478 



C A R O L A N. 



Carolan. rolan had a genius for music, artd his friends dcter- 

 ~Y"~ / mined to cultivate it by every means in their power. 

 When about ten years of age, a proper person was 

 engaged to instruct him in the practice of the harp ; 

 but, though fond of that instrument, he never struck 

 it with a master's hand. It has been justly remarked, 

 that genius and diligence are seldom united ; and yet 

 it is to practice alone, that we owe perfection in any 

 art. His harp, however, was rarely unstrung ; but, 

 in general, he used it only to assist him in composi- 

 tion ; his fingers wandered through the strings in 

 d'.iest of melody, while his mind was only intent on 

 the musical expression of the then vibrating chord. 

 At an early period, our bard became enamoured of 

 a Miss Cruise, of Cruise Town, county of Long- 

 ford : his harp now, like the lute of Anacreon, would 

 sound only to love. His passion for this lady almost 

 exceeds belief; yet she never gave him her hand, 

 though it cannot be doubted, that he held at one 

 time the first place in her breast. The song which 

 bears her name is his master-piece ; it came warm 

 from his heart, while his, genius was in full vigour, 

 . and inspired by her whom his soul adored. A very 

 extraordinary instance of the effect of Carolan's pas- 

 sion for this lady is related by one of his biogra- 

 phers : He went once on a pilgrimage to St Pa- 

 trick's Purgatory, a cave in the island of Lough 

 X)earg, county of Donegall. On his return to the 

 shore, he met several pilgrims waiting the arri- 

 val of the. boat that conveyed him. In assisting 

 some of these to get on board, he chanced to take 

 a lady's hand, and instantly exclaimed " By the 

 head of my gossip, this is the hand of Bridget 

 Cruise !" His sense of feeling had not deceived him ; 

 it was the hand of her whom he had once adored. 

 This anecdote is certainly curious, and cannot fail to 

 convey a strong impression of the emotions which he 

 felt, on meeting the object of his ea/ly affections. 

 Carolan had been at this time many years married, 

 and was in the middle of his earthly career. Our 

 bard having at length discovered, that it would be 

 impossible for him to gain the consent of Miss Cruise, 

 made application elsewhere ; and after a long and te- 

 dious courtship, obtained the hand of Mary M'Guire, 

 a young lady of good family, in the county of Ferma- 

 nagh ; and shortly after fixed his residence on a small 

 farm near Mosshill, in the county of Leitrim. Here 

 he built a neat cottage, where he lived for a while 

 comfortably, and gave every friend that called a kind 

 and hearty welcome. His ardent hospitality, how- 

 ever, soon consumed the produce of his little farm ; 

 he ate, drank, and was merry, and imprudently left 

 to-morrow to provide for itself. This mode of life 

 soon occasioned embarrassments in his domestic af- 

 fairs ; but, like too many others on whom nature has 

 bestowed strong powers of mind, he forgot to re- 

 flect in due time, that nothing can supply the want 

 of prudence ; and that negligence and irregularity long 

 continued, will render even genius itself contemptible. 

 Carolan, finding he could not support his family in this 

 way, resolved to become an itinerant harper and bard, 

 (see BARD,) in which character he continued during 

 the remainder of his life ; travelling through the 

 country, mounted on a good horse, attended by a 

 domestic on another, who carried his harp. Where- 



ever he went, the gates of the nobility and gentry Carolan. 

 were thrown open to him ; he was received with re- s< ~~Y~^* 

 spect, and a distinguished place assigned him at ta- 

 ble. At the house of the late Colonel Archdall he 

 always met the most flattering attention ; and he ne- 

 ver mentioned this gentleman, but with the most pro- 

 found respect. 



At Moneyglass, near Toom, in the county of An- 

 trim, the hospitable mansion of the late Mr Jones, he 

 spent many a pleasant day ; nor was he deficient in gra- 

 titude for the many civilities he experienced during his 

 stay. He has enshrined the convivial and philanthro- 

 pic character of Mr Jones, in one of his best planx- 

 ties ; of this, the air alone remains, the words are now 

 forgotten. The well-known English version, called 

 " Bumper Squire Jones," being written by Baron 

 Dawson, and is one of the best drinking songs ex- 

 tant, and v^ell adapted to the original air of Carolan. 

 It was during his peregrinations, that Carolan com- 

 posed all those airs which are still the delight of his 

 countrymen, and will transmit his name to the remo- 

 test posterity. He thought the tribute of a song 

 due to every house in which he was entertained, and 

 he never failed to pay it ; generally choosing for his 

 subject the head of the family, or the loveliest of its 

 branches. The subject of one of his favourite and 

 most admired compositions was a Miss Nugent, who 

 lived near Belanagar, in the county of Roscommon, 

 when sheinspired our bard; and he has endeavoured to 

 do justice'.to her merits in the song now well known by 

 the name of Gracy Nugent. A Miss Fetherslon of the 

 county of Longford, whom he accidentally met on her 

 way to church, gave rise to the much-admired com- 

 position called " Carolan's Devotion." It is related, 

 on good authority, that Carolan in his gayest mood, 

 and even when his genius was most inspired by the 

 flowing bowl, could never compose a planxty on aMiss 

 Brett, in the county of Sligo, whose father's house he 

 frequented, and where he always met a reception due 

 to his taste and endowments. One day, it is said, 

 after an unsuccessful attempt to compose something 

 in a sprightly strain on this amiable young lady, he 

 threw aside his harp in a mixture of rage and .grief, 

 and addressing himself in Irish to her mother, " Ma- 

 dam," said he, " I have often, from my great respect 

 to your family, attempted a planxty, in order to ce- 

 lebrate your daughter's perfections, but to no purpose. 

 Some evil genius always hovers over me there is not 

 a string in my harp that does not vibrate a melan. 

 choly sound whenever I set about this task. I fear 

 she is not doomed to remain long amongst us." Tra- 

 dition says, that the event verified the melancholy pre- 

 diction, as the young lady did not survive it twelve 

 months. Carolan, from a defect in education, had 

 in his early days contracted a fondness for spirituous 

 liquors, which never forsook him during the remain- 

 der of his life ; but inordinate gratifications always car- 

 ry their punishment along with them; nor was Caro- 

 lan exempt from suffering his full share. His physicians 

 having assured him, that unless he corrected this per- 

 nicious habit, a scurvy, which was the consequence of 

 his intemperance, would soon put an end to his mor- 

 tal career ; he at last, though with great reluctance, 

 promised to obey, and seriously resolved upon never 

 again tasting the seducing cup. The town of Boyle 



