Jones, who was an active magistrate, made strenuous efforts to apprehend Larry Clinch, a daring robber, who, with his gang, had attacked and burned the Belfast mail coach at Santry in 1806. Clinch, in retaliation, actually attacked Clonliffe House in force with his men. As some such onslaught had been apprehended, Jones had taken the precaution of securing a guard of the Tipperary Militia in the house, with an officer, Lieutenant Trant. After a battle, which reads like a wholesale shooting affray in the early days of California, the robbers were routed, and left two of their number dead. The bodies of these were exposed that they might be claimed by their friends; but as nobody came forward to do this, they were buried at the extremity of the road near Ballybough Bridge.

Amongst the poems of the late Thomas Caulfield Irwin may be found one entitled, "The Ghost's Promenade." Old Clonliffe House is made the theatre of a romantic tragedy, which, if it had any foundation outside the poet's brain, must have taken place before the time of even Tristram Fortick. The road and house are thus described :

"There was a long, old road anear the town,

Skirted with trees:

One end joined a great highway; one led down

To open shores and seas.

There was no house on it save only one

Built years ago:

Dark foliage thickly blinded from the sun
Its casements low."

THE BOURCHIER TABLET IN THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ST. CANICE, KILKENNY, WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THAT FAMILY.

BY RICHARD LANGRISHE, FELLOW.

PART I.

[Read MAY 26, 1903.]

THIS HIS most remarkable tablet, probably unique in Ireland for the number of armorial bearings displayed upon it, was originally placed in the north chapel of the choir of St. Canice's Cathedral in Kilkenny; and in the pavement beneath were laid slabs ornamented with the Bourchier knot. This statement appears in the "History of St. Canice's Cathedral," by the Rev. James Graves and John G. A. Prim, published in 1857.

Some ten years later it appears to have been removed, as were most of the monuments in the cathedral, to preserve them from injury during the restoration works.

It appears that the learned authors of the above-mentioned History were permitted by the Dean and Chapter, when the monuments were about to be replaced on completion of the works, to arrange them in the nave according to their dates, which accounts for that of which we are about to treat being now placed on the wall of the north aisle, near the transept. One of the slabs bearing the Bourchier knot is fixed in the wall beneath.

The tablet was erected by Sir George Bourchier (third, but eventually second, surviving son of John, twelfth Baron Fitz Warine, and second Earl of Bath) and Martha, his wife, fourth daughter of Lord William Howard, first Baron Effingham, in memory of their children, Charles and Frederick Philip.

The account of the arms sculptured on the tablet given in Graves and Prim's History is exceedingly meagre, being nothing more than any casual visitor with some knowledge of heraldry might write down on seeing it for the first time. It, therefore, seemed to be worthy of a fuller account being written of it, showing how the Bourchier family became entitled to the several coats thereon, and their connexion with Kilkenny. The inscription, which is in the usual black-letter characters of the sixteenth century, reads as follows::

“Qui clari fuerant fili spesq' alma parentū,
Bourcberi Cbarolus Fredericusq' Pbilippus

Ossa immatura simul flebilis nunc contigit urn'

Morte puer juvenis virq' senexq' cadit.
Quorum alter obiit xvii die Septembris, 1584.
Alter viii die Martii A° 1587."

Mr. Graves translated it thus:

"Charles and Frederick Philip Bourchier, who were the fair sons and fond hopes of their parents. The mournful urn now covers their immature remains together. By death falls the boy, the youth, the mature man, and the aged. One of them died on the 17th day of September, 1584. The other on the 8th day of March, 1587."

The portions of the second last line which are underlined are illegible, having probably been broken away in the removal of the tablet, as they are given in full in the History of the cathedral.

The dexter or "baron" side of the shield is Quarterly of 10. (1) Argent, a cross engrailed, gules, between four water bougets sable, for Bourchier; (2) Gules, billetée or, a fesse argent, for Louvain; (3) Per fesse dancettée, quarterly ermine and gules, for Fitz Warine; (4) Gules, a fret or, for Audley; (5) Gules, three oak-leaves slipped, argent, two and one, for Cogan; (6) Sable, a chevron barry-nebuly, argent and gules, for Hankford; (7) Argent, two bendlets wavy, gules, for Stapledon; (8) Argent, on two bars gules, three bezants, for Martin; (9) Gules, a fesse dancettée ermine (but cut as five lozenges conjoined in fesse), for Dynham; (10) Gules, three arches argent, two and one, for Arches.

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The marshalling of the coats is incorrect: as will be seen from the subjoined pedigree, they should be placed in the following order :(1) Bourchier; (2) Louvain; (3) Hankford; (4) Stapledon; (5) Fitz Warine; (6) Audley; (7) Martin; (8) Cogan; (9) Dynham ; (10) Arches.

The shield is also incomplete, a large number of the coats of heiresses intermarried with having been omitted, some of these being very notable, as will be shown hereafter. The arms on the sinister or "femme" side of the shield are those as then and now borne by the Dukes of Norfolk. Quarterly, (1) Gules, on a bend between six cross crosslets fitchy, argent, an escutcheon or, charged with a demi-lion rampant pierced through the mouth with an arrow, within a double tressure, flory counter-flory of the first, for Howard; (2) Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale, or, in chief a label of three points, argent, for Plantagenet, Earl of Norfolk; (3) Chequey, or and azure, for Warren, Earl of Surrey; (4) Gules, a lion rampant, or, for Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk. This quarterly coat in the funeral entries is differenced with a mullet, placed on the fesse point, for William, Lord Howard of Effingham, who was the third son of the second Duke of Norfolk, who left issue.

There are three exemplifications of Sir George Bourchier's arms in Ulster's office, and one of those of his son, Sir John Bourchier. The first, being the record of Sir George having been made a P.C., is not impaled, and exhibits eight coats only, four of those on the tablet being omitted, and two not there added, viz.—(1) Bourchier; (2) Louvain; (3) Plantagenet, Earl of Gloucester; (4) De Bohun; (5) Fitz Warine; (6) Audley; (7) Dynham (the charge tricked here also as lozenges); (8) Arches; a