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ditch, and covering five or six feet of surface, so that
the bank and ditch seldom occupy less than nine feet in
width: in the breast of this bank, about halfway up, a
single row of quicksets is placed, sometimes accom-
panied by seedlings of forest timber. In those parts
which have not been subjected to tillage there are very
rich fattening grounds; but where the soil has been
much exhausted by the plough, the pasture is poor and
light. The grasses in the meadows and feeding pastures
are of the most valuable kinds; in low bottoms, es-
pecially in those subject to floods, Timothy grass is
the principal herbage. Dairies of any extent are not
frequent, except in the parts convenient to the Dublin
market, where they are kept for the purpose of fattening
calves. Great improvement has been made in the breed
of cattle, the old long-horned Irish cow being now
rarely seen; the most esteemed are the short-horned or
Dutch breed, crossed with the Durham; some of the
gentry and wealthy farmers have introduced the pure
Durham breed, which commands large prices; others
have the North Devon, which answers remarkably well.
The small farmers mostly prefer the old Irish long-
horned cow, crossed with the Durham; and in some
districts scarce any other is seen: in the northern
baronies, bordering on Meath, the large and heavy
long-horned cattle are very common and grow to a size
equal to those of Meath or Westmeath. Great numbers
of cattle are brought from other counties, and fed here
for the Dublin market. Great improvement has been
made in the breed of sheep, and vast flocks are every
year reared on the Curragh: the most prevailing breed
is a cross between the New Leicester and the Ayrshire,
but many of the principal agriculturists have the pure
New Leicester; sometimes they are crossed with the
Kerry sheep. The lower class of farmers have brood
mares as part of their tillage stock, but they do not pay
sufficient attention to the breed of the sires, and are
too desirous of crossing with racers. Planting has been
carried on for many years extensively and successfully.
Many of the demesnes are ornamented with full-grown
timber. The timber sallow thrives particularly well in
the wet grounds with which the county abounds; beech
and larch are also of very quick growth. In the demesne
of Moore Abbey is one of the best-planted hills in
Ireland; and the woods of Carton and Palmerstown are
extensive, and the timber remarkably fine. In draining
the bogs remains of ancient forests have been discovered.
The great mountain range of granite of which the
county of Wicklow is nearly composed, terminates in
this county at Castledermot. Thence by Ballitore, Kil-
cullen, and to the south-east of Naas, nearly as far as
Rathcoole, is clay-slate; the rest of the county belongs
to the great field of floetz limestone which covers the
greater part of the flat country of Ireland, and which is
here interrupted only by the chain of central hills. Thelow
group of hills west of Rathcoole, which includes Wind-
mill Hill, Athgoe, Lyons, and Rusty Hill, is composed
of clay-slate, grauwacke, grauwacke-slate, and granite.
The grauwacke consists of small and finely rounded and
angular grains of quartz, numerous minute scales of
mica, small fragments of clay-slate, and sometimes
portions of felspar. The rock at Windmill Hill ranges
10° north of east and south of west, which is the general
direction of these hills, exhibiting also at times an
undulating curved slaty formation: the dip is towards
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the south-west, and generally at an angle of about 45°.
The grauwacke-slate of Windmill.Hill is remarkable for
containing subordinate beds of granite, the uppermost
at the depth of four fathoms; they are 50 or 60 yards
apart, separated by the grauwacke-slate, and all dip from
45° to 50° to the south-east. Some of these granite beds
may be traced westward to the turnpike road opposite
to Rusty Hill: they consist of a small and finely grained
intermixture of yellowish and greyish white felspar,
greyish vitreous transparent quartz, and flakes or scales
of mica, white and silvery, with some scattered portions
of schorl: the grains are sometimes so minute that the
stone appears almost compact. Sometimes also small
particles and cubical crystals of iron pyrites are dissemi-
nated through the rock, which, when decomposing,
communicate an iron-shot spotted appearance to the
stone. The red sandstone conglomerate occurs in situ
at the northern foot of the Hill of Lyons, where it is ex-
posed for about 10 fathoms in length, in strata four feet
thick, ranging east and west, dipping 30° to the north,
and resting on grauwacke-slate; it re-appears in the
central range. Red Hill, Dunmurry Hill, and the western
foot of Grange Hill, consist of alternating beds of finely
grained grauwacke, grauwacke-slate, and clay-slate, rang-
ing 10° north of east and south of west, and dipping 60°
towards the south-east, but in many places being nearly
vertical. At the northern foot of Red Hill is a small
patch of red sandstone conglomerate, which was quarried
for mill-stone some years since. Enough of the firm
rock is visible to show that the strata range east and
west, and dip 17° west. The Chair of Kildare consists of
floetz limestone, extending southwards to the northern
foot of Dunmurry Hill, and covering the grauwacke and
slaty rocks. To the north it rests on the trap of Grange
Hill, which also covers the same kind of rock. Strictly
speaking, these two elevations are but parts of the same
hill, with a slight hollow between them. The floetz
limestone of the latter appears to be disposed in massy
strata, from four to five feet thick, dipping 45° towards
the south-east: it is generally greyish white, but some-
times mottled reddish brown, being intermixed with
shades of blueish white and grey; and it contains bivalves
and entrochites. In its outgoing to the north-west the
limestone presents a rocky face, or small escarpment,
beyond which is a slight hollow forming the southern
face of Grange Hill. In the road leading to the hill,
above the rock which appears at the surface, is compact
greenstone, in some places porphyritic: but near the
surface it is easily frangible, and being much decom-
posed acquires almost the appearance of wacke. From
the dip of the limestone and the general form of the
Chair of Kildare, it is highly probable that the green-
stone is subjacent to the limestone; an opinion confirmed
by the fact that the greenstone just described contains
marine exuviæ, and, where adjacent to the limestone, it
appears to be intermingled with calcareous matter. The
organic remains are principally bivalves, ammonites, and
terebratulites, with entrochites in smaller number. These
organic remains seem to be confined to that portion of
the rock which is in the vicinity of the limestone; for
none can be discerned in the remaining mass of the hill,
which exhibits everywhere rocky protuberances from
one continuous body of greenstone and porphyry. The
only other rock visible is clay-slate, standing in strata
nearly vertical: it appears low down on the western side,