:g 



language of my iuformaut, " she went to the Devil in fine 

 style, and cheated the Banks into the bargain !" The loss 

 of the resident gentry has seriously affected the prosperity 

 of the localit}', but the villagers have taken the parks r-^or 

 grazing at rents averaging 40s. an acre ; and it is estimated 

 that each acre will fatten a bullock. I said just now that 

 the village of Castleconnell had about it signs of decay, 

 but the extent to which it has suffered from the bad times 

 may be gathered fi-om the fact that whereas the population, 

 forty years ago, was 1,000, it is now only 350 ! The village 

 High-street is barely 200 yards long, and to provide for 

 the refreshment of its 350 inhabitants, there are, in that 

 short distance, eleven fully licensed houses for the sale of 

 intoxicants, and it is fair to assume that they, as well as 

 emigration, have contributed towards reducing the popula- 

 tion. "When I expressed my astonishment at this super- 

 fluity of shebeens my boatman said there were three shebeens 

 which had recently shut up. Did the magistrates take 

 the licenses away? " Xot a bit of it" says he. "It was 

 a new cui^ate who came into the parish, formed a temper- 

 ance leac'ue, and ruined the drink trade entirelv." Did 

 many people join? Indeed they did — more than half the 

 parish took the pledge — and made the drinksellers awfully 

 mad — they could not obtain enough profit to pay for their 

 licenses. 



But enough of these WTetched drink troubles, let us 

 throw them aside and go on tramp together from our 

 delightful little village of Castleconnell to the historical 

 City of Limerick. The distance is variously stated by all 

 to whom we appeal for information, but, assuming, as I 

 always do, that an Irish mile is a mile and a quarter full, 

 the journey can be performed within three hours on foot. 

 For the first few miles, the road is bounded on either 

 side by massive stone walls, whilst continuous rows of 

 beech trees interlace their branches overhead, thus forming 

 a natural arch, through which the sunlight plays, producing 

 a long vista of light and shade that is exceedingly beautiful. 

 The walls are overgrown with ferns, lichens, and moss, whicli 

 here flourish in as much luxuriance as if thev were culti- 



