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By J¥^7t^

HARVARD COLLEGE LIBRARY

GifitfUtt THE AUTHOR

_. „ I

_

J'

STATISTICAL SURVEY

OF TOE

COXJ^"TY OF ROSCOMMON,

&c. &c.

.Ol

1

4

i

<

i

0

STATISTICAL SURVEY

Of TJll.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON, .

D K A w X u i» i; N I) V. u r 1 1 r. n i u f.c i i o n s

OK THE

ROYAL DUBLIN SOCIETY.

I5v ISAAC WELD.

MCJinr i: *^^ '"^ nov\f. ii:i«ii a* \m-.m"i : n. i.Tdw <»[ rnK (.n)i.or,;i \l

«'»( u i\ oi iii::i.iN, J rf. i k .

DUBLIN :

PRINTED BV R. GRAISBERRY,

l*RINTKR TO THE UOVAL Dir.LIN SOCIKTY.

1S32.

/ff/^^

SUBJECTS OF INQUIRY

FOR

THE COUNTY SURVEYS,

ORIGINALLY SUOOBSTED BY

THE ROYAL DUBLIN SOCIETY,

GEOGRAPHICAL STATE AND CIRCUMSTANCES.

Sitaation and Extent,

Divisions,

Climate,

Soil and Surface,

Minerals,

Water.

AGRICULTURE.

Mode of culture,

Kxtent of it, and of each species of grain sewed,

Course of crops,

Use of oxen — how harnessed,

Nature and use of implements of husbandry,

Markets for grain,

Use of green food in winter.

PASTURE.

Nature of it.

Breed of cattle — how far improved,

ft vi SUGGESTIONS

Breed of cattle — how far capable of further improvement,

Markets or Fairs for then^

General prices,

Modes of feeding — how far housed in winter,

Natural grasses.

Artificial g^rasses.

Mode of hay-making.

Dairies, their produce.

Prices of hides, tallow, wool, and quantity sold.

FARMS.

Their size.

Farm houses and offices.

Mode of repairing them, whether by landlord or tenant.

Nature of tenoret.

General state of leases,

of particular clauses therein.

Taxes or Cesses paid by tenants,

Proportion of working horses or bullocks to the site of farms,

General size of fields, or enclosures.

Nature of fences.

Mode of hedge-rows, and keeping hedges.

Mode of draining,

Nature of manures.

GENERAL SUBJECTS.

Population,

Number and size of villages and towns,

Habitation, fuel, food, and clothing of the lower rank — their general cost.

Price of wages, labour, and provisions.

State of tithe, its general anoont on each article — what arti- cles are exempt, and what charged by modus,

Vk of beer and spirits, whether either or which is increasing,

OF INQUIRY. VII

State of roacb, bridges, &c.

of navigations and navigable rivers,

of fisheries,

State of education, schools, and charitable institutions,

of absentee and resident proprietors,

■ of circulation of money or paper,

of fanning or agricultural societies,

of manufactures, whether increasing,

of encouragement to them, and the peculiar aptness of

the situation for their extension,

of mills of every kind,

of plantations and planting,

of the effects of the encouragement heretofore given to

them by the Society, particularized in the list annexed. of any improvements which may occur for future en- couragement, and particularly for the preservation of

the trees, when planted,

of nurseries within the county, and extent of sales,

Price of timber and state of it, in the county,

Quantity of bog and waste ground.

Possibility and means of improving it.

Obstacles to it and best means of removing them.

Habits of industry, or want of industry among the people,

The use of the English language, whether general, or how far

increasing, Account of towers, castles, monasteries, ancient buildings, or

places remarkable for any historical event. Churches — resident clergy, glebes and glebe houses, Whether the county has been actually surveyed, when, and

whether the survey is published, Weights and measures, liquid or dry — in what instances arc

weights assigned for measures — or vice versa. The weight or measure, by which grain, flour, potatoes, butter.

Sec. are sold.

The Society do not deem themselves pledged to any opinion given by tlie Author of this Surrey ; and they desire, that nothing contained in it, be considered as their sentiments ; they have only published it as the report of the Gentleman whose name is affixed, and they publish it for the comments and observations of all persons, which they entreat to be given freely and without reserve.

It is therefore requested, that the observations on reading this work may be returned to the Royal Dublin Society, as soon as may be convenient, and which will meet with the fullest attention in a future edition.

CONTENTS.

Situation, Extent, Boundaries, p. 1. Area English and Irish meaBure, 2. Frondera, 3. Divisions of the County. Positions of Baronies, 4. When formed, 5. Tabular contents, 6. Parishes and contents, 7. Sammary of same, 1 0. Acreable contents, per county map and county books, 11. Surface and appearance of the county, 12. Mountains, 15. Highest lands, 17.

Geological Formation and Mineral Productions, 18. Sandstone and limestone districts, 19. Coal forma- tion, 20. Table of strata, 24. General Obserrations thereon, 26.

Collieries, Iron Works, &c., 33. Early wrought, 35. History of the Arigna iron works, established by the O'Reillys, 37. Situation described, 39. Mr. Griffith's survey and report thereon, 41. Establishment of joint stock mining companies, 43. Arigna coal and iron com- pany, 46. Account of their proceedings, 47. Estimates of the cost of the iron, 73.

Bogs. Description and general observations, 77. Surveys thereof, executed under the commissioners by Mr. Long^ field, Mr. Griffith, Mr. Edgeworth, Mr. Nimmo, 80. Latter improvements of bog, 81.

Lakes and Rivers. Proportion of surface covered by water, 85. Turloughs, 86. Loughs, 88. Lough

b

X CONTENTS.

Gara, 89. The river Brecogae, 91. The river Lung, 92. Sinks into the earth and rises again, 93. Swallow holes ; mills near them, 93. Height of Lough Gara, 94. Rivers into and from it, 95. Damages from floods, 95. Pro- posed remedy, 96.

The River Suck, 97. Ballinasloo canal, 98. General view of the river, 99. Table of levels, 101. Circuitous course, 102. Bridges over it, 103. Description of some, 104. Its sources and supplies, 105. Fish, 106.

The River Shannon, 106. General description of its course and navigation, 108. Source of the Shannon, 110. Lough Allen, 111. Its shores, scenery, &c, 112. Town of Drumshambo, 114. Its improvement and markets, 115.

Detailed description of the Shannon : From Lough Allen to Battle Bridge - - - 116

Battle Bridge to Jamestown - - - 119

Jamestown to Drumsna - - - - 122

Drumsna to Rooskey - - - - 128

Rooskey to Tarmonbarry - - - 1 30

Mr. Richard's plan for opening the navigation to

the town of Roscommon - - - - 1 36

From Tarmonbarry to Lanesborough - - 1 39

Town of Lanesborough - - - - - 143

Lough Rec - - 145

Its shores, islands, scenery, castles, ruins - . 146

From Lough Ree to the mouth of the river Suck 153

Athlone bridge - - - - - - 155

Shannon bridge - - - - - - 159

Summar}' tables of distances, falls, and heights

above the sea, along the Shannon - - 163

Gen€ral observations on the Shannon, its trade, navigation, &c. 164. Tables of tonnage of l^ats, entering to and from the Royal Canal, 170. Ditto, Grand Canal, 171. Compara- tive prices of land carriage, 1 75.

CONTENTS. XI

Roads, 176. Communications with the sea cotst, and with

navigable inland waters and canab, 177. Soil, 179. Climate, 182.

BARONY OF BOYLE.

Surface and general character, 186. Mountains and lakes, tb. Country seats, 187. Town of Boyle, 188. Enu- meration of houses, 189. Origin, 191. Increase and im- provements, 194. The Irish town, 194. Mendicity, 199. Commerce, 200. Shops and warehouses, 202. Trades, 204. Money and banking* business, 206. Public houses and iniv9, 207. Church and places of worship, 209. Bridge, 210. New sessions house, 212. Savings bank, 213. Cha- ritable loan, 213. Dispensary, 217. Schools, ib. Leases and tenures, 218. The abbey, 219. Rockingham, 231. Lough Key, 235. Island and ruins, 236. General im- provements, 240. Schools, moral agent, 241. Extensive estates of Viscount Lorton, 243. Size of farms and rents of land, 244. New houses, 245. Ardcarne, ib. Boyle water and Knockvicar bridge, 246. Coote Hall estate, 247. Former condition, 249. Improvements, 2.51 . The old hall, 253. Oakport, 254. Turbaries, trade in turf, 257.

Northern part of tue Barony of Boyle. — Loughs Skeen and Meelagh, 259. Separation of the lime- stone and sandstone, 260. Crossna, 261. Castle Tenni- son, 262. Village of Kilronan, 263. Old Church, 264. Cardan, ih. Patron, 269. Keadue, 270. Drumshambo

inn, ib. Curlew Mountains, 272. Boyle to Lough Gara, 275. Asilin, 277. Mill sites, ih.

Cromlech, 278. Plains of Boyle, 279. Southern parts of the Barony or Bovlf, 280. Easter-

XJl CONTENTS.

snow, 281. Village of Croghan, 282. Mr. Ooy Uojd, 283. Riagh Crogbao and aacred care, 285. Kilfana- cumaej, ib. Killuken, 286. Breeogne rirer, 288. Freneh Park, 289. The Tillage, 294. Prices of land, 296. Clon- shanril abbej, 297. South westbrv parts of the Barovt op Botle, 300. Lough 01yn» ib. Village, 302. Antiquities, 304.

BARONY OP ROSCOimON.

General description^ 306. Longhs and rivers, 308. Wells, 309. Tarioughe, 309. Bogs, 310. Sandstone tract, 311. SlieTebawn, ib. Country seats, 314. Grating and til- lage, 314, 315. New road from Tarmonbarry, 318. Strokestowr, 319. Hoose and demesne of Lord Hart- landy 329. Agricdtore, 333. Trimming sheep snbse- qoentto sheering, 334. Improved breeds of animals, pigs, 335. Inns, ib. Races and balls, 336. Elphik, 337. Porerty of cottages, 338. Want «f employment, 339. Enumeration of booses, 340. The Inn, 341. Fine water, 343. Shops, ib. Com markets, 344. New market house, 345. General obsenrations on bishop's property, 346. Schools, 349. Diocesan, t6. Register office, 354. Cathedral, 356. Oliver Goldsmith, 362. Tulsk, 371. Abbey, 372. Castle, 373. Country in vicinity of Tulsk, 374. Grazing farms, 4^.

BARONY OF BALUNTOBBER.

General description, 377. Formation of the barony, 378. O'Cooor Cuntly, ib. Castle of Ballintobber, 383. Towv OP Roscommon, 391. Enumeration of houses, 398. Ordinaiy markets, 402. Manufactures of pottery ware, 403. Diligences, inns, &c., 405. Mendicity, ^06. New

CONTENTS. XUl

ooort houM, 409. Local courts and jurlBdictioDy 413. New gaol, ib. Lunatic asjium, 423. County infirmary, 425. Diseases, 430. Equitable loan, 437. Schools, ib. Castle of Roscommon, 438. The abbey, 449. Clontoskert abbey, 459.

CsvTRAL division of Ballintobber barony, 460. Face of the country, ib, Moate park, 461. Eastern part of dirision, 463. Western part, 465.

WzsTEEV division of the barony of Ballintobber, 466. Cas- tlereagh, 467. Lord Mount Sandford*s estates, 473. Bal- linlough, 482. Belanagare, 484. Castle Plunket, 486.

Rasterk division of Ballintobber barony.

HALF BARONY OF BALLYMOE.

General description, 492. Oran, 493. Value of land, ib,

BARONY OF ATHLONE.

General description, 498. Athleague, 507. Knockcroghery, 508. Tobacco pipe manufactory, 510. Brideswdl, 515. Towv OF Athlgne, 519. Castle and antiquities, 520. Siege of 1690-1, 522. Barracks, 533. Military hospital, 534. Bridge, 535. Corporation, 541. Tolls, ib. Houses, streets, &c. 544. Public houses, 549. Mendicity, 550, Customs, 551. Trade and commerce, 555, St. John's, 558.

HALF BARONY OF MOYCARNE.

General description, 566, Shannon bridge, 567. Ballina- sloe, 568.

STATISTICAL TABLES.

Church Establishment 574

I. Benefices, parishes 575

II. Alphabetical list of parishes _ - - - 579

XIV CONTENTS.

III. Tithe composition ..... 584

IV. Vestrj assessmentB ..... 589

V. Grants from Board of First Fruits ... 590

VI. Glebes - 591

VII. Extentof diocese of Elphin, &c. ... 592

VIII. First Fruits 594

IX. Produce of ditto 596

X. Incumbents .--..-- 597

XI. Resident clergy 599

XII. Population returns 601

xm. Ditto 605

XIV. Ditto 606

XV. Ditto --.----- 607

XVI.* Education - 609

xvi.«> Do. 610

XVII. Do. schools 611

XVIII. Do. do. 613

XIX. Do. London Hibernian Society ... 517

XX. Do. Ladies' Hibernian Female Schools - - 618

XXI. Do. Sunday schools ..... 619

XXII. Do. Education Society, Kildare-place - - 620

XXIII. Grand Jury Presentments ... 621

XXIV. Do. do. 623

XXV. Do. Baronial assessments .... 624

XXVI. Do. special levies 625

XXVII. ConsUbulary establishment - 626

XXVIII. Criminal offences .... 627

XXIX. ChariUble institutions .... 628

XXX. Licenses for sale of spirits .... 629

XXXI. Coroner's inquests 630

XX XII. Ciril bilb at quarter sessions - - 631

XXXIII. Quarter sessions, where held ... 632

XXXIV. PeUy sessions 633

XXXV. Trespass rates ..... 634

CONTENTS. XV

XXXVI. Personal property under probate - - 636

XXXVII. Prices _...-- 637

XXXVIII. Newspaper stamps . - - - 643

XXXIX. Fairs 644

XL. Post towns ------ 646

Grand Jury for 1820 647

Do. 1821 648

Do. 1828 649

Do. 1829 650

Grand panel of the county, 1828 - - - - 651 Do. 1829 - - - - 652

Do. 1830 - - - - 653

General Observations. Agricnlture, 654. The spade and the loy, 657 . The stiveen, 659. Spade husbandry, 660. Produce of large and small holdings, 662. Grazing farms, 665. Rents and produce, 666. Dairies, 670. Rents and public burdens, 671. Employment for the people, 678. Manufactures, 681. Linen do. 682. Agriculture, the surest source of employment, 686. Prevalent misery, 690. Petition from the trades of Boyle to the House of Lords, 690. Resolutions of the grand jury 1829, on the poor laws,

SUNDRY RESOLUTIONS OF GRAND JURIES.

In 1 829, on poor laws, 696

In 1823, on tithes, 697

In 1824, on salaries of the county officers, - - 698

Education, 699. Absentee Rentals, 704. Antiquities, 707. Political circumstances, 708.

APPENDIX.

History of the Arigna Coal and Iron Company, i. On the cultivation of the bogs, xxvii.

PREFACE.

The present yolume occnpies the tirenty- fourth place in the series of statistical county survejrs of Ireland, originally instituted by the Royal Dublin Societyi under the immediate patronage of the Irish parliament That no greater progress, at the end of so many years, should have been made towards the completion of this important national undertaking, and that eight counties should still remain unde- scribedy is, perhaps, principally attributable to the inadequacy of the remuneration held out by the Society, in itself alone, offering little tempta- tion to enter upon the laborious exertions, as well in the field as in the study, which are absolutely necessary to bring a county survey to a satis- factory conclusion. Neither has any distinction been made between the large or the small, the near or the remote counties. The Society, at the outset, appears to have depended upon persons

XTIU PREFACE.

being found, who would volunteer their services, regardless of immediate recompense, and such expectations have not proved altogether devoid of foundation ; but, in the mean time, the sur- veys have lingered on to the present day.

As far back as the year 1 799> upon the pub- lication of my travels in the States of North America and the Canadas, I had been solicited by the persons who were then at the head of the Society, to undertake one of the surveys ; but after having had my mind so long occupied with the destinies of the giant regions of the new world, I felt no inclination to descend to the examination of an Irish county, and at once declined the proposal. That, at the end of thirty years, I should have undertaken a task which I had before rejected, may require a few words df explanation ; and I think, I may say, I was principally prompted to it, by the perusal of the able little book upon Ireland, by Mr. Biche- no, and the conversation I had the pleasure of holding with him at my own house, though to my regret, only during a very cursory visit I had ample leimire also at the time, and felt a desire to avoid, in some measure, the obloquy wfaidi has been cast upon those, who, after years spent in foreign travel, in various countries, remain but iU acquainted with their own. Of the county of Roscommon and of Connaught in general,

PREFACE. XIX

I knew, in fact, little or nothing, from personal observation, having never set foot within their limits, excepting during a short excursion to examine the mining districts on the confines of Lough Allen.

I commenced my task in the summer of the year 1830 ; spent the principal part of the months of August, September, and October, in peram- bulating the county to and fro in every direc- tion ; and, in the following winter sat down to arrange the fruits of my researches. But having been under the necessity of going to London for some months, on my own business ; and af- terwards having gone thither, a second time, on a mission relative to the financial affairs of the Royal Dublin Society, the composition of the work was retarded ; and the printing was after- wards protracted considerably beyond the time usually required to bring such a volume to a termination.

I have spared no pains, whether in pursuing my inquiries on the spot, or in searching for information from sources already published: the latter, indeed, occupied much more time than I had anticipated ; and, to my mortification, without any very satisfactory results. That I may not have fallen into error, and also passed over many things unnoticed, I am not so presump- tuous as to suppose j but, pursuant to the notice

XX PREFACE.

which appears prefixed to this work, I beg leave to Bay, that I shall gratefully receive any com- munications which may be offered, tending to illostrate the statistics of the county; and shall do my utmost to arrange them, in order to their being deposited along with this volume, in the library of the Royal Dublin Society.

I. W.

KAVENSWELIm

BRAV.

SURVEY

or THE

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON.

SITUATION — EXTENT — BOUNDARIES.

Xhr County of Roscommon, one of the five coonties which compose the province of Connaught, is situated on the western bank of the river Shannon, and nearly in the centre of Ireland. Its extreme north lies in N. latitude 54^ l' 27" ^ and its most southern point in 53° 16' 13" : the distance between these two parallels of latitude amounts in Irish miles to about forty-six two-thirds, and in English statute nearly to fifty-nine one-third, which may accordingly be set down for the length of the county.

The breadth of the county is very unequal, and it diminishes to a narrow angle both at the north and at the south. Its largest continuous width from east to west is nearly in the parallel of Rooskeybridge, on the Shannon, where it reaches to about twenty-five Irish miles, somewhat less than thirty-two English. Beyond this line to the north and to the south the county becomes narrower, more particularly in the

B

2 SURVEY OP THE

latter direction : near the town of Athleague, upon the river Suck, the distance from that stream to Lough Ree, one of the expansions of the Shannon, does not exceed ten miles.

The meridian of Elphin, which is nearly in the centre of the county, is in 8® 8' 31" W. longitude from Greenwich.*

The area of the county contains

Irish Measure. EDglish Meisnre.

In square miles 575 . . 932

In acres .. 368,446 696,821

Which last may be subdivided as follows :

Arable acres 279,976 « •• 453.515

Bog do. 80,908 .. 131,057

Water do. 7,562 . . 12,249

368,446 596,821

*

The northern frontier of the county, which, as already observed, is very narrow, not exceeding three miles in breadth, is bounded by the County of Leitrim ; 'on the north-^est the boundary is formed by Sligo; on the west by Mayo ; on the south-west by Galway, or rather by the river Suck, which flows between the two counties, in a meandering course of nearly fifty miles, computing all its windings. But the most re- markable boundary of the County Roscommon ia that ^m its eastern side, formed by the river Shannon and its extensive lakes ; and although from the point wheie

* Vide tilt Gftad Jaiy coeatj map tieculed by Mfssit. JEdftworlb aad Ridufd Grifith, pabiiflied ia 1817.

COUNTY OF ROSCX>MlfON. d

the boundary line lo the n^rth meets Lough AUen^ to the mouth of the river Suck on the south, which two points are not far from being under the same meridian/ the distance, as already mentioned, does not exceed sixty English miles in a straight line, yet at least double that extent may be assigned to the frontier line, if all the windings of the river, and all the sinuosities of the shores of the lakes, are taken into account. About two- thirds of the boundaries of the county are defined by water.

