Accident at Kenmare

Accident at Kenmare—Arrival at Killarney—Dread of Heretical Books—Turk Waterfall—Funeral Wail—America's good fame—Lions of the Lake—"Sweet Innisfallen"—White-robed Procession—A Third Funeral—Dry Bones—Battle of the Ghosts—Pair of Slippers—Test of Orthodoxy—Staring! Staring!—Another Hospitable Gate-house—Lord Kenmare's Park—Calm Sabbath Morn—The Little Petitioner for the "Word of God"—A Door of Access

It was certainly an object of no small interest at Kenmare, that such a "dacent body" was not in a coach, and the fat contented old lady, to whom the priest directed me, knocked the ashes from her pipe, saying, "and it's you that's the lady." The village assembled in the evening and listened to reading till a late hour, ever finding it a better way before distributing tracts to read something interesting, which always awakened a curiosity to become better acquainted with them. Sabbath morning, going out to an ivy-covered decayed castle near by, and attempting to climb a wall, my cape blew over my face, my foot slipped, and I fell upon the pavement, and so great was the jar, that for a moment I supposed my fate was sealed, and that in Ireland, and in that unpromising looking town, I must endure probably months of suffering with a disease of the spine, as I had done in New York. A company were passing to mass, and two old men helped me a little upright, and placed me against the wall, leaving me to my meditations, which were not the most flattering. I looked about upon the desolate town, and recoiled at the thought of being left in it, and made an effort to arise; with considerable suffering I reached my lodging, and in a little time quite regained my former position. Heard a dull sermon with dull ears.

Ireland’s Welome to the Stranger is one of the best accounts of Irish social conditions, customs, quirks and habits that you could wish for. The author, Mrs Asenath Nicholson, was an American widow who travelled extensively in Ireland on the eve of the Great Famine and meticulously observed the Irish peasantry at work and play, as well as noting their living conditions and diet. The book is also available from Kindle.