a Setees eye nce =
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PROCEEDINGS
7
OF THE AA (¢ 4”
a
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV
DUBLIN
PUBLISHED AT THE ACADEMY HOUSE, 19, DAWSON STREET
SOLD ALSO BY
HODGES, FIGGIS, & CO., Limirep, 104, GRAFTON STREET
Anp By WILLIAMS & NORGATE, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND OXFORD
1902-1904
Spe \2R4 LR Yule
Tue Academy desire it to be understood that they are not
answerable for any opinion, representation of facts, or train of
reasoning that may appear in any of the following Papers. The
Authors of the several Essays are alone responsible jor their
contents.
PROCEEDINGS
OF TILE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV
SECTION A.—MATHEMATICAL, ASTRONOMICAL,
‘AND PHYSICAL SCIENCE
DUBLIN
PUBLISHED AT THE ACADEMY HOUSE, 19, DAWSON STREET
SOLD ALSO BY
HODGES, FIGGIS, & CO., Limiren, 104, GRAFTON STREET
Anp By WILLIAMS & NORGATE, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND OXFORD
1902-1904
Tue Acapremy desire it to be understood that they are not
‘ answerable for any opinion, representation of facts, or train of
reasoning that may appear in any of the following Papers. The
Authors of the several Essays are alone responsible for their
contents.
CONTENTS
SECTION A.-MATHEMATICAL, ASTRONOMICAL, AND
PHYSICAL SCIENCE
Fraser (Joun), M.A., F.T.C.D. :—
A Method of Reduction of a Quartic Surface possessing
a Nodal Conic to a Canonical Form. With an
Application of the same Method to the Reduction
of a Binodal Quartic Curve to a Canonical Form,
Hinton (C. H.) :—
The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of
Orthogonal Transformation,
Jounston (J. P.), M.A., D.Sc. :—
Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three
given Conics as Polar Conics, : ‘ :
Jory (Cuartes Jasper), M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D. :—
Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable,
The Multi-linear Quaternion Function,
Some New Relations in the Theory of Screws,
Joty (Jonn), D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S. :—
Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh
and Salt Water,
Roserts (Rey. W. R. Westrope), B.D., F.T.C.D. :-—
Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve,
On Bicursal Curves, . : ; ‘ 3
PAGE
71
59
66
69
21
34
53
Contents
Trouton (Freperick T.), D.Sc., F.R.S. :-—
On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension
of Mixtures,
DATES OF PUBLICATION
1
2.
3.
4
Pages
99
(etONe Or
AT ose
BY) a, ish
August, 1902.
April, 1903.
September, 1908.
January, 1904.
PAGE.
te TL A & C) 9
Sclences
PROCEEDINGS
OF
THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY.
PAPERS READ BEFORE THE ACADEMY.
I.
ON THE CREEPING OF LIQUIDS AND ON THE SURFACE
TENSION OF MIXTURES.
Br FREDERICK T. TROUTON, D.Sc., F.RB.S.
[Read June 10, 1901.]
Certain liquids, as is well known, when left in the open air, will
creep up over the sides of the containing vessel and escape. Ordi-
nary commercial paraffin is a liquid which creeps in this way toa
remarkable extent. The phenomenon is well known in connexion
with domestic lamps, often producing inconvenient results.
The effect is readily observed by standing a beaker full of ordi-
nary paraffin on paper in the open air, when in a few days a
considerable quantity of the liquid will be seen to have crept out on
to the paper.
Experiments were undertaken with the view of investigating
the conditions necessary for this creeping to occur, and the con-
clusions ultimately arrived at from these may be summed up in the
statement that i order that a liquid should creep it must be a mixture,
and the surface tension of this mixture must be less than that of tts least
volatile constituent.
A simple form of experiment, to compare the creeping tendencies
of different liquids, may be arranged as follows. A long metal strip
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. A. | A
2 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
is made to stand up in a beaker, by suitably forming its end into
a base (fig. 1). The upper end of the strip is bent over and
touches the interior of another vessel.
The liquid is placed in the beaker and
creeps over, and is collected in the
second vessel. The phenomenon di-
vides itself naturally into two parts:
(1) The initial stage, while the liquid
is forming a layer over the surface of
the strips; and (2) when the con- j
tinuous transport of liquid across to ZA
the second vessel takes place. Passing =
by for the present the initial stage, it
will abundantly appear from what
follows that a mixture is necessary for init, ip
continuous creeping.
Though many attempts were made, no pure liquid could be found
which would creep. Various mixtures, however, were found which
did so actively. For instance, a pure paraffin (or rather what was
sold as such) did not creep, but the addition of a small quantity of a
lighter paraffin enabled it to do so actively. Again, ordinary paraffin,
which is, as is well known, a mixture of a number of different mem-
bers of the paraffin series, when left in the open air, loses much of its
lighter constituents and at the same time it-is found to lose its power
of creeping in a like proportion. The power of creeping may be
restored by the addition now of a small quantity of a lighter oil.
Thus a liquid which has once crept over will not creep again nearly
so actively, if at all. If the surface-tension of the portion of liquid
which has crept over and been collected in the experiment described
above be determined, it will be found to be always greater than that
of the original liquid, and it also naturally consists of the less
volatile constituents of the mixture. This suggests that evaporation,
in conjunction with change in surface tension, plays an important
role in the phenomenon of creeping. This is easily verified by
covering the whole arrangement with a bell-jar. Evaporation being
thus prevented, creeping ceases likewise.
We now can see where the energy comes from to enable liquid, as
shown in fig. 1, to be continuously elevated and carried into the upper
vessel. Evaporation of the liquid lowers the temperature, and in
consequence energy can be obtained from the environments. The effect
is brought about, it must be observed, through the loss into the
Trouton—On the Creeping of Liquids, ete. 3
surrounding atmosphere of the more volatile portions of the liquid,
and the process is consequently an irreversible one. The condition
necessary to enable this influx of energy to produce a directed effect
of the kind required is that the surface-tension of the liquid remaining
after the loss of the more volatile constituents shall be greater than
before. In this way, as the liquid passes along the strip, its surface
tension increases, and more liquid is enabled to be drawn up and
ultimately to pass over.1
In accordance with this view of the phenomenon, the creeping
activity of paraffin should be increased by the addition of any liquid
which is more volatile and which has a lower surface tension. The
addition of benzoline, ether, and of a number of other liquids, was
found to increase the rate of creeping immensely.
On the other hand, the addition of a more volatile liquid, with a
higher surface-tension, which, on mixing with the paraffin, increases
its surface-tension, should tend to prevent creeping. Various liquids,
such as benzene and chloroform, which are more volatile, but have
a higher surface-tension, were tried with this view. These were
found, however, not to prevent, but to actually increase, the creeping
activity.
On account of these unexpected results, experiments were made
with the object of ascertaining the effect produced on the surface-
tension of paraffin by the addition of these liquids, and afterward
experiments were made with mixtures of various liquids to inyesti-
gate the law of the surface-tension of mixtures in general.?
The curve in fig. 2 exhibits the determinations made of the
surface-tension of mixtures of paraffin and chloroform; and on
examining the curve, the reason becomes obvious why the addition of
chloroform does not prevent but rather facilitates the creeping of
paraftin, for the value of the surface-tension is there seen to be
diminished by the addition of small quantities of chloroform. The
like was found to hold good for benzene.
Mixtures, then, of various liquids were examined, and it was
invariably found that the surface-tension of a given mixture was
1A single liquid might conceivably creep through a similar gradient in
surface-tension, brought about by the cooling due to evaporation alone increasing
the surface tension.
2 Since then the author has had the opportunity, through the courtesy of
Prof. W. Ramsay, of consulting a hitherto unpublished paper of his on the
surface-tension of mixtures of liquids.
A 2
i Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
less than would be calculated from the percentage present in the
mixture, on the supposition that the surface-tension was proportional
to the composition. The following liquids were used :—benzene,
chloroform, turpentine, paraffin, alcohol, benzolene, and ether. These
were examined, two and two, in nearly all those cases where mutual
Fig I. — 50
= -7-----°-77
10
: Surface tension of Paraffine
Surface tension of Chloroform
Paraffine 100 % 80 60 40 20 0%
Chloroform 0 Yo 20 4) AO 20 10 %
hive W.
solution occurs. In addition, water and alcohol, water and glycerine,
aniline and chloroform, olive oil and benzene, were examined, all
with like results.
The curve shown, as in fig. 3, typically exhibits the results
obtained in general for mixtures of liquids. The dotted line gives
the value the surface-tension would
have for all percentage-mixtures if the
surface-tension were proportional to
the composition. The ordinates to the
PA
>
full line represent the observed values. = 2
When the surface-tensions of the = 2
pure liquids are the same or not very = s
different from each other, the surface- S
tension of mixtures in all or in some
proportions may be less than either of '°*4 cafes hese
the given substances. Oe Ue ee
The depression of the surface-ten- Hig. 3-
sion of mixtures of liquids below the calculated value seems to be
but a particular case of a general principle which underlies the
character of the effect produced on physical properties by admixture
or solution, and which ranges from things so far asunder as melting
points and electrical conductivities.
Trouton—On the Creeping of Liquids, ete. 5
No simple relation, however, could be found connecting the
depression with the properties of the pure substances. In some
few cases, it should be remarked, it was found that the effect of
one substance on another was roughly in inverse proportion to their
molecular weights. Thus, the depression produced on the surface-
tension of chloroform below the calculated value by the addition of
small quantities of alcohol is at the rate of about 1-7 for each
percentage added, while the corresponding depression produced by
chloroform on alcohol is only about ‘7. These are in the ratio of
about 2°4, which is also nearly the ratio of their molecular weights,
59°5/23=2°5. The effects produced are, in this case at all events,
simply proportional to the number of molecules added, and the
failure in general to find similar relationships holding with other
liquids may perhaps be due to the masking of the effect through
molecular association.
A number of experiments have been made to ascertain if there is
any specific effect produced by the kind of material over which the
creeping takes place: this both in the initial stages and for con-
tinuous creeping. No consistent quantitative results have been so
far reached. This is probably to be attributed to the difficulty of
presenting clean and unaltered surfaces for the liquids to creep over.
The experiments, however, undoubtedly point to a decided difference
between different metals, both in the rate the creeping goes on at
in the continuous stage, as well as in the initial stage.
That the latter should be the case is not surprising, but it is not
easy to see how the kind of material the surface is made of can have
effect once the layer of liquid has become established, for its thickness
is found to be great compared to molecular distances.
It is possible, however, that the effect may be wholly due to
specific roughness or corrugosity incident or natural to surfaces pre-
pared from different materials, for the state of roughness of a given
metal is found to have a great influence on the effect.
Attraction between the solid and liquid is a necessary condition
for creeping to occur at all; thus, that the rate the liquid in the
first instance establishes the layer should be dependant upon the
material over which the creeping occurs, is not surprising.
Paton)
; Jal
INTEGRALS DEPENDING ON A SINGLE QUATERNION
VARIABLE. By CHARLES JASPER JOLY, M.A., D.8c.,
F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’ Professor
of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
[Read Aprin 28, 1902.]
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
ART, Page. ART. Page.
1.—Explanation of Hamilton’s 9.—Integrals of higher order, . 14
method for single Quaternion 10.—Specification of the modes of
Integrals. Modeof passage, 7 passage. Time and space
2.—Difference of integrals be- method, . 14
tween fixed limits according 11.—Hydrodynamical ‘Alystheavtiens
to different modes of pas- for single a in-
sage expressed as a double tegral, 6 15
integral, . 2 8 | 12. —Physical Tineneysam ae mean-
3.—Conditions for madevenienen ing of quaternion double
of mode of passage, . o & integral, . : 16,
4.—Case in which the variable is 13.—Electro-magnetic Sppesitoins as
avector. Stokes’s Theorem, 10 conditions of independence
5.—Double integrals with a single of mode of passage for a
quaternion variable, . , id double integral, . : ua
6.—Variation of double integral 14.—Double integral expressed as
corresponding to variation difference of two single in-
in mode of passage, . . 11 tegrals. Vector potential of
7.—Difference of double integrals magnetic current. Quater-
for different modes expressed nion potential, . zi
as a triple integral. Con- 15.—Case in which the acl
ditions for independence of depends on the mode of pas-
mode of passage, . . 12 sage. Conducting dielectric, 18.
8.—Triple integrals in a single | 16.—Physical illustration for triple
quaternion variable, . LATS integral, . : } 1 hits:
InTRopucTION.
In the ‘ Lectures on Quaternions,”” Hamilton devotes a brief series
of Articles (625-630) to the investigation of quaternion integrals.
It does not seem to have been observed that his results lead directly to
the fundamental theorems of Green and Stokes and to the extensions.
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 7
of these theorems due to Tait and proved by him and other writers in
various ways. Indeed, Hamilton regards the subject as one of great
difficulty and dismisses it rather abruptly; but his method is of wide
scope and merits further developments.
I propose therefore to sketch some of the consequences of
Hamilton’s method in relation to quaternion integrals depending on
a single quaternion variable, and from certain general results I shall
deduce as particular cases the extensions of the theorems of Stokes
and Green. It is not my object to furnish short proofs of these
theorems ; they can be readily supplied from the results of this Paper
by substituting from the commencement vectors instead of quaternions
and by integrating round closed curves or over closed surfaces.
In the concluding articles it is shown that the quaternion integrals
are capable of physical applications, and the more concrete character
of these articles may assist in forming a clearer conception of the
nature of the general integrals considered in the earlier portion.
As the integrals discussed in this Paper depend essentially on the
combinatorial functions which I haye called guaternion arrays (Trans.
R.I.A., vol. xxxii., p. 17), it may be useful to recapitulate the formule
which we shall require. (Compare ‘‘ Elements of Quaternions,”’
Art. 365 (6)). If a, 6, e¢ and d@ are any quaternions, the arrays are
(ab) = VbSa-—Va8b; [ab] = V-VaVb; (abc) = Sa[bc];
[abe| = (abc) — [bc] Sa — [ea] Sd — [ab] Se
and
(abed) = Sa| bed }.
Transposition of contiguous symbols changes the sign of an array,
and an array vanishes if its constituents are linearly connected.
Also for any fifth quaternion e,
a(bede) + b(edea) + e(deab) + d(eabe) + e(abed) = 0
and.
e(abed) = [bed |Sae — [acd | She + [abd | Sce — [abe] Sde.
Art. 1.—If F'(q,7r) is any function of two quaternions, distributive
with respect to the second, so that
F(g,r+s) = F(g,r)+ FQ, 8), (1)
8 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the integral considered by Hamilton is
2)
a=|'F@ a0), (2)
, Zo
in which the variable quaternion g changes by a determinate mode
of passage from one fixed limit gq to the other g,. He supposes the
mode of passage to undergo a slight variation while the limits remain
fixed, and he denotes the corresponding variation in the integral by
q, q
dQ = 3| F(q, 49) = oF (q, dq). (3)
% 90
Now
dF (q, dg) = 0,7 (4, dg) + F(g, 649) (4)
in which 6, is a symbol of partial differentiation and relates to
g alone and not to 6g. Similarly
dF(q, 67) = 4, F'(q, 6g) + F(q, 489), (5)
and because the differentials dg and 6g are independent
ddg = déq. (6)
Therefore, subtracting (5) from (4) we find |
bP (q, dg) — d#(g, 8g) = 8, F(q, dg) -— a, "(g, 8g), (7)
and when we integrate this between the fixed limits we obtain
Hamilton’s result
q
8= |" (8F(adg)-4.F4,%)},
because dg vanishes at the limits.
Art. 2.—Hamilton contents himself with observing that the
elements of the integral (8) do not generally vanish, and therefore
the value of the integral (2) depends in general on the mode of
passage. We shall suppose that it is possible to pass by continuous
variation of the mode of passage from one given mode to another
without the introduction of infinite terms. In this case we shall
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 9
have the integral Q, for the second mode connected with the integral
Q for the first by the relation
q
Q,= Q@+f/8Q= Qt {| (.2@ dg) -d,2’(q, 8¢)} . (9)
0
The limits of the double integral are fixed and prescribed by the
modes of passage for the single integrals; and if the single integrals
are single-valued (their modes of passage being given) the value
of the double integral is independent of the manner in which the
variation has been performed: in other words, the double integral is
independent of its mode of passage, provided always that no infinite
terms arise. More generally even if the single integrals are multiple-
valued, the double integral is independent of its mode of passage
provided that mode is included in a determinate domain.
Art. 3.—Introducing a quaternion operator D, analogous to V,
which operates on g alone, we may write symbolically
O, = seg 1D, dp i= idg Dy: (10)
and therefore we may may replace (9) by
| Q, = Q+f[F(q, dgSsqD - 8g8dqD), (11)
in which we repeat D operates on g alone. It will be noticed that
dgS é¢gD - dgSdqD
vanishes for 6g = dg and is consequently expressible in terms of
the arrays?
(dy dq) = dgSdg-dgSdg and [dgdg] = VVdgVédg. (12)
In fact
dg SdgD — dgSdgD = —- (dgdg)SD + SVD (dgdg) - VV Di. dgdg], (18)
and in order that the integral (2) should be independent of the mode
of passage we must have
- F(q, B-a) SD + F(g, SD (B-a)) - F(g, VVD Va) = 0 (14)
for all constant vectors a and 6 as we see by replacing the vectors
1 Trans. R.I.A., vol. xxxii., p. 17.
10 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
(dg, 8g) and [dg, 6g] by B-a and Vaf respectively. (Compare
Trans. R.I.A., xxxii., p. 5.) It is easy to see that the terms in
B-a and Vaf in (14) must vanish separately, so we may replace this
condition by the pair
SD-F(g, y)-SyD-#(%1) = 90, #4, VyVD)=0, (15)
in which y is any constant vector.
In particular if we write g =7%+p so that D becomes
0
wes ae 16
2 ot y ve
the conditions for an exact differential are
ae Flu 7) + 8yV-F(y, 1) = 09) 2G NaN) os
and for a scalar integral, or if J’(g, dg) = Sp dg, the conditions
reduce at once to
(32)
or separately for the scalar and vector part of a,
Fi(,VD)=0, A@VVDa)-SD-#g,2)=0 (88)
a being an arbitrary vector. Or in terms of V and = by (16) this is
F,(9, V) = 0, F,(q, VVa)+— FG, a) =e (34)
The general scalar double integral is of the form
JJ So, (dg d’g) + [{So,[dgda'q], (35)
and for this the conditions reduce to
Sve,-0, “22anee (36)
1 These arrays are defined by the relations
(abc) =SVaViVe; [abc] = (abe) + [cb] Sa + [ac] Sb + [ba]Se,
in which a, 6 and ¢ are any quaternions, and as (abe) = S[abe] any three-symbol
array can be expressed in terms of [abc].
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 13
For a vector variable p, (22) reduces to
Q = Jf F:(p, V dp dp) (37)
and (31) to
dQ = - |] F.(p, V)S dpdpd’p, (38)
so that
Q, = @- IJ Fa(p, V) 8 ép dp d'p ; (39)
but a direct proof of the relation (38) by Hamilton’s method is
probably quite as short for anyone not thoroughly familiar with the
notation of this paper as the process of deduction from the general
result. This last result includes Green’s theorem.
Art. 8.—Finally, so far as quaternions are concerned, we have
triple integrals of the type
Q = sF@ [dg, d’g, d"q]) (40)
in which (compare Arts. 5 and 6) the three independent differentials
dg, d’g, dg enter combinatorially or in terms of the three-symbol
array [dgd’qgd’q]. The limits of this integral being fixed, exactly
as in Art. 5, we may reduce 6Q to the form
8Q = fff {a L(g, [dg, dg, aq]) — 4, F'(g, [8¢, 4’9, d’¢7])
+d’, f(g, [dg, 89, d"q]) - a”, F'(g, dg, dq, 8g])} 5 (41)
and because for any quaternions! we have identically
p(abed) = [bed |Sap —[acd|Sbp+ [abd |Sep—[abe|Sdp (42)
we obtain in terms of D by relations such as (10) the simple
equivalent of (41),
dQ = fff D):(8¢d¢ a’ ag). (43)
The conclusions of Art. 2 and of the last Article apply to this
ease, the difference of two triple integrals corresponding to two
different modes of passage between fixed limits being expressible as a
quadruple integral. The condition that the triple integral (40)
1 Here (abcd) = Sa[bed] &c. is the single four-symbol array for four given
quaternions.
14 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
should be independent of the mode of passage is simply (compare (15)
and (33))
F(g, D) = 0 (44)
“or in terms of V, (compare (17) and (384))
a)
pL ea ee (45)
For the general scalar triple integral having for its element
Sp[dgd’qd’q], the condition (45) is
8p -SVVp=0O. (46)
Art. 9.—At the commencement of the last Article we stated that
the triple integral completed the list for quaternions. A quadruple
quaternion integral has a four-spread mode of passage; in other
words the quaternion variable receives every possible value included
within the given limits, and the mode of passage is incapable of
variation. The methods of the present Paper apply however without
formal modification to integrals of a variable
Q = B+ + Leylgt ... + Uyly (47)
where the units 7, 7% ... 7%, obey the laws
==), bate, — 0 (48)
and where multiplication is associative.
Art. 10.—Analytically the conception of the modes of passage for
single, double and triple quaternion integrals presents no difficulty.
We have only to conceive the variable quaternion to be a function of
one, two or three variable parameters. The limits are defined when
a single restriction is imposed on the group of parameters for each
limit. Thus the limits for a double integral are defined by two
quaternions each of which is a function of a single parameter, and
for a triple integral the limits are two quaternions, functions of two
variable parameters.
It is worth while inquiring whether we cannot assign useful
interpretations for the modes of passage and for the limits when we
replace g by + and regard ¢ as the time measured from a fixed
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 15
epoch and p as the vector to a variable representative point at the
time ¢. Fora single integral taken between fixed limits, the repre-
sentative point is obliged to leave a fixed position at a given time and
to reach another fixed position at another given time. The path it
describes and the rate at which it traverses that path are fully
specified by the mode of passage.
Art. 11.—To give an illustration, take the case of the scalar
integral
Q = [S(#+0)(dt+dp) = { #dt+ fSodp. (49)
We have seen (18) that the conditions that this integral should be
independent of the mode of passage are
iV H=0- VVc=0. (50)
The form of these equations suggests an example from fluid motion,
s0 we suppose o to be the velocity of the fluid which the second
condition requires to be irrotational. To see what interpretation
we may assign to the scalar #, we write down the equation of
motion, the suffix denoting that op is not operated on by V, (compare
the Appendix to vol. m. of the ‘‘ Elements of Quaternions,” p. 547),
Oo ]
ae ee One ee te eapees 51
Oars SaVeo VP ; Vp (51)
in which P is the potential of the impressed force, ¢ the density
and p the pressure. But we have identically
Voo VVo = SaV:ao-—VSaqo0 = SaVeo+Vilo’® = 0, (852)
_ and therefore
ae -VP-—Vp-3VT 0%. (53)
Thus we may take
B= P+|-dp+ 3% (54)
so that # is the energy of the fluid per unit mass.
In general in the case of fluid motion when /# is the energy per
unit mass and o the velocity of the fluid at the representative
~
16 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
point during its motion from one limit to the other, the time integral
of the energy diminished by the time integral of the component of the
velocity along the path of the representative point into the element of
that path (- Sodp), depends on the manner in which the point moves
in the given interval of time from one limit to the other; but when
the fiuid motion is irrotational the difference of these integrals (49)
is independent of the mode of passage of the representative point.
It should be observed that {Sodp is not now the flow, for the
velocities o are taken successively in time and not at the same instant
along the path.
When we do not suppose the motion irrotational, the difference of
the integrals (Art. 3.) for two different modes of passage is given by
f= q+ {| soe dp — dé en)( = - vE)-| J[SVVoVdpdp. (55)
In this case by (51) and (52)
~+VE= Vo,VVo, (56)
and this relation may be employed to simplify (55). But the double
integral admits of further simplification, for if in the variation of the
mode of passage we suppose the curves dp to be instantaneous or to
pass through the loci of representative points at every instant during
the passage, we shall have d¢ = 0, so that
Q, = Q-ffdtSépVo,VVoe —-[{f SVVcV dpép. (57)
Art. 12.—To illustrate the meaning of the double integral we
take the simple case (85) which becomes in terms of ¢ and p
Q = {{ So, (dtd'p - d’'tdp) + [{ So. Vdpd'p (58)
because
(dgd’g) = dtd’p-@tdp, [dgd’g]=Vdpd'p. (59)
The limits being fixed must consist of a closed curve composed of
pairs of corresponding points of departure and arrival, the times being
prescribed for every point. There is now a singly infinite system of
representative points, each of which leaves its point of departure at a
definite. instant and reaches its point of arrival at another definite
instant, and when the mode of passage is given the path and the
rate cf description of that path is given for every representative
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 17
point. We may therefore conceive a curve connecting the series
of representative points to sweep across the closed curve in a manner
prescribed by the mode of passage. Let us suppose the differentials
chosen so that dp is an element of this instantaneous curve while
d’p is an element of the path of a representative point. We shall
then have dé = 0, and the integral becomes
Q = -fd't[So,dp + [[So.dpd'p (60)
and —{So,dp is now (compare Art.11) the flow of the vectors o,
along the instantaneous curve from one extremity to the other. In
like manner {So,dpd’p is the flux of the vectors o, through the
elementary strip between two consecutive instantaneous curves, the
integration being performed along an instantaneous curve; but for
the reason stated in Art. 11, [{{So,dpd’p is not the flux of the
vectors o, through the surface generated by the instantaneous curve,
being rather the integral of the fluxes at successive intervals of
time through the strips determined by successive positions of the
instantaneous curve.
Art. 13.—We have seen (36) that the conditions that this integral
should be independent of the mode of passage are
SVo, = 0, ° Vv Va. (61)
Now these are precisely the equations which the electric displacement
1 f : 5 2 é
q,o7) ma dielectric and the corresponding magnetic force (c)
T
satisfy. It is therefore possible to give a physical illustration of the
integral (60). Any closed curve being taken in the dielectric, if a
variable curve is subject to the conditions that its extremities shall
move in a determinate manner along the fixed curve; then the time
integral of the flows of the magnetic force from one extremity of the
variable curve to the other in every position of the curve added to
47 times the integral of the displacement through the strips between
successive positions of the variable curve, is independent of the nature
of the variable curve.
Art. 14.—When the double integral is independent of the mode of
passage, it may be expressed as the difference of two single integrals.
R.1.A. PROC., VOL. ¥XIV., SEC. A. | B
18 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Replacing Q by P in (49) and (55) for the sake of greater clearness
and choosing the differentials so that 5¢ is zero, we have
3
P=[S(E£+0) (dt + dp); P,- P=-|Jaesap( = + vz
~{[SVVoVdpSp. (62)
Comparing the second of these with (60) and observing that 6 and d
correspond respectively to d and d’, we may write
0
w= a, t VEG Gy = VY a. (68)
and the conditions (61) are identically satisfied. Now -—o is the
vector potential of the magnetic current, and — # is the scalar
magnetic potential,' so that if
p=-E-o, (64)
we shall have the integral (60) equal to the difference of the two
values of the integral
P=-JSpdg (65)
corresponding to the two modes of passage which together form the
limit for the integral (60). The quaternion py may be called the
quaternion magnetic potential; and the magnetic force o, and the
electric displacement = o2 are derived from p by the combinatorial
T
operations with D,
o,=-(D,p), C255, [D, p). (66)
Art. 15.—When the integral is not independent of the mode of
passage (31) gives
0 9
8Q= {fs = - Vor | (S¢V dp dp + dtV d'pdop + d’t V dp dp)
—{{SVo.Sdpdpd'p;
or supposing the differentials chosen so that dp and 8p are along
1 Oliver Heayside: Electrical Papers, vol. i., p. 467.
Joty—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. 19
instantaneous curves (so that dé and d¢ are zero), while d’p is an
element of a path of a representative point, this reduces to
00%
a? = [ae] 8( FP - Vive) ¥ dpdp — JS v0.8 apap dp. (67)
The difference between two integrals for different modes of passage is
therefore
; Q, = Q-=fd't ff Sus dp dp — [ff 8 Vo, 8 Spdp d’p (68)
1
00»
oe = — igre (69)
In the variation from one mode of passage to the other, the in-
stantaneous curve corresponding to a given value of ¢ traces out a
surface—the instantaneous surface. The integral [{/ So; dpdp is
the flux through this surface, supposed momentarily fixed, and the
time integral of this is [d’¢ [[So;dpdp. In the electro-magnetic
iulustration o; is the conduction current when the medium is not a
perfect non-conductor. § Voy is the electric volume-density. (Clerk
Maxwell, Electricity and Magnetism, Art. 619).
Art. 16.—Finally for the triple integral (40), we take as an
example
@ = |JJ 8pldgd'g dy], (70)
or in terms of p and ¢ since
[dg dg dg] = Sdpd'pd"p - dt Vd'p dp — Wt V a"pdp
-atVdpd'p, (71)
and since we may choose the differentials so that d¢ and dt are
zero, we have
Q=-Jd"t[[SVpVdpd’p+{[fSpSdpdpd”p. — (72)
The limits now consist of a closed surface composed of pairs of
points of departure and arrival corresponding to prescribed times.
We may imagine a surface drawn through the representative points
to sweep through the closed surface. This variable instantaneous
surface must at every instant cut the limiting surface in a definite
curve corresponding to that instant, but the shape of the instantaneous
surface is otherwise arbitrary until the mode of passage is prescribed.
20 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
If the integral is independent of the mode of passage, the con-
dition (46) is
<8p-SVVp = 0, (73)
and the simplest physical illustration seems to be to take Sp = ¢ to
be the density of a fluid and Vp = co to be the fproduct of the
density and the velocity. The equation of continuity being
0c
57 ~ SV (eo) = 9, _ (74)
the condition is satisfied, and the integral
Q = —fd’t {{feSodpd'p + f{feSdpd’pd”p (75)
is independent of the mode of passage.
The integral {f¢Soadpd’p is the flux of the fluid through the
surface with which the variable instantaneous surface momentarily
coincides, and the integral - {d’’t {{f cSadpd’p is the negative of
the time integral of this flux corresponding to the motion of the
instantaneous surface. The integral {{{fcSdpd’pd”p is simply the
negative of the quantity of fluid which has passed through the
instantaneous surface in its motion.
[ 21 ]
III.
SOME EXPERIMENTS ON DENUDATION BY SOLUTION IN
FRESH AND SALT WATER. By J. JOLY, D.Sc., F.RB.S.,
F.G.S., Professor of Geology and Mineralogy in the University
of Dublin.
[Read Frepruary 24, 1901.]
Tue following experiments are directed to throw light on the much-
neglected question of the solvent effects of sea-water on rocks and
rock-forming silicates.
Materials deait with—F¥our substances are dealt with in these
preliminary experiments—basalt, hornblende, obsidian, and orthoclase.
The basalt is a typical specimen, black, fine-grained, compact, with
specks of olivine, from the Giant’s Causeway, Ireland. The hornblende
is the dark-green aluminous variety, well crystallized, cleavable, from
Friedrickshaabe. The obsidian is a typical rhyolite glass from Monte
Pelato, Lipari. The orthoclase is highly cleavable, fresh, pale pink in
colour.
Mode of Experiment.—The experiments are all comparative, equal
amounts being exposed to solution in distilled water and in sea-water
under like conditions. The sea-water used was taken from the rocky
coast of Killiney, County Dublin, a part of the coast sufficiently far
removed from any stream or river discharge.
The experiments are of two distinct types. In the one it was
sought to secure to the full the effects of aeration upon the rate of
solution.
To this end ten grammes of the mineral, finely powdered, are
placed along with 1000 c.cs. of the solvent in a Jena-glass flask of
the conical Erlenmeyer shape, the flask having a capacity of
1100 c.cs. A continuous stream of air is directed by a Jena-glass
tube to the bottom of the flask, the air escaping in bubbles which rise
through the liquid, and with the help of occasional shaking preserve
the sediment in suspension. The entering air is filtered from dust by
passage through cotton wool, and damped by passage through towers
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. A. | C
22 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
of pebbles, wetted with salt water in the case of the salt-water experi-
ments, and fresh water in the case of the fresh-water experiments.
Eight flasks were exposed in this manner, each to an equal stream of
’ air, four containing fresh water, and four sea-water. The duration
of the experiments was three months, during which time the current
of air continued, with only a very few days intermission, both during
night and day. On each occasion upon which the flasks were shaken
it was found that the salt-water solutions had almost cleared before
the next day, whereas the fresh-water solutions remained turbid, a
natural effect, which in nature is of much importance.
The second mode of experiment was applied to a specimen of the
basalt only. In this case the material in coarse grains and fragments,
to the weight of about 180 grammes, is placed in a U-tube, and by a
cup-of-Tantalus arrangement, which will be described in the appendix,
the solvent (which in this case also was 1000 c.cs. in volume) was
compelled to travel in opposite directions through the tube, passing from
an Erlenmeyer Jena-glass flask placed beneath to one placed above,
and gravitating back again, continuously during the daytime. The
air from the room enters through damping tubes into the upper and
lower flasks alternately with the withdrawal of the solvent.
The action upon the material in the U-tube may be considered as
much like what goes on upon the sea beach or in the wash of a river,
for at the completion of each upward passage of the water through
the U-tube one limb of the tube is to a considerable extent drained
of water, air entering freely between the coarser particles. On the
completion of the downward movement the other limb of the tube is
drained out to a large extent. The particles are thus exposed to the
wash of the solvent in both directions, and to its periodic partial
withdrawal from around them. There is, however, no attrition.
The time occupied in the upward passage of the water is from
seven to eight minutes; in the downward from about eight to nine
minutes. The flasks and U-tubes are in duplicate, the U-tubes being
attached side by side, the one holding basalt traversed by salt water,
and the other basalt traversed by fresh water, and the current is
maintained through each by the one hydraulic arrangement.
The duration of this experiment was four months. At night the
active motion of the water was stopped, but during this period the
particles remained submerged.
Surface Area exposed to Solution.—It is very certain that the rate
of motion of the solvent in such experiments has within limits only a
minor influence on the ultimate results. It is even doubtful if the
Joty—Some Experiments on Denudation. 23
quantity of the solvent within wide limits, so long as the solid is
maintained immersed, seriously effects the results. The primary
factor appears to be the stability of the solid material, and hence
the extent of surface which this exposes to the solvent is the most
important quantitative measurement involved. It is too often the
practice to state in such experiments the amounts gone into solution
as a percentage of the mass of the entire solid. The latter quantity
is in itself of little importance.
In the case of the last described experiment the materials
introduced into the U-tubes were sifted through sieves of measured
mesh. ‘Thus in each U-tube the following quantities of basalt were
inserted :—
25 grammes, passed 0°55 m.m., stopped by 0°45 mm. mesh.
40 ”? be] 0°45 9) 9 i) 0°35 ) 9)
20 9 ? 0°35 ) 9? oP) 0°20 ) 9?
To each of these, 103 grammes of coarse fragments haying a mean
diameter of about 5 mms. were added. A minimum value for the total
surface area is arrived at by assuming the particles spherical in form,
and having diameters of the mean values of the mesh which admits
and the mesh which stops. The assumption is also applied to the 103
grammes of larger fragments. Making the requisite calculations, we
arrive at the result that the area exposed is not less than 0°509 square
metres. The actual area lies above this minimum value. The
particles are rarely rounded, more often rectangular or wedge-shaped
and rough. The assumption that the particles were cubical would
leave the area still below one square metre. We are probably not far
from the actual value in assuming, therefore, one square metre as
approximately the total surface area exposed within each tube.
In the case of the ten-gramme charges, on the conclusion of the
experiments, each was separated by suspension in water into five
degrees of coarseness. These parts were carefully weighed, and the
mean diameters estimated by micrometric measurements (from ten to
twenty measurements being applied to each assortment), and the total
areas calculated, on the assumption that the particles are cubic in
form.
The following are the results in square metres :—basalt, 1209;
orthoclase, 1°799; obsidian, 1:163; hornblende, 0°791.
On the foregoing data the table which follows further on is
calculated representing the amounts of material removed in each case
24 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
per annum from an area of one square metre, according to the experi-
ments.
Such calculations can of course give only approximate evaluation
‘of surface. We possess no definite knowledge as to the depths to
which solutions might in such cases penetrate beneath the surface of
the various minerals and exert a solvent action. If this depth is
considerable, which does not appear probable, the gain in surface
obtained by reducing the material to very fine particles is more
apparent than real. Doubtless, the rate of abstraction of dissolved
material is in any case much greater at the actual surface. If we
assume such abstraction of material to only go on for molecular
distances beneath the surface, or at least distances small compared
with the diameters of the particles, the calculations afford at least a
definite basis of comparison with purely solvent processes in Nature,
for here also a similar penetration of solvent influences occurs. In
each case, too, we may assume a somewhat similar protective effect due
to residual materials. The conclusion to be drawn is that under-
estimate of the surfaces exposed—even on the assumption of cubic
particles—is more probable than over-estimate.
As regards chemical attack over the surface of glass exposed in
each vessel, it may be stated here that this can only cause small error.
The glass used throughout (save the U-tubes in the basalt experiments)
was Jena glass. This glass has been the subject of tests made at the
Technical Institute of Charlottenburgh, which the makers have
published, and which apply to the amount of Na,O liberated under
various conditions. These show that the area of 500 sq. cms. exposed
in the flask, even if the full rate of solution for water at 20° C.
continued for three months, would only liberate 0:00017 grammes of
Na,O. As itis not to be supposed that the primary rate of extraction
would continue, and as the mean temperatures were not higher than
12° C., in any case the error may be considered negligible. The fact
isthe area of glass exposed is small compared with the areas of the
mineral particles.
The Chemical Results.—The chemical analyses were carried out in
the Chemical Laboratory of the Royal Dublin Society, under the
supervision of, and in part by, Mr. R. J. Moss, I.C.8., Chemical
Analyst to the Society, to whom my best thanks are due. Mr. Stone,
the assistant, bestowed the utmost pains on the very difficult task of
evaluating the small quantities available for estimation.
Unfortunately the estimate of the alkalies in the case of the sea-
water solutions, owing to the indirect methods available and the
Joty—Some Experiments on Denudation. 265
overwhelming amounts of sodium and potassium already present,
could not be effected with sufficient accuracy. The lime was in those
cases estimated where the nature of the mineral rendered its solution
probable. A partial analysis of the sea-water used was also carried
out under like conditions to those obtaining in the case of the salt-
water analyses.
The procedure in analyses was the usual one. The lime was
weighed as oxide by ignition of the oxalate, no attempt being made to
separate further possible impurities, which may in the case of sea-
water, as pointed out by Dittmar, amount to as much as 9 per cent. of
MgO, Na,0, &c. The presence of TiO, in the silica precipitate was
not sought for, the weighing after the usual precipitation with HC1
and ignition being entered as silica.
The columns headed 1. refer to the basalt dealt with according to
the second method of experiment as described, the substance being
comparatively coarse-grained, and subjected to an alternate flow of
water in opposite directions. In all cases the quantities in the columns
headed ‘‘ Salt’ have already been reduced by the amounts of dissolved
silica, alumina, and lime detected in the unused sea-water, as given in
the last column.
The mean temperature prevailing during the progress of Experi-
ments II., UI., Iv., and v., was 7° C.; and during Experiment 1., 12°C.
At the conclusion of the experiments the sea-water, in each case,
showed a distinctly increased alkaline reaction towards litmus; the
fresh water also showed a very faint alkaline reaction towards litmus.
Consideration of Results—The principal issue which led to the
foregoing experiments is the broad and somewhat complex one, as to
whether the water of the sea is a more active solvent denuding agent
than fresh water. It seems to have been left an open question up to
the present. Daubrée’s well-known experiments! with chloride of
sodium and water acting on orthoclase exposed to violent attrition in
a rotating vessel admittedly applies to the activity of the one dissolved
substance only. Moreover, the negative result which Daubrée appar-
ently obtained is not in agreement with the results obtained by Beyer,’
that the felspars decompose rapidly in water containing sodium
chloride. But Daubrée does not appear to have gone beyond investi-
gating the final reaction, whether alkaline or not. Further direct
1“ Geologie Expérimentale,’’ vol. i., p. 237.
* Quoted by G. P. Merrill in ‘‘ Rocks, Rock- Weathering, and Soils,’ p. 178.
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28 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
evidence on the broad question at issue I have not found. Dana con-
sidered that basalt rocks were protected by sea-water, either where
quite covered or merely washed with spray, relatively to the same
rock exposed to the alternate wetting and drying of sub-aereal actions.
“Merrill, commenting on this, remarks justly that erosive actions, in
such cases, preserve a deceptive appearance of freshness to the rock.
He, however, thinks that no exception can be taken to Dana’s remarks
regarding rocks wholly immersed.
Gustav Bischof in his well-known ‘‘ Chemical and Physical Geology”’
has advanced reasons from the chemical point of view for believing
that the alkaline silicates of felspars, &c., will experience more active
dissolution in water containing dissolved salts of calcium and mag-
nesium. This view is based on the fact that alkaline silicates are
decomposed in presence of the sulphates and chlorides of calcium and
magnesium, the sparingly soluble earthy silicates being precipitated.”
If this applies to the naturally occurring crystallized silicates, in
which alumina forms part of the molecule, and which are, compara-
tively speaking, insoluble bodies, sea-water, containing MgSO,, CaSO,,
and MgCl1,, in abundance, should accelerate the decomposition of
felspars.
The results of the reaction with the alkaline silicates appear,
according to Bischof, to be the formation of the silicates of lime and
magnesium and the sulphates and chlorides of the alkalies. The
latter will, of course, be dissolved. The silicate of lime will again be
decomposed if carbonic acid is present, silica separating out and preci-
pitating, and carbonate of calcium being formed. The silicate of
magnesia will, however, not be decomposed by carbonic acid.
According to these reactions, wherever sea-water acts upon silicates
containing alkaline silicates, and is, as in the experiments, freely
exposed to the CO, of the atmosphere, decomposition will be accele-
rated, silicate of magnesia being precipitated, bicarbonate of calcium
formed and retained in solution (or precipitated if the amount of CO,
is deficient), silica precipitated, and soluble chlorides and sulphates of
the alkalies formed. These reactions would alone not serve to explain
the presence of the comparatively large amount of silica in solution
revealed by the reaction with orthoclase (Ex. ut.), unless soluble
alkaline silicates remain in solution, or a hydrosol of silica is formed.
a
1 Loc. cit., p. 258.
*““ Geologie Expérimentale,”’ yol. i., p. 12.
Jory—Some Experiments on Denudation. 29
But they suggest forcibly that the final results in nature (or in the
experiments), as regards bringing the rock materials into solution,
represent but a part of the total reaction upon the rock. In other
words, the amount of decomposition actually effected is indicated only
by the liberation in solution of certain of the constituents. This fact—
which could be instanced by many well-known phenomena of rock-
weathering—involves a conservative effect of great importance in
nature, and which must also be borne in mind in considering any such
experiments as the present ones, effected on fresh material. The pro-
cess of leaching out soluble constituents, and leaving insoluble ones, or
those of secondary formation, behind, must lead to a rapid diminution
of the surface activity of the solid.
With the conspicuous exception of the orthoclase the silica obtained
in the salt water solutions is either about equalled or actually largely
excelled in amount in the case of the fresh-water solutions—as in the
experiments on basalt and obsidian.
The obsidian, it will be observed, proved to both solvents the most
resistant of the materials dealt with. Daubrée records among his
results that this same substance offered remarkable resistance to
attack.’ The final solutions in this case, he records, showed scarcely
any alkaline reaction.
A conspicuous feature of the results is the much greater quantities
of lime dissolved in the salt-water solutions. According to Bischof
this might be explained, as we have seen, as the result of the
secondary reaction attending the liberation of alkaline silicates. The
result, which is more especially conspicuous in the case of the basalt
(both in fresh and salt water), is in keeping with the well-known
deposition of carbonate of calcium in some basic igneous rocks
undergoing decay. Alumina in solution was only detected in the
salt solutions, but in every case in minute quantity. The almost
complete absence of iron in the solutions is remarkable, the delicate
test by sulphocyanide of ammonium revealing no more in any instance
than a trace.
Looking at the figures at the foot of the columns of Tables r. or 11.,
we observe that in every case the total amount removed in solution by
the salt water exceeds considerably what is removed by the fresh water.
If the alkalies (and magnesia in some cases) taken up by the sea water
were added, the preponderance would be still greater. As it stands the
1 foc. cit., p. 275.
30 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
sea-water dissolves from twice (obsidian) to fourteen times (orthoclase)
the mass dissolved by fresh water. j
The main question at issue is undoubtedly answered by these
experiments, incomplete though they be. They show, indeed, that
under the conditions of experiment :—moderate temperature; fresh
material; abundant aeration ; active circulation ; absence of attrition :
marine solvent denudation exceeds in activity fresh-water denudation
in the case of basalt not less than three times ; in the case of hornblende
not less than eight times; in the case of obs¢dian over four times; and
in the case of orthoclase not less than fourteen times. In short, taking
alkalies into account and some MgO (as we have seen there is some
reason to believe MgO will not enter largely into solution in the case
of sea water), the preponderance ranges from about four times (basalt)
to seventeen or eighteen times (orthoclase). With the lapse of time,
as the surface of the solids become exhausted of the more soluble
constituents, a convergence and approximation of the two rates will
probably occur.
Itis interesting to place the figures applying to fresh-water solvent
denudation side by side with estimates which have been based on river-
water analyses.
Mr. T. Mellard Reade has estimated that solvent denudation in
England and Wales is lowering the surface of the land at the rate of
one centimetre in 430 years. This represents the removal of about
60 grammes per square metre per annum. The Mississippi, drawing
its supplies from areas exposed to wide climatic extremes and from
every variety of rock and soil, is lowering its basin at the rate of one
centimetre in 833 years, which represents the removal of about
30 grammes per square metre per annum. Comparing these figures
with the experimental figures, we see that even a brisk continuous
washing of fresh rock-surface having the superficial area of the denuded
region would not be competent to supply more than a small percentage
of these amounts. The mean of the figures at foot of the columns apply-
ing to fresh-water denudation in Table 11. is just 0:08 grammes
removed per square metre per annum. This is 0-15 per cent. of the
amount estimated by Mr. Mellard Reade, and 0:3 per cent. of the
amount removed per square metre per annum by the Mississippi.
Herein we see the influence primarily of the great surface areas
exposed in the soils (as much as 500 square metres in the litre),
as well as the solvent influence of the acids originating in vege-
tation, the more rapid solution of the calcareous rocks, effects of
alternate wetting and drying, frost and sunshine.
Joty—Some Experiments on Denudation. 51
APPENDIX.
A brief account of the apparatus used in the experiments on the
solvent denudation of basalt (coarse grain) in fresh and salt water may
be of value to anyone entering on such experiments. The arrange-
ment is such as to utilize the motion of a continuous water supply
from any source to produce a reciprocating passage of a given quantity
of a liquid through a U-tube containing the substance being dealt
with.
In the diagram for clearness one U-tube only is shown, X, contain-
ing the basalt. In the actual experiments there were two U-tubes
attached side by side so as to be under like conditions of temperature,
both containing basalt of same assortment of grain; but through the
one salt water, through the other fresh water circulated. It will thus
be understood that the flasks containing these solvents, F, and /,, were
four in number, the diagram showing those required for the one solvent
only. Beyond them those for the other solvent may be supposed
concealed. Similarly, behind X the second U-tube is concealed. The
tube B biturcates at 6, one branch ascending to the top of F, as
shown, the other ascending to the top of the flask concealed behind J.
At S isa stop-cock controlling the city water supply. A stout
rubber connection, closed all but for a nearly capillary glass tube,
admits from this a continuous small stream of water at high pressure
into the tube 4. Itis thus conveyed ina slow continuous stream
into the closed Wolt’s bottle placed above the tap and above the flasks.
If we imagine the Wolf’s bottle just full of air, and water flowing
into it from the tap, this air will escape by the second tube B into
F, and at first pass through the mineral particles in X, and escape
through the measured quantity of solvent in F;, emerging by the
damping tubes 7. When the Wolf’s bottle gets quite full the siphon
C comes into operation and rapidly empties the bottle, like a cup-of-
Tantalus, the siphon being in fact of sufficient bore to empty the
bottle in about eight minutes, although the stream is entering by tube
A all the time. During this emptying process evidently the solvent
in F, issucked up and passes through X, rising finally into F,. When
all is nearly drawn up the Wolf's bottle is quite empty. The siphon
breaks, and the current from 4 gradually refills the Wolf’s bottle,
during which time the solvent flows back through X. This takes
about nine minutes.
There is thus a tide upwards and downwards maintained through
o2 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the U-tube X; and it is easy to arrange that the sand in each limb
shall be alternately uncovered and exposed to the air when the supply
of solvent from the attached flask fails. It is necessary for safety to
take the tube B about 60 centimetres or thereabouts above the Wolf’s
bottle.
Where the siphon opens within the bottle a peculiar arrangement
is adopted, absolutely essential to the success of the apparatus. This
consists in forming the lower part, ¢, of the siphon of soft-rubber
tubing, carrying at its lower end an open thistle funnel, D. The
object of this is to obviate a well-known difficulty in the cup-of-
Tantalus arrangements: viz. the failure of the siphon to ‘“‘ break”
at end of its discharge and the consequent formation of a chain of
gas-bubbles and water-bubbles, carrying off the water at the same
rate as that at which it enters the bottle. Now the action of the
thistle funnel and rubber tube is as follows :—as the water sinks in
the bottle and at last begins to uncover the thistle funnel, the weight
of the water in this funnel elongates the rubber tube a little, so that
finally, when the lower lip of the funnel uncovers and the water
spills out of it, the contraction of the rubber tube jerks the funnel
completely out of the water beneath and lets the whole siphon fill
with air.
This arrangement gave no trouble and worked with no more
attention than that required to re-moisten the gravel contained in the
damping tubes 7. I may point out that the adjustment of the
effective capacity of the Wolf’s bottle is simply carried out by an
adjustment of the length of the arm of the siphon within the
bottle, that is, by adjusting the length of the rubber tube 7.
A
4
eS
c
i.
ie
LLL LL.
[ 34 ]
PVE
SOME PROPERTIES OF A CERTAIN QUINTIC CURVE. By
Tur Rev. W. R. WESTROPP ROBERTS, B.D., F.T.C.D.
[Read January 27, 1902.]
1.—Tue Curve, the properties of which I treat of in this Paper,
is a special case of the class of quintic curves having a triple point.
Such curves possess considerable interest, as many of their properties
can be ascertained by the known properties of Abelian integrals
and functions, and they thus afford us geometrical interpretations
of complex mathematical formule. :
The equation of a quintic curve having a triple point is readily
seen to be of the form
Av —~Bher C= O70 «4. 2 eam
the triple point, which we shall denote by O, being at the point of
intersection of the axes z and y, A, being a binary cubic in w and y,
B, a quartic and C a quintic in the same variables, and z a line
which passes through the points in which the five lines through
O whose equation is C = 0 meet the curve.
We shall now express the coordinates of a point on the curve
in terms of a parameter 6. In order to effect this we shall seek
expressions for the coordinates of the two points in which the line
xz = Oy meets the curve.
Introducing this value of z into the equation of the curve, we
find, after dividing by 4%,
Ag -2Bsy+ Oy2=0,.... . (2)
where A is what 4 becomes when we put z = @ and y = 1, and,
similarly, B and C are what B and C become for the same values
of x and y.
Rozserts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 35
If we now solve the above quadratic for the ratio z: y, it is plain
we may write
px = AO
py — vi . . . ° . . . (3)
pa By aa
where & = EAE.
It follows thus that the line « = 6y meets the curve in two
points P and P’, which we call corresponding points, and further, if
we denote their coordinates by x, y, 2, and 2’, y’, 3’, we shall have
px = AO px’ = Ad
py = 4 py = A sees ()
ps = B+ fk is = BR
that is to say, 6 being given, to one point ? there corresponds a
positive value of the radical iva and to the other point P’ a
negative value. It is evident that if R = 0, the points P and P’
coincide.
2.—The class of this curve is easily ascertained, since the triple
point O is to be counted as equivalent to three double points in
estimating the number of tangents which can be drawn from an
arbitrary point to the curve; this number is then 5x4-—3x2=14;
and if this point be on the curve the number of tangents which can
be drawn from it will be 14 diminished by 2, or 12; but if the point
be O, the triple point, the number of tangents which can be drawn
from it to the curve will be 14 -— 3x2 = 8: hence eight tangents can
be drawn from O to the curve. Now, a line drawn through O meets
the curve in corresponding points, and these points will coincide
when the line touches the curve, the eight points of contact of
tangents which can be drawn from O to the curve, are then points
which coincides with their corresponding points. Their equation is
consequently ae
Te = Us
We shall call the roots of R = 0, a, a,, ... ag, and we shall
sometimes write it in the form
Sis 7 DDD; DD, 3
D,, D., D,, and D, being four quadratic factors whose roots are
36 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
1, G23 G3, 43 Gs, Ag; 7, ag. We shall refer to these eight points
as the & points.
3.—Let z = idx + my be the equation of any line, and let us seek
the equation which determines the parameters of the five points of
section. Substituting for s, its value /x + my in the equation of
the curve, we obtain
A (la+myy—-2B(la+my)+C=0,.. . (1)
and consequently the five @s of the points of section of the curve
with the line, which we shall denote by 6, 63, 03, 01, 6;, are
found from the equation
A (10+m)— 2B(16+m)+C = ¢(6)=0. . . (2)
If we now investigate the change in @ due to changes d/J and dm
in / and m, we obtain, by differentiating the above equation,
a) -40 + 25 A (10+ m) — B\(6dl+dm) =
Now, A (l6+m) -— B = dee
and 1) ) = M¢'(@), where IY is a function of 7 and m; hence
dé, 9 Ar) ae + im)
= + 2————____
sll I ¢' (6;)
6, being one of the five roots of the equation
$(0) = 0, and (6) = (0,— 6) (A- 6;) (A, - 6,) (@,- 65) .
A040, We Ahora)
We now write
a6, (6, dl + dm)
Ss 4 28-0,
JR, HH $'(6:)
6, a6 62 d1+ 6, di
EO oe ae ssa Ree
JB, I $'(tr)
6,246, (6,3 dl + 6,2dm)
pS 4 2 =,
Bs Ug! (6)
where = denotes summation from 6, to 6;.
Rosrerts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 37
But, by the theory of partial fractions, we have
1 6, 6? 6,3
mrTON 0, WEAN atl 3 7 F 0, Minnoo’ =
SIE = (6) = FG) 2 gion 71
Consequently we obtain the following three relations connecting the
five values of @ and their differentials which correspond to the points
of section of a line with the curve,
2
se sp As 1 3 cad Gy . (5)
Une IB, li,
These differential equations we can integrate since they are true for
every line which can be drawn to meet the curve.
>
If we now write 6” dé
: ies = L,(9) ;
r being an integer, we obtain, by integration of the differential
system (5),
SLO) = a,
@iaay foes ©
=L(8) = @,
> denoting summation from 6, to @;, and ¢, ¢, and ¢, being constants.
4.—We now proceed to determine the values of the constants
Ie Gia GhoGl Gye
By reference to equations (4), Art. 1, we see that to a given value
of the parameter 0, corresponds but one point P, if we agree to affect
the radical I R with a positive sign, its corresponding point P’ being
determined by giving the radical a negative sign. To the triple
point O will then correspond three values of the parameter 6, or, in
other words, there are three different values of @ which will give us
z=0, y= 0,
these values of 6 corresponding to the different branches of the curve
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. A. | D
38 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
which pass through O. These values of @ are plainly the roots of
the equation A = 0, which we shall denote by m, m, ms.
The constants ¢, ¢, ¢ being the same for all lines, their value
‘will remain unaltered if we consider a line, x = @y, drawn through
O. Now, such a line meets the curve in O counted three times, and
whose parameters on each branch on which it lies are respectively
1, M2, and m3, and in two corresponding points for which 6 is the
same but the radical is equal in value and opposite in sign. The sum,
then, of the five integrals 7, reduce to J,(m) + Jj(m2)+L)(”3) = Wy say.
We find then
¢ = IV,, and by parity of reasoning
L,(m) + Ln) + L(ns) = M, ere)
T,(m) + T:(m) + Ty) = Ny.
ll
C7}
C2
Hence any line meets the curve in five points such that
=1,(0) = ™,
SHIA) 2 4, Pere mcna Bos), (52)
=2,(9) = M,.
In precisely the same way we may prove that any conic through
the triple point O meets the curve in seven points, and so that
371, (0) = 5,
34(6) = ™,, ames 2)
= £,(6) = N,.
As these three equations will, in all cases we shall discuss, always
obtain together, we shall write them in the briefer form
=1(0) = NV,
it being always understood that this equation 3 Z(@) = WV implies
three equations, connecting 3 1,(6), 34(0), and 34(6), with
Ni, Vip sand LV; -
Rozserts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 39
5.—To any point for which @ is given, and also the sign of the
radical alin correspond the three integrals J,(6), (0), and £,(6),
which we shall refer to as the integrals of the point, to any three
points whose parameters are 6,, 6., and 6;, will correspond three
integrals Z,(6,), Z,(62), and J,(0@;), three integrals of the class [,(6)
and three of the class (0). If we write
DT, (91) + Ly (G2) + Lo (8s) = Of
F, (6) + L(O:) + (0:) = U, goth ah bale)
£(0;) + £(6:) + £(6;) = Th,
we might, not improperly, call UY), U,;, and U,, the arguments of
the three points whose parameters are 6,, 62, and 6.
For such quintic curves we have a theory of residuation analogous
to Sylvester’s Theory of Residuation for the Cubie ; but as I have already
discussed such a theory in a Paper published in the ‘‘ Proceedings of
London Mathematical Society” some years ago, and as the treatment
for the quintic is almost exactly similar to that I adopted in the case
of the uni-nodal quartic, I shall not do more than allude to it.
We consider the equation of a curve of the mth degree of the
form
az—-b=0,
which we call an O curve, where a and 6 are binary forms of the
m — 1th and mth degrees respectively. Such a curve has O for a
point of the m — 1th order; and we find, by reasoning of a precisely
similar nature to that we employed in discussing the relations of the
parameters of the points of section of a line with the quintic, that
the 2m+3 values of @ corresponding to the 2m+3 points of section
are connected by three relations, viz.,
31(6) = ¥.
If two systems of points on the quintic a and 8 together make up
the complete intersection of an O curve and the quintic, these
systems are said to be co-residual.
6.—We now turn to the equation of the curve
Ag —-2Bs+C=0.
40 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
If we write for zs, z,+/, f being the equation of a line through 0,
we find
Az —2(B- Af)z, + C-2Bf+ Af =0,
or, Az; —— 2 Biz, == C, = 0 ;
where B, = B-Af, C, = C-2Bf+ Af’.
Now it is clear since f contained but two constants, it will not in
general be possible to make C, contain the binary cubic J as a factor.
The curve we discuss is that special case of the quintic with a triple
point in which it is possible to transform the equation of the curve
so that C, = AQ, Q being a binary quadratic. This involves one
condition. The equation of this curve can then be written in
this form
AP —ZB2+ AQ i ae eee
This being the case, suppose we transform the above equation to a
new axis of z, which will be effected by writing +f for zs. For
this transformation we have
Az? —2Biz+ G => 0,
where B, = B- Af,
C, = AQ-2Bf+ Af.
Now, we say, since we have two constants at our disposal, that it is
possible to determine f so that B- Af may contain Q—/? as a factor.
Let us write then
Be AFAG- Pr nn eee
F being a binary quadratic.
Let us now see what C, becomes in this case. We have
C, = A(Q+f*) -228f
AC Q+S) 2h 4s 140 — fee
(Q-f?)(4-2fF) = (Q-f*) & say,
where H=AaxwIfF.
Roserts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 41
The equation of our curve can consequently be written
-2(Q-f*)F2+(Q-f)H=0. .. (8)
Now the equation of the tangents from O to this curve will be the
discriminant of the above equation considered as a quadratic in s.
Hence R = (Q-f*){(Q-/*) F- AH} = D,D,D,D,;
we have, consequently,
Q-f =D,
D, being the equation of a pair of tangents from O to the curve
multiplied by such a factor so that
Q- D, Sie e
There are eight & points as we have stated, and there are con-
sequently twenty-eight ways of arranging the eight points in pairs;
and consequently twenty-eight ways of reducing the equation of the
curve to the form
A SOD Tig IDE = We 5) 6 6 6 (@)
If we write A = ma@a3, a, a and a; being the tangents at
triple point, we can show that our quintic can be regarded as the
envelope of a certain cubic curve. Let & be so chosen that
ka,a;+ D = ¢ say,
then we have, rae the equation (4) by & and substituting
for ka,a; its value ¢? -
a(¢?-D)#? -2DFiks+kDH = 0;
or, a(p3—-D) = Dias? + 28(kF-a¢)+4D-kH}
showing that the curve is the envelope of the cubic
a D(p-1)* = 2(p-1)(EF- das)
+ f ays + 23(kf- ap) + aD-kH} =
or, ae+2(kF-apd)+paD-kH=0;.. . (5)
and this cubic touches the curve in five points where it meets
the conic
sm = Dp.
42 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
7.—The equation of our quintic being
Az#?-2Bz+AQ=0,
an equation which is obviously satisfied by s = 0, A = 0, it follows
that the tangents at the triple point meet the curve again in three
points which lie on a right line, this then is the characteristic of
our quintic, that the tangents at O meet the curve in three points which
lie on a right line; these points, we call the 4 points, and the line
joining them meets the curve in two points which we call the
@ points.
It is easy to see that each of the A points has O as a cor-
responding point, and consequently the arguments of the 4 points
are seen to be —JV,, -1,, and —-Z,. If now we call Q and Q’,
the two points in which the line joing the 4 points meets the
curve, and J and J’ their integrals, as above defined, we must have
EJ; Nea)
1
or, J+J' =2N. ) @)
The @ points play an important part in the geometry of our quintic.
8.—Any conic drawn through the Q points and O meets the
curve in five points whose corresponding points lie on a line.
This theorem is readily proved as follows: we have
SLI(@+S+S =N,
where & refers to the five values of the parameters of the points in
in which the conic meets the quintic. Now we proved, in the last
Article, that
J+ SI’ =2N.
Consequently,
=1(0) =-N,
or,
— 3 1(0) =W,
which proves the theorem, as — I(@) is the value of Z(6) for the
points corresponding to those in which the conic meets the curve.
Roserts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 43
9.—Given the curve, to determine the Q points. By aid of the
theorem of the last Article, we can find the Q points by drawing any
line meeting the curve in five points. By means of the ruler alone
we can determine their five corresponding points, and through these
latter points and O it will be found possible to draw a conic which
will meet the curve in the required points.
Since we know the Q points, we can draw the tangents at the
triple point.
All we have to do is to draw a line through the Q points meeting
the curve in three other points, the lines joining these to O will
touch the curve at O.
10.—If any line be drawn through one of the Q points, Q,
meeting the curve in four other points, their corresponding points
lie on a line which passes through Q’.
We have
ZI(0)+J7= N,
> referring to the four 6s of the points in which the line through Q
meet the curve. Now
J+J’ =2N;
therefore,
N-J=J'-N;
consequently,
—-31(6)+ J’ = WN,
which proves the theorem.
On account of the importance of this theorem, we give another
proof.
Let the factors of Q be g and q’, so that
Q= 97,
and let us seek the equation which determines the points in which
a line s = Ag, drawn through one of the Q points meets the curve.
Substituting the value of s in the equation
A#?—-2Bs+AQ=0,
we find
AMG —-2BAqg+ Aq? = 90,
or, dividing by Aq,
A (NOE AS ei 2 be O: ~. = « - (CE)
<4 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Now this is exactly the equation we should find to determine the
points in which a line z=21q’ meets the curve; hence it follows
that the lines
,
e-Ag=0, z-hig =0
meet the curve in points which correspond.
Now, these two lines are obviously connected by a 1, 1 relation
and the locus of their intersections is the conic Q = 2? which we
call the Q conic.
11.—The eight # points lie on the Q conic. For, if a line be
drawn through O meeting the curve in two corresponding points
P and P’, the lines QP, QP’ intersect on the Q conic; consequently
the Q conic must meet the curve in points which coincide with their
corresponding points, or in other words the Q conic passes through
the # points. (
We shall show how to construct, geometrically, the Q conic, and
consequently to determine, geometrically, the & points.
We have already shown how to determine the Q points; conse-
quently, if we draw any three lines through one of the Q points, and
through the other Q point the lines which correspond to them, we
determine by their intersection three points, which, with the Q
points, enables us to determine completely the Q conic.
The # points are then found by describing the Q conic as above
indicated.
12.—To draw a tangent to the curve at a given point P. Join
P to Q and Q by lines PQ and PQ’, meeting the curve in two sets
of three points, one on each line whose arguments are, say, u and v.
Then we have, if 6 refer to the point P,
I(0)+u+J=N, )
Stee 0 eae ea
Trees}
from which we obtain by addition,
21(0)+u+rotdid’=2N, .. . (2)
or, sum J+J’ = 2H,
21(@)+ut+v=0,
Rosperts—On some Properties of a Certain Quintic Curve. 465
we may write this in the form
—-u—-a+{N-27(6)}=N, . . .. (8)
the signification of which is that the O cubic through the triplets
corresponding to w and v passes through the residual of the pair of
consecutive points at P. We can, however, draw the tangent at P
by means of two conics as follows —
Let U = & ++ as, v= 6b,+h46,,
then through the points corresponding to the points a,, a, b,, b
describe an O conic meeting the quintic again in three points ¢, 2, ¢s.
Since 2I(0)+u+v =0,
we have 2J(@)+q+m+6+4,+6 = NV,
which proves that the five points ¢, @, ¢3, a3, and 4; lie on O conic
which touches the quintic at P. Hence the tangent required is
determined by drawing the tangent to this conic at P.
13.—If a line be drawn through one of the Q points to touch the
curve in P, then the tangent at P’, its corresponding point, will pass
through Q’, and the correspondence between the lines QP and QP’
will be of the kind noted in Article 10.
ae ae
Ay, Az, Az are the A points lying on a line, and Q and Q’ the Q points.
Now twelve tangents can be drawn from each Q point to the
curve, and to each tangent from Q, such as QP, corresponds a tangent
Q'P’, so that the anharmonic ratio of any four tangents from Q is
equal to that of the four corresponding tangents from Q’.
R,I.A, PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. A. ] E
46 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The twelve points of intersection, then, of the tangents from Q
with the corresponding tangents from @’ lie on a conic through @
endive. = =
» As the treatment of this quintic is so similar to that of the
uninodal quartic, previously dealt with, it is only necessary to
indicate how this curve may be submitted to the same manner of
investigation with many similar results. We give a figure of the
curve on page 40.
pray 9]
Vv.
THE MULTI-LINEAR QUATERNION FUNCTION.
By CHARLES JASPER JOLY, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D., Royal
Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’ Professor of Astronomy in
the University of Dublin.
[Read Novemper 10, 1902.]
1. A bilinear quaternion function is symbolically defined by the
equation
f(a+6, +d) =f(a, e)+f(a, d)+ f(b, ¢)+f(6,4), (1)
a, b, c, and d being any four quaternions. In other words, the function
J (p, 7) is distributive with respect to its first quaternion p, and also
with respect to its second quaternion gq.
The quaternions ¢ being arbitrarily assinmed constants, the function
may be expressed in the form
J (pg) = aSppg + eSpfg + eSpfg + eSpfsg ; (2)
and is thus seen to involve sixty-four constants, sixteen in each linear
function fi, fo, fs, Ss
2. Transposing the quaternions alters the function into its per-
mutate, which may be distinguished by a sub-accent; thus
FS (eD =F,(ar), F(w) =F, (29): (3)
If the linear functions in (2) are self-conjugate, the function is
permutable, and conversely.
3. Introducing two new functions P and C defined by the equa-
tions
F (pq) =P (pq) + Cv), F,(e = P(pg)-C(eg), (4)
it is evident that P is a permutable function, and that C changes sign
with permutation ; in fact (by (3) and (4)),
2P (py) =S(pq) +S (gp), 2C (pg) =S (eg) -S (gp). (9)
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. VIIL., SEC, A. ] F
48 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The function C may be called a combenatorzal function, for
C(p +29, 9)=C(py), C(pp) = 0. (6)
’ Thus an arbitrary bilinear function is reducible in one way to the
sum of a permutable and a combinatorial function.
4. For all quaternions », q, 7, we agree to write
| Sof(ar) = Safar) = Sr" (9p) ; i)
and we call. the new functions /’(pq), /’(pq), the first and second
conjugates, respectively, of the given function. The phraseology is
justified by the consideration that the first conjugate is the conjugate
if the bilinear function is regarded as a linear function of its first
quaternion.
5. Permuting the quaternions in (7) according to the rule (8), and
taking the conjugates, we obtain the series of equal scalars
Spfar) = Sef’ (wr) = 8r(P)" (pg) = Sa (P), 7p)
Srf’(qp) = Sr(P"), (99) = 8a) (rp)
= Spfi(rq) ='Sr(f,)' (wg) = SaA)"(rp)s (8)
and from these we obtain the relations
(PY" Cog) = (FP), (09) = SFY Cog) = FP);
(CF), (0) =F) (29) = Oi) en) 7 GD; (9)
where the brackets are employed to obviate any confusion as to the
order in which the operations indicated by the accents have been
performed.
These relations, taken in conjunction with the obvious relations
Seg) = (i), (eM) = (FY (99) = P"C9); (10)
enable us to reduce any multiply-accented function to one or other of
the six fundamental functions,—the function and its two conjugates,
the permutate and its two conjugates.
Il
6. Having now explained the fundamental principles underlying
the manipulation of bilinear functions, we shall indicate some of the
uses to which they may be applied.
JoLty—On the Multi-Linear Quaternion Function. 49
A quaternion being interpreted as representing a point, the equa-
tion
r = f (pq) (11)
establishes a relation between three points p, g, and 7.
Let » be supposed given and constant. In this case we have the
general homographic transformation in space for a set of points (q¢) to
another set (vr). The nature of this transformation is changed for
every change in the constant p; and the equation may be taken to
represent what Sir Robert Ball might have called a four-system of
homographic transformations. The four-system of transformations is
more clearly exhibited by writing
p= 1,4, aa teMs + talks ae b4Q4, (12)
where the symbols a denote given and constant quaternions, while the
symbols ¢ denote scalar parameters. Thus the linear transformation
is
r= tf (mq) + tof (aq) + tf (aq) + ef (asg) 3 (18)
and it is compounded from the four given linear transformations
Flag), Faq), SF (4g), and f (ag).
7. In the second place, consider 7 to be a constant quaternion,
while y and q are variable, subject to the condition (11).
The equation then represents the general space homography con-
necting two points p and gq, so that if one is given, the other is
generally uniquely determinate.
Again, as in (12), we may replace r by
r= 81, + Sebo + 8305 aF 84)4; (14)
and, according to the various values assignable to the scalars s, we
obtain a four-system of space homographies.
8. In the third place, let p =q; then we have (Art. 3),
r= f(99) = Pag); (15)
and this represents the general quadratic transformation in space, so
that to one point g corresponds one point 7, and to one point 7 cor-
respond eight points g determined by the intersections of three
quadric surfaces
Snr = Sr,P (¢q) = 0, Srer=Sr.P (gq) = 0, Srer=SrsP (gq) = 0, (16)
where Sr,r = 0, &e. are any three planes through the point 7.
50 Proceedings of the Royai Irish Academy.
9, In the fourth place, write .
r= 3f(p9) — 2f (gp) = C (v9); (17)
and we find an equation which represents a one-to-one correspondence
between lines pg and points r.
10. Again, consider the mutual relations of three points p, gq,
and r, which satisfy the equation
Sef (gr) = 0. (18)
If p=q=r, the equation
S7f(rr) = 0, or SrP(rr) = 0, (19)
represents the general cubic surface, and with this surface are asso-
ciated systems of linear complexes,
Sp (f(qr) -F(gr)) = 0, or SpC (gr) =0, (20)
so that to each value of p corresponds a linear complex represented
by (19).
This is quite analogous to the quadric surface and the correlated
linear complex
Sqfq = 0, Spfq - Sefp = 0, (21)
obtainable from a linear function f.
Further, by suitable permutation of the quaternions in (18), we
may obtain an equation of the form
(qr) = 0, (22)
which is combinatorial with respect to p, g, and r, where / is a
constant quaternion determined by the nature of the function f. This
equation (22) represents a determinate fixed plane which contains the
points p, g, and r.
11. Similarly, for the trilinear function, various analogous results
may be,deduced; but there is one which deserves special mention.
The equation
Lo I (4, , q), . (28)
in which @ and 6 are quaternion constants arbitrarily assignable,
represents the complete group of homographic transformations in space, or
Joty—On the WVulti- Linear Quaternion Function. 51
the whole szxteen-system of such transformations. This appears on
expressing @ and 6 in terms of sets of scalar parameters ; and then from
(23) we obtain sixteen distinct transformations corresponding to the
sixteen products of the scalars of one set by those of the other.
12. From the equation for a trilinear function
Saf (bed) = 0, (24)
it is easy to derive, by permutation and conjugation, scalar equations
of the form
F({ab}, {ed}) = 0, (25)
which is combinatorial with respect to a and 6, and also with respect to
e and d. Thus given a line ad, (25) represents a linear complex ;
and in this equation there is a relation between line and complex
and complex and line, somewhat analogous to the relations connecting
generators of opposite systems of a quadric.
13. It. is possible by suitable permutation to derive from f(abec) a
combinatorial function of a, 6, ¢; or, in other words, a linear function
(compare (27))
Flabe] : (26)
of the symbol of the plane [adc] containing these points. And in like
manner from Saf (bed), we may deduce a scalar combinatorial function
of the four points; but this is simply (abcd) multiplied by a scalar
determined by the nature of the function.
Following out this line, it appears at once that the various per-
mutates of a function of the fifth order are not independent. In fact,
for the trilinear function, we find the combinatorial function (26), or
more fully
(abe) + f (bea) + f (cab) — f (cba) — f (bac) —f(acb); (27)
and similarly from the permutates of a function of the fifth order, we
can obtain a combinatorial function of the five quaternions a, 4, ¢, d, ¢,
and the function /'(abcde). But a combinatorial function of five
quaternions is zero; and consequently the I15 permutates of the
function are connected by one identical relation. In like manner, for
functions of higher order, the permutates obtained from any group of
52 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
five quaternions are linearly connected ; and the- number of fy an
permutates is reduced in this way to:
° HPL TOL SO 22
i ue SIS a, 28
IIn 15 (28)
Similarly the conjugates and permutates of a function of the
fourth order are connected because Saf (bede) is a particular case of
the function of the fifth order.
The number of conjugates and permutates formed on the plan of
Art. 5 is, in the first instance, II(z + 1). This reduces, for the
reasons given, to
II(m + 1) IIln (29)
15 (n—5) W4M(n- 4) Pay
[yes as)
VI.
ON BICURSAL CURVES.
By REV. WILLIAM RALPH WESTROPP ROBERTS, M.A.,
Fellow Trinity College, Dublin.
[Read January 26, 1903.]
Ir is well known that the coordinates of any point on a curve which
possesses its maximum number of double points can be expressed
as rational algebraic functions of a variable parameter. The converse
theorem is also true, namely, that if the coordinates of a curve are
expressed as rational functions of a parameter, such a curve possesses
the maximum number of double points. Curves of this nature are
termed unicursal curves, and to each value of the parameter
corresponds one and one point only lying on the curve.
We propose to consider in this paper curves which we shall call
bicursal, since to each value of the parameter, in terms of which the
coordinates of the curve are expressed, correspond two points lying
on the curve.
We suppose then, that the coordinates of such a curve are ex-
pressed in terms of a parameter in the following manner :—
(1) eA, + By SR.
y = A, + Bf RP,
B= As PBs «/
Where 4,, A,, A;, are binary quantics of the m” degree in
two variables A and p, the ratio of A to w being regarded as the
parameter determining the points on the curve, # is a binary quantic
of the 2n” degree, and #,, B,, B; binary quantics of (m — n)”
degree in A and p.
Such equations obviously remain unchanged in form for any linear
transformation of the variables » and p.
54 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
In order to determine the degree of a curve given by the above
equations we have only to ascertain the number of points in which
an arbitrary line meets it.
, Let the equation of such a line be /x+my+mnz; and we have
evidently the following equation to determine the ratio of A to p, or
the parameter of each point in which the line meets the curve :-—
(2) 1A4,+ mA, +A; + (LB; + mB, + 2B;) /R=0,
or (14, + mA,+n7A;)* = (1B, + mB, + nB;)R.
Now this being an equation of the 2m” degree, the degree of the
curve is, in general, 2m.
We now proceed to investigate the number, and determine the
position of, the double points on the curve.
In order to make clear the spirit of our method we shall first
show how the double points on the unicursal curve given by the
equations,
(3) “pe
Yi A,,
z = A3.
,, A,, 43, being binary quantics of the m” degree in A and p,
may be determined.
Let U=0 be the equation of the curve in 2, y, z, which results
from the elimination of the parameter from the above equations ; and
let us call Z, Wf, and JN, the differential coefficients of U with regard
to x, y, and z, respectively.
We have then, for any point on the curve Lz+ My + Nz=0,
and for the consecutive point Ldx + Mdy + Ndz = 0.
Hence we easily see that we must have
(4)
{, & da dy a)+ ( dz da\ |
ay sag at OP ga A ye ae
(dz dz ) (dy dy
dz dz
+W(F ahs = dy )=0,
since “, y, and z are homogeneous functions of the m” degree
in A and p.
Roserts—On Bicursal Curves. 55
But these equations show us that Z, UW, and J are proportional to
the determinants
| dy dz | ds da | | dz dy
dX dX | dX dr| dry adr |
dy dz |” | dz de| | de dy |
| Ce ae dp dp dp dp |
| |
Now we may write
dy ds dy ds
ar dp. = dy. ar 5 J (Ap, As),
where J stands for the Jacobian of the quantics A, and A;, and
where it is to be remembered that
J (A, As) = — J(As3, Az).
Consequently we may write |
(5) Tie NS CAs, eA.
M= A J(A3, A),
NESW SIi(Ag elo).
where A is some quantity yet to be determined.
Now the equation of the curve being of the m” degree, = is of
the (m-— 1)" in z, y, and zs, and, as these are each of the degree m in
the parameter, Z, regarded as a function of the parameter, is of the
m(m — 1)" degree.
The system of equations (5), however, shows us that Z, J/, and V
are proportional to functions of the parameter of the degree
2m —2, for J (Avy As), J (As, Ay), J (Ay, Ae)
are of the degree 2m — 2,
Hence, it follows that Z, I/, NV, when expressed in terms of the
parameter, contain a common factor A whose degree in A and » must
be equal to the difference between m(m-—1) and 2(m-1), or
m* — 3m + 2.
L, M, and NV can thus simultaneously vanish for the
(m —1)(m— 2) roots of A= 0.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. A. ] G
56 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Now, we know that to each double point correspond two values of the
parameter, that is to say, one corresponding to each branch of the
curve on which the double point lies. The number of double points
is consequently equal to half the number
(m —1)(m—2) or }(m—1)(m- 2).
Having found the equation of the curve, we are then to find the
greatest common measure of Z, I/, and WV which will give us the
function A, and consequently the double points on the curve. This
is most simply done by dividing Z by J( (Le + My + Mz) + re |,
1
74 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
where F(a) =
| h b+2h, ff m
| g i e+ 2h, n
L m n d— ri?
Consider
= JED a z
=; — [2+ 28-7 (Lat y + Vz) + hawt],
1 FQ) [ x ( y )
D, = 83+ &. ... f(A,) =— 8A? + Ee. ;
hence the coefficient of (2? +y?+s*)* vanishes; and for the same
reason the coefficient of (2° +y?+2*)w[a, y, 2] also vanishes.
The coefficient of
: D, , Te
ws? = 23° ee >
FPO) DSF oR).
But since TR,) =e
—-A,D, = 0.
L2
D, = A, = — 4A,5+ &.
2
Hence | 2A-D, a 3 | = (16 - 16)A,*+ &c.;
therefore the coefficient of w?z? also vanishes.
The coefficient of
vay = xt Dell gL
* D?F' QO) D,f" (rr) ’
but YA | Oe | es a
Ge, = HW = —2id? + &ee. 2.
D,
Hence the coefficients of w?[zy, yz, sz] all vanish; and hence
5 Qf Lat+ y+ Nz 7?
2 ok ee ee hp |. = 0
Faulty 7 D, i reas”
that is, that the squares of these five Jacobian Quadrics are connected
by a linear relation.
~
Fraser— Reduction of a Quartic Surface to a Canonical Form. 75
Again, consider
L I, NV, 2
35 ae E +y+2-2 (Ceo) Ww + ao | D, = 8,3 + &e.,
ae (A,) r 9
the coefficient of
j 8A,2 + &e.
2 2 2\ ee 6 aw so
(a +y + 37) 21 OS) Ue
the coefficient of
Noa r,[ 4A,? + &e.]
UP) es ay = Cie io es
mC) axe
hence the terms
wa, y°, 3°, xy, 22, ya, "2, sa, sy |
do not appear, as their coefficients all vanish for the same reason.
The coefficient of
2 2
iat = 3 De faa, ee af eer
=) f(r) D, J (Ar)
A,D, — £7 =
= 8,2 + 40,7 (a +b + e)} + &e. — 40,{4A,¢ + 40,3 (6 + 0), |
es ce Se ERA Rs ce Sn rte
FO) os
a.8d,i+..
== = ean ee
S'(Ar)
and of course the coefficient of wy? = — b, and of w*s? = —e.,
The coefficient of
sy Bs L, My _ s en aH |- SUE: 2A,)(a—A,?) + &e. |
way = 2s,
es (Ay). D, f(r) fr)
h.16A,4 + ]
= —_- = all.
7 Fm)
Similarly the coefficient of w*y*?z =-—2f, and of w*zv =— 2g.
The coefficient of
Lr?
we = - 34> L, = — 41,5 + &e.;
POY
hence this coefficient = — 21, that of w*y = — 2m, and of w*s = — 2n.
The coefficient of
IDEN 2
a ea) 1Z+mM+nN + (d-d*)D = FhOM)F
L, M, N are only quadratics in X; hence
AD, = —A,f(A,) + AJL, + mi, + nN, + dD,) = d.8d,* + Ke. ;
76 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
AZD, Ee
F'(Ar)
JSP = (ety +e) +u*[ (a,b, ¢,d, f,9,h,l, m,n) (2, y,%, w)? |.
Far) = 0, ee ee = da;
r, D
n -Bb sa
4 Ie (A,)
Hence we have the equation of this quartic surface expressed in a
canonical form
Viz. : 357 — . J,
FO)
D
where 3° .J~ = 0.
FOr)
We might consider particular cases of this quartic surface, accord-
ing as the conic becomes an ellipse, hyperbola, parabola, or circle.
In particular, the imaginary circle at infinity.
In this case, the plane w becomes the plane at infinity, and the
axes Z, y, rectangular; hence we may put, without introducing any ~
other peculiarity, f=O0=g=h, and a=@=y=1 in the original
equation.
And the Jacobian quadrics become of the form
2 (La + My + Nz)w
2+ y* + 3% — D + Aw’,
viz., spheres, where
0=f(A)=| a@+2Ad 0 0 y
0 b+ 2Xr 0 m
0 0 e+2Xr n
l m n d—
The system of quadrics which have double contact with the surface
must also be spheres, since they pass through the circle (imaginary) at
infinity, and the locus of the pole of the plane at infinity with
respect to them, that is, their centre, is
w £L y Z
ZL a+2 0 0
= 0,
y 0 b+2Xr 0
3 0 0 c+ 2X
Fraser—feduction of a Quartic Surface to a Canonical Form. 77
which shows that the five quadrics belong to the same confocal
system.
ee Ea BE C-rX.D_ f(a),
D? D Dae
and hence, in this case, the identical linear relation becomes
J,
=F Rao
ay? + 2[(abefgh) (ay2)?] = 0
represents the general equation of a binomial quartic curve having the
points s=0, «=0; s=0, y=0 for its two nodes.
2(ax + By + yz) + ay =0
denotes a conic passing through the same two points.
If it has double contact with the quartic, then it must also have
double contact with the conic
(az + By + y2)? + (abefgh) (ayz)? = 0;
hence
(az + By + yz)’ + (abefgh) (ayz)? + 2X[s(ae+ By + yz) + ay] = LD;
and therefore every minor of the discriminating determinant must
vanish.
Let A denote it.
a a+ a h+XrX+aB gt+a(A+y)
h+r+ Ba b+ ?? f+BAty)
gt(Atyja ft BAty) e+ (AtyP-¥
= 1 0 0 0
a a+ a h+rX+aB gt+a(A+y¥)
B h+2+ Ba b+ # f+ BAtY)
At+y gta(At+y) f+ B(A+y) ¢+(Atyy?-¥
=| bt 56 Sf = (Qysb57)
a a h+xXr g
B. hae |b i
Y g f e-»
and every minor of the latter form of A must vanish.
78 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
a a h+x g (Or.
h+xzr b fF PS" Us
; g Ff c-H»
iw aG+BF+(A+y)C=0;
iii. 1 -a --£B
a a A+A | =0.
B h+xX b
i. is a quartic for A, and to each value of A we have a linear rela-
tion connecting a, 8, y, given by ii., and a quadratic relation between
a, B, given by iii.
ay +s(axr + By+ yz) = 0,
aG+BF+(A+y)C=0;
al Czr— G2)\+ Bl Czy—-F#)+ Cry +rAC¥ =0
is an equation of enveloping conic; and its form shows that it belongs
to a system which has a Jacobian cubic curve, viz. :
Fs 0 y
0 s z = 0,
Cr-2Gs Cy-—2Fsz -2dCz
or — 22[AC# + Cry — Fer - Gry] = 0.
Hence the system which, since it passes through two fixed points, has
a common Jacobian conic
ny - 7. [Fr+ Gy] +A? =0,
a conic which also passes through the same two points.
To each value of A, we have a corresponding conic
a (Csr — G2) + B( Czy — F#) + Cry + XC2 = 0.
If this conic becomes a pair of lines, then
OS ©, al
Ce BC | = 0,
aC BC 2C-20G-2BF
= C? [2aBC — 2AC + 2aG + 2BF]
ll
Oo
Fraser—Reduction of a Quartic Surface to a Canonical Form. 79
rejecting the factor C?,
204 + 2BF— 200 + 2aBC = 0;
but
-l a4 B
a. a h+nr = 0.
Bi) shen) V6
Eliminating 8 between these two equations, we get a quartic for a,
and to each value of a one value, and one only, of B.
Hence, to each value of X, we have four conics of the system which
reduce to a pair of lines, that is, a conic consisting of a tangent from
each node of the binodal quartic.
The node of this conic, 7.¢. the point of intersection of these two
tangents, must lie on the corresponding Jacobian. Hence, the four
Jacobians, as written above, are the equations of four conics, each of
which passes through four of the sixteen points of intersection of the
tangents to the binodal quartic from its nodes; and hence, we may
infer that the anharmonic ratio of the two pencils of tangents is the
same, since the conics pass through the nodes.
If the point xyz has the line z = 0 for its polar with respect to
a [ Csx — Gz] + B[ Czy — Fe] + Clay —dz"] = 0,
then
aCz+ Cy=0, afs+ Cx = 0;
hence
gy x |
y @ h+r | =0.
| @ h+r 6b
Hence, the locus of the poles of the line s = 0 with respect to the
conics of the system lies on a fixed conic; and the above is its equation
determined in terms of the coefficients of the quartic.
Corresponding to each value of A, we have a conic.
The Jacobian conics are
_ 8 (Gat Ky]
C,
i G Fy 2
so EB Fal a Y) v2 |
Ji, = 450) + A,3° + &e.
Consider
80 Proceedings of the Royal lrish Academy.
The coefficients of .2y?, zay, szy? vanish since G is of the first
order in A; F'is also of the first order, and C of the second order in X,
J (A) being of the fourth order.
The coefficient of z* is
9G, + fF, + (¢ va Z,) UB Sj Ov)
NGO, = JN) POG, + Jl 9 Gs yl, wa EO
.., the coefficient of z* is zero.
The coefficient of
22zy = 3,4 ( A, + =| be
Oe TON
but
PiG 210 Hos) a Oe
(ld, Oxes Ay ol pigeen Gee
= St Fiji eau aE HOD)
The coefficient of
BIO, B20, qa = By =- M+ &e.;
G2
AB aak dragon ey 2
2 Fs) Che
and
C, (G2 + Fy)
xi = E 3 - +A,3? | =0
TOON C,
Again consider
a) 2
Deal
The coefficient of
ware
Da Ay tee:
FO |
>t ——-—- = -
3 Mega 7)
Fraser— Reduction of a Quartie Surface to a Canonical Form. 81
The coefficient of
A+.
ey = Bia = oO
The coefficient of
ve TBD Nve — ar,3+ &e.
Ae = Se See eee oe
a onion BCE a pO) :
The coefficient of
Ca
gt = 2 Fh) o 5;
GiGi plata (Caw N, 2) iyi) =3
ASC, = 0,[¢C. + 94,4 fF] = - a+
The coefficient of
grP + wate
Be ee ete ; Se
of oa Fs) 2
The coefficient of
r #s Ge pa fe TONGS Fee
ie eG) Ne) ates ee ae! OL,
Hence
A,C, (La + Gy)z :
a 4 ye re 2
21 J (A,) ley Op i Ae ‘|
= ty + 2[ (a,b, e,f,9, (ay, 2h
and
ANG 2
Bt E = (hz oe i n2 | = 0.
The bicircular quartic might be treated in precisely the same
manner, = 0 denoting the line at infinity in the plane, and x + vy
written for 2, x-7iy written for y. But it can also be treated
directly, thus—
(x? + y?)? + au? + by? + e+ 2gu + 2fy =0
denotes its equation.
82 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
If the circle 2?+y?+2a%+2By+y=0 has double contact with
it, then
(2ax + 2By + y)? + ax? + by? + 0+ 2gx+ ytet+dr[a?+ y? + 2ax+ 2ZBy+y]
= 2.
Y a ?
hence, as before, every minor of
A=| a@4+A+ 40? 4aB Qay+g+ar
4Ba b+2rA+48? W2Wyt+f+ Br
Qayt+gtAa 2By+f+AB e+Ay+y7
- 1 — 4a -— 48 — (A + 2y)
a a+xX 0 g
B 0 b+xX f = (0,
Sane! ?
ty o f rae
Omen.» fui le Ee Lam a
p % nF GE DEAN Ct ae
7. ij ge
ime 240° +48
402 4B?
r 0 |= =
a a+ 0, or SGN cp ecEN 0;
B 0 b+Xr
aT 0 |
B 0 b+r Se rele ALL alle
pee Chie yO
eg f
Td
i. Shows that A is determined by a quartic.
ii. Shows that the centre of the enveloping circle moves on a fixed
conic, and also to each value of X we have a determinate conic, and
the conics are confocal.
Fraser—Leduction of a Quartic Surface toa Canonical Form. 83
iii. Shows that the circle cuts the fixed circle
29 2F r
2 tte = (0)
age gi sae: aN
orthogonally; but, since ~
g ae 2 {
| ie)
Ga Cee ae :
g
=)
Gene 5
2g? 2 f? ene
CEDC2y) CHpGEy 2
hence the fixed circles are orthogonal, and as in the case of the binodal
quartic the 16 points of intersection of the tangents from the circular
points to the quartic le by fours on these circles,
4 ; 29 PA ONO
Say |@ t+ z 0 ole
where
= (a+A,)(b+X,);
aud
2, (@+A,\(b+A2,) me ge Reus. Nal?
la egarer heres arise
= (27 + y?)? + ax? + by? + 2gu + 2fy + ©,
where f(A,) =| a@+A, 0 g
a b+ r, ie |= 0.
Ve |
Y) of oF | |
The reduction is just the same
C = (a+A/)(b+Ad),
aE Ne)
-@ = flat),
&e.
84 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
It is interesting to show, from this point of view, that
AN)!
(@+A)b+A) ”
5: fe Ps
zt G5) Grae
Ue 1. eee ee
DR bh | 2 GEO:
also
iam 8 ee
(a+r)? (b+A)? 2 NK “(a+ A)(b +d) (a +X)(6+ dy)’
since
FOXY,
hence
= = 0,
4 Ape p 2 9
== s— = (#8 + 9") + ax? + by? + Qgr + By + ¢.
PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV
SECTION B.—BIOLOGICAL, GEOLOGICAL, AND
CHEMICAL SCIENCE
DUBLIN
PUBLISHED AT THE ACADEMY HOUSE, 19, ‘DAWSON STREET
SOLD ALSO BY
HODGES, FIGGIS, & CO., Limiren, 104, GRAFTON STREET
Anpgpy WILLIAMS & NORGATE, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND OXFORD
1902-1904]
THe AcapEmy desire it to be understood that they are not
answerable for any opinion, representation of facts, or train of
reasoning that may appear in any of the following Papers. The
Authors of the several Essays are alone responsible for their
contents.
CONTENTS
SECTION B—BIOLOGICAL, GEOLOGICAL, & CHEMICAL
SCIENCE
PAGE
Barrett -Hamimron (Caprain G. EH. H.), B.A., F.Z.S.,
M.R.I1.A. :—
Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the
Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabit-
ing Snowy Countries, and the more striking
points in the Distribution of White in Vertebrates
generally, : : . : ’ » 303
An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals, . 315
CarpPENTER (GrorcE H.), B.Sc. Lond., M.R.I.A. :—
*On the Relationships between the Classes of the
Arthropoda. (Plate VI.), : : ‘ . 3820
Cott (Grenvitte A. J.), M.R.I.A., F.G.S. :—
The Intrusive Gneiss of Tirerrill and Drumahair, Sato
On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal.
(Plates I.-V.), . : Z - 5 a 21203
Hsritt (Grorer), B.A. : see Ryan (Huan).
McArpte (Davin) :—
A List of Irish Hepaticer, . : : , ‘ ost
McHenry (Atexanper), M.R.1.A.: —
Report on the Ox Mountain Rocks and their probable
continuation from Galway and Mayo into Donegal,
Tyrone, and Londonderry, . ’ ; ; eye!
Contents
Nicuots (A. R.), M.A. :— PAGE
A List of Irish Echinoderms, . - : : - 231
O’ Remy (J. P.), C.E. :—
On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in
Irish History, . - - s * : Byte 12
Prarcer (Rosert Lioyn), B.A., B.E. :—
On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora, . - i!
Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany, : fi at
Ryan (Huex), M.A., D.So., F.R.U.L, and Gzorcz Epramn,
B.A. :—
- The: Synthesis. of Glycosides: Some Derivatives of
Arabinose, . 379
Sonanrr (R. F.), B.So., Pa.D. :—
Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem, . 268
DATES OF PUBLICATION
Part 1. Pages 1 to 94. July, 1902.
2 =f 95 ,, 280. September, 1902.
Jon oe 5, 231 ,, 302. April, 1903.
4 5, 903 ,, 386. September, 1908.
5 » 9887 ,, 502. January, 1904.
PROCEEDINGS
OF
THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY,
PAPERS READ BEFORE THE ACADEMY.
il,
ON TYPES OF DISTRIBUTION IN THE IRISH FLORA.
By R. LLOYD PRAEGER, B.A., B.E,
[Read Marca 15, 1902.]
For the purpose of expressing the horizontal range of flowering
plants in Great Britain, H. C. Watson' has employed eight ‘‘ Types
of Distribution,” which he has named and defined as follows :—
1. British type—species widely spread through S.M.N. Britain.
2. English type—species chiefly seen in S. or S.M. Britain.
3. Scottish type—species chiefly seen in N. or N.M. Britain.
Intermediate type—species chiefly seen in Mid Britain.
4. Highland type—species chiefly seen about the mountains.
5. Germanic type—species chiefly seen in East England.
6. Atlantic type—species chiefly seen in West England.
Local species, restricted to single or few provinces.
Watson is careful to state that in the use of the names for these
types he does not make any suggestion regarding the centre of dis-
persal or route of migration of the plant-groups which they represent ;
he uses them simply to express facts of present distribution.
Since range in latitude corresponds phytologically to range in
altitude, it will be seen that the first five of these divisions are, to-
1 Cybele Britannica, 1. 48 (1847), rv. 409 (1859), and Compendium of the Cybele
Britannica, 23 (1868-70).
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. B. | B
2 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
a considerable extent, a grouping according to one and the same
standard—the latitudinal, or vertical, range of the species, whichever
term we prefer to employ. The vertical limit of plants is usually
more defined than their latitudinal limit. A small range in altitude
corresponds to a comparatively large range in latitude, and the limit
of latitudinal range is often obscured by local conditions. Thus, while
the vertical limit of a plant may often be represented by a straight
line, the latitudinal limit frequently resembles rather an indented
coast-line, with promontories, bays, and outlying islands. The fifth
and sixth ‘‘ Types of Distribution” are of a different character, and
represent eastern and western range in England. The focus of the
*‘Germanic”’ plants is in the south-eastern counties, of the “ Atlantic”
group in the south-western.
In books and papers dealing with the vegetation of Ireland, whether
of the whole country or of selected districts, it has been usual to
analyse the flora according to these types of distribution, which were
chosen with reference to Great Britain only, and without reference to
Ireland.t The distribution of plants in Ireland was not, indeed, in
Watson’s time sufficiently worked out to allow of its being ranged
alongside Great Britain. Now that the distribution of species in this
country is at least as well known as in Great Britain, it is possible to
institute comparisons and analyses. I propose, in the first place, to
review the distribution in Ireland of Watson’s Types, and from that
to pass on to the consideration of natural Types of Distribution in
Treland as revealed by a study of the flora of this country.
The most convenient way of expressing the facts to be dealt with
is by means of a series of statistical maps, constructed according to a
uniform plan. As regards the basis of these maps, the lists of the
Watsonian plant-groups are compiled from the ‘‘ Compendium of the
Cybele Britannica,’ which, though now over thirty years old, is the
latest pronouncement on the subject. In his works, each species is
referred by Watson either to a definite type, such as ‘‘ English,”’ or to
a qualified type, as ‘‘ English-Germanic,”’ which signifies that the species
belongs to the former type, with tendencies towards the latter. It
should be noted in passing that these qualified types approximate
nearly to each other, so that, as Watson admits, the reference of a
species to one such type or its counterpart may become arbitrary.
1 This fact was recognized in the first edition of Cybele Hibernica by the consis-
tent use of the term ‘‘ type in Great Britain,’’ instead of merely ‘‘type’”’; an
important distinction which has not been retained in the second edition.
Prarcer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 3
Between ‘‘ English-Atlantic” and ‘‘ Atlantic-English” no wide diffe-
rence exists, and it can be readily imagined that the distribution of a
species may place it between the two. Especially in such cases, the
finding of a plant in a couple of new counties might turn the scale.
Many such discoveries have been made since Watson defined the “‘ type
of distribution” of each British plant in 1870, yet the ‘‘ types” have
not been revised. Therefore, for our purposes, it will be better to use
pure types only, where possible.
The maps are constructed, according to a uniform plan, in five
depths of shading. The units of area employed are the forty county-
divisions of ‘‘ Irish Topographical Botany ”’ and the standard used as a
list of the Irish flora, and its distribution, is taken from the same work,
posted up to date. For the construction of the maps, the distribution
in the forty divisions of the component species of each group has been
tabulated. In order to balance the statistics, and maintain their
scientific integrity, sub-species (¢.¢. those printed in italics in ‘‘ Irish
Topographical Botany’’) are not reckoned, nor records of doubtful
value (7.e. those of which the accuracy is doubted, or to which the
marks signifying ‘‘ probably introduced” or ‘‘ certainly introduced”
are applied). From the totals thus obtained for the county-divisions,
giving the number of plants of the type present in each, the lowest and
highest figures are taken, and the intervening space divided into five
equal portions. The forty totals are grouped according to these five
portions, and the map shaded accordingly in the order :—
(1) white, (2)=, (8) =FIF, (4) ZEEE, (6) black.
An example will make the process clear. Say we find that of the
plant-group in question the maximum number of species occurring
in any one of the county-divisions is 30, and the minimum 11. Divyid-
ing this difference into five equal portions, we get as our series :—
ICO on to Lo LON top 220925 to26,) 2 toe
white = =|=|= =|E|= black.
~ It is to be distinctly understood that the shading of each division
represents the number of plants of the group which occur in it, not
their distribution in the division. For instance, in the Highland type
map, the actual distribution of the species in many divisions would
show as little more than a few dots on the map; instead of which
an even shading is spread over the whole of each division according to
the number of Highland plants growing within it.
B2
= Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
1. Berrtsh Tyre: ‘‘ Species widely spread through §.M.N. Britain.’””
—To this type belongs the mass of our common plants. From the
definition of the type we should expect to find plants of this group
largely represented and widely spread in Ireland. According to our
Standard list, the number of Irish plants of purely British type is 377;
the list for Great Britain adds but a very few to this number—namely,
one species, Avena pratensis, unknown in Ireland, and two or three
others whose claims to native rank in Ireland are doubtful or inad-
missible. If we include in the list all plants of qualified British type,
the number of Irish absentees is increased to eight, which will be
found listed in ‘‘ Cybele Hibernica,”’ p. xlii; most of these are of
British-English type, or have, in other words, a southern tendency in
Great Britain.
As examples of typical “British” plants, Watson selects the
following :—
Alnus glutinosa. Cnicus palustris.
Betula alba. Plantago lanceolata.
Corylus Ayellana. Polygonum ayiculare.
Lonicera Periclymenum. Urtica dioica.
Hedera Helix. Juncus effusus.
Calluna vulgaris. Carex panicea.
Ranunculus acris. Poa annua.
Cerastium triviale. Festuca ovina.
Trifolium repens. Anthoxanthum odoratum.
Stellaria media. Pteris Aquilina.
Lotus corniculatus. Polypodium vuigare.
Bellis perennis.
All of these occur in every Irish county-division.
Of the distribution of the 377 typical British type plants in Ireland,
I have made a somewhat minute analysis, to discover if the varying
conditions of soil and climate produce any increase or diminution in
their numbers in north or south, east or west. There is no indication
of the kind. It appears that the number of species present in the
forty divisions ranges from 85 to 99 per cent. of the Irish total—a very
small amount of variation. On mapping their distribution, the result
is found to correspond so remarkably with map IV. of “Irish Topo-
graphical Botany,’ which shows the extent to which the flora of each
division is at present known, that there can be no doubt that, in the
majority of cases, the absences are only apparent, and that, as a group,
these 377 species will eventually prove to be as evenly spread in
Ireland as in Great Britain. The only portions of the country to
which a comparison within such narrow limits can be safely applied
PraEGeR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 5
are those which have been practically thoroughly explored; namely,
Kerry and Cork, Dublin and Wicklow, Donegal, and the North-east.
As these areas are widely scattered, the figures may be worth compar-
ing, especially since the divisions in question are all maritime, which
renders them more comparable :
Antrim, te .. 875 North Kerry, .. 2. ©GOL
Down, 50 oe West Cork, ne .. 3859
Derry, sa .. 869 Wicklow, Ae po Sut)
East Donegal, .. .. 868 South Kerry, .. .. 3856
West Donegal, .. Haiy O62 Dublin, sis .. 356
East Cork, a we 302 Mid Cork, ie 45 cel
The smallest number on record is 297, in Monaghan—the least
worked of all the Irish divisions.
It should be noted, however, that the whole of these British type
plants are not widely spread in Ireland. There are a few notable
exceptions. One, as already mentioned, is absent from this country.
A few others are very rare therein, as exemplified below, where the
first number shows in how many of the British 112 vice-counties each
species occurs, the second number in how many of the Ivish 40:
Great Britain. Treland.
Adoxa Moschatellina, -. 91, or 81 per cent. 1, or 24 per cent.
Ulmus montana, so OG ey CE. og, Hg UA 5
Mercurialis perennis, 50 OG ay OB ss thee eA Sia
Juniperus communis, 50 U0 op CD ogy 12 5 SO =
Poa nemoralis, so MD 5 BD 16 ,, 40: 5;
Pilularia globulifera, oo. BE 55 BB og Hep I
2. Enetish Type: “Species chiefly seen in S. or §.M. Britain.”
—These are the southern plants of Great Britain, having their head-
quarters in the south of England. They are largely lowland species
favouring light soils.
As typical ‘‘ English”’ plants, Watson selects the following :—
Rhamuus catharticus. Linaria Elatine.
Ulex nanus. Ranunculus parviflorus.
Tamus communis. Lamium Galeobdolon.
Bryonia dioica. Hordeum pratense.
Hottonia palustris, Alopecurus agrestis.
Chlora perfoliata. Ceterach officinarum.
Sison Amomum.
Of these, six are unknown in Ireland in the native state; of the rest,
Chiora and Ceterach are the only ones which are not rare and local.
6 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Here again the number of the group in Ireland is so large—close:
on 400 altogether—that we may restrict our analysis to those plants
which are of purely English type. Of such plants, 135 are included,
qccording to our standard list, in the Irish flora. But of these, no less.
than 44, or 33 per cent., are reckoned in Ireland as possibly, probably,
or certainly introduced. Here, in fact, we come upon the home of
the large section of our vegetation which owes its presence in the
country to the operations of man—the weeds of cultivation, and light-
soil plants. And while 44 represents the number of doubtfully native
plants of this type which have established themselves in Ireland, the
number which occur in this country more or less sporadically would
largely increase this figure. For our present purpose, however, we
are concerned only with the balance of 91 species which are reckoned
indigenous in Ireland. The maximum in any county-division is 63, or
69 per cent. of the Irish list, in Dublin; the minimum 18, or 20 per
cent., in Monaghan. A map constructed according to the principle:
laid down gives the following result :—
oa
721
: ap)
Fic. 1.—Distribution of ‘* English” plants.
This map shows clearly how the English type plants reach their
maximum along the east coast in Dublin, Wicklow, and Wexford, as
we should expect them to do from considerations of position, soil and
climate. Their great abundance in Clare is a remarkable point, to
PraeGer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 7
which we shall presently return. For the rest, excepting their
frequency in Antrim, they decrease from S8.E. to N.W., reaching their
minimum in Sligo, Leitrim, Monaghan, and Tyrone. It may be
pointed out that the group embraces a number of maritime plants, and
therefore the maritime divisions are necessarily slightly richer in
species than divisions situated inland.
3. Scorrish Type: ‘‘ Species chiefly seen in N. or N. M. Britain.”
—This type is the opposite of the last. With headquarters well up in
Scotland, the species range southward in diminishing numbers. They
are the northern plants of Britain.
As characteristic examples of the Scottish type Watson cites—
Empetrum nigrum. Trientalis europza.
Rubus saxatilis. Ligusticum scoticum.
Trollius europzeus. Mertensia maritima.
Geranium sylvaticum.
Of these, Zrientalis is absent from Ireland; of the remaining six,
three are confined to the north. This and the succeeding groups being
much smaller than the British and English types, we will call in the
full strength of the group, whether the species be of pure or qualified
type, in order to strengthen the features indicated by their distribution.
The Scottish type in Ireland is represented by 50 species, or less than
half of the British total—
Scottish.
Trollius europeus. Mertensia maritima.
Viola lutea.
Geranium sylyaticum.
Prunus Padus.
Callitriche autumnalis.
Drosera anglica.
Ligusticum scoticum.
Pyrola media.
secunda.
Melampyrum sylvaticum.
Ajuga pyramidalis.
Lamium intermedium.
Thalictrum minus.
Sagina subulata.
Vicia sylvatica.
Parnassia palustris.
Antennaria dioica.
Pyrola minor.
Pinguicula vulgaris.
Salix pentandra.
Habenaria albida.
Potamogeton filiformis.
nitens.
Scirpus rufus.
Carex limosa.
Festuca sylvatica.
Polypodium Dryopteris.
Equisetum umbrosum.
variegatum.
Scottish-British.
Galeopsis versicolor.
Carex dioica.
filiformis.
Elymus europzus.
Polypodium Phegopteris.
Equisetum hyemale.
8 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Scottish-Highland.
Rubus saxatilis. Lobelia Dortmanna.
Saxifraga hypnoides. Empetrum nigrum.
, Circa alpina. Salix phylicifolia.
Crepis paludosa. Listera cordata.
Scottish-Intermediate.
Arenaria verna. Saxifraga Hirculus.
Vicia Orobus. Potamogeton prelongus.
Scottish-Atlantic.
Orobanche rubra. Eriocaulon septangulare.
This is a purely native group; not one of them is under any
suspicion of introduction. Most of them are plants of thoroughly
wild ground—hills, heaths, glens, lakes, and bogs.
The maximum in any division is 43 (or 86 per cent.) in Antrim, the
minimum 5 (or 10 per cent.) in East Cork. Constructing our map we
get the following :—
Fic. 2.—Distribution of ‘‘Scottish”’ plants.
The result is striking. The Scottish type plants are concentrated
in the north, as we should expect. Thence they range down the coast
on either side: but while on the east they greatly diminish south of
PraEGeR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 9
Co. Down, on the west coast they maintain their sway as far south as
Clare, or even North Kerry. Inland everywhere they are few in
number, Westmeath alone falling barely within the third grade. The
latter fact cannot be accounted for by the absence of saline conditions
in central Ireland, as out of the 50 species only four—Ligusticum,
Mertensia, Scirpus rufus, and Elymus—are maritime plants. Nor is
it due to an avoiding of the Central Plain on account of its limestone
expanses, for the limestones of Sligo, Leitrim, and Clare yield them
in abundance, and they attain their minimum in the south-east and
south, where limestone is only very locally developed. Neither does
the distribution of hilly ground satisfactorily account for their range,
which is apparently due to climatic conditions as yet imperfectly
understood.
4. Hicutanp Tyre: “ Species chiefly seen about the mountains.”
—As H. C. Watson points out, the more characteristic members of this
group might be better called Arctic Type, as they consist of high
northern species, brought into our latitudes by the elevation of the
land into mountains. This group occupies the northern end of the
series of four latitudinal types—English, Intermediate (a small and
indefinite group), Scottish, Highland. Its headquarters are on the
high Scotch mountains and in the extreme north of that country.
The list of Highland type plants in Ireland is as follows :—
Thalictrum alpinum. Hieracium strictum.
Subularia aquatica. gothicum.
Draba incana. corymbosum.
Arabis petreea. Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi.
Silene acaulis.
Dryas octopetala.
Rubus Chamemorus.
Alchemilla alpina.
Epilobium alsinefolium.
Sedum Rhodiola.
Saxifraga stellaris.
nivalis.
aizoides.
oppositifolia.
Galium boreale.
Saussurea alpina.
Hieracium senescens.
anglicum.
iricum.
prenanthoides.
crocatum.
Vaccinium Vitis-Idza.
Polygonum viviparum.
Oxyria digyna.
Salix herbacea.
Juniperus nana.
Carex pauciflora.
rigida.
aquatilis.
Aira alpina.
Sesleria ceerulea.
Poa alpina.
Cryptogramme crispa.
Aspidium Lonchitis.
Asplenium viride.
Lycopodium alpinum.
Selaginella selaginoides.
Tsoetes lacustris.
10 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
All of these are classed by Watson as of purely Highland type except
Subularva and Vaccinium Vitis-Id@a, which he ranks as Highland-
Scottish, and Sesleria, which goes as Highland-Intermediate. Plants
of this group are thinly spread in Ireland, as is to be expected from
the conformation of the country ; but taking into account the charac-
ter and altitude of the mountain-groups, the total does not fall much
below what might be expected. With the vertical distribution of the
species, the present paper is not concerned; but some interesting
points become apparent from the mapping of their horizontal range.
Here the maximum is 29 (or 69 per cent.) in West Donegal, the
minimum 0 in Mid and East Cork. (Fig. 3.)
Being essentially a mountain group, it is desirable to contrast their
distribution with that of high land in Ireland—say of over 1000 feet
elevation. The actual distribution of land of over 1000 feet in
Treland is shown in fig. 4.
But for purposes of comparison, it may be well to construct a
graduated map on the same principle as the floral maps (fig. 5). A
difficulty is encountered here, for the amount of high land in two of
the divisions— Wicklow and South Kerry—so far surpasses that which
is found elsewhere, that were an evenly graduated scale employed, the
varying elevation of the rest of the country would not be brought out.
We therefore employ the following scale :—
0 — 25 square miles over 1000 feet elevation, white
26— 50 29 ” 7 =
5l- 75, % » =|=l=
76 — 100 7 ” ” =|2[=
200 — 225 - cf iS black
For comparison, I add the distribution of ground over 2000 feet
elevation (fig. 6), according to the scale—
0 square mile over 2000 feet, white
up to 1 a7 5 ——
lto 3 a3 s =|=|=
Bt 8 » 3B
20 to 25 ag af black
If we contrast these two maps with map 3, we have_the materials
for comparing the distribution of ‘‘ Highland”’ plants in Ireland with
that of high ground. In area of high ground, whether the 1000 foot
Prarcer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 11
Rus
Fic. 3.—Distribution of ‘‘ Highland ” plants. Fic. 4,—Actual distribution of land over 1000 ft.
Fic. 5.— Distribution of land over 1000 feet. Fic. 6.—Distribution of land over 2000 feet.
12 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
or 2000 foot contour line be taken, Wicklow and South Kerry far
outstrip any other portion of the country: yet both fall below the
maximum of alpine plants, which is carried off by West Galway, and
the two divisions of Donegal. The distribution of highland ground
is in fact no criterion of the distribution of the highland flora. The
amount of high ground in western Ireland (Kerry to Donegal inclusive)
is about the same as that in eastern Ireland: but the collective
Highland flora of the western half is double that of the eastern.
If we want to get an analogue of the distribution of the alpine flora
we will turn to the Scottish type map (fig. 2), and will at once see
many points of resemblance. The distribution of these two allied
groups is distinctly similar, the bulk of the species which compose
them inhabiting chiefly the hilly grounds of the north and west, and
being but sparsely spread over the east and south-east, and also of
course over the centre.
Those ‘‘ Highland”? plants which occur in the east, as on the
Mourne and Wicklow mountain ranges, are usually truly alpine in
habitat ; in the west a change of conditions is clearly shown by the
frequent descent of alpines to sea-level, and by the ascent of maritime
plants to high elevations (such as Cochlearia officinalis, Silene maritima,
Armeria maritima, Plantago maritima) which are absent on the eastern
mountains.
Leaving for the present the distribution in Ireland of Watson’s
latitudinal types, we must briefly consider those which are by their
definition longitudinal—namely, the Germanic and Atlantic types.
5. Germanic Typ: ‘ Plants chiefly seen in East England.””—This
is a special group of English type plants, segregated and separately
classed on account of their marked aggregation towards the south-east.
As Watson points out, the Cretaceous deposits lie almost exclusively
in the eastern and south-eastern provinces of England, so that the
“chalk plants” fall within this type.
As examples of the Germanic type Watson names
Frankenia levis. Pulicaria vulgaris.
Anemone Pulsatilla. Lactuca Scariola.
Reseda lutea. Atriplex pedunculata.
Silene conica. Aceras anthropophora.
noctiflora. Spartina stricta.
Pimpinella magna.
Of these, only one, Pimpinella magna, is certainly native in Ireland ;
of the rest, two alone, Reseda lutea and Silene noctiflora, are included -
in the Irish flora, marked as doubtfully indigenous.
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 13
Being the furthest removed from Ireland as regards not only actual
distance, but soil and climate, it is to be expected that this should be
the type least numerously represented in this country, and such is the
case. Out of 102 ‘‘Germanic”’ plants in England, only thirteen are
enumerated in the Irish flora, and four of these cannot be reckoned in
the certainly indigenous list. The list is as follows; the extent of
range of the members of the group in Ireland is so variable, that after
each species the number of divisions in which it is known to occur is
added, in order to illustrate this feature.
Germanie.
*Crepis biennis, 13. Scirpus triqueter, 2.
Ti taraxacifolia, 18. Glyceria Borreri, 2.
Polygonum mite, 4.
Germanic-British.
Astragalus Hypoglottis, 1. *Senecio viscosus, 1.
Germanice-English.
{Galium erectum, 8. Teucrium Scordium, 7.
Hypopithys multiflora, 6. Orchis pyramidalis, 38.
Limosella aquatica, 2. Bromus erectus, 9.
This is, in Ireland, distinctly a calcicole group of plants. All but
two—Crepis biennis and Polygonum mite—are confined to limestone
districts or to limy sea-sands. Leaving out of account the two
‘“certainly introduced” species, Orepis biennis and Senecio viscosus, as
their range is devoid of phyto-geographical significance, and giving
the remaining two dubious natives the benefit of the doubt, the
distribution of the group works out as shown in fig. 7, next page.
Here the maximum is 8 species in Clare, the minimum 0 in Tyrone.
Our scale is 0-1, 2-38, 4-5, 6-7, 8— 9 species. The group is seen to attain
its maximum in Clare, S.E. Galway, and Dublin; while the only divisions
in which more than one species occur are certain counties in which
limestone largely predominates. This result is significant, even though,
when dealing with the distribution of so small a number of plants, it
is unwise to lay too great emphasis on present results. The fact is
that, as a group, the Germanic plants have no place in the Irish flora ;
such stragglers as have found their way here have a distinctly /emestone
range.
14 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Fic. 7.—Distribution of “‘ Germanic’ plants.
6. Artantic Type: ‘Species chiefly seen in West England.’’—
This group has its headquarters in the south-west of England, and is
in this way related to the ‘‘ Hibernian” and ‘ Lusitanian” groups of
Ireland, since among them are the remnants of the old southern flora
that flourished on the lost south-western shore-line of the British Isles.
Watson’s Atlantic type has other components besides these ancient
species, but it is still the smallest of his British plant-groups, number-
ing altogether but 62 species.
As typical examples of “‘ Atlantic” plants, Watson cites—
Sinapis monensis. Euphorbia portlandica.
Matthiola sinuata. Scirpus Sayii.
Raphanus maritimus. Sibthorpia europea.
Sedum anglicum. Erica ciliaris.
Cotyledon Umbilicus. Polycarpon tetraphyllum.
Bartsia viscosa. Adiantum Capillus- Veneris.
Pinguicula lusitanica. Cynodon Dactylon.
Of these, four are unknown in Ireland; three are confined to the
south and west; most of the others have a wide range in this country.
PrarceR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 15
Of the 62 ‘“ Atlantic” plants occurring in Britain, Ireland possesses
33, as follows :—
Atlantic.
Matthiola sinuata. Sibthorpia europea.
Raphanus maritimus. Euphorbia Peplis.
Viola Curtisii. portlandica.
Lavatera arborea. Asparagus officinalis.
Erodium moschatum. Rhynchospora fusca.
Carum vyerticillatum. Scirpus Sayii.
Crithmum maritimum. Asplenium lanceolatum.
Rubia peregrina. Adiantum Capillus-Veneris.
Wahlenbergia hederacea. Hymenophyllum tunbridgense.
Bartsia viscosa.
Atlantic-British.
Hypericum Androseemum. Cotyledon Umbilicus. Lastrea emula.
Atlantic-English.
Linum angustifolium. Inula crithmoides.
Hypericum’elodes. Statice occidentalis.
Erodium maritimum. Euphorbia Paralias.
Sedum anglicum.
Atlantic-Scottish.
Pinguicula lusitanica. Scilla verna.
Atlantic-Highland.
Hymenophyllum unilaterale.
Atlantic-Intermediate.
Meconopsis cambrica.
Two other members of the group, Senebiera didyma and Bromus
madritensis, are omitted as probable introductions into Ireland. It
will at once be remarked that a large number of these—a full dozen—
are maritime plants, The rest are largely plants of rocks and bogs
the group is characteristic of thoroughly wild ground,
16 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The maximum in any Irish county-division is 24 (or 72 per cent.
of the Irish list) in South Kerry, West Cork, and Waterford, the
minimum 2 (or 6 per cent.) in Kildare. Our map works out very
prettily :—
Fic. 8.—Distribution of ‘‘ Atlantic ”’ plants.
The group is seen to be essentially coastal—partly on account of
the plentiful sprinkling of maritime species, partly because the
remainder are largely plants of the rough country which often
accompanies the older rocks ; such country as is found in the home of
the group in Devon, Cornwall, and Wales, and in Ireland round a
great portion of the seaboard. The group also shows an increase south-
ward, and attains its full luxuriance round the shores of the southern
half of Ireland.
Before proceeding to briefly sum up the features brought out by
the foregoing series of maps, it will be well to consider one important
factor in plant-distribution. Apart from climate, the most potent
influence affecting the flora is undoubtedly soil, and it is the
presence or absence of lime in soils that most affects the vegetation
which they support. Ireland consists, roughly speaking, of a great
plain of Carboniferous limestone occupying the centre, with more
PrarGeR—On Types of Distribution m the Irish Flora. 17
elevated and broken ground formed of non-caleareous rocks around
the margin. The actual distribution of limestone is shown in black
on the following map (fig. 9). Let us compare this with the distri-
bution of lime-loying and lime-avoiding plants.
Fic. 9.—Actual distribution of Carboniferous limestone.
The data are at hand. Mr. Colgan has paid much attention to
these soil-relations in Ireland, and has compared his results with those
obtained in France; in the second edition of ‘‘ Cybele Hibernica’’ he
indicates the calcicole and calcifuge species, using three grades
(A, B, C) for each, according to their degree of preference for a
limy soil or soil free from lime, ‘‘ A” indicating the most marked
preference in either case.
The calcicole plants of ‘“‘ Cybele” range as follows :—
Caleicole A.
Geranium lucidum. Calamintha officinalis.
Potentilla fruticosa Galeopsis Ladanum.
Galium sylvestre. Orchis pyramidalis.
Carlina vulgaris. Ophrys apifera.
Gentiana verna. Sesleria czrulea.
R.I.A. PROC.) VOL. VIII., SEC. B. |
18 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Aquilegia vulgaris.
Reseda Luteola.
Hypericum perforatum.
Anthyllis Vulneraria.
Poterium Sanguisorba.
Pimpinella Saxifraga.
magna.
Rubia peregrina.
Galium boreale.
Asperula cynanchica.
Erigeron acre.
Tussilago Farfara.
Carduus nutans.
Centaurea Scabiosa.
Crepis taraxacifolia.
Leontodon hirtus.
Arabis hirsuta.
Sisymbrium Alliaria.
Viola hirta.
Cerastium arvense.
Euonymus europzus.
Calcicole B.
Leontodon hispidus.
Chlora perfoliata.
Gentiana Amarella.
Lithospermum officinale.
Verbascum Thapsus.
Salvia Verbenaca.
Origanum yulgare.
Ophrys muscifera.
Spiranthes autumnalis.
Juncus glaucus.
Carex divulsa.
glauca.
Trisetum fiavescens.
Avena pubescens.
Adiantum Capillus-Veneris.
Ceterach officinarum.
Calcicole C.
Pulicaria dysenterica.
Conyolyulus arvensis.
Habenaria conopsea.
Carex muricata.
Festuca rigida.
Antennaria dioica.
Total 53. Our maximum is 50 in Clare, minimum 20 in Tyrone.
The map works out as shown in fig. 10, opposite page.
The result is somewhat unexpected. The calcicole group has its
headquarters, not in the Limestone Plain, but in the west, reaching
its maximum in Clare, 8.E. Galway, and Limerick. Thence it
follows the edge of the limestone northwards, so that although West
Galway has nothing more than a strip of limestone along its eastern
edge, this division is high in the scale, along with N.E. Galway and
E. Mayo. A prevalence of calcicole plants appears also in E. Cork,
Kilkenny, Kildare, and Dublin, none of which occupy the first rank
as regards area of limestone. Elsewhere the distribution of the
group is what we should expect: the minimum is reached in Ulster,
where, on the Silurian area and elsewhere, but few calcicole plants
maintain an existence. The reason for the great development of the
calcicole group in the west is not far to seek; it lies in the occurrence
of bare limestone pavements in the Burren area, in Limerick, and
around the great lakes of Corrib and Mask. It is the presence of
PRAEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 19
live limestone rock over large areas that produces the calcicole flora
in its full development. The tough limestone drift which covers
the rock over the greater portion of the Central Plain and eastern
counties, may, as a matter of fact, have all the lime washed out of its
surface layers, and yield a non-calcareous soil.
Fic. 10.—Distribution of calcicole plants.
To turn to the calcifuge group. The plants which show a
preference for a non-calcareous soil are more numerous than those
which prefer lime; so that the species classed as calcifuge A in
““Cybele”’ almost equal in number the whole calcicole group and
will alone suffice for our purpose. They are as follows :—
Caloifuge A.
Corydalis clayiculata.
Viola palustris.
Polygala serpyllacea.
Montia fontana.
Elatine hexandra.
Hypericum elodes.
Radiola linoides.
Cytisus scoparius.
Ulex Gallii.
Lathyrus macrorrhizus.
Saxifraga stellaris.
umbrosa.
Drosera rotundifolia.
anglica.
intermedia.
Peplis Portula.
Galium saxatile.
Gnaphalium uliginosum.
Senecio sylyaticus.
Lobelia Dortmanna.
Jasione montana.
Wahlenbergia hederacea.
Vaccinium Vitis-Idea.
Myrtillus.
C2
20 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Caleifuge A—continued.
Calluna vulgaris. Potamogeton polygonifolius.
Erica Tetralix. Scirpus ceespitosus.
cinerea. fluitans.
Microcala filiformis. Carex pilulifera.
Digitalis purpurea. binervis.
Scutellaria minor. Deschampsia flexuosa.
Polygonum Hydropiper. Nardus stricta.
Rumex Acetosella. Blechnum Spicant.
Narthecium ossifragum. Athyrium Filix-femina.
Juncus squarrosus. Lastrea dilatata.
supinus. Osmunda regalis.
Total 46. The group reaches its maximum in Kerry and West
Cork with 44 species, minimum in Westmeath with 26 species.
fefe}efoleleleloje|
soneeesaae
4B
felefele|
Fic. 11.—Distribution of calcifuge plan
It will be noted that calcifuge plants are more widely spread
than calcicole. Not only is the scale somewhat higher than that
of the calcicole group, being 56 to 95 per cent. of the group, as
against 38 to_95 per cent., but the number of high percentages is
much greater, even though we are dealing with only the most
strongly calcifuge species. The reason is clearly to be seen in the
fact that non-calcareous soils are to be found in limestone areas, both
on account of the washing-out process referred to, and by reason of
PrarcER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 21
accumulation of vegetable matter, in woods, and much more in bogs,
which are largely developed in the Irish limestone districts. On the
other hand, no natural process is at work in this country producing
a calcareous soil in districts devoid of limestone, except on coastal
sands, where shelly aceumulations may have a distinct effect on the
flora.
Glancing at the map, it will be seen by comparison with map 8
that, as contrasted with the distribution of limestone, the range of
the calcifuge flora is quite normal. It reaches its maximum on the
old non-caleareous rocks that stand grouped around the coast; its
minimum in the Limestone Plain. The absolute minimum is reached
in Westmeath, the only division in Ireland which can be said to be
altogether under the sway of the limestone. It will be noted that in
Clare, where the calcicole flora attains its greatest development, the
calcifuge flora is also at high-water mark; but in the rich and
remarkable flora of that varied county, almost every group, whether
English or Scottish, Atlantic or Germanic, calcicole or calcifuge,
attains or approaches its maximum !
Considering generally the series of maps showing the range in
Treland of the ‘‘types”? of Great Britain, it will be seen that we
have really three topographical groups to deal with :—
(1) Enenisa and Germanic, the latter a peculiar and intensified
section of the former. A southern group, often light-soil and often
calcicole in their proclivities. The Germanic plants represent the
xerophile and thermophile element in the flora of England, and are
congregated where a comparatively continental climate produces hot
and dry summers. In Ireland these groups are concentrated along
the east and south-east coasts, where position, soil, and climate
apparently account for their predominance; and in the Clare district,
where the warm dry limestone pavements probably form the attraction.
In referring the paucity of ‘‘ Germanic” plants in Ireland to the
breaking down of the Ivish-English land-connection prior to that of
the English-Continental, the editors of ‘‘ Cybele Hibernica,”’ ed. I1.,
remark (p. xliii):—‘‘The advance guard of aggressive species, the
British type and a large section of the English type, had time to push
westward into Ireland before its eastward land-connections were
broken down; but the rear-guard of more slowly spreading species
found their westward progress checked by the,land subsidence which
created the Irish Sea. The mass of this rear-guard was probably
formed of the Germanic type plants, a group so little aggressive in
22 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
character that it seems to have been quite unable to push its way, as
a whole, across England, in the face of the more hardy settlers who
had gone before and occupied the ground.’”’ I do not altogether follow
this explanation. Rather than compare the’stream of plant-migration
to the march of an army, of which the main body does the fighting, and
the rearguard has merely to follow across ground cleared for its
progress, ought we not to choose as a simile the spread of an
empire, which enlarges its boundaries without in any way relaxing
its hold over the ground already won. The plant-army had to
conquer a presumably weaker flora which was in possession of the
ground ; but the rear-guard had to oust the conquerors! It is a fair
assumption that each successive wave of migration was composed of
species more hardy and aggressive—better fitted for the struggle for
existence—than those which preceded it; otherwise it would not
advance. Then, isthe ‘‘Germanic’’ group composed of species ‘‘ more
slowly spreading”’ and ‘‘so little aggressive in character’??? An exami-
nation of the list of ‘‘ Germanic” plants is not favourable to this view.
Mr. Clement Reid has conveniently summarised the seed-characters
possessed by British plants which assist them in migration, and has
pointed out that capacity for migration consists largely of the power
of a species to cross “‘ deserts ’?—a desert being an area unsuitable to
the plant: it may be water, low ground or high ground, dry soil or
wet soil, limy soil or soil free from lime. We fail to find, among
“Germanic” plants, any characters which render them inferior to the
other groups in power of dispersal. Five of our Irish ‘‘Germanic”’
plants are under more or less suspicion of being recent human intro-
ductions: namely, {Galium erectum, * Crepis biennis, + C. taraxacifolia,
*Senecio viscosus, +Bromus erectus. All but the fourth have spread
widely by natural means, moving freely about the crowded country,
and showing no lack either of aggressiveness or of rapidity of migra-
tion. The ‘“‘Germanic” plants may have been the rear-guard of the
Post-Glacial migration which provided our islands with the bulk of
their present flora. But if so they fought their way right across
Europe (where many of them have a wide distribution) against the
“‘ British” and ‘‘ English” plants that had gone before; while the
mobile remnant that reached Ireland before the breaking-down of the
land-connection marched right across the country, or round its former
margin, and still holds its ground on the very edge of the Atlantic.
The range of Watson’s Germanic type in the British Isles appears
1 Origin of the British Flora, chap. iii.
PrarcEr—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 23
to be due largely to suitability of soil, partly to conditions of
climate.
(2) Scorrisn and Hrentanp. These are the northern plants, the
latter an intensified group of the former. In Ireland they are concen-
trated in the north, spreading somewhat abundantly down the western
coast, much more sparsely along the eastern. It should be noted that
the distribution in England and Wales of these plants offers many
points of resemblance to their Irish range, though the species extend
somewhat further southward in the larger island. As in Ireland, the
group spreads far down the west coast of England, much less so down
the eastern, so that, on a rough examination, South Wales appears to
contain as many ‘‘ Scottish” plants as the Trent province. Physical
conditions will suggest themselves in explanation of this in a manner
not applicable to Ireland, where the problem is more difficult of solu-
tion. A line drawn north-eastward from the Bristol channel to the
Wash will cut off, on the northward, most of these plants ; and this line
would appear to correspond well with one in Ireland drawn from the
Shannon mouth to Dundalk Bay.
To account for the greater abundance of alpine plants in the west
than in the east of Ireland, the suggestion has been made, in ‘‘ Cybele
Hibernica,”’ ed. 11., and elsewhere, that during the Glacial Period the
mantle of ice drove these species downward to the seaboard in the milder
west, whence, on the retreat of the ice-sheet, they colonized the western
mountains. This appears as likely a hypothesis as can be put forward.
But the similarity of the range of ‘‘ Highland”’ and of “‘ Scottish”
species suggests that at least some of the ‘‘ Highland ”’ plants, which
in Ireland are not alpine in range, may have come into Ireland with
the “‘ Scottish’ plants, many of which probably colonized this country
from the north-east. Another point to be remembered is. that—pre-
sumably on account of greater moisture—the west of Ireland is un-
doubtedly more suited, even at low elevations, to the growth of alpine
plants than the eastern, and the ‘‘ lowest limit’’ line, which for many
species almost touches sea-level along the west coast, may, in the east,
pass above the tops of the mountains.
(3) Arrantrc. In England south-western, and including a consider-
able number of maritime plants. This is the hygrophile element of
the English flora, composed of plants which prefer the equable tempe-
rature and abundant moisture that pertain to an insular climate. In
Ireland the group is rather southern, distributed in fair proportion
round the southern half of the littoral, but many of the species occur
round the greater part of the Irish coast.
24 Proceedings of the Royal Trish Academy.
Glancing at the maps showing the distribution of calcicole and
calcifuge species, it will be seen that, while the range of the “‘ Scottish,”
‘** Highland” and “‘ Atlantic” plants corresponds broadly with that of
the calcifuge flora, the distribution of ‘‘ English”’ and ‘‘ Germanic”
species offers many points of resemblance to that of the calcicole group;
which facts we should expect to be apparent when we consider the
petrological conditions prevailing in the homes of Watson’s various
“ec types.”
So far as I can gather without an elaborate study of the distribu-
tion of the flora of Great Britain as known at present (which would
be outside the scope of the present paper), there isa greater overlap in
northern and southern forms in England than is the case with Ireland.
If we construct isophytic lines to represent the limit of the main body ©
of the ‘‘ Scottish” and ‘‘ English ”’ floras respectively in Great Britain
and in Ireland, they will run somewhat like this :-—
wm >
Fue
Fic. 12.—Isophytic lines in the British flora.
AA. Northern limit of the ‘‘English”’ fora. 2s. Southern limit of the “‘ Scottish”? flora.
But this statement is only put forward tentatively and as a side-
issue of the subject in hand. The material for a proper study of the
PraEGeR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 25
question is now in existence, though much scattered, and will, I trust,
be some day brought together and analysed. It is an interesting
point.
To come now to the second portion of my paper—the question of
natural geographic plant-groups in the Ivish flora. Following on
‘Watson’s lines, an essay has been made to group the native species
according to their present horizontal range, and without reference (in
the first instance) to the environmental or other cause of such distri-
bution. For this purpose, a set of maps was employed, representing
the whole Irish flora, each map showing, by means of a uniform wash
of colour, the range of one species, the data used being those given in
‘Trish Topographical Botany”? brought up to date. On these maps,
Fic. 13. Fic. 14.
Continuous range of a native plant Discontinuous range of an introduced plant
(Cicuta virosa). (Sedum Telephium).
divisions in which any plant was considered as probably or certainly
introduced were left uncoloured. The set of over eleven hundred
maps was then sorted by eye according to the distribution of the
colour on each. In this way, by making the process as mechanical as
possible, I hoped to determine the natural grouping of the plants, and
to eliminate theoretical considerations. The groups thus obtained
were then critically examined, and the claim of each member to belong
to it considered. This involved questions of relative frequency through-
out the range, and considerations relating to possible introduction in
26 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
certain divisions. All species ranked as probably or certainly intro-
duced in Ireland were kept apart, as their range could throw but little
light on natural plant groups. It may be remarked that the maps
brought out very clearly the discontinuity of range which marks the
alien flora. Speaking generally, the native lowland plants are charac-
terized by a continuous range between their limits, while the alien
plants frequently exhibit a broken and discontinuous range (figs. 13,
14). Remarkable exceptions to both rules exist, and will be men-
tioned later on.
In arranging the maps under types of distribution, one difficulty
was quick to make itself felt. This was, that in the natural flora
every gradation exists between any two types of distribution which
we may select. The difficulty was met by using Watson’s plan—the
only possible one—of modified or intermediate types as already referred
to; but considering the unsatisfactory nature of such fine distinctions
in a flora not yet fully worked out, the creation (by publication) of
such intermediate types is for the present withheld, and lists will be
given chiefly of those plants whose range is sufficiently characteristic
to allow of their being referred without qualification to one definite
type of distribution.
The grouping of the maps established in the first place two classes:
(4) plants which show no aggregation in any portion of the country;
and (B) plants which show an aggregation or diminution in some
portion of the country. :
Class A consists of (1) universal species, 7.¢. species on record for all
the forty botanical divisions, and showing no marked increase or decrease
in frequency in any direction; (2) species of probably universal distribu-
tion, the occasional gaps on the maps being with little doubt the result
of incomplete knowledge. To sections (1) and (2) some 360 species may
be referred, or about one-third of the Irish flora. (3) Following these we
have arange of species of diminishing frequency but wide distribution,
the list extending from the border of the ‘‘ probably universal ” species
down to plants which have only a few widely scattered stations in
Ireland, and which might be separately classed as of local type.
Following the nomenclature of Watson, who gave the name of British
type to all species evenly spread throughout Great Britain (though not
necessarily continuously distributed), we may define the three groups of
the above Class A as of “ Irish” type so far as the Irish flora is
concerned; but the use of this term, except with the qualification
appended, might mislead; and I prefer to employ, in the present
paper, the term ‘‘ General type of distribution,” for all species whose
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 27
distribution shows no marked aggregation in any part of the country.
It does not appear necessary to list those common plants, over 260 in
number, which are at present known to be universal in Ireland—
inhabitants of every botanical division. As might be expected, the
plants of universal distribution in this country are almost all of
Watson’s British type likewise; it will be worth while to note the
exceptions. In the following list the ‘‘ probably universal” species
which are not of British type are added to the ‘‘ universal” plants,
and distinguished by an asterisk.
PLANTS OF GENERAL DISTRIBUTION IN [RELAND WHICH ARE NOT OF
BRITISH TYPE.
British-English, 41 species.
Ranunculus bulbosus. *Veronica montana.
Barbarea vulgaris. *Mentha sativa.
*Reseda Luteola. *Lycopus europeus.
* Arenaria trinervia. *Polygonum lapathifolium.
Malva sylvestris. Rumex nemorosus.
Hypericum tetrapterum. Euphorbia Peplus.
Trifolium dubium. *Salix alba.
*Lotus uliginosus. *Allium ursinum.
Geum urbanum. Typha latifolia.
Agrimonia Eupatoria. *Sparganium simplex.
Epilobium parviflorum. *Potamogeton crispus.
Cireeea Jutetiana. Carex remota.
* 7Athusa Cynapium. < sylvatica.
Caucalis Anthriscus. hirta.
Sambucus nigra. Briza media.
Viburnum Opulus. *Bromus giganteus.
Eupatorium cannabinum. = asper.
Petasites officinalis, Nardus stricta.
Anagallis arvensis. Scolopendrium yulgare.
Myosotis palustris. Aspidium angulare.
*Veronica polita.
British- Scottish, 5 species.
Potentilla palustris. Eriophorum vaginatum
Habenaria viridis. Botrychium Lunaria.
Scirpus czespitosus.
British-Highland, 3 species.
Chrysosplenium oppositifolium. Lycopodium Selago.
Vaccinium Myrtillus.
28 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
English-British, 11 species.
*Nuphar luteum. Calystegia sepium.
Potentilla reptans. *Conyolvuius arvensis.
’ Epilobium hirsutum. *Juncus glaucus.
*Bidens cernua. Carex disticha.
Lysimachia vulgaris. *Equisetum maximum.
*Samolus Valerandi.
Scottish-British, 1 species.
*Antennaria dioica.
Atlantic-British, 1 species.
Hypericum Androsemum.
Atlantic-English, 1 species.
*Cotyledon Umbilicus.
English, 7 species.
Sagina apetala. Pulicaria dysenterica.
Euonymus europeus. Arum maculatum.
Pyrus Malus. Ceterach officinarum.
Apium nodiflorum.
Scottish-Highland, 1 species.
*Crepis paludosa.
From this analysis, we find that the ‘‘Universal”’ plants of Ireland
which are not equally widespread in Great Britain are generally in
the latter island of rather southern range (British-English and English-
British); and a few are distinctly southern (English); this result we
might expect from a comparison of the range of latitude of the two
islands. The most noteworthy feature of the few other species in the
lists is the abundance in Ireland of the distinctly northern (Scottish-
Highland) Crepis paludosa.
Cnicus pratensis has an anomalous range. Though recorded from
every Irish division, it is rare in the east and increases westward,
becoming abundant in the west and north; while in Great Britain it is
of characteristic English type, bemg unknown north of Yorkshire.
Its range in Ireland is the reverse of that of most English type
plants—see fig. 1. above.
In the case of a few other ‘‘ Universal”’ plants, their distribution
over the country is not even, but it is yet not sufficiently accentuated
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 29
to render their separation necessary. These are mostly calcicole or
calcifuge species, which increase in abundance in the centre or round
the margin according to their proclivities.
As regards the plants of General type which are not universal.
In some cases the gaps in range are with little doubt only apparent ;
this applies particularly to critical species, such as the two whose
distribution is illustrated below (figs. 15, 16).
Fic. 15. Viola Reichenbachiana. Fic. 16—Ranunculus heterophyllus.
But many other cases are instances of genuine discontinuous
distribution; four good examples are illustrated below, all being
well-known and easily recognized species (figs. 17-20).
1-.—Hypopithys multiflora. Fig. 18.—Zznaria repens.
30 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Fic. 19.—Stachys Betonica. Fic. 20.—Cephalanthera enstfolia.
The following is a list of the species of General type of distribution
other than the universal species, plants of intermediate or doubtful
type being omitted; for comparison, the Watsonian type in Great
Britain is appended (in initial) to each species’ :—
Irish Watsonian Irlsh Watsonian
Name. Census. type. Name. Census. _ type.
