James embarked at Kinsale and landed at Brest, the first bearer of the news of his own defeat. William arrived at Dublin and took possession of the city on Sunday the 6th of July. After this, Kilkenny, Duncannon, and Waterford surrendered in quick succession. The body of the great old soldier Schomberg was brought to Dublin and interred in St. Patrick's Cathedral; and a tall obelisk to his memory now rises from a rock on the north bank of the Boyne.

CHAPTER LI.

THE SIEGE OF LIMERICK.-PART I.

SARSFIELD AND THE SIEGE TRAIN.

A.D. 1690.-William and Mary.

ONCENTRATING their whole force at Limerick and Athlone, the Irish now determined to make the Shannon their line of defence, and to stand at bay in these two strongholds. On

the 17th July, General Douglas, with 12,000 men, arrived before Athlone, which

was the great important pass into Connaught. The town was divided in two, then as now, by the Shannon, the part on the Leinster or eastern side being called the English Town, and that on the Connaught side the Irish Town. Colonel Richard Grace the Governor, a brave old soldier, one of the Confederates of half a century before, seeing that the English Town could not be defended, burned it and posted his whole.

army at the Connaught side, breaking down the bridge. Douglas, having taken possession of the ruins, sent a summons to surrender; but the Colonel, firing a pistol over the messenger's head, told him to return and say that these were the terms he was for. Douglas carried on the siege vigorously day after day, but was successfully kept at bay by the stout old governor. At the end of a week, news came that Sarsfield was approaching from the west whereupon Douglas, fearing that his communication with Dublin might be cut off, suddenly raised the siege and marched away quietly in the middle of the night, not taking time even to demolish the walls. Turning southwards, he joined King William, who was at this time making his way leisurely towards Limerick. The king with the united army arrived before the walls

on Saturday the 9th August, a little more A.D. 1690 than a month after the battle of the Boyne. He was not yet quite prepared for effective siege operations, as the whole of his artillery had not come up but a great siege train was on its way from Dublin, guarded by a convoy of two troops of horse, with heavy cannons, plenty of ammunition and provisions, tin boats or pontoons for crossing the river, and other necessary war materials.

While the citizens of Limerick were busily engaged preparing for defence, a French deserter from William's camp brought intelligence of the approach of the siege train: on which Sarsfield, who commanded the cavalry, instantly determined to intercept train and convoy: an uncertain and perilous venture, requiring courage, coolness, and dash. On the night of Sunday, August 10th, after a hasty preparation, he quietly crossed Thomond Bridge to the Clare side with 500 picked horsemen. Knowing that the fords near the city were all guarded

by Williamite detachments, and wishing to escape observation lest he might be intercepted, he rode to Killaloe, fifteen miles above Limerick, keeping the river close on the right. Crossing at a ford a little above Killaloe, so deep and dangerous that it had not been thought necessary to place a guard on it-or perhaps it was not known-the party turned east and halted towards morning on the northern slope of Keeper Hill, in the neighbourhood of Silvermines. On Monday morning they moved leisurely round the eastern base of the mountain, and rested quietly for the remainder of the

Thomond Bridge in 1681, with King John's Castle and Cathedral: from the Journal of Thomas Dinely. "Kilkenny Archæological Journal," 1864-6, p. 426.

day, hidden among the glens at the eastern extremity of the Slieve Felim mountains: while Sarsfield sent scouts southwards for intelligence. During the whole of his journey, from the time he left Limerick, he was guided by rapparees and peasants, who were devoted to him heart and soul, and who knew every hill, glen, and pass along the difficult route. According to a vivid local tradition, which is probably true, his chief guide was a celebrated rapparee captain of the time,

often mentioned by Story, well known then, and remembered to this day, by the name of " 'Galloping O'Hogan."

On Monday a country gentleman of the neighbourhood of Limerick, named Manus O'Brien, came to William's camp and told the officers that Sarsfield had left on the night before on some enterprise of importance but they only laughed at him, believing it a dream of his own. The cautious king however, having questioned him, took the matter more seriously.

He

at once ordered out a party of 500 horse under Sir John Lanyer, to meet and protect the siege train: but the preparations were slow, and the party did not start till an hour or two after midnight.

The convoy had set out with their charge on Monday morning from Cashel, and passing through the little village of Cullen, halted for the night at the base of a rocky eminence on the summit of which stood the ruined castle of Ballyneety, just two miles beyond the village, and about twelve miles from the rear outposts of William's encampment.* As no danger was apprehended, little precaution was taken. The tents were scattered over the sward: the horses were turned out to graze; sentinels were set on guard; and the men lay down to sleep in fancied security, "but some of them," observes Story, in his quaint way, "awoke in the next world." Oddly enough the password for the night was "Sarsfield."

All through this chapter and the next I have given the distances in English miles. The mile of Story and other contemporary authorities is equal to 1 or 12 or sometimes 2 English miles. Story says that Ballyneety was "not seven miles from our camp, and directly in the rear of it." His " seven miles

means about twelve.

In the evening of the same day, Sarsfield's scouts returned to Slieve Felim with intelligence of the convoy's camping place; and some time after nightfall he and his party, refreshed after their long day's rest, set out southwards, and after a hard midnight ride, found

Patrick Sarsfield. From an engraving in Gilbert's "Jacobite War"; that from

an old print in the National Gallery, Dublin; and that again from the original picture by Margaret, Lady Bingham.

themselves about two o'clock in the morning at Cullen. Here, by a lucky accident, Sarsfield found out the password, which enabled the party to pass some outlying