A month in Mayo : comprising characteristic sketches (sporting and social) of Irish life, with miscellaneous papers

Each story keeps the passage it was read from. Open one to read the passage as the book has it, and, where the companion has written its own telling, that too.

1. Sunday morning athletic sports in Phoenix Park

   Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

   On a Sunday morning in Phoenix Park, groups of lads engage in athletic sports such as running, jumping, and leap-frog. A saturnine-looking priest watches over them, ready to intervene with reprimands or blows if excess occurs, which the boys would bear reverentially, highlighting the power of the clergy in Ireland.

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   taken their gallop, or perhaps had a trial spin. They are smoking after their exertion, and their attendants are diligently mopping their reeking sides, their saddles, bridles, and paraphernalia lying in separate heaps. It seems strange, somehow, on a Sunday morning ; but I have heard that such things sometimes occur in parts of England, and, at any rate, like little Alice in Wonderland, one soon ceases to be surprised at anything in Ireland. Hard by, some fifteen or twenty lads are busily engaged in athletic sports, running, jumping, leap-frog, what not ? A desecration of the Sabbath, no doubt, but, gentle reader, every one of these lads heard mass before you were out of bed in the morning. Yonder saturnine man, dressed in tight-fitting, not over-new, clothes, with close-shaved crown, seedy low-crowned hat, and small outward vestige of linen, regarding their gambols with no unkindly eye, would, at the first sign of riot or excess, be down upon them with upbraiding voice and gesture ; if necessary, with heavy blows, which, albeit he is personally unknown to them, would be borne not only uncomplainingly, but reverentially. Great is the power of the priests in Ireland.

   I am now at the rear of the Viceregal Lodge, and I see that this side of the park is bounded by

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 44

   As the companion tells it

   Coming up now through Phoenix Park in Dublin. On a Sunday morning here you might find fifteen or twenty lads busily engaged in athletic sports, running, jumping, leap-frog, what not. It looks like a desecration of the Sabbath, but every one of these lads heard mass before you were out of bed in the morning. Nearby, horses have taken their gallop, perhaps had a trial spin. Men smoke after their exertion, and attendants diligently mop their reeking sides, saddles, bridles and paraphernalia lying in separate heaps. It seems strange on a Sunday morning, but like little Alice in Wonderland, one soon ceases to be surprised at anything in Ireland. Yonder stands a saturnine man, dressed in tight-fitting, not over-new clothes, with a close-shaved crown, a seedy low-crowned hat, and small outward vestige of linen. He regards their gambols with no unkindly eye. But at the first sign of riot or excess he would be down upon them with upbraiding voice and gesture, and if necessary with heavy blows, which, albeit he is personally unknown to them, would be borne not only uncomplainingly but reverentially. Great is the power of the priests in Ireland.

2. The Viceregal Lodge and its grounds in Phoenix Park

   Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

   The rear of the Viceregal Lodge in Phoenix Park is described as ugly, though its grounds are tastefully laid out, bounded by a deep ha-ha and a pleasant wood stretching down to a lake. The Viceroy himself, a tall handsome man with a long red beard, is pointed out by a gazing crowd, reflecting the Irish idolization of rank.

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   a massive wall, with holes cut into it here and there for ingress and egress. Ugly as is the front of the Lodge, the rear is still uglier, but the grounds appear to be tastefully laid out, and on the other side of the deep ha-ha which bounds it is a pleasant wood, stretching down to a lake, with a broad gravel-walk here and there open to view. A tall handsome man, with a long red beard, is pointed out by one of a gazing crowd as the Viceroy himself. He might have been the Viceregal gardener for anything I knew to the contrary, but I think my informer was right as to the identity. We worship rank in England, but in Ireland it is idolized, and the veriest cad knows every man of title by sight.

   A sullen roar proclaims my vicinity to the Zoological Gardens, and feeling a wish to inspect them, I approach the gate in the subdued hope that some good Samaritan may give me a ticket of admission. To my surprise and delight, I find that in Dublin, so far from Sunday being an exclusive day set apart for the visits of the Upper Ten, or the very bad imitation of the Upper Ten which on Sundays infest our own Zoological Gardens, the populace are invited to them on payment of the small entrance fee of one penny. I cannot conceive a greater improvement on the

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 45

   As the companion tells it

   As you pass through Phoenix Park, the Viceregal Lodge comes into view behind a massive wall with holes cut into it here and there for ingress and egress. The front of the Lodge is ugly, and the rear is uglier still. But the grounds are tastefully laid out. On the other side of a deep ha-ha that bounds the property, a pleasant wood stretches down to a lake, with a broad gravel walk here and there open to view. A tall handsome man with a long red beard is pointed out by one of a gazing crowd as the Viceroy himself. The writer says he might have been the vice-regal gardener for anything he knew to the contrary, but he thinks his informer was right as to the identity. The remark follows that we worship rank in England, but in Ireland it is idolized, and the veriest cad knows every man of title by sight. A sullen roar proclaims the vicinity of the Zoological Gardens. Approaching the gate, the writer finds that in Dublin, far from Sunday being an exclusive day set apart for the visits of the upper classes, the populace are invited on payment of the small entrance fee of one penny.