Anemone nemorosa, 39 B Silene Cucubalus, 39 B
Ranunculus trichophyllus, 30 HP Stellaria Holostea, 39 B
Drouetii, 12 — Arenaria trinervia, 37 BE
heterophyllus, 20 — serpyllifolia, 39 B
Auricomus, 24 BE Sagina nodosa, 39 B
Nuphar luteum, 39 EB Montia fontana, 388 B
Fumaria pallidifiora, 24 B Ilex Aquifolium, 39 B
contfusa, 29 — Trifolium medium, 29 B
Borzi, 14 — procumbens, 39 B
muralis, 14 — Anthyllis Vulneraria, 37 B
officinalis, 28 B Lathyrus macrorrhizus, 36 B
Nasturtium sylvyestre, 10 E Potentilla procumbens, 32 B
Cardamine flexuosa, 39 — Rosa spinosissima, 36 B
Lepidium campestre, 8 BE involuta, 8 B?
Reseda Luteola, 39 BE mollis, 17 B
Viola palustris, 38 B Cotyledon Umbilicus, 39 AE
canina, 36 B Myriophyllum spicatum, 35 B
Reichenbachiana, 12 = Callitriche stagnalis, 32 —
arvensis, 37 B obtusangula, 12 —
Polygala vulgaris, 37 B Apium inundatum, 38 B
serpyllacea, 38 — /#thusa Cynapium, 37 BE
1 Tn this and following lists, since statistics are no inyolvyed,
included if their distribution is characteristic.
segregates ar
PraEGeR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 381
Irish Watsonian Irish Watsonian
Name, Census. type, Name. Census. type.
Scandix Pecten-Veneris, 32 BE Polygonum maculatum, AN See
Asperula odorata, 389 B Salix alba, 38 BE
Valeriana Mikanii, 13 — Empetrum nigrum, 31 SH
Scabiosa arvensis, 29 B Ceratophyllum demersum, 10 EB
Solidago Virgaurea, 38 B Neottia Nidus-avis, 23 BE
Bidens cernua, 39 EB Cephalanthera ensifolia, 12 E
Achillea Ptarmica, 3 B Epipactis latifolia, 30 BE
Senecio sylvaticus, 38 B Orchis latifolia, 10 2
Arctium minus, 29 B Allium ursinum, 37 BE
Crepis paludosa, 37 SH Juncus glaucus, 39 EB
Hieracium murorum, 11 B Sparganium simplex, 36 BE
umbellatum, 17 E affinis, 20 BS
Erica cinerea, 389 B Butomus umbellatus, 16 E
Hypopithys multiflora, 7 GE Potamogeton heterophyllus, 30 BE
Lysimachia nemorum, 39 B nitens, 19 S
Samolus Valerandi, 39 EB lucens, 28 EB
Myosotis versicolor, 389 B perfoliatus, 37 BE
Lithospermum officinale, 30 BE obtusifolius, 20 EB
Convolyulus arvensis, 36 EB Eleocharis acicularis, 23 EB
Veronica hedereefolia, 36 8B Scirpus sylvaticus, 16 BE
agrestis, 39 B Eriophorum vaginatum, 39 BS
- polita, 36 BE latifolium, 10 BE
montana, 36 BE Carex sylvatica, 39 BE
Anagallis, 39 B . vesicaria, 37 BE
scutellata, 39 B Phleum pratense, 33 BE
Melampyrum pratense, 39 B Glyceria plicata, 21 EB
Utricularia vulgaris, 37 B Bromus giganteus, 39 BE
minor, 39 B asper, 39 BE
Mentha sativa, 35 BE Lolium temulentum, 30 BE
Lycopus europeus, it BE Nardus stricta, 39 BE
Scutellaria galericulata, 33 B Polypodium Dryopteris, 5 S
Stachys Betonica, 11 EB Botrychium Lunaria, 36 BS
Lamium hybridum, 21 B Equisetum maximum, 37 EB
Teucrium Scorodonia, 39 B hyemale, 16 SB
lee)
ie3)
Polygonum lapathifolium, 33
If we analyse this list, making in the case of composite type plants
a certain allowance in each of the types concerned, we find that the
plants are 70 per cent. British type, 24 per cent. English, 5 per cent.
Scottish, and less than 1 per cent. each Atlantic, Germanic and High-
land. This result calls for no remark.
Under the general type also we can best place our common
maritime plants (see p. 39)—species which are of general occurrence
where saline conditions prevail, such as Cochlearta officinalis, Arenaria
peploides, Eryngium maritimum, Salicornia herbacea, Triglochin maritt-
mum, Glyceria maritima, Asplenium marinum. These are about forty
32 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
in number: they are almost exclusively of British type in Great
Britain ; their distribution calls for no remark, and we need not delay
over them.
Before leaving the plants of general distribution in Ireland, it is to
be noted that a group of species drops in here which belongs neither to
Class A treated of above nor to Class B which follows. These are
widely distributed species the feature of whose range is their absence
from some one defined area. The distribution of these is not sufficiently
even to allow of their being placed in Class A, nor is it sufficiently
restricted to permit of their inclusion in any portion of Class B. The
thinning out or absence of a plant as shown in these instances is of
high interest, and of as great phyto-geographical importance as
the restriction of another to the same area. It will presently
appear that the two phenomena sometimes go hand-in-hand, and I
shall further refer to ranges such as the above-mentioned after the
conyerse case of plants characteristic of the same areas has been
discussed. It may be pointed out that even if such gaps in range are
eventually filled up by the discovery of a few stations in the blank
counties, the result will be to obscure rather than to do away with an
interesting feature of their distribution, for they are in any case much
rarer in these areas than in the rest of Ireland.
We now pass to the second and more important of the two large
classes into which the set of maps naturally divides itself—plants
which show an aggregation in some portion of the country.
It is to be remembered that, as compared with Great Britain,
Treland is small, with a more restricted range both in latitude and in
longitude, and in altitudeas well. Itis also of more even shape, being
roughly elliptical in outline, and possesses less variety of surface and
climate. It is not surprising, therefore, that the flora of its various
portions displays a reduced diversity; in other words, that the
number of species of strongly marked local range is not large.
Nevertheless, some definite features of distribution came out clearly
as the maps were studied. The first strong character displayed isa
tendency towards a central or marginal distribution, a peculiarity not
found to any marked degree in the flora of Great Britain, and resulting
from the physical features of the country. The non-calcareous rocks
and the mountain-groups lie around the edge of the island, and here
is concentrated the flora pertaining to such conditions; while the low-
lying limestone plain with its numerous bogs, marshes, and lakes, is
the head-quarters of a different set of species. By referring a plant
to the Central type of distribution, then, we signify that it is found
PraEGer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 33
chiefly in the Central Plain. While plants of this type often extend
to the margin of the island in the east and west, they show a marked
restriction of range towards the north and south.
The area of the Central type of distribution may be defined as being
limited by a line joining the Shannon mouth with Waterford on the
south, and a line joining Sligo Bay with Dundalk Bay on the north,
while in its most characteristic form it does not touch either the
eastern or western margin of the island. The circle on fig. 21 approxi-
mately defines its ideal boundary.
The Marginal type, which is generally speaking the converse of
this, hardly requires definition, as its name is sufficiently descriptive.
The plants which belong to it are characterized by a tolerably even
though frequently discontinuous range through those divisions which
lie around the margin of the island, and by an avoiding of the Limestone
Plain. The negative character of avoidance of the Central Plain is the
most striking feature of this type of distribution ; and the ring which
marks the range of the constituent species frequently thickens consider-
ably in the north and south, where the coast-line lies far from the
edge of the plain. The area of the Marginal type of distribution may
be described as lying outside the circle on fig. 21.
A number of the rarer and more interesting plants of Ireland are
more or less marginal in distribution (being rare in the Central Plain),
but are restricted to limited areas; while many others show a general
increase towards the north, south, east, or west of the island. As
regards these, the strongest phytological boundary which developed
itself is one which corresponds with the curves evolved from a consider-
ation of the range in Ireland of the northern and southern plants of
Great Britain (see fig. 12); and this boundary can be best localized by
drawing a line from Galway Bay on the west to Dundalk Bay on the
east. The need of a dividing line between eastern and western plants
also became clear; and the most natural boundary appeared to be a
line passing through the cities of Londonderry and Cork—a division
which corresponds with the partition into eastern and western already
employed in ‘‘ Irish Topographical Botany.”
The central circle and these two intersecting lines, then, define six
types of distribution which I believe are founded on the actual range
of plants in the country. The names most conveniently employed for
the ‘‘types”’ will be
2. Central. 5. Mumonian.
3. Marginal. 6. Lagenian.
4, Ultonian. 7. Connacian.
R.A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. B.] D
34 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the last four being named after the four provinces of Ireland, in which
each type respectively reaches its maximum, namely: Ultonian type
jn Antrim, Mumonian type in East Cork, Lagenian type in Dublin,
Connacian type in West Galway.
Fic. 21.—Boundaries of the areas of the Irish Types of Distribution.
We have now to consider in detail the six types of distribution
above defined. In the lists of species which follow, only the more
characteristic plants of each type are mentioned. No attempt is
made, considering the still incomplete state of our knowledge, to
PrarceR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 35
refer every Irish plant to some type or combination of types. It is
quite possible that some of the plants which appear in the lists
below may, in the course of time, receive an extension of range that
will place them outside of the type to which they are at present
referred. On-the other hand, future confirmation of the present
limits of range may allow other species to be definitely referred to
one or other of the ‘‘ types’? which are at present unclassed. After
the name of each species, its Irish census is given, and its type in
Great Britain is added for comparative purposes.
2. Centrat Typz.—Thirty-eight species, with an average range
of 15 divisions per species, fall into this group. The distribution of
four characteristic plants of this type is shown in figs. 22 to 25.
Fic. 24.—Sium latifolium. Fic. 25.—Andromeda Poltfolta.
D2
36 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Thalictrum flayum, Wp iy Gentiana Amarella, 29 BE
Ranunculus circinatus, 13 EG Teucrium Scordium, 7 GE
Caltha radicans, 2 — Betula verrucosa, 17 —
Stellaria palustris, 19 EB Orchis Morio, 20 EK
Rhamuus catharticus, I eee Ophrys apifera, 26 EG
Lathyrus palustris, ll E muscifera, 8 EG
Poterium Sanguisorba, Die Juncus obtusiflorus, 26. Gui
Myriophyllum verticillatum, 25 E Lemna polyrhiza, 8 E
Sium latifolium, 14 EG Sagittaria sagittifolia, 21 Ae
Cornus sanguinea, (13) Up Potamogeton plantagineus, 23 EB
Galium uliginosum, 13 BE Carex paradoxa, 1 2
Erigeron acre, ize 1} Pseudo-cyperus, 22 -
Inula salicina, 2 absent | Equisetum variegatum, 15) GS
Carlina vulgaris, 28 EB Chara desmacantha, 21 —
Centaurea Scabiosa, 21 BE polyacantha, 22 —
Crepis taraxacifolia, 18” 1G denudata, 1 eo
Tragopogon pratensis, 22 BE tomentosa, 5 —
Andromeda Polifolia, 24 IS Tolypella glomerata, ll —
Pyrola rotundifolia, 1 SG Nitella tenuissima, R=
An examination of this list shows a characteristic composition.
Eleyen of the thirty-eight are
aquatic; species nine more are
marsh plants. Ten belong to
pastures and dry ground; two
are bog plants. Eight are
ealcicole, and none calcifuge,
according to the standard of
“‘Cybele Hibernica.”” All are
lowland; none are charac-
teristic of the uplands or
highlands. None are woodland
species. If we construct a sta-
tistical map according to the plan
already used, the distribution
of the group comes out clearly
(fig. 26). Here the minimum
is 1 in South Kerry and West
Donegal, the maximum 35
(or 92 per cent. of the group) Fic. 25.—Distribution of ‘‘ Central” plants.
* It may be pointed out that the relative value of the depths of shading is
really higher than expressed by the numerical equivalents, since species generally
thin out towards the limits of their range, and reach their maximum abundance
about the centre of their areas of distribution; whereas on these maps a uniform
value is awarded to each plant throughout its whole range.
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 37
in Westmeath, followed by 31 in 8.E. Galway. It will be noted
that Antrim furnishes a sufficient number of species to raise it
above the minimum grade; this is the effect of the Lough Neagh
flora, which includes a number of stragglers from the waters and
marshes of the Central Plain, such as Zhalictrum flavum, Rhamnus
catharticus, KR. Frangula, Lathyrus palustris, Sagittaria sagittifolia.
The prolongation of certain species into Mid and East Cork appears
to be due to the extension of the limestone into those divisions.
Analysed according to their British distribution, this ‘‘ Central’’ plant-
group is strikingly southern. Of29 whose types are given by Watson,
18, or nearly two-thirds, are of English or Germanic type; seven
more have ‘‘ English” tendencies, while the only northern plants
are one ‘‘ Scottish” species, Hyuisetum variegatum, and two bog
plants of Scottish tendencies, Andromeda Polifolia and Pyrola rotundi-
Solia.
3. Marervat Typr.—Exclusive of maritime plants (of which more
anon), the Marginal type is somewhat more numerous in species
than the Central. Forty-six plants are listed below; they have
an average range of 16 divisions per species.
Subularia aquatica, 10 HS Saussurea alpina, a del
Senebiera Coronopus, 236) Hieracium anglicum, i) BL
Cerastium tetrandrum, 30 B Schmidtii, 8 S
semidecandrum, 17 BE gothicum, 6° Hic
arvense, 10 BE cesium, eo —
Sagina ciliata, 1018 Lobelia Dortmanna, 18 SH
subulata, 8 SB Jasione montana, 29 BE
Elatine hexandra, 10 E Centunculus minimus, 15 EB
Hypericum elodes, 23 AK Myosotis collina, 12) B
Radiola linoides, 20 B Pinguicula lusitanica, 31 AS
Erodium moschatum, If ask Stachys arvensis, 25 2B
Trifolium striatum, 9 #E Galeopsis versicolor, 17 EG
arvense, 14 BE Scleranthus annuus, 16= B
fragiferum, ll E Salix herbacea, Ug paek
- Vicia sylvatica, 22. SB Zannuichellia palustris (aggr.), 20 B
Agrimonia odorata, 20) =H Carex dioica, 20 SB
Saxifraga stellaris, igmeee rigida, 15 H
Sedum Rhodiola, iG) 181 Milium effusum, 21 BE
Callitriche hamulata, 21s Lycopodium alpinum, 12
Carum verticillatum, Gi TatA. Isoetes lacustris, ily fay Comte
Filago minima, 1s B Pilularia globulifera, 5) TOB
Gnaphalium sylvaticum, jl 6B Chara canescens, Boo
Anthemis nobilis, 20 Nitella translucens, ll —
38 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The distribution of four characteristic examples of this type is
given in figs. 27 to 30.
Fic. 290.—Pinguicula lusitanica. Fic. 30.—iVitella translucens.
Tt will at once be noticed that this group, of homogeneous dis-
tribution, is composed of heterogeneous elements, the result of the
varied conditions which the marginal area provides. The leading
sections are alpine plants, brought in by the numerous mountain
groups; calcifuge plants, rejoicing in the absence of limestone; and
xerophytes, for which the sands of the coast are an attraction. No
less than 23, or one half of the group, are characteristically highland
or upland species (though only five of these do not occasionally
PraEcer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 39
descend to near sea-level). Thirteen more favour light or sandy
soils. Nine are water plants, but marsh and bog plants are few.
Seven are typical calcifuge species, one only (Cerastium arvense) is
slightly calcicole. Comparing their distribution in Great Britain, a
corresponding diversity is apparent. Eight are of pure Highland type,
one of Scottish, seven more have Highland or Scottish tendencies.
Six are of English type, two of Atlantic; the remainder are British
or composite.
For our map we have a maximum of 39 species (or 88 per cent. of
the group) in Antrim, a minimum of 0 in Longford. The avoidance
by the group of the low-lying Central Plain and limestone areas
comes out clearly.
Fic. 31.—Distribution of ‘‘ Marginal” plants.
Maritime plants of general distribution round the coast are not
classed as of Marginal type, as their proper place seems to be rather
in the General type. In cases of restricted range, they are placed
under the type to which are referred other species of similar distri-
bution.
4. Utrontan Typr.—Into this group comes much of the northern
element of the Irish flora. The list given below numbers forty-five
species, which might be swelled by the addition of numerous Hawk-
40 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
weed segregates. The restricted range of plants of this and the follow-
ing groups (arising from the more restricted area by which the types
are defined) as compared with that of the ‘‘ Central” and “Marginal 73
plants, is evident from the fact that the average number of divisions
per species drops to 6, as compared with 15 and 16 in the two preced-
ing types.
Fic. 34.—Czcuta virosa. Fic. 35.—Potamogeton filiformis.
The distribution of four selected examples of this type is shown in
figs. 32 to 35, All of these are comparatively wide-ranging species,
but many plants of the type have a quite limited range, mostly with
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 41
Antrim as focus. The peculiar and defined range of Cicuta is note-
worthy, and without a parallel.
Ranunculus fiuitans, 1 E Hieracium strictum, 5 i
Trollius europzus, 3 Ss corymbosum, oH
Cardamine amara, Qe auratum, 4 —
Barbarea intermedia, 5 —_— crocatum, ! 6 H
Teesdalia nudicaulis, 1 BE Hypocheris glabra, i GB
Silene acaulis, 4 0 Vaccinium Vitis-Idza, 19 HS
Geranium sylvaticum, 1 S Pyrola media, 8 bs)
pratense, 1 BE minor, 6 SB
Prunus Padus, 20 Ss secunda, 3 S)
Rubus Chamemorus, 27 Melampyrum sylvaticum, 2 8
Rosa hibernica, 3 I Polygonum minus, 22 E
Saxifraga oppositifolia, gl mite, a G
aizoides, S Jal Salix pentandra, 27 8
Callitriche autumnalis, 13 N) phylicifolia, 6 8H
Epilobium angustifolium, 7 BS nigricans, 3 SH
Circea alpina, il SBE Potamogeton filiformis, 10 8
Cicuta virosa, iG LN Carex pauciflora, 1
Ligusticum scoticum, 5 S elongata, 2. &
Galium Cruciata, IBID Buxbaumii, 1 —_
Adoxa Moschatellina, 1 B irrigua, 1 —
Arctium nemorosum, 7 = Calamagrostis stricta, 4 LI
Hieracium lasiophyllum, —— Cryptogramme crispa, Go
argenteum, —" Equisetum pratense, 3 s
The character of this group is shown by the fact that some 30 out
of the 45 are hill or mountain species, though very few of these are
confined to high elevations. Four are water plants; five frequent
marshes, and four peat bogs. One is a maritime species. Only six
affect dry or cultivated soils. The group is characterized by an absence
of either calcicole or calcifuge plants. Analyzed according to the
British types, the Highland and Scottish species largely predominate ;
out of 38 classed by Watson, nine are of Highland type, ten of Scottish;
six more have Scottish tendencies. Only five are English. Only one,
Adoxa, is of British type.
For the construction of our statistical map, we haye a maximum
of 37 species (or 82 per cent. of the group) in Antrim, a minimum of 0 in
various southern divisions. The northern grouping of the species comes
out clearly.
a ee Cee eee
1 And a number of other Hawkweeds of more restricted range.
42 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Fic. 36.—Distribution of ‘‘ Ultonian”’ plants.
5. Mumontan Type.—This is the largest of the six groups, being
approached in numbers by the Lagenian type alone. Sixty-six
species are listed below; these have an average range of 8 divisions
per species.
The range of four selected examples of Mumonian plants is shown
in figs. 37 to 40, and these are characteristic of well-marked sub-types.
Fic, 37.—Ranunculus Lenormandz. Fic. 38.—Pinguicula grandiflora.
Prarcer— On Types of Distribution in the Lrish Flora. 48
Fic 39.—Campanula Trachelium. Fic. 40.—Chiora perfoliata.
Fig. 387 (Ranunculus Lenormandt) exemplifies the manner in which
various southern plants range up the east coast. As further examples
of this peculiarity of distribution may be mentioned
Linum angustifolium. Orobanche major.
Eythrea pulchella. Salvia Verbenaca.
Wabhlenbergia hederacea. Juncus acutus.
Fig. 38 (Pinguicula grandiflora) shows the well-known Kerry-
Cork type, of which several of the famous Lusitanian group are note-
worthy examples. Other plants of this group are
Rosa micrantha. Allium Scorodoprasum.
Saxifraga Geum. Carex punctata.
Arbutus Unedo. Asplenium lanceolatum.
Microcala filiformis. Nitella Nordstedtiana.
Sibthorpia europzea.
Fig. 39 (Campanula Trachelium) illustrates the peculiar Barrow
valley range which is shared by this species and Colchicum autumnale—
a well-marked and very rare type of distribution.
Fig. 40 (Chlora perfoliata) exemplifies the more wide-ranging
Mumonian plants. Chlora might, indeed, be called a Central Plain
species extending southward, rather than a southern plant extending
northward ; it is strongly calcicole. Leontodon hispidus is a parallel
ease, and has precisely the same northern boundary. The line joining
Dublin and Killala marks, indeed, the northern limit of several of the
more widespread of the Mumonian plants,
44 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Ranunculus tripartitus, iL By Microcala filiformis, 3 EA
Lenormandi, 12 i Erythrea pulchella, 6 E
parviflorus, 6 K Cynoglossum officinale, 14. EB
Glaucium flavum, 16 EB Antirrhinum Orontium, 3 E
Matthiola sinuata, 2 A Sibthorpia europza, 2 A
Brassica nigra, 10 EK Orobanche major, 6 E
Lepidium latifolium, 5 i Pinguicula grandifiora, 5 absent
Viola hirta, 5 EKG Calamintha officinalis, 25 E
lutea, 5 Ss Thymus Chamedrys, 2 —
Linum angustifolium, 14 AE Salvia Verbenaca, 10 GL
‘Geranium pusillum, 6 EB Scutellaria minor, 16 EA
rotundifolium, 5 E Chenopodium rubrum, 12 EG
columbinum, 20 EB Atriplex portulacoides, 11 E
‘Ornithopus perpusillus, sy 53D) Rumex maritimus, 4 E
Erodium maritimum, 11 AE pulcher, 8 E
Trifolium filiforme, 12 EK Euphorbia Peplis, 1 A
Lathyrus maritimus, 1 L Mercurialis annua, 8 E
Alchemilla alpina, 2 H Spiranthes autumnalis, 16 E
Rosa micrantha, 4 E Allium Scorodoprasum, 5 Is
Saxifraga Geum, 3 absent | Colchicum autumnale, Oh nth
decipiens, 2 L Juncus acutus, 4 EA
Feeniculum officinale, 8 E Potamogeton densus, 12 E
nanthe pimpinelloides, 1 E flabellatus, 20 —
Rubia peregrina, 16 A Scirpus parvulus, i —
Dipsacus sylvestris, 16 E Carex muricata, 16 BE
Diotis candidissima, 2 A divulsa, 19 EG
Hieracium hypocheroides, 2 — axillaris, 4 E
Leontodon hispidus, 24 EB punctata, oo —
Campanula Trachelium, 4 E Festuca Myuros, 22 E
Wahlenbergia hederacea, 7 A Bromus erectus, 7 GE
Arbutus Unedo, 3 absent | Brachypodium pinonatum, 1 GE
Ligustrum vulgare, 3 E Agropyron pungens, 6 —
Chlora perfoliata, 25 E Asplenium lanceolatum, 3 A
The chief character of this large group as regards habitat lies in
the fact that more than half of them are plants of pastures, light soils,
and dry places. Four are water plants, and five marsh plants; none
are characteristic of peat bogs. Eleven are maritime species. Only
eight are plants of the uplands or mountains. Analyzed according to
their distribution in Great Britain, they are a markedly southern and
western assemblage. Of 57 classed by Watson, 27 are of English type,
7 Atlantic, and 10 more combinations of English with Atlantic or
Germanic. Viola lutea is the only Scottish species, and one other,
Allium Scorodoprasum, has Scottish tendencies. The Highland type
is entirely absent except for nN
‘ginqsed ‘eSeqiry, sa rt oy oF ay z
“Bog weg 1 ~ roy aQ — =
“YSIe yl a = = S = 2
“1O4R AA = &R = 2 -
sg : S
. bs 3
S = 3 I r= | 3 3
es 3 i= 4 3) | =
Si $ aS | g F
a a 3s 5s FP 6
i>)
i) =| =) = 4 =)
by
bo
52 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The figures, especially as regards habitat, are of course merely
approximate, as exact data in such matters are not possible; never-
theless, the table brings out in a very striking manner the widely
divergent characteristics of the various Types of Distribution, and fits
in well with the maps previously given, showing the distribution of
plants according to soil and elevation, and also according to type in
Great Britain.
Notice has already been taken of the fact that certain plants of
wide distribution in Ireland are nevertheless characterized by an
absence from definite areas. This interesting point must now engage
our attention for afew minutes. One of the most marked ranges of
this kind is illustrated in fig. 52 (Drosera anglica), which shows an
absence from those south-eastern counties where the Lagenian flora
reaches its maximum. The following species show a similar absence
from or rarity in the south-east :—
Nympheea alba. Myrica Gale.
Rubus saxatilis. Scirpus pauciflorus.
Myriophyllum alterniflorum. Rhynchospora alba.
Pinguicula vulgaris.
—while in the case of Parnassia palustris and Selaginella selaginordes,
the centre of the ‘‘ absent?’ area lies further south ; most of these are
universal over the rest of Ireland, while in Great Britain they are as a
group ‘‘British”’ with a ‘Scottish’? tendency. It will be noticed that
in the main they are plants of lowland boggy places, and such ground
reaches its minimum in these divisions; nevertheless some further
reason appears necessary to explain their absence. They might be
classed as Anti-Lagenian rather than as Pan-Connacian, since they
do not exhibit any marked increase westward.
: . Rue
) Fic. 52.—Dvosera anglica. . Fic. 53.—Q@nanthe Phellandrium.
PraEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 58
Another type of absence appears in fig. 53 (Qnanthe Phellandrium),
consisting of a dying out along the mountain-rim of Ireland, especially
in the west. Seven species—
Nasturtium palustre. Rumex Hydrolapathum.
amphibium. Elodea canadensis.
Sium angustifolium. Lemna trisulca.
(Enanthe Phellandrium.
—exhibit this feature conspicuously, and others to a less degree; all
are practically universal! elsewhere. This is quite a homogeneous
group, inhabitants of lowland marshes and ditches, with a strong
‘“¢ English ”’ tendency in Great Britain.
A third group is illustrated in fig. 54 (Viera angustifolia), with
which may be classed
Sisymbrium Alliaria. Valerianella olitoria.
Ulex Gallii.
Here the character is a marked absence from the province of Connaught
—the middle part of the Connacian district. These plants have little
in common, Srsymbrium being calcicole, Ulex calcifuge, the others
neutral ; and they show similar diversity in other respects, the only
point of agreement being a preference for dry situations.
Fic. 54.—Vicia angustifolia. Fic. 55.—Leontodon hirtus.
1 By ‘‘universal’’ I mean present in all divisions.
54 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
A better-marked group is that whose feature is rarity in or absence
from Ulster, especially central Ulster (fig. 55). We may cite
, Papaver Rheas. Scrophularia aquatica.
Brassica alba. Origanum vulgare.
Saxifraga tridactylites Parietaria officinalis.
Carduus pycnocephalus. Orchis pyramidalis.
Leontodon hirtus. Festuca rigida.
Verbascum Thapsus.
The proclivities of this ‘‘ Anti-Ultonian’’ group are lowland, light soil,
calcicole, and ‘‘ English”; characters which reach their minimum in
the Ulster flora. The sandy soils by the sea enable most of these
species to creep northward round the Ulster coast, but inland they
are rare or absent.
Lastly, there is a group of ‘ Anti-Central” species, too widely
spread to be cited as characteristic ‘‘ Marginal’ plants. One of the
best marked is figured (fig. 56) in Gnanthe erocata, and the following
resemble it in range :— .
Hypericum humifusum. Myosotis repens.
Filago germanica. Carex levigata.
Fic. 56.—@nanthe crocata.
These are all plants of somewhat marginal type, and increase on
the hills and non-calcareous rocks.
One small but well-marked type of distribution which, though in
a broad sense ‘‘ Central,” does not typically fall into any of the seven
types already defined, deserves mention. The plants composing it
PrarceR—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 55
show a diagonal range across Ireland from the north-east towards the
south-west, having a marked absence in the north-western and south-
eastern areas. An example (fig. 57, Hydrocharis Morsus-rane) will
illustrate this type ; and to show the similarity of range of the group,
a statistical map is added (fig. 58) according to the usual plan, show-
ing the aggregate range of the following members :—
Ranunculus circinatus. Eleocharis acicularis.
Lathyrus palustris. — Carex acuta.
Hydrocharis Morsus-rane. Lastrea Thelypteris.
Sagittaria sagittifolia.
Fic. 57.—Aydrocharis Morsus-rane. Fic. 58.—Mountain-folding of Ireland.
On the map I have added the main lines of the old ‘‘ Caledonian ”’
and ‘‘ Hercynian ” folding of Ireland, as demonstrated by Prof. Cole,?
since this, I believe, is the key to the peculiar range of these species.
It will be noticed that they are without exception marsh and water
plants, and they follow the great central trough of the island, spread-
ing over the basins of the Shannon, Erne, Boyne, and Bann, which
lie in the synclinal area, but avoiding the great anticlines of Leinster,
Mayo and Donegal, including the river-system of the south-east ; and
are absent even from the great western lake-system of which Lough
‘Corrib is the predominant member.
Lastly, as to the distribution of plants which are probably or certainly
introduced in Ireland. As before stated, the aliens are generally
marked by a discontinuous range. A large number are widely spread;
1 Knowledge, April, 1898.
56 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
but others fall in with various Types of Distribution, and as this is no
doubt in most cases the effect not of chance, but of soil or climate, it
will be worth classifying them. Leaving out of account species which
have a restricted range, such as Senecio sgualidus and Stratiotes aloides,
the aliens of well-marked range run as follows: —
Central—
Arenaria tenuifolia, x Matricaria discoidea —
Marginal—
Lychnis Githago, B Cuscuta Trifolii, E
Inula Helenium, K? Lycium barbarum, —_—
Silybum Marianum, — Mimulus guttatus, —
Centaurea Cyanus, B Plantago media, EB
Cichorium Intybus, EK Bromus secalinus, BE
Cuscuta Epithymum, E
Ultonian—
Myrrhis odorata, 1? Veronica peregrina, —
Anchusa sempervirens, E
Mumonian—
Senebiera didyma, AE Verbena officinalis, E
Valerianella Auricula, E Marrubium vulgare E
Picris hieracioides, E Humulus Lupulus, B
Linaria Elatine, E Narcissus biflorus, —
minor, E Leucojum estiyum, GE
Lagenian—
Draba muralis — Campanula rapunculoides, LI
Sisymbrium Sophia, BE Ballota nigra, E
Medicago maculata, E Acorus Calamus, E
Lactuca muralis, E
Connacian—
Allium Babingtonii, —
It will be seen that the more successful aliens, other than those of
general distribution, are grouped round the margin of the island,
especially in the south and east. They reach their minimum in the
centre, north, and west. Their distribution, in fact, coincides with
that of the ‘‘ English ”’ plants (fig. 1), to which type belong, as will
be seen from the analysis appended to the list, 16 out of 26 classed by
Prazcer—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 57
Watson. This Mumonian or Lagenian range of the aliens is of interest,
for there can be no doubt that it is the result of conditions of climate and
soil, In support of this view, one remarkable instance may be cited.
Clover seed, imported from England, is sown widely in Ireland;
official information supplied to me is to the effect that no more clover
is sown in the south and east than in other parts of the country.
With the clover come the seeds of the parasite Orobanche minor, a
plant of English type, not a native of Ireland, and unknown therein
until some forty years ago. The plant is now an established and
spreading colonist, and its present range coincides in a striking degree
with that of the group to which it belongs—the light soil English
raat
Ar \
}
Rue
Fic. 59.—Ovoban minor .
type plants. In the central portions of its range—Wexford particu-
larly—it is now abundant and permanent. This further emphasizes
the floral peculiarities of the south-eastern portion of Ireland, which
have already been demonstrated both from the presence and absence
therein of certain groups of species. The great Leinster anticline
is an important factor in Irish plant distribution, and a phyto-
logical boundary of marked character is formed by the line where its
uplands sink into the Central Plain, and by the prolongation of that
line northwards and southwards.
Of the seven Types of Distribution proposed in this paper, five have
their analogues in the types which Watson instituted for Great Britain.
In both series we have a General type, and a Northern, Southern,
Eastern, and Western type. The General, Northern, and Southern
types of Great Britain and of Ireland in a wide sense correspond in their
58 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
composition. The Eastern group of Ireland is seen to be essentially
southern in Great Britain, while the Eastern group of Great Britain is
practically absent from Ireland; nevertheless the two correspond in
character, representing in each case the nucleus of the thermophile and
xerophile elements of the flora—in England a much more intensified
group than in Ireland. The Western plants of the two islands also
exhibit a wide diversity in range, those of Great Britain being
Southern and Marginal in Ireland, while those of Ireland are not
to any extent Western in Great Britain, and include besides a
number of species absent from the sister island. But here again
the two have affinities, both being hygrophile and frigofuge in
character. The two remaining Irish types, the Central and Mar-
ginal, have no analogues in Great Britain. The former consists largely
of ‘‘English”’ species, the latter chiefly of ‘“ British’’ plants which
do not penetrate into the Limestone Plain.
It will be observed that no type corresponding to Watson’s High-
land type is proposed for Ireland. Plants of this kind form in Ireland
a much less distinct group than in Great Britain, being largely reduced
in numbers, and not nearly so montane in habitat. Moreover, they
have not any so definite head-quarters as, in Great Britain, they find in
the Highlands of Scotland. In Ireland, plants of Highland type are
distributed almost equally between the Marginal, Ultonian, and Con-
nacian areas. None belong to the Lagenian and only one to the Mumo-
nian, although in those districts occur the largest areas of high elevation,
as well as the loftiest summits, in the country. The actual alpine flora
of Ireland is extremely limited. Taking the 42 Irish plants belonging
to Watson’s Highland type, we find that one-third of them descend in
Ireland to sea-level. Sixty per cent. may be found at elevations of
500 feet or less. Fully one-half of the group flourish at these low
elevations in places where alpine ground—say over 1000 or 1500 feet—
does not adjoin, so that their occurrence means not merely the washing
down of seeds from their natural high-level habitats. Only 30 per
cent. keep above the thousand-foot contour line, only 5 per cent. above
the 2000-foot line. In fact, Watson’s Highland plants cannot be defined
in Ireland as a group “‘ chiefly seen about the mountains.” They are
chiefly seen in certain hill-regions, but the presence of even high
mountains does not necessarily involve their appearance. The species
seen about the mountains are largely British type plants, with a
variable admixture of ‘‘ Highland” species, and certain local groups—
in the north “‘ Scottish’ plants, in the south often ‘‘ Lusitanian.”’ It
does not seem desirable to attempt to construct out of these hetero-
PRAEGER—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. 59
genous materials any group of Imish plants ‘‘ chiefly seen about ‘the
mountains.” The peculiar range of the Irish high-level plants—often
absent from lofty mountains in the east and present on hills of less
eleyation or on low grounds in the west—is best brought out by treat-
ing them with the other plants of similar distribution.
So much for the facts. The causes which lead or have led to the
distribution of the flora as we now find it are difficult to determine.
The effect produced by the distribution of lime, and of open light
soils, is fairly clear; but climatic effects are not so easily dealt with.
As regards temperature, some of the characteristic plants of Connacian
type are without doubt frigofuge—in other words, their chief need in
our climate is a sufficiently high winter temperature; and in fig. 60,
which shows the isotherms of the coldest month of the year in Ireland
(January), parallels between isophytic and isothermal lines may easily
Fic. 60.—January isotherms. Fic. 61.—July isotherms.
be drawn from among the plants of the south and west. Fig. 61 like-
wise, showing the isotherms of the warmest month (July), suggests
that a number of the south-eastern species may be thermophiles—
plants for which the most pressing need is a high summer temperature
for the ripening of fruit. Questions of rainfall probably effect but little
60 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the distribution of plants in Ireland, since (fig. 62) there is everywhere
a sufficiency. But the limit of the Connacian type (fig. 51) will be
Fic. 62.—Annual rainfall.
seen to correspond with that of the wet west-of-the-Shannon district
of Ireland, while the driest area is included in that which marks the
range of the Lagenian and most of the English type species. There
is eyen a dry area around Galway Bay which no doubt helps to
produce the remarkable aggregation of ‘‘ English” and ‘‘ Germanic ”’
species in north Clare. Butthe facts are not yet brought together, nor
the observations made which will enable us to determine how far the
present distribution of plants is effected by climatic causes. Nor is
this the only direction in which work is required. We cannever hope
to understand our phyto-geography till its problems have been attacked
by the historical method. Yet the history of the Irish flora is still an
absolutely unworked field. The records lie buried below our peat
bogs and superficial deposits, and their elucidation will furnish evidence
of the highest importance. No branch of Irish botany has more
pressing claims on the field botanist than this.
a ll
im:
GLEANINGS IN IRISH TOPOGRAPHICAL BOTANY.
By ROBERT LLOYD PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
[Read Marcu 1l6ru, 1902.]
Or the material contributed or collected for ‘‘ Irish Topographical
Botany,” a quantity of gleanings remain after the crop has been
gathered in. These consist mainly of two sorts—notes of varieties
and hybrids, and notes of aliens. Except where the information
respecting species could be amplified by including records of their
varieties, or where alien species could be admitted as naturalized,
neither of these classes of records was included in the book referred
to. In now publishing a selection of these notes, I have kept ‘‘ Cybele
Hibernica’’ before me, and have aimed mainly at giving such records
as are ‘supplementary to the information therein contained. Though
the bulk of the notes which follow are unpublished previously, I have
not hesitated to include records scattered through inaccessible publica-
tions; and have sometimes given, in condensed form, all information
relating to a plant, whether published or unpublished, usually indi-
cating what matter is original. The notes are arranged under county
divisions, and records are quoted according to the rules adopted in
“‘Trish Topographical Botany.” References to published papers are
given by means of the numbers prefixed to them in the same work;
which is followed in other details of arrangement also.
As regards the records for which I am responsible. The heavy
field work of 1896-1900 gave little opportunity for the study of
critical plants; but in some genera, notably Alchemilla, Kuphrasia,
and Chara, large collections were made, and the distribution of segre-
gates and varieties in Ireland to a great extent ascertained. My best
thanks are due to the several critical botanists who devoted much
labour to the naming of the material collected—Mr. Arthur Bennett,
the late Prof. A. W. Bennett, Mr. G. C. Druce, Messrs. H. & J. Groves,
Rey. E. F. Linton, Rev. E. 8. Marshall,.Rev. W. Moyle Rogers, and
Mr. Frederick Townsend.
62 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Ranunculus peltatus Fr., var. elongatus F. Schultz.
38 Down Canal near Scarva (Lett)—W. B. E. C. ’94-5.
: Also in 32—see Irish Top. Bot.
R. acris, L., var.*Boreeanus (Jord.).
In 12, 16, and 26, ’95-6—K. S. Marshall.
var. Steveni (Andrz.).
39 Antrim ‘Glenarm, &c.,”’ ’99—Druce 285.
Caltha radicans Forst., var. zetlandica Beeby.
23 Westmth. E. 8S. Marshall refers (527) EH. F. Linton’s plant from
Brittas Lake ( Cyb., p. 10) to this.
{Fumaria Vaillantii Loisel.
8 Limrck. Limerick ’97 [among casuals] (G. Fogerty)—Herd.
LEC.)
Nasturtium amphibium x sylvestre = N. barbarcedes Tausch.
6 Waterfd. Cappoquin ’99—P.
29 Leitrim Carrick-on-Shannon ’99—P.
Mr. Bennett is not positive of the determination, but both parents
are now known to occur on the Shannon and TEledleyaian and there
seems little reason to doubt the determination.
N. officinale L., var. microphyllum (Reichb.).
In 12 Wexford, and 16 W. Galway—H. 8. Marshall.
Barbarea vulgaris R. Br., var. arcuata (Reichb.).
1 Kerry 8. *Rossbehy ’00—Scully.
389 Antrim Drum Bridge ’94—Stewart.
Arabis hirsuta Scop., var. glabrata Syme.
9 Clare Inishmore ’95—P.
*Alyssum calycinum L.
Divisions 1, 4, 5, 19, 20, 21, 40.
_*A, maritimum L.
5 Cork E. Queenstown ’90—Phillips, and ’98—Mrs. Persse !
PRAEGER— Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 63
Sisymbrium officinale Scop., var. leiocarpum DC.
8 Cork W. Glandore ’96 (J. Groves)—R. A. Phillips.
*Erysimum orientale R. Br.
Divisions 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12, 22, 39.
*Bunias orientalis L.
Divisions 6, 12, 21—P.
*Camelina sativa Crantz.
Divisions 4, 12, 16, 20, 21, 28, 27, 31, 32, 88, 39, 40.
*Lepidium Draba L.
Divisions 5, 8, 11, 12, 21, 37, 38, 39.
Appears to be establishing itself at Limerick—P.
*ZL. ruderale L.
Divisions 3, 5, 8, 12, 21.
? Polygala calcarea F. Schultz.
Specimens collected near Tuam are doubtfully referred to this form
by Prof. A. W. Bennett, while others from Devil’s Bit (N. Tipperary)
and Athlone (Roscommon), collected by myself, and Kilrea (Derry) by
Mrs. Leebody, are marked by the same authority ‘‘ approaching
calearea.”” P. calcarea being as yet unrecorded from Ireland, the
occurrence of these intermediate forms is interesting.
*Silene Armeria L.
Divisions 9, 12, 21, 37, 39, 40.
§. Cucubalus Wibel., var. puberula Syme.
13 Carlow Aghade ’99—P.
15 Galw. SE. Garryland ’00—P.
I believe frequent in Ireland, but I did not note localities.
Cerastium glomeratum Thuill., var. apetalum Dum.
3 Cork W, ‘Timoleague ’97—Phillips.
C. triviale Link, var. holosteoides Fr.
6 Waterfd. By the Blackwater below Cappoquin ’99—P.
64 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Arenaria serpyllifolia L., var. leptoclados (Guss.).
8,4, 5 Cork Frequent—Phillips.
6 Waterfd. Dungarvan ’99, Carrickbeg ’00—P.
“7 Tipp. S. Clonmel ’00—Phillips. Cahir and Slievenaman ’00—P.
8 Limrck. Limerick ’99—Somerville. L. Gur ’00—P.
10 Tipp. N. Nenagh ’00—Phillips. Bailingarry ’00—P.
11 Kilkny. Ballyragget ’99, Fiddown bridge ’00—P.
13 Carlow By Barrow above Borris ’99—P.
14 Queen’s Mountrath ’97, Maryborough ’96—P.
15 Galw. SE. Coole ’?00—P.
18 King’s Birr ’00, Banagher ’98—P.
19 Kildare . Nurney ’97—P.
20 Wicklow Kilmacannoge ’94—P.
21 Dublin Sutton ’94—P.
31 Louth Soldier’s Point ’96—P.
Also in 28, 26, 35, 37, 88, 89—see Cybele II.
var. Lloydii (Jord.).
12 Wexford Carnsore and Gorey districts ’97—E. 8S. Marshall.
Stellaria umbrosa Opiz.
5 Cork E. Near Castletownroche ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Rev. E. F. Linton writes of the specimens :—‘‘ S. umbrosa and
S. media mayor seem to run into one another, and this may be regarded
as S. umbrosa with bluntly tubercular fruit or as var. major with
glabrous inflorescence; 7. ¢., there are connecting links which seem to
_ abolish S. umbrosa as a species, and then we have two contiguous vars.
at times barely separable—S. media var. umbrosa, S. media var.
major.”
Stellaria umbrosa is unknown in Ireland hitherto.
Spergula arvensis L., var. vulgaris (Benn.).
Divisions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 16, 20, 21, 38.
yar. sativa (Beenn.).
Divisions 1, 8, 4, 5, 6, 11, 15, 16, 21, 27, 35, 36.
Apparently the two forms are about equally common. -
Montia fontana L., var. minor (Gmel.).
Divisions all, except 8, 22.
PraEGER—Gleanings in Lrish Topographical Botany. 65
var. rivularis (Gmel.),
Divisions 4, 6, 7, 10, 13, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40.
Chiefly about the mountains,
Geranium Robertianum L., var. modestum (Jord.).
6 Waterfd. Dungarvan ’82 (Britten and Nicholson)—B.E.C. ’82.
var. purpureum Forst,
2 Kerry N. Lower Lake of Killarney ’01—G. C. Druce.
Ononis repens L., var. horrida Lange.
5 Cork E. Youghal ’00: frequent near the sea—Phillips.
6 Waterfd. Bunmahon and Knockmahon ’82—Hart 3°4-
21 Dublin St. Doulagh’s ’96—P. . Rare.
38 Down Ardglass (Waddell)—S. & P. 874.
*Medicago faleata L
5 Cork E. Queenstown Junction 1894-1900, Tivoli ’96—Phillips.
8 Limrck. Corbally ’98 (Bentley)—Herb. L. F. C.! | Old quarry
at Limerick ! ’00—R. D. O’Brien.
*Melilotus alba Desr.
Divisions 1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 21, 22, 34, 38, 39.
Lotus corniculatus L., var. crassifolius Persoon.
12 Wexford Near Wexford ’?96—E. S. Marshall.
38 Down Newcastle ’?98—G. C. Druce.
And in 39, 40—see Cybele II.
Vicia tetrasperma Meench.
5 Cork E. Ballyvodock ’00—R. A. Phillips.
V. angustifolia Roth., var. Bobartii Koch.
4 Cork Mid Coachford ’97—R, A. Phillips.
V. cracea L., var. incana Thuill.
16 Galw. W. Clonbur ’95—M. & S. 545.
23 Westmth. NW. end of L. Owel ’95—Levinge.
26 Mayo E. Clonbur ’95—M. & S. 545.
Re I. A. PROC.) VOL. VIII., SEC. B. | #
66
26
21
14
29
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Lathyrus macrorrhizus Wimm., var. tenuifolius Reich. fil.
Cork E.
Tipp. N.
King’s
Kildare
Westmth.
Mayo E.
Dublin
Queen’s
Dublin
Westmth.
Glanmire ’?00—R. A. Phillips.
*Prunus domestica L.
Nenagh ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Clonad Wood ’96—P.
Carbury ’96—P.
Rubus fuscus x incurvatus.
Crooked Wood ’95—H. C. Levinge, and 503.
R. mucronatus x pyramidalis.
L. Corrib near Cong ’95—M. & BS. 545.
R. corylifolius x rusticanus.
Malahide ’93—P. .
R. corylifolius x leucostachys.
Maryborough ’93—P.
R. corylifolius x ceesius.
Howth Junction ’938—P.
Knock Ross—Levinge ’94 484.
Potentilla suberecta Zimm. = P. procumbens x silvestris.
Tipp. N.
Queen’s
Galw. W.
Mayo E.
Leitrim
Ferman.
Tyrone
Down
Antrim
Near Cloughjordan ’00—P.
Base of Arderin ’97—P.
About Clonbur ’95—M. & S. 545.
Clonbur ’95—M. & S. 545.
Ballinamore ’00, Lurganboy ’99—P.
Newtownbutler ’49 (Dr. Mathew)—Marshall 535.
Omagh ’96—Miss Knowles.
Newtownbreda ’49 (Mateer)— Marshall 535, and Pur-
chas, Journ. Bot. xxxi., 374.
Glenshesk ’93—Shoolbred 837.
Geum intermedium Ehrh. = G. rivale x urbanum.
King’s
Wicklow
Mayo E.
Leitrim
40 L’derry
Also in 14, 15,19, 21, 24, 38, 37, 89—see Cy belegII.
Clonad Wood ’96—-P. -
West of Baltinglass ’99—P.
Ballinrobe ’91—Mrs. Persse!
Annaghearly Lake ’99—P.
Limavady ’95—B.N.F.C. Garvagh—Miss° Knowles.
PrarcEer— Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 67
Alchemilla vulgaris L.
The paper on the distribution of A/chemilla segregates in Ireland,
by Rey. E. F. Linton in Journ. Bot. and Lrish Nat., April, 1900,
summarizes our knowledge up to that date. As Mr. Linton has since
named for me a large batch of gatherings, and as he has not in many
instances given localities in his paper, I give in full all the information
I have.
9 Clare
17 Galw. NE.
18 King’s
22 Meath
23 Westmth.
24 Lonefd.
25 Roscomn.
27 Mayo W.
28 Shgo
29 Leitrim
30 Cavan
81 Louth
383 Ferman.
384 Dongl. E.
36 Tyrone
38 Down
539 Antrim
3 Cork W.
10 Tipp. N.
16 Galw. W.
18 King’s
26 Mayo EK.
27 Mayo W.
28 Sligo
29 Leitrim
30 Cavan
381 Louth
33 Ferman.
A. pratensis Schmidt.
Co. Clare (Herb. R. P. Murray)—Linton ’00 sor.
Annaghdown ’00—P.
Tullamore and Clara ’99—P.
Ballivor ’00, Hill of Down, Oldcastle—P.
Knock Eyon ’99, Moate, Hare I., Coosan L.—P.
Castlerea ’00, Ballymahon, Killashee—P.
Lough Key ’97—P.
Pontoon and Crossmolina ’00—P.
Ballysadare ’00, Lough Key—P.
Lough Melvin and Lurganboy ’99—P.
Lough Gowna 700, Lough Sheelin—P.
Rayensdale ’?00—P.
Lower L. Macnean ’00, Castle Coole— P.
Brown Hall ’00—P.
Lough Muck ’97, Cookstown —Miss Knowles.
Near Holywood ’85—P.
White Park Bay ’97, Dunloy—P. Belfast (Stewart)
—Linton sor.
A. alpestris Schmidt.
Gurtavehy ’00, Skibbereen ’89—R. A. Phillips.
Youghal Bay ’99—P.
Recess ’94—P.
Above Kinnitty ’00—P.
Near Claremorris ’00—P.
Castlebar ’96—E. 8. Marshall.
Mullaghmore ’00, Keishcorran, Lough Gill—P.
Glenade and Lough Gill ’99—P,
Ballyconnell ’?00—A. Somerville.
Carlingford Mountain ’00—P.
Florencecourt ’00, Carragh Creagh, L. Melvin—P.
F2
68
35
36
38
39
29
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Dongl. W. Lough Salt (Herd. Brit. Mus.)—Linton sor.
Tyrone Omagh *97—Miss Knowles.
Down Saintfield ’96: common ( Waddell) —W.B.E.C.’96-7.
Antrim Dunseverick ’97—P. Frequent.
A. filicaulis Buser.
Cork Mid Dripsey ’89—R. A. Phillips.
Cork E. Fermoy ’50 (T. Chandlee)—Herd. 8. & A. M.
Waterfd. Cappoquin ’99—P.
Tipp. 8. Fethard ’97, Lough Muskry ’00—P.
Limreck. Adare ’99—Somerville. Capantimore—Herb. L.F.C.
Tipp. N. Ballingarry 00: common—P.
Kilkny. Kilmacow ’00—Miss Horne. Ballyragget—P.
Carlow Goresbridge and Ballintemple ’99—P.
Queen’s Grantstown ’98, Arderin ’97—P.
Galw. SE. Chevy Chase ’00: common—P,
Galw. W. Moycullen, Kilbeg Ferry, ’99—P. Clonbur.
Galw. NE. Knockmae ’99, Dunmore, Barbersfort, &c.—P.
King’s Kinnitty ’00, Shannon Harbour—P.
Kildare Ballymore ’00, near Baltinglass—P.
Dublin Kilternan ’94—P.
Meath Ballivor and Sleve Bregh ’00—P.
Westmth. Knock Eyon and Lough Iron ’99—P.
Longford Longford 98: common—P.
Roscomn. Rockville ’99, Slieve Bane, Mote Park—P.
Mayo E. Ballinrobe—Mrs. Persse!
Mayo W. Mvweelrea ’82—Hart 38o.
Leitrim Rinn Lough and Carrick-on-Shannon ’99—P.
Louth Kearney’s Cross ’97—P.
Monaghn. Drumreaske ’00—A. Somerville.
Dongl. E. Lag ’98—H. C. Hart.
Tyrone Omagh ’97—Miss Knowles.
Armagh Tynan Abbey ’92—P.
Down Scrabo Hill ’87—P.
Antrim Cave Hill ’98—G. C. Druce. Common.
L’derry Benevenagh-—S. A. Stewart. Frequent.
Rosa tomentosa Sm., var. scabriuscula (Sm.).
Leitrim Lurganboy ’99—P.
Also in 20, 33, 39—see Cybele II,
40
PraEGER—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany.
Cork E.
Tipp. 8.
Kilkny.
Wexford
Galw.W.
King’s
Mayo E.
Dongl. E.
Down
Antrim
Dongl. W.
Clare
Cork W.
Cork K.
Queen’s
Galw. W.
Westmth.
Mayo E.
Dongl.W.
Down
Antrim
L’derry.
Down
Westmth.
Tipp. 8.
Kaldare
Armagh
Down
Antrim
L’derry.
69
R. canina L., var. lutetiana Leman.
Mitchelstown ’97: frequent—R. A. Phillips.
Fethard ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Kilkenny ’00—R., A. Phillips.
Near Wexford ’96—E. S. Marshall.
Clonbur ’95—E. 8. Marshall.
Edenderry ’96—P.
Clonbur ’?95—E. S. Marshall.
Near Killygordon—/7. Donegal.
Saintfield ’95—C. H. Waddell.
Common ’983—W. A. Shoolbred.
var. spherica (Gren.).
Fl. Donegal.
var. senticosa (Ach.).
Ballyvaughan ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Ardara
var. dumalis (Bechst.).
Skibbereen ’96 : frequent—Phillips.
Near Mitchelstown ’97 : frequent—Phillips.
Abbeyleix ’00—Phillips.
Clonbur ’95—E. 8. Marshall.
Clonave ’95—Linton 503.
Clonbur ’96—KE. 8. Marshall.
Gweebarra estuary—/7. Donegal.
Saintfield *95—C. H. Waddell.
Glenarm ’99—Druce 285. Common.
L. Neagh ’99—Druce 285. Eglinton—Mrs. Leebody.
f. verticillacantha (Mérat.)
Saintfield ’94—C. H. Waddell.
var. urbica (Leman).
Knock Body ’95—Linton 503.
var. dumentorum (Thuill.).
Fethard ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Co. Kildare— Cyd. II.
Near Lough Gilly ’98—Druce 285.
Killowen (Stewart)—Suppl. Fl. NE.
Mazetown (Stewart)—Suppl. Fl. NE.
O me
.
Toomebridge ’98—Druce 285
70 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
var. arvatica Baker, f. cesia Sm.
35 Dongl. W. Eglish River (F. J. Hanbury)—/7. Donegal.
- The above being the first attempt to show the distribution of
R. canina forms in Ireland, I have given all the reliable records of
which I have knowledge.
R. glauca Vill., var. coriifolia (Fr.).
39 Antrim Cave Hill ’98—Druce 28>.
40 Lderry. Lough Neagh ’98—Druce 285.
Crategus Oxyacantha L., var. oxyacanthoides (Thuill.).
Divisions 34, 35, 38. Not distinguished elsewhere.
var. monogyna (Jacq.)
Divisions 12, 21, 23, 34, 35, 838. Probably common.
Pyrus Malus L., var. acerba DC.
Divisions all except 2, 3, 4, 9, 12, 34, 35, 36, 40.
var. mitis Wallr.
Divisions all except 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 238, 25, 27, 84,35, 40.
*Bryonia dioica Jacq.
22. Meath Thicket by the Boyne at Oldbridge ’01—Miss R.
Smith!
Apium nodiflorum Reichb. fil., var. ocreatum Bab.
12 Wexford Near Wexford ’96—E. 8. Marshall.
16 Galw. W. South side of Lough Mask ’95—M. & 8. 545.
21 Dublin Ireland’s Eye ’94—P. 736.
23 Westmth. L. Owel and L. Derevaragh gs eaianion 503.
35 Dongl. W. Ramelton and Kincashla—FV. Donegal.
A. inundatum Reichb. fil., var. Moorei Syme.
17 Galw. NE. River Clare near Tuam ’99—P.
22 Meath Navan ’00—P.
34 Dongl. E. North-west of Ballyshannon—/V. Donegal.
Frequentabout Downpatrick and in the Bann basin, in 37, 38, 39, 40.
A remarkable variety.
PrarcEer—Gileanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 71
Sambucus nigra L., var. laciniata L.
15 Galw. SE. Gort ’?00—R. A. Phillips.
Galium palustre L., var. Witheringii (Sm.),
Divisions 5, 8, 11, 12, 16, 21, 23, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 34, 37, 38, 39.
Of fifteen Irish gatherings of G. palustre submitted to Rey. E. S.
Marshall, only one is referred (and that doubtfully) to the type
which appears to be very rare in Ireland.
?
Valerianella olitoria Poll., var. lasiocarpa Reichb.
12 Wexford Common between Greenore and Carnsore ’97—E. S.
Marshall.
Matricaria inodora L., var. salina Bab.
5 Cork E. Ballycotton ’96—R. A. Phillips.
12 Wexford Near Wexford ’96—KE. 8. Marshall.
16 Galw. W. Salthill ?00—R. A. Phillips. Roundstone—5o2.
20 Wicklow Kilcoole ’94—P.
21 Dublin Howth ’94—P.
39 Antrim Giant’s Causeway ’?983—W. A. Shoolbred.
- Artemisia vulgaris L., var. coarctata Forcell.
16 Galw. W. About Clonbur ’95—KH. S. Marshall.
26 Mayo E.
Senecio vulgaris L., var. radiatus Koch.
6 Waterfd. Dunmore East ’?01—Mrs. Persse !
8 Limrek. Kilmallock ’00—R. A. Phillips.
S. Jacobea L., var. flosculosus (Jord.).
6 Waterfd. Tramore ’99—P.
10 Tipp. N. Dromineer ’00—R. A. Phillips.
16 Galw. W. Knocknagoneen ’99—P.
22 Meath North of Laytown ’96—P.
28 Sligo Strandhill ’97—P.
34 Dongl. E. Buncrana (J. Hunter)—Hart 705.
38 Down Groomsport ! ’86—Stewart.
Also in 2, 9, 12, 31, 35—see Cybele II.
Frequent on coast sandhills: very rare inland.
72 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
S. aquaticus L., var. pennatifidus Gren. et Godr.
16 Galw. W. Maam and Clonbur ’95—M. & 8. 545.
26 Mayo EK. Cong ’95—M. & 8.545.
Cnicus palustris x pratensis.
- Plants found in several parts of Ireland convinced me that this
hybrid is of not infrequent occurrence. In 1900, in a damp pasture
north-west of Claremorris, a large colony of plants was found which
exhibited every grade from C. palustris to C. pratensis, both of
which were present in abundance. Of specimens midway in the
series from this locality Mr. Arthur Bennett writes: —‘‘19. 12.00. I
have to-day compared the Carduus specimens at the British Museum.
Among the British specimens there is nothing so extreme as your
specimens. The nearest is an Irish specimen. Watson’s Forsteri is
an anglicum [= pratensis| with its tenuity of the leaves retained—
yours has more the harshness of palustris. In the general collection
at the British Museum there is nothing like it; but when I showed
Mr. 8. Moore the specimens he said ‘‘I think ajhybrid.’’ Clearly,
your specimens retain to the heads more the characters of pratensis
than palustris. Did C. tuberosus occur in Ireland I should have been
much inclined to name one of your specimens (¢.e. 3. 7. ’00 N. of
Claremorris) C. palustris x tuberosus. You will say—well, then,
what do you name the specimens after all? I answer, though with
some doubt—a hybrid as you make them, probably. C. pratensis
x palustris, but more extreme than any I have seen of English
specimens so named.’’ The conditions under which these plants
occurred do away in my mind with any doubts which might hang
around the few dried specimens submitted; and I group with this
gathering other plants obtained in Queen’s County and Carlow. As
regards certain previous records of this hybrid, no valid reason
appears for excluding them. Rey. E. S. Marshall confirms (577)
Mr. Levinge’s Westmeath record (484), and also Rey. E. F. Linton (7
htt.); and if Mr. Levinge, a discriminating observer, is correct about
his Westmeath plant, he is probably also correct about his Clare one.
I think, therefore, that in recording the undermentioned stations for
C. pratensis x palustris we are on tolerably safe ground :—
9 Clare Lisdoonyarna ’92—H. C. Levinge.
13 Carlow Below St. Mullins ’?99—P.
14 Queen’s Mountrath ’97—P.
PrarcEer—Gileanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 73
23 Westmth. Lough Owel—H. C. Levinge Sz.
26 Mayo E. North-west of Claremorris ’00—P.
40 L’derry. Garvagh and Jackson Hall (1). Moore)— Cy). I.
C. arvensis Hoffm., var. mitis Koch.
3 Cork W. Glengariff ’90—Druce 284.
40 Liderry. Toomebridge ’98—G. C. Druce. Aghadowey ’95
(Waddell)—W. B. E. C, 795-6.
var. horridus (Adam).
1 Kerry 8. Kenmare ’90—Druce 287.
11 Kilkny. Ferrybank ’95—M. &S. 545.
var. setosus Bess.
27 Mayo W. Gortnaraby ’00—P.
34 &35 Dongl. Frequent—see FV. Donegal.
38 Down Lambeg ’00—Davies 272.
40 L’derry. Between Kilrea and Garvagh ’98—Stewart and Miss
Knowles.
*Lactuca virosa L.
8 Limreck. Waste ground at Limerick! ’00—R. D. O’Brien.
Holding its own in two stations here.
Taraxacum officinale Web., var. erythrospermum (Andrz.).
5 Cork KE. Near Youghal ’00—R. A. Phillips.
6 Watrfd. | Tramore ’99—R. A. Phillips.
21 Dublin Portmarnock ’01—P.
var. palustre (DC.).
8 Limrck. Near Limerick ’99—A. Somerville.
9 Clare Near Ballyvaughan ’99 (Playfair) —W.B.E.C. ’99—00.
2 ae nif | South of Lough Mask’95—M. & S. 545.
29 Leitrim Drumcoura Lough ’?00—A. Somerville.
30 Cavan Ballyconnell ’00—A. Somerville.
32 Monaghn. Mullyash Hill ’00—A. Somerville.
35 Dongl. W. Fanet, &c.: north only—fV. Donegal.
Also in 1, 4, 19, 20, 21, 28, 36, 88, 839—see Cyéede II.
74 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
var. udum (Jord.).
12 Wexford Carnsore ’97—E. 8S. Marshall.
16 Galw. W. Near Clonbur ’96—E. 8S. Marshall.
93 Westmth. Knock Drin ’95—Levinge. Castletown—Marshall.
26 Mayo E. Near Cong—Marshall ’99 547.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—E. S. Marshall.
Also in 15—see Cybele II.
Sonchus arvensis L., var. angustifolia Mey.
26 Mayo EH. S.E. end of Lough Mask ’95—M. & 8S. 545.
Tragopogon pratense L., var. minus (Mill.).
Divisions 7, 8, 15, 18. I believe this is the usual Irish form, but
information is lacking.
Jasione montana L., var. major Koch.
16 Galw. W. Mount Gable ’95—M. & 8. 545.
Statice auriculefolia Vahl., var. intermedia Syme.
21 Dublin Howth, Killiney, &c. (Hart)—7/. Donegal.
Erythrea Centaureum Pers., var. capitata Koch.
3 Cork W. Baltimore ’96: frequent on coast—Phillips.
9 Clare Lahinch ’01—Miss E. Armitage.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—E. 8. Marshall.
Symphytum officinale L., var. patens (Sibth.).
3 Cork W. Skibbereen ’97: frequent—Phillips.
4 Cork Mid. Frequent—Phillips ’00.
11 Kilkny. Graiguenamanagh ’00—Phillips.
15 Galw. SE. Portumna ’00— Phillips.
*§. tuberosum L.
Divisions 4, 5, 21, 22, 36, 88.
*Borago officinalis L.
Divisions 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 12, 14, 21, 22, 26, 38, 39, 40.
*Antirrhinum majus L.
Divisions 4, 5, 7, 11, 21, 25, 31, 35, 38, 39.
*Linaria purpurea L.
Divisions 4, 11, 12, 21.
Prarcer—Gileanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 75
Scrophularia aquatica L., var. cinerea Dum.
27 Mayo W. Newport ’99—E. S. Marshall.
12
16
23
26
27
6
8
10
15
17
18
27
And in 16, 28, 26—see Cybele II.
Veronica Anagallis L., var. anagalliformis Bor.
Wexford
Galw. W.
Westmth.
Mayo E.
Mayo W.
Wexford ’96—KE. 8. Marshall. ;
Clonbur and Cong frequent ’95—M. & 8. 545.
Knock Drin and Scraw bog ’95—Levinge.
Jong frequent ’95—M. & 8. 545.
Mallaranny district frequent ’99—Marshall.
Euphrasia officinalis L.
Except for a few gatherings chiefly by English visitors, Irish Eye-
brights have as yet, except for my own collecting, been almost
unworked. Iam under a deep debt of gratitude to Mr. F. Townsend,
who has identified all the plants which are recorded in my name
below. As no attempt has been made except in Mr. Townsend’s
Monograph (1897) to give the Irish distribution of the Eyebrights, I
have included all reliable records of which I have cognisance.
Waterfd.
Limrck.
Tipp. N.
Galw. SE.
Galw. NE.
King’s
Mayo W.
Wexford
Galw. W.
Kildare
Meath
Lonefd.
Mayo W.
Ferman.
E. stricta Host.
Ballyscanlan Lough ’99—P.
Mullagh ’00—P.
Cloughjordan ’00—P.
Rinyille House ’99—P.
Menlo and Killower Lough ’99—P.
Clonmacnoise ’99—P.
Ballina ’00—P.
E. borealis Wettst.
Between Greenore and Churchtown ’97—Marshall 539.
Oughterard ’99—P. Connemara ’53 (F. Kirk)—Sgo.
South of Kildare ’97—P.
Laytown ’96—P.
Common by Lough Ree ’00—P.
Ballina, Rosserk, Derreen, Crossmolina, ’00—P.
Lower Lough Macnean ’00—P.
76
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Tipp. S.
Limrck.
Tipp. N.
Kalkny.
Carlow
Queen’s
Galw. SE.
Galw. W.
Galw. NE.
King’s
Kildare
Dublin
Meath —
Longford
Roscomn.
Mayo E.
Mayo W.
Sligo
Leitrim
Cayan
Louth
Tyrone
Down
Antrim
L’derry
Tipp. N.
Mayo E.
Galw. NE.
E. brevipila Burnat et Gremli.
Thurles ’98—P.
Askeaton ’00—P.
L. Ourna ’99, Keeper Hill, Devil’s Bit, Cloughjordan
Portumna—P.
Tory Hill ’99, Urlingford ’98—P.
Borris ’98, Bagenalstown ’97—P.
Abbeyleix, 98, Mountrath ’97—P.
Garryland and Chevy Chase ’00—P.
Oughterard and Gentian Hill ’99—P.
Tuam, Keekill, Oranmore, Menlo ’99; Clonbrock—P.
Clanmacnoise ’99, Edenderry ’96—P.
Rathangan ’98, Rathmore, Leixlip, Kilcock, Kilmeage,
Carbury—P.
Near Tallaght ’97—P.
Laytown and Enfield ’96—P.
Castlerea ’00—P.
Slieve Bane ’00, Arigna, Corkip Lough, Athlone—P.
NW. of Claremorris ’00—P.
Mallaranny district common ’99—Marshall. Ballina
district common ’00-—P.
Carrowkee Hill ’97, Lough Gara, Inismurray—P.
Ballinamore ’00, Garadice L., Glenade, Rinn L., L.
Gill—P.
Mount Nugent ’96—P.
Ballymascanlan ’00, MRavensdale, Ardee, ‘Togher,
Lurgan Green—P.
Mullaghcarn and Omagh ’96—Miss Knowles.
Greypoint ’85—P.
Glenarm and Cave Hill ’98—G. C. Druce.
Toomebridge ’98—G. C. Druce.
ft. subglabra.
Cloughjordan ’00—P.
East of Foxford ’?00—P.
f. eglandulosa.
Menlo ’99—P.
10
19
27
PraEGER—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 77
Tipp. N.
Kildare
Mayo W.
f. subeglandulosa.
Devil’s Bit ’?98—P.
Above Rathmore ’98—P.
E. brevipila x Rostkoviana.
Lough Conn south of Derreen ’00—P.
The same hybrid is doubtfully named from 11, 15, 28, 31.
Arya IN,
Galw. SE.
Westmth.
Ferman.
E. nemorosa Mart.
Cloughjordan ’00—P.
Lough Derg ’96 (N. Colgan)—A. Bennett.
Lac Lean [ Lough Lene ? |—see Townsend Sogo.
Florencecourt ’00—P.
Also recorded from ‘‘ Mayo” in Wettstein’s Jfonograph.
Clare
Meath
Clare
Galw. NE.
Down
Antrim
Cork E.
Waterfd.
Down
Tipp. 8.
Tipp. N.
Kilkny.
Galw. NE.
Meath
Westmth.
Sligo
f. tetraquetra.
Murrough ’95 (N. Colgan)—A. Bennett.
Oldcastle (W. S. Millar) —Townsend Sgo.
E. curta Fries, var. glabrescens Wettst.
Lahinch ’01—Miss E. Armitage.
Knockmae ’00—P.
Newcastle ’98—G. C. Druce.
Lough Neagh ’98—G. C. Druce.
E. occidentalis Wettst.
Poorhead [= Power Head] ’95 (Phillips)—Townsend
890.
Tramore ’99—P.
Templemore [= Tollymore | Park ’98—G. C. Druce.
E. gracilis Fries.
Fethard and near Cashel ’98—P.
Between Devil’s Bit and Ballyhoul ’98—P,
Inistioge ’98—P.
Annaghdown ’00, Keekill ’?99—P.
Oldcastle ’?96—P.
Athlone ’98—P. L. Derevaragh —Levinge and Groves
Ballysadare ’00—P.
78 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
29 Leitrim Lough Melvin ’99—P.
32 Monaghn. Creeye Lough ’00—P.
39 Antrim Near Ballintoy ’93—W. A. Shoolbred.
"A few records are withheld, as the determinations were made prior
to the recognition of so many forms in these countries.
E. scottica Wettst.
7 Tipp.S. Thurles’98—P.
13 Carlow South of Carlow ’98—P.
16 Galw. W. Ross Lake ’99—P.
19 Kildare Hill above Rathmore ’98—P.
25 Roscomn. Athlone ’98—P.
26 Mayo E. East of Foxford ’98—P.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny’99(E.S. Marshall).—A. Bennett. Ballina,
Rathroeen L., frequent by Lough Conn ’00—P.
31 Louth Carlingford Mountain ’00—P.
E. Rostkoviana Hayne.
1 Kerry 8. Dingle ’53 (D. Oliver)—Townsend 8go.
6 Waterfd. Dungarvan and Kilmacthomas ’99—P.
8 Limrck. Doon ’00—P.
10 Tipp. N. Dromineer ’99, Devil’s Bit ’?98—P.
11 Kilkny. Thomastown, Inistioge, Barleeagh Wood, ’98—P.
13 Carlow Killedmond River ’99—P. —
14 Queen’s Rathdowney ’98, Emo ’96—P.
15 Galw. SE. Marble Hill ’97, Chevy Chase ’00—P.
20 Wicklow Scalp ’72—Herb. G. Pim.
22 Meath Oldcastle ’96—P.
23 Westmth. Moate ’99, Athlone—P. Bog of Lynn—Levinge.
25 Roscomn. Arigna ’?00—P.
28 Sligo Ballysadare ’00—P.
36 Tyrone Baronscourt ’?96—Miss Knowles.
E. Salisburgensis Funk.
Divisions 8, 9, 15, 17, 26, 29—-see Cybele and Irish Top. Bot.
E. Salisburgensis x brevipila.
18 King’s Lough Goura ’98—P.
‘* B. Salisburgensis x brevipila, I. doubt not.’””—F.. Townsend.
Mr. Townsend fayours me with a formal-description of this new
Prarcer—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 79
hybrid, which, he remarks, is an exceedingly interesting plant. He
is anxious to see further specimens, and I hope any botanist visiting
King’s County will not lose the opportunity of searching for it. The
finding of the parent #. Salisburgensis in King’s County would alone
be a valuable discovery.
Of fourteen ‘‘ species’? of Eyebright—the ‘‘ species”’ seem as well
founded as those of the Aubi—known as British, Iveland possesses
ten. Of these, two, &. brevipila and L.*Rostkoviana, appear to
constitute the bulk of the Irish Eyebright flora. #. brevipilais very
widespread in Europe, but in Great Britain appears to increase north-
ward; while #. Rostkoviana, a plant of middle Europe, in Great
Britain increases southward. For the rest, Z. borealis, E. gracilis, and
#. scottica are northern in their range, though not so in Ireland.
£. nemorosa is southern in Great Britain; #. occidentalis appears to be
a very local plant occurring in N.W. France and Britain, and £.
stricta, a lowland mid-Europe form, seems to be a rare plant in these
countries. The well-known £. Salisburgensis, a northern and alpine
plant, is as yet unknown in Great Britain, though ranging widely
along the west coast of Ireland. Of the four British forms not yet
found in Ireland, £. latifolia and EZ. Foulaensis are high northern, and
£, Kernert a limestone plant of limited distribution. With the
exception of 4. Salisburgensis,'none of the Irish Eyebrights show a
marked range either horizontally or vertically, though the species
differ much in abundance.
Rhinanthus Crista-galli L., var: fallax W. & G.
16 Galw. W. Between Clonbur and Mt. Gable ’95—M. & S. 545.
23 Westmth. Lough Owel ’95 (W. R. Linton)—B. E. C. 795.
39 Antrim Near Toomebridge ’98—Druce 285.
var. R. stenophyllus Schur.
25 Roscomn. Kilteevar’97—T. A. P. Mapother.
Rhiranthus forms are almost unworked in Ireland.
Bartsia Odontites Huds.
Var. verna is known from divisions 5, 8, 11, 12, 26: var. serotine
from 5, 12, 21, 39. Further information is needed as to their distri-
bution in Ireland.
80
36
16
18
23
24
14
40
—
11
12
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy
Down
Cork E.
Kilkny.
Galw. SE.
*Mentha alopecuroides L.
Dunny Water Bridge ’90—P. This is the J. rotundi-
folia of Hart 35z, and of Stewart & Praeger 873.
*M. longifolia Huds.
Dodge’s Glen (J. Sullivan)—Alhn 79.
Callan ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Gort ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Also in 1, 3, 21—see Cybele II.
*M. viridis L.
Divisions 4, 5, 18, 23, 34, 38.
M. hirsuta Huds., var. subglabra (Baker).
Tyrone
Galw. SE.
King’s
Westmth.
Longfd.
Queen’s
Tipp. 8.
L’derry
Kerry S.
Cork Mid
Kilkny.
Wexford,
By Lough Neagh ’96—Miss Knowles.
M. sativa L., var. paludosa (Sole).
Woodford River ’85—Linton 502.
Tullamore and Clara ’99—P.
L. Derevaragh ’95 (W. R. Linton)—B. E. C. ’95.
Near Ballymahon ’00—P.
Also in 2 and 40—see Cybele II.
var. subglabra Baker.
Graigue ’99—P.
var, rubra (Smith).
Divisions 4, 12, 13, 38.
var. gracilis (Smith), f. cardiaca.
Fethard ’00—R. A. Phillips,
M. verticillata L. = arvensis x aquatica.
Toomebridge ’98—G. C. Druce,
M. Pulegium L., var. erecta Syme.
Gallarus ’87 (A. Ley)—Zerd. Glasnevin
Stachys palustris x sylvatica.
Blarney (R. Mills)—Allin z9.
Ballyragget ’98—P.
Courtown ’94—Mrs. Tatlow!
PraErceR—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 81
13 Carlow Borris ’98—P.
19 Kildare Leixlip ’96—P.
20 Wicklow Glen of the Downs ’93—P.
22 Meath Athboy ’00, Maynooth, Beaupare, Oldcastle—P.
24 Longfd. Newtowncashel ’00—P.
31 Louth = Togher ’96—P.
385 Dongl. W. Near Gweedore—fV. Donegal.
36 Tyrone Newtownstewart ’96—Miss Knowles.
Also in 5, 21, 37, 38, 39, 40—see Cybele II.
Usually nearer palustris than sylvatica, and cannot then be referred
to S. ambigua Smith.
Plantago Coronopus L., var. pygmea Lange.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—KE. 8. Marshall.
*Chenopodium murale L.
Divisions 3, 5, 8, 21, 22, 39; recently seen in all except the first two.
Polygonum Convolvulus L., var. subalatum Y. Hall.
16 Galw. W. Oughterard ’95—M. & S. 545.
31 Louth Mouth of the Boyne ’96—P.
38 Down Saintfield ’93, Magheralin—Waddell 896.
P. aviculare L., var. arenastrum Syme.
Divisions 6, 21, 27, 38.
var. littorale (Link.).
Divisions 21, 22, 31, 38.
P. Persicaria L., var. glandulosa V. Bosch.
38 Down Ballynahinch ’86—P.
var. incanum auct.
88 Down Warrenpoint town reservoir ’90—P. This is the P.
lapathifolium of Stewart & Praeger 873.
Euphorbia Cyparassias L.
19 Kildare Curragh ’97—P.
24 Longfd. Saint’s Island ’?99—Miss R. Smith!
In wild ground in these stations.
k. I. A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. B. | G
82 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Betula pubescens Ehrh., var. denudata Gren. et Godr.
8 Limrck. Thornfields bog ’01—Miss E. Armitage !
20 Wicklow Altadore ’93—P.
Salix triandra x fragilis = S. decipiens Hoffm.
32 Monaghn. Lough Avaghon ’00—P.
S. pentandra x fragilis = S. cuspidata Schultz.
16 Galw. W. *Maam ’99—Marshall 547.
19 Kildare {Kilcullen ’97—P.
26 Mayo E. *Cong ’99—Marshall 547.
A rare hybrid. .
S. aurita x cinerea = S. lutescens A. Kern.
Cork W. Inchigeela ’97—R. A. Phillips.
Tipp. 8. Between Fethard and Cashel ’98—P.
Galw. W. Maam ’95—M. & BS. 545.
OI co
bot
S. nigricans x aurita = S. coriacea Forbes.
23 Westmth. Knock Drin neighbourhood ’95—Linton 503.
co
S. viminalis x Caprez = S. Smithiana Willd.
Divisions all, except 2, 9, 12, 13, 15, 17, 26, 27, 31.
S. viminalis x cinerea.
7 Tipp. 8. Between Cashel and Fethard ’98—P.
20 Wicklow Shillelagh ’99—P.
22 Meath Kildalkey ’00—P.
S. viminalis x aurita = S. fruticosa Doell.
11 Kilkny. By the Nore above Ballyragget ’99—P.
S. viminalis x Caprea.
6 Waterfd. Ballyscanlan Lake ’99—P.
18 King’s Clara ’99—P.
3 Westmth. Quarry bog ’95—Levinge. Near Athlone ’99—P.
5 Roscomn. Rockville ’99—P.
*§. purpurea x viminalis = §. rubra Huds.
I have gathered this in divisions 8, 26, 28, 29.
PrarcEer—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 83
Populus tremula L., var. glabra Syme.
Limrek. +Adare ’99—A. Somerville.
16 Galw. W. Clonbur ’95—E. 8. Marshall.
io.)
Iris Pseud-acorus L., var. acoriformis (Boreau).
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny district abundant ’99—Marshall.
Apparently the usual Irish form.
Allium vineale L., var. compactum (Thuill.),
Limrek. Limerick ’99—A. Somerville.
ie2)
Juncus effusus x glaucus = J. diffusus Hoppe.
Tipp. 8. — Carrick-on-Suir ’00—R. A. Phillips.
Also in Dublin only.
~I
Luzula erecta Desv.
f. umbellata in 5, 10, 15, 18, 29, 36, 37, 38, 39.
£. congesta in 1, 5, 6, 8, 10, 15, 16, 18, 29, 88, 89, 40.
Both are probably universal.
Arum maculatum L.
The spotted-leaved form, from which the species derives its name,
is apparently very rare in Ireland. The only notes I have are :—
15 Galw. SE. Portumna ’99—Mrs. Joyce. Dunsandle ’99—P.
21 Dublin Glencullen ’02—G. H. Pethybridge!
Typha latifolia L., var. media Syme.
9 Clare Inishmaan ’90—Nowers and Wells 657.
Sparganium ramosum Huds., var. microcarpum Neum.
16 Galw. W. Maam and Clonbur frequent ’95—M. & 8. 545.
26 Mayo E. Frequent at Clonbur ’95—M. & 8. 545.
388 Down Loughanisland (Waddell)—S. & P. 874.
Potamogeton crispus x obtusifolius = P. Bennettii Fryer.
87 Armagh Canal below Caledon ’92—P. See Jrish Nat., u., 182.
This hybrid was described by Alfred Fryer in 1895 (Jowrn. Bot.,
XXXiii., p. 1, tab. 848) from Grangemouth, Stirlingshire, which still
remains the only other British station.
84 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
P. lucens L., var. acuminatus Fr.
28 Westmth. Lough Derevaragh ’92—H. C. Levinge.
P. pusillus L., var. tenuissimus Koch.
12 Wexford Near Wexford ’96—Marshall 537.
34 Dongl. EK. Doagh Island ’98—H. C. Hart.
37 Armagh Armagh ’76 (S. A. Stewart)—Herb. A. Bennett.
38 Down Saintfield ’00 (Waddell) —W.B.E.C. 1900-1.
Zostera marina L., var. angustifolia Fr.
12 Wexford Wexford Harbour ’96—E. 8. Marshall.
15 Galw. SE. Kinvarra ’00—P.
16 Galw. W. Gentian Hill ’00—P.
21 Dublin Malahide inlet’99—P. Baldoyle—Herd.8.& A.M.
22 Meath Nanny River ’96—P.
27 Mayo W. Near Killala ’00—P.
31 Louth Boynemouth ’96—P.
34 Dongl, E. Trawbreaga Bay ’98—H. C. Hart.
88 Down Strangford Lough, common—P.
Carex teretiuscula Good., var. Ehrhartiana (Hoppe).
17 Galw. NE. Near Clonbrock ’96—P.
Also in 34 and 35—see 7. Donegal.
C. Goodenovii J. Gay, var. elatior (Lange), f. angustifolia.
39 Antrim Harbour Island ’98—G. C. Druce.
var. juncella Fr.
5 Cork E. Youghal ’96—R. A. Phillips.
7 Tipp. 8S. Thurles’00—R. A. Phillips.
15 Galw. SE. Woodford ’00—R. A. Phillips.
17 Galw. NE. Donamon ’97—P.
32 Monaghn. Bessmount and elsewhere ’00— Waddell.
34 Dongl. E. Near Ballyshannon—/7, Donegal.
35 Dongl. W. Milford Lake and Glenties—FV7. Donegal.
Also in 1, 4, 12, 16, 23, 26, 39—-see Cybele II.
C. extensa Good., var. pumila Anders.
12 Wexford Wexford Harbour ’96—Marshall 537.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—E. S. Marshall.
Prarcer—Gileanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 85
C. flava L., var. deri Retz.
Mr. Marshall finds this in 12, 16, 26, 27—in all the localities he
has worked, so it is probably common in Ireland.
var. minor Towns.
17 Galw. NE. Killower Lough ’99—P.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny district abundant ’99—Marshall.
40 Lderry Lough Beg ’98—G. C. Druce.
C. flava x fulva.
3 Cork W. Gurtavehy Lake ’00—R. A. Phillips.
16 Galw. W. Ross L. ’99—P. NW. side of L. Corrib—M. & 8. 545.
26 Mayo EH. S. side of L. Mask ’95—M. & SB. 545.
27 Mayo W. Newport and west of Castlebar ’99—Marshall.
37 Armagh JDerryadd Lough ’92—P.
Agrostis alba L., var. stolonifera (L.).
Divisions 6, 11, 18, 15, 17, 22, 31—P. No doubt common.
var. maritima Mey.
3 Cork W. Baltimore ’96: common on coast—Phillips.
21 Dublin Portmarnock ’90—Druce 284.
22 Meath Laytown ’95—P.
var. coarctata (Hoffm.)
39 Antrim Islands in Lough Neagh ’98—G,. C. Druce.
40 L’iderry Common near Lough Beg ’98—G. C. Druce.
A. vulgaris With., var. pumila (L.).
Divisions 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 24, 26, 27, 29, 38, 36,
38, 39, 40. Merely a state induced by starvation.
Arrhenatherum avenaceum Beauy., var. nodosum Reichb.
8 Limreck. Thornfields ’01—Miss E. Armitage.
23 Westmth. Knock Drin—Levinge 4874.
36 Tyrone Omagh ’96—Miss Knowles.
Phragmites communis Trin., var. nigricans Gren. et Godr.
23 Westmth, Lough Owel ’95—H. C. Levinge.
86 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Koeleria cristata Pers., var. gracilis (Bor.).
16 Galw. W.)
26 Mayo E. f South of Lough Mask ’95—M. & 8. 545.
Sesleria cerulea Ard., var. luteoalba Opiz.
Divisions 9, 15, 17: apparently frequent where the type occurs.
Poa pratensis L., var. subczrulea (Sm.).
12 Wexford Rosslare ’97—K. 8. Marshall.
21 Dublin North Bull ’00—R. A. Phillips.
23 Westmth.. Bog of Lynn ’95—H. C. Levinge.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—E. S. Marshall.
Also 34, 35—see F7. Donegal.
P. trivialis L., var. Koeleri (DC.).
12 Wexford Rosslare ’97—E. S. Marshall.
27 Mayo W. Mallaranny ’99—E. 8S. Marshall.
29 Leitrim Glenade ’99—P.
var. glabra Doell.
12 Wexford South of Greenore ’97—Marshall 530.
Festuca ovina L., var. capillata Hackel.
38 Cork W. Glengariff ’90—Druce 287.
16 Galw. W. Maam abundant ’95—M. & S. 545.
F. elatior L., var. pratensis Huds.
Divisions 8, 11, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 24, 25, 28, 29, 33, 34, 35, 36,
38, 39, 40. Probably in all divisions.
F. elatior x Lolium perenne.
18 King’s Pallas Lough ’00—P.
31 Louth Boyne mouth ’96—P.
34 Dongl. E. Innishowen Head and Culdaff (Dickie)—/7. Donegal.
Also 13, 17, 23, 39—see Cybele II.
Bromus giganteus L., var. triflorus Syme.
Divisions 36, 38, 39. Frequent ?.
PraEGER—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 87
Agropyron repens Beauv., var. barbatum Duval-Jouve.
11 Kilkny. Ballinlaw Ferry ’99—P.
21 Dublin Portmarnock ’94—P.
31 Louth Queensborough ’96—P.
36 Tyrone Omagh ’96—Miss Knowles.
*Lolium perenne L., var. multiflorum (Lam.).
36 Tyrone Strabane ’96—Miss Knowles.
*var. italicum (Braun).
Divisions 8, 12, 32.
Ceterach officinarum Willd., var. crenatum Milde.
‘Divisions 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, 26,
27, 29, 38, 89. Generally occurs wherever the plant grows strongly.
Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum L., var. acutum (Bory).
5 Cork E. Near Whitegate ’00—R. A. Phillips.
11 Kilkny. Snowhill ’99—P.
Also in 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 16, 20, 26, 27, 388—see Cybele II.
Lastrea Filix-mas Presl., var. affinis Bab.
Divisions 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 18, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23,
24,25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 38, 37, 38, 39, 40.
var. paleacea Moore.
Divisions 1, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 18, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21,
22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 37, 38, 39, 40. Both
are, no doubt, universal.
var. abbreviata Bab.
The only locality whence I have seen undoubted ‘‘ Lastrea pro-
pinqua”’ is the Mourne Mountains. Mr. Hart has recorded it from
Brandon and Mount Leinster (38z), and states that this is the usual
form on the upper part of the Donegal mountains (£7. Donegal).
L. dilatata Presl., var. collina Bab.
1 Kerry 8. Brandon ’87 (A. Ley)—B.E.C. ’87.
88 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Polypodium vulgare L., var. serratum Willd.
Divisions 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 23, 28, 39. Not unfrequent in limestone
districts when the plant is growing strongly. It develops into var.
semilacerum and that again into var. cambricum.
Equisetum limosum Sm., var. fluviatile (L.).
Divisions all except 3, 4, 5, 9, 11, 20, 32, 34, 85. The usual form
in shade or in running water.
E. palustre L., var. polystachyum auct.
8 Limrck. Thornfields ’01—Miss E. Armitage!
15 Galw. SE. Marble Hill ’97—P.
Merely a sport, produced by exuberant growth or more often by
injury to the axis.
yar. nudum Newm.
29 Leitrim Lough Melvin ’99—P.
A sport, consisting of an absence of branching, the result of exposed
habitat.
CHARACEZ.
So much material was obtained during my five years’ field-work,
that I have in most cases supplemented my notes with brief references
to additional records, as given in Messrs. Groves’ papers, &c., so as to
make the following a complete account of the distribution of Characeze
in Ireland so far as present information goes. In Jrish Top. Bot.
the records given under each species include those of its varieties.
In the following lists I have separated typical forms from varieties.
My warm acknowledgments are due to Messrs. H. and J. Groves for
naming or confirming the very large number of the plants listed below,
with which my name is associated.
Chara fragilis Desy.
Type—Divisions all, except 29, 35, 40.
yar. barbata Gant.
1 Kerry N. Near Ventry ’94—D. McArdle.
9 Clare Killaloe ’96—Colgan 279.
Pe a
32
14
16
PrRAEGER—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany.
Kilkenny
Queen’s
Galw. SE.
Galw. NE.
King’s
Kildare
Wicklow
Meath
Westmth.
Longfd.
Roscomn.
Mayo E.
Mayo W.
Louth
Down
Antrim
Kerry 8S.
Kerry N.
Galw. W.
Dublin
Leitrim
Louth
Monaghn.
Ferman.
Down
Monaghn.
89
Urlingford ’98—P.
Rathdowney ’98—P.
Loughrea ’98 : widespread and frequent—P.
Clonbrock ’96—P.
Banagher ’98, Shannon Harbour, Geashill—P.
Rathangan ’98, south of Kildare ’97—P.
Murrough ’95 (D. Moore)—Groves 349.
Near Ardee bog ’97—P.
Loughanstown—Levinge 454. Mullingar—Grovyes 349.
Canal at Killashee ’98—P.
Rockville ’99—P.
Kilmovee ’99—P. About Cong ’95—M. &S. 545.
Lough Conn near Derreen ’?00—P.
Killencoole ’96—P.
Holywood hills 91, Clandeboye, Craigauntlet—P.
Portmore L. [’46 |(Thompson), Tardree Hill (Grainger)
—S8. & P. 874.
var. capillacea Coss. & G.
Cloonee Lough ’98—P.
Long Range ’87 (Scully)—Groves 349.
Galway W.’75 (More), Renvyle—Groves 343, 34¢.
Howth ’94—P.
Glenade Lake ’99—P.
Soldier’s Point ’96—P.
L. Naglack ’01—Bullock- Webster. Creeve L. ’?00—P.
Three miles N. of Enniskillen ’81-2—Barrington zo8.
Glasdrumman ’98—Davyies. Holywood ’85—P.
var. Hedwigii Kuetz.
Lough Naglack ’?01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
Also in divisions 16, 21, 26, 28, 38—see Groves 349.
Cork W.
Queen’s
Galw. W.
Galw. NE.
R. I. A. PROC., VOL. VIII.
var. delicatula Braun.
Inchigeela ’97--R. A. Phillips.
Rathdowney ’98, Maryborough ’96—P.
Oughterard, Moycullen,’99—P. Recess(Linton)—3 9.
Kallower Lough ’99—P.
, SEC. B. | H
12
2
—
15
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Dublin
Meath
> Westmth.
Roscomn.
Mayo E.
Mayo W.
Sligo
Leitrim
Louth
Monaghn.
Ferman.
Dong]. E.
Dongl. W.
Tyrone
Armagh
Down
Antrim
Wexford
Ciondalkin ’94—P.
Oldcastle ’?96—P.
Lough Owel ’01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
Lough Ree at Galey ’97—P.
Lough Corrib near Cong ’95—M. & S. 545.
Lough Cullin near Pontoon ’00—P.
Lough Gill ’99—P.
Glenade Lough, Annaghearly L., L. Melvin, ’99—P.
Braganstown bog ’97—P.
Greaghlone Lough ’01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
Blaney Bay on Upper L. Erne ’81—2—Barrington 708.
Bundrowes River—/f/. Donegal.
Tullyconnell L.’98—Hart zo5. Kinny L. L. Sessiagh.
Favour Royal ’96 (Mrs. Leebody)—J. Groves.
Common in Lough Neagh ’92—P.
Lough Neagh ’98—J. H. Davies.
Lough Beg ’94—P. Frequent in Lough Neagh.
C. connivens Braun.
Lagoon north of Wexford Harbour ’97—E. 8, Marshall.
C. aspera Willd.
Type—Divisions all, except 6, 7, 8,13, 25, 28, 31, 32, 34, 36.
Dublin
Galw. SE.
Cork W.
Wexford
Galw. SE.
Sligo
Leitrim
Armagh
Antrim
L’derry
var. capillata Braun.
Blanchardstown ’89 (Scully)—Groves 349.
var. curta Braun.
Portumna demesne ’81—B. King 46s.
var. subinermis Kuetz.
Near Lough Hyne ’96—J. Groves & R. A. Phillips.
Lagoon north of Wexford Harbour ’96—Marshall 537.
Kilecolgan ’99—P.
Lough Gill River ’84—B. & V. rz2.
Glenade Lough ’84—B. & V. zzz.
Lough Neagh ’92—P.
L. Neagh ’84 (Lett)—Groves 345. Rathlin; Ram’sI
R. Bann below Coleraine ’94—P.
PRAEGER—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 91
var. lacustris H. & J. Groves.
38 Down Lough Neagh ’98—J. H. Davies.
Also in 16, 27, 86, 37, 839—see Groves 349. So far as at present
known, confined to three lakes, Lough Neagh (where it is abundant),
Lough Cullin, and a lake at Roundstone.
sub-sp. desmacantha H. & J. Groves.
32 Monaghn. Near L. Naglack ’01—G. R. Bullock-Webster.
Also in divisions 7, 8, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24,
25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 38—see Lrish Top. Bot.
C. polyacantha Braun.
382 Monaghn. Carrickmacross and L. Naglack ’?01—Bullock- Webster.
Also in divisions 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21,
22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 32, 37—see Irish Top. Bot.
C. contraria Kuetz.
Type—Divisions 1, 10, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25,
27, 29, 30, 82, 35, 37, 38, 40.
var. hispidula Braun.
Divisions 16, 23, 26—see Groves 349. Common in the Westmeath
lakes: elsewhere at Cong only.
C. denudata Braun.
23 Westmth. Brittas Lake ’94—Levinge 485.
C. tomentosa L.
Divisions 10, 15, 23, 24, 25—-see Irish Top. Bot. Westmeath
lakes and Shannon only.
C. hispida L.
Type—Divisions all, except 3, 6, 12, 26, 29, 30, 33, 34, 36, 39.
yar. macracantha Braun.
Divisions 19 [not 21], 20—see Groves 38.
92 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
var. rudis Braun.
Tipp. 8. Clonmel ’97—P.
8 Limrck. Adare’99—Somerville. L. Gur, Curragh Chase,’00—P.
9 Clare Inishmore ’91 (Stewart)—Groves 349.
10 Tipp. N. Ballingarry, Cloughjordan, Youghal Bay, ’?00—P.
11 Kilkny. River Nore above Ballyragget ’99—P.
14 Queen’s Graigue ’99, Erkina marshes, Portarlington, &c.—P.
15 Galw. SE. Loughrea and Portumna ’98—P.
16 Galw. W. Clonbur ’96—E. 8. Marshall.
17 Galw. NE. Barbersfort ’99: very frequent—P.
18 King’s Canal at Edenderry ’96—P.
19 Kildare Levitstown ’99, Monasterevan, Maynooth, &c.—P.
21 Dublin Royal Canal at Lucan ’94—P.
22 Meath Lough Crew and Enfield ’96—P.
23 Westmth. Mullingar ’99—P. Knock Drin, Brittas L.—Levinge.
24 Longfd. Ballymahon ’00, Killashee, Priest’s Island—P.
25 Roscomn. Corkip L., R. Suck, ’99—P. Common in L. Ree.
26 Mayo E. Claremorris’00—P. lL. Mask—M.&S. 54s.
27 Mayo W. Derreen ’00—P. Ballina ’91—A. Somerville.
28 Sligo Lallysadare ’00, Rosses Point—P. Frequent in east.
30, Cavan Lough Sheelin ’96—P.
382 Monaghn. Carrickmacross district f.’01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
37 Armagh About Armagh and Loughgall ’92—P.
38 Down Money Lake ’91—P. Loughanisland—/V. VE.
C. vulgaris L.
Type—Divisions all, except 5, 6, 26, 34, 36.
yar. longibracteata Kuetz.
2 Kerry N. Blenneryille ’88 (Scully)—Groves 349.
5 Cork E. Midleton ’72 (T. Allin)—Groves 349.
7 Tipp. 8. Carrick-on-Suir ’00—P.
9 Clare Co. Clare ’95 (N. Colgan)—Groves 355.
11 Kilkny. Granny ’98—P.
14 Queen’s Mountrath ’97—P.
15 Galw. SE. Kinvarra ’00, Portumna ’98—P.
17 Galw. NE. Barbersfort and Ballyloughaun ’99—P.
19 Koldaie Hills above Rathmore 798, Carbury ’96—P.
20 Wicklow Base of Great Sugarloaf ’94—P.
26
28
Prancer—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. 98
Dublin
Meath
Westmth.
Roscomn.
Mayo E.
Sligo j
Leitrim
Louth
Monaghn.
Ferman.
Down
Antrim
Kerry S.
Limrck.
Kilkny.
Wexford
Carlow
Queen’s
Galw. SE.
Mayo W.
Tveland’s Eye ’95—P. Swords (D. Moore)—3z9.
Oldcastle ’96—P.
Lough Iron ’99—P. Frequent.
Rockville ’99—P.
Kalmoyee ’99—P.
Rosses Point ’97—P. Glencar L. ’84—B. & V. zzz.
Lough Melvin ’99—P.
Greenore ’00, Castlebellingham—P. Dundalk—} 9.
Carrickmacross and Moynalty L.’01—Bullock- Webster.
Belleek ’00—P.
Kireubbin ’90—P. Near Belfast (Stewart)—3709.
Springfield ’57 (Hind)—Groves 349.
yar. papillata Wallr.
Waterville ’89 (Scully)—Groves 379.
Limerick ’?99—A. Somerville.
Thomastown ’98—P.
North side of Wexford Harbour ’96—Marshall 537.
Bagenalstown ’99—P.
Near Farmhill ’90 (Scully)—Groves 349.
Near Portumna ’97—P.
Ballina ’00—P.
C. canescens Loisel.
Divisions 1, 12, 17—see Lrish Top. Bot.
For the Irish species of the genera TZolypella and Nitella, I have
no information additional to that given in Jrish Top. Bot. except the
following :—
Nitella tenuissima Kuetz.
23 Westmth. Lough Owel ’01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
N. mucronata Kuetz.
32 Monaghn. Carrickmacross, Lough Naglack, and abundant in
Moynalty Lough ’01—G. R. Bullock- Webster.
An interesting addition to the Irish flora.
R. I. A. PROC., VOL. VIII., SEC. B.] £
94 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
N. flexilis Ag., var. crassa Braun.
24 Longfd. Lough Gowna ’00—P.
e
var. nidifica Wallm.
25 Roscomn. Lough Allen at Arigna ’00—P.
30 Cavan Lough Sillan ’01—G. R. Bullock-Webster.
32 Monaghn. Annaghmakerig Lough ’00—P.
A very rare variety, its only other British record being Marlee
Loch, East Perth (Sturrock, 1882).
I have included in these notes records up to the Spring of 1902.
The unequal nature of the records shows how much work is still required
among Irish critical plants. An excellent example of the interesting
results which will still reward careful field work in the country is
shown by Rey. G. R. Bullock-Webster’s discoveries in the Characee
of Monaghan, of which he has given an account in Lrish Naturalist,
vol. xi. pp. 141-146, 1902.
JEW
ON THE WASTE OF THE COAST OF IRELAND AS A FACTOR
IN IRISH HISTORY. By J. P. O'REILLY, C.E.
[Read DrecemsBer 9, 1901.]
Havrye proposed to myself the examination of certain points relative
to the forms and structure of some of the ancient monuments of
Treland, I was led on to the study of the past and present physical
geography of the country, as being intimately connected with its
history, and, therefore, with that of the peoples to whom certain of
these monuments have been attributed. Modern historians show their
strong appreciation of this connexion, by the care they take to illustrate
by maps and drawings the localities or places wherein or whereat have
taken place the events which they treat of, as also in pointing out the
changes which haye occurred in the localities since the period con-
sidered by them in their narration. That this is no easy task has
been shown by Sir Charles Lyell in his “‘ Principles of Geology,”
vol. i., p. 252, where he says :—
«Mo those whose attention has never been ealled to the former
changes in the Karth’s surface which geology reveals to us the position
of Jand and sea appear fixed and stable. It might not seem to have
undergone any material alteration since the earliest times of History ;
but when we inquire into the subject more closely we become convinced
that there is annually some small variation in the geography of the
globe. In every century the land is in some places raised and in
others depressed in level, and so likewise is the bed of the sea. By
these and other ceaseless changes the configuration of the Earth’s sur-
face has been remodelled, again and again, since it was the habita-
tion of organic beings; and the bed of the ocean has been lifted up to
the height of some of the loftiest mountains; the result is in general
view insignificant, if we consider how slightly the highest mountain
chains cause our globe to differ from a perfect sphere. Chimborazo,
though it rises to more that 21,000 feet above the sea, would be
represented on a globe of about 6 feet diameter, by a grain of sand
somewhat less than -;th of an inch in diameter.”
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B.] K
96 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Indeed the great difficulty which meets the conscientious writer of
History, at every step, is that of placing the reader in a position to
realize as fully as possible the conditions under which the events he
narrates have taken place, and that for the particular period he may
be treating of. Even correct maps can only represent the present state
of the country or ground considered, since accurate surveys may be
said to date from the nineteenth century only. As to the geographical
delineation of countries previously to that time, one has only to examine
the maps of the eighteenth and seventeenth centuries to become aware
of their insufficiencies and defects however valuable they may have
been at the time or may be still historically. As to restorations, the
remarks of Sir Charles Lyell in this respect are well worthy of citation.
«The difficulty,” he says, ‘‘or rather the impossibility of restoring the
geography of the globe, as it may have existed at any former period,
especially a remote one, consists in this, that one can only point out
where part of the sea has been turned into land, and we are almost
always unable to determine what land may have become sea”’ (Lyell’s
‘Principles of Geology,” vol. i., p. 255).
As regards Great Britain and Ireland the splendid maps of the
Ordnance Survey give us the correct representation of these countries
as they are at the present period, and furnish therefore a thoroughly
complete and reliable standard by which to judge of the changes that
time may bring, or by which to work out what may have been the
geography of these countries in former times.
It might be supposed that but few changes can have taken place
in the outline or general character of these islands during historical
time, and that any such changes, if of any magnitude, would be found
recorded in some document or historical work. That many records of
such changes exist is certain, but that all have been noticed or recorded
is very doubtful. The changes attributable to atmospheric erosion
during historic times, are probably on the whole not very great, and
have been more or less approximatively estimated by geologists. Those,
however, which have been due to the action of the ocean on the coast
lines are in certain respects more important and more easily observable.
Few great storms from the west, north-west or south-west fail to leave
their mark on the coasts somewhere or other; and the steady continuous
beat of the Atlantic waves on the rocky headlands and coast lines
works their disintegration and removal, slowly it may be, but most
effectually. As an example of this action on the east coast of Ireland
may be pointed out the coast line between Killiney and Bray, as also
that between Bray Head and Greystones, along which considerable
O’Reituy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §c. 97
extents of the coast are formed by the drift, the surface of which slopes
down towards the sea, and seems to have met it at some former period.
Forming at present a cliff of more or less altitude, it is being steadily
eaten into by the tidal action and waves to such an extent and so
rapidly, as to have given cause to the withdrawal of the railway line
further inland during the last quarter of the past century, more par-
ticularly along the part lying between Bray Head and Greystones ;
and to have rendered necessary frequent if not incessant, and therefore
very costly, defence and embankment work by the Railway Company for
the safety of the line (quite lately, January 22nd, 1901, the Chairman
of the Company estimated this cost at £18,000). It is to be regretted
that such inroads of the sea along our coasts are not more carefully
noted, measured, and mapped for future record and information as
their total amount must in time become very appreciable.
Besides this steady corrosion of the coasts, especially on those most
exposed to the Atlantic waves and storms, are to be counted with, the
slow alterations of level which have been noticed in Great Britain, if
not in Ireland, during historic time. Hence, it may be inferred that
unless land be reformed proportionally to the waste along our coasts
arising out of the tidal and wave action and erosion, the superficial
area of these countries must be slowly decreasing, and presuming that
the same causes have been in action during the past, this area must in
former times have been greater than it is at present. This decrease of
superficial extent of land is thus noticed in a criticism of ‘‘ The Reclama-
tion of Land from Tidal Waters,’’ by Alex. Beaseley, m.tnst.c.z. (1900),
which appeared in Nature, vol. 62 (19th July, 1900), p. 266 :—
“The area of this country is gradually diminishing by the con-
tinual waste that is going on all round the coast. On the Yorkshire
coast it is estimated that two miles have disappeared since the Roman
occupation, and more modern records show that towns and villages
have disappeared with their houses and churches, and in some cases
the whole parish has been washed away. Along the Norfolk coast the
only record of several villages is ‘ washed away by the sea,’ and on
the Kentish coast churches and houses haye fallen down the cliffs, on
whichare to be seen the bones formerly deposited in a vanishing church-
yard. On the south coast, although the chalk cliffs at the east end of
the English Channel are subject to continual falls and slips, more care
has been taken to protect them, but along the clay cliffs of Dorsetshire
the waste is continuous; here 20 acres slipped down seaward in one
night from the cliffs at Axminster.
“On the west coast the nets of the fishermen are said to become
K 2
98 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
occasionally entangled in the ruins of houses and buildings buried in
the sea some distance from the coast of Blackpool.”
These considerations would apply still more strongly to the islands
which border the western coast of Ireland, and which may be presumed
to have been in former times larger and more important than they are
at present, as also more numerous. Such greater extent, number, and
importance of them in former times, would enter as factors into the
question of the advent of man in these countries and of the various.
eolonizations which it gave rise to. It is mainly to geology, and in
part to tradition and history, that we must have recourse for evidence
of these alterations in the coast line of the country, more particularly
as regards former extent. With the aid of the Admiralty maps which
furnish reliable data as regards soundings, and which, by the aid of the
eontour lines in depth, which these soundings enable us to draw, can
be indicated the probable extent and nature of the changes, which
have taken place in the coast lines of the country as the result of
immersion or emersion and general action of the sea. From this point
of view the subject has been very fully and lucidly treated by Professor
Boyd Dawkins in his work ‘‘ Early Man in Britain and his place in the
Tertiary Period,’ published in 1880, and from which work the follow-
ing extracts are taken :—
He opens (p. 3) with the remark: “The continuity between
Geology, Prehistoric Archeology, and History is so direct that it is
impossible to picture early man in this country without using the
results of all these sciences.”
(p. 5.)\—He states: ‘‘ Before our ancestors were in Europe, and
before our country was an island, there were Paleolithic tribes in
Britain, ignorant of the use of polished stone and of metals, without
domestic animals, living solely by the chase, fishing, and fowling. Of
these, the older or ‘river drift men’ have left evidence that they
wandered over the greater part of western and southern Europe, over
North Africa, Asia Minor, and over the whole of India, while the
newer or ‘cave men’ have been traced over a large part of Europe.”
(p. 9).—He gives his reasons for starting on his inquiry with the
commencement of the Tertiary Period as follows: ‘‘In the Tertiary
Period each life group is so closely linked to that which went before
and followed after, that there is no break of sufficient importance to
be used as a starting-point in our special inquiry into the Ancient
History of Man. We shall therefore be compelled to treat in outline
the principal changes which took place in this country from the
beginning of the Tertiary Period down to the time when man first
O’Rritty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 99
appears on the stage, and to see how they are related to the varying
conditions of life on the Continent.”’
He then gives the following classification of the stages of the
Tertiary Period :—
Characteristics.
Living orders and
Earth were represented by allied forms belonging to (“p15 44 Seieane
J. Eocene; or that in which the Mammalia now on the
existing orders and families.
II. Miocene; in which the alliance between living and
fossil mammals is more close than before. \ Living genera.
IIfI. Pliocene ; in which living species of animals appear. Living species.
TY. Pleistocene; in which living species are more abundant | Living species abun-
than the extinct. Man appears. dant. Manappears.
fruits appear, and man has multiplied exceedingly mestic animals.
VY. Prehistoric ; in which domestic animals and cultivated | Manabundant. Do-
on the Earth. Cultivated fruits.
VI. Historic ; in which the events are recorded in history. Historical record.
(p. 14.)—He says: ‘‘ The invasion of Europe by the Placental
Mammals is the great event which is the natural starting-point for our
inquiry into the ancient history of man, since the conditions by which
he was surrounded on his arrival in Europe form part of a continuous
sequence of changes from that remote period down to the present day.”’
(p. 18.)—He gives a sketch map (fig. 3) of the geography of north-
western Europe in the Eocene Age, and having given the reasons which
enabled him to give its outline he says:
(p. 23.)—‘‘ From these considerations (zoological, botanical, and
geological), Eocene Britain (and Ireland) may be taken to have formed
part of a great continent extending north and west to America by way
of Iceland and Greenland, while to the north-east it was continuous
with Norway and Spitzbergen. It extended also to the south-west
across what is now the Channel to join the western parts of France.
This great north-western continent or ‘ Northern Atlantis’ as it may
be termed, existed through the Eocene and Miocene Ages, offering a
means of free migration for plants and animals, and it was not finally
broken up by submergence until the beginning of the Pleistocene Age.”
(p. 48.)—-As regards the continuity with North America he states :
“The researches of Professor Heer into the forest vegetation of the
Continent, Britain, Iceland, Spitzbergen, Greenland, and Grinnell-
land prove that the whole of this portion of the Earth’s surface was
dry land in the early Tertiary Period, offering free means of migration
to plants and animals from the Polar regions into America on the one
100 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
hand, and into Europe on the other. The 500 fathom line indicates:
the probable coast line during both Eocene and Miocene, and the rapid
increase of depth in the Atlantic to its west would allow of a consider-
able depression taking place without altering in any important degree
the position of the sea margin.
(p. 44.)—“ Professor Heer places his ‘ Atlantis’ to the south-west
of the line represented in the map (fig. 6), but the enormous depth
of the North Atlantic renders it very improbable that there was dry
land in that region at a time, geologically speaking, so recent as the
Miocene Age ” (reference will be again made to this remark further on).
‘The principal mountains in the British Isles were in their present
positions in the Miocene Age, but were considerably higher, (probably)
double what they are now.”
As bearing on the fact of the former extension of the land to
America and towards the north-east of Europe it is of interest to cite
the following note on the ‘‘ Report of Messrs. Newton and Teall on the
Lava sheets of Franz-Josef Land” from Wature, vol. 57 (Noy. ’97 to
April 798), p. 324: ‘The immense lava sheets that cover an area of
some 200,000 square miles in the Deccan of India have been looked
upon as the greatest examples of Vulcanism in the world, but an even
more extensive outpouring of similar material must formerly have been
evident in the northern hemisphere if we can accept the conclusions
reached by Messrs. Newton and Teall from a study of the geological
collections made in Franz-Josef Land by the Jackson-Harmsworth
Expedition (see Quart. Journal Geolog. Soc. December, 1897). That
Archipelago is formed of the fragments of an ancient basalt plateau
which must have stretched far beyond its present limits. Similar
igneous rocks are found in Spitzbergen, Jan Mayen, Iceland, Green-
land, the Fardes, the Hebrides, and north Ireland ; and the authors are
inclined to regard all these areas as the isolated fragments of a formerly
continuous land area, the greatest part of which has sunk to form the
northern portion of the North Atlantic Ocean. The period of this
outpouring was probably the end of the Cretaceous and beginning of
Tertiary times. The period seems to have been distinguished by similar
occurrences in other parts of the world, for the great lava flows of the
Deccan and of Abyssinia are of the same age.” ‘‘In Auvergne, in the
Miocene Period, the volcanoes burst through the granitic and gneissose
plateau of central France” (Geikie, ‘‘ Text-book of Geology ” (1893),
p. 203).
(p. 66.)—Boyd Dawkins says: ‘‘There is no proof of the presence
of man in Europe during the Miocene Age.”
O’Rettty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §c. 101
In this respect it may be worth citing the following from an article
in the Wineteenth Century, ‘‘On the Cradle of the Human Race,” by
Samuel Waddington :-—
‘‘ Others see reason to believe that there is little or no doubt that
the human race has existed on the face of the Earth for more than one
million or even two million years.
‘* Darwin, it will be remembered, was of opinion that man may have
existed in the Eocene Period; while Mr. Wallace holds (Vineteenth
Century, 1887) that he certainly did exist in that period. Professor
Huxley also appears to have held this view, for he observes that the
first traces of the primordial stock whence man has proceeded need no
longer be sought by those who entertain any form of doctrine of pro-
gressive development in the newest Tertiaries, but that they may be
looked for in an epoch more distant from the age of the Hlephas primi-
genius (Mammoth) than this is from us.”
‘The remoteness of the date,” observes Sir John Evans, ‘‘at which
the Paleolithic Period had its beginning almost transcends our power
of imagination”; and Professor Ratzel in his ‘‘ History of Mankind,”
states that a regular workshop for the manufacture of chert flakes
which was discovered on the banks of the Mississipi in Minnesota, dates
from the Interglacial Era, and that hunters chased the long-extinct
beasts of the Drift Age in Mexico and in Argentina.
He (Mr. Waddington) asks, ‘“‘ But how long ago is it since the
commencement of the Eocene Period ?”’ and taking into consideration
the statements of Lord Kelvin as to the probable time since the
solidification of the Earth, he says: ‘‘ The date of the beginning of the
Eocene Period cannot therefore be estimated at less than four million
years before the present time.
‘‘ When the great Mastodon, now in the British Museum, was
found by Dr. Kock in the Ossage Valley, Missouri, a number of stone
arrowheads and charcoal were found near it, and one of the arrow-
heads lay underneath the thigh-bone of the Mastodon, and in contact
with it. The animal was found, it will be remembered, at a depth of
20 feet under several alternate layers of loam, gravel, clay, and peat,
with a forest of old trees on the surface.”
(p. 72.)—Boyd Dawkins sketches out the Geography of Britain
(and Ireland) in the Pliocene Age (fig. 10), and says: ‘‘ The North
Sea, which was small in the Miocene age, and did not touch our
present coast line, was now gradually enlarged at the expense of the
land, and ultimately a direct communication was made with the Arctic
Sea, by the sinking of the land, extending from the Scandinavian
102 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Mountains to the British Isles, to Iceland and SuEELALL on the one
hand, and to Spitzbergen on the other.”
This depression by which the Arctic became continuous with the
North Sea, caused it also to become connected with the Atlantic.
(p. 78.)—He says: ‘‘ The Atlantic line at that time may be taken
to be marked by the steep slopes passing downwards from the 100
fathom line, to the 300 or 400 fathom line, which imply that a land
barrier was in that position for a very long period.
““It would make very little difference in the map of Pliocene
Britain (and Ireland) if we were to take the western coast line to be
marked by the 300 fathom instead of the 100 fathom line.”
(p. 75.)—He shows the evidence of icebergs at that period off the
coast of Great Britain, and the submergence of the tract of land
uniting Ireland with the continent of Miocene Europe, by which
currents of cold water from the Polar regions obtained free access to the
North Sea of the Pliocene Age, from which they had been before shut
out by a barrier of land.
(p. 93.)—He states that, as evidence stands at present, the
Geological record is silent as to man’s appearance in Europe in the
Pliocene age.
(p. 94.)—Speaking of the Pleistocene Age, he says: ‘“‘ New
Mammals now appear belonging for the most part to living species.
Their remains were associated with human implements in such a
manner as to show that man was a member of the fauna which
characterises the Pleistocene Period of this quarter of the world.”
(p. 110.)—Describing the great geographical and climatal changes
of the period, he says: ‘‘ Britain must also have formed part of
the mainland. Ireland must also have been united to Britain, to
have allowed of the groups of animals (mentioned by him) finding
their way so far to the west. The elevation above the present
sea-level necessary to account for this distribution of the animals, is
not less than 600 feet or 100 fathoms” (fig. 24). The Straits
of Gibraltar could not have been in existence when the African
elephant ranged as far north as Madrid, and the Caffir cat, African
Lynx, and spotted Hyena sought their prey in the Iberian
Peninsula.
(p. 112.)—He says: ‘‘From these considerations, it is evident
that Pleistocene Europe must be looked upon as intimately connected
with Africa on the south, and with Asia on the east, and that it
offered no barriers to the migration of Asiatic and African animals
as far to the west as Britain and Ireland.”
O’Rui.ty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 103
(p. 113).—He says: ‘‘ From the distribution of the Pleistocene
Mammals, we may infer that the climate was severe in the north and
warm in the south; while in the middle zone, comprising France,
Germany, and the greater part of Britain, the winters were cold and
the summers warm, as in Middle Asia and North America. There
were secular changes of climate in Pleistocene Europe, and while
the cold was at its maximum, the Arctic animals arrived at their
southern limit ; and while it was at its minimum, the spotted Hyena,
and the Hippopotamus, and other southern animals roamed to their
northern limit.”
The climatal and geographical changes which then took place in
Britain were marked by Glacial phenomena, which are summarized as
follows :—
(p. 115.)—“‘ (1) The first Glaciation was « period of elevation.”
(p. 116.)—‘‘ The ice at that time was sufficiently thick to have
overridden Schihallion in Perthshire, at a height of 5500 feet, and the
hills of Galway and Mayo at 2000 feet.”’
(p. 117.)—‘‘ (2) The Icebergs—aA period of depression.
““(3) Zhe depression continued. The glaciers disappeared, and
the sea beat upon an archipelago of islands, which gradually sank
beneath the sea toa depth of from 2300 feet below their present
level on the flank of Snowdon, to 1200 feet at Vale Royal, on the
road between Buxton and Macclesfield, and to about 1400 feet in
Scotland.
‘““(4) A reversion to a severe climate.
‘““(5) Period of elevation. The climate becoming temperate, there
followed an upward movement of the land, until the Upper Boulder Clay
became dry land, and Britain and Ireland became part of the mainland
of Europe as represented in the map (fig. 32). The climate was
less severe than in the preceding period, and was gradually again
becoming temperate.
‘‘ As the Upper Boulder Clay deposited on the sea bottom became
lifted up, it was gradually covered by forests of yew, Scotch fir,
oak, ash, and alder, in which the Pleistocene Mammalia found ample
food in the eastern and midland counties.”
As regards the Glacial Period in Great Britain and Iveland, it may
be well to cite here the opinion of the eminent geologist, Professor
Lapworth, givenin his ‘‘ Intermediate Text-book of Geology,” 1899.
(p. 885.)—“ That the glacial conditions of Britain and Western
Kurope were accompanied by a certain amount of depression is
generally acknowledged, but whether that depression was excessive
104 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and general, and was broadly coincident with the Middle Glacial times,
or whether it was relatively insignificant, repeated, and local, is yet
a matter of dispute.”
(p. 125.)—Boyd Dawkins says: ‘‘ In all probability the geogra-
phidal conditions of Britain and Ireland at the time of the River
Drift (Pleistocene) Hunters, were identical with those of the Late
Pleistocene (fig. 32, p. 150), when our country formed part of the
Continent.
(p. 148.)—‘‘The remains of the late Pleistocene animals lie
scattered over a large area in Britain, and it is necessary to conclude,
from their presence, that our country formed part of the mainland of
Europe at that time.”
(p. 150.)—“‘ The Geography of Great Britain (and Ireland) in the
late Pleistocene Age is indicated by the map (fig. 32, p. 150)’; and
he says :-—
(p. 151.)—‘‘ It may be concluded that Britain (and Ireland) stood
at least 600 feet above its present level, and so that the Severn R.
united its waters with the rivers of the south of Ireland.”
(p. 152.)—He then defines the Range of the late Pleistocene
Mammals over Britain and Ireland :—‘ In Ireland the Mammoth has
been found in the Counties of Cavan, Galway, Antrim, and Waterford,
and in the Shandon cave near Dungarvan, in the last of these counties
along with the grizzly bear, wolf, fox, horse, stag, and alpine hare.
This irregularity in the distribution of the animal remains is intimately
connected with the geographical and climatal changes which were
going on in the obscure and complicated portion of the late Pleistocene
Age, known as the Glacial Epoch, and it is highly probable that all the
Irish Mammalia mentioned above are pre-Glacial.”
(p. 153.)—“‘ We must further realise that all the climatal and geogra-
phical changes known as Glacial, happened while the Late Pleistocene
Mammalia were living in the regions not covered by glaciers, or
overwhelmed by the sea, and that they wandered to and fro, as the
barriers to their migration were altered.’’
(p. 169.)—He says: ‘‘ The Paleolithic Hunter of Mid and Late
Pleistocene River deposits in Europe belongs to a fauna which
arrived in Britain before the lowering of the temperature produced
glaciers and icebergs in our country. He may therefore be viewed
as being probably pre-Glacial. When the temperature was lowest, he
probably retreated southwards, and returned northwards as it grew
warmer, precisely in the same manner as the Mammalia on which he
depended for food.”
O’Reitty— On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 105
(p. 171.)—‘‘ It may therefore be concluded, he says, that man was
probably pre-Glacial and Glacial in Europe, but was certainly post-
Glacial in the area of the North Thames.”
It may be worth while to cite here the views put forward by
Lapworth, in the work already cited on the Glacial Period.
(p. 352.)—“ During the last half century, abundant evidences have
been obtained of the existence of man as far back as the final stages
of the Glacial period; and the glacial and post-Glacial formations
have consequently been separated off from the Tertiary, and erected
into a distinct series by themselves, which has been termed the
Quaternary, while the period of Geological time which they represent,
has been denominated Anthropozoiec.”’
(p. 8378.)—‘* The recent deposits were formerly referred to as the
Human, as it was supposed that they alone afforded evidence of the
existence of man, but the discoveries of late years, haye made it clear
that man existed in Pleistocene times, at any rate, in the later stage
of the epoch, if not throughout the whole.”
As bearing on this question, it may be of use to cite here the
opinions of the eminent French geologist, de Lapparent, as stated in
the last edition of his ‘‘ Traité de Géologie,” vol i., 1900, in his
critical review of the general characteristics of the Tertiary Era.
(p. 1632.)—He considers the question of the Establishment and
Vicissitudes of the great Glaciers, and says:—‘‘It would seem that
independently of a first or primary Pliocene phase, there were, as well
in America as in Europe, two other great Pleistocene phases of
extension of the glaciers. These phases were separated by intervals
of time, during which the climate was at least as favourable as at
present, and the surface of the land became clear of ice, even into the
very hearts of the mountain valleys. The greatest extension took
place anteriorly to the development of the Paleolithic civilization
which made its appearance during inter-Glacial Periods, when the
LElephas primigenius commenced to associate with the Elephas antiquus.
‘“‘The first mentioned species, accompanied by a fauna, on the
whole of a colder climate than the previous one alone, was in existence
during the succeeding extension to which followed, even if it did
not accompany in part, the deposit of the great Zoés. At that time a
period of dry cold supervened to interrupt the active flow of the
rivers. Man then took refuge in the caves and under rock-shelters,
whilst in the meantime became developed in our part of Europe, first
the ELguide and then the Reindeer, an animal known to dread fogs
whilst supporting easily dry cold.
106 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
‘* Before the end of the ‘ Magdalenian Civilization’ characteristic
of the period, the humidity of the atmosphere reappeared, without
however being accompanied by any earth movements sufficiently
marked to have given rise to renewed energy in the erosive action of
the Wwater-courses.
“‘The Reindeer was almost completely driven north, and the
Neolithic civilization came into existence everywhere. It is probable
however, that the phenomena were more complicated, and that in
addition to the great Glacial Periods already indicated, it would be
proper to add intermediate phases, since every Gay’s experience more
strongly causes it to be recognised that the relations between the
morainic deposits is more or less complicated.”
(p. 1634.)—He says: ‘‘It is therefore logical to admit that
successive movements of emersion of the continents which took place
suddenly (par saccade), marked the phases of the activity of the
water-courses.”
Discussing the probability of a rapid transition from the age of the
Reindeer to that of the Turfbogs, he says: ‘‘ Whatever may have
been the exact course of events in our part of Kurope, the transition
from the regimen of great water-courses, to that of the reindeer,
must have taken place rapidly. Otherwise, the rivers which at first
carried only coarse gravel, would have little by little filled up their
principal channels with silt, as has been justly remarked by Belgrand.
On the contrary, the principal channels which during the Pleistocene
Epoch hardly sufficed to carry the river floods, must have been dried
up suddenly, thus laying bare the horizontal surface of gravel over
which a thin stream continued to meander. Consequently, when
later on, a sufficiently humid regimen reappeared, it was the peat
which undertook to fill up the main water-courses, wherever the
permeability of the slopes secured for the rivers a regimen exempt
from violent floods. With the bogs commences the actually existing
regimen. During the period of dry cold, the fauna of the Mammals
was that of the Siberian steppes. The humidity of the age of the
bogs by favouring the development of timber, determined the
incoming of a forest fauna. The temperature henceforward under-
goes but slight vicissitudes, and with the exception of some alterna-
tions of invasion and retreat of the sea in the Flemish regions, the
contours of the continents have become fixed, and the story of
succeeding events belongs rather to Archeology and to History than
to Geology.”
At p. 247 of his work already cited Boyd Dawkins says : “‘ The
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 107
Pre-Historie Period covers all the events which took place between the
Pleistocene Age on the one hand, and the beginning of history on the other.”
(p. 248.)—He says: ‘‘ The Pre-Historic Period is separated from
the Pleistocene by a long interval, during which not only great
changes in the zoology of Great Britain (and Ireland) took place, but
also corresponding changes in the geography.
‘¢ At the close of the Pleistocene Age (fig. 32), the valleys which
united Britain to North France, Germany, and Scandanavia, as well
as to Ireland, were gradually depressed beneath sea level, and the
North Sea, the British Channel, the Irish Sea, and the Western
Atlantic Coast line generally, became very much as we find it now
(see fig. 95, p. 254). An examination, however, of the submerged
forests and peat bogs, proves that the downward movement had not
ceased until a late period in the Neolithic Age.”
(p. 250.)—He shows that, ‘‘In West Somerset and at Minehead,
we may infer that man was living in this region during the time that
a dense forest overshadowed a large portion of what is now the British
Channel, and before the deposit of the blue fresh-water clay, and the
marine silt, at a time not later than that marked by the layer of peat
or vegetable soil in which the prostrate trees are embedded.”
(p. 251.)—‘‘ The submerged forests are merely scraps spared by
the waves of an ancient growth of oak, ash, and yew, extending in
Somersetshire underneath the peat and alluvium, and joining the
great morasses of Glastonbury, Sedgemoor, and Athelney, in which
Neolithic implements have been met with by Mr. Stradling.
‘In Torbay as well asin North Devon and Somersetshire, man
was in possession of the country when the land stretched farther out
to sea than at the present time. In this particular case (Torbay),
Mr. Pengelly estimates the submergence to have been not less than
40 feet, since the forest was alive.”
Similar proofs of submergence are to be met with on our coasts,
wherever the land dips gently under the water-lne.
(p. 253.)—He says: ‘‘It is worthy of remark that the enormous,
trunks of the trees prove that the Scotch firs, oaks, yews, willows, and
birches, of which the forest was in these places mainly composed,
must have grown at some distance from the ancient coast line, since
the westerly winds sweeping over Lancashire from the Atlantic at the
present time prevent the free growth of vegetation on every unpro-
tected spot on the coast. The prevalent winds, however, are proved to
have been very much the same, since then as now, by the position of the
trees, which lie prostrate, with their heads pointing towards the east.
108 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
“The depression of land throughout Great Britain and Ireland
since the trees flourished could not have been less than from 30 to 40
feet. The ten-fathom line, therefore, considered by Sir H’ de la
Béche to be roughly the boundary of the land at that time, may
be taken to represent the sea margin (of that time) with tolerable
accuracy.”
(p. 254.)—“‘ This forest growth is proved to belong to the Neolithic
division of the Pre-Historic Period by the presence of animals originally
domestic, and introduced by the Neolithic tribes, the Celtic short-
horn, and the sheep or goat, as well as by the absence of the Pleisto-
cene Mammals.”
(p. 256.)—He cites Dr. Jas. Geikie’s work on the geography and
climate of North Britain :—‘‘ When these buried trees darkened the
now bleak islands (Orkneys and Shetland) with their greenery, the
land stood at a higher level and the neighbouring ocean at a greater
distance. To have permitted this strong forest growth we are com-
pelled to admit a former elevation of the land, and a corresponding
retreat of the ocean. .
“The same inference may be drawn from the facts disclosed by
the mosses of Ireland and England. On the coasts of France and
Holland peat dips under the sea and along these bleak maritime
regions of Norway, where now-a-days the pine tree will hardly grow,
we find peat mosses, which contain the remains of full-grown trees,
such as are only to be met with in districts much further removed
from the influence of the sea.” (See ‘‘ Great Ice Age,’’ c. xxvi.)
(p. 263.)—He says: ‘‘ Such changes in the Mammalia and in the
geography of Great Britain (and Ireland), in the interval separating
the Pleistocene from the Pre-Historic Period, could not have taken place
in a short time; and when we reflect that comparatively little change
has taken place in this country during the last 2000 years, it is
obyious that the one period is separated from the other by a lapse of
many centuries, of how many we cannot tell.”
(p. 265.)—He says: ‘‘ It may be concluded that the former period
was, beyond calculation, longer than the latter.”
(p. 482.)—He says: ‘‘ Britain, at the beginning of the historic
period, differed considerably from the Britain of to-day, although
there is no reason to suppose that any vertical movements have altered
the relation of sea to land. The dash of the waves for the last 1900
years has destroyed large tracts of land, where cliffs are composed of
soft and incoherent materials. The inroads of the sea on the south
coast have been so great, in some places, such as Pevensey and Payham,
O’Rertty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 109
in Sussex, that it is by no means improbable that the Isle of Wight
may have been united at low-water to the adjoining coast during the
Roman occupation. (It was an island in the days of Claudius).’’
(p.483.)—He says : ‘‘The rainfall, at the beginning of the Historic
Period in Britain, must have been greater than it is now, because of
the large extent of forest and morass. The surface of the country was
densely covered with trees.”’
(This relatively greater rainfall may be taken as implying, amongst
other causes, a relatively greater height of the mountain parts, in the
interior, since such greater height would necessarily favour a greater
amount of condensation, and, consequently, of rainfall).
These many extracts from Boyd Dawkin’s work, and from the
other authors mentioned, show us not merely the former varied geo-
graphical conditions of Great Britain and Ireland, relatively to the
Continent and to one another, but also allow us to appreciate the
immense interval of time that must have elapsed since the commence-
ment of the Tertiary Period, and consequently how very small the
Historical Period must appear in comparison therewith, and there-
fore how valuable all the data that can be collected either in the
form of traditions, or as observations and historical records relative
thereto. The early traditions regarding this country, which appear in
O’Flaherty’s ‘‘ Ogygia”’ and in the ‘‘ Annals of the Four Masters,”
merit, in this respect, careful and considerate attention.
Thus the commencing lines, ‘‘ The age of the world to this year of
the Deluge, 2242: Fifty days before the Deluge, Cesair came to
Treland with fifty girls and three men; Bith, Ladhra, and Fintain,
their names.”
This passage, which is fully commented on in the notes to O’Dono-
van’s edition, from the purely scholarly and literary point of view, is
capable of assuming another aspect if taken in connexion with the
series of submergencies of lands and islands, which formed part of the
great northern continent, or group of islands, considered in the Report
of Messrs. Newton and Teall, ‘‘On the Lava Sheets of Franz-Josef
Land,” already referred to. Ireland was evidently affected by the
series of volcanic movements, which seem to have lasted from the
Miocene Period onward, and of which series Iceland is still an im-
portant and active centre. It may be, therefore, that the ‘‘ Deluge ”
referred to in the Annals represents the echo of a tradition from
Pre-Historic times of one of these sudden and catastrophic volcanic
movements (such as that of Krakatoa in 1883) which affected Ive-
land and gave rise to a remarkable depression which, if sudden and
110 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
accompanied by a series of tidal waves from the ocean, might well be
tantamount to a deluge. One has only to read of the recorded appear-
ance and destructive effects of such waves in modern times to recognise
how truthfully they are described as ‘‘ Deluges,” particularly by the
survivors who have witnessed the catastrophe Aa suffered from it. The
details given in the Annals as to the places of their deaths and inter-
ments rather tends to prove that the ‘‘ Deluge’’ was not such as to
have prevented people from surviving and living on the island, which
so far favours the supposition of a sea-wave or subsidence with sea-
wave. Too much stress cannot be laid on this view of the question,
since it bears a certain relation to the submersion of the Island of
‘* Atlantis,”’ as mentioned by Plato, and the two together might be
taken as connecting links in that chain of events implied by the break-
ing-up and submersion of different parts of that Great Lava Plateau
spoken of in Messrs. Newton and Teall’s report. It is further interest-
ing to note that a series of modern archeological discoveries, resulting
from the excavations so successfully and scientifically carried out in
Egypt and in Asia Minor, as also in Mesopotamia, and now being
actively pursued in many other quarters of the Kast, have resulted in
pushing back the record of time so, that already dates of 7000 B.c.
are spoken of, and we may well foresee that further researches will
in not many years hence push the antiquity of human records back to
10,000 s.c. There even appears in the Seventific American Supple-
ment of January 26th, 1901, p. 20960, an article entitled ‘‘ Archeology
in the Past Century,” by Prof. WE M. Flinders Petrie, p.c.u., u1.D., of
University College, London, in which he says :—
ceNV.e; dheriane. haye nee now at the end of this century to a
far wider view of ene history, and classify his earlier agesin Europe
thus :—
(1st). Holithic—Rudest massive flints from deposits 600 feet up.
(2nd). Paleolithic—Massive flints from gravels 200 feet up and
less ; (Achulien).
(3rd). ‘3 Cave-dwellers, flints like the preceding and
flakes ; (Moustérven).
(4th). 53 Cave-dwellers, flints well worked and
finely shaped; (Solutrien).
(5th). M Cave-dwellers, abundant bone-working and
drawing ; (Magdalenien).
(6th). Meolithic—Polished flint working; pastoral and agri-
cultural man.
O’RritLy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &e. 111
‘¢ What time those periods cover nothing yet proves. The date of
4000 z.c. for man’s appearance, with which belief our century started,
has been pushed back by one discovery after another. Estimates of
from 10,000 to 200,000 years have been given from various possible
clues. In. Egypt an exposure of 7000 or more years only gives a
faint brown tint to flints, lying side by side with Paleolithic flints that
are black withage. I incline to think that 100,000 3.c. for the rise
of the (2nd) class and 10,000 B.c. for the rise of the (6th) class will be
a moderate estimate.”
Thus the period of time stated to have elapsed since the submersion
of the Atlantis Island, as mentioned by the Egyptian Priest to Solon,
according to Plato’s narrative, was 8000 years before his time; this
up to the present, has been treated as fabulous and as throwing discredit
on the statement, but it now becomes not merely credible, but harmo-
nises with the date which Flinders Petrie assigns for the (6th) period
above-mentioned of Human History, that is about 10,300 years ago.
It is of importance to point this out, since the submersion of the
Atlantis Island may, as already stated, be but one of a series of volcanic
and seismic movements in the Great Lava plateau of North Western
Europe, having been marked by immersions of parts of the plateau,
the formation of islands, the further immersion and destruction of
these with accompaniment of great tidal waves comparable in their
destructiveness to deluges as already stated.
In connexion with this question there is room for citing the work
of Sir Jos. Prestwich, ‘‘ On certain phenomena belonging to the close
of the last geological period, and their bearing upon the tradition
of the Flood”’ (1895). He says (p. 72): ‘‘ In any case these tentative
estimates, are in accordance with the conclusion I have arrived at on
other grounds, that the Glacial (including the post-Glacial) Period,
together with Paleolithic man came within 10,000 to 12,000 years of
our time.”
Assuming, as argued by Boyd Dawkins, and as indicated by his
map (fig. 32), that at the close of the Pleistocene Age, Great Britain and
Ireland were still in connexion by land one with the other, and with
the continent of Europe, and that subsequently a series of depressions
intervened which resulted in the isolation of these countries, it is
reasonable to accept that these changes took place relatively slowly
and successively, and that they were contemporaneous with changes
in the Atlantic coast line, probably in connexion with the volcanic
phenomena of the Icelandic, Greenlandic, and Franz-Josef group, all
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B. | L
112 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
which had for result the present general coast outline of these
countries.
It may be asked would the 100 fathoms line as supposed by Boyd
Dawkins truly or approximatively represent this Atlantic coast line
at the end of the Pleistocene time? and are there not grounds for
admitting the existence of a more extended western land and of
adjacent islands, which could have afforded the shelter necessary for
the forests which covered these countries prior to the growth of the
bogs.
This query is in some degree met by the results pointed out in
an article by Dr. Reusch in “ Naturen,” cited in Wature, vol. 63
(Dec. 13th, 1900), p. 160, in which he calls attention ‘‘to the
changes of level that have taken place in Iceland in recent
geological times viz. since the Ice Age.”’ He says: “‘In 1896 the
Danish Ingolf Expedition investigated the sea bottom between Jan
Mayen and Iceland. In examining the dredged material Herr A.
S. Jansen made the observation that almost everywhere on the bottom
of the deep ocean le shells of dead Molluscs of well-known shallow-
water forms, side by side with deep-water forms. It was very remark-
able to dredge up from depths of 500 fathoms to 1300 fathoms
Yoldia Arctica which now lives at Spitzbergen, and in the Kara Sea
at depths from 5 to 100 fathoms. Dr. Reusch suggests that these
remains of Arctic life forms cannot have been carried there by drift-
ing ice, but that the sea bottom, in comparatively recent times during
the Ice Age, must have been much nearer the sea level than now. At
that time the Arctic shallow-water forms must have lived there ‘ zm
situ’; then a sinking of the sea bottom has taken place which can be
estimated at not less than about 2500 metres (about 1355 fathoms).
It is easy to see that these results of the Danish naturalist have an
important bearing upon the phenomena of the Ice Age.’ It is evident
that from these results, there may be presumed a much greater exten-
sion of the Western European plateau and of its resulting islands
than Boyd Dawkins was prepared to admit. Whatever the chain of
events was that gave rise to the depression of the land, it is reasonable
to assume that the causes thereof were more active on the Atlantic
side of Ireland than on the eastern coast, and that the surface of land
affected thereby was more extensive. The breaking up of the land and
accompanying island groups during the Pre-Historic Period necessarily
occupied a considerable time, and allows us to admit that from the
coast of Spain, northwards to Ireland, and even farther, a great
number ofislands, more or less inhabited, and of greater or less extent,
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 118
existed during a certain time, and had not finally been worn away and
submerged in the Atlantic before the dawn of Irish traditional history.
Thus we see room for the tradition of the Island of Brazil (with
reference to which a very interesting paper was published in the
Royal Dublin Society’s Proceedings, N.S8., m. 1880, p. 178) and for
a Rockall fat more prominent and extended than the present island,
which now can hardly be approached, so bold and precipitous are its
coasts.
As to the probable existence of other islands in the North Atlantic,
we can only arrive at a conclusion relative thereto by the aid of a
bathymetric chart of that ocean (that is, a chart coloured according to
the relative depths by means of contour lines of equal depth), and
keeping in mind the remarkable conclusions arrived at, in Dr. Reusch’s
article already cited.
As regards the coast of Ireland in general, and the changes they
have undergone during past ages, the only data that can at present be
availed of, are the records of the various Geological Surveys made of
them, and of the parts of the coasts of Great Britain which are as
fully exposed to the action of the Atlantic waves and storms as are the
Trish coasts, as well as of the adjacent island groups, the Hebrides,
the Faroé, Orkneys, and Shetland groups. Certain descriptions of the
maritime counties both in Ireland and in Great Britain also furnish
observations and have been availed of. These records have up to the
present not been brought together and presented in a collected form,
and in the present paper it is proposed to so present them as a basis for
a more complete recension of all the data bearing on the question of
the wear of the Irish coasts. As in regard to many parts of the Irish
coast, the data are meagre, if not entirely wanting, while for much of
the coasts of Scotland, Wales, and England such data are available in
greater or less sufficiency, it has seemed reasonable to employ these
data when concerning parts of the coasts which are directly exposed to
the Atlantic Ocean; since it is evident that whatever has been the
destructive action of the waves and storms upon these, it cannot be
supposed to have been less on those parts of the coasts of Ireland
which are more directly and more immediately exposed to the full
action of the Western Ocean storms. Hence the indications existing
as regards the wear on the Scotch and Cornish coasts can to a certain
extent make up for the meagreness or absence of details as regards
the western, north-western, and south-western coasts of Ireland.
