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ROS
J. Dickson, Esq., is a handsome mansion, situated in a
highly cultivated demesne embellished with extensive
and thriving plantations; and near the small village of
Tullaghan, on the sea-shore, are several handsome seats
and pleasing villas. Of these, the principal are Tynte
Lodge, the residence of J. P. Tynte, Esq.; Fair View,
of the Rev. H. M. Nash; Dungarbery Lodge, of the
Rev. J. L. Dickson, vicar of the parish; and several
neat bathing-lodges. On Lough Melvin is Mount
Prospect, the seat of T. Conolly, Esq., beautifully
situated and commanding some fine views; about a
mile from Kinlough is Brook Hill, that of Capt. John-
ston, romantically situated under the brow of the
mountain; and one mile farther is Glenade House, the
handsome residence of L. Tottenham, Esq. Lough
Melvin is a beautiful sheet of water, studded with
picturesque islands, and celebrated for the gillaroo
trout, which is found here in abundance. The river
Drowse, which flows from the lake into the sea, and
separates this county from that of Donegal, abounds
with salmon of choice quality, which is in season
during the whole of the year. Fairs are held at Kin-
lough on the 6th of every month; at Tullaghan, in
May, Aug., Nov., and Dec.; a fair is held at Moague
on the 1st of July, and petty sessions at Kinlough on
alternate Mondays.
The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Kilmore,
and in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory is
partly appropriate to the see, and partly impropriate in
Owen Wynne, Esq. The tithes amount to £450, of
which £140 is payable to the bishop, £140 to the im-
propriator, and £170 to the vicar. The glebe, situated
in the parish of Killasnet, six miles distant, comprises
320 acres, valued at £170 per annum. The church, for
the repairs of which the Ecclesiastical Commissioners
have granted £406, is a neat plain edifice. In the R. C.
divisions the parish forms the three separate benefices
of Kinlough, Glenade, and Ballaghameehan, in each of
which is a chapel. About 560 children are taught in
five public schools, of which the parochial school is
aided by the incumbent, and two are supported by Sir
Robert Booth Gore, Bart., and — La Touche, Esq.;
there are also 12 private schools, in which are about
550 children, and a Sunday school. There are only
slight vestiges of Dungarbery castle, an extensive
building, erected by Isabel Clancy in the reign of Eliza-
beth within a quarter of a mile from the sea; one gable
end with an arched doorway only remains. On an
island in Lough Melvin are the remains of the castle of
Rossclogher, and on the eastern shore are the ruins of
the ancient church of Rossinver, supposed to have been
that of the nunnery of Doiremell, founded by St. Tiger-
nach for his mother, St. Mella. At Keelogues are the
ruins of an old church, and at Conwell is a cemetery,
still used by the Roman Catholics as a burial-place. On
the Oakfield estate is a mineral spring, and another at
Tullaghan; and about a mile from the latter is a sul-
phureous spring in much repute.
ROSSLARE, a parish, in the barony of FORTH,
county of WEXFORD, and province of LEWSTER, 7
miles (S. E. by S.) from Wexford; containing 897 inha-
bitants. The parish, which is peninsular, is situated
on the eastern side of Wexford Harbour, its northern
extremity forming the southern side of the entrance to
the harbour. It comprises 1744 statute acres of well-
VOL. IL—537
ROS
cultivated land, exclusive of an extensive rabbit burrow,
or sand bank, a portion of which has been enclosed
within the last few years. In 1814 an English com-
pany expended nearly £30,000 in attempting to reclaim
a large tract of land from the harbour; but just as the
enclosure was completed, the tide during a heavy gale
of wind made a breach in the embankment; and the
company having exhausted their funds, and being un-
able to repair the damage, Jas. Boyd, Esq., lord of the
manor, took possession of it, and succeeded in reclaim-
ing about 200 statute acres (about one-fourth of the
tract originally embanked), which are now in cultiva-
tion, and have produced good crops of corn: it is con-
sidered that the remainder of the tract might still be
reclaimed at a comparatively small expense. In exca-
vating for the drains, a number of the roots and stems of
oak trees, and several antlers, were discovered; similar
remains have also been found in a small bog. Marl
abounds, and, together with sea weed, is used for
manure. With a view to afford employment for children,
a quantity of the sea weed called alga marina was
lately collected, and, after its saline properties had
been extracted, it was sent to Dublin and Liverpool
for making mattresses and cushions, for which it
has been found well adapted: it is still occasionally
collected. A considerable herring fishery is carried
on in Rosslare bay, in which about 30 boats belong-
ing to this place are engaged during the season;
these are joined by boats from Kilmore and other
places. A new road, about two miles in length, has
been lately made from Rathdowney Point towards the
southern part of the peninsula, which cuts off a consi-
derable angle of the old road from Wexford. On its
extreme northern point is situated the coast-guard
station called Rosslare fort, a quadrangular range
of buildings, containing ten houses, being the chief
of the five stations comprised in the Wexford dis-
trict. Near the fort is the pilot station of the Wex-
ford Quay corporation; the establishment consists of
14 pilots, and an officer or chief pilot: three of the
former are generally in attendance on the quay at
Wexford. Rosslare House, the residence of James
Boyd, Esq., is a handsome mansion, commanding an
extensive and diversified prospect of the town, bridge,
and shipping of Wexford, and of several seats and
plantations in the vicinity: it is surrounded by a plan-
tation of evergreens, which, notwithstanding the sandy
soil and its proximity to the sea, is in a flourishing con-
dition: twelve years since there was not a single tree at
Rosslare. Near Mr. Boyd’s mansion is the neat resi-
dence of Nath. Vicary, Esq., also surrounded by a
thriving plantation of evergreens. The parish is in the
diocese of Ferns, and is a rectory and vicacage, forming
part of the union of Kilscoran (also called the union of
Tacumshane) and corps of the chancellorship of Ferns:
the tithes amount to £192, 8. 3¾., and there is a small
glebe of about; ¾ of an acre. In the R. C. divisions it
is part of the union or district of Tagoat, and has a
neat chapel at that village, which see. A school-house
was erected, and the school for a time supported as a
seminary for literary instruction, by Mr. Boyd, aided by
the subscriptions of some other gentlemen; it is now
used solely as a place for teaching needlework. About
40 children are educated in a school at Tagoat patronised
by the parish priest. The ruins of the old church still
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