The river Suck is only navigable for small boats, and that to a short distance from its mouth ; whilst the Shannon during the greater part of its course, along the shores of Roscommon, is navigable for boats of burthen ; but the navigation is frequently inter- cepted by shallows and falls, as will be more particu- larly explained in the section upon the rivers, and the utility of the navigation to the commercial and agri- cultural interests of the county ; for the present the subject is merely one of boundaries.

By bridges across the Shannon, Roscommon com- municates with the Counties of Leitrim, Longford, Westmeath, and with the King's County; and by bridges across the river Suck, with Galway.

DIVISIONS OF THE COUNTY.

Roscommon is divided into six baronies and half baronies, in the following order, beginning at the north :

( Occupying the northern and north- Barony of Boyle, } western parts of the County ; thQ

V principal town that of Boyle.

BaroDj of Rotoommon,

Barony of Ballintobber,

Half Baronj of Ballj-

moe,

Barony of Athlone,

tURVKT OF THC

Lying to tho tooth of tho pre- ceding one, and occupying the central part of the County: principal town Elphik.

nrhis Barony consiatB of three ae- parate detached portions: two of them bordering upon the Shannon, but disjoined by the intenrention of the Barony of Roscommon : and the third, situ- ated to the extreme west of the county, being separated from the other two parts of the ba- rony, by the intenrention of the half barony of Ballymoe. The county town, Roscommov, stands within this barony.

On the south-west of the coonty, adjoining the County of Gal* way.

/^Extending entirely across the J county from east to west, near J the town of the same name : V. principal town, Atiilon£.

.•,..« /.m# f Occupying the extreme south of

HalfBaronyofMoycame, i .. ,

* Is tbt togrtTfd county map, by Meiars. Edfeworth and GriiBth, tilt half barony of Ballymoe if not designated by name in large letten, like the other baronies, bnt its position may be assumed from the town of Ballymoe, on the borders of the County of Galway, and from the cokmriag •f the map*

CX)UNTY OF R0900M1I0N. 5

In the foregoing table, the baronies are placed in: their geographical order £rom north to south, the bet- ter to render their respective situations understood; But in the county books, as well as in the marginal references of the county map, they are arrange dif- ferently, and stand thus :

Athlone,

Ballintobber,

Half Ballymoe,

Boyle,

Half Moycame,

Roscommon.

On what principle the arrangement was originally made, I have not been able satisfactorily to ascertain. The division of Connaught into counties, and of Ros« common into baronies, was made in the time of Queen Elizabeth under Sir John Perrot. Athlone being then the place of the greatest importance, in the central parts of Ireland, and the residence frequently of the Deputy, was naturally placed the first on the list ; but why the half baronies of Ballymoe and of Moycame, which contain no towns of note, and which, as their epithet of /wi//" denotes, are appendages of the divisions of another county, should be placed, the one before the barony of Boyle, and both before the barony of Roscommon, is not so readily explained. Ballintob- ber, which is the largest of all the baronies, comes the second on the list ; and this barony, it is to be ob- served, contains the town of Roscommon ; but whe- ther it was fixed upon for the county town, from being one of the most central places, admits of doubt. The barony of Ballintobber comprised the terri-

6 SURVKY OP THE

toriea of OConor Mumne;* that of Roseommon, the territories of O'Conor Ruadk :\ these were riral chieftains, but both of them were eompelled to sub* mit to the queen, and to surrender their Brehon titles. They executed indentures of submission, and accepted of re-grants to them and their heirs*

The barony of Boyle was formed at the same time out of the territories of M^Dermott of the Rock.

The following is a table of the contents of these several Baronies, according to a marginal note in the great County map already referred to :

BARONIES.	ACRES.
Aeablb.	Boo.	Watbe	toul Irish.	total English.
BOTLB • . . ROBCOMMOir BALLIlfTOBBBE . Half Ballymob Atblovb • . Ha LP MOYCAEITB	65,137 48,700 75,923 13,333 66,623 10,170	25,548 6,629 23,295 1,001 16,337 8,098	3,598 1,686 1,300 56 902 20	94,283 57,105 100,518 14.390 83,862 18,288	152 723 92,501 162,822 23,309 135,843 29,623
loUl in Irith Acros' 279,976 1	80,908	7,562	368,446
Total in £ng. Acres 453,515	131,057	12,249		596,821

These baronies are subdivided into parishes, and the parishes into townlands ; arbitrary divisions con- taining no definite number of acres.

* Dkwuna, or Dim, lirown, so called from tlie colour of his hair.

t Ru»dk, spelt also Humidk ; that is, red-haired.

I most take this early opportnnitj of eipressiog my thanks to Blatihew O'Conor, Bsq., Barrister, brother of the late 0*Conor Don, M. P. for the Coanty of Roseommoo, for his obliging communication of theit and other inttfietiBf particiilars.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 7

The following tables specifying the parishes, the townlands, and the acreable contents of the parishes, are t^en from the county books, which serre as the basis of the fiscal assessments upon the county.

I.

BARONY OF BOYLE.

Pvishes. Number of Townlands.	Contento in Iriih Acret.
	15	1939
Ki11bry«m	6	969
Ardcarne	39	5760
Tumma	27	2762
Killuken	26	2212
Killamod	12	1781
Easteranow	22	1976
Killcolagh . .	12	1798
Taughboyne	56	9193
Boyle • •	43	6378
Eillronan	34	2399
Creaye	.19	1891
KillmacumBey	32 343	2759
	41,817

n.

BARONY OF ROSCOMMON.

Parishes.	Townlands.	Contents.
Shankbill . .	. . Zo . •	2622
Bumlin	17	2273
Elphin	. • OO • 1	5532
KiltroBtan • .	..28	3007

1 3,434

6

	SimVBY OF THE
Ptmh.	Townlandi.	Conte&tt.
Brought forward	13,434
Clonfinloagh	28	3025
Lisanuff • • •	22	2699
KUlaken	22	2511
Ogulla	24	3002
KUlhooly . .	21	2296
Clooncraff . .	23	1527
Aghrim	37	3417

283

31,911

in.

BARONY OF BALUNtOBBER.

Piriihet. Killbride and Derran Killkeeran .

Tarmonbarry

Ballintobber

BaaUck

Killoorkej

KUlUran

Killmore

Killglaii

Killgefliii

RoaconnaoD

Cloootoakert

KilltoUa^

• •

• •

• •

• •

• •

TownUnds.	Conteiiti.
36	7122
50	6138
— ,	1872
16	2646
25	5621
11	2847
21	1597
34	3855
37	5024
22	2515
28	3918
24	1720
43	6128

347

51,003

COUNTY OF ROSOOIIMON.

IV.

HALF BARONY OF BALLYMOB.

Parishes.		Coatenu.
Gran	• • to • •	2506
IXmsinon	• . (5 • •	586
DiUmtemple	16 • •	1775
CUMmigormican	12	a532

49

8399

V.

BARONY OF ATHLONE.

Parishes.	Townlands.	Contents.
St Peter's ..	6	1442
Drum	24	3352
Killtoom	21	3770
Cam	30	5352
Taughmaconnel	35	5538
Dysart	14	1836
St. John's	18	3685
Taughboy	24	2661
Taughsrara	27	3147
Rahara	32	2148
Killenvoy	33	2781
Killmayn	42	3759
Athleague . •	22	3462
Fuerty . .	35	5549

363

48,483

10

SURVEY OF THE

VI.

HALF BARONY OF MOYCARNE.

Paritbet. Creeagh Moore

•*,

TownUndt.

14

19

• •

57

ContcDls. 3276 5483

		33		8759
	SUMMARY	•
Baroniei.	Parisbet.	Townluidt.	Contents.
Bojle	13		343	41,817
	11		283	31,911
Ballintobber	13		347	51,003
Half Ballymoe	4		49	8,399
Athlone	14		363	48,483
Half Mojcame	2		33	8,759

190,372

On easting the eye over the preceding taUes, it will be immediately perceived, that there is a great difference between the acreable contents of the county, as noted in the margin of the county map, and the contents of the several baronies in the books according to which the assessments are levied on the county. To place this difference in a clearer point of view, the table has been constructed :

€X>UNTT OF ROSCX>BfMON. 11

Contenti per the ContenU bj the countj

Biroiiiei. county map. books for aiietmeiit.

Jriik Aenu Iruk Aam*

41,817

1. Boyle .. 65,137

2. Roecommon 48,790

3. Ballintobber 75,923

4. HalfBallymoe 13,333

5. Athlone . . 66,623

6. Half Moycarne 10,170

31,911 51,003

8,399 48,483

8,759

Total arable land 279,976 190,372

Thus^ by the county books^ it appears as if the whole superficial contents of the county only amounted to 190,372 acres ; a quantity less by 89,604 acres than the amount of the mere arable land set down in Messrs. Edgeworth and Griffith's map. Incorrectness in any one part of a statement necessarily creates doubts about the remainder; and in these old esti- mates, although the whole contents are less, yet have they in some instances gone beyond the mark, and assigned more acres to certain townlands than they are known actually to contain. Thus, in the pai'ish of Elphin, as I was informed by his Lordship the Bishop, there is an instance of county cess being levied every year for 61)0 acres, whereas not more than 500 acres can be ascertained as existing within the district described.

In treating of the taxation of the county, this sub- ject will come more fully under notice. At present it has been introduced merely in reference to the superficial contents of the county and its subdivision. So also, in considering the ecclesiastical divisions of the county, discrepancies will be pointed out between

12 SURVLT OF THK

the preceding list of the parishes, and those named in the Elcclesiastical Register, and in the county map.

It is to be presumed that the subdivision of pa* rishes into townlands, and the various different pro- portions of surface assigned to the latter, originally depended on the estimated quantity of profitable ground which each townland contained. Had the estimate been made with tolerable precision, or even with a reasonable approximation to precision, a cu- rious and interesting basis would have been afforded for a comparison between the extent of profitable ground in former and present times. But the esti- mate of the contents of the townlands in general is admitted to have been made very inaccurately; and hence much inequality arises in the taxation of the county.*

SURFACE AND APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTY.

The mountains on the borders of Lough Allen, the Curlew mountains in the same district, the great sand- stone ridge of Slievebawn, extending through the baro- nies of Ballintobber and Roscommon, and Slievealuyn in the west, afford sure indications that the surface of Uie county is not devoid of inequality and variety. Neither is it merely in the vicinity of the mountains that the surfEkce is broken ; but in various parts it is agreeably

* It U to iwireM Umm erron, and readtr tha divinon more j«tl» that in •dditioD io, and id coonciion with the great TrigoooBBctrical Ordnance Swey, another one U can7ing on linraltaniMiatlj, to regvlate boundarietf and Bake a new cetimaie of the Tatie of the lead.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 13

iindulated with hiU and dale. Nevertheless^ considera- ble tracts of flat ground intervene likewise, through which dull and sleepjr rivers wind their sluggish course^ finequently overflowing their sedgy banks and flooding the country to a considerable extent on either side. Some of the larger bogs also present flat surfaces of considerable extent, whilst others are diversified with all the inequalities of the hills upon which they re- pose. Along the river Suck, and likewise on the Shannon, there are extensive tracts of flat alluvial soil, and also vast plains of bog. The most remarkable of these are in the contiguity of Athlone and of Lanes- borough. The latter was selected for the base line measured for the Trigonometrical Survey of the county, by Messrs. Wm. Edgeworth and Richard Griffith, the length of which amounted to 42,046 feet. It may be observed, however, that this tract does not present an uninterrupted even surface, but is crossed by several ridges of limestone gravel, so that in passing between Lanesborough and Roscommon, the old gaol, near the summit of the hill in the latter town, which is a re- markable land-mark on this side of the county, is in several instances obscured by the intervening ground*

Occasionally, roads may be seen passing for one or two miles, and even more, over nearly dead levels, whilst in far more numerous instances, they wind over hills, where ascents and descents occur of inconvenient steepness, and that also not in the immediate vicinity of the mountains.

Though rocks appear above the surfaces in various places beyond the mountainous region, yet they rarely rise to considemble height, or present large individual compact masses. I cannot call to recollection a single

14 SURVEY OP THE

instance^ excepting it be actually amongst the moan'* tainS) where they form cliffs, or become remarkable objects in the landscape* Along the Suck, and along the river Shannon, south of Carrick, the shores in several parts are bold, and cliffs occasionally overhang the water ; but these in general are formed of compact masses of limestone gravel and indurated day ; and although the bed of these rivers is traversed by ledges of rocks, which form bars in various places, yet these seldom appear above the water, and never rise to a height so as to become picturesque, or even prominent objects in the landscape. The rocks upon which the ancient castles and abbeys are based, invariably of limestone, present the same character of flat ledges, and where cut through for the formation of the fosse, or moat, are covered with vegetation and scarcely dis- tinguishable from banks of earth.

In the northern parts of the county, amongst the mountains, scenery occasionally occurs, picturesque if not romantic in its nature. Certain parts of the banks of the Suck are also beautiful, and the shores of some of the lakes truly delightful. Indeed, there is scarcely any part of the county which would not be grateful to the eye, if it was but more generally wooded ; but the want of timber is very observable. Yet in the neighbourhood of country seats, there are g^roves and plantations, which serve to show what the country might become if the same spirit which created them were more generally diffused. The freedom with which trees flourish, and the healthy and vigorous appearance of those which have attained considerable age as well as size, plainly indicate that they have found both toil and climate congenial to their growth.

COUNTY OP ROSCOMMON. 15

Near some of the more distmguished residences, the extent of wood is very considerable, all of it, however, artificially planted. Amongst these, Moate Park, near the town of Roscommon, the seat of Lord Crofton ; Strokestown, Lord Hartland's; Lough Glynn, Lord Dillon's; Rockingham, Viscount Lorton's; French Park, Mt. Talbot, &c., may all boast of some beautiful reaches of wood, and several fine individual trees. Ex- cepting it be near Lough Meelagh in the northern part of the county, I am not aware, however, of having seen any trees, even of moderate size, which bore the ap- pearance of original natural growth; but in some ravines, to the west of Castlerea, and also near the banks of the lower Suck, as well as near Lough Ree, scrubby thickets may be seen which seem to have sprung from old stocks, probably the remnants of former woods.

Of modem plantations, not made for ornament, in the immediate neighbourhood of the house or demesne, the most extensive are those of Viscount Lorton, at the base of the Curlew mountains, and of Mr. Wills, on Slievealuyn, near Ballinlough.

MOUNTAINS.

The highest moiintains in the county are those of Ballieve or Brahlieve, and Slieve Curkagh, to the north, through the valley between which the river Arigna flows, subsequently emptying itself into the Shannon, immediately after the latter river has issued firom Lough Allen. I am not aware of any published data from which the relative heights of these moun-

IG SVnVET OF THE

tains of Roscommon may be estimated, but they will probably be made knowni together with many other interesting particulars, through the present Ordnance Surveys. Mr. Griffith, in hb Surrey of the Connaught Coal District, gives some grounds for supposing that the height of Brahlieve may amount to 1000 or 1200 feet above the valley at its base. I should be disposed to think it still higher; but every one knows how very erroneous the mere judgment by the eye often proves. Slieve Curkagh mountain, on the opposite or northern side of the valley, appears to be yet more elevated. These mountains rise conspicuously above all the other heights in Roscommon, and show their blue summits in the horizon from very distant parts of the county.

Next to these in height is the ridge of Slieve Bawn, which extends in a direction nearly north and south, within the distance of from two to four miles of the river Shannon. The most southern extremity of the ridge lies nearly in the same parallel of latitude as the town of Lanesborough, at the h^ad of Lough Ree, on the Shannon. The ridge of Slieve Bawn may also be seen peering in the horizon from a very con- siderable distance, more particularly from certain places within the County of Longford on the eastern side of the Shannon. These mountains of Brahlieve and Slieve Curkagh, in the northern extremity of the county, in the vicinity of Lough Allen, and of Slieve Bawn, near the middle of the eastern frontier, are the only heights which appear to deserve the appellation of mountain, although it in not easy to say where the term hill should cease to be used, and that of mountain begin. The word Slieotf it may be here observed, sig* nifies in the Irish language a mountain^ so that the

COUTJ^JT OF R0900MM0N. 17

application of that term to certain heights shows, tole- rably clearly, the general opinion that was entertained of their superior elevation. The other highlands are for the most part distinguished by the epithet mount: as Fairymount, &c.

Nevertheless, Mr. Long^eld, in his Survey of the Bog Districts, as published in the third Report of the Commissioners appointed by Parliament to inquire into the nature and extent of the bogs in Ireland, supposes the Fairymount which is situated near Lough- glynn, in the south* west angle of the barony of Boyle, to be the most elevated ground in the county. '' There is one certain fact,*' he says, ** namely, that a stream which rises in the eastern side of Fairymount hill, runs by Cloonshanville to Lough Gara, (a principal source of the Shannon J and another stream rising on the south-west side of said hill, and running to Castle- rea, forms a principal source of the river Suck ; which proves that Fairymount hill must be the highest ground in tho County Roscommon, and as such I have chosen it for the chief point of observation in taking my trigonometrical angle." Now, that Fairy- mount is the highest land in that part of the County Roscommon, will admit of no doubt on examining the course of the streams alluded to ; but it may be ob- served, that both the waters of Lough Gara and those of the river Suck fall into the Shannon consider- ably below the embouchure of the river Arigna; those of the Suck indeed at a distance exceeding that of the actual length of the county. The Arigna, more- over, is a rapid river, having several considerable falls in the valley through which it runs ; whereas the Lung and the Suck are both sluggish streams. The

D

18 SURVEY OP THR

hill of Fairymount is a gently rising eminence, with cultivation extending to its very summit; whilst Brahlieve and Slieve Curkagh, as their names signify in Irish, are mountains in the real acceptation of the term ; mountains which would be considered as such in any part of the world, with steep rugged sides, and broad perpendicular faces of rock near their summits^ towering above the valley at their base.

GEOLOGICAL FORMATION, AND MINERAL PRODUCTIONS.

The greater part of Roscommon is a limestone country, constituting a portion of that extensive tract of the same nature, which reaches in an east and west direction, nearly across the island, from sea to sea, be- tween Dublin and Galway ; and in a north and south direction, from Clonmel to Enniskillen.* The appear- ance and quality of this limestone varies very consi- derably in different places. The upper beds are com- monly of a grey colour, and they abound with petri- factions, principaUy of madrepores, chamities, and archites. The lower beds, on the contrary, are more generally of a blackish colour, and the stone contains large portions of argillaceous and silicious earths, which frequently render it unfit for burning into lime. To this impure limestone, Mr. Kirwan gave the name of calp. Its strata are often accompanied with thin layers of Lydian stone, which occasionally are so nu- merous and minute as to give the rocks a striped appearance. The calp beds are commonly succeeded

* GriAih't lUpoit M tU CoBSMght Cotl Diilrkt.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 19

by strata of black limestone of a cryBtalline stmcture and capable of a high polish ; bnt in the northern parts of the Coonty of Roscommon, the limestone of the lower beds, even where they come into c(mtact with the sandstone, is fonnd very frequently of a light grey colour, and also of a crystalline texture and sus- ceptible of polish.

Rising up from beneath, and bursting, as it were, through these various beds of limestone, siliceous sandstone appears in several parts of the county, form- ing insulated hills. Of such character is the hill of Bdlyfennoyle in the northern part of the coun^, and also the ridge of Slievebawn, already mentioned, as extending in a direction nearly north and south, within a short distance of the Shannon, its southern extre- mity being nearly in the same parallel with Lanes- borongh. The word slieve in Irish, signifies a mountain, BJidbaum or ion, white; Slievebawn therefore means the white mountain, so called from the white siliceous sand- stone which appears through the heath and verdure in some of the breaks near the summit of the ridge. The sandstone likewise appears at the surface near Belanagar, stratified in very thin flags, which are used iu that part of the county for roofing buildings. The Roman Catholic chapel in the village is covered with them. So also in the more western parts beyond Castle- rea, sandstone appears in various places, and limestone is comparatively rare, though it is seldom necessary to go beyond the distance of a few miles to procure it.

But by far the most interesting part of Roscommon, in reference to its geological construction, is the nor- thern district of the county, on the confines of Lough Allen, where the series of rocks occur which consti- tute what is called the coal formation.