3. Sunday admission to the Dublin Zoological Gardens

   Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

   Unlike London, the Zoological Gardens in Dublin's Phoenix Park are open to the general public on Sundays for a one penny entrance fee. The gardens are beautifully wooded and stretch down to a lake, though an air of poverty pervades the animal dens, which appear ramshackle and unsafe.

   Read the passage

   A sullen roar proclaims my vicinity to the Zoological Gardens, and feeling a wish to inspect them, I approach the gate in the subdued hope that some good Samaritan may give me a ticket of admission. To my surprise and delight, I find that in Dublin, so far from Sunday being an exclusive day set apart for the visits of the Upper Ten, or the very bad imitation of the Upper Ten which on Sundays infest our own Zoological Gardens, the populace are invited to them on payment of the small entrance fee of one penny. I cannot conceive a greater improvement on the

   128 THE PH(EN1X PARK.

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 45

   As the companion tells it

   As you pass through Phoenix Park, you might catch a roar from the Zoological Gardens. A writer approaching the gate hoped some good Samaritan might give him a ticket. He was surprised and delighted to find that in Dublin, unlike London, Sunday is not a day set apart for the Upper Ten. The populace are invited in for one penny. He could not conceive a greater improvement.

4. Deer combat observed in Phoenix Park

   Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

   The author observes two bucks in Phoenix Park that have been fighting until mutually exhausted, one a black buck with superb horns gored in the side and lame behind. A white buck flees from the black victor, and the author watches further manoeuvres of the deer herd including mock combat and courtship.

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   Close at hand lay two fine bucks, and I marvel at their apparent good-fellowship, knowing the habits of the animal in October. While mentally attributing their strange quietude to the fact that they are Irish, and of course different from any other bucks, they both rise together, and I then see that the two have been combatants, fighting until, like the warriors of old, they have lain down to rest, mutually exhausted. The victor, a black buck, with superb horns, is, as frequently happens, in sad case ; besides the punishment received from his adversary, he has been gored in the side, probably by some jealous youngster, " a felon knight" who has caught him at a disadvantage when engaged with his adversary ; he is, besides,

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 42

   As the companion tells it

   As you pass through Phoenix Park, keep an eye out for the deer. The author here once watched two bucks lying close together, apparently at peace, though in October their kind are fighters. Both rose at once, and it became clear they had been combatants, worn out and resting like warriors after battle. The victor was a black buck with superb horns, but he was in sad case, gored in the side, probably by some jealous youngster who caught him at a disadvantage.

5. Ballynahinch salmon fishing before protection laws

   Ballynahinch · townland · Galway · 1836–1846

   A local expert recalled that thirty or forty years before, when the mouth of the river at Ballynahinch was closed by a solid wall and there were no fishing restrictions, both lake and river swarmed with salmon and white trout far more abundantly than in the present day. He argued that misguided conservation efforts, such as clearing stones from spawning streams, had actually harmed fish populations.

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   opposite effect to that intended." At Ballynahinch, for instance, he declared that thirty or forty years since, when the mouth of the river was closed by a solid wall, over which no salmon could pass, excepting in a heavy flood, when there was neither gap, nor slap, nor license, nor close time, when every man, and woman too, not only fished, but netted and speared and burnt the water, as seemed good in their eyes, both lake and river swarmed with fish ; there were twenty salmon and a hundred white trout for every one in the present day.

   " Do you think, then," asked I, " that we should recur to those lawless times and abolish protection altogether ? "

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6. River Liffey in flood at Dublin

   near River Liffey · river · Dublin

   Travelling by tramway-car along the banks of the Liffey, the author describes it as a turbid stream swollen by recent rains, hardly contained within its stone-supported banks. Flecks of white foam dot the surface, boats struggle against the surging water, nets hang from the walls, and hundreds of gulls flit above.

