Year: 1871




beautiful valley Of the Lee, which, with the
distant hills for background, is fine land
scape for a painter.


All the way VIC were greeted with plenty
of singing birds such as we see at home;
also rabbits, phcasants and crows--the lat
ter in great abundance and very tame, poo-
pie not being allowed to kill them, as they
extorminato grubs, vermin and carrion,
and no Indian corn being raised in this
country, they can do but little mischief.


For about mile the way is winding and
up hill. All along by this roadside hill
there are low, thatched-roof, stone, paddy
shantics, only one room in elch, and the
floor is the ground itself. The goats. the
fowls and tho pigs have free access and
equal privileges in and out of the house
with the children. day and night; and the
pig is the gentleman, for he pays the rent.
The front yard is the pen for them all, as
well as the open cosspool for all their filth.
1t is wonderful how they can exist in this
way, and yet it is the same with the poor
people all over this land. Then the great
number Of dirty, half-clad children which
throng these huts, looking so healthy, fat
and rugged-it is wonderfully strange


As we walked the horse up this hill,
dozen to twenty of these dirty urchins, Of
all ages, from 3 to 10 years old, followed us
up, calling out at every breath, "No, shir,
penny" "No, shir, penny" Which means,
No. sir, we won't go away till we get PEN
ny. One little fellow, not over years old,
ran after us nearly a mile, to the top Of the
hill, when threw out the last piece of cop
per | had. 1t was one of our American
pennies. He stopped, picked it up, stood
awhile to examine what the little coin was,
the first he ever saw, I suppose; then turn
cd as we were going out of sight, and rais-
cd his little fist, as to say, "Beiabbers, yc
are a fraud


At the top of this hill we came in sight of
the castle, which was built on an elevation
overlooking a beautiful valley. We can
also see from here st. Annc's hill, on which
are located the celebrated watcr-curc and
Turkish baths, a place Of great resort for
invalids,-fnc buildings, well located in
charming spot. And here is stopping one
of our insane Americans, "Sir George Fran
c is Train" who is giving lectures through
this country, now in Cork, to large crowds
of the common people, who go to learn
moro of our land Of liberty, to which so
many of their blood have gone. He is rails
ing quite a breeze here, and with other
things proclams that he has the nOmina-
ton already from the leading party in the
United States, and that he is to be the next
President after Grant. At the close Of each
lecture he takes a vote, and is voted in with
loud accamatons, President of the U. :. \.
To our surprise, it is believed by Il large
majority of the people TO be truth, that he
is over here iorestaling votes of the Tweed
Il Co. order, who are to be qualified the day
they get there. The papers speak of him
as the Great American Orator. (Grcat fool,
more like.


Just before we reach the castle we pass
through the old town of Blarney, small
town mostly built of stones, with only one
street, and having no attractions. At thcend
of the street we got out at gate that leads
to the castle grounds. This gate is kept by
woman who, like everybody in this coun-
try who looks at an American, expects a
siXpencc for opening it. The walk up to
the castle leads through green field l-4th
of a mile wide in which were grazing as
fine cows as | ever saw. And here let me
say that Ireland is filled with fine stock.
These cattle are not so large but their cows
as a general thing are a good deal superior
TO ours; and we cannot compare with them
for sheep, their sheep are very fine.


As our party were walking along and ad-
miring the stock, all at once hunchbacl
man came in our midst from some place.
Said he: 81 am the guide to yonder Blar-
ney Castle. | have charms for the witch
which lives and is seen in the castle after
dark. Also for the ghosts often seen there
in and about the dungeon and by the wick
ct gate" lie said, STOPPING down and pick
ing up from the grass little bit Of sham
rock, which like clover grows everywhere,
and holding it up, "This in my hand, stran-
gers, fear nothing, for as | go before they
will ali fly away" He was strange spec-
men of humanity to look at, though some
how hunchbacks all look alike and speak
alike, and he was not unlike others, save
his Irish broguc, and we followed him un-
til we reached the vast old ivy-covered ruin,
and he took us all about it, and in sober
earnest, with face which an Irishman only
can assume and put ON when reeling of
btdyRcy, would rattle away such strange and
unaccountablc, frightful stories at each stop
ping place,-at the round tower, at tn, bell
tower the dungeon, the cave, the dark sub
terranean passages, and each and every
nook where the word "boo would echo.
Finally he brought us up to the doorway,
and sure enough here stood what looked
more like a real old witch than / can de-
scribe. 1t was an old woman in a black
dress, white cap, checkorcd apron, pale,
thin, wrinkled face, bony hands, holding a
huge iron key. Hunchback suddenly stop
ped and stood in silence, and she was silent
and motionless. We, too, were silent; all
of us gazing at the old witch, and she at us.
At last ventured to call out, cold lady,
who are your" ~ am the keeper Of the
castle, sure; and if We would be after TAX
lag Il look within, como ON here llunch-
back, who had taken an attitude pointing
us ON, we went. She opened the old wood
en- door which led to the winding stairway
to the top of the castle. Our party entered
and went up, The view from the dizzy
height is fine indeed, and MS we stood look
ing out at the window opening of the upper
room, we could but wonder who had stood
there years before, when it was first built.
The walls, within and out, exhibited signs
of great architectural beauty; and the old
chimney-places were so very large that all
four of MS could stand in them without
STOPPING. There were many large rooms
and several stairways and dark recesses
within the walls. We spent an hour or so
here, filed with amazement at what once
was.


As we came down to the door, the old
woman would not allow any of us to go out
until we had kissed the blarney stone,
which was a smooth, peculiar shaped stone,
once very handsomely wrought, and which
she said had boon taken down from the


i A "a.