20 SURVKY OP THK

Before we enter apon a more particular description of these, it will be essential to keep in mind, that there are two distinct kinds of sandstone, materiallj different from each other, the first or deepest of which, known bj the term of the old Jtoeix sandstone, is found below the limestone ; whilst the secondary sandstone, more immediately connected with the coal formation, Uss above the limestone. The difference between these two kinds of sandstone is not so readily ascertainable by an examination of their respective textures and qualities, as by tracing the relative position and con- nexion of the beds to which they severally belong. For want of such examination of the beds and of their relative position, great errors have been committed in the search after coal, by making borings in the old sandstone, which itself lies below the rocks of the coal formation. Mr. Griffith, in different parts of his excellent Essays and Reports on the coal districts of Ireland, has pointed out various instances of the ex- pensive mistakes which have been made in this way ; and in conversation with some of the English miners who had been latterly sent ov^ to this part of the country, I found several who were stiU anxious to be allowed to make trials for ooal, by boring in the old and deeper sandstone, where it was quite idle to expect it

Mr. Griffith, in his Report on the Connaught Coal District, describes the first or old Jtoeim sandstone, as resting upon the primary rocks, chi^y of mica slate, and upon this suidstone rests the first floeta lime- stone, above which is found the series of rocks which accompany coal.

*^ The oldest fleets sandstone formatioD, is very unequal and irregular in its stratification. In some

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 21

places it fomm lofty hills and even lungea of moun- tains ; in others, it does not exceed twenty or thirty feet. This sandstone, which is in beds, and in colour red, grey, or yellowish-white, is sometimes, though rarely, interstratified with reddish or greyish sand- stone slate. Where this happens it has been mistaken ibr sandstone of the coal formation ; and many fruit- less trials for coal have been madf in consequence. The hill of Fairymount, to the south of Strokestown, has been supposed to contsdn coal ; as also the hilt of Ballyfermoyle» to the north-east of Lough Key, and dose to the coal country. The sandstone of these hills is, however, separated from the coal formation, by a succession of beds of limestone exceeding one thousand feet in thickness.

^ The distinguishing mark between the old floetz sandstone, and the sandstone of the coal formation, is, that the first is always below, and the second above the first fleets limestone. The old fleets limestone, in numerous places in the vicinity of the coal district, rises through the limestone, forming insulated hills.

^^ On viewing the coal country from the south,'' says Mr. Griffith, '^ it exhibits a steep and straight ridge of high land, rising from 1000 to 1200 feet above its base, and extending fourteen miles in an east and west direction, but broken in the middle by the great valley of the Shannon, which flows through it directly yrom Lough Allen.* The summits of these ridges are universally flat, and are covered by shallow bog.

* There is evidently a mistake in describing the coal district ai broken by the Shannon Bowing from Lough Allen, because there is no coal to the south of the lake ; but the lough itself breaks or diTidcs the coal district.

22 SURVEY OF THE

'^ The strata of the coal fonnation are arranged with great r^^laritjr, and dip or incline conformably with the limestone on which they rest, and contrary to the declivity of the hill ; but the continuity of the different beds is frequently broken by the strata of one part of a hill having fidlen or slipped down to a lower level from that of the other. These slips frequently occasion a difference of the level in the same bed, of twenty, forty, or even one hundred yards. A know- ledge of the precise direction and amount of the &11 of these slips is of the utmost importance to the coal miner, otherwise they must lead to great expense, and possibly to the abandonment of the colliery."*

Mr. Grriffith computed that the whole of the coal country, in the vicinity of Lough Allen, lying within the edge of the limestone, contained about 114,000 Irish acres, and he has considered it to be divisible into four parts, two of which, situated to the north and east of the lake, it will be unnecessary to refer to, except in general terms, since they lie beyond the bounds of the County of Roscommon, and are, more- over, the least rich in coal. Of the other two parts, on the western side of the lake, the southern division, which is by far the most important, lies entirely within Roscommon, as well as a considerable portion of the fourth one. The relative positions of these last two will probably be best understood, by explaining, that they are merely separated from each other by the val- ley through which the river Arigna runs ; that the valley is narrow ; and that the mountains in which they are comprised, rise boldly from the vaUey on either side.

* Rtpofft oa tkt CooBMfkt Cod

COUNTY OP ROSCOMMON. 23

The length of the southern division is put down at about nine miles, that is, from south-west to north- west, the direction of the ridge being in that course, and the average breadth at two miles. The ridge is straight, flat at the top, and steep on both sides. The strata, on the northern and southern declivities, dip contrary to their inclination, at an angle of from five to six degprees from the horizon, and form a flat dipping curve in the centre.

*^ Though the strata are nearly similar in the southern and western divisions,* they are not exactly the same in all parts, and a trifling diflerence will be found even within the short distance of twenty yards. Thus, a bed which is composed of soft slate clay, will gra- dually pass into sandstone slate ; or thin beds of sand- stone slate, will be found interstratified with a bed of slate clay. Beds of sandstone slate will also sometimes graduate into sandstone."t

The following Table of the different rocks will show the order in which they occur, in these divisions of the district, commencing with the limestone, which lies below the coal series, and ascending regularly, ending with the bed of sandstone flag, which fonna the uppermost stratum of the country.

* By the western division is to be understood the one which liei on the northern side of the river Arigna ; the name is quite sufficient to designate it, although it does not extend as far to the west as the other division on the same side of the lake. It might perhaps more strictly be termed the northern division on the western side of the lake*

t Report on the Connaught Coal District.

24 SURVEY OF THE

TABLE OF STRATA.*

Ft. In. Ft. In.

1. limeBtone, thickness unknowa.

2. Black Slate Clay.— This bed rests on the

uppennost bed of limestone. Beds of sandstone slate, and even thin beds of sandstone, are found interstratified with it towards the upper part. It cAnt^Sna numerous beds of clay iron stone, from half an inch to two feet in thickness. On an aTerage the thickness is - 600

3. Greyish white sandstone, known by the

name of the first or great sandstone 30 to 60

4. Black slate clay 9to20

5. Grey sandstone - 6tol0

6. Sandstone with impressions known by the

name of seat rock --.--- Ito 3

7. Fire clay, called coal seat • . - . 1 to 3

8. Coal intermixed with thin laminse of

date day Ito 3

9. Greyish white sandstone .... 4 to 20

10. Black slate day 6 to 15

11. Sandstone 12 to 15

12. Good Coal 26tod4

13. Grey soft slate clay, cod ro^f . - • 10 to 15

14. White sandstone 24to45

15. Coal, npper bed ...•-•• 8to — 9

16. Slate day in beds of Tarioos thickness

and diflbrent degress of haidness, bat generally soft and black. These bede amtain innumerable thin hed$ of clay iron ttone 100 to 200

* Bepoct Conasaglit Cod Dtslikt.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMOX. 25

Ft. Ft.

17. Blackish grey sandfltone slate in thin

layers --------- 30 to 60

1 8. Sandstone flag 30 to 50

The peculiarity of the coal district, on the confines of Longh Allen, consists, in the seams or beds of coal all lying* at a considerable elevation in the mountains ; so that in ascending the mountains, the outer edges of the beds of coal, called by the various terms of the eut-(;oingy the out-bursting^ atU-croppingy fcc, may be distinctly traced in various places, as well as the edges of the several strata which are connected with the coal formation. This is more particulariy the case in some of the ravines which have been widened by the^ waters which rush down the mountain. But, fot the most part, the outer edges of the strata of which the mountains are composed, are concealed by earth, and by bog, and by the heath, and various plants which clothe the surface. The coincidence of the strata, in regular succession, in those places where an opportunity has been afforded for examination, leaves no doubt of their extension throughout the whole of the mountains, in the same order ; but the thickness of the strata, not excepting the seams of coal, is liable to great variation. ITie researches which have been made by the agents of the various Mining Companies which have been established amongst these mountains in latter years, have ascertained many points, which, previously, had been merely subjects of conjecture ; or at best only deductions from the appearances of the coal and other strata in different parts of the district. Thus, ns far as the latest examinations have extended, the principal seam of coal, put down in the table at No. 12,

£

20 SURVn* OF THE

as measuring from two feet six inches to three feet four inches, has been found to diminish as low as one foot four inches, and most rarely to amount to two feet ten inches and a half. At present, it is believed that if the average of this seam of coal» which ia the prin- cipal one in the district, was set down at two feet, it would be rather a favourable view of what it, as yet, promises to afford. But it is still to be kept in mind, that the seam of coal, more particularly of the southern district, the one which lies to the south of the river Arigna, is what is called a trough coal; that is, the seam dips or bends downwards from the outer edges towards the centre of the mountain ; and it ia usually found that in the instances where trough coal occurs, the seams are thicker towards the lower part of the bend than they are elsewhere ; further, as no actual trials have yet been made of the thickness oi the seam in these parts of the district, it is possible that enterprise may yet meet with its reward.

Although the strata in these mountains lie in regular succession, they are neverthele|s frequently interrupted by what are called slips» or faults, occa- sioned by portions of the whole series of strata, in certain places, having been split through, vertically; and the parts on one side of the crack or split having sunk below, or risen above the other. Such faults are common in all coal districts. If we could suppose that a part of the mountain had been suddenly de- prived of its foundation, and that it consequently sunk down, of course fracturing the strata, at the borders of the part which gave way, some idea might be formed of the nature of these slips, or faults ; or if we could suppose some protruding force to have been in ope*

COUNTY OF ROSCX>MMON. 27

Iratton, like the expansive force of vapours during earthquakes, which had heaved up the strata, altoge- ther, in one particular place, appearances nearly simi* lar might be produced. In some instances the edges of the strata, at the slip or crack, are comparatively even, having seemipgly been severed by a sudden and powerful action ; in other instances they are much broken and the fragments confusedly mingled together. The skill of the coal miner of course consists in know* ing where to search for the continuation of the seam, when he finds it interrupted by one of these slips or feuilts. If well acquainted with the stratiication of the district, and provided that the separation has been dean, he can readily tell whether to work upwards or downwards, in search of the continuatkm of the seam which has been lost : but where the edges are con^ Aisedly iMoken, and more especially where the first sinkings or trials happen to be made near the 8epara-> lion and amidst the fragments, llie miner is liable to foe baffled. From these few observations it must be evident to those who will be at the trouble of thinking upon such matters, that the foundation of skill in coal-mining, must be based upon the knowledge of geology ; and that without a previous and most inti- mate acquaintance with the stratification of a district, mistakes of the grossest kind may be committed.

To enter upon an extended discussion of the mighty operations of nature by which these mountains have been split asunder to their inmost depths, does not fall within the province of a work like the present one ; yet it is not possible to advert to the existing cir- cumstances of the country, without offering a few observations on the subject. And in the first place,

28 SURVEY OF THB

Beeiug that these mountains, between which Lough Allen lies, as in a basin, are composed of strata, which^ in the natural order of arrangement, belong to a for* mation which is only found above those rocks, or strata, which appear on the snrfiMC, in other parts of tlie neighbouring districts, an inquiry naturally arisea, whether these latter districts, at any former period of time, were covered with the series of rocks which con* stitute the coal Ibrmation ; and if so, what has become of them.

The stratified ibrmation of the cool mountains na- turally leads to the supposition, that each layer or bed was the result of deposition from a fluid medium, pro* bably water ; and the impressions of vegetables on the stratified ihale, more immediatdy in connection with the coal, seem to put this matter almost beyond doubu But let the depth or height of the fluid, above the pre* sent surface, the surface of the lake £or instance, have been ever so great, it is difficult to conceive how so many difierent depositions, and these also made proba* bly at distant intervals, could have taken place in one district, so as to amount to the bulk of mountains, with- out their having extended in a greater or less degree over other districts in the same country. The preci« pitous sides of the existing mountains indeed suffi- ciently explain, that the depositions could not have termiuated abruptly there; but that corresponding strata must have extended much farther over the adjacent country ; and it is equally dear, that if ever such strata had heretofore existed, they must have been swept away, since rocks, now on the surfiice in the lower country, are merely continuations of the strata which lie deep seated under the coal aountsins,

COUNTY OP RO90OMMON. 29

The immense boulders^ or rounded masBes of slone, whieh are toand dispersed OTor the smfftce, and, fre- qnentlj) placed on the elevated aummita of hilla» to which, it is evident, fiom their totally diffeient nature and texture, that they never originally bekmgad, afbcd proof of the tremendous power of the floods, wUch have swept them away from their jirimary poaaliona, rounded oS their edges and angles by attrition against olher masses, and finally left them where they now stand. So also in the hiUs and beds of limestoiie gravel which are found accumulated in so many various parts of the island, abounding with pebbles of every size, the smooth rounded snrfiuses of these ^stones show evidently that they must have been roUed about and been rubbed against others for a long period of time^ before the sharp and jagged edges which sudi stones present when recently fractured, could have been worn away. And here I may observe, that it is not a little remarkable, that whilst limestone i^avel abounds in such quantities in Ireland, no such mate- rial is known in Great Britain ^ whence it is to be in- ferred, that the limestone strata, out of the debris of which this gravel was formed, stood in a more elevated position, and were more exposed to the action of the great floods, than similar strata of limestone in Great Britain ; and this circumstance may account also for the scarcity of coal in Ireland, as compared with the beds of coal in Great Britain ; since, as the coal lies over the old floetz limestone, it consequently must have been swept away in the first instance.

By what mighty convulsions, or by what mighty revolutions of nature these changes have been effected, is, however, a subject veiled in awful, and probably.

30 BURV£Y OF THfi

impenetrable mystery ; the inquiry never fails to ex- cite a most lively interest in every philosophical rnind^ at entering upon the path of g^logical research ; but there are appearances in nature which baffle the most sagacious, and which, at best, are only attempted to be explained by plausible conjectures. Yet» in prosecute ing inquiries of such a kind, discoveries are oecasion- ally and accidentally made of the highest importance; and a close and rigorous investigation of £Eict8| and a comparison of the appearances in one place with those in another, though they may fiul to bring all the seerets to light, are nevertheless calculated to open new sources of information on a variety of points, which, at the out* set, were not contemplated. The votaries, if not con* ducted at once to the direct object of their pursuit, are still gratified, as they proceed, by the acquisition of facts which become the foundation of future knowledge, and assist in developing causes which, at least, tend to an approximation towards truth. In the study of geology, nature offers astounding objects to our view, and impassable barriers seem to impede further pro- gress ; yet in no one science, within the last half cen- tury, have more rapid advances been made.

In treating of the inequalities and irregularitiea which are perceived on the surface of our globe, in hills and mountains, it has frequendy been a subject of inquiry, whether the whole of the different strata, which have been formed at various periods, have been heaved up altogether, and simultaneously, in their en- tire mass ; or whether a heaving up of the first formed strata merely took place, above or around which the later depositions were made. Within the county Ros- common, examples might be adduced to coontenaace

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 31

the rappositioo, that the sandstone had been heaved up alone, in the first instance ; and that the limestone in a soft state, at a different period, had flowed round the hills thus already formed, penetrating into their hollows and recesses. But in other parts of the count j it may be assumed from the appearances, that the whole series of stiata, formed in different eras of time, had been heaved up together, and that where the sandstone now appears bare, it is attributable to the strata or beds which were the last deposited, and which once covered the surface, having been swept away.

That great changes have taken place on the surface of our globe, will appear obvious to the most ordinary observer ; nor can there be a doubt, that many of the changes were effected by the agpency of water; but when the immense thickness of the strata is taken into account, and also the different nature of the materials of which each is composed, it may be presumed, that a long series of ages must have elapsed before such vast depositions could have taken place, or their subsequent consolidation have been effected ; probably also, the several depositions may have occurred, each at a very remote era of time from the other. As for the dis« mption of the strata, and the terrific revolutions which must afterwards have happened, mountains heaved up, vallies rent asunder, all that we know from our own limited experience of the mighty effects of earth- quakes and volcanoes, are the veriest trifles in compa- rison of the convulsions which could have produced the marvellous appearances which we now behold; the mind is astounded in the attempt to figure to it- self the power by which such awful and mysterious changes were effected ; it feels its finite means of re-

32 SURVEY OF THE

search, and shrinks back, assured of nothing but its own insignificance in the vast and immeosurable scale of creation, and its utter inability to comprehend the canse of all these wonders.

In addition to the general observations I have made on the geological formation of Rosconraum, it may suffice to state, that accidental variations in the strata occur, not merely in the coal ^stricts, but in several other parts of the county. Thus, for example, between Mantua and Belanagar, there is a ridge which contains pale bluish striated flints, approaching in appearance to calcedony and agate, which are thinly dispersed through a tough compound stone, in which the calcareous matter predominates, of an ash colour and earthy fracture.

Clay, suitable for potter's use, and also for tobaceo pipes, is likewise found in different parts of the county' ; in th^ vicinity of the town of RosconmioD there aie several small potteries, and, at Knockcroghery, ma- nufactories of pipes. In the coal districts fire clay abounds, firom which exc^ent fire bricks have here- tofore been made for the use of the iron works.

The beds of slate clay, abounding with iron stone, have already been noticed in the tabular description of the strata of the coal district Ironstone has likewise been found in the western parts of the county, where formerly it was smelted in small quantities.

Other incidental particulars relative to the uiinefd productions of the county will be noticed under the heads of the several baronies^

In various parts of the county there are valuaMe limestone quarries, some yielding a stime which mmsf be esteemed tme marble ; such Ibr instaaoey ie tbat;<0f

COUNTY OF R090OMMOX. 33

wbich Rockingham House, YiscouDl hotum's, is built, wliich 18 of a grey colour wheo poliBhed ; and that of Roscommon Court^Uousei which approaches to Uack, in the same state. The only mines worked are those of coal mxkd iron on the confines of Lough Alien, and as their history is one of peculiar interest, a section qiart may be devoted to it.

coLLiieRns, moN works, etc.

The beds of coid in the Connanght coal distrkt, ave, as already exfhAned in the preceding section «pon the gedogical formation of the coonty, situated at a considerable elevation in the mountains ; and as the ontgoings or outer edges of these beds were plainly to be distinguished in several places^ so the existence ml coal in the country could scarcely fiul ef being eai)y known, thongh, for what length of time, most now probably itmatn a subject of vague conjecture. The abnndance of wood which existed in former ages, affording at once the most ready source and the most agreeable kind of fiiel ; and the ample supply of turf which may still be found, both on the sommits and sides of the mountains, and dispersed in the low lands, nmst have occasioned coal to have been regarded with comparative indifference. In fact, at the present day, turf continues to be the fuel of the cottage, and of the generality of the farm houses ; whilst the principal part of the coal which has been raised, over and above what has been consumed in the iron works, ^or hn the forges of the country smiths, has been sold for the supply of more distant places where fuel was less plen-

1'

34 SURVEY OF THE

tiful. Some has passed down the Shannon,^ but still more has been transported by cars and horses, parti- cularly towards the county of Caran.

Numerous traces may be obserred on each side of the lake, of small workings which have been begun at the outer edges of the seams, where the coal was visible ; but as the difficulties invariably increased on advancing into the mountain, these small and in- significant workings were generally abandoned after short trials. I saw some going on which had been only lately begun. The coal thus raised has been commonly used for the smiths' forges. The remains were also pointed out to me, amongst the mountainsy on the western side of the lake, of operations on a more extensive scale, and of a singular nature, here- tofore carried on by the peasantry. These had con- sisted in applying the power of water to tear off the roof or upper covering of the seam of coal. Of course it will be understood, that the covering in question was neither very thick, nor very compact The place lay along a steep part of the mountain at the outer side, towards the lake, where the original covering of the coal had been worn away by the action of water, in the progress of ages, and in part, perhaps, by the inundations of the very stream whose concentrated force was now employed to sweep off the whole cover-

* I am indebted to the Directors of tbe Royml Ctnml, for the foUow« iDg account of the quantity of coal which entered their canal from Lough Allen during three years .

1829, 1st Jan. to 31tt Dec. 6 bouU, 184 torn I ewt. coal.

1830, do. to do. 19 do. 712 do. 2 cwt. do.

1831, do. to do. 9 do. 235 do. 18 cwt. do.

Total • • 33 1 132 toos I cwt. coal.

