The Sun.
London, England, 1868-04-18 00:00:00

THE ROAD TO THE RACES.

." From an early hour,"—No, there is not the least use in
trying to describe it. The people were simply determined
to have their own way as regarded railway accommoda-
tion. They took possession of the carriages, and as the
trains came up they filled them. Then, when the autho-
rities bethought them of the device of sending up no
more carriages, the people marched down the line.
and by a stroke of genius compelled surrender.
As a good way of securing a passage to SaMns they lay
sown on the rails crossways, so that no train could pass up
to take the Prince except over their bodies. Some
frightened officials thought there was a riot, and talked of
calling out the military ; but the settled purpose of the
Lord-Lieutenant and Lord Mayo, and, we may be sure,
the desire of the Prince, was, that not a soldier should be
seen under arms on the day of Punchestown, and Colonel
Boyle, of the 89th, a gallant and experienced officer—
senior on duty—placed a proper value on the representations
addressed to him. True, the Prince was detained for some
time at the Castle. But what of that? He got off at last,
and came in—take racecourse proceedings generally—good
time to the course. Every road in Ireland does not lead to
Punchestown, perhaps, but there must be many which do,
and one of them, at any rate, is not a good one. Let me
not dwell at such a time on the sorrows and anxiety of a
breakfastless pedestrian, who found himself landed on the
side of a black mountain road in Wicklow, nine miles from
the course, by the sudden collapse of the horse which the
driver assured him was "turned out of a mail coach
because they never could stop 'im from galloping,"
but rather hasten on to that distant scene, though
it be quite hopeless to give an idea of what hap-
pened there. The Prince and Princess, the Lord-
Lieutenant and Lady Abercorn, the royal and viceregal
suites, and a vast number of distinguished personages
came by train to Sallins, and then drove through the
town of Naas to Punchestown ; but although monster
trains were started as fast as they could be torn from the
grasp of the people, the railway contributed but a small
proportion to the great gathering on the course, and it is
not at all clear that the estimate given above of the num-
ber present is not considerably under the mark, as the
masses were spread over an immense distance, and were hid
now and then in hollows, out of which they rushed, as if
thrown from a crater, when the horses passed. The roads
which intersect or climb the Wicklow hills, creeping
through valleys or skirting ridges, were black with vehicles,
the occupants of which were white with dust. The day
was not quite what it ought to be at the beginning
for pleasure-seekers, though it was capital for race-
horses. There was a cloudy sky, a strong cold breeze,
with easterly in it, and the higher of the hill ranges
were capped with drifting vapour. But as noontide
came the sun shone out, lighting up the fresh foliage
of the hedges and sparse plantations on the undulating,
smoothly-rounded folds of land which rise from the Dublin
basin over the course of the Liffey, and justifying the
claim of Ireland to the title of the Green Isle, which is,
perhaps, purchased a little dearly, because, though the
fields and hedges were surpassingly verdant in their emerald-
hued honours, and the work of spring appeared to be nearly
over, in reality the work of the harvest is far more ad-
vanced in England, which seems at present comparatively
so backward in vegetation. Through their lane-like roads,
not so often skirted by hedgerows as by banks of stone
or turf, trailed long processions of vehicles, of which
the " low-backed car " was the most frequent, though
the proprietors of those places where London cabs must
be put when they are worn out seemed to have sent a large
accumulation of their stock to join the revelry. There
were of course private vehicles, and there were open sparse
drags and wheeled eccentricities " of sorts ; " but the most
characteristic of all were the farmers' carts, laden with
country girls, and rustics who ought to be friezecoated,
but who prefer inferior broadcloth. They were not so
numerous as one could wish ; but the country here is
not populous, and most of the farmers and small gentry
were apparently on horseback, for the show of
equestrians galloping about the course was one of the
special features of the occasion. One route from Dublin
lies through a place which has recently gained what is
called an " unenviable notoriety," even among people
who could not easily or properly pronounce the name—
" Tallaght." Formerly it gave a title to a sort of
conversation not yet disused in Ireland, and not un-
known in other countries. A native, who was desirous
of impressing his friends with an idea of his courage,
told them how "he had up and said to the master
that he was a black-hearted tyrant, and that for a
trifle he'd leave him a pair of black eyes." "Did you,
in truth, Pat ?" "To be sure I did." "And when did
you say it to his honour ?" " Oh, begorra, I waited till I
got to the other side of Tallaght-hill." He waited a long
time, for Tallaght-hill, though not high or steep, is very
long and wide. Near the few houses which stand on both
sides of the road, and by so doing constitute a town, lies
the police-station of Tallaght, which was attacked last
year. And who that saw the iron shields pierced for
musketry covering the windows would not feel sad that
such a spectacle should be witnessed within a few miles of
the capital, and deem it worth while to make any sacrifice
not inconsistent with principle or honour to remove the
painful memorial ?

