The Sun.
London, England, 1861-08-29 00:00:00

THE QUEEN'S VISIT TO IRELAND.

KILLARNEY, A. 27.
Her Majesty has at last visited the most lovely
spot in all her wide dominions. The Royal party
arrived here yesterday evening, accompanied by
the Prince of Wales, to whom the superb scenery
of the upper and lower lakes, Tore Mountain, the
Eagle's Nest, and Muckross Abbey, is now a thrice
told tale. Yet, the tale is one that almost improves
by repetition, and as his Royal Highness is said to
be very fond of this grand scenery, and was tre-
mendously popular among the country people while
he was here, his return is now hailed with no little
satisfaction, and his appearance elicited a cheer of
welcome scarcely less uproarious than that which
greeted his Royal parents.
It is only possible just now to give a mere hurried
outline of the journey and arrival here. The
Queen left Dublin at 1 o'clock yesterday. All the
routes to the station were thronged, and the Royal
leave-taking from the Trish capital was a really warm
display of popular feeling, and one such as is not
often seen. The Earl of Carlisle attended her Ma-
jesty to the Kingsbridge station. The chairman
of the Great Southern and Western Railway, Mr.
Houghton, with the principal directors, and Mr•.
Ilbery, the traffic manager, accompanied the party
to Killarney. Every mile which the train had to
traverse was, as in England, carefully timed, and a
pilot engine preceded her Majesty to each station.
For many miles along the route there was little of
interest beyond the round towers of Kildare and
the curiously broken range of hills known as the
Devil's Bit. The land, where under cultivation,
was rich and fertile enough, and the thick harvest
was piled about the fields in bounteous disarray,
each sheaf a lyric of plenty. But it was not all of
this smiling aspect, for, intermixed amid the bright
green meadows and tracts of well-tilled land, come
long brown gaps of stagnant-looking bog, where the
piles of neatly-cut turf were stacked out in rough
black cones, like dilapidated beehives, to dry in the
sun, and where the peasantry were busy in groups
cutting down the soft black earth which was to be
their winter's fuel. At all the stations there were
crowds of anxious spectators cheering and waving
hats as the train flew by, and at almost all, down to
the very smallest in the extreme west, some rough,
but not inefficient attempt had been made at deco-
ration. Sometimes, as at the Limer.ek Junction,the
effort was of a more ambitious kind, and triumphal
arches had been erected. Generaty, however, it
was limited to dressing tl station with evergreens
and wreathing the posts ith bunches and garlands
of flowers. The train reeched Portarlington at 2
o'clock, Thurles at a quarter past 3, Kilmallock at
half-past 4, Mallow at 5, and Killarney soon after
6. At Thurles the Royal party received a tremen-
dous welcome, but it was of course here,at Killarney,
that the great reception was given. All the tenantry
of Lord Castlerosse and Mr. Herbert were: Asembled,
and all the farmers and peasantry for Liles and
miles round had also come in to do as mach honour
as they could to the occasion.
Lord Castlerosse had spared nothing whatever
which could be supplied by the most consummate
taste or the most lavish expenditure to add eclat to
the Queen's arrival and visit. The Ross-road, lead-
ing from the station to Killarney-house, was decked
with triumphal arches, and large raised galleries
were erected, especially to enable the tenantry to
see her Majesty, and keep the road clear for her car-
riage. At Killarney-house itself all the quaintly
shaped but wide and lofty rooms had been redeco-
rated, and their superbly moulded ceilings and
cornices had been carefully tinted with pale, soft,
deli sate colours, which brought them out in exqui-
site relief. In all the apartments, drawing rooms,
dining rooms, library, and sitting rooms, there was
the same care, the same elaborate richness, the same
taste and skill, and careful finish. The decorations
of the drawing and dining rooms especially were
singularly beautiful and striking. The mantelpiece
was a perfect gem. Facing the dining table in the
latter was an exceedingly fine buffet of massive
family plate, the heirlooms of the Earls of Kenmare,
and with it was a small service of gold, specially
bought for this occasion. It is quite impossible by
mere hurried description to do justice to the exqui-
site situation of the house. The back front is cqm-
pletely shut in by a nnhla growth of trooa trio front
facing towards the lower lake, commands an une-
qualled prospect over its lovely waters and the soft
but purple range of little mountains known as the
" Reeks." His lordship had evidently bestowed quite
as much care on the appearance of the grounds as
on the house itself, for the lawns were literally like
velvet ; every parterre was crowded with sweet-
' smelling flowers, while terracotta, stone, iron, and
marble vases, filled with the most beautiful exotics
were disposed round the various paths and turn-
ings. The effect of such a garden in such a scene
was really indescribably beautiful. Mr. Herbert's
house is further up, and close to the well-known
ruins of the grand old Abbey. The same extensive
and beautiful preparations have been made there
also for the reception of her Majesty, but I have
not yet had time to visit the place.
It is now definitely arranged that her Majesty is
to visit Mr. Herbert this evening, and remain at
Muckross till Thursday, on which day at 12 o'clock
she returns to Dublin en route to Scotland. Alto-
gether, then, her Majesty will have only two com-
plete days here. This will allow her to see very
little, and, unfortunately, the programme is so ar-
ranged that even that little will be by no means the
best that Killarney offers to the lovers of all that is
beautiful in nature. lts most exquisite gems of

