as far as concurrent with those of Boyle, and thus present to the public the fullest native authorities for the subject down to the year 1245. They will be found to preserve singularly faithful outlines of remote events; undisguisedly exhibiting, on the one hand, the battles, feuds, and vices of the ages they record, the rivalries of petty princes and dynasts, the desolating visitations of foreign oppressors, and on the other, with unadorned simplicity, registering the succession of kings, bishops, abbots, scribes, bards, and sages, the founding and flourishing of schools, the care and custody of relics, -a "hortus siccus” of by-gone vegetation: and, most assuredly, when examined in conjunction with the ancient laws, poems, and tales of the country, presenting singularly interesting memorials of a lettered and thinking people, secluded from the habits of the rest of Europe, and wintered beyond the tropics of Roman power; a treasure of language, manners, social intercourse, and religious rites. From those Annals, laws and poems, preceding by centuries the period of official records, yet ever since unalterably reiterated; from the synods of Ireland, the decrees of her councils, the rules of her monks, the registries of her churches, and the lives of her bishops and holy men, the speaking evidences of her former days can alone, perhaps, be legitimately traced. Regardless, however, of these native authorities, the later historians of this country have but dipped their pens in the gall of its animosities; the devoted liegemen of a party, they wrote to maintain a position, and without regarding or inquiring into the grounds of the statements they adopted. The Annals of Boyle preceded the era of such falsifying influence, and, although the nearest in time of compilation after the English invasion and the interesting events of that period, they yet exhibit none of the rancorous and exciting spirit of national hostility, which too soon commenced to dissociate the ardent but misguided subjects of one empire. The original of this historic work is preserved in the Cottonian Collection of the British Museum, a vellum manuscript of 68 pages, classed there Titus, A. 25; and a very accurate copy on paper is bound up with other Annals and Ecclesiastical Registries, in a volume of the Dublin University Manuscripts, classed E. 3. 2. They commence at the earliest period of scriptural history, and, treating briefly of general history, with some few notices of Ireland interspersed, to the time of St. Patrick, they are, from that period, almost exclusively devoted to national events, down to the year 1245, where the work closes. The late Doctor O'Conor, the Venerable Bede of his country's history, has indeed done much towards re-uniting the fragments of her Chronicles to the period of the English invasion, in his "Rerum Hibercarum Scriptores," printed under the auspices of the late Marquess of Buckingham; and wherein he not only translated and diligently collated these portions of the Annals before alluded to, but, yet more, accompanied them with such notes and illustrations as his genius, research, and learning could supply. In this Collection Dr. O'Conor includes the Annals of Boyle, but he has omitted that first section of its manuscript, which more particularly refers to general history, and to the affairs of Greece and Rome, concluding, its transcription would but weary the reader; his publication of them, accordingly, only commences with the year 420. In the "History of Ireland," however, which is annexed to this Essay, all of these notices relating to that country are restored, and will be found running through its pages, like the other "Annals" of Boyle, translated, and in a distinguishing type. These few early notices being almost wholly in Latin, while those of subsequent date are printed in the second volume of the "Rerum Hibernicarum Scriptores," it would unnecessarily increase the expense of this work to repeat a text of such practicable access. Having thus introduced the "Annals of Boyle" to the reader, it may be asked, how this particular compilation came to be selected, as that, by which the course of the annexed History was to be guided? The answer will disclose some of the difficulties that works on Irish History or Antiquities must as yet encounter, a bounty can alone bring them into market; no publisher, as the author of these volumes can testify, at least on his humble experience, will, or prudently could, at once indemnify the writer, and present such a work to the public, in a respectable form; there is, consequently, no alternative left for one that would prosecute such an object, but to claim, from those who might favour the introduction of peaceful studies in Ireland, and promote its dispassionate illustration, their aid and co-operation, at least for his mere indemnity. Having felt the necessity of adopting this course in former works for the local illustration of Ireland, the author, although the numerical result