Sir Charles Lyell’s ‘‘ Principles of Geology’’ (1872) supply some
very valuable information in these respects, offering excellent terms of
L 2
114 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
comparison for an appreciation of the wear that these coasts have
undergone, and consequently merit detailed citation. Under the
heading ‘‘ Destroying and Transporting Power of Currents’? and sub-
heading ‘‘ Action of the Sea on the British Coast, Shetland Islands,
§c.,”” he says (p. 507, vol. i.): ‘‘The northmost group of the British
Isles, the Shetlands, are composed of a great variety of rocks, in-
cluding granite, gneiss, mica schists, serpentine, greenstones, and
many others, with some secondary rocks, chiefly sandstones and
conglomerates. These islands are exposed continually to the uncon-
trolled violence of the Atlantic, and no land intervenes between the
western shores and America. The prevalence therefore of strong
westerly gales causes the waves to be sometimes driven with irresistible
force upon the coast, while there is also a current setting from the
north. The spray of the sea aids the decomposition of the rocks and
prepares them to be breached by the mechanical force of the waves.
Steep cliffs are hollowed out into deep caves and lofty arches; and
almost every promontory ends in a cluster of rocks, imitating the forms
of columns, pinnacles, and obelisks.”
(p. 509.)—‘‘In some of the Shetland Islands, as on the west of
Mickle Roe, dykes or veins of soft granite have mouldered away, while
the matrix in which they are enclosed, being of the same substance
but of a firmer texture, have remained unaltered. Thus long narrow
ravines, sometimes 20 feet wide, are laid open, and often give access to
the waves.”
After describing some huge cavernous apertures, into which
the sea flows for 250 feet at Loeness, Dr. Hibbert, writing in
1822, enumerates the other ravages of the ocean: ‘‘ But the most
sublime scenes are where a mural pile of porphyry, escaping the process
of disintegration that is devastating the coast, appears to have been
left as a sort of rampart against the inroads of the ocean. The Atlantic,
when provoked by wintry gales, batters against it with all the force of
real artillery, the waves having in their repeated assaults forced them-
selves an entrance. This breach, named the Grind of Naver (fig. 47)
is widened every winter by the overwhelming surge that, finding a
passage through it, separates large stones from its sides, and forces them
to a distance of not less than 180 feet. In two or three spots the frag-
ments which have been detached are brought together in immense
heaps, that appear as an accumulation of cubical masses, the product of
some quarry”’ (Hibbert, ‘‘ Description of the Shetlands.”’ Edin., 1822).
“‘There are localities in Shetland in which rocks of almost every
variety of mineral composition are suffering disintegration. Thus the
O’Rrrtty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &e. 115
sea makes great inroads on the clay-slates of Fitfel Head, on the
serpentine of Vord Hill, in Fetlar, and on the mica schists of the Bay
of Trieste, on the east coast of the same island, which decomposes into
angular ‘rats The Quartz Rock, on the east of Walls, and the
gneiss and mica schist of Garthness suffer the same fate.’’
(p. 511.)—Lyell says, under the heading ‘“‘Destruction of Islands”’ :
‘‘Such devastation cannot be incessantly committed for thousands of
years without dividing islands, until they become at last mere clusters
of rocks, the last shreds of masses once continuous. To this state
many appear to have been reduced, and innumerable fantastic forms
are assumed by rocks adjoining the islands, to which the name
‘Drongs’ is applied, as it is to those of similar shape in Feive. The
granite rocks (fig. 48) between Papa Stour and Willswick Ness afford
an example; a still more singular cluster of rocks is seen to the south
of Hillswick Ness (fig. 49), which presents a variety of forms as
viewed from different points, and has often been likened to a small
fleet of vessels with spread sails. Midway, between the groups of
Shetland and Orkneys, is Fair Island, said to be composed of sandstone,
with high perpendicular cliffs. The current runs with such velocity
that during a calm, when there is no swell, the rocks on its shores
are white with the foam of the sea driven against them.
“The Orkneys, if carefully examined, would probably illustrate
our present topic as much as the Shetland group. The north-west
promontory of Sanda, one of these islands, has been cut off in modern
times by the sea, so that it became what is now called Start Island,
where a lighthouse was erected in 1807, since which the new strait
has grown wider.”’
As regards the Orkneys, the following is takenfrom the Ordnance
Gazetteer of Scotland, under that head :—
‘‘ Except in the Pentland Firth, where the depth of the sea reaches
40 fathoms, the water in the straits between the islands and their
immediate neighbourhood is nowhere deeper than 20 fathoms; a rise
of 120 feet in the sea-bottom would unite the whole group, except
Sivona and the Pentland Skerries, into one mass of land, which would
be separated from the mainland of Scotland by a strait of from 2 to 3
miles broad, where the Pentland Firth is. If these sounds are, how-
ever, of moderate depth, their number and the broken and winding
Aah of the coast are evidences of the hard struggle that constantly
takes place between the land and the Atlantic surge.”’
‘‘ The intricate, indented coast-line, worn into creeks, and caves, and
overhanging cliffs—the crags, and Skerries, and sea stocks, once a part
116 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
of the solid land, but now isolated among the breakers—the huge pile
of fragments that lie on the beach, or have been heaped up far above
the tidal-mark—tell only too plainly how vain is the resistance even
of the hardest rocks to the onward march of the ocean. The rate of
waste along some parts of those islands is so rapid as to be distinctly
appreciable within a human lifetime. Thus the start-point of Sanda
was found by Mr. Stevenson, in 1816, to be an island every flood
tide ; yet, even within the memory of some old people then alive, it
had formed one continuous tract of firm ground. Nay, it appears that
during the ten years previous to 1816 the Channel had been worn
down at least 2 feet.
‘Some few years back (about 1874), when the Channel fleet were
in the north, they attempted to pass to the westward through Westray
Firth, in the teeth of a strong spring flood; but all the Queen’s horse-
power and all the Queen’s men could not do it, and they had to turn tail.
‘* Short storms of great violence are not the worst, being surpassed
by the long continuance of an ordinary gale, and during great storms
the devastation and ruin is very great. During a peculiarly severe
storm, in 1862, in Stornna (in Caithness), in the Pentland Firth, the
sea swept right over the north end of the island, lodged fragments of
wreckage, stones, seaweed, &c., on the top, 200 feet above ordinary
sea level, and then rushed in torrents across the island, tearing up the
ground and rocks in their course towards the opposite side. The
heaviest rains and the most prevalent and strongest winds are from the
south-west and south-east.”
As the west coast of Ireland is largely made up of the same classes
of rocks as those forming the Hebrides, the Shetlands, and the Orkneys,
and is more fully and directly exposed to the force of the Atlantic
wayes, it is reasonable to assume that all that has been herein stated
as to the destructive force of the ocean on these islands holds good,
even more strongly, as regards the western coast of Ireland—the
“Wild West,” as it has been called—and we may admit that wear and
waste is going on there incessantly, even although we have no obser-
vations in support thereof.
As regards the coast of Britain, from the coast of Wales south-
wards, more has been observed and noted, and the resulting wear
recorded would tend to show what must have been the waste along the
south-western and southern coasts of Ireland, even although we had
no records regarding them.
There is a very interesting article, by D. Mackintosh, Esq., F.¢.s.,
in the Quart. Journ. of the Geolog. Soc. of London, vol. xxiv., 1868,
O’Rretmty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 117
p- 279, ‘‘On the mode and extent of the encroachment of the sea on
some parts of the shores of the Bristol Channel.”” He says: ‘‘In a
paper read before this Society, November 8, 1865 (see vol. xxii., p. 1),
Mr. Goodwin Austin brought forward very satisfactory reasons for
concluding that the area of the Bristol Channel was dry land during
the (now submarine) Forest Era, and that it must afterwards have
subsided to a depth of at least 120 feet, as a submerged land is now
found at that depth under the sea level. Whatever relative changes
in level the land and sea may have subsequently undergone, it is
obvious that the general tendency of the ‘‘ waves”’ and ‘‘ ground sea,”
or “ Atlantic drift,’ which is sensibly felt beyond Watchet (18 miles
west of Bridgewater), has been to destroy the contour of the gradually
rising shores by wearing them back into cliffs. Asa consequence, the
extent of the encroachment since the forest area went down may in
some localities be approximately ascertained.”
He then gives a section of the coast-line near Watchet, and ex-
amines the relation of the cliffs to the exposed shore, and says: ‘It
will be obvious that the sea has recently had no small share in the
denudation of the Bristol Channel, whatever may have been the cause
of the original excavation.”’
As evidence of the ‘‘ recent rate of encroachment, he says: ‘I
learned from a very old fisherman at Watchet, whose veracity no one
seemed to doubt, and whose statements concerning the encroachments
of the sea were directly or indirectly corroborated by others, that not
more than 150 years ago a brewery, belonging to a Mr. Davies, stood
at a distance of at least 200 yards from the present cliff, east of
Watchet harbour, and that the rocks under its site are still recognised.
There was likewise a village (or hamlet ?) called Easenton, to which
the fisherman’s great-grandfather was in the habit of going for a mug
of beer, the site of the furthest east part of which is now about one-
fourth of a mile from the coast.”
He adds a note: ‘‘I found the followig record among the
documents of a solicitor of Williton :—‘ North of Racloze, a part of
Watchet in 1662, a barn and other buildings, with orchard and garden
beyond; in 1751, all gone to sea.’ To the west of Watchet the sea is
encroaching on a high ridge and undermining large blocks of sandstone,
interwoven with alabaster, which it carries away entirely, or scatters
and piles in a strange confusion. The configuration of the sea-bed,
under and for some distance from the cliffs, very much resembles the
uneven ground at the base of many inland escarpments.”’
(p. 281.)—‘* Encroachments on Weston-super-mare.—The sea is
118 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
converting slopes into cliffs, where it is not silting up flat areas from
Brean Down to a considerable distance northwards. Near Weston
the sea is forming a line of cliffs on the north-western side of
Weorle Hill. At Bernbeck cove its encroachments have disclosed,
or rather nearly destroyed, the last remnants of a genuine raised
beach.”
Professor John Rhys, u.a., of Oxford, in his “‘ Celtic Folklore of
Wales and Isle of Man,”’ has some interesting legends as regards the
waste on the Welsh coast, in vol. ii, p. 401, under the heading,
“* Triumphs of ‘the Water World.” He says: ‘‘ More than once in
the last chapter was the subject of submersions and cataclysms brought
before the reader, and it may be convenient to enumerate here the
most remarkable cases, not to mention that one of my informants had
something to say (p. 219, vol. i.) of the submergence of Caer Arianrhod,
a rock now visible only at low-water between Celynnog Fawr and
Dinas Dintte, on the coast of Arfon; but, to put it briefly, it is an
ancient belief in the principality that its lakes generally have swallowed
up habitations of men.’
(p. 403.)—“‘ Perhaps it is best to begin with historical events,
namely, those implied in the encroachment of the sea and the sand, on
the coast of Glamorganshire, from Mumbles in Gower to the mouth of
the Ogmore, below Bridgend. It is believed that formerly the shores
of Swansea Bay were from three to four miles further out than the
present strand, and the oyster-dredges point to that part of the bay,
which they call the ‘‘ Green Grounds,” while trawlers, hovering over
these sunken meadows of the Grove Islands, declare that they can
sometimes see the foundations of the ancient homesteads, overwhelmed
by a terrific storm which raged some three centuries ago. The old
people sometimes talk of an extensive forest, called Coed Arian
(‘Silver Wood’), stretching from the foreshore of the Mumbles to
Kenfig Burroughs, and there is a tradition of a long lost bridle-path
used by many generations of Mansels, Mowbrays, and Talbots, from
Penrice Castle to Margam Abbey. All this is said to be corroborated
by the fishing up, every now and then, in Swansea Bay, of stags’
antlers, elk horns, those of the wild ox, and wild boars’ tusks, together
with the remains of other ancient tenants of the submerged forest.
Various references in the registers of Swansea and Averavon mark
successive stages in the advance of the desolation from the latter part
of the fifteenth century down. Among others, a great sandstorm is
mentioned which overwhelmed the borough of Cynffig, or Kinfig, and
encroached on the coast generally; the series of catastrophes seem to
O’Rettuy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 119
have culminated in an inundation, caused by a terrible tidal wave, in
the early part of 1607.
“To return to Kenfig: what remains of that old town is
near the sea, and it is on all sides surrounded by hillocks of finely
powdered sand, and flanked by ridges of the same fringing the
coast. The ruins of several old buildings, half buried in the sand,
peep out of the ground, and in the immediate neighbourhood is Kenfig
Pool, which is said to havea circumference of nearly two miles. When
the pool formed itself I have not been able to discover.”
(p. 404.)—“‘ On this coast is another piece of water, namely,
Crymlin or Crumlin Pool, now locally called ‘the Bog.’ It lies on
Lord Jersey’s estate, at a distance of about one mile east of the mouth
of the Tawe, and about quarter of a mile from high-water mark, from
which it is separated by a strip of ground knownas Crymlin Burrows.
The story about this pool, also, is that it covers a town buried be-
neath the waters. An article of the South Wales Daily News, of
February 15th, 1899, says of Crymlin: ‘It is said by the old people
that on the site of this bog once stood the old town of Swansea, and
that, in clear and calm weather, the chimneys, and even the church
steeple, could be seen in the bottom of the lake.’ The lake was at one
time much larger than at present.”
(p. 416.)—“‘ The writer of an article in the Monthly Packet for
1859 gives a sketch of the story of the country overflowed by the
neighbouring portion of Cardigan Bay, mentioning, that once ona time
there were great cities on the banks of the Dovey and the Disynni.
‘Cities with marble wharfs,’ the author says, ‘busy factories, and
churches, whose towers resounded with beautiful peals and chimes of
bells.’ The author goes on to say, that Mausna is the name of the city
on the Dovey; its eastern suburb was at the sandbank now called
Borth, ‘its western stretched far out into the sea.’ The name Borth
stands for ‘ Y. Borth,’ 7@.e. ‘the Harbour.’ ”’
Passing from the south of Wales and the Bristol Channel to the
peninsula of Deyon and Cornwall, which is beaten by the waves of
the Atlantic in all their force, we find in Sir Henry de la Béche’s
Report on the Geology of Cornwall, Devon, and West Somerset (1839)
a very interesting chapter on the ‘‘ Action of the Sea on the Coast,”
from which the following citations are made :-—
(p. 485.)—“* As about 472 miles of coast, exclusive of estuaries and
minor irregularities, are in the district under consideration exposed to
the action of the sea, considerable facilities are afforded for the study
of this action, more especially as the rocks brought within its influence
120 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
are very different, and the conditions under which they are exposed
are also variable. We soon perceive that the streams of the tide, to
the movement of which so much abrading power has been attributed,
have very little influence upon this coast; that it is chiefly in those
places where the tides have little strength, but where the softer rocks
prevail, and the exposure to the prevalent winds, and hence to
breakers, is considerable, that the chief loss of land by the action of
the sea is greatest. In fact, the tides rarely run beyond one or two
miles per hour, except round the headlands, which are nearly all com-
posed of hard rocks, the softer parts of the coast having been hollowed
out by the breakers, during the lapse of ages, into creeks, coves, and
bays, so as to be removed from the main stream of the tide.”
It would be difficult to form a correct idea of the geological
time during which this coast has taken its present form, when we
pereeive so many hard rocks worked into creeks and coasts, and learn
as indeed from their aspect we would expect, that no appreciable
change has been observed in them during the memory of man, we can
readily believe that the present condition of this coast is due to no
ordinary lapse of time as reckoned by him.
(p. 436.)—“‘ The hard quartzose and trappean rocks of Trevose
Head, the greenstone and trappean rocks of Pentire Point, near
Padstow, the hard slates of St. Agnes Head, the compact sandstones
and hard slates of Godrevy Head, the greenstone of St. Ives Point,
the greenstone and hardened schistose rocks of Gurnards Head, and
the granite of the Land’s End—may be readily supposed incapable of
being appreciably wasted by the action of the streams of tide which
pass over them. In like manner the granites of many other points in
the Land’s End district.”
(p. 487.)—‘‘ A very short experience of the destructive effect of
breakers will be sufficient to afford evidence of the form which a
coast must take according to the variable manner in which it may be
exposed to them ; so that after the lapse of ages any given coast will
readily show, from the wearing away of the softer rocks into creeks,
coves, and bays—the harder being gradually left to protrude as points
and headlands—that it has been scooped out according to the unequal
resistances of the rocks on the one hand, and the variable power of
the breakers on the other, due allowance being made for the original
form of the land, and the indentations produced by the entrance of
the sea, at its high-water level, into valleys, producing estuaries.”
(p. 488.) —“‘ It rarely happens that breakers do not fall on the
western part of the coast, even in the calmest weather, undulations
O’ReitLy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &¢. 121
from the Atlantic, produced by gales of wind on some part of it, not
too distant, to allow the waves so caused entirely to subside before
they meet the land, rolling in upon the shores, and often breaking
with a heavy crash on them, causing, probably, as much abrasion as
the waves at any othertime. These are technically known as ‘ ground
swells,’ as they tear up the beaches exposed to them, hold abundance
of pebbles or sand, as the case may be, in mechanical suspension, and
even seem, as it were, to rise from the bottom of the sea, hurling
the mechanically-suspended substances upon the beach or against the
cliffs with a heavy grinding noise, frequently heard far inland. As
these ‘ground swells’ very often roll in from the westward, the
coast from Morte Point to the Land’s End is much exposed to it,
particularly towards the latter place. When, as it often does, the
Atlantic or ground-swell rolls from the south-westward, a large
portion of the southern coast, otherwise protected, is exposed to it;
generally the formidable breakers caused by the swell, even in calm
weather, do not extend beyond the Prawle and Start-Points.”
(p. 489.)—“* The ordinary breakers are well known to be the
crash of the waves produced by winds blowing on the coast, and
according to the exposure of the coast to open sea, other things being
equal, are their magnitude and destructive powers.
‘Tn many situations common atmospheric influences so combine
with the action of the breakers to produce the destruction of the
cliffs, that it may be difficult to say whether the loss of land may not
be more due to the one than the other; in most places, however, the
breakers nearly cause the whole loss, leaving isolated rocks to show,
to a certain extent, the destruction they have caused. The cliffs,
from Trevose Head to new quay, may be selected as affording a
good example of the destruction of a coast by the action of heavy
breakers.”
(p. 440.)—‘“‘ The rocks between Teignmouth and Lyme Regis suffer
much loss from the action of the breakers upon them to an extent
that, if the latter possessed the average force of those which wear
away the coast last mentioned, very considerable inroads would be
made upon them, aud the bay would be much enlarged northwards in
the course of a few thousand years. Independently, however, of the
loss by landslips, the Lias cliffs near Lyme Regis are readily seen to
be washed away by the breakers, as may easily be observed between
Charmouth and that town, as also to the eastward of it. Consider-
able waste of this coast has thus been occasioned within the memory
of persons now living—a waste first recorded, we believe, by De Lue,
122 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and one which is still proceeding at a considerable rate, the fall of
the cliffs being frequent, particularly in bad weather. Much loss
of coast is sustained near Sidmouth, particularly in the direction
of High Peake, the small green-sand cap on the top of which will
disappear at no distant date, geologically speaking, and be only
known to haye existed from the geological maps now constructed of
that part of the country.”
(p. 441.)—‘‘ The isolated Red Sandstone and Conglomerate cede
on several parts of the coast, the evidence of its former boundaries
between Sidmouth and Teignmouth, are often worn away by the
breakers in a manner well illustrating the unequal resistance offered
by different portions of them. One of these isolated masses, named
‘the Chit Rock,’ which long rose above a ledge on the west of Sid-
mouth, was a few years since upset, in consequence of a central part
of it having been finally worn so thin that the upper portion was
knocked off by the breakers in a gale of wind.”
Near Watchet, East Quantockshead and Little Stoke, the Lias
red marl and sandstone of the coast suffer much annual loss—not so
considerable a loss as they would sustain if exposed to the action of
heavier breakers than now reach them, even to such as now batter
and wear away similar rocks near Lyme Regis and Sidmouth, but
sufficiently to become well marked.
The minor effects of the breakers are easily seen on every part
of the coast, the harder rocks resisting their action, while the
softer are worn into caves, creeks, and coves, of every variety of
form.
(p. 442.)—‘ The sea, by its action upon rocks of unequal hard-
ness and the fall of some compact portions of them, or of large
indurated nodules contained within them, often raises a barrier
against itself, and the lower portions of cliffs become protected for a
time; beyond that they would remain otherwise firm, even in some
cases producing points of land composed of these blocks or more in-
durated masses of rock. (JVote).—Indeed it may be said, on this
head, that beaches generally, more especially shingle beaches, are
only the harder part of abraded cliffs reduced to somewhat smaller
dimensions),”’
(p. 443.)—‘‘ Having thus briefly adverted to the destructive action
of the breakers on this coast, we should notice the protection afforded
by the common beaches thrown up in front of low lands.’’ (The
author then enters into considerations regarding the formations and
influences of these beaches and the formation of dunes.)
O’RetwLy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 123
Under the heading of ‘‘ Cornwall,” “‘ Lewis’ Topographical Diction-
ary of England” says (p. 516): ‘‘ The sea has considerably encroached
upon the coast within the last sixty years (1771 to 1881), in the
hundreds of Stratton and Lesnewth, especially near Bude Harbour,
where the waves are rapidly wasting the sandhills.”
As a considerable extent of the north-western and western coasts
of France are fully exposed to the action of the Atlantic storms and
breakers, and consequently to waste, it will be of interest to note
what is said relative thereto in the ‘‘ Dictionnaire de Géographie
Universelle de Vivian de St. Martin” ; and for that purpose the coasts
of the different departments exposed to the Atlantic action will be
considered in their succession from east to west—that is, Calvados,
Manche, Ille-et-Vilaine, Cotes du Nord, Finisterre, Morbihan, Loire
Inf., and Vendée.
Speaking of the ‘‘ Configuration physique” of the Department of
Calvados, the Dictionary says: ‘‘ Les cotes du département offrent un
développement de 120 kil.-carrés formant une courbe rentrante peu
sinueuse, bordée de falaises dont la mer ronge insensiblement le pied,
et d’un difficile accés a cause des nombreux rochers, débris d’un rivage,
que les souvenirs historiques constatent s’étre plus avancé en mer
autrefois qu’aujourd’hui. Les rochers de Calvados ont donné leur
nom au département ; ce mot de Calvados, est le corruption de I’ Es-
pagnol Salvador, et ‘le Salvador’ était un vaisseau de linvincible
Armada qui se brisa sur cet écueil.”
Speaking of the coasts, the Dictionary says: ‘‘ Cette cote a subi
des révolutions dont les vestiges sont visibles sous les eaux et dans
Vintérieur des terres. Le plateau du Calvados n’est pas autre chose
que la base d’un prolongement des falaises du Bessin quia été rasé par
la mer. On ne saurait guére chercher ailleurs que dans ces falaises
détruites, la source des atterrissements qui ont comblé les anciens
golfes de Orne et de la Dives.
‘‘La forét de Hautefeuille, disent encore les traditions locales,
ombragait au commencement du XVI™ siécle la large lisiere sur
laquelle s’épandent aujourd’hui les marées audessus de Berniéres et
de Langrane. De nombreuses et puissantes racines s’enfoncent en
effet dans les fissures des rochers mis Anu. Les commissaries du Car-
dinal de Richelieu trouyérent, 4 défaut dela forét, un petit port &
Berniéres ; la Seulles y debouchait en s’inflechissant 4 ]’E., et de vastes
BY
marais s’étendaient 4 l’ouest jusqu’d Anelles 4 12 km, de distance.
124 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Depuis la mer a dévoré le port et les marais; elle a racourci le cours de
la Seulles de 3 km., et il ne reste plus du havre de 1640, qu’une serie
de bas fonds ot la retraite de la marée laisse de longues flaques d’eau.
I] est du reste permis de voir un indice de transformations bien plus
vaste’, dans les vestiges de retranchements romains qui, de Réviers a
Tailleville et A St. Aubin enveloppent Courseulles. La charrue met
souvent a découvert dans leur vate enceinte des briques, des fragments
de poterie antique, et des médailles. I] est peu probable que les
Romains se fussent si fortement installés sur ce point s’ils n’avaient eu
qu’une insignifiante station navale 4 protéger, et l’ancienne configura-
tion du rivage donnait sans doute a leur établissement militaire des
raisons d’étre qui n’existent plus. La cote est encore rongée par le
flot ; mais, A mesure que les dentelures s’en emoussent, elle donne moins
de priseaux courants.
The same Dictionary, speaking of the English Channel (the
‘“‘Manche”’), says: “La triple action des météores, des courants et
des vagues de marée, continue de ronger incessamment les rivages du
grand détroit. Batz, Traigoz, les sept Iles, Bréhat, sont les restes
d’un littoral disparu. Au N. les Scilly Is., le cap Land’s end, le cap
Lizard, se dressent dans une mer toujours agitée par le flot et le jusant.
Les météores fissurent en haut les rochers que la mer sape en bas, et
d’énormes blocs s’écroulent dans les flots et y forment des écueils.
De quelques uns de ces écueils imagination populaire a fait les ‘ Armed
Knights’ (les chevaliers armés), défenseurs des continents; mais a
leur tour ils cédent a la pression des vagues et s’engloutiront tout & fait.
A Vest des granits résistants de Treguier, les cdtes ont 6t6 fortement
entamées par le flot, et des péninsules comme Herviant, Verderlet,
Cezembre, sont deyenu des jles.
‘Tans le sud de Vile de Jersey des roches et des gréves, que ser-
vaient de fondement a des terres disparues, s’etendent 4 marée basse.
jusqu’a 3 k./metres du rivage.
“Les falaises de Normandie composées de matériaux beaucoup
moins durs que les promontoires de la Manche occidentales sont plus
facilement entamées. Le recul des falaises de la Seine Inférerieure et
du Calvados est d’enyiron 25 a 30 c/metres en moyenne par an. Sur
les cotes de |’ Angleterre situées en face, l’erosion est plus rapide encore.
La masse totale des rochers que la Manche Orientale brise chaque année
est évaluee a environ 10 millions de m./eubes.. Kn 1862 pendant une
1 Maréchal, ‘‘ Ann. des ponts et chaussées.”’
O’Rei.ty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, Sc. 125
tempéte les rochers de la Héve se sont éboulés sur une épaisseur de
15 métres. Dans les ages antéricurs l’Angleterre était rattachée A la
terre ferme, par un isthme a jonction qui a été graduellement rompu
par le choc et la pression des vagues. Plus a lest au Pas de Calais,
la falaise du cap Gris-nez récule en moyenne de 25 métres par siécle
A Pouestde Dover, la falaise de Shakespeare d’aprés Mr. Beete Jukes
areculé de 2 k./métres depuis le temps de Jules Ceesar.
‘¢ Mais le flot qui détruit, édifie aussi, et a ’'extremité orientale de
la Manche on peut constater un des examples les plus frappants de
Vinfluence des marées sur la forme des rivages. ‘ Une plaine basse et
marécageuse dite, Romney Marsh,’ qui se termine a la pointe de
Dungeness s’est formée par l’arrét du courant de marée qui vient de la
Mer du Nord. Le flot de l’Atlantique arrache a la base des falaises
crayeuses de Hastings des débris siliceux qui ne pouvant passer la
pointe de rencontre des marées, s’arrétent le long du Romney Marsh
et le prolongent coutinuellement en mer. La pointe Dungeness
saccroit d’environ 0™ 50 par an.’ Ailleurs la mer a procédé par
enyasement, en déposant des débris d’algues et d’animalcules mélés
au sable et a Vargile, et cest ainsi qu’elle a fait avancer le profil
des rivages dans le golfe de Carentan, a la racine de la péninsule
de Cotentin.”
The same Dictionary speaks as follows of the coast of the Depart-
ment of ‘ Ille et Vilaine ’’ :—
‘‘Le plus élevé (plissement de terrain) de tous, Haute-Forét, n’a que
255 m.; dominant les sources de |’ Aff, affluent de l’Oult, il se dresse
pres des frontiéres du Morbihan, dans la forét de Paimpont, dont les
6070 hect. sont un faible débris de antique et célébre forét de Brocé-
liande. Toutes les collines du pays, tous ses plateaux, tout cela fut
jadis une forét immense, qui de plus en plus s’éfface.
‘‘De ces bois sans fin faisait partie, du temps de Romains, le Serssza-
cum nemus, laforét de Scissey, envahie brusquement par la mer en 709
dit on, et devenue alors une gréve marécageuse qu’on a desséchée, et
remplacée par une plaine humide de 15,000 hect. appartenant a 23 com-
munes. OC’est le marais de Dol, entre le massif de Dol et celui de St.
Malo ; ‘ Petite Hollande,’ ayant ses dignes parfois ébréchées par les
assauts des flots, ses canaux, ses moulins a vent, ses marais, ses brumes
grises. C’est en percgant, pendant les grandes marées d’équinoxe, un
cordon littoral allant des caps de Granville au Grouin de Cancale
que la mer recouvrit les terres basses du Sevsstacum nemus. Ce fut la
plus grande,perturbation qui se soit produite sur la cote de la France.
La digue qui protége le marais de Dol domine d’un métre et demi les
126 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
plus hautes marées d’équinoxe. De l’embouchure du Ginoult a la
pointe de Chateau Richeux la rivage reste plat, mais a cette pointe
commence la fameuse cote de Bretagne, une des plus déchiquetées,
des plus sauvages, des plus sombres, des plus orageuses du monde
entier. Le littoral n’est pas moins déchiqueté qu’a lest et les terribles
écueils dont la mer est parsemée, le rendent trés dangéreux pendant
les mauvais temps.”
Speaking of the Departement de Finisterre, this Dictionary says:—
“ Comme Vindique son nom, le Finisterre forme au sein de l’Océan
Vavant garde du Continent Armoricain, les deux points de Raz et de
St. Mathieu, celle-ci granitique, celle-la gneissique, s’avancent dans
les flots et soutiennent vaillamment leurs premiers assauts; des roches.
de schiste, moins résistantes, ont cédé sous l’effort de la vague furieuse,
et y a creusé la rade de Brest et la baie de Douarnenez. Fouettées 4
fois par jour aux deux marées montantes et aux deux jusants, secouées.
souvent par des vagues de tempétes, les extremités de la peninsule sont
assaillies par ces terribles agents de destruction. De la toutes ces
petites iles violemment séparées de la terre ferme, ces pans de mur, a
demi-ensévilis sous les sables, et ces traditions de villes détruites qui
temoignent partout des progrés de l’Océan. A Vaide des jalons de
granit épars sur les bas fonds, on peut, avec quelque certitude fixer a
25 km. le minimum des envahissements de |’ Atlantique depuis l’anti-
quité. Dans la baie de la Forét, sur les cotes de Penmarch, du Raz,
du Conquet des constructions et des troncs d’arbres témoignent des
pertes récentes qu’a fait ici la terre ferme.”
Describing the Department of the Loire Inférieure the same
Dictionary says: ‘‘Le ‘szllon de Bretagne’ est élevé presque par-
tout de 60" a 80™;—seulement 4 91™-de hauteur supréme prés du
Temple de Bretagne. Entre Saveney et Port Chateau il commande:
les Briéres, marais souvent inondés, prairies tourbeuses, dont la plus
vaste, est la Grande Briere, entre Loire au S. la Vilaine au N.
et les hauteurs de Guernande qui la séparent de |’Atlantique a
Ouest. Longue de 15 km., large de 10 km., elle a bien 8000 hect.
a altitude moyenne de 8". Ancienne forét mouillée, pleine encore
de trones noircis par un long séjour dans le tourbe, on la voit tour a
tour et suivant la saison, nappe sans profondeur, ot l’on chasse les
oiseaux d’eau, prairie ot pait le mouton, et d’ou les Briérons tirent par
milliers de tonnes la tourbe—entre la grande Briere et les ‘bogs’
d’Irlande, il n’y a point de différence—des foréts qui croissaient
autrefois sur le sol envahi par les tourbes, ont été étouffées, et les
arbres tombés pour la plupart, dans la direction du vent principal,
O’Ruritty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 127
se montrent encore parfaitement conservés sous la couche a demi
carbonisée des sphaignes; leur bois devenu aussi noir, aussi dur,
que l’ébéne, est assez bien conservé pour ¢tre débité et transformé en
parquet.
As regards the Départment de Vendée, the Dictionary says :—
‘‘La dans ce que nous nommons maintenant la Baie de Bourgneuf
entre la cote de France et Noirmoutier, elle a deposé, dépose et
déposera, des alluvions jusqu’a comblement, devant le continent
toujours accru, 4 labri de la roche, et du sable de Vile, qui s’éléve
en briselame contre les vagues du grand large. Il n’y a présentement
ici qu’une seule terre en mer, Noirmontier, mais quand ce rem-
blaiement commenga, le rivage regardait trois iles, Noirmoutiers,
au N.W., Retz, rocher de schiste au S.E., et entre les deux,
Vile de Monts. Ce que l’Océan laissa tomber ici, ce qui y tom e
encore, c’est la ruine des caps bretons, la vase de la Loire, les menus
fragments des caps de Noirmoutiers, et quelques boues des ruisseaux
du rivage. De plus le sol s’exhausse, du moins on le croit. Tout
endiguement a part, la France a gagné durant les deux derniéres
siécles quelques 700 hectares dans la Baie de Bourgneuf, ainsi appelée
de la ville de Bourgneuf en Retz (Loire Inf.) jadis riveraine, tandis
que 2 k.m. de plaine basse et de marais salants, la séparent du flot a
cette heure ; de méme Beauvoir-sur-mer est 4 4 km. de la mer.”
If it were merely wished to establish the general fact of the
wasting action of the sea on the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland
many more examples of such wasting action could be cited from
Lyell’s ‘“‘ Principles of Geology,” particularly the excellent details as
regards the north-east of Scotland and the east and south-east of
England. The main object in making the citations already given, has
been to allow of a more just appreciation of the action of the Atlantic
waves on the coast of Ireland, and of the consequent waste which
must have been, and is incessantly going on day by day, although
unobserved and unrecorded for the most part. Turning, therefore,
to the examination of the coasts of Ireland, that of the eastern side
will be considered first, commencing with the coast-line of Wexford.
The National Gazetteer (1868) says of the coast: ‘‘The coast is
generally low and shingly from Kilmichael Point, in the north-east, to
Wexford Harbour, a distance of nearly 30 miles, and is skirted along
the entire line by a series of sand-banks marked at their northern
extremity by the Arklow ship-light.”
Dr. Joyce, in Philips’ ‘‘ Atlas of Ireland” (1833), says of the
R.I.A. PROC., XXIV., SEC. B. | Mu
128 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
“ Coast-line”’: ‘‘ The coast is low, and for the most part sandy, inter-
rupted in a few places by fringes of rock; it is unbroken from Kil-
michael Point to the Raven Point; but from this to Waterford
Harbour it is much indented by inlets.”
In the Proceedings, Roy. Ir. Academy, Series ii., Science, vol. ii.
(1877-83), Mr. George H. Kinahan published a Paper on Sea-beaches,
especially those of Wexford and Wicklow, of which the following are
extracts :-—
(p. 191.)—‘‘ During the time I have been engaged on the Geolo-
gical Survey of Ireland (over twenty years) I have had, when stationed
in maritime districts, favourable opportunities of observing the sea-
beaches. This has been especially so during the last six years
while I have been engaged in examining the counties of Wicklow and
Wexford, and in these years the observations made were both numerous
and minute.”
(p. 192.)—‘‘ The western Saltee current runs north-east to Kilmore
Pier, where it turns westward, and forms the ‘counter tide’ that
meets the Hook current at the Keragh Island. At the meeting of
these two currents a shoal has accumulated. Under ordinary circum-
stances the current from Hook carries the beach with it only to the
neighbourhood of Keragh, as proved by the fact that the stones from
Hook promontory are rarely found beyond Keragh. The ‘counter
tide’ west of Kilmore carries the beach north-west along Ballyteige
Bay, and during the last 40 years (since the Ordnance Map was made)
has lengthened the Ballyteige sand-hills more than 200 feet.”
(p. 193.)—‘* The Cahore shingle beach is about 8 miles long, and
is largely composed of fragments of the Greenore and Carnsore rocks ;
with these there are others from the cliffs along the Blackwater
coast. Opposite Courtown (north of Cahore) is the ‘ zodal,’ or ‘ hinge-
line,’ of the tides on the south portion of the Irish Sea, where the
rise is least and the current greatest. The refuse from the shipping
at Courtown Harbour, such as bits of brick, tile, slate, coal, &c., are
principally stranded along the beach a few miles south-west of Kil-
michael Point. On this beach, Greenore and Carnsore rock fragments
are not uncommon; but in the two small bays to the north of the
Point the gravel and shingle is made up almost solely of the local
rocks, many of the fragments being more or less angular. The débris
from the shipping at Arklow is principally beached on the strand
south-west of Mizen Head.
(p. 195.)—‘“‘ The effects of the Wind Waves: The waves of this
class that act on this coast are of two kinds, viz., ‘ ground swells,’ or
O’Rritty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 129
waves generated by storms in the Atlantic or the Channel, and the
waves directly due to the winds blowing on the coast. Their effects
are either to pile up and fill the beaches or to cut them out. If they
strike the beach at a right angle, they fill it up, forming ‘fulls’ or
‘storm beaches, while, if they are running in a more or less opposite
direction to the flow-tide, they cut out the beach.”
(p. 197.) —‘‘ Consequently, during the last 40 years, the coast-
line between Lady’s Island lake and Kilmore has been considerably
denuded away, especially in the vicinity of St. Patrick’s Bridge.
These beaches, during the continuous east and north-east winds of
the spring of 1876, changed from their ordinary gravel into ‘‘ fulls ”
of shingle.
“In the North Bay all winds seem to ‘ cut out,’ this being due to
the complication of the tidal currents, the beaches rarely being full
except in the summer and autumn, when there are no winds. On
account of the great cutting out along the beach, the marginal cliffs
have been vastly denuded within the last 40 years. The ‘ Cahore
shingle beach, at the north of the bay, is fullest during south and
south-east gales, while it is cut out by winds from the north-east,
and by ‘ ground swells.’ After south and south-west gales it is often
smothered up with fine sand blown from the adjoining accumulations
of Aolian Drift.
‘A little to the north of Cahore Point is Poulduff Pier, with the
beaches accumulated since it was erected, while farther north are the
piers and other works at Courtown.
‘‘On the coast-line, south (fig. 4, pl. 6) and north (fig. 5, pl. 6)
of Kilmichael Point, there has been considerable denudation of the
sand-hills since the Ordnance Survey was made (7.e. 40 years ago).
‘In the first-mentioned localities over 37 acres have been carried
away by gales from the south-east. Here there is an exceedingly
swift tidal current to the north-north-east, which, under ordinary
circumstances, carries all the beach with it, and leaves no protection
between the sea and the sand-hills ; consequently, under these circum-
stances, during south-east gales, the wind-waves have full power on
the latter, which they then rapidly denude away.
“* ( Note.)—(This is a most remarkable place, as in recent years the
sand-hills at one time seem to be forming and at other times wasting
away. Some of the old men can point out the extensions of the sand-
hills prior to the Ordnance Survey, and the roads that used to lead to
them, which now end at stiff cliffs; while one old man, in June,
1875, pointed out in a cliff that had only been uncovered the previous
M 2
130 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
winter, an old quarry that must have been worked with iron tools
prior to the accumulation of the sand-hills that existed there when
the Ordnance Survey was made).
‘“‘ Northward of Kilmichael Point, in the bay at the mearing of the
eounties Wicklow and Wexford, the denudation of the sand-hills has
also been considerable within the last forty years (fig. 4, pl. 6), more
than 20 acres in the townland of Cloon Lower and Upper having been
swept away.”
(p. 199.)—‘‘ It ought to be specially pointed out, that the storms
which cut out the beaches may not be the same as those which denude
away the marginal cliffs. A small storm, when the strand is empty,
may do great damage to the coast-line.
‘* (Vote.)—After very wet seasons great falls of cliffs often take
place. The natives will often tell you that so many yards are going
yearly, and, in proof of this assertion, will point to the waste of the
previous winter, they supposing the same happens every year. The
greatest falls occur at the highest cliffs, on which account the greatest
waste is supposed to be taking place in those localities; but, after
eareful calculation, I find this not to be the case. None of the high
eliffs reach an average waste of 0°75 feet per annum, and generally
the loss is less than 0°50 feet per annum, while in places the low
eliffs have been denuded away as much as 2°5 feet per annum. The
greatest denudation on the whole line of coast between Hook and
Dalkey is at the low cliff near St. Patrick’s Bridge, Kilmore.
‘“‘ Extraordinary high tides, unaccompanied with wind, seem to
do little or no damage on an open seaboard. In March, 1867, there
was aremarkable high tide on the coast of Galway, the traces of
whieh were scarcely perceptible along the open coast, even on the
sand-hills ; but in the land-locked bays it did considerable damage to
the piers and sea-walls.
‘“On January 3rd, 1877, there was on the east coast a very high
tide, which along the Wicklow coast was accompanied by a very
moderate wind. This did considerable damage to the Dublin and
Wicklow Railway between Greystones and Wicklow; not so much
by the direct force of the waves as by their height, they flowing over
the line, and the overflow cutting into the land side of the embankment,
thus gradually eating out the beaches. Between Newcastle and
Wicklow Chemical Works it encroached in many places, as much as
3 yards into the Morrough (anglice, the plain).”
11867. 2. Sunspot minimum.
O’Reri.Lty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &e. 131
(p. 202.)—‘‘ Some of the big waves or ‘rollers’ that visit the
coast, on rare occasions are due to earthquakes.”
(p. 203.)—“' At the Kish Bank, off Dublin Bay, an attempt was
made to erect a light-house on screw piles; but it was given up, as
the flanges of the piles were broken by large blocks in the accumula-
tion of sand.”
(p. 207.)—‘‘ On no coast are groynes so necessary as that now
under consideration, especially in parts of Wexford and Dublin where
valuable land is yearly disappearing ; yet they have been erected
only in isolated spots.”’
In the Memoir of the Geological Survey of Ireland, accompanying
sheets Nos. 158 and 159, including the district around Enniscorthy,
County Wexford, by G. H. Kinahan, m.z.1.4. (1882) the following
observations occur :—
(p. 32.)—‘* Some of the newest accumulations are the estuarine
mudlands of the northintake inthe Wexford lagoon. These mudlands are
described in the published memoir to accompany sheets 169, 170, &c.
To the north-east of this intake, at Curracloe and Ballinesker, both
inside and outside the AMolian Drift, which is the northern end of the
Raven Spit, is deep peat. That outside is cut when the tide is out,
and carried up above high-water mark, to be dried and made into
turf. Outside the marginal Aolian Drift hills in the Ram Channel,
peat has been dredged at the 4 fathom line.”
(p. 34.) —‘‘ In Ballynaclash, about 3 mile south-west of the mouth
of the Blackwater there is the following section :—
‘*(Section No. 4.)
feet.
8. Soil, 2
7. Clay, 06 cc 30 1
6. Peat, ne a0 .. fromlinch to 1
5. Blue Clay, 30 .. from 7inchesto 1°65
4. Peat, 60 5A .. fromilinch to 1:25
3. Pebbly Clay, very irregular, as it is
filing what seems to be a water 8
excavation in theassociated sand, ;
2. ManureSand, .. 00
1. Clayey Glacialoid Drift, .. os 5A ie 30
44°75
At this place the denudation is excessive, the cliff being altogether
changed since Mr. Wyley made a sketch of it about thirty years ago
(1850-52); while since 1840 a strip of land about 175 feet wide has
disappeared or at a rate of over 4°25 feet per annum.
From here south-west to Ballinesker (1°75 mile) the drift is
132 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
alternations of sand and marl, within places, Glacialoid Drift ; also to
the south of Ballyvalloo, the previously mentioned rib of Boulder
Clay Drift (fig. 5). The denudation of the cliff is considerable, rarely
less than 2 feet per annum; and in some places, as in the vicinity of
Ballyvalloo House, it is over 3 feet.
In the Memoir to sheets 169, 170, 180, and 181 of the
Geological Survey of Ireland by Mr. G. H. Kinahan, w.z.1.4. (1879),
p- 14, the author states :—
(p. 15.)—‘“‘ In connexion with this area, the denudation of the
coast line should be described, as a considerable waste of land yearly
takes place. The Ordnance maps of the country were published
about 1840 or thirty-five years ago. (lVote.—The cliffs were examined
in 1875.) If, therefore, the present coast line is mapped, an estimate
can be made of the annual waste of the drift cliffs. While examining
these cliffs, it was observed that the effects of denudation varied
according to the nature ofthe drift. The Glacial Drift, in general, best
resisted the encroachment of the sea; but ina few places it has been
considerably wasted. In such places the sea undermined the bottom
of the cliffs, causing great falls, principally due to their own weight.
Joints open in the marl during the dry weather; if these are
perpendicular or oblique to the line of the cliff the water percolates
through them, and the cliffs remain more or less perpendicular ; but if
they are parallel or nearly so to the line of cliff, they fill with water,
causing great slips, which masses, after coming under the influence
of the waves of the sea, are dissolved and wasted away. Such clifis
gave way in mass, but the slips are so extensive, that it takes years
before the sea can remove the débris, thus giving time to a protecting
slope to form. If marl is interstratified with sand, gravel or other
drift, the waste of the cliff is usually very rapid.”
To the south-west, the Baginbun promontory is margined with
rocks, and very little denudation is apparent, except in the black
shales at Petit’s Bay, between Carnivan and Baginbun Heads. To
the east of Bannow Bay, for about 3 miles, the sea cliffs, in general,
have a rock foundation, over which the drift may be glacial, aqueous,
or meteoric. Ina few places the rocks have protected the cliffs, but
in many places they have been eaten away. In the townland of
Bannow, to the south of the old church, over 60 feet in depth have
been cut away since 1840, or at arate of 1:71 feet per annum. In
the vicinity of Kiln Bay, and at the east margin of the townland,
there has also been considerable waste, respectively, of about 2 and
O’Re1tty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &ec. 133
2°5 feet per annum. Further eastward, at the south-west of the
townland of Haggard, the waste is nearly 1-5 foot per annum, but in
the east portion of the townland, also in those of Blackhall and Loftus
Acre, it has been excessive, in places reaching 3 feet per annum.
‘Further eastward, in the townland of Ballymadder, the denuda-
tion is less, being about 1-5 feet per annum. This is also the average
in the western portion of Cullenstown. In these places, at the base of
the cliff in the aqueous drift, are recent sandstones or conglomerates
that resist the sea action, and thus preserve the accumulation resting
on them, while at the east of the townland, opposite the end of
Ballyteige Warren, there has been great waste, over 3 feet per annum.
The Ballyteige Warren is an irregular ridge of Molian Drift. Its
outer margin seems to have been more or less cut away since 1840,
whilst its western end has grown more than 400 feet in length. At
the east of Crossfarnoge Point, to the eastward of Ballyteige Warren,
shingle has accumulated west of Kilmore Quay ; but a little farther
eastward, north and north-east of St. Patrick’s Bridge in the
townland of Nemestown, there has been considerable waste, in some
places as much as 200 feet since 1840, or over 5 feet per annum; at
this place there seems to have been the maximum denudation on the
south coast.
‘‘ Farther east-north-east, in the townlands of Ballygrangans,
Bastardstown, and Ballyhealy (Wexford ++), the waste is about 1:4
per annum, and in Ringbaun and Ballagh about 1 foot.
“Between Tacumshin and Lady’s Island lakes, the denudation
of the coast line has been from 5 to 50 feet in the last thirty-seven
years, while the bank enclosing the latter lagoon (Lady’s Island lake)
has been pushed inland more than 60 feet. Eastward, in Burrow,
Wexford (Wexford Sheet 53), the coast has been cut away at about a
rate of 75 foot per annum, the denudation ceasing suddenly as we
approach Carnsore Point.
‘“At Carnsore Point and from that northwards to the old coast-
guard station at St. Helen’s, there has been very little general
denudation of the coast, although the strand margin for the most part
is drift. In a few places, the denudation is more or less considerable.
‘From the old coast-guard station of St. Helen’s to Greenore, and
from that eastward and northward to Rosslare coast-guard station,
considerable denudation has taken place. Here the cliffs are high
and formed of marl. They therefore nearly invariably come down
in slides, the débris of which must be removed by the sea before
another slide takes place, and but for this the waste would be much
134 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
more rapid. Between St. Helen’s and Greenore Point, the waste has
been 1 foot per annum. Between Greenore and Ballygeary pier,
-25 foot, and between the pier and Rosetown about -50 foot. The
denudation here being greatest in the townland of Hill of the Sea,
-75 foot.
(p. 17.)—‘* The new pier of Ballygeary exemplifies how easily, by
a well regulated system of groynes, the denudation of this coast
could be arrested. The pier was commenced in the spring of 1873,
and in 1875 a large accumulation of sand had collected along the
coast to the south-east, but especially in the vicinity of the pier
where now (1878) sand-dunes are forming. This accumulation forms
a foreshore that is gradually stopping the denudation of the cliff.
The cliff to the westward of the pier also now suffers less from
denudation.
‘From Rosslare coast-guard station (Rosehill) to Ballinesker
(Wexford #2), are the banks (Rosslare and the Raven) that enclose
the lagoon of Wexford Harbour. They are composed of Aolian Drift,
and have been considerably altered, especially Rosslare since 1840.
Opposite White House, at the land or south end of Rosslare, the
coast line has moved westward or inland over 100 feet (3 feet per
annum). Opposite Rosslare House, about 75 feet (2 feet per annum),
and a mile and a quarter farther north, where the denudation is
greatest, about 203 feet or 5°74 per annum. From this point north-
wards, the denudation decreases to the Bull’s Perch, where it is
50 feet (1:45 per annum), but to the north thereof it again rapidly
increases, being at 170 yards north of that point, 150 feet (about
4 feet per annum), the banks in places being breached, and the sea
passing through it during gales from the south-east. Further north
the bank originally had a very irregular outline, but now it has been
considerably added to inside, while outside in places it has been cut
away. The length of the bank has also increased northward.
When it was examined in 1876, the Dogger Bank, off the mouth of
Wexford Harbour, was of considerable size, and in part an island.
This, however, has quite changed in the last two years, the island
having disappeared, and consequently the form of the northern portion
of the Rosslare has also changed.”
(p- 18.)—‘‘ The changes in the forms of the Rosslare and Raven
Banks are in a great measure due to the intaking of the north and
south midlands in Wexford Harbour, as now the outflow of the
water is much less than formerly ; consequently the ‘ Flow tide’
wave current from the south changed the form of the Dogger Bank
O’Re1tty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 135
from a massive shoal to the south of the entrance, into a long narrow
bank that overlapped the mouth, and even the end of the Raven Bank,
and changed altogether the tidal currents and the drift of the sand.
(p. 82.) —‘‘ Tomhaggard District.—The sections along this coast have
greatly changed since they were examined thirty years ago (1858)
by Wilson. They are even much changed since the above records
were noted in 1873. Sometimes when ‘the beaches are full,’ none
of the base of the cliffs can be seen, as occurred in September, 1878.”
(p. 36.)—‘* Raven and Rosslare Burrows.—There is a tradition that
the ancient entrance into Wexford estuary, was to the north, in the
vicinity of Curracloe. This is not at all improbable, but it must have
been in very ancient times to allow for the great depth of peat now
accumulated at Curracloe.
(p- 386.)—‘‘ The hollows occupied by Wexford estuary are very
ancient. The present outline for the most part was induced by the
25 feet sea, but since that time, while the land was lower than at
present, and subsequently the shore lines underwent various modi-
fications. The surface area of the estuary, however, has changed
considerably since the time of the 25 feet sea-beach. Subsequently
to the time of the 25 feet beach, the land was at least 30 feet
higher than at present to allow the peat to grow. After it had
again sunk, the sand-bars seem to have formed, but farther seaward
than at present, as otherwise the peat would not be found under,
and to seaward of them. Other submerged peaty and lagoon deposits
have been recorded south-west of Greenore Point, in the neighbour-
hood of Ballytrent and St. Margaret’s, where there are sites of small
lagoons margined by sand-ridges. Under and outside the latter,
being peaty accumulations. Of the latter locality, Mr. Wyly re-
cords ‘ Bog with trees ; exposed between high- and low-water marks
of spring tide.’”’
(p. 47.)—‘‘ Kilmore district.—Further eastward the cliffs are low,
and have in general olian Drift above, and gravelly Glacialoid Drift
below. The sections given are very different to those recorded by
Mr. Wyly when examining the coast about thirty years ago (1858),
as the marine denudation during the intervening years has been
excessive. Prior to leaving the drift, it may be mentioned that, as
in all the Glacialoid Drift between Crossgarnoge Point and Tacumshin
Lake, fragments of shells and flints may be found, more especially
near the top and the bottom of the accumulations according as the
gravels and sands lie under or over it. They are also numerous in
the inlying patches and layers of sand.
136 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
(p. 48.)—‘' The Saltee Islands.—These islands lie to the south of
the mainland, and are connected with it by a bar or ridge that is
partially submerged and partially tidal, the latter portion being
called St. Patrick’s Bridge. On the east of St. Patrick’s Bridge are
some large blocks, the residue of the drift that has been cut away by
the sea, the largest being called ‘St. Patrick’s boat,’ from a legend
connected with it. It is aremarkably large erratic.”
(p. 50.)—‘* The bar of AMolian Drift that separates the Lady’s
Island lagoon from the open sea is, in places, swept over during
storms and high tides. Outside the bar, during storms, the sea tears
up large pieces of sandy, clay peat, similar to that at the bottom of
the lake. On the east coast, between Crossfintan Point and Carna
House, there is a low ridge of Molian Drift, while north of Carna
House is a submarine peat extending below low-water mark.”
Wicklow Coast.—Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, 121 and
130 (1869), by J. Beete Jukes, m.a., F.x.s., and G. V. Du Noyer,
M.R.1.A. No particulars given.
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, 1388 and 189 (1888), R. J.
Cruise, M.R.I.A.
(p. 22.)—‘* Raised Sea- Coast.—All along the coast of the counties
of Wicklow and Wexford, the evidences of a recent rise in the
sea bed and adjoining coast are remarkably clear. These consist in
the occurrence of terraces and flats formed of silt, sand, and shelly
gravel, rising a few feet above the high-water line, and bounded inland
by cliffs or abrupt banks (according to the nature of the material and
form of the ground), which originally constituted the sea margin at
the time when the terraces and flats were submerged. The actual
extent of rise of the coast and sea-bed is uncertain ; but the old sea-
bed generally lies from six to twelve feet above the highest tides,
The level is often increased by hillocks or dunes of blown sand which
have been thrown up by the winds, as is the case in Brittas Bay,
Arklow Bay, and other protected inlets. In the district contained in
Sheet 139, examples of the raised coast are to be observed in the
bays lying between the headlands, and in a direction from north to
south they occur—
‘‘(1) In Brittas Bay, between the Castle Rock of Ballynacarrig
(Sheet 130) and Mizen Head.
(2) Between Mizen Head and the coast cliffs of Kilbride.
O’Rettty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 187
‘““(3) In Arklow Bay, both to the north and south of the Ovoca
River.
‘‘(4) In the bay south of Arklow Head (see fig. 3); and
‘‘(5 and 6) In the bays north and south of Kilmichael Point.
‘“«The old sea margin is in these cases generally very clearly defined
by banks from 10 to 30 feet high, formed either of marl or slaty
strata, from the base of which the low terrace stretches seaward as
far as the abrupt descent which forms the margin of the existing sea-
shore. The old sea-bed is now covered either by sand-dunes, or,
where these are absent, is green with coarse grass and other land
plants.”
Dublin Coast—Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 91
and 92 (1871), by Edward Hull, m.a., F.n.s., F.¢.8., and R. J. Cruise,
M.R.I.A.
(p. 42.)—‘' Raised Beaches.—A raised beach is seen in detached
places along the shore from Balbriggan to Lowther Lodge. North
of the lodge it stands from 5 to 8 feet above high-water mark; and
shells which had in most cases lost their colour, and were generally in
a fragmentary state, were foundtherein. (List of same by Mr.Baily).
Dublin Coast.—Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 102
and 112 (1861).
(p. 50.)—*‘ Drift (Lambay Island).—This deposit exists merely on
the low ground which extends along the western margin of the island,
and in no respects differs from the ordinary brown drift gravel clay,
containing boulders and rounded lumps of the Carboniferous limestone
which is so common over Ireland. Here, however, as we would
naturally expect, this clay contains a large percentage of rounded
fragments of the local porphyries, but nothing to stamp it as a local
deposit. It is, however, evident that, at the period of its deposition,
Lambay Island formed a part of the mainland. This clay does not
extend more than 100 feet, if so much, up the flanks of the more
elevated portion of the island, and beneath it the rock surfaces are
rounded, smoothed, and scratched, the directions of the striz being
north-west and south-east.”’
(p. 66.)—‘‘ The Drift.—The drift over the whole of this county
consists of two deposits. The first a black or brown gravelly
calcareous clay, containing a large amount of rolled limestone
fragments of various sizes as the lowest deposit; and the second,
loose sand and gravel, consisting ’ principally of limestone pebbles,
138 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
though fragments derived from all sorts of Lower Silurian, and such ~
kinds of rock, form a large percentage of the whole. Pebbles of
granite are not uncommon in this gravel, and chalk flints and
pebbles are also sometimes present. The lowest of these deposits is
found over the northern portion of the district under review, but it
terminates at elevations varying from 300 to 400 feet above the sea.”’
(p. 67.)—** Shennick’s Island, opposite Skerries, affords an interest-
ing proof of the extreme age of this drift clay. It measures (1860) 575
yards in length, from north-west to south-east, by about 150 in width,
and is formed of thin gravelly clay, which the sea has now abruptly
escarped on the north-west of the island to the depth of 46 feet. On
the opposite shore, south of Skerries, the same deposit is also escarped
by the sea, to the depth of 41 feet, the distance between the two
being in one place close on three-quarters of a mile. This channel
has, therefore, been cut by the sea long subsequent to the deposition
of this clay, which, no doubt, represents the remains of what was
once a very large extent of land stretching into the Irish Sea. The
same fact, just noticed, has been mentioned in connexion with Lambay
Island, which is two miles and a-half from the nearest point of the
mainland, the deepest part of the channel being over five fathoms.
The east face of Howth, also, affords us another proof of the existence
of land haying extended here far into the sea. On the top of the
cliffs, from Foxhole to the north of Lough Levin on the south, a
distance of 600 yards, we found this brown gravelly clay, containing
numerous limestone pebbles, plastered against the rocks, and termi-
nating at an elevation of about 100 feet above the sea, having a main
width of only 70 yards.”
Enough has been said to prove the great antiquity of this deposit
by the amazing amount of denudation which has taken place since its
formation.
On the shore, one quarter of a mile west of Malahide, there is a
layer of gravelly clay, three feet thick and six feet above high-water
mark, containing recent shells and fragments of granite, chalk, and
flint. At low-water mark there is exposed on the beach east of
Malahide, blue marly clay, containing the dead shells of a species of
Pholas, &c.
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, to sheets 121 and 130,
portions of Counties of Wicklow and Dublin. J. Beete Jukes, m.a.,
F.R.S., and G. V. Du Noyer (1869).
(p. 46.)—*‘ The area described lies wholly in the County Wicklow,
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 189
except a small part along its northern border, which belongs to
the County Dublin. Along the seabeach, between Bray and Grey-
stones, there are low cliffs of marl, with limestone and other pebbles
and fragments of shells, over which is a deposit of sand and gravel.”
(It is in these cliffs that the action of the sea, already referred
to, has been so marked, undercutting them and causing the cliff face
to fall away, and be subsequently removed by the tidal action. As
already mentioned, the waste has been so considerable that the railway
line as originally laid down, at a slight distance from the face of the
cliff, has been so endangered by the approach of the cliff face, that
the line had to be withdrawn inland at some considerable expense,
while costly works of underpinning and strengthening the base by
stockades and groyns has been going on up to quite lately. The same
remarks hold good as regards the stretch between Bray river and
Ballybrack).
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, sheets 91 and 92 (1891).
The area included in the sheets embraces portions of the Counties of
Meath, Louth, and a small tract of the County Dublin (no available
particulars given).
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 81 and 82 (1871).
These maps embrace the greater part of the County Louth, showing
fourteen or fifteen miles of its coast-line (no particulars given).
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, sheets 60, 61, and part of
71 (1881). The District described in the Memoir lies wholly in the
County Down.
(p. 20.)—‘* Ravsed beaches.—There are numerous indications around
the coast that the land has been raised in recent times. These indica-
tions occur in the form of terraces, consisting of stratified sands and
gravels, often containing marine shells of the species now inhabiting
the neighbouring seas, with possibly a few forms which may have
disappeared. These terraces were clearly old sea-beds, and they have
since been raised into land-surfaces beyond the reach of the highest
tides. Such terraces are found skirting the northern shores of Dundrum
Bay, partially covered and concealed by sand-hills, and extending to
the foot of the high ground at Newcastle. They again appear, form-
ing a very narrow strip along the coast at Annalong, where they have
been subjected to the wasting effects of the waves; but on both sides
of the entrance to Carlingford Lough, at Soldiers Point and Greenore
140 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Point, they form considerable tracts of level land and may be con-
yeniently examined. Of these terraces, which may be probably called
‘raised beaches,’ there appear to be two; the lower, rising from 3 to
to 7 feet above high-water mark of spring-tides; the second, from
10 to 15 feet above the same datum. Mr. Trail has described these
terraces as they occur at Greenore, where, in the stratified gravels of
which they are formed, there are bands of oyster shells, together
with shells of the genera Mytilis, Pecten, Natica, Littorina, &c. At
Killowen, near Rostreyor, similar shells were found in shingle, 10 feet
- above high-water mark. The two terraces on the opposite shore are
similar in formation.
*< On the lower terrace, that of about 10 to 15 feet above high-water
mark, is built the town of Warrenpoint, together with the old keep
of Narrowwater, on the estuary of the Newry river.
‘« At Annalong Harbour the terrace is at 40 feet elevation above
Ordnance datum, or a little over 22 feet above high-water line; this
is, therefore, the upper terrace. The terrace bordering the coast near
Dundrum is referable to the first or lower level.”
(p. 21.)—‘‘ Other remains of raised beaches are to be found at
intervals along the shores of Carlingford Lough to Warrenpoint from
10 to 12 feet above the water-line.
‘** Tn addition to the raised beaches, clear indications of terraces,
formed out of the drift deposits are to be observed at several levels,
viz. at those of 50, 75, and 159 feet. These are often more easily to
be recognised when viewed at some little distance than when standing
upon them. The terraces of this class are of more ancient date than
those described above, and are probably referable to the period when
the land was emerging from the sea, towards the close of the Glacial
Period, the terraces having been formed during long pauses.”
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 37, 38, and part
of 29 (1871).
The area described in this Memoir lies altogether in the County
Down.
(p. 42.)—Raised Beaches Skirting the shores of Belfast Lough,
between Hollywood and Donaghadee, we find a deposit of marine sand
eravel, the maximum elevation of which is about 20 feet above the level
of high water. In this deposit, artificially formed, flint flakes were dis-
covered some time back, of which Mr. G. VY. Du Noyer, in a communica-
tion addressed to the Secretary of the Royal Geological Society of
Treland, thus writes: ‘I mayremark that when thesesingular flakes were
O’Re1tny— On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 141
first discovered in the district round Carrickfergus, about five years ago,
their mechanical origin was questioned. Indeed I myself thought at
first that they were due to the crushing by natural causes (the weight
of the basalt) of the flint nodules, forming the original drifts over the
atmospherically eroded surfaces of the chalk. The chippings around
the edges of the flakes can, however, only be accounted for by
artificial means, as they afford clear evidence of design in their forms
and mode of occurrence. Subsequent examination clearly showed me
that every flake, no matter how rude its form, or how sharp its edge,
exhibited at one end a flat surface, transverse to the longest axes of
the flake, and from this surface a blow was given ata point on it,
which caused a flake to come off from the original nodule, and this
flake below the point of concussion, exhibited a conchoidal fracture
and a ‘bulb of concussion,’ features which could only be formed by,
and were the result of, ‘an intelligent blow.’ And further on he
says: ‘The conclusions which my present information on this subject
leads me to arrive at with regard to the origin and explanation of the
mode of formation of these flint flakes are these: During the period
of formation of our present raised sea-beaches, the men of that period
resorted to the out-crop of the chalk for flint nodules, from which to
manufacture their mallets, hand-axes, knives, rude spear- and arrow-
heads, and other implements, and these are the reecta of that
manufacture during an unknown period, the localisation of the raw
material conducing to the localisation of the worked implements, lost
or rejected, and which was then covered by the sea, but which is now
the land skirting the the present coast line.’ These flakes are
generally found close to the upper surface of the drift gravel, but at
Ballyholme Bay near Bangor, they occur at a depth of from 6 to 8
feet from the surface, in stratified sand and gravel. On the beach
under the cliff there is asubmerged bog, with stems and roots of trees
visible at low water.
Worked flint-flakes are also found on Reagh Island, in Strangford
Lough, in a raised beach on the north of the island. About 1 mile
north of Ballywalter, near Ballyferris Point, is a raised beach
consisting of stratified sands and shells. It is about 3 feet above
high-water mark.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 49, 50, and part of
61), 1871. The district considered is situated wholly in the County
Down and along its eastern shore.
(p. 11.)—‘‘ The two islands of the ‘ North and South Rocks’ lie
142 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Acadenvy.
off the eastern shore at a distance of about 2 miles, and are about the
same distance apart. This outer coast has a very shallow sea-board,
with numerous low sunken rocks, and being much exposed is
dangerous to navigation. These islands are the most eastern limits of
land comprised in the Irish survey.
“Along the western margin of Strangford Lough, the largest
islands are to be found, viz., Islands, Taggart, More, Mahee, and
Reagh, while many smaller ones are thickly dispersed all round.
Extensive sandy and slob-lands occur surrounding these, the islands
themselves being composed chiefly of rounded drift-hills, tailing off
down to the water’s edge. Some of these, on their exposed side, end
abruptly in a steep escarpment, sometimes on the northern, and at
others on the southern side. On none of these does rock zn situ occur,
while on those along the eastern side, the margins of the islands are
formed of solid rock, with a central covering of drift. Strangford
Lough is connected with the sea by a narrow strait about 5 miles
long, and from half to three-quarters of a mile in average width.”
(p. 12.)—‘‘ Near its exit occurs Rock Angus and several isolated
rocks (‘Pladdies’) of a dangerous nature, and upon the bar (on
which is always deep water) at times, a terrible sea breaks.
Throughout the strait, a wide and deep channel exists, attaining a
depth 26 fathoms off the Cloghy rocks, and 35 fathoms (or 216
feet) between Portancarlagh and Ballyhenry Bay. This strait has
mostly rocky shores, and is kept clear by the scouring action of the
tides, which here run with a very rapid current, at about 5 to 73
knots an hour for ordinary tides, and up to 9 knots for some spring
tides. In parts, the passage is contracted to comparatively small
dimensions, the narrowest being between Isle-o’-Valla and Rue Point
on Bankmore Hill, where it is only 1700 feet wide. This latter side
being an obstruction of a projecting drift hill, is gradually wearing
away, thus tending to widen the channel of this place. A little
south of this, between Black Islands and Gowland Rocks, at low water,
the passage is reduced to only 1000 feet, with a depth of 15 fathoms.
Here there is a whirlpool. About half amile to the southward occurs
also a series of whirlpools of considerable size, where there is a depth
of 26 fathoms, whose influence is felt for upwards of half a mile, and
which are called ‘‘the Routen Wheels.” Here a bad sea always
prevails, and small vessels even hesitate to pass through them except
at slack water. The roaring of these breakers is often heard for many
miles distant. It is probably to some irregular or peculiar conforma-
tion of the bottom, with the rapid current flowing over it, that these
O’REitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 143
are to beattributed. The width of the channel opposite Strangford to
the southern end of the village of Portaferry, is a little under 1800
feet, or about 4 mile, and in part is 15 fathoms deep. The difference
in time of high water at the bar and at the northern extremity of the
Lough is nearly two hours.”
The author gives an estimate of the quantity of water which
passes through this strait in fillmg and emptying the Lough at each
tide
(p. 18.)—‘‘ I may further remark, with regard to Strangford Lough,
that we have evidences which would lead us to suppose that it differs
very materially in its present state from what it originally was, that
its very existence is probably due to its having been a ‘‘ Geological
basin”’ of limestone, of which traces are still to be found in the
narrow skirting thereof at Castle-Espic, but which has all been
removed by denudation and ‘atmospheric solution,’ and that instead
of, as at present, being a lough connected with the sea by a strait, it
was originally a fresh-water lake. (Note.—History does not state
as much, but an old tradition seems to exist that such was formerly
the case).”’
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 21, 28, and 29),
(1876). The area forms a portion of the great volcanic region of the
County Antrim bordering on the eastern coast.
(p. 21.)—‘‘ Flint implements.—Flint-flakes, celts, cores, &c., are
found over the entire district, not only on that portion where the
chalk is subjacent, but also on the high grounds occupied by the
basalt. In many places the fragmentary chips are very abundant,
such as on the chalk outcrop in Drain’s Bog, as well as along the
outcrop south of Glenarm, pointing out the locality where these
implements were made.
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheet 14), (1886). The
district presents some of the most striking features in the scenery of
County Antrim, and no one visiting it can fail to be struck with its
fine headlands and deep glens opening out upon the sea-coast. The
district included in the northern half of Sheet 14 extends from the
River Bush, near Armoy on the west, to the sea-coast on the east at
Cushendun, and southward to Red Bay.
(p. 9.)—“ The coast line is, in general, bold and precipitous. North
of Cushendall, south towards Glenariff, it is rather low and un-
dulating, and exhibits some fine examples of the old sea caves of the
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B. | A
144 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
25 feet raised beach. They are to be seen at Red Bay Tunnel, and
south of it excavated out of the New Red Sandstone—the principal
one being called ‘ Nanny’s Cave.’ A little south-east of Cushendun,
there are also some very fine and extensive sea-caves occurring in the
conglomerates of the Old Red Sandstone. The raised beach itself
ranges from the 25 feet to the 40 feet contour, and is well marked
along the coast at several places between Cushendun and Glenariff,
forming a slight escarpment or cliff of drift and rock along its course.
The southern half of the sheet, has for its eastern boundary the shore
extending from Red Bay to Glenarm Bay.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (sheets 7 and 8), 1888. The
district described extends along the coast of Antrim and Derry ; it also
includes the Island of Rathlin.
(p.7.)—‘‘The shore line from Portrush to Fair Head, east of
Ballycastle, composed for the most part of cliffs formed of successive
tiers of basalt resting on chalk, is generally bold, often inaccessible,
more especially in the neighbourhood of Bengore Head, which rises to
a height of 367 feet above the waters of the sea, where the celebrated
Giant’s Causeway makes an interesting geological feature. Striking
as is the appearance of Bengore Head, it is completely surpassed by
that of Benmore or Fair Head, rising 636 feet or nearly double the
height of the former. This latter has a cap composed of a massive
sheet of dolerite which, on the sea face, is broken up into great poly-
gonal monoliths over 250 feet in length. At the base of this lofty
cliff broken columns of basalt are confusedly strewn over the slopes to
the waters edge, covering the underlying Carboniferous beds.
«The peninsula of Portrush lies in the extreme north-west corner
of the county Antrim, and is fenced on its western side by perpendi-
cular cliffs composed of a sheet of dolerite some 70 feet in thickness.
The most westerly promontory is called Ramore Head. At a distance
of half a mile north-east from Ramore Head, a chain of islands,
sixteen in number, called ‘the Skerries’ commences, and extends in
an easterly direction for about a mile and a half, forming a natural
breakwater to the north Atlantic waves, which even in comparatively
calm weather may often be observed breaking over the seaward faces
of the Skerries and throwing the spray high into the air.
‘“‘The coast line at and west of Portrush consists chiefly of cliffs of
basalt and dolerite, bounded at the base by a narrow uneven margin of
the same rocks, indented by numerous small irregular creeks and bays.
The surface at the top of these cliffs stands generally at a height of
O’Rettty— On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 145
25 to 40 feet above the sea, reaching, however, about 100 feet in the
vicinity of Island Doo. ‘This island is one of a number of outliers
belonging to the basalt, which lie at a short distance out from the
shore, some being separated from the mainland merely by narrow necks
of water at full tide. The rocks are often traversed by fissures,
some of them being open up to the surface so as to form ‘ puffing
holes’ or ‘ blow holes,’ through which the air, accompanied by spray
is projected with more or less force by the waves rushing into the
cavities below. One of these occurs at Blackcastle rock close to
Portstewart, the fissure here communicating with a cave which runs
southward between the rock itself and the mainland. Another is
found on an island south-west of Blackrock. Of the few caves that
occur on this part of the coast, none are of large dimensions. Close
to the ruins of Ballyreagh Castle, an opening of this nature runs in for
about 18 yards, being 7 yards wide at the entrance and at most 7 feet
in height.”
(p. 9.)—‘ Rathlin Island.—Although so close to the mainland,
Rathlin Island is very difficult of access, owing to want of proper
harbour accommodation and the liability to dangerous seas due to
tidal currents between the island and the mainland. The northern
coast face, consisting of tabular and columnar basalt resting on chalk,
is formed of bold, often inaccessible cliffs, between 300 and 400 feet
in height, while along the opposite side of the island the sheets slope
towards the south, and along their seaward faces, show a similar
superposition of the basaltic and Cretaceous beds.”
(p. 20.)—“‘ The next westward outcrop of the chalk is to be found
at low water on either side of Dunluce Castle ; whence the rock gradu-
ally rises and forms a cliff at the ‘ White Rocks’ of about 150 feet.
This cliff as seen from the sea presents a varied aspect owing to the
numerous caverns and fantastic forms into which the rock has been
carved by the erosion of the sea, a process which is still going
on.”
(p. 21.)—‘‘ Rathlin Island.—The Chalk formation is the foundation
rock of the Island of Rathlin: the thickness of the formation is about
220 feet, and is the greatest of the chalk either in Rathlin or on the
mainland.
‘Good sections of this division of the basalt (Lower Basalt) are
exposed to view in the steep sea-cliff faces between Ballycastle and
Ballintoy, in which latter direction it thins out to not more than a
hundred feet or so; while in the vicinity of Ballycastle, the mass
cannot be less than 350 feet thick.”
N 2
146 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
(p. 24.)—“‘ Upper Basalt.—Although most of the district is capped
with sheets of Upper Basalt, the only good sections are to be found in
the almost inaccessible cliffs east and west of Bengore Head. Here
they form successive tiers of columns varying in size and sometimes
in position. These tiers indicate successive outflows of lava. The
most remarkable of them is the lowest of the series which caps the
iron ore deposits, and forms the Giant’s Causeway.”
(p: 27.)—* Rathlin Island.—The Tertiary volcanic rocks here are
well represented, and present very much the same section as they do
about Bengore Head on the mainland. The best sections are seen from
the sea, in the cliffs on the north side from Bull Point to the lighthouse.
‘¢ At Doonpoint there occurs a causeway in the Lower Basalt, and
the longitudinal section shows vertically columnar basalt having fan-
shaped and radiating columns of smaller dimensions blended into it
from the top, showing that the two sheets amalgamated before cooling.
Dr, Haughton notes of the rocks at Doon as follows: ‘The curvature
of some of the pillars is continuous through 90°, and they pass from
the vertical to the horizontal position, exhibiting, however, a tendency
to break at the point of greatest flexure, which has caused most of
them to be broken off by the action of the sea.’ ”’
(p. 28.)—‘‘ The Dolerite of Fair Head is probably of the same
age as that at Portrush, but does not weather so rapidly. The Fair
Head sheet is remarkable for its enormous thickness, presenting, as it
does, an unbroken columnar face to the sea, near the ‘ Grey Man’s
Path’ of 250 feet.
‘¢ At the base of the basaltic cliff at Fair Head an intrusive sheet of
columnar basalt 70 feet thick occurs; and in its extension it is met
with at Drumnakill Point, to the south, where the columns are
scattered in all directions.”
Mr. Symes regards the Dolerite of Fair Head as possibly the
latest volcanic protrusion in the county Antrim.
(p. 81.)—‘‘ Voleanie Vents.—One of the most remarkable volcanic
vents in the county Antrim is situated at the well-known island of
Carrick-a-raide and the adjacent coast, a fine view of which can be
had from the celebrated ‘swinging bridge.’ This old neck cannot
be less than from 1000 to 1200 feet in diameter, and is filled up with
massive, coarse, and tough grayish volcanic agglomerate, enclosing
large irregular masses and smaller fragments of basalt, basalt bombs
of all sizes, and chalk pieces occasionally.”
(p. 84.)—‘‘Peat Bogs and Alluvial Flats.—A deposit of peat projects
from beneath the blown sand, and follows the slope of the strand for
O’Retiy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, Se. 147
a short distance seaward, at the point where the county boundary
terminates a little south of Portrush. It is partly covered at high
water, during which, in rough weather, masses of it are torn away
and carried out to sea. The peat contains hazel nuts, portions of
small branches, leaves, and the elytra of beetles. The presence of
this peat, within range of the sea-action, may indicate a subsidence of
the land within very recent times. Similar instances are to be
observed at various points of the Irish coast.
‘Raised Beaches.—These occur at Portrush, Port Ballintroe, Rathlin
Island, and the Giant’s Causeway. Professor Hull has recognised
the raised beaches of the county Antrim as the representatives of the
“29 feet beach’ of the opposite coast of Scotland.”
(p. 35.)—‘* The shores of White Park Bay and the coast-line
north-west of Ballintoy exhibit examples of the raised beaches and
their associated old sea-caves and sea-stacks (see fig. 7).
‘¢ Prehistoric remains have been found in abundance on the raised
beach platform of White Park Bay, consisting of worked flints, stone
hammers, corn crushers, fire hearths, pottery, etc., and the bones of
various animals; also ‘ kitchen middens’ of shells and ashes.
“« Caverns.—The Chalk at the White Rocks is penetrated by numerous
eaves at different elevations, but none of them extending any great
distance. Under Dunluce Castle a cave runs through the entire rock ;
this is probably artificial, and could easily have been excavated, owing
to the spheroidal nature of the rock. At the Giant’s Causeway are
two caves in the Lower Basalt at the sea-level; and in Rathlin Island
four have been noted by Mr. Andrews, the lengths varying from
150 to 250 feet.
(p. 37.)—‘“‘ Among the sandhills in the town of Portrush, a gale
recently exposed a Prehistoric hearth, in which were pieces of pottery,
numerous flakes, and cores of flint, and a few bones. The flakes are
remarkable for their freshness ; wherever else found the majority of
them are porcelainized or weathered.
Memoir, Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 12 and 6) (1885).
(p. 5.)—‘*The district described lies entirely in the county
Londonderry, except a small area to the north-west of Lough Foyle,
which belongs to the county Donegal. The greater part of this
district have been described by General Portlock in his geological
report on Londonderry and parts of Tyrone and Fermanagh (1843).
‘Lough Foyle occupies a considerable area in the central and
western parts of this district, dividing the portion in the county
148 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Donegal from that in the county Londonderry. The former, which is
very small, is part of the peninsula of Inishowen.
‘The county Derry portion of the district is characterized by the
extensive plains that border Lough Foyle; the lowest of which is a
raised beach, bounded on the sea-side by large tracts of reclaimed
land or intakes.”
(p. 6.)\—‘*‘ The high ground in the east of sheet 12, with its
continuation in sheet 6, is underlaid by the basalt which forms the
great Tertiary plateau of the counties Antrim and Derry. The
boundary of this volcanic area is here, as in other parts of the district,
often characterized by bold, precipitous cliffs, which, towards the
north, assume magnificent proportions, and are accompanied by huge
landslips of comparatively recent date. The rugged masses thus torn
away, rise sometimes in sharp pinnacled forms in front of the steep
face of solid rock, and are separated from it by a gap, strewn with
blocks that have fallen in large numbers on either side.
“The bold outline, which thus denotes the boundary between the
Secondary and Tertiary formations, passes northwards and eastwards,
with a wide sweep into sheet 6, accompanied by a gradual descent.
towards the coast. Here, at the east of Umbra, it consists of a
steeply-receding cliff of chalk and basalt, about 500 feet in height,
supporting a mass of boulder clay, which stands piled up against the
escarpment for a height of nearly 300 feet.”
(p. 7.)—‘‘ East of Umbra the boundary of the basalt follows the
coast-line for a short distance, bending out below the sea, within a
mile of Downhill; while beyond this point, and as far eastward as
the locality just named, nearly perpendicular crags, composed of
basalt, with some beds of ash, overhang the shore, skirted for half
their height by an accumulation of blown sand, resting on boulder
clay, and in some parts barely upholding ponderous semi-detached
masses of rock, which seem ready to fall from their position.
‘** From Downhill eastward to Castlerock, the cliffs directly overlook
the sea, having a more irregular and rugged outline, owing to the
constant and frequently violent action of the waves, which are at
the present day hollowing out caves in the basalt. Similar openings,
standing at a somewhat higher level, and dating back to the period of
the adjacent raised beach, occur in the chalk between Downhill and
Umbra ; whilst, in some instances, as at Backaunaboe (‘ the tether-
stake’), a little east of Downhill railway station, the conditions seem
to point to a continuous drilling action carried on from that day to
the present. The above name is given to a sharp sea-stack, composed
O’Remty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §c. 149
of amydaloidal basalt, standing out from the cliff at the western end
of the temple tunnel—a remnant of the northern wall of a spacious
cave, the eastern portion of which is still to be seen penetrating the
rock for a short distance (see fig. 1).”
(p. 8.) —‘*‘ The raised beach, traces of which exist at various places
around the coasts of Derry, Antrim, and Donegal, and which represent
the 25 feet terrace of the western coast of Scotland, here extends
inland as far as the margin of drift composing the sloping ground west
of the basalt escarpment.”
(p. 26.)—‘‘ Raised Beach.— An extensive raised beach, at an
average height of about 25 feet, fringes the southern and eastern
shores of Lough Foyle, extending to Bellarena and Magilligan, where
it has a width of from two to four miles. It is also seen on the
north-western shore in Donegal, where, owing to the nature of the
ground, it is much narrower, being only a quarter of a mile wide at
Quigley’s Point.
‘The Robbers’ Cave and the Pipers’ Cave, which penetrate the
Chalk at about one or two hundred yards, respectively, east of the
stream that joins the sea a little east of Umbra, in Sheet 6, standing
at about the 25 feet contour line, belong, no doubt, to the period of
this raised beach. These openings were occasionally within reach of
the waves, during the prevalence of storms, till the construction of the
railway presented a barrier; and the floors are now strewn with
rolled blocks and pebbles of basalt and broken shells. In a place
where the basalt is laid bare among the sand dunes, 400 yards east
of Castlerock, at about the level of the 25 feet contour line, the
surface of the rock bears clear evidence of the rounding action of the
sea, and the crevices are filled with sand and shell fragments—pro-
bably remnants of an old beach.”
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 1, 2, 5, 6, and 11
(in part), (1889).
(p. 9.)—‘‘ The district described forms a remarkable promontory,
bounded on either side by Lough Swilly and Lough Foyle, and jutting
out far into the Atlantic Ocean, where it terminates in the cliffs of
Malin Head. Though not actually an island, as its name indicates,
being connected with the mainland by a neck of alluvial soil, yet the
name is not without significance, as pointing to the inference that
within the historic, or at least traditionary, period it may have been
really an island, at least during high tides. As a physical fact, the
150 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
narrow neck by which the promontory is united to the mainland,
though about 8 miles from shore to shore, is formed of an old sea-bed,
which has been elevated into land, certainly in very recent times,
and,in all probability within the period during which Ireland was
inhabited by Celtic tribes. It corresponds with the well-recognised
“25 feet raised beach’ of our northern coast. This narrow strip,
along which the railway from Londonderry to Buncrana is carried,
has an average elevation of from 20 to 25 feet above Ordnance datum,
and only for a short distance, near Pennyburn, is the level materially
exceeded, the ground rising to 50 or 54 feet above Ordnance datum,
or 41 to 45 feet above mean level.”
(p. 10.)—‘‘ But the island of Inishowen, thus constituted, seems
to have been itself a double island, owing to the existence of a second
narrow strait by which it was crossed at the period above referred to.
Between Culdaff Bay, on the east, and Trawbreaga Bay, on the west,
there stretches a low neck of alluvial land, deeply covered with peat ;
and, during the period of depression, this was overflowed by tidal
waters, as the old sea-bed, consisting of sand, silt, and gravel, well
seen in the neighbourhood, underlies the peat, which has grown over
the surface since its elevation into land. The highest level of this
alluvial tract is 50 feet above Ordnance datum, or 12 feet above high-
water of ordinary tides, and of this, probably, 10 or 12 feet consists
of peat. At its western end this strait communicated with the ocean
both to the north and south of Doagh Island, which is at present
connected with the mainland by a bar and sand-dunes forming the
shore of Pollan Bay.
** (Note.)—Dr. Sigerson (Proc. Roy. Ir. Acad., 2nd ser., vol i.,
p- 212, et seg.) has adduced historical evidence in confirmation of
the statement that Inishowen was an island, not only within the
period of human habitation, but within that of history. In the maps
of the Escheated Counties of Ireland (1609), of which facsimile copies
were taken at the Ordnance Office, Southampton, in 1861, a strip of
water is shown connecting the Foyle and the Swilly loughs across to
the north of the ‘City of Derrie,’ just where the raised sea-bed
occurs. Another strip of water is shown, stretching from the ‘ Lake
of Loughfoile,’ near Saint Johnstown, to the inlet of the Swilly, near
Castle Hill. Derry itself stood on an island before the last elevation
of the land as a strip of water, recently a morass, bounded the hill on
which the old city is built, on the west. Sigerson quotes passages
from the ‘ Annals of the Four Masters,’ of the dates a.p. 1211 and
1010, in which the name island is applied to the present promontory ;
O’Rettty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &e. 151
thus, in the latter case, the quotation runs:—‘a.p, 1010, (ngus
O’Lappan, Lord of Cinel Enda, was slain by Cinel Eoghain of the
Island,’ 7.¢. Inishowen. Thus historical evidence concurs with that
derived from an inspection of the physical conditions, that Inishowen
was actually an island up to within very recent times. The raised
beach referred to is in reality a representative of that of Kilroot and
Larne, containing numerous worked flints, and of the 25-30 feet
raised beach of Scotland, in which several canoes and other works of
human art have been found.” (See J. Geikie, ‘‘ Great Ice Age,”
p. 311, &e.)
(p. 10.)—‘‘ The promontory of Inishowen, as now constituted, is
exceedingly hilly, and consists largely of rocky ground, covered by
heath and mountain bog. Its culminating point is Slieve Snaight
(= ‘Snow Mountain’), a quartzite mountain, which rises from the centre
of the promontory to an altitude of 2019 feet above Ordnance datum.
The most prominent feature is the grand quartzite ridge of Raghten
More, which traverses the western portion of East Inishowen between
Dunree Head and Pollan Bay, and reaches an elevation of 1655 feet.
Thus, although of no very great elevation, this mountain ridge, owing
to its position as rising abruptly from the Atlantic, and breaking off
along its western slopes in a naked wall of quartzite, conveys to the
mind an impression of massiveness which is not altogether dependent
on its altitude.”
(p- 11.)—‘‘ The coast-line of Inishowen is generally rocky and
precipitous, except along the margin of Lough Foyle, and the inlets
through which the principal streams make their escape into the
ocean. The northern coast is particularly bold, the cliffs often rising
to heights of 500 or 600 feet, and at ‘ the Pounds,’ north of Glengad
Head, to a height of 802 feet above Ordnance datum. Malin Head
(fig. 1), although the most projecting point of the coast is compar-
atively low (125 feet) ; but Dunaff Head, at the entrance of Lough
Swilly, presents to the Atlantic waves a bold wall of granite and
quartzite of over 600 feet in height.”
(p. 13.) —‘* Zslands.—Several islands rising from the Atlantic lie
at some distance off the coast of Inishowen. The largest of these is
Inishtrahull (fig. 3), a rocky mass, nearly a mile across from east to
west, formed chiefly of gneiss. Some dangerous rocks, called ‘ The
Tor Rocks’ (fig. 2), rise above the surface a mile north of Inishtra-
hull (= ‘Island of the big strand’ ).
‘¢( (Note.)—Inishtrahull means the ‘Island of the Big Strand,’
Inish = Island; tra =strand, and h-wll, an old and uncommon Celtic
152 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
word for big or large.! There is actually no very big strand at the
present day, as I am informed by Mr. Cruise, who geologically sur-
veyed the island; but there is a raised beach extending right across
the «western side of theisland, now about 50 feet above Ordnance
datum, or 30 feet above high-water mark, and it is not improbable
that at the time the island received its name this may have been a big
strund in the ordinary sense of the word.)
“The Garvan Islands form another group of rocky islets, three in
number, rising about a mile from the coast of Malin Head, and formed
of quartzite, while another small islet, called Glashedy Island, lies
a mile off the coast in the bay between the prominences of Dunaff
Head and Malin Head. This island is formed of quartzite.”
(p. 22.)—‘* At Glengad Head crumpled micaceous schists form a
vertical cliff, 200 feet high; sections in similar beds are also freely
exposed along the coast line to their junction with the quartzite.”
(p. 26.)—“* Moville District.—This tract of country is as wild and
rugged as almost any part of Donegal, the coast line being bold and
precipitous, except on the south-east along the shore of Lough Foyle.
On the north the sea-cliffs reach a height of 400 and 500 feet, and are
in but few places accessible except by boat.”
(p. 33.)—“ For some three miles south-west of Moville, a line of
gravel cliffs at an average height of about 50 feet borders Lough
Foyle, and similar though smaller deposits may be observed on the
shores of Lough Swilly.
“* Ratsed Beaches.—An extensive raised beach, probably the repre-
sentative of the 25 feet beach of Scotland, borders the alluvial plain
south-east of Inch Island, continuing to the south-west along the
valley between Carowen and Burt, opening into the Blanket Nook,
while to the east it occupies the valley that extends from Burnfoot, in
a south-easterly direction to Pennyburn, the average height observed
being 32 feet. At Farland Point, south of Inch Island, and along the
coast of Lough Swilly, south-westwards, portions of a raised beach at
the same elevation remain. Small portions of a raised beach are also
seen on the southern and eastern shores of Inch Island, and a more
extensive one stretches along the shore of Lough Swilly for about a
mile and a-half north of Fahan to Buncrana.”’
(p. 84.)—“‘ On Inishtrahull a fine example of a 50 feet raised
beach occurs in the centre of the island. The lightkeeper informed me
1 «* Hulk” is a word still used among country people in the north of Ireland to
mean a big lazy fellow.
O’Re1tty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 153
that in the year previous to my visit, 1885, during a gale from the
north, this beach was covered with water for over two hours.
‘‘On the mainland from Malin Coastguard Station a raised beach
extends for two miles to the south, being sometimes one mile wide.
This beach was at one time covered with bog, which is now nearly all
cut away. At Malin Watch Tower there are fine examples of the
25, 50, and 75 feet raised beaches. Along the shore to Malin Head
numerous patches of the 50 feet beach may be observed between the
rocks. The most important and extensive, however, of these raised
beaches is that which stretches from Culdaff to Tranbreaga Bag. Its
average heightis about 50 feet, and most of its surface is covered with
bog, which is being rapidily cut away. Another extensive raised
beach stretches from Tullaghan Bay to Leenan Bay, the bog that
formerly covered this beach being nearly entirely removed. As
pointed out by Professor Hull, both these raised beaches are of a
comparatively recent date.
‘‘Along the south coast, between Inishowen Head and Moyille, the
50 feet raised beach occurs in several places. It consists of sand and
gravel, and is best seen between Greencastle and Inishowen Head.
Shells of existing species are common throughout the deposit. At
Tremore, Kinnoge, and Glennagiveny bogs, the 25 feet beach is
represented, and contains shells at each place.”
(p. 34.)—“ Kitchen Middens.—Associated with the raised beach,
mounds and accumulations of shells occasionally occur, which must
be regarded as of human origin, inasmuch as flint flakes, fragments of
bone, and burnt wood are often found in them. They were observed
on the shore north and north-west of Ballymoney, in the Carowen
district, at Fairland Point, at Inch Island, near the old castle of
the South, and at Inch Road railway station.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 3, 4, 5 (in part), 9,
10, 11 (in part), 15 and 16 (1891).
The region described in this memoir includes all the tract lying
between Lough Swilly on the east, Gweebarra Bay on the west, and
the Atlantic coast, which connects these two inlets along the north.
It is the most mountainous portion of Donegal, and from its centre
rises the culminating height of the north of Ireland, the twin-peaked
Errigal, which attains an elevation of 2462 feet above the surface of
the ocean. Its coast line is indented to a remarkable extent, and
along the west is broken up into numerous rocky islands.
(p. 8.)—* Errigal is certainly the most perfect pyramidical
mountain in Ireland, perhaps in the British Islands, and is a conspicuous
154 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
object far out at sea from the decks of ships approaching the north
coast of Ireland from the Atlantic.”
(p. 14.)—‘‘ Sea Loughs.—The coast between Lough Swilly and
Gweebarra Bay is deeply indented by several bays and sea loughs, of
which Milroy Bay and Sheep Haven are the most important. The
latter is a broad bay, the entrance to which is bounded by the bold
cliffs of Horn Head on the west, and by the less elevated coast of
Doagh on the east.”
(p. 15.)—*‘ Islands. —In addition to Horn Head, which is an island,
there are several islands lying off the coast of north-western Donegal
requiring special notice. Of these, Tory and Aran Islands are the
most important.
‘“‘ Tory Island, in ancient writings Toirinis and Torach, ‘the Island
of Towers,’ is remarkably distinct when viewed from the mainland
between Dunfanahig and Cross Roads. It les at a distance of about
eight miles from the coast of Horn Head, the bottom of the sea
descending to 24 fathoms. Along the north-east, the island presents
a bold front of naked rock towards the Ocean; but on the south side
the wide bay of Camusmore affords shelter and anchorage for ships
and fishing boats. The western shore is shelving, and is lined by a
remarkable shingle beach forming a natural breakwater, and giving
evidence from its extent of the force and sweep of the Atlantic billows
when impelled by the prevalent westerly winds.
“Aran Island.—This is a large island separated from the mainland
by a sound about half a mile across.
“‘The numerous rocky islets lying off the coast between Gweebarra
Bay and the Bloody Foreland are all formed of granite.”
(p. 17).—‘‘ As regards the occurrence of pebbles of granite, &e.
in the quartzite, and limestone, it is believed that they have been
derived from rocks older than the granite (not improbably of Archean
Age), and now submerged beneath the waters of the Atlantic.”
(p. 72.)—‘* Bloody Foreland District and adjoining Islands.”
(p. 73.)— Rugged cliffs, sometimes 100 feet in height, bound
Gola Island and Umfin Island, especially on the west. These are
penetrated by sharp fissures, hollowed out along the joint planes, so-
that, in some cases, one side overhangs the sea at an angle of 70° or
80°. Natural arches also occur, as at Scoltydoogan, north of Gola
Island, where a smull inlet, entered by a narrow gully, communicates
with the sea by means of an arched passage about 40 yards in length,
at a depth of 70 feet below the surface of the ground. At
Scoltaglassan, nearly half a mile east of Torglass Island, a narrow
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 155
inlet between steep walls of granite, has been hollowed out by the
sea along a line of fissure, now partly-filled with broken rock and
boulder clay. This break, which is accompanied with little or no
dislocation, seems to run across the western part of the island,
appearing again at Scoltnalinga north of Allagh Island. A small
arch occurs in the prolongation of the same line east of Tornamullane,
forming a gully with an overhanging eastern wall 50 feet high, that
on the west, reaching 80 or 90 feet.”
(p. 74.) —‘‘ Umfin Island has an exceedingly irregular outline, and
is bounded by steep rugged cliffs, pierced by caves and natural arches.
At about 50 yards from the extreme western point, one of the arches
runs north-north-east, along the lines of jointing quite through the
promontory. Ithas a length of 60 or 70 yards, and the opening forms
a conspicuous feature as viewed from Gola Island. A cave 70 yards
in length cuts through the northern part of the island.”’
(p. 74.)—“‘ The main portion of the granite on Inishbogin (Sheet 3)
is coarsely crystalline, and it is sometimes largely porphyritic. The
Junction with the schists is clearly traceable across the highly
glaciated surfaces of the latter on the north coast of the island. At
Illanamarve, the shore line is broken by deep narrow inlets, one of
which is spanned by a natural arch, the apex being formed of a band
of fine-grained schistose granite, 4 yards wide.”
(p. 75.)—‘ Rosguil District—The northern portions of this
promontory are mainly composed of granite, which has been intruded
amongst the metamorphic rocks. It has been intruded amongst
quartzites generally, and along the coast of Doagh Bay, breaks across
them in numerous dykes and off-shoots, which are visible in the coast
cliffs.
(p. 84.)—“‘ Gweedore and Aranmore Districts —Numerous dykes
of felstone penetrate the granite and metamorphic rocks, chiefly in
the rugged area south of Inishfree Bay and in the western half of
Aran Island. Variations of colour and character are frequently
noticeable in the same dyke; and the felstone forming the dykes of
this and other localities, in this portion of the district, weathers
rapidly into cream-coloured or light brown kaolinized rock. North
of Kincaslough, the dykes consist usually of dark-brown rock, with
pink felspar crystals porphyritically developed, dark mica, and occa-
sionally blebs of free quartz. The trend here is mostly northerly.
Caves and precipitous inlets mark the point of the coast line where
such dykes exist, as at Scalpnadinga and Illion in Aran Island, and at
the northern extremity of Cruit, near Owey Island, a dyke of coarse-
156 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
grained gray porphyritic felstone 15 feet wide, has originated a cave
with a blowing hole at its inner extremity. The erosion within has
been so extended as to form a natural bridge, so that the roof of the
former cave forms a natural bridge over the narrow inlet to the space
within as represented in the wood-cut (fig. 17).”
(p. 87.) —“‘ Fanad District (Diorrte and Epidiorite).—Commencing at
the northern part of Fanad Head, we find an irregular mass of dark-
bluish evenly crystalline diorite, forming a small boss. South of this
boss at Bonnaweelmore, another large mass of finely crystalline diorite
extends from the shore inland, apparently bedded in the quartzites,
seen in cliff section. Along this coast there are several fine sea-
stacks formed of these rocks, notably that of Stookmore, or Brown
George, inside Swilly Beg.”
(p. 88.)—‘‘ From Illanmore to Lee Point, numerous dykes and
irregular masses of diorite occur, sometimes following the bedding of
the rocks, and at others crossing it. They are all of a dark greenish
colour with varying degrees of crystallization. At the ‘Seven
Arches’ several dykes of diorite occur, weathering freely, but the
‘ Arches’ are formed by the weathering of the quartzites along joint
planes and planes of bedding.”
(p. 89.)—‘‘ From Ardbune Point in Caffard Bay, a well-defined
diorite dyke averaging 400 feet in width, can be traced almost con-
tinuously in a south-east direction, from the eastern to the western
shores of Mulroy waters. It forms the elevated peak called Cashel
Fort, 496 feet, a striking feature in the landscape.”’
(p. 93.)—"* Horn Head.—The diorite of Horn Head occupies a
considerable area of the more rugged portions of the promontory.
Sections in the cliffs, which from the coast line show that this rock
has been toa large extent intruded between the beds of quartzite
among which it can be traced in dark bands, varying in thickness and
conforming in general direction to the lines of outcrop. Im cases
where it has crossed the bedding horizontally, or nearly so, and the
upper portion of the quartzite has been denuded away, the diorite
appears in section as a cap resting on the truncated portion below.
South of Traglish Point the diorite ranges up among the quartzite beds
to the top of the cliff, a height of about 600 feet in amass, 60 or 70 feet
in width.”
(p. 97.)—‘‘ Bloody Foreland District.—A very conspicuous dyke of
columnar dolerite 4 yards wide cuts through the schists west of
Curran’s Point (Sheet 9), where it is shifted for a distance of 25 yards
by a fault. It appears again to the north-west, penetrating both the
O’Reitty— On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 157
schist and a tongue of granite, and forming the wall of a chasm about
20 feet deep, at an inclination of 15° from the vertical.”
(p. 98.)—‘‘ A dyke of fine dolerite reaching 4 yards in width,
passes by Lough Aninver on the mainland north of Gweedore Bay.
It is in some parts porphyritic with large crystals of felspar.”’
‘Two separate rocks, rising from the sea, in nearly the same line
and distinguished by their dark colour, are prolongations of this dyke.
‘* Tory Island.—Tory Island in the Atlantic Ocean, is situated due
north of the coast of county Donegal. It is about eight miles distant
from the foreland, and lies a little to the east of north from that head-
land. The distance from the boat slip at Magheraroarty is nine miles,
and from Dunfanaghy, around Horn Head to the same part of the
Island, about 16 miles. The Islands of Inishbofin, Inishdooey and
Inishbeg lie between Tory Island and the mainland, the farthest north,
viz. Inishbeg, being about half-way across.
“‘The Island of Tory is a narrow strip of rocky land lying with
its longest diameter of nearly three miles in a north west and south-
east direction.”
(p. 99.)—‘* At its widest part, viz. at the north west extremity,
it is less than a mile in width, and at the narrowest part, ¢.e. just east
of Westown, or about the middle of the Island, it is only one-fifth of
a mile across, its average breadth being about half a-mile.
‘The natives always speak of it as Tor-i, and this would appear
to be the most explicit manner of spelling, to be in consonance with
the derivation of the name.
‘“‘This island was anciently the stronghold of the Formorian
pirates, whose chief was Balor, ‘ and two of the tower-like rocks on the
side of Tory are still called ‘‘ Balor’s Castle’ and ‘‘ Balor’s Prison .’’’
Of the former of these, there remains but the site. As it was situated
at a very narrow isthmus which is the only passage from the main
portion of the island on to the Doon peninsula (where peat is cut for
fuel), it is probable that the islanders have removed the building.
The highest point on the island, viz. Doon Balor, 282 feet above sea
level, is situated at the north end of this peninsula and in the cliffs
further south, was ‘ Balor’s Fort.’ Around Westown are several not
too well preserved monuments of ancient worship—as St. Columbkille’s
Church, St. John’s altar and cross, another altar, a grave, Temple
Anvoresher, or Church of the Seven, and a Cloigtheach, or round tower.
This latter is the only one that is well-marked and preserved.”
(p. 100.)—‘‘ The outline of the island as seen from the south,
although very much broken and irregular, presents a general inclination
158 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
from the west to the east. To the south and south-east of the light-
house at the north-west extremity, the land is very little raised
above the sea level, to which it runs down by a gradual slope, being
at its junction with the shingle beach which forms the south-west
part of the shores, but 26 to 30 feet above the sea. The whole of the
southern and south-west half of the island is comparatively flat and
lowland, and rises with somewhat rapid slopes to the north and north-
east terminating in precipitous cliffs, from 100 to 280 feet in height.
The north and north-east coast line, in marked contrast to the south
and south-east shore line, which is but slightly indented, is more
irregular, being carved into a multiplicity of minor headlands and
points and many varieties of inlet, creek, and cave.
‘‘ Owing to the irregularities in the sea-cliffs, the coast presents the
appearance of numerous tors or isolated crags, standing up as if occur-
ring in the centre of the island.
‘Tory Peak (see fig. 21) isa most prominent feature in the outline
of the island, appearing lke a great tower standing about the centre
of the island. It is in fact a partially detached sea-stack on the north-
east coast, near the east end ofthe island. A wide bay is cut far into
the land south of this peak at Scoltshoarsa; and the land about East
Town, lying very low, permits nearly the whole of this huge mass of
rock to be seen from the south. Similarly Tormore or the great Tor,
which occurs at the north extremity of the Doon peninsula and which,
in common with the latter, runs out to north-east at nearly right
angles to the main island, appears as a massive tower, at the eastern
extremity of the island, the whole of the ‘ Anvil,’ as the ridge is
called, being foreshortened into one mass. The whole of the Doon,
which rises rapidly from the sea level at Port Doon to nearly 300 feet,
also is foreshortened into a craggy or torlike mass.”’
(p. 102.)—*‘* From the extremity of Doon Balor, a fine view of the
whole island is obtained, and on a clear day nearly all the northern
cliffs are seen from this position, with the lighthouse distinctly promi-
nent at the western extremity of the island (fig. 22).
““ Granite—The greater part of the island consists of granite
which varies greatly in texture, being at one part a massive com-
pact durable rock, and at others, where porphyritic, much more
decomposable than in the former case. At the north-western
extremity at Toradardeen, the rock occurs in irregular amorphous
masses. Along the sea-cliffs, the rock appears as a highly porphy-
ritic gray granite with the weathered surface thickly studded with
erystals of orthoclase. The shore is much indented.
O’Rem1ty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 159
‘ast of the promontory of Ardlaheen, the rock still maintains
its coarsely crystalline character. A set of very distinct, nearly
vertical cross-joints, running south-west occurs here, traversing the
reddish and grey gneissose granite. The direction of these points
nearly coincides with that of the promontories and inlets in this
locality.”
(p. 104.)—‘‘ Along the south-east face of Meggart Headland a
basalt dyke about 2 feet thick occurs, and thins out before reaching
the top of the cliff. A large basalt dyke, 10 or 12 feet wide, occurs to
the north of this, and is continued into the north-west face of Morard
Head, where it is weathered out and forms a cave.
‘ At Pollabraher (‘ Wolf’s hole’ ?) the sea has cut through the
small headland, forming a natural arch, and inland occurs the cave
Lagrehy (or Ram’s cave), which is a round or oval shaped pit, like a
quarry hole, and has been formed along vertical joimts running east
north-east. It communicates with the sea by an underground passage,
and is cut out of the granite, which has slipped in and been carried
away as shingle. Torbanny, which is a small sea-stack, rises to the
eastward.
“« Along the western side of the island, a very well-marked shingle
bank forms the margin. It consists of rounded blocks of quartz, a
few of hornblendic and augitic rocks, and the rest of gray granite.
‘To seaward of this bank a fringe of rocks but little elevated above
the sea level, consists uniformly of grey and reddish granite.”’
(p. 105.)—‘‘ The quartzite in Port Doon dips generally to the
eastward at angles of 20° to 30°. It is intersected by numerous
vertical joints, running south 30° east, along which the island rock,
Torahaur, which stands as a sentinel at the entrance of this little
natural harbour, has been cut off from the mainland.”’
(p. 106.)—‘‘ Northward, from Port Doon, the ground rapidly rises,
and the rockin the cliffs consists of white tabular and flaggy quartzite,
dipping east 10° north at 20°. The coast-line is most irregular and
deeply carved into bays, together with headlands and numerous sea-
stacks. These cliffs end in a remarkable narrow ridge of rocks named
the ‘ Anvil,’ which terminates at its northern extremity in Tormore.
A channel has been cut through by the sea at the southern end, where
this ridge is connected with the mainland by a natural arch.
‘* Along the western shores of the Doon the rocks preserve the same
general easterly dip, and exhibit various sea-stacks or tors; a rather
picturesque one being Tornaweelan, which stands at the entrance to
Portachalla Bay. In the southern cliffs of this bay and on the shore
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIYV.., SEC. B. | O
160 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
occurs a considerable deposit of pipe-clay, though of a very impure
sandy nature. It is at least 12 feet wide, extends to the summit of
the cliff, and is nearly vertical.”
(p. 109.) —‘‘ Bloody Foreland District.—Deep deposits of boulder
clay, often covered by several feet deep of peat, are seen in section in
the cliffs of Bloody Foreland, and the coast lying to the east. The
face of the cliffs is often cut by narrow gullies, worn by small
streams, which become swollen in rainy seasons. Large blocks, fallen
from the boulder clay, sometimes strew the shore, one of which, close
to Meenlaragh, composed of granite was found to measure about
15 feet by 12 feet by 9 feet.”
(p. 110.)—‘‘ Deposits of peat occur at several points along the
coast, which lie wholly or in part below high-water level, such as
north of the Gweebarra R. near Dooey Hill, and south of the estuary
at the Black Strand.”
(p.111.)—‘‘A peat deposit, evidently grown 7 situ, has been
observed below high-water mark on the ocean side of Inishfree Island
on its south side. Fragments of peat, washed up by the waves when
more than usually large, strew the Leabgarrow strand on the east
side of Aranmore, and the peasantry speak of the possibility, not very
long since, of crossing to Rutland Island at low water.
‘“This seems, therefore, strong evidence for a recent submergence
of the land to some extent. Mr. Harte in his Paper (Journ. Roy.
Dub. Soc., Dublin, vol. i., pp. 25-27) speaks of ‘forests that are
under the sea’ which ‘ may be very extensive.’ ”’
(p- 112.)—‘‘ Remains of peat bogs, now covered by the tide,
frequently occur along the coast, at Ballyness Bay near Falcarragh,
Gortahork, and Ards Point. This submergence constitutes proof of
depression of the land during a recent period.
** Dungloe District.—Large accumulations of drifted sand are to
be met with at several points along the coast, frequently forming
dunes, as at the mouth of the Gweebarra River. The drifting sand
has been disastrous to a village which formerly constituted an impor-
tant fishing-station on the east side of Rutland Island. The sand now
almost covers the desolated habitations.
*« ((Note.)—Mentioned by the late Lord George Hill in the second
part of his elaborate ‘ Hints to Donegal Tourists’ (1846-7). Rutland,
his Lordship stated, was a green island until forty years before the
date of his publication (1806-7), was then a military station with
“good houses’ and ‘ quite a gay place.’ ”’)
(p. 113.)—‘‘ In Skull Island (Inishcoole) human remains lie
O’Rritty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 161
entombed in blown sand, as noticed by the late Mrs. Craik (in an
‘Unknown Country’: an illustrated account of a tour in Donegal).
“* Fanad District.—-Examples of raised beaches are found all round
the northern coast from Ballymastocker Bay, on Lough Swilly, to
Mark’s Point at the ‘ Narrows’ on Mulroy waters.
‘‘ At Ballymastocker Bay a fine example may be seen of an old
sea-cliff, 1000 feet inland from the present tidal flow. It is semi-
circular, and about 50 feet high; the space between it and the sea is
filled with sands which, in places, are becoming cemented together.
Evidence of a raised beach can also be seen at Sessiagh Bay, and to
the south at Doaghmore Strand.”
Memoir, Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 22, 23, 30, and 31
(in part),
(p. 7.)—‘‘The district described in this memoir comprises the
south-westerly portion of the county Donegal, lying to the north of
Donegal Bay, and stretching along its western margin into the
Atlantic Ocean. Along its coast-line it is indented by numerous bays
with intervening headlands.”’
(p. 10.)—“‘ Sea-cliffs and Headlands.—The promontory of Banagh
generally presents a bold and rock-bound coast to the Atlantic, deeply
indented with bays and gullies, ‘and often rising in cliffs several
hundred feet ahove the surface of the ocean. Along the southern
shore of Loughros Beg Bay, the quartzite cliffs rise from the ocean in
a steeply sloping wall, 500 feet in height; and some distance further
west, under the summit of Slieve Tooey, a nearly vertical wall of the
same rock descends a thousand feet from its edge to the surface of the
waters. At the head of Tormore Bay, still further west, the cliffs are
almost equally lofty and steep; and all along the coast to Glen Head
they break off with faces several hundred feet in height. Glen Head
is a remarkable cliff, almost vertical, with a descent of 600 feet,
surmounted by a tower, built as a watch-tower in the time of the
Spanish Armada. The long ridge of quartzite, which bounds the
valley of Glencolumbkille on the south, here breaks off abruptly ;
and along with the cliffs terminating at Doon Point, encloses a little
bay, at the head of which are masses of shingle, piled up by the
powerful Atlantic waves when impelled by westerly winds. The
force of these waves must be sometimes prodigious; but their
destructive effects on the quartzite rock, which is naturally brittle,
are somewhat lessened by the occurrence of intrusive sheets and dykes
of epidiorite, which help to bind together, as with bands of iron, the
02
162 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
masses of natural masonry of which the coast is constructed. Malin
More headland, formed of tough schistose rocks, though not very lofty,
seems to have been able to resist the force of the waves better than
the cliffs of quartzite, as it projects much further out into the ocean,
than the adjoining parts formed of the latter rock; and the same
statement holds good with reference to the promontory of Malin Beg
to the southward. This headland is, however, somewhat protected by
the group of islands formed of felstone porphyry, of which Rathlin
O’Birne Island is the largest. All along this part of the coast the
rocks are fissured, faulted, and thrown into numerous sharp folds.
‘‘From Rossarrell Point, as we proceed southwards, the coast
cliffs retreat inwards, and gradually become more and more lofty and
precipitous till they culminate in that magnificent wall of natural
masonry, which descends from the summit of Slieve League to the
surface of the ocean, through a height of nearly 2000 feet, and
stretches in an unbroken sweep from north-west to south-east through
a distance of about three miles. The greatest elevation of this
stupendous cliff occurs immediately below the summit of the mountain,
which reaches a height of 1972 feet, though here the actual cliff
is only 1650 feet in depth, the remaining part consisting of slopes;
and from this the crest gradually descends in either direction, till at
Bunglass Bay, near the southern extremity, the cliff is about 1000 feet
in height. The cliff is formed of successive courses of quartzite and
schist, variously coloured, yellow, red, and gray, witha gentle dip
southward, or rather towards the south-east, along the northern and
eentral part of the escarpment, but becoming highly inclined and even
vertical, where the bay sweeps round to the west at Bunglass, where
it is surmounted by the cliff called ‘The Eagle’s Nest.’ ”
(p. 11.)—‘‘ At the base of the vertical cliffs of Bunglass Bay a
shelying shingle beach slopes downwards into deep water; and, stand-
ing on the edge of the cliff, you look down into the clear green waters
of the ocean from an elevation of 800 feet, and again upwards to the
cliffs above, rising to a similar height. This great sea-wall of meta-
morphosed strata has attained its present dimensions, both in length
and altitude, by the gradual undermining of the base, where the surf
is always breaking, and against which, during storms, the waves
beat with terrific force, as exposed to the full sweep of the Atlantic
waters, It would appear from the position of the summit of the
mountain immediately over the cliff, and from the direction of the
contour lines, as shown in the map, that the cliff has now reached its
maximum of eleyation, ‘When the work of excavation has proceeded
O’Re1rty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 163
for some distance further, the height of the cliff will gradually lessen,
owing to the fall of the ground inwards. Among the coast cliffs of
Ireland, and perhaps of the British Isles, there is none which reaches
in loftiness that which presents its face to the Atlantic along the
western flank of Slieve League, and which forms a breakwater not
unworthy of the great ocean which washes its base.
‘‘This coast, indeed, from Carrigan Head to Donegal, consists
of a succession of deep bays, with proportionately long intervening
headlands.”’
(p. 12.) —‘ Kast of the promontory of Carntullagh lies McSwyne’s
Bay, separated from Inver Bay by the long and narrow promontory
terminating in St. John’s Point, which, owing to its form and length,
is the most remarkable headland of Donegal Bay. Measured from
St. John’s Point to the village of Dunkineely, this promontory is
over 6 miles in length, with an average breadth of half a mile.”
(p. 86.)—‘“‘ There is a large sea-cave directly beneath the highest
point of Sheve League.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 31 (in part) and
32 (1891). The district described lies in the south-western border
of the great tract of metamorphic rocks which stretch northwards
into the highlands of Derry and Donegal. (No available particulars
given.)
Memoir. Geological Survey of Ireland, Sheets 42 and 43 (1885).
The eastern and larger portion of the ground described belongs to the
Co. Leitrim.
(p. 9.)—‘' The lowland belt stretches through the district as an
undulating or boggy tract between the central mountains and the sea,
most usually presenting a low line of cliffs and islets, or a sandy
foreshore, to the full force of the Atlantic breakers.
‘“‘That part of the Atlantic off the coast has not any great depth in
the vicinity of the land, nor does it seem to present any such abrupt
irregularities in the form of its bed as diversify the shape of the
ground under description. Such depths as 8, 15, and 25 fathoms, are
marked on the Admiralty Chart, within distances from the coast-line,
which, taken inland, would show differences in elevation equal in
amount to considerably more than 200 fathoms. Drumeliff Bay is
only one or two fathoms deep; and even out in the wildest part of
Donegal Bay, mid-way between the Teelin and Ardboline headlands,
the depth given (31 fathoms) is less than the height above sea-level of
164 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the broadest part of the Ardboline or Lissadill promontory at the foot.
of Benbulben. Four miles from the northern shore of this promontory
land re-appears in the small flat island of Inishmurray and adjacent
rocks.”
(p. 27.)—‘“t Raised Beaches.—Portions of the coast of Drumcliff
Bay, not far from Carney, are marked on the map as raised beaches ;
these containing oysters, clams, periwinkles, &c., are now four or six
or seven feet above high-water mark.”
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland, Sheet 55 (1885). A certain
portion of the description refers to the arms of the sea, Ballysadare,.
and Sligo Bays. (No available particulars given.)
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland, Sheet 54 and south-west part
of 42 (1880). The district described lies almost altogether in the
Co. Sligo. (No available particulars given.)
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland, Sheets 39, 40, 51, 52, and
northern portion of 62 (1881). The area described occupies the
north-western portion of the County Mayo. It is bounded on the
north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the south by Blacksod
and Tullaghan Bays.”
(p. 7.)—‘‘Worth-eastern Portion of District.—The tract of country
to be described is that which extends from Benmore Head, west of
Bunatrahir Bay, to the old coast-guard station at Porturlin.
‘«'The physical features of this district are characterized by a bold
and precipitous coast-line. To the mighty roll of the waters of the
Atlantic must be attributed the varying features of headland and bay,
precipice and shingle ridge, island and gorge, which give this coast its
great interest to the geologist. The ocean waves, acting along lines
of weakness and displacement, those of fissures, jointage planes
or dykes, interesting rocks of different degrees of hardness, and in
various stratigraphical positions, have carved out the diverse features
of the coast-line, as we now find them. Eastward the greatest eleva-
tion attained by the cliffs is at Keady Point, where it reaches 352
feet from this on either side, the shore-line, while still precipitous,
gradually diminishes in elevation. Between Glengloss Point and
Belderg Harbour the cliffs range up to 189 feet high, and are sharply
indented along lines of fault or of fissure. To the westward they
again increase considerably in altitude, attaining 640 feet at Benwee
Geevraun Point, and in continuation of Glinsk mountain to about 850
O’Re1tLy—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 165
feet, although they are not so steep. Opposite the island of Ilan-
master the cliffs are 790 feet high, and very precipitous. From thence
to Porturlin they range in varying heights of 400 to 600 feet, with
islands detached from the several headlands and fissure gorges cut into
the mainland. Further westward the cliffs attain to still higher
elevations.”
(p. 8.)—‘‘ The Stags of Broad Haven form a group of four islands
rising from the surface of the Atlantic, at a distance of upwards of a
mile and a-half from the north-west coast of Mayo. One of these
rises to an elevation of 316 feet, another to 312 feet, the next to
256 feet, and the lowest to 243 feet. That nearest the coast is
domeshaped, while the most northern of the group is pointed. They
consist of schistose rocks, and form a favourite retreat for sea-birds.”
(p. 9.)—‘* The long north and south peninsula, locally called the
‘Mullet,’ which is separated from the mainland by Blacksod Bay,
and an arm of Broad Haven, contains no very considerable elevations,
the highest (434 feet) being towards Erris Head on the north, whilst
the remainder of the peninsula is low lying and gently undulating
ground. The coastline from Rossport, along Broad Haven to Erris
Head and thence to Annagh Head, presents a continuous line of bold
precipitous cliffs, generally inaccessible, the remaining part being low,
gravelly, sandy, and rocky beaches.”
(p. 17.)—‘‘ Along the shore a little to the eastward, between
Nyranagh and Claddaghnahowna, at the base of the cliffs 160 feet
high, the metamorphic rocks are visible at about the sea level,
dipping apparently 20°, 30° east-north-east beneath the Carboniferous
sandstones which overlie them unconformably, and dip from 5° to 10°
only. By the breaking away of the sandstones, owing to the sea
action, the schists are revealed at low tides, and in the face of the
cliff adjacent, their broken uneven surface is again visible underneath
the sandstones and shales.”
(p. 18.)—‘*‘ At the head of the small bay, between Keady Point and
Benaderreen, into which the waves roll majestically, the inclined
face of rock is laid bare by the removal of the outer portion up to
a line of fault, which bears east-south-east, with an inclination
northward at 25° from the vertical, the southern side remaining
intact.”
(p. 22.)—‘‘ Peat bogs.—Peat bogs are numerous and extensive
over the whole country, particularly in the southern portion, where
they are of vast extent and great thickness, and along the shores of
Blacksod Bay and Broad Haven, extend even below low-water mark.
166 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
These extensive low-lying bogs contain numerous trunks and roots of
large forest trees, such as the oak, fir, &c., as well as the stems, leaves,
and fruit of the hazel, and other stunted varieties, which prove the
existence at one time of large tracts of forest in the country, although
it is now quite destitute of timber.”’
(p. 27.)—‘‘ Following the shore line from Belderg Harbour,
westward, Horse Island is met with. It is almost completely —
separated from the mainland by a deep and narrow gorge, due
probably to a line of fault or fissure.
‘¢ About one mile and a half further westward (of Benwee Geevraun
headland) a most interesting locality occurs, where Glinsk Mountain
abuts upon the seaboard near the townland boundary of Glinsk and
Laghtmurragha. The cliffs attain a height of about 900 feet, and
are broken into steep slopes and precipices; they are partially
accessible from the top by a winding path, or from the bottom by
landing from a boat.”
(p.31.)—‘‘A more remarkable fault fissure and dyke occurs between
the islands of Illanmaster 353 feet high, and the headland adjacent
which is 790 feet high. This narrow cleft is cut down to the sea
level, with almost perpendicular sides, through which there formerly
was an open water passage, but now a ridge of shingle has
accumulated in it. Traces of the dyke are visible at low water. On
the opposite side of the small islet, this fissure is further continued
east 25° south, as a chasm into the flanks of Glinsk Mountain, the
open sides of which attain to a perpendicular height of 300 feet.”
(p. 31.)—‘‘ The most remarkable of those fissures and dykes occurs
adjacent to the Island of Torduff. A cleft has been formed along a
line of fault into the mainland, with perpendicular sides up to 400 feet
in height, and scarcely 10 feet apart in some places, but widening out
at the top. Seaward it is prolonged in a rather remarkable manner ;
first cutting off by an open chasm with vertical walls, one island from
its adjacent headland, then another—Torduff—from its headland,
which is over 500 feet high, then [launakanoge from its headland,
Fohernasmeel, almost 550 feet in elevation, and further westward, but
with wider interval, the Island of Carrickduff from its adjacent
headland. The view looking down this cliff with its four pairs of
opposing perpendicular headlands on either side is almost unique.
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheet 63 and north half of
74), 1880. The district described is one of the wildest and most
inaccessible in Ireland, but is not devoid of many features of
O’Rettty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 167
geological interest. It lies wholly in the County Mayo. It is bounded
on the south by Clew Bay, and on the west by part of Curraun, Achill,
and part of the Blacksod Bay.
(p. 17.)—‘‘ On the shores of Tullaghan Bay below high-water
mark, numerous large trunks and roots of trees are to be met with
resting in the bog, showing the existence of extensive forest in the
locality at one time. At present the whole country is quite destitute
of timber of any kind.”
Memoir of Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheet 62 and northern
part of Sheet 73).
(p. 7.)—‘‘ The area described embraces a small portion of the coast
of west Mayo, from Ballycroy to Blacksod Bay. As also the Islands of
Achill, Achill Beg, Clare, Innishbiggle, Innishgalloon, Duvillaun,
Leamarch, &e.
‘«The whole of the Island of Achill, and a considerable portion of
the adjacent mainland, is of extremely mountainous character. The
Island of Achill, whose extreme dimensions from east to west are
15 miles, and from north to south 11 miles, is separated from the
mainland by Achill Sound, a channel of the average width of from
half to three-quarters of a mile, narrowing to about 300 yards at
Bullsmouth, the Ferry, and Darby’s Point, and spreading out into a
large expanse of water north of the ferry between Achill and Bally-
croy, containing the Islands of Innishbiggle, Annagh, &c., and
sweeping away to the eastward and southward, joins Ballycragher
Bay, forming with the waters of Clew Bay at Mulranny, a peninsula
of that large tract of country which lies to the west of the village, of
which Curraun Hill, 1715 feet high is a conspicuous feature.
‘* Proceeding to the west, or west 20° north, from the ferry at the
Sound, the ground rapidly rises within a distance of 43 miles as the
crow flies, till it attains west of the village of Mweelin, an elevation of
1530 feet, forming there a ridge or tableland running due south for
nearly 3 miles, and terminating ata height of 818 feet in Dooega
Head. Its western margin descends with a nearly vertical descent of
900 feet into the sea, forming the precipitous and picturesque cliffs of
Minaun. To the north of this, and east of the Protestant colony, the
ground again rises 698 feet above the sea level, whilst immediately
to the west abruptly rises the mountain of Slievemore, attaining a
height of 2204 feet within a horizontal distance of one mile. This
mountain gradually slopes to the west, and at a distance of 1} miles
from its apex, terminates at Ooghnaboo, in sea cliffs 80 feethigh. Its
168 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
north-east face is broken by a precipitous rift or chasm, which extends
to within a few hundred feet of its summit, and runs down nearly to
the sea cliff. From this out to the extreme west point of the island,
yviz..Achill Head, the surface of the country consists of only high hills
and elevated boggy plateaux, culminating in the mountain called
Croaghaun, whose summit towers nearly vertically over the Atlantic,
at a height of 2192 feet. This mountain is sheared off by an
enormous precipice of nearly 2000 feet, running from top to bottom of
its north-west face, and forming an almost perpendicular wall to the
sea.”
(p- 9.)—‘‘Achillbeg Island.—One and a half miles long by one
mile wide is an elevated tract of land, lying about half a mile from
the main island. Three hundred feet up the sharply inclined flank of
the south-east face of this high ground are found large perched blocks.
of red sandstone, more than a ton in weight, in a condition of unstable
equilibrium. Achillbeg is bisected by a broad, sandy, east and west
cut, or passage, running parallel to the passage that divides the two
islands, and the three eastern and western valleys, occurring at
intervals of two miles each, going north on the mainland. The above
passage is nearly on a level with the sea, which has evidently swept
through it; its direction coincides with that of the joint planes and of
the numerous eastern and western faults.”
(p. 12.)—‘‘ Starting from the north-east end of the island, viz.
Ridge Point; the ridge is due to the hard siliceous nature of the
schists, backed up on the least weathered side, by a strip of still
harder quartzite. On the west side of this the sea has encroached
along the line of strike, leaving exposures of the harder portions of
rock here and there. North of Doogort the coast-line is most irregular,
the rock being soft and easily decomposed, and also cut by numerous
faults. The bold sea-cliffs at the base of Slievemore, standing out in
a semilune, are composed of a hard quartz-schist. From Dirk to
Annagh the coast-line is recessed at right angles to itself. Here the
rocks are not less hard, but we have a sudden change of dip along a
northern and southern fault at Dirk, and the change in the outline is.
probably due to jointing, by which the rocks are much cut up. This
increased excavation is due also to the reversed dip. From this point
the seaboard projects outwards until it terminates on the north-west
point of Gubroenacoragh, composed of hard quartzose schists. The
flanking cliffs on the north and west coasts of this tableland, being of
felspathic or micaceous schists, have been more rapidly cut away
along the parallel jointings, which running north-north-west at
O’Re1tity—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §c. 169
intervals of two feet, cut the rock into slabs. In the Croaghaun cliffs
the dip changes from south-south-east to north-north-east or north-
east, and continues thus out to Achill Head, the master joints running
parallel to the line of cliffs. Along the shores on the south, Moyteoge
Head presents a barrier of quartzite to the agents of denudation, thus
sheltering the inlet or bay of Keem from the south-westerly gales.
The bay is formed parallel to a line of fault. Further east the head-
land of Gubalennaum More stands forth in the comparative impenetra-
bility of quartzite, being carved out along the lines of jointing—the
indentations of Dooagh and Keel are cut in along the line of strike.”’
(p. 13.)—‘‘ On the east side of Keel Bay, in the Minaun Cliffs, the
strike bends more and more to the north-east, the jointing continuing
approximately at right angles to the dip. From Doonty Eighter, the
southern point of the quartzite cliffs of Minaun, the coast-line, as a
whole, trends to the south-east, the schists becoming softer, more
micaceous, steatic, and chloritic as we go south, and this portion of
the coast being more exposed to the south-western gale has run at the
southern end of the island away to a point. It is very noticeable that
the coast-line throughout is approximately either at a very high angle
or at right angles to the direction of the dip.
** Achill Sound itself appears to have been formed by a gradual
subsidence of the land, the direction of the coast-line being approxi-
matively parallel to the line of the strike of the rocks, viz. north-
north-east and east-south-east, and frequently coinciding with that of
the major joints. On both the eastern and western shores also, the
bog is found running down on the beach, and forming banks at the
level of high tide.”
(p. 14.)—‘‘ At Ooghrelleyrannell there is a cavern cut in along the
joint lines called the ‘ Seal Cave.’ ”
(p. 15.)—‘* From Saddle Head to Achill Head.— Very fibrous, and
highly felspathic, coarsely crystalline gneissose schists. Cliffs dan-
gerous, and almost inaccessible.” _
(p. 17.)—‘‘ At the east side of Keel Bay in the Minaun or
‘Cathedral Cliffs,’ the sea having excavated passages through pro-
jecting points along the joint planes, we find the coast-line and head-
land of hard, flaggy, and tabular quartzites, with occasional bands of
argillaceous and other schists. We here notice in all the more
weathered parts, 7.¢. those cut into the cliff, that the direction of
the dip is at right angles to that of the most weathered face of the
cliff.””
(p. 18.)—-“‘In Achillbeg Island. The coast-line here is very
LiOy Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
irregular, being cut into numerous inlets, among rapidly weathering
rusty-looking schists. In the guts the sea is rapidly cutting its way
between the foliation planes.
¢
Memoir, Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 73 and 74 (in part),
18 and 84) (1876).
The country described includes a part of the county Mayo with a
small portion of the county Galway. This tract is bounded on the
west by the Atlantic, and on the north by the southern shore of Clew
Bay, and on the south by Killary Bay.
(p. 12.)—‘‘ In the Atlantic, off the mainland, are some islands,
the largest being Clare Island, which is about four and a-half miles
long from east to west, while its greatest breadth is not more than
two and a-half. To the west of this island are the steep cliffs of Knock-
more, which rise directly from the ocean to the height of 1520 feet.
Next in importance are Inishbofin, Inishark, Inishturk, and Cahir.
Most of those islands would appear to be the peaks of submerged
ridges. Cahir and Inisturk lying in a line with the ridge that extends
from the Mweelrea Mountains, towards the north-west, north of
Loughs Cunnel and Glencullin, and the valley of the Owennadornaun
to Cross Lough; while Inishbofin and Inishark may be either on
the ridge that forms the Rinvyle Promontory or on the continuation
of the ridge forming the promontory called Cleggan Head, both of
which are included in the district to the south.”
(p. 14.)—‘* Clare Island.—On the eastern side of this rugged and
wild island is the only landing-stage, which is afforded by a smooth
beach. Between the western and eastern coasts the island is traversed
by seyeral ridges of moderate elevation, culminating in that of Knock-
more, which, as already stated, presents a bold and steep face to the
Atlantic. The northern portion of the island presents a very rugged
appearance due to the unequal denudation of strata formed of different
materials.”’ 3
(p. 14.)—“‘ Islands in Westport Bay.—These islands are remark-
able for their uniformity both in shape and composition, while their
summits never rise to more than about 100 feet above the level of the
sea.
“Their form is apparently connected with the direction of the
original glaciation of the district; but on the western side of each—
save that of Inishgort, which is protected by Dorinish—marine action
is making a preceptible change, leaving perpendicular cliffs, while
towards the east the ground slopes to the water’s edge.”
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 171
(p. 27.)—‘‘ Since the great Glacial Period, but probably while
glaciers existed in at least some of the sheltered mountain valleys, the
sea rose at least 350 feet higher than it is at present, its waters chang-
ing the features of all the valleys that came under their influence
while at the same time and subsequently atmospheric waste modified
the higher portions of the country.”
(p. 89.)\—“ Inishark, Inishgort, Inishkinnymore, and Lnishkinny-
beg.—The first is the principal island in this group. It is bleak
and wild, rocky towards the west and north-west, while there is an
envelope of drift on the eastern slopes. At the north-west shore
are high and almost perpendicular cliffs.
‘« Inishbofin has a gencral east and west strike. On an average it
is four miles long and two wide; but the north and south coasts are
indented with bays and at Lough Bofin from sea to sea, is not half a
mile. The island consists of five hills, namely :—Westquarter, its
greatest height being 292 feet; it forms a promontory nearly separate
from the rest of the island, being connected by the previously men-
tioned low isthmus in which Lough Bofin is situated :—MMiddlequarter,
highest peak, 288 feet ; Cloonamore, the north east hill, having a height
of 157 feet; Knock, the hill east of the harbour, 271 feet; and Znish-
lyon, 148 feet, which is a tidal island, and separated from the other
hills during high water.”
(p. 42.)—‘‘ A little north-west of Lough Bofin are north 70° west
dykes, which apparently are portions of the gabbro dykes just men-
tioned. Further north-west and north-east of Bunnamillen Bay, are
massive dykes of melaphyre; apparently portions of the same dykes,
but separated from one another, and shifted by faults. These have
weathered considerably and formed the deep marked fissures called
‘ Boher-na-collig’? (Old hag’s path).”’
(p. 42.)—‘‘ Inishturk lies about five miles north east of Bofin, and
eight miles from the mainland. The surface is undulating; there are
four marked peaks: the north-west or signal tower hill, 629 feet; the
north-east, 428 feet; the south-east, 588 feet ; and the south-west 240
feet. The east and south-east coast is low; while on the west and
north-west are considerable cliffs, some of which are nearly perpen-
dicular and vary from 200 to 400 feet in height.”
(p. 48.)— Freehill and Govern Islands.—These rocky islets lie
from one to two miles from the mainland and are composed of very
felspathic, massive, purplish and greenish grits and sandstones, often
pebbly and much cut up by quartz strings.”’
(p. 78.)—‘* The numerous islands in Clew Bay are saddle-backed
172 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
hills of boulder clay resting on limestone. These islands are peculiarly
shaped, being generally oval, with theirlongest axes runningin an east and
west direction, the most western of them haying their face on the sea side
cut away by the encroachments of the sea, and presenting vertical cliffs.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 93 and 94 and adjoin-
ing portions of Sheets 83, 84, and 103), 1878, The area described is
pounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the
Atlantic and Killery Harbour, on the south by the Ocean.
(p. 8.)—‘‘ The Atlantic Ocean, which bounds so much of this area,
indents its coast by fiords, bays, and creeks, some of which are of
considerable size and length. The largest and most marked of the
fiords are Killery Harbour and Streamstown Bay. The first is over
nine miles long, and seldom, except near the east termination, over
half a mile across; while Streamstown Bay is nearly five miles long,
and for the most part only a few hundred yards wide.”
(p. 11.)—‘‘ The central ridge ends towards the west at Inishturk,
in a height of 120 feet, while the northern branch immediately west of
Aughrustbeg Lough is only 78 feet high; nevertheless farther west,
and apparently one of the partly submerged peaks of this ridge, is
Ardillaun or High Island, with an altitude of 208 feet.
‘‘ Bordering the Atlantic Ocean on the north, and partly parallel
with the northern branch of the east and west ridge just now described,
is a low range of hills that towards the north-west ends in the cape
called Cleggan Head. North-west of this is Inishbofin, and possibly it
may be part of this ridge; however, more probably it is part of a more
northern ridge (Revyte Promontory).”’
(p. 13.)—‘* Besides the mountains now described there are isolated
hills forming conspicuous and striking objects, such as Lettermore
(‘the big slope,’ 1172), forming the promontory north of Ballynakill
Harbour; Lackairea, ‘the tangled flags,’ 1807 feet above the sea,
standing over and abruptly rising from Maum Bay, and in a quarter of
a mile gaining a height of 1279 feet).”
(p. 14.)—“‘ Islands.—Lying off the west and south coasts, also in
some of the bays, are large and small islands, and sea rocks. (Carrig
and Carrygeen). The islands off the north part of the west coast are
apparently peaks of the submerged parts of ridges as previously
suggested, being situated on lines having a similar bearing to the
parts of the ridges on the mainland, 7.e. nearly east and west lines.
Southward of Mannin Bay and off the south coast, other arrange-
ments seem to exist ; and the islands, if they are parts of ridges, belong
O’Rrit1y—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &e. 173
to systems having other bearings. South-west of Mannin are Chapel,
Duck, and other smallislands. These extend in a north-east and south-
west direction, and may be parts of a ridge that runs from Knock, south
of the mouth of Mannin Bay, to Shiprock ; while the islands that lie
further westward (Inishdugga, Inishkeeragh, Illaun-na-neid, or Slyne
Head, &c.) may be parts of a second parallel low ridge. Off the south
coast, the islands are scattered about irregularly; still, however,
they may also possibly be peaks of submerged ridges, as Inishlackan,
Ilaunnacroagh More and Beg, Croagh-na-keela, and the Carriggeens or
sea-rocks, three miles further to the south-west, lie in a line which is
parallel to the ridges or lines of islands just described; while Mace
Head, St. Macdara Island, and the sea-rocks called the Sherds, lie in
a second nearly parallel line.”
(p. 538.)—“ High Island.—This is the most westerly land in the
county Galway, and is bounded on all sides by high cliffs, which are
for the most part perpendicular or nearly so.”
(p. 54.)—‘* Friar’s Island is also wild, rugged, and very inacessi-
ble. To the north-west in the granite, occur systems of east-and-west
and nearly north-and-south vertical joints, which produce a columnar
aspect when viewed from the west or north-west.
‘The southern side of Cruagh is glaciated, grooved, and etched,
the bearing of the ice varying from north 70° west to east and west.”
(p. 58.)—“* Islands off the Rinvyle Promontory ; Inishbroon, off Rin-
vyle Point; IWaunananima, Treaghillaun North; Crump Island.—The
exposed portions of the hornblendic rock weather freely into a rusty
brown crust.”
(p. 89.)—“‘ Islands off the South-west and South Coasts ; Inish-
dugga, Illaunaminara, Lyal More and Beg, Inishkeeragh, and lllaunane,
with numerous smaller Islands and Tidal Rocks.—This group of islands
lies to the south-west of Mannin Bay, between it and Slyne Head,
many of them being joined together at low water.
“* Iilaunamid, or Slyne Head, Chapel Island, Duck Islamd, Doonna-
waul, Iilaunaleama, and their associated carrigs and carrigeens. These
islands and rocks form the south-west extremity of the Co. Galway.
Carrickfin, Horse Island, Strawbeach Island, Carricknure, Illaunpollna-
muck, Lllaunurra, and the adjoining sea-rocks.—These islands and rocks
le in and to the south-east of the bay, that is situated east-north-east
of Slyne Head.”
(p. 90.)—‘* To the south-east of Bunowen Bay, in Crompaun Bay,
and south of Ballyconneely Bay, there are numerous rocks and small
islands,
174 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
“ Inishlackan, Illaunnacroagh More and Beg, and Croaghnakeela.—
These islands lie off the mainland south and south-west of Roundstone
Bay.
“¢ Mile Rocks and Sheds.—These isolated sea-rocks lie to the south-
west and south of Croaghnakeela, and are inaccessible except in calm
fine weather.”
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland, Sheets 104 and 113, and adjoin-
ing parts of Sheets 103 and 122 (1871). The area contained within
the limits of Sheet 113 is, for the most part, occupied by the Atlantic
Ocean and the entrance to Galway Bay. The two northern islands of
Aran are situated towards the western margin, and immediately to the
south of it, in Sheet 122, is Inisheer, the extreme south-easterly
island of the Aran group. Parts of the islands of Lettermullan and
Gorumna, with the portions of the mainland that lie east and west of
Cashla Bay, occur inside the northern margin.
(p. 7.)—‘* The Aran Islands, at the mouth of Galway Bay, lie in a
north-west and south-east direction, being about 16 miles long from
Carrickemonmacdonagha, the north-west point of Ilaun-eragh (the
western of the Brannock Islands), to Trawkeera Point, the eastern
extremity of Inisheer. They consist of three large islands—Inish-
more, Inishmaan, and Inisheer—with four small islands off the north-
west point of Inishmore, called the Brannock Islands (p. 8); and on
its east coast, at the entrance of Killeany Bay, Illaunatee or Straw
Island; the last named being joined to the island by a sand-bank
during low water. Connected with the Aran Islands there are very
few detached rocks, besides these to the north-west, which are included
under the general name of Brannock Islands, only three occurring off
Inishmore, called Island-a-reefa, Craghalmon, and Carrickmonaghan ;
and one, a spring-tide rock, called Finnes, half a mile from the shore of
Inisheer.
“* Sounds.—North of Inishmore, between it and Iar-Connaught, is
the Worth Sound, about 53 miles wide. Between Inishmore and
Inishmaan is Gregory’s Sound, from 1 to 13 miles wide, while Inish-
maan is separated from Inisheer by the Foul Sound, which is 1} miles
wide between the nearest points, and Inisheer, from the barony of
Burren, Co. Clare, by the South Sound, about 4 miles across.”
(p. 9.)—** Mainland ; form of the ground.—Vhe land on the north of
the Galway Bay is intersected by numerous chains of lakes, bays, and
creeks; various harbours and bays are formed by the islands and
promontories. In Sheet 113, on the west of Lettermullen, are some
O’ Ruitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 175
islands and rocks. Eagle rock is the largest of the group of small
islands lying north-west of Golam Head, its highest part being 35 feet
above the main sea-level.”
(p. 10.)—‘‘ To the north-west is Fish Rock, always above water ;
as is also Seal Rock, which is about half a mile to the southward.
Lettermullen is a wild, rugged-looking island, having irregular slopes
towards the south-west and south. Gorumna Jsland is the largest of
the archipelago studding the extensive estuary between Greatman’s
and Kilkieran Bays. Between Greatman’s and Cashla Bays is the
long, narrow promontory which separates these harbours. At its
southern extremity are two wild, rocky heads, between which is a
small cove, called Doleen Harbour, to which, when the wind is not
from south or south-west, small boats can resort.”
