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diff --git a/old/54209-0.txt b/old/54209-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 77cbe44..0000000 --- a/old/54209-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1534 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. 12, -September 19, 1840, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. 12, September 19, 1840 - -Author: Various - -Release Date: February 19, 2017 [EBook #54209] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IRISH PENNY JOURNAL, SEPT 19, 1840 *** - - - - -Produced by Brownfox and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by JSTOR www.jstor.org) - - - - - - - - - - - THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL. - - NUMBER 12. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1840. VOLUME I. - -[Illustration: THE TOWN OF ANTRIM.] - -Travellers whose only knowledge of our towns is that derived in passing -through the principal street or streets, will be very apt to form an -erroneous estimate of the amount of picturesque beauty which they often -possess, and which is rarely seen save by those who go out of their way -expressly to look for it. This is particularly the case in our smaller -towns, in which the principal thoroughfare has usually a stiff and formal -character, the entrance on either side being generally a range of mud -cabins, which, gradually improving in appearance, merge at length into -houses of a better description, with a public building or two towards -the centre of the town. In these characteristics the highway of one town -is only a repetition of that of another, and in such there is rarely any -combination of picturesque lines or striking features to create a present -interest in the mind, or leave a pleasurable impression on the memory. -Yet in most instances, if we visit the suburbs of these towns, and more -particularly if they happen, as is usually the case, to be placed upon -a river, and we get down to the river banks, we shall most probably be -surprised and gratified at the picturesque combinations of forms, and the -delightful variety of effects, presented to us in the varied outline of -their buildings, contrasted by intervening masses of dark foliage, and -the whole reflected on the tranquil surface of the water, broken only by -the enlivening effect of those silvery streaks of light produced by the -eddies and currents of the stream. - -Our prefixed view of the town of Antrim may be taken as an illustration -of the preceding remarks. As seen by the passing traveller, the town -appears situated on a rich, open, but comparatively uninteresting plain, -terminating the well-cultivated vale of the Six-mile-water towards the -flat shore of Loch Neagh; and with the exception of its very handsome -church and castellated entrance into Lord Ferrard’s adjoining demesne, -has little or no attraction; but viewed in connection with its river, -Antrim appears eminently picturesque from several points as well as from -that selected for our view--the prospect of the town looking from the -deer-park of Lord Massarene. - -In front, the Six-mile-water river flowing placidly over a broad gravelly -bed, makes a very imposing appearance, not much inferior to that of the -Liffey at Island-bridge. The expanse of water at this point, however, -forms a contrast to the general appearance of the stream, which, although -it brings down a considerable body of water, flows in many parts of its -course between banks of not more than twenty feet asunder. The vale -which it waters is one of the most productive districts of the county, -and towards Antrim is adorned by numerous handsome residences rising -among the enlivening scenery of bleach-greens, for which manufacture -it affords a copious water-power. Scenes of this description impart a -peculiar beauty to landscapes in the north of Ireland. The linen webs of -a snowy whiteness, spread on green closely-shaven lawns sloping to the -sun, and generally bounded by a sparkling outline of running water, have -a delightfully _fresh_ and cheerful effect, seen as they usually are with -their concomitants of well-built factories and handsome mansions; and in -scenery of this description the neighbourhood of Antrim is peculiarly -rich. The Six-mile-water has also its own attraction for the antiquary, -being the _Ollarbha_ of our ancient Irish poems and romances, and flowing -within a short distance of the ancient fortress of Rathmore of Moylinny, -a structure which boasts an antiquity of upwards of 1700 years. - -In our view the river appears crossed by a bridge, which through the -upper limbs of its lofty arches affords a pretty prospect of the river -bank beyond. In building a bridge in the same place, a modern county -surveyor would probably erect a less picturesque but more economical -structure, for the arches here are so lofty, that the river, to occupy -the whole space they afford for its passage, must rise to a height that -would carry its waters into an entirely new channel. - -But the principal feature in our prospect is the church, the tower and -steeple of which are on so respectable a scale, and of such excellent -proportions, as to render it a very pleasing object as seen from any -quarter or approach of the town. It would be difficult to say in what the -true proportions of a spire consist, whether in its obvious and practical -utility as a penthouse roofing the tower, or in its emblematic aptitude -aspiring to and pointing towards heaven. Still, every cultivated eye will -remark how much more dignified and imposing is the effect of a spire -which is only moderately lofty, as compared with the breadth of its base, -than that of one which is extremely slender. We would point out the spire -of St Patrick’s Cathedral, for example, or that before us, on a smaller -scale, as instances of the former sort. Any one acquainted with the -proportions of those attenuated pinnacles which we so often find perched -on the roofs of churches erected within the last ten years, cannot be -at a loss for examples of the latter. The church itself at Antrim is, -however, rather defective in point of size, as compared with its nobly -proportioned tower and spire. - -The suburb of the town, on this side of the bridge, runs up to the -demesne wall of Lord Ferrard’s residence, Antrim Castle, an antique -castellated mansion, seated boldly over the river in a small park laid -out in the taste of Louis XIV., from the terraced walks and stately -avenues of which there are many beautiful views of the surrounding -scenery. - -In point of historical interest, there are but two events connected with -Antrim worthy of any particular note--the defeat of the insurgents here -in the rebellion of 1798, on which occasion the late Earl O’Neill lost -his life; and a great battle between the English and native Irish, in the -reign of Edward III., hitherto little spoken of in history, but forming -one in a series of events which exercised a great influence over the -destinies of this country. - -Very soon after the first invasion of Ulster by John de Courcy, the -English power was established not only throughout the counties of -Down and Antrim, but even over a large portion of the present county -of Londonderry, then called the county of Coleraine. We find sheriffs -regularly appointed for these counties, and the laws duly administered, -down to the time of Edward III. The native Irish, who had been pushed out -by the advance of this early tide of civilization, took up their abode -west of the Bann, and in the hilly county of Tyrone, from whence they -watched the proceedings of their invaders, and, as opportunities from -time to time presented themselves, crossed the intervening river and -“preyed” the English country. The district around Antrim was from its -situation the one chiefly exposed to these incursions, and the duty of -defending it mainly devolved on the powerful sept of the Savages, who at -that time had extensive possessions in the midland districts of Antrim, -as well as in Down. - -The most formidable of these incursions was that which took place -immediately after the murder of William de Burgho, Earl of Ulster, who -was assassinated by some malcontent English at the fords of Belfast, A. -D. 1333. The earl had been a strenuous asserter of the English law, and -had rendered himself obnoxious to the turbulent nobles of the country by -the severity with which he prohibited their adoption of Irish customs, -which, strange to say, had always great charms for the feudal lords of -the English pale, arising probably from the greater facilities which -the Brehon law afforded for exacting exorbitant rents and services from -their tenants. The immediate object of the assassins of the earl was to -prevent him carrying the full rigour of the law into operation against -one of his own _hibernicised_ kinsmen; but the ultimate consequences of -their act were