6 



glen on the side of Corrinmore hill, and it joins the Aubeg near Done- 

 raile. After leaving the hills it traverses the plain before its junction 

 with the Aubeg, and in this part of its course its channel is sometimes 

 very wide, and filled with heaps of gravel and rocks, rolled down from 

 the mountain, so that the stream, which is generally very small, and 

 often nearly dry, is much scattered, divided, and interrupted. These 

 characteristics are very correctly described in Spenser's beautiful pasto- 

 ral, and he has also rightly interpreted the name as signifying " false." 



The word " breug" means a lie, and in various modified senses it is 

 pretty commonly used in Irish names. Eor example, Dromorebrague, 

 in the parish of Aghaderg, Down ; there is a tradition that the founders 

 of Dromore at first intended it to be here, and that, having changed 

 their minds, and built the town on its present site, the former place was 

 called Dromorebrague — false or pseudo Dromore. So also Armaghbrague, 

 a few miles south of the city of Armagh ; and there is a townland of 

 this name in the parish of JSTobber, Meath. 



In a great many places in Ireland, standing stones that look at a 

 distance something like men are called Eirbreaga — false, or fantastic, 

 or pseudo men — and these objects have given name to some townlands. 

 The word is sometimes applied to rivers that are subject to sudden and 

 dangerous floods, and in this case it means deceitful or treacherous. I t 

 forms part of the name of Trawbreaga bay at Malin, Donegal, the false 

 or treacherous strand — a name well deserved, as the tide rises there so 

 suddenly, that it has often swept off people walking incautiou sly on 

 the shore. 



Spenser's Bregoge also fully bears out its name ; it is formed by the 

 junction of four mountain streams, all of the same length, and meeting 

 nearly in the same place. There is very little water in these in dry 

 weather ; but whenever a heavy shower falls on the hills, four mountain 

 floods rush down simultaneously, and coming from the same distance, 

 they meet together nearly at the same instant, and the insignificant 

 little rivulet swells in a few moments to a dangerous torrent. 



In the north of the parish of Galbooly, Tipperary, there is a river 

 called Breagagh — same meaning as Bregoge ; at the city of Kilkenny 

 there is a small stream of the same name ; and the River Dinin in Kil- 

 kenny is, or used to be often called Breagagh, on account of its sudden 

 and destructive floods. 



" The Liffar deep" is the Foyle atLifford. It is often called Liffar 

 by early English writers, as by Spenser himself in his "View of the 

 State of Ireland" (p. 158, Ed. 1809) :—" Another [garrison] would I 

 put at Castle -liffer, or thereabouts, so as they should have all the pas- 

 sages upon the river to Logh-foyle." Both Gibson and Gough, the 

 translators of Camden, also call this river by the name of Liffer. The 

 Irish form of the name as used by many authorities is Leithbhearr, 

 which is well represented in pronunciation by the old and correct 

 English form Liffer. The town of Lifford takes its name from the 

 river, a circumstance very usual in Ireland ; in this manner Dublin, 



