с The fact seems to be, that his history of Ireland is a compound of truth and error; from which the latter should, if possible, be cautiously winnowed, while the grains of valuable historical fact should be as carefully preserved. Regarding the result of his applications to individuals for local information, the author cannot complain. While he certainly is not enabled to say that success was invariable, or that intelligence was, in all instances, freely communicated, he is, assuredly, not compelled to make a report so unfavourable as that of Mr. Dutton, author of the Survey of the county of Clare, who thus writes in the preface to that work: "Had I," he says, "not considered myself bound to fulfil my promise to the Dublin Society, this survey of the county of Clare would never have been published; that ungracious illiberal silence, with regard both to the hundreds of letters I wrote, and to the reiterated verbal applications I made, (and which to the disgrace of Ireland, is complained of in almost every survey that has been published), would otherwise have urged me, at an early period, to decline all further progress. Some, to whom I applied, (whose rank in life should have placed them above such gross ignorance), asked me what a survey was, what it was about, &c.; and some, very wittily, wished to know, was it to take an account of all the pigs in Ennis and Killaloe, with a multitude of other remarks equally sagacious and liberal."-The author of the present work, unquestionably, did not, in all cases, meet an enlightened disposition to afford useful or interesting information; but, to the credit of his native county, he can with truth assert, that in no instance did he encounter barbarism such as that related by Mr. Dut ton. Let us hope that the day will speedily arrive, when the gentry of Ireland, universally, will duly appreciate the advantages of mental cultivation, and the benefits arising from the diffusion of useful literature. The history concludes at the year 1800, for the following reasons: firstly, it is usual to close every work of the kind at some well-defined era; and secondly, the present generation must be perfectly acquainted with the transac tions of the last thirty years. The chief and important feature in the history of our county since the Union, we will, however, mention. It consists of a recent effort on the part of the Romish priests and the agitators to destroy the ancient and salutary influence of the gentry over their tenantry, and to usurp the power of returning the county members to parliament. In this latter, they completely succeeded at the general election of 1831; and they have since maintained their unjust and pernicious ascendancy A detail of the causes which ensured their first success and subsequent supremacy, is needless, and would occupy more space than could be well afforded in this place. It will suffice to observe, that the gentry themselves, are not altogether blameless in the affair. This, in the spirit of true friends, we think it our duty to state. The author avows himself attached to Tory, Conservative, and Protestant principles, but he can safely say, that truth and impartiality have been closely studied in the following work. He was not ignorant of Cicero's rules for the historian; the first of which he declares to be, not to state any thing false, and the second, to dare to publish the truth.* The author trusts, that his adherence to these laws is obvious in the following pages. Amicus Plato, amicus Socrates, sed magis amica veritas. It is worthy of remark, that several of the ancient families connected with our county, who formerly were by no means distinguished for their loyalty to the throne, are now among its firmest supporters. It is further a striking circumstance, that so long as the members of these families remained Romanists, so long did they continue disposed to rebellion, but from the time of their adoption of the reformed religion, their political conduct has been that of good subjects, it has been steady, correct, and unimpeachable. To the various gentlemen who contributed information. to the work, the author returns his best thanks. The DEAN OF ST. PATRICK'S, WILLIAM HARTY, Esq., M.D., the Rev. H. KINGSMILL, F.T.C.D., SAMUEL LITTON, Esq., M.D., and W. SHAW MASON, Esq., are entitled to his particular acknowledgments, for facilities afforded by them to the collection of valuable historical matter. The In imitation of the plan adopted by the Rev. Mr. Gordon and Dr. O'Halloran, in the publication of their histories of Ireland, subscribers names were received; and the author has to express his thanks to the noblemen and gentlemen who thus promoted the work, and thereby fostered the growth of literature in this much neglected land. That imperfections do not exist in the following work, the author is not so presumptuous as to suppose. defective state of our public records, and the occasional difficulty of access to those which exist, will be remembered; while the circumscribed limits of the county (the smallest in Ireland excepting Louth) will not be forgotten. And should the number, beauty, or interest of the ancient works of art, be found not equal to that of some of the neighbouring counties, the author confidently trusts, that for such circumstance he will not be censured. Nor will the reader be so unreasonable as to expect matter foreign to the nature of the work, though, possibly, more absorbing, or exciting, in its specific properties. Dublin, 12th July, 1833. De Orat. Lib. 2. cap. 15. J. R. Present state of the Antiquities of the County of Carlow, Some account of the respectable families who have been THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF THE COUNTY OF CARLOW. CHAPTER I. Geographical Sketch of the County of Carlow. PREVIOUSLY to entering upon a detail of the history and antiquities of the county, it will be advisable to state its situation, boundaries, extent and divisions. No great space will be required for this purpose. The county of Carlow, formerly termed Catherlogh, is situate in the kingdom of Ireland, and province of Leinster. It is twentysix Irish miles in length, from north to south, and twenty-three in breadth from east to west. It is bounded on the north and northwest by the Queen's county and the county of Kildare, on the west by the county of Kilkenny, and on the east and south east by the counties of Wicklow and Wexford. The number of baronies in the county, is six, viz.: Carlow, Forth, Idrone East, Idrone West, Rathvilly and Saint Mullins. The quantity of acres in each, according to a survey made in 1789, is as follows: Making a total of 135,733 acres in the whole county, or about 346 English square miles. The baronies are further divided into parishes (all in the diocese of Leighlin), of which the civil distribution is as follows: |