felt throughout all Ireland for two centuries after. For -the Irish, taking advantage of the consternation attendant on the death -of the chief officer of the crown in that province, crossed the Bann -in unexampled numbers, and after a protracted struggle, in which they -were joined by some of the degenerate English, succeeded at length in -recovering the whole of the territory conquered by De Courcy, with the -exception only of Carrickfergus in Antrim, and a portion of the county -of Down, which the Savages with difficulty succeeded in holding after -being expelled from their former possessions at the point of the sword. -It was during this struggle that the battle to which we have alluded was -fought at Antrim. The story is told at considerable length and with much -quaintness by Hollinshed; but want of space obliges us to present it to -our readers in the more concise though still very characteristic language -of Cox:-- - -“About this time lived Sir Robert Savage, a very considerable gentleman -in Ulster, who began to fortifie his house with strong walls and -bulwarks; but his son derided his father’s prudence and caution, -affirming that “a castle of _bones_ was better than a castle of -_stones_,” and thereupon the old gentleman put a stop to his building. -It happened that this brave man with his neighbours and followers were -to set out against a numerous rabble of Irish that had made incursions -into their territories, and he gave orders to provide plenty of good -cheer against his return; but one of the company reproved him for doing -so, alleging that he could not tell but the enemy might eat what he -should provide; to which the valiant old gentleman replied, that he hoped -better from their courage, but that if it should happen that his very -enemies should come to his house, ‘he should be ashamed if they should -find it void of good cheer.’ The event was suitable to the bravery of the -undertaking: old Savage had the killing of three thousand of the Irish -near Antrim, and returned home joyfully to supper.” - -Sir Henry Savage’s “castles of bones” were found insufficient in the end -to resist the multitudes of the Irish; and the English colonists, as we -have mentioned, notwithstanding their victory at Antrim, were finally -obliged to cede the valley of the Six-mile-water to the victorious arms -of the Clan-Hugh-Buide, whose representative, the present Earl O’Neill, -still holds large possessions in the territory thus recovered by his -ancestors. - -With respect to the origin of the place, there is little to be said -beyond the fact, that, like that of most of our provincial towns, it -was ecclesiastical. The only remnant of the ancient foundation is the -round tower, which still stands in excellent preservation about half a -mile north of the town. The name is properly “Aen-druim” signifying “the -single hill,” or “one mount.” - - - - -A CHAPTER ON CURS. - - -Without doubt I am a benevolent character: the grudge gratuitous to -my nature is unknown: I never take offence where no offence is given. -Hence, on most animals I look with complacency--for most animals never -intermeddle with my comfort--and on only a few with antipathy, for only -a few so behave as to excite it. High up on the list of the latter--I -was going to say at the very top, but that pestering, pertinacious fly -impudently alighting, through pure mischief alone, on the tickle-tortured -tip of--but he’s gone--no, he’s back--there now I have him under my hat -at last--tut! he’s out again under the rim--up with the window and away -with him! At the head, then, ay, at the very head--how my grievances come -crowding on my brain!--I unhesitatingly place that thrice-confounded -breed of curs, colleys, mongrels, or whatever else they may be called, -with which the rural regions of this therein much-afflicted country are -infested. The milk of my humanity--yea, I may say the cream, for such -it was with me--has in respect to them been changed to very gall--an -unmitigable hostility has possessed me, which--did not the scars of -the wofully-remembered salting, scrubbing, scarifying, and frying (to -say nothing of two months’ maintenance of an hospital establishment of -poultices and plasters), to which my better leg was twice submitted, -counsel me to mingle discretion with my ire--would absolutely make me -turn Don Quixote for their extirpation. - -Let flighty philosophers frolic as they list with the flimsy phantasies -no optics save their own can spy--let political economists prate about -public problems, till other people’s pates are nearly as addled as their -own--let flaming patriots propound and placid placemen promise this, -that, and t’other, as grievous burdens or great concessions; but let men -of sense give heed to things of substance--let them exclaim with me, -“Out upon all abstract gammon--out upon all squabbling about what we can -only hear, but neither see nor feel, taste nor smell--bodily boons--real -redress--and first and foremost, ‘to the lamp-post’ with the curs!” I -have suffered more at their teeth, both in blood and broad-cloth, than -all the benefactions I have ever received at the hands of any government -would balance. The inviolable independence of British subjects, forsooth! -the parental guardianship of the constitution, the security for life -and person--faugh!--away with the big inanities, so long as a peaceful -pedestrian cannot take an airing along a highway, much less adventure -on a devious ramble, without exposing person and personalities to the -cruel mercies of a tribe of half-starved tykes issuing from every cabin, -scrambling over every half-door, and almost throttling themselves in -their emulous ambition to be the first to tatter the ill-starred wight -who has stumbled on their haunts. Let no one urge in their behalf -that they are faithful to the misguided men who own them: so much the -worse, since in their small system, fidelity to one must needs manifest -itself in malice, hatred, and uncharitableness to every creature else, -dead or alive. No, there is no redeeming trait--they are _curs_, -essentially biting, barking, cantankrous, crabbed, sneaking, snarling, -treacherous, bullying, cowardly _curs_, and nothing else. This, under all -circumstances, I undertake to maintain against all gainsayers, though -at the same time I am free to confess that I write under considerable -excitement, having just returned from the country (whither--besotted -mortal not to be content with the flag way of a street, and the scenery -of brick and mortar--I had repaired, forsooth, for air, exercise, and -rural sketching) with a couple of new coats, to say nothing of trousers, -curtailed beyond recovery, a bandaged shin smarting beyond description, -and a host of horrid hydrophobic forebodings consequent thereon. It -chanced that in an evil hour I made an engagement with an ailing friend, -whose house was situate in what I may emphatically term a most _canine_ -locality, which constrained me to make several calls upon him. Unhappily -it was only approachable by one road, the sides of which were here and -there dotted with a clutch of cabins, in each of which was maintained a -standing force of the aforesaid pests. This ambushed defile, about three -miles in length, dire necessity compelled me to traverse thrice, and -never did general more considerately undertake a march through a hostile -country, or an enemy more vigilantly guard a pass therein, than did I -and they respectively. On each and all of these occasions have I debated -with myself whether I should not fetch a secure though sinuous compass -through the fields, even with the addition of a few miles and other -discomforts to my walk; but as often--with honest, though, as I look upon -my leg, with melancholy pride I write it--did my pluck preserve me from -so disgraceful a detour. What! my indignant manhood would exclaim, shall -I, one of the lords of the creation--shall I, who have dared and have -accomplished so and so--recalling some of my most notable exploits by -flood and field, in crossing the Channel and cantering in the Park--shall -I, one of her majesty’s liege subjects, a grand jury cess-payer and a -freeholder to boot, be driven from the highway which I pay to support, -and obliged to skulk like a criminal from view, scramble over walls and -splutter through swamps, daub my boots, rend mayhap my tights, and risk -other contingencies, and all by reason of such vile scrubs? No, perish -the thought!