(p. 12.)—‘ Aran Islands.—From the north-east shores of the Aran
Islands the land rises in a series of cliffs or huge steps, which form
continuous terraces (see section, fig. No. 1), while from the summit of
the island there is a gradual fall south-westward, it ending, however,
at the sea-board in cliffs that, at the present day, are being formed by
the Atlantic Ocean.
‘* Inishmore is 84 miles long, from its north-west point to Gregory’s
Sound, and of various widths, being only half a mile wide at Port-
murvy, while at Kilronan it is a little more than two miles across.
Viewing Inishmore from the hills west of Galway town it appears to
be three islands. This is caused by two low valleys which extend
across it; one west of Killeany Bay and the other south-west of Port-
murvy. The latter is so low, about 50 feet above the sea, that it has
been mistaken by Galway-bound ships for one of the channels into the
bay, for which reason it has received the name of the ‘ Blind Sound.’
Of it O’Flaherty says: ‘About the year 1640 (1639-5 sun-spot
maximum), upon an extraordinary inundation, the sea, overflowing the
bank, went across over the island to the north-west.’
‘* (Note.)—In Mallet’s list of earthquakes for 1640, there is one
mentioned on the 4th of April, at 3.15 a.w., felt in France, Belgium,
and Holland. Perhaps it might have been the wave resulting from
this seismic commotion which caused the inundation. On the 15th of
August, 1852, a large wave rolled in on the west coast of the island,
drowning fifteen persons who were fishing on the rocks.”
(p. 13.)—‘‘ At this sea cliff, on the north-west of the island, there
are two well-marked terraces, which, with four below them obser-
vable in the neighbourhood of the village of Bungowla (see fig. 1),
make in all eight terraces. Such terraces are not confined to the
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B. | We
176 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
land now above the sea-level, as submerged terraces occur in Galway
Bay on the north-east of the island.
‘< The sea-cliffs on the north-east side of the island are low, and
are often replaced by strands or shingle beaches. On the south-west
they have taken a definite character, being usually perpendicular, and
often over 50 feet in height; however, at the north-west point of the
island, under the shelter of the Brannock Islands, there is a heavy
shingle beach, on which boats can land in fine weather.
‘From the north-west point, south-eastward to Gregory’s Sound,
the eliffs are either perpendicular or terraced. From Mvweeleenar-
ceaya, a little south of the Brannock Islands, to Doocaher, except for
a short distance, at the ‘Blind Sound,’ the cliffs are perpendicular,
although at the base of some of them, as will be hereafter mentioned,
there are sea-terraces or steps below the high-water mark of spring
tides. At Doocaher the cliffs are about 100 feet high, and from that
towards the north-west they gradually rise to 234 feet at Corker,
from which they lower by degrees to the ‘ Blind Sound’; but north-
west of this, at Dun Aingus, there is an Ordnance height of 265 feet,
and they attain their greatest altitude (300 feet), about a mile further
north-west, a little south-east of Polladoo. From Doocaher towards
the south-east to the point called Illaunanaur there are sea-terraced
cliffs (excepting a few short breaks), which are surmounted by a
rampart formed of large blocks. This is called, in Professor King’s
MS. account of the Aran Islands, the ‘ Block Beach.’
‘From Illaunanaur to Portdeha, on the west of Gregory’s Sound,
the cliffs are perpendicular or terraced; but on the north of the latter
place the Sound is bounded by a strand.”
Lord Dunraven, ‘‘ Notes on Irish Architecture,’ vol. i. p. 1
(1875-77).
“Dun Aingusa, on the greater Island of Aran. — Landing on
Aranmor, the largest of the three islands, and commencing his walk
at the southern end (the visitor) should keep along the edge of the
cliffs, which gradually increasing in height as he advances, seem to
form a grand barrier to the ocean that beats for ever at their feet.
They are of limestone, and are marked by long parallel horizontal
lines or fissures, so that where they break, they seem to shape
themselves into huge masses, squared as if by giant hands. Here
and there, where in bold promontories they advance into the sea, they
have become separated from the land, and rise like towers from the
O’Re1tty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 177
waves. Passing upward and onward towards the highest point, the
traveller will begin to perceive that this precipice is crowned with a
circular wall, ‘grey, weatherbeaten and wasted,’ whose broken and
serrated edge stands dark against the sky.”
(p. 2.)—‘‘ The solitude and grandeur of the scene are un-
speakable.””
(p. 3.)—‘‘ Dun Aingusa or the fort of AXngus, is named from one
of the sons of Hua Mor, a chieftain famed in the earliest period of
Irish legendary history. It occupies an angle of the cliff, and is
therefore protected by it on two sides to the north and west. It is, in
plan, irregularly concentric, composed of three areas or wards, each
within its wall. The interior of the fort proper is half an ellipse, 142
feet on the short diameter which rests on the cliff, and 150 feet deep,
being half the long diameter, which projects northward from the
ciff. The containing wall is 8 feet to 12 feet thick. The entrance
is on the west-east, 90 feet from the cliff.’
(p. 4.)—‘‘ The inner doorway is arude, flat-topped opening, 3 feet
4 inches wide. Only its upper 3 feet is now visible (1870-75), the
lower part being covered up with rubbish. When Dr. O'Donovan
saw the doorway in 1859 it was perfect. It has since shared the
mournful fate which awaits the whole structure.
“The annexed drawing made in the spot in the year 1857, by
Mr. Frederick William Burton, was then a faithful representation of
this doorway ; but since that time a great change has been effected.”
(p. 9.) —‘*‘Dubh Cathar,’ ‘ The black fort,’ Aranmor.”
(p- 10.)—‘‘ Dr. O’ Donovan observes that this fortification would
appear from its colossal rudeness to be many years older than Din
Angus or Din Conor. The guide, an old man, who accompanied me to
the place, informed me that he remembered the wall nearly perfect ; but
that a great part of it had fallen in a storm a few years ago. Scarcely
any of the inside face of the wall now remains, and the force of the
Atlantic waves has swept away the lesser buildings which it enclosed.
One wave he described as rising in sucha vast body of water above the
cliff, that it overran the hollow within the wall of the fort, and flung
the stones on all directions.
‘* Inishmaan is three miles long from the north-east to the south-
west, and half a mile wide between Trawtagh on Gregory’s Sound, to
Trawbetteragh on the Foul Sound.”
(p. 14.)—‘‘ The north part of the island is bounded by low clifis,
strands or shingle beaches. On the south-west from Trawtagh to
Aillinera, the cliffs rise in steps, at the latter place being perpendicular,
P2
178 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and about 200 feet high, from which, southwards, the surface
gradually falls to about 40 feet at the cliff opposite Taunabruff, the
south-western extremity of the island. From the south part of
Aillinera, where the cliff is about 170 feet in altitude, southward to
Taunabruff, and then north-east to Clogharone, the cliff is cut into
sea-terraces and surmounted by a ‘ block beach.’
“¢ Inishere is less than two miles across from the shore, north of the
village of Ballyhees, to Fardarris Point, and 23 miles from Trawkeera
Point to Tonefeehney. Captain Bedford says of this island, ‘Its
shores are everywhere rocky, except at its north-east side, where there
is a small sandy beach called the North Strand.’ ”
(p. 26.)—‘‘ The subjacent rocks of the Aran Islands are limestones,
with which are interstratified some thin shales and clay beds. The
shales and clay seem in a great measure to have guided the denudation
that carved out the terraces, for at the base of many of the well-
marked clifis, shale or clay beds occur.
“The terraces are more or less undercut, and may have been
formed by marine action, but of this there is no direct proof; if they
were, the force of the waves would seem to have come from the east-
north-east, while, at the present day, it is from the south-west.”
(p. 32.)—‘‘ Sea Chiffs—Of the cliffs of the north-east and north-
west of this island, scarcely more can be said than that already
mentioned in the general description, but those on the south-west are
peculiar, as in places they are terraced by the waves of the Atlantic.
Moreover, some of them are surmounted by the previously mentioned
‘block beach.’ This peculiar accumulation of blocks does not occur
at all on the north-east shore, while to the north-west it was only
found at the point due east of the north point of Brannock Islands.
On Inish-Eeragh, the westernmost of the Brannock Islands, there is
also a block beach, which is thus described by Captain Bedford :
‘On all but the eastern side there isa margin of massive blocks of lime-
stone, upheaved by the violence of the sea, and which now form a
sort of barrier against its farther encroachment. The highest part
of the island is the summit of the upheaved beach at the north-west
side, which is 36 feet above the mean level of the sea.’
“‘'The north part of the north-west coast of Inishmore, as before
mentioned, is a perpendicular cliff that either extends upwards from
the sea-level, or has at its base a few steps.
“‘The vertical cliff seems to be caused, in a great measure, by
vertical master-joints, some of which cut through all the visible beds,
while others only reach the shale beds. In the former case the cliffs
O’Rew1ty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §c. 179
are perpendicular down to the sea, while in the latter there are steps
or sea-terraces at the base of the cliffs. South-east of Polladoo, there
are four sets of steps at the base of the cliff, and the note made on the
ground is as follows:—‘ Cliff over 250 feet high. Two shale beds.
The cliff rises perpendicularly from the highest.’ South of Portmurvy
there are from four to six of these sea-terraces, and the cliff is less
than 50 feet high. South of Gurtnagapple, the cliffs are low but
perpendicular; hereabouts nearly east and west master-joints occur
about 2 yards apart, and as the sea undermines the cliff, masses of
rock, tons in weight, that are disconnected by these joints, topple over
and fall, forming a break-water at the base of the cliff. This
breakwater extends for about 3} a mile.”
(p. 83.)—“‘ At Corker, there is a perpendicular cliff formed by
east and west master-joints. In the face of the cliff there are two
shale partings about 40 feet asunder, the lower being about 60 fee
above half neap tide.
‘‘ South-east of Nalhea there are four or five sea-terraces at the base
of the cliff; and at Whirpeas the cliff is about 140 feet higher than
the level of neap tide, a shale bed occurring about 40 feet above this
level. To the east of this, at Pollnabriskenagh, the limestones are
traversed by east and west master-joints, and the sea yearly causes
great destruction ofthe rock. This cliff, whichis about 100 feet high,
is undercut at the base. At Bensheefrontee, the point a little north-
west of Doocaher, ‘the block beach’ sets in, and extends to the
south-east point of the island, having only five small breaks in it:
three at the ‘cooses’ or small bays in the vicinity of Doocaher, one
at the ‘coose’ called Doughatna, and one about 40 yards wide at the
Glassan Rock, in all of which places the base of the cliff is undercut,
while that part which is surmounted by the ‘ block beach’ is stepped.
However, although it is undercut, and forms a cave at Doughatna,
yet below the cave, there are six very low steps. The highest part of
the cliff on which this beach occurs is in the vicinity of Doocaher, and
about 100 feet above the sea level, while the lowest part, a quarter of
amile west of the Glassan Rock is about 35 feet. These steps at the
base of the cliffs are usually from 4 to 7 in number, seemingly having
been cut, one by low water of spring tides, another, by low water of
neap tides, another by high water of neap tides, another by high water
of spring tides. At one place, east of Carrickurra, there is a step
above high water of spring tides on which the ‘block beach’ rests.
At this place the cliff is about 50 feet high.
‘The stones forming the ‘block beach’ are cast up during the
180 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
winter gales, and some of them are of considerable size. A little
south of Doughatna, the following observation was made—‘ Great
quarrying seems to be going on here during the gales. Blocks, 30
by 15 by 4 feet tossed and tumbled about.’ And again, half way
between Doughatna and the Glassan Rock there is this note. A block
15 by 12 by 4 feet seems to have been moved 20 yards, and left on a
step 10 feet higher than its original site. East and west of the
Glassan Rock, there are two caves which run for a considerable
distance inland, and connected with both are ‘ puffing holes.’ The
western puffing hole is 85 yards from the sea margin, and the eastern
33 yards. On the north-eastern side of the latter there is a small
‘block beach,’ the blocks in which have all the appearance of being
yearly tossed about by the waves, while more are added to it, and we
may suppose some sucked into the abyss below. Other puffing holes
were observed further north-west, but none so large as those just
mentioned.”
(p. 34.)—‘‘ The sands are very considerable, occurring in all the
islands. They are ever changing their positions; and in O’Flahertie’s
‘History’ we find mention of various churches, tombs, and fields,
now covered or nearly covered by them. During the examination of
Inishmaan, tombs were pointed out near its shore that had only a
a few months previously been discovered, as up to that time they
were covered with sand, which now has been blown away.
‘‘ At Trawmore, on the south of Killeany Bay, proofs have been
lately discovered (1860-67), not only of the movement of the sand-
hills, but also that this part of the land, since the islands were first
inhabited, has changed its level, as human structures are found under
the strand, and extending out seaward. In the history of the islands,
by the then vicar, Rey. W. Kilbride, it is stated: ‘This movement of
the sands has gradually uncovered the ruins, which consist of two
“‘ cloghauns’”’ or stone-cells, with beehive-shaped roofs and structure,
in every point similar to those usually called Leabuidh Diarmaid agus
Grane, or ‘‘ Dermot and Graine’s Bed,” and old wall or single stone
fences, dividing the ground into regular fields and gardens, evidently
under cultivation in former times. These walls extend out seaward,
and all the structures, until very lately, were completely covered over
by sand from 10 to 20 feet high. They must apparently have been
buried a long time ago, for it cannot be less than a thousand years
since Eany’s church was first erected on part of this sandbank which
still remains.’ This author also mentions other places to which the
sandhills have moved during the historical period, one of the most
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 181
remarkable being at St. Colman’s burying-place on Inisheer, when a
‘hillock,’ which in O’Flahertie’s time (a.p. 1684) was a nice ‘ green
plain,’ is now only a mass of sand.”
(p. 385.) — ‘‘ Inishmaan.—Seven continuous terraces occur, but
whether they are the continuation of the terraces on Inishmore or not,
it was impossible to prove.
** Sea-cliffs.—On the west coast the sea-cliffs rise in steps, as they
followed southward from Trawtagh, until at Aillinera they reach their
maximum height (nearly 200 feet), southward of this they gradually
fall to nearly the sea-level at Ailyhaloo, the south-west point of the
island. Immediately south of Aillinera, at a height of about 170 feet,
there is a ‘ block beach,’ which is continuous from this point round
the west and south-east sides of the island.”
(p. 86.)—‘‘ The cliffs below it are always in steps very similar to
those described below the ‘block beach’ on the south-west of Inish-
more. In one place steps were observed over high-water mark of
spring-tides, on which the following record was made. ‘ At Tauna-
bruff the limestone is thin bedded, and the winter storms have formed
seven low steps between the high-water mark of spring tides and the
“* block beach.” ’
‘“On the west coast some of the blocks are remarkable for their
size, and the distance and height to which they have been moved by
the force of the waves. The following are the most notable :—
‘ About one hundred yards southward of Pollnashedaun, ‘‘large blocks
have been ‘ quarried’ by the sea, the largest measured being 15 by 5
by 4 feet.”” South of Taunabruff a block 20 by 5 by 1 feet has been
raised 20 feet, and moved 31 yards from its natural site.’ A little
south of this, near Ailyhaloo, a block 19 by 8 by 3 feet was raised
5 feet, and moved 8 yards; and another 27 by 9 by 4 feet was raised
4 feet, and carried 9 yards.
‘‘On the south-coast the ‘ block beach’ is peculiar, being formed
of small blocks; also, in other places, the blocks seem to be re-arranged
yearly, while here and there they do not seem to have been moved for
years, and the impression formed at the time was, that the tidal
current cannot hereabout now set as strong in the same direction
against the coast as formerly, because samphire, sea-pink, etc., now
grow freely on the two terraces below, as well as amongst the blocks
forming the beach ; moreover the blocks seem not to have been stirred,
or added to by the sea, for years.” This beach was found extending
as far towards the east as Clogharone, the south-east extremity of this
island.
182 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
(p. 36.) —‘‘ Islands off Errisainhagh: Inishtreh.—This is a small
island on the extreme north-west of the Errisainhagh promontory ;
during low water it is jomed to the mainland by a bank of gravelly
shingle, which also covers the greater part of the island—the rock is
porphyritic granite.
“ Freaghillaun, Rush Island, and Inishbigger.—These islands lie in
the entrance to and west of the Moyrus Boat Harbour. The south
and south-west shores of Freaghillaun are covered with large rect-
angular blocks of an even-grained granite, with black mica, similar to
the rock about Mall Head.
** S$t. Macdara’s Island, or as it was anciently called Croach Mic
Dara, z.¢. ‘ Macdara’s stack or rick.—The shape of the island may
partially be due to ice erosion, as many of the rocks have the appear-
ance of being ice-dressed. However its slopes, more specially those
northward and southward, appear in a great measure to be due to the
structure of the rock, as it is inclined to split off nearly everywhere
in plates afew feet thick. This remarkable weathering can be well
examined at the south-west of the island, where the waves of the
Atlantic are yearly quarrying largely, and hurling up the blocks above
high-water mark, thereby forming a beach of huge blocks, and one of
considerable size that was measured, gave 21 by 21 by 2 feet as its
dimensions.
** Mason Island lies a little east-south-east of St. Macdara’s. On
the west there are numerous angular blocks and boulders scattered
along the shore, while on the east the rock is covered with sand.
““ Wherron, Avery, and Ardnacross Islands.—The two former le
north-west, and the latter east of Mason Island, from which it is
separated by a creek, which is fordable during low water, while all
are nearly covered by the tide at high water.
“Mweenish Island, Inishtroghen, and Tidal Rocks.—Mweenish
bounds Ards Bay on the south, and is connected with the mainland
by a pass, that is fordable at half-tide.”
(p. 38.)—‘* Duck Island lies about half a mile south of Mweenish.
and its subjacent rocks are similar to those on the south part of that
island.
** Finish Island.—This island bounds Mweenish Bay, on the south-
east, and is connected to the mainland at low water by a strand. A
mile south of this island is Jnishmuskerry.
** Birmore and Birbeg Islands and Tidal Rocks.—Birbeg is situated
about a mile south-south-west of Ardmore Point, and Birmore south
of the latter, the two being connected during low water.”
O’Rettty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 183
(p. 50.) —“‘ Lnisherk, Dinish, Furnace, llauncashin, and Lllaunanar-
roor.—These are tidal, being joined during low water.”
(p. 56.)—‘' Lettermore Island, with Illaunroe, and Inchagham.—
Lettermore Island, consists of two hills, one to the east and the other
to the west, with a flat bog between them. To the north, at Cashla
point, the unweathered veins stand up 2 inches above the surface of
the rock. A little east of Cashla Point is a north, 10° east, dyke of
quartziferous porphyry ; and a little farther east, into which a small
bay has been cut by the action of the sea, is a course of rotten granite,
running nearly north and south. Hereabouts the unweathered portions
stand 8 inches above the mass, while inland south of this and due east
of the trigonometrical point, A 364, they are only one inch high.
“ Inishlay and Inchmakinna.—These islands lie south-east of Letter-
more in Fearmore Bay. The former is joined by a bank to Gorumna
during low water, while the latter lies near the east shore.
“« Annaghvaan, Inishtravin, Lllaunakirka, Beaghy, Illaunard, north
island, and the adjacent carrigs (rocks) and carrigeens (small rocks and
half tide rocks). ‘These form a small archipelago at the junction of
Fearmore, Camus, and Kilkieran Bays.”
(p. 57.)—“‘ Of Kinnelly Islands, Mr. Cruise says—these are tidal
islands, and are situated about a mile and a quarter due west of Inish-
traven.”
(p. 71.) —‘‘ Here it may be mentioned that a register of the amount
of weathering of some of the granites, since the ice disappeared from
this country, would seem to be recorded by the veins which traverse
these kinds of rocks; as these veins are usually unweathered, retain-
ing their glaciated surfaces, and stand up above the mass of the rock ;
near the coast being usually from 2 to 3 inches high, while more inland
they only average 1:5 inches in height. This weathering would
seemingly also suggest that in the neighbourhood of the sea, the
atmospheric influences are different to those inland, not only in the
amount of work done, as shown by the greater height of the veins
near the sea, but also in respect to the colouring matter, in some of
the rocks, for, as previously mentioned, the purplish gray or greenish
felstones near the sea weather red, while the same rock inland weathers
a dull yellowish white.”
(p. 71.)—“ On the sea-coast, about a quarter of a mile south-east
of Foal Island, there is a remarkable kitchen-midden about 50 feet in
diameter, 15 feet in height, and forming a flat-topped conical hillock.
It seems to be nearly altogether formed of the shells of the Patella
vulgata and the Littorina littorea; no excavations was made into it.
184 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
There seems to be added to it yearly a few more shells, by the people
who visit the site of a church, and two holy wells dedicated to St.
Columbkill, which are in its vicinity.”
e
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland (Sheets 105, and part of 114),
1869. (North of Galway Bay.)
(p. 41.)—‘‘ In places along the shore of Galway Bay, peat with the
roots of trees is found below high-water mark ; this might not prove
that the land has sunk, for, at the present day, about two miles west
of Galway, between Blackrock and Blake’s Hill, is a morass below
high-water mark, in which peat and shrubs are growing. This morass.
is divided from the sea bya barrier of shingle. However, against this
theory, we find in a half tide bog west of Blake’s Hill, an oak stem,
12 feet long and 2 feet in diameter, immediately above the ‘ corker’
or butt. This tree could scarcely have grown on ground below sea
level; moreover on the Aran Islands at the mouth of the bay, there
are proofs of the islands haying sunk since they were first inhabited.”
(See Memoir Sheet 113.)
Memoir Geolog. Survey of Ireland (Sheets, 114, 122, and 123)
(1863). The sheets contain the north-western extremity of the
County Clare, lying on the south side of Galway Bay, and the island
of Inishere, the smallest and most easterly of the south Isles of
Aran. They include the coast line from the southern shore of Liscan-
nor Bay to the Head of Galway Bay.
(p. 5.)—‘‘ To the north of Liscannor Bay, in the promontory of
Hag’s Head, the ground rises to heights of 500 and 600 feet, especially
along the coast, which exhibits a line of magnificent precipices nearly
three miles long, and rising in one part, quite perpendicularly, to a
height of 668 feet; these form the well-known cliffs of Moher (see
fig.al).7?
(p. 11.)—‘‘ Much of this removal has been caused by the wearing
action of the sea, when the land stood at a lower level. The escarp-
ment which runs round the foot of the limestone hills, is as much like
an old sea-coast on the east side as on the west where the sea is still
beating on it. The action of the sea on the high Coal Measure land
may be well observed still going on at Hag’s Head and the cliffs of
Moher, the waves eating away the lower part of the cliff, and constantly
causing fragments of the upper part to fall for want of support. This
O’Reitty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, §e. 185
action is considerably assisted by the great vertical joints, which tra-
versing the rock, divide it into blocks, rendering the work of destruction
a far easier matter than it would otherwise be. The best instance of
this is at Ailleenasharragh, at the cliffs of Moher. A steep and wind-
ing pathway leads the explorer to the foot of this magnificent cliff,
and the most casual observer cannot fail of being struck by the
immense accumulation of débris which forms a talus on the beach,
huge masses of grit, shale, and flagstone lying piled together in
wild confusion. Here the cliffs are constantly decreasing in alti-
tude, inasmuch as the ground slopes inland from the coast; where-
ever on the other hand, the slope of the surface is seaward, the height
of the cliff is increasing.”
(p. 12.)—‘‘ There is a tradition among some of the peasantry that
at one period Hag’s Head was connected with the southern shores of
Liscannor Bay by dry land, and that about midway stood the church of
St. Scoitheen; that by means of an earthquake, land and church suddenly
disappeared; and on clear days, when the sea is calm, it is said that
the ruins of the church are sometimesvisible atthe bottom. (Note—I am
indebted for this tradition to the late Professor O’Curry. It is alluded
to inthe ‘Annals of the Four Masters,’ translated by him.—F. J. F.).”
(p. 19.)—‘‘ The Coast section—The almost continuous section
along the coast exhibits the structure of the whole district.”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 115 and 116), 1865.
(No available details given.)
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 131 and 132), 1860.
The district described forms part of the western side of the County
Clare. (No available details given.)
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 140 and 141), 1860.
The district described includes the south-west part of the County
Clare, lying north of the mouth of the Shannon, and a small part of
the northern corner of the County Kerry, on the south of that river.
(p. 5.)—‘‘ This part of the County Clare is an undulating tract,
stretching away westward in a long narrow promontory, the termi-
nation of which is Loop Head. The length of the promontory from
Poulnasherry Bay to Loop Head is 16 miles in a direction about
186 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
west 30° south. Its greatest breadth (a little west of Poulnasherry
Bay) is five miles, from which point it varies considerably towards
the west on account of the irregular form of its southern shore.
Thus. at Carrigaholt it is nearly three miles broad, at Kilbaha, 13,
while approaching Loop Head it rapidly contracts, so that half a mile
before reaching that point its breadth is little more than mile. It is
bounded by precipitous cliffs, which in many places assume fantastic
forms, resulting from the action of the sea on the rocks. On the
north-west shore these cliffs attain in some places to an elevation of
200 feet perpendicularly above the sea; but along the shore of the
Shannon they do not exceed 100 feet.”
(p. 6.)—‘‘ The shore of the Shannon, south-east of Kilrush, is
very varied in form. In some places the ground terminates abruptly in
cliffs ranging from 40 to 100 feet in height, while at others it slopes
almost imperceptibly towards the river.”’
‘‘The width of the Shannon between the shores of Clare and Kerry
in this map varies from two to three miles.”’
(p. 13.)—‘‘ At the north side of the Loop, the cliffs are 200 feet
high. Dermot and Graine’s Rock separated from the mainland by a
chasm 95 feet in width at the top, forms a striking object. (Fig. 4).”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheet 142), 1860. That
part of the Sheet which lies north of the River Shannon belongs tothe
County Clare. At the south-west corner of the Sheet there is a small
portion of the County Kerry. At the south-west corner of the Sheet
there is a small portion of the County Kerry, in which is the little
town of Tarbert. (No available details given.)
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheet 143), 1860. The
River Shannon runs with a general bearing east and west through
the northern part of the district described. (No available details
given. )
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 150 and 151), 1859.
The principal features of the district described are, the promontory of
Kerry Head on the west, rising to the height of 700 feet. The
promontory of Kerry Head may be described as a regularly formed
hill, upwards of twelve miles long, from its western extremity to the
O’Remty—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland, &c. 187
point where it sinks eastward into the plain. Its highest points are
Trisk and Maulin Mountains, which are upwards of 700 feet above
the sea. From these points the ground slopes away very gently
towards the sea on all sides except the east, terminating in rugged
cliffs, which attain in some places, to a height of 200 feet, but
generally vary from 50 to 100 feet.
(p. 10.)—‘* The action of the water on the north coast of Kerry
Head has caused the cliffs to assume various curious forms in many
places, such as caves and natural arches. Near Ballingarry Island
are some good examples, as also at Illaunamuck. (Fig. 1).”
Memoir Geological Survey of Ireland (Sheets 140, 161, 171,
and part of 172), 1863. That promontory of Kerry which stretches
on the north side of Dingle Bay, and south-west of the Bay
of Tralee, happens to be divided among four of the Sheets, but can
obviously be only described as one district. The general form of the
ground is that of a broken ridge, traversed by several large valleys
and ending westward in the precipitous islets and rocks known as the
Blaskets.
(p. 8.)—‘‘ This north and south ridge of Mount Brandon rises
gradually from the sea near the town of Dingle, till, in the course of
2 or 3 miles, it attains an altitude of about 2000 feet. Still further
north it rises to 2764 feet, in Brandon Peak, where it has in some
places so narrow a crest that aman may sit down astride of it. mémoire (1900), Bull. Carte géol. de la France, No. 71, pp. 21
and 28.
208 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Here and there an argillaceous layer occurs, converted almost wholly
into mica at its contact with the granite vein.*
Opposite Swan Mount, above the Portnoo Hotel, a granite appears
amid crumpled mica-schists, and is darkened, toughened, and altogether
modified by numerous inclusions of mica-schist and aphanite. There
is not the slightest doubt as to the nature and origin of these inclu-
sions, and the rock resembles the similar instance at Castlewellan,
Co. Down. A large specimen, with inclusions in various stages of
absorption, has the characteristic specific gravity of 2°77.
Higher up, on Cashel Hill, veins of granite, with green mica,
penetrate a mica-aphanite; and biotite-granite appears in force near
the summit of the hill. All this serves to correlate the Portnoo granite
with that of the main mass further east; but it must be borne in mind
that pegmatitic veins cut all the rocks of this area, including the
foliated granite of the Ardara dome, and that the Portnoo granite may
possibly belong to this later series of intrusions. Some faulting has
occurred since the intrusion of the granite veins into limestone near
the road on the north side of Narin Hill,” and these veins may belong
to the older granite ; but the typical pegmatites occur, cutting across
the foliation of dark schists, as near at hand as Clooney, and also
freely throughout Ballyiriston. From the point of view of general
principles, however, the masses of pure and modified granite at Portnoo
are, of course, available, whatever their age, as links in the argument
concerning the composite gneisses in the dome of Ardara.
When we come east of Clooney, we are dealing with exposures on
the true north flank of the dome. The junction of the Ardara granite
and the schists is well displayed in a little quarry by the main road,
just east of Cashelgolan Hill. The mica-schist is here delicately
penetrated by sheets of muscovite-granite, which have been forced
along the almost vertical planes of foliation. This foliation is parallel
to that noticeable in the granite itself on the south side of the road.
The junction shows very various features. In one place the granite,
in which muscovite is the common mica, intrudes in delicate sheets
1 Compare Lacroix on the alterations of calcareous strata in the Pyrenees, ‘‘ Le
granite des Pyrénées, etc.,’’ 1¢* mém. (1898), Bull. Carte géol. de la France, No-
64, p. 15.
? This is probably the locality near Narin where Mr. E. H. Blake noted the
difficulty of saying “‘ where the slate ends and the granite commences”’ (‘‘ On the
primary rocks of Donegal,’’ Journ. Geol. Soc. Dublin, vol. ix. (1862), p. 296).
The apparent passage from the one rock into the other was recognised early in
Donegal, as elsewhere in Europe.
CoLtE— On Composite Gineisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 209
along the foliation-planes of the mica-schist. The latter rock contains,
in addition to the usual pale biaxial mica, a green-brown biotite,
probably developed as a product of the igneous contact.! A specimen
measuring 7 cm. by 8 cm. by 2 cm., from west of the farm of Ard-
lougher, and formed of clearly defined sheets of muscovite-granite
and interlaminated mica-schist, in apparently equal proportions, has a
specific gravity of 2°74. Specimens in which far more subtle inter-
mingling has gone on have much the same density, despite the more
coarse development of their crystalline constituents. The crystalline
associations probably arise at an early stage, and the growth of larger
crystals is a process of rearrangement of the groups already formed.
The contact-zone occasionally shows a yellow-brown composite rock,
in which brown mica is abundant, but in which granitic characters on
the whole predominate. This would be styled by French authors a
Leptynolite.? The biotite, which is almost uniaxial, and which dis-
plays grey-brown to rich yellow-brown face-colours, does not occur in
the granite itself, nor is it the same variety as that in the adjacent
mica-schist. Muscovite is also present in the leptynolite, and separated
out a little before the biotite; the latter certainly does not represent
in this case mere patches of residual material derived from the mica-
schist. The complete graduation of this rock into the granite, and
also into various types of interlaminated composite gneiss, makes it
clear that it also is essentially a composite rock, in which absorption of
the schist and recrystallisation have occurred. A “ leptynolite,” or
more precisely, a fine-grained ‘ granitite”’ with oligoclase and two
micas, and a specific gravity of 2°70, has resulted from an interming-
ling that must have amounted in this case to interfusion (PI. rv., fig. 1).
This zone of leptynolite, as observed by myself east of Cashelgolan
Hill, is not more than 10 cm. thick ; but I see no reason to doubt that
similar effects may be produced elsewhere on a far more important
scale.
Those who, with Mr. F. D. Adams,’ have urged that such leptyno-
lites arise from progressive metamorphism of the constituents of a shale,
! Salomon, ‘‘ Geologische Studien am Monte Aviolo,’’ Zeitschr. d. deutsch.
geol. Gesell., Bd. xlii. (1890), p. 471, describes the formation of a brown biotite
at the expense of chlorite, in phyllites invaded by the tonalite of Monte Adamello.
* Compare Lacroix, op. cit. (1898), p. 8, and his pl. I, figs. 1-5,'and W. Salomon,
‘*Essai de nomenclature des roches métamorphiques de contact,’’ Congrés géol.
internat., Comptes rendus, viii® session (1901), p. 343.
3 «The excursion to the Pyrenees in connection with the 8th International
Geological Congress, ’’ Journal of Geology, vol. ix. (1901), p. 44.
210 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
without any addition from the igneous rock, have cited chemical
analyses to prove the possibility of such a change; but they seem to
me to overlook the evidence of the field itself, and also the interming-
ling traceable with the microscope on the margin of inclusions and of
veins that look sharp enough to the unaided eye. When a passage
from an inclusion to the surrounding rock is clearly visible, the inclu-
sion is, as previously remarked, lable to be treated as a ‘“‘ basic
segregation.” But it isimpossible to assert that the contact-schists in
such a case as that of CashelgolanHill are ‘‘basic segregations”’ from
the granite. The latter rock has none the less intermingled its magma
intimately with their crystallizing materials. In such a case, the
microscope merely refines and carries further the conclusions forced
upon us in the field.
On the rising ground in Ballyiriston, south-east of this junction,
there are rapid variations in the constitution of the granite. Very
pure types, free from biotite, merge into darkened types with pink
felspars and nests of dark green biotite. (Pl. ut., fig. 1). The mode
of aggregation of this biotite at once suggests its foreign origin; and
this is confirmed by the frequency of lumps of schist, streaked out
parallel to the east-and-west foliation, even as far south as half a
mile from the visible junction on the road. Here, then, on the north
side of the dome, the phenomena of Kilgole and Garvegort Glebe are
repeated; the foliated granite is clearly of composite origin.
If any evidence were required, in addition to that which is so
obvious in the field, to show that the inclusions are not the oft-cited
“basic segregations,’’ it would be found in the fact that veins run
from the surrounding granite into these inclusions, and take advantage
of pre-existing foliation-surfaces in them. A lump of muscovite-
biotite-epidote-rock in the granite south of Bonnyglen Lough is thus
penetrated by zigzag veins and tongues of biotite-granite. These
1 W. Salomon, op. cit., Zeitschr. d. deutsch. geol. Gesell., Bd. xlii. (1890), pp.
476 and 493, describes certain large masses, resembling concretions, in the tonalite
of Monte Aviolo, as shading off into the igneous rock, but being none the less
inclusions from the adjacent schists. Great crystals of biotite and plagioclase, like
those of the tonalite, occur within them ; their outer portions have been melted,
and the tonalite-magma has flowed in along cracks, taking foreign constituents
into itself and undergoing thus a chemical modification. Salomon’s observations
deserve quotation beside those of Lacroix, Sollas, and others, whose conclusions
this author to some extent anticipates; and they have more value from the fact
that he elsewhere denies that any extensive modification of the tonalite-magma has
occurred through absorption of schist upon a large scale (‘‘ Ueber Alter etc. der
periadriatischen Massen,”’ I'sch. Mittheil., Bd. xvii., 1898, p. 173).
Cote—On Oomposite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 211
caused a further development of greenish biotite in a thin contact-
zone along their junctions with the schist; in fact, this biotite seems
to have been deposited as a first product of cooling from the veins
themselves, just as the augite in the dolerite veins traversing older
dolerite at Portrush has a tendency to gather on their margins. Then
the felspar, which is mostly orthoclase, formed a zone on each side,
leaving the quartz, which has separated last, to occupy a central band.
Some large-erystals of biotite occur, setirregularly in the veins. This
little block, measuring some 7 cm. by 7 cm. by 6 cm., shows us that
many lumps of schist must have been altogether cut to pieces and lost
during the invasion by the igneous mass.
The dark microcline-granite in Ballyiriston shows under the micro-
scope the clustered groups and flecks of biotite, associated with epidote,
with which one soon becomes familiar along such intermingled contact-
zones (Pl. ur, fig. 1). A little sphene and green hornblende have
developed, indicating the approach to more basic types. The specific
gravity of this granite is slightly raised, and is here 2°69, that of
the normal granite of Boylagh, as tested from various localities, being
close on 2°60. ‘The pure microcline-granite is here, then, modified
towards quartz-diorite; at the same time, many of the inclusions in
it become so commingled with matter from the granite as to pass
at their margins quite insensibly into the igneous mass.
II].—Carpane, NEAR GLENTIES.
A conerete example of the structure of Boylagh occurs on Carbane,
a hill 450 feet in height above the sea, and half a mile east of the
little town of Glenties.! The Dalradian series in ‘‘ the Rock,’’ as the
rough street at the south end of the town is styled, consists of vertical
well-bedded quartzites and black micaceous shales. Along their strike,
as they swing round to the north-east, they show crumplings, and the
shale-layers pass in a quarter of a mile into foliated and wrinkled
mica-schist. The pressure under which this change was brought
about is evidenced by the folding of the metamorphosed strata round
small eyes of amphibolite (epidiorite); these doubtless represent the
characteristic accompanying sheets of dark igneous rock, diorites and
aphanites, which have become broken up in the more yielding shales.
“The Rock’? at Glenties is probably itself an eye on a large scale, a
patch of strata that has escaped crumpling and deformation.
1 This is the area referred to in the Survey Memoir to S.W. Donegal, pp. 29
and 53.
212 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Carbane rises on the south-east of this metamorphosed area, and
consists of granite, which penetrates the shale. On the southern slope
of the hill the contacts are excellently seen. The granite is a pale
pink aplitic rock, consisting almost entirely of pink orthoclase, larger
and less decomposed colourless microcline, and quartz. Its specific
gravity is 2°59. Near any large inclusions of schist, and near the
junction generally, it becomes darkened and gneissose; but even the
uncontaminated specimens show a delicate foliation, especially on their
weathered surfaces. Specimens intermediate in structure between
the darkened granite and those which exhibit distinct veins of aplite
penetrating schist are only intelligible when their relations are followed
out in the field. The schist, which is here not much more than a dark
micaceous shale or phyllite, occurs 2m situ, dipping south-east, about
midway between the road from Glenties and the summit of Carbane.
The granite not only invades 4t, but is so worked up in it that crystals
of quartz and microcline lie as white oval specks in a dark ground of
phyllite, which flows round them. Tongues of granite shade off into
mixed rocks of the most diverse character—here into a schist which
has become set porphyritically with constituents from the granite ; here
into a fine-grained composite gneiss, in which the former sediment is
represented by delicate waving sheets of biotite, with aplite layers,
less than 0°5 mm. thick, between them. Hence the same contact-
zone gives us granulitic biotite-gneisses, and rocks that, by themselves,
might be regarded as felspathic ash-beds. The more uniformly inter-
mingled masses show the same type of darkened granite as in the
dome of Ardara, and occasionally obvious flecks of schist indicate the
origin of the darkening. The composite rock, in a handsome specimen
specially examined, has a specific gravity of 2°73, and is seen under
the microscope to contain bent and streaky groups of biotite and yellow
epidote, caught up between the constituents of the normal granite.
Sphene, a common accompaniment of such contact-action, occurs
freely. Some subsequent pressure-effects are traceable, in the pro-
duction of mylonitic envelopes about certain felspars, and the alter-
ation of quartz crystals to granular aggregates ; but, both in the field and
in the section, the actual intermingling is seen to be due to igneous flow.
We pass by gradations from this rock to those which resemble felspa-
thic ash, and see under the microscope how an excess of sedimentary
material and a deficiency in granite has produced this extreme compo-
site type. (Pl. m., fig. 2). HEarth-pressures no doubt assisted the pene-
tration of the granite-magma into the schist; as usually happens, the
igneous rock followed, but did not originate, the upheaval, and its
CorE— On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 213
consolidation occurred under the very influences that had driven it
from its subterranean caldron.! But the continuation of these pressures,
when consolidation had begun, broke up the tiny sheets of granite,
squeezed the yielding layers of biotite-schist between the crystals,
and gave us the interesting porphyroide of Carbane as a parallel with
the ‘crush-conglomerates” that occur so often on a larger scale.
But, here again, the essential intermixture of materials occurred
during the igneous flow. In one specimen, a lump of biotite-epidote-
gneiss occurs among the schist-layers, shifted by the dynamo-meta-
morphic movements from the position it once occupied, but showing
that gneissic rocks had arisen in Carbane by intermixture prior to
these particular movements.
All the rocks examined from this contact-zone show signs of
pressure-alteration subsequent to their having received a foliated
structure. Were not the evidence satisfactory in the field, it would be
easy to attribute the principal foliation also to dynamic action. This
combination of igneous penetration with shearing movements seems
a common feature along granite-contacts in the Pyrenees. But
again and again, even in hand-specimens, we see that no dynamic
movements could have produced such differentiation in successive
layers of the rock. This is markedly the case in certain epidiorites
of the Dalradian series, which are found on Carbane delicately inter-
foliated with wavy and fluidal sheets of aplite. The final movements
have faulted some of these sheets, and the planes of fracture cut
across their foliation (PI. 11., fig. 1); but the original igneous inter-
penetration, and the consequent production of a hornblende-gneiss
with strongly differentiated layers, are as clearly traceable here as in
the instance elsewhere cited by me from Cregganconroe, in the county
of Tyrone. Sphene and epidote occur in the composite rock ; and
the latter mineral, occasionally appearing in large patches in the
fluidal granite veins, is doubtless there of primary origin, owing to
the conditions under which the ultimate consolidation of the rocks
took place.*
1 Compare Weinschenk on the Alps, Congrés géol. internat., Comptes rendus,
yili® session, p. 340.
* See Lacroix, ‘‘ Le granite des Pyrénées et ses phénoménes de Contact,’’ 1°
mém., pp. 6 and 40, and 2™e mém., p. 18.
3 “*Metam. Rocks in E. ‘'yrone, etc.,’’? Trans. R. Irish Acad., vol. xxxi.,
p. 440, and pl. xxvi., fig. 1.
‘See Weinschenk, ‘‘ Mémoire sur le dynamométamorphisme, ete.,’’ Congrés
geol. internat., Comptes rendus, vili® session (1901), p. 340.
214 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The microscopic evidence, in fact, sustains to the full the broader
evidence in the field. The handsome red granite of a portion of
Carbane, with flakes of mica-schist in it at intervals, passes clearly into
darkened gneissic types along its margin. The more we study the rela-
tions of the granite and the Dalradian series in Boylagh, the more
influence we may ascribe to the structure of the latter, prior to its
invasion by the granite. Even where not already foliated by the
earth-movements which reared successive mountain-chains, even where
it remained as little altered as in ‘‘ the Rock” at Glenties, the sedi-
mentary series provided surfaces for the penetration of the granite,
and the previous structure of the country originated that of the
banded gneiss.
Mr. Kilroe’ has already laid stress on the metamorphosed condition
of the strata in Boylagh prior to the intrusion of the granite. I
cannot help thinking, in considering the modifications of this igneous
mass, that too great importance has been attached to the dynamic
action which followed on its consolidation, and too little to the con-
tact-phenomena and interpenetration, of which Carbane serves as s0
typical an example.
IV.—Tue Marern or tHe Granite From Ranny To Derxsec Hitt.
In the southern half of Sheet 15 of the Geological Survey Map,
Mr. Kilroe has represented in remarkable detail the intrusive and
serrated margin of the granite, where it invades the Dalradian series
near the mouth of the Gweebarra. Limestones, diorites, quartzites,
and schists are, as it were, dovetailed into the granite across four
miles of country. North of the Gweebarra River, their strike is
fairly parallel to the granite-margin; but on the south side their
outcrops swing round to the north-east, and are crossed at right angles
by the igneous rock. The prominent tongues of the granite, how-
ever, run out along the strike, and show how potent an influence the
he of the sedimentary rocks exerted on the flow of the invader.
Mr. Kilroe? has similarly noted that at Dunlewy, further north,
where the granite cuts across the foliation of the Dalradian series,
its offshoots invade that series, ‘‘ usually along the strike.” Masses
are described as having been detached from the metamorphic series,
and remaining as bands within the granite.
1 Mem. S.W. Donegal, p. 30; also p. 27.
* Memoir to Sheets 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 15, and 16 (1891), p. 71.
Corz—On Composite Gineisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 215
In our present area, commencing with the bare white hog’s-back
of Trusklieve, we find that the granite has included a great eye of
schist, a quarter of a mile long, above Ranny Lough, and has caused
kyanite to develop throughout it by contact-action. According to the
interesting views of Weinschenk,! this mineral implies that the
intrusion was accompanied by earth-pressures, sufficient to determine
the formation of the denser aluminium silicate rather than andalusite.
The whole rock thus comes to have a specific gravity as high as 2°86.
This schist, viewed under the microscope, is a very handsome quartz-
mica-garnet rock, rick in brown biotite, which has a small optic
axial angle, and with a little plagioclastic felspar. The longer axes
of the kyanite crystals lie in the surfaces of foliation, and tufts of
sillimanite have developed extensively in the micaceous patches, and
spread throughout the granular quartz. The latter mineral thus
comes to resemble cordierite when seen in section; but its granules
are, of course, uniaxial.”
The main boundary of the granite occursat Ranny Lough, and the
rock becomes darker, showing the usual gneissose bands of biotite as
it intrudes among the schists; but another band of granite comes up
along the strike of the schists and epidorites at Felmurry Lough, a
third of a mile to the south-west, while small veins in the townland
of Farragan point to the continued proximity of the igneous masses
below. The two great dykes, however, at the old stone fort in Cor,
still further south against the Gweebarra, belong in all probability
to the later and unfoliated pegmatite series. They have given rise to
interesting phenomena of admixture and recrystallization in the massive
amphibolite which they traverse.
At the north end of Toome Lough, and the south-east corner of
Trusklieve, the marginal granite contains abundant inclusions of the
schist, which here dips under the main mass of Trusklieve. Op. cit., Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. London, vol. xli. (1585), pp. 224 and 229,
Cotr—On Composite Gineisses in Boylayh, West Donegal. 221
various other places in Boylagh, as we have already noted. Dr. Callaway
held that the main gneissic structure was due either to igneous flow
of molten material, or to flow of some kind under earth-pressures.
The latter type of flow might have occurred—(i) during consolidation,
or (ii) after consolidation. Dr. Callaway! concluded in favour of
dynamic metamorphism after the granite had forced its way as an
intrusive rock among the schists.
It was in the light of these previous opinions and observations
that the officers of the Geological Survey approached the interesting
area between Maas and Finntown. Mr. A. M‘Henry,* in noting the
masses of limestone and schist caught up here and enveloped in the
granite, explains their parallelism with the foliation in the igneous
rock by stating that ‘‘ both the granite and enclosed masses have been
subsequently foliated at the same time by the last great shearing
forces that affected this region.”
In a previous section of the present paper, on the other hand,
certain foliated granites towards the Maas end of the district have -
been explained as due to imperfect incorporation of the hornblende-
and mica-schists in the igneous rock (p.216). Mr. J. A. Cunningham,
B.A., A.R.C.SC.I., Who accompanied me throughout these observations,
subsequently visited the foliated granite on the road from Glenties to
Doocharry Bridge on the south side of the Gweebarra. A photograph
taken by him shows how much work remains to be done on the non-
homogeneous ‘‘ banded gneisses’? which are boldly developed across
this area. At present, however, I propose only to furnish details from
personal observation on the historic roadside sections between Glen-
leghan (Glenleheen) and Finntown. I am willing, however, after
experience of similar materials in the Pettigo area, to take these
exposures as representative of a much wider district.
On approaching Glenleheen by the highly picturesque road from
Doocharry Bridge, the intrusive character of the granite is manifest
at the top of the long rise from Adderwal, and just within the town-
land of Meenmore West. The granite has penetrated the schist along
the foliation-planes, and has converted it into a ‘‘leptynolite,” im
which felspars are visible to the naked eye. A band of limestone,
marked upon the Survey map, is included in the granite, and has
undergone the usual type of metamorphism. Red garnet, diopside
1 Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc. London, vol. xli. (1885), pp. 230 and 239.
* Mem. sheets 3, 4, 15, etc. (1891), p. 69.
222 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
altering to actinolite,! quartz, and a lime-scapolite, have arisen in it,
together with sphene, which Mr. Scott? always associated with altered
limestone in Donegal. Labradorite felspar occurs abundantly in parts
of this rock, side by side with quartz, but seems to vary in amount
in inverse proportion to the scapolite.
This is probably the locality where Mr. Scott? discovered scapolite
in 1861, in conjunction with sphene, pyroxene, orthoclase, and quartz.
After passing Carbal Gap, across the Glenleheen River, a fine section
is seen, partly quarried, on the north-east side of the road, in the
townland of Loughnambraddan. The structural planes are vertical,
and a remarkable variety of rocks can be gathered within a few feet
of one another in traversing the strike. After a little scrutiny, two
types of rock become sorted out, the one a pink euritic aplite, with
the characteristic specific gravity of 2°59, the other a dark
hornblende-biotite-schist, with a specific gravity of 2°89.
The former shows under the microscope the structure of a mildly
fluidal gneiss, without banding, but in which a few of the felspars
assumed ovoid contours, from continued movement after crystallisation
had commenced (PI. v., fig. 1). The quartz settled down in angular
interlocking grains, like those of a metamorphic quartzite. Only the
merest trace of biotite occurs, and the aplitic character is complete.
Iron ores are represented by rounded grains of pyrite.
The dark rock, on the other hand, is an obvious schist,
almost slaty in places, though more distinctly crystalline than
some of the masses on Carbane (p. 212). Under the microscope it
shows a predominance of hornblende over biotite; these minerals are
associated with abundant epidote, sphene, and pyrite. The three
last-named constituents seem alike to have existed in the rock before
its myasion by the granite. The usual basic felspars, and a few
granules of interstitial quartz, form a second association of minerals,
interwoven, as it were, with the ferriferous ones. So far, the rock
is a typical schistose epidiorite (PI. v., fig. 2).
But other bands in this striking roadside section show a coarse-
grained granite with pink orthoclase, intruding up the general vertical
planes. In hand-specimens this rock resembles some of the handsome
gneisses of the Outer Hebrides; but its most foliated portions are
1 The distinct green colour of this paramorphic product indicates the presence of
iron also in the diopside.
2 Op. cit., Journ. Geol. Soc. Dublin, vol. ix., pp. 288 and 289.
3 Op. cit., ibid., vol. x., p. 21.
Cote—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 223
marginal, and are due to sheets of schist entangled in it. Mr. Scott!
aptly compared this type of gneiss near Finntown with the veins at
Castle Caldwell on Lough Erne; I have little doubt that in both
localities these coarser granitoid rocks belong to the later series of
granitic intrusions. They may thus be of Devonian age.
When, however, these coarser rocks associate themselves with the
earlier and more fine-grained granites, as they do also at Carn, near
Pettigo, the composite rock formed of hornblende- or mica-schist,
penetrated along its foliation-planes by coarse and fine parallel veins,
presents a remarkable imitation of many Archeean gneisses. Yet it
owes its characters to the original flow of granite under pressure up
the most easily found planes of parting.
Again and again, the shrinkage of the original uptilted sediments,
as metamorphism went forward, a feature on which Mr. Joseph
Barrell? has laid considerable stress, may have helped the intrusive
mass to spread upwards from below. ‘The previous crumpling and
compression, however, of the Dalradian series probably drove off a
part of its volatile constituents, and so prevented any further marked
reduction in bulk under the heating action of the granite.
Short of the local bands of pseudo-Hebridean aspect, we have
every variety of intermingling between the granite and the schist.
Biotite is developed in these grey gneisses and granites, partly at.
the expense of hornblende. The epidote of the partially absorbed basic
rock remains intact, in association with much biotite, a little green
hornblende, and sphene. These minerals are grouped in flakes and
patches, which give the rock its gneissic aspect. The sphene is so
prominent in some of these mixed rocks that it has probably developed
during the epoch of contact-metamorphism. The rock-section selected
for illustration (Pl. ry., fig. 2) shows foliated structure on a conve-
niently small scale; otherwise it represents the more granitoid and
less basic type of the composite gneiss of Loughnambraddan. The
specimen from which it was cut shows a granite vein penetrating the
schist, and losing its identity in so doing, thus affording a complete
parallel with some of the specimens from Carbane.
Another of the grey composite rocks examined in detail has a
specific gravity of 2:74. It is, when considered apart from its mode
of occurrence, a member of the Tonalite series, with zoned orthoclastic
and plagioclastic felspars, quartz, biotite, hornblende, epidote, and
1 Op. cit., Journ. Geol. Soc. Dublin, vol. x., p. 18. at
2 «¢ The Physical Effects of Contact Metamorphism,’’ Am. Journ. Sci., vol xiii.,
(1902), p. 294.
224 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
handsomely developed crystals of sphene. There are signs of defor-
mation in some of the felspars; but the gneissic structure is clearly
due to other than dynamic causes. As in previous cases, the epidote
is in constant association with the streaks of biotite or hornblende.
It is noteworthy that the rounded granules of pyrite observed in
the pure euritic aplite of this locality occur also in the more aplitic
layers of the composite rocks.
There is good evidence, then, that the varieties of grey and red
gneiss above Finntown are portions of granite masses locally modi-
fied by the conditions of their intrusion. The phenomena of Ballyir-
iston and Derkbeg Hill are here carried out on a still more convincing
scale. It seems highly probable that the ‘‘ Hornblende-Biotite-Granites
(Hornblende-Granitites)”’ described from other parts of Donegal by
Dr. Hyland have the same origin as those studied in the present
paper.
What, then, is the general conclusion that we may come to in
regard to the gneissic patches, often half a mile or so long, which
occur with so constant a foliation-strike in the granite mass south of
the Gweebarra? Are they not, equally with the strips of epidiorite
and limestone, the relics of strata that formerly occurred, in metamor-
phic wrinklings, in the crown of some great anticlinal arch’? It is
not necessary to urge that the whole of the space now occupied by
granite was formerly filled with folded schists, and that the solution
of the latter provided room for the granite in its ascent; the magma
of the granite may have at first welled up into the spaces provided for
it by the Caledonian folding, and then, under continued earth-pressures,
have been forced, with destructive effect, against its bounding roof
and walls.
Instead of representing, as Mr. Scott was tempted to do, the
foliated and sedimentary strips of rock near Finntown as vertical
beds between vertical layers of granite, may we not rather regard the
present surface of the mass between Lough Finn and Doocharry
Bridge as exhibiting a cross-section of the upper zone of inter-
action? Some masses from the roof have survived, and give us a
profound impression of the material that has been altogether lost
within the granite caldron (fig. 1). Had denudation worn away the
1 Mem. to Sheets 3, 4, 15, etc., p. 136.
* Mr. Kilroe speaks of detached areas and bands of schist, ete., in the granite
east of Dungloe, which form a curyed series when regarded as a whole, as
‘“‘obviously fragments of a schist series, which formerly extended from Tor
westward’’ (Idid., p. 43).
Corm—On Composite Gineisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 225
*(9z% *d oas ‘uordr
19)
$
ap tof)
I ‘SLT
226 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
composite mass even down to the present sea-level, our knowledge of
the banded gneisses of Boylagh might have been limited to those which
arose upon the side-walls of the caldron.'! As it is, from specimens a
féw centimetres square up to moorlands that are not to be traversed in
a day, we may see throughout Boylagh what attacks are made from
below upon the materials of a rising mountain-chain. The final out-
come is a consolidation of the anticlinal ridges, by the intimate pene-
tration of igneous material, which crystallizes within their cores; and
ribs are added to the Earth’s crust, like those of Donegal, which
successfully resist later systems of folding, and still hold their own
among the rugged highlands of the world.
Fie. 1. Ideal section to illustrate the structure of the granite mass
south of the Gweebarra.—A great group of sediments has become
folded into a complex anticlinal mass, with production of schistose
features in most of the rocks. Granite has intruded during the
formation of this compound arch, and especially into the anticlinals,
where pressure is relieved ; it has found its way most easily along the
planes of bedding or foliation, as the case may be, in the overlying
mass. Parts of the latter mass are absorbed ; but flakes remain, pro-
ducing a composite rock, and imparting a gneissic structure to the
eranite. Denudation, acting continuously during these changes, has
now worn down the rocks to the surface indicated by the line XZ.
Above the point A, the parallel intrusions suggest on this surface
that we are on the edge of an uptilted laccolite. At this point it
would be very difficult to determine how far the metamorphism of the
schists was previous to, and how far due to, the intrusion of the
granite. Above B, we have a granite moorland with occasional
gneissic structure. As we approach C, the origin of this structure
becomes again traceable; and ultimately composite ‘“ leptynolites”’
and “‘ granitised schists’? are seen to pass into the ordinary schists on
the right-hand side of the complex anticlinal.
VI.—Conctivsion.
The references above made to the work of others show that the
explanation now put forward for the gneissic structures in Boylagh
is one that has raised a certain amount of controversy in the case of
other European areas. It is not to be expected that all gneisses
1 Compare ‘‘Metam. Rocks in E. Tyrone and 8. Donegal,” Trans. Roy.
Trish Acad., vol. xxxi., pp. 468 and 469.
Cote—On Composite Gineisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. 227
have been formed by the same processes; and even banded gneisses
may in certain instances represent stratified materials crystallized
and modified in place. This would, at any rate, be the logical
deduction from the views of Mr. F. D. Adams,' which would bring
us back to some of the oldest and half-forgotten theories respecting
metamorphic rocks. Fascinating as the dynamometamorphic theory
has been, it may be questioned if strongly marked banding can be
produced in crystalline rocks by the agencies thereby invoked.
Mylonitic destruction, rather than banding, results, as a rule, from
earth-pressure combined with movement; and the distinctions between
adjacent layers tend to become obliterated. Professor Judd,’ in 1898,
called attention to the slow processes of ‘‘ statical metamorphism,”
whereby rocks which are kept stationary underground may be modi-
fied, not only in mineral constitution, but even in chemical composition.
Crystalline layers, their individual characters dependent on those of
the successive original strata, might thus eventually arise, and would
even produce a banded gneiss. In Boylagh, however, the phenomena
of igneous injection and intimate penetration have played by far the
most important part; and there is no particular mystery as to the
mechanical or chemical nature of the process, the stages of which
are often traceable with the naked eye.
While believing with Lévy and Lacroix that granite does not
come into its final position without a considerable absorption of
material from the walls of its caldron,? I naturally admit, from
considerations of geological structure, that the caldron itself most
commonly originates in the arch of an anticlinal.« | As Salomon®
perceived in the case of the Adamello chain, the position where the
igneous rock ultimately manifests itself is determined by the oppor-
tunities allowed it during the larger movements of the crust. But are
1‘ Some recent papers on the Influence of Granitic Intrusions upon the
Development of Crystalline Schists,’’? Journ. of Geology, vol. v. (1897), pp.
293-302.
2 “ On Statical and Dynamical Metamorphism,’’ Geol. Mag., 1889, p. 243, ete.
This subject has been greatly developed by Van Hise, ‘‘ Metamorphism of Rocks
and Rock-flowage,’”’ Bull. Geol. Soc. America, vol. ix. (1898), p. 269.
3 Compare Lacroix, op. cit., Bull. de la Carte Géol. de la France, No. 64
(1898), pp. 1 and 62.
4 Compare T. A. Jaggar, jr., ‘‘ The Laccoliths of the Black Hills,’’ 21st Ann.
Rep. U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. iii. (1901), p. 173.
> <“*Ueber Alter, Lagerungsform, und Enstehungsart der periadriatischen
granitisch-kornigen Massen,’’ Tscherm. Mittheil., Bd. xvii. (1898), pp. 173-4.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIYV., SEC. B. | U
228 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
we to believe that such upwellings, implying local relief from pressure,
are unaccompanied by incorporation and assimilation on a considerable
scale? Even Salomon himself, who shows that the variations in the con-
stitution of the enormous mass of tonalite are not related to the nature of
the contact rocks, presents us with a section! illustrating “‘ lit par lit”
injection above the Poglia valley, where the igneous rock assumes a
bedded structure, and includes residual and parallel strips of altered
Triassic limestone. The resemblance of such structures to those near
Finntown is apparently complete; and the author attributes the
position of the tonalite between the sedimentary bands to the solution
of certain shaly layers, as the tonalite sent off apophyses into them.
Salomon still concludes, as in an earlier paper,” that the gneissic
structure of the tonalite is due to subsequent dynamic action, despite
the occurrence of a little true fluidal structure here and there ;? but
his work is nowhere opposed to the views above stated in explanation
of the gneiss of Boylagh.
More than twenty years ago, Mr.G. W Hawes’ called attention to
the production of mixed rocks on an important scale at the contact of
granite in New Hampshire; and there is little difference between
his statements and those made so clearly by Lacroix’ in 1898 con-
cerning the composite gneisses of the valley of Baxouillade. Con-
siderable stimulus will now be given to such enquiries by the remarks
of Mr. Teall® in his Presidential Address to the Geological Society of
London in 1902; and it is probable that the importance of composite
gneisses will be recognised in many areas, where the prevalent
structures have hitherto received other interpretations.
1 “* Ueber Alter, Lagerungsform, und Entstehungsart der periadriatischen
granitisch-kornigen Massen,’’ Tscherm. Mittheil., Bd. xvii. (1898), p. 159.
* “Neue Beobachtungen aus den Gebieten der Cima d’Asta und des Monte
Adamello,’’ Tscherm. Mittheil., Bd. xii, (1891), p. 411.
3 Op. cit., Tscherm. Mittheil., Bd. xvii., p. 131.
4 «
Scuarrr—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. 293
doubt, are introduced by man with plants aud in packing-cases,
They not only form the exception among woodlice, but they rarely
spread far beyond human habitations, and are easily recognisable as
intruders.
From the researches of Dollfus and Norman, who have given us
valuable reports on the woodlice of the Azores and Madeira, we notice
that they are mostly identical with those of Europe and North Africa,
and that there is likewise an endemic element. Some characters in
the fauna of these islands seem to support the view that they have
not long ago formed part of the continent of Europe. Philoxia
Couchi—a species which occurs on the shores of the Mediterranean
under sea-weed, and extends along the Atlantic coasts of Europe as
far north as the south of Engiand—also inhabits the Azores and the
Canaries. Among the rocky coasts of the Atlantic, we find another
species, much more common than the last—viz., Ligia oceanica, which
is replaced in the Mediterranean by JZ. ¢talica; but the latter form
turns up again on the coasts of the Canary Islands, the Azores, and
Madeira.
In the Canary Islands, a species of the peculiar blind woodlouse,
Platyarthrus, has been discovered, which inhabits the subterranean
burrows of ants. One cannot conceive of any accidental means of
transport to an island of such a creature, and the occurrence of
Platyarthrus Schibu—a Mediterranean form—in Teneriffe is a very
convincing argument in favour of aland-conneetion with North Africa
in late Tertiary times. Nineteen species of terrestrial Isopods are
known from the Canary Islands, sixteen from the Azores, and twelve
from Madeira.
There is little in the crustacean fauna of either Madeira or the Azores
which might lead us to believe that they were once connected by land
with America; but it is different with the Canary Islands, which
probably formed part of a land stretching, as was suggested before,
from North Africa to South America.
The genus Platyarthrus, including several small blind subterranean
species, is represented by three species in Western Europe and North
Africa, one of which, as we have seen, reached the Canary Islands.
The only other species of the genus P. Simoni has been discovered in
Venezuela, in South America.
Take again, Porcellio, an almost essentially European and North
African genus. We find one species peculiar to Venezuela. Metopo-
northus, evidently an ancient genus, is also mostly European ; but
one species has spread eastward to Sumatra, another is found in North
294 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
America, a third in Mexico, while still another has found means to
reach Madagascar. Similarly, Phzloscva, of which there are a number
of European species, has two in North America, ten species in South
America, one in Madagascar, one in Zanzibar, and another in Borneo.
There is, however, another group of Crustacea which yields such
decisive indications of the former land-connection between Africa and
South America that scarcely anything else is needed to put that theory
on a firm basis. The group referred to is that of the fresh-water
Decapods (cf. Ortmann, A), the species on both sides of the Atlantic
showing a most remarkable affinity.
There are, in the first place, to be mentioned two species of Atya,
A, scabra, occurring in Central America, the West Indies, and also
on the Cape Verde Islands, off the west coast of Africa; while 4.
gabonensis inhabits the Orinoco river in South America, and the
Gabun river in West Africa. Next we have two species of fresh-water
Paleemon—yiz., P. jamaicensis and P. olfersi, the former being known
from South and Central America, southern California, and the West
Indies, and also from Liberia, the Niger river, and the Congo, in West
Africa. Palemon olfersi has been recorded from the West Indies,
from Brazil, and from the island of St. Thomas on the east coast of
Africa.
Dr. Ortmann points out that the crustacean fauna of the East-
American litoral region exhibits a very marked relationship to that of
western Africa—such species as Remipes cubensis, Calappa marmorata,
and Callinectes diacanthus occurring on both sides of the Atlantic.
This fact appears to me to be suggestive of a former coast-line having
existed across the Atlantic, along which these shallow-water forms
migrated from one country to the other. Dr. Ortmann, however,
is of opinion (B, p. 84) that the larvee of these species had been able to
cross the Atlantic by means of ocean currents.
Worms.
There is one more group of invertebrates to be considered,
which is of importance in deciding questions of former geographical
reyolutions—viz., that of the earthworms. Land-planarians, no doubt,
might be most usefulin aiding us to unravel problems of zoogeography ;
but their distribution is as yet very little known, and their relation-
ship has not been sufficiently studied for this purpose.
The ocean, according to Mr. Beddard, is an insuperable barrier to
most of the earthworms, and more effective than any other. The
latter are therefore, as that author remarks, exceptionally qualified
Scuarrr—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. 295
for careful consideration in relation to the theories of past changes of
land (p. 57).
As regards the earthworms of the Atlantic Islands, most of them
are identical with European or North African forms, Whenever
peculiar species occur,—such as Helodrilus Mébii of Madeira—they are
closely allied to continental ones. The particular species mentioned
has its nearest relation (H. Mollert) in Portugal. Several of the rarer
forms,—such as Dendrobena madeirensis of Madeira and Bimastus
Hisent of the Azores,—occur also on the part of the Continent nearest to
them—viz., in Portugal.
As for any indications of an American relationship among the
Atlantic Island earthworms, there are some species—such as Pheretima
californica of Madeira and P. barbadensis of Teneriffe—which may
be of American origin; but they probably owe their existence on the
islands to artificial introduction.
The problem of the former land-connection between America and
Africa also receives some support from the distribution of earth-
worms. The family Geoscolicide is almost entirely confined to
South America and Africa; only afew species reach the Palearctic and
Oriental regions.
Among the genera which indicate the former union between the
two continents might be mentioned Gordiodrilus—which is confined to
the West Indies, the Gold Coast, and Zanzibar—and WVematogenia,
which is only found at Lagos in West Africa, and at Panama in
Central America (cf. Michaelsen).
Very little is, as yet, known of the leech-fauna of the Atlantic
Islands, but our common European horse-leech (Hemopis sanguisuga)
has been met with in the Azores; while Dina Blaiset, a common
Mediterranean species, occurs on several islands of the Azorean
archipelago, and also on Madeira.
Conclusions.
The conclusions based upon this general survey of the fauna of
the Atlantic Islands are of more value than if only a single group
of animals had been taken into consideration. It will also be con-
ceded that, from the facts and examples I have collected, we are
entitled to form a very definite judgment on the subject, though my
interpretation of these may not appeal to all.
The great importance of such data of distribution, as factors in
solving problems of former geographical changes, is now generally
recognized. Dr. Wallace was the first to appreciate the bearing of a
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIYV., SEC. B.] 2B
296 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
study of zoogeography in the determination of past changes in the sur-
face of the globe. ‘‘ Itis certainly a wonderful and unexpected fact,” he
says (OU, p. 14), “‘that an accurate knowledge of the distribution of
birds and insects should enable us to map out lands and continents
which disappeared beneath the ocean long before the earliest traditions
of the human race.”
That certain species are occasionally liable to be accidentally
carried away from their homes towards distant lands, has been noted
and referred to by Lyell, by Darwin, by Wallace, and many others.
Yet, owing to a variety of circumstances, and especially the great
difficulty such species have in maintaining a foothold in their newly
acquired quarters, such species do not persist as a rule in large
numbers in any country. Altogether I am conyinced that their
influence in the permanent colonization of a country has been
exaggerated. Actual observations of accidental introductions, more-
over, have only been made in exceedingly few instances; while there
are numerous records to show that such occasional intruders rarely
become established. In order to find out whether animals could
traverse oceans and thus populate islands, Darwin and others have
attempted to determine experimentally how long certain snails could
stand immersion in sea-water. For one of their experiments Cyeclo-
stoma elegans was taken, a snail provided with a lid or operculum
which can be closed over the mouth of the shell. This provision of
nature enabled the creature to withstand a fortnight’s immersion in
sea-water; and one would imagine such a species to be easily trans-
ported by sea to distant islands in that time. Cyclostoma elegans is
common on the western border of France and England; but though
dead shells of the species have been cast upon the shores of Ireland
repeatedly, and probably living ones as well, it has never become
established on this island. If a species so particularly favoured by
nature to resist the deleterious influences of sea-water is unable to
establish itself in a neighbouring island, what chances are there for
less suitably endowed forms to cross the ocean ?
But in studying zoogeographical problems such as the one I have
endeavoured to solve, it is not at all necessary to base a theory on
species which can be accidentally transported by hurricanes or marine
currents. We can confine ourselves to those whose habitats preclude
the possibility of occasional dispersal. As such I consider Plutonia
atlantica—a slug-like creature living altogether underground in the
Azores ; the fresh-water crayfish, confined to South America and West
Africa; the blind woodlouse Platyartkrus, inhabiting ants’ nests in
Scrianrrr—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. 297
Western Europe and Venezuela; the burrowing Amphisbaenide,
whose range is restricted to America, Africa, and the Mediterranean
Region ; and many others alluded to in the preceding pages,
From the facts quoted, I conclude that Madeira and the Azores, up
to Miocene times, were connected with Portugal; and that from
Marocco to the Canary Islands, and from them to South America,
stretched a vast land which extended southward certainly as far as
St. Helena. This great Continent may have existed already in
Secondary times, as Dr. Ihering suggested; and it probably began to
subside in early Tertiary times. But I think its northern portions
persisted until the Miocene Epoch, when the southern and northern
Atlantic became joined, and the Azores and Madeira became isolated
from Europe.
This, however, does not explain the whole history of the Atlantic
Islands. To account for the extraordinary predominance of the
‘Mediterranean element in their fauna, they must have again united
with the Old World in more recent times. This took place, no doubt,
in precisely a similar manner as before; and I believe they were
still connected, in early Pleistocene times, with the continents of
Europe and Africa, at a time when man had already made his appear-
ance in western Europe, and was able to reach the islands by land.
APPENDIX.
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Bepparp, F. E.:
A text-book of Zoogeography. London, 1895.
Branrorp, W. T.:
Address delivered at the anniversary meeting of the Geological
Society. London, 1890.
Cuampron, C.:
List of the Cicindelidae, &c., of Gibraltar. Trans. Entomol. Soc.
London, 1898-99,
Curist, H.:
Vegetation und Flora d. canarischen Inseln, Engler’s botanische
Jahrbiicher, Vol. 6. 1885,
2B 2
298 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Dann, F.:
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Doutrvs, A.:
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France. 1888-1889.
Drocvet, H.:
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Encier, A.:
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biete d. nordl. Hemisphere. Leipzig, 1879.
Forzrs, E.:
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Fritscu, K. yon. and Retry, W.:
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Gapow, H.:
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Gopman, F. du Cane:
Natural History of the Azores. London, 1870.
Grecory, J. W.:
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GuntTHER, A.:
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Gurry, R. J. L.:
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Kozett, W.:
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kozool. Gesellsch. 1887.
Kosetr, H.:
E. Die zoogeographische Stellung d. Insel St. Helena. Geo-
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Krauss, H.:
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Lapparent, A. de:
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ScuarFr—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. 801
Nevumayr, M.:
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WALT
ABSTRACT OF A PHYSIOLOGICAL HYPOTHESIS TO EX-
PLAIN THE WINTER WHITENING OF MAMMALS AND
BIRDS INHABITING SNOWY COUNTRIES, AND THE
MORE STRIKING POINTS IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF
WHITE IN VERTEBRATES GENERALLY.
By CAPTAIN G. KE. H. BARRETT-HAMILTON, B.A.,
F.Z.8., M.R.1.A.
Read May 11, 1903.
AxtHoucH so much attention has been attracted to the subject of
the winter whitening of mammals and birds, no theory has, so far as
I know, been advanced to explain the physiological meaning of this
phenomenon. On the other hand, Naturalists seem to be perfectly
agreed as to the advantages in a protective sense which the animals of
snowy countries derive from their seasonal change, it being regarded
as one of the most perfect of known instances of adaptation to
environment. JI venture to believe that scientific investigations have
now brought together facts sufficient to shed a glimmering of light
upon the physiological or primary meaning of the white seasonal
colour changes. I therefore put forward the following hypothesis,
which is based upon an intimate connexion between fat and animal
pigmentation.
I. The connexion between Fat and Vertebrate Pigmentation.
While I was in South Africa I was greatly surprised at the
number of species of birds in which the fat is more or less deeply
coloured, rich yellow, orange, or even reddish. I further found a
correspondence, often quite remarkable, between the colour of such
fat and the pigmentation of the feathers. Thus in birds in which
yellow appears in the plumage the fat is usually of a correspondingly
yellow or orange tint. Instances of this may be found in the Great-
tailed Widow Bird, the Cape Long-Claw, the Masked Weaver Bird,
and the Red and Taha Bishop Birds.
In other birds, although more rarely—to include some other than
South African species—as the Chough, Stork, and Flamingo, the
= - 2C
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B.] os
304 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
fat is red, in conjunction with a corresponding external colouration of
the legs and bill. It has been shown that for the Flamingo intensity
of the red colour is proportional to the amount of fat or oil present in
the feathers.
Again, fat saturated with pigment may be found in birds whose
feathers are deeply pigmented, yet whose colours are not necessarily
red or yellow. Such are the Coot and Blackbird, the latter of which,
as Dr. Gadow informs me, may be distinguished in this very particular
from the closely allied but less darkly coloured Song-thrush. In the
Sacred Ibis, a white bird with the bill, bare head and neck, and the
legs of the deepest black, the fat is intensely red.
I further observed that the feather-tracts are amongst the parts of
the body where fat especially tends to accumulate.
But deeply coloured fat is not confined to birds. It occurs also in
mammals, as is well known in the case of domestic cattle. I found it
also in wild forms, such as the South African Hedgehog and the Aard
Wolf. It is present in abundance in reptiles, such as the African
Monitor, and in the Lizard Agama distanti. In the Monitor and many
other reptiles, in which the fat is deeply pigmented, there is a strong
accumulation of black pigment in the body cavity. Lastly, the
common Salmon is an instance of the same thing amongst fish.
In all these creatures fat is frequently deposited in the ovaries,
testes, or other glands, which, as a result, are often yellow, sometimes
black, and to a similar cause the yolks of the eggs of birds owe their
colour. The yellow pigment of the yolks of fowl’s eggs, called
by Krukenberg coriosulferin, is said to be, like zoomelanin, a coloured
fatty oil.
The yellow or red fat pigments belong to the same class, that of
the lipochromes, as the reds and yellows of external pigmentation.
They are also found in certain vegetable substances, such as maize.
If an animal be fed on maize, the colour of its fat is greatly heightened.
A third important pigment, but a little less intimately connected with
fat, is black. The constituents of the two are very similar, zoomelanin
being, according to Bogdanow, composed of carbon, hydrogen,
nitrogen, and oxygen, as found in the black feathers of Pica, Corvus,
and Ciconia.
When we regard mammals and birds, we find, with few exceptions,
great uniformity of pigment-colours. Black, red, and yellow, with
their inter-mixtures, are almost the only three pigmentary colours
with which we have to deal. In the lower vertebrates the effect of
white is due also to a pigment, guanin, a purely waste product of
B.-Hamitton— Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds. 305
nitrogen. Almost all other vertebrate colours are structural. The
basis of these structural colours is, however, always a strong deposit
of pigment.
Finally, we have evidence of the direct part played by fat in
animal colouration in the marked change which may be brought about
in the plumage of birds, such as the Bullfinch, by the ingestion of a
fatty food such as hempseed.
It has been pointed out to me! that the pigmentation of the skin
which accompanies the peripheral distribution of fat in human
pregnancy is a fact which supports my views. Again, in the morbid
symptoms of Addison’s disease abnormal pigmentation is remarkably
associated with abundance of fat, especially distributed subcutaneously
on the abdomen. Most striking of all, perhaps, is the removal of fat,
and with it pigment, from certain organs of the breeding Salmon
(muscles, intestines, and liver) for deposition in the ovaries and the
skin. The result is that these organs become pigmented, to use Miss
Newbiggin’s expression, ‘‘as it were incidentally in the life-history
of the individual under circumstances which render the question as
to the inheritance of acquired characters absolutely unimportant.”*
It seems, then, hardly possible to avoid connecting this pigmented
fat of animals with their external colouration. The suggestion is not,
I think, a new one.
Il. The connexion between Fat and Winter Whitening.
Let us now apply these facts to the Arctic mammalia and birds,
first briefly recapitulating the known phenomena of winter whitening.
The phenomena are not nearly so isolated as seems to be generally
believed. From the always pure white (or rather yellowish) Polar
Bear and the Snowy Owl, through the seasonably white Polar and
Alpine Hares and Ptarmigans, there are many intermediate degrees of
winter whitening, until the commencement of the process is just
visible in the numerous instances where northern animals wear a
winter coat or plumage lighter than that of summer (Squirrels,
Auks, Guillemots, &c.).
The manner of this change of colour has been deeply discussed,
and has caused much disagreement. The Polar Hare, in particular,
1 By Dr. Gadow and Mr. Anderson, of Cambridge, who have been so kind
-as to read my paper.
*See Report of Fishery Board for Scotland for 1898.
306 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
has formed the subject of many contradictory assertions. Whatever may
be true of other species, Mr. J. Barcroft could find no trace of an autumn
moult in the case of a Scotch Variable Hare, kept at my request at
Cambridge under constant observation in the Physiological Laboratory
during the autumn of 1899, and which had turned almost completely
white by January of 1900. In the very same winter a wild Variable
Hare which lived close to this house turned from half to almost
completely white within the space of a few days in late December.
The first half of the change had been accomplished earlier in the
season. It is, therefore, very hard to believe that the positive
statements made in regard to the change of colour of Lepus americanus
by moult alone can apply to the Variable Hares of Europe as regards
the autumn change. The spring change, on the other hand, appears
to be due in all cases which have been studied to a change of coat.
Summarised from a physiological aspect, it would appear that
there are two conditions of the animal’s body, in one of which white,
in the other pigmented, hairs are produced.
That this is so cannot indeed be doubted in view of the experiments
of Professor Halliburton and Drs. Brodie and Pickering.1 These
investigators have shown that the condition of the intravascular blood
varies in animals which, like the Arctic Hare, are sometimes white,
and at other times in a pigmented state. Further, that the composition
of the blood of an animal which has undergone winter whitening is
similar to that of a permanent albino. The presence or absence of
pigment is then but the external evidence of changes occurring
internally in an animal possessing a varying metabolism. So the
white hairs of Arctic animals must be regarded as due to a cause
similar to that which brings about absence of pigment in albinos, and,
almost certainly also, in aged animals.
And, since it has been shown that Arctic animals possess a varying
metabolism, it seems most reasonable to suppose that the vital
changes reach their lowest point at the same season as in the human
race, for which physicians accept a metabolism at its lowestin autumn.
That is to say, metabolism is lowest just at about the very time of
the change from brown to white (Dr. J. Netton Radcliffe in Quain’s
Medicai Dictionary, p. 114).
It is at this very season that there comes the shock to the system
of the onset of the cold of the Arctic winter, and, as is well known,
1 Journal of Physiology, xvi., p. 135, 1894; xviii., p. 285, 1895; xx., pp. 310
to 315, 1896.
B.-Hamition— Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds. 307
heat and cold exert very serious influences on animal organisms. In
the human body, for instance, ‘‘ continued exposure to such degrees of
cold as is yet not incompatible with the maintenance of life, neverthe-
less keeps at low ebb activity of nutrition and function alike”
(Dr. A. E: Durham in Quain’s Medical Dictionary, p. 270). The action
of the skin is sluggish, that of the kidneys more active. Under an
increase of temperature, on the contrary, the exhalation of carbonic
acid and of water is lessened; the urine diminishes in quantity and
contains less urea and chlorides. But the skin acts much more freely,
its secretion being increased by about 24 per cent.
One of the concomitants of a sluggish metabolism is diminished
oxydisation and consequent storage of fat. For instance, fat is readily
accumulated by castrated animals in contrast to those which are in
full sexual activity. Many animals accumulate fat during one season
of the year, and utilize it during the breeding season. In particular,
this has been shown in considerable detail by Dr. Noel Paton and his
colleagues of the Fishery Board for Scotland to be true of the Salmon,
while the African Mud-Fish (Protopterus) is another well-known
example.
I have already shown the connexion between fat and animal
pigmentation. It seems then not an unreasonable suggestion that the
temporary cessation of metabolism of fat and the absence of pigment
are part of the same process. In the autumnal season the metalolism
grows more and more sluggish, particularly in the periphery of the
body, until there comes a time when a maximum of fat remains idle
internally.
There is, as it were, to use a graphic expression, at one time a
centrifugal, at another a centripetal, condition of fat. And, since the
pigment accompanies the fat, any hairs or feathers which grow
during the prevalence of the centripetal condition are white to an
extent which is evident more or less according to the intensity of
the physiological influences at work. Hence results a condition of
things wherein exists great opportunity for the play of such diverse
factors as heredity, individual temperament, and the influence of
external conditions. This exactly corresponds to the observed facts,
always so puzzling, often at first sight so contradictory.
But not only are new hairs white. Eventually there comes a time
when, with a constantly lowering metabolism, not only is peripheral
activity sluggish, but, as shown by Mr. Barcroft, material is actually
recalled from the hairs, no doubt for the internal uses of the body.
The working of this process has been observed by Professor
308 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Metchnikoff,' who in the case of old men and dogs saw the phagocytes
passing from the medullary to the cortical layers of whitening hairs.
These phagocytes ingest the pigment granules, and remove them into
the body—a process which, as Professor Metchnikoff believes, ‘‘ can be
classed under the general law of atrophy of solid parts of the
organism.’”’ And that the organism is at this time economical of its
resources, and unwilling to waste them peripherally, is probably
indicated by the fact that the silkiness of the winter hairs of animals
inhabiting cold countries indicates a fineness of texture, that is to say,
less material is appropriated for their manufacture in proportion to
their length than for the summer hairs. Since the animal organism
has power to recall pigment from its hair, it matters not whether or
no the physiological causes of winter whitening culminate at the time
of a moult. Once the required condition prevails, new hairs will
grow, and already existing hairs will rapidly become white.
As to the reverse process, the recolouration of the coat, years of
study have failed to supply me with an instance of its occurrence
without a moult: so that the conclusion seems hardly avoidable that
the hairs, once whitened, are dead to further changes of colour.
Thus is explained the curious fact that in the mild climate of the district
where I write, such winter whitening as occurs in the Hares (and
it is sometimes considerable in extent) remains in force, no matter
what the weather may be, until the spring moult. As this moult does
not take place until the spring has well advanced, those Hares which
have undergone the most complete winter change are for some little
time incongruously conspicuous in the flowery meadows of the south of
Ireland, while the April and May sunshine lights up their Arctic
livery. At the time of the spring moult, the physiological causes —
which led to the whitening of the previous autumn having now passed
away, vital change being now at its high-water mark, and fat, and
with it pigment, available for constructive purposes throughout the
body, the new coat (or, in the case of birds, the plumage) comes up
of the pigmented summer tint.
But it is not fair to regard as typical of its kind the cycle of winter
whitening as observed in England or Ireland. Here at the southern
limit of the conditions which have called it into existence, the process
is complicated by numbers of contradictory factors, the resultant of
which is a considerable modification and obscuring of the typical
phenomena. In the Arctic regions these are nearly uniform.
1Proc. Roy. Soc., London, vol. lxix., p. 156, 1901.
B.-Hamitton— Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds. 309
We have then in winter whitening an instance of peripheral atrophy
of the hair or feathers—an atrophy which manifests itself more or less
in all the members of the Fauna of cold countries, and which may be
partial or complete, seasonal or permanent.
Not the least remarkable feature of this atrophy of winter whitening
is the fact that the order of the parts affected by it is to all intents and
purposes the same in all mammals, even in those so widely separated
as the Stoat and Hare. Excluding, for purposes of this paper, the
head, the change begins from the base of the tail at the posterior
margin of the back, and on the flanks, just where the dorsal colour
meets the white of the underside. It then creeps up the back. In
many animals, as in British specimens of the Common Hare (Lepus
europeus Pallas), which frequently whitens to a slight extent, it rarely
climbs higher than the rump. In spring the moult, and with it the
brown colour, progresses in exactly the opposite order, creeping down
the back, and extending to the sides until it reaches the permanent
barrier of the white belly. Itis, in fact, as if the internal physiological
condition represented by the white belly annually overpowers more
than its ordinary share of the animal in autumn, and in its ascent
reaches a height dependent upon its energy, to remain in possession
until driven out in spring by the way it came.
I look upon this fact as a confirmation of my hypothesis that
winter whitening is connected with the fat of the body and its distri-
bution. For it seems more than a mere coincidence that the upward
march of this winter whitening and the order of the parts affected by
it is almost exactly indicative of the order in which fat is accumu-
lated internally in an ox, sheep, or fowl—an order which is probably
applicable to other mammals and birds also. In oxen, sheep, and
fowls, asin man and most vertebrates, the favourite region for fat
storage is the belly, where, besides being deposited on the deeper
organs, such as the kidneys, it forms a layer known as the panniculus
adiposus, lying near the surface, between the skin and the abdominal
walls. Next im order, as regards the accumulation of fat, comes
the rump, and thirdly, portions of the neck region and of the back
and ribs.
And since we know that the presence of fat is indicative of defi-
cient oxydation, it is not altogether surprising to find external
atrophy its accompaniment.
For the success of my theory two crucial tests have been suggested,
either of which might be performed by experiment. If my supposition
be true, there should (it has been thought) be more fat in hair in
310 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
summer than in winter; and, further, the fat of an animal should be
more deeply coloured in winter than in summer. It is obvious that
these experimental proofs of my theory cannot be performed all at
once. But I do not care to delay publication until I can myself
institute the necessary investigations, since some other worker may
possibly be in a position to do so. As regards the second point, I am
not at all sure that it is actually necessary that the winter fat be more
deeply pigmented than that of the summer. The point is rather that
there should be more unoxygenated fat peripherally at the time of the
autumn than of the spring change; and that this is so I can myself
answer in the affirmative. It is full of significance, also, that the
muscle of the breeding Salmon becomes pale on transference of the
fat and pigment to the genitalia or for combustion as a source of
energy.
Ill. Zhe meaning of white in Domestic Animals and Vertebrates
generally.
If my conclusions be accepted, it seems that we may be hovering
somewhere near the explanation of the primary or physiological
meaning of many puzzles of animal colouration. The widespread
existence of white undersides in vertebrates—a fact only as yet
explained on purely secondary grounds (as by the ingenious suggestion
of Mr. Abott H. Thayer)—is now seen to have a direct connexion
with the main peripheral fat-tract of the body. The white rumps of
birds and mammals, the familiar ‘‘ recognition marks’? of Mr. Alfred
Russel Wallace, correspond to one of the next most important fat-
tracts, light neck- and ring-marks to yet another.
I am inclined to push my theory even further, since I see in it the
explanation, often vainly sought for, of the marked extent to which
the white colour makes its appearance in domestic animals. Since
nearly all these animals derive their commercial value from their power
of accumulating fat, it is natural that, if my suppositions be true, the
pigmentation of the hair (or feathers) should be affected. I am aware
that in many breeds the appearance of the white patches is believed
to be quite irregular, and not to follow any definite order of fre-
quency as regards the regions affected. I feel sure, however, that
further investigations will show that this is not really the case. Thus
my own studies, unfortunately as yet incomplete, indicate that even
in such, at first sight, irregularly-marked animals as cattle, the
markings, although undoubtedly subject to very great latitude, tend
B.-Hamitton— Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds. 311
to arrange themselves in accordance with one or two definite patterns.
The latitude is no doubt due to the fact that, although following the
general order described ‘above, the panniculus adiposus of domestic
animals is almost universally distributed over the body, and varies
only with éach animal’s individual idiosynerasy of constitution. It is
noticeable, moreover, that the Hereford breed of cattle, in which the
arrangement of the fat differs from that of other breeds, it being
mainly distributed peripherally, is distinguished by regularity of
pattern, having the principal peripheral fat-tracts clearly mapped out
in white.
The accumulation of fat in a fattening ox is, however, marked,
not by loss of pigment, but of the hair, the skin becoming bare, par-
ticularly on the rump and neck, as the animal ripens. This, then, is
only another aspect of the atrophy which may accompany deposits of
fat under the skin. Here again I find more than a mere coincidence in
the fact that the bare buttocks of monkeys correspond to the light
rump-patches of many other vertebrates; further, that the accumu-
lation of subcutaneous fat in marine mammals is correlated with
deficiency of hair, in a graduating series, from the amphibian warmly
furred Fur-seals to the completely aquatic hairless Cetacea and Sirenia.
A great difficulty for some time lay in the way of my theory,
namely, the occasional reversal of the ordinary arrangement of
vertebrate colouration, whereby the ventral is usually the lighter, the
dorsal the darker surface. For instance, in the Skunks, Polecats,
and the Eider Duck, the upper surface is conspicuously lighter than
the under. These facts were not at all explained by Mr. Thayer’s
hypothesis, and each case is usually argued on its own merits, the
Skunk’s white back being regarded as a warning of its bearer’s
malodorous nature, the Eider Duck’s as protective to the sitting-bird,
and so on ; they certainly proved a stumbling-block to me. I hardly
felt bold enough to predict that the unusual arrangement would be
found to correspond with a like internal disposition of the panniculus
adiposus ; and no other supposition, unless, as it were, some deus ex
machina, in the shape of an ingenious secondary explanation, seemed
likely to be able to pull me round the difficulty.
A second difficulty lay in the fact that the heads of vertebrates are
very frequently the centre of conspicuous light marks or bars, which,
while not apparently related to any internal fat-tracts, are yet so
similar in many widely-distinct forms (such as mammals and birds) as
to be without doubt due to some similar cause in all.
Most fortunately both these difficulties were simultaneously and,
312 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
as I think, most remarkably, removed by the accidental trapping of a
Badger. In this animal, as is well known, although the case is not
nearly so conspicuous as are many others, the deepest tints occur on
the under side. In the particular specimen (a male) the upper surface.
of the body, with the whole tail, and the inguinal region, was con-
trasted by its light colouration with the remaining portions of the
under side. On examining the carcase, I found that the lightest ex-
ternal parts, viz., the rump, tail, and inguinal region, lay over the
thickest accumulation of fat. A thinner layer of fat extended over
the whole back, whereas the upper belly and breast were almost free
from fat. Thus external colouration was here directly correlated with
the distribution of the panniculus adiposus. In view of this fact, it
seems probable that certain of the colour-differences which help to
distinguish some of the foreign species of Badgers from our own are
due to further developments of the panniculus adiposus, for they
frequently follow the line which would be taken by winter whitening
on a Hare or that in which fat is deposited on an ox. That is to
say, when a Badger differs from our own species in regard to the
lightness of its upper surface, we may almost predict that the lightest
part will be the rump, while in another species the white will have
undergone further extension up the back. Thus a series of skins of
the various species of Badgers may be almost made to match (in
regard to the whiteness of the upper side), one consisting of the skins
of Hares in process of whitening.
The second difficulty was upset in a most unexpected manner when
I came to examine the animal’s head. There I found that the three
white bands lay over three regions of the skull where no flesh intervenes
between the bone and the skin: the three white external bands were,
in fact, clearly marked out by three similar cranial bands of ligament
and bone. Here, then, was the most unexpected fact that not only
may deficiency of pigment be associated with the presence of under-
lying subcutaneous fat, but also with that of bone or ligament. So
that we may almost lay down the law that there is a tendency to
pigmentary aberrations at those parts of the body where nutrition of
the skin is interfered with by contact with underlying fat, bone, or
ligament, or better, that adjoining regions of uneven nutrition tend to
originate unevenness of external pigmentation—a result which Mr.
Alfred Tylor missed by very little in i886.1
It is obyious that this conclusion, if further borne out, may exercise
1 «¢ Colouration in Animals and Plants;’’ London, 1886.
B.-Hamitton— Winter Whitening of Mammals and Birds. 313
a profound influence upon current views of animal colouration. For
instance, it at once dawned upon me that therein lies the explanation
of the white ‘‘ blaze” of so many domestic animals, and in particular
of horses. This is usually situated over the frontal or nasal bones
where they lie directly under the skin. Again, the fact that in man
baldness occurs first in corresponding regions is almost certainly but
another instance of the working of the same law.
Although thus pushing my theory to lengths which have, I believe,
been untouched by any other view, I must be the first to point out its
own restrictions. I have at present, at all events (although I confess
I begin to see light here also), no desire to connect it with such
complicated colour schemes as the spots of the Leopard or the stripes
of the Tiger and Zebra. It is further evident that puzzles like the
curious arrangement of the white areas on the tails of birds, or the
restriction of pigment to the upper side of a flat-fish, are phenomena
which, although probably connected in their origin with subcutaneous
fat, seem to require some further factor for their full explanation.
In birds, for instance, without entering into detailed descriptions of
what is perfectly well known to naturalists, the light patterns on the
rectrices are frequently the sum of a series of complicated markings,
different as to each individual feather, but fitting into their place like
the pieces of a mosaic. Now, although the deficiency of pigment in
this case is, on my showing, certainly connected in a general manner
with the fat-tract of the region whence these feathers spring, it is
hard to see how all the complicated details of the pattern can be thereby
explained. But in view of Dr. Finsen’s discoveries, it does not seem
too great a stretch of imagination to suppose that the exact distri-
bution of the pigment may be not unaffected by the varying amount
of light to which the different parts of the feathers are subjected,
or again that the pigmentary differences between the two surfaces
of a flat-fish may have in a like manner been due, although exactly
how we do not understand, to unequal stimulations of the light
which they receive.
Thus, then, I have no wish to extend my arguments universally
to white colouration in nature, since there may undoubtedly be causes
other than atrophy which result in absence of pigment. It is obvious
also that many animals are not subject to the hair-atrophy which in
others follows the peripheral accumulation of fat. On the other
hand, it may well behove Zoologists to consider not only the external
advantages accruing from but the deep-seated physiological processes
involved in seasonal colour changes. Even those connected with sex
514 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
may but represent the external symptoms of a varying metabolism.
They may be, as I have elsewhere suggested, primarily but the
symptoms of a pathological or quasi-pathological condition, the
importance of which to the organism must quite overshadow any
external applications for ornament or protection.
In conclusion, I submit that my hypothesis, although it may not
explain the minutiz of each individual case, throws a distinct light on
the phenomena of winter whitening, and through it of animal coloura-
tion as a whole. It also illustrates the possibility in nature that
characters having a definite physiological or primary meaning may be
found useful for some quite secondary external purpose.
Leoly
VIII.
AN ADDITION TO THE LIST OF BRITISH BOREAL!
; MAMMALS.
By CAPTAIN G. E. H. BARRETT-HAMILTON, B.A.,
DDe/Ar Sey ES eI
Read May 11, 1908.
In the present Paper I wish to describe a remarkable Bank Vole
or Red-backed Mouse (votomys) inhabiting the small island of
Skomer, off the coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Skomer Island? is said to owe its Danish name, which, according
to some writers, signifies ‘‘ the rocky,’’ to its rough character. It
is the haunt of immense numbers of Puffins, ratercula arctica, and
of Manx Shearwaters, Puffinus anglorum. It has an area of about 700
acres, and, forming the southern horn of the crescent of St. Bride’s
Bay, is parted from the mainland by a narrow sound some two miles
wide. There is but one house upon the island; in connexion with
this there are about 250 acres of cultivation. The island is without
bush or tree, and is said to be very wind-swept.
I first heard rumours of the existence of a peculiar Vole on Skomer
Island in or about the year 1898. In October of that year Mr. H. W.
Marsden, of Clifton, was so kind as to send me a pair. They had
been caught by Dr. Y. H. Mills, of Haverford-West. Dr. Mills has
since obtained for me several excellent specimens, so that I now
possess a dozen in all.
I believe, however, that Mr. R. Drane, of Cardiff, deserves the
eredit of having been the first to collect and recognise the interesting
character of the Skomer Voles. Mr. Drane sent specimens for exhibi-
tion to the Linnean Society of London, but they were regarded by the
members present as ‘‘the Common Bank Vole, MWierotus glarcolus.’’®
Mr. Drane’s own opinion, however, as expressed to me in a letter, is
both different and decided. He wrote: ‘‘They are, I contend, a local
1 These details are taken mainly from the Rey. Murray A. Mathew’s ‘‘ The
Birds of Pembrokeshire and its Islands,’’ 1894, pp. xxx to xxxi.
? Proc. Linn. Soc. Lond., June, 1899, p. 63.
3 T use the term throughout in the sense given to it in the works of American
writers on geographical distribution.
316 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
variety of this Vole (i.e. Hvotomys glareolus). They certainly are not
either of the other two British Voles; they are the common Bank
Vole, a local variety of it or a new species to this country.”
Mr. Drane ‘‘ always took these Voles about farm buildings
or within them, where one would not expect to find Voles.’? When
traps were set a few hundred yards away, he never took the Voles but
only Wood Mice, Mus sylvaticus.
The predilection of the Skomer Voles for the neighbourhood of
houses is corroborated by Dr. Mills, who wrote that he usually caught
them in the heaps of turnips stored up for winter, and that the turnips
are their food.
The following is a description of the ‘‘Skomer Vole,”’ which I
propose to name
Evotomys skomerensis, sp. nov.!:—
General Characters.—Size large; skull of adults, about 25mm.
in greatest length; total length, averaging about 165 mm.;
hindfoot, averaging 18 mm.; ratio of tail vertebre to total length,
33; skulls strong, (for Hvotomys) angular and ridged for muscular
attachment ; the zygomatarather heavy. Colour deep and moderately
bright. Skull of the same type as that of Z. nagerz (I have no skulls
of either Z. norvegicus or EH. vasconiae for comparison) with which it
agrees in size, angular appearance, and general massiveness, but is, on
the average, slightly smaller.
The skull of an adult male presents the following dimensions (in
mm.) :—Greatest length, 25 ; basilar length, 22:5 ; palatal length, 12;
length of palatal foramina, 4-5; zygomatic breadth, 14; breadth of
brain-case above zygomata, 11°75; length of molar series (both
upper and lower), 6; length of nasals along middle line, 8.
Colour.—Above between bright ‘‘ cinnamon-rufous”’ and ‘‘madder-
brown,’ the general appearance being due to the subterminal bands
of the hairs, about 2mm.in breadth. The hidden (and major)
portions of these hairs are ‘‘slate-black” and the tips black. Face,
sides of head, and flanks becoming gradually deficient in rufous, and
running through light ‘‘ hazel” or ‘‘ vinaceous-cinnamon”’ to a dull
greyish-buff. Rump and upper side of the sharply bi-coloured tail,
‘‘mummy-brown.’ Under side of body and tail, with the legs and
feet, white (the hidden portion of the hairs again near “‘ slate-black’’),
1] thus accord this form full specific rank in order to secure uniformity with
Mr. Miller’s treatment. (See footnote No. 2, p. 318.)
2 Names of colours in inverted commas are taken from Mr. Robert Ridgeway’s
‘< Nomenclature of Colours,’’ 1886.
B.-Hamitton—Addition to List of British Boreal Animals. 317
usually with a very perceptible yellowish wash. The line of demar-
cation between the colours of the upper and under surfaces moderately
defined. Ears nearly naked externally ; internally covered with light
‘¢ cinnamon-rufous ”’ hairs.
The rump of the only winter specimen before me shows a much
larger area of brown than is present in any of the other specimens
(all taken in April and May). This may be an indication of a sea-
sonal change. ;
Tyre or Sprecres.—A male, registered No. 3.7.4.3. of British
Museum Collection, presented by Dr. Y. H. Mills, Skomer Island,
April 7th, 1900.
Diwensions 1n Minumerrses.
Head
and Tail. Hindfoot. Ear.
body.
Maximum of 7 males and 5 females, 114 61 19 15
Mean 5 3 about 110 55°5 18 13°5
Minimum, . : : : : 105 50 V7) 12
No accurate naturalist could possibly confound the Skomer Vole
with the ordinary Bank Vole of Great Britain. The greyish sides,
brown rump, far larger size, general proportions, and cranial characters
of EZ. skomerensis are such as to mark it as belonging to quite a distinct
division of the genus from that containing H. glareolus britannicus,
Miller, the ordinary British Bank Vole. The following dimensions
of a number of the latter form will illustrate my meaning :—
Greatest
Head Greatest | breadth
and Tail. | Hindfoot. Ear. length of skull
body. of skull. at
zygomata.
No. of specimens, 29 36 36 11 27 21
a mm. mn. mm. mm. mm. mm.
I Maximum, -| 104 55 18 12 25 14
= 2 P
Mean, ‘ ; 93 43 16:25 1l 23°8 12°75
z | No. of specimens, 38 38 36 12 33 26
= | mm. mm. mm. mm. mm. mm.
= Maximum, o || ile 51 18 13 24°75 13.5
= eee fe Sh Olco 42 16°5 11:5 23:05) 12:26)
318 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The Skomer Voles thus exceed those of Great Britain generally
by an average of 18 mm. on the body length, so that they are nearly a
quarter as large again, and these proportions are borne out in the
average dimensions of the tail, hindfoot, ear, and skull. There is,
besides, a difference in the proportionate lengths of the tail vertebrae
to the total length of the two forms, that of the ordinary British
being about as 31-50, that of the Skomer Voles as 33 per cent. of the
total length.
I was much surprised to find that the Skomer Vole is clearly allied
to the forms inhabiting Boreal Europe. It is quite closely related to
Evotomys norvegicus Miller, of Norway, £. nagert (Schinz) of the Alps,
and L. vasconie Miller of the Pyrenees.
In a recent paper Mr. Gerrit 8. Miller, junior,! has, excluding the
Arctic #. rutilus (Pallas) and the very distinct? £. rufocanus (Sundeyall)
of Northern Europe, divided the Bank Voles of Continental Europe
into two sets. One of these, consisting of the three species mentioned
in the last paragraph, is characteristic of the mountains, and cor-
responds in its distribution with the Variable Hares. The other
includes a number of smaller lowland forms, amongst which is the
British, the Z. hercynicus*® britannicus of Miller.
The Skomer Vole constitutes a fourth member of the Boreal group,
which, like its allies, is totally distinct from the Voles of the surround-
ing country. I regret that I have very few specimens of the other
Boreal forms wherewith to compare it. It is, however, less grey
than Z. nageri, of which Mr. Oldfield Thomas has shown me several
specimens obtained by himself near Locarno in Italian Switzerland,
while it appears to have a shorter tail than #. norvegicus. Further,
on comparison with the dimensions given in Mr. Miller’s tables, it
seems to be the smallest Boreal form yet described.
Ido not propose to attempt an explanation of the occurrence of
this colony of Voles almost indistinguishable from those of Boreal
Europe, nor why they appear to be confined to a small, wind-swept
island. It is, for the present, sufficient to place the facts on record,
noting, however, that the Skomer Vole is in no sense of the word a
stunted representative of its genus such as might reasonably be
1 “ Preliminary Revision of the European Red—backed Mice.’’ Proceedings of
the Washington Academy of Science, vol. xi., pp. 83 to 109, July 26, 1900.
2 A form which Mr. Miller has, I think, somewhat unnecessarily raised to sub-
generic rank.
>I do not, however, accept the validity of Mr. Miller’s arguments for the
abolition of the well-known term giareolus and the substitution for it of hercynicus.
B.-Hamirron—Addition to List of British Boreal Animals. 319
considered to have definite relations to the peculiarly cramped local
conditions of a small island. On the contrary, the Skomer Vole is
remarkably robust, and apparently only slightly less so than the
corresponding types of Boreal Europe. In its robustness it affords a
parallel to the long-tailed Field Mice of St. Kilda and of Lewis (J/us
sylaticus hirtensis mihi and I, hebridensis, de Winton), and the H ouse
Mouse (JZ. muralis mihi) of the former island.
It cannot, however, be without meaning or importance that we
have here on this small, treeless, wind-swept islet, almost facing the
home of Lepus timidus hibernicus, an animal which belongs to the same
type of Fauna as that Boreal mammal. It may be that we may yet
find amongst the Welsh mountains further colonies of these Boreal
Voles, and the possibility should at least be a stimulus to British
Field Naturalists in their collecting expeditions. Meanwhile we may
note the parallel between the occurrence of a Boreal Vole at sea-level
on Skomer Island and the similar downward extension of the range of
the Variable Hare in Ireland, accompanied as it is in the West by
the frequent descent to the plains of certain Alpine plants.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B. | 2D
[ 320, ]
TX.
ON THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE CLASSES OF
THE ARTHROPODA.
Br GEORGE H. CARPENTER, B.Sc. Lond., M.R.L.A.,
of the Science and Art Museum, Dublin.
[Prare VI. |
Read May 11, 1903.
Introduction.
Few zoological problems have given rise to wider differences of
opinion than that of the relationships that may exist between the
various classes of animals included under the term ‘‘ Arthropoda.”’ For
many years, the existence of some rather close affinity between Insects,
Centipedes, Millipedes, Arachnids, and Crustaceans was undisputed.
Linné, in 1758, included all these groups in his ‘‘ Class Insecta’’$ and
the name “‘ Arthropoda,” bestowed upon the assemblage by Von Siebold
in 1848, was intended to mark them off as a grand primary division of
the Animal Kingdom. When the evolutionary doctrine spread, and
naturalists began to go ancestor-hunting, there was no hesitation in
deriving all the Linnean ‘‘ Insecta”? from a common stock. The
development of so many and diverse Crustacea from a Nauplius larva
was believed by Miller (’69) to indicate the descent of the whole
Crustacean class from Nauplius-like ancestors; and through some
primitive Phyllopod, the Arachnida were traced back to the same
parent-stem. The six-legged larva of certain Millipedes led to the
conclusion that both Insects and ‘‘ Myriapods” had originated from a
Thysanuriform stock, which had been derived, according to Haeckel
(?76) and others, from a primitive zoaea-like Crustacean.
During recent years these phylogenetic speculations have been
discredited by many zoologists. If too much weight was formerly
allowed to larval stages in the discussion of ancestral forms, the
tendency at present is to regard such stages as of hardly any im-
portance at all. Then comparisons have constantly been made
between Arthropodean and Annelidan organs—between appendages
and parapodia, coxal glands and nephridia, tracheal tubes and dermal
glands, so that many zoologists think it more instructive to compare
various Arthropods with Annelids than with each other. And the
CarPENTER—Relationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 321
demonstration of the Arthropodous affinities of the Peripatide has led
many students to look upon those worm-like creatures as indicating
the probable ancestors of Millipedes, Centipedes, and Insects, and to
believe in the derivation of those classes from an Annelidan stock
quite independently of the Crustacea. Thus the opinion seems to have
been slowly gaining ground that the Arthropoda can no longer be con-
sidered as a natural group of the Animal Kingdom (Hutton, &c.,’97).
The most extreme view of the multiple origin of the Arthropoda
is that put forward by Bernard (’96), who would derive each of the
great classes independently from an Annelid ancestry. Most recent
writers, however, consider that the present-day Arthropods have
developed along two main lines of descent. Kingsley (’94), for
example, recognising, with Lankester (’81), the Arachnidan affinities
of Limulus, refers the Crustacea and Arachnida to one great group, the
Insects, Centipedes, and Millipedes to another. But other zoologists
consider the manner of breathing to be the all-important character in
deciding the affinities of the Arthropod classes. Lang (’91), for
example, divides the Arthropoda into a Branchiate and a Tracheate
series, regarding Limulus and the Eurypterida as closely allied to the
Crustacea, and believing that the Arachnida were derived from the
Insectan (Tracheate) stock by the fusion of the head with the thorax
and the disappearance of the feelers.
Supporters of either of these two views agree in supposing a wide
divergence between Crustaceans and Insects; they differ as to whether
the Arachnida should be associated with the former or with the latter
group. The special question of the affinities of the Arachnida will be
discussed later. ‘lhe conflicting views of. the various authors men-
tioned have been briefly sketched as an introduction to the argument
of this essay, which will endeavour to show that the various classes
of the Arthropoda are indeed truly related to each other, and that
ancesters with distinctly arthropodan characters must be predicated
for all of them. As has been recently pointed out by Lankester (97),
the structural features in which all Arthopods agree—even if the hard,
segmented exoskeleton and the jointed limbs be left out of account—
are striking and remarkable. The heart with paired openings; the
‘pericardium ’’ and the secondarily-formed body-cavity made up of
greatly enlarged blood-channels; the reduced ccelom; the variable
number of pairs of mesodermal excretory tubes ; the uniformly striated
muscle-fibres,! and the complete absence of ciliated epithelium'—all
1 Except among the Malacopoda.
322 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
these form an assemblage of characters quite unique in the Animal
Kingdom. And any attempt to explain their appearance in the various
classes of Arthropods as the result of convergent evolution must raise
far more difficulties than it can solve.
But the principal view maintained in this essay is one which was
suggested nearly sixty years ago by Huxley (758), and which has been
‘already published in outline by the present writer (’99)—that Crus-
taceans, Arachnids, and Insects agree closely in the primitive number
of their segments. It has been generally believed that the fixed and
definite number of segments found in the Malacostraca has been derived
by reduction from the numerous segments of Branchiopodan ancestors ;
that the definite segmentation of Insects has arisen by condensation
from some primitive richly-segmented Myriapod. But, as Huxley
wrote in 1858, ‘‘ I venture to think it a matter of no small moment if
it can be proved that a Lobster, a Cockroach, and a Scorpion are
composed of the same primitive number of somites.” If this be the
fact, we have well-nigh demonstrative proof that the classes to which
these three animals belong are truly akin to each other, and that their
allies with very many segments represent abnormal developments. It
is almost impossible that a reduction to exactly the same number of
segments in three classes of similarly-formed animals could have been
independently produced.
It is proposed, therefore, to compare the orders of the various
classes of Arthropods so far as it may be necessary to arrive at a con-
ception of the most primitive members of each class, with especial
reference to their segmentation. Then the various classes as a whole |
can be profitably compared and their affinities discussed. The writer
would express his special indebtedness to a most suggestive but
strangely neglected paper by Hansen (’93). If students of the
Arthropoda would follow his example, and compare diligently Arthro-
pods with other Arthropods, before comparing them with specialized
Annelids, our phylogenetic studies might advance with greater
assurance and less controversy than at present.
Nature of the most primitive Insects.
Any lengthened discussion of the relationship between the various
Orders of Insects is needless in view of the almost universal agree-
ment among entomologists in regarding the Thysanura as the most
primitive of living groups. Bernard (Hutton, &c., ’97) has, indeed,
recently revived the suggestion that the caterpillars of Lepidoptera
and Sawflies are to be considered as representing the ancestral stock
CarpENTER—Feelationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 323
of Insects ; and this speculation is tempting to those who seek to derive
Insects, independently of other Arthropods, from Annelidan ancestors.
But the view will not bear examination. Brauer (’69), Lubbock (’74),
and, more recently, Miall (’95), and Packard (’98), have shown con-
clusively that the active, campodeiform, armoured larva characteristic
of the lower orders of Insects must have preceded, in the evolu-
tion of insect-metamorphosis, the worm-like eruciform larva charac-
teristic of the more specialised orders. Not only is this evident
from a study of the various orders, but from comparison between the
families of any one order. Among the Lepidoptera, for example, we
_ find that the caterpillar of a low-type moth, like Hepialus, has, in
addition to a chitinous tergite on the first thoracic segment, paired
tergal plates on the second and third segments, and in some species on
the abdominal segments also, while the legs are strong and relatively
long, recalling those of a beetle-larva. But the caterpillar of a high-
type moth—a Sphinx, for example—has no distinct tergal plates on
any body-segment, excepting the first thoracic, those of the other
segments being reduced to tubercles, while its legs are relatively
shorter and weaker than those of the Hepialus caterpillar. Thus we
see that the worm-like characters of the larva are most markedly
shown by the higher moths. Among the beetles a complete transition
from the campodeiform to the eruciform type of larva can be traced ;
while the fact that, in the life-history of certain genera, the former
type precedes the latter in the development of the individual, shows
conclusively that the active armoured grub preceded the worm-like
caterpillar or maggot, which is undoubtedly a specialized secondary
larval form. We may, therefore, safely accept the conclusion that
the primitive insects were thysanuriform.
But in connexion with the object of this essay it is of the greatest
importance to arrive at a correct view as to the segmentation and
appendages of the primitive insects. To this we are guided partly by
morphological and partly by embryological evidence. Taking, first of
all, the head, at least six limb-bearing segments, all primitively postoral
in position, can now with certainty be recognised. Foremost of these
is the antennal segment bearing the feelers, innervated by the deuto-
cerebral ganglia. Then comes the tritocerebral segment with evanes-
cent appendages clearly detected by Wheeler (93) in the embryo of
Anurida, and by Uzel (’97) in that of Campodea. In the latter insect,
indeed, these appendages persist as paired tubercles in the adult. The
next postoral segment of the head is that which bears the mandibles.
The next segment has only recently been clearly demonstrated ;
324 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and its existence is still ignored by most writers upon Arthropod
morphology. Its discovery is due to Hansen (’93), who points out
that the paired structures associated with the tongue in the Thysanura
and Collembola, and vaguely called ‘‘ paraglosse’’ by most students
of those insects, are in reality a pair of jaws situate between the
mandibles and the first maxille. He gives to them the appropriate
name of ‘‘maxillule.” It is strange that so important an observation
should have been received with marked neglect for many years, but
Howes (’02) has now accepted Hansen’s interpretation. A careful
examination of these maxillule in the Thysanuran, Machilis maritima,
must convince anyone that there is no escape from Hansen’s conclusion.
If the mouth-parts are viewed in their natural positions, the tips of
Fig.1. Fig. 2.
Fic. 1. Right Maxillula of Machili maritima. 90. ga., galea; la., lacinia ;
plp., palp.
2. Left Maxillula of Isotoma palustris. x 260. ga., galea; la., lacinia.
the maxillule are seen to lie just behind the mandibles, and in front
of the maxille ; while, when dissected out, these organs show all the
appearance of a reduced pair of jaws (fig. 1). On the outer edge of each
maxillula is a short vestigial palp ; while the tip of the appendage has
two very distinct lobes, corresponding with the galea and lacinia of
a typical maxilla. Both lobes show a beautiful arrangement of
spicules, ridges, and pits ; and the lacinia, at least, is jointed with the
basal sclerite. The maxillule, at their bases, articulate with the central
tongue. In Japyx these organs are still more highly developed, with
three-segmented palps, according to Hansen (’93).
CarPrnter—MLelationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 325
A full description of these organs in the Collembolan Orchesella
was three years ago published by Folsom (’99); and, although he
did not at that time recognise them as a pair of jaws, his figures
show that they correspond closely with the maxillule of Machilis,
though less highly developed than the latter. In Isotoma—perhaps
the least specialized genus of the Collembola—the maxillule are
more strongly developed than in Orchesella. As observed in
Isotoma palustris (fig. 2), the lacinia is distinctly toothed at the tip ;
and the series of spines along the inner edge of the basal region are
stronger than in Orchesella. The association of the maxillule with
the tongue is closer in the Collembola than in the Thysanura, as
might be expected from the greater specialization of the former
group.
A final proof that the maxillule (or ‘‘ superlingue’’) are indeed
a distinct pair of appendages has been afforded by Folsom (’00), who
has studied their development in the Collembolan Anurida maritima.
He finds that they arise from paired rudiments like those of the
mandibles and maxille, and that their association with the central
rudiment of the tongue is secondary—exactly as would be anticipated
from a comparative study of the adult insects. Although the
maxillular rudiments arise between rather than behind the rudiments
of the mandibles, a special post-mandibular ganglion and a pair of
celomic spaces are associated with them. It is evident from the
figures given by Eaton (’83) and Heymons (’96) that these appendages
are present in the Ephemerid larva, though in a reduced state.
According to Hansen, their vestiges can be clearly made out in the
Earwigs and Hemimerus, and in a still more reduced condition in the
Cockroach and other Orthoptera.
The two pairs of maxille (‘‘maxille” and ‘‘labium” of
entomologists) are the appendages of the two hinder postoral somites
of the head. A point of considerable interest to be noted is the fact
that, in, the more generalised Insects at least, the labial segment is
incompletely fused with the head-capsule, part of its skeleton forming
the cervical sclerites or so-called ‘‘ microthorax,” very evident in the
Cockroach. This interpretation of the cervical sclerites, suggested
by Huxley (’78), has been established by Comstock and Kochi (’02).
We conclude, therefore, that in the Insectan head are six limb-
bearing segments, whereof the hindermost, at least in the more
generalised orders, is incompletely fused with the rest. It is likely,
as will be seen later, that an extra, primitively limb-bearing, ocular
segment in front of the feelers must also be reckoned.
Behind the head, the segmentation is comparatively simple. The
326 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
three thoracic segments, each with its pair of legs, are succeeded by
ten abdominal segments. Of these latter, the second to the ninth
bear short unjointed appendages in Machilis ; while the tenth, in many
of the’ more generalized insects, carries a pair of jointed cercopods.
Then comes a small terminal anal segment. But the researches of
Heymons (’95) have shown that the segment on which the cercopods
arise in the embryo, is in reality the eleventh abdominal, which, as
growth proceeds, becomes fused with the tenth. It has long been
known that rudiments of limbs appear on the abdominal segments of
many insect-embryos. This fact, in conjunction with the abdominal
appendages of Machilis and other Thysanura, leads us naturally to
conclude that the ancestors of insects had limbs on all the segments of
the body, except the anal segment. With confidence, therefore, we
can believe that the most primitive insects possessed a head with five
post-oral limb-bearing segments, completely fused, a ‘‘ neck ” segment,
undergoing fusion with the head, three thoracic segments with well-
developed legs, and an abdomen of twelve segments, whereof the first
ten carried poorly-developed limbs, the eleventh a well-developed pair
of cercopods, while the twelfth or anal segment had no appendages.
As no insect is hatched in the winged stage, and as the young of so.
many irsects are Thysanuriiorm, there need be no hesitation in
concluding that the ancestral insects were wingless. And it is
reasonable to conclude that the pedigree might be traced farther back
still to animals with a head with paired eyes and five limb-bearing
segments, and a trunk with sixteen undifferentiated segments, whereof
all but the last carried paired appendages. (See Table, pp. 354-5.)
elationships between Insects, Centipedes, and Millipedes.
But it may readily be objected that Centipedes and Millipedes are
less highly organized than Insects—to which class nevertheless they
are related—and that they possess a larger number of limb-bearing
segments than the Insects have. Therefore, it may be argued, Insects
must have been derived from ancestors with numerous segments.
This objection, however, is by no means serious, and rests largely on
the assumption that ‘‘rich segmentation” must, of necessity, be a
primitive character among Arthropods. The absence of wings in
Centipedes, and the similarity of most of the body-segments and their
appendages, are doubtless primitive characters. But it is quite as
likely that, compared with the ancestral stock, the number of segments
should have increased as that they should have suffered reduction.
CarPEentER— Lelationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 327
And an examination of the relationships of these classes and their
orders shows that the former alternative has much evidence in its
favour.
The morphological studies of Kingsley (’88) and Pocock (’93a), and
the embryological researches of Heymons (’01), have established beyond
any reasonable doubt that the ‘‘ Class Myriapoda”’ must be abandoned,
the Centipedes (Class Chilopoda) being more nearly related to the
Insects than to the Millipedes (Class Diplopoda). The Centipedes
agree with the Insects in the simple segmentation of the body, in the
lateral position of the spiracles, in the anastomosing tracheal tubes,
and in the posterior position of the genital openings; while the
Millipedes exhibit for the most part a fusion of the segments in
couples, so that each apparent segment carries two pairs of legs, the
spiracles are ventral in position, the air-tubes are unbranched and do
not anastomose, and the genital openings are far forward on the third
body segment.
If, then, it is believed that Insects and Centipedes on the one hand,
and Millipedes on the other, have diverged from some common
ancestral stock, it is natural to inquire whether any living form can
suggest approximately what that stock may have been like. The
only animals that combine some of the divergent characters of Insects,
Centipedes, and Millipedes, are the Scolopendrellide, now usually
regarded as a distinct class, called, on account of their annectant
characters, the Symphyla (Ryder, ’80). These small, frail, somewhat
degenerate creatures, show the series of similar, simple limb-bearing
segments characteristic of Centipedes, the forwardly-situated genital
aperture as found in Millipedes, and a number of body-segments
identical with that occurring in Insects. Their chief point of
specialization is the curious inequality and displacement of the
tergites. No surprise need be felt that some students of their structure,
like Packard (’98), regard them as representing the ancestral stock of
Insects ; others, as Grassi (’85), that of Centipedes and Millipedes. But
if we are willing to accept the view, admitted as possible by Lang
(791), that most living Centipedes and Millipedes have become what
they are by an increase from the number of primitive segments, there
is no reason why we should not, with Haase (’86) and Pocock (93a),
regard the Symphyla as approximate to the common ancestor of the
Insecta and the Chilopoda on the one hand, and of the Diplopoda
(including the Pauropoda) on the other. Haase particularly suggests
that the common ancestors of the three great Tracheate classes had as
many segments as Scolopendrella.
328 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
But Schmidt (’95), to whom we owe the most recent account of
this interesting animal, denies that its segmentation is primitive, and
suggests that the pointed processes on the coxze of its legs must be
regardéd as the vestiges of pairs of limbs belonging to segments which
have become closely fused with the present evident segments. He
considers Scolopendrella, therefore, to be a very highly specialized
Diplopod, the fusion of the segments in couples being so intimate, that
the adjacent limbs have coalesced. But this view is surely far-fetched,
when we consider in how many points of structure Scolopendrella
mx =A r
a
Fic. 3. a. Right Maxilila (mx.), tongue (li.), and maxillula (mxl.) of Scolopendrella
immaculata. The tip of the right maxillula is seen in situ; the left
maxillula is exposed by removal of the maxilla and part of the tongue.
x 390.
B. Second maxille (labium) of Scolopendrella. x 90.
approaches the Thysanura. The antenne resemble closely those of
Campodea, and differ in the most marked way from those of any
Millipede. The head-skeleton, with its angular epicranial suture,
is quite Insectan. Latzel’s figures (84) show clearly three distinct
pairs of jaws, the mandibles, maxille, and labium corresponding rather
CarPrnter—Relationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 829
closely with the similar structures in the Collembola. And by
dissection of the head, I have succeeded in demonstrating the presence
of a pair of minute maxillule' associated with the tongue, and lying
between mandibles and maxille, just as they do in the Springtails
(fig. 8, mxl.). All that is now wanting to bring the segmentation of
Scolopendrella into perfect agreement with that of the primitive Insects,
is embryological proof of the presence of the vestigial tritocerebral
appendages of the head. With confidence, therefore, we may postulate
a Scolopendreloid ancestry for Insects, Centipedes, and Millipedes.
Among the Centipedes we find very great variation in the number
of the body-segments, Lithobius and Scutigera having only fifteen pairs
of walking-legs, Scolopendra and its allies twenty-one or twenty-three
pairs, and the Geophiloids often more than a hundred pairs. Now,
according to the view of Haase, adopted by Bollman (’93), the fifteen-
legged groups must be regarded as the more primitive on account of
the comparative simplicity of the tracheal system in Lithobius, the
spiracles having no closing apparatus; and it is especially noteworthy
that a correspondingly simple stage is passed through in the develop-
ment of the Scolopendride. Although the tracheal system of Scutigera
is highly specialised and the spiracles dorsal in position, the head and
mouth-parts of that animal retain many primitive characters.
But the important discovery recently announced by Pocock (’02)
of a Tasmanian genus of Centipedes (Craterostigmus) with fifteen
pairs of legs like a Lithobioid, and twenty-one tergites like a Scolo-
pendra, is believed by him to indicate the descent of the Lithobioids
from Scolopendroid ancestors through the loss of six segments—the
drd, 6th, 9th, 11th, 14th, and 17th. He suggests that, in Cratero-
stigmus, the tergites of these segments are still retained. Two objections
may be made to this view. It is hard to imagine a reduction in the
number of segments by the loss of a scattered series such as this.
And the derivation of the Lithobioids from the Scolopendroids, through
Craterostigmus, would destroy the remarkably close correspondence
between the position of the spiracles on the Ist, 3rd, 5th, 8th, 10th,
12th, and 14th body-segments of Lithobius and the corresponding
segments (except the Ist) of Scolopendra. As Craterostigmus exhibits
several Geophiloid characters, it is more likely that its six ‘‘ minor”
tergites should be compared to the smaller sections of the incom-
pletely-divided dorsal plates of the Geophilide.
1 While this paper is passing through the press, I find that the maxillule of
Scolopendrella have been seen and figured by Hansen (’03).
380 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
There is good reason, therefore, for considering that the richly-
segmented Centipedes are abnormal developments from forms with a
moderate number of segments. The paleontological evidence of the
subject is very meagre. In Carboniferous times, we know from the
researches of Scudder (’90) that Latzelia, a form resembling Scutigera,
but without the specialised dorsal tracheal system, existed. The
fossils referred by Scudder to the Eoscolopendride are too imperfect
for any certain conclusions to be drawn from them. If the bristle-
bearing animal Paleocampa, referred by him to a special order, the
Protosyngnatha, were indeed a Centipede, its body-segments were but
few in number. Embryological researches on the Centipedes, the
latest of which is Heymons’ exhaustive treatise on the development of
Scolopendra (’01), show the close correspondence between the Chilopodan
and the Insectan head. The presence of a tritocerebral rudiment in
the Centipedes has been established, so that the feelers, mandibles,
maxille, maxillule, and labium of the insect correspond respectively
with the feelers, mandibles, two pairs of maxille, and poison-jaws of
the Centipede. The freedom from the head of the segment bearing
the last-named limbs in the Centipedes shows that their ancestors must
have diverged from the primitive stock at a very early period. In
this respect, the head of Scolopendrella is specialised as compared with
the Centipede-head ; and in the Symphylan ancestral stock of Centi-
pedes and Insects, the pair of limbs that now forms the plate-like
labium in Scolopendrella and the Collembola, must have been free and
leg-like.
One of Heymons’ most startling discoveries is the presence of a
pair of pre-antennal rudimentary appendages on the head of the
Scolopendroid embryo. The segment bearing these he regards as post-
oral; and he ranges it with the optic segment of the insect head. Its
existence strongly suggests that the eyes of the far-off ancestors of
Centipedes were stalked and appendicular. As the development of
the lateral simple eyes in Scolopendra does not support the theory that
they are degraded compound eyes, it is to be presumed that the ances-
tral compound eyes have been lost, except in the Scutigeride.
Turning next to consider the Millipedes, we find that they, like
Centipedes, exhibit a wide divergence in their segmentation. It is
impossible to lay any stress on the hexapod condition of their larve,
as indicating relationship to the Insects, as the segments on which the
three pairs of legs occur are not successive, and vary in different
groups. But the strongest evidence for the derivation of the Diplopoda
from the same stock as the Chilopoda and the Insecta is afforded by
CarpEnteR—Lelationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 33
the fact that in Scolopendrella the genital opening is far forward, as
in the Millipedes, while the curious group of the Pauropoda, which show
many points of correspondence with the Symphyla, have been proved
to exhibit (Kenyon, ’95) marked Diplopod affinities. Kenyon, indeed,
places the Pauropoda, together with the Pselaphognatha (Polyxenidz),
in a group which he calls the Protodiplopoda. Pauropus has only
nine pairs of legs; and its segments are imperfectly fused. There can
be little doubt that this form has undergone secondary shortening; but
Polyxenus has thirteen leg-bearing segments followed by two limbless
segments, so that its segmentation agrees exactly with that of
Scolopendrella and the primitive Insects. The mandibles of Pauro-
pus and Polyxenus resemble those of the Collembola. In other
Millipedes, these jaws are complex, being composed of several sclerites
—a condition which, like that of the mandibles in certain Scarabzeid
beetles, must perhaps be regarded as a secondary adaptation. The
““lower lip” or ‘ gnathocilarium ”’ of Millipedes seems to be certainly
formed by the union of two pairs of appendages which probably
represent the maxillule and maxille of Insects; while the labial seg-
ment of Insects is represented by an embryonic limbless segment
(Heymons, ’97). (See Table, pp. 354-5.)
What paleontological evidence we possess of the history of Milli-
pedes shows that richly-segmented forms, in which the segments were
already beginning to fuse together in couples, were living in Devonian
times. But as winged Insects have been traced back to the Silurian,
we have nothing but comparative studies in living forms to guide us
as to the nature of the common ancestor of Insects and Millipedes.
Morphological evidence shows clearly that Millipedes might well have
arisen, through some form combining the primitive characters of
Pauropus and Polyxenus, from a Scolopendrelloid stock. The fusion
of segments in couples would not be likely to take place until the
number of segments had become very great. It is suggestive to notice
in this connexion that, in the Pauropoda and Pselaphognatha, the
fusion of segments has hardly begun. The earliest truly ‘ diplo-
podous’”’ forms would have been elongate Juloid Millipedes. Thence,
by a reduction in the number of segments, the Glomeroid forms may
have sprung.
The difficulty that arises in bringing together two groups which, like
the Millipedes on the one hand, and the Insects’and Centipedes on the
other, exhibit a great difference in the position of the genital aperture,
will be discussed later in connexion with the relationship between
Insects and Crustacea. For the present it is enough to repeat the
302 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
fact that in Scolopendrella, despite its marked Insectan affinities, the
genital opening is far forward, as in Millipedes. Therefore the differ-
ence in the position of the genital opening cannot by itself indicate
a very radical divergence. Although Centipedes are more nearly
related to Insects than to Millipedes, it is likely that the kinship of
Insects to the two classes of ‘‘myriapods” is equally close. The
Insects represent the main stem, the Centipedes and Millipedes two
divergent branches.
Relationship between the Orders of Crustacea.
Turning next to consider the probable nature of the most primitive
Crustaceans, we find the prevailing opinion among modern zoologists
to be that the Phyllopoda, as exemplified by the many-segmented
Apus and Branchipus, represent, more nearly than any other living
order, the ancestral stock of the class. According to this view, the
evolution of the Crustacea has been effected by a reduction in the
number of body-segments until the definite and limited number
characteristic of the higher orders (Malacostraca) has been reached.
But Packard (’82), Sars (’87), and Hartog (’88) have argued that the
Copepoda are more primitive than the Phyllopoda.
Now if we consider the lower orders (Entomostraca) as a whole,
we are struck by the quite exceptional presence of a rich segmenta-
tion. In the Phyllopoda the number of pairs of legs may vary from
four to over sixty; whilst, in the other recent orders of the Entomo-
straca, the limb-bearing segments are always few. We now know that
Phyllopods, closely related to Apus (Protocaris), and Ostracods, had
already been differentiated in the Cambrian period. Therefore, what-
ever may have been the segmentation of the primitive Crustaceans,
there had been great modification before the dawn of the earliest life-
epoch known to us by fossil evidence. No doubt can be entertained
that such poorly-developed segmentation as is shown by the Ostracods
must be due to reduction. But has such reduction been the constant
rule in Crustacean development? It may be of interest to consider in
this connexion that most ancient of Crustacean orders known to us—
the Trilobita.
Nearly all Trilobites are composed of a number of segments greater
than that characterising the Malacostraca. After the recent researches
of Beecher (’00) and others, there can be no reasonable doubt that
these animals were true Crustacea, and that they combined to some
extent the characters of the Branchiopoda and the lower Malacostraca.
CarPEentER—Relationships between Classes of Arthropoda. 333
What is the history of their evolution as regards segmentation ?
Olenellus is the oldest known genus; and, according to Peach (’94), O.
Ajerulfi is its most primitive species. This Trilobite had sixteen body-
segments, in addition to the five-segmented head—only one more than
the typical Malacostracan and Insectan number. And if we study the
segmentation of Trilobites generally, we find a slow but steady increase
in the number of segments from the Cambrian on to the dying-out of
the order in the Carboniferous. Taking from Zittel (’87) the genera
whose segmentation is clearly known, it is found that the average
number of body-segments present in the Trilobites of each great period
of the Primary Epoch work out as follows :—
Period. No. of Genera. ) 99
Pd see or
3rd 99 9?
Athi. 55
Gthiaie. 95
Thike ep. a
Sth 7, Z
Oth; op
Oth 57
Lith "3, 75
(2 a
ochre. 55
ith, ve,» Ss
[sth 3; 5
Anal Segment
Telson
CRUSTACEA
Leptostrace
Stalked Eyes§
Antennules
Antenne ~
Mandibles
1st Maxille
2nd: 55
Ord) ene
4th ,,
jth
(jiley 0 5h
Tf cp
Sth 735
Ist Pleopods
oid ae
Bivil x
4th ,,
5theeegs
6th ,,
Limbless Se
ment
Anal Segme
Furea
The line after Segment 5 indicates the hind-margin of the primitive Arthropodan Head.
EGMENTATION BETWEEN THE CLASSES OF THE ARTHROPODA.
‘alacostraca
(Astacus).
plkced Hyes
Meanules
| itennee
andibles
t Maxillee
te 5,
F
d 99
t Pleopods
a;
d
4
a ”
‘opods
‘Ison
/
t Maxillipeds
INsEcTA
(Machilis).
Ocular Segment
Feelers
Tritocerebral
Segment
Mandibles
Maxillule
Ist Maxillee
2nd Maxille
(Labium)
Ist Legs
2nd ,,
ard_,,
_ist Abdominal
Segment
1st Abdominal
Limbs
2nd_ ,,
ord sy, ”
4th ,,
5th yy) 99
6th 99 99
7th 9 : 99 :
8th ,,
Cercopods
nal Segment | Anal Segment
SyMPHYLA
(Scolopendrella).
Feelers
Mandibles
Maxillulz
Ist Maxillee
2nd Maxille
Ist Legs
2nd);
ord ,,
4th ,,
5th ,,
Cth;
TH gp
8th ,,
OFhier
10th ,,
tthe’, ¢
12th ,,
Retires Limbs
Cercopods
Anal Segment
DrieLoropa
(Polyxenus).
Ocular Segment
Feelers
Mandibles
Gnathochilarium
[Vestigial Seg-
ment
Ist Legs
2nd ,,
3rd_,, oy
4th ,,
SHIN op
6th ,,
7th ,,
Sth.
9th ,,
UO thins,
llth ,,
WAN 55
BIO pp
Limbless Seg-
ment
Anal Segment
Poison -feet
CHILOPODA
(Lithobius).
Pre-antennal rudiments
(Scolopendra)
Feelers
Tritocerebral Segment
Mandibles
Ist Maxillee
Indies,
Ist Legs
2nCaass
3rd_,,
4th ,,
BUA op
Gila 4,
ith),
Sunes
ila 5
10th ,,
llth ,,
12th ,,
13th ,,
14th ,,
15th ,,
Genital limbs 3 ?
Anal Segment
i :
The signs ¢ ¢ indicate the positions of the male and female genital openings, respectively.
306
a
’00.
794.
96.
93.
702.
00.
69.
95.
96.
799.
he.
702.
80.
83.
799,
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
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Eaton, A. E.—A Revisional Monograph of the existing
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Fousom, J. W.—The Anatomy and Physiology of the Mouth-parts
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Grasst,-B.—Morphologia delle Scolopendrella. Attc, R. Accad.
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Grossen, C.—A contribution to the Knowledge of the Genealogy
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Ryan anp Esrirr—TZhe Synthesis of Glycosides. 381
stance (acetobromoglucose) by Koenigs and Knorr! was an important
advance in the method of synthesising glycosides. The pure, well-
crystallized acetobromoglucose was converted into -pentacetyl
glucose, B-methyl, 6-ethyl, B-phenyl, @-f-naphthyl, and #-carva-
eryl-glucosides.
A still further advance was made by the discovery of Fischer and
Armstrong,” that anhydrous liquid halogen acids react with a- and f-
pentacetyl glucoses to form well-crystallized a- and B-acetochloro and
acetobromoglucoses. In this way the acetochlorogalactose, obtained
as a syrup by Colley’s method,’ was isolated in the pure condition as
a well-crystallized compound, and converted into B-phenyl galacto-
side. From the a-acetochloroglucose they obtained a-alkyl-glucosides,
and from f-acetochloroglucose the corresponding B-glucosides. The
failure of Fischer and Armstrong to convert acetohalogen pentoses into
phenol derivatives is probably due to the ease with which the a-com-
pound changes into the B-derivative in the presence of dilute alkali.*
By the action of phosphorous pentachloride and aluminium
chloride on the chloroform solution of a-pentacetyl-glucose and a-pen-
tacetylagalactose, crystallized a-acetochlorohexoses were obtained by
Skraup and Kremann.’? Acetochlorolactose was obtained by Bodart,°
by the action of hydrochloric acid gas on dry lactose, suspended in
cold acetic anhydride, which, with its isomeride, was also obtained
by Fischer and Armstrong. The latter chemists also converted the
analogous acetochloromaltose into 6-methyl-maltoside.
The 8-phenyl-maltoside obtained by Fischer and Armstrong’ from
8-acetobromomaltose was hydrolysed by emulsine to maltose and
phenol. Its behaviour towards the enzyme is different from that of
amygdalin, which is decomposed, on hydrolysis by emulsine into
glucose, benzaldehyde, and hydrocyanic acid.
Although halogen derivatives have been most largely employed
for the synthesis of glycosides, it is interesting to note that nitro-
derivatives have also been successfully used by Kcenigs and Knorr.*®
1 Sitz. Bayr. Akad. der Wissensch., 1900, p. 103.
® Sitz. der K. Akad. der Wissensch., Berlin, 1901, xiii., p. 316.
° Ryan, Journ. Chem. Soc., 1899, p. 1057; Proc. Roy. Dubl. Soc., vol. ix.
(N.S.), p. 506.
* Berichte, xxxiv., 1901, p. 2885.
° Monatsch. f. Chem., xxii., p. 375.
SVenlocmcuts
” Berichte, xxxv., 1902, p. 3153.
* Berichte, xxxiv., 1901, p. 957.
382 Proceedings of the Royal Inish Acadeny.
Acetonitroglucose and acetonitrogalactose have been converted into
alkyl hexosides. From acetonitromaltose heptacetyl-6-methyl malto-
side was similarly obtained.
‘It has been shown by Ryan and Mills' that, by the direct action
of acetyl chloride on arabinose, a well-crystallized acetochloroarabinose
can be obtained. Chayanne, by the same method, afterwards? re-dis-
covered the substance, obtained the corresponding acetobromoarabi-
nose, and converted it into a crystallized tetracetylarabinose.
From acetochloroarabinose, as mother-substance, we have obtained
the arabinosides of carvacrol, ortho cresol, 6-naphthol, and methyl
alcohol. The new glycosides resemble the corresponding phenolic
hexosides in their appearance and behaviour.
Preparation of Acetochloroarabinose.
The method of obtaining this compound has been briefly described
in a previous paper.® In further preparations the method which was
found most convenient was to allow acetyl chloride (4 mols.) to act
on dry, powdered arabinose (1 mol.) in a small flask (fitted with a
calcium chloride tube to prevent the entrance of moisture), until the
mixture had solidified to a crystalline magma. Dry chloroform was
then added, and the action allowed to go on until complete solution
was effected.
The chloroform solution was shaken in a funnel, washed first with
water, then with sodium carbonate, separated, passed through a dry
filter, dried with anhydrous sodium sulphate, and the chloroform dis-
tilled off in vacuo.
The yield from five grams of arabinose was generally seven and
a half grams of crystalline acetochloroarabinose, which was sufficiently
pure for conversion into phenolic glycosides. ‘The properties of the
substance given by Chavanne (loc. cit.) are almost identical with those
previously given by Ryan and Mills (loc. cct.).
The acetochloroarabinose, which is a well-crystallized compound,
and comparatively stable in the air, is a more convenient mother-
substance for the preparation of glycosides than the impure syrupy
acetochloroglucose and acetochlorogalactose previously employed.
1 Journ. Chem. Soc., 1901, p. 706. —
2 Comptes Rendus, cxxxiy., 1902, p. 661.
8 Ryan and Mills, Journ. Chem Soc., 1901, p. 706.
Ryan anp Eprint— The Synthesis of Glycosides. 383
Owing to its stability, it is even more convenient than the crystallized
acetobromoglucose of Kcenigs and Knorr; and the method of prepa-
ration is simpler than that of Fischer and Armstrong for the aceto-
halogenhexoses.
Action of Methyl Alcohol on Acetochloroarabinose.
Acetochloroarabinose (1°6 gram) was dissolved in warm methyl
alcohol (50 c.c.), and the mixture was allowed to remain at the tem-
perature of the laboratory for four days. Silver carbonate (1:6 gram)
was added, and the precipitate filtered. After evaporating the filtrate
on the water-bath, the residue was dissolved in a little methyl alcohol,
refiltered, and let evaporate spontaneously in a vacuum desiccator
over calcium chloride. Leaf-like aggregates of crystals separated.
They were free from chlorine, and did not reduce Fehling’s solution
before hydrolysis. After repeated recrystallizations from hot methyl
alcohol, the crystals, when dried at 105°C., became soft at 159° C., and
melted at 166—168° C.
