HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



227 



rarities tcTattempt the ascent, which is attended 

 with great risk, owing to the crumbling nature 

 of the limestone rocks and the number of loose 

 stones, which descend in a shower if you essay 

 a scramble up the precipitous pathways, fit only for 

 the feet of sheep, of which a few are to be seen far 

 up the height ; the pinks, however, and many of the 

 ferns have been almost rendered extinct in this 

 place, owing to the repeated raids made on them 

 by women, who offer them for sale at an exorbitant 

 rate. 



At one point in the range a large rock, standing 

 rather prominently forward, with its imaginary 

 embattlements and turrets, somewhat resembling an 

 ancient fortress, has received the name of the 

 " Castle Rock." Having reached the end of the 

 series of cliffs, it is advisable to ascend by a steep 

 path on the right, and returning by the summit, 

 a fine view from above is to be obtained. These 

 cliffs being so lofty, rugged, and sharply defined, 

 form a majestic and imposing sight by moonlight. 

 It is not easy to account for the formation of this 

 huge chasm, and different opinions are current 

 amongst geologists as to the mode in which it has 

 been made. Many suppose that a fissure, in the 

 first instance inconsiderable, was produced, perhaps 

 by shrinking, and that this fissure has been enlarged 

 and hollowed out by aqueous agency until it as- 

 sumed its present proportions. This supposition 

 appears to be borne out by the tortuous course of 

 the ravine, as if some swollen stream had been 

 hollowing out a channel for its turbulent waters 

 to run in, and had had its course deflected by 

 the obstacles it met on its way. Collinson, who 

 has written a history of the county of Somerset, 

 gives a very graphic description of these cliffs, 

 from which, in conclusion, I will make the follow- 

 ing extract. He says: "Here indeed, Nature, 

 working with a gigantic hand, has displayed a 

 scene of no common grandeur. In one of those 

 moments when she convulsed the world with the 

 throes of an earthquake, she burst asunder the 

 rocky ribs of Mendip, and tore a chasm of more than 

 a mile in length. The vast opening yawns from 

 the summit down to the roots of the mountain, 

 laying open to the sun a sublime and tremendous 

 scene, exhibiting a combination of precipices, rocks, 

 and caverns, of terrifying descent, fantastic form, 

 and gloomy vacuity."—//. A. M. 



We have every reason to believe that the bed 

 of the German Ocean was formerly dry land, and 

 that the Eorth, Tay, Tyne, and other British rivers 

 flowing eastwards were tributaries to the llhine, 

 which at that time was a huge river passing down 

 the bed of the German Ocean, and entering the 

 Atlantic to the west of the Orkney Islands. — CroWs 

 '• Climate and Time." 



SKETCHES IN THE WEST OE IRELAND. 



No. 8. Aran Islands. (Post-Christian Antiquities.) 



By G. H. Kinahan, M.R.I.A. 



ILLAUNMORE, or the largest isle of Aran, 

 was one of the earliest Christian settlements 

 in Erin. About A.D. 4S0 the island was given 

 by Aengus, king of Munster, to Saint Einne, 

 or Eude, who built a church and founded a school 

 where the village of Kileany is now situated. In 

 this island the ruins of churches and other post- 

 Christian structures are extremely numerous, but 

 unfortunately all, both here and in the other islands, 

 are in a sad state of dilapidation. This is due to 

 various causes : — after the ecclesiastical rule ceased, 

 the islands seem to have been a bone of contention 

 between the O'Briens of Clare aud the O'Flaherties 

 of Yarconuaught, one being the conquerors at one 

 time, while at another the others were victorious ; 

 this brings us up to the time of Queen Elizabeth, 

 when the Irish seem to have been driven out of 

 them, the castle of Askin at the present village 

 of Killeany having been her chief stronghold in 

 Connaught : still more recently, the churches and 

 other erections were dismantled by the soldiers of 

 Cromwell to build fortifications, while at the pre- 

 sent time neither the proprietor nor the inhabitants 

 of the islands seem to put any value on the ruins, 

 so that in late years irreparable damage has been 

 done to them. 



All the principal post-Christian structures seem 

 to be included in the following list :— a round 

 tower, churches, cashels,bulians, leabuidhs or labbas, 

 aharlas or airlas, carhas or galtans, crosses, ter- 

 minal crosses, loscas, cloghans, cceuobiums, and 

 lauras. With these may be mentioned holywells 

 for elthough not absolutely structures, they are 

 nearly allied. 



The ancient Irish churches have different names, 

 according to their size aud the age in which they 

 were built. To give all these, however, would 

 occupy too much space. In Aran the major portions 

 are of small size, and of early construction. In 

 some places in Ireland the early churches were 

 built of wood, in others of stone, which seems to 

 have depended very much on what materials came 

 more readily to hand ; and in Aran, as stones are 

 abundant, they were used, the dimensions of the 

 churches being usually about 16 it long by 12 ft. wide 

 (fig. 144) ; having a plain Egyptian doorway in the 

 west end (fig. 145) ; and a slip window in the east 

 gable (figs. 146 and 147), the windows slightly varying 

 in character, but being somewhat like the accom- 

 panying woodcuts. This, however, was notalways the 

 case, as in some places, on account of the situation 

 being exposed, the doorway would not be placed in 

 the west wall ; while in others, seemingly on account 