THE SCENE ON THE COURSE.

But all this time the Prince and. Princess, the Lord-
Lieutenant and Lady Abercorn, are speeding on their
way to Punchestown. The arrival of the royal
party was delayed, as we have seen, but at two o'clock
there drove up to the entrance of the Grand Stand
a line of carriages, which were hailed by such a shouting
and rejoicing as were never heard even on an
Ascot Cup day. The Prince and the Princess
bad come at last. And they had had such a time of
it. All the way from Sallies, where they left the
special train, to the moment of their arrival, they were
escorted by a running, shouting, buzzing crowd, and Lord
knows how many hands the good Princess shook or had
her hand shaken by ! " Harro for the Countess of Dublin
" Shure, won't you stay with us, or promise you'll soon
come back and stop for ever ?" " God bless the Earl of
Dublin !" Such cries and ejaculations, and such greetings
and gesticulations ! And now the gentle Princess seems
quite used to them, and the Prince, always gay and kindly,
understands the feelings of the crowd around him. The 3 ru
among the horses, dive under the chargers of the police, who
are intended to clear the way, and not as an armed guard.
They hang on by the sides of the open carriage ; in fact,
two or three poor fellows who held on behind yesterday as
the carriage entered the Castle lost their coat tails, which
Were grasped by the indignant constabulary, and con-
tinued their career—non tali auxilio—in high glee, laugh-
ing and rejoicing till they were brought up by detainers
on more substantial attachments. At this time the scene
from the Grand Stand was, even to a native of Punches-
town—there is no such town, but there are natives for all
that—most strange, and to all most curious asd interesting.
Beside the Grand Stand was the Stewards' Star d; next to
it, and part of the same structure, was the Royal Stand,
which was fitted up with taste and perfect comfort for the
royal visitors and the viceregal party. A scarlet carpet was
laid on the sward, from the gateway to the flight of rather
steep steps to the estrade, on which were placed the chairs
of the illustrious party. 'Whatever may be said of the
non-appearance of the Irish peers and gentry in the pro-
cession yesterday— and it would seem as if there were
reasons for it which go far to render censure not alto-
gether so justifiable as it appeared to be—there is not a
word to be uttered against them in that respect as regards
Punchestown. There has never been so great a gathering
of the peers and gentry of Ireland since George IV. came
over as there is in Dublin at present, and most of them
were on the course. Behind the Grand Standwere booths
and large tents, at which refreshments could doubtless
be obained on reasonable terms, and, strange to say,
though the sale of liquor was forbidden, no one was
dnink, at least visibly so, up to a late hour. And be it
added, that at night, after all the excitement of the day
and the fatigue of the excitement, and then the illumina-
tions of the evening, there was scarcely a drunken man in
the streets. When the Prussians close up all the temples
of fortune and misfortune in Germany there will be a
refnge left for the spirited proprietors at Punchestown,
for there no police vex those who love the hazard of the
di?, nor check the roll of the roulette ball, or arrest
the course of the nimble pea. In front of the Grand
Stand, of course, the great throng of people ryas
1 the royal visitors me

recet

; repeated again and again and once more, and it
trikit,l t') the pcpularity of the Lord-Lientenant

ar.:l of Lr.:l:y ,11Krcorn that in the midst of the enthusiasm
tl.o people (lid not foriet to pay their Excellencies special
honour. The Duke of Cambridge was greeted, too, most
heartily ; and those who recognised Prince Tech gave him
a round for himself. As the Princess, who looked exceed-
ingly beautiful, ascended the estrade, the cheers never
ceased. The Prince, who led Lady Abercorn, was, of
course, included, and when the Prince and Princess
presented themselves in their places to the multitude,
a waving of hats and handkerchiefs and a roar of
many voices expressed the delight and loyalty of
the mass which thronged the course. Again and