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   My course lay along the banks of the Liffey — a turbid stream, swelled by the recent rains, and hardly contained within its stone-supported banks. Flecks of white foam, like snowballs, dot the surface, a few boats struggle against the surging water, nets hang in festoons from the walls, and foaming torrents roll in from flooded sewers, hundreds ol gulls flit, like swallows, above and about, ever dipping down, making a feint, but never, or but

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 41

7. Wildlife and lake at the Dublin Zoological Gardens

   Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

   The Dublin Zoological Gardens feature healthy bears with ample water tanks, fine birds, large condors, and an elephant that collects pennies. The lake is the great feature of the place, populated by cranes, storks, ducks, geese, cormorants, and pelicans floating on the still surface.

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   The lake itself, though, is the great feature of the place ; cranes and storks wander along the margin, ducks of various kinds dot the surface, coots and moorhens nestle in the weeds, dabchicks, and divers perpetually turn up their comical little tails and seek their food in the depths below, whilst gulls of all sorts, geese of varied breed and strange plumage, dark, uncanny cormorants, and splendid pelicans, float at their ease on the still surface of the water. The garden is a pleasant place, and great credit is due to its managers. I wish that our Council would from their superfluity grant some much-wanted aid to their poorer brethren. Our Zoo has too much money at its disposal.

   "Did I ever tell you," asks Jack Brag, "what

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   As the companion tells it

   As you pass through Phoenix Park, the Dublin Zoological Gardens hold a lake that's the great feature of the place. Cranes and storks wander its margin, ducks dot the surface, coots and moorhens nestle in the weeds. Gulls, geese, dark cormorants, and splendid pelicans float at ease on still water. The writer thought the garden a pleasant place and wished more support for poorer zoos, though he felt the Dublin Zoo had too much money at its disposal.

8. Poaching at Pwl-na-carrig pool near Castlebar

   Castlebar · town · Mayo

   Larry reports that a large group of poachers—the Dalys, Barretts, and Joyces—were fishing in Pwl-na-carrig, Miss O'Hara's uncle's favourite salmon pool, on a Sunday night. Larry fired two barrels from a nearby bridge into the darkness, scattering them; big Jim Barrett received a shot-corn in his eye.

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   " Troth, an' I did not at all ; I just stood on the bridge down beyant, and fired two barrels right among them ; * sure you might have heard them skirling at Castlebar."

   * A fact !

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 12

   As the companion tells it

   You're coming through Castlebar, in Mayo. Nearby was Pwl-na-carrig pool, a favourite salmon pool of Miss O'Hara's uncle. One Sunday night the Dalys, Barretts and Joyces were poaching there. Larry stood on the bridge and fired two barrels into the darkness among them. Big Jim Barrett caught a shot-corn in his eye, and as Larry said,

9. Criticism of Maynooth seminary's effect on priesthood

   Maynooth · town · Kildare

   Mr. Blake held that the establishment at Maynooth had sadly lowered the standard of priestly intellect and education. He argued that ignoring Catholic priests and treating them as socially inferior was not the way to spread Protestantism, favouring instead cordial relations such as those enjoyed with Father Pat.

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   Another favourite scheme of his, which has since been partially carried into effect, was the amelioration of the condition of the priests. The unfortunate, as he held it, establishment at Maynooth has, no doubt, sadly lowered the standard of priestly intellect and priestly education ; but he held that keeping aloof from them, ignoring them and their form of religion, and treating them as though they were of a different and lower grade, unfit to associate with gentlemen, was not exactly the way to spread a love for Protestantism.

   We were on excellent terms with Father Pat, who had permission to course over the mountain, and not unfrequently dined with us ; a very jolly fellow was Father Pat, and one who, though he never exceeded, liked his glass of grog. He was, in fact, Mr. Blake's head keeper, and a most efficient one. Excepting Larry, Mr. Blake had no one regularly appointed to look after shootings extending over fifteen thousand acres ; but no English manor could have been better preserved.

   Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 20

   As the companion tells it

   Up ahead is Maynooth, the Kildare town whose seminary drew sharp criticism from a man called Mr. Blake. He held that the establishment here had sadly lowered the standard of priestly intellect and education. His deeper point was that ignoring Catholic priests and treating them as a lower grade, unfit to associate with gentlemen, was no way to spread a love for Protestantism. He favoured cordial relations instead, the kind he enjoyed with Father Pat, a jolly priest who had permission to course over the mountain and often dined with them. Father Pat liked his glass of grog, though he never exceeded, and served as Blake's head keeper, looking after shootings extending over 15,000 acres with no English manor better preserved.

10. Phoenix Park's natural expanse described

    Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

    The author visits Phoenix Park, Dublin, and is struck by its great extent and the tasteful decision to leave it in a state of nature, without iron railings or hurdles. He compares it favourably to Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, noting ancient thorn-trees, magpies' nests, and views of the Wicklow mountains.

