Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Narrative of a residence in Ireland during the Summer of 1814, and that of 1815 (Author: Anne Plumptre)

entry 13

Ascent of the Mountain Knock-Laid. — The Limestone Quarries, and Organic Remains. — Plants and Mosses. — Promontory of Benmore, or Fairhead. — Alarming Adventure of a Gentleman and Lady there. — Migration of the Eels. — The Island of Rathlin. — Its turbulent Sea. — Doon-Point, and its Basaltic Pillars. — Ushut. — Burning Kelp. — Visit from Mr. Conolly, Minister of Ballycastle. — The Fata Morgana. — The Collieries.

13

A striking feature in the scenery, on approaching Ballycastle, is the mountain Knock-Laid, which rises close to the town, towering far above all the other summits by which it is surrounded. This mountain had never been mentioned by any one who had talked to me of the county of Antrim; perhaps, therefore, being a very conspicuous feature, it caught my attention the more earnestly, and having rather a taste for ascending mountains, I began immediately to speculate in my mind upon visiting its utmost height. Upon this subject I held a conference in the course of the afternoon with my landlord at the hotel. He said that the mountain was perfectly accessible, going to a certain point with the car, when I must quit that and walk the rest of the way. Not many people, he said, chose the trouble of going to the top; but if the day happened to be clear, there was a very fine view to the Isle of Man and coast of Scotland, one way; to Lough Neagh, another; and to the mountains in the county of Donegal, another. He offered, at the same time, to accompany me as a guide, since without some one to direct I might not take the best way. All was soon arranged; it remained only to see whether the weather, which had not then a very favourable appearance, would permit the execution of the scheme.

The sun did very good-humouredly shine upon it: to the wet evening succeeded a very fine morning; and after an early breakfast we set off. The track, for road it could not be called, from the foot of the hill to about halfway up, was certainly practicable for a carriage, for mine did get over it with safety; but indeed between the stony parts, which we had sometimes to jumble over, and the deep sloughs through which we had to wade at others, I was


p.116

rather surprised that no accident happened. At a farm-house we quitted the car, leaving it there for protection, and commenced the pedestrian part of the expedition. On this we had not proceeded far before we perceived a man running hastily after us. We stopped till he came up, and then learnt that he was son to the farmer where we had left the car. He had seen us at Cushendun the day before, and had fallen into conversation with my servant; and the moment he saw the car again recognized it: when, finding we were going up the mountain, he very civilly came to offer his assistance in directing us the best way; since he, living as he did upon the spot, was perfectly acquainted with every part of it. Indeed he was of essential service: but for the assistance I received from him and Mr. Fullerton, (the master of the hotel,) I never could have reached the summit. A considerable part of the mountain is so boggy, that it is no easy matter to pick a way over it: not unfrequently my two squires stood half-way up their boots in water, to assist me in jumping from one spot where there was firm footing to another. More than once I was half-disposed to abandon my undertaking; but my guides piqued themselves so much upon conducting me through it, that I persevered, and at length reached the cairn, as it is called, a heap of stones piled up pyramidally, which marks the highest spot on the mountain. It is called cairn-an-truir, or the cairn of the three, but no tradition records who the three were.

I sat myself down upon the stones, and indeed enjoyed a rich reward of my toils in the noble view spread before me: not that it was quite as clear as might have been wished; for Lough Neagh was not visible, nor was the Isle of Man, but I could nevertheless see over an immense extent of country, including some very interesting objects. Benmore, which appeared so magnificent as I saw it from my window at the hotel, here seemed nothing; that is 631 feet above the level of the sea, and we were now at the height of 1500 feet. We could see over the whole island of Rathlin as if it had been in a map, and the wide waste of bog over which we had travelled the day before, while appearing extremely contracted in extent, had at the same time lost half its dreariness. Westward, the whole line of coast with its numerous broken basaltic promontories was to be seen distinctly, as far as the Innishowen mountains in the county of Donegal. But what I most eagerly sought, the Giants' Causeway, was not visible, it was concealed by the two lofty promontories between