COUNtY OF ROSCOMMON. 35

ing at one burst. The first step was to form a dam across the stream, in order to obtain a strong head of water; then, holes and trenches were made on various parts of the surface, to give the water more hold ; and when all was prepared, the dam was suddenly broken down, and the torrent bore away all before it, learing the coal exposed. Sometimes the coal itself was like- wise torn away ; but it was readfly gathered up from amongst the fragments of the rocks and earth. This system of working, at once simple and ingenious, was, according to the information I received on the spot, the sole and actual inrention of the peasants of the neighbourhood, who united together for the labour^ and shared in the profits. But as it was only on cer- tain parts of the mountain near the outer verge, and where the superior rocks had already been broken away, that it could be applied, so, it did not continue long in practice. The remains of their workings offered a very interesting sight to the geologist, inas- much as the rock, on which the coal had been origi- nally seated, was left fully exposed to the day," and consequently its varieties and undulations were all

distinctly perceptible.

The discovery of coal in so many different parts of these mountains, naturally gave rise to hope, not only amongst the immediate proprietors of the soil, but throughout the country in general. No rigorous in- vestigations into the thickness or extent of the seams appear however to have been deemed necessary ; but that which had been seen was eagerly assumed as an earnest of the rich masses which remained hidden in the bowels of the earth. Industry and capital alone were supposed lo be wanting, to add largely to the

36 BUKVKY OF THE

increase of national wealth. The importance of col-, lieries to manufactures was dwelt upon with seal, and became a frequent object of discussioD in the Irish parliament. New laws were passed to ifu:ilitate the opening of roads to the mouths of the coal pits. An extensive water communication was also to be provided for the transmission of these ideal mineral treasures ; and the river Shannon, which ran so immediately in the vicinity ot the district, was forthwith to be rendered navigable in every part of its coarse, and made the channel of commerce through a vast extent of inland country. Thus, in the fond expectation of the enthu- siasts of the day, Ireland was to become independent of Great Britain for her supply of coals ; manufactures were to spring up ; and, as a necessary consequence, wealth was to follow in their train, and be diffused throughout a smiling land. The sequel will show how much delusion there has been on the subject, and it is not yet altogether at an end.

The first great era in the mining history of thia district, was the establishment of the iron works al Arigna, by three brothers of the name of O^Reilly, about the year 1788. Iron, indeed, had long before been made at the opposite side of Lough Allen, at the base of the range of SIieve«a.neeran, literally, in Irish, signifying the iron mountains, whilst the forests con* tinned to afford supplies of wood for charcoal ; but with the destruction of the woods, there, as well as in the many other parts of Ireland in which the smelting of iron ore had been commonly effected, the works were abandoned. The use of pit coal in the smelting of iron was comparatively of recent introduction in England, and was totally unknown or unpractised in

COUNTY OF ROSOOJOfON. 37

Irdand, until the O'Reillyt had the spirit and bold- ness to ventore on the attempt Of iron ore there was no deficiency ; its quality was known of old to be excellent, and the iron which was produced at Arigna by the O'fieillys, both in castings and in bars, obtain- ed the highest reputation in Dublin, and in erery place to which it wa$ sent. In my first visit to this country, I observed in several houses, specimens of their castings ; and in particular, a water trough in a smith's forge, which appeared to be extremely well made, and which, although light and thin, had stood out hard and constant use.

It was supposed that the O'Reillys had committed an error in commencing the manufacture of bar as well as pig iron, the process for the first being attended with difficulty, and requiring considerable capital; and had they confined themselves merely to pig iron and to castings, perhaps their business might have gone on successfully. Be that as it may ; or, whether it was owing to any of the sudden alterations in the money market, and the consequent vicissitudes of trade ; whether to the want of capital at the outset ; or to the real unproductiveness of the concern altogether; the undertakers found themselves involved in pecuni- ary difficulties. In the expectation of obtaining as- sistance, they procured an introduction to the wealthy and respectable house of Messrs. Latouche, bankers, and their wants were submitted to the firm. It has been represented, that the Messrs. Latouche were startled at the extent of the accommodation which was required ; yet they made a moderate, and what might have appeared a reasonable, if not liberal advance to the applicants. This accommodation, however, so

38 simvsY OP THi

much below the actual wants of the O^Reillys, afford- ed in reality very little relief ; and when the time came round for the payment of the bills which had been passed, there was an utter inability to meet their en- gagements. Under such circumstances, fresh accom- modation was afforded by the bank, but with a simi- lar result Alarm naturally followed; the Messrs. O'Reilly to secure the debt, mortgaged their works and premises, which finally were brought to sale un- der the court of chancery ; and one of the partners of the bank, hurried away with the opinion that money alone was wanting to render the concern most pn^t- able, himself became the purchaser, and determined to have the works at Arigna carried on for his own account.

I well recollect taking a ride with that excellent and kind-hearted man, at a venerable period of bis life, and on stopping before a large iron gate, in his beautiful park of Bellcvue, being asked, whether I had ever before seen so costly a piece of workmanship ? The gate was a spacious and a goodly one, but there was nothing extraordinary in its appearance. *' I see you are hesitating Sir,'* said the good old gentleman ; ^* and yet, I can venture to assert, that you never be- fore saw a gate which cost the owner so much. That gate, Sir, cost me £80,000 ; for it is the only thing I ever got out of the Arigna iron works, in return for all my money expended there."*

'^ Perhaps," says Mr. Griffith, in bis account of the Arigna iron works, as detailed in bis report on the Oonnaught coal district, '' the frequent change of

* The price paid for Um works at tlie sale ta chtootfy wm £86«000.

COUNTY OF ROSCOIfMON. 99

managers, more than any other cause, ' tended to acce- leiate the fEtilure of the undertaking ; for the plans of each new master (that is of each new agent or manager of the works) were generally at variance with those' of his predecessor ; and the destruction of the old, and the erection of new works caused great additional ex- pense. Some were undertaken which sound judgment would have disapproved ; and others, most useful, in- judiciously destroyed." -^ The construction of the great dam across the Arigna river, above the works, was of the former nature; as the destruction of the bank, on either side, was a catastrophe which might naturally have been expected, from the constant pressure of an immense body of water, aided, in time of flood, by the furious rapidity of a precipitous mountain torrent.**

The works, in fact, after a great outlay, and the trial of many years, were abandoned on the part of Mr. Latouche, as a hopeless and profitless concern ; but the liability to the rent to which the premises were subject, was not to be so easily got rid of, and they remained a dead weight upon hands. A care- taker was kept, at the place, merely to prevent the pillage and destruction, to which, otherwise, the works and buildings would in all probability have been ex- posed, from the country people. The suspension of the works took place somewhere about the year 1808, that is, about twenty years after their original com- mencement by the O'Reillys.

The Arigna iron works are situated near the mouth of the valley watered by the river of the same name, and on the right or southern side of the stream. The mountain, which begins to rise almost at the verge of the works, constitutes what Mr. Griffith calls his

40 SURVBT OP THB

fourth or soathem division of the Connaaght coal district ; and it is nnqnestionably the most important one in the country, containing seyeral coal pits, both on the side next to the yalley, and also on the outer or southern side of the ridge. Two of the principal of these coUieries had been leased to the undertakers of the Arigna iron works, both being situated on the side of the mountain which lies next to the Arigna river. The nearest one, called the Rover colliery, lay at the distance of about half a mile from the iron works ; and the other, which was the largest and most extensive in the district, caUed the Aughabehy col- liery, at the distance of three miles. A winding road led from the latter colliery to the works, not inju* diciously laid out, but carried necessarily over parts of the mountain, occasionally rough, occasionally soft, and liable to be affected by rains and floods, conse- quently liable to be interrupted, and requiring fre- quent and expensive repairs : along this road the coal used to be conveyed on the backs of horses.

The Rover colliery belonged to the Arehbishop of Tuam ; that of Aughabehy, to Colonel Tenison.

These collieries which had been leased to the ira* dertakers of the Arigna iron works, ceased to be used when the making of iron was given over ; and, in het^ remained either closed or inaccessible, from the water which rose within them. But Colonel Tenisim, whoae royalties extended entirely across the monntani to the southern side, or outer fkee of it, towards the low coun- try, kept pits open on his own account, for the sale of coal to those who came to purchase it, from a distance, especially from the county of Cavan.

It was during this state of things, and aboot the

COUNTY OP RO90OB1MON. 41

jear 181 4^ six years after the iron works had been discontinued) and whilst the collieries attached to the iron works lay neglected and abandoned, that Mr. Griffith made his survey of the Connaught coal dis- trict, the report upon which was published in the year 1818. Mr. Griffith was the first person, as far as I am informed, who gave a general view of the geological formation of the country, and his report is replete with valuable observations, which have enlarged the bounds of the science, and cannot fail of being highly interesting to every geologist and mineralogist who may visit the district.

But as I have already explained, there is appa- rently an error in the statement both as to the extent and the thickness of the principal bed of coal, numbered 12, in his table of the stratification ; attributable, I be- lieve, to the Aughabehey and Rover pits not having being accessible, at the period of his visit ; and to erro- neous information having been communicated to him on the subject, by persons who ought to have known better.

" The future prosperity of the Connaught coal district," says Mr. Griffith, " may be said to depend entirely upon the produce of the bed No. 12, (called the three foot coal,) which though of moderate thick- ness, is fortunately of great extent. Its quality as fuel for domestic purposes is excellent, and if used for smelting iron, it is amongst the best in tJie empire.''**

• According to the analysis of Mr. Kirwan, 100 parts of this coal are

conposed of

71.42 carbon.

23.37 mixture of asphalt and naptha.

5.21 grey ashes.

100 G

42 SURVEY OF THB

** The thickness of this coal is rarely less than three feet, or more than three feet four inches/'

The western division, (that is the mountain on the western side of the lake and north of the Arigna river,) he supposes might contain a coal field of about . - - - - 1200 acres;

which added to the contents of the

southern division of - - 2800 do.

gfave a general total of - - 5000 do.

'^ From this calculation, making deductions for im- purities of the coal, and loss b j slips and undulations ; and estimating the produce at 7840 tons per acre, Irish, (that is, one ton for each superficial yard,) there would be thirty millions of coal, as the probable quan- tity which might be raised out of the southern and western divisions ; and supposing 50,000 tons annually were used in the country, and 10,000 tons more in the iron works, there would be a supply sufficient for the supposed demand for 500 years to come — (Report, p. 29.)

In his examination before a committee of the House of Commons, 12th May, 1824, {vide vol. viii. 51, 1824,) Mr. Griffith repeats his opinion that ^^ there are three beds of coal in the Lough Allen district; the upper nine inches ; the second three feet ; and the third also three feet thick ; but the centre one is much the best.*' — *^ The quality of the coal is not so good as thai of either Whitehaven or Newcastle ; it is a kind of medium between the open burning or quick blazing coal of Scotland, and the caking coal of Whitehaven : he considers it a very good coal for culinary and ma- nu£Bu:turing purposes.** — To a question, whether the quantity of good coal in the Lough Allen district was

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 43

sufficiently known and ascertained before his visit? He answers, ''That it was not known: there had been two or three collieries opened in it> but the ex- tent of the coal field was not ascertained/* — '' He con- ceives there are 5000 Irish, or 8000 English acres still remaining of good three foot coal, which would yield above 30,000,000 tons." — " The coal is particularly ex- empt from water : being placed on a high level, the water in most cases may be drawn off by levels or tunnels."

In the same volume of the papers of the House of Commons, (viii. 32, 1824,) may be seen the evidence delivered 5th April, 1824, before the same committee, by John Leslie Foster, Esq. M . P., at present, a Baron of the Exchequer.

'' Mr. Griffith has made several reports containing maps, sections, and delineations of the stratification of the several coal districts in Ireland, which I think it extremely desirable should be called for by Parlia- ment, as they contain, in my opinion, more practical invitations for investment of British capital in Ireland, than any other I know to exist."

The practical invitations thus held out for the in- vestment of capital in these collieries were not long of being accepted ; for, before another year had revolved, the Arigna Coal and Iron Company, the Irish Mining Company, the Hibernian Mining Company, all joint stock companies, with large capitals and intelligent and enterprising agents, had entered into the field, and the country on the confines of Lough Allen, at once became the theatre of activity and industry.

The Arigna Company obtained possession of the old works, and the collieries attached to them, on the

44 SURVKT OF THE

south side of the river : and the two other companies began their operations in the mountains on the north side of the Arigna river, in the part which Mr. Griffith designated as his third or western division. The ex* tent of the coal field in this latter part, as already explained, had been computed to contain 1200 Irish acres of three foot coal. Suspicions, however, soon began to be entertained by the agents of the compa- nies, both as to the extent and as to the thickness of the coal; and the Hibernian Company, before they committed themselves by lease, prudently stipulated for permission to make previous trials. These trials ended in disappointment, and the Hibernian Compa- ny soon afterwards abandoned the field as one utterly undeserving of further attention.

The Irish Mining Company displayed more energy and more perseverance in the same district. The coal field of which they look a lease, had, at least to a cer- tain extent, been already proved by the sinking of some detached pits, from which coal had been raised with profit for sale. The principal one was at Tully- naha, just on the verge <^ the county of Roscommon. Here, the new company constructed a large engine shaft on the most approved principle, and a steam engine was in a short time set to work. I was present in the year 1825 at the formation of this shaft ; and in the summer of 1890, again visited the same place. The mountain, at the first period, was in the rude state of nature, and the only mode of conveyance for the coals, from the pits, down to the shores of Lough Allen, a distance of about two miles, was on the backs of horses, over the heath and bogs ; but when I last saw it, there was an excellent road, and the coal was

COUNTY OF R09C01CAI0N. 45

brought down by carts of the ordinary kind in use throughout the country, carrying about one ton or somewhat more, each, and drawn each by a single horse: there was a gradual descent the whole way to the water. The agricultural improvements also, which had taken place near the lower parts of this road, on each side, served to show what collateral be- nefits may spring from mining industry, and the ex^ penditure of capital amongst the people. The shores of liough Allen likewise had undergone a great and important alteration. On my first visit they were in a state of nature ; it was difficult to load a boat in any place at any time, and utterly impossible to do so if the wind blew fresh ; now, there is a small dock or basiuy where boats may lie in safety, and a quay, connected with the company's coal yards and stores, where they can be readily laden. This is the pleasing side of the picture ; but there is an opposite one which must not be passed over unnoticed. The steam eng^e on the mountain, when I saw it in 1830, was no longer in use ; it had gone out of order, and had been left in that state for more than a twelvemonth ; the cost of reparation having been considered questionable, un- der the disappointment which had been experienced as to the thickness of the seam of coal : instead of im- proving as had been sanguinely expected, the seam had, when I was last there, rather grown worse, and the small coal-slack, or culm, bore an over great pro- portion to the good coal; a large heap of it appeared in the yards, for which there was but a very limited demand in the country ; but the good coal was disposed of at a fair remunerating price, as fast as it could be raised.

46 SURVEY OP THE

To the Scotch miniiig agents who had been brought over to conduct the works, it was a subject of no small surprize, in the beginning, to find the attention of an extensive company, with a large capital, devoted to collieries which appeared so thoroughly insignificant compared with those in the country from which they came. In the sister island such seams of coal would scarcely be thought worth the working. It was scarcely less a matter of surprize to them, however, to witness the dexterity with which the Irish colliers could extract the coal from such thin seams, work- ing in a recumbent position with wads of heath or grass to ease the hips and shoulders ; but there is no laborious exertion which the Irish workman will not undergo, provided he is fairly paid in proportion to the labour he performs. In working these thin seams of coal, it is the practice to cut the whole of the coal away, and to fill up the vacuity, at intervals, with props, called pillars, to support the roof, which other- wise would be liable to fall in ; the stones for the pur- pose are let down from above. Of course, passages of sufficient height for men to ply with barrows must be left, tending to the bottom of the shaft, where the coals are deposited, in readiness to be raised to the surface by aid of machinery. At Aughabehy, when I visited the place in 1825, a whim and horses were used ; at Tullyneha, as I have stated, a steam engine was set up for the same purpose : but in 1830, at the latter place I found the coal brought up merely by a common windlass and buckets, worked by men.

As for the proceedings of the new Arigna company in this district, they are so involved with the extraor- dinary transactions connected with the formation and

OOiJNTY OP ROSCOMMON. 47

management of the company in London, that to be properly understood, the history of the company must be read.

I have drawn out a sketch of it, but. as it contains some details which might appear irrelevant to the immediate subject of this Survey, I have placed it in the appendix, instead of introducing it here.

Whatever might have been the private views of the parties with whom the company originated, there seems to be no question but that the formation of it was publicly avowed to have been based upon the reports which had been published of the capabilities of this mining district ; and upon the promise of fair re- muneration which was likely to attend the employ- ment of capital, combined with skill and intelligence, in the working both the coal and iron. The company took possession of the premises at Arigna, in the course of the winter 1824-5, and in the following spring, I happened to visit the place for the first time. The buildings and offices, confined for the most part to an extensive yard, were then undergoing repairs; a mining agent, Captain Vivian, presided over the whole ; and engineers, smiths, fire master, masoDs, miners, &c., all Englishmen, skilled in the business of their re- spective departments, were actively employed ; and all, according to the usual habits of Englishmen, had con- trived to make themselves comfortable, in the first place. It was like a little colony in a new country ; and it was really pleasurable to behold the contrast which their several dwellings, from the good housewifery of their females, afforded to the ordinary habits of the peo- ple of the surrounding wild districts. But ardent spirits, the liquid devil, in the emphatic language of the late

48 SURVEY or THB

Dean Kirwan, had already begun to exercise a baneful influence over the conduct of many of the people^ and those not the lowest ; whiskey was too cheap to be resisted, and those who should have set a better ex- ample, were amongst the first to succumb.

An immense heap of iron stone had been collected, at that time, near the furnace ; but there was no pro- vision of coal equal to smelting it. The old roasting kilns seemed to be in a tolerable state of fitness, and the walls of the original furnace, which was 44 feet in height and 12 feet in the bosh, were standing perfectly sound. The hearth had been taken up for repair and alteration, but as soon as that work should have been effected, it was intended forthwith to commence the making of iron ; none whatever had as yet been made by the company at the time of my first visiu Such was the state of things in the spring of 1825. In the autumn of 1830, when I again examined the place, the appearance of the furnace was precisely the same ; that is, it was without its hearth, which had been taken up a second time for repair. Iron, however, had actually been made during the intervals between my two visits ; but after a very short working, either through neglect, ignorance, or wilful design, the fur- nace became gobbed, a term expressive of the charge put into it consolidating into a mass, without being sufficiently fused to permit the metal to flow, an oc- currence seldom failing to injure the furnace ; and in consequence of it, no more iron had been made up to the period of my second visit

Such an accident might have arisen bom an inju- dicious mixture of the materials for the charge, or possibly from an improper management of the fire ;

couNnr OF rosoommon. 49

but Henrj Clarke, in his endeoce before the commit* tee of the House of Commons, attributed the whole to the sinister influence of some adverse party in Lon- don, operating upon the workmen, by whom the mis- chief had been wilfully perpetrated^

The whole quantity of iron made, which was be- tween the months of November, 1825, and May, 1826) amounted only to 230 tons, 8 cwt, 3 qrs. of pig iron ; and according to Mr. Twigg's report to the directors, the mere cost of the making amounted to £8 4«. per ton.

During the period that ihe works were in the hands of Mr. Latouche, to him ever a source of loss and disappointment, various expedients had been adopted to change or modify their character; and advice had been obtained from different iron masters who had been invited to the spot for the purpose. Mr. John Grieve, of Edinburgh, who examined the circum- stances of the place in the year 1800, conceived that pig iron aught to be made there at a cost of £2 17«. dd. per ton. Mr. Thomas Guest, of the Dowlais iron works, in South Wales, estimated that the cost should be £4 lbs. per ton. But, notwithstanding such esti« mates, Mr. Latouche was unable to reap any profit, and, finally, abandoned the place in despair.

Mr. Griffith, at p. 71 of his Report, made during the period of abandonment, estimated the cost at which pig iron ought to have been made at Arigna, at £3 5*. b\d. per ton ; but with the aid of such im- provements as he devised, the cost, as he calculated, might be diminished in a sum of exactly 3«. O^d. per ton, which would leave the iron at £3 25. 5rf. per ton. We have seen the account of the real cost to the new

H

50 SIRVEY OF THE

company in the first instance ; but what it may be for the future, after the works which have been recom- mended, with all the improvements, shall have been executed, still remains to be proved.

