The Highland Lady In Ireland. Elizabeth Grant
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Wicklow Tuesday.5 Shocking work in Carlow and the priests as busy as bees everywhere. Mr. George Moore told the Doctor that everywhere the prospects of the Conservatives are most encouraging; the Carlton Club reckon on a majority of seventy. I would divide this by half and still be satisfied. Mrs. Ogle Moore has a son, a fine baby; she suffered much more than usual, but she got over her dangerous time better though she was for two hours in great peril, so exhausted at last that she said: ‘Shall I live, Doctor?’ He says some day she will slip through, poor thing. How curious it is that to some women the very purpose of their being should be in the fulfilment so fraught with danger. Other animals give birt h of their young with an ease one should suppose natural to an occurence in the course of nature, but women almost always peril their lives when producing their children. It must be from the artificial lives we lead. Too little exercise to develop the strength of our bodies, and too many luxuries which further enervate them. The poor Doctor is still a prisoner Mrs. Kilbee hourly expecting her trial, then Mrs. Foster and Mrs. Gore,—population encreasing well.
14. Doctor called and had a long gossip for us of election news, priest interference etc. Lady Milltown also called, in a gracious mood with me but sadly out of sorts with the rest of the world. She really is totally deserted by everyone. No wonder they should both fly to Baden or any where else where they are not known, the mere change of place is consoling to those who have neither friends nor occupation. My Lord is gone to some races, my Lady goes after him on Saturday. Miss Sçavoy is gone too, the new governess, poor thing, arrives to-day little knowing the misery before her and the mother leaves the children with a stranger. She has begged of me to look after them which so far as calling occasionally I will do with pleasure but I decline all other charge.
16. Fine day, riding, walking, driving nearly the whole of it. Hal took a great drive, ride I mean about sixteen miles I am sure, called on half his acquaintance heard from Mr. Gore that in the Agent’s accounts there is a regular entry against Lord Downshire for the expenses of his visits to the Murrays. Hal was quite taken aback, so opposite from all he had ever heard. At Edenderry Mr. Gore said it was the same and that in the little intercourse he had himself had with him hitherto he had always acted liberally. Lord Downshire said he is not understood in this country.
17. Dublin County is won, Mr. O’Connell is returned for Cork. The intimidation going on in the South and West is frightful, armed mobs seem to have possession of the country stopping the voters, whose party they oppose even when in the Mail coaches, beating, stoning, imprisoning even murdering, it is dreadful that such things can be in a civilised land.
Miss Peel married with the greatest pomp to Viscount Villiers. Every body that is any body at the banquet. Prince George, Princess Augusta, many of the Queen’s household and a large number of the leading nobility and gentry at the marriage. Sir Robert Peel may be a proud man, fortune in every way favouring him, or rather rewarding his consummate prudence and temper and integrity.
Went to school and found no scholars, this fever and the several deaths caused by it having frightened all the parents. Drove to Blesinton and found quite a levée at the Doctor’s, himself, the Colonel, Mr. Ogle Moore, Mr. Finnemor, Mr. Gore, all having met to decide on the spot for building our new Dispensary which is to have rooms overhead for an infirmary or fever hospital, the contract is taken by the mason who built the market house and the scite is on the road to Naas a little distance from the town, on this side. Mr. Gore seems to be a very different sort of agent from poor weak Mr. Murray who had no energy, no abilities and no new lights.
26. A letter from John announces that the tenants are many of them after all our trouble getting into arrears, nearly three hundred pounds owing on the property up to last May which must not be allowed and therefore he will come and distrain upon all those farms whose holders do not produce cash immediately. It is quite unpardonable in those that really have it, such actual dishonesty as in Commons, Rutherfurd, Mick Tyrrell etc., and in the others, it merely proves that they are not fit to manage ground and should descend into the class of labourers at once for all the rents on this property are very low—1200 English acres 20 miles from Dublin producing but £770 a year.
7. Gloomy morning but no rain. Mrs. Gore better, she was in great danger again yesterday. I never saw the Doctor more anxious about anybody, really fretting. She was so ill and is naturally so delicate and the husband in such a state of misery about her, the six children too to leave behind. He came this morning looking quite relieved. There is going to be a subscription for Colonel Bruen, [the defeated candidate for Carlow] any sum however small will be accepted with much pleasure, none over £1 taken and whether a piece of plate or what will be presented to him they have not settled nor does it signify, the respect all the Conservative party hold their champion in will be demonstrated and indeed he is entitled to it for he has fought the good fight well.
The more I think over the unhappy condition of the people of this country the more convinced I am that all their misery springs from want of education, moral and intellectual, they get neither, either in their homes or generally at their schools and I should say the higher ranks are very nearly as much in need of it in every point as the lower.
Example in point. We went to Blesinton to-day to attend a Meeting of the Protestant Orphan Association, a most excellent institution of the utmost importance to the welfare of the country and the only remark it could call forth must be surprise that it is so lately established as twelve years ago, that it should be the only institution of the kind in Leinster and that its funds should still be so small. Two gentlemen connected with it came down to give information respecting its progress with a view to their statements exciting us all to greater zeal in our endeavours to aid it. We expected a pathetick appeal to our best feelings, a list of cases which had been relieved, an account of plans of education, expenditure etc.
What did we hear, the most furious declamation against the National Schools and other exciting political topicks without grammar, common sense, or proper application of words, from two unbearably vulgar creatures, one a Curate, not quite so bad as the odious Secretary to the Deaf and Dumb who obliged us the last. It was a most ridiculous exhibition, painful to reflect on as the amount of mischief in the power of these two mountebanks to create during their tour is incalculable. Mr. Moore was annoyed to a degree, Mr. Foster furious, it really might have the effect of injuring a good cause, indeed I should like to know more of the spirit which animates the Committee of the society before pledging myself to any further support.
At the Doctor’s fell in with Edward, Vans, Mr. Moore and one of the Shehans, editor of the Evening Mail,6 a most amusing and clever man, the worse of the fun of his youth I should say, he was on his way with the Recorder to his shooting lodge for a day or two during these political holidays.
28. A poor old body came to get help to stock a basket so I fitted it up in a way. Hal says they have a notion that if ever they have the merest shadow of a trade they will not be sent to the poor house, this trade then will not keep this poor body long out of it. John Hornidge is in the greatest fright ever was, he ejected a tenant and arranged with the man’s brother-in-law, Hugh Kelly to succeed him and the night before last the house was burned, a bullock shot and a poor lad the care-taker would have been burned too had it not been for a chance passenger for they had fastened the door on him. John Hornidge was pale and trembling when he told his tale and he would not proceed home in the broad daylight without the protection of Vans and Edward.
After the Sessions yesterday Hal took us such a beautiful drive, he had to go to Elverstown to speak to Rutherfurd and we went in the car with him, he riding, poor Annie could not ride as the pony wants a fore shoe. We went all over the garden, the offices and the house all having a wealthy air for Ireland but bare looking to my foreign eyes. Mahogany tables in the parlour, beaufit with plenty of glass and china and an eight day clock, but a mud floor, no carpet, no curtains, bare walls. In the kitchen, two fiddles, no bacon, nor does he feed pigs, nor has he a dairy, he veals his calves and buys his milk, meat and butter. The back kitchen which in England would shew such comfort was here filled with turf, the oven a ruin, the way to the cellar blocked up, neither jug nor basin in any of