Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, Vol. 20
The circumstances now alluded to will, I trust, account, to some extent, for the length of time which has elapsed between the reading of the original Essay to the Academy, and the publication of the pre sent volume. For this delay I have exposed myself to the censure of many, but I can truly aver that it was to none a cause of so much regret as to myself. The laborious character of the work will, how ever, be my best apology, -a work requiring a most intimate ao quaintance with the existing monuments, not merely of a county or district, but of the whole kingdom, with its contiguous islands, often most difficult of access - and again, demanding the most diligent examination of the whole body of our ancient manuscript authorities, as far as they were accessible in the public libraries, as well of England as of Ireland - and lastly, requiring the labours of the draftsman no less than those of the literary antiquary. It should be remembered, moreover, that works of research of this character are amongst the most tedious that man can undertake; scarcely a page of them can be written without a previous investigation of the most laborious character; and the antiquary who is restrained from rush ing prematurely into print by a conscientious desire to make himself previously acquainted with every thing conducive to the discovery of truth, is, as I conceive, more deserving of praise than censure, and will be so judged by posterity.
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