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    Leaving the car, I enter the park, and before I have got well past the ugly monument, which, a friendly potboy tells me, was erected to commemorate Wellington and his victories, I am strikingly impressed with its magnitude and superiority in every respect to our own comparatively small and stupidly subdivided enclosures, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. The extent of the Phoenix I do not know, but it must be very considerable, and is, with good taste, left as far as possible in a state of nature ; iron railings are rare? iron hurdles unknown.

    Turning to the left, I find myself in a thicket of ancient thorn-trees, standing singly, many covered with a luxuriant growth of ivy, and opening here and there to beautiful views of the Wicklow mountains and the rapid river looking bright in the distance. Some thrushes and blackbirds are hard at work with the berries, a colony of longtailed tits flits before me, and a redbreast dribbles out its cheery wintry note from the branch above ;

    Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala

    As the companion tells it

    Passing through Phoenix Park, you're moving through ground one visitor found striking for its sheer magnitude, calling it superior to Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, which he dismissed as "comparatively small and stupidly subdivided enclosures." The park was left, with good taste, as far as possible in a state of nature, with iron railings rare and iron hurdles unknown. Not far from a monument to Wellington and his victories, ancient thorn-trees heavy with ivy open to views of the Wicklow mountains and the river bright in the distance, while thrushes, blackbirds, long-tailed tits, and a robin work the winter berries.

11. Wellington Monument in Phoenix Park

    Wellington Monument · man-made feature · Dublin

    The author passes an 'ugly monument' at the entrance to Phoenix Park, which a friendly potboy tells him was erected to commemorate Wellington and his victories. He is already struck by the park's magnitude before proceeding further into its grounds.

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    Leaving the car, I enter the park, and before I have got well past the ugly monument, which, a friendly potboy tells me, was erected to commemorate Wellington and his victories, I am strikingly impressed with its magnitude and superiority in every respect to our own comparatively small and stupidly subdivided enclosures, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. The extent of the Phoenix I do not know, but it must be very considerable, and is, with good taste, left as far as possible in a state of nature ; iron railings are rare? iron hurdles unknown.

    Turning to the left, I find myself in a thicket of ancient thorn-trees, standing singly, many covered with a luxuriant growth of ivy, and opening here and there to beautiful views of the Wicklow mountains and the rapid river looking bright in the distance. Some thrushes and blackbirds are hard at work with the berries, a colony of longtailed tits flits before me, and a redbreast dribbles out its cheery wintry note from the branch above ;

    Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 42

    As the companion tells it

    Right here at the entrance to Phoenix Park stands the Wellington Monument. A traveller passing through in the 1800s called it an ugly monument, erected to commemorate Wellington and his victories. A friendly potboy told him that was what it was for. He had barely got past it before he was struck by the sheer magnitude of the park, left as far as possible in a state of nature, with rare iron railings and no hurdles at all. Beyond the monument, ancient thorn-trees covered in ivy open to views of the Wicklow mountains and the river, with thrushes and blackbirds working the berries and a robin singing its wintry note from the branch above.

12. Limestone brought by boat to Westport

    Westport · town · Mayo

    When asked about limestone, Tony Bodkin referenced dark stone brought by boat to Westport and burned to powder, linking local trade to the prospective buyer's geological inquiries about the estate's agricultural potential.

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    " Faith, and that's true ! " remarked Tony, humbly ; " it's you English gintlemen have the laming, and, God be praised ! know how to use it. But," he added, after a moment's consideration, " would that be limestone, yer 'onner, that comes to Westport

    H •

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13. Deer at Phoenix Park, Dublin

    Phoenix Park · electoral division · Dublin

    Tony Bodkin compared the prospective abundance of deer on the Mayo estate to the deer he had seen with large horns at Phoenix Park in Dublin, invoking the park as a familiar reference point for plentiful game.

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    " I'll go bail for that same," interposed Tony ; "they'll be as plenty as thim chaps with the big horns I see in the Phaynix Park at Dublin."

    I think Tony had a tale to tell bearing on his visit to Dublin ; but he was too intent on his present object, whatever that might be, to yield to the temptation at the present moment.

    Internet Archive monthinmayocompr00roopiala, Chapter 35

    As the companion tells it

    Phoenix Park in Dublin was a place Tony Bodkin knew. He said the deer on the Mayo estate would be as plenty as, in his words, "thim chaps with the big horns I see in the Phaynix Park at Dublin." He seemed to have a tale from his own visit to the city, but he stayed focused on the matter at hand and never told it.