THE ROUND TOWERS OF IRELAND.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 127, 29 May 1913, Page 7

THE ROUND TOWERS OF IRELAND.

(To the Editor.) Sir,—lt ks a disputed question amongst .ißi;iqua,ri.iT!H ae' to whether the pillar towers of Ireland are of Pagan or Tβligione origin. 'Dr. Stokee inclines to the latter view, but at leaet all are agreed that they add an additional charm to the natural -beauties and advantages which Nature has bestowed with bountcoue hand on Ireland. Besides these grey old pillars, bow perishing and weak The Roman arch of trlnmph and temple of the Greek. Thaee old ruined pitee poesees a peculiar attraction for the true Iriehma.n. He ga/es upon these ivy-clad remnante of once .mighty castles, and his mind ie carried back t-o the olden days when a-round theee grim fortrneees surged the tide of conflict, and tbe air wan filled with fierce .battle cries. Or he paces the rooflees cloisters of come famed Abbey, like Glendatoagh, and if it be evening time, when the shadows deepen, he almost imagines those hallowed epots wrapped in gloom peopled once more with long-robed monke, and that Veeper hymns steal softly on Wβ ear. The preservation of theee ancient m«moriaAe ie now assured. Of the 120 round towers at the close of the last cpirtury, only 65 are now standing.—l am. etc.. GAELIC.