The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-10-12 00:00:00

Bearing north from Foyne's Island, and on the west side
of the archipelago of the Fergus, in Clare, stands, on the
rising ground near the shore, the protty village of Kildysart,
(noticed in a former sketch,) conspicuous from its white-
washed houses and its small church with a tower. Behind
Foyne's Island, on the south, rises the high hill of Knock Pa-
trick, cultivated nearly to its top, and crowned by the ruins of
a church and other ancient edifices, said to have been erected
by the Danes, though more probably by the Anglo-Normans.
On this airy height there is a cemetery in which some of the
first families in the surrounding districts have long had their
burying places. Round the eastern angle of the bill may be
seen part of an extensive forest, which, facing the south,
flourishes in dense luxuriance. Foyne's Island is a fertile
spot, well wooded, and forms a fine object in the landscape.
There is a pier on the north side, and a good depth of water
round it, " Foyne's Channel" having from twenty to twenty-
five fathoms when the tide is down. East of it are two
islets. Robert's River discharges itself into a bay a little to
the south of them. A few miles up this stream, and on its
west bank, lies the village of Robertstown.
The richly-wooded domain of Cahircon, in a small bay or
indenture, on the north 'shore of the Shannon, will here
attract the attention of the voyager, from the warmth and
luxuriance of its appearance. Opposite to it, on the Lime-
rick side, stands Mount Trenchard, the seat of Lord Mont-
eagle, better known, before his election to the Peerage, as
Spring Rice, Esq., quondam Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The mansion, in the modern style of architecture, is built of
blue limestone, and the grounds are beautiful and extensive.
A short distance below it, and near the ruins of a castle, a
hill will be observed, on which there are valuable coal mines

and culme pits. A small river here discharges itself, on the
west bank of which, prettily situated in a ravine, stands the
neat village of Loughill. A new mail coach road is formed
along the 'whole of this shore to Tarbert, and thence, by
Byllylongford, to Tralee, which has greatly shortened the dis-
tance—the old road, which is more to the south, being rough
and tortuous. Opposite to Loughill, on the Clare side of the
river, is Labeshida bay, and village, backed by rising ground,
the latter resembling an English hamlet. The Irish name
" Labeshida" signifies " silken bed." On the north side of
the bay, may be seen Gap Castle, and a seat called Mount
Shannon. The south bank, from Loughill to Tarbert, is
occupied by a continuous range of handsome seats and marine
villas. Passing Rock Lodge, and one or two other seats, in-
cluding Cahara House, the residence of Mr. Sleeman, the
voyager reaches Gfin, a handsome rural little town on the
west bank of a brook, with many neat • slated and detached
houses and cottages. Here there is a harbour for boats, but
no pier. A boat came off to us with passengers. The church,
on an eminence on the east, is a neat gothic building with a
tower, embattled, and terminating pinnacles. We reached

Glin in two hours and twenty -minutes from Limerick

Immediately below the town stands Glin Castle, the seat of
John Francis Fitzgerald, Knight of Glin, Deputy Lieutenant
of the county, and descendant of the famous family of the
same name. The Castle is situated near the river at the
bottom of a fine high wooded hill, and has an extensive lawn
or park in front, between it and the water, the whole forming
per sea beautiful landscape. The building in front, which is
cemented in imitation of stone, is in the-Old English style,
of a square form, with fronting wings, and embattled block-
ing. The woods are tall and luxuriant, and the pleasure
grounds very finely diversified. The offices extend in a long
range to the westward, and are of corresponding castellated
architecture. The principal entrance, close to the shore, is
a castellated structure of considerable size, flanked by two
square embattled towers ; and two smaller corresponding
towers terminate the "ramparts"—one at the extremity of
each, east and west. A great battle, it is said, was fought
near the site of the Castle between the adherents of the old
Fitzgerald family and the troops of King William.
On our passing the castle, a red-cross flag was hoisted
from the battlements, in compliment to our new vessel as a
welcome addition. to the navigation of the Shannon. We
hoisted our colours and fired a salute with our two brass
guns, in return for that of the worthy knight on our passing
his demesne on our arrival from Liverpool, and which we
could not acknowledge at the time, our powder having been
damaged in the gale of wind we had encountered on the
passage round.
Amongst the villas westward of Glin, is Birch Wood, a
beautiful cottage residence, and Shannon View, a fine house
with a projecting semi-circular centre. A neat thatched
cottage above it was the birth-place of General Evans, and
is still the residence of his brother, Counsellor John Evans.
Near these, lower down, are Shannon Lodge; also Bally -
donohoe Wood, the seat of Counsellor Fitzgerald, a large
mansion with wings. His brother, the Rev. Fitzgerald,
resides a short distance above it ; the land here, which is well
wooded, rising gently towards the south. Between Glin
Castle and Shannon View, a road will be observed running
to the south-west, on the face of the acclivity, and crossing
a brook at a short distance from the shore. This brook
divides the counties of Kerry and Limerick.

