called the Tin Isles. That they had a factory there, for the working of tin at a very early date, is generally conceded.

It appears from the poems of Avienus, who, in the fourth century, had access to some Punic records in one of the temples of Carthage, that a Carthaginian, named Milcho, made an expedition to Ireland about three hundred and fifty years before Christ, and on his return gave a particular account of the country. In this he speaks of the commerce carried on by the Carthaginian colonists at Gades, now Cadiz, with the Tin Isles, and remarks that the husbandmen of Carthage, as well as her common people, were accustomed to visit them. It is to be remarked that he speaks more particularly of Ireland than of Britain. He describes the hide-covered boats, or curracks, in which the inhabitants of the islands navigated their seas; of the populousness of the isle of the Hyberni, and the turfy nature of its soil.

By collecting such scattered testimonials as these, from ancient writers, though we can by no means adopt the fanciful theories of certain Irish historians, we may conclude, that, while the first population consisted of Celts, the Phoenicians had established colonies in the island, or at least had commercial intercourse

with the people, several centuries before the Christian era, and that the Phoenician priests had introduced their religious rites and ceremonies into the country. This view of an early connection with Eastern countries, and the early infusion of Eastern manners and customs among the people, appears to be sanctioned by the traditions of Ireland herself, by numerous monuments, the names of her promontories, and her old usages and rites, all bearing indelibly the same Oriental stamp.

While some of the religious rites of the ancient Irish seem to have been of Celtic origin, and while some are traceable to the Phoenicians, there are others still, which are referable to the Persians, with whom the Phoenicians are known to have had frequent intercourse. All these several superstitions appear to have been mixed up in the ancient Irish worship. Thus the sun, moon, fire, and water, were objects of adoration. The veneration of particular groves and trees was common, as well as the worship of stones and fountains. They had sacred hills, or tumuli, for sacrifice. The round towers, of which there are now about fifty, and which form a remarkable and peculiar feature of Irish antiquities, are supposed to have been connected with

fire worship, and may perhaps have been used for preserving the sacred fire. The cromlechs, of which there are still many vestiges, appear to have been places of sepulture. All these remains, scattered over Ireland, bear testimony to the high antiquity of the Irish people, and their intimacy with Eastern nations at a very early period.

Of the Druidism of Ireland, it may be remarked that it differed considerably from that of Britain and Gaul; and it has been conjectured that Ireland may have been the country whence this ancient superstition was transmitted to the neighboring countries of Europe. It has been deemed probable that it was, in fact, compounded from the several heathen rites that were brought together in that island. However this may be, there are still to be found in different parts of Ireland, among the manners, customs, and opinions of the people, the traces of all the various ancient superstitions to which we have alluded. These seem to cling to the people with unyielding pertinacity, and even engraft themselves, down to the present day, upon the rites and ceremonies of the Christian religion.

Thus far we have drawn our proofs of the antiquity of the Irish nation from the scattered

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records of ancient Greek and Roman writers, and from the indisputable testimony of monuments, language, and manners. These afford, indeed, but glimpses of the nation in remote ages while they assure us of a few leading facts, they still leave us in ignorance or doubt as to details, save such as can be supplied by legitimate inference.

The next sources of Irish history are to be found in the legends of the bards and the records of the annalists. The first of these portray to us, in shadowy but poetic outline, the brilliant deeds and barbaric glory of kings and heroes even more ancient than Romulus or Remus. However rich as sources of poetic inspiration to the Irish harper these may have been in former times, and however they may still linger as fond realities in the fancy of the modern Hibernian, still their extravagance and obscurity must exclude them from cautious and sober history.

The Irish annals are worthy of higher consideration, and, after much controversy, have been permitted to take their rank among authentic historical documents. The annals of Tigernach are reputed to be most worthy of credit. This annalist admits that the records

of Ireland are fabulous or uncertain, previous to the reign of Kimboath, two centuries before the Christian era. From that time, a regular succession of princes, down to a comparatively modern date, is furnished. Other events are also recorded, throwing some light upon the state of the country, and showing, at a very early period, a progress in civilization beyond most of the Celtic or Teutonic nations, which, like Ireland, borrowed no light from Roman civilization.

In respect to the confidence to be reposed in the Irish annals, it may be proper to make a few observations. It appears to have been among the most solemn of the customs observed in Ireland, even in the earliest times, to keep in each of the provinces, as well as the seat of the monarchical government, a public Psalter or register, in which all passing transactions of interest were noted down. This, like all the other ancient observances, continued to be retained after the introduction of Christianity. To the great monasteries all over the country fell the task of watching over and continuing these records. It is from the materials thus transmitted, that the Irish annals, to which I have referred, were made out, about the period of the twelfth century.