--though their name be Legion, and their nature impish, I -will face them, ay, and write the fear of me upon their hides too, if -they dare molest me--that I will. Thus spoke the man within me, as I -fiercely griped my cane; and if, as I cooled, an occasional shrinking of -the calves of my legs in fancied supposition of a tooth inserted therein, -betokened aught like quailing, I recalled Marlborough’s saying on the -eve of battle, “How this little body trembles at what this great soul is -about to perform!” and felt that I too was exemplifying that loftiest -courage in which the infirmity of the flesh succumbs to the vigour of the -spirit. - -Decided by some such discipline to run the gauntlet, and in a state of -temper alternating between war and peace, inclining, as I remarked, -strange contradiction! to the former when the latter was in prospect, and -to the latter when the former, I proceeded in guarded vigilance. “Hope -deferred maketh the heart sick,” no doubt, but in my case evil deferred -doth oftentimes as much. The substantial presence of danger for me, -before its fearful imminence--the real onset of a canine crew, before the -terrible suspense of passing the open den in which haply they lay wait, -the shrill gamut of attack splitting your ear worse in apprehension than -in action. But attention! yonder is the first position. Egad! I’m in luck -to-day; the coast seems clear, and--the pacific now prevails amain--poor -devils, I won’t make any ruction. - - “Ever follow peace - If you’d live at ease,” - -saith the tuneful proverb, and I’ll pass inoffensively if I can. Ay, -i’faith, I may well say _if I can_, for if my eyes are worth a turnip, -yonder is an outpost stretched before that sty. No, I’m wrong, it is a -young pig--worthy little fellow, would I had the craft of Circe to change -every cur in the land into your similitude! A grunt before a snarl, a -snore before a snap any day. But what am I gabbling about?--there is -evil at hand indeed, for yonder is a lurching devil squatted behind -that stone, and no mistake. But softly: he seems asleep, and I may -perchance steal past unnoticed--about as probable, my present experience -assures me, as that you could ring my well-bred friend Piggie without -an acknowledgment--he is sole sentry, and if I can but bilk him, I’ll -do. Vain hope--he is waking, he is giving a preparatory stretch to his -limbs and to his jaws, and, miserable sinner that I am! I’m in for it. -But there is yet a single chance--I’ll try the magic of the human eye: -there is wonder-working majesty, they say, in it. Did I not myself see -Van Amburgh’s brutes blench before it?--am not I too a man?--ay, and -I’ll let them see it. Whereupon, with the most astounding corrugation -of my brows I could accomplish, I fixed my grim regards upon the cur, -expecting to see him sneak in awe away as I drew nigh. But, alas! for -the majesty of man, in a pinch like this let me tell him it is but a -sorry safeguard--the veriest whelp in the land will bandy surly looks, -and haply something worse, in its despite: a cudgel or a “hardy,” I now -say, on such an emergency, before the most confounding countenance that -ever frowned beneath a diadem. The foe, then, recking but little my -display of the tremendous, gave a fierce alarm, while in the vehemence -of his wrath he described three circles, his hind legs being the centre, -which brought the whole posse of aids and abettors fast and furious into -view. And now commenced the fray in earnest: beleaguered on every side, -my blood, not to speak boastfully, rose with the great occasion: my -tongue gave vigorous utterance to my fury, and my cane swept gallantly -from right to left and from left to right, though from the wariness -with which, ’mid all their fuss and clamour, the war was waged by my -assailants, it was but seldom that a shrill yelp piercing through the -din announced its collision with flesh and blood. Never was man more -thoroughly put to it. As I made a dash forward upon one, my unprotected -rear was promptly invested by another: my only security lay in the -rapidity of my evolutions, and considering I am a man five feet five -in height and fifteen stone in weight, I fairly take credit to myself -for performances in this line, which poor Joe Grimaldi himself were he -alive could not eclipse. But a man’s sinews are not of steel, nor are -his lungs as tough as a pair of bellows, and under my extraordinary -exertions I speedily began to think of vacating a field whereon nothing -but a barren display of prowess without satisfaction was to be reaped. -Accordingly, all my craft in strategy was put in practice, and by a -most dexterous combination of manœuvres--now advancing, now receding, -now stooping _as if_ to seize a stone (incomparable among expedients in -canine encounters), for the road here of course was as bare of them as a -barn-floor, and now feigning to fling it--I at length contrived to draw -the battle from their own ground, and their pugnacity being inversely -as their distance from home, had the relief, for by this time I was -blowing like a grampus, of seeing them retire in detachments, giving -volleys in token of triumph and defiance so long as I remained in view. -This brisk affair concluded with the loss only of a mouthful or two of -my coat-tails, and the gain of a few trifling transparencies in the -legs of my trousers--thank my boots, I have not to add in those of my -person--I proceeded to the scene of my next “passage at arms,” about half -a mile off. So ruffled was I that at first, after a few score peghs and -puffs restorative, I bustled bravely on, desiring nothing so much as an -opportunity of wreaking my wrath on some of the odious race, to which -purpose I providently deposited a few pretty pebbles in my pocket. - -But I am pre-eminently a reasoning man, in whom the reign of passion is -but brief, and discretion had so far recovered its rightful ascendency -as I drew nigh the next “picket,” that I began to think it more prudent, -more benevolent I mean, to bottle up, or repress I should say, my -indignation, and try what the “gentle charities,” a benign demeanour and -a pleasant salutation, might avail in the way of securing a peaceful -transit. With this aim I threw a prodigious amount of amiability (if -somewhat more than I felt, Heaven forgive the hypocrisy) into my -countenance, and accompanied a few familiar fillips of my finger with a -most honied, and, as I thought, captivating phraseology of address, to -a sinister-faced wretch who lay recumbent on the nearest threshold. But -it would not do: up bounced the vile ingrate with obstreperous bay; his -myrmidons were forthcoming on the instant, and in a jiffey I, a grave, -reserved, and middle-aged man, a short, stout, and not very well-winded -man, was in the melée once more, yerking my heels out fore and aft, -whacking right and left, puffing, blowing, and altogether cutting such -uncouth capers as verily it shames me now to think upon. Whether or -not it was that my resentment, and proportionably thereto my prowess, -were aggravated by the flagrant ingratitude displayed, I distributed -my “dissuaders” on this occasion with such distinguished emphasis as -well as science, as speedily to create a considerable diversion in my -favour, and make more than one repentant sinner yelp out “devil take the -hindmost,” in such vigorous style as to bring a bevy of grandam fogies -in wrath from their chimney corners. “An what are yees abusin’ the poor -craythurs for, that wouldn’t harm nobody in the world at all at all, -barrin’ a pig or so? It’s a wonder yees been’t ashamed to treat the poor -dumb (!) brutes that way, that niver did an ill hand’s turn to us nor one -belonging to us, an’ it’s longer we’re acquaint with them than you. Come -here, Trig--come here, Daisy--in there, Snap--down there, Peerie,” and so -forth. Recrimination on such opponents was out of the question; and this -brush over in rather creditable style, I made all speed from the united -clamour of the offended crones and their injured innocents. - -The next sore point I happily passed in the company of an iron-nerved, -long-thonged carman, whom I providently engaged in conversation at the -crisis. This fellow minded them no more than if they had been so many -sods of turf, nor in truth did they, having probably tasted erewhile the -crusty quality of such a customer, pay much regard to him, although not -a few ill-favoured glances were cast askew at my poor self, as under his -lee I stoutly stumped along; and some ill-suppressed growls and spiteful -grins gave me to understand that I owed my safety solely to my company. A -jolly beggarman--alack-a-day! that I should ever stand in need of such a -convoy--to whose nimble fictions I gave ear for the nonce with singular -philanthropy, was my next protector, and a sixpence paid for the safe -conduct, at which rate I am pretty confident, had he seen how matters -lay, he would have offered to trudge it at my elbow far enough, for the -sturdy rogue cared not a snuff for them had they been twice as numerous; -and in a few seconds after, I saw him with a flourish of his duster enter -a hut in the midst of them all. - -But it is needless to dive any farther into the budget of adventures -which then and there befell me, except to mention, as a sort of set-off, -a notable retaliation that I