Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-20
Historic Places With Ruins of
Castles and Abbeys.
LAST OF THE DESM0NDs
Askeaton Abbey, With Its Walls
Twenty Feet Thick.
WISE EARLS OF DUNRAVEN
Beautiful Manor and Mansion of the
Famous Yachtsman and His
Three Valkyries.

RY WILLIAM e. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald
LIMERICK, August II, 1908.
Before I left Washington highly
esteemed friend. and one OF the most
charitable and public-spirited citizens OF
that city. Entrusted me with a mission
which was fulfilled as soon az possible
after arriving in Limerick. 1t was 10
leave with the parish priest of his native
village OF Askeaton a generous sum OF
money for the benefit of the poor. ana
you may imagine the pleasure that at
tended our visit there Askeason Is
very ancient town Of seven or eight hum
dred Inhabitants, about twenty miles
from Limerick. where the River Deel
tumbles over lodges OF rocks into the
Shannon. and forms q series of cascades
which have given 1t the second-oest
water-power in Ireland and perpetuafed
the name Of Celtic chieftain concerning
whom nothing else is known.
Five Thousand Secondhand Coats.
We went down in an automobile, WIS.,
iting several other places Of interest oy
the way, passing Donmore. the seat OF
the Earl OF Limerick, an ancient ruin IN
which a holy hermit lived several CEN
turtles ago: Dysart House. the seat OF
the Earl Of Dysart. and q beautiful place
called Holly Paxk. where. until recently,
Taylor. He had inherited t1ne farm
and considerable wealth, but lived
bachelor until he was sixty years old,
when he married his cook. There was
nothing wrong with him, except g. mama
for buying coats. and he used to haunt
the secondhand stores of Limerick, Dub
lin, London and wherever else he hap
pened to go, picking up ALI the queer
patterns and cOlors that ne couid ma:
He spent most OF his time brushing and
cataloguing them, and when he died last
spring more than Ave thousand coats
were found hanging on racks in the up
per rooms and the attic OF Holly Park.
It took three big wagons to carry them
away. for his wife, the former cook. got
rid OF them as soon after the 1uneral as
she could arrange for.
Village Of Askeaton.
Askeaton used to be q place Of some
Importance and at one time returned two
members Of parliament. but it has lost
population and trade and many years ago
the franchise was taken away and $4,000
was paid as indemnity to Lord Carrick
and Massey, who controlled tho sufrages.
1t isn't far from the sea and there Is
q good deal of fishing, although agricul-
ture is it's chief dependence. There is a
carbide factory owned by John Is. Hew-
son, and q big -four mill, which, how
ever. 10 idle because the people ind IL
cheaper to buy American dcur. The farm
ers here cannot compete with California
wheat. They tell me It is more profitable
to raise potatoes for market and turntps
for cattle.
Askeaton is a quaint village. with IT.
regular streets and old fashioned houses
Of brick and mortar. hugging closely to
the walls of an ancient castle. which was
the stronghold OF the earIs of Desmond,
and the scene Of much fighting In ancient
times. It Is one Of the largest ruins In
Ireland, a monstrous pile covering more
than two acres, and the walls of stone,
now standing, are more than ninety feet
high. and ten and fifteen feet thick.
The great hall measures ninety by thirty
feet and is lighted by four great windows
In a fair state Of preservation.
Desmond's Prison.
Over the first arch from the stairway
Is a small chamber measuring eight by
seven feet called "Desmond's prison." in
which Gerald, the twelfth Earl OF Des-
mond, was imprisoned by Edmond Mac
Teig, who contested his succession. and
for six years pined in captivity, shut up
in the Castle of Askeaton. till his re-
lease. which was obtained by the inter-
cession Of his wife, who was related to
Edmond. A battlemented wall surrounds
the entire structure, which could be en-
tered only by a narrow pathway cut
through the rock SO that any attempt to
force an entrance would be impossible.
Last Of the Desmonds.
The castle was the final refuge of the
Last Earl OF Desmond, who organized
aud Jnl ~,
reign Of Queen Elizabeth, and was de-
Tended by him with great courage and
pertinacity. But he was finally compelled
to abandon it because OF an assault by the
Earl OF OrmOnde with battery of heavy
artillery-the first ever seen In Ireland. it
They dared not face the new weapons
with which their foes were equipped.
They were accustomed to firearms, and
even light fieldpieces, but this was the
first time heavy artillery was ever used
against the walls OF a castle. Therefore
they blew up the place and fled to the
woods. and the Earl Of Desmond was de-
prived Of his last stronghold. When he
left Askeaton he was an outlaw with a
price set upon his head, and was finally
betrayed, captured. conveyed to London
and committed to the tower in 1867.
After several years of Imprisonment
Queen Elizabeth's advisers thought 1t
prudent to restore the son to the honors
and estates Of the family. Accordingly
in 1900 James. then Earl of Desmond, was
escorted to Limerick by the Archbishop
Of Cashel and Richard Boyle, afterward
Earl Of Cork. But the people showed him
no respect whatever. They insulted him
on every occasion, and he. being greatly
mortified. shortly afterward returned to
England and died the following year,
which was the end of the famous house
of Desmond.
Askeaton Abbey.
Oskeaton Abbey. which was founded
under the protection of the castle for the
Franciscan monks in 1920 by the seventh
Earl of Desmond. is only few steps
distant and, Judging from the huge
masses of masonry, it must have been
an extensive and solid structure. Some
Of the walls twenty feet thick, and
the lightest are four feet and a half
thick. 1t is kept with great care by the
board of public works. and the clOister
Is remarkably perfect, being Enclosed by
twelve pointed arches of black marble.
1t was destroyed at the same time as the
castle and many OF the monks were muir
dered by the Irish troops under the Earl
of Ormonde and Sir Henry Pelham.
In lGi1 an attempt was made to restore
the abbey to its former magnificence, but
1t was abandoned shortly after.
The parish church. which stands upon
hill on the edge Of the village, was
built by the Knights Templar. who had
an establishment at ASkeatOn. dating
from the thirteenth century. but nothing
remains of it now but a curious tower in
the church yard.
With Sergeant Quirk. the head con-