The weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1878-1881, 1880-11-09
Blarney Castle.

VI Those who visit ireland, and especially the
city of Cork, will naturally extend their pill
Agrimage . little further to visit the far-famed
Blarney Castle, long celebrated in song and
Rlegend. a. "
Four centuries ago, when people were
obliged to build strong Notifications Of stone
lin order to protect themselves against their
Ineighbors, one Cormack Mccarthy, of the
froyal line of Irish nobility, selected a site for
IA castle. The place selected was five miles
from the city of Cork, a prominent point
Acommanding a widely extended view OF the
Surrounding valleys and hills. Here in due
time rose the solid walls, battlements and
massive donjon overs of Barney Castle.
There were also the lookout tower, where a
guard paced to and fro, banquet rooms, cham
i bers entered by secret passages aud dungeons
4 hopelessly strong, with an underground pas
Z sage of nearly a mile. And here, it is said,
4 Cormack Mccarthy and his retinue lived and
died, defying all enemies; aud when tie SOL
i diersO of Cromwell came to storm the strong
/ hold they received a bath of molten lead, and
quickly retired, thus, without gunpowder or
heavy cannon, the castle was made lmpregna-
BILE. 1t was, however, supposed to have been
forfeited from the original owners IN 1859 by
Lord Clancarty, and afterwards purchased by
an ancestor of Mr.. Jeffreys.
Of the original fortress there remains only
a large massive square tower, a sort OF dom
jon, covered with its wall Of ivy. Time, that
silent power which makes the hair grow gray
and the steps of the strong become feeble,
did what the enemie of Blaruey could not
do. A window casement crumnled; here
and there a stone dropped out; the ivy grew
upon the roughening walls; room after room
was regarded as unsafe; the family went into
smaller quarters, and finally the floors fell
with a crash, and Blarney Castle became a
ruin, and a very picturesque one.
The main tower, still standing, is about
120 feet in height, and stand on the north
side of a PERCEPTIONS ridge OF limestone rock
rising from a deep valley. A part OF its base
is was2ed by a small and beautiful clear river
called the Au Martin. Near it are the famous
groves of Blarney, literally a thick shruboery
Of large laurel trees.
Richard Alfred Milliker, q poetical lawyer
of Cork, being struck with the amusing eX-
travagance of some d0gerel rhymes compos-
ed by an i~tlnerant cobbler Of in favor of Cas-
tie Hyde, near harmony, in which he speaks
Of
The trout and the salmon
4 playing backgammon
All by the banks OF the sweet Castle Hyde
wrote about the year 1879, The Groves of
Barney as a burlesque, i'll the same meter.
In the following year it was heard at Cork by
the iate DIT. NdaIlue"s, d Col1eu!ah, WHO sdns
it frequently at private parties. 1t was sung
on the stage, and by none more effectively,
we are told, than the late Tyrone Power.
To return to the castle. Who has not heard
of the Blarney stone?
.'There is a stone there.
That whoever kisses,
Oh, he never misses
To grow eloquent;
'Tis he may Chamber
To a lady'S chamber,
Or become a member
OF Parliament.
A clever SpOuter
He'll soon turn out, or
An out and outer
To be let alone!
Don't hope to hinder him,
Or to beWilder him;
Sure he's a pilrim
From the Blarney Stone