4 •■ Mr. Petrie on the Book of Mac Firhis. 



The original manuscript, which I also lay on the table, is, as will be seen, 

 a small quarto on paper, containing 957 pages, all of which, with the exception 

 of a few towards the end, are in the handwriting of the compiler, the celebrated 

 Irish hereditary antiquary, Duald Mac Firbis ; and the pages not written by 

 him are in the handwriting of the no less celebrated antiquary Michael O'Clery, 

 chief of the annalists, popularly called the Four Masters, of whose great work 

 the autograph is in the library of the Academy. The contents of the volume 

 may be described in general terms as historico-genealogical, being a history of the 

 several colonies who established themselves by conquest in Ireland, with genea- 

 logies of the principal families who descend from them, carried down in many 

 instances to the time of the compiler. The nature and extent of this collection 

 will be best understood from the following abstract of its contents, which, how- 

 ever, for the sake of brevity, I am obliged to compress into a very narrow compass. 



The writer commences with this title of the work, in the manner of Irish 

 writers of his own time, as follows : — 



" The branches of relationship and genealogical ramifications of every colony 

 that took possession of Ireland [carried] from this time up to Adam, (excepting 

 only those of the Fomorians, Lochlons, and Sax- Galls, of whom we, however, 

 treat, as they have settled in our country, ) together with a sanctilogium and cata- 

 logue of the kings of Ireland ; and finally, an index, which comprises, in alpha- 

 betical order, the surnames, and the remarkable places mentioned in this book, 

 which was compiled by Dubhaltach Mac Firbis of Lecan, 16.50."* 



The writer then proceeds to give the title of the work, after the manner of 

 the old Irish authors, giving an account of the time, place, author, and object 

 of the work, as follows : — 



" The place, time, author, and cause of writing this book, are : — the place, 

 the college of St. Nicholas, in Galway ; time, the time of the religious war 

 between the Catholics of Ireland and the heretics of Ireland, Scotland, and 

 England, particularly the year 1650 ; the person or author, Duald, the son of 



• " CpaoBa coiBneapa ajup geuja jenealuij jaca jaBala oap ^aB Gpe on aitipa 50 

 haoarii (ace poihopaij toclonaij njup Saxjuill amain laitiam o ranjaoap oap mp) 50 

 naoiTiifeancup ajup pempio^pui^e Poola pop. Cfjup pa oeoij clap na ccuimpi^reap (lap nupo 

 aibjiope) nu plomnce ajup na haire oipoeapcu luaiceap ipin leabappa do ceajlomao lepan 

 tDuBalcac mac pipBipi^ Ceacain 1650." 