Methyl arabinoside obtained by Fischer’s method becomes soft at
165° C., and melts at 169-176°C. It crystallizes in needles or leaf-
like aggregates, and does not reduce Fehling’s solution.’
Action of an Alkaline Solution of Carvacrol on Acetochloroarabinose.
Slightly more than equivalent quantities of potash and carvacrol,
dissolved in absolute alcohol, were added to a solution of acetochloro-
arabinose (7 grams) in absolute alcohol. The mixture was allowed to
remain at the temperature of the laboratory for a few days. A white
solid separated, and the solution smelt of acetic ester. The filtrate
from the potassium chloride was evaporated on the water-bath, and
the residue dissolved in water. The aqueous solution was evaporated
a few times with addition of water, until the odour of carvacrol had
disappeared.
The residue crystallized on cooling. The reaction had proceeded
thus :-—
—
CHe OAc CH (CHOAc)2 CH + CsH3CH3C3H; OK + 3C2H;0H
Cl
sated (yi
= CH,OH GH (CHOH), CH + KCl + 3CH; COOC Hs
O —C,H3 CH3 C3 H7
1 Berichte, xxvi., 1893, p. 2400.
R.1.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. B. | 2 I
384 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The carvacryl-arabinoside was recrystallized from boiling water,
and dried at 100° C. for analysis :—
0°1229 g. sbst. : 0°2869 g. CO, : 0:0897 g. H,0.
C 63°66, H8-19.
C,; H,. O; requires C 63°78, H 7°87.
Carvacryl arabinoside (C;H,0, - O - C,H; - CH; - C;H,) erystal-
lizes from water in long needles, melting, when dry, at 119-120°C.
It dissolves in alcohol, ether, acetone, and chleroform. It is insoluble
in carbon bisulphide and toluene, and sparingly soluble in cold water,
but readily in hot water. The pure substance does not reduce
Fehling’s solution. When heated for a short time with dilute sul-
phuric acid it is hydrolysed to carvacrol and arabinose. Carvacryl
arabinoside differs from carvacryl glucoside in its not being more
soluble in potash than in water.
Conversion of Acetochloroarabinose into B-naphthyl-arabinoside.
Acetochloroarabinose (3 grams), dissolved in absolute alcohol, was
slowly added to a solution of 0°6 gram potassium hydroxide and
1°5 gram #-naphthol, also dissolved in absolute alcohol. The mix-
ture after a few minutes smelt of acetic ester, and quickly became
turbid from the separation of a white solid (potassium chloride).
After remaining at the temperature of the laboratory for one day it
was heated on the water-bath for a short time, and again allowed to
remain for three days at the ordinary temperature. The yellow
filtrate from the potassium chloride was heated on the water-bath,
under the reflux condenser, for half an hour, and the alcohol then
distilled off. The cold residue became solid on the addition of a little
water. The product was dried on clay, washed with chloroform till
colourless, recrystallized from boiling absolute alcohol, and dried at
105° C. for analysis :—
0°1072 g. sbst.: 0°2562 g. CO, and 0:0562 g. H,0.
C 65-18, H5°82.
C,; H,;, O; requires C 65°21, H 5:8.
B-naphthyl arabinoside crystallizes from absolute alcohol in long-
branching, grouped needles, which are visible and multicoloured
between crossed nicols. It dissolyes in cold alcohol and acetic ester.
The crystals are scarcely soluble in benzene, chloroform, ether, water,
Ryan anp Epsritt—The Synthesis of Glycosides. 385
or petroleum ether, but very readily soluble in hot alcohol. They
melt, when dry, at 176-177°C. The arabinoside does not reduce
Fehling’s solution before hydrolysis, but does so readily after hydro-
lysis by boiling with dilute sulphuric acid for a short time.
Conversion of Acetochloroarabinose nto Orthocresyl Arabinoside.
Equimolecular quantities of orthocresol, potassium hydroxide, and
acetochloroarabinose were mixed together in alcoholic solution. The
copious precipitate which first formed was redissolved on boiling the
mixture. After remaining at the ordinary temperature for a few
days, the filtrate from the precipitated potassium chloride was allowed
to evaporate spontaneously, and the residual oil was dissolved in
boiling water. On concentrating to a small bulk, and allowing it to
stand for several days, beautiful rosettes, consisting of needle-shaped
crystals, were obtained, which were dried on clay and recrystallized
from water. When air-dried at 100°C. it melted at 124° C., and gave
an analysis : —
0:1548 g. sbst. : 0°3364 g. CO,, 0:0978 H.0,
C 59:44, H 7-02,
Ci, Hig O; requires C 59:95, H 6°7.
Orthocresyl arabinoside is soluble in cold water, and very readily
soluble in hot water. It is insoluble in ether and carbon disulphide,
scarcely soluble in chloroform or benzene, and easily soluble in alcohol
or acetone, from which it separates in beautiful branching needles.
The arabinoside does not reduce Fehling’s solution before, but readily
after, hydrolysis by hot, dilute sulphuric acid. The hydrolysed solu-
tion smelt of cresol.
Nomenclature employed.
It has been customary, up to the present, to call a substance which
can be hydrolysed by an enzyme or a dilute acid to two or more
bodies, one of which is a reducing sugar—a glucoside. The oldest and
best-known members of the series are derivatives of glucose, and, in
these cases, the term is a correct one. When, however, similar
derivatives were obtained from another hexose, such as galactose,
they should, strictly speaking, have been termed galactosides.
In most instances, this system has been adopted ; but a difficulty is
still felt in finding a suitable name for the whole series.
386 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The term hexoside has been applied by me to all such derivatives
of the hexoses (glucose, galactose, fructose, mannose, &c.). Analogous
derivatives of the pentoses, tetroses, &c., may be called pentosides,
tetrosides, &c. In general, any such derivative of a polyose may be
called a polyostde. Although the latter term is probably the best for
the whole series, I have, in the present paper, used the word glycoside,
suggested for the same purpose by van Rijn.
fear }
XIII.
A LIST OF IRISH HEPATIC.
By DAVID McARDLE.
(REPORT FROM THE FAUNA AND FLORA COMMITTEE. )
Read June 22, 1903. Published January 28, 1904.
IntTRODUCTION.
Tus paper is an attempt to give a full and reliable list of the
Hepatic of Ireland, as they are known at the present time. It is
intended to form Part II. of ‘‘ Cybele Hibernica,’’ and is based on
exactly the same lines. Since the late Dr. D. Moore’s death in 1879, I
have continued to study the subject which he first taught me, knowing
that his valuable Report on Irish Hepatice, which he read before the
Royal Irish Academy in 1876, was preliminary to a more exhaustive
work. With financial help from the Fauna and Flora Committee of
the Academy, I have been enabled to make research in many
counties. The results I have from time to time laid before the
Academy, and for their help I offer my best thanks.
The Irish Hepaticee have been studied with great success by the
earlier botanists, notably by Dr. Taylor, of Kenmare, in Kerry, who
published the result of his researches in Part II. of Mackay’s ‘“‘ Flora
Hibernica,” in which seventy-five species are enumerated under the
genus Jungermania, besides Marchantiacee and Anthocerotacee, which
include eight species, making eighty-three in all.
Miss Hutchins, of Bantry, about the same period was collecting
and studying Hepatice in Co. Cork, with rare discriminating
power. Most of the plants she gathered were sent to Sir William
Hooker; and one has only to turn over the pages of Hooker’s grand
work on the British Jungermanie to find her name more or less
connected with the discovery of every rare Irish plant.
Dr. Thomas Power’s “‘ Contributions towards the Fauna and Flora
of Cork,” published in 1844, includes fifty species.
The late Mr. Isaac Carroll contributed largely to our knowledge
of these plants in Co. Cork and elsewhere. In 1863, the late Dr.
Carrington, of Manchester, published his ‘‘ Gleanings among the
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIYV., SEC. B. | 2K
388 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Irish Cryptogams”’; 110 species are enumerated, and many varieties
collected by him when on a visit to Ireland of eleven weeks’ duration,
which he spent in Kerry and Cork. He also includes in his list some
stations for rare Hepatice, discovered by Dr. D. Moore; and some
species growing in the neighbourhood of Cork by Mr. I. Carroll,
and Mr. W. Wilson, of Warrington; about the same time Mr. Mitten
made interesting discoveries in Co. Kerry, notably on Brandon.
In 1873, at the invitation of Dr. D. Moore, the late Professor
Lindberg, of the University of Helsingfors, paid a visit to this
country, and spent the months of June and July collecting Liver-
worts, in company with Dr. Moore, in Co. Kerry. Brandon, and
a large part of the Dingle peninsula, and Killarney, got a close
examination. They also collected in many parts of Co. Wicklow
and Co. Dublin. The result of their trip was a collection of eighty-
seven species of Hepatice, an account of which Professor Lindberg
published in the ‘“‘ Acta Societatis Scientiarum Fennice,” vol. x.,
under the heading, ‘‘ Hepatic in Hibernia, mense Juli, 1873, lect ”
This was an important contribution, and included several new species.
In the northern counties, the subject has been by no means
neglected, but has occupied the attention of keen observers since the
days of John Templeton, A.L.S., of Belfast, one of the most acute
naturalists of his time. Mr. Samuel Alexander Stewart, of the same
city, has studied the subject with his characteristic care. The
results of his work are published in the ‘“ Flora of the N.-E. of
Ireland,’’ and in various Reports. In 1885, in company with Mr.
Holt, of Manchester, he visited Killarney, in search of Mosses and
Hepatice. The result of their trip was the discovery of several
species of Hepaticee new to science. He has also been ably assisted
by the Rey. C. H. Waddell, of Saintfield, Co. Down, and the Rev.
Canon Lett, of Loughbrickland, Co. Down. The Report of the latter,
which was read before the R. I. Academy in 1889, included the
Mosses, Hepaticee, and Lichens of the Mourne Mountain district.
Sixty-four species of Hepaticee are enumerated, an important list of
plants collected on a wide area, which includes roughly 560 square
miles. The Rev. C. H. Waddell published a valuable paper in the
‘Journal of Botany,” 1893, on the distribution of Lejewnea in
Treland.
Dr. D. Moore’s Report on Irish Hepatic in 1876 included all
previous papers and work by collectors in Ireland up to that date.
As to his own investigations he writes: ‘‘ The Irish habitats may be
relied upon, as I have collected nearly every one of the plants with
McArpie—A List of Irish Hepatice. 389
my own hands at some time or other during the last forty years,
having for this purpose travelled over a very large portion of Ireland,
from east to west, and from north to south, and from sea-level to the
tops of the highest mountains. The chief merits of this Report may
indeed be considered to consist in its giving as full an account as I
am able to render of the Irish Hepatice, and of their geographical
distribution in Ireland; 137 species of them are enumerated.” It
will be seen from the following list that I have endeavoured to
follow closely in the footsteps of this great bryologist, and have
availed myself of every advantage offered to further the object. I
enumerate 172 species and sixty-three varieties ; some of the latter
have been raised to the rank of species by authors, and they are all
more or less of botanical value. To Mr. W. H. Pearson, of Manchester,
and Mr. M. B. Slater, of Malton, Yorkshire, I offer my best thanks for
their help in matters of doubt when investigating critical species.
PuysicaL FEeatures.
The physical features of Ireland are favourable for the growth of
Hepatice. A large area is occupied by peat bogs both lowland and
mountain ; and large lakes lie in the central plain, with smaller and
more numerous ones towards the west—as in Connemara, West Mayo,
and Kerry. In the north-east, Lough Neagh covers an area of 1538
square miles, and is the largest fresh-water surface in the British
Islands. The Shannon is the largest river; it flows for 214 miles,
and creates in its course Lough Ree and Lough Derg. The eastern
part of the central plain is drained by the Rivers Boyne and Liffey,
the south-eastern part by the Rivers Suir, Barrow, and Nore ; while
the waters of the north-eastern part are collected into Lough Neagh,
chiefly by the Blackwater, and from thence discharged into the sea
by the Lower Bann. The rivers outside the central plain are short ;
the principal ones are the Erne, flowing north-west; the Foyle and
Bann to the north; the Slaney to the south-east; and the Bandon,
Lee, and Blackwater flowing through Co. Cork. The bays and
marine loughs are numerous and deep, penetrating inland for a con-
siderable distance, as Lough Swilly on the north coast, Bantry Bay
in the south-west, &c.
The principal mountain ranges are near the coast. The highest
Trish mountain is Carrantuohill, 3414 feet, which is part of Magilli-
euddy’s Reeks in Kerry; while westward across the Iveragh and
Dingle Peninsulas lies Brandon, which rises to 3127 feet, and is the
2K 2
390 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
highest in the Dingle range; on the east coast ranges we have
Lugnaquilla in Co. Wicklow, which reaches to 3039 feet; and the
Galtees in Co. Tipperary rise to 3015 feet. In the counties of Mayo,
Waterford, and Wexford, some mountains are over 2600 feet. North-
wards, the extensive Ben Bulben range in Sligo rises to 2100 feet ;
Errigal, 2466 feet, and Muckish, 2197 feet in Co. Donegal; there
are extensive ranges in Antrim and Derry; and Slieve Donard in
Co. Down rises to 2796 feet.
CLIMATE.
The moist, mild atmosphere of the south-west and south is now
accounted for by the broad area covered by the south-west winds over
the Atlantic Ocean (which drive the vapour-laden clouds which are
condensed by the Kerry Mountains), and also by the influence of the
Gulf Stream.
The mean annual temperature is about 50° Fahrenheit. The rain-
fall is remarkable, as may be seen from the following table for ten
years. It will be observed that the increase from east to west is
striking.
391
ce.
h Hepat
t Iris
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392 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
PECULIARITIES OF THE Irish Hepatic FLoras.
It is in the moist, warm, sheltered glens of the high mountain
ranges near the coast that some of the rarest species flourish. A few
of them are alpine, as Scapania nimbosa and S. ornithopodiordes,
Cesias, &e. The curious Clasmatocolea cuneifolia often descends, as do:
other alpines or sub-alpines, to low elevations, washed down by
mountain torrents, so that in few instances can we recall species that
are exclusively alpine in habitat. About the Killarney basin the
luxuriance and beauty of some of the tropical species, such as Dumor-
tiera wrrigua, are remarkable. This is accounted for by its sheltered
position, and the continual moist, genial atmosphere the plants enjoy’
most months of the year. Similar luxuriance has been observed in
many of the glens in the Dingle peninsula, where 129 of the total 172
species of the Irish Hepatic flora are known to grow.
It is remarkable that several of these plants have never
been found in fruit, and still continue to grow and increase,
as in the ease of Plagiochila tridenticulata, the female plant of
which has not been seen. The same may be said of Clasmatocolea
cunerfolia; neither male nor female fruit has been found, and yet it.
flourishes. Of Porella pinnata, sterile plants only are found in Ireland,
and, I believe, in Europe. Adelanthus decipiens furnishes another
example ; the male plant was once found many years ago at Killarney
by the late Dr. Carrington; but the female has never been seen on
Irish or British soil. The rare and beautiful Scapania ornithopo-
dioides, of which fertile specimens are unknown, luxuriates on
Brandon, in Kerry, and has been known to grow there for over one
hundred years.
Later research proves that Hepatics can propagate themselves not
only by spores, but by adventitious budding, gemme being produced
on the leaf-margins, or almost on any part of the plant, stem and’
perianth included.. Dr. Spruce records an instance of Jungermania
juniperina (= Herberta adunca) with branchlets growing out of the
leaves, which would in time become independent plants (see ‘‘ Phyto-
logist,” vol. ii., 1845, p. 85). My own investigations for a number of
years, on this subject of their asexual mode of propagation and dis-
persal, prove that they readily propagate by budding, and with more
certainty of growth, as the gemme are often furnished with root-hairs
before they become detached from the parent plant. (See McArdle,
“On Adventitious Branching in Liverworts,” ‘Irish Naturalist,”
vol. iv., p. 81, plate 3, 1895).
McArpir—A List of Irish Hepatice. 393
ALPINE ork Sus-Axbpine HeEpaticz.
Anthelia julacea, Mastigophora Woodsir, Scapania ornithopodioides,
S. nimbosa, S. uliginosa, Mylia Taylor, Plagiochila spinulosa, P. pune-
tata, P. tridenticulata, Jungermania cordifolia, J. alpestris, J. lycopo-
dioides var. Floerku, J. minuta, Nardia compressa, Marsupelila sphacelata,
M. Funekii, Cesia corallordes, C. obtusa, Fossombronia pusilla, F. cristata,
EF. cespitiformis.
TropicaL Typus.
Jubula Hutchinsie (Pacific Islands), Lejeunea hamatifolia (Gold-
bearing districts, Kynsna, South Africa), Plewrozsia cochleariformis
(E. Indies, Sandwich Islands) Herberta adunca (W. Indies, Africa,
Java), Mastigophora Woodsit (Himalayas), Lepidozia cupressina (W.
Indies), Cephalozia connivens (S. Africa), C. curvifolia (Mexico, S.
Africa), C. dwvaricata (Asia), Prionolobus Turneri (California and
Africa), Adelanthus decipiens (Cuba), Scapania ornithopodioides (Sand-
wich Islands, KE. Indies), S. nemorosa (Java), Lophocolea bidentata (W.
Indies), Jungermania minuta (Africa, Mexico), Blasia pusilla (N. Asia),
Aneura pinguis (Cuba), Metzgeria pubescens (Simla, Himalayas), JZ.
furcata (Africa), If. conjugata (Africa), I. hamata (Asia, N. Zealand),
Marchantia polymorpha (Japan, Java), Conocephalus conicus (Asia,
Japan), Reboulia hemispherica (Asia, Java, N. Zealand), Preissva com-
mututa (Asia, Japan), Lunularva cruciata (Africa, Queensland), Dumor-
tiera wrrigua (W. Indies), Spherocarpus terrestris (N. Africa).
TroprcaL Sourh American TYPEs.
Lejeunea flava, L. hamatifolia, Herberta adunca, Jubula Hutchinsia,
Lepidozxia cupressina, Cephalozia (Odontoschisma) denudata, Adelanthus
decipiens, Scapania nemorosa, Clasmatocolea cunetfolia, Nardia hyalina,
Blyttia Lyellii, Aneura palmata, Metzgeria furcata, UM. hamata, Tar-
gronia hypophylla.
Norta American Typzs.
We have ninety-three species, among them Lejeunea serpyllifolia,
L. calearea, Porella Thuja, P. platyphylla, P. pinnata, Trichocolea
tomentella, Lepidozxia reptans, Bazzania tricrenata, B. triangularis, B.
trilobata, Mylia Taylori, Fossombronia pusilla, F. angulosa, F. cris-
tate, Jungermania gracilis, J. cordifolia, Harpanthus scutatus,
Marsupella sphacelata, Pellia calycina, MUetzgeria pubescens, Riccra
glauca, Anthoceros levis, A. punctatus.
394 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Berriso Types.
Lgeunea Mackait, L. microscopica, Frullania germana, Radula voluta,
R. aquilegia, Lepidozia Pearsont, Cephalozia pallida, Scapania nimbosa
(Scotland and Ireland), Lophocolea spicata, Acrobolbus Wilsoni, Scalia
Hookeri, Pallavicinia hibernica, Aneura sinuata, Riccia giaucescens.
IrtsH Typrs.
Lejeunea Holtii, L. diversiloba, Radula Holtii, Bazzania Pearsont,
Cephalozia hibernica, Plagiochila ambagiosa, P. exigua.
DISTRIBUTION IN THE DISTRICTS.
Varieties are printed in italics.
2) 03) 4) R0n 6) Ye 1819) 10
2 3
He
or
fon)
~I
[oe)
iio}
H
Oo
Frullania Tamarisci,
—_
atrovirens,
cornubica, : -
robusta,
microphylla,
fragilifolia,
germana, 4
dilatata, .
Jiabellata, .
prolifera, . : :
Jubula Hutchinsiz, : :
integrifolia,
Lejeunea Mackaii, . . .
serpyllifolia, . : -
planiuscula,
cavifolia, .
heterophylla,
prolifera, .
patens,
erecta, .
cochleata, .
flava, E 2
Holtii,
ovata, . ° :
hamatifolia,
el cee cee ee ee |
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PAGE
404
404
404
404
405
405
406
406
406
407
407
407
408
408
408
409
409
409
409
410
410
410
411
412
412
McArpir—aA List of Irish Hepatice.
Lejeunea calcarea, .
Rossettiana,
minutissima, . :
microscopica,
diversiloba,” . 4
ulicina, .
calyptrifolia,
Radula voluta, : 3
Holtii, . 5 a
aquilegia,
Carringtonii, .
complanata, . 9
minor, —« z
Porella levigata, . 5
integra, . °
platyphylla, .
Thuja, . °
rivularis,
pinnata, . 0
Pleurozia cochleariformis,
Anthelia julacea, .
gracilis, .
Herberta adunca,
Mastigophora Woodsii,
Blepharozia ciliaris, :
Trichocolea tomentella, .
Blepharostoma trichophyllum, .
Lepidozia cupressina, .
reptans,
Pearsoni,
setacea, . S
sertularioides, .
trichoclados, .
Bazzania trilobata, .
triangularis,
tnnovans, .
devexum, .
tricrenata, 0 .
Pearsoni, 3
Kantia Trichomanis,
arguta, .
Cephalozia catenulata,
pallida,
Le ce a rr
Le ce ee se De eT
mowp
(J)
COM COMICON
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395
PAGE
413
413
414
414
415
415
416
417
417
417
418
419
396 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
12 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 pace
Cephalozia lunulefolia, . 162s 53 6%]. 7 <8 = so fdle Sannese
bicuspidata, . : « LOZ 845 Gel 89). LO ar LORS 2
major, : = e - - - = = =-=- 8 -.= = = 482
rigidula, . = l1-------+-.- = = 433
setulosa, 1 - - —~ ~ 6 7 =~ ~ 10 = = = 488
tenuirama, l1--------°=- - = 433
minute red plant, 1 - 4 5 - - = - 10 - — 488
Lammersiana, . 2 =) lod) 34> 526. 7 (8 =- 10) Pea ss
hibernica, 1 - - = =- - -.- .—-. = 4384
connivens, 5 12 = 4°5'6 7 8 =. 10 desta %434
curyifolia, il —- 4 §6)=.= 8 9. = od 2435
Francisci, 1 - - 6 - —- 8 -. —-. = 12 485
fluitans, . 1 —- - 6 7 8 — 10 — 12 486
Sphagni, . 1 2) 34) (OT IG. 82 19k LON II RAS
denudata, Die 8 oh f= 8 =. = yh 437
divaricata, E e lo =o] 4-516. 7 8 =. LO Ui lag 437
Starkii, 1- - - 6 6- —- —~. — I1 12 488
stellulifera, . : oe ore = - - 8 —- —~ = 12 438
elachista, : : elea s-4 - - - - =.= = 489
leucantha, = 1------ 8 = = =~ = 489
Prionolobus Turneri, 1- == He Se eS He es = 489
Hygrobiella laxifolia, 1--- 6 - - 8 - — -— 440
Adelanthus decipiens, 1----- - 8 9 = Il 12 440
Scapania compacta, 1— 3-45 = = 8 = 10 = 12) 441
subalpina, : = - l--4--- 8 - = = 12 441
undulifolia, : »- - - £656---- = = = 44%
zequiloba, - 1-3 465 6-- 9 —- 11 — 442
inermis, le ee eee em He Se) Se 4a
aspera, 1° =) 35 == 55-6. = 8 =, 10 .1 lies?
resupinata, 12 3 4 5 - - 8 —- 10 11 12 4438
nemorosa, 123 4 5 6 — 8 -. 10.11 12 444
purpurea, . 1-- 4- -- 8 —- - Il 12 446
nimbosa, . 1) Se SS SS Ss ed
ornithopodioides, l1------8 -~- = = = 4465
undulata, Mi 28a 4a bE 6, Wie (8) 9, LOM PIR AG
purpurascens, l1--45---- - Ill —- 446
speciosa, —- - - 4---8 - = = = 446
tsoloba, l1----—- +--+ = =,= = 446
major, l1--4--- 8 - - = = 446
laxifolia, l------2. —- = Il 12 447
dentata, - 2----- 8 -.-.=- Il 447
intermedia, ~ 2------ = = 11 12 447
irrigua, l1--4--- 8 9 —~ .— 12 447
McArpite—A List of Irish Hepatice.
Scapania uliginosa, .
curta, : S C
umbrosa, . .
Diplophyllum albicans,
obtusifolium,
Dicksoni,
Lophocolea bidentata,
Hookeriana,
cuspidata, 4
heterophylla, .
spicata, . C i
Clasmatocolea cuneifolia,
Chiloscyphus polyanthos,
pallescens,
riwularis, .
Harpanthus scutatus,
Mylia Taylori,
anomala, . 4
Pedinophyllum interruptum,
Plagiochila asplenioides, .
minor, 3
devexa, . 6
humilis,
ambagiosa, c
spinulosa,
Jlagellifera,
imermis, . C
punctata,
tridenticulata, .
exigua, . c :
Jungermania cordifolia, .
pumila,
riparia,
spherocarpa,
lurida,
crenulata,
gracillima,
inflata,
compacta, .
laxa,
heterostipa,
turbinata,
bantriensis, . E
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464
464
465
398
Jungermania bantriensis—cont.
Muelleri, . .
acuta, 2
Hornschuchiana,
capitata, .
bicrenata, é
vertricosa, : :
porphyroleuca, .
alpestris, .
incisa,
exsecta,
exsecteformis,
Lyoni,
gracilis, . :
barbata, . 2
lycopodioides, . 5
minuta, . 5
orcadensis,
Nardia hyalina, :
obovata, . - E
compressa, : -
rigida, .
scalaris, .
COMpressa,
distans, .
rivularis, .
robusta,
Marsupella emarginata,
minor, :
picea,
major,
sphacelata,
Funckii, . 3
Cesia coralloides,
obtusa, .
crenulata,
Acrobolbus Wilsoni,
Saccogyna viticulosa,
Scalia Hookeri, :
Fossombronia pusilla,
ochrospora, .
cristata, .
angulosa, .
Proceedings of the
Royal Irish Academy.
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McArviE—A List of Irish Hepatice.
Fossombronia pusilla—cont.
Dumortieri,
ceespitiformis, .
Petalophyllum Ralfsii,
Pallavicinia Lyellii,
hibernica, ee
leptodesma,
Blasia pusilla,
Pellia epiphylla,
calycina, .
Neesiana, :
Aneura palmata,
multifida,
ambrosioides, .
latifrons, .
sinuata,
pinguis, . :
denticulata,
Metzgeria pubescens,
furcata, .
e@ruginosa,
prolifera, .
conjugata,
prolifera, .
hamata, . -
Marchantia polymorpha, .
Conocephalus conicus,
Reboulia hemispherica, .
Preissia commutata,
Lunularia cruciata, .
Dumortiera irrigua,
Targionia hypophylla,
Spherocarpus terrestris, .
Riccia glauca,
erystallina, .
sorocarpa,
glaucescens,
Ricciella fluitans
Ricciocarpus natans,
_ Anthoceros levis,
punctatus, :
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399
PAGE
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400 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ALPHABETICAL List, UNDER AUTHORS, OF THE PRINCIPAL Booxs, Papers,
anpD HERBARIA RELATING TO THE Hepatic Frora or IRezann,
«WITH ABBREVIATED REFERENCES USED IN THE PRESENT Paper.
1 Publications.
Carrington, Benjamin, M.D.:
Gleanings among the Trish Cryptogams. Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. viii.
1863. (Carrington 1863.)
British Hepatice, Descriptions and Figures. [Only four parts issued.] 1874-6.
(Carrington 1874.)
Cotter, G. M.:
The Flora of the County Cork, [in F. M. Cusack’s ‘* History of the City and
County of Cork.’? 1875. Enumerates twenty-nine Hepatice. |
Hart, Henry Chichester, B.A.:
Irish Hepatice. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxiv., p. 360. 1886. (Hart 1886.)
Hooker, Sir William Jackson :
British Jungermanie, being a History, with Description and Figures, of each
Species of the Genus, and microscopical Analyses of the Parts. London.
1816. (Hooker 1816.)
Lett, Rev. Canon Henry William, M.A., M.R.I.A.:
Report on the Mosses, Hepatics, and Lichens of the Mourne Mountain District.
Proc. R. I. Academy, 3rd ser., vol. i., No. 3. 1890. (Lett 1890.)
A List, with Descriptive Notes, of all the Species of Hepatics hitherto found in
the British Islands. Eastbourne, 1902.
Lindberg, Prof. Sextus Otto:
Hepatice in Hibernia mense Julii, 1873, lecte. Acta Soc. Scient. Fennice,
vol.x. 1875. (Lindberg 1875.)
McArdle, David:
Notes on some new or rare Irish Hepatice. Sci. Proc. R. Dublin Society,
vol. iii., plates 5, 6. 1880. (McA. 1880.)
Hepatice of County Wicklow. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxvii., p. 267. 1889.
(McA. 1889.)
Hepatice of Lough Bray, County Wicklow. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxviii.
1890. (McA. 1890.)
Hepatice of King’s and Queen’s Counties. Jrish Nat., vol. i., p. 69. 1892.
+ (McA. 1892 a.)
The Plants of Dalkey Island. Ivish Nat., vol. i., p. 183. '1892. (McA. 1892.)
On the Hepatice of the Hill of Howth. Proc. R.I. Academy, 3rd ser., vol. iii.,
No. 1, plates 3, 4. 1893. (McA. 1893 a.)
Rare Irish Hepatice at Leixlip, County Kildare. Trish Nat., yol. ii. 1893.
(McA. 1893 4.)
A Visit to Castletown Berehaven, County Cork. Jrish Nat., vol. iii. 1894.
(McA. 1894.)
Mosses and Liverworts [of Galway Field Club Conference. ] Irish Nat., vol. iv.,
p. 244. 1895. (McA. 1895 a.)
McArpitE—A List of Irish Hepatice. 401
McArdle, David—continued.
Adventitious branching in Liverworts. Jrish Nat., vol. iv., plate 3. 1895.
(McA. 1895 d.)
Hepatic collected in County Carlow. Jrish Nat., vol. vy. 1896. (McA.
1896 a.)
Mosses and Hepatic at Clonbrock, County Galway. Trish Nat., vol. vy.
1896. (McA. 1896 5.)
Additions to the Hepatic of the Hill of Howth, with a Table showing their
geographical distribution. Proc. R. I. Academy, 3rd ser., vol. iv., No. 1.
1897. (McA. 1897.)
Report on the Mosses and Hepatic of County Cavan. Proc. R. 1. Academy,
3rd ser., vol. iv., plates 21, 22. 1898. (McA. 1898.)
The Hepatice of Ross Island, Killarney. Irish Nat., vol. ix., plate 1. 1900.
(McA. 1900.)
Report on the Hepatice of the Dingle Peninsula, Barony of Corkaguiny,
County Kerry. Proc. R. I. Academy, 3rd ser., vol. vi., No. 3, plates 16, 17.
1901. (McA. 1901.)
Hepatice from County Wexford. Irish Nat., vol. xii., p. 132. May, 1903.
(McA. 1903.)
McArdle, David, and Lett, H. W.:
Report on Hepatice collected at Tore Waterfall, Killarney. Proc. R. I.
Academy, 3rd ser., vol. v., No. 2, plates 8,9. 1899. (McA. & Lett 1899.)
Moore, David, Ph.D.:
Contributions to the British and Irish Musci and Hepatic. Proc. Dubl. Univ.
Zool. and Bot. Assoc., vol. ii., p. 80. 1863. (Moore 1863.)
[Adds Seapania undulata var. major and some new habitats.] Dublin Nat. Hist.
Soe. Proc., vol. v., p. 89. 1866.
Report on Irish Hepatice. Proc. R. I. Academy, ser. 2, vol. ii., plates 48, 44,
45. 1876. (Moore 1876.)
List of Hepaticee which are found in the Counties of Dublin and Wicklow,
with their principal Localities. Sci. Proc. R. D. Society, vol. i. 1878.
(Moore 1878.)
Pearson, W. H.:
On Radula Carringtonii. Journ. of Bot., vol. xx., p. 140. 1882.
Frullania microphylla. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxxii., p. 328. 1894.
A new British Hepatic [Lejewnea Rossettiana]. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxxvii.,
p. 353. 1899. (Pearson 1899.)
A new Hepatic [Cephalozia hibernica]. Irish Nat., vol. iii., p. 245, plate 6. 1894.
The Hepaticee of the British Isles, with Figures and Descriptions of all known
British Species. Vols. i., ii. London, 1902. (Pearson 1902.)
Power, Thomas, M.D.:
Contributions towards the Fauna and Flora of Cork. Part ii. Botany. 1844.
[Fifty Species of Hepatice. ]
Scully, Reginald William :
Kerry Hepatice. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxviii., p. 200. 1890. (Scully 1890.)
Spruce, Richard, Ph.D. :
Musci Preeteriti. II. Jowrn. of Bot., vol. x., pp. 11-33. 1881. (Spruce 1881.)
402 Proceedings of the Royal Trish Academy.
Spruce, Richard, Ph.D.—continued.
On Cephalozia, its Sub-Genera, and some allied Genera. Malton, 1882.
(Spruce 1882.)
Hepatice Amazonice et Andine. Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb.,vol. xv., with
twenty-two plates. 1885. (Spruce 1885.)
Legeunea Holtii, A new Hepatic from Killarney. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxv.,
p- 33, plate 272. 1887. (Spruce 1887 a.)
On a new Irish Hepatic)[Radula Holtii]. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxy., p. 209.
1887. (Spruce 1887 4.)
On Lejeunea Rossettiana. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxvii. 1889. (Spruce 1889.)
Stewart, Samuel Alexander, F.B.S.E. :
Report on the Botany of the Island of Rathlin, County Antrim. Proc. R. I.
Academy, 2nd ser., yol. iv., No.2. 1884.
Report on the Botany of Lough Allen and the Slieveanierin Mountains. Proc.
R. I. Academy, 2nd ser., yol. iv., No. 2. 1885. (Stewart 1885.)
Report on the Botany of South Clare and the Shannon. Proc. R. I. Academy,
3rd ser., vol.i., No.3. 1890. (Stewart 1890.)
Stewart, S. A., and Corry, T. H., M.A., F.L.S.:
Flora of the North-East of Ireland. Belfast, 1888. (Stewart 1888.)
Stewart, S. A., and Praeger, R. Lloyd; B.A., B.E., M.R.I.A.:
Supplement to the Flora of the North-East of Ireland. Proc. Belfast Nat.
Field Club, 1894-5, Appendiz. (Stewart 1895.)
Taylor, Thomas, M.D.:
Hepatice (Part ii. of Mackay’s Flora Hiberniea). [Eighty-two Species.]}
1836. (Taylor 1836.)
Descriptions of Jungermania ulicina and J. Lyoni. Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb.,
vol. i.,p.115. 1841. (Taylor 1841.)
On two new Species of Jungermania and another new to Britain. Trans.
Bot. Soc. Edinh., yol.i., p. 179. 1843-4.
On four new Species of British Jungermania. Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. ii.,
p. 43. 1846. (Taylor 1846.)
Contributions to British Jungermanie. Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. ii., p- 115-
1846. (Taylor 1846.)
Waddell, Rev. C. Herbert, B.D.:
Mosses and Hepatice of Ben Bulben, County Sligo. Jrish Nat., vol. i.
p. 194. 1892. (Waddell 1892.)
Distribution of Lejeunea in Ireland. Journ. of Bot., vol. xxxi. 1893-
(Waddell 1893.)
Wade, Walter, M.D-.:
Plante Rariores in Hiberniz inventz. Dublin, 1804. (Wade Rar. 1804.)
Il. Herbaria.
Belfast Museum, College-square North, Belfast.
Moore, David, Ph.D.: Ordnance Survey Collections, Counties of Derry and
Antrim. 1834-8.
National Museum, Kildare-street, Dublin.
Botanical Department, Trinity-College, Dublin.
McArpLE—A List of Irish Hepatice. 403
ABLREVIATIONS USED FOR AUTHORITIES OTHER THAN THOSE CITED IN THE
Brenan,
Carrington,
Carroll,
1h Wie Wie
Greene,
Holt,
Hooker,
Hunt,
Hunter,
Hutchins,
Lett,
Lindberg,
MeA.,
Moore,
Pearson,
Praeger,
Russell,
Scully,
tewart, 6
Templeton,
Taylor, ae
Waddell, 50
Wade,
FOREGOING List.
.. Rev. S: A. Brenan, B.A., Cushendun.
Dr. Benjamin Carrington, Eccles, Manchester.
Isaac Carroll, Cork.
Frederick William Moore, A.L.S., Glasnevin Botanic Gardens.
Dr. G. E. J. Greene, F.L.S., &c., Ferns, Co. Wexford.
G. A. Holt, Manchester.
Sir William Jackson Hooker, London.
G. Hunt, Manchester.
J. Hunter, Holywood, near Belfast.
Miss Hutchins, Bantry, Co. Cork.
Rey. Canon H. W. Lett, M.A., Loughbrickland, Co. Down.
Professor Sextus Otto Lindberg, Helsingfors University.
David Mc Ardle, Glasnevin Botanic Gardens.
Dr. David Moore, Glasnevin Botanic Gardens.
W. H. Pearson, Manchester.
Robert Lloyd Praeger, National Library, Dublin.
Rev. Canon Charles Russell, D.D., Geashill, King’s Co.
Dr. Reginald Scully, Dublin.
Samuel Alexander Stewart, F.B.S.E., Belfast.
John Templeton, A.L.S., Cranmore, Belfast.
Dr. Thomas Taylor, Kenmare.
Rev. C. H. Waddell, B.D., Saintfield, Co. Down.
Dr. Walter Wade, Dublin.
THe Twetve Boranicat Districts oF ‘‘ CyBere Hripernica.’’
miles.
. Sourn Artantic.—Kerry and South Cork; 3143 square miles.
. Buackwater.—North Cork, Waterford, South Tipperary ; 3181 square
. Barrow.—Kilkenny, Carlow, Queen’s County; 1804 square miles.
. Leryster Coast.—Wexford and Wicklow; 1677 square miles.
. Lirrey anp Boynr.— Kildare, Dublin, Louth, Meath; 2230 square miles.
. Lower Suannon.—Limerick, Clare, East Galway ; 3989 square miles.
. Upper Suannon.—North Tipperary, King’s Co., Westmeath, Longford ;
2700 square miles.
. Nort Ariantic.—West Galway, West Mayo; 2146 square miles.
. Norra Connauecut.—East Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim, and Roscommon; 3086
square miles.
X. Erne.—Cavan, Armagh, Fermanagh, Monaghan, Tyrone; 3733 square
miles.
XI. Donzcat.—Donegal, and Derry west of the Foyle; 1890 square miles.
XII.
R.I.A. PROC.
Uxster Coast.—Down, Antrim, and Derry ; 2862 square miles.
, VOL. XXIV., SEC. R. | 2L
404 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
: Class HEPATIC.
Order I. JUNGERMANIACEZ.
Tribe I. JUBULEZ.
Genus I. Frullania Raddi.
1. Frullania Tamarisci Linn., Dumort.
Jungermania Tamariser Linn., Sp. Pl., 1 ed., vol. ii., p. 1184. Hook.,
Brit. Jung., tab. 6. Dumort., Recueil Jung., p. 13. Moore, Irish
Hepat., p. 610. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 24, plate I.
Districts 1. TA LV VeVi via Va ae, Ke Xe
Hab.—On the trunks of trees in large spreading patches, on rocks
and wall-tops, from sea level to the tops of the highest mountains.
var. atrovirens Carrington.
Hab.—On rocks which are frequently inundated.
Eagle’s Nest and Cromaglown, Killarney: Carrington 1863.
Glena, Killarney, 1873: Lindberg 1875. Tore Waterfall, Sept. 1897:
McA. & Lett. Ross I., 1899 (McA. & Lett): McA. 1900. Loughanscaul
near Dingle, rare, Sept. 1898 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901.
var. cornubica Carrington.
Hab.—On stones.
Fairhead, Co. Antrim (Lett): Stewart 1888.
var. robusta Lindberg.
Hab.—On rocks and on the bark of trees.
Glena and Cromaglown at Killarney, Connor hill near Dingle,
and Lough Bray, Co. Wicklow, 1873: Lindberg 1875; McA. 1890.
2. Frullania microphylla Gottsche, Pearson.
Frullania Tamarisei Linn., var. microphylla Gottsche ex Carrington
in Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. vii., p. 457, 1863. Frullania micro-
phylla Gott., Pears. in Journ. of Bot., 1894. Exsicc. Gottsche &
Rabenh., Hepat. Eur., nos. 209 & 636. Carr. & Pears., Hepat. Brit.,
fasc. 2, no. 137. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 26, plate 2.
McArpvie—A List of Irish Hepatice. 405
Districts I. II. — — — — — VIII. — — XI. —.
Hab.—On smooth rocks and on the bark of trees, in shallow
patches, closely attached, mostly near the coast.
I. Old Weir Bridge, Killarney: Carrington 1863; Moore 1876.
Ross I., Killarney, 1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1900. Tore Water-
fall, Killarney, 1898: McA. & Lett 1899. Anascaul and Connor
Hill: McA. 1894. On the west side of Brandon near the summit, and
Maghanabo glen near Castlegregory, April 1897: F. W. M. & McA.
On smooth rocks on the shores of Lough Duff near Connor Hill, May
1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901. Glengariff, 1861 (Carrington and
G. EK. Hunt): Pearson 1902.
II. On rocks, Bay Lough, Knockmeildown Mountains, Co. Tipperary,
June 1902: McA.
VIII. Woods at Pontoon on Lough Conn and on Nephin, May
1901: Lett & McA. Achill and Bangore, Sept. 1901: Lett. On
Alder near Ballinlough, Co. Mayo, Sept. 1901: McA.
XI. Rathmullan Wood, July 1902: Hunter. Gartan Lake and
Cratleagh Wood, Sept. 1902: McA. On rocks, River Trillick, Bun-
crana, March 1903: Hunter. On Hypnum cupressiforme, Errigal,
June 1903: McA.
3. Frullania fragilifolia Taylor.
Frullania fragilifolia Tayl. in Ann. and Mag. of Nat. Hist., p. 172,
1843, and Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. ii., p. 45, 1846. Moore,
Trish Hepat., p. 609. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 29, plate 3.
Districts I. — — LY. — — — — — — XC OST.
Hab.— On shaded rocks and on the bark of moss-covered trunks
of trees.
I. Killarney: Moore 1876. Muckross demesne and near Dean
Bridge: Carrington. On the bark of Betula, Killarney, 1873: Lind-
berg 1875. Tore Waterfall, on rocks and the bark of trees, 1897:
McA. & Lett 1899. Ross I., 1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1900. On
mural rocks, Dunkerron, 1829 (Taylor): Carrington 1863. Burnham
Wood between Dingle and Ventry: McA.1901. On boulders, Bantry
Bay and Glengariff: Carrington.
IV. On the trunks of Alder with Plagiothectum Borrerianum,
Lough Bray, Co. Wicklow, 1887: McA. 1890.
XI. Cratleagh wood near Milford, rare, Sept. 1902: McA.
XII. On granite rocks, Cove Mtn., Co. Down: Lett 1890. ‘‘ The
Craigs,” Rasharkin, Co. Antrim (Lett & Waddell); Glenariff (Lett) :
Stewart 1895.
2L2
406 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
4, Frullania germana Taylor.
‘Jungermania germana Tayl. in Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. ii-
p. 45, 1846. Frullania Tamariser, var. germana Carr., Trans. Bot. Soc.
Edinb., vol. vill. 1868. Frullania germana Tayl., Moore, Irish Hepat.,
p..610. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 31, plate 4.
Districts I. — — IV. — VI. — VIII. — X. XI. XII.
Hab.—On rocks and on the trunks of trees.
I. Dunkerron, 1832: Taylor. Killarney: Moore 1876. Glena and
O’Sullivan’s Cascade, 1873: Lindberg 1875; and (Holt & Stewart) :
Pearson 1902. On rocks at Tore Waterfall, rare, Sept. 1897:
McA. & Lett 1899. Ross I., 1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1900.
Connor Hill near Dingle, 1873: Lindberg 1875. Burnham Wood
near Ventry, May 1894: McA. 1901. On the west side of Brandon,
Sept. 1897; Anascaul and Mt. Eagle, 1898; rocks between Emalough
and Inch, May 1899: Lett & McA. Lough Duff in the Brandon
Valley, 1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901. Old walls about Castle-
town Berehaven: McA. 1894.
IV. Lough Bray, Co. Wicklow: Moore 1876.
VI. Carn Seefin, Co. Clare: McA. 1895a.
VIII. On the slopes of the Deyil’s Mother, and on Slievemore,
Achill, Sept. 1901: Lett.
X. Slieve Glah, Ballyhaise woods, and Farnham woods, Co. Cavan,
1893; McA. 1898.
XI. Glenalla hill, Rathmelton and Rathmelton Wood, July 1902 :
Hunter. Cratleagh Wood, on rocks by Columbkil Lake, Bunlin
Waterfall on trees, Sept.1902; Lough Eask woods, June 1903: McA.
XII. Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim: Stewart 1888.
5. Frullania dilatata Linn., Dumort.
Tungermania dilatata Linn., Sp. Pl., p. 1600. Hook., Brit. Jung.,
tab. 8. Frullania dilatata, Dum., Recueil Jung., p. 138. Moore,
Irish Hepat., p. 609. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 33, plate 5.
Distraces E. 1T: TLL. TVs Vee Vis VealLS Ve Xe eX aie rxaiee
Hab.—On the trunks of trees and on rocks.
var. flabellata Spruce.
Hab.—On the trunks of trees in shallow tufts, closely attached,
spreading in neat strata. Hickson’s Wood near Anascaul, Co. Kerry,
very rare, 1898 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901.
McArpite—A List of Irish Hepatice. 407
var. prolifera McArdle.
Hab.—On moist rocks, side of a stream near the Baily Lighthouse,
Howth, Co. Dublin, 1896: McA. 1897.
Norr.—This form shows adventitious budding, the leaf-margins
and the stems being covered with leafy shoots, which become inde-
pendent plants.
Genus Il. Jubula Dumort.
Jubula Hutchinsiz Hook., Dumort.
Jungermania Hutchinsie Hook., Brit. Jung., tab. 1. Lrullania
Hutchinsie, Nees, Europ. Leberm., 111., p. 240. Moore, Irish Hepat.,
p. 608. Jubula Hutchinsie Dum., Comm. Bot., p. 212. Pearson,
Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 36, plate 6.
Districts I. — — IV. — — — VIII. — — — XI.
Hab.—On shaded wet rocks near streams, often found within
reach of the spray of waterfalls.
I. Glengariff (Miss Hutchins): Hooker 1816; and Moore 1876.
Ballinhassig Glen, and near Kinsale (I. Carroll): Moore 1876.
Cromaglown (Moore), Tore Cascade, Killarney, 1873: Lindberg 1875.
In the same station on the fronds of Dumortiera irrigua, Sept. 1898 :
Lett & McA. Caves, Dingle Bay (Moore): Carrington 1863. Magha-
nabo Glen near Castlegregory, 1875: McA. Loughanscaul, west side
of Brandon, and shores of Lough Doon in the Dingle Peninsula,
1897-8 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901.
IV. Altadore Glen, Co. Wicklow: McA. 1889.
VIII. Rocks by the lake at Letterfrack, 1874: Moore. On the
slopes of the Devil’s Mother, Co. Mayo, Sept. 1901: Lett.
XII. Rocks on the coast south of Newcastle, Co. Down (Miss
Thompson): Waddell, Irish Nat., vol. iv., 1895, p. 190. Tollymore
Park, and by the Spinkwee River: Waddell 1892. Waterworks on
Rostrevor Mtn. (Waddell): Stewart 1888.
var. integrifolia, Nees ab Essenbeck, Syn. Hepat., p. 426: var. .
N. ab E., Hepat. Java, l.c. Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 609 (under
Frullania), with excellent figure, plate 45.
Hab.—On wet rocks, and on the larger Hepatic. Connor Hill
1873 (Lindberg & Moore): Lindberg 1875; Moore 1876. Mountain
stream in the Maghanabo Glen near Castlegregory, on the fronds
of Dumortiera irrigua, fertile, 1875 (McA.): Moore 1876. Tore
408 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Waterfall, Killarney, 1889: Scully 1890. On rocks, Loughanscaul
near Dingle, Sept. 1898: Lett.
Genus III. Lejeunea Libert.
1. Lejeunea Mackaii Hook., Sprengel.
Jungermania Mackaii Hook., Brit. Jung., tab. 53. Phragmicoma
Mackaii Dumort., Comm. Bot., p. 112. Lejeunca Mackaui, Spreng., Syst.
Veg., iv., p. 288. Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 616. Pearson, Hepat.
Brit. Isles, p. 40, plate 7.
Districts I. — — IV. V. VI. — VIII. — — — XII.
Hab.—Mostly on limestone rocks, often in large shallow patches,
and on decayed wood.
I. Ballylicky near Bantry, 1812 (Miss Hutchins): Hooker 1816.
Near Cork, frequent : Moore 1876. Muckross, Killarney: Carrington
1863 ; and(Moore) : Lindberg 1875. Ross I., 1893: McA.; plentiful
1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1900. Tore Waterfall, Sept. 1899:
Lett and McA. Loughanscaul, rare, Sept. 1898 (Lett & McA.):
McA. 1901.
IV. Dargle, Co. Wicklow, 1812 (Mackay): Hooker 1816. On
rocks in the same station (Scully & McA.): McA. 1889.
V. Woodlands near Dublin: Moore. Omeath Waterfall, Co.
Louth (Waddell): Lett 1890.
VI. At Kilmuryy on the Aran Islands, rare: McA. 1895a.
Clonbrock, Co. Galway: McA. 18950.
VIII. On rocks by asmall lake near Letterfrack, Co.Galway, 1874:
Moore.
XII. On old yew trees, Tollymore Park, Co. Down (Waddell):
Lett 1890. Gobbins Cliffs, Co. Antrim: Waddell 1893. Limestone
rocks, Redhall Glen, 1809 (Templeton); Glenariff (Lett): Stewart 1895.
2. Lejeunea serpyllifolia Dicks., Libert.
Jungermania serpyllifolia Dicks., Pl. Crypt. Brit., fasc.4. Lejewnea
serpyllifolia Libert. in Ann. Gen. Sch. Phys., vi., p. 374. Moore, Irish
Hepat., p. 614. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 45, plate 10.
Districicsmiaieew TY.. Vi VI. VEL, Vile, Vxexe xc xanie
Hab.—In damp shaded places, on the trunks of trees, on rocks and
stones in rivulets, and on damp banks.
var. planiuscula Lindberg.
Hab.—On rocks among Mosses. O’Sullivan’s Cascade, Killarney,
1873: Lindberg 1875. In same station: Scully 1890. Connor Hill
near Dingle, 1873: Lindberg 1875,
McArpie—A List of Irish Hepatice. 409
var. cavifolia Ehrhart, Lindberg.
Hab.—On rocks and damp banks.
Killarney: Carrington 1863; Moore 1876. Glena and Tore
Cascade, among Hypnum eugyrium, 1873: Lindberg 1875. On aturfy
bank among rocks, between Emalough and Inch, Co. Kerry, May 1899
(Lett & McA.): McA. 1901.
var. heterophylla Carrington.
Hab.—On wet rocks.
O’Sullivan’s Cascade and Tore Waterfall: Carrington 1863; Moore
1876. Ross I., 1899 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1900. Frequent in the
Dingle Peninsula: McA. 1901. Altadore Glen, Co. Wicklow: McA.
1889. Glenariff, Co. Antrim ; Spinkwee River, Co. Down: Waddell
1892. Lough Eask woods and Barnesmore Gap, June 1903: McA.
var. prolifera McArdle.
Hab.—On decayed bark.
-Hickson’s Wood near Anascaul, Co. Kerry, May 1894: McA.
1901, and McA. 1895 8.
3. Lejeunea patens Lindberg.
Leeunea patens Lindberg in Acta Soc. Fenn., vol. x., p. 482, 1875.
Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 615, plate 49, 1876. Pearson, Hepat. Brit.
Isles, p. 47, plate 11.
Districts I. — III. IV. V. VI. — VIII. IX. — XI. XII.
Hab.—On damp rocks, on the bark of moss-covered trees, and on
the larger Mosses and Hepatice.
I. Killarney: W. Wilson. Glena and Tore Cascade, 1861:
Carrington; and Sept. 1897: McA. & Lett 1899. O’Sullivan’s
Cascade, among Thamnium alopecurum, and on Connor Hill, 18738:
Lindberg 1875. Between Dingle & Ventry, 1873: Lindberg &
Moore. On the west side of Brandon, and on Mt. Eagle, 1881:
F. W. M. & McA. Coumanare Lakes, Sept. 1898; Derrymore Glen
near Tralee, May 1899: Lett & McA. Frequent in the Dingle
Peninsula: McA. 1901. Dunboy Wood, Castletown Berehaven :
McA. 1894.
III. Cappard, Queen’s Co., 1891 (Russell) : McA. 1892 @. Wood
near Goresbridge, Co. Carlow: McA. 1896 a.
IV. Altadore Glen, Co. Wicklow: McA. 1889.
V. Carlingford Mtn., Co. Louth, very rare (Waddell): Lett 1890.
410 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
VI. Carn Seefin, Co. Clare: McA. 1895a. |
VIII. Gentian Hill near Galway: McA. 1895 a. Co. Galway, 1891:
Dr. E. J. McWeeney. Nephin, May 1901: Lett & McA. Slopes of
the Devil’s Mother, Bangore, Slievemore on Achill, Sept. 1901: Lett.
Pontoon near Foxford, May 1901: Lett & McA.
IX. Ben Bulben: Moore; and July 1880: McA. Glenade, Co.
Leitrim, 1875: Moore.
XI. Cratleagh Wood near Milford, very rare, Sept. 1902: McA.
Dunree River near Buncrana, June 1903: Hunter.
XII. Glenariff: Waddell 1898. Sallagh Braes (Lett): Stewart
1895. Tollymore Park: Waddell 1893. Black Stairs on Slieve
Donard: Waddell.
var. erecta. McArdle, I. Nat., vol. i1., p. 189, 1894.
Hab.—On damp peat among rocks.
Ross. I., Killarney, 1893: McA. Connor Hill near Dingle, rare,
June 1894: McA.
var. cochleata, Spruce (species).
Spruce, Hepat. Amaz. et And., Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. xv.,
p. 278, 1885.
Hab.—On wet rocks, decayed wood, and on the larger Mosses
and Hepatics.
Ben Bulben, Co. Sligo, and Glenfarm demesne, Co. Leitrim,
1871: Moore,g Kylemore, Co. Galway, 1874: Moore; McA. 1880;
and 1891: McWeeney. Woodenbridge, Co. Wicklow, fertile, 1895:
McA. Glenariff, Co. Antrim: Waddell. Black Stairs on Sheve
Donard, Co. Down, and Slish Wood, Co. Sligo: Waddell 1892.
O’Sullivan’s Cascade, Killarney, 1893: McA.
Nore.—The specimens collected in these localities compare
favourably with plants collected by Dr. Spruce on Mount Tanguragua,
S. America, and probably the var. cochleata should be the type, and
LI. patens the variety.
4. Lejeunea flava Swartz, Nees.
Lejeunea flava Swz., Prodr. Fl. Ind. Oce., p. 144, 1788. Nees,
Nat. Eur. Leberm., iii., p. 277, 1839. Lejewnea serpyllifolia var.
thymifolia Carrington, Irish Crypt. 1863. Lejewnea Moore Lindberg,
Hepat. Hib., p. 487, 1875. Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 615. Pearson,
Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 49, plate 12.
Districts I. — II. IV. V. VI. — VIII. — — XI. XII.
McArpii—A List of Irish Hepatice. 411
Hab.—On damp moss-covered rocks, on decayed wood, and on the
larger Hepatics.
I. Cromaglown and Glena, 1873: Lindberg 1875. At the Hunting
Tower, Cromaglown, 1862: Moore; and 1875: McA. O’Sullivan’s Cas-
cade (Moore; G. A. Holt; M. B. Slater): Pearson 1902. On decayed
wood and on the fronds of Metzgeria, Tore Waterfall, very scarce,
1897: McA. & Lett 1899. Ross I., 1893: McA.; and 1899, rare
(Lett & McA.): McA. 1900. Brandon, April, 1897: F. W. M.
& McA. Among Hypnum, Lough Nalachan on Brandon, 1899; and
Mt. Eagle Lake, Sept., 1898: Lett & McA. Hickson’s Wood near
Anascaul, 1894: McA. In the Dingle Peninsula: McA. 1901. Dun-
boy Wood, Co. Cork, typical: McA. 1894.
III. Goresbridge, Co. Carlow: McA. 1896 a.
IV. Altadore Glen and Luggielaw: McA. 1889. JDargle, Co.
Wicklow: McA. & Seully. Wood by the Slaney River near
Enuiscorthy, and Killoughrim Oak Forest, Co. Wexford, typical, rare,
1899: McA.
V. Howth demesne, Co. Dublin, April, 1895: McA. 1897.
VI. Carn Seefin, Co. Clare: McA. 1895 a.
VIII. Near Letterfrack, Co. Galway, 1891: McWeeney. Pontoon,
Co. Mayo, May, 1901: Lett & McA.
XI. Very fine in wood by the seashore, Rathmullan, and at
Macamish Point, July 1902: Hunter. Cratleigh Wood and wood
at Mulroy Bay, Sept. 1902: McA. Barnesmore Gap, very scarce,
June 1908: McA.
XII. Glenariff, Co. Antrim, and Tollymore Park, Co. Down:
Waddell 1893.
5. Lejeunea Holtii Spruce.
Lejunea Holtii Spruce, Journ. Bot., vol. xxv., p. 83, plate 272.
1887. McA. & Lett, Hepat. of Tore Waterfall, Killarney, Proc. R.
I. Acad., 8rd ser., vol. v., no. 2, 1899. McArdle, Report on the
Hepat. of the Dingle Peninsula, Proc. R. I. Acad., 3rd ser., vol. vi.,
no. 8, 1901. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 51, plate 13, 1902.
Districts I, — — — — — — — — — — — :
Hab.—On wet rocks in shaded places, among Mosses and on the
larger Hepatics, on the bare wet rocks in neat strata.
I. Tore Waterfall, Killarney, June 1885 (Holt): Spruce 1887a.
On Trichocolea and Metzgeria, also mixed with Leeunea Mackan, on
bare rocks within the spray of Tore Waterfall, Sept. 1897: McA.
& Lett 1899. In the crevices of rocks among Lvssidens taxifolius,
Loughanscaul near Dingle, May 1894: McA. Rocks near the lake
412 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
on Mt. Eagle, and shores of Barnanaghea Lough near Dingle, Sept.
1898: Lett & McA. Lough Nalachan on Brandon, May 1899 (Lett &
McA.y: McA. 1901.
6. Lejeunea ovata Taylor.
Jungermania serpyllifolia var. ovata Hook., Brit. Jung., tab. 42.
Lejeunea ovata Taylor MS., G. L. N., Syn. Hepat., p. 376. Moore,
Trish Hepat., p. 612. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 42, plate 8.
Districts I. — — — — VI. — VIII. — — XI. XII.
Hab.—On moss-covered trunks of trees, and on the larger Hepaticz
and Mosses.
I. Killarney: Carrington. Tore Waterfall: Taylor; and Sept. 1897:
McA. & Lett. Cromaglown abundant, and through the Killarney
district: Moore. Among Rhacomitrium on Connor Hill near Dingle,
1873 (Lindberg and Moore): Lindberg 1875; and 1881, F. W. M. &
McA. On the N.E. side of Brandon, 1875: McA. Frequent in the
Dingle Peninsula: McA.1901. Bantry: Taylor. Dunboy Wood and
near Pulleen Cove, Co. Cork: McA. 1894.
VI. Carn Seefin, Co. Clare, plentiful: McA. 1895 a.
VIII. Nephin, May 1901: Lett & McA. Bangore, slopes of
Devil’s Mother, and on Slievemore, Achill, Sept. 1901: Lett.
XI. On Frullania Tamarisci on Goat Island, Lough Eask, plentiful,
June 1903: McA.
XII. Near Belfast (Dickie): Moore 1876. Slieve Donard: Lett
1890. On the stem of Se at the Black Stairs on Slieve Donard,
Co. Down (Waddell): Lett 1890. Glenariff, Co. Antrim: Waddell
1893.
7. Lejeunea hamatifolia Hook., Dumort.
JFungermania hamatifolia Hook., Brit. Jung., tab. 54. Leeunea
hamatifolia Dum., Comm., p.111, 1822. Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 611.
Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 43, plate 9.
Districts I. — IJ. IV. V. VI. — VIII. IX. — XI. XI.
Hab.—On the trunks of trees and on bare moist rocks, and on the
larger Hepatics, such as Frullania.
I. Killarney Woods, plentiful: Moore. On bare rocks, Connor
Hill near Dingle, with Lgeunea calyptrifolia, July 1873 (Lindberg and
Moore): Lindberg 1875. In same locality, very fine, with perianths,
Sept. 1898: Lett & McA. Mt. Eagle, July 1881: F. W. M.& McA.
Loughanscaul, on Radula Carringtonii, Sept. 1898: Lett & McA.
Brandon, June 1900: Lett & McA. Frequentin the Dingle Peninsula:
McA. 1901. Rocks near Ballybunnion: Stewart 1890.
McArvie—A List of Irish Hepatice. 413
III. Brittas demesne, Queen’s Co., 1891 (Russell): McA. 1892 a.
IV. Powerscourt, Co. Wicklow: Moore.
V. Woodlands, Co. Dublin (Taylor): Moore 1876. Close to the
waterfall in Omeath Glen, Co. Louth, rare: Lett 1890.
VI. Gleninagh, Co. Clare: McA. 1895a@. Tycooley Wood, Clon-
brock, Co. Galway: McA. 1896 8.
VIII. Pontoon near Foxford, May 1901: Lett & McA. Bangore,
slopes of Devil’s Mother, and Doolough, Co. Mayo, Sept. 1901: Lett.
Kylemore, 1874: Moore.
IX. Glenfarm demesne, Co. Leitrim, 1875: Moore.
XI. Woods by River Trillick, Buncrana, March 1903: Hunter.
Goat Island, Lough Eask, June 1903: McA.
XII. Glendun, 1836: Moore, and Glenarm and Colin Glen, Co.
Antrim, 1837: Moore. Glenariff, Co. Antrim, 1889 (Waddell):
Stewart 1895. Near the waterfall at the Black Stairs on Sleve
Donard: Lett 1890. Tollymore Park, Co. Down: Waddell 1893.
8. Lejeunea calcarea Libert.
Lejeunea calearea Libert, in Bory de St. Vinc., Ann. des Sc. Nat.,
vol. vi., p. 873, no. 1, tab. 96, fig. 1, 1820. Jungermania hamatifolra
var. echinata Hook., Brit. Jung., 1816. Lejewnea echinata Taylor MS.,
G. L. N., Syn. Hepat., p. 345, 1844. Moore, Irish Hepat., p. 612.
Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 58, plate 16.
Districts I. — — — VY. — — — — — — >.GUE
Hab.—On limestone rocks and on Mosses.
I. Muckross demesne, on Thamnium alopecurum, 1863 (Carrington):
Moore 1876. In the same place, and on the same moss, 1873: Lind-
berg 1875. Ross I.: Scully 1890. Limestone rocks near Tralee, 1875:
Moore. On rocks, Mt. Eagle, July 1881: F. W. M. & Mca.
Connor Hill near Dingle, 1897: Lett & McA.
VY. Limestone rocks at Woodlands, Co. Dublin (Taylor): Hooker
1816. Omeath, Co. Louth: Lett 1890; Waddell 1893.
XII. Wall at the base of bridge over the Shimna River, Tollymore
Park, Co. Down, very rare (Waddell): Stewart 188%. Glenariff,
Co, Antrim, 1893 (Lett and Waddell): Stewart 1895.
9. Lejeunea Rossettiana Massalongo.
Lejeunea Rossettiana Massal., Nuovo Giorn. Bot. Ital., vol. xxi.,
p-. 487, 1889. Pearson in Journ. Bot., vol. xxvii., p. 352, tab. 292,
1889. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 60, plate 17. McA., Hepatice of
414 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Ross Island, Killarney, Irish Naturalist, vol. ix., p. 23, plate 1, figs.
1-6, February, 1900. .
Districts I. — — — V. — — — — — — —
Hab.—On limestone rocks and among Mosses, often mixed with
L. calearea.
I. Muckross demesne, May 1861: Carringten. Ross I., Killarney,
1889: Scully 1890. On decayed stems of Hrica, and on damp peat
in the same place, very rare, May 1899: Lett & McA.
V. At Woodlands near Dublin, 1830: Taylor.
10. Lejeunea minutissima Smith.
Lejunea minutissima Smith, Eng. Bot., tab. 1683. Hook., Brit.
Jung., tab. 52, excepting fig. 5, whichis probably L. ulicina. Junger-
mania inconspicua Raddi, in Atti Soc. Mod., 1818. Moore, Irish
Hepat., p. 613 (under Lyeunea). Lejeunea minutissima Sm., Pearson,
Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 61, plate 18.
Districts I. — III. — — — — VIII. — X. — XII.
Hab.—On the trunks of trees and on decayed wood, and on the
larger Mosses and Hepatics.
I. Kenmare: Taylor. On Ash trees, Muckross demesne: Carring-
ton 1863. Near Muckross Hotel on Beech, among Zygodontium,
and on rocks at Glena on Lejeunea Mackawt, 1873: Lindberg 1875.
Ross I., 1893: McA. 1900. Tore Waterfall, on Jetzgeria, and on
bark of trees, Sept. 1897: Lett & McA. Brandon: Moore. Connor
Hill, 1873: Lindberg 1875. Burnham Wood near Ventry, May 1894:
McA. 1901. MHickson’s Wood near Anascaul, Sept. 1898: Lett &
McA. Co. Cork (I. Carroll): Carrington 1863.
IIl. Brittas demesne, Queen’s Co., 1891: Russell & McA.
VIII. Slevemore, Achill, Co. Mayo, Sept. 1901: Lett.
X. On trees among Metzgeria, Farnham demesne, and very fine
on Frullania; and at Killakeen, Co. Cavan, on Hypnum cupressiforme :
McA. 1898.
XII. Gillhall, Co. Down (Waddell), Colin Glen near Belfast
(Moore): Stewart 1888.
11. Lejeunea microscopica Taylor.
Jungermania microscopica Taylor, in Mackay’s Fl. Hib., part ii.,
p- 59. Taylor, in Hooker’s Journal of Botany, vol. iv., p. 97, with
excellent figure, tab. 29. Lejeunea microscopica Moore, Irish Hepat.,
p- 613. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 63, plate 19.
Districts I. — — — — VI. — VIII. — — ~— XII.
McArpie—A List of Irish Hepatice. 415
Hab.—On the bark of trees, decayed wood, Filmy Ferns, Mosses,
and Hepatics.
I. Wood at Gortagaree, near Killarney, on Hypnum loreum, 1836
(Taylor): Moore 1876. Cromaglown, 1849: Taylor and W. Wilson.
Tore Cascade with Lophocolea bidentata: Carrington 1863 ; and Sept.
1897: McA. & Lett 1899. Killarney, common up to 1500 feet
on Slieve Mish: Scully 1890. O’Sullivan’s Cascade 1873: Lindberg
1875. Ross I., on Hymenophyllum, Noy. 1893: McA. 1900. Glen
on Brandon: Moore. Very fine on the N.E. side of Brandon on
Diplophyllum albicans, June 1900: Lett & McA. On Frullania, Connor
Hill, 1873: Lindberg 1875; and Sept. 1877: McA. Loughanscaul,
Sept. 1898 (Lett & McA.): McA. 1901.
VI. Carn Seefin, Co. Clare, on Plagiochila spinulosa: McA. 1895 a.
VIII. On the bark of Alder and on Frudlania Tamarisei, fertile,
Pontoon near Foxford, and on Nephin, May 1901: Lett & McA.
On Deyil’s Mother, and on Shevemore, Achill, Sept. 1901: Lett.
XII. Glenariff, Co. Antrim, July 1889 (Waddell) : Stewart 1895.
12. Lejeunea diversiloba Spruce.
Lejeunea diversiloba Spruce, Journ. of Bot., vol. xxv., p. 38, 1887.
Lejeunea minutissima var. maor Carrington, Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb.,
vol. viii., p. 468, tab. 17, fig. 1. Lejeunea diversiloba Pearson, Hepat.
Brit. Isles, p. 56, plate 15.
Districts I. — — — — — — — — — — — :
Hab.—On moist rocks and on the trunks of trees among Detzgeria,
&e., and on Mosses.
I.. Tore Waterfall, 1842: Spruce; and 1885 (Holt): Spruce 1887a.
Very rare here, Sept. 1897: McA. & Lett. Tore Waterfall, Glena
and Eagle’s Nest, Killarney : Carrington 1863. On damp rocks among
Metzgeria conjugata, Connor Hill near Dingle, July 1881: F. W. M.
& McA.; and Sept. 1898: Lett & McA. Loughanscaul near Dingle,
Coumanare Lakes and Barnanaghea Lough near Anascaul, Sept. 1898 ;
and at Lough Nalachan on Brandon, rare, 1899: Lett & McA.
13. Lejeunea ulicina Taylor.
Jungermania ulicina Taylor, in Trans. Bot. Soc. Edinb., vol. i.,
p- 115, 1841. Leyeunea ulicina Taylor, in G. L. N., Syn. Hepat.,
p. 387. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 54, plate 14.
Disimcts lewis Th eehys, eVer—wVllo WV bts ox. i= IT OEE.
Hab.—On the bark of trees and on mosses.
I. Abundant in the Killarney woods: Moore 1876. Loughanscaul
416 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
near Dingle among Hypnum on damp rocks, Sept. 1898 : Lett & McA.
Rare in the Dingle Peninsula: McA. 1901. About Cork, frequent
(Carroll): Carrington 1863.
IJ. In woods, Scarriff, Galtees, cum. per., plentiful; and Glengarra
Wood, Galtees, Co. Tipperary, June 1902: McA.
III. Cappard, Queen’s Co., 1891: Russell.
IV. Luggielaw and Powerscourt, Co. Wicklow: Moore. Killough-
rim Oak Forest, Co. Wexford, May 1899: McA.
V. Woodlands near Dublin: Moore.
VII. Lake at Brittas, King’s Co., 1892: McA.
VIII. Kylemore Castle demesne, 1874: Moore. On the bark of
Alder at Pontoon, and on Nephin, May 1901: Lett & McA.
IX. Glenfarm demesne, Co. Leitrim: Moore 1876.
XI. Lough EKask Woods, on Frullania Tamarisci, June 1908: McA.
XII. Gillhall and Castlewellan, Co. Down: Waddell 1893. Colin
Glen near Belfast: Moore.
14. Lejeunea calyptrifolia Hook., Dumort.
Jungermania calyptrifoka Hook., Brit. Jung., tab. 48. Eng.
Bot., tab. 2538. Lejeunea calyptrifoia Dum., Comm., p. 111.
Colura calyptrifolia Dum., Recueil, p.12. Lejeunea calyptrifolia Moore,
Irish Hepat., p.611. Pearson, Hepat. Brit. Isles, p. 64, plate 20.
Districts I. — — — V. — — VIII. — — — XII.
Hab.—In minute yellowish-green tufts on the bark of trees, on bare
moist rocks, on the stems of Ulex near the ground, and on Frullania.
I. Glengariff, Co. Cork (Miss Hutchins): Hooker 1816. Onrocks,
Upper Lake, Killarney, 1873 (Lindberg & Moore): Moore 1876. Near
Dunkerron, 1836: Taylor. Torc Mountain on the stems of Pinus:
Wilson & Carrington. O’Sullivan’s Cascade, 1893: McA. Near the
Hunting Tower, Killarney: Scully 1890. Connor Hill, on bare moist
rocks by the ‘‘ Doctor’s Well,” 1873: Lindberg & Moore; also July
1881: F. W. M. & McA.; and Sept. 1897-8 (Lett & McA.): McA.
1901. In Hickson’s Wood near Anascaul, on the stems of ay
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PROCHEHDINGS
OF
THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY.
PAPERS READ BEFORE THE ACADEMY.
It.
ON THE DISCOVERY OF AN ANCIENT GRAVE, NEAR
ARDRAHAN, COUNTY GALWAY.
J. MARRIS ROBERTS, B.A.I. (Dustry).
[COMMUNICATED BY GEORGE COFFEY, B.E. |
[Read January 14, 1901].
I wave the honour to submit to the Members of the Royal Irish
Academy the following account of the discovery of an ancient grave
in the neighbourhood of Ardrahan, Co. Galway. During the early
part of January, 1900, while Mr. Stephen Tarpey was excavating
gravel from a newly-opened pit on his farm, which lies about 2} statute
miles to the N.N.W. of Ardrahan, the workmen came upon a flag,
standing vertically in the ‘‘face”’ of the pit. This fell out, disclosing
the grave (fig. 1). Inside the grave, which was formed of four flags
set on edge, with another on top acting as a cover, were a quantity
of bones and two urns. One of the latter, unfortunately, got broken
at the time, and, before the grave could be carefully examined, the
bones and urns were disturbed from their original positions. | A
drawing of the urns, as shown (fig. 2), and a detailed report on the
bones by Dr. Brown of the Anthropometrical Laboratory, Trinity
College, Dublin, is appended. The internal dimensions of the graye
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [1]
2 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
were 4 feet in length, by 2 feet 3 inches in breadth, by 2 feet in
height. The plan and cross-section (figs. 1 and 3) will show the
arrangement of the flags. There was no flag in the bottom of the
grave, the contents resting directly on the gravel. This, by the way,
is limestone glacial detritus. The side flags were from 3 to 4 inches
in thickness, and were placed outside the end ones, which were of
the same description. The covering-stone was very rough and
irregular. The top of this cover was situated 1 foot below the
surface of the ground, and the grave was placed due north and south.
On inguiry I was informed that, when first found, the skulls were at
/'s
/
ML
l
Scale ¢° = i foot.
Fic. 1.—Section of Cist.
the north end—one in each corner; the bones scattered along the
grave, and the urns exactly at the centre at the east and west
points, and resting on their bases.
The measurements of the complete urns are—4} inches in height,
53 inches across the rim, 22 inches across the base.
The remnant of the broken one measures—3 inches across the rim.
There were no markings on the base. The ornamentation appears
to be deeper and clearer on the broken one than on the one that is
complete. On each there is a pattern inside the lip. When found,
ra
b arowaae:
reer
=o S
Be
4
— —r es
TI NN.
LA J 2
Ge
=e
GL Ay
GG
Fie. Y.—THe Urns.
[1*]
4 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
they were quite wet and easily broken. The pottery of which they
are composed is coarse and unevenly burnt, quite black at the centre,
and brown outside and inside. Prior to the discovery of this grave,
the workmen found some bones, but re-buried them. The pit is now
50 . v a poe ee.
eS OS dS oO ov bg
.
-
uv
~eer
)
e
he
«
. Scale = 1 foot ;
Fie. 3.—Plan of Cist.
nearly half excavated, and it is quite possible that another cist will
be unearthed.
No beads, or ornaments, or celts were found in the neighbourhood
of the grave, nor in the cist itself.
Report sy Dr. CHarres Browne.
ANTHROPOLOGICAL LABORATORY,
Trinity Cottece, Dusri.
Having examined the remains submitted to me I have to report
that they consist of—
(a) Bones which have been cremated or subjected to great heat.
These are in so fragmentary a state, and so distorted by the action
Roserts—Discovery of Ancient Grave, County Galway. 5
of fire, that little or nothing can be said about them except that they
seem all to belong to one skeleton (there being no duplicate of parts),
which, it may be assumed from the size of the mastoid processes, was
that of an adult male.
(6) The greater part of a skeleton of an infant.
These bones show no traces of the action of fire.
(c) The skull and many of the other bones of a young person, all
much ‘weathered,’ and extremely brittle from loss of animal matter.
The skull was in so fragile a condition, that in order to enable it to
stand the handling necessary for examination and measurement it had
to be painted over with a solution of gelatine.
The body evidently lay on its left side, as the bones of that side
(especially the bones of the skull) are much more affected by damp
than those of the right. The skull is that of a young person under
eighteen years of age and most probably a female. Much injured by
damp, the outer table of the left parietal bone and the left zygoma
being weathered away. It is of small size and symmetrical in shape.
Viewed in norma verticalis, the shape of the cranium is a broad blunt
oval, in norma lateralis the forehead is seen to be upright, with well-
marked frontal eminences, vertex high and prominent, occipital region
flattened off above superior curved line.
Mastoid processes very small, and glabella absent, all markings
slight. The cephalic index is on the border line between the mesati-
cephalic and brachycephalic classes. Frontal bones grooved. Face,
medium width. Left molar bone and zygoma weathered away. Nose,
evidently leptorhine. Orbits round, megaseme. Palate deep. Teeth
all present at time of death, small and sound. Third molars not
erupted.
Mandible, much weathered on left side, so no measurements are
obtainable. The angles are strongly marked, and the mental pro-
cess prominent and square; slightly concave at symphysis, so that
it has an almost forked appearance. Teeth were all present at time
of death, sound, and not much worn on crowns.
Sutures.—All open (including the basilar suture), those of the
vault very complex ; three epactals in lambdoid suture.
There is little worthy of record to be observed in the other bones,
ribs, vertebra, clavicles, scapular radii, and ulne, fibule, patelle,
bones of the hands, feet, and tibia, except that by their stage of
development they aid in determining the age of the person to whom
they belonged, and that by the absence of any duplication of parts
6 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the presence of only the one body is ascertained. The important
skeletal bones are the femora, ossa innominata, and sacrum, and all
are those of a young person. The femora are much weathered, and
the epiphyses had not at the time of death joined the shafts of the
bones, but were among the bones recovered, and where those of the
right femur were placed i setu the whole bone thus set up measured
415 mm.
The ossa innominata are not fully developed, the three primary
divisions ilium, ischium, and pubes, all existing as separate bones.
The Sacrum.—The body of this bone is in good preservation, and
is rather broad and flat, lateral masses absent, the fourth and fifth
segments are united, but all the rest are detached.
From the condition of these bones and the skull it may be con-
cluded that they belonged to a young person under seventeen years of
age, and most probably a female.
On account of the weathered condition of the skull, and the youth
of the subject, the cranial measurements are not very valuable, but
are given here in case they may prove ot interest.
Calculating from the length of the right femur, the stature was
1482 mm., or about 4 feet 10 inches.
Cranial Measurements.
Glabello-occipital length, . . . 173 | Horizontal circumference,. . . 497
Maximum breadth, . . . . . 140 | Foramenmagnumlength,. . . 85
Basio-bregmatic height, . . . 130 | Foramen magnum breadth, . . 386
Auriculo-vertical height, . . . 117 | Basio-alveolarlength, . . . . 86
Frontal longitudinal arc, . . . 115 | Basio-nasallength,. . .. - 90
Parietal longitudinal arc, . . . 125 | Auriculo-nasallength,. . . . 90
Occipital longitudinal arc,. . . 110 | Auriculo-alveolar length, . . . 87
Bi-asteric width, . . . . . 113
Face,
iacelencth= a. ses eee] O4e|m Nasalebreadth=) iss ele mlriee arene? 0)
Nasio-alveolar length, . . . . 68 | Orbitalheight, . . ... . 88
Facial breadth, . "= eee On| Orbital width, 0) 5) ay eee
WNasalsheighis). ¢-:2)i4 ~altnnen wae
Indices.
Cephalic, Leesa, Hj, -AQOPSM Alveolar. 4 4/8, yc ko A OnES
mltttndinal ws Wee) cep.) ve OS MMNaBals 2 zy cass ey, von bay gee
Auriculo-verical <0 « .% 2 6y-6ulmOrbital,” . 8 3 sealing
CuHartes R. Browne.
ieee a
It
THE IRISH GUARDS, 1661-1798.
By C. LITTON FALKINER, M.A.
[Read Novemser 30, 1901.] |
Tuer recent addition to the strength of the British Army of a Regiment
of Irish Guards has been hailed with acclamation as an appropriate
compliment to the soldierly qualities of Irishmen, and as a graceful
recognition of the valour displayed by Irish troops on the battle-fields
of South Africa. The innovation has also been criticised, on the other
hand, as a somewhat tardy recognition of the claims of Ireland to
a share in the honour of furnishing those regiments which are most
closely associated with the personal service of the Sovereign, and
which have enjoyed for centuries a traditional precedence in the regi-
mental roll. It is not a little curious that a people, who, differing
among themselves in many things, are at one in their common pride
in those martial instincts which Irishmen have manifested wherever
and whenever opportunity has served, should have so completely
forgotten an episode so interesting in the history of Irish arms as the
raising of the first regiment of Irish Guards. Yet it is a fact that
what has been greeted as a belated innovation is really only a revival
of a corps which is coeval in antiquity with the institution of the
standing army, and which, under the title of ‘‘ His Majesty’s Regiment
of Guards in Ireland,” enjoyed a distinguished reputation for valour
and military efficiency at a most interesting period of Irish history.
The occasion, therefore, seems appropriate for an attempt to trace
the record of a regiment which anciently held a distinguished place at
the head of the military establishment of Ireland, and to recall the
history of the remarkable corps which constituted the flower of the
Irish army from the Restoration to the Revolution. And the
inquiry is not the less interesting because it isin this Restoration
Regiment of Irish Guards that we shall find the origin of one of the
8 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
most eminent of the distinguished corps which subsequently consti-
tuted the Irish Brigade abroad. For though disbanded after the
Boyne, the regiment, taking service abroad, achieved under a succes-
sion of brilliant officers an honourable place in the military history of
eighteenth-century France. And preserving in exile that fealty to
the principle of hereditary right which, combined with devotion to the
Roman Catholic faith, had led its officers to adhere through evil days
to the fallen fortunes of James the Second, it renewed, on the fall of
Louis XVI., its allegiance to the Sovereign of the Three Kingdoms,
and was re-enrolled for a brief period in the ranks of the British
army.
The oblivion into which the origin of the regiment has fallen is,
however, not very surprising, and is explained in great part by the
circumstance that the compilers of Irish military history have given
but scanty attention to the records of Imish regiments at home. For
example, O’Conor’s ‘‘ Military Memoirs of the Irish Nation,” useful
as an account of the exploits of the Imsh Brigade abroad, is
absolutely silent on the military establishment of Ireland at the
Restoration. D’Alton, again, in his ‘“‘ Historical and Genealogical
Illustrations of King James’s Army List,” begins, as is natural, only
with Tyreonnel’s viceroyalty. And though O’Callaghan, in his
admirably minute and exhaustive ‘‘ History of the Irish Brigade in
the Service of France,” does not omit all notice of the origin of the
distinguished regiments whose subsequent careers he traces in so much
detail, his references to their pre-Revolution story are brief and paren-
thetic. To this explanation of our ignorance of the earliest records
of the first regiment of Irish Guards it may be added, that it is only
in years comparatively recent that the materials for tracing the origin
of the regiment with any semblance of completeness have become avail-
able. No investigator in this field of our seventeenth-century history
can fail to acknowledge a large debt to our distinguished and lamented
academician, the late Sir John Gilbert, who, by his labours as editor
of the Ormonde Manuscripts and of the Records of the Corporation of
Dublin, has thrown open to the students of seventeenth-century
Ireland two splendid treasuries of historical, topographical, and anti-
quarian lore.
The process by which the regiments raised by various royalist
officers became the parents of several of the most distinguished of
existing regiments has its best known examples in the Grenadier
Guards and the Coldstream Guards, and need not be delineated
here. And the circumstances which, immediately following on the
FatKineEr—TZhe Irish Guards. i)
Restoration, led to the institution of a standing army, and laid the
foundations of the existing military system of the United Kingdom,
are familiar to every student of our political and constitutional
history. But it may be well to glance at the beginning of the system
in Great Britain, since it was there that the model was provided for
the military establishment which, on the appointment of the Duke
of Ormond to the Viceroyalty, was at once instituted in Ireland.
Especially is this necessary to the elucidation of the origin of the Irish
Guards, because the conception of a regiment directly associated with
the Crown, a regiment formed to be, in fact as well as name, ‘‘ His
Majesty’s Guards,” goes back to a period prior to the Restoration.
Four years before the Restoration, Charles I1., hopeless of the
renewal of the ineffectual and half-hearted succour extended to him at
the beginning of his exile by the French Court, which under the
inspiration of Mazarin had become convinced of the permanence of the
Cromwellian regimé, imagined that he had found in Spain the assistance
necessary to regain his throne. In connexion with a project for the inva-
sion of England by a Spanish expedition, it was resolved to organise, for
service with the Spanish forces in the Low Countries, the considerable
soldiery which had accompanied their Sovereign abroad, and had
earned distinction in the armies commanded by Turenne. Accord-
ingly, several regiments, both British and Irish, were gathered to-
gether into a division, and placed under the Spanish commander in
Flanders. ‘The English officers, by whom Charles was more imme-
diately surrounded, were formed into what was called a Royal Regi-
ment of Guards under Lord Wentworth, and some regiments of Irish
were organised at the same time... The command of the largest of
these, a corps seven hundred strong, was assigned to the Marquis of
Ormond, and quartered near Bruges, and ultimately took part in the
unsuccessful operations at Dunkirk. The officers included many of
the Confederate Catholic officers who had fled from Ireland.’
1 Clarendon’s account of the matter is as follows:—‘‘ The king resolved to raise
one regiment of Guards, the command whereof he gave to the lord Wentworth,
which was to do duty in the army as common men till his majesty should be in
such a posture that they might be brought about his person. The marquis of
Ormond had a regiment in order, to be commanded by his lieutenant-colonel, that
the Irish might be tempted to come over.’’—‘‘ History of the Rebellion,” xv.,
p- 68.
2 Sir F. Hamilton, in his ‘‘ History of the Grenadier Guards,’’ mentions that
Charles I., during his stay at Oxford in 1642-3, had raised a regiment which was
known as ‘‘ The King’s Guards,’’ and states that ‘‘ the Regiment of King’s Guards,
as well as all the rest of the Royalist troops in England, ceased to exist as regiments
10 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Wentworth’s Regiment of Guards survived the ill-success of
Charles the Second’s negotiations for aid from Spain; and remaining
abroad at the Restoration as part of the garrison of Dunkirk, it escaped
inclusion in that general disbandment of the army of the Common-
wealth, in September, 1660, which was almost the first act of the
restored monarchy. The young Sovereign, however, whose whole
conception of the kingly dignity was coloured by his familiarity with
continental courts, had no intention of remaining without a personal
guard; and at the very moment which witnesses the dispersion of the
remnant of Cromwell’s Ironsides, he entrusted Colonel John Russell, a
brother of the Duke of Bedford, with a commission to raise a Regi-
ment of Foot Guards, twelve hundred strong, under the title of the
King’s Royal Regiment of Guards. Lord Wentworth’s earlier formed
regiment remained abroad until the sale of Dunkirk, when it came to
England, where it was maintained as a distinct corps during Went-
worth’s life. But on the death of its colonel, three years later, on
the eve of the outbreak of the Dutch War, Wentworth’s was merged
in Colonel Russell’s regiment, to which the existing regiment of
Grenadier Guards proudly traces its origin. !
No one who has had occasion to consider the character of the
arrangements made upon the restoration for the machinery of the
constitution and the equipment of the public service, can have failed
to be struck by the closeness with which the institutions of every
sort set up in Great Britain were followed in the organisation of the
in 1646-7 ; and the English troops raised subsequently by Charles 1I., with which
he endeavoured to recover the Crown of his ancestors, were disbanded after the
battle of Worcester in 1651; so that though we trace among the officers of the
Regiment of Guards which Charles II. raised in Flanders many Royalists who had
either served in the King’s Guards or in other corps during the Civil War, both in
the time of Charles I. and II., there is no connexion as a regiment between these
two corps of Guards”’ (vol. i., p. 8). It appears, however, from a letter published
in the “Ormonde Papers’’ (Hist. MSS. Comm., 14th Rep., vol.i., p. 97), that
Wentworth’s regiment existed in some form in 1649:-——‘‘Thomas Wentworth
to Edward Broughton. Breda, June 24, 1649. You are to receive such
men as shall be delivered you on shipboard as part of a Regiment to (sic) the
King’s Guards, and you to command them as Serjeant-Major to the said Regiment,
and at your landing in Ireland you are to obey such orders and directions as you
shall receive from the Marquis of Ormond, the Lieutenant-General of the kingdom
of Ireland.’’ It is noticeable that this letter is addressed by the subsequent colonel
of Charles the Second’s post-Restoration Guards, to an officer who subsequently
held a commission in that regiment. The letter is addressed, ‘‘ For Major Edward
Broughton, Major to the King’s Guard of Foot.”
1 Sir F. Hamilton’s ‘‘ History of the Grenadier Guards,’’ pp. 30-84.
VFaLKInER—TZhe Ivish Guards. 1l
Irish Government. The formal constitution of a standing army by
Charles II., and the formation of His Majesty’s Regiment of Guards,
took place early in 1661. It does not appear how far, if at all, the
King’s advisers then contemplated the provision of a separate military
establishment for Ireland. It is probable that the question remained
in abeyance until after the selection of the first Restoration Viceroy,
an appointment which was delayed until the autumn of that year. When
the Duke of Ormond was appointed to the Viceroyalty, he was careful
to imitate in all respects, as far as possible, the model provided in Eng-
land. The establishment for Ireland, both civil and military, followed
closely upon the lines laid down by Clarendon and the other advisers
of Charles If. Ormond was given a free hand in Ireland, ‘the
places, as well in the martial as civil list, being left freely to his
disposing.”” He at once proceeded to exercise his authority, by
providing for the civil and military needs of Ireland upon a scale of
great magnificence. And as a means, both of emphasising the dignity
of the Viceregal office, and of supplying an efficient force for service
in emergency, one of his first steps was to procure a commission to
raise a Regiment of Guards for service in Ireland. Accordingly, on
April 23rd, 1662, a commission was issued to the Viceroy.?
The Duke of Ormond? received his commission on April 23rd, 1662,
and he lost no time in acting on the authority thus given to him.
On the following day the regiment was formally constituted, and pro-
vision was made for the enrolment of twelve companies of one hundred
men each. The Viceroy’s second son, Lord Richard Butler, who was
immediately afterwards created Earl of Arran, was gazetted Colonel of
the regiment with the captaincy of a company ; and eleven other
officers were appointed to the remaining companies. The establish-
ment of the regiment was calculated on a generous scale, no less asum
1 The following is the text of this Commission :—
‘¢ Whereas we have already constituted and appointed James, Duke of Ormond,
to be Governor of our Kingdom of Ireland, and of all our armies there raised and to
to be raised: And whereas we have thought fit to raise within this our kingdom
of Ireland, a regiment of 1200 foot to be our Regiment of Guards in our said
Kingdom of Ireland: We do give and grant to our said Lieutenant and Chief
Governor full power, liberty and authority, by beat ‘of drums, proclamations, or
otherwise, to raise the said number of men in England, and to conduct, lead and
transport them into Ireland, with power and authority to him to give and grant
commissions under his hand and seal to such persons as he shall think fit to be
officers and commanders of the said regiment.’’—Ormonde MS., unprinted.
* Ormonde, MS§., vol. i., 239.
3 “« Sir William Petty’s Political Anatomy.”’
12 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
than £24,518 8s. 8d. per annum being allocated to its maintenance.
Its roll included, in addition to the Colonel, a Lieutenant-Colonel, a
Major and nine Captains of companies, twelve Lieutenants, twelve
Ensigns, forty sergeants, thirty-six corporals, a drum-major with
twenty-four drummers, a piper to the King’s Company, and twelve
hundred soldiers. In addition to the fighting strength of the regi-
ment, there were attached a Chaplain, an Adjutant Quarter-Master,
a Surgeon and Surgeon’s mate.
It does not appear from any document from what district the
rank and file of the regiment was recruited ; but it is evident that at
the date of the commission to Ormond considerable progress had been
already made in finding the men and arranging for their equipment,
and the original list of officers included some who had served in the
regiment commanded by Ormond in Flanders. On April 14th, 1662,
the Vice-Treasurer received orders to pay to Lieutenant-Colonel Sir
William Flower, the sum of £1897 8s. 8d., ‘“‘towards the raising,
sending to the sea-side, and transporting into Ireland of the officers
and soldiers of the said regiment.”* Two days later, a similar
sum, ‘‘ being one month’s pay of the Regiment of Guards for
Ireland,” was ordered to be paid to the same officer. On April
21st, orders were given for £663 14s. to be paid to John Wall,
‘‘for 600 scarlet coats, bought of him for His Majesty’s Regiment
of Guards for Ireland, and £755 12s to be paid to Henry Prescott
for 661 red coats, and embroidering twenty-four drummer’s coats,
with sacks to pack them up in.’ This uniform is identical with
that prescribed for Colonel Russell’s Regiment of Guards in England.
A little later Alderman Daniel Bellingham, afterwards the first
Lord Mayor of Dublin, received an order to furnish all the non-com-
missioned officers and men with a ‘“‘red cassock,’” a term not as yet
appropriated by the clergy, together with ‘cloth breeches, two
shirts, one pair of stockings, and one pair of shoes.’’t
No time was lost in transferring the newly raised regiment to its
destination. As early as May, the news-letters of the day chronicled
the embarkation of the Guards for Ireland.’ ‘‘On the 9th instant,”
according to the Chester correspondent of Mercurius Publicus, ‘‘ Sir
1 Ormonde, MS., vol. i.
2 Carte Papers, 165, 3.
* See Sir F. Hamilton’s ‘ History of the Grenadier Guards.”’
4Orrery’s State Letters, p. 58.
> Mercurius Publicus, May 9 and 28, 1662. See also ‘‘M‘Kinnon’s ‘‘ History
of the Coldstream Guards,”’ i. 109, note.
FsaLtKiner—Zhe Irish Guards. 13
William Flower, who had the conduct of His Majesty’s Regiment of
Guards for Ireland, under the command of the Earl of Arran, arrived
here with that regiment, in order to their transportation for Ireland,”
and on the 14th May, it was reported that ‘‘ Sir William commenced
to ship twelve companiesin eleven ships at Weston.”’ We are further
informed that ‘‘during the march from London with this regiment,
Sir William himself constantly marched with the men. Sir William
Flower, my Lord Callan and other chief officers in the regiment were
entertained by the Mayor at Chester.” They reached Dublin safely
before the end of May; and on the 28th of that month, the same
journal announced that ‘‘the King’s Regiment of Foot, under the
command of the Karl of Arran, consisting of twelve companies, that
came this week from England, marched this day, completely armed
and clothed through the city, and are all quartered in and about it for
the Guards.”
The conception of the regiment being that of a body-guard for the
person of the Lord Lieutenant as the representative of the King, it
was not contemplated that the corps should serve, in time of peace
at least, outside the capital. Accordingly, arrangements were at
once made for quartering the soldiers in Dublin, and for this purpose
communications passed between the Government and the City Corpora-
tions. Between the Court and the City the liveliest accord existed
throughout Ormond’s Viceroyalty, the Duke having, as one of his first
acts, secured a payment of £500 a year from the exchequer to the
Mayor in consideration of the loyalty of the city in the years
following the Rebellion of 1641, and of the civic poverty resulting
from the Civil wars, and having exerted himself to the utmost at the
restoration for the protection and enlargement of the liberties of
Dublin. And it was to Ormond’s intervention that the dignity of
Lord Mayor shortly afterwards conferred on the head of the Corpora-
tion, the royal gift of a collar of SS. and cap of maintenance, and
other marks of royal favour, were directly due.!
The City Assembly was therefore prepared to comply with a loyal
alacrity with the direction of the Viceroy to provide quarters for the
Guards. On the 28th May the Lords Justices and the Council, by
direction from the Lord Lieutenant, ordered the sheriffs of Dublin and
seneschals of the Liberties ‘‘to provide lodging for the officers and
soldiers of His Majesty’s Regiment of Guards lately arrived out of
18peech of Sir W. Davyys, the Recorder, Dublin Corporation Records, iv. p.,
679, and see vol. i., p. 42.
14 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
England, in inns, wine-taverns, ale-houses, or victualling houses.! The
officers were likewise quartered on the city. On June 14th Ormond
wrote to the Mayor, and sheriffs requiring them ‘forthwith to
appoint convenient quarters as near the Castle of Dublin as may
be for our son Richard Earl of Arran, Colonel of His Majesty’s
Regiment of Guards and his servants’?; and shortly afterwards
provision was made by the city, pursuant to his Excellency’s warrant
for the quartering of the commissioned officers of the King’s
Regiment in the city and suburbs. Thenceforward and down to the
Revolution, Dublin appears to have continuously remained the head-
quarters of the Guards; and although the arrangements for their
lodging appear to have involyed some burthen on the city, the best
relations seem, in general, to have been maintained between citizens and
soldiery. The troops seem to have been quartered partly in the Castle,
partly through the city, especially at the city gate-houses,? which, at
that time, were still utilised for residential purposes, as appears from
the complaint of one John Eastwood who had contracted to pay £4 per
annum to the city for St. Nicholas’ Gate, but represented that ‘‘ the
said gate was taken up from him by the soldiers, by special orders from
the Lord Lieutenant, to his very great damage.’’ ‘The provision of fire
and candlelight for the Guards were also constituted a charge upon the
city, and assessments were annually made for this purpose on a warrant
from the Viceroy, this being, in the language of a resolution of 1665,
‘“required to be done by act of state and a business of public concern-
ment to this city.”* The amount of the assessment for this purpose
was usually from £150 to £200 a year. The tax appears to have, in
general, been readily contributed, though in June, 1667, one John
Quelch, a freeman of the city and member of the Corporation, refused
‘tin violation of his oath as freeman to pay his portion of the charge
amounting to half-a-crown”’ as unlawful and unwarrantable. °
In addition to the occasional restiveness excited by the tax for their
maintenance, the Guards appear to have provoked some unpopularity by
their demeanour towards the citizens. In August, 1667, a petition was
presented to the Lord Lieutenant by the City Council ‘‘for a redress
against the several oppressions of the officers and soldiers on the
inhabitants of the city under the pretence of quartering.” This,
however, was resented by the Colonel, Lord Arran, and the officers of
1Carte Papers, 37, 228.
2 Corporation Records, iy., p. 278. 3 Thid., p. 299.
4 Dublin Corporation Records, iv., p. 347. 5 [bid., p. 485.
ee
FaLtkiner—TZhe Irish Guards. 15
the regiment, who, in a counter-petition, demanded an inquiry into the
matters complained of, averring their indignation at aspersions which
they stigmatised as ‘‘a high reflection on the officers and soldiers of the
said Guards, either in committing or suffering such oppressions to be
committed by those under their command.”! But in general the rela-
tions between soldiery and civilians were harmonious, and Dublin was
proud of the regiment. In 1666? ‘‘his grace the Duke of Ormond,
taking notice of the many buildings lately made on Oxmantown Green,
which have taken up so much room there that His Majesty’s Horse and
Foot Guards and the City Militia have not conveniency to exercise as
formerly,’”’ and ‘‘ recommending the city to take present orders that
the grounds upon St. Stephen’s Green, lately walled in, be forthwith
made fit for that purpose,” the Assembly cheerfully ordered that the
ground should be levelled and made smooth with that object. This was
accordingly done, and thenceforth St. Stephen’s Green became the
parade-ground of the Guards. A review of the regiment on this ground
twenty years later is described in Clarendon’s State Letters.®
A further memorial of the connexion of the Irish Guards with
Dublin is supplied in the records of two Dublin parishes. The
regiment appears to have attended Divine service regularly every
Friday, sometimes in St. Michael’s and sometimes in St. Audoen’s,
and in 1671 Lord Arran contributed a sum of £150 towards the re-
building of the latter church. In requital of his liberality it was
ordered ‘‘ that the arms and supporters of the said Earl of Arran be
fairly presented and erected in the said church” ;* and further, that
every commissioned officer of the Royal regiment, from the said Earl
to the ensign, should henceforth enjoy all privileges and indemnities of
parishioners in regard to marriage, christenings, and burials. The
parish of St. Michael was less fortunate, when two years later it
solicited a like contribution, notwithstanding that it was averred that
‘“‘for several years past the several companies of the Royal regiment
practised in this city have made use of the Church of St. Michael,
but in all that time nothing hath been contributed towards the repara-
tion of the said church or the seats thereof.”
Mention has just been made of the City Militia, and some confusion
might easily occur between the two bodies, which in the Assembly rolls
1 Dublin Corporation Records, iv., p. 423.
* Ibid. p. 383, 11th Aug. 1666.
3 Clarendon’s ‘‘ State Letters,’’ vol. i., 434, Sth June, 1686.
4 Gilbert’s ‘‘ History of Dublin,” i., 281.
16 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
are sometimes referred to indifferently as the Guards of the city. The
two forces were, however, entirely distinct, and had no relation to each
other, save in so far as each was in its degree responsible for the defence
of the city. A militia, 24,000 strong, was raised to supplement the
regular army; and in 1660 two foot regiments of city militia had been
formed, one for service within the other without the city, the Mayor
for the time being acting as Commander-in-Chief. The Mayor was
likewise designated commander of a foot company through the good
offices of Sir Theophilus Jones, the Scout-Master-General of the army,
a distinction which was so much appreciated by the city dignitary that
the city assembly voted a sum of £50 for a piece of plate to be pre-
sented to Lady Jones in recognition of her husband’s exertions.’ Some
friction seems occasionally to have been provoked between the City
Guards and the King’s regiment. The author of ‘‘Ireland’s Sad
Lamentation’’* imputes to the latter a slackness little creditable to the
gallantry of the corps, alleging that the militia would not be suffered
to guard within the city, the King’s Guard being appointed to defend
the same, and were obliged to serve outside the walls, ‘‘so that upon
any attempt, our volunteer inhabitants might certainly have perished
before the King’s soldiery who receive pay had entered into any
dangerous engagement.”’ But this innuendo, with the rest of the pub-
lication in which it appeared, was declared by the city Assembly to be
‘¢a black and ugly libel.”
Another force not to be confounded with his Majesty’s Regiment of
Guards was the Lord Lieutenant’s Guard of Halbertiers or Battle
Axes, which, during the reign of Charles II., from the opening of
Ormond’s Viceroyalty* in 1661 down to 1665, was maintained as part
of the Military Establishment. This body which was known some-
times as the Company of Battle Axes, sometimes as the Guard of
Halbertiers, consisted of a captain, lieutenant, two sergeants, and sixty
men, dressed in buff coats, and was modelled on the Yeomen of the
Guard. The provision made at the Restoration for such a retinue to
attend the Viceroy was in accordance with the ancient traditions of
the Viceregal office, for as early as the reign of Henry VIII. wheu
the Earl of Surrey came over as Deputy, one hundred Yeomen of the
Guard were sent to Ireland with him to serve as his body-guard.* It
1 Dublin Corporation Records, iv., p. 221.
2«< Treland’s Sad Lamentation,’’? 1681. Dublin Corporation Records, v, Preface.
3Ormond Manuscripts, i., p. 406.
4 «Sir W. Petty’s Political Anatomy.”’
5 Preston’s ‘‘ Yeomen of the Guard,”’ p. 100.
FaLKiner— The Trish Guards. 17
would appear that in their uniform and accoutrements this Guard
closely followed its English prototype.' On April 2, 1662, Colonel,
afterwards Sir Daniel, Treswell, who was appointed to its command,
received from Ormond a warrant for £275 4s. towards buying ‘‘64 buff
coats and 64 belts at £4 6s. for each coat and belt for our guard of
foot.’? The forces having been equipped in England came to Ireland
in that year, and ‘‘for the more convenient performance of their
duty’? were ordered to be quartered as near to Dublin Castle as
possible. Treswell, their Colonel, who had come to Ireland in
1641 in command of a troop of horse, had ‘‘ faithfully served his
Majesty in honourable employment during the whole war in England
and Ireland,’ in the course of which he had commanded the Lord
Lieutenant’s regiment of horse, and Ormond, loyal in prosperity
to his friends in adversity, not only rewarded his fidelity with the
command of his Battle-axes,* but procured him, in 1665, the honour of
a baronetcy, and recommended him in the same year to the burgesses of
Downpatrick by whom he was returned to Parliament.*
In addition to the city guard the Lord Mayor, in emulation of the
Lord Lieutenant, seems also to have instituted a small body-guard of
halbertiers ; but it is not surprising to learn that this force, six in
number, was ‘‘ not found so useful as it was expected,” and that it was
in consequence ordered that as many of them as the Lord Mayor and
sheriffs should think fit to be officers at mace should be so appointed,
and discharged from their place of bearing halberts.
That his Majesty’s Regiment of Guards was from the first intended
to hold the highest place in the regimental roll in Ireland there can be no
manner of doubt. When, during the Viceroyalty of Lord Clarendon, at
the opening of the reign of James II., several of the officers of the Guards
were displaced by Tyrconnel in pursuance of his programme to new-
model the Irish army on a Roman Catholic basis, Major Billingsley,
one of the displaced officers, in protesting against his removal, averred
that ‘‘to be a Major of the Royal Regiment of Guards is better and
more honourable than to be Lieutenant-Colonel of any other regiment.”
1 Carte Papers.
2 Order for quartering the Battle-axes, Dec. 8, 1662, Ormond MS., Dublin
Corporation Records, iv., p. 545.
3 Hist. MSS. Com., 6th Rep., 14th Report, i. and ii.
* The following inscription appears upon a tomb in the chancel of the old church
at Finglas, near Dublin:—‘‘ Heere under lyeth the body of Sir Daniel Treswell
knight and baronett who faithfully served his Majesty in honourable employment
during the whole warin England and Ireland and dyed the 24th day of May, 1670.”
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. KXIV., SEC. C. | [2]
18 . Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The prestige of the regiment derived éclat at the outset from the fact
that the commission for the raising of the regiment was given to the
Viceroy. The Duke of Ormond was not alone the King’s representa-
tive and the General-in-Chief of the army in Ireland, but the first of
his Irish subjects in rank, fame, and fortune. He had held the post
of Lieutenant-General or Commander-in-Chief of the army formed by
Strafford as far back as 1640. His association with the regiment
would have been sufficient of itself to stamp the corps with peculiar
distinction; and Ormond was careful to secure that its honour should
undergo no diminution in the persons of its officers, who were selected
largely from the ranks of the Irish nobility, and included several
who had followed his fortunes through the whole course of the civil
war and foreign exile.
Unable himself, with the multifarious duties of the Viceroyalty, to
assume the direct command, Ormond asserted in the most marked way
his personal interest in the fortunes of the regiment by nominating
to the Colonelcy his second son Richard, Earl of Arran, a nobleman,
who, if less distinguished than his gifted brother, Lord Ossory,
was yet a man of considerable ability, who, on more than one
occasion during Ormond’s absence in England, filled the office of
Lord Deputy. Arran gave proofs of considerable military capacity
in command of his regiment, first in suppressing a formidable mutiny
of the soldiers of other regiments at Carrickfergus, in 1666, and later,
in 1673, by his distinguished conduct under the Duke of York, in the
sea-fight with the Dutch in that year, in which, after the manner of
those days, the Guards took a part serving on board ship.’ For his
services on this occasion, Arran was rewarded with an English
peerage. ‘‘No man,” says Carte, ‘‘ was more active, more eager, and
more intrepid in danger.’’ During his tenure of the office of Deputy
in 1684, he exhibited great personal gallantry in dealing with a very
serious fire in Dublin Castle, by which a great part of the castle
buildings was destroyed.? An address of congratulation was presented
on this occasion by the citizens of Dublin, in which Arran’s energy is
eulogised in glowing terms: ‘‘ By your Excellency’s presence of mind,
care, and conduct, in the midst of the devouring flames which
encompassed you, not only the remaining part of the buildings of the
Castle, but the great magazine of powder to which the fire had within
a few steps approached, was wonderfully preserved, and the ancient
records of this Kingdom, then also in the Castle, rescued from those
1 Carte’s ‘* Ormonde,” ii., 544. 2 Dublin Corporation Records, v., p. 312.
Fatxiner—TZhe Irish Guards. 19
flames.”” On Lord Arran’s premature death, early in 1786, shortly after
his father had been recalled from the Irish Government by James IT.,
the direct association of the Ormond family with the Guards was
maintained by the bestowal of the command of the regiment on Lord
Ossory, son of the distinguished soldier-statesman of that name and
afterwards second Duke of Ormond, a selection which, as the new
Viceroy, Clarendon, reported to Sunderland, gave as lively a satisfaction
in Ireland as could be imagined.!
At the time of his original appointment, Lord Arran was too
junior to have acquired the military knowledge necessary in the
commander of the regiment in the field; and for the Lieutenant-
Coloneley Ormond selected, as we have seen, Sir William Flower, an
officer who was well qualified by his experience to undertake the
effective control of the newly enrolled corps.* Flower, whose father
had come to Ireland towards the close of Queen Elizabeth’s reign, and
had served in James the First’s time as Governor of Waterford, had
been one of Ormond’s officers in the troubled years that followed the
rebellion. As early as 1641, he had held a Captain’s commission in
Ormond’s own regiment of foot, which had its quarters in Christ-
church yard, and had formed part of the garrison of Dublin down to
1648; and he had risen to its command. He had suffered imprisonment
at the hands of the Parliamentary party on Ormond’s departure from
Ireland in 1648. At the Restoration, he was at once raised to eminence
by his old patron, becoming a member of the Privy Council, with a
seat in the Irish Parliament as member for St. Canice, and being
appointed one of the trustees for satisfying the arrears of the ’49
officers. He received considerable grants of land; and his son
extending the family influence by a matrimonial alliance with the
daughter of Sir John Temple, the family became important enough to
win, in the person of Sir William Flower’s grandson, the peerage
of Castle Durrow, a rank which, in the generation following, was
merged in the still existing dignity of the Viscounty of Ashbrook.*®
The other officers appointed to the command of companies at the
institution of the regiment were likewise persons of distinction. The
King’s Company was given to Sir Nicholas Armorer, who had acted
1 “Clarendon Correspondence,”’ i., 229.
» Archdall’s ** Lodge’s Peerage,’’ vol. v., p. 283.
° There is good reason to suspect that during the eclipse of the royalist fortunes
Flower, like not a few of Ormond’s Irish adherents, was among those who conformed
to the government of Commonwealth, and to haye held a command in Fleetwood’s
Regiment. See the Leyburne-Popham Papers, Hist. MSS. Commissioners Report,
p- 153.
[24]
20 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
as equerry to the King in exile, and was a close friend of the Duke
of Ormond, by whose influence he was returned to Parliament for
County Wicklow, and appointed Governor of Cork.! Sir John Stephens,
who, like Sir William Flower, had held a commission in Ormond’s
old regiment as far back as 1643, and who, after the Restoration,
represented Fethard in the Irish Parliament—who had married a
sister of Flower’s, and held the office of Governor of Dublin Castle
—was appointed Major; and the other officers included Lord Callan,
afterwards the third Karl of Denbigh, Lord John Butler, Ormond’s
youngest son, and Colonel Francis Willoughby, well known in the
ten years’ warfare in Ireland, from 1641 to 1651. It is thus evident
that the note of pre-eminence and distinction which has ever been
associated with the Guards in England was characteristic of the Irish
regiment from the date of its institution.
A corps, whose sphere of service was restricted in time of peace to
the capital, and which even in war was only likely to be actively
employed in circumstances of emergency, was naturally deprived for
some years of many opportunities of distinguishing itself, and it is
not very easy to recall the record of the regiment in the first few
years of its existence. Its earliest active service appears to have been
in suppressing the mutiny at Carrickfergus in 1666 already noted,” but
down to 1673, such mention of it as we find is chiefiy in connection
with ceremonial display. On the occasion of the Duke of Ormond’s
state entry into Dublin, in 1665, a pageant of unusual magnificence,
the regiment formed the guard of honour, from St. James’s Gate to
the Castle, the King’s Company being in close attendance on the
Viceroy, and following immediately the Guard of Battle-axes. In
1672, they were ordered for service with the fleet on the outbreak of
1 Cholmondeley Papers, Hist. MSS. Com., 5th Rep.
2 The following reference of the services by the Guards on this occasion is taken
from MeSkimmin’s ‘‘ History of Carrickfergus,’’ pp. 18, 19 :—
‘©1666, about the beginning of May, the garrison, consisting of about 200 men,
mutinied for want of their pay, and, choosing corporal Dillon for their commander,
seized the town and castle. On the 25th of the same month, the Earl of Arran,
son to the Duke of Ormond, arrived by sea in the Dartmouth frigate, with four
companies of Guards, and he assaulting the town by sea, and Sir William Flower
by land, the mutineers were forced to retreat into the castle, with the loss of
Dillon their commander, and two others. The Karl also lost two soldiers. Next
day the Duke of Ormond arrived from Dublin with the Horse Guards, and the
mutineers surrendered at discretion. The corporation (of Carrickfergus) received
thanks from the Government for their loyalty on this occasion, and gave a
splendid entertainment to the Earl of Arran.”’
FaLKiInER—TZhe Irish Guards. 21
the Dutch War, and two companies, of which Lord Arran’s was one,
were sent to Chester, and appear to have taken part in the action at
Solebay.’
The military annals of the Restoration still remain very scrappy
and imperfect ; and even the achievements of the British Guards, have
been insufficiently recorded. Little or nothing is known of the career
of the Irish Guards from 1675 to 1685, when, as already mentioned,
the coloneley passed to the young Lord Ossory on the death of his
uncle Lord Arran, although very full lists of its officers for several
years of this obscure decade are still extant. The changes in the
regiment within this period do not seem to have been many ; the most
important being the appointment of Sir Charles Fielding—a member of
the ancient family of which the Earl of Denbigh is the head—to be
Lieutenant-Colonel on the death, in 1680, of Sir William Flower.
The Guards appear, however, to have been maintained in vigorou.
efficiency. On April 23, 1685, Major Billingsley reported to his
Colonel, that he ‘‘drew out the Regiment to solemnise the corona-
tion, which was performed after the usual way on state days.’”*
Lord Clarendon, who superseded Ormond in the Irish Government in
1685, reported very favourably of their appearance in a letter to
James IJ. :—‘‘The other day,’ he wrote, ‘‘I saw your Majesty’s
Regiment of Guards drawn out; and though I am no soldier, yet I
may assure your Majesty they exercise and perform all their duty
as well as your Guards in England can do. If they had the honour
to be in your presence you would have no cause to be ashamed of
them.”
But the regiment was now about to become involved in those far-
reaching changes which shortly after the accession of James II. became
so universal in every department of the public service, and were
ere long to lead to such startling results. The King resolved on a
drastic reform of the personnel of the army, and Tyrconnel came
to Ireland to superintend and carry out the changes which had been
resolved upon. This is not the occasion on which to discuss the policy
of James the Second’s dealing with his Irish forces prior to the events
which obliged him to rely upon their services in his unsuccessful
effort to retain his Crown. It must suffice here to observe, that under
Tyrconnel’s direction a sweeping reform was rapidly and even violently
1 Sir F. Hamilton’s ‘‘ History of the Grenadier Guards,” vol. i., p. 163.
* Ormonde MS.
‘* Clarendon Correspondence,’’ i. 281.
22 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
carried out. The process may be traced in the correspondence of Lord
Clarendon, who, though unquestionably loyal to his Sovereign, was
alarmed at the vehemence of the subordinate who was so shortly to
be his successor. Clarendon’s letters, written during the period of his
Viceroyalty, shed a flood of clear light on events in Ireland in the
years immediately preceding the Revolution. Though of liberal
opinions on the Roman Catholic question, he was, despite his close
family connexion with King James, far from endorsing every item in
the policy of his royal master, disliking the rapidity and violence
with which changes were introduced into the system of government
he was administering, and particularly resenting the interference of
Tyrconnel, who, as Lieutenant-General of the army in Ireland,
exercised plenary powers independently of the Viceroy. His letters,
descriptive of Tyrconnel’s proceedings, contain several references to
the Guards.' In letter after letter he represented to James and to
his ministers his disapproval of proceedings which, apart from their
unfortunate effect in alienating a large section of the Irish population,
he considered injurious to the efficiency of the army in Ireland, and
especially to the Regiment of Guards.
Pursuant, however, to the commands of the king who, as he told
Clarendon, was ‘‘resolyed to employ his subjects of the Roman
Catholic religion,” and ‘‘ not to keep one man in his service who ever
served under the usurpers,’’? Tyrconnel proceeded to put out of the
regiment such of the officers as were unlikely to lend themselves
to the new order of things, and at the same time to make large
changes in the personnel of the rank and file. The true reasons
for these alterations were not of course publicly avowed, the ostensible
reason being that, in the language of Tyrconnel, ‘‘the Scotch battalion,
which is newly come into England, has undone us; the King is so
pleased with it that he will have all his forces in the same posture.
We have here a great many old men, and of different statures :* they
must be all turned out, for the King would have all his men young
and of one size’; this, however, was only a pretext, for, according to
Clarendon, the new men were “‘ full as little’? as those who were
turned out.
On June 8th the Guards were reviewed in St. Stephen’s Green by
Tyrconnel, who owned to Clarendon that ‘‘it was a much better regi-
ment than he could have imagined, and that the men did their exercises
1 Clarendon State Papers, i. 433, et seq. * Ibid., 1., p. 481.
3 Ibid., i., p. 468.
FaLKinEr—The Irish Guards. DA}
as well as any regiment in England” ;! but this did not prevent
Tyrconnel from proceeding with his reforms. The new officers were
commissioned and presented to the regiment on parade. Sir Charles
Fielding, who had served with the regiment from its formation and
risen from- ensign to be leutenant-colonel, was superseded in his
command—the King, as Tyrconnel put it, ‘‘ being so well satisfied in
the long services of Sir Charles Fielding that he had removed him to
prefer him to a better post”’;* and Sir William Dorrington, a native of
England and the youngest major in the army, whose subsequent
career evinced considerable military ability, but who was a complete
stranger to his new command, was appointed in his place.* Other old
officers of long standing in the regiment, such as Major Billingsley
and Captain Margetson,* a son of the Irish Primate, were likewise
suspended. The changes among the officers were followed by the
dismissal of 500 men, at least 350 of whom, according to Clarendon,
were ‘‘ able and lusty men,” and a credit to the regiment. The
hardship of their dismissal was aggravated by the fact that they had
just bought fresh uniforms by direction of their colonel, the young
Duke of Ormond, and were not reimbursed for their expenditure. To
fill the places of these men, Dorrington received orders to recruit in
such counties as he thought fit; and accordingly despatched Arthur,’
one of his captains, to Connaught to raise men for the Guards—a pro-
ceeding much resented by Clarendon, who forbade Dorrington to
proceed in it.
So violent an exercise of authority inevitably excited alarm.
‘All men,”® wrote Clarendon, ‘‘ who have any consideration and
care of the King’s service are extremely troubled at the method which
is taken of doing things. To turn out, in one day, 400 men of the
Regiment of Guards, 300 of whom have no visible fault, and many of
them cheerfully went the last year first into the north and after-
wards into England, does put apprehensions into men’s heads which
they would otherwise have no cause for, and putting in none but
natives in their rooms, who really to the eye, as to stature and
1 Clarendon State Papers, i., p. 440.
2 Tbid., i, p. 434.
3 [bid., li., p. 45. There is no authority for D’Alton’s statement, followed by
0’Callaghan, that Dorrington was connected with the regiment from its formation.
His name does not appear in any of the early lists of officers.
4 [bid., i, p. 435.
5 [bid.,i., p. 578.
® Ibid., i., p. 476, July 4, 1686.
24 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ability, makes worse figures than those that are put out, confirms
their jealous apprehensions.”! But though the composition of the
corps was largely altered, and the principal positions confided to
officers of Tyrconnel’s way of thinking, there does not appear to
have been any general surrender of commissions by the old officers
who escaped immediate dismissal, and these appear to have remained
in the regiment down to the landing of William III. at Torbay,
when, with their Colonel, Lord Ossory, they embraced the cause of
the Prince of Orange.
From the sweeping changes inaugurated by Tyrconnel, it resulted
that, notwithstanding that the Colonel, Lord Ossory, who, in 1688,
succeeded to the Dukedom of Ormond, and had been left undisturbed
in his nominal command, went over to William III. as soon as he
landed at Torbay, the regiment took part with James II. in his
struggle for the Crown of the Three Kingdoms, though in numbers
considerably short of its proper strength. The coloneley was then
given to Dorrington, under whose command the Guards took part
in the siege of Derry, and subsequently were present at the Boyne
and Aughrim. In the latter battle Dorrington was taken prisoner, and
Barker, who had been appointed Lieutenant-Colonel, was killed ; and it
does not appear under what officers the last services of the Irish Guards
on Irish soil were rendered at the defence of Limerick. After the
capitulation of that city the Royal Regiment of Guards was the fore-
most of those which made choice of the cause of King James and exile,
and in that dramatic scene, so powerfully painted for us by Macaulay,
when the garrison of Limerick was ordered to pass in review before the
rival commanders, Ginkell and Sarsfield, and those who wished to remain
in the Ireland of King William were directed to file off at a particular
spot, all but seven of the Guards, marching fourteen hundred strong,
went beyond the fatal point and embraced the alternative of exile.
Not all of these, however, adhered to their resolution, and only five
hundred appear to have been included in the thousands, who, in the
language of the historian, ‘‘ departed to learn in foreign camps that
discipline without which natural courage is of small avail, and to
retrieve, on distant fields of battle, the honour which had been lost
by a long series of defeats at home.’’?
Reference has been made above to the fact that the career of the
Irish Guards was not closed with the defeat of the cause with which
1 Clarendon State Papers, i., p. 485, July 6.
2? Macaulay’s History of England, chap. xvii.
FaLxiner— The Jrish Guards. 25
their last years in Ireland were identified. After 1690, indeed, they
disappeared from the roll of the regiments in the service of the
British Crown, and it is hardly surprising that William III. made no
attempt to revive a corps which had fought for his opponent. But
though exiled to France for above one hundred years, the identity of
the regiment was never completely lost. It still continued to be
recruited abroad from the ‘‘ wild geese’? who flocked in a continuous
stream from Ireland to the Continent through the course of the
eighteenth century. Under the leadership of Dorrington it served
with distinction at Loudon and Charleroy, and though broken up in
1698, after the Peace of Ryswick, when it ceased to retain its old
title, it was substantially re-embodied under its old chief, and
was known until his death, in 1718, as the Dorrington Regiment.
The regiment continued during this period, by desire of King
James II., to retain the uniform and colours it had worn in the British
Service.! Thenceforward it was distinguished by the names of its
successive Colonels, Counts Michael de Roth and Edward de Roth,
Robert Dillon, Lord Roscommon, and Count Antoine Walsh de
Serrant, all of them representatives of old Irish families, and all of
them soldiers of capacity. In the Marlborough wars, the regiment
served with the army of Flanders, and was present at Malplaquet
under Count Michael de Roth; it served with the Duke of Berwick
in Spain, and during the colonelecy of his son took part in the
battles of Dettingen and Fontenoy. Finally under Count Walsh
1 See on this point, ‘‘ Historique du 87 Régiment d’ Infanterie de Ligne, 1690-
1892.’ Par Capitaine Mallaguti. Paris, 1892, from which the following extracts
are taken :—
‘Tl semble que, dés cette époque (1698), les regiments Orlandais et suisses
etaient distingués par l’habit rouge gavance ; tandis que toute l’infanterie francaise
portait l’habit gris-blanc,’’ p. 16.
‘* Notes sur Vuniforme du Regiment de Dillon de 1690 a 1791.’’—‘‘ Nous n’ayons
pu trouver aucun renseignement sur l’uniforme de Dillon pendant les quarante
premiéres annees de son sé our en France. Le premier ouvrage qui nous ait furni
une donnée précise est la Carte abrégée du militaire de la France (de Leman de
la Jaise) qui, pour les années 1730 et 1738 attribué 4 Dillon: habit rouge et pare-
ments bleus,” p. 75. The ‘‘ habit rouge-garance ’’ was worn continuously to 1791
by all the Irish regiments in the French service. The facings varied in colour,
and in the case of the Irish Guards were of St. Patrick’s blue. A representation
of the uniforms of the French army in 1772 shows the Guards or Roscommon
Regiment, as it was then called, to have worn a red coat or tunic with blue
facings, buff breeches, white Hessian boots, and a plumed helmet.
The colours of the Regiment at this time showed a white cross on a ground of
St. Patrick’s blue.
26 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
de Serrant the regiment maintained its old traditions down to the
Revolution, when it merged in the 92nd Regiment of the Army
of France. But its officers were still, for the most part, Irishmen,
and on the fall of the Bourbons, it was natural that the representatives
of a traditional loyalty to hereditary right should prefer the Fleur-de-
lys to the Tricolor. The successors of those who had refused to
concur in the English Revolution were too proud of their consistent
loyalty to be content to accept the French one. Almost without
exception its officers followed their Colonel, Count Walsh, in his refusal
to serve under the banner of the Republic, and were among those who,
in 1794, accepted with alacrity the invitation conveyed to the Colonels
of the three surviving regiments of Dillon, Berwick, and Walsh by
the Duke of Portland, to take service under the British Crown under
the title of the Irish Brigade.’ It was intended that the regiment
should be placed upon the Irish Establishment, and be recruited
exclusively in Ireland for service abroad ; and its officers came over to
raise a fresh corps in Ireland. But the times were out of joint for
such an enterprise. The emigrant officers found Ireland in a turmoil
of agitation, which had much more in common with the France of the
Revolution than with that of the ancien régime, and their efforts were
almost entirely unsuccessful. The Rebellion of 1798 quickly follow-
ing, put a final end to whatever hopes might have previously been
entertained, by filling the English Government with misgivings as to
the use to which an Irish Catholic Brigade might possibly be turned
in spite of the unquestioned loyalty of its leaders. Recruits being
forthcoming in quite insufficient numbers, it was found necessary to
amalgamate the regiments forming the Brigade, with the result that no
place remained for many of the returned officers. Weak and insufficient
in numbers the corps was sent to North America and the West Indies,
but it was found impossible to maintain the Brigade as an independent
organization, and within a few years it had ceased to exist.
This last chapter in the history of the regiment isasadone. Making
every allowance for the exacerbation of feeling at the time, the treat-
ment accorded to the returned officers was little creditable to Irishmen
of any shade of opinion; whilst the conduct of the War Office in regard
to their pay and allowances was equally deserving of disapproval.
Wolfe Tone, in his Journal for 1796, describes how the officers
intending to go to Mass on Christmas Day in full uniform were
obliged to give up the idea for fear of being hustled by the populace
1 See note added in the Press.
Fatxiner— The Irish Guards. Py
of Dublin. On the other hand, the Duke of Fitz James, the descen-
dent of the great soldier Berwick, and the principal personage among
those to whom the invitation to join the British army had been
addressed, was insulted by some observations from Lord Blaney in the
Irish House of Lords, and fought a duel with that nobleman in the
Phoenix Park in assertion of the honour of his confréres.1 The un-
employed officers were treated with so little consideration by the
military authorities that some of them were reduced to a half-starving
condition, and had to wait several years for arrears of pay: while the
Colonels on the final disbandment of the Brigade were refused the
rank as half-pay officers for which they had stipulated when entering
the British service. Thus the final chapter in a story that had
extended over a space of above one hundred and thirty years was one
of misfortune and even humiliation. But none the less the record of
the Irish Guards, from their formation in 1662 to the final dispersal of
the last remnant of the regiment, is one in every respect creditable to
the martial traditions of Ireland; and rooted in the history of its
country, whether as Jacobite or Williamite, as loyalist or rebel, as
fighting for or against the Crown to which it owed its origin, its
career is one in which were exhibited at every stage the stainless
honour of Irish gentlemen, and the indomitable valour of the Irish
race.
NOTE ADDED IN THE PRESS.
Mr. Lecky, in his ‘‘ Mistory of England in the Eighteenth Cen-
tury,” vol. vil., p. 254, gives some account of that final chapter in the
history of the Irish Brigade, to which O’Callaghan in his otherwise
exhaustive narrative gives but scant attention. Reference is also made
to the episode in Mrs. M. A. O’Connell’s Last Colonel of the Lrish Brigade.
But much the fullest authority for the later history of the Irish Guards
is to be found in avolume entitled: ‘‘Une Famille Royaliste, Irlandaise
et Francaise, et Le Prince Charles-Edouard,” privately printed at Nantes
in 1901 by the Duc de la Trémoille. In this work several documents
relating to the regiment under the Colonelcy of Antoine Count Walsh
de Serrant are reproduced. From it are extracted the documents follow-
ing, viz.: the letter of the Duke of Portland above referred to, and the
1 Annual Register, 1797.
28 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Commission of George III. to the Comte de Serrant as a Colonel of
Infantry in the Irish Brigade :—
»
Lerrer oF THE Duke or PortianD To Count WALSH DE SERRANT.
A WuiTEHALL, cE 30 Sept. 1794.
Monsieur,
Le Roi desirant remplir les intentions de la legislature d’Irlande, et de
douner a ses sujets catholiques de ce royaume, un prompte témoinage de son affection
et de sa confiance, s’est déterminé a rétablir le corps connti cy devant sous le nom
de la brigade Irlandaise, et comme vous etiez colonel d’un des regiments dont elle
etoit composée, Sa Majesté m’a donné l’ordre de vous offiir dans ce nouveau corps
le méme rang de colonel que vous teniez dans l’ancien.
L’intention de Sa Majesté est, que cette brigade soit maintenant composée de
quatre regiments, le commandement de trois desquels, elle m’a ordonné d’offirir
aux colonels (ou a leurs representans) qui out commandé les trois corps qui com-
posoient la brigade, lorsqu’ elle étoit au service de sa Majesté trés chretienne, et eclui
du quatriéme a Monsieur O’Connell, cy devant officier général au service de
France, et certainement bien connu de yous et de tous les gentilshommes irlandois
qui out seryi dans ce corps.
I] a aussi pler 4 Sa Majesté de déterminer que tous les officiers, tant de ]’état-
major que les autres, excepté vous, Monsieur le comte et Monsieur le duc de
Fitz James, seront pris d’entre ceux de ses sujets qui sont nés en Irlande, et qui
se seront distingués par leurs services, dans les mémes grades dans la brigade, et
que si l’on manque d’officiers (comme il y a toute apparance) pour remplir les
grades inférieurs, on les choisisse dans les familles des gentilshommes de Ja méme
réligion dout la demeure 4 toujours été en Irlande.
L’intention de Sa Majesté est de plus, que cetté brigade soit mise, du moment
qu elle sera complette, sur l’état militaire de ce royaume, ou de celui d’Irlande, en
sorte que, dés ce moment 1a, les officiers qui y tiendront des places, prendront rang
avec les autrés officiers des armées de Sa Majesté, et en cas que le corps soit
reformé, ils auront droit 4 la derniére paye.
Sa Majesté recevra aussi la récommendation des colonels dans le choix des
officiers, et cela surtout, quand ces recommendations seront faites en faveur de
ceux qui ont servi cy devant dans la brigade irlandoise. Mais elle ne permettra
pas, qu’aucune considération pécuniére soit donnée pour obtenir aucun rang
dans ce corps; et en consequence, comme il n’aura éte permis a ancun officier de
quelque rang qu’il soit, de rien payer pour sa place, il doit comprendre clairement,
que sous aucun prétexte il ne lui sera permis de la vendre.
Sa Majesté m’a commandé aussi de vous informer qu’elle est déterminer a ce
que ce corps soit spécialement affecté au services des colonies de Sa Majesté dans
les Autilles, ou dans telle autre possession de Sa Majesté, hors de ces deux
royaumes de la grande Bretagne et de Inlande, qu’il lui plaira de les employer; et
que Sa Majesté d’attendra 4 ce que tout officier de quelque rang qu’il soit, qui a
Vhonneur d’ayoir un brevet dans ces corps, de tiendra comme indispensablement
obligé de venir avec son regiment dans quelque partie de monde que se soit.
FaLKiIner— Zhe Irish Guards. 99
Sans entrez dans de plus grand détails sur se sujet, j’ajontérai seulement, 4
Voccasion de votre qualité de colonel proprietaire d’un des régiments de l’ancienne
brigade irlandaise, qu’il est trés essentiel que je vous rappelle, Monsieur le Comte,
que la constitution de ce pays-ci n’admet n’aucune proprieté semblable, attenda
comme yous devez vous le rappeler, que les fonds pour 1’établissement militaire ne
sont accordé que pour l’année, et que par conséquent il ne peut ayoir qu’une
existence annuelle.
Capendant, quoique place ne yous soit contiée par la législature que pour un an,
ou doit en considérer la possession comme yous étant assurée, durant yotre bonne
conduite, terme que je ne juis regarder de moindre durée que celui de votre vie.
Je yous ai maintenant exposé toutes les circumstances qui m’ont paru nécessaires
pour vous aider 4 déterminer si vous devez accepter les offres gracieuses de Sa
Majesté ; je n’ai qu’ajouter, que, si aprés mtire considération, il yous parait plus
convenable de ne pas vous en prévaloir, la bonté naturelle de Sa Majesté la
disposera a interpreter les motifs qui vous auront déterminé, dela maniére la
plus favorable pour vous ; et je juis méme voux assurer, que dans le cas méme ov
yous accepteriez la proposition que je suis chargé de yous faire, et que la guerre
finie, ou méme pendant sa durée, yous avez lVayis, de quitter le service de Sa
Majesté, et de reutrer 4 celui de Sa Majesté trés Chrétienne, que yous trouverez le
Roi disposé de méme de vous accorder votre congé, et de considérer cette mesure
avec sa bonté accouturmée.
Je ne scaurois douter, que yous n’avez la bonté d’informer les officiers de la
brigade, qui out eu l’honneur de servir sous vos ordres, des intentions du Roi, 4
leur égard, selon la forme et les conditions que je vous ai specifié cy-dessus ; et
que je vous vondrez bien aussi leur recommander, le peut6t possible, a quelque
endroit convenable d’ou il pourront le plus commodément se rendre en Irlande, et
se mettre en état de remplir les deyoirs qui leur seront consignés de la part da Roi.
Je n’ai pas besoin de yous dire, que dans le cas, ot vous yous décideriez 3
accepter la proposition que Sa Majesté m’a autorisé a vous faire, il n’y aura pas un
moment a perdre pour yous rendre ici, 4 in de régler tout ce qui 4 rapport 4 la levée
des corps, le plus promptement possible.
Il ne me reste qu’A vous prier assuré, que je m’estime trés heureux d’ayoir été
autorisé 4 yous donner ce témoignage, non équiveque, de la bonne opinion et
Vestime de Sa Majesté.
J’ai Vhonneur d’étre, Monsieur le Comte, votre trés humble et tres obeissant
serviteur.
PoRTLAND.
Palais de st. James. 1°, 1794. Brevet de colonel d’infanterie (dans la brigade
irlandaise) pour Antoine Walsh, Comte de Serrant, au nom du Roi Georges III.
sous la signature de lord Portland.
George the Third, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, France, and
Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc., to our trusty and well beloved Antony, Count
Walsh de Serrant, greeting: We reposing especial trust and confidence in your
loyalty, courage, and good conduct, do by their presents constitute and appoint
you to be Colonel of a Regiment of Foot, forming part of the corps known by the
name of the Irish Brigade, and likewise to be a Captain of a company in our said
regiment. You are therefore to take our said regiment as Colonel, and the said
30 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
company as Captain into your care and charge, and duly to exercise as well the
officers as soldiers thereof in arms, and to use your best endeayours to keep them
in good,order and discipline; and we do hereby command them to obey you as
their Colonel and Captain respectively; and you are to observe and follow such
orders and directions from time to time as you shall receive from us, or any other
your superior officers, according to the rules and discipline of war, in pursuance of
the trust we hereby repose in you.
Given at our Court at St. James’s, the first day of October, 1794, in the thirty-
fourth year of our reign,
By His Majesty’s command,
PortLanpD.
AntTHony Count WALSH DE SERRANT,
Colonel of a Regiment of Foot.
{ The authorities on which this Paper is based are for the most part
indicated in the foot-notes, or in the body of the text. The writer
has also derived assistance from articles on the subject in the
Nineteenth Century, for June, 1900, and in the Household Brigade
Magazine, for the same year, contributed respectively by the late
Fitzalan Manners, and by Lt.-Col. R. Holden, Secretary of the
United Service Institute. In addition the writer desires to express
his obligations to Major-General Sir Martin Dillon, K.C.B., and to
Mr. V. Hussey Walsh, for much valuable information; to Mr. F.
Elrington Ball, M.R.I.A., for transcripts of documents in the Carte
Papers at the Bodleian Library; to Dr. W. J. O’Donnavan, M.R.1.A..,
for references to general useful authorities; and to the officials of the
Imish Record Office who have assisted his searches with their usual
courtesy and helpfulness.—C.L.F. ]
1 << Une Famille Royaliste,’’ Appendix, p. 95.
Pq ston
ie
SCARABS IN THE DUBLIN MUSEUM.
By MISS M. A. MURRAY, F.S.A. Scor.
[COMMUNICATED BY COL. G. T. PLUNKETT, C.B. |
[Read Aprit 14th, 1902.]
Tue Dublin Museum contains, among many other interesting Egyptian
antiquities, a fairly representative collection of ‘‘scarabs,” those little
beetles made of stone or faience, which were held in high estimation
by the ancient dwellers on the Nile. The living scarabeus beetle was
the symbol of the god Khepra, the Creator, and was also emblematic
of the Resurrection ; its effigy is therefore appropriately deposited in
the tomb as the symbol of life hereafter and as placing the dead body
under the direct protection of its Maker. This, however, accounts
only for the scarabs found with the dead, and gives no clue to their
use among the living. All scarabs, whether for the living or for the
dead (with the exception of the so-called heart-scarabs which had a
special purpose), are pierced as if for threading, or for setting on a
swivel as the bezil of a ring, and are plainly intended for a more
definite use than mere ornament.
The underside of the scarab is flat, and this little oval space is
inscribed, the interest and value of the scarab depending entirely upon
the inscription. The reason for this use of the scarab hus never been
explained, nor, as I said before, has the real use of scarabs themselves
ever been satisfactorily demonstrated. The generally-accepted theory
is that some were seals and some were charms, and this though not
altogether satisfactory, serves as a convenient foundation for classifi-
cation.
The meaning of the signs in the inscriptions is one of the chief
difficulties in the study of scarabs. Take, for instance, the very com-
mon hieroglyph Neb, Lord, which appears continually on scarabs. It
is impossible to say whether it is inserted merely as being of a con-
venient shape to fill the curved ends of the oval, or as a semi-sacred
word, and therefore appropriate on a protective amulet. The latter
reason would account for the constant use of other semi-sacred signs,
32 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
such as Nub, Gold, which convey no special meaning to us, and which
by their shape cannot have been inserted as purely decorative designs
to fillan otherwise empty space. Unfortunately the amulitic scarabs
have never been studied thoroughly and scientifically, and our know-
ledge on that subject is still very limited.
Scarabs may be divided into nine classes :
1. Kings’ names.
1. Names of private persons.
ut. Records of events.
tv. Titles, royal or priestly.
v. Names of gods.
vi. Sacred signs.
vu. Charms expressed in words.
vur. Sacred animals,
1x. Decorative designs.
I. Of royal names there are fourteen in this collection. The
earliest is Nub-hetep (No. 1) of the XVIth dynasty. The dark-brown
of this scarab was not its original colour. It was once green, but the
greens and blues of copper, with which scarabs are glazed, are fugitive
under certain conditions, and the green changes to brown while the
blue fades to white. It is very tempting to place No. 52 in the Vth
dynasty, as the scarab of King An.’ The name An is written with
a fish, but, as Professor Petrie pointed out to me, in this case the lotus-
design is distinctly of the XIXth dynasty (compare the lotus in the
scarab of Rameses II., No. 11). This scarab, therefore, falls under
class yor., and must be considered there. The scarabs of Menkheper-
Ra (Thothmes III. of the XVIIIth dynasty) are the most numerous
of all royal names. There are several varieties in this collection. No. 2
has the king’s cartouche upheld by two kneeling figures, emblematic
of the Upper and Lower Nile, symbolising the king’s sovereignty over
the Two Lands, z.c. North and South Egypt. No. 3 has the royalname
flanked on each side by a degenerate form of the crown of Lower
Egypt repeated four times. The crown of Lower Egypt, the Red
Crown, appears to have had some peculiarly symbolic meaning, as it
is constantly found on scarabs. No. 4 shows the king as a sphinx,
beneath whom is the prostrate figure of an enemy. No. 5, a very
1 Vide ** Petrie’s Historical Searais.’’
Murray—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. 33
-worn scarab of this king, with a rude representation on each side of
the crown of Lower Egypt. No. 6 is a square plaque engraved on
both sides; obverse, the royal cartouche, flanked by serpents, wearing
respectively the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt, symbolising, as in
the case of the two Niles, the sovereignty of the king over the two
parts of Egypt. On the reverse, is the king as the sphinx, wearing the
double crown; behind him the serpent, emblem of power, and the
winged disk, emblem of protection; beneath is the sign Neb, Lord.
No. 7 has merely the king’s title, followed by the epithet ‘‘ Chosen of
Ra.”
No.8 is the throne-name of Thothmes IV., Menkheperu-Ra, finished
with the Neb sign below.
No. 9 is doubtful, though it may possibly be Neb-maat-Ra, the
throne-name of Amenhetep III. The throne-name was assumed by the
king when he actually succeeded to the crown. It is always com-
pounded with the name Ra, showing the king’s descent from the sun-
god Ra. The throne-name is the one generally used on scarabs, though
the personal name is occasionally found.