p.117

which it runs. The Mull of Cantire and some other parts of the Scotch coast appeared close by. I took two pieces of stone from the cairn, on each of which I engraved my name with the day of the month and year; one I left for the information of any future wanderer who may be seized with a wish of undertaking the same adventure, the other I brought away to preserve as a relic. The head of this mountain is very much rounded, so that it was only by taking a mathematical measurement that the highest point could be determined. In ascending, repeated disappointments are experienced, when in reaching what at a little distance appears the summit, instead of proving so, it is found to be only a shelving of the mountain leading to another and more arduous ascent. On the declivity are two small quarries of limestone remarkably pure and white; the stone abounds with belemnites, but I found no other organic remains. In some of the most boggy parts pieces of quartz were scattered about, remarkably white and transparent, scarcely inferior in beauty to alabaster. I also found a great variety of mosses, one of a description I have never seen elsewhere. Here too the cotton-plant was growing very luxuriantly, and there were abundance of whortle-berries and bilberries; — the former of these are called in the country Fruckogs, the latter Monags.

The weather did not remain wholly favourable, we had two pretty smart showers while we were upon the mountain, so that between the wet from above and that I had to wade through below, I was obliged entirely to new dress myself when I got back to Ballycastle. This done, I once more mounted the car and proceeded to the summit of Benmore. Near the road going thither are some trifling remains of an abbey once of great note in these parts, that of Bona-Marga, but they are so insignificant as to be scarcely deserving of notice. Before the Rock-heads were reached I was again obliged to quit the car, and pursue my way on foot. Two boys ran after us from a cottage which we had just passed, who we found considered themselves as privileged guides; and under their conduct we went round the whole head of the promontory, which I found much more extensive than could have been supposed from seeing it at a distance.

This promontory is better known by the name of Fairhead than of Benmore. It is improperly called by the former name; that really belongs to another head, two miles to the west of Ballycastle, Kenbann, which signifies Whitecliff.


p.118

It is a limestone rock, with the ruins of a castle on the summit. Benmore has the same signification as Penmaur (for so, and not Penmanmaur, ought the rock in Wales to be called), that is, high mountain, a name very properly applied to such an object; whereas Fairhead ill applies to a dark towering mass of basalt. It is indeed awful to look down this precipice: I could not have done it standing, I was obliged to go upon my hands and knees to get near the edge. On a superficial view it might be pronounced that the basalt here is not columnar, but on an accurate survey it is evidently seen to be so. The columns are prisms of four sides; and being closely wedged together, they present a level front which easily deceives. The tallest of these columns measures 233 feet in height; two of the sides measuring thirty-three feet in breadth, the other two thirty-six. It appears to be the highest mass of stone so perfectly characterized at present known in the mineralogical world. The base on which this enormous mass of pillars rests, rises 398 feet above the sea, so that the whole height of the promontory at this point is 631 feet. In one part is a fissure in the basaltic mass, down which a path called the Gray Man's Path, leads to the foot of the precipice; a vast pillar has fallen and rested on the other side, forming an arch over it, but it is fixed so immovably that there is no danger to be apprehended in passing underneath it. From the foot of the basalt the rock slopes down to the sea, and the whole of this part is scattered over with broken fragments, which really appear like the ruins of some structure formed by the hands of giants. The regular prismatic forms of these fragments serve to confirm the columnarity of the mass from which they have fallen. I did not go down the Gray Man's Path, as both the descent and ascent are fatiguing; and having the intention of sailing round the Head the next day, there was no object to be attained by taking a less perfect view of it.

About a twelvemonth before, a gentleman and lady came to visit this promontory, but would not suffer any of the people about to accompany them as guides. They descended the Gray Man's Path; it was then growing dusk: when they had satisfied their curiosity below, and sought the path to reascend, they could not find it: in vain did they wander backwards and forwards, the path was not to be discerned: complete darkness soon came on, and the night was passed by them among this ruined heap of fragments, with the sea roaring at a great


p.119

depth below, they afraid to stir lest a false step might have proved their destruction; — as the climax of the adventure, the lady was considerably advanced in pregnancy. What must have been their sensations at seeing daylight again dawn upon them! — what a blessed deliverer must the glorious sun have been hailed! — It is very unwise to go about places where danger may be incurred, without a proper guide.

