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VIII. — On the Life and Laboues op the late John D'Alton, Esq. 

 By Mr. J. E. O'Flanagan. 



[Read February 25, 1867.] 



The death of the late Mr. D'Alton, who justly ranked among the most 

 eminent Irish historians of our day, and who obtained distinguished 

 honours from the Eoyal Irish Academy in bygone years, has already 

 been mentioned in suitable language by our President. As I had the 

 honour and advantage of being linked to him by ties of intimate friend- 

 ship for a quarter of a century, and, as I was well acquainted with the 

 nature and extent of his literary labours, it occurred to me that I might 

 do some service to his memory, and to the Academy, by bringing those 

 labours before the members somewhat in detail. 



The late John D'Alton was born at Bessville, county of Westmeath, 

 the seat of his father, William D'Alton, Esq., on the 29th of June, 1792. 

 His mother, also of highly respectable family, was named Elizabeth 

 Leyne. He was educated in Dublin, whither he was sent, in his ninth 

 year, to the school of the Eev. Joseph Hutton, on Summer-hill, not far 

 from the abode in which he passed his life ; and, as an early indication 

 of his devotion to the labour of many a year, the work he selected as his 

 first premium, won at the age often, was Leland's "History of Ire- 

 land." He continued at the school of Mr. Hutton until ready to enter 

 College, which he did in his fourteenth year, in July, 1806. He 

 was an excellent classical scholar, and, even at this early age, gave 

 indications of those literary tastes which clung to him during his life- 

 time. 



Mr. D'Alton, in the year 1808, was elected a member of a society 

 which, for now close upon a hundred years, has been the cradle 

 wherein Irish eloquence has been rocked into a vigorous and steady 

 maturity — the College Historical Society. 



Mr. D'Alton early signalized himself, and his success was not eva- 

 nescent. His step was always in the arena, his shield always hung on 

 the lists; and for, I may venture to say, the whole of his years of mem- 

 bership, he successively was awarded the prizes for Poetry in the Col- 

 lege Historical Society. 



In May, 1811, he commenced the study of a profession which is, 

 with no good reason, supposed antagonistic to poetry— the law. We 

 had no later than our last night of meeting a signal proof of the co- 

 existence of the most profound and exact professional erudition in the 

 mind of one whose poetry infuses delight wherever the English lan- 

 guage is known ; and the Eegius Professor of Civil Law in the Univer- 

 sity of Dublin is certainly more widely known as the exquisite trans- 

 lator of " Eaust." Mr. D'Alton was a student of the Middle Temple, 

 London, and our King's Inns, and, having duly kept his terms, was called 

 to the Irish Bar in 1813. 



The course of his professional career does not warrant me occupying 

 your time. He published a " Treatise on the Law of Tithes," went 