No more iron had been made at Arig^a, up to the mouth of October, 1831 ; but active preparations were making for setting, not only the old, but likewise a new additional furnace at work ; and it was expected that iron would be again produced within a few more weeks.*

Thus, it appears, that in this great and promising mining district, the whole produce of iron in the course of seven years, and with an outlay, probably, by the new company, of more than £50,000, did not amount to 300 tons.

In the sketch which I have given of the his- tory of the company, in the Appendix, it may be seen, that there had been, during the spring of the year 1826, a complete change at the board, and in the management of the company. The incorrectness that had been discovered, now led to doubts about every thing connected with the concern; and even the value of the property which had been acquired was questioned. To clear up these matters, it was resolved forthwith to send over to the county of Ros- common, the most experienced English mining snr-

* Since the above wtt written, I bad again an opportnnitj of vbitiBf tbe company*! office, in London, in tbe month of February, 1S33, tad was informed, that up to that period the imelting of irou had not reoo«- menced. It had been determined, also, that whenever the tmelting ahovld go on, both the fumacet were not to be uied, but merely the old om and that before this one should be let to work, a proviiion oC at 3000 tons of coal should be in itadiaeta. The rail-way had beta pleted, and found tffactive. The coke had prorad exctlltat.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 51

▼cyor who could be procured, and Mr. Twigg, of Ckesterfield, was selected for the purpose. His printed report, which bears on the title page the date of Lon- don, 1827, was put into my hands whilst I was in the county of Roscommon, and on the spot ; add it is from this, as well as from subsequent printed reports, with which I was afterwards favoured in London, that I hare derived the further information which I now offer on the subject.

To every person at all conversant with such sub- jects, it must be evident, that the prosperity of iron works, depends, not merely on the abundance and ex- cellence of the ore, but on the supply of fuel; and at Arigna, the first and most important object of inquiry must needs be, the extent and thickness of the seams of coal. " On reaching Arigna," says Mr. Twigg, in his fieport, ^' I did not find that any previous trials had effectually been made, for proving either the quan- tity or the quality of the coal mines, within the coal district leased to the company. This, in my opinion, should have been done in the offset of the business ; as I presume, it was very well known that a want of it had formerly proved the rock on which the former proprietors had wrecked a large fortune. Actual proofs' of the coal mines might have been made in much less time than has elapsed since the company first took possession of the works ; and the present state of the works is neither equal to the money, nor to the time which had been expended."

He found, as he further adds, that the Arigna com- pany had been getting coal from an old shaft, at Augh- abehy colliery, that had been shut up by a former com- pany near twenty years before ; and their reasons for

52 SURVEY OF THB

abandoning that part of the colliery, at the time, werci because the coal could not be profitably raised. And, by an examination of the books containing an account of the workmen's wages employed in that department alone» he shows, that on 795 tons raised at that shaft, by the Arigna company, there was only one-fourth of the quantity, which consisted of good coal fit for coking; which stood the company in 1«^. Ad. per fon, on the spot ; whilst the remaining three^feurths con* si&ied of culm, worth, after deducting the royalty dues, only S«. per ton. It was with this coal at 15^. 4d. per, ton, and which, after being reduced to coke, Mr. Twigg Talued at SOs. per ton, that the company had made the small quantity of iron which had been produced at Arigna, prior to his arrival there. Of course the iron could not fail of being dear, estimating its price merely from the cost of the materials used in the making.

But, added to the injudioiousness of the course of operations which had been pursued, there was reason likewise to condemn the very expensive establishment which had been formed and kept up at Arigna ; and the following list which is given in the report, will serve to show how lavishly the afiairs of joint stock companies were occasionally carried on in those timet.

COUNTY OF R08C0UM0N.

53

A UST

or THK AGIIfTS, ETC., KMPLOTID AT AftlONA, AT TBI TIMB OP

MS. TWI0G*8 PlftlT TI8IT.

Namn.	Employ ment.	Whert Empioytd.	Amnmml SmUrits.
			£ u d.
Mr, John Viyian,	Chief Manager, Iron works, |	500 0 0
Mr. 0*Beirae,	Principal Cleik,	Do.	92 6 2
Hr. Morton,	Second do.	Do.	46 3 1
George M'Dermott,	Storekeeper,	Do.	60 0 0
William Moiun,	Furnace yard keeper.	Do.	48 0 0
Michael Deely,	Watchman by day.	Do.	IB 15 0
Fnncis Gilhooly,	Do. by night.	Do.	18 15 0
Miehael Deely, jnn.	Watchman by day.	Do.	18 15 0
Junes Sweeny,	Do. by night.	Do.	18 15 0
H«gh M'Nimarm,	Stablekeeper& hoose	Servt.toMr.yiTiao,	28 0 t)
JamcftDick,	Colliery agent.	Collieries,	100 0 0
Patrick Gnjhen,	Do. clerk.	Do.	48 0 0
Robert Jolmstone,	Do. do.	Do.	24 0 0
John Brenan^	Dep. colliery agent.	Do.	48 0 0
Michael Kenrolsh,	Do.	Do.	50 0 0
Con. O'Donnell,	Agent,	Ironstone mines.	25 0 0
Michael M'Manus,	Do.	Do.	20 0 0
Edward Mount,	Watchman,	At the colliery,	18 0 0
Michael Deely,	Do. Do.	18 0 0
CoDor Judge,	Watchman &c sales- 1
	man,	Rover colliery,	18 0 0
James M'Lochlan,	Clerk furnace yard,	Iron works,	18 0 0
John Brady,	Road Overseer,	On mountain roads,	30 0 0
Francis Northall,	Furnace manager,	Iron works,	273 0 0)
Mr. Walsh.	Employed to transmit money from Dub- lin to Arigna for		1 t 1 •
	workmen's wages,		200 0 Ol 1
1			1739 9 3|

It may be expedient, before we follow Mr. Twigg further in his survey, briefly to state once more, that the mountain containing the coal fields, at the south eastern extremity or termination of which the Arigna

54 SURVEY OF THB

irou works are situated, consists of a ridge of rather narrow breadth in proportion to its length ; that the coal appears at each side of the ridge ; that the seam or bed of coal dips from the outer edges, at each sid^, towards the centre of the mountain, forming, what is technically called, a trough or swilly coal ; that it is presumed to be the same bed which extends through the whole of the mountain, though disturbed and altered from its original continuity and position, in various places, by disruptions of the strata, which are called faults or slips ; that the several collieries, and several denominations of mining grounds belonging to, or acquired by the Arigna compcuiy, are all situated in this one mountain ; that the royalties belong lo different proprietors, of which Colonel Tenison is the principal ; and that his property extends entirely acroM the ridge, from the river Arigna, on one side, to the south or opposite side, next to Castle Tenison ; thai the Aughabehy district, which is one of the most, or probably the most, important, begins at the river Arigna, and extends for a considerable breadth, up- wards, towards the crest of the ridge, its distance from the iron works being about three miles, and that the royalties belong to Colonel Tenison ; that the Rover collieries are situated nearer to the works, the royalties belonging to the Archbishop of Tuam ; and that as to the other collieries, some lie on the side towards the Arigna river, and some to the south, but all nearer to the works than Aughabehy.

^^ Upon examining the mining ground at Augha- behy,'* says Mr. Twigg, ^' I found a large fault run- ning across the mountain, upon a course norths six

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMOV. 55

degrees west, and south, six degrees east, from a point near an old shaft wrought by the former company : this fault throws down the strata several yards per- pendicular into the west, or what is called in several mining districts, a leap down into the west"*

'' On the north-east side of the before-mentioned fiuilt, a small tract of the mining ground has been wrought ; and the bed or seam of coal in that direction proved to be very thin.\ Two coal shafts have been sunk at this colliery, on the leap down side of the said fault, and the bed of coal thus found has been proved to be of a much better quality and considerably thicker, than what the same bed or seam of coal was on the contrary or upleap side of the said fault/'

(p. 84.) " I have closely and carefully examined the bed of coal at this colliery, at the face of the coal woAiBg& on the west or down leap side of the fault, as before described ; and, in addition to this examina- tion, caused two head ways or drifts to be cut into the bed of coal at the Chisel pit, in two different parts of the mine, in order to enable me better to get a fair average thickness of the bed, and which I found to be 2 feet 7 j inches : and the whole, except half an inch, is coal that will produce strong coke."

• These faults had been already noticed by Mr. Griffith, and laid down 01 the map, illustrative of his Report, to the Royal Dublin Society, upon tike Connaught coal district.

t In the year 1825 I descended into this colliery by the uhim, which hftd then lately been set up by the Arigna company, and penetrated, ac- companied by one of the English miners, into different parU of the workings, I had my rule and tape with me, and on measuring the face of the coal leam in various places, in no one instance did it reach to the thickness of two feet, and for the far greater part it was considerably less.—AuTHOR.

56 SURVET OF THB

(p. 35.) '' The bed of coal here dips at a very gm* daal declination towards the centre of the mountain, and I am certain that it is the same bed as breaks out at the surface of the land, on the south-west side of the mountain, in the direction from Aughabehy col- liery towards Castle Tenison. This bed is what in several mining districts would be called a trough or dish coal, vis. dipping or declining from the surfece of the land very gradually, in a certain direction for a long space, and then rising in the same direction, until the same bed made its way out on the contrary side of the mountain, at the surface."

(p. 45.) Mr. Twig^ states, that it was with difficulty he could get to see the bed of coal at Aughabehy ; for that on his arrival there he found the colliery full of water; and it was not until some considerable exer- tions had been made, that the coal mine at Aughabehy was drained and put into a condition for his examina^ tion. As to the quantity of tons contained in the coal district of Aughabehy, ^^ my opinion,*' says he, (p. 46,) '' is, that if the bed continues of the same thickness as it is at the points at which I measured it, that every acre, English measure* will produce at least 2550 tons of coking coal ;* that is, if the bed proves upon an average of the thickness of that named in my report; but my opinion is, that no person can pretend to speak positively as to whether the bed will or will not be

* Mr. Grilfith's estimate of th« produce ia good coal, after makiof allowance for waite, &c. wai one ton to each superficial yard of the team ; of course at that rate the English acre would ha?e yielded 4S40 toai.

Mr. Twigg takes it at 2550

Diflerence, which amounts to 48 per cent. • 1290

COUNTY OF ROSCOBfMON. 57

the thickness, or more* than the thickness as hereto- fore named. In practice I find frequently a consider- able difference in the thickness of one and the same bed of coal, at trifling distances, even in the same coal field, or colliery. On this g^und I wish the com- mittee (directors) to understand me, as answering, re- latire to the quantity of tons contained in their mining ground, as hypothetically, viz. not positive, for reasons heretofore given."

Mr. Twigg states further, that, after having care- fully examined the mining ground leased to the com- pany, that is to say, as far as could be done without boring or sinking in sundry parts of the royalty for actual trial, his opinion is, that in this part of the mining ground called Aughabehy, there is a tract of land containing the bed of coal equal to 160 English acres. It actually measured something more, but he takes it at this amount for safety ; and if the coal held oat of the same thickness yielding 2550 tons to the acre, this tract would consequently afford in all 408,000 tons of coals.

** My opinion," says Mr. Twigg, "also is, that the mining ground at Rover, leased to the company, will contain a very considerable quantity of coal, fit for the purpose of smelting iron from the crude material. It is the same bed of coal as the Aughabehy, but con- siderably altered in thickness and quality, by a fault or faults crossing the mountain ; but my opinion is, that when the workings at Rover are carried across

* TUe word less appears to be wanting here ; that is, no one can tell whether the thickness will be more or less. Mr. English, with much dis- crimination, calls it a teat]/ coal, varying materially in thickness; in some

parts not exceeding 1 foot 4 inches.

I

5S SURVEY OF THB

the before-mentioned fault, that the coal will then be in a great degree similar to the Aughabehy bed, or perhaps equally as good. The quantity of acres of coal in the mining ground at Rover, of the same or nearly similar quality as Aughabehy bed, at present cannot be ascertained by any examination short of boring, or sinking, or both ; but I should think that a quantity not less than from 80 to 100 English acres, may be fairly calculated on at Rover.

*^ I am certain that the beds of coal at Carananault and Derenavoggy, are the same as the bed at Augha- behy and Rover; and it is very probable, that coal, fit for making coke for furnace use, may be found there, when the colliery workings approach nearer the cen- tre of the mountain ; or at least as soon as the work* ings have crossed the line of faults that has so much altered the bed of the coal for the better, at Augha- behy."—(p. 7.)

Quality of the Coal. — Mr. Twigg describes the coal as being of a bituminous quality, or what is generally called a coking coal, and that with proper manage- ment it will produce a coke sufficiently strong to bear a heavy blast and carry a sufficient burden, (p. 34 ;) and he gives this opinion both from experiment tried, on a small scale, and from his general practical know- ledge.

I apprehend, however, that there is a very consi- derable difference in the quality of the coal, at diffe- rent parts of the seam, and at different pits. We have already seen the account given by Mr. Twig^, that, of the coal raised at one of the pits by the Arigna company, not more than one-fourth was fit for making coke, and that the other three-fourths were merely culm.

con<rrY of roscommon. 59

So hIso, as I have already explained, at TiiHyneba col- liery, in the mountain on the northern side of the Arig^a river, worked by the Irish Mining Company, there was a very large proportion of small coal, or slack, compared with that of the solid coal. Mr. Wm. Stephens, already mentioned, who had fixed himself at Arigna, with Mr. Latoache^s permission, in the expectation of being able to make coke, advantageously, for the Dublin market, found the coal of the first pits he tried, utterly unfit for the purpose. Much of the coal which I saw burning in diflTerent houses through the country, assumed, after a while, the appearance of red hot cinders, without caking at all, and it fell readily through the bars of the grate. At Athlone, it was not held in much repute for distillery use ; and Mr. Grantham informed me, that they could not em* ploy it with satisfaction for the steam boats belonging to the Inland Steam Navigation Company, on the Shannon, and that they gave a decided preference to English coal at a much higher price. But there is ample demand at the pits for all the coal, whether it will coke or not, which the company can spare; and it appears from some of their latter reports, that a considerable quantity has been sold at remunerating prices.

Subsequently to the survey made by Mr. Twigg, the company took a lease, on very desirable terms, of another coal field, called the Gubberudda colliery, the coal being of the same quality as the Aughabehy bed, of which it may be said to form a part. It was re- puted to contain about thirty acres of good coking coal. The lease was determinable on giving six months* notice. All these mining fields are on one and the same mountain.

GO SURVEY OF THE

The directors of the company, in their report of March 1 830, state, '^ that they were enabled to close for this property, owing to the liberal manner in which Colonel Tenisou met their proposal, for a reduction of the royalty to which he was entitled, upon all coal brought from other estates, and consumed at the works. That royalty was originally one shilling per ton ; but with a view to assist the efforts of the directors, to make the works productive. Colonel Tenison consented to allow coal obtained from other estates, to be con- sumed on his property^ to the extent of one-third of the total consumption, the company paying only a moiety of the former royalty."

'^ Colonel Tenison, further, at there presentation of the Board, conceded to the company the exclume right to work the minerals on his estates ; and by thus foregoing rights which weighed so much in public opi- nion, and by thus precluding the chance of all compe- tition and future collision, has tended, in the opinion of the directors, very materially to enhance the value of the property."

Irofistone, — As to the quantity of ironstone exist- ing in the mining ground, leased to the company, Mr. Twigg considered it as almost inexhaustible, and ad- mitting of being delivered at the iron works, at an easy expense for many years to come. I may observe in this place, however, that the great quantity of iron stone here alluded to, and from which the works had heretofore been supplied, consisted of the stones found in the bed of the river, whither they had fallen down from the clay slate in which they had been originally deposited, in proportion as the outer edges of the latter gave way. It is extremely difficult to form an exact

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 61

compulation of the quantity of any material thus lying scattered at the bottom of the stream ; but, that the ironstone is extremely abundant, admits of no doubt ; still, the quantity thus disengaged, and lying as it were to hand, will infallibly be exhausted, if there should be coal enough to smelt it, and should the works be perseveringly carried on. The only resources could then be, either these same beds of clay slate in which ironstones are loosely diffused, or the solid compact beds of ironstone which traverse the bottom of the Arigna river. The difficulties and the increased expenses which might devolve upon the undertaking in future times, have not escaped the present sagacious managers of the company ; though the period may be far distant when the change shall be felt. But there is a great supply of ironstone to be obtained at the opposite side of the lake; and iron ore of a very valuable description is known to exist on the borders of the counties of Longford and Leitrim, not far from the Shannon, by which it might be conveyed up to Lough Allen * In fact, iron ore is by no means a

» Since writing the above, I find the following passage in a Report of the directors to the company.

•* The superabundant supply of ironstone in the neighbourhood of the works, has rendered the opening of the ironstone mines unnecessary at the present moment. Your directors, however, hare to report the acquisition of a desirable property of this description, in virtue of an agreement en- tered into with Mr. Nesbit of Derrycarne. The terms on which this agree- ment was drawn, were proposed by the company, with a due regard to the real interests of botli landlord and tenant, and were handsomely assented to by Mr. Nesbitt. As the ironstone possesses different properties from that at Arigna, and as it is ready of acce»s, and facilities are afforded by water communication, it is fairly presumed that this agreement will be found advantageous.

But the company have no want of ironstone in their own premises,

62 SURVEY OF THE

rare cominodity in Ireland ; it is the fuel, to make it available for useful purposes, which is deficient. The ironstone at Arigna is of the kind desig^nated clay iron- stone, commonly of a dusky red or brownish colour, ponderous, tough, and occasionally very hard, and found in rounded fragments from the size of a peb- ble to that of a bull's head, or even larger.

The limestone which is used as a flux in smelting the iron ore, Mr. Twigg also pronounced to be of the very best quality ; of that indeed no doubt existed.

Fire clay. — ^This material so essentially necessary in the construction of the furnace, and for making fire bricks, and blocks, &c., according to Mr. Twig^'s re- ports to the directors, existed in a bed in the moun- tain ; but, says he ^^ as it has not been sufficiently tried, little can be said on that head, and as far as appear- ances go, judging of texture, grain, and weight, I should think it not very good.*' Now, in the labora- tory of the Royal Dublin Society, this clay had under- gone comparative trials with the celebrated fire claj from Stourbridge, and it was the opinion of those who

and if equallj sure of coti, and id the tame proportionate abundanoe* their works would be infallibly prosperous. '* The ironstone mines," sayt Mr. Twigg, in a subsequent Report, dated June, 1830, *' have been ex- amined, and the result extremely favourable. A greater variety of iron- stones I have never met with, from which, by a proper admixture and proper management, I have no hesitation in saying, that pig iron of best marks and suitable for foundry works of every kind may be obtained." In a sub- Report from one of the agents on the spot, he states : *' The iron mines begin in Rover, and continue for more than two miles and a half. I measured several of the beds to more than two feet thick, in some placet laid bare in the ravines ; and in\he bed of the Arigna river we can get any quantity at a very short notice. The distance from the side of the railway will vary from 30 to 250 yards. I'herc is enough to last two furnaces Ik 360 yeais."

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 63

were competent to form an accurate opinion, that the Irish clay from the Brahliere mountain was not infe- rior to that of England. It was notorious that no other clay had been used in the operations carried on at Arigna by the O'Reillys, and under Mr. Latouche, and it had been found to answer most effectually the purposes to which it had been applied. One of tbe English workmen whom I found on the spot, who had been long engaged at different iron works both in England and Wales, told me that he considered the fire clay of first rate quality ; that it only wanted a little more grinding than the English clay ; and this man spoke with confidence, founded on long experience and intimate knowledge of the material. It was not, therefore, without surprize, that at my last visit to the works in the year 1830, I perceived several score of large casks of Stourbridge fire clay in the yard, which had been brought over from England at considerable expense. It seemed to be verifying the proverb of carrying coals to Newcastle.* I was informed, how- ever, in London, that as the directors had determined to adhere strictly to Mr. Twigg's suggestions, and to leave the responsibility of success upon him, so, in such a comparatively trivial matter as bringing fire clay from Stourbridge, it was judged more advisable

• I was pleased to find, by the report of the directors to the proprietors, in'March, 1830, that they had at last made a discovery of a second and superior bed of fire clay, on the Arigna estate ; which, as they say, " held out a pleasing prospect to the company of the works being rendered, at a future period, independant of so expensive an article as fire brick from £ng- land.'' There can be no doubt of the mountain affording abundance of most valuable fire clay, and in time the manufacture of fire bricks, &c. may form an important branch of the company's business.