The basalt here is not so pure as in many other parts; it is coarse-grained, having sometimes almost the appearance of granite, and occasionally containing augite. I know not what kind of stone constitutes the base of the rocks; probably sandstone, since that occurs both to the east and west of the promontory. Not far from it, on the western side, lie the collieries, but I did not visit them till two days after. Upon the head of the promontory, and near the brow, are two small pools of water, or lochs as they are called, connected together. From that nearest to the edge of the rock a small rill trickles down to the sea, up which the young eels, when not thicker than a small packthread, ascend to the lochs, where they remain and thrive exceedingly. This migration of the little fry, extraordinary as it may appear, up so great a height and so rapid an ascent, is a well established fact. The thing is so notorious and occurs so regularly, that against the time when they may be expected the peasantry lay haybands down along the rill to assist the tender navigators in their course. The same thing occurs at other places along the coast. A variety of heath plants grow on the tops of the rocks, and mingled with them cranberries, though not in great abundance; — they were now just beginning to turn red.

The next day, as I was told by the fishermen (the only mariners of the place) that the weather was remarkably favourable for sailing round the Head and to the island of Rathlin, I engaged a boat and set out on my voyage. Though very desirous of visiting this island, and very glad when I was safe back again that I had been there, yet I believe if I had previously had any idea of the sea I was to navigate, I should entirely have relinquished the idea of venturing upon it. Round the Head the swell of the sea was very powerful, sufficient to give me a sensation of fear, to which I am not subject upon the water; but once round, all was calm again, and the rocks form a most sublime spectacle indeed; a boat can go almost close to their foot. We landed on the other side of the promontory, and walked about for near an hour till the tide would serve


p.120

for going to the island. If I thought the swell round the Head extraordinary and awful, how much more tremendous appeared the monstrous waves by which we were now surrounded for the greater part of the voyage. I was disposed to be very angry with the boatmen for having, as indeed I thought they had, deceived me in the state of the weather, and enticed me out when the sea was so violently agitated. They assured me that what I saw was nothing, that they considered the sea as very quiet, and begged me to notice that there really was no wind, scarcely sufficient to fill the sails. So far was certainly true, the breeze was as light as possible, but the sea notwithstanding rolled in mountains; — of such a swell without wind I could not have formed an idea if I had not seen it. To add to the misery of the thing, we were obliged to tack repeatedly in order to make the island, so that we were thus tossed about for a most tedious length of time. Indeed, I began to think that instead of being off the coast of Ireland I was off that of Sicily, and had fallen into the vortex of Charybdis. To the fishermen who are accustomed to this sea its present state was mere play, and they seemed astonished that anybody could be alarmed; but I, who now saw it for the first time, could almost say that what was play to them was death to me. I do not know that I ever felt so alarmed upon the water, inadequate as our frail bark appeared to stemming such a mighty force: but we did stem it, and I am alive to recount my fears. It should seem that the true cause of this extraordinary effect is yet among the hidden secrets of the deep, for no attempt hitherto made to explain it is by any means satisfactory. To ascribe it to the narrowness of the channel is far from being so, since that is eight miles over10, and no such effect is seen in many a channel not approaching to that breadth. A great conformity is said to exist between this sea and the straits of Reggio which divide Sicily from Italy. The same occult causes may very probably subsist in both, and, yet undiscovered, will most likely ever remain so.


p.121

13

This island is variously named by different writers; — the most common name is Rathlin, it is considered as the Ricina of Ptolemy. By some it is called Raughlin, by others Raghery. Mr. Newenham, who seems not to have informed himself better with regard to its name, than its distance from the Irish coast, calls it Rachlin or Rachree. Its form may be designated as that of a half horse-shoe; its length from one extremity to the other is five miles, in no part does its breadth exceed a mile. It is a very commonly received opinion that it was at a remote period torn from the adjacent coast of Ireland by some violent convulsion of nature, this theory being chiefly drawn from urged analogies between the geological construction of the island and the parallel shores of Antrim. Against this it may be urged, that the character of the basalt which constitutes the upper stratum in the greater part of the island, is very different from that at Benmore: the stone is of a much finer and closer texture; and instead of being divided into vast quadrangular prisms, we have here the regular columnar formation that distinguishes the Giants' Causeway. Doonpoint, which is a small promontory at the east end of the island, and lying directly opposite to Benmore, is composed entirely of these pillars: the great difference between them and those at the Causeway is, that whereas the latter all stand perpendicular, here some are curved, others lie horizontally, others again rest in an inclined position without any curve: the whole promontory bears a strong resemblance to the ribs which form the keel of a vessel standing inverted11. Nothing is to be seen above the water but the pillars; it is probable that they rest on a base of white limestone, since northward of the promontory appear cliffs of that stone. In going from Ushut-point, where we landed, to Doonpoint, I got from the cliffs which surround a small loch, pure gneiss, and imperfectly-formed red ochre. Near Ushut-point is a considerable range of pillars all lying horizontally. Mr. Hamilton, in his Letters on the County of Antrim, says, that at Church Bay, which lies at the bend of the island, "there is a heterogeneous mass of freestone, coals, iron ore, &c. the same as is to be found on the east side of Ballycastle Bay." I did not go so far into the island, so can say nothing of it. The broken fragments of rock scattered over the


