16 JOURNAL OF THE COUNTY DONEGAL .i!ISTOR.JCAL SOC1ETY: his "Literature in Ireland" I could sa;fely raries of Dublin Uni'Versity, the British say, even at this early stage, that the Museum and the Royal Irish Academy. greater pol'tions of the seventeenth and Some of these, s\l!Ch as the Civii survey e~ghteenth centuries were periods when of OOunty [)onegal, 161)4 :to 1656, .and the the literary output' 'of C'o. Done.gal was CromweHian 1Cens~ Returns, have jus~ completely barren. '1 was amaz.ed ~o been edited :and ~bed by the Irish find that Henry·Morris claimed to be the Historiical !Manuscripts Commi§ion :a.nd proud possessor of the only Penal Day others, such as the Co. !Donegal DeposiIrish manuscript in the Donegal dialect, tions Of 164'1, are being prepared for and this laid side by sl:de with Bishop publication in the near f1uture. .other O'GaHag;her's Sermons mruke .a very ·manuscripts, Hike 1the Catholic OuitlarNTY poor disp\lay. lists of 169·1, ffiliY re~.ain indefinitely a.s such in 'the li!brar:y of Trinity College, Ii I e~clude the works of Toland and Dulblin, or, li'ke the Protestant OutlaiwrY his fellow-renegade Macklin,* my displ:ay Lists of the same period, ·they may aipof Cio, Donega!l Anglo-Irish literw~ure, pear in rare pairnphlet or boolC( {Orm in during' the same period, reveals a simi- gpecific lilbraries such as. 'llh~ $Qnned lar hi:.cuna, ;arid few can plead extenuat- by ·the VeryRJev.. iOean.;·H\ing' ih Derry. ing circumstances . since Co. Donegal These are \but a ·trsc·tron of the .treawas very welil served with English teach- sure.S which were 1.os·t 111 the Public RJeing schools, even in its Gaelt,achtt, from cords' !Clttfice Jn 19212>, and yet there is the re~gn of Charles the Second on-· no reason to deSi1>3.ir, for your town, wards. The only Anglo-Irish literature parish and !barony is still well reipreI can offer to you for thl:s period are a sentedtiby ·marriage setttftements, , m~rtfew religious and se~i-re1iJg1ous poems galges; ·deeds .p()ll, oonv~yaµees; : J$Wby Dr. Croyle, .i:t:ie Bishop of . Raphoe, sui.ts and compl:a:ints, ooverinig many some treatises on surveyi~g by Thomas centuries and well preserved in ,the ReHood, of Newt01Wnoonnmgham, the . gi.stry of Deeds, !Henrietta St., and the . poems of. the Rey. Jam;s Porter, the a·rchives of Trinity Oollege, Dublin. Presbyterian patriot of 98, and some To these yoiu can also add files of docupamphlets. and sermons issued andupub- ments, covered with an age old deposit lished by clergymen in the Ramelton- of dust tn ,'FJstate IAgent·s· and SoUcitors' Letterkenny area. offllces .and Banks throu,ghout the BriThis list is fairly exhaustive; and as tish· Jsles. you see has little or no local colour or th informa.tion in it. For this material we A large 'Part of eighteen . ·~ntury must ·ran back on the spate of eigh- Co. Donegal is even well documented in teenth- century tour and guide books our County Ubrary, lfot ·the C/Qunty whieh began to ·floQd the litera·ry mar- Lilbrarian, Mr. MwclQtyre, has maqe kets with Dr. Pococ:ke's chatty "Journey tyipescript 'COipies of two interestiiig. sets Through Ireland", and reached their ;of.manuscripts .which-. .es~ped ,~he,. wancHmax in Arthur Young's excellent ton ctestTuctlon of the Coo~ty Reco:f~. a "Tours Through Ireland" of the years few years :a;go. The manuscrapts. salv:ed 1776 to 1779. I sh.all not weary you with from this piece' of v:an.dalism were the a long list of Post Ohaise Companions, Reg1sters of :Freehoklers, in. Co.. DoneHibernian Atlases, and various Ittner- gal for ·the years. 1768 to J711:' 'ltUd 'the arles, Gazet.eers, and TopograJ)hles, but Presentme.nts of ·the C'ounty .and .$011le I assure you that picking and co-ordin- of the. Baronial Presentments:from·,the ating 1nforma?lon ·relative.: to et.ghteen y.ear 1753 to . 1800; ' These . .con:ttlin a century Doneigial out of them is as fas- wealth ·of .un1ta1)ped lnfoi'ma:tion ion ;tl)e cinating and as exasperating as a Jig- · social a>nd economic life of,the county, Saw puzzle~ from crimes .and cntriinals up to the lf, howeveT, ·any of you attempt to · write a comprehensive history .puibUc activities of local nolb!.1Ry.. a;nd gentry. of your town; parish or..barony yau can The information contained in these delve · dee.per 'f.1ian th.l.S, and. YOU can manUSCtl1JtS cap:, 'be . aimp·il.fied , by . the supplement your local historles bf Hugh reference tc> The .QathQl'ic . Qualitk.a:- Ailllngham or Dr; ·Maguire with Anglo- tion ROlls, 1718-188kthe elg'h~e»th Irish Manuscript materials which were century Convert RollS~The. Betham. Exunknown to or ignored by these autho·rs. tracts of Wills, . all of. whilch. are:still Seventeenth· century Co. Donegal is now preserved in .the iPubltc. ltecouis'. Qm-Oe, par.ticularly well documented· in various [)uiblin. ..One ,can carry ,this w~r~. :<>n catalo!?ues of State pa~ers and manus-. int.o the las.t. .century ·w;ith . ~the Ti.the ·crl.pits .from repositories snrch :u; the lib- Applotments. Rolls, 1'820,,-1830, in. the (*l am not con:vin·ced that Macklin was a Donegalman), Reool.'ds !Department of the Iir!sb .I,a.nd Commission, .and with·: .. the , pUil)li&hed imarps and lists of the Grfft\th. .Valuation, 18i5~-1·860. ·In these you 1ge~ a de-
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQxNzU3