KILRUSH KINGSTON. 



571 



the extraordinary contrast between its former 

 greatness and its present fallen condition ; on 

 account of which it has been styled the " Balbeck 

 of Ireland." Archdale, speaking of it, says, " Kil- 

 mallock was formerly a town of great note, being 

 walled, and the houses beautifully and elegantly 

 built of hewn stone; it is now in ruins, yet has a 

 greater share of magnificence even in that misera- 

 ble state than any town in Ireland." Sir Richard 

 Colt Hoare, thus describes its general appearance : 

 " The first view of this place is singularly striking, 

 it has the appearance of a town suddenly deserted 

 and left in ruins. I entered it by the side of a 

 lofty turretted gateway, leading into the principal 

 street, which is formed on each side by a line of 

 houses, excellently well built of stone ; a certain 

 uniformity prevails in the style of architecture, and 

 in a great measure ascertains their date. Many of 

 these houses have been perfectly gutted, and have 

 only the outward shell of wall remaining. This 

 town was fortified with a strong wall, and (as I 

 was informed)) had five gates, of which two only 

 now remain ; the one on the road to Limerick, 

 called St John's Gate, the other leading towards 

 Charleville." According to others there were ori- 

 ginally but four gateways; the two which remain 

 are built in a massive style, and have a solid 

 heavy effect, " with a strong resemblance to Span- 

 ish or Moorish architecture." The Limerick gate 

 looks towards the north : and the Charleville gate 

 towards the west. A portion of the town-wall, 

 still retaining in some places its original height, 

 may be traced uninterruptedly from the one gate 

 to the other ; it is supposed to form a fourth part 

 of the whole rampart. It is the main street, how- 

 ever, which conveys the best idea of the ancient 

 consequence of Rilmallock, and likewise, it may 

 be added, of its present degradation. On each 

 side are the remains of houses built of hewn 

 stone, and apparently on an uniform plan ; the 

 workmanship is so excellent, that the walls of 

 many of them are still in perfect preservation, 

 only roofs and floors being wanted to make these 

 as complete as when formerly inhabited. Popula- 

 tion of the town, 1408 ; of parish, including town, 

 3126. 



KILRUSH; a thriving little sea-port of Ire- 

 land, in the county of Clare, twenty-one miles 

 S. W. from Ennis, and 130 from Dublin. It is 

 situated about fifteen miles from the mouth of the 

 Shannon, near the head of a small creek or inlet, 

 which forms a good bay for vessels. The trade of 

 the place consists in the export of corn and butter, 

 and occasionally flags and slates. The vicinity is 

 rich in natural productions, besides slates and flags, 

 limestone, gritstone, coal, manganese, and potters' 

 clay are found here. The cliffs along the shore 

 produce samphire and mushrooms, and the strands 

 afford dilisk and leaver, from the latter of which 

 slake is made. In the town friezes, flannels, and 

 coarse linens are manufactured. Population of 

 town in 1841,5071; of parish, 11,385. Besides 

 this Kilrush, there are five other parishes bearing 

 the same name, in Ireland, namely, one in Kildare, 

 with 577 inhabitants ; one in Kilkenny, with 754 

 inhabitants ; one in Waterford, with 723 inhabi- 

 tants; one in Wexford, with 3158 inhabitants; and 

 one in county Dublin, the inhabitants of which are 

 not separately enumerated. 



KINCARDINE signifies in Gaelic, the clan of 

 friends; and the name is applied to several par- 

 ishes and towns throughout Scotland, besides to 



the county noticed below. There is a parish and 

 village of Kincardine in the counties of Ross and 

 Cromarty, with a population in 1841, of 2,008; 

 there is a parish of Kincardine in the southern part 

 of Perthshire, district of Menteith, with a popu- 

 lation of 2232 ; there is a parish of Kincardine in 

 Inverness-shire, incorporated with Abernethy ; 

 there is a parish called Kincardine O'Neil in Aber- 

 deenshire, with a population of 1857 ; there is a 

 district in Aberdeenshire with the same name, 

 which embraces a population of 14,987 ; and fin- 

 ally, there is a considerable thriving sea-port town 

 called Kincardine in the parish of Tulliallan, sit- 

 uated on the shore of the Frith of Forth, at the 

 distance of five miles east from Alloa, with a popu- 

 lation, including the parish, of 2875. 



KINCARDINESHIRE ; a county of Scotland, 

 extending along the coast of the North Sea about 

 thirty-two miles, and containing, by accurate mea 

 surement, 243,444 English acres. It is bounded 

 on the north by Aberdeenshire, and on the south- 

 west by Forfarshire, the sea forming its other 

 boundaries. It was anciently and is still popularly 

 called the Mearns, from its having, according to 

 tradition, become the property of Mernia, a brother 

 of king Kenneth II.: another brother, called Angus, 

 conferring his name upon the adjoining county of 

 Forf'ar. The more modern appellation of the 

 shire is derived from the village of Kincardine, 

 formerly its chief town ; but from which the courts 

 of judicature were removed in the reign of James 

 VI., to Stonehaven, where they are still held, Kin- 

 cardine having now dwindled into a mere hamlet 

 or farm-steading. The surface of the county border- 

 ing on the sea, is partly rugged, and partly flat, 

 with a gradual rise from the coast to a fine level 

 elevation of about 150 feet, intersected by a range 

 of the Grampian Hills, forming the north side of 

 the How, or Hollow of the Mearns, which is the 

 north-eastern extremity of the vale of Strathmore. 

 South of this tract the soil is fertile, and recent 

 improvements in agriculture have made it exceed- 

 ingly productive ; but the north-west district being 

 mountainous, is only appropriated to pasturage. 

 It is watered by numerous streams, of which the 

 rivers Bervie, Carron, Cowie, and North Esk, are 

 the chief, and contains, besides the county town of 

 Stonehaven and the royal burgh of Inverbervie, five 

 or six small towns, as Johnshaven, Lawrencekirk, 

 Fettercairn, Fordoun, and Auchinblae, with several 

 elegant mansions of the Scottish gentry, and vari- 

 ous remains of Roman and other ancient places of 

 strength, such as the Green Castle, Dunnottar 

 Castle, Fenella's Castle, the Kame of Mathers, 

 &c. There is no coal or marl in the county, and 

 very little limestone, but the latter is imported in 

 large quantities for agricultural purposes. Popu- 

 lation of Kincardineshire in 1821, 29,118; in 1831, 

 3 1,431; and in 1841,33,075. 



KINGSTON; a town of Ireland, situated op 

 the southern shore of the bay of Dublin, five mile. 

 E.S.E. from that city. It was formerly called 

 Dunleary, but received its present appellation in 

 honour of George IV. embarking for England at 

 this port, after his visit to Ireland in 1821 ; in 

 commemoration of which a small obelisk stands 

 near the harbour. The harbour, the largest yet 

 formed in Ireland, was commenced in 1816, and 

 from that period the prosperity of the place may 

 be dated. From a small fishing village, it has 

 risen rapidly to an elegant metropolitan suburban 

 town, containing ranges of handsome buildings, 



