Mr. Martin, Of Galway.
The Times, 1824-07-16T00:00:00

Mir. Martin is, we understand, about to act upon the advice given to him by a correspondent of ours, and return to bis nurmerotzs tenantry in Cunnemara. There are several extraordinary partien- lars connected with this gentleman's history. His grandfather was called Nimble Dick from the following occurrence :-Agentleman who was known tobe a person of fightingquality, saw 0l Dickwalk- ing along the streets in Galway, and ealed out to him from a win- dow in some very offensive manner. There has been since the ear- liest periods of the history of Ireland, a hereditary abhorrence of in- sult in the Martin famtly. Old Dick, who wore his sword, ran into the house, bolted the door of the room in wvhich his insulter was, and prepared for battle. The other did not like the p,ospect, and keld a clair before hiia to protect himself, but Old Dick thrusr his sword through the seat of the chair, and into the heart of his antagonist. The people of Galway, who wondered at nothing in the transaction but the agility of Old Dick, gave bim no other epithet tban that of NimbleD ick. Trial was out of the question. Neither a police-officer nor a sheriffs officer ever dared to enter the vast wilderness of Ounnemara since the deluge. The extent of Ar. Al ar- dn's property is enomious. It covers upwardsof80milesof seacoast; and well it is thatit does, for the sea supplies him with the only va- luable comrnofitv on the estate, with the exception ofpotatoes. The kelp, or sea-weed, is the great support of the tarmily. When groceries7 or clothes, or other necessaries are to be paid for, Mr. lartin loads a couple of asses (for there is not a horse upon the estate) with kelp, and thie asses return with the produce. Ioney is a thing unknown at ('unnemara; and that which is spent in the servioe of the public, to the terror of the Smithfield drovers, never reaches this country- without going through the hands of the soap-boilerg of Galway or the surrounding country. WVhen he wishes to dispose of some land, he never says, " Give me so much an acre for this or that piece of ground ;" but he takes the purchaser up a hill, and pointing to a bush (for a bush is a land-mark on the estate, there being scarcely a tree to be seen), he says, "I'll let you al that, from that tree acrosg that bog to foot of that moantain, with all that coast, for so much kelp and so much butter." But although a bailiff would no more live in the air of Cunnemara than a serpent, the town of ("alway is not so destructive to the vcrmin. When a dissolution of Parliamenttakes-place, Galway, awell as Smithfield, may run riot. The retmeat of utnnemara then is more honoured than it is at any other period; but the moment the return is made, a flag is hoiated upon the hustiiags over the Court-house, and then the worthy renresentative rides off to his constituents and assures them that' the question of Catholic emancipation shall receive his strongest support. Mr. Mlartin owes his constant return to Parliament to an nt of the greatest virtue and hospitality. Whea the Orangemen of Armagh were banishing the Catholic peasantry -when they were putting nightly on the doors of ihe Cathoulics " to Hell, or toConnaught," and if the summons was not obeved by an immediate disappearance, conflagration and murder were the con- sequence-Mr. Martin received into his wilderness the almost countless multitudes. He did more. lie made freeholders of them;' for in that free country a tract of mountain or of bog, the fee-sim- ple of wltich would not seduce 1001. out of the pockets of any man in his senses, was sufficient to constitute some hundreds of elecors;- and they are grateful. He keeps a storehouse of brogues, whicl he opens at the time of election to his constituents, and they sally forth t in genteel though exceedingly inconvenient style, to vote for the tveisther" (master.) They regularly deposit the mark of di,tinc- tion on their return, any thing in the shape of a shoe never having been seen on a human foot,except septennially, in the whole district of Cunnemara. MR. MARTIr, OF GALWAY.