IRELAND,

ITS SCENERY, CHARACTER, &c. &c.

DOWN.

THE maritime county of Down, in the province of Ulster, is bounded on the east and south by the Irish Sea (Carlingford Bay separating it from Louth), on the north by the county of Antrim and Belfast Lough, and on the west by the county of Armagh. It comprises, according to the Ordnance Survey, an area of 611,404 acres, of which 502,677 are cultivated; the proportion of mountain and bog, hitherto unproductive, being somewhat more than a sixth. In 1821, the population amounted to 325,410; and in 1831, to 352,012. It is divided into the baronies of Ards, Castlereagh, Dufferin, Lower Iveagh, Upper Iveagh, Kinealearty, Lecale, and Mourne. Its principal towns are Newry (part of which is in the county of Armagh), the assize-town of Downpatrick, one of the most ancient boroughs in Ireland; Newtown-Ards, Hillsborough, Castle-wellan, Banbridge, Warrens-point, Strangford, Bangor, and Donaghadee. The county is remarkable for its inequality of surface; for, although the mountains are chiefly confined to the southern district, where they are magnificent, the lesser hills are abundant in all parts; hence it is said to have derived its ancient name, Dunum, "which signifies a hill, or a hilly country." This peculiar character-a perpetual rise and fall in the landscape-renders it highly picturesque*; it is not

* In the old Survey of Down, (1740,) this peculiarity is thus oddly described. "The whole county is remarkable for its number of hills, being compared to wooden bowls inverted, or eggs set in salt; from whence it took the name of Down, which signifies a hilly situation." In the elevated parts of the county, the great multitude of hills naturally produces basins, from which there is no egress, and lakes are formed, These are very numerous, and in some parts meet the traveller so frequently that he might almost conceive himself in Westmoreland. Some in the parish of Annahilt, near the leading road from Hillsborough to Ballynahinch, are extremely curious: they contain floating islands of two or three perches in area, which sometimes sink to the bottom, and are sometimes moored to the sides. The substance of which they are composed is chiefly a vegetable deposit like "flow moss," buoyant under certain circumstances with all its

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ill wooded; it contains many rivers; the ocean is its boundary on three sides; and the huge inland sea, "Strangford Lough," forms another striking and interesting feature of the county.

The tourist proceeding northwards to Belfast, or en route to "the Causeway," will pass through the pleasant and flourishing town of Newry *-distant fifty miles from Dublin; from which, if he be in search of the picturesque, he must verge to the right, for about seven miles, along the banks of the Newrywater, to visit the beautiful village of Rosstrevor-not inaptly termed the "Montpelier of Ireland." The drive, all the way, is full of interest; on the opposite side of the river are seen the lofty range of the Carlingford Mountains, while the still loftier and more famous mountains of Mourne form its northern boundary, stretching far up into the county, hanging over the sea, and forming indeed a huge peninsula that juts out into the ocean, extending from Dundrum Bay to the Bay of Carlingford.

The ruined castle of Narrow-Water stands about two miles from Newry; but its date is no more remote than the reign of the second Charles, having

shrubs and verdure. In others, indications exist of a state of society very remote. In a small lake situated between Ballynahinch and Clough, a canoe was found some years ago of a very curious construction, but no iron seemed to have been employed in it.

*Newry, from Na yur, the yew-tree, owes its importance to Sir Nicholas Bagnal," marshall of Ireland," during the reign of Elizabeth, by whom it was surrounded with walls and converted into a fortified town. Its monastic establishment, however, had been celebrated many centuries before. Its ancient abbey is said to have been founded by Mac Loughlin, king of Ireland, A. D. 1157, and is styled in the charter Ibar cyn tracta, "the flourishing head of the yew-tree," from a number of large and venerable yews that formerly flourished there-one of which tradition reported to have been planted by the hands of St. Patrick. Its endowments were confirmed by Hugh de Lacy, after the Anglo-Norman conquest, in 1237. The town was destroyed by the Irish in 1641; and again by the Duke of Berwick in 1689; "a square castle or two, and five or six houses only escaping." It recovered rapidly, however, and is now exceedingly prosperous, being very advantageously situated for commerce, on the borders of the counties of Armagh, Louth, and Down, with a river rendered navigable by a canal, continued to Lough Neagh. The houses are well built, the streets remarkably clean, and the suburbs in all directions of great beauty.

been built after "the restoration" by the great Duke of Ormonde, as a protection to the river, to which it still renders essential service as contributing largely to its pictorial effect. A modern "castle" has, however, been erected upon the "rising ground" above it, by Roger Hall, Esq., a principal proprietor of the district. There are few mansions in the kingdom of more perfect construction or more happily situated. The avenue extends for nearly two miles from the entrance-gate to the house, through lines of finelygrown trees, and the view from every part of the demesne is magnificent in the extreme. The building reflects the highest credit upon the architect—a native-resident of the town of Newry. A little farther on, is the village of Warrens-point; * backed by the mountains, and facing the broad bay; some three miles to the east is "beautiful Rosstrevor." There are few places in Great Britain that offer stronger temptations to visitors—who love the picturesque, enjoy the magnificence of nature, or desire tranquil and healthful retirement. Although completely open to the sea, it is approached only by mild southern breezes; the adjacent hills protect it completely on the north and east, and a promontory, covered with luxuriantly-grown trees, juts between it and the west; villas, mansions, and cottages ornées, surround it on all sides, wherever the mountains have left small nooks of verdure; and streamlets innumerable are rippling down into the valley from the hill-sides. Under the fostering care of its owner, David Ross, Esq., the village has within the last few years grown to the magnitude and importance of a town; its natural beauties have been appreciated-it seems the very temple of health-and persons from all the northern and midland counties of Ireland have made it their place of residence-at least for a season. Consequently, neat, clean, and well-built cottages have sprung up along the banks of the bay, which are furnished for, and let to, lodgers. It is difficult to conceive a spot that looks more happy and prospering than this—so beautifully situated; nestling at the foot of a mighty mountain and bordering upon the ocean, into which its gardens absolutely run.

It was on a Sabbath morning, early, that we set out to climb the great hill of Clough-Mor, one of the Mourne range; the one that hangs directly

"In one direction the houses form a little square, and in another, stretch along the edge of the shore, where there is a convenient quay, at which there are in general several sailing and steam vessels. It is esteemed one of the best and most frequented bathing-places in the north of Ireland. In 1827 a neat small church was erected here; and immediately adjoining the town there is a Presbyterian meeting-house, and also a Roman Catholic chapel. Although, but a few years since, this was a very inconsiderable village, it at present contains a thousand inhabitants. A large windmill stands nearly in its centre, and adds considerably to the picturesque and pleasing appearance which the village presents at a distance. There was formerly a very extensive rabbit-warren here, from which circumstance the place derives its name."