Westropp — Forests of the Counties of the Loiver Shannon Valley. 273 



was probably Feenagh, as it commands an important pass from the edge of 

 Connaught, through which we find an ancient hill-road to the Caher valley 

 from the pass of Carcairnaglearagh, near Corcomroe Abbey, round into 

 Glenarraga, by Feenagh, Formoyle, and on to the ancient forts above Crumlin. 

 It seems to have been followed by the army of King Donchad on their march 

 to Corcomroe Abbey in 1317. 



Evidence of the little ragged hawthorn bushes occurs at Poulnaskagh in 

 Kilcorney, and Knocknaskeheen ; of the holly, at Iskancullen — stunted bushes, 

 indeed, are still found in the craggy districts not far from the last. A nearly 

 vanished thicket gave its appellation to the curious square stone fort of 

 Caherkyletaun. Creevagh, " place of branches," farther to the S.E., deserved 

 its name even in 1655, as it was covered with dwarf-wood. General 

 Ludlow, about 1651, quotes a proverb of Burren : " There is neither wood 

 enough to hang a man, water enough to drown him, or earth enough to bury 

 him."^ During the same period we have the help of the "Books of Distribution." 

 Clare is very fortunate in being treated far more fully in this Survey than 

 many of the other counties ; the more so that all, save three, of its Down 

 Survey Maps were burned.- The book gives the nature of the ground and the 

 acreage of the woods and shrubberies, but does not specify the kinds of trees. 

 Eastern Clare and Corcomroe are contained in the first volume, and Western 

 Clare (save Corcomroe] in the second.^ 



In Burren, few of the parishes had plantations or shrubberies in 1655. 

 Most lay in the north-eastern parts. In Oughtmama parish there were 132 

 acres of wood and 327 of dwarf-wood found in Carran, chiefly at Creevagh, 

 with 200 of wood in Drumcreehy, while they had shrubberies respectively of 

 272, 166, and 350 acres in extent, besides 225 in Gleninagh, and 357 in Abbey 

 parish. The total covered 2,660 acres. 



(4) CoKCOMEOE. — This was a far more favourable place for trees ; it must 

 have been closely wooded in early times, to judge from the endless finds of 

 tree-roots and stems of bog-deal in the bogs. They also are found in sub- 

 merged bogs under the sand in Liscannor Bay. The place-names are few. 

 We find Beighey or Birchfield, Garraun, and Caheraderry, the stone fort of 

 the oaks, and Knocknaskeagh, all near Liscannor : Derreen in Kilshanny, and 

 perhaps Keelkyle and Drumminagran (little ridge of the boughs). Brian 

 MacMurrough O'Gonor, at his death in March, 1593, held Ardnekoyllie and its 

 wood, Ardkill, in Derreen, near Dough.* I do not know if Cahernafurreesha 



' Ludlow's Memoirs, vol. i., p. 379. 



- These have been recently published from the early copies in the Bibliotheque Rationale in Paris, 

 by permission of the French Government. 



2 It and the Desmond Surveys are preserved in the Public Record Office of Dublin. 

 1 Inquisition No. 43, taken 1612. 



