Above: Irish Bogs

Bogs

Ireland (Ireland Tours) is remarkable for the number and size of its bogs. They are of two kinds flat bogs, or those lying on plains, and mountain bogs on hills and high valleys. A large part of the Central Plain consists of bogs.

The most extensive is the Bog of Alien, which covers the greater part of Counties Kildare (Accommodation, Kildare, Ireland) and Offaly (Bed and Breakfasts, Offaly, Ireland). It is covered to a depth of upwards of twenty feet with peat, a substance formed of decayed vegetable matter. Cut into blocks, the peat is dried in the sun and is used for fuel.

Above: Some Irish people

The native Irish (Irish Guide) belong to the Celtic race. Their language is somewhat like the Gaelic of Scotland ; but it is now little used, except in the west. The population is about four and a half million. It has decreased during late years through so many of the Irish having left their native land to make new homes in America and Australia.

Provinces and Counties. Ireland (Ireland Tours) is divided into four provinces and these are subdivided into thirty-two counties. The provinces are Ulster, Connaught, Leinster and Munster.

Above: In Munster

County Kerry, in the south-west corner of Ireland, is pierced by deep bays or inlets, which cut the land into long and narrow peninsulas. No words can describe the bold, wild, rugged, and much indented coast, against which the great Atlantic waves are for ever beating.

The Shannon mouth, Tralee Bay, Dingle Bay, and Kenmare Bay, are the chief openings. There are many capes and bold headlands, but the chief is Dunmore Head, the most westerly point of Ireland. Of the many islands off this coast we can only mention Valentia.

Above: Scenic view in Musnter

County Cork, on the south coast, is the largest Irish county. The coast is broken up into countless bays and inlets, with tall din’s, broken rocks, rugged headlands, and sandy beaches. The chief coast features are Cork Harbour, Kinsale Harbour, Cape Clear Island, Mizen Head, and Bantry Bay.

Cork is a mountainous county, the most rugged part being in the west. The chief
rivers are the Lee, the Bandon, and the Blackwater.

Above: In Munster

County Tipperary lies east of Limerick and the Shannon. The middle of the county is a plain, through which, flows the river Suir. The Golden Vale” of Limerick is a part of this plain. The Slieve Bloom Mountains are on the north-east border, and the Knockmele-down Mountains in the south. The Galty Mountains, one of the finest ranges in the country, lie on tlie Limerick border. The Shannon and the Suir are the chief rivers.

Above: View in Munster

Munster comprises the whole of the south-west of Ireland. The entire coast is washed by the Atlantic, which enters the land by long narrow opening’s like those on the west coast of Scotland. This province contains six counties.

Couty Clare lies north of the Shannon and south of Galway. It is surrounded by
water - the Atlantic, the Shannon, and Lough Derg - except for about forty miles on its northern borders.

Above: View in Munster

Munster comprises the whole of the south-west of Ireland. The entire coast is washed by the Atlantic, which enters the land by long narrow opening’s like those on the west coast of Scotland. This province contains six counties.
Irish Province of Munster