right happily achieved on one of my -tormentors. After a scuffle, contested on both sides with considerable -toughness, I was retiring from a sort of drawn battle, when I espied a -short-legged, long-backed, crook-knee’d, lumpish-looking rascal scuttling -along through a field at a prodigious pace. He had heard the well-known -gathering-note when at a distance with some turf-cutters in a bog, and, -eager for sport, namely, a pluck at my inexpressibles, lost no time in -making for the scene. The affair was, however, over before he arrived -upon the ground; but determined that his “trevally” should not be for -nought, he gave me immediate chase up the road, reserving his fire as -if intent on close combat alone, and altogether showing such an earnest -business-like way with him, as made me set him down as a singularly -crabbed customer. On he came at a rate that soon left me nothing for -it, was I ever so much disinclined, but to face about and stand at -bay. Hereupon, however--so conversant with currish character was I now -become--a much increased ostentation of action upon his part, accompanied -with a much diminished rate of progression, and a most superfluous -discharge of barks, let me into a gratifying little secret. “Ha, my -gentleman,” thought I, “Is this the way the land lies? You’re not just -so stout a hero as you would fain be thought; and as, i’faith, I have -no notion of being made sport of by such small ware as you, I’ll just -try if I cannot give you a lesson worth the learning.” With that I again -showed him my heels, which relieved him of his rather awkward suspense, -and, turning round a corner, dexterously managed in a few moments to -have my lad ensconced in a pretty angle, with a deep pool behind him, -and a high stone wall on either side. Even in the height of my triumph -and wrath, I could not help noticing the extraordinary mutations the -outwitted ettercap underwent at this astounding juncture. The last yelp -perished incomplete: a dismal wonder-what-ails-him bewilderment, horror, -cowardice, despair, supplied a sort of prelibation of “the condign” my -injured honour and outraged rights craved in expiation. Before him I -flourished my cane in a fashion that made the very thought of contact -therewith terrible--behind him lay the expectant plunge-bath of which -he, in common with all his tribe, entertained a most hydrophobic horror. -Thrice he seemed to contemplate an eruption, and thrice my waving weapon -turned him to the watery gulf behind, and in mortal misery he appeared -to balance their respective terrors. A cogent persuasive delivered -rearward in handsome style, created a partial preponderance in favour -of the latter. One paw was passed over the fearful brim; a timely -reiteration sent the other after; the avenging rod was upraised to give -the grand finale, when his outstretched tail suggested a device, which I -rapturously seized on to prevent that gradual fulfilment of inevitable -fate which the cowardly caitiff seemed to meditate. In the fervour of my -career I even laid hands on this appendage of my once so dreaded foe, -and swinging him aloft, to give him a proper elevation, as well as a -momentary view of the murky abyss to which a few aërial evolutions were -to bring him, dismissed him by a most righteous retribution to his fate. -A gurgling yelp announced the crisis of the plump, and a few moments -after, snorting and kicking, wriggling and splashing, in a perfect -frenzy of amaze, the culprit emerged, and made way like mad for the -bank. Tempering justice with mercy, with a noble magnanimity I allowed -him to scramble up to the road, which he did with most astonishing -alacrity, and, without even a shake to his bedraggled coat, or more than -a glance of horror at myself, scurried homeward at a rate with which -even his pursuit could not compare: _he_ never troubled me again. With -this beautiful illustration of retributive justice--oh, that I could but -make it universal!--I will wind up the relation of my misfortunes and -feats on this plaguy but memorable day, which I have selected--may my -vanity be pardoned--as exhibiting myself, though I say it who shouldn’t -say it, in rather a distinguished point of view, as being devoid of -certain humiliating circumstances with which on most other occasions my -lot was accompanied, and as being at the same time sufficient, without -wanton trifling with my own feelings and those of others, to make the -resentment of all who are susceptible of sympathy with their kind burn -fierce against these pestiferous persecutors of our race. I have said -enough to show, that if we care to maintain that native supremacy which -these contumacious rebels make but light of questioning, if we wish to -rescue our order from the disgrace and contumely from such vile sources -cast upon it, the time for action, systematic, conjoint, national action, -has now arrived. “Union,” say the sages of the rostrum with admirable -discernment, “Union is strength.” Let us act on the profound discovery; -let combination be the order of the day; let the cry of “Down with the -cynocracy!” ring resistless through the land; let pistol pellets and -pounded glass be in every one’s possession; let the legislature be -simultaneously bombarded; let the squire whose game is incontinently -gobbled up in embryo, the wayfarer whose person and all that hangs -thereon is supinely compromised, the philanthropist who would augment -human happiness, the humanist who would diminish dumb-brute suffering, -the vindicator of the pig, the cat, the donkey, and all the tribe of -cur-bebitten animals, ay, even the friends (if such besotted beetleheads -there be) of the detested breed themselves, who hold it better “not to -be” than “to be” in semi-starvation, in mangy malevolence, in spiteful -pugnacity, in the perpetual distribution of snarls, bites, and barks, -and receipt of cuffs, kicks, and cudgels--let all and every of these -great and various parties agitate, agitate, agitate, petition, petition, -petition, that such comprehensive measures as the enormity of the -case demands be forthwith adopted for the correction, abatement, or -abolition of this national scourge, by taxation, suspension, submersion, -decapitation, or deportation, as to the “collective wisdom” may most -advisable appear. - - A MAN. - - - - -LUOIGH NA SEALGA. - -POEM OF THE CHASE. - - -There are many poems of great beauty and interest in the Irish language, -several of which have become known to the English reader through the -medium of a translation. Of those poems there is a particular class known -to Irish scholars by the name of the “Fenian Tales”--an appellation -which they derive from Finn, or Fionn, the son of Cumhail (the Fingal of -Macpherson), and his heroes the FIONNA EIRONN. Fionn, renowned for his -martial exploits, flourished about the beginning of the third century, -under Cormac,[1] of whose forces he was the commander-in-chief. He has -been to the Milesian bards what King Arthur was to the Britons, the -theme of many a marvellous achievement and poetic fiction. Oisin, his -son, was equally celebrated as a warrior and a poet; and of him it might -be said, as of Achilles, Æschylus, Alfred, Camoens, Cervantes, and many -another, that “one hand the sword and one the harp employed.” Numerous -poems have been ascribed to him; but there is no proof that he has a -legitimate claim to any composition extant. As for the impostures of -Macpherson, they have been sufficiently exposed; and no one who has taken -pains to investigate the subject, or who has the least knowledge of Irish -history, antiquities, or language, will pretend that he is worthy of the -slightest credence. The date and origin of the Fenian Tales, from which -he drew many of the materials of his centos, are altogether uncertain. -It may seem, however, not unreasonable, from slight internal evidence, -to conjecture that some of them may have been composed soon after the -introduction of Christianity, though they must since have suffered many -changes and modifications.[2] In few countries, if in any, did the -Christian religion win its way more easily than in Ireland; and yet it -can scarcely be supposed that its triumph became universal without some -reluctance on the part of the people, whose habits it condemned, and to -whose superstitions it was strenuously opposed. It attempted to produce -such a complete revolution in their tastes and occupations, that it would -be surprising had not various objections been started to its reception. -The quiet and devotion of the monastic life formed a melancholy contrast -to the spirit-stirring excitements of the chase, and to those games of -strength and skill in which the heroes of the Ossianic age delighted. -They who rejoiced in the clash of arms, in the music of hounds and horns, -and in the feast and the revel, could have small taste for the chiming of -bells in the services of religion, for the singing of psalms, and still -less for fasting-- - - ----the waster gaunt and grim, - That of beauty and strength robs feature and limb. - -The bards, it may well be imagined, who were always not only welcome but -necessary guests at all the high festivals of the chiefs and princes, -would be among the first to lament a change of manners by which their -pleasures and honours were abridged or abolished; and to give more effect -to their complaint, as well as to conceal its real authors, they put it -into the mouth of Oisin, their great master, by poetic licence, though -in violation of chronology. They ascribed to him those sentiments which -they thought he would have expressed, had he really been the contemporary -of Saint Patrick.