p.122

beach at Doonpoint were many of them studded all over with shells of the nereis tribe, and a profusion of small corallines of the gorgonia genus were adhering to other masses. About Ushut I collected shells of the genera Buccinum, Cerithium, Patella, Venus, Helix, and Nereis. To the north-east of the island, half way between that and the Scotch coast, it is said that a group of basaltic pillars is seen rising just above the sea.

The surface of the island is estimated at two thousand acres, and the number of inhabitants at twelve hundred. Inhospitable as it appears, standing in the midst of such a turbulent and tempestuous sea, the inhabitants are not less attached to their dreary and desolate home than those that dwell under the most auspicious and benignant sun; they would consider being sent to live in Ireland as a painful exile. A small but delicious breed of sheep are fed here, and some barley is grown; but the great support of the island is the quantity of kelp burnt. The export of it is estimated at not less than a hundred tons annually, which is chiefly bought by the linen-bleachers at the price of five guineas the ton; the manufacture of it is carried on principally by the women and children. The sea-weed is cut from the rocks at low water, and spread out in the sun to be dried. At night it is made up into heaps, which are spread out again in the morning; and this process is continued till it is dried sufficiently to be burnt. A hole is then made in the ground and a temporary kiln constructed of loose stones for burning it: in this process the vegetable salt separates from the other matter, which is destroyed by the fire, and coagulates at the bottom of the kiln. This is the state in which it is exported; — the islanders have not yet learnt the art of purifying the alkaline salt from the marine salt with which it is incorporated. The shores are frequented by a vast number of sea-fowl.

A monastery was of old established here by Saint Columba, which was destroyed by the Danes: and barren and inhospitable as the island is, it has often been made the subject and theatre of contention between the Irish and Scotch. A tradition is preserved that at a place called Sloc-na-Calleach, all the old women of the island were once precipitated over the rocks, at the command of a Scotchman of the Campbell clan, by name MacNalreavy. Some people may perhaps think there was no great harm done, since the atrocity fell only upon the old women. During the contest for sovereignty in Scotland between Robert Bruce and John Baliol, the former sought an asylum here in a castle at the


p.123

north-east part of the island, which was thenceforward called after him Bruce Castle; some remains of it are still standing. Spear-heads and ancient swords have occasionally been dug up in a small plain about the centre of the island. From Doonpoint the Scotch coast was seen so plain, that without the assistance of glasses we could distinguish the white foam dashing up against the cliffs. Our mariners, in amusing themselves with my apprehensions of the tremendous sea, said, that the women of Rathlin would row themselves over from thence to Ballycastle, in a much more frail vessel and with much worse weather, without having the least idea of danger, or that they were engaged in an adventurous undertaking: — such is the force of custom.

