Homes and Haunts of the Most Eminent British Poets, Vol. 1 (of 2)Howitt, William
History
Homes and Haunts of the Most Eminent British Poets, Vol. 1 (of 2)
Howitt, William
Literary landmarks -- Great Britain; Poets, English -- Homes and haunts
Like his house at Dublin, Swift's house here is gone. There remains only
one tall, thick ruin of a wall. "What is that?" I asked of a man at a
cottage door close by. "It's been there from the time of the dane," said
he. For a moment I imagined he meant the Danes, but soon recollected
myself. Close to it, at the side of the high road, is a clear spring,
under some bushes, and margined with great stones, which they call "the
Dane's Cellar" and "the Dane's Well." "He was a very good man to the
poor," say they. "He was a fine, bright man." This, however, is all the
remains of his place here. The present vicar has built himself a good
house in the fields, nearer to Trim; and not only the dean's house is
all gone except this piece of wall, but his holly hedge, his willows,
and cherry-trees have vanished. A common Irish hut now stands in what
was his garden. The canal may still be traced, but the river walk is now
a marsh.
Trim, where Stella lived when Swift was at Laracor, though the county
town of Meath, is now little more than a large village. It bears,
however, all the marks of its ancient importance. The ruins all about
it, on the banks of the Boyne, are most extensive. They are those of a
great palace, a castle, a cathedral, and other buildings. It is a great
haunt for antiquarians, and not far distant from it is Tara, with its
hill, the seat of ancient kings. As you leave the town to go to Laracor,
you come, at the town-end, to a lofty column in honor of Wellington, who
was born at Dangan Castle, a few miles beyond Laracor. The way to
Laracor then lies along a flattish country, with a few huts here and
there by the wayside. On your left, as you approach Laracor, runs an old
ruinous wall, with tall trees within it, as having once formed a park.
The first object, connected with Swift, which arrests your attention, is
the ruin of his house, with its spring, which lies on the right hand of
the road; and on the left side of the road, perhaps a hundred yards
further, stands the church in its inclosure.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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