The Story of an Irish Property

T HE ST OR Y OF AN I R I SH PR OPERT Y BERT RAI T RO S . ‘ AUTH OR 0? m s u rn: AN D CAMPAI GNS or H U GH ’ rm sr vx scovm Go ucn O"FO R D PR IVATELY PR I N TE D AT T H E UN IVE R SI TY PR ESS 1 908 P REFATORY IN OTE Tm s l le book must be its own a olo itt p gy. a m t s ak f r and I have no cl i o pe o I el . ‘ Yet grate ful title may I plead ’ For many a kindly word and de ed . Reverence for the me mory of a gre at and allan so dier sincere ra ude to those who g t l , g tit succeed ed to his name and his house and have , the recollections ofmany happy weeks in recent summers ha e led me to bri n his i e ibu e , v g t l ttl tr t to a beautiful land . I ha e endea ou ed in the course of m v v r , y narra e to ex ress m obl a ions as I incu red tiv , p y ig t r hem But I mus he re add an ex ress on of t . t p i m deb to the V scoun and Viscountess Gou h y t i t g , r m h l and in er fo uch e p t est . R R S . N EW LLEGE "FOR D CO , O , u ust 1 08 A g , 9 . 20608 25 CON TE N TS H A T R C P E I . H I STOR Y A N D TRAD ITIONS HA T C P E R II . THE I SLE OF SAIN TS CHAPTE R I II . ’ THE O S HA UGH N ESSYS CH APTE R IV . THE FAMILY o r GORT R CH A PT E V . THE FAMILY OF GOUGH APPEN D I"I . PLAC E- NAMES APPEN DI"I I . THE TRI B ES or GALWAY APPE N DI"I I I . THE D ISTRI CT A T TH E AC C ESSION o r QUEEN VI CTORIA LI ST OF I LLUSTR ATI ON S ' ' H G I ST I SC O T GOUC H F ronhs zece U H, V UN p ’ T O SSY t HE SHAUGHNE oface p . 6o T to e 1 06 LOUCH CUTRA CAS LE fac p . A I VAN ASTL to ace 1 0 R DI MULL C E f p . 9 For the photographs ofLough Cutra Castl e and Ardi mullivan Castl e the writer i s indebted to the kindness of c Mr . c . C . P M arthy THE STOR Y O F AN I R I SH P R OP ERTY CHAPTER I I TH E place of which we are to speak has been a home fthe men e of many gen e rations . O who first kn w and love d the land which lies round Lough Cutra we know the nothing . Th ey have passed into night and left S no ign . e ec m e m ofthe e e e e Gr y r u b nt to bs d ad in d s rt plac s, Standing stones on the vacant wine-red moor ‘ the se are all that remain to tell us of the silent ’ e e e men vanish d rac s , of a long succ ssion of and me e e e wo n , whos blood, p rchanc , may flow in living ‘ e who e e e are v ins, but hav l ft no m morial, and ’ e e e e p rish d as though th y had n ever been . Und r the se mysterious ston es may have lain the bones of me n w e e e e e or e hos courag sav d a p opl , whos ambition was realized only at the cost of human suffe ring none the less real that it has b ee n for centuries forgotten . The e e e m e e r ward of th ir fam is this i m morial ston , which re cords nothing beyond the Simple fact that men have live d and die d . Antiquaries may dispute what e ofm en e e e the me mann r th y w r , but argu nt will not e e e e the e v n att mpt to go b yond t chnical terms which , e e e e e e dim e b ing int rpr t d, conjur up for us som pictur e C e of vagu racial haract ristics . Glory of warrior, glory B 2 STORY OF AN I RIS H PROPERTY ’ e e m e ee ; of orator, glory of song th r ust hav b n but they were only sea Paid with a voice flying by to be lost on an endl ess . Imagination its elf can do little to bring us into touch wi th such pe ople s or to make us realize that th ey had e e o ne like passions with ourselves . Th r is only point l was e we of hu man contact. This and th irs , and can e e e still see th eir mountains and str ams and lak s, or h ar the moaning of the wind among the trees as it moaned b efore the coming of the Firbolgs . The lake and its islands are rich in beauty of water e e e the e e and woodland and rock . Ov r th m ris Sli v e are a and e u Echtge mountains . Th y gradu l r g lar in ‘ t e e e e the ou lin , and ris to no gr at h ight , but soft evening light upon th em has bee n the inspiration of the e e re c e r m poets . On oth r sid st t h s a count y of arsh e e ese and woodland and field and homest ad. Sinc th e e e e e and m e arly rac s disapp ar d , natur ankind hav combined to change and mod ify physical fe ature s th em e e We fe i h e s lv s . do not know if hu man li ex ste d er before the e verlasting hills w ere th emse lves ground down by the slow and c e rtain proce sses of th e I ce Age ; but long after the epochs which be long to the geologist and th e i n the not to h storia , face of nature has own e d th e e c e e e h pow r of hang . Bogs hav be e n form d by t e r t e - i e e rapid g ow h of p at produc ng moss s , and th y have been drain ed ; forests have disap peared and bee n re planted ; land has aris en from under the surface of th e e lak s . Yet the cou ntry is real ly th e same as whe n the me n e e m are , whos v ry to bs to us a myste ry, dre w he e e e i t br ath of lif , and lov d and s nne d and died ; and I fone of them could revisit th e sce n e s of those long s e , he v uld i lo t y ars st ll know it for his home . The . ' ' i e e woip anc nt po t d z ga n re‘oice in de11ghtful Echtge and in the ke its isl anii la and s. H ISTO RY AN D TRADITION S 3 Th ere is one natural fe ature which give s to the — district a sp ecial distinction and interest an under ' ground nver such as most boys have navigated in th e - e m o e s day dr a s of childh od . To g ologist it is known 1 s th e e C e e t e a riv r of Gort , but it hang s its nam af r each succ essive re appearance from th e cave rns through e u e which it flows . It ris s in Lough C tra and its cours e e e e is visibl for about two mil s, wh n it disapp ars into h e P olldua h e t e e . e arth , and flows und rground to g H r e e e e the the and th r it is for a mom nt op n to air, and most re markable and impressive of th es e hole s is ’ - the large one known as the Devil s Punch bowl . P olldu a h e e th e e From g it wand rs , aft r mann r of e e ee i e to the - ordinary riv rs , for ov r thr m l s south east e e e se e e of Kiltartan, wh r it again ngulfs it lf, r app aring e e e e e e e the e e s v ral tim s b for it r ach s lak of Cool , e e e e e the wh nc , by an u nd rground cours , it pass s into s I ts e e e so far ea.

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