After passing several other seats, the voyager reaches Tar-
bert, one of the stations at which the two steam-vessels run-
ning between Limerick and Kilrush call to land and receive
passengers and goods. Tarbert is in the direct route from
Dublin to the Lakes of Killarney (from which last it is distant
47 miles), as also to Tralee. I would strongly advise tour-
ists to Killarney to take the Shannon, between Limerick and
Tarbert, either in going or returning. They may, by thus
alternating their route, see a large and highly interesting
portion of that noble stream and its banks, as well as visit
all the objects worthy of attention in the journey by land—
to several of which I have made allusion in this sketch. The
packet accommodations are moreover of the first class, and
the fares exceedingly moderate. Tarbert is a neat and pret-
tily situated town, at the head of a creek or little bay, formed
on its west side by a projecting point of land, which here
narrows the stream of the Shannon to what is called Tarbert
Race, and at the peninsular extremity of which is a hand-
some light-house, forming a conspicuous object for several
miles up and down the river. Near the lighthouse, which
is built upon a rock, there is a battery, which, with
one on the opposite Clare shore, is intended to command the
" race" should occasion require. There is here also a re-
venue station, and I observed in the roads one of the smart
cutters of the service, of which there are several constantly
on the look out on the waters of the Shannon and the neigh-
bouring coast. The anchorage is near the battery, about a
mile or a mile and a half from the town. Some years ago
the Steam Company constructed here a convenient pier,
partly of open wood work or piles, and partly of stone.
Great part of it was however carried away last winter by a
storm, so that it is no longer available ; and as the govern-
ment have at length determined to build a large and suitable
pier, it has not been renewed. The passengers and goods
are now landed in boats from a lighter alongside of which the
steamer lies. It is remarkable, that after the destruction of
the present pier, the hard wood work that was under water
was found to be curiously perforated in large borings by a
marine insect, whose operations resemble those of the pro-
bably similar genus that are so destructive to ships' bottoms,
when unprotected by copper, in the West Indies and other
tropical regions.
In the immediate vicinity of Tarbert there are several fine
seats, particularly Leslie Hall (or Tarbert House), the resi-
dence of Mrs. Leslie, a splendid mansion, on the west of the
harbour or bay, on an eminence commanding a most exten-
sive and delightful view up the river. The grounds are
densely wooded even to the water's edge. There are several
ornamental cottages along the beach, and the whole presents
a beautiful and dignified picture of rural retirement. After a
brief stay we proceeded towards Kilrush. The British flag
was picturesquely displayed from a slender cross- jack yard on
the staff of the light-house as we passed, for the first time in
day light, and the men on the balcony at the top waved their
hats, a compliment which we of course returned. After
passing Tarbert race, the voyager will observe on the Clare
side of the river the bay of Clanderlaw, which forms a large
indenture, running up in a north east direction to the mouth
of a river which passes a hamlet of that name. On the west
side of the bay is Kilmore, the seat of Captain Hickman, a
fine domain amongst lofty trees : this gentleman being a
sportsman keeps a fine pack of hounds. A little to the
north west of it is another fine seat called Summer-
hill, on an elevated site. There are other handsome seats
near the shore. After passing the mouth of the bay, which
is celebrated for its fisheries, the course to Kilrush more
closely approximates the shores of the county of Clare,
and the voyager is soon abreast of Money Point, on the
steep rocky coast, where there is a quarry noted for the size
and excellence of the flags it supplies, and the working of
which, through the enterprise of C. W. Williams, Esq., of
the Dublin Steam Company, and other gentlemen, affords
profitable employment to a great number of men, and has
redeemed the district in which it is situated from the pressure
of extreme poverty to the enjoyment of ease and comfort.
The stone is of excellent quality, and tray be sawn into
flags of any size. Specimens, I was informed, had been
sent to the British museum, and the article is supplied not
only to the Limerick district, and parts of England, but has
even found its way to the United States. Further westward,