No. 10 belongs to a very curious class of scarab which, as Professor
Petrie has shown, contain the names of two kings. In some scarabs—
unfortunately this collection has no specimen of the kind—the hiero-
glyphs are so arranged that one sign will do duty in both names. In
this scarab the names are Thothmes ITI. of the XVIIIth dynasty, and
Sety I. of the XI Xth dynasty, two kings separated by a space of more
than a hundred years. Obverse, the throne-name of Sety I., Men-
maat-Ra, associated with the crown of Lower Egypt, a couchant lion,
and the Neb sign. Reverse, the throne-name of Thothmes IIL.,
Men-kheper-Ra, the crown of Lower Egypt, the hieroglyphic titles of
the king of Upper and Lower Egypt, the sign Nefer (good luck or
happiness), and the Neb-sign. It is interesting to observe that in this
specimen the bee, the hieroglyph for the king of Lower Egypt, is much
larger than the hieroglyph for the parallel title of the king of Upper
Egypt. This, taken in conjunction with the constant occurrence of
the crown of Lower Egypt, would seem to show that the title has a
specially symbolic significance. Another explanation is that these
scarabs were made in Lower Egypt. Im all other places, except on
scarabs, the dominion of Upper Egypt takes precedence over Lower
Egypt, so much so that it it is a generally received opinion that the
king of Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt and added the title to
the one he already possessed.
No. 11 is the throne-name of Rameses II.,"User-Maat-Ra, of the
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIYV., SEC. C. | [3]
34 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
XIXth dynasty, surmounted by a design of lotus flowers and buds..
Next to Thothmes III., this king’s scarabs are the most common.
No, 12, Ba-en-Ra, Merenptah, son and successor of Rameses II.
This king is usually supposed to be the Pharaoh of the Exodus. No. 13
is of an obscure king, Se-Amen, of whom little is known but the name.
No. 14, the last of the royal scarabs in this collection, is that of
Shishak II., Kheper-sekhem-Ra, abbreviated to Kheper-Ra, and sur-
rounded by a conventional cord border. This Shishak was the
descendant and successor of Shishak I. who defeated Rehoboam and
spoiled the temple of its golden shields. Nos. 15 and 16 are doubtful.
They may be royal, but I think that they belong to?the next class.
II. Besides these there are only two private-name scarabs in this
collection.
No. 17, Mentu-sa.
No. 18, son of the sun, ? Nefer-Maat.
III. The extremely interesting series of scarabs, apparently struck
like medals to commemorate some great event, are unfortunately quite
unrepresented here. In Professor Petrie’s collection there are several
specimens of Thothmes III. They are all of the same type—the king’s
name in a cartouche, followed by the record of the event, ¢.g. born in
Thebes, crowned in Thebes, and so on. The great scarabs of Amen-
hetep III., recording his hunting and lake-making exploits as well as
his marriage, are too well known to need description.
IV. This class of scarab presents many difficulties, and it is almost
impossible to say anything about them. They may have been seals of
office, but some are probably amulitic.
No. 19, of the VIth dynasty, shows the bee of Lower Egypt,
and a quadruped of uncertain character.
No. 20. The royal title Sa Ra (Son of the Sun), the unoccupied
space being filled with a lotus flower.
No. 21. Hieroglyphs giving the ordinary title of the sovereign,
King of Upper and Lower Kgypt.
No. 22. The King as Lord of the Two Lands.
No. 28. The Living Horus, Lord of the Two Lands.
No. 24. The servant of Ra. This is read backwards.
VY. Scarabs bearing the names of gods are apparently mere
charms, the wearer being placed in this manner under the special
protection of the god.
Nos. 25-27. Amen-Ra.
W. 29
Bl. = Blue. Dk. bl. = Dark blue. Bn. = Brown. Gn.= Green. Gy. = Grey.
W = White.
36 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
I am inclined to place in this class No. 28 with the doubtful read-
ing ‘‘Amen-Ra, king of the North and South, Lord of the Two
Lands.”’
VI. anp VII. Sacred signs, and charms expressed in words are so
closely connected that it is impossible to separate them with any
accuracy. They form the largest class of scarabs and are undoubtedly
amulets against evil. So little have scarabs been studied—Professor
Petrie’s Historical Scarabs is the only book giving anything like a
classification of the subject, and he unfortunately confines himself
entirely to Royal Scarabs—that amulitic scarabs are still an unsolved
mystery.
No. 29. Khonsu as protection. Khonsu appears from a popular
story to have been the chief protector against evil spirits.
Scarabs engraved with the Boat of Ra form a large division of the
amulitic class. They are placed by Professor Petrie in the XXIInd
dynasty.
No. 30. Worthy before the Boat of Ra.
No. 31. The Boat of Ra, [therefore ] fear not.
Nos. 32 and 33. The legends on these are not decipherable.
No. 34, Gladdening [literally, Enlarging] of the heart, establish-
ing goodness, giving life.
No. 35. Life and Happiness. Or perhaps ‘“ Life and Luck” is a
better rendering.
Nos. 36-47 are untranslateable. Noone has yet ventured to
suggest how the perfectly legible hieroglyphs of amulitic scarabs
should be read.
Nos. 48 and 49, though also untranslateable, show the worship of
the Sun-god Ra under the form of an obelisk.
No. 50 gives the Crown of Lower Egypt, and two untranslateable
signs.
VIII. Sacred animals and figures are placed on scarabs with some
idea of protection.
The lion (No. 51), the fish (52), the lizard (53), and the croco-
diles (54 and 55), are animals who were supposed to possess powers
of enchantment. The double crocodiles figure largely in those
curious magical objects called Cippi of Horus, where the youthful
god is represented standing on two crocodiles.
Nos. 56 and 57 are figures of deities, associated with the ostrich
feather, the emblem of Truth and Righteousness,
Bo. 4]
7
36 3
2
= SY
fn. 43
W. 42
Bl. = Blue. Bk. = Black. Bn=Brown. Dk. bn. = Dark Brown. Gn. = Green.
Gy. =Grey. W.= White.
38 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Nos. 58 and 59. Rude representations of the ape holding the sign
Nefer, Luck.
No..60. Two nondescript animals and a sphinx. This may possibly
be a charm invoking the king, as the sphinx bears the royal snake on
the forehead.
Very curious specimens of the Sacred-animal class are the Vulture,
Beetle, and Snake scarabs, which are found in every variety of com-
bination, Nos. 61-69. Undoubtedly some special significance was
attached to the union of these three creatures together. The Beetle
is the emblem of Creation, the Vulture of Protection, and the Snake
of Power or of Death. The winged snake (61) is also symbolical
of Protection. Often the sacred animals are combined with sacred
signs, as in 64, where the Nefer and Neb signs appear; 66, two signs
of Life; 63, two Neb and Ankh (Life) signs; 69, the sign Hes,
Praise.
No. 68, Apparently a purely conventional design, but it still shows
its origin, namely, four snakes and four crowns of Lower Egypt
symmetrically arranged.
a &
W 67 W 68 Cn
W = White. Gn. = Green.
Tegel
IX. The purely decorative designs are very commonly found, and
vary in beauty according to the period to which they belong. The
spiral and the lotus are the most usual forms of decoration.
No. 70. Spiral design, combined with the hieroglyphs Uaz and Ka.
No. 71. Concentric circles.
Of lotus designs there are only two in this collection, Nos. 11 and
52, in neither case appearing separately, but in combination.
yg»)
IV.
NOTES ON AN UNPUBLISHED MS. INQUISITION (a.p.
1258), RELATING TO THE DUBLIN CITY WATER-
COURSE. FROM THE MUNIMENTS OF THE EARL
OF MEATH. By HENRY F. BERRY, ma.
[Read Frpruary 24, 1901.]
In the year 1244, Maurice FitzGerald, then Chief Justiciary of
Ireland, issued a writ directing an inquiry as to the best and most
suitable place from which water might be diverted from its course, and
‘conveyed to the city of Dublin. The citizens, who appear to have badly
needed an additional supply, were prepared to pay the costs of the
necessary works, and special enquiries were to be made as to loss and
injury to property consequent on the formation of a watercourse, which
must necessarily run through the lands of divers persons. The under-
taking was duly carried out, and the ancient city watercourse, as we
still know it, from its “‘head’’ beyond Templeogue, where the river
Dodder is diverted, was constructed in pursuance of the Justiciary’s
writ.
Prior to this period, low lying portions of the city and suburbs
depended on the waters of the Poddle, which, flowing from Tymon
and the green hills of Tallaght, through Harold’s Cross, lazily
meandered through the Liberties into the river Liffey. The more
ancient portion of the city, built on high ground, was supplied by
wells, and that the Castle itself had no other resort, is proved by an
entry in a Pipe Roll, 12 and 13 Henry III. In Easter Term, 1228-9,
the Sheriff of the Vale of Dublin made a payment of 2s. for a bucket
for the well of Dublin Castle.
It is certain that the authorities and the residents within the
precincts of the Castle were anxious to acquire a more abundant
supply of water, as in the year 1245 (a year subsequent to the issue
of the above mandate), the King directed John FitzGeffrey, then
40 Proceedings of the Royai Irish Academy.
Justiciary, to have his Hall in Dublin finished, and water conveyed
thereto through a pipe from the city conduit, the work to be completed
by the. ensuing summer.
In the course of the year 1254, water from the Dodder was flowing
into the conduit in High-street, which stood near the great gate of
the priory of the Holy Trinity, and the Lzber Albus of the corporation
of Dublin contains copies of water grants made in that year to
certain private citizens, and to some of the great ccclesiastical
foundations, (among them) to the said priory, and to the church of the
Holy Saviour, near the bridge of Dublin.
It is my privilege to bring before the Academy a hitherto un-
published,’ and (I venture to think) unknown document, which makes
us acquainted with some of the terms of an agreement, in connexion
with this water supply, made between the city authorities and the
Abbey of St. Thomas the Martyr, which stood in the western suburbs.
There are no contemporary documents known to be in existence
relating to these transactions, other than what haye been above
indicated, so that this additional evidence, only four years later in
date than the period when the Dodder water was directly supplied to
the city, is of peculiar interest and importance. The next document
in point of date with which I am acquainted is some sixty years
later.
Among the muniments preserved at Kilruddery is a parchment
roll, containing the earliest grants (c7re..1177) connected with the
foundation of St. Thomas’ Abbey by King Henry II. Attached to the
roll is an inquisition of 1258, taken in reference to the above agree-
ment, and this document Lord Meath has most kindly permitted me
to transcribe, with a view to submitting it to the Academy. These
archives of Thomas Court have been handed down in the Brabazon
family from the time of Sir William Brabazon, grantee in 1545 of its
possessions.
The inquisition is as follows :—
Inqwisitio facta a die Pasche in tres septimanas anno regni domi
Regis UWenrict xtm°. coram domino galfrido de Forestel, tune locum
justiciarii Hibernie tenente et aliis dommi Regis et domi Edwardi
fidelibus per breve domini Regis et domini Edwardi de transgressionibus
factis domino abbati et conyentui sancti Thome martiris juxta Dublin
1 It is not to be found in the Register of St. Thomas’, edited from the original in
the Bodleian, by Sir John Gilbert. There is no copy in the Register of the abbey»
preserved in the Library of this Academy, which I have examined.
Berry—Wotes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition, &e. 41
per majorem et cives Dublii per subscriptos, Haket filvwm Roberti,
Augustinum, filéwm Rogeri, Willedmum Pilets, Michaelem de Angulo,
Milonem Chever, Wille/mum Fichet, Henricum Galuy, Ricardum
Levayt, Alexandrum pistorem, Robertum Dispensatorem, Thomam de
Athgo, Adam de Weston, El: Juvenem, Rogerum Sumeter, Robertum
Tracy, Johannem le Poer, Milonem le porter, Wille/mum Mati,
Johannem de Stachkony, Phzlypum Macy, Andream Tyrell, et
Johannem, filiwm Bartholomez, Galfridum de Dondrom, Thomam
prepositum, Wille/mum forestarium, Jordanem le Taylour, et Michae/em
de Stachkonny. Qui juraé: dicunt super sacramentum suum quod sic
convenit prius inter abbatem sancti Thome martiris juxta Dublifi et
majorem et communitatem ejusdem civitatis per mandatum domini
Mauréiz file? Galfridi quod tantum caperent de aqua sua cwrrente de
Dother quantum curreret per medium mole cujvsdam rote plaustri et
non plus sine assensu conventus pro quinque mares fine facto de
quibuvs tres marcas solverunt et pro una marea annui redditus,
quemquidem redditum nunquam receperunt. Dicunt eciam quod
predict? cives facere debent murum lapideum supra aquam de Doder
ad custum suum proprium circa capud dicte aque assumpte et nondum
fecerunt. Et preterea dictus abbas dzctum murum sustinere deberet
pro predicta marca annui redditus pro hac autem conventione omnes
contentiones inter dictum abbatem et cives dicte civitatis deberent
sedari et pacificar?. Et dicunt quod jam ducterunt dictam aquam ad
duplum vel amplius et hoc ad dampnum molendinorwm dictorum
abbatis et conventus et molendinorum domini Regis qualibet septimana
ad multuram unius molendini per unum diem unde estimatwm dampnum
dictorum abbatis et conventus ad x1t libras et dampnum domzni Regis
sex marcas. Et dicunt quod maior et predicti cives vendiderunt aquam
predictam priori et conventui sancte Trinitatis Dublin, domum sancti
Johannis, sancti Salvatoris et sancti Francisci, set summam yvenditonis
pecunie nesciuzt nec recompensationem dampni inde proyenientis.
Item dicunt quod predicti maior et ciyes injuriantwr eisdem super
libertatibus suis ledendis de captione vadiorwm hominum suorwm pro
Alewyth, quod facere non debent. Et dicunt quod quedam insula
de Donouy est de baronza dicti abbates et non pertinet ad libertatem
predicte civitatzs ubi vadia eorwm sepe capta fuerunt contra libertatem
predictorum abbatis et conventus per predictos cives; dicunt eciam quod
vicus inter ecclesiam sancte Katerine et forum equorum est de libera
elemosina pertinens ad abbathiam sancti Thome. Et ad istius
inquisitionis certificationem omnes juratores suprascripti presenti
inquisition? sigilla sua apposuerunt.
42 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
From the foregoing, it is clear that the citizens of Dublin and St.
Thomas’ Abbey had had contests over the water supply derived from
the Poddle, prior to the construction of the watercourse from the
Dodder, and though, with the sanction of the Justiciary, a solemn
agreement had been entered into between the parties, for the
purpose of meeting such differences and difficulties as might arise
under the new arrangements, the citizens appear to have violated
their part of the compact, and infringed on the undoubted rights
and privileges of Thomas Court. It is matter of history that,
until the suppression of the Abbey, this and other subjects of
controversy were frequent sources of litigation between the two
bodies.
In 1258, King Henry the Third and his son Edward, as Lord of
Treland, issued a writ at suit of the Abbey, under which the foregoing
inquisition was taken, and the findings of the inquisition may be briefly
summed up as follows :—
The citizens were entitled to take from that portion of the Dodder
water appropriated to the Abbey a fixed supply, but in reality they
were drawing off double the stipulated quantity and even more.
They were entitled to take what would run ‘“ per medium mole
cujusdam rote plaustri,’ but as the word written ‘‘ mole’? (which
might possibly be read mete, and which may originally have had
a mark of contraction over it) is very indistinct, a perfectly satis-
factory conclusion as to the precise meaning of the phrase cannot be
arrived at.
At this early period, a more primitive mode of partitioning the
water than that afterwards constructed at the Tongue, may have been
used, and the clause in the inquisition may well have reference to this
point in the course. In the absence of the agreement, however, and
of a more specific description of the locality and surroundings of the
spot where the contrivance for limiting the supply was fixed, the
precise. meaning of the expression must be matter of conjecture ;
but it seems plain that a cartwheel of a circumference agreed
on (implied by the word, cwjusdam) was to be the standard of
an outlet for regulating the quantity of water to be drawn
away.
A fine of five marks was to be paid for this accommodation, of
which three had been discharged, and in addition, a yearly rent of one
mark was fixed on, which, up to the date of the inquisition, had not
been paid. The jurors assessed the damage sustained by St. Thomas’
mills and those of the King, consequent on the excessive with-
Brerry—WNotes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition, &c. 43
drawal of water, at £12 and six marks respectively, calculating at the
rate of the multure’ of one mill a day each week.
It may be well to explain here that the Dodder water, when
diverted, was conveyed in an open course or channel to the Tongue
(near Mount Argus), where by means of a stone pier, ending in an
acute angle, the water was partitioned, two thirds being conveyed to
the Liberty of Thomas Court and Donore, which supplied the mills
and tenantry of St. Thomas’ Abbey. One third was brought, va
Dolphin’s Barn to a large reservoir, which stood to the west of the
Abbey gate. From this cistern, as it was called, the water was
further led to the conduit in High-street, whence it was conducted by
means of leaden pipes to the citizen’s houses,
The jurors further found against the citizens on another count in
the Abbey’s indictment, namely, that they had failed to construct
round the ‘‘head”’ (as it was termed) a stone wall, which when built
(in consideration of the yearly rent before mentioned), the Abbey
was under terms to keep up. This ‘‘ head’’ was a dam or rampart of
stone, strong enough to resist floods, which was erected at a place
called Balrothery in the townland of Tallaght. When this was
damaged by very serious floods, the mayor and bailiffs were bound
to collect a number of the citizens and of those who had mills along
the water, with a view to its speedy repair.
Another of the findings was to the effect that water had been sold
by the city authorities to the following ecclesiastical foundations—
namely, the priory of the Holy Trinity, the House of St. John,
St. Saviour’s and St. Francis’. In the Ziber Albus of the corporation
of Dublin are found entries of grants of water in 1254 to Holy Trinity
and to the church of the Holy Saviour near the bridge of Dublin.
St. John’s was a poor house or hospital, outside the new gate, which
opened to Thomas-street, and which was founded in 1188. St. Francis’
must have been the house of Grey Friars, founded in 1235, which
stood in what is still called Francis-street. St. Saviour’s lay in
Oxmantown, on the north side of the Liffey, occupying the site
of the present Four Courts, so that the water had of necessity to
be brought across the river; for this purpose the bridge had to be
utilized, and the Friars bound themselves to carry out the works
without injuring it.
As numerous water grants to citizens for specified sums of money
are to be found in the Zider Albus, it is matter of conjecture why
1 Toll or fee which a miller takes for grinding corn.
44 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the above special cases should have been proved against the city at
suit of the Abbey. In the case of Holy Trinity, though an agreement
is mentioned, no rent or payment is named, while the supply to
St. Saviour’s is expressly stated to have been bestowed as perpetual
alms. St. Thomas’ Abbey could hardly have objected to these grants,
unless it had some claim to a share in the profits, save on the ground
of the amount of water required to supply so many large establish-
ments, which might seriously affect its own interests.
The next finding deals with infringement of the Abbey’s rights by
the city in taking pledges of their men for alewyth, in offering an
explanation of which I am much indebted to the researches of the
Deputy-Keeper of the Records, who is at present engaged in editing,
under the Master of the Rolls, the Justiciary and Plea Rolls of
Ireland, of the reign of King Edward I. Very little is known as to
the jurisdiction of the courts here at this early period, more especially
with regard to the practice of the inferior and petty courts, on the
origin and growth of which the publication in question must neces-
sarily throw much light.
The clause in our inquisition evidently refers to suits, prosecutions,
and fines in the baronial court of the lord abbot of Thomas Court, for
the liberty of Donore, which would be held at stated times by his
seneschal, and to similar proceedings in the rival court of the
mayor and citizens of Dublin. In those petty courts, asin the superior
ones, when any one had cause of complaint, he came in during a sitting,
stated his case and gaye pledges for prosecution: in minor matters,
some article of more or less value would be deposited, and in a case of
greater magnitude, a friend or neighbour appeared as surety. These
were in no sense courts of record and the proceedings were carried on
without being committed to writing. On pledges being given, the
court was bound to summon the defendant to appear and answer at a
certain day, a summoner receiving instructions verbally from the court.
In the present instance, it seems plain that the city court had been
taking the pledges of the inhabitants within the jurisdiction of the
abbot of St. Thomas, the cause of action lying in the island of Donore.
I have no where else met with mention of any part of this district
being called anisland, but it must have been some lowlying portion of
the large district and liberty of the name, insulated by the windings
of the Poddle.
Gilbert’s Mistorie and Municipal Documents of Ireland contains
notices of appeals to the Justiciary of Ireland and to the King and
council in England from St. Thomas’ Abbey against the city for draw-
Brrry—WNotes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition, &e. 45
ing to their court pleas of tenants of the former, which of right should
have been pleaded in the barony court of the abbot.
Among the ‘‘ Laws and Usages of the City of Dublin,” enrolled in
the Ohain Book of the corporation, appears the following :-—
Dr CERvEISE.
Dautrepart, chescune ki aceresce paiera par an ij®. pur ceruoise
quele vend par an si ele neyt grace des bailiffs.
Dautrepart, si ele ne face si bone cerueise come ele fere deust ne
ne tient lassise come veisin et autre, ne si com est crie parmi la vile,
ele est en la mercy de xv deniers.
As this enactment deals with women brewers, it is to be supposed
that the bulk of the brewing in the neighbourhood was in small
quantities, and that women were principally engaged in it.
In later times, the brewing trade was extensively carried on along
the line of the Poddle and the city watercourse, the water being of a
character peculiarly fayourable for the purpose, and here the brewers,
especially about Donore, would have been subject to the jurisdiction
of the Abbey.
The saxon wyte, wite, wytam were equivalent to the Latin mudcta,
fines, and the alewyth of the inquisition was, doubtless, the ale mulct
or fine of 15 pence imposed on such as brewed bad ale or an article
not up to the standard of the assise of ale. Complaints were frequent as
to the assises of bread and ale not being strictly kept, and as to the
assay not being sufficiently frequent. These old-time ale brewers
would probably have had to give pledges in anticipation for payment
of this fine, which some of them were certain to incur, and the city
authorities were active in taking these, instead of allowing them to go
to their rightful tribunal, the court of the abbot, as baron. In con-
nexion with the subject of ale, it may be interesting to recall the fact
that one of the most ancient privileges conferred on the Abbey of
St. Thomas the Martyr, was the Zoldoll, a custom of the tribute of one
gallon and a-half of the best ale and mead to be rendered by every
brewer in Dublin out of each large brew. This had been granted to
Prince John, son of Henry the Second, and while lord of Ireland,
before his accession to the throne of England, he made a gift of the
imposition, in perpetual alms, to the abbey founded by his father.
The inquisition concludes with a finding that the street between
St. Catherine’s church and the horse market was of free alms,
46 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
appertaining to St. Thomas’ Abbey. The city, as it grew westward,
began to encroach on the monastic precincts, for the Abbey, at its
foundation, stood at a considerable distance from the walls, and some
authoritative pronouncement on the extent and nature of the abbot’s
jurisdiction in this direction must have become necessary. Gilbert’s
Calendar of Ancient Records of Dublin (vol. ii.), under the year 1571,
mentions houses built on the old horse market in St. Thomas-street,
which street Speed’s map (1610) shows as then running east of
St. Catherine’s, and it seems probable that this market lay nearer
St. Francis-street and the New Gate. The same calendar (vol. i.,
p- 121) describes ground outside the New Gate, near the Franciscans’
convent, the grant of which reserves a place for holding pleas annually
during the time of the fair. Another grant is entered, wherein a
curtilage in the city land where the fair was held, is mentioned as
lying outside the New Gate, in St. Francis-street.
Enweed a]
AE
AN ARABIC INSCRIPTION FROM RHODESIA.
By STANLEY LANE-POOLE, M.A., Lrrv.D.
(Prat I.)
[Read May 12, 1902.]
Tur Marble tablet represented on Plate I. is remarkable not only
as the first Arabic inscription so far discovered in Rhodesia, but as
a document relating to a very early settlement of Muslims in South
Africa, unrecorded in any Arabic history. Much has been published
during the past ten years on the ancient monuments of Rhodesia, and
the thirteen sites which formed the basis of Bent’s Ruined Cities of
Mashonaland have now been multiplied by more recent exploration
till they are estimated! at five hundred distinct groups of ruins, of
which however scarcely half have been even partially surveyed, and
none has yet received thorough investigation by trained archeologists.
These interesting monuments, scattered over the immense stretch of
country between the Zambesi and Limpopo rivers, and bearing strong
points of resemblance to the remains of ancient buildings in Southern
Arabia, have naturally attracted much attention, and their origin is
one of the most curious problems that archeology has to solve. The
hypothesis that they were the works of Sabsean miners of the period
when the South Arabian kingdoms were at the height of their power,
more than fifteen hundred years before the Christian era, and that
the numerous ancient gold-workings connected with these monuments
were really the source of the ‘gold of Ophir’ which the ‘ships of
Tarshish’ brought for the adornment of Solomon’s temple, as argued
by Professor A. H. Keane? and others, has everything in its favour,
except epigraphic proof, and it may still be hoped that further ex-
1 Hall and Neal, Ancient Ruins of Rhodesia, 1902.
2 The Gold of Ophir, whence brought and by whom? 1901.
R.I-A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C. | [4]
48 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ploration may reveal Himyaritic inscriptions. Nothing is more pro-
bable than that the sea-farmg Arabs of the Yemen and Hadramawt
should have been in close commercial relations with the east coast of
Africa and have discovered the mineral resources of Rhodesia where
numerous gold-mines still testify to very ancient workings.
What the ancient Himyarites probably did in almost prehistoric
times, the medieval Arabs undoubtedly carried on. There is every
reason to believe that the predominant influence of Arab traders,
and in some parts even of Arab rulers, was continuously maintained
along the east coast of Africa as far south at least as Beira down
to the arrival of the Portuguese at the close of the fifteenth century.
When Vasco da Gama reached Sofala, the medieval port near Beira
(towards which the ancient sites and gold routes of Rhodesia evidently
converge), he found ‘ Moorish’, 7.e. Arab, traders employing natives
to work the gold mines!, and seized Arab dhows laden with gold dust.
There is no doubt that this commerce had been going on for centuries,
if not for some thousands of years. The references in the works of
Arabic geographers and travellers, scanty and vague as they are,
sufficiently prove that Sofala was well-known as a port for the gold
trade. El-Mas‘adi, writing in the middle of the tenth century,
mentions Sofala (which is itself an Arabic word, meaning ‘low-
country’) as the terminus of the voyages of the merchants of the
Persian Gulf, and adds that ‘the country of Sofala and Wak-Wak
produces quantities of gold and other marvels.’”? El-Birini, Ibn-Said*
and Yakut refer to this trade, and el-Idrisi says that in all the land
of Sofala gold is found in abundance, sometimes in nuggets of a (ratl)
pound’s weight.*
Probably these commercial relations between Arabia and the east
coast of Africa had been uninterruptedly maintained from ancient
1 J. de Barros, Da Asia, Dec. I, liv. x, cap. 1.
2 Ed. Barbier de Meynard, i, 6, 7.
3 Reinaud, Fragm. Ar., 112; Géogr. d Aloulfeda, Intr., 141.
4 Jaubert, i, 66.
Lanet-PooLE—On an Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. 49
times ; but when the Muslim Arabs first made settlements on the coast
is not stated in any of the general Arabic histories. There was
evidently no definite invasion at the time of the great Mohammadan
expansion in the seventh century, or it would have been recorded.
The only authority we possess, and that at second hand, is a ‘chronicle
of the kings of Quiloa’ which was discovered when Francisco de
Almeida, the Portuguese viceroy, took that island in 1505. An
abstract of this history—the original is apparently lost,—appears in
the celebrated Da Asta of Joao de Barros', who seems to have had the
work at his disposal; and a modern Arabic ms. from Zanzibar in the
British Museum (Or. 2666), entitled ils hss | us Sa) brs’,
contains a brief history of Kilwa (Quiloa) which has evidently been
compiled from some such earlier source as the Chronica dos Reys de
Quiloa cited by Barros. According to this solitary authority there
were three independent settlements of Muslims on the Zanzibar coast.
First a number of the schismatic sect of Zeydis—whose leader, Zeyd
ibn “Ali, a descendant of the prophet, was executed for proclaiming
himself as the Mahdi in 740 by the Omayyad caliph Hisham’,—
emigrated to the African coast, somewhat north of the modern
Zanzibar, to escape persecution. Barros calls them ‘ Kmozaydij’,
which, as Mr. Arnold suggests‘, is probably a corruption of Umma
Zeydiya, ‘the people of Zeyd’. These were followed in the first
half of the tenth century by a second (but orthodox) band of
fugitives, who left their homes near the Bahreyn on the Arabian
coast of the Persian Gulf in consequence of the oppression of the
amir of Lasah (probably el-Hasa), and settled at the same place as
the Zeydis, whom they drove into the interior. This second colony
founded the great port of Makdashii (Magadaxo) which became the
1 Dee. I, liv. vil, cap. 4.
2 Published by Mr. 8. Arthur Strong in the Journal of the R. Asiatic Society,
1895, 385-430.
° Et-Tabari, Annales, ed. de Goeje et alii, 111, 1742 ff.
* Arnold, The Preaching of Islam, 278, 279.
50 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
metropolis of the Arabs on that coast.1 The Morocco traveller
Ibn-Batiita visited this city in 1332, and describes it as a vast town,
with numerous mosques, and under the rule of a Mohammadan sultan
called Sheykh Abu-Bekr ibn ‘Omar. He mentions its trade with
Egypt, and says that Magadaxo was fifteen days’ sail from Zeyla‘ on
the Red Sea.” It was situated about half-way between Zanzibar and
Bab-el-Mandeb. The third settlement of Muslims came early in the
eleventh century from Shiraz in Persia. Sailing from Hurmuz in
the Persian Gulf, and avoiding orthodox Magadaxo—for the new-
comers belonged to the Shia sect,—they proceeded further south to
Kilwa (Quiloa), where they found a previous Muslim settlement
and a mosque. Here they built a fort, and ruled until the coming
of the Portuguese. This was the most important of all the Arab
settlements, for the kings of Quiloa extended their sway north over
Mombasa,’ and south over Sofala,* where they entered into relations
with the native ruler, whom the Portuguese called the Monomotapa
or Benomotapa, a name which Professor Keane explains as Bantu for
‘lord of the mines’, but which the Portuguese understood as meaning
merely ‘ emperor’.’
Such is, in abstract, the little that we know about the Moham-
madan settlements on the east coast of Africa. Although the Quiloa
chronicle places the first arrival of Muslims not earlier than 740,
it is permissible to assume that other Muslims had preceded them,
since it is hardly probable that a band of persecuted fugitives would
have fled to an unexplored land, where the natives had the reputation
of cannibals, unless some others had shown them the way. That
there was some such early settlement, not only earlier than the date
1 Cp. Rigby: Report on Zanzibar Dom., 47, where the migration of Arabs of
the tribe of el-Harith from the Bahreyn to East Africa and the foundation of
Magadaxo is placed about a.p. 924.
2 Ed. Defrémery and Sanguinetti, ii, 180 ff.
3 Strong, J.R.A.S., 1895, 430.
4 Barros, Dec. I, liv. vii, cap. 4; Wilson, Monomotapa, 109.
5 Barros, Dec. I, liv. x, cap. 1; Keane, Ophir, 9.
Lane-Poote—On an Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. 51
when the Zeydis established themselves north of Zanzibar, but also
much further south, is implied by the inscription which has reached
us from Rhodesia. The text, chiselled on a small slab of white
marble, is quite legible :—
es i pee pale SY
AM Spry voste all ald
Pee ee allie
Srey oes Sle co, ale
lh 5 2h pi foliated Giana
ently aco paxil et =
mabe al LEM QF ee
al
(The pointing in the original is reproduced above. There are no
points to uot or to the & of d or to pas: eeyel omits
the first ae and has superfluous dots under w)
Translation :—
In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.
There is no god but God. Mohammad is the apostle of God,
God bless and save him! And this [is| the tomb
of Sallam wbn Salah [who| had forsaken
this world for the Last Abode, and was [i.e. after |
the Hyra of the Prophet of the faithful five and ninety
years. The sentence ends. And God is all-knowing.
God.
There are several grammatical errors in the text. ) dd
should of course be mm \>. It has been suggested that it may
52 Proceedings of the Royal Trish Academy.
=
be -# \3, ‘this is indeed the tomb’; but I have never met with
this classical form in an Arabic inscription, unless in Koran
quotations. cs | . as third person feminine, does not agree with
Bae
its masc. subject - \-. Possibly itis 3 8, ‘thou hadst forsaken’.
In any case it is a very peculiar phrase. |» should be \a\. The
phrase upceecll ze 5> oS, etc., oddly as it is expressed,
can only mean that the wet happened ninety-five years before.
The formulas aS) = and — é}\ call for special notice. AO) 45
‘the sentence palin? ; uctile to ‘end of extract’ or finis, may
possibly imply that the inscription is copied from an earlier document.*
-- aly, ‘God is All-knowing’ or ‘God knows best’ is a phrase,
like ,\-\ 4J\, that suggests some doubt on the part of the writer
as to the accuracy of the statement. As to the names of the
deceased, they may be read simply Salim ibn Salah, ‘Peace (or
security) son of Prayer’ (for Shc), which might possibly be names
adopted by a native convert; or the first name should have teshdid
and should be read Sallam, a not unusual Muslim name in the first
century of Islam, whilst the second may either be a mistake for
do. Silah, or possibly a form of the root cle with the meaning of
Mee, ‘ strong.’
We have therefore in this curious inscription an epitaph on a
Muslim who is stated to have died in the year 95 of the Hijra,
1 Mr. A. G. Ellis, of the Department of Oriental Manuscripts in the British
Museum, informs me, however, that this phrase is characteristically West African,
and that he has seen it in a draft inscription in absurdly bad Arabic composed by
a West African native for a memorial stone to soldiers who fell in the recent
Ashanti expedition. He has also met with such names as Tawhid and Ya-sin
among West African negroes, which would be parallels to ‘Peace’ and ‘ Prayer’
in the present inscription. That this inscription is not West African, however,
is conclusively proved, not only by its provenance, but by the pointing of the fé
and kafs, which are differently pointed in the Maghrabi script.
Lanr-Pootr—On an Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. 58
or A.D. 718-714. There is nothing whatever to suggest that it is a
forgery. Its history is perfectly straightforward. It was brought
some eight or nine years ago from what appeared to be ‘an ancient
temple’ in Matabeleland—unfortunately all inquiries have failed
to trace the site—to Mr. P. Hanbury France, an agent of the
Union Steamship Company at Cape Town. Mr. France attached no
importance to it, and gave it as a curiosity to Dr. W. M. Russell,
a surgeon on that line of steamers, who afterwards practised at
Kimberley, and Dr. Russell passed it on to Mr. G. S. Cary, of
Terenure, Co. Dublin, in whose possession it remains. No one in
South Africa could have forged it, nor is there any motive for
forgery. Moreover, forgers follow received types, and this in-
scription is peculiar in many ways. Nor do I believe that it was
imported. The inscription is too unusual in diction to have been
composed at any educated Mohammadan centre, but its peculiarities
and grammatical errors are natural in such an out-of-the-way place as
southern Rhodesia. J am told that there is no marble in Rhodesia,
but this remains to be proved. Arabs do not carry tombstones about
with them on their travels, nor can I imagine such an inscription
entering the mind of an Arab of Arabia or a Muslim of Egypt: the
language is too bizarre.
Assuming the inscription to have been engraved in Rhodesia
and set up over the tomb of this Sallam son of Salah, the question
remains, is it the original epitaph or merely a commemorative tablet
erected in later times? The style of writing is no certain guide,
since we possess no other specimens from the same region, and
without dated examples epigraphic science cannot exist. The
Arabic character varies so greatly at different places in different
ages that it would be rash to draw conclusions from similar styles
of inscriptional naskhz elsewhere. Still, judging roughly by the
character, it is impossible to believe that it goes back so far as the
54 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
eighth century, and having regard to the peculiar formulas ‘ the
sentence (or record) ends’, and ‘God knows best’, I incline to the
belief that there was some doubt as to the actual site of the tomb of
this Sallam ibn Salah—possibly a local saint,—and that some later
Muslim put up the tablet, with all reserve, to commemorate the spot
identified by local tradition. Such tablets are not uncommon in the
East over the graves of holy men, and to erect them is a pious act
which brings credit to the commemorator. There remains, however,
the possibility that the century of the date has been omitted, but this
I think improbable.
It will be seen that there are a good many problems connected
with this tablet which are not easily solved. This much, however,
may be laid down. If not actually a contemporary tombstone of a
Muslim who died in southern Rhodesia in the beginning of the
eighth century, it shows at least that there was a local tradition
in regard to such a person strong enough to induce some one in
later times to set up a commemorative tablet recording his name
and date. As the solitary Arabic document from South Africa the
inscription is valuable; but it is to be hoped that it will not long
enjoy its unique eminence. A qualified archeological exploration
of Rhodesia ought to bring to light other monuments of the Muslim
and possibly far earlier periods, and decide many questions in regard
to the ancient and medieval history of South Africa which can
never be settled until we have the evidence of trained explorers
and thorough excavation of the numerous sites which so far have
been scarcely more than looked at. Such an archeological survey
should be undertaken without delay, and the results should be
collected in the Museum ef the Rhodesia Scientific Association at
Bulawayo, whose members are fully alive to the importance of the
subject,
ee Sa0]
Wik
SOME FURTHER NOTES ON ANCIENT HORIZONTAL WATER-
MILLS, NATIVE AND FOREIGN. By JOSEPH P. O’REILLY,
C.E.
(Praves II., III., ann IV.)
[Read Aprin 14, 1902.]
Ly the paper on the ‘‘ Milesian Colonization of Ireland considered in
relation to Gold Mining,” read before the Royal Irish Academy,
January 22nd, 1900, I took occasion to cite from the work by Kugéne
Trutat on ‘‘The French Pyrenees” the names of the tools employed by
the gold washers at Pamiers in the Comté de Foix, and their probable
Celtic derivation, with a view to show the connexion that probably
existed between the tribes or peoples engaged in the working of the
precious metals in ancient times all over Europe, particularly in the
mountainous regions, and the consequent similarity not only in the
forms of the tools employed by them, but also in their names or desig-
nations, Convinced that this path of inquiry is capable of leading to
very striking as well as useful results, as regards both Archeology and
Philology, I have been expecting to meet with further opportunities
of pursuing it, and beg to submit the following remarks as to the
probable origin of certain ancient Irish water-mills. The subject
was suggested to me by the article which appeared in the Ulster
Journal of Archeology, vol. iv., 1856, p. 6, entitled ‘‘ Ancient Water-
Mills,”’ from which the following details are worth citing : —
“The accompanying drawing represents accurately an ancient
wooden water-wheel in the possession of Mr. James Bell, of Pros-
pect, near Ballymoney, county Antrim, excepting only that such
portions as are now imperfect, have been restored in the drawing
to correspond with the others.
‘“‘It was found a number of years ago, in the bog of Moycraig,
within one mile of Morsside, on a farm now occupied by William
Hamill, and which is comprised in the district called ‘ The Grange of
Drumtullogh.’ The spot is low and flat, and no’stream is at present
visible near it.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C. | [5]
1856; —Nol.4, — p6.
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O’Reitty—Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foreign. 57
‘The wheel here represented is a horizontal one, and is the most
pertect specimen yet foundin Ireland. Portions of another of precisely
similar construction are now in the Belfast Museum which were found
in the county Down, near Killinchey, beside an artificial island, or
water fastness, which is now occupied as a garden. The material of
the wheel now figured is of oak, and when found was quite soft and
spongy from long immersion in the bog; but on being dried, it
recovered its hardness, and appeared perfectly sound. The water-
wheel consists of a nave and upright axle, both cut out of one solid
piece of wood, the entire length being 6 feet by 6 inches. Round the
nave are inserted nineteen buckets or ladles, curved in the manner
shown in the drawing, and which received the impulse of the stream of
water. Ten of these still remain perfect. At the upper end of the
axle is a deep groove 12 inches long, in which moves an oaken wedge,
used evidently for the purpose of raising or lowering a small millstone
which was placed above, or for what would be called now ‘ gristing
the mill.’ ‘he whole mechanism was supported by a stone pivot or
gudgeon secured by a wedge at the foot of the axle where it still
remains. This pivot, no doubt, revolved upon another stone hollowed
to fit it (a socket). A stone of this kind was in fact found near the
water-wheel at Killinchey, and is preserved along with it in the Belfast
Museum, bearing evident marks of having been deeply perforated by
some pivot constantly revolving init” (p.7): ‘‘The buckets are ingeni-
ously fastened into the nave by mortising, and are firmly secured by
an oaken pin driven in a sloping direction, from the outer circumference
of the nave, in such a manner as to pass through the inner ends of
three, and at equal distances, each bucket in the wheel had three pins
passing through it, thus securing it completely to the two adjoining
ones and to the nave.
‘‘ No tradition now remains among the people respecting the use of
water-mills of this construction in the country, but there is evidence
(which I give further on) to prove that they were common at least in
Ulster three centuries ago. However, down to that period and even
later, the use of the quern or hand-mill was quite general throughout
Ireland and its use is not yet given up in some of the western islands of
Scotland. So early as the thirteenth century legal means were adopted
in Scotland to compel the people to abandon the use of the hand-mill
for the larger water-mills then introduced. In 1284, in the reign of
Alexander III., it was enacted that ‘No man sall presume to grind
quheit, maishlock, or rye, with hand mylne, except he be compelled
be storm, or be lack of mills, quhilk sould grind the samer ; and in this
[5 2]
58 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
case, gif a man grinds at handmylnes, he sall give the threttein
measure as multer; and gif anie man contraveins this our prohibi-
tion he sall tine his hand-myleres perpetuallie.’ Yet in 1819,
M‘Culloch ( Western Isles, vol. 11., p. 30) states that the quern is found
in every house in St. Kilda, and the statistical account of Scotland,
published in 1845, mentions that in the parish of Sandsting in Shet-
land, there are ‘ querns or hand mills without number.’
‘There seems to be reason, however, for believing that water-mills.
were not unknown in Ireland at a very early period. Dr. O’ Donovan,
in an article in the Dublin Penny Journal, has quoted several passages
from the Brehon laws, which are of great antiquity, stating the
damages to which the miller and the millwright shall be respec-
tively liable in case of an accident occurring in a mill turned by
water. He also gives references to many of the lives of Irish Saints,
in which water-mills are expressly mentioned as having been erected
by ecelesiastics, proving that they were in use not long after the intro-
duction of Christianity.
‘Mr. Getty, in his account of Torry Island (Ulster Journal of
Archeology, vol. i., pp. 148, 146), mentions the curious circumstance
of a yery ancient stone cross being fastened at its base into a mull-
stone; and notes the tradition of the islanders, that all ancient
buildings there have a millstone in their foundations.
‘* In the notes to the translation of the Annals of Ulster (now in
course of publication in this Journal) at a.p. 587, it is stated from
the Breviary of Aberdeen, that Constantine, a King of Damnonia in
Britain, ‘haying abdicated his throne, repaired to Ireland and
became miller to a monastery.’ It is well known that a mill was
almost always in connexion with religious houses of the Cistercian
Order.
‘In the Annals of Tighernach, one of the most trustworthy of our
old Irish chronicles, there is a curious passage at the year 561, where
mention is made of the slaughter of the sons of Blathmac, King of
Ireland, in the mill of Maclodran; and a verse is quoted from an
ancient poem, in which the Bard fancifully addresses the mill thus:
‘O mill! what hast thou ground? precious wheat? Thou hast
ground not oats, but the sons of Cerbhall,’ &c. (O’Connor, Rerum.
Hibern. Scriptores, vol. ii, 198). The writers of the historical notes
to the Ordnance Survey of Londonderry gave quotations from the
Book of Kells (MS. Trinity College), and the Registry of Clonmacnoise
‘Clarendon MSS., Brit. Museum), in which grants of mills to
monasteries in the eleventh century are mentioned; and various
O’Retriy— Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foreign. 59
passages may be found scattered through our Irish Annals, in which
allusion is made to mills. Most writers who have mentioned the
subject seem to take it for granted that water-mills must have been
introduced into Ireland by Roman ecclesiastics, or at all events from
some country subject to Roman sway, especially as it is pretty well
ascertained that a mill of some kind was usually at each Roman
station in Britain; and a decisive evidence seemed to be afforded by
the similarity or rather identity of the Irish and Latin names for a
mill. A little further examination of the question may perhaps
show that this is not so certain, at least so far as the North of
Ireland is concerned.’”’ The writer then examines the philological
argument first. He cites Cormac’s Glossary, and discusses the
derivation of the Irish term Dwilean. The forms in which it appears
in the modern languages which are kniown to be directly descended
from the Latin, such as the Italian, Spanish, French, Walloon, &c.,
are mulino (It.); molino (Sp.); moulin (Fr.); molin (Walloon).
‘“‘But,”’ he continues, ‘‘if we examine further, we shall find the very
same root, little more changed than in the above examples in a
variety of other languages, which can claim an origin as independent
as the Latin, and are spoken by nations who were never influenced by
Roman sway.’ He then gives a table of the equivalents for the word
‘mill’ as used in the chief languages of Europe, exclusive of the
four already mentioned, twenty-eight in all. In each case the name
given is a slight modification of the word ‘mill.’ This slightly
modified name is found in countries extending from the shores of the
Mediterranean to the far North, and from the coasts of Spain and
Ireland to the extremity of Russia. To complete the chain we
have only to note further, that in Persian ma/ is ‘to grind,’ and
that in Sanskrit, the old language of India, malana signifies ‘ rubbing
or grinding.’ The root is therefore common to all the extensive class
of languages known as the Indo-European family, as well as to
‘several outlying districts not included among them. There can be
littie doubt, therefore, that it is one of extreme antiquity, and cannot
be claimed exclusively by the Latin any more than by the Celtic.”
(p. 9.)\—He then discusses the probability of the Romans having
introduced the water-mill into the British Isles. He shows that the
hand-mill was no doubt in extensive use from a remote period, not
only in Italy, but all over Europe and the East. It must have been well
known to the Gauls and Britons in Cesar’s time, as he speaks of
their ‘‘ molita cibaria,” or ground breadstufts.
(p. 10.)—‘‘ The water-mill does not appear to have been a Roman
60 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
invention. Strabo mentions that a mill of this kind was erected in
Pontus (in Asia) at the palace of King Mithridates (Strabo, xii., 3,
§ 30), which is the earliest of which we have any record. Indeed, we
have it on Roman authority that water-mills were not introduced in
Italy before the time of Julius Ceesar (who died B.c. 44), and were then
only used by a few individuals (Vitruvius x., 5, 2). Pliny’s slight
notice of them, which only occurs in one sentence of his entire great
work, shows that they were by no means common in his day (Plin.
lib. xvili., ec. 10). He died a.p. 79. The earliest mentions of public
water-mills is about the year 398, under the Emperors Arcadius and
Honorius ; and the manner in which they are referred to in the laws.
of the period shows that they were thena novelty (Code Teod. 14, 15).
Now it was at this very time that the Romans finally abandoned
Britain. It appears therefore that the Romans never used water-
mills to any great extent, nor have we any satisfactory proof that
they established such mills at each of their military stations in
Britain. Many small millstones, indeed, belonging to the Roman
hand-mills, have been discovered on the sites of the Roman stations,
but so far as I am aware only a few doubtful cases have been brought
forward to prove the existence of water-mills at those places.
‘“‘For the foregoing reasons and from the consideration that there
never was a friendly intercourse maintained between Ireland and the
Roman province, it seems unlikely that water-mills were introduced
into this country from Roman Britain. We must therefore seek for
their origin in some other quarter, and, in my opinion, the weight of
probability rests on the North of Europe. Although the Danes and
Norwegians did not effect their conquest of Ireland for many centuries.
after the departure of the Romans from their British province, they,
and the other maritime tribes in the neighbourhood of the Baltic had
maintained an intercourse with these islands for an indefinite
period. The details of this intercourse is unknown to us further
than what may be gathered from scanty allusions in old Irish Annals
and Icelandic sagas. But there seems to be little doubt that during
the obscure period alluded to these Gothic tribes had been gradually
colonizing the east and north of Scotland, and of course bringing
within them whatever arts of civilization they possessed, which there
is reason to believe were greatly superior to those existing in their
new colonies. A people who could send out fleets of well-equipped
vessels and armies of mailed warriors, sweeping the coasts of Europe,
and conquering wherever they appeared, must have possessed con-
siderable mechanical skill, and were not likely to be without water--
O’Rettty— Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foreign. 61
mills for grinding their corn. Their native hills abounded in
cascades suggesting the employment of water-power, and their forests
furnished the materials for their mll-wheels.”
(p. 11.) —‘‘ Now it so happens that the poetical account of the first
water-mill ever erected in Ireland (written by a bard who died
A.D. 1024) and the popular tradition state the millwright who
constructed it was brought from Scotland. This was in the third
century, when, as the poet relates, the Monarch Cormac, desirous of
saying a beautiful bond-maid the labour of grinding corn daily in a
quern, sent across the sea for a millwright who erected a mill on the
stream of Nith near Tara (Poem of Cuan O’Lochain, quoted in the
historical notes to the Ordnance Survey of Londonderry). We have
no description of this mill to assist us in forming a conception of
its form or construction, but we may assume that it was of wood, and
of a simple form, probably not very different from the one which is
the subject of the present article. This traditional story, at all events,
points to the quarter from whence the invention was believed to have
come. Now, if on examination, we should find that mills quite
similar to our specimen were in use, or are actually still in use, ina
number of districts in the British Islands and the islands adjoining,
known to have been peculiarly Scandinavian, and for centuries under
the government of the Northmen, it would be difficult to avoid the
inference that these machines were introduced thither by them.
This I am enabled to show from various independent authorities,
whose several notices of mills I now place together for comparison.”
1. Ln the Farée Islands.—‘‘ The construction of a water-mill in Faroe
is exceedingly simple. The building for the most part consists merely
of wood, the roof being supported by four posts or pillars; but, to save
timber, these pillars are sometimes built of stone, mixed with mud; it
is entirely open below, so that the water can have a free course through
it. On the ground is placed a loose beam, haying in the middle a
piece of iron, with a small hole in it, which, however, does not pass
through the beam. This hole is made to receive the gudgeon of a
perpendicular axle, which proceeds up to the millstone, and this axle
supplies the place of a crown wheel and spindle. To the upper end
of the axle is fixed a round rod of iron, which passes through the
lower stone, and which supports the iron cross that bears the upper
millstone. At the lower end of the axle there are eight leaves or
boards mortised into it, about 18 inches in length, a foot in breadth,
and from 1 to 13 inch in thickness. These leaves, which perform the
part of a water-wheel, do not stand exactly in a perpendicular, but with
62 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
a somewhat oblique direction, so as to turn their flat sides towards the
water which falls upon them; and the spout, which must give the
water a sudden fall, is placed with its lower end close to these leaves.
From one end of the beam lying on the ground, which supports the
axle and the upper millstone, a piece of wood rises in a perpendicular
direction towards the millwork, where it rests on wedges, and by
pushing in or drawing out these wedges the upper stone can be
raised or lowered at pleasure. The millstone makes a hundred revo-
lutions in a minute; but, as the stones in general are small, and have
no furrows in them, they grind slowly, and are not calculated for
the preparation of grits or barley.—Landt’s ‘ Farde Islands,’ 1810,
p. 293.”
(p. 12.)—2. In the Shetland Islands—‘‘In skirting along the
harbour (‘ Rigseller Voe, in Shetland’) numerous slender rills were
observed ambling down the dales to pay their tribute to the Voe.
These occasionally served to supply some small mill, the presence of
which was signified by a low shed of unhewn stones that stretched
across a diminutive streamlet, over which it was possible in many
places to stride. Compared with a water-mill of Scotland or England,
the grinding apparatus of Shetland seemed designed for a race of
pigmies. The millstones are commonly formed of a micaceous gneiss,
being from 30 to 36 inches in diameter. Under the framework by
which they are supported is a sort of horizontal wheel of the same
diameter as the millstones, named ‘ Zirl,’ which consists of a stout
cylindrical post of wood, about 4 feet long, into which are mortised
twelve small float boards, placed in a slanting direction, or at an
oblique angle. It has a pivot at its under end which runs in a
hollowed iron plate fixed ina beam. A strong iron spindle, attached
to the upper end of the ‘Tir/,’ passes through a hole in the under
millstone, and is firmly wedged in the upper one. A trough conducts
the water that falls from the hill, upon the feathers of the ‘ Zirl,’ at
an inclination of 40° or 45°, which, giving motion to the upper mill-
stone, turns it slowly round. Such is a description of this exquisite
piece of machinery, the invention of which is probably as old as the
time of Harold Harfagre.”
3. In the Hebrides —‘ The mills at Lewis are probably the greatest
curiosity a stranger can meet with on the island. There is scarcely a
stream along the coast, or any part of the island, on which a mill is
not to be seen. These mills are of very small size and of a very
simple construction. The water passes through their middle, where
the wheel, a solid piece of wood, generally 18 inches *u diameter,
O’Rritty—Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foreign. 63
stands perpendicularly. A bar of iron runs through the centre of this
wheel. This bar of iron, or axle, rests on a point of steel, which is
fixed on a plank, the one end of which is fixed in the mill wall, the
other in the end of a piece of plank, which stands at right angles with
the plank on which the wheel rests. The upper end of the axle fits
into a cross-bar of iron, which is fitted into the upper millstone,
which is rested upon wooden beams or long stones. There is a pur-
chase upon the end of the said perpendicular beam or plank by which
the upper millstone can be raised or lowered (p. 13). There are nine
pieces of board, 8 inches broad and 13 feet long, fixed in the wheel,
parallel and at equal distance from each other, upon which the water
is brought to bear; which, together with a few sticks for roof and
some heather for hatch, constitutes a Lewis mill.””—‘‘ New Statistical
Account of Scotland,” 1845.
M‘Culloch states that the quern was found in every house in
St. Kilda, and recommends the establishment of a water-mill to super-
sede it. He then gives a description of a water-mill almost identical
with those already described, and says: ‘‘It would not be easy to
construct the horizontal mill on cheaper terms.’’—M‘Culloch’s ‘‘ West-
ern Isles of Scotland,” vol. 11., p. 30.
4, Isle of Man.—‘‘ Many of the rivers (or rather rivulets) not
having sufficient water to drive a mill the greatest part of the year,
necessity has put them on an invention of a cheap sort of mill, which,
as it costs very little, is no great loss, though it stands idle six months
in the year. The water-wheel, about 6 feet in diameter, les hori-
zontal, consisting of a great many hollow ladles, against which the
water, brought down in a trough, strikes forcibly, and gives motion
to the upper stone, which, by a beam and iron is joined to the centre
of the water-wheel.”—‘ Gibson’s Camden” (Isle of Man), vol. ii.,
p. 1448.
5. Ulster.—I conclude with a few remarks more, viz. :—‘‘That from
the said long bogg (beside Newtownards, Co. Down), issue many rills
and streams, which make small brooks (some of them almost dry in
ye summer) that run to the sea on each side of ye upper half-barony,
and on them each townland almost had a little milln for grinding oats,
dryed in potts, or singed and leazed in ye straw, which was ye old
Irish custom, the mealle whereof, called ‘ greddane,’ was very coarse.
The mills are called ‘ Danish,’ or ladle millies; the axle-tree stood
upright and ye small stones or querns (such as are turned with hands)
on ye top thereof; the water-wheel was fixed at ye lower end of ye
axle-tree, and did run horizontally among ye water, a small force
64 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
driving it. Ihave seen of them in ye Isle of Man, where the Danes
domineered, as well as here in Ireland, and left their customs behind
them.” —‘‘ Montgomery MSS.,” p. 321.
(p. 14.)—*‘ Anyone by comparing the foregoing separate descrip-
tions will at once perceive that the several mills mentioned are identical,
in principle and construction, with the one described in the present
paper, while differing in a few details, such as the number of buckets
or paddles. It will also be noted that the districts in which they
are described as being commonly used form, when taken together, a
geographical chain, leading directly from the country of the North-
men through the old seats of their dominion in these countries, and
terminating on the eastern coast of our own province.
“Tt will be seen likewise that the last of the extracts alludes
specially to the popular tradition, both in Ulster and in the Isle of
Man that these mills were Danish. The same passage, written about
the year 1698, shows also that in the county Down a short time
previously such mills were quite common. It is only remarkable that
more of these remains have not been discovered, but this has arisen no
doubt from the perishable nature of their materials.”"—Roperr M‘ApaM.
To these citations may be added one from the ‘“‘ Encyclopedia
Brit.”’ (9th ed.), vol. ix., p. 344, article ‘‘ Flour Mills.” The nature
of the water-mills, which were formerly common in Great Britain and
Ireland, and which continued in use well into the present century
(nineteenth), may be gathered from the following description of one
visited by Sir Walter Scott during his voyage in the Shetland Islands,
&c., in 1814. (‘‘ Lockhart’s Life’’):—‘‘ In our return, pass the
upper end of the little lake of Cleik-him-in, which is divided by
a rude causeway from another small loch, communicating with it,
however, by a sluice for the purpose of driving a mill; but such a
mill! The wheel is horizontal, with the cogs turned diagonally to the
water; the beam stands upright, and is inserted in a stone quern of
the old-fashioned construction. This simple machine is enclosed in a
hovel about the size of a pigstye, and there is the mill! There are
about 500 such mills in Shetland, each incapable of grinding more
than a sack at a time.”
That mills, mechanically worked, were known and erected in
Ireland in the thirteenth century appears from the following entry in
the Calendar of State Papers, Ireland 1171-1251, p. liv. (2941), June
O’Retriv—Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foregin. 65
3rd, 1248. Mandate from the Justiciary of Ireland to assign to the
abbot and monks of St. Mary’s, near Dublin, land or annual rent of
10 marks in compensation for the injury done to them by the erection
of the King’s mills near the Castle of Dublin. That the hand-mills
were in common use at that time appears from the first entries in
that calendar, p. 1, entry 1, ‘‘ Barth. de Glanville and others render
their account for 468 equippers (eskiperii), six hand-mills
(manumolendina).”’
Similar mentions occur in the entries 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13,
14, 15, 16.
It would seem from these different citations that while the hand-
mill was in common usage all over Europe during ancient times, and
in the northern countries down to quite recently, water-mills, though
not so common, were also in use, particularly in these northern
countries, and that they presented generally, the peculiarity of con-
struction detailed in the before-mentioned descriptions, that is, were
horizontal wheels, with paddles of peculiar form, adapted to receive
the impulse of a small stream of water having a certain yolocity, that
is, a certain sufficient head. Mr. M‘Adam’s conclusion that the
origin of this style of mill must be referred to the Danish or Norse
people seemed plausible enough, granting his assumptions, and taking
as ascertained, that no other such mills were known elsewhere in
Europe orin the East, but Mr. M‘Adam does not appear to have made
the necessary research in this respect, and hence it is desirable to
examine if there be any evidence for the existence in past or present
times of such mills in the countries of Europe and of the East which
have still remaining either monuments or records.
A priori, one might expect that the Chinese knew of water-mills,
as of many other mechanical appliances, long before any other nation
in the East, and in Chambers’ Encyclopedia, under the heading, ‘‘ Water-
power,” p. 365, it is stated: “‘ Notably, amongst eastern nations, the
Chinese were conversant with water-motors from a very early period.”
‘The first attempt to produce hydraulic machinery proper, as
the term is now understood, were made in the Greek schools at
Alexandria, which flourished under the Ptolemies, under whose
regime Ctesibius and Hiero invented the fountain of compression, the
siphon, and the force-pump about 120 z.c.” That water-mills were
invented or introduced into Europe as early as that period would
appear from the following paragraph taken from Smith’s “ Dictionary
of Greek and Roman Antiquities,” 2nd edition, 1859, under the
66 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Acadenvy.
heading ‘‘ Mola,” mill and water-mill (mola aquaria). The first water-
mill of which any record is preserved was connected with the palace of
Mithridates in Pontus (Strabo, xii. 3, § 30). ‘‘ At Cabeira (in Pontus)
was the palace of Mithridates (the Great, 120 3.c.), the water-mill,
the park for keeping the wild animals, the hunting ground in the
neighbourhood, and the mines.’”’ That water-mills were used at Rome
is manifest from the description of the them by Vitruvius (x. 5, edition
Schneider) :—‘‘ A cogged wheel, attached to the axis of the water-
wheel, turned another which was attached to the axis of the upper
millstone, the corn to be ground fell between the stones out of a
hopper (infundibilium) which was fixed above them.”’ (See Palladio
de Re rustica, 1, 42). Ausonius mentions their existence on the river
near Treves, and Venantius Fortunatus, describing a castle built in
the sixth century on the banks of the Moselle, makes distinct mention
of a tail race, by which ‘‘ the tortuous stream is conducted in a straight
channel.”’
It is to be remarked that the water-wheel above described from
Vitruvius’ work, was evidently a’ vertical wheel with horizontal azis,
the cog-wheel placed on this, communicating its movement to the
vertical axis carrying the millstone, by means of another cog-wheel.
It was therefore not of the same description as the wheels forming the
subject of this paper; rather indeed of the same style as those modern
forms so common in these countries in modern times, and which are
those generally mentioned in the various encyclopedias under the
heading Water-mill. It is very difficult to find any historical
description or mention of the horizontal water-wheel in question in
these works, although the turbines, which they really are a rude form
of, are described, but as of quite modern invention. It can therefore
be only incidentally that such a description may be met with, and
as such I have come across the following in the ‘‘ Lettres sur la
Gréce, l’Hellespont, et Constantinople (1811) premiere partie,” by
A. L. Castellan. Of this writer and artist the following short account
is given in the ‘‘ Biographie Universelle ” :—
**( Antoine Louis Castellan, peintre, graveur, and architecte francais;
né a Montpelier en 1772: mort 4 Paris, 2 Avril, 1838. Il se voua
@abord a la peinture, entra in 1788 dans l’atelier de Valenciennes ; il
acquit bientot pour le paysage une réputation méritée. Voyagea dans
le Levant, visita Constantinople, la Gréce, les Hes, l’Italie, et 1a Suisse;
recueillant partout un grand nombre de documents, de dessins, et puis-
ant dans ces riches contrées, un gout d’autant plus sur, qu’il ne se
O’Rettty—Ancient Water-mills, Native and Foreign. 67
laissait pas aller 4 un enthusiasme irreflechi. Fixé a Paris des 1804,
il s’occupa de publier, divers ouvrages pleins d’intérét ot se trouvent
consignés les résultats de ses voyages et de ses observations. Tls sont
accompagnés de nombreuses ves dessinées et gravées par l’auteur; tels
sont. ‘Lettres sur la Morée et les [les de Cerigo, Hydra, et Zante,’
1 vol. in 8°, Paris, 1808: ‘ Lettres sur Constantinople,’ &c., in 8”,
Paris, 1811.)”
At p. 87 of this last work he speaks as follows :—
‘« Rn Gréce, on retrouve a chaque pas la tradition des usages antiques,
et particuli¢rement dans les arts mécaniques. I1 est bon d’observer
que la plupart des machines dont on se sert dans ce pays, sont d’une
simplicité qui, bien loin de marquer l’enfance de l’art, semble au con-
traire ne pouvoir étre que le résultat de la réflexion, aidée d’une longue
expérience.
‘Si on entend par mécanique, l’art d’augmenter les effets en simpli-
fiant les causes, on pourrait croire que les anciens l’entendaient mieux
que nous, surtout si l’on en juge d’aprés les entreprises gigantesques
qu ils ont exécutées avec des machines qu’on peut appeler primitives ou
élémentaires, et dont les notres ne sont que la complication.”
(p. 90.) ‘‘ Nous avons dit que le besoin seul était le véhicule des
anciens dans Vinvention des machines. En effet, celle des moulins a
moudre le grain ne remonte qu’au siécle d’ Auguste. Avant cette épo-
que, on s’était contenté de moulins a bras, semblables a ceux qu’on
voit encore en Sicile (Voyage pittoresque de Sicile par M. Houel,
1782-87) (p. 91), et qui ne sont que de simples instruments de ménage.
Ces moulins étaient portatifs, occupaient les moins d’espace possible,
et devaient fournir a peu de frais, assez de farine pour nourrir une
famille. On pouvait méme employer a ce travail jusques aux enfants,
et dans les maisons des riches, lon en chargait les esclaves.
‘‘ Mais lorsque le luxe s’introduisit 4 Rome, et que les besoins
augmenterent en proportion des richesses de quelques particuliers,
tandis que le peuple s’appauvrissait d’autant, les grands dont, l’ambi-
tion était de gouverner, imaginérent pour conquerir l’opinion publique,
de donner des fétes magnifiques accompagnées de distributions de vivres
et de pain.”
(p. 92.)— ‘ C’est alors que les moulins a bras dévinrent insuftisants.
Or fit forcé d’ayoir recours a des entrepreneurs pour fournir a ces im-
menses distributions. Ces hommes avides, étant dans l’ obligation de
payer un grand nombre d’esclaves, et qui méme employaient des moyens
68 Proceedings of the Royal Inish Academy.
criminals pour s’en procurer (Théodose fit en 889 une loi pour reprimer
ces désordres qui duraient encore de son temps (Lebeau, ‘ Histoire du
Bas-Enipire,’ livre 24), cherchérent 4 diminuer le nombre des bras en y
suppléant par les agents plus puissants et moins cotteux, que devait
leur fournir la mécanique, et lon inventa les moulins a eau.)
‘« T’époque de cette découverte est fixée d’une maniére précise par
l’epigramme suivante, faite a cette occasion (Anthologie manuscrite de
la Bibliothéque impériale et mémoires de ]’Académie des Inscriptions
et belles lettres, vol. ii. p. 408. Edit" en 8°.) ‘Femmes, occupées a
moudre le blé, cessez de fatiguer vos bras; vous pouvez dormir a votre
aise et laisser chanter les oiseaux dont la voix annonce le retour
daurore. Cérés ordonne aux Naiades de faire ce qui faisaient vos
mains; elles obéissent, elles s’élancent jusqu’en haut d’une roue et
font tourner un essieu. L’essieu, par la moyen de rayons qui l’entour-
ent, fait tournir avec violence, la pesanteur des meules creuses qu'il
entraine. Nous voila, revenus a la vie heureuse de nos premiers péres,
et a récueillir sans peine les fuits des travaux de Cérés.’
‘Tl parait d’aprés cette épigramme d’Antipater, que Vusage des
moulins 4 eau n’a commengé que du temps d’Auguste, et ,Vitruve, son
contemporain, fait dans son dixieme livre la description de ces moulins,
qui peut méme servir de commentaire a l’épigramme Gréque. Strabon
(lib. 12) remarque aussi une machine alors fort rare, et dont il parle
comme d’une singularité, a occasion de la ville de Cabires et du palais
de Mithridate. 11 n’est pas douteux que les moulins qu’on voit encore
dans l’Asie mineure et dans toute la Gréce ne soient des copies de
moulins antiques, et par cela il est intéressant de les faire connaitre.
D’ailleurs il est probable que ces mémes machines nous ont été trans-
mises par la fréquentation que nous avons eue avec ces pays. On
peut croire aussi que leur établissement chez nous, ne remonte qu’au-
temps des Croisades, et qu’auparavant nous ne connaissions pas les
moulins a eau, les moulins a vent, et les puits a roue,”’ &c.
(p. 94.)—‘‘ Les croisés, au retour de leurs expéditions d’outre-mer,
introdusirent dans leur patrie ces machines et bien d’autres, qui se
sont perpétuées et perfectionées en raison de nos besoins et de nos
lumiéres. I] n’en est pas moins curieux de voir d’ou lon est parti, ce
que nous devons aux peuples orientaux, et ce que nous avons ajouté a
leurs inventions.
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Dolmens in the Barony of Upper Tulla.
110 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
east and west, and that it tapers eastward from 7 feet 6 inches to
6 feet 6 inches in 20 feet. The axis lies north-east and south-west.?
(23). Tyrepacn Lower, Tulla Parish (O. 8. Sheet 27, No. 13).—
Not far away from the last in the adjoining townland, separated from
Tyredagh Upper by the road from Carrahan to Tulla, is a large dolmen
lying in one of the back yards of Tyredagh House. Borlase has
published very roughly a view and sketch-plan from my notes. The
dolmen is from 16 feet to 19 feet long, and tapers eastward from
5 feet 10 inches to 3 feet 11 inches internally, the sides sloping in the
same direction. A fine horse-chestnut tree growing in the enclosure
has helped to destroy the western end. Three of the side blocks
remain respectively to the north and south, with two others projecting
from them, and two end blocks to the west and one to the east. Three
large slabs of the broken and rather thin cover remain.?
In the adjoining field are the reputed remains of another dolmen,
being two rows of rather small blocks lying east and west, and nearly
parallel. No cover remains; and I am more than doubtful as to the
nature of the structure.
In a plantation to the east, beyond the yards and garden, is a
small earthen ring-mound, far too small to be a rath. One can only
recall the tomb of Dathi at Rathcroghan and the passage in Keating’s
‘“Three Bitter Shafts of Death’’® (1620), where it is stated that the
pagans were laid facing the east, and a small rath raised round
with a leacht or cairn, or an earthen rath without a monument. No
stones remain in the Tyredagh ring.
In the field still farther eastward is a pillar slab, 9 feet high, made
of a very thin flag of limestone, tapering upwards from 31 inches to
24 inches wide‘ and 5 inches broad.® A graveyard lies near it to the
north, and north of the latter, at the opposite side of the road and in
line with Tyredagh Castle, hes a large sandstone boulder with a bullaun
or basin ground into it.
The dolmens in the two townlands have been described from my
1 Plan, p. 109, fig. 1, supra.
2 Plan, p. 109, fig. 2, supra.
3See note in ‘‘The Battle of Gabhra’’ (edited by N. O’Kearney) in the
publications of the Ossianic Society; also Kilkenny and South-East of Ireland
Society (R.S. A.I.) Journal, 1854, for ‘* Tulachs”’ or burial-mounds.
4 Misprinted 5 fect in Proceedings of the Royal Ivish Academy, wt infra.
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122 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
block is 7 feet 3 inches east and west, and about 5 feet 6 inches to
6 feet north and south. Itis capped with a mass of turf and heather,
and has-broken across and hangs into the cist; but is still otherwise
perfect and in position.*
I noticed a very similar pillar and several large loose blocks lying
about in the fourth field south of the road to the east of Cappaghbane
school-house. It may be a wrecked dolmen, though suitable blocks
abound up these valleys. I have seen no others that are not manifestly
untouched by man.
Barony oF Tutta Lower.
This barony corresponds to the old states of Tuath Ua gConghaile
(Ogonnelloe), Ui Thoirdhealbhaith (south of Killaloe), Tuath Ui bFloinn
(Kilseily and Clonlea), and Glenomra. It consists mainly of the great
slate and sandstone hills of Slieve Bernagh, rising to heights of 1746
feet, 1729 feet, 1458 feet, 1353 feet, &c., above the sea.
The dolmens lie, with one exception, in the circuit of the hills; and
several of them—such as Knockshanvo, Ballykelly, Formoyle, Cloony-
conry, Killokennedy Drummin, and Lackareagh—occupy prominent
positions.
There seems to be little prehistoric legend connected with the hills,
save the late one of the deuth of the poisoned Ard Righ Crimthann at
Glennagross, about A.D. 377 ; but the connection of Aibhell, the Great
Banshee of the Dalcassians, with Craglea, is of very antique
complexion. At least two examples of Fearbreagas occur: one near
Knockaphunta, and one near Killokennedy, neither being very far
from dolmens. >
We may divide the dolmens, as usual, into simple cists of five slabs
—Elmhill, Knockshanvo, Violet Hill; simple cists of several slabs
—Drummin, Cloonyconrymore (two), Cloghoolia, Lackareagh (?) ;
complex cists of more than one compartment—Ardnataggle, Long-
graves, Formoylemore, Ballykelly, Killokennedy; doubtful and sites—
Bealkelly-Purdon, Ardskeagh, Cloonyconrymore (upper dolmen).
KILLvURAN.
(37). Exum, Killuran Parish (0.8. Sheet 36, No. 9).—The
remains of this cist stand on a grassy ridge not far from Doon Lake,
and command a striking view of the highest part of Slieve Bernagh.
1 Plan, p. 109, fig. 13, supra; Plate vir., fig. 1.
Westropr—Oists, Dolmens, and Pillars of East Clare. 128
Tt is not marked on the 1840 map, and was first noted by Mrs.
O’Callaghan, of Maryfort, to whose interest and constant help I am
much indebted for the completion of this paper. The monument
was a cist of four blocks and a cover. The northern side measures
7 feet by three feet, by 1 foot 4 inches, lying E.S.E. and W.N.W.
The eastern block has fallen, and is 3 feet by 3 feet by 1 foot
3 inches; the other 6 feet by 3 feet to 4 feet 2 inches by 1 foot
4inches. The cover is tilted up, and measures 5 feet 3 inches by
4 feet 8 inches by 1 foot. In the adjoining field to the east is the
disused graveyard of ‘‘ Lackbrack.’? Whether this is an old name for
the dolmen (of which it would be most descriptive) I cannot now
learn. Mr. Borlase has described it from my notes.*
OGONNELLOP.
(38). Braketty-Purpon or Bunernacu, Ogonnelloe Parish (O. 5.
Sheet 37, No. 1).—This dolmen had been overthrown before 1839.
Some blocks still remain to mark the site high up the hills over Lough
Derg.
KIsEILy.
(39). Drumuin, Kilseily Parish (0.8. Sheet 44, No. 2).—This
dolmen is shown on the map of 1840 as four radiating blocks on the
western slope of the high rounded hill called Laghtnagat,? perhaps
from the monument. O’Curry calls it a ‘‘ broken giant’s-grave.”’ It
is really a cist, of which the top slab has been removed. The west
end is a block of conglomerate, 4 feet 10 inches long by 3 feet by
ll inches. ‘he northern side consists apparently of 2 slabs (one of
slate, one of conglomerate), and is 10 feet long. The south had three
blocks (the western of slate, the eastern of conglomerate), and is
9 feet 3 inches long. The cist measures internally about 4 feet
4 inches wide, and 8 feet long. The axis hes E.N.E and W.S.W.
It is nearly buried in small stones, and stands in a cultivated field,
with a wide view to the north of the hills beyond the river Grancy,
and lies over 600 feet above thesea2 _
There are some blocks in line E.N.E. and W.S.W. among furze im
O’Shea’s acres, south of the last; but I am not certain whether they
1 « Tyolmens of Ireland,’’ vol. i., p. 96. See also plan, p. 121, fig. 5, supra.
2It is 968 feet high. Broadford is only 100 feet above the sea, and lies at it
oot to the south-west.
3 Plan, p. 121, fig. 11, sepra.
124 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
were portion of a dolmen, though they do not seem to belong to a line
of fence.
(40).- Viotrer Hitt, Kilseily Parish (0. 8. Sheet 44, No. 2).—It is
not marked on the 1840 map, and lies above the beautifully situated
house, looking out across southern and central Clare, with the wooded
shores and lakes of Doon and Cullane, and the bluff hills of Knocksise
behind Kilseily Church. The cist is nearly buried in furze and a cairn.
of small stones, and consists of a sandstone slab, 5 feet 9 inches by
5 feet 7 inches, resting on two smaller blocks, about 3 feet apart and
3 feet long. Whether the cist continues farther eastward I am unable
to find; but aslate slab, 3 fect 8 inches long, and 4 inches thick,
is set in the ground, 3 feet from the west end. Another sandstone
block, only 31 inches long and 9 inches thick, lies east and west 2 feet -
east of the cover; and another block, 4 feet by 2 feet 8 inches, lies 3 feet
6 inches farther east, in line with a side slab south of the cist, which
is leaning outward, near the centre of the south side, and is 8 feet
7 inches by 2 feet. Two other large blocks lie down the slope.
I was told of another dilapidated cairn, called a “ giant’s grave,’
by Mr. James Going, in 1893, but could not find it on my later
visit, the hill-top being much covered with furze.}
(41). Arpskeacu or Broaprorp, Kilseily Parish—(O.S. Sheet 44,
No. 6).—This place is the Ard Sgiath of the 1390 rental of the
Macnamaras. In 1839, three large blocks of stone, lying east and
west, oceupied a little rounded knoll near the old road from Broadford
to Kilbane, at a place called Knockaunnafinnoge, not far from a hollow,
called Poulamuckagh, in which stands a large boulder. The dolmen
was probably removed when the field was cultivated ; and we have
seen corn cut and bound on its site. It is on the lower slope of the
hill, not on high ground as stated by Mr. Borlase.
(42). Bartyxetty, Kilseily Parish (0.8. Sheet 44, No. 5).—This
occupies a noble station on a shoulder of the high hill of Knocksise
south of the entrance of the valley at Broadford, and about 550 feet
above the sea. It commands a view out to Slieve Aughty and Callan,
with the Shannon, the Fergus estuary, anda crowd of lakes. Beneath
it lies the picturesque lake of Doon, with its wooded shores and
crannoges; beyond it lie bogs pink with heath in the season. The
massive tower of Tiecrovannan, the white houses of O’Callaghan’s
Mills, and beyond them the wooded demesnes of Kilkishen, Kilgorey,
Derrymore, and Fortanne, with Maryfort on its woody hill. Mr.
1 Plan, p. 121, fig. 4, supra.
Wesrrope—Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars of Eust Clare. 125
Borlase figures and describes the dolmen.' He lays stress on its having
been called ‘‘ Old Grania”’ by a woman; but such names as “‘ Granny’s
beds” are not uncommon. O’Curry mentions it, with Drummin, as a
‘broken giant’s-grave.”” It is a long dolmen, consisting of a row of
seven blocks,’ extending for nearly 25 feet towards the E.N.E. They
are of irregular height; but get lower eastward. The most western
is 6 feet 6 inches high, and has a slab set parallel to it in the interior.
Three of the covers still rest against the northern side ; and scarcely
any of the southern blocks are undisturbed.? The first and highest
slab in the west end and the other blocks (save the second and fourth,
which are of grey conglomerate) are of green slate.
(43). Kwocxsuanvo, Kilseily Parish (O. 8. Sheet 44, No. 13).—
This picturesque and perfect cist lies far up the hill-side, above the
Dromsillagh river in a rushy field, sheeted with scabious and bilberry,
while long ferns grow in its chamber. The ridge of Knockaphunta,
purple with heather, rises boldly not far away to the north-west ; and
to the east, beyond a picturesque ‘‘ screen” of fir-trees, we get a fine
view of Slieve Kimalta—the Keeper Hill—and its attendant ridges, and
the broken edge of Tipperary and Limerick to the serrated peaks of
the Galtees; southward, we overlook the plateau and the valley of
the Drumsillagh stream, down to Trough.
The monument is shown on the 1840 map as a large block
supported at its western end. Tradition says it was used for the mass
during the stress of the penal laws; and a hollow near Knockaphunta
is also said to have been a place of secret worship.
The cist is of massive sand-stone slabs; they measure respectively :
the northern, nearly 10 feet long by 16 inches to 18 inches thick,
und 3 feet 8 inches high inside, the peat rising over a foot outside it ;
the southern, 7 feet 2 inches long and 13 inches thick, being the same
height ; it leans slightly outwards ; the east, 3 feet 4 inches long; it 1s
slightly displaced ; and a slab 32 inches wide has been removed from
the south-east angle; the west, 4 feet by 9 inches, and has fallen out.
The cist tapers from 3 feet 4 inches to 3 feet; the cover does not slope,
and is a finely-shaped sandstone slab, from 4 feet 6 inches at the
west to 3 feet 3 inches at the east ; 7 feet 6 inches long, and 17 inches
to 18 inches thick ; it has curious corrugations and a small round hole,
perhaps an ‘elf mill,” such as occurs in the cover of more than one
1 «< Dolmens of Ireland,”’ vol. i., p. 97. View and plan.
* The ‘granite’? mentioned by Mr. Borlase is, I think, a grey conglomerate
occurring elsewhere on the hills.
3 See plan, p. 121, fig. 1, sepra; also Plate vut., fig. 1.
126 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
of the Swedish dolmens, and even in some Irish ones. The axis of the
cist lies towards the E.N.E.?
KILLOKENNEDY.
(44). Kitroxennepy,” Killokennedy Parish (0.8. Sheet 44, No. 3).
— The townland and parish derive their names from the church of the
O’Kennedys, a once powerful clan of the Hymbloid, expelled by the
O’Briens and Macnamaras after the battle of Dysert O’Dea, in 1318.
The church was probably founded by Cronan (perhaps of Tomgraney),
to whom its well was dedicated. Passing the steep bohereen past its
ivied and broken walls, we find the “‘ giant’s grave,”’ high up the steep
hillside to the north. The dolmen stands on a little drift mound,
projecting from the slope, and is nearly 900 feet above the sea, and
650 above the road from Broadford to Kilbane. The hills rising
behind it up to Cragnamurragh, which is 1729 feet high, and Glen-
nagalliagh mountain, 1746 feet high, the highest point in county
Clare. A slip has taken place above, and partly buried the monument,
which is a ‘‘long graye.’’ The outlook is very fine, far over Gleno-
mera to the Galtees, and Knockfierna; flanked by the rounded hills
of Glennagalliagh and Cloonyeonry ; southward, the view includes
the pleasing (if not strikingly picturesque) valley to Hurdleston.
The complete monument is 17 feet long, or 27 feet if we include
a compartment at its western end, of which the two northern slabs
(6 feet 8 inches and 3 feet 6 inches long) remain. These are greatly
distorted by the slipping of the earth. The west end is a strong
block, measuring (so far as we are able to reach among the other stones
in which it is embedded) 5 feet 10 inches long, 20 inches thick, and
at least 4 feet high. The main structure had three side slabs to the
south, about 5 feet 5 inches, 5 feet 10 inches, and 4 feet 6 inches long ;
the eastern is prostrate ; on it lie two other slabs, evidently the eastern
end slab and the cover. There are four cover blocks, cach from 6 feet
to 6 feet 6 inches long, and partly buried on the north. A narrow
block, 5 feet 8 inches long, slopes out from the south-west angle, and
a great block of slate rock (evidently natural) projects diagonally to
the south-east, and a little stream runs down the face. It is hard to
give further measurements of a structure whose slabs lie piled two and
three deep ; but from the ends it seems to have tapered eastward from
7 feet 2 inches to 3 feet 3 inches.
1 Plan, p. 121, fig. 10, supra; Plate vitt., tig. 2.
* Killogennedid in the Papal Taxation, 1302.
Westropre—Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars of East Clare. 127
Four other dolmens lay along the southern side of the valley in this
parish.
(45). Formoyrtemorn, Killokennedy Parish (0.8. Sheet 44, No. 9).
—This is the Formaol of the 1390 rental of the Macnamaras. A fine
long dolmen stands (as the name implies) on a conspicuous bare ridge,
to the east of the road from Limerick to Broadford, before it dips boldly
into the valley near the perfect earth fort of Lisnagry. It has been
planned by Mr. Borlase! in his usual careful manner. It was embedded
in a modern house, of which (like the dolmens of Slievenaglasha and
Commons in this country) it formed a part. The buildings are nearly
demolished; but the dolmen is almost perfect. It consists of four
blocks of sandstone and slate to the north, and five longer blocks to
the south ; outside and parallel to these are others—one to the north and
two to the south, showing that, like the grave at Ballyogan, it had
side rows. Two large cover slabs rest upon it, and others lie about.
Its axis lie E.S.E. and W.N.W. It measures 17 feet long, and tapers
eastward from 3 feet to 2 feet 4 inches.
(46). Croonyconrymorn, Killokennedy Parish (O.S. Sheet 44,
No. 7).—This townland, the Cluan Ui Chonaire of the 1390 rental,
possessed a group of three dolmens. ‘The two existing ones are on a
rounded shoulder; the larger on a choice situation, crowning a hummock
of cultivated land. It is in sight of the dolmens of Lackareagh,
Killokennedy, Ardskeagh, and, I think, Formoyle, and looks out of the
mouth of the valley over Broadford. The larger dolmen is of coarse
and shapeless sandstone blocks, and has been planned and figured
by Mr. Borlase.? It has the west end, two blocks to the north and one
to the south. The cover measures 7 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 3 inches.
Seven of the side blocks remain.
The second cist lies lower than the first, which is in sight of it. Itis
not marked on the maps or noted by Mr. Borlase. Ithas a small chamber,
8 feet 38 inches by 3 feet 8 inches to 3 feet 4 inches internally, and
tapering eastward. There are two slabs to the north, one 6 feet by 2 feet
by 2 feet thick to the south, and one at the west end; the top has been
removed.* The third lay high up the secondridge of the hill. I saw
no trace of it ; and the new maps mark its site under a fence, by
1“ Dolmens of Ireland,’’ vol. i., pp. 98, 99. Plan. See also p. 121, fig. 2,
SUpIA.
? Ibid., pp. 99, 100. View and plan.
* Plan, p. 121, fig. 3, supra; Plate vir., fig. 2.
4 Plan, p. 121, fig. 6, supra.
128 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
which it was destroyed or covered. It is shown on the 1840 maps
as a large slab supported by smaller ones, and was evidently a
cist. :
- O’Brren’s Bripce.
O’Brien’s Bridge is a straggling late parish, and cuts into the
Glenomera and Broadford valleys at their junction to the north-east.
Near this point stood a dolmen, and another one lay at the further
and lowest ridges of the hills to the south-east, three miles away.
(47). Lacxarzacu, O’Brien’s Bridge Parish (0. 8. Sheet 44, No. 8).
—This cist is shown on the map of 1840 as a large regular slab,
evidently the north side, against which a long and more irregular slab,
of about the same size, is leaning, with its nearer end on the ground.
It is there called ‘‘ Dermot and Grania’s Bed.”” When Mr. Borlase
visited the site, there were only the remains of a cairn; and it is
only shown as a “site” on the map made in 1893 (published in
1898). It stood near the summit of the hill above Glennagalliagh’
Valley, nearly 1180 feet above the sea. The stream and gorge of
Aillenagommaun runs down the flank of the hill to the north.
(48). Arpnaticcter,? O’Brien’s Bridge Parish (O.S. Sheet 53,
No. 4).—This dolmen lies on the northern slope of a low ridge, not
very far from Bridgetown and O’Brien’s Bridge, near the so-called
“ Cromwell’s-road.”” It commands a fine view of the great bluffs of
purple and brown which we have been exploring. It is embedded in
deep heather and bracken; and its interior is a veritable garden of
delicate ferns and sorrel. Mr. Borlase,* in publishing a version of my
notes, considered that there had been a row of enclosing slabs round
the tomb. I do not think this was the case, as none of the sup-
posed ‘‘peristyle” is standing, and no loose blocks (even) lie to the
north. It is shown on the 1840 map as a large block, supported on
two others. It is really a complex cist, with two if not three compart-
ments; the most perfect resembling the little sketch on the map, and
is about 8 feet 6 inches. At the west end are two large slabs, 6 feet
6 inches long, the more eastern forming the end of the cist. The
first compartment of this is formed of irregular gritstone blocks ; the
cover is 7 feet 3 inches long, 5 feet to 6 feet 6 inches wide, and
11 feet to 20 inches thick. Beyond this the cist continues in a very
1 Locally ‘‘ Glounagolloch.”’
? Ardataggle of the Ordnance Survey maps. 3
3 «* Dolmens of Ireland,” vol. i., p. 131. See plan, p. 121, fig. 9, supra.
Westropr—Cists, Do/mens, and Pillars of East Clare. 129
defaced condition for 11 fcet, and, perhaps, had three compartments.
The axis hes E.N.E. and W.S.W. It is now locally known as the
‘‘lobba,’”’? but is called ‘‘ Dermot and Grania’s Bed’’ on the 1840
map.
(49). Croenoorra, Clonlea Parish (0.8. Sheet 52, No. 4).—Far
from all other dolmens, in a valley in the plateau of Slicve Bernagh,
stands the wreck of a small cist. It lies near Oatfield, and to the
north of the road running from Sixmilebridge, through the woods of
Mount Ievers, and past Trough to the pretty village of Clonlara and
the falls of the Shannon at Doonass. It is in a meadow, whence, to
the east, we see the great dome of the Keeper Hill, and to the south, over
a low boggy hollow and ridge, the blue lake of Colmeen, where, in 1813,
Lochlain Macnamara, chief of that powerful clan, was beheaded by his
foes during De Clare’s wars. ‘‘ Spray-showering, wind-swept Loch
Colmin of the easy landing-places and green shores, . . . Loch of
Colmin that has a cruel story.”? The cist is called ‘‘ Dermot and
Grania’s Bed” on the 1840 map, and was possibly perfect at that date,
for it is shown as an irregular oblong enclosure. It is nearly buried
in the field; the west end, two southern blocks, and, perhaps, part of
the north slab, remain. The first is 4 feet 6 inches by 6 inches, and
only rises 2 feet above the field; the othertwo are 2 feet 4 inches by
6 inches, and 6 feet 10 inches by 10 inches to 7 inches; the east end
level with the ground. It sloped and tapered eastward, and, if the
block north of the east end be in situ, was 9 feet 4 inches by from
2 feet 6 inches to 12 inches wide. A tiny holly-bush springs between
the side blocks. Two other slabs lie to the south, one 6 feet east and
west, and 4 feet 4 inches north and south ; and probably the cover lies
3 feet from the east end; the other is 8 feet 9 inches long, and
12 inches thick, and may have been a north block: all are of fine
brown sandstone.?
This concludes these notes on the dolmens of Eastern Clare. We
have described all those marked on the Ordnance Survey maps or
known tous. The cairns, which are usually dilapidated, and some-
times of doubtful age, are, however, omitted.
The vast majority of the dolmens are considered by the peasantry
to be ‘‘ Dermot and Grania’s Beds” ; but the legend, save from modern
books, is, I believe, extinct. In some cases they are recognised as
146¢Wars of Turlough, 1313; see also Journal Royal Society of Antiquaries of
Treland, vol xxi. (1891), p. 387.
? Plan, p. 121, fig. 7, supra.
130 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
graves, occasionally as “‘ giant’s graves,’ but no legends of their
occupants seem to exist. In other cases they are supposed to be
Christian- altars (as Altoir Ultach and Knockshanyo) or wells (as
Tobergrania). I only met one legend, and that not from a local person,
but from a servant, that the ‘‘ Druids”’ used to offer black cocks upon
the Maryfort cist. I have also heard on local authority that (over fifty
years ago) a black cock ‘‘ without a white feather’? was actually.
offered on the giant’s grave at Carnelly in the same county. This was
intended to bring about the fulfilment of the sacrificer’s dearest wish ;
but was also believed to have brought misfortune in its train. Whether
the dolmen was an accidental rather than an essential adjunct of these
unholy rites is not clear; probably the ‘‘ Druidical ”’ pseudo-archeology
of the earlier nineteenth century filtered into the minds of some of the
peasantry, superseding their own rational tradition that the dolmens
were sepulchral by that of the belief that they were sacrificial altars
of the pagans.
In later days (about 1879) great excitement and anger was caused
in a place about a mile from the Maryfort dolmen, by four quarters of
a beast having been found “ offered” at the four corners of a certain
field. The comparatively recent date of the latter event prevents my
saying more on this very obscure but curious subject, though I am
acquainted with the names and circumstances; but these two cases
show that it isnot impossible that (minus the ‘‘ Druids”) the Maryfort
story may have, at least, some probability. The most general impression
seems to be that they were graves. All seem to have been opened
before living memory, except, perhaps, Ballinphunta. Only one find,
that of a gold fibula, is recorded (Knocknalappa). Owing to the lapse
of time since they were explored, all memory of finds of bones (as at
various dolmens in the Burren) or pottery is lost.
To summarise for the four baronies surveyed in these Papers, there
are simple cists of four blocks and a cover—Ballyhickey, Ballyma-
conna, Ballymacloon, Caherloghan (4? 5), Kilvoydan, Monanoe,
Toonagh (2?3), Ballysheen, Dromullan (?), Tobergrania, Kiltanon,
Maryfort, Miltown (at least 6), Moymore, Fomerla (1? 2) Elmhill,
Violet Hill, Knockshanvo, Lackareaghmore. (In all 26 or 29.)
Simple cists of more than four side-blocks and a cover—Knappoge
(with enclosure), Knocknalappa, Altoir Ultach, Ballycroum, Druman-
doora (2), Cappaghbane, Corracloonbeg, Kiltanon, Newgrove (with
? Dermot and Grania are Christian ‘saints from Feakle,”? Grania being a man
in the legend at Ballycroum. See Proc. R.I.A., vol. iv., ser. iii., p. 91.
Wesrroprp—Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars of East Clare. 131
enclosure), Rosslara, Tyredagh Lower, Drummin, Ardskeagh (?),
Cloghoolia. (In all 13.)
Cists of several chambers—Rylane, Ballinphunta, Caheraphuca,
Kilcornan, Tyredagh Upper, Ardnataggle. (In all 6.)
Long Graves—Ballyhogan (2), Miltown, Ballykelly, Formoylemore,
Killokennedy. (In all 6.)
Enclosures of blocks and circles—Clooney (2) Dooneen. (In all 3.)
Massive top block and double-walled cist—Derrymore.
Pillars—Cranagher (5), Magh Adhair, Newgrove, Tyredagh,
Tomgraney. (In all 9.)
Making the total of some 66 doliens, 9 pillars, 3 enclosures.'
ILLUSTRATIONS OF DOLMENS.
Puate V. 1. Caheraphuca—Crusheen, from south.
2. Knocknafearbreaga—pillars, from south.
Prats VI. 1. Knocknalappa—Sixmilebridge, Rossroe Castle and Lake in
distance.
2. Derrymore-Tulla.
Puarse VII. 1. Cappaghbane—Scariff, from north-east ; Lough Derg and
hills of Thountinna, Ogonnelloe and Glennagalliagh in the
distance.
2. Cloonyconrymore—Broadford, from south; Knocksise, Doon
Lake, and Broadford in distance.
Pate VIII. 1. Ballyke!ly—Broadford, from south-west ; Doon and Kilgorey
Lakes in distance.
to
. Knockshanvo—Broadford, from west ; Keeper Hill in distance.
1'The following photographs of dolmens in the baronies of Tulla are in the
collection of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland :—Tyredagh, Miltown,
Newgrove, Maryfort, Rosslara, Altoir-Ultach, Tobergrania, Corracloon, Elmhill,
Cloonyconry (2), Formoyle, Killokennedy, Knockshanvo, Cloghoolia, Violet Hill,
Drummin, Ballykelly, and Cappaghbane.
My thanks are due to my sister Mrs. O’Callaghan, Col. O’Callaghan Westropp,
Rey. J. B. Greer, Mr. A. G. Creagh, and the late Mr. Pierce O’ Brien, for assistance
in finding and examining the dolmens of Lastern Clare.
132
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
INDEX
TO THE ABOVE TWO PAPERS, TAKING THE NUMBERS
OF THE LOCALITIES. “3
[ The figures refer
Ardnataggle, 48.
Ardskeagh, 41.
Ballinphunta, 21.
Ballycroum, 33.
Ballyhickey, see Hazelwood.
Ballykelly, 42.
Ballymacloon, 14.
Ballymaconna, 3.
Ballymullen, sce Miltown.
Ballyogan, 4.
Ballysheenbeg, 19.
Ballyslattery, sce Newgrove.
Bealikelly-Purdon, 38.
Brickhill, 20.
Caheraphuca, 1.
Caherloghan, 10.
Cappaghbane, 36.
Classagh, see Knocknafearbreaga.
Clogher, see Derrymore.
Cloghlea, sce Tomgraney.
Cloghoolia, 49.
Ciooney, 6.
Cloonyconrymore, 46.
Corbehagh, see Drumandoora.
Corracloonbeg, 34.
Croaghane, sé Ballinphunta.
Derrymore, 31.
Dooneen, 12.
Drumandoora, 32.
Drummin, 39.
Drummullan, 17.
to the sections. |
| Elmhill, 37.
Fomerla, 27.
Formoylemore, +45.
Hazelwood, 11.
‘Kilcornan, 18.
Killokennedy, 44.
Kiltanon, 24.
Kilvoydan, 2.
Knappoge, 15.
Knocknafearbreaga,
Knocknalappa, 16.
Knockshanvo, 43.
-
| Lackareagh, 47.
Lismekan, sce Maryfort.
Magh Adhair, 8.
Maryfort, 29.
| Miltown, 25.
| Monanoe, 13.
ee
Moymore, 28.
Newgrove, 26.
Rosslara, 30.
Rylane, 4.
Tomgraney, 35.
Toonagh, 9.
Tyredagh, 22, 23.
Violet Hill, 40.
petsen |
IX.
SOME ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE COMMERCIAL HISTORY
OF DUBLIN IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.
(Prates [X.-XII.)
By C. LITTON FALKINER, M.A.
[Read June 9, and June 23, 1902.]
Tuer volumes placed at the disposal of the Council by Colonel Welch
came into his possession as executor of the late Charles Haliday,
by whose zeal as a collector of Irish books and manuscripts the
Academy has so largely profited. They consist of two volumes of
minutes, each bearing closely on the origin and early history of two
important Dublin institutions, viz. the Port and Docks Board and
the Chamber of Commerce. Of the two volumes, the first in date, if
not in point of interest, is an old folio bound in calf, and labelled
‘* Ballast Office, 1708 to 1712.” It contains the minutes of the pro-
ceedings of the Committee of Directors for the Ballast Office during
the first four years of the existence of that body. These minutes add
considerably to our knowledge of the development of the Port of
Dublin. A portion of them has been published in an abbreviated
form in Mr. William Gibbon’s notes to those ‘‘ Observations Explanatory
of Sir Bernard de Gomme’s map, made a.p. 1673,” which are printed
as an appendix to Mr. Haliday’s ‘‘ Scandinavian Kingdom of Dublin,”
and which form perhaps the fullest account yet attempted of the history
of the Port of Dublin. Through the courtesy of Mr. Proud, the
secretary, the writer has been permitted to examine the records of the
Port and Docks Board, the successors of the Ballast Committee, and
has ascertained that the earliest volume of minutes in the possession of
that body is the Committee Book of the Ballast Committee, commencing
March 8rd, 1721. ‘he volume acquired by the Academy is thus
several years earlier than the oldest official record, and as elucidating
the condition of the harbour of Dublin at the very commencement of
the eighteenth century, it is of considerable value to all who are
interested in the history of the development of our city.
The second and perhaps the more important of these volumes isa
folio manuscript book, bound in green boards, and labelled ‘‘ Merchants’
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [10]
134 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Rough Book.”’ It contains the minutes of a body called the Committee
of Merchants, apparently a sort of Council of the Guild of Merchants,
which appears to have taken charge of the commercial interests of
Dublin-during a considerable portion of the eighteenth century. The
entries in this volume cover a period of fifteen years, viz. from 10th
February, 1768, to 10th February, 1783; and the importance of this
record in relation to the history of our capital may be measured by
the fact that it opens with a statement of the circumstances in which the
fine building, long knownas the Royal Exchange, and now familiar to
us as the City Hall, originated, and closes with a ‘‘ Plan for instituting
a Chamber of Commerce in this city,” which was the direct origin of
the flourishing mercantile association so well known to us now under
that name. Incidentally the volume covers a number of topics of
interest touching on the development of Dublin, as, for instance, the
building of the present Custom House—a project vehemently opposed
by the merchants of the day, on the ground that it tended to shift the
commercial centre of gravity in Dublin from Essex-bridge and
Dame-street, the neighbourhood of the old Custom House, to the
inconvenient and then scarcely accessible slobland of the North
Lotts.
As in the case of the Ballast Committee’s minutes, so in this, the
writer has been enabled to consult the minutes of the modern body to
whose chronicles the book relates, and has ascertained that though
the minutes of the Chamber of Commerce are extant for ten years
immediately succeeding its institution in 1783, no document sur-
vives to indicate in what manner the Chamber came into existence.
The Rough Minute Book is therefore valuable as containing an
authentic statement of the circumstances in which one of the
most important of our Dublin corporate bodies came to be formed.
Advantage has been taken of this acquisition of volumes bearing
so directly on two important Dublin institutions which date from
the eighteenth century, not only to give a brief description of
the nature of their contents, but to offer some account of the
origin of those well-known corporations, the Port and Docks Board,
formerly known as the Ballast Board, and the Dublin Chamber of
Commerce. The history of both institutions throws considerable
light on the commercial development of Dublin ; and a valuable
sidelight is thrown on the same topic by the story of the Ouzel
Galley Society, which is also included in the present paper in con-
nexion with one of the Society’s Gold Medals, lately added to
the Academy’s collection.
FarxinEr—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 135
I.—Oniern oF tHE Batrast Orrice ann Por anp Docks Boarp.
Projects for the improvement of the harbour of Dublin and the
better regulation of the shipping of the port appear to have been
frequent in the last quarter of the seventeenth century. The fear
lest the audacity of the Dutch and the defenceless condition of the
envirous should expose the capital to attack had led, in 1673, to
Sir Bernard de Gomme’s well-known ‘‘ Survey of the city of Dublin
and part of the harbour below Ringsend ;”’ and although this survey
was undertaken from purely military considerations, it naturally drew
the attention of mercantile people to the deficiencies of the port from a
commercial standpoint. ‘The control of the port was vested at this
period in the Corporation of Dublin, to whom it had belonged from
the time of King John, when a royal charter had endowed the
citizens! with so much of the river and estuary of the Liffey as ran
within the city franchises.” The Corporation does not appear to have
paid close attention to that part of its responsibilities which concerned
the harbour; but in the year following De Gomme’s visit their
attention was called to the matter by the visit of Andrew Yarranton,
an expert on harbour improvement.’ Yarranton, ‘‘ acquainting the
Lord Mayor with his thoughts as to the making a very good harbour
at Ringsend,”’ was ‘‘importuned to bestow some time in a survey and
discovery thereof,” and devoted three weeks to this task. But though
the survey was made, no steps were taken by the Corporation, and the
first step towards providing a proper machinery for the control of the
port was left to private enterprise. In 1676 one Thomas Howard
petitioned the Irish Privy Council for a patent for the provision
of a Ballast Office in all the ports of Ireland. Howard’s proposal
stirred the city fathers to activity. Protesting against the petition,
so far as it related to Dublin, as an encroachment on their civic rights,
they appointed a committee to consider the erection of a Ballast Office,
“‘ the profits whereof is intended for the King’s Hospital,” and prayed
the Lord Lieutenant that no patent should pass to Howard. The
protest of the Corporation was effective, and Howard, though he had
1 Gilbert’s Historical and Municipal Documents of Ireland, 1172-1320.
2 The Mayor of Dublin anciently exercised, as Admiral of the Port of Dublin,
a jurisdiction which appears to have extended from Skerries to Arklow, and the
city was entitled to the customs of all merchandise within those limits (Haliday’s
Scandinavian Kingdom of Dublin, pages 189 and 246).
3 Haliday’s Scandinavian Kingdom of Dublin, p. 242.
[10*]
136 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
obtained a patent in England for the erection of a Ballast. Office in
Ireland, was unsuccessful in his application. Accordingly his next
move was to petition the city, in association with his brother, for a
lease of the port of Dublin at £50 a-year, in return for which he
undertook to surrender his English patent. A lease for thirty-one
years was granted; but as the Howards took no step to perfect it,
it was three years later declared void, and petition was made by the
Corporation for a patent to the city for a Ballast Office. The activity
displayed on this as on the previous occasion was due to the exertions
of a private individual who had taken up Howard’s project.
In the year 1697 one Captain Davison had made a proposal to
the city to erect on or near the bar of Dublin a lighthouse! forty
feet above water, which should be enclosed with a small fort of thirty
guns capable of defending the harbour, and at the same time he
proposed a Ballast Office, ‘‘by which ships should be supplied with
ballast from such places only as should tend to the bettering the
harbour.” In 1700, having obtained the approval of the Dublin
merchants and captains of ships trading there, and being encouraged
by the Irish Government, Davison proceeded to London, and
petitioned William III. for authority to proceed with the work, and
for a grant of the lighthouse and Ballast Office. His petition was
referred to the Irish Lords Justices, who reported that the design
was useful and ‘‘ absolutely necessary for the preserving the trade of
the place”; but stated that the ‘‘ city desired that the grant thereof
might be made to them.” The Lords Justices accordingly re-
commended that ‘‘lest it should be thought a business of clamour to
grant such a thing away from a whole city, the grant should be made
to Davison as the instrument of the Corporation.”
The matter was then referred to the Committee of the Privy
Council for the affairs of Ireland, ‘‘ to investigate the claim of the
several parties pretending to a right in the carrying on of this work,’””
several other persons haying meantime sought a patent. The
Committee found the claims of Davison infinitely superior to those of
all private rivals; but the city of Dublin alleging several ancient
charters by which they had title to the ground from whence the said-
ballast was proposed to be taken, ‘‘and having in the sitting of the
last Parliament obtained a bill to be sent over for the establishment of
a Ballast Office,” they recommended the claims of the citizens to Her
1 Memorial about the Light House at Dublin. Brit. Museum, Add. MS..
21136 folio 82. Printed in Dublin Corporation Records, vi. p. 609.
FaLkiner—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 137
Majesty’s favour in preference to those of any private persons. They
at the same time expressed an opinion that, if the authority were
given to the city of Dublin, Captain Davison should be employed on
the work. |
No action appears to have been taken upon this report, and in
1702 Davison renewed his application,’ which was again opposed by
the Dublin civic authorities as highly prejudicial to the city, and the
project seems to have remained in abeyance for some years. In 1707,
however, a petition under the city seal was ordered to be addressed
to His Royal Highness Prince George of Denmark, Queen Anne’s
Consort, then Lord High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland,
for erecting a Ballast Office. This petition set forth that ‘the port
and river of Dublin are almost choked up, and are very unsafe
by the irregular taking in and throwing out of ballast,” and
besought favourable consideration for a fresh bill which had been
sent over for erecting a Ballast Office, the petitioners being advised
that without legislation no duty for the support of such office
when erected could be imposed on shipping. The petition further
averred that ‘‘ nothing can contribute more to the safety of the lives
of seafaring men who resort hither than the mending of one of the
most dangerous ports in Her Majesty’s dominions ” ; and in order to
obviate the possibility of a grant to any private individual rather than
to the city, it expressed the willingness of the assembly that all
profits arising from the Ballast Office ‘‘ should be applied towards the
maintenance of the poor boys in the Blue Coat Hospital in this city,
whereby they are instructed in navigation to qualify them for Her
Majesty’s sea service.” In a letter from the Lord Mayor to Prince
George, in furtherance of the city claim, it was also stated that the
port was so unsafe that there was scarce depth of water left fora
small vessel to ride, where some years before a man of war could
safely anchor.®
These applications were not favourably entertained by the
Admiralty, Prince George of Denmark being of opinion that the erecting
of a Ballast Office by Act of Parliament was a direct infringe-
ment of the rights of his office of Lord High Admiral. He therefore
expressed his intention of opposing the bill! But His Royal Highness
“having a particular regard to the cleansing of the port of Dublin,”
1 Dublin Corporation Records, vol. vi. p. 272. 7 Jb. p. 374-5. $ Jd. p. 616.
4 Letter of Josiah Burchett, Secretary to the Admiralty. Dublin Corporation
Records, vol. vi. p. 618.
138 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
was content ‘‘if the Lord Mayor would make proper application to
him and to him only,” to grant a lease of a Ballast Office to the city of
Dublin for a term of years, provided that the surplus of the port dues
should be applied to the benefit of the Blue Coat Schoo! in the
manner already mentioned. The objections then raised by the
Admiralty were combated in a very vigorous letter addressed to
Lord Sunderland, the Secretary of State, in which it was pointed out
that the sand and soil whence the ballast was to be taken was the
inheritance of the city of Dublin, which by several charters had the
jurisdiction of the Admiralty granted to it, notwithstanding which the
city would be willing to waive all such rights and take a lease from the
Lord High Admiral, were it not that powers under an Act of Parlia-
ment were absolutely necessary, as a means of obviating the difficulty
raised by Prince George, to enforce payment of harbour dues.1 And
in token of the readiness of the city to admit the claims of the
Admiralty, an offer was made on the part of the Corporation to
add to the bill a clause saving the Admiralty jurisdiction, by pro-
viding in the following quaint terms for the city’s ‘‘ yielding and
paying therefor and thereout to His Royal Highness Prince George
of Denmark, Lord High Admiral of Great Britain, and to his
successors, Lord High Admirals of the same, one hundred yards
of best Holland duck, that shall be made or manufactured within
the realm of Ireland, at the Admiralty Office of London on
every first day of January for ever hereafter.” The solution thus
propcsed was accepted by the Admiralty, and the heads of the bill
haying been approved in England, there was passed through the
Irish Parliament in 1707 the statute of the 6th Anne, chapter 20,
entitled, ‘‘An Act for Cleansing the Port, Harbour, and River of
Dublin, and for erecting a Ballast Office in the said City.”
The minute-book acquired by the Academy contains the record
of the steps first taken to put this Act in motion, and must form the
materials for the first chapter in any history of the Ballast Office, or
of its successor, the Port and Docks Board (see Appendix I.).
IJ.— Oriemn oF tHe Dustin CHAMBER oF CoMMEKCE.
No record exists of the circumstances under which our Dublin
Chamber of Commerce was founded, and inquiries recently instituted
regarding its origin show that, save in so far as they are contained in
1 Dublin Corporation Records, vol. vi. p. 621. |
FaLkinER—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 189
the Rough Minute-Book of the Committee of Merchants recently
acquired by the Academy, those circumstances cannot now be traced.
For although the Chamber of Commerce still possesses among its
records the first minute-book of the Chamber, that volume throws no
light upon the mode in which the Chamber of Commerce was first
constituted. It begins with an entry dated March 18, 1783, which
records the calling of a meeting for March 22 ensuing to elect a
President, two Vice-Presidents, and a Treasurer, and to determine on
the duties of a Secretary. And the next entry duly announces the
election of those officers and the appointment of one William Shannon
as Secretary at an annual salary of £30. But of the circumstances
leading up to these proceedings no trace remains. The minute-book of
the Committee of Merchants not only unexpectedly supplies the lost
details, but incidentally gives us a very interesting chapter in the
history of the mercantile development of Dublin.
In the account given by Sir John Gilbert in his History of Dublin
of the origin of the Royal Exchange (now the City Hall), mention is
made of an association of merchants formed to resist the exactions of
one Thomas Allen, who, having been appointed in the year 1763 to
the office of Taster of Wines, endeavoured to enforce for his ownadyantage
a fee of two shillings per tun on all wines and other liquors imported into
Treland. The struggle against this arbitrary tax did not, according
to the authority quoted by Gilbert, last long; ‘“‘and turning their
thoughts to the best mode of applying the redundant subscriptions
raised to conduct the opposition,” the members unanimously adopted
the idea of building a commodious building for the meeting of
merchants and traders. A situation having been fixed upon, the
purchase-money, £13,000, was obtained from Parliament by the
zeal and activity of Dr. Lucas, then one of the city representatives.
The building so erected was the Royal Exchange, of which the toun-
dation stone was laid in 1769, which was opened ten years later.'
It is to the proceedings of the Committee of Merchants, by whom the
building of the Exchange was promoted and conducted, that this Rough
Minute-Book relates ; and the record shows that the committee not only
performed for many years many of the functions now discharged by the
Chamber of Commerce, but was the actual parent of that institution.
The minute-book opens with the record of a resolution “that the
ground for building an Exchange be conveyed to the Corporation of
the Guild of Merchants, and the planning of the building and carry-
1 Gilbert’s History of Dublin, ii. 46.
140 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ing into the execution of the Exchange conducted by a committee
of certain citizens therein named, together with fifteen wholesale
merchants, freemen of the Guild of Merchants to be chosen by the
wholesale freemen of the Guild of Merchants from among themselves.”
The earlier entries in the book are concerned with the steps taken to
raise funds for the erection of the Exchange, the money voted by
Parliament being absorbed by the cost of the site. These funds were
for the most part obtained by means of lotteries. On Feb. 23, 1768,
it was resolved ‘‘that a scheme be grafted on the State Lottery now
depending in England in order to raise a further sum towards the
expense of erecting an Exchange on the reserved ground on Cork Hill,
and that an advertisement for that purpose be published in due time
in all the Dublin papers, except the Gazette.”” The minute-book is
crowded with entries, between the dates 1768 and 1778, relating to
the progress of the building, including a resolution of 24th Feb., 1769,
for the payment of the bills ‘‘ for the expenses of entertaining the Lord
Lieutenant on the occasion of his laying the foundation stone,”’ not-
withstanding the Committee are of opinion they are exceedingly
extravagant. The bills amounted to £298 13s. 13d.
But the Committee of Merchants was concerned with topics more
serious than these. They busied themselves from the first in such
matters as the procuring an amendment in the Irish Bankruptcy Laws,
in movements for the direct importation of spirits from the British
plantations without first landing them in Great Britain, and other
questions directly affecting the commercial interests of Ireland. That
they also took a lively interest in the mercantile development of their
own city is evident from the space devoted in their records to such
topics as the building of the new Custom House, and a proposal for
erecting Law Courts in College-green. Both of these projects were
opposed by the merchants on the ground that they tended to shift
the commerce of Dublin from its old centre in the neighbourhood of
Essex-quay ; the latter scheme was especially obnoxious as tending
‘to the erection of a bridge east of Essex Bridge”; and the former
was formally condemned as ‘‘ extremely injurious to the interests of
thousands of individuals, and highly prejudicial to the commerce of
this city in general.”’! It is interesting to note that the erection of the
1 On 30th Dec., 1773, it was resolved :—‘‘ That the removal of the Custom
House below Temple Lane slip will tend to draw the inhabitants of the city further
down the river, and so furnish a pretext for building a bridge to the east of Essex
Bridge, which would be still more injurious to private property, to trade, and to navi-
gation than even the removal of the Custom House.’’ —(Extract from Minute-book.}
FaLxiner—Jlustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 141
former Custom House had two generations earlier led to similar com-
plaints. But the objections of the merchants were, of course, unavail-
ing. The Commissioners of Revenue pointed out that the increase of
building had been of late so rapid that the town which was formerly
terminated to the east of Essex Bridge was now divided by that
‘structure into equal parts, east and west, that the eastern portion had
no communication across the river save by ferries, and that as the city
must naturally continue to develop in an easterly direction, they would
-be highly blamable in preventing such a communication in the future.
The merchants, however, did not surrender without a struggle ; they
interviewed the Viceroy, petitioned Parliament, and invoked the aid of
the merchants of London; and they voted gold snuff-boxes to two
London merchants who had interested themselves in promoting opposi-
tion among the traders of the English capital. The result of their
efforts was to retard the erection of the new Custom House for about
ten years. But in 1781 the Commissioners of Revenue were at length
-empowered to build the Custom House on the site so much objected
to, and although at a public meeting summoned by the merchants
under the presidency of the Lord Mayor, a further petition was ordered
to be presented to the Viceroy by the members for the city, Mr.
Clements and Sir Samuel Broadstreet, the protest was unavailing.
The Custom House was built where it still stands, Carlisle (now
O’Connell) Bridge became an immediate necessity, and the develop-
ment of the city to the east and south-east at once proceeded apace.
It was probably a sense of the deficient authority of the Merchants’
Committee, as revealed by the failure of their opposition to the Custom
House scheme, which led to the institution of the more formal organi-
zation of a Chamber of Commerce. The change may also have been
hastened by an investigation into the conduct of the lotteries held by
the Committee, which appears to have provoked some scandal, though
no proofs of fraud were established. It is certain, at all events, that
little more than a year later the Committee was convened to meet at
the Royal Exchange on February 10, 1783, for the special purpose of
taking into consideration the ‘‘ Plan for instituting a Chamber of
Commerce in this city,” a copy of which is printed as an Appendix to
this Paper (see Appendix II.). Resolutions affirming the plan were
at once adopted, and the Committee of Merchants, after a useful and
interesting existence of exactly fifteen years, merged in the Chamber
of Commerce of Dublin.
Although it is not the province of this Paper to further pursue the
history of the Chamber of Commerce, it appears desirable, inasmuch
142 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
as that history has never been written, to note the steps which were
taken to provide the new association with a formal constitution pur-
suant to the resolution just chronicled. One month after the final
meeting of the Committee of Merchants a ballot was held for the elec-
tion of a Council of forty-one members.1_ One hundred and fifty-three
persons appear to have voted, and Mr. Travers Hartley, long the most
active member of the old Committee, who had been for many years a
representative of Dublin in the College-green Parliament as a follower
of Grattan, was returned at the head of the list. Atafurther meeting
held on March 22, for the election of officers, Mr. Hartley was elected
President of the Chamber—a position which he appears to have held
continuously down to 1788. In that year rules were drawn up
for the annual election of officers of the Chamber, but no election
under these rules is recorded in the minute-book, which is a blank
from March 29, 1788, to 1805, except for a single entry in 1791.
Whether or not the Chamber met during this long interval does not
certainly appear; but from the fact that the first minute-book in the
possession of the Chamber of Commerce is indexed as ‘‘ Old Chamber,”
and that what is referred to as the ‘‘ second’’ Chamber began to sit
in 1805, it may be assumed that the Chamber as originally started
failed to meet for several years, and was, in fact, during a period of
seventeen years a less efficient guardian of mercantile interests than
the old Committee of Merchants which it had replaced. The minute-
book ends with the year 1807. No records exist of any meetings from
that year until 1820, when the Chamber appears to have been recon-
stituted ; and it is doubtful for how many years its proceedings were
suspended. From the latter date the manuscript records have been
preserved in perfect sequence, and are in the custody of the present
Secretary of the Chamber, Mr. Perry. The printed reports of the
Chamber date from 1821.
IIl1.—Tue Ovzet Gattey Socrery.
At the end of the seventeenth century, in the closing years of the
reign of William III., a vessel known as the “‘ Ouzel,”’ in the owner-
ship of a Dublin merchant, and engaged, it is believed, in the Smyrna
trade, sailed from Ringsend for the Levant. Prior to her departure she
had been insured against risks, with Dublin underwriters, in the usual
way. In the ordinary course her absence would have been a lengthened
1 Minutes of Chamber of Commerce.
Farxiner—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 143
one; but when, after a lapse of some years, nothing had been heard of
her, she was assumed to have been lost at sea with all hands. The
owners duly claimed their insurance-money, which was paid by the
underwriters ; the ship was deemed to have made her last voyage, and
the commercial transactions in respect of her to have been finally
closed. But it fell out that not very long afterwards, to the astonish-
ment of all concerned, the ‘‘ Ouzel Galley ”’ cast anchor in the port of
Dublin. The captain had a strange tale to tell. Proceeding in her
eastern course down the Mediterranean, the ‘‘ Ouzel’’ had fallen a
victim to the Algerine corsairs, who in those days, and, indeed, for
long after, were still the scourge of the mercantile marine, and being
alarge and well-found ship, she had been appropriated by her captors
to their own uses. But by some fortunate chance the crew of the
‘‘Ouzel’”’ were enabled to turn the tables on their conquerors, to
repossess themselves of their ship and its cargo, and to return in
safety to the port from whence they had sailed.
So far all was for the best. But the return of the ‘“ Ouzel,”
unfortunately, proved the occasion of a knotty legal difficulty involv-
ing troublesome litigation, which in one form or another lasted for
several years. The ‘‘ Ouzel”’ brought home in her hold, not alone the
peaceful merchandize which it was her mission to carry, but the
piratical spoils of her sometime Algerine masters. This loot was of a
value far exceeding that of the legitimate cargo, and immensely in
excess of the amount for which the ship had been insured, and for
which the owners had been compensated. A question at once arose
as to the ownership of the plunder. Was the booty the property of the
original owners under whose auspices it had been gained? Or did it pass
to the underwriters in virtue of their completion of the contract of
indemnity ? The point was a nice one, which apparently had not then
been settled, and the gentlemen of the Law Courts exerted their
ingenuity in the endeavour to determine the destination of so rich a
prize. No records of this litigation are now traceable; but it is
reputed to have engaged the Courts for years without any result being
reached ; and the case was ultimately referred to the arbitration of a
committee of merchants, through whom a compromise was effected,
and the litigation terminated.
To celebrate this triumph of the elastic principle of arbitration
over the unaccommodating and dilatory procedure of the Courts, the
merchants of Dublin resolved to found a society which should have for
its object the settlement of all commercial disputes without having
recourse to the winding mazes of the law; and they gave to their
144 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Association the name of the vessel which had been the means of
bringing it into being. Accordingly, about the year 1705, the Ouzel
Galley Society was founded.
The books of the Proceedings of the Society for the first half-
century of its existence have long been irrecoverably lost, and only
the more recent minute-books are now extant. But its rules and
regulations, with a list of members, were printed in 1859, as col-
lected from the books of Proceedings which were then available.
These rules and regulations include the Report of a Committee of the
Society appointed in 1799 ‘‘to inquire into and prepare a declaration
of the rules, orders, and customs of the Galley.” We are thus
enabled to understand the precise objects of the Society and the mode
in which it was organized. From this it appears that it was the duty
of all members of the Galley to sit as arbitrators ‘in the settlement of
such disputes as might be referred to them, ‘‘ provided all the arbitra-
tors chosen are members of the Galley.”’ Parties were prohibited from
making any personal applications to members respecting any matter in
dispute, and all proceedings were regulated under the guidance of an
officer known as the Registrar, to whom a sum of money, arranged
according to a fixed scale, was payable by the parties seeking arbitra-
tion, ‘‘to insure the payment of the Galley Fees,” which were
appropriated, after payment of the costs of the award, to a charitable
fund. Within the limits of the Society parties were entitled to the
choice of their arbitrators, but with the arbitrators when chosen lay
the appointment of an umpire.
Such were the purposes for which the Society was formally
constituted ; but it had, or grew to have, other functions at once
benevolent and convivial, which appear in time to have engrossed a
large share of the attention of its members. From the year 1770 tlie
subscription appears to have been a guinea; but on November 11,
1801, ‘‘it appearing by the bursar’s accounts that the subscription of
one guinea per annum is insufficient to pay the annual dinners,” it
was raised to a guinea and a-half. Two years later, no doubt for the
same reason, it was raised to £2 5s. 6d.; and the frequent occurrence
of the word ‘‘ dinner” in its rules may, perhaps, be held to account
for the mourning accents with which surviving members still speak of
this ancient Society. Most of the business of the Society was trans-
acted at or after dinner, except at the November meeting, which was
held immediately before dinner. Certain it is, at all events, that
while continuing to perform its more serious functions, the Ouzel
Galley Society became highly popular among the merchants of Dublin
Fatxiner—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 145
as a convivial association. Its roll being limited to forty members,
admission to it was highly prized. The list of its members for a
period of a hundred and forty years, contains, it is no exaggeration
to say, representatives of all that is most honourable in mercantile
Dublin, and attests the high character the Society continuously
enjoyed. The names of La Touche, Guinness, Hone, Pim, Jameson,
Hatley, Colvill, and others equally familiar constantly recur.
The esteem in which the Society was borne, and the hold it had on
the affections of its members, was strengthened by the quaint and
characteristic customs which its constitution ordained and its rules
enforced. It was organized, in deference to its marine origin, on a
nautical basis. The affairs of the Ouzel Galley were administered by
a Council, of which the officers were :—‘‘ The captain, two lieutenants,
master, bursar, boatswain, gunner, carpenter, master’s mate, coxswain,
boatswain’s mate, and carpenter’s mate ’’; and a peremptory regulation
enacted that at the meetings of the Galley, of which three were held
annually, ‘‘ the captain, or in his absence the senior officer on board,
has supreme command, and any disobedience to him is mutiny.” The
introduction of officers and new members was conducted ‘‘ according
to the ancient and immemorial usage of the Galley,” part of the
ceremony being, it is understood, the draining, at a single draught, of
a bumper of claret from the glass cup, a beautiful example of Irish
glass-work, a photograph of which is reproduced with this Paper.
Guests could only be introduced on the invitation of the ‘‘ captain,
officers, and crew of the Ouzel Galley.” At each meeting members
were bound, on pain of a fine, to wear a gold medal’ pendant from
an orange ribbon. Finally, the members were ‘piped to dinner”
with a boatswain’s whistle; and the minutes for 1754 record that a
silver whistle, probably that of which a representation appears below,
was ordered to be provided by the carpenter for the boatswain’s use.*
1 The records of the Society for Feb., 13, 1772, contain the following :—
‘‘ Ordered, that the medal be made of gold. That on one side of the medal the
*Ouzel Galley’ be represented, and the motto ‘Steady.’ That on the reverse be
represented the figure of ‘ Equity,’ with the motto ‘cuique suum.’ ”’
These medals appear to have been struck at different periods. That acquired
by the Academy is believed to be from the design of Parks, a Dublin architect.
2 The captain’s oath, in 1754, was as follows:—‘‘I, 4, B, do swear that I
will be faithful to our Sovereign Lord King George the Second; and this galley,
entrusted to my command, I will, to the best of my power, defend against all
pirates either by sea and land ; the rules and orders established on board I will see
observed to the utmost of my power, and justice admisistered to the crew, and all
who put any freight on board. I will continue to be a good fellow, and, as long
as I can, hearty and merry.”’
146 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
That at these convivial meetings the charitable objects associated
with them were by no meansignored appears from the regulation that
the bursar should keep two accounts; one for the Subscription Fund,
and the other for the Charitable Fund; and that after such dinner it
was customary to vote away in charity the earnings of the Galley.
And it is certain that the Society enjoyed throughout its existence a
high reputation for practical benevolence.
The meetings of the Ouzel Galley Society were held throughout
the nineteenth century at the Commercial Buildings, and many still
recall these gatherings which each November were held in the open
square behind the Chamber of Commerce. In the latter part of the
eighteenth century, and for many years subsequently, the dinners
appear to have been held at Atwell’s Tavern in Dame-street.’
From the foregoing account, it is easy to understand that a society
of this kind must, in time, have outgrown the circumstances in which
it originated. Though as a benevolent association it continued to
serve a useful purpose, its functions as an institution for promoting
arbitration gradually fell into desuetude, as legal procedure adapted
itself more closely to the needs of the mercantile community. From
a printed account of awards made in each year from 1799 to 1869, it
appears that 364 awards, many of them dealing with matters of great
magnitude, were made within that period. But of these nearly two-
thirds were made in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. In
1888, accordingly, the Ouzel Galley was voluntarily wound-up and
dissolved by an order of the Court of Chancery, which provided for
the distribution of its funds, to the amount of £3300, among charitable
institutions connected with the city in which the Society had so long
flourished.
Many citizens of Dublin must be familiar with the large painting
of a full-rigged ship which hangs over the door of the news-room in
the Chamber of Commerce, with the legend, ‘‘ The Ouzel Galley,”
1 The meeting-places of the Society, as recorded in their Transactions, throw
interesting light on the taverns or eating-houses of Dublin and its environs, in the
second half of the eighteenth century. In 1748 the Galley met in the Phenix
Tavern, Werburgh-street ; in 1751, at the Ship Tavern, Chapelizod ; in 1775, at
the Rose and Bottle, Dame-street; in 1770, at the Eagle Inn, Eustace-street ;
in 1776, at Power’s, Booterstown ; in 1796, at Harrington’s, Grafton-street; and,
in 1800, at Atwell’s Commercial Tavern, Dame-street. In the early part of the
nineteenth century the favourite resorts were Leech’s Royal Hotel, Kildare-street ;
Morrrison’s, in Nassau-street ; the Bilton, in Sackyille-street ; and Jude’s Hotel,
Commercial Buildings.
Farxiner— Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 147
beneath it. It seems right that in this notice of the Society the pedigree
of this painting should be preserved so far as it can be collected from
the records of the Society.
The painting appears to have been presented to the Society as far
back as 1752 by Alderman Johr Macarrell, the then captain of the
Galley. Whether or not it was a merely fancy picture, or an
authentic representation of the actual ship from which the Society
took its name, cannot be stated, for nothing further is known of the
date of the picture or of the artist. In the minutes of the meeting
of the Galley held at Chapelizod in August, 1753, a receipt is in-
serted, in which one John Morris acknowledges the receipt of ‘‘a
large painted piece representing the Ouzel Galley, which is put up in
the great room in my house,’ and admits the picture to be the pro-
perty of the Galley. Morris was probably the owner of the inn or
tavern in which the Society was then in the habit of meeting.
Nineteen years later, 16th July, 1772, the minutes record the
appointment of a committee ‘‘to inquire after and recover the picture
of the Galley presented to the Society by Alderman Macarrell,” but
the result of the inquiry is not given in any subsequent minute. It
may be presumed, however, that the picture was recovered, and is
identical with that which still hangs in the Chamber of Commerce,
and is thus referred to in the entry for 3rd June, 1870 :—‘‘ That the
offer of the Chamber of Commerce to place the old painting of the
Galley in a more conspicuous place be accepted.”
[No account of the Ouzel Galley Society has ever appeared in
print, save a brief notice in Whitelaw & Walsh’s ‘‘ History of
Dublin,”’ vol. i1., p. 914. The account given above of the origin of
the Society, and its history prior to 1753, is not sustained by any
documentary authority, but is derived from oral tradition preserved
among its members. The writer has to express his cordial obliga-
tions to Mr. R. F. 8S. Colvill, of Coolock—whose father, the late
James Chaigneau Colvill, was the senior officer of the Society at
the date of its dissolution—for much information and assistance.
To Mr. Colvill, also, as the custodian of the glass cup and silver
whistle, and the possessor of one of the medals shown in the illustra-
tions, the Academy is indebted for permission to photograph these
interesting relics.—C, L. F.]
148
Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
APPENDIX,
I.
Berne THE First Entey In THE Mrycute-Book oF THE
Battast Orrice ComMMITTEE,
“The Committee appointed to consider the proper methods for
settling the Ballast Office, &c., are come to the following resolutions,
which they humbly offer to your Lordships and the Assembly as
follows :—
Imprimis.—That it is necessary there should be a standing com-
mittee of 3 or 5, who shall be called Governors and Directors,
and haye the management of the business, and report their
proceedings to the Lord Mayor and Assembly quarterly at their
meetings, and oftener if needful—the Committee to be altered
every Assembly if thought fit.
2ndly.—That there be a proper officer appointed called the Master
and Treasurer of the Ballast Office, who shall duly attend the
said office in person, and observe such directions as he shall |
receive from the Committee of Directors; and that he have a
good Clerk for receiving and paying, etc., for whom he will be
answerable, but if recommended by the Assembly then security
to be given by him to the Directors.
3rdly.—That there be a good and sober Clerk, called Accountant
and Registrar, to officiate; also a Secretary: to the Directors,
and to attend the General Assembly with the Registry, and
other books of the proceedings of the office when required.
4thly.—That there may be an officer knowing in Shipping, by
the name of Chief Gauger and Supervisor, to gauge the Ships,
and inspect into the working of the Lighters and Gabbards,
and make return to the office of what ballast is put on board, etc.
5thly.—That there may be a sober and careful person appointed
to be messenger and office keeper, who may be frequently
employed to assist in other matters in the daytime.
Favxiner—Lllustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 149
6thly.—That there ought to be an office immediately appointed
in a proper place, as near to the Custom House as can con-
veniently, and where boats and Ringsend cars may come
without disturbance to the street.
That at. Temple-bar there is a proper place if none more conve-
nient be found ; it has large rooms and warehouses, at £15 ann.
7thly.—That there ought to be a convenient boat with 2 boat-
men, to attend the Gauger and Supervisor, and other services.
8thly.—That there being no Gabbards in this port of the kinds
of the Lighters used at London, for the raising the ballast
with expedition and ease—it is necessary that 2 Lighters be
immediately built, one of twenty the other of thirty tun, with-
out decks or bends. When these Lighters are set to work by
the men belonging to the office, they will show what quantity
of ballast can be raised in a certain time, and what the cost
will be to put each tun on board; and this will be the guide
either to build more of these Lighters, or come to agreements
with masters of Gabbards. The Governors and Directors, after
they have met 2 or 3 weeks, will be able (it is believed) to
inform your Lordship and the Assembly what are the more
proper steps to be taken in relation to the raising the ballast.
This Committee are humbly of opinion that no salaries can
well be settled till 3 months after the 1st of May next.
11th Dec., 1707.
*¢ Robert Cheatham. John Pearson
Wm. Quaile. Matthew Pearson.
Tho. Kirkwood. Humphry Jervis.
Tho. Thorne. John Rogerson.
John Neyill. Wm. Fownes.
Ed. Surdevill. John Eccles.
Thos. Wilkinson. John Godley.
Nath. Whitwell.”’
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [11]
150 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
100
Resoturions or Dustin MrrcHants, aND OF THE COMMITTEE OF
MERCHANTS, RELATIVE 10 THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CHAMBER
oF CoMMERCE.
Royat Excuance, Dustiy,
7th February, 1783.
Present—Travers Hartley, Esq., in the Chair. Messrs. William
Colville, James Horan, John Binns, Denis Thomas O’Brien, David
Dick, Alexander Armstrong, George Lang, Henry Lyons, John
Cowan, Samuel Dick, Robert Magee, Arthur Bryan, Paul Patrick,
James Anderson, George Lunell, Edward Forbes, Edward Patrick,
William Bruce Dunn, Daniel Marston, Joshua Pim, Frederick Geale,
George Sutton, Leland Crosthwaite, Thomas Mitchell, Robert Black.
A paper having been introduced, containing ‘‘ Propositions for the
Establishment of a Chamber of Commerce in the City ’””—
Resotvep —That the said Paper be referred to the Committee of
Merchants, and their opinion requested thereon.
The meeting adjourned to Tuesday evening next at seven o’clock,
when the answer of the Committee of Merchants will be received.
Roya ExcHanée,
February 10, 17838.
Present—
Mr. Colvill.
Mr. Hartley. Mr. O’Brien.
Alderman Sutton. Mr. Cosgrave.
Mr. Carothers.
At a meeting of the Committee of Merchants regularly convened by
summons for the special purpose of taking into consideration a plan of
instituting a Chamber of Commerce in this city, Mr. John Patrick and
Mr. Joshua Pim presented to the Committee the plan hereunto annexed,
which being received, read, and considered, the following resolutions
were entered into :—
‘That we highly approve of the said plan as forming a broad and
firm foundation on which may be expected to arise a superstructure
of eminent usefulness in the commercial department.
That from this measure the trading interest is likely to derive
great additional importance and respect, and the public in general the
advantages consequent thereto.
Faixiner—llustrations of Commercial History of Dublin. 151
That on the great change expected shortly to take place in the
commercial system of Great Britain and Ireland, and probably in that
of some other countries, it is highly necessary and peculiarly seasonable
by a scheme of this nature to collect the experience and abilities of
every intelligent trader in the various lines of commerce and manufac-
tures that their united knowledge may be happily directed to the
general good.
That this Committee do therefore most heartily recommend to
their fellow-citizens the carrying said plan into effect as speedily as
possible, and they will think themselves happy in resigning their ap-
pointment as the Committee of Merchants when on the liberal and
extensive plan now proposed a Council of the Chamber of Commerce
shall be elected.
Prawn For IystirutiInc A CHAMBER OF CoMMERCE IN THIS Crry.
‘The present important situation of this country, its lately renewed
constitution, its fond hopes of rising commerce, and consequently in-
creasing opulence, the variety of commercial regulations necessarily
incident to this change of circumstances, and particularly requisite
from the late revolution in the political system ; every consideration
appearing to demand a general union among traders and a constant
unwearied attention to their common interests ; from a view whereof,
to promote these laudable objects in this particular district, and to
hold forth an example for imitation and co-operation to the rest of the
kingdom, it is proposed to institute forthwith a Chamber of Commerce
for the city of Dublin.
That any merchant or trader resident within the said city or its
dependencies shall be eligible as a member of this Chamber on his
paying one guinea to Mr. John Patrick or Mr. Joshua Pim, who have
kindly undertaken to act as Treasurers until a person shall be elected
to that office; such subscribers to continue members as long as they
shall respectively comply with the rules which shall be adopted by the
said Chamber for its good government ; and for the continuation of a
fund to answer the purposes of its institution.
That when the subscribers shall amount to one hundred the said
temporary treasurers shall call a meeting by public advertisement,
at which said first meeting of the Chamber, or at an adjournment of
said meeting, the members present shall choose by ballot a certain
number of persons who shall be called the Council of the Chamber of
Commerce, to continue in office until the 1st of May, 1784; and that
11*
152 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
an annual ballot for such Council shall be held on every first day of
May, not being Sunday, and when Sunday, on the 2nd day of May.
That it shall be the business of said Council to attend to the in-
terests of commerce, and for that purpose to hold frequent meetings, to
confer when necessary with persons in high stations or others, to have
a watchful attention to the proceedings of Parliament respecting trade
in both kingdoms; to inspect into the methods of transacting business
in Dublin, and to continue and recommend improvements therein when
such shall be thought expedient.
That the said Council for the time being shall choose by ballot from
among themselves a President, two Vice-Presidents, and a Treasurer,
and shall appoint a Secretary with a fixed salary suitable to his services.
That it be understood that the members of the Chamber of Com-
merce shall be peculiarly entitled to the protection of the institution
on every proper occasion.”
[edad
xX,
THE ITINERARY OF PATRICK IN CONNAUGHT,
ACCORDING TO TIRECHAN.
he dio 1h, IEICE. ING, ID5, lorie D
Regius Professor of Modern History in the University of Cambridge.
[Read January 26, 1903.]
Ir we attempt to trace on a map the itinerary which Tirechan marks
out for St. Patrick through the kingdom of Connaught, we are met by
several difficulties, but by none perhaps more awkward at first sight
than that which arises at the very outset in regard to the point where
Patrick crossed the Shannon. In the present paper I propose to
show that this difficulty is only apparent, being due to an erroneous
identification which has been accepted without question, and to deter-
mine as nearly as possible the alleged route of Patrick from Granard
to Rath Crochan. Further, I shall have occasion to point out a funda-
mental confusion which pervades Tirechan’s memoir.
To avoid misconception, it may be well to state explicitly that I
am concerned here merely with the interpretation of that document ;
not directly with what Patrick did, but with what Tirechan says
he did.
§1. At the end of Book i., our text of Tirechan thus marks the
progress of Patrick from the cacumen Graneret to the Shannon :—
venit in campum Rein (3115 Rolls ed.) ;1
venitque P. ad alueum Sinone ad locum in quo mortuus fuit auriga illius
Boidmalus et sepultus ibi in quo dicitur Cail Boidmail usque in hune diem (3119).
That is: Patrick proceeded through Mag Rein, and reached a place
on the Shannon, which, in the writer’s time, was Cail Boidmail. Mag
Rein included the southern part of County Leitrim; and the name is
1 While I supply the reference to the Rolls edition, I give the text of the
passages which I quote from the proof-sheets of Dr. Gwynn’s edition of the Codex
Armachanus which is shortly to appear.
154 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
still preserved in Lake Rinn and the river Rinn. We have no means
of identifying the exact site of Cail Boidmail; but its whereabouts
seems to be indicated clearly enough. It was ad alueum Sinone.
The question arises: why did Tirechén, whose language is always
plain and unadorned, use this phrase, which recurs 312,, and 3133,
instead of saying simply ad Sinonam? There can, I think, be only
one answer. Requiring a Latin word to express the swellings or
lakes of the Shannon, Tirechaén adopted alueus as the best equivalent
he could find: Otherwise a/ueus in these passages is perfectly
unmeaning. Now the Shannon-swelling which Patrick would reach,
advancing westward from Granard through the plain of Rinn, is that
which is known as lakes Bofin and Boderg. The inference is that
Cail Boidmail was somewhere on the eastern bank of these lakes.
§ 2. Digression on Mag Slecht.—An interesting question presents
itself here, bearing on the criticism of Tirechan’s text. In later
biographies, which depend largely on Muirchu and Tirechan, we find
a notice that Patrick visited Mag Slecht, where Crom Cruach was
worshipped, and cast down the idol. Now, this incident is not recorded
in the documents contained in the Codex Armachanus ; and therefore it
might seem reasonable to infer that it wasa story of later origin than the
events, whether legendary or historical, recorded by Tirechén and
Muirchu. On general grounds I do not feel that such an inference
would be quite safe; but there are certain particular considerations in
this case which must make us hesitate. The later biographies, to
which I referred, are those which it is usual to designate, following
Colgan’s nomenclature, as the Vita Tertia, Vita Quarta, and Vita
Tripartita. Now, in the Vita Tertia, the story of Mag Slecht (c. 46)
is inserted immediately after the incidents connected with Coirpre and
Conall, sons of Niall(c. 43 and 44), and immediately before the tule of
the darkness which the magicians drew down upon Mag’ Ai, when Patrick
entered Connaught. In the Vita Quarta, the visit to Mag Slecht
(c. 53) ocenrs in exactly the same position (between Coirpre and
Conall (c. 51, 52), and the darkness on Mag ‘Ai (c. 54)). Asthese two
Lives are quite independent of each other, this is highly significant,
for it shows that both depended here on a common source in which
these incidents were related in this order. Now the story of the two
sons of Niall, and the legend of the magic darkness, are derived from
Tirechén; so that the conclusion which naturally presents itself is
1 The association of alucus,‘ river-bed,’ with aluus,‘ paunch,’ explains the use of
the former word by Tirechan.
Bury—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 155
that the common source of Vy and V; here was an intermediate docu-
ment in which the compiler inserted at this point the story of Mag
Slecht.
Turning to the Vita Tripartita, in which large portions of
Tirechan’s- memoir have been reproduced, we find that the visit to Mag
Slecht immediately precedes the crossing of the Shannon (pp. 90-92,
ed. Rolls), and follows the visit to Granard. This confirms our con-
clusion. The coincidence in these three documents points to an older
document, in which the episode of Mag Slecht immediately preceded
the crossing of the Shannon.
Now, it is easy to see why a compiler who was following the
memoir of Tirechan might have been tempted to introduce from
another source the Mag Slecht incident just at this point. The
following words in Tirechén’s text obviously might supply the
motive :
mittens autem Patricius methbrain! ad fossam Slecht barbarum Patricii propin-
quum qui dicebat mirabilia in deo uera (31117).
The mention of Rath Slecht here might have readily induced a
compiler, who was at a loss where to insert the story of Crom Cruach,
to choose this place as appropriate. If so, the author of the Tripartite
Life, Part ii. (or his source), has gone further ; and in the process of
inserting the story, has altered a point in Tirechan’s narrative.
Having recounted the overthrow of the idol, the Tripartite proceeds to
reproduce as follows the passage which I haye just quoted from
Tirechan :—
Forothaigsium [dano] eclais isininutsin .i. Domnach Maige Slécht, ocus
foraccaib and Mabran Barbarus Patricii, cognatusque ei et propheta.
