The country through which the railway to Dublin runs affords a beautiful example of Irish scenery. As far as Cork the track follows the bank of the River Lee, which is inclosed on either side by a high ridge crowned with stately mansions, glorious trees, and handsome gardens. Several of the places are historic, and the scenery has been frequently described in verse by the Irish poets.
Father Prout, a celebrated rhymemaker of Cork, has described one of the villages as follows:
“The town of Passage is both large and spacious,
And situated upon the say;
’Tis nate and dacent and quite adjacent
To Cork on a summer’s day.
There you may slip in and take a dippin’
Foreninst the shippin’ that at anchor ride,
Or in a wherry you can cross the ferry
To Carrigaloe on the other side.”