scenery will be unvisited altogether.
The Royal train, as I have said, came in here
soon after 6 o'clock. Lord Castlerosse was in
attendance on the platform, with Mr. Herbert and
the Knight'of Kerry, General Bloomfield, command-
ing the district, Mr. William Galway, and one or
two other gentlemen inside the station ; the recep-
tion was, as usual, private, but outside it was up-
roariously public, and the Queen seemed excessively
pleased with the enthusiasm. Of course, every-
thing was so arranged that the Royal carriage
should not be followed by the crowd, but it need not
be told that the Irish are a very impulsive race, and
that the Queen had no sooner bowed and smiled in
kind recognition of her hearty welcome, than the
people were at once over walls and barriers and
poured along the road in a great tumultuous stream,
shouting till the echoes of Killarney rung again. It
was, beyond a doubt, the most hearty and genuine
reception the Queen has had in Ireland.

The Royal party passing along the Ross-road,
and under the principal entrance to the demesne,
wound round the beautiful lawns in front of the
house to the foot of the terrace. Here Lady Castle-
rosse was in waiting to receive her Majesty, who
greeted her most cordially. Both the Queen and
the Prince Consort remained for a few minutes on
the terrace examining the garden, lawn, the lake,
and distant mountains with apparently the keenest
interest and admiration. Her Majesty then ac-
cepted the arm of her noble host and entered Kil-
larney-house. After a short rest the Queen, with
the members of the Royal family, again came forth
and walked about the beautiful grounds for some
time. In the evening a few of the most distin-
guished of the neighbouring gentry were invited to
meet her Majesty at dinner, and, of course, Mr.
Herbert and the Knight of Kerry were thus
honoured.

Late at night there was a very beautiful display
of fireworks from the island called The O'Donog-
hue's Prison. The night was a perfect calm, so
that the fireworks seemed to be prolonged indefi-
nitely by their reflection in the water, while the
noise of their explosion was magnified even more
by the echoes arising from the mountains.
To-day, at 12 o'clock, the Queen goes upon the
water in the lower lake, and will be rowed in her
beautiful State barge from Ross Castle to the upper
lake and the beautiful cottage ornee built by the
late Lady Kenmore. At this the Royal party will
lunch, returning early to Killarney-house, whence
they will start at once for Muckross.
To-morrow there is to be a stag hunt, but it is
not known whether the Queen will witness it or go
boating and sketching on the lake. It is more
than probable that she will do both.

CIVIL SERVICE RIFLE VOLUNTEERS.--The band
of this regiment will perform a selection of music in the
square of Somerset House this day (Thursday) at four in
the afternoon.