in these fell far short of his expectations, determined on seeking a similar guarantee for one of its general history, and so confident was he still in the certainty of a vastly increased list, that he actually contemplated, as he then thought, the original undertaking of editing the Annals of the Four Masters, as decidedly the most full in narrative, and extensive in scope of time; fortunately, however, it transpired, in an interview with Messrs. Hodges and Smith, that they had theretofore, at their personal responsibility, engaged an editor and translator for this very work, had incurred considerable expense in the necessary preliminaries, and were about to issue circulars (as they have since done), for a subscription list, they, therefore, claimed right of pre-occupation, and their wish was responded to; the harvest of national literature is too heavy to justify prejudicial conflict, the apprehension ought rather be, that too much valuable produce must perish, from the deficiency of labourers to gather it in, and, in truth, as the price which these respectable publishers, with the most zealous wish for circulation, deemed it necessary to put upon their volumes, was six guineas, a private individual may congratulate himself, as having escaped such serious risk in the cause of patriotism. The "Annals of Inisfallen" seemed the next best calculated to gratify public attention, and, although the general class of subscribers might be diminished, by the title sounding as local, yet it was thought this disadvantage could be countervailed, but of course with increased labour and research, by associating the Annals with a history of Inisfallen and the lovely lakes of Killarney, or even, on more extended local encouragement, a History of Kerry, and thence obtaining a considerable co-operation from resident proprietors. The individual, in rank and influence projected as most likely to promote this object, appeared to be the Earl of Kenmare, and accordingly, it was proposed, that the History of Kerry, with a supplemental volume or volumes, comprising the Annals of Inisfallen, should be undertaken, if his Lordship would appropriate £200 towards the outlay, not to be paid until the whole work was accomplished; but to that communication no reply has ever since been received. The third, and more successful application, was submitted to Viscount Lorton, in reference to the "Annals of Boyle," with an accompanying volume on the Statistics and History of the Barony of Boyle, which it was offered to compile, on an appropriation by his lordship of 100 guineas, that sum being, in this case, deemed a sufficient contribution, as the scope of the local matter was only over a barony. Lord Lorton's answer was immediate, not only assenting to promote the publication, but, as some engravings of the scenery of his princely residence would greatly enhance the value of the work, his Lordship was pleased to invest £200 in bank, at the disposal of the author. This noble auspice was followed by an ap propriation of £50 by the late Mr. Tenison, in regard to the romantic scenery of Castle Tenison, within the barony of Boyle (of which three engravings were to be and are given by the compiler), an obligation which his brother and heir, Captain Edward King Tenison, has since ratified and discharged. Mr. Mulloy of Oakport also contributed three views, and Mac Dermott Roe one, connected with their respective estates in that barony. Having thus adopted the Annals of Boyle, it was more than appropriate to give the fullest local illustration of the scenes in which they were compiled, and with much of which they were especially conversant; nor can it surely be objected to, that the vignette title of the work exhibits the seat of its noble patron, and that an introductory volume is devoted to the statistics and history of one of the most picturesque baronies in Ireland, and withal, the land where Carolan, the justly celebrated bard, passed his happiest hours, and found his last home. It was not hastily or unadvisedly, that the work, as its scope had been then contemplated, was undertaken. The original prospectus, largely circulated, proposed only to print a translation of the "Annals of Boyle," with notes, historical, topographical, and genealogical, and an introductory history of the town of Boyle and of the interesting localities of its barony, in one volume, embellished with 15 plates; "price to subscribers one pound, to be paid when the work was announced as ready for delivery on order." For the work, thus limited, the appropriations above alluded to were, with a subscription list of 300, sufficient indemnity, and on that basis has the author ever signified his readiness to publish any of the extensive collection of manuscripts which he had amassed. When, however, the proposed subject was more intimately examined, the Annals of Boyle, although their meagreness was the best test of their antiquity, were considered too brief to afford that gratification to the |