G4 SURVEY OF TflE

to incur that expense, and to let Mr. Twigg be tho- roughly satisfied, as to the excellence and durability of his materials, than to leave any excuse for failure : for not long after his first report, arrangements vere made for confiding the whole management of the works to his care ; and Mr. Vivian, the first resident manager, or as these mining agents are commonly called. Captain Vivian, was removed from his situa- tion. Vivian was succeeded by a Mr. Partridge, from whom the company had high expectation ; but, after a while, Partridge, in his turn, was put out, and a third person put in. One cannot reflect on such changes without calling to mind Mr. Griffith's evidence before the committee of the House of Commons, that the for- mer failures at Arigna, whilst there were so many apparent causes why the works should have prospered, was to be attributed in a great measure to the want of consistency in the management ; the managers being frequently changed, and persons not well skilled in the business having been employed ; in consequence of which large sums of money had been unnecessarily expended.

In fact, it is sufficiently known to those who have had experience in mining affairs, how extremely difficult it is to procure the service of persons who arc tho- roughly skilled in such subjects, competent to the performance of all the duties they undertake, and confidential in the fullest sense of the acceptation. Nevertheless, let the cause of failure in reaping profit be what it may, it is but a common disposition on the part of those who suffer disappointment, to suppose that by a change of servants, matters may go on more prosperously ; and it is only after repeated trials that

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 65

they become satisfied that one servant is not better than his predecessor ; or that the evil is inherent in the very nature of the business. I must beg, however, that it may be dJitinctly understood, that these general observa- tions are not meant to apply in any respect to the character or abilities of any of the agents who have been employed by the new Arigna Company. I never had any personal communication either with Captain Vivian or Mr. Twigg, and know nothing of the lat- ter, but from his published reports to the board of cKrectors. Nieithcr of them was at Arigna at the period of my visits, although in the employment of the company.

For the improvement and extension of the works at Arigna, Mr. Twigg, after his first survey, suggested four principal measures, and these were immediately adopted by tlie directors of the company, and orders given for carrying them into effect.

1st. To complete the principal adit or level which had been beg^n formerly by the O'Reillys.

2nd. To establish the coke yards near the mouth of this level.

3d. To lay down an iron rail road from the coke yard to the iron works.

4th. To build a second smelting furnace in con- nexion with the one then existing, as the same establishment of agents would manage both.

As the seam of coal is situated at a considerable elevation in the mountain, and extends entirely across it, so that the outcrop or outgoing of the coal is visible on the verge of the mountain at each side, it could scarcely have escaped observation that a level or pas- sage opened into the heart of the mountain, at a con-

K

6G SURVEY OF THE

veuient distance below the seam, would answer the double purpose of a drain for the water, and a passage for bringing out the coals; and the O'Reillys had already made considerable progress in the undertaking before they gave np to Mr. Latouche, having advanced it 800 yards into the mountain. To bring up the coals to the surface of the mountain through a perpen- dicular shaft, was, of course, a useless expenditure of labour, that ought to be avoided, since the same coals, which hadbeen raised, had afterwards to be carried down the hill again. Mr. Griffith, in his book, alludes to a project for making the horizontal passage the seat of a narrow canal, for the conveyance of the coals in boats, and no doubt such a measure would be quite practi- cable ; and the only subject of consideration, the ex- pense. Mr. Twigg proposed that the passage should be wide enough for a horse to work, and as this ex- ceeded the limits which had been planned by the O'Reillys, for their level had only been 5 feet high and 4 feet 9 inches wide ; the first part of the new work consisted in enlarging the old adit, which in every part was to be not less than 7 feet wide and 6 feet high.

In the report delivered in at the general meeting of the company in April 183], it is announced, that

^^ The level at Aughabehy, a work of infinite im- portance as affording means of communication with, as well as unwatering the coal, has been carried to the extent of 522 yards, which will suffice for the work- ings of that and the Gubbemidda collieries for the immediate operations of the company .'* — *^ It has not, however, been the lot of the company to escape the common fate of proceedings founded on estimate ; the

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 67

usual discrepancy between the amount of these and the actual expenditure entailed, being considerable in the present case. The excess in many respects is to be atcounted for, by the interposition of difficulties of which there were no just grounds for anticipation ; as, for instance, the level, where rock, not forming part of the regular stratification of the mountain, was found in the course of the driving ; and not only much im- peded that work, but entailed such a very considerable additional expense, as to cause the cuttings in some parts to have amounted to twelve pounds per yardy in- stead of 25s. ; and in other cases, the hardness of the stone for furnace use cost three times the amount for dressing, of that of the stone of this country.'*

The sandstone of the country is of various dc^ees of hardness, and in some instances not only hard but extremely tough ; it is stated, however, that the un- usual stone, foreign to the regular stratification en- countered in cutting the level, was not sand, but whin stone, but I did not see any specimen to enable me to describe it more accurately.

The operation of coking, as every person must be aware, diminishes the original weight of the coal ; ac- cording to Mr. Twigg's estimate, the decrease is no less than 45 per cent. Of couree if the process can be conveniently carried on near the place where the coals are first delivered from the mine, there would be a saving of that per centage on the carriage ; and at the distance of somewhat less than 300 yards from the mouth, there was a place every way suitable for esta- blishing the new coking yards.

The whole length of the rail- way down to the iron works was computed at 5500 yards, and the report last

08 KLRVEY OF THE

alluded to, announces, that 5,100 yards of it bad been already completed, and that but little more work wa» required to render it available for the transit of coal, ironstone, &c.

** The nature of the soil through which the road passes, and a considerable space of bog, through which it is cut, with the depth of the excavations and heavy fillings, in some instances 24 feet, have rendered this work one of considerable anxiety and trouble. It has been represented as having withstood the late stormy season admirably, as, although the water in many places passed over it, no damage of any importance was sustained."

Of course, on an inclined plane, with the advan- tage of an iron rail-way, coals could be conveyed far more easily and expeditiously, than by the old system of panniers on horseback : indeed formerly a conti* derable outlay was generally required in keeping the mountain roads in a passable state for the horses. Mr. Twigg estimated the probable saving at £5000 per annum. Besides, in using horses on hire, the com* pany was exposed to imposition and combiniEttion, whereby the works might have been at any time stopped.

As to the rail-way, an anomaly not less remark- able than the bringing of Stourbridge fireclay to these mountains which produced a material equally good, occurred with respect to it ; since the iron, for the purpose, or at least much of it, was actually pro- cured from England, and transported at a heavy ex* pense, to supply the wants of this region, so pom- pously announced as teeming with iron and coal ; and this also, after the works had been five years in the

COUVTY OF ROSCOMMON. 69

possession of die company, and after their having actuaUy set their furnace into action. The pig iron which had been made at Arigna l>y the new company , had been all sent off to Dublin and to England, to show what could be produced; although there was no doubt, from past experience, of the excellent quality of the iron which these works could be brought to yield; and when it became an object to form the railroad without farther delay, the iron which had been thus sent away was brought back, or at least all of it that could con- veniently be re-obtained, together with as much more as was necessary to complete the work. Whilst I was at Arigna in the summer of 1830, the castings were going on with great activity, and they appeared to me of a very beautiful description, each piece bearing in well formed sharp letters, the name of the Arigna Com- pany. In these observations nothing can be farther from my intention than to impute mismanagement to the present board ; on the contrary, I admire their per- severence, and am satisfied that their proceedings have been directed by prudence and economy, and from my heart I wish them every success. But the sending of fire-clay and of iron from England to this place, is not the less a remarkable circumstance which must be set down in the history of Arigna.

The iron rail road was considered by Mr. Twigg, as absolutely essential to the success of the business, which may readily be conceived, if, as stated, an ex- penditure of £4000 upon the road, was to occasion a saving of £5000 per annum. — (Report, p. 11.)

The estimates given in were for three and a half English miles of rail-way, at 70lbs. of iron per yard, amounting in all to 192^ tons. Now, there was a good

70 SURVEY OF THB

deal of waste and refuse iron lying about the place, which, it was conceived, might be converted to use ; cupelows for melting the iron were already erected, and by getting more iron, and employing the English workmen belonging to the company, it was calculated the castings could be produced at ^6s« per ton ; but if purchased, deliverable at Arigna, they would cost £12 per ton.

The first estimate was as follows :

192^ tons of cast iron at 268. Stone aleepers, inclading carriage, &c. Cutting and fbrmiDg embankmentB, bridge, &€., and Uying the road

Contingencies ....

£	s.	d.
250	5	0
255	10	0
1400	0	0
1905	15	0
90	0	0
1995	15	0
£.	s.	d.
2310	0	0
255	10	0
1400	0	0
100	0	0

The second estimate :

i92| tons of cast iron at £12 Sleepers, as before - . • Embankments, &c. ... Contingencies - . . .

4065 10 0

The company put their own men to the work, and the rail-way, after being nearly completed, was found, according to the report, to come close to the estimates. The fall was calculated to enable one horse to draw nine to ten tons.

We arc now come to a part of the subject, avowedly indeed the most important of all, the quantity of iron

COUNTY OP ROSCOBfMON. 71

which may probably be prodaced, the cost of it to the company, and consequently the profits on the concern. Ihis subject must, however, be approached with cau- tion ; and it is essentially necessary to bear in mind, that it is not upon the results of actual experience, but rather upon the estimates of the mining surveyors and engineers, who have at different periods been em- ployed to examine the premises, and give their opi- nions thereon, that a judgment can be formed with any pretensions to an approximation towards the truth.

Mr. John Grieve, of Edinburgh, who examined into the circumstances of the place, in the year 1800, as I have already stated, gives the following estimate of the cost of making a ton of pig iron.

5 j tons of raw coal, at 48. lid. 4 do. iron stone at 3s. 8d. -

I

1 ton 3 cwt. of limestone, at 2s. 3d. Contingencies, wear and tear, &c.

£	s.	d.
1	7	0
0	14	8
0	2	7
0	13	0

2 17 3

The latter item at once shows, that this account is hypothetical j but it is still more so, in respect to the price put down for the coals ; for that price was not the actual one at which coals were then delivera- ble at the works ; but the price at which he supposes they might thereafter be delivered, if certain im- provements as to the levels, means of carriage, &c. &c. were adopted, pursuant to his suggestion. In fact the collier's ton of coals— containing 22cwt., at 120lb. to the cwt., making 1 ton 3 cwt. 2 qrs. and 8 lbs., actually stood in 13s. del. at the timo ; equal to lis. 3d. per

£	8,	d.
1	11	8
1	4	0
0	4	0
0	10	a
1	5	4

72 SURVBY OP THI

ton of the ordioarj measure. The difference woald amount to 68. 4d. per ton, whieh on 5^ tons would be jCI 14s. 10d*y making the cost of the ton of iron amount to £4 128* Id.

Mr. Thomas Guest's esdmales, also already men- tioned, were as follow :

5 ions of raw coal at 66. 4d.

4 do. iroastoney at Gs. -

1 do. limestoney at 48. -

Working famace, calcining, coking, &c.

Incidental charges, wear and tear, &c.

4 15 0

These estimates appear in the notes, or addenda, to Mr. Griffith's report on the Connaught Coal Dis- trict.

Mr. Griffith's own estimate, at p. 71 of his book, stands thus :

5 tons of raw coal at 7b, 6d. 4 do. ironstone, at 3s. 4d. 1 do. limestone, at 48. - - - Expense of coking, roasting, furnace-men, &c. ------

Contingencies at 20 per cent.

Cost per ton of pig iron - - - 3 5 5| But with the proposed improrements which he has suggested, Mr. Ghrifflth considers the iron could be made at - . 3 2 5

£ s.	d.
1 7	f)
0 13	4
0 4	0
0 10	0
2 14	10
0 10	7*

Difierence sared - - - 0 3 Oj

C0UN1T OF ROSOOlfMON. 73

Mr. Tirigg's eitiOMCe 6f the expense of making pig iron at Arignai next falls under consideration. Bot here it most be explained in the fimt instance, that Mr. Twiggi in his repcHrt to the company, repre- sentedi that with all the improvements and eoonomical arrangements which had been suggested, the changes must vary, at different periods of time, aeoctfdiiig as the coals should be w<»ked in a more or less temote part of the mountain, and according to the distance from which it might booome noeessavy to bring the ironstone.

Estimate for making one ton of pig iron of No. 1 quality.

£ t. d. 5\ ioaa of best raw omJ st 7b. IM., the sap- posed «?ersgs prks fcr 21 yesrs -* « t 3 i 3tdti8 4cwt.ofifomtotteat4s. lOd. • ^ 0 15 A 1 do. limestsae at3s» - - «- •030

Warkmea's vmgm &r nakiag Ne. 1 yig mat aa BOW paid to English woikmsa «• - 0 18 3

Cost of engine ileck upon each ton of iron made ; with sgeacy and ill other inciden- tal expenses, including hearths^ liaingpiy and all wear and tear * - - - -0110

4 5 9

If the limestone should he supplied by meana of a rail way, deduct Is. 1 Id. per ton - 0 1 1 1

4 3 10

This estimate is of coarse in English monej, the pteceding ones were in the old Irish currency, but it was not material to reduce them.

74 8UKVBV OP TBI

No question seems to be entertained of the good quality of the iron vrhieh has been heretofore made at AngntL, and doubtless as good, if not better, may be made hereafter, considering what improrements in science and in art hare taken place* But it may be questionable whether the pig iron, or the bar iron, should the manufieu^ture of it be attempted, can be sue* cessfiilly brought in competition, into the great markets which are at present supplied from Engluid, SeotUnd, and Wales. The Canron castings, for example, can by direct water carriage be conveyed to the port ci Sligo, within a few miles of Arigna ; and it is well known that they are poured in large quantity into Dublin, although the English and Welsh works are in tsiCt nearer ; for even where the articles are equally good, or nearly so, it is not always that proximity will influence the market. Cheapness^ consisting in the compared rates of price and quality, vrill sooner or later bring customers, and liberality and exactness se* cure them* But it is quite possible that Arigna may furnish castings, which by means of the canals and the Shannon, may find their way to the central parts of Ireland, as well as to Dublin and Limerick ; and the spirit, and perseverence, and liberality with which the company have carried on their works, must induce every friend to the extension of national industry, earnestly to wish them success.

As to the quantity of pig iron which could be pro* duced from the two furnaces, old and new, the one 44 feet high and 12 feet in the bosh, the other M feet high and proportionately broad, if kept at constant work, Mr. Twigg calculated it at about 60 tons per

COUNTir OP ROfiOOMMON. 75

wed[, which would make 3120 tons in the year ;* and allowing 6^ tons of coals for each ton ot iron, the con- sopiption of coal would be equal to 16,100 tons annu- ally, which coal, it is to be obsenred, must all be of the best quality ; and if the acre produced 2550 tons of good coal, then the consumption would exhaust some- what more than six acres of the company's best coal fidds in each year; but if the seams became thin, or the coal of indifferent quality, the exhaustion must proceed at a more rapid rate. Fuel for the steam en- gine^ castings, &c. must also be taken into the account, all tending to exhaust the existing stock.

The following is an account of the assets ot the Company, according to the statement laid be-

* I bsvealnady fUted, that the company ha^e jndgtd it mora adfitft- Ue, sinoe, to b6gia with one fornace alone ; of come not mora than one half the qaantitj can be produced.

It maj be interesting to compara such an amomt of production with that of the iron works in Groat Britain.

" The qnantity of iron annually mannfactnied in Wales, is about 270,000 tons, of which about three- fourths b made into bars, and one- fourth sold as pigs and castiogs. The quantity of coal required for its ninufacture, on the average of the whole, including that used by engines, woiimen, &c. will be about five tons and a half for each ton of iron. The annual consumption of coal by the iron works, will, therefore, be about 1,600,000 tons. The quantity used in the melting of copper ore, im- ported from Cornwall, in the manufacture of tin plates, forging of iron for various purposes, and for domestic uses, may be estimated at 850,000 tons. The annual quantity of iron manufactured in Great Britain is 690,000 tons. — Tram, Soc, Nat. Hist., N<n-ihuMb€rland and Durham, ^c.

If such be the immense consumption of coal and iron in this country at praatnt, who can calculate what it will be in a few years, when the kingdem will be covered with rail-roads, and when we bear in mind that upwards of 4000 tons of iron have been laid down in the double line of rail-way between this town and Manchester* a distance of abeat 30 miles ou]y,-^jAv4rpool Mercury,

76^ SUHVCY OV THfi

foro tho proprietors, in April, 1831, and ttubsequesdy printed for distribution.

Arigns iion works, with ftiniaees, easting beuses, andotlMr bniMings, stesm engines, miehinerj, Ste.y St^.

Aughabehj, "\

Qubbamidda I ^^ These are all situated in the one moun-

CarMianeidt, I ^*"^* Derr^FMvoggj, ^^

Rail road 5500 yard^ from Aughabehy colliery to the Arigna

works.

£ 8. d, Innsitone in stock, limeslone, and other mate-

riab - - 362 16 0

Pig inn sonfS, Ac 477 12 0

RaU tram platM and sleepsn * - 1833 10 10

Building materials, timber, &c. in sloek . 414 0 8

Sundry tools and ImpDements ... 338 18 5

Farm stock 248 19 6

3675 17 5 £ f. d, 1 1»033 9 7-^3 par cent, consols, Parlianientarj land.

829 12 8 — 3\ per eeoli. inrested under order of die

Cburt of Chancery. 3,513 18 8^3| per cents, forming the proprietors* gua- rantee fund.

£ f . d. Cash, as per balance sheet ... 3,568 8 11

Arrears due as per last statement • 10,462 0 0

On the 7th call on 1,064 sknreo - . 1,064 0 0

On the 8th catt en 2,128 shares, Islinalahnsnt 2,128 0 0 OBibe8theaUen2,798shaieo,2d do. 2,798 0 0

Due by Mr. Joseph Clarke Ibr half-a-year*s dividend received by him - - 164 10 0

CX>UllTf OF aOfiOOMlfON. 77

The gfeat importance liarelofore altadied to this mining' district has led me to dwell upon the subject longer than I otherwise would have done. I most now ccmcliide, and in doing so must take this opportanity of expressing my thanks to Mr. English, the inteUi- grat, xealous, and active secretary of the Arigna Com- pany, for all the informatioii lie so politely and oUigingly afforded me on the sobject, wh^i in Lon- don, in the month oi August, 1881.

BOOS.

According to the marginal note on the county map, by Messrs. Edgeworth and Chrtffith, of which a trans- cript has been given in a preceding pag^ the bogs of Roscommon amount to 80,908 Irish, equal to 181,067 Englirii acres, occupying in pr^Mxrtion to the arable land about 29 parts in 100. They are dispersed over the face of the country in divisions oi Tarions size, from tracts of thousands of continuous acres, to small patches, which barely sufiEu^e to supply the neighbouring districts with fuel. It is rare to find four miles together without the occurrence of bogs, and they are met with in almost every variety of situation ; on the summits of the coal mountains and the tops of the highest hills ; on their sloping sides ; on the banks of loughs and rivars, and in the depth of vallies. Several of the bogs on the uplands, are oomparativdy dry, and in their natural state often affeid course pasturage, which an- swers for young and hardy cattle : but all the upland bogs are not dry, neither do they all yield pasturage : on the contrary, in sUuotbns where it might be least

78 SURVBY OP THK

expected^ springs, swallow boles, and quagmires occur, dangerous in many instances to approach, and often absolutely impervious to man or beast The depth of the bogs is Various ; from that of a few feet to upwards of seven fathoms.

* As sources of fuel, the distribution of these bogs over the face of the country, may be regarded as a bountifid gift from providence, diffusing comparative comfort amongst many a poor Ceimily, which, without such an advantage, would suffer extreme misery. A distance of four miles intervening between the turbary and the residence, is considered in Roscommon, a sub- ject of peculiar inconvenience ; and a marked difference is observable in the condition of the peasantry who have a plentiful supply of turf at hand upon easy terms, and those who have to fetch it from such a distance, or to pay for it in money. But the fourth part of the surface of the land is not wanted for fuel, and even if it were, the value of bog is not impaired by dnuning and cultivation. The growth of the bog plants may be stopped, and consequently the increase of the mass ' prevented ; but the turf from a bog which has been consolidated by draining, is more dense, and conse- quently of more value, and the cultivation of the sur« face neither lessens nor deteriorates what lies beneath. Are then these extensive wastes destined to remain in continued barrenness ; or are they, by the ingenuity, ^industry, and perseverance of man, to be rendered sub- servient to bis sustenance, and contributive to the general wealth and prosperity of the land?

