by having his youngest brother smuggled over to -France to return to home and restored estates when Edward VI. sat on the -throne. - -Do not, however, for a moment imagine that that family "lived happily -for ever after." Certainly not with such blood flowing in their veins -and with Elizabeth Tudor wearing the crown, during whose reign the -sixteenth Earl of Desmond did all he could to prevent his name from -sinking into oblivion. He became conspicuous as an "ingenious rebel" and -the Queen speaks of him in one of her letters as "a nobleman not brought -up where law and justice had been frequent," by which I presume her -Majesty meant that he had forgotten that the words "law" and "justice" -meant the royal "will" and "desire" only. We have had some such -forgetfulness in our own land of late years. Desmond was of such power -that he could raise a company of five hundred men of his own name alone, -all of whom and his own life also he lost in three years' time. There is -little doubt that he was driven to rebellion by wrong and oppression, as -he and his estates were objects of envy to every other chieftain of -Ireland. His greatest enemy, the Earl of Ormond, was finally empowered -by the crown to crush him and in the end succeeded. Desmond, "trusting -no home or castle," was driven to woods and bogs and finally captured -in a ruined hovel where his head was struck off and sent to the Queen -"pickled in a pipkin." His executioner, a soldier named "Daniel Kelly," -received a pension of twenty pounds from the crown but for some later -act was hanged at Tyburn. - -With James, the son of this Desmond, the power of the family terminated. -He became a Protestant and the only one of his name. It is useless to -state that the followers of his ancient house would not tolerate such a -lapse and upon his only visit to Kilmalloch he was spat upon on his -return from church. That drove him to London, where he died. - -As I have stated, there is almost nothing to remind the traveller -through Kilmalloch to-day of its ancient splendour, though he may still -trace its walls which once completely surrounded the town. Just outside -stands the ruins of the Dominican friary, a stately empty shell. - -Leaving it, we roll away southward and upon entering the town of -Buttevant are rudely shaken from the contemplation of ancient days to -the activity of this twentieth century. - -Buttevant is indulging in a horse fair where David Harums congregate -from all the land roundabout. As our car rolls through the streets, we -are regarded as legitimate prey and have horses of all ages, sizes, and -colours,--"Sound? Glory be to God, as sound as yer honour," shoved in -front of us. (That we pass on without pausing stamps us at once as -unworthy of further notice.) One man with absolutely no right has seized -upon an adjoining field and after breaking a hole in the wall as a -ticket window proceeds to collect a shilling from all who enter, of -which there are many. If any refuse to pay he seizes a convenient rock -and threatens them. It is useless to state that most of the community -imagine that all that is worth seeing in the place is in that field, and -as every one crowds in there they are not far wrong. Still, I learn -later, the canny ticket collector takes care to vanish at the proper -moment. They spend some time looking for him, especially as the owner of -the field threatens to have the law on the whole lot for trespass. - -Leaving the noise and confusion behind us, we enter the great square of -the barracks, and the motor vanishes for a season. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - - Buttevant Barracks--Army Life--Mess-room Talk--Condition of the - Barracks--Balleybeg Abbey--Old Church--Native Wedding--Kilcoman - Castle, Spenser's Home--Doneraile Court--Mrs. Aldworth, the only - Woman Free Mason--Irish Wit--Regimental Plate--Departure from the - Barracks. - - -In the barracks at Buttevant are at present quartered a battalion of the -Dublin Fusiliers, a regiment which dates back to the days of Charles -II., and which has spent most of its years in India. Now this battalion -is back home and I doubt not that both officers and men find the cool -grey skys and green fields a welcome contrast to the blazing heavens and -burnt brown stretches of the Far East. Yet I imagine that there will be -certain moments of longing for the land where they have made their home -for so many years,--a land which never entirely releases her hold upon -those who have dwelt there. - - "If a year of life you give her; - If her temples, shrines you enter; - The door is closed, you may not look behind." - -But that state has not arrived with these men yet and they are very -contented to be "at home." - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Dinner at Buttevant Barracks] - -These barracks at Buttevant are spacious and, as barracks go, very -comfortable. Situated in a good hunting country, one hears horse and -hound talk intermingled with the many bugle calls and the stirring -sounds of the fife. The campus or compound, a great green square -surrounded by the quarters, is constantly a gay spot, often with -lawn-tennis and cricket going on in its centre, and there are always the -officers' wives and children, giving the scene just that touch and charm -which can only come from women's presence. - -Orderlies are leading or riding around the drive the hunters recently -purchased at the neighbouring horse fair, and constant are the comments -upon each nag as it passes,--mingled with much badinage at the expense -of the purchasers. - -The regimental band of fifty men discourses sweet music. Tea is on in -the mess-room--soldiers in khaki and soldiers in scarlet coats are -everywhere. Snatches of songs come from the different quarters and life -does not seem hard to these soldiers, at least not now, and yet--the -call to arms and the chance of a skirmish is always welcome at first, -until they realise that "War is Hell" and once entered upon cannot be so -easily stopped. There is no thought of war here now and life goes -merrily onward. - -At seven-thirty the dressing bugle sounds and we are off to reassemble -in the officers' mess at eight for that most important function, -dinner. I confess I feel slovenly in my black clothes amongst the -scarlet and gold of the officers. The mess dress of the army is very -effective, a scarlet jacket fitting closely and showing a generous shirt -front, dark blue trousers with scarlet stripes, strapped over patent -leather boots bearing spurs,--a dress becoming to any man. Once he knows -you, a British officer is always very cordial and agreeable; there are -few exceptions to that rule. I am certainly given a cordial welcome -amongst them on my first evening. - -Dinner announced, we file down to the mess-room where if you imagine -things are crude or camp-like you are mistaken. The spacious apartment -is adorned with the "colours" old and new of the whole regiment (as this -is the headquarters of all its battalions and all such things are here -stored), most of them torn with the strife of battle. The table, of -Bombay oak (which travels with the regiment wherever it goes), is of -great width and as long as the room will permit. For dinner it is decked -with magnificent plate in the form of candelabra, cups and fantastic -salt-cellars, etc. There are flowers and snowy linen of course, and the -room is brilliant with scarlet coats and the mellow light of wax -candles. The dinner goes merrily on, while outside the regimental band -discourses its best. Towards the end we are brought to our feet with -"Gentleman, the King," and so, to the national anthem, drink the health -of his Majesty. - -(I must compliment this band. It is excellent, and I believe is -considered the best in south Ireland.) - -After dinner, we adjourn to the smoking-room upstairs, and "bridge" -comes in for proper attention. - -Not caring for the game, Major Beddoes and I are seated before the fire. -The room is a large one and, I am thankful to say, does not possess -electric lights; a shaded lamp throws a warm glow downward upon the card -tables while the flashes of the firelight bring the scarlet coats and -gold braid of the players, and the tattered battle flags beyond them -into bold relief now and then. - -The air is full of tobacco smoke, but aside from our subdued voices and -an occasional remark thrown at me by the players because I neither smoke -nor play, the room is very quiet. Outside, the barracks and the town -seem to have gone to sleep save for an occasional bugle call or sentry -challenge. - -There had been some commotion below earlier in the evening because of a -young setter pup, which Capt. D. had shut up in his room, having eaten -one of the Captain's new walking boots, and Major Beddoes had some words -with his man, whom he had discovered wearing one of his, the Major's, -best dress shirts. "Sure, Major, 'twasn't soiled enough to give to old -Mag beyant there to wash, and I jest thought I would give it a wear or -so mesell, knowin' ye wouldn't care." - -But those incidents of barracks life have passed on, when I ask the -Major what he thinks are the real feelings of the English for -Americans,--do you like us?--he is enough like a Yankee to throw the -query back at me with the parties reversed; but I came first upon the -field and insist upon that advantage. After some moments of quiet -pulling at his beloved pipe, he answers, "I think individually, yes,--as -a nation, _no_, and you have probably discovered that for yourself, and -the feeling on our part may be based on jealousy. You are also aware -that the same holds in your own land toward our people. As a general -thing we like your women, but not your men, and our opinion of the -latter is probably influenced by those of your citizens who have turned -their backs upon their own land and settled amongst us. Of these I do -not include those who have come amongst us for business reasons,--they -always expect to go 'home,' and are at all periods of their sojourn here -Americans,--but those others who, drawing their entire support from -their own country, settle here and become more anti-American than any -Englishman ever was. We despise them, and no matter how hard they may -work for it, they will never be looked upon otherwise than as -strangers,--their children, reared over here, possibly, but never -themselves, for whether we like you or not, we do think that one born in -America should be proud of that fact and not a cad. Do you agree with -me?" - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Buttevant] - -"Assuredly, and personally whatever pride in the past I possess is -centred in those of my ancestors who helped to make and preserve our -great nation,--beyond them, while it is interesting to trace backward -into the countries of the old world, it is simply a pastime." - -"You certainly send us funny lots of people during the touring months." - -"Yes,--but have you ever tried to talk to them?" - -"Just recall that lot at Mallow the other day. Could any party on the -surface be more unattractive?" - -"You are quite correct, but if you had spoken to that most aggressive -looking man and his more aggressive looking wife and daughter, you would -have discovered well educated and intelligent people, such as form the -real backbone of a nation. They have consumed six summers travelling in -Norway alone, and thoroughly appreciate that beautiful country. They -believe that the world is a better book than any ever enclosed between -covers, and they intend to read it, and when the years bring old age -upon them, all that world will still be an open volume, its changes and -improvements fully appreciated and understood. Can you not excuse much -that is unpleasant in people like these? And do they not compare -favourably with the masses of English of a certain class found all over -Europe." - -As for the sentiments of one nation for another, it is summed up in the -words of a recent author, "Moreover, the fine old dislike which Bretons -bestow upon everything outside Brittany was hers both by inheritance and -careful cultivation." There you have it in a nutshell,--not only as -regards the English but all other nations. England certainly holds that -feeling towards all the continent and I believe towards America; Boston -has it for all the rest of our land. New York has of late years become -more liberal, more cosmopolitan, yet I heard but lately a man make the -remark in her best club that he had "a perfect horror of the middle -West." How does that sound from an educated man in this twentieth -century, and of cities which have long since passed their centennial? To -be sure, far from being a criterion for the citizens of New York, he was -one who had kept his nose down on the books of some counting-house and -had never left the confines of the city. - -As for California, I have known the dislike of everything outside of -that State, especially Eastern, to separate husband and wife and destroy -a family; where the wife's hatred of "outsiders" extended from her -husband's parents to and including every friend he had in the East,--an -impersonal sort of hatred because she was stranger to most of them, yet -none the less violent, with the result as stated. - -Again, did not such a feeling have something to do with our Civil War? -Does not England even to-day believe that the cultivation was largely -in the South, and yet how unjust such an opinion! I am half Southern, my -mother's family having been slave-owners for generations, and I think I -can speak without prejudice, and I say again "how unjust such an -opinion." The cultivation in the South was sprinkled over a sparsely -settled country and centred in a few thousands of planters and their -families. In the North, it covered all of a densely populated section, -and from ocean to ocean it would have been impossible to find a class -like the mountaineers of Virginia, so ignorant that many of them not -only could not read but did not know what "reading" meant. Furthermore -where were, and still are, all the greater universities and seats of -learning? In the North. Where did our great poets and essayists come -from? The North again. I do not desire to decry the South,--far from -it,--but the old idea was an absurdity; the South in her palmiest -ante-bellum days sent the majority of her sons north to be educated, -but---- - -Bridge in the meantime is over for to-night and the group before the -fire increased thereby. So the talk drifts on and on. I am not given to -slang and do not like it, but I happened to use a bit just here, "he -monkeyed with a buzz saw." Attracted by the silence which followed I -looked up to find every face gazing upon me in puzzled amazement, until -finally Major ---- felt that some explanation must be forthcoming. - -"Monkeyed with a buzz saw? Now let me see, let me see. What exactly _is_ -a 'buzz saw,' and what happened to the monkey?" - -My laughter forced them all to join in and for the next hour these -defenders of the British flag took a lesson in American slang, until -upon the soft air outside sounded the notes of the "last post" (or -"taps" as we call it), the saddest bit of melody in the world of music, -and so "good night," "good night." One by one the lights went out and -sleep settled upon the living while the moon, turning her attention -elsewhere, went off to light the fairies dancing on the river and the -witches down in old Ballybeg Abbey. - -The following day being Sunday the soldiers of the King go to service in -full dress; the grim barracks are brilliant with hundreds of scarlet -coats and to the music of _Stars and Stripes Forever_ our one time foes -move off to pray for peace while prepared for war. I notice that -_Hiawatha_ is the favourite tune for marching men, and am told that it -is not only because it is a most excellent march but because the fife -plays an important part in its rendering and the fife is the only -instrument which can be heard above the din of battle. - -[Illustration: Kilcoman Castle - Spenser's Home - Where he wrote _The Faerie Queene_] - -There is a drummer in this band whose movements are simply amazing, and -I find myself trying to imitate them with pole and cane to the peril of -life and property. How he does swing those great sticks around his head -and bring them down upon that huge bass-drum! A drummer surely whose -pomposity surpasses anything of its kind within my memory. As the -inspiring music grows fainter and fainter and the scarlet coats pass -away down the streets of the old town I turn for an inspection of the -barracks. On the top of the entrance arch are the offices, on the right -the guard-house, and beyond it a large gymnasium. On either side of the -green and running at right angles to the entrance are the officers' -quarters, while a large barracks for the men forms the fourth side of -the square. Back of this is another square surrounded by large barracks, -while the married men have a separate building beyond these and the -Colonel lives in a retired pleasant house off in one corner. Of that -house and the dwellers therein I have some very pleasant memories. - -To a looker-on in this twentieth century the disregard of sanitary -measures in such a barracks as this is surprising and I doubt not the -same holds in all others of the Empire and perhaps in all those of other -countries, including my own. Of that I am unable to speak, but the -outrage is an outrage all the same. One can understand the lack of such -things in far western camps or in war times, but that a great stone -place like this with a hundred years to its credit should have no proper -baths or toilet-rooms for its officers is "an outrage" most certainly, -and one which the nation should insist upon being promptly corrected. -There are a few bathrooms with good tubs and hot and cold water for the -men but the officers have nothing save the inconvenient, nasty little -tin tubs, and it is practically impossible for a big man to keep himself -in proper condition by their use. - -These quarters are, as I have stated, massive stone buildings. Each -officer has a sitting-room with two small rooms adjoining and so placed -that either of the latter could be transformed at small cost into an -excellent bathroom with hot and cold water laid on. As it is now, these -gentlemen must use a little tin thing with an inch or two of cold water. -It's a common saying amongst the officers of the army that nothing is -done for _them_. What the government does is all for the rank and file. -That the soldiers should receive everything needful is in all ways -proper, but are not the men who lead them, the brains of this strength -of the nation, entitled to like consideration? They offer their lives -upon the slightest cause, and gladly too, yet their government is so far -forgetful, not to call it by a harsher term, that it neglects their -well-being in this manner. They are willing to put up with _nothing_ -when it is necessary, and surely are entitled to a _bare something_, and -this is nothing more, when it can so easily be done and at such small -expense. Cleanliness is certainly more essential to health than many -brilliant coats and much silver plate. - -There is often scorn expressed for our bathrooms with their modern -appliances, but I noticed at P---- that one of the scoffers, who might -have had his little "tub" (so constantly extolled) in his bedroom, -waited and almost missed his dinner that he might use the only bathroom -in that vast establishment. I do not desire to accuse the officers of -uncleanliness--very far from it--but they should be better provided for -in this respect. - -I am also astounded to note the treatment of the common soldiers--"Tommy -Atkins"--by the public. In time of war he is worshipped, but in time of -peace is scarce considered to be a man, merely a servant to be pushed -and shoved about and treated most discourteously, to say the least. I -saw this done in a theatre the other night, to a soldier who addressed a -simple, civil question to the man next him. The reply he got and the -treatment he received would, in America at least, have resulted in a -row, and justly too. However, that occurred in Ireland where the "red -coats" are not liked. - -I understand that the pay per year of the officers in the British army -is about as follows: - - A Colonel, £400 Sterling - Lt. Colonel, 300 - Major, 240 - Captain, 200 - Lieutenant, 100 - -These figures do not seem very large when a man offers his life to his -country, but they are in excess of many nations on the Continent, where -the officers are forced into beastly poverty by the call for outside -gorgeousness. At a late grand review the eye of a beholder was attracted -by an officer quite resplendent in a beautiful white uniform, superb -high black boots with glittering spurs, a silver breastplate, and -glittering helmet, and mounted on a splendid black charger, his -appearance was gorgeousness intensified. After the review the observer, -passing the tent of this same officer, saw the entire gorgeousness as to -uniform hung up to dry and on the wretched camp bed sat the man _with no -socks on_,--"too poor to buy them," all the pay and far more gone in the -useless display,--and yet not altogether useless, for without the -uniforms these great standing armies would melt away like mist before -the sun and many a throne totter to its fall. However, if the splendour -must be maintained, and it is certainly beautiful to look at, then those -forced to wear it and bear its expense should be better paid, -remembering at the same time that the wearers are ready at any moment to -stand up to be shot to death in defence of the home where you sit -comfortably reading your paper--therefore "PAY, PAY, PAY!" - -The officers of these Fusiliers are devoted to their cook. I suggested -the other day that his coffee might be improved,--it was wretched, in -fact, not coffee at all, while no fault could be found with the rest of -the menu. They replied that they knew it, but he had been so devoted in -battle, had cooked under a galling Gatling fire, had rushed so many -times over death spots to bring them hot sausages which he was forced to -carry in his hands, that they could not scold him. I drank his coffee -with great pleasure after that. The heroes in this world do not always -wear the most brilliant uniforms and has it not been proven that it is -the commissary which in the end decides the conflict? - -[Illustration: Doneraile Court, County Cork] - -There is nothing going on in the barracks this morning which interests -me, save perhaps a court-martial, at which I am told that my absence -will be very precious. So I stroll off in the soft sunlight through the -great gateway, where a sentry holds constant ward and watch, just for -appearance sake, I imagine, as it cannot be to keep the boys in or -strangers out, for just at yonder corner is a breach in the wall -unguarded where any one may come and go at pleasure, and I doubt not -many of the boys do go and for pleasure, though there can be little -amusement in the sad town which clusters between the barracks and -castle. Of young men it seems to hold none, and there are not many -children, so that when these few old people pass onward and enter for -eternity yonder churchyard, old Buttevant will wither away altogether. -Many kindly faces come to the doors to watch me, knowing that I am an -American, and their eyes have a questioning look as though to ask for -some dear one in the land beyond the sea. - -The place is indeed very old and every now and then as I pass through -the streets I come across some vestige of its past greatness and a mile -beyond its limits reach the ruins of Ballybeg Abbey, in a smiling meadow -down by the river Awbeg. Something of a stately structure in its palmy -days, there is little of that left now, but on the whole it is all -rather sociable. The river is of that sort, and having loitered downward -under its trees and through its grasses murmurs confidential bits of -gossip about the castle yonder upon its banks. Yellow buttercups push -their heads upward through the turf which climbs to the old grey walls -of the abbey, and in the abbot's doorway the white face of a ruminating -cow is silhouetted against the inner darkness. "They also serve who only -stand and wait," must have been written of Ballybeg and its kind, for it -has left no trace upon the pages of history. Yet withal, as I have -stated, it's a sociable old place and I spend some time in its company, -seated on the parapet of a neighbouring stone bridge where 'tis said the -fairies dance when the moon is full. - -I expected much from the name--Ballybeg--why I can scarcely tell but I -cannot say that I am disappointed, though such stately structures as -Fountaine and Tintern in Wales would scarce consider Ballybeg to be -exactly "in their set." - -Wandering up the banks of the Awbeg, I pass beyond the castle. We -had tea there last season and a medieval castle which can descend -to having afternoon tea served within its walls is not worthy of -description. It is owned by an irascible old lady who occupies one part -and rents out the other and who generally keeps such a strict eye upon -her tenants that it results in driving them out. When we visited it the -tenants were an officer and his wife, and just that shortly happened, -so that on my second visit to Buttevant, the castle stares at me with -vacant eyes of windows, and I pass onward up the river to the centre of -the town, where the ruins of its Franciscan abbey raise their arches -and columns and guard the dead of long ago, and those who come in this -later day to sleep beneath its shadows. - -If you enter its crypt, you will stand amazed at the vast quantity of -human bones piled pell-mell there. Some say that they are but the -natural accumulation of departing humanity and others that they all came -from the neighbouring battlefield of Knockninoss,--others believe that -when in the flesh they all lived yonder in old Ballybeg. - -Be that as it may, they are here now, quietly awaiting that day of days, -which shall summon them forth once more, and as I stand in the darkness -with my foot on a skull, which might have enclosed the brains of an -Irish king, downward through a broken casement comes the sound of a -voice and the words "I am the resurrection and the life, he that -believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live," and I roll the -skull gently back into denser shadows, wondering, _wondering_, and -then, as we all must do, ceasing to wonder, and just continuing -to--trust. - -Passing upward into the sunshine and forward amidst the long grasses -which cover the humbler dead, I find that one more has but now joined -this silent company, and those who brought her here are slowly leaving -the churchyard. Poor people, all of them,--there does not appear to be -any others in this town of Buttevant,--but death seems to hold no -terrors for any one of these and many sit round on the tombstones and do -not hesitate to discuss the qualities, good and bad, of those asleep -beneath them and to admire the inscriptions. Here is one quaint enough -surely: - - "Here lies Pat Steele--that's very true; - Who was he? What was he? What's that to _you_?" - -Yonder is a cross of wood under discussion at the present moment. It -states that "here lies Kate O'Shea and also her sister Mrs. Mary -Buckley," and that as "their father died last year, this is the end of -the O'Shea family." That thereby hangs a tale is very evident, and -yonder fat old lady on whose head a bit of a black bonnet is poised and -round whose shoulders a comfortable shawl is wrapped could and would -tell me if there were not so many listeners about, who knowing her love -of gossip keep sharp watch and ward, so that of those who are gone I -learn nothing, but of what is shortly to happen I hear more. - -[Illustration: The Room in Doneraile Court where Mrs. Aldworth Hid] - -A wedding is to take place in the modern church just here and we sit -round on the tombstones, awaiting the coming of the bride. There are -hints as to this bride which rouse my curiosity, and I decide to await -her coming, which shortly happens. She is a comely looking young woman, -modestly dressed in a green gown, and a blue hat with red roses thereon. -Her blue eyes do not possess a very happy look as they rest on the fat -middle-aged bridegroom, and the old lady on the tombstone next to me -heaves a sigh which tells unutterable things. Still, all seems going -smoothly and we follow into the church. The ceremony begins, and -progresses as usual to that point where the bride is asked if she takes -this man to be her wedded husband, when upon the amazed and horrified -ears of all falls the reply in sharp tones, "Indade, I won't," followed -by a swish of a blue skirt and a flash of red roses down the aisle and -out the door and the bride is gone. I leave a description of the hubbub -which followed to your imagination. - -Getting finally outside, I find myself once more near the old lady of -ample proportions, and just in time to hear her remark "and him wid nine -illegant fat pigs and sivin suits of clothes _aich one better than the -other_." This entirely destroys my dignity and self-control and I double -up with laughter upon a neighbouring tombstone, whereupon the old lady, -after one look of grand amaze, gives me "the full of her back" and with -her "nose trun in the air" passes majestically away. I learn later that -of that bride they never again heard. Like the bubble on the river she -was gone and for ever. - -The neighbourhood of Buttevant is full of interest to those who will -turn aside from the usual tour of Ireland. To-day we are off through the -green lanes for a visit to Kilcoman Castle, the home for some years of -the poet Spenser, and where he wrote his _Faerie Queene_. We shall later -visit the