As I embarked in the morning I observed standing on the shore a lame gentleman having the appearance of a clergyman, who seemed rather occupied with the embarkation; and as I was sitting in the evening after my return home I was surprised by a visit from him. He was, I found, the clergyman of the place, by name Conolly, and having learnt who I was, and that I was travelling to explore the country, he came very politely to offer me his services in anyway that they might be rendered useful, expressing regret that he had not sooner known of my being in the place, so that his offers might have been better timed. I found that he was the author of some pretty little poetic tales founded on the legends of his country, with a copy of which he was so obliging as to present me. With him I had a great deal of conversation on that extraordinary catoptric phenomenon the Fata Morgana, which is occasionally seen on this coast as well as in the Straits of Reggio, to which it is so often compared. He said that he could not boast himself of ever having seen this beautiful delusion, but he had talked with persons of great credibility by whom it had been witnessed. It was in summer evenings, when the clouds appeared remarkably electric; appearances then exactly resembling castles, ruins, tall spires, groves of trees, rocks, and other terrestrial objects seemed to sail rapidly along the surface of the sea from the east to the west, remaining for a length of time sufficient to give assurance that such appearances actually existed, that they were not the mere effect of strong imagination; — at sunset they wholly disappeared. This curious optical delusion seems to bear a strong analogy with one described by Professor Lichtenstein in his Travels in Southern Africa, (see English Translation, page 169.) as seen by him and his party, and which he learnt from some


p.124

of the inhabitants of the country was not exceedingly uncommon in those parts. A long account of the Fata Morgana may be seen in Dr. Rees's Cyclopedia, to which the reader is referred. Various particulars relative to it are also given in the notes to Dr. Drummond's poem of The Giants' Causeway. It is probable that many fables now in general circulation along this coast owe their origin to these actual appearances. In 1748 a book was published by a gentleman residing near the Giants' Causeway, in which a curious detail is given of an enchanted island seen annually floating along the coast of Antrim, of which it is said that a sod thrown on it from the terra-firma would fix it for ever. Attempts have been made at various times to throw this sod, but hitherto all have proved abortive. At Rathlin a belief prevails that a green island rises every seventh year out of the sea between their island and the promontory of Bengore. The inhabitants assert that many of them have distinctly seen it, and that it is crowded with people selling yarn and engaged in various other occupations common to a fair. As I purposed leaving Ballycastle the following day, Mr. Conolly obligingly desired that I would first breakfast with him. He observed that in ascending Knock-Laid, and going over to Rathlin, I had done two things scarcely ever thought of by travellers in those parts.

The next morning I set off at six o'clock to visit the collieries, which lie about two miles east of the town, between that and Benmore: the road lies along the strand at the foot of the cliffs. Within less than half a mile of the collieries we found it completely blocked up by an immense downfall of the cliffs which had happened in the night, between three o'clock, when the road was perfectly clear, and the time that I saw it; — fortunate indeed was it that it did happen in the night when no one was near, since inevitable destruction must have been the fate of any one on the spot. Indeed it was at once an awful and sublime spectacle to contemplate, accompanied with a grateful feeling to Providence that the accident had not happened just at the moment when I was passing beneath. Immense masses of stone had fallen, which could not be removed again but at the expense of vast labour. It was impossible for the car to proceed any further; so quitting that, I was obliged to go on foot round the sort of promontory formed by the ruins, which extended over the rugged stony beach to the very edge of the water; indeed had not the tide been down, it would have been scarcely possible to get round it at all.


p.125

13

My wish and intention had been to penetrate into the recesses of the mines; but upon inquiry into the practicability of doing so, I found it expedient to abandon my purpose. When I mentioned the idea to the surveyor who was walking about with me, he stared, and seemed quite astonished that such an one should ever have entered my head. "Madam," said he "I wouldn't for all the coals in the country have you abuse yourself in such a way." The veins of coal lie at some height in the steep rocks which rise above the sea, but the entrances to the shafts are on a terrace raised but little above the beach, so that it is by a dark narrow passage hollowed within the rock and having a very rapid ascent that the veins are reached; the coals are brought down in a sort of small carts constructed on purpose, drawn by men. The rock mass in which they lie is a dull white sandstone; in this stone are numerous impressions of vegetable bodies, the prototypes of which for the most part have never been seen in a recent state; — one of the specimens which I procured has very much the appearance of an Euphorbia. Above the coal in some parts is an imperfectly characterized aluminous mass, containing traces of organic bodies, possibly the detached members of zoophytes, similar to those which have produced the entrochites, trochites, and marine stars. The sandstone, as is very commonly the case in coal districts, contains insulated nodules of iron pyrites; and near the collieries, as is also common in coal districts, mica is almost a principal constituent of the sandstone. This stone also abounds with crystallizations of calcareous matter. The upper part of the coal mines is of a slaty character, and of a very inferior quality for burning; the coal itself is not heavy, and has many characteristics of vegetable origin.