[3] At the same time it must be admitted, that in the -Poem of the Chase at least, such a description of the creative power of -the Deity is given by the saint, as is worthy of a Christian missionary, -though he is obliged to succumb to the stern indignation of the “Warrior -Bard.” - -Leaving the further consideration of this subject for the present, -I proceed to give an analysis of the Poem of the Chase, from which -the reader may be enabled in some degree to judge how far Spenser is -justifiable in affirming that the poems of the Irish bards “savoured of -sweet wit and good invention.” - -The poem commences by Oisin asking St Patrick if he had ever heard -the tale of the chase; and on receiving an answer in the negative, -accompanied with a request that it may be told truly, he feels indignant -at the suspicion that he or any of the Fionna Eironn could ever deviate -from the strictest veracity, and retaliates by declaring how much he -prized his former friends, whose virtues he records, beyond Patrick and -all his psalm-singing fraternity. Patrick, in reply, exhorts him not to -indulge a strain of panegyric which borders on blasphemy, and extols -the power of that great Being by whom all the Fenian race had been -destroyed. The mention of his friends’ extinction calls forth a fresh -burst of indignation from Oisin, and leads him to compare the pleasures -of the days gone by with the melancholy occupations of psalm-singing and -fasting. Patrick requests him to cease, and not incur the impiety of -comparing Finn with the Creator of the universe. Oisin replies in a style -more indignant, and after reciting a number of the glorious exploits of -the Fenians, asks by what achievements of Patrick’s Deity they can be -matched. The saint, justly shocked by such daring, accuses him of frenzy, -and tells him that Finn and his host have been doomed to hell-fire by -that God whom he blasphemes: but this only provokes Oisin to make a -comparison between Finn’s generosity and the divine vengeance; and as for -himself, it is a sufficient proof of his sanity that he allows Patrick -and his friends to wear their heads. Patrick, as if tacitly admitting -the validity of his argument, pays him a compliment, and requests him -to proceed with the promised tale. Oisin complies, and informs him that -while the Fenian heroes were feasting in the tower of Almhuin, Finn -having withdrawn from the company and spied a young doe, pursued her -with his two hounds Sceolan and Bran as far as Slieve Guillin, where she -suddenly disappeared. While he and his hounds are left in perplexity, -he hears a sound of lamentation, and looking round espies a damsel of -surpassing beauty, whom he accosts, and with friendly solicitude asks the -cause of her grief. She replies that she had dropped her ring into the -adjoining lake, and adjures him as a true knight to dive into the water -to find and restore the lost treasure. He complies, and succeeds; and -while handing her the ring, is suddenly metamorphosed into a withered old -man. - -Mean time the absence of their chief begins to create some fears for his -safety in the breasts of the Fenians. Caoilte expresses his apprehension -that he is irrecoverably lost, when bald Conan, the Thersites of the -Fenian poems, rejoicing at the idea, boasts that he will in future be -their chief. The Fenians having indulged in a laugh of scorn to hear such -arrogance from one they contemned, proceed in quest of Finn, and discover -the old man, who whispers in the ear of Caoilte the story of his strange -metamorphosis. Conan, on hearing it, waxes valiant, and utters some -bitter reproaches against Finn and the Fenians. He is rebuked by Caoilte; -but still continuing to vituperate and boast, he is answered at last -by the sword of Osgar. The Fenians interfere, and having put an end to -the strife, and learned the cause of Finn’s misfortune, they search the -secret recesses of Slieve Guillin, and at length find the enchantress, -who presents a cup to Finn, of which he drinks, and is restored to his -former strength and beauty. - -Miss Brooke, a lady to whose genius and taste Irish literature is greatly -indebted, has given a translation of this poem in her “Reliques of Irish -Poetry,” published in 1788. Every Irish scholar is bound to speak with -respect of her patriotic literary labours, and the present writer would -be among the last to pluck a single leaf from the chaplet which adorns -her brows-- - - ----neque ego illi detrahere ausim - Hærentem capiti multa cum laude coronam.--HOR. - - Not from her head shall I presume to tear - The sacred wreath she well deserves to wear.--FRANCIS. - -To Miss Brooke is due the well-merited praise of having been the first -to introduce the English reader to a knowledge of these compositions. -But that province of translation into which she led the way is open to -all, and no one has a right to claim it as his exclusive property. -Chapman translated Homer: he was followed by Hobbes, Hobbes by Pope, Pope -by Cowper, Cowper by Sotheby. Who will be the next competitor in this -fair field of fame? How many translators have we of Virgil, of Horace, -of Anacreon, and of all the most eminent Greek and Latin poets, each -advancing a claim to some kind of superiority over his rivals? Would -that we had more such honourable rivalship in translations from the -Irish! Miss Brooke has been faithful to the sense of her originals; but -it appears to the present writer that she not unfrequently errs by being -too diffuse, that several passages are weakened by unnecessary expansion, -and that the spirit of the whole can be better preserved in a more varied -form of versification than in the monotonous quatrains which she adopted. -The prevalent fault of most poetical translations is diffuseness or -amplification, by which the thoughts are weakened and their spirit lost. -Much allowance, however, must be granted to those who attempt to clothe -in English verse such compositions as the Irish Fenian tales; and any one -who makes the experiment will feel the difficulty of preserving a just -medium between a loose paraphrase and a strict verbal translation. It is -almost if not altogether impossible to translate into rhyme without an -occasional accessory idea or epithet on the one hand, and the omission -of some unimportant adjunct on the other. The great object should be to -preserve the spirit of the original--to be “true to the sense, but truer -to his fame”--_nec verbum verbo reddere fidus_. Some passages could not -be understood, others would not be endured by any reader of taste or -refinement if rendered word for word. - -In my next communication I shall send you a translation of the first -part of the Poem of the Chase--namely, the introductory dialogue between -Patrick and Oisin. This shall be followed by the succeeding part of the -poem, should you deem such compositions suited to the pages of your -“Journal,” which I hope will be eminently useful in promoting both the -literary and moral taste of the people of Ireland. - - D. - -[1] Cormac Ulfada, grandson of “Con of the hundred battles.” He reigned -forty years, and was honoured as a wise statesman and a philosopher. - -[2] The reader who feels an interest in this subject, and in the Ossianic -controversy, is referred to the essays by the Rev. Dr. Drummond and Mr -O’Reilly in the fifteenth volume of the Transactions of the Royal Irish -Academy. In the Transactions of the Hiberno-Celtic Society Mr O’Reilly -observes, that “many beautiful poems are extant that bear the name of -Oisin, but there are no good reasons to suppose that they are the genuine -compositions of that bard. If ever they were composed by Oisin, they -have since suffered a wonderful change in their language, and have been -interpolated so as to make the poet and St Patrick contemporaries, though -the latter did not commence his apostolic labours in Ireland until the -middle of the fifth century, when by the course of nature Oisin must have -lain in his grave about one hundred and fifty years.” - -Since this paper was sent to the press, the author has been assured by a -most competent Irish scholar that there are manuscript