Apart from the notice of the foundation of Domnach Maige
Slecht, which is not mentioned by Tirechan, there is an important
discrepancy between the two passages. In Tirechén’s memov,
Patrick, from some place in Mag Rein, sends his relative to Rath
Slecht ; in the Tripartite he /eaves his relative in Rath Slecht. This
difference could of course be accounted for, as due to an alteration
entailed by the insertion of the Mag Slecht story.
1 How is this to be reconciled with madran in the Tripartite? Must we not
suppose that m is in both cases an error for ni, the name being Niabrain? Cf.
L. B. fo. 15 a,b. For nieth, cp. Ann. Ult. a.p. 693, and Rhys, Welsh People,
p- 51. A similar mistake occurs in the Biburg MS. of the Vita Tertia (Colgan,
p. 26, c. lxuii): Mothfer for Niothfer. Colgan’s note to the passage shows that
this is not a misprint.
156 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
But I confess that I do not feel quite satisfied with this explanation
of the notable coincidence between Vita 3, Vita 4, and the Tripartite.
It is the only possible explanation if we assume that the text of
Tfrech4n is right, as it stands in the Liber Armachanus. But there
are grounds for questioning this assumption. In the first place, there
is some corruption, whether large or small, in the passage quoted
above (mittens autem ...%n Deo uera); for there is no finite verb for
the subject Patricius. The scribe of the Armagh Ms. noted the
difficulty of the passage by his symbol z in the margin. In the
second place, it seems strange that Tirechan should not have
mentioned explicitly that the purpose of the mission of Patrick’s
follower was to take charge of a church which had been founded at
Rath Slecht. This is evidently implied; but we expect it to be
stated. Combining these two considerations, we cannot avoid the
conclusion that there isa lacuna here. For the sense, it is necessary
only to asume a short lacuna; the sentence might have been completed
by a few words referring to Domnach Maige Slecht. But the
suspicion forces itself upon us that the lacuna may have been of larger
compass, and that the original text of Tirechan may have contained
a notice of the visit to the Field of Adorations. .
§3. Having brought Patrick to the bank of an alueus Sinone in
Book i., Tf{rechan thus resumes his journey in Book ii. :—
Uenit ergo Patricius sanctus per alueum fluminis Sinnae per uadum duorum
auium in campum ‘Ai (31221);
et uenierunt per alueum fluminis Sinnae quae dicitur Bandea ad tumulum
Gradi (3132) ;
uenierunt ad campum Glais et in illo posuit celolam magnam quae sic uocatur
Aellula magna (ib. 10) ;
deinde uenit ad Assicum et Bitteum et ad magos qui fuerunt de genere
Corcuchoniuain Hono et Ith fratres. Alter suscepit Patricium et sanctos eius cum
gaudio et immolauit sibi domum suam. Et exiit ad Imbliuch Hornon... Et
posuit ibi Assicum &e. (ib. 13).
Patricius uero uenit de fonte Alofind ad Dumecham nepotum Ailello et fundauit in
illo loco aeclessiam quae sic uocatur Senella Cella Dumiche usque hune diem (31410).
Patrick is thus said to have proceeded to Mag ‘Ai by crossing the
Shannon at Vadum Duarum Auium, the Latin equivalent of the Irish
Snémh-d4-én. The plain known as Mag ’Ai comprises a large part of
County Roscommon, stretching from the town of Roscommon
northward beyond Elphin. It is in the north part of this plain that
we find Patrick when he has crossed the river; first of all, he does
certain things in Mag Glais, a district whose name still survives (as
Bury—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. L157
we shall see) close to Boderg; and then he goes on to Elphin,
evidently crossing the Baune (Badgna) hills, which divide Mag Glais
from Mag’Ai. Accordingly, if we had no other knowledge, we
should, without much diffidence, conclude that the Vadum Duarum
Auium was‘in the neighbourhood of Boderg and Bofin.
But when we consult modern authorities on Irish topography, we
find the Snamh-daé-én placed, without any hesitation, far from the
scene of the events described by Tirechan. It is shown by
O’ Donovan that it was an old name for a part of the Shannon close to
Clonmacnois. It is mentioned as a landmark in a description of the
boundaries of the Hy Many, in a context which shows that it was
south of Athlone!; and the situation near Clonmacnois is implied in
the story of the Acded Diarmada, published in Mr. O’Grady’s Silva
Gadelica,” and in a passage in the Agallamh na Sendrach.*
It may be said without the least reserve that this situation is quite
irreconcilable with the narrative of Tirechan. It would mean that
this writer supposed Patrick to have travelled southward from Mag
Rein (in Leitrim) to a point south of L. Ree in order to cross the river,
and returned northward again along the western bank just for the
purpose of reaching Mag Glais. It is as if one who wanted to reach
Battersea from Hampstead were to go round by way of Henley. Mag
Rein lay on one side of the Shannon ; Mag Glais opposite to it on the
other. If Tirechén had intended to bring Patrick round by this
cireuit of seventy miles, it is inconceivable that he should not have
said something to explain it or indicated more precisely the route ;
nor is there any imaginable cause why such a route should have been
chosen, if it were not for the purpose of preaching and founding
churches in the districts through which it lay. Not a hint is given
of any such activity in the territory through which Patrick would
have passed, and the Vadum Duarum Auium is introduced as if it were
the direct and natural passage from Mag Rein to the northern part of
Mag ‘Ai.
In the case of another chronicler, we might suspect that, through
ignorance of topography, he had mixed up his information and failed to
perceive the incongruity of his story. But, as I have pointed out at
10’Donovan, Hy Many, p. 5; compare the map.
*Text, pp. 72-3; translation, p. 76: “two birds that Nar son of Conall
Cernach’s son Finncha killed there on Eistine the Amazon’s shoulder, whence it
is named Snamh-da-én.’
31b. Text, p. 134; transl. p. 147.
158 Proceedings of the Royal Trish Academy.
length elsewhere,! Tirechaén was personally acquainted with the
geography of Connaught and Meath; and we must feel the utmost
hesitation in imputing to him the apparent absurdity.
These considerations seem to me so weighty as to be fatal to the
notion that Tirechan supposed Patrick to have crossed the river in the
neighbourhood of Clonmacnois. But the argument becomes simply
irresistible when we turn to the details which the memoir supplies as
to the crossing. The crossing was ata river-swelling (alueus fluminis) ;
and this condition is not fulfilled by O’Donovan’s Snémh-da-én. In
order to meet the difficulty, it might be proposed to take the words
per alueum fluminis per uadum duarum avium in an unnatural way, so
as to mean that Patrick, having travelled along the left shore of L. Ree
(alu. flum.), proceeded down the river to the Snamh-da-én, and there
crossed. But if we could entertain such a forced explanation, it
would be only to encounter a new difficulty on the other bank.
Having crossed over by the wadum, Patrick and his companions came
to another river-swelling :—
Et uenierunt per alueum fluminis Sinnae quae dicitur Bandea ad tumulum
Gradi (3133).
Thus Patrick, having already crossed the Shannon by the wadum,
has again to cross the a/ueus ‘ Bandea,’ in order to reach Duma Graid.?
Unfortunately Duma Graid no longer bears that name; and we cannot
make use of it to determine the situations of other places. But it
was clearly in Connaught, on the western side of the Shannon, on the
same side as Mag Glais; for Patrick proceeds from it into Mag Glais
without again crossing the river.
If any doubts be still felt as to the justice of my negative criticism
on the view that Patrick (according to Tirechaén) crossed by O’Dono-
van’s Snamh-da-én, they must yield to the positive fact that there is
another place on the Shannon which satisfies fully the conditions of
the problem. The essential condition is that having crossed by a
rviver-swelling, Patrick should then come to another river-swelling
1 English Historical Review, April, 1902.
* The only way out of this conclusion would be to assume that here per alueum
does not mean ‘across’ but ‘ along the banks of ’—yer in these passages being used
in different senses with al/weum and with wadum. In that case the alueus Bandea
might be sought anywhere (except in L. Ree, which, on this theory, would be a
different a/ueus), since, ex hypothesi, circuitous routes not traced by the writer are
admissible. But such possible attempts at exegesis will not satisfy a reasonable
critic.
Bury— The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 159
which he should also cross without returning to the left bank. This
seems imperative ; but it will also be admitted as a desirable, if not
indispensable, condition that the required river-passage should lie in
the direct, or more or less direct, route from Mag Rein to Mag Glais.
Now, these conditions are exactly fulfilled by the river-swellings
which are known as Bofin and Kilglass. Wesaw above, following
Tirechan’s route, that the natural place to locate Cail Boidmail was on
the eastern bank of Bofin or Boderg. We may say, more generally,
that any one passing from Mag Rein to Mag Glais, in the north part
of the barony of North Ballintober, would be sure to cross the river
somewhere between Roosky and Drumsna.
But if the second condition is satisfied, the first condition is also
strikingly fulfilled. If he crossed L. Bofin, Patrick would haye found
himself on the river-girt promontory (which forms part of the modern
parish of Kilglass), with L. Bofin on one side, and L. Kilglass on the
other. In order to reach Mag Glais, whither he was proceeding, he
would have to cross L. Kilglass, unless he took a long détour round
the south extremity of this river-lake. It is manifest that this topo-
graphy conforms precisely to the requirements of the narration of
Tirechén. Having crossed a first alueus, L. Bofin, the saint then goes
on to cross a second, L. Kilglass, by which means he is able to proceed
into Mag Glais. It follows that Bandea was the old name of the
branch swelling which is now known as the lake of Kilglass.?
Having crossed Bandea, Patrick went to Duma Graid. Topographers
expect to find this appellation in the form Doogary, a place-name
1 The Tripartite Life, Part ii., which depends here on irechan, gives an
additional piece of topographical information, derived from an unknown source.
The passage is translated by Dr. Stokes as follows (p. 93): ‘‘ There Patrick
found the fertas (bar ?, bank ?), namely, the earth was raised up under Patrick in
the ford ; and the learned still find that ridge. And he went into the harbour at
once, and there died Buad-moel, Patrick’s charioteer, and was buried in that place.
Cell Buadmdil is its name, and it belongs to Patrick.’ [Cell Baadmail should be
corrected, after the text of Tirechan, to Cail Baiadmail.] While this abbreviates
Tirechan’s account, it adds the token that at the passage there was a ridge of raised
earth in the river-bed. This notice is far more likely to have a basis of fact than
to be a pure invention. There is no reason to suppose that the name Cail Baadmail
had disappeared between Tirech4n’s date and the composition of the Vita Tripartita ;
and we need not have many scruples in accepting the statement that near Cail
Btiadmail there was a bank in the river which, according to the people of the
neighbourhood, rose out of the bed as the saint was crossing. It would be interest-
ing to know whether there are traces of this bank in L. Bofin. There is at all
events an island.
160 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
which occurs in different parts of Ireland. But in the neighbourhood
where we seek Tirechan’s Duma Graid, near Mag Glais, there is none
to be found.? Thence Patrick and his companions went to Mag Glais.
The name of the plain of Glas has survived unchanged since Tirechan’s
day, though with a far narrower signification. Moyglass is now a
small townland adjoining L. Tap in the parish of Kilmore? The
ancient Moyglass included the modern parish of Kilmore, of which it
is now only a small portion. This follows from the fact that the
Patrician church which gave its name to the parish of Kilmore was in
Moyglass, combined with the geographical consideration which suggests
the probability that there was a name to designate the whole district
between the Baune hills and the Shannon. It is possible that the
territory thus named extended considerably beyond the parish of
Kilmore, south-westward, into the barony of Roscommon. This may
be inferred from the existence (a mile or so west from the south
extremity of L. Kilglass) of another townland, Moyglass, which looks
as if it too preserved the denomination of the original Mag Glais; and
likewise from the name of the ‘ Church of Glas,’ from which L. Bandea
came to be called L. Kalglass.
In this district, Patrick founded a large cellula called Cellula Magna,
that is, in Irish, Cell Mor. This foundation has been preserved, and
the original ce// was, we may assume, not very far from the modern
church, about two miles north of the bridge which spans the mouth of
L. Kilglass.
The circumstance that Cellula Magna in campo Gilais is situated
close to that part of the Shannon which, in other respects, conforms to
the conditions which are implied in Tirechén’s narrative, strongly
corroborates my conclusion that this writer makes Patrick cross the
Shannon at L. Bofin. We must now return to the original difficulty.
While, as has been shown, the details of Tirechan’s story make it clear
that the crossing was at L. Bofin, Tirechan designates the place of
1 There is a L. Doogary in Leitrim ; another in Armagh; there are Doogarys
in Cavan, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Monaghan, Down, Kerry. The nearest places to
Mag Glais are Doogarymore in the barony of Ballintober South, near L. Ree
(Ordnance Map of Roscommon, Sheet 40), and Doogary in barony of Boyle (id.,
sheet 4); but neither is possible.
2 Yet it seems possible that the name survives in a corrupted form in the islet
which is known as Dockery’s island at the mouth of L. Kilglass. If so, we
might infer that Duma Graid was opposite this island in the townland of Rushport.
3 Rightly identitied by Mr. Hennessy in a note to his translation of the Vita
Tripartita in M. F. Cusack’s Trias Thaumaturga (p. 427, n. 8).
Bury—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 161
crossing as Vadum Duorum [se] Auium, or Snémh-dd-én, which was
a wholly different place.
In the case of a more commonplace name, one might, with some
reason, leap to the conclusion that there were two places so called on the
Shannon—one at L. Bofin, and one near the later monastery of Clon-
macnois. But the ‘ Swimming-place of the Two Birds’ hardly lends
itself to such a facile explanation, which we should have no difficulty
in accepting if the name were, for example, the ‘Swimming-place of
the Ox’; and it seems to me that we can hardly escape the conclusion
that Tirechan did not intend to associate Patrick’s crossing-place with
the name Snémh-da-én, and that an error has crept into his text. The
thought naturally occurs that the Vadum might have been known by
the name of the two cows, the red cow and the white cow, Boderg and
Bofin, which gave its names to the river-swelling. If Tirechan wrote
Vadum duarum vaccarum (to translate Snaémh-da-bo), and if vaccarum
fell out accidentally (through homeeoteleuton), it is easy to conceive that
duarum might have been corrected to dwarum auium by a scribe towhom
the name of the Snaémh-dé-en was familiar, but who had no accurate
knowledge of the geography of the Shannon.!
§ 4. From Moyglass, the saint proceeds, in the pages of Tirechan, to
the territory of the ‘ Corcu-chonluain’;* and one of the chiefs of this
tribe (one of two brothers, named Ith and Hono, described as mag?)
welcomed Patrick, ‘et immolauit sibi domum suam et exiit ad
Imbliuch Hornon.’ It seems probable that Hornon is an error for
Honon (genitive of Hono); and this is the view suggested by the
Tripartite Life (p. 94), where ‘Imlech Onand’ is the dwelling of
Ono, ‘de quo Ui Onach.’ If this correction is legitimate, one
1 As there was a Druim-da-én near the Snamh-da-én on the river-reach
belowAthlone, so it is possible that, if there was a Snamh-d4-bo, there may haye
been a ridge of corresponding name. The modern Drum-sna is north of the river-
swelling ; but it may at least be suggested that the ridge from which the place
derives its name was called from the ancient Vadum—the ridge of the Snémh
(dé bé). At all events Drum-sna must be short for a fuller name in which the
particular sxa@mh was designated.
* The name (suggesting stereus caninum) is puzzling ; but the Corew Ochland (so
Vit. Trip. 94) are meant. Their territory is described in Vita Trip. (#.) as ‘on
this side of the land of the Hy Ailella, and to the north of Sliay Baune.’ See
O’ Donovan, ‘ Annals of Four Masters,’ a.p. 1256, p. 458, mote; and ‘ Topogra-
phical Poems of John O’Dubhagain, &c., notes, p. xl, on the Corca Sheachlann or
Corca Achlann, one of the three tuathas which formed a deanery in the diocese
of Elphin.
162 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ambiguity, will be removed from the narrative, which, at this point, is
not quite clear. Itis not made evident which of the two brothers
received Patrick; but if Jmbliwch Honon is the true reading, it will
follow that it was Hono (as the Tripartite Life assumes).
Another ambiguity lies in exit. The sentence reads as if Hono
were the subject ; but if this means, as it would naturally mean, that
Hono went thither alone without Patrick, a difficulty arises as to the
reference of 767 which occurs just after. The text is :—
et immolauit sibi domum suam et exiit ad imbliuch, hornon et dixit illi
Patricius Semen tuum erit benedictum et de tuo semine erunt sacerdotes domini et
principes digni in mea elimoysina et tua hereditate et posuit ibi assicum et betheum
filium fratris assici et cipiam matrem bethei episcopi.
The awkwardness is increased when, reading on, we find that the
place from which Patrick started when he had thus set up Assicus
and Betheus was a place which he was not said to have reached—
Sons Alofind (314).
Now, it seems certain that 7b7 means Alofind, for there can be
little doubt that Assicus was stationed there.’ The inference might
seem to be that one sentence at least has fallen out, in which the
coming of Patrick to Alofind was mentioned. But if we turn to the
Tripartite Life, we find a solution which may enable us to dispense
with the assumption of a lacuna. There we find Alofind identified
with Imbliuch Honon (94;,). This interpretation implies that
Patrick, received by Hono somewhere in the territory of Corcu-
chonliain, went with him to Imbluch Honon—that is, Elphin—and
founded a church there.
It must be allowed that the text of Tirechan, just as it stands,
admits of this interpretation. A different punctuation from that
adopted in the Rolls text will make it clear :—
Alter suscepit Patricium et sanctos eius cum gaudio et immolauit sibi domum
suam. Et exiit ad Imbliuch Hornon et dixit illi Patricius: ‘* Semen tuum erit—
hereditate.’? Et posuit ibi Assicum, &c.
The subject of exit is Patricius, who proceeds to the Imbliuch of
Hono; and it is to be observed that, with this interpretation, the pro-
bability that Honon, to which the following 2//i would refer, is a true
correction for Hornon, approaches certainty.
1 Compare Tirechan, 3132s.
Bury—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 163
Yet it remains strange that the close proximity of Alofind to
Imbliuch Honon is not more clearly brought out, and also that the
foundation of the Ecclesia there is not formally mentioned.
§ 5. In any case, Alofind gives a fixed point in the territory of the
Corcu-chonltain; and for the purpose of marking the itinerary, it is
enough to determine that, from Kilmore, Patrick, having crossed
Slav Baune, proceeded south-westward to Elphin. TVrom there he
passed on to Dumecha in the country of the Hy Ailello, and founded
the church called Senella Cella. The ‘land of Ailill’ has survived in
the name of a portion of western Sligo; but the barony called Tir-
errill corresponds only to a part of the original territory, and the
present passage has topographical importance in proving the southern
extension of the territory of that tribe.’ For it is clearly right to
seek the Senella Cella to which Patrick passed from Alofind, in the
district of Shankill, which is close to Elphin. Thus the territories of
the Hy Ailello and the Corcu-chonliain would have adjoined close to
Alofind.
But the church which Patrick founded here at Dumecha cannot
have borne the name of ‘Old Church’ when it was newly founded by
him. ‘Tirechan speaks as if it were so called from its very foundation ;
but it must have been in contrast to some newer establishment that
the cell of Dumecha was distinguished as old. We are here in
presence of the same kind of problem that is puzzling Roman
archeologists in regard to the name of that early church of which
the plan has recently been discovered in the Forum. But S. Maria
Antica is more baffling than the Cella Senella of Dumecha. The
clue seems to lie in the close vicinity to Alofind. If we suppose that
the church was situated on ecclesiastical ground near the cemetery at
the Shankill crossroads, a mile from Elphin, then the natural con-
jecture would be that the foundation of Dumecha was earlier than
that at Alofind, and that, when the newer church was planted, the
earlier came to be distinguished from it as the ‘ Old Cell.’
The obvious objection to this conjecture is that it contradicts the
narrative of Tirechan, who represents the foundation at Dumecha
as subsequent to that at Imbliuch Honon, or Alofind. This objection,
however, is not fatal. In fact, we come here into close quarters
with a problem of great importance regarding Tirechan’s itinerary.
He tells us himself that Patrick peruenit per Sinonam, that is, visited
1 O’Donovan, Leabhar na g-Ceart, p. 101.
164 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Connaught three times (329); and the question suggests itself
whether Tirech4n, in collecting his information from various sources,
has not gathered up and compressed into the one visit to Connaught,
which he describes, incidents which really belonged to other visits.
At the end of this paper I will adduce a larger argument to prove that
Tirechén was guilty of such a confusion; but here I may point out
that some of the incidents mentioned by Tirechan imply a previous
visit. Thus, we have a statement that, on crossing the Shannon,
Patrick ordained Ailbe, cuz indicauit altare mirabile lapideum in monte
nepotum Ailello (313;). The natural implication is that Patrick had,
on a previous occasion, visited Sliab hua nAilello, and seen the altar.
Again, it is important to observe that, when Patrick comes to Corea
Ochland, he is described as coming not only to the chiefs Hono and
Ith, but to Assicus and Betheus, his disciples (313,;). Thus Assicus
and Betheus were already stationed in the district ; and the inference
may be that Patrick had visited it before, and planted a small
Christian community somewhere. If so, the conjecture that the
Senella Cella had been founded on the occasion of the previous visit
seems plausible.
§6. At Senella Cella, Patrick was visited by Mathona, the sister
of Benignus; and here we encounter a difficult passage, which requires
elucidation :—
Et uenit apud se filia felix in perigrinationem nomine Mathona soror Benigni
successoris Patricii quae tenuit pallium apud Patricium et Rodanum. Monacha
fuit illis. Et exiit per montem filiorum Ailello et plantauit aeclessiam liberam
hilamnuch. Et honorata fuerat adeo et hominibus, et ipsa fecit amicitiam ad
reliquias sancti Rodani, et successores illius epulabantur ad inuicem.
It is obvious that the words e¢ exitt .. . hiTamnuch interrupt the con-
text most awkwardly, and that the sentence should run: Wonacha fuit
illis, et honorata fuerat adeo et hominibus. Etipsa, &c. Moreover, the
idea forces itself upon us that the subject of exit and plantauit in the
inserted clause must be Patricius, not Mathona. And, turning to the
Tripartite Life, we find that, in the text in the Rolls ed. (p. 98),
though it agrees with the Armagh text, the clause in question is
referred to Patrick.’
1So, too, in Colgan’s Latin translation (Tr. Th., p. 135); where, however, the
sentence et ipsa fecit, &c., becomes ¢t ipse fecit, &c., and is postponed to the
following notice of the ordination of bishop Cairell, to whom ipse is made to
refer.—In regard to the clause fothaigis ineclais sair hi Tamnach (p. 9812, ed. Rolls),
Bury—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 165
This criticism is borne out, and the problem defined, when we
discover that almost the same clause recurs in f. 15 r° a (328,) :
et exiit trans montem filiorum Ailello et fundauit aeclessiam ibi, id Tamnach
et Echenach et Cell Angle et Cell Senchuae.
Now, the fact that this crossing of Sliab mace nAilello and founding
of the church in 'Tamnach (in Tirerrill) is mentioned in almost the same
words in two different contexts, at two different stages of the itinerary
which Tirechan has marked out for Patrick, is highly significant. It
seems clear, in the first place, that the foundation of Tamnach was
not the work of an excursion of the saint from Shankill on this occa-
sion, but belongs to the context of other work in the region of
Tirerrill, And in the second place, itseems probable that the founda-
tion of the churches in irerrill (as described in the passage just
quoted) belonged to a previous visit to Connaught. For it is natural
to suppose that it was from Tamnach that Mathona came in peregrina-
tionem to see Patrick, at Shankill ; and if so, the Tamnach community
was already established.
Moreover, the mention of the mons filiorum Azlello corroborates
these inferences. This chain of hills can hardly be any other than
the Bralieve mountains which divide Tirerrill from Leitrim. There-
fore if Patrick crossed these hills to reach the districts of 'lamnach
and Senchua (Tawnagh and Shancoe), he must have come from the
Leitrim side. This confirms the conclusion that the work in those
districts belonged to a different visit.
A corollary of considerable importance may be drawn. We cannot
easily explain this particular confusion unless Tirechan had a written
source before him, in which the crossing of the Mons filiorum Ailello was
distinctly recorded in connexion with the foundations in Tirerrill. If
his material had been merely oral, he would have been less likely ‘to
fall into the topographical inconsistency which helps to reveal his
methods to us. But, having a written authentic statement before
him : exiit trans montem filiorum Ailello, he simply wrote it out without
criticism.
In both the passages where he repeats this statement (314), and
328,), there are signs of patchwork. We have seen how the Mathona
passage is dislocated ; but there is also an awkwardness, though of a
the editor translates ‘founded the church eas¢ in Tamnach,” and observes, in a
note, that Colgan gives insignem ecelesiam, ‘‘as if for sair, his texts had sdir,
‘noble.’’? But surely Tirechin’s /ideram shows that the word is saer, ‘ free.’
R. I. A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [12]
166 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
slighter kind, in the Tirerrill passage. The singular aeclessiam,
introducing four churches, is curious; and Dr. Stokes, feeling this,
was led to-suggest aeclessias quatuor. But aeclessiam seems to me not
to be a textual error, but to let out a secret of compilation. As
I have said, Tirechan was here using a written source; he used it
both for the Mathona passage and for the Tirerrill passage. Why did
he think of using it for the Mathona passage? The obvious conjecture
is that it mentioned Mathona in connexion with Tamnach. This con-
jecture at once supplies the explanation of the singular aeclessiam.
In the source, the words fundauit aeclessiam liberam ibi, id est Tamnach
(or hiTamnuch), were followed by a notice of Mathona’s association
with that community, after which the foundations of the other
ehurches (Echenach, &c.) were enumerated. But Tirechan had
worked the notice of Mathona into his account of Shankill and
Rodanus; and, consequently, he dropped it out when he came to speak
of the communities of Tirerrill. But in doing so, he left the aeclessiam
(which in his source applied only to Tamnach), although he added, in
dependence on the same verb, the names of three other foundations.
§ 7. From Elphin and Shankill, Patrick went on to Rath Crochan,
seveu or eight miles to the south-west (314,)) ; and there I must leave
him.
The two things which I have endeavoured to do in the fore-
going pages are (1) to identify the place at which, according to
Tirechan’s memoir, Patrick crossed the Shannon; and (2) to show
that—assuming the author’s statements as to Patrick’s doings in Con-
naught to be more or less authentic—we are forced to infer that, in
putting together his material, he has worked into the frame of
one visit events which must have belonged to different visits ; because
he has unwittingly left certain implications which betray this uncon-
scious contamination.
But the suggestion that the events of more than one expedition to
Connaught have been confused and conbined in the narrative of
Tirechan admits of a clearer and more trenchant demonstration,
which touches the whole plan of his memoir. The motive of the
circular tour which the writer describes is represented to have been
the meeting of Patrick with the sons of Amolngaid. It was arranged
by Endae, one of these brethren, and Patrick that they should travel
together to Endae’s country in north-western Connaught, to establish
the Christian faith in those regions. But the route followed by
Patrick is quite inconsistent with this motive. In the first place, he
spends a long time in missionary or ecclesiastical work in Meath
Bury— The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught. 167
before he enters Connaught. And when he crosses the Shannon, he
makes a long tour in Roscommon and Mayo before he comes to
Tirawley. The goal of his journey is entirely lost from view;
Tirawley is almost the last part of Connaught he visits. It is mani-
festly absurd to suppose that Endae and his followers undertook to
accompany the apostle on this long round of missionary activity. Nor
is there, in the itinerary itself, the slightest indication that they did
so. Endae and his arrangement to travel with Patrick are completely
forgotten in Tirechan’s story, until suddenly—after the lapse of
months, or years—he reappears with his son Conall, as Patrick’s
companion, when the saint at length crosses the Moy and enters
Tirawley.
At this point, indeed, the suture in Tirechan’s compilation is
visible. ‘The route can be traced from stage to stage through Ros-
common and Mayo to Mount Egli in Murrisk. After his fast on the
mountain, Patrick proceeds to the region of Corcu-themne, which
seems to have been near the Partry mountains and L. Mask. Then we
find him in regionibus maice Hercae in Dichuil et Aurchuil (324,,), and
in the White Plain i regionibus nepotum maint. This was probably
in southern Roscommon. Then there is an extraordinary leap :—
Per Muadam uero uenit et ecce audierunt magi filiorum Amolngid quod sanctus
uir uenisset, etc. (32525).
The break here in the itinerary is manifest, and exhibits very clearly
the method of Tirechén. The narrative between 310,. and 325,;—
between the starting for 'Tirawley and the coming to Tirawley—is
wholly or mainly concerned with the incidents of another journey,
or other journeys, than that which was taken expressly for the
purpose of converting the tribe of Amolngaid.
In one passage Tirechén himself betrays a consciousness of the
incongruity. He states—inconsistently with the context and the
situation—the object of the expedition of Patrick and Endae to have
been Mount Egli (310;), whereas the tenor of his own account
implies that it was Tirawley. This is the only attempt he makes
to conciliate the actual itinerary with the avowed motive of the
journey.
This investigation confirms the suspicion which I hazarded in a
former paper on Tirechdn, that, while the notices of the particular
incidents which he records depend on sources written or oral, and may
in many cases be credible, yet the actual route which he traces and
168 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy...
the chronological order which he assumes may be due to his own
combinations. I must add that further study and more. minute
analysis of Tirechan’s text have led me to conclude that he had
more written. material at his disposal than I was before inclined to
suppose. :
1 See Tirechan’s Memoir of St. Patrick in Eng. Hist. oe April, 1902,
pp- 235, sqq.
[ 169 J
ExGI
THE COUNTIES OF IRELAND: AN HISTORICAL SKETCH
OF THEIR ORIGIN, CONSTITUTION, AND GRADUAL
DELIMITATION.
By C. LITTON FALKINER, M.A.
Read NovemBer 29, 1902.
Nor the least of the many merits of that most luminous of nineteenth-
century historians, the late John Richard Green, is his insistence on
the importance of the relation in which geography stands to history.
By geography Mr. Green meant not so much physical as political
geography. The dominating influence upon the development of any
given race or people of the main physical characteristics of the land in
which their lot is cast has long been understood by historians ; and
the effects produced on the history of the world—in modern times, by
the insular position of Great Britain, or, in the world of the ancients,
by the peninsular position of Greece—are among the commonplaces
of historical criticism. What is not so much a commonplace is the
extent of the influence exerted upon the domestic history of any
community by the accidents of its early local history, and the degree
in which archaic conditions of tribal division may survive in the
modern organisation. For these divisions often continue for long
centuries after their origin has passed into the partial oblivion of
unexplained tradition, to mould the shape and form of a more advanced
civilization.
The application of this principle to the case of Ireland is direct
and obvious. For the local history of Ireland is, as has been acutely
observed, in a special degree, the backbone and foundation of its
general history. Owing to what may be described as the inorganic
character of the social structure in the Ireland of the Middle Ages, to
the absence of a strong central government or settled constitution,
capable of giving to the country and the people the impress of its own
uniformity, it is almost exclusively to clan or sept history, and to the
history of the particular areas with which the septs were associated,
R. I. A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [13]
170 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
that we must chiefly look if we would seek to realise the body politic
of the Ireland of a not very remote past. If this statement should
appear at all exaggerated, let it suffice to note two simple but striking
illustrations. As late as the reign of Henry VIII., ina memorandum on
the State of Ireland, which is among the most instructive documents in
the Tudor State Papers, the names of the “‘ Irish regions,” and not the
territorial divisions to which we are accustomed, are the units employed
by the writer to describe by far the greater portion of the country.}
And in the Elizabethan Map of Ireland, drawn by Dean Nowel, in
the third quarter of the sixteenth century, division by territories, or
“* chieferies,’”’ and not that by counties, is the method adopted ;? for
down to the reign of Philip and Mary, as Sir John Davies observes in
the lucid paragraphs devoted to the history of the shiring of Ireland in
his well-known work :—‘“‘ The provinces of Connaught and Ulster, and
a good part of Leinster, were not reduced to shire ground. And
though Munster were anciently divided into counties, the people were
so degenerate as no justice durst execute his commission among them.’”®
It is the main object of this Paper to indicate the process by which
these large districts were gradually brought within the ambit of
English administration, and by which the counties of Ireland, as we
now know them, came to be formed.
‘“‘The civil distribution of Ireland,” to quote Bishop Reeves’s
most valuable Paper on ‘The Townland Distribution of Ireland,’ ‘‘in
the descending scale, is into Provinces, Counties, Baronies, Parishes,
and Townlands.’’* But this highly convenient division of the surface
of Ireland, as the Bishop goes on to say, is characterised neither by
unity of design nor by chronological order in its development. ‘‘ The
1«< Who list make surmise to the King for the reformation of his land of
Treland, it is necessary to show him the estate of all the noble folk of the same, as
well of the King’s subjects and English rebels, as of the Irish enemies. And first
of all to make His Grace understand that there may be more than 60 countries,
called regions in Ireland, inhabited with the King’s Irish enemies ; some region as
big as a shire, some more, some less, unto a little; some as big as half a shire and
some a little less; where reigneth more than 60 chief captains . . . that liveth
only by the sword and obeyeth to no other temporal persons, but only to himself
that is strong . . also there is no folk daily subject to the King’s laws but half the
county of Uriel, half the county of Meath, half the county of Dublin, and half the
county of Kildare.’’ ‘*The State of Ireland and Plan for its Reformation.”
“¢ State Papers Henry VIII.,”’ vol. ii., Part iii., p. 1.{
2 Copy of an ancient map in the British Museum by Laurence Nowel, Dean of
Lichfield, ob. 1576. Printed by Ordnance Survey.
3 << Discovery of the True causes why Ireland was never entirely subdued,” &c.
4“ Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy,” vol. vii., p. 473.
FatxinEr—TZhe Counties of Ireland. 171
provinces, subject to one suppression and some interchange of adjacent
territories, represent a very ancient native partition which in the
twelfth century was adopted for ecclesiastical purposes. The counties
and baronies, though principally based on groupings of native lordships,
are of Anglo-Norman origin, and range, in the date of their creation,
from the reign of King John to that of James I. The parochial
division is entirely borrowed from the Church, under which it was
matured probably about the middle of the twelfth century; while the
townlands, the znfima species, may reasonably be considered, at least in
part, the earliest allotment in the scale.”
With the two last of these grades of classification we have nothing
to do here. But a word must be said regarding the third. The
baronial division does not indeed present any very difficult problem.
For though it be not easy to account for the adoption of the term
‘“‘barony’’ as signifying the division of a county,! seeing that it has
no such meaning in the territorial classification of Great Britain, there
is no doubt that in general the baronies were successively formed on
the submission of the Irish chiefs, the lands of each chieftain consti-
tuting a barony, and that they thus represent more nearly than any
other unit the ancient tribal territories. The origin of the parochial
system is much less easily traced; and the relation between the
diocesan areas and the provincial or county divisions is a subject
which might well engage the attention of some of our ecclesiastical
antiquaries.
The limits of the five kingdoms of what has been called the Irish
Pentarchy, into which Ireland was anciently divided, correspond
closely to those of the provincial divisions, as the latter were main-
tained down to the seventeenth century. They represent, as
Dr. Reeves has pointed out, ‘‘a very ancient native partition,” the
adoption of which in the twelfth century, for ecclesiastical purposes,
served to embalm a division of our island which, being based on no
great natural boundaries, must otherwise haye perished. The five
provinces are shown separately as late as 1610 in Speed’s map. For
it was not until late in the reign of James I, that Meath ceased to be
1«¢ The cause of the difference in name between the Irish baronies and English
hundreds has been thus accounted for: When the kingdom of Meath was granted
to the elder De Lacy, shortly after the arrival of the English, he portioned it out
among his inferior barons, to hold under him by feudal service, and hence their
estates naturally took the name of baronies, which gradually extended itself to
similar subdivisions of other counties.’ See Hardiman’s ‘‘ Notes to the Statute of
Kilkenny,”’ in ‘‘ Tracts relating to Ireland,”’ ii., p. 108.
172 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
generally reckoned a separate province; in popular usage it long re-
tained its provincial identity; and Boate, writing under the Common-
wealth, mentions the province as but lately merged in Leinster. The
Ulster of unsubdued Ireland was conterminous with the modern
province-of that name, save that it included Louth—a fact com-
memorated in the still existing incorporation of that county in the
See of Armagh and the northern ecclesiastical province—and that it
did not include Cavan. Ancient Munster differed from the modern
only by including within its bounds the territory of Ely (the
O’Carroll country), which, now represented by two baronies of the
King’s County, forms a part of Leinster. Connaught included, in
addition to its present territories, the County of Cavan, and a part of
Longford ; while during the sixteenth century the earldom of Thomond
or County of Clare oscillated, as we shall see, at the pleasure of suc-
cessive deputies, between Munster and Connaught, giving to the western
province, in the periods of its association with it, a predominance it
has long ceased to enjoy. Meath, which is substantially identical
with the modern counties of Meath and Westmeath—it is practically
conterminous with the diocese of Meath—also embraced a considerable
portion of Longford; while Leinster comprised the modern Leinster
counties, less Louth, Meath, Westmeath, Longford, and the part of
the King’s County specified above.
The first attempt at a division of Ireland into counties was, of
course, subsequent to the Anglo-Norman conquest, and is commonly
dated from the reign of King John. It is generally ascribed to the
tenth year of that monarch’s reign; but it does not appear that this
ascription, though doubtless substantially correct, rests upon any
extant documentary authority of ancient date. It has been adopted,
however, by every writer, and Sir John Davies’s account is as succinct
and accurate as any other: ‘‘ True it is that King John made twelve
shires in Leinster and Munster—namely, Dublin, Kildare, Meath,
Uriel or Louth, Catherlogh, Kilkenny, Wexford, Waterford, Cork,
Limerick, Kerry, and Tipperary. Yet these counties did stretch no
further than the lands of the English colonies did extend.”’ Harris,
in his additions to Ware’s account of the division of Ireland,! asserts
and, indeed, elaborately argues, that the twelve counties attributed to
King John were really of earlier origin, and were, in fact, part of an
earlier division effected by Henry II. Without a division into shires
and the appointment of sheriffs, Henry’s grant to Ireland of the laws
1«¢ Antiquities of Ireland,” chap. v.
FaLtxkinEr— The Counties of Ireland. 173
of England would, in his opinion, have been no better than a
mockery : ‘‘ For without sheriffs, law would be a dead letter;” and
without a shire there could be no sheriff. That there were sheriffs
in Henry’s reign Harris considers proved by the language of a patent
to one Nicholas de Benchi, directed to all archbishops, bishops,
sheriffs, &c.; and that shires were known in Iveland prior to the
tenth year of King John is shown by a patent of the seventh of
that reign, in which the County of Waterford is distinguished from
the City of that name. In further. support of his thesis, Harris
also argues that the division of Connaught into the two counties of
Connaught and Roscommon is of earlier date than King John’s
counties ; that Leix and Offaly were reckoned in Kildare, and other
portions of the Queen’s County in Carlow, prior to the reign of Philip
and Mary; and that there were unquestionably sheriffs of Down and
Newtownards, of Carrickfergus and Antrim, and of Coleraine, long
prior to the division of Ulster into counties under Elizabeth. But
though he would be a bold antiquarian who would venture to contro-
vert a proposition maintained by the erudition of Ware, the authority
of Ware’s laborious editor is hardly so formidable. It may at least
be said that if the shiring of Ireland was really accomplished by
Henry I1., all substantial traces of it have perished ; and the historian
must be content to start with King John.
As has just been noted, there is no conclusive evidence now extant
of the formation by King John of the twelve counties traditionally
ascribed to him. And it is certain that though these divisions were
probably known as separate geographical areas, they cannot in several
instances, if in any, have formed counties in the modern administrative
sense till a date considerably later than King John’s reign.’ For it
must be remembered that the earliest grants of territory by Henry II.
were in the nature of counties palatine rather than of ordinary counties,
though the term “‘ palatine ”” nowhere occurs in any early instrument ;
and of the twelve counties imputed to King John, five formed part of
the single liberty or palatine county of Leinster. In order to follow
the process of the development of our Irish counties, it is essential to
have regard to this fact and to the consequences flowing from it. It is
therefore necessary to consider the origin of the institution of counties,
and the difference, in the extent and nature of their respective
jurisdictions, between simple and palatine counties.
1See Hardiman’s ‘‘ Notes to the Statute of Kilkenny ”’ in “ Tracts relating to
Treland,’’ ii., p. 102.
174 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The name and office of Count were derived from the Court of
Charlemagne, and the institution of counties in England is of earlier
date than the Norman Congquest.1 The creation of a count involved
from the first a delegation of royal authority for legal and adminis-
trative purposes, and the ordinary county had two courts—the King’s
Court for criminal cases, and the Earl’s Court for civil causes. But
the judicial officers and sheriffs were in all cases appointed by the
Crown. Between a county palatine and an ordinary county the
distinction was broad and well defined. According to Blackstone,
‘< counties palatine””—of which there were in England the three great
examples of Chester, Durham, and Lancaster, besides the smaller ones
of Hexham and Pembroke—‘“‘are so called a palatio, because the
owners of them had formerly in those counties jura regalia as fully as
the King in his palace.”* The Earl of a county was Lord of all the
land in his shire that was not Church land; and his jurisdiction was
equivalent in all essential points to the jurisdiction of the King in an
ordinary county.* The jura regalia included a royal jurisdiction and
a royal seignory. By virtue of the first the Earl Palatine had the
same high courts and officers of justice as the King; by virtue of the
second he had the same royal services and escheats, and could even
create barons, as was certainly done in Chester. Included in the
power to appoint officers of justice was the appointment of the sheriff ;
and with the functions of the sheriff in the palatinate no King’s
sheriff might interfere. And therefore, says Sir John Davies, ‘‘ such
county is merely [absolutely | disjoined and separated from the Crown,
so that no King’s writ runs there, except a writ of error, which being
the last resort and appeal is excepted out of all their charters.’
The origin of these immense delegations of royal power was of
course the inability of the Sovereign in early times to establish an
efficient administrative system throughout his realm; and the same
considerations which compelled resort to the palatine system in
England by the early Norman Kings, rendered necessary the applica-
tion of an analogous method of administration in Ireland by Henry II.
In the case of England, where the central authority was strong, the
palatinates were limited to the march or border districts, as Chester
*Selden’s “ Titles of Honour,” p. 694.
* Stephen’s Blackstone, i., p. 131.
3 Stubbs’s ‘* Constitutional History,’’ i., p. 363.
* Sir J. Davies’s “ Reports des cases et matters en Ley,”’ “‘ Le Case del Countie
Palatine de Weixford,”’ p. 62.
FaixineEr— The Counties of Ireland. 175
on the Welsh and Durham on the Scottish or Northumbrian borders.
In the case of Ireland, the Crown having practically no authority, the
policy of Henry II. was to hand over the country to Strongbow and
his followers, with powers practically co-extensive with the powers
of the Crown, but subject to and excepting any grants of Church
lands. Only the sea-coast towns and the territories immediately
adjacent were reserved to the Sovereign. And, in fact, it was in these
latter districts, and in these only, that for a long period the authority
of the English Kings had any direct force in Ireland.
Accordingly, as Sir John Davies, with his usual insight, observes,
all Ireland was ‘‘ cantonised’”’ by Henry II. among the persons of the
English nation, who, ‘‘ though they had not gained the possession of
one-third part of the whole kingdom, yet in title they were owners
and lords of all, so as nothing was left to be granted to the natives.”
Of these grants at least three—those of Leinster to Strongbow, of
Meath to De Lacy, and of Ulster to De Courcy —were grants of royal
jurisdiction equivalent to palatinates; and most probably all were
intended to be such. It is clear at all events that the liberty of
Leinster was confirmed in right of Strongbow’s daughter to William
Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, by King John, and that, on the division
of Leinster among the five co-heiresses of the latter, the five divisions
of Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Kildare, and Leix were regarded as
separately enjoying, within their respective territories, the same
palatine privileges which had pertained to the undivided liberty of
Leinster. That Leinster was long regarded as preserving its palatine
privileges may be seen by the Statute 25 Ed. I., in which ‘‘the whole
community of Leinster” is referred to as ‘‘ lately but one liberty.”
Of the remaining palatinates or liberties, Meath was divided
between the sisters of Walter de Lacy, of whom Matilda married
Walter de Greenville, and Margaret, John de Verdon. The half known
as the liberty of Trim passed to the Crown through the marriage of a
descendant of Matilda de Lacy with Mortimer, Earl of March; while
the second half, descending to the Talbots, Earls of Shrewsbury, was
resumed by Henry VIII. under the Statute of Absentees.’ Ulster,
originally granted to De Courcy, was re-granted by John to the
De Lacys, and descending through a daughter to the De Burghs, and
thence to the Mortimers, ultimately became vested in the Crown in the
person of Edward IV., as the descendant of Lionel Duke of Clarence.
Connaught, granted to the De Burghs, also technically passed with
1 Stat. 28 Henry VIII., cap. iii.
176 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Ulster to the Crown; though the rebellion of the younger branch of
the Burkes, on the failure of heirs male of the elder, deprived the legal
title of the-Crown of all effective force. The union of all these terri-
tories in the Crown of England is incidentally recognised in an Act of
Parliament of Henry VII.’s reign (10 Henry VII., c. 15), which,
reciting that ‘‘the EKarldoms of March, Ulster, the Lordships of Trim
and Connaught, bin annexed to our sovereign lord the King’s most
noble Crown,’”’ makes provision for the better keeping of the records
of those ancient dignities, the title to which had been jeopardised
by the loss of the muniments. This Act expressly refers to ‘‘ Richard,
late Duke of York,” as lord of Trim.
The precise character of the jurisdiction conferred by King John on
the early Palatine counties of Ireland does not appear from any extant
documents. But if, as it seems reasonable to suppose, the later juris-
dictions conferred by Edward III. were similar in their general scope,
its nature may be gathered from the records of the Palatinate of
Tipperary. The process of Quo Warranto by which James I. resumed
possession of Tipperary enumerates the courts and offices which existed
at the beginning of the sixteenth century, and which, doubtless,
1 Selden, in his ‘‘ Titles of Honour ”’ (third edition, p. 694), has a reference to
the use of the name and office of Palatine Earl in Ireland, which seems to
state the facts with great accuracy :—‘‘ The title of local Earl Palatine, as well as
of other Earls, occurs in the Records of that Kingdom. But I do not believe that
any man was eyer created into the title of Count Palatine there, or the County
expressly made a County Palatine by Patent; but as in other countries, so here,
the enjoying of the title of earl (and sometimes of lord), together with a territory
annexed to that title, wherein all royal jurisdiction might be exercised, was the
original whence in speech and writing the title of Earl Palatine or Count Palatine
grew.’ This was written in 1614; and it is noteworthy that Selden’s view as to
the title of Palatine is confirmed by the Patent of Charles II. to the Duke of
Ormond in 1660 for the County Tipperary. Tipperary was an undoubted Pala-
tinate; yet neither the Patent nor the Act of 2 George I., cap. 8, by which it
was revoked, contains the term ‘‘ Palatine’’; but they speak only of the regalities
and liberties of Tipperary.
The extent and character of the privileges of a county palatine or liberty of
England appear by the Charter of Edward III. to John of Gaunt for the Palatinate
of Lancaster—a dignity which, owing to the prudent sagacity of Henry IV., has been
preserved in its ancient independence and prerogatives almost down to the present
day. Anxious that the hereditary honours of his dukedom should be secured to him,
even should fortune deprive him of a usurped crown, Henry, on attaining to the
throne, had an Act passed providing that the duchy of Lancaster should remain in
himself and his heirs in like manner as though he had never acceded to the royal
dignity.
FaLKiInER— Zhe Counties of Ireland. 177
represented in all essentials the Palatine constitution of earlier times.!
The jurisdiction, authorities, and liberties set out in the Quo Warranto
of James I. were restored on the reconstitution of the Palatinate in
1662 in favour of James, first Duke of Ormond, with the exception
(which appears to have been a reservation common to all Palatine
grants) of the four pleas of arson, rape, forestalling, and treasure
trove, as originally reserved in the grant of Edward III.
In tracing the position of the Irish counties through the obscure
1 The following are among the more important of the privileges vested in the
Karls of Ormond within their Palatinate :—
1. To have and to hold within the county of Tipperary one Curia Cancellariae,
commonly called a Chancery Court, and to make, appoint, and constitute one
Cancellarius, or officer of the same Court, commonly called a Chancellor, which
Chancellor, under colour of such his office, makes and causes to be made all kinds
of original writs and other processes in all actions, as well real as personal and
mixed, within the aforesaid county arising, occurring, or happening.
2. To have and to hold within the aforesaid county one other Court of Pleas of
the Crown of the said Lord the now King, and to make, appoint, and constitute
one other officer or Seneschallus, commonly called a Seneschal, and one other
officer or Justiciarius, commonly called a Justice, to hold Pleas of the Crown of
the said Lord the King.
3. And also to have and to hold within the aforesaid county one other Court of
Common Pleas held before the aforesaid Seneschal and Justice.
4, And also yearly to nominate, appoint, make, and constitute in the same
county one other officer, vyiz., one Vicecomes, commonly called a Sheriff, for the
custody of the same county, which sheriff makes execution of all writs, &c., issuing
and directed to the same sheriff from the four courts of the said lord the King held
at the King’s Courts in the County of the City of Dublin, also from the Justices
assigned to take the assizes in the County of Tipperary aforesaid, as well as from
the aforesaid Chancellor, Justice, and Seneschal inthe same county. And he holds
in the same county divers Courts of Zurn, Leet, and Curiae Comitatus, called
County Courts.
5. And moreover to have and appropriate to themselves the power of granting
charters of Pardon, and ad pardonandum—Anglicé, to pardon—whatsoeyer persons
are suspected, accused, convicted, outlawed, condemned, or attainted of any felonies
and treasons by them within the aforesaid county in any wise done, committed, or
perpetrated... .. And further to do and execute within the aforesaid county all
other things whatsoever which appertain to any Earl of any County Palatine to be
done or executed.
6..And also to make, appoint, and constitute in the aforesaid county divers
other officers, viz., one or more Coroners, and one Escheator and one Feodary,
and one Clerk of the Markets, and one Sub-vicecomes, commonly called a Sub-
sheriff.—Fifth Report of the Deputy Keeper of the Public Records of Ireland,
pp. 34-36.
178 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
complexity of Irish administration under the Plantagenet Kings, the
only guide whom we may follow with any degree of confidence is the
Sheriff. The whole machinery of local or county administration in
Plantagenet times practically centred in the Sheriff, who united the
threefold functions of a civil officer in relation to the courts of law;
of returning officer in relation to the election of parliamentary repre-
sentatives; and of revenue collector in relation to the royal exchequer.
Owing to the destruction in the reigns of the two first Edwards of
most of the early records of the Kingdom of Ireland, the materials
available in regard to Plantagenet Sheriffs are unhappily meagre ;
and the Act of Henry VII. just referred to indicates the paucity
of the records of several of the greater earldoms. But a study of
the Plea Rolls, Pipe Rolls, and Patent Rolls, as well as of the Planta-
genet statutes, so far as these survive, is not wholly fruitless; and
the last-mentioned source is fairly rich in references to the functions
and office of the sheriff. An examination ofthese sources establishes,
at least negatively, the fact that from the time of King John to that of
the Tudors no new county was formed, or if formed that it did not
survive; and that no Sheriff was created for any new district, with
the single exception of the subdivision of the great territory of
Connaught into the separate districts of Connaught and Roscommon.'
It is impossible to say how much or how little of Connaught was
intended to be included in Roscommon, or precisely when the division
was made. But the separation is certainly as old as the thirteenth
century, and Roscommon is among the counties and liberties? whose
respective Sheriffs and Seneschals were directed by the Statute 26
Ed. I. (1296) to return to the ‘‘ general parliament”’ held in Dublin in
that year ‘‘two of the most honest and discreet knights of each
county or liberty.” This vagueness of the territorial divisions and of
the shrievalties associated with them was not confined to the western
province, but was characteristic of all the so-called counties of King
John. And this was especially so in the case of the Leinster counties,
whose south-western borders were probably in a state of continuous
flux. Thus in 1297 a list of Coroners of Kildare shows that county
to have included Offaly, Leix, and Arklow, and therefore to have
1 See Hardiman’s ‘‘ Statute of Kilkenny,” p. 106.
2 The following is the enumeration in the Statute :—“ Likewise the Sheriffs of
Dublin, Louth, Kildare, Waterford, Tipperary, Cork, Limerick, Kerry, Con-
naught, and Roscommon ; and also the Seneschals of the liberties of Meath, Weys-
ford, Katherlagh, Kilkenny, and Ulster.’’ See Betham’s “‘ Feudal Dignities,’’ p. 262.
Fatxiner— The Counties of Ireland. 179
extended far over its present borders into the modern counties of
King’s County, Queen’s County, and Wicklow.
The broad distinction which was drawn between counties ordinary
and counties palatine was reflected in the designation of the most
important office in their respective jurisdictions. In the county
proper that officer is invariably styled sheriff; but in the county
palatine he is as uniformly referred to as ‘“‘the seneschal of the
liberty.’ The distinction is clearly marked in a mandate of
Edward III. to the Treasury of Ireland, which directs that ‘‘ because
the liberty of Carlow has been taken into the King’s hands,’! the
writs of the King for execution should be directed to the sheriff of
Carlow, in place of the late seneschal of that liberty.”? It appears,
however, that a general jurisdiction lay in the sheriff of Dublin for
districts not clearly belonging to a specific county or liberty, or
wherever the seneschal of the latter should be found in default, as in
the case of Kildare prior to the Statute of 25 Edward I. In
18 Edward II. precepts were issued to the sheriffs of Dublin and
Meath to execute writs ‘‘in spite of the liberties of Kildare and
Louth ”; but this interference with the general principle of palatine
independence was doubtless exceptional and probably due to the
disorganisation resulting from the Bruce invasion. For so extensive
were the privileges of the liberties that, though the King might
and did appoint sheriffs within their limits, the authority of the
royal officers extended only to the Church lands, whence they were
known as sheriffs of the County of the Cross. Of such counties
there must originally have been as many in Ireland as there were
counties palatine’; but with the gradual absorption of the palatinates
in the Crown, either by inheritance, as in the case of Ulster, or by
forfeiture, as in that of Wexford, they had all ceased to exist before
the reign of Henry VIII., except the County of the Cross of
Tipperary, which, being within the great Ormond palatinate, created
by Edward III., survived till Stuart times.
1 This had been done by virtue of Edward III.’s arbitrary but temporary reyoca-
tion of all franchises, liberties, and grants formerly made in the Kingdom of Ire-
land—a measure doubtless intended primarily as an answer to the renunciation by
the Bourkes of Connaught of their allegiance to the Crown, and to the general
disorganisation which followed the wars of the Bruces.
2 Close Roll, 17 & 18 Edward III.
3In the list of Proffers and Fines of Sheriffs & Seneschals in the time of
Edward III., Sheriffs of the Cross are mentioned for the Crosses of Kilkenny,
Tipperary, Carlow, Wexford, Kerry, Kildare, Meath, and Ulster.
180 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Whatever the precise origin of the counties so generally ascribed
to King John, there appears to be no doubt that the writs either of
the king er of his palatines ran in all of them for a full century from
John’s time, and that these counties represent the extent of the
effective predominance of English power down to the invasion of
Edward Bruce in 1315. Prior to that event some efforts seem to
have been made to extend the counties to Ulster, and to define
more accurately the limits of the Leinster counties. An Act of
25 Edward I. (1296), for the settlement of Ireland, enacted that
““henceforward there shall be a certain sheriff in Ulster, and that
the sheriff of Dublin shall not intermeddle henceforth in Ulster.’
Meath was declared to be a county by itself; and Kildare, which
had been regarded as a liberty of Dublin, was discharged from the
jurisdiction of the Dublin sheriff, and given an independent position.
But from the wars of the Bruce the English colony received a blow
from which it did not recover until the Plantagenets had been
replaced by the Tudors. The authority of the State, so far as it
was effective in the interior of the island, was exerted through the three
great earldoms of Ormond, Desmond, and Kildare, all of which date
from the fourteenth century. The area under the direct control of
the Crown was narrowed continually, until after a lapse of precisely
two centuries more the boundaries of the English Pale had shrunk
to its lowest limits, and, in the quaint language of Stanyhurst, were
‘““cramperned and crouched into an odd corner of the country named
Fingal, with a parcel of the King’s land of Meath and the counties
of Kildare and Louth.” Thus from the reign of Edward II. to that
of Henry VIII. the extension of the Irish counties was politically
impossible.’
That the shrinking of the English Pale had been accompanied by
1 The Pale at this period is thus described in the State Paper of Henry VIII.
already referred to :—
“© Also the English Pale doth stretch and extend from the town of Dundalk to
the town of Deryer, to the town of Ardee, alway on the left side leaving the
march on the right side, and so to the town -of Sydan, to the town of Kenlys,* to
the town of Dangle,7 to Kilcock, to the town of Clane, to the town of Naas, to
the bridge of Cucullyn,{ to the town of Ballymore,§ and so backward to the town
of Ramore,] and to the town of Rathcoole, to the town of Tallaght, to the town
of Dalkey, leaving alway the march on the right hand from the said Dundalk
following the said course to the said town of Dalkey.”%
* Kells. + Dangan, = Kilcullen. ? Ballymore-Eustace. || Rathmore.
| “State Papers,” Henry VIIL., vol. ii., part iii., p. 22.
FautKiner—The Counties of Ireland. 181
a parallel diminution of the interest in and knowledge of the country
possessed by the English Sovereigns may be sufficiently inferred from
the language used in 1587 in a‘‘ Memorial for the Winning of
Leinster,” addressed by the Irish to the English Council, which begins
by reciting that ‘‘ Because the country called Leinster and the situation
thereof is unknown to the King and his Council, itis to be understood
that Leinster is the fifth part of Ireland.” But from this period, never-
theless, may properly be dated the revival of English authority. In
1541 the resolution of the Sovereign himself to convert his long
nominal lordship of Ireland into an effective supremacy, was shown by
the Act constituting Henry VIII. King of Ireland; and this was the
prelude to the adoption of that policy of converting the chiefs of the
Irish septs into the immediate feudatories of the Crown which led
directly to the conversion of the lands without the Pale into districts
cognisable by English law, and ultimately to their formation into
modern counties. Little, indeed, was done under Henry VIII. towards
defining the County boundaries, the only actual change in the map
being the severance of Westmeath from Meath by a Statute of 34 Henry
VIII. But though the proverb quoted by Sir John Davies continued to
hold good during the reign of Henry VIII., that ‘‘whoso lives by west of
the Barrow, lives west of the law,”’ the area of the anglicised districts
steadily increased. The greater part of Leinster was in this and the
succeeding reign gradually won back to what was called “ civility”’ ;
till towards the close of Elizabeth’s reign the Pale was understood to
extend through all Leinster, Meath, and Louth.’
The first step in this process of restoration, and the first real
addition to the list of Irish counties made since King John’s time, was
the formation of the King’s and Queen’s Counties in the time of Philip
and Mary.* The districts of Leix and Offaly, the territories of the
powerful septs of the O’Moores and O’Connors, were, in that reign,
reduced to subjection, during the Viceroyalty of the Earl of Sussex,
who, in the words of Sir John Davies, ‘‘took a resolution to reduce
all the rest of the Irish counties unreduced into several shires.” Sussex
was the first of the Tudor Deputies to acquire a really systematic
personal acquaintance with the country he was sent to govern; and
the accounts of his journeys through the provinces,’ of which he made
1<«State Papers Henry VIII.,”’ vol. ii., Part iii.
2 See ‘‘ A Perambulation of Leinster, Meath, and Louth, of which consist the
English Pale’’ in 1596. ‘* Carew Cal.,”’ iii., p. 188.
3 See ‘‘ Calendar of Carew Papers, I.,’’ pp. 257, 265, 274, 330, 352
182 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
at least three, together with his reports to Mary and Elizabeth of the
results of his observations, are among the most valuable of the State
Papers of that age. Sussex proposed to divide Ireland into six parts,
viz., Ulster, Connaught, Upper Munster, Nether Munster, Leinster,
and Meath; and he enumerates in his Report the countries which
these divisions respectively comprised. But though he appears to
have been the first to conceive any large plan for an efficient adminis-
trative settlement of Ireland, he was recalled before he had had
time to grapple effectively with that problem of the shiring of Ireland,
which he saw lay at the root of all real administrative reform. But
at least he made a beginning. It is worthy of remark, too, that
Sussex is the only Deputy who, in addition to creating fresh counties,
gave to his creations names not borrowed from the territories by which
they were constituted."
In 1556 there was passed the Statute 3 & 4 Philip & Mary,
Cap. IL., ‘‘ whereby the King’s and Queen’s Majesties, and the heirs
and successors of the Queen,” were declared entitled to the countries of
Leix, Slewmargy, Irry, Glenmaliry, and Offaly, and provision was
made for making these countries shire ground. After reciting that
these countries had been subdued in the previous reigns, but had
rebelled and been again reduced by the Queen’s Deputy, Thomas
Ratcliff Fitzwalter, Earl of Sussex, the Statute proceeds thus :—
‘¢ And for that neither of the said countries is known to be within the
limits of any shires or counties of this realm, be it enacted that the
King and Queen, and the heirs and successors of the Queen, shall
have, hold, and possess for ever, as in the right of the Crown of
England and Ireland, the said countries of Leix, Slewmargy, Irry,
Glenmaliry, and Offaly.” A further section provided that ‘‘to the
end that the same countries may be from henceforth the better
conserved and kept in civil government, the new fort in Leix be from
henceforth for ever called and named Maryborough, and the countries
of Leix, Slewmargy, Irry, and part of Glenmaliry, be one shire
and county named the Queen’s County”; and, similarly, that the
new fort in Offaly should be named Philipstown, and the country of
Offaly and part of Glenmaliry be called the King’s County.
That the Government of the Earl of Sussex contemplated a
further extension of the policy embodied in this Act appears from the
1 The case of Londonderry is an exception to this statement more apparent than
real. In its first form, the County of Londonderry was known as Coleraine,
taking its name from the well-known town of that name.
FaiKiner— The Counties of Ireland. 183
Statute immediately succeeding it,! “‘ to convert and turn divers and
sundry waste grounds into shire ground.” This Act provided for
the appointment of Commissioners ‘‘to view, survey, and make
inquiry of all the towns, villages, and waste grounds of the realm
now being-no shire grounds,”’ with power to the Commissioners to erect
such districts into counties. Nothing was done in this short reign,
nor for some years afterwards, to give effect to this enactment. But
widely as the general policy of Elizabeth differed from that of her
predecessor, her attitude towards Ireland was in principle the same
as Mary’s. The Statute (11 Elizabeth, Cap. 9), ‘‘for turning of
countries that be not yet shire grounds into shire grounds,’’ sub-
stantially re-enacted the earlier legislation.? And the task of giving
effect to these provisions was confided by Elizabeth in great measure
to the same statesmen who had devised them under Mary.
Though the actual delimitation of the counties was not finally
settled until, in the reign of James I., it was accomplished by Sir
Arthur Chichester with the assistance of Sir John Davies, the
business of shiring Ireland, in the sense of formally naming and
constituting the county divisions of Connaught, Ulster, and part of
Leinster under their modern designations, was practically the work of
the two last Tudor Sovereigns. Their policy was carried out by three
statesmen of eminence—the Earl of Sussex, Sir Henry Sydney, and
Sir John Perrot. And as in the case of the final measures taken in
the reign of James I. to perfect the county system we have been
provided by the chief agent of the work, Sir John Davies, with a vivid
description of the proceedings, so in the case of the earlier and
tentative steps taken under Elizabeth, we have the advantage of an
authentic narrative by one of the principal actors. The part played
by the Earl of Sussex has just been noticed. Sussex was followed by
the gifted and valiant Sir Henry Sydney. Not only has that ablest
of Elizabethan Deputies left detailed accounts of his progress through
the provinces, but he has given in a memoir of his services in Ireland,
drawn up in 1583, a striking statement of the Irish policy of Elizabeth
13 & 4 Philip and Mary, Cap. III.
? The preamble to both Statutes is worth quoting as showing the principle on
which this policy of shiring was based :—‘‘ Whereas divers and sundry robberies,
murders, felonies, and other heinous offences be daily committed and done within
the sundry countries, territories, cantreds, towns, and villages of this realm being
no shire ground, to the great loss both of the Queen property and of divers and
sundry her Highness true subjects of this realm, and to the boldening and
encouraging of many offenders. Be it enacted,” &e.
184 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
in the first half of her reign, and a full summary of the proceedings
taken by him to reduce the backwoods of Ireland to shire ground.
The circumstances in which this memoir was written add to its
intrinsic value the piquancy of an interesting historical association.
For the occasion of the narrative was the then approaching marriage
of the writer’s son, Sir Philip Sidney, the chivalrous author of the
‘* Arcadia,” to the daughter of Sir Francis Walsingham, a lady whose
fate it was to be successively the wife of Philip Sidney, of Robert
Devereux, the unfortunate Earl of Essex, and of the third Earl of
Clanricarde. The memoir was written primarily as an apology for
Sydney’s inability to make a sufficient settlement on his son. Sir
Henry explained how his expenses as the representative of the Queen
in Ireland, and the neglect of the Sovereign to relieve his impoverished
fortune, had reduced him to a position of “biting necessity,” which
prevented him make such provision as he desired for his much-loved
son. ‘Three times,” wrote Sydney to Walsingham, “her Majesty hath
sent me her Deputy into Ireland, and in every of the three times I
sustained a great and violent rebellion, every one of which I subdued,
and with honourable peace left the country in quiet. I returned from
each of those deputations three thousand pounds worse than I went.’
Sydney’s contribution to the formation of the Irish counties
consisted in the main in the shiring of Connaught. In 1566, in the
first of his three Viceroyalties, he took the first step in this under-
taking by providing efficient and permanent means of communication
between Dublin and the western province. ‘‘ I gave order,” he writes,
“‘for the making of the bridge of Athlone, which I finished, a piece
found serviceable; I am sure durable it is, and I think memorable.”
A few years later a bridge over the Suck at Ballinasloe, ‘‘ being in the
common passage to Galway,” was constructed by Sir Nicholas Malby
at Sydney’s direction. This was the necessary preliminary to any
effective assertion of English law in the remoter parts of the country.
It was followed by the division of Connaught into four of the five
counties of which it now consists, viz:—Sligo, Mayo, Galway, and
Roscommon, with the addition of Clare. In his “ orders to be observed
by Sir Nicholas Malby for the better government of the province of
Connaught,” issued in 1579, Sydney’s reasons for this arrangement are
thus given:—‘‘ Also, we think it convenient that Connaught be
restored to the ancient bounds, and that the Government thereof be
1 The accounts of Sydney’s provincial journeys have been printed in the Ulster
Archzological Society’s Journal, vol. iii., et seg.
Farxiner— The Counties of Ireland. 185
under you, especially all the lands of Connaught and Thomond, being
within the waters of Shannon, Lough Ree, and Lough Erne.” In
the same document suggestions are made for the appointment of ‘safe
places for the keeping of the Assizes and Cessions.”’ Sligo, Bures
(Burris hoole), Roscommon, and Ballinasloe, are respectively designated
as suitable county towns.*
Leitrim for the present was excluded. O’Rorke’s country was
not reduced to a county until Perrot’s time in 1588. But the
country of the O’Ferralls, called the Annaly, and the territory of the
O’Reillys, or East Breny, both of which, as already noted, were then
reckoned in Connaught, were formed into the modern counties of
Longford and. Cavan.” East Breny was described at the time by Sir
N. Bagnal as ‘‘a territory where never writ was current,” and
which it was almost sacrilege for any Governor of Ireland to look
into. The precise allotment of these counties among the provinces
seems to have been left open, for Sydney, as will appear in a moment,
was solicitous lest Connaught, which he had already extended in
another direction, should become disproportionately large.
The district of Thomond had always been reckoned a part of the
southern province. . Indeed, the name signified North Munster, and
its people were a Munster people. But Munster was a troublesome
responsibility in Sydney’s time; and the Deputy, who was then form-
ing the system of Presidencies by which for the next seventy years
the provinces of Munster and Connaught were to be administered,
desired to reduce its importance.* He therefore ignored this ancient
division, and taking the Shannon as a natural boundary (the province,
if we exclude Leitrim, being thus, as the author of the ‘‘ Description of
Treland”’ has it, ‘‘in manner an island’’), he added this large territory
to Connaught. ‘‘ Thomond, a limb of Munster, I annexed to the Pre-
sident of Connaught by the name of the County of Clare,’’ is Sydney’s
concise summary of this important transaction. In his instructions
to Malby, already quoted, the north part of the city of Limerick was
suggested as the ‘‘shire town,” ‘‘ because a jury may be had there
for the orderly trial of all country causes.”’ But the President was
1 See O’ Flaherty’s ‘‘ West Connaught,’’ ed. Hardiman, p. 305.
2 Sussex appears to have designed to add Cavan to Leinster rather than Ulster,
<¢Q’Reilly,” he writes, ‘‘ bordering upon Meath, and lying by situation of his
country unfit for any of the other Governments, is to be under the order of the
principal governor.”’ Carew Calendar, i., 338.
3 «« Reasons for retaining Thomond in Connaught.’”’ Carew Calendar, iy., p. 471.
* Collins’s Sydney Papers, i., 75.
R,I.A. PROC., VOL, XXIV., SEC. C. | [14]
186 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
directed to choose some apt place in Thomond; and Quin, Killaloe, and
Ennis were suggested as suitable.
We may pause at this point to consider the subsequent administra-
tive history of Thomond. It continued to be included, under its new
designation of Clare, in the government of Connaught almost to the
end of Elizabeth’s reign. It was then erected into an entirely distinct
division, and governed as a distinct entity under a separate Commis-
sion, by Donagh, Henry, and Barnaby, successive Earls of Thomond.?
In 1639, however, under Strafford’s Government, it was arranged
that on the death of the last-mentioned earls the territory should be
reannexed to Munster; and though the ensuing disturbances delayed
the fulfilment of this intention, the County of Clare was finally
reunited to Munster at the Restoration.
But to revert to Sir Henry Sydney. If he was successful in his
operations in the distant provinces of Connaught, he was less fortunate,
not only in the north, where, indeed, the conditions were hardly ripe
for such work, but in a district much nearer to the seat of his Govern-
ment. It is certain that the County of Dublin was originally much
larger than its present area indicates; and it appears probable that it
anciently extended from Skerries, in the north, to Arklow, in the
south. It had been conterminous, in fact, as has been pointed out,
with the ancient Scandinavian kingdom of Dublin—a territory still
marked for us by the ecclesiastical division of the United Dioceses
of Dublin and Glendalough. But the Danish rulers of Dublin
troubled themselves little about the interior of the country,? and it is
doubtful whether at any time prior to Henry VIII. the wild septs of
the Byrnes and Tooles, whose incursions in the neighbourhood of the
city Stanyhurst describes so graphically, had given even a nominal
recognition to the Norman or English power. In the thirty-fourth
year of that monarch’s reign they are said to have petitioned the Lord
Deputy and Council to make their county shire ground, and to call it
the County of Wicklow, but nothing came ofthe proposal. Be thatas
it may, the sway of these Wicklow chieftains was exercised without
dispute down to Sydney’s day right up to the near neighbourhood of
Dublin, and the inhabitants were ever, as Davies observes, ‘thorns
in the side of the Pale.” Indeed, it may be said that the whole
1 Liber Munerum Hibernie, Part II., p. 185.
? Haliday’s *‘ Scandinavian Kingdom of Dublin,” pp. 139 and 246.
3 Stokes’s ‘‘ Ireland and the Celtic Church,” p. 277.
+ Book of Howth, p. 464.
Fatkiner— Zhe Counties of Ireland. 187
country south-west of Dublin, including large portions of Kildare,
Carlow, and Wexford, as well as the modern Wicklow, long remained
a rude “hinterland”? into which law and order seldom penetrated.
The State Papers are full of such entries as this of 1537—“ Devices
for the ordering of the Kavanaghes, the Byrnes, Tooles, and O’Mayles
for such lands as they shall have within the County of Carlow and
the marches of the same county, and also of the marches of the County
Dublin,” —which plainly show the unsettled state of these districts. In
1578, however, a Commission issued under the Act of 11th Elizabeth
and ‘‘the Birns’ and Tooles’ country, with the Glens that lie by
South and by East of the County of Dublin, was bounded out into a
shire, to be named and called the County of Wicklow.’ But though
this Commission was carried out, and the boundaries of the counties
defined by Sir William Drury, who succeeded Sydney as a Lord
Justice, the troubles of Elizabeth’s latter years in Munster and Ulster
left little leisure to her Deputies to attend to the Wicklow septs.
The Byrnes and Tooles resumed their independence ; and in 1590, as
Sir George Carew wrote, ‘‘ those that dwell within sight of the smoke
of Dublin” were not subject to the laws.2 When Sir Arthur
Chichester came to complete the work Sydney had begun a genera-
tion earlier, of ‘‘ adding or reducing to a county certain, every border-
ing territory whereof doubt was made in what county the same should
lie,”’? he found that the mountains and glens of Dublin were almost
as far as ever from ‘‘ civility,” and contained such a multitude
of untutored natives that it seemed strange that ‘‘so many souls
should be nourished in these wild and barren mountains.” The
shiring of Wicklow was only finally accomplished in 1606, and it thus
fell out that the county nearest to the metropolis was of all the last
to be brought effectively within the scope of English government.
In connexion with this attempt towards the formation of the
County Wicklow, Sydney had also a project for dividing Wexford into
two shires, of which the northern part should be called Ferns. This
county, severed by the Wicklow mountains from the metropolis, had,
though less disturbed than its neighbours, been practically outside the
Pale.t The southern part of it, indeed, according to a ‘‘ Description of
1 Fiant of Elizabeth, No. 3,608, Irish Record Office.
* Carew Cal., iii., p. 44.
3 Sir J. Davies’s ‘‘ Discovery.”
~ See Hore and Graves’s ‘*‘ Social State of the South-Eastern Counties in the
Sixteenth Century,”’ p. 27.
188 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the Provinces of Ireland,” written about the year 1580, was “civil,”
‘that part contained within a river called Pill” (a name given to the
estuary of the Bannow) being inhabited by ‘‘the ancientest gentleman
descended of the first conquerors.” But this district was connected
with the capital by sea only, and the rest of the county was inacces-
sible. Sydney and Sir William Drury finding ‘“‘that there were no
sufficient and sure gentlemen to be sheriffs, nor freeholders to make a
jury, for her Majesty,” the project was let drop. Their successor,
Sir John Perrot, had the same object in view, and in a report to
Elizabeth, ‘‘ how the natives of Ireland might with least charge be
reclaimed from barbarism to a godly Government,”’! he gives a
picturesque account of the condition of the south-eastern counties and
the need which existed for providing a proper system of administration.
‘‘The Birnes, Tooles, and Kayvanaghs must be reduced.’’ They are
‘ready firebrands of rebellion to the O’Moores and O’Conors, and till
they be brought under or extirped, Dublin, Kildare, Meath, West-
meath, and the King’s and Queen’s County cannot be clear either of
them or of 0’ Moores or O’Conors, or of the incursions and spoils of the
McGeoghegans, O’Molloys, and other Irish borderers.’’ But though
he stated the difficulty thus vigorously, Perrot, like Sydney, left
Ireland without doing anything effective to remedy it. Sir Henry
Sydney’s last tenure of the office of Lord Deputy closed in 1578, and
for the next few years the Desmond rebellion perforce put a stop to
the work he had set himself to accomplish. It was not until the
southern rising had been crushed that Sir John Perrot, who, in 1584,
succeeded to the Irish Government, was able to resume the work.
Though this statesman is best remembered in our history in connexion
with the composition of Connaught, which was effected during his
administration, it is in relation to Ulster that his proceedings have
most interest in the present connexion. To Perrot belongs the
honour of haying divided the northern province into divisions sub-
stantially corresponding to its modern counties, though twenty years
were to elapse before these divisions were generally recognised, or
before they became effective portions of the administrative machinery
of the country. .
The story of the Anglo-Norman colonies of Ulster and the settle-
ment of Lecale, the Ards, and Carrickfergus, has never been fully
analysed, and to tell it is outside the purpose of this Paper. Here it
must suffice to observe that the only counties in the modern sense of
1Sloane MS., 2,200, Brit. Mus.
FanKiner—The Counties of Ireland. 189
the term which can be recognised as existing in Ulster before the
time of Elizabeth were Louth, which, as already noted, was anciently
accounted part of that province, and the counties of Antrim and
Down. The precise date at which the two last were constituted is
unknown ; but it appears by the ‘‘ Black Book of Christ Church” that
they, or at least certain districts bearing these names, had existed prior
to the reign of Edward II. From that time down to the settlement in
Antrim of the McDonnells of the Isles, under Henry VIIL,, little is
known of them; but the two counties had been recognised as settled
districts by Perrot’s time, and as such were distinguished by that
Deputy from the ‘‘unreformed”’ parts of Ulster. In 1575 Sir Henry
Sydney had made a journey to Ulster with a view to dividing the
province into shires, but had failed to effect anything—an effort which
was referred to by Sir John Davies in his address as Speaker of the
Irish Parliament in 1613; when, congratulating the Commons on the
completeness of its representation, he observed, ‘‘ How glad would Sir
Henry Sydney have been to see this day, he that so much desired to
reform Ulster, but never could perfectly perform it.”
Perrot’s contribution to the shiring of Ulster was little more than
a settlement on paper of the boundaries of the new counties he desired
to create. It is best described in the language of Sir John Davies :—
‘“‘ After him [Sydney] Sir John Perrot . . . reduced the unreformed
parts of Ulster into seven shires, namely, Armagh, Monaghan, Tyrone,
Coleraine, Donegal, Fermanagh, and Cavan, though in his time the
law was never executed in these new counties by any Sheriff or
Justices of Assize; but the people left to be ruled still by their own
barbarous lords and laws.”’ Perrot’s work was of course interrupted,
and for the time rendered nugatory, by the rising of Hugh O’Neill;
but it was so far effective that his division became the basis of the
subsequent allocation of the northern territories, which a few years
later followed the Flight of the Earls and the Plantation of Ulster.
Had affairs in England permitted the Government to bestow steady
and continuous attention on the affairs of Ireland, it is probable that
the work initiated by Sussex and Sydney, and so largely extended by
Sir John Perrot, would have been completed before the close of Eliza-
beth’s reign. But Perrot was recalled in 1588, and the business of
shiring Ireland was arrested for nearly twenty years. With O'Neill
taking full advantage of the difficulties in which England was involved
by the struggle with Spain, and asserting his power effectively
throughout Ulster, the sub-division of the northern province remained
purely nominal, and even in the more settled districts much confusion
reigned, The result is seen in the discrepancies which appear between
190 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the various accounts which remain to us of the division of Ireland at
this time. These exhibit considerable confusion, not only as to the
counties of: which each province was made up, but even as to the pro-
vinces themselves. Thus Haynes, in his ‘‘ Description of Ireland,”
in 1598, states that Ireland is divided into five parts. He includes
Meath among the provinces, mentioning it as containing four counties,
viz., Kast Meath, Westmeath, Longford, and Cavan, though he adds
that the last is by some ‘‘esteemed part of Ulster.” On the other
hand, in a survey printed in the Carew Calendar,’ revised to the
year 1602, Longford is included in Connaught, while Cavan is not men-
tioned, and the completeness of the relapse of Ulster from ‘“‘ civility ”
is shown by the description of that province as containing three
counties and four ‘‘ Seignories.”’
Thus it was not until after the accession of James I., in the time
of Sir Arthur Chichester, that, in the words of Sir John Davies, ‘‘ the
whole realm being divided into shires, every bordering territory
whereof doubt was made in what county the same should lie was
added or reduced to a county certain.” The boundaries of the counties
forming the provinces of Connaught and Ulster were ascertained one
after another by a series of Inquisitions between the years 1606 and
1610, which confirmed in the main the arrangements tentatively made
by Perrot, though in the case of Ulster these were necessarily varied
in some important respects, particularly as regards Londonderry, by
the changes resulting from the Flight of the Earls and the Plantation
of the northern province. The enumeration of counties and provinces
in Speed’s ‘‘ Description of the Kingdom of Ireland,” in 1610, shows,
as already noted, that in that year the precise allocation of counties
among the provinces still remained vague and indeterminate in the
popular estimation. But Meath had by that time finally disappeared
from the list of provinces; and though some years were to elapse ere
all the counties could be finally delimited, this process had been
practically completed when Sir John Davies left Ireland in 1616,
except in the case of Tipperary, where the exceptional conditions
created by the existence of the Ormond Palatinate long retarded the
final settlement.
Although Munster is of all the great divisions that which, if com-
pared with the original distribution imputed to King John, shows the
least alteration in its county system, the southern province has not
been without its vicissitudes in this respect. In Perrot’s time Munster
consisted of as many as eight counties, and the final settlement of
1 Carew Calendar, iv., pp. 446-454.
Far Kkiner—The Counties of Ireland. 191
the six counties now embraced in it was, in fact, delayed until after
the other provinces had assumed their present form. The shiring
of Munster was effected chiefly through the instrumentality of the
provincial government known as the Presidency of Munster, which
was established by Sydney in 1570. No single act of Elizabethan
policy had more important or more satisfactory results than the insti-
tution of the Presidencies of Munster and Connaught; and as the
gradual demarcation of the counties of both provinces as they now
exist was largely effected by their means, it seems desirable to give a
brief account of an institution whieh was devised by Sydney, as
Davies puts it, ‘‘to inure and acquaint the people of Munster and
Connaught again with English Government.”
The first idea of these instruments of administration was formed in
the time of Edward VI., when a scheme was devised for the appoint-
ment of separate Presidents for each of the three provinces of Munster,
Connaught, and Ulster. But although Sussex had a clearly defined
scheme for giving effect to this policy, it was not until Sir Henry
Sydney’s first administration that, in 1565, definite shape was given
to it, or that the constitution of what for the next century were
known as the Presidency Courts of Connaught and Munster was formally
drafted. The Presidency not only included a President answerable to
the Lord Deputy, but a Council composed of prelates and nobles of
the province, and a Chief Justice with two Justices and an Attorney-
General, together with a Treasurer, Clerk of the Council, and other
administrative officers. In 1568 Sir John Pollard was nominated first
President of Munster, and in the year following Sir Edward Fitton
became President of Connaught. No President was appointed for
Ulster, the charge of which was confided, under a temporary Com-
mission, to a marshal, an officer whose duties were half-civil, half-
military. Pollard, however, never entered on his Government, and the
first acting President of Munster was Sir John Perrot, who, appointed
in 1570, was for six years a strenuous representative of the Crown
in that province.
It is a matter of great regret that the records of these Presidencies
have long since perished.! They seem to have been lost in the
1 See Prendergast’s ‘‘ Introduction to Cal. 8S. P. Iveland,’’ James I., 1606-
1608, pp. xx.-xxxv. A volume called ‘‘The Council Book of Munster”’
survives in the Harleian Collection at the British Museum (Harl. Col., No. 697);
but it only extends from 1601 to 1617. The ‘‘ Instructions for the Lord President
and Council of Munster,’’ in 1615, haye been printed in ‘‘ Desiderata Curiosa
Hibernica,”’ yol. ii,
192 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
troubled times succeeding the rebellion of 1641, and the Presidential
institution itself did not long survive that cataclysm. Though they
lingered heyond the Restoration, the Presidencies were not regarded
by the Duke of Ormond as necessary or efficient instruments of
government ; andin 1672, during the Viceroyalty of Lord Essex, they
were finally abolished. But though the Presidency system was not
destined to remain a permanent feature in the administrative system
of Ireland, its operation during the years first following its institu-
tion was unquestionably effective. In Perrot’s hands, both as
President of Munster, and later when as Deputy he became
responsible for the whole country, it was largely utilized to effect
what was practically a fresh delimitation of the old counties of
Munster. In an old ‘“‘note,” probably dating back to the fifteenth
century, quoted by Perrot in his Report to Elizabeth, already cited,
the Munster counties are thus enumerated: ‘‘In Munster there be
five English shires—Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Kerry, Tipperary ;
and three Irish shires—Desmond, Ormond, and Thomond.” It will
be noted that the five former of these counties with Thomond or
Clare nominally make up the modern province of Munster. Ormond
represents Tipperary less the County of Cross Tipperary, and as
such still possesses a well-defined meaning. Desmond is a: district
perhaps less clearly defined in the popular mind. It embraced a
large portion of East Kerry and West Cork, and at one time was
actually erected into a separate county. In 1571 a Commission
issued to Sir John Perrot and others, under the Statute 11 Eliz.,: for
the counties of Waterford, Tipperary, Cork, Limerick, and Kerry,
and the countries of Desmond, Bantry, and Carbery, and all countries
south of the Shannon in Munster, to make the country of Desmond
one county, and to divide the rest into such counties as.may be
convenient.” As a result of this Commission, Desmond beeame and
was long regarded as a distinct county, and its boundaries appear
from an Inquisition of 1606. But though Fynes Moryson places
Desmond on the list of the Munster counties, stating it to have
been lately added, its separate identity is not invariably recognised,
though for a time it boasted that essential note of independence, a
separate sheriff. This, however, had disappeared before the close of
Elizabeth’s reign, for Haynes writes in his account of Cork that that
county,” ‘‘ being the greatest in the realm, have been tolerated to have
1Fiant, Eliz., 1486. Irish Record Office.
2¢ The Description of Ireland in 1598,’’ ed. by Rev, Edmund Hogan, s.s.,
p. 169.
FaLkinEr— The Counties of Ireland. 193
two sheriffs—the one particular in Desmond, the other in the rest of
the county—and this without any ground of law, but by discretion
of the L. Deputies; the inconvenience thereof being espied, it had
been of late thought good that one sheriff should be for Kerry and
Desmond, and so two sheriffs in one county against law taken away.’
The amalgamation with Kerry appears to have been completed by
1606, when Mr. Justice Walshe, in describing to Salisbury the
Munster Circuit of that year, mentions particularly the successful
union of Desmond and Kerry.
The dual representation of Tipperary in the list of Irish counties
was long a puzzle to antiquaries, and even an inquirer so diligent
and in general so accurate as Sir John Davies was misinformed on
the subject, notwithstanding the minute inquiries he appears to
have instituted into the origin of what struck him as a curious
administrative anomaly. ‘‘ At Cashel,” he writes in his account of
the Munster Circuit of 1606,” ‘‘ we held the Sessions for the County
‘“ of the Cross. It hath been anciently called ‘the Cross’ (for it had
‘“been a county above 300 years; and was, indeed, one of the first that
‘‘ever was made in this kingdom) because all the lands within the
‘precincts thereof were either the demesnes of the Archbishop of
“* Cashel, or holden of that See, or else belonging to Abbeys or houses
‘¢ of religion, and so the land as it were dedicated to the Cross of Christ.
‘The scope or latitude of this county, though it were never great, yet
‘‘now is drawn into so narrow a compass that it doth not deserve the
““name of shire.”
Davies’ confusion as to the two counties of Tipperary, which con-
tinued to be separately represented down to Strafford’s Parliament of
1634, was extremely natural in view of the limited information ayail-
able when he thus accounted for the anomalous existence of the
County of Cross Tipperary. But, in fact, the duplication had really
originated in the Palatine system. To the accident which preserved
Tipperary as the last of the Palatinates was due the survival of Cross
Tipperary as the last of the counties of the Cross; and it will be
convenient here to trace the history of both jurisdictions. The
County Palatine of Tipperary was originally created by letters patent,
granted in 1328 by Edward III. to James le Botiller, Earl of Ormond,
and confirmed by successive monarchs to that nobleman’s successors
in the honours of the Butler family. The jurisdiction thus granted
1 Cal. of ‘‘ State Papers,’’ Ireland, 1603-6, p. 573.
2 Cal. of “State Papers,’’ Ireland, 1606-8.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.| [15]
194 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
embraced the whole County of Tipperary, with the exception of certain
Church lands, which constituted, as was usual with Church land in
Palatine counties, a distinct shrievalty under the ordinary jurisdiction
of the King’s Courts. In addition to these districts of the Cross, there
was also excepted from the Palatine grant the district of Dough Arra,
or MacBrien’s country, adjacent to Killaloe, which, long a debatable
land on the borders of the three counties of Clare, Limerick, and
Tipperary, was in 1606 te by Chichester to the County of the Cross
of Tipperary.
In 1621, during the wardship of the daughter and heiress of
Thomas, tenth Earl of Ormond, the Palatinate of Tipperary was seized
into the Crown by James I. The County of the Cross apparently
remained unaffected by this exertion of the Royal prerogative, and, as
already noted, it was represented in the Parliament of 1634, though
the county proper appears to have returned no members to that
assembly. The Palatinate remained in abeyance for a period of forty
years, till after the Restoration it was reconstituted by Charles Il.
in 1664, in favour of the first Duke of Ormond. The grant on
this occasion included both the old territory of the Cross, which never
thereafter returned members to Parliament, and the district of Dough
Arra, formerly excepted from the Palatine county. The liberties and
royalties of the whole County of Tipperary were enjoyed by the
Butlers until the attainder in 1715 of the second Duke put an end
to the last Irish example of these great medieval jurisdictions.’
The Statute 2nd George I., cap. 8, ‘‘an Act for extinguishing the
royalties and liberties of the County of Tipperary,” by its second
section enacted, “‘ that whatsoever hath been denominated or called
Tipperary or Cross Tipperary, shall henceforth be and remain one
county for ever, under the name of the County of Tipperary.”
[No attempt is made here to discuss the origin of the names of the Irish
counties. This may form the subject of a separate inquiry.
The writer desires to express his obligations to the courteous officials of the
Irish Record Office, and especially to the Assistant Deputy Keeper, Mr. H. F.
Berry, m-n-1.4. He has also to thank Mr. Tenison Groves, c.z., for many useful
suggestions.—C. L. F.]
1 See 5th Report of the Deputy Keeper of Public Records of Ireland, p. 7, and
Appendix III, pp. 33-38.
[ 195 J
20[-
NOTES ON THE ORIENTATIONS AND CERTAIN ARCHI-
TECTURAL DETAILS OF THE OLD CHURCHES OF
DALKEY TOWN AND DALKEY ISLAND.
By JOSEPH P. O'REILLY, C.E,
[Prates XITI.—XVII. |
Read Frespruary 23, 1903.
Tue churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island are of course alluded
to, or mentioned, in the different works treating of these localities, but
generally with relatively few details ; the dates of their foundations,
as well as the names of their founders, are apparently unknown. All
that can be ascertained as to their early history is to be obtained from
the records of Christ Church Cathedral, and from those of St. Patrick’s,
to the Chapters of which these churches were given over by Hugh
de Lacy, who had received them in grant from Henry II. Both
churches date, therefore, from a period anterior to the Norman
Invasion. As to the saints or saint to whom they were dedicated, or
are mentioned as haying been dedicated, there have been some doubts.
Seward’s ‘‘Topographia Hibernica” (1795) says of the town: ‘‘ This
village in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and a great part of the last
[seventeenth ] century, before the port of Dublin was improved, was the
repository of the goods belonging to the merchants of Dublin. Here
are the ruins of a few old castles, places of defence against the
incursions of the pirates who at that time swarmed on the Ivish
coast.”
As regards the island, the work says: ‘‘It is so called [Dalkey]
from Dalki, on account of the pagan altar there.” There is no ancient
pbuilding on Dalkey Island but the ruins of a church.
In Carlisle’s ‘‘ Topographical Dictionary of Ireland’ (1810), it is
stated: ‘‘ Dalkey Island.—Here are the ruins of a church.”
Lewis’s ‘‘ Topographical Dictionary’? (1837) says, as regards the
town: ‘‘The church is in ruins; it was situated in the village, and
appears to have been a very spacious structure.”
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C. [16]
196 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
As regards the island: ‘‘ There are the ruins of a church dedicated
to St. Benedict ; and ‘ kistvaens,’ or stone coffins of rude workmanship
and great antiquity, have been found near the shore.”
D’Alton’s ‘History of the Co. Dublin,” 1838, says (p. 882):
‘¢ While in the town, are the not uninteresting remains of an ancient
church, picturesquely situated at the foot of the Rochestown Hills,
and presenting a nave fourteen yards long, by five broad, and a choir
eight by five, divided by a well-executed arch.” Page 885: ‘‘On the
shore, in a little rocky cove, the tourist will find a ready boat to
facilitate his pilgrimage to the island, where, surrounded by cliffs and
a frequently tempestuous sea, an ancient mariners’ chapel was erected
and dedicated to St. Begnet or Benedict.’’ Page 886: ‘On it [the
island | is adoubtful remain, said to be the patron’s church ; butcertainly
having nothing of the ecclesiastical aspect, unless perhaps a plain
gable belfry; and wholly disconsecrated, even in the traditions of the
people, by its present uses.” Page 887: ‘‘In 1178 Archbishop
O’Toole assigned to Christ Church (amongst several) the church of
St. Begnet of Dalkey, with all its tithes; and his grant was further
assured by letters-patent from Prince John. In 1200 the Archbishop
had a grant of a Wednesday market here [in the town], and an annual
fair to be held on St. Begnet’s day.”
‘‘The Parliamentary Gazetteer’? (1846), speaking of the island,
says: ‘‘A small old ruin on the island is usually regarded as having
been a church dedicated to St. Benedict; but though possessing a
belfry, it exhibits very distinct marks of simple domestic or dwelling-
house structure. ‘Kistvaens’ enclosing human bones are said to
have been found upon the island, and are regarded as vestiges of
Celtic or Belgic tribes of a very remote era.”
Mr. F. Elrington Ball, in his ‘‘ History of the County Dublin,”
1902, says as regards the churches (p. 79): Dalkey Island.‘ The
ruined church—for such undoubtedly is the structure on the northern
end of Dalkey Island—is coeval with, and similar in construction to,
that of the Kill of the Grange. It has a primitive doorway and
window ; and its side walls project upon the end ones, as do those of
the Kill Church, forming pilasters.” ‘‘The belfry is a later addition ;
and a fire-place and enlarged doorway and window in the south wall
were made by the workmen employed in the construction of the
Martello Tower, who used it as their dwelling ”’ (Wakeman’s “‘ Primi-
tive Churches in the County Dublin,” Journal R. Soc. Antiqgq. of
Treland, vol. xxi., p. 701; see also vol. xxvi., p. 415). ‘‘The church *
[on the island], whichis supposed to have been dedicated to St.
O’Reitny—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 197
Begnet, the patron saint of Dalkey, indicates, by its state of preserva-
tion, use in the middle ages; but nothing is recorded of the history
of the island from the twelfth century, when it was given by Hugh
de Lacy to the See of Dublin, until the seventeenth century, when it
was destitute of inhabitants, and used for grazing cattle.” Page 81:
‘‘The church [of Dalkey Town] was dedicated to St. Begnet the
virgin, the patron saint of Dalkey, who is supposed to have flourished
about the seventh century, and whose festival falls on the 12th
November. After the English Conquest [second Norman Inyasion?],
it was assigned to the priory of the Holy Trinity.”
The most important paper for the purposes of this present one, is
that of Mr. Wakeman, cited by Mr. F. E. Ball. It appeared in
vol. xxi., 1890-91, of the Journ. Roy. Soc. Antiqq. of Ireland, p. 697,
the title being: ‘‘ Primitive Churches in the County Dublin,” by
W. F. Wakeman, Hon. Fellow, Hon. Sec. for the County Dublin.
After some introductory remarks as to the existence of early
Christian celle around Dublin, ‘‘some of which have not hitherto
attracted antiquarian consideration,” he says: ‘‘It is a significant
fact that while several celle, teampulls, or cills, in the Dublin district,
are as generally ancient in character as any structure of the like
class to be seen in remoter provinces of Erinn, no architectural
- connecting-link between them and churches of late twelfth- or even
thirteenth-century date can be discovered.”” ‘‘ The primitive churches
when not utterly dismantled or razed by Northern ravage were, in all
likelihood, left in ruinous neglect; and it would seem there exists
architectural evidence that it was not until some considerable time
subsequent to the overthrow of Danish influence, or, indeed, until
the Anglo-Norman settlement had commenced, that many of our old
parish churches were once more used as places of Christian worship.”
P. 698: ‘*‘ When it was deemed necessary to enlarge the church, by
the addition of a chancel (a feature very rare in our earlier team-
pulls), they broke through the eastern gable, hacking an aperture,
the edges of which were then lined, in jambs and arch, with plain or
hammered stones. The added choir or chancel was simply built up
against the original east gable, and not bounded with it.” ‘‘ Sur-
mounting the western gable, at the time of transition referred to, it
was customary to erect a turret with provision for one, two, or some-
times three bells.” P. 701: “I now draw attention to an old church
which still stands, almost intact, upon the island of Dalkey (see Pl. I,
‘fig. 1). This structure has long been regarded by Dublin people as
very mysterious in character. They could scarcely fancy it a church ;
[16*]
198 | Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and yet in all its features it presents characteristics which unmistak-
ably point to one conclusion, viz., that the structure is neither more
nor less than a slightly modified example of our oldest style of c7// or —
church.”
Its form is oblong—27 feet 7 inches in length by 20 feet 3 inches
in breadth, external measurement. The walls average 2 feet 10
inches in thickness. Pilasters or extensions of the side walls are
found on the eastern and western ends. Similar features are observed
in connexion with a considerable number of our oldest churches,
such as Teampull McDuagh, in Arranmore, County Galway; on
St. M‘Dara’s Church in Inis M‘Dara, off the coast of Connemara; at
Dulane, near Kells, County Meath; and, indeed, in many other
places. ‘‘ Here they are 2 feet 7 inches wide, and project 1 foot
2 inches beyond the gables.”
‘© A fine flat-headed doorway measuring 7 feet 3 inches in height
by 2 feet 8 inches in breadth at the top, and 2 feet 9 inches at the
base, occupies a position in the centre of the west end. The lintel
in this example is peculiarly massive” (see Pl. II., fig. 2). ‘‘ Above
the western gable rises a somewhat clumsily-constructed bell-turret
containing a single aperture, the head of which is in a rather late
pointed form.” ‘‘It is quite evident that this campanile is a compara-
tively late addition.” ‘‘Its aperture would have been completely
covered by the original roof, the pitch of which is indicated by traces
of mortar or cement which still remain.” ‘‘ A small flat-headed
window (see fig. 3, p. 702), placed high on the south side wall,
appears to be the only original light to be found in the building.”’
‘¢ The structure, indeed, bears evidences of alteration at various dates ;
but the principal change, no doubt, occurred in the second or third
year of the nineteenth century, when this curious and mysterious c7//
was utilized as a dwelling-place by the Government employés
engaged in building the Martello Tower, which was intended to
command the Sound of Dalkey, and much of the neighbouring coast.
I myself, some thirty years ago [ante 1890], when residing in the
vicinity, was well acquainted with a truly ancient mariner named
Tom Doyle, who had assisted in the work.” ‘‘He stated that the
church was used as a house by himself and fellows; and that to make
themselves comfortable, and the building suitable for their occasions,
they had broken a doorway and window in the southern wall, and
constructed the still existing fireplace. He stated further that when
disturbing sods or scraws to be used in roofing material, the diggers
found human bones apparently of great antiquity.”
O’Rettty— Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 199
‘¢ Not far from the church, on the brink of the Sound, is a well
which the old people consider very sacred, and highly efficacious for
the cure of sore eyes. One relic of extremely early days may be
observed carved or picked out upon the natural undisturbed rock
which stands immediately facing the western gable. It is what
Bishop Graves styles an ‘ eastern’ cross, enclosed by a circle, and is
probably as early as the sixth or seventh century (see fig. 4).
Within the quadrants are raised pellets. Indeed, the figure is
extremely like some found on certain of the oldest remains for which
Inismurray and some districts of Kerry are famous. It is the only
rock-marking of its interesting class which I have seen out of the
West or South of Ireland.”’
‘The Church of Dalkey (Island), its details, and this cross, are
here, so far as I am aware, for the first time figured and described.”
Practically all that was known up to their time concerning the
churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island is given in the two
citations from Mr. F. E. Ball’s work and Wakeman’s paper cited by him.
This latter may indeed be taken as a text for the further considera-
tion of these two remarkable ruins.
As regards the name of the saint to whom both these churches are
said to have been dedicated, I am indebted to Mr. Ball’s courtesy for
the communication of the following details to be found in the Report
of the Deputy Keeper of the Public Records and Keeper of the State
Papers in Ireland (1896). There is given therein an Index to the
Calendar of Christ Church deeds, 1174 to 1684, contained in Appen-
dices to the 20th, 23rd, and 24th Reports. It gives the following
forms of the name ‘‘ Dalkey,’’ and the indications of the mentions of
that name in the extracts given in the reports :—
Daikey, Dalkaye, Dalkeya, Dalkie, Dalky, Gilbeknith, Killekenet,
Kilbekenet, St. Begnetes, St. Begnetts.
Entries—51, 219, 379, 881, 2, 413, 415-6, 431, 779, 927, 1145,
1303, 1306, 1341, 1346, 1374.
Dalkey Church—52-8, 379, 481, 440, 557, 1378.
Dalkey Churchyard—1341.
In these extracts the Church of Dalkey Town is designated as
follows :—
51— Cirea 1240—Chapel of Kilbekenet.
o2—" 4; », —Church of Killekenet.
53—16th March, 1245—Church of Kilbek[ enct'].
379—17th Septr., 1504—The Church of St. Begnet of Dalkey.
557—Circa 1320—A messuage in the tenement of Gilbeknith,
200 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the frontage looking from the sanctuary and lying on the western
side of Gilbeknit Church.
(dn doyso) Quit claim of the land of the Church of Dalkey.
In the 24th Report, 26th May, 1892, there is the entry :—
P. 161, 1802—Lessors in No. 1298, and the Vicars choral of Holy
Trinity Church leave to Shane Kennay, alias Shane McDonaghe
‘‘inclaune’’ of Saint Begnete’s, Co. Dublin, fisherman, a house and
land in St. Begnete’s for 41 years. Dated 8th Jany. 1565-6 & 28th
Eliz. (Jn dorso) Dalkey, Kilbegnet.
P. 77, 1374— Lessors in No. 1298, lease to John Dongane, second
Remembrancer of the Irish Exchequer, a moiety of a messuage,
castle, orchard, and land, in St. Begnett’s, alias Dalkey, Co. Dublin,
for 61 years. Dated 20th March, 1585-6 & 28th Eliz.
There will thus be remarked the great variation in the form of
the name applied to the church, as regards the name of the saint, and
the further fact that, according to the entry 1374, ‘St. Begnett’s”’
was at one time an aliter name for Dalkey Town.
As regards the St. Begnet to whom the churches are said to be
dedicated, and whose festival is mentioned as occurring on the 12th
NVov., there is no such saint mentioned in Butler's ‘‘ Lives of the
Saints,’ and none such under the date 12th November. The name
‘¢ Begnet ’’ appears to be the diminutive form of Beg or Bec ; and the
question arises what particular saint of that name is thereby referred
to. In this respect the following citation from the ‘ Book of Obits
and Martyrology of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,” with
introduction by Jas. H Todd, p.p. (1844), is of interest. P. xiv.
Noy. 12th, ‘‘St. Begneta or Begnait is not mentioned in the Martyr-
ology of Aingus. In the calendars of two ancient manuscript
breviaries, now in the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, she is styled
‘ Virgo non-martyr.’ One of these (B. 1, 3) belonged to the Church
of Clondalkin; the other (B. 1, 4) to the Parish Church of St. John
the Evangelist, Dublin. The ancient church, now in ruins, on the
Island of Dalkey, near Dublin, is dedicated to St. Begnet; although,
in Lewis’s ‘Topographical Dictionary,’ it is erroneously said to
have been dedicated to St. Benedict. Mr. D’Alton also, in his
‘History of the County Dublin,’ improves upon this mistake. He
says (p. 885): ‘On the shore, in a little rock-cove, the tourist will
find a ready boat to facilitate his pilgrimage to the island, where,
surrounded by cliffs, and a frequently tempestuous sea, an ancient
mariner’s chapel was erected and dedicated to St. Begnet or Benedict.’
O’Remnty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 201
‘‘ Does Mr. D’Alton mean to say that ‘Begnet’ and ‘ Benedict’
were one and the same? In Alan’s Register (folio 9 b) there is an
exemplification of an Act of Parliament held in Dublin on the Friday
next after the feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, 22nd Edward IV.,
where it is enacted in favour of the Archbishop of Dublin: ‘ Ordeyne
est, et establie par auctorite du dit Parlement, que le dit Erchevasque
poet auer un marchée al dit ville de Dalkey annuelement, chescun
maresdye per ane, de Sepmaine en Sepmaine, et un jour de faire
Cestassauere le jour de Seyncte Begnet la Virgine, continnuaunt IIT.
jours annuelment,’ &c.”
Starting from the statement that the St. Begnet in question was
a virgin, and presuming that the termination of the name is a dimi-
nutive, it may be asked what was the original form of the name of
the saint. The simplest would be Beca or Bega, and such a name is
found in Smith and Wace’s “‘ Dictionary of Christian Biography ”
(1877). Thus it gives (p. 800) Becga or Begga, daughter of Gabhran,
virgin ; her festival on the 10th February. It is said (Colgan, ‘‘ Tr.
Thaum.,” 121) that when St. Patrick was in East Meath, he left at the
Church of Techlaisran, in that county, two of his disciples, Bega, a
virgin, and Lugaidh, a priest (Ap. 17th), probably brother and sister,
the children of Gauran, the latter (place) having the name of Feart-
Bige or Bega’s Tomb. The same Dictionary gives (p. 304) the follow-
ing :—‘‘ Bega, Beza, Beya, Begga, Bec, St. A Cumbrian saint of
whom nothing is clearly known, and whom the endeavours of the
hagiographers have only succeeded in investing with a history that
‘ belongs to several other saints. According to Alban Butler, she was
an Irish saint (September 6th) and virgin who lived as an anchoret
in the seventh century, and founded a nunnery in Copeland. He also
mentions a place in Scotland called Kilbees after her. This is the
most reasonable account. According to the life of her, seen by Leland
(coll. iii, 86), after founding her monastery in Cumberland, she
removed into Northumberland and founded another north of the Wear ;
then to Hert, where she becomes identical with St. Heiu (Hxrv), and
then to Tedcaster, winding up her career at Hackness, as identical
with St. Begu (Mon. Ang. iii. 575).”
‘“‘ Beou and Heiu are well known from Bede, and were two different
persons, neither of them possibly identical with the Cumbrian saint.
Yet Suysken, in his commentary on St. Bega (AA. SS. Boll., Sept. 2,
684-700), accepts this version as true. In default of an English
reer for the saint, she is next sought in Ireland and Scotland, and
the Aberdeen Breviary contains lessons of two saints with either of
202 Proceedings of the Royal Llrish Academy.
whom she might be identified—(1) St. Bega, venerated at Dunbar,
who lived in an island called Cumbria in the Ocean Sea as an anchoret,
visited occasionally by St. Maura, and dying on September 3rd, was
buried in her island, whence the Rector of Dunbar, attempting to
fetch her remains, was driven back by a storm; (2) St. Begga, an
Irish princess, given in marriage by her parents against her will, hears
of the Gospel as preached in England, flies to England to Oswald and
Aidan, and becomes the first abbess of nuns in England. She has her
home in a desert island, and, in her old age, resigns her abbey to
St. Hilda, under whose rule she ends her days (October 31st). After
460 years her remains were removed to Whitby (Brev. Aberd. pars
Aistiv., fo. 145 and 136). Here are probably some reminiscences of
St. Heiu. She was probably a local saint of the eighth century. The
monastery bearing her name was founded as a cel/ to St. Mary’s at
York in the reign of Henry I.” This same Dictionary also mentions
‘St. Begha, Virgin, circa A.D. 660, also called St. Bex and St. Begagh.
She left her home in Ireland on hearing of the flourishing state of
Christianity in Britain, and, in order to avoid a marriage intended for
her, fled into Scotland in a ship that was in waiting. She received
the veil at the hands of Bishop Aidan in the reign of King Oswald in
Britannia, and ruled a community in a cell constructed by him in a
certain desert island. When St. Hilda returned from Gaul (Bede,
Eccles. Hist., 1v., c. 28), St. Begha prayed that she might be freed
from the burden of government, and that St. Hilda might be conse-
crated Abbess in her stead, and this was accordingly done. After
many years she died in the odour of sanctity, attested by many
miracles at her tomb (Brey. Aberd. pars Aistiv. f. c. xxxvi). Bede
mentions a nun called Begu, in the monastery of Hacanos, thirteen
miles from Whitby, to whom the death of St. Hilda was revealed in a
vision (Eccl. Hist., 1v., c. 23). St. Begha is honoured at Kilbagie
and Kilbucho in Scotland; but her greatest foundation was within
the kingdom of Strathclyde at St. Bees,’ which takes its designation
from her. It was founded in 4.p. 656.”
P. 305. ‘There was a cell of this house at Nendrum or Mahee
Island in Down County (see ‘‘ Description of Nendrum,” by Rev.
William Reeves, p.p., 1845), and his Eccl. Antiq., 163, 190-199 for
the grant of the Island of Nedrum, or Nendrum, by Sir John de
Courcy in 1178 to the Priory of St. Bega de Copeland” (Bishop
Forbes, ‘‘ Kal. of Scotch Saints,” pp. 248-52).
In the ‘‘ Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy,” vol. viii.,
p. 258, there is a Paper by Dr. Wm. Bell (read by Dr. Reeves) on
?
O’Remtty— Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 203
“‘The so-called Ring Money in reference to many specimens in the
possession of the Right Hon. the Earl of Londesborough, and more
especially an Irish one with a movable Swivel Ring” (read Monday,
December 8th, 1862). In it, it is stated: ‘St. Bega was the patroness
of St. Bees in Cumberland, where she left a holy bracelet, which was
long an object of profound veneration.” A small collection of her
miracles, written in the twelfth century, is extant, and has been
published. In the prefatory statement of the compiler, we learn,
among other things, ‘‘that whosoever foreswore himself upon her
bracelet swiftly incurred the heaviest punishment of perjury or a speedy
death.”’ [May there not be some possible relation between the Greek
Cross on the rock in front of the church on Dalkey Island and this
swearing on St. Bega’s bracelet ? |
In Butler’s ‘‘ Lives of the Saints,’’ under September 6th, St. Bega,
or Bees, V., itissaid: ‘‘ She was a holy virgin, who flourished about the
middle of the seventh century, led an anchoritical life, and afterwards
founded a nunnery in Copeland near Carlisle. Her shrine was kept
‘there after her death, and became famous for pilgrims. There is in
Scotland a place called Kilbees from her name, according to a note
of Thomas Innis on the Manuscript Calendar kept in the Scotch
College of Paris.” (See Alford Annal., t. 2, p. 294. Monasticon
Angles. Suysken, t. 2, September, p. 694. Note: ‘‘She is honoured on
the 22nd November under the name of St. Bees.’’)
It may not be out of place to cite from Montalembert’s ‘‘ Monks of the
West,” vol. v., p. 247, where he speaks of her: ‘‘ She was, according
to the legend, the daughter of an Irish King, the most beautiful woman
in the country, and already asked in marriage by the son of the King of
Norway. But she had vowed herself, from her tenderest infancy, to
the spouse of virgins, and had received from an angel, as a seal of her
celestial betrothal, a bracelet marked with the sign of the cross. She
escaped alone with nothing but her bracelet which the angel had
given her, threw herself into a skiff, and landed on the opposite shore
in Northumbria, where she lived long in a cell in the midst of the
woods, Fear of the pirates, who infested these coasts, led her after a
while further inland. What became of her? Here the confusion,
which is so general in the debatable ground between legend and
history, becomes nearly inextricable. (P. 250) What is certain,
however, is that a virgin of the name of Bega figures among the
most well-known and long venerated saints of the north-west of
England. In the twelfth century, the famous bracelet which the
angel had given her was regarded with tender veneration ; the pious
204 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
confidence of the faithful turned it into a relic, upon which usurpers,
prevaricators, and oppressors, against whom there existed no other
defence, were made to swear, with the certainty that a perjury
committed on so dear and sacred a pledge would not pass unpunished.
It was also to Bega and the bracelet that the cultivators of the soil
had recourse against new and unjust taxes with which their Lords
burdened them.”
In the ‘‘ Imperial Dictionary of Universal Biography ’’ (1865)
there is a notice of her by John F. Waller, t1.p., u.p.1.a., Hon. Sec.,
R. D. S., as follows: ‘‘ Bega, Suint, a native of Ireland, according
to Butler; but Dempter asserts that she was born in Scotland, misled
probably by the earlier writers on hagiology, who are accustomed to
call Ireland ‘ Scotia.’ Be this as it may, she was a virgin of great
sanctity, and spent her life in retirement and devotion in Carlisle,
where she died in the latter half of the seventh century. A religious.
house was established in her honour, and the 7th of September is
observed in memory of her.—J. F. W.”
From the whole of these citations it may be concluded that, so far
as ascertainable, there is a tradition that the two churches were
dedicated to a St. Bega, or St. Begnet, ‘‘a virgin but not a martyr,”
whose festival is stated to have been celebrated on the 12th November.
It is equally clear that more than one saint and virgin bearing the
name of Begha, Bega, or Begge is mentioned in the ancient records
bearing on the subject, and that up to the present it has not been
possible to determine the particular St. Bega to whom the churches
were said to be dedicated, otherwise than by the date of the festival.
Now there is no saint of this name having a festival in the month of
November mentioned in any of the works cited. If, however, it were
allowable by way of argument to assume that there is a possible
confusion between the names ‘“‘ Begnet”’ and ‘‘ Benen,” we have a
possible clue in the account given of St. Benignus or Benen, who
died the 9th November, 468, of whom it is said in Dr. Healy’s
‘“‘Tnsula Sanctorum et Doctorum,” p. 95: ‘Benignus, son of
Sescnin, Bishop of Armagh, died 9th November, 468,” p. 95. The
death of Benignus is thus noticed in the ‘‘ Martyrology of Donegal”’:
“« November 8th. Benignus, 7.¢. Benen, son of Siscnen, disciple of
St. Patrick, and his successor that of Primate of Armagh. He was
a virgin without ever defiling his virginity.”
This would furnish a date for the festival very close to that
mentioned, viz., the 12th. Butconfining the question to the determi-
nation of the particular St. Bega or Begnet, to whom the church
O’Remiy— Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 205
of Dalkey was dedicated, the choice would lie between St. Bega (1),
venerated at Dunbar already referred to, whose festival is on the
3rd September, according to Smith and Wace’s ‘Dictionary of
Christian Biography’’; or on the 7th September, according to the
notice of the ‘‘ Imperial Dictionary of Universal Biography.”
Or on the 22nd November, according to Allan Butler (under the
name of St. Bees).
Or St. Begga (2) mentioned already, whose festival would be on
the 31st October (old style or new style not stated).
Or St. Becga or Begga, d. of Gabhran, V., whose festival is on
the 10th February.
Or St. Begghe, Duchess of Brabant, daughter of Pepin le Vieux,
Mayor of the palace of Austrasia, who died in 692 or 698. She was
the mother of Pepin, called ‘‘ Heristal.” After the death of her
husband she consecrated herself to the service of God, and founded in
680 the monastery of Andenne (‘‘ Art de verifier les dates”’). It is
further said of this saint, that to her is attributed the foundation of
the ‘‘ Beguines,’’? an order of uncloistered nuns still existing in a
modified form in Ghent, Belgium. No date is mentioned for her
festival.
In a question involving so much uncertainty it is allowable to
offer a suggestion with a view to helping to clear it up. It is that
the name Bec, Beg, or Bega may have had a titular or collective
signification, and have been attached to the heads of a certain female
Order; or as a name for the whole Order, as in the case of the
** Beguines”’ just mentioned; or as in the case of the ‘‘ Clatrettes,”
the name given to the Bernardines (Littré, ‘‘ Dictionnaire de la L. Fr.’’),
wherein the termination seems to be a diminutive of the same
character as the “‘ net” in ‘‘ Begnet.”’ This view would be to some
extent supported by the fact that in Old and Middle Age French the
word “Bec”? was used with regard to women, as mentioned by
Littré in his dictionary, under that word. Thus he says: §4°,
‘¢Minois”’ :
‘¢Un sien valet avait pour femme
Un petit bec, assez mignon.”
La Fontarne, ‘‘ Paté.”
“Tu voudrais me déplaire, A moi, Crispin, a moi, que tu nommais
tojours ‘ Ton Bee,’ ton petit bec ?’”” (Hauteroche, ‘‘ Nobles de Province,”
Iv. 4).
Th 6c 4) ey ee oa b th “cc Di ti ” e
e word ‘‘minois”’ is given by the same ictionary ”’ as
206 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
meaning, ‘‘ par extension,” ‘‘ une jolie fille.” From this point of
view ‘‘ Begnet”’ might represent either the Order collectively, or the
head of the Order or house for the time being; and the date of the
festival might vary from place to place, and even apply to different
saints.
On the other hand, some consideration may be had of the Orienta-
tion of the church of Dalkey Town. In Chambers’s “‘ Encyclopedia”
(1901), under the word ‘‘Orientation,”’ it is stated: ‘‘ The Orientation
of churches is not usually very exactly to the east; and it is supposed
that the east end, in some cases, has been set so as to point towards
the place where the sun rises on the morning of the patron saint’s day.
In other cases, the choir and the nave are not built exactly in a
straight line, the choir having thus a right inclination to one side,
which in the symbolism of the middle age, was supposed to indicate
the bowing of our Saviour’s head on the cross.”
Now the church of Dalkey presents the peculiarity of having the old
nave a more modern chancel orientated in slightly different directions
(Pl. XIV., fig. 2). The older or western portion is orientated about
east 8° 10' north; while the eastern and modern end has a direction
of about east 9° 80’ north. Assuming that this or these orientations
were intended to point to the point of the horizon at which the sun
rose on the festival day of the patron saint, we have simply to see
to what dates in the year these northern declinations of the sun
correspond. This should take place at two- different periods of the
year, the one on the passage of the sun from equinox to summer
solstice, and the other on his return southwards. In the first case,
there is an indicated north declination of from 8° 4’ 24” to 9° 31’ 47”
occurring between the 11th and the 15th April. In the second case
there is an indicated north declination of from 9° 36’ 38” to 8° 10/
26” occurring between the 29th August and the 2nd September. Search-
ing among the different saints whose festivals occur about these dates,
we find mentioned St. Benezet or little St. Benedict, of Avignon, who
died in 1184, and whose festival is kept on the 14th April—a possible
solution if there were any equivalence between Begnet, Benen, and
Benedict, which, as shown, is denied by scholars such as Dr. Todd
and Dr. Joyce, not to speak of the difficulty of the St. Begnet in
question having beena virgin. As regards the St. Bega, or Begga, the
daughter of Gabhran, virgin, already mentioned, and whose festival
is given as occurring on the 10th February, it should be remembered
that she is mentioned as being the sister of Lugaidh, a priest whose
festival is on the 17th April.
O’Re1tty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 207
As regards the festivals mentioned as occurring between the 29th
August and the 2nd September, the nearest in date would be that of
St. Bega (September 3rd), of whom it is stated, as already mentioned,
that she was an Irish princess of the seventh century, was venerated
at Dunbar, who lived in an island in the Ocean Sea, and whose festival
is given by Allan Butler on the 6th September, and by Waller, in the
citation from the ‘‘ Imperial Dictionary of Biography,” as occurring
on the 7th September. But, as has been already pointed out, a
ereat confusion rests over the different saints known by this name.
At all events, if the Orientation of the church of Dalkey be taken as
haying a connexion with the patron saint’s festival, then it would
point to the St. Bega of Dunbar, whose festival is given as occurring
on the 8rd, or 6th, or 7th September, and relatively close approximation
to the dates indicated by the Orientations (29th August to 2nd
September). The question of the Orientation of the Church on Dalkey
Island will be discussed further on: it is sufficient here to say that it
is quite different from that of the church of Dalkey Town. The data
concerning the church on Dalkey Island are, as has been already
pointed out, very scant. The only thing apparently on record is its
transference by Hugh de Lacy to the Cathedral Chapter of Dublin, as
mentioned in Mr. Elrington Ball’s account of it, already cited.
Nothing is seemingly known as to the date of its foundation, nor,
strictly speaking, as to the particular saint to whom it was dedicated,
except the tradition that it also was dedicated to St. Begnet, the
patroness of Dalkey Town church.
It might seem that any further description of it than that given
by Wakeman, already cited, would be superfluous; but the closer
examination of the ruin on the one hand, and meagreness of
documentary record concerning it on the other, justify a more careful
examination of the remains, were it only for the purpose of securing
a fairly correct plan and details of the structure. Moreover, the
question of the orientation presents an interest in this case also, and
being different from that of Dalkey Town church, it is presumable
either that the church may not have been originally dedicated to the
same saint, or that a different intention guided the founders in that
respect.
The position (Pl. XIV., fig. 6) occupied by the building is re-
markable, as shown by the east and west cross-section of the island
through the old church. It lies in a sort of depression on the central and
longer axis of the island, at a point where the ground offers an extent of
surface sufficiently level to allow of its being conveniently built on. It
208 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
also lies near the little rocky cove by which communication is still
had with the land; and to the west of it, at a comparatively short
distance, stands the rock with the cross and circle described as Greek |
by Dr. Graves, and mentioned and sketched by Wakeman in his Paper
already referred to. Towards the east the ground rises, as indicated
by the section, and nearly hides the structure on that side, since but
the summit of the roof and the points of the gables could be seen from
the sea. This disposition may have been intentional, with a view to
more completely hiding the building from the attacks of the sea-rovers,
who seem to have continually infested these coasts, and, indeed, those
of Ireland in general, more notably during the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, as would appear from the Public Records. In
the Report of the Keeper of Public Records in Ireland (2nd May,
1888), p. 23, mention is made of ‘‘the orders and letters concerning
principally the guarding of the coasts against pirates, Turkish and
other sea-rovers, with instructions to the commanders how to carry
out the orders of the State,’’ and dating from 1631 to 1638.
The roof of the church, just overlooking the sea to the east and
north-east, would have afforded an advantageous position for a look-
out, from which to give warning by means of a bell to those on land.
In this respect it may not be out of place to cite the following from
Chambers’s ‘‘Encyclopedia ” of 1864 under the word ‘‘ Wartello
Tower ” :—
‘The name is said to have been taken from certain Italian
towers built near the sea during the period when piracy was common
in the Mediterranean, for the purpose of keeping watch and giving
warning if a pirate ship was seen approaching. This warning was
given by striking on a bell with a hammer (ital., “‘ martello’’), and
hence the towers were called (‘‘ Zorri da Martello”). Such a look-
out should, of course, have been constantly kept up, and necessitated,
therefore, the continuous residence of an outlooker or outlookers on
the island. The position selected for the Oratory may also have been
influenced by the vicinity of the well, that of the landing cove, and
the relative shelter from the easterly and south-easterly storms
afforded by the ground. In any case the position was well selected
from all these points of view.
As is indicated by the section, the eastern horizon would have
been visible from a point at the height of the belfry; and it is
proposed to examine in this Paper the possibility and the probability
of the building having been either intended as, or at least used as, an
observatory for the determination, by direct observation, of the rising
O’Remiuxy— Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 209
of the sun on the horizon, and thus to fix the precise period of the
equinox and summer solstice—the former fundamentally necessary for
the correct determination of the Paschal Time.
The plan of the church was carefully made, and, for reasons here
unnecessary to explain, the dimensions were taken in metres and
centimetres, which can always be converted into English feet and
inches when required. It will be observed that the plan (PI. XIV.,
fig. 1) does not indicate a very great precision in the laying out of the
foundations, and that measurements to a centimetre give the amount
of accuracy attainable.
The principal feature which strikes one on the examination of the
plan is the projections of the north and south side wall, beyond the
gable faces, so as to form what have been called, in the description by
Wakeman, “‘ pilasters,’ but which, more properly, might be called
‘‘ ante ’’—a detail of form so characteristic of the more ancient styles
of Greek and Italian temples. These projections are not quite equal
at the four corners; the two at the western end of the building are
practically equal in amount of projection; but at the east end the
projections are unequal and somewhat greater than at the west end.
The door in the western gable is marked in its style as noticed by
Wakeman. The jambs are slightly inclined; the breadth of doorway
between them is, at the top, under the lintel, 80 centimetres; while at
the ground, where a sill may have existed, it is 82 centimetres: thus
barely an inch, but determinable.
A character of the building, which does not seem to have been
noticed, is the ‘‘ batter”’ of the walls, which may be observed on the
angles of the building, but more particularly on the jambs of the door,
which showed a thickness of wall of 93°5 centimetres at the floor,
and only 85:5 centimetres under the lintel. This batter, or inward
inclination of the walls, is fairly recognisable in the photographic
vignette placed at the end of the chapter (p. 80) in Mr. Elrington
Ball’s work already referred to. It would favour the presumption of
great antiquity for the building, and would, to some extent, account
for the resistance of the walls to the destructive action of time, wind,
and weather.
The masonry is very rough, and is composed of stones, which
seem to have been either surface-boulders or very weathered material
from some other structure. The sizes of the stones vary much, from
very large in the lower parts, to middling- and small-sized in the upper
parts. Of courses there are, strictly speaking, none, the stones
having been seemingly fitted to one another as they came to hand,
210 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
with, however, a very abundant use of ‘‘spawls,” and much intelligence
shown in their use.
The mortar seems, indeed, to have been employed rather to secure
the ‘‘spawls”’ than to bed the stones.
The material is, for the most part, of granite; but here and there
may be noticed stones, more or less dressed, of limestone, evidently
dressed glacial boulders from the drift, and some slabs of mica-schist
from Killiney shore. As ‘‘spawls’’ were employed, pieces of granite,
mica-schist, andalucite-schist from Killiney shore, and even pieces of
the ‘‘ epidiorite”? now found in Killiney Park, and described by the
author of the present Paper in the Proc, Roy. Ir. Acad. (3rd Series,
vol. vi., No.1). As to the source which furnished the greater part of
the material, the rounded and weathered nature of which is so evident,
it may be recalled here that a dun, or fort, existed on the island prior
to Christian times. It is mentioned in ‘‘The Annals of the Four
Masters,” p. 6, as having been built, according to that authority, in the
age of the world 3501, by Sedgha, a Milesian chief of great renown.
This date would, according to the chronology of these authorities,
correspond to B.c. 1700. It may be assumed that its remains still
existed down into Christian times; and there is therefore a certain
probability that the material employed in the construction of the
church was, to some extent, procured from the remains of this ‘* dun,’’
since so few loose stones or boulders are to be met with at present on
the island. It would certainly add to the interest attaching to the
present ruin if it were presumable that the materials employed there-
for had at one time formed part of the walls of that prehistoric
monument.
That the materials for the building of the dun itself were all pro-
cured from the neighbouring shore is hardly likely, and such would
imply the use of a size and style of coasting vessel, and skill in
handling it, that might with difficulty be conceded to the ‘‘ Milesians’’
of B.c. 1700; but that some part of the material may have been so
transported is conceivable,
The only openings in the walls, besides the western door, are the
small window in the south wall described by Wakeman, and con-
sidered by him as ‘original. He gives a sketch of it on p. 702 of the
volume containing the paper. This woodcut is so far incorrect as it
would lead to the impression that the jambs of this window are
vertical, or but slightly inclined. But the contrary is the case; the
window is at 360 cm. from the present ground-level on the outside;
it has a single-stone lintel and sill, The breadth in the clear under
O’Re1tty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 211
the lintel is 27 cm., and on the sill is 30 em., while the height of the
opening is about 55°5 em. The inclination of the jambs is therefore
well marked, and more marked and distinct than in the case of the
door. The splay of the sides on the inside gives an interior breadth
of opening of 75 cm.
This window was seemingly intended to light a small room placed
above the floor, at the west end of the building, and of which traces
still remain on the interior surfaces of the walls. It seems to have
formed part of the original design. The larger window in the south
wall, situated at the south-east end, sketched and briefly described by
Wakeman, is by him considered as quite recent; and be gives testi-
mony in support of that view. As the masonry has been exposed to
the action of the air and weather for at least a century or so, since
the period of the alterations referred to by him, it does not show with
marked evidence the certainty of this change, unless by the relative
smallness of the material employed on the sides of the opening and
the presence of the two sill-stones so strangely placed across the
opening (Pl. XVI., fig. 1), That the space underneath these stones has
been the result of quite recent work, and is roughly a hole broken in
the wall, may be at once granted. But itis probable that there was
originally at the south-east end of this south wall an opening or
window of the same character as that still existing in the western
part of Dalkey . Town church (Pl. XVI, figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5).
This is a tall, narrow slit, so placed as to throw light on the altar
at the east end of the church; possibly that of Dalkey Island was
divided towards the mid height by a cross-stone or sill, as in the case
of the Dalkey Town church window referred to, and of the two stones
remaining across this south-east end opening; the upper one was pro-
bably the middle sill of the original window. This is to some extent
suggested by a comparison of the relative distances of the two windows
in question from the respective south-east corners of the buildings. In
the Dalkey Town church the distance of the eastern vertical edge of
the opening from the south-east corner of that building is 186 cm, ;
while the same measurement in the case of Dalkey Island church gives
182 cm.—practically the same—and so far suggests that an entirely
new window was not broken in the wall, but rather that the narrow
light or opening, such as that of Dalkey Town church, was enlarged
towards the west side to its present breadth. It is proposed to dis-
cuss hereinafter the possible usage of this narrow opening for the
purpose of the determination of the periods of the solstices, by means
of the relative positions of the patches of light formed by the sun’s
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] (17]
212 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
rays, on the floor and walls, for which object the narrowness of the
opening would be more advantageous than if it were wide, as at
present is the case.
The only other opening in the walls of the building is a small
square cavity, situated in the northern wall, quite near the north-
west interior angle of the building, and situated at a height of
273 cm. from the ground. Its dimensions are about 40 cm. by 40 cm.
It was originally evidently a recess in the nature of a cupboard, and
did not then extend through the thickness of the wall; since on the
outside, as it presents itself at present, it is represented by a hole, the
place from which a stone had been forced out.
On the walls, in the interior, are to be seen the remaining traces
and patches of plastering, leading to the presumption that the greater
part of these surfaces had been so treated. On the interior face of
the west wall, this plastering shows the traces of a floor having once
existed at the height of 273 cm, from the present ground, and in
the south-west corner at this height, appears a rectangular space
measuring 135 cm. by 98 cm., marked on the plastered surface,
as if some article ot furniture had been in position there (see
Pl. XV., fig. 2).
The fire-place in the eastern wall is mentioned by Wakeman as
having been made by the workmen who took up their dwelling in the
old church during the building of the Martello Tower. The recessed
space above it is probably original, and is unsymmetrical in its lines,
as regards the vertical axis of the wall face. The workmanship is
very rough, as is also that of the arching. There is a crack in this
face over this recess, as if there were a void space in the wall,
such as a chimney-flue.
There is every reason to suppose that the original roof was of
stone slabs, probably of the chiastolite mica-schists that outcrop on
Killiney shore, possibly of the ordinary mica-schist to be found in
connexion with the granite there. What was the form of the
termination of the eastern gable can only be a matter of conjecture
at present; but it supported the roof at all events, and may have
presented an opening just under the ridge of the roof, or this eastern
gable may have carried a belfry or opening such as that still remain-
ing on the western gable. Wakeman considers this latter belfry to
be a recent addition; but the appearance of the masonry hardly
supports that opinion; while, on the other hand, the thicknesses of
the two gable walls at the base, 91 cm. (about one-tenth greater than
that of the two side walls), would point towards the presumption
O’Remuy—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 218
that these two gables were intended to carry belfries or elevated
parts of that nature.
In the two elevations (exterior and interior, Pl. XIIT., fig. 1, and
Pl. XV., fig. 1) of the western gable herewith submitted are shown two
square holes in the sides of the belfry, one on either side of the belfry
opening, which may have been intended to receive the ends of the
purloins which supported the roof. These holes are thorough; and I
have assumed the existence of, and sketched in dotted lines in the
longitudinal section (Pl. XIII, fig. 2), a projecting platform, supported
on these beams where they pass through these holes. I have done so in
order to bring out the idea already suggested, viz.: that observations
may have been made from this platform by an observer standing on it,
and looking through the existing belfry opening, and a corresponding
one in the eastern gable, on to the horizon, which I assume to be
clearly visible from that point through such an opening. This implied
use of the belfry is to some extent supported by Wakeman’s remark
that it must have been enclosed by the roof, which would precisely fit
it for such an application. It is not necessary to examine here the
size or form that such an opening should have had for that purpose ;
but there is ground for discussing the more general question of to
what extent and in what way were direct observations of the sun
and stars made currently, in connexion with these ancient churches,
with a view to the determination of the festivals and hours of
service, of the equinoxes and solstices, and of the due fixation of the
paschal time and other festivals and seasons of the year.
That from the earliest periods of Irish history the division of time
into years, months, and days was known and employed, need not here
be discussed. Dr. Joyce, in his “Irish Names of Places,” vol. i.,
p- 200, chap. vi., discusses the names arising out of ‘‘customs, amuse-
ments, and occupations,” and says: ‘‘ The Pagan Irish divided their
year, in the first instance, into two equal parts; each of these was
subdivided into two parts or quarters. The four quarters were called
Earrach, Samhradh, Foghmhar, and Geimhridh [Arragh, Sowra,
Fowar, and Gevre] (Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter), which
are the names still in use; and they begin on the first days of February,
May, August, and November, respectively.’’? Now such a division of
the year must have been based on some sort of actual astronomical
observations, and could only have been maintained by continual and
regular observations of the heavenly bodies which determine the
divisions of the year. Hence, there must have been at all times of
[17+]
214 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Trish society, astronomers and places and methods of observation
sufficient for the requirements of the period. Moreover, observatories
or places of observation were requisite as matters essential to the
security of aggregated communities, and most essentially along the
coasts, on which incursions might be made by enemies or by piratical
adventurers. High points offermg extended views in all or certain
directions would naturally serve as such observatories or look-outs;
and in the case of buildings their highest points. Hence, places of
defence, fortifications, castles, &c., from the very earliest periods of
history have had, as part of their general scheme of arrangement,
elevated places or towers from which views, either of the heavens or
of the country in the neighbourhood, could be securely and advan-
tageously obtained. Dr. Joyce, in his ‘‘ Names of Places,” vol. 1,
p. 215, says: ‘‘ Look-out points, whether on the coast to command the
sea, or on the borders of a hostile territory to guard against surprise,
or in the midst of a pastoral country to watch the fields, are usually
designated by the word coimhead (covade). This word signifies
‘ watching’ or ‘ guarding’; and it is generally applied to hills from
which there is an extensive prospect.”
We should therefore expect to find corresponding arrangements in
the plans of the earliest monasteries and buildings intended to receive
Christian communities. In Smith and Cheatham’s “ Dictionary of
Christian Antiquities,” p. 1240, in speaking of the ‘‘ Cenobium” of
St. Euthymius, in Palestine, circa a.p. 328, it is stated: ‘‘ The whole
area was fortified with a palisade and wall, and further protected by
a strong tower forming the citadel or stronghold of the whole desert,
rising in the middle of the cemetery.”
This tower just described was a very usual feature in the monas-
teries of the East, which, from their liability to attack from the
predatory tribes, assumed the character of strong fortresses. The
whole establishment was dominated by a lofty tower near the
entrance, like the keep of a Norman castle, placed under the patronage
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Michael the Archangel, Apostles, or
saints, to which the inhabitants might flee for protection when the
rest of the buildings had fallen into the hands of the assailants
(monasteries of Mount Athos). In some cases protection was still
further secured by the single entrance being made many feet above
the ground, only accessible by ladders, or by a bucket raised by a
windlass, ¢.g., the monastery of St. Catherine on Mount Sinai.
At page 12438, the Dictionary says: ‘‘ The Irish and early Scotch
O’Rettty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 215
monasteries of the sixth and seventh centuries, such as that of
Armagh and Iona, followed the eastern model.”
So far there is merely a presumption that these towers served for
look-out and observation purposes; but being constructed for the
safety of the community, this could only be secured by such continual
observation and outlook. Moreover, another important requirement
of the religious communities rendered such observations necessary,
more particularly that of the heavenly bodies—that was the division
of the hours of the day and of the night, for the regular occupations
and offices of the community. The division of the day into hours
must have been in some way arrived at, and, moreover, announced
regularly to the members of the community. How the hours of the
day or night were marked in the pagan and early Christian times of
Treland is not distinctly stated, so far as I can find. That the round
towers or “‘cloictheachs” served in some way for that purpose the
very name implies; and yet Petrie barely concedes that they may
have been thus used. In the East, and in those latitudes wherein
the sun is generally visible during the day-time, the use of the
gnomon was common until the introduction of the ‘‘ clepsydra,” and
later on of the clock; but in a climate such as that of Ireland, the
sky of which is so frequently overcovered by clouds, and continuous
sunshine thus exceptional, means must have been found at an early
period of mechanically dividing the time of the day and of the night ;
and also a means of making known these divisions to the public, or
to those requiring this knowledge for their daily avocations.
In the ‘‘ Dictionnaire Encyclopédique de la France” (Ph. le Bas,
Paris, 1843), under the heading ‘‘ Horloges,” p. 485, the author
describes the wonderful clock or clepsydra made for the Calif of
Bagdad, Haroun-al-Raschid, in a.p. 807, and presented by him to
Charlemagne; and then continues: ‘‘On a done ignoré absolument
jusqwau 12™° siécle, la division du temps par le moyen des roues
dentées, et des pignons qui s’y engrénaient. Ce n’est que depuis ce
temps, qu’on a commencé a fabriquer, pour les cloches des églises, des
grandes horloges, qui fonctionnaient au moyen d’un poids attaché a
la plus grande roue et faisant aller tout le mécanisme. Des ouyriers
intelligents perfectionnérent ensuite cet appareil, en y ajustant un
rouage correspondant a un marteau, qui frappait sur un timbre sonore
les heures indiquées par le cadran. Ce perfectionnement devint d’une
grande utilité, et pour les monastéres, od avant son introduction al
faillait que les religieux proposassent des gens pour observer les étoiles
216 © ~~ Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
pendant la nuit afin 7 étre avertis des heures de V office, et pour les yilles,
ou les crieurs faisaient connaitre la marche du temps, usage qui se
conserve dans plusieurs provinces.”
“On a a tort fait descendre jusqu’au 13”° siécle et méme jusqu’au
14"° siécle, V’invention des horloges sonnantes; elles se trouvent
déja citées dans les statuts de l’ordre de Citeaux, réunis vers l’année
1120. On voit en effet dans ces statuts un article par lequel on
défend toutes sonneries de cloches, méme a l’horloge, depuis la messe
de jeudi saint, jusqu’a celle du samedi saint; un autre article aussi,
qui enjoint au sacristan de regler Vhorloge de sorte qu'elle sonne et
qu’elle V’éveille pendant Vhiver, avant matines ou avant les noc-
turnes,” &c.
This article distinctly points out the observation of the stars
during the night for the fixation of the hours of office in the monas-
teries of the early Christian period, and such observation implies an
observatory or part of the building capable of being so applied, such
as a tower or elevated part dominating the surrounding parts of the
building, any trees in the proximity, and having a free and extended
view towards the horizon. Let it be remarked, en passant, that such
conditions are presented by the highest story of the round towers.
Another and more important requirement for the early Christian
churches called for such regular observations and for corresponding
observatories. It was that of the correct determination of the Easter
time. It isamatter of history the difference that subsisted for nearly
two centuries between the Churches of Ireland and England, and that
of Rome and the East, as regards the proper period for the cele-
bration of Easter. Dr. Healy, in his Lusula Sanctorum et Doctorum
(1890), p. 233, says: ‘‘ Of course the system of computing the date of
Easter in use in Ireland and in England, at the beginning of the
seventh century, was that which was introduced by St. Patrick him-
self, and which he acquired in the schools of France and Italy. From
[p. 284] the very beginning, however, much diversity of practice
existed between the Churches of the East and West, and even between
some Churches in the West itself, in reference to the date of Easter
Day.”’ He then gives an account of the results of the Synod of Arles
in this regard, of the Nicene Synod of 4.p. 325, and of the reference
to the Church of Alexandria for the exact date thereof, and its notifi-
cation to the Roman Church, by which it was finally made known to
the other Churches. He says: ‘‘ The Alexandrian usage ultimately
prevailed, but was finally accepted in the Western world only about
O’Rritty— O/d Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 217
a.D. 580, when explained and developed by Dionysius Exiguus.
This, the correct system, therefore lays down three principles :—(first)
Easter Day must be always a Sunday; never on, but next after, the
14th day of the moon; (secondly) that the 14th day, or the full
moon, should be that on, or next after, the vernal equinox ; and (thirdly)
the equinox itself was invariably assigned to the 21st of March.
Whilst, however, the continental Churches aimed at uniformity after
a troublesome experience of their own errors, the Irish and British
Churches, practically isolated from their neighbours, tenaciously clung
to the system introduced by St. Patrick.”
This citation is made in order to show the importance attached to
the question in the early Churches, the differences that existed between
them, the effect of their isolation from the continental communities,
and the intimate dependence of the exact date on that of the vernal
equinox. Itis true that from a very early date a cycle of years was
adopted, and brought into use for the purpose; but it is clear that the
actual observation and determination of the vernal equinox were not
the less necessary as a check on,.and a control of the computation;
and hence in the Western churches, and more particularly in those of
Ireland, such means of observation must have been provided for, and
have been employed from the time of St. Patrick.
In support of this point of view, it may be interesting and useful
to cite the inscription which appears on the pavement floor of the
north transept of the Church of St. Sulpice in Paris, in connexion
with the meridian line traced on that floor. It is thus referred to in
Baedeker’s ‘‘ Guide to Paris,” 1891, p. 252 :—‘‘ St. Sulpice, Transept.