scenes of that poem. - -In 1586 Spenser received some fifteen hundred acres of land from the -crown, and on them stood this ancient stronghold of the Desmonds, which -he made his home for years. Those were troublous times and he saw much -of their misery, and their sadness tinges his great poem. - -He received but small acknowledgment for his work from Elizabeth, and -even that was objected to by Burleigh,--"What--so much for a song!" - -This castle was sacked whilst he occupied it and he fled to London, -where he died in poverty. - -The ruins rise from the midst of a green meadow some seven miles from -Buttevant, and consist of a lonely tower, to the top of which we mounted -by its ancient staircase within the walls. The tower chamber still has -its roof intact, but at its best the castle must have formed a poor -abiding-place even three centuries ago. - -The prospect from the top is rather dreary, and we leave the spot -without regret. - -Doneraile Court, in whose vast park were laid the scenes of the _Faerie -Queene_, is very different. It is now the property of Lord Castletown. - -One more fully appreciates the comfort of a motor-car when forced -suddenly as we were last night to take a jaunting-car for a ride of nine -miles to Doneraile. That distance would be nothing at all in the former -vehicle, but is every inch of nine miles in the latter. It's no easy -matter to hold one's seat in these cars. If you happen to have a -trotting horse it's not so difficult, but if the beast is inclined to -canter, as ours was, the wheels of the car will almost leave the ground -with every canter, and chances are that you will desert the car -altogether. I came near doing so several times last night, and reached -the court in a breathless state, which the horse, with a wicked leer in -his eye, seemed to enjoy to the full. Tom, the driver, secure on his -perch in front, rode most of the way with his back to the horse, which -appeared to know whither we were bound, Tom the while discoursing to me -upon the charms of hunting in Ireland and showing me several of the -favourite jumping places. I did not enthuse; though I have ridden all my -life and hunted some, still a jump composed of a stone wall, a hedge, -and a deep drop on the far side did not commend itself to me, especially -as a man had "broken his neck there but lately." One can scarcely -understand such clumsiness on his part as the drop was quite sufficient -for horse and rider to turn a complete summersault, and still come out -right side up. However, I shall not try the trick, but that I would -hesitate for an instant, for such a reason, to join in the national -sport stamps me as unsportsmanlike--as one who will not buy a horse, and -that settles my position, in Ireland. - -We approached Doneraile Court through the village of that name, which -clusters close under its park walls. Doneraile is quite _the_ place in -this section, and we find it a stately mansion presiding over one of the -most beautifully wooded parks in Great Britain. - -These houses in Ireland, mostly all dating from the Restoration, are -commodious and ofttimes stately structures, and have a beauty all their -own and very different from anything in England, hence one cannot -compare them. This estate somewhat antedates that period as it was -purchased from Spenser's son by William St. Ledger, President of Munster -in Charles I.'s reign, and the town gives the title to the family. - -Doneraile presents a lofty and attractive front to the park and the -attraction abides as one enters the spacious halls filled with the -trophies of the chase and with quaint arms gathered from all over the -world. In the distance a stately staircase mounts to the upper floors -and on the left is a suite of handsome withdrawing-rooms and a library, -while the dining-room holds on its walls many interesting family -portraits, one of which quite diverts my attention from the conversation -during dinner. It is that of Mrs. Aldworth, and shows a very strong, -determined countenance. The finger on that book indicates that you will -believe what she tells you or she will know the reason. - -[Illustration: The Hon. Mrs. Aldworth - The only woman Freemason] - -I have another picture of the lady from a painting in Doneraile,--never -photographed before,--but it is not so distinct as the one I give, and -is merely that of a beautiful woman, a woman of the world before her -character has been developed. Certainly none would dare claim--in her -presence at least--that the character of the lady in the portrait I do -give has not been developed, nor would it be well to cast any aspersions -upon that character. You may think you know a thing or two, but if wise -you will not dare the owner of that face yonder. Madam, I doubt not but -that you were the very best Mason the sun ever shone upon, so let me -alone, will you? - -She was born in 1695, and her history is told us by Lord Castletown in -the room where its great event occurred. - -It is the first on your right in front as you enter the mansion, and the -interest of the house centres there, for therein was being held in 1725 -the Free-masons' lodge when the Hon. Mary St. Ledger, afterwards Mrs. -Aldworth, hid herself, some say in the great clock, and upon being -discovered was by those present condemned to death, when one man so -plead for her that her life was spared and she was made a full-fledged -Mason, the only one in the world's history. What could follow an -incident so romantic save a wedding, and it did follow shortly. It is -said that she was condemned for ever to wear clocks on her stockings, -hence that name for that bit of embroidery. It is also stated that -Aldworth at first voted for her death and she married him to pay him out -again. Whichever tale is correct it is stated that in later years he -more than regretted that he had not voted for her death, but he was -probably a degenerate man, for the face in yonder portrait was worth -fighting for. In the room where it all occurred are her masonic emblems, -a "square" about three inches long, the stone above an amethyst, the -rising sun above, gold, and the rays diamonds (or old paste), a greyish -stone, and yellow amethyst in alternate rays. A little thing to last -when she who wore it and created all this disturbance has been dust and -ashes since 1775. - -The room is a double or alcoved apartment with bookcases ranged around -its walls, and still holds, I believe, the same furniture as upon the -eventful night. - -The talk drifted onward about her and many other curious persons and -things, and the smoke from the cigars grew denser and denser until I -dreamed that I saw all sorts of vanished faces in the space around me, -and I fear that I was dreaming actually when aroused by Major Beddoes -and told that "the ladies are retiring" and so we lighted their candles -for them, and chatting a moment at the foot of the staircase, watched -them disappear above. - -Burne-Jones must have gotten the idea for his famous picture from such a -scene. There is no place where a group of stately, beautifully gowned -women show to better advantage than upon a staircase. I was strongly -reminded of his painting on this occasion. After all the custom of good -night to the ladies with the lighting of candles and its pleasant chat -is a pretty one though you may object to their early disappearance and -would greatly prefer an hour's more talk with them than with your own -sex. - -However, it is late to-night, and bidding our host adieu we move off -through the glades of the park where Spenser wandered and dreamt so long -ago, pausing a moment by the lake where the swans still drift as on a -surface of molten silver. The midsummer air is balmy and delightful and -a full moon lights up the woods until one almost fancies the Faerie -Queene is out in their glades with all her court, or adrift on the lake -with the swans. - -My stay in the barracks is drawing to a close, and perhaps it is well. -Major Beddoes threatens me with arrest, fearing a riot if I am allowed -to wander around attending weddings and other functions to which I have -not been bidden. - -During my sojourn I have employed a boy named Tom who owns a sprightly -horse and a jaunting-car not more than a century old, the latter -harnessed to the former by means of strings. We have had many a rare -drive between the hawthorn hedges, leaving the motor neglected in a -shed: its day will come. - -I have been desirous since leaving Achill to hear again that mournful -cry for the dead,--"keening,"--and had arranged with Tom to bring two -old women into the barracks after dark, to whom I was to give half a -crown each and a bottle of--let us say "cologne"; but they did not -materialise and when I questioned Tom he replied, "Sure, sor, I had 'em -beyant Major Beddoe's rooms, but he druv 'em away." - -"Certainly I did," chimed in the Major; "do you want me -court-martialled?" - -I would not object if it were in a good cause. I think there is also a -bit of personal malice in his acts, as I laughed at him the other day. -He has lately married a charming wife, and is at present quartered in -Mallow, from whence he runs the nine miles in a motor-car of his new -father-in-law. When he made his first appearance the other day on the -barracks compound, with all the officers and their families assembled to -greet him, said motor-car looked as though it had been through the wars, -and was as pug-nosed as many of the aborigines of the land, caused by -sudden contacts with stone gates and the sides of houses, to say nothing -of unexpected excursions through old ladies' gardens and into gullies -not intended for motors. I laughed, I could not help it, hence the -malice aforesaid, with threats of arrest. - -[Illustration: The Lake at Doneraile Park] - -One day we are returning from a jaunt to nowhere in particular, having -been out just looking for things to happen,--which they generally -did,--when, as we draw near the barracks, we pass a dilapidated old trap -with some men inspecting it. One hails our boy with the query, "I say, -Tom, is that your family chariot?" Quick as thought comes the reply: -"Yes, and I am in want of a mule; are _you_ widout occupation?" - -After that we find it advisable to order the car into the barracks -enclosure when dismissing it--at which time I get a wink from Tom--we -shortly find ourselves ensconced before a bright fire in the -smoking-room. - -The quarters are very comfortable. This room is a large double apartment -with easy chairs and lounges, red rugs and carpets, two fire-places for -winter use, and books and cards galore. Downstairs there is a -billiard-room. The quarters of the officers are cleanly and comfortable, -the dwellers therein a healthy, happy looking lot, though they all agree -with what I have said about the bathrooms. - -The regiment has collected its plate throughout all the years since its -foundation, nearly two centuries and a half, and it forms a superb -collection, which I examined with great interest. - -When in 1661 Charles II. married Catherine of Braganza, Bombay was ceded -to England by Portugal as part of the dower of that princess. This -regiment of the Fusiliers was formed at that time and has been in -existence ever since. As the years have gone by this plate, now -amounting in value to some thousands of pounds, has been collected, and -the designs and taste of two and a half centuries are interestingly -displayed in the various articles, especially in the smaller pieces, -such as salt-cellars, snuff-boxes, etc. There are, of course, the -greater pieces, stately candelabra, drinking-cups, and epergnes. One -piece especially attracted my attention, a train of silver cars, each -holding its crystal decanter for port, sherry, brandy, etc., which after -the cloth was removed was rolled around the ancient table. This plate -and table go with the regiment at all times. It even went to South -Africa. - -Captain D. got it all out for my inspection one day and assured me that -it was often in use even in war times. - -Therein lies the difference between the English and Americans. They live -and we spend our lives getting ready to live, and rarely reach the goal. -A soldier especially realises that his life is but from day to day, and -therefore uses each day, with all he owns, to the full. An American -regiment would store such plate and it would be absolutely useless, -rarely if ever seeing the light of day,--but throughout its two -centuries and a half of existence this plate has had constant usage and -shows it. - -Ah, well, what, I wonder, will be our manners and customs when our -nation, like this, has a thousand years to its credit? What will America -be, what will England be then? Let us trust both better and greater and -grander than they are now. - -While I handle these dainty bits of silver that have outlasted the lives -of so many great men, Captain D. pours bits of gossip about army life -and the late war into my ears, and I notice that he does not hear very -well on one side, and ask why. "Oh, nothing much; a Boer bullet hit me -one day and clipped out a bit of my skull under my left eye, coming out -behind my ear, and destroying my sight and hearing on that side,--it was -not much." No! I suppose all soldiers would say it was merely in the -line of their profession, yet life is the best thing given to us, and -those who hold it at a nation's disposal should have the best that -nation can bestow at all times. I have no doubt but that each nation -intends to give all--they are careless, not ungrateful. - -After these days of rest in Buttevant barracks, it is pleasant to see -again our green car glide round the corner and draw up at the door--not -that we have not used it while here. My sojourn with these soldiers of -the King has proven a delightful experience which I shall never forget. -As we are loaded up and the car is snorting to be off they crowd around -us and we make all sorts of appointments for future meetings, few of -which in the usual course of life will ever be carried out, but there is -pleasure in the making. With a last handshake, I give the word and the -car glides noiselessly forward, turns out through the great archway, and -Buttevant Barracks are a thing of the past for us,--really so, as this -regiment moves in September to Fermoy. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Mallow Castle] - - - - -CHAPTER X - - Route to Killarney--Country Estates--Singular Customs--Picturesque - Squalor--Peace of the Lakes--Innisfallen--The Legend of "Abbot - Augustine"--His Grave--"Dinnis" the "Buttons" and his Family - Affairs--Motors in the Gap of Dunloe. - - -The route to Killarney lies through Mallow, where it is amusing, at the -little hotel, to watch the airs and graces assumed by some dozen -Irish-Americans who have returned to their native land for a visit after -having made a dollar or so in America. My Jap boy last night ventured -the remark that they "treat their own people very nastily," which is -quite true. One is constantly impressed with the changed circumstances -of those returning to the old world. On the inward-bound voyage last -month I stood near two of the ancient faith who were watching the -steerage below us. "Vell," said one, "that's the vay I vent over." "Me, -too," replied his companion, and then complacently caressing heavy gold -watch chains stretched across capacious stomachs, they strutted back to -the smoking-room and proceeded to abuse the steward for not anticipating -their wants. Such is life and progress, I suppose. - -But our car has left Mallow far behind and is gliding onward by the side -of the Blackwater, whose course we follow for many miles. - -This is a beautiful section of the land. There are many fine estates on -the hillsides and many ruined and ivy-clad towers by the waters. We have -spent pleasant hours at several of the former and rambled over many of -the latter. In one of the houses where we were for the "week end," I was -amused by rather a singular custom. After dinner, the men having settled -to bridge in the smoking-room I found myself, as I do not play cards, in -the hall with the ladies, of whom there were several of the household -and one visitor. We were enjoying some music and dancing when at nine -o'clock in came our host and handing a lighted candle to each dame -literally shooed them all off to bed, much to the indignation of the -visiting lady and my own astonishment. Paying no attention to me, he -returned to his game, and I sat on in the dark hall so convulsed with -laughter that I was glad that the one candle left shrouded my mirth by -casting many shadows. There were but two things for me to do, go and -watch the game, or go to bed, and I did the latter though it was but -nine o'clock. It is the custom at all these country homes for the ladies -to retire long before the men, but I never before or since have seen -them so peremptorily driven off. - -I think on the route to the Lakes that the villages and straggling huts -must be kept in the state of squalor in which we found them to the more -thoroughly impress the newly arrived tourists; certainly as we near -Killarney they are worse than any we have seen before,--rows on rows of -squalid, dirty houses through whose open doors pigs or geese wandered, -and beyond which gleamed a bit of a fire; white-capped or tozzle-headed -women leaned chattering over the low half doorway used to keep both -children, pigs, and geese from too freely passing off and away between -the high mud-banks with their towering hedges of hawthorn. Droves of -geese slip from beneath our flying wheels and scoff at us as we pass; -chickens fly, screeching, to the safety of neighbouring dung-heaps, and -some ducks get a gait on them that is most astonishing. It would be -impossible for them to maintain their balance unless they kept up that -furious pace. - -As night closes in the clouds lower and finally rain comes down heavily -but fortunately not until we have reached our journey's end, and the -lights from the quaint Hotel Victoria stream out a welcome. They really -act glad to see us and from the proprietor down to "Dinnis" the buttons -each and all appear personally interested in our arrival. How different -from the magnificent insolence of an American hotel clerk. But we are -too tired for further comparisons and are soon off to bed. - -To pass from the pomp and splendour of the army and the kaleidoscopic, -unrestful, rushing life of the world to the peaceful shores of -Killarney is a grateful change. It is so beautiful here to-day and the -world seems so far away that one has no desire to do aught save sit -under the waving boughs of the trees and watch the glittering waters of -the lake. Off across its mirror-like surface the mountains rise abruptly -and over them masses of white clouds hang broodingly, peacefully. Lazily -I wander over the grass, and entering one of the many boats drifting in -the water allow the boy to row me away upon the glassy surface. - -Boyse is still in bed and so I have the boat to myself and also all the -lake, for there is no sound or sign of life anywhere as we drift -outward. The boy moves the oars lazily, scarcely touching the water with -their tips, and we seem to drift halfway between the white clouds -overhead and those far beneath us. Lily pads bearing their white and -gold chalices wave gently to and fro and a stately white swan with her -brood of little ones keeps us company for a space. - -I have not told the boy where to go and he has not demanded to know, -indeed he scarce seems conscious of my presence, but keeps his dreamy -eyes fixed upon his beloved mountains brooding yonder under fleecy -clouds. Ahead of us a fairy island floats waving green boughs in -greeting and as our boat grounds on its gravelly beach, the boy rolls -over and goes to sleep. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Irish Cottage, County Kerry] - -This is evidently the haven where we would be, this holy Isle of -Innisfallen, but it is some time before I am willing to break the -brooding silence by any movement. The long drooping boughs of the trees -trail gently to and fro across the boat and parting now and then give -glimpses of the chapel of St. Finian the leper, but it is so in ruins, -and it and its saint belongs so to the very long ago, that to-day it is -like a thought in a dream. - -As I wander off through the underwood shaded by giant ash the spirits of -the dead monks seem all around me. The path leads to the grave of the -abbot, so long dead that a huge tree growing from his ashes has -encircled his tombstone with its very roots. He lived--but let this poem -tell his story. - - "Augustine, Abbot of Innisfallen, stood - In the abbey gardens at eventide, - And prayed in the hush and solitude - That his spirit might be more sanctified. - He blessed the hills, and fields, and river, - He blessed the shamrock sod; - While he asked the great and glorious giver - For a closer walk with God. - In that twilight hour came tumbling down - The song of a bird, so sweet and clear - That away from the abbey of Innisfallen and town, - The abbot followed, that he might hear; - Followed until, in a dim old wood, - Where the sweetness of song filled all the place - It paused and made glad the solitude, - With its joyous notes of strength and grace, - And the heart of the holy abbot plead - That the world might hear it and understand, - And he turned to the cloister near at hand. - Strange were the voices of prayer and praise, - And the faces were all unknown; - Gone were the monks of the older days, - Augustine, the abbot, stood alone. - 'Where is Sacristan Michael, my son?' - In a faltering voice, the abbot asked; - 'Is Malachi's _pater noster_ done, - Has his strength been overtasked?' - The monks drew near to the aged man, - And told their beads with trembling hands, - As they heard that the stranger worn and wan - Was Augustine head of their house and lands. - 'Two hundred years have gone,' they cried, - 'Since rent was his temple's veil - Two hundred years since the good man died - And the Saxon rules over Innisfail; - No harp now of his countrie's weal - Sings loud in the house of O'Conner, - Gone is Tara's hall to the great O'Neill; - There is nothing left but honour.' - 'Absolve me,' Augustine softly said, - 'For mine hour is close at hand, - To rejoin the brethren who have fled - To the refuge found in a better land. - I soon shall hear the singing - That is clearer and sweeter still - Than the echo of heaven ringing - In the woods beyond the hill. - I shall soon be where a thousand years - Are as a day to the pure and true - To whom life was long with its cares and pains - Though its numbered years were few.' - They tell that legend far and wide - From Clonmines to Loch Neagh, - From Holy Cross to Dundalk Tide - From Antrim to Galway." - -It is said that Innisfallen may not be put to profane uses, that early -in the last century its owner commanded that it be cultivated, but when -the work was begun the air at once became filled with millions of white -birds, whose beating wings drove the men forth and away, leaving the -isle sacred and unprofaned, and the abbot and his brethren to their -dreamless slumbers, and so the years glide by. - -As I pause to-day by the abbot's grave, its great tree rises above with -arms extended, as though in final benediction, the grasses are spangled -with millions of daisies, and the warm air is again, as in his day, full -of the song of birds, and unless I desire a sleep of centuries it may be -as well to return to the world of to-day. - -The boy in the boat awakes with a yawn, and smilingly moves the boat off -and away farther and farther until the Holy Isle seems to detach itself -from the shimmering waters and to float cloudlike slowly heavenward. - -How little the casual tourist ever sees of any land, especially of -Ireland,--a day or two at Killarney, an hour at Blarney, some time -waiting to hear Shandon bells, then a rush to Dublin and the Causeway, -and they leave the island with a shrug of the shoulders and a belief -that there is little to see. But wander into the byways, linger in the -lost corners and talk to these people, and every moment will be of some -sort of interest,--the tears and sadness will pull your very -heartstrings one moment and laughter and fun will bubble all around you -in a mad frolic an hour later. You may hear the wild songs of the -mountains, or the wilder wailing for the dead, and the clouds will drift -far overhead, as though in mourning for their sorrows, then the sunlight -will follow after, sparkling, as though in laughter. Some of the inns -will be neat and comfortable, whilst others will turn out like that -horror of a hotel in Galway. - -We are welcomed on our return to that at Killarney by "Dinnis." Now -"Dinnis" is the "buttons" of the house and stands up to the magnificent -altitude of four feet. He looks about fifteen and when I ask him if he -goes to school I am about bowled over by his reply,--"I'm a married man, -sor." Great heavens! I am told later that the fair bride is near twice -Dinnis's height and that his wooing was of such an ardent nature that it -nearly created a scandal. Ah, well--we don't live but once and Dinnis -believes that if his life is to be as short as his stature, at least it -shall be a merry one. I am told also that there are great expectations -in his family and as our car glides away I lean out and implore him--if -it's a boy--to name it "Mike." Dinnis's indignation at my intrusion upon -his private life is vast but somewhat drowned out by a half-crown and -the roars of laughter from the car boys around. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Chapel of St. Finian the Leper, Innisfallen] - -The poor car boys in Ireland, especially at Killarney, are so many that -there is not work for all and they have to take certain days for each, -that all may have a share. The drivers of jaunting-cars turn gloomy eyes -at our auto as we roll by, well knowing that the advent of such means -loss to them. - -I was strongly tempted to essay the Gap of Dunloe in the motor. The -result would probably have been a fight, as one of Cook's waggons was -attacked not long since while trying the same thing. According to my -recollection of that road, its passage would not be at all difficult for -a good car, but once the legend of its impassability save by ponies is -done away with the occupation of many hereabouts would be over for all -time. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - - Kenmare and Muckross Demesnes--Old Woman at the Gates--Route to - Glengariff--Bantry Bay--Boggeragh Mountains--Duishane Castle--The - Carrig-a-pooka and its Legend--Macroom Castle and William - Penn--Cork--Imperial Hotel--Ticklesome Car Boy--The Races and my - Brown Hat--Route to Fermoy--Breakdown--Clonmel and its "Royal - Irish"--Ride to Waterford. - - -I have never taken a more beautiful drive than that from Killarney to -Glengariff, and it is especially delightful in a car, as one is spared a -slow and tedious ascent of the mountains. We leave Killarney on a -perfect morning; the motor seems to have rested with our stay there, and -throbs with a healthy sound. The route takes us through the domains of -Kenmare and Muckross. The latter has been sold by its ancient owners, -the Herberts, and now belongs to a prosperous brewer of Dublin. - -As we enter the domains we are stopped at the gateway by a buxom dame, -who demands a shilling a head. I try to bargain with her, offering half -price for the Jap, and suggesting that we may meet with a catastrophe -which will prevent our getting our money's worth. "It makes no -difference phat sort of quare heathen you have wid yez, or if yez all -died ten feet inside the gate, yez will pay a shilling a head before yez -come a foot farther," and planting herself directly before the car, she -looked it squarely in the eye--wherever that may be--and would have kept -her word. So I perforce hand over four shillings, only to be detected in -trying to pass off an American quarter. As we roll inward an anathema is -hurled after us: "Ho, ho, ha, ha, bad sess to the likes of yez." - -How beautiful it is here--how delicious the day! The sun shines hot and -the air is laden with the odour of the balsam. The superb roadway winds -in and out for miles, now by the lake and here in the deep green of the -forest, with enchanting views of the mountains. Bird-like the car skims -over ancient stone bridges, or close to the water, and we pause a moment -to do homage at the shrine of Muckross, and finally cross the old weir -bridge, declining the bog-oak work for sale by the old man who tried to -sell us such thirty years ago,--same man and same work, I think. - -From here on the road mounts higher and higher, twisting and turning -until I am not sure in which direction we are really going, and am -reminded of a remark of a dear aunt of mine, while riding on a -narrow-gauge railroad near Denver, "Really, I very many times saw the -back of my own bonnet." - -Here, to-day, while far different from the rugged grandeur of our -western mountains, the vistas are equally charming. There, it is not so -much, to my thinking, in the splendour of the hills as in the prospect -over the limitless plains. Vast and grandly mysterious, they roll up to -the very point where the mountains rise abruptly from their western -limits, and as one gazes outward they resemble the ocean itself suddenly -calmed into eternal sleep by the mandate of God, "Peace, be _still_," -and those western plains are indeed _still_. - -This prospect in the old world shows the traveller the entire panorama -of Ireland's most beautiful mountains, and far below him nestle the -chain of Killarney's enchanted lakes, where the fairies dance nightly -and the daisies bloom for ever. But why attempt description? All the -world knows Killarney, and to-day I seem to hear her wild echoes as they -bear away the love song of Dermot Asthore. - -The road from here descends in sweeping curves seaward and our car -scarcely seems to touch the ground, as with all power off and the wings -out it sails downward, until we come to rest at Glengariff, just as the -setting sun tinges her rocks and waters with rose colour. - -The Atlantic is at rest far out and sends only whispers inward on the -ripples to-night. The surface of the bay is dotted with many white swans -floating majestically shoreward. I believe they are native here. At -least we are told that these have their nests on the farther rocks and -rear their young in freedom; even in winter the weather is mild enough -to allow of their being out of doors. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Tree over the Abbot's Grave, Innisfallen] - -Are these the children of Lir still under enchantment in the shape of -swans? One hears of them at Ballycastle, and on the island of Achill, -but this is the only place where they have appeared and yonder old -gentleman swan has an eye which would indicate knowledge of much that he -has no intention of telling us about. - -One does not see the outer ocean at all at Glengariff. The whole -prospect is that of an enclosed lake, where one might drift for ever -without danger from the tempests which howl around this coast at times. - -Not until we reach Bantry Bay does the outer ocean show itself. After -all, what is there in a name? That of Bantry Bay had always attracted -me, and I had expected to find such a spot as Glengariff, but it is far -from that in all ways, being tame and unattractive, though evidently a -much better harbour for shipping. - -Here our route leaves the coast and turning inland passes beneath the -shadow of the Boggeragh Mountains, where there are so many ancient -towers and castles that to visit or relate the tales of each would be to -rewrite the folklore of Ireland. - -One of them, however, cannot be passed in silence, or the spirits which -inhabit it might execute dire vengeance for the slight. The gloomy -castle of the MacCarthys of Duishane, Carrig-a-pooka, rears its dark -towers on a steep rock close to our route, and it is the reputed abode -of that spirit of evil, the Pooka, which in all malice and mischief has -no equal in the fairy lore of Ireland. He has many forms which he may -assume at will,--sometimes a bull, sometimes an eagle, but more often a -horse spouting fire, as he tears through the darkness. He does not show -his demon qualities until he has secured a rider, but on gloomy nights -is met with in the shape of a docile nag, browsing on the highway and -almost inviting you to mount and ride,--but do so and at once he changes -into the wildest and most terrible charger man ever mounted and fairly -flies over castle, lake, and river, into deep valleys and over the -highest mountains and even far out over the ocean. What becomes of the -rider is not told for he does not return, though 'tis said that one -Jerry Deasy did get the best of a Pooka and by the means of spur and -whip reduced even this "divil" into a quiet trot. - -Downward from the mountains our road winds once more through the fair -green country in the valley of the Sullane. We pause a moment before -Macroom Castle, the ancient fortress of the O'Flynns, not because of its -beauty, which from its mantle of ivy is great, but because it was the -birthplace of the father of William Penn, who gave peace to all with -whom he came in contact in life and undoubtedly has found peace in -Heaven. - -The old castle has seen more of war and its horrors than should fall to -the lot of any one spot. It has been destroyed by fire several times, -and at one execution nine outlaws were hanged within its court for -murder. It is not a place which the superstitious seek, after dark or -when winds wake and the chains clank. From Macroom onward the route lies -through a smiling valley until finally the silver toned bells of Shandon -welcome us to the city of Cork. - -The Imperial Hotel in Cork is crowded with people and dirt. I think the -latter will prevail, as it is of the mouldy order. The floors seem -sinking, and en route to the dining-room one walks as upon the deck of a -rolling ship with danger of sharp collision against passing waiters. -True Irish gentlemen, who look not upon the wine when it is red but -drink straight old Irish whiskey in unlimited quantities, are -encountered with the result that between the floors and themselves one -has difficulty in navigating and takes to port several times en route to -dinner. - -This is the week of a cattle and horse show--the viceroy is here and -incidentally most of the rest of Ireland, not that the viceroy's -presence has anything to do with their coming, they give you to -distinctly understand _that_, but that wherever a horse is to be shown, -there come the sons of Erin. I think there is something in the -profession or tastes of a man which stamps his face and figure. One -could never mistake any man here for other than horsey,--all clean, yet -the air is fragrant with the smell of the stalls and aroma of much good -whiskey. Where they stow away all the latter is a puzzle to me, for -their bodies most certainly cannot carry such amounts of ballast as I -have seen poured into them all day long. Not to be horsey completely -ostracises a man, but as that gives one an opportunity to escape the -drinks and so watch the crowd, it is not to me objectionable. - -While Cork is "a place of advanced ideas" and probably less favourable -to the powers that be than any other section of Ireland, still she does -not approve of change in the city or its manners or customs. This hotel -has not had a thing done to it in more than a quarter of a century. I -believe it makes money all the time, hence improvements are not -necessary, certainly they are not made, as witness those floors. One is -still beset by the importunate boys with their "cars" at its doors and -all over the town, but the driver of a jaunting-car is a jolly beggar -full of laughter and fun and thereby puts many an extra shilling into -his pocket. - -Rags and tatters many of them, that is as to themselves, but this does -not extend to their horses,--he is indeed a poor Irishman and not of -pure blood who neglects his horse, and with him it is love me, love my -nag. He will meet your smile with one brighter, and kindness to him -_does_ "butter the parsnips" of the traveller. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Upper Lake, Killarney] - -Leaving the hotel the other day Boyse summoned a car, but the driver -thereof was in such a state of tatters that the lady of the party -refused to ride in that car. To the driver of the one chosen she -remarked, "That man must be very poor; you should club together and buy -him new clothes." "Poor,--not at all, me lady; he's rich, but so -ticklesome that not a tailor in town can take his measure." - -As we are en route to the fair grounds I discover that Boyse does not -approve of my costume, but it is some time before I find out wherein I -fall short. It turns out to lie in my hat, a _brown_ Derby. At home -black hats vanish with warm weather and brown take their place, but here -I learn that a brown Derby belongs to the "fast lot which one does not -know,"--_hence_ Boyse's disgust, but that does not affect me in the -least and I insist upon wearing my brown hat. I really think it almost -spoiled his pleasure in the horse show, if anything could do that. - -The day turns out pleasant and the crowd is large. The viceroy does not -come, which certainly detracts not at all from the pleasure of the -people, as the real viceroy, the horse, is here in full state. Several -of the officers are down from Buttevant and we pass a merry afternoon -clouded only by Boyse's feeling about my hat--he sits afar off and does -not appear to know me when acquaintances pass or if an introduction -occurs is careful to state that I am an American--what a multitude of -sins that covers;--I trust the statement is altogether unnecessary and -that I could never be taken for anything else. - -We are held a day at Cork for repairs to the car, but, those finished, -roll rapidly away in the direction of Fermoy. These roads are very good -and the motor glides smoothly and rapidly onward, first by the banks of -the Lee and then northeastward towards Fermoy. The day is misty and -damp, forcing the hood over our heads, though I would almost rather get -wet than have it up. However, one must consider fur robes, etc., so up -it goes. - -Shortly thereafter I note a clicking sound underneath and an -unsatisfactory movement of the motor, which causes the chauffeur to slow -down and stop. A lengthy examination mends matters for a time, but the -trouble occurs again and then Robert announces that we must return to -Cork as the water won't circulate. We are twelve miles out with no place -en route for help. We are also about the same distance from Fermoy but -in that direction and but three miles away there is a town where cars -may be had and help obtained, so onward we move, and wisely, as matters -turn out, for we come to a final halt on the confines of the village. -Loading the luggage and ourselves upon two cars we drive to Fermoy -leaving orders to have the motor towed in by a mule, ignoble as that -may sound. As it turns out even the motor rebels at such disgrace and -refuses to move even by the use of two mules. Robert manages, however, -to get it over the eight miles to Fermoy by its own power, in some four -hours, allowing much oil to run into the water tubes,--not the best -thing for the motor but all that could be done. I can see that he is -decidedly disgruntled with the car. This is the third time it has been -in the shop in two weeks, which certainly should not have been the case -with a new car such as I was assured this was. When I state this to the -chauffeur, he laughs and replies, "_New!_ Yes, as to the body, but the -motor is some years old, in fact is the original Panhard motor used by -Mr. Harvey du Gros; it has been lengthened and repaired and a new body -put upon it."[7] Fortunately we have each time been where help was at -hand save on this occasion. But as it turns out Robert can repair it in -this hotel yard as they have a pit to work in. He had thought that the -trouble arose from oil and waste getting into and clogging the water -pipes, but it proves to have been a broken pin in the wheel of the -pump,--"broken through age," he states. If this accident had occurred in -the wilds of Mayo or Sligo far from any assistance our plight would have -been a serious one, and I cannot but feel that to send the car out as -new, knowing the motor, the only important part, to be old was - -scarcely fair,--in fact, far from it. Robert is an excellent chauffeur -and thoroughly understands and is able to repair a machine. In this last -case, however, we had to buy a new wheel. - -The town is a small garrison town and we are delayed there only one -night. Still I must acknowledge, as has been so often the case, that its -little hotel was far more comfortable than those in most of the large -towns and cities of Ireland. Its rooms are cleanly and the food good. - -The roads from Fermoy to Clonmel, the depot of the "Royal Irish," B.'s -old regiment, are hilly but good, and the auto takes on life once more, -though I notice that Robert seems concerned as to the result. However -the machinery warms to its work after an hour and we speed onward, -breathing more freely as the pulsations settle down into a rhythmical -beat, finally rolling into the barracks at Clonmel in good season. There -we spend a pleasant hour, lunching with the officers of the mess and -having no time for the town itself, which is not of interest. - -The roads are fine all of the afternoon, most of them well rolled. Our -route is eastward through the valley of the Blackwater, evidently a -stream of importance in ancient days, as its course is guarded by towers -and castles, now all in ruins and given over to clambering ivy. At -Waterford the stream is broad and deep and ocean steamships lie moored -at her quays. - -[Illustration: "Dinnis" - Hotel Victoria] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[7] A statement denied _in toto_ at the garage in Dublin. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - - Ancient Waterford--History--Reginald's Tower--Franciscan - Friary--Dunbrody Abbey--New Ross--Bannow House--Its "Grey - Lady"--Legend of the Wood Pigeon--Ancient Garden--Buried City of - Bannow--Dancing on the Tombs--Donkeys and Old Women--Tintern Abbey - and its Occupants--Quaint Rooms and Quainter Stories--Its History - and Legends--The Dead Man on the Dinner Table--The Secret of the - Walls--The Illuminated Parchment--The Sealed Library--Ruined - Chapel--Clothes of the Martyr King--Is History False or True? - - -The afternoon sun shines brilliantly as we cross the river Suir and -enter Waterford, one of the most ancient towns of the kingdom, yet one -which well survives the passing centuries, holding still the bustle and -clangour of life in its streets and on its quays, which stretch for a -mile and more along the banks of the river and where you will find a -good steamship which in eight hours will land you in New Milford,--but -we are not to leave Ireland yet, nor have I any desire to do so. - -To relate the history of Waterford would be to cover much of that of -Ireland, which is not necessary here. Suffice it to say that this -southeast end of the island appears to have been the first to attract -outside barbarians and we find records of the Danes here back in 853. -Reginald reigned here in the eleventh century, and I find myself -blinking up at his round tower which still keeps watch and ward over -this river. - -There are others in the town if one cares to look for them, but like -this of Reginald all have fallen from their high estate. This is but a -police station now. Of King John's palace nothing remains. In fact -relics of the past are not many in Waterford. - -We pause a moment at the Franciscan Friary, which Sir Hugh Purcell built -in 1220. It is in ruins, of course, and is quite in the heart of the -city, unnoticed save by some wandering spirit. Grass grows thickly under -its arches and there are many flat tombstones bearing historic names and -those of families well-known to-day. - -Not far away stands the cathedral, too entirely renovated, in fact -rebuilt, to be of interest, save for some curious monuments. One -especially, that of a man named Rice, represents his body as they found -it a year after death,--a toad sits on his breast, and we turn away with -anything but pleasant thoughts. It seems he commanded that his tomb be -opened after a year and his monument made, holding a copy in stone of -his body exactly as they should find it,--hence this repulsive statue. -There are but few who would care to attain earthly immortality in that -manner. - -Every road in Wexford will lead one to or near some relic of the past. -Seven miles out from Waterford we find Dunbrody Abbey, standing serene -and stately in the midst of a great meadow and near to an arm of the -sea. Dunbrody is called the most beautiful ruin in the county and it has -been a ruin for nearly four hundred years, having been suppressed by -Henry the Eighth. Its abbots and monks have long since gone the way of -all flesh and one must now cultivate the good graces of a little old -woman in a neighbouring house if one would enter the sacred precincts, -for though ancient, if one door in its outer walls be locked, even an -enterprising man of the twentieth century may not enter its courts. We -tried it and the great central tower seemed to smile down upon us in -derision. All the while the little old lady stood afar off, holding the -key, which we did not get until we had paid for it. - -The world does not come to Dunbrody very often. The tourist world knows -nothing of it--in fact, all this most interesting section of Ireland is -as yet unexplored by the tide of travel rushing northward from -Queenstown. Certainly to-day nothing comes near us and we spend a -delightful hour in the warm sunshine high up on the great tower, and -then awakening Robert, who in turn starts the motor to life, we roll off -through the shady lanes once more. - -The day's work is over and these simple people are resting from their -labours. We have just passed one comfortable old dame seated on a chair -under the bending boughs of the hawthorn. She wore a great frilled -white cap and knitted industriously, while in her lap a white kitten lay -asleep. She greeted us with a pleasant smile as we rolled into and out -of her life and away toward Bannow House, the home of the Boyse family. -I had visited Bannow last year; when leaving the train at New Ross I had -expected to find its entrance gateway not more than a mile or two away, -and fell back aghast when the boy who met me with the dog-cart quietly -remarked that it was a drive of eighteen miles. I must confess that that -is farther than I care to live from the railway, and Boyse has -acknowledged that that distance home has several times deterred his -departure from London--not but what that might have been a mere excuse -for London is just London and means much. However, a new railroad is now -opened only three miles from Bannow, and to-day our car annihilates the -eighteen miles in short order. - -Crossing the river at New Ross the road leads towards the sea. There is -a fine highway all the distance, winding but well made, and the car -appreciates that fact, and makes fair time until we turn into the gates -of the home park and roll onward through its avenues of rhododendrons to -the entrance. Then the car vanishes around to its quarters for a few -days. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - The Route to Glengariff] - -I know of no more attractive, peaceful spot than Bannow House. It is a -large square stone mansion with some centuries to its credit and stands -in the meadow-lands close to the sea in the southeast corner of the -county of Wexford and in a park of some eight hundred acres. One hears -the murmur of the ocean but the house is secluded by avenues of trees -which cut off the view of the sea and also shelter the place from the -fury of the winds. - -Coming into the possession of the Boyse family with the restoration of -Charles II., it has grown until to-day, with its spreading wings, it is -an extensive establishment, a typical Irish home. You find many such -about the land, all charming places to live in. Springing into existence -as the use and need for castles passed away, they are built of stone and -in the case of Bannow House the stone portico has its monolith -columns,--what they call here "famine work." In the dreary winter of -1847 the people worked out their debt to the landlord, for food, etc., -in this manner. The fine avenue of trees through which we approached the -house is also the result of "famine work." - -Entering the house, one finds a large square hall ornamented with spears -and shields from Africa and objects from all over the world, gathered -throughout the years up to date by its former masters and its present -owner. - -To one's right is a spacious dining-room, to the left a ball-room, while -behind the hall is another square hall holding a stair which ascends on -two sides into a gallery above. At the left of this, one enters on the -main floor a spacious drawing-room, where I have spent many a pleasant -evening. - -Bannow is full of the portraits of those who have lived and died here. -They face me at the table, peer at me on the staircase from unexpected -nooks and corners, and beam down upon me in the mellow lamplight of the -drawing-room, each one with a tale of its own, I fancy, and one can -trace the passing centuries by the different styles of dress. Yonder -damsel with that long neck should have lived in the days of beheading at -the block as she would have been a splendid subject; that quaint old -gentleman in the corner knew a thing or two and could tell a good story, -I doubt not. Yonder lady with the towering wig was a beauty in her day, -but, deserted by her husband, who fled to America, she was taken under -the patronage of Queen Charlotte. I spend many a moment talking to these -old pictures and I think they answer always. - -The bedrooms at Bannow range themselves around the gallery,--mine is off -at the end of a long passageway and is haunted, so the story runs, by a -"grey lady." Wheels are heard driving furiously now and then up the -avenue at midnight and pausing at a walled-up door, then the grey lady -flits around the gallery and into this room, where some time since in a -hidden niche in the wall an ancient rosary was discovered. The dame of -the shadows does not appear to be a malign spirit, certainly she has not -disturbed me as I have slept very soundly in her old chamber. - -To-night as I lean out the window, the moon is at the full, flooding -the terrace below, and its stone stairs, guarded by vases and stone pine -cones yonder, gleam whitely as they mount under the shadows of an old -yew tree. The fragrance of sweet grasses fills the air and the night is -full of silence save for the brooding calls of some doves in the forest, -and I wait and watch for the grey lady but she does not come. - -Do you know the legend of the wood pigeon? If not, then the next time -you hear one, listen and it will almost tell it without further words -from me. Once a man went to steal a cow in the days when cattle-lifting -was the proper thing and, when deep in the forest, declared that the -wood pigeons, or doves, as we call them, insisted that he should "take -two--coos--Paddy," "take two--coos--Paddy," and so he did, and still -these birds of the forest will say to you if you listen, "take -two--coos--Paddy," and for ever after you will hear the same as you -listen to their voices. - -Just now there is one on the yew tree by the terrace steps strongly -insisting upon a double depredation on my part of the adjoining pasture, -and his plaint grows louder and more insistent as I close the window, -leaving him to exercise his corrupting influence upon those who may pass -in the night. - -Wandering the next morning up the stone steps and nearly in the forest I -find an ancient garden of great extent enclosed by a lofty wall. I have -already seen such at Doneraile Court and I know that they are charming -spots,--something we can never have in America as we have no time for -them, our places change hands so constantly. I enter this one at Bannow -House through a trellis of white roses embowering a door in the wall and -am confronted by a tree fuchsia towering above me and casting its -crimson and purple blossoms down on my cap. The enclosure is five acres -in size, surrounded by a wall of brick some thirty feet high. Golden and -crimson and white roses nod at me from the walls or peer over the top at -the deep, cool woods without. Formal beds bordered in privet line the -straight walks. Glories of white lilies, purple lilies, scarlet poppies, -and nasturtiums throw splotches of colour all around. In the centre -stands an old stone sun-dial and passing through an archway, gnarled, -squat apple trees and gooseberry bushes are found lining the paths, -while to the walls cling plum and pear trees. Flaming hollyhocks light -up shadowy corners, and from a distant tool-house an old cat is sedately -leading a lot of kittens anything but stately and a great care to their -mother. From under a currant bush wanders an old duck, a sad looking -dame, acquainted with grief, I doubt not. She recalls to mind when as a -child sitting at the feet of my mother I watched the approach of a -similar old duck who gravely waddled up and laid close to the hand which -had been good to her a fragment of a shell, striking a note of tragedy -thereby. We had often fed her on her nest by the brook and now she -brought this as a token that some vandal had destroyed her home, and so -we found it. As I am thinking of her in this garden far enough off from -that brook a stray cat wanders out from a hot-house and sits down to -regard me, bottle flies buzz in the sunlight, and I wonder whether there -is an outside world of rushing unrest. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Carrig-a-pooka Castle] - -This morning the pony cart is in requisition and, with one of the -ladies, I am off for a visit to the buried city of Bannow. It is -sometimes pleasant to banish the auto and jaunt slowly along. The pony -understands that to-day we have all the time there is and so takes it -leisurely with every now and then a grab at the hawthorn blossoms which -bend temptingly toward him in the narrow lanes. He seems to know the way -and finally wanders close down by the sea to where at the end of a long -grassy lane we are halted by a high-barred gate through which some -cattle gaze wonderingly outward. Wending our way through the tall -grasses we mount to where Bannow church holds its ruined watch over the -dead within and around it and over the city buried in the sands and -under the sea. Aside from the sanctuary there is no evidence that man -ever lived here, yet back in the days of James I. Bannow was a -prosperous town paying the crown rents on two hundred and more houses, -but a great storm arose in that same reign and so filled up the entrance -to its harbour as to destroy it, and from that period onward the -sentence of death was carried out against the ancient city. Higher and -higher rose the sands until they covered all except this ruined church -and the dead which lie around it, but,--here comes in a strange law or -custom,--though there was absolutely nothing to represent, the place for -generations returned two members to Parliament, and for the loss of this -privilege the Earl of Ely received fifteen thousand pounds sterling. -Certainly those two members were not annoyed by the wishes or opinions -of their constituents deep in their graves here. - -As I move through the long grasses to enter the ruins I pause a moment -to pay tribute at the tomb of one Walter French, a man who passed one -hundred and forty years upon the earth and "died in the prime of life." -His last illness was the result of his walking some miles carrying a -piece of iron weighing over one hundred weight, and which "somewhat -strained the muscles around his heart, and he sickened and died, much to -the astonishment of all who knew him." He has been dead but a short time -and there are many now here who remember him well. Peace to his ashes, -and here on this breezy down beneath the shadow of this ancient church -and with yonder murmuring sea close by it should be peaceful enough even -for the dead. The church is one of the oldest in Ireland and long -antedates the English invasion. - -It is not extensive, but it is quaint and interesting and possesses some -curious monuments and one pretentious stone sarcophagus. Who slept -there, I wonder?--there is no trace of him now. Bishop or layman, he has -vanished, leaving no sign or name; and when he does come again will he -pass by here? How strange Bannow church will appear to him then--and -where will he search for the mortal part of him? It is certainly not -here in this tomb which he vainly imagined would hold his body inviolate -throughout all time and to the portals of eternity. - -This is a Sunday afternoon of midsummer, a warm balmy day when the -waters have gone to sleep and the bees hum drowsily. Over the hills and -through the lanes come groups of peasantry, in their Sunday best. The -usual number of dogs appear and chase imaginary rabbits through the long -grasses, and on yonder flat tombstone a lad and lassie are gaily dancing -a jig, and I doubt if the mortal or spiritual part of the sleeper -beneath them is at all disturbed by the apparent desecration of his -resting-place. - -Save on Sunday the living rarely come here but to leave one of their -number who has passed the far horizon of life, or sometimes to dance by -day as we see them, or in the moonlight, on the great flat tombstones of -the Boyse family in the chancel, listening while they rest to the -constant advice of the wood doves to "take two coos, Paddy." - -We are favoured with the same admonition, but though those fine red cows -are tempting we pass onward, to the increasing indignation of the -inhabitants of yonder trees. - -As we turn for a last look at Bannow church on its green hill, the -roofless gables are sharply silhouetted against the glow of evening, and -the lad and lassie are still gaily dancing their jig, and two others on -a neighbouring slab are "sittin' familiar." - -So leaving them we wander back, to find the pony, after having her fill -of daisies and grasses, has lain down in the shafts and gone to sleep. -When we reach home there is still much of the evening left, and, -deserting the pony--for which it casts reproachful glances upon us--we -enter the motor and roll away again. - -It is not however an hour for hurry or speed and our car glides slowly -along while we enjoy the delicious air. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Macroom Castle] - -As we pass by the door of an humble cabin, the turf fire within -illuminates the interior, throwing the bright scarlet dress of a girl -into bold relief against a dark wall, and lighting up the bent figure of -an old man smoking on a bench by the fireplace. In one corner is a bed -while in another a huge pig lies asleep. The dark eyes of the girl meet -mine for an instant with a pathetic hopeless expression but the old man -pays no sort of attention, and we roll away, only to come suddenly just -around a corner on a donkey drawing a cart, upon which is perched a -buxom old lady. The beast objects most decidedly to our appearance, and -after an instant of inaction, during which he stares in afright with his -ears pointed forward, he begins to back, and the old woman to screech, -more in indignation than fear, it strikes me, but be that as it may, -both keep in action until brought to a standstill under the bending -boughs of a gigantic fuchsia, whose purple blossoms are cast downward, -and all over the vast white frilled cap of the old lady. Except in -plastering the dame against that beautiful tree, no harm was done, and I -throw her a kiss as we roll away, while faintly on the air is borne to -my ears the anathema, "Ye spalpeen, yez." There is more, but our wings -are out by now and it is lost in the distance. However I would not -hesitate to apply to that old lady were I in trouble and I know I would -not apply in vain, though she might read me a lecture the while and even -bestow a clout with her big soft hand which would be more in the nature -of a caress than a censure. - -How time and people have changed in America during the past forty years! -Then our land was sprinkled with settlements by these Irish, where one -could find all the quaint manners and customs of their homeland; wakes -were as strictly carried out there as here, weddings were just the same, -and around each humble home clustered a bit of atmosphere of the old -world. - -Who does not remember the "tin man," generally named John, who made -his rounds with a tin-shop of no mean proportions crowding his red -waggon? Then there were the tinkers, but I must state that they were of -a better order than those of Wexford to-day. We have just passed a dirty -cart and forlorn pony, driven by a man more dirty and wretched-looking, -if that be possible. I am told he is the head of the tinkers of Wexford, -and that a more disreputable lot of tramps does not exist on this earth. -As for morality, they have never heard of such a word, and certainly do -not know its meaning. In their slovenly villages, they live in the most -promiscuous manner and when the men start on their summer's tramp each -takes along some woman who pleases him, regardless of what the degree of -consanguinity may be. One must see them on their native heath to -comprehend fully the force and meaning of the expression, "I don't care -a tinker's dam"--but our motor has stopped before a great iron gate -beyond which stretch the glades of a magnificent park. On entering I -notice a sign on one of the great trees, "Wards in Chancery," and wonder -"what have we here." - -I doubt not that many of my readers have visited the great estates of -Europe, but unless they have seen Tintern Abbey in Wexford--the -quaintest of all abodes in this quaint Ireland--they have still an -experience before them. - -The history of Tintern dates back to 1200, when the Earl of Pembroke--he -who married the Lady Isabel de Clare, Strongbow's daughter--founded -this abbey to the Virgin after being delivered from the sea on the coast -near-by. It was named after and peopled by monks from Tintern in Wales, -which was founded by the De Clares, and while the cathedral could not -have been so extensive as the one there, the entire monastery was quite -as large as the older establishment. It must have been a glorious place -and is so even now in its ruins, and is one of the most interesting -spots in the island. It lifts its towers amidst groves of stately trees -in a valley but a short distance from the sea and is embowered in -clambering ivy. Its great tower, still preserved as a ruin, is not -habitable save in its lower story, which is used as a kitchen. The -chancel of the abbey has been turned into a dwelling-place and one of -the most curious I have ever inspected. It is late on a brilliant -afternoon when our car, rolling down the broad avenue of the park, comes -suddenly upon the ancient structure in its secluded valley. At first all -appears to be in ruins until we note that some of the arches have been -walled up and hold modern windows. There are bits of ruin -everywhere,--moss-grown stairs with shattered heads on the rail lead to -shadowy terraces over which ancient yew trees extend sheltering arms; -ruined arches and ivied towers dot the meadow, and vine-draped pillars -standing far apart show the once great extent of the abbey. - -Rolling on we round the corner of the main structure and draw up in the -great courtyard, which evidently, in the days of the abbey's grandeur, -was the cloister. To our pulling an ancient bell makes loud reply off in -the tower above us, but for some moments no sign of life is evidenced. -Finally the door is opened by a servant who reminds one of Obaldistone -in Scott's _Bride of Lammermoor_. His manner is as grand as though this -were the portals of Windsor Castle. - -Yes, Mrs. C---- is at home, and will be glad to see us. We are ushered -into one of those quaintly interesting rooms to be found only in the old -world, a room impressed by each passing owner with some of his or her -own personality, individuality, without which no room has any charm. -Yonder is a portrait by Sir Peter Lely of a lady evidently lovesick. -Here is a bit of some framed fancy work whose faded colours plainly show -that it was done by a hand long since still for ever. Ivy peers into the -window and taps on the glass and there is a taint of the buried years in -the air,--the very sunlight seems to belong to late October. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Reginald's Tower, Waterford] - -Bestowed by Elizabeth upon the ancestor of its present owner, Tintern -has suffered the fate of most great Irish houses and now lives in the -memory of the past. I am shown a parchment holding the family tree, -dating backward to 1299, with all its numberless coats of arms done in -colour, but evil times came down upon the race in the last century. Open -house was kept for all who passed. Beggars sat by the scores in its -great courtyard sure of their dole. In its entrance hall stood a bowl of -small silver coins for general usage, and it was dipped into by all. Its -sideboards groaned with a feast on all days,--waste and plenty, plenty -and waste,--until finally upon the death of one owner a question arose -as to the succession and so in came the law and the Court of Chancery. -That suit cost the estate one hundred thousand pounds sterling, and was -finally settled by a workman who discovered the necessary missing -documents in a hidden receptacle in the wall, but too late to save -trouble, and so to-day and each day Tintern is going more and more into -ruin, and the voracious ivy climbs ever higher and higher, pointing like -the handwriting on the wall to the ending of it all. - -In the midst of all these reflections our hostess enters, a typical -Irish lady, all hospitality and warm welcome, as cordial to me whom she -has never seen before, as to her old friends who have brought me -thither. Her hearty laugh drives off the shadows and she is much pleased -that we are interested in her old home: old,--yes verily--just think of -it, her people have lived right here for three hundred years, and but -for the secretion of those documents by some stupid ancestor the domain -would be a rich one even yet. But that does not keep laughter out of -Tintern. Many's the dance which has been given here, and once, with -that love of humour which laughs at everything sad or mournful, the -cards of invitation bore the phrase, "Supper in the charnel house and -dancing in the vaults." Rest assured the feast was lively, leaving -nothing for any ghosts which might happen along that night, and I doubt -their braving the laughter of that merry throng; and yet with it all -there must have been sadness for all which had been so uselessly lost. - -There are many legends for the cause of the troubles which have come -upon the abbey and its owners. - -For holding property belonging to the Church they are for ever under its -curse of fire and water; then the neighbouring peasantry have a legend -that trouble arose because of the murder by Sir Anthony of all the -friars he found in the house when he came to take possession, but they -rather incline to the belief that he rested under a curse of the fairies -because he destroyed an ancient rath, or hill, which they frequented. He -was engaged to the lovely heiress of Redmond. Having gone to England, -his lady promised to burn a light in her tower of Hook to guide him on -his return, and so she did, but the fairies beguiled her to slumber with -their music, and put out the light. So her lover was drowned. The -disconsolate maiden converted her father's tower into a lighthouse, and -so it remains to this day. - -It is also stated that the first Colclough was but secretary to the lord -who obtained the grant and was sent by him to England to have it -ratified. He so pleased the Virgin Queen that when he returned he found -that the deeds conferred the estates upon himself. - -I noticed in the drawing-room a framed address or diploma of some sort -and asked what it was. It contained the portrait of a handsome man in -the prime of life and the emblazonments were many and rich. During the -life of the late owner he was master of the hounds, and it was decided -to present him with this illuminated address together with a present of -one hundred pounds. The event was made the occasion of a great feast, -and these old walls rang so loudly with the merriment that the rooks in -the ruined tower were startled, and fled shrieking into the forests. The -presentation was made with much ceremony, the illuminated parchment -greatly admired, also the casket which held the purse with its hundred -pounds, but which of course was not opened until the guests had all gone -or been carried home. No gentleman would leave such a feast able to -walk,--and the flunkies outside knew their duty and did it. Now it seems -the recipient of all this owed ninety-eight pounds to the man who had -made the presentation speech, and when all had gone and the family had -gathered round to examine the purse they found upon opening it two -pounds in money and a receipted bill for those ninety-eight pounds. Ah -well, 'twas all in a lifetime and life went merrily in those days at -Tintern. But it was a shabby trick, for the neighbours each and all owed -very much more in hospitality to Tintern than the amount of that bill. - -While I am inspecting the framed address the bell of the castle clangs, -the butler throws open the doors, and we pass to the dining-room for -tea, the most pleasant meal of the day over here. - -When the grandfather of our hostess died, he was laid out, as befitted -the head of the house, on this dining table around which we are -gathered. I know that the thought of it returns to several of us as we -sit here. - -There is a vast thickness in the walls of the room and a space not -accounted for by any room, in which it is thought some monk or nun was -immured when the abbey was a house of God--be that as it may, no -investigation has ever been made, and it will probably never be known -what, if any, grisly horror is immured there, so near to our gay -laughter. - -We spend some time discussing tea and the usual assortment of cake. I -never could digest the English fruit cake and I feel quite sure the slab -pressed upon me here would kill a man if it struck him upon a vital -spot. Most of it goes into my pocket, and when we depart I drop it deep -down in a bed of blooming plants near the door, an action observed by -Boyse, who, until I threaten his life in a gloomy whisper, insists upon -examining with the hostess that particular spot, professing a great -knowledge of botany, of which his ignorance is colossal. Whilst I am -guarding my buried cake, our attention is called to what once was the -north transept of the abbey and afterwards for centuries the library of -those who have lived here. It is still a library and full of books, but -for some ungiven reason has been walled up for many, many years,--the -books, I am told, mouldering in great heaps on the floor. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Franciscan Friary - Waterford] - -My desire to explore is intense but, it is useless to say, unexpressed -in this instance. - -From this court started the funeral procession of the gentleman who had -been laid out on the dining table. The cortège was so immense that it -circled away for three miles, though it is not half a mile to the family -vault. Every man was provided with hat band and gloves at the expense of -the widow. At the feast which followed that great table in the dining -hall was decked in the centre with a huge bow of crêpe, black of course. -The roast fowls had crêpe bows tied around their necks and as the old -butler served the whiskey he did so with tears streaming down his face. -As he carried the bottle, also decked with a crêpe bow, he gave -utterance to the mournful words, as the whiskey sobbed gurgling forth, -"Ah, sor, 'tis this bottle will miss him indade, indade." But those -around were determined that, for the day at least, they would drown its -sorrow, and when they went home "there wasn't wan of them knew whether -he was going backwards or forwards, and most of them wint sideways." - -The chapel on the hill yonder must even then have been roofless and in -decay. To-day it is in a choke of brambles and wild roses. Bidding the -car to follow, we cross the park and mount to where it stands, an -absolute ruin. - -We "give Boyse a leg" to a broken casement and he clambers in and down -amongst the brambles up to his neck, and making his way towards the high -altar reads aloud of Sir Anthony Colclough, who died in 1584, he to whom -Queen Elizabeth made the grant. - -There are many other tablets embowered in creeping, drooping vines, and -almost obliterated by the moss of centuries, while a great tree fuchsia -hangs in wildest profusion, shaking its crimson blossoms downward upon -the ruined altar. Wandering around, pushing our way through brambles, -and stumbling over forgotten graves, we come upon the family vault, -underneath and as large as the chapel. The door being open, we wandered -in and paused amazed at the spectacle of dead humanity. - -Outside the sunlight flickered downward through waving branches, casting -long lines of light into the place of the dead, lighting up a sight such -as may be seen only in southern Ireland. The entire space was crowded -with coffins in all stages of appalling decay and ruin and dating all -the way along from the reign of Elizabeth. At our feet lay the ruin of a -large coffin, its handles still clinging to its sides. The skeleton -within had vanished absolutely except the beautiful teeth, -evidently a woman's, which gleamed white in the sunlight. The lid, cast -to one side, left all open to the light of day and passing of moonlight -or storms. Beyond were two still perfect coffins of later date, and yet -farther in where the shadows were thicker rose the ruins of coffin on -coffin, all tumbling pell-mell into one wild chaos. Pausing in silent -dismay for an instant only, we went forth into the sunshine, leaving the -dead to their rest. - -Only in Ireland may one come upon like scenes, where the doors are not -closed even after death. I had often read of such spots, but scarcely -believed the tales until to-day when we stumbled quite by accident upon -that open door and entered, and certainly I shall never forget the -sight. We closed the portal as best we could. One can only hope that the -return of dust to dust may be not delayed, and that all that therein is -may vanish utterly. - -As we roll away the sunlight streams brilliantly aslant, lighting up the -ruined chapel and the old abbey, while the great trees stand all about -them like Druids deep in thought. - - * * * * * - -A rapid rush through the mists of Ireland will so drive the cold air -into one's system that after dinner it is difficult to keep awake and -one is apt to doze off while sitting upright in the drawing-room and to -dream dreams and see visions, especially after our afternoon's -experience. Here to-night in the drawing-room my book has fallen upon -my knees and I have almost passed to the land of nod when some one -suggests that we inspect "King Charles's clothes," and being but half -awake I wonder when he arrived and whether he will permit such -familiarity, and then the questions "which Charles," and if "the first" -of that name, will he bring his head, cause me to come to my full senses -just as Boyse is drawing a long wooden case from beneath a sofa. When it -is opened all the room is filled with a faint perfume, some fragrance so -long forgotten that one cannot give it a name, and yet which calls to -mind the frou-frou of silks and the tapping of high-heeled shoes on -parquette floors, over which wax lights are shedding a soft radiance -while the air resounds to stately music. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Dunbrody Abbey, County Wexford] - -Let us transport ourselves mentally backwards to the dark days of 1649. -Penshurst, the ancient seat of the Sidneys, a gift from Edward VI., when -the tragedy of Charles Stuart was over and the axe had fallen at -Whitehall, his sister the Queen of Bohemia, bowed with sorrow for the -past and undoubtedly with fear for the future, divided as precious -relics amongst those who had been faithful, the belongings of the late -King. These before me she gave to Mr. Spencer, the ancestor of our -hostess here in Bannow House. Mr. Spencer was then acting for Algernon -Sidney, who was a prisoner in the Tower. The relics came into the -possession of the present owner through her father, the Rev. Thos. -Harvey of Cowden Rectory, Kent, and as they are drawn forth one by one -from their hiding place, I glance involuntarily over my shoulder and out -into the misty night, almost expecting to see the shadowy face of the -King questioning our right to these things of his, while the faces on -the walls about have awakened to life and express a strong desire to -come down and join us in the inspection. Here, in a shagreen case, is a -huge silver camp watch which has long since ceased to mark the passage -of time and the vanity of princes. Yonder is a silk dove-coloured coat -and a waistcoat brocaded in rose colour, black, and silver. Here is a -pair of breeches in brown figured silk and another of red and white cut -velvet. There are some quaint gold embroidered slippers with great bows -and high heels and as I stand them on the floor they seem to have been -used but yesterday and are expecting to be used again, and I glance once -more into the outer shadows. At the bottom of the chest are two long -rolls of illuminated vellum illustrating the marriage of the Queen of -Bohemia, called the "Queen of Hearts" by the people who loved her well. -As I look at the painted procession, my hand rests on a lace ruffle of -King Charles, which he may have worn on that occasion. - -It was all so very long ago that I think we have in our unconscious -thoughts almost arrived at the conclusion that these and many of the -famous personages of history are but the fanciful figures of fiction -after all, and it is only when we look upon this frayed doublet which -seems but just cast aside by its wearer, or pick up yonder glove which -still holds the curve of his palm and shape of his fingers, that the -belief is forced upon us that, like ourselves, he once lived and -breathed, enjoyed and suffered, was really of flesh and blood. - -Yet what was this Charles, warm-hearted and generous, or proud, -dictatorial, and utterly unreasonable, holding the divine right of kings -so far above the rights of his people that they were forced to lay low -his head? Which view is the correct one?--for with him, as with all -others of history, there seems a doubt. In fact doubts are being cast -upon the pages of history from all sides to-day. Writers make Lucretia -and Cæsar Borgia far different from the scribes of a century ago, and -possessed of no desire to assist people to a better world. She, for -instance, is now held to have been a model wife and loving mother. Also -we read that Richard of England was not deformed, either in person or -character, but because of the very doubtful legitimacy of the sons of -Edward IV. was the real heir to the crown, and so summoned by -Parliament,--that he did not murder or have murdered Henry VI., the Duke -of Clarence, or the Princes, and that the latter lived at his court many -years--in fact that he was no such character as we have been raised to -believe; and, more marvellous to relate, that the real villain of that -period was Henry VII. of blessed memory,--that he and he alone imported -historians from Italy who at the royal bidding wrote history as it has -been read for so many centuries, that he was the murderer of both King -and Princes and of the Duke of Clarence. Surely we shall shortly have -the Jew of Venice made a generous character, possessing deep love for -all Christians, whilst the eighth Henry will repose in a glorious -effulgency as a model husband as Froude would have us believe. But they -are all of the so very long ago that they appear to us like figures in a -painted window, brilliant or sombre, as the sunshine or shadows of -history illumine or cast them into shade, and it is only when we see -such a thing as this glove of Charles or a half-worn shoe of the -Scottish Queen that they walk out upon us and take their places as real -men and women. - -And so one feels near the presence of that unfortunate Stuart King, as -these belongings of his lie spread out before us. What a small man he -was! These things might be worn by a boy of fifteen,--a delicate boy of -slight frame. They are of great value as such things go, which reminds -one that the world holds much of great value of its dead kings and -queens. It is estimated that the relics of Mary Stuart collected -together at the tercentenary in Peterborough in 1887 amounted in value -to sixty thousand pounds sterling, three hundred thousand dollars of our -money, and yet she was often forced to write imploring letters to her -"brother of France" for her revenues from her fair duchy of Touraine, in -order that she might keep out the cold in her English prisons, and -whilst she was the guest of her "good sister Elizabeth." - -Did her grandson wear these silks and velvets during those sad days at -St. James's Palace? He would almost require the attendance of a body -servant to carry that watch and surely no man who appeared in such -ruffles and high-heeled fancy shoes to-day could induce an army to fight -for him, be he the anointed of God or not,--but then, that clothes do -not make the man was certainly proven in his case, when "a man was a man -for a' that," the Puritans to the contrary notwithstanding. I doubt if -he thought much of his fuss and feathers or paid as much attention to -them as said Puritans did to their sober browns, or some rulers of the -Europe of to-day do to their gaudy plumage. If Charles was vain, it was -with a vanity we can pardon, and far different from that which floods -the world with a string of portraits in different uniforms and -poses--but it is late and even the shades of royalty cannot keep us -awake longer; still as we take our candles and move upwards through the -shadowy hallway I seem to hear the stealthy fall of following footsteps -and turn suddenly, wondering--wondering. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Bannow House] - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - - Return to Ireland--Illness--Conditions on the Great Liners--The - Quay at Cork "of a Saturday Evening"--En Route Once more--The Old - Lady and the Donkey--Barracks at Fermoy--Killshening House, - Abandoned Seat of the Roche Family--Fethard--Quaint Customs--The - Man in the Coffin--"Curraghmore House"--Its great Kennels--Its - Legends and Ghosts and History--Lady Waterford--Oliver Cromwell at - the Castle--The Marquis in the Dungeon. - - -A year has rolled away since I wrote my last line about this Emerald -Isle,--a year of sickness and suffering, brought about, most seem to -think, by the bubbling springs and cool wells of this same island; at -least B., who drank whiskey and soda, passed scathless, while typhoid -for the second time seized upon my system and worked its will for months -and months. But that is over and gone, and for another year at least I -am immune. Still I think that during this visit I shall hold to soda and -some whiskey, at least I am so advised by a last telegram as my ship -moves out to sea. - -If the Board of Trade knew of the state of affairs on the great liners -they would scarcely permit it. Think of one hundred and sometimes one -hundred and fifty stewards crowded into a confined space below the -saloon with _one_ bathroom only. They are only allowed on deck way -back amongst the emigrants, and from there they come to the main saloon -to wait on the first-class passengers, running the risk of carrying all -sorts of contagious diseases; no air, no ventilation to speak of. The -deck stewards are somewhat better off, being only six in a room, but no -better ventilated than the pen referred to. If things are so on an -English ship, what must they not be upon an Italian! - -It blew great guns, and rained in torrents as we landed at Queenstown. -The _Campania_ came in just behind the _Baltic_ and between the two -nearly two thousand passengers were landed. The accommodations both in -tenders and at the custom house are in every way inadequate, and the -confusion was appalling. - -However, all was passed and done at last, and ten P. M. finds me at the -Imperial in Cork, which is in this rainy weather even more mouldy than -last year, but where B. and a whiskey and soda make matters assume a -more cheerful tone. However as the house is crowded to suffocation an -excursion into the outer darkness has its attractions. On our way out we -remark to the barmaid that it is rather stupid here to-night, and she -suggests that this being Saturday evening if we will go down to the quay -we may find some diversion. Knowing that she would be correct in her -surmise as to other towns on that night and at such places we conclude -to try it in Cork and sally forth, only to fall into the clutches of a -car boy, who absolutely refuses either to be left behind or to allow us -to walk. Hence we are shortly mounted on that characteristic Irish -vehicle, a jaunting-car, and en route for wherever its owner may see fit -to take us. - -Our suggestion of "the quay" evidently meets with his approbation, and -with a twinkle in his eye and a blow for his horse, we set forth. The -pace is one which causes us to clutch the swinging car for safety. That -the streets are crowded matters not at all to our jehu, and many is the -anathema hurled at our heads from the scattering populace--until finally -the crowd becomes so dense that our pace is reduced perforce to a walk, -and at last we stop altogether. Just before us is a half-grown boy -celebrating the approach of the day of rest to the best of his ability, -and an odder figure I have never seen. His tattered trousers are rolled -up above a pair of brogans which would fit the Cardiff giant, the tails -of what once was a black coat of great size trail on the ground behind -him, while his dirty mug of a face has the stump of a pipe fixed -somewhere in the middle--I can see no mouth--and is crowned by what was -once a silk hat, now by numerous blows and whacks more resembling an -opera hat semi-collapsed. In his hand he twirls a shillalah, and as he -croons a ditty he wheels ever and anon to attack any one who treads on -the tails of his coat. Before we have fully appreciated all of his good -points our attention is attracted by increased shouts and the rush of -the crowd down the quay, where evidently Pat and Dinnis are at it hard -and fast. - -How the hats fly! You can hear the whacks of the shillalahs even from -here. The dancing, jeering, hooting, and howling crowd takes first one -side and then the other, "fightin aich uther fur konciliation and hatin -aich uther fur the love o' God." Just about this time we think best to -retire, as good hats are too attractive in free fights. - -It has turned stormy again and the wind blows in great gusts up the -river from the sea. Shortly after we start homeward a fishwife carrying -her loaded basket comes out from a doorway and up a few steps onto the -pavement, when the wind taking her broadside blows her over backwards, -her legs sticking up in the air like two great lighthouses. Of course -the contents of her basket are attacked by every gamin in sight, but the -old woman gets all the fish but one and she has a firm hold on one end -of that, while a sturdy boy holds tight on to the tail. Then begins a -tug of war, resulting in an upset for the boy with half the fish -clutched in his fist. Quick as lightning she seizes him and thoroughly -washes his face with the other half. The last glimpse I have of them as -we roll away she has turned him over her knees and there is no -indication of "konciliation" on her face. - -[Illustration: The Terrace, Bannow House - County Wexford] - -Verily--there is "something doing on the quay at Cork of a Saturday -evening." - -Nine o'clock next morning brings our motor to the hotel door. It is soon -packed and, the word given, is rolling away through the streets of the -city, which one moment laugh with sunshine and the next weep with -downpouring rain,--but bless you, no one minds the rain in Ireland, -certainly not in Cork. - -The music of the Bells of Shandon follows us far out into the green -lanes and winding highways and the motor hums and sings in response as -we roll under the grand old trees with their curtains of quivering ivy. -Almost at once, things begin to happen, and, as usual, an ancient dame -is the cause of war. - -At the end of a long lane, over which the ivy draped trees form a -perfect archway, a donkey cart driven by an old lady approaches us, and -as usual we produce consternation. With each leg pointed towards one of -the points of the compass and with great ears