poems attributed -to Oisin not less than a thousand years old in the Library of the Dublin -University. It is much to be wished, for the honour of ancient Irish -literature and for the light which these poems may throw on some dark and -disputed topics of Irish history, that they may before long be properly -analysed and presented to the public. - -[3] Thus Horace exposes the arts of the parasites and fortune-hunters of -Rome in a dialogue between Tiresias and Ulysses. - - - - -DEAF AND DUMB--A MOUNTAIN SKETCH. - -BY MRS S. C. HALL. - - -It has been a general and certainly a well-founded complaint against -Ireland, that the arts, whose influence has extended so much over England -and Scotland during the last half century, have made but little progress -in “the Emerald Isle.” It “has sent forth painters, but encouraged none.” -This I fear is true, though lately I have been delighted to observe some -very happy exceptions to the rule. - -There are many reasons why art and artists have not flourished in -Ireland. The greater number of those who have the means to patronise -talent are absentees, spending in foreign lands the produce of the riches -bestowed by the Almighty on their own--while the minds of the residents -are usually so pre-occupied by religious or political controversies, -that they have no time to bestow, or attention to give to anything -else. Another reason I would urge, even at the hazard of being charged -with national pride, is, the country so overflows with natural beauty, -that in the matter of landscape painting the Irish gentry are hard to -please. To those who doubt this, I would simply say, come and see; and -if any English artist does not discover good cause why they should be -fastidious, all I can observe is, that I shall be very much astonished. -Even the highways are crowded with antiquarian and picturesque beauty; -but road-makers do not seek these so much as convenience; nor are the -most-talked-of places those where a “landskipper,” as I heard an artist -called in Kerry, will reap the richest harvest. - -There are hills and lakes, rivers and glades, of most exquisite beauty, -profusely scattered over the country--far away from the highroads, in the -fastnesses of the mountains--and even within hearing of the roar of the -wild ocean are dells and little valleys, cascades, lawns of greenest hue -and softest grass, where Druids’ altars hang upon their mysterious points -of rest, and the breeze whispers amid mouldering towers--memorials of -the troubled past. Still, eyes accustomed from their opening to really -fine scenery are not likely to be satisfied with aught that falls short -of perfection; and, as I have said, I find such of my countrymen as -really love art very hard to please in landscape, particularly in Irish -landscape: they have become familiar with the same scenes from many -points of view--the artist can only record one, and it is at least likely -that _the_ one he has chosen is not the favourite. - -Still, I fear, the _chief_ cause why art has not flourished hitherto, -must be attributed to the continued excitement of religion and politics; -to judge from collateral evidence, the influence of this excitement -is happily on the decrease, for I have seen framed prints in several -cottages, and observed in many dwellings, where paintings would be an -extravagance, volumes of beautiful engravings displayed as the chief -treasures of their country homes. - -On our late pilgrimage through the beautiful and romantic “Kingdom of -Kerry” we encountered a native artist, who beguiled us of an hour, -and interested us deeply. We had lingered long in the beautiful vale -of Glengariff, and still longer on the mountain road which commands -a view of the magic bay and its golden islands, that seem lifted by -earth towards heaven as a peace-offering; and when we passed through -the tunnel, which is still regarded by the mountaineers with evident -astonishment, the sun was sinking behind the huge range of Kerry -mountains, which looked the more bleak when contrasted with the memory -of the exceeding fertility of Glengariff. We were then literally _amid_ -both clouds and mountains, and the only sound that disturbed the awful -stillness of the scene was the scream of an eagle, which issued from -behind a tower-like assemblage of barren rocks, where most probably -the eyrie of the royal bird was placed; the sound added greatly to the -effect of the scenery, and we drew up that we might listen to it more -attentively; it was several times repeated, and almost at the same -instant a fresh breeze dispersed the mists which had in some degree -obscured the glory of the departing sun; and the valley beneath the -pass became literally illuminated wherever the breaks or fissures in -the opposite mountains permitted the brightness of the sun, as it were, -to pass through. I had never seen such an effect of light and shade -before, for the mountain shadows were heavy as night itself; I feel I -cannot describe either the brightness of the one or the intenseness of -the other. I am sure the scene could not be painted so as to convey any -idea of its reality. Any attempt to depict the extravagance of nature is -always deemed unnatural. - -We are weak enough to bound the Almighty’s works by what has come within -the sphere of our own finite observations. How paltry this must seem to -those who dwell amongst the mountains, and read the book of ever varying -nature amid the silent places of the earth! - -I had been gazing so earnestly upon the scene below and around us, that I -had not noted the sudden appearance of a lad upon a bank, a little to the -left of the place on which we stood; but my attention was attracted by -his clasping his hands together, and laughing, or rather shouting loudly, -in evident delight at the scene. There was nothing in his appearance -different from that of many young goatherds we had passed, and who -hardly raised their heads from the purple heath to gaze at our progress. -His sun-burnt limbs were bare below the knee; but his long brown hair -had been cared for, and flowed beneath a wide-leafed hat, which was -garnished, not untastefully, with a couple of wreaths of spreading fern. -His garments were in sufficient disorder to satisfy the most enthusiastic -admirer of “the picturesque;” and although we called to him repeatedly, -it was not until a sudden diffusion of cloud had interfered between him -and the sunset, so as to diminish the light, and of course lessen the -effect of the shadows, that he noticed us in the least; indeed, I do not -think he would have done so at all, but for the unexpected appearance of -another “child of the mist,” in the person of a little _tangled-looking_, -bright-eyed girl--literally one mass of tatters--who sprang to where the -boy stood, and seizing his hand, pointed silently to us. He descended -immediately, followed by the little girl, and after removing his hat, -stood by the side of our carriage, into which he peered with genuine -Irish curiosity. - -To our question of “Where do you live?” the mountain maid replied, “Neen -English,” which experience had previously taught us signified that she -did not understand our language. We then addressed ourselves to the boy, -when the girl placed her hands on her lips, then to her ears, and finally -shook her head. “Deaf and dumb?” I said. Upon which she replied, “Ay, ay, -deaf, dumb--deaf, dumb.” The little creature having so said, regarded him -with one of those quick looks so eloquent of infant love; and seizing -his hand, lifted up her rosy face to be kissed. He patted her head -impatiently, but was too occupied examining the contents of our carriage -to heed her affectionate request. His eye glanced over our packages -without much interest, until they rested upon a small black portfolio, -and then he leaped, and clapped his hands, making us understand he wanted -to inspect _that_. His little companion had evidently some idea that -this was an intrusion, and intimated so to the boy; but he pushed her -from him, determined, with true masculine spirit, to have his own way. -Nothing could exceed his delight while turning over a few sketches and -some engravings. He gave us clearly to understand that he comprehended -their intent--looking from our puny outlines to the magnificent mountains -by which we were surrounded, and smiling thereat in a way that even -our self-love could not construe into a compliment; he evinced more -satisfaction at a sketch of Glengariff, pointed towards the district, -and intimated that he knew it well; but his decided preference was given -to sundry most exquisite drawings, from the pencil of Mr Nicoll, of the -ruins of Aghadoe, Mucross Abbey, and a passage in the gap of Dunloe. I -never understood before the power of “mute eloquence.” I am sure the boy -would have knelt before the objects of his idolatry until every gleam of -light had faded from the