The inquiry into the general question of bog im- provement, is avowedly one not only of great interest in itself, but of great national consequence. Think only of the possibility of adding upwards of 130,000

OOUimr OF ROfiOOllMON. 79

English^ acres of prodoctiTe sarface to. this single countj of .Bosoommon* How .many human beings who now languish in penury, and. drag out a listless life of inaction and inutility,, ending with the infirmi- ties of premature old age, might be employed in use- ful labour, and. thereby be rendered comfortable and happy, if the bogs were once reduced to a state suitable for jSultiTation.*

Now that bog soil will admit of permanent agri- cultural improvement ; that it may be brought to yield com and grass, and many of the. most raluable escu- lent plants which nature. has provided for the suste- nance of man and beast, seems to be put beyond all doubt, by what has been already effected in various parts of Ireland, and numerous instances may be ad- duced of bog improvements ^within the county of Bos- common. But it is to be observed that the greater part of these improvements have been effected on bogs of comparatively small extent, so that the grand and interesting question of the practicability of re^ ducing the large and deep bogs to a state fit for culti- vationy yielding at the same time a profit to the undertaker, seems to be still at issue, notwithstanding the vast sums which have been expended under the com- mission of 1809, in obtaining information as to their nature, extent, and peculiar circumstances through- out the island.

* Mr. Sadler, in his able and luminout statement in the House of Commons on the subject of poor laws, showed that the defalcation of life in Ireland, after the age of forty, was, in proportion to the numbers born, and of those who attained to that age, most remarkable, as compared with the state of the population in Great Britain ; the human system in Ireland after the prime vigour of life was over, seemed unable to support the hard- ships and deprivations to which it was exposed.

80 SURVKY or THB

So much has been written npon the nature of the bogs, and the means of reclaiming them, that it is scaicely possible to Umch upon the subject, without falling into repetition of what is already before the public. But repetition may surely be allowable where there is the least hope of its giving a fresh impulse to national improvement.

As conducive to this end, I have put together some of the principal observati<ms which have been made by the engineers employed in this county, under the commissioners appointed for inquiring into the nature and extent of the bogs in Ireland, and the practicability of draining and cultivating them ; more especially as these observations will furnish more ac- curate information respecting the bogs of Roscomm<m, than is obtainable from any other source that I am acquainted with ; but as a great deal of extraneous mat* ter not immediately relating to Roscommon, is of ne- cessity introduced, it appeared to me better to transfer the subject to an Appendix, rather than to dweU upon it at large in this place.

The surveys of the bogs of Roscommon, under the commission appointed for the purpose by Pkritameal, were executed in the years 1812 and 181S, by Messrs. Longfield, Griffith, and Edgeworth, and the bogs were classed under four districts. The first by Mr. Long- field, called the Lough Gara district, comprised the bogs which lay in the vicinity of that great body of water, on the western frontier of the county, in the baronies of Boyle and BaUintobber, Mr. Griffith un- dertook the survey of two districts, the first omiprising the bogs which dischaiged their watars into the tt|^per Suck; the second, the bogs which disdmiged their

COUNTY OP ROSCOMMON. 81

wateiB into the lower Suck, and into the Shan« noD. Mr. Edgeworth^ the fourth district, laj be- tween the rirer Shannon and the ridge of Slierebawn, or the white mountain ; Rooakej-bridge on the Shan- non was the most northern part, and Lough Ree the most southern. The whole quantity of bog surveyed was upwards of 1 00,000 English acres ; but the sur- veys, according to the regulation of the commissioners, were not to include any bogs of less extent than 500 Irish acres.

Notwithstanding the accuracy and intelligence of the engineers, and the confident and almost enthnst- aslic terms in which they represented the pracyca«> bflity of draining and improving the bogs, and the consequent profits attendimt on the measure, yet no*- tlung of any note has been effected since these surveys were made; at least nothing in pursuance of the plans which were then laid down and submitted to the eommissicmers and to Parliament.

The most remarkable improvements within the county, particularly those in the southern parts, in the vicinity of Athlone, and the largest plantation of tim - ber trees upon bog, were effected before the com- mission was issued; these were referred to by the surveyors, in their reports, as examples of what might be done, and they still remain as the principal exam^- pies which are to be seen within the county on a considerable scale. Minor improvements have indeed gone on, in various places, and a season has never passed over without some accession of reclaimed bog, as it is called, to the arable surface of the county. On Lord Dillon's estate, near Lough Glynn, on the western side of the county, in the barony of Boyle,

M

82 SURVEY OF TH£

where the tenants were allowed to extend cultivation at pleasure into the large bog near the village, as described by Mr. Longfield, in his Report on the Ros- common bogs, annual progress has continued to be made ; and I there saw close to the village some small plantations of fir trees growing upon drained bog, as vigorously as ever I saw any trees of the same kind on firm soil.

A similar system of improving bog has been adopted in the same neighbourhood, towards Castlerea, on Lord Mount Sandford's estate, under the intelligent guid- ance of Mr. Owen Young, the agent. New well boill cottages have been erected on the sound land in the contiguity of the bog, and the tenants have been en- couraged to cidtivate it, aided by master drains cut through the wetter parts of the bog, which have greatly tended to facilitate the improvements.

On the road between the town of Roscommon and Lanesborough ,ou the Shannon, bog improvements may likewise be seen annually increasing, the woric of cottagers, many of them adventurers who have been attracted by the cheapness of fuel, and the prospect of obtaining a settlement ; though they are left to boild their own miserable huts, and are made to pey very dearly for the permission to occupy. In fact, in almost every part of the county, wherever a road is carried over a bog, and wherever drains are made for keeping the road dry, which drains also serve to dry the bog, the peasantry, if left to themselves, will immediately fix, and build huts ; and, as already staled, some will not only pay for the permission, but at a rate neaily equivalent to the rent of sound ground ; the certainty of having fuel in abundance, being one ^subject of oott-

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 83

sideration ; and the prospect of procuring an increasing extent of surface capable of producing food, merely by their own labour, another and still more important one.

In various places, also, on passing through the "count]^ whilst the harvest was partly standing, partly in sheaf, I observed richer, cleaner, and heavier crops on the improved bog, than on some of the adjacent firm grounds. I do not mean to say better crops than the prime lands of Roscommon would produce, but better crops than what some of the light but not bad land yielded.

Now, if such circumstances as I have descril^, are consequent upon the opening of an ordinary road carried through a bog casually, who can doubt of a similar result, if roads were carried through the larger bogs, for the express purpose of their improvement ? Several spirited individuals have set an example to a certain extent, of what might be effected, but nothing has been done on a large scale, which involved much expense and outlay ; nothing whatever on any com- bined plan of united cooperation. All the bog im- provements effected in Roscommon, when summed up together, are absolutely trifling and insignificant, when compared to the immense extent of bog which still remains in a state of nature, useless and neglected.

Amongst the late improvements of bog, some of the most considerable which came under my observation, were those on the Coote Hall estate, in the barony of Boyle, near the Shannon, purchased not many years ago by Hugh Barton, Esq. These were effected chiefly by opening and lowering the natural channels for the waters, pursuant to a plan devised by Mr. Longfield ;

84 SURVEV OK THE

but this part of the country was not included in any of the surveys which were executed for the commis- sioners. The great success of the undertaking, and the acquisition of a tract of nearly 500 acres of pro- fitable surfiice, at an extremely moderate outlay, in comparison with the value obtained, excited atten- tion in other parts of the county, and Mr. Longfield^s* services were soon put in requisition to the same end in other quarters, more particularly towards the great bogs in the vicinity of French Park. But it seems strange, that with Mr. Longfield, with Mr. Griffith, with Mr. Nimmo, at hand, men individually so dis- tinguished in their profession, and so extensively em- ployed under the commissioners of the bogs; and moreover, whose subsequent avoeations in the county of Roscommon, on matters of a different nature, mutt of necessity have brought them still closer into relation with many of the proprietors of extensive tracts of bog ; it seems strange under such circumsUinces, with such advice, with such experience to guide and direct, so little should have been hitherto attempted towards the improvement of the bogs.

In the detailed descriptions of the baronies, iheie may be occasioa to take notice incidentally of soma of the bogs which they contain ; but ibr the general view of the subject, I must beg le«ve to refer to the Appen- dix.

* Mr. LoDgficId'i abilities bav« bttn kng appitckltd in tht couaty of Rotcomiuoa, aad I had the gratiBcation of Mtiiig maay of kit bM«- uhllj executed mapt of eitalet in that count j. mora ptrtkvltrly ihoae of J^^td Mount Sandlnd.

COUNTT OP ROSCOMMON. 85

LAKES AND RIVERS.

In the table of the superficial contents of the eocrnty, inserted at a preceding page, it may be seen that the surface covered by water amounts to 7562 acres Irish, equal to 12,248 English ; so that if the whole extent of arable or sound land be taken at 279,976 acres, the waters may be set down as bearing thereto a propor- tion of nearly 2/^^ to 100. It is to be observed, how- ever, that considerable portions ot the waters, though comprised within the limits of the county, lie, never- theless, beyond the apparent boundary. Thus along the whcde eastern side of the coaaty, from Lough Allen to the mouth of the river Suck on Uie south, the (San- son and its broad lakes seem to be the bounds of the county, whilst the real line of demarcation passes through the middle of the waters; the same observa- tion will apply to the river Suck on the south western side of the county, and to that large body of water called Lough Gara. The waters, therefore, seem to admit of a division into two classes, those which, lying upon the boundaries, are common to other coun- ties, and those which lie exclusively within the county. A glance at the map will serve to show, that the baro- nies of Boyle and Roscommon are more abundant in water than any of the others ; neither does this arise merely from their contiguity to, and share in, the large boundary lakes, but from the number of internal lakes and rivers which they severally contain. The relative proportion of the water to the sound land, excluding the bogs altogether, in the several baronies, may be seen

86

SURVEY OF THE

in the following table, beginning with those which contain the largest quantity of water.

Table showing the relative proportions of water in acres and decimal parts to every 100 acres of tattd, exdosive of bog, in each barony.

Boyle, - - Roscommon, Ballintobber, Athlone, Half Ballymoe, Half Moycame

Land,

per 100 acres,

Water.

ACfM.

5.6 3.4 1.7

1.3 0.4 0.1

sible into loughs, tur-

The waters are again divi loughs, and rivers ; but without the aid of the actual notes of the surveyor, it would be difficult to assign the extent of surface occupied by each.

TURLOUGHS.

Tlie turloughs are temporary lakes, which usually commence in winter and disappear in summery but they vary considerably in extent during different years, and sometimes continue during the whole of the sum- mer, and even during a second year. It is in this respect that they differ from the pools which are ao commonly formed, more especially in flat countries, by the winter floods, and which disappear with the returning spring.

The turloughs usually occupy shallow basins, and are invariably, as it is believed, connected with the limestone districts, where fissures in the rocks and

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 87

swallow holes commoDly occur. So long as these vents remain open, the water runs off, and there is no lake; bat when decayed weeds, aquatic plants, &c. are swept away by the first winter floods and borne towards the vents, the passages, by the accumulation of the masses, become stopped, and remain so until the vegetable mat- ter is entirely decomposed by the returning warmth of summer. The water, consequently, having no outlet, soon forms the turlough.

That turloughs are occasioned in this manner, can admit of no doubt, because, the remains of the vegeta- ble masses which had been accumulated around the swallow holes, may be seen after the water has been drained off. But it appears to me, that turloughs may also be formed by the vents or passages becoming stopped by back water from subterranean reservoirs with which they may be connected; and in the county of Longford, a turlough, so called, was pointed out to me, the rise and fall of which was evidently connected with the floods in the Shannon, although situated at the distance of a mile or two from the river, and sepa- rated from it by hills.

When the turlough happens to have a grassy bot- tom, the most luxuriant crops are obtained if the waters retire timely; on the other hand, losses and disappointment are sustained if the waters unfortu- nately continue throughout the summer. The great turlough of Mantua had remained full for such a length of time, that measures were once in agitation for opening surface drains to empty it. But nature, after occasionally making these deviations from her usual course, generally resumes her former ways, and sometimes, when least expected, the turlough, after

88 SURVRT OF THE

alarming the occupant of the soil, quietly parts with its waters. The turloagh of Mantua is computed to contain 8B0 acres Irish, rather more than 600 English. Another very large tnrlough, of more than a mile in length, lies still farther to the west, beyond Lough Glin. Other turloughs of Tarious sizes occur in diffe- rent parts of the county ; but it would be useless to enumerate them : suffice it to state, that they are more numerous in the western and central parts of the county than elsewhere.

LOUGHS.

The term lough, seems to admit of a much more general signification than that of lake, since it is ap- plied to mere ponds, as well as to bodies of water of miles in extent. The number of loughs in Roscom* mon is very considerable. Some of them neither receive nor discharge any stream, unless it be by sub* terranean courses ; these are probably fed by surface water from the adjacent lands, or by springs, or land drains. Others, fed in the same way, discharge streams ; and others again, both receive and discharge streams. In many instances, streams pass from lough to lough, connecting them into a chain of lakes for several miles together : these streams, however, are rarely naviga- ble ; though no doubt exists but that some might be rendered so, and made to contribute essentially to the convenience and improvement of the county.

The loughs admit of division, as already observed, into those which are wholly comprised within the county, and those which merely border upon its con- fines, and are shared by other counties. The latter are by fiir the largest Such are Lough Allen, Loogh

couNnr OF roboobimon. 89

Bodarig, Lough Boffin, Lough Forbes, Lough Ree upon the Shannon* Of these, some are obviously mere expansions of the river: whilst Lough Allen and Lough Ree have all the appearance of individual lakes, which the Shannon may rather be supposed to pass through than to form. The description of these seve- ral bodies of water will fall with more propriety under the head of the river Shannon.

Lough Gara, on the western side of the county, computed to contain 2924 acres Irish, equal to 47M English, is another of the great lakes which is only shared by Roscommon, with Mayo and Sligo ; indeed, the latter county extends in part to each side of the lake, and appears like an interloper upon Roscommon, intruding beyond its natural boundary of the lake.

To attempt to enumerate all the loughs which lie exclusively within the county, would be a task not less useless, than it would be perplexing, considering that the name of lough is g^ven almost to every pond, and that these abound in the country. The largest indi- vidual lake of Roscommon, is that of Lough Key, in the barony of Boyle. This lake receives the surplus waters of Lough 6ara, as I shall presently explain more at large, and discharges its waters by a river, into the upper and lower loughs of Oak-port, which communicate with the Shannon. In the same barony there are two little lakes. Lough Skean and Lough Meelagh, the latter very picturesque, which also dis- charge their waters into the Shannon.

Farther to the south, in the baronies of Roscom- mon and Ballintobber, on the eastern side of the county, there are several chains of small lakes which discharge their waters into Lough Bodarig, on the

N

90 SURVKT OF THE

Shannon, by means of which, if the navigation could be opened along the connecting streams, a communi- cation might be extended from the Shannon to a con- siderable distance into the interior of the country.

On the western side of the county, also in the baronies of Boyle and of Ballintobber, there are seve- ral lakes, the most considerable one of which is Lough Aeluyn, near the village of Ballinlough ; at a little distance further to the north in the same clistrict lie the lesser lakes of Lough Errit and J^ough Glin, on the beautiful wooded banks of the latter of which, stands the mansion of Lord Dillon. In the more southern parts of the county, the only lough of any note is that of Puncheon, in the barony of Athlone.

In the account of the respective baronies, a more detailed description of these several lakes will be in- troduced, and it will be needless to dwell on the subject in this place, longer than just to give a general view of the course of the waters of the county of Roscom-- mon. These all find their way into the river Shannoo, but through very different channels. On the eastern side of the county, the course of the waters into the Shannon is very direct; but on the extreme west, the waters divide in a remarkable manner, one part de- scending to the south, and falling into the Suek; whilst in the same immediate neighboorhood, other waters run towards the north, falling into Lough Grais, and passing thence into Lough Key and Oak-port Lough, before they unite with the Shannon. On re- ferring to the map, it may be observed, that in the district situated to the north-west of Castlerea, Lough Errit, Cloonagfa Longh, and several leaser lougha, betwMn which there is a chain of oonunmicatioii by

COUNTY OP ROSOOJfMON. 91

rivers, passings firom one to the other, as well also as the detached lake of Lough Glin, pour forth their waters to augment the river Lung, which conveys them ultimately into Lough Gara, whikt those of Lough Aelnyn, in the same district, join the river Suck, and are conveyed southward into the Shannon.

But the nearest approach of the head waters of the streams which take this opposite course, on one side to the Suck, and on the other to Lough Grant, is ob- servable at a few miles to the north-east of the town of Castlerea, between the sources of an auxiliary branch of the river Suck, and those o( the river Bree* ogue, which though rising within view of each other, snd destined ultimately to mingle in the Shannon, yet before they reach the point of union, run, the one near 50 miles, and the other not much short of double that distance in different directions.

The rivers Breeogue and Lung, which fall into Lough Gara, and the river Suck which joins the Shan- non below Shannon-bridge, are the great outlets for the waters on the western side of the county.

Uie River Breeogue is but of inconsiderable length, measuring, with all its meanderings, scarcely more than ten miles from any one of its sources to Lough Gara, into which it falls on the southern side. It has three principal sources, one near Belanagar, another near Clonshanville, and the third in Lough Bally, one of the small lakes of this district. At Ballabridge, there is a fall of 2 feet 6 inches in 100 perches, but when Lough Gara rises, this fall disappears, and the back water occasions floods for six miles upwards from the mouth of the river. The river runs deep and slow, and it is from one to three perches broad. Breeogue

92 SURVEY OP THE

bridge which crosses the stream, within a little more than a mile of the loogh, is a low winding cansewaj bridge, and the river, full of reeds and sedge, is there scarcely distinguishable from the plashes, through which it makes its reluctant waj. There are no means of remedying the mischief occasioned bj the floods of this river, and they are considerable for one of so short a coarse, except by lowering Lough Gara, which might be effected with very great &ei- lity as I shall presently point out. By removing the obstructions which occasion the fall at Balla* bridge, it has been suggested, that the level of Lough Bally might bo reduced, and some fifty acres of com* paratively profitless surface freed from water and con* verted to useful purposes.* At the same time the river might be made navigable up to Lough Bally for small craft, and might thus become useful for the conveyance of g^vel in improving the bogs in the vicinity.

The River Lung derives a part of its supplies from sources within a very short distance of those of the Suck and of the Breeogue ; others are situated in the coimty of Mayo. One of the principal of its tributary streams comes from Lough Errit, which dischargiea its water into Lough Orier in Mayo, but which retoma them back into the county of Roscommon, througli Cloonagh lake. After leaving this lake, and pastiiig under Annagoldagh bridge, the stream, at the end of a course of something less than four miles, sinks into tlie ground and disappears. The actual sinking is only observable, however, at seasons when the tnrlough or

* lUport bjr Mr. LoogfieM on the Lough Gwi Bof Ditlrwt.

couimr OP rosoommon. 93

temporary lake is not flooded. Another branch of this river coming from the county Mayo, also sinks into a f^f like a quarry hole. But at the distance of about a mile, these streams again appear, each rising from its own distinct fountain ; after a short separate course they unite and form one considerable river.

These temporary sinkings of streams into subter- ranean channels, are common in several limestone districts, and there are several instances of the kind in the county of Roscommon. Springs of the clearest water imaginable also abound, issuing from the earth occasionally with considerable velocity, and in copious volume«

At some of the larger swallow holes, as they are called in the country, mills have been erected, the wheels being contrived to receive the water as it rushes with force into the abyss.

The Lung, like the other rivers of this district, has a very circuitous course^ soon winding out of the county, and only returning to it to serve as a boundary.

The extreme length of the district through which it passes in Roscommon scarcely exceeds ten miles.