slanting towards us, the -little beast is prepared against all attacks, and to run in any -direction, but he reckons without his mistress. She does not propose -that there shall be any run at all, and quickly slides to the ground -from her perch in the cart--and in her progress shows us that aside from -her waist and woollen skirt she is not encumbered with clothing. The -situation requires prompt action, and seizing her skirt in both hands -she rushes at the donkey and claps it over his head. His surprise is -intense and deprives him of action. What he thinks I know not, but as we -roll by we distinctly hear a suppressed "he-haw." - -The distance to Fermoy is quickly covered, and we pass in triumph the -spot where last year we broke down and were forced to take to -jaunting-cars. - -The Fusiliers who then were at Buttevant are in Fermoy now, and we dine -in the Mess. - -The barracks are much alike in the two places, but while this has no -"green" for cricket and croquet, Fermoy is quite a contrast to the -wretched town of Buttevant. Still all that sinks into nothingness when -it is stated that _that_ is "a better hunting country." - -As of old, the officers endeavour to induce me to spend a winter in that -sport. Twenty years ago I might have done so, but it's too late now, -though I have no doubt that if I lived here I should try it regardless -of the flight of years. I have no doubt but that I could if necessary -buy hunters from each and all of them,--and I have also no doubt but -that they would loan me all they have or may have if I would accept, -which I would not do. - -This is Sunday morning, and his Majesty's soldiers are going to church. -The Church of Rome claims the larger number and there are some hundreds -of scarlet coats marching past the hotel now to the ever favourite and -inspiring tune of _Hiawatha_. How the fifes do seize upon and rip out -those notes and what joy there is in every whack given by that great -bass drummer! My admiration of last year is intensified. - -The officer in charge is a man I know very well and I try my best to -attract his attention, but without success; discipline must be -maintained, and not a glance comes in my direction from under his -towering "bear skin," though I know that he sees me. He owes me a grudge -because, his mother being an American, I tell him his coat should be -blue. - -The streets have ceased to glitter with crimson and gold, and the air -has lost the tones of martial music as we roll away,--only the murmur of -the river and the solemn music of the organ from an ivy-clad church -yonder breaks the stillness of this sunny Sunday morning. - -Not far from Fermoy stands a mansion which is of interest to many in -America, Killshening House, one of the seats of Lord Fermoy. That title -will in time pass to an American boy, or man as he will be then, though -I doubt his ever assuming it--certainly he will never occupy this house. -The present owner lives in a place belonging to his wife, and as we -enter the gates of Killshening, we see at once that it is and has been -long deserted. - -These abandoned houses greet the traveller all over Ireland. This one -has not been lived in for some generations by the family. It does not -pay to keep up the house, and renting the land out as pasturage brings -more income than in any other way. Still it is sad to find a stately -mansion in such a reduced state. The rusty gates have long ceased to -perform their function and stand deeply imbedded in the grass-grown -drive which stretches inward toward the house. The trees have grown wild -at will and stretch their branches almost across the drive. The grass is -rank but still thick and velvety and some sheep stare at our intrusion -and then scuttle away to a safe distance where they stop huddled -together and stare again. Hawthorn hedges white with bloom enclose the -place almost like the palace of the sleeping beauty and one wonders -whether man has entered yonder silent house for the last hundred years. -It certainly has not that appearance. Its windows have a sightless, -unoccupied look and its doors swing open to the summer breezes. Except -for the sheep there is no sign of life anywhere and we enter and roam at -will through the deserted rooms. In its exterior it is of the usual type -of such houses in Ireland, a stately rectangular structure, probably of -some two centuries of age. Its portals are never closed, and passing -inward, one enters a large square hallway, whose fine ceiling is -supported by four stately columns. Surrounding this are numerous -living-rooms, reception-and dining-rooms, and in several the ceilings -show much beauty even through the mould and dirt of years of neglect. - -[Illustration: Corner of the Rose Garden, Bannow House - County Wexford] - -Of those who made this place a home all have long since passed beneath -the "low green tent whose curtains never outward swing" and those who -own it now have other houses more to their taste, so this stands -tenantless, the silence both without and within broken only by the sound -of our footfalls as we explore the empty, echoing spaces. - -The park around is fine, but as we pass away we note that nearly all the -great timber has been cut down. - -It's a sad place, and even our motor seems anxious to leave it. - -Our car this year is a 16-20 Clement and on its top speed runs as -noiselessly as an electric. It is not an especially good hill climber, -though that may be but a temporary fault, as sometimes it sails up an -incline with ease, while at others balks at much lesser grades. On the -whole I like the car very much, and though two years old and having had -hard usage, with but small expense it could be made as good as new. It -is certainly to be preferred to the Panhard of last year and is more -agreeable to ride in than the sixty horse-power Mercedes of the Duke of -M. In those high power cars, unless at full speed, which is impossible -on most Irish roads, one is disagreeably conscious of the power beneath -one, and rather dreads a breaking away with its ensuing destruction. -Certainly but few of these Irish roads are suited to a speed of sixty -miles per hour. This car comes from Wayte Bros., of Dublin, and costs -twenty pounds per month less than that of last season. - -Our onward route lies over the hills to Fethard through Clonmel and -across the river Moyle. As we enter, we encounter a funeral, and I -notice that they are carrying the corpse round and round what is -certainly the town pump. Later I learn that a cross once stood there, -also that through the gate by which Cromwell entered the town the dead -are never carried. - -Boyse has a sister living here, and we pass the night in her home. - -Fethard is one of those quaint Irish places which the world, unless it -hunts the fox, never comes near,--but the Irish world does hunt the fox -and hence everybody that is anybody comes to Fethard. - -As I wandered out into the meadows behind the mews, I came upon a pile -of coffins under a shed,--new and awaiting occupants. Evidently they are -bought by the wholesale here and of assorted sizes against emergencies. -Near-by stood the village hearse, and backed up against a hayrick the -remains of the worn-out one which had ceased from its labors. My remark -that the "coffins were cheap and thin" brought out the rejoinder, "Ah, -they're good enough, give the worms a chance." So wears the world away. -The reply came from an old man smoking a stump of a pipe, and calmly -reposing the while in a pine box, the future use of which could not be a -matter of doubt. - -Leaving him to his repose I enter the motor and with my host and hostess -and B. roll off through Clonmel to the superb estate of the Marquis of -W., "Curraghmore House," the location of which at once strikes the -beholder as very superb. Lofty hills, rich dales, and almost -impenetrable woods surround him in all directions. The home park alone -holds some twenty-seven hundred acres, entirely enclosed by a high stone -wall. - -As we approach the gates we see on a distant hill a lofty tower erected -in memory of one of the heirs, who as a boy broke his neck while -attempting to jump his horse over the gate just before us, and which is -to-day opened to our sounding horn by a smiling old lady, who curtsies -deeply as we pass her. - -Three gates are encountered before we enter the court of Curraghmore -House, where we hear that "His Lordship is down at the kennels," and so -roll away again through the aisles of such trees as only these ancestral -places can show, save in California or a primeval forest where the -vandal, man, has not had his way. How beautiful it is! The wide white -avenues roll and twist away over the deep rich grass. Yonder valley is a -mass of blossoming rhododendrons,--tree fuchsias bloom on the other -hand,--and across the river the green hills mount away, dotted with -sheep, to a fair blue sky. - -We cross an ancient bridge of stone with the water gurgling deliciously -beneath as it flows off down a lane brilliant with the lilac of the -rhododendrons. - -The kennels are probably the most extensive in Ireland and resemble a -large carnivora house in some zoölogical garden,--even to the iron cages -for summer use. - -Here, amidst more than a hundred hounds, we find our host. Of an ancient -Irish family, tall, very fair, with close cropped yellow hair and blue -eyes, and clad in a long white linen coat, his appearance is very -English, which remark would not please him at all I am told. He is -making a register of his hounds for the dog show at Peterborough next -month. - -Each hound is presented, passed upon, and has her name duly entered on -the list. I am told that the dog does not make a good hunter in Ireland, -and hence all of the one hundred and twelve animals here are bitches. -[Perhaps that is always the case, if so you will discover that I am not -a sportsman.] If you were to stumble and fall while near them they would -promptly tear you to pieces, though they are friendly enough and almost -every one, as she passes through the cage, pokes her nose into our -hands. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Bannow Church - County Wexford] - -These dogs actually seem to know what is being said about them. When -they passed muster they jumped away like a boy through with his -examinations,--but there were two or three which did not pass, and the -look of reproach cast upon their keeper as he told of their failings was -almost human. - -The registering done with, they are let out in two lots on the hillside, -and crowd around us, still friendly apparently, but as we turn to -leave--the hounds having been caged again--I drop my stick, and when I -stoop to pick it up the whole pack spring at the bars in a wild attempt -to get at me. I do not regret the protecting iron. - -These kennels are beautifully kept, and the oatmeal cakes on the shelves -of the feed house would taste very good, I fancy. In fact I am bidden to -try one. - -We motor back through the domain to the grounds back of the house and -walk across them to enter the mansion. They are beautifully laid off, -but I think the huge bronze fountain in the centre is a mistake,--a -simple stone basin with a majestic geyser of water would be more in -keeping with the age of the place and the simple and severe outlines of -the house. Like most of the great fountains there is too much bronze and -too little water. - -Curraghmore House was built about 1700, around the remains of a very -ancient castle. From this side the building somewhat resembles -Chatsworth, but on the other one sees the great square tower which dates -from the twelfth century. It has been, of course, much changed and -is now outwardly made to conform to the rest of the mansion,--but upon -entering you at once notice the great thickness of the walls which prove -its age. They are adorned with trophies of the chase of much interest. - -Mounting a staircase of gradual ascent one enters another square hall -around which are the living-rooms, some very rich in ornamentation, -especially in the painted ceilings. Many portraits gaze questioningly at -me from the walls, some so dark with age that only the eyes are visible, -eyes in a pallid face and all else lost in the shadow,--faces whose -owners have come and gone like the shadows of a dream, and whose very -names are now forgotten;--living, I fancy, their lives out in these old -halls, with as little thought for the inevitable forgetfulness of time, -as we have to-day, and we have none at all, but pass the time in a happy -fashion over tea in the Library. - -Some of us wander off to the billiard hall up in the great tower, and -descending stop a moment in a room which it is claimed is visited by -such a ghostly caller as Scott tells of in his "Tapestried -chamber,"--one which will wake you and jibe at you. Here is a portrait -of a lady, with a band on her wrist. She and a brother lived long ago -and were both atheists. The brother became converted to a belief in God -but not this sister, and he promised that when he died if there was a -God and a hereafter, he would return, which he did, and seizing his -sister by the wrist left a mark which necessitated the wearing of this -band. There it is in that portrait over the mantel in the ghost's room. - -There are other phantoms which haunt this mansion of Curraghmore, but -let this suffice. I should like to have slept in that room, and after we -departed I was told that we had all been asked to "stay the night," but -the ladies of the party objected as Lady W. was absent. - -Many years ago en route from Calcutta to Ceylon we had on board a poor -sick man en route to colder climes in the hope of prolonging his life--a -vain one as it proved. He was brought out daily and laid on the deck and -naturally became an object of interest and sympathy to all of the -passengers. One elderly lady was especially kind to him and I held many -long conversations with her. She told me that he had been in the employ -of the government in the Indian Islands, and, stricken with fever, had -been ordered home, leaving a wife and a newly born child behind him. As -I left the ship at Colombo I saw her standing by his side fanning him. -Poor man--he was buried at sea near Aden and to-day I find _her_ -portrait looking down upon me from these walls. She was Lady Waterford, -the grandmother of our host, a woman who believed in seeing the world -and, as I know, doing good as she passed along. I believe she was -considered rather eccentric--interesting people generally are so,--and -it is stated that she discarded all the family jewels in favour of one -made of foxes' teeth. Although eighteen years had elapsed since that sea -trip hers was not a face to be forgotten, and I knew it at once. I -believe she has long since passed away. - -There is a story told of the castle in Cromwell's day which, while it -proves that there is a woman at the bottom of most incidents in this -world, shows that here her wits were the salvation of the house. Knowing -that her father would die rather than surrender to the king-killer, she -seduced the lord of the manor into one of his own dungeons and promptly -locked him up. Into Cromwell's hands she then delivered the keys of the -castle, assuring him that though forced to be absent on this auspicious -occasion her father was nevertheless well disposed to the cause of -Parliament and willing to give such proof as the Protector might demand. -In consequence Curraghmore remained unimpaired in the possession of its -owner, securely locked up the while in his own dungeon. - -Taking it all in all it is a most interesting place, yet when all is -said, to my thinking, the greatest beauty lies in the superb trees of -the park, and its wonderful stretches of grassland. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Tombs in Bannow Church - County Wexford] - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - - Departure from Fethard--The Dead Horse and a Lawsuit--Approach to - Dublin--Estate of Kilruddery--The Swan as a Fighter--Glendalough, - its Ruins and History--Tom Moore and his Tree in Avoca--Advantages - of Motor Travel--Superstition of the Magpie--A Boy, a Cart, and a - Black Sheep--The Goose and the Motor. - - -The next day opens nasty and wet. Leaving our benediction and thanks -with Mr. and Mrs. P. we roll off through the drops of rain over the -muddy roadways. It is not especially pleasant and conversation lags, but -it must be a bad day indeed to suppress all chances for excitement in -Ireland, as we shortly discover. - -Turning a bend of the road we see, coming towards us, a jaunting-car, -hauled by a bay horse and driven by an old man. The nag gives evidence -of fright and our motor is stopped instantly at some three hundred feet -from her. The old man succeeds in turning her around and at our -suggestion unwinds himself from his lap-robe and gets down to hold her. -All the time our car is at a standstill and making no sound. Whether the -old chap got tangled in the reins or stumbles, I know not, but the nag -plunges, knocking him down, then plunges again and falls against a -stone wall, breaking a shaft. B. gets out of our car and suggests that I -go back to the town just behind and bring a policeman as there will -surely be claims for damages. I cannot see how, as we have not been in -motion for the past fifteen minutes and certainly have an equal right -upon the highroads. However, I roll away, and en route I notice a -travelling circus with a nigger in charge who grins at me. The policeman -secured and brought back in the car, we find to our amazement that the -horse is dead, and the nigger and owner are already haggling over the -sale of its carcass. The latter wants a sovereign and the former offers -half a crown. - -What killed the beast is unknown to us to this day; it certainly did not -break its neck as it kicked and plunged a lot after it was down. -However, it is dead, and there is trouble in consequence. Of course we -are "entirely to blame" though the accident did not occur until we had -been stationary for some fifteen minutes, and until the old man had had -ample time to argue with the horse and then to turn her around and move -away from us before he got down, at which time she was perfectly quiet. -It's my opinion that he became tangled in the reins and fell against -her. Fact remains that she neither scared nor plunged until he got down -from the car and made for her head, and as I have stated before, I have -often noticed that horses are more frightened by their owner's sudden -grabs at the bridle than by the motor car. - -I had once a saddle horse which could never be induced to pass a piece -of paper be it ever so small without violent shying, and I could at any -instant, by pressing my knee suddenly into the saddle, cause him to look -round for such objects and shy violently in advance. - -So it is with most car horses,--let alone they would stand quietly; -grabbed at by the driver they plunge and shy. As far as our car is -concerned it always comes at once to a dead halt if there is the -smallest evidence of trouble. We did so, as I have stated, in this case, -yet I have no doubt damage or blackmail will have to be paid. If this -were not done and B. ever wanted to hunt over this country he would come -to dire disaster, as our names and addresses were taken down by the -policeman, and will never be forgotten but stored away to be remembered -either in blessing or malediction according as we pay or not. - -This being a rented car the owners assume all such risks, and on -reaching Dublin we learn that a claim for twenty-five pounds has already -been presented, the value of the beast having increased by leaps and -bounds, and I doubt not before the year is out will have passed that of -the winner of the Derby. - -I should like to have been at the trial if it came to that, if only to -count the witnesses that would have sprung up by the dozens, undoubtedly -proving in the end that the old man was driving two horses to that -jaunting-car and that our appearance killed them both. - -The day after that occurrence the driver of a cow deliberately placed -her in our pathway in hopes that we would kill her, but he reckoned -without our brakes, which stopped the car not a foot from the cow. Her -owner laughed in a stupid, leering fashion as we rolled away. - -After the death of the poor old horse, which no one could have regretted -more than we did, nothing occurred during the ride to Dublin. - -As we approach the city, the highways are of greater width and in better -condition, though most of the Irish roads are good. There are motor-cars -flying in all directions now and ours catching the disease skims along -like a bird, and quite as noiselessly, until the pavements and narrower -streets of the city force a reduction of speed, and even then the rate -is more rapid than I like. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Tintern Abbey] - -Dublin is in the throes of an exposition, and there is "no room in the -inn." Not to be forced to sleep in a manger we direct our course to Bray -Head, and in her very comfortable hotel of that name are at rest for a -few days. While there are no real mountains in this section of Ireland -the hills and headlands are very bold and beautifully outlined. The -roads are fine and there are many points of interest hereabouts. To-day -we have been rambling over Kilruddery, the fine estate of the Earl of -Meath. The house, while modern, has not that appearance, and at first I -thought it must date at least from the days of the good Queen Bess -during whose reign the property passed into the hands of this family. It -is of that period in its architecture, but the great glory lies all -around it. These grounds are justly famous. I have never seen more -beautiful, stately hedges even at Versailles, and one rather feels that -one should be dressed in the fashion of the Grand Monarque to pace these -grassy lanes. At one point the hedges, thirty feet high, spread off like -the spokes of a wheel, and the legend runs that in ancient days the -abbot had his cell in that centre from where the brethren living down -the aisles could be easily watched, and being human, even if saintly, I -doubt not that they needed watching now and then. - -In front of the mansion two oblong lakes nestle in the velvety grass -like great mirrors and on their waters numerous swans are floating. One -old general mounts the bank and with arched neck and spreading wings -advances to attack us, but we do not risk the battle. Those male birds -can strike hard, and while it might be possible to seize and stretch -their necks, the Lord of the Manor does not like that to be done. So we -take refuge in the flower garden, a perfect glory of bloom and colour. - -Later on, as we are at tea in the "long drawing-room before my lady's -picture," the old swan raises his head just outside in watchful ward -lest we dare to come out. - -I think Dickens must have visited Kilruddery about the time he wrote -_Bleak House_, though he placed the scene of his great work in -Lincolnshire. Here are the long drawing-rooms with my lady's picture -over the mantle before which Sir Leicester sat in such grandeur; yonder -is the window through which the moonlight streamed upon my lady seated -at the open casement, and just here between my lord and my lady Mr. -Tulkinghorn must have paced as he "told my story to so many people." -Just outside runs the Ghost Walk where upon that fatal night the step -grew louder and louder, and above one can doubtless find Mr. -Tulkinghorn's chamber opening out upon the leads, and where he met and -cowed my lady. This may not be the place which the great writer had in -mind, but it might well have been. - -I confess to an intense envy when I visit these superb estates, not so -much as to the houses, unless they are very ancient, but certainly as to -the parks. It is perhaps well that our country cannot know such,--it -certainly never will unless the law of primogeniture is established, -which God forbid. And yet here the younger members of a family seem to -think it but right and just that everything should pass to but one of -them, that they, who may love and appreciate their lifelong home as -perhaps the heir never will, should be turned out, often with nothing, -while, as often, he proceeds to pile debt on debt until the old home -goes by the board and passes to strangers or the great trees are cut -down to pay gambling debts. All this may be gall and wormwood to some of -them but if so they are loyal to the rules of their order and murmur not -at all. - -It is necessary for B. to return to Bannow for a day as he is a -magistrate there and has some business in consequence. So we are off in -the forenoon and shall run the hundred miles by teatime with several -stops thrown in. We enter amongst the hills on starting and are amongst -them all day save for sudden dips into some valley or down to the sea. - -As we speed up the mountains the prospects behind are enchanting. The -valleys are deep and very green while on the other side of one -amphitheatre the vast mansion of "Powers Court House," where we shall -spend the week-end, stands half way up the hillside in a most beautiful -location. From here it appears to be a stone structure of several -stories, with long wings on either hand, and even at this distance one -can see that the garden and park are very extensive. - -Our route southward to Bannow lies through the mountains of Wicklow, -which here resemble Arthur's Seat and other hills around Edinburgh. -Fortunately the day is fine and the roads dry without dust, but one -never suffers from the dust of one's own car and we do not meet any -others, hence the ride is exhilarating and beautiful, especially as we -approach Glendalough, where the scenery is almost Alpine. - -That ancient place lies in a deep valley with mountains towering all -around it. Its ruined churches are presided over by one of the tallest -and most perfect round towers in Ireland. - -Wherever one sees those strange structures they are objects of interest -and this one, rising in stately watch and ward over the dead who sleep -all around it, is unusually so. It stands in an enclosure so choked with -graves that one must walk over the dead to reach it. Two, lately buried -I should say, seem to have used the old tower as their especial -monument, so closely are their heads placed against its ancient base. A -little wooden cross between the graves protests that those who sleep -beneath are of the faith of the Nazarene and not of that of the -long-dead heathens who, some claim, erected this and all other similar -towers in this land, a false idea of course. - -Glendalough is very ancient, and dates its foundation back in 618 A.D. -St. Kevin of the royal house of Leinster died here at a great age, -having lived for years in a hollow tree near the lake and in a cave, to -which there was no access save by a boat. His memory has been honored -for centuries, and in the peculiar manner of much drinking and many free -fights here on the spot where he died, a custom stopped by the parish -priest who emptied the whiskey into the stream and burned the -shillalahs, after which he forced these people who had been enemies for -centuries to embrace over Kevin's grave. He lived to the age of one -hundred and twenty years, founding here what became a crowded city, with -schools, colleges, sanctuaries for the saintly, and asylums for the poor -and sick. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Kilkenny Castle] - -Glendalough began to decline more than six centuries ago, and to-day -holds nothing save a few ruined churches, the stately round tower, and -many graves deep down in its vale, guarded by the brooding mountains. -Its silence is rarely broken except when one more is added to the quiet -company which lies around, or when some wanderer from the outer world -remembers that Glendalough has been and pauses a moment to offer -devotions at her crumbling shrines. - -How completely one's thoughts shift from the ancient heathen history of -this island to gentler times and songs, waving trees, sunlight, and the -music of waters as the car rolls through the Vale of Ovoca, where gentle -Tom Moore's spirit still seems to be singing of its bubbling streams. - -Stop at the old stone bridge and lean a while upon its parapets and you -will be just over the tree, now a gaunt dead skeleton with all its glory -gone, where he wrote the poems so dear to all of us. Beneath you murmurs -one of the streams, and, just beyond, it rushes joyously to its meeting -with the other, and the old tree stands on a point at the meeting place. -The waters plash and sing and dance away and away, the years have rolled -by, and the poet is gone, but his verses live on for ever, and pilgrims -from all over the world come to this spot which he found beautiful. - -To-day as we roll up there are a party of women all from my own land, I -should judge, and each takes her seat for a moment under the great -skeleton where Moore sat and wrote his songs for mankind. - -The east and west sides of Ireland are very different. On the latter -lies all the grandeur and ruggedness, as though nature had been carved -and hewn by the tremendous blows of the North Atlantic's winds and -waves, and all the music is wild and weird; while on the eastern side -all is like a beautiful park, pastoral and full of sunshine and flowers. -Moore's melodies sound all around one and if a lad or lassie sings in -passing it will be of Robin Adair or Aileen Aroon. The former lived just -back there in Hollybrook House and the latter dwells all over the -mountains and down in every vale. - -The entire ride from Bray to Bannow is over fine roads and affords -constant panoramas of sunlight, seas, and stretches of woodlands and -grass-lands, with here and there a stately mansion keeping ward over a -beautiful park and with many gushing, bubbling rivers and brooks. The -air is laden with the perfume of the sweet grasses, and the way is -bordered by blossoming hawthorns and wild roses. Quaint villages and -ancient cities nestle by the sea, whose waters murmur peacefully, -forgetful that storms have ever been. - -With the rapid flight of the motor, new life rushes through one's veins, -and surely some years must drop away. - -It is an error to imagine that an automobile tour means merely a rapid -flight through the country. It may be made just that, and no doubt often -is, but on the other hand it will be found that those who love to -travel, love antiquities, are students of history, will see far more by -the use of a car than would have been possible with stage-coach or by -rail. By the former, progress was slow, and so tedious often that many -points of great interest were given up because of the bodily weariness -necessary in reaching them. With rail I know, from personal experience, -that I allowed years to pass without visiting points which I greatly -longed to see, because it necessitated change of trains and weary -waiting in dirty stations. With a motor one is possessed almost of -Aladdin's lamp. Make your wish, turn a crank, glide over the earth -almost as rapidly as the owner of the lamp did through the air, and -behold you have your heart's desire, and so you have many desires of the -heart and spy out the land as you never would have done in days gone -by,--days which seem so long gone by, though but a few years have passed -since those old modes of transit were the only ones known. You may go as -slowly as you desire in a motor, you cannot in a train. You are able -also to glide rapidly over long, tedious roads of no interest, where -with horses hours of wearisome journey would be necessary. - -So, my dear critic, don't condemn a book of notes written from a motor -until you have tried that method of locomotion and found it wanting, -which, to my thinking, will never occur. This journey to Bannow, but -better still my inspection of the island of Achill is a case in point. -Not satisfied with my first visit, I determined to return. I was then in -Wexford, quite on the other side of the island, but that was, with a -motor, no barrier. I simply crossed the island in a day's run, spent -another day in Achill, and returned to Wexford. - -Had the time been twenty years or ten years ago, the trouble of a second -visit would have destroyed all chances of making it. - -It is very dreamy and poetic to sigh over the old dead days, but it's -all bosh. The modern appliances of the twentieth century enable the -traveller to see more and at his leisure in one summer than he would -ever have dreamed of seeing in those "dear old dead days." - -The time will come when these machines will be made for the people and -general utility. I venture to quote here an article from _Harper's -Weekly_ as to the future of this great invention. - -[Illustration: Deserted Killshening House - Fermoy] - - "When a man takes hold of the knob of his office door he knows - that, year in and year out, the knob will perform its proper - function. When the housewife sits down to her sewing-machine she - knows that hardly once in a thousand times will it fail to do its - work, and do it well. Unreliable is an indictment to which our cars - must too often plead guilty. In America we have done a lot of - foolish things in motor-car building, but we are approaching saner - methods and more correct lines. The car of the future, either for - business or pleasure, has not yet been laid down. He would be a - bold, perhaps a rash, prophet who would undertake any detailed - description of this car. Nevertheless, reasoning _a priori_, there - are some features we may prognosticate. In the first place, it will - be built of better steel than we have been accustomed to use. In - the next place, the cars will become standardized, and when - standardized they will be built by machinery in enormous quantities - at an exceedingly low cost. The wheels will be large, built of wood - and of the artillery type. Hard rubber or some enduring substance - will take the place of the present high-priced unsatisfactory - pneumatic tires. The car will be light, simple, strong, and easily - kept in repair. Mr. Edison once said the automobile will never be - wholly practical until it is fool-proof and the ordinary repairs - can be made on the highway by a darky with a monkey-wrench. The - present highly unsatisfactory system of change-speed gears will be - supplanted by a variable speed device. There are not wanting good - judges who believe that the problem will be solved by a system of - hydraulic transmission. The fuel of the future will be kerosene or - grain alcohol. Thirty-five per cent, of the population of America - are farmers. The farmer will be the chief automobile owner and - user. The maximum speed of his car may be only twenty miles per - hour, but that is twice as fast as his present mode of travel. The - car will be an invaluable adjunct to his work on the farm. The - adjustment of a belt, the turn of a crank, and the automobile - engine furnishes power to thresh his grain, cut his wood, chop his - feed, and pump his water. After being in constant use all the day, - the car is ready to take the entire family to the social gathering - in the village at night, or to church services on Sunday morning. - The farmer will use the automobile as will the butcher, the baker, - and the storekeeper--when he can in no other way get the same - amount of work done at so low a cost; and when the business man can - deliver his goods more quickly and more economically than he can by - using the horse he will do so. - - "There will always be motor-cars de luxe for the rich, but they - will be merely the fringe of the garment of a great industry. The - countless millions of tons of freight now slowly and painfully - drawn over country roads and through city streets by poor dumb - brutes will go spinning along, the motors of the heavily laden - trucks humming a tune of rich content, and all the thousand - tongues of commerce will sing the praises of the motor-car. - - "Let me suggest a few practical things that the tireless horse of - the future will accomplish: - - "1. It will solve the problem of the over congestion of traffic in - our city streets. - - "2. It will free the horse from his burdens. A few years ago, in - the city of New Orleans, an old darky came in from the country and - for the first time saw the electric street cars, which had taken - the place of the mule-drawn car. The old darky threw up his hands, - and looking up to heaven said, 'Bless de Lord, de white man freed - de nigger, now he done freed the mule.' - - "3. The automobile will furnish relief to the tenement house - districts. - - "4. It will stimulate the good roads movement throughout the - United States. - - "5. It will save time and space and become invaluable to many - classes of citizens. - - "6. It will tend to break down class distinction, because one - touch of automobilism makes the whole world kin." - -The motor has come to stay-rest assured of that. It has an equal right -upon the highway under the law of the land, with all other vehicles or -animals, so spare yourselves your curses and your ill temper, which only -injure yourselves.--A stoppage for luncheon allowed me time to bring in -all that, but we are miles onward by now. - -In addition to song and story, superstition, perhaps of a harmless sort, -certainly reigns in Ireland, at least in the southern parts. Even B. -never sees a magpie that he does not cast his eyes and hands aloft in -supplication, to exorcise the evil results of the encounter. I have -always understood that the legends of that famous bird ran "one for -luck, two for joy, three for a wedding, and four for a boy." But B. -insists that the appearance of one means misfortune; however "maggies" -are eminently domestic and travel in pairs. Marriage is not a failure -with them. - -While B. is stoutly maintaining his belief in the ill luck sure to -follow the appearance of a bird just now flirting his tail at us from a -tree near-by, the car comes to a sudden halt and Robert's face plainly -indicates something wrong. With an "I told you so" B. gets out to -inspect. Knowing nothing and caring less about machinery I stay where I -am; the seat is comfortable and paid for, whether in motion or not; if -they want to get down on their backs in that mud they can do so, I -won't. While the work is in progress I question B. on the matter of -superstition and am told that no real Irishman would, in case of death -in his house, go after the coffin _alone_,--that "must never be done." -Many even in these days will place a lighted candle in the hands of the -dying to light them to Heaven, and at a wake there is always a plate of -snuff on the corpse. - -Not long since, a stranger desiring to attend one of these weird affairs -was conducted to the house of a man who--it was stated--had just died. -The deceased was laid out in the little cabin with candles at his head -and feet, and the usual number of mourners around him. Now every one -smokes at a wake, and the visitor, lighted cigar in his mouth, stood -solemnly regarding the placid dead, when some motion caused his cigar -ash to fall upon the placid face, whereupon the dead sneezed and the -wake broke up in "Konfusion." So at least runs the tale. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Curraghmore House - Marquis of Waterford] - -An incident of the later afternoon is also attributed to "a beast of a -bird" which flew over our heads shortly before its occurrence. It -certainly was a most amazing escape from a serious smash-up, and only -the steering ability of the chauffeur saved us and the car. About to -take a side road running at right angles to the one we were on, and -hidden by a tall hedge, we came suddenly upon a boy asleep in a cart -drawn by an old white horse, also apparently asleep. They were not -twenty feet off; to pass was impossible, and our man shot his car -forward, turned it almost on its axis and under the nose of the old -horse so closely that I thought the shaft would strike me and dodged -down into the car; then another sharp turn down into a ditch, -fortunately grassy and not dangerously deep, and up on to the road, and -away as though nothing had happened and all so quickly done that the -horse and boy stood stock still in dumb amazement. It was a very close -shave, and proved that these cars can be turned completely around in a -much smaller space than one would believe possible. We are not courting -such experiences, especially as news of the dreadful deaths of the -Trevor brothers in Cincinnati has just been published. Our man is a -superb driver and thoroughly understands his machine; also he does not -lose his head for an instant, or on this occasion it would have meant -destruction all round. - -Shortly afterwards a black sheep--"horror of horrors," I heard B. -exclaim--crossed our pathway at tremendous speed, and having great faith -in the strength of its skull and in its butting powers tried conclusions -with a closed iron gateway,--the result being intense astonishment -and dire destruction to itself, the gate holding fast. Earlier in the -day we ran over for the first time a goose, apparently without injury -thereto, as the last I saw it was chasing us down the road with -outstretched neck squawking loudly. - -Our orders are strict as to avoiding all living things if by so doing we -do not endanger our own safety and several times we have done so by -sudden swerves to save an old hen or chicken. - -Taking it all together to-day's ride has not been without excitement, -and we almost decline to get out when the car stops at Bannow House; but -I think the driver has had his fill of work for one day, so it is ended, -fortunately with no injury to any one. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - - The Lunatic--Insanity and its Causes in Ireland--The Usual Old Lady - and Donkey--Sunshine and Shadow--Clonmines and its Seven - Churches--The Crosses around the Holy Tree--Baginbun and the - Landing of the English--The Bull of Pope Adrian--Letter of Pope - Alexander--Protest of the Irish Princes--Legends--Death of Henry - II. - - -"To some men God hath given laughter, and tears to some men he hath -given." - -To-day it is tears and sadness for one poor woman. - -B. is a magistrate here and last night at dinner a warrant for his -signature was brought to the house. It was for the commitment of a poor -woman to an asylum for the insane and this morning we roll away to the -village to conclude the matter. The "Court" awaits our arrival, but I -have no mind for such scenes; indeed I do not think it right that mere -lookers-on should be permitted, any more than curiosity seekers should -be allowed to stare at men in prison. So I stay out in the car while B., -followed by the "Court," which has been sunning itself outside, passes -within. - -However, I am not to escape in all ways, as, turning my eyes towards a -window to the left, I see the poor woman staring out at me, the sadness -and misery of her expression passing description,--life is so absolutely -over for her, with nothing save the horror of increasing insanity to -look forward to throughout all the years which may remain of existence. -Her mother died in an asylum and her fate is certain. The curse of -intermarriage has pronounced her doom as it does for so many in Ireland. -It is also claimed that much of the insanity so prevalent here is caused -by excessive use of tea, and _such_ tea. Placed on the stove and allowed -to simmer and stew all day, it acquires a strength that would destroy in -time the strongest of nerves. - -This poor woman goes to the asylum by her own wish, and is glad to go, -knowing the hopelessness of it all for her. Ah, the pity of it, and one -is so absolutely powerless to do aught to help! The law is soon complied -with and leaving her sad face still at the window we roll away. - -The day is especially brilliant and the air like wine, laden with the -fragrance of the hawthorn and wild grasses; while the hedgerows -bordering the lanes are a mass of blossoms, and the world is -beautiful,--all the more beautiful by contrast with that glimpse of -sadness we have just left. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Hallway, Curraghmore House] - -Our car goes rushing and singing along until we round a bend of the -road and are immediately involved in wild confusion. An old lady--as -usual--seated on the smallest of carts, drawn by a most diminutive -donkey,--Ireland is full of old ladies in carts, in fact one rarely sees -any others in them,--is vainly trying to stop the wild circles it is -describing, cart and all, in fright at our appearance. It whirls her -around at least a half-dozen times before a passing postman seizing the -bridle leads it by us, while the ancient dame, the flowers on her much -awry bonnet trembling with her indignation, hurls curses at us. "Blarst -yer sowls" comes back at us as she is borne away. - -Truly sunshine and shadow, laughter and sadness chase each other closely -in this Isle of Erin. Don't for a moment imagine, though you may seem to -be in the densest solitude of the country, that there is nobody about; -any instant a sudden turn may find you in the midst of shrieking women, -flying chicks, quacking ducks, and scoffing geese, where clatter and -confusion and curses reign supreme, but again those curses imply nothing -generally here, they are only a form of salutation, and rarely mean what -is said. - -We pass down long stretches of road with the sparkling sea spread out -before us until we draw up near the ruins of the seven churches of -Clonmines, close down by the placid waters of the river. - -Of the churches there is little left, save a few ruined towers. In the -centre of one where the sunshine falls warmest and many flowers grow, -the late priest of the parish has found his resting-place. - -After all there seems to have been close connection between the far -east and this Emerald Isle. At these seven churches of Clonmines, there -was once held a Moorish slave market, and one cannot but think that -that keening for the dead must have come from the chant which one may -still hear amongst the followers of the prophet. - -Clonmines, which is named from the silver mines near-by, was "a very -ancient corporation but quite ruinated" even in 1684 when we find it so -described in an old manuscript of Wexford. In the time of the Danes it -possessed a mint for silver coining and was surrounded by a fosse. On -the shores of its river or tide inlet, called the Pill, the descendants -of the first English conquerors still lived in the days of Elizabeth, in -fact we find yet living in one of these ancient towers, the descendant -of the man, Sir Roger de Sutton, who built it _seven centuries ago_--a -love of home which passes understanding, for that abode to-day could not -be considered as agreeable under any circumstances. - -This little river was considered of such importance in the days of Henry -VI. that an act of Parliament was passed for the building of towers upon -its banks "that none shall break the fortifications or strength of the -waters of Bannow." - -Even in Henry IV.'s time one John Neville was appointed keeper of this -water, and the feudal tenure by which the Hore family held their manor -of Pole was for the keeping of a passage over the Pill when the Sessions -were held at Wexford. But King and noble reckoned without the storms of -winter, which year after year drove the sands of the sea inward, filling -the harbour and finally destroying all the towns on its banks. One of -them, Old Bannow, we have already visited, and we leave this of -Clonmines, to-day a ruin past all redemption, inhabited by that one -family whose members have watched the years go by just here for seven -centuries. - -As we glide off through the winding lanes, the birds are talking to -themselves in the hedgerows, and could tell us much about it all I doubt -not, while far away on the soft air sounds the throbbing and the sobbing -of the sea. - -Close by the roadside we come upon an evidence of one of the quaint -customs still to be met with in this section. There is a certain -tree--why so selected does not appear--which is regarded as holy, and -every funeral which passes leaves a small cross at its base, so that -to-day the pile of rude wooden emblems of our faith reaches half way up -its trunk. There are no shrines around the place or any other evidence -that it is regarded as sacred or used as a point for devotion, simply -that mass of plain wooden crosses mounting high around its trunk, and -numbering many thousands, each one representing the passing of some poor -soul out of this earthly sunshine and into the shadow of the grave. - -Our day is not over yet. This section of Ireland so abounds in points of -interest that fearing we may pass any of them the speed of the car is -reduced to that of a donkey-cart, in fact, several of the latter pass us -with great show of speed and scornful glances cast by ancient dames at -our crawling monster, while the donkey kicks dust in our faces--whether -from contempt of us or a desire to get home to supper he takes no time -to state, but the fact remains. - -Our way leads down by the sea, and leaving the car to puff itself to -sleep, we pass through the downs on the cliffs and out on to the point -of Baginbun. If you are not versed in Irish history, you will wonder why -you are brought here--it is pretty, yes, certainly, but you have seen -other places far more so. There is a little cove just under you where -the waters murmur and whisper, but what of that? Well, that is Baginbun -and just there, though time and tide have long since obliterated the -marks of their ships' prows, landed the English for the first time in -Ireland. Fitzstephens and his band of adventurers in May, 1169, landed -there and doubtless climbed this hill where we stand knee deep in the -grass to day. What that meant to Ireland is told in the history of all -the ensuing years down to this latter day. How many readers are aware of -the Bull of Pope Adrian IV. handing Ireland body and soul over to Henry -II. of England,--let us quote a bit of it just here. - - "Adrian, Bishop, servant of the servants of God, to our well - beloved son in Christ, the illustrious King of the English, health - and apostolical benediction. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Dining-room, Curraghmore House - Seat of the Marquis of Waterford] - - "Your highness is contemplating the laudable and profitable work of - gaining a glorious fame on earth, and augmenting the recompense of - bliss that awaits you in heaven, by turning your thoughts, in the - proper spirit of a Catholic Prince, to the object of widening the - boundaries of the Church, explaining the true Christian faith to - those ignorant and uncivilised tribes, and exterminating the - nurseries of vices from the Lord's inheritance. In which matter, - observing as we do the maturity of deliberation and the soundness - of judgment exhibited in your mode of proceeding, we cannot but - hope that proportionate success will, with the Divine permission, - attend your exertions. - - "Certainly there is no doubt but that Ireland and all the Islands - upon which Christ, the Sun of Righteousness, hath shined, and - which have received instruction in the Christian faith, do belong - of right to St. Peter and the Holy Roman Church, as your grace - also admits. For which reason we are the more disposed to - introduce into them a faithful plantation and to engraft among - them a stock acceptable in the sight of God, in proportion as we - are convinced from conscientious motives that such efforts are - made incumbent on us by the urgent claims of duty. - - "You have signified to us, son, well-beloved in Christ, your - desire to enter the island of Ireland in order to bring that - people into subjection to laws, and to exterminate the nurseries - of vices from the country; and that you are willing to pay to St. - Peter an annual tribute of one penny for every house there, and to - preserve the ecclesiastical rights of that land uninjured and - inviolate. We, therefore, meeting your pious and laudable desire - with the favour which it deserves, and graciously according to - your petition, express our will and pleasure that, in order to - widen the bounds of the Church, to check the spread of vice, to - reform the state of morals and promote the inculcation of virtuous - dispositions, you shall enter that island and execute therein what - shall be for the honour of God and the welfare of the country. And - let the people of that land receive you in honourable style and - respect you as their Lord. Provided always that ecclesiastical - rights be uninjured and inviolate, and the annual payment of one - penny for every house be secured for St. Peter and the Holy Roman - Church. - - "If then, you shall be minded to carry into execution the plan - which you have devised in your mind, use your endeavour diligently - to improve that nation by the inculcation of good morals; and - exert yourself, both personally and by means of such agents as you - employ (whose faith, life, and conversation you shall have found - suitable for such an undertaking), that the Church may be adorned - there, that the religious influence of the Christian faith may be - planted and grow there; and that all that pertains to the honour - of God and the salvation of souls may, by you, be ordered in such - a way as that you may be counted worthy to obtain from God a - higher degree of recompense in eternity, and at the same time - succeed in gaining upon earth a name of glory throughout all - generations." - -In such words this island, which had been faithful to the Church of Rome -for centuries, was handed over by its head to bloodshed and murder. - -That the progress of the King was watched and approved of is amply set -forth in the letter of Pope Alexander III.: - - "Alexander, Bishop, servant of the servants of God, to our well - beloved son in Christ, Henry, the illustrious King of the English, - greeting and apostolical benediction. - - "It is not without very lively sensations of satisfaction that we - have learned, from the loud voice of public report, as well as - from the authentic statements of particular individuals, of the - expedition which you have made in the true spirit of a pious King - and magnificent prince against that nation of the Irish (who, in - utter disregard of the fear of God, are wandering with unbridled - licentiousness into every downward course of crime, and who have - cast away the restraints of the Christian religion and of - morality, and are destroying one another with mutual slaughter), - and of the magnificent and astonishing triumph which you have - gained over a realm into which, as we are given to understand, the - Princes of Rome, the triumphant conquerors of the world, never, in - the days of their glory, pushed their arms, a success to be - attributed to the ordering of the Lord, by whose guidance, as we - undoubtedly do believe, your serene highness was led to direct the - power of your arms against that uncivilised and lawless people." - -There exists to-day the complaint of the Irish Princes to Pope John -XXII. in answer to a letter from him to the Irish prelates empowering -them to launch the thunders of the Church against all, whether lay or -ecclesiastical, who were guilty of disaffection to the ruling powers. -This from their holy head in favour of the English was felt very keenly -all over the land and called forth the document referred to above. - - "In the name of Donald O'Neill, King of Ulster, and rightful - hereditary successor to the throne of all Ireland, as well as - Princes and Nobles of the same realm with the Irish people in - general present their humble salutations approaching with kisses of - devout homage to his sacred feet." - -They lay before him, "with loud and imploring cry," the treatment they -have received, and also an account of their descent from Milesius, the -_Spaniard_, through a line of one hundred and thirty-six kings unto the -time of St. Patrick, A.D. 435. From that saint's day until 1170 -sixty-one kings had ruled who acknowledged no superior, in things -temporal, and by whom the Irish Church was endowed. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Kilruddery House - Earl of Meath] - - "'At length,' say the Princes, 'your predecessor, Pope Adrian, an - Englishman--although not so completely in his origin as in his - feelings and connections,--in the year of our Lord 1155, upon the - representation, false and full of iniquity, which was made to him - by Henry, King of England--the monarch under whom, and perhaps at - whose instigation, St. Thomas, of Canterbury, in the same year, - suffered death, as you are aware, in defence of Justice and of the - Church,--made over the dominion of this realm of ours in a certain - set form of words to that Prince, whom, for the crime here - mentioned, he ought rather to have been deprived of his own - kingdom; presenting him _de facto_ with what he had no right to - bestow, while the question touching the justice of the proceeding - was utterly disregarded, Anglican prejudices, lamentable to say, - blinding the vision of that eminent Pontiff. And thus despoiling us - of our royal honour, without any offence of ours, he handed us over - to be lacerated by teeth more cruel than those of any wild beasts. - For, ever since the time when the English, upon occasion of the - grant aforesaid, and under the mask of a sort of outward sanctity - and religion, made their unprincipled aggression upon the - territories of our realm, they have been endeavouring, with all - their might, and with every art which perfidy could employ, - completely to exterminate, and utterly to eradicate our people from - the country ... and have compelled us to repair, in the hope of - saving our lives, to mountainous, woody and swampy and barren - spots, and to the caves of the rocks also, and in these, like - beasts, to take up our dwelling for a length of time.' - - "The Princes enclosed a copy of Pope Adrian's Bull, along with - their Complaint, to Pope John, which Bull the latter Pope - forwarded to King Edward.... - - "The part which the _Church of Rome_ has taken, not only in the - bringing of _Ireland_ under _English rule_ in the first instance, - but in the _maintenance_ of that rule, has _never been understood - by the Irish people in general_. - - "Dr. Lanigan, whose history of Ireland is expensive and scarce, - says of Pope Adrian that 'love of his country, his wish to gratify - Henry, and some other not very becoming reasons, prevailed over - every other consideration, and the condescending Pope, with - great cheerfulness and alacrity, took upon himself to make over to - Henry all Ireland, and got a letter, or Bull, drawn up to that - effect and directed to him, in which, among other queer things, he - wishes him success in his undertaking, and expresses the hope that - it will conduce, not only to his glory in this world, but likewise - to his eternal happiness in the next.'[8] - - "Adrian's old master was one Marianus, an Irishman, for whom he - had great regard, yet, says Dr. Lanigan, 'he was concerned in - hatching a plot against that good man's country, and in laying the - foundation of the destruction of the independence of Ireland.'