sky, if he had been permitted so to do. - -Nor was his enthusiasm less extraordinary than the purity of his taste; -for he turned over several coloured engravings, brilliant though they -were, of ladies’ costumes, after a mere glance at each, while he returned -again and again to the drawings that were really worthy of attention. - -While he was thus occupied, his little companion, struck by some sudden -thought, bounded up the almost perpendicular mountain with the grace -and agility of a true-born Kerry maiden, until she disappeared; but she -soon returned, springing from rock to rock, and holding the remnants of -her tattered apron together with evident care. When she descended, she -displayed its contents, which interested us greatly, for they were her -brother’s sketches, five or six in number, made on the torn-out leaves -of an old copy-book in pale ink, or with a still paler pencil. Two were -tinged with colour extracted from plants that grew upon the mountain; and -though rude, there were evidences of a talent the more rare, when the -circumstances attendant upon its birth were taken into consideration. The -lad could have had no instruction--he had never been to school, though -schools, thank God! are now to be found in the fastnesses of Kerry--the -copy-book was the property of his eldest brother, and he had abducted the -leaves to record upon them his silent observations of the magnificence -of Nature, whose power had elevated and instructed his mind, closed -as it was by the misfortune of being born deaf and dumb, against such -knowledge as he could acquire in so wild a district. We should not have -read even this line of his simple history, but for the opportune passing -of a “Kerry dragoon”--a wild, brigand-looking young fellow, mounted -between his market-panniers on his rough pony--who proved to be the lad’s -brother, although he did not at first tell us so. - -“We all,” he said, “live high up in de mountain; but I can’t trust Mogue -to look after de goats by himself. His whole delight is puttin’ down upon -a bit of paper or a slate whatever he sees. I’d ha’ broke him off it long -agone; but he was his mother’s darlin’, and she’s wid de blessed Vargin -these seven years, so I don’t like to cross his fancy; besides, de Lord’s -hand has been heavy on him already, and it does no harm, no more than -himself, except when any of de childre brake what he do be doing; den -he goes mad intirely, and strays I dunna where; though, to be sure, de -Almighty has his eye over him, for he’s sure to come back well and quiet.” - -The lad at last closed our portfolio with a heavy sigh, and did not -perceive until he had done so that his little sister had spread out his -own productions on the heather which grew so abundantly by the road-side. -He pointed to them with something of the exaltation of spirit which -is so natural to us all when we think our exertions are about to be -appreciated, and he bent over them as a mother would over a cherished -child. His triumph, however, was but momentary--it was evident that his -having seen better things rendered him discontented with his own, for -while gathering them hastily together, he burst into tears. - -Poor mountain boy! I do not think his tears were excited by envy, for he -returned to our folio in a few moments with the same delight as before; -but his feelings were the more intense because he could not express them; -and he had been taught his inferiority, a bitter lesson, the remembrance -of which nothing but hope, all-glorious hope, that manifestation of -immortality, can efface. - -We gave him some paper and pencils, together with a few engravings, -and had soon looked our last at Mogue Murphy, as he stood, his little -sister clinging to his side, waving his hat on a promontory, while we -were rapidly descending into the valley. I thought the memory of such a -meeting in the mountains was worthy of preservation. - - - - -IMPROPER CONDUCT IN PUBLIC PLACES. - - -There is scarcely anything by which a stranger is more forcibly struck -on visiting Paris and other continental cities, than meeting at the -museums, libraries, palaces, menageries, and other places of exhibition, -crowds of private soldiers, artizans, and persons of inferior degree, -who with the greatest attention, and in the most decorous and orderly -manner, inspect the various objects presented to their notice; and who, -judging from the intelligent manner in which they discuss the merits of -these objects, would appear to derive the greatest possible advantage -from the privileges they enjoy. Amongst this crowd of people it was not -an unfrequent sight, a year or two since, to observe some well-dressed -individual poking at a picture with his fingers, as if his eyes were on -the points of them, teasing the animals in the menagerie, or possibly -inscribing his worthless name on some pillar or statue. You might have -safely addressed the person whom you saw thus employed in English as one -from our own dominions; and if you looked around, you would have seen -an expression of anger in the countenances of the native spectators, -or have heard them muttering their just contempt of the ignorance and -rudeness displayed in thus wantonly injuring or defacing that which, -being publicly exhibited for general advantage, becomes so far public -property as to appeal strongly to the _honour_ of all well-thinking -individuals for its protection. In our own country, a few years since, it -required no ordinary generosity, and no little sacrifice of selfishness, -to place within the reach of our people any works of art or curiosity -in the shape of exhibitions; and our government contributed very little -assistance towards forwarding the great work of national improvement by -such means. Truly melancholy was it then to see the mischief wantonly -done to the property of the few liberal individuals who offered to -share their pleasures with their less fortunate fellows; one instance -of which (probably one that has wrought much to induce good conduct) -may perhaps be worth narrating here. In certain beautiful pleasure -grounds, freely opened to the public, there was to be seen, a few -years since, a board bearing the following inscription:--“This mound -was planted with evergreens three times, and as often trampled down -by thoughtless individuals admitted to walk in the grounds: it is now -planted a fourth time.” This was the delicate but touching reproof of -the worthy proprietor, who may now, however (having suffered in a good -cause), congratulate himself on the amended habits of the people, brought -about by the increasing enlightenment on the subject of the necessity -and utility of admitting the humbler orders to places of rational and -instructive recreation, aided by their improved education and temperate -habits, which hold forth great encouragement to those who possess the -power to extend the privileges still too scantily accorded. We are indeed -satisfied that a most decided improvement in the habits and feelings of -the humbler classes of the community has really taken place within the -last few years, and that under judicious arrangements they might now be -admitted safely even to exhibitions of objects of great intrinsic value; -and in proof of this opinion we may state, that about two years since, -when, on the occasion of the Queen’s coronation, the Royal Hibernian -Academy opened the doors of their annual exhibition to the public -gratuitously for one day, though thousands took advantage of this free -admission, not the slightest accident to the property or impropriety of -any kind whatever occurred. - -If proofs of the utility of thus disposing of the spare time of the -people be required, one answer will be, that they are thus at least “kept -out of harm’s way;” and in accomplishing this (quite a sufficient object -for exertion when man’s propensities to evil are taken into account), -a great deal more of good is achieved, for a spirit of inquiry is thus -induced, and a talent for observation cultivated, which are the parents -of true knowledge, and which, combined with the habit of concentrating -thought and reflection, must open up the sources of wisdom, and produce -an enlargement of understanding in the fortunate possessor, which older -and still too prevalent methods of education are eminently calculated to -repress. It has been observed, until the observation has become trite, -that “knowledge is power,” and it is therefore the duty of all who are -sensible of the value of mental development to encourage whatever tends -to promote it; though, unfortunately, there still exists a class of men -who seek to maintain undeserved superiority, by keeping all persons -subordinate to them in ignorance, instead of generously extending to them -such help as would enable them to advance in intelligence. How different -was the feeling of him who said, that if permitted to have his wishes -accomplished he would ask but for two: the first, that he might possess -all knowledge that man in his finite nature can or ought to possess; and -the second, that having attained this knowledge, all his fellow-creatures -might be admitted to a participation of it. - -The value of observation as an accessible source of information to all, -must be obvious; the infant observes before he reasons, and reason -advances with the powers of observing. When the man becomes a sage, he -may theorise; but he must first test his wisdom by observation, which -would thus appear to be the fulcrum on which mind must depend to raise -itself; and as opportunities of observation are now daily increasing, it -becomes a matter of importance to aid those who are inclined, by showing -them how to observe, and to draw out the latent talent in those who, -having eyes, yet see not; and there is no mode in which this can be more -effectually and agreeably done than by drawing their attention to those -natural objects by which they are surrounded. The sacred writers were -well aware of the value of thus directing the mind; and our poets have -in many instances derived applause and celebrity from their power of -accurately observing and faithfully describing the phenomena of nature. - -To aid the people in the acquirement of knowledge so desirable, our best -efforts shall not be wanting, and we propose to ourselves accordingly to -give a series of papers on Natural History, pointing out, in a popular -manner, what all who have eyes may see, and, seeing, profit by. - - B. - - - - -ANSALDO AND THE CATS. - - -Everybody, we presume, has heard or read the story of “Whittington and -his Cat,” which is an especial favourite with the worthy citizens of -“London town,” where it is matter of history that the once poor and -friendless little boy rose to be thrice Lord Mayor; but from the tale -quoted below, it would seem that the Italians are not without a version -of their own on the subject. Which of the two is the most ancient or -original, we confess our inability to decide, but it is a matter of -very little consequence, as the moral in each is similar, namely, that -perseverance and industry will generally meet their just reward, while -the endeavours of an idle and improvident man to realise a great fortune -all at once, by some wild and desperate speculation, pretty much the same -as gambling, or even, as we may add, by that detestable and degrading -vice itself, rarely fails to involve the rash projector in ruin and -disgrace. However, without fatiguing the reader with further preface, we -will present him with the following literal translation from the Italian -of Lorenzo Magaletti:-- - -“About the time when our Amerigo Vespucci discovered the new world, -there was a merchant in our town whose name was Messer Ansaldo degli -Ormani, who, though he had become very rich, but yet desirous to double -his wealth, chartered a very large ship, and began to trade with his -merchandise in the newly-discovered regions of the West. Having already -made two or three prosperous voyages, he wished to return thither once -more; but scarcely had he left Cadiz when there arose a most furious -gale, which drove him along for several days, without his knowing where -he was; but at length fortune was so kind as to enable him to reach an -island called Canaria. He had no sooner done so than the king, being -informed of the arrival of a vessel, went down to the port with all his -nobles, and gave Messer Ansaldo a kind reception: he then conducted -him to the royal palace, to show his joy at his arrival. Dinner was -then prepared in the most sumptuous style, and he sat down with Messer -Ansaldo, who was surprised to see a great number of youths who held in -their hands long sticks, similar to those used by penitents; but no -sooner were the viands served up than he understood fast enough the -meaning of such attendance, for - - ‘Not Xerxes led so many into Greece, - Nor numerous thus the myrmidonic bands, - As on the scene their countless hosts appeared!’ - - BERNI. - -In fact, so many and so large were the rats which came in from all -quarters, that it was really wonderful to see them. Thereupon the youths -aforesaid took to their sticks, and with great labour defended the dish -from which the king and Messer Ansaldo were eating. When the latter -had heard and seen the multitudes of those filthy animals which were -innumerable in that island (nor had any means been found to extirpate -them), he sought to make the king understand by signs that he wished to -provide him with a remedy by means of which he might be freed from such -horrid creatures; and running quickly to the ship, he took two very fine -cats, male and female, and brought them to the king, saying that on the -next occasion they should be put upon the table. As soon therefore as the -smell of the meat began to diffuse itself, the usual procession made its -appearance, when the cats seeing it began to scatter them so bravely that -there was very soon a prodigious slaughter of the enemy. - -On seeing this, the delighted king, wishing to remunerate Ansaldo, sent -for many strings of pearls, with gold, silver, and rare precious stones, -which he presented to Messer Ansaldo, who, thinking he had made a good -profit of his merchandise, spread his sails to the wind, prosecuted his -voyage, and returned home immensely rich. - -Some time afterwards, he was relating what had occurred between himself -and the King of Canaria to a circle of his friends, when one of them, -named Giocondo dé Finfali, was seized with a desire to make the voyage -to Canaria himself, to try his fortune also; and in order to do so, sold -an estate he had in the Val d’Elsa, and invested the money in a great -quantity of jewels, together with rings and bracelets of immense value; -and having given out that he intended to go to the Holy Land, lest any -should blame his resolution, he repaired to Cadiz, where he embarked, and -soon arrived at Canaria. He presented his riches to the king, reasoning -in this manner--‘If Messer Ansaldo got so much for a paltry pair of cats, -how much more will be my just recompence for what I have brought his -majesty!’ But the poor man deceived himself, because the King of Canaria, -who highly esteemed the present of Giocondo, did not think he could make -him a fairer exchange than by giving him _a cat_; so having sent for a -very fine one, son to those which Ansaldo had given him, he presented -it to Giocondo; but he, thinking himself insulted, returned miserably -poor to Florence, continually cursing the King of Canaria, the rats, and -Messer Ansaldo and his cats; but he was wrong, because that good king, -in making him a present of a cat, gave him what he considered the most -valuable thing in his dominions.” - - W. S. T. - - - - -INSCRIPTION ON A TOMBSTONE IN THE CHURCHYARD OF YOUGHAL, OF ANNE MARIA -CAREW, AGED 24. - - - ’Tis ever thus, ’tis ever thus, when hope hath built a bow’r - Like that of Eden, wreathed about with many a thornless flow’r, - To dwell therein securely, the self-deceivers trust-- - A whirlwind from the desert comes, and all is in the dust. - - ’Tis ever thus, ’tis ever thus, that when the poor heart clings - With all its finest tendrils, with all its flexile rings, - That goodly thing it cleaveth to so fondly and so fast, - Is struck to earth by lightning, or shattered by the blast. - - ’Tis ever thus, ’tis ever thus, with beams of mortal bliss, - With looks too bright and beautiful for such a world as this, - One moment round about us their angel light wings play; - Then down the veil of darkness drops, and all is passed away. - - ’Tis ever thus, ’tis ever thus, with creatures heavenly fair, - Too finely formed to bear the brunt more earthly natures bear-- - A little while they dwell with us, blest ministers of love, - Then spread the wings we had not seen, and seek their homes above. - - * * * * * - - Printed and Published every Saturday by GUNN and CAMERON, at - the Office of the General Advertiser, No. 6, Church Lane, - College Green, Dublin.--Agents:--R. GROOMBRIDGE, Panyer Alley, - Paternoster Row, London; SIMMS and DINHAM, Exchange Street, - Manchester; C. DAVIES, North John Street, Liverpool; J. - DRAKE, Birmingham; M. BINGHAM, Broad Street, Bristol; FRASER - and CRAWFORD, George Street, Edinburgh; and DAVID ROBERTSON, - Trongate, Glasgow. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Irish Penny Journal, Vol. 1 No. -12, September 19, 1840, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IRISH PENNY JOURNAL, SEPT 19, 1840 *** - -***** This file should be named 54209-0.txt or 54209-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/4/2/0/54209/ - -Produced by Brownfox and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by JSTOR www.jstor.org) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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