Romantic Ireland; volume 2/2

too offensively well kept to be wholly appealing. It is by

r another, to the largely increasing number o

ntic interest, lies in its association with its lakes and

e upper, middle, and lower lakes, Purple Mountain, Black Valley, Eagle's Nest, and Inni

Y AND AB

he more real personages

to categorically enumerate th

diate one's journeys therefrom for as extended a period as circumstances will allow. The guide-books set forth the att

t question Lough Leane and Innisfallen (Monk's Ro

f his lyric genius in the verses which he wro

l modern poets, none has struck the responsive chord of ima

l have some

comes drop

m the veils

S ORATORY,

the crick

ight's all

n a pur

ull of the li

arise an

ys, nigh

ake wate

sounds by

tand on t

e paveme

the deep he

rhaps as appropriate, but

sfallen, fa

sunshine lo

ou art let

fair shall l

t, which it is perhaps impossible to duplicate for its sentimental charm,-an a

out Killarney. The view ahead is peculiarly grand in its contrast with that left behind. Down the beetling precipices along which the road is clinging to its sterile sides, one traces the valley beneath until it blends with the silvery surface of Kenmare River. From Kenmare, the way to Killarney is by the "Windy Gap." Beneath lies an extensive valley, and beyond is the Black Valley. Farther on are the skylines of the

D FROM COR

ckross." This is characteristic of Sir Walter and his fine sentiment; but, as Muckross is s

h; and reeks of the native soil and its peo

old church which, in 1192, had been destroyed by fire. The remains of several of this prince's descendants are said to rest here. In the choir is the vault of the ancient Irish sept., the McCarthys, the memory of whom is preserved by a rude sculptured monument. Here also re

ough Leane. The middle lake is also called the Torc. A winding stream, known as the Long Range, unites the different bodies of water. The chief of the natural beauties of the Long Range is the Eagle's Nest, which rises sheer from the water's edge 1,700 feet. The upper lake is the most beautiful of all, though the

niscent of Gerald Griffin's

of Muckr

nd Torc Mountain lies just to the southward, and is justly famed as one of the brilliant beauties of the region, as it f

urrounded it. MacGillicuddy's Reeks lie farthest to the westward in the Killarney region. The name of this stern and jagged range sounds somewhat humourous, and in no way suggests the majesty and splendour of these hills; for they resemble the great mountains of other parts only by reason of their contrast with the low-lying land around th

-riding. This answers well enough for the "tripper," but is as unsatisfying to the real lover of nature as an

ry and rugged road on foot. Its scenic aspect is gloomy and grand, with mirrored lakes, lofty mountains, and a thick undergrowth of heather and

one emerges into "The Black

AGLE'

a gloomy, depr

owever, conjure up any very dark suspicions with regard to its past, judging from the aspect of the valley between the hours of nine in the morning and two in the

dy famed in history for their beauty; but one must

s, those who have mourned the lack of a single thought in his verse. This is certainly not true with regard to

ere the eagle soars; and there, beyond, the wild deer dash through the arbutus coverts, through which they have come to the margin of the lake to drink, and, scared by your footstep or your oar, are away back to the crosiered bracken or heather-covered moorland. But the first, the final, the deepest and most enduring impression of Killarney is that of beauty unspeakably tender, which puts on at ti

S C

rmoniously blent, constitute the most perfect and adequate loveliness that natur