on the same side, and near the shore, is Balymacrenan,
said to have been the residence of a Mr. Scanlon, whose
history and whose fate form a dark and painful page in the
annals of Limerick, and have furnished materials to the
author of a novel, entitled " The Collegians." Scanlon, it
is said, was a young man of a good family, but of wild and
dissipated habits. He some years ago held a situation in
the customs, and in the course of his amours seduced Miss
O'Connor, a beautiful young lady of property. Becoming
weary of her society, or from a combination of motives, (for
my informant afforded me but scanty information of the
facts,) he took her out in his pleasure yacht on the Shannon,
and threw her overboard near his residence. She was
drowned, but the body was picked up, and suspicion having
fallen upon him, he was apprehended, tried at the assizes,
found guilty of the murder, and condemned to suffer the last
penalty of the law. Great intercession was made in high
quarters by his relatives and friends, with a view to save his
life, but wrthout effect. When being drawn through the
streets of Limerick, from the gaol to the place of execution,
in a coach and four (which was permitted in deference to his
rank in life), the horses all at once became restive, kicking
and plunging to the endangerment of the lives of all who
were near them, and every endeavour to induce them to
proceed proved unavailing. It therefore became necessary
that hand his friends and conductors should alight and
walk to the scaffold. He suffered death ; and to this day it
is the popular belief, so strong was the abhorrence of his
crime, that the horses became instinctively aware that he was
.either Satan himself or the veritable prototype of the arch-
fiend, and that the load of iniquity was too great for their
strength or inclination to draw !
The traveller now fast approximates the interesting island of
Scattery, with its round tower and ecclesiastical ruins. The
river is here of great width, and the country, whether as
regards its picturesque appearance or the prominent objects
of curiosity to the antiquary and general observer, becomes
deeply interesting. On the Kerry side is Carquafoyle Island
—on which is a large battery—at the mouth of a considerable
river, which passes successively the hamlets of Ballylongford,
Rushen, and Curriekfoil, all on its left bank. The remains
of three castles, which once guarded its entrance—one on the
west and two on the east—are distinguishable in clear weather.
The former was long the resort of a famous smuggler—another
Will Watch, though he met not with the fate of that outlaw—
who, even in modern times, ran his vessel with contraband
goods for many years almost to the quays of Limerick, in de-
fiance of the preventive service • and it is said, realised a
large fortune. The country around is fertile and well wooded.
On Scattery Island are the remains of seven small churches,
near each other, said to have been founded by St. Simon.
The tall tower of one of them, resembling a steam-engine
chimney, is still in tolerable preservation, though rent by the
lightning some years ago. There are several houses upon it ;
and between it and the main land lies Hog Island, of much
smaller extent. A romantic event connected with its early
history, is referred to by a modern bard, in the beautiful
ballad addressed to a lady, commencing " Oh, haste thee
from the lonely isle!" There is a large battery on the island.
The channel to Kilrush passes between Hog Island and
the adjacent main land. Opposite to Scattery, and at a
short distance from it, is the pier station for the steam
packets, about a mile and a quarter from the town. Here we
landed, after a fine passage, exclusive of stoppages, of three
hours and thirty-five minutes. There is here a row of neat
small houses, and a revenue station. The port (if it may be
ssea
ol called)forwhich
his i
eh frequentedvery inadequate
dbeyq
aaafteew accommodationsbrigs and o the r
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vided, considering the important trade that might otherwise
be carried on. The pier, which projects in a straight line
only sixty paces from the shore, affords no shelter from south
easterly winds, and vessels of any considerable draught of
water running up alongside of it, take the ground when the
tide is down. The carrying out of this pier to at least trepple
its length, and curving it outwardly towards the east, together
with the construction of a break-water a little higher up in
the same direction, would be an obvious and valuable im-
provement,
ryroevaermeinott,o effect.wliic
which the Shannon commissioners would do well
On the top of an eminence behind the hamlet stands