Morning journal and courier., 1889-06-29

The Vast Extent of Irish A netQ ul lties- The Walled Compartments Called SStoRe Pockets''-A Forgivable Phan- tasy of An Old stone Catter-NTany Pre-Histor1c Remains The Mystic ssrianan of Aileach.
 ARMAGH, Ireland, June IT, To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER: At the sides of Irish roads are found every few miles walled compartments, open to the highway, called 'sstone pockets" for storing broken stone required from time to time ia road repairs. Nnmberless times in my tramps through Ireland have come to these and found an old pensioner breaking stone, as he had done half his life at shilling a day. Many cheery chat have these stone- breakers and had together; and one, on the highway between Galway and Oughterard, with whom one day divided the soant lunch in my knapsack, felt he must make an effort to interest and recompense me for my civili- ty. The royal Irish engineers have survey or's mark or sign, which is chiseled into stone if such be found at angles of survey. It is called the s'crow's foot" or "broad ar row." and consists of a tiny circle from which radiate, like the sticks of fan, three arrow-like indentations. Bringing me to one of these with great dignity, the old man "ithaEs*- his A@ LrNEEsRinting to the broad arrow, asked with impressive solem. nifty.
 Dye mind thatt'
 "I do;" said I.
 'Thim printsa" said he.
 "The same;" said I.
 "Thim, sor"-and here the old man seemed foot taller for the momentous revelation upon his lips-"thim, sor, wor the tread of the aigle before the foodl"
 This forgivable phantasy of the old stone breaker was but an echo of the consciousness of the surpassing age traced in countless ways upon the face of Erin, among even the most ignorant of the peasantry; for not half mile from where we stood, stretching away towards the black moors of lar Con- naught, covering the sides of the valley sweeping past the grim ruins of Augnanure, and showing gray and white towards the cleaning waters of Lough Corrib, were in- numerable cromlechs and cairns, their sur- rounding little and great circles composed of Druidic stones of ali sizes and shapes. Here, two thousand, yes, perhaps three and four thousand years before we stood there, gath cred pagan hosts to witness Druidic rites and stand in awe before the weird spells and mysteries their incantations evoked. For myself I originally had no faith in Irish an- tiquities. And I know that is the general feeling of iconoclastic Americans. But for nearly whole year every day my eyes have opened upon some new and astounding monument to prehistoric peoples of Ireland; and my only apology for the temerity in go
 humble reference to these antiquities as can only come within the bounds of newspaper article, when the subject has occupied the attention of learned societies, archaeologists and antiquarians for centuries, Is that have seen these antiquities myself, and perhaps greater number of all classes of them than any single person who ever wrote of them; and also because I would be glad if could influence some of the thousands who annu- ally visit continental Europe in search of like study, to turn aside from the worn, musty ways, for season of wondrous win someness and delight, in 8 land where every square mile possesses the sweetest and no
 blest examples of scenery. and the richest and most impressive antiquarian remains possible to come upon anywhere else in the whole wide world.
 In a broad sense the prehistoric antiquities of Ireland comprise pagan sepulchral re- mains and military monuments. The form CT consist of cromlechs, pillar stones, ogham stones, and sepulohral mounds and cairns. The latter only furnish raths and duns. ArchSologists have for centuries disputed over the application of the word cromlech. Some believe it signifies ''the stone of Crom," deity of the Irish Druids repre- senting fate; others, that it is derived from "Crom," circle, and "lech," a stone; and still others believe 1t derived from "Crom liagh." ancient Briton and Irish for a crooked stone, so adjusted to permit the blood of sac riGcial victims Ito run of freely" How ever this may be, two hundred and twenty six pagan monumental remains, called crom- lechs: may be found in Ireland, one hundred and eighty-one of which have personally inspected. Notwithstanding the tremendous research which archasologists have devoted to the subject, no definite conclusion as to their origin and use has been reached. The con- sensus of opinion points to one of two uses, that of pagan sacri6cial tables, or altars, for Druidic rites, or simply as . pagan form of sepulcher and monument for the dead. The curious fact exists, however, that the pre- vailing idea involved in local names for cromlechs is that of bed or final resting place. Nor has the question been disposed of whether they were originally covered with earth or built precisely as they stand to-day. Their form, however, seldom varies. Three or more huge stones of from six ts ten feet high stood endwise or sidswise from support ing pillars. Upon these is laid another mon strous stone. The whole forms a sort of rude half open stone chamber In many have been found entire skeletons and perfectly preserved calcined bones. These oromlechs are scattered indisoriminately over Ireland, ffty-fve being found in Lsinster, forty six in Ulster, eighty-two in Connaught and forty-thre in Munster. The largest of these interesting remains Is probably that tho ct1 ohr Nf o1ov- miles from Dublin, on the Enniskerry road. The covering stone of this huge cromlsoh is six and one-half feet thick, seventeen in
 breadth and upwards of twenty-three feet long. I found a much smaller, though far more perfect, example in county Down, near
 the public road, but half mile west of the little village of Broadstone The oap-stone is perfectly flat slab. Formerly this orom-
 lech was covered by earth. This was recent ly removed and cinerary urn was discov- cred within the structure. Other splendid specimens may be found at Csrrowmore, county Sligo, at Ballygilbert and Island Magee in coanty Antrim.
 The pillar and Ogham stones which have
 been discovered in various parts of Ireland are now regarded without dissent as monu- ments to the pagan dead. Their age is vari- ously placed at from one hundred to a thou- sand years behind the Christian era. One splendid specimen of the pillar stone sixteen feeb ln clrcumIerence may De found near the great sepulchral mound at Newgrange, near Drogheds; that at Ballynaoraig measures twenty-four feet in circumference; and oth- CTS may be seen in the valley of Glanismole, few miles from Dublin. Quite number bear inscriptions in the Ogham character. This was 8 species of writing known to have existed in Ireland previous to the introduc- ton of Christianity; and it existed, at least for the purpose of monumental inscription, to an extent after that date, as has been proven by the discovery of an Ogham in- scription on tho cap-stone of an ancient oromlech in Kerry, as it's correlative in the debased Latin of the period chiseled beneath 1t. tells that the structure is the tomb of Connait, son of Curoi, and was erected by