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CAP
be seen, from all points at a distance of 28 nautical
miles. Adjoining the lighthouse is the signal tower,
erected after the attempt of the French to land at Ban-
try bay, and purchased by the above corporation. On
the north side of the island, and about a quarter of a
mile from the shore, vessels may anchor in moderate
weather. About four miles (W.) from Cape Clear is
Fastnet rock, famous for the quantities of ling, hake,
&c., taken near it. According to the census of 1831,
there were 206 houses occupied by 200 families; the
houses are mostly built of stone and thatched; and from
the unsheltered situation of the island, exposed to every
raging blast; the inhabitants are. obliged to secure the
thatch on the roofs by an interwoven covering of net-
ting or matting kept down by heavy stones. There is a
coast-guard station on the island.
It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Ross, and is part
of the union of Kilcoe; the rectory is impropriate in Sir
W. W. Becher, Bart. The tithes amount to £34, of
which one-half is payable to the impropriator, and
one-half to the vicar. There is neither church nor
glebe-house; divine service is occasionally performed in
the tower of the lighthouse. The glebe, on which are
the ruins of an ancient church, comprises 25a. 3r. 26p.
In the R. C. divisions this island is the head of a union
or district, comprising also the island of Innisherkin,
and containing in each a chapel, of which the chapel
here is a small thatched building. There is a national
school, in which are about 40 boys and 20 girls. Not far
from the harbour are the ruins of St. Kiaran s church;
on the shore is an ancient stone with a cross rudely
sculptured on it, and at a short distance a holy well.
Till about the year 1710, the islanders had a resident
king chosen by and from among themselves, and an
ancient code of laws handed down by tradition, which
it was his duty to administer; and though the king had
neither funds for the maintenance of his dignity, nor
officers to enforce his authority, the people generally
submitted voluntarily to these laws, and were always
ready to carry his judgments into execution. The
greater number of the laws are become obsolete, but
some still remain and are enforced with rigour. The
island was formerly remarkable for a race of men of
extraordinary stature and strength, whose feats are the
subject of many interesting narratives. The O’Driscolls,
several of whom were kings of the island, were the
most celebrated; they had large possessions and held
five or six castles in different parts of the country,
which were all forfeited in the insurrection of 1601,
after which they emigrated to Spain, leaving behind
them only their dependents, whose posterity have long
since mingled with the peasantry.
CAPELL, or CABLE ISLAND, in the parish of KIL-
MACDONOUGH, barony of IMOKILLY, county of CORK,
and province of MUNSTER, 5 miles (S.) from Youghal.
This island, which is uninhabited, lies at the entrance to
Youghal bay, off Ring Point, in lat. 51° 53’ 30”, and
Ion. 7° 51’ 30”. Being high and precipitous, it is diffi-
cult of access, except in calm weather; its south-western
side has been much excavated by the waves, and at the
base of some of the cliffs are huge detached masses of
rock. It is the property of the Marquess of Thorn ond,
and contains about 30 acres of excellent pasturage
for sheep. Its elevation and central position point it
out as an admirable situation for a lighthouse, which
250
CAP
would be of great benefit to vessels entering Youghal
bay and to the trade of Cork harbour. On this island
the Capells, or Supples, as they are called in Irish, are
said to have landed at the period of the first English in-
vasion, and from them it takes its name, although it is
laid down in most charts and maps as Cable Island;
but so early as the reign of Rich. III., and frequently
since, it is mentioned in the charters of Youghal as
Capell Island, having been made one of the boundaries
of the admiralty jurisdiction and port of Youghal, as well
by land as by water.
CAPPACLOUGH, a village, in the parish of KIL-
GOBBIN, barony of CORKAGUINEY, county of KERRY,
and province of MUNSTER, about 9 miles (W. S. W.)
from Tralee; containing 419 inhabitants. It is situated
on the old road from Tralee to Dingle, and contains the
ruins of the old R. C. chapel, which gives name to the
parochial district; a new chapel has been built near the
village, at Camp, where are the ruins of an old castle.
CAPPAGH, or CAPPA, a parish, in the Shanid Di-
vision of the barony of LOWER. CONNELLO, county of
LIMERICK, and province of MUNSTER, 4 miles (W.)
from Adare; containing 694 inhabitants. This parish
is situated on the road from Adare to Shanagolden, and
comprises 1124 statute acres, as applotted under the
tithe act. The soil in some parts is good, but a great
proportion of the parish is stony, and in some places
the limestone rock rises above the surface; on its bor-
der, next to Rathkeale, are some exhausted bogs. The
village is a station of the constabulary police; and not
far from it is Cappagh House, the residence of R. Pep-
pard, Esq. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese
of Limerick, and is part of the union of St. Mary and
corps of the deanery of Limerick: the tithes amount to
£95. The church is in ruins, and there is no glebe-
house, but a glebe comprising above eight acres. In the
R. C. divisions it forms part of the union or district of
Stonehall and Cappagh; the chapel is a large plain
thatched edifice. There is a private school of 50 chil-
dren in the parish. Near Cappagh House are the ruins
of Cappagh castle, built by Dermod Mac Einery in the
reign of King John, and having fallen into the hands of
the Geraldines it shared the fate of their numerous other
castles, being confiscated for their rebellion against
Queen Elizabeth; it stands on an artificial mound, and
the ruins are 90 feet high and form an interesting fea-
ture of the landscape.
CAPPAGH, a parish, partly in the barony of OMAGH,
but chiefly in that of STRABANE, county of TYRONE,
and province of ULSTER, 2 miles (N.) from Omagh;
containing, with the district parish of Mountfield, 13,589
inhabitants. This parish, according to the Ordnance
survey, comprises 37,670½ statute acres, of which
34,626¾ are in Strabane, and 3043¾ in Omagh; the ap-
plotment under the tithe act embraces 16,097 acres, and
266¾ are water, The greater part of the land is reclaimed
bog or mountain, and about 1500 acres are woodland:
in some places the land is remarkably good, particularly
in the eastern part of: the parish, but not more than
one-fourth is cultivated. Part of the mountains of Bessy
Bell, Mary Gray, and Mullaghcairn are in this parish,
and afford good pasturage for cattle to their very sum-
mits. The inhabitants combine with agricultural pur-
suits the spinning of flax and weaving of linen. There
is abundance of freestone, with limestone of inferior