[9] - - "This is strong language from an Irish Roman Catholic clergyman, - who enjoys the fullest confidence of his country, with regard to a - former Pope, and it must be remembered that the statement was not - made in a platform speech, when momentary excitement might impel a - speaker into the use of words which he would afterwards regret, - but that it was calmly and deliberately penned in the quietness of - the study, and, probably, read and re-read, and finally corrected, - before it was committed to print. - - "The Rev. M.J. Brennan, O. S. F., who is not at all so - unprejudiced as Dr. Lanigan, states that 'Adrian, anxious for the - aggrandisement of his country,' or, as Cardinal Pole expresses it, - 'induced by the love of his country, lost no time in complying - with the agent's request.'[10] The agent referred to was John of - Salisbury, who had been sent by King Henry in 1155 to ask for the - Pope's sanction for the invasion of Ireland, and who states that - the invasion was delayed until 1171 by the restraining influence - of the King's mother, the Empress Matilda. With this statement Dr. - Lanigan agrees.[11] - - "It is a mistake to suppose that the Conquest of Ireland is due to - the appeal made in 1168 by Dermot MacMurrogh for King Henry's aid. - That event merely afforded to the King and the Pope a convenient - excuse for carrying out a long-determined plan. - - "Attempts have been made on various grounds to justify Pope - Adrian's action. Edmund Campion, the famous English Jesuit, - alleges that the Spanish ancestors of the Irish were subject '376 - years ere Christ was born' to one Gurguntius, from whom King Henry - was descended, and that, consequently, the Pope only helped to - restore to Henry his rightful authority.[12] But this notion is - too far-fetched to deserve consideration. - - "A more plausible excuse is that about a century previous to the - Conquest the Irish handed over to the Pope of that time--Urban - II.--the sovereignty of this country. This theory was advocated by - the Rev. Geoffrey Keatinge, D.D. - - "But a still more popular excuse is, that all the Christian - Islands of the Ocean were conferred on the Popes by the first - Christian Emperor, Constantine. - - "Dr. Lanigan brushes aside all these fanciful ideas with one - sweep. 'This nonsense' he says, 'of the Pope's being the head - owner of all Christian Islands had been partially announced to the - world in a Bull of Urban II., dated 1091, in which, on disposing - of the Island of Corsica, he said that the Emperor Constantine had - given the Islands to St. Peter and his vicars. But Constantine - could not give what did not belong to him, and accordingly, as - Keatinge argues, could not have transferred the sovereignty of - Ireland to any Pope.'[13] - - "As to Keatinge's own idea, namely, that the Irish had transferred - their crown to the Pope, Dr. Lanigan writes: 'Neither in any of - the Irish annals, nor in the ecclesiastical documents of those - times, whether Roman or Irish, is there a trace to be found of a - transfer of Ireland to Urban II., or to any Pope, by either the - Irish Kings or Irish nobility, although the sly Italian, Polydore - Virgil, who has been followed by two Englishmen, Campion and - Sanders (both Jesuits), and also by some Irish writers, has told - some big lies on this subject. These stories were patched up in - spite of Chronology, or of any authority whatsoever, and Keatinge - swallowed them as he did many others.'"[14] - -There is much more to be read on the subject and those who are -interested in the question cannot do better than examine that very -excellent little work of John Roche Ardill, _Forgotten Facts of Irish -History_,[15] from which the foregoing pages are a quotation. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Glendalough] - -A very recent writer (Thomas Addis Emmet) states that - - "It would be inconsistent with the truth were we to attribute the - piteous condition of Ireland to any other cause than that the great - majority of the Irish people belong to the Catholic faith. Had the - Irish been willing to cast aside, for temporal benefit, the faith - which they have unflinchingly maintained for over twelve centuries, - their country would have received every aid to advance prosperity, - which would, with their greater advantages of soil and climate, - have been far greater than that attained by Scotland."[16] - -What has Mr. Emmet to say of the treatment of the Irish people by the -English _Romanists_ from Henry II. down to and including the reign of -Mary the First? He will scarcely find that the students of Irish history -will agree with his statement. - -There is another tale, legend or fact, in which, of course, a woman -and her abduction from her husband, O'Roirke, Prince of Breffin, by -Dermot MacMurrogh, King of Leinster, with her own consent many think, -was the cause of the interposition of the English, and she is called -the Irish Helen. Dermot fled to England and laid his case before the -King, craving protection and swearing allegiance. Henry was too busily -engaged in France to attend, but he did issue an edict offering his -protection to all who might aid his trusted _subject_, Dermot, King of -Leinster. - -This aroused Richard, Earl of Chepstow, called "Strongbow," who for his -assistance was to receive the hand of Dermot's daughter in marriage, and -a settlement of all of that Irish King's property upon them and their -children (a contract which was fulfilled), but Strongbow being tardy was -anticipated by Robert Fitzstephens, who agreed to assist Dermot, and was -to receive in payment the town of Wexford and adjoining lands, and he it -was whose boats landed on this little beach, where the water murmurs so -quietly to-night. - -Dermot in his castle yonder at Ferns awaited the coming of these -invaders, and promptly sent his natural son Donald with five hundred -horse to join them, and so the game was played, and his throne restored -to him. - -Then came Strongbow, then Henry II. with his armies, and the English -were here to stay. - -Whatever the facts of the case are, it is certain that just here landed -the first of the English, and from here spread their rule,--whether for -good or ill is the great question of to-day in this island. There are no -relics of the event, though there appear to be some earthworks which are -thought of Celtic origin. - -The leagues are not many which separate this cliff from Cardiganshire in -Wales, and a friendly intercourse was kept up until Pope and King came -together in solemn conclave. - -One of that King's first acts was the bestowal of Dublin upon the "good -citizens of my town of Bristol." The capital of a kingdom bestowed upon -the _traders_ of Bristol! The original of this gift is in the Record -Office of Dublin castle. - -Would it have been any satisfaction to those of the land which he had so -oppressed to have known of the ending of this "Great King"? Dying at -Chinon in a rage so terrible that even death could not smooth out the -traces from his face, Henry II.'s body was plundered like the -Conqueror's, and, like his, left stark naked. Shrouded at last in some -cast-off garments, it was placed in its coffin, a rust-broken sceptre -stuck in its hand, an old and meaningless ring of no value on its -finger, while the crown on its brow was composed of a piece of gold -fringe torn from a discarded robe of some court dame, who doubtless had -curtsied to the ground many times before the living monarch. In such -state, Henry II. was buried in the stately abbey of Fontevrault and -promptly forgotten, though the wrongs he did Ireland lived on and on. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[8] King's _Eccles. Hist. of Ireland_, vol. iv., p. 159. - -[9] _Ib._, p. 158. - -[10] _Eccles. Hist. of Ireland_, vol. i., p. 305. - -[11] It is interesting to notice that the Bull was issued in -the year 1155, that is sixteen years before the invasion took place. -This was one of the earliest transactions in the popedom of Adrian and -the kingship of Henry, as it was only in December of the previous year, -1154, they were elevated to their respective thrones. In 1155 the -proposal to seize Ireland was considered at the Parliament of -Winchester. (King's _Eccles. Hist. of Ireland_, p. 492.) - -[12] _History of Ireland_, p. 71. - -[13] _Eccles. Hist. of Ireland_, vol. iv., p. 160. - -[14] _Ib._, p. 161. - -[15] Hodges, Figgis & Co., 1905. - -[16] _Ireland under English Rule, or a Plea for the Plaintiff_, -by Thomas Addis Emmet, M.D., LL.D. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - - Wild Times in Ireland--Landlord and Tenant--Evictions--Boycott at - Bannow House--The Parson and the Legacy--The Priest and the - Whipping--Burial in Cement--Departure from Bannow House--Kilkenny - and her Cats--The Mountains of Wicklow--Powers Court and a Week - End--Run to Dublin and an Encounter by the Way--The Irish - Constabulary--Motor Runs in the Mountains--Lord H. - - -Ireland has seen strange wild times, and no section of it more than this -remote County Wexford. As I have stated, this estate of Bannow is -eighteen miles from a railroad station now, but in another month a new -line three miles away opens for traffic, and though a good thing for the -property of all in the county, it will sound the knell of probably all -the quaint and curious customs still in vogue here. If that railway -company is wise it will build a seaside hotel in this neighbourhood. The -climate is for most of the year delightful and is rarely subject to the -howling tempests which so constantly sweep the west coast for half the -year. Wexford abounds in beautiful scenery and almost every valley holds -a charming home while quaint towns crowd the river banks and ruined -towers crown the hills on either side. - -[Illustration: Tom Moore's Tree - Vale of Ovoca] - -The maintenance of many of these Irish estates becomes each year more -and more difficult unless the whole is strictly entailed. This is -especially the case with places of small income, say two or three -thousand pounds sterling. In the days when rents were good and five per -cent. obtained it was well enough, but to-day when three per cent. is -all that can be hoped for and yet the old charges for dowers and -legacies must be paid, the owner is perforce a poor man. At present the -landlord seems to have no rights. His tenants may and do absolutely -refuse to pay him rent and he is reduced to poverty. There is a case I -know of where the tenants are amply able to pay him, but they simply -_won't_. His only resource is eviction, which is slow, expensive, and -brings down wrath upon his head. So he is forced to give up his home and -retire to a cottage, while his tenants laugh at him. - -In the case of the peasants, eviction is not only expensive but useless. -No man will rent the hut of those turned out, no matter how many years -drift by, and some landlords are reinstating their evicted tenants. -Better them than empty farms. - -With the new Land Act the tenants dictate that they will buy or nothing. -Of course there have arisen the usual number of scoundrels who get -behind these peasants, buy out their rights, and in the end get the land -for a song. There are several instances where such men who at one time -broke stones on the highway are now landowners of considerable extent. I -heard of one the other day who was just adding a billiard-room to his -"mansion." - -There is much said over here about the corruption of our city -governments, especially those of Chicago and New York, but I also hear -that that of the city of Dublin is to say the very least nothing to -boast of, and that graft has even penetrated London itself. - -Home rule for the peasants of Ireland, so it is stated here, would be -about as sensible as a rule of the blacks in America. When the leaders -in Parliament found they could make no more money by the disturbances, -they called them off, and one of the members of that august body was -kicked all the way down this peaceful avenue before me here and out -yonder gate for abuse of the late Queen. - -During the boycott, Bannow House was in a state of siege and its owner -forced to start a store on the lawn for his own workmen, who could not -purchase anywhere. These provisions were brought from London under -guard. - -After his death--in 1881--his grave, guarded by policemen for -twenty-four hours--until the concrete in which his coffin had been -buried had set,--was surrounded all the time by a howling mob who would -have promptly "had him out" otherwise. - -He hated the parson and so left the church's legacy of two thousand -pounds to the "next incumbent," or rather the interest thereof, but the -parson was equal to the occasion, and, resigning, got himself -re-elected, and so became the "next incumbent" and secured the interest. - -There was another instance here where the holy man, this time a priest, -did not fare so well. He had attacked a member of his parish from the -pulpit, and thereby aroused the ire of the wife. She was about six feet -tall, and following the priest into the vestry-room flogged him soundly. -It was a foolish thing to do, as it roused the whole country round about -and she and her household almost starved from the boycott which promptly -followed. On her death it was necessary to bury her also in cement, to -prevent desecration, every man at the funeral carrying a gun. - -Fortunately those days are gone by, let us hope for all time, but with a -people so ignorant and superstitious anything may happen and if that -cattle driving does not cease old times will come again. - -It is quiet enough here this morning; the peace of the country is -intense, yet to me it is never a solitude, never lonely, and it is -delicious to awake in the early light and feel the cool, damp air blow -in upon one through the open window, while even at this hour of dawn -yonder old reprobate of a wood pigeon is earnestly entreating Paddy to -follow the way of the transgressor,--"_two_ coos, Paddy," "two coos." -One can almost hear the stealthy rustle of the departing beasts and the -soft footfall of Paddy. Far beyond the trees where the pigeons hide, the -fair blue of heaven has been rain-washed during the night, and white -clouds drift lazily off towards the sea murmuring in the distance. - -To-day brings my stay at Bannow House to a close, I trust not for all -time. After luncheon, bidding our hostess farewell, we roll away through -the avenue of rhododendrons, over the meadows, through the forest, where -the insistent birds try for the last time to corrupt my honesty, and so -out on the highway and off to the north. - -Our route takes us past the site of Scullaboyne House, a spot sadly -famous. - -In the dark days of the rebellion of 1798, New Ross and this vicinity of -Bannow suffered horribly. Indeed the battle at the former town was the -most sanguinary of that period, and an event which followed it here too -horrible to be passed over without notice even at this late date. -Scullaboyne House, but lately deserted by its owner, Capt. King, and -seized by the rebels, was in use as a prison. In the house itself were -confined some thirty-seven men and women and in the adjoining barn were -over one hundred men, women, and children, chiefly, but not exclusively, -Protestants. After their defeat at New Ross the rebels sent word to -destroy these prisoners. Those in the house were called one by one to -the door and shot down, but a worse fate awaited those in the barn, -where firebrands thrown into and upon its roof soon turned the whole -into a red hot furnace. Children were tossed out of the windows to save -them, but only to be impaled upon the pikes of the outlaws. Some -authorities claim that two hundred and thirty persons met their deaths -in Scullaboyne. Certainly the French Revolution can show nothing more -horrible. - -[Illustration: One of the Seven Churches of Clonmines - County Wexford] - -There is little left here now to recall the event save a few blackened -fragments, which the rich grass and creeping vines are daily covering -more and more each passing year. - -It is claimed by the insurgent party that they had nothing to do with -the slaughter--that it was the act of outlaws, such as are always to be -found dogging the footsteps of contending forces. However that may be, -the result was absolute ruin to the cause of the rebels. Be it recorded -to the credit of the intelligent priests of the day that they at all -times did what they could to prevent like occurrences and save human -life and that amongst the sixty-six persons executed in Wexford, after -that period, for murder and rebellion, only one was a priest. - -But let us hasten away from all this. - -The roadways are superb all over this section of Ireland, and indeed I -have so far encountered none which could be called bad the (worst were -better than we have around most of our cities), and we are at the -extreme south, having circled the island. - -To-day we meet but few motors. Others are not so fortunate, as we -discover by a disturbed roadbed and some fragments of cars lying around. - -The other day, Lord Blank and a friend of his, driving their cars here -on roads running at right angles and shaded by tall hedges,--the noise -of each motor drowned in that of the other,--came together, "sociable -like," at the junction. Result, two cars gone to smash, but bless you -that's "all in a lifetime" in this blessed isle. - -Bicyclists also appear to meet with trouble now and then, as we have -just passed an inn bearing the sign "Broken down cyclists rest free." - -The road from Bannow via New Ross to Kilkenny passes through Inistiogey, -Thomastown, and Bennett's Bridge, and is fine all the way and through -lovely scenery, most of the time by the banks of the Barrow. - -We reach Kilkenny about three P. M., two hours and five minutes out, -about fifty miles, which is good time on Irish routes, because of their -narrowness and the frequent stoppages rendered necessary through -stubborn donkeys and young cattle. - -The approach to Kilkenny is marked, as is most appropriate, by an -increase in the number of cats, sorry looking specimens, most of them. I -must congratulate the town upon her very clean and comfortable Club -Hotel. - -Kilkenny Castle is not of interest save its stately appearance from the -bridge. It has been modernised into a comfortable dwelling-place, -prosaic in the extreme. - -I find in Ireland that the interesting abodes are of two classes only, -the very ancient castle or the square manor-house; the latter, while -appearing modern, have some centuries to their credit and are -characteristic of the country. I certainly have never seen them -elsewhere. Castles such as Kilkenny and Lismore (the Duke of -Devonshire's), while holding somewhere in their vastness remnants of the -ancient strongholds, have, as I have stated, been brought up to date and -out of all interest. - -The same holds with the cathedral here. Even the round tower looks new. -Rolling onward we pass again through the Vale of Ovoca, but have no time -now for more than a glance as the day wanes and rain threatens. - -Entering amongst the mountains of Wicklow, our car balks once or twice -at the grades, but finally makes up its mind to go ahead and so puffs -and pulls and stews with less noise than most motors would be guilty of, -until finally, with a last effort, the highest point is reached, and the -vale beyond is open to our view, with the demesne of Powerscourt -nestling on its farther side. There are few more enchanting prospects in -the British Isles. It would seem from here to be a great bowl, so -completely enclosed in the mountains as to be accessible only by wings. -The billowy foliage is broken at one point by a waterfall some three -hundred feet high, which plunges down into the celebrated glen, "the -Dargle." - -Half-way up the mountain stands the huge mansion of Powerscourt House, -as though it were the royal box in this vast opera-house of nature. -Dublin has many beautiful points in her neighbourhood, more in fact I -think than any other city of Europe, but none so beautiful as this -before us. - -The temptation to linger is strong, but it is late, and there are miles -yet to go. The route drops rapidly downward and then upward until barred -by the gates of the home park, which we are allowed to enter once it is -certain that we are "going to the house" and are not tourists. - -When we reach there every one is abroad in motors, and it is too late -for tea, but not too late for a whiskey and soda, which, being assured -that we are expected,--hosts have been known to forget their -invitations,--is accepted and thoroughly enjoyed. - -Powerscourt, the seat of Viscount Powerscourt came into possession of -the family during the reign of Elizabeth, and is one of the largest -estates in Ireland, having some twenty-six thousand acres within its -bounds. Probably its scenery is more varied and beautiful than that of -any other estate in the kingdom. - -[Illustration: Funeral Crosses by the Wayside - County Wexford] - -One enters a hallway of large dimensions, whose walls and ceilings are -laden with trophies of the chase from all over the world. Skins of every -description cover walls and floors, while chandeliers formed of antlers -hang by the dozens from the ceilings. - -Doffing our coats and rugs on its great table and trying to appear like -white men after our hundred-mile run through rain and mud, we pass into -the morning room and so out on to the terrace beyond, which on this side -of the house stretches along the entire front, while below terrace after -terrace drops downward to a stone balustrade overlooking the lake, -beyond which the land rises tier after tier until the higher mountains -outline against the sky. - -The rain has ceased and the setting sun is casting long shafts of light -into the quivering forests whose leaves are thicker than ever they were -in Vallombrosa. - -But it is chilly and we hunt out the smoking-room where a bright fire -works its will with the winds driven through us all day and we are found -half asleep when host and hostess return. - -These Irish places are not so gorgeous as many in England but an Irish -welcome is something one does not meet with either in England or any -other land, and to-day holds no exception to that rule. They are glad to -see us and the usual stiffness of an entry in a strange house and -amongst strange people is altogether lacking. The time passes so quickly -that the dressing gong sounds all too soon. - -As I mount the stair portraits of the former owners look down upon me, -from those long dead to that of the present owner, presented by his -tenants upon his coming of age, which by the way must have occurred very -lately, as he is the youngest looking man to be the father of two -children that I have ever seen. - -There is another portrait in yonder corner of a man who looks as though -_he_ would like a whiskey and soda on this damp evening, but he must -long since have passed to the land where such things are not. - -At the head of this main stairway, one enters a vast hall supported by -columns. George the Fourth strutted through here in all his gorgeousness -in 1821. As far as Royalty is concerned, that monarch and his successor -certainly marked its lowest stage--the latter the worse of the two, as -he was common. The rebound since then has been so tremendous that one -feels as though gazing from the top of a mountain downward upon the -marshes by the sea. - -One of the late owners of Powerscourt evidently felt great interest in -the house as he placed tablets in many of the rooms indicating what they -were and had been. I am told to go where I like and examine the whole, -but of course I do not penetrate behind closed doors where evidently -there is much of interest. But I do get lost actually as far as the body -is concerned and mentally in a picture of a lady in the dark corner of a -distant gallery, and have to be hunted out when the gong sounds for -dinner. In the dining-room my eye is attracted by a portrait on the -opposite wall. It proves to be one of Lady Jane Grey when a child of -eight or nine years of age, but has a very Dutch appearance and the -original could never have developed into the graceful greyhound-like -creature so familiar to all in the later portraits. - -The living-rooms in these European country houses are so homelike and -comfortable that similar rooms in our Newport houses must strike a -foreigner as very stiff and new, and generally they are just that, for -with few exceptions they are but temporary abiding-places for a few -weeks in summer. - -The drawing-room in Powerscourt is a wide, sunny apartment; in the -daytime its windows, giving on to the terrace, hold a marvellous -panorama framed for one's benefit, but to-night the curtains are dropped -and a bright fire blazes on the hearth around which runs a rail topped -with a broad leather cushion, which forms a most comfortable perch -promptly appropriated by the men, while the ladies are on low seats. - -The walls are covered by pictures of great value and there is much else -of interest around one, yet it is all so homelike and comfortable that -one scarcely remembers any of the details but simply a charming picture -of the whole; and so the time passes until the ladies having vanished we -are again in the smoking-room, where Boyse starts in to talk and would -have kept it up until grey dawn, but I for one am sleepy and detect the -same symptoms in our host, so we suppress Boyse and go to bed. He may -talk to the fire if he likes, but not to us. - -The next day being Sunday I wanted to go to church, but it is intimated -that my presence is not desired. So Boyse and I roll off to Dublin for -letters and en route back break down and nearly miss luncheon in -consequence. - -On our return we encountered one of the rare cases of hatred, pure and -simple, for those of the upper ranks which I have noted in Ireland. The -avenues between Bray and the city were crowded with Sunday -excursionists, and at one point, a van having stopped, the occupants -covered all the roadway and two men stood facing us exactly in the -centre of our only course. Moving at a snail's pace, we trumpeted -constantly and finally stopped directly in front of these men. I have -never noted more malignant snarls on human countenances than these bore -as they grudgingly gave way. "Do ye think ye own the whole shop?" The -fact that we appeared unconscious of their existence only enraged them -the more, and had they dared strike they would have done so, but one is -always sure of the presence of some of those splendid specimens of men, -the Irish constabulary, than whom the world holds of their kind none -better. All over six feet in stature, they are not merely policemen, -ignorant or not as the case may be, but men of education and who must -keep up that education by further study for higher examinations, which -unpassed will cost them their positions. There are three here to-day, -hence those lowering brows and clenched hands disappear. However, we -have encountered but little of that state of feeling in Ireland, the -instances have been few and far between,--a contrast indeed to France, -where a well-dressed man is often impressed with the belief that those -around him would like to erect a guillotine for his express enjoyment -and would do so upon the smallest provocation. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Powerscourt House - Seat of Viscount Powerscourt] - -All the afternoon is spent out of doors. Other guests have arrived, one -with three motors and another with one. Lord P. has several and ours has -been polished up to look its best, but we finally leave it behind, and -stowed away in the others the whole cavalcades spend the afternoon in -wild flights over the hills and mountains. In the rushes through the -valleys we are well together, but in climbing the ascents which around -here are very steep the cars of greater power vanish in the distance and -we do not see them again and only know of their passage by the general -state of wild confusion reigning amongst dogs, geese, and chickens, -which knowing there must be more of us have not as yet returned to the -centre of the highways; except the geese--it takes more than a motor to -keep those doughty birds off the road. - -Those are wonderful fowls. They measure the width of an approaching car -to a nicety, and retreat just beyond that. So near in fact that we have -been struck by their indignant wings several times. - -To-day I am in an enclosed car belonging to Mr. G. Whilst very -comfortable, especially for ladies in a city, I do not think that they -are pleasant to ride in. The constant rumble and roar becomes very -unpleasant, something one never experiences in an open car; also one -loses entirely that sensation of flying so delicious in an open car. -This one makes my head ache, and it is not a matter of regret when, the -ride over, I am out on the lake with Lord H., attempting to tug a duck -house out of the mud. I am quite convinced that I did most of the work, -but I believe he denies that fact. - -I cannot but regret as I look at this young man, certainly not more than -twenty-five years of age, that we have not something like a school for -the study of diplomacy. We might even have such scholarships, now that -we have decided to become a world power in which diplomats are so -necessary. I asked what was the future of this man in question and was -told, "Oh, he will be an ambassador some day, that is what he is working -for," and working for that means the attainment of perfection in all -things necessary for an educated man,--perfection in everything, not a -mere smattering in a few things. This man speaks all the modern -languages of Europe with equal facility. If music is necessary for his -career he has it at his fingers' ends. He is wealthy, but his money will -be used to further his progress, not to kill it. Nothing will interfere -with that. - -I cannot but contrast him with one I know of whose prospects appeared -equally bright, though his education was not at all the equal of this -man's. However, he might have done much with his life, but marrying a -rich wife he promptly resigned and "sat down to good dinners," amounting -now to absolutely nothing, his career ended. - -Abandoning the rescue of the duck house together with graver questions, -we adjourn to the gardens and consume half an hour, and also a lot of -the biggest strawberries I have ever eaten. - -Time flies. Tea on the terrace, to which more motors have brought other -guests, dinner, and the night are over and gone, and we have rolled -away, waving thanks to our host and hostess for the pleasant "week end" -at Powerscourt House. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - - Dublin--Derby Day and the Rush to the Curragh--An Irish Crowd--The - Kildare Street Club and Club Life--Jigginstown House and its - History--The Cowardice of a King--The Old Woman on the Tram - Car--Parnell--The Grave of Daniel O'Connell. - - -Given the capital of Ireland, a bright day in the midsummer of an -exposition year, with the King almost here, and above all the Derby at -hand, and if you are looking for peace and quiet you should go -elsewhere. All Dublin is in an uproar this morning and there is not a -jaunting-car which will look at you for less than double the tariff. -Stately equipages move slowly along, motors of all descriptions pass -like the wind. The beggars are out in full force and if you have a heart -in your bosom you will reach the race-track with not a shilling left -you. Our motor dashes around the corner and up to the door as though it -were new instead of some years of age. The spirit of the races seems to -have gotten into its old bones and it shrieks and snorts and rushes off -with us at an appalling pace notwithstanding the crowded streets and -stone pavements. Out on to the broad highway to the south in company -with the whole town we roll onward past the ruins of Jigginstown House. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Great Salon, Powerscourt House] - -Of the thousands who come this way to-day, few give thought to the house -or its history. They have little time for the past as just a few miles -beyond is the famous Curragh of Kildare, a stretch of the most -marvellous grass-lands in the world, where the turf is of greatest -richness and elasticity. Not for this, and yet because of this, the -people flock four times a year in tens of thousands to worship there at -the altar of the noble horse. The Curragh holds Ireland's greatest -race-course, and has held it for two thousand years. The winner of the -last English Derby is to be on hand and to race to-day and nearly all -Ireland is en route to be present. - -So there is no time for dead Earls and ruined houses on such a day, and -we are swept on and away, for once forgetting our caution and bidding -the chauffeur beat every other motor on the road if he can, and to our -amazement this old "Clement" comes near to doing it, and there are some -very smart cars going down to-day. How the wind does sing around us--if -a cap is lost we do not stop to get it--it would not be possible or safe -to do so with this onrushing crowd behind us. Dogs and chickens get out -of the way in wildest terror, and it seems to me that we take several -turns on two wheels only. It is dangerous work and we know that a break -means destruction most complete, but we cannot help it. Curragh air had -gotten into our heads and go we must. - -After all is said, I think the desire for a race is in every man of us, -inborn and irresistible. Such is the case to-day and our record is good, -though every now and then a sullen rumble and roar and many blasts of a -horn warn us that some car of great power is coming to which we must -give place, and though going at full speed we seem to stand still as it -rushes by us, and here comes in one of the greatest dangers of the road. -The clouds of dust in the wake of such a car are appalling and -impenetrable to sight, yet through this our own car rushes on, trusting -to Providence to keep the way clear. It is a relief to me at least when -it mounts in safety to the downy stretches of the Curragh where there is -no dust, and I find on calling the roll that none of our party is -missing. - -What a beautiful sight! The downs of deep grass stretch away on all -sides crossed and recrossed by the wide highways. Off to the left lies -the great military camp, while in front stretches the race-course, -towards which what seems the whole of Dublin is moving and in every -imaginable manner, from the foot passenger and funny little donkey to -the tally-ho coaches and the gorgeous motor-cars, while over and around -it all rings the Irish laughter, as it has rung around this race-course -of Curragh for two thousand years,--its very name "_Cuir reach_" -implying "race-course." It must mean that to-day at all events, but I -should think that if any sort of a race could disappoint an Irishman -that to-day, the Irish Derby, would do so. It was a foregone conclusion -that the winner of that race in England would be first here,--but to my -thinking it proves no race at all, that horse and another of the same -owner simply running round the course with no show for any other, and -with apparently no speed exerted on their own parts. - -However, it is the changing panorama of the people and not the race -which interests me, and that is not in any degree a disappointment. - -The return to Dublin and on to Bray was the same wild flight as when -going down and a feeling of relief came to me at least when we got -safely back to our hotel, or rather to the exposition grounds where we -dined. What time we reach the hotel and bed I have no memory. Boyse -never got there at all. - -The following day being rainy, I am not disposed to go to the races, and -also learn that our car is in need of attention. However, another must -be forthcoming if desired, and one does come, in which Boyse and a -friend of his, "Copper," are most comfortably packed, and evidently -bound for the Curragh, being Irish. Now, though that is my car, my -absence is evidently very precious to its occupants; still Boyse _does_ -ask kindly whether I "would like to go." What a pressing invitation -that!--much like a blast from the North Atlantic. For an instant I am -tempted to say yes, just to watch their discomfort, but I much prefer -not to go and so state, when--whiz--they vanish like smoke around the -corner, evidently with no intention of allowing any reconsideration on -my part. - -Laughing, I summon a jaunting-car and go to buy my ticket homeward. The -usual tariff for short distances is a sixpence and I hand it over on -descending at the ticket office. The driver evidently has exposition -extortions in his head for, regarding me sourly for an instant, he -remarks, "Ye could 'ave saved five ov thim if ye'd come in the tram." -However, his anger is short lived, and when I laugh he laughs. God bless -you, Pat,--may you succeed in "doing" the next man you carry. - -Many of our evenings have been passed at the Kildare Street Club, of -which Boyse is a member. While they do not give a stranger a week's card -as we do, a member seems to be at liberty to take him there as often as -that member desires, and so the result is the same, if not better. -Certainly at this, the best club in the Irish capital, I was made to -feel as much at home as in my own in America. I shall always remember it -and the men I met there with pleasure. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Ruins of Jigginstown House] - -There are clubs in London, notably the Army and Navy, where one is -treated in the same manner. That club has been growing more and more -liberal of late years. At one period a short while ago, a stranger could -go only to one room and one dining-room. Now in company with a member -the whole club is open to him. There are other London clubs where he may -not even pass the portals, but this is the twentieth century, an age of -reform, and all that will change in time. What homelike and yet what -heartless things clubs are! A man may make his home in one for years, -may have his own particular corner and be the very life and soul of the -house; many would declare that the place could not get on without his -jests and merry laugh, and that they would miss him for ever. How many -would do so? Coming in some day they would note the flag at half mast -and his name on a black bordered card near the door. Most who passed -would not be able to recall his features whilst remembering that they -had drank with him often, and the majority would forget him promptly. -For those who did remember, it would be sad to think that - - "PERIN has gone; and we who loved him best - Can't think of him as - 'entered into rest.' - But he has gone; has left the morning street, - The clubs no longer echo to his feet; - Nor shall we see him lift his yellow wine - To pledge the random host--the purple vine. - At doors of other men his horses wait, - His whining dogs scent false their master's fate; - His chafing yacht at harbour mooring lies; - 'Owner ashore' her idle pennant flies. - Perin has gone-- - - Forsook the jovial ways - Of Winter nights--his well-loved plays, - The dreams and schemes and deeds of busy brain, - And pensive habitations built in Spain. - Gone, with his ruddy hopes! And we who knew him best - Can't think of him as 'entered into rest.' - So when the talk dies out or lights burn dim - We often ponder what is keeping him-- - What destiny that all-subduing will, - That golden wit, that love of life, fulfil? - For we who silent smoke, who loved him best, - Can't fancy Perin 'entered into rest.'" - -The touring is almost over, and I fancy for ever, in Ireland. Our last -day's journey was one of the most pleasant and interesting of the lot. -Having gone to Bray Head to escape the heat of the city, we rolled off -at nine a.m. and passing through town in a rush fled southwards towards -the military camp at Curragh. The day was brilliant and the motor fairly -flew over the highway which to-day we have all to ourselves. - -Passing again the unfinished palace of the Earl of Stratford we paused -to inspect it and to learn its history. - -"Jigginstown" was built by Sir Thomas Wentworth, created Earl of -Stratford by Charles I., who made him Deputy of Ireland and regarded -him at the time as his chief minister and counsellor. In his early -years he was certainly a character of doubtful virtue, as before -this appointment he was as strongly counter to the King as he was -for him after he had received it. The King was subject to a violent -outcry for using a Papist to murder his subjects. Wentworth laboured -under the severe hatred of the English, Scotch, and Irish. He secured -from the Irish Parliament large sums which he used to engage an army -against Scotland. His rule here lasted eight years, and while active -and prudent he was most unpopular. When his fall occurred the Irish -Parliament used every expedient to aggravate the charge against him. -Envy and jealousy both here and in England were the prime causes of his -ruin. - -Knowing the power and deadly hatred of his enemies he implored the King -to excuse him from attending Parliament, but Charles promised that not a -hair of his head should be injured; but his enemies arose in such might, -that no voice was raised in his defence and he was accused of high -treason. The whole affair was a gigantic conspiracy of the leaders of -the Parliament against one man, of whom they could prove no wrong save -that he served the King, and who they were well aware possessed -knowledge of their own treason. "Unprotected by power, without counsel, -discountenanced by authority, what hope had he? yet such was the -capacity, genius, and presence of mind displayed by this magnanimous -statesman that while argument, reason, and law held any place he -obtained the victory and he perished by the open violence of his -enemies." - -(There is a strong resemblance between this trial and that of the Queen -of Scots in Fotheringay the preceding century.) His government of -Ireland was promotive of the King's interests and of the people -commended to his charge. He introduced industries and the arts of peace -and augmented the shipping of the kingdom a hundred fold. The customs -were tripled upon the same rates, the exports doubled in value that of -the imports, and he introduced the manufacture of linen;--that stands -his monument to-day, but,--he was a friend of the King and so must die. - -That is one side of the picture. His enemies claim that whether guilty -of the crime named at the trial or not, he deserved death for his -treatment of the Irish. They state that his project was to subvert the -titles to every estate in Connaught, also that he had sent Lord Ely to -prison to force him (Ely) to settle his estates according to the wishes -of his daughter-in-law, whom Strafford had seduced. The House, on his -condemnation, nobly excluded his children from the legal consequences of -his sentence. - -It is stated that the King was deeply grieved but he certainly did -consent to the deed, though by appointing a commission of four noblemen -to give the royal assent in his name, he flattered himself that neither -his will consented to the deed nor his hand engaged in it. The -exclamation of the doomed man, "Put not your trust in princes," told how -he felt, and so he died in his forty-ninth year, one of the most eminent -personages that has appeared in English history. - -[Illustration: Parnell's Grave - Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin] - -His great unfinished palace rears its walls now close by the highway and -of all the thousands who rush by here to Curragh Camp or races, how many -give it a thought or know who built it? I was told that it was a -monastery whose bricks were passed from hand to hand all the way from -Dublin; others stated that it was an unfinished cotton factory, and it -looks like such. - -It is of red brick, two stories in height, and of great length. Its -arches and brickwork are of the finest, but the whole stands a -melancholy monument to the downfall of human greatness, to the cowardice -of a King. - -From whom did Charles I. inherit such a streak? Certainly not from his -Danish mother, or from his royal grandmother. The worst enemies of the -Stuart Queen never could accuse her of the desertion of her friends. She -was faithful unto death and should deserve the crown of life for that -reason if for none other. But Lord Darnley was never faithful to -anything throughout his entire life, and from that source surely came -this taint in the Stuart kings of England--the degeneracy of James I., -and the cowardice of his son Charles. - -Leaving melancholy Jigginstown behind, we moved on to the Curragh, but -this time to the camp, which, by the way, is one of the largest in the -empire. - -En route, we chased through a drove of cattle, one of which, after -racing with us for some distance, decided finally to take our -right-of-way, and our guard sliding under her hind leg, lifted it high -off the ground, causing her to plunge wildly and the air to be filled -with distant oaths and curses from her owner. She was not hurt at all, -and as the car slid forward and away, clouds of dust hid our number and -defeated all chances of a claim for damages. - -Luncheon with the officers in the mess-tent being over, we started again -citywards, as my days in the land were growing few indeed, to my regret, -and there were some shrines which must be visited or my journey would be -incomplete. - -En route to the tomb of a great statesman we paused to pay our homage at -that of a great divine, Dean Swift, who sleeps in the Cathedral of St. -Patrick under a simple tablet. There, upon an important occasion, when -the cathedral was crowded, he delivered himself of those famous words, -"The Lord loves them that give to the poor, and if you believe in the -security, dump down the dust,"--the shortest sermon ever delivered in -St. Patrick's, and the most effective, for "the dust" came in clouds. - -St. Patrick's blessing must be passing from Ireland at last, as the -papers describe the capture of a brown snake three feet long in a garden -at Ranelagh. - -As we approach the stately cathedral I ask our boy: - -"Is that a Catholic church, Dennis?" - -"No, sor." - -"A Protestant?" - -"No, sor." - -"What then?" - -"A Church of England, sor." - -While these people will generally enter whole-souled into jest or gibe -they will not, it is said, do so with the English, and some of the -encounters with the latter people are amusing in the extreme. - -The other day on the top of a tram car, some Englishwomen were enlarging -upon the not at all times cleanly inhabitants surrounding them. One -remarked that they were all horrid and she should go to Wales where she -would not meet any of "these dirty Irish." An old woman across the tram -could no longer restrain herself, but rising in her wrath, confronted -the Englishwoman with flashing eyes, and "I would not go to Wales ma'am -wur I yez, for yez will find plinty of Irish there; but take my advice -and go to Hell, ye'll find no Irish there." - -A man, killed near Dublin not long since, had been shot through the -forehead, death resulting instantly. The usual crowd gathered, amongst -them an old woman, who for a moment intently regarded the poor fellow, -dead as Pharoah, then, raising her hands and eyes, she ejaculated -"Wusn't it a blessin' of God he wusn't shot in the eye!" What -difference that could have made to him she disdained to explain. - -The last resting place of Daniel O'Connell is in Prospect Cemetery, some -four miles from Dublin. There Parnell also sleeps under the shadow of a -simple iron cross. - -The passing years have called a halt on both of those men. How little we -are conscious of the flight of time until suddenly we find our thoughts, -which before have all been towards the future, have unconsciously to us -turned towards the past, and we are looking backward and not forward. -Then we realize with a sinking heart that for us youth is over and done -with, that for us there is no future save beyond the far horizon. - -The memorial to O'Connell, appropriate in every respect, rears itself in -the stately form of an ancient round tower. Simple and dignified, one -cannot imagine a more appropriate monument to the man who sleeps beneath -it. The tower is of grey stone smoothly polished and rises from a circle -under which is the vault of O'Connell. Around this runs a broad, stone -walk which in its turn is encircled by a rampart, holding many vaults -whose doors open upon the walk, and being all unlocked you may enter -where you will once you pass the outer gate of the circle, generally -locked. To-day, however, the workmen are redecorating the O'Connell -vault and we are allowed to enter. - -[Illustration: Photo by W. Leonard - Daniel O'Connell's Monument - Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin] - -Passing down a broad flight of steps and through an iron grill we find -confronting us, across the circular stone pathway, another grill closing -the centre vault, over whose door is the name "O'Connell." The great -Irishman sleeps alone in the centre of this vault in an altar-like tomb, -through the stone quarterfoils of which you may see and touch his oaken -coffin. The inscription is on a brass frieze around the top. In an -adjoining catacomb are the coffins of several members of his family. I -think such mausoleums are always more impressive when the stone walls -and ceilings are unadorned, but such is not the taste here and the -ceilings and walls were being painted in gorgeous colours. - -It is a useless expense, as with the arches and walls covered with -moisture, the work will be undone very shortly. The plain stone would be -infinitely more impressive and dignified, surely, like the tower above, -more in keeping with the character of the illustrious dead. - -As we leave the cemetery I turned for a last look at the shrine of -Ireland. I have seen, I think, the final resting places of all the -illustrious dead of the earth, and I know of none which has more -profoundly impressed me than this stately tomb of Daniel O'Connell, with -whose name let us close these sketches of the land he loved so -well--Ireland. - - - - -INDEX - - - A - - Achill, island of, 50, 53, 57, 60, 62, 64, 95, 156, 173 - - Adrian IV., Pope, 248, 252, 253, 255 - - Aldworth, Mrs., 153 - - Alexander III., Pope, 251 - - Antrim, 26 - - Ardill, John Roche, 256 - - Armagh, 22, 27 - - Arran, 32 - - Augustine, Abbot, 165 - - Auxerre, 26 - - Awbeg, 146 - - - B - - Baginbun, 248 - - Ballentine, Nancy, 21 - - Ballinaboy Bridge, 85 - - Ballybeg Abbey, 140, 146 - - Ballycastle, 33, 34, 173 - - Ballygalley Bay, 32 - - Ballymena, 26 - - Ballynahinch, 85 - - Bannow, 184, 189, 231, 234, 246, 247, 260, 264 - - Bannow church, 191, 192 - - Bannow House, 184, 186, 188, 242, 262, 264 - - Bantry Bay, 173 - - Beddoes, Major, 135, 154, 156 - - Belfast, 31 - - Bennett's Bridge, 266 - - Biddy, 90, 91 - - Birr, 101, 104, 115 - - Birr Castle, 102, 103 - - Blackwater, 162, 180 - - Blake, Mr. and Mrs., 44 - - Blarney, 167 - - Boggeragh Mountains, 173 - - Bohemia, Queen of, 205 - - Bombay, 157 - - Bowen, Mr., 40 - - Boyne, the, 12 - - Boyse family, the, 185, 191 - - Braganza, Catherine of, 157 - - Bray, 234, 299 - - Bray Head, 282 - - Brenan, Rev. M. J., 254 - - Bretons, 138 - - Brice, Archbishop, 121 - - Brigid, St., 28 - - Brittany, 138 - - Bruce, Edward, 123 - - Buchanan, George, 19 - - Bundoran, 37, 52 - - Burne-Jones, 155 - - Burrishoole, 77, 78 - - Bushmills, 36 - - Butlers, 124 - - Buttevant, 127, 130, 132, 134, 148, 150, 160, 214 - - Buttevant Castle, 147 - - - C - - "Caiseal," 123 - - Campion, Edmund, 255, 256 - - Cantyre, 32 - - Carrickfergus, 31 - - Carrig-a-Hooly, 77, 78, 80 - - Carrig-a-pooka, 174 - - Carrolls, the, 101, 102 - - Cashel, 44, 127, 129 - - Cashel, Rock of, 120, 121, 123-125 - - "Castle of Roses," 78 - - Castlebar, 73 - - Castletown, Lord, 151 - - Caucasus, 78 - - Caulfields, the, 61 - - Celtic tongue, the, 86, 87 - - Charles I., King, 97, 205, 206 - - Charles II., King, 132, 157, 185 - - Charlotte, Queen, 186 - - Chinon Castle, 259 - - "Cios-ail," 125 - - Claddagh, 99 - - Clare, island of, 75, 79, 80 - - Clare, Lady Isabel de, 195 - - Clarence, Duke of, 206, 207 - - Clares, the de, 195 - - Clew Bay, 50 - - Clifden, 85 - - "Cloicoheach," 123 - - Clonmacnoise, 114-116 - - Clonmel, 126, 218, 219 - - Clonmines, 167, 246, 247 - - "Cluain-maccu-Nois," 115 - - "Cluan-mac-noise," 115 - - Colclough, Sir Anthony, 198, 202 - - Coleraine, 36 - - Columba, St., 28 - - Connemara, 82 - - Constantine, Emperor, 255, 256 - - "Copper," 279 - - Cork, 175, 176, 178, 210, 211, 213 - - Cormac, King, 10 - - Cormac's Chapel, 122, 125, 282, 283, 288 - - Coro, 125 - - Cotton, Archdeacon, 121 - - Cromwell, Edward, Lord, 28 - - Cromwell, Oliver, 97, 218, 224 - - Culloden, battle of, 103 - - Cumberland, Duke of, 103 - - Curragh, the, 277-279, 282, 285 - - Curragh Camp, 288 - - Curraghmore House, 219, 221, 223, 224 - - Curraun, Peninsula of, 54 - - Currick-Patrick, 125 - - - D - - D----, Captain, 158, 159 - - Dame Court, Dublin, 36 - - Danes, the, 12, 28, 123, 181 - - Dargle, the, 268 - - Dark Valley, 68 - - Darnley, Lord, 285 - - Deasy, Jerry, 174 - - Decies, 123 - - Declan, St., 123 - - De Courcey, 28 - - Derby, 227 - - Desmond, Earl of, 129, 130 - - Desmonds, the, 128, 150 - - Dichu, 27 - - Dickens, Charles, 230 - - "Dinnis," 163, 168 - - Doneraile Court, 150, 152, 153, 187 - - Donnelly, Bishop, 27 - - Dooley's Hotel, Birr, 103 - - Doo Lough, 82, 85 - - Doordry, 125 - - Downpatrick, 26, 27, 31 - - Dowth, 12 - - Drogheda, 13 - - Drum-feeva, 125 - - Dublin, 6, 14, 23, 227, 228, 279, 282 - - Dublin Fusiliers, 132, 158 - - Dudley, Lady, 58 - - Dugort, 61 - - Dunbrody Abbey, 183 - - Dundalethglass, 27 - - Dundrum, 25 - - Dunloe, Gap of, 169 - - - E - - Edison, Mr., 237 - - Edward IV., King, 206 - - Edward VI., King, 204 - - Edward VII., King, 23 - - Elizabeth, Queen, 22, 79, 202, 246 - - Ely, Earl of, 190 - - Ely, King of, 125 - - Emmet, Thomas Addis, 257 - - Erne, Lough, 37 - - - F - - Fee Lough, 85 - - Fermoy, 160, 178, 179, 214, 215 - - Fermoy, Lord, 215 - - Ferns Castle, 258 - - Fethard, 218 - - Ffranckfort Castle, 102, 110, 112, 113 - - Fitzgeralds, 124 - - Fitzstephens, Robert, 248, 258 - - Fontevrault, 259 - - _Forgotten Facts of Irish History_, 256 - - Franciscan Friary, 182 - - French, Walter, 190 - - - G - - Galty Mountains, 126 - - Galway, 14, 40, 44, 66, 88, 94, 95, 97, 99-101, 168 - - Gaughans, 61 - - Germanus, Bishop, 26 - - Giant's Causeway, 34, 35, 167 - - Gladstone, 14 - - Glasgow, 31 - - Glendalough, 123, 231-233 - - Glengariff, 170, 172 - - Grace, Queen, 77, 78 - - Gurguntius, 255 - - - H - - H----, Lord, 274 - - "Harp of Erin," 105 - - Henry II., King, 123, 248, 251-255, 257, 259 - - Henry VI., King, 206, 246 - - Henry VII., King, 206 - - Henry VIII., King, 79, 129, 183 - - Henry, Mr., 89 - - Herberts, the, 170 - - Heremon, King, 9 - - Holy Cross Abbey, 117, 120 - - Hook, tower, 198 - - Hore family, 246 - - Horl, Abbey of, 126 - - "House in the Bog," 41, 42 - - - I - - Imperial Hotel, Cork, 175 - - Inchiquin, Lord, 124 - - Inistioge, 266 - - Innisfallen, 165-167 - - _Irish Cyclist_, 36 - - - J - - James II., King, 11, 12 - - Jigginstown House, 277, 282, 285 - - John XXII., Pope, 251, 253 - - John, King, 10, 28, 182 - - "John of the Glen," 64, 67-71 - - John of Salisbury, 254 - - - K - - Keatinge, Rev. Geoffrey, 255, 256 - - "Keening," 56 - - Kellarn, 125 - - Kelly, Daniel, 130 - - Kenmare, domain, 170 - - Kevin, St., 232 - - Kieran, St., 115 - - Kilcoman Castle, 150 - - Kildare, Earl of, 124 - - Kildare Street Club, 6, 280 - - Kilkenny, 23, 266, 267 - - Killarney, 161, 163, 167-170 - - Killary Bay, 82 - - Killary Harbour, 85 - - Killshening House, 215 - - Kilmalloch, 127-130 - - Kilruddery House, 228-230 - - Kimbolton Castle, 18 - - King, Captain, 264 - - Knockninoss, 147 - - "Knockshigowna," 106 - - Kylemore Castle, 88-93 - - - L - - Lanigan, Dr., 253-256 - - Larne, 32 - - Lavelles, the, 61 - - Leap Castle, 102, 104, 106, 108 - - Lee, the, 178 - - Leenane, 82, 83, 85 - - Lely, Sir Peter, 196 - - Letterfrack, 85 - - Limavady, 36 - - Lis-no-Lachree, 125 - - Llemish Mountain, 26 - - Londonderry, 37 - - Loo-ee, 125 - - Lorrha, 101-103 - - Louis le Grand, 90 - - Louisburgh, 80, 85 - - Lynch, family of, 98 - - Lynch, James, 98 - - - M - - Mac Art, Cormac, 8 - - MacCarthys, the, 174 - - MacMurrogh, Dermot, 255, 257, 258 - - Macroom Castle, 174, 175 - - Mallaranny, 50-52, 62, 64, 77, 84 - - Mallow, 161, 162 - - Manchester, Duke of, 92, 217 - - Mantua House, 40, 41, 48 - - Marianus, 254 - - Marine Hotel, Ballycastle, 33 - - Martin, St., of Tours, 26 - - Mary Queen of Scots, 19 - - Matilda, Empress, 255 - - Mayo, 72, 78, 179 - - Mayo Mountains, 71 - - Meath, Earl of, 228 - - Mecridy's Maps, 36 - - Michael, Sacristan, 166 - - Michu, 26 - - Milesius, 252 - - Monahans, 61 - - Moore, Tom, 233, 234 - - Mourne Mountains, 25 - - Moyle, the, 218 - - Muckross, 170, 171 - - Munster, kings of, 122 - - - N - - Navan, 10, 11 - - Neagh, Loch, 167 - - Nestorian Christians, 59 - - Neville, John, 246 - - Newcastle, 25 - - New Grange, 11 - - New Port, 50, 66, 84 - - New Ross, 184 - - Newry, 13-15, 25 - - - O - - O'Brien, Donald, 123 - - O'Carrolls, 107 - - O'Connell, Daniel, 288, 289 - - O'Conner, 166 - - Offaly, 123 - - O'Flynns, the, 174 - - O'Hallon, Redmond, 15 - - O'Halloran, 32 - - O'Malleys, 61 - - - O'Neill, Donald, King of Ulster, 252 - - O'Rourke, Prince, 257 - - Ormond, 125 - - Ormond, Earl of, 129 - - Ovoca, Vale of, 233, 267 - - - P - - P----, Mrs., 225 - - Parnell, 288 - - Parsonstown, 101 - - Patrick, St., 10, 24, 26, 28, 122, 125, 252 - - "Patrick's Sabball," 27 - - Penshurst, 204 - - Peterborough, 207 - - Phoenix Park, 7 - - Pointz-pass, 15 - - Pole, Cardinal, 254 - - Pope, the, 23 - - Portugal, 158 - - Powerscourt, 267, 270, 271 - - Powerscourt House, 231, 275 - - Powerscourt, Viscount, 267, 273 - - Prospect Cemetery, 288 - - Ptolemy, 8 - - Purcell, Sir Hugh, 182 - - - Q - - "Queen of Hearts," 205 - - - R - - Read, T. Buchanan, 105 - - Recess, 85, 88, 91 - - Redmond, 198 - - Reginald, 181, 182 - - Richard, Earl of Chepstow, 258 - - Richard, King, 206 - - Rolleston, Major, 110, 111 - - Roscommon, 40, 42, 48 - - "Royal Irish," the, 188 - - - S - - St. Dominick, Abbey of, Lorrha, 102 - - St. James's Palace, 208 - - St. Ledger, Hon. Mary, 153 - - St. Ledger, William, 152 - - St. Mary's, Abbey of, Trim, 10 - - St. Nicholas, Church of, Claddagh, 100 - - St. Patrick's Cathedral, 286 - - Salis, Count de, 15 - - Saul, Church of, Strangford Lough, 26 - - Scullaboyne House, 264, 265 - - Shandon bells, 167, 175, 213 - - Shannon, the, 115 - - "Shan Van Do," the, 68 - - Shelburn Hotel, Dublin, 3 - - Sidneys, the, 204 - - Skreen, Hill of, 8 - - Slieve Donard, 25 - - Slievemore, 61 - - Slievenaman Hills, 126 - - Sligo, county of, 37, 40, 55, 179 - - Spenser, 150, 152 - - Stanford's, 36 - - "Stone of Destiny," 10 - - Strafford, Earl of, 282 - - Strangford, 26, 31 - - Strongbow, 28, 195, 258 - - Stuart, Mary, 207 - - Succat, 26 - - Suir River, 116, 181 - - Sutton, Sir Roger de, 246 - - Swift, Dean, 286 - - - T - - Tamara, Queen, 78 - - Tanderagee, 15, 17, 19, 24, 92 - - Tara Hill, 7-10 - - Taylor, Bayard, 113 - - Teheran, 59 - - Temora, 9 - - Thea, 9 - - Thomas, St., 252 - - Thomastown, 266 - - Thomond, King of, 123 - - Tintern Abbey, 194, 196, 197, 200 - - Tipperary Vale, 126 - - Toombeola Bridge, 85 - - Trim, 10 - - Tully Chapel, 85 - - Tyburn, 130 - - - U - - Urban II., Pope, 255, 256 - - - V - - Victoria Hotel, Killarney, 163 - - Virgil, Polydore, 256 - - - W - - W----, Marquis of, 219 - - Waterford, 180-183 - - Waterford, Lady, 223 - - Wayte Bros., 218 - - Wentworth, Sir Thomas, 282 - - Westport, 85 - - Wexford, 182, 185, 194, 246, 260, 265 - - Whitehall, 204 - - Wicklow, 231, 267 - - William III., King, 11 - - "Wingfield," 104-106, 108 - - - - - _A Selection from the - Catalogue of_ - - G. 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