—On the pavement here a meridian line was drawn in 1743 with the
signs of the Zodiac. It is prolonged to an obelisk of white marble,
which indicates the direction of the north; while towards the south it
corresponds with a closed window, from a small aperture of which a
ray of the sun falls at noon on the vertical line of the obelisk.” This
description, rather curt and wanting in detail, does not sufficiently
describe these details, nor show the significance of this remarkable
piece of scientific work. Not only is the meridian plane clearly and
sharply defined by a ribbon of brass, inlaid on edge into the floor, but
it is marked with signs of the Zodiac on the floor, and on the gnomon
or obelisk situated in the north transept, and serving to indicate by
horizontal lines traced thereon the positions which the ray of sun-
light, coming from the south transept window, occupies at the various
periods of the year corresponding to the inscribed signs thereon.
218 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
These refer to the equinoxes and solstices, as clearly pointed out by
the inscription, which is as follows (the lines of which run across the
meridian line) :—
Gnomon Astronomicum
ad Certum paschalis
AAquinoctize Explorandum.
Quod S. Martyr Episcopus Hyppolitus
Advyisus est, Quod concil. Niceain
Patriarche Alexandrino, Dimandavit,
Quod Patres Constantienses et Late
ranenses, solicitos habuit. Quod inter
Romanos Pontifices Gregrorius XIII
et Clemens XI incredibile Labore et
Adhibitan Peritorum Astronomorum
industria conati sunt. Hoc Amulator,
Stylus iste, cum sub Ductum Lin. meri
diana, puncto quinoctiali certis
Periodorum,—Solarium indicibus.
On the floor between the two transepts occurs the following
inscription (the lines of which also run across the meridian line) :—
Opus. D. O. M. Sacrum.
elaboravit
Scientiarum Academize nomine et consi
liis C. Cl. le Monnier Ejusdem Acad. et
London, Socius. Ad. quinoctize Autumnali
et in Hiemnali Solstitia absolvit An.
Rep. Sal. > MDCCXLIII.
O’Rem1ty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 219
At the side door of the south transept entrance is placed the
following inscription on a slab let into the wall :—
aii Hee liptin: Maxima.
: 2 8’: 40"
Fat par Claude Langlois
Ingr. aux Galeries du Louvre
MDCC:XLIV
This remarkable piece of work demonstrates, by its arrangement
and inscriptions, the traditional acknowledgment of the Papal and
Patriarchal admonitions as to the observation and determination of the
equinoxes and solstices, in view of the correct definition of the paschal
time, and of the festival connected therewith. That similar arrange-
ments may still exist in other churches and cathedrals on the
Continent, particularly in those of Rome, there is reason to believe; and
considering the influence that the Continental ecclesiastical customs
had on the early churches of Ireland, it is presumable that in many
of these some such arrangement was provided for.
The examination of the south-eastern opening of Dalkey Town
old church seems to me to point to such a use of the beams of sunlight
which may pass through the upper and lower compartments of this
window, of which an elevation, section, and interior elevation are
submitted herewith (Pl. XVI., figs. 2, 3,4, and 5). It will be observed
that the opening is divided towards the middle of its height by a
cross-piece or sill; exteriorly, this and the lower sill are of roughly-
fashioned slabs of granite; but the middle sill, while showing a
granite slab exteriorly, presents on the inside a mica-schist slab, which
naturally offers relatively smooth surfaces and sharp straight edges.
Now the thickness of the wall, taken in conjunction with the
height of the opening in the clear, determines the conditions under
which sunbeams are able to pass through these openings, and the
forms determined by the beams of light on the floor or opposite wall.
220 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
It is quite clear that during the winter months, or those during
which the meridian sun’s elevation above the horizon is low, sun-
light can penetrate into the church by both compartments of the
window, and show itself on the floor, or on the opposite wall, in the
form of two more or less Peviane mar parallelograms or patches of
light separated by a bar.
It is also evident that for a certain meridional elevation of the sun
above the horizon, the upper portion of the window will not allow
any sunbeam to penetrate which could still penetrate by the lower
one, and that finally for a still higher elevation of the midday sun—
that is, during the summer months—the meridian sun could send no
beams into the church by either part of this window.
The dimensions that were taken of these openings allow of a
sufficiently close determination of what these different elevations may
be, and therefore of the periods of the year that would be indicated
by the appearance of both patches of light, of one only, or finally of
neither one nor other, on the floor or wall of the church. From the dia-
gram section herewith submitted (Pl. X VII., fig. 3), it may be seen that
the angle of incidence of a beam of sunlight, for which it would cease to
penetrate, or would be ‘‘ extinguished,” in the upper compartment of
the window, is 44°; while in the lower part of the window the
corresponding angle is 52°. Now these angles of incidence of sunlight
would occur twice in the course of the year, for each compartment,
accordingly as the sun moves from one solstice to the other. For the
angle of 44°, the date would be 9th April and 4th September; while
for the angle of 52°, the dates are 2nd May and 11th August. (I
have here to acknowledge the kindness of Sir Robert Ball, F.z.s.,
of the Observatory, Cambridge, for these determinations. )
It has already been pointed out that, taking into consideration the
direction of orientation of Dalkey Town church, the St. Begnet or
Bega to whom the church was dedicated was the virgin, venerated at
Dunbar, whose festival is given on the 6th September by Alban
Butler, and on the 3rd September by another authority. It may
therefore be assumed that the upper compartment of this window
was arranged so as to give notice or warning of the arrival of the
dedicatory saint’s festival.
It is probable that the under compartment of the window was
‘intended to give some such warning or notice as regards some other
festival.
Presuming, as has been already advanced, that the south-east
window of the Dalkey Island church was originally similar in style
O’Remty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 221
to that still existing in the church of Dalkey Town, it may be
presumed that it was designed to fulfil the same objects—that is,
to admit sunlight and mark the arrival of some certain period of the
year or festival day, or even that of the equinox. This double mode
of observation of the latter—that is, by direct observation towards the
horizon from the height of the belfry, on the one hand, and by the
incidence of the sunbeams through the compartment of the window,
on the other—in no way contradict, but rather supplement one
another; since in our climate the horizon may be covered at sunrise,
and the sky quite clear at mid-day. Enough, however, has been said
to point out the interest that the forms, positions, and dimensions of
the different openings of this class of ancient church in Ireland
present, and to justify the proposition that a more careful examination
and measurement of the still existing ‘‘czl/s” or oratories should be
made in the expectation of very interesting and instructive results
being furnished thereby. As the church on Dalkey Island is stated
to have been dedicated to St. Begnet, as well as that of Dalkey Town,
it might be expected that its orientation would in some way concord
with such dedication. As already mentioned, however, the orientation
in this case is nearly due east and west, the difference or error
of direction therefrom being about 3°, as determined by a hand-
compass. It might be asked is this error due to defective observation,
-or to imperfect means of tracing the east and west line, or rather was
the direction as existing so intended from the foundation. It has
been already remarked that the position of the building is such that
the eastern horizon cannot be seen from its actual site, on account of
the ground rising towards the east, as shown in the section (Pl. XVI.,
fig. 6) ; hence, if the orientation were made by actual observation of the
sun on the true equinoctial day, and if his appearance above the ridge
of rocks lying to the east of the site were awaited for the tracing of
the line of orientation, there should be an error of at least some degrees
to the south of the correct east and west direction intended ; and such
is actually the case. Hence, it is reasonable to presume that a true
east and west orientation was intended; and the error of about 3° is
quite in harmony with this view. Were the error to the north, it
would be more difficult to reconcile with such intention, and there
would be grounds for assuming that it was designed to refer to some
feast-day happening close to the equinox (such as that of St. Benedict,
the patriarch of the western monks), 21st March.
The presumption that the orientation was intended to be due east
and west, and that the observation of the sun for equinox was one
222 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
of the objects for which the building was intended, receives a certain
support from the relation of position of the church to the rock-face,
on which is cut the Greek cross, mentioned and figured by Wakeman
in his Paper already cited. This rock is situated at 11:15 m. (about 14
yards) west of the western door; not, however, due west thereof, but.
north of west, a certain number of degrees (Pl. XVII., fig.1). It had
long occurred to me that the Irish crosses showing a circle with cross-
arms might have some connexion with solar observations, serving, for
instance, as a means of determining the position of the sun at certain
periods, or rather fixing certain periods by the shadow of the pillar
and cross at certain positions and elevations of the sun. I was there-
fore led to examine attentively the position of this cross relatively to
the east and west direction of the building. On the ground that the
determination of the direction of the setting sun is equally important
as that of the rising sun, if accurately determined, for the fixation of
the solstices or equinoxes, it might be assumed a priori, that some
means would be found to ensure this determination; and on examining
the position of the Greek cross in question relatively to the plan of
the building, it was found that a line passing through the north-west
edge of the building, due east and west, passes nearly through the
centre of the cross; and probably if very exact measurements of the
orientation and of the position of the cross relative to the sides of the
building were made, this relation would be brought out more markedly...
It would seem as if, when the building was completed, and observa-
tions from the belfry height could be made on to the horizon, leading
to the recognition of the correct east and west direction, the cross.
was cut as a fiducial point which, with the north-west edge of the
building, gave the true east and west direction.
The lineal measurements given in this Paper are in centimetres ;.
and, perhaps, it may not be out of place to here offer an explanation
of the use of this unit of measurement in this case, rather than of
English feet and inches, usually employed in this country for such
purposes. The explanation is simply that the author had been
continually in the habit of employing the metre in connexion with
geological and stratigraphical studies and measurements, and therefore
continued to use it when measuring buildings. In consequence of
this use of the metre, a very interesting observation has resulted, and
a very important question arises.
Having been, when in Northern Spain, continually under the neces-
sity of converting the ‘‘yara” or Castilian yard (the unit of measure-
ment of the country) into metre units and vice versa, the relation of the-
O’Ruitty— Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Island. 2238
‘‘vara” to the metre became familiar to me. When, therefore, I
came to examine the metric measurements of the Dalkey Island
church, I soon observed that the ‘‘ vara” unit seemed to have been
that employed in the construction of the building.
In O’Shea’s ‘Guide to Spain and Portugal,” p. 109, he gives the
following table of ‘‘ Reduction of Varas into Metres’ :—
M. M.
1 vara = 0'835 7 varas = 5°845
2 varas = 1°:670 8 ,, = 6:680
3.4, = 2°505 Cn ce PBL
A384 0 10. ,, = 8°350 (correctly 8°3489)
ole Wil 55 G)eilfe ts)
6, =5:010 12 ,, =10-020
Examining the pilasters or ‘‘ ante ”’ of the building, the following
were the thicknesses found: north-east, 86 cm. ; south-east, 82°5 cm, ;
north-west, 83 cm.; and south-west, 85 cm.; the mean value of these
is 84:1 cm. ; a close approximation to 83°5 em.; that is, a ‘‘ vara.”
Examining then the horizontal dimensions of the building, the
breadths interiorly of the east and west gables give the following
measurements (two for each end): 416 cm., 418 cm., 417 cm.,
416 cm., of which the mean is 416°75 cm., or approximately
417°5 cm., that is, ‘5 varas,” according to the above table, with a
difference of 0°75 cm.
The breadth of the opening of the western door at the sill was
found to be 82 cm., probably intended for a ‘‘ vara,” so that the
spacing on the inner side of the gable shows the intervals of 167 cm.,
82 cm., and 166 cm., that is 2 varas, 1 vara, 2 varas.
The length of the south wall on the inner face is 626°5 cm.
(mean value), equal to 74 ‘‘ varas”’ (or 626°3 cm.).
The same dimension taken on the interior face of the north side
wall is 619°5 em., which differs sensibly from that of the south wall,
and may be taken as the result of imperfect construction, since the
two diagonal measurements differ; that from the south-east to the
north-west measuring 750 cm. = 9 ‘‘ varas’’ (7°515 m.); while that
from north-east to south-west measures only 746 cm., that is a differ-
ence of 4 cm. (almost negligible, in a building so primitive and so
ruined). The lengths of the north and south side walls on their
exterior faces measure: for the north wall, 881 cm.; and for the
south wall, 879 cm.; this last approximates to the “‘ vara” measure-
ment of 103 varas = 876°7 cm.
224 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
The measurements for the heights cannot offer any satisfactory
terms of comparison, since neither the gables nor any one of the
corners of the pilasters remain in a state sufficiently complete to allow
of any satisfactory comparison with ‘‘vara’’? measurements. The
small window in the southern wall, sketched by Wakeman, and so
markedly ‘‘pelasgic’’ in the character of its inclined jambs, preset
the following dimensions :—breadth of opening at top, 27 cm. = 4 vara
(27-8 em.); breadth of opening at sill, 30 cm. (27 cm.+ 4 = 30 cm.);
height, mean value of the two sides, 55°5 cm. = 2 ‘‘ vara ” (55°6 cm.).
The western doorway presents on the basement course an opening
of 82 cm., as already remarked, or approximately 1 ‘‘ vara”; this
opening under the lintel is only 80 cm., or a diminution of about +;
while the height from the basement course to the lintel under-surface
is 208 cm. = 23 varas (208°72 cm.).
To bring out more distinctly the ‘‘ vara” relations of the different
measurements, it may be convenient to present them in a tabular
form as follows :—
Mean value. Vara value. Differences.
cM.
plssicte : breadths .. 86:0 ee! aon ue
O. do. «cab SoD s
Do. do. ee fee _
Do. do. 85:0) |
E. sae W. gables—interior 7 416.0
aces: measurements of (418.0 < S ;
to. He “a7. 0 416°75 4175 0°75
Do. do. . 416.0
Spacing on inner face of (167-0 167°5 05
west gable. 82:0 83°5 15
Do. do. 166°0 167°5 15
Inner face of south wall: ‘length 626°5 626°3 0:2
Inner face of north wall: length 619°5 626-3 6°8
8.W./N.E. diagonal ia 750°0 7515 15
N.W./S.E. diagonal ae 746°0 751°5 55
North wall: exterior face 881:0 876°7 43
South wall :—exterior face 879°0 876°7 2:3
Small window in south wall:
breadth at top F 27:0 27°8 0's
Do. do. at sill ee 3070 | 27°8+1/9=30°9 0:9
Do. height 55°5 55°6 O1
Western door-way:
opening on basement course .. 8270 } 83°5 15
Do. under lintel face ae 80°0 | 83-5—1/41
Height 3 ee ia oe 208-0 208-72 0°72
The mean value of these various aierenae is 1:82 cm., or a little
more than a half inch English measurement. *
O’Reitty—Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Islund. 225
These several concordances between the ‘‘ vara’”’ values and the
metric measurements, found for different parts of the Dalkey Island
church, can hardly be fortuitous, and go far to support the assump-
tion that Spanish masons, or builders, used to the Spanish unit of
measurement, were engaged on the building of this church. This
assumption would be quite in harmony with the remarks from
Cheetham and Smith’s ‘‘ Dictionary of Christian Antiquities,” cited
in the paper ‘‘On the mode of ringing or sounding bells in the early
churches of Northern Spain and of Ireland”’ (Proceedings, Royal Irish
Academy, third series, vol. vi., p. 490), as to the points of resemblance
between certain very ancient oratories or churches of Northern Spain
and those of Ireland. It would also go to demonstrate the activity
of the commercial relations between Spain and Ireland in ancient
times, and the frequentation of the safest ports of the Irish coast by
Spanish and Continental traders, most probably for fishing purposes,
and for the trade in salt, amongst other objects.
A still more interesting question is raised by the considera-
tion of these measurements; it is that of the wnits of length which
prevailed in Ireland at various periods of tts history. Up to the
present, it has been customary to give the measurements of monu-
ments, no matter what their age or nature, in standard English feet
and inches. For practical purposes this is perfectly intelligible; but
it is not to be supposed that all the monuments of this country were
laid down as regards dimensions in the units of measurement now
currently in use. It is evidently presumable that various units pre-
vailed from time to time, according to the culture and customs of the
predominating races, and that most certainly the use of British units
of measurement did not generally prevail until long after the Norman
invasion.
In O’Curry’s Lectures, vol. ii. (Lecture XIX., ‘‘ On Buildings,
Furniture, &c., in Ancient Erinn”), frequent mention is made of
dimensions of buildings in feet; but no indication is given as to the
absolute length of the foot mentioned, or as to the standard implied;
and the reader, accustomed only to the current English foot, naturally
reads it into the measurements cited by O’Curry and others. The
recovery of these ancient units is most desirable, and should be
attempted, however arduous the task may prove to be; and it can
only be brought about by the careful measurement with such a com-
mon unit as the metre of all our monuments, still sufficiently well
preserved to allow of such measurements being satisfactorily taken,
and the comparison of these with such units as are known to haye
226 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
prevailed in former times. This task was undertaken and carried out
to a definite conclusion by Newton, as regards the Egyptian cubit or
cubits used in the construction of the great monuments of that
country, and by other eminent savants as regards the units of Persia,
Babylonia, Greece, and Italy. It presents, therefore, a field of study
which has been cultivated by men of the greatest learning, and as
necessary for the proper understanding of the histories of the countries
mentioned as displayed in their monuments, works, and utensils.
The study of the ancient czl/s or oratories of Ireland, from this point
of view, would, I beg leave to submit, furnish data of the very
highest historical interest, and merits, therefore, the encouragement ot
the Royal Irish Academy.
EXPLANATION OF PLATES.
Puate XIII.
Fig. 1.—Western elevation of Dalkey Island Church.
Fig. 2.—E. to W. vertical section of same.
Puate XIV.
Fig. 1.—Plan of old Church on Dalkey Island.
Fig. 2.—Plan of St. Begnet’s Church, Dalkey Town: showing orientation.
PuatE XV.
Fig. 1.—Interior elevation of western gable wall of Dalkey Island Church.
Fig. 2.—Interior elevation of eastern gable wall of Dalkey Island Church.
Puate XVI.
Fig. 1.—Interior elevation of S.-E. window of Dalkey Island Church.
Fig. 2.—Interior elevation of S.-E. end window of Dalkey Town Church.
Fig. 3.—Vertical cross-section of this, N.-S.
Fig. 4.—Elevation of same, facing south,
Fig. 5.—Plan of same.
Fig. 6.—E.-W. vertical cross-section of Dalkey Island, to show lie of ground, and
visual from Belfrey of Old Church towards eastern horizon.
Puate XVII.
Fig. 1.—Plan of Dalkey Island Church, to show relation of orientation with Greek
cross on rock to the W.
Fig. 2.—Elevation of rock bearing Greek cross, Dalkey Island.
Fig. 3.—S.-E. opening in western end of St. Begnet’s Church, Dalkey Town:
N.-S. section, showing the angles of extinction of rays of sunlight.
poeez
XII.
THE FIRST MOHAMMADAN TREATIES WITH CHRISTIANS.
By STANLEY LANE-POOLE, M.A., Lirr. D.
Read Apri 27, 19038.
Tur early treaties of the Arabs are important documents in the
history of Islam. They show us, upon evidence that cannot be
disputed, the policy adopted by the conquerors towards the
vanquished ; and they enable us to understand in some degree
the causes which contributed to the spread of the new religion.
There is a very widely spread misconception on this subject. It
is frequently alleged that Islam was ‘ propagated by the sword.’
Carlyle’s rejoinder, ‘First get your sword’, was only a partial
answer to the accusation; for though the religion of Islam must
have possessed other attractions to draw men to it in its hour of
weakness, when there were no swords on its side, yet it would be
quite natural that, when the faith had been embraced by many
thousands of fighting men, the argument of the sword should be
employed to bring others to the confession of the creed. Indeed,
if it is held that there is but one road to salvation, it is at least
arguable that forcible methods would be justified in saving men
even against their own wills. But, as a matter of history, Islam was
not ‘propagated by the sword.’ The Koran never enjoins any such
principle. It does indeed exhort Muslims to ‘fight in the path of
God with those who fight with you,’ but adds, ‘if they desist, God is
forgiving and merciful; . . . let there be no hostility save against
transgressors.’** ‘Unprovoked war is clearly contrary to the letter
and spirit of the Kur-4n; but war against the enemies of el-Islam,
who have been the first aggressors, is enjoined as a sacred duty;
and he who loses his life in fulfilling this duty (if unpaid) is pro-
mised the rewards of a martyr. . ... Of such enemies, if reduced
hy force of arms, refusing to capitulate, or to surrender them-
selves, the men may be put to death or be made slaves; and the
* Koran, ii., 186-9.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C. | [18]
228 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
women and children also, under the same circumstances, may be
made slaves: but life and liberty are to be granted to those who
surrender themselves by capitulation or otherwise, on the condition
of their embracing el-Islam, or paying a poll-tax, unless they have
acted perfidiously towards the Muslims.’* In other words, unless
there were exceptional circumstances of treachery or inveterate
hostility, the invariable terms offered by Muslim generals were com-
prised in the simple formula ‘Embrace Islam, or pay the poll-tax.’
As this tax on non-conformity was not more than two dinars, or about
a guinea, a head per annum, and was levied only on able-bodied men,
and not on the aged or women or children, it was scarcely heavy
enough to induce many to become converts on purely economical
grounds.
There is no justice in the charge against Islam that it was
‘propagated by the sword’; but it is easy to see how it arose. The
Arabs made vast conquests, and the majority of the people they
conquered became, sooner or later, Muslims; therefore, it is argued,
Islam owed its extension to the sword. But this is to confound two
distinct things. The Arabs were inspired to a new life and a common
enthusiasm by Islam, and in their unprecedented union they set out
to conquer; but the motive of conquest was gain, not proselytizing,
and the sword was wielded by an expanding people, inspired, it is
true, by the new faith, but not for the purpose of imposing it on
others. Arab statesmen indeed clearly recognized the fact that the
more converts were made to Islim the less would be the revenue
from the non-conforming poll-tax ; and as the Arabs have never been
indifferent to money, this consideration formed a check upon a too
zealous propaganda.
The early Muslim treaties are an irrefragable proof of the accuracy
of what has been said about the terms offered to non-Muslim subjects.
We have several records of early treaties of peace with Christians.
The first is with the city of Jerusalem in 636 (4.4. 15), the text of
which will be given later on. An earlier convention, of which the
text is not preserved, was made on the surrender of Damascus in the
previous year, by which every male adult who did not become a
Muslim was to pay annually one dinar (10s. 6d.) and one measure of
corn from each field. Of the first treaty made by ‘Amr ibn el-‘Asi,
the conqueror of Egypt, with the Christians, we fortunately possess
the complete text, as in the case of the Jerusalem treaty. The names
* Lane, Selections from the Kur-dn, 1st ed., 70, 71.
LanE-PooLe—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 229
of the witnesses are given, as in the Jerusalem document, and the
name of the scribe is appended. The two treaties run on similar lines,
and contain not only practically identical clauses, but even absolutely
identical words and phrases. Since we find the name of ‘Amr ibn
el-"Asi among the witnesses to the Jerusalem treaty, it is easily
understood that he carried its terms with him, in memory or in
writing, when he invaded Egypt, and that he endeavoured to accord
to the Christians of Egypt the same terms, mutatis mutandis, as the
Caliph “Omar had, in his presence, accorded to the Christians of
Jerusalem.
The following text of the Treaty of Misr (or Egypt) is from
Tabari’s Annales, in de Goeje’s edition, part 1., pp. 2588-9 :—
maf leash all py
Be ba ge gee dal abel gol gree hel be Ibe
Jaw 5) Bes role ls wdlysly parsley pd~iil
Ur) dey Cyl ngisley Uy gee Yy NS ye “Ld “pele
wgily cll Wn Je leerel Lil Syed he wl pos
ee rind ‘Lor kk mercy cl Call aprenncd ee Soh;
Ll ‘yea led mat lal un pee ey ae ol sea
CNS jai pele By il ia? ale oye adgh Gat Obs iiss
i legeiee rte Sao ai" agtly agit ye messthe od LES ures
gh Avole ee wl ge bal Lost, Ul oy pel
et ble “Ub of 3 WT Taedle Lo gdh Lille aye ge Y
[18*]
230 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Agee reeny al see QM Nw 3 be ke [pele be
Wplatasd pall Bpll Jey gureyall wady opiayall peal JEJE' dad,
ya Tl le “es Wasy 1S UL) SW ee
“slut sassy all oney afl gd Fly Yy ole FLEW yo byeres
“Ute Uloy G2Sy
Varvae lectiones :—
a C jem, Co wyghioy. b. TH et, Meee Ps
C Costu, IK mox dll erst. Jy. e.. C.et, IK .s.p.3; Co deo;
C mox peste « d. 1H om. e. Com., 1K ons. fu dale ,,
A goalie, VH? wole, sed » loco rasurae. g. Co ely el 5
IK rursus Holl, . h. Co om. -7.:Co @M5. & THA add.
Ze NAA
IK haec verba inde a i ud om. 7. [IKom. m. IH add. diges.
n. 1K ay et mox Lyre - o. IH ye he i wile THY pasty,
apud IH’ punctum litterae : erasum est.
Translation :-—
‘In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.
‘This is what ‘Amr ibn el-“Asi granted the people of Misr
in pledge of security for their persons and their religion and
their goods, and their churches and their crosses and their lands
and their waters: there shall not be taken from them anything of
this, nor diminished.*
* Or as de Sacy renders it, more freely, ‘on n’attentera a leurs droits
relativement 4 aucune de ces choses, et on ne leur fera éprouver aucun tort.”
Mémoires de V Institut (Acad. des inscr. et belles-lettres), v., 35 ff. (1821).
Lanr-PooLE—Hohammadan Treaties with Christians. 281
‘ And the garrisons shall not settle among them.
‘ And [it is binding] upon the people of Misr that they pay the
poll-tax when they come into this Treaty of peace and the overflow
of their river has subsided—fifty millions.
‘ And [binding | on them is what their robbers commit.
‘ And if any of them refuse [to come into this Treaty |, the sum of
the taxes shall be cut down for them [who are liable for it] in pro-
portion to them: and our obligation towards those that refuse is quit.
‘And if their river has less than its full rise, then the sum
[of taxation] shall be reduced for them in proportion.
‘And whoso of the Romans and garrisons shall come into their
Treaty, for him is the like as for them, and on him is the like
[ obligation} as on them.
‘And whoso refuses and chooses to go away, he shall be safe
till he reaches his place of security or departs from our dominion.
‘What is [laid] upon them is by thirds, at every third draw-
ing a third of what is [laid] upon them.
‘For what is in this writing [stands] the pledge and warranty of
God, and the warranty of His Prophet, and the warranty of the
Khalifa, the Commander of the Faithful, and the warranties of the
Faithful.
‘And [it is prescribed] for the garrisons who consent [to this
Treaty], that they shall assist with* so many head and so many
horse that they be not plundered or hindered from commerce to and
fro. Witness Ez-Zubeyr and “Abdallah and Mohammad his sons.
Wardan wrote that and was present.’
* De Sacy renders this ‘ fournir tant d’hommes et tant de chevaux, moyennant
quoi on ne portera point la guerre chez eux; ou quoi ils seront dispensés de
Vobligation de faire la guerre sacrée.’ The verb \y 52 may be active or passive.
The whole clause is obscure.
232 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
For purposes of comparison I subjoin the Jerusalem Treaty* :—
ro) glen AN
eae al Jal epee eel ess a) ase doch be lin
are eo, adly-cly neni GLst pe old
psd, eos Si yal tle pL, — ads
rely ot ely parte ue ajam re Ip eke ake
ALL ey pede vel ler neyo de wr
LS Aza Noe sh Ubi al hey ayedl ge del age
"ery, yl lehe bere GJ ‘pele wise! Gal be
reece ee Alley dni Asie rat pero cyt Wot
er AY al de Le Ube abey d ye pate Ail ayes
os poe alley Kekity acid =UbS Mala cs oe re dy ll
“pelea peg de> “pel te ol nail wees st des
wd" Me Shin J" fe "Ne NE ayes petals tle ze
et yes Ape oye “lebl Je ele aw dale yg aed pene lis
wees py ae yo
yur, wey en aM age CoREaM da cat be cde 5 prolar
Sat Ryjss\ ye dle Coil Wybacl 11 cpiegell deny libel ded,
mie uy clan flay yale! gy gyaty Ay gy alle “eN3 Se*
* Yo ab eae eng wee al ep & heey
*T. 1, FO, FI. 1. Fora similar Treaty with Lydda, see Tabari,
ibid. Ff FV,
Lanr-PootE—Hohammadan Treaties with Christians. 233
Variae lectiones :—
a. Modj. pela, b. Modj. et Soj. lps ponies « c. Modj. et
Soj. igi. @ Soj. (aiv. — ¢. Modj. et Soj. lnse; Cod.
Leid. lyj> . f. Codd. Iy>0 5 Modj. et Soj. yr 6. gy. Modj.
dey 2. Modj. et Soj. Gomall}. 7. Modj. et Soj. 3. &, TH
om.; suppl.e Modj. 7. Modj.et Soj.; codd. om. ies - m. verba
spuria? . Modj. et Soj. as. 9. Soj. et Modj. om. yp. Modj.
et Soj., bd) » qe Modj. ar. rey Isl = dass 5 Soj. acs? 5
om. am. 8. Modj. et Soj. ¢ Soj. EN&. v. Modj. et Soj. om.
Translation :—
‘In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.
‘This is what the servant of God, ‘Omar, Commander of the
Faithful, gave to the people of Jerusalem [ Lliya] in pledge of security:
he gave them security for their persons and their goods and their
churches and their crosses, and its sick and its sound, and all of
its religion: their churches shall not be impoverished or destroyed ;
nor shall [aught] of it be diminished, neither of its appurtenances
nor of its crosses nor of anything of its provisions; and they shall
not be forced against their faith, and not one of them shall be
harmed.
‘And none of the Jews shall dwell with them in Jerusalem.
‘ And [it is binding] on the people of Jerusalem that they pay the
poll-tax as the people of el-Medain pay it;
‘And that they expel the Romans and robbers from it [ Jerusalem | :
and whoso of them goes forth he shall be safe as to his person and
property until they reach their place of safety; and whoso of them
204 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
stays, he shall be safe and on him [is binding] the like of that which
[is binding] on the people of Jerusalem, a poll-tax.
‘And whoso of the people of Jerusalem prefers to go away, himself
and his property, along with the Romans, and leave their churches
and crosses, they shall be safe in person [and churches and crosses ?]
until they reach their place of safety. 7
‘ And whoso of the people of the land was in it [Jerusalem ] before
the fighting, if he wish to settle, on him [is binding] the like as what
[is binding] on the people of Jerusalem, a-poll-tax, and if he wishes
to depart with the Romans or to return to his own people, nothing
shall be taken from them [i.e. in poll-tax ] until the harvest is reaped.
And for what is in this writing [stands] the pledge and warranty of
God, and the warranty of his prophet, and the warranty of the
Khalifas, and the warranty of the faithful, provided they pay what
is due of the poll-tax. Witnesses to that, Khalid ibn Welid, and “Amr
ibn el-‘Asi, and “Abdu-r-Rahman ibn Auf, and Mu‘awiya ibn Abi-
Sufyan. And wrote and was present [x], year 15.’
The close similarity between the two documents will be seen at
the first glance. In both we find an assurance of security for the
person, goods, religion, churches and crosses, of the conquered people.
In both we have the imposition of a poll-tax on those who do not
conform to Islam. In both we have the undertaking that a dominant,
or once dominant, people shal] not dwell among them, in the one case
the Jews, in the other the Romans. In both the Romans, as rulers,
are to depart, yet if any of them choose to remain as subjects, they are
to enjoy the same privileges and bear the same burthen of tax as the
native Christians. Both end with pledges of warranty and the names
of witnesses, and the formula yams ey, ‘wrote and was
present,’ only the name of the scribe is given in the Egyptian treaty
but not in that of Jerusalem. It is evident that we have here two
LanE-Poote—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 235
formal documents, drawn up on astandard model; and I do not think
there can be any doubt of their textual accuracy, subject to minor
variations in different manuscripts. These variants I have appended
to the texts.
It will be noticed that the Egyptian Treaty, with which I am
chiefly concerned, does not in so many words impose a capitation
tax (d) yy ) at so much a head, but states a fixed tribute of fifty
millions. It does not say millions of what coin, but it must evidently
be dirhems. Abui-Salih,* writing about a.p. 1200, says that ‘Amr
imposed an annual tax of 263 dirhems (i.e. 2 dinars), on all, but
made the rich pay three ardebbs of wheat in addition, and this
is the universal tradition. The conditions annexed, that the tax
is to be paid after the inundation, i.e., in harvest time, and that it is
to be reduced if the Nile is lower than the average, seem to point to
a tax upon land-produce; but if, as is clear from all authorities, there
was only one tax, by whatever name it was called, it would in any
case fall upon the land in an agricultural country like Egypt; andas ,
at the conquest the whole population was Christian, the Arabs
forming an insignificant minority, the poll-tax would in reality be a
land-tax. In fact there is no evidence that any land-tax was imposed
at the conquest (except at Alexandria), beyond the statement that
three ardebbs were levied from the richer class. The land-tax
(gh) was imposed somewhat later. It seems probable therefore
that the fifty millions (of dirhems), equal to three and one third
million dinars, represent a rough guess at the sum which would be
produced by a poll-tax of two dinars a head on adult males. It was,
as a matter of fact, too low an estimate, for the poll-tax soon
brought in twelve millions; but at the time of the treaty, when
only a small part of the country was subdued, and most of the Delta
was still in Roman hands, it was impossible to take an accurate
* Churches and Monasteries of Egypt, ed. and tr. Evetts, f. 22a.
236 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
census of population. It is recorded that “Amr only raised one
million dinars in the first year, two millions in the second, and four
in the third year of his occupation of Egypt; and however we may
distrust this geometrical progression, it indicates at least that at the
beginning the revenue from the poll-tax was incomplete.
Another point in the Treaty which is of the first importance
relates to the Roman garrisons. ‘The garrisons shall not settle
amongst them’: but ‘whoso of the Romans and garrisons shall come
into their treaty, for him is the like as for them.’ I wish to draw
particular attention to these clauses because my translation differs
from all previous versions. Hitherto the word nub i) has been
translated ‘the Nubians,’ and in my History of Egypt in the Middle
Ages I followed the received version. But the introduction of
Nubians into a treaty made with the people of the Egyptian Delta at
a time when the Arabs had not even penetrated into Upper Egypt
struck me from the first as curiously unnecessary. We read nothing
in history about Nubian influence or Nubian settlements in Egypt, at
least since the Ethiopian dynasty of thirteen hundred years before.
A passage in Tabari* set me on what I think is the right path. He
says, in reference to “Amr’s arrival at Heliopolis (“Ayn Shems), ‘ and
the dominion (or rule, eM ) was between the Copts and the Wub.’
This apparent omission of the Romans as the ruling power points
clearly to some other meaning of Wud. It could not be stated
seriously that the government of Egypt was shared between Copts
and Nubians. The phrase puzzled the copyists, for two transcripts
(I H) have a marginal note to en-Nub, ‘perhaps the Romans,’
paps aa.
Now I need scarcely explain to you that Arabic MSS. seldom
give the vowel-points, and that a word without vowel-points may
mean several different things. Nutb certainly means Nubian, but put
* De Goeje’s text, 1. 2587.
Laner-Poote—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 237
the vowel-sign fetha over the > and it becomes nuab brs the
plural of xauba. In the text of the treaty in two places we find the
variant en-nauba dogll in place of ll 5 and dal occurs through-
out in the text of the treaty printed by de Sacy from Abi-l-Mahasin
(quoting Ibn-Kethir) in his Second Mémoire sur la nature et lesrevolutions
du droit de propriété territoriale en Egypte.* Nauba means primarily a
‘turn’; hence what is done in turns or takes turn-about, a ‘sentinel,’
a ‘guard’; and so it comes to mean a ‘garrison.’ This last meaning
is common in later literary Arabic; and Dozy cites it, s. v. C5), as
used by el-Bekriin the eleventh century. I believe, therefore, that the
true translation of ra) a | and yl in the Treaty is ‘ garrison’ and
‘garrisons.’ This rendering makes the whole document intelligible.
There was no reason to suppose that the Nubians were disposed to
settle in Lower Egypt; there was certainly no foundation for the
statement that they shared the dominion with the Copts; and there
seems no object in connecting them closely with the Romans. But as
soon as you substitute ‘garrisons’ for ‘ Nubians’ the whole sense
becomes clear. ‘The garrisons shall not settle among’ the people of
Egypt: this was the chief desire of the Copts, for whom the Roman
garrisons were the symbol and agents of that Melekite or ‘ Chalce-
donian’ persecution which had made the Roman rule intolerable to
the monophysite church to which the great majority of Egyptian
Christians belonged. Yet, if the Roman soldiers chose to become
peaceful citizens, they might enjoy the privileges of the treaty and pay
the poll-tax: ‘whoso of the Romans and garrisons shall come into
their [i.e. the Copts’ | treaty, for him is the like as for them, and on
him is the like as on them.’ It would be quite unnecessary for the
treaty to lay down such a rule for the Nubians, whose inclusion was
at that time scarcely probable. Precisely the same policy is laid down
in the Jerusalem Treaty, which enacts that the Romans are to depart,
* Mem. de V Institut (Acad. des inscr. et belles-lettres) v, 1 ff.
238 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
but that, if any of them prefer to stay, they shall be protected, and
have the same conditions as the people of Jerusalem: \, (Jrc daley
“LLY Cal es compare the words in the Treaty of Misr, (Jie ai
ride Le he ale, pd Le
The last clause relating to the garrisons, which comes like an
afterthought between the citation of the warranties and the names of
the witnesses, is not very intelligible. It is translated by Weil* in
the following sense: ‘And [it is binding] upon the garrisons who
consent [to this Treaty ] that they shall help [the Muslims] with so
many men [t. heads] and so many horses that they [the Nub] be not
attacked nor hindered from trading coming HL going.’t I do not see
what other meaning can be made out of | one Even if we disregard
the vowel-point, and take the word as the Ist form imperfect of wrt
instead of the [Vth of wat? Vaares would mean ‘scout’ instead of
‘help,’ and would come to much the same thing. \, Fa again may be
taken either as active or passive—to ‘attack’ or ‘be attacked.’ The
clause may be understood to provide for a limited escort of friendly
Romans to protect the caravans trading between Egypt and Syria;
but such a provision appears extremely improbable. The Arabs would
scarcely trust the Romans with sufficient forces to guard the caravan
routes, and would undoubtedly prefer to guard (or plunder) the
commerce themselves. It is not clear from the text whether it was
the trade of the Romans or the trade of the Arabs that was to be
protected ; but if the former, the clause would seem to suggest that
the Romans were to be allowed a small force in self-defence; and
this appears to be the more probable interpretation of the sentence.
I have called this document the Treaty of Misr throughout, not
the Treaty of Egypt, because, although Misr means ‘ Egypt,’ it also
means the middle capital of Egypt, successively known as Memphis,
* Geschichte der Chalifen,i.112. YT De Sacy’s rendering is given above, p. 231.
LaneE-Poote—Wohammadan Treaties with Christians. 239
Fustat, and Cairo. That there was at the time of the Arab conquest
a city called Misr, and known to the Greek historians as Babylon, the
successor of the partly ruined city of Memphis, is evident from all the
authorities, though its extent is doubtful. We know only that it was
dominated by the fortress of Babylon which gave its name to the city
in both earlier and later times, and supported by at least two other
forts. To judge by other treaties, such as those of Damascus,
Jerusalem, and Lydda, it was the custom of the conquering Arabs to
make treaties with a city, not with a country as a whole. It may be
urged against this view, that the amount of tribute is altogether out
of proportion to a single city,#and must refer to Egypt at large; and
the reference to ‘lands and waters’ also suggests a wider meaning
than Misr the city. But the same occurred in the case of the Treaty
of Lydda, which was made to include the neighbouring people of
Palestine, but was formally contracted with the town of Lydda. I
think “Amr made the treaty with the capital of the Copts (ignoring
the as yet unconquered Roman capital, Alexandria), and made the
capital responsible for all the rest of the country. Tabari’s phrase,
however, ‘So the people of Misr, all of them, entered into that and
accepted the Treaty, and horses were collected,’ \J us pon
Jaeul Weeoel, al had rds yee Usa}, seems to imply a
general acceptance. The double meaning of Misr is a perpetual cause of
confusion, and it would be rash to insist on either interpretation.
It is abundantly evident, however, that this was a treaty with the
Copts, not with the Romans. The Roman garrisons are mentioned,
but only in a subordinate manner. The people of Misr, not the
Roman army of occupation, still less the emperor Heraclius, were the
contracting parties on the other side. As there is no indication in
the treaty itself that the Romans were consulted in the matter, we
240 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
must conclude that this treaty was made behind their backs; that it
was a compact between the Copts and the Arabs without the
authority of tthe Roman garrison, though these had the option of
accepting the same terms. Mr. A. J. Butler, in his recent learned
work on The Arab Conquest of Egypt, labours under the extraordinary
impression that this treaty is really the treaty of capitulation of the
Roman garrison of Alexandria. His words* are: ‘ But the text of the
treaty is actually given by Tabari, who by a strange confusion calls
it the Treaty of “Ain Shams, instead of the Treaty of Alexandria.’
Mr. Butler unfortunately gives a very inaccurate translation, and
then appends the curious footnote: ‘This treaty is preserved by
Ibn Khaldin, who quotes it from Tabari; but it does not seem to
occur in Tabari’s extant account of the conquest of Egypt; see
Zotenberg’s edition, vol. iii, pp. 461 seq.’ Mr. Butler’s valuable
work is vitiated in many places by his references to the Persian
abridgment of Tabari, which not only does not contain a great deal of
the most important passages of the original Arabic work, but intro-
duces errors by compression, and even adds mere legends from Persian
tradition. As we have seen, the original Arabic text of the treaty
does occur in de Goeje’s edition of Tabari; but it is not there called
the Treaty of “Ayn Shems, and it could not possibly refer to the
capitulation of Alexandria, According to the earliest, indeed the
almost contemporary Christian authority though unhappily we
possess it only at third hand, and in a distractingly dislocated order—
John of Nikiu’s Chronicle, cited by Mr. Butler from a translation of
the Ethiopic version of the Arabic translation of the Coptic or Greek
original, the capitulation of Alexandria included an armistice of
% Arab Conquest of Egypt. Oxford: at the Clarendon Press, 1902, p. 324.
Lane-Poote—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 241
eleven months, at the expiration of which the Roman garrison of
Alexandria was to quit the city and depart by sea; no Roman army
was to return or attempt the recovery of Egypt; hostages were to be
given by the Romans for the due execution of the treaty ; and the
Jews were to be allowed to remain at Alexandria. There is not
a word of all this in the Treaty of Misr; and it obviously has no
connexion with the capitulation of Alexandria.
It was, as is evident from its contents, a treaty with the Copts of
the city of Misr as against the Romans, rather than with the Romans.
The questions now arise, when could it have been concluded, and by
whom? Now the Arab historians—upon whom alone we have to
rely for events between the capture of the city of Misr and the fall
of the fortress of Babylon, for there is a gap here in John of Nikiu’s
Chronicle—are full of reports of negotiations between the Copts and
the Arabs with a view to a peace, which was strongly opposed by
the Roman garrison in the fortress, then the chief position of Roman
power at the apex of the Delta. According to Tabari, after the
Arabs had reached Babylon, there came to meet them, on the part of
of el-Mukawkis (the name they give to the governor of Egypt), a
patriarch (gathaltk, catholicus) and a bishop, who, after some fighting
( aglili ), were invited by “Amr to discuss terms: this was before
reinforcements had reached the Muslims, and “Amr and his 4000 men
were apparently in a precarious position. The discussion was of a
friendly nature in regard to the Copts, for whom, it was said, the
Prophet Mohammad and the Muslims had always entertained a kindly
feeling, on the atavic ground of the Arabs’ descent from the Egyptian
bondmaid Hagar, “Amr offered the usual terms: those who embraced
Islam should be the equals of the conquerors and enter the universal
brotherhood of the Muslims, and those who refused should pay the
242 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
poll-tax (jzzya). The two ecclesiastics were disposed to accept, and
returned to el-Mukawkis to report the negotiations. But Aretion
( ype 2) in the Arabic, happily emended as cya 2 by Mr. Butler
—Aretion had previously been governor of Jerusalem), the Roman
governor of the fortress, rejected the proposals absolutely and gave
orders for an attack. The patriarch and bishop then said to the
people of Misr: ‘We will try to ward off evil from you, but we
cannot return till four days hence.’ They had to go to Alexandria,
one presumes, to consult el-Mukawkis, and apparently they brought
him south with them, for he was present in the fort when the Arabs
laid siege to it. Meanwhile “Amr joined by reinforcements under ez-
Zubeyr and others camped at Heliopolis (‘Ayn Shems). Tabari does
not mention the battle of Heliopolis by name in this connexion; but
he afterwards speaks of the encounter of “Amr and el-Mukawkis at
“Ayn Shems, and John of Nikiu gives a detailed account of the battle,
which, he records, was followed by the fall of Tendunyas (Umm
Duneyn), a fortified place on the site of the later medieval Maks
and the modern Ezbekiya quarter of Cairo ; aad this involved the fall
of the city of Misr, which is recorded by John of Nikiu merely in the
heading of a chapter. Tabari goes on to relate how the people of
Misr, alarmed at the approach of the Arabs, entreated their ruler
( agile) to make terms with them, but he refused; ‘and this was
the fourth day’; so there was a battle ( pay sli ), and after the
victory ez-Zubeyr scaled the wall and opened a gate—Tabari does
not say of what city or fortress—whereupon the people came to sue
for peace, and the Treaty of Misr was concluded.
The mention of the fourth day, when the patriarch and bishop
were expected to return, points to an armistice, and shows that the
Romans were awaiting the return of the ambassadors. It is not
Lang-Poote—Vohammadan Treaties with Christians. 248
recorded that the ecclesiastics took part in the treaty, but Tabari
mentions their reappearance immediately afterwards to arrange about
the prisoners. Who they were it is impossible to say. Tabari and
other Arabic writers give them the impossible names of Abii-Maryam
and Abu-Maryam; and Mr. Butler regards Abi-Maryam as a cor-
ruption of Abi-Miyamin, which itself is an Arabic perversion of
Benjamin. Is it possible that Benjamin, the monophysite patriarch
who had been driven into hiding by Cyrus, the Melekite patriarch of
Alexandria, but who was still alive, and was afterwards reinstated,
came out of his retreat near Kis in Upper Egypt to help his people
to throw over the Roman yoke? Or was Abu-Maryam Cyrus himself?
Tabari’s story fits perfectly with the contents of the treaty, which
is thus shown to be a treaty with the Egyptian people against the
wish of the Roman army of occupation. The authority of Tabari as
a careful compiler of attested traditions is very great, indeed almost
absolute in Muslim acceptation: and this story rests on a chain of
traditionists running up from es-Sari through Shu‘eyb and Sey f to
Abu-Haritha and Abi-‘Ottiman (Wied ,c US pl a i
BIBI robs cal ee ul we dws ye ). It is not a record
to be lightly set aside.
The most widely accepted story of the surrender, and the most
detailed, is given by el-Makrizi.* It must not be inferred from the
lateness of Makrizi’s date (he wrote about 1420) that his account is
necessarily of little authority. He was a laborious compiler from
good sources; and he had at his disposition mmagoripts of early works
which have since disappeared. His account rests upon traditions
which may go back—some certainly do—to early times, and it is
* Ihitat, i. 289-294.
R.I.A. PROC., VOL. XNIV., SEC. C. | [19]
244 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
confirmed by much earlier writers. Makrizi first relates the story
in brief, and then gives a detailed narrative. Probably these two
accounts conte from different sources, for it was the usual habit of
Arabic chroniclers to set down the different accounts one after the
other with little or no attempt to reconcile them. These two
accounts in Makrizi, however, agree. The short account says that
after “Amr had been reinforced by a body of 12,000 men under ez-
Zubeyr he laid siege to the fortress; that ez-Zubeyr scaled the wall
and captured the fort ( ure ),* and seized a gate; and that el-
Mukawkis in alarm sued for peace, which was concluded on the basis
of a tribute of two dinars a head from the Copts. His is practically
Tabari’s account. The longer narrative relates how el-Mukawkis,
after a month’s fighting, discouraged by the perseverance and energy
of the Arabs, left the fortress of Babylon in company with the
leaders of the Copts, and took up his position in the opposite island,
now called er-Rawda, cutting the bridge of connexion. Then fearing
that the fortresses would fall, he opened negotiations with the Arabs.
He urged that the Romans were far more numerous and better
equipped than the Muslims; that the Nile was high and hemmed in
the invaders ; and that their wisest course would be to come to terms
before the Romans overwhelmed them. His object was evidently to
get easy terms before the decrease of the inundation set the Muslims
free for wider operations. “Amr kept the envoys two days and nights,
and then sent them back with the usual alternatives: embrace Islam
and be our brothers; or pay the poll-tax and be our inferiors ; or
else fight till God decides the issue. El-Mukawkis asked the envoys
to describe what they had seen during their two days’ visit to the
* Not necessarily the Castle of Babylon.
Lanr-Poote—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 245
Muslims’ camp; and they answered, ‘ We saw a people who love,
every one of them, death more than life, and set humility above
pride, who have no desire or enjoyment in this world, who sit in the
dust and eat upon their knees,* and their commander is like all the
rest; you cannot distinguish the strong from the weak, nor the
master from the slave.’ This report increased the dread which the
Arabs inspired. The negotiations were continued on the island of er-
Rawda; but el-Mukawkis could obtain no modification of the terms.
Fighting with the garrison of Babylon was accordingly renewed ; but
finally el-Mukawkis persuaded the people that resistance was hope-
less, and “Amr’s terms were accepted—a poll-tax of two dinars a head,
except from old men, children, and women, with three days’ mainten-
ance for the Muslims.
In spite of superficial differences, Makrizi’s story tallies with
Tabari’s. In each there is the contrast between the willingness of
the Egyptians to treat and the stubborn resistance of the Roman
garrison. In each we find the capture of a fort and gate to be the
decisive event which hastened the conclusion of the Treaty. In each
it is essentially a treaty with the Copts, not with the Romans, though
Romans who submitted were included. Makrizi’s statement that
the negotiations took place during high Nile, coupled with the remark
that they began after there had been a month’s fighting at the
fortress, though it does not agree with Tabari’s ‘ four days,” shows
that this treaty must have been made about October, 640. It cannot
therefore refer to the final evacuation of Babylon, which is definitely
fixed at 9 April, 641. The capture of the fort, wos, must evidently
be distinguished from the fall of the castle, pol, and must represent
* Mr. Butler’s translation of WAS) ls, ‘on horseback,’ is obviously a
mistake.
[197]
246 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
only a partial lodgment of the Arabs in the fortifications or even in a
neighbouring fortress. It has generally been assumed that there was
but the one castle of Babylon to be taken; but it is clear that this was
but a part of the fortifications of Misr. We have already seen that,
according to John of Nikiu, Tendunyas (Maks) was a fortified post;
and it is possible that ez-Zubeyr’s scaling of the fort may refer to
what Mr. Butler describes as the second capture of Tendunyas.
Makrizi mentions another fortress besides Kasr esh-Shema‘ (the well-
known fortress close to Cairo which is generally identified with the
Castle of Babylon); and this other fortress, which was situated on a
rocky hill to the south-east of Kasr esh-Shema‘, and was within the
city, was particularly called the fortress or palace ( 5 ) of Babylon.
Remains of this other fortress may possibly be represented by the
massive walls on the southern part of the hill, afterwards known as
“Antar’s Stable.* f
We have secn, therefore, that this Treaty of Misr was concluded
between “Amr and el-Mukawkis on behalf of the Copts about the
month of October, 640. It was a treaty of surrender for the whole
country, but the Roman garrisons remained unsubdued. Hence the
clause ‘ The garrisons shall not settle (or dwell) among the people of
Misr,’ a clause to which the Romans were obviously no party.
Makrizi, however, now enters upon a fresh division of the subject,
introduced by a fresh chain of tradition,t dating back through Ibn
Lahia to Yahya ibn Meymin. According to this tradition,
el-Mukawkis stipulated for the Romans that they might choose
whether they would stay in Egypt on the same terms as the Copts,
or whether they would rather go to their own country, which they
* See Lane, Cairo Fifty Years Ago, 146, 147.
T Khitat, i. 293.
Lanet-PootEe—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 247
were free to do, including the Romans of Alexandria and the parts round
about. And it was agreed in writing that el-Mukawkis should write
to the emperor to inform him of what he had Fone ; and if he accepted,
the treaty was good. Heraclius’s reply was naturally a repudiation
of the treaty. He pointed out the small numbers of the Arabs
compared with the Romans and the Copts, and ordered hostilities to
be resumed. Upon this el-Mukawkis, convinced that resistance was
useless, went to “Amr, and begged of him three things: first, ‘do not
break faith with the Copts, but count me as one with them, and on
me be binding what is binding on them, for my word and theirs
agreed upon what thou didst covenant, and they are fulfilling towards
thee what thou wishest; secondly, if the Romans after this sue for
peace, make no peace with them till thou hast made them confiscate
and slaves; . . . and thirdly, I beg of thee when I go to my rest to
have me buried at St. John’s at Alexandria.” And ‘Amr agreed
to these requests. It is true that Makrizi, in another part of his
work,* gives the same three requests of el-Mukawkis in slightly varied
words, on the authority of Ibn “Abd-el-Hakam, in connexion with
the conquest of Alexandria. Such confusions are unhappily too
common in regard to many events in the Arab invasion of Egypt.
But the three requests, to whichever date they belong, show clearly
enough that el-Mukawkis and ‘Amr held by the Treaty ot Misr
which had been concluded with the Copts, and that the Romans put
themselves outside the treaty. The ninth-century writer, Ibn ‘Abd-
el-Hakam’s account of that treaty, as cited by Makrizi, closely agrees
with what has already been related, and the learned geographer
* Jbid., i. 163. Mr. Butler says, ‘Here we get back to an earlier version’ :
but Ibn ‘Abd-el-Hakam is a hundred years Jater than Ibn Lahi‘a (t 164 4.1.)
The latter moreover was a famous traditionist, as well as chief Kadi of Fustat.
248 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Yakut, a Greek, who wrote his great work in 1225, uses the iden-
tical words employed by Makrizi in parts of a practically identical
narrative, so far as it goes.* He adds that the Treaty was made‘by
el-Mukawkis for the Copts and the Romans; but while the Romans
had the choice of assenting to it or not, according as their emperor
should decide, the Copts had no such choice ( ee we Lal al 4):
This treaty with the Copts, which both the Arabs and the Copts
upheld against the Romans, is, as we have seen, ascribed by Makrizi,
and by much earlier writers, such as Ibn ‘Abd-el-Hakam and el-
Beladhuri, to el-Mukawkis as representative of the Copts. Makrizi
describes him as over both the Copts and Romans ( lsh eal - -
Unisiccll ane ’ roles 3 Lal ).+| Who this Mukawkis was has been
a puzzle to all historians. He is called, by Arabic writers, either
‘the Roman’ ee ¥ or ‘the Greek’ el gall , and his name is given
either as ‘George son of Mina’ lie oe Cur , or ‘son of
Kurkub’ Us; wy Tabari and Beladhuri give him no name
beyond el-Mukawkis—a word which is explained as meaning ‘ ring-
dove’ in Arabic, but which is probably not Arabic—and John of
Nikiu does not mention him by name. Professor Karabaéekt interprets.
the names as George, son of Mina Parkabios, makes him both strategos
and pagarch, and thinks the title Mukawkis may represent the Greek
peyavxns—a title, however, which he has invented on a rather loose
analogy with titles, such as évdog07aros, found in papyri of the Roman
period. Mr. Milne§ identifies him with George the prefect mentioned
by John of Nikiu. Professor Bury|| follows Karabacek, but not in the
* Mu‘jam-el-Buldan, s.v. blbal|, iii. 894-5. + Khitat, i. 290.
+ Pap. Erzherzog Reiner, i. 1-11.
§ Egypt under Roman Rule, 224.
|| Ed. of Gibbon, v. appendix, 540.
Lane-Poore—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 249
acceptance of the assumed Greek title peyavyys. Finally, following
the lead of the Portuguese scholar Pereira, Mr. Butler, in his Arad
Conquest of Egypt, after an elaborate examination of the authorities,*
has come to the conclusion that el-Mukawkis was none other than
Cyrus, the Melekite patriarch of Alexandria.
The evidence he relies upon for this theory consists partly in state-
ments by Coptic writers ; partly in coincidences between acts attributed
to el-Mukawkis by one set of historians and acts attributed to Cyrus
by another set of authorities. The statements of Coptic writers are
these :
1. Severus, bishop of Ushmiineyn in the latter part of the tenth
century, in an Arabic work on the lives of the patriarchs, which
has not yet been printed, says, ‘ When Heraclius had recovered his
territories, he appointed governors in every place. To usin the land
of Egypt Cyrus was sent to be governor and patriarch together.’
Referring to the ten years’ persecution of the monophysites, he says,
‘These were the years during which Heraclius and Al Mukaukas
were ruling Egypt’; and again, ‘ When the ten years of the reign of
Heraclius and the misgovernment of Al Mukaukas were over.’ He
speaks of ‘the misbelieving governor, who was both prefect and
patriarch of Alexandria ;’ and he makes the ex-patriarch Benjamin
speak of ‘the time of the persecution which befell me when Al
Mukaukas drove me away.” It should be added that the Greek
historian Theophanes (9th c.) also makes Cyrus at once patriarch and
prefect.
2. The Coptic Synaxarium, quoted by Amélineau, says, ‘ The
Mukaukas was head of the faith of Chalcedon, and had been made
* Arab Conquest of Egypt, App. C, 508-526. He uses the Ethiopic vocalization
Mukawkas, instead of the Arabic Mukawkis.
200 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
ruler and patriarch over Egypt’; and the Ethiopic Synaxarium con-
tains the words ‘The Mukaukas, that is to say, the governor and
archbishop of Alexandria and all the land of Egypt.’
3. In the Coptic life of Samuel of Kalamiin, of which a tenth-
century fragment is preserved in the Bodleian, and of which the
original would appear from internal evidence to have been composed
before the death of Cyrus, a curious story is told of the patriarch’s
visit to a monastery ; and incidentally he is described as NK&AS6XIOC
TENCE’ T OA PXHENICKONLOC, or ‘the kauchios, the false arch-
bishop.’ In this Coptic word—if it be Coptic—sauchios Mr. Butler,
following Amélineau and Pereira, sees the original of the title
Mukawkis. The explanation is a case of obscurum per obscurvus, for
no eee meaning has so far been found for kauchios; and Mr.
Butler himself hazards three distinct conjectures — ‘ Caucasian,’
‘Cholchian,’ and ‘paederastian.’ The obscurity of the meaning,
however, does not affect the argument; if kauchios be the original
of Mukawkis, then this Coptic document makes Mukawkis and Cyrus
one person. But it is far from certain that hauchios is the Coptic
original of the Arabic or Arabicized title Mukawkis.
Supposing these translations to be accurate, and supposing the Mss.,
which are chiefly late, to be faithful transcripts of early authoritative
.documents—a matter which I am not qualified to decide—these
extracts taken together show that Cyrus and the Mukawkis were one
and the same person in the opinion of the writers. This can hardly
be contested. The only question is whether the writers were
authoritative. Severus was ignorant of Coptic, and not very trust-
worthy,* and he wrote late in the tenth century, later by a hundred
* Butler, Arab Conquest, xiv, xvii.
Lanet-PootE—Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. 251
years than Beladhuri, and fifty or sixty years than Tabari. By
himself, I do not think his evidence counts for much. The Synaxaria
are thus described by Mr. Butler:* ‘Every | Coptic] church has
specially attached to its service a book called in Coptic “« synaxér,’
i.e. ovvaéapiov, or lives of the saints, from which a portion is often
read at matins, in accordance with a very ancient custom sanctioned,
for instance, at the third Council of Carthage in 8974.p. This book
corresponds closely to the passional of our English churches, from
which the lessons at matins were sometimes taken, or to the martyr-
ology, which was read at the end of prime-song. The synaxar is
confined within the sacred walls, and there is no copy of it in any
private person’s possession. It has, of course, been rendered into
Arabic for use at service: and the legends printed at the end of this
work, which are from the Arabic version, will serve to give an idea of
the miraculous traditions to which the faithful still listen with un-
questioning reverence.’ This does not give a very high position to the
synaxaria as historical authorities ; but, as in the case of Severus, it is
possible that genuine historical data may be included among much
legendary garbage.
Such is Mr. Butler’s positive evidence. The coincidences upon
which he also relies are the statements on the one hand that Cyrus,
on the other that el-Mukawkis was Governor of Egypt under
Heraclius ; the statements of the Greek historians and John of Nikiu
that Cyrus made peace with the Arabs, and those of the Arabic
historians that el-Mukawkis made peace with them. But these
coincidences may be explained by the hypothesis that el-Mukawkis
was the sub-governor who made the peace, and Cyrus the patriarch
* Coptic Churches of Eyypt, i. 259, 260.
252 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and supreme governor who accepted his subordinate’s arrangement and
reported it to the emperor.
The whole question really turns on the respective credibility of the
two or three Coptic authorities and the whole series of Arabic historians.
Now Mr. Butler himself admits* that ‘the historical value of these
Coptic documents is not very great. The writers were set upon
wgaandine matters of Church interest—the more miraculous the better
—and their minds were almost closed to the great movements of the
world about them.’ And referring to Severus, he adds that this.
historian mentions ‘ that he had recourse to some Copts to get Greek
and Coptic documents turned into Arabic, as the two former languages
even then were unknown to most Christians. This is interesting as
showing the state of decay reached by Coptic and Greek, and as showing
Severus’ own ignorance of both languages. Indeed the evidence as
regards Coptic is so remarkable as to seem barely credible.’{ It is
clear, then, that the Copts as a rule got their historical information
through the Arabic. In studying Arabic chroniclers Severus would
find that el-Mukawkis made a treaty of surrender to the Arabs ; if he
read Tabari, as he probably did, for Tabari’s work was a standard
authority in the Fatimid library at Cairo, and Severus was a persona
grata at the Fatimid caliph’s court, he would also find that a
catholicos came to “Amr and treated for peace. He might naturally
put the two statements together, and being a Jacobite bishop not
averse to believing every evil of a ‘ Chalcedonian’ patriarch, he might
very well saddle Cyrus with the shame of betraying Christian Egypt
to the Muslims. As soon as we realize that the Arabic sources were
older than Severus, and were probably under his eye, and that he
* Arab Conquest, x. + Ibid., xiv.
Lanet-Poote—Dohammadan Treaties with Christians. 25%
could not read any language but Arabic, it is easy to see how he
might pervert or misunderstand the sufficiently confused and obscure
narratives of the Arabic chroniclers. Whether the same argument
would apply to the Synaxaria depends upon their dates, on which we
have at present no information.
If we had nothing but these Coptic and Ethiopic data to go upon,
the identification might perhaps be taken as proved. But when we
look at the long series of Arabie writers, not only those whose works
survive, but many who are cited by survivors, but whose original
. writings are lost, and when we fail to find the slightest hint that any
one of them suspected el-Mukawkis and Cyrus to be the same person,
I confess that their evidence, negative as it is, seems to me over-
whelming. How is it that not one of them says that el-Mukawkis
was a priest, much less an archbishop? Why do they give him the
name of George son of Mina or son of Kurkub, if his real name was
Cyrus? Why does Abu-Salih, who was a Christian, and wrote about
1200 a.v., state that Heraclius placed the government of Egypt
under ‘ George the son of Mina el-Mukawkis,’ and also cite ‘the book
of el-Janah’ for the fact that ‘the bishop of the Romans at Misr and
Alexandria was named Cyrus’? How is it that not a single historian
of Egypt, Muslim or Christian, has ever said in so many words
‘ el-Mukawkis was a title or nickname given to the patriarch Cyrus’ ?
It is incredible that such an identity—surely a striking fact if true—
should have escaped them all. And against this solid wall of negative
evidence that no Muslim historian, no Christian historian, not even
the almost contemporary John of Nikiu, mentions this identity, are we
to accept two jottings in two church office-books, the date of which
is not given, and a not very definite incidental statement of a tenth-
century Copt who did not know Coptic?
254 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Moreover, if el-Mukawkis was Cyrus, who was not sent to Egypt
until 631, what becomes of the mission which the Prophet Mohammad
sent in 628 to ‘el-Mukawkis, lord of Alexandria’?* Mr. Butler
thinks that this is merely a case of applying a later name to an
earlier governor by mistake; but it must be remembered that in reply
to Mohammad’s mission, el-Mukawkis sent him presents, including
two Egyptian girls, one of whom, Mary, was received into the
Prophet’s harim and bore him a son. There was every reason for
preserving accurately the name of the man who gave a wife (or
concubine rather) to the Prophet; and Mary herself and her fellow-
slave would not be likely to forget it or to fail to make it known.
The Mukawkis of 628 may very well be the same person as the
Mukawkis of 640, but he cannot be Cyrus.
Apart from this silence of the chief authorities, the inherent
improbability of the hypothesis must be considered. Cyrus was
patriarch and civil governor, but not military prefect: yet we find
him (if he be el-Mukawkis) commanding at the battle of Heliopolis.
When the treaty was repudiated by Heraclius, el-Mukawkis, accord-
ing to the Arabic tradition (reported by so early an authority as
Ibn-Lahi‘a), threw in his lot with the Arabs; but Cyrus, according to
the Greek historians, was recalled to Constantinople and castigated.
That he should have returned at all to Constantinople, knowing what
he had to expect, after making his peace with the Arab conqueror,
seems preposterous. Cyrus finally came back to Egypt, and arranged
the capitulation of Alexandria in October or November, 641; he had
now accomplished the insidious plan attributed to him by Mr. Butler,
and he lived five months longer: why do we hear nothing of his
* Tabari, i. 1559-61, Ibn-Hisham, Wiistenfeld’s trans., 318.
Lanet-PootE—Hohammadan Treaties with Christians. 255
reward for his treachery from his Arab ally? On the contrary,
according to Mr. Butler, the only request made by Cyrus to ‘Amr was
apparently refused. Certainly the ambitious patriarch took little by
his treachery, if indeed treachery it was. Looking at the transaction
in the cool light of history, it has more the aspect of wise submission to
the inevitable.
Admitting, as we must, that Cyrus was recalled and reprimanded
for concluding the Treaty of Misr, is it necessary to hold that he was
the sole negotiator? Supposing that the catholicos who according to
Tabari came to “Amr and treated for peace was Cyrus, we are told
that he went away to report the negotiations to el-Mukawkis. Now
if el-Mukawkis was the military prefect, or comes limitis Acgypti,* it
was essential that he should be consulted by the civil prefect before
peace could be concluded. According to Mr. Butler, who follows the
indications of John of Nikiu, Theodorus the military prefect was at
Alexandria at the time of the Arab invasion; was then brought to
Babylon by Cyrus; and commanded at the battle of Heliopolis. Now
this is exactly what is related of el-Mukawkis by Tabari. El-
Mukawkis was absent from Babylon when the catholicos was treating
with “Amr. He appeared at Heliopolis, where the catholicos also
appeared after the battle. He was the commander who corresponded,
so far as we can see, with the military prefect. So far as the Arabic
evidence goes, except for his names, el-Mukawkis may have been
Theodorus.
This only illustrates the extreme doubtfulness of any identification
of the mysterious Mukawkis. Until further evidence is obtained,
* This is the later title of the military commander formerly styled dux degypli.
See Milne, Egypt under Roman Rule, Note vit1, 215, and ep. 181.
256 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
such as we may hope for from the constantly increasing discoveries
of papyri of the Roman period, it seems rash to attempt to fix his
identity. That he was a military governor of high rank, and that he
concluded the first treaty between Muslims and Christians in Egypt,
with the concurrence of the patriarch Cyrus, is all that can be
affirmed with certainty.
XIV.
SOME MONUMENTS OF THE LA TENE PERIOD RECENTLY
DISCOVERED IN IRELAND.
By GEORGE COFFEY.
Read Novemser 9, 1908.
[Prates XVIII.—XXII. |
Tue late Sir A. W. Franks was the first to distinguish in a definite
manner the antiquities of what he called the Late Celtic Period.
The term ‘‘ Late Celtic’? was introduced by Franks with reference
to Britain, to denote the period preceding the permanent occupation of
that island by the Romans, dating from about 200 B.c. to the middle of
the first century a.p. It cannot be strictly applied to the Continent
or to Ireland. Franks’ conclusions were published in Kemble’s
‘‘ Hore Ferales’”? in 1863. He then wrote that in this class of
antiquities ‘‘the British Islands stand unrivalled; a few ancient
objects, analogous in design, may be found in various parts of the
Continent, and more extended researches in local Museums may bring
others to light, but the foreign contributions to this section are
scanty when compared with those in our own country.’
Since that was written our knowledge of the antiquities of the
period has been greatly extended, especially on the Continent. The
“(foreign contributions” are no longer scanty; and although the
magnificent Late Celtic shields found in the rivers Witham and
Thames are still unrivalled, the foreign finds far exceed in number
those of Britain. This we should naturally expect to be the case, for,
speaking generally, the style may be described as Gaulish, and repre-
sents on the Continent the period of the historical Celts dating from
about 400 B.c. to the Roman conquest of Gaul.
On the Continent the period is known as ‘‘La Téne,” so called
from the site of a Helvetian oppidum on the Lake of Neuchatel—La
1 «* Hore Ferales,” p.172. Franks took a wider view of the subject in a later
paper, Archzologia, vol. xlv., p. 265.
258 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Téne: the Shallows—where this class of antiquities first attracted
prominent notice.
A threefold division of'the period is now recognised into Early,
Middle, and Late La Téne (or, as M. Reinach has proposed, for brevity,
La Teéne I., La Téne II., and La Téne III.), dated approximately :
Early, 400-250 z.c.; Middle, 250-150 s.c.; Late, 150 3.c., to the
beginning of the Christian era.’
In Early La Téne the treatment of the ornament is much freer
than in the later periods, and the influence of classical elements,
especially the Greek anthemion, may be traced. In the middle and
late periods a progressive geometrical conventionalization is apparent,
until in the late period the classical elements are completely absorbed
or are eliminated.
In England the Late Celtic style was submerged by Roman art, but
not wholly destroyed; it reacted on Roman art locally, and re-emerged
as a native style in Saxon times, reinforced from Ireland and Scotland.
In Ireland its history is continuous into the Christian period.?
It has been a habit of mind with English archeologists to regard
the periods in Ireland as later than, and the styles as derived from,
Britain. This view was expressed in an extreme manner in a resolu-
tion passed by the Society of Antiquaries of London, November 28th,
1901, in connexion with the recent controversy over the gold
antiquities found at Broighter, County Londonderry. The resolution
contained the statement that these antiquities, which were ascribed to
the close of the La Téne period, were “remains of the art of the
ancient Britons,” and had ‘only an accidental connexion with
Treland.’’*
We need not take this attempt to make archeology by resolution
seriously. The general impression, on the subject of which the reso-
1 Tischler, “‘ Uber Gliederung der La Téne-Periode,’’? in Correspondenz- Blatt
der deutschen Anthropologischen Gesellschaft, 1885, pp. 157-172: Montelius:
Cong. Préhbistoriques, Paris, 1900, p. 358. Also p. 427.
2 In Gaul important political changes appear to have occurred between La Tene
II. and La Téne III. Continuity of burial customs is broken, inhumation and chariot
burial is replaced by cremation. A similar difference has been noted in Britain.
The earlier class of Late Celtic interments are represented by burials such as at
Arras, Yorkshire, where the skeleton was laid with the chariot and horses, and the
later by the Late Celtic urn-field at Aylesford, Kent. See ‘“‘ Note sur l’oppidum
de Bibracte,’’ Congrés Préhist., Paris, 1900, p. 418; and Evans, ‘‘ Late Celtic
Urn-field at Aylesford,’’ Archzologia, vol. lii., p. 386. Wehave not yet any
information from Ireland on this branch of the subject.
3 The Times, Noy. 29, 1901.
Corrry— Monuments of the La Tene Period. 259
lution is an expression, is based on the assumption that Ireland being
more remote from the Continent than Britain, was less within reach
of Continental influence in early times. I have combated this view
elsewhere.’ The fact that Danubian types, such as the conical pet
and late Bronze Age swords, are so well represented in Ireland,
itself contradicts the assumption. The geographical argument must %
used with caution and knowledge. Trade does not necessarily follow
the lines of nearest geographical contact. It is chiefly determined by
the objects desired, and convenience of transit and of market centres.
The frequent intercourse between Ireland and Gaul in early Christian
times, fifth-seventh centuries, need not be insisted on. The chief
point of landing appears to have been the river Loire. The central
lands of France, to which the Loire gives ready access, were much
frequented by the first Irish Christians. We hear of them at Auxerre,
at Autun (close to the ancient Bibracte), at Luxeuil.? It was from
Nantes that St. Columbanus was deported to Ireland in a ship “ que
vexerat commercia cum Hibernia.”*® In Roman times Ireland was
believed to lie between Britain and Spain, and is mentioned as
_‘¢favourably situated as regards the Gallic Sea.’”*
The Hallstatt sword can be traced westward across Gaul, and has
lately been found as far west as Poitou.’ We have possibly an
indication here that the Loire was a point of departure for Ireland as
early as the end of the Bronze Age.
It isnot, however, the purpose of this Paper to discuss the question
of trade routes, but to describe a new class of La Téne monuments
recently discovered in Ireland, the first examples of La Téne carving
in stone, I believe, which have been brought to light.
Some two years ago Lord Walter FitzGerald showed me a rubbing
of a stone he had discovered at Mullaghmast, in the County Kildare.
The carving on the stone was of the form we are accustomed to call
in Ireland trumpet-pattern, and I was at once struck by its early
character. As the stone had been removed from its original position,
I urged on Lord Walter the importance of securing such an interesting
monument for the Museum. He gladly undertook to do so if possible.
At his instance the stone was presented to the Royal Ivish Academy
1 Journ. R.S.A.1., 1895, p. 23.
2 Margaret Stokes, Trans. R.I.A., vol. xxx., p. 286.
3 Reeves’s ‘‘ Adamnan,’’ p. 37.
4 Tacitus, ‘‘ Agricola,’”’ cap. 24.
¢ 5 Revue Archéologique, 4 ser., vol. ii. (1903), p. 56.
R.I. A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [20]
260 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
by the daughters of the late S. W. Haughton, of Carlow, owners of
the property, and has been placed in the National Collection.
Last year Mrs. Coote, of Carrowroe, Roscommon, sent me photo-
graphs of a stone at Castle Strange, near Roscommon, which she
thought might be of interest. Here was another stone carved with
trumpet-pattern. This time the La Tene character of the ornament
was unmistakable. This stone appeared to me to be so important that
I forthwith determined to visit it, and make a cast of it for the
Museum. Mr. Coote gave me every assistance; and with his help I
was able to take a mould of the stone in plaster, from which a cast
has been placed in the Museum. I should mention that Mr. John
Byrne, the present tenant of Castle Strange, spared no trouble for us,
and most kindly undertook the packing and forwarding of the mould
after we had left.
I had heard some time previously of a stone near Loughrea, in the
neighbouring county of Galway, which was said to have carving on it
of spirals. I had endeavoured to get a photograph of the stone, but had
not been successful.
On seeing the stone at Castle Strange, I lost no time in visiting
the one at Loughrea, on the chance that it might be of the same class.
I was surprised to find that it was the most remarkable example of
the three, richly carved with La Téne ornament in bold relief. Mr.
Dolphin, the owner, readily consented to a cast being taken, which has
been placed in the Museum.
It will be convenient to describe these stones in reverse order of
discovery. I shall therefore take the Loughrea stone first.
Tt stands in front of Mr. Dolphin’s house at Turoe, about three
miles from Loughrea, Ordnance map, 6-inch sheet 97. It was moved
to its present position by Mr. Dolphin’s father some fifty years ago.
A small fort a short distance to the west of Turoe House was pointed
out to me as the place from which the stone had been taken. It was
said to haye been inside the fort. Subsequently an old man, said to
be the oldest inhabitant of the locality, brought me to the exact spot,
as well as he could remember, from which it had been taken. This
proved not to be within the fort, but some distance to the west of the
fort, towards the bottom of the slope on the top of which the fort is
placed. The old man’s recollection was'quite clear that the stone was
outside the fort. There is, therefore, no reason to suppose that the
stone had any connexion with the fort.
In its present position it stands 4 feet above ground, and measures
3 feet and 2 feet 4 inches at the sides, It is an erratic boulder of
CorrEy— Monuments of the La Tene Period. 261
granite. The carving is very distinct and well preserved. The orna-
ment does not require description ; it is fully shown in the accom-
panying illustrations (Plates x1x., xx., xx1., fig. 1). These are from
photographs of the cast in the Museum, painted in parts to bring out
the pattern. An untouched photograph of the stone itself is shown
(Plate xvim.).
The carving of this stone is, I think, distinctly early. The treat-
ment of the ornament is free, not constrained geometrically as in late
La Téne, especially the examples found in Britain and Ireland. The
derivation from the Greek anthemion can still be traced.
The fret pattern is rarely associated on the same object with
La Téne ornament. In the preceding or Hallstatt period, the fret
occurs frequently. It is usually simplified to plain rectangular forms.
KK
\ ——a Ss ©
Fig. 1.—Fret-patterns from bronze vessels, Hallstatt cemetery ; the fret is also
found on Hallstatt pottery.
Again, on a sword-sheath of La TéneI., found at Halstatt, we find
the simplified fret. The simplified fret, often in the form of fragments
consisting of single steps, occurs also on the pottery found in the
Gaulish cemeteries of the Marne. There it appears to be a pottery
tradition, and the period is abundantly established as La Téne I.-I1.,
chiefly La Téne I. The higher forms of the fret are not found on the
Marne pottery; so that these single-step patterns, or fragments of
meanders, may be considered as a feature of the Gaulish style in that
district, fig. 2(1-6).? Several examples of these fret-forms have been
found in Ireland, and must, I think, have reached our island as early
as the close of the Hallstatt period, or in La Téne I.
We see the form on a bronze spear-head found near Boho, Co.
Fermanagh, fig. 3, in which there appears to be a mixture of Hall-
statt and La Téne elements. Good examples of this class of fret were
also found in the crannog of Lisnacrogher, Co. Antrim, associated
with swords of La Téne I. They occur on the bronze bands of
1 Von Saken, ‘‘ Das Grabfeld von Hallstatt,’’ Pls. 23 and 26.
*Munro, “ Bosnia-Herzegovina,”’ fig. 151.
e Morel, ‘La Champagne Souterraine,” Pls. 6, 19, 20, 41; Moreau, ** Album
Caranda,’’ iii., Pl. 138; Revue Archéologique, 3 s., xli. (1902), p. 196.
[20*]
262 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
spear-shafts, fig.4. The blades of the spears were of iron.! An iron
spear-head, found at Corofin, Co. Clare, likewise shows the fret-form ;
the borders of the openings in the blade are inlaid with bronze,’ fig. 5.
The fret-pattern at the bottom of the Turoe stone, it will be
observed, is similar in treatment to those on the Marne pottery. It is,
in fact, the same as fig. 2, no. 4, brought closer together. Again, the
scroll-work may be compared with that of the torques figured by
Morel, pl. 37. The feeling of the work is very similar. A relation-
ship of the highest interest is thus established between the Turoe stone
and the style of the Marne district. Our knowledge of the La Téne
Fig. 2.
period in Ireland is still very imperfect. We cannot say whether
Tischler’s classification holds good for Ireland or not, or how far we
have to allow for survivals. But the preceding considerations preclude,
in my opinion, a late date being assigned to this stone, and induce me
to place it as early at least as La Téne IL., or possibly the later half of
La Teéne I.
The Castle Strange Stone.—This stone is also an erratic, of the same
class of granite as the Turoe stone. It is at present in the demesne
1Journal R. Soc. Ant. Iv., vol. xvi., p. 395. One of the sword-sheaths from
Lisnacrogher is figured by Lindenschmit, ‘‘Alt. u. h. Vorz,”’ iii., Heft. iii, Taf. 3,
from the specimen in the British Museum. It is erroneously stated to be from
the Thames. ;
? This specimen is the property of Mr. Mark Patterson, of Corofin, and has not
been published before.
Corrry—WMonuments of the La Tene Period. 263
of Castle Strange, a few yards to one side of the principal avenue.
There are no remains near it with which it can be associated, and it
has probably been moved from its original site and placed beside the
avenue as an ornamental stone. No traditions are attached to it. I
could learn nothing about it, save that it had been in its present
position as long as the oldest people remembered. Its dimensions are
3 feet by 2 feet 3 inches by 2 feet. The carving is not in relief,
but incised. The under side is not carved; the natural surface of
the stone has there been left untouched. Figure 6, an end view of
the stone, shows the form of the under side: the drawing is from a
photograph taken when the stone was raised to examine the under
Fig. 4.
side. The style of the ornament is similar to that on the Turoe stone,
and it must be referred to the same period. The illustrations (Plate
XXI., figs. 2, 3) are from the cast in the Museum. The stone has
suffered somewhat from weathering on the top and at one side.
The Mullaghmast Stone.—-This stone is a compact limestone. It
measures, in its present condition, 3 feet by about 1 foot 3 inches at
the sides. It is approximately square in section. The history of the
stone, as far as Lord Walter FitzGerald could ascertain, is that at the
time the Haughton family demolished the FitzGerald castle of Mullagh-
mast, which formerly stood in a field on the hill called “ Oldtown,”’
this stone was found in the walls, and it was then removed to the
haggard of the farm of Prospect House, on Mullaghmast hill, which
was built out of the materials of the castle.
264 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Pieces of the stone have been broken off at each end, as if an
attempt had been made to square it at the ends for building. There
is nothing to.show whether this was done at the time the castle was
Fig. 5 (3). Fig. 7.
built or when the stone was removed to Prospect Farm. If the stone
was built into the wall of the castle at the time it was erected, it was
probably done with the idea that some virtue or power attached to the
stone on account of its ornament.
The carving of this stone is later in treatment than the preceding
CorrEy—WMonuments of the La Tene Period. 265
stones. It is more geometrical, the incised patterns in particular
being of the interlocked C-scheme order frequently found on our early
Christian monuments.
When I first saw a rubbing of this stone, I was on that account
inclined to regard it as belonging to the Christian period, and con-
jectured that it might be a practice-piece or specimen of work. On
seeing the stone I abandoned that opinion. The monumentis complete
in itself, and there is nothing of a Christian character about it to
connect it with the Christian period.
It is necessary to describe the carving in some detail. On the
slanting top of the stone a characteristic Celtic whorl of the triskele
type is carved in relief; it is probably symbolic in intention. The
principal face, which we will call a, is carved in relief, with the
exception of the bottom panel. The upper half of the face is occupied
by a pointed oval panel enclosing two spirals, set obliquely on the
stone. The treatment of the spaces in this panel is characteristic of
La Téne III. Below this panel is a band of ornament which has
unfortunately suffered much from weathering and injury; the late
La Téne character of the design is, however, apparent. Below this is
a curious zigzag fret, and below that is a panel divided x-wise by
incised lines. The stone is a good deal injured, and the surface flaked
off at the left side, but the restoration of the design, fig. 7, is
probably fairly correct.
Taking the faces in order from left to right, face d is the next.
Nearly half this face has been broken off at the right side. The
design appears to have been an oval panel filled with incised trumpet
pattern. At the top and at the bottom traces of carving in relief are
noticeable, and the border framing the oval was also in relief.
Face ¢ has lost nearly all its carving. Large pieces have been
split off it, leaving only a portion of the upper end intact. Here a
single spiral is carved in relief. The carving on this face was, no
doubt, chiefly in relief, and it should be noticed that it is opposite to a,
also carved in relief.
Face d.—Here again we have an arrangement after the manner of
face 6. The centre is covered with incised trumpet-pattern, while
above and below the carving is in relief. The upper carving consists
of a triangular panel, injured by cuts where the stone has been used as
a sharpening stone; the lower is a good piece of La Téne ornament.
It is not certain whether or not the incised patterns are finished,
or were intended to be carved in relief. But however that may be,
there is no doubt that, notwithstanding their late look, they are
266 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
contemporary with the rest of the carving; the ornament of the stone
is a completed scheme. The bands round the base show that it was
intended to be set upright, and was in fact a stele. As already stated,
there is nothing Christian about the monument. The incised panels,
however, lead into the Christian period, when the use of the trumpet-
pattern organized as a system of interlocking spirals becomes frequent
for the filling of panel spaces. The Mullaghmast stone must, there-
fore, be placed towards the end of the pre-Christian period in Ireland,
or in the overlap of the Pagan and Christian periods.
It may now be asked, what light do these stones throw on the
general question of a La Tene period in Ireland? JI think it may be
claimed that they show that the La Tene style had taken deep root in
Treland before the Christian period, and that the La Téne antiquities
found from time to time are not to be accounted for simply by trade
or raid from Britain and the Continent.
That the La Téne style was widely spread in Ireland I have held
to be probable, chiefly on the ground that the derived La Téne orna-
ment, which forms so marked a feature of early Christian ornament in
Treland, presumed an extensive use of the La Téne style previous to
the introduction of Christianity. These stones go far, I think, to
confirm that opinion. It must be borne in mind that the ancient
inhabited sites of Ireland have not been excavated. The great period
of Tara and of Emania, in our heroic literature, was from a century or
two 8.c. to the third century 4.p. From Emania, some very beautiful
La Téne brooches are known, and there can be no reasonable doubt
that if either of these sites were excavated, numerous antiquities of
the La Téne style would be brought to light.!
In conclusion, I desire to express my indebtedness to Mr. A.
MeGoogan, of the National Museum, for much kind assistance in the
preparation of the photographs to illustrate this paper.
1 The fibula, ‘‘ Horae Ferales,” Pl. xx1., fig. 1, is stated to be from Navan Rath,
Co. Meath. This is an error for the Navan Rath, near Armagh, the site of the
ancient Emania (an Eamhuin = nEamhuin, pronounced Navan, and now known as
the Navan Rath, or Nayan Fort). Two other examples from the same site are in
the National Collection. Wilde’s Catalogue R.I.A., p. 568. Petrie Collection,
No. 612.
( 267 )
XV.
“THE ANCIENT FORTS OF IRELAND.” BEING SOME
FURTHER NOTES ON A PAPER OF THAT NAME,
ESPECIALLY AS TO THE AGE OF MOTES IN
IRELAND.
By THOMAS JOHNSON WESTROPP, M.A.
Read NovemMBER 30, 1908. Published January 23, 1904.
Wuen I laid before the Academy a Paper! on the extensive and as
yet most imperfectly known subject of the ancient forts of Ireland,
I was well aware of the many limitations of my work. I was also
prepared for the detection of many errors in its pages, and have been
the more agreeably surprised at the consideration it has received from
other antiquaries. I would confine this paper to giving certain cor-
rigenda and addenda of my own had not one criticism been published,
which, though friendly, affects not the details, but the broad deduc-
tions of one section of my paper. I wish therefore to reply to this
one point, lest my silence should be misinterpreted; for I believe the
following facts will justify and bear out my views in the above-
mentioned paper.
It has been stated that, from being unacquainted with an essay by
a certain English antiquary, I have adopted the view of the pre-
Norman and, in some cases, prehistoric origin of Irish motes, the fact
being (it is alleged) that they are confined to the English Pale and
were only of Norman origin.
First, to avoid error—for the word ‘‘ mote” or ‘‘ moate’’ is
sometimes applied by Irish antiquaries to the low rath or liss—I use
the word ‘‘ mote” exclusively for the high flat-topped ‘‘ mount,” with
or without a lower side-platform or “‘ bailey,” and girt with one or
more rings and fosses. When without the base court, I use the term
‘“‘simple mote”; otherwise, the term ‘‘ complex mote.’
1Trans. R. I. A., xxxi., p. 579. I have also dealt with the mote question in
a paper read November, 1902, before the R.8. A. I.
2 As only one Thing mote is recorded at any of the Danish settlements, I do
not deal with any but the residential motes in this paper.
R.I,A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.] [21]
268 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Let me first state that I was (necessarily) fully aware of the trend
of antiquarian opinion as to the exclusively (or at least usually)
Norman origin of the English motes. I had read the essay alluded to!
before my paper even went to press; but I decided not to alter or
add notes in press, nor to modify my statement as regarded Irish motes,
for the following reasons. These, so far as I can see, prevent the
English theory from being as sweepingly applied to Ireland as has
been done on very slight authority in the aforesaid essay. My reasons
are, first, the term ‘‘ English pale”? is most variant, vague, and mis-
leading ; but even allowing it to include all districts (even when
occupied for the shortest time by the Normans, from 1170 to 1250)
the motes exist outside it, and are non-existent in very important
districts colonised by the Normans. It is only by ignoring all Irish
field-work and history that this base of the theory as applied to Ireland
could be maintained. Turning from more general objections to
details, let us note? :—
1. Motes do not occur at the recorded sites of many important
early Norman castles, ¢.g. Kells, Killare, Ardfinnan, Limerick, Tris-
tledermot, Imleach, Karkinliss, Iniskefti, Castro-Iconing, Kilmallock,
Birr, Rindown, Athlone, Carrickfergus, Caoluisge, Carlingford, Thurles,
Croom, Dungarvan—all earlier than 1217. Motes are not found on the
chief manors, and ‘‘ vills’”’ of the great colonies in Eastern Limerick,
Central Connaught,* and Cork, or in the important settlements in
Thomond.
2. While they occur in places never held by the Normans or not
occupied by any castle during the earlier generations after the invasion,
z.e. before 1250. Several of these are noted in sections 128 and 134.
3. Several motes, and those of the first importance, occurring at the
site of Norman castles, represent forts recorded as at those places long
before the Norman invasion. For example: the sheet-anchor of the
1 Mrs. Armitage, in Journ. Soc. Ant. Scotland, xxxiv (1899-1900), p. 276.
2T use the short forms as usual—C. 8. P. I., Calendar of Documents (or State
Papers) relating to Ireland; R.S. A.I., Roy. Soc. Antiqq., Ireland.
3 Castles of Escluen, Castleconnell, Wethney, Croom, Askeatun, Castle Robert
Goer, Castle Robert Doondonnell, Newcastle, Caherconlish, Adare, and Kil-
mallock; or the vills of Aney, Bruree, Rathkeale, Mahoonagh, Athlacca, and
Corcomohide. In this large district there are only two small and probably
sepulchral tumuli near Aney. Neither Shanid nor Kilfinnane figures among the
early castles ; but motes are found there alone.
4See for this colony the important papers by Mr. H. T. Knox, in Jour.
R.S8. A.I., xxxi., p. 179, &e. ; and xxxiii., p. 58, &.
Westropep—TZhe Ancient Forts of Ireland. 269
theory, so far as English writers apply it to Ireland, is the fact of the
making of motes at Slane and Trim in County Meath, as mentioned in
“‘The Song of Dermot and the Karl.”” No mote remains at Trim; and the
Slane mote was levelled soon after its construction in 1176. Slane
has a fine simple mote on the hill-top near the Abbey. But the ‘ Life
of St. Patrick,” by Murchu Macci Mactheni (who was a friend of
Aedh, Bishop of Sleibhthe, before 698, and which work is preserved in
the Book of Armagh, 807-812), mentions great earthworks and fosses
on the Hill of Slane, and evidently near St. Patrick’s Camp. Now
the abbey is supposed, on early tradition, to occupy the site of
St. Patrick’s foundation, and bears his name. The medicyval castle
stood down the slope, near the Boyne, where the present castle
stands,* and possibly there (and not.at the Abbey) did Flemyng
make his mote. Mactheni says that, even in his day (some 500 years
before the Norman invasion), the Slane earthworks were attributed
by ‘‘a fabulous story” to the slaves of Feccol Ferchertni, a pre-
Christian prophet of ‘‘ Bregia.””?
The Normans made a castle of earthworks, palisades, and a long
wall at Downpatrick or Dun da leathglas in 1177. But the Annals
of Tighernach, who died in 1088, mention ‘‘ expugnatio Duin leath
glaise’’ under 496. The Annals record the storming of the same fort in
733. The ‘‘Annals of Ulster”’ mention it in 1009: ‘‘ Dun da leathglas
was burned both the fortress and a third of the town (the lay part) by
lightning.” Under its other name Rathceltchair, it figures in the
pre-Norman “‘ Book of Leinster,”’ and the earlier Lives of St. Patrick,
its legendary founder belonging to the earlier heroic cycle of the Red
Branch heroes.? As will be noted, Jocelin of Furness, before 1186, attri-
butes this fort to a period earlier than St. Patrick, and accurately
describes Dun da leathglais as a ‘‘ neighbouring mote” (monticulus)
near St. Patrick’s Church at Down, ‘surrounded by marshes of the
sea.”
The Normans built a castle at Knockgraffan, County Tipperary,
in 1192.4 The place possesses a fine complex mote, with the ruins of
a stone castle in its bailey. But the fort of Graffan is reserved to
1See the maps in the Down Survey, where the Flemyngs’ Castle is shown in
detail.
2 Mactheni (Kd., Rey. A. Barry, 1895), p. 19.
3 « Book of Leinster,’’ p. 118.
4 Ann. F. M., noticed in 0.8. P. I. vol.i., No. 169, as granted to W. de Burgo,
1201-2.
270 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
the King of Munster in the ‘‘ Book of Rights,’’? which claims to be
of the fifth century, dates in its present form from its compilation or
revision before 902, and is found in pre-Norman manuscripts. The
fort, in fact, is connected in early legend with the mother of the
pre-Christian King Fiacha Muillethan.
Naas, County Kildare, was fortified by the Normansin 1186. It has
a mote which figures both in early legends (such as the pre-Norman
Dindsenchas) from 277, and in the Annals from the fifth to the
ninth century. It is mentioned as the ‘“‘Dun of Naas,” in the
‘‘ Tripartite Life” (tenth century),? as being visited by St. Patrick,
who camped ‘“‘on the green of the fort to the east of the road”; “‘ to
the north of the fort is his well.”’ As the chief fort of the Kings of
Leinster it was deserted in 904.
These legends, at least, prove the forts to be long pre-Norman.
These examples from four out of the five ancient provinces (there
being, so far as I am aware, no case of a mote and early Norman
castle ‘‘coming together”? in Connaught) may suffice to show my
reasons for adopting the view that some residential motes in Ireland
are pre-Norman and even prehistoric.
4. Such motes occur in places where no early Norman castle is
known to have stood; but where in some cases early forts are
recorded.*
Again confining ourselves to a few examples :—
The great mote of Kilfinnane, County Limerick, with triple fosses
and rings, is evidently (from the identification of the surrounding
great forts of Clure, Duntrileague, &c., &c.) the Treada na riogh or
triple fort of the kings named in the “ Book of Rights,” ante 902.*
The complex mote with two great fosses at Donaghpatrick,
County Meath, appears in the ‘“‘ Annals of Tighernach,” in 746, as
being stormed ; and six of the prisoners taken in it were crucified.
The ‘‘rath” of Magh Adhair, County Clare, lies some miles
distant from the bounds of the almost nominal borderland of the
1 « Leabhar na gCeart”’ (Ed. O Donovan), pp. 87-89.
*Ed. Whitley Stokes, p. 185.
5 Those who hold the Norman origin of Irish motes ought first to establish
records of castles being built (say) before 1250, at the vast majority of forts,
in the long list of motes named in my paper, pp. 708-712. Our records and state
papers at least are silent. Mrs. Armitage’s remarks suggest an acquaintance with
Wright’s ‘ Louthiana,’ but no knowledge of motes outside the Pale.
4 Loe. cit.
Wesrropp— Zhe Ancient Forts of Ireland. 271
English colony in Tradree.t It figures as the place of inauguration
of the Dalcassian princes from 877, when King Flan Sunach was
defeated on its green, to 1313, and is a good example of the simple
mote. This is not only mentioned in the Annals, but in the
pre-Norman ‘‘ Wars of the Gaedhil with the Gaill.”
5. The type of such motes is prehistoric. It occurs in Austria
and Bosnia with Early Bronze Age ‘‘finds.’? A bronze axe was found
near the mote of Dromore, County Down, and early urn-burials in
the mote of Skeirk, Queen’s County, not in the mount, but in the
‘“‘hailey.”? I fully recognise the great difficulty in Ireland (if not
elsewhere) of disentangling the sepulchral elements. For example,
there is no reason either to doubt that a pre-existing sepulchral
tumulus may have been adapted for residence and defence by the
addition of a bailey and fosses, or that the practice of burial in resi-
dential forts was so little unusual, that the discovery of sepulture in
a mote (as at Greenmount) in no way disproves the residential nature
of the earthwork.*
6. If English antiquaries are right in applying the fact of the
ascertained Norman ‘‘origin’”’ of English motes to Ireland, there
should be evidence forthcoming in the abundant records’ of the early
Norman colonies. This is not so: save for the ‘“‘ motes” of Trim
and Slane—and I may add a third example (not given by the Eng-
lish writers), the mote at Roscrea—the evidence rather runs to the
contrary. English antiquaries have apparently made no use of the
most obvious and, in this matter, most reliable authority, Giraldus
Cambrensis. He was a contemporary, a relative of some of the chief
actors in the Norman invasion of Ireland, and visited the country
during the events he records in i183 and 1186. He mentions the
erection of many forts and camps: the Normans use an ancient fort,
or make fortifications of sods, and boughs, stakes, &c. ;! but he only
' Save for the short-lived Castle of Quin, 1280-85, the nominal English lands
north of Dromoland, and beyond Finlough, were uncolonised and lay waste. See
C.S.P.I., 1287, and ‘‘ Wars of Turlough.’’ No English castles, save Quin, Clare,
and Bunratty, are recorded in that part of Thomond ; no mote occurs at their sites
or in the English settlement.
2 For burial in various types of forts, see my paper, Trans. R. I. A., section 44.
3 The making of only one mote appears (so far as I have found) in the great
mass of records cited in the ‘‘ Cal. Doc. relating to Ireland,’’ and at the Dublin
Record Office.
*Giraldus’ (Ed. Bohn) ‘‘ Topography,’’ p. 194; ‘‘Conquest,” Book x.,
sections Xi: and xiii.
272 Proceedings of the Royal Trish Academy.
once mentions the motes, not as built in his day, but as having been
made before 838, by Turgesius, who ‘‘ erected castles; . . . they were
surrounded with deep ditches, and very lofty, being also round, and
most of them having three lines of defence.’! If his contemporaries
made similar structures at all the places where motes and Norman
castles exist, his silence is very unaccountable; if the pre-existing
motes were, like the raths and cahers of earth and stone, utilized by
the Normans, his silence speaks very plainly indeed. The evidence
of Jocelin also tells against the exclusively Norman origin of our
greater motes. He was a monk of Furness, and wrote in the time,
and at the suggestion, of Thomas, Archbishop of Armagh (1181-1201).
He probably compiled his work before 1186, as he does not allude
to the translation of the remains of the three Patrons, at Down, in
that year. He mentions ‘‘a work called a rayth,” 7. ‘“‘a wall,”
and other earthworks; but his one allusion to a mote is to attribute
it to the fifth century or earlier. He tells how the hostage of Dichu
was starved and ill-treated by his detainer, and of his liberation
by St. Patrick. The saint then placed the broken chains, as a
remembrance, ‘‘one in a place at Down, where now is erected the
church of St. Patrick; and the other on a neighbouring mote (monti-
culus) surrounded by a marsh of the sea,’ which was still called in
Jocelin’s day, Dun da leathglas.2 Seeing how hastily made and
easily destroyed were the motes of Slane and Trim; how the Roscrea
mote was “‘run up” so hastily, that the leave of the Bishop of
Killaloe, on whose lands it stood, could not be obtained before its
completion? (though only thirty miles distant from his see) ; we cannot
readily believe that even these motes were structures such as are
found broadcast all over Eastern Ireland in and outside Norman
territory, and rarely elsewhere even in the early English colonies.
In view of the continuance of ‘‘fort’’-making, both of the stone
caher and the ring mound with fosses, down to very late times, I am
theoretically inclined to believe in the late construction of motes in
1 [bid., ‘‘ Topog.,”’ ch. xxxvil. and xxxyiii.
* Jocelin’s “‘ Life of St. Patrick, chapter xxxvii.: ‘‘In loco ubi nunc in Dun
edificata est ecclesia S. Patricii . . . in monticulo vicino circumcluso palude
pelagi . . . a catenis confractis vocabulum, scilicet Dun da leathglas, sortitus
est.”’ See also ‘‘ Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Down, Connor, and Dromore,’’
Dr. Reeves, 1847. Note that with Jocelin ‘‘rath’’? meant ‘‘rampart”; and
*‘dun,’’ ‘‘a mound or mote.’’
3C.8.P.1., vol. 1., No. 2760.
Wesrropep—The Ancient Forts of Ireland. 273
Ireland. I do not deny that some of these motes may have been
made by the Normans ;' but the evidence is (so far as I have found in
the records or on the field) non-existent in any save three cases, and
these have left no trace. I merely show that the attempt to include
Ireland in any theory requires local study and local knowledge,
and that the ‘‘rule”’ laid down for Irish motes by some English
antiquaries ought not to be held “‘ proved by its exceptions,” though
the exceptions are endless.
The facts certainly show the necessity of great caution before
theories founded on facts lying outside this island can be sweepingly
applied to monuments within its shores, and accepted without further
examination.
The ‘‘ confusion’’ between sepulchral tumuli and motes also calls
for further notice. In my paper (section 128) I wrote of simple
motes, ‘‘It is very easy to confuse this form with tumuli; but the
mistake is of less moment that certain defensive motes contain burials,
and certain sepulchral motes have been adapted for fortification.”
This has naturally called forth criticism, which leads me to add a
little to what appears above on p. 271. The ‘‘confusion”’ exists in
the monuments themselves. We have some reputed sepulchral mounds
girt with fosses and rings evidently for residence. The ‘‘mound” of
Donaghpatrick, and that of Morristown Biller (so familiar to travellers
from Dublin to Kildare), are round-topped’; but in each case we find a
large, and evidently residential, entrenched annexe or “‘ bailey.” This,
and the allusion in our history to the capture of Donaghpatrick, show
that, even where the mote is not flat-topped, we cannot lightly declare
it to be sepulchral. The mote of Magh Adhair is the traditional grave
of a mythical Firbolg prince, the ‘‘rath,”’ and eventually the mound
of inauguration, of more historic chiefs. Here we have a complete
confusion of tomb, residence, and thingmote in one earthwork. So
far as I can find, there is no evidence for the existence of thingmotes
at any Norse colony, except at Dublin. This being so, may not this
latter mound have been an earlier fort used by the ‘‘ Danes,” or even
a sepulchral tumulus, like those at Clontarf and other places round
the city ? In view of all this, I should have ‘“‘ darkened knowledge,”
1 The only cases I have collected where a recorded Norman castle stands near
or at a mote, and at which no pre-Norman mention of a fortress is discoverable,
amount to eight. I have twenty-seven early castle-sites from Giraldus, the
Annals, and State Papers, where no record or traces of motes remain.
2 So, however, are the defensive motes shown on the Bayeux Tapestry.
274 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
and started erroneous theories, had I ventured to distinguish between
these structures, and to lay down boundaries where the old mearings
were lost, as’some would have had me to do.
One other objection is made—that I regard the forts of the Ivish
types over central Europe as the work of one (presumably Celtic)
race. This is met by a passage in my paper overlooked by my critics
(loc. cit., p. 580):—‘‘ I use the term ‘Celtic’ as a mere symbol for
the types prevailing in Ireland. Many forts of these types were most
probably constructed by tribes to which even the loosest users of the
term would never think of applying the word ‘Celtic.’”
ADDENDA AND CoRRIGENDA.
I may add the following additions and corrections to my paper,
giving first the page of Transactions, then (in brackets) that of the
reprint :—
Page 593 (15). As Duncriffin appears to have been near the sea,
but on the side of Howth, next Meath, it was more probably the
destroyed fort near the martello tower, above the harbour, than the
‘Dun Hill,” and was certainly not the promontory fort at the Bailey,
which bears its name on the Ordnance Survey.
Page 618 (40), page 678 (100). The wall of Grimspound is 10,
not 20, feet thick ; and the well is, I am told, merely the inflow of a
stream.
Page 620, note (42). For ‘‘ Doronman”’ read ‘‘ Downman.”
Page 626, note (48). For ‘‘ 902” read ‘‘ 802.”
Page 642, note (64). The description of this monument has since
been published by Mr. P. Lynchin ‘‘ Journal Royal Society Anti-
quaries, Ireland, vol. xxxii., pp. 3380-382.
Page 644 (66). Add the Island Killeen, County Waterford, as con-
taining an ogham-inscribed pillar of a descendant of NetaSegamon.
Page 648 (70). The fort of Langough is now thickly overgrown ;
and long reaches of the foundations cannot now be traced.
Page 693 (115). Add to section 85. The great stone fort of
Oughtmama, on the hill south of Corcomroe Abbey, Clare, is over
700 feet across.
Page 696 (118), and opposite page after ‘‘ Dunconor,” for ‘ Inis-
here,” read ‘‘ Inishmaan.”
Page 698 (120). Add to section 96: ‘‘ Middens in Cashlaun Gar
and Cahercommaun have since yielded bones of deer and oxen, and
(in the latter) iron fragments.”
Westropp—TZhe Ancient Forts of Ireland. 275
Page 701 (123). Kilbradran. The fort is stone-faced, 100 feet in
diameter, with curved annexes to the north, west, and south-east ;
of these the western is the chief, with a deep fosse and earth-works,
6 to 11 feet high, and is 50 to 70 feet across its ‘‘ half-moon”
girth. The north annexe is much defaced, 118 feet across, with fosse
and earthworks, 5 feet high. The eastern annexe is nearly levelled ;
two ancient roads wind round it to the central caher ; it is 187 feet
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across, and its earthwork is rarely over 4 or 5 feet high, the fosse
being nearly filled up.
Page 704 (126). Add to the promontory forts of Waterford, ‘‘ Island
Hubbock ‘ entrenchment.’ It has two deep fosses and a mound, and
is on a sheer headland.”
Page 705 (127). Add to ‘descriptions’? of Dunnamoe that by
Rey. Cesar Otway, in ‘‘Erris and Tirawley (1841),” p. 67.
R.I. A. PROC., VOL. XXIV., SEC. C.1 [22]
276 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.
Page 708 (180). Add to the simple motes—‘“‘ Limerick, Shanid
Castle (0.8. 19).”
Page 711 (183). Skirk or Skeirk is placed by mistake among the
simple motes. The mount is 16 feet 6 inches high, and 43 feet
across the top; the annexe is 5 feet high, and 160 feet by 220 feet ;
the fosse 12 to 14 feet wide; one of the pillar-stones is still standing.
Page 713 (135), line 1. For “within the circuit” read ‘‘ about
the circuit.”
Page 717 (189). Section 156, for “‘ ancient forts” read ‘‘ ancient
roads’’; and add, ‘‘ The view is most probable in the lines in Kerry,
Limerick, and Waterford.’”’ The above misprint took place after
the proofs had left my hands; and it completely reverses the meaning
of the whole paragraph.
In section 158, Mercator shows the ‘‘ Raduffe’”? as havmg a
central mound, with a fosse on each side.
Proc. R. J. A., Vol. XXIV., Sec. B.
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LA TENE MONUMENTS
O10 1 \W eae
iF /jseeers | C1902.
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Votume I.-(1836-1840) is Vorume I. Ist Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
eee IT (A S40211044) 5 ices eee oe :
» LII. (1845-1847) ,, papi Ui 7 fe
iy IV. (1847-1850) ,, opera 2 f se
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», WII. (1857-1861) ,, Be fll Ue 3 oo
ne WHIT 1861-1864),,: 25.3, VILE A; i
y IX. (1864-1866) ,, sh eepsleXts 53 3
¥ X. (1866-1869) ,, pute st Ny y
i XI. (1870-1874) ,, rs I. 2nd Ser. Science.
Fe KGT8(3 9 75-1877),5, sop eas, $
rw TE H(1883) \%,, pe SSDT 5 5A
ee ety 5 1884-1888)",,° "4, ENG oe, 3 ,
¥ XY. (1870-1879) ,, 4 1 y Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
5, XVI. (1879-1888) ,, rrp w xf
», XVII. (1888-1891) ,, 3 I. 3rd Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
», XVIII. (1891-1898) ,, aang He 3
», XIX. (1893-1896) ,, pice 0 os 3
» &X. (1896-1898) ,, EA 5
5 X&AI. (1898-1900) ,, i beg PF 3 7
RRL (1900-1902) ens, VI... P
aOR, * ed O01) ee ee LL, i
XXIV. (Current Volume) :—
Sec. A. Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science.
9)
)
B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science.
C. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
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a ee
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In the year 1902 it was resolved to number in consecutive
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consequently attention is requested to the following Table :— %
CONSECUTIVE SERIES. ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
Votume I. (1836-1840) is Votume I. 1stSer. Sci., Pol. Lit.&Antiqg. —
be 1454 HE (4840-1848)),, Uk) CSE ewe ik
fa aH LBAE-184 2, 2 ES ee A
i IV. (1847-1850) ,, SAV RPV: +
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hag WEL A ISS 1861) 4, = oy VT, f
», WIII. (1861-1864) ,, sf WAST. = 35
Pe aX 464-1866); aye Ee 5
Bors (Xs (1866-1869) hoe erie :
“f XI. (1870-1874) ,, ne I. 2nd Ser. Science.
», XII. (1875-1877) ,, oo oa 5 Fe
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», XXIV. (Current Volume) :— :
Sec. A. Mathematical, Astronomical,and Physical Science.
, B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science.
,, C. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
~
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September, 1903 PE
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PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV., SECTION A
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SCIENCE
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VoLUME
II. (1840-1844) ,,
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va
Vis
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Sec. A. Mathematical, Astronomical,and Physical Science.
4
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ROY A TRISE -ACADE IA
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ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
I. (1836-1840) is Vorume I. 1stSer. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
IL.
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(Current Volume) :—
VI.
Vil
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Science.
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Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
. 3rd Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqg.
», B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science.
,, C. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
Fe a eee ee ee ee
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January, 1904
PROCEEDINGS
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/n the year 1902 it was resolvea to number in consecutive
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CONSECUTIVE SERIES. ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
Votume I. (1886-1840) is Vorume I. 1IstSer. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
es BI A(1S40 1044) ae ahold, OG 5
», III. (1845-1847) ,, re LEE _ aes
- IV. (1847-1850) ,, eon AE 5 0
is Vi(GS5O-1658) ,, 2h uh eV eo, “9
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BVI TA(1So7-1861).,, °°.) |. 5, Vy? 4, i,
», WIII. (1861-1864) ,, aa Lee 3
. IX. (1864-1866) ,, er, “a 7,
A X. (1866-1869) ,, 5 set i =
# XI. (1870-1874) ,, , I. 2ndSer. | Science.
5,» XII. (1875-1877) ,, Sects i alle 33 Ee
Ree ULL. §=*-(1885) Sin, iy eel. # is
5, ALY. (1884-1888) ,, aaa LN i 3
a8 XY. (1870-1879) ,, % lig 4 Pol. Lit. & Antiqgq.
5» XVI. (1879-1888) ,, oy ae F 4
,, XVII. (1888-1891) ,, Ae I. 8rd Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
5, XVIII. (1891-1893) ,, oy lip Ls ha An :
» XIX. (1893-1896) ,, 7 ae i -
» XX. (1896-1898) ,, Apu. r3
55 XXL. (1898-1900) ,, oe AD if =
55 XXII. (1900-1902) ,, on Ls 55 os
UL ee (19 G1) on se ee Nils 55 i
», SXIV. (Current Volume) :—
Section A. Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical
Science.
» B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science.
,, ©. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures.
By Freperick T. Trovron, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Caar.es
Jasprr Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jony, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Wesrropr Roperts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
5,—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Cuartes Jasper Joxy,
M.A., D.Se., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rey. Witt1am RaLen Wustrope Roserts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Hinton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conics as
Polar Conics. By J. P. Jonnston, Sc.D.
9.—Some New Relations in the Theory of Screws. By Proressor
Ce). cLoty, PMA. DSc. B.0.C.D:
10.—A Method of Reduction of a Quartie Surface possessing a Nodal
Conic to a Canonical Form. With an Application of the same
Method to the Reduction of a Binodal Quartic Curve to a
Canonical Form. By Joun Fraser.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Roserr Lioyp
Prancer, B.A., B.E.
2.—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Ropertr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., BE.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Remty, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GrenvILLE
A. J. Cott, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicnors, M.A., being a
_Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some ee on the Atlantis Problem. By R. F. Scuarrr, B.Sc.,
Pu.D.
7.—Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the Winter
Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabiting Snowy Countries,
and the more striking points in the Distribution of White in
Vertebrates generally. By Carrary G. E. H. Barretr-
Hamitton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
8.—An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals. By Caprarn
G. E. H. Barrett-Hamitron, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.LA.
9.—On the Relationships between the Classes of the Arthropoda. By
GrorcE H. Carpenter, B.Sc. Lond., M.R.I.A., of the Science
and Art Museum, Dublin. (Plate VI.)
10,—The Intrusive Gneiss of Tirerrill and Drumahair. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Cotz, M.R.1.A., F.G.S,, Professor of Geology in the Royal
College of Science for Ireland.
11.—Report on the Ox Mountain Rocks and their probable Continuation
from Galway and Mayo into Donegal, Tyrone, and Londonderry.
By Atex. M‘Henry, M.R.I.A. '
12.—The Synthesis of Glycosides: Some Derivatives of Arabinose. By
Hvuexu Ryan, M.A., D.Sc., F.R.U.I., and Grorce Esritt, B.A.,
Catholic University School of Medicine, Dublin.
13.—A List of Irish Hepatice. By Davip McAnDLr.
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marris Roserts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By G. Lrrron FALKINER, M.A.
3. gee rete e in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S.A,
cot
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (4.p. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By STANLEY Lane- POOLE,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water- Mills, Native
and Foreign. By Josepm P. O’Rertty, C.E, (Plates i. pad AD Be
and IY.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). By THomas Jounson WEsTROPP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tomas Jonnson Wesrropp,
M.A. (Plates VI. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lirron Fauxrner, M.A. (Plates
TX KT. )
10.—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
Jab: Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
11.—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and gradual Delimitation. By C. Lirron FALKIner,
M.A.
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of the
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosepH
P. O’Remty, C.E. (Plates XIII.-XVIL.)
13.—The First Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. By STANLEY
LanE-Pootr, M.A., Lirr.D.
14.—Some Monuments of the La Téne Period recently discovered in
Treland. By Grorcr Correy. (Plates XVIII.-XXII.)
15.—‘‘ The Ancient Forts of Ireland.” Being some further Notes on a
Paper of that name, especially as to the Age of Motes in Ireland.
By Tuomas Jonnson Wesrnopp, M.A.
CONTENTS
SECTION A. PART 4
9.—Some New Relations in the Theory of Screws. By Proressor C. J.J ey
M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.,
10.—A Method of Reduction of a Quartic Burfate riosestin a Nodal lanie
to a Canonical Form. With an Application of the same Method to
the Reduction of a Binodal Quartic Curve toa Canonical Form. ak
JOHN FRASER, eres E ; . c
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME.
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1.—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface ‘l'ension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trovuton, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2.—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By CHARLES
JASPER JoLy, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in I’resh and Salt
Water. ByJ. Jony, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S,
4,—Some Properties of a certain ‘Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R
Westrorp Rozerts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By CHartes Jasper Jory,
M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rey. Wittiam Ratea Wusrrope Roperts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of ‘Cayley’ s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Hryton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubie Curve having three given Conies as
Polar Conies. By J. P. Jounston, Sc.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rosrrr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
2.—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Roserr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Retty, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West oe By GRENVILLE
A. J. Cort, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nrcwors, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. By R. I. Scuarrr, B.Sc.,
Tete D3
7.—Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the Winter
Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabiting Snowy Countries,
and the more striking points in the Distribution of White in
: Vertebrates generally. By Caprarin G. E. H. Barrertt-
Hamitton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
.8.—An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals. By Caprary
G. E. H. Barrert-Hamitton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
" 9,—On the Relationships between the Classes of the Arthr opoda. By
Grorck H, Carpenter, B.Sc. Lond., M.R.I.A., of the Science
and Art Museum, Dublin. (Plate VI.)
10.—The Intrusive Gueiss of Tirerrill and Drumahair. By GRenyILLE
A. J. Cotz, M.R.I.A., F.G.8,, Professor of Geology in the Royal
College of Science for Treland.
11.—Report on the Ox Mountain Rocks and their probable Continuation
from Galway and Mayo into Donegal, Tyrone, and Londonderry.
By Atrx. M‘Henry, M.R,I.A.
12.—The ‘Synthesis of Gly cosides : Some Derivatives of Arabinose. By
Hues Ryan, M.A., D.Sc., F.R.U.1., and Grorcr Exsritt, B.A.,
Catholic University School of Medicine, Dublin.
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient.Grave, near Ardrahan, County <
Galway. By J. Marris Roperts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Fatxiner, M.A.
eee in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Muraray, F.S.A,
cot.
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (A.D. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey Lane-Poors,
M.A., Litt.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By JosepH P. O’Rertty, C.E, (Plates II., I1.,
and IV.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County 2
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). ByTHomas Jounson WEsTROPP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas Jounson WeEsrropp,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lirron Farxiver, M.A. (Plates
IX.-XI1.)
10.—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
11,—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and Gradual Delimitation. By C. Lirron FALKINER,
M.A.
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of the
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosrrH
P. O’Remty, C.E. (Plates XIII.-XVII.)
CONTENTS
SECTION A. PART 3
PAGE
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal Trans-
formation. By C. H. Hrnron, Patent Office, U.S.A., . : ae Fh
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conies as
Polar Conies. By J.P. Jounston, Sc.D., . : : : - > > 66
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy. :
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1.—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface ‘'ension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trovuron, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2.—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By CHan.es
. JASPER Joy, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jony, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
4.—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rey. W. R.
Westrropp Roserts, b.D., F.T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By CHantus Jasper Joty,
M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rey. Witttam Rateo Wesrrope ROBERTS,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1,—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rozerr Luoyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E. ;
2,—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Rosrerr Lioyp
Prarcer, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of [reland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Rerity, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gueisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GrenvILLEe
A. J. Cott, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicwots, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. ByR. F. Scmarrr, B.Sc.,
PHD:
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marrtis Roserts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Farxrner, M.A.
3.—S¢arabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S.A.
Scot.
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (a.p. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Karl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey LANE-POOrE,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By JosepH P. O’Rertty, C.E. (Plates I., IL,
and IV.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). By THomAs Jounson WEstRoprp,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Taomas Jounson WEsrKoPP,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C, Lrrron Farkrner, M.A.
10,—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
CONTENTS
SECTION A. PART 2
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Caarius Jasper Joty, M.A.,
D.Se., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’ Pro-
fessor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin,
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rev. Wmu1am RatpH WEstrropp Roserts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin, : ‘ . °
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
PAGE
47
53
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trovuton, D.8c., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By CHartzs
Jasper Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
.3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jony, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
_ 4.—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rey. W. R.
Westrope Rozerts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
Section B,—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1,—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rosertr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
2.—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Rosert Lioyp
PrarceR, B.A., B.E.
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marris Roperts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Favxiner, M.A.
3.—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S,A.
Scot.
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition (A.D. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Burry, M.A.
CONTENTS.
(SECTION A.—PART I.)
1.—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures.
By Frepericrx T. Trovron, D.Sc., F.R.S.,
2.—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Caries
JASPER Joty, M.A., D.8c., F.T.C.D., .. a heae , ‘ i
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt Water.
By J. Jouy, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.8.,
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Westrrorr Rozerts, B.D., F.T.C.D., ;
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & WELDRICE,
Printers to the Academy.
PAGE
21 |h-
34
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II. (1840-1844) ,,
IIT. (1845-1847) ,,
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VII. (1857-1861) ,,
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IX. (1864-1866) ,,
X. (1866-1869) ,,
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XVIII. (1891-1893) ,,
XIX. (1893-1896) ,,
XX. (1896-1898) ,,
XXI. (1898-1900) ,,
XXII. (1900-1902) ,,
(1901),
ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
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» 3B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Scien
», ©. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature. —
La dial Sa
April, 1908 Re ce
PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV., SECTION B
BIOLOGICAL, GEOLOGICAL, & CHEMICAL SCIENCE
PARES
DUBLIN
PUBLISHED AT THE ACADEMY HOUSE, 19, DAWSON STREET
“ SOLD ALSO
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By WILLIAMS & NORGATE
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SOV per tae ty We Nie ee AR Wee j ith Fr
OF THE
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Vorumz I. (1886-1840) is Vorume I. 1st Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antic
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», SXIV. (Current Volume) :—
Sec. A. Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Se é
» 5B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science
,, CO. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
ala a a aie N. Y ACA DE RA?
September, 1903 Whe
ie rasa Cre nC?)
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SCIENCE —
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OF THE ©
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CONSECUTIVE SERIES.
I. (1836-1840) is Votumz I. istSer. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Anti
VoLumME
¥. IT. (1840-1844) ,, fet tabs
a III. (1845-1847) ,, gph Ke
A IV. (1847-1850) ,, rete
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» WII. (1857-1861) ,, ae Vek
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»» AAII. (1900-1902) ,, rapa £
» XXII. (1901). -,, jo WAL.
», XXIV. (Current Volume) :—
2 8B. Biological, Goslasiie and Chemical Science.
,, OC. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
/
PROCEEDINGS
January, 1904
OF THE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV., SECTION B
BIOLOGICAL, GEOLOGICAL, & CHEMICAL SCIENCE
PART 5
DUBLIN
PUBLISHED AT THE ACADEMY HOUSE, 19, DAWSON STREET
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By HODGES, FIGGIS, & CO. (Lrp.), GRAFTON-ST.
By WILLIAMS & NORGATE
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er
/n the year 1902 it was resolvea to number in consecutive
order the Volumes of the PROCEEDINGS of the Academy, and
consequently attention is requested to the following Table :—
CONSECUTIVE SERIES. ORIGINAL NUMERATION.
Vouume I. (1836-1840) is Vorume I. Ist Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqgq.
FAIR, AL AIS40A1844 yy ee ee 4
op ALLA 164524 847) eae, Gets wae if
oy STV. (USAT AIBSD) pn ase ae) E
s V. (1850-1858) ,, a Ws #1 a
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OOMTL (1861-AG64) os sy. VILLS ee if
NAT (1864 18BB) 5)" gp Rn: es
he Xy (IGE ABGS} + 5, oe a &
: XI. (1870-1874) ,, - I. 2nd Ser. Science.
ere R11 1875-90771, Si ss ees A
KITE. os (1B8B) fi oa ad 2
tay RAV, {3884-1008) 3,071 ea Ae rf
5) &V. (1870-1879) ,, Saks abe 5 Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
MS eeR WA (IB OIBGS) Gy AS ee Lee
5» XVII. (1888-1891) ,, % I, 3rd Ser. Sci., Pol. Lit. & Antiqq.
5, XVIII. (1891-1893) ,, 5 eels 53 EY
JU PRER M(TS0Se SURV arora ATL Ce if
ee LORS (ABOR ABUR Yay iy STR ie ee ao
a XRT {18908 TOO) ete Von, ss
» XXII. (1900-1902) ,, Powe is 5 a
7 LLL © ae 1901: eV LE: 4 %
», SAXLV. (Current Volume) :—
Section A. Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical
Science.
» 5B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science.
», (. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature.
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1.—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures.
By Freperick T. Trovron, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Cuantes
JASPER JoLy, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in I’resh and Salt
Water. By J. Joty, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Wesrrorr Roserts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Caartes JAsprr Jory,
M.A., D.Se., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rev. Wittiam RaLren Wusrrope Ropers,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Hinton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conies as
Polar Conics. By J. P. Jounston, Sc.D.
9.—Some New Relations in the Theory of Screws. By Proressor
Cele donee MiAs D So.) BR. T-C. Di
10.—A Method of Reduction of a Quartic Surface possessing a Nodal
Conic to a Canonical Form. With an Application of the same
Method to the Reduction of a Binodal Quartic Curve to a
Canonical Form. By Jouw Fraser, M.A., F.T.C.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science —
1,—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rospert Luoyp
PrAaEGeR, B.A., B.E.
2,—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Roserr Lioyp
Prarcer, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Rertty, C.K.
4.—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GrenviInLE
A. J. Cort, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicnots, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some ca on the Atlantis Problem. By R. F. Scuarrr, B.Sc.,
Pu.D.
7.—Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the Winter
Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabiting Snowy Countries,
and the more striking points in the Distribution of White in
Vertebrates generally. By Caprarmy G. E. H. Barrerr-
Hamitron, B.A., F.Z.8S., M.R.1.A.
8.—An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals. By Caprary
G. E. H. Barrert-Hamitron, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.D.A.
9.—On the Relationships between the Classes of the Arthropoda. By
GrorcEe H. Carpenter, B.Sc. Lond., M.R.I.A., of the Science
and Art Museum, Dublin. (Plate VI.)
10.—The Intrusive Gneiss of Tirerrill and Drumahair. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Conn, M.R.I.A., F.G.S,, Professor ot Geology in the Royal
College of Science for Ireland. ;
11,—Report on the Ox Mountain Kocks and their probable Continuation
from Galway and Mayo into Donegal, Tyrone, and Londonderry.
By Atrx. M‘Henry, M.R.I.A.
12,—The Synthesis of Glycosides: Some Derivatives of Arabinose. By
Hueu Ryan, M.A., D.Sc., F.R.U.I., and Grorer Exsnritt, B.A.,
Catholic University School of Medicine, Dublin.
13.—A List of Irish Hepatice. By Davip McAnrbtr,
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marris Ropzrrs, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Farxiner, M.A.
Beate in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S.A.
cot.
4.—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (a.p. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Karl
of Meath. By Henry F, Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey Lanz-Poors,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.) :
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By Josep P. O’Rertiy, C.E, (Plates II., IIL,
and IV.) :
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). ByTHomas JouNSON WESTROPP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas Jonnson WEsrxopp,
M.A. (Plates VIL. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lrrron Farxiner, M.A. (Plates
IX.-XIL.)
10,—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
11,—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and gradual Delimitation. By C. Lirron FarKrner,
M.A.
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of the
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosEpH
P. O’Remty, C.E. (Plates XIII.-X VIL.)
13.—The First Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. By SranLEy
Lane-Poorr, M.A., Lirrt.D.
14.—Some Monuments of the La Téne Period recently discovered in
Ireland. By Grorer Corrry. (Plates XVIII.-XXII.)
16,—‘‘ The Ancient Forts of Ireland.” Being some further Notes on a
Paper of that name, especially as to the Age of Motes in Ireland.
By Tuomas Jonnson Westuopp, M.A.
CONTENTS
SECTION B. PART 5
13.—A List of Irish Hepatice. By Davin McArptz, , : : ‘
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
We FY,
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
i
sy
Bein
my Pay
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures,
By Freperick T. Trovton, D.8c., F.R.S.
2.—Integrais depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Cuartes
Jasper Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Joty, D.Sc., F:R.S., F.G.S.
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rey. W. R,
~Westrorp Rozerts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Cuartes Jasper Joy,
M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C,D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rey. Wizt1am Raten Wrstropp Roperts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Huyton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conics as
Polar Conics. By J. P. Jounsron, Sc.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Ropertr Lioyp
PraneGer, B.A., B.E.
2,—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Roserr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Remty, C.E.
4.—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By Grenvitie
A. J. Corn, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicnors, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
. ARE? - :
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», XXIV. (Current Volume) :— :
Sec. A. Mathematical, Astronomical,and Physical Science. ;
,, 3B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science. ae!
,, ©. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature. :
RANMA UR STAC Ny Opal eT Ero eva re
RAUL APMC YW Se ee SY \
PA
ae Des, 1904 |
PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY
VOLUME XXIV., SECTION C
ARCHAOLOGY, LINGUISTIC, AND LITERATURE
PART 5
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ee
_ consequently attention is requested to the following Table:— =———
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— Votume I. (1836-1840) is Votume I. 1stSer. Sci., Pol. Lit. oe
Ma ted TES (TORO BAL hi Ne ny i
CALL) (LBA BAD ivy Ay yet LRN neil ks
PO ANSE (A S27 LGB OV /0 von a mM a uhh be Y
Ht (1 B5O=18b8). i gem Nen eu ee y
PMV LABS -RBDT) 45) igs OW Leh tis iM
PM AV ELESCLB DA LOOL) oy 0's ons) Melba i tania i
A MII ($861-1864))) 0: at OLE Lo) H ‘i
BAMA (1864-1 BGG) yp) 0 gy Maa cag Nt
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si RAL: (LS TOUT Typ tiga Rus is 4
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i KV. (1870-1879) yy Ags Bo Rol. ait, & "Antigg: i
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, XVII: (1888-1891),, ,, I. 8rdSer. Sci., Pol. Lit.&Antiqg,
PORN ETA) (1691 BORN es Thee iT. i, is
CHIOCER, (1898-1696) gui) ia cee 00 ss it |
pa aie KOR (18961 BOB) saat) cer mao 3 i‘ ie.
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PARAL L CLOT) sate Mag neRManin sy. ene
» SIV. (Current Volume) :—
Section A. Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical
Science. a
» B. Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science. =
, ©. Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature. : f
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME.
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures.
By Freperick T. Trovron, D.8c,, F.R.S.
2.—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Cuartrs
- Jasper Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. ByJ. Jory, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S,
4.—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Wesrropr Roserts, B.D., F.'T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Cuartes Jasper Jory,
M.A., D.S8c., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rnvy. Witttam Rate Wusrropp Roperts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Hinton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conies as
Polar Conics. By J. P. Jounsron, Sc.D.
9.—Some New Relations in the Theory of Screws. By Proressor
C. J. Jory, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
10.—A Method of Reduction of a Quartic Surface possessing a Nodal
Conic to a Canonical Form. With an Application of the same
Method to the Reduction of a Binodal Quartic Curve to a
Canonical Form. By Jonn Fraser, M.A., F.T.C.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Roperr Lioyp
Prarcer, B.A., B.E.
2.—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Rosert Lioyp
Prarepr, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
-By J. P. O’Rertty, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Conn, F.G.S. (Plates I. to ne
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicwots, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some Suh on the Atlantis Problem. By R. F. Scuanrr, B.Sc.,
Pu.D.
7.—Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the Winter
Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabiting Snowy Countries,
and the more striking points in the Distribution of White in
Vertebrates generally. By Carram G. E, H. Barrerr-
Hamitton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
8.—An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals. By Caprary
G. E. H. Barrerr-Hamitron, B.A., F.Z.8., M.R.TA.
9.—On the Relationships between the Classes of the a By
GrorcEe H. Carpenter, B.Sc. Lond, M.R.I.A., of the Science
and Art Museum, Dublin. (Plate VI.)
10,—The Intrusive Gneiss of Tirerrill and Drumehair. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Cone, M.R.1.A., F.G.S,, Professor of Geology in the Royal
College of Science for Ireland.
11.—Report on the Ox Mountain Rocks and their probable Continuation
from Galway and Mayo into Donegal, Tyrone, and Londonderry.
By Atrx. M‘Hewry, M.R.I.A. :
12.—The Synthesis of Glycosides: Some Derivatives of Arabinose. By
Huex Ryan, M.A., D.Sc., F.R.U.I., and Grorce Esprit, B.A.,
Catholic University School of Medicine, Dublin.
18.—A List of Irish Hepatic. By Davi McAnntr.
Section c a ape Tinea. andl Literature—
: 1 —On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Medvaban County Nes?
Meter Galway. By J. Marris Roperrs, B.A.I. (Dublin).
is. —The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By ¢. Lirron Farxiner, M.A.
- $.—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss er A. Murray, F. 8. he ;
me ee cusoots a | sp
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition ae D. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey Lane- Pootg,
M.A., Litr.D. (Plate I.)
6.— Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water- Mills, Native
and Foreign. By Josep P. O’Reitty, C.E. (Plates IL, Te,
and IV.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare(Haronies of Bunratty). By Tuomas Jounson WEsTROPP,
. M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas JoHnson WEsrRopp,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lirron Farxrver, M.A. (Plates
1X.-XI1.) ra
10,—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechén. By
J. B, Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
11,—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and gradual Delimitation. By C. Lirron FaLKrner,
< '
M. . :
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of the
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosnpH
P. O’Remty, C.E. (Plates XIII.-X VIL.)
13.—The First Mohammadan Treaties with Christians. By SraNLEY
LANnE-Pootr, M.A., Lirr.D.
14.—Some Monuments of the La Téne Period recently discovered. in
_. Treland. By Groner Corrry. (Plates XVIII.-XXII.)
15.—‘‘ The Ancient Forts of Ireland.” Being some further Notes on a
Paper of that name, especially as to the Age of Motes in Ireland.
By Tuomas Jonnson Wesruopp, M.A.
CONTENTS
SECTION C. PART 5
PAGE
138.—The First Mohammadan Treatics with Christians. By STANLEY
Lane-Poorr, M.A,, Lirr.D., 227
14,—Some Monuments of the La Téne Peron recently discovered in Ireland.
By Grorce Corrry. (Plates XVIII.-XXII.), ’ 257
16.—“The Ancient F.rts of Ireland,’’ Being some further Notes on a
- Paper of that name, especially as to the ae of Motes in Ireland.
By Tuomas Jonnson Westrorp, M.A., Behe : » 267
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
>
~
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Ty
ive
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trovron, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2.—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Cuartes
JASPER JoLy, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jory, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Westrorp Roserts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
5.—The Multi-linear Quaternion Function. By Cuartes Jasper Joxy,
M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D., Royal Astronomer of Ireland, and Andrews’
Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin.
6.—On Bicursal Curves. By Rey. Wizt1am Raten Westropp Roserts,
M.A., Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin.
7.—The Geometrical Meaning of Cayley’s Formule of Orthogonal
Transformation. By C. H. Hinton, Patent Office, U.S.A.
8.—Method of obtaining the Cubic Curve having three given Conies as
Polar Conics. By J. P. Jounston, Sc.D.
Section B,—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Roperr Lioyp
Prancer, B.A., B.E.
2,—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Roserr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Rertty, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GrenvILLe
A. J. Core, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicwors, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
teers ae on the Atlantis Problem. By R. F, Scuarrr, B.Se.,
H.D.
7.—Abstract of a Physiological Hypothesis to explain the Winter
Whitening of Mammals and Birds inhabiting Snowy Countries,
and the more striking points in the Distribution of White in
Vertebrates generally. By Carrarmy G. E. H. Barrerr-
Hamirton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
8.—An Addition to the List of British Boreal Mammals. By Caprarn
G. E. H. Barrerr-Hamitton, B.A., F.Z.S., M.R.I.A.
9.—On the Relationships between the Classes of the Arthropoda. By
Grorce H. Carpenter, B.Sc. Lond., M.R.I.A., of the Science
and Art Museum, Dublin. (Plate VI.)
10.—The Intrusive Gneiss of Tirerrill and Drumahair. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Corr, M.R.I.A., F.G.8,, Professor of Geology in the Royal
College of Science for Ireland.
11.—Report on the Ox Mountain Rocks and their probable Continuation
from Galway and Mayo into Donegal, Tyrone, and Londonderry.
By Arex. M‘Henry, M.R.I.A.
12.—The Synthesis of Glycosides: Some Derivatives of Arabinose. By
Hueu Ryan, M.A., D.Sc., F.R.U.I., and Grorcr Esprit, B.A.,
Catholic University School of Medicine, Dublin.
E Section 0. ceed. Linguistic, and literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardeahan: County.
Galway. By J. Marrts Roperts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
_-:2,—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By G. Lirron Farkrner, M.A.
es 3. ee in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, FS. re
nes cot
- 4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (a.D. 1258), relating to ~
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl _
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By SranLey Lanz-POOLE,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By JoserH P. O’Rertty, C.E, (Plates IL. PLL;
and IY.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County —
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). ByTHomas Jounson WEsrROPP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas Jonnson WEsrropp,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
9.—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lirron Faurxiner, M.A. (Plates
IX.-XII.)
10.—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridg e.
11,—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and gradual Delimitation. By C. Lirron FALKIner,
M.A.
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of, the
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosErH
P. O’Remty, C.E. (Plates XITI.-XVII.)
CONTENTS
SECTION C. PART 4
PAGE
11.—The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of their Origin, Con-
stitution, and gradual Delimitation, By C. Lirron Fatxtver, M.A., 169
12.—Notes on the Orientations and certain Architectural Details of the :
Old Churches of Dalkey Town and Dalkey Island. By JosupH Yh
P. O’Rettty, C.E. (Plates XIJI.-XVII.), . 4 J : . 195
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME.
(XXIV.)
Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1.—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures.
By Frepericr T. Trovron, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By Cuartes
Jasper Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jory, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S.
4.—Some Properties of a certain ‘Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Westropp Roserts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science —
1,—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Roserr Lioyp
PraEGeR, B.A., B.E.
2,—Gleanings in Trish Topographical Botany. By Roperr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A.,
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Rertty, C.E.
4.—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By Grenvit.e
A. J. Coun, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.
5.—A List of Irish Echinoderms. By A. R. Nicwors, M.A., being a
Report from the Fauna and Flora Committee.
6.—Some Remarks on the Atlantis Problem. By R. F. Scmanrrr, B.Sc.,
Pa.D
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J..Manris Roserrs, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By CG. Lrrron Fanxrrr, M.A.
3.—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Mornay, F.S.A.
Scobie
4.—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inguisition (A.p. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Hunry F. Berry, M.A. —
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey Lanr-Poowe,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By Joseru P. O’Rertty, U.K. (Plates IL., IIL,
and LV.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
* of Clare(aronies of Bunratty). ByTHomas Jounson WeEsruorpP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas Jounson Wesrrorr,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
9,—Some Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lrrron Fatkiner, M.A.
10,—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, aceording to Tirechin. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lirr. D., Regius Professor of Modern
History in the University of Cambridge.
. ae
CONTENTS
SECTION C. PART 3
peta
Illustrations of the Commercial History of Dublin in the —
Eighteenth Century. By C. Lrrron Fatxrner, M.A., 5 ee
r= ae - z >
.—The Itinerary of Patrick in Connaught, according to Tirechan. By
J. B. Bury, M.A., LL.D., Lrrr.D., Regius Professor of Modern
. ety _ History in the University of Cambridge, . AY heey Ale
Dublin: Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
Printers to the Academy.
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
Section A. —Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trouton, D.8c., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By CHartes
JASPER Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
3.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jony, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.8.
4.—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rev. W. R.
Westrorp Roserts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
Section B.—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1.—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rospertr Lioyp
PRAEGER, B.A., B.E.
2.—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Rosrert Lioyp
Prarcer, B.A.,.B.E.
3.—On the Waste of the Coast of Ireland as a Factor in Irish History.
By J. P. O’Rerty, C.E.
4,—On Composite Gneisses in Boylagh, West Donegal. By GRENVILLE
A. J. Core, F.G.S. (Plates I. to V.)
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marris Roperts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Farxriner, M.A,
3.—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S,A.
Seot.
4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition (A.D. 1258), relating to
the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Srantey LANE-POooLE,
M.A., Lirr.D. (Plate I.)
6.—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native
and Foreign. By Josep P. O’Rertry, C.E. (Plates II., IIL,
and IY.)
7.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare(Baronies of Bunratty). By THomAs Jounson WEsTROPP,
M.A. (Plates V. and VI.)
8.—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County
of Clare (Baronies of Tulla). By Tuomas Jomnson WesrRorp,
M.A. (Plates VII. and VIII).
CONTENTS.
(SECTION C.—PART 2.)
5.—An Arabic Inscription from Rhodesia. By Stantey Lanu-Pootz, M.A.,
~Lirt.D. (Plate I.), ; ‘ 5 : : . : : :
44 ~ 6,—Some further Notes on Ancient Horizontal Water-Mills, Native and
x 4 i Birt Foreign. ByJosern P. O’Reriy, C.E. (Plates Il., IlI., and IV.),
a
Pal Fane —The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County of
4 lee Clare (Baronies of Bunratty). By Tuomas Jonnson Wusrrorp, M.A.
a eee etnies Ve end V0), oe ay wating teat aa Slee
4
:
ik : “8 .—The Cists, Dolmens, and Pillars, in the Eastern Half of the County of
i Clare (Baronies of Tulla), By Tuomas Jounson Wesrropp, M.A.
(Plates VII. and VIII.), . : . : : : 3 ; 3
bn
ng
Riis
Bia Dublin: | Printed at the University Press, by PONSONBY & GIBBS,
a : Printers to the Academy.
PAGE |f
47
55
85
CONTENTS OF CURRENT VOLUME,
(XXIV.)
e, Section A.—Mathematical, Astronomical, and Physical Science—
1,—On the Creeping of Liquids and on the Surface Tension of Mixtures,
By Frepericx T. Trouton, D.Sc., F.R.S.
2,—Integrals depending on a Single Quaternion Variable. By CHARLES
Jasper Joty, M.A., D.Sc., F.T.C.D.
- 8.—Some Experiments on Denudation by Solution in Fresh and Salt
Water. By J. Jory, D.Sc., F.R.S., F.G.S,
4,—Some Properties of a certain Quintic Curve. By the Rey. W. R.
Westrorp Roserts, B.D., F.T.C.D.
Section B:—Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science—
1,—On Types of Distribution in the Irish Flora. By Rozert Lioyp
” Praucer, B.A., B.E,
2,—Gleanings in Irish Topographical Botany. By Rosperr Lioyp
Prarcer, B,A., B.E,
Section C.—Archeology, Linguistic, and Literature—
1.—On the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County
Galway. By J. Marrts Roserts, B.A.I. (Dublin).
2.—The Irish Guards, 1661-1798. By C. Lirron Farxryer, M.A.
3.—Scarabs in the Dublin Museum. By Miss M. A. Murray, F.S,A.
Scot.
aR: 4,—Notes on an Unpublished MS. Inquisition (A.D. 1258), relating to
ah the Dublin City Watercourse. From the Muniments of the Earl
of Meath. By Henry F. Berry, M.A.
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-1.—0n the Discovery of an Ancient Grave, near Ardrahan, County Galway,
By J. Manzis Rozezts, B.A.L (Dublin), : E - :
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