The latter part of its course is dull and slow, and it is affected even still more than the Breeogiie river, if possible, by the rise of the waters of the lake. The mill of Lung, at a distance of more than three miles above the lake, is frequently stopped by the back water, and the inundations spread over a considerable extent of the low grounds. When the floods unfor- tunately occur during the hay season, which, in this district, seldom comes on until the corn is ripe, it is not unusual to see hundreds of hay cocks peering above the surface of the waters : sometimes, also, the grass is actually cut whilst under water. The same

94 SURVEY OP TUB

thing happens on the banks of the Shannon, where I saw the mowers at work, laboriously wielding the scythe under water, which reached above their knees, whilst their assistants caught the grass as it was severed, and bore it on their shoulders to the nearest bank to dry.

The usual level of Lough Gara at midsummer was assumed by Mr. Longfield, in his Survey of the bogs of that district under the Parliamentary eommisrion, as the standard to which all the others were made to refer. But there appears to have been an omission in the engraved maps, and in the accompanying printed reports, in not stating the height of the lake itself above the sea, or above any given fixed point. How- ever, the height may be inferred from an observation which Mr. Longfield makes at p. 55 of his Report, relative to a certain bog, which is represented as being 140 feet above Lough Gara, and 220 feet above the level of the Shannon at Carrick ; for the difierence, or 80 feet, must of course be the height of the lough above the Shannon ; and the Shannon at Carrick being 18S feet 6 inches above the level of high water mark in Dublin bay, it follows, that the height of Lough Gara, above the same level of high water mark, must be 21S feet 6 inches.

The most rapid part of the fall in the river which flows from Lough Gara, known by the name of the Gara river, or the Boyle water, occurs between the lake and the town of Boyle, through which it pastee. Such a vast head of water as the lake affords, and at an elevation so considerable, could not fail of proving most propitious to the supply of a canal, were it ever deemed expedient to cut one through this pert o^ihe

COUNTY OF RO90OMMON. 95

countrj. The river also abounds with mill sites, where there would be found water power sufficient for any ordinary purposes. The mills at present upon it are of a very humble description, employed merely for grinding com for the use of the neighbourhood.

Lough Gara, on its eastern side, is indented by nu- merous deep and narrow bays, between which there are corresponding long promontories, consisting of ridges of limestone. None of the latter are of consi- derable elevation, but they give variety to the scene, and if well wooded would render it very beautiful, 'fhe sides of some of these ridges are cultivated, and there are traces of incipient improvements in planta- tions ; but others remain nearly in a state of nature. On the western or Sligo side, the hills rise with con- siderable boldness, not abruptly from the water, however, but at a little distance from it; speaking generally, the shores of the lake may be described as being in a rude and rough state. The highest lands are towards the lower end of the lake ; whilst at its upper extremity, both where it receives the waters of the Lung and Breeogue rivers, and in other places, the shores are marshy and low, so that when the lake rises, as it commonly does, to the height of several feet above its ordinary level, after heavy rains, or on the melting of snow, the water is forced back upon the country, to the great injury of those who occupy the soil. And yet a most eflFectual security could be obtained against all these losses and inconveniences, simply, by lowering the bed of the river, which issues from the lake, so as to afford a better outlet for the superabundant waters ; an operation, which, as Mr. Longfield pointed out so long ago as the year 1812,

96 SURVEY OF THE

might be easily performed, and at a moderate expense, since the distance from the lake to the brink of the first fall on the river is inconsiderable. In the whole county, indeed in no part of Ireland, probably, could so great an improvement be effected on such moderate terms; and nothing can exhibit more forcibly the deplorable want of co-operation for a useful purpose, than the continued existence of an evil which so many persons are interested in having removed. The vested rights in a mill and in an eel- weir at the hecul of the fall have been cited as an obstacle, fiut the mill is one of a very bumble description, and might be purchased at a small price. Indeed the whole pro* perty is of so little value, that the tenant, as I was informed on the spot, had latterly suffered an eject- ment to take place for the non-payment of an old low rent. Possibly it would be only speaking strictly within bounds to say, that the amount of one-tenth part of the losses which have been experienced in the upper country, in one single year, would more than pay for the fee simple of the ground on which the mill stands, with the mill itself, eel-weir, and all ap* purtcnances included. But the difficulty consists in providing the funds, small as the required amount may be. The fairest course would obviously be to throw the charge upon the lands liable to be flooded : but sup* posing that an assessment could be levied, upon whom is it to fall, or by what means ought it to be fairly and justly apportioned ? Is the tenant in possession to pay for the future benefit of his landlord ; or is the land- lord who has given a lease, to advance money, which for a generation to come will not produce him one shilling profit ? The long tenures, and the numeioaa

COUXTY OF ROSCOMMON. 97

and involved interests appear to be the great obstacles to operations of such a nature, and it is only by the interference of Government, or by some definite mea- sures to be provided by the legislature, that there can be any prospect of seeing such great and important improvements carried into effect.

The river which flows from Lough Gara, has, as already observed, a very rapid course towards the town of Boyle. When swollen by floods, it rushes with vio- lence through the place, but gradually abates of its swiftness as it approaches Longb Key, where it is ab- sorbed. Under tbe same name of the Boyle Water, it re-issues from the lake augmented by the streams which have poured into it from the Curlew mountains. Here it becomes for a little way navigable for row- boats, or small craft ; but below Knock Vicar Bridge, and below the upper lough of Oakport, near Coote Hall, it appears a mere rippling stream, which, in ordi- nary seasons, could scarcely be supposed to afford the only channel for all the waters which pour from Lough Gara and Lough Key.

THE RIVER SUCK.

Has several different sources, some of them in mountains beyond the verge of the county, and others amongst the highlands situated to the north, north- west, and norch-east of Castlerea, within Roscom- mon. It unites with the Shannon at a short distance below Shannon-bridge. At its mouth the Suck has the appearance of a very considerable river, little inferior indeed to the Shannon ; yet it is not navi- gable even to Ballinasloe, excepting for flat-bot- tomed craft of light burthen ; small row-boats how-

o

98 Sl'RVEY OF THE

ereTf can pass above the bridge of Ballinasloe, and for a few miles higher. For a long time it had been a favourite project to open the navigation of the Suck up to Ballinasloe, and surveys of the river had been made with that view as far back as 1802 ; but an end was put to the speculation by the cutting of a canal, which has opened a communication between Ballinasloe and Shannon Harbour at the mouth of the Grand Canal, and thus connected the commerce of the country, with Dub- lin, and with Limerick by the Shannon navigation. This canal was executed by the Grand Canal Com- pany, being a branch or extension of their still water navigation. It is carried on the south side of the Suck through the county of Gal way, and almost the whole way through bogs.

Whether this work was more advantageous to the nation than the opening of the river navigation, I shall not stop to inquire* But it is not possible to pass over unnoticed the evidence given before the Committee of the House of Commons, by Mr. C. W. Williams, the active and enlightened promoter of steam navigation,* who has done more to facilitate and advance inland commerce, than all the boards of Inland Navigation^ with the thousands of pounds which their establish- ment has heretofore cost the country. ** If,** says Mr. Williams, '' the £40,000 granted for the Ballinasloe canal had been accompanied by an obligation to pay interest, it would not have been asked for probablj. The company might have expended the money so at to produce mere immediate profit. The Suck, for example, it is said, might have been made navigable to Ballinasloe for half the mmP

* Coranuittf on Sute of Poor, 6768.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. ^

The Suck has been described as uearly analogous, in its character, to the Shannon ; that is, the beds of each river are traversed by ledges, composed sometimes of limestone, but more commonly of compact lime- stone gravel, which damming up the waters, divide the rivers into long reaches, in many instances nearly on a dead level. But although the Suck expands in several places, more particularly in the broad vallies where the bottoms are boggy and marshy, yet it has no lakes like the Shannon. Over the shallows formed by these bars, and at the falls usually found below them, the waiters run with considerable velocity, and in periods of floods with impetuosity ; but in many of the reaches, for several miles together, the current is deep and smooth ; in some few places almost imper* ceptible; in others rolling in circling eddies amongst the islands with which the river Suck abounds. The scenery amongst these islands, tufted with thickets and bordered with reeds and sedge, is occasionally pleasing ; and it is still more so where the river winds, as it does in several parts of its coui*se, under high banks covered with dense woods, or at the base of gently swelling grounds clothed with rich verdure, and enlivened by herds of cattle. But where the river pursues its way through the bogs and marshes nothing can well be imagined more ugly or dreary. Near its junction with the Shannon there are bogs oi more than a mile in breadth, extending for a consi- derable distance along the margin of the river.

The most interesting parts of the Suck, as it ap- peared to me, are about Mount Talbot, Rookwood, Castlestrange, Curraghmore, where the banks, occa- sionally high, are diversified by considerable reaches of

100 SURVEY OF THB

woods and plantations ; the river al^o makes some very beautiful bends. Immediately above the bridge at Bal- linasloe, the scenery is also pleasing, the stream gliding amongst tufted islands, with a hnA current, and keeping the gay painted little boats, riding at anchor before the town, in constant movement, swinging from side to side.

About Donamon, the brea4th of the valley is con- siderable, and the bottoms being oversprcAd witli marsh and bog, the Suck is nearly lost to view, from the Roscommon side, or is only distinguishable wbece it dilates into pools, for lakes they do not deserve U> be called. Donamon Castle, which stands on i|ie Galway side, appears surrounded with woods, but the valley beneath is a dreary scene.

Several of the reaches of the Suck are liable to 4oods, productive of much mischief to the low lands on their borders : these are occasioned in part by the natural obstructions which impede the passage of the waters, and in part by the mill-dams imd eel-weirs which are constructed upon it. The mill-dam at Bally- foran occasions back water in times of flood for a very considerable distance. By the removal of these ob- structions, which doubtless might be effected, much valuable ground might be saved from inundations, which if they happen at certain periods of the year, are nearly destructive of the crops. But the removal of these natural bars is nevertheless an affair of mo- ment which requires deliberation; because it is pos- sible that whilst one reach of the river was benefited, the evils might be aggravated on another. Of course their removal neither ought to be, nor would be at- temptedt without weighing the interests of all parties^

COUNTl' OF ROSCX>MMON.

101

and paying the usual deference to rested rights. Hut the .^iddition of profitable surfiice is aiwiys4i^i|ue8iion of consequence in «t€I7 oranuy^ amd ^ridi theia- crease of wealth and popillatian, no doinribt 'can ^tKiat'^ the subject being taken into teffioas -eoMaderatioii sooner or later.

The following Table showing Che lev^ds^ tiie riFer Suck, above the Shannon at their juactioii, in varioss places from Ballinasloe up to Castlerea, has been oon- structed from the levels maiiked upon the bog maps. At the mouth of the Sock, the elevatioB ol the fi¥evi above high water mark at Dublin bay, is estiumted at 104 feet.—

	tieiglit in	feet	Cwme ••£ rivtr. Mila.
Ballinasloe	5	% •	84
Ballyforan	22	• •	104
Sheviu river • •	26	• •	2
Mount Talbot	31	• M	2t
Athleague	50	• •	7
Castle Strange	51	• •	ll
Castle Coote	61	• •	2
Donamon	66	• •	H
Ballyhaigue river	72	• •	7
Castlerea	94	• •	7 494
	Equal to 63 EogHsh Miles

It may readily be perceived from this Table, and more especially from what has been said of the nature of the bars and falls, that the river Suck is likely to offer favourable positions for mills; and it affords a great supply of water at every season of the year. In fact there are several considerable mills upon it, as at Ballinasloe, Ballyforan, Athleague, Castlecoote, &c.,

102 SURVEY OP THE

and the immense quantity of water which goes to waste over some of their dams, shows how much more might be effected by means of this river, were it found expedient to apply its great water powers to the pur- pose of turning mills or other machinery.

The river Suck in nearly every part of its course is remarkable for its windings, some of which are really subjects of curiosity. Near Castle Strange, for instance, although the transverse distance between one part of the river.and another only amounts to 132 perches, yet measured between the same places along the course of the stream, the distance is upwards of seven-fold, amounting to no less than 93G perches.* It makes another bend little less remarkable at Athleague, round the lands of Curraghmore. At the former place, it was proposed on one occasion, to cut a new channel for the river in order to facilitate the passage for its

* " The fall in the river between Mount Talbot and Cattle Strange u 20 feet 9 inches, and in leTeral parts of this distance, it is to gradual, and the nver is so frequently obstructed by low banks of limestone gravel, that it scarcely seems to flow, and the flat meadows are to frequently overflowed, as to deteriorate their value considerably. This evil might be in part re- medied by making a new channel, where the windings appioach each other. In one place, near Castle Strange, the course might be reduced from 936 to 132 perches; but as a limestone rock intervenes, the operation would prove costly, unless there was a demand for the stones, for a bridge or other purpose.

" But there are valuable eel- weirs, and a mill at Athleague, liable to injury from such an alteration of the course of the river ; lo that the benefit gained in the increase and improvement of land, might be oounterbalaaeed.

" To remedy these inconveniences, sluice gates were proposed, to be opened only in times of flood, and thus to divert the great body of water at such periods, from their former mischievous course.

" There is always more vrater in the river than what smflkcs for the mills."-.anjia*s tUptrU am tk» B<ff , 4 Rep. 150.

COUNTY OP ROflCOMMOy. 103

waters, and obyiate some of the inconveniences occa« sioned by the floods already noticed. The interests of the mill at Athleague were implicated in the project, but by placing flood-gates or slnices on the new cnt, to be used only when they were required to let off an excess of water, it was conceived that the proprietors of the mills were not likely to be injured. These matters will all become subjects of inquiry with the general improvement and advancement of the country* The following is a list of the bridges over the Suck, beginning with the lowest, at Ballinasloe, but not enumerating the smaller ones, of which there are seve- ral above Castlerea :

Ballinasloe, Castle Strange,

Ballygill, Castle Coote,

Bally foran, Donamon,

Mount Talbot, Ballymoe,

Bookwood, Willsbrook,

Athleague, Castlerea.

These bridges are of very various character, many of them being mere causeway bridges with small arches, at intervals between the islands; whilst others cross the stream where it is of considerable breadth, and present a very bold appearance. Such is the bridge at Mount Talbot, consisting of twelve rather high arches thrown over the river where it is about 230 feet broad. It forms a fine object in the land- scape, backed by the woods of Mount Talbot, and viewed from below according to the course of the stream, is seen at a considerable distance.

The bridges of Athleague and Castle Strange, though only o few miles distant, are altogether of a

104 SURWY OF THI

different descriptioD, being carried from island to islondy and connected by raised causeways nearly on the one level. Of the same character is the bridge of Ballinasloe, the lowest one upon the Suck.

At Castle Strange the principal part of the stream passes under three arches of moderate span, and there are two other sets of arches, in each three, but compa- ratively diminutive*

At Athleague, passing from the left bank, there is first a long causeway with one arch sufficient for the water passing into the mill-race ; then a bridge of six arches with starlings between ; then more causeway ; then one small arch ; then more causeway ; and finally two small arches ; in all ten. The whole passage across the river is a winding one, obliquing downwards from the left to the right bank, and of considerable length, in proportion to the actual breadth of the water.

But the passage across the Suck at Ballinasloe ia still more remarkable for the succession of bridges and causeways, the whole distance from the right to the left bank of the river along it being upwards of five hundred yards. In all, there are sixteen arches, bal of very different dimensions, and placed at very irrega- lar intervals, and several of them stand singly. The principal water>way lies under four arches, the two largest of which are about 16 feet in span, the others 14 feet and 12 feet. On the Gal way side the arches are very small, and when I saw them were nearly filled with water up to the key-stones. This passage across the Suck at Ballinasloe, is evidently a very old one, for the castle, which in the reign of Elisabeth was one of the strong holds of Connaughl, stands just at the beginning of it on the Boscommon side.

COUNTY OF ROSCOMMON. 105

The Suck conveys down to the Shannon all the waters of the south-western part of the county of Soscommony of which Castlerea, and the district for a few miles above it^ according 'to the course of the streams, may be considered as the head. The longest stream, and which, on that account, might perhaps be considered as the Suck proper, comes from the verge of the county next Mayo, nearly west of Castlerea. This unites with the river from Liough Aeluyn, and afterwards other tributary branches fall in below the town of Castlerea. The rivulets which issue from the bogs and hills on the southern part of Fairymount, and which unite and form one stream above Lord Mount Sandford's demesne near Castlerea, might also be con- sidered as sources of the Suck, and there are still others to the north-east of Castlerea in the direction of Be- lanagar, which after uniting together, likewise fall into the branch last mentioned. The several tributary streams, which have united into one above Lord Mount Sandford's demesne, run through it in a brisk lively course, and become highly ornamental to the scenery. Many of these streams have already been use- ful in turning mills in their progress down to Castle- rea ; and they perfonn the same service at that town, besides contributing very materially to the conve- niences of distillers, tanners, and other manufacturers of the place.

But the Suck is still only an inconsiderable stream until, at Ballymoe, it is augmented by the junction of the Ballyheague river, nearly as large as itself, from the county of Galway, and again by another and longer river, the Shevin, coming from the same county, and falling in below Mount Talbot.

p

IOC iURVET OF THE

On the Roscommon side, below Castlerea, the Suck receives but few subsidiary streams, and none of any note except that which falls in about four or five miles above Ballinasloe^ at Cr^^nacamahy one of those dull streams towards its mouth, liable to be flooded by the rising of the waters of the Suck, and to occasion at times much damage. The country in fact which lies to the east of the Suck, between Castle- rea and Ballinasloe is for a great part a dry limestone district, and its ridges completely separate the valley of the Suck from that of the Shannon.

It is remarkable however, that some of the sources of the Suck, a few miles above Castlerea, are only separated by a very narrow space from those of other streams which run in a quite opposite direction, to the northward into Lough Gara. And yet these same waters after a separate course of one hundred milaty finally mingle together in the Shannon, the great re- ceptacle of all the lesser rivers in the central parts of Ireland.

The river Suck abounds with fish of the same de- scription as the Shannon affords ; but its eels, in the opinion of connoisseurs, amongst whom I must beg leave to declare, that I have no pretensions lo be asso- ciated, are, as I have been informed, considered of a much superior quality, and they are now sent in con- siderable quahtities to Dublin, by the canal, which furnishes at once an expeditious and cheap mode of conveyance.

THB RIVBR SHANNON.

On the whole face of the globe probaUy no river exists of so large a siaee in proportion to that of the

COUNTY OF AO80OMMON. 107

bland through which it flows, as the river Shannon, and were all the advantages which it is capable of affording, turned to the best account, by the industry and intelligence of the inhabitants, aided by capital, its influence upon the internal communication and commerce of the country could not (ail of being very extensive. In its natural state, however, the Shannon has conferred fewer benefits upon the country it waters, than streams of far inferior magnitude which were more even and regular in their course, and at the same time easier of access along their banks. This will be more readily understood, when it is explained, that in the distance between Lough Allen and Limerick, amounting to about 120 Irish miles, equal to somewhat more than 152 English, no less than seventeen diffe- rent falls or rapids intervene, amounting in all to at least 146 feet 11 inches in height; each of them ope- rating as a positive impediment to the navigation.*

* The oldest map of the Shannon which I am acqounted with is that by Mr. John Cowan» engraved in Dublin, on a scale of 2( miles to an inch. It bears no date ; but, I apprehend, was published about the year 1795. Tables of heights and distances appear in the margin. Mr. Williams, in his admirable little pamphlet upon the Navigation of the Shannon, (West- minster, 1831,) states, however, that the survey of the Shannon, executed by Mr. Grantham, during the years 1821-2, is, without doubt, the'most valuable document on the state of that river in existence. " It cost the nation,*' he adds, '* some thousand pounds ; but most probably has never once been looked at since it was delivered to the Irish Government."

In the course of the last year, however, a series of lithographic maps of the Shannon, printed and published for the Irish Inland Steam Navigation Company, has appeared, purpoiting to be accurately taken from the survey made by John Grantham, Esq. C. £., by order of the Irish Government, under the direction of the late John Rennie, Esq. C. £. But neither on the general index map of the whole course of that river, nor on any one of the thirteen separate enlarged portionSi is there any scale : neither is there

108 SURVEY OP THE

If, therefore, it be true, as set forth in the recent valuable pamphlet by Mr. Williams, ^ that nature ap- pears to have done her part,'* it can only be said that she deals out very different measures of bounty towards different countries.

any written information as to the scale on which it is laid down. In the margin of the general map, a table of the heighU of the falls* and another of the distances along the course of the river, appear ; bat these seem merely to be transcripts from Mr. Cowan's tables, excepting that Irtth milea have been converted