It is a subject of debate among the learned and scientific, at what time these collieries were first known and worked. Some attribute the discovery of them to the Danes, when they had obtained possession of such large portions of the island — that is, previous to its being conquered by the English. Upon this subject I shall beg leave to quote a passage from Mr. Hamilton's Letters on the County of Antrim. "I have already mentioned," he says, "some reasons which might induce the belief that these collieries were wrought at a very remote period of time; but an accidental discovery has lately put that matter beyond doubt, and has laid open a very curious circumstance in the ancient history of this country. About twelve years ago, the workmen in pushing forward a new


p.126

adit12 towards the coal, unexpectedly broke through the rock into a cavern. The hole which they opened was not large, and two young lads were made to creep in with candles to explore this new region. They accordingly went forward, and entered an extensive labyrinth branching off into numerous apartments, in the mazes and windings of which they were at last completely lost. After many vain attempts to return, their lights were extinguished, and they sat down in utter despair of ever escaping from their dreary dungeon. In the mean time the people without in the drift were alarmed for their safety, fresh hands were employed, a passage was at last made for the workmen, and the two unfortunate adventurers were extricated after a whole night's imprisonment.

"On examining this subterraneous wonder, it was found to be a complete gallery, which had been driven forward many hundred yards to the bed of coal that it branched off into various chambers where the miners had carried on their different works; that pillars were left at proper intervals to support the roof; in short, it was found to be an extensive mine, wrought by a set of people at least as expert in the business as the present generation. Some remains of the tools, and even the baskets used in the works were discovered, but in such a state that on being touched they immediately fell to powder. The antiquity of this work is evident from the circumstance that not the most remote tradition of it remains in the country; but it is still more strongly demonstrated from a natural process which has taken place since its formation, stalactite pillars having been generated reaching from the roof of the pit to the floor; the sides and supports were besides covered with sparry incrustations, which the present workmen do not observe to be deposited in any definite portion of time."

Mr. Hamilton goes on to say that the people of the country attribute this work to the Danes; but he employs many arguments to prove that it must have been anterior to their time, thus referring it to a period of a thousand years back. On this question I am far from pretending even to give an opinion: — that a great degree of civilisation existed at that time in Ireland, more than in most parts of Europe, does certainly appear probable; but to arrive at any certainty upon the


p.127

subject scarcely appears within the scope of probability13. The surveyor who walked about with me asserted, without any manner of doubt or hesitation, that the mines had been worked by the Danes; and added, that when they found they could no longer keep possession of the country, they determined, before they quitted it, to do all the mischief in their power, among other things to set fire to these coal-mines. This they attempted, but succeeded no further than to burn the stratum above the coals, the fire never penetrated to the coals themselves: and he added, all above the coals is a vein of ashes, the remains of this conflagration. If I would like to have some of the ashes, he said, there was plenty to be had at a spot which he pointed out, high up in the cliff, and he would go and get me some. Without regarding his story as gospel, I was curious to see what the material might be which he thus designated, and I signified my acceptance of the offer. He immediately climbed up the cliff, and soon descended with his waistcoat-pocket filled with pieces of the aluminous mass which has been noticed as above the coal, and which he seemed most seriously to consider as the relic he had described of Danish vengeance. From him I also got a magnificent piece of the stalactite from the old mine.

These collieries are believed capable, if they were properly worked, of furnishing such abundance of coal as, in conjunction with the other mines in different parts of the island, amply to supply it with fuel without having recourse to foreign importation. But the difficulty of conveyance forms at present a fatal barrier against their being made the resource to the country of which they are capable. The tempestuous sea and the want of a harbour preclude all idea of their being transported through that medium. Would it be practicable to make an inland navigation by means of a canal communicating with Lough Neagh, and thence with the whole interior of the island? — I know not; but he would be a true patriot who would use his exertions to ascertain this point, and promote the work should it appear within the bounds of possibility.

After partaking of Mr. Conolly's hospitable breakfast, in a nice neat little cottage pleasantly situated near the edge of the cliff, about twelve o'clock I left Ballycastle and proceeded on my route towards the Causeway.


p.128